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 THE LIBRARIES 
 
I -SO' 
 THE HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 MODERN EUROPE. 
 
 WITH AN ACCOUNT OF 
 
 THE DECLINE AND FALL 
 
 ROMAN EMPIRE: 
 
 AND 
 
 A VIEW OF THE PROGRESS OF SOCIETY, FROM THE RISE 
 
 OF THE MODERN KINGDOMS TO THE PEACE 
 
 OF PARIS, IN 1763. 
 
 IN A SERIES OF LETTERS, 
 
 BY WILLIAM RUSSELL, L. L. D. 
 
 SECOND AMERICAN EDITION, CAREFULLY CORRECTED. 
 
 Vol. l 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 
 SEfNTED FOR WILLIAM YOUNG BIRCH AND ABRAHAM SMALL, 
 BY H. MAXWELL, COLUMBIA-HOUSI. 
 
 1802. 
 
a 11 
 
 vi 
 
 \ 
 
TO HIS GRACE 
 
 FRANCIS, DUKE OF BEDFORD, 
 
 THIS 
 
 IMPROVED EDITION 
 
 OF THE 
 
 HISTORT OF MODERN EUROPE^ 
 
 IS 
 
 RESPECTrULLY INSCRIBED, 
 
 BY HIS grace's most HUMBLE, 
 
 *"and most obedient servant, 
 WILLIAM RUSSELL, 
 
 60175 
 
ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 A PERSUASION of the Utility of a 
 concise History of Modern Europe induced 
 the Author to undertake this Work: and he 
 has had the Satisfaction to find his Opinion 
 justified by that of the Pubhc. The Episto- 
 lary Form was chosen, as best calculated in 
 tracing the Concatenation of Events, for unit- 
 ing the Accuracy of the Chronologer with the 
 Entertainment of the Memorialist. And the 
 Character of a Nobleman and a Father was 
 assumed, in order to give more weight to the 
 
 Moral and Political Maxims, and to entitle the 
 Avuhor to offer, without seeming to dictate to 
 the World, such Reflections on Life and Man- 
 ners as are supposed more immediately to be- 
 long to the higher Orders in Society. 
 
 To this Edition, is added a Chronological 
 Xable of Contents, 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL 
 
 TABLE OF CONTENTS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 FIRST VOLUME. 
 
 ■ ' OF 
 
 THE HISTORY OF MODERN EUROPE. 
 PART L 
 
 rSOM THE RISE OF THE MODERN KINGDOMS, TO THE 
 PEACE OF WESTPHALIA, IN 1648, 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire^ and Settlement of the 
 Barbarians, 
 
 Page. 
 
 A. D. Y jjj. Subject proposed - - - 1 
 
 View of the state of Ancient Europe - -2 
 
 The Northern nations never wholly conquered by the Ro- 
 mans _ _ . . ibid. 
 476 They break from their forests and fastnesses, and finally 
 subvert the Roman Empire - - 3 
 Moral and political causes of that great event ibid. 
 To be ascribed more immediately to the too great ex- 
 tent of the Roman dominion, and to the debasing influ- 
 ence of its despotic government - - 4 
 Causes of the ruin of the Roman republic - 5 
 Of the decline of the Imperial po\^er - - 6 
 The treasons of the soldiery, and espicially of the Pretorian 
 bands _ _ - - - 7 
 The dissolute lives of the emperors, and the removal of the 
 imperial seat to Constantinople - - ibid. 
 The disputes between the Christians and Pagans, and be- 
 tween the different Christian sects - . - 8 
 The superiority of the Barbarians in virtue and in valour 10 
 
 The 
 
CONTENTS. 
 4. r>. Page 
 
 The despicable policy of the Romans in purchasing their 
 forbearance, and taking large bodies of them into pay 1 1 
 
 The Visigoths plant themselves in Spain; the Franks in 
 Gaul ; the Saxons in the Roman provinces of South 
 Britain; the Huns in Panonia; the Ostrogoths in Italy 
 and the adjacent provinces, by the beginning of the 
 sixth century - _ . . - ibid. 
 
 A total change takes place in the state of Europe ibid. 
 
 That change not to be lamented - - ibid. 
 
 The contempt of the Barbarians for the Roman improve- 
 ments, and its cause _ . - ibid. 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 System of Policy and Le^-islation established by the Barbarians 
 on their Settlement in the Provinces of the Roman Empire. 
 
 The primitive government of the barbarous invaders, like 
 that of the ancient Germans, a kmd of military demo- 
 cracy, under a general or chieftain - - 14 
 
 They considered their conquests as common property, in 
 which all had a right to a share - - 15 
 
 After settling in the provinces of the Roman empire, 
 they established a new species of government, known 
 by the name of the Feudal System - ibid. 
 
 The advantages and disadvantages of that government 17 
 
 The bond of political union feeble, and the sources of dis- 
 sension many - - - - 18 
 
 A feudal kingdom commonly torn by domestic broils, and 
 little capable of any foreign enterprise - ibid. 
 
 The judicial proceedings of the Barbarians long very ab- 
 surd ----- ibid. 
 
 Resentment almost the sole motive for prosecuting crimes, 
 and the gratification of that passion the chief rule in 
 punishing them - - - - ibid. 
 
 The feudal system, with aH its imperfections, yet less 
 degrading to humanity than the uniform pressure of 
 Roman despotism _ _ - - - 19 
 
 LETTER in. 
 
 Rise of the French Monarchy, and History of France under the 
 
 Kings of the First Race. 
 
 Introductory reflections on Historical Composition ibid. 
 
 Modern history of little importance before the time of 
 
 Charlemagne -. - - - 20 
 
 The French monarchy first claims our attention ibid. 
 
 486 Clovis, king of the Franks, son of Childeric, and grandson 
 
 of Merovius (head of the Salian tribe) gains a victory 
 
 over Syagrius, a Roman usurper in that province, and 
 
 founds the kingdom of France - - ibid* 
 
 He 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. D. Page 
 
 496 He defeats the Allemani at Tolbiac, and is baptised, with 
 almost the whole French nation - - - 21 
 
 507 Vanquishes Alaric, king of the Visigoths, and adds Aqui- 
 
 taine to the kingdom of France - - 22 
 
 Disfigures the latter part of his reign by cruelties and 
 
 perfidies t«ward the princes of his blood - ibid. 
 
 nil Dies, after attempting to atone for his crimes, by building 
 
 and endowing churches and monasteries - ibid. 
 
 The grandeur of the French Monarchy much impaired by 
 
 being divided among his four sons ; Thierri, Childebert, 
 
 Clodomir, and Clotaire . . . ibid. 
 
 5G2 A like division takes place on the death of Clotaire, tlie 
 
 sole successor of his brother and nephews ibid. 
 
 Two rival queens Brunechilda wife to Sigebert, king of 
 
 Austrasia, and Fredcgonda, wife to Chilperic, king of 
 
 Soissons, sacrifice every thing to their bloody ambition 23 
 
 613 Clotaire II. son of Chilperic and Fredcgonda, being left 
 sole monarch of France, re-establishes tranquillity, and 
 gains the hearts of his subjects - - ibid. 
 
 632 Dagobert, the son and successor of Clotaire, (by his vices, 
 and his imprudent policy, in committing al) real power 
 to the Mayors of the place), greatly weakens the royal 
 authority _ _ . _ ibid. 
 
 644 His two sons, Sigebert II. and Clovis II. his feeble suc- 
 cessors, only the founders of new convents ibid. 
 Several succeeding kings, aptly denominated sluggards, 
 equally insignificant - - - 24 
 
 690 Pepin Heristel, duke of Austrasia, usurps the administra- 
 tion, under the name of IMayor, and governs France 
 equitably twenty-eight years - - ibid. 
 
 714 After his death, Charles Maitel, his natural son, assumes 
 the government of the kingdom - - ibid. 
 
 751 And Pepin, the son of Charles, usurps the Sovereignty; 
 excluding forever the descendants of Clovis, or the Me- 
 rovingian race, from the throne of France ibid. 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 Spain, under the Dominion of the Visigoths, and under the 
 Moors, till the Reign of Abdurrahman. 
 
 467 The Visigoths found their monarchy in this Roman pi-o- 
 
 vince - - - - - 25 
 
 The clergy early possessed of great power in Spain, which 
 
 becomes a theatre of revolutions and crimes ibid. 
 
 585 Leovegild, an Arian, puts to death his son Hermenegild, 
 
 because he had embi'aced the Catholic faith 26 
 
 612 Sisebuc dispossesses the Greek emperors of that territory 
 
 they had eontinued to hold on the coasts of the Medi- 
 
 v©L. I. B terranean, 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. D. Page 
 
 terranean, and obliges all the Jews in his own dominions, 
 on pain of death, to receive baptism - ibid. 
 
 682 Wamba, who had defeated the Saracens, the countrymen 
 and followers of Mahomet, is excluded the throne, be- 
 cause he had been clothed in the habit of a penitent, by 
 a ghostly trick, whilst labouring under the influence of 
 poison - - - - - 26 
 
 712 The Saracens of Mauritania, under the name of Moors, 
 make themselves masters of Spain, and put an end to 
 the empire of the Visigoths - - - 27 
 
 7 1 7 Pelagius, a prince of the blood royal, retires into the moun- 
 tains of Asturias, and there founds a little Christian king- 
 dom - - - - - 38 
 
 732 The Moors defeated by Charles Martel, in attempting to 
 
 penetrate into France - . - ibid. 
 
 Spain at first very miserable under its Moorish governors, 
 
 who were dependent on the viceroy of Africa ibid. 
 
 756 But afterward happy and flourishing under the dominion 
 of Abdurrahman, who founds at Cordova a Mahometan 
 kingdom independent of the Califs, or successors of the 
 Prophet and their African viceroy - - 29 
 
 LETTER V. 
 
 lialjUy under the Dominion of the Ostrogoths, and under the 
 Lombards till the Reign of Luitprand. 
 
 493 Theodoric, the first Gothic king of Italy, and several of his 
 successors, princes of much prudence and humanity 30 
 554 The Ostrogoths subdued, and Italy recovered, by the gene- 
 rals of Justinian, emperor of Constantinople ibid. 
 568 Great part of Italy seized by Alboinus, king of the Lom- 
 bards - - - - - 31 
 He establishes the feudal policy in his dominions ibid. 
 586 Autharis, one of his successors, perfects that form of go- 
 vernment - - - - 32 
 And embraces Christianity - - ibid. 
 643 Rothai-is gives written laws to the I>ombards ibid. 
 668 Grimoald reforms the laws of Rotharis - ibid. 
 Luitprand forms the design of making himself master of 
 Italy - . - - 33 
 726 This project favoured by the edict of Leo Isauricus, em- 
 peror of Constantinople, prohibiting the worship of 
 images - - - - 34 
 1*27 The Italians have recourse to arms in support of the wor- 
 ship of images - - - - 35 
 728 Luitprand, taking advantage of this tumult, lays siege to 
 Ravenna, the seat of the Exarch or imperial governor, 
 and carries it by storm - - ibid. 
 
 LETTER 
 
CONTENTS. 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 Rise of the Pope's Temporal Power, ivith some account nf th: 
 Affairs of Italy, the Empire of Constantinople, and the King- 
 dom of France, from the time of Charles Martel to that of 
 Charlemagne. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 The grand aim of the papal policy, to free the city of Rome, 
 the seat of the apostolic court, from the dominion of the 
 Greek emperors, without subjecting it to the Lombard 
 kings - - - - 36 
 
 728 Gregory II. more afraid of Luitprand than of the emperor 
 
 Leo, retakes Ravenna, with the assistance of the Vene- 
 tians - - - - 36 
 
 729 The emperor, notwitlistanding this service persists in his 
 
 design of abolishing the worship of images in his Italian 
 dominions - - - - 37 
 
 73 1 Gregory applies for protection to Charles Martel who then 
 governed France, and Charles becomes the guardian of 
 the church ... -211 
 
 74: 1 Constantine Copronymus not only renews his father's edict 
 against the worship of images, but prohibits the invo- 
 cation of saints - - - 40 
 This new edict confirms the idolatrous citizens of Rome 
 in a resolution they had taken, at the instigation of the 
 Pope, of separating themselves entirely from the Greek 
 empire - - - - 41 
 They accordingly I'cvolt, and drive out of their city such 
 of the Imperial officers as had hitherto been suffered to 
 continue there . . . ibid. 
 
 ..75 1 Pope Zachary encourages Pepin, son of Charles Martel, to 
 dethrone Childeric III. and assume the title of king of 
 France - . . _ ibid. 
 
 754 Pepin, in gratitude to his spiritual benefactor, marches into 
 Italy, and obliges Astulphus, king of the Lombards, to 
 desist tram an attempt upon Rome - 42 
 
 .755 He takes the same journey a second time - ibid. 
 
 756 More effectually humbles Astulphus, and founds the tem- 
 poral power of the popes, by bestowing on the see of 
 Rome a considerable territory in Italy, ravished from 
 the Lombards - - - 43 
 
 ,786 He dies, after dividing his dominions between his two sons, 
 Charles and Carloman . ^ ^ 4.4, 
 
 LETTER VIL 
 
 Britain, from the time it was Relinquished by the Romans, io 
 the End of the Saxon Heptarchy. 
 .44s The Romans finally evacuate Britain - ibid. 
 
 The degenerate inhabitants of South Britain, after the 
 
 Roman 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 Roman legions are withdrawn, unable to defend them- 
 selves against the Scots and Picls - ibid. 
 
 449 They apply to the Romans, but without effect, and ulti- 
 
 mately to the Saxons for protection - 45 
 
 450 The Saxons and An'^Ies, or Anglo-Saxons, come to their 
 
 assistance, and repel t!ie Scots and Picts - 47 
 
 584 But afterward enter into a league with those barbarous 
 invaders, and make themselves masters of all the low 
 country of South Britain _ _ _ 49 
 
 827 The seven kin%*doms of tlie Heptarchy, formed in the 
 coarse of the Saxon conquests, united under Egbert king 
 of Wessex - - - 5 1 
 
 The Anglo-Saxons converted to Christianity before this 
 period _ . . . ibid. 
 
 But having received that doctrine through the polluted chan- 
 nels of the church of Rome, it had little effect in either 
 softening their minds or purifying their morals 52 
 
 LETTER VIII. 
 
 Government and Laivs of the Anglo-Saxons. 
 
 As the Saxons rather extirpated than subdued the natives, 
 they had no occasion to burden themselves with feudal 
 services - - - - 53 
 
 They transplanted into Britain their civil and military in- 
 stitutions - - - - ibid. 
 
 Their king was only the first citizen of the community, 
 and his authority, which was very limited, depended 
 chiefly on his personal qualities - ibid. 
 
 They had, at all times, a national council, a Wittenage- 
 mot, or assembly of {he wise men, whose consent was 
 necessary to the enacting of laws, and to give sanction 
 to the measures of public administration - 54 
 
 The members of this assembly the principal landholders ib. 
 
 The Saxons, like all the German nations, divided into three 
 orders of men; the noble, the free, and the servile ibid. 
 
 The Si:iremotes, where all the freeholders assembled twice a 
 year, well calculated for the support of general liberty 55 
 
 The criminal laws of the Anglo-Saxons exceedingly mildib. 
 
 Their judicial proofs very singular - - 56 
 
 The absvu'dities of the ordeal - - ibid. 
 
 Their manners always rude, and their knowledge of the 
 arts imperfect - - - ibid, 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 Reign of Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, King of France, 
 and Emperor of the fVest. 
 771 Charles sole sovereign of France, in consequence of the 
 death of his brother Carloman - - 57 
 
 He 
 
A. D. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Page 
 772' He concludes a treaty with the Saxons, wham he had van- 
 quished - - - ' •" r r^ 
 
 773 And marches into Italy against Desiderius, kmg of the 
 
 Lombards - - - - ibid. 
 
 Defeats Desiderius, and takes Verona - 60 
 
 774 Reduces Pavia, and puts an end to the kingdom of the 
 
 Lombards - - - " '[^^"* 
 
 775 Havine- settled the government of Italy, he marches against 
 
 the Saxons - - " ""* 
 
 776 Defeats them in several engagements, and treats them 
 
 with great severity _ _ - 64^ 
 
 778 Makes an expedition into Spain, and takes Pampeluna and 
 Saragossa - - - " ibid. 
 
 Become master of France, Italy and Germany, he pays 
 great attention to the arts of peace - 65 
 
 <i|j|^ccount of his private life - - 66 
 
 He encourages learning _ - 67 
 
 Is a friend to the church _ - 63 
 
 794 Assists at the council of Frankfort - " ^^ 
 
 Goes into Italy to do justice to Pope Leo III. - 70 
 800 And is invested with the imperial ensigns by that pontiff 71 
 Universally acknowledged emperor of the West, immedi- 
 ately after his coronation at Rome - "^^ 
 S02 Receives an embassy from Nicephorus, emperor of Con- 
 stantinople, complimenting him with the title of Au- 
 gustus ----- ibid. 
 And from the famous caliph, Ilarun-al-Raschid, with the 
 present of a striking clock - - _ ibid. 
 Arts and learning flourish in Asia, under Al-Raschid and 
 his successors _ _ - - 75 
 808 Charlemagne delivered from a formidable invasion of tiie 
 Normans by the death of their king, Godfrey 74 
 8 13 He associates his son Lewis with him in the empire ibid. 
 S14 Dies at Aix-la-Chapelle in his seventy-lirst year _ 75 
 The extent of his dominions 1 - - ibid. 
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 Empire of Charlemagne a?id the Church^from ihe Accession of 
 his Son, Lewis the Debonnaire, to the Death of Charles thz 
 Bald. 
 
 814 Lewis renders himself odious to the clergy by attcmptin;;- 
 to reform certain abuses - - - 7'5 
 
 817 Associates his eldest son Lothario with him in the cra- 
 
 ibid 
 
 pire - - - - 
 
 818 Suppresses a rebellion in Italy, headed by his ncplicw Ber- 
 
 trand, whom he punishes with the loss of his eyes ibid. 
 
 Is seized with remorse, in consequence of this severity, ami 
 
 enjoined public penance at his own desire - 7 7 
 
 His 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 829 His three sons by the first bed, among whom he had di- 
 
 vided his dominions, join in a rebellion against him, 
 because he sought from them some provision for his son 
 Charles, by a second Avifc - - - 78 
 
 830 Abandoned by his army, he is made prisoTjer ibid. 
 Released by the nobility ... ibid. 
 
 833 Again abandoned by his army, he is deposed and clothed in 
 
 the habit of a penitent - - 79 
 
 834 Obtains absolution, and is restored to his dignity 81 
 
 840 Dies near Mentz, in the seventy-second year of his age 82 
 Lothario succeeds to the Empire - - ibid. 
 
 841 Attempts to seize the possessions of his brothers 83 
 
 842 Is defeated and obliged to receive conditions ibid. 
 847 Subscribes the constitutions of Mersen - 84 
 855 Dies in the habit of a monk - - ibid. 
 
 Lewis IL his eldest son, succeeds to the kingdom of Italy 
 and the imperial dignity - - ibid. 
 
 And Ijis two younger sons, among whom he had divided 
 the rest of his dominions, succeed to their several allot- 
 ments - - - - 85 
 
 857 France ravaged by the Normans - - ibid. 
 
 858 Invaded by Lewis the German, who dethrones his brother 
 
 Charles the Bald - ' - - ibid. 
 
 Lewis expelled, and Charles restored - 86 
 
 Examples of the wickedness of Charles - ibid. 
 
 Ambitious projects of the Popes - - 87 
 
 860 Lothario, king of Lorrain, divorces his wife ibid. 
 
 863 Pope Nicholas I. endeavours to force him to take her back 88 
 
 868 He goes to Rome in order to justify himself - 89 
 
 Dies on his way home . . _ ibid. 
 
 Charles the Bakl succeeds to his dominions - 90 
 
 875 The emperor Lewis II. dies without male heirs 91 
 
 Charles the Bald, in prejudice to his brother the German, 
 
 obtains the imperial crown - - ibid. 
 
 877 Marches into Italy, in order to expel the Saracens 92 
 
 Pursued thither by his nephew Carloman, son of Lewis the 
 
 German, he attempts to retreat, and dies at a miserable 
 
 cottage - - - - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XL 
 
 The Normans or Danes, before their Settlement in France and 
 
 England. 
 The Normans the inhabitants of the ancient Scandinavia 92 
 They become the terror of all the maritime parts of Eu- 
 rope _ - _ _ 93 
 Description of their religion and manners - ibid. 
 Their singular contempt of death - 94 
 Their mode of conducting their piratical enterprizes ibi^. 
 
 They 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. D. Page 
 
 845 They pillage Rouen and burn Paris - 95 
 
 877 Charles the Bald publishes a capitular, in order to regulate 
 
 the contributions to be paid to them - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XII. 
 
 England.) from the End of the Saxon Heptarchy^ to the Death 
 of Alfred the Great. 
 827 Egbert, the first sole Monarch of England, a Prince of 
 great abilities - - - 95 
 
 He defeats the Scots and Picts - - 97 
 
 832 The Danes invade England - - - ibid. 
 
 835 Expelled by Egbert - - - ibid. 
 
 838 Death of that prince - - - ibid. 
 
 His son Ethelwolf, a weak prince - ibid. 
 
 The Danes return, and long ravage England unmolested ib. 
 
 851 Defeated by the Anglo-Saxons - - ibid. 
 
 852 They winter in the isle of Thanet, and in the spring burn 
 
 the cities of London and Canterbury - 98 
 
 854 Ethelwolf makes a pilgrimage to Rome - ibid. 
 
 856 Confers the tithe on the clergy - - ibid. 
 
 England continues to be infested by the Danes 99 
 
 872 Alfred, youngest son of Ethelwolf, succeeds to the throne, 
 in consequence of the death of his elder brothers ibid. 
 Routs the Danes in several engagements - ibid. 
 
 875 They land in great numbers, and I'educe the Anglo-Saxons 
 to despair - - _ _ loo 
 
 Alfred, abandoned by his subjects, is obliged to lay aside 
 the ensigns of his dignity, and assume the habit of a 
 peasant - - - - ibid. 
 
 $80 Throws off that disguise - - 101 
 
 Defeats the Danes with great slaughter - 102 
 
 Allows a body of the vanquished enemy to settle in North- 
 umberland, on their consenting to embrace Christia- 
 nity - - - - . ibid. 
 Establishes a regular militia for the defence of his king- 
 dom - - . - 103 
 Creates a navy - - - ibid. 
 His wise regulations - - - 104 
 890 He frames a body of laws - - 106 
 Encourages learning - - - 107 
 Navigation and commerce - - 108 
 901 His death and character _ . _ ibid.- 
 
 LETTER XIIL 
 
 Empire of Charlemagne, and the Church, from the Death of 
 Charles the Bald to the Death of Lewis IV. when the Impe- 
 rial Dignity was translated from the French to the German. 
 «77 Lewis the Stammerer, son of Charles the Bald succeeds to 
 the crown of France - - - 109 
 
 i]79 Dies, leaving his Queen Adelaide pre§;nant 110 
 
 Is 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 879 Is succeeded by Lewis III. and Carloman II. his two sons 
 by a former marriag^e - - ibid. 
 
 SS-t Onlhe death of these Princes, the Emperor Charles the Fat, 
 son of Lewis the German, is elected king of France ibid. 
 Disgraces himself by ceding Friesland to the Normans 1 1 1 
 Jsr These Northern ravagers besiege Paris - ibid. 
 
 But relinquish the enterprize, on receiving a ransom from, 
 the pusillanimous Charles - - ibid. 
 
 888 He is deposed in a Diet of the Empire - 112 
 
 Arnold, grandson of Lewis the German, is raised to the 
 Imperial throne - - - ibid. 
 
 898 Charles III. surnamed the Simple, son of Lewis the Stam- 
 merer by Adelaide, succeeds to the crown of France, 
 after a long scene of contention - 113 
 
 The nobles aspire openly at independency, and depress the 
 great body of the people - - ibid. 
 
 905 The Normans establish themselves in France 114 
 
 And give to the province of Ncustria the name of Nor- 
 mandy - - - - 115 
 912 Death of Lewis IV. son of the Emperor Arnold ibid. 
 The empire departs from the Frcncii to the Germans ibid. 
 
 LETTER XIV. 
 
 The German Empire, from the Election of Conrad I. to the 
 Death of Henry the F&wler. 
 912 Extent of the German Empire at the election of Con- 
 rad I. - - - - - 1 If 
 His reign one continual scene of troubles - ibid. 
 917 The Huns ravage the Empire - ibid. 
 920 Henry I. surnamed the Fowler, succeeds Conrad in the 
 Imperial tin-one - . - 118 
 He forms regulations for the security of the Empire 1 19 
 925 Conquers Lorrain ... ibid. 
 932 Defeats the Huns in a great battle ' - ibid. 
 956 Dies in his march for Italjr - - 120 
 Is succeeded in the imperial throne, by his sou Otho, after- 
 ward styled the Great - - ibid.. 
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 France, from the Settlement of the NormaiiSy to the Extinction 
 
 of the Carlovingian Race, 
 
 Liberal policy of Rollo, Duke of Normandy - 121 
 
 222 Charles the Simple deposed, and Robert, Duke of France, 
 
 procluimed king ... ibid. 
 
 923 Rodolph, Duke of Burgundy, obtains the crown on the 
 
 death of Robert - - - ibid. 
 
 929 Charles the Simple dies in prison - - ibid. 
 
 936 Rodolph acts with resolution and vio'our - 122 
 
 Dies 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Di Page 
 
 Dies without issue, and is succeeded by Lewis the Stran- 
 
 ger 
 
 ibid. 
 
 Lewis attempts in vain to rescue himself from the tyranny 
 of Hugh the Great, Duke of France ' - ibid. 
 
 954 Leaves only a shadow of royalty to his son Lothario ibid. 
 966 Lothario quietly succeeded by his son Lewis V. 123 
 987 In Lewis V. ends the Carlovingian line, or second race of 
 
 French kings - - - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XVL 
 
 The German Empire and its Dependencies^ Rome and the Ita- 
 lian States, under Otho the Great, and his successors oj" the 
 House of Saxony. 
 836 Otho defeats the Hungarians in the plain of Dortmund ibid. 
 937 Makes Bohemia tributary to the German Empire 124 
 838 Expels Everhard, Duke of Bavaria, and bestows the Duchy 
 on his uncle Bartolf - - - 125 
 
 Revives the dignity of Count Palatine - ibid. 
 
 940 Assembles a Diet at Arnsberg, which appoints a judicial 
 combat to decide the rights of inheritance ibid. 
 
 943 He augments the privileges of the German clergy 125 
 Propagates Christianity by force of arms - ibid. 
 
 952 Conquers Italy _ . _ 127 
 
 955 His son Ludolphus revolts - - ibid. 
 959 Returns to his duty, and dies - - ibid. 
 962 Otho suppresses a rebellion in Italy, and is crowned at 
 
 Rome by the Pope - - - 128 
 
 Confirms to the Holy See the donations of Pepin and Char- 
 lemagne - - - - 129 
 Orcat disorders in the Papacy - - ibid. 
 966 Oth-o enters Italy, a third time, and quells a new revolt 130 
 970 Returns to Germany covered with Glory - 131 
 973 His son, Otho II. suniamedthe Sanguinary, succeeds him 
 in tlie Imperial throne - - ibid. 
 New disorders in the Papacy - - 132 
 $81 Otho marches into Italy, and severely chastises the re- 
 bels .... 13J 
 998 Otho III. his son and successor, takes Rome by assault, and 
 executes vengeance on the authors of another revolt 134 
 
 1000 Returns tfj Germany, and erects Poland into a king- 
 
 dom . _ . _ jijj^. 
 
 100 1 Again marches into Italy, and expels the Saracens ibid. 
 
 1002 The empire sustains a great loss by his death ibid. 
 The Duke of Bavaria, grandson of Olho II. elected Em- 
 peror, under the name of Henry II. - 135 
 
 J 005 Marches into Italy, and is crowned king of Lombardy at 
 
 Pavia - - - . ibid. 
 
 In danger of losing his life by a revolt of the citizens ibid. 
 
 Quells the troubles in Germany - ibid. 
 
 VOL. I. c Returns 
 
CONTEiXTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 1014 Returns to Italy, and is crowned at Rome by the pope 136 
 
 102-1 Increases in prosperity to the liour of his death ibid. 
 
 Appears to have made a vow of chastity - il)id. 
 
 LETTER XVII. 
 
 Englandj from tiie Death of Alfred to ths Reign of Canute 
 the Great. 
 910 Edward the Elder, the son and successor of Alfred, a 
 Prince of a martial genius - - 137 
 
 Engaged in perpetual war with the Danes - LIS 
 
 925 His natural ^on Athelstan succeeds him in the throne ib. 
 Athelstan confers on Sitheric, a Danish nobleman, the 
 title of King of Northumberland - ibid. 
 
 93 !• Enters Scotland with a numerous army - ibid. 
 
 938 Defeats the Scots, Welsh, and Danes, in a great bat- 
 tle - - - - ibid.' 
 His memorable law for the encouragement of com- 
 merce - - - 139 
 941 Succeeded by his brother Edmund - ibid. 
 945 Edward conquers Cumbei'land from the ancient Britons, 
 and confers it on Malcolm, King of Scotland, on condi- 
 tion of his doing homage for it to the king of England ib. 
 948 His violent death - - - ibid. 
 His brother Edred raised to the throne ibid. 
 952 Edsed places a governor over the Northumbrian Danes ib. 
 Delivers over his conscience to the guidance of Dunstan, 
 abbot of Glastonbury - - 140 
 The rigid monastic rules introduced into England by that 
 Priest - - - - 141 
 The celibacy of the clergy enjoined - ibid. 
 955 Edwy, the son of Edmund, who succeeds to the crown of 
 England, less favourable to the Monks - 142 
 Dunstan publicly insults him - - ibid. 
 Is banished the kingdom - - - 143 
 The enraged monks poison the minds of the people ibid. 
 959 Edwy is deposed, and his brother Edgar placed on the 
 throne _ - - - _ ibid. 
 Wise policy of Edgar - - - 1 44 
 His great power and prosperity - - ibid. 
 Secures the favour of Dunstan and the monks ibid. 
 His licentious amours - - - - 145 
 Story of Elfrida - - - - ibid. 
 Violent death of Athelvvokl - - ibid. 
 Edgar marries Elfrida - - - 146 
 Extir)nites wolves from England and Wales ibid. 
 97 o Succeeded by his son, Edward the Martyr - ibid. 
 078 Edward, murdered at the instigation of his step-mother 
 Elfrida, in order to make room for her son Ethelred ibid. 
 Ethclred, a weak Prince - - - ibid. 
 
 Meanly 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 Meanly compounds with the Danes for his safety 148 
 
 1002 Cruel massacre of the Danes throughout England ibid. 
 
 1003 Sweyn, King of Denmark, takes vengeance on the English 
 
 for the slaughter of his countrymen - 149 
 
 1013 Ethelred abandons the kingdom, and seeks refuge in the court 
 
 of his brother-in-law, Richard, Duke of Norm.andy ibid. 
 
 1014 Returns on the death of Sweyn ... ibid. 
 
 1015 Finds a terrible enemy jin Canute, the son and successor 
 
 of that prince .... ibid. 
 
 1016 Dies in the midst of his troubles - - - 150 
 Edmond Ironside, his son, bravely struggles for the inde- 
 pendency of his kingdom - » - ibid. 
 
 Betrayed by his general Edric, and obliged to divide his 
 dominions with Canute - - - ibid. 
 
 1017 Murdered by his chamberlains - - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XVIII. 
 
 France, from the Accession of Hugh Capet, to the invasion of 
 England by William Duke of A'^urmandj. 
 
 987 Hugh Capet, son of Hugh the Great, the most powerful 
 
 Nobleman in France, seizes the crov/n on the death of 
 Lewis V. - - - - - 151 
 
 988 He associates his son Robert in the government 152 
 991 Makes prisoner the Duke of Lorrain, who attempted to 
 
 dispute his right to the crown _ . _ ibid. 
 
 996 Is quietly succeeded by his son Robert - 155 
 
 998 Gregory V. the reigning Pope, dissolves the marriage of 
 
 Robert - _ . _ _ . ibid. 
 
 And excommunicates him for persisting in keeping Bertha, 
 
 his queen . . . _ - ibid. 
 
 Terrible effects of the sentence of excommunication 154 
 
 1024 Robert rejects the imperial dignity - - ibid. 
 
 Great disorders in his family - - ibid. 
 
 1031 He dies amid those disorders - - 155 
 
 His son Henry I. succeeds him in the throne of France ibid. 
 
 Henry is supported by Robert, Duke of Normandy 156 
 
 Robert makes a pilgrimage to Jerusalem - ibid. 
 
 1035 Dies before his return - . . ibid. 
 
 1046 The battle of Val de Dunes gives William, his natural 
 
 son, full possession of the duchy - - 157 
 
 1060 Henry I. succeeded by his son Philip I. - ibid. 
 
 1066 William, Duke of Normandy, prepares for the invasion of 
 
 England - - - - - 158 
 
 1067 Philip I. assumes the reins of government - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 England, from the Danish to the Norman Conquest. 
 1017 Canute, the Dane, in consequence of the murder of Ed- 
 mond Ironside, becomes sole .'sovereign of England 159 
 
 Liberal 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. B. Page 
 
 Liberal policy of Canute - - ^ 160 
 
 1019 Ik* visits Denmark ... - IGl 
 
 1028 Makes himself master of Norway - - ibid. 
 
 Sees the insigniiican'cy of human-greatness - ibid. 
 
 1031 IMakes a pilgrimage to Rome - - - 162 
 
 1035 His son Harold iiarefoot succeeds him in the throne of 
 Englar.d ... - - ibid. 
 
 1031) Harold Iiarefoot reigns four years, and is succeeded by his 
 brother H'ii'dicaniite, a brave prince - ibid. 
 
 1041 On the Death of Hardicanute, the English shake off the 
 Danish yoke, and place on the throne of his ancestors Ed- 
 ward, surnamed the Confessor, son of the luifortunate 
 •Ethelred .... ibid. 
 
 Though a good prince, Edward disgusts the English by the 
 fa\our which he shews to the Normans, among whom he 
 had been educated, and who thronged his court 163 
 1051 Earl Godwin rebels, and is expelled the kingdom ibid. 
 
 1053 He returns and reduces the king to conditions ibid. 
 Great power of his son Harold - - 164 
 
 1054 Macbeth, usurper to the crown of Scotland, defeated and 
 
 slain by an English army under Siward, Duke of North- 
 umberland T - - - - ibid. 
 
 Anecdotes of Siward - - - - ibid. 
 
 1066 Harold obtains the crown of England, on the death of Ed- 
 ward the Confessor - - - 166 
 
 He defeats the Danes in a great battle - 167 
 
 His right to the English crown disputed by William, Duke 
 of Normandy, who lands on the coast of Sussex, at the 
 head of sixty thousand men - - 168 
 
 Harold slain in the battle of Hastings, which lays open the 
 succession of England to the Duke of Normandy 174 
 
 View of the state of England under the Anglo-Saxons ib. 
 
 Singular manners and customs - - - 176 
 
 LETTER XX. 
 
 Spain, the Arabs, and the Empire of Constantinople, during the 
 Ninth, 'Tenth, and part of the Eleventh Centurj. 
 SPAIN. 
 Pissentions among the Moors favourable to the Chris- 
 tians - - - - - 178 
 The kingdom of Asturias, or of Leon, and Oviedo, increases 
 under Alphonso III. . . _ _ ibjd. 
 fSS The kingdom of Navarre founded by Garcias Ximenes ib. 
 938 Ramiero II. king of Leon, and Oviedo, gains over the 
 Moors the celebrated victory of Simancas - 179 
 Great success of Almanzor, the Moorish general ibid. 
 998 His defeat and death - - - 180 
 
 The 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. D, Page 
 
 The ^Mahometan kingdom of Cordova, on the extinction 
 of the race of Abdurrahman, divided into many petty 
 sovereignties . _ . . ibid. 
 
 The Christian kingdoms subdivided in like manner ibid. 
 
 Freedom of the people of A rragon - - ibid. 
 
 Singular privileges of their Justiza, or Grand Judge 181 
 
 EMPIRE OF THE ARABS. 
 
 Th.e African Governors shake oil' their dependence on the 
 Caliph - - - - - 182 
 
 Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli, become independent states ib. 
 
 969 The Fattimides, a Mahometan sect, found an empire in 
 
 Egypt, and make Cairo the seat of a new Caliph ibid. 
 
 Another sect seize on the western coast of Africa, and found 
 the kingdom of Morocco _ _ _ ibid. 
 
 The caliphs of Bagdat, gradually stript of their power by 
 the Turks, a Tartar tribe, originally hired as common 
 mercenaries, and afterwards employed as the royal 
 guard - _ - . - ibid, 
 
 A variety of sovereigns spring up under the name of Sul- 
 tans - _ , - _ 183 
 
 EMPIRE OF CONSTANTINOPLE. 
 
 The extent of this empire yet considerable ibid. 
 
 S 1 1 Nicephorus, an execrable tyrant, made prisoner, and put 
 to death by the Bulgarians - - ibid. 
 
 The Saracens in his reign conquer the island of Cyprus ib. 
 Leo, the Armenian, attempts to assassinate the king of the 
 Bulgarians; who, in revenge, pillages the suburbs of 
 Constantinople - - - 184 
 
 Superstition of Michael the Stammerer - ibid. 
 
 323 In his reign the Saracens make themselves master of the 
 island of Crete - - - ibid. 
 
 The Empress Theodora persecutes the Manicheans 184 
 The grand schism between the Greek and Latin churches 
 brought to a crisis by the conversion of the Bulga- 
 rians - - - - - 185 
 
 879 The two primates excommunicate each other - ibid. 
 922 Constantine Porphyrogenetus, an encourager of learn- 
 ing ----- 186 
 
 961 Nicephorus Phocas recovers Crete and other places from 
 
 the Saracens - - - _ . ibid. 
 
 He is murdered in bed _ _ - ibid. 
 
 Basil 11. vanquishes the Bulgarians - - ibid. 
 
 I03i- The crimes of the princess Zoe, and the wretched state of 
 
 the Empire - - - - 187 
 
 Constantine Ducas abandons the Asiatic provinces to the 
 Turks - - - - - - 188 
 
 His 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. D. Page 
 
 1063 His widow Eudoxia, whom he had left regent during the 
 
 minority of his three sons, marries Romanus Diogenes, 
 
 who had hcen condemned to suffer death as a pubUc 
 
 malefactor, and procures for him the imperial crown ibid,. 
 
 LETTER XXI. 
 
 Progress of Society in Europe^ from the Settlement of the 
 Modern Nations to the Middle of the Eleventh Centurj. 
 
 The nations, who subverted the Roman empire, generally 
 embrace the Christian religion - - 189 
 
 The clergy gainers, but Christianity a loser by their con- 
 version - - - - - 19a 
 
 They blend with its doctrines and ceremonies their former 
 gross superstitions .... ibid. 
 
 Corrupt state of Christianity, the ignorance of the clergy, 
 and the disorders of the church, together with those of 
 government and manners during the middle ages 19 L 
 
 These disorders attain their heights beiort; the end of the 
 tenth century - - - - 193 
 
 Causes that contributed to banish anarchy and barbarism, 
 and introduce order and politeness - - 195 
 
 Keneficial effects of chivalry - - - 196 
 
 Its origin and character as a civil and military institution ib. 
 
 Its liberal spirit - - - - 197 
 
 That spirit strongly counteracted by the Monastic Institu- 
 tions - - - - - - 199 
 
 Account of the origin of those institutions, and of the ex- 
 travagance of the rage for pious solitude - ' 200 
 
 Disorders of the Monks and Nuns - - 202 
 
 Chivalry, by awakening an ardour for enterprise, and a ge- 
 nerous passion for the softer sex, saves Europe from 
 monastic tyranny - - . ■ - 203 
 
 LETTER XXIL 
 
 The German Empire and its Dependencies, Rome and the Ita- 
 lian States^ under Conrad II. and his Descendants of the 
 House of Franconia. 
 1024 Disputes on the death of the Emperor Henry II. 204 
 Coniad, Duke of Franconia, elected by the princes and 
 states, after six weeks deliberation - - ibid. 
 
 He marches into Italy, quells a revolt, and is crowned at 
 Rome , . . . - ibid. 
 
 Retui'ns to Germany, suppresses a rebellion, and gets his 
 son Henry declared his successor - - ibid. 
 
 Humbles the Poles and Huns - - ibid. 
 
 1034 Obtains the succession of the kingdom of Transiurane 
 Burgvmdy ----- ibid. 
 1039 Extinguishes a rebellion in Italy, and dies on his return to 
 Germany .... - 105 
 
 Henry 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. u. Page 
 
 . Hemy III. succeeds his father in the imperial throne ibid. 
 The first years of his reign distinguished by successful 
 wars in Bohemia, Pohuid, and Hungary - ibid. 
 
 Rome and Italy distracted by factions - - ibid. 
 
 1046 Henry composes the disorders there, and is crowned by 
 Clement II. whom he had raised to the papacy 206 
 10-17 Enters into a treaty with Drago, Rainulphus, and other, 
 Norman adventurers, who had established themselves 
 in Apulia and Calabi'ia, at the expense of the Greek em- 
 perors , - . . . ibid. 
 Intrigues of Hildebrand the Monk, at the election of Pope 
 Leo IX. ..... 207 
 
 1053 Leo having made war unsuccessfully against the Norman 
 adventurers, joins his sanction to the imperial investi- 
 ture for the lands which they held in Calabria 208 
 The emperer causes his infant son, Henry, to be declared 
 king of the Romans, a title still in use for the acknow- 
 ledged heir to the- imperial crown - ibid. 
 Alarmed at the ambitious projects of his sister Beatrice, 
 Dowager Marchioness of Mantua, who had married the 
 Duke of Lorrain, and contracted her daughter Matilda, 
 by the Marquis of Mantua, to the Duke of Spoleto, he 
 marches into Italy and carries her off - ibid. 
 1056 Dies soon after his return to Germany - - 209 
 Henry IV. only five years old at his father's death ibid. 
 Troubles of Germany, and usurpations of the RoraanPon- 
 tiffs during his minority ... ibid. 
 1072 He assumes the reins of government at the age of twenty- 
 two, and begins his administration with suppressing dis- 
 orders and remedying abuses - - 211 
 Is summoned to appear before the tribunal of the Holy 
 See, by Pope Alexander II. for having exposed the in- 
 vestiture of bishops to sale - - ibid. 
 He treats the mandate with contempt - - 212 
 107.3 Hildebrand elected Pope, under the name of Gregory 
 VII. ..... ibid. 
 
 The Emperor confirms his election - - ibid. 
 
 He begins his pontificate with exconmiunicating every 
 clergyman, who should receive a benefice from a lay- 
 man, and every layman by whom such benefice should 
 be conferred .... ibid. 
 
 Attempts to ntiake himself lord of Christendom, by freeing 
 the whole body of the clergy from the jurisdiction of 
 the Civil Power, and subjecting all Temporal Princes 
 to the authority of the See of Rome - ibid. 
 
 Summons the Emperor to appear before him for continu- 
 ing to bestow investitures ... ibid. 
 1076 Henry, enraged at that arrogant message, sends an am- 
 bassador 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. Dk Page 
 
 bassador to Rome with a formal deprivation of Gre- 
 gory - - - - - 214 
 The Pope deposes and excommunicates the Emperor ibid. 
 
 1077 Overwhelmed with enemies, in consequence of the dis- 
 
 pleasure of the head of the Church, Henry humbles him- 
 self at the feet of his Holiness - - 216 
 Elated with his triumph, Gregory becomes more haughty 
 and insolent - - - - 217 
 
 1078 He induces the Germans to elect another Emperor ibid. 
 
 1080 Henry defeats his antagonist, degrades Gregory, and gets 
 
 another Pope elected - - - 218 
 
 1081 Victorious in Germany, he marches into Italy, and makes 
 
 himself master of Rome after a siege of two years 219 
 1085 Gregory, having taken refuge in the castle of St. Angelo, 
 escapes to Salerno, and there dies - - 220 
 
 Germany involved in new troubles - - ibid. 
 
 1090 Conrad, the emperor's eldest son, rebels against his father, 
 and assumes the title of king of Italy - - ibid. 
 Is generally acknowledged by the Italian cities and no- 
 bles - - - - - 221 
 
 1099 His brother Henry is declared king of the Romans ibid. 
 
 1 100 Conrad dies, after having been put to the ban of the em- 
 
 pire, and the king of the Romans rebels against his fa- 
 ther _ _ _ - ibid* 
 1106 Henry IV. treacherously made prisoner by this unnatural 
 son, is divested of the imperial ensigns - 222 
 Makes his escape, but dies before he can efiect his resto- 
 ration _ . _ _ 223 
 Henry V. maintains the right of investiture - 224 
 Attempts in vain to settle the dispute by argument ibid* 
 1 1 1 1 Enters Italy at the head of a great army, and takes the 
 Pope prisoner - - - 225 
 His right of investiture confirmed, and afterwards denied 
 by Pascal II. - - - ibid. 
 1116 He marches into Italy a second time, and enters Rome in 
 triuirtph - - - ,226 
 1 122 The dispute in regard of investitures settled by a general 
 council - _ _ - 227 
 1125 Death of Henry V. - - - - 228 
 
 LETTER XXIII. 
 
 England-, from tJic Battle of Hastings to tlie death of Henry I. 
 1066 Consternation of the people of England - 229 
 
 William, Duke of Normandy, marches toward London ib. 
 Is met by the nobility and clergy, who declare their inten- 
 tion of submitting to his authority - 230 
 Takes the usual oath administered to the Anglo-Saxon 
 kings, and is crowned in Westminster abbey ibid. 
 
 Confirms 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 10o7 Confirms the nobility and t^entry in the possession of 
 tlicu- lands and dignities, and London, and all the other 
 r.ities of England, in the enjoyment ol their liberties 
 and immunilies - - - 231 
 
 But every where disarms the natives, and places all real 
 power in the hands oi the Normans, among whom he 
 divides the forfeited estates of Harold and those of his 
 adherents . _ . _ 232 
 
 He visits Normandy -. - - ibid. 
 
 The English rebel hi his absence - 233 
 
 1068 He returns and humbles the insurgents - ibid. 
 
 The English again attempt to shake off the Norman 
 yoke - .... 235 
 
 The revolt becomes general - - ibid. 
 
 J059 William politically breaks the force of his enemies, by 
 corrupting tlieir leaders, and reduces the whole king- 
 dom, to a state of the most humiliating subjection 236 
 1070 He lays waste the country to the extent of sixty miles, 
 between the Humber and the Tees - 237 
 
 ConBscates the estatesofthe principal English landholders, 
 and bestows them upon his Norman followers 238 
 Introduces the feudal polity into England ibid. 
 
 His regulations in regard to the church - 239 
 
 1076 His son Robert rebels against him in Normandy 242 
 Robert expelled by an English army - ibid. 
 
 1079 A reconciliation between the father and the son brought 
 about by a singular circumstance - ibid. 
 
 1081 William orders a general survey to be taken of all the 
 lands in England . _ _ 243 
 
 1087 His death and character ^ _ - 244 
 
 He is succeeded in the duchy of Normandy by his eldest 
 son Robert, and in the kingdom of England by Willi- 
 am, his second son, surnamed Rvifus - ibid. 
 1089 Tyrannical government of William II. - 246 
 Generous disposition of Robert, Duke of Normandy 247 
 He enlists himself in the first crusade, and mortgages his 
 dominions to his brother W'illiam - 248 
 1097 William quarrels with Anselm, Archbishop of Canter- 
 bury, and confiscates all his temporalities - ibid. 
 He is threatened with the sentence of excommunication 
 by the Pope, who protects the primate - 249 
 Anselm distinguishes himself in the council of Bari ibid. 
 1100 William Rufus accidentally killed by an arrow 250 
 His impious and tyrannical character - 251 
 His younger brother Henry ascends to the throne of Eng- 
 land, without regarding the prior righi of Robert ibid. 
 Henry I. courts popularity - - - ' 252 
 
 Grants 
 TOL. I. D 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 Grints 5 charter of liberties to his English subjects ami 
 reinstates Ansehn in the see of Canterbury - ibid. 
 IIOI His brother Roljert returns from the Holy Land, and in- 
 vades England . . _ . ibid. 
 An accommodation brought about through the mediation 
 of Anselm - - - - - 253 
 Henry persecutes Robert's adherents - ibid. 
 1106 Mak'^s himself master of the duchy of Normandy ibid. 
 Carries Robert prisoner into England, and confines him 
 for life in Cardiff castle - - - ibid. 
 
 1119 Defeats the French near Andeley in Normandy 255 
 
 1120 His only son William, who had accompanied him, is 
 
 shipwrecked, and perishes with all his retinue on his 
 return - - - - - ibid. 
 
 1127 Marries his daughter Matilda to Geoffrey Plantagenct, 
 eldest son to the Count of Anjou - ibid. 
 
 1133 Matilda delivered of a son, named Henry ibid. 
 
 1135 Henry I. dies, leaving his daughter Matilda heiress of all 
 his domiriions ... 256 
 
 Reflections on the government of the Anglo-Saxons ibid. 
 That government highly favourable to liberty 257 
 
 Changes produced in it by the Norman conquest 253 
 Rigour of the Anglo-Norman government 259 
 
 That rigour ultimately favourable to the cause of free- 
 dom ..... 2r)d 
 In the struggles between the king and the nobles, the 
 people recover their consequence - 261 
 
 LETTER XXIV. 
 
 France^ iimky riillip I. and Lewis VI. with some Account of 
 the First Crusade, 
 
 1095 Philip I. excommunicated by Urban II. in the famous 
 
 council of Clermont, where the lirst crusade was 
 preached ... - 262 
 
 Origin of the Crusades — a desire of recovering the Holy 
 Land from the infidels, and a hope of beholding the 
 sudden appearance of Christ on Mount Sion 264 
 
 Ardour for the Holy War excited by Peter the Hermit 265 
 
 1096 Persons of all ranks fly to arms, and march toward Asia, 
 
 under the banner fjf the cross - 26S 
 
 They are guilty of the greatest disorders in their pro- 
 gress . . . . ^ ibid. 
 
 1097 At length reach Constantinople, alarm the Greek emperor 
 
 by tlieir numbers, and muster a prodigious army on 
 
 the banks of the B.osi)iiorus - - 267 
 
 1093 Make themselves masters of Nice and Antioch, and break 
 
 the power of the Turks - - 269 
 
 Invest 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. B. P^K^S 
 
 1099 Invest Jerusalem, and take it by assault, after a sic^e 
 of five weeks - ~ - - - 2,'0 
 
 Godfrey of Bouillon chosen king of Jerusnlem ibid. 
 
 Philip I. absolved from the sentence of excommunication, 
 in consequence of the deatli of Urban II. 270 
 
 He associates with him his son Lewis in the govern- 
 ment - - - - 2^^ 
 
 Lewis VI. corrects the licenliousness of the Nobles ibid. 
 
 He establishes the commons, or third branch of the le- 
 gislature, enfranchises the villains or bondmen, and 
 regulates the courts of justice - 272 
 
 U37 Dies in the sixtieth year of his age, and is succeeded by 
 his son Lewis VII. - - 273 
 
 LETTER XXV. 
 
 The German Empire and its Dependencies, Rome a?id the Ita- 
 lian States, from the Death of Henry V. to the Election of 
 Frederic I. surnamed Barbarossa. 
 ills Lothario, Duke of Saxe Supplenbourg, elected Em- 
 peror _ _ - - - ibid. 
 1132 He marches into Italy, and re-establishes Innocent II. 
 in the papal chair - - - 274 
 Orders justice to be administered in the empire accord- 
 ing to the Roman or Civil code - ibid. 
 
 1 139 Dies in the twelfth year of his reign, and is succeeded in 
 
 the imperial throne by Conrad, Duke of Franconia 275 
 
 1140 Origin of the Guelphs and Ghibelins - ibid. 
 
 Singular example of conjugal affection fT^ 
 
 1147 Conrad III. engages in the second crusade, along vVith 
 
 his nephew, Frederic Barbarossa - 277 
 
 LETTER XXVL 
 
 France, tender Lewis VII. till the Divorce of 'Shieen Eleanor^ 
 Hvith some Account of the second Crusade. 
 
 1145 Lewis VII enraged at his rebellious subjects, orders the 
 
 town of \''itri to be set on fire - - ibid. 
 
 That cruel command makes a deep impression on his 
 mind - - - - . - ibid. 
 
 St. Bernard exhorts him to expiate his guilt by an expe- 
 dition to the Holy Land, where the Christians were in 
 great distress - - - - 278 
 
 1146 He takes the cross at Vazelai in Burgundy - ibid. 
 Eleanor his Queen, heiress of Guienne and Poitou, also 
 
 takes the cross ; and the example of the royal pair is 
 followed by many of the chief Nobility, and by a mul- 
 titude of people of inferior condition - ibid. 
 
 1 147 The Emperor, jealous of the King of France, marches be- 
 
 fore hira into the Holy Land, and is defeated - 280 
 
 Lewis 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 it. »»■ ?3^C 
 
 Lewis follows Conrad, and is not more fortunate ibid. 
 He is dishonoured by Queen Eleanor, his pious consort 1 81 
 Divorces her . _ _ - ibid* 
 
 She marries Henry Plantagenet, duke of Noraiandy, and 
 presumptive heir to the crown of England - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XXVII. 
 
 England, from the Death of Henry 1. to the Accession cf 
 Henry II. 
 1135 Stephen, count of Boulogne, grandson of William the Con- 
 queror, usurps the crown of England on the death of 
 Henry I. in violation of the right of the heiress Ma- 
 tilda _ - ... 282 
 1L36 Grants exorbitant privileges to the nobility andcletgy ibid. 
 Wretched state of the common people under his reign ibid. 
 David King of Scotland appears in support of Matilda's title 
 to the English crown - - - ibid. 
 
 1138 Battre of the staiidard - - - - 283 
 Scots routed with great slaughter - - ibid. 
 
 1139 Matilda lands in England . _ - ibid. 
 She is joined by several barons - - 284 
 England desolated by civil war - - ibid. 
 
 1148 A cessation of arms takes place, and Matilda retires into 
 Normandy . _ . . ibid. 
 
 1153 Her son Henry invades England - - 285 
 Evacuates the kingdom on having the succession secured' 
 
 to him . - _ - - ibid. 
 
 1154 Death and character of Stephen - ... 385 
 
 LETTER XXVin. 
 
 Engla7idy during the Reign of Henry II. with an account of 
 the affairs of France. 
 1154 Extensive continental dominions of Henry H. - 2^7 
 His popularity in England _ - _ jbid. 
 
 Civil and military regulation _ _ . 288 
 
 1162 He attempts to reform the abuses of the church 289 
 Difficulty of that undertaking _ - - ibid. 
 Character of Thomas a Becket, archbishop of Canter- 
 bury ----- 2<X> 
 
 He declares himself the champion of the clergy 291 
 
 1163 They plead an exemption from all civil jurisdiction, and 
 
 are guilty of the greatest enormities - - 292 
 
 1164 In order to subject them to the authority of the legislature, 
 
 the King enacts the Constitutions of Clarendon ibid* 
 
 Becket opposes the operation of those statutes, appeals to. 
 
 the Holy See, and takes refuge in Erancc - 294 
 The Pope annuls the Constitutions of Clarendon, and. 
 
 threatens Henry with the sentence of excommuni- 
 
 eation - ' - - • - - 2.95- 
 
 Afraid 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 -A. D, Ps^ge 
 
 1170 Afraid of the thunder of the church, the king permit* 
 Becket to return to the see of Canterbury - 297 
 Insolence and arrogance of the pnmate - 298 
 
 He is murdered by four gentlemen of the king's house- 
 hold ----- 299 
 ! 171 Henry H. sends ambassadors to Rome to maintain his 
 innocence of that crime . - _ 300 
 Miracles said to be wrought at the shrine of Thomas a. 
 Becket ----- ibid. 
 Henry undertakes the conquest of Ireland - ibid. 
 State of that country - - - 301 
 
 1172 Subdued by the English Monarch - - ibid. 
 Henry purges himself by oath of any concern in the mur- 
 der of Becket _ . . - 302 
 
 1173 His tliree sons rebel against him, and are supported by 
 
 the kings of France and Scotland - - ibid. 
 
 1 1 74 He walks bare-footed to Becket's tomb and prostrates him- 
 
 self before the shrine of the reputed saint in order finally 
 
 to make his peace with the church - - 303 
 
 Gains on the same day a victory over the Scots - ibid. 
 
 1175 Subdues his rebellious barons both in England and Nor- 
 
 mandy, and accomodates matters with his sons 304 
 Frames several wise ordinances for the government of hla 
 kingdom _ - - - - ibid. 
 
 1 183 Philip Augustus succeeds to the crown of France 306 
 1183 He enters into a confederacy with prince Richard, heir 
 apparent to the crown of England - - 307 
 
 1189 Richard sub-dues the barons of Poitou, Guienne, Anjou, 
 and Normandy . - _ - ibid. 
 
 His father oblig-ed to submit to his demands ibid. 
 
 Death and character of Henry U. - - 308 
 
 Many foreign im.provements introduced into England du- 
 lling his reign - - - - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XXIX. 
 
 The German Empire and its Dependencies, Rome and the Ita-- 
 lian Slates, under Frederick I. siirnamed Barbarossa, with 
 some account of the tliird Crusade. 
 
 1152 Frederick duke of Swabia, surnamed Barbarossa, elected 
 Emperor on the death of Conrad III. - 309 
 
 He receives the oath of fealty from Frederick king of Den- 
 mark, as a vassal of the empire - - 3 1 a 
 Marches into Italy Avhere he asserts with vigour the im- 
 perial authority - - - - 313 
 1158 Conquers Poland, and erects it into a tribut:irr kingdom ib. 
 IU9 Returns into Italy, which was distracted by civil and reli- 
 gious dissentigps . _ , - ibid. 
 
 Acts. 
 
CONTExXTS. 
 
 Jt. D. Page 
 
 1162 Acts there with extreme rigour - - 313 
 
 1 1 68 The principal Italian cities enter into an association for 
 
 the defence of their liberties - - - 314 
 
 11 76 The imperial army defeated by the confederates, and the 
 
 imperial fleet by the Venetians - - 315 
 
 Origin of th.e ceremony of wedding the Adriatic ibid. 
 The Emperor in his turn victorious - - ibid. 
 
 1177 The Italian cities submit, on obtaining a general pardon, 
 
 and liberty to use their own laws and forms of govern- 
 ment ----- ibid. 
 
 1179 New regulation with regard to election of the Popes 316 
 
 1180 The Emperor composes the troubles of Germany, and 
 
 makes laws for the preservation of its peace and good 
 
 order - - - - - 317 
 
 1187 Resolves to undertake an expedition to the Holy Land ib. 
 
 Languishing state of the kingdom of Jerusalem ibid. 
 
 The Holy City taken by Saladin - - ibid. 
 
 1 1 90 Frederic Barbarossa crosses the Helespont w ith a great 
 
 army - - - - - 319 
 
 Defeats the Turks in several battles - - ibid. 
 
 Takes the city of Iconium, and passes Movmt Tauris ili. 
 
 Dies in consequence of bathing in the cold river Cydnus ib. 
 
 LETTER XXX. 
 
 France and England, from the Death of Henry II. to the 
 granting of the Great Charter by King John, with a far- 
 ther Account of the third Crusade. 
 1190 Richard I. of England, and Philip II. of France, under- 
 take a joint expedition to the Holy Land - 320 
 
 Quarrel at Messina in tlie island of Sicily, but are seem- 
 ingly reconciled - - . . 323 
 'tl91 Arrive in Syria, and undertake the siege of Ptolemais 324 
 
 Reduce the place after a desperate siege - - ibid. 
 
 The king of France returns to Evu'ope in disgust 325 
 
 1 192 The king of England defeats Saladin in a great battle, and 
 
 arrives within sight of Jerusalem - - ib. 
 
 But being abandoned by his associates, he is obliged to re- 
 linquish his enterprize, and conclude a truce with the 
 Saracen Emperor - - - - 326 
 
 Death and character of Saladin - - 327 
 
 1193 Richard, returning in disguise, is made prisoner by the 
 
 duke of Austria, and confined in a dungeon in Ger- 
 many ----- ibid. 
 
 The king of France, and Richard's brother John endeavour 
 to make themselves masters of his dominions - 328 
 
 He purchases his release with a large ransom - 329 
 
 The joy of the English nation on his return « ibid. 
 
 War between France and England - - 330 
 
 Richard 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. D. Page 
 
 1199 Richard mortally wounded by an arrow - ibid. 
 
 Succeeded, after a bloody dispute, in- his brother John 332 
 J 205 John's foreign dominions arc adjudged forfeited to the 
 crown of France, and successively subdued by Philip Au- 
 gustus - _ . . . ibid. 
 He is universally despised in England - 3o3 
 Draws upon himself the indignation of the clergy ibid. 
 1207 His kingdom is laid under an interdict by the Pope 334 
 Awful execution of that sentence - - ibid. 
 Innocent HI. publishes a Crusade against the Albi- 
 genses _ _ _ . . 335 
 1213 Denounces against the king of England the sentence of 
 deposition, and entrusts the execution of it to the king 
 of France ----- 335 
 Both kings prepare for war - - . ibid. 
 Johp r^ojectly agrees to put himself under the pTOtectiou of 
 the Pope, and to hold his kingdom as a fief of the church 
 of Rome - - - - - 337 
 1 2 1 5 The English barons have recourse to arms, and extort from 
 him Magna Chart a, or the Great Charter - 340 
 Privileges secured by that Charter - - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XXXI. 
 
 The German Empire and its Depende7:cies-, Rome and the 
 Italian States^ from the Accession of Henry VI. to the Elec- 
 tion of Roclulph of Hapsburg^ Founder of the House of Au- 
 stria., luith a continuation of tlie History of the Crusades. 
 
 1190 Frederick Barbarossa is succeeded in the imperial throne 
 
 by his son Hemy VI. . - . 342 
 
 1191 Henry attempts to make himself master of the kingdom of 
 
 Sicily ; to which he was heir in right of his wife Con- 
 stantia, but which had been seized by Tancred her na- 
 tural brother . - - - 343 
 Obliged to relinquish the enterprize - - ibid. 
 
 1192 Incorporates the Teutonic Knights into a regular order ib. 
 Account of the origin of those Knights, and also of the 
 
 Knights Templars, and Knights Hospitalers ibid. 
 
 1194 The Emperor makes new preparations for the conquest of 
 Sicily, and accomplishes his purpose on the death of 
 Tancred - - - - - 344 
 
 His atrocious cruelty and perfidy to the Sicilians 345 
 
 1196 Attempts to render the imperial crown hereditary in his 
 family ----- 346 
 
 Countenances a new crusade - - 347 
 
 Three German armies raised for the recovery of the Holy- 
 Land ----- ibid. 
 Henry severely punishes a revolt of the Sicilians ibid. 
 
 Rendered 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Rendered desperate they again revolt: the Empress Con- 
 stantia heads them; and Henry havhig dismissed his 
 troops, is obliged to submit to his wile, and to the con- 
 dition she is pleased to impose upon him in favour of her 
 countrymen . . - - 347 
 
 Death and character of Henry VI. - - ibid. 
 
 Distracted state of the empire during the minority of his son 
 Frederick H. - - - - ibid. 
 
 1203 NeAV crusade under Baldwin count of Flanders ibid. 
 
 1204 The champions of the cross make themselves masters of 
 
 the Christian city of Constantinople, which they pil- 
 lage ..... 348 
 Baldwin gets himself elected Emperor of the East 349 
 Yhe A'enelians and the marquis de Montferret share with 
 him the provinces of the Greek empire - ibid. 
 The troubles of Germany continue - - ibid. 
 
 1214 Frederick H. assumes the reins of government, and com- 
 
 mands implicit obedience - - - 351 
 
 1216 He encourages a new crusade - - 352 
 
 1-17 Two great armies raised under various leaders 553 
 
 1219 Progress of the adventurers - - - 354 
 
 Their misfortunes - . - . ibid. 
 
 Obliged to conclude a dishonourable peace with Meleden, 
 
 soldan of Egypt and Syria - - ibid. 
 
 1228 The Emperor embarks for the Holy Land - 357 
 
 1229 Obliges the soldan to cede Jerusalem and its territory to 
 
 the Christians .... ibid. 
 
 The subsequent part of Frederick's reign one continued 
 
 C[uarrel with the Popes ... ibid. 
 
 After his death the afi'airs of Germany fall into the utmost 
 
 confusion - - - - - 361 
 
 Origin of the Hanseatic league - - 362 
 
 LETTER XXXII. 
 
 England.) from the Granting the Great Charter to t/ie Reign 
 of Edward I. 
 
 1215 The Pope absolves king John from the oath whicli he had 
 
 taken to observe the Great Charter - - 363 
 
 John ravages the whole country, from Dover to Berwick, 
 
 with an army of Braban^ons - - ibid. 
 
 The barons dreading the total loss of their liberties, their 
 
 lives and their possessions, offer the English crown to 
 
 Lewis, eldest son to Philip Augustus, king of France 364 
 
 1316 Lewis lands in England ... ibid. 
 
 Disgusts the people by his partiality to his countrymen 365 
 
 Death and character of John - - ibid. 
 
 The principal barons agree to acknowledge the authority 
 
 •f his son Henry HL . - . 366 
 
 Lewis 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. 15. iPage 
 
 1217 Lewis obliged to evacuate the kingdom - ibid- 
 
 The young king offends the English nation by his profuse 
 bounty to foreign favourites - 56t 
 
 1242 Loses what remained to him of Poitou - 368 
 
 1255 The Pope flatters Henry with the conquest of Sicily, and 
 drains England of immense sums under that and other 
 pretences _ - - - 369 
 
 The barons demand an extension of their priveleges 371 
 1258 Headed by the earl of Leicester, they extort from the 
 king the Provisions of Oxford - 272 
 
 They abuse their authority - - ibid. 
 
 1263 A civil war . _ . 373 
 
 IS 64 The king and prince Edward made prisoners ibid. 
 
 Tyrannical government of Leicester - 374 
 
 He summons a new parliament, into which the represen- 
 tatives of boroughs are admitted - ibid. 
 Reflections on that innovation - - ibid. 
 J365 Prince Edward makes his escape from prison, and heads 
 the Royalists - - - 375 
 Leicester slain, and his army routed - ibid. 
 The king restored - - - 37S 
 His clemency - - - ibid. 
 
 1270 Prince Edward undertakes an expedition to the Holy 
 
 Land, where he signalizes himself by many gallant 
 exploits - _ - - ibid. 
 
 1271 Death and character of Henry in. - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XXXIIL 
 
 France^ from the Reign of Philip Augustus to the end of the 
 
 Reign of Lewis IX. commonly called St. Lewis, with some 
 
 account of the last crusade. 
 
 1223 Death of Philip Augustus - - 277 
 
 Short reign of his son, Lewis VHL - ibid. 
 
 Character of Lewis IX. - ibid. 
 
 His humanity and generosity - - 378 
 
 His superstition - - - ibid. 
 
 1241 He makes a vow to engage in a new crusade 379 
 
 1248 Sets sail for the relief of the Holy Land, accompanied by 
 
 his queen and almost all the knights of France ibid. 
 State of the East in those times - - ibid. 
 
 Conquests of Genghiz-Kan and his descendants 426 
 
 1249 Lewis lands near the city of Damietta in Egypt, at the 
 
 head of sixty thousand men - - 331 
 
 1250 That place is abandoned to him, but afterwards besieged, 
 
 and restored in consequence of the diseases in his 
 
 army - _ . - ibid. 
 
 1211 Lewis visits Palestine, where he continues four years, 
 
 without effecting any thing of moment - ibid. 
 
 VOL. I. ir Disorders 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 Disorders in France durins^ his absence - ibid. 
 
 1258 lie reUirns and makes many wise regulations for the 
 
 government of his kingdom - 382 
 
 1264 Is appointed arbiter between the king of England anci his 
 
 rebellious barons .' _ - 283 
 
 1268 Plis brother establishes himself on the throne of Sicily 384 
 1 27 1 Lewis IX. heads a new army against the Infidels, and dies 
 
 on the coast of Africa. - - ibid. 
 
 His son Phihp, surnamed the Hardy, saves the remains 
 
 of the French army - - - 385 
 
 LETTER XXXIV. 
 
 Spain, from the Jlliddle of the Eleventh to the End of the 
 Thirteenth Century, 
 1037 Rise of the kingdom of Castile - - 385 
 
 Spain divided into many kingdoms at that time 386 
 
 Origin of Knights Errant - - ibid. 
 
 Famous exploits of Don Koderigo, surnamed the Cid ibid. 
 1084 Memorable siege of Toledo - - 387 
 
 1QS5 Dispute coi'cerning the Roman and Musarabic liturgies ib. 
 '1 he Cid conquers Valencia from the Moors ibid. 
 
 1134 Grandeur of Alphonso \'IL king of Castile 388 
 
 1 147 Alphonso Henriquez, count of Portugal, obtains from his 
 foilovv'crs the till" of King - - 389 
 
 1179 His legal dignity confirmed by the see of Rome ibid. 
 1211 The M'ramolin of Afiica undertakes an expedition 
 against the Chriblians in Spain, assisted by the Moors 
 in that country . _ . 390 
 
 The Christian princes unite, from the sense of a common 
 danger . - . - ibid. 
 
 Battle of hierra Morena - - ibid. 
 
 T212 The Moois v.inquished after nn obstinate dispute ibid. 
 1236 Ferdinand 111. king of Castile, conquers Cordova, the 
 seat ofthe first I^.ioorish kings - - 391 
 
 1238 The Inficit Is are also driven outof the island of Majorca ib. 
 And dispossessed of the kingdoms ot Murcia and Va- 
 lencia _ - . - - ibid. 
 Ferdinand til. takes from them the opulent city of Se- 
 ville - .. ... ibid. 
 1283 Alphonso, surnamed the Astronomer, invites over the Mi- 
 raniolin to protect him against his rebellious sons ibid. 
 1303 Ferdinand IV. makes himself master of Gibraltar 392 
 
 LETTER XXXV. 
 
 Progress of Socielj in Europe^ duriiig the Twelfth and Thir- 
 teenth Centuries, 
 Beneficial effects of the Crusades - - 393 
 
 Rise of Commerce . , - ibid. 
 
 Freedom 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. 9. Page 
 
 Freedom of Cities » - - 394 
 
 Corporation Charters granted - - 395 
 
 Their happy consequences - - - 396 
 
 The commons obtain a place in the national assemblies ib. 
 Enfranchisement of the villains, or slaves employed in 
 husbandry .... ibid. 
 
 Abolition of trials by ordeal, and by duel - 397" 
 
 Suppression of the practice of private wslv - 398 
 
 Revival of the study of the civil law - 399 
 
 Universities founded . - - 400 
 
 Academical titles and honours invented - ibid. 
 
 The first studies, though ill-directed, rouse the human 
 mind _ . . - - ibid. 
 
 Barbarism gradually disappears with ignorance 401 
 
 LETTER XXXVI. 
 
 England^ during the R^ign of Edward I. ivith an introduction 
 
 to the History of Scotland ; some Account of the Conquest of 
 
 that country by the English, and the fnal Reduction of 
 
 Wales. 
 
 1274 Return of Edward I. from the Holy Land - 402 
 
 His wise policy _ . _ _ ibid* 
 
 1276 He undertakes an expedition against Lewellyn prince of 
 
 North Wales, and obliges liim to submit ibid. 
 
 The Welsh revolt, and are again subdued - 40:i 
 
 1283 The laws of England established in the principality of 
 
 Wales . - - - - ibid. 
 
 Retrospective view of the history of Scotland 401 
 
 1286 Edward revives a claim of feudal superiority over that 
 
 kingdom ----- 405 
 
 Disputed succession to the Scottish crown ibid. 
 
 Edward chosen umpire of the dispute between Bruce and 
 
 Baliol, the two competitors - - 40S 
 
 1291 Scotland acknowledged by both to be a fief of the Eng- 
 
 lish monarchy. - _ - ibid. 
 
 1292 Edward gives judgment in favour of Baliol ibid. 
 Baliol enters into a secret alliance witl^ France 407" 
 
 1295 True sera of the English House of Commons ibid. 
 Its beneficial influence upon the constitution ibid. 
 
 1296 Edward cites Baliol as his vassal to appear in the Eng- 
 
 lish parliament - - - - 40s 
 
 Baliol refuses compliance . - - ibid. 
 
 Edward enters Scotland, and subdues the whole country 409 
 Baliol carried prisoner to London, and comm.itted to the 
 
 Tower ----- ibid. 
 
 Edward attempts the recovery of Guienne, which Philip 
 
 the Fair had ordered to be confiscated as a fief of 
 
 France - - - - - 4I(,> 
 
 Obtains 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A. B. Page 
 
 12^7 Obtains large supplies from his parliament, and confirms 
 
 the Great Charter with an additional clause 411 
 
 Guienne restored to Ena-land - - 413 
 
 The Scots rebel . _ - . ibid. 
 
 Character and heroic exploits of William Wallace ibid. 
 
 He defeats the English army near Stirling, and expels 
 
 the invaders of his country - - 413 
 
 1298 Edward again enters Scotland with a great army, and 
 
 subdues the southern provinces - - 414 
 
 1305 Wallace treacherously delivered up to him, and executed 
 
 as a rebel - - - - 415 
 
 Character of Robert Bruce - - - 416 
 
 He encourages his countrymen to shake off the yoke of 
 
 England - - - - - 417 
 
 1306 The English forces driven out of Scotland - 418 
 Bruce defeated by Amor de Valence, the general of Ed- 
 ward _ . - _ - ibid. 
 
 1307 Edward I. dies at Carlisle, in advancing to complete the 
 
 recovery of Scotland . - - ibid. 
 
 His high character as a legislator - 419 
 
 He regulated the jurisdiction of the several courts, and 
 
 acquired the title of the English Justinian ibid. 
 
 LETTER XXXVII. 
 
 England, during the reign of Edward II. with an Accoimt of 
 the Affairs of Scotland. 
 1307 Edward II. relinquishes the7projected reduction of Scot- 
 land, after a few feeble efforts - - 420 
 Disgusts the English by his profuse liberality to Piers 
 Gaveston, a foreign favourite » - 421 
 1S08 A confederacy formed against Gavcston - 421 
 He is banished - . _ ibid. 
 But recalled, and beheaded, in consequence of a new re- 
 volt .... 422 
 Edward resolves to subdue the Scots - - ibid. 
 Makes great preparations for that purpose - ibid. 
 1514 Enters Scotland at the head of one hundred thousand 
 men - _ . _ ibid. 
 Battle of Bannockburn - - 423 
 The English defeated with great slaughter - 424 
 1315 The Scots ravage the northern counties of England and 
 invade Irelana - - 425 
 Bruce established on the throne of Scotland - ibid. 
 The English barons insult the fallen fortunes of Edward ib. 
 His attachment to Hugh le Despencer, a new favourite^ 
 furnishes them with a pretext for rebellion - 426 
 1*21 The favourite and his father banished - ibid. 
 Recalled, and the rebellious barons humbled - 427 
 
 The 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 A, D, P^f^C 
 
 1322 The earl of Lancaster and about twenty other noblemen 
 
 condemned and executed - - ibid. 
 
 The rapacity of the younger Spencer - ibid. 
 
 1323 Edward concludes a truce with Scotland - ibid. 
 
 1324 Isabella, his queen, enters into a conspiracy against him 
 
 Avith Roger Mortimer, her gallant, and other dissatis- 
 fied barons - . _ 428 
 1326 The two Spencers condemned and executed - 429 
 1337 The king accused of incapacity for government and de- 
 posed - - - ibid. 
 Inhumanly murdered - - 430 
 
 LETTER XXXVIII. 
 
 The German empire and its dependencies, Rome and the Ita- 
 lian States, from the election of Rodolph of Hapsburgh to 
 the Death of Henry VII. 
 1273 Rodolph Count of Hapsburgh invested with the impcrid 
 ensigns after an interregnum of twenty-three years 431 
 He corrects the disorders in Germany - 432 
 
 1275 Rebellion of Ottocarus, king of Bohemia - ibid. 
 
 1276 He is compelled to submit - - 453 
 
 1277 Again rebels, and is slain in battle - - ibid. 
 Rodolph settles the afl&irs of Italy - - ibid. 
 
 1282 Establishes the grandeur of his family in Austria ibid. 
 
 1291 His death and character - - - 43i 
 
 1292 Adolphus of Nassau elected emperor - ibid. 
 1267 He is deposed _ . - - ibid. 
 
 Albert duke of Austria is raised to the Imperial throne ib. 
 And Albert kills his competitor Adolphus in battle 435 
 The Jews persecuted with great rigour in Germany 456 
 
 1208 The rise of the republic of Switzerland - 437 
 
 Remarkable circumstances with which it was attended 43$ 
 
 The emperor Albert slain by his nephew, when ready to 
 
 march against the Swiss - - 4/10 
 
 1 309 The Count of Luxembourg elected emperor, under the 
 name of Henry VII. - - - ibid. 
 
 IS 10 He resolves to establish the Imperial authority in Italy 441 
 State of that country - - - 44 i 
 
 1811 The emperor there compels universal submission 443 
 
 1313 Dies at Benevento - - - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XXXIX. 
 
 Irance, from the death of Lewis IX. till the Accession of the 
 
 House of Valuis. 
 
 1270 Accession of Philip III. to the crown of France 444, 
 
 1282 Account of the Sicilian Vespers - - 445 
 
 12S4 Philip III. at the instigation of the Pope, undertakes the 
 
 conquest of the kino;dom of Arraaon - 4i!» 
 
 Fails 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 iSSS Fails in that enterprize, and dies at Perpignan 447" 
 
 The tirst French monarch who granted letters of nobi- 
 lity . . - . - ibid. 
 Accession of Philip IV. surnamed the fair - 448 
 He institutes the supreme tribunals called Parliaments 449 
 1303 His quarrel with the See of Rome - ibid 
 Orders the Pope's Bull to be thrown into the fire ibid. 
 1310 Persecutes the Knights Templars - 451 
 1312 Suppression of that order, and the cruel circumstances 
 that accompanied it - - - 452 
 J314 Philip IV. succeeded by his son Lewis X. - 454 
 
 1316 Violent dispute in regard to the succession, on the death 
 
 of Lewis - - - - - ibid. 
 
 1317 The States of the kingdom, by a solemn decree, declare 
 
 all Females incapable of succeeding to the crown of 
 France - - - 455 
 
 1328 Philip de Valois, in consequence of that decree, is unani- 
 mously raised to the throne - - 456 
 
 LETTER XL. 
 
 England, Scotland^ France, and Spain, during the Reign of 
 Edtvard III. 
 1327 Tyrannical government of Queen Isabella and Mortimer 
 iier gallant - _ . 455 
 
 1330 Mortimer seized by order of young Edward, and perishes 
 
 by ttie hands of the hangman - - 457 
 
 Edward III. assumes the reins of government ibid. 
 
 1331 He makes provision for the impartial administration of 
 
 justice - _ _ ibid. 
 
 Secretly encourages Edward Baiiol in his claim upon the 
 
 crown of Scotland - - 458 
 
 1332 Baiiol makes himself master of that kingdom 459 
 
 1333 Is expelled, and takes refuge in England - ibid. 
 Edward agrees to reinstate him. on his admitting the su- 
 periority of England, and defeats the Scots with great 
 slaughter at Halidovvn Hill ... ibid. 
 
 Baiiol is acknowledged by a parliament, assembled at 
 Edinburgh _ _ - 450 
 
 The Scots again revolt from Baiiol, and return to their 
 allegiance under David Bruce, the son of the great Ro- 
 bert - - - - ibid. 
 1335 Edward, a second and third time, marches into their 
 country, and obliges them to take refuge in their hills 
 and fastnesses - - - 461 
 He lays claim to the crown of France - 462 
 1337 Is flattered in his pretensions by Robert ofArtois ibid. 
 The kings of Finance and England form alliances on the 
 Continent . . ^ ibid. 
 
 State 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. D. Page 
 
 Stale of the Flemings - - - 162 
 
 1338 They favour the cause of Edward - 463 
 
 1S40 The English gain an important advantage over the French 
 
 by sea . . _ 455 
 
 Heroic character of Jane, Countess ofMountford 466 
 1342 Her gallant defence of Hennebone - ibid. 
 
 1346 Edward invades France with an army of thirty thousand 
 
 men - - - 467 
 
 Philip de Valois advances against him at the head of an 
 
 hundred thousand men - - ibid. 
 
 Famous passage of the Somme - ibid. 
 
 Battle of Cressy [Aug. 26.] - - 469 
 
 The French defeated with great slaughter - ibid. 
 
 Reflections on the invention of fire-arms - ibid. 
 
 David Bruce, King of Scotland, invades England 470 
 He is defeated and made prisoner by an English army, 
 
 under Queen Philippa and Lord Percy [Oct. 17.] ibid. 
 
 1347 Calais taken by Edward - - 471 
 1548 He concludes a truce with France, and returns in tri- 
 umph to England _ . . ibid. 
 
 1350 Institutes the order of the Garter - ibid, 
 
 A dreadful pestilence in England - 472 
 
 Death of Philip de Valois - - ibid. 
 
 Character of King John, his son and successor 473 
 
 Dangerous intrigues of Charles, King of Navarre ibid. 
 
 1356 Edward Prince of Wales, commonly called the Black 
 
 Prince, invades France on the expiration of the truce 474 
 Battle of Poictiers [Sept. 19.] - - ibid. 
 
 Prince of Wales defeats the French and takes their king- 
 prisoner - - - ibid. 
 Flis generous treatment of the captive monarch ibid. 
 
 1357 He concludes a truce for two years, and returns to Eng- 
 
 land - - - - 475 
 
 1358 Distracted State of France - - 476 
 The nobility and gentry exposed to the barbarity of the 
 
 common people - - 477 
 
 These disorders suppressed by the Dauphin 473 
 
 ld59 Edward HI. againinvades France - ibid. 
 
 1360 Concludes an advantageous peace with his prisoner. King 
 
 John, who obtains his liberty - iliid. 
 
 1363 John, unable to fulnl the articles of the treaty, honourably 
 
 returns to his confinement in England - 479 
 
 1364 His death - - - - ibid. 
 Fie is succeeded in the throne of France by his son, 
 
 Charles V. - -. - ibid. 
 
 Wise policy of Charles - - ibid. 
 
 1365 His general, Bertrand du Guesclin, defeats the King of 
 
 Navarre, and order is reiitorcd to France - 4S0 
 
 3.iiserabls 
 
CONTENTS. 
 A. ». Page 
 
 Miserable state of Spain under Peter I. - 481 
 
 1366 Peter dethroned by his brother Henry, assisted by a 
 
 French army under du Guesclin - ibid. 
 
 1 367 Restored by an EngUsh army under the Black Prince 482 
 His ingratitude to his benefactor - ibid. 
 
 1368 Heis slain by his brother Henry - 483 
 1370 111 health of the Black Prince - 484 
 
 The English are stript of most of their conquests in 
 
 France - - - ibid. 
 
 1 S7« Death of the Black Prince - - ibid. 
 
 1377 Of King- Edward HI. - - 485 
 
 1380 Of Charles V. of France - ibid. 
 
 LETTER XLL' 
 
 The German empire and its dependencies, Rome and the Itali- 
 an States, from the election of Lewis of Bavaria to the 
 Death ef Charles IV. 
 1313 Death of Henry Vn. followed by an interregnum 485 
 Italy and Germany desolated by civil wars - ibid. 
 
 1519 The battle of Muldorff - - ibid. 
 
 1522 Lewis V. undisputed emperor - - 487 
 
 1324 The Pope declares his election void - ibid. 
 
 1328 He marches into Italy, and deposes John XXII. 488 
 1338 Establishes a constitution, with the concurrence of the 
 Princes both Ecclesiastical and Secular, by which it was 
 irrevocably fixed, " That the plurality of the Suffrages 
 " of the electoral College confers the Empire, without 
 " the consentof the Holy See." - 490 
 
 Germany enjoys the blessings of peace - ibid. 
 
 1347 Lewis V. succeeded in the Imperial throne by the Duke 
 
 of Luxembourg, imder the name of Charles IV'. 491 
 Nicholas Reinai, an ambitious demagogue, excites disor- 
 ders in Rome - - - ibid. 
 Story of Joan Queen of Naples - 492 
 
 1348 Lewis king of Hungary, her husband's brother, accuses 
 
 her of the murder of that prince - ibid. 
 
 She is acquitted by the Pope - - 493 
 
 1355 The Emperor, Charles IV. having settled the affairs of 
 
 Germany, is crowned at Rome - 494 
 
 1356 He fixes the number of electors, by the famous constitu- 
 
 tion, called the Golden Bull - - 49S 
 
 Style of that celebrated charter - - ibid. 
 
 Pump with which the publication of it was accompa- 
 nied - - - ibid. 
 The latter part of the reign of Charles IV. distinguished 
 by no memorable event - - 496 
 1378 His death - - - ibid. 
 
THE HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 MODERN EUROPE. 
 
 PART I. 
 
 TROM THE RISE OF THE MODERN KINGDOMS TO 
 THE PEACE OF WESTPHALIA, IN 1648. 
 
 LETTER J, 
 
 DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE, AND THE 
 SETTLEBIENT OF THE BARBARIANS. 
 
 X OU have already, rtxy dear Philip, finished, 
 your course of Ancient History, under your preceptor : 
 in the elements of Modern History, I myself will under- 
 take to instruct you. The establishment of the present 
 European nations; the origin of our laws, manners, 
 and customs ; the progress of society, of arts, and of let- 
 ters, demand your pai'ticular attention, and were ill 
 committed to the disquisitions of a mere scholar. 
 
 Europe is the theatre on which the human character 
 has appeared to most advantage, and where society has 
 attained its most perfect form, both in ancient and mod- 
 ern times; its history will, therefore, furnish us witli 
 
 VOL I, F every 
 
2 THE HISTORY OF [part. t. 
 
 every thing worthy of observation in the study of men, 
 or of kingdoms. I shall, however, tut-n your eye occasion- 
 ally on the other parts of the globe, that you may have a 
 general idea, at least, of the state of the universe. But 
 before I proceed to the history of Modern Europe, it will 
 be proper to say a few words concerning its ancient in- 
 habitants, and its situation at the settlement of the present 
 nations. 
 
 The inhabitants of ancient Europe may be divided in- 
 to three classes, Greeks, Romans, and Barbarians; or 
 those nations the two former were pleased to call so, be- 
 cause less civilized than they. With the Greek and Roman 
 storv you are well acquainted. I shall, therefore, only 
 remind you. That the Greeks, the most polished people 
 of antiquity, inhabited the maritime parts of the country 
 now known by the name of European Turkey; that, when 
 corrupted, they were conquered by the Romans ; and 
 that, after the conquest of Greece, the Romans turned 
 their arms against the Barbarians or northern nations, 
 the Gauls, the Britons, the Germans, whom they also in 
 a great measure subdued, by their superiority in the art 
 of war, but not with the same facility they had overcome 
 the voluptuous nations of Asia. A single battle did not de- 
 cide the fate of a kingdom. Those brave and indepen- 
 dent people, though often defeated, resumed their arms 
 with fresh valour, and defended their possessions and their 
 liberties with obstinate courage. But after a variety of 
 struggles, in which many of them perished in the field, and 
 many were carried into slavery, a miserable remnant sub- 
 mitted to the Romans ; while others fled to their moun- 
 tains for freedom, or took refuge in the inaccessible cor- 
 ners of the north. There, defended by lakes and rivers, 
 the indignant barbarians lived, until time had ripened the 
 seeds of destruction. Then rushing forth, like an impetu- 
 ous flood, and sweeping every thing before them, they 
 
 overturned the vast fabric of the Roman em- 
 A, D. 476. . , 111 If .. 1 • 
 
 pire, the work and the wonder ot ages, taking 
 
 yengeance on the mvirderers of mankind; established on 
 
 its 
 
LET. I.] MODERN EUROPE. 3 
 
 its ruins new governments and new manners, and accom- 
 plished the most signal revolution in the history of nations . 
 
 Here we must make a pause, in order to consider the 
 jnoral and political causes of that great event, and its in- 
 fluence on the state of society. 
 
 As soon as the Romans had subdued the north of Eu- 
 rope, they set themselves to civilize it. They transfei*red 
 into the conquered countries their laws, manners, arts, sci- 
 ences, language, and literature. And some have thought 
 these a sufficient compensation for the loss of liberty and 
 independency. But you, my dear Philip, will judge very 
 differently, I hope, whatever veneration you may have for 
 the Roman name. 
 
 Good laws are essential to good government, arts ancj 
 sciences to the prosperity of a nation, and learning and 
 politeness to the perfection of the human character. But 
 these, in order to exalt a people, must be the result of 
 the natural progress of civilization, not of any adventi- 
 tious ferment or violence from abroad. The fruits of 
 summer are ripened in winter by art; but the course of 
 the seasons is necessary to give them their proper flavour, 
 their proper size, or their proper taste. The spontane- 
 ous produce of the forest^ though somewhat harsh, is 
 preferable to what is raised by such forced culture; and 
 the native dignity, the native manners, and rude virtues 
 ot the barbarian, are superior to all that can be taught 
 the slave. When mankind are obliged to look up to a 
 master for honour and consequence, to flatter his foibles, 
 and to fear his frown, cunning takes place of wisdom, 
 and treachery of fortitude ; the mind loses its vigour, 
 the heart its generosity, and man, in being polished, is 
 only debased. 
 
 1. It was long fashionable with modern writers, but especially those 
 of a classical turn, to rail against their rude ancestors, and lament the fall 
 of the Roman empire as a great misfortune to the human race. This mis. 
 take seems to have arisen from an admiration of ancient literature, and 
 an imperfect knowledge of history; from not sufficiently distinguishing 
 between the extinction of Roman libsrtj-, and thedastruction of Roman 
 •lespotism. 
 
 This 
 
4 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 This truth was never, perhaps, more strikingly exem- 
 plified than in the history of the Roman empire. The 
 degrading influence of its dominion, more than any other 
 circumstance, hastened its final dissolution ,- for although 
 the conquered nations were by that means more easily 
 kept in subjection, they became unable to resist a foreign 
 enemy, and might be considered as decayed members 
 of the body politic, which increased its size without in- 
 creasing its strength. An appearance of prosperity, in- 
 deed, succeeded to the havoc of war; the ruined cities 
 were rebuilt, and new ones founded; population flourish- 
 ed; civilization advanced; the arts were cultivated; but 
 the martial and independent spirit of the* people of the nor- 
 thern provinces was so totally extinct in a few centuries, 
 that instead of preferring death to slavery, like so many 
 of their illustrious ancestors, they patiently submitted to 
 any contribution which a rapacious governor was pleased 
 to levy. And the descendants of those gallant warriors 
 who had disputed the field with the Roman legions under 
 Csesar and Germanicus, were unable to oppose the most 
 desultory inroads of a troop of undisciplined barbarians. 
 They were become incapable of either thinking or acting 
 for themselves. Hence all the countries, which had been 
 subjected to the Roman yoke, fell a prey to the first inva- 
 der, after the imperial forces were withdrawn. 
 
 Many other causes contributed to the dissolution of the 
 Roman empire, beside the debility occasioned byits un- 
 wieldy corpulence. 
 
 Rome owed her dominion as much to the manners as 
 to the arms of her citizens\ Their dignity of sentiment; 
 their loveof liberty and of their country; their passion for 
 
 2. " Think not," said the elder Cato, to the Roman senate, " it was 
 " merely by force of arms that our forefathers raised this republic from % 
 t' low condition to its present gi-eatness ;....no! but by things of a very 
 
 " different nature industry and discipline at home, abstinence and 
 
 " justice abroad, a disinterested spirit in council, unblindedby passion, 
 '• and unbiassed by pleasure." Sallust. £elL Catilin. 
 
 * glory J 
 
LET. I.] MODERN EUROPE. 5 
 
 glory; their perseverance in toils; their contempt of dan- 
 ger and of death; their obedience to the laws; and above 
 all, their civil constitution and military discipline, had 
 extended and cemented the conquests of the Roman?. 
 The very usurpations of that sovereign people (for I speak 
 of the times of the republic) were covered with a certain 
 majesty, which made even tyranny respectable. But 
 their government carried in its bosom the seeds of de- 
 struction. The continual jealousy between the patricians 
 and plebeians, the senate and the people, without any 
 balancing power, made the ruin of the republic inevitable, 
 as soon as the manners were relaxed; and a relaxation of 
 manners was necessarily produced, by the pillage of 
 Greece and the conquest of Asia'; by the contagious 
 refinements of the one, and the influx of wealth from the 
 other. 
 
 The fall of Carthage, and the expulsion of the Gauls 
 out of Italy, though seemingly the two most fortunate 
 events in the Roman history, contributed also to a change 
 of manners, and to the extinction of Roman liberty. 
 While Carthage subsisted, the attention of all parties was 
 carried toward that rival state; to defend themselves or 
 annoy their enemies, was the only care of the Romans: 
 and as long as the Gauls had possessions in the neigh- 
 bourhood of Rome, her citizens were united by the sense 
 of a common danger ; but no sooner were their fears 
 from abroad removed, than the people grew altogether 
 ungovernable. Ambitious men took advantage of their 
 licentiousness; party clashed with party. A master 
 became necessary, in order to terminate the horrors of 
 civil war, as well as to give union and vigour to the state. 
 Interest and vanity made coui^tiers; force or fear, slaves. 
 The people were disarmed by the jealousy of despotism, 
 
 o. It v/as in the delicious climate and pleasurable groves of Asia, says 
 Sallust, that the army of the Roman people first learned to abandon them" 
 selves to wine and women — to admire pictures, statues, and vases of cuii" 
 ous workmanship — and to spare nothing civil or sacred to come at th<^ 
 possession of them. Bell Caiilin. 
 
 and 
 
6 THE HISTORY OF [pakt. i. 
 
 and corrupted by the example of an abandoned court. 
 Effeminacy, debauchery, profligacy, and every atrocious 
 vice, was common upon the throne. 
 
 A new source of ruin disclosed itself. Some disputed 
 successions having made the army sensible that the sove- 
 reignty was in their hands, they thenceforth sold it to 
 the highest bidder. Sporting with the lives of their 
 princes, as formerly with the laws of the republic, they 
 created emperors only to extort money from them, and 
 afterwards massacred them, in order to extort like sums 
 from their successors. Emperors were opposed to 
 emperors, and armies disputed the pretensions of armies. 
 With obedience discipline was lost. Wise princes 
 endeavoured, but in vain, to restore it: their zeal to 
 maintain the ancient military regulations only exposed 
 them to the fury of the solldery; the very name of 
 discipline was a signal for revolt. The armies of Rome 
 did not now consist of free men, who had voluntarily 
 chosen a military life: or who, in obedience to the laws, 
 served for a term of years, but of mercenaries collected 
 from the provinces, or barbarians bribed into the service, 
 as more able to undergo the fatigues of war. Her soldiers 
 were no longer citizens armed in defence of their country, 
 they were its oppressors; they were licensed robbers, 
 insatiable of plunder. 
 
 In order to prevent the continual treasons of the sol- 
 diery, especially the Pretorian bands, the emperors 
 associated with themselves in the supreme power, their 
 sons, their brothers, or such persons as they could trust; 
 and every emperor elected a Csesar, or successor. They 
 likewise subdivided, and consequently diminished, the 
 power of the Pretorian prefects, who were the grand 
 viziers of their time, appointing four instead of two. By 
 these means the imperial seat was rendered more secure: 
 the emperors were permitted to die in their beds ; man- 
 ners were softened, and less blood was shed by ferocity; 
 but the state was wasted by an enormous expense, and 
 anew species of oppression took place, no less disgrace- 
 ful 
 
LIT. I.] MODERN EURO^^E. 7 
 
 ful to humanity than the former massacresL The 
 tyranny was transferred from the soldiery to the prince: 
 the cause and the mode was changed, but the effect was 
 the same. Shut up within the walls of a palace, sur- 
 rounded by flatterers and women, and sunk in the softness 
 of Eastern luxury, those masters of empire governed in 
 secret by the dark and subtle artifices of despotism. 
 Iniquitous judgments, under the form of justice, seemed 
 only to set death at a distance, in order to make life 
 more miserable, and existence more precarious. No- 
 thing was said, all was insinuated: every man of prime 
 reputation was accused; and the warrior and the politi- 
 cian daily saw themselves at the mercy of sycophants, 
 who had neither ability to serve the state themselves, 
 nor genei'osity to suffer others to serve it with honour'^. 
 The removal of the imperial court to Constantinople, 
 to say nothing of the subsequent division of the empire 
 into Eastern and Western, was a new blow to the gran- 
 deur of Rome, and likewise to its security: for the veteran 
 legions, that guarded the banks of the Danube and the 
 Rhine, were also removed to the East, in order to guard 
 another frontier; and Italy, robbed of its wealth and inha- 
 bitants, sunk into a state of the most annihilating languor. 
 Changed into a garden by an Asiatic pomp, and crowded 
 with villas, now deserted by their voluptuous owners, 
 this once fertile country was unable to maintain itself; 
 and when the crops of Sicily and Africa failed, the peo- 
 ple breathed nothing but sedition. 
 
 These discontents, occasioned by the removal of the 
 imperial court, were heightened by those of religion, 
 Christianity had long been making progress in the empire, 
 it now ascended to the throne of the Ca;sars. As the 
 Christians had formerly been persecuted, they, in their 
 turn, became persecutors. The Gods of Rome were 
 publickly insulted, their statues were broken, their vota- 
 
 4. Montesq. Considerat. stir ies Causes de la Grandeur drs domains, et 
 de leur Dccad. chap. xv. xvi. xvii. and the authors there cited, but especi- 
 ally Tacitus, Ammianus, Marcellinus and Zosimus. 
 
 Ties 
 
* THE HISTORY OF [part I. 
 
 ries were harassed. Penal statutes were enacted against 
 the ancient worship: the punishment of death was de- 
 nounced against the sacrifices formerly ordained bylaw; 
 the altar of Victory was overturned, the Cross was 
 exalted in its stead, and displayed in place of that trium- 
 phant eagle, under which tiie world had been conquered^. 
 The most dreadful hates and animosities arose. The 
 Pagans accused the Christians of all their misfortunes; 
 they rejoiced in the midst of the greatest calamities, a? 
 if the Gods had been come in person to take vengeance 
 on the destroyers of their altars; while the Christians 
 affirmed that the remains of Paganism alone had drawn 
 down the wrath of Omnipotence. Both parties were 
 more occupied about their religious disputes than the 
 common safety; and, to complete the miseries of this 
 unhappy people, the Christians became divided among 
 themselves. New sects sprung up; new disputes took 
 plac e ; new jealousies and antipathies raged; and the same 
 pmiishments were denounced against Heretics and Pagans. 
 An universal bigotry debased the minds of men. In a 
 grand assembly of the provinces, it was proposed. That, 
 as there are three persons in the Trinity, they ought to 
 have three emperors. Sieges were raised, and cities 
 lost, for the sake of a bit of rotten wood, or withered 
 bone, which was supposed to have belonged to some saint 
 or martyr. The eifeminacy of the age mingled itself 
 with this infatuation; and generals, more Aveak than 
 
 5. Four respectable deputations v.'ere successively voted to the imperial 
 court, representing the grievances of the priesthood and the senate, and 
 soliciting the restoration of the altar of Victory.The conduct of this im- 
 portant business was entrusted to Symmachus, a noble and eloquent orator, 
 who thus makes Rome herself plead, before the imperial tribunal, in favour 
 of the ancient worship; " These rites have repelled Hannibal from the 
 " city, and the Gauls from the capitol. Wei-e my grey hairs reserved for 
 «' such intolerable disgrace ? I am ignorant of the new system that 1 am 
 " i-equired to adopt; but I am well assured, that the correction of old 
 " age is always an ungrateful and ignominious ofiice." Symmach. lib. x. 
 epist. 54. 
 
 humane, 
 
LET. I.] MODERN EUROPE. 9 
 
 humane, sat down to mourn the calamities of war, when 
 they should intrepidly have led on their troops to battle'^. 
 
 The character of the people with whom the Ro- 
 mans had to contend, was, in all respects, the reverse 
 of their own. Those northern adventurers, or barba- 
 rians, as they were called, breathed nothing but war. 
 Their martial spirit was yet in its vigour. They sought a 
 milder climate, and lands more fertile than their forests 
 and mountains: the sword was their right; and they ex- 
 ercised it without remorse, as the right of nature. Bar- 
 barous they surely were, but they were superior to the 
 people they invaded, in virtue as well as in valour. Sim- 
 ple and severe in their manners, they were unacquainted 
 with the name of luxury; any thing was sufficient for 
 their extreme frugality. Hardcaed by exercise and toil, 
 their bodies seemed inaccessible to disease or pain; war 
 was their element; they sported with danger, and met 
 death with expressions of joy. Though free and inde- 
 pendent, they were firmly attached to their leaders; be- 
 cause they followed them from choice, not from con- 
 straint, the most gallant being always dignified with the 
 command. Nor were these their only virtues. They 
 were remarkable for their regard to the sanctity of the 
 marriage bed; their generous hospitality, their detesta- 
 tion of treachery and falsehood. They possessed many 
 maxims of civil wisdom, and wanted only the culture of 
 reason to conduct them to the true principles of social 
 life^ 
 
 What could the divided, effeminate, and nowdastardly 
 Romans, oppose to such a people? Nothing but fear and 
 folly; or, vv^hat was still more ignominious, treachery. 
 
 6. Montesq. Considerat. &e. chap, xviii — xxii. See also Gibbon's Hist, 
 of the Decline and Fall of the Ronyan Empire, vol ili — vi, and the auihoi-s 
 there quoted. 
 
 7. Tacit, (le Morihiu Germ. Priscus, Excerpt, ds Legat. Jornandes, de 
 Eeb. Get. " As in polished societies," saya Ammiaiuis Marcellinus, 
 speaking of the Huns, " ease and tranquillity arc courted, they delight in 
 war and dangers. He who falls in battle is reckoned happy ; vvhil they, 
 who die of old age or disease, are held infamous." IJitt. lib. xxxi. 
 
 VOL. I. G SooK 
 
10 THE HISTORY OF [i^AH-r i. 
 
 Soon convinced that the combat was unequal, they attempt- 
 ed to appease their invaders by money: but that peace 
 could not be of long continuance, which put those who 
 sold it in a better condition to sell another. Force is 
 seldom just. These voluntary contributions were changed 
 into a tribute, which was demanded as a right; and war 
 was denounced when it was refused, or fell short of the 
 customary sum. Tributes were multiplied upon tributes, 
 till the empire was drained of its treasure. Another 
 expedient was then fallen upon: large bodies of the barba- 
 rians were taken into pay, and opposed to other barba- 
 rians. This mode of defence, so contrary to the practice 
 of the first Romans, answered for the moment, but ter- 
 minated in ruin: those auxiliaries proved the most 
 dangerous enemies to the empire. Already acquainted 
 with the Roman luxuries, the Roman wealth, and the 
 Roman weakness, they turned their arms against their 
 masters, inviting their countrymen to come and share 
 with them in the spoils of a people unworthy of so many 
 accommodations. They were likewise become acquainted 
 with what little military skill yet remained among the 
 Romans; and that, superadded to their natural intrepi- 
 dity, made them perfectly irresistible. A third expe- 
 dient, yet more unworthy of the Roman name, was had 
 recourse to:. ...assassination was employed by the empe- 
 rors against those princes, or leaders, whose arms they 
 feared ; it was even concealed beneath the mask of friend- 
 ship, and perpetrated under the roof of hospitality! in 
 the convivial hour, and at the festive board*^. 
 
 This diabolical practice, the want of faith, and other 
 unmanly vices of the Romans, not only account for the 
 total subversion of their empire, but also for many of 
 the cruelties of the conquerors. Inflamed with the pas- 
 sion of revenge, no less than the thirst of conquest or 
 the lust of plunder, the inflexible and high spirited, 
 though naturally generous barbarians, were equally deaf 
 to the offers of treaty and the voice of supplication. 
 
 8. Mon'esquieu and Gibbon, ubi siip. 
 
 Wherever 
 
LET. I.] MODERN EUROPE. 11 
 
 Wherever they marched, their route was marked with 
 blood. The most fertile and populous provinces were 
 converted into deserts. Italy, and Rome itstilf was often 
 pillaged. New invaders, from regions more remote and 
 barbarous, drove out or exterminated the former settlers ; 
 and Europe was successively laid waste, till the North, 
 by pouring forth its myriads, was drained of people, 
 and the sword of slaughter tired of destroying. 
 
 In less than an hundred years after the first northern 
 invasion, scarce any remains of the laws, manners, arts, 
 or literature of the Romans were left in our quarter of 
 the globe. By the beginning of the sixth century, the 
 Visigoths had possessed themselves of Spain; the Franks 
 of Gaul; the Saxons of the Roman provinces in South 
 Britain; the Huns of Pannonia; the Ostrogoths of Italy, 
 and the adjacent provinces. New governments, laws, 
 languages; new manners, customs, dresses, new names 
 of men and of countries every where prevailed. A total 
 change took place in the state of Europe'. 
 
 How far this change ought to be lamented, is not now 
 a matter of much dispute. The human species was re- 
 duced to such a degree of debasement by the pressure 
 of Roman despotism, that we can hardly be sorry at any 
 means, however violent, which removed or lightened the 
 load. But we cannot help lamenting, at the same time, 
 that this revolution v/as the work of nations so little 
 enlightened by science or polished by civilization: for 
 the Roman laws, though somewhat corrupted, were yet 
 in general the best that human v/isdom had framed; and 
 the Roman arts and literature, though much declined, 
 
 9. A similar change was soon to take place in the state of Asia, great 
 part of which was st'll subject to the emperors of Coastarttinop'e. These 
 emperors, though gradually robbed of their Asiatic provinces by the 
 followers of Mahomet, continued to preserve, in the East, as we shall 
 have occasion to see, an image of Roman greatness, long after Rome had 
 been sacked by the barbarians, and the Roman dominion finally extin- 
 guished in the V/est. The Roman provinces in Africa were already cver- 
 vttii by the Vandal», who had spread desolation with fir« arvd sv;ord. 
 
 were 
 
18 THE HISTORY OF [paut i. 
 
 were still superior to any thing found among rude na- 
 tions, or which those who spurned them produced for 
 many ages. 
 
 The contempt of the barbarians for the Roman im- 
 provements is not wholly, however, to be ascribed to 
 their ignorance, nor the suddenness of the revolution to 
 their desolating fury ; the manners of the conquered must 
 come in for a share. Had the Romans not been in the 
 lowest state of national degeneracy, they might surely have 
 civilized their conquerors; had they retained any of the 
 virtues of men among them, they might have continued 
 under the government of their own laws. Many of the 
 northern leaders were endowed with great abilities, and 
 several of them were acquainted both with the policy and 
 literature of the Romans; but they were justly afraid of 
 the contagious influence of Roman example ; and there- 
 fore avoided every thing allied to that name, whether 
 hurtful or otherwise". They erected a cottage in the 
 neighbourhood of a palace, breaking down the stately 
 building, and burying in its ruins the finest works of 
 human ingenuity; they ate out of vessels of wood, and 
 made the vanquished be served in vessels of silver; they 
 hunted the boar on the voluptuous parterre, the trim 
 garden, and expensive pleasure-ground, where effemi- 
 ' nacy was wont to saunter, or indolence to loll; and they 
 pastured their herds, where they might have raised a 
 luxuriant harvest. They prohibited their children the 
 knowledge of literature, and of all the elegant arts; be- 
 cause they concluded, from the dastardliness of the Ro- 
 mans, that learning tends to enervate the mind, and that 
 he who has trembled under the rod of a pedagogue will 
 never dare to meet a sword with an undaunted eye". 
 
 10. " When we would brand an enemy," says an enlightened bai-ba- 
 riun, " with disgraceful and contumelious appellations, we call him a 
 Roman; a name which comprehends whatever is base, cowardly, avari- 
 cious, luxurious.. ..in a word, lyin^, and all other vices." Luitprand, Le- 
 gal, ap. Murat. vol. ii. 
 
 11. Procop. Bell. Goth. lib. i. 
 
 Upon 
 
I.ET. I.] MODERN EUROPE. 13 
 
 Upon the same principles they rejected the Roman juris- 
 prudence. It reserved nothing to the vengeance of man: 
 they therefore, not unphilosophically, thought it must rob 
 him of his active powers. Nor could they conceive 
 how the person injured could rest satisfied, but by 
 pouring out his fury upon the author of the injustice. 
 Hence all those judicial combats, and private wars which 
 for many ages desolated Europe. 
 
 In what manner light arose out of this darkness, order 
 out of this confusion, and taste out of this barbarism, we 
 shall have occasion to observe in the course of history: 
 how genius and magnificence display themselves in a new 
 mode, which prevailed for a time, and was exploded; 
 how the sons came to idolize that literature which their 
 fathers had proscribed, and wept over the ruins, of those 
 sculptures, paintings, and buildings, which they could not 
 restore; digging from dunghills, and the dust of ages the 
 models of their future imitations, and enervating them- 
 selves with the same arts which had enervated the Ro- 
 mans. 
 
 In the meantime we must take a view of the system 
 of policy and legislation established by the barbarians on 
 their first settlement. 
 
 LETTER 
 
U THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 THE SYSTEM OF POLICY AND LEGISLATIO^f ESTABLISHED BY 
 THE BARBARIANS, ON SETTLING IN THE PROVINCES OF 
 THE ROMAN EMPIRE. 
 
 jL he ancient Gauls, the Britons, the Germans, 
 the Scandinavians, and all the nations of the north of 
 Europe, had a certain degree of conformity in their go- 
 vernment, manners, and opinions. The same leading 
 character, and the same degree of conformity was also 
 observ-able among their more modern descendants, who, 
 under the names of Goths and Vandals, dismembered the 
 Roman empire. Alike distinguished by a love of war 
 and of liberty, by a persuasion that force only constitutes 
 right, and that victory is an infallible proof of justice, 
 they were equall)' bold in attacking their enemies, and in 
 resisting the absolute domination of any one man. They 
 were free even in a state of submission. Their primitive 
 government was a kind of military democracy, under a 
 general or chieftain, who had commonly the title of king. 
 Matters of little consequence were determined by the 
 principal men, but the whole community assembled to 
 deliberate on national objects. The authority of their 
 kings or generals, who owed their eminence entirely to 
 their military talents, and held it by no other claim, was 
 extremely limited: it consisted rather in the privilege of 
 advising, than in the power of commanding. Every in- 
 dividual was at liberty to chuse whether he would engage 
 in any warlike enterprise. They therefore followed the 
 chieftain who led them forth in quest of new settlements 
 from inclination, not controul'; as volunteers who offered 
 to accompany him, not as soldiers whom he could order 
 to march. They considered their conquests as common 
 
 1. Carsar. </f Bell. Gall. lib. vi. Tacit, de Moribus German, cap. xi — 
 Jtlvj. Amra. Marcel, lib. xxxi. Pris. Ehet. ap. Byzz. Script, vol. i. 
 
 property, 
 
LET. II.] MODERN EUROPE. IS 
 
 property, in which all had a right to share, as all had con- 
 tributed to acquire them; nor was any obligation what- 
 soever entailed on the possessor of lands thus obtained. 
 Every one was the lord of his own little territory. 
 
 But after settling in the Roman provinces, M'here they 
 had their acquisitions to maintain not only against the an- 
 cient inhabitants, but also against the inroads of new in- 
 vaders, the northern conquerors saw the necessity of a 
 closer union, and of relinquishing some of their private 
 rights for public safety. They continued therefore to ac- 
 knowledge the general who had led them to victory: he 
 was considered as the head of the colony ; he had the 
 largest share of the conquered lands ; and every free 
 man, or every subordinate officer and soldier, upon re- 
 ceiving a share, according to his military rank, tacitly 
 bound himself to appear against the enemies of the 
 community'. 
 
 This new division of property, and the obligations 
 consequent upon it, gave rise to a species of government 
 formerly unknown, and which is commonly distinguished 
 by the name of the feudal systkm. The idea of a feudal 
 kingdom was borrowed from that of a military establish- 
 ment. The victorious army, cantoned out in the coun- 
 try which it had seized, continued arranged under its 
 proper officers, who were ordered to hold tlieniselves in 
 readiness to assemble whenever occasion should require 
 their united operations or counsels. 
 
 But that system of policy, apparently so well calcula- 
 ted for national defence or conquest, and which prevailed 
 for several centuries in almost every kingdom of Europe, 
 did not sufficiently provide for the interior order and tran- 
 quillity of the state. The bond of political union was fee- 
 ble; the sources of dissention were many; and corruption 
 was interwoven with the very frame of the constitution. 
 The partial division of the conquered lands, which were 
 
 2. Du Cange, G!oss. voc. Miles e' Alcdie. 
 
 chiefly 
 
16 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 chiefly swallowed up by the great officers, gave the few a 
 dangerous ascendency over the many. The king or gene- 
 nil, by his superior allotment, had it amply in his power to 
 reward past services or attach new followers, for the pur-? 
 pose of future wars. With this view he parcelled out his 
 lands; binding those, on whom he bestowed them, to attend 
 him in all his military enterprises, under the penaltyof for- 
 feiture. The nobles, or great officers, followed his exam- 
 ple, annexing the same conditions to their benefices or 
 grants of land, and appearing at the head of their numerous 
 vassals, like so many independent princes, whenever 
 their pride was v/ounded or their property injured. They 
 disputed the claims of the sovereign; they withdrew their 
 attendance, or turned their arms against him^ A strong 
 barrier was thus formed against a general despotism 
 in the state ; but the nobles themselves, by means of 
 their wavlike retainers, were the tyrants of every infe- 
 rior district, holding the people in servitude, and prevent- 
 ing any regular administration of justice, every one claim- 
 ing that prerogative within his own domain. Nor was 
 this the only privilege those haughty nobles usurped; they 
 also extorted from the crown the right of coining money 
 in their own name, and of carrying on war against their 
 private enemies^. 
 
 In consequence of these encroachments on the royal 
 prerogative, the powerful vassals of the crown obtained 
 grants during life, and afterwards others including their 
 heirs, of such lands as they had originally held only dur- 
 ing pleasure. And they appropriated to themselves titles 
 of honour, as well as offices of power and of trust, 
 which became hereditary in many families. The ties 
 which connected the principal members of the constitution 
 with its head were dissolved; almost all ideas of politi- 
 cal subjection were lost, and little appearance of feudal 
 subordination remained. The nobility openly aspired at 
 
 5. Montesquieu, UEspritdea Loix, liv. xxx. xxxi. 
 4. Montesquieu, uhi supra. Robiertson, Inlrod. L'ist. Charles V. Hume, 
 Hist. Er-.g. Append, ii. 
 
 independency: 
 
LET. II.] MODERN EUROPE. 17 
 
 independency: they scorned to consider themselves as 
 subjects; and a kingdom, considerable In name and ex- 
 tent, was often a mere shadow of monarchy, and really 
 consisted of as many sparate principalities as It contained 
 baronies. A thousand feuds and jealousies subsisted 
 among the barons, and gave rise to as many wars^. 
 Hence every country in Europe, wasted or kept in con- 
 tinual alarm by these internal hostilities, was filled with 
 castles ?.nd places of strength, in order to protect the in- 
 habitants from the fury of their fellow-subjects. 
 
 Kingdoms so divided, and torn by domestic broils, 
 were little capable of any foreign effort. The wars of 
 Europe, therefore during several centuries, as we shall 
 have occasion to see, resembled more the wild and desul- 
 tory incursions of pirates, or banditti, than the regular 
 and concerted operations of national force. Happily, 
 however, for posterity, the state of every kingdom was 
 nearly the same ; otherwise all must have fallen a prey 
 to one: the independent spirit of the North might have 
 been extinguished forever; and the present harmonious 
 system of European policy, which so gloriously struggled 
 from the chaos of anarchy, would have sunk in eternal 
 night. 
 
 The particular manner in which the barbarians, or 
 northern invaders, conducted their judicial proceedings, 
 when they first settled in the provinces of the Roman 
 empire, cannot now be distinctly ascertained: but their 
 form of government, their manners, and a variety of 
 other circumstances, lead us to believe it was nearly the 
 same with that which prevailed in their original countries; 
 where the authority of the magistrate was so limited, 
 and the independency of individuals so great, that they 
 seldom admitted any umpire but the sword". 
 
 Our most ancient historical records justify this opin- 
 ion: they represent the exercise of justice in all the king- 
 doms of Europe, and the ideas of men with respect to 
 
 5. Id. ibid. 6. Ferguson, Essay on the Hist, of Civil Society, part ii, 
 VOL. I. H equity, 
 
18 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 equity, as little different from those which prevail in a 
 state of nature, and deform the first stages of society in 
 every country. Resentment was almost the sole motive 
 for prosecuting crimes; and the gratification of that pas- 
 sion, more than any View to the prosperity and good 
 order of society, was the end, and also the rule in pun- 
 ishing them. He that suffered the -wrong, was the only 
 person who had a right xo pursue the aggressor; to 
 demand or remit the punishment: — and he might accept 
 of a compensation for any offence how heinous soever. 
 The prosecution of criminals in the name, and by the 
 authority of the community, in order to deter others 
 from violating the laws, now justly deemed the great 
 object of legislation, was a maxim of jurisprudence then 
 little understood in theory, and still less regarded in 
 practice. The civil and criminal judges could, in most 
 cases, do no more than appoint the lists, and leave the 
 parties to decide their cause by the sword. Fierce and 
 haughty nobles, unused to the restraints of law, con- 
 sidered it as infamous to give up to another the right of 
 determining what reparation they should accept of, or with 
 v/hat vengeance they should rest satisfied: they scorned 
 to appeal to any tribunal but their own right-arm. And if 
 men of interior condition sometimes submitted to av/ard 
 or arbitration, it was only to that of the leader whose 
 courage they respected, and whom in the field they had 
 been accustomed to obey^ Hence every chieftain became 
 the judge of his tribe in peace, as well as its general in 
 war. — The pernicious effects of this power upon gevern- 
 ment and upon manners, and the many absurd modes 
 of trial established before its abolition, we shall have 
 
 7, This subject has been finely illustrated by Dr. Robertson, (Introd. 
 Hist. Charles V.) and by the president Montesquieu, (L'Esprit des Loix^ 
 liv. xviii. — xxxi.) who has written a philosophical commentary on the 
 Lavss of the Barbarians. It has also been treated, with much learning 
 and ingenuity, by Dr. Stuart in his F/cw of Society, and by Mr. Gibbon 
 Ja his History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, chap, xxxviii. 
 
 frequent 
 
LET. III.] MODERN EUROPE. 19 
 
 frequent occasion to observe in the history of eveiy 
 modern kingdom. 
 
 The feudal system, however, with all its imperfections, 
 and the disorders to which it gave birth, was by no 
 means so debasing to humanity as the uniform pressure 
 of Roman despotism. Very different from that dead 
 calm w^iich accompanies peaceful slavery, and in which 
 every faculty of the soul sinks into a kind of somnolen- 
 cy, it kept the minds of men in continual ferment, and 
 their hearts in agitation. If animosities were keen, 
 friendships also were warm. The commonality were 
 unfortunately degraded to the condition of slaves, but 
 the nobility were exalted to the rank of princes. The 
 gentry were their associates: and the king, without the 
 form of compact, was in reality but chief magistrate, 
 or head of the community, and could literally do no 
 WRONG J or none, at least, Avith impunity. 
 
 LETTER III. 
 
 RISE OF THE FRENCH MONARCHY, AND THE HISTORY O.F 
 FRANCE UNDER THE KINGS OF THE FIRST RACE. 
 
 i-N history, as in all other sciences, it is neces- 
 sary to set certain limits to our inquiries, if we would 
 proceed with certainty; and, where utility more than 
 curiosity is our object, we must even contract these 
 boundaries. We must not only confine ourselves to those 
 periods where truth can be ascertained, but to those 
 events chiefly which were followed by some civil or 
 political consequence, which produced some alteration 
 in the government or the manners of a people: and, even 
 of such events, we should be more particularly attentive 
 to those which continue to operate upon our present 
 civil or political system. 
 
 In 
 
so THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 In these few words, my dear Philip, in order to avoid 
 egotism, I have indirectly given you an account of the 
 manner in which I mean to conduct that History of 
 Modern Europe^ which is intended for your instruction. 
 The first epochs of modern, as well as ancient history, 
 are involved in fable; and the transactions of the imme- 
 diately succeeding periods are handed down to us in 
 barren chronicles, v/hich convey no idea of the character 
 of the agents, and consequently are destitute alike of 
 instruction and amusement; while the events of latter 
 ages are related with a copiousness so profuse and 
 undlstinguishing, that a selection becomes absolutely 
 necessary, for such as would not willingly spend a life- 
 time in acquiring a knowledge of the transactions of those 
 who have lived before them. And as I would rather have 
 you acquainted with the character of one living, than of 
 ten dead statesmen or heroes, I shall be as concise in 
 my narration as is consistent with perspicuity, and as 
 select in my matter as information will allow; yet always 
 taking care to omit no anecdote which can throw light 
 on the history of the human heart, nor any circumstance 
 that marks the progress of civil society. 
 
 Modern history is of little importance before the 
 time of Charlemagne; and a late celebrated writer has 
 fixed upon the coronation of that prince at Rome, in the 
 year 800, as the proper sera of its commencement. But, 
 for the sake of order, as well as to gratify the curiosity 
 we naturally have to become acquainted with the origin 
 of nations, I shall give you a short sketch of the state of 
 modern Europe previous to that sera. 
 
 The French monarchy first claims our notice; not on 
 account of its antiquity only, but because of its early 
 and continued consequence. Gaul was shared by the 
 Romans, the Visigoths, and the Burgundians, when 
 . Clovis king of the Franks, (son of Childeric, 
 and grandson of Merovius, head of the Salian 
 tribe) defeated Syagrius, a Roman usurper in that pro- 
 vince, and established a new kingdom, to which he gave 
 
 the 
 
LET. III.] MODERN EUROPE. 21 
 
 the name of France, or the Land of Free Men t» HoW 
 ill applied in latter times ! 
 
 Though Clovis was only nineteen years of age when 
 he obtained this victory, his prudence appears to have 
 been equal to his valour. And many circumstances con- 
 spired to his farther aggrandizement. The Gauls hated 
 the dominion of the Romans, and were strongly attach- 
 ed to Christianity: Clovis gained on their piety, by- 
 favouring their bishops: and his marriage with Clotilda,' 
 niece to Gondebaud, king of Burgundy, made them, 
 hope that he would speedily embrace the faith. The 
 attachment of his countrymen to their ancient worship 
 was the sole objection: the pious exhortations of the 
 queen had some effect; and the king having vanquished 
 the Allemanni at Tolbiac, near Cologne, after an obsti- 
 nate engagement, politically ascribed that victory to the 
 God of Clotilda, whom he said he had invoked during the 
 time of battle, under promise of becoming a Christian, 
 
 if crowned with success. He was accord- .^- 
 
 A. D. 4'96. 
 ingly baptised by St. Rernigius, bishop of 
 
 Rheims, and almost the whole French nation followed 
 
 his example^. 
 
 This was a grand circumstance in favour of Clovis: 
 
 and he did not fail to take advantage of it. The Gauls 
 
 were staunch Catholics, but the Visigoths and Burgun- 
 
 dians were Arians. Clotilda, however, happily was a 
 
 Catholic, though nursed in the bosom of Arianism; and 
 
 1. Gregor. Turon. lib. ii. cap. 27. 
 
 2. Gest. Franc, cap. xv. Greg.Turon. lib. ii. cap. SI. Of the miracle, 
 said to have been wrought on the conversion of Clovis, the author of 
 tliis work says nothing, as he would not wish to foster pious credulity; 
 but the lovers of the marvellous will find sufficient food for their passion 
 in Hincmar (Vit. St. Rcmig.) It may not, hov/ever, be improper to ob- 
 serve, that Clovis, when warmed with the eloquence of the bishop of 
 Rheims, in describing the passion and death of Christ, started up, and 
 seizing his spear, violently exclaimed, "Had I been there with the va- 
 •' liant Franks, I would have, redressed his \7rong3!" Fredig. Epitotn. 
 cap. xxi. 
 
 Clovis 
 
2B THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Clovis himself overflowed with zeal for the same faith, 
 as soon as he found it would second his ambitious views. 
 Under colour of religion, he made war vipon Alaric, 
 king of the Visigoths, who possessed the country be- 
 tween the Rhone and the Loire. I'he Gallic 
 clergy favoured his pretensions; and the bat- 
 tle of Vouille, in which the king of the Visigoths was 
 vanquished and slain, near Poictiers, added to the king- 
 dom of France the province of Aquitaine^. 
 
 But Clovis, instead of enjoying his good fortune with 
 dignitv, disfigured the latter part of his reign by perfidies 
 and cruelties toward the princes of his house, whom he 
 extirpated. He died in 511, after attempting to atone 
 for his crimes by building and endowing ch'arches and 
 monasteries, and assembling a council at Orleans for the 
 regulation of church-discipline"*, 
 
 The death of Clovis was a severe blow to the gran- 
 deur of the French monarchv. He left four 
 A. D. 511. , J- • 1 1 1 • ■ • 1 • • 
 
 sons, who divided his extensive dominions 
 
 among them. Thierry, the eldest, had the largest share ; 
 he was king of Austrasia, or that part of the Oriental 
 France which lies between the Rhine and the Meuse, 
 Metz was his capital. Childebert was king of Paris, 
 Clodimir of Orleans, and Clotaire of Soissons^ This 
 division of the empire of the Franks, into four indepen- 
 dent kingdoms, not only weakened its force, but gave 
 rise to endless broils. The brothers became enemies 
 whenever their interests jarred. The most frightful bar- 
 barities were the consequence of their dissensions. Mur- 
 ders and assassinations grew common events. 
 
 The experience of these evils, however, did not 
 prevent a like division taking place after the death of 
 Clotaire, the sole successor of his brothers and nephews. 
 His four sons divided the four kingdoms by lot*^. The 
 
 kingdom of Paris fell to the lot of Caribert; 
 
 Soissons to Chilpevicj Austrasia to Slgebert? 
 
 5. Greg. Tiir. lib. ii. cap. 37. 4. Greg. Tiiron. lib. ii. cap. 40 — 43 
 5. Ibid. lib. cap. ". C. Ibid. lib. iv. cap. 22. Gest. Franc, cap. xxix. 
 
 and 
 
LET. I.] MODERN EUROPE. ,23 
 
 and Orleans to Gontran, in whose lot also was included 
 Burgundy, which had been conquered by the united 
 forces of Childebert and Clotaire. This new division 
 was followed by consequences still more fatal than the 
 former. Two queens, more deserving the name of furies 
 than of women, sacrificed every thing to their bloody 
 ambition; Brunechikla, princess of Spain, wife to Sige- 
 bert, king of Austrasia, and Fredegonda, first concubine 
 and afterward wife to Chilperlc, king of Soissons. Their 
 mutual hatred, conjoined with their influence over their 
 husbands, was productive of an infinite number of crimes, 
 equally ruinous to the people and the royal family, and 
 the most enormous to be met with in the history of 
 mankind. 
 
 After the murder of a multitude of princes, and 
 many jears of civil war, carried on with the most vin- 
 dictive spirit, and accompanied with every form of treach- 
 ery and cruelty, Clotaire II. son of Chilperic and Fre- 
 deoronda, was left sole monarch of France^. 
 
 . . . . A D. 61 3 
 
 He re-established tranquillity, and gained the 
 hearts of his people by his justice and generosity: and 
 he attached the nobility to him by augmenting their con- 
 sequence. He committed the government of the pro- 
 vinces of Austrasia and Burgundy to the Mayors of the 
 palace, as they were called; a kind of viceroj^s, who, 
 daily acquiring power, at last made their way to the 
 throne. 
 
 The vices of Dagobert, the son of Clotaire ; the 
 taxes with which he loaded the people, to furnish his 
 debauches, or to atone for them, according to the cus- 
 tom of those times, by piaus profusions, weakened the 
 royal authorit}^ at the same time that they debased it. 
 His two sons, Sigebert II. and Clovis II. were only the 
 founders of new convents. They were nobody in their 
 kingdoms, the mayors were every thing. 
 
 On the death of Sigebert, Grimoald, mayor of Aus- 
 trasia, set his own son upon the throne of that kingdom. 
 
 7. Fredig. Chivn. cap. xliii. 
 
 The 
 
24 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 The usurper was deposed; but the seducing example 
 
 ^^^ remained as a lure to future ambition. The 
 A. D. 656. ,. . , 1 . 
 
 succeedmg sovereigns were as weak as their 
 
 predecessors: and Pepin Heristel, duke of Austrasia, 
 
 governed France twenty-eight years, under the title of 
 
 mayor, with equal prudence and fortitude. The kings 
 
 were no more than decorated pageants, to be shewn to 
 
 the people occasionally. The appellation of sluggards, 
 
 which was given them, aptly expresses their stupid 
 
 inactivity. 
 
 After the death of Pepin, who, by restoring national 
 
 assemblies, which the despotism of former 
 
 * mayors had abolished, by turning the restless 
 impetuosity of the French against foreign enemies, whom 
 he always overcame, and other wise measures, had quietly- 
 enjoyed a power hitherto unknown in the monarchy; his 
 authority passed into the hands of his widow Plectrude, 
 whose grandson, yet an infant, was created mayor. So 
 high was the veneration of the French for the memory 
 of that great man ! — But the government of a woman 
 was ill suited to those turbulent times, though the insig- 
 nificant kings were content to live under the guardianship 
 of a child. Charles Mavtel, natural son of Pepin, was 
 suspected of ambitious views by Plectrude, and imprison- 
 ed. He found means, however, to make his escape, and 
 was received by the Austrasians as their deliverer. His 
 
 superior talents soon exalted him to the same 
 "* degree of power which his father had enjoyed, 
 and he was no less worthy of it. He saved France from 
 the sword of the Saracens, who had already subjected 
 Spain, and he kept all the neighbouring nations in awe 
 by his wise and vigorous administration; yet he never 
 
 styled himself any more than duke of France, 
 * conscious that the title of kingcould add nothing 
 to his power. But his son Pepin, less modest or more 
 vain, assumed the sovereignty in name as well as reality; 
 excluding forever the descendants of Clovis, or the Me- 
 rovingian race from the throne of France^ 
 
 8. Adon. Cbron. Annul, Metens. 
 
 The 
 
LET. IV.] MODERN EUROPE. 25 
 
 The circumstances of that revolution I shall soon 
 have occasion to relate. At present we must take a view 
 of th^ other states of Europe. 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 S'PAIK UNDER THE DOMINipN OF THE VISIGOTHS, AND UNDEft 
 THE MOORS, TILL THE REIGN' OF ABDURRAHMAN. 
 
 oPAIN, my dear Philip, next merits your at- 
 tention as the second great kingdom on this side of the 
 Alps. Soon after the Visigoths founded their monarchy 
 in that Roman province, already over-run by the 
 
 . AD 46/ 
 
 Vandals and the Suevi, the clergy became pos- 
 sessed of more power than the prince. So early was the 
 tyranny of the church in Spain I Almost all causes, both 
 civil and ecclesiastical, were referred to the bench of bish- 
 ops; they even decided in their councils the most weigh- 
 ty affairs of the nation. Along with the nobles, among 
 whom they held the first rank, they often disposed of 
 the crown, which was more elective than hereditary'. 
 The kingdom vv^as one theatre of revolutions and crimes. 
 The number of kings assassinated fills the soul with hor 
 ror. The barbarians, after their establishment, contrac- 
 ted new vices: their ferocity became bloody, WTiat 
 crimes did no bigotry alone produce ! 
 
 In order to make you fully sensible of this, as well 
 as acquainted with all that is necessary to be known in 
 the history of the Visigoths in Spain, I need only mention 
 the principal reigns. 
 
 Leovigild, who died in 585, and who is so much ce- 
 lebrated for his victories over the Suevi, whom 
 he entirely subdued, put to death his son Her- 
 jnenegild, because he had embraced the Catholic faith, 
 
 1. Geddes's Tracts, vol. ii. See also Savedv?, Cq/oim €^»rtAiea. 
 
 VOL. u I he 
 
^ THE HISTORY OF 
 
 he himself being an Arian. Recared, however, his other 
 son and successor, abjured Arianism. The Avians were 
 persecuted in their turn. The spirit of persecution dai- 
 ly increased. Sisebut, a prince in other respects wise, 
 and whose valour dispossessed the Greek emperors of 
 what territory they had continued to hold on the coasts 
 of the Mediterranean obliged the Jews, on 
 ~*pain of death, to receive baptism. In the 
 reign of this monarch the empire of the Visigoths was at 
 its height ; comprehending not only Spain, but also some 
 neighbouring provinces of Gaul, and part of Mauritania. 
 Chintila, a subsequent king, banished all the Jews; and a 
 council, or assembly of divines, convokedduringhis reign, 
 declared that no prince could ascend the Spanish throne 
 without swearing to enforce all the laws enacted against 
 that unfortunate people. Under the reign of Recesuint, 
 the election of kings was reserved by a council to the 
 bishops and palatines. These palatines were the principal 
 officers of the crown. — Thus the Spanish nobility lost one 
 of their most essential rights. 
 
 Wamba, who defeated the Saracens in an attempt up- 
 on Spain, was excluded the throne, because he 
 "' had been clothed in the habit of a penitent, 
 while labom-ing under the influence of poison, adminis- 
 tered by the ambitious Erviga! — This stroke of priest- 
 craft, the first of the kind we meet with in history, shews 
 at a distance what might be expected from clerical finesse. 
 A council adjudged the throne to Erviga; and another 
 council, held during his reign, prohibited the king, under 
 penalty of damnation, from marrying a king's widow. 
 This canon is a sufficient proof of the spirit of legis- 
 lation which at that time prevailed in Spain. The de- 
 bauchery, cruelty, and impiety of Witiza, whose wick- 
 edness knew no bounds, occasioned a civil war in 710. 
 Roderic, or Roderigue, dethroned this prince, 
 and was himself dethroned by a people whom 
 nothing could withstand^ 
 
 2. Isidor. Cron. Goth. Ferreras, Hist. Eisp, vol. ii. Mariana, ibid. Greg. 
 Turon. lib. vi. 
 
 T^-i 
 
LET. IV.] MODERN EUROPE. 27 
 
 The Mahometan religion was already established in 
 many countries. Mahomet, its founder, who erected at 
 Mecca a spiritual and temporal monarchy, had died in 
 632 J and his countrymen, the Arabs or Saracens, soon 
 after over-ran great part of Asia, and all that part of 
 Africa which was under the Roman dominion. Animated 
 by the most violent spirit of fanaticism, their valour was 
 altogether irresistible. The Koran promised heaven 
 and eternal sensuality to such as fell in battle, and the 
 conquerors always tendered liberty and protection to 
 those who embraced their superstition. They threatened 
 the whole world with subjection. Count Julian, whose 
 daughter king Roderic had dishonoured, invited them, 
 it is said, to land in Spain. Nor is this circumstance 
 by any means improbable, considering the character of 
 the times, more revolutions being then occasioned by thje 
 private vices of princes than any other cause. 
 
 The Saracens, already masters of Mauritania, now 
 
 Barbary (a name which the lawless ferocity of their 
 
 descendants has given to that country, as it gave to them 
 
 the name of Maures or Moors), made a de- 
 
 • . A. D 712. 
 
 scent upon Spain; and by the decisive battle 
 
 of Xeres, in Andalusia, put an end to the empire of the 
 Visigoths^ Muza, viceroy of Africa, under the calif 
 Walid, came over to finish the conquest. According to 
 the prudent policy of the Mahometans (the only 
 enthusiasts who ever united the spirit of toleration with 
 a zeal for making proselytes), he offered the inhabitants 
 their religion and laws, on condition that they should 
 pay to him the same subsidy they had paid their former 
 sovereigns: and such as embraced the religion of the con- 
 querors were intitled to all their privileges. Most cities 
 submitted without resistance: those that held out he 
 reduced by force, burning and pillaging them. Oppas, 
 archbishop of Seville, and uncle to the children of Witiza, 
 
 3. Rod. Tolet Hht. Arab. Ferreras, ubi sup. 
 
 was 
 
30 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 was not ashamed on this occssion to join the Saracens, 
 and sacrificed his countiy and his religion to his hatred 
 against Koderic. But Pelagious, a prince of the royal 
 blood, remained firm in his faith and his duty; and when 
 he could no longer keep the field against the Infidels, he 
 retired to the mountains of Asturlas, followed b)'^ a 
 ^ number of faithful adherents. There he 
 founded a Christian kingdom which he defend- 
 ed by his valour, and transmitted to his posterity"^. 
 
 Meanwhile the Saracens or Moors, little willing to 
 confine their ambition witiiin the limits of the Pyrenees, 
 made an unsuccessful attack vipon Eudes, duke of Aqut- 
 taine. But that check was soon forgot. Abdurrahman, 
 the new emir or governor of Spain, made 'a second 
 irruption with superior forces, and penetrated as far as 
 Sens. Repelled there by bishop Ebbo, he fell upon 
 Aquitaine, vanquished the duke, and advanced towards 
 
 ^ ^ the heart of France. Charles Martel put a 
 A. D. 732. . . . 
 
 stop to his career, between Poictiers and 
 
 Tours, by a memorable battle, irif which Abdurrahman 
 himself was slain; and, if we believe the historians of 
 those times, the Saracens lost in this action above three 
 hundred thousand men. But such exaggerations are fit 
 only for romance. 
 
 Spain was at first very miserable under the dominion 
 of the Moors. The emirs being dependent on the 
 viceroy of Africa, who allowed them to continue but a 
 short time in their gcvernment, were more busy in fleec- 
 ing the Spanish nation, than in the administration of 
 justice or the preservation of good order. Civil wars 
 arose among the Moslems themselves, and the califs or 
 vicars of the prophet, the successors of Mahomet, who had 
 made Damascus the seat of their court, were unable to 
 quell those disorders. The competitions for the califat, 
 as may by expected, even favoured the projects of the 
 rebels. At length that august dignity, which included 
 
 4. Mariana, vol. i. Ferreras, vol. ii. 
 
 both 
 
LET. IV.] MODERN EUROPE. 29 
 
 both the highest regal and sacerdotal eminence, passed 
 from the family of the Ommiades to that of the 
 Abassides. This revolution, which was bloo- 
 dy, gave birth to another, truly advantageous to Spain, 
 but injurious to the Christian faith. 
 
 Abdurrahman, called also, Almanzor, a prince of the 
 blood royal, who escaped in the massacre of the 
 Ommiades, founded in Spain an independent 
 kingdom, consisting of all those provinces which had been 
 subject to the califs He fixed his residence at Cordo- 
 va, which he made the seat of the arts, of magnificence 
 and of pleasure. Without persecuting the Christians, 
 he was able, by his artful policy, almost to extinguish 
 Christianity in his dominions ; — by depriving the bishops 
 of their dioceses; by reserving all honour and offices for 
 the followers of his prophet; und by promoting intermar- 
 riages between the Christians and Mahometans. No 
 prince in Europe equalled Abdurrahman in wisdom, nor 
 anypeople the Arabs in whatever tends to the aggrandize- 
 ment of the human soul. Lately enemies to the sciences, 
 they now cultivated them with success, and enjoyed a 
 considerable share both of learning and politeness, while 
 the rest of mankind were sunk in ignorance and barba- 
 rism*^. 
 
 I shall afterward have occasion to be more particular 
 on this subject. In the mean time, we must cast an eve 
 on Italy, Rome, Constantinople, and France, from the 
 time of Charles Martel to that of Charlemagne. 
 
 5. Ferreras. ubi sup. 6. Ockley, IlUt. Sarac. vol. i. ii. 
 
 LETTER 
 
30 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 LETTER V. 
 
 ITALY UNDER THE DOMINION' OF THE OSTROGOTHS, AND UNDER 
 THE LOMBARDS TILL THE UEIGN OF LUITPRAND. 
 
 XTALY experienced a variety of fortunes after 
 it lost its ancient masters, before it fell into the hands of 
 Charlemagne. It was first wholly conquered 
 * by the Heruli, a people from the extremity of 
 the Euxlne or Black Sea, who held it only a short time, 
 being expelled by the Ostrogoths. Theodoric, the first 
 Gothic king of Italy, and several of his succes- 
 sors, were princes of great prudence and hu- 
 manity. They allowed the Italians, or Romans, as they 
 still affected to be called, to retain their possessions, their 
 laws, their religion, their own government, and their own 
 magistrates, reserving only to the Goths the principal mi- 
 litary employments. They acknowledged the emperors of 
 Constantinople their superiors in rank, but not in juris- 
 diction. Ravenna was the seat of their court, and in real 
 magnificence vied with ancient Rome, as their equitable 
 administration did with the reigns of Trajan and Antoni- 
 nus'. They were at lastsubduedby Belisarius and Narses, 
 the generals of Justinian, who having recovered Africa 
 fi-om the Vandals, had the pleasure of uniting 
 Italy once more to the Roman, Eastern, or 
 
 1. Procop. Bell. Goth. Cassiodor. lib. viii. The lenity of the Ostro- 
 goths on first settling in Italy, may l«e accounted for from two causes— 
 partly from that polish which their manners may be supposed to have re- 
 ceived (luring their intercourse with the Romans, whom they had long 
 served as auxiliaries against the Huns and other barbarous nations ; part- 
 ly from the character of Theodoric the Gothic conqueror, who having 
 been educated at Constantinople, and initiated in all the learning of the 
 times, retained ever after a just admiration of the Roman laws and arts. 
 
 Greek 
 
LET. v.] MODERN EUROPE. «1 
 
 Greek empire, the Western empire, which took its rise, 
 as a separate state, on the death of Theodosius in 325, 
 being totally annihilated by Odoacer, king of the Heruli. 
 
 Soon after the expulsion of the Ostrogoths, great part 
 of Italy was seized by Alboinus, king of the 
 Lombards or Langobards, a Gothic nation. He 
 and his successors made Pavia the place of their resi- 
 dence. The government of Italy was now entirely chang- 
 ed. Alboinus established the feudal policy in those 
 countries which he had conquered, settling the principal 
 officers of his army, under the name of duke, in the chief 
 cities of every province-. A similar kind of government 
 prevailed in that part of Italy which remained subject to 
 the emperors of Constantinople; the exarch or supreme 
 governor, who resided at Ravenna, appointing the dukes 
 or chief magistrates, of the other cities, and removing 
 them at pleasure. Even Rome itself was governed by 
 a duke, the very name of the senate and consuls being 
 abolished. 
 
 Alboinus was one of the greatest princes of his time, 
 and no less skilled in the science of reionine- 
 
 A. D. 57 1 1 
 
 than in the art of war ; but he was slain by the 
 treachery of his wife Rosamund, before he had leisure to 
 perfect the government of his kingdom. Clephis, his suc- 
 cessor, was an able, but a barbarous prince. His cruel- 
 ties gave the Lombards such an aversion against regal 
 power, that they resolved, after his death, to change 
 their form of government; accordingly, for the space of 
 twelve years, they chose no other king, but lived subject 
 to their dukes. These dukes had hitherto acknowledged 
 the royal authority: but, when the kingly power was abol- 
 ished, each duke became sovereign of his own city and 
 its district. 
 
 The Lombards, during that interregnum, extended 
 their conquests in Italy. But, being threatened by fo- 
 reign enemies, they saw the necessity of a closer union; 
 of restoring their ancient form of government and com- 
 mitting the management of the war to a single person. 
 
 2. Paul. Diac. dc Gest. Langob. lib. ii. 
 
 For 
 
52 THE HISTORY OF [part v. 
 
 For this purpose the heads of the nation assembled, 
 ^ and with one voice called Autharis, the son of 
 Clephis, to the throne. Autharis, perfected 
 that form of government, which had been established by 
 Alboinus. Sensible that the dukes, who had ruled their 
 several districts like indepeiiident princes, for so many- 
 years, would not willingly part with their authority, he 
 allowed them to continue in their governments, but re- 
 served to himself the supreme jurisdiction. He made 
 them contribute a part of their revenues toward the sup- 
 port of his royal dignity, and take an oath, that they would 
 assist him to the utmost of their power in time of war'. 
 After settling the government of his kingdom, he enacted 
 several salutary laws for its tranquillity and good order. 
 He was the first of the Lombard kings who embraced 
 Christianity, and many of his subjects followed his ex- 
 ample ; but being of the Arian persuasion, like most of 
 the northern conquerors, whose simple minds could not 
 comprehend the mysteries of the Trinity and incarnation, 
 many disputes were by that means occasioned between 
 the Arian and Catholic bishops; for the Romans, or 
 native Italians, were then as staunch Catholics as at this 
 day. 
 
 Liberty of conscience, however, was allowed under all 
 the Lombard kings; and Rotharis, who surpassed all his 
 predecessors in wisdom and valour, was so moderate ia 
 his principles, and so indulgent to his people, that during 
 his reign most cities of Italy had two bishops, one Catho- 
 lic and the other Arian. He was the first prince wha 
 
 ^ , c:ave written laws to the Lombards. For that 
 A. D. 643 . ' . 
 
 purpose he summoned at Pavia, a general di- 
 et of the nobles; and such regulations as they approved, 
 he ordered to be digested into a code, and observed over 
 all his dominions. His military talents were not inferior 
 to his civil. He very muchextendedthe limits of his king- 
 dom, and gained so many advantages over the imperial 
 
 2. Ibid. lib. iii. 
 
 forces, 
 
t.ET. v.] MODERN EUROPE. tS 
 
 forces, that no future hostilities passed between the ex- 
 archs and the kings of the Lombards, till the reign of 
 Luitprand. 
 
 But the emperor Constance, before that time, landed 
 in Italy with a considerable army, which he 
 commanded in person, determined to expel 
 the barbarians, and reunite the kingdom of Lombardy 
 to his dominions. He at first gained some inconsiderable 
 advantages; but his army was afterward totally routed 
 by Romuald, duke of Benevento, whose failier, Gri- 
 moald, had been elected king of the Lombards. — Gri- 
 moald was a prudent prince, and in all respects worthy 
 of the dignity to which he had been raised. As soon 
 as he was free from the alarms of war, he applied him- 
 self wholly to the arts of peace. He reform- ..„ 
 
 J 1 1 m 1- • 1-1 r A. D. 668. 
 
 ed the laws ol Kothans, which were now irom 
 choice appealed to by the Italians as well as the Lom- 
 bards; revoking some, and enacting others more appli- 
 cable to the circumstances of the times. Influenced by 
 the arguments of John, bishop of Bergamo, he renounced 
 the tenets of Arius. His successors followed his exam- 
 ple, all professing the Catholic faith; so that Arianism 
 was in a short time forsaken by the whole nation of the 
 Lombards'^. 
 
 Luitprand gave strong proofs of his wisdom and va- 
 lour from the moment he ascended the throne ; 
 , , . • . J J 1 A. D. 712. 
 
 but nis courage sometimes bordered on rash- 
 ness. Informed that two of his attendants had conspired 
 against his life, and only waited an opportunity to put 
 their design in execution, he walked out with them alone, 
 j^nd upbraided them with their guilt. Struck with such 
 heroic firmness, they threw themselves at his feet, as 
 wretches unworthy of mercy. The king, however, thought 
 otherwise: he not only pardoned them, but received them 
 into favour, promoting them afterwards to principal em- 
 pfloyments. Having thus won his domestic enemies by 
 kindness, and strengthened his interest abroad by marry- 
 
 4. Paul. Diac. lil>. y. 
 VOL. I. K. ing 
 
34 THE HISTORY OF [part r, 
 
 ing the daughter of the duke of Boioari'i, Luitprand ap- 
 plied himself, in imitation of his two illustrious predeces- 
 sors, Kotharis and Grimoald, to the formation of new 
 laws. In one of these, his sagacity appears highly con- 
 spicuous. He blames " the ridiculous custom of trials 
 " by duel, in which we would force God to manifest his 
 "justice according to the caprice of men;" adding, 
 *' that he has only tolerated the abuse, because the 
 *' Lombards are so much attached to it^" 
 
 But Luitprand's gi-eat qualities were in some mea- 
 sure shaded by his boundless ambition. Not satisfied 
 with the extensive dominions left him by his predeces- 
 sors, be formed the design of making himself sole master 
 of Italy: and a favourable opportunity soon offered for the 
 execution of that enterprise. 
 
 Leo Isauricusy then emperor of Constantinople, 
 
 where theological disputes had long mingled with affairs 
 
 of state, and where casuists were more common upon the 
 
 ^ throne than politicians, piously prohibited the 
 
 * Vi'orship of images; ordering all the statues to 
 be broken in pieces, and the paintings in the chiuxhes to 
 be pulled down and burnt. The populace, whose devo- 
 tion extended no farther than such objects, and the monks 
 and secular priests, interested in supporting the mumme- 
 ry, were so highly provoked at this innovation, that they 
 publicly revolted in many places. The emperor, how- 
 ever, took care to have his edict put in force in the East; 
 and he strictly enjoined the exarch of Ravenna, and his 
 other officers in the West, to see it as punctually obeyed 
 in their governments. In obedience to that command, 
 the exarch beean to pull down the images in 
 
 'the churches and public places at Ravenna; a 
 conduct which incensed the superstitious multitude to 
 such a degree, that they openly declared they would ra- 
 ther renounce their allegiance to the emperor than the 
 worship of images. They considered him as aix abo- 
 
 6: Leg. Lang'.)h. in Codex. Lindenbrog. 
 
 mlnable 
 
LET. V.3 MODERN EUROPE. 35 
 
 minable heretic, whom it was hiwful to resist by force, and 
 took arms for that purpose*^. 
 
 Luitprand, judging this the proper season to put his 
 ambitious project in execution, suddenly assembled his 
 forces, and unexpectedly appeared before Ravenna; not 
 doubting but the reduction of that important place would 
 be speedily followed by the conquest of all the imperial 
 dominions in Italy. The exarch, though little prepared 
 for such an assault, defended the city with much courage; 
 but finding he could not long hold out against so great a 
 force, and despairing of relief, he privately withdrew. 
 Luitprand, informed of this, made a vigorous attac^; 
 carried the city by storm, and gave it up to be plundered 
 by his soldiers, who found in it an immense booty, as it 
 
 had been successively the seat of the Western 
 
 • • AD 728. 
 
 Emperors, of the Gothic kings, and of the ex- 
 archs. Alarmed at the fate of Ravenna, most other ci- 
 ties in the exarchate surrendered without resistance^. 
 Luitprand seemed, therefore, in a fair way to become 
 master of all Italy. But that conquest neither he nor 
 any of his successors was erer able to complete: and 
 the attempt proved fatal to the kingdom of the Lombards^ 
 
 £ Meimb. Hist. Iconodaat. 7. Paul. Diac. lib. vi. 
 
 LEJT£R 
 
•M THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 SI3EOF THE POPE's TEMPORAL POWER, WITH SOME ACCOUN"? 
 
 OF thp: affairs of italy, the empire of Constanti- 
 nople, AND THE KINGDOM OF FRANCE, FROM THE TIME OF 
 CHARLES MARTEL TO THAT OF CHARLKMAGNE. 
 
 X HOUGH Rome was now governed by a 
 dt'lze, who depended on the exarch of Ravenna, the Pope, 
 or bishop, had the chief authority in that cit}'. He was 
 yet less conspicuous by his power than the respect which 
 religion inspired for his See, and the confidence which 
 was placed in his character. St. Gregory, who died in 
 604, had negociated with princes upon several matters of 
 state, and his successors divided their attention between 
 clerical and political objects. To free themselves from 
 the dominion of the Greek emperors, without falling a 
 prey to the kings of Italy, was the great object of these 
 ambitious prelates. In order to accomplish this impor- 
 tant purpose, they emplo3'ed succesfully both religion 
 and intrigue; and at last established a spiritual and tem- 
 poral monarchy, which of all human institutions, perhaps 
 jnost merits the attention of man, whether we consider its 
 nature, its progress, or its prodigious consequences. 
 
 Gregory II. had offended the emperor Leo, by oppo- 
 sing his edict against the worship of images; but he was 
 more afraid of the growing power of the Lombards than 
 of the emperor's threats ; he therefore resolved to put a 
 stop, if possible, to the conquests of Luitprand. The 
 only prince in Italy, to whom he could have recourse^ 
 was Ursus, duke of Venice, the Venetians making alrea- 
 dy no contemptible figure. Not less alarmed than Grego- 
 ry at the progress of so powerful a neighbour, Ursus and 
 ^ the Venetians promised to assist the exarch 
 (who had fled to them for protection) with the 
 whole strength of the republic. They accordingly fitted 
 
 out 
 
LET. VI.] MODERN EUROPE. M 
 
 out a considerable fleet, while the exarch conducted an 
 army by land, and retook Ravenna before Luitprand could 
 march to its relief. 
 
 As the recovery of Ravenna had been chiefly owing 
 to the interposition of Gregory, he hoped to be able to 
 prevail on the emperor to revoke his edict against the 
 worship of images in the West. Leo, however, sensible 
 that the Pope had been influenced merely by his own 
 interest in the measures he had taken relative to that event, 
 was only more provoked at his obstinacy, and resolved 
 that the edict should be obeyed even in Rome itself. 
 For this purpose he recalled Scholasticus, exarch of 
 Ravenna, and sent in his stead Paul, a patrician, order- 
 ing him to get the Pope assassinated, or to seize him, 
 and send him in chains to Constantinople. But Gregory, 
 far from being intimidated by the emperor's threats, so- 
 lemnly excommunicated the exarch for attempting to put 
 the imperial edict into execution, exhorting all 
 the Italian cities to continue stedfast in the 
 Catholic faith. Luitprand, though highly incensed against 
 Gregory, assisted him in his distress; and the populace 
 rose at Ravenna, and murdered the exarch, making pro- 
 digious slaughter of the Iconoclasts, or image-breakers, 
 as the abettors of the edict were called. The duke of 
 Naples shared the same fate with the exarch; and as Leo 
 still insisted that his favourite edict should be 
 enforced at Rome, the people of that city, at ' * ' ' 
 the instigation of Gregory, withdrew their allegiance from 
 the Greek emperor'. Hence the rise of the Pope's tem- 
 poral power. 
 
 Informed of this revolt, and not doubting who was 
 the author of it, Leo ordered a powerful army to be 
 raised, with a design both to chastise the rebels and take 
 vengeance on the Pope. Gi-egory, alarmed at these 
 warlike preparations, looked round for some power on 
 which he might depend for protection. The Lombards 
 
 1. Anast. in Vit. Greg. II. Meimb. Hist, Iconoclast. 
 
 were 
 
83 THE HISTORY OF [tart i. 
 
 were possessed of sufficient force, but they were too near 
 neighbours to be trusted; and the Venetians, though 
 zealous Catholics, were not yet in a condition to with- 
 stand the strength of the empire. Spain was at that time 
 over-run by the Saracens: the French seemed, therefore, 
 the onl)^ people to whom it was adviseable to apply for 
 aid, as they were at once able to oppose the emperor, 
 and enemies to his edict, France was then governed by- 
 Charles Martel, the greatest commander of his age. 
 Gregory sent a solemn embassy to Charles, entreating 
 him to take the Romans and the church under his pro- 
 ^„ tection, and defend them against the attempts 
 * of Leo. The ambassadors were received with 
 extraordinary raaiks of honour: a treaty was concluded^; 
 and the French, glad to get any concern in the affairs 
 of Italy, became the protectors of the church. 
 
 In the meantime considerable alterations were made 
 by death. Gregory IL did not live to see his negocia- 
 tion with France finished. He was succeeded in the 
 See of Rome by Gregory III. and, some years after, 
 Leo Isauricus was succeeded on the imperial throne by 
 his son Constantine Copronymus, who not only renewed 
 his father's edict against the worship of images, but 
 prohibited the invocation of saints. This new edict con- 
 firmed the Romans in the resolution they had taken of 
 separating themselves entirely from the empire; morfe 
 especially as being now under the protection of France, 
 they had nothing to fear from Constantinople. They 
 accordingly drove out of their city such of the imperial 
 officers as had hitherto been suffered to continue there; 
 ^nd abolished, by that means the very shadow of subjec- 
 
 ^, . tion to the emperor. Soon after Leo, died 
 ji. n, 741. 
 
 Charles Martel, and also Gregory III. who 
 
 was succeeded in the See of Rome by Zachary, an active 
 
 and enterprising prelate. Immediately after his election, 
 
 he waited upon Luitprand, and obtained the restoration 
 
 2, Sigon. J^eg. Itul. 
 
LET. VI.] MODERN EUROPE. 39 
 
 of four cities in the territory of Rome, which had been 
 
 yielded to that prince as a ransom for the capital,^ when 
 
 ready to fall into his hands'. 
 
 Luitprand henceforth laid aside all ambitious thoughts, 
 
 dvinp: in peace with the church and with men. „^^ 
 
 ' ,° ,^ r 1 1 A- D. 743. 
 
 Kachis, his successor, conhrrned the peace 
 
 with Zachary; but being afterwards seized with a thirst 
 of conquest, he invaded the Roman dukedom, and laid 
 siege to Perugia. Zachary, before he solicited ^ 
 
 the assistance of France, the only power on ' ' * 
 which he could depend, resolved to try once more his 
 personal influence. He accordingly went in person to 
 the camp of Rachis; and being respectfully received by 
 that prince, he represented so forcibly to him the pimish- 
 ment reserved for those who unjustly invade the property 
 of others, that Rachis not only raised the siege, but was 
 so much subdued by the eloquence of the pontiff, that 
 he renounced his crown, and retired to the monastery of 
 Monte Cassino; prostrating himself first at Zachary's 
 feet, and taking the habit of St. Benedicf^. 
 
 While things w^ere in this situation in Italy, Pepin, 
 son of Charles Martel, governed France in the character 
 of mayor, under Childeric III. and acquainted, no doubt, 
 with the sentiments of his Holiness, proposed to Zachary 
 a case of conscience, which had not hitherto been sub- 
 mitted to the bishop of Rome. He desired to know, 
 whether a prince incapable of governing, or a minister 
 invested with royal authority, and who supported it with 
 dignity, ought to have the title of king. Zachary decided 
 in favour of the minister; and the French clergy sup- 
 ported the pretensions of Pepin, because he had restored 
 the lands of vrhich Charles Martel had robbed them. 
 The nobles respected him, because he was powerful and 
 brave ; and the people despised the sluggard kings, whom 
 they scarcely knew by name. The judgment of the Pope 
 therefore silenced every scruple. Childeric was deposed; 
 
 3. Paul. Diac, lib. vi. 4. Id. ibid. 
 
 or 
 
46 THE HISTORY OF [part i, 
 
 or more properly, degraded; for he could never be said 
 to reign. He was shut up in a monastery. 
 Pepin was raised to the throne; and St. Boni- 
 face, Bishop of Mentz, the famous apostle of the Germans^ 
 anointed him solemnly at Soissons^. 
 
 This ceremony of anointing, borrowed from the 
 Jews, and hitherto unknown to the French nation, or at 
 most only used on the conversion of Clovis, seemed to 
 bestow on the king a kind of divine character: and so 
 far it was useful, by inspiring respect. But as ignorance 
 abuses all things, the bishops soon imagined they could 
 confer royalty by anointing princes; an opinion which was 
 followed by many fatal consequences. The Eastern 
 emperors had long been crowned by the patriarchs of 
 Constantinople: the popes, in like manner, crowned the 
 emperors of the West. Crowning and anointing were 
 supposed necessary to sovereignty. A pious ceremony 
 gave the church a power of disposing of kingdoms. 
 
 These observations, my dear Philip, you will find 
 frequent occasion to apply. I offer them here, in order 
 to awaken your attention. We must see things in their 
 causes, to reason distinctly on their effects. 
 
 Success soon attended the crafty policy of the popes : 
 the new king of France repaid their favour with interest. 
 Astulphus, the successor of Rachis, less piously inclined 
 than his brother, thought only of conquest. In imitation 
 of Luitprand, he resolved to make himself master of all 
 Italy : and as the emperor Constantine Copronymus was 
 now engaged in a war with the Saracens and Bulgarians, 
 and in a still more hot and dangerous war against images, 
 Astulphus judged this a proper season to invade the 
 imperial dominions. He accordingly entered 
 the exarchate at the head of a considerable 
 army; took Ravenna, subdued the whole province, and 
 also Pentapolis, which he added to the kingdom of the 
 Lombards, reducing the exarchate and its ancient me- 
 tropolis to the condition of a dukedom''. 
 
 5. Sigon. Feg. Ital. 6. Sigon. Eeg, ItaL 
 
 Ambitiott 
 
JLET. VI.] MODERN EUROPE. 4t 
 
 Ambition is only increased by accession of dominion. 
 Astulphus no sooner saw himself master of Ravenna 
 and its territory, than he began to lay claim to the Ro- 
 man dukedom, and to Rome itself. He urged the right 
 of conquest. This, he alledged, entitled him to the 
 same power over that city and its dukedom which the 
 emperors, and also the exarchs, their viceroys, had for- 
 merly enjoyed, as he was now in possession of the whole 
 exarchate^ And, in order to enforce his demand, he 
 marched an army towards Rome, reducing many cities 
 in its neighbourhood, and threatening to put the inhabi- 
 tants to the sword, if they refused to acknowledge him 
 as their sovereign. Stephen III. then pope, no less 
 alarmed at the approach of so powerful a monarch, than 
 at the severity of his message, endeavoured to appease 
 him by a solem-n embassy. But presents, prayers, and 
 entreaties, were employed in vain; Astulphus wanted to 
 govern Rome. 
 
 Made sensible at last, that force must be repelled by 
 force, Stephen resolved, in imitation of his predecessors, 
 to crave the protection of France. He accordingly applied 
 to Pepin, who, mindful of his obligations to Zachary, 
 and now firmly seated on the throne of Clovis, readily 
 promised the pope his assistance, and sent two ambassa- 
 dors to conduct him to Paris. Astulphus permitted him 
 to pass: and a treaty was concluded between both, at the 
 expense of the emperors of Constantinople and the kings 
 <of Italy. Stephen anointed Pepin anew, with the holy 
 unction, and also his two sons, Charles and Carloman, 
 declaring each of them Romanorum Patricius^ or Protector 
 of the Roman people; and the French monarch, in 
 return for these honours, promised to make a donation 
 of the exarchate and Pentapolis to the Romish church'. 
 Pepin however endeavoured,, before he set out for 
 Italy, to persuade Astulphus, to be content with the 
 
 7« Leo Ostiensis, lib. i. 
 VOL.. I. B dominions 
 
42 THE HISTORY OF [paut r. 
 
 dominions of his predecessors; to restore what he had 
 conquered ; and thus prevent the effusion of 
 Christian blood. But finding the king of the 
 Lombards deaf to his entreaties, he crossed the Alps, 
 and advanced to Pavia. Astulphus now, convinced of 
 his danger, sued for peace, and obtained it, on condi- 
 tion that he should deliver up to the pope, not to the 
 emperor, all the places he had taken. He consented; 
 but, instead of fulfilling his engagements, no sooner did 
 he think the storm blown over by the departure of Pepin, 
 than he broke again into tlie Roman dukedom, took 
 several cities, and laid siege to Rome. 
 
 In this extremity, Stephen had again recourse to his 
 protector the king of France, writing to him those fa- 
 mous, letters which are still extant, and in which he 
 artfully introduces St. Peter, to whom the donation of 
 the exarchate had been made, conjuring Pepin, 
 his two sons, and the states of France to come 
 to his relief; promising them all good things, both in this 
 world and the next, in case of compliance, and denounc- 
 ing damnation as the reward of refusal". Pepin, much 
 affected by this eloquence, wild as it may seem, crossed 
 the Alps a second time, and Astulphus again took refuge 
 in Pavia. 
 
 Meanwhile the Emperor Constantine Copronymus, 
 informed of the treaty between the king of France and 
 the pope, by which the latter was to be put in possession 
 o"f the exarchate and Pentapolis, remonstrated by his 
 ambassadors against that agreement, offering to pay the 
 expenses of the war. But Pepin replied, that the 
 exarchate belonged to the Lombards, who had acquired 
 it by the right of arms, as the Romans had originally 
 done: that the right of the Lombards was now in him, 
 so that he could dispose of that territory as he thought 
 proper. He had bestowed it, he said, on St. Peter, that 
 the Catholic faith might be preserved in its purity, free 
 
 8. Anastas. in Vit. Steph. III. 
 
 from 
 
XKT. VI.] MODERN EUROPE. 43 
 
 from the damnable heresies of the Greeks; and all the 
 money in the world, he added, should never make him 
 revoke that gift, which he was determined to maintain 
 to the church with the last drop of his blood. In con- 
 sequence of this resolution, the ambassadors were dismis- 
 sed, without being suffered to reply. Pepin pressed the 
 siege of Paviaj and Astulphus, finding himself unable to 
 hold out, agreed to fulfil the former treaty, giving hosta- 
 ges as a pledge of his fidelity, and putting the pope im- 
 mediately in possession of Commachio, a place of great 
 importance at that time?. 
 
 Before Pepin returned to France he renewed his do- 
 nation to St. Peter, yielding to Stephen and 
 his successor the exarchate ; Emilia, now Ro- 
 magna; and Pentapolis, now Marca d'Ancona ; with all 
 the cities therein, to be held by them forever; the kings of 
 France, as patricians, retaining only an ideal superiority, 
 which was soon forgot'". Thus was the sceptre added to 
 the keys, the sovereignty to the priesthood, and the popes 
 enriched with the spoils of the Lombard kings and the 
 Roman emperors. 
 
 Astulphus, soon after ratifying his treaty with France, 
 was killed by accident, when he was preparing to reco- 
 ver his conquests. Pepin continued to extend his sway 
 and his renown till the year 768; when, after having impoi 
 sed tribute on the Saxons and Sclavonians, having made 
 the duke of Bavaria take an oath of fidelity, and 
 reunited Aquitaine to his crown, — equally res- 
 pected at home and abroad, hedied in the fifty-fourth year of 
 his age, and the seventeenth of his reign. He never affected 
 
 9. Leo Ostiensis. ubi sup. 
 
 10. Many disputes have arisen concerning the nature of Pepin's dona- 
 tion, and some writers have even denied that such a donation was ever 
 made; but on comparing authorities, and observing the scope of history, 
 the matter seems to have been nearly as represented in the text. The mi- 
 pertinences of Voltaire on this subject, under the form of reasoning, are 
 too contemptible to deserve notice, 
 
 absolute 
 
44 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 absolute power, but referred all matters of importance 
 to the national assemblies, of which he was the oracle. 
 By the consent of the nobles, he divided his kingdom 
 between his two sons, Charles and Carlonian. 
 
 The reign of Charles, known by the name of Charle- 
 magne, or Charles the Great, introduces a new sera, and 
 will furnish the subject of a future Letter. In the mean- 
 time, we must trace the settlement of other barbarians, 
 and the rise of another great kingdom. 
 
 LETTER Vn. 
 
 BRITAIN, FROIM THE TIME IT WAS RELINQUISHED BY THE 
 ROMANS, TO THE END OE THE SAXON HEPTARCHY. 
 
 X HE affairs of our own island, my dear Philip, 
 now claim your attention. It was ultimately evacuated 
 by the Romans about the year 448, after they had been 
 masters of the southern, and most fertile part of it, for 
 almost four centuries. 
 
 Never, perhaps, was the debasing influence of despot- 
 ism so fully displayed as in its effect on our ancient coun- 
 trymen. No people were ever more brave, none more 
 jealous of liberty, than the Britons. With ordinary- 
 weapons, and little knowledge of military discipline, they 
 struggled long with the Roman power, and were only 
 .^^ subdued at last by reason of their want of uni- 
 
 A. D. 409. T> r t - r ., , 
 
 on. But alter three centuries oi tranquil sub- 
 mission, when the exigencies of the empireobligedthe Ro- 
 mans to recal their legions from this island, and resign 
 to the inhabitants their native rights, the degenerate Bri- 
 tons were incapable of prizing the gift. Conscious of their 
 inability to protect themselves againsttheir northenineigh- 
 bours, and wanting resolution to attempt it, they would 
 
 gladly 
 
LET. VII.] MODERN EUROPE. 45 
 
 gladly have lived in security and slavery'. They had 
 therefore recourse, again and again, to their conquerors; 
 and the Romans, beside occasionally sending over a le- 
 gion to the aid of the Britons, assisted them in rebuilding 
 the wall of Antoninus, which extended between the friths 
 of Forth and Clyde. This wall was esteemed by the 
 Romans a necessary barrier, first against the Caladonians, 
 and afterwards against the Scots and Picts. 
 
 JMuch time has been spent in inquiring after the ori- 
 gin of the Scots and Picts, and many disputes have arisen 
 on the subject-. The most probable opinion, however, 
 seems to be, that they were two tribes of native Britons, 
 who at different times had fled from the dominion of the 
 Romans, chusing liberty and barren mountains rather 
 than fertile plains and slavery. But whoever they were, 
 they are allowed to have been brave and warlike adven- 
 turers, who often invaded the Roman territories, and 
 were greatly an over-match for the now dastardly and 
 dispirited Britons. 
 
 These two nations or tribes, no sooner heard of the 
 
 final departure of the Romans, than they considered the 
 
 whole British island as their own. One party crossed the 
 
 frith of Forth, in boats made of leather, while another 
 
 attacked with fury the Roman wall, which the Britons 
 
 had repaired for their defence, but which they abandoned 
 
 on the first assault, flvinc: like timorous deer, 
 
 A. D. 448» 
 and leaving their country a prey to the enemy. 
 
 The Scots and Picts made dreadful havoc of the fugitives; 
 
 and, meeting with no opposition, they laid all the south- 
 
 1. Gildas, Bede, lib. i. Mr. Gibbon, whose historical scepticism is aA 
 well known as his theological incredulity, has attempted to controvert 
 the degeneracy of the Britons under the Roman government. But facts 
 will speak for themselves; these he has not been able to destroy. The 
 Britons, who fled before their naked and barbarous neighbours, were 
 surely inferior to those that intrepidly contended with the Roman legions 
 ^.nder Julius Cssar and other great commanders, 
 
 2. See Macpherson's Introd, Hist. Brit. Origin. &c. of the Caledonians^ 
 Whi taker's Hiit. of Mancbciter, Genuine Hist. Brit, and Hume's Hist of 
 England, vol. 1. note A. 
 
 erai 
 
46 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 crn part of the island waste with fire and sword. Fa- 
 
 ^,^ mine followed with all its horrid train. The 
 A D. 449. 
 
 * miserable Britons, in this frightful extremity, 
 
 had once more recourse to Rome. They v/rit to iEtius, 
 then consul the third time, that memorable letter enti- 
 tled The Groans of the Britons^ and which paints their 
 unhappy condition strongly as it is possible for 
 
 * words i " We know not," say they, " even 
 *' which way to flee. Chased by the Barbarians to the 
 *' sea, and forced back by the sea upon the Barbarians, 
 *' they have only left us the choice of two deaths j either to 
 *' perish by the sword, or be swallowed up by the waves^." 
 What answer they received is uncertain; but it is well 
 known they received no assistance, Rome being then 
 threatened by Attila, the most terrible enemy that ever 
 invaded the empire. 
 
 The Britons, however, amid all their calamities, had 
 one consolation; they had embraced Christianity ; a reli- 
 gion which above all others teaches the endurance of mis- 
 fortunes, which encourages its votaries to triumph in 
 adversity, and inspires the soul with joy in the hour of 
 affliction. Many of them fled over to Gaul, and settled 
 in the province of Armorica, to which they gave the name 
 of Britany; part of them submitted to the Scots and Picts; 
 and part, collecting courage from despair, sallied from 
 their woods and caves upon the secure and roving inva- 
 ders, cut many of them to pieces, and obliged the rest 
 to retire into their own country. But the enemy threat- 
 ening to return next season with superior forces, the 
 distressed Britons, by the advice of Vortigern, prince 
 of Dunmonium, who then possessed the principal au- 
 thority among them, called over to their assistance, by 
 a solemn deputation, the Saxons and Angles, or Anglo- 
 Saxons'*. 
 
 3. Bede, Gildas, ubi sup. Gul. Malms, lib. i. 
 
 4. Bede, lib. i. Gul. Malms, ubi sup. 
 
 The 
 
LET. VII.] MODERN EUROPE. A>i 
 
 The Saxons, like all the ancient German tribes, were 
 a free, brave, independent people. They had arrived at 
 that degree of civilization in which the mind has acquired 
 sufficient force for enterprise, and seems to derive energy 
 from the unimpaired vigour of the body. A nation, ta- 
 ken collectively, is never perhaps capable of such great 
 achivements as in this state of half-civilization. The 
 Saxons had spread themselves overGemany and the Low- 
 Countries from the Cimbrian Chersonesus, now Jutland, 
 taking possessionof the whole territory betweenthe Rhine 
 and the Elbe ; and, when the Britons sent to implore 
 their assistance, they were masters not only of the present 
 Westphalia, Saxony, east and West Friesland, but also 
 of Holland and Zealand. They readily complied with 
 the request of Vortigern: and having fitted out three large 
 transports, about fifteen hundred of them put to sea under 
 the command of Hengist and Horsa, two brother chiefs, 
 said to be descended from Woden, their tutelary God. 
 The Saxon chiefs landed in the isle of Thanet, which was 
 assigned them as a possession, and a league 
 was entered into between them and the British 
 prince^ Soon after their arrival, they marched against 
 the Scots and Picts, who had made a new irruption, and 
 advanced as far as Stamford. These northern ravagers 
 unable to withstand the steady valour of the Saxons, were 
 routed with great slaughter; and the Britons, felicitating 
 themselves on an expedient by which they had freed their 
 country from so cruel an enemy, hoped thenceforth to 
 enjoy security under the protection of their warlike aux- 
 iliaries. 
 
 5. Glldas. Bede, ubi sup. Chron. Sax. p. 13. Mr. Gibbon, on the au- 
 thority of Nennius, gives a different account of this matter (Hist. chap, 
 xxviii.) He represents Hengist and Horsa as two fugitive adventurers ; who 
 in a piratical cruize, were taken into the pay of the British prince. But I 
 can see no reason for adopting such an opinion; for independent of cir- 
 cumstances, which are greatly in favour of tke common manner of telling 
 the story, the authority of the venerable Bede is iuvely superior to that of 
 the fabulous Nennius. 
 
 But 
 
48 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 But mankind, in the possession of present good, are 
 apt to overlook the prospect of future evil. The Bri- 
 tons did not foresee that their deliverers were to be their 
 conquerors; though it must have been evident to any dis- 
 interested observer, that the day of subjection was nigh. 
 The reflections of Hengist and Horsa, aftertheir victory 
 over the Scots and Picts, were very different from those 
 ©f the Britons. They considered with what ease they 
 might subdue a people who had been unable to resist 
 such feeble invaders; and sent to their countrymen in- 
 telligence of the fertility and opulence of Britain, inviting 
 them to come and share in the spoils of a nation, 
 without union and without valour, sunk in indolence and 
 sloth'. 
 
 The invitation was readily accepted. Seventeen ves- 
 sels soon arrived with five thousand men; who joined to 
 those already in the island, formed a considerable army^. 
 Though now justly alarmed at the number of their allies, 
 the Britons sought security and relief only in passive sub- 
 mission; and even that unmanly expedient soon failed 
 them. The Saxons pulled off the mask ; they complained 
 that their subsidies were ill paid, and demanded larger 
 supplies of corn and other provisions. These being re- 
 fused, as exorbitant, they formed an alliance with the 
 Scots and Picts: and proceeded to open hostilities against 
 the people they had come over to protect. 
 
 The Britons were at last under the necessity of tak- 
 ing arms; and having deposed Vortigern, who was be- 
 come odious by his vices, and the unfortunate issue of 
 his rash councils, they put themselves under the command 
 of his son Vortimer. Many battles were fought between 
 the Saxons and Britons with various success, though com- 
 monly on the side of the former; and in one of these 
 battles, the Saxon general Horsa was slain. The sole 
 command now devolved upon Hengist: who, continually 
 
 6. Chron. Sax. ubi sup. Ann. Beverl. p. 49. 
 
 7. Had Hengist and Horsa been a couple of exiles, thejr would not so soon 
 have found so many followers. 
 
 reinforced 
 
LET. VII.] MODERN EUROPE. 49 
 
 reinforced with fresh adventurers from Germany, carried 
 desolation to the most remote possessions of the Britons, 
 Anxious to spread the terror of his arms, he spared 
 neither age, sex nor condition". The description is teo 
 horrible to read ; and, for the honour of humanity, I am 
 willing to suppose it to be partly untrue. 
 
 Of the unhappy Britons, who escaped the general 
 slaughter, some took refuge among inaccessible rocks 
 and mountains; many perished by hunger; and many, 
 forsaking their asylum, preserved their lives at the ex- 
 pense of their liberty. Others, crossing the sea, sought 
 shelter among their countrymen in Armorica. They 
 who remained at home suffered every species of misery: 
 they were not only robbed of all temporal but spiritual 
 benefits^. In this extremity, a British and a Christian 
 hero appeared. Arthur, prince of the Silures, revived 
 the expiring valour of his countrymen. He defeated the 
 Saxons in several engagements; and particularly in the 
 famous battle of Badon-hill, which procured ^^ 
 
 the Britons tranquillity for upwards of forty 
 years. But the success of Hengist and his followers 
 having excited the ambi.tion of other German tribes, 
 who arrived at different times, and under different leaders, 
 yet all speaking one language, being governed by the 
 same regulations, and passing under the common appel- 
 lation of Saxons or Angles, they were naturally 
 led to unite agamst the ancient inhabitants oi 
 the island. The Britons therefore ultimately found 
 themselves unequal to the contest, and i-etired to the 
 mountains of Cornwall and Wales, v/here they formed 
 independent principalities, protected by their remote and 
 inaccessible situation'". 
 
 The Saxons and Angles, or Anglo-Saxons (for they 
 are mentioned under both these denominations), v>'ere. 
 
 8. Bede, lib. i. Gildas, sec. xxiv. Usher, p. 226. 
 
 9. Bede, GilJas, Usher, ubi. sup. 
 
 10. Gul. Malms, lib. i. II. Ilantiiigdon, lib. II, Qhron. Sd>:. p. 20. 
 
 VOL. 1. M now 
 
SQ THE HISTORY OF [part i, 
 
 tiow absolute masters of the whole fertile and cultivated 
 part of South Britain, which had changed not only its 
 inhabitants, but its language, customs, and political insti- 
 tutions". History aifords an example of few conquests 
 more bl(%ody, and few revolutions so violent as that 
 effected by the Saxons. In the course of their wars Avith 
 the Britons, which continued an hundred and thirty-five 
 years, they had established many separate kingdoms, the 
 seventh and last of which was that of Northumberland. 
 The names of the other kingdoms were Kent, Sussex, 
 Essex, Wessex, Mercia, and East Anglia. These 
 seven kingdoms formed what is commonly called the 
 Saxon Heptarchy'". 
 
 While the Saxons had to struggle with the Britons 
 for dominion their several princes leagued against the 
 common enemy, and an union of councils and interests 
 was preserved. But after the wretched natives were 
 shut up in their barren mountains, and the conquerors 
 had nothing to fear from them, the bond of alliance 
 was in a great measure dissolved, among the princes of 
 the Heptarchy; and although one prince seems still to 
 have assumed, or to have been allowed, some ascendant 
 over the rest, his authority v/as so very limited, that 
 each state acted as if entirely independent. Jealousies 
 and dissentions arose among the Saxon chiefs, and these 
 
 11. The Saxons and Angles were originally distinct ti-ibes; but at thft 
 time they landed in Britain, they were so much incorporated as to pass 
 sometimes under the one name, sometimes under the other. (Alford. ad 
 Ann, 449.) Hence the compound name of Anglo-Saxons, given them by- 
 most writers. The Jutes had also a considerable share in the conquest of 
 South Britain, and settled themselves in Kent and the Isle of Wight. 
 Essex, Middlesex, Surrey, Sussex, and all the southern counties, as far as 
 Cornwall, ivere peopled by Saxons. The Saxons also took possession of 
 the northern counties, Norfolk, Suirolk, and all the midland counties 
 were inhabited by the Angles, Bede, lib. i. ii. Ethelwerd, lib. i. H. Hunt- 
 ing, lib, ii. Hume, vol, i. chap. i. 
 
 12. The extent of the diflerent kingdoms is of too little importance 
 new to deserve a particular description. 
 
 were 
 
LET. VII.] MODERN EUROPE 51 
 
 were followed by perpetual wars; which, in Milton''s 
 opinion, are no more worthy of a particular narration, 
 than the combats of kites or crows. And, independent 
 of so great an authority, which however it would be 
 presumption to slight, it may be safely affirmed, That 
 the barren records transmitted to us, and the continued 
 barbarities of the times, render it impossible for the most 
 eloquent and discerning writer to make this portion of 
 our history either instructive or entertaining. It will 
 therefore be sufficient for me to observe. That after a 
 variety of inferior revolutions, the seven kingdoms of the 
 Saxon Heptarchy were united under Egbert, king of 
 Wessex, in the year 827'^. His dominions 
 
 A. D 827 
 
 were nearly of the same extent with what is * * 
 now properly called England; a name which was given 
 to the empire of the Saxons in Britain, immediately after 
 the termination of the Heptarchy. 
 
 The Anglo-Saxons before this period, had been con- 
 verted to Christianity by the preaching of Augustine, a 
 Roman monk, and the zeal of Bertha, daughter of Cari- 
 bert, king of Paris, and wife to Ethelbert, king of Kent; 
 but as they received that doctrine through the polluted 
 channels of the church of Rome, though it opened an 
 intercourse with the more polished states of Europe, it 
 had not hitherto been very effectual either in purifying 
 their minds, or in softening their manners. The gros- 
 sest ignorance and superstition prevailed among them. 
 Revei-ences to saints and reliques seemed to have sup- 
 planted the worship of the Supreme Being; donations to 
 the church atoned for every violation of the laws of 
 society; and monastic observances were more esteemed 
 than moral virtues. Even the military virtues, so habitual 
 to the Saxons, began to fall into neglect. The nobility 
 themselves began to prefer the indolence and security 
 of the cloister to the toils and tumults of war; and th6 
 
 13. Wessex, or the kingdom of the West Saxons, extended over the 
 countiei of Hant», Dorset, Wilw, Berks, and the I»le of Wight. 
 
 crown. 
 
52 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 crowri) Impoverished by continual benefactions to the 
 church, had no rewards for the encouragement of 
 valour. 
 
 This corrupt species of Christianity was attended 
 with another train of inconveniences, proceeding from 
 a superstitious attachment to the see of Rome. The 
 Britons had conducted all ecclesiastical matters by their 
 own synods and councils, acknowledging no subordination 
 to the Roman Pontiff; but the Saxons having received 
 their religion through the medium of Italian monks, were 
 taught to consider Rome as the capital of their faith. 
 Pilgrimages to that city were accordingly represented as 
 the most meritorious acts of devotion; and not only 
 noblemen and ladies of rank undertook this tedious jour- 
 ney, but kings themselves, resigning their crow^ns, 
 implored a safe passport to heaven at the foot of St. 
 Peter's chair, and exchanged the purple for the sack- 
 cloth '^. 
 
 But England, even in those times of British darkness, 
 gave birth to some men equal, at least, to any of the 
 age in which they lived. Offa, king of Mercia, was 
 thought worthy the friendship of Charlemagne, the great- 
 est prince that Europe had produced for many centuries; 
 and Alcuin, an English clergyman, had the honour of 
 instructing that illustrious monarch in the sciences, at 
 the time when he was surrounded by all the literati of 
 Christendom. 
 
 Having mentioned Charlemagne, I think it necessary 
 to observe, That I shall finish the history of that great 
 conqueror and legislator before we proceed to the reign 
 of Egbert, the first English monarch ; who, as you will 
 afterward have occasion more fully to know, was educated 
 in the court, and in the armies of the new emperor of 
 the West. Meanwhile, my dear Philip, I must say a 
 few words of the government, laws, and manners of the 
 Saxons, after their settlement in Britain. 
 
 14. Bede, lib. i. ii. Spell. Cone. H. Hunting, lib. iit. 
 
 LETTER 
 
Lr.T. VIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 53 
 
 LETTER VIII. 
 
 60VERNMEKT AND LAW OF THE ANGLO-SAXONS. 
 
 XxAD the Saxons, on their settlement In 
 Britain, established the same form of government with 
 the other northern nations that seized the provinces of 
 the Roman empire, this Letter would have been in a 
 great measure unnecessary; but as they rather exter- 
 minated than subdued the natives, and were under few 
 apprehensions from foreign enemies, they had no occa- 
 sion to burden themselves with feudal services. They 
 therefore retained entire their civil and military institu- 
 tions: they transplanted into this island those principles 
 of liberty and independency which they had so highly 
 cherished at home, which had been transmitted to them 
 from their ancestors, and which still continue to flourish 
 among their descendants. Their original constitution 
 was a kind of military democracy, in which the protec- 
 tion of the state was the voluntary care of its members, 
 as every free man had a share in the government; and 
 conquest was the interest of all, as all partook in the 
 acquisitions. Their king, or chief, was only the first 
 citizen of the community: his authority was extremely 
 limited; and depended, as did his station, principally on 
 his personal qualities. The succession was neither elec- 
 tive nor hereditary. A son who inherited his father's 
 virtues and talents was sure to succeed to his sway; but 
 if he happened to be weak, wicked, or under age, the next 
 in blood was generally raised to the throne, or the per- 
 son of most eminence in the state'. 
 
 We owe to the masterly pen of Tacitus this account 
 of the primitive government of the Saxons, who were a 
 
 1. Tscit. de Moribut Germ. cap. xi. 
 
 tribe 
 
54 THE HISTORY OF [rAiwr i. 
 
 tribe of the ancient Cimbri. Unfortunately the Saxon 
 annals are too imperfect to enable us to delineate exactly 
 the prerogatives of the crown, and the privileges of the 
 people, after their settlement in Britain. The govern- 
 ment might be somewhat diiferent in the different king- 
 doms of the Heptarchy, and might also undergo several 
 changes before the Norman conquest; but of those 
 changes we are in a great measure ignorant. We only 
 know, that at all times, and in all the kingdoms, there 
 was a national council, a Wittenagemot, or Assembly of 
 the WiseMen, whoseconsentwasnecessary totheenacting 
 of laws, and to give sanction to the measures of public 
 administration. But who the constituent members of 
 that assembly were, has not hitherto beeen determined 
 with certainty. The most probable conjecture however 
 seems to be, that it consisted of the nobility, the digni- 
 fied clergy, and all freeholders possessing a certain portion 
 of land. 
 
 The Saxons were divided into three orders of men; 
 the noble, the free, and the servile. These distinctions 
 they brought into Britain with them. The nobles were 
 called thanes, and were of two kinds, the greater and 
 lesser thanes. The latter seem to have had sonie 
 dependence on the former, as the former had on the 
 king, but of what nature is uncertain. The lower kind 
 of freemen among the Saxons were denominated ceorles, 
 and were chiefly employed in husbandry. Whence a 
 husbandman and ceorle came to be synonymous terms. 
 They farmed the lands of the nobility, or higher orders, 
 and appear to have been removable at pleasure. But the 
 slaves, or villains, w^ere by much the most numerous 
 class in the community; and being the property of their 
 masters, were consequently incapable of holding any pro- 
 perty themselves. They were of two kinds: houshold 
 slaves, after the manner of the ancients; and rustic 
 slaves, who were sold and transferred, like cattle, with 
 the soil. The long wars between the Saxons and Britons, 
 and afterwards betv/een the different kingdoms of the 
 Haptarchy, seem to have been the cause of the dispro- 
 portionate 
 
LET. VIII.] MODERN EUROPE SS 
 
 portionate number of these unhappy men; for prisoner^ 
 taken in battle were reduced to slavery by the laws of 
 war, and entirely at the disposal of their masters^. 
 
 The higher nobility and dignified clergy among the 
 Anglo-Saxons possessed a criminal jurisdiction within 
 their own territories, and could punish without appeal 
 such as they judged worthy of death. This was a dan- 
 gerous privilege, and liable to the greatest abuse. But 
 although the Anglo-Saxon government seems at last to 
 have become in some measure aristocratical, there were 
 still considerable remains of the ancient democracy. All 
 the freeholders assembled twice a year in the county- 
 courts, or Shiremotes, to receive appeals from the inferi- 
 or courts ; a practice well calculated for the preservation of 
 general liberty, and for restraining the exorbitant power 
 of the nobles. In these courts they decided all causes, 
 ecclesiastical as well as civil, the bishop and alderman, 
 or earl, presiding over them. The case was determined 
 hy a majority of voices, without much pleading, forma- 
 lity, or delay; the bishop and earl having no farther autho- 
 rity than to keep order among the freeholders, and offer 
 their advice when necessary^. Though it should there- 
 fore be granted, that the Wittenagemot was composed 
 entirely of the greater thanes anddignified clergy, yet in a 
 government where few taxes were imposed by the legis- 
 lature, and few statutes enacted; where the nation was 
 Jess governed by laws than by customs, which allowed 
 much latitude of interpretation, the county-courts, where 
 all the freeholders were admitted, and which regulated 
 all the dally occurrences of life, formed a wide basis for 
 freedom. 
 
 The criminal laws of the Anglo-Saxons, as of most 
 barbarous nations, were uncommonly mild; a compensa- 
 tion in money being sufficient for murder of any species, 
 and for the life of persons of any rank, not excepting 
 the king and the archbishop, whose head, by the laws 
 
 2. L. Edg. sec. xiv. ap. Spelman, Cone. vol. i. Brady, Gai. Pref. p. 
 7, 8, 9. Nithard, Bist. lib. iv. 
 
 3. Hickes, dissert. Eplst. ii....viii. 
 
 of 
 
56 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 of Kent, was estimated higher than the king's. The 
 price of all kinds of wounds was also settled: and he who 
 was caught in adultery with his neighbour's wife, was or- 
 dered by the laws of Ethelbert to pay him a fine, and 
 buy him another wife; a proof, though somewhat equi- 
 vocal, of the estimation in which women were then held. 
 The punishments for robbery were various, but none of 
 them capital. If any person should track his stolen cat- 
 tle into another's ground, the owner of the ground was 
 obliged to shew their tracts out of it, or pay the value of 
 the cattle '^. 
 
 But if the punishments for crimes among the Anglo- 
 Saxons were singular, their proofs were no less so. 
 When any controversy about a fact was too intricate for 
 the ignorant judges to unravel, they had recourse to what 
 they called the Judgment of God: or in other words, to 
 chance. Their modes of consulting that blind divinity 
 were various, but the most common was the ordeal. This 
 method of trial was practised either by boiling wa- 
 ter, or red-hot iron. The water or iron was consecrated 
 by many prayers, masses, fastings, and exorcisms; after 
 which the person accused either took up with his naked 
 hand, a stone sunk in the water to a certain depth or 
 carried the iron to a certain distance. The hand was 
 immediately wrapped up, and the covering sealed for 
 three days: and if on examining it there appeared no 
 marks of burning or scalding, the person accused was 
 pronounced innocent! if otherv/ise, he was declared 
 guilty^. The same kinds of proof, or others equally extra- 
 vagant, obtained among all the nations on the continent ; 
 and money, in like manner was every where the atone- 
 ment for guilt, both in a civil and ecclesiastical sense. 
 
 4. Avglo-Saxon Laws, ap. Wilkins. 5. Spelman, in Verb. OrJeal. 
 
 LETTER 
 
LET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 THE REIGN OF CHARLEMAGNE, OR CHARLES THE ORE AT, KING 
 OF FRANCE AND EMPEROR OF THE WEST. 
 
 VyllARLES and Carloman, the two sons of 
 Pepin, and his successors in the French monarchy, were 
 men of very different dispositions. Charles was open 
 and generous, Carloman dark and suspicious; 
 it was therefore happy for mankind, that Car- 
 loman died soon after his father, as perpetual wars must 
 have been the consequence of the opposite tempers and 
 interfering interest of the brothers. Now alone at the 
 head of a powerful kingdom, Charles's great and ambi- 
 tious genius soon gave birth to projects which will ren- 
 der his name immortal. A prosperous reign of forty-six 
 years, abounding with military enterprises, political in- 
 stitutions, and literary foundations, offers to our view, in 
 the midst of barbarism, a spectacle worthy of more po- 
 lished ages. 
 
 But before we proceed to the history of this illustrious 
 reign, I must say a few words of the state of Germany at 
 that time. 
 
 Germany was anciently possessed by a number of free 
 and independent nations, who bravely defended their li- 
 berties against the Romans, and were never totally sub- 
 jected by them. On the decline of the Roman empire, 
 many of those nations left their native country, as we have 
 seen, and founded empires of their own; so that Germany, 
 at the accession of Charlemagne to the crown of France, 
 was principally occupied by the Saxons. Of their govern- 
 ment I have already spoken. They v/ere still Pagans. 
 What was then considered as their territory comprehend- 
 ed a vast tract of country. It was bounded on the west by 
 
 VOL. 1. N the 
 
*8 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 the German ocean, by Bohemia on the east, on the north 
 by the Baltic sea, and on the south by Germanic France, 
 extending along the lower Rhine, and from Issel beyond 
 Mentz. This extensive empire was governed by an in- 
 finite number of independent princes, and inhabited by 
 a variety of tribes, under different names; who, by rea- 
 son of their want of union, had become tributary to the 
 French monarchs. But whenever the throne of France 
 was vacated by death, or when the kings of France were 
 engaged either in foreign or domestic wars, the Saxon 
 princes threw off their allegiance, and entered the French 
 territories'. Charles had occasion to quell one of those 
 revolts immediately after the death of his brother; and 
 the work was but imperfectly executed, when his arms 
 were wanted in another quarter. 
 
 Charles and Carloman had married two daughters of 
 Desiderius, king of the Lombards. Carloman left two 
 sons by his wife Berta; but Charles had divorced his 
 consort, under pretence that she was incapable of bearing 
 children, and married Ildegarda, a princess of Suabia. 
 Berta, the widow of Carloman, not thinking herself and 
 her children safe in France after the death of her husband, 
 fled to her father in Italy, and put herself and her two 
 sons under his protection. Desiderius received them 
 with joy. Highly incensed against Charles for divorcing 
 his other daughter, he hoped by means of these refugees 
 to raise such disturbances in France as might both gratify 
 his revenge, and prevent the French monarch from inter- 
 meddling in the affairs of Italy. In this hope he was en- 
 wwg couraged by his intimacy with pope Adrian I. 
 "* to whom he proposed the crowning and anoint- 
 ing of Carloman's two sons. But Adrian, though suffi- 
 ciently disposed to oblige him, refused to comply with 
 the request; sensible that by so doing he must incur the 
 displeasure of Charles, the natural ally of the church, 
 and the only prince capable of protecting him against his 
 
 1. Eginhard, in Vit. Car. Mog. 
 
 ambitious 
 
LET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. 59 
 
 ambitious enemies. Enraged at a refusal, Desiderius 
 ravaged the papal territories; or, as they were called, the 
 patrimony of St. Peter^ and threatened to lay siege to 
 Rome itself. In order to avert the pressing danger Adrian 
 resolved to have recourse to France, in imitation of his 
 predecessors. He accordingly sent ambassadors private- 
 ly to Charlemagne, not only imploring his assistance, but 
 inviting him to the conquest of Italy, his friendship for 
 Desiderius being now converted into the most rancorous 
 hate. The French monarch, who waited only an oppor- 
 tunity to revenge himself on that prince for keeping his 
 nephews, and still more for wanting to crown them, re- 
 ceived the pope's invitation with incredible satisfaction. 
 He immediately left Germany, concluding a kind of trea- 
 ty with the Saxons, and collected such an army as evi- 
 dently shewed, that his object v,^as nothing less than the 
 extinction of the kingdom of the Lombards^. 
 
 Desiderius, informed of these preparations, put him- 
 self at the head of a great army, and sent several bodies 
 of troops to guard the passes of the Alps. But Charle- 
 magne, apprised of this precaution, sent a detachment 
 under experienced guides to cross the mountains by a 
 different route. The French completed their march; 
 and falling unexpectedly upon the Lombards, who guard-;- 
 ed the passes, struck them with such terror, that they 
 fled in the utmost confusion. Charles now 
 entered Italy unmolested, and marched in quest 
 of Desiderius. Finding himself unable to keep the field, 
 the king of the Lombards retired to Favia, his capital; 
 sending his son Adalgisus, and his daughter Berta, the 
 widow of Carloman, with her two sons, to Verona, a 
 place not inferior in strength to Favia. 
 
 As soon as Charlemagne understood that Desideri- 
 us had taken shelter in Favia, he assembled his whole 
 army and laid siege to that city, resolving not to witli- 
 draw his forces till it had submitted: but, as the Lom.- 
 
 2, Sjgon, Eeg. Lei. Anast. in Vit. Hadriani. 
 
 bards 
 
CO THE HISTORY OF [pajit i. 
 
 bards made a gallant defence, he changed the siege into 
 a blockade, and marched with part of his troops to invest 
 Verona. Adalgisus defended the place, for a time, with 
 great bravery, but finding himself, at last, reduced to 
 extremities, and despairing of relief, he secretly withdrew 
 and fled to Constantinople, where he was cordially receiv- 
 ed by the emperor. Verona now surrendered to Charles; 
 who having got Berta, his brother's widow, and her 
 two sons into his power, sent them immediately, under 
 a strong guard, into France. What afterwards became 
 of them, history has not told us. It is much to be fear- 
 ed, however, that their fate was little to the honour of 
 the conqueror. Humanity was not the characteristic of 
 those times. 
 
 The siege of Pavia was renewed, and pushed with 
 
 fresh vigour. But the festival of Easter approaching, 
 
 ^„ , which Charles had resolved to spend at Rome, 
 
 A. D. z/^. 
 
 * he left the conduct of the siege once more to 
 his uncle Bernard. The pope received his deliverer in 
 the most pompous manner, the magistrates and judges 
 walking before him with their banners, and the clergy 
 repeating, " Blessed is he that cometh in the name of 
 the Lord!" After Charles had satisfied his curiosity, 
 and confirmed the donation which his father Pepin had 
 made to St. Peter, he returned to the camp before Pa- 
 via. The Lombards still continued to defend that city 
 with obstinate valour, so that the siege was little, if at 
 all advanced; but a plague breaking out among the be- 
 sieged, the unfortunate Desiderius was obliged at last to 
 surrender his capital, and deliver up himself, his wife, 
 and his children, to Charles, who sent them all into 
 France, where they either died a violent death, or lan- 
 guished out their days in obscurity, being never more 
 heard of ^ 
 
 Thus ended the kingdom of the Lombards in Italy, 
 after it had subsisted two hundred and six years. They 
 are represented by the monkish historians as a cruel 
 
 3. Leo Ostiens. Monarch. Engolism. 
 
 and 
 
LET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. 61 
 
 and barbarous people, because they opposed the ambitious 
 views of the popes: but the many wholesome laws which 
 they left behind them, and which devouring time has still 
 spared, are convincing proofs of their justice, humanity, 
 and wisdom. 
 
 A short account of the state of Italy at the time it 
 was entered by Charlemagne will here be proper, and also 
 of the new form of government introduced there by the 
 conqueror. 
 
 Italy was then shared by the Venetians, the Lombards, 
 the popes, and the emperors of the East. The Vene- 
 tians were become very considerable by their trade to 
 the Levant, and bore no small sway in the affairs of Ita- 
 ly, though it does not appear that they had yet any town 
 on the terra frma^ or continent. The pope, by the gene- 
 rosity of Pepin and his son Charles, was now master of 
 the exarchate and Pentapolis. The dukedom of Naples, 
 and some cities in the two Calubrias, v/ere still held by 
 the emperors of the East. All the other provinces of 
 Italy belonged to the Lombards; namely the dukedoms 
 of Friula, Spoleto, and Benevento, together with the 
 provinces of Liguria, Venetia, Tuscany, and the Alpes 
 Cottias, which were properly called the kingdom of the 
 Lombards. These Charles claimed by right of conquest, 
 and caused himself, in imitation of them, to be crowned 
 king of Italy, v/ith an iron crown'^, which is still preser- 
 ved in the little tov/n of Monza. 
 
 The ceremony of coronation being over, the conqueror 
 thought it necessary to settle the government of his nev/ 
 kingdom, before he left Italy; and, after consulting with 
 the pope, who declared him patrician of Rome, and pro- 
 tectorof the apostolic see, he agreed that the people should 
 be permitted to live under their former laws, and that 
 all things should remain as established by his predeces- 
 sors. Accordingly he allowed the dukes of Friuli, Spo- 
 leto, and Benevento, the same authority which they 
 
 4. Eginhard, in Vit. Car. Mt'v. 
 
 had 
 
^2 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 had enjoyed under the Lombard kings. He also permit- 
 ted the other dukes to hold their dukedoms, contenting 
 himself with an oath of allegiance, which he obliged them, 
 and likewise the three great dukes, to take annuall3\ It 
 was conceived in these words; " I promise, without fraud 
 *' or deceit, to be faithful to my sovereign Charles, and 
 *' his sons, as long as I live; and I swear by these Holy 
 *' Gospels, that 1 will be faithful to him, as a vassal to 
 " his lord and sovereign: neither will I divulge any thing 
 *' which, in virtue of my allegiance, he shall commit to 
 " me." He never transferred a dukedom from one fami- 
 ly to another, unless when the duke broke his oath, or 
 died without male issue. This translation from one to 
 another was called investiture; and hence it came, that 
 fiefs were not granted but by investiture, as was after- 
 wards the case with respect to other vassals and feudato- 
 ries'. 
 
 Charles committed the boundaries of his new king- 
 dom, and the territory of cities, to the care of counts, who 
 were vested with great authority. These boundaries were 
 called Marchse or Marches, and those who had the 
 care of them were styled Counts of the Marches, 
 or Marquisses, whence the title marquis had its rise. 
 He also sent occasionally missi, or commissaries who 
 were vested with higher powers, and examined into 
 the conduct of the counts, whose province it was to admi- 
 nister justice over all the dominions of Charlemagne. — 
 That Italy might retain at least some shadow of liberty, 
 he convened, as often as he returned thither, a general 
 assembly of all the bishops, abbots, and barons of 
 the kingdom, in order to settle affairs of national impor- 
 tance. The Lombards had but one order in the state, 
 composed of the barons and judges; but the French, in 
 the time of Charlemagne, had two, the clergy and nobili- 
 ty; hence was added by Charles in Italy, after the man- 
 ner of France, the order of ecclesiastics to that of the 
 barons or noblest 
 
 5. Sigonius, ubi sup. 6. Ibid. 
 
 The 
 
LET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. 63 
 
 The affairs of Italy being thus settled, Charles 
 returned to France and marched immediately 
 against the Saxons, who had again revolted 
 during his absence. But his wars with that barbarous, 
 though brave and independent people, which lasted 
 upwards of thirty years, and formed the principal busi- 
 ness of his reign, could afford little pleasure to a 
 humanized mind. I shall therefore only observe, That, 
 after a number of battles gallantly fought, and many 
 cruelties committed on both sides, the Saxons were to- 
 tally subjected, and Germany became part of the empire 
 of Charlemagne. A desire to convert the Saxons to 
 Christianity seems to have been one of the principal 
 motives for prosecuting this conquest; and as they were 
 no less tenacious of their religion than their liljerty, per- 
 secution marched in the train of war, and stained with 
 blood the fetters of slavery. 
 
 Witikind, so deservedly celebrated by his nation, was 
 the most eminent Saxon general during these hostilities. 
 He frequently roused the drooping valour of his country- 
 men, and revived in their hearts the love of liberty and 
 independency. Nor were they wanting to him in attach- 
 ment, for which they severely paid. After an unsuc- 
 cessful revolt, when they went to make submission to 
 Charlemagne, he ordered four thousand five htindred of 
 theirprincipal men to be massacred, because they refused 
 to deliver up their general'. An equal instance of severity 
 is not, perhaps, to be met with in the history of mankind; 
 especially if v/e consider, that the Saxons were not 
 Charles's natural subjects, but an independent people 
 struggling for freedom. Witikind at last submitted and 
 embraced Christianit}', continuing ever after faithful to 
 his engagements. But he could never inspire his 
 associates with the same docile sentiments: they were 
 continually revolting; and submitting, that they might 
 
 7. Eginhard, in AnnaU 
 
 have 
 
64 THE HISTORY OF [PARt i. 
 
 have it in their power to revolt again. On the final 
 reduction of their country, the more resolute spirits retir- 
 ed into Scandinavia, carrying along with them their 
 vindictive hatred against the dominion and the religion 
 of France. 
 
 A word here of religion. Charlemagne very justly 
 considered the raild doctrines of Christianity as the best 
 means of taming a savage people; but he was mistaken 
 in supposing that force will ever make Christians. His 
 Capitulars for the Saxons are almost as barbarous as 
 their manners. He obliged them, under pain of death, to 
 receive baptism; he condemns to the severest punishments 
 the breakers of Lent: in a word, he every where substi- 
 tutes force for persuasion. Instead therefore, of blam- 
 ing the obstinacy of these barbarians, we ought to be filled 
 %vith horror at the cruel bigotry of the conqueror. 
 
 Almost every year of Charles's reign was signalized 
 by some military expedition, though very different from 
 those of our times. War was then carried on without 
 any settled plan of operations. The troops were neither 
 regularly disciplined nor paid. Every nobleman led 
 forth his vassals, who were only obliged to serve for a 
 certain timej so that there was a kind of necessity of 
 concluding the war with the campaign. The army was 
 dissolved on the approach of winter, and assembled next 
 season, if necessary. Hence we are enabled to account 
 for a circumstance which would otherwise appear inex- 
 plicable, in the reign of this great prince. — Besides the 
 Lombards, and Saxons, whom he conquered, Charles 
 vanquished in several engagements the Abares or Huns, 
 plundered their capital, and penetrated as far as Raab 
 on the Danube. He likewise made an expedition into 
 Spain, and carried his arms to the banks of the Ebro^. 
 
 Abdurrahman, the Moorish king, whom I have 
 alread}' mentioned, still reigned with lustre at Cordova. 
 A superb mosque, now the cathedral of that city, six 
 
 8. Id. ibid. 
 
 hundred 
 
LET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. f,5 
 
 hundred feet in length, and two hundred and fifty in 
 breadth, supported by three hundred and sixty-fue 
 columns of alabaster, jasper, and black marble, continues 
 to manifest the grandeur of this monarch. No other 
 people but the Arabs could then either have conceived 
 or executed such a work. The little Christian king of 
 the Asturias had prudently sued for peace from Abdur- 
 rahman; but the Moorish governors of Saragossa and 
 Arragon having revolted, implored the assistance of 
 Charlemagne, offering to acknowledge him as their 
 sovereign. Willing to extend his empire on that side, 
 
 Charles crossed the Pyrenees v/ith all exoedi- 
 
 .. 1 T> 1 ' 1 c ' , A. D. 778. 
 
 tion; took Jr'ampeiuna and baragossa, and 
 
 re-established the Moorish governors under his protec- 
 tion. In repassing the mountains, his rear-guard was 
 defeated by the duke of Gascony, at Roncevaux''. Here 
 fell the famous Roland, so much celebrated in Romance, 
 and represented as nephew to Charlemagne; though his- 
 tory only tells us, that he commanded on the frontiers of 
 Bretagne. 
 
 But Charles, though engaged in so many v/ai's, was 
 far from neglecting the arts of peace, the happiness of his 
 subjects, or the cultivation of his own mind. Govern- 
 ment, manners, religion, and letters, v/ere his constant 
 study. He frequently convened the national assemblies, 
 for regulating affairs both of church and state. In these 
 assemblies he proposed such laws as he considered to 
 be of public benefit, and allowed the same liberty tO' 
 others; but of this liberty, indeed it would have been 
 difficult to deprive the French nobles, vvho had been 
 accustomed, from the foundation of the monarchy, to 
 share the legislation with their sovereign. His attention 
 extended even to the most distant corner of his empire, 
 and to all ranks of men. Sensible how much mankind 
 in general reverence old customs, and those constitu- 
 tions under which they have lived from their youth, he 
 
 9. Eginhard, iibi sup, 
 
 VOL. T. o permitted 
 
66 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 .permitted the inhabitants of all the countries that he 
 conquered to retain their own laws, making only such 
 alterations as he judged absolutely necessary for the 
 good of the community. He was particularly tender of 
 the common people and every where studied their ease 
 and advantage. This benevolence of mind, which can 
 never be sufficiently admired, was both more necessary 
 and more meritorious in those times, as the commonalty 
 were then in a state of almost universal oppression, and 
 scarcely thought entitled to the common sympathies of 
 humanity. The same love of mankind led him to repair 
 and form public roads ; to build bridges, where necessary; 
 to make rivers navigable, for the purposes of commerce ; 
 and to project that grand canal, which would have opened 
 a communication between the German Ocean and the 
 Black Sea, by uniting the Danube and the Rhine'". This 
 illustrious project failed in the execution, for want of 
 those machines which art has since constructed. But 
 the greatness of the conception, and the honour of hav- 
 ing attem.pted it were beyond the power of contingencies: 
 and posterity has done justice to the memory of Charles, 
 by considering him on account of that and his other 
 public spirited plans, as one of those few conquerors who 
 did not merely desolate the earth; as a hero truly worthy 
 of the name, who sought to unite his own glory with the 
 welfare of his species. 
 
 This great prince was no less amiable in private life 
 than illustrious in his public character. He was an 
 affectionate father, a fond husband, and a generous friend. 
 His house was a model of ceconomy, and his person of 
 simplicity and true grandeur. " For shame!" said he 
 to some of his nobles, who were finer dressed than the 
 occasion required; " learn to dress like men, and let the 
 world judge of your rank by your merit, not your habit. 
 I^eave silks and finery to women; or reserve them for 
 ihose days of pomp and ceremony, when robes are worn 
 
 10. Eginliard, Vit. Cur. Mag. 
 
 for 
 
LET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. er 
 
 for shew, not use." On some occasions he himself 
 appeared in imperial magnificence, and freely indulg- 
 ed in every luxury; but in general his dress was plain, 
 and his table frugal. His only excess was in the pleasure of 
 the sexes, at once the most natural and the most excu- 
 sable; and this, it must be owned, he sometimes carried 
 to such a height as to endanger his very athletic constitu- 
 tion, he being almost seven feet high, and proportionably 
 strong. He had his set hours for study, which he sel- 
 dom omitted, either in the camp or the court; and, not- 
 withstanding his continual wars, and unremitted atten- 
 tion to the affairs of a great empire, he found leisure to 
 collect the old French poems and historical ballads, with 
 a view to illustrate the history ox the monarchy. The loss 
 of this collection is much to be lamented, and could 
 never have happened, if every one had been as well ac- 
 quainted with its importance as Charles. But he was 
 the phcenix of his age; and, though not altogether free 
 from its prejudices, his liberal and comprehensive mind, 
 which examined every thing, and yet found time for all 
 things, would have done honour to the most enlightened 
 period. He was fond of the company of learned men, 
 and assembled them about him from all parts of Europe, 
 forming in his palace a kind of academy, of which he 
 himself condescended to become a member. He also 
 established schools, in the cathedrals and principal abbies, 
 for teaching writing, arithmetic, grammar, and church 
 music"; certainly no very elevated sciences, yet consi- 
 derable at a time when many dignified ecclesiastics could 
 not subscribe the canons of those councils in which they 
 sat as members'% and when it was deemed a sufficient 
 qualification for a priest to be able to read the Gospels, 
 and understand the Lord's Prayer^ 
 
 Alcuin, our learned countryman, was the companion, 
 and particular favourite of Charlemagne; instructed him 
 
 11. Id. ibid. 12. Ncm. Traite. Difilont. 13. Reg. Brumier.s. ap 
 Bruck. Hist. Philos^ 
 
 in 
 
68 THE HISTORY OF [fart i. 
 
 in the sciences, and was at the head of his Royal 
 Academy. A circumstance so much to the honour of 
 this island should be omitted by no British historian. 
 Three rich abbies were the reward of the learning and 
 talents of Alcuin. This benevolence has been thought to 
 border on profusion; but in that age of darkness, when 
 even an enthusiastic zeal for letters was a virtue, no 
 encouragement could be too great for the illuminators of 
 the human mind. 
 
 Had Charles's religious enthusiasm been attended 
 with no worse consequences than his literary ardour, his 
 piety would have been as deservedly admired as his 
 taste. But a blind zeal for the propagation of Christianity, 
 which extinguished his natural feelings, made him 
 guilty, as we have already seen, of severities that shock 
 humanity; and a superstitious attachment to the see of 
 Rome, which mingled itself with his policy, led him to 
 engage in theological disputes and quibbles unworthy of 
 his character. The honours which his father Pepin 
 and he owed to the popes can only render him in any 
 degree excusable. But although the theological side of 
 Charles's character is by no means the brightest, it 
 merits your attention; as it serves to shew the prejudices 
 of the age, the littleness of a great man, and the great 
 effects that frequently proceed from little causes. 
 
 As Charlemagne was equally a friend to religion and 
 letters, and as any learning which yet remained among 
 mankind, in our quarter of the globe, was monopolized 
 by the clergy, it is not surprising that they obtained 
 many singular marks of his favour. Even the payment 
 of tithes, then considered as a grievous oppression, but 
 which he ordered as a compensation for the lands with- 
 held from the church; and the consequence which he gave 
 to church-men, by admitting them into the national 
 assemblies, and associating them along with the counts 
 ni administration of justice, appear less extravagant than 
 his sitting himself in councils merely ecclesiastical, 
 assembled about the most frivolous points of a vain the- 
 ology. 
 
LET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. 69 
 
 ology. But, like some princes of later himes, Charles 
 seems to have been ambitious to be considered not only 
 as the protector, but the head o.f the church : and his power 
 and munificence made this usurpatioii be overlooked, not- 
 withstanding the height at which the papal dig- 
 nity had then arrived. We accordingly find 
 him seated on a throne in the council of Frankfort, with 
 one of the pope's legates on each hand, and three hun- 
 dred bishops waiting his nod. 
 
 The purpose of that council was to examine the doc- 
 trine of two Spanish bishops; who in order to refute the 
 accusation of polytheism, brought against the Christians 
 by the Jews and Mahometans, maintained that Jesus 
 Christ is the son of God only by adoption. The king 
 opened the assembly himself, and proposed the condem- 
 nation of this heresy. The council decided conformably 
 to his will; and in a letter to the churches of Spain, m 
 consequence of that decision, Charles expresses himself 
 in these remarkable words. " You entreat me to judge 
 " of myself: I have done so: I have assisted as an audi- 
 " tor, and an arbiter, in an assembly of bishops; v/e have 
 " examined, and by the grace of God, we have settled, 
 " what must be believed 1" Neither Constantine nor any 
 other of the Greek emperors, so jealous of their theo- 
 logical prerogative, ever used a more positive language. 
 
 Charlemagne went still farther in the question of ima- 
 ges. Leo IV. the son of Constantine Copronymus as 
 zealous an image-breaker as his father, had banished his 
 wife Irene, because she hid images beneath her pillcw. 
 This devout and ambitious princess coming afterward to 
 the government, during the minority of her son Constan- 
 tine Porphyrogenetus, with whom she was associated in 
 the empire, i-e-established that worship which she loved 
 from polic}^ no less then piety. The second council of 
 Nice accordingly decreed, That we ought to render to 
 images an honorarij worship, but not a real adoration, 
 which is due to God alone. Unfortunately, however, 
 the translation of the acts of this council, which pope 
 
 Adrian 
 
70 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Adrian sent iilto France, was so defective, that the sense 
 
 of the article relating to images was entirely perverted, 
 
 running thus; " I receive and honour images according 
 
 " to that adoration which I pay to the Trinity." Charles 
 
 was so much incensed at this impiety, that he composed, 
 
 by the assistance of the clergy, and published in his own 
 
 name, what are called the CaroUn Books, in which the 
 
 Council of Nice is treated v/ith the utmost contempt and 
 
 abuse. He sent these books to Adrian I. desiring him 
 
 to excommunicate the empress and her son. The pope 
 
 prudently excused himself on the score of images, ma- 
 
 Jking Charles sensible of the mistake upon which he had 
 
 proceeded; but he insinuated at the same time, that he 
 
 would declare Irene and Constantine heretics, unless they 
 
 restored certain lands, which had belonged to the church: 
 
 artfully hinting at certain projects, which he had formed 
 
 for the exaltation of the Roman church and the French 
 
 monarchy ■^. The exaltation of the monarchy was at 
 
 hand, though Adrian did not live to be the instrument 
 
 ofit. 
 
 Leo III. who succeeded Adrian in the papacy, sent 
 
 ^^^ immediately to Charlemagne the standard of 
 A. D. 796. „ ,-'.,, ° 
 
 Rome, beggmg him to send some person to re- 
 ceive the oath of fidelity from the Romans,^; a most flat- 
 tering instance of submission, as well as a proof that the 
 sovereignty of Rome, at that time, belonged to the kings 
 of France. Three years after, Pascal and Campule, two 
 nephews of the late pope not only offered themselves as 
 
 accusers of Leo, but attacked him in the public 
 
 A D 79*-) 
 
 streets; wounded him in several places, and 
 dragged him half dead into the church of St. Mark. He 
 made his escape by the assistance of some friends; and 
 the duke of Spoleto, general of the French forces, sent 
 him under an escort to Charlemagne. Charles received 
 him with all possible marks of respect, sent him back 
 
 H. FJfmens d'Nht. Gen. par M. Abbe Millot, part II. torn i. 
 15. Egiiihard in V it. car Mag. 
 
 with 
 
iET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. 71 
 
 with a numerous retinue of guards and attendants, and 
 
 went soon after to Italy in person to do him justice"'. 
 
 On the arrival of the French monarch at Rome, he 
 
 spent six days in private conferences with the 
 
 r 1 • 1 1 , J ^ I • 1 A. D. 800. 
 
 pope; alter which he convoked the bishops 
 
 and nobles, to examine the accusation brought against 
 
 the pontiff. " The apostolic see," exclaimed the bishops, 
 
 *' cannot be judged by man!" Leo, however, spoke to 
 
 the accusation: he said the king came to hioxo the cause; 
 
 and, no proof appearing against him, he purged himself 
 
 by oath. 
 
 The trial of a pope was doubtless an uncommon 
 scene, but one soon followed yet more extraordinary. 
 On Christmas-day, as the king assisted at mass in St. 
 Peter's church, in the midst of the ecclesiastical cere- 
 monies, and while he was on his knees before the altar, 
 the supreme pontiff advanced, and put an imperial crown 
 upon his head. As soon as the people perceived it, they 
 cried, " Long life and victory to Charles Augustus, 
 " crowned by the hand of God! — Long live the great 
 " and pious emperor of the Romans." During these 
 acclamations, the pope conducted him to a magnificent 
 throne, which had been prepared for the purpose; and, 
 as soon as he was seated, paid him those honours which 
 his predecessors had been accustomed to pay to the Ro- 
 man emperors, declaring that, instead of the title of 
 Patrician, he should henceforth style him Emperor and 
 Augustus. Leo now presented him with the imperial 
 mantle; with which being invested, Charles returned 
 amidst the acclamations of the populace, to his palace'^. 
 
 The pope had surely no right to proclaim an emperor; 
 but Charles was worthy of the imperial ensigns: and 
 although he cannot properly be ranked among the succes- 
 sors of Augustus, he is justly considered as the founder 
 of the New Empire of the West. 
 
 J 
 16. Anast. In Vit. Leon. 17. Id. ib. E2inhard, in Annal. 
 
 Charlemagne 
 
72 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Charlemagne was no sooner proclaimed emperor than 
 his title was universally acknowledged; and he received 
 several embassies, which must have given him high satis- 
 faction, as they did equal honour to the prince and the 
 men. Irene, empress of the East, the most artful and 
 ambitious woman of her time, who had deposed her son 
 Constantine, that she might reign alone, made the new 
 emperor a proposal of marriage. This proposal was 
 made with a view to secure her Italian dominions, which 
 she was informed Charles intended to seize; and the 
 marriage-treat}' was actually concluded, when Nicephorus 
 the patrician conspired against Irene, banished her to the 
 island of Lesbos, and ascended the imperial throne. 
 Nicephorus also fearing the power of Charles, sent am- 
 bassadors to him under the title of Augustus. ^^^ 
 
 rrn, , , 1 T- • r 1 • A. D. 802. 
 
 They settled the limits oi the two empires, 
 by a new treaty; according to which, Calabria, Sicily, 
 the sea coast of !^^aples, Dalmatia, and Venice, were 
 to continue under the dominion of the emperors of Con- 
 stantinople'^. This treaty proves, that the Venetians 
 were not yet altogether independent; but they aspired at 
 independency, and soon deservedly obtained it. 
 
 The renown of Charles extended even into Asia, 
 He kept a correspondence with the famous Harun-al- 
 Raschid, the tAventy-fifth calif, and one of those who 
 contributed most to enlighten and polish the Arabs. 
 This prince valued the friendship of Charlemagne above 
 that of all other potentates; as a proof of which he 
 complimented him with an embassy soon after he was 
 proclaimed emperor, and ceded to him, if not the lord- 
 ship of Jerusalem, as some authors affirm, at least the 
 holy places in that city, whither devotion already led a 
 great number of Christians. Among the presents which 
 the ambassadors of Al-Raschid brought into France was 
 a striking clock, the first ever seen in that kingdom; for 
 notwithstanding the efforts of Charlemagne to enlighten 
 
 18. Eginhard in Vit. Car. Mag. Adon. Cbroii. Theoph. Cbroiwgraphia 
 
 his 
 
LET. IX.] MODERN EUROPE. f3 
 
 his nation, the scholars of his court were by no means 
 equal to those of the calif's in knowledge, nor his peo- 
 ple in the arts, either liberal or mechanical. The Araba 
 might then have been preceptors to all Europe. 
 
 I must here say a few words of this surprising 
 phenomenon. 
 
 The Abassides having ascended the throne of Maho- 
 met, transferred the seat of the califat from Damascus 
 to Caffa, and afterwards to Bagdad, on the banks of the 
 Tigris. Thither the calif Al-Mansur attracted the arts 
 and sciences. The Greeks had furnished ideas, and 
 communicated taste to their barbarous conquerors; a 
 species of triumph reserved for civilized nations, even 
 in a state of servitude. Al-Mohdi, successor of Al- 
 JMansur, cultivated these precious seeds; and Al-Raschid, 
 successor of Al-Mohdi, augmented their fecundity by 
 his knowledge and attention, being equally liberal and 
 enlightened. Under Al-Mamun, Al-Motasem, Al- 
 Watheck, and their immediate successors, the sciences 
 flourished still more; but, at length, dissensions and civil 
 wars robbed the Arabs, in their turn, of the fruits of 
 genius and the lights of learning, which are almost insepa- 
 rable from public tranquillity. 
 
 In all nations the same revolutions are produced by 
 the same causes. Nothing merits your attention more in 
 the study of history. 
 
 One of the principal causes of the fall of empires has 
 ever been, but more especially in modern times, the 
 error of dividing the same monarchy among different 
 princes. The custom was established before Charle- 
 magne: he followed it by a testamentary divi- 
 sion of his dominions, among his three sons, 
 Charles, Pepin, and Lewis. The particulars of this 
 division are of little consequence, as Lewis only sur- 
 vived his father. It is necessary, however, to observe, 
 that the Italian provinces were assigned to Pepin; a 
 donation which was confirmed to his son Bernard, with 
 the title of king of Italy, and proved the ruin of that 
 
 VOL. I. p prince, 
 
r4 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 prince, as well as the cause of much disturbance to the 
 empire. 
 
 In the meantime, the emperor was threatened by a 
 new enemy, and the most formidable he had ever en- 
 countered. The Normans, as the French call them, or 
 the inhabitants of the great northern peninsula of Europe, 
 (whom I shall afterwards have occasion more particu- 
 larly to mention) had long harassed the coasts of his 
 extensive donvinions with their robberies and piracies; 
 and notwithstanding the wise measures of Charles, who 
 created a powerful marine, and took every other precau- 
 tion against their ravages, they not only continued their 
 
 depredations, but made a formal descent in 
 A D 808 . 
 
 Friezland, under Godfrey their king, laying 
 
 every thing waste before them. Charles assembled all 
 his forces in the neighbourhood of the Rhine, and 
 was preparing for a decisive battle, which might per- 
 haps have terminated the empire of the Franks, as 
 Godfrey was not inferior to the emperor either in val- 
 our or military skill, and had a numerous body of fear- 
 less adventurers under his command. But the issue of 
 this battle was prevented by the death of the Norman 
 prince, who was assassinated by one of his followers. 
 His forces were immediately re-embarked, and a peace 
 was afterwards concluded with his son '^ 
 
 The satisfaction which Charles must have received 
 from this deliverance, and the general tranquillity which 
 he now enjoyed, was more than balanced by his domes- 
 tic misfortunes. He lost his favourite daughter Rotrude 
 (for whom he is supposed to have felt more than a fa- 
 therly aftection,) his son Pepin, and his son Charles. 
 Soon after the death of Charles he associated 
 his son Lewis with him in the empire. The 
 ceremony was very solemn. As if this great man had 
 foreseen the usurpations of the church, he placed the im- 
 perial crown upon the altar, and ordered the prince to lift 
 
 19. Adon. Chron. Egiiibard. in Fit. Car. Mag^ 
 
 it, 
 
LET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. 7S 
 
 it, and set it on his own head*": intimating thereby, that 
 he held it only of God. 
 
 The emperor died at Aix-la-Chapelle, his usual resi- 
 dence, intheseventy-firstyear of his ageandthe 
 forty-seventh of his reign. The glory of the 
 French empire seemed to expire with him. He posses- 
 sed all France, all Germany, part of Hungary, part of 
 Spain, the Low Countries, and the continent of Italy as 
 far as Benevento*'. But to govern such an extent of terri- 
 tory, a monarch must be endowed with the genius of a 
 Charlemagne. 
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 -«MPIRE OF CHARLEMAGNE AND THE CHURCH, FROM THE AC- 
 CESSION OF HIS SON, LEWIS THE DEBONNAIRE, TO THB 
 DEATH OF CHARLES THE BALD. 
 
 X HE history of Europe, for several ages after 
 the death of Charlemagne, is little more than a catalogue 
 of crimes, and a register of the debasing effects of igno- 
 rance and superstition. His empire soon experienced 
 the fate of Alexander's. It had quickly attained its height; 
 and yet, while animated by the superior genius of Charles, 
 it possessed a surprising degree of strength and harmony. 
 But these not being natural to the feudal system, the dis- 
 cordant elements began to separate under his son Lewis 
 the Dcbonnaire, so called on account of the gentleness of 
 his manners; and that vast body, no longer informed by 
 
 20. Vit. LuJovici Pit. 21. Eginhard, ubi aup. 
 
 the 
 
rs THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 the same spirit, was in a short time entirely dismembei-- 
 ed. 
 
 Lewis, though a prince of some abilities, was unable 
 to support so great a weight of empire ; and his piety and 
 parental fondness, however amiable in themselves, en- 
 feebled a character already too weak, and an authority 
 never respected. He rendered himself odious to the clergy 
 by attempting to reform certain abuses, without foreseeing 
 that this powerful body would not pay the same submis- 
 sion they had yielded to the superior capacity of his fa- 
 ther. More religious than political, he spent less time 
 in settling the affairs of his empire than those of his soul; 
 ignorant that true religion consists in fulfilling the duties 
 of our station, and that the practices of the cloister are 
 improperly associated with the functions of the throne. 
 But his greatest error was occasioned by his paternal af- 
 fection, and a blind imitation of his father's example, in 
 dividing his dominions among his children. 
 Soon after his accession to the throne, he as- 
 sociated his eldest son Lothario with him in the empire; 
 he created Pepin king of Aquitaine; Lewis, of Bavaria: 
 and after the ceremony of coronation was over, he sent 
 them to the government of their respective kingdoms'. 
 
 Bernard, king of Italy, the grandson of Charlemagne, 
 was offended at that division. He thought his right to 
 the empire superior to Lothario's, as his father Pepin was 
 the elder bi-other of Lewis. The archbishops of Milan 
 and Cremona flattered him in his pretensions: he revol- 
 •ted, and levied war against his uncle, in contempt of the 
 imperial authority, to which his crown was subject. Lewis 
 acted on this occasion with more vigour than either his 
 friends or his enemies expected; he immediately raised 
 a powerful army, and was preparing to cross the Alps, 
 when Bernard was abandoned by his troops. That un- 
 fortunate prince was made prisoner, and condemned to 
 
 Ni^iard de Ditsentionibut Filiorum. Ludovici Pit. 
 
 lose 
 
LET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. 77 
 
 lose his head; but his uncle, by a singular 
 kind of lenity, mitigated the sentence to the 
 loss of his eyes. He died three days after the punish- 
 ment was inflicted: and Lewis, to prevent future trou- 
 bles, ordered three natural sons of Charlemagne to be sha- 
 ved, and shut up in a convent*. 
 
 In consequence of these rigours, the Emperor was 
 seized v/ithkeen remorse; accusing himself of the mur- 
 der of his nephew, and of tyrannic cruelty to his brothers 
 inhumanly secluded from the world. He was encouraged 
 by the monks in this melancholy humour; which at last 
 grew to such a height, that he impeached himself in an 
 assembly of the states, and begged the bishops to en- 
 join him public penance^. The clergy now sensible of 
 Lewis's weakness, set no bounds to their usurpations. 
 The popes thought they might do any thing under so 
 pious a prince; they did not wait for the emperor's con- 
 firmation of their election, but immediately assumed the 
 tiara, and were guilty of every other irregularity. The 
 bishops exalted themselves above the throne, and the 
 whole fraternity of the church claimed an exemption 
 from all civil jurisdiction. Even that set of men who 
 pretend to renounce the world, the monks, seemed to as- 
 pire at the government of it. 
 
 Lewis, by the advice of his ministers, who were de- 
 sirous to divert himfromhis monastic habits, had married 
 a second wife, whose name was Judith, descended from 
 one of the noblest families in Bavaria, and distinguished 
 
 both by her mental and personal qualities. That 
 
 I u. u- f II A. D. 824. 
 
 prmcess brought him a son, afterwards known 
 
 by the name of Charles the Bald, whose birth was the 
 
 occasion of much joy, but proved eventually the cause of 
 
 many sorrows. For this son there was no inheritance, 
 
 the imperial dominions being already divided among the 
 
 children of the first marriage. The empress, who had 
 
 2. Vit. Lud. Pii. 3. Theogan. de. Rek Gest. Lud. Pii. 
 
 gained 
 
78 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 gained a great ascendency over her husband, therefore, 
 pressed Lewis to place her son Charles on a footing with 
 his other children, by a new division of the empire"^. 
 Aquitaine and Bavaria were small kingdoms, from them 
 nothing could be expected; but Lothario's share was 
 large, and might spare a little. Sensible of the wishes 
 of his indulgent father, and prevailed on by the entrea- 
 ties of this fond mother, Lothario consented that some 
 provision should accordingly be made for his bro- 
 ther Charles. But he soon repented of his too 
 
 A, D. 829 
 easy concession, and the three brothers joined 
 
 in a rebellion against their father^, the most singular 
 circumstance perhaps, to be met with in history. 
 
 These disorders were fostered by Walla, abbot of 
 Corbie, a monk of high birth, who had formerly been iii 
 the confidence of Lewis, but was now in disgrace. He 
 declaimed against the court, and against the empress in 
 particular, accusing her of an adulterous commerce with 
 
 ^^^ count Bernard, the prime minister. His 
 A. D. 830. J J -ru u 
 
 schemes succeeded. Ihe emperor was aban- 
 doned by his army, and made prisoner, along with his 
 wife Judith, and her son Charles. The Empress was 
 shut up in a cloister, and Lewis himself would have been 
 obliged to take the monastic habit, had it not been suppo- 
 sed that he would make a voluntary resignation of his 
 crown. He had the courage, however, to insist on the 
 rectitude of his intentions while he acknowledged his 
 errors, and promised to act with more circumspection in 
 future. The nobility pitied their humbled sovereign; and 
 by the intrigues of the monk Gombaud, who sowed dis- 
 sentions among thebrothers, Lewis was rcstoredto his dig- 
 nity, and seemingly reconciled with his family^. 
 
 The first use that the emperor made of his liberty, was 
 to recall his consort to court; though not without the 
 permission of the pope, as she had formally taken the 
 veil. Bernard was also recalled, and Walla banished; 
 
 4. Vit. Lud. Fit. S. Nithard. ubi sop. 6. Thcogan: de Qest. Lud. PH. 
 
 yet 
 
tET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. r9 
 
 yet Lewis did not long enjoy either peace or tranquillity. 
 The monk Gombaud thought he had a right to be prime 
 minister, as the reward of his services; and as women 
 generally repay flattery with favour, they as generally re- 
 serve vengeance for insult: the empress brought her ani- 
 mosities alonir with her, Walla's friends were 
 
 Ad 832 
 persecuted, and Lothario was deprived of the 
 
 title of emperor, that the succession might be reserved 
 for young Charles. The three brothers again associated 
 themselves in a league against their father^. Count Ber- 
 nard, dissatisfied with his master's conduct, joined the 
 rebels; and Gregory IV. then pope, went to France in 
 the army of Lothario, under pretence of accommodating 
 matters, but really with an intention to employ against 
 the emperor that power which he derived from him, glad 
 of an opportunity to assert the supremacy and indepen- 
 dency of the holy see 
 
 The presence of the pope, in those days of supersti- 
 tion, was of itself sufficient to determine the fate of Lewis. 
 Aftera deceitfulnegociation, andan interviewwith Grego- 
 ry on the part of Lothario, the unfortunate emperor found 
 himself abandoned by his army, and at the mercy of his 
 rebellious sons. He was deposed in a tumul- 
 tuous assembly held on the spot, and Lothario 
 proclaimed in his stead^. After that infamous transac- 
 tion the pope returned to Rome. 
 
 In order to give permanency to this revolution, as 
 well as to apologize for their own conduct, the bishops of 
 Lothario's faction bethought themselves of an artifice, 
 like that which had been made use of to degrade king 
 Wamba in Spain. " A penitent," said they, '' is incapa- 
 " ble of all civil offices ; a royal penitent must then be in- 
 " capable of reigning; let us subject Lewis to a perpetu- 
 *' al penance, and he can never ascend the throne." He 
 was accordingly arraigned in the assembly of the states, by 
 Ebbo, archbishop of Rheims (who had been raised by his 
 
 7. Nithard. dt D'ussnt. FlUor. Lud. PH. 8. Theogan. dt Gest. Lud. PU. 
 
 bounty 
 
80 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 bounty from the condition of a slave,) and condemned to 
 do penance for life'^. 
 
 Lewis was then a prisoner in the monastery of St. 
 Medard, at Soissons; and being much intimidated, he 
 patiently submitted to a ceremony no less solemn than 
 debasing. He prostrated himself on an hair-cloth, which 
 was spread before the altar, and owned himself guiltv of 
 the charge brought against him, in the presence of many 
 bishops, canons, and monks; Lothario being also present 
 in order to enjoy the sight of his father's humiliation. 
 But this acknowledgement was not enough: they gave 
 him a written confession to read aloud, in which he is 
 made to accuse himself of sacrilege and murder, and to 
 number among his crimes the marching of troops in 
 Lent, calling an assembly on Holy Thursdaj^, and taking 
 arms to defend himself against his rebellious children! 
 for superstition can transform into crimes the most inno- 
 cent and even the most necessary actions. After having 
 finished his confession, this unhappy prince, by order of 
 the ungrateful archbishop, laid aside his sword and belt, 
 divested himself of the royal robes, put on the penitential 
 sackcloth, and had a cell assigned him'°. 
 
 but the feelings of nature, and the voice of humanity, 
 prevailed over the prejudices of the age, and the policy 
 of the clergy. Lothario was universally abhorred, and 
 his father no less generally pitied; his two brothers uni- 
 ted against him, in behalf of that father whom they had 
 
 , contributed to humble. The nobility returned 
 A. D 834 
 
 to their obedience; they paid homage to Lew- 
 is, as their lawful sovereign; and the ambitious Lothario 
 was obliged to crave mercy, in the sight of the whole ar- 
 my, at the feet of a father and an emperor, whom he 
 had lately insulted in the habit of a penitent". He re- 
 ceived it, and was permitted to retain the kingdom of 
 Ital)^ 
 
 9. Id. ibid. 10. Jet. Exavet. Lud. Fit. 11. Nithard de Dissent. Lud. PH. 
 
 Lewis 
 
LET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. «l 
 
 Lewis immediately demanded absolution (such was 
 his weakness!) and an assembly held at Tliionville for- 
 mally restored him to his dignity, declaring void every 
 thing that had been done at Soissons. He might now 
 have ended his days in peace, but for the intrigues of 
 the empress Judith; who, still ambitious of the aggran- 
 dizement of her son Charles, again entered into a nego- 
 ciation with Lothario, in consequence of the death of his 
 brother Pepin. An assembly was held at 
 Worms, to which he was invited. His father 
 received him kindly, the empress loaded him with cares- 
 ses. The kingdom of Neustria had lately been added 
 to the dominions originally assigned her son: and the 
 object of all these intrigues was to engage Lothario in 
 a scheme by which Charles should also become possess- 
 ed of the kingdom of Aquitaine, at the expense of Pe- 
 pin's children. Lothario assented to what he was not in 
 a condition to dispute. But Lewis, king of Bavaria, 
 though not injured by this new division of the empire, 
 was so much incensed at its injustice, as he pretended, 
 that he assembled the whole force of his dominions. 
 His father marched against him, but was sud- 
 denly taken ill; and an eclipse of the sun hap- 
 pening at the same time, the superstitious old man had 
 the vanity to think, that Heaven had taken the trouble 
 to foretel to mankind the death of a prince whose very 
 virtues dishonoured the throne and who should never 
 have stirred beyond the walls of a cloister. He there- 
 fore repeatedly received the communion, and scarce any 
 other nourishment, till his piety fulfilled the prediction 
 which his folly had suggested'-. 
 
 Lewis died near Mentz, in the seventy-second year 
 of his age, and the twenty-eighth of his reign. He left 
 a crown, a sceptre, and a very rich sword, to Lothario, 
 by which it was supposed he also left him the empire, on 
 
 12. Vit. Lud. Pit. Annul. Bertiniani. Theogan. de Gest. Lud. PH. 
 
 VOL. I. Q. condition 
 
82 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 condition that he should fulfil his engagements to the 
 empress and her son Charles. His brother, the bishop 
 of Mentz, observing that he had left nothing to his son 
 Lewis, then in arms against him, reminded him that for- 
 giveness at least, was his duty. " Yes, I forgive himl" 
 cried the dying monarch with much emotion;" but tell him 
 " from me, to seek forgiveness also of God, for bringing 
 *' my grey hairs in sorrow to the grave'^" 
 
 A bad son, my dear Philip, is not likely to make a 
 good brother; for the natural feelings in the second re- 
 lation are necessarily weaker than in the first: you must 
 therefore expect to see the sons of Lewis the Debonnaire 
 armed gainst each other. No sooner was Lothario infor- 
 med of his father's death, than he considered himself as 
 emperor in the most extensive sense of the word, and re- 
 solved to make himself master of the whole imperial do- 
 minions, regardless of his engagements with Judith and 
 her son Charles the Bald, or the right of his brother Lewis 
 to the kingdom of Bavaria. And he seemed likely to at- 
 tain the object of his ambition. He was a prince of great 
 subtlety and address, could wear the complexion of the 
 times, and was possessed of an extensive territory, beside 
 the title of emperor, which was still much respected; he 
 therefore assured himself of success against his brothers; 
 Charles being only a youth of seventeen, under the tuition 
 of his mother, and Lewis a prince of no high reputation. 
 He was deceived, however, in his conjectures. These two 
 
 princes, united bv^ a sense of common interest, 
 A D 841. ' . . 
 
 gave him battle at Fontenai, m Burgundy, 
 
 where fraternal hatred appeared in all its horrors. Few 
 engagements have been so bloody. An hundred thousand 
 men are said to have fallen on the spot. Lothario and 
 his nephew Pepin (who had joined him to assert his right 
 to the crown of Aquitaine) were totally defeated ''. Pepin 
 fled to Aquitaine, and Lothario towards Italy, abandon- 
 ing France to the victorious army. 
 
 13. Vit. Lud. Ph. 14. Kithard de Disstnt. Lud. PH. 
 
 Nothing 
 
LET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. 83 
 
 Nothing now remained for Lewis and Charles but to 
 secure their conquests. For this purpose they applied 
 to the clergy; and with hopes so much the better founded, 
 that Lothario, in order to raise troops with more expe- 
 dition, had promised the Saxons the liberty of renoun- 
 cing Christianity; or in other words, liberty of conscience, 
 a thing held in abhorrence by the church of Rome. Se- 
 veral bishops assembled at Aix-la-Chapelle; and, after 
 examining the misconduct of the emperor, asked the two 
 princes, whether they chose to follow his example, or 
 govern according to the laws of God. Their answer may 
 easily be imagined. " Receive then the kingdom by 
 " the divine authority," added the prelates: we exhort 
 you, we command you to receive it T^" 
 
 This command would have taken effect in its most 
 extensive meaning, if Lothario had respected it as much 
 
 as his brothers. But that artful prince bv 
 
 f , . . 1 , . .u c J A. D. 842. 
 
 means or his mdulgence to the baxons, and 
 
 other political expedients, was enabled to set on foot a 
 new army. He became again formidable. The two vic- 
 torious princes therefore thought it adviseable to nego- 
 ciate with him. By a new treaty of division, he was 
 left in possession of the kingdom of Italy, with the im- 
 perial dignity, and the countries situated between the 
 Rhone and the Alps, the Meuse and the Rhine. Charles 
 retained Neustria and Aquitaine; and Lewis, afterwards 
 styled the German, had all the provinces on the other 
 side of the Rhine, and some cities on this side of it'''. 
 
 The extinction of the civil war made but one evil 
 less in the empi're of Charlemagne, ravaged in different 
 parts by the Normans, and by the Saracens, who pillaged 
 Italy. The turbulent independency of the nobles, ac- 
 customed during the last reign to despise the prince and 
 the laws, the discontents of the clergy, and the ambitious 
 projects of both, were the source of new troubles. Every 
 
 15. Id, ibid. Annal. Meter*. 16. Nithaid. ubi sup. 
 
 thin^ 
 
84 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 thing threatened the most fatal revolutions, every thing 
 tended to anarchy. 
 
 In order to lessen these evils, the three brothers en- 
 tered into an association, the effect of weakness more than 
 affection, by which the enemies of one were to be consi- 
 dered as the enemies of all, (so low was the empire of 
 the great Charles?) and in an assembly held 
 at Mersen on the Meuse, they settled certain 
 contitutions relative to the succession, and other public 
 matters. By these it was established. That the children of 
 the reigning prince, whether of age or underage, should 
 succeed to his dominions, and owe nothing to the other 
 princes of the monarchy but the respect due to the ties 
 of blood^; a regulation well calculated to prevent civil 
 wars, though it proved ineffectual in those disorderly 
 times. But other constitutions of the assembly at Mer- 
 sen tended to enfeeble the royal authority, which had 
 already but too much need of support. They provide, 
 That the crown vassals shall no longer be obliged to fol- 
 low the king, unless in general wars, occasioned by for- 
 eign invasions ; and that every freeman shall be at liberty 
 to chuse, whether he will be the vassal of the king or 
 of a subject'^. The first of these regulations increased 
 the independency of the crown vassals, and the second 
 their power, by augmenting the number of their retain- 
 ers; for many persons chose rather to depend upon some 
 neighbouring nobleman, whose immediateprotection they 
 might claim (at a time when protection was necessary, 
 independent of the laws) than on the sovereign, whose 
 attention they had less reason to expect, and whose aid 
 was more distant or doubtful. 
 
 Lothario some years after, took the habit of a monk, 
 that according to the language of those times, he might 
 atone for his crimes: and though he had lived a tyrant, 
 die a saint. In this pious disguise he expired before he 
 had worn it quite a week. He had divided his domini- 
 
 17. ^nna/. Bertiniani. 18. Ibid. 
 
 ons 
 
LET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. 85 
 
 ons amonff h'i3 children: and by virtue of the 
 
 °,, 1 •I , , A. D. 855. 
 
 treaty or Mersen, they quietly succeeded 
 
 to their allotments. Lewis had Italy, with the title of 
 emperor; Lothario the provinces between the Rhone, 
 the Soan, the Meuse, the Escaut, and the Rhine, called 
 from his own name the kingdom of Lotharingia, and by 
 corruption Lorrain. Charles had Provence, Dauphine, 
 and part of Burgundy. He took the title of king of Pro- 
 vence. One might have imagined there were now kings 
 enough in this monarchy; yet Charles the Balci declared 
 his infant son king of Aquitaine'9. 
 
 Thus was the empire of Charlemagne, split by con- 
 tinual subdivisions, the source of perpetual wars, till it 
 became, to use the language of Shakespeare, only " a 
 *' stage to feed contention on." Foreign invasions conspi- 
 red with civil dissensions to spread terror and disorder in 
 every quarter; but more especially through the dominions 
 of Charles the Bald, a prince as weak as his father, and 
 restless as his mother. The Normans carried fire and 
 sword into the heart of his kingdom; to Rouen, and 
 even to the gates of Paris. Young Pepin, son of the 
 last king of Aquitaine, joined the invaders, and ravaged 
 that country over which he had been born to reign. No- 
 menoe, duke of Bretagne, usurped the title of king, 
 which Charles was obliged to confirm to his son Heris- 
 pee, by whom he had been totally defeated. The spirit 
 of revolt became every day more general. Some factious 
 nobles invited Lewis the German to usurp his brother's 
 kingdom. He came at the head of a powerful army, 
 and received the homage of the principal no- 
 bility. Venilon, archbishop of Sens, and other 
 prelates of Lewis's party, at the same time declared 
 that Charles had forfeited his dignity by mal-administra- 
 tion and crowned his brother the German'". 
 
 Charles, however, recovered his kingdom as quickly 
 as he had lost it. The prelates of his party excommu- 
 
 *9. Annal. Fuldens. 20. Annal. Bertiniani. Concil. Gal. torn. ii. 
 
 nicated 
 
W THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 nicated those who had dethroned him, which brought 
 the rebels into contempt, and even abhorrence. Lewis 
 sent back his army into Germany, that he might not give 
 umbrage to the French, and he was afterwards obliged 
 to take the same route himself^'. Charles no sooner ap- 
 peared than he was universally acknowledged; his resto- 
 ration did not cost a single blow. The most terrible 
 anathemas were now denounced against Lewis the Ger- 
 man by the French clergy, unless he submitted to the 
 rigours of the church, among M^hich were included pe- 
 nance; and he was weak enough to reply, that he must 
 first consult the bishops of his own kingdom'^^ 
 
 The weakness of Chai-les the Bald was still more 
 extraordinary. Having assembled a council to judge 
 the traitor Venilon, he presented a memorial against 
 him, in which is the following singular passage: " I 
 " ought not to have been deposed; or at least not before 
 *' I had been judged by the bishops who gate me the royal 
 *' authority I I have always submitted to their correction^ 
 " and am ready now to submit to it!" Venilon escaped 
 punishment, by making his peace with the prince: and 
 the bishops of the council bound themselves by a canon 
 to remain united, " for the correction of kings, the no- 
 *' bility and the peopled 1" 
 
 A variety of circumstances shew, that the clergy 
 now aspired at the right of disposing of crowns, which 
 they founded on the custom of anointing kings. They 
 emplo3'ed fictions and sophisms to render themselves in- 
 dependent: they refused the oath of fealty, " because 
 *' sacred hands could not, without abomination, submit 
 *' to hands impure'' !" One usurpation led to another; 
 abuse constituted right, a quibble appeared a divine law. 
 Ignorance sanctified every thing: and we may safely 
 conclude from the abject language of Charles, in public- 
 ly acknov/ledging the right of the bishops to depose 
 him, and other examples of a like nature, that the usur- 
 
 21. Annal. Benin. 22. Ibid. 25. Concil. Galat. torn ii. Flcury, 
 Hut. Etcl$s. 24. Hist. flel'Eglise Galie. 
 
 pations 
 
:tET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. ajT 
 
 pations of the clergy were, in a great measure, occasion- 
 ed by the slavish superstition of the laity, equally blind, 
 wicked, and devout. 
 
 The zeal of the bishops to establish their indepen- 
 dency was favourable to the projects of the court of 
 Rome. Sergius II. the successor of Gregory IV. had 
 taken possession of the apostolic see, in 844, without 
 the approbation of Lothario, then emperor. Incensed 
 at such an insult, Lothario sent his son Lewis to 
 Rome with troops and prelates. The pope having con- 
 ducted the prince to St. Peter's gate, said to him, " I 
 *' permit you to enter, if your intentions are good; if 
 *' not, I will not suffer you to enter!" and the French 
 soldiers being guilty of some irregularities, he actu- 
 ally ordered the gates to be shut. Lothario com- 
 plained; Sergius was cited to appear before a coun- 
 cil; he appeared, and justified himself in the eye of 
 the priesthood^^. Leo IV. celebrated for the courage 
 with which he defended Rome against the Saracens, and 
 Benedict III. elected in spite of the emperor, both lived 
 in peace with royalty; but Nicholas I. more bold than 
 any of his predecessors, made himself the judge of 
 kings and of bishops, and realized the chimera of lying 
 decretals. 
 
 A grand occasion offered in France for Nicholas to 
 exercise that authority which he attributed to 
 himself. Lothario, king of Lorrain, divor- " ' * 
 ced his wife Teutberge, falsely accused of incest. She^ 
 was cleared by the trial of boiling water, but afterwards 
 convicted by her own confession; if an involuntary 
 acknowledgment, the effect of violence and fear, can be 
 called conviction. A council held at Aix-la- 
 Chapelle authorised Lothario to espouse Wal- 
 drade, a young lady whom he had seduced. The guilty 
 parties were equally desirous of this marriage ; a crimi- 
 nal amour had drawn them to the brink of dishonour. 
 
 25. Cmcil. GmI. torn. u. Flcurj, Eitx. Ecdct. 
 
 The 
 
^88 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 The scandal was horrible! Nicholas laid hold of the 
 
 affair, and attempted to force the king to take back his 
 
 first wife. For this purpose he ordered the 
 A n 863 
 
 bishops to hold a council at Mentz, along with 
 
 his legates, and there to cite and judge Lothario, They 
 confirmed the divorce, contrary to the expectations of 
 the pontiff: a decree which so much enraged him, that 
 he deposed the bishops of Treves and Cologne, who 
 had been appointed to present to him the acts of the coun- 
 cil. These bishops complained to the emperor Lewis IL 
 He went immediately to Rome; displayed his authority, 
 and seemed determined to repress the papal power. 
 But he fell ill: a superstitious fear seized him; and he 
 retired, after having approved the conduct of Nicholas, 
 who became still more imperious. Lothario humbled 
 himself in vain before the haughty pontiff; though he 
 went so far as to offer to come and justify himself in 
 person. The pope insisted, that Waldrade should first 
 be dismissed; and a legate threatened the king with im- 
 mediate excommunication, if he continued in disobe- 
 dience. Lothario, intimidated, now submitted: he re- 
 called Teutberge, and even consented that the legate 
 should lead Waldrade in triumph to Rome. She set out 
 on that mortifying journey, but escaped by the way; and 
 in a short time, resumed her place both as mistress and 
 queen. Meanwhile the unfortunate Teutberge, sinking 
 beneath the weight of persecution and neglect, at last de- 
 sired to be separated from Lothario, protesting that her 
 marriage was void, and that Waldrade's was legitimate. 
 But nothing could move the inflexible Nicholas: he con- 
 tinued obstinate-^. 
 
 We may consider this pope as the forerunner of Gre- 
 gory VII. and, in the same circumstances, he would 
 likely have carried his ambition to the same height. The 
 bishops of Treves and Cologne accused him, in an in- 
 
 26. Hincmar tie Dlvort. Lotbar, et Theutberg. 
 
 vective. 
 
LET. X.J MODERN EUROPE. «9 
 
 vective, of inaking himself emperor of the whole world ; 
 and that expression, though somewhat strained, was not 
 altogether without foundation. He asserted his dominion 
 over the French clergy by re-establishing Rothade of 
 Soissons, deposed by a provincial council; and he received 
 appeals from all ecclesiastics dissatisfied with their bish- 
 ops. By these means he accustomed the people to ac- 
 knowledge a supreme tribunal at a distance from their 
 own country, and consequently a foreign sway. Ke gave 
 orders for the succession to the kingdom of Provence, 
 which Charles the Bald disputed with the emperor Lewis, 
 brother to the deceased king. " Let nobody hinder the 
 " emperor," says he, in a letter on that subject, " to go- 
 *' vern the kingdoms which he holds in virtue of a suc- 
 *' cession confirmed by the holy see, and by the crown 
 ** which the sovereign pontiff has set upon his head^''." 
 
 Nicholas died in 867; but his principles had taken 
 such deep root, that Adrian IL his successor, though 
 more moderate, and desirous of peace, thought his con- 
 descension great in permitting Lothario to come to Rome, 
 in order to justify himself or do penance. Charles the 
 
 Bald and Lewis the German waited with im- „„„ 
 
 r , . . P , . A. D. 868. 
 
 patience tor the excommunication or their 
 
 nephew, persuaded that they should then have a right to 
 seize his dominions. Thus the blind ambition of princes 
 favoured the exercise of a power, which they ought to 
 have foreseen might be turned against themselves; which 
 afterwards became the scourge of royalty, and made every 
 crowned head tremble. 
 
 Lothario while at Rome, employed all possible mean* 
 to soften the pope; he received the communion from his 
 hand, after having sworn he never had any criminal com- 
 merce with Waldrade, since the prohibition of Nicholas, 
 nor ever would have any in future^^. He died at Pla- 
 centia, in his way home. This accident was considered 
 as a just vengeance; as a mark of the divine displeasure 
 
 27. Epist. Nicol. Pap. 28. Adon. Cbron. LothariL Jfe^. Cesi. Rom. 
 vol.. I. R against 
 
.90 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 against perjury, and rendered the proof by the eucharist 
 still more iinportant. 
 
 The emperor Lewis II. brother of Lothario, ought 
 legally to have succeeded to his dominions; but he being 
 at that time employed in expelling the Saracens, who 
 had plundered Italy, and consequently not in a condition 
 to assert his right by arms, Charles the Bald laid hold 
 of the succession, and retained it notwithstanding the re- 
 monstrances of the pope. " The arms which God has 
 " put in our hands," writ Adrian, " are prepared for 
 *' his defence*!^!" Charles was more afraid of the arms 
 of his brother the German, with whom he found it ne- 
 cessary to share the kingdom, though the nobility and 
 clergy of Lorrain had voluntarily submitted to him. 
 
 'Ihs: pope still continued his remonstrances in favour 
 of the emperor, hoping at least to obtain something from 
 him; but they were disregarded by the French monarch 
 who had now thrown off much of his piety, and answered, 
 in a spirited manner by the famous Hincmar, archbishop 
 of Rheims. This bold and independent prelate desired 
 the pope to call to mind, that respect and submission 
 which the ancient pontiffs had always paid to princes: he 
 bid him knoMr that his dignity gave him no right over 
 the government of kingdoms; that he could not be at the 
 same time pope and king: that the choice of sovereigns 
 belongs to the people; that anathemas ill applied have no 
 effect upon the soul; and that free men are not to be en- 
 slaved by a bishop of Rome^". 
 
 Adrian affected to despise tliese arguments, and con- 
 tinued for sometime his menaces, both against Hincmar 
 and the king; but, finding them ineffectual, he changed 
 his tone, and wrote several flattering letters to Charles, 
 promising him the empire on the death of his nephew, 
 then in a languishing condition. This project in favour 
 of the French monarch was executed vmder John VIII. 
 Adrian's successor. The emperor Lewis II. died with- 
 
 29. Epist. Adrian. 30. Flcury, HUt. Eccks. 
 
 out 
 
LET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. 91 
 
 out male heirs. Lewis the German claimed 
 the succession, and the imperial dignity, as ' 
 the elder brother of Charles: but the pope preferred the 
 claim of Charles for political reasons; which, with the 
 court of Rome, never fail to take place of equity. Lewis 
 seemed fast approaching to his end, and had three sons, 
 among whom his dominions must be divided. Charles 
 was a younger man, and had only one son; he there- 
 fore appeared the most proper person to chuse as a pro- 
 tector. He crossed the Alps at the head of his army, 
 and accordingly received the imperial crown as a present 
 from the pope; but much in the same manner that many 
 presents of the like kind are obtained in our days, by 
 paying roundly for it. In an assembly at 
 Pavia, the bishops, abbots, and Italian no- * • ' • 
 bles, recognized him in the following words: "Since the 
 " divine favour, through the merits of the holy apostles, 
 *' and of their vicar pope John, has raised you to the 
 " empire, according to the judgment of the Holy Ghost, 
 " we elect you unanimously for our protector and lord^ ." 
 
 On the death of Lewis the German, a prince of 
 considerable abilities both as a warrior and politician, 
 Charles the Bald, always ambitious and imprudent, at- 
 tempted to seize that part of Lorrain which he had 
 granted to his brother, and was deservedly defeateds^. 
 His three nephews, Carloman, Lewis and Charles, pre- 
 served their possessions by maintaining a strict union 
 among themselves. The first had Bavaria, the second 
 Saxony, and the third Suabia. 
 
 About this time the Saracens renewed their ravages 
 in Italy. They took and plundered Comachio. 
 Pope John had recourse to the emperor; and 
 desired him " to remember the hand that had given him 
 *■'■ the empire; lest," added he, " if driven to despair, 
 " we should change our opinion!" That menace, suffi- 
 ciently intelligible, had its effect. Though France was 
 
 SI. Ibid. 32. Anna!. Fuldens, 
 
 then 
 
^ THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 then over-run by the Normans, whom Charles was un- 
 able to resist, he undertook to expel the Saracens; and 
 he was scarce arrived in Italy, when he received intelli- 
 gence of a new enemy. Carloman, his nephew had ad- 
 vanced against him, with an intention to seize the impe- 
 rial crown and the kingdom of Italy, in virtue of his 
 father's will, and the right of primogeniture. Charles, 
 betrayed by his nobles, retired with precipitation: fell 
 ill, and died in a miserable cottage, at a village called 
 Brios, in the fifty-foiu'th year of his age^^. 
 
 A capitular in the last year of Charles's reign, per- 
 mits the nobility to transmit their employments to their 
 sons or other male hcirs^"^. This privilege, extorted 
 from the crown, as I have already observed^^, was one 
 of the principal sources of disorder in the feudal govern- 
 ment; and tended, as we shall have occasion to see, to 
 the abolition of all political subjection. In the meantime 
 I must speak of a people, who deserve your attention^ 
 IK) less on account of their manners than their warlik? 
 achievements. 
 
 LETTER XL 
 
 THE NORMANS OR DANES, BEFORE THEIR SETTLEMENT IK 
 FRANCE AND KNGLAND. 
 
 X HE bravest and most liberal minded of the 
 Saxons, mydearPhilip, on the final reduction of their coun- 
 try by Charlemagne, havingfledfrom the dominion and per- 
 secutions of the conqueror, into the ancient Scandinavia, 
 or that part of the norchern peninsula of Europe which 
 comprehends the present kingdoms of Sweden, Denmark 
 
 33. Sigon. de He^. Ital. Annul. Bertinlani. 34, Capit. Caroli Calvi^ 
 35. Letter II. 
 
 and 
 
i.£T. XI.] MODERN EUROPE. 9S 
 
 and Norway, carried with them (as ah-eady observed',) 
 their vengeance, and violent aversion against Christianity. 
 There meeting with men of dispositions similar to their 
 own i and the same religion with themselves, they were 
 cordially receiv'ed, and soon stimulated the natives to 
 deeds of arms; to enterprises which at once promised 
 revenge to the fugitives, and subsistence to the inhabi- 
 tants of countries then overstocked with people. 
 
 In their various incursions on the continent, these 
 ferocious adventurers were known by the general name 
 of Normans, from their northern situation; and in their 
 attacks upon Britain, by the common appellation of 
 Danes, to whatever country they might belong. They 
 became the terror of all the maritime parts of Europe— 
 But before I speak of their depredations, I must say a 
 few words of their religion and manners. 
 
 The manners of a people, and their popular supersti- 
 tion, depend mutually on each other. Religion takes its 
 complexion originally from the manners: men form a 
 deity according to their own ideas, their prejudices, their 
 passions; and the manners are, in a great measure, con- 
 tinued or altered by the established religion of any 
 country, especially if calculated to affect the imagination. 
 The religion of the ancient Scandinavians was highly so^^ 
 and was preserved entire among the Normans, who also 
 retained their unadulterated manners. They were wor- 
 thy of each other: equally bloody and bai'barous, but 
 formed to inspire the most enthusiastic courage, and thd 
 most unremitted perseverance in toil. Odin, whom the 
 Saxons called Woden, was their supreme divinity. They 
 painted him as the God of terror; the Author of devas- 
 tation; the Father oi carnage! — and they worshipped him 
 accordingly. They sacrificed to him, when successful, 
 some of the captives taken in war: — and they believed 
 those heroes would starrd highest in his favour who had 
 killed most enemies in the field; that after death, the 
 
 1,. Letter IX. 
 
 brave 
 
94 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 brave would be admitted into his palace, and there have 
 the happiness of drinking beer (the favourite liquor of 
 the northern nations) out of the skulls of their slaugh- 
 tered foes-. 
 
 In consequence of this belief, fatigues, wounds, com- 
 bats, and perils, were the exercise of infanc}', and the 
 sport of youth. They Were forbid to pronounce the 
 word fear, even on the most trying occasions. Educa- 
 tion, prejudice, manners, example, habit, all contributed 
 to subdue in them the sensation of timidity; to make 
 them covet danger, and seem greedy of deaths Mili- 
 tary discipline was only wanting to have enabled them 
 to enslave the whole Christian world, then sinking under 
 the weight of a debasing superstition, and cringing 
 beneath the rod of priestly tyranny. 
 
 Though Charlemagne, as I have had occasion to 
 notice, took many wise precautions against the Normans, 
 he was not able wholly to prevent their irruptions, and 
 was only freed by the death of their leader from a dan- 
 gerous competition. Under Lewis the Debonnaire, they 
 threw all France into alarm; and under Charles the Bald, 
 they committed frightful devastations. Their fleets, 
 which were composed of light barques, braved the storms 
 of the ocean, and penetrated every creek and river; so 
 that they landed sometimes on the coasts, and sometimes 
 in the interior parts of the kingdom. As the govern- 
 ment took no effectual measures for repelling them, the 
 unjjrotected people knew nothing but fear. Fire and 
 
 2. See the Edda, or system of Runic Mythology. In that state of fes- 
 tivity, the departed warriors were supposed to be served at table by 
 beautiful virgins called Valker, who ministered to other pleasures beside 
 those of the feast. {Edda Mythol. xxxi.) And war and arms, the delight 
 of the Scandinavians in this life, were believed to be their amusement in 
 another world. Edda Mytbol. xxxv. 
 
 3. " The l>attle is as pleasing to me," says Lodbrog (vj'^o was a king 
 and a warrior as well as a poet), " as the bed of a virgin in the glow of 
 her charms, or the kiss of a young widow in her most secret apartment." 
 Epked. S.troph. xiv. 
 
 swoi"d, 
 
LET. XI.] MODERN EUROPE. 95 
 
 sword, on all hands, marked the route of the ravagers. 
 With their booty they carried off women, to whom they 
 were much addicted, and boys to recruit their predatory 
 bands. They were no sooner gone than they 
 again returned. They pillaged Rouen twice; 
 they surprised and burnt Paris j they laid waste Aqui- 
 taine and other provinces, and reduced the French mo- 
 narch to the greatest distress''^. 
 
 Shut up at St. Denis, while his capital v/as in flames, 
 Charles the Bald was no less anxious about saving his 
 people, than the reliques. Instead of encountering the 
 enemy, he bought a peace: or, in other words, he fur- 
 nished the Normans with the means, while he inspired 
 them with the motive of a new war. They returned 
 
 accordino^ly: and Charles to complete his dis- 
 
 . . . A. D. STT. 
 
 grace, published when going to assist the pope, 
 
 in the last year of his reign, a capitular to regulate the 
 contributions to be paid to the Normans^. 
 
 England had also experienced a variety of calamities 
 from the incursions of these plunderers, when it found a 
 protector in the great Alfred. But before I exhibit the 
 exploits, or consider the institutions of that illustrious 
 prince, we must take a view of the reigns of his prede- 
 cessors from the end of the Saxon Heptarchy. 
 
 4. Fer. Chron. Hist, Norm. S. Cupiu Caroli, Calm. 
 
96 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 LETTER XII. 
 
 JtNGLAND, FROM THE END OF THE SAXON HEPTARCHY, TO THK 
 DEATH OF ALFRED THE GREAT. 
 
 X^GBERT, the first sole monarch of England, 
 
 was a prince of eminent abilities and great experience. 
 
 He had enjoyed a considerable command in 
 A. D. 827. . - > 
 
 * the armies of Charlemagne, by whom he was 
 
 much respected, and had acted successfully against the 
 Normans, and other enemies of the empire. After his 
 return to Britain, he was engaged in a variety of strug- 
 gles, before he obtained the supreme dominion; but 
 having surmounted those difficulties, he found himself 
 without a rival. Being the only remaining descendant 
 of Hengist and Horsa, the first Saxon leaders who landed 
 in this island, and who were supposed to be sprung from 
 Woden, the chief divinity of the ancient Saxons, the 
 people readily transferred their allegiance to a prince 
 who appeared to merit it equally by his birth and talents; 
 so that Egbert was no sooner seated on the throne of 
 England than the seven kingdoms of the Heptarchy were 
 strongly cemented into one monarchy. An union of go- 
 vernment seemed to promise internal tranquillity; and 
 the Saxons, from their insular situation^ and their power, 
 had little reason to be afraid of foreign enemies. The 
 Britons were humbled; and the Scots and Picts, wasted 
 by continual wars with each other, being in no condition 
 to molest Egbert, he flattered himself with peace and 
 security. But huma« foresight is very limited, a fleet 
 of those northern adventurers, whom we have already 
 seen ravaging France, under the name of Normans, 
 soon gave the English monarch reason to alter his 
 ©pinion. They first landed in the isle of Shepey, pillaged 
 
 it 
 
LIT, XII.] MODERN EUROPE. 97 
 
 it, and carried off their booty Avith impunity. They re- 
 turned next year in thirty-five ships. Egbert 
 gave them battle at Charmouth in Dorset- 
 shire; where they were worsted, after an obstinate 
 dispute, but made good their retreat to their ships. 
 Now sensible what an enemy they had to deal with, 
 
 they entered into an alliance with the Britons 
 
 . . A. D* 835. 
 
 of Cornwall ; and, landing in that country, 
 
 their confederates and they made an irruption into the 
 
 county of Devon. They were met by Egbert at Hen- 
 
 gesdown, and totally defeated'. But whilst England was 
 
 threatened with new alarms from the same quarter, this 
 
 warlike monarch, who alone was able to op- 
 
 AD 838 
 pose the invaders, unfortunately died, and left 
 
 the kingdom to his son Ethelwolf, a prince better fitted 
 to wear the cowl dian the crov/n, 
 
 Ethelwolf began his reign with dividing his domin- 
 ions, according to the absurd custom of those times ; 
 delivering over to his eldest son, Athelstan, the coun- 
 ties of Essex, Kent, and Sussex. But no inconvenien- 
 caes seem to have arisen from this partition, the terror 
 of the Danish invaders preventing all domestic dissen- 
 tions. Time proved that this terror was but too just. 
 The Danes returned with redoubled fury ; and, though 
 often repulsed, and sometimes defeated, they always 
 obtained their end, by committing plunder, and carry- 
 ing off their booty. They avoided coming to a general 
 engagement, which was not suited to their plan of ope- 
 rations. Their vessels being small, ran easily up the 
 creeks and rivers ; they drew them ashore, and formed 
 an entrenchment around them, leaving them under a 
 guard. They scattered themselves over the face of the 
 country in small parties, making spoil of every thing 
 that came in their way ; goods, cattle, and women. If 
 opposed by a superior force, they betook themselves to 
 their vessels ; set sail, and invaded some distant quar- 
 ter, not prepared for their reception. All England 
 
 1. Cbron. Sax. 
 
 VOL. I. s was 
 
98 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 was kept in continual alarm ; nor durst the inhabitants 
 of one part go to the assistance of another, lest their own 
 families and possessions should be exposed to the fury 
 of the ravagers'. Every season of the year was alike : 
 no man could compute on a moment's safety 
 
 Encouraged by their past successes, the Danes at 
 length landed in so large a body as seemed 
 * to threaten the whole island with subjection. 
 But the Anglo-Saxons, though labouring under the 
 weight of superstition, were still a gallant people ; they 
 roused themselves with a vigour proportioned to the 
 necessity, and defeated their invaders in several en- 
 gagements'. The Danes however ventured, for the 
 first time, to take up their winter quarters in England ; 
 and receiving in the spring a strong reinforcement, by 
 
 three hundred and fifty vessels, they advan- 
 A. D. 852. . 
 
 ced from the isle of Thanet, where they had 
 
 stationed themselves, and burnt the cities of London 
 
 and Canterbury. They were again defeated in several 
 
 engagements ; yet they still maintained their settlement 
 
 in the isle of Thanet, and spent next winter in the isle 
 
 of Shepey. 
 
 The harassed state of his kingdom did not hinder 
 
 Ethelwolf from making a pilcrrimaGre to 
 \. D. 854. . Ola t> ^ 
 
 Rome. Thither he carried Alfred, his 
 
 fourth and favourite son, then only six years of age. 
 
 In his return after a twelve-month spent in devotions 
 
 and benefactions to the see of Rome, Ethelwolf married 
 
 Judith, daughter of the Emperor Charles the Bald ; 
 
 and, soon after his arrival in England, he conferred a 
 
 perpetual and very important donation on the church, 
 
 by granting to the clergy a tenth out of all 
 
 the produce of land. This enormous tax 
 
 upon industry had been long claimed by the servants 
 
 of the altar, as a perpetual property belonging to the 
 
 priesthood ; a jargon founded on the practice of the 
 
 Jews. Charlemagne had ordered the tythe to be paid 
 
 in consideration of the church-lands seized by the 
 
 2. Alured Beverl. 5. Chron. Sax, 
 
 laity: 
 
LET. XII.] MODERN EUROPE. 99 
 
 laity: but, in England, no such invasion had been made. 
 The church enjoyed many lands, and was enriched by 
 the continual oblations of the people : the English cler- 
 gy, therefore, had not hitherto been able to obtain their 
 demand. But a favourable opportunity now offered, 
 and religion furnished the motive ; a weak and super- 
 stitious prince, and an ignorant people dejected by their 
 losses, and in terror of future invasions, greedily laid 
 hold of any means, however costly, of bribing the pro- 
 tection of Heaven*. 
 
 During the absence of Ethelwolf, his eldest son 
 Athelstan died ; and Ethelbald, the second son, had 
 formed the project of excluding his father from the 
 throne. This unnatural attempt gave the pious mo- 
 narch little concern. He complied with most of his son's 
 demands, and the kingdom was divided between them. 
 
 Ethelwolf lived only two years after his re- 
 
 . . . A. D. 857. 
 
 turn to England, which he left by his will 
 
 to be shared between his two eldest sons, Ethelbald 
 
 and Ethelbert. 
 
 Ethelbald was a profligate prince, but his reign was 
 happily short ; and Ethelbert succeding to the govern- 
 ment of the whole kingdom, conducted him- 
 
 .n , . . °_ ' . A. D. 860. 
 
 sell, during a reign oi live years, in a man- 
 ner more suitable to his rank. England was still in- 
 fested by the depredations of the Danes : who, in his 
 reign, sacked Winchester, but were there defeated. 
 
 Ethelbert was succeeded by his brother Ethelred, 
 whose whole reign was one continued strug- 
 gle with the Danes. He defended his king- 
 dom with much bravery, and was gallantly seconded in 
 all his efforts by his younger brother Alfred ; who, 
 though excluded from a large inheritance left him by 
 his father, generously sacrificetl his resent- 
 ment to the public good. Ethelred died in * * 
 the midst of these troubles, and left his disordered 
 kingdom to his brother Alfred. 
 
 4 Sclden, Hist. T}tb. cap. viii. 
 
 Alfred 
 
100 THE HISTORY OF [part r, 
 
 Alfred was now tM'enty years of age, and a prince 
 of very promising talents. He had no sooner buried 
 his brother than he was obliged to take the field against 
 the Danes. They had seized Wilton, and were ravag- 
 ing the neighbouring country. He gave them battle, and 
 at first gained some advantage over them ; but, pursu- 
 ing his victory too far, he was worsted by means of 
 the enemy'^s numbers. The loss of the Danes, how- 
 ever, was so considerable that, fearing Alfred might 
 suddenly receive reinforcements from his subjects, they 
 stipulated for a safe retreat, under a promise to depart 
 the kingdom. But they were no sooner freed from 
 danger than they renewed their ravages. A new swarm 
 of Danes landed under three principal leaders ; and 
 Alfred, in one year, fought eight battles with 
 ' these faithless and inhuman invaders, and re- 
 duced them to the greatest extremity. But this generous 
 prince again condescending to treat with them, was' 
 again deceived. ^V''hile he was expecting the execu- 
 tion of the agreement, a third swarm landed from 
 the nothem hive, and reduced the Saxons to despair. 
 They believed themselves abandoned by Heaven, and 
 devoted to destruction ; since, after all their vigorous 
 efforts, fresh invaders still poured in upon them, as 
 greedy of spoil and slaughter as the former. Some left 
 their country, others submitted to the conquerors, but 
 none would listen to the exhortations of Alfred ; Avho> 
 still undismayed, begged them to make one exertion 
 more in defence of their possessions, their liberties, 
 and their prince^. 
 
 Thus abandoned by his subjects, this illustrious 
 monarch was obliged to lay aside the ensigns of his 
 dignity, and assume the habit of a peasant. In that 
 mean disguise he eluded the pui"suit and the fury of his 
 enemies; and, in order to save his country, he even con- 
 descended to live for some time as servant to a grazier. 
 
 5. Chron. Sax. Alured. Bevei-I. 
 
 But 
 
LET. X11.3 MODERN EUROPE. lOl 
 
 But the human mind is as little suited to employments 
 beneath, as above its capacity : the great Alfred made 
 a bad cow-herd. His guardian genius was occupied 
 about higher cares ; and as soon as he found the search 
 of his enemies become more remiss, he collected some 
 of his adherents, and retired into the middle of a mo- 
 rass, formed by the stagnating waters of the Thone and 
 Parret ; where finding some firm ground, he built and 
 fortified a castle, no less secure by its own strength 
 than by its remote and inaccessible situation. This 
 place is called Aethelingey, or the Isle of Nobles. 
 It now bears the name of Athelney. Here during £ 
 twelve-month, Alfred lay concealed, but not inactive ; 
 he made frequent and unexpected sallies upon the 
 Danes, who often felt the vigour of his arm, but knew 
 
 not whence the blow came, or bv whom it 
 
 AD 880 
 was directed. At length a prosperous event 
 
 emboldened the royal fugitive to leave his retreat, and 
 enter on a scene of action more worthy of himself. 
 
 Oddune, earl of Devonshire, being besieged in his 
 castle by Hubba, a celebrated Danish general, made an 
 unexpected sally upon the enemy, put them to route, and 
 pursued them with great slaughter; killed Hubba himself, 
 and got possession of the famous Reafen^ or Raven, an 
 enchanted standard, in which the Danes put great confi- 
 dence^ The news of this victory were immediately 
 carried by the faithful earl to Alfred, who was happy to 
 find the seeds of valour beginning to revive among his 
 subjects; but, before he would assemble them in arms, 
 he resolved to inspect the situation of the enemy, and 
 judge of the probability of success, as an unfortunate at^ 
 tempt in the present state of national despondency, must 
 have terminated in final ruin. In consequence of this 
 resolution, he entered the Danish camp under the dis- 
 guise of a harper, and passed unsuspected through every 
 quarter. He observed the supine security of the ravagers^ 
 their contempt of the English, and their neglect of all 
 
 6. Cbrun. Sax. Abbas. Rieval. 
 
 niilitary 
 
102 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 military regulations. Encouraged by these propitious 
 appearances, he sent secret intelligence to his most pow- 
 erful subjects, and summoned them to assemble, along 
 with their retainers, on the borders of Selwood forest^ 
 The English, who, instead of ending their calamities by 
 submission, as they fondly hoped, had found the in- 
 solence and rapine of the conquerors more intolerable 
 than the dangers and fatigues of war, joyfully resorted 
 to the place of rendezvous. They saluted their beloved 
 monarch with bursts of applause; they could not satiate 
 their eyes with the sight of a prince whom they had be- 
 lieved dead, and Avho now appeared as their deliverer; 
 they begged to be led to liberty and vengeance. Alfred 
 did not suffer their ardour to cool: he conducted them 
 instantly to Eddington, where the Danes lay encamped; 
 and, taking advantage of his previous knowledge of the 
 enemy's situation, he directed his attack against their 
 most unguarded quarter. Surprised to see an army of 
 Englishmen, whom they considered as totally subdued, 
 and still more to find Alfred at their head, the Danes 
 made but a feeble resistance notwithstanding their supe- 
 rior numbers^. They were soon put to flight, and routed 
 with great slaughter. 
 
 Alfred, no less generous than brave, and who knew 
 as well how to govern as to conquer, took the remain- 
 der of the Danish armv, and th*eir prince Guthrum under 
 his protection. He granted them their lives on submis- 
 sion, and liberty to settle in the kingdoms of Northum- 
 berland and East Anglia (which were entirely desolated 
 by the frequent inroads of their countrymen), on condi- 
 tion that they should embrace Christianity. They con- 
 sented and were baptised: the king stood god-father for 
 Guthrum9. 
 
 This mode of population fully answered Alfred's 
 expectations. The greater part of the Danes settled 
 peaceably in their new possessions; and the more turbu- 
 
 7. Gul. Malines. lib. ii. 8. Cbron. Sax. Simon Dunelm. Alured Beverl- 
 e. Ibid. 
 
 lent 
 
LET. XII.] MODERN EUROPE. 103 
 
 lent made an expedition into France, under their famous 
 leader Hastings, Avho afterwards invaded England, but 
 was expelled by the valour and vigilance of Alfred'". 
 
 In the meantime this great prince was employed in 
 establishing civil and military institutions: in composing 
 the minds of men to industry and justice, and in providing 
 against the return of like calamities. After rebuilding the 
 ruined cities, particularly London, which had been destroy- 
 ed by the Danes in the reign of Ethelwolf, he established a 
 regular militia for the defence of the kingdom. He took 
 care that all his subjects should be armed and registered, 
 and assigned them a regular round of duty: he distributed 
 one part into the castles and fortresses, which he erect- 
 ed at proper places; he appointed another to take the field 
 on any alarm, and assemble at stated places of rendezvous; 
 and he left a sufficient number at home, who Vv^ere em- 
 ployed in the cultivation of the lands, and afterwards 
 took their turn in military service. The whole kingdom 
 was like one great garrison: the Danes could no sooner 
 land in any quarter, than a sufficient force was ready to 
 oppose them, and that without leaving the other parts 
 naked or defenceless". 
 
 But Alfred did not trust solely to his land forces. 
 Jle may be considered as the creator of the English navy, 
 as well as the establisher of the monarchy. Sensible that 
 ships are the most natural bulwark of an island, a cir- 
 cumstance hitherto entirely overlooked by the Saxons or 
 English, as they began now to be generally called, he 
 provided himself with a naval force, and met the Danes 
 on their own element. A fleet of an hundred and twenty 
 armed vessels was stationed upon the coast; and being pro- 
 vided with warlike engines, and expert seamen, both Fri- 
 sians and English, maintained a superioritv over the 
 enemy, and gave birth to that claim, which England still 
 supports to the sovereignty of the ocean^-. 
 
 10. Gul. Malmes. lib. li. 11. Spelman's Life of Alfred. 12. Id. ibid 
 
 In 
 
104 THE HISTORY OF [rART. i. 
 
 In this manner did Alfred provide for the security of 
 his kingdom; and the excellent posture of defence every- 
 where established, together with the wisdom and valour 
 of the prince, at length restored peace and tranquillity to 
 England, and communicated to it a consequence hitherto 
 unknown in the monarchy. But I should convey to you, 
 my dear Philip, a very imperfect idea of Alfred's merit, 
 were I to confine myself merely to his military and po- 
 litical talents. His judicial institutions, and his zeal for 
 the encouragement of arts and sciences, demand your par- 
 ticular attention. We must now, therefore, consider him 
 in a character altogether civil; as the father of English 
 law and English literature. 
 
 Though Alfred in the early part of his reign, had 
 subdued, settled or expelled the Danes, as a body, strag- 
 gling bands of that people afterwards continued to infest 
 the kingdom with their robberies; and even the native 
 English, reduced to extreme indigence by these and 
 former depredations, abandoned themselves to a like 
 disorderly life. They joined the robbers in pillaging 
 the more wealthy part of their fellow-citizens. Those 
 evils required redress, and Alfred took means effectually 
 lo remove them. In order to render the execution of 
 justice more strict and regular, he divided all England 
 into counties; these counties he subdivided into hundreds, 
 and the hundreds, into ty things. Every housholder 
 was answeraJble for the behaviour of his family, of his 
 slaves, and even of his guests, if they resided above 
 three days in his house. Ten neighbouring housholders, 
 answerable Ujt each other's conduct, wei-e formed into 
 oae corporation, under the name of a tything, decennary, 
 or fribourg, over which a person called a tything man, 
 headbourg, or borsholder, presided. Every man was 
 punished as an outlaw who did not register himself in 
 some tything: and no man could change his habitation, 
 without a warrant and certificate from the borsholder of 
 the tything to which he formerly belonged' 3. 
 
 13. Fxdus Alfrtd, ct Gcthium. cap. iii. ap. Wilkins. 
 
 These- 
 
lET. XII.] MODERN EUROPE. 10.5 
 
 These regulations may seem rigorous, and are not per* 
 haps necessary in times when men are habituated to obe- 
 dience and justice. But they were ^Vell calculated to re- 
 duce a fierce and licentious people under the salutary 
 restraints of law and government; and Alfred took care 
 to temper their severity by other institutions favourable 
 to the freedom and security of the subject. Nothing 
 can be more liberal than his plan for the administration 
 of justice. The borsholder stmimoned his whole decen- 
 nary to assist him in the decision of smaller differences 
 among the members of the corporation: in controversies 
 of greater moment, the dispute was brought before the 
 hundred, which consisted of ten decennaries, or a hun- 
 dred familes of freemen, and was regularly assembled 
 once in four weeks, for the trying of causes"*. Their 
 mode of decision claims your attention: twelve freehold- 
 ers were chosen; who having sworn along with the ma- 
 gistrate of the hundred to administer impartial justice, 
 proceeded to the examination of the cause that was sub- 
 mitted to them. In this simple form of trial you will 
 perceive the origin of juries, or judgment by equals, an 
 institution now almost peculiar to the English nation, 
 admirable in itself, and the best calculated for the pre- 
 servation of man's natural rights, and the administration 
 of justice, that hunr.an wisdom ever devised'^'. 
 
 Beside these monthly meetings of the hundred, there 
 was an annual meeting, appointed for the more general 
 inspection of the police of the district; inquiring into 
 crimes, correcting abuses in magistrates, and obliging 
 every person to shew the decennary in v/hich he was re- 
 gistered. In imitation of their ancestors the ancient Ger- 
 
 14. Id. Ibid. 
 
 15. Trial by jury was known to the Saxons, at least In criminal 
 cases, before their settlement in Britain. But, amonj the nations of 
 the continent, it was not necessary that the members of a jury should b* 
 nnanimous in their decision : a majority of voices was sufficient to acqui'' 
 or condemn the person accused. Stiernkof </c^are Sueon. ft Cothor. Vuiusf 
 lib. i. 
 
 VOL. I. T mans. 
 
106 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 mans, the people on those occasions assembled i» 
 arms: whence a hundred was someties called a Wapen- 
 take, and its court served for the support of military dis- 
 cipline, as well as the administration of justice'^. 
 
 The next superior court to that of the hundred was 
 the county-court, which met twice a-year, and consisted 
 of all the freeholders of the county, who had an equal 
 vote in the decision of causes; but of this court I have 
 already spoke in treating of the laws and government 
 of the Saxons. 1 shall therefore only add here, That 
 to the alderman and bishop, Alfred added a third 
 judge in each county, under the name of Sheriff, who 
 enjoyed equal authority with the two former'^. His office 
 also empowered him to guard the rights of the crown in 
 the country, and levy the fines imposed; which, in an age 
 when money atoned for almost eveiy violation of the 
 laws of society, formed no inconsiderable branch of the 
 public revenue. 
 
 In default of justice from all these courts, an appeal 
 lay to the king himself in council ; and as the wisdom 
 and justice of Alfred were universally revered, he was 
 soon overwhelmed with appeals from all parts of his 
 dominions. In order to remedy this inconvenience, he 
 chose tlie earls and sheriffs from among the men most 
 celebrated for probity and knowledge in the kingdom: 
 he punished severely all malversation in office ; he remo- 
 ved all whom he found unequal to the trust^^; and, the 
 better to guide magistrates of all kinds in the adminis- 
 tration of justice, he framed a body of laws; 
 which, though now lost, served long as the 
 basis of English jurisprudence, and is generally esteemed 
 the origin of our common law. 
 
 Alfred appointed regular meetings of the states of 
 England twice a-year in the city of London, which he 
 himself had repaired and beautified, and which thence- 
 
 16. Sj>elm. Gloss, in vcc. Wapentake. 17. Ingulph. 
 
 18. Le Miruir de yustiee, chap. ii. 
 
 fovtR 
 
XET. XII.] MODERN EUROPE. 107 
 
 forth became the capital of the kingdom. Every thing 
 soon wore a new face under his wise and equitable go- 
 vernment. Such success attended his legislation, and 
 so exact was the general police, that he is said to have 
 hung up, by way of trial, golden bracelets near the 
 high roads, and no man cLared to touch them"^. But 
 this great prince, though rigorous in the administra- 
 tion of justice, which he wisely considered as the best 
 means of repressing crimes, preserved the most sacred 
 regard to the liberty of his people. His concern 'on 
 this subject extended even to future times, and ought 
 to endear his memory to every Englishman. " It is 
 just," says he in his will, " that the English should 
 *' forever remain free as their own thoughts-"." 
 After providing for the security of his kingdom, 
 and taming his subjects to the restraints of law, Al- 
 fred extended his care to those things which aggran- 
 dize a nation, and make a people happy. Sensible that 
 good morals and knowledge are almost inseparable in 
 every age, though not in every individual, he gave 
 great encouragement to the pursuit of learning. He 
 invited over the most celebrated scholars from all parts 
 of Europe : he established schools every where for the 
 instruction of the ignorant : he founded, or at least re- 
 paired, the university of Oxford, and endowed it with 
 many privileges, revenues, and immunities: he enjoined 
 by law all freeholders, possessed of two hides of land, 
 to send their children to school ; and he gave prefer- 
 •ment, either in church or state, to such only as had 
 made some proficiency in knowledge^'. But the most 
 effectual expedient employed by Alfred for the encou- 
 ragement of learning, was his own example, and the 
 progress which he made in science. Notwithstanding 
 the multiplicity of civil objects which engaged his atten- 
 
 19. Gul. Malmes. lib. ii. 20. Asser. p. 24. 
 
 21. H. Hunt, lib. vi. A hide contained laiid sufficient to employ 
 •ne plough. Gervase of Tilbury s^ys, it commonly consisted of an 
 kundred aeres. 
 
 tion, 
 
|08 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 tion, and although he fought in person fifty-six battles 
 by sea and land, this illusti-ious hero and legislator was 
 able to acquire by his unremitted industry, during a life 
 of no extraordinary length, more knowledge, and even 
 to produce more books, than most speculative men, in 
 more fortunate ages, who have devoted their whole time 
 to study. He composed a variety of poems, fables, 
 and apt stories, to lead the untutored mind to the love 
 of letters, and bend the heart to the practice of virtue. 
 For the same purpose he translated from the Greek the 
 instructive fables of Esop. He also gave Saxon trans- 
 lations of the histories of Orosius and Bede, and of 
 the Consolation of Philosophy, by Boetius". 
 
 Alfred was no less attentive to the propagation of 
 those mechanical arts, which have a more sensible, 
 though not a more intimate connection with the wel- 
 fare of a state. He introduced and encouraged manu- 
 factures of all kinds, and suifered no inventor or im- 
 prover of any useful or ingenious art to go unreAVarded. 
 He prompted men of activity and industry to apply 
 themselves to navigation, and to push commerce into 
 the most distant countries ; and he set apart a seventh 
 portion of his own revenue for maintaining a number 
 of workmen whom he employed in rebuilding the 
 ruined cities and castles. 
 
 The elegancies of life are said to have been brought 
 to him, even from the Mediterranean and the Indies^^; 
 and his subjects seeing these desirable productions, and 
 the means of acquiring riches by trade, were taught to 
 respect those peaceful virtues by which alone such 
 blessings can be earned or insured. 
 
 This extraordinary man, who is justly considered, 
 both by natives and foreigners, as the greatest prince 
 after Charlemagne that Europe saw for several ages, 
 and as one of the wisest and best that ever adorned the 
 
 ^^, annals of any nation, died in the year 901, 
 A. D. 901. . . . 
 
 in the vigour of his, age and the full strength 
 
 22. Gul. Malmes. lib. ii. 23. Id. ibid. 
 
 of 
 
LET. XIII.] MODERN EUROPE i09 
 
 of his faculties, after a life of fifty-three years, and a 
 glorious reign of twenty-nine years and a half. His 
 merit, both in public and private life, may be set in 
 opposition to that of any sovereign or citizen in ancient 
 or modern times. He seems indeed, as is observed 
 by an elegant and profound historian^^, to be the com- 
 plete model of that perfect character, which, under the 
 denomination of a sage, or truly wise man, philoso- 
 phers have been so fond of delineaiing without the 
 hopes of ever seeing it realized. 
 
 LETTER XIII. 
 
 EMPIRE OF CHARLEMAGNE AND THE CHURCH, FROM THE 
 DEATH OF CHARLES THE BALD, TO THE DEATH OF LEWIS 
 IV. WHEN THE IMPERIAL DIGNITY WAS TRANSLATED 
 FROM THE FRENCH TO THE GERMANS. 
 
 X HE continent of Europe, my dear Philip, 
 toward the close of the ninth century, offers nothing to 
 our view but calamities, disorders revolutions, and an- 
 archy. Lewis the Stammerer, son of Charles the Bald, 
 may be said to have bought the crown of France at the 
 
 price, and on the conditions, which the bish- _ 
 
 A. D. S77 
 ops and nobles were pleased to impose on ' * 
 
 him. He was not acknowledged till after he had heap- 
 ed lands, honours and offices on the nobility ; and pro- 
 mised that the clergy should enjoy the same emolu- 
 
 24. Home, vol. i. 
 
 ments, 
 
no THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 ments, and the same privileges, which they had pos- 
 sessed under Lewis the Debonnaire'. 
 
 Pope John VIII. made an effort to get Lewis elect- 
 ed emperor, in the room of his father, by the Italian 
 states ; but not being able to carry his point, he retired 
 into France, and held a council at Troyes, where he 
 excommunicated the Duke of Spoleto, and the marquis 
 of Tuscany for opposing his measures, and attacking 
 the ecclesiastical state. One of the canons of this coun- 
 cil is very remarkable ; it expressly asserts, that *' the 
 *'^ po'wers of the world shall not dare to seat themselves 
 *' in the presence of bishops unless desired*. 
 
 Lewis the Stammerer died in 879, after a reign of 
 about eighteen months, and left his queen 
 
 A Tl R^Q 'J. 
 
 Adelaide pregnant. He was succeeded by 
 Lewis III. and Carloman II. two sons by a former wife, 
 whom he had divorced. Duke Boson, father-in-law to 
 Carloman, procured them the crown, that he might 
 afterwards share the monarchy. By his intrigues with 
 the pope and the clergy, he got a council to declare 
 the necessity of erecting a new kingdom : and they 
 bestowed by the divine inspiration, to use their own 
 language, the kingdom of Aries, or Provence, upon this 
 ambitious duke-\ Italy was in possession of Carloman, 
 king of Bavaria, who had also seized part of Lorrain, 
 and the French nobility already enjoyed most of the 
 lands ; so that a king of France retained little more 
 than the mere shadow of royalty. 
 
 On the death of Lewis and Carloman, the joint 
 kings of France, who lived in harmony notwithstanding 
 their confined situation; their brother Charles, born 
 after his father's death, and known by the name of the 
 Simple, ought to have succeeded to the monarchy, by 
 the right of birth ; but as he was only five years old, 
 and the nobility were desirous of a king capable of 
 governing, or at least were afraid of the advancement 
 
 1. Aimorv. lil). 5. 2. Concil. Gall. torn. iii. 3. Id. ibid. 
 
 of 
 
lET. xiii.J MODERN EUROPE. Ill 
 
 of Hugh, surnamed the Abbot, to the regency (a noble-* 
 man of great integrity and abilities), they 
 elected Charles the Fat, son of Lewis the 
 German, already emperor, and successor to his two 
 brothers'*. He re-united in his person all the French 
 empire, except the kingdom of the usurper Boson; and 
 proved, what those who elected him had not sufficiently 
 attended to, if they meant the v/elfare of the state. 
 That a prince may conduct his sffairs with judgment, 
 ■while confined within a moderate conr^pass, and yet be 
 very unfit for the government of a great empire. 
 
 The incapacity, and even the cowardice of Charles, 
 became soon too obvious to be denied. Though he had 
 governed his paternal dominions without any visible de- 
 fect of judgment, and raised himself to the empire by 
 his reputation and address, his mind, instead of expand- 
 ing itself to its new object, even shrunk from it, and 
 contracted itself, till every mark of abilities disappeared. 
 After disgracing himself by ceding Friezland to the 
 Normans, and promising them a tribute for forbearance, 
 he roused them by his perfidy, while he encouraged 
 them by his weakness. Enraged at the death of their 
 king, who had been invited to a conference and mur- 
 dered, they entered France: penetrated as far as Pon- 
 toise, burnt that city, and besieged Parish. 
 
 This siege is much celebrated by the French histo- 
 rians: prodigies are related of both sides. Eudes, 
 count of Paris, whom we shall soon see on the throne 
 of France; his brother Robert; bishop Goslin; and after 
 his death, bishop Anscheric, and abbot Eble, nephew to 
 Goslin, were particularly distinguished by their valour 
 and patriotism. The besieged defended themselves 
 more than a year against an army of thirty thousand 
 men, and the combined efforts of courage and stratagem, 
 before the emperor came to their relief. At length, 
 Charles appeared on the mountain of Monjmart, with 
 
 4 Aimon. lib. v. 5. Chron. de Gest. Norm. 
 
 the 
 
112 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 the %vho!e militia of his dominions under arms, fully 
 
 persuaded that the Normans would retire at 
 
 AD 887 
 the sight of his standards". But he soon 
 
 found his mistake: they did not shew the smallest alarm; 
 and Charles, preferring a shameful negociation to a 
 doubtful victory, engaged to pay them a prodigious ran- 
 som for his capital, and the safety of his kingdom. Nay, 
 what was stiil more disgraceful, not being able to raise 
 the money till the spring, it being then the month of 
 November, he permitted the Normans to winter in Bur- 
 gundy, which had not yet acknowledged his authority ; 
 or, in other words, to continue their ravages, which they 
 did with the most insatiable fury^. 
 
 This ignominious treaty, and its consequences, en- 
 tirely ruined the emperor's reputation, which was already 
 low. He had no minister in whom he could confide: 
 for he was neither loved nor feared. The Germans 
 first revolted. Charles had incurred the hatred of the 
 nobility by attempting to limit the hereditary fiefs; and 
 he made the clergy his enemies, while he exposed himself 
 to universal contempt, by prosecuting Ludard, bishop of 
 Verceil, his prime minister, and the only person of au- 
 thority ^n his service, on a suspicion of a criminal cor- 
 respondence with the empress Rachel, whom he impri- 
 soned, and who completed his disgrace. She kept no 
 measures with him: she affirmed, that she was not only 
 innocent of the crime laid to her charge, but a pure vir- 
 gin, yet untouched by her husband and her accuser; in 
 support of which asseveration she offered to undergo any 
 trial that should be assigned her, according to the super- 
 stitious custom of those times, when an absurd appeal to 
 heaven supplied the place of a jmy of matrons, and in- 
 sisted on being admitted to her purgations. Ludard 
 
 fostered the ceneral discontent; and Charles 
 A. D. 888. , , ? ,. p , ' . , 
 
 was deposed m a diet of the empire, and ne- 
 
 6. Paul ^mil. de Gest. Franc. 7. Chron. Gest. Norm. 
 
 ^cted 
 
LET. X.] MODERN EUROPE. 113 
 
 glected to such a degree, as to be obliged to subsist by 
 the liberality of the bishop of Mentz^. 
 
 Arnold, the bastard son of Carloman, late king of 
 Bavaria, and grandson of Lewis the German, was now 
 raised to the imperial dignity. Italy submitted alter- 
 nately to Berengarius, duke of Friuli, and Guido, or 
 Guy, duke of Spoleto, both of the family of Charle- 
 magne, by the mother's side. Their competitions were 
 long and bloody. Count Eudes, whose valour had 
 saved Paris, and whose father, Robert the Strong, had 
 been no less brave and illustrious, was elected king of 
 France; which he agreed to hold in trust for Charles 
 the Simple, yet a minor'. 
 
 But France, notwithstanding the courage and talents 
 of Eudes, w as still a scene of contention and disorder. 
 A faction pretended to assert the right of the hiwful 
 heir, who was not really injured, and Eludes ceded to 
 him the greater part of the kingdom. Count Ralph, or 
 Rodolph, established the kingdom of Burgundy Trans- 
 juran (so called on account of its relation to mount Jura), 
 which comprehended nearly the present Switzerland and 
 Franche Comte. A council confirmed to Lewis, the sou 
 of Boson, the kingdom of Aries, as a council had given 
 it to his father'". History would be nothing but a mere 
 chaos, were it to comprehend all the effects of violence, 
 treachery, and anarchy, that disgraced this period. I 
 shall therefore only notice the leading circumstances, 
 which alone deserve your attention. 
 
 Eudes died in 898, without being able to remedy the 
 
 disorders of the state : and Charles the Simple, 
 
 \ T) 898 
 but too justly so named, now acknowledged 
 
 king of France in his own right, increased by his weak- 
 ness the prevailing evils. The nobles aspired openly at^ 
 independency. They usurped the governments with 
 which they had been intrusted, and extorted confirma- 
 
 8. Annal. Fuldens. Regln. Chronicon. 
 
 9. Annal. Metens. 10. Regin. Chron. 
 VOL. I. u tions 
 
m THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 tions of them from Charles for themselves and their 
 heirs, on the easy condition of an etnpty homage". A 
 large, and once well-regulated kingdom, was divided 
 into a multitude of separate principalities, altogether 
 independent of the crown, or dependent only in name, 
 whose possessors waged continual wars with each other, 
 and exercised an insupportable tyranny over their de- 
 pendents, their vassals, and sub-vassals 2. By these 
 means, the great body of the people was either reduced 
 to a state of absolute servitude, or to a condition so pre- 
 carious aiid wretched, that they were often happy to ex- 
 change it for protection and slavery'^. 
 
 The Normans took advantage of this state of weak- 
 ness and anarchy, to establish themselves in France. 
 RoUo, one of their most illustrious leaders, and truly a 
 great captain, after having spread terror over all the mari- 
 time provincesof Europe, sailedupthe Seine, took Rovien, 
 fortiSed it, and made it his head-quarters 
 
 A. D. 905. T., re 1 11 
 
 J\ow sure 01 a sate retreat, he set no bounds 
 to his depredations; and soon became so formidable, 
 that Charles offered him his daughter in marriage, with 
 the province of Neustria, as her dower. Francon, arch- 
 bishop of Rouen, was charged with the negociation. He 
 only demanded that Rollo should acknowledge Charles 
 as his superior, and become a christian; and, in order 
 to induce the Norman to embrace the faith, the prelate 
 preached of a future state, of hell, and of heaven. Inte- 
 rest, not superstition, determined Rollo. After con- 
 sulting his soldiers, who, like most gentlemen of the 
 sword, were very easy on the article of religion, he 
 agreed to the treaty; on condition that the province of 
 Bretagne also should be ceded to him, till Neustria, then 
 entirely laid waste by the ravages of his coun- 
 trymen, could be cultivated. His request 
 
 11. Orig. de Dignitez et de Magist. de France, par P. Fauchet. 
 
 12. Id. ibid. 
 
 13. L'Esprit des Loix, liv. xxx. 
 
 was 
 
LET. XII.] MODERN EUROPE. 115 
 
 was granted: he was baptized, and did homage for his 
 crown, less as a vassal than a conqueror'*. 
 
 Rollo was worthy of his good fortune; he sunk the 
 soldier in the sovereign, and proved himself no less 
 skilled in the arts of peace than those of war. Neustria, 
 which henceforth took the name of Normandy, in honour 
 of its new inhabitants, soon became happy and flourishing 
 under his laws. Sensible that the power of a prince is al- 
 ways in proportion to the number of his subjects, he in- 
 vited the better soi't of Normans from all parts to come and 
 settle in his dominions. He encouraged agriculture and 
 industry; was particularly severe in punishing theft, 
 robbery, and every species of violence; and rigidly exact 
 in the administration of justice, which he saw was th& 
 great basis of policy, and without which his people would 
 naturally return to their former irregularities'"'. A taste 
 for the sweets of society increased with the convenien- 
 cies of life, and the love of justice with the benefits de- 
 rived from it: so that the duchy of Normandy was in a 
 short time not only populous and cultivated, but the 
 Normans were regular in their manners, and obedient to 
 the laws. A band of pirates became good citizens, and 
 their leader the ablest prince, and the wisest legislator of 
 the age in which he lived. 
 
 While these things passed in France, great altera-, 
 tions took place in the neighbouring states, and among 
 
 14. When he came to the last part of the ceremony, which was that 
 of kneeling- and kissing the king's toe, he positively refused compliance ; 
 and it was with much difficulty he could be persuaded to maJic that com. 
 pliment, even by one of his officers. At length, however, he agreed to 
 the alternative. But all the Normans, it seems, were bad courtiers; for 
 the officer commissioned to represent Rollo, despising so unwarlike a 
 prince as Charles, caughtlus majesty by the foot, "and pretending to carry 
 it to hi& mouth, that he might kiss it, overturned both him and his chair, 
 before all his nobility. This insult was passed over as an accident, be- 
 cause the French nation was iu no condition to revenge it. Gul. Gemet. 
 Cbron. de Dues de Normandie. 
 
 15. Qui. Gemet, iibi sup, Didon. de Morib. et Act. de Norm. Dtic. 
 
 the 
 
lid THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 the princes of the blood of Charlemagne. The most 
 remarkable only merit your attention. Arnold, king of 
 Germany, and emperor of the West, was succeeded by 
 his son, Lewis IV. only seven years of age. Another 
 Lewis, king of Aries, and son of the usurper Boson, cros- 
 sed the Alps, and obliged pope Benedict IV. to crown 
 him emperor. But he was soon after surprised at Ve- 
 rona by Berengarius, who put out his eyes, and ascended 
 the throne of Italy, which he had long disputed with the 
 emperor Arnold'^ In the mean time Lewis 
 IV. died, and the empire departed from the 
 French to the Germans; from the family of Charlemgne, 
 to those Saxons whom he had subdued and persecuted; 
 who became, in their turn, the protectors of that religion 
 for which they had suffered and the persecutoi-s of other 
 Pagans. But this revolution deserves a particular Letter. 
 
 LETTER XIV. 
 
 THE GERMAN KMPIRE, FR03I THE ELF.CTION OF CONRAD I. T9 
 THE DEATH OF HENRY THE FOWLER. 
 
 OOME historians, my dear Philip, are of opi- 
 nion, that the German empire does not properly com- 
 mence till the reign of Otho the Great, when 
 Italy was reunited to the imperial dominions; 
 but the extinction of the rare of Charlemagne in Germa- 
 ny, where the empire was wholly detached from France, 
 and the imperial dignity became elective, seems to me 
 the most natural period to fix its origin, though the two 
 first emperors never received the papal sanction. I shall 
 
 16. Annal. Metent. 
 
 therefore 
 
LET. XIV.] MODERN EUROPE. ^17 
 
 therefore begin with Conrad, the first German who ruled 
 the empire, after it ceased to be considered as an appen- 
 dage of France. 
 
 Though the successors of Charlemagne possessed 
 that empire which he had formed by virtue of hereditary" 
 descent, they had usually procured the consent of the 
 nobles to their testamentary deeds, that no dispute might 
 arise in regard to the succession. This precaution was 
 highly necessary in those turbulent times, especially as 
 the imperial dominions Avere generally divided among the 
 children of the reigning family, who vvere by that means 
 put in a better condition to contest a doubtful title. What 
 was at first no more than a political condescension in the 
 emperors, became gradually to be interpreted into a pri- 
 vilege of the nobility, and hence originated the right of 
 those electors, by whom the emperor is still invested with 
 the imperial power and dignity. They had already depo- 
 sed Charles the Fat, and raised to the empire Arnold, bas- 
 tard of Carloman, king of Bavaria'. 
 
 Thus authorised by custom, the German nobles 
 assembled at Worms, on the death of Lewis IV. and 
 not judging Charles the Simple worthy to govern 
 them, they offered the imperial crown to Otho, duke of 
 Saxony." But he declined it, on account of his age; 
 and with a generosity peculiar to himself, recommen- 
 ded to the electors Conrad, count of Franconia, though 
 his enemy. Conrad was accordingly chosen by the 
 diet. The empire of Germany then comprehended 
 Franconia, the provinces of Bamberg, Suabia, Constans, 
 Basil, Bern, Lausanne, Burgundy, Bezancon, Lorrain, 
 Metz, Liege, Cambray, Arras, Flanders, Holland, Zea- 
 land, Utrecht, Cologne, Treves, Ments, Worms, Spire, 
 Strasbourg, Friezland, Saxony, Hesse, Westphalia, Thu- 
 ringia, Wateravia, Misnia, Brandenburg, Pomerania, 
 Rugen, Stetin, Holstein, Austria, Carinthia, Stiria, the 
 Tyroles, Bavaria, the Grisons; and in general, itll the 
 
 1. See Let. x. 
 
 countries 
 
U9 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 countries situated among these provinces, and their de- 
 pendencies. 
 
 The reign of Conrad I. was one continued scene 
 of troubles, though he took every necessary measure to 
 support his authority and preserve the tranquillity of the 
 empire. He was no sooner elected than he had occasion 
 to march into Lorrain ; where the nobility, being at- 
 tached to the family of Charlemagne, acknowledged 
 Charles the Simple as their sovereign, and offered to 
 put him in possession of that country. Before Conrad 
 could settle the affairs of Lorrain, he was recalled by the 
 revolt of several powerful dukes, who had envied his pro- 
 motion. One rebellion succeeded another; and, to com- 
 plete his misfortunes, the Huns, or Hungarians, invaded 
 the empire. They had for some time been accustomed 
 to pass the entrenchments formed by Charlemagne 
 along the Raab, in order to restrain their incursions, 
 and, no less fierce than their ancestors, they had laid 
 every thing waste before them, and borne down all oppo- 
 sition. In 901 they ravaged Bavaria, Suabia, Franco- 
 nia; all Germany felt their fury. Lewis IV. submitted 
 to pay them an annual tribute. They had several times 
 pillaged Italy: and now in their Avay from that country, 
 where they had humbled Berengarius (taking advantage 
 
 of the troubles of the empire"), they made 
 \. D. 917. . , . . . 
 
 * irruptions into Saxony, Thuringia,Franconia, 
 
 Lorrain, and Alsace, which they desolated v/ith fire and 
 
 sword, and obliged Conrad to purchase a peace on the 
 
 most shameful conditions'. He died without male heirs, 
 
 in 919, after recommending to the Germanic body as 
 
 his successor, Henry duke of Saxony, son of that Otho 
 
 to whom he owed his crown. 
 
 Ilenrv I. surnamed the Fowler, because he delighted 
 
 much in the pursuit of birds, was elected with 
 A D 9iiO • 
 
 * universal approbation by the assembled states ; 
 
 composed of the dignified clergy, the principal nobility, 
 and the heads of the army. 
 
 2. Ann. Hildist. Annal. German, ap struv, Corp. Hist. vol. i. 
 
 This 
 
LET. XIV.] MODERN EUflOPE. 119 
 
 This riglitof chusingan emperor, originally common 
 to all the members of the Germanic body, was afterwards 
 confined, as we shall have occasion to see, to seven of 
 the chief members of that body, considered as represen- 
 tatives of the whole, and of all its different orders; 
 namely, the archbishopsol Mentz, Cologne, and Treves, 
 chancellors of the three great districts into which the 
 German empire was anciently divided, the king of Bohe- 
 mia, the duke of Saxony, the marquis of Brandenburg, 
 and count Palatine of the Rhine^ 
 
 It was still undecided whether Lorrain should be- 
 long to France or Germany. Henry, as soon 
 A. D, 925, J . . n • <Y- • 1 1 " 
 
 as the Situation or his affairs would permit, en- 
 tered it with apowerful army, and subdued the whole coun- 
 try. His next care was the internal peace and prospe- 
 rity of the empire. He published a general amnesty in 
 favour of all thieves and banditti, provided they would 
 enlist in his armies, and actually formed them into a 
 troop. He created marquises, in imitation of Charle- 
 magne, to guard the frontiers of the empire against the 
 barbarians, and obliged all vassals and sub-vassals to 
 furnish soldiers, and corn for their subsistence*. He like- 
 wise ordered the principal towns to be surrounded with 
 walls, bastions, and ditches; and that the nobility might 
 be habituated to tlie use of arms, even in time of peace, 
 he instituted certain military games, or tournaments, in 
 which they vied with each other in displaying their 
 valour and address. 
 
 After taking these wise measures for the welfare 
 of the state, Henry began to prepare for war against 
 the Hungarians, whom he had exasperated by refusing 
 the annual composition, and other marks of 
 
 A. D 03*^ 
 
 disdain and defiance. Enraged at his firm- * ' ^ '^' 
 ness, they entered Germany with an army of three hun- 
 dred thousand men, breathing vengeance. But Henry 
 being supported by the whole force of his dominions, 
 
 5, Goldttts. Politic, imperial, init. 4. Ann. Sax. 
 
 though 
 
120 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 though still inferior to theirs, defeated them with great 
 slaughter at Mersbourgh, and rescued the empire 
 from a barbarous enemy, and an ignominous tribute^. 
 
 Having thus subdued his enemies, and secured the 
 tranquillity of his subjects, both at home, and abroad, 
 the emperor began to taste the fruits of his wisdom and 
 valour, when the pope and the citizens of Rome invi- 
 ted him to the conquest of Italy, still distracted by civil 
 
 wars, ofrerinG- him the holy vinction, and the ^ „ 
 
 . A. D. 936. 
 title of Augustus. Henry, who was ambi- 
 tious to be master of Italy, and no doubt desirous of 
 the papal sanction to the imperial crown, set out im- 
 mediately for that country at the head of his troops ; 
 but being seized with an apoplexy on his march, he was 
 obliged to return, and died at Mansleben in Thuringia . 
 Before his death, he convoked the princes of the empire, 
 who settled the succession on his son Otho. 
 
 Henry v/as universally allowed to be the ablest 
 statesman, and the greatest prince of Europe in his 
 time ; but his successor Otho, afterwards styled the 
 Great, surpassed him both in power and renown, though 
 not perhaps in valour or abilities. For, as Voltaire 
 well observes, the acknowledged heir of a great prince, 
 who has been the founder or restorer of a state, is always 
 more powerful than his father, if not very much inferior in 
 courage and talents: — and the reason is obvious. He 
 enters on a career already opened to him, and begins 
 where his predecessor ended. Hence Alexander went 
 farther than Philip, Charlemagne than Pepin, and Otho 
 the Great than Henry the Fowler. But before I pro- 
 ceed to the reign of Otho, we must take a view of the 
 troubles of France under Charles the Simple, and his 
 unhappy successors of the Carlovingian race. 
 
 5. Engelhus. p. 174. 6. Jnn. Sax. 
 
 LETTER 
 
LET. XV.] MODERN EUROPE. 121 
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 FRANCE, FROM THE SETTLEMENT OB' THE NORMANS TO THE 
 EXTINCTION OF THE C ARLOVINGI AN RACE. 
 
 Y OU have already, my dear Philip, seen the 
 usurpations of the nobles, and the settlement of the Nor- 
 mans in France, under Charles the Simple. He gave 
 daily more proofs of his weakness, and became 
 equally contemptible to the French and Nor- 
 mans. A violent attempt was made to dethrone him 
 b}'^ Robert duke of France, brother to Eudes, the late 
 king. This rebellion was defeated, in the first instance, 
 by the unexpected answer of RoUo, duke of Normandy, 
 who generously declared, when solicited to join in it, 
 that he was equally incapable of abetting or suffering in- 
 justice'!. ...Yet Rollo, as we have seen, was once a 
 robber by profession. But then, as ought to be observed 
 in his vindication, he was under engagements to no prince, 
 and claimed the protection of no laws: he was then 
 on a footing with the Csesars and the Alexanders, and 
 now only inferior in power to the Alfreds and the 
 Charlemagnes. 
 
 After the death of Rollo, duke Robert renev/ed his 
 intrigues. He first made the king dismiss Haganon, his 
 favourite minister; and next seized that minister's trea- 
 sures, with v/hich he gratified his adherents. 
 
 , . . . A. D. 922. 
 
 They declared Charles incapable of reigning, 
 
 and proclaimed Robert king of France. He was soon 
 
 after killed in battle, yet his party triumphed: and his 
 
 son Hugh the Great, or the Abbot, as he is styled by some 
 
 writers, on account of the number of rich abbles which 
 
 he held, had the crown in his power. But he 
 
 . A. D. 923 
 
 chose to place it on the head of Rodolph, 
 
 duke of Burgundy, who assumed the title of king, and 
 
 was almost universally acknowledged^. 
 
 1. Flodoard. Chron. 2. Monach. 
 VOL. I. X In 
 
122 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 In this extremity, Charles had recourse to William 
 I. duke of Normandy, and to the emperor Henry the Fow- 
 ler, who were preparing to assist him, when he was decoy- 
 ed by the treacherous friendship of Herbert, count of Ver- 
 _ ,, , mandois, into the fortress of Chatteau-Thierri, 
 and there detained prisoner. The unfortunate 
 monarch now became the sport of the ambition of his 
 own rebellious subjects. The count released him, and 
 
 ^^^ paid homaoe to him as his sovereign, when 
 A. D. 929. . . . 
 
 he wanted to gain his ends with Rodolph, 
 
 and shut him up when they were accomplished. The 
 county of Laon was the price of Charles's confinement. 
 He died in prison. 
 
 After the death of Charles the Simple, Rodolph 
 acted with much spirit and resolution. He repelled the 
 incursions of some new tribes of Normans, restrained the 
 licentiousness of the nobles, and restored both tranquil- 
 lity and vigour to the kingdom. But as this 
 A. D. v3b. ". ^. , . , . _, 
 
 prnice died Avithout issue, r ranee was again 
 
 involved in troubles, and a kind of interregnum ensued. 
 At length Hugh the Great, still disdaining the title of 
 king, or afraid to ^surp it, recalled Charles's son Lewis, 
 surnamed' the Stranger, from England; whither he had 
 been carried by his mother Egina, daughter of Edward 
 the Elder, and grand-daughter of the great Alfred** 
 She had taken refuge in the court of her brother Athelstan. 
 Lewis was only in his seventeenth year Avhen he was 
 recalled, and in a great measure unacquainted with the 
 affairs of France; yet he conducted himself with a spirit 
 l)ecoming his rank, though not without some degree of 
 that imprudence natural to age. He attempted to rescue 
 himself from the tyranny of duke Hugh, who had been 
 appointed his tutor, and allowed him little more than the 
 name of king. But, after a variety of struggles, he was 
 obliged to make peace with his vassal, and confirm to 
 him the countv of Laon-'', to which almost the whole 
 royal domain \ras reduced. 
 
 3 Glab. Iiist. iui temp. 4. Flodoard. Clron. 5. Airr.on. lib. v. 
 
 Lewis 
 
LET. XV.] MODERN EUROPE. 123 
 
 Lewis the stranger died in 954, and left a shadow 
 
 of royalty to his son Lothario: or rather Hucrh ^ , 
 
 AD 954. 
 the Great was pleased to grant him the title 
 
 of king, that he himself might enjoy the power^ This 
 
 ambitious nobleman, no less formidable than the ancient 
 
 mayors, died in 955. He was succeeded in 
 
 consequence and abilities by his son Hugh 
 
 Capet, whom we shall soon see on the throne of France. 
 
 Lothario wanted neither courage nor ambition. He 
 attempted to recover Lorrain, which had been for some 
 time in the possession of the emperors of Germany. But 
 Otho IL by an artful stroke of policy, disconcerted his 
 measures and ruined his reputation. He ceded the dis- 
 puted territory to the king's brother Charles, on condi- 
 tion that he should hold it as a fief of the empire^. Lo- 
 thario, incensed at this donation, by which his brother 
 was benefitted at the expense of his character, his interest, 
 and the honour of his crown, assembled a powerful army, 
 and marched suddenly to Aix-la-Chapelle, where he sur- 
 prised the emperor, and put him to flight. 
 He himself was vanquished, in his turn, and 
 again victorious^. But, after all, he was obliged to re- 
 sign Lorrain, which was divided between his brother 
 Charles and the emperor Otho. 
 
 Lothario died in 996, and was quietly succeeded 
 by his son Lewis V. who governed under the direc- 
 tion of Hugh Capet, during a short regin of one year 
 and two months, which was one continued 
 scene of troubles. In him ended the Cai'lovin- 
 gians, or the descendants of Charlemagne, the second 
 race of French kings. ...The affairs of the empire now 
 (claim your attention. 
 
 6. Flodoard. Ci'ron. 7, Aimon. lib. v. 8. Id. ibid. 
 
 LETTER 
 
12i THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 LETTER XVI. 
 
 THE GERMAN E3IPIRE AND ITS DEPENDENCIES, ROME AND THE 
 ITALIAN STATES, UNDER OTHO THE GREAT, AND HIS SUC- 
 CESSORS OF THE HOUSE OF SAXONY. 
 
 WTHO I. the most powerful emperor since 
 
 Charlemagne, and who had the honour of re-uniting Italy 
 
 to the imperial dominions, was elected at Aix-la-Chapelle 
 
 in ®36, by the unanimous consent of the diet 
 A. D. 936. , ui 1 J- . L 
 
 there assembled, according to the promise 
 
 made to his father Henry the Fowler. He began his 
 
 reign with the most upright administration, and seemed 
 
 desirous to live in peace and tranquillity. But his quiet 
 
 was soon interrupted by wars bo|h foreign and domestic, 
 
 which he had suff.cient abilities to manage, and which 
 
 terminated in his aggrandizement. 
 
 The Hungarians, according to custom, invaded the 
 
 empire, committing every species of barbarity. Otho, 
 
 however, soon put a stop to their ravages. He came up 
 
 with them on the plain of Dortmund, in Westphalia, and 
 
 1. The diets of the German empire were originally the same with the 
 national assemblies held by the kings of France. They met at least once 
 a year, and every freeman had a right to be present. They were great 
 councils, in which the sovereign deliberated with his subjects, concerning 
 their common interests. But when the nobles and dignified clergy acquired 
 with the rank of princes, territorial and independent jurisdiction, the diet 
 became an assembly of the separate states that formed the confederacy of 
 which the emperor was the head : and in which, if any member possessed 
 more than one of those states, he was allowed a proportional number of 
 suffrages. On the same principle the imperial cities, as soon as they be- 
 came free, and acquired supreme and independent jurisdiction within their 
 own territories, were received as members of the diet. (Alrum?eus de 
 Comitiis Rom. German. Imperii. ) The powers of the diet extended to 
 every thing relative to the common interests of the Germanic body, as a 
 jpnfedcracy, but not to the interior government of the different states, 
 unless when domestic disorders disturbed or threatened the peace of the 
 Empire. Psessel. Abrege. 
 
 defeated 
 
LET. XVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 125 
 
 defeated them with great slaughter. But the Hunga- 
 rians wei*e not the only enemy that Otho had to encoun- 
 ter. Immediately after his return from this 
 victory, he was informed that the Bohemians 
 had revolted. Bohemia was then entirely barbarous, and 
 mostly pagan. Otho, after a variety of struggles, ren- 
 dered it tributary to Germany, and also obliged the in- 
 habitants to embrace Christianity\ 
 
 In the mean time the emperor was engaged in many 
 disputes with his own rebellious subjects. Arnold, dukd 
 of Bavaria, being dead, his son Everhard refused to do 
 homage to Otho, on pretence that he was not his vassal, 
 but his ally. This struggle between the crown and the 
 great fiefs, between power which always seeks increase, 
 and liberty which aspires at independency, for a long time 
 agitated Europe. It subsisted in Spain, whilst the 
 Christians had to contend with the disciples of Mahomet; 
 but after the expulsion of the Moors, the sovereign au- 
 thority got the ascendant. It was this competition that 
 involved France in troubles till the middle of the reign 
 of Lewis XI. when the feudal lordships were gradually 
 stript of their power, and the nobles reduced to a depen- 
 dence on the prince; that established in England the 
 mixed government, to which we owe our present great- 
 ness, and cemented in Poland the liberty of the nobles with 
 the slavery of the people. The same spirit hath, at differ- 
 ent times, troubled Sweden and Denmark, and founded the 
 republics of Holland and Swisserland: the same cause 
 hath almost every where produced different effects! — 
 The prerogatives of the prince have, in some instances, 
 as in that of the German empire, been reduced to a mere 
 title, and the national union itself preserved only in the 
 observance of a few insignificant formalities. The duke 
 of Bavaria was not willing to observe even these for- 
 malities; Otho therefoi'e entered that country with an 
 army, expelled Everhard, and bestowed the duchy upon 
 
 2. Dubrav. Hist, Bohem. 
 
 his 
 
136 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 his uncle Bartoif, who willingly did homage for such 
 a presents The emperor at the same time cre- 
 ated one of Everhard's brothers count palatine 
 of Bavaria and the other count palatine of the Rhine. 
 
 The dignity of count palatine was revived from thft 
 counts of the palace of the Roman and the French em- 
 perors. These palatines were at first supreme judges, 
 and gave judgment in the last appeal, in the name of 
 the emperor. They were also entrusted with the go- 
 vernment of the imperial domains. 
 
 Otho having thus settled the internal tranquillity of 
 the empire, (which however was soon dis- 
 'turbed by the rebellion of his brother) assem- 
 bled a diet at Arensberg, where among other things it 
 was debated, whether inheritance should descend in a 
 direct line ; whether, for example, a grandson, heir to 
 an elder son, should succeed, on the death of his grand- 
 father, in preference to his uncles. The diet not being 
 able to come to any determination on this point, though 
 so clear according to our present ideas of inheritance, 
 it was agreed that the cause which had suggested the 
 doubt, should be decided by (iuel. An equal number 
 of combatants were accordingly chosen on both sides ; 
 and the suit was determined in favour of the grandson, 
 his champions being victorious-t. 'I'he decision by arms 
 was, for once consistent with equity : the law is now 
 xmiversal. This mode of trial soon became general 
 t)ver Europe ; and under the following reign a diet or- 
 dained, that doubtful cases should no longer be decided 
 upon oath, but by the sword^. The base at least were, 
 by that ordinance, deprived of the advantages which 
 they might have reaped from perjury, whatever other 
 incon,veniencies might attend if'. And the regulation 
 itself proves the baseness as well as the ignorance of 
 the age. 
 
 3. Baare, Hht. d'AHemagne, torn. iii. 4. Td. ib, 
 
 5. Le^. Larignb. lib. ii. 
 
 6. This reason is actually assigned, in a barbarian code, in favour cf 
 the judicial combat, in cases where an oath might settle the dispute. Le^;- 
 Bur2rcnd. tit, xhv 
 
 In 
 
LET.xvi.J MODERN EUROPE. 12r 
 
 In order to counterbalance the power of tuc no- 
 bility, Otho augmented the privileges of 
 the German clergy. He conferred on them 
 dutchies and counties, with all the rights of other prin- 
 ces and nobles : and, like Charlemagne, the founder of 
 that empire, who§e lustre he restored, he propagated 
 
 Christianity by force of arms. He obliged ^^^ 
 
 , ^ -^ -^ , . ., , ° A. D. 948. 
 
 the Danes to pay him tribute, and receive 
 
 baptism; as an earnest of their good behaviour. The 
 Bohemians as I have already observed, were also sub- 
 jected to the same conditions. 
 
 No sooner did Otho find himself in quiet posses- 
 sion of the North, than the South attracted his eye : 
 and a favourable opportunity now offered for gratify- 
 ing his ambition without injury to his humanity. Italy 
 was torn by factions, and ruled by tyrants. Rodolph II. 
 king of the two Burgundies, had dethroned Berengarius, 
 and being himself dethroned by Hugh, marquis of Pro- 
 vence, whose son Lothario was also dethroned by Beren- 
 garius II. This Berengarius kept Adelaida, the widow 
 of Lothario, in confinement. She invited Otho to her 
 
 relief. He entered Italy at the head of a 
 
 . . A. D. 952. 
 
 powerful army; delivered Adelaida, married 
 
 her, and obliged Bereftgarius to take an oath of fealty, 
 generously leaving him in possession of the kingdom^. 
 
 The pleasure which Otho must have received from 
 the conquest of Italy, was allayed by the revolt of his 
 son Ludolphus; who, though already declared successor 
 to the empire, was so much chagrined at his father's se- 
 cond marriage, that he engaged in a rebellion against him 
 with the duke of Franconia, and other German noblemen. 
 Pursued by the vigilance of the emperor, Ludolphus took 
 refuge in Ratisbon, wliere he was soon reduced to extre- 
 mity. At the intercession of his friends, however, he was 
 
 permitted to retire v^ith his^ followers. He 
 
 'nil. • r^ ^ A. D. 95 j» 
 
 agaui rcueiied; but returning soon alter to a 
 
 7. Ann. Sux. 8. Fladoard. lib. W. 
 
 sense 
 
128 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 sense of his duty, he took an opportunity, when Otho 
 was hunting, to throw himself at his feet, and implored 
 forgiveness in the most humiliating language. " Have 
 " pity," said he, (after a pathetic pause) on your child, 
 *' who returns, like the prodigal son, to his father. If 
 " you permit him to live, Vv'ho has so. often deserved to 
 *' die, he will be faithful and obedient for the future, and 
 *' have time to repent of his folly and ingratitude." The 
 emperor, equally surprised and affected at this moving 
 spectacle, raised his son from the ground, while the tears 
 trickled from his eyes, received him into favour, and 
 all his followers^. 
 
 This young prince afterwards died in Italy, whither 
 he had been sent by his father, to humble the ungrateful 
 Berengarius, who had broke his faith with the emperor, 
 
 ^^,^ and tvrannised over his countrymen. The un- 
 Jit D. 959. ' 
 
 / * timely death of Ludolphus, which greatly af- 
 fected Otho, gave Berengarius time to breathe. He was 
 soon absolute master of the ancient kingdom of Lombar- 
 dy, but not of Rome, which was then governed by Octa- 
 vianus Sporco, grandson of the celebrated Marozia, con- 
 cubine of Sergius III. By the great interest of his 
 family, he had been elected pope at the age of eighteen, 
 when he was not even in orders. He took the name of 
 John XII. out of respect to the memory of his uncle, 
 John XI. and was the first pope who changed his name 
 on his accession to the pontificate'". 
 
 This John XII. was a patrician, or nobleman of 
 Rome, and consequently united in the papal chair the 
 privileges of both temporal and spiritual authority, by a 
 right whose legality could not be disputed. But he was 
 young, sunk in debauchery, and unable to oppose the 
 tyranny of Berengarius and his son Adelbert; he therefore 
 conjured Otho " by the love of God, and of 
 " the holy apostles, to come and deliver the 
 " Roman church from the fangs of two monsters." 
 
 9. Annal. Germ, ex Meib. 10, Sigon. Feg. Ital. lib. vi. 
 
 This 
 
LET. XVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 129 
 
 This flattering invitation was accompanied with an offer 
 of the papal sanction to the imperial crown, and of the 
 kingdom of Lombardy, from the Italian states". 
 
 In compliance with the request of the pope, or 
 rather with the occasion it afforded of gratifying his 
 own ambition, the emperor assembled a 
 powerful army, and marched into Italy, 
 after having convoked a diet at Worms, where his son 
 Otho, by Adelaida, was elected his successor; a nece s 
 sary precaution, in those troublesome times, for secu- 
 ring the crown in a family. Berengarius fled before 
 him: he entered Pavia without opposition, and was 
 crowned king of Lombardy at Milan, by the 
 archbishop of that city, in presence of the 
 nobility and clergy, who had formally deposed Berenga- 
 rius. Rome also opened its gates to Otho: and the pope 
 crowned him emperor of the Romans, dignified him 
 with the title of Augustus, and swore allegiance to him 
 on the tomb where the body of St. Peter is said to be 
 deposited'^. The emperor at the same time confirmed to 
 the apostolic see the donations made by Pepin and 
 Charlemagne, " Saving in all things," says he, " our 
 *' authority, and that of our son and descendants'^;" 
 expressions by which it appears that, in this grant, 
 Otho reserved to the empire the supreme jurisdiction 
 over the papal territories. 
 
 The emperor next marched in pursuit of Berenga- 
 rius, whom he seized, and condemned to perpetual im- 
 prisonment. Meanwhile the pope, finding that he had 
 given himself a master in a protector, repented of what 
 he had done; broke his oath to the emperor, and 
 entered into a league with Adelbert, the son of Beren- 
 garius, though formerly his most implacable enemy. 
 Otho suddenly returned to Rome; Adelbert fled; and 
 a council deposed John XII. for his debaucheries, as 
 
 11. Didmar. lib. ii. 12. Fr. Hen. Eod. Synt. ex Meib. 
 13. Exemplar. Diplom. Othon. ap. Karon. 
 
 was 
 
 VOL. I. T 
 
130 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 was pretended, but in reality for revolting against the 
 emperor, though his licentiousness was sufficiently enor- 
 mous to render him unworthy of any civil or ecclesias- 
 tical dignity. Leo VIII. a layman, but a man of virtue, 
 
 was elected his successor; and the clere-y 
 
 A. D. 963. ... . 
 
 and citizens of Rome took anew the oath of 
 
 allegiance to Otho, and bound themselves neither to 
 elect nor consecrate a pope without the consent of the 
 emperor''*. 
 
 But Otho having occasion to quell some distur- 
 bances in Spoleto, a faction reinstated John XII. a new 
 
 council deposed Leo, and a canon was enact- 
 A. n» 964. . . . 
 
 ed, declaring, '' that no inferior can depose 
 
 a superior'^;" by which Avas meant to be intimated, not 
 
 only that the bishops and cardinals had nc^ power to 
 
 depose a pope, but that the emperor, as a layman, owed 
 
 to the church that very allegiance which he ex-acted 
 
 from her. 
 
 Soon after this revolution, pope John was assassin- 
 ated in the arms of one of his mistresses. His party 
 however still refused to acknowledge Leo, and proceed- 
 ed to the election of Benedict V. who was accordingly 
 promoted to the chair of St. Peter. Informed of these 
 audacious and faithless proceedings, Otho marched 
 back to Rome, which he reduced, and restored Leo 
 VIII. to his dignity. Benedict appeared before a 
 council ; owned himself guilty of usurpation ; stripped 
 himself of the pontifical robes; implored compassion, 
 and was banished to Hamburgh. Leo VIII. with all 
 the clergy and Roman people, made at the same time 
 a celebrated decree, v/hich was long considered as a 
 fundamental law of the empire ; " That Otho, and his 
 " successors in the kingdom of Italy, should always 
 " have the power of chusing a successor, of naming 
 " the pope, and of giving investiture to bishops'^." 
 
 The affairs of Italy being thus settled, Otho return- 
 ed to Germany; where he was scarce arrived, when the 
 
 14. 1 f5 •. lib. vii. 15. Luitprand. lib. vi, 16. Extract, in Gratiana^ 
 
 Italians. 
 
iL£T, XVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 131 
 
 Italians again revolted, and expelled John XIII. who 
 had been elected in presence of the impe- 
 rial commissioners, after the death of Leo 
 VIII. Enraged at so many instances of perfidy, Otho 
 OJice more entered Italy, and marched to Rome, which 
 he treated with a severity somewhat bordering on re- 
 venge, but justly merited. He banished the consuls, 
 hanged the tribunes, and caused the prefect of Rome, 
 who aimed at the character of a second Brutus, to be 
 
 whipt naked throuc'h the streets on an ass^. _„^ 
 
 .T, ' . .... I'll- A. D. 966. 
 
 1 hese ancient dignities subsisted only in name 
 
 and the people were destitute of every virtue. They had 
 repeatedly broken their faith to the prince, whose pro- 
 tection they had craved, and to whom they had sworn 
 allegiance; an attempt therefore to restore the republic, 
 which had at one time been considered as the height of 
 patriotism, was now deservedly punished as a seditious 
 revolt.. ..though a person of no less eminence than Vol- 
 taire seems to consider both in the same light. 
 
 After re-establishing the pope, and regulating the po- 
 lice of Rome, Otho retired to Capua, where he received 
 
 ambassadors from Nicephorus, the Greek ^^.^ 
 
 , , 1 1 1 11- A. D. G6r. 
 
 emperor, who wanted to renew the old alliance 
 
 between the Eastern and Western empires, and also pro- 
 posed a marriage between his daughter Theophania and 
 Otho's son, lately associated with his father in the 
 supreme power. In the course of this negociation, how- 
 ever, the Greek grew jealous of the German, and ordered 
 the nobles to be assassinated who came to receive the 
 princess. Incensed at so enormous a perfidy, 
 Otho directed his generals to enter Calabria, 
 where they defeated the Greek army, cut off the noses of 
 their prisoners, and sent them in that condition to Con- 
 stantinople'^. 
 
 But peace was soon after established between the two 
 empires. Nicephorus being put to death by his subjects, 
 
 17. Sigon, lib. rVi. 18. Id- ibid. 
 
 John 
 
132 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 John Zlmisces, his successor, sent the princess Theopha- 
 nia into Ital^', where her marriage with young Otho was 
 consummated ^, and all differences happily- 
 accommodated. The emperor returned to Ger- 
 many covered with glory and success, and lived to enjoy 
 the fruits of his victories two years in his native Saxony. 
 He died in 973, after a reign of thirty-six years; during 
 which, by his generosity and courage he had justly acqui- 
 red the appellation of Otho the Great, the conqueror 
 of Italy, and the restorer of the empire of Charlemagne. 
 Otho. II surnamed the Sanguinary, on account of the 
 
 ^^ , blood spilt under his reign, succeeded his father 
 A. D. 974. - . . 
 
 at the age of eighteen. His youth occasioned 
 
 troubles, which his valour enabled him to dissipate. Henry, 
 duke of Bavaria, and several other noblemen rebelled, but 
 were all reducced in a short time.- Denmark and Bohe- 
 mia felt his power, and Rome, by new crimes, offered a 
 theatre for his justice. The consul Crescentius, son of 
 the abandoned Theodora, who had been concubine to pope 
 John X. revived the project of restoring the republic, and 
 caused Benedict VI. who adhered to the emperor, to be 
 murdered in prison. His faction elected Boniface VII. 
 another faction elected Benedict VII. and a third John 
 XIV. who was put to death by Boniface^°, 
 
 These horrors succeeded one another so rapidly that 
 chronologers have not been able to ascertain the dates nor 
 historians accurately to settle the names of the pontiffs. 
 The pope of one party was the anti-pope of another. But 
 Benedict VII. and the imperial party prevailing, Boniface 
 went in person to Constantinople, and implored the Greek 
 emperors, Basil and Constantine, to come and restore 
 the throne of the Caesars in Italy, and deliver the Ro- 
 mans from the German yoke^'. 
 
 This circumstance, my dear Philip, merits your at- 
 tention. The popes, in order to increase their power, 
 had formerly renounced their allegiance to the Greeks, 
 
 19. Annai de I' Jimp. torn. i. 20. Sigon. lib. vii. 21. Id. ibid. 
 
 and 
 
XET. XVI.] MODERN EUROPE. J33 
 
 and called in the Franks. They afterwards had recourse 
 to the Germans, who confirmed the privileges granted 
 them by the French; and now they seemed ready to 
 receive their ancient masters or rather to acknowledge 
 no master at allj and hence they have been accused 
 of boundless ambition. But in these proceedings I 
 can see no foundation for such a charge. It is natural 
 for men to desire sway; and, when obtained to seek to 
 increase it. When the popes were become temporal 
 princes, they would consequently seek to secure and 
 extend their dominion. If they had acted otherwise, 
 they would not have been men. I am much more offen- 
 ded at that dominion of blind belief, which they endea- 
 voured to extend over the human mind. The one was a 
 generous, the other an ignoble ambition; the first made 
 only a few men change their sovereign, the latter subjected 
 millions to a debasing superstition and was necessarily 
 accompanied with hypocrisy and fraud. 
 
 I have already mentioned, in the history of France, the 
 dispute about Lorrain, which Otho II. politically divided 
 with Lothario's brother Charles, on condition that the 
 French prince should do homage for it after the custom 
 of those times, with bended knee, and closed ^^^ 
 
 AD 981 
 
 hands. That war being finished, and the af- * ' 
 fairs of Germany settled, Otho marched into Italy, en- 
 tered Rome without opposition, and severely chastised 
 the rebels ; but attempting to wrest Calabria from the 
 Greeks, his army was cut in pieces by the Saracens, 
 whom the Greeks had called to their assistance". He 
 died soon after at Rome, while preparing to take revenge 
 on the enemy. 
 
 Otho HI. already elected emperor, succeded his father 
 at twelve years of age; and his uncle and his mother 
 disputing the administration, Germany was 
 disquieted by a turbulent regency, while Rome 
 
 22. Leo Osiiensisj lib. ii. 
 
 became 
 
134 THE HISTORY OF [part. i. 
 
 became a prey to new factions, and the scene of new 
 crimes. Crescentius blew again the trumpet of liberty, 
 and persuaded the Romans they were still free, that he 
 might have it in his power to enslave them. 
 
 But when the emperor, who proved a brave and enter- 
 prising prince, came of age, all things were soon reduced 
 ,^^,^ into order. He defeated the Danes, who had 
 invaded the empire, and entered into a friendly 
 alliance with Eric, king of Sweden, Denmark, and Nor- 
 way, on condition that German missionaries should be 
 allowed to preach the gospel in his dominions^^; a great 
 concession in those times, and highly mortifying to the 
 worshippers of Odin. 
 
 The affairs of the North being settled, Otho marched 
 into Italy at the intercession of John XV. who was per- 
 ^^ - secuted by Crescentius. Alarmed at the name 
 of Otho, which had so often proved fatal to 
 their confederates, the rebels returned to their duty, 
 and Crescentius was pardoned. But scarce had the 
 emperor left Rome, when that licentious spirit again 
 revolted; expelled Gregory V. the successor of John 
 XV. and elevated to the papal chair a creature of his 
 own, under the name of John XVI. Enraged at this 
 
 ^^^ fresh insult, Otho returned with a powerful 
 A. D. 998. . 
 
 army to Rome, which he took by assault ; or- 
 dered Crescentius to be beheaded, and the anti-pope to 
 be thrown from the top of the castle of St. Angelo, after 
 his eyes had been put out, and his nose cut off'*. 
 
 Having thus punished the rebels, restored Gregory, 
 and received anew the allegiance of the citizens of Rome, 
 
 ^^ ■ Otho returned to Germany; whence he pro- 
 A. D. 1000. ,, Till i-i-l J- 
 
 ceeded to Poland, which he erected mto a 
 
 kingdom at the solicitation of the duke Boleslaus, who 
 
 did him homage, and agreed to hold his dominions as Jt 
 
 fief of the empire'^ 
 
 23. j^nnnl. de I'Emp. torn. i. 
 
 24. Id. ibid. Heiss, Jhst. t/e I'Emp. torn. i. 
 
 25. Baron. 
 
 But 
 
iiT. KTi.] MODERN EUROPE. 135 
 
 But the Saracens about this time making an irruption 
 
 into the Campania of Rome, the emperor was again 
 
 obliged to march into Italy. He expelled the .^^_ 
 
 ° . . , . , 11 , 1 „ A.D.lOOl. 
 
 ravagers, and repaired 'with a small body oi 
 
 troops to Rome, where hia life was endangered by a 
 conspiracy; and, while he was assembling forces to pun- 
 ish the rebels, he is said to have been poisoned by a pair 
 of gloves sent him by the widow of Crescentius, whom 
 he had debauched under a promise of marriage-<5. 
 
 The empire sustained a great loss in the death of this 
 prince, who v/as equally brave, resolute, and just; and 
 by a glorious reign of eighteen years, changed inno 
 
 the surname of Infant, which had been given 
 him at his accession, into that of the Wonder of the 
 World. 
 
 As Otho III. died without children, a number of com- 
 petitors started up for the empire, three of whom were 
 supposed alike qualified to wear the imperial crown ; 
 Henry duke of Bavaria, Herman duke of Suabia, and 
 Ekkard marquis of Saxony. But the duke of Bavaria 
 being grandson to Otho II. by the female line, was 
 elected in consequence of his superior power, and con- 
 firmed and consecrated under the name of Henry II. 
 
 The new emperor had no sooner settled the affairs of 
 Germany, and disconcerted an association formed againse 
 him by the king of Poland, than he found it necessary to 
 march into Italy, where Ardouin, marquis of Ivrea, had 
 assumed the sovereignty. Ardouin retired at -in^n 
 
 the approach of Henry, who was crowned king "* 
 of Lombardy at Pavia, by the archbishop of Milan; but 
 the marquis having some partizans in that city, they 
 Inflamed the populace to such a degree, that the emperor 
 was in danger of being sacrificed to their fury. The 
 tumult was at last quelled by the imperial troops. Those 
 within the city defended the palace, while detachments 
 from the camp scaled the walls, and committed terrible 
 
 26. Hist, de VEglise par Eene<l. 
 
 slaughter 
 
136 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 slaughter in the streets, till Henry ordered thena to 
 desist, and retired to the fortress of St. Peter. Thither 
 the principal citizens repaired in a bodyj implored the 
 emperor's clemency; protested their loyalty, and laid 
 the blame of the sedition on the partizans of Ardouin, 
 who had practised on the ignorance of the vulgar, iienry 
 generously admitted their apology: " Mercy," said he, 
 " is my favourite virtue; and I would much rather find 
 " your obedience the result of affection than the conse- 
 *' quence of fear-7." 
 
 The troubles of Germany obliged the emperor to 
 leave Italy without visiting Rome. But these being 
 quelled, and the king of Poland, who had revolted, re- 
 duced to obedience, Henry afterwards returned to Italy, 
 with his wife Cunegunda, and was crowned in St. Peter's 
 by Benedict VIII. He at the same time 
 'defeated Ardouin^ who had re-assumed the 
 royal authority in his absence, and quieted the disorders 
 of Lombardy. 
 
 Cloyed with success, sick of human greatness or of the 
 toils of empire, and charmed with the tranquillity of a 
 monastic life, Henry had for some time expressed a de- 
 sire of retiring from the world, and now actually took 
 the religious habit. But the abbot of St. Vail, when he 
 received the emperor as a brother, wisely imposed the 
 following command on him: — " Monks owe obedience 
 " to their superior," said he, " I order you to continue 
 *' at the helm of governments^." 
 
 In consequence of this injunction, Hienry consented 
 to wear the crown, and increased in prosperity to the 
 hour of his death. Yet he seems to have been 
 " 'a prince of a weak mind: for, besides his mo- 
 nastic whim, it appears that he had made a vow of chas- 
 tity. And, when he felt his end approaching, he sent for 
 the parents of his wife Cunegunda, and said, " You gave 
 " her to me a virgin, and I restore her a virgin^?!" Can 
 
 17. Heiss, lib. ii. Barre, torn. iii. 28. Annal. de I'Emp. torn, i, 
 
 29. Id. ibid. 
 
 a restraint 
 
LET. xvii.j MODERN EUROPE. isr 
 
 a restraint on the natural inclinations be a virtue, where 
 their indulgence does not interfere with the welfare of 
 society ? Do not think so. Such a declaration from a 
 husband is sufficient to make us credit the accusations of 
 adultery laid against Cunegunda, though she is said to 
 have proved her innocence by handling red-hot iron. 
 
 LETTER XVII. 
 
 ENGLAND FKOM THE REIGN OF ALFRED TO TflE RF.lGN OF 
 CANUTE THE GREAT. 
 
 Ji-NGLAND, my dear Philip, from the reign 
 of Alfred to the Danish conquest, affords few objects to 
 arrest the attention of the scholar, the gentleman, or the 
 politician. Little attention was paid to arts or letters; 
 which, with manners, suffered a decline. The consti- 
 tution continued nearly the same. A concise account of 
 the principal reigns will therefore be sufficient for your 
 purpose; more especially as England, during this period, 
 had no connection with the affairs of the continent. 
 
 Alfred was succeeded by his son Edward the elder, 
 being the first of that name who sat on the English throne. 
 Though inferior to his father in genius and erudition, he 
 equalled him in military talents: and he had occasion for 
 them. Ethelwald, his cousin-german, son to king Ethel- 
 bert, Alfred's brother, disputed the crown, and called in 
 the Danes to support his claim. The death of Ethehvald, 
 who fell in a battle with the Kentish men', de- ^^^ 
 
 AD QIO 
 
 cided the quarrel; but Edward's wars with the 
 Danes continued during the greater part of hir, reign, 
 though he was successful in almost every engagement. 
 He died in 925. 
 
 1. Chron. Sax. H. Hunting. 
 VOL. I, z Athelstan, 
 
138 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Athelstan, Edward's natural son, obtained the king- 
 dom, in preference to his legitimate children. 
 As he vv'as arrived at an age more suited to 
 the cares of government, and the nation, exposed to 
 foreign and domestic wars, required a prince of vigour 
 and abilities, the stain in his birth was overlooked. 
 
 No sooner was Athelstan securely seated on the 
 throne, than he endeavoured to give it stability by pro- 
 viding against the insurrection of the domestic Danes. 
 With this view he marched into Northumberland, their 
 most considerable settlement; and finding that they bore 
 with impatience the English joke, he judged it prudent 
 to confer on Sitheric, a Danish nobleman, the title of 
 king, and to give him his sister Editha in marriage, as a 
 farther motive of attachment. But this policy, though 
 apparently wise, proved the source of many troubles. 
 
 Sitheric died within a twelvemonth after his eleva- 
 tion; and his two sons, by a former marriage, Anlaf and 
 Godfrid, founding pretensions on their father's rank, 
 assumed the sovereignty, without waiting for the appro- 
 bation of Athelstan. But they were soon expelled by 
 that pov/erful monarch, who Was no less brave than poli- 
 tic. The former took shelter in Ireland, the latter in 
 Scotland; where he was protected for some time, by the 
 clemency of Constantinc, who then swayed the Scottish 
 sceptre. Continually solicited, however, and even men- 
 aced by the English monarch, Constantine at last pro- 
 mised to deliver up his guest; but secretly detesting 
 such treachery, he ga^'^e Godfrid a hint to make his escape. 
 Incensed at Constantine's behaviour, though the death of 
 the fugitive had freed him from all apprehensions, Athel- 
 ^,, . Stan entered Scotland with a numerous armv, 
 and reduced the Scots to such distress, that 
 their king was happy to preserve his crown by the most 
 humble submission\ 
 
 2. Ilovedon 
 
 Athelstan 
 
lET. XVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 139 
 
 Athelstaii afterwards defeated the Scots, Welsh, and 
 Danes, m a general engagement at Biuns- ^^^^ 
 
 bury, in Northumberland. In consequence 
 of this victory he enjoyed tranquillity during the rest of 
 his reign. He appears to have been one of the most able 
 and active of our ancient princes: and his memo- 
 rable law for the encouragement of commerce, discovers 
 a liberality of mind worthy of the most enlightened ages ; 
 That a merchant, who had made two voyages, on his 
 own account, to distant lands, should be admitted to the 
 rank of a lesser thane or gentleman^. 
 
 Athelstan was succeeded by his brother Edmund ; who, 
 on his accession, met with some disturbance 
 from the Northumbrian Danes, whom he 
 reduced to obedience. He also conquered Cumberland 
 from the Britons, and conferred that princi- „,„ 
 
 . A. D. 9-*5. 
 
 pality on Malcolm, king of Scotland, on condi- 
 tion that he should do homage to England for it, and 
 protect the Northern counties from all future incursion* 
 of the foreign Danes^ 
 
 Edmund's reign was short, and his death violent. 
 As he was solemnizing a feast in Gloucester- ^ 
 
 shire, a notorious robber named Leolf, whom 
 he had sentenced to banishment, audaciously entered the 
 hall where his sovereign dined, and seated himself at one 
 of the tables. Enraged at such insolence, Edmund ordered 
 him to be seized; but observing that the rufaan was pre- 
 paring to resist, the indignant monarch sprung up, and 
 catching him by the hair, dragged him out of the hail. 
 JMeanwhile Leolf having drawn his dagger, lifted his arm 
 with a furious blow, and stabbed the king to the heart, 
 who immediately expired on the bosom of his murderer. 
 
 Edmund left male issue; but as his eldest son was too 
 young to govern the kingdom, his brother Edred was 
 raised to the throne. The beginning of Edrcd's reign, 
 like those of his predecessors, v/as disturbed by the rtbel- 
 
 3. BromptoTi. 4. Cu'. Mal.nes. I'.b. li. j. IJ. ibiJ. H. Huuung. 
 
 lioa 
 
140 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 lion of the Northumbrian Danes. Though frequently 
 humbled, they were never entirely subdued, nor had 
 they ever paid a sincere allegiance to the English ciown. 
 Their obedience lasted no longer than the present terror. 
 Edr£d, instructed by experience, took every precaution 
 to prevent their future insurrections. He settled English 
 garrisons in their most considerable towns, and placed 
 over them an English governor, to watch 
 their motions, and check the first appearance 
 of revolt. He also obliged Malcolm, king of Scotland, to 
 renew his homage for Cumberland''. 
 
 But Edred, though a brave and active prince, lay 
 under the influence of the lowest superstition, and had 
 blindly delivered over his conscience to the guidance of 
 Dunstan, abbot of Glastonbury, commonly called St. 
 Dunstan, whom he advanced to the highest offices of 
 state, and who concealed beneath an appearance of sancti- 
 ty the most insatiable and insolent ambition. In order 
 to impose on the credulity of mankind, this designing 
 monk had long secluded himself from the world in a mi- 
 serable cell, where he is said to have had frequent con- 
 flicts with the Devil; until one day, when the infernal 
 spirit attempting to seduce him in the shape of a woman, 
 Dunstan seized him by the nose with a pair of red-hot 
 pincers, and held him till the whole neighbourhood re- 
 sounded with his bellowings^. Satan, thus vanquished, 
 ilurst nevermore shew his face. This story, and others 
 of the like nature, then seriously believed, obtained the 
 abbot a reputation, both with prince and people, which no 
 real piety or virtue could possibly have procured him. 
 Soon after his return from solitude, he was placed by 
 Edred at the head of the treasury; and, sensible that he 
 owed his advancement solely to the opinion of his aus- 
 terity, he professed himself a friend to the rigid monas- 
 tic rules, which about this time began to prevail, and by 
 which monks were excluded from all commerce with the 
 
 6. Hoveden. 7. O.-^berne, in Aiif^Iia Sacra, vol. ii. 
 
 world 
 
LET. XVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 141 
 
 world and with women. He introduced them into the 
 convents of Glastonbury and Abingdon, and endeavoured 
 to render them universal in the kingdom*^, 
 
 A word here of the monastic life. 
 
 There had been monasteries in England from the first 
 introduction of Christianity among the Saxons, and these 
 establishments had been greatly multiplied by the mis- 
 taken piety of the English princes and nobles, who sought 
 to bribe Heaven by donations to the church. But the 
 monks had hitherto been a species of secular priests, who 
 were at liberty either to marry or continue single, and 
 who lived after the manner of our present canons or pre-, 
 bendaries. They both intermingled with the world, in 
 some degree, and endeavoured to render themselves 
 useful to it. A superstitious devotion, hoAvever, had 
 produced in Italy a new species of monks, who secluded 
 themselves entirely from the world, renounced all claim to 
 liberty, and made a merit of the most inviolable chastity. 
 Dunstan laid hold of this circumstance to commence re- 
 former. The popes had favoured the doctrine from 
 motives of general policy, as detaching the ecclesiastical 
 from the civil power: the abbot embraced it for his own 
 aggrandizement. Celibacy was therefore extolled as the 
 universal duty of priests; and, in England, the minds of 
 men were already prepared for such an innovation, thojugh 
 it militates against the strongest propensities in human 
 nature. 
 
 The first preachers of Christianity among the Saxons 
 had carried to the most extravagant height the praises 
 of inviolable chastity; the pleasures of love had been 
 represented as incompatible with Christian perfection; 
 and an abstinence from all commerce with the softer sex, 
 certainly the highest act of self-denial, Avas deemed a, 
 sufficient atonement for the greatest enormities. It there- 
 fore naturally followed, as a consequence of this doctrine, 
 that those who officiated at the altar should at least be 
 
 S. Id. Void. 
 
 free 
 
142 THE HISTORY 01' [part i. 
 
 free from such pollution. Dunstan and his reformed 
 monks knew well how to avail themselves of these popular 
 topics, and set off their own character to the best advan- 
 tage. On the otJier hand, their rivals the secular clergy, 
 who were numerous and rich, and possessed of the eccle- 
 siastical dignities, defended themselves with vigour, 
 und boldly maintained the sanctity of the institution of 
 marriage". The whole nation was thrown into a ferment. 
 In the meantime, the power of the monks received a 
 
 ^^^ check by the death of Edred, the dupe of 
 A. D ySSt . . 
 
 their ambition. He left children, but in an 
 
 infant state; the crown was therefore conferred on Edwy, 
 his nephew, son to Edmund his brother and predecessor ". 
 This prince, who was only seventeen years of age at 
 his accession, possessed an elegant person, and the most 
 amiable and promising virtues. But neither the graces 
 of his figure, nor the accomplishments of his mind, could 
 screen him from the fury of the monks, whom he unhap- 
 pily offended in the beginning of his reign. The beau- 
 tiful Elgiva, his second or third cousin, had made an 
 impression on the susceptible heart of Edwy; and, as he 
 was at an age when the tender passions arc most keenly 
 felt, he ventured to marry her, though within the degrees 
 of afiinity prohibited by the church. The austerity of 
 the monks made them particularly violent on this occa- 
 sion; the king therefore entertained a strong aversion 
 against them, and determined to oppose their project of 
 expelling the seculars from the convents. But he had 
 soon reason to repent his rashness, in provoking such 
 dangerous enem.ies. On the day of his coronation, while 
 the nobility, assembled in the great hall, were indulging 
 themselves in riot and disorder, after the example of 
 their German ancestors, Edwy, attracted by the gentler 
 pleasures of love, retired to the queen's apartment, and 
 gave loose to his fondness, which was but feebly checked 
 by the presence of her mother. Dunstan conjectured the 
 reason of the king's absence; and carrying along with him 
 
 1. S;ielm. (.Ml lol. i. 10. Cbron. Sex. 
 
 Odo, 
 
LET. XVII.] MODERN EUROPE. US 
 
 Odo, archbishop of Canterbury, over whom he had gained 
 an absolute ascendant, he burst into the royal privacy, 
 upraided Edvvy of lasciviousness, tore him from the arms 
 of his consort, and pushed him back ignominiously into 
 the company of the nobles, loading the queen with the 
 most opprobrious epithets". 
 
 Though Edwy was young, and had the prejudices of 
 the age to encounter, he found means to revenge this 
 public insult. He accused Dunstan of malversation in 
 office, while at the head of the treasury ; and as that 
 minister did not clear himself of the charge, the king 
 banished him the realm. But Dtmstan's party were not 
 idle during his absence. They poisoned the minds of 
 the people to such a degree by declamations against the 
 king, and panegyrics on the abbot's sanctity, that the royal 
 authority was despised, and still more outrageously in- 
 sulted. Archbishop Odo ordered the queen to be sei- 
 zed : and after her face had been seared with a red-hot 
 iron, in order to destroy that fatal beauty which had 
 ensnared the king, she was carried into Ireland, there 
 to remain in perpetual exile'-. 
 
 Edvvy finding resistance ineffectual, was obliged to 
 consent to a divorce, which was pronounced by the im- 
 perious Odo. But these were not the only evils which 
 attended this unfortunate prince and his consort. The 
 amiable Elgiva was made prisoner by her persecutors, 
 and cruelly murdered in returning to the embraces of 
 the king, whom she still considered as her husband. 
 Nothing less than her death could satisfy the archbishop 
 and the monks. Edwy was dethroned by the same in- 
 fluence, in order to make room for his brother Edgar, 
 a boy of thirteen years of age. Dunjtan returned to 
 England, and took upon him the government of the 
 young king and his party. He was first installc d in the 
 see of Worcester, next in that of London, and after- 
 wards in that of Canterbury : of all which he long kept 
 
 11 Gul Malmfs. lib. ii. 12. Osberne, ubi sup 
 
 possession 
 
144 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 possession. In the mean time the unhappy Edwy was 
 
 ^^^ excommunicated, and pursued bv his enemies 
 A 13 959. , '' 
 
 with unrelenting vengeance '^. But his death 
 
 soon freed them iVom all inquietude, and left Edgar in 
 peaceable possession of the throne. 
 
 The reign of Edgar is one of the most fortunate in 
 the English annals. Though he ascended the throne in 
 early youth, he soon discovered an excellent capacity 
 for governmeut. He shewed no aversion against war ; 
 he took the wisest precautions for public safety ; and, by 
 his vigilance and foresight, he was enabled to indulge 
 his natural inclination for peace. He maintained a body 
 of troops in the North, to keep the mutinous Northum- 
 brians in awe, and to repel the inroads of the Scots. 
 He also built and supported a powerful navy : and, in 
 order to habituate the seamen to the practice of their 
 profession, as well as to intimidate his enemies, he sta- 
 tioned three squadrons off the coasts of his kingdom, and 
 commanded them to make by turns the circuit of his 
 dominions. The foreign Danes durst not approach a 
 country which was so strongly defended ; the domestic 
 Danes saw destruction to be the inevitable consequence 
 of insurrection ; and the princes of Wales, of Scotland, 
 and even of Ireland, were happy to appease so potent a 
 monarch by submission'*. 
 
 But the means by which Edgar more especially 
 maintained his authority at home^ and preserved pub- 
 lic tranquillity, was paying court to Dunstan and the 
 monks, who had violently placed him on the throne, and 
 whose claim to superior sanctity gave them an ascen- 
 dant over the people. He favoured their scheme of 
 reformation, as it was called, but in reality of dispossess- 
 ing the secular canons of the monasteries ; he consulted 
 them in the administration of all ecclesiastical, and even 
 of many civil affairs ; and although the vigour of his 
 genius prevented him from being entirely guided by 
 
 13. Rrompton. 14. Spclm. Cone. vol. i. 
 
 them 
 
LET. XVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 145 
 
 them, he took care never to disoblige them. Hence he 
 is represented by the monkish writers not only as a 
 warrior and a politician, a character which he seems to 
 have merited, but also as a saint and a man of virtue, 
 though he was licentious in the highest degree, and vio- 
 lated every law human and divine. Kis very amours 
 are a compound of barbarity and brutality. He broke 
 into a convent, carried off a nun by force, and even 
 committed violence on her person'^. Struck also with 
 the charms of a nobleman's daughter, in whose house he 
 was entertained, he demanded that she should pass that 
 very night with him, without once consulting the young 
 lady's inclinations'^'. But his most remarkable amour 
 was with the beautiful Elfrida ; and, as it is connected 
 with the history of the following reign, I shall relate it 
 circumstantially. It will give you at once an idea of the 
 manners of the age, and of the character of Edgar. 
 
 Elfrida the only daughter and sole heiress of Olgar, 
 earl of Devonshire, though educated in the country, and 
 a stranger at court, had filled all England with the repu- 
 tation of her beauty. Edgar, v/ho Vv'as never indifFerent 
 to any report of this kind, sent Athelwold his favourite to 
 see if the young lady was indeed as fair as fume had re- 
 presented her. Athelwold no sooner saw Elfrida than he 
 was inflamed with love, and determined to sacrifice to it 
 his fidelity to his master: he therefore told Edgar, on his 
 return, that the fortune and quality of Elfrida alone had 
 been the cause of the adulation paid, and that her charms, 
 so far from being extraordinary, would have been entirely 
 over-looked in a woman of inferior condition. " But," 
 addedhewhenhefoundhehadblunted the edgeof the kind's 
 
 15. Gul. Malrnes. lib. ii. 
 
 16. This demand was made to the mother, who being a woman 
 of virtue, sent secretly to the king's bed, instead of her daughter, her 
 maid Elfleda; with whom Edgar passed the night so much to his satis- 
 faction, that he not only forgave the old lady for her pious deceit, but 
 transferred his love to Elfleda, who became hi* favourite mistress. Gv.l- 
 Malmes. ubi sup. 
 
 curiosity 
 VOL, I. A a 
 
146 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 curiosity, *' though she has nothing to claim the attention 
 ** of a sovereign, her immense wealth would, to a subject, 
 " be a sufficient compensation, for the homeliness of her 
 " person; and, although it could never produce on mc 
 " the illusion of beauty, it might make her a convenient 
 *' wifel" 
 
 Edgai-, glad of an opportunity of establishing his favour- 
 ite's fortune, not only gave his approbation to the pro- 
 jected match, but forwarded its success by recommending 
 him in the warmest manner to the earl of Devonshire; so 
 that Athelwold w^as soon made happy in the possession of 
 his beloved Elfrida. Dreading, however, the eyes of 
 the king, he still found some pretence for detaining his 
 wife in the country. But all his precautions were insuf- 
 ficient to conceal his amorous treachery. Royal favour- 
 ites are never without enemies; Edgar was soon informed 
 of the truth; but before he would execute vengeance on 
 Athelwold's perfidy, he resolved to satisfy himself fully 
 in regard to Elfrida's beauty. He therefore told his 
 deceiver, That he intended to pay him a visit at his castle, 
 and be introduced to his wife,whosebeautyhehadformer- 
 ly heard so much praised. Athehvold was thunderstruck 
 at the proposal; but, as he could not refuse such an hon- 
 our, he only begged leave to go a few hours before his 
 royal guest, that he might make proper preparations for 
 his reception. On his arrival, he fell at his wife's feet; 
 discovered the whole secret, and conjured her, if she valu- 
 ed either her own honour or his life, to disguise as much 
 as possible that fatal oeauty which had tempted him to 
 deceive his prince and friend. Elfrida promised compli- 
 ance, though nothing appears to have been farther from 
 her thoughts. She adorned her person with the most 
 exquisite art, and called forth all her charms ; not des- 
 pairing, it should seem, yet to reach that exalted station 
 of v.?hich Athelwold's fondness had deprived her. The 
 event was answerable to her wishes; she excited at once in 
 Edgar's bosom the warmest love, and the keenest desire 
 of revenge. The king, however, who could dissemble 
 those passions, as well as feel them, beheld her with seem- 
 ing: 
 
LET. XVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 147 
 
 ing indifference, and having seduced Athelwold into a 
 wood, under pretence of hunting, he stabbed him with his 
 own hand, took Elfrida to court, and soon after puWlicly 
 married her'^ 
 
 This reign is remarkable for the extirpation of wolves 
 from England. Edgar took great pleasure in pursuing 
 those ravenous animals: and when he found they had all 
 taken shelter in the mountains and forests of Wales, he 
 changed the tribute of money imposed on the Welsh 
 princes by Athelstan, into an annual tribute of three hun- 
 dred head of wolves'^, a policy which occasioned so much 
 diligence in hunting them, that the breed soon became 
 extinct in the island. 
 
 Edgar Avas succeeded by jhis son Edward, commonly 
 called the martyr, whom he had by his first 
 wife, the daughter of earl Ordmer. 
 
 The succession of Edward did not take place without 
 much opposition. Elfrida, his step-mother, had a son 
 named Ethelred, only seven years old, whom she at- 
 tempted to raise to the throne. But the principal nobi- 
 lity, dreading her imperious temper, opposed a measure 
 which must increase her authority, if not put her in pos- 
 session of the regency; and Dunstan, to whom it was of 
 great importance to have a king favourable to his cause, 
 resolutely crowned and anointed Edward, over whom he 
 had already gained an absolute ascendant. His short 
 
 reiffci was remarkable for nothing: but a conti- 
 
 A. D. 978 
 nual struggle between the monks and the secu- 
 lar clergy. He was treacherously murdered at the instiga- 
 tion of Elfrida, in order to make roonj for her son 
 Ethelred. 
 
 Soon after the accession of Ethelred, a prince with- 
 out courage or capacity, England was visited anev^r by 
 the Danes. The wise regulations of Alfred, and the 
 valour of his immediate successors had long deterred 
 those ravagers from approaching the British shores; and 
 
 17. Gul. Malmes. Hoyeden. Bronjpton, ubi sup. 
 IS. Gal. Majmes. liW. ii. 
 
 their 
 
14,8 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 their settlement In France had required, for a time, most 
 of their superfluous hands. But a new race of men having 
 now sprung up in the northern regions, who could no 
 longer disburden themselves on Normany, and England 
 being no longer governed by an Alfred or an Edgar, they 
 ventured to renew their depredations. Ethelred, instead 
 of rousing his people to defend with courage 
 their prince and their property, meanly com- 
 pounded Avith the enemy for his safety, by bribing them 
 to depart the kingdom'^. 
 
 That shameful expedient, which invited assailants 
 instead of repelling them, was attended with the success 
 that might have been expected; the Danes again returned, 
 and were again bribed to depart. In the meantime 
 Ethelred, from a policy incident to weak princes, em- 
 braced the cruel resolution of massacring the Danes 
 throughout all his dominions. Secret orders were accor- 
 dingly given to commence the execution on the same day, 
 
 ^^^^ arid- ^11 the Danes Avere destroyed without 
 
 A. D. 1002. ^ r> M 1 • 1- 1 • r 
 
 mercy. £.ven Gunilda, sister to the king oi 
 
 Denmark, who had married earl Paling, and embraced 
 
 Christianity, was seized and put to death by Ethelred, after 
 
 having seen her husband and children butchered before 
 
 her face-". 
 
 This unhappy princess foretold, in the agonies of 
 
 despair, that her murder would soon be revenged by the 
 
 19. Id. ibid. 
 
 20. Gul. Malmes. lib. ii. Hen. Hunt. lib. vi. Contrary to the testi- 
 mony of most of our old English historians, who represent the massacre 
 of the Danes as universal, Wallingford, (p. 545.) says that it afTecled 
 only a military body in the pay of the king, dispersed over the country; 
 become insolent in an ttncommon drgree, and in some measure masters 
 of the kingdom ; which, instead of protecting, they often ravaged, in 
 conjunction with the foreign Danes. After so great an elapse of tiin^ 
 it is impossible to decide upon the matter with certainty ; but as the king- 
 donis of Korthumberland and East-Anglia were cliiefly peopled wifj^ 
 Danes, Wullingford's account seems most probable. 
 
 total 
 
LET. XVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 149 
 
 total ruin of the English nation. Ne\'er was prophecy 
 w^^^ better fulfilled, nor ever did barbarous policy 
 
 A D. 1003 
 
 prove more fatal to its projectors. Sweyn, 
 king of Denmark, breathing vengeance for the slaughter 
 of his countrymen, landed speedily in the west of England, 
 and desolated the whole kingdoni with fire and sword. 
 The English, sensible what they had to expect from a 
 barbarous and enraged enemy, attempted several times 
 to make a stand ; but they were successively betrayed 
 by Alferic and Edric, governors of Mercia. The base 
 and imprudent expedient of money was again tried, till 
 the nation was entirely drained of its treasure, but with- 
 out effect. The Danes continued their ravages ; and 
 Ethelred, equally afraid of the violence of the ^ ^, 
 
 A. D. 1013. 
 
 enemy and the treachery of his own subjects, 
 fled over to his brother-in-law, Richard duke of Nor- 
 mandy, who received him with a generosity that does 
 honour to his memory^'. 
 
 Sweyn died soon after Ethelred left England, and be- 
 fore he had time to establish himself in his ^^. . 
 
 , ..... -n 1 1 1 A* D. 1014. 
 
 newly acquired domniions. Jithelrecl v/as re- 
 called; but his misconduct was incurable. On resuming 
 the government, he discovered the same incapacity, indo- 
 lence, cowardice, and credulity, which had so often 
 exposed him to the insults of his enemies: and the 
 English found in Canute, the son and successor of Sweyn, 
 an enemy no less terrible than his father. An army was 
 assembled against him under the command of Edric and 
 prince Edmond. Edric, v/hom the infatuated king still 
 trusted, continued his perfidious machinations. After 
 endeavouring in vain to get the prince into his ioi t 
 
 power, he found means to dissipate the army, 
 and then openly revolted to Canute with forty vessels". 
 
 Notwithstanding thfs misfortune, Edmond, whose 
 intrepidity never failed him, collected the remaining force 
 
 21.. Men. Hunting, lib. vi. 22. GuL Malnici. lib. ii. 
 
 of 
 
150 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 of the kingdom, and was soon in a condition to give the 
 enemy battle. But the king had so often experienced 
 the perfidy of his subjects, that he had lost all confidence 
 in them; he therefore refused to take the field; so that 
 the prince's vigorous measures were rendered altogether 
 ineffectual, the army being discouraged by the timidity 
 of their sovereign. As the north had already submitted 
 to Canute's power, Edmond retired to London, deter- 
 mined there to maintain the small remains of 
 English liberty. In the meantime his father 
 died, after an inglorious reign of thirty-five years. 
 
 Ethelred left two sons by his first marriage : Edmond, 
 who succeeded him, and Edwy, whom Canute afterwards 
 murdered. His tv/o sons by the second marriage, Al- 
 fred and Edward, were conveyed into Normandy by 
 queen Emma, immediately after the death of their 
 father. 
 
 Edmond, who received the name of Ironside from 
 his hardy valour, possessed courage and abilities sufHcient 
 to have saved his country ; not only from sinking under 
 its present calamities, but even to have raised it from 
 that abyss of misery into which it was already fallen, had 
 the English, among their other misfortunes, not been 
 infected with treachery and disloyalty. But these ren- 
 dered his best concerted schemes, and his noblest efforts 
 fruitless. The traitor Edric pretended to return to his 
 dut}'; and, as Edmond had no general in whom he could 
 fepose more confidence, he gave him a considerable com- 
 mand in the army. A battle was soon after fought at 
 Assington in Essex. Edric deserted to the enemy, in 
 the beginning of the day, and occasioned the total defeat of 
 the English army, with a great slaughter of the nobility. 
 
 The indefatigable Edmond, however, had still re- 
 source5v. He assembled a nev/ army at Gloucester, and was 
 again in a condition to dispute the field; when the Danish 
 and English nobility, equally tired of the struggle, obli- 
 ged their kings to come to terms. The kingdom was 
 divided between tii;;m bj' treaty. Canute reserved to 
 
 himself 
 
iET. XVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 151 
 
 himself the northern divison ; Mcrcia, East-Anglla, and 
 Northumberland, which he had entirely- 
 subdued : the southern parts were left to 
 Edmond, who survived the treaty only a month. He 
 was murdered at Oxford by two of his chamberlains, 
 accomplices of Edric, whose treachery made way for the 
 accession of Canute the Dane to the throne of England*''; 
 Edwin and Edward, the son of Edmond, being yet in 
 their infancy* 
 
 LETTER XVni. 
 
 ■f RAKCE, FROM THE ACCESSION OF HUGH CAPET, TO THE INVA- 
 SION OF JSNGLAND BY WILLIAM DUKE OF NORMANDV. 
 
 While England changed it»Kne of sovereigns, 
 and Germany its form of government, France also had 
 changed its reigning family, and was become, 
 like Germany, a government entirely feudal. 
 Each province had its hereditary counts or dukes. He 
 who could only seize upon two or three small villages, 
 paid homage to the usurper of a province; and he v/ho 
 had only a castle, held it of the possessor of a town. The 
 kingdom was a monstrous assemblage of members, with- 
 out any compact body. 
 
 Of the princes, or nobles, who held immediately of 
 the crown, Hugh Capet was not the least powerful. He 
 possessed the dukedom of France; which extended as far 
 as Touraine: he was also count of Paris; and the vast 
 domains which he held in Picardy and Champagne, gave 
 him great authority in those provinces. He therefore 
 
 23. Gul. JlsJmei. Hen, Hunting, ubi sa^,- 
 
 seized 
 
152 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 seized the crown on the death of Lewis V. and brought 
 more strength to it than he. derived from it; for the royal 
 domain was now reduced to the cities of Laon and Sois- 
 sons, with' a few other disputed territories'. 
 
 The right of succession belonged to Charles, duke of 
 Lorrain, uncle to Lewis V. but the condition of vassal of 
 the empire appeared to the French nobility a sufficient 
 reason for excluding him, and Hugh Capet secured the 
 favour of the clergy by resigning to them the abbies 
 which had been hereditary in his family. An extreme 
 devotion, real or assumed, recommended him to the peo- 
 ple; and particularly, his veneration for reliques. Force 
 and address seconded his ambition, and the national aver- 
 sion against his rival completed its success. He was 
 acknowledged in an assembly of the nobles; he was anoint- 
 ed at Rheims; and he farther established his throne, by 
 associating his son Robert in the government 
 * of the kingdom, and vesting him with those 
 ensigns of ro3'alty, which he prudently denied himself, 
 as what might give umbrage to men who were lately 
 his equals'*. 
 
 In the mean time the duke of Lorrain entered France, 
 made himself master of Laon by assault, and of Rheims 
 
 bv the treachery of archbishop Arnold, his 
 A.13. 9S9. ', . o ;. , t \ 
 
 relation. But this unhappy pruice was after- 
 wards himself betrayed by the bishop of Laon, and made 
 prisoner for lifej. 
 
 A council was assembled for the trial of Arnold. He 
 was degraded: and Gerbert, a man of learning and genius 
 wlio had been tutor to the emperor Otho III. and to the 
 king's son Robert was elected archbishop of Rheims. But 
 the election was declared void: Arnold was re-established 
 and Cierbert deposed. The first, however, remained in 
 prison till the death of Hugh Capet, who was more afraid 
 of Arnold's intrigues than of the thunder of the Vatican*, 
 while the second, having found an asylum in the court 
 of his pupil Otho, became archbishop of Ravenna, and 
 afterwards pope, under the name of Silvester II. 
 
 1. Glab. Hist, mi Temp. 2. Ibid. 3. Sigeberti. Chron. 
 
 4. Id ibid. 
 
 Nothing 
 
LET. XVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 153 
 
 Nothing else memorable happened during the reign 
 
 of Hugh Capet, who conducted all his affars with great 
 
 prudence and moderation; and had the singular honour 
 
 of establishing a new family, and in some measure a new 
 
 form of government, with few circumstances of violence, 
 
 and without shedding blood. He died in the ^^„ 
 
 . . A. D. 996. 
 
 iifty-seventh year of his age, and the eighth of 
 
 his reign, and was quietly succeeded by his son Robert 
 a prince of a less vigorous genius, though not of a less 
 amiable disposition. 
 
 The most remarkable circumstance ia the reigu of 
 Robert, and the most worthy of our attention, is his ex- 
 communication by the pope. This prince had espoused 
 Bertha, his cousin in the fourth degree; a marriage not 
 only lawful according to our present ideas of things, 
 and justified by the practice of all nations^. ancient and 
 modern, but necessary to the welfare of the 'state, she 
 being the sister of Rodolph, king of Burgundy. >But the 
 clergy, among their other usurpations, had about, this 
 time made a sacrament of marriage, and laid the most 
 essential of civil engagements under spiritual prohibitions, 
 which extended even to the seventh degi-ee of consangui- 
 nity. The popes politically arrogated to themselves a 
 special jurisdiction over this first object of society, and 
 that on which all the rest hang. Gregory V. therefore, 
 undertook to dissolve the marriage between Robert and 
 Bertha, though it had been authorised by several bishops; 
 and, in a council held at Rome, without examining the 
 cause, and without hearing the parties, he published; 
 with the most despotic authority, an imperious decree, 
 which ordered the king and queen to be separated, under 
 peril of excommunication. And all the bishops v^'ho had 
 countenanced the pretended crime, were suspended from 
 their functions, until such time as they should make satis- 
 faction to the holy see^ 
 
 Robert, however, persisted in keeping his wife, and 
 thereby incurred the sentence of excommunication ; v/hich, 
 
 S. Glab. Hist, Sid temp. 
 VOL, I. B b according 
 
154 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 according to cardinal Peter Damien, an historian of those 
 times, had such an effect on the minds of men, that the 
 king was abandoned by all his courtiers, and even by hi& 
 own domestics, two servants excepted. And these threw 
 to the dogs all the victuals which their master left at 
 meals, and purified by fire, the vessels in which he had 
 been served: so fearful were they of what had been 
 touched by an excommunicated persons I.. ..The same cre- 
 dulous author adds, that the queen was brought to bed 
 of a monster, which had a neck and head like a goose;. 
 a certain proof and punishment of incest'... ..But, as Vol- 
 taire very justly observes, there v/as nothing monstrous 
 in all this affair, but the insolence of the pope, and the 
 weakness of the king; who giving way to superstitious 
 terrors, or afraid of civil commotions, at last repudiated 
 his wife Bertha, and married Constance, daughter to the 
 count of Aries, in whom he found an imperious terma- 
 gant, instead of an amiable consort. Gregory also obliged 
 him to restore the traitor Arnold to the see of Rheims". 
 In the meantime Robert had it in his power to have 
 been master of the popes, if he had possessed the ambi- 
 tion and the vigour necessary for such an enterprize. After 
 
 the death of Henrv II. the last emperor of ^^., ^ 
 
 , , f. „ ' , r T . ^ f , A. D. 1024. 
 
 the house oi baxony, the Italians^ sick or the 
 
 German dominion, offered their crown, and the imperial 
 
 dignity, to the king of France. Robert, however, had the 
 
 resolution to refuse it; and not only his own subjects, 
 
 6. Let US not, however, with certain sarcastical historians, represent 
 this mode of inspiring religious terrors as an invention of the Cliristian 
 priesthood. For Csesar tells us that, among the ancient Gauls, if any one,. 
 whether magistrate or private person, refused to submit to the sentence of 
 the Druids, he was interdicted the sacrifices ; and that, while under such 
 • prohibition, all men J/6"««ec/.him, lest they %\\ovXA sxtffer by the contagion 
 of his impiety (Caesar, Bell. Gal. lib. vi.) The power of excommuni. 
 CATION, or the authoiity oi excluding the vicious and refractory from ;<r- 
 ligious privileges, is necessary indeed to every body of priests. But it 
 ought to e.vtend no farther, Xo ajfect no legal ri^ht, nor any civil privile^e^ 
 7. Aimon. Hint. lib. y. 
 
 but 
 
lET. xvm.] MODERN EUROPE. 155 
 
 but Europe in general was soon convinced that he had, 
 acted wisely J for those who made the proposal, after- 
 wards deserted the person who accepted it^. 
 
 The latter years of Robert's reign were renderet^ 
 very unhappy by the disorders of his family. Unfortunate 
 in the death of his eldest son Hugh, whom he had associ- 
 ated in the sovereignty, his queen Constance, whose 
 haughtiness was altogether insupportable, attempted to 
 regulate the succession. Having an aversion against her 
 son Henry, she wanted to place her younger son Robert 
 on the throne. But the king, by the advice of his par- 
 liament, confirmed the succession to Henry, his eldest 
 surviving son. Provoked at this measure, the queen 
 wanted to embroil the brothers'^; but they, being united 
 by a sincere friendship, withstood all her irritations. At 
 length, become equally the objects of her hatred, they 
 
 retired from court, and took arms in order to . ^„^ 
 
 , . , T , T 1 A. D. 1031, 
 
 obtam a separate establishment. In the mean- 
 time the king died, and was succeeded by his son Henry. 
 There is not any monarch in the French history more 
 generally, or more highly commended than Robert, not- 
 withstanding his weakness of temper, or on whose death 
 the lamentations of all ranks of people were louder or 
 more sincere. The monks spoke the sense of the whole 
 nation, when they deplored him in these words: *' We 
 " have lost a father, who governed us in peace. We lived 
 " under him in security; for he did not oppress, or sufi'er 
 *• oppression: we loved him, and there was nobody whom 
 " he feared'"." 
 
 Henry I. was twenty-seven years of age at his acces- 
 sion to the throne, and with all the spirit of a young man, 
 he had the sagacity and prudence of one more advanced 
 in years; without which, the crown had been shaken from 
 his head almost as soon as it was placed there. His mother 
 Constance, who hated him, as has been observed, and 
 who was ambitious still to govern, had drawn over to her 
 
 8. Id. Ibid. 9. Glab. Hist, sui Temp. 10. Helgaldus. Glab, ubi sup. 
 
 party 
 
156 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 pai-ty a number of Lords and bishops, under pretence of 
 supporting the cause of her younger son Robert. Henry, 
 therefore, after some ineffectual struggles, was obliged 
 to take refuge in Normandy, M'here he was received with 
 all possible respect by duke Robert; who assured him, 
 that the treasures and forces of the duchy were at his 
 disposal. Nor Avere these mere expressions of civility: 
 an army of Normans entered France on one side, while 
 the king and the royal party invaded it on the other. The 
 queen dowager and her faction were humbled, and Henry 
 recovered all that he had lost. But although this contest 
 ended gloriously for the king, it proved hurtful to the 
 monarchy; for as the suceess of the war was principally 
 owing to the duke of Normandy, Henry added to his 
 duchy Gisors, Chaumont, Fontoise, and that part of the 
 Vexin which yet remained to the crown". 
 
 The next affair of importance that occupied the king's 
 Attention was the succession to the duchy of Normandy. 
 Duke Robert had thought fit, in compliance with the 
 fashionable devotion of those times, to make a pilgrimage 
 to Jerusalem. But before his departure, as he was a 
 prudent prince, though now old and superstitious, he 
 assembled his nobles; and, informing them of his pious 
 purpose, the length of the jcurney, and the dangers to 
 v/hich he must be exposed, he engaged them to swear 
 allegiance to his natural son William, whom he tenderly 
 loved, and intended for his successor, as he had no legi- 
 timate issue. He also recommended the guardianship of 
 this son, who was only nine years of age, to two persons 
 in whom he placed the greatest confidence; Henry I. 
 king of France, and Alain duke of Bretagne". But these 
 precautions did not prevent many disorders, which a 
 mind not hoodwinked by superstition must have foreseen; 
 arising from the habitual turbulency of the great, the 
 illegitimacy of William and the claims from other branches 
 of the ducal family. 
 
 11. Gul. Gemel. lib. vi. 12. Id. ibid. 
 
 Robert 
 
iET. XVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 157 
 
 Robert died, as he had apprehended, in his pilgri- 
 mage; and left his son rather the heir of 
 his wishes than of his dominions. The 
 licentious nobles, freed from the awe of sovereign 
 authority, broke out into personal quarrels, and made 
 the whole duchy a scene of war and devastation. Alain, 
 duke of Bretagne, came to appease their animosities; 
 but being very roughly treated, be returned home, and 
 was soon after carried off by slow poison, supposed to 
 have been given him in Normandy. Various preten- 
 ders arose to the succession; and the king of France 
 forgetting what he owed to Robert, seemed willing to 
 deprive his infant son of his inheritance, by taking 
 advantage of these troubles. He accordingly invaded 
 the Norman frontier, and reduced several places: but 
 not finding the conquest so easy as he expected, or 
 influenced by the returning sentiments of friendship 
 
 and e-enerosity, he united his forces with ^^^z-* 
 
 r , J 1 J 1- 1 A. D. 1046. 
 
 those ol the young duke, and the malecon- 
 
 tents were totally routed in the battle of Val de Dunes, 
 
 which gave William quiet possession of his dominions'^. 
 
 Henry I. died in 1060, and was succeeded by his 
 son Philip, whom he had by his second wife, and the 
 first with whom he cohabited, the daughter of Joradis- 
 laus, duke of Russia; a circumstance truly remarkable, 
 in an age when the intercourse between nations was so 
 little familiar. But the prohibitions of marriage were 
 so multiplied, and the example of his father so alarm- 
 ing, that Henry is supposed to have sought a wife in 
 this remote country, in order to avoid the crime of 
 incest, and the danger of excommunication. What 
 must the disorders of society have been, when even a 
 king did not know whom he might lawfully marry. 
 
 Philip I. was only eight years of age at the time 
 
 of his accession; and, what is very sinc:ular, ^^^^ 
 
 , p , . ' , , ■' ^,. A. D. 1060. 
 
 instead or oemg put under the guardian- 
 
 13. GuL Geinet. ubi sup. 
 
 ship 
 
158 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 ship of his mother or his uncle, one of whom it might 
 naturally be supposed would have been called to the 
 regency, he was committed by his father to the care of 
 Baldwin V. surnamcd the Pious, earl of Flanders; a 
 man of strict honour, and brother-in-law to Henry. 
 Baldwin gave his pupil an education suitable to hid 
 rank; he kept the nobility in awe, without giving them 
 just cause of offence ; and he maintained peace, by being 
 always prepared for war. History, in a v/ord, scarce 
 furnishes us with an instance ol a minority more quiet 
 and of none more happy; an example the more remarka- 
 ble, as the times and circumstances of it were both 
 delicate. 
 
 The only colour that Baldwin gave for censure, was 
 in his conduct towards William duke of Normand}-, 
 ivho was preparing to invade England, and whom he 
 permitted to raise forces in France and Flanders; a 
 liberty which, from the event, was judged impolitic. 
 But the duke being his son-in-law, he could not refuse 
 him with a good grace: and there was yet a farther 
 motive for compliance. The fortunate and enterprising 
 William might have entered France with that army 
 which he had assembled against England where h6 
 succeeded more speedily, and with more case than could 
 possibly have been expected. But the particulars of 
 that invasion, and its consequences, belong to the his- 
 tory of our own country. I shall therefore only here 
 observe, that to balance in some measure the increase 
 of William's power, an offensive and defensive alliance 
 was concluded between the crowns of 
 * France and Scotland. Soon after that nego- 
 ciation Baldwin died, and left his pupil Philip I. in 
 peaceable possession of his kingdom, when he had 
 attained his fifteenth year"*. 
 
 14. Pul. Malmes. lib. ii. 
 
 LETTER 
 
j.£T. XIX.] M0DP:RN EUROPE. tS9 
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 ENGLAND rRO:^! THE DANISH TO THE NORMAN CONQJJF.ST. 
 
 Y OU have already, my dear Philip, seen Ed- 
 mond Ironside inhumanly murdered, and England ex- 
 posed to the ambition of Canute the Dane; a prince both 
 active and brave, and at the head of a numerous army, 
 ready to take advantage of the minority of ir\i'-' 
 
 Edwin and Edward, the sons of Edmond. 
 The English could therefore expect nothing but total 
 subjection from Canute. But the Danish monarch, com- 
 monly so little scrupulous, shewed, on this occasion, an 
 anxiety to conceal his injustice under plausible preten- 
 ces. Before he seized the inheritence of the two young 
 princes, he summoned a general assembly of the states 
 of England in order to fix the succession; and having 
 suborned some noblemen to depose that in the treaty of 
 Gloucester it was agreed, " That Canute, in case of Ed- 
 " mond's decease, should succeed to the whole king- 
 " dom," the states, convinced by this evidence, or over- 
 awed by his victorious arms, immediately put the Dane 
 in full possession of the government'. 
 
 But although Canute had now attained the great ob- 
 ject of his ambition in the undivided sovereignty of En- 
 gland, he was at first obliged to make many sacrifices to 
 it ; and to gratify the chief nobility, by bestowing on 
 them extensive governments and jurisdictions. He also 
 thought himself obliged, from political motives, to ex- 
 ercise some severities. In order to reward his Danish 
 followers, he loaded the people with oppressive taxes ;. 
 and jealous of the tv/o young princes, but sensible that 
 he should render himself detested if he ordered them to 
 be murdered in England, he sent them to his ally the 
 king of Sweden, whom he desired to get them privately 
 
 1. Gul. Malmes. lib. ii. R. Hoveden, Annal. pars prior. 
 
 dispatched, 
 
160 THE HISTORY OP [part u 
 
 dispatched, as soon as they arrived at his court. But 
 the Swedish monarch was too generous to comply with 
 such a barbarous request. Afraid, however, to draw 
 on himself the displeasure of Canute, by protecting the 
 English princes, he sent them to be educated in the 
 court of Solomon, king of Hungary j a strange place 
 surely to seek for a preceptor. But the defenceless seek 
 only a protector : and the sons of Edmond found one 
 in Solomon. Edv/in, the eldest, was married to that 
 monarch's sister ; but he dying without issue, Solomon 
 gave his sister-in-law, Agatha, daughter of the Empe- 
 ror Henry II. in marriage to Edward, the younger bro- 
 ther : and she bore him Edgar Atlieling, whom I shall 
 have occasion to mention ; Margaret, afterwards queen 
 of Scotland ; and Christina, who retired into a convent** 
 The removal of Edmond's children into so distant a 
 country as Hungary, was regarded by Canute, next to 
 their death, as the greatest security of his government. 
 But he was still under alarm on account of Alfred and 
 Edward, the sons of Ethelred, who were protected and 
 supported by their uncle, Richard duke of Normandy. 
 Richard had even fitted out a fleet, on purpose to restore 
 the English princes to the throne of their ancestors. In 
 order, therefore, to break the storm, and to secure him- 
 self on that side, Canute paid his addresses to queen 
 Emma, the duke's sister, and the mother of those prin- 
 ces who disputed his sway. He was listened to : Ri- 
 chard sent over Emma to England j where she was soon 
 after married to Canute, the enemy of her former hus- 
 band's family, and the conqueror of that country which 
 her children had a right to rule. But Canute promised 
 that her children should still rule it, though not the 
 children of Ethelred ; and, although the English disap- 
 proved of the match, they were pleased to find at court 
 a sovereign to v.hom they were accustomed : so that 
 the conqueror, by this marriage, not only secured the 
 alliance of Normandy, but acquired the confidence of 
 
 2. Id. ibid. 
 
 his 
 
iET. xix.j MODERN EUROPE. i61 
 
 his new subjects. Having thus freed himself from the 
 danger of a revolution, Canute determined, like a truly 
 wise prince, by the equity of his administration, to re- 
 concile the English yet farther to the Danish yoke. He 
 sent back to their own country as many of his followers 
 as could safely be spared : he restored the Saxon cus- 
 toms ; he made no distinction between the Danes and 
 English in the distribution of justice ; and he took care, 
 by a strict execution of law, to protect the lives and pro- 
 perties of all his subjects^ The Danes were gradually 
 incorporated with the native English ; and both were 
 glad to breathe a little from those multiplied calamities, 
 which the conquerors, no less than the conquered, had 
 experienced in their struggle for dominion. 
 
 The first use that Canute made of this tranquillity 
 was to visit Denmark, where he obtained a victory over 
 the Swedes, by the valour of the Enp;lish un- ^^^^ 
 
 'VD.ioi y » 
 
 der the command of earl Godwin, on whom' * 
 
 he bestowed his daughter in marriage. In a second 
 
 voyage to Denmark, he made himself master of Norway, 
 
 and expelled the good Olaus from his kingdom. Canute 
 
 jeems to have attained the height of his am- 
 
 f.. r f ,.. • 1 i: A. D. 1028. 
 
 bition ; tor, trom this period, he appears not 
 
 only to have laid aside all thoughts of future conquests, 
 but to have held in contempt all the glories and pleasures 
 of the world : a necessary consequence, my dear Philip, 
 of assigning to human enjoyments a satisfaction which 
 they cannot yield, and more especially of pursuing them, 
 (another effect of the same cause) at the expense of jus- 
 tice and humanity. 
 
 During this change of mind it must have been that 
 Canute, the greatest and most powerful prince of his 
 time, being sovereign of Denmark, Norway, and En- 
 gland, put to the blush his flattering courtiers, who 
 exclaimed in admiration of his grandeur, that every thing 
 was possiblt for him. He ordered a chair to be brought, 
 
 o, Gul. Malrnes. lib. ii. 
 VOL. t. c c and 
 
102 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 and seated himself on the sea-shore, while the tide was 
 rising ; and as the waves approached, he said, in an im- 
 perious tone. " Thou sea I art under my dominion, and 
 *' the land which I sit upon is mine : I chaige thee, ap- 
 " preach no farther ! nor dare to w^et the feet of thy so- 
 " vereign." He even sat some time in seeming expec- 
 tation of submission : but as the sea still advanced to- 
 wards him, and at last began to wash him with its bil- 
 lows, he turned to his courtiers, and observed, that 
 every creature in the universe is feeble and impotent ; 
 and that power resides only with one Being, in whose 
 hands are the elements of nature, and who can say to 
 the ocean, " Thus far shalt thou go, and no farther''!" 
 
 But although Canute, sick of worldly greatness, began 
 to turn his eyes towards a future state of existence, the 
 spirit which prevailed in that age unfortunately gave a 
 wrong direction to his piety. Instead of making repa- 
 ration to the persons whom he had injured by former 
 acts of violence, he built churches, endowed monaste- 
 ries, and appointed prayers to be said for the souls of 
 those who had fallen in batile against him ; nay, more 
 meritorious than all the rest ! he undertook a pilgrimage 
 to Rome. 
 
 After his return from Rome, Canute performed no- 
 thing memorable, except an expedition against Malcolm 
 ^..^ king of Scotland, whom he humbled. He died 
 'in 1035, and left the crown of England to his 
 son Harold Harefoot, by his first wife, Alfwen, daugh- 
 ter to the earl of Hampshire, in prejudice of Hardica- 
 nute, his son by queen Emma, to whom he had promised 
 the succession^ 
 
 Harold reigned only four years. He was succeeded 
 
 by his brother Hardicanute, whose reign 
 A. D. 1039. . . 
 
 was yet shorter. Neither of these princes 
 
 had any qualities that merit your attention, nor did 
 
 any thing memorable happen during their reigns. It 
 
 4- Jii^iia Sacra, toI. i. 5. Cbrflti. Sax. H. Hunting R. Hovcdcn. 
 
 will 
 
lET. XIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 16S 
 
 will therefore be sufficient to observe, that on the 
 
 death of Hardicanute, who fell a sacrifice to his brutal 
 
 intemperance, the English shook off the .^.^ 
 
 „ . V , 1 ?i 1 r TVT A. D. 1041. 
 
 Danish yoke, rind recalled Irom JNorman- 
 
 dy EdAvard, sou of Ethelred and Emma, surnamed the 
 
 Confessor, to the throne of his ancestors. 
 
 This revolution was effected without bloodshed : and 
 the mild and equitable government of Edward soon re- 
 conciled the Danes, no less than the English, to his 
 sway. The distinction between the two nations va- 
 nished. But the English in vain flattered themselves, 
 that they were forever delivered from foreign masters, 
 A little time convinced them, that the evil was rather 
 suspended than removed. 
 
 Edward had been educated in Normandy ; and ha- 
 ving contracted many intimacies with the natives of 
 that country, as well as an affection for their manners, 
 the court of England was soon filled with Normans, 
 who were distinguished by the royal favour, and had 
 great influence on the national councils. He had also, 
 it appears, though married to a beautiful woman, made 
 an indiscreet vow of virginity, which rendered his bed 
 sterile, but obtained to him from the monks the title 
 of saint and Confessor : and he had given his kinsman, 
 William duke of Normandy, hopes of succeeding to 
 the English crown. What use that enterprizing prince 
 made of this promise, real or pretended, we shall after^ 
 ward have occasion to see. 
 
 In the mean time the English, and particularly earl 
 Godwin, the most powerful nobleman in the kingdom, 
 and who had hopes of exalting his own son to the 
 throne, bec.une jealous of the preference shewn to 
 foreigners, and openly revolted. The rebels were re- 
 duced : the estates of Godwin and his son were con- 
 fiscated ; and they were obliged to flee the realm. But 
 
 they soon after returned, and reduced the 
 
 1 • * ,• . ,j , . , , , A, D . 1053 
 
 king to conditions ; tiic moit considerable 
 
164 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 of which was, that all foreigners should be banished the 
 kingdom^. 
 
 Godv/in's death, which happened shortly after this 
 treaty, prevented him from establishing that authority 
 which he had acquired at the expense of the crown. 
 But his son Harold, who succeeded him in his estates 
 and offices, and who, with an ambition equal to his fa- 
 ther's, was superior to him in address and insinuation, 
 proved no less dangerous to the vmsuspecting and un- 
 warlike Edward, whose confidence he had 
 obtained. And the death of Siward, duke 
 of Northumberland, while it enfeebled the royal au- 
 thority, gave still more consequence to the ambitious 
 Harold. Siward, beside his loyalty, and exploits in 
 behalf of the crown, had acquired honour to England, 
 by his successful conduct in the only foreign enterprise 
 undertaken during this reign : and as it is connected 
 with a memorable circumstance in the history of a 
 neighbouring kingdom, as well as with the intrigues of 
 Harold, it doubly deserves our attention. 
 
 Duncan, king of Scotland, a prince of a gentle dis- 
 position, and some talents, but not possessed of suf- 
 ficient vigour to govern a turbulent nation, distracted 
 by the animosities of the great, had laid himself open 
 to the designs of Macbeth, a powerful nobleman, nearly 
 allied to the crown ; and who, not contented with curb- 
 ing the king's authority, carried yet farther his traite- 
 rous ambition. He murdered his sovereign ; usurped 
 the crown ; and chased Malcolm Kcnmure, the prince 
 and heir, into England. Siward whose daughter was 
 married to Duncan, undertook, by Edward's orders, 
 the protection of this unhappy family. He marched an 
 army into Scotland, defeated and killed Macbeth in 
 battle, and restored Malcolm to the throne of his an- 
 cestors. This service added to his former connections 
 with the royal family of Scotland, brought great acces- 
 
 6. R. Hoveden. Sim. Dunclm. 
 
 sion 
 
LET. XIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 165 
 
 sion to the authority of Siward in the north, and ena- 
 bled him to be highly useful to Edward, in restraining 
 the ambition of Godwin and his powerful family ; but 
 as he had lost his eldest son Osbern, in the action with 
 Macbeth, it proved eventually fatal to his house and 
 hurtful to the crown. The duke's second son, Wol- 
 theof, appeared too young, on his father's death, to be 
 entrusted with the government of Northumberland : 
 and Harold's influence obtained that dukedom for 
 Tosti his own brother^. 
 
 There ar^ two anecdotes related of Siward, which 
 strongly mark his character, and are eminently express- 
 ive of that enthusiasm of valour, so long predominant 
 in the house of Northumberland. When informed of 
 his son Osbern's death, he was at first inconsolable. 
 But enquiring how he fell, and being told that he be- 
 haved with great gallantry, and that his wound was in 
 the breast, the feelings of the father seemed lost in those 
 of the soldier ; his grief was transformed into joy. 
 " Would to God," exclaimed he, " that I had as many 
 *' sons as I have hairs, that I might lose them thus 1" 
 And when he found his own death approaching, he 
 ordered himself to be clothed in a suit of complete ar- 
 mour J and sitting erect on a couch, with a spear in his 
 hand, " In this posture," said he, " the only one wor- 
 " thy of a warrior, I will meet the tyrant : if I cannot 
 " conquer, I shall at least y^ce" the combat"'." 
 
 Tosti behaved so tyrauically in his government of 
 Northumberland, that the people rose against him, and 
 expelled him by force of arms ; a circumstance which 
 contributed much to his brother's aggrandizement. Har- 
 old was appointed by the king to punish the Northum- 
 brians, and advanced with an army for that purpose; but 
 being met by a deputation from Morcar, who had been 
 elected duke, and finding that Tosti had acted in a man- 
 ner unworthy of his station, he returned to the king, and 
 
 7. Gul. Malmes. lib. ii. Buchanan, lib. vii. 8. H. Hunting, iib. vii. 
 
 generously 
 
16a THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 generously persuaded him not only to pardon the rebels, 
 but even to confirm Morcar in the dukedom. He after- 
 ward married the sister of that nobleman, and got her 
 younger brother, Edwin, elected into the government of 
 Mercia. He also undertook an expedition against the 
 Welsh, whom he obliged to receive English governors'. 
 By these political and fortunate steps, Harold soon 
 found himself in a condition openly to aspire at the suc- 
 cession to the crown. He had gained the affections of 
 his countrymen by his lenity to the Northumbrians : he 
 had raised their admiration of his valour, by his con- 
 quest of Wales ; and so great was his influence that he 
 laid almost all England under the command of himself 
 or his friends. His competitors for the succession were 
 Edgar Atheling, the sole surviving heir to the crown, 
 who had been recalled from Hungary, and William duke 
 of Normandy, the king's cousin. But the first was a 
 youth whose imbecility was thought suificient to set aside 
 his claim, and the second a foreigner. Edward's pre- 
 possessions hindered him from supporting the preten- 
 
 .--- sions of Harold, and his irresolution from 
 A. D. IOdo, . , 1 , - r T«.T 
 
 securing the crown to the duke oi Norman- 
 dy, whom he secretly favoured: he therefore died with- 
 out appointing a successor, being worn out with age and 
 infirmities, and more anxious about obtaining a heavenly, 
 than settling his earthly inheritance. 
 
 Edward the Confessor was the first v/ho touched for 
 the schrophula, hence denominated the King's evil. The 
 opinion of his sanctity procured belief, among the super- 
 stitious vulgar, to this mode of cure : and his successors 
 regarded it as a part of their royalty to support the same 
 idea. The practice was first dropt by the princes of the 
 house of Brunswic ; who v/isely considered, that such a 
 pretension must be attended with ridicule in the eyes of 
 all men of cultivated minds, and even become the scorn 
 of an enlightened populace. Posterity arc more indebt- 
 
 5. Orcknc. Vital. 
 
 ed 
 
LET. XIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 167 
 
 ed to this prince for the body of laws which he compi- 
 led, and which on account of their mildness, were long 
 dear to our ancestors. 
 
 Though Edward left the succession undecided, it did 
 not long continue so. Harold immediately stepped into 
 the vacant throne ; and so well had he taken his measures, 
 that his accession was attended with as little opposition 
 or disturbance, as if he had succeeded by the most indis- 
 putable hereditary title. The right of Edgar Atheling 
 was scarce ever mentioned; and still less the claim of 
 the duke of Normandy: the whole nation seemed joyfully 
 to swear allegiance to the new king'°. 
 
 The first danger that Harold experienced was from 
 abroad, and from his own brother. Tosti, when ex- 
 pelled the government of Northumberland, had sub- 
 mitted to a voluntary banishment in Flanders : but no 
 sooner was he informed of the accession of Harold, to 
 whose fortunate ambition he considered himself to 
 have fallen a sacrifice, than he entered into a league 
 with Halfagcr king of Norway, who invaded England 
 with a fleet of three hundred sail. Tosti himself had 
 collected about sixty vessels in the ports of Flanders, 
 with which he put to sea ; and after committing some 
 depredations on the south and east coasts of England, 
 he sailed to Northumberland, where he was joined by 
 Halfager and his powerful armament. The combined 
 fleets disembarked their troops at the mouth of the 
 Humber; and the earls of Northumberland and Mercia 
 were defeated in attempting to oppose the Invaders. 
 
 Harold was no sooner informed of this disaster, than 
 he hastened to the north ; anxious for the safety of his 
 people, and ambitious to shew himself worthy of that 
 crown which had been conferred upon him by his coun- 
 trymen. The English flocked from all quarters to his 
 standard : so that he found himself in a condition to 
 give battle to his enemies, as soon as he reached them. 
 
 10. Gul. rict. Order. Vital. 
 
 The 
 
168 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 The two armies engaged at Stanford. The action, 
 which was long and bloody, ultimately terminated in 
 the total rout of the Danes, and in the death of Tosti 
 and Halfager. Harold, however, had scarce time to 
 rejoice on account of this victory, before he received 
 intelligence, that the duke of Normandy, having land- 
 ed with a formidable force in the south of England, 
 determined to dispute with him the crown. 
 
 The Norman prince (whom I have already had oc- 
 casion to mention, both in the history of France and of 
 England) founded his claim to the English crown on a 
 -pretended will of Edward the Confessor in his favour. 
 This claim he fortified with an oath extorted from Ha- 
 rold when shipwrecked on the coast of France, that he 
 would never r ;pire to the succession, and by which he 
 bound himself to support the pretensions of William. 
 The will Harold knew to be void of foundation, and 
 the oath he entirely disregarded, as it had not only 
 been drawn from him by the fear of violence, but was 
 in itself unlawful ; unless William had not only been 
 appointed successor by the king, but chosen by the 
 people, the English crown not being at the disposal of 
 the sovereign. He therefore replied to the Norman 
 ambassadors, who summoned him to resign the king- 
 dom, that he was determined strenuously to maintain 
 those national liberties with which he had been intrust- 
 ed, and that the same moment should put a period to 
 his life and his sway". 
 
 This answer was no other than what William ex- 
 pected. He knew the valour of Harold, and the 
 power of the English nation ; but he consulted only 
 his ambition, and his courage. The boldness of the 
 enterprise he thought would astonish the enemy, and 
 inspire his soldiers with resolution from despair, as 
 well as from a desire of supporting the reputation of 
 their countrymen ; who had about this time revived 
 
 ■ 11. Gul. Mslmes. lib. iii. Higden. Matth. West. 
 
 their 
 
LET. xix.J MODERN EUROPE. ley 
 
 their ancient fame, as we shall afterward have occasion 
 to see, by the most hazardous exploits, and the most 
 wonderful successes, in the other extremity of Europe. 
 
 Nor were these the only foundation of William's 
 hopes. A military spirit had universally diffused itself 
 over Europe ; and the feudal nobles, whose minds 
 were elated by their princely situation, greedily em- 
 braced the most hazardous enterprlzes, how little so- 
 ever they might be interested in the failure or success. 
 Hence their passion for chivalry, and their ambition 
 to outshine each other in exertions of strength or 
 prowess. William had long been distinguished among 
 those haughty chieftains by his power, his courage, and 
 his address in all military exercises ; and every one 
 ambitious of acquiring renown in arms, repaired to the 
 court of Normandy, where they were entertained with 
 that hospitality and courtesy which distinguished the 
 age. The fame of the intended invasion of England 
 had been every where diffused : the more perilous the 
 attempt appeared, the more it suited the genius of the 
 times : multitudes of adventurers therefore crowded to 
 tender their service to William, impatient to acquire 
 fame under so renowned a leader, or to support, by 
 new acts of valour, that reputation which they had al- 
 ready earned"' ; so that the duke's army consisted of 
 the flower of all the warriors of the continent, deter- 
 mined to die or to conquer. 
 
 The continental monarchs could surely have ob- 
 structed those supplies. But Philip I. of France, whose 
 interest most it was, being a minor, Baldwin, earl of 
 Flanders, William's father-in-law, who then held the 
 reigns of government, favoured the duke's levies (as 
 I have had occasion to observe) both in France and 
 Flanders ; and the emperor Henry IV. besides giving 
 all his vassals leave to embark in this expedition, which 
 so much engaged the attention of Europe, promised 
 his protection to the duchy of Normandy during the 
 
 12. Gul, rictav. 
 VOL, I. D d absence 
 
170 THE HISTORY OF OarT i. 
 
 absence of the duke, and thereby enabled him to dravr 
 his whole strength to the attack of England. 
 
 But William's most important ally was pope Alexan- 
 der II. who had a mighty influence over the warriors of 
 that age ; and who, besides being flattered by an appeal 
 which William had made to the caurt af Rome in fa- 
 vour of his undertaking, at a time when this pontiff 
 wanted to be the arbiter of princes, foresaw that if the 
 French and Norman barons were successful in their 
 enterprize, they would import into England, which 
 still maintained some degree of independence in ec- 
 clesiastical matters, a more devoted reverence to the 
 holy see. He therefore declared immediately in favour 
 of William's claim : pronounced Harold a perjured 
 usurper ; denounced excommvmication against him and 
 his adherents ; and in order more particularly to en- 
 courage the duke, he sent him a consecrated banner^ 
 and a ring with one of St. Peter's hairs in it^. Thus, 
 as the sagacious Hume remarks, all the ambition and 
 violence of this invasion were covered safely over with 
 the broad mantle of religion. 
 
 The Norman fleet, which consisted of three hun- 
 dred vessels, great and small, and carried an arniy of 
 sixty thousand men, selected by William from those 
 numerous supplies that courted his sei'vice, had been as- 
 sembled early in the summer, and put to sea soon after ; 
 but being long detained by contrary winds, the troops 
 began to imagine that heaven had declared against them, 
 and that, notwithstanding the pope's benediction, they 
 were destined to destruction. The wind, however, for- 
 tunately changed on the eve of the feast of St. Michael, 
 the tutelar saint of Normandy ; and the soldiers and 
 their bold leaders, who had an equal contempt of real, 
 and a dread of imaginary dangers, fancying they saw 
 the hand of Providence in the cause of their former ter- 
 rors, set out with the greatest alacrity, and safely arrived 
 at Pcvensey in Sussex, where the troops quietly disem- 
 
 13. Baker,. Chront 
 
 barked^ 
 
LET. XIX.] MODERN EUROPE. in 
 
 barked. The duke himself had the misfortune to fall, 
 as he leaped ashore ; a circumstance which, considering 
 the superstition of the times, might have been construed 
 to his disadvantage, but which he had the presence of 
 mind to turn in his favour, by calling aloud, " I have 
 taken possession of England !" and a soldier running 
 to a neighbouring cottage, plucked some thatch, which 
 he presented to his general, as giving him seisin of 
 the kingdom '4, The confidence of William and his fol- 
 lowers was now so great, that when they heard even of 
 Harold's victory over the Danes, instead of being dis- 
 couraged they seemed only to long, with more impatience 
 for the arrival of the English army. 
 
 They had not long occasion to wait. Harold was at 
 York when he received intelligence of the Norman inva- 
 sion, and hastened by quick marches to meet his compe- 
 titor. But on reviewing his forces, he found them much 
 diminished, though he had been reinforced with fresh 
 troops from London and other places. His victory proved 
 his ruin. Many of his bravest officers, and veteran soldiers 
 fell in the action; some retired from fatigue, aiid others 
 secretly withdrew from discontent, because he had refus- 
 ed to distribute the Danish spoils among them: a conduct 
 little suited to his usual generosity of temper, and which 
 can only be accounted for from a desire of easing his 
 people in the war that hung over them from Normandy, 
 and which he foresaw must be attended with great 
 expense. 
 
 From these and other circumstances, Gurth the king's 
 brother, a man of bravery and conduct, began to enter- 
 tain apprehensions of the event; and represented to the 
 king, That it would be better policy to prolong the war 
 than to risk a general action, as the winter was approach- 
 ing, when the enemy would suffer many hardships, while 
 the English, better sheltered, and becoming every day 
 more incensed against their invaders, would hasten from 
 all quarters to his assistance, and render his army invin- 
 
 14. Order. Vital. 
 
 cxble: 
 
172 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 cible; or, if he thought it necessary to hazard a battle, 
 he ought at least not to expose his person, that some 
 resource might still be left for the liberty and indepen- 
 dency of the kingdom. But Harold, deaf to all these 
 arguments, rejected his brother's advice with disdain; 
 and, elated with past prosperity, as v/ell as stimulated by 
 his native courage, replied. That he would give battle 
 in person, and convince his subjects, that he was worthy 
 ot the crown Avhich they had set upon his head*-''. 
 
 With this resolution he drew near to the Normans, 
 who had removed their camp to Hastings. He was even so 
 confident of success, that he sent a message to the duke 
 of Normandy, offering him a sum of money, if he would 
 depart the kingdom without the effusion of blood; and 
 William, not to be behind him in vaunting, commanded 
 him to resign the crown of England, to submit their cause 
 to the arbitration of the pope, or to fight him in single 
 combat. Harold replied, that the God of battles would 
 soon be the arbiter of all their differences'*^. 
 
 Both armies now impatiently expected the awful de- 
 cision; but night drawing on, it was deferred till morn- 
 ing. During this interval of darkness and suspense, the 
 scene was very different in the two camps: The English 
 spent the night in riot and feasting; the Normans, in 
 f^ prayer and preparations for battle. As soon 
 
 as day began to appear, the duke assembled 
 his principal officers, and made them a speech suitable 
 to the occasion. He next divided his army into three 
 lines. The first consisted of archers and light-armed 
 infantry; the second was composed of his bravest battal- 
 lions, heavy armed, and ranged in close order. The 
 cavalry, at the head of which William placed himself, 
 formed the third line, and were so disposed that they 
 stretched beyond the infantry, and flanked each wing of 
 the army. He commanded the signal to be given; and the 
 whole army moved at once, and, singing the celebrated 
 
 15. Order. Vital. Gul. Malmes. lib. iii. 16. Higden. 
 
 song 
 
fcxT. XIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 173 
 
 song of Rowland, the fabulous nephew, but renowned 
 captain of Charlemagne, advanced in order of battle'''. 
 
 Harold, whose army was inferior to William's, in num- 
 ber as well as in discipline, had seized the advantage of a 
 rising ground; and having drawn some trenches to secure 
 his flanks, seemed inclined to act upon the defensive, and to 
 avoid all encounter with the Norman cavalry, to which his 
 strength in horse was very unequal. The Kentish men were 
 placed in the front, a post which they had always claimed as 
 their due: the Londoners guarded the standard; and the 
 king, dismounting, placed himself in the centre, at the 
 head of his infantry expressing his resolution to conquer 
 or die. The first attack of the Norman foot was terrible: 
 their archers sorely galled their adversaries; and, as the 
 English ranks were close, the arrows did great execution. 
 But Harold's army received the shock of the enemy un- 
 dismayed; and after a furious struggle, which long remain- 
 ed undecided, the Normans began to give ground. Con- 
 fusion was spreading from rank to rank ; when William, 
 who found himself on the brink of ruin, hastened with a 
 select band to the relief of his broken forces. His presence 
 restored the battle. The English were obliged to retire 
 in their turn; but the duke finding they still made a vigor- 
 ous resistance, aided by the advantage of ground, and 
 animated by the example of their valiant prince, ordered 
 his troops to make a hasty retreat, and allure their anta- 
 gonists from their station by the appearance of flight. The 
 artifice succeeded. Impelled by the enthusiasm of valour 
 and the heat of action, the troops of Harold precipitately- 
 followed the Normans into the plain: while William 
 instructed his infantry at once to face about on iheir pur- 
 suers, and the cavalry to make an assault upon their wings. 
 The English were thrown into disorder, and driven back 
 with loss to the hill; where being rallied by the generalship 
 of Harold, they were again able to maintain the combat. 
 William tried the same stratagem a second tiine, and with 
 equal success. Yet he still found a large body of English 
 
 17. Gul. Malmcs. lib. iii. Du Gang, in Glos. Verb. Cant. Roland. 
 
 forces 
 
tr* THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 forces that remained firm around their prince, and seemed 
 determined to dispute the field to the last man ; when 
 fortune decided a victor)' which valour had left doubtful. 
 Harold, who had fought with unspeakable courage and 
 personal prowess from dawn until eve, was shot into the 
 brains with an arrow, while bravely defending the royal 
 standard at the head of his guards. His two gallant 
 brothers, Gurth and Leofwin, also were slain; and the 
 Englisli army, dispirited by the loss of its leaders, gave 
 way on all sides, and was pursued witli great slaughter 
 by the victorious Normans'". 
 
 Thus, my dear Philip, was gained by William the 
 Norman, afterwards surnamed the Conqueror, the fa- 
 mous battle of Hastings, which terminated the Anglo- 
 Saxon monarchy in England ; and which, by the heroic 
 feats of valour displayed on both sides, by both armies, 
 and both commanders, seemed worthy to decide the fate 
 of a mighty kingdom. Fifteen thousand of the Normans 
 fell, and a much greater number of the English forces'^.— 
 But we must take a view of the other nations of Europe, 
 and also throw a glance on those of Asia and Africa, 
 before I consider the consequences of this victory, and the 
 influence of the revolution by which it was followed, upon 
 the laws, government, and manners of England. In the 
 meantime, however, it will not be improper to take a 
 slight survey of the state of England at the Norman 
 conquest. 
 
 POSTSCRIPT. 
 
 NO territory of so small an extent has ever so much 
 engaged the attention of mankind, for so long a series of 
 ages, as the island of Britain. From the most remote 
 antiquity it was visited by the Phoenicians and Carthagi- 
 nians, on account of its tin and other valuable productions. 
 
 15. Gul. Malmes. ubi sup. Gul. Pict. H. Hunting. R. Hoveden. M. 
 Faris. Order. Vital. 19. Gul. Gemet. chap, xxxvi. 
 
 The 
 
jkar. XIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 175 
 
 The Romans, in the height of their power, made them- 
 selves masters of the southern part of it, at a vast ex- 
 pense of blood and treasure ; and they thought the acqui- 
 sition of sufficient importance to preserve their footing 
 in this distant and transmarine province for three hundred 
 years, by maintaining in it a great naval and military force. 
 The ancient Britons lost their courage and their inde- 
 pendent spirit under the Roman dominion, but received 
 from their enlightened governors some knowledge of arts 
 and letters^°. The Saxons, in achieving their sanguinary 
 conquest, destroyed every trace of ingenuity which the 
 Romans had introduced into the island, without bringing 
 along with them one peaceful art with Avhich the Britons 
 were not better acquainted : and the inveterate wars be- 
 tween the princes of the Heptarchy afterwards obstruct- 
 ed, among their people, the usual progress of civili- 
 zation. But no sooner was England united into one 
 kingdom under Egbert, than commerce and manufactures 
 began to be cultivated in a country so highly favoured by 
 nature ; abounding in the materials of industry, and 
 surrounded on three sides by the sea, which forms on 
 .its coasts many commodious bays and safe harbours^^. 
 
 The commerce and navigation of the Anglo-Saxons, 
 however, was cruelly injured by the piracy and preda- 
 tory invasions of the Danes ; yet did England, under 
 their government, contain many large trading towns, 
 and a greater number of inhabitants, both in the towns, 
 
 20. If the Britons had any knowledge of letters before the arrival of 
 the Romans, that knowledge was confined chiefly if not solely to their 
 priests, the mysterious Druids. 
 
 21. The principal English exports, during the Anglo-Saxon times* 
 were tin, lead, wool, hides, horses, and y/a««/—— These slaves consisted 
 Hot solely of sach unhappy persons as the laws of war, or other causes had 
 reduced to the condition of perpetual servitude. The Anglo-Saxons wer« 
 iiccused by cotemporary writers, of making merchandise even of their 
 nearest relations ; '* a custom," adds a respectable historian who lived 
 •fter the Norman conquest, " which prevails in Northumberland, even in 
 " our own days." Gill. Mairaes. lib. i. 
 
 and 
 
176 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 and in the country than could have been er\:pected in 
 such a turbulent and hostile period. London, York, 
 Bristol", Exeter, and Norwich, were great and popu- 
 lous cities ; and as the labours of husbandry were 
 chiefly performed by slaves or villains, who were ex- 
 cluded from militar)'- service, the number of freemen in 
 England, habituated to the use of arfns, if not greater, 
 must have been as great at the Norman invasion, as in 
 any former or subsequent period^^ But let us not hence 
 
 conclude, 
 
 22. The Bistol traders were distinguished, even in those early ages, 
 by their mercantile sagacity. " The people of this town," says an auiho»" 
 of undoubted veracity, " were cured of a most odious and inveterate cus- 
 ♦• tom by Wulfstan, (bishop of Winchester at the Norman conquest) of 
 " buyirg men and nvonicH in all parts of England, and exportivg them for 
 " the sake of gain. The young ixomen they commonlv got with child, and 
 " carried them to market in their pregnancy, that they might bring a better 
 ** price!" Anglia Sacra, tom. ii. 
 
 23. To that exemption from rustic labour, which was friendly to the 
 use of arms, may also perhaps be ascribed the dissolute manners of the 
 Anglo-Saxons. Unless when employed in war or hunting, their whole 
 time was sjient in drinking and feasting. This licentious life seems to have 
 much impaired the native courage of the English nation, before the Da- 
 nish conquest. The wars which introduced and accompanied that conquest, 
 revived their martial spirit : and under the Danish princes, the Anglo- 
 Saxons appear to have emulated their conquerors all in acts of prowess 
 and valour. But both were alike given to long and excessive drinking, in 
 large societies or clubs : and the Danes added to this convivial intern, 
 perance an inordinate passion for women; in which they seem to liave 
 gloried, and often gratified in a manner shocking to humanity. Violence 
 in love, was with them as common as in war. Yet they sometimes 
 made use of other means to accomplish their purpose: they affected gal- 
 lantry ; and, by their attention to dress and cleanliness, are said to have 
 seduced many English wives. That cleanliness, however, by which they 
 were distinguished, consisted only in combing their hair once a day, 
 and washing themselves once a week. Wallingford, ap. Gale, tom. i. 
 Gul. Malmes. lib. ii. dnglia Sacra, tom. ii. 
 
 The manners of the Welsh, in this dark period, must have been even 
 less delicate than those of the Anglo-Saxons: for they thought it neces- 
 sary, we find, to make a law, That none of the courtiers should ^/w the 
 , qveen 
 
LTE. xix.l MODERN EUROPE 177 
 
 conclude, that sixty thousand men, under an experi- 
 enced leader, have at all times been sufficient to over- 
 turn the constitution of this vigorous kingdom. William 
 was ultimately indebted for his good fortune, less to the 
 rashness of the English monarch, his own conduct, or 
 the valour of his troops, than to the unsettled state of 
 the succession to the crown. Harold had owed his ex- 
 altation to the throne, as much to fear as affection ; and, 
 on his death, the English nobility, who had borne with 
 impatience the sway of an equal, naturally looked up to 
 his conqueror and competitor, the kinsman of their an- 
 cient princes, as their sovereign, their head, and centre 
 of union. The duke of Normandy, at Hastings, had 
 triumphed over their elected king, but not over their 
 liberties. These they imprudently put into his hands 
 (as we shall afterward have occasion to see) in hopes 
 that he would not abuse their generosity, when resis- 
 tance, and even vengeance, was in their power. 
 
 gueen a i>l(nu, or snatch any thing violently out of her hands, under p&nalty 
 Qii forfeiting her majesty's protection. (Leg. Wallicae, p. 11.) And if any 
 woman brought an action for a rape, which was denied by the man, she 
 was ordered to take hold of the culprit by the offending part, with her 
 left hand, and to lay the right on the holy reliques ; and -n that position, 
 to make oath of the violation of her person — quod is per vim se isto mem- 
 iro vitia verit. Ibid. p. 80. 
 
 LETTER 
 
 VOL, I. EC 
 
178 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 LETTER XX. 
 
 PA rN,THK ARABS AND THE EMPIRE OF CONSTANTINOPLE, DUR- 
 ING THE NINTH, TENTH, AND 'ART OF THE ELEVENTH 
 CENTURY. 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 JL HE death of Abdurrahman, the Moorish 
 king, whom we have seen reign with so much kistre at 
 Cordova, was followed by dissensions among his chil- 
 dren, which procured some relief to the Spa- 
 nish Christians. The little kingdom of the 
 Asturias, or of Leon and Oviedo, as it was afterwards 
 called, founded by Pelagius, increased under Alphonso 
 III. surnamed the Great, on account of his wisdom and 
 valour. Garcias Ximenes, descended from the ancient 
 Spaniards, had also founded, in 758, the kingdom of 
 Navarre, which became one of the most considerable 
 Christian principalities in Spain. 
 
 The Moors however, still possessed Portugal, Mur- 
 cia, Andalusia, Valentia, Granada, Tortosa, and the 
 interior part of the country as far as the mountains of 
 Castile, and Saragossa ; more than three-fourths of Spain, 
 and the most fertile provinces. Among them, as in 
 the other nations of Europe, a crowd of too powerful 
 nobles affected independency, and the sovereign was ob- 
 liged to contend with his subjects for dominion. This 
 was the time to have crushed the Mahometan power ; 
 but the Spanish Christians were not more united than 
 their enemies. Though continually at war with the 
 Moors, they were always destroying each other. The 
 reign of Alphonso the Great was full of conspiracies and 
 revolts : his own wife and his two sons were 
 * among the number of the rebels. He resigned 
 his crown to Garcias the eldest : he even generously 
 
 fought 
 
LET. XX.] MODERN EUROPE. itg 
 
 fought under his command ; and died in 912, with the 
 glory of a hero, and the piety of a saint'. 
 
 Ramiro II. king of Leon and Oviedo, another Span- 
 ish hero, gained, 938, the celebrated victory 
 of Simancas, where the Moors are said to * * ' 
 have lost fourscore thousand men. He had promised 
 to St. James, in a pilgrimage to Compostella, that if 
 he was victorious, all his subjects should offer annually 
 a certain measure of wheat to the church of that saint. 
 The church was enriched, and the name of St. James 
 became the alarm to battle among the Spaniards. 
 
 Men are chiefly indebted for all their heroic achieve- 
 ments to their passions ; hence nothing is so irresis- 
 tible as the valour inspired by enthusiasm, while it 
 lasts. The name of St. James was long terrible to the 
 Moors, and long the companion of victory. Mahomet 
 Almanzor, however, the celebrated general, and prime 
 minister of Hissem king of Cordova, found means, by 
 another artifice, to turn the tide of success. Seeing 
 his troops began to fly, in a battle fought on the banks 
 
 of the river Ezla, he dismounted from his 
 
 . . A. D. 095, 
 
 horse; sat down in the field ; threw his tur- 
 ban on the ground ; and laying his arms across his 
 breast, declared he would in that posture meet his fate, 
 since he was abandoned by his army. This stratagem 
 had the desired effect : his troops returned to the 
 charge, and obtained a complete victory. The ?*Ioors 
 became sensible that they could conquer in spite of St, 
 James ; and the Christians in their turn, trembled at 
 the name of Almanzor. 
 
 That great man, who was no less a politician than 
 a warrior, is said to have vanquished the Christian 
 princes in fifty engagements. He took the city of Leon 
 by assault ; sacked Compostella ; pillaged the church 
 of St. James, and carried the gates in triumph, on the 
 shoulders of his army, to Cordova. This triumph pro- 
 
 t . Fcrreras. \f ariana. 
 
 ved 
 
180 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 ved his ruin. A flux breaking out among his troops, 
 the Christians considered that distemper as a punish- 
 ment inflicted by St. Tames : the flame of 
 
 A. D. 998. , . , • 1, 1 1 Ai 
 
 enthusiasm rekindled, and Almanzor was 
 
 defeated. But what was infinitely more advantageous 
 to the Christians, as well as more fatal to himself, he 
 was so much ashamed of his misfortune, that he would 
 neither eat nor drink, and obstinately perished of 
 hunger^ 
 
 About the begining of the eleventh century, the 
 race of Abdurrahman being extinct, the kingdom of 
 Cordova was dismembered, by the ambition of a num- 
 ber of noblemen, who all usurped the title of king. 
 Toledo, Valentia, Seville, Saragossa, and almost all 
 the great cities, had their independent sovereigns. 
 The provinces were changed into kingdoms, which 
 multiplied in the same manner among the Christians ; 
 who had a king of Leon, of Navarre, of Castile, of Ar- 
 ragon : and Sancho, surnamed the Great, king of Na- 
 
 , varre, was so imprudent as to subdivide 
 A. D. 1034. , . ' . . ^ , • <• T, 
 
 his dominions amongst his tour sons, jrer- 
 
 petual jealousies, with all the crimes that accompany 
 them, were the consequence of these divisions of ter- 
 ritory : treachery, poisonings, assassinations ! the com- 
 mon weapons of petty neighbouring and rival princes, 
 who have much ambition and small means of gratify- 
 ing it. Hence the history of Spain becomes always 
 less important, in proportion to the Increase of the 
 kingdoms. One circumstance, however, merits ■'Our 
 attention, both on account of its nature and its singu- 
 larity. 
 
 In this dark and oppressive period, when the com- 
 monalty all over Europe were either degraded to a 
 state of actual slavery, or in a condition little more to 
 he envied, the people of Arragon shared the govern- 
 ment with their sovereign. The representatives of 
 
 2. Rod. Tolet de Etb. Hisp. Amal. Compoitd. 
 
 cities 
 
LET. XX.] MODERN EUROPE. 151 
 
 cities and towns had a place in their Cortes, or nation- 
 al assembly. But the Arragonians, not satisfied with 
 this check on the royal prerogative, nor willing to trust 
 the preservation of their liberties solely to their repre- 
 sentatives, elected a Justiza, or grand judge, who was 
 the supreme interpreter of the laws, and whose parti- 
 cular business it was to restrain the encroachments of 
 the crown, and protect the rights of the subject. He 
 was chosen from among the cavelleros, or second order 
 in the state, answering to our gentlemen commoners, 
 that he might be equally interested in curbing the 
 oppressive spirit of the nobles, and setting bounds to 
 the ambition of the prince. His person was sacred, 
 and his jurisdiction almost unbounded : his power was 
 exerted in superintending the administration of govern- 
 ment, no less than in regulating the course of justice. 
 He had a right to review all the royal proclamations 
 and patents, and to declare whether they were agreea- 
 ble to law, and ought to be carried into execution : — 
 and he covdd by his sole authority, exclude any of the 
 king's ministers from the management of affairs, and 
 call them to answer for their conduct while in office. 
 He himself was answerable to the Cortes alone. 
 
 The justiza had also the singular privilege of receiv- 
 ing the coronation oath, in the name of the people ; 
 when, holding a naked sword opposite to the king's 
 heart, he repeated these remarkable words, " We, who 
 " are your equals, make you our sovereign, and pro- 
 *' mise obedience to your government, on condition that 
 *' you maintain our rights and liberties ; if not — not 1" 
 And it was accordingly an established maxim in the con- 
 stitution of Arragon, that if the king should violate his 
 engagements, it was lawful for the people to depose him, 
 and to elect another in his stead-'i. 
 
 3. Zurit. Annal. de Arag. Hier. B'anca. Comment, dc Rer. Ara». 
 
 THE 
 
182 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 THE EMPIRE OF THE ARABS. 
 
 FROM the Arabs in Spain, we pass naturally to 
 those of Asia, and the neighbouring continent of Africa. 
 'I'he great empire of the Arabs, as well as its branches, 
 had experienced those revolutions, which war and dis- 
 cord naturally produce, and which sooner or later over- 
 turn the best founded governments. The glory of the 
 califat was obscured toward the end of the ninth century. 
 Under weak or wicked princes, the African governors 
 shook off their allegiance. Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli, 
 formed particular states. Religious quarrels augmented 
 those of ambition. The Fattimides, a Mahometan sect, 
 flamed with all the fury of fanaticism. They 
 * founded an empire in Egypt, from which they 
 expelled the race of Abbas ; and Cairo, the capital of 
 that empire, became the seat of a new calif, and a flou- 
 rishing city of commerce. 
 
 Another fanatical sect, persuaded that the abuses in- 
 troduced into the religion of Mahomet required refor- 
 mation, delivered themselves up to the transports of en^ 
 thusiasm, and acquired strength by being persecuted. 
 They revolted, obtained several victories, and seized 
 the provinces on the western coast of Africa, which form 
 the present kingdom of Morocco ; where their chief, like 
 the other califs, uniting the royalty with the priesthood, 
 governed his new empire under the name of Miramoulin, 
 or Commander of the Faithful, a title implying his claim 
 to the califat. 
 
 Other circumstances conspired to dismember the em- 
 pire of the Arabs. The califs of Bagdat had received 
 into their armies a body of Turks, or Turcomans, a 
 Tartar tribe. These auxiliaries, on account of their va- 
 lour, were soon employed as the royal guard, and sub- 
 
 y 
 
 :ted 
 
LET. XX.] . MODERN EUROPE. 182 
 
 jected those whom they were hired to protect. They 
 took advantage of the civil wars raised against the cali- 
 fat, to make themselves lords of Asia : they stript the 
 califs, by degrees of the sovereignty, but permitted them 
 to retain the pontificate, which they revered ; prudently 
 submitting themselves to the religion of the country, and 
 kneeling to the priest while they despoiled the king''^. 
 
 A variety of sovereigns sprung up under the name of 
 Sultans, who were invested with their dominions by the 
 califs, but took care to leave them very little authority ; 
 so that the successors of Mahomet found therr.selves, 
 towards the middle of the eleventh century, in much the 
 same situation with those of St. Peter under the first 
 German emperors ; or with the kings of Europe about 
 the same time, whose power declined in proportion to 
 the increase of their vassals. 
 
 THE EMPIRE OF CONSTANTINOPLE 
 
 WHILE the empire of the Arabs was thus overturn- 
 ed, and that of Charlemagne falling to pieces, the em- 
 p'lm of Constantinople, to borrow a simile from Voltaire, 
 st^ stood like a large tree, vigorous though old, stript 
 of its branches, some of its roots, and buflTeted on every 
 side by storms and tempests. Though much circum- 
 scribed on the eastern frontier, it yet extended over all 
 Greece, Macedonia, Epirus, Thessaly, Thrace, Illyri- 
 cum : it was contracted indeed, but not dismembered ; 
 often changing its emperors, but always united under 
 the person who swayed the sceptre. How unworthy, in 
 general, of the imperial dignity ! and what a people had 
 they to govern ! 
 
 Nicephorus, whom we have seen dethrone Irene, was 
 an execrable tyrant. The Saracens robbed him of the 
 isle of Cyprus ; and the Bulgarians, the 
 scourge of Thrace, took him prisoner, after * * 
 
 4. Leunclav. Annal. Turcici. Georg. Elmacin. Ilislor. Saraceniea. 
 
 having 
 
184 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 having cut off his army, beheaded him, and threw his 
 body to the beasts of the field, while they made a drink- 
 ing-cup of his skulls 
 
 StauracLis, the son of Nicephorus, rendered himself 
 so odious in the beginning of his reign, that he was aban- 
 doned by his people, and obliged to become a monk. 
 
 Michael Rangabus refused to make peace with the 
 Bulgarians, because a monk declared, that he could not 
 in conscience, deliver up the deserters. In consequence 
 of this refusal, the Greeks were defeated by the Bulga- 
 rians : the emperor betook himself to flight : and the 
 officers, incensed at his behaviour, proclaimed Leo the 
 Armenian. 
 
 Leo attempted to assassinate the king of the Bulga- 
 rians ; who, in revenge, pillaged the suburbs of Con- 
 stantinople. The emperor could conceive nothing more 
 effectual to save the state than the extirpation of idola- 
 try^ ; that is to say the abolition of images. He accord- 
 ingly commanded a new persecution ; and eight hundred 
 and twenty persons were massacred in one church. 
 
 Michael the Stammerer, the successor of Leo, at 
 
 first tolerated the worship of images : but he afterwards 
 
 changed his system : he persecuted those whom he hacl 
 
 formerly protected, and would even have had the sabbath 
 
 observed, and the passover celebrated in the manner of 
 
 the Jews. The Saracens took advantage of his weak- 
 
 „^ ness to make themselves masters of the isle 
 A. D. 823. 
 
 of Crete, now Candia : they also conquered 
 
 almost all Sicily, and ravaged Apulia and Calabria°. 
 
 During the reign of Theophilus, though more wor- 
 thy of the imperial throne, the persecution was redoub- 
 led, and the Saracens extended their conquests. But 
 after his death, the empress Theodora, governing during 
 the miniority of Michael III. re-established the worship 
 of images, as Irene had formerly done. Afterward, 
 desirous to convert the Manicheans by terror, she caus- 
 
 5. Theophan. 6. Cerden. 
 
 ed 
 
LET. XX.] MODERN EUROPE. 185 
 
 cd them to be destroyed in thousands. Those who 
 
 escaped went over to the Bulgarians, and the empire 
 
 was obliged to contend with its own subjects. P*Iichael 
 
 confined Theodora in a convent, and delivering himself 
 
 up to all manner of crimes, carried his impiety so far, 
 
 as to spoi-t with the ecclesiastical ceremonies. He was 
 
 assassinated by Basil, whom he had associa- „„^ 
 
 , . , . , . , , , , A. D. 8b7. 
 
 ted m the empire, and imprudently would 
 
 have deposed. 
 
 , Basil, originally a beggar, now found himself em- 
 peror. He is celebrated for his justice and humanity; 
 but he was a dupe to the patriarch, Photius, whom he 
 favoured with his confidence, even after he had exiled 
 him. His reign is the aera of the grand schism, v/hich 
 forever divided the Greek and Latin churches. 
 
 This schism, which took its rise from a jealousy 
 between the primates of the East and West v^as brought 
 to a crisis by the conversion of the Bulgarians. As 
 Bulgaria had formerl\^ belonged to the Eastern empire, 
 it was disputed, whether the new Christians ought to be 
 subject to the pope, or to the patriarch of Constantinople. 
 A variety of other reasons was assigned for the squab- 
 ble that followed; but this is the true one, and the only 
 one which it is necessary for you to know. The council 
 of Constantinople ga.ve jvidgment in favour ^„ 
 
 of the patriarch; but the pope's legates protest- "' 
 ed against the decision. Nev/ circumstances widened" 
 the breach. The two primates excommunicated each 
 other; and although the quarrel was sometimes mode- 
 rated by the mediation of the emperors, it was never 
 made up. The schism continued. 
 
 The Saracens took Syracuse, while Basil was era- 
 ployed in founding a church; and his son Leo composed 
 sermons, while the empire was ravaged on all sides. 
 Leo, however, is styled the Philosopher; because he 
 loved learning, and favoured learned men, not from 
 being an Alfred or a Marcus Aurelius. 
 
 Constantine Porphyrogenitus, the son and successor 
 of Leo, merits the eulogies bestowed oa him, as a nro- 
 VOL. 1, F f 
 
186 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 tector of the sciences, which he himself cultivated with 
 
 ^^^ success. Men of the first rank tauorht phil- 
 A« D. 912. . . 
 
 osophy, geometry, and rhetoric, at Constanti- 
 nople, during his reign, which commenced in 
 912 and ended in 959. But the affairs of the 
 empire were not conducted better than formerly. 
 
 They were still worse conducted under Romanus, the 
 son of Constantine, who poisoned his father, and was the 
 tyrant of his people. 
 
 Nicephorus Phocas had the honour of vanquishing 
 the Saracens, and of recovering from them Crete, An- 
 
 ^^, tioch, and other places. His avarice and t\'- 
 A. D. 961. ' 1 , • , , , . 
 
 ranny, however, made him detested; his own 
 
 wife joined in a conspiracy against him; and he was mur- 
 dered in bed. 
 
 John Zimisces, one of the assassins, seized the empire 
 
 ^^^ and delivered it from the Rossi, or Russians, 
 \. D. 969. . 
 
 whom he defeated in several engagements. 
 
 This brave prince was poisoned by the eunuch Basil, his 
 chamberlain; who notwithstanding, preserved 
 his credit under Basil II. grandson of Con- 
 stantine Porphyrogenitus. 
 
 Basil was a warrior, but a barbarous one. Havihg 
 vanquished the Bulgarians, he caused the eyes of five 
 thousand prisoners to be put out. His subjects, loaded 
 with taxes, could not enjoy his triumphs. He fought for 
 himself, not for them. His death was fol- 
 lowed by a train of the blackest crimes of 
 which we have any example in history. 
 
 The princess Zoe, daughter of Constantine, the bro- 
 ther and colleague of Basil, had espoused Romanus Argy- 
 ropulus, who was proclaimed emperor. Zoe, 
 afterwards becameenamoured of Michael Pa- 
 phlagonotus, a man of low birth: she poisoned her hus- 
 band, in order to give the throne to her lover; but the 
 poison not operating quick enough, she caused Argyro- 
 pulus to be drowned in a bath. The patriarch of Con- 
 stantinople 
 
lET. XX.] MODERN EUROPE. 187 
 
 stantlnople at first scrupled to marry the empress to 
 
 Michael. But a sum of money quieted his ^^-,. 
 
 ... • 1 r 1, , A. D. 1034. 
 
 conscience, and the imperial crown iollowed 
 
 the sanction of the church. 
 
 The emperor Paphlagonotus, a prey to diseases and 
 
 remorse, died in the habit of a monk : and 
 
 rw , . , , 1 , T^/r- A. D. 1041. 
 
 Zoe gave the empire and her hand to Mi- 
 chael Calaphates, the son of a caulker, or cobler of 
 ships, by a sister of the other Michael, hopihg that he 
 would be the slave of her will. But the new emperor, 
 jealous of his power, put her in confinement. The peo- 
 ple revolted : they released the empress and her sister 
 Theodora, and put out the eyes of Calaphates. 
 
 The two sisters reigned together a year, and em- 
 ployed themselves only about trifles. The in4.o 
 people would have a prince; and Zoe, at last, 
 married Constantine Monomachus, one of her ancient 
 lovers, who was crowned. This upstart emperor neglect- 
 ed his wife for a young mistress. The Greeks incensed 
 at his conduct, seized him in a procession, and declared 
 they would only obey two empresses. He would have 
 been cut in pieces, if the princesses had not interposed. 
 
 Monomachus augmented the miseries of the empire 
 by his rapacity. The frontier provinces had been ex- 
 empted from taxes, on condition that they should defend 
 themselves against the barbarians. The emperor pre- 
 tended that he would defend them, and made them pay 
 like the rest of the empire": but they were poorly defend- 
 ed, notwithstanding the taxes. 
 
 These particulars will be sufficient to enable you to 
 judge of the state of Constantinople. If at any time we 
 find an able and warlike prince there, we always find the 
 same reigning spirit of superstition and rebellion. Isaac 
 Comnenus, one of the best Greek emperors, proclaimed 
 in 1057, made himself hated by the monks, because he 
 
 7. Ibid. See also Curpolatus and Leo Grammaticus. 
 
 applied 
 
188 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 applied to the public exigencies the superflux of their 
 
 .^..^ wealth. Lamed b*/- a fall from his horse, he 
 A D. 1059. . , 
 
 ' gave himself up to devotion : resigned his 
 
 crown in favour of Constantine Ducas, and took the habit 
 
 of a monk. 
 
 Ducas, too much a friend to peace, abandoned the 
 provinces to the ravages of the Turks. He made his 
 three sons emperors, and left the regency to their mother 
 Eudoxia, exacting from her a promise that she would 
 never marry: and this promise he obliged her to confirm 
 in writing. Eudoxia, however, soon resolved to marry 
 Romanus Diogenes, whom she had condemned to die, 
 but whose fine person subdued her heart. Her promise, 
 deposited in the hands of the patriarch, now gave her 
 much uneasiness. In order to recover it, she artfully 
 pretended to have fixed her choice on the patriarch's 
 kinsman. This amorous deceit had the desired effect. 
 The writing was restored; and the empress, 
 absolved from her promise of widowhood, 
 did not fail to take advantage of her release. She 
 immediately married Romanus, and procured him the 
 empire". 
 
 Could ignorant savages have acted more absurdly ? 
 or ruffians amenable to public justice more atrociously ? 
 — Yet the Greeks v/ere still the most learned and polish- 
 ed people in Europe ; and Constantinople, notwithstand- 
 ing all its misfortunes, its revolutions, and crimes, hav- 
 ing never felt the destructive rage of the barbarians, 
 continued to be the largest and most beautiful European 
 city, after the fall of Rome, and the only one where any 
 image of ancient manners or ingenuity remained. 
 
 Thus, my dear Philip, we rapidly traverse the wilds 
 of history ; where the objects are often confused, rude, 
 and uninteresting. But it is necessary to travel these 
 first stages, in order to arrive at more cultivated fields. 
 
 8. Anna Comnena. Nicetas. 
 
 We 
 
LET. XXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 189 
 
 We shall soon meet \nth a new set of objects equally 
 interesting and important : and then more leisure and 
 attention will be required. In the mean time we must 
 take a review of past ages. 
 
 LETTER XXI. 
 
 PROGRESS OF SOCIRTY IN EUROPE, FROM THE SETTTEMENT 
 OF THE MODERN NATIONS, TO TEE MIDDLE OF THE ELE- 
 VENTH CENTURY. 
 
 JL HAVE already given you, in a particular 
 letter, an account of the system of policy and legislation 
 established by the barbarians, or northern invaders, on 
 their first settlement in the provinces of the Roman em- 
 pire' : and I have endeavoured, in the course of my 
 general narration, to mark the progress of society, as it 
 regards religion, laws, government, manners, and litera- 
 ture. But, as the history of the human mind is of infi- 
 nitely more importance than the detail, of events, this 
 letter, my dear Philip, shall be entirely devoted to such 
 circumstances as tend more particularly to throw light 
 upon that subject. I shall also pursue the same method, 
 at different intervals, during the subsequent part of your 
 historical studies. 
 
 Though the northern invaders wanted taste to value 
 the Roman arts, laws, or literature, they generally em- 
 braced the religion of the conquered people. And the 
 mild and benevolent spirit of Christianity would doubt- 
 less have softened their savage manners, had not their 
 minds been already infected by a barbarous superstition; 
 which, mingling itself with the Christian principles and 
 ceremonies, produced that absurd mixture of violence, 
 
 1. I,etter 11. 
 
 devotion, 
 
199 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 devotion, and folly, which has so long disgraced the 
 Romish church, and which formed the character of the 
 middle ages. The clergy were gainers, but Christianity 
 was a loser, by the conversion of the barbarians. They 
 rather changed the object than the spirit of their religion. 
 The Druids among the Gauls and Britons, the 
 Priests among the ancient Germans, and among all the 
 nations of Scandinavia, possessed an absolute dominion 
 over the minds of men. These people, after embracing 
 Christianity, retained their veneration for the priesthood. 
 And unhappily the clergy of those times had neither 
 virtue enough to preserve them from abusing, nor know- 
 ledge sufficient to enable them to make a proper use of 
 their power. They blindly favoured the superstitious 
 homage : and such of the barbarians as entered into holy 
 orders, carried their ignorance and their original preju- 
 dices along with them. 
 
 The Christian emperors of Rome and Constantinople 
 had enriched their church : they had lavished on it pri- 
 vileges and immunities : and these seducing advantages 
 had but too much contributed to a relaxation of disci- 
 pline and the introduction of disorders, more or less 
 hurtful, which had altered the spirit of the gospel. Un- 
 der the dominion of the barbarians the degeneracy increas- 
 ed, till the pure principles of Christianity were lost in 
 a gross superstition ; which, instead of aspiring to vir- 
 tuous sanctity, the only sacrifice that can render a rational 
 being acceptable to the great Author of order and excel- 
 lence, endeavoured to conciliate the favour of God by 
 the same means that satisfied the justice of men, or by 
 those employed to appease their fabulous deities\ 
 
 As the punishments clue for civil crimes, among the 
 northern conquerors, might be bought off by money, they 
 attempted, in like manner, to bribe Heaven, by benefac- 
 tions to the church, in order to supersede all future 
 inquest. And the more they gave themselves up to 
 
 2. Mosheim. Hist. Eccles. vol. i. ii. 
 
 their 
 
LF.T. XXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 191 
 
 their brutal passions, to rapine, and to violence, the more 
 profuse they were in this species of good works. They 
 seem to have believed, says the Abbe de Mably, that 
 avarice was the first attribute of the divinity, and that 
 the saints made a traffic of their influence and protec- 
 tion. Hence the bon mot of Clovis : " St. Martin serves 
 " his friends very well ; but he makes them pay soundly 
 *' for his trouble !" 
 
 " Our treasure is poor," said Chilperic, the grand- 
 son of Clovis ; " our riches are gone to the church : the 
 *' bishops are the kings !" — And indeed the superior 
 clergy, who, by the acquisition of lands, added the 
 power of fortune to the influence of religion, were often 
 the arbiters of kingdoms, and disposed of the crown 
 while they regulated the affairs of the state. There was 
 a necessity of consulting them, because they possessed 
 all the knowledge that then remained in Europe : they 
 only knew any thing. The acts of their councils were 
 considered as infallible decrees; and they spoke usually 
 in the name of God ; but, alas ! they were only men. 
 
 As the interest of the clergy clashed with that of the 
 laity, opposition and jealousy produced new disorders. 
 The priests made use of artifice against their powerful 
 adversaries : they invented fables to awe them into sub- 
 mission ; they employed the spiritual arms in defence of 
 their temporal goods ; they changed the mild language 
 of charity into frightful anathemas', the religion of Jesus 
 breathed nothing but terror. To the thunder of the 
 church, the instrument of so many wars and revolutions, 
 they joined the assistance of the sword. Warlike pre- 
 lates, clad in armour, combated for their possessions or 
 to usurp those of others ; and like the heathen priests, 
 whose pernicious influence was founded on the ignorance 
 of the people, the Christian clergy sought to extend 
 their authority by confining all knowledge to their own 
 order. They made a mystery of the most necessary 
 sciences : truth was not permitted to see the light, and 
 
 reason 
 
192 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 reason was fettered in the cell of superstition. Many 
 of the clergy themselves could scarce read, and writing 
 was chiefly confined to the cloisters^; where a blind and 
 interested devotion, equally willing to deceive and to 
 believe, held the quill; and where lying chronicles and 
 fabulous legends were composed, which contaminated 
 history, religion, and the principles and the laws of 
 society. 
 
 Without arts, sciences, commerce, policy, principles, 
 the European nations were all as barbarous and wretched 
 as they could possibly be, unless a miracle had been 
 wrought for the disgrace of humanity. Charlemagne 
 indeed in France, and Alfred the Great in England, as 
 you have had occasion to see, endeavoured to dispel this 
 darkness, and tame their subjects to the restraints of 
 law : and they were so fortunate as to succeed. Light 
 and order distinguished their reigns. But the ignorance 
 and barbarism of the age were too powerful for their 
 liberal institutions : the darkness returned, after their 
 time, more thick and heavy than formerly, and settled 
 over Europe, and society again tumbled into chaos. 
 
 The ignorance of the West was so profound during 
 the ninth and tenth centuries, that the clergy, who alone 
 possessed the important secrets of reading and writing, 
 became necessarily the arbiters and the judges of almost 
 all secular affairs. They comprehended within their 
 jurisdiction, marriages, contracts, wills; which they took 
 care to involve in mystery, and by which they opened to 
 themselves new sources of wealth and powcr'^. Every 
 thing wore the colour of religion ; temporal and spiritual 
 concerns were confounded : and from this unnatural 
 mixture sprung a thousand abuses. The history of those 
 
 3. Persons who could not write made the sign of the cross, in place 
 of their name, in confirmation of any legal deed. (Dii Cange, Gloss, 
 voc. Crux.) Hence the phrase sigtiivg, instead of subscribing a paper. 
 
 4. Du Cange, voc. Curia Ckristian. Fleiiry. Hist. Hcc/es. torn. xix. 
 Disc. Pre/ int. 
 
 ages 
 
lET. XXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 19 
 
 ages forms a satire on the human soul ; and on religion, 
 if we should impute it to the faults of its ministers. 
 
 *' Redeem your souls from destruction," says St. 
 Egidius, bishop of Noyon, " while you have the means 
 *' in your power : ofifer presents and tythes to churchmen; 
 *' come more frequently to church ; humbly implore the 
 *' patronage of the saints; for if you observe these things, 
 ** you may come with security in the day of the tribunal 
 *' of the eternal Judge, and say, Give us O Lord, for we 
 *' have given unto the^l 
 
 In several churches of France a festival was celebra- 
 ted in commemoration of the Virgin Mary's flight into 
 Egypt. It was called the Feast of the Ass. A young 
 girl richly dressed, with a child in her arms, was 
 upon an ass superbly caparisoned. The ass was led 
 to the altar in solemn procession. High mass was 
 said with great pomp. The ass was taught to kneel at 
 proper places ; a hymn, no less childish than impious, 
 was sung in his praise ; and when the ceremony was 
 ended, the priest, instead of the usual words with which 
 he dismissed the people, brayed three times like 
 an ass: and the people, instead of the usual response, 
 brayed three times in return''. 
 
 Letters began to revive in the eleventh century, but 
 made small progress till towards its close. A scienti- 
 iicial jargon, a false logic, employed about words, 
 without conveying, any idea of things, composed the 
 learning of those times. It confounded all things, in 
 endeavouring to analyse every thing. As the new scho- 
 lars were mostly clergymen, theological matters chiefly 
 engaged their attention; and as they neither knew his- 
 tory, philosophy, nor criticism, their labours were as 
 futile as their inquiries, which were equally disgraceful 
 to reason and religion. The conception of the blessed 
 Virgin, and the digestion of the eucharist, were two of 
 
 5. D. SpecHeg. Fet. Scri/it. vol.ii. 6, Du Cange. voc. Fmtum. 
 
 VOL. T. e ^ th« 
 
194 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 the principal objects of their speculation; and out of the 
 last a third arose; which was, to know whether it wa» 
 voided again^. 
 
 The disorders of government and manners kept 
 pace, as they always will, with those of religion and 
 learning. These disorders seem to have attained their 
 utmost height about the middle of the tenth cen- 
 tury. Then the feudal policy, the defects of which I 
 have pointed outg^ v/^as become universal. The dukes 
 or governors of provinces, the marquises employed to 
 guard the marches, and even the counts intrusted with 
 the administration of justice, all originally officers of 
 the crown, had made themselves masters of their 
 duchies, marquisates, and counties. The king indeed 
 as superior lord, still received homage from them for 
 those lands which they held of the crown ; and which, 
 in default of heirs, returned to the royal domain. He 
 had a right of calling theni out to war, of judging 
 them in his court by their assembled peers, and of con- 
 fiscating their estates in case of rebellion : but, in all 
 other respects, they themselves enjoyed the rights of 
 royalty. They had their sub-vassals, or subjects; they 
 made laws, held courts, coined money in their own 
 name, and levied war against their private enemies^. 
 
 The most frightful disorders arose from this state of 
 feudal anarchy. Force decided all things. Europe 
 was one great field of battle ; where the weak struggled 
 for freedom, and the strong for dominion. The king 
 was without power, and the nobles without principle : 
 they were tyrants at home, and robbers abroad. No- 
 thing remainedto be a check upon ferocity and violence. 
 The Scythians in their deserts could not be less indebt- 
 ed to the laws of society, than the Europeans during 
 the period under review. The people, the most nume- 
 rous as well as the most useful class in the community, 
 
 7. Hist. Lkeraire de France. 8. Letter. II. 9. Du Cang, voc. Feudum 
 
 were 
 
lET. XXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 195 
 
 were either actual slaves, or exposed to so many miseries, 
 arising from pillage and oppression, to one or other of 
 which they were a continual prey, and often to both, that 
 many of them made a voluntary surrender of their liberty 
 for bread and protection". What must have been the 
 state of that government where slavery was an eligible 
 condition? 
 
 But, conformable to the observation of the philosophic 
 Hume, there is a point of depression as well as of exalta- 
 tion, beyond which human affairs seldom pass, and from 
 which they naturally return in a contrary progress. This 
 utmost point of decline, society seems to have attained in 
 Europe, as I have already said, about the middle of the 
 tenth century ; when the disorders of the feudal govern- 
 ment, together with the corruption of taste and manners 
 consequent upon these, were arrived at their greatest 
 excess. Accordingly from that sera, we can trace a suc- 
 cession of causes and events, which, with different degrees 
 of influence, contributed to abolish anarchy and barbar- 
 ism, and introduce order and politeness. 
 
 Among the first of these causes we must rank Chi- 
 valry ; which, as the elegant and inquisitive Dr. Ro- 
 bertson remarks, though commmonly considered as a 
 wild institution, the result of caprice and the source of 
 extravagance, arose naturally from the state of society in 
 those times, and had a very serious effect in refining the 
 manners of the European nations. 
 
 The feudal state, as has been observed, was a state of 
 perpetual war, rapine, and anarchy- The weak and un- 
 armed were exposed every moment to insults or injuries. 
 The power of the sovereign was too limited to prevent 
 these wrongs, and the legislative authority too feeble to 
 redress them. There was scarce any shelter from vio- 
 lence and oppression, except what the valour and gene- 
 rosity of private persons afforded: and the arm of the 
 brave was the only tribunal to which the helpless could 
 appeal for justice. The trader could no longer travel in 
 
 10. Marculfus, lib. cap. 8. 
 
 safet-^ 
 
196 THE HISTORY OF [part l. 
 
 safety, or bring unmolested his commodities to market. 
 Every possessor of a castle pillaged them, or laid them 
 tinder contribution ; and many not only plundered the 
 merchants, but carried off all the women that fell in their 
 way. Slight inconveniencies may be overlooked or en- 
 dured, but when abuses grow to a certain height, 
 the society must reform or go to ruin. It becomes the 
 business of all to discover, and to apply such remedies as 
 will most effectually remove the prevailing disorders. 
 Humanity sprung from the bosom of violence, and relief 
 from the hand of rapacity. Those licentious and tyrannic 
 nobles who had been guilty of every species of outrage and 
 every mode of oppression ; who equally unjust, unfeeling, 
 and superstitious, had made pilgrimages, and had pillaged 1 
 who had massacred, anddonepenanccltouchedatlast with 
 a sense of natural equity and swayed by the conviction of 
 a common interest, formed associations for the redress of 
 private wrongs, and the preservation of public safety". 
 So honourable was the origin of an institution generally 
 represented as whimsical. 
 
 The young warrior among the ancient Germans, as 
 well as among the modern knights, was armed, for the 
 first time, with certain ceremonies proper to inspire mar- 
 tial ardour; but chivalry, considered as a civil and mili- 
 tary institution, is as late as the eleventh century. The 
 previous discipline and solemnities of initiation were 
 many and singular. The novice in chivalry was edu- 
 cated in the house of some knight, commonly a person of 
 high rank, whom he served first in the character of page, 
 and afterwards of squire; nor was he admitted to the 
 supreme honour of knighthood, until he had given many 
 striking proofs of his valour and address. The ceremony 
 of initiation was very solemn. Severe fastings, and nights 
 spent, in a church or chapel, in prayer; confession of 
 sins; and the receiving of the sacraments with devotion; 
 bathing, and putting on white robes, as en^blems of that 
 purity of manners required by the laws of chivalry, were 
 necessary preparations for this ceremony. 
 
 11. Mem. sur I'A'icienne, par. M. de laCurne dc St. Palaye. 
 
 When 
 
LET. XXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 19Y 
 
 When the candidate for knighthood had gone through 
 all these, and other introductory formalities, he fell at 
 the feet of the person from whom he expected that honour, 
 and on his knees delivered to him his sword. After answer- 
 ing suitable questions, the usual oath was administered 
 to him J namely, to serve his prince, defend the faith, 
 protect the persons and reputations of virtuous ladies, 
 and to rescue, at the hazard of his life, widows, orphans, 
 and all unhapp)^ persons, groaning under injustice or 
 oppression. Then the knights and ladies, who assisted 
 at the ceremony, adorned the candidate with the armour 
 and ensigns of chivalry; beginning with putting on the 
 spurs, and ending with girding him with the sword. 
 Seeing him thus accoutred, the king or nobleman, who 
 was to confer the honour of knighthood, gave him the 
 accoladcj or dubbing, by three gentle strokes with the 
 fiat part of his sword on the shoulder, or with the palm 
 of his hand on the neck, saying, " In the name of God, 
 " St. Michael, and St. George, I make thee a knight I 
 " be thou loyal, brave, andhardy'^. 
 
 Valour, humanity, courtesy, justice, honour, were 
 the characteristics of chivalry: and to these was added 
 religion; which, by infusing a large portion of enthusiastic 
 zeal, carried them all to a romantic excess, wonderfully 
 suited to the genius of the age, and productive of the 
 greatest and most permanent effects both upon policy and 
 manners. War was carried on with less ferocity, when 
 humanity, no less than courage came to be deemed the 
 ornament of knighthood, and knighthood a distinction 
 superior to royalty, and an honour which princes were 
 proud to receive from the hands of private gentlemen ; 
 more gentle and polished manners were introduced, when 
 courtesy was recommended as the most amiable of knight- 
 ly virtues, and every knight devoted himself to the ser- 
 vice of some lady; and violence and oppression decreased, 
 when it was accounted meritorious to check and to punish 
 them. A scrupulous adherence to truth, with the most 
 
 13.. Id. ibid. 
 
 religious 
 
198 THE HISTORY OF [part l 
 
 religious attention to fulfil every engagement, but particu- 
 larly those between the sexes, as more easily violated, 
 became the distinguishing character of a gentleman: 
 because chivalry was regarded as the school of honour, 
 and inculcated the most delicate sensibility with respect 
 to that point' 3. And valour, seconded by so many 
 motives of love, religion, and virtue, became altogether 
 irresistible. 
 
 That the spirit of chivalry often rose to an extrava- 
 gant height and had sometimes a pernicious tendency, 
 must however be allowed. In Spain, under the influence 
 of a romantic gallantry, it gave birth to a series of wild 
 adventures, which have been deservedly ridiculed: in the 
 train of Norman ambition, it extinguished the liberties of 
 England, and deluged Italy in blood ; and we shall soon see 
 it, at the call of superstition, and as the engine of papal 
 power, desolate Asia under the banner of the cross. But 
 these violences, resulting from accidental circumstances, 
 ought not to be considered as arguments against an insti- 
 tution laudable in itself, and necessary at the time of its 
 establishment. And they who pretend to despise it, the 
 advocates of ancient barbarism and ancient rusticity, 
 ought to remember. That chivalry not only first taught 
 mankind to carry the civilities of peace into the operations 
 of war, and to mingle politeness with the use of the sword, 
 
 13. This sentiment Uecame reciprocal. Even a princess, says Tirant 
 le Blanc, declares, That slie submits to lose all right to the benefit of chi. 
 valr>', and consents that never any knight shall take arms in her defence 
 if she keeps not the promise of marriage, which she has given to the 
 knight who adored her. And a young gentlewoman, whose defence was 
 \tndertaken by Gerard de Nevers, beholding the ai'dour with which lie en- 
 gaged in it, took off her glove, v.'e are told, and delivered it to him saying. 
 Sir my person, my life, my lands, and my honour, I deposit in the care 
 of God and you; praying for £uch assistance and grace that I may bg 
 " delivered out of this peril." (M. dc la Curne de St. Palaye, ubi sup.) Many 
 similar examples might be produced of this mutual confidence, the basis 
 of that elegant intercourse between the sexes, which so remarkably distin- 
 guishes modern from ancient nianners. 
 
 but 
 
LET. XXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 109> 
 
 but roused the human soul from its lethargy; invigorating 
 the human character, even while it softened it, and pro- 
 duced exploits which antiquity cannot parallel. Nor 
 ought they to forget, that it gave variety and elegance, 
 and communicated an increase of pleasure, to the inter- 
 course of life, by making woman a more essential part 
 of society j and is therefore entitled to our gratitude, 
 though the point of honour, and the refinements in gal- 
 lantry, its more doubtful effects, should be excluded from 
 the improvements in modern manners. 
 
 But the beneficial effects of chivalry were strongly 
 counteracted by other institutions of a less social kind. 
 Some persons of both sexes, of most religions and most 
 countries, have in all ages secluded themselves from the 
 world; in order to acquire a reputation for superior 
 sanctity, or to indulge a melancholy turn of mind, affect- 
 ing to hold converse only with the Divinity. The number 
 of these solitary devotees, however, in ancient times, 
 was few; and the spirit of religious seclusion among the 
 heathens, was confined chiefly to high southern latitudes, 
 where the heat of the climate favours the indolence of the 
 cloister. But the case has been very different in more 
 modern ages: for although the monastic life had its origin 
 among the Christians in Egypt, Syria, and Palestine, it 
 rapidly spread not only over all Asia and Africa, but also 
 over Europe, and penetrated to the most remote corners 
 of the north and west, almost at the same time that it 
 reached the extremities of the east and south; to the 
 great hurt of population and industry; and the obstruc- 
 tion of the natural progress of society'*. 
 
 Nor were these the only consequences of the passion 
 for pious solitude. As all who put on the religious habit 
 after the monastic system was completely formed, took a 
 vow of perpetual chastity, the commerce of the sexes was 
 
 14. Mosheim, Hitt. Ecdes. vol. i. ii. et Auct. ctt. iu loc- 
 
 representee! 
 
200 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 represented by those holy visionaries as inconsistent with 
 Christian purity j and the whole body of the clergy, in 
 order to preserve their influence with the people, found 
 themselves under the necessity of professing a life of ce- 
 libacy. This condescension, which was justly considered 
 as a triumph by the monks, increased their importance, 
 and augmented the number of their fraternities. Nothing 
 was esteemed so meritorious, during the period under 
 view, as the building and endowing of monasteries. And 
 multitudes of men and women of all conditions, but espe- 
 cially of the higher ranks, considering the pleasures of 
 society as seducers to the pit of destruction, and turning 
 with horror from sensual delight, retired to mountains 
 and deserts, or crowded into cloisters: where, under the 
 notion of mortifying the body and shutting all the avenues 
 of the soul against the allurements of external objects, 
 they affected an austerity that gained them universal vene- 
 ration, and threw a cloud over the manners of the Chris- 
 tian world ^. 
 
 The extravagance to which both sexes are said to 
 have carried that austerity, during the first fervours of 
 monastic zeal, seems altogether incredible to cool reason, 
 unenlightened by philosophy. In attempting to strip 
 human nature of every amiable and ornamental quality, 
 in order to humble pride, and repress the approaches of 
 loose desire; or, in their own phrase, " to deliver the 
 " celestial spirit from the bondage of jlesh and bloody^ 
 they in a manner divested themselves of the human cha- 
 racter. They not only lived among wild beasts, but after 
 the manner of those savage animals; they ran naked 
 through the lonely deserts with a furious aspect, and 
 lodged in gloomy caverns; or grazed in the fields, like the 
 common herd, and like cattle took their abode in the 
 epen air'^\ And some monks, and holy virgins, by the 
 habit of going naked, became so completely covered with 
 hair, as to require no other veil to modesty. Many chose 
 
 15. Id. ib. 16. Mosheim, voK ii. Tillemont, Mem. Eccles. torn. viii. 
 
 their 
 
LET. xxi.] MODERN EUROPE. aoi 
 
 their rugged dwelling in the hollow side or narrow cleft 
 of some rock, which obliged them to sit or stand in th^ 
 most painful and excruciating posture, during the remain- 
 der of their wretched lives j while the others, with no small 
 exultation, usurped the den of some ferocious brother 
 brute, whom they affected to resemble; and not a few, 
 under the name of Stylites, or Pillar-saints, ascended 
 the top of some lofty column, where they remained for 
 years, night and day, without any shelter from heat or 
 cold.^ 
 
 Even after teligious houses were provided for the 
 devout solitaries of both sexes, and endowed with ample 
 revenues by the profuse superstition of the newly conver- 
 ted barbarians, they attempted, in their several cells to 
 extinguish every spark of sensuality, by meagre fastings, 
 bloody flagelations, and other cruel austerities of disci- 
 pline, too shocking to bear a recital. But no sooner did 
 the monastic fury subside, than nature began to assert 
 her empire in the hearts of the deluded fanatics ; to tell 
 them they had wants inconsistent with their engagements, 
 and that in abandoning society, they had relinquished the 
 most essential requisites of human happiness. The holy 
 sisters and brothers, convinced of their pious folly, 
 endeavoured by tender familiarities to console each 
 other; but without violating, as they affirmed, their vow 
 of chastity'^. And although this delectable commerce 
 was prohibited' 5*, as alike scandalous and dangerous, by 
 resembling too nearly the ways of the world, and pro- 
 voking sensibilities too strong for the curb of restrain- 
 ing grace, other solacing practices took place in the con- 
 vents, not more for the honour of the monastic life^°, 
 
 17. Id. ibid. 18. Moshelm, ubl. sup. 
 
 19. The si.xth general council (canon xvii.) forbids women to pass 
 the night in a male, or men in a female monastery. And the seventh 
 general council (canon xx.) forbids the electing of double, or promis. 
 cuous monasteries of both sexes. (Heveridge, torn, i.) On the irregular 
 pleasures of the monks and nuns, see Thoniassin, torn. iii. 
 
 20. Mosheim, rol. ii. 
 
 vol.. I. H h Whenever 
 
202 THE lilSTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Whenever any set of people, by laying a constraint upon 
 the natural appetites, seek to arrive at a degree of purity 
 inconsistent with the welfare of society, they never fail 
 to be guilty of crimes which society disclaims, and na- 
 ture abhors ; unless they relax the rigour of their insti- 
 tutions, or slide back, by a blameless corruption, into the 
 more smooth but slippery paths of erring humanity. 
 
 The ignorance of the limes, however, favoured by 
 certain circumstances, continued the veneration for reli- 
 gious solitude, notwithstanding the licentiousness of the 
 monks. Many new monastic orders were instituted in 
 the elevenlh century, under various rules of discipline ; 
 but all with a view to greater regularity of manners* 
 And monks were called from the lonely cell to the most 
 arduous and exalted stations ; to fill the papal chair, and 
 support the triple crov.'n ; or to discharge the office of 
 prime minister in some mighty kingdom, and regulate 
 the interests of nations. Though utterly ignorant of 
 public transactions, their reputation for superior sanctity, 
 which v/as easily acquired, by real or affected austerity, 
 in ages of rapine and superstition, made them be thought 
 fit to direct all things. This ghostly reputation even enab» 
 led them to trample upon the authority, and insult the 
 persons of the princes whose government they adminis- 
 tered ; especially if the lives of such princes, as was 
 very commonly the case, happened to be stained with 
 anv atrocious acts of lust, violence, or oppression. In 
 order to stay the uplifted arm of divine justice, and 
 render the Governor of the world propitious, the king 
 knelt at the feet of the monk and the minister ! happy 
 to commit to the favourite of Heaven the sck' guidance 
 of his spiritual and temporal concerns^'.. And if chival- 
 ry 
 
 21. Beside the wealth and inffuence acquired by tP.e monks, in con. 
 Stquence of the stiperstitioiis ignorance of the great, who often fhared 
 not only their power hut the fruits of their rapine with their pious 
 (jireciors, a popular opinion which prevailed toward the cloie of the 
 
 tenth 
 
lET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. SQ3 
 
 ry, bv awakening a spirit of enterprise, had not roused 
 the human powers to deeds of valour, and revived the 
 passion for the softer sex, by connecting it with arms, 
 and separating it from gross desire, Europe might have 
 sunk urtder the tyranny of a set of men, who pretended 
 to renounce the world and its affairs, and Christendom 
 have become but one great cloister. 
 
 LETTER XXII. 
 
 <rHE GERMAN EMPIRE AND ITS DEPENDENCIES, ROME AND 
 THE ITALIAN STATES, UNDEK CONRAD II. AND HIS 
 DESCENDANTS OE THE HOUSIC Of ERANCONIA. 
 
 VV E now, my dear Philip, return to the great 
 line of history, which I shall endeavour to trace as exact- 
 ly as possible, that you may be able to keep in view the 
 train of events, without which, you will neither be able 
 to reason distinctly on them yourself, nor to understand 
 clearly the reasonings of others. I shall therefore bring 
 down the history of the German empire to the death of 
 Henry V. when the quarrel between the popes and the 
 emperors came to a stand, before I speak of the affairs 
 of France and England ; which, from the Norman con- 
 quest, became inseparably intervowen, but had little 
 influence for some centuries on the rest of Europe. 
 
 Great disputes ensued on the death of Henry II. 
 about the nomination of a successor to the empire ; that 
 
 tenth century, contributed greatly to augment their opulence. The thou- 
 sand years, frons the birth or death of Christ, mentioned dy Sr. John 
 'n the book of Revelations, were supposed to be nearly accomplished* 
 and the Day of Judgment at hand. Multitudes of Christians, therefore 
 anxious only for their eternal salvation delivered over to the monas- 
 tic orders all their lands, treasures, and other valuable effects, and 
 repaired with precipitation to Palestine, where they expected the appear 
 a nee of Christ on Mount Sion. Mosheim, vol. ii. 
 
 prince 
 
204 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 prince, as you have had occasian to see, dying without 
 
 issue. The princes and states assembled in the open 
 
 ^, fields between Mentz and Worms, no hall 
 A. D. 1024, . , . . 
 
 being suthcient to hold them ; and, after six 
 
 ■weeks encampment and deliberation, they elected Con- 
 rad, duke of Franconia, surnamed the Salic, because he 
 was born on the banks of the river Sala . 
 
 The Lombards revolting, as usual, scon after the 
 election of the new emperor, Conrad marched into Italy; 
 and having redueed the rebels by force of arms, he went 
 to Rome, here he was consecrated and crowned by 
 
 Pope John XX. in presence of Canute the 
 A. D 1027'. . 
 
 Great, king of England, Denmark, and Nor- 
 way, and Rodolph III. king of Transjurane Burgundy. 
 But his stay at Rome was short. Scarce was the coro- 
 nation over, when he was obliged to return to Germany, 
 on acccuvit of some insurrections raised in his absence. 
 He took the precaution, however, before he attempted 
 to humble the insurgents, to get his son Henry, then 
 above twelve years of age, declared his successor, and 
 solemnly crowned at Aix-la-Chapelle. The rebellion 
 was soon after suppressed by the valour of Conrad. He 
 defeated the authors of it in several engagements ; in 
 one of which, Ernest, duke of Suabia, who had been 
 put to the ban of the empire, was slain\ 
 
 The word ha7i originally signified banner, afterwards 
 edict, and lastly, a declaration of outlawry, which was 
 intimated thus " We declare thy wife a widow, thy chil- 
 *' dren orphans ; and send thee, in the name of the 
 *' devil, to the four corners of the earth." This is one 
 of the first examples of that proscription. 
 
 The emperor next turned his arms against the Poles, 
 and afterward against the Huns, and obliged both to sub- 
 scribe to his own conditions. In the mean time Rodolph, 
 king of Transjurane Burgundy, dying without issue, left 
 
 1, Jnnal. de V Emp. torn. i. 2. Heiss lib. iir 
 
 his 
 
LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE 205 
 
 his dominions to Conrad. They were of small extent, 
 but included the seignioral superiority over ,^„ . 
 
 r. . 1 ^ • T, T-1 A. D. 1034. 
 
 the Swiss, the Orisons, rrovence, r ranche- 
 Compte, Savoy, Geneva, and Dauphine. Hence the lands 
 on the other side of the Rhine are still called the Lands 
 of the Empire; and all the noblemen of those cantons, 
 who formerly held of Rodolph and his predecessors, now 
 hold of the emperors 
 
 While Conrad II. was employed in taking possession 
 of his new inheritance, the Poles revolted; and this re- 
 bellion was no sooner quelled than he had occasion to 
 oppose another in Italy, headed by Hubert, bishop of 
 Milan, whom he had loaded with favours. Conrad made 
 
 so much haste, that Milan was taken by 
 
 . A. D. 1039. 
 
 sm-prise. The bishop was condemned to 
 
 perpetual banishment; and the emperor died soon after 
 
 his return to Germany, leaving behind him the reputation 
 
 of a just, generous, and magnanimous prince*. 
 
 Henry III. surnamedthe Black, son of Conrad and Gi- 
 sella of Suabia, was elected in consequence of his father's 
 recommendation, and crowned a second time at Aix-la- 
 Chappelle. 
 
 The first years of Henry's reig-n were signalized by 
 successful wars against Bohemia, Poland, and Hungary; 
 which, however, produced no memorable event. Rome 
 and Italy, as usual, were involved in confusion, and dis- 
 tracted by factions, particularly those of the Pandolphi 
 and the Ptolemei. The Pandolphi had thrust Benedict 
 IX. a boy of twelve years of age, into the papacy. He 
 was deposed by Ptolemei and the people, who substituted 
 in his place Sylvester III. This new pope was deposed, 
 in his turn, by the Pandolphi, and his rival 
 re-established. Benedict, however, finding * ' 
 himself universally despised, voluntarily resigned in fa- 
 vour of John, archpriest of the Roman church: but after- 
 wards repenting of his resignation, he wanted to resume 
 his dignity. 
 
 3. Annal. dc VEmp. torn. i. 4. Heiss, lib. ii. 
 
 These 
 
206 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 These three popes, supported by their several parti- 
 zans, and living peaceably with each other, maintained 
 themselves each upon a different branch of the holy see. 
 One resided at St. Peter's, another at Santa Maria 
 Major, and the third in the palace of the Lateran, all 
 leading the most profligate and scandalous lives. A 
 priest, called Gratian, at last put an end to this singular 
 triumvirate. Partly by artifice, partly by presents, he 
 prevailed upon all three to renounce their pretensions to 
 the papacy; and the people of Rome, out of gratitude for 
 so signal a service to the church, chose him pope, under 
 the name of Gregory VI. 
 
 Henry III. took umbrage at this election, in which 
 he had not been consulted, and marched with an army 
 into Italy. No emperor ever exercised more absolute 
 authority in that country. He deposed Gregory, as 
 having been guilty of simony, and filled the papal chair 
 ifUfi with his own chancellor, Suidgeror Heidiger, 
 bishop of Bamberg, who assumed the name of 
 Clement 11. and afterward consecrated at Rome, Henry 
 and the empress Agnes*. 
 
 This ceremony being over, and the Romans having 
 ■worn never to elect a pope without the approbation* of 
 the reigning emperor, Henry proceeded to Capua, where 
 he was visited by Drago, Rainulphus, and 
 other Norman adventurers; who, having left 
 their country, namely the duchy of Normandy, at diffe- 
 rent times, had made themselves masters of great part of 
 Apulia and Calabria, at the expense of the Greeks and 
 Saracens. Henry entered into a treaty with them ; and 
 not only solemnly invested them with those territories 
 which they had acquired by conquest, but prevailed on 
 the pope to excommunicate the Beneventines, who had 
 refused to open their gates to him, and bestowed that 
 city and its dependencies, as fiefs of the empire, upon 
 llie Norman princes, provided they took possession by 
 
 5. Muratori, Annul, d'ltal. Mosheim, Sist. Ecdes. vol. ii. 
 
 force 
 
LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE HO? 
 
 force of arms^ What use they made of the imperial 
 favour, we shall afterwards have occasion to see. At 
 presi^nt the papacy claims all our attention. 
 
 The emperor was scarce returned to Germany, when 
 he received intelligence of the death of Clement II. Cle- 
 mpnt was succeeded in the apostolic see, by Damasus II, 
 who also dying soon after his elevation, Hen- 
 ry nominated Bruno, bishop of Toul, to the 
 vacant chair. This Bruno, who was the emperor's 
 relation, immediately assumed the pontificals; but being 
 a modest and pious prelate, he threw them off on his jour- 
 ney, by the persuasion of Hildebrand, a monk of Cluny, 
 and went to Rome as a private man. " The emperor 
 " alone," said Hildebrand, " has no right to create a 
 " pope." He accompanied Bruno to Rome, and secretly 
 retarded his election, that he might arrogate to himself 
 the merit of obtaining it^. The scheme succeeded to 
 his wish, Bruno, who took the name of Leo IX. believ- 
 ing himself indebted to Hildebrand for the pontificate, 
 favoured him with his particular friendship and confi- 
 dence : and hence originated the power of this enterpri- 
 sing monk, of obscure birth but boundless ambition, who 
 so long governed Rome, and whose zeal for the exal- 
 tation of the church occasioned so many troubles to 
 Europe. 
 
 Leo soon after his elevation, waited on the emperor 
 at Worms, to crave assistance against the Norman prin- 
 ces, who were become the terror of Italy, and treated 
 their subjects with great severity. Henry furnished the 
 pope with an army ; at the head of which his holiness 
 marched against the Normans, after having excommu- 
 nicated them, accompanied by a great num- 
 ber of bishops and other ecclesiastics, who 
 were all either killed or taken prisoners, the Germans 
 and Italians being totally routed. Leo himself was led 
 
 6. Hist. Conq. de. Norm. 7. Leo Ostiensis, lib. ii. Diehmar 
 
 Vit. Greg. VII. 
 
 captive 
 
20S THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 captive to Benevento, of which the Normans were now 
 masters, and which Henry had granted to the pope in 
 exchange for ihe fief of Bamberg in Germany ; and the 
 apostolic see is to this day in possession of Benevento, 
 by vtirue of Henry's donation. The Norman chiefs, 
 however, who had a right to that city by a prior grant, res- 
 tored it in the mean time, to the princes of Lombardy ; 
 and the holy father was treated with so much respect by 
 the conquerors, that he revoked the sentence of excom- 
 munication, and joined his sanction to the imperial inves- 
 titure for the lands which they held in Apulia and Ca- 
 labria"'. 
 
 Leo died soon after his release ; and the emperor 
 about the same time, caused his infant son, 
 afterwards the famous Henry IV. to be de- 
 clared king of the Romans, a title still in use for the 
 acknowledged heir of the empire. Gebhard, a German 
 bishop was elected pope, under the name of Victor II. 
 and confirmed by the address of Hildebrand, Vvho waited 
 on the emperor in person for that purpose, though he 
 disdained to consult him before hand . Perhaps Hilde- 
 brand would not have found this task so easy, had not 
 Henry been involved in a war with the Hungarians, 
 •who pressed him hard, but whom he obliged at last to 
 pay a large tribute and furnish him annually with a cer- 
 tain number of fighting men. 
 
 As soon as the emperor had finished this war, and 
 others to which it gave rise, he marched into Italy to 
 inspect the conduct of his sister Beatrice, widow of Boni- 
 face marquis of Mantua, and made her prisoner. She 
 had married Gozelo, duke of Lorrain, without the 
 emperor's consent : and contracted her daughter Ma- 
 tilda, by the marquis of Mantua, to Godfrey duke of 
 Spoleto and Tuscany, Gozelo's son by a former marriage. 
 
 This formidable alliance iustly alarmed Hen- 
 A. D. 1056. , ,1 f 1 1- 1 •. 1 
 
 ry: he therelore attempted to dissolve it by 
 
 8. Giannone, Hist, di NapoL 9. Leo Csliensis, lib ii. Hist Lite 
 raire de la France, torn. vii. ' 
 
 carrying 
 
LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. S«9 
 
 carrying his sister into Germany, where he died soon 
 after his return, in the thirtj-ninth year of his age, and 
 the sixteenth of his reign. 
 
 This emperor, in his last journey to Italy, concluded 
 an alliance with Contarini, doge of Venioe. 1 hat n pub- 
 lic was already rich and powerful, though it had onlv been 
 ehfranchised in the year 998, from the tribute of a mantle 
 of cloth of gold, which it formerly paid, as a mark of 
 subjection, to the emperors of Constantinople. Genoa 
 was the rival of Venice in power and in commerce, and 
 was already in possession of the island of Corsica, which 
 the Genoese had taken from the Saracens'". These two 
 cities, which I shall afterwards have occasion frequently 
 to mention, ingrossed at this time almost all the trade of 
 Europe. There was no city in 1' ranee or Germany equal, 
 in any respect, to eidier of them. 
 
 Henry IV. surnamedthe Great, was only five years 
 old at his father's death. He was immedi itelv acknow- 
 ledged emperor in a diet of the princes convoked at Co- 
 logne, and the care of his education was committed to his 
 mother Agnes, who also governed the empire. She was 
 a woman of spirit and address, and discharged both her 
 public and private trust vviih diligence and ability. 
 
 -Germany, during the first years of this reijn, was 
 harassed with civil wars; so that the empress Agnes, 
 notwithstanding her strong talents, found it difficult to 
 
 maintain her authority. And at length the 
 1 , f c 1 u • , ° ,. , A. D. 1062. 
 
 dukes or baxony and Bavaria, uncles oi tne 
 
 young emperor, carried him off fnjm her by stratagem, 
 accusing her of sacrificing the public welfare to the will 
 of the bishop of Augsburg, her minister and supposed 
 gallant. Thus divested of the regency, she fled to 
 Rome, and there took the veil '. 
 
 Henry was now put under the tuition of the arch- 
 bishops of Cologne and Bremen, v/ho discharged their 
 trust in a very opposite manner. The first endeavoured 
 
 10. Muratoi-i., Jnnal. d'ltal. torn. vi. 11. Annal. deVMmp. 
 VOL. I. I i to 
 
SlO THE HISTORY OF [part i, 
 
 to inspire him with a love of learning and virtue, while 
 the second sought only to acquire an ascendency over his 
 passions, by indulging him in all the pleasures of youth. 
 This indulgence produced a habit of licentiousness which 
 he could never afterwards restrain. 
 
 Italy, in the meantime, was a prey, as usual, to In- 
 testine disorders. After a variety of troubles, excited 
 on account of the pontificate, Nicholas 11. the creature 
 of Hildebrand, passed a famous decree, which gave rise 
 to many more; and by which it was ordained, in a coun- 
 cil of a hundred and thirteen bishops, " That for the future 
 the cardinals only should elect the pope, and that the 
 election should be confirmed by the rest of the Roman 
 clergy and the people: saving the honour," adds he, 
 " due to our dear son Henry, now king; and who, if it 
 " please God, shall one day be emperor, according to the 
 " privilege which we have already conferred upon him; 
 " and saving the honour of his successors on whom the 
 " apostolic see shall confer the same high privilege''." 
 
 The same pope Nicholas II. after having in vain 
 excommunicated the Norman princes, made protectors 
 and vassals of them; and they, who were feudatories of 
 the empire, less afraid of the popes than the emperors, 
 readily did homage for their lands to Nicholas, in 1059, 
 and agreed to hold them of the churches. 
 
 This mode of holding was very common in those days 
 of rapacity both for princes and private persons, the only 
 authority then respected being that of the church: and the 
 Normans wisely made use of it as a safeguard against the 
 emperors. They gave their lands to the church under the 
 name of an offering or oblata, and continued in possession 
 
 12. Chronlcon Farsense in Murat. Script. Fir. Ital. torn. ii. par. ii. 
 To this edict of Nicholas II. the college of cardinals owes the extensive 
 mthority and important privileges it still enjoys. Under the name oi Car- 
 dinals he comprehends the seven Roman bishops, Avho were considered 
 RS his suffragans, and also the twenty-eight presbyters, or parish priesti 
 who officiated in the principal churches. Mosheim, Hut. Eccles. rol ii. 
 
 13. Gixnnone, Hist. di. Napol. 
 
 of 
 
LIT. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 211 
 
 of them on paying a slight acknowledgment. Hence the 
 pope's claim of superiority over the kingdom of Naples 
 and Sicily. 
 
 Robert Guiscard, brother of Drago, and one of the gal- 
 lant sons of Tancred of Hauteville, received from the 
 pope the ducal crown of Apulia and Calabria ; and Richard, 
 count of Aversa, was confirmed prince of Capua, a title 
 which he had already assumed. The pope also gave the 
 Normans a right to hold Sicily in the same manner with 
 their other possessions, provided they could expel the 
 Saracens from it'^: and Robert Guiscard and his brother 
 Roger made themselves fully masters of that island ia 
 1061. 
 
 Henry IV. assumed the reins of government at th« 
 age of twenty -two, and began his adminis- my* 
 
 tration with restraining the thefts, rob- 
 beries, and extortions, which his subjects of the duchy 
 of Saxony exercised upon strangers, as well as upon 
 each other. But the Saxon princes and nobles, who 
 were gainers by these abuses, particularly by the infa- 
 inous practice of imprisoning travellers, and making 
 them pay for their ransom, opposed the intended refor- 
 mation, and entered into an association against the em- 
 peror, under pretence that their liberties were in danger. 
 In this rebellious disposition they were encouraged by 
 the arrogance of pope Alexander II. who, at the insti- 
 gation of Hildebrand, his confidant and oracle, sum- 
 moned Henry to appear before the tribunal of the holy 
 see, on account of his loose life, and to answer to the 
 charge of having exposed the investiture df bishops to 
 
 sal ,,. 
 e ■' 
 Henry treated the pope's mandate with the contempt 
 
 it deserved; and at the same time carried on war with 
 vigour against the Saxons and their rebellious associates, 
 whom he totally routed in a bloody engage- 
 ment, and made himself master of all Saxo- ^^' ^' ' 
 
 14. Id. ibid. 15. Leo Ostiensis, lib. iii. D'uhmar. V,t. Gre?. VII. 
 
 nv. 
 
fit THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 ny. The heads of the rebellion asked pardon of the 
 emperor in public, and begged to be restored 
 to his favour: he generously accepted their 
 submission, and peace was restored to Germany'*. 
 
 But rienry was not suffered long to enjoy the fruits 
 of his valour. A new storm threatened him from Italy: 
 which afterwards lell with violence on his head, and 
 shook all the thrones in Christendom. On the death of 
 Alexander 11. in 10/3, liildebrand had been elected 
 pope under the name of dregory VII. and although he 
 had not aske d the emperor's voice, he prudently waited 
 for his confirmation, before he assvuned the tiara. He 
 obtained it by this mark of submission: Henry confirmed 
 his election; and (^rcgory having nothing further to fear, 
 pulled off the mask. He began his pontificate with ex- 
 communicating every ecclesiastic who should receive a 
 benefice from a layman, and every lavman by whom such 
 benefice should be conierrcd. '^'his was eng-aging the 
 chvirch in an open war with the sovereigns of all nations. 
 But the thunder of the holy see was more particularly 
 directed against the emperor; and Kenry, sensible of 
 his danger, and willing to avert it, wrote a submissive 
 letter to Gregory, who pretended to take him into 
 favour, after having severely reprimanded him for the 
 crimes of simony and debauchery, laid against him by 
 the late pope, and of which he now confessed himself 
 guilty '. 
 
 Gregory, at the same time, proposed a crusade, in 
 order to deliver the holy sepulchre from the hands of the 
 Infidels ; offering to head the Christians in person, and 
 desiring Henrv to serve as a volunteer under his com- 
 mand! — n project so wild and extravagant, that nothing 
 but the prevailing spirit of the times, the double enthu- 
 siasm of religion and valour, can save the memory of its 
 author from the imputation of insanity. 
 
 16. Heiss, Hist, de I'Emp. lib. ii. 17. Jnnal. cle I'Emfi. torn. i. Dith- 
 mar. Vit. Greg. Vll. 18. Id. ibid. 
 
 Gregory's 
 
*ET.xxii,] MODERN EUROPE. 2ls 
 
 Gregory's project of making himself lord of Chris- 
 tendom, by not only dissolving the jurisdiction which 
 kings and emperors had hitherto exercised over the 
 various orders of the clergy, but also by subjecting to 
 the papal authority all temporal princes, and rendering 
 their dominions tributary to the see of Rome, seems no 
 less romantic; yet this he undertook, and not altogether 
 without success. Solomon, king of Hungary, dethroned 
 by his brother Geysa, had fled to Henry for protection, 
 and renewed the homage of Hungary to the empire. 
 Gregory, who favoured Geysa, exclaimed against this act 
 of submission: and said, in a letter to Solomon, " You 
 " ought to know, that the kingdom of Hungary belongs 
 *' to the Roman church; and learn, that you will incur 
 *' the indignation of the holy see, if you do not acknow- 
 -*' ledge that you hold your dominions of the pope, and 
 *' not of the emperor ^I" 
 
 This presumptuous declaration, and the neglect it 
 met with, brought the quarrel between the empire and 
 the church to a crisis. It was directed to Solomon, but 
 intended for Henry. And if Gregory could not succeed 
 in one way, he was resolved that he should in another: 
 he therefore resumed the claim of investitures, for v/hich 
 he had a more plausible pretence; and as that dispute 
 and its consequences merit particular attention, I shall 
 be more circumstantial than usual. 
 
 The predecessors of Henry IV. had always enjoyed 
 the right of nominating bishops and abbots, and of giving 
 them investiture by the ring and crosier. This right they 
 had in common with almost all princes. The predeces- 
 sors of Gregory VII. had been accustomed, on their 
 part, to send legates to the emperors, in order to entreat 
 their assistance; to obtain their confirmation, or desire 
 them to come and receive the papal sanction, but for no 
 other purpose. Gregory, however, sent two legates to 
 summon Henry to appear before him as a delinquent, 
 
 19. Goldast. Apologia pro Hen. IV. Tbnmas. Conten. inter Imp. et 
 Saccrdot. 
 
 beca^na 
 
HU THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 because he still continued to bestow investitures, not- 
 withstanding the apostolic decree to the contrary; adding, 
 that if he should fail to yield obedience to the church, 
 he must expect to be excommunicated and dethroned. 
 
 Incensed at that arrogant message from one whom 
 h© considered as his vassal, Henry dismissed the legates 
 with very little ceremony, and convoked an assembly of 
 
 ^^„^ all the German princes and dignified ecclcsi- 
 A. D. lore. . -„ ' , f ° J ... 
 
 astics at Worms; where, atter mature delibe- 
 ration, they concluded, that Gregory having usurped the 
 chair of St. Peter by indirect means, infected the church 
 of God with many novelties and abuses, and deviated 
 from his duty to his sovereign in several scandalous at- 
 tempts, the emperor, by that supreme authority derived 
 from his predecessors, ought to divest him of his dignity, 
 and appoint another in his place*". 
 
 In consequence of this determination, Henry sent an 
 ambassador to Rome, with a formal deprivation of Gre- 
 gory; who, in his turn convoked a council, at which 
 were present a hundred and ten bishops, who unani- 
 mously agreed, that the pope had just cause to depose 
 Henry; to dissolve the oath of allegiance which the 
 princes and states had taken in his favour, and to pro- 
 hibit them from holding any correspondence with him 
 on pain of excommunication. And that sentence 
 was immediately fulminated against the emperor and 
 his adherents. " In the name of Almighty God, and 
 " by your authority," said Gregory, alluding to the 
 members of the council, " I prohibit Henry, the son of 
 " our emperor Henry, from governing the Teutonic 
 " kingdom, and Italy : I release all Christians from 
 " their oath'of allegiance to him; and I strictly forbid 
 " all persons from serving or attending him as king^'." 
 
 This is the first instance of a pope's pretending to 
 deprive a sovereign of his crown, but it was too flatter- 
 ing to ecclesiastical pride to be the last! — No prelate, 
 
 20. Schilter. De Libertat. Ecdes. German, lib. iv. 21. Dithmar. Hist. 
 Bell, inter Imp. et Sacerdot. 
 
 from 
 
LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 215 
 
 from the foundation of the church, had ever presumed 
 to use so imperious a language as Gregory; for although 
 Lewis the Debonnaire had been deposed by his bishops, 
 there was at least some colour for that step. Thejr 
 condemned Lewis, in appearance, only to do public 
 penance. 
 
 The circvdar letters written by this pontiff breathe, 
 the same spirit with his sentence of deposition. In 
 these he repeatedly asserts, That " bishops are superior 
 " to kings, and made to judge them!" — expressions 
 alike artful and presumptuous, and calculated for bring- 
 ing in all the churchmen of the world to his stand- 
 ard. Gregory's purpose is said to have been, to engage 
 in the bonds of fidelity and allegiance to the Vicar of 
 Christ, as King of kings and Lord of lords, all the 
 potentates of the earth, and to establish at Rome an 
 annual assembly of bishops, by whom the contests that 
 might arise between kingdoms and sovereign states 
 were to be decided; the rights and pretensions of princes 
 to be examined, and the fate of nations and empires to 
 be determined". 
 
 The haughty pontiff knew well what consequences 
 would follow the thunder of the church. The German 
 bishops came immediately over to his party, and drew 
 along with them many of the nobles; the brand of civil 
 war still lay smouldering, and a bull properly directed 
 was sufficient to set it in a blaze. The Saxons, Henry's 
 old enemies, made use of the papal displeasure as a pre- 
 tence for rebelling against him. Even his favourite 
 Guelf, a nobleman to whom he had given the duchy of 
 Bavaria, supported the malecontents with that power 
 which he owed to his sovereign's bounty: nay, those vert 
 princes and prelates who had assisted in deposing Gre- 
 gory, gave up their monarch to be tried by the pope; and 
 his holiness was solicited to come to Augsburg for that 
 purpose^3. 
 
 22. Moshelm, Hitt. Eccles. vol. ii. par. ii. cent. xi. et Auct. cit. is loc. 
 2*. Uithir.ar. ubi sup. Annul. Cennan. ap. Struy, 
 
 Wijling 
 
216 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Willing to prevent this odious trial at Augsburg, 
 Henry took the unaccountable resolution of suddenly 
 passing the Alps at Tyrol, accompanied only by a few 
 domestics, in order to ask absolution of Gregory, his 
 tyrannical oppressor, who was then in Canosa, on the 
 Apennines; a fortress belonging to the countess or duchess 
 Matilda, whom I have already had occasion to mention. 
 At the gates of this place the emperor presented himself 
 :as an humble penitent. He alone was admitted within 
 the outer court: where, being stript of his robes, and 
 wrapt in sack-cloth, he was obliged to remain 
 ' * * * three days, in the month of Janviary, barefoot- 
 
 ed at.id fasting, before he was permitted to kiss the feet 
 of his holiness, who all that time was shut up with the 
 devout Matilda, whose spiritual director he had long 
 been; and, as some say, her gallant. But be that as it 
 may, her attachment to Gregory, and her hatred against 
 the Gcrmani', was so great, that she made over all her 
 estates to the apostolic see: and this donation is the true 
 cause of all the wars, which since that period have raged 
 between the emperors and the popes. She possessed,. 
 in her own rigbt, great part of Tuscany; Mantua, Par- 
 ma, Reggio, Piacentia, Ferrara, Modena, Verona, and 
 almost the whoU^ of what is nov/ called the patrimony of 
 St. Peter, from Viterbo to Orvieto ; together with part 
 of Umbria, Spoleto, and the Marche of Ancona'4. 
 
 The emperor was at length permitted to throw him- 
 self at the feet of the haughty pontiff, who condescended 
 to grant him absolution, after he had sworn obedi- 
 ence to his holiness in all things, and promised to sub- 
 mit to his solemn decision at Augsburg; so that Henry 
 got nothing but disgrace by his journey, while Gregory', 
 elated with his triumph, and now looking upon himself, 
 not altogether without reason, as the lord and master 
 of all the crowned heads in Christendom, said in several 
 of his letters, that it v^-as his duty *' to pull down the 
 *' pride of kings. "^ 
 
 24. Fran. Mar. Florent. Man della. Contesaa Matilda. 
 
 This 
 
LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 2ir 
 
 This extraordinary accommodation gave much dis- 
 gust to the princes of Italy. They never could forgive 
 the insolence of the pope nor the abject humility of the 
 emperor. Happily however for Henry, their indigna- 
 tion at Gregory's arrogance overbalanced their detesta- 
 tion oi his meanness. He took advantage of this temper; 
 and by a change of fortune, hitherto unknown to the 
 German emperors, he found a strong party in Italy, 
 when abandoned in Germany. All Lombardy took up 
 arms against the pope, while he was raising all Ger- 
 many against the emperor. 
 
 Gregory, on the one hand made use of every art to 
 get another emperor elected in Germany; and Henry, 
 on his part, left nothing undone to persuade the Italians 
 to elect another pope. The Germans chose 
 Rodolph, duke of Suabia, who was solemnly 
 crowned at Mentz ; and Gregory, hesitating on this occa- 
 sion, behaved truly like the supreme judge of kings. 
 He had deposed Henry, but still it was in his power 
 to pardon that prince : he therefore affected to be dis- 
 pleased that Rodolph was consecrated without his order; 
 and declared, that he wovild acknowledge as emperoi 
 and king of Germany, him of the two competitors who 
 should be most submissive to the holy see--^ 
 
 Henry.^ however, trusting more to the valour of 
 his troops than to the generosity of the pope, set out 
 immediately for Germany, where he defeated his ene- 
 mies in several engagements: and Gregory 
 seeing no hopes of submission, thundered ' ' ^' ° ^' 
 out a second sentence of excommunication aga'nst him, 
 confirming at the same time the election of Rodolph, 
 to whom he sent a golden crown, on which the follow- 
 ing well-known verse, equally haughty and puerile, was 
 engraved: 
 
 Fetra dcd'it Petro^ Petrus diadema Rodolpho. 
 
 25. Dithmar. Hist, Bell, inter Imp. et Sacerdot, Muratori, Annal 
 i'ltal. 
 
 VOL. I. K k This 
 
818 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 This donation was also accompanied with a prophet- 
 ic anathema against Henry, so wild and extravagant, 
 as to make one doubt, whether it was dictated by enthu- 
 siasm or priestcraft. After depriving him of strength 
 in combat^ and condemning him never to be victorious., it 
 concludes with the following remarkable apostrophe to 
 St. Peter and St. Paul : " Make all men sensible, 
 *' that as you can bind and loose every thing in Heaven, 
 *' you can also upon earth take from, or give to every 
 " one according to his deserts, empires, kingdoms, 
 " principalities — let the kings and princes of the age 
 *' then instantly feel your power, that they may not 
 *' dare to despise the orders of your church; let your 
 *' justice be so speedily executed upon Henry, that 
 " nobody may doubt but he falls by your means, and 
 " not by chance^*^." 
 
 In order to avoid the effects of the second excom- 
 munication, Henry took a step worthy of himself. He 
 assembled at Brixen, in the county of Tyrol, about 
 twenty German bishops; who acting also for the bishops 
 of Lombardy, unanimously resolved, that the pope, 
 instead of having power over the emperor, owed him 
 obedience and allegiance; that Gregory VII. having 
 rendered himself unworthy of the papal chair, by his 
 inisconduct and rebellion, ought to be deposed from a 
 dignity he so little deserved. They accordingly de- 
 graded Hildebrand, and elected in his room Guibert, 
 archbishop of Ravenna, a person of undoubted merit, 
 who took the name of Clement III. 
 
 Henry promised to put the new pope in possession 
 of Rome. But he was obliged, in the mean time, to 
 shift the scene of action, and to emplo'^ all his forces 
 against his rival Rodolph, who had re-assembled a large 
 body of troops in Saxony. The two armies met near 
 Mersburg, and both fought with great fury. Victory 
 remained long doubtful ; but the fortune of the day 
 
 26. Hardouin, Coneil. Fleury, Iliit. Ecclet. 
 
 seemed 
 
LET. XXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 219 
 
 seemed inclining to Rodolph, when his hand was cut off 
 
 by the famous Godfrey of Bouillon, then in the service ot 
 
 Henry, and afterwards renowned by the conquest of 
 
 Jerusalem. Discouraged by the misfortune of their 
 
 chief, the rebels immediately gave way ; and Rodolph 
 
 perceiving his end approaching, ordered the hand that 
 
 was cut off to be brought him, and made a speech to his 
 
 officers on the occasion, which could not fail to have a 
 
 favourable influence on the emperor's affairs. " Behold," 
 
 said he, " the hand with which I took the oath of alle- 
 
 *' giance to Henry ; an oath, which at the instigation of 
 
 " Rome, I have violated, in perfidiously aspiring to an 
 
 " honour that was not my due^^." 
 
 The emperor, thus delivered from his formidable 
 
 antagonist, soon dispersed the rest of his enemies in 
 
 Germany, and set out for Italy, in order to settle 
 
 Clement III. in the papal chair. But the .^„. 
 
 rn , . [ ' • V- u A.D. 1031. 
 
 gates oi Rome bemg shut agamst him, he was 
 
 obliged to attack it in form. The siege continued up- 
 wards of two years ; Henry, during that time, being 
 obliged to quell some insurrections in Germany. The 
 city was at length carried by assault, and with difficulty 
 saved from being pillaged ; but Gregory was not taken : 
 he retired into the castle of St. Angelo, and thence de- 
 fied and excommunicated the conqueror. 
 
 The new pope was however consecrated with the 
 
 usual ceremonies, and expressed his eratitude .^„. 
 
 . • Tj -1-1 pA.D. 1084. 
 
 by crownmg Henry, with the concurrence or 
 
 the Roman senate and people. Meanwhile the siege of 
 
 St. Angelo was going on ; but the emperor being called 
 
 about some affairs into Lombardy, Robert Guiscard took 
 
 advantage of his absence to release Gregory, rnss 
 
 who died soon after at Salerno. His last 
 
 words, borrowed from the scripture, were worthy of the 
 
 greatest saint : " I have loved justice, and hated iniquity : 
 
 *' therefore I die in exile^^ I" 
 
 27. Cbron. Ma^dcb. 28. Vit. Greg. VII. Murat ubi sup. 
 
 Henrv 
 
220 THE HISTORY OF [paiit i. 
 
 Henry did not long enjoy the successes of his Italian 
 expedition, or that tranquillity which nfiight have been 
 expected from the death of Gregory. Germany was 
 involved in new troubled : thither he hastened with all ex- 
 pedition. The Saxons, his old enemies, had elected a 
 king of the Romans, whom he defeated in several en- 
 gagements, and whose blood atoned for his presumption. 
 Another pretender shared the same fate. Every thing 
 yielded to the emperor's valour. 
 
 But while Henry was thus victorious in Germany, 
 his enemies were busy in embroiling his affairs in Italy, 
 into which he found it necessary again to march. Not 
 satisfied with Clement III. the emperor's 
 pope, they had elected the abbot of Monte 
 Cassino, under the name of Victor III. and he dying in 
 a short time, they chose in his room Urban II. who, in 
 conjunction with the countess Matilda, seduced the em- 
 peror's son, Conrad, into a rebellion against his father. 
 — It was this Urban who held the famous council of 
 Clermont, of which I shall afterwards have occasion to 
 speak, and where the first crusade was resolved upon. 
 
 Conrad assumed the title of king of Italy, and was ac- 
 tually crowned by Anselmo, archbishop of 
 'Milan. Soon after this ceremony, he married 
 the daughter of Roger, king of Sicily ; and succeeded so 
 well in his usurpation, that the greater part of the Italian 
 cities and nobles acknowledged him as their sovereign. 
 The emperor, therefore, despairing of being able to re- 
 duce his son to obedience, returned to Germany ; where 
 he assembled the princes, who put Conrad to the ban of 
 the empire, and declared his brother Henry 
 
 A. D. 1099. , . r 1- r. A W 
 
 kmg of the Romans. An accommodation 
 was made with the Saxons and Bavarians, and the em- 
 peror hoped to spend the latter part of his life in peace. 
 
 In the mean time Conrad died ; and Pascal II. 
 another Hildebrand, succeeded Urban in the see of 
 Rome. This pope no sooner found himself safely seated 
 
 29. Chro7i. Magdeb. 
 
 in 
 
LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 221 
 
 in the papal chair, than he called a council, to which he 
 
 summoned the emperor : and as Henry did not 
 
 u .u • • \- • 'i 1 ■ A-D. 1101. 
 
 obey the citation he excommunicated him a- 
 
 new for the schisms which he had introduced into the 
 church. But that vengeance, though sufficiently severe, 
 was gentle, in comparison of what Pascal meditated and 
 accomplished. He excited young Henry to rebel against 
 his father, under pretence of defending the cause of the 
 orthodox ; alleging, that he was bound to take upon 
 himself the reins of government, as he could neither ac- 
 knowledge a king nor a father that was excommunicat- 
 ed. ^^ 
 
 In vain did the emperor use every paternal re- 
 monstrance to dissuade his son from proceeding to ex- 
 tremities : the breach became wider and wider, and 
 both prepared for the decision of the sAvord. But the son 
 dreading his father's military superiority, and confiding 
 in his tenderness, made use of a stratagem equally base 
 and effectual. He threw himself unexpectedly at the 
 emperor's feet, and begjred pardon for his undutiful be- 
 haviour, which he imputed to the advice of evil coun- 
 sellors. In consequence of this submission, he was im-- 
 mediately taken into favour, and the emperor dismissed 
 his army. The ungrateful youth now bared his perfidious 
 heart : he ordered his father to be confined j while he 
 assembled a diet of his own confederates, at which the 
 pope's legate presided, and repeated the sentence of ex- 
 communication against the emperor Henrv IV. ^ , ^- 
 who was instantly deposed, and the paracidious 
 usurper Henry V. proclaimed^'. 
 
 The archbishops of Mentz and Cologne were sent 
 as deputies to the old emperor, to intimate his deposi- 
 tion, and demand the crown and other regalia. Henry 
 received this deputation with equal surprize and con- 
 cern ; and finding the chief accusation against him was, 
 " the scandalous manner in which he had setbishopricks 
 
 SO. Dithmar. Nht. Bell, inter Imp. et Sacerdot. 31. Id. ibid. 
 
 " to 
 
222 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 *' to sale," he thus addressed the audacious ecclesias- 
 tics : " If we have prostituted the benefices of the 
 " church for hire, you yourselves are the most proper 
 *' persons to convict us of that simony. Say then, I 
 " conjure you, in the name of the eternal God ! what 
 " have we exacted, or what have we received, for having 
 *' promoted you to the dignities which you now enjoy ?" 
 They acknowledged he was innocent, as far as regarded 
 their preferment : — " and yet," continued he, " the 
 " archbishopricks of Mentz and Cologne being two of 
 " the best in our gift, we might have filled our coffers 
 " by exposing them to sale. We bestowed them, how- 
 " ever, on you, out of free grace and favour ; — and a wor- 
 '* thy return you make to our benevolence ! — Do not, we 
 " beseech you, become abettors of those who have 
 *' lifted up their hand against their lord and master, in 
 " defiance of faith, gratitude, and allegiance." 
 
 The two archbishops, unmoved by that pathetic 
 address, injsisted on his compliance with the purport of 
 their errand. On this he retired, and put on his royal 
 ornaments ; then returning to the apartment he had left, 
 and seating himself on a chair of state, he renewed his 
 remonstrance in these words : " Here are the marks of 
 " that royalty with which we were invested by God and 
 *' the princes of the empire ; if you disregard the wrath 
 " of Heaven, and the eternal reproach of mankind, so 
 *' much as to lay violent hands on your sovereign, you 
 *' may strip us of them. We are not in a condition to 
 **■ defend ourselves." 
 
 This speech had no more effect than the former 
 upon the unfeeling prelates, who instantly snatched 
 the crown from his head ; and dragging him from his 
 chair, pulled off his royal robes by force. While they 
 were thus employed, Henry exclaimed, " Great God !" 
 — the tears trickled down his venerable cheeks — " thou 
 " art the God of vengc::nce, and wilt repay this outrage. 
 
 " I have 
 
LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 223 
 
 ** I have sinned, I own, and merited such shame by the 
 *' follies of my youth ; but thou wilt not fail to punish 
 " those traitors, for their perjury, insolence, and ingra- 
 " titude^2." 
 
 To such a degree of wretchedness was this unhappy 
 prince reduced by the barbarity of his son, that, destitute 
 of the common necessaries of life, he intreated Gertard, 
 bishop of Spire, whom he had created, to grant him a 
 canonicate for his subsistence ; representing that he was 
 capable of performing the office of " chanter or reader 1" 
 Being denied that humble request, he shed a flood 
 of tears, and turning to those who were present, said, 
 with a deep sigh, " My dear friends, at least have pity on 
 *' my condition, for I am touched by the hand of the 
 " Lord33!" — The hand of man, at least, was heavy up- 
 on him for he was not only in want, but under confine- 
 ment. 
 
 In the midst of these distresses, when every one 
 thought his courage was utterly extinguished, and his 
 soul overwhelmed by despondence, Henr)^ found means 
 to escape from his keepers, and reached Cologne, where 
 he was recognized as lawful emperor. He next repaired 
 to the Low Countries, where he found friends, who 
 raised a considerable body of troops to facilitate his 
 restoration ; and he sent circular letters to all the princes 
 of Christendom, in order to interest them in his cause. 
 He even wrote to the pope, giving him to understand, 
 that he was inclined to an accommodation, provided it 
 could be settled without prejudice to his crown. But be- 
 fore any thing material could be executed in 
 Henry's favour, he died at Liege, in the fifty- 
 sixth year of his age, and the forty-ninth of his reign. 
 He was a prince of great courage, and excellent endow- 
 ments both of body and mind. There was an air of 
 dignity in his appearance that spoke the greatness of his 
 soul. He possessed a natural fund of eloquence and 
 
 32. Dithmar, ubi sup. Heiss, ii, csp. ix. 33. Id. ibid. 
 
 vivacity ; 
 
224 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 vivacity ; was of a mild and merciful temper ; extremely 
 charitable ; and an admirable pattern of fortitude and 
 resignation^''. 
 
 Henry V. put the finishing stroke to his barbarous, 
 unnatural, and hypocritical conduct, by causing his fa- 
 ther's body, as the carcase of an excommunicated wretch^ 
 to be dug out of the grave where it was buried, in the 
 cathedral of Liege, and be carried to a cave at Spire^^. But 
 notwithstanding his obligations and seeming attachment 
 to the church, this paracidious zealot no sooner found 
 himself established upon the imperial throne, than he 
 maintained that right of investiture, in opposition to 
 which he had taken arms against his father, and the exer- 
 cise of which was thought to merit anathemas so fright- 
 ful as to disturb the sacred mansions of the dead. 
 
 In order to terminate that old dispute, Henry invited 
 the pope into Germany. But Pascal, who v/as well ac- 
 quainted with the emperor's haughty and implacable dis- 
 position, thought proper to take a different route, and 
 put himself under the protection of Philip I. king of 
 France, who undertook to mediate an accommodation 
 between the empire and the holy see. A conference was 
 accordingly held at Chalons, in Champagne, but without 
 effect. 
 
 After this unsuccessful meeting, the pope held a 
 
 , , ^^ council at Troves, and Henry convoked a diet 
 A.D.I 107^. J ' J 
 
 'at Mentz : the first supported Pascal's pre- 
 tensions, and the last declared for the emperor's right 
 of investiture. But more weighty affairs demanding 
 Henry's attention, the dispute was laid aside for a time. 
 He was engaged for several years in wars with Hungary 
 and Poland, which ended in the weariness of all parties, 
 and left things nearly as at the beginning. 
 
 When tired of fighting, Henry thought of disputing : 
 he was desirous of settling his contest with the pope ; 
 
 oi. Gob. Pers. I-eo Osilens. Cbron. Ma^Jeb. 35. Jnnal. de I'Emp. 
 torn. i. 
 
 and, 
 
3LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 225 
 
 and, lest force should be necessary, he entered 
 Italy with an army of eighty-thousand men. 
 Pascal received him with the greatest appearance of cor- 
 diality, but would not renounce the claim of investitures j 
 and Henry, finding himself deceived in his expectations, 
 ordered the pope to be seized. 1 he consul put the citi- 
 zens in arms, and a battle was fought within the walls of 
 Rome. The Romans were defeated ; and the carnage 
 was so great, that the waters of the Tiber were stained 
 with blood. Pascal was taken prisoner, and became less 
 inflexible. He crowned Henry, and confirmed him in 
 the right of investiture ; dividing the host with him, at 
 the same time, in token of perfect reconciliation, and pro- 
 nouncing the following anathema : " As this part of the 
 vivifying body," breaking it, " is separated from the 
 " other, let him of us two, who shall infringe the treaty, 
 *' be separated from the kingdom of Christ-''!" 
 
 But Henry had no sooner left Italy than it appeared 
 that the coiu-t of Rome was by no means sincere in the 
 concessions it had made ; for although Pascal himself 
 still preserved the exteriors of friendship and 
 
 • • A D 1 1 12 
 
 good faith, a council of the Lateran, called by * * 
 him, set aside the bull touching the investiture of be- 
 nefices, and ordered the emperor to be excommunicated. 
 The clergy every where attempted to fill the vacant sees, 
 and the whole empire was again involved in trouble and 
 dissention. 
 
 A rebellion broke out in Saxony, which Henry was 
 enabled to quell by the valour of his nephew, 
 Frederick duke of Suabia and Alsace, whom'^* ^* 
 he promoted to the supreme command of his army. In 
 the meantime the countess Matilda dying, the emperor, 
 as her nearest relation, claimed the succession, 
 notwithstanding the steps she had taken in fa-^' ^* •^^^•'* 
 vour of the holy see, alledging that it was not in her 
 power to alienate her estates, which depended imme- 
 
 ■16. Chro)u Abb. St. Tetri «3ft Eurgo. Padre Paolo, BcneJ. £ccles. 
 VOL. I. L I diatciv 
 
225 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 dlatel}^ upon the empire. He therefore set out for 
 Lombai'dy, and sent ambassadois to Rome, beseeching 
 the pope to revoke the sentence of excommunication, 
 which had been fulminated against him, expressly con- 
 trary to their last agreement. 
 
 Pascal would not so much as favour the ambassadors 
 
 with an audience ; but convoked a council, in which his 
 
 _ ^ ^ ^ treaty with the emperor, was a second time 
 
 A. D. 1116. / , T 11. TT 
 
 condemned, incensed at such arrogance, Hen- 
 ry advanced tov/ards Rome, determined to make his 
 auth.irity respected : and the pope, well acquainted with 
 his inflexible disposition, took shelter among the Norman 
 princes in Apulia, the new vassals and protectors of the 
 church. 
 
 The emperor entered Rome in triumph, and was 
 
 ^ crowned a second time by Bardinus, arch- 
 
 ' 'bishop of Prague, who attended him in this 
 
 expedition. But Henry's presence being necessary in 
 
 Tuscany, Pascal privately returned to Rome, where he 
 
 died in a few days ; and on the thiixi day after 
 
 'his decease, cardinal Cajetan was elected his 
 
 successor, without the privity of the emperor, under the 
 
 name of Gelasius II. 
 
 Enraged at this presumption, Henry declared the 
 election of Gelasius void, and appointed in his place Bar- 
 dinus, who assumed the name of Gregory VIII. revoked 
 the sentence of excommunication against the emperor, 
 and confirmed his right of investiture. Gelasius, though 
 supported by the Norman princes, was obliged to take 
 refup-e in France, where he died; and the arch- 
 "'bisop of Vienna was elected in his room by the 
 cardinals then present, under the name of Calixtus II. 
 
 Calixtus attempted an accommodation with Henry ; 
 which not succeeding, he called a council, and again ex- 
 communicated the emperor, the anti-pope, and 
 A. 15. I 'their adherents. He next set out for Rome, 
 where he was honourably received, and Gregory VIII. 
 retired to Sutri, a strong toiv'u, garrisoned by the 
 
 emperor's 
 
LET. XXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 227 
 
 eropcror's troops. They were not, however, able to pro- 
 tect him from the fury of his rival. Calixtus, assisted 
 by the Norman princes, besieged Sutri ; and the inhabit- 
 ants, afraid of the consequences, delivered up Gregory, 
 who was mounted, by his competitor, upon a camel, with 
 his face towards the tail, and conducted through the 
 streets of R ome, amid the scoffs and insult of the 
 populace, as a prelude to his confmement for life^". 
 
 In the mean time the states of the empire, quite tired 
 with this long quarrel between the popes and the em- 
 perors, unanimously supplicated Henry for peace. He 
 referred himself entirely to their decision : and a diet 
 
 being assembled at Worms, it was decreed, ^ ^ ^^ 
 
 ° . . A.D. 1 122. 
 
 that an embassy should immediately be sent* 
 
 to the pope, desiring that he would convoke a general 
 council at Rome, by which all disputes might be deter- 
 mined. Calixtus accordingly called the famous council, 
 which was opened during Lent, and at which were present 
 three hundred bishops, and about seven hundred abbots. 
 The imperial ambassadors being heard before this 
 grand assembly, the affair of investitures was at length 
 settled, with their consent, on the following conditions: — 
 " That, for the future, the bishops and abbots shall be 
 " chosen by the monks and cannons ; but that this elec- 
 *' tion shall be made in presence of the emperor, or 
 " of an ambassador appointed by him for that purpose : 
 " that, in case a dispute arise among the electors, the 
 " decision of it shall be left to the emperor, who is to 
 " consult with the bishops on that subject ; that the 
 " bishop or abbot elect shall take an oath of allegiance to 
 " the emperor, receive from his hand the regalia^ and 
 " do homage for them ; that the emperors shall no longer 
 " confer the regalia by the ceremony of the ring and 
 *' cros/er, which are the cnsig7is of a ghostly dignity, but 
 '^ by that of the sceptre, as more proper to invest the 
 
 37. Dithmar. HUt. Bdl. inicr h: p et Sacerdot, 
 
 " person 
 
228 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 *' person elected in the possession of rights znd privileges 
 " merely temporal''".^'' 
 
 Thus, in substituting the sceptre for the ri?ig and 
 crosier, ended one of the most bloody quarrels that ever 
 desolated Christendom. But, as no mention had been 
 made in this accommodation, of the emperor's right to 
 create popes, or to intermeddle in their election, Calix- 
 ^ ^ tus was no sooner dead than the cardinals, 
 
 A D. 1 IS-i 
 
 'clergy, and people of Rome, without the par- 
 ticipation of Henrv', proceeded to a new election, which 
 was carried on with so much disorder, that two persons 
 were elected at the same time ; Theobald, called Celestin, 
 and Lambert, bishop of Ostia, who assumed the name of 
 Honorius II. Honorius was confirmed in the papacy, 
 on the voluntary resignation of his competitor. 
 
 Henry died at Utrecht a few years after his accom- 
 modation with Rome. He was a wise, politic, 
 *and, resolute prince ; and exclusive of his un- 
 natural behaviour to his father, was worthy of the impe- 
 rial throne. He married Maud, or Matilda, daughter of 
 Henrv I. king of England, by whom he had no children; 
 so that the empire was left without a head. — But a 
 variet)' of objects demand your attention, before I cany 
 farther the affairs of Germany. 
 
 o8. Padre Paolo, ubi sub. Schilter de Ubertat. Xceles. German, lib. iv 
 
 LETTER 
 
LET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. TZ9 
 
 LETTER XXIII. 
 
 ENGLAND, FROM THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS, TO THF DF.ATH 
 OF HENRY I. 
 
 X OU have already, my dear Philip, seen William, 
 duke of Normandy, victorious at Hastings. Nothing 
 could exceed the astonishment of the English nation, 
 when made acquainted with the issue of that 
 * unfortunate battle — with the death of their 
 king, and the slaughter of their principal nobility. And 
 William, in order to terminate an enterprise, which he 
 knew celerity and vigour only could render finally suc- 
 cessful, instantly put his army in motion, and advanced 
 by forced marches to London. His approach increased 
 the general alarm, and the divisions already prevalent in 
 the English councils. The superior clergy, who even 
 then were mostly French or Normans, began to declare in 
 his favour ; and the pope's bull, by which his undertaking 
 was avowed and consecrated, was now offered as a rea- 
 son for general submission. 
 
 Other causes rendered it difficult for the English 
 nation, destitute as it was of a head, to defend their liber- 
 ties in this critical emergency. The body of thepeople 
 had, in a great measure, lost their ancient pride and 
 independent spirit, by their recent and long subjection to 
 the Danes ; and as Canute had, In the course of his 
 administration, much abated the rigours of conquest, and 
 governed them equitably by their own laws, they regarded 
 with less terror a foreign sovereign ; and deemed the in- 
 conveniencies of admitting the pretensions of William 
 lessdreadful than those of bloodshed, war,and resistance. 
 A repulse, which a party of Londoners received from 
 five hundred Norman horse, renewed the terror of the 
 great defeat at Hastings : the easy submission of all the 
 inhabitants of Kent, was an additional discouragement to 
 them ; and the burning of Soulhv/ark before their eves, 
 
 made 
 
S50 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 made the citizens of London dread a like fate for their 
 capital. Few men longer entertained any thoughts but 
 of immediate safety and self-preservation. 
 
 Stigand, archbishop of Canterbury, met the conqueror 
 at Barkhamstead, and, made submissions to him: and be- 
 fore he reached London, all the chief nobility, withthe 
 weak Edgar Atheling, their lawful but deservedly neg- 
 lected prince, came into William's camp, and declared 
 their intention of yielding to his authority. They request- 
 ed him to accept the crown, which they now considered 
 as vacant; and orders were immediately issued to prepare, 
 every thing for the ceremony of his coronation. It was 
 accordingly performed in Westminster-abbey^ in presence 
 of the most considerable nobility and gentry, both Eng- 
 lish and Norman, with seeming satisfaction . This ap- 
 pearance of satisfaction, on the part of the former, if it 
 contained any sincerity, must have been the effect of the 
 conciliating manner in which the coronation ceremony 
 was conducted. The duke of Normandy took the usual 
 oath administered to the Anglo-Saxon kings at their 
 inauguration ; namely, *' to preserve inviolate the con- 
 *' stitution, and govern according to the laws," before 
 the crown was placed upon his head, and after the con- 
 sent of all present had been asked and obtained'. 
 
 William thus possessed of the throne, by a pretend- 
 ,^^^ ed will of king Edward, and an irregular 
 
 A. D 1067 o ' o 
 
 election of the people, abetted by force of 
 arms, retired to Barking in Essex; where he received 
 
 1. Gul. Pictav. Ordei-ic Vital. 
 
 2. Ibid. Aware that such an oath would be demanded, and conscious 
 that he must either violate it or relinquish the right of conquest, William 
 is said to have hesitated whether he should accept the offer of the English 
 crown fiom the nobility and clergy, or owe it solely to the sword. Rut 
 his most experienced captains advised him to moderatij his ambition ; sen- 
 sible that the people of England, when they saw they had to contend for 
 their free constitution, and not merely for the person who should adminis. 
 tcr their government, would fight with double fury (Gul. Pictav.) when 
 they found that their dearest interests, their liberty and property wer^ 
 at stake. 
 
 the 
 
,LET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 231 
 
 the submissions of all the nobility, who had not attended 
 his coronation, and whom he generally confirmed in the 
 possession of their lands and dignities, forfeiting only 
 the estates of Harold, and those of his most active 
 adherents. Every thing v/ore the appearance of peace 
 and tranquillity. The new sovereign seemed solicitous to 
 unite, in an amicable manner, the English and Normans, 
 by intermarriages and alliances ; and all his subjects, 
 who approached his person, were received with affa- 
 bility and respect. No signs of suspicion appeared evea 
 in regard to Edgar Atheling, the natural heir to the 
 crown. On the contrary, the king confirmed him in the 
 honours of earl of Oxford, conferred on him by Harold, 
 and affected on all occasions to treat him with the greatest 
 kindness, as nephew to the Confessor, his friend and 
 benefactor. He dso confirmed the liberties and immu- 
 nities of London, and all the other cities of England j 
 and seemed, in a word, desirous of resting every thing 
 on ancient foundations. In his whole administration he 
 bore the semblance of the lawful prince, not of the con- 
 queror ; so that the English began to flatter themselves 
 they had only changed the succession of their sovereigns, 
 a matter which gave them Itttle concern, without injury to 
 the form of their government. 
 
 But William, notwithstanding this seeming confidence 
 and friendship, which he expressed for his English sub- 
 jects, took care to place all real power in the hands of 
 the Normans, and still to keep possession of that sword 
 to which he eventually owed his crown. He every where 
 disarmed the inhabitants: he built fortresses in all the 
 principal cities, where he quartered Norman soldiers: 
 he bestowed the forfeited estates on the most powerful 
 of his captains, and he established funds for the payment 
 of his troops. While his civil administration wore the 
 face of the legal magistrate, his military isstitutions wore 
 that of a master and a tyrant. And, by this mixture of 
 rigour and lenity, he so subdued and composed the minds 
 
 of 
 
232 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 of the people of England, that he ventured to visit his 
 native country within six months after he had left it^ 
 
 Various reasons have been assigned by historians for 
 this extraordinary journey; for extraordinary it certainly 
 was in William, as Normandy remained in perfect tran- 
 quillity, to absent himself so soon after the submission 
 of a great, warlike, and turbulent nation. Some have 
 ascribed it to ostentatious vanity, which made him im- 
 patient to display his pomp and magnificence among his 
 ancient courtiers; while others, supposing him incapable 
 of such weakness, affirm, that in this step, anparently 
 so extravagant, he was guided by a concealed policy; 
 that finding he could neither satisfy his rapacious captains, 
 nor secure his unstable government, without seizing the 
 possessions of the English nobility and gentry, he left 
 them to the mercy of an insolent and licentious army in 
 order to try their spirit, to provoke them to rebellion, 
 and to give a colour to his intended usurpations. For 
 my own part, I can see no reason why William, solid 
 as his genius was, may not have been influenced by both 
 these motives in undertaking his journey to Normandy. 
 But, whatever was the cause, the effect is certain j the 
 English nobility and gentry revolted in consequence of 
 the king's absence; and he thenceforth either embraced, 
 or was more fully confirmed in the resolution of seizing 
 their lands, and of reducing them to the most abject 
 condition. 
 
 But although the natural violence and austerity of 
 "William's temper made him incapable of feeling any 
 scruples in the execution of his tyrannical purpose, he 
 had art enough to conceal his intention, and still to 
 preserve some appearance of justice in his oppressions. 
 He was prevailed on to pardon the rebels, who submit- 
 ted themselves to his mercy ; and he order- 
 A. D. 1068. ^^^ ^^^ ^.g English subjects, who had been 
 arbitrarily expelled by the Normans during his absence, 
 
 3. Ibid. 
 
 tQ 
 
tET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. SS8 
 
 to be restored to their possessions. The public discon- 
 tents, however, daily increased; and the injuries com- 
 mitted and suffered on both sides, rendered the quarrel 
 betv/een the victors and vanquished, mortal. The inso- 
 lence of imperious masters, dispersed throughout the 
 kingdom, seemed intolerable to the natives, who took 
 every opportunity to gratify their vengeance by the 
 private slaughter of their enemies. Meanwhile an 
 insurrection in the northern counties drew general 
 attention, and seemed big with the most important 
 events. 
 
 Edwin and Morcar, the potent earls of Mercla and 
 Northumberland, were the conductors of this attempt 
 to shake off the Norman yoke. And these warlike 
 noblemen, before they took arms, had stipulated for 
 aid from Blethin, prince of North-Wales, Malcolm, 
 king of Scotland, and Sweyn, king of Denmark. Aware 
 of the importance of celerity in crushing a rebellion, 
 supported by such powerful leaders, and in a cause so 
 agreeable to the wishes of the body of the people, Wil- 
 liam, who had always his troops in readiness, marched 
 noi'thward with speed ; and reached York before the 
 hostile chieftains were prepared for action, or had 
 received any succours, except a small reinforcement 
 from Wales. Edwin and Morcar, therefore, found it 
 necessary to have recourse to the clemency of the king: 
 and their adherents, thus deserted, were unable to 
 make any resistance. But the treatment of the chief- 
 tains and their followers, after submission, was very 
 different. William observed religiously the terms-grant- 
 ed to the former, and allowed them for the present to 
 keep possession of their estates; but he extended the 
 rigour of his confiscations over the latter, and gave 
 away their lands to his foreign adventurers, whom 
 he planted through the whole country\ 
 
 4. Orderic Vital. Sim. D«n«Iin. 
 
 VOL. I. w m The 
 
234 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 The English were now convinced their final subjec- 
 tion was intended; and that, instead of a legal sove- 
 reign, whom they had at first hoped to gain by their 
 prompt submission, they had unwisely surrendered 
 themselves to a master and a tyrant. The early confis- 
 cation of the estates of Harold's followers seemed ini- 
 quitous, as the proprietors had never sworn fealty to 
 the duke of Normandy, and fought only in defence of 
 the government which they themselves had established 
 in their own country. Yet that rigour, how contrary 
 soever to the spirit of the Anglo-Saxon laws, was ex- 
 cused on account of the urgent necessities of the victor: 
 and they who were not involved in those forfeitures, 
 hoped to enjoy unmolested their possessions and their 
 dignities. But the subsequent confiscation of so many 
 estates convinced them, that the Norman prince intend- 
 ed to rely solely, for the maintenance of his authority 
 on the support and affection of foreigners. And they 
 foresaw new forfeitures and attainders, to be the neces- 
 sary consequences of this destructive plan of policy. 
 
 Impressed with a sense of their dismal situation, 
 ■many Englishmen fled into foreign countries; with an 
 intention of passing their lives abroad, free from oppres- 
 sion, or of returning on a favourable opportunity, to 
 assist their friends in recovering their native liberties. 
 Edgar Atheling himself dreading the insidious caresses 
 of William, made his escape into Scotland, and carried 
 thither his two sisters Margaret and Christina. They 
 were well received by Malcolm III. then king of that 
 country, who soon after espoused Margaret, the eldest 
 sister: and, partly with a view of strengthening his 
 kingdom by the accession of so many strangers, partly 
 in hopes of employing them against the growing power 
 of William, he gave great countenance to all the English 
 exiles'. JVIany of them settled in Scotland, and there 
 laid the foundations of families, v/hich afterward m.adc 
 a figure in that kingdom. 
 
 5. M. Paris, R. Hoveden. 
 
 While 
 
LET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 235 
 
 While the people of England laboured under those 
 
 oppressions, new attempts were made for the recovery 
 
 of their liberties. Godwin, Edmond, and Magnusj 
 
 three sons of Harold, had sought a retreat in Ireland, 
 
 after the defeat at Hastings ; and having met with a 
 
 kind reception from Dtrmot, and other princes of that 
 
 island, they projected an invasion of England, and 
 
 hoped that all the exiles from Denmark, Scotland, and 
 
 Wales, assisted by forces from these several countries, 
 
 would at once commence hostilities, and rouse the 
 
 resentment of the English nation against their haughty 
 
 conquerors. They landed in Devonshire, ^^^^ 
 
 /• , I 1 r XT J A- D. 1069. 
 
 but found a body oi JNormans ready to 
 
 oppose them; and being defeated in several rencounters, 
 
 they were obliged to seek shelter in their ships, and 
 
 return with great loss into Ireland. 
 
 The struggle, however, was not yet over: all the 
 north of England was soon in arms. The Northum- 
 brians, impatient of servitude, had attacked Robert da 
 Comyn, governor of Durham, and put him and seven, 
 hundred of his adherents to death. This example ani- 
 mated the inhabitants of York, who slew Robert Fitz- 
 Richard their governor, and besieged in the castle 
 William Mallet, on whom the chief command had 
 devolved. About the same time the Danish succours 
 were landed from three hundred vessels, under the com- 
 mand of Osberne, brother to king Sweyn, accompanied, 
 by Harold and Canute, two sons of that northern mo- 
 narch. Edgar Atheling also appeared from Scotland, 
 and brought along with him a number of English noble- 
 men, who had shared his exile, and who easily excited 
 the warlike and discontented Northumbrians to a 
 general insurrection. 
 
 In order more effectually to provide for the de- 
 fence of the citadel of York, Mallet set fire to some 
 neighbouring houses. But that expedient proved fatal 
 to himself, and to every man under his command. The 
 flames spreading into the adjacent streets, reduced the 
 
 whole 
 
230 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 whole city to ashes; and the enraged inhabitants, aided 
 by the Danes, took advantage of the confusion to 
 attack the fortress, which they carried by assault, and 
 put the garrison, amounting to three thousand men, to 
 the sword. This success served as a signal of revolt 
 to many other parts of the kingdom. The English every- 
 where repenting of their former too easy submission, 
 seemed determined to make one great effort for the 
 recovery of their liberty and the expulsion of their 
 oppressors'^. 
 
 Undismayed amid that scene of confusion, William: 
 assembled his forces, and animating them by the pros- 
 pect of new confiscations and forfeitures, marched 
 against the insurgents in the north, whom he consi- 
 dered as most formidable. Not chusing, however, to 
 trust entirely to force, he endeavoured to weaken the 
 rebels, by detaching the Danes from them. And he 
 accordingly prevailed upon Osberne, by large presents^ 
 and the liberty of plundering the sea-coast, to desert 
 his engagements. Many English noblemen in despair, 
 followed the unworthy example, made submissions to 
 the conqueror^ aud were taken into favour. Malcolm, 
 the Scottish king^ coming too late to support his con- 
 federates, was obliged to retire ; so that the Normans 
 
 „ ^^^ found themselves once more undisputed mas- 
 ». A. loro. r 1 1 • 1 1- , A , 1- 
 
 tcrs oi tiie kingdom. Edgar Athehng and 
 
 his followers again sought an asylum in Scotland; but 
 despairing of success, and weary of a fugitive life, that 
 prince afterwards submitted to his enemy, and was 
 permitted to live unmolested in England'. 
 
 William's seeming clemency, however, proceeded 
 only from political considerations, or from his esteem of 
 individuals: his heart was hardened against all compas- 
 sion toward the English as a people ; and he scrupled no 
 measure, how violent soever, which seemed requisite to 
 support his plan of tyrannical administration. Acquainted 
 
 6. Ord. Vital. Gu!. Gcmet. Sim. Dunelm. 7. Gul, Gernet. R, Hove- 
 i9i\. 
 
 with 
 
f. 
 
 ET. xxiii.] MODERN EUROPE. 237 
 
 with the restless disposition of the Northumbrians, who 
 had begun the revolt, and determined to incapacitate them 
 from ever more molesting him, he issued orders for laying- 
 waste that fertile countiy, which, to the extent of sixty 
 miles, lies between the Humber and the Tees^. The 
 houses were reduced to ashes by the unfeeling Normans; 
 the cattle were seized and driven away ; the instruments 
 of husbandry were destroyed ; and the inhabitants were 
 compelled either to seek a subsistence in the southern 
 parts of Scotland, or to perish miserably in the woods 
 from cold and hunger, which many of them chose rather 
 to do than abandon their native soil. The lives of an 
 hundred thousand persons are computed to have been 
 sacrificed to this stroke of barbarous policy'', which, by 
 seeking a remedy for a temporary evil, inflicted a lasting 
 wound on the power and populousness of the nation. 
 
 But William was now determined to proceed to ex- 
 tremities against all the natives of England, and to reduce 
 them to a condition in which they should be no longer 
 formidable to his government. The insurrections and 
 conspiracies, in different parts of the kingdom, had in- 
 volved the bulk of the landholders, more or less, in the 
 guilt of treason; and the king took advantage of executing 
 against them, with the utmost rigour, the laws of forfei- 
 ture and attainder. Their lives were commonly spared, 
 but their estates were confiscated, and cither annexed to 
 the royal domain, or conferred, with the most profuse 
 bounty, on the Normans and other foreigners. Against 
 a people thus devoted to destruction, any suspicion served 
 as the most undoubted proof of guilt. It was crime suf- 
 ficient in an Englishman to be opulent, noble, or power- 
 ful: and the policy of the king concurring with the 
 rapacity of needy adventurers, produced an almost total 
 revolution in the landed property of the kingdom. An- 
 cient and honourable families were reduced to beggary. 
 The nobles were every where treated with ignominy and 
 
 6. Chron. Zax. W. Malmes. R. Hoveden. M. Paris. Sim. Dunelm. 
 5. Order. Vital. 
 
 contempt: 
 
238 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 contempt : they had the mortification to see their castles 
 and manors possessed by Normans of the meanest con- 
 dition, and to find themselves excluded from every road 
 that led either to riches or preferment ,q. 
 
 Power naturally follows property. This change of 
 landholders alone, therefore, gave great security to the 
 Norman government. But William also took care, by 
 the new institutions that he established, to retain forever 
 the military authority in those hands which had enabled 
 him to acquire the kingdom. He introduced into England 
 the feudal polity, which he found established in France 
 and Normandy ; and which, during that age, was the 
 foundation both of the stability and of the disorders in 
 most of the monarchical governments of Europe. He 
 divided all the lands of England, with few exceptions, 
 beside the royal domain, into baronies; and he conferred 
 these, with the reservation of stated services and pay- 
 ments, on the most considerable of his followers. The 
 barons, who held immediately of the crown, shared out 
 part of their lands to other foreigners, who were denomi- 
 nated knights or vassals, and Avho paid their lord the same 
 duty and submission, in peace and war, which he owed 
 to his sovereign. None of the native English were admit- 
 ted into the first rank: the few, who retained any landed 
 property, were therefore glad to be received into the 
 second ; and, under the protection of some powerful 
 Norman, to load themselves and their posterity with a 
 grievous servitude, for estates which had been trans- 
 mitted free to them from their ancestors". 
 
 10. M. West Order. Vital. 
 
 11. M. West. M. Paris. Bracton, lib. i. cap. 11. Fleta, lib. i. cap* 
 8. The proprietors of land, under the Anglo-Saxon princes, were on// 
 subjected to three obligations; namely, to attend the king with their fol_ 
 lowers in military expeditions, to assist in building or defending the royal 
 castles, and to keep the highways and bridges in a proper state of repair 
 (Hickesi, Dhsertat. Spelman, Editjuicc,) emphatically called the three 
 rvccisitjes, as they certainly Aveie in a government without regular troops, 
 ai;d almost without revenue. 
 
 William's 
 
# 
 
 1.ET. xxiii.J MODERN EUROPE. 239 
 
 William's next regulations regarded the church. He 
 deposed Stigand, the primate, and several other English 
 bishops, by the assistance of Ermonfroy, the pope's 
 legate ; and as it was a fixed maxim in this reign, as well as 
 in some of the subsequent, that no native of the island 
 should ever be advanced to any dignity, ecclesiastical, 
 civil, or military, the king promoted Lanfranc, a Milan- 
 ese monk, to the see of Canterbury. That prelate profes- 
 sed the most devoted attachment to Rome, which thence- 
 forth daily increased in England, tmd became very 
 dangerous to some of William's successors; but the 
 arbitrary power of the Conqueror over the English, and 
 his extensive authority over the Normans, kept him from 
 feeling any inconveniencles from it. He retained the clei-- 
 gy in great subjection, as well as his lay subjects, and 
 would allow no person of any condition or character to 
 dispute his absolute will and pleasure. None of his minis- 
 ters or barons, whatever might be their offences, could be 
 subjected to spiritual censures, until his consent was 
 obtained. He prohibited his people to acknowledge any 
 one for pope, whom he himself had not received; and he 
 ordered, that all ecclesiastical canons, voted in any synod, 
 should be submitted to him, and ratified by his autho- 
 rity, before they could be valid. Even bulls or letters 
 from Rome, before they were produced, must receive 
 the same sanction. And when the imperious^ Gregory 
 VII. whom we have seen tyrannizing over kings and 
 emperors, wrote to this monarch, requiring him to fulfil 
 his promise of doing homage for the kingdom of England 
 to the see of Rome, and to send him over that tribute 
 which his predecessors had been accustomed to pay to the 
 vicar of Christ (meaning Peter'' s Pence, a charitable dona- 
 tion of the Saxon princes, which the court of Rome, as 
 usual, was inclined to construe into a badge of subjection 
 acknowledged by the kingdom), William coolly replied, 
 that the money should be remitted as formerly, but that 
 he neither had promised to do homage to Rome, nor 
 entertained any thoughts of imposing that servitude on 
 
 his 
 
340 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 his kingdom. Nay, he vrent so far as to refuse the En- 
 glish bishops liberty to attend a general council, which 
 Gregory had summoned against his enemies'^. 
 
 The following anecdote shews, in a still stronger 
 light, the contempt of this prince for ecclesiastical 
 dominion. Odo, bishop of Bayeux, the king's mater- 
 nal brother, whom he had created earl of Kent, and 
 entrusted with a great share of power, had amassed 
 immense riches; and, agreeable to the usual progress 
 of human wishes, he began to regard his present emi- 
 nence as only a step to future grandeur. He aspired 
 at nothing less than the papacy, and had resolved to 
 transmit all his wealth to Italy, and go thither in person, 
 accompanied by several noblemen, whom he had per- 
 suaded to follow his example, in hopes of establishments 
 Tinder the future pope. William, from whom this pro- 
 ject had been carefully concealed, was no sooner inform- 
 ed of it than he accused Odo of treason, and ordered 
 him to be arrested; but nobody would lay hands on the 
 bishop. The king himself was therefore obliged to 
 sei^e him; and when Odo insisted, that, as a prelate, 
 he was exempted from all temporal jurisdiction, Wil- 
 liam boldly replied, " I arrest not the bishop ; I arrest 
 " the earl 1" and accordingly sent him prisoner into Nor- 
 mandy, where he was detained in custody, during this 
 v/hole reign, notwithstanding the remonstrances and 
 menaces of Gregory' 3. 
 
 But the English had the cruel mortification to find, 
 that their king's authority, how worthy soever of a 
 sovereign, all tended to their oppression, or to perpe- 
 tuate their subjection. William had even entertained 
 the difficult project of totally abolishing their language. 
 He ordered the English youth to be instructed in the 
 French tongue, in all the schools throughout the king- 
 dom. The pleadings in the supreme couits of judica- 
 ture were in French: the deeds were often drawn in 
 tlie same language ; the laws were composed in that 
 
 •32/%. Jjvra. Eadmer. Iiigulph. Order. Vital. 13. Ibid. 
 
 idiom 
 
^lET. xxiii.] MODERN EUROPE. 241 
 
 idiom. No other tongue was used at court: it became 
 the language of all fashionable societies; and the natives 
 themselves affected to excel in it'4. To this attempt 
 of the Conqueror, and to the foreign dominions so long 
 annexed to the crown of England, we owe that predomi- 
 nating mixture of French at present to be found in our 
 language. 
 
 While William was thus Avantonly exercising his 
 tyranny over England, his foreign affairs lell into dis- 
 order; and the English had aii opportunity of at once 
 recovering their military character, and cf taking ven- 
 geance on part of their foreign oppressors. Fulk, count 
 of Anjou, had seized on the province of Maine, which 
 had fallen under the dominion of the duke of Normandy, 
 
 by the will of Herbert, the last count. But ^^^ , 
 
 ,:'.„. , , . f , . , A. D. 1073. 
 
 William, by the assistance ot his new sub- 
 jects, soon obliged the inhabitants, who had revolted, 
 to return to their duty, and the count of Anjou to 
 renounce his pretensions'''. 
 
 The king now passed some years in Normandy; 
 where his presence was become necessary on account 
 of the turbulent disposition of his son Robert, wht' 
 openly aspired at independency, and claim 
 ed the duchies of Normandy and Main, du- 
 ring his father's life-time. William gave him a positive 
 refusal, repeating that homely saying, that he never 
 intended to throw off his clothes till he went to bed. 
 He accordingly called over an army of Englishmen, 
 under his ancient captains, who bravely expelled Robert 
 and his adherents. The prince took shelter in the 
 castle of Gerberoy in the Beauvoisin, which the king 
 of France, who secretly favoured his pretensions, had 
 provided for him. In this fortress he was closely be- 
 sieged by his father, against whom he made a gallant de- 
 fence : under the walls of that place many rencounters 
 passed, which resembled more the single combats of 
 
 14. Chron. Eothum. Ingulph. Hist, p 71. Hume, Hist. Eng. vol. j. 
 Warton, Hist. Eng. Foctrjf, val. i. 15. Caran. Sate, Order, Vital. 
 VOL. I. j« a chivalry. 
 
342 THE HISTORY OF [part i^ 
 
 chivalry, than the military operations of armies. One 
 of these was too remarkable, by its circumstances and its 
 
 event, to be omitted. Robert happened to en- 
 
 A. D. 1079. , 1 . 1 . • 1 J I u- 
 
 counter the kmg; who bemg concealed by his 
 
 helmet, a fierce combat ensued. But at last the prince 
 ■wounded his father in the arm, and threw him from his 
 horse ; when calling for assistance, his voice discovered 
 him to his son ; who, struck with a sense of remorse, 
 duty, and the dread of greater guilt, instantly flung him- 
 self at the feet of his king and father, craved pardon for 
 his offences, and offered to purchase forgiveness by any 
 atonement. A return of kindness, however, did not 
 immediately ensue. William's military pride was wound- 
 ed, and his resentment was too obstinate at once to yield; 
 but a reconciliation was soon brought about by the inter- 
 position of the queen, and other common friends'^. 
 
 The peaceable state of William's affairs now gave him 
 leisure to finish an undertaking which proves his great 
 and extensive genius, and does honour to his memory. 
 It was a general survey of all the lands of England; their 
 extent in each district, their proprietors, te- ^ ^ 
 nures, value ; the quantity of meadow, pasture, 
 wood, and arable land, which they contained ; and, in 
 some counties, the number of tenants, cottagers, and 
 slaves of all denominations, who lived upon them. This 
 valuable piece of antiquity, called the Doomsday-book, 
 is still preserved in the exchequer, and helps to illustrate 
 to us the ancient state of England. 
 
 William, like all the Normans, was much attached to 
 the manly amusement of hunting: and his passion for this 
 amusement he cruelly indulged at the expense of his un- 
 happy subjects. Not contented with those large forests, 
 which the Saxon kings possessed in all parts of Eng- 
 land, he resolved to make a new forest near Winchester, 
 the usual place of his residence. Accordingly, for that 
 purpose, he laid waste the country for an extent of thirty 
 
 , 16. R. Hoveden. M. Paris. Order. Vital. 
 
 miles, 
 
LET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 24S 
 
 miles, In Hampshire, expelling the inhabitants from their 
 houses, seizing their property, and demolishing churches 
 and convents, without making the sufFerei's any compen- 
 sation for the injury^/. He also increased the rigour of 
 the game-laws, now become so grievous. 
 
 This monarch's death was occasioned by a quarrel 
 not altogether worthy of his life. A witticism gave rise 
 to war. William, who was become corpulent, had been 
 detained in bed some time by sickness, while in Norman- 
 dy ; a circumstance which gave Philip I. of France oc- 
 casion to say, with that vivacity natural to his country, 
 that he was surprised his brother of England should be 
 so long in being delivered of his big belly. William, 
 enraged at this levity, swore, *' by the brightness and 
 *' resurrection of God !" his usual oath, That, as soon 
 as he got up, he would present so many lights at Notre 
 
 Dame, as would give little pleasure to the ,_ „ 
 
 1 • r T- 11 1- V 1 A. D. 1086. 
 
 kmg or Trance ; alludmg to the usual prac- 
 tice, at that time, of carrying a torch to church after 
 child-birth. Accordingly, on his recovery, he led an 
 army into the Isle of France, and laid every thing waste 
 with fire and sword. But the progress of these hostilities 
 was stopt, by an accident which put an end to the Eng- 
 lish monarch's life. His horse suddenly starting aside, 
 he bruised his belly on the pummel of his saddle : and 
 this bruise, joined to his former bad habit of < •< 
 
 body, brought on a mortification, of which 
 he died, in the sixty-third of his age^^. He left Nor- 
 mandy and Maine to his eldest son, Robert: he wrote 
 to Lanfranc, desiring him to crown William king of 
 England ; and he bequeathed to Henry, the youngest of 
 the three, the possessions of his mother Matilda. 
 
 The characters of princes are best seen in their 
 actions : I shall, however, give you a concise character 
 of the Conqueror; for such he ultimately proved, though 
 little more than a conditional sovereign when he f.rst 
 
 17. Gul. Malmes. H. Hunting. Jngiia Sacra, vol, i, IB. M. Paris 
 M. Westminst. Order. Vital. 
 
 received 
 
244 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 received the submissions of the English nation'^ The 
 spirit of William I. says a philosophic historian, was 
 bold and enterprizing, j-et guided by prudence ; and 
 his exorbitant ambition, which lay little under the re- 
 straints oi justice, and still less under those of humanity, 
 ever submitted to the dictates of reason and sound 
 policy. Though not insensible to generosity, he was 
 hardrned against compassion; and he seemed equally 
 ostentatious, and ambitious of eclat, in his clemency and 
 in his vengeance. 
 
 William II. surnamed Rufus, or the Red, from the 
 colour of his hair, was instantly crowned king of Eng- 
 land, in consequence of his father's recommendatory 
 letters to Lanfranc, the primate; and Robert at the same 
 time took peaceable possession of Normandy. 
 
 But this partition of the Conqueror's dominions, 
 though apparently made without any violence or opposi- 
 tion, occasioned in England many discontents, which 
 seemed to promise a sudden revolution. The Norman 
 barons, who generally possessed large estates both in 
 England and their own country, were uneasy at the 
 separation of those territories, and foresaw that as it 
 would be impossible for them to preserve long their alle- 
 giance to two masters, they must necessarily resign their 
 ancient property or their new acquisitions. Robert's 
 title to Normandy they esteemed incontestable; his claim 
 to England they thought plausible; and they all desired 
 that this prince, who alone had any pretensions to unite 
 
 19. William acted so luiiformly like a conqueror, that, before the end 
 of his reign, there was not left one English, who was either earl, 
 baron, bishop, or abbot. (Gul. Malmes. lib. iv. H. Hunt. lib. vii.) No 
 revolution, ancient or modern, was ever, perhaps, attended with so com- 
 plete and sudden a change of power and property, as that accomplished 
 by the duke of Normandy. Nor was the administration of any prince 
 ever more absolute than that of William I. though the government which 
 he established was by no means a despotism, but a feudal monarchy, as 
 has been alreaay shewn. 
 
 the 
 
J.ET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 2-15 
 
 the duchy and kingdom, might be put in possession of 
 both-". 
 
 A comparison between the personal qualities of the 
 two princes, also led the malecontents to prefer the elder. 
 Robert was brave, open, sincere, generous; whereas 
 William, though not less brave than his brother, was 
 violent, haughty, tyrannical, and seemed disposed to 
 govern more by fear than the love of his people. Odo, 
 bishop of Baieux, who had been released from 
 
 . ^ 1 J 1 r 1 i- r A. D. 1088. 
 
 pnson on the death ot the Conqueror, eniorc- 
 ed all these motives with the dissatisfied barons, and 
 engaged many of them in a formal conspiracy to dethrone 
 the king. 
 
 Expecting immediate support from Normandy, the 
 conspirators hastened to put themselves in a military 
 posture: and William, sensible of his perilous situation, 
 endeavoured to provide against the threatened danger by 
 gaining the affections of the native English; who zealously 
 embraced his cause, upon receivir.g some general pro- 
 mises of good treatment, and leave to hunt in the royal 
 forests, having now lost all hopes of recovering their 
 
 ancient liberties. By their assistance the 
 
 1 • ui 1 11 1 . 1 I A. D. 1089. 
 
 kmg was enabled to subdue the rebels: but 
 
 the Norman barons, who had remained faithful to him, 
 only were the gainers. He paid i:o regard to the pro- 
 mises made to his English subjects, who still found 
 themselves exposed to the same oppressions which they 
 had experienced during the reign of the Conqueror, and 
 which were augmented by the tyrannical temper of the 
 present monarch^'. Even the privileges of the church, 
 which were held so sacred in those days, formed but a 
 feeble rampart against the usurpations of William; yet 
 
 20. Orderic Vital. 
 
 21. Chron, Sax. Gul, Malmes. lib. iv. The application of William, 
 however, and the service they had rendered him, made the natives sensi- 
 ble of their importance by reason of their numbers : and tliey gradually 
 recovered their consequence in the course of the struggles between the king 
 and the nobles. 
 
 the 
 
S46 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 the terror of his authority, confirmed by the suppression 
 of the late insurrections, kept every one in subjection, 
 notwithstanding the murmurs of the clergy, and preserved 
 general tranquillity in England. 
 
 William even thought himself sufficiently powerful 
 to disturb his brother in the possession of Normandy, 
 and bribed several Norman barons to favour his unjust 
 claim. The duke had also reason to apprehend danger 
 from the intrigues of his brother Henry, who inherited 
 more of his father's money than his possessions, and had 
 furnished Robert, during his preparations against Eng- 
 land with the sum of three thousand marks; in return 
 for which slender supply, he had been put in possession 
 of the Cotentin, almost one-third of the duke's dominions. 
 But these two brothers, notwithstanding their mutual 
 
 iealousies, now united, in order to defend 
 
 •', . .' . . ' , , . . f , A. D. 1090. 
 
 their territories agamst the ambition oi the 
 
 king of England, who appeared in Normandy at the head 
 of a numerous army : and affairs seemed to be hastening 
 to extremity, when an accommodation was brought about 
 by the interposition of the nobility. 
 
 Prince Henry, however, disgusted at the terms of 
 that agreement, in which he thought himself treated with 
 neglect, retired to St. Michael's Mount, a strong fortress 
 on the coast of Normandy, and infested the neighbour- 
 ing country with his incursions. Robert and William, 
 his two brothers, besieged him in this place, and had 
 nearly obliged him to surrender by reason of the scarcity 
 of water: when the elder, hearing of his brother's dis- 
 tress, granted him permission to obtain a supply, and also 
 sent him some pipes of wine from his own table; a con- 
 duct which could only have been dictated by the generous 
 but romantic spirit of chivalry that prevailed in those 
 times, and with which the duke was strongly infected. 
 Being reproved by William for his imprudent generosity, 
 Robert replied, " What ! shall I suffer my brother to 
 
 " die of thirst? Where shall we find another brother 
 
 *' when he is gone ?" 
 
 William 
 
JLET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. S4f 
 
 William, during this siege, also performed an act of 
 generosity less suited to his character. Ridingout alone to 
 survey the fortress, he was attacked by two soldiers, and 
 dismounted. One of the soldiers drew his sword, in 
 order to dispatch the king. " Hold knave I" cried Wil- 
 liam, " I am the king of England." The soldier sus- 
 pended his blow, and raised the king from the ground ; 
 who, charmed with the fellow's behaviour, rewarded him 
 handsomely, and took him into his service*^ 
 
 Prince Henry was at last obliged to capitulate: and 
 being despoiled of all his dominions, wandered 
 about for some time with very few attendants, 
 and often in great poverty. 
 
 In the mean time William was engaged in humbling 
 the Scots and Welsh, who had infested England with their 
 incursions during his Norman expedition. He had also 
 occasion to quell a conspiracy of his own ba- mo'T 
 
 rons, who meant to exalt to the throne Ste- 
 phen, count of Aumale, nephew to the Conqueror. But 
 the noise of these petty wars and commotions was quite 
 sunk in the tumult of the crusades, which then engaged the 
 attention of all Europe, and have since attracted the cu- 
 riosity of mankind, as the mostsingular examples of human 
 folly that were ever exhibited on the face of the globe. The 
 cause and consequences of these pious enterprises I shall 
 afterwards have occasion to consider: at present I shall 
 only speak of them as they affect the history of England. 
 Robert duke of Normandy, impelled by the bravery 
 and mistaken generosity of his spirit, had early enlisted 
 himself in the first crusade ; but being always unprovided 
 with money, he found it would be impossible for him, 
 without some supply, to appear, in a manner suitable to his 
 rank, at the head of his numerous vassals, who, transport- 
 ed with the general fury, were desirous of following hira 
 into Asia. He, therefore, resolved to mortgage, or to sell 
 
 ''€ Gnl. Malmes, tihi »up. M. Paris. R. Hoveden, 
 
 his 
 
S4« THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 his dominions, which he had not prudence to govern: and 
 
 he offered them to his brother William, who kept aloof 
 
 from all those fanatical and romantic warriors, for so small 
 
 , „„ a sum as ten thousand marks'^. The bargain 
 Jl. d. 1095. , J , , -„.„. . "^ 
 
 was concluded, and William was put in pcjsses- 
 
 sion of Normandy and Maine ; while Robert, providing 
 himself with a magnificent train, set out forthe Holy Land 
 in pursuit of glory, and in full hopes of securing his eter- 
 nal salvation. 
 
 In the mean time William, who regarded only the 
 things of this world, was engaged in a quarrel with An- 
 selm, commonly called St. Anselm, archbishop of Canter- 
 bury, a Piedmontese monk, whom he had called over in 
 a fit of remorse, and whom he wanted to deprive of his 
 see for refractory behaviour. Anselm appealed to Rome 
 against the king's injustice, and affairs came to such ex- 
 tremities, that the primate, finding it dangerous to remain 
 in the kingdom, desired permission to retire. mo? 
 
 beyond sea. It was granted him, but all his 
 temporalities were confiscated. He was nevertheless 
 received with great respect by Urban II. who considered 
 him as a martyr in the cause of religion, and even threat- 
 ened the king with the sentence of excommunication on 
 account of his proceedings against the primate^-*. 
 
 Anselm afterwards distinguished himself in the coun- 
 cil of Bari, where the famous dispute between the Greek 
 and Latin churches, relative to the procession of the third 
 person of the trinity was agitated; namely, whether the 
 Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son, or 
 
 from the Father only. He also assisted in a ^^^^« 
 
 ., „ \ • • 1 A. D. 1099. 
 
 council at Rome, where spiritual censures 
 
 were denounced against all ecclesiastics who did homage 
 
 to laymen, for their benefices, and on all laymen who 
 
 23. Our old historians are not agreed in regard to the particulars of 
 this transaction : but the ten thousand marks seem to have been paid for 
 a mortgage, or uninterrupted possession, of five years. Vide Eadmer. 
 M. Paris. Order. Vital. 
 24 Ibid. i 
 
 exacted 
 
LET. xxiii.J MODERN EUROPE. 249 
 
 exacted such homage. The arguments made use of on 
 thirt occasion, in favour of the clerg)^, are worthy of the 
 ignorance of the age, and strongly mark the gross super- 
 stition into which the human mind was sunk. 
 
 The ceremony of homage, by the feudal customs, 
 as I have had occasion to observe, was, that the vassal 
 sliould throw himself on his knees, put his hands between 
 those of Ills superior, and in that postvire swear fealty 
 to him. Churchmen had been accustomed thus to do 
 homage for their benefices. But this council declared 
 such homage inconsistent Vv'lth the dignity of the sacer- 
 dotal character, as v/ell as with the independency of the 
 church: " For," said Urban, " it is execrable, that holy 
 " hands, appointed to perform v/hat was never graiited 
 " to any angel, to create God, the creator, and offer 
 " him to God, his Father, for the salvation of mankind, 
 " should be reduced to the humiliating baseness of sla- 
 " vishly mingling with profane hands; which, besides 
 " being soiled v/ith rapine and blood-shed, are day 
 " and night employed in impure offices and obscene 
 " contacts"-''!" 
 
 The fanaticism of the times afforded the king of 
 England a second opportunity of increasing his domi- 
 nions. Poitiers and Guienne were offered to be mort- 
 gaged to him for the same pious purpose that had induced 
 his brother Robert to put him in possession of Normandy 
 and Maine. The bargain was concluded, and William 
 had prepared a fleet and army to escort the money, sti- 
 pulated as the price of his new territory, and 
 
 . A. D 1 100. 
 
 to secure the possession of it, when an ' ' 
 accident put an end to his life, and to all his ambitious 
 projects. He was engaged in hunting, the sole amuse- 
 ment, and, except war, the chief occupation of princes 
 
 25 Flemy, Hist. ILcdes. Anglia Sacra, vol. i. Eadmer. Brompton. 
 Sim. Dunelm. Eadmerius, who was present at that council, tells us, that 
 on the close of this impious speech of His holiness, all the venerable fathers 
 cried " Amen ! Amen .'" 
 
 Vol. I, GO in 
 
850 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 in those rude times, when this accident happened. Wal- 
 ter T}rrel, a French gentleman, remarkable for his 
 address in archery, attended him in that recreation, of 
 which the New-Forest was the scene; and as William 
 had dismounted after the chace, Tyrrel, impatient to 
 shew his dexterity, let fiy an arrow at a stag, which sud-. 
 denly started before him. The arrow glancing against a 
 tree, struck the king to the heart, and instantly killed 
 him; while Tyrrel, without informing any one of the 
 accident, put spurs to his horse, hastened to the sea-, 
 shore, embarked for France, and joined the crusade in 
 an expedition to the Holy Land^': a penance which he 
 imposed on himself for this involuntary crime, and which 
 was deemed sufficient to expiate crimes of the blackest 
 dye. 
 
 William II. though a man of sound understanding, 
 appears to have been a violent and tyrannical prince; a 
 perfidious, encroaching, and dangerous neighbour, and an 
 unkind and ungenerous relation. His vices, however, 
 have probably been much exaggerated by the monkish 
 writers, the only historians of those times, as he was 
 latterly void of superstition, and seemingly wanting in a 
 decent respect for religion. Of this many examples 
 might be prodi.red, but one will be sufficient. When 
 the body of the clergy presented a petition, that he would 
 give them leave to smd as a form of prayer to be used in 
 all the churches of England, " That God would move 
 " the heart of the king to appoint an archbishop!" he 
 having kept the revenues, or temporalities of the see of 
 Canterbury in his own hands almost five years, he care- 
 lessly replied, " You may pray as you please, and I will 
 " act as I please"7." Had he lived a few years longer, 
 he would greatly have enlarged his dominions; and as 
 he was the most powerful and politic prince in Europe, 
 he might perhaps have become its arbiter. He built the 
 tower, Westminster-hall, and London-bridge, monuments 
 pf his greatness, which still remain. His most liberal 
 
 26. Chron, Sax. R. Hovedcn. H. Hunt. 27. Gul. Malmes. p. 124. 
 
 col. i- 
 
 measure 
 
LET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE.* 2Sl 
 
 measure was the sending of an army into Scotland, iii 
 order to restore prince Edgar, the true htir of that 
 crown, the son of Malcohii III. surnamed Canmore, by 
 Margaret, sister of Edgar Atheling. The enterprize 
 succeeded. 
 
 Toward the latter part of this reign, IMagnus king 
 of Norway made a descent on the Isle of Anglesea, but 
 was beat off by the earl of Shrewsbury. Since that re- 
 pulse the northern nations have made no attempt against 
 England. 
 
 As William Rufus was never married, and consequently 
 could leave no lawful issue, the kingdom of England new 
 belonged to his brother Robert, both by the right of birth 
 and of solemn compact, ratified by the nobility. But as 
 prince Henry was hunting in the Nev/-Forest when the 
 king was slain, he immediately galloped to Winchester; 
 secured the royal treasure, was saluted king, and pro- 
 ceeded to the exercise of the sovereign authority. Sensi- 
 ble, however, that a crown usurped against all the rules of 
 justice would sit very unsteady on his head, Henry re- 
 solved, by fair professions at least, to gain the affections 
 of all his subjects. Besides taking the usual coronation 
 oath, to maintain the constitution, and to execute justice, 
 he passed a charter, v/hich was calculated to remedy many 
 of the grievous oppressions complained of during the 
 reign of his father and his brother; and he promised a 
 general confirmaticn and observance of the laws of Ed- 
 ward the Confessor^^. 
 
 In order farther to establish himself on the throuej 
 the king recalled archbishop Anselm, and reinstated hinn. 
 in the see of Canterbury. He also married Matilda, 
 daughter of Malcolm III. king of Scotland, and niece to 
 Edgar Atheling. And this marriage, more than any 
 other measure of his reign, tended to endear Henry to 
 his English subjects; who had felt so severely the tyranny 
 of the Normans, that they reflected with infinite regret 
 
 28. M. Paris. R. Hagulstad 
 
 on 
 
252 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 on their former liberty, and hoped for a more equal and 
 mild administration, when the blood of their native prin- 
 ces should be united with that of the new sovereigns'-^. 
 But the policy and prudence of Henry I. ran great 
 hazard of being frustrated by the sudden appearance- 
 oi his brother Robert, who returned from the Holy 
 Land about a month after the death of "William IJ^ took 
 possession of Normandy without resistance, and made 
 preparations for asserting his title to the crown of 
 England. - 
 
 The great reputation which Robert had acquired in 
 the east, favoured his pretensions; and the Norman 
 barons, still impressed with apprehensions of the conse- 
 quences of the separation of the duchy and kingdom, 
 discovered the same discontent which had appeared on 
 the accession of Rufus. Henry was, therefore, in danger 
 of being deserted by all his subjects ; and it was only 
 through the exhortations of archbishop Anselm, that 
 they were engaged to oppose Robert, who had landed 
 
 tir^i at Portsmouth. The two armies continued 
 A. D. iioi. ... ■- t -i -1 
 
 some davs in sjght ot each other without 
 
 coming to action; and by the interf osition of the same 
 prelate, an accommodation was happily brought about 
 between the brothers. 
 
 In this treaty it was agreed, That Robert should re- 
 sign his pretensions to England, and receive an annual 
 pension of three thousand marks ; that if either of the 
 princes died without issue, the other should succeed to 
 his dominions ; that the adherents of each should be par- 
 doned, and restored to all their possessions, and that nei- 
 ther the king nor the duke should thenceforth countenance 
 the enemies of each other^". But these conditions, though 
 so fuvourable to Henrv, were soon violated by his rapa^ 
 city and ambition. He restored indeed the estates of 
 Robert's adherents, but took care they should not remain 
 long in the undisturbed possession of them. Various 
 pretences were foraied for despoiling and humbling all 
 
 29. M. r;t»Is. K. Ilovedeu. 30. Chrun. Sax. Order. Vital. 
 
 who 
 
LET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 253 
 
 who, in his opinion, had either inclination or abilities to 
 disturb his government. 
 
 Enraged at the fate of his friends, Robert imprudently 
 ventured into England, but met with such a bad reception, 
 that he became alarmed for his own safety, and was glad 
 to purchase his esciq^e with the loss of his pension. One 
 indiscretion followed another. The affairs of Normandy 
 fell into confusion; Henry went over, by invitation, to 
 regulate them ; but, instead of supporting his brother's au- 
 thority, he increased the discontents by every art of bri- 
 bery, intrigue, and insinuation, and at length made himself 
 master of the duchy. The unfortunate Robert, who seem- 
 ed born only to be the snort of fortune, Avas -,-,r^a 
 ^ A. D. lluo. 
 carried prisoner into England; where he re- 
 mained in custody during the remainder of his life, v/hich 
 was no less than tv/enty-eight years; and died a captive 
 in the castle of Cardifl'in Glamorganshire^'. 
 
 The acquisition of Normandy was a great point of 
 Henry's ambition, being the ancient patrimonial inherit- 
 ance of his family, and the only territory which gave him 
 any weight or consideration on the continent. But the 
 injustice of the usurpation was the source of much inquie- 
 tude, and the jealousy of the French monarch gave rise 
 to those wars which v/ere to prove so fatal to posterity. 
 Lev/is VI. in concert with the counts of Arsjou and Flan- 
 ders, supported the claim of V/illiam, sou of Robert, to 
 the duchy of Normandv : he even craved the assistance of the 
 church for reinstating the true heir in his dominions, and 
 represented the enormity of detaining in prison so brave 
 a prince as Robert, one of the most eminent champions 
 of the Cross. But Henry knew hov/ to defend the rights 
 of his crown, with vigour, and yet with dexterity. He 
 detached the count of Anjou from the alliance, by contract- 
 ing his eldest son, William, to that prince's daughter, 
 
 31. Ar.nal. Wcirtrl. G-A. Malmec. lib, v. 
 
 while 
 
254 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 while he gained the pope and his favourites by liberal 
 
 . . .r. presents and promises. Calixtus II. who was 
 A. D. 1119. ' . „ ' J , , ^ r 
 
 then in Jb ranee, declared, alter a conrerence 
 
 with Henry, that of all men, whom he had ever seen, the 
 king of England was beyond comparison the most elo- 
 quent and persuasive^-. The complaints of the Norman 
 prince were thenceforth disregarded. 
 
 The military operations of Lewis proved as unsuc- 
 cessi\il as his intrigues. The French and English ar- 
 mies engaged near Andeley, in Normandy; where a sharp 
 action ensued, in which William, the son of Robert, be- 
 haved with great braverv. Henry himself was in emi- 
 nent danger. He was wounded in the head by a gallant 
 Norman, named Crispin, who had followed the fortunes 
 of William ; but, rather roused than intimidated by the 
 blow^, the king collected all his might, aud beat his an- 
 tagonist to the ground^^. The English, animated by the 
 example of their sovereign, put the French to total route; 
 and an accommodation soon after took place between the 
 two monarchs, in which the interests of young William 
 were entirely neglected. 
 
 But Henry's public prosperity was much overbalan- 
 ced by a domestic misfortune. His son William, who 
 
 had attained his eighteenth year, had accom- 
 A. D. 1120. ... . 
 
 panied him into Normandy, but perished in 
 
 his return, with all his retinue. The royal youth 
 
 was anxious to get first to land; and the captain of his 
 
 vessel, being intoxicated with liquor, heedlessly ran 
 
 her on a rock, where she was immediately dashed to 
 
 pieces. Beside the prince, above one hundred and forty 
 
 young noblemen, of the principal families of England 
 
 and Normandy, were lost on this occasion. The king 
 
 was so much affected by the news, that he is said never 
 
 to have smiled more^l 
 
 As prince William left no children, Henry had now no 
 
 legitimate issue, except his daughter Matilda, whom he 
 
 ..^^ had betrothed when a child to the emperor 
 
 A. D. 1 127 . . 
 
 Henry V. who also dying without children, 
 
 32. M. Paris. H. Ilunung. 33. Ibid. 34. R. Hoveden. 
 
 the 
 
LF.T. xxui.j MODERN EUROPE. 3.55 
 
 the king bestowed his daughter on Geoffrey Plantagenet, 
 the eldest son of the count of Anjou, and endeavoured 
 to secure her succession, by having her recognized heiress 
 of all his dominions; and he obliged the barons both of 
 Normandy and England to swear fealty to her. After 
 six years she was delivered of a son, who re- n oo 
 
 ceived the name of Henry; and the king, far- 
 ther to insure the succession, made all the nobility renew 
 the oath of fealty which they had already sworn to her, 
 and also to swear fealty to her infant son -'' . 
 
 The joy of this event, and the pleasure of his daugh- 
 ter's company, made Henry take up his residence in 
 Normandy: where he died in the sixty-seventh year 
 of his age and the thirty-fifth of his reign, 
 
 . A. D. lloo 
 
 leaving his daughter Matilda heiress of all 
 his dominions. He was one of the most able and accom- 
 plished princes that ever filled the English throne, pos- 
 sessing all the qualities, both mental and personal, that 
 could adorn the high station to which he attained, or fit 
 him for the government of an extensive territory. His 
 learning, which procured him the name of Beauclerc, or 
 t\\t Jine scholar, would have distinguished him in private 
 life, and his talents would have given him an ascendant 
 in any condition. 
 
 The affairs of France, my dear Philip, and the cru- 
 sades, which took their rise in that kingdom, claim your 
 attention, before I speak of the disputed succession of 
 Matilda, and of her son Henry II. commonly known by 
 the name of Plantagenet, whose reign affords some of 
 the most interesting spectacles in the History of England. 
 In the mean time it will be proper to take a slight review 
 of the change produced in our ancient constitution, and 
 in the condition of our Saxon ancestors, by the Normau 
 <:onquest or revolution. 
 
 35. Ypod. Neust. R. de Diceto. 
 
 Postcript. 
 
25t> THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 POSTSCRIPT. 
 
 THE original government of the Anglo-Saxoris, as 
 we have set'Ji, was a kind of military democracy, under a 
 hing or ciiief, wh.ose raithority Avas very limited, and 
 v.'hose ollice was not strictly hereditary, but depended 
 on the vv'ill of the people. This government ihey brought 
 into Britain v.ith them. Matters of small consequence 
 were settled by the king in council: but all affairs oi gene- 
 ral concern or national importance, the making of laws 
 the imposing of taxes, the declaring of war, were laid 
 befoiT the Wittenagemot or parliament, and determined 
 by the majority of voices, or a.t least by the prepondera- 
 tion of public opinions''. 
 
 From that assem.bly no freeman could be said to be 
 excluded; for although a certain portion of land was ne- 
 cessarv as a qualification, a husbandman or tradesman 
 no sooner acquired that portion, which was different at 
 different times of the Anglo-Saxon governments?, than 
 he had a right to be present, not only as a spectator, a 
 privilege that was common to every one, but as a con- 
 stituent member of the Wittenagemot. And all mer- 
 chants, who had made two voyages to foreign countries, 
 on their ov/n account, became possessed of the same right 
 bv a law passed in the reign of king Athelstan^"; so that 
 our Anglo-Saxon ancestors ir-ight make with truth the 
 glorious boast of modern Englishmen, that, every mem- 
 ber of the community shared with his sovereign the power 
 and authority by whicli he was governed. Little wonder, 
 therefore, that the great lines of this ennobling system oi 
 freedom, long after it was destroyed, seemed to be en- 
 gaved in their hearts, by the keen sorrow with which it 
 was 1 cjrretted! 
 
 06. SjK-lman, G'on. in I'or. Witienagemot. 
 
 27. It was originally only hve hides, but was raised by degrees as 
 liigl) as forty, 38. Wiikins, Leges Saxon. Selden, Tit. Hong. 
 
LET. XXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 257 
 
 If the Anglo-Saxons, as a nation, had reason to thuik 
 themselves happy in their deliberative and legislative, 
 they were no less so in their juridical capacity. Justice 
 was universally the care of the great body of the people: 
 and a regular chain of appeal was established from the 
 tithing or decennary, consisting of ten families, up to the 
 Wittenagemot, which was a supreme court of law, as well 
 as a national council or assembly. But the grand secu- 
 rity of justice, and even of liberty and property, was the 
 court called the Shiremote, held twice a year in every 
 county, at a stated time and place j where, along with 
 the alderman or earl of the shire, and the bishop of the dio- 
 cese, all the clergy and landholders of the country were 
 obliged to be present, and determined, by the majority 
 of voices, all causes brought before them, in whatever 
 stage of their progress; beginning with the causes of the 
 church, taking next under cognizance the pleas of the 
 crown, and lastly the disputes of private persons39. 
 
 As the duke of Normandy, by taking the usual oath 
 administered to the Anglo-Saxon kings at their coronation, 
 had solemnly engaged to maintain the constitution, and 
 to administer justice according to the laws, the English 
 nation had reason to believe ihey had merely changed their 
 native sovereign for one of foreign extraction: a matter to 
 them of small concern, as I have had occasion to observe, 
 especially as the line of succession had been already broken 
 by the usurpation or election of Harold. But although Wil- 
 liam ailected moderation for a while, and even adopted 
 some of the laws of Edward the Confessor, in order to 
 quiet the apprehensions of his new subjects, to these 
 laws he paid little regard; and no sooner did he find 
 himself firmly established on the throne, than he utterly 
 subverted the form of government, and the manner of 
 administering justice throughout the whole kingdom.. 
 The government which he substituted was a rigid feudal, 
 monarchy, or military aristocracy, in which a regular chaia, 
 
 39. Spelman. EcHqulie, Hipkcji, Dissertat. Eplst, 
 VOL. I. P p af 
 
2a« THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 of subordination and service was established, from the 
 sovereign or commander in chief, to the serf or villain ; 
 and which, like all feudal governments, was attended 
 with a grievous depression of the body of the people, 
 who were daily exposed to the insults, violences, and 
 exactions of the nobles, whose vassals they all were, and 
 from whose oppressive jurisdiction it was difficult and 
 dangerous for them to appeal. 
 
 This depression, as might be expected, was more 
 complete and humiliating in England, under the first An- 
 glo-Norman princes, than in any other feudal government. 
 William I. by his artful and tyrannical policy, by attain- 
 ders and confiscations, had become, in the course of 
 his reign, proprietor of almost all the lands in the 
 kingdom. These lands, however, he could not retain, 
 had he been even willing, in his own hands : he 
 was under the necessity of bestowing the greater part 
 of them on his Norman captains or nobles, the companions 
 of his conquest and the instruments of his tyranny, who 
 had led their own vassals to battle^^. But those grants 
 he clogged with heavy feudal services, and payments or 
 prestations, which no one dared to refuse. He was the 
 general of a victorious army, which was still obliged to 
 continue in a military posture, in order to secure the 
 possessions it had seized. And the Anglo-Norman bar- 
 ons, and tenants in capite, by knight's-service, who only- 
 held immediately of the crown, and with the dignified 
 clergy formed the national assembly, imposed obligations 
 yet more severe on their vassals, the inferior landhold- 
 ers, consisting chiefly of unhappy English gentlemen, as 
 
 40. Nothing can moi-e strongly indicate that necessity, than the follow- 
 ing anecdote. Earl Warren, when questioned, in a subsequent reign, con- 
 cerning his right to the lands he possessed, boldly drew his sword- 
 " This," said he, " is my title ! — William the Bastard did not conquer Eng- 
 " land himself: the Norman Barons, and my ancestors, among the rest, 
 " were joint adventurers in the enterprise." Dugdale, Baronage, vol. i. 
 
 well 
 
LST. xxiii.J MODERN EUROPE. 269 
 
 well as on the body of the people, for whom they seemed 
 to have no bowels of compassion4i. 
 
 41. The state of England, at the death of William the conqueror, is 
 thus described by one of our ancient historians, who was almost cotempo- 
 rary with that prince. " The Normans, had now fully executed the 
 " wrath of heaven upon the English. There was hardly one of that nation 
 " who possessed any power ; they were all involved in servitude and 
 " sorrow; insomuch, that to be called an Englishman was considered as 
 " a repromch. In those miserable times many oppressive taxes and tyranni. 
 " cal customs were introduced. The king himself, when he had let his 
 " lands at their full value, if another tenant came and offered more, and 
 * afterwards a third, and offered still more, violated all his former ficic^ 
 " tions,jLY\d gave them to him who offered most ; and the great men were 
 " injiamed with such a rage for money that they cared not by what means 
 " it WTLi acquired. The more they talked of justice, the more injuriously 
 " they acted. Those who were called justiciaries," alluding most likely 
 to the barons in their courts, " were the fountains of all iniquity. Sher- 
 " iffs and judges, whose peculiar duty it was to pi-onounce righteous 
 "judgments, were the most cruel of all tyrants, and greater plunderers than 
 •' common thieves and robbers.'^ (Hen. Hunting, lib. viii.) And the author 
 of the Saxon Chronicle, in speaking of the miseries of a subsequent reign, 
 says, that the great barons " grievously oppressed the poor people with 
 " building castles ; and when they were built, they filled them with wick- 
 "• cd men, or rather deyils, who seized both men and women supposed to be 
 "possessed of any money; threw them into prison and put them to more 
 " cruel tortures than the martyrs ever endured." {Chron. Sax. p. 238.) The 
 truth of this melancholy description is corroborated by the testimony of 
 William of Malmsbury. Hist. lib. ii. 
 
 The great power and success of the Normans made them licentious 
 •swell as tyrannical. This licentiousness was so great, that the princess 
 Matilda, daughter of Malcolm Canmore, king of Scotland, who had re, 
 ceived her education in England, and was afterwards married to Henry I. 
 thoughtit necessary to wear the i-eligious habit, in order to preserve her per- 
 son from violation. Before a great council of the Anglo-Norman clergy, 
 she herself declared. That she had been induced by no other motive to put 
 on the veil. And the council admitted her plea, in the following memora- 
 ble words : " when the great Hng Willimn conquered this land, many of his 
 •' followers, elated with their extraordinary success, and thinking that 
 " all things ought to be subservient to their vcill 2.nd pleasure, not only seiz- 
 " ed the posiessinns of the vanquished, but invaded tht honour of their ma- 
 «' trons a.Yidvirgins. Hence many young ladies, who dreaded such violences, 
 " were induced to seek shelter in convents, and even to take the ve/Zas sfort.ber 
 '■ security to their virtue. " Eadmer. I/ist, lib. iii. 
 
 But 
 
260 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 But the rigour of the Anglo-Norman government, 
 and the tyrannical and licentious spirit of the nobles, pro- 
 ved ultimately favourable to general liberty. The op- 
 pressed people looked up to the king for protection: and 
 circumstances enabled them to obtain it. The defect in 
 the title of William II. and of Henry I. induced them to 
 listen to the complaints of their English subjects, and 
 to redress many of their grievances. The people, in 
 some measure satisfied with the relief afforded them, 
 became sensible of their consequence, and of their obli- 
 gations to the crown: while the barons, finding themselves 
 in quiet possession of their English estates, and appre- 
 hending no future disturbance from the natives, bore with 
 impatience the burdens imposed upon them by William I. 
 and to which they had readily submitted, in the hour of 
 conquest and of danger. They saw the necessity of 
 being more indulgent to their vassals, in order to ob- 
 tain a sufficient force to enable them to retrench the 
 prerogatives of the sovereign, and of connecting their 
 cause with that of the people. And the people, always 
 formidable by their numbers, courted by both parties, 
 and sometimes siding with one, sometimes with the 
 other, in the bloody contest between the king and the 
 barons, recovered by various progressive steps, which 
 I shall have occasion to trace in the course of my nar- 
 ration, their ancient and natural right to a place in the; 
 parliament or national assembly. 
 
 Thus restored to a share in the legislature, the Eng- 
 lish commonalty felt more fully their own importance; 
 and by a long and vigorous struggle, maintained with 
 unexampled perseverance, they wrested from both the 
 king and the nobles, all the other rights of a free people, 
 of which their Anglo-Saxon ancestors had been robbed 
 by the violent invasion, and cruel policy of William the 
 Norman. To those rights they were entitled as men, 
 by the great law of nature and reason, which declares 
 the welfare of the xvhole community to be the end of all 
 civil government; and as Englishmen, bv inheritance. 
 
 In 
 
lET. XXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. 261 
 
 In whatever light, therefore, we view the privileges of 
 the commons, they are resumptions, not usurpations. 
 In order to establish this important political truth, 
 some of our popular writers have endeavoured to prove, 
 that the people of England were by no means robbed of 
 their liberty or property by William I. and that the 
 commons had a share in the legislature under all the Anglo- 
 Norman princes. But as this position cannot be main- 
 tained without violating historical testimony, the advo- 
 cates for prerogatives have had greatly the advantage 
 in that contentious dispute42. I have therefore made 
 the usurpations of William, in violation of his corona- 
 tion oath, the basis of my argument. Usurpation can 
 create no right, nor the exercise of illegal authority any 
 prerogative. 
 
 LETTER XXIV. 
 
 FRANCE, UNDER PHILIP I. AND LEWIS VI. WITH SOME AC- 
 COUNT OF THE FIRST CRUSADE. 
 
 JtHILIP I. as I have already observed', had 
 been perfectly well educated. Nor was he by any means 
 deficient in point of capacity; but his mind had acquired 
 
 42. Mr. Hume, in particular, has triumphed over every adversary. 
 His collected arguments, supported by facts, to prove " that the com. 
 *' mons originally formed no part of the Anglo-Norman parliament," are 
 strong and satisfactory. But the foUoviring clause in the great charter 
 is of itself sufficient to determine the dispute. " We will cause to be 
 " summoned," says the king, " as a common couNCiLof the kingdom, 
 " the archbishops, biihopi, earls, znd great barons, personally, by our letters ; 
 " and besides, we will cause to be summoned, in general, by our sheriffs 
 '' and bailiffs, all others who hold of us in chief." (Mag. Chart, c. 
 xiv.) This indubitable testimony, so full and conclusive, when duly 
 weighed, must preclude all future controversy on the subject. 
 1. Letter ZVIII. 
 
 a wrone 
 
£52 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 a wrong bias, which discovered itself in all his actions, 
 and swayed him upon all occasions, to prefer his inter- 
 est, or his inclinations, to his honour. His reign is 
 not so remarkable for any thing, as his marrying Ber- 
 trand de Montford, duchess of Anjou, while her hus- 
 band and his queen were both alive. For this irregu- 
 larity he was excommunicated by Urban II. in the 
 famous council of Clermont, where the first 
 Crusade was preached for the recovery of 
 the Holy Land^; a circumstance which naturally leads 
 me to speak of that extravagant expedition, its causes, 
 and its consequences. 
 
 Gregory VII. among his other vast ideas, had 
 formed, as we have seen, the project of uniting the 
 western Christians against the Mahometans, and of 
 recovering Palestine from the hands of those infidels3: 
 and his quarrels with the emperor Henry IV. by which 
 he declared himself an enemy to the civil power of 
 princes, only could have obstructed the progress of this 
 undertaking, conducted by so able a politician, at a 
 time when the minds of men were fully prepared for 
 such an enterprize. The work, however, was reserved 
 for a meaner instrument ; for a man whose condition 
 could excite no jealousy, and whose head was as weak 
 as his imagination was warm. But before I mention 
 this man, I must say a few words of the state of the east 
 at that time, and of the passion for pilgrimages which 
 then prevailed in Europe. 
 
 We naturally view with veneration and delight those 
 places which have been the residence of any illustrious 
 personage, or the scene of any great transaction. Hence 
 the enthiisiasm with which the literati still visit the 
 ruins of Athens and Rome ; and hence flowed the 
 superstitious devotion with which Christians, from the 
 earliest ages of the church, were accustomed to visit 
 that country where their religion had taken its rise, 
 
 2. Warduin. Condi, torn. xi. ". See Letter XXII. 
 
 and 
 
LET. XXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. 263 
 
 and that city in which the Messiah had died for the 
 redemption of those who believe in his name. Pilgrim- 
 ages to the shrines of saints and martyrs were also 
 common; but as this distant pilgrimage could not be 
 perfomed without considerable expense, fatigue, and 
 danger, it appeared more meritorious than all others, 
 and came to be considered as an expiation for almost 
 every crime. And an opinion which prevailed over 
 Europe towards the close of the tenth, and the begin- 
 ning of the eleventh century, increased the number and 
 the ardour of the credulous devotees, that undertook 
 this tedious journey. The thousand years mentioned 
 by St. John, in his book of Revelations, were sup- 
 posed to be accomplished, and the end of the world at 
 hand. A general consternation, as I have had occa- 
 sion to notice, seized the minds of Christians. Many 
 relinquished their possessions, abandoned their friends 
 and families, and hurried with precipitation to the Holy 
 Land, where they imagined Christ would suddenly ap- 
 pear to judge the quick and the dead^. 
 
 But the Christians, though ultimately undeceived 
 in regard to the day of Judgment, had the mortification, 
 in these pious journies, to see the holy sepulchre, and 
 the other places made sacred by the presence of the 
 Saviour, fallen into the hands of Infidels. The followers 
 and the countrymen of Mahomet, had early made them- 
 selves masters of Palestine, which the Greek empire, 
 far in its decline, was unable to protect against so 
 warlike an enemy. They gave little disturbance, how- 
 ever, to those zealous pilgrims who daily flocked to 
 Jerusalem: nay, they allowed every one, after paying 
 a moderate tribute, to visit the holy sepulchre, to per- 
 form his religious duties, and return in peace. But 
 the Turks, a Tartar tribe, who had also embraced Ma- 
 hometanism, having wrested Syria from the Saracens 
 as you have seen, about the middle of the eleventh 
 century, and made themselves masters of Jerusalem, 
 
 4. Cbron. Will. Godell! ap. Eoniiict. Feaicl! da Hist, de France, torn. x. 
 
 pilgrims 
 
264 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 pilgrims were thenceforth exposed to outrages of every 
 kind from these fierce barbarians. And this change, 
 coinciding with the panic of the consummation of all 
 things, and the supposed appearance of Christ on Mount 
 Sion, filled Europe with alarm and indignation. Every 
 pilgrim who returned from Palestine, related the dangers 
 he had encountered in visiting the holy city, and describ- 
 ed, with exaggeration, the cruelty and vexations of the 
 Turks; who, to use the language of those zealots, not 
 only profaned the sepulchre of the Lord by their pre- 
 sence, but derided the sacred mysteries in the very 
 place of their completion, and where the Son of God 
 was speedily expected to hold his great tribunal-''. 
 
 While the minds of men were thus roused, a fanati- 
 cal monk, commonly known by the name of Peter the 
 Hermit, a native of Amiens in Picardy, revived the 
 project of Gregory VII. of leading all the forces of Chris- 
 .tendom against the Infidels, and of driving them out of 
 the Holy Land. He had made the pilgrimage to Jerusa- 
 lem, and was so deeply affected with the danger to which 
 that act of piety now exposed Christians, that he ran from 
 province to province on his return, with a crucifix in his 
 hand, exciting princes and people to this holy v/ar; and 
 wherever he came, he kindled the same enthusiastic 
 ardour for it with which he himself was animated. 
 
 Urban II. who had at first been doubtful of the suc- 
 cess of such a project, at length entered into Peter's 
 
 ^r^r^^ views, and summoned at Placentia a council, 
 A. D.1095. , . , ' , ,. J . 1 ,j • L 
 
 which was obliged to be held in the open 
 
 fields, no hall being sufficient to contain the multitude: 
 
 it consisted of four thousand ecclesiastics, and thirty 
 
 thousand laymen, who ajll declared for the war against 
 
 the Infidels, but none of them heartily engaged in the 
 
 enterprize. Urban, therefore, found it necessary to call 
 
 another council the same year, at Clermont, in Au- 
 
 yergne, where the greatest prelates, nobles, and princes 
 
 5. F.ccard. Corp. Scrijit. Me:lii Evi, vol, i. 
 
 attended; 
 
lET. xxTv.] MODERN EUROPE. 265 
 
 attended; and when the pope and the hennit had con- 
 cluded their pathetic exhortations, the whole assembly, 
 as if impelled by immediate inspiration, exclaimed 
 with one voice: "It is the will of God! — It is the will 
 *' of God" — words which were deemed so memoraljle, 
 and believed to be so much the result of a divine influ- 
 ence, that they were employed as the motto on the 
 sacred standard, ard as the signal of rendezvous and 
 battle in all the future exploits of the champions of the 
 Cross ; the symbol chosen by the devoted combatants, 
 in allusion to the death of Christ, as the badge oi union, 
 and affixed to their right shoulder, whence their expe- 
 diiion got the name of a Crusade*^. 
 
 Persons of all ranks flew to arms with the utmost 
 ardour. Not only the gallant nobles of that age, with 
 their martial followers, whom the boldness of a romantic 
 enterprize might have been apt to allure, but men in the 
 more humble and pacific stations of life j ecclesiastics 
 of every order, and even women, concealing their sex 
 beneath the disguise of armour, engaged with emula- 
 tion in an undertaking which was deemed so sacred and 
 meritorious. The greatest criminals were forward in 
 a service, which they regarded as a propitiation for all 
 their crimes. If they succeeded, they hoped to make 
 their fortune in this world ; and if they died, they were 
 promised a crown of glory in the world to come. De- 
 votion, passion, prejudice, and habit, all contributed 
 to the same end; and the combination of so many 
 causes produced that wonderful emigration which made 
 the princess Anna Comnena say, that Europe, loosen- 
 ed from its foundations, and impelled by its moving 
 principle, seemed in one united body to precipitate 
 itself upon Asia^. 
 
 The number of adventurers soon became so great, 
 that their more experienced leaders, Hugh, count of 
 Vermandois, brother to the French king; Robert, duke 
 
 6. Theod. Ruinart. in Vit. Urhani II. Baron. Amal. Eccles. torn. xi. 
 r. Alexias, lib. x. 
 
 VOL. I. (^q of 
 
266 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 of Normandy : Raymond, count of Thoulouse ; Godfrev, 
 of Bouillon, prince of Brabant; and Stephen, count of 
 Blois; grew apprehensive that the greatness of the arma- 
 ment would defeat its purpose. They there- 
 
 A. u. 1069. r •., , r • r i "u-^ , 
 
 lore permitted an undiscipuned multitude, 
 
 computed at three hundred thousand men, to go before 
 them, under the command of Peter the Hermit, Walter 
 the Moneyless, and other wild fanatics. 
 
 Peter and his army, before which he walked with 
 sandals on his feet, a rope about his waist, and every 
 other mark of monkish austerity, took the road to 
 Constantinople, through Hungary and Bulgaria. Go- 
 descald, a German priest, and his banditti, took the 
 same route ; and trusting that Heaven, by supernatural 
 means would supply all their necessities, they made no 
 provision for subsistence on their march. But they 
 soon found themselves obliged to obtain by plunder, 
 what they had vainly expected from miracles. Want 
 is ingenious in suggesting pretences for its supply. 
 Their fury first discharged itself upon the Jews. As 
 the soldiers of Jesus Christ, they thought themselves 
 authorised to take revenge upon his murderers: they 
 accordingly fell upon those unhappy people, and put to 
 the sword without mercy such as would not submit to 
 baptism, seising their effects as lawful prize. In Bava- 
 ria alone twelve thousand Jews were massacred, and 
 many thousands in the other provinces of Germany. 
 But Jews not being every where to be found, these pious 
 robbers, who had tasted the sweets of plunder, and were 
 under no military regulations, pillaged without distinc- 
 tion; until the inhabitants of the countries through 
 which they passed, rose and cut them almost all off. 
 The Hermit, however, and the remnant of his army, 
 consisting of twenty thousand starving wretches, at 
 length reached Constantinople, where he received a 
 fresh supply of German and Italian vagabonds, who 
 were guilty of the greatest disorders, pillaging even the 
 chruches^. 
 
 8. Maimbourg, Hist, des Croisades, torn. i. 
 
 Alexis 
 
LET. XXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. 267 
 
 Alexis Comnenus, the Greek emperor, who had 
 
 applied to the Latins for succour against the Turks, 
 
 entertained a hope, and but a feeble one, of obtaining 
 
 such an aid as might enable him to repulse the enemy. 
 
 He was, therefore, astonished to see his dominions 
 
 overwhelmed by an inundation of licentious barbarians, 
 
 strangers alike to order and discipline, and to hear of 
 
 the multitudes that were following, under different 
 
 leaders. He contented himself, however, with getting 
 
 rid, as soon as possible, of such troublesome guests, by 
 
 furnishing them with vessels to transport themselves to 
 
 the other side of the Bosphorus ; and general Peter 
 
 soon saw himself in the plains of Asia, at the head of a 
 
 Christian army, ready to give battle to the infidels. 
 
 Soliman, sultan of Nice, fell upon the disorderly 
 
 crowd, and slaughtered them almost without resistance. 
 
 "SValter the Moneyless, and many other leaders of 
 
 equal distinction, were slain ; but Peter the Hermit 
 
 found his way back to Constantinople, where he \\'as 
 
 considered as a maniac, who had enlisted a multitude 
 
 of madmen to follow him*^. 
 
 In the mean time the more disciplined armies 
 
 arrived at the imperial city, and were there 
 
 • • Ji TJ I J fX> 1 .r- J A. D. 1097. 
 
 jomedbyi3oliemond,son oi Kobert Guiscard, 
 
 from motives of policy rather than piety. Having no 
 
 other inheritance but the small principality of Tarentum, 
 
 and his own valour, he took advantage of the epidemical 
 
 enthusiasm of the times to assemble under his banner 
 
 ten thousand horsemen, well armed, and some infantry, 
 
 with which he hoped to conquer a few provinces either 
 
 from the Christians or Mahometans. His presence gave 
 
 much alarm to the emperor Alexis Comnenus, with 
 
 whom he had been formerly at war. But the refined 
 
 policy of that prince, who carressed those rapacious 
 
 allies whom he wished to ruin, and secretly regarded 
 
 as more dangerous than the enemies they came to 
 
 9. Anna Comnena, uhi sup. 
 
 combatj 
 
268 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 combat, diverted all apprehensions of harm either from 
 Bohemond or the o her leaders of the crusade. He 
 furnished them with provisions, and transported them 
 saiely into Asia: after having conciliated their aftections 
 by presents and promises, and engaged them to do him 
 homage for the lands they should conquer from the 
 Turks". 
 
 Asia, like Europe, was then divided into a number 
 of little states, comprehended under the great ones. The 
 Turkish prmces paid an empty homage to the caliphs, 
 but were in reality their masters ; and the sultans, or 
 soldans, who were very numerous, weakened still 
 farther the empire of Mahomet by continual wars 
 with each other, the necessary consequence of divided 
 sway. The soldiers of the cross, therefore, who 
 amounted, when mustered on the banks of the Bosphorus, 
 to the incredible number of one hundred thousand 
 horsemen, and six hundred thousand foot, were sufficient 
 to have conquered all Asia, had they been united under 
 one head, or commanded by leaders that observed any 
 concert in their operations. But they were unhappily 
 conducted by men of the most independent, intractable 
 spirit, unacquainted with discipline, and enemies to civil 
 or military subordination. Their zen\, however, their 
 bravery, and their irresistable force, still carried them 
 forward, and advanced them to the great end of their 
 enterprize, in spite of every obstacle ; the scarcitv of 
 provisions, the excesses of fatigue, and the influence of 
 unknown climes. After an obstinate siege, they took 
 ,,^ Nice, the seat of old Soliman, the sultan of 
 byna, whose army they had twice deieated : 
 they had made themselves masters of Antioch, the seat 
 of another sultan, and entirely broke the strength of the 
 Turks, who h.ad so long tyrannised over the Arabs '. 
 
 The caliph of Egypt, whose alliance the Christians 
 had hitherto courted, recovered, on the fall of the 
 
 10. Maimbourg, ubi sup. 11. Dach. Specileg. vol. iv. Maimbourg, torn. i. 
 
 Turkish 
 
LET. XXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. 26^ 
 
 Turkish power, the authority of the caliphs of Jerusalein. 
 On this he sent ambassadors to the leaders ot the 
 crusade, informing them, that they might now perform 
 their religious vows, if they came disarmed to that city, 
 and that all Christian pilgrims, who should thencelorth 
 visit the holy sepulchre, might expect the same good 
 treatment which they had ever received from his prede- 
 cessors. His oft'er was, however, rejected. He was 
 required to yield up the city to the Christians ; and, on 
 his refusal, the champions of the Cross advanced to the 
 siege of Jerusalem, the great object of their armament, 
 and the acquisition of which they considered as the 
 consummation of their labours. 
 
 These pious adventurers were now much diminished 
 by the detachments they had made, and the disasters 
 they had suffered : and what seems almost incredible, 
 they did not exceed, according to the testimony of most 
 historians, twenty thousand foot, and fifteen hundred 
 horse, while the garrison of Jerusalem con- ioy9. 
 
 sisted of forty thousand men. But, be that 
 as it may, after a siege of five weeks, they took the city 
 by assault, and put the garrison and inhabitants to the 
 sword, without distinction. Arms protected net the 
 brave, or submission the timid: no age or sex was spared: 
 infants perished by the same sword that pierced their 
 mothers, while imploring mercy. The streets of Jeru- 
 salem were covered with heaps of slain; and the shrieks 
 of agony or despair still resounded from every house, 
 when these triumphant warriors, glutted with slaughter, 
 threw aside their arms, yet streaming with blood, and 
 advanced with naked feet, and bended knees, to the 
 sepulchre of the Prince of Peace ! sung anthems to that 
 Redeemer, who had purchased their' salvation by his 
 death ; and, while dead to the calamities of their fellow- 
 creatures, dissolved in tears for the sufferings of the 
 Messiah ''I — So inconsistent is human nature with itself; 
 
 12. M. Paris. Order. Vital. Vertot, Hist, de Cbev. de Malt. torn. i. 
 
 and 
 
aro THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 and so easily, as the philosophic Hume remarks, does 
 the mobt effeminate superstition associate both with the 
 most heroic courage, and with the fiercest barbarity. 
 
 About the same time that this great event happened 
 in Asia, where Godfrey of Bouillon M'^as chosen king of 
 Jerusalem, and Bohemond, and some other Christian 
 princes, settled in their new conquests, Url)an II. the 
 author of the crusade, and the queen of France, died in 
 Europe. In consequence of these deaths, Philip I. who 
 still continued to live with the countess of Anjou, was 
 absolved, by the new pope, from the sentence of excom- 
 munication denounced in the council of Clermont. But 
 although this absolution quieted in some measure his 
 domestic troubles, his authority, which the thunder of 
 the church, together with his indolent and licentious 
 course of life, had ruined, was far from being restored. 
 The nobility more and more affected independency; they 
 insulted him every hour; plundered his subjects, and 
 entirely cut off the communication between Paris and 
 Orleans '3. 
 
 In order to remedy these evils, Philip associated 
 
 his son Lewis in the government; or, at 
 
 A. D. 1100. , , 1 I u- -.u *u J c 
 
 least, declared him, wath the consent ot 
 
 the nobility, his successor. This young prince was, 
 in all respects, the reverse of his father; active, vigor- 
 ous, affable, generous, and free from the vices incident 
 to youth. He saw that in a state so corrupted, nothing 
 could be done but by force: he therefore kept continu- 
 ally in the field, with a small body of troops about him, 
 and these he employed against such nobles as would 
 not listen to the dictates of justice and equity, but 
 treated the laws of their country with derision. He 
 demolished their castles; he compelled them 
 ^* ^' ' to make restitution to such as they had pil- 
 
 laged, and he forced them to abandon the lands they had 
 usurped from the clergy: yet all these rigours he exe- 
 
 13. Order. Vital. Mezeray. 
 
 cuted 
 
LET. XXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. 271 
 
 cutecl in a manner so disinterested, and with so indis- 
 putable a zeal for the public welfare, that he gained the 
 affections of the virtuous part of the nobility, and the 
 reverence of the people, while he restored order to the 
 state, and preserved the monarchy from subversion *. 
 
 This prince, who is commonly called by the old 
 historians Lewis the Gross, from his great size in the 
 latter part of life, and who was the sixth Lewis that sat 
 
 upon the throne of France, succeeded his 
 
 i- 1 • .. 11 1 • r- A. D. 1108. 
 
 father m 1108, when he was thirty years ot 
 
 age. Soon after his coronation, he engaged in a war 
 against Henry L of England, a powerful vassal, whom 
 it was his interest to humble. The war was carried on 
 with a variety of fortunes during the greater part of this 
 reign, but without producing any remarkable eyent, ex- 
 cept what I have related in the 'history of England, or 
 any alteration in the state of either kingdom'^. 
 
 A peace was at length concluded between the two 
 rival princes; after which Lewis devoted 
 
 A. D. 1 1 ''8 
 
 himself to the regulation of the interior polity 
 of his kingdom, and either humbled or overawed the 
 great vassals of the crown, so as to procure universal 
 tranquillity. This he accomplished, partly by establish- 
 ing the commons or third state; partly by enfranchising 
 the villains or bondmen; and partly by diminishing the 
 exorbitant authority of the seignioral jurisdictions; send- 
 ing commissaries into the provinces to receive the com- 
 plaints and redress the wrongs of such as had been 
 oppressed by the dukes and counts, and every where 
 encouraging appeals to the royal judges. — But the king 
 of France, in the midst of his prosperity, fell into a lan- 
 guishing disorder, occasioned by his excessive corpu- 
 lency; and when he thought his death at hand, he 
 ordered his son to be called to him, and gave him the 
 following excellent advice. " By this sign," said he, 
 (drawing the signet from his finger, and putting it on 
 
 14. Order. Vital. Sug. Vit. Lud. Groul. 15. See Letter XXIII. 
 
 that 
 
27a THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 that of the prince) " I invest you with sovereign au- 
 ** thorityj but remember, that it is nothing but a public 
 *' employment, to which you are called by Heaven, and 
 *' for the exercise of which you must render an account 
 *' in the world to come'^." 
 
 The king unexpectedly recovered; but he would never 
 afterwards use anv of the ensigns of royalty. 
 
 A. , "., , , . , P , . A. D. 1137» 
 
 n accident contributed to the revival oi his 
 
 strength. William, dulce of Guienne, and earl of Poi- 
 tou, resolved to make a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. 
 James of Compostella, bequeathed his extensive territo- 
 ries to his daugiiter Eleanor, on condition that she mar- 
 ried young Lewis, already crowned king of France, at 
 the desire of his father; and the duke dying in that 
 pilgrimage, the marriage was celebrated with great pomp 
 at Bourdeaux, where Lewis VIL was solemnly inaugu- 
 rated as lord of Guienne and Poitou'7. 
 
 In the mean time Lewis VI. unable to support the 
 heat of the dog-days, died at Paris on the first of August, 
 in the sixtieth year of his age, and the thirtieth of his 
 reign. A better man, historians agree, never graced 
 the throne of France; but with the addition of certain 
 qualities, his countrymen say he might have made a bet- 
 ter king. Posterity, however, may not perhaps be incli- 
 ned to think worse of his character, when they are told 
 that the qualities he wanted were hypocrisy and dissimu- 
 lation, and that his vices were honesty and sincerity: which 
 led him to despise flattery, and indulge himself in a 
 manlv freedom of speech. 
 
 We should now, my dear Philip, return to the histo- 
 ry of England; but the second crusade, which was con- 
 ducted by the sovereigns of France and Germany, makes 
 it necessary to carry farther the affairs of the continent. 
 
 16. Su?. Vit. Lud. Gi-osse. Henault, Hist. torn. i. 17. Id. ibid. 
 
 LETTER 
 
lET. XXV.] MODERN EUROPE. 273 
 
 LETTER XXV. 
 
 tHE GERMAN EMPIRE AND ITS DEPENDENCIF K, I!OMK AND THE 
 ITALIAN STATES, FROM THE DEATH OFHINRY V. TO THE 
 ELECTION OF FREDERICK I. SURNAMED BARBAR03SA. 
 
 As Henry V. left no issue, it was universally 
 believed that the states would confer the empire on one 
 of his nephews, Conrad, duke of Franconia, or Frederic, 
 duke of Suabia, who were princes of great merit ; but 
 Albert, archbishop of Mentz, found means to influence 
 the German chiefs to give their suffrages i" ^ 1125. 
 favour of Lothario, duke of Saxe-Supplem- 
 bourg, who had supported him in all his contests with the 
 late emperor, Lothario was accordingly crowned at 
 Aix-la-Chapelle, in presence of the pope's nuncio. Mean- 
 while his two competitors neglected nothing in their power 
 to obtain the throne. But after a short opposition, which 
 was, however, obstinate and bloody, they dropped their 
 pretensions, and were reconciled to Lothario, who after- 
 wards honoured them with his friendship.' 
 
 The first expedition of the new emperor was against 
 the Bohemians, whom he obliged to sue for peace, and 
 do homage to the empire. He next marched into Ital)', 
 where the ecclesiastical affairs, as usual, were r> i -t qq 
 in much disorder. Innocent IL had succeeded 
 Honorius II. by virtue of a canonical election ; notwith- 
 standing which cardinal Leoni, the grandson of a weal- 
 thy Jew, was also proclaimed pope by the name of Ana- 
 cletus, and kept possession of Rome by means of his mo- 
 ney, whilst his rival was obliged to retire into France, the 
 common asylum of distressed popes. Lo- 11 -^o 
 
 thario espoused the cause of Innocent, with * * - 
 
 1. Annal dc I'Emp . tom. 5. Heis. lib. ii. cap. xi. 
 
 VOL. I, II r whom 
 
3r4 THE HISTORY OF [part r, 
 
 whom he had an interview at Liege ; accompanied him^ 
 to Rome at the head of an army, and re-est;iblibhed him 
 in the papal chair, in spite of all the efforts and oppo- 
 sition of Anacletus\ 
 
 After being solemnly crowned at Rome, the emperor 
 returned to Germany ; where, by the advice ol Ernerius, 
 a learned professor of the Roman law, he ordered that 
 justice should be administered in the empire according 
 to the Digesta, or Code of Justinian, a copy of which was, 
 about this time, found in Italy^ In the mean time, Roger,, 
 duke of Apulia, who had lately conquered the island of 
 Sicily, raised an army in favour of Anacletus, and made 
 himself inaster of almost all the places belonging to the 
 holy see. Pope Innocent retired to Pisa, which was then 
 one of the most considerable trading cities in Europe, and 
 again implored the assistance of Lothario. The empe- 
 ror did not desert him in his adversity: he immediately 
 put himself at the head of a powerful army; and^ by the 
 help of the Pisans, the imperial forces soon recovered all 
 --^w the patrimony of St. Peter. Pope Inno- 
 cent was re-conducted in triumph to Rome t 
 a circumstance which so much affected Anacletus, that 
 he fell a martyr to the success of his competitor, literally 
 dying of grief. 
 
 The emperor afterwards drove Roger, duke of Apu- 
 lia, from city to city; and,- at length, obliged him to 
 take refuge in Sicily, his new kingdom. He then sub- 
 
 ^ dued the provinces of Apulia and Calabria, and 
 A. D. 11 3Q, . 
 
 ■* all Roger's Italian dominions, which he formed 
 
 into a principality, and bestowed it, with the title of duke, 
 upon Renaud, a German prince, and one of his own re- 
 lations. 
 
 2. Jean de Laiines, Hist, du roniijicat. ilu Pope Innocent JI. 
 
 3. On this subject, -which is involved in controversy, see Hen. Brench- 
 roajin, IJlst. Pandect. Murat. AiUiq. Ital. torn. ii. 
 
 Oil 
 
LET. XXV.] MODERN EUROPE. i7S 
 
 On his way to Germany, Lothario was seized with 
 a dangerous distemper, which carried him off, near Trent, 
 in the twelfth year of his reign. He was distinguished 
 by a passionate love of peace, and an exact attention to 
 the administration of public justice. 
 
 Conrad, duke of Franconia, nephew to Henry V. 
 was unaniinously elected emperor, on the death of Lo- 
 thario. But the imperial throne was disputed by Henry 
 the Haughty, duke of Bavaria, the name of whose 
 family was Guelph; hence those who espoused his party 
 were called Guelphs, an appellation afterwards usually 
 bestowed on the enemies of the emperors. 
 
 Henry the Haughty died during this contest, after 
 being divested of his dominions by the princes 1 1 /Lr» 
 
 of the empire ; but the war was still carried 
 on against the emperor by Guelph, the duke's brother, 
 and Roger, king of Sicily. The imperial army was 
 commanded by Frederic, duke of Suabia, the emperor's 
 brother, who being born at the village of Hieghibelin, 
 gave to his soldiers the name of Ghibelins; an epithet 
 by which the imperial party was distinguished in Italy, 
 while the pope's adherents grew famous under that of 
 Guelphs'. 
 
 Guelph, and his principal followers, were besieged 
 in the castle of Weinsberg; and having sustained great 
 loss in a sally, they were obliged to surrender at discre- 
 tion. The emperor, however, instead of using his goQd 
 fortune with rigour, granted the duke, and his chief 
 officers, permission to retire unmolested. But the duch- 
 ess, suspecting the generosity of Conrad, with whose 
 enmity against her husband she was well acquainted, 
 begged that she, and the other women in the castle, 
 might be allowed to come out with as much as each of 
 them could carry, and be conducted to a place of safety. 
 Her request was granted, and the evacuation was imme- 
 
 4, Anna!, de l'£mp. torn. i. 5. Mura Dissertat. dc Guelph. et Gidbel. 
 Sigon. lib. xi. Krant. Sax. lib. viii. 
 
 diately 
 
276 THE HISTORY OF [part i, 
 
 diutely performed; wh<:'n llie erriperor and his army, vho 
 
 expected to see every lady loaded will) jewels, gold, and 
 
 silver, beheld, to their astonishment, the duehess and her 
 
 _ ^ _ fair companions, staffp-erinjr beneath the 
 
 A. D. 1141. . , 
 
 weight of their husbands. 7 he tears ran 
 down Conrad's cheeks: he applauded their conjugal ten- 
 derness, and an accommodation with Guelph and his 
 adherents, was the consequence of this act of female 
 heroism^. 
 
 "While these things were transacting in Germany, 
 new disorders broke out in Italv. The people of Rome 
 formed a design of re-establishing the commonwealth ; 
 of rctrie\ ijig the sovereignty of their city, and abolish- 
 ing the temporal dominion of the popes. Lucius II. 
 _, , marched against the rebels, and was killed 
 
 A. D. 1 145. 
 
 at the foot of the capiiol; but Eugenius III. 
 his successor, found means to reduce them to reason, 
 and prL-serve the authority of the apostolic see'. 
 
 This pope afterwards countenanced the second cru- 
 sade against the Saracens, preached by St. Bernard, in 
 which the emperor and the king of France, engaged, as 
 
 1 shall soon have occasion to r<'late. Another 
 K. D. 1147. 
 
 crubiide was preached against the Moors in 
 
 Spain, in wliich a great number of Germans, from the 
 neighbourhood of the Rhine and Weser, engaged; and 
 the Saxons, about the same time, undertook a crusade 
 against the pagans of the north, whom they cut off in 
 thousands, without making one convert'. 
 
 Nothing remarkable happened in the empire, after 
 the return of Conrad III. from the east, except the 
 death of prince Henry, his eldest son, who had been elect- 
 ed king of the Romans. This event greatly 
 affected the emperor, who died soon after ; 
 and his nephew Frederic, surnamtd Barbarossa, duke of 
 
 6. Heis. lib. ii. cap. xii. 7. Fleury, Elst. Lccles. vol. xiv. Mosheim, 
 Jiiit- Ecdes. vol. iii. 8. Id. ibid. 
 
 Suabia, 
 
LET. XXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. .27r 
 
 Suabia, was raised to the imperial throne by the unani- 
 mous voice of tlie princes and nobles both of Italy and 
 Germany. 
 
 LETTER XXVI. 
 
 FRANCE U^-DER LEWIS VII. TILL THE DIVORCE OF qUEEN 
 ELEANOR, WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE SECOND CRUSADE. 
 
 l^EWIS VII. surnamed the Young, was no 
 sooner seated on the throne of France, than he found 
 himself engaged in one of those civil wars, which the 
 feudal Q-overnment rendered unavoidable; and ^ ^ ^„ 
 
 A. D 1 137 
 
 having, in an expedition into Champagne, 
 made himself master of the town of Vitri, he ordered it 
 to be set on fire. In consequence of the conHagration 
 that followed, thirteen hundred persons, who 
 
 . A. D. 1 143 
 
 had taken refuge in the church, all perished 
 in the flames . This cruel action made a deep impres- 
 sion upon the king's mind, and prepared the way for a 
 second crusade, which now demands our attention. 
 
 The Christians of the east grew weaker every day 
 in those countries which they had conquered. The little 
 kingdom of Edessa had already been taken by the Turks, 
 and Jerusalem itself was threatened. Europe was solicit- 
 ed for a new armament; and as the French had begun 
 the first inundation, they were again applied to, in hopes 
 of a second. 
 
 Pope Eugenius III. to whom the deputies from the 
 east had been sent, very wisely pitched upon 
 Bernard, abbot of Clairvaux, as the instru- 
 ment of this pious warfare. Bernard was learned for 
 
 1. Gul. Tyr. Gest, Ludovlc. VII. 
 
 those 
 
278 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 those times, naturally eloquent, austere in his life, irre- 
 proachable in his morals, enthusiastically zealous and in- 
 flexible in his purpose. He had long held the reputation 
 of a saint, was heard as an oracle, and revered as a pro- 
 phet ; little wonder, therefore, that he found means to 
 persuade the king of France, that there was no other 
 method of expiating his guilt but by an expedition to the 
 Holy Land. 
 
 At Vezelai in Burgundy, a scaffold was erected in the 
 market-place, on which St. Bernard appear- 
 ' ed by the side of Lewis VIL The saint 
 spoke first, the king seconded him, after taking the cross, 
 and the example of the royal pair was followed by all pre- 
 sent, among whom were many of the chief nobility\ 
 
 Suger, abbot of St. Dennis, then prime minister, a 
 man very different from Bernard, endeavoured in vain to 
 dissuade the king from abandoning his dominions, by tel- 
 ling him that he might make a much more suitable atone- 
 ment for his guilt by staying at home and governing his 
 kingdom in a wise and prudent manner. The eloquence 
 of St. Bernard, and the madness of the times, prevailed 
 over reason and sound policy. Suger, however, retained 
 his opinion; and made no scruple of foretelling the incon- 
 veniencies that would attend an expedition into Palestine, 
 whilst Bernard made himself answerable for its success, 
 and extolled it with an enthusiasm that passed for inspira- 
 tion. 
 
 From France this fanatical orator went to preach the 
 crusade in Germany; where, by the force of his irresisti- 
 ble eloquence, he prevailed on the emperor Conrad IIL 
 Frederick Barbarossa, afterwards emperor, and an in- 
 finite number of persons of all ranks, to take the cross ; 
 promising them, in the name of God, victory over the 
 Infidels. He ran from city to city, every where com- 
 municating his enthusiasm ; and, if we believe the 
 historians of those times, working miracles. It is not 
 indeed pretended that he restored the dead to life ; but 
 
 2. Epiit. Ludovie. ad Suger. 
 
 the 
 
LET. XXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 279 
 
 the blind received sight, the lame walked, the sick were 
 healed. And to these bold assertions, we may add a fact 
 no less incredible, that while St. Bernard's eloquence 
 operated so powerfully on the minds of the Germans, he 
 always preached to them in French, a language which 
 they did not understand 1 or in Latin, equally unintelli- 
 gible to the body of the people^. 
 
 The hopes of certain victory drew after the emperor 
 and the king of France the greater part of the knights in 
 their dominions : and it is said, that in each army there 
 were reckoned seventy thousand men in complete 
 armour : with a prodigious number of light horse, 
 besides infantry ; so that we cannot well reduce this 
 second emigi-ation to less than three hundred thousand 
 persons. And these, joined to one million three hundred 
 thousand sent before, make in the whole sixteen hundred 
 thousand transplanted inhabitants. 
 
 The Germans took the field first, the French follow- 
 ed them : and the same excesses, thathad been ^ ^ > „ 
 
 A. D. 1 14/» 
 committed by the soldiers of the first crusade, 
 
 were acted over again by those of the second. Hence 
 Manuel Comnenus, who now filled the throne of Con- 
 stantinople, was disquieted with the same apprehensions 
 which the former enterprize had raised in the mind of 
 his grandfather Alexis. If the Greek emperor behaved 
 ungenerously to them, it must therefore be ascribed to 
 the irregularity of their own cotiduct, which made craft 
 necessary, where force was unequal ; especially as 
 Manuel is represented, on all other occasions, as a 
 prince of great generosity and magnanimity. But the 
 mortality which prevailed in the German army, near 
 the plains of Constantinople, may be fully accounted 
 for from intemperance and the change of climate, with- 
 out supposing the wells to be poisoned or the meal to 
 be mingled with lime. 
 
 After Conrad had passed the Bosphorus, he acted 
 ivith that imprudence which seems inseparable from 
 
 3. Henault. Ckron, Hist. torn. i. Amal. de I'Emp. torn. i. 
 
 such 
 
280 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 such romantic expeditions. As the principality of 
 Antioch was yet in being, he might have joined those 
 christians who remained in Syria, and there have wait- 
 ed for the king of France. Their numbers united 
 would have insured them success. But instead of such 
 a rational measure, the emperor, jealous both of the 
 prince of Antioch and the king of France, marched im- 
 mediately into the middle of Asia Miner ; where the 
 sultan of Iconium, a more experienced general, drew 
 
 his heavy German cavalry amone the rocks, 
 A. D. 1148. ' . . . ' 
 
 and cut his army in pieces. Conrad fled to 
 
 Antioch ; went to Jerusalem as a pilgrim, instead of ap- 
 pearing there as the leader of an army, and returned to 
 Europe with a handful of men"*. 
 
 The king of France was not more successful in his 
 enterprize. He fell into the same snare that had deceiv- 
 ed the emperor ; and being surprised among the rocks 
 near Laodicea, was worsted, as Conrad had been. But 
 Lewis met with a domestic misfortune that gave him 
 more uneasiness than the loss of his army. Queen 
 Eleanor was suspected of an amour with the prince of 
 Antioch, at whose court her husband had taken refuge. 
 She is even said to have forgot her fatigues in the arms 
 of a voung Turk : and the conclusion of the whole ex- 
 pedition was, that Lewis, like Conrad, returned to Europe 
 with the wreck of a great army, after visiting the holy 
 sepulchre, and being dishonoured by his pious consort, 
 whose affection and zeal led her to embrace 
 
 A. D. 1149. , , I.- • . A • <: I 
 
 the cross, and accompany him mto Asta^ ! 
 A thousand ruined families in vain exclaimed against St. 
 Bernard for his deluding prophecies : he excused him- 
 self bv the example of Moses ; who, like him, he said, 
 had promised the Israelites to conduct them into a happy 
 country, and yet saw the first generation perish in the 
 desert. 
 
 4. Otho (1e Frising. Gul. Tyr. Chron. Murhiiac. 5. Gul. Tyr. 
 Gest. Ludovic. VIL Henault, Chron. Hist. torn, i, 
 
 Lewi? 
 
MT. XXVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 281 
 
 Lewis, more delicate than politic, annulled soon 
 after his i-eturn, his marriage with queen Eleanor, who 
 immediately espoused his formidable vassal, Henry 
 Plantagenet duke of Normandy, count of Anjou and 
 Maine, and presumptive heir to the crown of England; 
 an inheritance which the accession of power arising 
 from this alliance enabled him to obtain, while France 
 lost the fine provinces of Guienne and Poitou, the here- 
 ditary possessions of the queen. But before I treat of 
 that subject, we must take a view of England during the 
 introductory reign. 
 
 LETTER XXVn. 
 
 ENGLAIvD, FROM THE DEATH OF HENRY I. TO THE ACCKSSION 
 OF HENRY ir. 
 
 XxENRY L my dear Philip, as you have had occa- 
 sion to see, left his dominions by will to his daughter 
 Matilda ; and as the nobility, both of England and Nor- 
 mandv, had sworn fealty to her, she had ..^^ 
 
 , . , . n 1 A. D. 1 lo5. 
 
 reason to expect the mnentance ot both states. 
 But the aversion of the feudal barons against female 
 succession, prevailed over their good faith, and prepared 
 the way for the usurpation of Stephen, count of Boulogne, 
 son of the count of Blois, and grandson of the conqueror, 
 by his daughter Adela. 
 
 Stephen was a prince of vigour and ability: but the 
 manner ia which he had obtained the crown of England, 
 obliged him to grant exorbitant privileges to 
 the nobility and clergy, who might be said to * * 
 command the kingdom. The barons built and fortified 
 custles: garrisoned them with their own troops; and 
 when offended, bid their monarch defiance, while wars 
 between themselves was carried on with the utmost fury 
 
 in 
 yoL. I. i 9 
 
282 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 in every quarter. They even assumed the right of coin- 
 ing money, and of exercising, virithout appeal, every act of 
 jurisdiction; and the inferior gentry, and the people, find- 
 ing no guardianship from the laws during this total dis- 
 solution of sovereign authority, were obliged to pay court 
 to some neighbouring chieftain, and to purchase his 
 protection, not only by yielding to his exactions, but by 
 assisting him in his rapine upon others' . 
 
 While things continued in this distracted situation, 
 David king of Scotland appeared at the head of a 
 considerable army, in defence of his niece Matilda's 
 title; and, penetrating into Yorkshire, laid the whole 
 country waste. These bai-barous outrages enraged the 
 northern nobility, who might otherwise have been inclined 
 to join him, and proved the ruin of Matilda's cause. 
 The earl of Albemarle, and other powerful nobles, as- 
 sembled an army at North Allerton, where a 
 A. D. 1138. 
 
 * great battle was fought, called the Battle of the 
 
 Standard, from a high crucifix erected by the English on a 
 waggon, and carried along with the army, as a military 
 ensign. The Scots were routed with great slaughter, and 
 the king narrowly escaped falling into the hands of the 
 English army'. 
 
 This success over-awed the malecontents in England, 
 and might have given stability to Stephen's throne, had he 
 not been so elated by prosperity as to engage in a a contest 
 with the clergy, who were at that time an over-match for 
 any monarch. They acted entirely as barons; fortified 
 castles, employed military power against their sovereign 
 or their neighbours, and thereby increased those disor- 
 ders which it was their duty to prevent, v/hile they claim- 
 ed an exemption from all civil jurisdiction, and atti'acted 
 popularity by the sacredness of their character. The 
 bishop of Salisbury, whose castle had been 
 * seized by order of the king, appealed to the 
 pope; and had not Stephen and his partizans employed 
 
 1. Gul. Malmes. Hist. IS'ovel. lib. i. 2. R. IIar;ulst. Ailred. de Bdl. 
 
 Standard. 
 
 menaces 
 
LET. XXVII.] MODERN EUROPE. as3 
 
 menaces, and even shewn a disposition of executing 
 vengeance by the hands of the soldiery, affairs had in- 
 stantly come to extremity between the crown and the 
 mitre. 
 
 In the mean time Matilda, encouraged by these dis- 
 contents, and invited by the rebellious clerj?v, ^ 
 
 . . O' ' Sept 10 
 
 landed in England, accompanied by Robert 
 
 earl of Gloucester, natural son of the late king, and a re- 
 tinue of an hundred and forty knights. She fixed her 
 residence at Arundel castle, whose gates v/ere opened to 
 her by Adelais, the queen-dowager, now married to 
 William de Albini, earl of Sussex. Her party dailv in- 
 creased ; she was soon joined by several barons : war 
 raged in every quarter of the kingdom ; and was car- 
 ried on with so much fury, that the land was 
 left untilled, and the instruments of husbandry 
 destroyed or abandoned. A grievous famine, the natural 
 consequence of such disorders, aifected equally both 
 parties, and reduced the spoilers, as well as the defenceless 
 people, to the most extreme want\ 
 
 Things were in this deplorable situation, when an 
 unexpected event seemed to promise some mitigation of 
 the public calamities. The royal army was 
 defeated near the castle of Lincoln ; and 
 Stephen himself, surrounded by the enemy, and borne 
 down by numbers, was made captive, after displaying 
 uncommon efforts of valour. He was conducted to Glou- 
 cester, thrown into prison, and ignominiously loaded 
 with irons. But he was soon after released in ex- 
 change for earl Robert, Matilda's brother, who was no less 
 the soul of one party than Stephen was of the other, and 
 the civil war was again kindled with greater fury than 
 ever'*. 
 
 The weakness of both parties, however, at last pro- 
 duced a tacit cessation of arms, and the empress Matilda 
 
 3. Chron. Sax. Gest. ffrg. SKflii^m. U. Ihir.iing. lib. viii. 
 
 4. Gul. Malme?. fJist. N'ov.'\\b.n lien, ilunr. lib. viii. 
 
 retired 
 
284 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 retired into Normandy. But an event soon after happen- 
 ^^. ed, which threatened a revival of hostilities 
 
 A. D. 1148. . T- , , „ . TT r ^^ ■^ . 
 
 in li,nglana. rnnce Henry, son oi Matilda 
 and Geoffrey Plantagenet, had reached his sixteenth year, 
 and was desirous of receiving the honour of knighthood 
 from his grand uncle, David king of Scotland. For thia 
 purpose he passed through England with a great retinue, 
 and was visited by the most considerable of his partizans, 
 whose hopes he roused by his dexterity and vigour in 
 all manly exercises, and his prudence in every 
 * occurrence. He staid some time in Scotland, 
 where he increased in reputation ; and on his return to 
 Normandy, he was invested in that duchy with the con- 
 sent of his mother Matilda. His father died the following 
 year, when Henry took possession of Anjou and 
 Maine, and espoused the heiress of Guienne 
 and Poitou, who had been married sixteen years to Lewis 
 VII. king of France, but v/hom he had divorced, as I 
 have already observed, on account of her gallantries. 
 This marriage, which brought Henry a great accession of 
 power, rendered him extremely formidable to his rival; 
 and the prospect of his rising fortune had such an effect 
 in Engiai^d, that the archbishop of Canterbury refused to 
 anoint Eustace, Stephen's son, as his successor, and made 
 his escape beyond sea, to avoid the fury of the enraged 
 inonarch\ 
 
 As soon as Henry was informed of these dispositions 
 ^^ in the people, he invaded England, Stephen 
 ^' advanced with a superior army to meet him : 
 and a decisive action was every day expected, when the 
 great men on both sides, terrified with the prospect of 
 farther bloodshed and confusion, interposed their good 
 offices, and set on foot a negociation between the contend- 
 ing princes. The death of Eustace, which happened du- 
 ring the course of the treat}-, facilitated its conclusion; 
 and an accommodation was at last settled, by which it 
 
 5. Id. ibid. 
 
LET. xxvii.] MODERN EUROPE. iSS ^ 
 
 was agreed, that Stephen should possess the crown during 
 his lite-time; that justice should be administered in his 
 name, even in the provinces which had submitted to his 
 rival; and that Henry, on Stephen's death, should suc- 
 ceed to the kingdom of England, and William, Stephen's 
 son, to Boulogne and his patrimonial estate^ 
 
 The barons all swore to the observance of this treaty, 
 
 and did homage to Henry as heir of the 
 
 TT • T . 1 r , , A.D. 1154. 
 
 crown, lie immediately alter evacuated the 
 
 kingdom ; and Stephen's death, which happened next 
 year, prevented those jealousies and feuds, which were 
 likely to have ensued in so delicate a situation. The 
 character of Stephen is differently represented by histo- 
 rians ; but all allow, that he possessed industry, activity, 
 and courage, to a great degree ; and had he succeeded by 
 a just title, he seems to have been well qualified to pro- 
 mote the happiness and prosperity of his subjects, notwith- 
 standing the miseries that England suffered under his 
 reign^. 
 
 6. Hen. Hunt, ubi sup. Anna! Waverl. M. Paris. J. Brompton. 
 
 7. These miseries are thus described by a cotemporary hiftorian- 
 « All England wore a face of desolation and wretchedness. Multitudes 
 •' abandoned their beloved country and went into voluntary exile : others, 
 " forsaking their own houses, built sorry huts in the church-yards, hoping 
 " for protection from the sacredness of the place. Whole families, after 
 «' sustaining life as long as they could, by eating herbs, roots, and the flcth 
 " of dogs and horses, at last died of hunger ; — and you might see many 
 " pleasant villages without asingle Inhabitant of either sex." Gett. Reg. 
 Stepb. 
 
 LETTER 
 
n^ THE HISTORY OF [paut i. 
 
 LETTER XXVIII. 
 
 IKCLAND, DURING THE REIGN OF HENRY 11. WITH AN ACCOUNT 
 OF THE AFFAIRS OF FRANCE. 
 
 1 HAVE already observed, my dear Philip, that 
 Before the conquestof England by the duke of Normandy, 
 this island was as distinct from tho rest of the world in 
 politics as situation. The English had then neither ene- 
 mies nor allies on the continent. But the foreign dominions 
 of William andhis successor connected them with the kings 
 and great vassals of France : and while the opposite pre- 
 tensions of the popes and the emperors in Italy produced 
 a continual inlercouse between Germany and that country, 
 the two great monarchs of France and England formed, 
 in another part of Europe, a separate systein, and carried 
 on their wars and negociations, without meeting either 
 with opposition or support from their neighbours ; the 
 extensive confederacies by which the European poten- 
 tates are now united, and made the guardians of each 
 other, being then totally unknown. No wonder, there- 
 fore, that Lewis VII. king of France, observed with 
 terror the rising greatness of the house of Anjou or 
 Plantagenet, whose continental dominions composed 
 above a third of the whole French monarchy, and 
 which gave a sovereign to England in the person of 
 Henry II. The jealousy occasioned by this alarming 
 circumstance, however, as we shall have occasion to see, 
 not only saved France from falling a prey to England, 
 but exalted that kingdom to the pitch of grandeur which 
 it has so long enjoyed. The king of England soon be- 
 came a kind of foreigner in his continental dominions; 
 and the other powerful vassals of the French crown, in- 
 stead of being roused at the oppression of a co-vassal, 
 were rather pleased at the expulsion of the Anglo-Nor- 
 mans. 
 
 But 
 
XXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 287 
 
 But as these important consequences could not be fore- 
 seen by human wisdom, the king of France had maintain- 
 ed a strict union vith Stephen, in order to prevent the 
 succession of Henry. The sudden death of the usurper, 
 however, rendered abortive all the schemes of Lewis. 
 Henry was received in England with the acclamations of 
 ail orders of men, who joyfully swore to him the oath of 
 allegiance : and he began his reign with re-establishing 
 justice and good order, to which the kingdom had been 
 long a stranger. For this purpose he dismissed all those 
 foreign mercenaries retained by Stephen ; and that he 
 might restore authority to the laws, he caused all the new- 
 erected castles, which had proved so many sanctuaries tO 
 rebels and free-booters, to be demolished'. In order yet 
 farther to conciliate the affections of his subjects, he 
 voluntarily confirmed that charter of liberties, which had 
 been granted by his grandfather, Henry P. 
 
 Tranquillity was no sooner restored to England, than 
 Henry had occasion to visit his foreign dominions; where 
 all things being likewise settled, he returned 
 to repress the incursions of the Welsh, who 
 at first gave him much trouble, but at length submitted. 
 In the mean time a quarrel broke out betv/een . . „ 
 
 T . , TT 1 • 1 ,.A. D. 1157. 
 
 jLewis and Henry, relative to the county oi 
 
 Thoulouse, and war was openly carried on between the 
 
 two monarchs. But these hostilities produced , ^^ 
 
 ,, , ^ . A. D. 1161. 
 
 no memorable event, were stopt by a cessation 
 
 of arms, and soon terminated in a peace, through the 
 mediation of the pope. 
 
 This war, so insignificant in itself, is remarkable for 
 the manner in which it was conducted. An army formed 
 of feudal vassals, as I have had occasion frequently to ob- 
 serve, was commonly very intractable and undisciplined; 
 both because of the independent spirit of the persons who 
 composed it, and because the commissions were not be- 
 stowed by the choice of the sovereign, in reward of the 
 
 1. Gervas. Chron, Gul. Neubrig, lib. U. 
 m. Vide Blackstone'i /.WW TracU, vol ii. 
 
 mililarv: 
 
288 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 militarv talents and services of the officers. Each baron 
 conducted his own vassals, and his rank in the army was 
 greater or less, in proportion to the value of his property. 
 Even the chief command, under that of the prince was 
 often attached to birth; and as the military vassals v/ere 
 obliged to serve only forty days, at their own charge, the 
 state reaped very little benefit from their attendance. 
 Henry, sensible of these inconveniences, levied upon his 
 vassals in Normandy, and other provinces remote from 
 Thoulouse, the seat of war, a sum of money in place of 
 their service : and this commutation, by reason of the 
 greater distance, was still more advantageous to his Eng- 
 lish vassals. He therefore imposed a scutnge of three 
 pounds upon each knight's fee; a condition, though 
 unusual, and the first perhaps to be met with in history, to 
 which the military tenants readily submitted. With this 
 money he levied an army, which was more at his disposal, 
 and whose service was more durable and constant: and, in 
 order to facilitate those levies, he enlarged the privileges 
 of the people, and rendered them less dependent on the 
 barons, by whom they had long been held in servitude, 
 or in a state of the most grievous oppression. 
 
 Having thus regulated his civil and military affairs 
 and accommodated his differences with Lewis, 
 "'Henry soon after his return to England, be- 
 gan to cast his eye upon the church, where abuses of 
 every kind prevailed. The clergy, among their other 
 inventions to obtain money, had inculcated the necessi- 
 ty of penance as an atonement for sin. They had also 
 introduced the practice of paying large sums of money, as 
 a composition for such penances. By these means the 
 sins of the people were become a revenue to the priests; 
 and the king computed, that, by this invention alone, 
 they levied more money from his subjects than flowed 
 into the royal treasury by all the methods of public supply^. 
 Feeling for his oppressed people, he therefore required 
 
 3. Fitz-Stepli. Vit. St. Thorn. 
 
 that 
 
tKT. XXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. fi89 
 
 that a civil officer, appointed by the crown, should for 
 the future be present in all ecclesiastical courts, and whose 
 consent should be necessary to every composition made 
 b) sinners for their spiritual offences. 
 
 But the grand difficulty was, how to carry this or- 
 der into execution ; as the ecclesiastics, in that age, had 
 renounced all immediate subordination to the civil power. 
 They openly claimed exemption, in cases of criminal accu- 
 sation, from a trial before courts of justice. Spiritual 
 penalties alone could be inflicted on their offences ; and 
 as the clerical habit was thus become a protection for 
 all enormities, they could not fail to increase. Accordingly 
 crimes of the deepest dye were daily committed with im- 
 punity by ecclesiastics : and it was found upon inquiry, 
 that no less than an hundred murders had been perpetrated 
 since the king's accession, by men in holy orders, who 
 had never been called to account for these offences against 
 the laws of nature and society'^. 
 
 In order to bring such criminals to justice, as the first 
 step towards his projected reformation of the church, and 
 by that means to restore union between the civil and 
 ecclesiastical power, so necessary in every government for 
 the maintenance of peace and harmony ! Henry exalted 
 Thomas a Becket, his chancellor, and the first man of 
 English descent who had occupied an eminent station 
 «ince the Norman conquest, to the see of Canterbury, on 
 the death of archbishop Theobald ; rightly judging, that 
 if the present opportunity should be neglected, and the 
 usurpations of the clergy allowed to proceed, the crown 
 must be in danger, from the predominating superstition of 
 the people, of falling under subjection to the mitre. 
 
 Becket, while chancellor, was pompous in his retinue, 
 sumptuous in his furniture, and luxurious in his table,, 
 beyond what England had seen in a subject. His house 
 was a place of education for the sons of the chief no- 
 bility, and the king himself frequently condescended to 
 
 4. Gul. Neubr. lib. ii. 
 
 VOL. I. T t partake 
 
SCO " ■ THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 partake of his chancellor's entertainments. His amuse- 
 rnents were as gay as his manner of life was splendid and 
 elegant. He employed himself at leisure hours in hunting, 
 hawking, gaming, andhorsemanship. His complaisance and 
 good humour had rendered him agreeable, and his indus- 
 try and abilities useful to his master. Pie was well acquaint- 
 ed with the king's intention of retrenching, or rather con- 
 finingwithin ancient bounds all ecclesiastical privileges, and 
 having always shewed a ready disposition to comply with 
 every advance to that purpose, Henry considered him as 
 the fittest person he could place at the head of the English 
 church. But no prince of so much penetration, as 
 appeared in the issue, ever so little understood the charac- 
 ter of his minister. 
 
 Becket was no sooner installed in the see of Canter- 
 bur}', which rendered him the second person in the 
 kingdom, than he secretly aspired at being the first, in 
 consequence at least, and totally altered his manner of 
 life. He affected the greatest austerity, and the most rigid 
 mortification : he wore sackcloth next his skin, which he 
 changed so seldom, that it was filled with dirt and vermin. 
 His usual diet was bread, his drink water : he tore his 
 back with the frequent discipline which he inflicted upon 
 it; and he daily washed on his knees, in imitation of Jesus 
 Christ, the feet of thirteen beggars, whom he afterwards 
 dismissed with presents-''. Every one who made profes- 
 sions of sanctity was admitted to his conversation, and 
 returned full of panegyrics on the humility, as well as 
 piety and mortification of the holy primate ; whose aspect 
 now wore the appearance of intense seriousness, mental 
 reflection, and sacred devotion. And all men of penetra- 
 tion saw, that he was meditating some great design, and 
 that the ambition and ostentation of his character had 
 taken a new and more dangerous direction. 
 
 This championof the church (for such he now declared 
 himself) did not even wait till the king had matured those 
 
 5. Fitz-Steph. ubi sub. 
 
 projects 
 
I.ET. xxi'iii.] MODERN EUROPE. £9i 
 
 projects, which he knew had been formed against eccle- 
 siastical power : he himself began hostilities, and en- 
 deavoured to over-awe the king by the intrepidity and 
 boldness of his measures. But although Kcnry found 
 himself thus grievously mistaken in the character of the 
 person whom he had promoted to the primacy, he deter^ 
 mined not to desist from his fornier intention of retrench- 
 ing clerical usurpations : — and an event soon occurred 
 which gave him a plausible pretence for putting his 
 design in execution, and brought matters to a crisis with 
 the archbishop. 
 
 A parish clerk in Worcestershire having debauched 
 a gentleman's daughter, had about this time 
 proceeded to murder the father. The general 
 indignation against so enormous a crime made the king 
 insist, that the clerk should be delivered up to the civil 
 magistrate, and receive condign punishment; but Becket 
 insisted on the privileges of the church, and maintained 
 that no greater punishment could be inflicted upon him 
 than degradation''. Henry laid hold of so favourable a 
 cause to push the clergy with respect to all their usurpa- 
 tions, and to determine at once those controversies 
 which daily multiplied betvveen the civil and ecclesiastical 
 jurisdiction. He summoned an assembly of all the prelates 
 of England, and put them to this concise and decisive 
 question : Whether or not they were willing to submit to 
 the ancient laws and customs of the kingdom ? The bishops 
 answered equivocally, and the king left the assembly with 
 marks of the highest indignation. They were struck with 
 terror, and gave a general promise of observing the an- 
 cient customs'. 
 
 But a declaration in general terms was not sufficient 
 for Henry: he wanted to define exactly the limits between 
 the rival powers. For this purpose he summon- 
 ed at Clarendon a general council of the bishops 
 and nobles, to whom he submitted that great and important 
 
 «. Ibid, 7. R. Hoveden, £ist. ^ad. 
 
 question. 
 
292 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 question. The barons were all gained to the king's party, 
 cither by the reasons he urged or b)- his superior authority, 
 while the bishops were over-awed by the general combina- 
 tion against them. And the following laws, among others, 
 commonly called the Constitutions of Clarendon, were 
 voted without opposition : " That no chief tenant of the 
 *' crown shall be excommunicated, or have his lands put 
 " under an interdict, without the king's consent; that n» 
 " appeals in spiritual causes shall be carried before the 
 " holy see, nor any clergyman be suffered to depart the 
 *' kingdom, unless with the king's permission ; that lay- 
 " men shall not be accused in spiritual courts, except by 
 " legal and reputable promoters and witnesses ; and 
 *' lastly," which was the great object aimed at, " that 
 " churchmen, accused of any crime, shall be tried in the 
 *' civil courts^." 
 
 These articles were well calculated to prevent the 
 principal abuses in ecclesiastical affairs, and put a final 
 stop to the usurpations of the church : and having been 
 passed in a national and civil assembly, they fully estab- 
 lished the superiority of the legislature over all j)apal 
 decrees and spiritual canons. But as Henry knew the 
 bishops would take the first opportunity to deny the au- 
 thority which had enacted these constitutions, he resolv- 
 ed they should set their seal to them, and give a promise 
 to observe them. With this view they were reduced to 
 writing ; and none of the prelates dared to oppose the 
 king's will except Becket, who at length consented. He 
 set his seal to the constitutions ; promised legally, with 
 good-faith, and w'xthowt fraud or reserve to observe them, 
 and even took an oath to that purposed 
 
 Henry, thinking he had now finally prevailed in this 
 great contest, sent the Constitutions of Clarendon to 
 Alexander III. to be ratified. But the pope, who plainly 
 saw they were calculated to establish the independency of 
 England from the holy see, abrogated, annulled, and re« 
 
 fl. M. Paris. Hht. Shiad. 9. Fitz-Steph. Gcrvas. 
 
 jected 
 
iET. XXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 29^ 
 
 jected them ; and when Becket found he might hope for 
 the papal support in an opposition to regal authority, he 
 expressed the deepest sorrow for his concessions. He 
 redoubled his austerities, as a punishment for his crimi- 
 nal compliance ; and he refused to exercise any part of 
 his ecclesiastical function, until he should receive abso- 
 lution from the pope. Absolution was readily granted 
 him ; after receiving which he set no bounds to his ob- 
 stinacy and ambition. 
 
 Henry, however, who was entirely master of his ex- 
 tensive dominions, and sure every one would obey his will 
 except the man whom he had lifted into power, and to 
 whose assistance he had trusted in forwarding his favour- 
 ite project against the clergy, was now incensed beyond 
 all measure, and resolved both to humble the church and 
 make the prelate feel the weight of his indignation. He 
 accordingly summoned Becket to give an account of his 
 administration while chancellor, and to pay the balance 
 due from the revenues of all the prelacies, abbies, and 
 baronies which had been subject to his management, du- 
 ring that time. 
 
 This prosecution, which seems to have been tnore 
 dictated by passion than by justice, or even by sound poli- 
 cy, threw Becket and all the clergy of England, into 
 the utmost confusion. Some bishops advised him to 
 resign his see, on receiving an acquittal; others were of 
 opinion, that he ought to submit himself entirely to 
 the king's mercy: for they were fully sensible, that ac- 
 counts of so much intricacy could not be produced of a 
 sudden, in such a manner as to satisfy a tribunal resolved 
 to ruin and oppress him. But the primate, thus pushed 
 to extremity, had too much courage to yield: he deter- 
 mined to brave all his enemies; to trust to the sacredness 
 of his character for protection; and to defy the utmost 
 efforts of royal indignation, by involving his cause with 
 that of God and the church. He therefore strictly pro- 
 hibited his suffragans to assist at any such trial, or give 
 their sanction to any sentence against him : he put him- 
 self and hi» see under the immediate protection of the 
 
 vicegerent 
 
294 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 vicegerent of Christ, and appealed to his holiness against 
 any penalty which his iniquitous judges might think pro- 
 per to inflict upon him. " The indignation of a great 
 " monarch," added he, " such as Henry, with his sword, 
 *' can only kill the body; while that of the church, intrust- 
 *' ed to the primate, can kill the soul, and throw the diso- 
 *' bedient into infmite and eternal perdition "." 
 
 Appeals to Rome, even in spiritual causes, had been 
 prohibited by the Constitutions of Clarendon, and conse- 
 quently were become criminal by law ; but an appeal in 
 a civil cause, such as the king's demand upon Becket, was 
 altogether new and unprecedented, and tended directly to 
 the subversion of the English government. Henry, there- 
 fore, being now furnished with so much better a pretence 
 for his violence, would probably have pushed this affair 
 to the utmost against the primate, had he not retired be- 
 yond sea and found patrons and protectors in the pope 
 and the king of France. 
 
 The violent prosecution carried on against Becket 
 at home, had a natural tendency to turn the public 
 favour on his side, and to make men forget his former 
 ingratitude towards the king, and his departure from all 
 oaths and engagements, as well as the enormity of those 
 ecclesiastical privileges, of which he affected to be the 
 champion: and political considerations conspired with 
 sympathy, to procure him countenance and support 
 abroad. Philip, earl of Flanders, and Lewis, king of 
 France, jealous of the rising greatness of Henry, were 
 glad of an opportunity to give him disturbance in his 
 government. They pretended to pity extremely the con- 
 dition of the persecuted archbishop; and the pope, whose 
 interests were more immediately concerned in abetting 
 his cause, honoured Becket with the highest marks of 
 distinction. A residence was assigned him in the abbey 
 of Pontigny, where he lived, for some years, in great 
 magnificence, partly by a pension out of the revenues 
 
 10. M. Paris. R. Hoveden. Epist. St. Thorn. Vit. St. Thorn. 
 
 - mi 
 
LET. xxviii.] MODERN EUROPE. 29« 
 
 of the abbey, and partly by the generosity of the French 
 monarch . 
 
 In the mean time the exiled primate filled all Eu- 
 rope with exclamations against the violence he had suf- 
 fered. He compared himself to Christ, who had been 
 condemned by a lay tribunal, and who was crucified aneW 
 in the present oppressions under which his church labour- 
 ed^. But complaint was a language little suited to the 
 ^vehemence of Becket's temper, and in which he did not 
 long acquiesce. Having resigned his see into the hands 
 of the pope, as a mark of submission, and received it 
 again from the head of the church, with high encomiums 
 on his piety and fortitude, he issued out a sentence of 
 excommunication against the king's chief ministers, by 
 name, comprehending, in general, all those who had 
 favoured or obeyed the constitutions of Clarendon : he 
 abrogated and annulled those constitutions, absolving all 
 persons from the oaths which they had taken to observe 
 them: and he suspended the spiritual thunder over Henry, 
 only that he might avoid the blow by a timely repentance'^. 
 
 Henry, on the other hand, employed the temporal 
 weapons still in his power. He suspended ^.^„ 
 
 the payment of St. Peter's Pence, and made ^- "• ''^'- 
 some advances towards an alliance with the emperor, 
 Frederic Barbarossa, who was then engaged in violent 
 wars with pope Alexander III. Both parties grew sick 
 of contention, and each was afraid of the other. Although 
 the vigour of Henry's governmeat had confirmed his au- 
 thority in all his dominions, he was sensible that his 
 throne might be shaken by a sentence of excommunica- 
 tion : but as the trials hitherto made of the spiritual 
 weapons by Becket had not succeeded to his expectation, 
 and every thing remained quiet both in Eng- 
 land and Normandy, nothing seemed impos- 
 isible, on the other hand, to the vigilance and capacity of 
 so great a prince. 
 
 11. Epht. Sf. Thorn. 12. Ibid. 13. M. Paris. R. Hoveden Fitz- 
 Steph. Vit. St. Thorn. 
 
 These 
 
29S THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 These considerations produced frequent attennpts at 
 an accommodation, which was long obstructed bv mu- 
 tual jealousy. After all differences seemed adjusted, 
 
 the king offered to sign the treaty, with a 
 
 , , . ; 7- •, .A. D. 1168. 
 
 salvo to his roijal digrutij; a reservation 
 
 which gave so much umbrage to the primate, that the 
 negociation became fruitless. And in a second negocia- 
 tion, Becket, imitating Henry's example, offered to 
 make his submissions with a salvo of the honour of God^ 
 and the liberties of ihc church; a proposal, which, for a 
 like reason, was offensive to the king, and rendered the 
 treaty abortive. A third conference was broken off by 
 the same means. And even in a fourth, when all things 
 were settled, and the primate expected to ..,^ 
 
 he introduced to the king, Henry retused 
 to grant him the kiss of peace, under pretence that he 
 made a rash vow to the contrary. The want of this for- 
 mality, insignificant as it may seem, prevented the conclu- 
 sion of the treaty, it being regarded in those times as the 
 only sure mark of forgiveness. 
 
 In one of these conferences, at which the French 
 king was present, Henry said to that monarch, " There 
 *' have been many kings of England, some of greater, some 
 *' of less authority than myself: there have also been 
 *' many archbishops of Canterbury, holy and good men, 
 " and entitled to every kind of respect: let Becket only 
 " act towards me with the same submission, which the 
 *' greatest of his predecessors has paid to the least of 
 " mine, and there shall be no controversy between us'*." 
 
 LeAvis was so much struck with this state of the case, 
 and with an offer which Henry made to submit his cause 
 to the French clergy, that he could not forbear condemn- 
 ing Becket, and withdrawing his friendship for a time. 
 But their common animosity against Henry soon produ- 
 ced a renewal of their former intimacy, and the primate 
 revived his threats and excommunication. All difficulties 
 
 14. Vit. St Thorn, lib. ii. 
 
 between 
 
LET. XXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 397 
 
 between the parties, however, were at last got over, and 
 Becket was permitted to return on conditions both hon- 
 ourable and advantageous: a certain pi-oof how . .^^ 
 , . ,-1 A. D. 11/0. 
 much Henry dreaded the interdict that was 
 
 ready to be laid upon his dominions, if he had continued 
 in disobedience to the church, and how terrible the thun- 
 der of the church must then have been, since it could 
 humble a prince of so haughty a spirit I 
 
 This accommodation with Becket, though settled on 
 terms b)- no means favourable to the crown, did not even 
 procure Henry that temporary tranquillity which he had 
 hoped to reap from it. Instead of being taught modera- 
 tion bv a six years exile, the primate was only animated 
 with a spirit of revenge. Elated by the victory which he 
 had obtained over his sovereign, he set no bounds to his 
 arrogance. On his arrival in England, where he v/ent 
 from town to town in a sort of triumphal cavalcade, he no- 
 tified to the archbishop of York the sentence of suspen- 
 sion; and to the bishops of London and Salisbury that of 
 excommunication, which at his solicitations, the pope had 
 pronounced against them, because they had assisted at 
 the coronation of prince Henry, whom the king had asso- 
 ciated in the royalty, during the absence of the primate, 
 and when an interdict was ready to be laid upon his do- 
 minions; a precaution thought necessary to insure the 
 succession of that prince. By this violent measure, there- 
 fore, Becket in effect declared war against the king him- 
 self; yet, in so doing, he appears to have been guided 
 by policy as well as passion. Apprehensive lest a prince 
 of such profound sagacity should in the end prevail, he 
 resolved to take all the advantage which his present vic- 
 tory gave him, and to disconcert the cautious measures 
 of the king, by the vehemence and vigour of his own con- 
 duct. Assured of support from Rome, he was little ap- 
 prehensive of dangers, which his courage taught him 
 to despise and which, though followed by the most fatal 
 consequences, would still gratify his thirst of glory, and 
 reward his ambition with the crown of martyrdom. 
 
 VOL. I. u u The 
 
298 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 The suspended and excommunicated prelates waited 
 upon the king at Baleux in Normandy, where he then re- 
 sided, and complained to him of the violent proceedings of 
 Becket: and Henry, sensible that his whole plan of ope- 
 rations was overturned, and the contest revived, which 
 he had endeavoured by so manv negociations to appease, 
 was thrown into the most violent agitation. " Will my 
 *' servants," exclaimed he, " still leave me exposed to 
 *' the insolence of this ungrateful and imperious priest?" 
 These words seem.ed to call for vengeance; and four gen- 
 tlemen of the king's houshold, Reginald P'itz-Urse, Wil- 
 liam de Tracy, Hugh de Moreville, and Richard Brito, 
 communicating their thoughts to each other, and swear- 
 ing to revenge their sovereign's quarrel, secretly with- 
 drew from court, and made the best of their way to 
 England. 
 
 In the mean time Henry, informed of some menac- 
 ing expressions which they had dropt, dispatched a 
 messenger after them, charging them to attempt nothing 
 against the person of the primate. But these orders 
 came too late to prevent their fatal purpose. Though 
 they took different roads, to avoid suspicion, they arriv- 
 ed nearly about the same time at Canterbury, where 
 they found the primate in perfect security: and on his 
 refusing, with his usual insolence and obstinacy, to 
 take of}' the excommunication and suspension of the 
 bishops, they murdered him in the church of St. Bene- 
 dict, during the evening servicers. 
 
 Such, my dear Philip, was the tragical death of 
 Thomas a Becket; a prelate of the most lofty, intrepid, 
 and inflexible spirit, who was able to cover from the 
 world, and probably from himself, the efforts of pride 
 and ambition, under the disguise of sanctity, and of zeal 
 for the interests of Christ and his church. His death 
 confirmed to the clergy those privileges which his oppo- 
 sition could not obtain. Though Henry had proposed 
 to have him arrested, when informed of his renewed 
 
 15. Vit. St. Thorn, lib. iii. M. Paris. Benedict. Abbas. 
 
 insolence, 
 
LET. XXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 399 
 
 insolence, he was no sooner told of the primate's murder 
 than he was filled with the utmost consternation. In- 
 terdicts and excommunications, weapons in themselves 
 so terrible, would now, he foresaw, be armed with 
 double force: in vain should he plead his innocence, and 
 even his total ignorance of the fact; he was sufficiently 
 guilty, if the church thought fit to esteem him so. 
 These considerations gave him the deepest and most 
 unaffected concern, which he was at no pains to conceal. 
 He shut himself up from the light of the sun for three 
 days, denying himself all manner of sustenance ; and as 
 soon as he recovered, in any degree, his tone of mind, 
 
 he sent a solemn embassy to Rome, main- 
 
 . . ,. . 'i n- • 1 u -^- D. 1171. 
 
 taming his innocence, and offering to sub- 
 mit the v/hole affair to the decision of the holy see'^. 
 
 The pope, flattered by this unexpected condescen- 
 sion, forbore to proceed to extremities against Henry; 
 more especially as he was sensible, that he could reap 
 greater advantages from moderation than from violence. 
 JMeantime the clergy were not idle in magnifying the 
 sanctity of the murdered primate. Other saints had 
 borne testimony, by their sufferings, to the general 
 doctrines of Christianity, but Becket had sacrificed his 
 life for the power and privileges of the church. This 
 peculiar merit challenged (nor without a ready concur- 
 rence) a tribute of gratitude to his memory from the 
 whole body of the priesthood. Endless were the pane- 
 gyrics on his virtues; and the miracles wrought by his 
 relics were more numerous, more nonsensical, and 
 more impudently attested, than those which ever filled 
 the legend of any saint or martyr. His shrine not only 
 restored dead men to life; it also restored cows, dogs, 
 and horses. Presents v/ere sent, and pilgrimages per- 
 formed, from all parts of Christendom, in order to 
 obtain his intercession with Heaven: and it was com- 
 puted that in one year, above an hundred thousand pil- 
 
 16. M. Paris. R. HoveJen. 
 
 grims 
 
300 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 grims arrived at Canterbury, and paid their devotion* 
 at his tomb'''. 
 
 As Henry found, however, that he was in no imme- 
 diate danger from the thunder of the Vatican, he under- 
 took the conquest of Ireland; an enterprize which he 
 had long meditated, and for which he had obtained a_ 
 bull from pope Adrian IV. but which had been defer- 
 red by reason of his quarrels with the primate. Of 
 that island something must here be said. 
 
 Ireland was probably first peopled from Britain, as 
 Britain was from Gaul; and the inhabitants of all those 
 countries seem to have proceeded from the same Celtic 
 origin, which is lost in the most distant antiquity. The 
 Irish, from the earliest accounts of history or tradition, 
 had been buried in ignorance and barbarism; and as 
 their country was never conquered, or even invaded by 
 the Romans, who communicated to the western world 
 civility and slavery, they had remained almost in their 
 primitive ccaidition. 'I'he small principalities into which 
 the island was divided, exercised perpetual hostilities 
 against each other; and the uncertain succession of the 
 Irish princes was a continual source of domestic convul- 
 sion, the usual title of each petty sovereign to his prin- 
 cipality being the murder of his predecessor. Courage 
 and force, though exercised in the commission of vio- 
 lence, were more honoured than pacific virtues; and the 
 most simple arts of life, even tillage and agriculture; 
 were almost wholly unknown among the rude natives of 
 Ireland. 
 
 From this short account of the state of the country, 
 you will be less surprised, my dear Philip, when you 
 are told, that Henry, who landed at the head of no more 
 than five hundred knights and their attendants, in a pro- 
 cress which he made through that island, had 
 A. D. 1172 • • 
 
 little other occupation than to receive the 
 
 homage of his new subjects. He left most of the Irish 
 
 17. Gul. Neubrig. J. Brompton. R. Hoveden. 
 
 chieftains 
 
LET. xxviii.] MODERN EUROPE. 201 
 
 chieftains or princes in possession of their ancient terri- 
 tories: he bestowed lands on some of his EngUsh adven- 
 turers; and, after a stay of a few months, returned to 
 Britain, where his presence was much wanted, having 
 annexed Ireland to the English crown^. 
 
 The pope's two legates, Albert and Theodin, to 
 whom was committed the trial of Henry's conduct in 
 regard to the death of Becket, were arrived in Norman- 
 dy, before his return, and had sent frequent letters to 
 England full of menacing expressions. The king hasten- 
 ed over to meet them; and was so fortunate as to con- 
 clude an accommodation with them, on terms more easy 
 than could have been expected. He cleared himself by 
 oath of all concern in the murder of Becket. But as the 
 passion which he had expressed on account of that prelate's 
 conduct, had probably been the cause of his violent death, 
 he promised to serve three years against the infidels either 
 in Spain or Palestine, if the pope should require him; 
 and he agreed to permit appeals to the holy see, in 
 ecclesiastical causes, on surety being given that nothing 
 should be attempted against the rights of his crown ^. 
 
 Henry seemed now to have reached the pinnacle of 
 human grandeur and felicity. His dangerous contro- 
 versy with the church was at an end, and he appeared to 
 be equally happy in his domestic situation and his political 
 government. But this tranquillity was of short duration. 
 Prince Henry, at the instigation of Lewis 
 VII. his father-in-law, insisted that his father 
 should resign to him either the kingdom of England, or 
 the duchy of Normandy : and the king's two vounger 
 sons, Geoffrey and Richard, also leagued with the court 
 of France, by the persuasions of their mother, queen 
 Eleanor; whose jealousy, when in years, was as violent 
 as her amorous passions, in youth. 
 
 Thus Europe saw, with astonishment, the best and 
 most indulgent of parents obliged to maintain war against 
 
 18. Benedict. Abbas. M. Paris. Expu^iat. Hibern. lib. i. 
 
 19. M. i'aris. R. Hovedcn. 
 
 his 
 
302 THE HISTORY OF [part i, 
 
 his whole family; and, what was still more extraordinary, 
 several princes were not ashamed to support this ab- 
 surd and unnatural rebellion! — Not only Lewis, king of 
 France, but William, king of Scotland, Philip, earl of 
 Flanders, and several other princes on the continent, 
 besides many barons, both English and Norman, espous- 
 ed the quarrel of young Henry and his brothers^". 
 
 In order to break that alarming confederacy, the king 
 of England humbled himself so far as to supplicate the 
 court of Rome. Though sensible of the danger of 
 ecclesiastical authority in temporal disputes, he applied 
 to the pope to excommunicate his enemies, and by that 
 means reduce to obedience his undutiful children, whom 
 he found such reluctance to punish by the sv/ord. The 
 bulls required were issued by Alexander III. but they 
 not having the desired effect, Henry v/as obliged to have 
 recourse to arms : and he carried on war successfully, 
 and at the same time, against France, Scotland, and his 
 rebellious barons in England and Normandy. 
 
 Meanwhile, the English monarch, sensible of his 
 danger, and of the effects of superstition on 
 the minds of the people, went barefooted to 
 Becket's tomb ; prostrated himself before the shrine of 
 the saint ; remained in fasting and prayer during a whole 
 day; watched all night the holy reliques; and assembling a 
 chapter of the monks, put a scourge of discipline into each 
 of their hands, and presented his bare shoulders to the 
 lashes which these incensed ecclesiastics not sparingly 
 inflicted upon him ! — Next morning he received absolu- 
 tion ; and his generals obtained, on the same da)', a great 
 victory over the Scots, which was regarded as a proof of 
 his final reconciliation with Heaven, and with Thomas 
 i Becket^'. 
 
 The victory over the Scots was gained near Alnwick, 
 where their king was taken prisoner ; and the spirit of 
 the English rebels being broken by this blow, the whole 
 
 20. Benedict. Abbas. R. Hovcden. W. Neubrig. 21. Ibid. 
 
 kingdom 
 
LET. XXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 303 
 
 kingdom was restored to tranquillity. It was deemed 
 impious any longer to resist a prince, who seemed to lie 
 under the immediate protection of Heaven. The clergy 
 exalted anew the merits and the powerful intercession of 
 Becket ; and Henry, instead of opposing their supersti- 
 tion, politically propagated an opinion so favourable to 
 his interests*^ Victorious in all quarters, 
 crowned with glory, and absolute master of ' * 
 his English dominions, he hastened over to Normandy; 
 where a peace was concluded With Lewis, and an accom- 
 modation brought about with his sons. 
 
 Having thus, contrary to all expectation, extricated 
 himself from a situation in which his throne was exposed 
 to the utmost danger, Henry occupied himself for several 
 years in the administration of justice, enacting of laws, and 
 in guarding against those inconveniencies, which either 
 the past convulsions of the state, or the political institu- 
 tions of that age, rendered unavoidable. The success 
 which had attended him in all his wars, discouraged his 
 neighbours from attempting any thing against him ; so 
 that he was enabled to complete his internal regulations 
 without disturbance from any quarter. Some of these 
 regulations deserve particular notice. 
 
 As the clergy, by the constitutions of Clarendon, 
 which Henry endeavoured still to maintain, were subject- 
 ed to atrial by the civil magistrate, it seemed but just to 
 afford them the protection of that power to which they 
 owed obedience : he therefore enacted a law. That the 
 murderers of a clergyman should be tried before the 
 justiciary, in the presence of the bishop or his official ; 
 and besides the usual punishment for murder, should be 
 subjected to a forfeiture of their estates, and a confisca- 
 tion of their goods and chattels^^. He also passed an 
 equitable law. That the goods of a vassal should not be 
 seized for the debt of his lord, unless the vassal was 
 surety for the debt; and that, in cases of insolvency, the 
 
 23. R.Hovedcn. 23. Gci-vase. Diceto. 
 
 rents 
 
304 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 rents of vassals should be paid to the creditors of the 
 lord, not to the lord himsell , . 
 
 The partition of England into four divisions, and the 
 appointment of itinerant judges, learned in the law, to go 
 the circuit in each division, and to decide the causes in 
 the counties, after the example of the commissaries of 
 Lewis VI. and the missi of Charlemagne, was another 
 important ordinance of the English monarch; a measure 
 which had a direct tendency to curb the oppressions of 
 the barons, andto protect t'heinferior gentry or small land- 
 holders, and the common people in their property'^. And 
 that there might be fewer obstacles to the execution of 
 justice, he was vigilant in demolishing all the new erected 
 castles of the nobility, in England as well as in his foreign 
 dominions. Nor did he permit any fortress to rem.ain in 
 the custody of those he found reason to suspect^''. 
 
 But lest the kingdom should be weakened by this 
 peaceful policy, Henry published a famous decree, called 
 Ian Assize of Arms ; by which all his subjects were oblig- 
 i ed to put themselves in a situation to defend themselves 
 [ and the realm. Every person possessed of a single knight's 
 fee, was ordered to have a coat of mail, a helmet, a shield, 
 and a lance : and the same accoutrements were required 
 to be provided by every one, whether nobleman or gen- 
 I tleman, for whatever number of knight's fees he might 
 I hold. Every free layman, who had rents or goods 
 to the value of sixteen marks, was to be armed in like 
 manner: every one that had ten marks was obliged to 
 have an iron gorget, a cap of iron, and a lance ; and all bur- 
 gesses were to have a cap of iron, a lance, and a coat 
 thicklv quilted with wool, tow, or some such materials, 
 called a Wamhais''^. 
 
 While the English monarch was thus liberally employ- 
 ed in providing for the happiness and security of his 
 subjects, the king of France had fallen into a most abject 
 
 24. Benedict. Abbass. 25. R. Hoveden. 26. Benedict Abbas. 
 27. Annal. JVuz-erl. Benedict. Abbas. 
 
 superstition ; 
 
LET. xxviii.] MODERN EUROPE. 305 
 
 superstition ; and was induced, by a devotion more 
 sincere than Henry's, to make a pilgrimage to 
 the tomb of Beclcet, in order to obtain his in- * ' 
 tercession for the recovery of Philip, his son and heir. 
 Lewis, as the sagacious Hume remarks, with no less 
 ingenuity than pleasantry, probably thought himself en- 
 titled to the favour of that saint, on account of their 
 ancient intimacy: and hoped that Becket, whom he had 
 protected while on earth, would not now, that, he was so 
 highly advanced in heaven, forget his old friend and 
 benefactor : the young prince was restored to health; and, 
 as was supposed, through the intercession of Becket. But 
 the king himself, soon after his return, was struck with an 
 apoplexy, which deprived him of his judgment; and Philip 
 II. afterwards surnamed Augustus, took upon him the ad- 
 ministration, though only fifteen years of age. His father's 
 death, which happened next year, opened his 
 way to the throne; and he proved the ablest, 
 and the greatest monarch, that had governed France 
 since the age of Charlemagne. The superior age and ex- 
 perience of Henry, hov/ever, while they moderated his 
 ambition, gave him such an ascendant over this prince, 
 that no dangerous rivalship, for some time, arose between 
 them. The English monarch, instead of taking advan- 
 tage of Philip's youth, employed his good offices in 
 composing the quarrels which arose in the royal family 
 of France : and he was successful in mediating an accom- 
 modation between the king, his mother, and uncles. 
 But these services were ill requited by Philip; who, when 
 he came to man's estate, encouraged Henry's sons in their 
 ungrateful and undutiiul behaviour towards their fa- 
 ther'^ 
 
 The quarrels between the king of England and his 
 family, however, were in some measure quieted by the 
 
 death of his two sons, younc: Henry and his 
 
 . A. D. 1187. 
 
 brother Geoffrey, who had both been in open 
 
 S8. EeK«dict, Abbas. R. Hoved^g. 
 
 TOL. I. X X rebellion 
 
30(5 THE HISTORY OF [part f. 
 
 rebellion against their parental sovereign : and the rival- 
 ship between old Henry and Philip seemed, for a time, to 
 give place to the general passion for the relief of the Holy 
 Land. Both assumed the cross, and imposed 
 * a tax amounting to the tenth of all moveables, 
 on such of their subjects as remained at home'^. 
 
 But before this great enterprise could be carried into 
 execution, many obstacles were to be surmounted. 
 Philip, still jealous of Henry's greatness, entered into a 
 private confederacy with prince Richard, now heir appa» 
 rent to the English crown ; and by working on his am- 
 bitious and impatient temper, persuaded him to seek 
 present power and independency at the expense of filial 
 duty, and of the grandeur of that monarchy which he was 
 one day to inherit. The king of England was therefore 
 obliged, at an advanced age, to defend his dominions by 
 , , „^ arms, and to enter on a war with France, 
 
 A D 1 189 
 
 and with his eldest surviving son ; a prince 
 of great valour and popularity, who had seduced the chief 
 barons of Poitou, Guienne, Anjou, and Normandy. 
 Henry, as might be expected, was unsuccessful; a 
 misfortune which so much subdued his spirit, that he 
 concluded a treaty on the most disadvantageous terms. 
 He agreed that Richard should receive the homage, an 
 oath of fealty of all his subjects, and that all his asso- 
 ciates should be pardoned : and he engaged to pay the 
 king of France a compensation for the charges of the 
 war3°. 
 
 But the mortification which Henry, who had been 
 accustomed to give law to his enemies, received from 
 these humiliating conditions was light, in comparison of 
 what he experienced from another cause on that occasion. 
 When he demanded a list of the persons, to whom he 
 was to grant an indemnity for confederating with Richard, 
 he was astonished to find at the head of them the name 
 of his favourite son John, who had always shared his 
 
 29. Benedict. Abbas, 30. U. Paris, EeneJ. Abbas. R. Hoveden. 
 
 confidence ; 
 
LET. xxvaii.] MODERN EUROPE. 307 
 
 confidence; and who, on account of his influence with 
 the king, had often excited the jealousy of Richaid. 
 Overloaded with cares and sorrows and robbed of his last 
 domestic comfort, this unhappy father broke out into ex- 
 pressions of the utmost despair : he cursed the day of his 
 birth; and bestowed on his undutiful and ungrateful 
 children a malediction, which he could never be brought 
 to retract^'. The more his heart was disposed to friend- 
 ship and affection, the more he resented the barbarous 
 return which his four sons had successively made to his 
 parental care ; and this fatal discovery, by depriving him 
 of all that made life desirable, quite broke his spirit, and 
 threw him into a lingering fever, of which he soon after 
 expired, in the fifty-eighth year of his age, at the castle 
 of Chinon, near Saumur, in Normandy. 
 
 The character of Henry, both in public and private 
 life, is almost without a blemish : and his natural endow- 
 ments were equal to his moral qualities. He possessed 
 every mental and personal accomplishment, which can 
 make a man either estimable or amiable. He was of a 
 middle stature, strong and well proportioned ; his counte- 
 nance was lively and engaging; his conversation affable 
 and entertaining; his elocution easy, persuasive, and 
 ever at command. He loved peace, but possessed both 
 bravery and conduct in war; was provident without timi- 
 dity, severe in the execution of justice without rigour, 
 and temperate without austerity. He is said to have been 
 of a very amorous complexion, and historians mention 
 two of his natural sons by Rosamond, the fair daughter of 
 Lord Clifford; namely, Richard Longespee or Longsword 
 (so called from the sword which he usually wore), who 
 married the heiress of Salisbury; and Geoffrey, first 
 bishop of Lincoln and afterward archbishop of York. The 
 other circumstances of the story commonly told of that 
 lady seem to be fabulous, though adopted by many histo- 
 rical writers. 
 
 31. R. Hovcden. 
 
 Like 
 
SOS THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Like most of his predecessors of the Norman line, 
 Henry spent more of his time on the continent than in 
 England. He was surrounded by the English nobility and 
 gentry, when abroad ; and the French nobility and gentry 
 attended him when he returned to this island. All foreign 
 improvements, therefore, in literature and politeness, in 
 laws and arts, seem now to have been transplanted into 
 England : and the spirit of liberty, which still continued 
 to animate the breasts of the native English, communi- 
 cated itself to the barons, who were all yet of Norman ex- 
 traction; and made themboth more desirous of independency 
 themselves, and more willing to indulge it to the people, 
 whom they at first affected to despise, and of restraining 
 those exorbitant prerogatives and arbitrary exactions, to 
 which the necessities of war, and the violence of conquest 
 had originally obliged them to submit. 
 
 The effects of this secret revolution in the sentiments 
 of men, we shall afterwards have occasion to trace. At 
 present I must return to the affairs of Germany; remark- 
 ing by the way, that Henry II. left only two legitimate 
 sons, Richard, who succeeded him, and John, commonly 
 denominated Lack-Land, because he inherited no territo- 
 ry, though his father at one time, had intended to leave 
 him a large share of his extensive dominions. 
 
 LETTER XXIX. 
 
 THE GERMAN EMPIRE AND ITS DEPENDENCIES, ROME AND 
 THE ITALIAN STATES, UNDER FREDERIC I. SURNAMED 
 BARBAROSSA, WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE THIRD CRUSADE. 
 
 1 HAVE already observed, my dear Philip, That 
 
 Frederic duke ©f Suabia, surnamed Barbai'ossa, a prince 
 
 of great courage and capacity, was unanimously elected 
 
 . . ^„ emperor on the death of his uncle Conrad III. 
 
 not only by the Germans, but also by the 
 
 Lombards, 
 
LIT. XXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 30a 
 
 Lombards, who gave their votes on that occasion. His 
 election was no sooner known, than almost all the princes 
 of Europe sent ambassadors to Mersburg, to congratulate 
 Kim on his elevation. The king of Denmark went thither 
 in person for the investiture of his dominions ; and 
 Frederic crowned the Danish monarch with his own hand, 
 and received the oath of allegiance from him as a vassal 
 of the empire". 
 
 But although the reign of Frederic thus auspiciously 
 commenced, it was soon involved in troubles, which re- 
 quired all his courage and capacity to surmount, and 
 which it would be tedious circumstantially to relate. I 
 shall therefore only observe. That, after having settled 
 the aifairs of Germany, by restoring Bavaria to Henry the 
 
 Lion, duke of Saxony, the emperor marched 
 
 Ad lJ.55 
 intoltaly, in order to compose the disturbances 
 
 of that country, and be crowned by the pope, in imitation 
 
 of his predecessors^. 
 
 Adrian IV. who then filled St. Peter's chair, was an 
 Englishman, and a great example of what may be done 
 by personal merit and good fortune. The son of a men- 
 dicant, and long a mendicant himself, strolling from 
 country to country, he was received as a servant to the 
 canons of St. Rufus in Provence ; where, after a time, 
 he was admitted a monk, was raised to the rank of abbot, 
 and general of the order, and at length to the pontificate. 
 Adrian was inclined to crown a vassal, but afraid of giving 
 himself a master : he therefore insisted upon the Roman 
 ceremonial : which required, that the emperor should 
 prostrate himself before the pope, kiss his feet, hold his 
 stirrup, and lead the holy father's white palfrey by the 
 bridle the distance of nine Roman paces. 
 
 Frederic looked upon this ceremony as an insult, and 
 refused to submit to it. On his refusal the cardinals 
 fled, as if the emperor had given the signal of civil war; 
 and the Roman chancery, which kept a register of every 
 
 X. Annalde I'Emp.tom.. i. 2. Id. iljid. 
 
 thing 
 
no THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 thing of this kind, assured him that his predecessors had 
 always complied with these forms. The ceremony of 
 kissing the pope's feet, which he knew to be the establish- 
 ed custom, did not hurt Frederic's pride, but he could ^ 
 not bear that of holding the bridle and the stirrup, which 
 he considered as an innovation : and indeed it does not 
 appear that any emperor, except Lothario, successor to 
 Henry V. had complied with this part of the ceremony. 
 Frederic's pride, however, at length digested these two 
 supposed affronts, which he construed only as empty 
 marks of Christian humility, though the court of Rome 
 viewed them as proofs of real subjection^ 
 
 But the emperor's difficulties were not yet over. The 
 citizens of Rome sent him a deputation, insolently de- 
 manding the restoration of their ancient form of govern- 
 ment, and offering to stipulate with him for the imperial 
 dignity. " Charlemagne and Otho conquered you by their 
 " valour," replied Frederic, " and I am your master by 
 *' right of succession; it is mine to prescribe laws, and 
 *' yours to receive them." With these words he dismissed 
 the deputies, and was inaugurated without the walls of the 
 city by the pope ; who put the sceptre into his hand, and 
 the crown upon his head*. 
 
 The nature of the empire was then so little under- 
 _ , „ stood, and the pretensions so contradictorv, 
 
 A. D. 1156. , ', ,,,T> •• 
 
 that on the one hand, the Roman citizens 
 mutinied, and a great deal of blood was spilt, because 
 the pope had crowned the emperor, without the consent 
 of the senate and the people ; and, on the other hand, pope 
 Adrian, by all his letters, declared. That he had confer- 
 red the benefice of the Roman empire on Frederic I. 
 " hencfdum imperii Romani-y'' now the word beneficium 
 literally signified a fief, though his holiness explained it 
 otherwise. Adrian likewise exhibited, publickly in Rome, 
 a picture of the emperor Lothario on his knees before 
 pope Alexander IL holding both his hands joined between 
 those of the pontiff, which was the distinguishing mark of 
 
 3. Bunau. JEf/ff. Fred, L M\ir9.t. Antiq. Ital. 4. Id. ibid. 
 
 vassalage ; 
 
lET. XXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. «H 
 
 rassalage ; and on the picture was this inscription: 
 
 Rex venit ante fores ^jurans prius urhis honorest 
 Post homo Jit papa ; sumit quo dante coronam^, 
 
 " Before the gates the king appears, 
 *' Home's honours to maintain he swears; 
 *' Then to the pope sinks lowly down, 
 *' Who grants him the imperial crown.'* 
 
 Frederic, who had retired to his German dominions, 
 was at Besangon, when he received information of Adri- 
 an's insolence; and having expressed his displeasure at 
 it, a cardinal then present made answer, " If he does 
 not hold the empire of the pope, of whom does he 
 hold it?" Enraged at this impertinent speech, Otho, 
 count Palatine, would have run the author of it through 
 the body, with the sword which he wore as marshal of 
 the empire, had not Frederic prevented him. The car- 
 dinal immediately fled, and the pope entered into a treaty. 
 The Germans then made use of no argument but force, 
 and the court of Rome sheltered itself under the ambigu- 
 ity of its expressions. Adrian declared, that henejice, 
 according to his idea, signified 2i favour not ^fef and he 
 promised to put out of the way the painting of the conse- 
 cration of Lothario*^. 
 
 A few observations will not here be improper. 
 Adrian IV. besieged by William I. king of Sicily, in 
 Benevento, gave up to him several ecclesiastical preten- 
 sions. He consented that Sicily should never have any 
 legate, nor be subject to any appeal to the see of Rome, 
 except with the king's permission. Since that time, the 
 kings of Sicily, though the only princes who are vassals 
 of the pope, are in a manner popes themselves in their 
 own island. The Roman pontiffs, thus at once adored 
 and abused, somewhat resembled, to borrow a remark 
 from Voltaire, the idols which the Indians scourge to ob- 
 tain favours from them. 
 
 5. Annalr de I'Smfi. torn. i. Budau, ubi tv.f. 6, Id. ibid. 
 
 Adiian 
 
312 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Adrian, however, fully revenged himself upon other 
 princes who stood in need of him. He wrote in the fol- 
 lowing manner to Henry II. of England. " There is 
 *' no doubt, and you acknowledge it, that Ireland, and 
 *' all the islands which have received the faith, appertain 
 " to the Roman church; but if you want to take posses- 
 *' sion of that island, in order to banish vice from it, to 
 " enforce the observance of the Christian doctrines, and 
 " with an intent of paying the yearly tribute of St. Peter's 
 ," penny for every house, we with pleasure grant you 
 *' our permission to conquer it^" 
 
 Thus an English beggar, become bishop of Rome, 
 bestowed Ireland, by his sole authority, upon an English 
 king, who wanted to usurp it, and who had power to 
 carry his design into execution. 
 
 The intrepid activity of Frederic Barbarossa had 
 not only to subdue the pope, who disputed the empire ; 
 Rome which refused to acknowledge a master, and many 
 other cities of Italy, that asserted their independency; 
 he had, at the same time, the Bohemians, who had mu- 
 tinied against him, to humble; and also the Poles, with 
 whom he was at war. Yet all this he effected. He con- 
 quered Poland, and erected it into a tributary kingdom: 
 he quelled the tumults in Bohemia; and the 
 king of Denmark is said to have renewed to 
 the empire the homage for his dominions^. He secured 
 the fidelity of the German princes, by rendering himself 
 formidable to foreign nations; and flew back to Italy, 
 where hopes of independency had arisen, in consequence 
 of his troubles and perplexities. He found every thing 
 there in confusion; not so much from the efforts of the 
 several cities to recover their freedom, as from that party- 
 rage, which constantly prevailed, as I have frequently 
 had occasion to observe, at the election of a pope. 
 
 On the death of Adrian IV. two opposite factions 
 tumultuously elected two persons, known by the names 
 
 7. M. Paris, Gerald. Canibr. Spelm, Conc'd. 8. Annal. de I'Ewp. 
 
 of 
 
LET. XXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 313 
 
 of Vicior IV. and Alexander III. The ennperoi-'s allies 
 necessarily acknowledged the pope chosen by 1 1 to 
 
 him: and those princes, who were jealous 
 of the emperor, acknowledged the other. What was 
 the shame and scandal of Rome, therefore became the 
 signal of division over all Europe. Victor IV. Frede- 
 ric's pope, had Germany, Bohemia, and one ha' of 
 Italy on his side. The other kingdoms and states 
 mitted to Alexander III. in honour of whom the Milan- 
 ese, who were avowed enemies to the emperor, built 
 the city of Alexandria. In vain did Frederic's party 
 endeavour to have it called Csesaria, the pope's name 
 prevailed: and it was afterwards called out of derision, 
 Alexandria del Paglia, or Alexandria built of straxv, on 
 account of the ineanness of its buildings'. 
 
 Happy had it been for Europe, if that age had pro- 
 duced no disputes attended with more fatal conse- 
 quences; but unfortunately that was not the case. Mi- 
 lan, for maintaining its independency, was, nr^ 
 by the emperor's orders, razed to the foun- 
 dations, and salt strewed upon its ruins; Brescia and 
 Placentia were dismantled by the conqueror; and all 
 the other cities, which had aspired at independency, 
 were deprived of their privileges. 
 
 Pope Alexander III. however, who had excited 
 
 these revolts, and had been obliged to take refuge in 
 
 France, returned to Rome, after the death of his rival; 
 
 and, at his return, the civil war was renewed. The 
 
 emperor caused another pope to be elected, 
 
 under the appellation of Pascal III. who 
 
 also dying in a short time, a third was nominated by 
 
 Frederic, under the title of Calixtus III. Meanwhile 
 
 Alexander was not intimidated. He solemnly 
 
 • . ] .1 1 1 fi A. D. 1167. 
 
 excommunicated the emperor; and the flames 
 
 of civil discord, which be had raised, continued to 
 
 spread. The chief citit^s of Italy, supported by the 
 
 9, Jvi;irat. Antlq. luil 
 ^oi.. I. Y y Greek 
 
314 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Greek emperor, and the king of Sicily, entered into an 
 association for the defence of their liberties; aiid the 
 A D. 1168. ^°P^' ^^ length, proved stronger by nego- 
 ciation, than the emperor by fighting. The 
 imperial army, worn out by fatigues and diseases, was 
 defeated by the confederates, and Frederic himself nar- 
 rowly escaped bcinc; made prisoner. About 
 A. D. 1176. , • y , 1 r , , , , .1 
 
 the same time he was deieated at sea bv the 
 
 Venetians, and his eldest son Henry, who commanded 
 his fleet, fell into the hands of the enemy. Pope Alex- 
 ander, in honour of this victory, sailed out into the 
 Adriatic sea, or gulf of Venice, accompanied by the 
 whole senate; and, after having pronounced a thousand 
 benedictions on that element, threw into it a ring as a 
 mark of his gratitude and afl'ection. Hence the origin 
 of that ceremony which is annually performed by the 
 Venetians, under the notion of espousing the Adri- 
 atic'". 
 
 In consequence of these misfortunes, the emperor 
 was disposed to an accommodation with the pope; but 
 his pride would not permit him to make any humiliating 
 advance. He therefore rallied his troops, and exerted 
 himself with so much vigour in repairing his loss, that 
 he was soon in a condition to risk another battle, in which 
 his enemies were worsted : and being no less a poli- 
 tician than a general, he seized this fortunate moment 
 to signify his desire of peace to Alexander III. who re- 
 ceived the proposal with great joy. Venice had the hon- 
 our of being the place of reconciliation. The emperor, 
 the pope, and a number of princes and cardinals, repaired 
 . . _w to that city, then mistress of the sea, and one 
 
 A. D. 11 /« . 
 
 of the wonders of the world. There the em- 
 peror put an end to his b!oody dispute with the see of 
 Rome, by acknowledging thf pope, kissing his feet, and 
 holding his stirrup while he inounted his mule"." 
 
 This reconciliation was attend^ed with the submission of 
 all the towns in Italy, which had, entered into an associa* 
 10. Id. ibid. 11. Ediau, Hist. Fred. I. 
 
 t'lon 
 
LET. XXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 31 » 
 
 tion for their mutual defence. They obtained a general 
 pardon, and were left at liberty to the use of their own 
 laws and forms of government, but were obliged to take 
 the oath of allegiance to the emperor, as their superior 
 lord. 
 
 Calixtus, the anti-pope, finding himself abandoned 
 by the emperor, in consequence of that treaty, made 
 his submissions to Alexander III. who received him with 
 great humanity; and in order to prevent for the future, 
 those schisms which had so often attended ^ ^ ^ 
 
 A. D. 1179. 
 
 the election of popes, his holiness called a 
 
 general council, in which it was decreed. That no pope 
 
 should be deemed duly elected, without having the 
 
 votes of two-thirds of the college of cardinals in his 
 
 favour'-. 
 
 The affairs of Italy being thus settled, the emperor 
 returned to Germany; where Henry the Lion, duke of 
 Saxony, had raised fresh troubles. He was a proud, 
 haughty, and turbulent prince, like most of his prede- 
 cessors, and not only oppressed his own subjects, but 
 committed violences against all his neighbours. His 
 natural pride was not diminished by his alliance with 
 the king of England, whose daughter he had married. 
 Glad of an opportunity of being revenged upon Henry, 
 who had abandoned him in his Italian expedition, 
 Frederic convoked a diet at Goslar, where the duke 
 
 was put to the ban of the empire ; and after a 
 
 . c , 1 . A. D. 1180. 
 
 variety ot struggles, the sentence was put in 
 
 execution. He was divested of all his dominions, which 
 
 were bestowed upon different vassals of the empire. 
 
 Sensible of his folly when too late, the degraded 
 
 duke threw himself at the emperor's feet, and begged 
 
 with great humility that some of his territo- 
 
 A. D 1181 
 
 ries might be restored. Frederic, touched 
 
 with his unfortunate condition, referred him to a diet 
 
 ©f the empire at Erfurt. There Henry endeavoured 
 
 12. Mosheitti, Hist. Eccks. yoI. iii. 
 
 to 
 
316 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 to acquit himself of the crimes laid to his charge. But 
 as it was impracticable immediately to withdraw his 
 liefs from the present possessors, the emperor advised 
 him to reside in England, until the princes who had 
 shiired his dominions could be persuaded to relinquish 
 them; and he promised that, in the mean time, no at- 
 tempts should be made upon the territories of Brunswick 
 or Lunenburg, which he would protect in behalf of Hen- 
 ry's children. In compliance with this advice, the duke 
 retired to England, where he was hospitably entertained 
 by his father-in-law, Henry II. and there his wife bore 
 him a fourth son, from whom the present house of 
 Brunswick, and consequently the present royal family of 
 England, is descended -\ 
 
 While tranquillity was, in this manner, happily 
 restored to Italy and Germany, the Oriental Christians 
 were in the utmost distress. The great Saladin, a prince 
 of Persian extraction, and born in the small country of 
 the Curdes, a nation always warlike, and always free, 
 having fixed himself, by his bravery and conduct, on the 
 throne of Egypt, began to extend his conquest over all the 
 east i and finding the settlements of the Christians in 
 Palestine an invincible obstacle to the progress of his 
 arms, he bent the whole force of his policy and valour to 
 subdue that small and barren, but important territory. 
 Taking advantage of the dissfentions which prevailed 
 among the champions of the Cross, and having secretly 
 gained the count of Tripoli, v/ho commanded their 
 armies, he invaded Palestine with a mighty force ; and, 
 aided by the treachery of that count, gained at Tiberias 
 a complete victory over them, which utterly broke the 
 power of the already languishing kingdom of 
 ' Jerusalem. The holy city itself fell into his 
 hands, after a feeble resistance : the kingdom of Antioch 
 also was almost entirely subdued by his arms ; and, ex- 
 cept some maritime towns, nothing of importance remaih- 
 
 13. Annal, de I'Ewp. torn. i. 
 
 ed 
 
LET. xMix.] MODERN EUROPE. 317 
 
 ed of those boasted conquests, which, near a century 
 before, had cost the efforts of all Europe to acquire"*. 
 Clement III. who then filledthe papal chair, nosooner 
 received these melancholy tidings, than he ordered a 
 crusade to be preached through all the countries in 
 Christendom. Europe was filled with grief and con- 
 sternation at the progress of the Infidels in Asia. To 
 give a check to it seemedthe common cause of Christians. 
 Frederic Barbarossa, who was at that time employed in 
 making reerulations for the preservation of 
 
 A.'D 11S8 
 
 the peace and good order of Germany, assem- 
 bled a diet at Mentz, in order to deliberate with the 
 states of the empire on this subject. He took the 
 cross ; and his example was followed by his son Fre- 
 deric, duke of Suabia, together with sixty-eight of 
 the most eininent German nobles, ecclesiastics as well 
 as laymen. The rendezvous was appointed at Ratisbon; 
 and in order to prevent the inconvenience of too great 
 a multitude, the emperor decreed, that no person should 
 take the cross who could not afford to expend three 
 marks of silver. But notwithstanding that regulation, 
 wisely calculated to prevent those necessities which had 
 ruined the former armies, so great was the zeal of the 
 Germans, that adventurers assembled to the number of 
 one hundred and fifty thousand fighting men, well 
 armed, and provided with necessaries for the expedi- 
 tion'^ 
 
 Before his departure Frederic inade a progress 
 through the principal cities of Germanv, accompanied 
 by his son Henry, to whom he intended to commit the 
 government of the empire; and that he might omit 
 nothing necessary to the preservation of peace and 
 harmony during his absence, he endeavoured so to 
 regulate the succession to his dominions as that none of 
 his children should have cause to complain, or any pre- 
 text to disturb the public tranquillity. 
 
 14. Ma'mboiirg, Hist, des Croiindes. 15. Id. ibid. Biinau,ubi supra. 
 
 The 
 
318 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 The emperor in person marched at the headof thirty- 
 , thousand men, by the way of Vienna, to 
 Presburg, where he was joined by the rest 
 of his army. He thence proceeded through Hungary, 
 into the territories of the Greek emperor ; who, not- 
 withstanding his professions of friendship, had been 
 detached from the interests of Frederick by Saladin's 
 promises and insinuations, and took all opportunities of 
 harassing the Germans in their march. Incensed at this 
 periidv, Frederic hiid the country under contribution ; 
 took and plundered Philippolis ; defeated a body of 
 Greek troops that attacked him by surprize ; and com- 
 pelled Isaacus Angelas, emperor of Constantinople, to 
 sue for peace. He wintered at Adrianople ; crossed the 
 ^ Hellespont in the spring ; refreshed his troops 
 a short time at Laodicea ; defeated the Turks 
 in several battles ; took and pillaged the city of Iconium, 
 and crossed mount Taurus. All Asia was filled with the 
 terror of his name. He seemed to be among the soldiers 
 of the cross, what Saladin was among the Turks; an 
 able politician, and a good general, tried by fortune. 
 The Oriental Christians, therefore, flattered themselves 
 with certain relief from his assistance. But their hopes 
 were suddenly blasted. This great prince, who was an 
 expert swimmer, ventured to bathe in the cold river 
 Cydnus, in order to refresh himself after fatigue in a 
 sultry climate, pei-haps in emulation of the Macedonian 
 conqueror; and by that means caught a mortal distemper, 
 which at once put an end to his life and his bold enttr- 
 prize"". 
 
 Thus unfortunately perished Frederic I. in the sixty- 
 ninth year of his age, and the thirty-eighth of his reign; 
 a prince of a firm spirit, and strong talents, who had the 
 good of his country always at heart, and who supported 
 the dignity of the empire with equal courage and reputa- 
 tion. He was succeeded in the imperial throne by his 
 
 16. Maimbourg, ubi sup. Biinau, Hist. Fred. I. 
 
 son 
 
LET. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. 319 
 
 son Henry VI. surnamed the Severe. But before I enter 
 on the reign of that prince, my dear Philip, I must carry 
 forward the hisxory of the third crusade, continued by the 
 kings of France and England. 
 
 LETTER XXX. 
 
 FRAWCE AND ENGLAND, FROM THE DEATH OF HENRY II. TO THE 
 GRANTING OF THt GREAT CHARTER BY KING JOHN, WITH 
 A FARTHER ACCOUNT OF THE THIRD CRUSADE. 
 
 X HE death of Henry II. was an event esteemed 
 equally fortunate by his son Richard, and. by Philip Augus- 
 tus, king of France. Philip had lost a dangerous and im- 
 placable enemy, and Richard got possession 
 of that crown which he had so eagerly pur- 
 sued. Both seemed to consider the recovery of the Holy 
 Land as the sole purpose of their government; yet neither 
 was so much impelled to that pious undertaking by 
 superstition, as by the love of military glory. The king 
 of England, in particular, carried so little the appearance 
 of sanctity in his conduct, that, when advised by a zealous 
 preacher of the crusade (who from that merit had acquired 
 the privilege of speaking the boldest truths) to rid him- 
 self of his pride, avarice, and voluptuousness, which the 
 priest affectedly called the king's three favourite daugh- 
 ters ; Richard promptly replied, " You counsel well ! — 
 " and I hereby dispose of the first to the Templars, of 
 " the second to the Benedictines, and of the third to my 
 " Bishops'." 
 
 The reiterated calamities attending the former cru- 
 sades, taught the king's of France and England the 
 
 1. M. Westminst. 
 
 necessitv 
 
320 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 necessity of trying another road to the Holy Land. They 
 determined to conduct their armies thither by sea; to 
 carry provisions along with them ; and, by means of their 
 naval power, to maintain an open communication with their 
 ,,^^ own states, and with all the western parts of 
 
 A.D. 1190. „ T^l r 1 f , 1 
 
 iiiUrope. 1 he tirst place ot rendezvous was the 
 plains of Vezelay, on the borders of Burgundy, when 
 Philip and Richard found their armies amount to one 
 hundred thousand men : an invincible force, animaterl by 
 religion and glory, and conducted by two warlike mo- 
 narchs. They renewed their promises of mutual friend- 
 ship ; pledged their faith not to invade each other's 
 dominions during the crusade, and exchanging the oaths 
 of all their barons and prelates to the same effect, then 
 separated. Philip took the road to Genoa, Richard that 
 to Marseilles, both with a view of meeting their fleets, 
 which were severally appointed to assemble in those 
 harbours^ They put to sea together ; and both, nearly 
 about the same time, were obliged by stress of weather to 
 take shelter in Messina, where they were detained during 
 the whole winter. This event laid the foundation of 
 animosities between them, which were never afterwards 
 entirely removed, and proved ultimately fatal to their 
 armament. 
 
 But before I proceed to that subject, a few words rela- 
 tive to the character and circumstances of the two 
 princes will be necessary. Philip and Richard, though 
 professed friends, were, by the situation and extent of 
 their dominions, rivals in power ; by their age and in- 
 clinations, competitors for glory : and these causes of 
 emulation, which might have stimulated them to martial 
 efforts, had they been acting in the field against the 
 common enemy, soon excited quarrels, during their 
 present leisure, between monarchs of such fiery tempers. 
 Equally haughty, ambitious, intrepid, and inflexible, they 
 ■were irritated at the least appearance of injury, and they 
 
 2. R. Hoveden. Gaus. Vinisauf. Iter, HierosoU lib. ii. 
 
 were 
 
lET. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE* 321 
 
 were incapable, by mutual condescensions, to efface those 
 Occasions of complaint ' which mutually arose between 
 them. Nor were other sources of discord wanting. 
 
 William II. the last king of Naples and Sicily, had 
 married Joan, sister to Richard; and that prince dying 
 without issue^ had bequeathed his dominions to his pa- 
 ternal sister Constantia, the only legitimate offspring 
 surviving of Roger, the Norman, who conquered those 
 states from the Greeks and Saracens, as we have already 
 seen. Henry VI. then emperor of Germany, had married 
 this princess, in expectation of that rich inheritance; but 
 Tancred, her natural brother, by his interest among the 
 Sicilian nobles, had acquired possessionof the throne, and 
 maintained his claim against all the efforts of the empire* 
 The approach of the crusaders naturally gave the king of 
 Sicily apprehensions for his unstable government: and he 
 was uncertain whether he had most reason to dread the 
 presence of the French or English monarch. Philip was 
 engaged in strict alliance with the emperor, Tancred'4 
 competitor; Richard was disgusted by his rigour towards 
 the queen-dowager, v/hom he confined in Palermo, be- 
 cause she had opposed his succession to the crown. 
 Sensible, therefore, of the delicacy of his situation, Tan- 
 cred resolved to pay his court to both these princes: nor 
 was he unsuccessful in his endeavours. He persuaded 
 Philip, that it would be highly improper to interrupt the 
 expedition against the infidels by any attack upon a 
 Christian prince: he restored queen Joan to her liberty, 
 and even found means to make an alliance with Richard. 
 But before this friendship was cemented, Richard, jealous 
 both of Tancred and the inhabitants of Messina, had taken 
 Up his quarters in the suburbs, and possessed himself of 
 a small fort, which commanded the harbour. The citizens 
 took umbrage. Mutual insults and injuries passed between 
 them and the English soldiers. Philip, who had quartered 
 his troops in the town, endeavoured to accommodate 
 the quarrel, and held a conference with Richard for that 
 purpose. 
 
 VOL. I. 3? a While 
 
S» THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 While the two kings, who met in the open fields, were 
 engaged in discourse on this subject, a body ot the Sici- 
 lians seemed to be drawing towards them. Richard, 
 always aident and inipatient, pushed forward, in order to 
 learn the cause of that extraordinary movement ; and the 
 English adventurers, insolent from their power, and in- 
 flamed by former animosities, wanting only a f>rf;tence to 
 attack tlie Messinese, chased them from the field, drove 
 them into the town, and entered with them at the gates. 
 The king employed his authority to restrain them from 
 pillage or massaciing the defenceless inhabitants; but 
 he gave order that the standard of England, in token of 
 the victo^ry, should be erected on the walls. Philip, who 
 considered the citv of Messina i:s his quarters, exclaimed 
 agains-t the arrogance of the English monarch, and order- 
 ed some of his troops to pull down the standard. But 
 Richard informed him by a messenger, that although he 
 Would willingly himself remove that ground of offence, he 
 would not permit it to be done by others: and if the 
 French king attempted such an insult on his digivity, h« 
 should not succeed but by the utmost effusion of blfood» 
 Philip, satisfied with this species of haughty con-descen- 
 sion, recalled his orders, aiid the difference was seemingly 
 accommodated ; but the seeds of rancour and jealousy 
 still remained in the breasts of the two monarchs\ 
 
 After leaving Sicily, the English fleet was assailed by 
 
 ^ ,^ a funous tempest. It was driven on the coast 
 A.D. 1191. f ,, ' r , , 
 
 ot Cyprus, and some or the vessels were 
 
 wrecked near Lemis^o in that island. laaac Comnenus, 
 despot of Cyprus, who had assumed the magnificent title 
 of emperor, pillaged the ships that were stranded, and 
 threw the seamen and passengers into prison. But Rich- 
 ard, who arrived soon after, took ample vengeance on him 
 for the injury. He disembarked his troops ; defeated the 
 tyrant who opposed his landing ; entered Lemisso by 
 »torm ; gained next day a second victory ; obliged Isaac 
 
 3v Bcued. Abtas. M. Paris. G. Vinisauf, ubi sup. 
 
XET. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. 323 
 
 to surrender at discretion; established governors over the 
 island ; and afterwards conferred it as a sovereignty upon 
 Guy of Lusignan, the expelled king of Jerusalem. Thrown 
 into prison, and loaded with irons, the Greek prince com- 
 plained of the little respect with which he was treated. 
 Richard ordered silver fetters to be made for him ; and 
 this phantom of an emperor, pleased with the distinction, 
 expressed a sense of the generosity of his conqueror"* ! 
 
 Richard, by reason of these transactions at C} prus, 
 was later of arriving in Asia than Philip. But the English 
 monarch came opportunely to partake in the glory ot the 
 siege of Ptolemais; a sea-port town, which had been in- 
 vested above two years by the united forces of all the 
 Christians in Palestine, and defended by the utmost 
 efforts of Saladin and the Saracens. Before this place, 
 Frederic, duke of Suabia, son of the emperor Barbarossa, 
 and who succeeded him in the command, together w^ith 
 the remains of the German army, had perished. The 
 arrival of the armies of France and England, however, 
 with Philip and Richard at their head, inspired new life 
 into the besiegers: and the emulation between these rival 
 kings, and ri\al nations, produced extraordinary acts of 
 valour. Richard especially, animated by a more precipitate 
 courage than Philip, and more agreeable to the romantic 
 spirit of that age, drew to himself the attention of all the 
 religious and military world, and acquired a great and 
 splendid reputation. Ptolemais was taken. The Sarace^ 
 garrison, reduced to the last extremity, surrendered them- 
 selves prisoners of war; and the governor engaged that 
 Saladin, besides paying a large sum for their ransom, 
 should release two thousand five hundred Christian pri- 
 soners of distinction, and restore the wood of the true 
 cross^ 
 
 4. II)id. 
 
 5. Benedict Abbaj. G. Vinisauf. lib. Hi. Saladin refused to ratify the 
 treaty; and the Saracen prisoners, to the number of five thousand, were in- 
 kuman!/ butchered. Id. ibid. 
 
 Thus, 
 
354 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 Thus, my dear Philip, was this famous siege, which 
 had so long engaged the attention of all Europe and 
 Asia, brought to the desired close, after the loss of three 
 hundred thousand men, exclusive of persons of superior 
 rank; six archbishops, twelve bishops, forty earls, and five 
 hundred barons. But the French monarch, instead of 
 pursuing the hopes of farther conquest, and redeeming the 
 holy city from slavery, being disgusted with the ascen- 
 dant assumed and acquired by the king of England, and 
 having views of many advantages, which he might reap' 
 by his presence in Europe, declared his resolution of re- 
 turning to France; and he pleaded his ill state of health as 
 an excuse for his desertion of the common cause. He left, 
 however, to Richard ten thousand of his tfoops, under the 
 commandof the duke of Burgundy, and he renewed his oath 
 never to commit hostilities against that prince's territories 
 during his absence. But no sooner did he reach Italy than 
 he applied to pope Celestine III. for a dispensation from 
 his vow; and though denied that request he still proceed- 
 ed, but after a more concealed manner, in his unjust pro- 
 jects. He seduced Prince John, king Richard's brother, 
 from his allegiance, and did every thing possible to blacken 
 the character of that monarch himself; representing him 
 as privy to the murder of the marquis de Montserrat, who 
 had been taken off, as was well known, by an Asiatic chief, 
 called The old Man of the 3Iountai?i, the prince of the 
 jis.?assms: a word which has found its way into most 
 European languages, from the practice of these bold and 
 determined ruffians, against whom no precaution was 
 sufficient to guard any man, how powerful soever, and 
 whose resentment the marquis had provoked . 
 
 But Richard's heroic actions in Palestine, were the 
 best apology for his conduct. The Christian adventurers, 
 
 ^ ^ under his command, determined, on openinjr 
 A. D. 1192, . . 
 
 ' the campaign, to attempt the siege of Ascalon, 
 
 in order to prepare the way for that of Jerusalem: and 
 
 6. W. Heming. J. Eromptom. G. Vinisauf. lib. iii. Bymei-, vol. i. 
 
 they 
 
^ET. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. 32J 
 
 they marched along the sea-coast with that intention. Sala- 
 din proposed to intercept their passage, and placed him- 
 self on the road with an army of three hundred thousand 
 combatants, ("^n this occasion was fought one of the 
 greatest battles of that age, and the most celebrated for 
 the military genius of the commanders; for the number 
 and valour of the troops, and for the great variety of 
 events which attended it. The right wing of the Christian 
 army, commanded by d'Avesness, and the left, conduct- 
 ed by the duke of Burgundy, were both broken in tha 
 beginning of the day, and in danger of being utterly de- 
 feated; when Richard, who commanded in the centre, and 
 led on the main body, restored the battle. He attacked 
 the enemy with admirable intrepidity, and presence ot 
 mind; performed the part of a consummate general and 
 gallant soldier; and not only gave his two wings leisure 
 to recover from their confusion, but obtained a complete 
 victor}' over the Saracens, forty thousand of whom are said 
 to have been slain in the field^. Ascalon soon after fell 
 into the handsof the Christians: other sieges were carried 
 on v/ith success ; and Richard was even able to advance 
 within sight of Jerusalem, the great object of his hopes 
 and fears, when he had the mortification to find, that he 
 must abandon all thoughts of immediate success, and put 
 a stop to the career of victory. 
 
 Animated with an enthusiastic ardour for these holy- 
 wars, the champions of the cross, at first, laid aside all 
 regard to safety or interest in the prosecution of their 
 pious purpose; and, trusting to the immediate assistance 
 of Heaven, set nothing before their eyes but fame and 
 victory in this world, and a crown of glory in the next. 
 But long absence from home, fatigue, disease, famine, 
 and the varieties of fortune which naturally attend war, 
 had gradually abated that fury which nothing was able in- 
 stantly to allay or withstand. Every leader, except the 
 king of England, expressed a desire of speedily returning 
 
 7. G. Vinisauf. lib- iv. 
 
936 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 to Europe; so that there appeared an absolute necessity of 
 abandoning, for the present, all hopes of farther conquest, 
 and of securing the acquisitions ctf the adventurers by an 
 accommodation with Saladin. Richard, therefore, con- 
 cluded a truce with that monarch; stipulating that Ptole- 
 mais, Joppa, and other sea-port towns of Pnlestine, should 
 remain in the hands of the Christians, and that every one 
 of that religion should have liberty to perform his pil- 
 grimage to Jerusalem unmolested*^. This truce was con- 
 cluded for three years, three months, three Aveeks, three 
 days, and three hours; a magical number, suggested by 
 a superstition well suited to the object of the war. 
 
 Saladin died at Damascus, soon after concluding 
 the truce with the leaders of the crusade. He was a 
 prince of great generosity and valour ; and it is truly 
 memorable, that, during his fatal illness, he ordered 
 his winding sheet to be carried as a standard through 
 every street of the city, while a crier went before the 
 person who bore that ensign of mortality, and proclaim- 
 ed with a loud voice, " This is all that remains to 
 *' the mighty Saladin, the conqueror of the Eastl" His 
 last will is also remarkable. He ordered charities to 
 be distributed to the poor, without distinction of Jew 
 Christian, or Mahometan"; intending by this legacy to 
 inculcate, that all men are brethren, and that, when we 
 would assist them, we ought not to inquire what they 
 believe, but what they feel: an admirable lesson to 
 Christians, though from an Infidel I But the advantage 
 of science, of moderation, and humanity were at that 
 time, indeed, entirely on the side of the Saracens. 
 
 After the truce Richard had no further business in 
 Palestine, and the intelligence which he received of the 
 intrigues of his brother John and the king of France, 
 made him sensible that his presence was necessary in 
 Europe. Not thinking it safe, however, to pass through 
 France, he sailed to the Adriatic; and being shipwreck- 
 
 8. W. Hemins;. lib. ii. G. Vinisauf. lib. vi. 9. Id. ibid. 
 
 cd 
 
iET. x:ix.] MODERN EUROPE. *%7 
 
 ed near Aquileia, he put on the habit of a pilgrim, with 
 an intention of taking his journey secretly through Ger- 
 many. But his liberality and expenses betrayed him. 
 He was arrested and thrown into prison by 
 
 AD 119S 
 
 Leopold, duke of Austria, whom he had 
 offended at the siege ol Ptolemais, and who sold him 
 to the emperor Henry VI. who had taken offence at 
 Richard's alliance with Tancred, king of Sicil}^, and 
 was glad to have him in his power". Thus the gallant 
 king of England, who had filled the whole world with 
 his renown, found himself, during the most critical state 
 of his affairs, confined to a dungeon, in the heart of 
 Germany; loaded with irons, and entirely at the mercy 
 of his enemv, the basest and most sordid of mankind". 
 While the high spirit of Richard suffered every in- 
 sult and indignity in Germany, the king of France em* 
 ployed every means of force and intrigue, of war and 
 negociation, against the dominions and the person of his 
 unfortunate rival. He made the emperor the largest 
 
 10 W. Neubr. M. Paris. 
 
 11. Cbron. T. Wykes. Not only the place of Richard's confinement, if 
 we believe the literary history of the times, but even the circumstance of 
 his captivity, was carefully concealed by his vindictive enemies: and both 
 nlight have remained unkaown, but for the grateful attachment of a Pro- 
 vencal bard, or minstrel, named Blondel, who had shared that prince'* 
 friendship, and tasted his bounty. Having travelled overall the European 
 continent to learn the history of his beloved patron, who was a poet, ic 
 appears, as well as a hero, Blondel accidentally got rntelligence of acer- 
 tarn castle in Germany, where a prisoner of distinction was confined, and 
 guarded with great vigilance. Persuaded, by a secret impulse, that this 
 prisoner was the king, of England, the minstrel repaired to the place. But 
 the gates of the castle were shut against him, and he could obtain no in- 
 formation relative to the name or quality of the unhappy person it secured. 
 In this extremity, he bethought himself of an expedient for making the 
 desired discovery. He chanted, with a loud voice, some verses of a song, 
 which had been composed partly by himself, partly by Richard ; and to his 
 unspeakable joy, on making a pauss, he heard it re-echoed and continued 
 by the royal captive. {Hist. Troubadours.) To this discovery the English 
 monarch, is s^iid to have owed eventualJ/ hi« rejisasd. 
 
 ofFerS) 
 
328 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 offers, if he would deliver into his hands the royal pri- 
 soner: he formed an alliance bymarriage with Denmark, 
 desiring that the ancient Danish claim to the crown of 
 England might be transferred to him : he concluded a 
 treaty with prince John, the king's brother, who is said 
 to have done homage to him for the English crown j 
 and he invaded Normandy, while the traitor John at* 
 tempted to make himself master of England *. 
 
 In the mean time Richard being produced before a 
 diet of the empire, made such an impression on the Ger- 
 man princes by his eloo^uence and spirit, that they exclaim- 
 ed loudly against the conduct of the emperor. The pope 
 also threatened him with excommunication; and al- 
 though Henry had listened to the proposals of the king 
 of i'rance and prince John, he found it would be imprac- 
 ticable for him to execute his and their base purposes, 
 or to retain any longer the king of England in captivity. 
 He therefore concluded a treaty witJi Richard for his 
 ransom, and agreed to restore him to his freedom lor one 
 hundred and fifty thousand marks of pure silver, about 
 three hundred thousand pounds of our present money 3. 
 
 As soon as Philip heard of Richard's release, he 
 
 wrote to his confederate John in these em- 
 
 1-1 1 .. T' 1 r ir, A- D. 1194-. 
 
 phatical words: " lake care ot yourselt! 
 
 the devil is broke loose." How diiferent on this occa- 
 sion were the sentiments of the English nation! — Their 
 joy was extreme on the appearance of their king, who 
 had acquired so much glory, and spread the reputation 
 of their name to the farthest East. After renewing the 
 ceremony of his coronation, amid the acclamations of all 
 ranks of people, and reducing the fortressses which still 
 remained in the hands of his brother's adherents, Ri- 
 chard passed over with an army into Normandy; impa- 
 tient to make war upon Philip, and to revenge himself 
 for the many injuries he had sustained from that mo- 
 narch'"*. 
 
 J2. M. Paris. W. Hemiug. R. Hoveden. 13. Rymer, vol. i. 
 
 J4. K. Hoveden. 
 
 Whe« 
 
lit. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. 529 
 
 When we consider two such powerful attd warlike 
 monarchs, inflamed with personal animosit)^ against 
 each other ; enraged by mutual injuries ; excited by 
 rivalship; impelled by opposite interests, and instigated 
 by the pride and violence of their own temper, our cu- 
 riosity is naturally raised, and we expect an obstinate 
 and furious war, distinguished by the greatest events, 
 and concluded by some remarkable catastrophe. We 
 find ourselves however, entirely disappointed; the taking 
 of a castle, the surprize of a straggling party, a rencon- 
 tre of horse, which resembles more a route than a battle, 
 comprehend the whole of the exploits on both sides: a 
 certain proof, as a great historian observes of the weak- 
 ness of princes in that age, and of the little authority 
 which they possessed over their refractory vassals'^. 
 
 During this war, which continued with short 
 intervals till Richard's death, prince JoTin deserted 
 Philip ; threw himself at his brother's feet, craved par- 
 don for his offences, and was received into favour, at 
 the intercession of his mother queen Eleanor. " I for- 
 give him with all my heart," said the king ; " and I 
 hope I shall as easily forget his offences, as he will my 
 pardon^." 
 
 Peace was just ready to be concluded betweeti 
 
 England and France, when Richard was ^.>s^ 
 
 . A. Di 1 199. 
 
 unfortunately slain by an arrow, before an 
 
 inconsiderable castle which he besieged, in hopes of 
 
 taking from one of his vassals a great mass of gold 
 
 which had been found hid in the earth. The story is 
 
 thus related : 
 
 Vidomar, viscount of Limoges, had found a treasure, 
 
 of which he sent part to the king, as a present. But 
 
 Richard, as superior lord, claimed the whole : and, at 
 
 the head of some Braban^ons, besieged the count in the 
 
 castle of Chalus, in order to make him comply with his 
 
 demand. The garrison offered to surrender ; but the 
 
 15. Hume, Hist. Tin^land, vol. ii. 16. M. Paris. 
 
 VOL. I. 3 A king 
 
330 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 king replied, since he had taken the trouble to come 
 thither and besiege the place in person, he would take 
 it by force, and hang every one of them. The same 
 day Richard, accompanied by Marcadee, leader of his 
 Brabancons, went to survey the castle ; when one Ber- 
 trand de Gourdon, an archer, took aim at him, and pierc- 
 ed his shoulder with an arrow. The king, however^ 
 gave orders for the assault ; took the place and hanged 
 all the garrison, except Gourdon, whom he reserved for 
 a more cruel execution^* 
 
 Richard's wound was not in itself dangerous, but 
 the unskilfulness of the surgeon made it mortal; and 
 when the king found his end approaching, he sent for 
 Gourdon, and demanded the reason why he sought his 
 life. " My father, and my two brothers," replied the 
 undaunted soldier, " fell by your sword, and you 
 " intended to have executed me. I am now in your 
 " power, and you may do your worst ; but I shall en- 
 ** dure the most severe torments with pleasure, provided 
 " I can think that Heaven has afforded me such great 
 *' revenge, as, with my own hand, to be the cause of 
 " your death." Struck with the boldness of this reply,, 
 and humbled by his approaching dissolution, Richard 
 ordered the prisoner to be set at liberty, and a sum of 
 money to be given him. But the blood-thirsty Braban<^on^ 
 Marcadee, a stranger to such generosity, seized the un- 
 happy man, flayed him alive, and then hanged him^^. 
 
 The most shining part of the character of Richard I.- 
 was his military talents. No man, even in that ro- 
 
 17. R. Hoveden. J. Brompton. 
 
 18. Hoveden. The Brabancons were ruffian mercenaries, formed out 
 of the numerous bands of robbers, who, during the middle ages, infested 
 every country of Europe, and set the civil magistrate at defiance. Exclud- 
 ed the protection of general society, these banditti formed a kind of govern- 
 ment among themselves. Troops of them were sometimes enlisted in the 
 service of one princeor baron, sometimes in that of another ; and they often 
 acted in an independent manner, under leaders of their own. W. Neubrig, 
 Chron. Gerv. 
 
 mantis 
 
HET. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. 3SI 
 
 mantle age, carried personal courage or intrepidity to a 
 greater height; and this quality obtained him the appel- 
 lation of Cocur de Lion, or the Lion-hearted Llero. As 
 he left no issue behind him, he Avas succeeded by his 
 brother John. 
 
 The succession was disputed by Arthur, duke of 
 Britanny, son of Geoffrey, the elder brother of Johnj 
 and the barons of Anjou, Maine, and Touraine, de- 
 clared in favour of this young prince's title. The king 
 of France, whose daughter he espoused, 
 also assisted him; and every thing pro- ^' ^' ^'^^^•' 
 mised success, when Arthur was unfortunately taken 
 prisoner by his uncle John, and inhumanly murdered. 
 The fate of this unhappy prince is differently relat- 
 ed, but the following account seems the most probable. 
 After having employed unsuccessfully different assassins 
 John went himself in a boat, by night, to the castle of 
 Rouen, where Arthur was confined, and ordered him to 
 be brought forth. Aware of his danger, and subdued 
 by the continuance of his misfortunes, and by the ap- 
 proach of death, the brave youth, who had before gal- 
 lantly maintained the justice of his cause, threw himself 
 on his knees before his uncle, and begged for mercy. 
 But the barbarous tyrant, making no reply, stabbed his 
 nephew to the heart; and fastening a stone to the dead 
 body, threw it into the Seine '9. 
 
 John's misfortunes commenced with his crime. The 
 whole world was struck with horror at his barbarity; 
 and he was, from that moment, detested by his subjects 
 both in England and on the continent. The Bretons 
 disappointed in their fondest hopes, waged implacable 
 war against him, in order to revenge the murder of 
 their duke; and they carried their complaints before the 
 French monarch, as superior lord, demanding justice 
 for the inhuman violence committed by John on the 
 person of Arthur. Philip II. received their application 
 
 19. T, Wykes. W. Heming. M. Paris. H. Knighton. 
 
 with 
 
833 THE HISTORY OF [part i, 
 
 with pleasure: he summoned John to stand trial before 
 him and his peers : and, on his non-appearance, he was 
 declared guilty of felon}^ and parricide, and all his fo- 
 reign dominions were adjudged forfeited to the crown 
 of France-". 
 
 Nothing now remained but the execution of thia 
 sentence, in order to complete the glory of Philip, 
 whose active and ambitious spirit had long with impa- 
 tience borne the neighbourhood of so powerful a vassal 
 as the king of England, He therefore greedily embraced 
 the present favourable opportunity of annexing to the 
 French crown the English dominions on the continent^ 
 ^ project which the sound policy of Henry 11. and the 
 military genius of Richard I. had rendered impractica- 
 
 ^r^^. ble to the most vigorous efforts, and most 
 A. D. 1204 
 
 * dangerous intrigues, of this able and artful 
 
 prince. But the general defection of John's vassals 
 
 rendered every enterprize easy against him; and Philip 
 
 not only re-united Normandy to the crown of France, 
 
 but successively reduced Anjou, Maine, Touraine, and 
 
 part of Poitou under his dominion^'. Thus, by the 
 
 baseness of one prince, and the intrepidity 
 
 A. D. 1205. r ' r 7 
 
 of another, the French monarchy received, 
 
 in a few years, such an accession of power and gran- 
 deur as, in the ordinary course of things, it would have 
 required several ages to attain. 
 
 John's arrival in England completed his disgrace. He 
 saw himself universally despised by the barons, on ac- 
 count of his pusillanimity and baseness; and a quarrel 
 with the clergy drew upon him the contempt of that 
 order, and the indignation of Rome. The papal chair 
 was then filled by Innocent III, who having been exalt- 
 ed to it at a more early period of life than usual, and 
 being endowed with a lofty and enterprising genius, gave 
 full scope to his ambition, and attempted, perhaps more 
 ppenly than any of his predecessors, to convert that 
 
 50. Annal, Mcfrgan. M. W«8t. 29. Cbron, 7revlt, Ypod. Neust. 
 
 ghostly 
 
LET. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. S33 
 
 ghostly superiority, which was yiehled him by all the 
 European princes, into a real dominion over them ; 
 strongly inculcating that extravagant maxim, '' That 
 *' neither princes nor bishops, civil governors nor eccle- 
 *' siastical rulers, have any lawful power, in church or 
 *' state, but what they derive from the pope." To this 
 pontiff an appeal was made relative to the 
 election of an archbishop of Canterbury. 
 Two primates had been elected; one by the monks or 
 canons of Christ-church, Canterbury, and one by the 
 suffragan bishops, who had the king's approbation. The 
 pope declared both elections void ; and commanded the 
 monks, under penalty of excommunication, to chuse for 
 their primate cardinal Langton, an Englishman by birth,' 
 but educated in France, and connected by his interests 
 and attachments with the see of Rome. 
 The Monks complied : and John, inflamed 
 with rage at such an usurpation of his prerogative, expel- 
 led them the convent; swearing by God's teeth, his usual 
 oath, that, if the pope gave him any farther disturbance, 
 he would banish all the bishops and clergy of England-^, 
 Innocent, however, knew his weakness, and laid the 
 kingdom under an interdict ; at that time the grand in- 
 strument of vengeance and policy employed against sove- 
 reigns by the court of Rome. 
 
 The execution of this sentence was artfully calculated 
 to strike the senses in the highest degree, and to ope- 
 rate with irresistible force on the superstitious minds of 
 the people. The nation was suddenly deprived of all 
 exterior exercise of its religion: the altars were despoiled 
 of their ornaments; the crosses, the reliques, the images, 
 the statues of the saints were laid on the ground; and, 
 as if the air itself had been profaned, and might pollute 
 them by its contact, the priests carefully covered them up, 
 even from their own approach and veneration. The use of 
 bells entirely ceased in all the churches; the bells them- 
 
 22. M. Paris. 
 
 selves 
 
3r.4 THE HISTORY OF [part t. 
 
 selves were removed from the steeples, and laid on the 
 ground with the other sacred utensils. Mass was celebrated 
 with shut doors, and none but the priests were admitted to 
 that holy institution. The laity partook of no religious rite, 
 except baptism of new-born infants, and the communion 
 to the dying. The dead were not intrrred in consecrat- 
 ed ground : they were thrown into ditches, or buried in 
 the common fields; and their obsequies were not attended 
 with prayers, or any hallowed ceremony. The people 
 were prohibited the use of meat, as in Lent, and debarred 
 from all pleasures and amusements. Every thing wore 
 the appearance of the deepest distress, and of the most 
 immediate apprehensions of divine vengeance and indig- 
 nation^3. 
 
 While England groaned under this dreadful sentence, 
 a new and very extraordinary scene disclosed itself on the 
 continent. Pope Innocent III. published a crusade against 
 the Albigenses, a species of sectaries in the south of 
 France, whom he denominated heretics ; because, like 
 all sectaries, they neglected the rites of the church, and 
 opposed the power and influence of the clergy. Moved 
 
 .^^ V ^y that mad superstition, which had hurried 
 A D. 1209. . . . • 
 
 such armies into Asia, in order to combat the 
 
 infidels, and the reigning passion for wars and adventures, 
 
 people flocked from all parts of Europe to the standard 
 
 of Simon de Montfort, the general of this crusade. 
 
 The count of Thoulouse who protected the Albigenses, 
 
 23. John, besides banishing the bishops, and confircating; the estates 
 of all the ecclesiastics who obeyed the interdict, took a very singular and 
 severe revenge upon the clergy. In order to distress them in the tender- 
 est point, and at the same time expose them to reproach and ridicule, he 
 threvi' into prison all their concubines. (M. Paris. Jn. Waver/.) These 
 concubines were a sort of inferior wives, politically indulged to the clergy 
 by the civil magistrate, after the members of that sacred body were enjoin, 
 ed celibacy by the canons of the church. Padre Paolo, Hist. Cone. Trid. 
 lib. i. 
 
 was 
 
iET. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. 335 
 
 was stripped of his dominions ; and these unhappy peo- 
 ple themselves, though the most inoffensive of mankind, 
 were exterminated with all the circumstances of the most 
 unfeeling barbarity-'^. 
 
 Innocent having thus made trial of his power, carried 
 still farther his ecclesiastical vengeance against the king 
 of England, who was now both despised and hated by 
 his subjects of all ranks and conditions. He gave the 
 bishops of London, Ely, and Worcester, authoritv to 
 denounce against John the sentence of excommunication. 
 His subjects were absolved from their oath of allegiance, 
 
 and a sentence of deposition soon followed. 
 
 TO L- 1 . . -1 J A. D. 1213. 
 
 JDUt as this last sentence required an armed 
 
 force to execute it, the pontiff pitched on Philip II. king 
 of France, as the person into whose hand he could most 
 properly entrust so terrible a weapon: and he proffered 
 that monarch, besides the remission of all his sins, and 
 endless spiritual benefits, the kingdom of England as the 
 rewai'd of his labour-5. 
 
 Seduced by the prospect of present interest, Philip 
 accepted the pope's liberal offer ; although he thereby 
 ratified an authority which might one day tumble him 
 from his throne, and which it was the common concern 
 of all princes to oppose. He levied a great army; sum- 
 moned all the vassals of his crown to attend him at 
 Rouen; Collected a fleet of seventeen hundred vessels, 
 great and small, in the sea-ports of Normandy and Picar- 
 dy; and partly by the zeal of the age, partly by the per- 
 sonal regard universally paid him, prepared a force which 
 seemed equal to the greatness of his enterprlze. John 
 on the other hand, issued out writs, requiring the attend- 
 ance of all his military vassals at Dover, and even of all 
 able-bodied men, to defend the kingdom in this dangerous 
 extremity. An infinite number appeared, out of which 
 he selected an army of sixty thousand men-'^. He had 
 
 24. HUt. Alhlg. 
 
 25. M. Paris. M, 'VVestminst, 26. Ibid. 
 
 also 
 
336 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 also a formidable fleet at Portsmouth and he might have 
 relied on the fidelity of both; not indeed from their at- 
 tachment to him, but from that spirit of emulation which 
 has so long subsisted between the natives of England and 
 France. 
 
 All Europe was held in expectation of a decisive ac- 
 tion between the two kings, when the pope artfully trick- 
 ed them both and took to himself that tempting prize, 
 which he had pretended to hold out to Philip. This ex- 
 traordinary transaction was negociated by Pandolfo, the 
 pope's legate to France and England. In his way through 
 France, he observed Philip's great armament, and highly 
 commended his zeal and diligence. He thence passed 
 to Dover, under pretence of negociating with the barons 
 in favour of the French king, and had a conferrence with 
 John on his arrival. He magnified to that prince the 
 number of the enemy, and the disaffection of his own 
 subjects: intimating, that there was yet one way, and 
 but one, to secure himself from the impending danger ; 
 namely, to put himself under the protection of the pope, 
 who like a kind and merciful father, was still willing to 
 receive him into his bosom. 
 
 John, labouring under the apprehensions of present 
 terror, listened to the insidious proposal, and abjectly" 
 agreed to hold his dominions as a feudatory of the church 
 of Rome. In consequence of this agreement, he did 
 homage to the pope in the person of his legate, Pandolfo, 
 with all the humiliating rites which the feudal law 
 required of vassals before their liege-lord and superior. 
 He came disarmed into the presence of the legate, who 
 was seated on a throne ; he threw himself on his knees 
 before it ; he lifted up his joined hands, and put thera 
 between those of Pandolfo, and swore fealty to the pope in 
 the following words. " I John, by the grace of God, 
 " king of England and lord of Ireland, for the expiation 
 ** of my sins, and out of my own free will, with the advice 
 " and consent of my barons, do give unto the church of 
 " Rome, and to pope Innocent III. and his successors, the 
 
 kingdoms 
 
LLT. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. 2-yr 
 
 " kingdoms of England and Ireland, together with all the 
 " rigiits belonging to them; and will hold them of the 
 *' pope, of his vassal. I will be faithful to God, to the 
 *' ciiurch of Rome, to the pope my lord, and to his suc- 
 *' ctssors lawfally elected; and I bind myself to pay him 
 *' a tribute of one thousand marks of silver yearly; to 
 *' wii, seven hundr-d for the kingdom of England, and 
 *' three hundred for Ireland^?." 
 
 Part of the money was immediately paid to the legate, 
 as an earnest of the subjection of the kingdom: after 
 which the cown and sceptre were also delivered to him. 
 The insolent Italian trampled the money under his feet, 
 indicating thereby the pope's superiority and the king's 
 dependent stale, and kept the regalia five days; then re- 
 turned them to John, as a favour from the pope, their 
 common master. 
 
 During this shameful negociation, the French mo- 
 narch waited impatiently at Boulogne for the legate's re- 
 turn, in order to put to sea. The legate at length 
 returned ; and the king, to his utter astonishment, 
 was given to understand, that he was no longer per-? 
 wiitted to attack England, which was become a fief oC 
 the church of Rome, and its king a vassal of the holy see, 
 Philip was enraged at this intelligence: he swore he 
 would no longer be the dupe of such hypocritical preten- 
 ces ; nor would he have desisted from his enterprize but 
 for weightier reasons. His fleet was utterly destroyed by 
 that of England; and the emperor Otho IV. who at once 
 disputed the empix^e with Frederick II. son to Henry VI. 
 and Italy with the pope, as we shall afterwards have oc- 
 casion to see, had entered into an alliance with his uncle, 
 the king of England, in order to oppose the designs of 
 France, now become formidable to the rest of Europe. 
 With this view he put himself at the head of a prodigious 
 force; and the French monarch seemed in danger of be- 
 ing crushed for having grasped at a present proffered him 
 by the pope. 
 
 27. Rymer, vol. i. M. Paris, Hist Major. 
 VOL. I. 3 ^ Philip, 
 
338 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Philip, however, advanced undismayed to meet his 
 enemies, with an army of fifty thousand chosen men, 
 commanded by the chief nobility of France, and including 
 tAvelve hundred knights, and between sixand seven thousand 
 gens-cCarraes. The emperor Otho, on the other side, had 
 with him the earl of Salisbury, bastard brother to king 
 John, the count of Flanders, the duke of Brabant, seven 
 or eight German princes, and a force superior to that of 
 Philip. The two armies met near the village of Bouvines, 
 between Lisle and Tournay, where the allies were totally 
 routed, and thirty thousand Germans are said to have 
 been slain^**. 
 
 This victory established for ever the glory of Philip, 
 and gave full security to all his dominions. John could 
 therefore hope for nothing farther, than henceforth to 
 rule his own kingdom in peace; and his close alliance 
 with the pope, which he was determined at any price to 
 maintain, ensured him, as he imagined, the certain 
 attainment of that felicity. How much was he deceived! 
 A truce was indeed concluded with France, but the most 
 grievous scene of this prince's misfortunes still awaited 
 him. He was doomed to humble himself before hi« 
 own subjects, that the rights of Englishmen might be 
 restored, and the privileges of humanity secured and 
 ascertained. 
 
 The conquest of England by William the Norman, 
 and the introduction of the feudal government into the 
 kingdom, had much infringed the liberties of the natives. 
 The whole people were reduced to a state of vassalage 
 under the king or barons, and even the greater part of 
 them to a state of actual slavery. The necessity also of 
 devolving great power into the hands of a prince who 
 was to maintain a military dominion over a vanquished 
 nation, had induced the Norman barons to subject them- 
 selves to a more absolute authority, as I have already 
 had occasion to observe, than menof their rank commonly 
 gubmitted to in other feudal governments; so that England 
 
 28, Gul. Brit. Vit Phil. August. Nag. Chron. P. iEmil. 
 
 during 
 
LET. XXX.] MODERN EUROPE. 339 
 
 during the course of an hundred and fifty years had 
 groaned under a tyranny unknown to all the kingdoms 
 founded by the northern conquerors. Prerogatives once 
 exalted are nut easily reduced. Different concessions 
 had been made by different princes, in order to serve 
 their temporary purposes; but these were soon disregard- 
 ed and the same unlimited authority continued to be ex- 
 ercised both by them and their successors. The feeble 
 reign of John, a prince equally odious and contemptible 
 to the whole nation, seemed therefore to afford all ranks 
 of men a happy opportunity of recoverirg their natural 
 and constitutional rights; — and it was not neglected. 
 
 The barons entered into a confederacy, and formally 
 demanded a restorationof their privileges; and, 
 that their cause might wear the greater appear- 
 ance of justice, they also included those of the clergy and 
 the people. They took arms to enforce their request: they 
 laid waste the royal domains: and John, after employing 
 a variety of expedients, in order to divert the blow aimed 
 at the prerogatives of his crown, was obliged to lower 
 himself, and treat with his subjects. 
 
 A conference was held between the king and the 
 barons at Runnemede, between Windsor and Stains; a 
 spot ever since deservedly celebrated, and even hallowed 
 by every zealous lover of liberty. There John, after a 
 debate of some days, signed and sealed the _ 
 
 I UNE 19 
 
 famous Magna Char ta^ or Great Charter; 
 which either granted or secured very important privileges 
 to every order of men in the kingdom — to the barons, 
 to the clergy, and to the people. 
 
 What these privileges particularly were you will best 
 learn, my dear Philip, from the charter itself, which 
 deserves your most early and continued attention, as it 
 involves all the great out-lines of a legal government, and 
 provides for the equal distribution of justice, and free en- 
 joyment of property; the chief objects for which political 
 society was first fotmded by men, v hich the people have a 
 perpetual and unalienable right to recall, and which no 
 
 time, 
 
340 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 time, nor })recedenr, nor statute, nor jtositive institution, 
 ought to deter them irom keeping ever uppermost in their 
 thou gilts 9. 
 
 The better to secure the execution of this charter, the 
 barons stipuhited with the king for the privileges of 
 choosing twenty-five members ol their own order, as con- 
 servators ot the public ii!)erties: and no bounds were set 
 to the authority of these noblemen, either in extent or 
 duration. If complaint was made of a violation of he 
 charter, any lour of the conservators might admonish the 
 king to redress the grievance; and. if satisfaction was not 
 obtained, thev could, assemble the whole council of 
 twenty-five. This august body, in conjunction with the 
 great council of thf nation, was empowered to compel him 
 to observe the charter, and in case of resistance, might 
 levy war agair.st him. All men tb.roughout tlie kingdom 
 were btnuul, under penalty of confiscation, to swear 
 obedience to the five and twenty barons; and the free- 
 holders of each county were to chuse twelve knights, who 
 should make report of such evil customs as required, re- 
 dress, conformable to the tenor of the Great Charter'". 
 
 In what manner John acted after granting the charter, 
 and under these regulations, to which he seemed passively 
 to submit, together witli their influence on the English 
 constitution, and on the affairs of France, we shall after- 
 wards have occasion to see. At present we must cast 
 our eyes on the other states of Europe. 
 
 29. The most valuable stipulation in this charter, and the grand secu- 
 rity of the lives, liberties, and properties of Englishmen, was the follou-- 
 ing concession. " No freeman shall be apprehended or imprisoned, or 
 •' disseised, or outlawed, or banished, or any other way destroyed; nor 
 " will WE go upon bim, nor will we send upon him, except by the legal 
 " juJ^ment of his been , or by the law of the land." {^Mag. Chart. Ar^^ 
 xxxii.) The stipulation r,e.\t in importance seems to be the singular 
 con:cs.sion, that •' no man will we sell, to no man will we delay right 
 " iiud justice." (Ibid. Art. xxxiii.) Theseconcessions shew, in a very strong 
 
 ight, the violences and iniquitous practices of the Anglo-Norman princes, 
 
 30. M. Paris. Kymer, vol. i. 
 
 LETTER 
 
LET. XXXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 341 
 
 LETTER XXXI. 
 
 THE GERMAN EMPIRE AND ITS DEPENDENCIES, R05IE AND 
 TH:-: ITALIAN STATKS, FROM THE ACCESSION OF HENRY VI. 
 TO THE ELECTION OF RODOLrH OF HAPSBURG, FOUNDER OF 
 THE HOUSE OF AUSTRIA, WITH A CONTINUATION Of THE 
 HISTORY OF THE CRUSADES. 
 
 It is necessary, my dear Philip, that I should 
 
 here recapitulate a little ; for there is no portion of Modern 
 
 History more pernlexed, than that under review. 
 
 'i'he emperor, Frederic Barbarossa, died, as you have 
 
 seen, in his expedition to the Holy Land; and his son, 
 
 Henry VI. received almost at the same time intelligence 
 
 of the death of his father and his brother- 
 
 A. D. 1190. 
 in-law, William king of Naples and Sicil)^, 
 
 to v/hose dominions he was heir in right of his wife. After 
 settling the affairs of Germany, he levied an army, and 
 marched into Italy, in order to be crowned by the pope, 
 and go with the em{)ress Constantia to recover the suc- 
 cession of Sicily, which was usurped by Tancred, her 
 natural brother. With this view he endeavoured to con- 
 ciliate the affections of the Lombards, by enlarging the 
 privileges of Genoa, Pisa, and other cities, in his way to 
 Rome. There the ceremony of coronation 
 
 f ! .1 1 r r , A. D. 1191, 
 
 was periormed, tlie day alter Easter, by 
 Celestine III. accompanied with a very remarkable cir- 
 cumstance. That pope, who was then in his eighty-sixth 
 year, had no sooner placed the crown upon Henry's head, 
 than he kicked it off again; as a testimony of the power 
 residing in the sovereign pontiff, to make and immake 
 emperors '. 
 
 Henry now prepared for the conquest of Naples and 
 Sicily, in which he was opposed by the pope. For although 
 
 1. R. Hoveden. JnnaL Heiss. lib. ii. 
 
 Celestina 
 
343 THE HISTORY OF [part x. 
 
 Celestine considered Tancred as an usurper, and wanted 
 to see him deprived of the crown of Sicily, which he 
 claimed, in imitation of his predecessors, as a fief of the 
 holy see, he was still more averse against the empero'rs 
 possessing that kingdom; because such an accession of 
 territory would have rendered him too powerful in Italy 
 for the interests of the church. He dreaded so formidable 
 a vassal. Henry, however, without paying any regard to 
 the threats and remonstrances of his holiness, took 
 almost all the towns of Campanra, Apulia, and Calabria; 
 invested the city of Naples, and sent for the Genoese 
 fleet, which he had engaged to come and form the 
 blockade by sea. But, before its arrival, he was obliged 
 to raise the siege, in consequence of a dreadful mortality 
 among his troops, and all future attempts upon the king- 
 dom of Naples and Sicily proved ineffectual during the 
 life of Tancred^ 
 
 The emperor, after his return to Germany, incorpo- 
 rated the Teutonic knights into a regular 
 order, religious and military, and built a 
 house for them at Coblentz. These Teutonic knights, 
 and also the Knights Templars, and Knights Hospitallers, 
 were originally monks, who settled in Jerusalem, when 
 it was first taken by the champions of the Cross. They 
 were established into religious fraternities for the relief 
 of distressed pilgrims, and for the care of the sick and 
 wounded, without any hostile purpose. But the holy city 
 being afterwards in danger, they took up arms, and made 
 a vow to combat the Infidels, as they had formerly done 
 to combat their own carnal inclinations. The enthusiastic 
 zeal of the times increased their members: they grew 
 wealthy and honourable; were patronized in Europe by 
 different princes, and became a militia of conquerors^. 
 Their exploits I shall have occasion to relate. 
 
 In what manner Richard I. king of England was 
 arrested on his return from the Holy Land, by Leopold 
 
 2. Sigon. Reg. Ital. lib. xv. 3. Hcylot. HUt. des Ordres. 
 
 duke 
 
LET. XXXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 349 
 
 duke of Austria, and detained prisoner by tbe emperor, 
 
 we have already seen. As soon as Henry received the 
 
 money for that prince's ransom, he made new ..„. 
 
 ■^ . f , f c- -1 J A. D. 1194. 
 
 preparations lor the conquest ol oicily; and 
 
 'I'ancred dying about the same time, he effected his pur- 
 pose by the assistance of the Genoese. The queen dowage* 
 surrendered Salerno, and her right to the crown, on con- 
 dition that her son William should possess the principality 
 of Tarentum. But Henry, joining the most atrocious 
 cruelty to the basest perfidy, no sooner found himself 
 master of the place, than he ordered the infant king to 
 be castrated; to have his eyes put out, and be confined in 
 a dungeon. The royal treasure was transported to Ger- 
 many, and the queen and her daughter were shut up in 
 a convent''-. 
 
 While these things were transacting in Sicily, the 
 empress, though near the age of fifty, was delivered of a 
 son named Frederick. And Henry, in the plenitude of 
 his power, assembled soon after a diet of the German 
 princes to whom he explained his intention of rendering 
 the imperial crown hereditary, in order to prevent those 
 
 disturbances which attended the election of 
 
 A J J r u A.D. 1195. 
 
 emperors. A decree was passed tor that pur- 
 pose; and Frederick II. yet in his cradle, was declared 
 king of the Romans^. 
 
 In the mean time the emperor was solicited by the 
 pope to engage in a new crusade, for the relief of the 
 Christians in the Holy Land. Henry obeyed, but took 
 care to turn it to his advantage. He convoked a ge- 
 neral diet at Worms, where he solemnly declared his re- 
 solution of employing his whole power, and even of 
 hazarding his life for the accomplishment of so holy an 
 undertaking: and he expatiated on the subject with so 
 much eloquence, that almost the whole assembly took the 
 cross. Nay, such multitudes, from all the provinces of 
 the empire, enlisted themselves, that Henry divided them 
 
 4. Sigon. Reg. Ital. Kelius, de Beg. Napol. et Sicil. 
 5- Lunig. Arch. Imp. Heiss, lib. ii. 
 
 into 
 
344 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 into three large armies ; one of which, under the command 
 of the bishop of Mentz, took the route of Hungary, where 
 it was joined by Margaret, queen of that country, who 
 entered herself in this pious expedition, and actually end- 
 ed her days in Palestine. The second army was assem- 
 bled in Lower Saxony, and embarked in a fleet furnished 
 by the inhabitants of Lubec, Hamburg, Holstein, and 
 Friesland; and the emperor in person conducted the third 
 into Italy, in order to take vengeance upon the Nor- 
 mans of Naples and Sicily, who had risen against his 
 government''. 
 
 The rebels were humbled, and their chiefs condemned 
 to perish by the most excruciating tortures. One Jornan- 
 di, of the house of the Norman princes, was tied naked 
 on a chair of red-hot iron, and crowned with a circle of 
 the same burning metal, which was nailed to his head. 
 '1 he empress, shocked at such cruelt}-, renounced her 
 faith to her hvtsband, and encouraged her countrymen to 
 recover their liberties. Resolution sprung from despair. 
 The inhabitants betook themselves to arms, the empress 
 Constantia headed them; and Henry having dismissed 
 his troops, no longer thought necessary to his bloody pur- 
 poses, and sent them to pursue their expedition to the 
 Holy Land, (blessed atonement for his crimes and theirs!) 
 was obliged to submit to his wife, and to the conditions 
 which she was pleased to impose on him in favour 
 of the Sicilians. He died at Messina, soon after this 
 
 treaty; and, as was supposed, of poison admi- 
 A. D. 1197. -Ill 1 mi- 
 
 nistered by the empress, who saw the rum 
 
 of her coitntry batching in his perfidious and vindictive 
 hearth 
 
 But Henr}', amid all his baseness, possessed many 
 great qualities. He was active, eloquent, brave; his ad- 
 ministration was vigorous, and his policy deep. None 
 of the successors of Charlemagne were evermore feared 
 and obeyed, either at home or abroad. 
 
 6. Giannone, Hist, di NapoL 7. Id. ibid. Relius, ubi sup. 
 
 Thft 
 
Lf.T. xxxi.J MODERN EUROPE. 345 
 
 The emperor's son Frederic, having ab'eacly been 
 declared king of the Romans, becam-e emperor on the 
 death of his father. But as Frederic II, was yet a minor, 
 the administration was committed to hh uncle, Philip 
 duke of Suabia, both by the will of Henry and by an as- 
 sembly of the German princes. Other princes, liowever, 
 incensed to see an elective empire become hereditary, 
 held a new diet at Cologne, and chose Otho duke of 
 l5runswick, son of Henry the Lion. Frederic's title was 
 confirmed in a third assembly, at Arnsburp;; 
 and his uncle Philip was elected king of the 
 Romans, in order to give greater weight to his adminis- 
 tration^. 
 
 These two elections divided the empire into two 
 powerful factions, and involved all Germany in ruin and 
 desolation. Innocent III. who had succeeded Celestine 
 in the papal chair, threw himself into the scale of Otho, 
 and excommunicated Philip and all his adherents. This 
 able and ambitious pontiff (of whom I have already had 
 occasion to speak) was a sworn enemy to the house of 
 Suabia; not from any personal animosity, but out of a prin- 
 ciple of policy. That house had long been terrible 
 to the popes, by its continued possession of the imperial 
 crown: and the accession of the kingdom of Naples and 
 Sicily, made it still more to be dreaded. Innocent, there- 
 fore, gladly seized the present favourable opportunity for 
 divesting the house of Suabia of the empire, by support- 
 ing the election of Otho, and sowing divisions among the 
 Suabian party. Otho was also patronized by his uncle, 
 the king of England; a circumstance which naturally in- 
 clined the king of France to the side of his rival. Faction 
 clashed with faction; friendship with interest: capri<,e, 
 ambition, or resentment gave the sway; and nothing was 
 beheld on all hands, but the horrors and miseries of civil 
 •war'. 
 
 -8. Krantz.lib. viii. Heiss, lib. ii. 9. Id. ibid Annal de fEmpAom.'i. 
 VOL. I. 3 e Meanwhile 
 
346 THE HISTORY OF [^art u 
 
 Meanwhile the empress Constantia remained in Sicily, 
 where all was peace, as regent and guardian of her in- 
 fant son, Frederic II. who had been crowned king of 
 that island, with the consent of pope Celestine III. But 
 she also had her troubles. A new investiture from the 
 holy see being necessary, on the death of Celestine, In- 
 nocent III. his successor, took advantage of the critical 
 situation of affairs for aggrandizing the papacy at the ex- 
 pense of the kings of Sicily. They possessed, as v/e 
 have seen, the privilege of filling up vacant benefices, and 
 of judging all ecclesiastical causes in the last appeal: they 
 were really popes in their own island, though vassals of 
 his holiness. Innocent pretended that these powers had 
 been surreptitiously obtained; and demanded that Con- 
 stantia should renounce them in the name of her son, and 
 do liege, pure, and simple homage for Sicily. But before 
 
 1 ->^^ ^'"y thing was settled relative to this affair, 
 
 A. D. 1200, , ^ J. , , . , !. 
 
 the einpress died, leavmg the regency oi 
 
 the kingdom to the pope: so that he was enabled to pre* 
 
 scribe what conditions he thought proper to young Frei 
 
 dericio. 
 
 The troubles of Germany still continued; and the 
 pope redoubled his efforts to detach the princes and pre-, 
 lates from the cause of Philip, king of the Romans, not- 
 withstanding the remonstrances of the king of France, 
 To these remonstrances he proudly replied, " Either 
 " Philip must lose the empire, or I the papacy"," 
 
 But all these dissensions and troubles in Europe did 
 not prevent the formation of another crusade or expedi- 
 tion into Asia, for the recovery of the Holy Land. The 
 adventurers who took the cross, were chiefly French and 
 GeVmans, Baldwin, count of Flanders, was their com- 
 mander; and the Venetians, as greedy of wealth and 
 power as the ancient Carthaginians, furnished them with 
 ships, for which they took care to be amply paid, both in 
 ^loney and territory. The Christian city of Zara, iu 
 
 ?0. Murat. Antiq. hal. torn. vi. 11. G«<. Innocent III. 
 
 Dalmatja, 
 
fcET. XXXI. 3 MODERN EUROPE. 347 
 
 Dalmatia, had withdrawn itself from the government of 
 the republic : the army of the Cross undertook to reduce 
 
 it to obedience: and it was besiec:ed and taken, nr.^-, 
 
 . , ,- u 1 7 . A. D. 1203i 
 
 notwithstandmg the threats and excommuni- 
 cations of the pope'-. Nothing can shew in a stronger 
 light the reigning spirit of those pious adventurers. 
 
 The storm next broke upon Constantinople. Isaac 
 Angelas, the Greek emperor, had been dethroned, and 
 deprived of his sight, in 1195, by his brother Alexisi 
 Isaac's son, named also Alexis, who had made his escape 
 into Germany, and was then in the army of the crusade, 
 implored the assistance of its leaders against the usurper; 
 engaging, in case of success, to furnish them provisions, 
 to pay them a large sum of money, and to submit him- 
 self to the jurisdiction of the pope. By their means the 
 lawful prince was restored. He ratified the treaty made 
 by his son, and died; when young Alexis, who was hated 
 by the Greeks for having called in the Latins, became the 
 victim of a new faction. One of his relations, surnamed 
 Murtzufle, strangled him with his own hands, and usurp- 
 ed the imperial throne". 
 
 Baldwin and his followers, who wanted only an apo- 
 logy for their intended violence, had now a good one; 
 and under pretence of revenging the death of Alexis, 
 
 made themselves masters of Constantinople. ^r.^^ 
 
 ^, J • • , ,• , . *^ A. D. 1204. 
 
 Ihey entered it v/iih httle or no resistance; 
 
 put every one who opposed them to the sword, and gave 
 themselves up to all the excesses of avarice and fury. 
 The booty of the French lords alone was valued at four 
 hundred thousand marks of silver: the very churches 
 were pillaged! And what strongly marks the character 
 of that giddy nation, which has been at all times nearly 
 the same, we are told by Nicetas, that the French offi- 
 cers danced with the ladies in the sanctuary of the church 
 of St. Sophia, after having robbed the altar, and drench- 
 ed the city in blood ''. 
 
 13, Maimbourg, Hkt. des Croitadcs. 13. Nicetas, Cbron. 14. Id. ibid. 
 
 Thus 
 
348 THE HISTORY OF [part jc. 
 
 Thus was Constantinople, the most flourishing; Chris- 
 tain city in the world, taken for the first time, and sacked 
 by Christians, who had vowed to fight only against 
 infidels! — Baldwin, count of Flanders, the most power- 
 ful of these ravagers, got himself elected emperor; and 
 this new usurper condemned the other usurper, Murt- 
 zufle, to be thrown headlong from the top of a lofty 
 column. The Venetians had for their share Pelopon- 
 nesus, the island of Canclia, and several cities on the 
 coast of Fhrvgia, which had not yet submitted to the 
 Turkish vokc. The marquis de Monferrat seized oa 
 Thessaly: so that Baldwin had little left except Thrace 
 and Mesia. The pope gained, for a time, the whole 
 eastern church; and, in a word, an acquisition was made. 
 of much gretitcr consequence than Palestine. Of this 
 indeed the conquerors seemed fully convinced; for not- 
 withstanding the vow they had taken, to go and succour 
 Jerusalem, only a very inconsiderable number of the 
 many knights who had engaged in this pious enterprize^ 
 went into Syria, and those were such as could get nc^ 
 share in the spoils of the Greeks". 
 
 Innocent III. speaking of this conquest, savs, in one 
 of his letters, "^ God, willing to console his church by 
 " the re-union of the. schismatics, has made the empire 
 " pass from the proud, superstitious, disobedient 
 *' Greeks, to the humble, pious, catholic, and sub- 
 *' missive Latins." So easy is it by words, to give 
 that complexion to persons and things, which most fa- 
 vours our interests and our prejudices! 
 
 I sliould now, my deivr Philip, return to the affairs 
 of Germanv; but a {c\v more particulars, consequent on- 
 the taking of Constantinople, require first to be notedy 
 as they cannot afterward be brought properly imder 
 review. 
 
 There still remained a number of princes of the 
 imperial house of Comnenus, who did hot lose their 
 courage with the destruction of their empire. One of 
 
 15. Kieetas. Ciintacuzenus. 
 
 those^ 
 
LET. XXXI.] MODERN EUROPE. U9 
 
 those, who bore among others the name of Alexis, took 
 refuge on the coast of Colchis; and there, between the 
 sea and mount Caucasus, erected a petty state to which 
 he gave the name of the Empire of Trebisond; so much 
 was the word empire abused! — Theodore Lascarus re- 
 took Nice, and settled himself in Bythiniat, by oppor- 
 tunely making use of the Arabs against the Turks. He 
 also assumed the title of emperor, and caused a patriarch 
 to be elected of his own communion. Other Greeks 
 entered into an alliance with the Turks, and even called 
 in their ancient enemies, the Bulgarians, to assist them 
 against the emperor Baldwin: who, being overcome by 
 
 those barbarians near Adrianople, had his 
 
 1 , A- . 1 r -'^' D- 1206. 
 
 legs and arms cut oft, and was lelt a prey to 
 
 wild beasts . Henry, his brother and successor, was 
 poisoned in 1216; and within half a century, the imperial 
 city, which had gone to ruin under the Latins retvu-ned 
 once more to the Greeks. 
 
 While these things were transacting in the East, 
 Philip and Otho were desolating the West. At length 
 Philip prevailed; and Otho, obliged to abandon Ger- 
 m.any, took refuge in England. Philip, elated with 
 success, got his election confirmed by a second corona- 
 tion, and proposed an accomm.odation with the pope, as 
 the means of finally establishing his throne. But be- 
 fore that accommodation could be brought about, he 
 
 fell a sacrifice to private revencce; beincr 
 
 . A. u. 1208. 
 
 assassinated by the count Palatine of Ba- 
 varia, in consequence of a private dispute'^. 
 
 Otho returned to Germany on the death of Philip, 
 married that prince's daughter, and was 
 
 J . D 1 T . TTT f. A. D. 1209. 
 
 crowned at Rome by Innocent 111. after 
 yielding to the holy see the long disputed inheritance 
 of the countess Matilda, and confirming the rights and 
 privileges of the Italian cities. 
 
 16. Ibiii, 17. Neiss, lib. ii. cap. xv. 
 
 But 
 
350 THE HISTORY OF (part u 
 
 But thesei concessions, as far at least as they re- 
 garded the pope, were only a sacrifice to present policy* 
 Otho therefore no sooner found himself in a condition 
 to act offensively, than he resumed his grant; and not 
 only recovered the possessions of the empire, but made 
 ., hostile incursions into Apulia, ravaging the 
 dominions of young Frederic, king of 
 Naples and Sicily: who was under the protection of the 
 holy see. Hence we may date the ruin of Otho» In- 
 
 .„. . nocent excommunicated him: and Frederic, 
 
 A. D. 1211. __ - , , * 
 
 now niteen years oi age, was elected empe* 
 
 ror, by diet of the German princes''^. 
 
 Otho however, on his return to Germany, finding his 
 
 party still considerable and not doubting but he should 
 
 be able to humble his rival, by means of his 
 
 A. D. 1^13. . - . . . 
 
 superior lorce, entered into an alliance with 
 his uncle, John king of England, against Philip Augus- 
 tus king of France. The unfortunate battle of Bouvines, 
 .^., where the confederates were defeated as we 
 
 A. Dk 1214. 
 
 * have seen, completed the fate of Otho. He 
 attempted to retreat into Germany, but was prevented 
 by young Frederic; who had marched into the empire 
 at the head of a powerful army, and was every where 
 received with open arms. 
 
 Thus abandoned by all the princes of Germany^ 
 and altogether without resource, Otho retired to Brun* 
 swick, where he lived four years as a private man, 
 dedicating his time to the duties of religion. He was 
 not deposed, but forgot; and if it is true that, in the 
 excess of his humility, he ordered himself to be thrown 
 down, and trod upon by his kitchen-boys, we may well 
 say with Voltaire, that the kicks of a turn-spit can never 
 expiate the faults of a prince'^. 
 
 Frederic II. being now universally acknowledged 
 
 emperor, was crowned at Aix-la-Chapelle 
 A. D. 1215. . , ^ . p , . , ^ 
 
 with great magnificence: and, in order to 
 
 preserve the favour of the pope, he added to the other 
 18. Heiss, lib. ii. cap. xvi. 19. Amal. de I'Emfi. torn. ii. 
 
 solemnities 
 
LET. XXXI.] MODERN EUROPE. .151 
 
 solemnities of his coronation, a vow to go in person to 
 the Holy Land"". 
 
 About this time pope Innocent died, and was suc- 
 ceeded by Honorius III. who expressed great 
 eagerness in forwarding the crusade, which 
 he ordered to be preached up through all the provinces 
 of Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Bohemia, and Hun- 
 gary: and his endeavours were crowned with extraor- 
 dinary success. The emperor indeed excused himself 
 from the performance of his vow, until he should have 
 regulated the affairs of Italy; and almost all the other 
 European monarchs were detained at home by domestic 
 disturbances. But an infinite number of private noble- 
 men and their vassals took the cross, under the dukes 
 of Austria and Bavaria, the archbishop of Mentz, and 
 the bishops of Munster and Utrecht; and Andrew, king 
 of Hungary, who brought with him a body of fine troops, 
 was declared generalissimo of the crusade^'. 
 
 While these adventurers of Upper Germany march- 
 ed towards Italy, in order to embark at ^^.^ 
 
 A. D. 1217 
 Venice, Genoa and Messina, a fleet of three 
 
 hundred sail was equipped in the ports of Lower Saxony, 
 to transport the troops of Westphalia, Saxony, and the 
 territory of Cologne. And those joining the squadron 
 of the Frieslanders, Flemings, and subjects of Brabant, 
 commanded by William count of Holland, George count 
 of Weerden, and Adolphus count of Berg, set sail for 
 the straits of Gibraltar, on their voyage to Ptolemais. 
 But being driven by a tempest into the road of Lisbon, 
 they were prevailed upon to assist Alphonso, king of 
 Portugal, against the Moors. They defeated these 
 infidels, and afterwards took from them the city of 
 Alcazar"^ 
 
 Meanwhile the king of Hungary and his army, having 
 joined the king of Cyprus, landed at Ptolemais; where 
 he was joyfully received by John de Brieune, a younger 
 
 20. Heiss, lib. ii. cap. xvii 21. A*uifi/. Padcrhorri. 
 
 22. Ibid. 
 
 brother 
 
an THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 brother of the family of that name in Champagne, Avho 
 had been nominated king of Jerusalem. After refresh- 
 ing and reviewing their forces, the two kings marched 
 into the great valley of Jesrael, against the Saracens, 
 with the wood of the true cross carried before them. 
 But Coradin, son of Saphadin, soldan of Kgypt and 
 Babylon, and nephew to the famous Saladin, finding him- 
 self greatly outnumbered by the Christians, retired with- 
 out giving battle; and the champions of the Cross under- 
 took the siege of lliabor, in which they miscarried. 
 They now separated themselves into four bodies, for the 
 . conveniency of subsisting. The king of 
 Cyprus died, and the king of Hungary 
 returned to his own dominions, in order to quiet some 
 disturbances which had arisen during his absence"-. 
 
 The fleet from the coast of Spain arrived at Ptole- 
 mais, soon after the departure of the king of Hungary; 
 and it was resolved in a council of war to besiege Dami- 
 etta in Egypt, which was accordingly invested by sea 
 ^^ and land, and taken after a siege of eighteen 
 months. During the siege Saphadin died; and 
 his eldest son Meledin, his successor in the kingdom of 
 Eg3'pt, who came to the relief of the besieged, was de- 
 feated. The duke of Austria, with a large body of 
 troops, returned soon after to Germany; and a reinforce- 
 ment arrived from the emperor, under the conduct of 
 cardinal Albano, legate of the Holy See24. 
 
 This cardinal, who was a Spanish benedictine, pre- 
 tended that he, as representative of the pope, the natural 
 head of the crusade, had an incontestable right to be 
 general ; and that, as the king of Jerusalem held his crown 
 only by virtue of the pope's licence, he ought in all things 
 to pay obedience to the legate of his holiness. Much 
 time was spent in that dispute, and in writing to Rome 
 for advice. At length the pope's answer came, by which 
 he ordered the king of Jerusalem to serve under the 
 
 23. Jac. de Vitri. Mainibourg, uhi supra. 24. Vertot, Bist. de 
 Chei!~ de Malth. torn. i. Mainibourg;, Bht. des CroUades. torn. ii. 
 
 benedictine: 
 
LET. XXXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 353 
 
 benedictine: and his orders were punctually obeyed, 
 John de Brienne resigned the command, and this mon- 
 kish general brought the army of the Cross between two 
 branches of the Nile, just at the time that river, which 
 fertilizes and defends Egypt, began to overflow its banks. 
 The soldan, informed of the situation of his enemies, 
 flooded the Christian camp, by opening the sluices; and 
 while he burnt their ships on one side, the Nile, increas- 
 ing on the other, threatened every hour to sw.iilow up 
 their whole army. The legate therefore now sav/ himself 
 and his troops in a similar extremity to that in which the 
 Egyptians unjder Pharaoh are described, when they beheld 
 the sea ready to rush in upon them. In consequence of 
 this pressing danger, Damietta was restored; loo-r 
 
 and the leaders of the crusade v/ere obliged 
 to conclude a dishonourable treaty, by which they bound 
 themselves not to serve against Meledin, soldan of 
 Egypt, for eight years^^'. 
 
 The Christians of the East had now no hopes left but 
 in the emperor Frederic II. who was about this time 
 crowned at Rome by pope Honorius III. whose friend- 
 ship he had purchased, by promising to detach Naples 
 and Sicily from the empire,, and bestow it on his son 
 Henry, to be held as a fief of the Holy See. He also 
 promised to pass into Asia with an army, at any time the 
 pope should appoint. But this promise: Frederic was 
 very little inclined to perform, and therefore found a 
 thousand pretences for delaying his journey. He was 
 indeed more worthily employed; embellishing and ag^ 
 grandizing Naples; in establishing an university in that 
 city, where the Roman law was taught; and in expelling 
 the vagrant Saracens, who still infested Sicily-*^. 
 
 In the mean time the unfortunate leaders of the crusade 
 arrived in Europe : and the pope, incensed at the 'loss of 
 Damietta, wrote a severe letter to the emperor, taxing 
 him with having sacrificed th® interests of loo^ 
 
 Christianity, by delaying so long the perfor- 
 
 25. Id. ibid. i. 2S. Sigon. Reg- Ital. Giaiiinpne, Hist, di Napol. 
 
 VOL, I. 3 o mane© 
 
3J4 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 mance of his vow, and threatening hJm with immediate ex- 
 communication, if he did not instantly depart with an ar- 
 my into Asia. Frederic exasperated at these reproaches, 
 renounced all correspondence with the court of Rome : 
 renewed his ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Sicily ; filled up 
 
 vacant sees and benefices, and expelled 
 A. D. 1226. . 
 
 some bishops, who were creatures of the 
 
 pope, on jireterice of their being concerned in practices 
 
 against the state'^ 
 
 Honorius at first attempted to combat rigour, with 
 rigour, threatening the emperor with the thunder of the 
 church, for presuming to lift up his hand against the sanc- 
 tuary; but finding Fpedtric not to be intimidated, his holi- 
 ness became sensible of his own imprudence, in wantonly 
 incurring the resentment of so powerful a prince, and 
 thought proper to soothe his temper by subriii-ive apolo- 
 gies and gentle exhortations. The emperor and the pope 
 were accordingly reconciled, and conferred together at 
 Veroli; where the emperor, as a proof of his sincere at- 
 tachment to the church, published some very severe edicts 
 against heresy, which seem to have authorised the tribu- 
 nal of the Inquisitica--. 
 
 A solemn assembly was afterwards held at Ferenti- 
 no, where both the pope and the emperor were present, 
 together with John de Brienne, titular king of Jerusalem, 
 who was come into Europe to demand succours against 
 the soldan of Egypt. John had an only daughter named 
 Yolanda, whom he proposed as a wife to the emperor, 
 with the kingdom of Jerusalem as her dower, on condi- 
 tion that Frederic should, within two years, perform the 
 vow he had made to lead an army into the holy land, 
 Frederic married her on these terms, becajuse he chose 
 to please the pope ; and since that time the kings of Si- 
 cily have taken the title of king of Jerusalem. 
 
 27. Id. ibid. 28. Petr. de Vignes, lib. i. 
 
 But 
 
XET. XXXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 353 
 
 Bat the emperor was in no hurry to go and conquer 
 his wife's portion, having busitiess of more importance 
 on his hands at hom-e. The chief cities of Lombardy 
 had entered into a secret league, with a view to throw off 
 
 his authority. He convoked a diet at Cre- .„ „ 
 
 A. D. 122/0 
 mona, where all the German and Italian noble- 
 men were summoned to attend. A variety of subjects 
 were there discussed, but nothing of consequence was 
 settled. An accommodation, however, was soon aftejr 
 brought about, by the mediation of the pope ; who, as 
 umpire of the dispute, decreed, that the emperor should 
 lay aside his resentment against the confederate towns, 
 and that the towns should furnish and maintain four hun- 
 dred knights for the relief of the Holy Land'^, 
 
 Peace being thus concluded, Honorius reminded the 
 emperor of his vow: Frederic promised compliance ; but 
 his holiness died before he could r.ee the execution of -^ 
 project which he seemed to have so much at heart. He 
 was succeeded in the papal chair by Gregory IX. brother 
 of Innocent III. who, pursuing the same line of policy^ 
 urged the departure of Frederic for the Holy I^and: and 
 finding the emperor still backward, declared him incapa- 
 ble of holding the imperial dignity, as having incurred 
 the sentence of excommunication. Frederic, incensed 
 .at such insolence, ravaged the patrimony of St. Peter, 
 
 and was actually excoinmunicated. The 
 
 • 1 1^11 1 /-i -1 1 -^- "• 1228. 
 
 animosity between the Guelphs and Ghibei- 
 
 lines revived ; the pope was obliged to quit Rome, and 
 Italy became a scene of war and desolation : or rather of 
 an hundred civil wars, which, by inflaming the minds, and 
 exciting the resentment of the Italian princes, accustom- 
 ed them but too m.uch to the horrid practices of poison- 
 i,ng and assassination. 
 
 During these transactions, Frederic 11. in order to 
 remove the cause of so mauv troubles and to gratify the 
 prejudices of a superstitious age, jesolved tp perform 
 
 29. Richard, Chion. ap. MLirat, 
 
 his 
 
,856 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 his vow. He accordingly embarked for the Holy Land, 
 leaving the affairs of Italy to the management of Renaldo, 
 duke of Spoleto. The duke prohibited his departure, be- 
 fore he was absolved from the censures of the church. But 
 Frederic went in contempt of the church, and succeeded 
 better than any commander who had gone before him. 
 He did not indeed desolate Asia, and gratify the bar- 
 barous zeal of the times, by spilling the blood of infidels ; 
 but he concluded a treaty with Meledin, soldan of Egypt 
 and master of Syria, by which the end of his expedition 
 
 ^ seemed fully answered. The soldan ceded 
 A. D. 1229. . 
 
 to him Jerusalem, and its territory as far as 
 
 Joppa; Bethlehem, Nazarath, and all the country between 
 
 Terusalem and Ptolemais; Tyre, Sidon, and 
 A.D. 1230. '', ... . . '. \ ' ' 
 
 the neighbourmg territories. In return tor 
 
 these concessions, the emperor granted the Saracens a truce 
 of ten years, and prudently returned to Italy, where his 
 presence was much wanted^". 
 
 Frederic's reign, after his return from the east, was 
 one continued quarrel with the popes. The cities of 
 Lombardy had revolted during his absence, at the insti- 
 gation of Gregory IX. and before they could be reduced, 
 the same pontiff excited the emperor's son 
 Henry, who had been elected king of the 
 Romans, to rebel against his father. The rebellion was 
 suppressed, the prince was confined, and the emperor ob- 
 tained a complete victory over the associated towns; but 
 his troubles were not yet ended. The pope excommu- 
 nicated him anew; and sent a bull into Germany, in order 
 to sow division between Frederic and the prin- 
 ° ces of the empire, in which are the following 
 remarkable words. '* A beast of blasphemy, replete 
 *' with names, is risen from the sea, with the feet of a 
 *' bear, the face of a lion, and members of other different 
 
 30. Annal. Bo/or. lib. vii. Heiss. Hist, de I'Emp, lib. ii. cap. xvii, 
 Maimbourg, ubi sup. 
 
 *^ animals 
 
iEt. XXXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 357 
 
 " animals ; which, like the proud, hath opened its mouth 
 '' in blasphemy against the holy name ; not even fearing 
 *' to throw the arrows of calumny against the tabernacle 
 *' of God, and the saints that dwell in heaven. This beast, 
 *' desirous of breaking every thing in pieces by his iron 
 " teeth and nails, and of trampling all things under his feet, 
 " hath already prepared private battering rams against 
 ^' the wall of the catholic faith ; and now raises open ma- 
 *' chines, in erecting soul-destroying schools of Ishmael- 
 ■*' ites; rising, according to report, in opposition to 
 *' Christ the Redeemer of mankind, the table of whose 
 " covenant he atteraps to abolish with the pen of wicked 
 •*' heresy. Be not therefore surprised at the malice of this 
 ^' blasphemous beast: if we, who are the servant of the Al- 
 *' mighty, should be exposed to the arrows of his destruo 
 *' tion. — This king of plagues was even heard to say, 
 " that the whole world has been deceived by three 
 '^' impostors: namely, Moses, Jesus Christ, and Mahom- 
 '' et. Bat he makes Jesus Christ far inferior to the other 
 *' two: ' They,' says he, ' supported their glory to the last, 
 * v/hereas Christ was ignominiously crucified.' " He also 
 ^' maintains," continues Gregory, "thatit is follytohelieve 
 *' the ONE only God, Creator of the Universe, could he 
 " born of VLivoman^ zwd more especially of a virgin?' S'' 
 
 Frederic, on the other hand, in his apology to the 
 Princes of Germany, calls Gregory the Great Dragon^ the 
 Antichrist^ of whom it is writen, " and another Red Horse 
 " arose from the sea, and he that sat upon him took 
 *' Peace from the Earths^." 
 
 The emperor's apology was sustained in (iermany ; 
 and finding he had nothing to fear from that quarter, he 
 resolved to take ample vengeance of the pope and his as- 
 sociates. With that view he marched to 
 Rome, where he thought his pinty was strong ' ' * ""^ ' 
 enough to procure him admission. But this favourite 
 scheme v/as defeated by the activity of Gregorv, wh.o 
 
 31. Gob. Pers. Cosmo:!, cap. l.\iv. .,'^;?. Id. ibid 
 
 ordered 
 
35S THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 ordered a crusade to be preached against the emperor, 
 as an enemy of the Christian faith ; a step which in- 
 censed Frederic so much, that he ordered all his pri- 
 soners, who wore the cross, to be exposed to the most 
 cruel torture s^^ 
 
 The two factions of the Guelphs and Ghibellines 
 continued to rage with greater violerce than ever ; in- 
 volving cities, districts, and even private families, in 
 troubles, divisions, and civil butchery, no quarter being 
 given on either side. Pt'Ieanwhile Gregory IX. died, 
 
 , , and was succeeded in the see of Rome by 
 A. D. 124-3. 
 
 Celestine IV. and afterwards by Innocent IV. 
 
 formerly Cardinal Fiesque, and who had always expres- 
 sed the greatest regard for the emperor and his interest. 
 Frederic was accordingly congratulated upon this occa- 
 sion ; but having more penetration than those about 
 him, he sagely replied, " I see little reason to rejoice. 
 " The cardinal was my friend, but the pope will be my 
 *' encmy^*." 
 
 Innocent soon proverl the justice of this conjecture. 
 He ambitiously attempted to negociate a peace for Italy. 
 But not being able to obtain from Frederic his exorbi- 
 tant demands, and in fear of the safety of his own person, 
 
 he fled into France, assembled a creneral 
 A.D. 1245. -IT 11 wi 
 
 council at Lyons, and deposed the emperor. 
 
 " I declare," said he, " Frederic II. attainted and con- 
 
 " victed of sacrilege and heresy, excommunicated and 
 
 " dethroned ; and I order the electors to choose another 
 
 " emperor, reserving to myself the disposal of the king- 
 
 '" dom of Sicily -'." 
 
 Frederic was at Turin when he received the news 
 
 of his deposition, and behaved in a manner that seemed 
 
 to border upon weakness. He called for the casket in 
 
 which the imperial ornaments were kept; and opening it, 
 
 33. Krantz. lib. viii. Murat. Annul. ltd. torn. vii. 
 Zi. Id. ibid. 35. Gob. Pers. ubi snp. 
 
 an4 
 
LET. XXXI.] MODERN EUROPE. 559 
 
 and taking the crown in his hand, " Innocent," cried he, 
 *' has not Vet deprived me of thee : thou art still mine! 
 " and before I part with thee, much blood shall be 
 
 *' Spilt3^" 
 
 Conrad, the emperor's second son, had been de- 
 clared king of the Romans, on the death of his brother 
 Henry, which soon followed his confinement; but the 
 empire being now declared vacant by the po'^^e, the Ger- 
 man bishops (for none of the princes Avere 
 
 . ^ . . . r t- ■, ,■ A. D. 1246. 
 
 present; at the mstigation oi his hohness, 
 
 proceeded to the election of a new emperor. And they 
 chose Henry, landgrave of Thuringia, who was styled, 
 in derision, " The King of priests." 
 
 Innocent now renev/ed the crusade against Frederic. 
 It was proclaimed by the preaching friars, since called 
 Dominicans, and the minor friars, known by the name 
 of Cordeliers or Francis,cans; a new militia of the court 
 of Rome, whicli, about this time, began to be established 
 in Europe. The pope, however, did not confine himself 
 to these measures only, but engaged in conspiracies 
 against the life of an emperor who had dared to resist 
 the decree of a council, and oppose the whole body of 
 monks and zealots. Frederic's life was several times 
 in danger from plots, poisonings, and assassinations;- 
 which induced him, it is said, to make choice of Maho- 
 metan guards, v/hom he was certain would not be under 
 the influence of the prevailing superstition. 
 
 Meiuiwhile the landgrave of Thuringia dying, the 
 
 same prelates who had taken the liberty of 
 
 . A, D. 1247, 
 
 creating oue emperor, made another; namely, 
 
 William count of Holland, a young nobleman of twenty 
 
 years of age, who bore the same contemptuous title as 
 
 his predecessor"^ 
 
 Fortune, whii.h had hitherto favoured Frederic, 
 
 seemed now to desert him. He was defeat- 
 
 A. D. 1243. 
 ed before Parma, which he bad long besieg- 
 
 35. M. Paris. Hist. Major. 57- Jilnai £ul6r. 
 
 ed; 
 
360 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 ed ; and to complete his misfortune, he soon after 
 learned, that his natural son Entius, whom he had made 
 king of Sardinia, was worsted and taken prisoner by the 
 Bolognese. 
 
 In this extremity, Frederic retired to his kingdom 
 of Naples, in order to recruit his army, and 
 there died of a fever, in the fifty-firth year of 
 his age^'^. He was a prince of great gei>ius, erudition, 
 and fortitude ; and notwithstanding all the troubles he 
 had to encounter, he built towns, founded universities, 
 and gave a kind of new life to learning in Italy. 
 
 After the death of Frederic 11. the affairs of Ger- 
 many fell into the utmost confusion, and Italy continued 
 long in the same distracted state in which he had left 
 it. The clergy took arms against the laity, the weak 
 were oppressed by the strong, and laws divine and human 
 were disregarded. But a particular history of that un- 
 happy period would fill the mind with disgust and horror: 
 I shall therefore only observe, that after the death of 
 Frederic's son, Conrad, who had assumed the imperial 
 ^^-^ dignity, as successor to his father, and the 
 
 A. D 12jO cj ^ ' ^ 7 
 
 death of his competitor, William of Hol- 
 land, a variety of candidates appeared for the empire, 
 and several were elected by diflferent factions, aiiiong 
 whom was Richard earl of Cornwall, brother to Henry 
 III. king of England. But no emperor was properly 
 acknowledged, till the year 1273, when Rodolph, count 
 of Hapsburg, was unanimously raised to the vacant 
 throne. 
 
 During the interregnum which preceded the election 
 of Rodolph, Denmark, Holland, and Hungary entirely- 
 freed themselves from the homage they were wont to 
 pay to the empire; and nearly about the same time 
 several German cities erected a municipal form of go- 
 vernment, Avhich still continues. Lubec, Cologne, 
 
 39. Krantz, lib. viii. Keiss, lib. ii. cap. xvii. 
 
 Brunswick^ 
 
LET. XXXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 361 
 
 Brunswick, and Dantzic, united for their mutual defence 
 against the encroachments of the great lords, by a famous 
 association, called the Hanseatic League; and these 
 towns were afterwards joined by eighty others, belong- 
 ing to different states, which formed a kind of commer- 
 cial republic. Italy also during this period assumed a 
 new form of government. That freedom for which the 
 cities of Lombardy had so long struggled, was confirmed 
 to them for a sum of money : they were emancipated by 
 the fruits of their industry. Sicily likewise changed 'i\M 
 government and its prince, as shall be related in the his- 
 tory of France, which furnished a sovereign to the Sici- 
 lians. 
 
 I next propose to carry forward the aff^airs of Eng- 
 land to the reign of Edward I. a period at which the 
 history of our own island becomes peculiarly interesting 
 to every Briton. 
 
 LETTER XXXIL 
 
 ENGLAND, FROM THE GRANTING OF THE GREAT CHARTER, TP 
 THE REIG>f OF EDWARD I. 
 
 X OU have already seen, my dear Philip, in what 
 manner king John was forced by his barons to grant the 
 great charter of English liberty, and the regulations ne- 
 cessary for preserving it, to which he seemed 
 passively to submit. He went still farther : * * 
 he dismissed his forces, and promised that his govern- 
 ment should be as gentle as his people could wish it. But. 
 he only dissembled, till he should find a favourable op- 
 portunity to revoke all his concessions; and in order to 
 facilitate such an event, he secretly sent abroad emis- 
 saries to enlist foreign soldiers, and to invite the rapaci- 
 VOL. I. 3 £ ous 
 
362 THE HISTORY OF [pakt i, 
 
 ous Brabancons into his service, by the prospect of sharing 
 the spoils of England. He also dispatched a messenger 
 to Rome, to lay the Great Charter before the pope ; who, 
 considering himself as superior lord of the kingdom, was 
 incensed at the temerity of the barons, and issued a bull 
 annulling the charter, absolving the king from his oath to 
 observe it, and denouncing a general sentence of excom- 
 munication against every one who should persevere in 
 maintaining such treasonable pretensions'. 
 
 John now pulled off the mask : he recalled all that lie 
 had done; and as his foreign mercenaries arrived along 
 with the bull, he expected nothing but universal submis- 
 sion. But our gallant ancestors were not so easily to 
 be frightened out of their rights. Langton, the primate, 
 though he owed his elevation to an encroachment of the 
 court of Rome, refused to obey the pope in publishing 
 the sentence of excommunication against the batons. 
 Persons of all ranks, among the clergy as well as laitv, 
 seemed determined to maintain, at the expense of their 
 lives, the privileges granted in the Great Charter.^ John 
 had therefore nothing to rely on for re-establishing his 
 tyranny, but the sword of his Brabancons; and that un- 
 fortunately proved too strongs if not for the liberties of 
 England, at least for its prosperity. 
 
 The barons, after obtaining the Great Charter, had 
 sunk into a kind of fatal security ; having not only dis- 
 missed their vassals, but taking no rational measures for 
 re-assembling them on any emergency: so that the king 
 found himself master of the field, without any adequate 
 force to oppose him. Castles were defended, and skir- 
 mishes risked, but no regular opposition was made to the 
 progress of the royal arms; while the ravenous mercena- 
 ries, incited by a cruel and incensed prince, were let 
 loose against the houses and estates of the barons, and 
 spread devastation over the whole face of the kingdom. 
 
 1. Bymer, vol. i. M. Paris. Hht. Major. 
 
 Nothing 
 
ixT. xxsii.] MODERN EUROPE. 363 
 
 Nothing was to be seen, from Dover to Berwlcl:, but 
 the flames of villages, castles reduced to ashes, and the 
 consternation and miser}- of the helpless inhabitants". 
 
 In this desperate extremity, the barons dreading the 
 total loss of their liberties, their lives and their posses- 
 sions, had recourse to a remedy no less des- 
 
 / ^,. cc ^ . 1 11 T • A- D. 1210. 
 
 perate. 1 hey otterea to acknowledge as then- 
 sovereign, prince Lewis, eldest son of Philip Augustus 
 king of France, provided he would protect them from 
 the fury of their enraged monarch. The temptation 
 was too great to be resisted by a prince of Philip's am- 
 bition. He sent over instantly a small army to the 
 relief of the barons, and afterwards a more nunaerous 
 body of forces, with his son Lewis at the^r head; although 
 the pope's legate threatened him with interdicts and ex- 
 communications, if he presumed to invade the domi- 
 nions of a prince under the immediate protection of the 
 holy see. Assured of the fidelity of his subjects, these 
 menaces were little regarded by Philip. 
 
 The French monarch, however, took care to pre- 
 serve appearances in his violences, and only appearances. 
 He pretended his son Lewis had accepted the ofi'er from 
 the English barons without his advice, and contrary to 
 his inclinations, and that the armies sent into England 
 were levied in that prince's name. But these artifices 
 were not employed by Philip to deceive. He knew that 
 the pope had too much penetration to be so easily impos- 
 ed upon, and that they were too gross even to gull the 
 people; but he knew, at the same time, that the manner 
 of conducting any measure is of as much consequence as 
 the measure itself, and that a violation of decency, in the 
 eye of the world, is more criminal than a breach of 
 justice. 
 
 Lewis no sooner landed in England, than John was 
 deserted by his foreign troops., who being principally le- 
 
 2. M. Paris. Chton. Ma:b-Qs. 
 
 -Viet 
 
364 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 •vied in the French provinces, refused to serve against the 
 heir of their monarchy ; so that the barons had the me- 
 lancholy prospect of succeeding in their purpose, and of 
 escaping the tyranny of their own king, by imposing on 
 themselves and the nation, a foreign yoke. But the 
 imprudent partiality of Lewis to his countrymen increas- 
 ed that jealousy, which it was so natural for the English 
 to entertain in their present situation, and did great hurt 
 to his cause. Many of the dissatisfied barons returned 
 to the king's party; and John was preparing to make a 
 last effort for his crown, when death put an end to his 
 troubles and his crimes, in the forty-ninth year of his 
 age, and the eighteenth of his reign. His character is 
 nothing but a complication of vices, equally mean and 
 odious; ruinous to himself and destructive to his people. 
 But a sally of wit upon the usual corpulency of the priests, 
 more than all his enormities, made him pass with the 
 clergy of that age for an impious prince. " How plump 
 " and well fed is this animal 1" exclaimed he one day, 
 when he had caught a very fat stag ; — " and yet I dare 
 " swear he never heard mass\" 
 
 John was succeeded by his son Henry III. only nine 
 years old at his father's death: and for once a minority 
 proved of singular service to England. The Earl of 
 Pembroke, who by his office of mareschal was at the head 
 of the military power, and consequently, in perilous 
 times, at the head of the state, determined to support the 
 authority of the infant prince. He was chosen protec- 
 tor; and, fortunately for the young monarch and for the 
 nation, the regency could not have been entrusted into 
 more able and more faithful hands. In order to recon- 
 cile all classes of men to the government of his pupil, he 
 made him renew and confirm the Great Charter. And 
 he wrote letters in Henry's name to all the malecontent 
 barons, representing, that whatever animosity they might 
 
 3. M. Paris. 
 
 hav^ 
 
LET. XXXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 305 
 
 have harboured agahist the late king, they ought to retain 
 none against his son, who had now succeeded to his 
 throne, but neither to his resentments nor to his princi- 
 ples, and was resolved to avoid the paths which had led 
 to such dangei'ous extremities; cxhoiting them, at the 
 same time, by a speedy return to their duty, to restore 
 the independency of the kingdom, and secure that liberty 
 for which they had so zealously contended, and which 
 was now confirmed to them by a second charter"^. 
 
 These arguments, enforced by the character of Pem.- 
 broke, had a mighty influence on the barons. ]5r!ost ot 
 them secretly negociated with him, and many of them 
 openly returned to their duty. Lewis, therefore, who 
 had made a journey to France, and brought over Iresh 
 succours with him from that kingdom, found his party 
 much weakened on his return: and that the death of 
 John, contrary to all expectation, had blasted his favour- 
 ite designs. He laid siege, however, to Dover, which 
 was gallantly defended by Hubert de Burgh. In the 
 mean time the French army, commanded by the count 
 de Perche, was totally defeated by the earl of Pembroke, 
 before the castle of Lincoln; and four hundred knights, 
 with many persons of superior rank, were made prison- 
 ers by the English. Lewis, when informed of this fa- 
 tal event, retired to London, which was the centre and 
 life of his party. He there received intelligence of a 
 new disaster, which extinguished all his hopes. A 
 French fleet, with a strong reinforcement on board, had 
 been repulsed on the coast of Kent, and obliged to take 
 shelter in their own harbours^. 
 
 The English barons, after this second advantage 
 gained over the French, by the royal party, hastened 
 from all quarters to make peace with the protector, and 
 prevent, by an early submission, those attainders, to 
 which they were exposed on account of their rebellion j 
 
 4. Rymer, vol. i. Bradv. Append. No. 14". 5. M. Paris. 
 
 while 
 
366 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 M'hile Lewis, whose cause was now totally desperate, be- 
 gan to be anxioiis lor the safely of his person, and was 
 glad, on any tolerable conditions, to make his escape 
 from a country where c\ ery thing was become hostile to 
 him. He accordiuKh' concluded a treaty with 
 Pembroke, by which he promised to evacuate 
 the kingdom; only stipulating in return, an indemnity to 
 his adherents, a restitution of their honours and fortunes, 
 and the free and equal enjoyment of those liberties, which 
 had been granted to the rest of the natior/'. Thus, my 
 dear Philip, was happily terminated a civil war, which 
 seemed to spring from the must incurable hatred and 
 jealousy, and had threatened to make England a province 
 oi France. 
 
 The prudence and equity of the protector, after the 
 expulsion of the French, contributed to cure entirely 
 those wounds which had been made by intestine discord. 
 He received the rebellious barons into favour; observed 
 strictly the terms of peace, which he had granted them ; 
 restored them to their possessions; and endeavoured, by 
 an equal behaviour, to bury all past animosities in per- 
 petual oblivion. But, unfortunately for the kingdom, 
 this great and good man did not long survive the pacifi- 
 cation: and Henry, when he came of age, proving a 
 weak and contemptible prince, England was again involv- 
 ed in civil broils, which it would be equally idle and im- 
 pertinent to relate; as they were neither followed, during 
 many years; by an event of importance to society, nor 
 attended with any circumstances, which can throw light 
 upon the human character. Their causes and conse- 
 quences were alike insignificant. 
 
 It is necessary however to observe, that the king 
 having married Eleanor, daughter of the count of Pro- 
 vence, was surrounded by a multitude of strangers, 
 from that and other countries, whom he caressed with 
 the fondest affection, and enriched by an imprudent gene- 
 
 6. Rymer. vol. i. 
 
 rositv. 
 
I.ET. XXXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 367 
 
 rosity. The insolence of these foreigners is said to have 
 arisen to such a height, that when, on account of their 
 outrages or oppressions, an appeal was made to the laws, 
 they scrupled not to say, " What do the laws of Eng- 
 " land signify to us? We mind them not." This open 
 contempt of the English constitution, roused the resent- 
 ment of the barons, and tended much to aggravate the 
 general discontent arising from the preference shewn to 
 strangers; as it made every act of violence, committed 
 by a foreigner, appear not only an injury, but an insult. 
 Yet no remonstrance or complaint could ever prevail on 
 the king to abandon them, or even to moderate his attach- 
 ment towards them. 
 
 But Henry's profuse bounty to his foreign relations, 
 and to their friends and favourites, would have appeared 
 more tolerable to the English, had any thing been done 
 for the benefit of the nation ; or had the king's enterprizes 
 in foreign countries been attended with any success or 
 glory to himself or the public. Neither of these however 
 was the case. As imprudence governed his policy, mis- 
 fortune marked his measures. He declared 
 
 . . A. D. 1242. 
 war against France, and made an expedition 
 
 into Guienne, upon the invitation of his father-in-law, 
 who promised to join him with all his forces: 
 
 A D 1 2 io 
 
 but being worsted at Taillebourg, he was de- 
 serted by his allies, lost what remained to him of Poi- 
 tou, and v/as obliged to return with disgrace into Eng- 
 land'. 
 
 Want of economy and an ill-judged liberality, were 
 tlie great defects in Henry's domestic administration. 
 These kept him alway;i needy, and obliged him continu- 
 ally to harass his barons for monev under different pre- 
 tences. Their discontents were thereby increased, and 
 he was still a beggar. Even before his foreign expedi- 
 tion, his debts had become so troublesome, that he sold 
 all his plate and jewels, in order to discharge them. 
 
 7. M, Paris. W. Hemming'. Cbron. Duiist. 
 
 W!ien 
 
368 I'HE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 When this expedient was first proposed to him, he asked 
 where he should find purchasers. " In the city of Lon- 
 don," it was replied. " On my woid," said he, " if the 
 *' treasmy of Augustus were brought to sale, the citi- 
 " zens are able to be the purchasers. These clowns, 
 *' who assume to themselves the name of barons, abound 
 " in every thing, while we are reduced to necessity^." 
 And he was thenceforth observed to be more greedy in 
 his exactions upon the citizens. 
 
 Many however as were the grievances that the Eng- 
 lish during this reign, had reason to complain of in their 
 civil government, they seem to have been still less bur- 
 densome than those which proceeded from spiritual usur- 
 pations and abuses ; and which Henry, who relied on the 
 pope for the support of his tottering authority, never fail- 
 ed to countenance. All the chief benefices of the king- 
 dom were conferred on Italians, great numbers of whom 
 were sent over to be provided for: and non-residence 
 and pluralities were carried to so enormous a height, that 
 Mansel, the king's chaplain, is computed to have held, 
 at one time, seven hundred ecclesiastical livings. The 
 pope exacted the revenues of all vacant benefices; the 
 twentieth of all ecclesiastical revenues, without excep- 
 tion; the third of such as exceeded one hundred marks 
 a year, and the half of such as were possessed by non- 
 residents I He claimed also the goods of all intestate 
 clergymen: he pretended a right to inherit all money got 
 by usury, and he levied voluntary contributions on the 
 people''. 
 
 But the most oppressive expedient employed by the 
 court of Rome, in order to drain money from England, 
 „ was that of embarking Henry in a project 
 for the conquest of Sicily. On the death 
 of the emperor Frederic II. the succession of that island 
 devolved to his son Conrad, and afterwards to his grand- 
 son Conradine, yet an infant; and as Mainfroy, the em- 
 
 8. M. Paris. 9. Ibid, 
 
 peror's 
 
LET. xxxii.] MODERN EUROPE. 369 
 
 peror's natural son, under pretence of governing the 
 kingdom during the minority of the young prince, had 
 formed a scheme for usurping the sovereignty, Inno- 
 cent IV. had a good apology for exerting that superi- 
 ority which the popes claimed over Sicily, and at the 
 same time ot gratifying his hatred against the house of 
 Suabia. He accordingly attempted to make himself 
 master of the kingdom; but being disappointed in all his 
 enterprizes by the activity and artifices of Mainfroy, and 
 finding that his own force was not sufficient for such a 
 conquest, he made a tender of the crown to Richard, 
 ear.l of Cornwall, brother to Henry III. and supposed 
 to be the richest subject in Europe. Richard had the 
 prudence to reject the dangerous present, but not the 
 power to prevent the evil. The same offer being after- 
 wards made to the king, in favour of his second son Ed- 
 mond, that weak monarch was led by the levity and 
 tlioughtlessness of his disposition, to embrace the insi- 
 dious proposal, and immense sums were drained from 
 England, under pretence of carrying this lofe/r 
 
 project into execution; for the pope took 
 that upon himself. But the money was still found in- 
 sufficient: the conquest of Sicily was as remote as everi 
 Henry, therefore, sensible at length of the cheat, was 
 obliged to resign into the pope's hands that crown which 
 he had more than purchased, but which it was never 
 intended either he or his family should inherit"^. 
 
 The earl of Cornwall had now reason to value him- 
 self on his foresight, in refusing the fraudulent bargain 
 with Rome, and in preferring the solid honours of an 
 opulent and powerful prince of the blood in England, to 
 the empty and precarious glory of a foreign dignity; but 
 he had not always firmness sufficient to adhere to this 
 
 resolution. His immense wealth made the ^^^^ 
 
 „ . , . , . A. D. 1256. 
 
 Oerman prmces cast their eye on mm as 
 
 a candidate for the empire, after the death of William 
 
 10. Rymer, vol. i. M. Paris. Chron. Dunst. 
 VOL. I, 5 >? of 
 
370 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 of Holland; and his vanity and ambition for once prevail* 
 
 ed over his prudence and his avarice. He went over 
 
 to Germany, was tempted to expend vast sums on his 
 
 election, and succeeded so far as to be chosen by a 
 
 faction, and crowned at Aix-la-Chapelle ; but having 
 
 .^ - i^o personal or family connections in that 
 
 A. B. 1257. ' , -^ , , . ... 
 
 country, he never could attain any solid 
 
 power. He therefore found it necessary to return into 
 
 England, after having lavished away the frugality of « 
 
 whole life, in order to procure a splendid title''. 
 
 England, in the meanwhile, was involved in nevf' 
 troubles. I'he w^eakness of Henry's government, and 
 the absence of his brother, gave reins to the factious 
 and turbulent spirit of the barons. They demanded an 
 extension of their privileges ; and, if we may credit the 
 historians of those times, had formed a plan of so many 
 limitations on the royal authority, as would have reduced 
 the king to a mere cypher. Henry would agree to no- 
 thing but a renewal of the Great Charter; which, at the 
 desire of the barons, was ratified in the following man- 
 ner. All the prelates and abbots were assembled; they 
 held burning tapers in their hands; the Great Charter 
 was read before them: they denounced the sentence of 
 exccfmmumcation against every one who should violate 
 that fundamental law; they threw their tapers on the 
 ground, and exclaimed, " May the soul of every one, 
 " who incurs this sentence^ so stink and corrupt ift 
 " hell!" The king also bore a part in the ceremony, 
 and subjoined, " So help me God; I will keep all 
 " these articles inviolate, as I am a man, as I am a 
 " Christian, as I am a knight, and as I am a king 
 '' crowned and anointed'-. 
 
 This tremendous ceremony, however, was no soon- 
 er over than the king forgot his engagements, and the- 
 barons renewed their pretensions. At the head of the 
 malecontents was Simon de Montfort, earl of Lcices-' 
 
 11. M. Paris.- 12. W. Hemming. M. Paris. M. West. 
 
 tcr, 
 
XT.T. XXXII.] MODERi\ EUROPE. 371 
 
 ter, a man of great talents and boundless ambition, who 
 had married Eleanor, the king's sister, and hoped to 
 Njvrest the sceptre from the feeble and irresolute hand 
 that held it. He represented to his associates the ne- 
 cessity of reforming the state, and of putting the exe- 
 cution of the laws into other hands than those which had 
 hitherto been found, from repeated experience, unfit 
 for that important charge. After so many submissions 
 and fruitless promises, the king's word, he said, could 
 no longer be relied on, and his inability tq violate na- 
 tional privileges could thenceforth only insure their pre- 
 servation, 
 
 These observations, which were founded in truth, 
 and entirely conformable to the sentiments of those to 
 whom they were addressed, had the desired effect. The 
 
 barons resolved to take the administration 
 
 1 • 11 J TT . . A, D, 1^3B, 
 
 into their own hands: and Henry havmg 
 
 summoned a parliament at Oxford, found himself a 
 prisoner in his national council, and was obliged to sub- 
 mit to the terms prescribed to him, called the Pro- 
 visions of Oxford, According to these provisions, 
 twelve barons were selected from among the king's mi- 
 nisters: twelve more were chosen by the parliament : 
 and to those twenty-four barons unlimited authority was 
 granted to reform the state, Leicester was at the head 
 of this legislative body, to which the supi-eme power 
 was in reality transferred: and their first step seemed 
 well calculated for the end which they professed to 
 have in view. They ordered that four knights should 
 be chosen by each county ; that they should make inqui- 
 ry into the grievances of which their neighbourhood had 
 reason to complain, and should attend the ensuing par- 
 liament, in order to give information to that assembly 
 of the state of their particular counties'^ 
 
 The earl of Leicester and his associates, however, 
 having advanced so far as to satisfy the nation, instead 
 of continuing in the same popular course, immediately 
 
 13, Rymer, yoI, i. M. Paris. Chron. Dunst. 
 
 provided 
 
$M THE HISTORY OF [part t, 
 
 provided for the extension and continuation of their 
 own exorbitant authority, at the expense both of the 
 king and the people. They enjoyed the supreme pow- 
 er near three years ; and had visibly emplojed it, not 
 for the reformation of the state, their original pretence, 
 for assuming it, but for the aggrandizement of them- - 
 selves and families. The breach of trust was evident 
 to all the world: every order of men in England felt it, 
 and murmured against it; and the pope, in 
 order to gain the favour of the nation, ab-^ 
 solved the king and all his subjects, from the oath 
 which they had taken to observe the provisions of 
 Oxford'*. 
 
 As soon as Henry received the pope's absolution 
 from his oath, accompanied with threats of excommuni- 
 cation against all his opponents, he resumed 
 * the government; offering, however, to main- 
 tain all the regulations made by the reforming barons, 
 except those which entirely annihilated the royal authority. 
 But these haughty chieftains could not peaceably resign 
 that uncontrolled power, which thev had 
 so long enjoj'ed. JVlany or them adopted 
 Leicester's viev/s, which held in prospect nothing less 
 than the throne itself. The civil war was renewed in all 
 
 its horrors: and after several fruitless nego- 
 A. D. 1264. . . , n ^ 1 r r ni- 
 
 dations, the collected iorce oi the two parties 
 
 met near Lewes, in Sussex, where the royal army- 
 was totally defeated, and the king and prince Edward 
 made prisoners. 
 
 No sooner had Leicester obtained this victory, and 
 got the royal family in his power, than he acted as sole 
 master, and even tyrant of the kingdom. He seized the 
 estates of no less than eighteen barons, as his share of 
 the spoil gained in the battle of Lewes: he engrossed tq 
 himself the ransom of all the prisoners, and told his 
 barons, with wanton insolence, that it was sufficient for 
 
 14. Ibid. 
 
 them 
 
LET. XXXII.] MODERN EUROPE. 372 
 
 them that he had saved them, by that victory, from 
 the forfeitures and attainders which hung over them. 
 All the officers of the crown were named by him; the 
 whole authority, as well as arms of the state, was lodg- 
 ed in his hands'^. 
 
 But it was impossible that things could remain long 
 in this equivocal situation. It became necessary for 
 Leicester either to descend to the rank of a subject, or 
 mount up to that of a sovereign j and he could do neither 
 without peril. He summoned a new parlia- 
 ment ; which, for his own purposes, he fixed on 
 a more democratical basis than any called since the Nor- 
 man conquest, if not from the foundation of the monarchy. 
 He ordered returns to be made not only of two knights 
 from every shire, but also of deputies from the 
 boroughs'^; and thus introduced into the national coun- 
 cil a second order of men, hitherto regarded as too mean 
 to enjoy a place in those august assemblies, or have any 
 share in the government of the state. 
 
 But although we are indebted to Leicester's usurpa- 
 tion for the first rude outline of the House of Commons, 
 his policy only forwarded by some years an institution, for 
 which the general state of society had already prepared 
 the nation; and that house, though derived from so in- 
 vidious an origin, when summoned by legal princes, soon 
 proved one of the most useful members of the constitu- 
 tion, and gradually rescued the kingdom, as we shall 
 have occasion to see, both from aristocratical and regal 
 tyranny. It is but just, however, to observe, that as 
 this necessary, and now powerful branch of our consti- 
 tution, owed its rise to usurpation, it is the only one of 
 the three that has latterly given an usurper to the state. 
 The person to whom I allude, is Oliver Cromwell; and I 
 will be so bold as to affirm, that if ever England is again 
 subjected to the absolute will of any one man, unless from 
 abroad, that man must be a member of the House of 
 
 IS\ Rymer, vol, i. M. Paris. W. Hemming. H, Knyghton, 16. Ibid. 
 
 Commons. 
 
374 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Commons. The people are alike jealous of the power of 
 the king and of the nobles; but they are themselves 
 greedy of dominion, and can only possess ii through their 
 representatives. A popular member of the lower house, 
 therefore, needs only ambition, enterprize, and a favour- 
 able conjuncture to overturn the throne; to strip the 
 nobles of their dignities; and, while he blows the trumpet 
 of libertVj to tell his equals they are slaves. 
 
 Leicester'^ motive for giving this form to the pai'- 
 liament, was a desire of crushing his rivals among the 
 powerful barOns; and trusting to the popularity acquired 
 by such a measure, he made the earl of Derby be ac- 
 cused in the king's name, and ordered him to be seized 
 and committed to prison without being brought to any 
 legal trial. Several other barons were threatened with 
 the same fate, and deserted the confederacy. The 
 royalists flew to arms; prince Edward made his escape; 
 and the joy of this young hero's appearance, together 
 with the oppressions under which the nation laboured, 
 soon produced him a force which Leicester was unable 
 to resist. A battle was fought near Evesham; where 
 Leicester was slain, and his army totally routed. When 
 that nobleman, who possessed great military talents, ob- 
 served the vast superiority in numbers, and excellent 
 disposition of the royalists, he exclaimed, " The Lord 
 *' have mercy on our souls! for I see our bodies are 
 " prince Edward's: he has learned from me the art of 
 ** war''." Another particular deserves to be noticed. 
 The old king, disguised in armour, having been purposely 
 placed by the rebels in the frontof the battle, had received 
 a wound, and was ready to be put to death, when he 
 weakly, but opportunely cried out, " Spare my lifel — I 
 *' am Henry of Winchester, your king ^" His brave 
 son flev/ to his rescue, and put him in a place of safety. 
 
 The victory of Evesham proved decisive in favour of 
 the royal party, but was used with moderation. Although 
 
 17. W. Kenimiug. M. Paris. 18. W Hemming, lib. iii. 
 
 the 
 
LET. XXXII.] MODERN EUROPE. iYS 
 
 the suppression of so extensive a rebellion commonly 
 produces a revolution in government, and strengthens 
 as well as enlarges the prerogatives of the crown, no 
 sacrifices o( national liberty were exacted upon this 
 occasion. The clemency of this victory is also remarka- 
 ble; no blood was shed on the scaffold. The mild dis- 
 position of the king, and the prudence of the prince, 
 tempered the insolence of power, and gradually restored 
 order to the several members of the state* 
 
 The affairs of England were no sooner settled than 
 prince Edward, seduced by a thirst of glory, undertook 
 an expedition into the Holy Land; where he 
 signalized him sell by many acts ol valour, and 
 Struck such terror into the Saracens, that they emplov- 
 ed an assassin to murder him. The ruffian wounded 
 Edward in the arm, but paid for his temerity with his 
 life '9. Meanwhile the prince's absence from England 
 was productive of many pernicious consequences, whicli 
 the old king, unequal to the burden of government, was 
 little able to prevent-". He therefore implored his gallant 
 
 son to return, and assist him in swaviner that 
 
 • . A. D. 1271 
 
 sceptre which was ready to drop from his 
 
 feeble hands. Edward obeyed; but before his arrival 
 
 the king expired in the sixty-fourth year of his age, and 
 
 the fifty-sixth of his reign, the longest in the English 
 
 annals. 
 
 The most obvious feature in the character of Henrv 
 
 III. is his weakness. From this source, rather than from 
 
 insincerity or treachery, arose his negligence in observing 
 
 his promises; and hence, for the sake of present conve- 
 
 niency, he was easily induced to sacrifice the lasting 
 
 advantages arising from the trust find confidence of his 
 
 people. A better head, with the same dispositions, would 
 
 have prevented him from falling into so many errors! 
 
 19. M. Paris. T. Wykes. 
 
 20. The police v/as so loose during the latter part of Henry's reign, 
 that rot only single houses, but whole villages were often pillaged hj 
 liands of ro!»bers, Ckron. Dicmt. 
 
 but 
 
376 THE HISTORY OF [part l. 
 
 but (every good has its alloy!) with a worse heart, it 
 would have enabled him to maintain them. 
 
 Prince Edward had reached Sicily in his return from 
 the Holy Land, when he received intelligence of th& 
 death of his father, and immediately proceeded home- 
 ward. But a variety of objects, my dear Philip, claim 
 your attention before I carry farther the transactions of 
 our own island, which now become truly important. The 
 reign of Edward I. forms a new sera in the history of 
 Britain^ 
 
 LETTER XXXIIL 
 
 f-'RANCE, FROM THE REIGN OF PHILIP AUGUSTUS, TO THK END 
 OF THE REIGN OF LEWIS IX. COMMONLY CALLED ST. LEWIt,' 
 VriTH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE LAST CRUSADE. 
 
 J. HE reign of Philip Augustus has already en- 
 gaged our attention. We have had occasion to observe 
 the great abilities of that prince, both as a warrior and 
 a politician ; we have seen him reunite many fine pro- 
 vinces to the kingdoni of France at the expense ot the 
 English monarchy: we have seen him attempt the con- 
 ijuest of England itself j and we have also seen in what 
 manner prince Lewis was obliged to abandon that pro- 
 ject, notwithstanding the power and the intrigues of 
 Philip. Soon after the return of Lewis, 
 his father died, and left the kingdom of 
 France twice as large as he had received it ; so that fu- 
 ture acquisitions became easy to his successors. 
 
 Lewis VIII. however, did not enlarge the monarchy. 
 His short reign was chiefly spent in a crusade against 
 
 the 
 
ti:T. XXXIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 377 
 
 the Alblgenses, in the prosecution of whicli he died. 
 
 He was succeeded by his son Lewis IX. ^^^r. 
 
 . . A. D. 1226. 
 
 commonly called St. Lewis. Durmg the 
 
 minority of this prince, though in his twelfth year at his 
 accession, a variety of disorders arose in France, occa- 
 sioned chiefly by the ambition of the powerful vassals of 
 the crown. But all these were happily composed by the 
 prudence and firmness of Blanche of Castile, the regent 
 and queen-mother. 
 
 Lewis no sooner came of age than he was univer- 
 sally acknowledged to be the greatest prince in Europe; 
 and his character is, perhaps, the most singular in the 
 
 annals of history. To the mean and abiect ^ ^ 
 
 ' , , • , „ . A.D. 1235. 
 
 superstition oi a monk, he united all the cou- 
 rage and magnanimity of a hero; nay, what may be 
 deemed still more wonderful, the justice and integrity 
 of the sincere patriot; and, where religion was not con- 
 cerned, the mildness and humanity of the true philoso- 
 pher. So far was he from taking advantage of the divi- 
 sions among the English, during the reign of Henry IIL 
 or attempting to expel those dangerous rivals from the 
 provinces which they still possessed in France, that he 
 entertained many scruples in regard to the sentence of 
 attainder pronounced against the king's father, and had 
 not his bishops, it is said, persuaded him, that John was 
 justly punished for his barbarity and felony, he would 
 have restored all the conquests made by Philip Au- 
 gustus'. 
 
 When Gregory IX. after excommunicating Frederic 
 
 II. offered the empire to the count of Artois, 
 
 . A. D. 1240. 
 
 brother of St Lewis, this pious prince acted 
 
 in the same disinterested manner. He did not indeed 
 
 refuse that gift as what the pope had no right to bestow, 
 
 but he replied, that Frederic had always appeared to him 
 
 a good catholic; that ambassadors should first be sent to 
 
 him, to know his sentiments touching the faith; that, if 
 
 1. Mangius, in Vita Ludovici IX. 
 vot, I. 3 G orthodox, 
 
378 THE HISTORY OF [part t. 
 
 orthodox, there could be no reason for attacking him ; 
 but if heretical, war ought to be carried on against him 
 with violence; and, in such case, even against the pope 
 himselP. 
 
 This was Lev/is's foible. Persuaded that heretics, 
 or those who did not hold the established belief, deserv- 
 ed the punishment of death, he favoured the tribunal 
 of the inquisition; and the same turn of thinking led 
 him to ascribe merit to a war against infidels. His hu- 
 mane heart became a prev to the barbarous devotion of 
 
 _ , , the times. Being seized with a dangerous 
 A. D 124-4'. 
 
 illness, v/hich deprived him of his senses, 
 
 and almost of his life, his heated imagination took fire, 
 and he thought he heard a voice commanding him to 
 shed the blood of infidels. He accordingly made a vow, 
 as soon as he recevered, to engage in a new crusade, 
 and immediately took the cross. Nor could any re- 
 monstrances engage him to forego his purpose: he con- 
 sidered his vow as a sacred obligation, which it was not 
 permitted man to dissolved 
 
 But Lewis, though not to be dissuaded from his 
 eastern expedition, was in no hurry to depart. He 
 spent four years in making preparations, and in settling 
 the government of his kingdom, which he left to the 
 care of his mother; and, at fcngth, set sail for Cyprus, 
 accompanied by his queen, his three brothers, 
 ' and almost all the knights of France. At 
 Cyprus it was resolved to make a descent upon Egypt, 
 as experience had shewn, that Jerusa.lem and the Holy 
 Land could never be preserved, while that country re- 
 mained in the hands of the infidels^. But before I speak 
 of the transactions of Egypt, I must say a few words of 
 the state of the east in those times. 
 
 Asia, my dear Philip, from the earliest ages, has 
 been the seat of enormous monarchy, and the theatre of 
 the most astonishing revolutions. You have seen with 
 
 2 Ibid. 3. lQ\\\\\\\z,IIkt.de St.Louh. 4. Ibid. 
 
 what 
 
LET. XXXIII. J MODERN EUROPE. 3/9 
 
 what rapidity it was over-run by the Arabs, and after- 
 wards by the Turks: you have seen those conquering 
 people, for a time, borne down by the champions of the 
 cross, and Saladin himself sink beneath the arm of our 
 illustrious Richard. But neither the zeal of the Chris- 
 tians, nor the enthusiasm of the Mahometans, who were 
 supposed to have carried conquest to its utmost point, 
 was attended with a success equal to the hardy valour of 
 the Moguls, or Western Tartars, under Genghiz-Kan; 
 who, in a few years, extended his dominions, fi*om a 
 small territory, to more than eighteen hundred leagues, 
 from east to west, and above a thousand, from north to 
 south. He conquered Persia, and pushed his conquests 
 as far as the Euphrates ; subdued Indostan, and great 
 part of China; all Tartary, and the frontier provinces of 
 Russia. 
 
 This wonderful man died in 1226, when he was pre- 
 paring to complete the conquest of China. His empire 
 was divided among his four sons, whose names it is un- 
 necessary here to mention. They continued united 
 till the death of Octay, his successor as Great Kan, who 
 totally subjected Egypt. One of his grandsons passed 
 the Euphrates ; dispossessed the Turks of that part of 
 Asia Minor now called Natolia, and terminated the do- 
 minion of the Califs of Bagdat. Another of them car- 
 ried terror into Poland, Hungary, Dalmatia, and to the 
 very gates of Constantinople^. 
 
 These Western Tartars, accustomed from their birth 
 to brave hunger, fatigue, and death, were ii'resistible, 
 while they preserved their savage austerity of manners. 
 The offspring of the same deserts which had produced 
 the Scythians, the Huns, and Turks, they were more 
 fierce than either; and as the Goths had formerly seiz- 
 ed upon Thrace, when expelled by the Huns from their 
 native habitations, the Korasmins, in like manner, flying 
 before the Moguls, overran Syria, and Palestine, and 
 
 5. De la Croix, Ht, Genghiz-Kan. Mod, Ur;:v. Hist. vol. ui. fol. edit. 
 
 made 
 
88© THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 made themselves masters of Jerusalem in 1244, putting 
 the inhabitants to the sword<^. The Christians, howe- 
 ver, still possessed 7Vre, Sidon, Tripoli, and Ptole- 
 mais; and though always divided among themselves, 
 and cutting one another's throats, they united in implor- 
 ing the assistance of Europe against this new danger. 
 
 Such was the situation of the east, and of the Ori- 
 ental Christians, when St. Lewis set out for their re* 
 lief. But, instead of sailing immediateh' for Palestine, 
 he made a descent, as I have observed, upon Egypt. 
 His declared purpose in so doing has been already ex- 
 plained. But as the soldan of Egypt was not now in posses- 
 sion of Jerusalem, this invasion must have proceeded 
 from the king of France's ignorance of the affairs of the 
 east; or from an ambition of conquering so fine a coun- 
 try, more than from any hope of advancing the interest 
 of Christianity. 
 
 Lewis and his prodigious army, said to have been 
 
 ^^,^ transported in eighteen hundred ships, land- 
 A. D, 1249. ^ . ° / 
 
 ed near the city of Damietta ; which, con- 
 trary to all expectation, was abandoned to them. He 
 afterwards received fresh succours from France, and 
 found himself in the plains of Egvpt at the head of sixty 
 thousand men, the flower of his kingdom, by whom he 
 was both obeyed and loved. What might not have been 
 expected from such a force, under such a general! Not 
 only Egypt, but Syria, should have yielded to their 
 arms. Yet this crusade, like all the rest, terminated in 
 sorrow and dtsappointment. One half of these fine 
 
 ,^ „ troops fell a prev to sickness and debauchery: 
 
 A. D. 1250. , ' ,'r , , ' 11 T»x 
 
 the other was defeated by tne soldan, at JVlas- 
 soura, where Lewis beheld his brother, Robert of Artois, 
 killed by his side, and himself taken prisoner, together 
 with his other two brothers, the count of Anjou and the 
 pount of Poitiers, and all his nobility^. 
 
 6. Id. ibicj. 7- Joinville, Hist, de St. Louis. 
 
 The 
 
LET. xxxm.] MODERN EUROPE. 381 
 
 The French, however, were still in possession of 
 Dann.ietta. There St. Lewis's consort was lodged; and 
 thinking her safety doubtful, as the place was besieged, 
 she addressed herself to the Sieur Joinville, a venerable 
 knight, and made him promise, on the faith of chivalry, 
 to cut off her head, if ever her virtue should be in danger. 
 " Most readily," answered Joinville, in the true spirit of 
 the times, " will I perform at your request, what I 
 *' thought indeed to do of myself, should misfortune 
 " make it necessary." But he had happily no occasion 
 to put his promise into execution. Damietta held out, 
 and a treaty was concluded with the soldan, by which 
 that city was restored, in consideration of the king's 
 liberty, and a thousand pieces of gold paid for the ran- 
 som of the other prisoners^. 
 
 Lewis was now solicited to return to Europe with 
 the remnant of his fleet and army, but devotion led him 
 to Palestine, where he continued four years, without ef- 
 fecting any thing of consequence. In the mean time the 
 affairs of France were in much confusion. The queen- 
 mother, during the king's captivity, had unadvisedly 
 given permission to a fanatical monk, to preach a new 
 crusade for her son's release; and this man availing him- 
 self of the pastoral circumstance in the Nati- 
 vity, assembled near one hundred thousand 
 people of low condition, whom he called shepherds. It 
 soon appeared, however, that they might with more pro- 
 priety have been styled wolves. They robbed and pil- 
 laged wherever they came; and it was found necessary 
 to disperse them by force of arms. Nor was that eflfect- 
 ed Avithout much trouble''. 
 
 The death of the queen-mother determined Lewis, 
 
 at last, to revisit France. But he only re- 
 
 1 • I . r J ^-D. 1258, 
 
 turned in order to prepare tor a new crusade ; 
 
 so strongly had that madness taken hold of his mind!— 
 
 8. Id. ibid. 9. Fontainay, Hist, de I'Eglhe Gallic, torn. xi. 
 
 Boulay, Hist. Acad. Paris, torn. iii. 
 
 Meanwhile 
 
383 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Meanwhile his zeal for justice, his care to reform abuses, 
 his wise laws, his virtuous example, soon repaired the 
 evils occasioned by his absence. He established on a 
 solid foundation, the right of appeal to the royal judges, 
 one of the best expedients for reducing the exorbitant 
 power of the nobles. He absolutely prohibited pri- 
 vate wars, which the feudal anarchy had tolerated: he 
 substituted juridical proofs, instead of those by duel; and 
 no less enlightened than pious, he rescued France from 
 the exactions of the court of Kome'°. 
 
 In his transactions with his neighbours, Lewis was 
 alike exemplary. Equity and disinterestedness were 
 the basis of his policy. If he sometimes carried these 
 virtues too far, as a prince, they always did him honour 
 as a man: they even procured him respect as a sovereign, 
 and secured to his subjects the greatest blessing that a 
 people can enjoy, peace and prosperity. He ceded to 
 James I. of Arragon his incontestible right to Rousillon 
 
 .^^^ and Catalonia, which had been subject to 
 A. D, 1262. 
 
 France from the time of Cl>arlemagne, in ex- 
 change for certain claims of that monarch to some fiefs 
 
 in Provence and Lancruedoc : and he restor- 
 A. D. 1263. . . 
 
 * ed lo the English crown Querci, Perigord, 
 
 and the Limousin, for no higher consideration than that 
 the king of England should renounce all right to Nor- 
 mandy, Maine, and other forfeited provinces, which 
 were already in the possession of France. But Lewis, 
 as has been observed, was doubtful of the right by which 
 he held those provinces. And although an ambitious 
 prince, instead of makipg this compromise, might have 
 taken advantage of the troubles of England under Henry 
 III. to seize Guiennc, and all that remained to that mo- 
 narchy in France, such a prince might also, by these 
 means, have drawn on himself the jealousy of his neigh- 
 bours, and in the end have fallen a sacrifice to his rapa- 
 
 10. Id. ibid. 
 
 city: 
 
LET. xxxiir.] MODERN EUROPE. 2U 
 
 cltv: whereas Lewis, by his moderation, acquired the 
 
 confidence of all Europe, and was chosen ar- ^„^. 
 
 , . , V 1 • f 1- 1 1 II- A. D. 1.264. 
 
 biter between the king oi England and his 
 
 barons, at a time wlien it was his interest to have ruined 
 both; an honour never conferred upon any other rival 
 monarch, and with which, perhaps, no other could ever 
 safelv have been trusted. He determined in favour of 
 the king, without prejudice to the people : he annulled 
 the provisions of Oxford, as derogatory to the rights of 
 the crown, but enforced the observation of the Great 
 Charter. And although this sentence was rejected by 
 Leicester and his party, it will remain to all ages an 
 eternal monument of the equity of Lewis". 
 
 The most blamable circumstance in this great mo- 
 narch's conduct, and pei^haps the only one that deserves 
 to be considered in that light, was his approbation of the 
 treaty between his brother and the pope, relative to 
 Sicily. That kingdom had formerly been offered, as 
 you have seen, to the earl of Cornwall, and to prince 
 Edmond, son of Henry IIL After being given up by 
 England, it was offered to the count of Anjou: he accept- 
 ed it ; and Lewis permitted a crusade to be preached in 
 
 France ap-^inst Mainfroy, who had now ac- ^^^^ 
 
 „ , , o- .,• , • . A.u. 1266. 
 
 tually usurped the bicilian throne, in preju- 
 dice of his nephev/ Conradine. The count of Anjou 
 marched into Italv at the head of a numerous army. — 
 Mainfroy was defeated and slain in the plains of Bene- 
 vento, and Conradine appeared in vindication of his 
 native rights. He was also routed and taken prisoner, 
 together with his uncle, the duke of Austria ; and both 
 
 were executed at Naples, upon a scaffold, at 
 1 _ , 111 A. D. 1268. 
 
 the request ol the pope, and by the sentence 
 
 of a pretended court of justice'-; an indignity not hither- 
 to offered to a crowned head. 
 
 11. Rymer, vol. i. Chron. T. Wykes. Chron. Dunst. M. Paris. W. 
 H«mmin^. 12. Giannone, Hist, cii Nafi. 
 
 In 
 
584 THE HISTORY OF [part t. 
 
 In consequence of the revolution that follov/ed this 
 barbarity, by which Charles, count of Anjou, established 
 himself on the Sicilian throne, the ancient rights of that 
 island were annihilated, and it fell entirely under the 
 jurisdiction of the pope. Meanwhile St. Lewis, who^ 
 either out of respect to his holiness, or of complaisance 
 to his brother, thus beheld with indifference the liberties 
 of mankind sacrificed, and the blood of princes unjustly 
 spilt, was preparing to lead a new army against the infi- 
 dels. He hoped to make a convert of the king of Tunis'; 
 and, for that purpose, landed on the coast of Africa, 
 sword in hand, at the head of his troops. But the Mus- 
 sulman refused to embrace Christianity : the 
 A. D. 1270 . . . 
 
 French army was seized with an epidemical 
 
 distemper, of which Lewis beheld one of his sons expire, 
 
 ^^ and another at the point of death, when he 
 A D. i2ri . . 
 
 was seized with it himself, and died in the 
 
 fifty-sixth year of his age. His son and successor, 
 Philip, recovered; kept the field against the Moors; 
 and saved the remains of the French army, which pro- 
 cured him the name of the Hardy'^. But the reign of 
 this prince must not at present engage our attention: we 
 must return to the affairs of Spain, which had still little 
 connexion with the rest of Europe, but was every day 
 rising into consequence. 
 
 13. Joinville, ubi sup. Mezerav, torn. iii. Henault, tom^ i. 
 
 LETTER 
 
tET. XXXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. 385 
 
 LETTER XXXIV. 
 
 SPAIN, FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE ELEVENTH TO THE £ND OF 
 THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY. 
 
 VV E left Spain, my deaf Plilip, towards the mid- 
 dle of the eleventh century, dismembered by the 
 Moors and Christians, and both a prey to civil wars. 
 About that time Ferdinand, son of Sancho, surnamed 
 the Great, king of Navarre and Arragon, reunited to 
 
 his dominions Old Castile, together with the _ h^no-- 
 1 • , r T 1-11. 1 r u- ^'^' 1037. 
 
 kingdom oi Leon, which he took^irom his 
 
 brother-in-law, whom he slew in battle. Castile theu 
 b^caiwie a kingdom, and Leon one of its provinces^. 
 
 In the reign of this Ferdinand lived Don Roderigo, 
 surnamed the Cid, who actually married Chimene, 
 whose father he had murdered. They who know no- 
 thing of this history, but from the celebrated tragedy 
 written by Corneille, suppose that Ferdinand was in 
 possession of Andalusia. The Cid began his famous 
 exploits by assisting Don Sa'ncho, Ferdinand's eldest 
 son, to strip his brothers and sisters of the . . „,, 
 
 . ' , , r 1 1 1 • r 1 1 ^'^' 1072. 
 
 inheritance leit them by their lather; but 
 Sancho being murdered in one of these unjust expe- 
 ditions, his brothers entered again into possession of 
 their estates. 
 
 A short digression will be here necessary. Besides 
 the many kings at this time in Spain, who amounted 
 to near the number of twenty, there were also many 
 independent lo^s, who came on horse-back complete- 
 ly armed, and followed by several stjuires, to offer theit 
 service to the princes and prin-e^i'sses engaged in war. 
 
 >., 
 
 1. Mariana, Hist. Gen. de Espana. 
 
 VOL. I. 3 H , 'A" "I'ht 
 
386 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 The princes with whom these lords engaged girded 
 them with a belt, and presented them with a sword, 
 with which they gave them a slight blow on the shoul- 
 der; and hence the origin of knights-errant, and of the 
 number of single combats, which so long desolated 
 Spain. 
 
 One of the most celebrated of these combats was 
 fought after the murder of that king Sancho, whose 
 death I have just mentioned, and who was assassinated 
 while he was besieging his sister Auraca in the city 
 of Zamora. Three knights maintained the honour of 
 the infanta against Don Diego de Lara, who had ac- 
 cused her. Don Diego overthrew and killed two of 
 the infanta's knights, and the horse of the third having 
 the reins of his bridle cut, carried his master out of 
 the lists, and the combat was declared undecided. 
 
 Of all the Spanish knights, the Cid distinguished 
 himself most eminently against the Moors. Several 
 knights, ranged themselves under his banner; and these 
 knights, with their squires and horsemen, composed aa 
 army covered with iron, and mounted on the most 
 beautiful steeds in the country. With this force he 
 overcame several Moorish kings; and having fortified 
 the city of Alcassar, he there erected a little sove- 
 reignty. 
 
 But of the various enterprises in which the Cid and 
 his followers were engaged, the most gallant was the 
 siege of Toledo, which his master Alphonso 
 VI. king of Old Castile, undertook against 
 the Moors. The noise of this siege, and the Cid's repu- 
 tation, brought many knights and princes from France 
 and Italy; particularly Raymond, count of Toulouse, 
 and two princes of the blood-royal of France, of the 
 branch of Burgundy. The Moorish king, named 
 Hiaya, was the son of Almanaon, one of the most gene- 
 rous princes mentioned in history,^ and who had 
 afforded an asylum, in this very city of Toledo, to Al- 
 phonso, when persecuted byhis brother Sancho. They 
 had lived together for a long time in strict friendship; 
 and Almamon was so far from detaining Alphonso, 
 
 when 
 
LET. XXXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. S97 
 
 when he became king, by the death of Sancho, that he 
 gave him part of his treasures, and they shed tears, ii 
 is said, at parting. But the spirit of those times made 
 every thing lawful against infidels, and even meritori- 
 ous. Several Moorish princes went out of the city to 
 reproach Alphonso with his ingratitude, and many re- 
 markable combats were fought under the walls. 
 
 This siege lasted a whole year ; at the end of which 
 
 Toledo capitulated; on condition that the .„„- 
 
 Tix 11, . , . ... , , A. D. 1085. 
 
 Moors should enjoy their religion and laws, 
 
 and suffer no injury in their persons or property^. All 
 New Castile, in a short time, yielded to the Cid, who 
 took possession of it in the name of Alphonso; and 
 Madrid, a small place, which was one day to become 
 the capital of Spain, fell into the hands of the Christians. 
 Immediately after the reduction of Toledo, Alphonso 
 called an assembly of bishops, who, without the con- 
 currence of the people, formerly thought necessary, pro- 
 moted a priest named Bernard to the bishopric of that 
 city; and Pope Urban II. at the king's request, made 
 him primate of Spain. The king and the pope were also 
 anxious to establish the Roman liturgy and ritual in place 
 of the Gothic, or Musarabic, hitherto in use. The 
 Spaniards contended zealously for the ritual of their an- 
 cestors: the pope urged them to receive that which he 
 had given his infallible sanction: a violent squabble 
 arose; and, to the disgrace of human reason, a religious 
 opinion was referred to the decision of the sword. Two 
 knights accordingly entered the lists in complete armour. 
 The Musarabic champion was victorious; but the king 
 and the archbishop had influence enough to get a new 
 trial appointed, though contrary to all the laws of com- 
 bat. The next appeal was to God by fire. A fire being 
 prepared for that purpose, a copy of each liturgy was cast 
 into the flames. The fire, most likely, respected neither; 
 but authority prevailed. The Roman liturgy was ordered 
 
 2. Rod. Tolet. de Rcb. Hut. Mariana, ubi sup. Ferreras, Hist. d'Kspana, 
 
 to 
 
388 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 to be received ; yet some churches were permitted to re- 
 tain the Musarabic^. 
 
 Alphonso, either from policy or inclination, augment- 
 ed the dominions which he had acquired through the 
 valour of the Cid, by marrying Zaid, daughter of Aben- 
 habet, the Mahometan king of Seville, with whom he 
 received several towns in dowry: and he is reproached 
 with having, in conjunction with his father-in-law, invited 
 the Miramolin of Africa into Spain. But be that as it 
 may, the Miramolin came; and, instead of assisting, as 
 was expected, the king of Seville, in reducing 
 ' ' the petty Moorish princes, he turned his arms 
 against Abenhabet, took the city of Seville, and became 
 a dangerous neighbour to Alphonso*. 
 
 In the mean time the Cid, at the head of his army 
 of knights, subdued the kingdom of Valentia. Few 
 kings in Spain were, at that time, so powerful as he; 
 yet he never assumed the regal title, but continued 
 faithful to his master Alphonso. He governed Valentia, 
 however, with all the authority of a sovereign, receiving 
 ambassadors, and being treated with the highest respect 
 by all nations. Aftex- his denth, which happened in 1096, 
 the kings of Castile and Arragon continued their wars 
 against the infidels ; and Spain was more drenched in 
 blood than ever, and more desolated. 
 
 Alphonso, surnamed the Battle-giver, king of Na- 
 varre and Arragon, took Saragossa from the 
 * Moors; and that city, which afterwards be- 
 came the capital of the kingdom of Arragon, never 
 again returned under the dominion of the infidels. He 
 was continually at war either with the Christians or 
 Mahometans; and the latter gained a complete victory 
 over him, whii h mortified him so much, that 
 he died of chagrin, leaving his kingdom, by 
 will, to the Knights Templars. This was bequeathing a 
 civil war as his last legacy. The testament was esteemed 
 
 5. Id. ibid. 4. Rod. Tolet, de Eeb. Jtisp- 
 
 valid; 
 
LET. XXXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. 389 
 
 valid; but fortunately these knights were not in a condi- 
 tion to enforce it; and the states of Arragon chose for 
 their king Garcias Remiero, brother to the deceased 
 monarch. He had led a monastic life for upwards of forty 
 years, and proved incapable of governing. The people 
 of Navarre therefore chose another king, descended 
 from their ancient monarchs ; and, by this division, both 
 these states became a prey to the Moors. They were 
 saved by the timely assistance of Alphonso VII. king 
 of Castile; who had obtained many victories over the 
 infidels, and in return for his protection received the 
 city of Saragossa from the Arragonese, and the homage 
 of the king of Navarre. This success so much elated 
 Alphonso, that he assumed the title of emperor of 
 Spain5. 
 
 Alphonso Henriquez, count of Portugal, received 
 about this time the title of king from his soldiers, after a 
 victory obtained over the Moors; and he took Lisbon 
 from them by the assistance of the crusaders, as has been 
 already mentioned. On this occasion pope i-»Ar 
 
 Alexander III. steady to the policy of his 
 predecessors, took advantage of the papal maxim. That 
 all countries conquered from the infidels belong to the 
 holy see, to assert his superiority over Portugal; and 
 Alphonso politically allowed him an annual ^ 
 
 tribute of two marks of gold, on receiving a 
 
 bull from Rome confirming his regal dignity, and his in- 
 fallible right to that territory*^. 
 
 A very few efforts would now have been sufficient to 
 have driven the Moors entirely out of Spain; but for 
 that purpose it was necessary that the Spanish Christians 
 should be united among themselves, whereas they were 
 unhappily engaged in perpetual wars one with ^ 
 
 another. They united, however, at length, 
 from a sense of common danger, and also implored the 
 assistance of the other Christian princes ^Europe. 
 
 5. Id. ibid. 6. KeufviUe, HUt. Gcifde Port. 
 
 IMahomet 
 
390 • THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Mahomet Ben Joseph, Miramolin of Africa, having 
 crossed the sea with an army of near one hundred 
 thousand men, and being joined by the Moors in An- 
 dalusia, assured himself of making an entire conquest of 
 Spain. The rumour of this great armament roused the 
 attention of the whole European continent. Many adven- 
 turers came from all quarters. To these the kings of 
 Castile, Arragon, and Navarre, united their forces: the 
 kingdom of Portugal also furnished a body of 
 * troops; and the Christian and Mahometan ar- 
 mies met in the defiles of the Black Mountain, or Sierra 
 Morena, on the borders of Andalusia, and in the province 
 of Toledo. Alphonso the Noble, king of Castile, com- 
 manded the centre of the Christian army: the archbishop 
 of Toledo carried the cross before him. The Miramolin 
 CLCcupied the same place in the Moorish army: he was 
 dressed in a rich robe, with the Koran in one hand, and 
 a sabre in the other. The battle was long and obstinately 
 disputed, but at length the Christians prevailed^: and the 
 sixteenth of July, the day on which the victory was 
 gained, is still celebrated in Toledo. 
 
 The consequences of this victory, however, were 
 not so great as might have been expected. The Moors 
 of Andalusia were strengthened by the remains of the 
 African arm)^, while that of the Christians was imme- 
 diately dispersed. Almost all the knights, who had been 
 present at the battle, returned to their respective homes 
 as soon as it Avas over. But although the Christians 
 seemed thus to neglect their true interest, by allowing 
 the Mahometans time to recruit themselves, the Moors 
 employed that time more to their own hurt than the 
 Christians could, if united against them. All the Moorish 
 states, both in Spain and Africa, were rent in pieces by 
 civil dissentions, and a variety of new sovereigns sprung 
 Up, which entirely broke the power of the infidels. 
 
 7. Rod. Tolet. de Feb. HUp. 
 
 The 
 
tET. XXXIV.] MODERN EUROPE. 39t 
 
 The period seemed therefore arrived, to use the 
 language of that haughty and superstitious nation, marked 
 out by Heaven for the glory of Spain, and the expulsion 
 of the Moors. Ferdinand III. styled by his countrymen 
 St. Ferdinand, took from the infidels the 
 famous city of Cordova, the residence of * * 
 the first Moorish kings; and James I. of Arragon dis- 
 possessed them of the island of Majorca, and 
 drove them out of the fine kingdom of Vulen- 
 tia. St. Ferdinand also subdued the province of Murcia, 
 and made himself master of Seville, the most 
 opulent city belonging to the Moors^. Death 
 at length put an end to his conquests: and if divine 
 
 honours are due to those who have been the ^ ^_ 
 
 J ,. r 1 • o • • 1 A. D. 1252» 
 
 deliverers ot their country. Spam justly rever- 
 ences the name of Ferdinand III. 
 
 Alphonso, surnamed the Astronomer, or the Wise, 
 the son of St. Ferdinand, likewise exalted the glory of 
 Spain J but in a manner very different from that of his 
 father. This prince, who rivalled the Arabians, in the 
 sciences, digested the celebrated Spanish code, called 
 Las Portidas; and under his inspection those astronomi- 
 cal tables were drawn up, which still bear his name, and 
 do honour to his memory. In his old age he saw his son 
 Sancho rebel against him, and was reduced to the dis- 
 agreeable necessity of leaguing with the Moors against 
 his own blood, and his rebellious Christian 
 subjects. This was not the first alliance which ' * ' 
 
 Christians had entered into with Mahometans against 
 Christians; but it was certainly the most excusable. 
 
 Alphonso invited to his assistance the Miramolin of 
 Africa, who immediately crossed the sea; and the two 
 monarchs met at Zara, on the confines of Granada. The 
 behaviourand speech of the Miramolin, on this occasion, 
 deserves to be transmitted to the latest posterity. He 
 gave the place of honour to Alphonso at meeting: " I 
 
 8. Id. ibiil 
 
 " treat 
 
392 THE HISTORY OF [part r* 
 
 *' treat you thus, said he, because you are unfortunate; 
 *' and enter into alliance with you merely to revenge the 
 " common cause of all kings and all fathers?." 
 
 The rebels were overcome; but the good old king 
 
 died before he had time to enjoy the fruits of his victory: 
 
 and the Miramolin being obliged to return to Africa, 
 
 ^ ^^_ the unnatural Sancho succeeded to the crown 
 
 A.D. 1303. . ... ^ rr • c c 
 
 m prejudice to the oiisprmg ot a lormer 
 marriage. He even reigned happily; and his son Ferdi- 
 nand IV. took Gibraltar from the Moors^''. 
 
 This Ferdinand is called by the Spanish historians 
 the Summoned; and the reason they assign for it is some- 
 what remarkable. Having ordered two noblemen, in a 
 fit of anger, to be thrown from the top of a rock, those 
 noblemen, before they were pushed off, summoned him 
 to appear in the presence of God within a month, at the 
 end of which he died^^ It is to be wished, as Voltaire 
 very justly observes, that this story were true; or at least 
 believed to be so by all princes who think they have a 
 right to follow their own imperious wills at the expensa 
 of the lives of their fellow-creatures. 
 
 These are the circumstances most worthy of notice 
 in the history of Spain during the period here examined. 
 We must now take a view of the progress of Society. 
 
 LETTER XXXV. 
 
 PROGRESS OF SOCIETY IN EUROPE DURING THE TWELFTH AND 
 THIRTEENTH CENTURIES. 
 
 X OU have already, my dear Philip, seen let- 
 ters begin to revive, and manners to soften, about the 
 middle of the eleventh century. But the progress of 
 
 9. Ferreras et Mariana, ubi supra. 10. Ibid. 
 
 11. Ferreras, H it Lspana. 
 
 refinement 
 
iiT. XXXV.] MODERN EUROPE. S93 
 
 refinement was slow during the two succeeding centu- 
 ries and often altogether obstructed by monastic auste- 
 rities, theological disputes, ecclesiastical broils, and the 
 disorders of the feudal anarchy. Society, however, made 
 many beneficial advances, before the close of this period. 
 These I shall endeavour distinctly to trace. 
 
 The influence of the spirit of chivalry on manners; 
 as we have seen, was great and singular; it enlarged the 
 generosities of the human heart, and soothed its fero- 
 city. But being unhappily blended with superstition, it 
 became itself the means of violence; armed one half of 
 the species against the other, and precipitated Europe 
 upon Asia. I allude to the crusades. Yet these ro- 
 mantic expeditions, though barbarous and destructive in 
 themselves, were followed by many important conse- 
 quences, equally conducive to the welfare of the com- 
 munity and of the individual. All adventurers who 
 assumed the cross being taken under the immediate 
 protection of the church, and its heaviest anathemas 
 denounced against such as should molest their persons 
 or their property, private hostilities were for a time sus- 
 pended or extinguished: the feudal sovereigns became 
 more powerful, and their vassals less turbulent; a more 
 steady administration of justice was introduced, and 
 some advances were made towards regular government. 
 
 The commercial effects of the crusades were no less 
 considerable than their political influence. Many ships 
 were necessary to transport the prodigious armies which 
 Europe poured forth, and also to supply them with 
 provisions. These ships were principally furnished by 
 the Venetians, the Pisans, and the Genoese; who ac- 
 quired by that service, immense sums of money, and 
 cj)ened to themselves, at the same time, a new source 
 of wealth, by importing into Europe the commodities of 
 Asia. A taste for these commodities became general. 
 The Italian cities grew rich, powerful, and obtained 
 extensive privileges. Some of them erected themselves 
 into sovereignties, others into corporations, or inde- 
 
 VOL. I. 3 I pendent 
 
994 THE HISTORY OF [part, i, 
 
 pendent communities'; and the establishment of those 
 comnuiiiiiit's may be considered as the first great step 
 towards ;jviii?'ition in modern Europe. 
 
 This subject requires your particular attention. The 
 feudal government, as I have frequently had occasion to 
 observe, had degenerated into a system of oppression. 
 The nobles had reduced the great body of the people to 
 a state of actual servitude, and the condition of those 
 denominated free, was little, if at ail, more desirable. 
 Not only the inhabitants of the country, but even whole 
 cities and villages held of some great lord, on whom 
 they depended for protection; and the citiEens were 
 no less subject to his arbitrary jurisdiction, than those 
 employed in cultivating the estates of their masters. Ser« 
 vices of various kinds, equally disgraceful and oppres* 
 sive, were exacted from them, without mercy or mode- 
 ration: and they were deprived of the most natural and 
 unalienable rights of humanity. They could not dispose 
 of their effects by will, appoint guardians to their chiU 
 dren, or even marry without the consent of their supe- 
 rior lord''. 
 
 Men, in such a condition, had few motives to indus- 
 tr)'. Accordingly we find all the cities of Europe, before 
 their enfranchisement, equally poor and wretched. But 
 no sooner were they formed into bodies politic, govern- 
 ed by magistrates chosen from among their own mem- 
 bers, than the spirit of industry revived, and commerce 
 began to flourish. Population increased with indepen- 
 dency; the conveniencies of life, with the ineans of 
 procuring them: property gave birth to statutes and 
 regulations; a sense of common interest enforced them; 
 and the more frequent occasion of intercourse among 
 men and kingdoms, gradually led to a greater refinement 
 in manners, and tended to wear off those national and 
 local prejudices which create dissension and animosit)'' 
 between the inhabitants of different states and provinces. 
 
 1. Murat. Antiq. Ital. vol. ii. 2. Ordon. des Eois de France, 
 
 torn- J. Jii. Dach. Spiccleg. torn. xi. Murat. AnUcjuit, Ital. vol. iv. 
 
 The 
 
LET. XXXV.] MODERN EUROPE. S95 
 
 The manner in which these immunities were obtained, 
 was different in the different kingdoms of Europe* Some 
 ot" the Italian cities, as we have seen, acquired their 
 freedom by arms, others by money; and in France and 
 Germany, many of" the great barons were glad to sell 
 charters of liberty to the towns within their jurisdiction, 
 in order to repair the expense incurred by the crusades. 
 The sovereigns also granted, or sold, like privileges to 
 the towns within the royal domain, in order to create 
 some power that might counterbalance their potent va.H- 
 sals, who often gave law to the crown\ Tlie practice 
 quickly spread over Europe; and before the end of the 
 thirteenth century, its beneficial effects were general./ 
 felt. 
 
 These effects were no less extensive upon govern- 
 ment than upon manners. Self-preservation had obliged 
 every man, during several centuries, to court the pa- 
 tronage of some powerful baron, whose castle was the 
 common asylum in times of danger; but towns surround- 
 ed with walls, and filled wih citizens trained to arms, 
 bound by interest as well as the most solemn engage- 
 ments, to protect each other, afforded a more commo- 
 dious and secure retreat. The nobles became of less 
 importance, when they ceased to be the sole guardians 
 of the people; and the crown acquired an increase of 
 power and consequence, when it no longer depended 
 entirely upon its great vassals for the supply of its 
 armies. The cities contributed liberally toward the 
 support of the royal authority, as they regarded the 
 sovereigns as the authors of their liberty, and their 
 protectors against the domineering spirit of the nobles. 
 Hence another consequence of corporation charters. 
 
 The inhabitants of cities having obtained personal 
 freedom and municipal jurisdiction, soon aspired at civil 
 liberty and political power. And the sovereigns, in 
 most kingdoms, found it necessary to admit them to a 
 
 3. Du Cange, voc. Communia. 
 
 share 
 
396 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 share in the legislature, on account of their utility in 
 raising the supplies lor government; it being a tunda- 
 mental principle in the feudal policy, that no free man 
 could be taxed but with his own consent. The citizen* 
 were now free; and the wealth, the power, and the 
 consequence which they acquired on recovering their 
 liberty, added weight to their claim to political emi- 
 nence, and seemed to mark them out as an essential 
 branch in the constitution. They had it much in their 
 power to supply the exigencies of the crown, and also 
 to repress the encroachment of the nobles. In England, 
 Germany, and even in France, where the voice of liberty, 
 is heard no more, the representatives of communities 
 accordingly obtained, by different means, a place in the 
 national council, as early as the beginning of the four- 
 teenth century*. 
 
 Thus, my dear Philip, an intermediate power was 
 established between the king and nobles, to which each 
 had recourse alternately, and which sometimes opposed 
 the one, and sometimes the other. It tempered the rigour 
 of aristocratical oppression with a mixture of popular 
 liberty, at the same time that it restrained the usurpa- 
 tions of the crown: it secured to the great body of the 
 people, who had formerly no representatives, active and 
 powerful guardians of their rights and liberties; and it 
 entirely changed the spirit of the laws, by introducing 
 into the statutes, and the jurisprudence of the European 
 nations, ideas' of equality, order, and public good. 
 
 To this new power that part of the people still in 
 servitude, the villains, who resided in the country, and 
 were employed in agi-iculture, looked up for freedom. 
 They obtained it, though contrary to the spirit of the 
 feudal polity. The odious names of master and slave 
 were abolished. The husbandman became farmer of 
 
 4. M. I'Abbe Mahly, Cbseiveit. sur I' Hist, de France, torn. ii. Henaiilt 
 tem. i. Pfeffel. Ahrege de Hist, et Droit d'Alkvia^ne. Brad/, Treatise of 
 Boroughs. Madox, Firtna Burgi. 
 
 the 
 
LET. XXXV.] MODERM EUROPE. 3!)r 
 
 the same fields wliuli he had lormerly been compelled 
 to cvdtivate for the benefit of another. He reaped a 
 share of the fruits of his own industry. New prospects 
 opened, new incitements were offered to ingenuity and 
 enterprise. The activity of genius was awakened; and 
 a numerous class of men, who forme:rly had no political 
 existence, were restored to society, and augumented the 
 force and riches of the state. 
 
 The second great advance which society made dur- 
 ing the period under review, was an approach towards 
 a more regular administration of justice. 1 he barbarous 
 nations who over-ran the Roman empire, and settled in 
 its provinces, rejected the Roman jurisprudence, as I 
 have had occasion to observe, with the same contempt 
 that they spurned the Roman arts. Both respected ob- 
 jects of which they had no conception, and were adapted 
 to a state of society with which they were then acquaint- 
 ed. But as civilization advanced, they became sensi- 
 ble of the imperfection of their own institutions, and 
 even of their absurdity. The trial by ordeal and by- 
 duel was abolished in most countries before the end of 
 the thirteenth centur}', and various attempts were made 
 to restrain the practice of private war; one of the great- 
 est abuses in the feudal polity, and which struck at the 
 foundation of all government. 
 
 As the authority of the civil magistrate was found 
 ineffectual to remedy this evil, the church interposed; 
 and various regulations were published, in order to set 
 bounds to private hostilities. But these all proving 
 insufficient, supernatural means were employed: a let- 
 ter was sent from Heaven to a bishop of Aquitaine, en- 
 joining men to cease from violence, and be reconciled 
 to each other. This revelation was published during 
 a season of public calurnity, when men were willing to 
 perform any thing, in order to avert the v/rath of an 
 offended God. A general reconciliation took place: 
 and a resolution was formed, That no man should, in 
 
 tin\e*. 
 
398 THE HISTORY OF [part t* 
 
 times to come, attack or molest his adversaries during 
 the seasons set apart for celebrating the great festivals 
 of the church, or from the evening of Thursday in each 
 week, to the morning of Monday in the week ensuing: 
 the intervening days being considered as particularly- 
 holy, Christ's passion having happened on one of those 
 days, and his resurrection on another. This cessation 
 from hostilities was called " The Truce of God," and 
 three complete days, in every week, allowed such a 
 considerable space for the passions of the antagonists to 
 cool, and for the people to enjoy a respite from the 
 calamities of war, as well as to take measures for their 
 own security, that if the Truce of God had been ex- 
 actly observed, it must have gone far towards putting 
 an end to private wars. That, however, was not the 
 case; the nobles prosecuted their quarrels as formerly, 
 till towards the end of the twelfth century, when a car- 
 penter of Guienne gave out, that Jesus Christ, together 
 with the blessed Virgin, had appeared to him, and 
 having com.manded him, to exhort mankind to peace, had 
 given him, as a proof of his mission, an image of the 
 Virgin holding her sou in her arms, with this inscription 
 '' Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, 
 " give us peace!" Tiiis low fanatic was received as 
 an inspired messenger of Heaven. Many prelates and 
 barons assembled at Puy, and took an oath, not only 
 to make peace v/ith all their own enemies, bxit to attack 
 such as refused to lay down their arms, and to be re- 
 conciled to their enemies. They formed an associa- 
 tion for that purpose, and assumed the honourable 
 name of" The Brotherhood of God." Like associations 
 were formed in other countries; and these, together 
 with civil prohibitions, enforced by royal power, contri- 
 buted to remove this pernicious ev'iV. 
 
 5. Du Cange, Gloss, voc. Treuga. Du Mont. Corfis Diplomatique, 
 
 torn. i. Robertson's Introd. Hist. Cbales V. sec. i. Hume, Hist. England, 
 
 Append, i. 
 
 When 
 
IKT. XXXV.] MODERN EUROPE. 399 
 
 When society was thus emerging from barbarism, 
 and men were become sensible of the necessity of order, 
 a copy of Justinian's Pandects was discovered at Amal- 
 phi, in Italy; and although the age had still too little 
 taste to relish the beauty of the Roman classics, it im- 
 mediately perceived the merit of a system of laws, in 
 which ail the points most interesting to mankind were 
 settled with precision, discernment, and equity. All 
 men of letters were struck with admiration at the wis- 
 dom of the ancients: the Justinian code was studied 
 with eagerness; the professors at civil law were ap- 
 pointed, who taught this new science in most countries 
 of Europe. 
 
 The effect of studying and imitating so perfect a 
 model, were, as might be expected, great. Fixed and 
 general laws were established; the principles and the 
 forms by which judges should regulate their decisions, 
 were ascertained ; the feudal law was reduced into a 
 regular system; the canon law was methodised; the 
 loose uncertain customs of different provinces or king- 
 doms were collected and arranged with order and ac- 
 curacy. And these improvements in the system of 
 jurisprudence had an extensive influence upon society. 
 They gave rise to a distinction of professions. 
 
 Among rude nations no profession is honourable 
 but that of arms ; and, as the functions of peace are 
 few and simple, war is the only study. Such had been 
 the state of Europe during several centuries. But when, 
 law became a science, the knowledge of which required 
 a regular course of studies, together with long attention 
 to the practice of courts, a new order of men naturally 
 acquired consideration and influence in society. Another 
 profession beside that of arms was introduced, and re- 
 puted honourable among the laity: the talents requisite 
 for discharging it were cultivated ; the arts and virtues 
 of peace were placed in their proper rank ; and the 
 people of Europe became accustomed to see men rise to 
 eminence by civil as well as military employment''. 
 
 6. Montesquieu, V Esprit de* Loix, Vxv. xxviii. Hume, Hist. England 
 <phap. xx'ii. Robertson, Introd. Charles V. sec. i. 
 
 The 
 
400 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 The study of the Roman law had also a considerable 
 influence upon letters. The knowledge of a variety of 
 sciences became necessary, in order to expound with 
 judgment the civil code; and the same passion which 
 made nftn prosecute the juridical science with so much 
 ardour, made them anxious to excel in every branch of 
 literature. Colleges and universities were founded, a 
 regular course of studies was planned, and a regular set 
 ot professors established. Privileges of great value 
 were conferred upon masters and scholars ; academical 
 titles and honours were invented, as rewards for the 
 different deforces of literary eminence; and an incredible 
 number of students, allured by these advantages, resort- 
 ed to the new seats of learning^. 
 
 But a false taste unhappily infected all those semi- 
 naries, which is thus ingeniously accounted for by a 
 learned and inquisitive writer: — Most of the persons 
 who attempted to revive literature in the twelfth and 
 thirteenth centuries, had received instruction, and deriv- 
 ed their principle of science, from the Greeks in the 
 eastern empire, or the Arabs in Spain and Africa. 
 Both these people, acute and inquisitive to excess, 
 corrupted the sciences which they cultivated. 1"he 
 Greeks rendered theology a system of speculati\e re- 
 tinement or endless controversy; and the Arabs com- 
 municated to philosophy a metaphysical and frivolous 
 subtlet)'. Misled b)- these guides, the persons who first 
 applied to science were involved in a maze of intricate 
 inquiries. Instead of allowing their fancy to take its natu- 
 ral range, and produce such works of elegant invention as 
 might have improved the taste, and refined the senti- 
 ments of the age; instead of cultivating those arts which 
 embellish human life, and render it delightful, they 
 spent the whole force of their genius in speculations as 
 unavailing as they were difficult'^ 
 
 7. Id. ibid. 8 Robertson, ubi sup. 
 
 But 
 
LET. XXXV.] MODERN EUROPE. 401 
 
 But fruitless and ill-directed as these speculations 
 were, their novelty roused, and their boldness engaged 
 the human mind; and although science was further cir- 
 cumscribed in its influence, and prevented during several 
 ages from diffusing itself through society, by being de- 
 livered in the Latin tongue, its progress deserves to be 
 mentioned, as one of the great causes which contributed 
 to introduce a change of manners into modern Europe. 
 That ardent, though mistaken spirit of of inquiry which 
 prevailed, put ingenuity and invention in motion, and 
 gave them vigour: it led men to a new employment of 
 their faculties, which they found to be agreeable as well 
 as interesting; it accustomed them to exercises and 
 occupations that tended to soften their manners, and to 
 give them some relish for those gentle virtues, which 
 are peculiar to nations among whom science has been 
 successfully cultivated. 
 
 Some ages indeed elapsed before taste, order, and 
 politeness were restored to society: but anarchy and 
 barbarism gradually disappeared with ignorance; the 
 evils of life, with its crimes: and public and private 
 happiness grew daily better understood; until Europe 
 (wisely governed!) came to enjoy all those advantages, 
 pleasures, amusements, and tender sympathies, which 
 are necessary to alleviate the pains inseparable from, 
 existence, and soothe the sorrows allied to humanity. 
 
 yoL. I. 3«: LKTTER 
 
402 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 LETTER XXXVI. 
 
 ENGLAND, DURING THE REIGN OF EDWARD I. WITH AN INTRO- 
 DUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF SCOTLAND; SOME ACCOUNT 
 OF THE CONQUEST OF THAT COUNTRY EY TME ENGLISH, 
 AND THE FINAL REDUCTION OF AVALES. 
 
 JL HE reign of Edward I. my dear Philip, as 
 already observed, forms a new sera in the history of 
 Britain. I must now make you sensible what entitles 
 it to that distinction. 
 
 As soon as Edward returned to England (where his 
 authority was firmly established, by his high 
 character both at home and abroad), he ap-- 
 plied himself assiduously to the correcting of thoses 
 disorders, which the civil commotions, and the loose; 
 administration of his father, had introduced into every 
 part of government. His policy, though severe, was 
 equally liberal and prudent. By an exact distribution of 
 justice, and a rigid execution of the laws, he gave at 
 once protection to the inferior orders of the state, and 
 diminished the arbitrary power of the nobles. He made 
 it a rule in his own conduct to observe, except upon 
 extraordinary occasions, the privileges secured to the 
 barons by the Great Charter, and he insisted on their 
 observance of the same charter towards their vassals; 
 he made the crown be regarded as the grand fountain 
 of justice, and the general asylum against violence and 
 oppression. By these wise measures, the state of the 
 kingdom was soon wholly changed; order and tranquil- 
 lity were restored to society, and vigour to govern- 
 ment'. 
 
 Now it was, that the enterprising spirit of Edward 
 
 ^ ^ bej^an more remarkably to shev/ itself. He 
 A. D.l2r6. J , , ,. . • T 11 
 
 undertook an expedition against Lewellyn, 
 
 1. M. West. T. Walsingham. 
 
 prince 
 
LET. xxxYi.] MODERN EUROPE. 405 
 
 prince of Wales, who had formerly joined the rebellious 
 barons, and whose two brothers, David and Roderic, 
 had fled to Edward for protection; craving his assi.stance 
 to recover their possessions, and seconding his attempts 
 to enslave their native country. 
 
 The Welsh prince had no resource against the su- 
 perior force of Edward but the inaccessible situation of 
 his mountains, which had hitherto protected his fore- 
 fathers against all the attempts of the Saxon and Normsid/ 
 conquerors. He accordingly retired with the bravest of 
 his subjects among the hills of Snowdon. But Edward, 
 no less vigorous than cautious, pierced into the heart of 
 the country, and approached the Welsh army in its last 
 retreat. Having carefully secured every pass behind 
 him, he avoided putting to trial the valour of a nation 
 proud of its ancient independency. He trusted to the 
 
 more slow but sure effects of famine for suc- 
 
 A. D. 1277. 
 cess; and Lewellyn was at length obliged to 
 
 submit, and receive the terms imposed upon him by the 
 English monarch^. 
 
 These terms, though sufficiently severe, were but ill 
 observed by the victors. The English oppressed and 
 insulted the inhabitants of the districts which were yield- 
 ed to them. I'he indignation of the Welsh was roused: 
 they flew to arms; and Edward again entered Wales with 
 an array, not displeased with the occasion of making 
 his conquest final. This army he committed to the 
 command of Roger Mortimer, while he himself waited 
 the event in the castle of Rudhlan; and Lewellyn, having 
 
 ventured to leave his fastnesses, was defeated ^^ ^ 
 
 , Ti/r • 11- - • u ^- D- 1283. 
 
 by Mortimer, and slam, together with two 
 
 thousand of his followers. All the Welsh nobility sub- 
 mitted to Edward, and the laws of England were estab- 
 lished in that principality^ 
 
 In order to preserve his conquest, Edward had 
 cecourse to a barbarous policy. He ordered David, 
 
 2. T. Wykes. 3. T. Walsinghani. T. Wykes, Annal. TVaiieiL 
 
 Powel, Hist. Wales. 
 
 brother 
 
404 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 brother to Lewellyn, and his successor in the principa- 
 lity of Wales, to be hanged, drawn, and quartered, as a 
 traitor, for taking arms in defence of his native country, 
 which he had once unhappily deserted, and for maintain- 
 ing by force his own hereditary authority. He 
 * also ordered all the Welsh bards to be collect- 
 ed together and put to death ; from a belief, and no absurd 
 one, that he should more easily subdue the independent 
 6 Irit of the people, when their minds ceased to be 
 roused by the ideas of military valour and ancient 
 glory, preserved in the traditional poems of these min- 
 strels, and recited or sung by them on all public occasions 
 and days of festivity''. 
 
 Edward's conduct, in regard to Scotland, at which 
 his^ambition now pointed, is little more excusable. But 
 several things must be premised, my dear Philip, before 
 I proceed to his transactions with that country. 
 
 On the final departure of the Romans from this 
 island, you have seen the Scots and Picts, its northern 
 inhabitants, ravaging South Britain. Thty were repelled, 
 but not subdued by the Saxons; and the first Norman 
 princes were too much occupied with the affairs of the 
 continent to push their conquests beyond the Tweed. 
 Meanwhile fierce and bloody wars were, during several 
 ages, carried on between the Scots and Picts, and 
 Kenneth II. the sixty-ninth Scottish king, according to 
 tradition, had obtained, in 838, a complete victory 
 over the Picts, and united into one monarchy the whole 
 country at present known by the name of North Britain. 
 The Scots thenceforth became more formidable; and 
 having less business on their hands at home, were always 
 ready to join the English malecontents, and made 
 frequent incursions, into the bordering counties. In one 
 of these incursions, as I have had occasion to notice, 
 William king of Scotland was taken prisoner; and Henry 
 I. as the price of his liberty, not only extorted from him 
 
 4. Sir J. Wynne. 
 
 an 
 
LfiT. XXXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 405 
 
 an exorbitant ransom, and a promise to surrender the 
 places of greatest strength in his dominions, but compell- 
 ed him to do homage for his whole kingdom. Richard I. 
 a more generous but less politic prince than his father, 
 solemnly renounced his claim of homage, and absolved 
 William from the other hard conditions which Henry had 
 imposed. The crown df Scotland was therefore again 
 rendered independent, and the northern potentate only 
 did homage for the fiefs which he enjoyed in England, 
 (a circumstance which has occasioned many mistakes, 
 and much dispute among historians) in the same manner 
 as the king of England himself swore fealty to the 
 French monarch for the fiefs which he inherited in 
 
 France. But on the death of Alexander III. ^^„- 
 
 r 1 • • f T17-1T ^-D* 1286. 
 
 near a century alter the captivity ot VViUiam, 
 
 Edward I. availing himself of the situation of affairs in 
 Scotland, revived the claim of sovereignty which had 
 been renounced by Richard^. 
 
 This is the real state of the controversy concerning 
 the independency of Scotland, which took its rise about 
 this time, and in the following manner. As Alexander 
 left no male issue, nor any descendant except Margaret 
 of Norway, his grand-daughter, who did not lorg survive 
 him, the right of succession belonged to the descendants 
 of David, earl of Huntingdon, third son of king David I. 
 Of that line, two illustrious competitors for the crown 
 appeared: Robert Bruce, son of Isabel, earl David's 
 second daughter; and John Baliol, grandson of Margaret, 
 the eldest daughter. According to the rules of succession 
 now established, BalioPs right was preferable; he would 
 succeed as the representative of his mother and grand- 
 mother; and Bruce's plea of being one degree nearer the 
 common stock, would be disregarded. But in that age the 
 question appeared no less intricate than important: the 
 sentiments of men were divided: each claim was support- 
 ed by a powerful faction; and arms alone, it was feared, 
 
 5. Buchanan, Hist. Seat lib. viii. Ilobevtson, book i. 
 
 must 
 
406 THE HISTORY OF [fart i. 
 
 roust terminate a dispute too weighty for the laws to 
 decide. 
 
 In this critical situation the parliament of Scotland, in 
 order to avoid the miseries of civil war, embraced the 
 dangerous resolution of appealing to Edward I. He was 
 accordingly chosen umpire, and both parties agreed to 
 acquiesce in his decree. Now it was that this ambitious 
 and enterprising prince, already master of Wales, resolv- 
 ed more determinedly to make himself lord of the 
 whole island of Britain, by reviving his obscure claim of 
 feudal superiority over Scotland. Under pretence of 
 examining the question with the utmost solemnity, he 
 
 .„- . summoned all the Scottish barons to attend 
 A. D. 1291. , . . , 1 fivT 1 
 
 nim m the castle or JNIorham, a place situated 
 
 on the southern bank of the Tweed; and having gained 
 some and intimidated others, he prevailed on all who 
 were present, not excepting Bruce and Baliol, the 
 two competitors for the succession, to acknowledge Scot- 
 land a fief of the English crown, and swear fealty to him 
 as their sovereign or liege lord". 
 
 This step led to another still more important. As it 
 was in vain to pronounce a sentence which he had not 
 power to execute, Edward demanded possession of the 
 disputed kingdom, that he might be able to deliver it to 
 him whose right should be found preferable: and that 
 exorbitant demand was complied with both by the barons 
 and the claimants. He soon after gave judgment in fa- 
 .^^^ vour of Baliol, as beine the least formidable 
 "' of the competitors, we are told, by a respecta- 
 ble historian^; but in justice to Edward, I am bound to 
 say, that his award, which was no less equitable than 
 solemn, seemed to proceed merely from the state of the 
 question. He not only referred it to the consideration 
 of an hundred and forty commissioners, partly English 
 and partly Scotch, but proposed it to all the celebrated 
 lawyers in Europe, who returned an uniform answer con- 
 
 6. Rymer, vol.ii. \V. Hemming, vol. i. 7. Robertson, Hist. 
 
 Scotland, book i. 
 
 formablc 
 
lET. XXXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 407 
 
 formable to the king's decree. Baliol renewed the oath 
 of fealty to England, and was put in possession of the 
 kingdom". 
 
 Edward having thus established his unjust claim of 
 feudal superiority over Scotland, aspired next at the 
 absolute sovereignty and dominion of that kingdom. He 
 attempted to provoke Baliol by indignities; to rouse him 
 to rebellion, and to rob him of his crown, as the punish- 
 ment of his pretended treason and felony. The 
 passive spirit of Baliol accordingly began to ' * " 
 mutiny; and he entered into a secret alliance with France, 
 which was already engaged in a war with England, the 
 more effectually to maintain his independency. 
 
 The expenses attending these multiplied wars of 
 Edward, and his new preparations for reducing Scotland, 
 obliged him to have frequent recourse to parliamentary 
 supplies, and introduced the lower orders of the state 
 into the public councils. This period, therefore, the 
 twenty-third year of his reign, seems to be the true 
 sera of the House of Commons: for -.he former precedent 
 of representatives from the boroughs, summoned by the 
 earl of Leicester, was regarded as the act of a violent 
 usurpation, and had been discontinued in all the sub- 
 sequent parliaments. But when the multiplied necessities 
 of the crown produced a greater demand for money, 
 than could be conveniently answered by the common 
 mode of taxation, Edward became sensible, that the 
 most expeditious way of obtaining supplies was to 
 assemble the deputies of all the boroughs; to lay before 
 them the exigencies of the state; to discuss the matter 
 in their presence, and to require their consent to the 
 demands of their sovereign. He therefore issued writs to 
 the sheriffs, enjoining them to send to parliament, along 
 with two knights of the shire, two deputies from each 
 borough within their county, provided with sufficient 
 powers from their community, to consent to what levies 
 
 8. Rymer, vol. ii. W- Herraiiing vol. 
 
 should 
 
408 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 should seem necessary for the support of government. 
 *' As it is a most equitable rule," says he, in his preamble 
 to this writ, " that what concerns all should be approved 
 " of by all; and common dangers be repelled by united 
 " efforts^." Such a way of thinking implies a generosity 
 of mind much superior to what might be expected from 
 Edward's general conduct. 
 
 The aldermen and common-council, after the election 
 of these deputies, gave surety for their attendance before 
 the king and parliament; and their charges were borne 
 by the borough that sent them^*'. How different in that, 
 as well as in other respects, from our modern represen- 
 tatives ! — Insteadof checkingand controlling the authority 
 of the king, they were naturally induced to adhere to him, 
 as the great fountain of justice, and to support him against 
 the power of the nobles, who at once oppressed them, and 
 disturbed him in the execution of the laws. The king, in 
 his turn, gave countenance to an order of men so useful, 
 and so little dangerous. The peers also were obliged to 
 pay them some respect, on account of their consequence as 
 a body. By these means the commons, or third estate, 
 long so abject in England, as well as in all other European 
 nations, rose gradually to their present importance; and, 
 in their progress, made arts and commerce, the necessary 
 attendants on liberty and equality, flourish in Britain. 
 
 Edward employed the supplies granted by his people 
 in warlike preparations against his northern neighbour. 
 
 He cited Baliol, as his vassal, to appear in 
 A D. 1296. 
 
 an English parliament, to be held at New- 
 castle. But that prince, having now received pope 
 Celestine's dispensationfrom his oath of fealty, renounced 
 the homage which had been done to England, and set 
 Edward at defiance. This bravado was but ill supported 
 by the military operations of the Scots. Edward crossed 
 the Tweed without opposition, at the head of thirty- 
 thousand foot, and four thousand horse. Berwick was 
 
 9. Bra.dy, Treatise of Jlorougbs, {rom the Records. 10. Id. ibid. 
 
 EeliquiiS Spelm. 
 
 taken 
 
LtT. XXXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 409 
 
 taken by assault; the Scottish army was totally routed 
 near Uunbar; the whole southern part ot the kingdom 
 was subdued; and the timid Baliol, discontented with his 
 own subjects, and over-awed by the English, instead 
 of making use of those resources which were yet left, 
 hastened to make his submissions to the conqueror. He 
 expressed the deepest penitence for his dislovaltj' to his 
 liege lord; and he made a solemn and irrevocable renun- 
 ciation of his crown into the hands of Edward^'. 
 
 The English monarch marched as far north as Aber- 
 deen and Elgin, without meeting a single enemy. No 
 Scotsman approached him, but to pay him submission, 
 and do him homage. Even the turbulent Highlanders, 
 ever refractory to their own princes, and averse against 
 the restraints of law, endeavoured by a timely obedi- 
 ence to prevent the devastation of their country: and 
 Edward, flattering himself that he had now attained 
 the great object of his wishes, in the final reduction of 
 Scotland, left earl Warrenne governor of the kingdom, 
 and returned with his victorious army into England'^. 
 Here a few particulars are necessary. There was 
 a stone to which the popular superstition of the Scots 
 paid the highest veneration. All their kings were seat- 
 ed on it when they received the rite of inau- 
 
 A • ^* IV 1 *u A. D. 2090, 
 
 guration. Ancient tradition assured them, 
 
 that their nation should always govern where this stone 
 was placed; and it was carefully preserved at Scone, as 
 the true palladium of their monarch, and their ultimate 
 resource under all misfortunes. Edward got posses- 
 sion of it, and carried it with him into England. He 
 also gave orders to destroy all the records, and all those 
 monuments of antiquity which might preserve the 
 memory of the independency of the kingdom of Scot- 
 land, and refute the English claims of superiority. The 
 great seal of Baliol was broken, and that prince him- 
 self was carried prisoner to London, and committed to 
 
 jV Rymer, vol. ii. Hemmin|^. vol. i. Trivet. Anna!. 12. Id. Il»id. 
 
 TOt. I, 3 L rlgats 
 
410 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 close custody in the Tower'^. Two years after he 
 v/as restored to liberty, and submitted to a voluntary 
 banishment in France; where, without making any 
 farther attempt for the recover}' of his royalty, he died 
 in a prl\ ate station. 
 
 Edward was not so successful in an effort which he 
 made for the recovery of Guienne. The French mo- 
 narch, Philip IV. surnamed the Fair, had robbed Eng- 
 land of this province, by an artifice similar to that which 
 Edward had practised against the Scots. He had cited 
 the English monarch, as his vassal, to answer, in the 
 court of peers, the charge of treason against his sove- 
 reign; for having permitted his subjects to seize some 
 Norman vessels, and denied satisfaction: and Edward 
 refusing to comply, was declared guilty of treason, and 
 the duchy of Guienne confiscated. An English army 
 was sent over to recover it, under the earl of Lancaster, 
 who died in a short time ; and the earl of Lincoln, who 
 succeeded him in the command, failed in the attempt. 
 But the active and luiibitious spirit of Edward could 
 mot rest satisfied so long as the ancient patrimony of 
 his family remained in the hands of his rival. He 
 therefore entered into an alliance with the 
 earls of Holland and Flanders'"*; and hop- 
 ed, that when he should enter the frontiers of France 
 at the head of his English, Flemish, and Dutch armies, 
 the French king would purchase peace by the restitu- 
 tion of Guienne. 
 
 But, in order to set this vast machine in motion, 
 considerable supplies were necessary from parliament; 
 and these Edward readily obtained both from the lords 
 and commons. He was not so fortunate in his impo- 
 sitions on the clergy, whom he always hated, and from 
 whom he demanded a fifth of all their moveables, as 
 a punishment for their adherence to the Mountfort 
 faction. They tu'ged the pope^s bull in opposition to 
 
 13. W. Hemming. T. V/r.I.ine'.iam. 14. Rvmer, vol. ii. Hemming, vol. i. 
 
 ail 
 
LET. XXXVI.1 MODERN EUROPE. 4ii 
 
 all such demands; and Edward, instead of appl) ing to 
 Boniface VIII. then pontiff, for a relaxation of his 
 mandate, boldly told the ecclesiastics, that since they 
 refused to support the civil government, they were un- 
 worthy to receive any benefit from it, and he would 
 accordingly put them out of the protection of the 
 laws. 
 
 This vigorous measure was immediately carried 
 into execution. Orders were issued to the judges to 
 receive no cause brought before them by the clerg}-; to 
 hear and decide all causes in which they v/ere defend- 
 ants: to do every one justice a-gainst them, but to do 
 them justice against nobody. The ecclesiastics soon 
 found themselves in the most miserable situation ima- 
 ginable. They could not remain always in their own 
 houses or convents for want of subsistence; if they went 
 abroad in quest of necessaries, they were robbed and 
 abused by every ruffian, and no redress could be ob- 
 tained by them for the most violent injury. The spirit 
 of the clergy was at last broken by this harsh treatment. 
 "They all either publicly or privately complied with 
 the king's demands, and received the protection of the 
 laws'^. Not one ecclesiastic, as the sagacious Hume 
 remarks, seemed willing to suffer for the sake of reli- 
 gious privileges, this new species of martyrdom, the 
 most tedious and languishing of any; the most morti- 
 fying to spiritual pride, and not rewarded by that crown 
 of glory, which the church holds up with such ostenta- 
 tion to her faithful sons. 
 
 But all these supplies were net sufficient for the 
 king's necessities. He was obliged to exert his arbi- 
 trary power, and lay an oppressive hand on every or- 
 der of men in the kingdom. The people murmured, 
 and the barons mutinied, notwithstanding their great 
 personal regard for Edward. He was obliged t^yc)'* 
 
 ito make concessions; to promise all his 
 subjects a compensation for the losses they had sus- 
 
 IS. W. Heiumin^. vol. i. Cbron. Dumt. vol. ii. 
 
 :t«iced, 
 
412 THE HISTORY OF [paut i,. 
 
 tained, and to confirm the Great Charter with an addi- 
 tional clause, in order to secure the nation for ever 
 against all impositions and taxes without consent of 
 parliament ^. These concessions, my dear Philip, our 
 anccsiors, had the honour of extorting, by their boldness 
 and perseverance, from the ablest, the most warlike, 
 and the most ambitious monarch that ever sat upon the 
 throne of England. The validity of the Great Charter 
 was never afterwards formally disputed. 
 
 Such a number of domestic discontents obstructed 
 the king's embarkation for Flanders ; so that he lost 
 the proper season for action, and after his arrival made 
 no great progress against the enemy. The 1' rench mo- 
 narch, however, proposed a cessation of arms; and 
 peace was soon after brought about by the mediation 
 of the pope, in consequence of which Guienne was res- 
 tored to England. 
 
 In the mean time the Scots rebelled. Earl War- 
 renne having returned to England, on account of his ill 
 state of health, had left the administration entirely in 
 the hands of Ormsby and Cressingham, the officers next 
 in rank; who, instead of acting with that prudence and 
 moderation necessary to reconcile the Scottish nation 
 to a yoke which they bore with such extreme reluc- 
 tance, axasperated every man of spirit by the rigour 
 and severity of their government. Among these Wil- 
 liam Wallace, whose heroic exploits are worthy of just 
 panegyric, but to whom the fond admiration of the Scots 
 has ascribed many fabulous acts of prowess, undertook 
 and accomplished the desperate project of delivering 
 his native country from the dominion of foreigners. 
 He had been provoked by the insolence of an English 
 officer, to put him to death; and finding himself on that 
 account obnoxious to the conquerors, he fled into the 
 woods, and offered himself as a leader to all whom the 
 oppressions of the English governors had reduced to 
 the like necessity. He was of a gigantic stature, and 
 
 16, T. Wahingham. W. Hemmingford. 
 
 endowed 
 
LET. XXXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 41S 
 
 endowed with wonderful strength of body; with invin- 
 cible fortitude of mind: with disinterested magnanimi- 
 ty ; with incredible patience, and ability to bear hun- 
 ger, fatigue, and all the severities of the seasons : so 
 that he soon acquired, among his desperate associates, 
 that authority to which his virtues so eminently entitled 
 him. Every day brought aocounts of his gallant actions, 
 which were received with no less favour by his country- 
 men, than terror by the enemy. All men who thirsted 
 after military fame v/ere desirous to partake of his re- 
 nown : his successful valour seemed to vindicate the 
 nation from the ignominy under which it had fallen by 
 its tame submission to the English; and although no 
 nobleman of note ventured yet to join the party of Wal- 
 lace, he had gained a general confidence and attachment, 
 which birth and fortune alone are not able to confer. 
 
 So many fortunate enterprizes brought the valour of 
 the Scottish chieftain's followers to correspond with his 
 own: and he determined to strike a decisive blow against 
 the English government. Ormsby, apprised of his in- 
 tention, fled hastily into England; and all the other 
 officers of his nation imitated his example. Their 
 terror added courage to the Scots, who betook them- 
 selves to arms in every quarter. Many of the principal 
 barons openly countenanced Wallace's party: and the 
 nation, shaking off its fetters, prepared to defend, by 
 one united effort, that liberty which it had so unexpect- 
 edly recovered from ths hands of its oppressors. 
 
 Meanwhile Warrenne having collected an army of 
 forty thousand men in the north of England, in order to 
 re-establish his authority, suddenly entered Annandale, 
 before the Scots had united their forces, or put them- 
 selves in a posture of defence; and many of the nobles, 
 alarmed at the danger of their situation, renewed their 
 oaths of feahy, and received a pardon for past offences. 
 But Wallace, still undaunteil, continued obstinate in his 
 purpose. As he found himself unable to give battle to 
 the enernyj he marched northwards, with an intention 
 
 oi" 
 
414 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 of prolonging the war, and of turning to his advantage 
 the situation of that mountainous and barren country. 
 Warrenne attacked him in his camp near Stirling, on 
 the banks of the Forth, where the English army was 
 totally routed, Cressin^ham, whose impa- 
 
 • . SEPT 11 
 
 tience urged this attack, was slain; War- 
 renne was obliged to retire into England, and the prin- 
 cipal fortresses in Scotland surrendered to the con- 
 queror'^. 
 
 Wallace was now universally revered as the deliverer 
 of his country, and received from his followers the title 
 of Regent or guardian of the kingdom, a dignity which 
 he well deserved. Not satisfied with expelling the 
 enemy, he urged his army to march into England, and 
 revenge all past injuries, by retaliating on that hostile 
 nation. The Scots, who deemed every thing possible 
 with such a leader, joyfully attended his call. They 
 broke into the northern counties during the winter sea- 
 son, laying every thing waste before them; and after 
 extending their ravages on all sides, as far as the bish- 
 opric of Durham, returned into their own country, load- 
 ed with spoils, and crowned with glory, under the 
 victorious Wallace". 
 
 Edward was in Flanders, when he received intelli- 
 gence of these events, and having already 
 concluded a peace with France, he hastened 
 over to England, in assured hopes, not only of wiping 
 off every disgrace, but of recovering the important con- 
 quest of Scotland, which he had always considered as 
 the chief glory of his reign. With this view he col- 
 lected the whole military force of England, W^ales, and 
 Ireland ; and with an army of one hundred thousand 
 combatants, entered th€ devoted kingdom. Scotland 
 was never at any time able to withstand such a force. 
 At present it was without a head and torn by intestine 
 Jealousies. The elevation of Wallace was the object of 
 
 ir. V/, Hemming. T. Walsin^haro. 18. W. Hemmitig, vol. 5. 
 
 ienvy 
 
LIT. XXXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 415 
 
 envy to the nobility, who repined to see a private man 
 
 raised above them by his rank, and still more by his 
 
 reputation. Sensible of these evils, Wallace resigned 
 
 his authority; and the chief command devolved upon, 
 
 men more eminent by birth, though less distinguished 
 
 by abilities, but under whom the nobles were more 
 
 willing to serve in defence of their country. They tixed 
 
 their station at Falkirk, where Edward came 
 
 . JULY 22. 
 
 up with them, and the v/hole Scottish army 
 
 was broken, and chased off the field with great slaugh- 
 ter' 9. 
 
 The subjection of Scotland, however, was not yet 
 accomplished. The English .army, after reducing all 
 
 the southern provinces, was obliced to retire 
 
 . . , A. D. 1299. 
 
 for want of provisions; and the Scots, no 
 
 less enraged at their present defeat than elevated by 
 their past victories, still maintained the contest for li- 
 berty. They were again victorious, and again subdued. 
 Wallace alone maintained his independency amidst the 
 universal slavery of his countrymen. But he was at length 
 betrayed to the English by his friend Sir John Mon- 
 teith: and Edv/ard, whose natural bravery and magnan- 
 imity should have led him to respect like qualities in 
 an enemy, ordered this illustrious patriot to be carried 
 in chains to London f to be tried as a rebel and traitor, 
 though he had never made submission or sworn fealty 
 to England, and to be executed on Tower- 
 hilP°. He could not think his favourite con- 
 quest secure, whilst Wallace was alive. Hence the 
 unworthy fate of a man, who had defended for many 
 years, with signal valour and perseverance, the liber- 
 ties of his native country. 
 
 But the barbarous policy of Edward failed of the 
 purpose to which it was directed. The cruelty and 
 injustice exercised upon Wallace, instead of breaking 
 the spirit, only roused more effectually the resentment 
 of the Scots. All the envy which, during his life-time, 
 
 19. T. Walsingham. T. Wykes. W. Hemming. 20. M. W'est. 
 
 G«o. Buchanan. 
 
 had 
 
416 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 had attended that gallant chieftain, being now buried 
 in his grave, he was universally regarded as the cham- 
 pion of Scotland, and equally lamented by all ranks of 
 men. The people were every where disposed to rise 
 against the English government: and a new and more 
 fortunate leader soon presented himself, who conducted 
 them to liberty, to victory, and to vengeance. 
 
 Robert Bruce, son of that Robert who, had been 
 •ne of the competitors for the crown of Scotland, had 
 succeeded, in consequence of his father's death, to all 
 
 ^^^^ his pretensions; and the death ol John 
 A. D. 1306. „ ,.' , . , 1 , , , 
 
 Baliol, which happened about the same 
 
 time in France, seemed to open a full career to the 
 genius and ambition of this young nobleman. He had 
 formerly served in the English army; but in a private 
 conference held with Wallace, after the battle of Falkirk 
 the flame of patriotism was suddenly conveyed from the 
 breast of one hero to that of another. Bruce regretted 
 his engagement with Edward, and secretly determined 
 to seize the first opportunity of rescuing from slavery 
 his oppressed country. The time of deliverance 
 seemed now come. He hoped that the Scots, without 
 a leader, and without a king, would unanimously repair 
 to his standard, and seat him on the vacant throne. In- 
 flamed with the ardour of youth, und buoyed up by na- 
 tive courage, his aspiring spirit saw alone the glory of 
 the enterprize, or regarded the difficulties that must 
 attend it as the source only of greater glory. The 
 miseries and oppressions which he had beheld his coun- 
 trymen sufl'er in their unequal contest for independen- 
 cy: the repeated defeats and misfortunes which they 
 had undergone in the struggle, proved but so many in- 
 centives to bring them relief, and to lead them boiling 
 with revenge, against the haughty victors. 
 
 In consequence of this resolution, and some suspi- 
 cions that Edward was apprised of it, Bruce suddenly 
 left the English court, and arrived in a few days at 
 
 Dumfries, 
 
L£T. XXXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 4.ir 
 
 Dumfries, in Annandale, the chief seat of his family 
 interest. There a number of the nobility were happily 
 assembled, and among the rest John Cummin, to whom 
 he had formerly communicated his designs, and who 
 had basely revealed them to Edward. The noblemen 
 were astonished at the appearance of Bruce, and yet 
 more when he told them, that he was come to live or 
 die with them in defence of the liberties of his country} 
 and hoped, with their assistance, to redeem the Scottish 
 name from all indignities which it had so long suffered 
 from the tyranny of their imperious masters. It were 
 better, he said, if Heaven should decree it, to perish at 
 once like brave men, with swords in their hands, than 
 to dread long, and at last undergo the fate of the unfor-, 
 tunate Wallace-^ 
 
 The spirit with which this discourse was delivered, 
 the bold sentiments which it conveyed, the novelty of 
 Bruce's declaration, assisted by the graces of his youth 
 and manly deportment, made deep impression on the 
 minds of the nobles, and roused all those principles of 
 indignation and revenge, with which they had long been 
 secretly actuated. They declared their unanimous re.^ 
 solution to use the utmost efforts in delivering their 
 country from bondage, and to second the courage of 
 Bruce, in asserting his and their undoubted rights 
 against their common oppressors. Cum^min alone, who 
 had privately taken his measures with Edward, opposed 
 the general determination, by representing the great 
 power of the English nation; and Bruce, already inform., 
 ed of his treachery, followed him out of the assembly, 
 and running him through the body, left him for dead. 
 Sir Thomas Kirkpatrick, one of Bruce's friends, asked 
 him on his return, if the traitor was slain. " I believe 
 so," replied Bruce: " And is that a matter," cried Kirk«. 
 pat-rick, " to be left to conjecture — I will secure him,'^ 
 
 21, Ibid. 
 VOL. I, 3 m He 
 
418 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 He accordingly drew his dagger, ran to Cummin, and 
 stabbed him to the heart-^. 
 
 This deed of Bruce and his associates, my dear 
 Philip, which contain circumstances justly condemned 
 by our present manners, was regarded in that age as an 
 effort of manly vigour and just policy. Hence the family 
 of Kirkpatrick took for the crest of their arms a hand 
 with a bloody dagger; and as a motto, the words employ- 
 ed by their ancestor, when he executed that violent action: 
 *' I will secure him I" 
 
 The murder of Cummin affixed the seal to the con- 
 spiracy of the Scottish nobles. They had no resource 
 left, but to shake off the yoke of England or perish in 
 the attempt. The genius of the nation roused itself from 
 its long dejection; and Bruce, flying to different quarters, 
 excited his partizans every where to arms. He success- 
 fully attacked the dispersed bodies of the English ; got 
 possession of many castles; and having made his autho- 
 rit)' be acknowledged in most parts of the kingdom, was 
 solemnly crowned at Scone, by the bishopof St. Andrew's^ 
 who had zealously embraced his cause. The English 
 were again driven out of the kingdom, except such as 
 took shelter in tlie fortresses still in their hands ; and 
 Edward found that the Scots, already twice conquered 
 by his valour, were yet to subdue. 
 
 Conscious, however, of his superior power, as well aa 
 superior skill in arms, this great monarch made light of 
 his antag-onist. He thought of nothing but victory and 
 vengeance. He sent a body of troops into Scotland 
 under Aymar de Valence, his general ; who falliag unex- 
 pectedly upon Bruce, threw his army into disorder, and 
 obliged him to take shelter in the Western Isles. 
 Edward himself was advancing with a mighty force, 
 determined to make the now defenceless Scots the vie- 
 tims of his severit}', when he unexpectedly 
 ' sickened anddied at Carlisle; enjoining, with 
 
 22. W. Hemming. M. West. T. WiilaiTigham. G, Buchanan, lib. viii. 
 
 his 
 
XET. XXXVI.] MODERN EUROPE. 419 
 
 his latest breath, his son and successor to prosecute 
 the war, and never to desist till he had finally subdued 
 the kingdom of Scotland-3. But that, as we shall after- 
 wards have occasion to see, the second Edward was 
 little able to accomplish. 
 
 The character of Edward I. as a warrior and politician, 
 has already been sufficiently delineated. I shall, therefore, 
 forbear touching again on those particulars, and conclude 
 this letter with his merit as a legislator, which has justly 
 obtained him the honourable appellation of the English 
 Justinian. The numerous statutes passed during his 
 reign settled the chief points of jurisprudence ; and, as 
 .Sir Edward Coke observes, truly deserre the name of 
 establishments, because they have been more constant, 
 standing, and durable laws, than any made since. The 
 regular order maintained in his administration, also 
 gave the common law an opportunity to refine itself; 
 brought the judges to a certainty in their determinations, 
 and the lawyers to precision in their pleadings. He 
 regulated the jurisdiction of the several courts; esta- 
 blished the office of justice of the peace, completed the 
 division of the court of exchequer into four distinct 
 ■courts, each of which managed its separate branch, with- 
 out dependence upon any one magistrate ; and as the 
 lawyers afterwards invented a method of carrying busi- 
 ness from one court to another, the several courts became 
 rivals and checks on each other.; a circumstance which 
 tended very much to improve the practice of the law in 
 this country^'K But although Edward took so much care 
 that his subjects should do justice to each other, we 
 cannot ascribe it to his love of equity; for in all his 
 transactions, either with them or with his neighbours, 
 he always desired to have his owai hands free: — and his 
 •violences upon both were not fev/. 
 
 23. T. Walsingham. Trivet, Amiai. V3Q7. 
 S4. KaJe, ffist. of English L-.iw. 
 
 3LET IFJR 
 
420 THE HISTORY OF [paut u 
 
 LETTER XXXVII. 
 
 felVrCLAND) DURING THE REIGN OF EDWARD II. -VflTM A* 
 ACCOUNT OF THE AFFAIRS OF SCOTLAND. 
 
 JL HE critical situation of affairs between England 
 feind Scotland at the death of Edward I. makes it necessa- 
 ty, my dear Philip, to carry farther the history of our 
 Own island, before we return to the transactions on the 
 continents 
 
 No prince ever ascended the English throne with 
 more advantages than Edward H. He was in the 
 twenty-third vear of iiis age, and universally beloved by 
 the people, both on account of the sweetness of his own 
 ■disposition, and as the son and successor of their illustri- 
 ous monarch. He was at the head of a great army, ready 
 to subject the whole island to his sway; and all men 
 promised themselves tranquillity and happiness under 
 his goveniment. But the first act of his reign blasted all 
 these hopes, and shewed him totally unqualified for his 
 high station. Instead of prosecuting the cont^uest of 
 Scotland, according to the desire of his father, he 
 returned into. England, after a few feeble efforts, and 
 immediately disbanded his forces ; although Robert 
 Bruce had, before this time, emerged from his obscurity, 
 •and was become sufficiently formidable to make more 
 vigorous measures necessary. 
 
 The next step taken by Edwafd was no less weak and 
 impfudent. He recalled Piers Gaveston, a youthful 
 favourite, whom the late king had banished the realm, 
 on account of his ascendency over this prince ; and 
 whom, on his death bed, he had made him promise never 
 more to entertain. Gaveston was the son of a Gascon 
 Jcnight of sorne distinction, and by his shining accomplish- 
 ments had early Insinuated himself into the affections of 
 young Edward, whose heart was easily caught by ap»- 
 |)earances, and strongly disposed to friendship and con- 
 fid encco 
 
LET. XXXVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 421 
 
 fidence. He was endowed with the utmost elegance of 
 shape and person ; was noted for a fine mien and 
 easy carriage; had distinguished himself in all warlike 
 and genteel exercises, and was celebrated for those quick 
 sallies of wit in which his countrymen usually excel. 
 Little wonder that such a companion was thought ne- 
 cessary to a gay monarch, whose foibles he was able to 
 flatter: but a wise king will have no public favourite, 
 and still less a foreign one, Edward experienced this 
 danger. 
 
 Gaveston no sooner arrived at court than he was 
 loaded with benefits, and exalted to the highest honours. 
 The king bestowed upon him the earldom of Cornwall, 
 which had escheated to the crown, by the death of prince 
 Edmond, son of Richard king of the Romans. He mar- 
 ried him to his own niece; and seemed to enjoy no plea- 
 sure in his royaltv but as it served to add lustre to this 
 object of liis fond idolatry. The haughty barons, already 
 justly dissatisfied with Edward's conduct in regard to 
 Scotland, were enraged at the superiority of a minion 
 whom they despised. Nor did they take any care to con- 
 ceal their animosity. Meanwhile Gaveston, instead of 
 ■disarming envy b)^ the moderation and modesty of his 
 behaviour, displayed his power and influence witli the 
 utmost ostentation. Every day multiplied his enemies; 
 and nothing was wanting but time to cement their union, 
 and render it fatal both to him and his master. 
 
 This union was at length efifected by Thomas earl of 
 Lancaster, cousin-german to the king, and first prince of 
 
 the blood. He put himself at the head of that 
 
 , , , I'll 1 A.D. 1303. 
 
 party among the barons v/ho desired the de- 
 pression of this insolent stranger. The confederated 
 nobles bound themselves by oath to expel Gaveston: thcv 
 took arms for that purpose, and Edward was obliged to 
 banish him. But he was alterwards recalled, reinstated 
 in his former consequence, and became more than ever 
 the object of general detestation among the nobility, on 
 account of his ostentation and insolence. A new confe- 
 deracy 
 
422 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 deracy was formed against him: he was again banished, 
 and again recalled by the fond deluded monarch. An 
 ^^^^ universal revolt took place: Edward and his 
 lavourite were hunted from corner to corner j 
 and Gaveston at last fell by the hands of the public execu- 
 tioner . 
 
 After the death of Gaveston, the king's person be- 
 came less obnoxious to the people. The discontents of all 
 men seemed to be much appeased; the animosities of fac- 
 tion no longer prevailed; and England, it was hoped, 
 would now be able to take vengeance on all her enemies, 
 but especially on the Scots, whose progress was become 
 the object of general resentment a;id indignation. 
 
 Soon after Edward's retreat from Scotland, Robert 
 Bruce made himself master of the whole kingdom, except 
 a few fortresses. He dail}' reconciled the minds of the 
 nobility to his dominion: he enlisted under his standard 
 every bold spirit, and enriched his followers with the 
 spoils of the enemy. Sir Jam.es Douglas, in whom com- 
 menced the greatness and renown of that warlike family, 
 seconded Robert in all his enterprizes. Edwai'd Bruce, 
 the king's brother, also distinguished himself by his 
 valour; and the dread of the English power being now 
 abated by the feeble conduct of Edward, even the least 
 sanguine of the Scots began to entertain hopes of re- 
 covering their independency. They obtained a truce, 
 which was of short duration, and ill observed on 
 both sides. But short as it was, it served to con- 
 solidate the power of the king, and introduce order 
 into the civil government. War was renewed with 
 greater fury than ever. Not content with defend- 
 ing himself, Rol:)ert made successful inroads into Eng- 
 land; subsisted his needy followers by the plunder of the 
 country, and taught them to despise the military genius 
 of a people, who had long been the object of their terror. 
 
 1. T. Walsingham. T. de la More, W. Hemming. 
 
 Edward 
 
LET. XXXVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 42'i 
 
 Edward, at length roused from his lethargy, had 
 inarched an army into Scotland; and Robert, determined 
 not to risk too much against a superior force, had agaia 
 retired into his mountains. The English monarch ad- 
 vanced beyond Edinburg; but being destitute of provi- 
 sions, and ill supported by his nobility, he was obliged to 
 return home, without gaining any advantage over the 
 enemy. The seeming union, however, of all parties in 
 England, after the death of Gaveston, opened again the 
 prospect of reducing Scotland, and promised a happy 
 conclusion to a war in which both the interests and the 
 passions of the nation were so deeply engaged. 
 
 Edward assembled forces from all quarters, with a 
 view of finishing at one blow this important enterprize. 
 He summoned the most warlike of his vassals from 
 Gascony: he enlisted troops from Flanders, and other 
 foreign countries: he invited over great numbers of the 
 disorderly Irish, as to a certain prey : he joined to them 
 a body of Welsh, who were actuated by like motives : he 
 collected the whole military force of England, and enter- 
 ed Scotland at the head of an army of near 1^11. 
 one hundred thousand men. The Scottish 
 army did not exceed thirty thousand combatants ; but 
 being composed of men who had distinguished them- 
 selves by many acts of valour, who were rendered despe- 
 rate by their situation, and who were inured to all the 
 varieties of fortune, they might justly, under such ajeader 
 as Bruce, be esteemed equal to a far more numerous 
 body. Robert, however, left as little as possible to the 
 superior gallantry of his troops. He posted himself 
 strongly at Bannockburn, about two miles from Stirling j 
 the only fortress in Scotland that remained in the hands 
 of the English, and which was on the point of surren- 
 dering. He had a rivulet in front, a hill on his right 
 flank, and a morass on his left. In this situation he wait- 
 ed the approach of Edward. 
 
 The English army arrived in sight towards evening, 
 and a smart combat immediately commenced betwt-en 
 
 twa 
 
424 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 two bodies of cavalry. Robert, who was at the head of 
 .. the Scots, enpraored in single combat with 
 
 JUNE 14. ' t) t) o 
 
 Henry de Bohun, a gentleman of the family of 
 Hereford, and at one stroke cleft his antagonist to the 
 chin with a battle-axe, in sight of the two armies. The 
 English horse fled with precipitation to their main body, 
 and night prevented any farther hostilities. Meanwhile 
 the Scots, encouraged by this favourable event, and glory- 
 ing in the prowess of their prince, prognosticated a happy 
 issue to the contest of the ensuing day; and the English^ 
 confident in their numbers, and elated by past suc- 
 cesses, longed for an opportunity of revenge. The 
 darkness, though but of a few hours, was borne with im- 
 patience: and Edward, as soon as light appeared, drew 
 up his forces, and advanced against the Scots. Both 
 armies engaged with great ardour, and the dispute 
 was fierce and bloody. Sir James Douglas had broken 
 the English cavalry; but their line of infantry was 
 still firm, when a stratagem decided the fortune of 
 the field. Bruce had collected a number of waggoners 
 and suuipter boys, and furnished them with standards. 
 They appeared upon the heights towards the left. The 
 English mistook them for a fresh army coming to 
 surround them: a panic seized them; they threw down 
 their arms and fled. The Scots pursued with great 
 slaughter as far as Berwick ; and besides an inestimable 
 booty, took many persons of quality prisoners, with above 
 four hundred gentlemen, whom Bruce treated with great 
 humanity, and whose ransom was a new accession of 
 wealth to tlie victorious army. Edward himself narrow- 
 ly escaped, by taking shelter in Dunbar, whence he passed 
 by sea to Berwick'. 
 
 Such was the great and decisive battle of Bannock- 
 burn, which secured the independency of Scotland ; fixed 
 Bruce on the throne of that kingdom, and may be deem- 
 ed the most signal blow that the English monarchy has 
 
 2. MoK. Mulmes. T. de la More. T. Wahin-ham. Ypod. Neust. 
 
 received 
 
LIT. xxxvii.] MODERN EUROPE. 4^ 
 
 received since the Norman invasion. The number of 
 slain is not certainly known, but it must have been very 
 great; for the impression of this defeat in the minds of 
 the English was so strong, that no superiority of force 
 could encourage them to keep the field against the Scots 
 for some years. 
 
 In order to avail himself of his present success, 
 Robert entered England; ravaged all the northern coun- 
 ties without opposition ; and elated by his continued 
 prosperity, now entertained hopes of making the most 
 important conquests at the expense of the English. He 
 sent over his brother Edward with an army _ ^ 
 
 A D 131^ 
 
 of six thousand men into Ireland, and he * * 
 himself followed soon after with a more numerous body 
 of troops. But a grievous famine, which at that time 
 desolated both Britain and Ireland, reduced the Scottish 
 army to the greatest extremity; so that Robert was oblig- 
 ed to return with his forces much diminished, into his 
 own country. His brother, who assumed 
 the title of king of Ireland, after experienc- 
 ing a variety of hardships, was defeated and slain by 
 the English near Dundalk ; and Robert became sensible 
 that he had attempted projects too extensive for the 
 force of his narrow kingdom. 
 
 Edward, besides the disasters which he suffered 
 from the invasion of the Scots, and the opposition form- 
 ed against his government in Ireland, was harassed 
 with a rebellion in Wales : and the factions of his nobility 
 troubled him yet more than all these. They took advan- 
 tage of the public calamities to insult his fallen fortunes, 
 and endeavoured to establish their own independency on 
 the ruins of the throne. The king's unhappy situation 
 obliged him to comply with all their demands. The 
 ministry was new modelled by the direction of Lancas« 
 ter, and that prince was placed at the head of the coun- 
 cil. Edward himself was evidently by nature unfit to 
 hold the reins of government. He was sensible of hi» 
 own defects, and sought to be governed ; yet every 
 favourite (for such they were rather than ministers) 
 
 VOL. I* 3 w whon» 
 
426 -TKE HISTORY OF [paiit r» 
 
 whom fie successively chose, was regnrded as a fellow- 
 subject exalted above his rank and station, and became 
 the object of envy to the chief nobility. The king's 
 principal favourite, after the death of Gaveston, was 
 Hugh le Despenser, or Spenser, a young man of Eng-. 
 iish birch, and of a nnble family. He possessed all the 
 exterior accomplishments of person and address that 
 were fitted to engage the weak mind ' of Edward, but 
 was destitute of that moderation and prudence, which 
 might have qualified him to mitigate the envy of the 
 great, and conduct himself quietly through the perils 
 ,of the dangerous station to which he was advanced. 
 
 No sooner was Edward's attachment declared for 
 
 young Spens&r, than the turbulent Lancaster, and most 
 
 of the great barons regarded him as their rival; made 
 
 hini the object of their animosity, and formed violent 
 
 plans for his ruin. They withdrew them- 
 
 A T) 1 'iSl 
 
 selves from parJiament, betook themselves 
 to arms, and demanded the banishment of the favourite 
 and his father, These noblemen were then absent. The 
 father was abroad, the son at sea: and both were em- 
 ployed in executing different commissions. The king 
 therefore replied, that his coronation oath, by which he 
 was bound to observe the laws, restrained him from 
 giving his assent to so illegal a demand, or condemning 
 noblemen who were accused of no crime, nor had any 
 opportunity afforded them of giving answer. But equity 
 and reason proved a feeble barrier against men who had 
 arms in their hands, and who being already involved in 
 guilt, saw no safety but in success and victory. They 
 entered London with their troops; and giving into the 
 parliament, which was then sitting, a charge against the 
 JSpensers (of which they did not attempt, to prove one 
 article), they procured by menaces and violence, a sen^ 
 |,ence of perpetual exile against those mini6ters\ 
 
 p. Tyrrel, from the Register of C. C. Canterbury. T. Walsingham. 
 Tnttle's Collect, par, ii. Ryracr, vol. iii, 
 
 Thi« 
 
LET. XXXVII,] MODERN EUROPE. -427 
 
 This act of violence, in which the king was obliged 
 to acquiesce, rendered his person and authority so con- 
 temptible, that every one thought himself entitled to 
 treat the royal family with neglect. The queen wai 
 publicly insulted; but as that princess was generally 
 beloved, Edward was permitted to take vengeance on 
 the ofl'ender. Having now some forces on foot, and 
 having concerted measures with his friends throughout 
 England, he ventured to pull off the mask ; to attack all his 
 enemies, and to recall the two Spensers, whose sentence 
 he declared illegal, unjust, and contrary to the tenor of 
 the Great Charter4. 
 
 The king had now got the start of of the barons; 
 «.n advantage which in those times was generally deci- 
 sive. It proved so in the present instance. Lancas- 
 ter alone made resistance; he was taken prisoner, con- 
 demned by a court martial, and led to exe- . „ ^^ 
 cution. About tiyenty more of the most 
 notorious offenders were afterwards condemned bj^ le- 
 gal trial and executed. Many were thrown into 
 prison; some made their escape beyond sea; and 
 most of the forfeitures were seized by young Spenser^ 
 whose rapacity was insatiable. The barons of the 
 king's party were disgusted with this partial division 
 of the spoils : the envy against the favourite rose high- 
 er than ever. The people, who always hated him, 
 made him still more the object of their aversion: all 
 the relations of the attainted barons vowed revenge ; 
 and although tranquillity was in appearance restored to 
 tlije kingdom, the general contempt of the king, and 
 odium of Spenser, engendered future revolutions and 
 convulsions. 
 
 In such a situation no success could be expected 
 
 from foreign wars. Edward, therefore, after making 
 
 one more fruitless attempt ap-ainst Scotland, 
 
 . . A. D. 1323. 
 
 whence he retreated with dishonour, found 
 
 it necessary to terminate hostilities with that kingdom 
 
 4. Rymer, vibi sup. 
 
 by 
 
428 THE HISTORY OF [part r. 
 
 by a truce of thirteen years. This truce was so much 
 the more seasonable for England, as the nation was at 
 that time threatened with hostilities from France, 
 Charles the Fair had some grounds of complaint against 
 the English ministers in Guienne, and seemed desir- 
 ous to take advantage of Edward's weakness, in or- 
 der to confiscate all his foreign dominions. 
 
 After an embassy by the earl of Kent, the king's 
 
 ^ „^ , brother had been tried in vain, queen Isa- 
 A. D. 1324. . . 
 
 bella obtained permission to go over to 
 
 Paris, and endeavoured to adjust matters with her bro- 
 ther. She there found a number of English fugitives^ 
 the remains of the Lancastrian faction, and their com- 
 mon hatred of young Spenser, soon begot a secret 
 friendship and correspondence between them and that 
 princess, who envied the favourite his influence with 
 the king. Among these refugees was Roger Morti- 
 mer, a potent baron in the Welsh Marches, who had 
 been condemned for high treason, but had made his 
 escape from the tower. His consequence introduced 
 him to queen Isabella, and the graces of his person 
 and address advanced him quickly in her affections. 
 He became her confidant and counsellor in all her 
 measures; and gaining ground daily upon her heart, 
 he engaged her to sacrifice at last, to her passion, all 
 the sentiments of honour and fidelity to her hus- 
 band. Hating now the man she had injured, and 
 whom she never loved, she entered ardently into 
 all Mortimer's conspiracies; and having artfully got 
 into her hands the young prince, and heir of the_ 
 monarchy, she resolved on the utter ruin of the king, 
 as well as of his favourite. She engaged her bro- 
 ther to take part in the same criminal purpose: her 
 court was daily filled with exiled barons : Mortimer 
 lived in the most declared intimacy with her, and a 
 correspondence was secretly carried on with the male- 
 conten: party in England^. 
 
 5. T. Walsingham. T. de la More. Ypod. Kcust. 
 
 When 
 
LET. xxxvii.] MODERN EUROPE. 429 
 
 When Edward was informed of these alarming cir- 
 cumstances, he reqviired the queen speedily to return 
 with the prince. But Isabella publicly replied, that 
 she would never set foot in the kingdom, ..,«^ 
 
 until Hugh Spenser was lorever removed 
 from his presence and councils. This declaration proj» 
 cured her great popularity in England, and drew a de- 
 cent veil over all her treasonable enterprizes. She no 
 sooner arrived with her son in England than the king 
 was eniirely deserted. He fled to W;ales. The elder 
 Spenser, now earl of Winchester, and governor of the 
 castle of Bristol, was delivered by the garrison into the 
 
 hands of his enemies: and being instantly . „„. 
 
 . , . , . -^ A. D. 1326. 
 
 condemned, without any trial, witness, or 
 
 accusation, to suffer death, he was hanged on a gibbet 
 in his armour. His unhappy, but more criminal son, 
 soon after shared the same fate: and the king, disap- 
 pointed in his expectations of succour from the Welsh, 
 was seized among their mountains, where he had en- 
 deavoured to conceal himself, and confined in Kenil- 
 worth castle. Meanwhile the queen, taking advantage 
 of the prevailing delusion, summoned, in Edward'* 
 name, a parliament at Westminster; where the king was 
 accused of incapacity for government, 
 and by the authority of her partizans de- 
 posed. The prince, a youth of fourteen years of age, 
 was placed on the throne, and the queen was appointed 
 regent during his minority^. 
 
 The great body of the people are seldom long in the 
 wrong with respect to any political measure. Corrupt- 
 ed as they now were by the licentiousness of the times, 
 and inflamed by faction, they could not, in the present 
 instance, remain insensible to the voice of nature. A 
 wife had first dishonoured, next invaded, and then de- 
 throned her husband; she had made her infant son an 
 instrument in this unnatural treatment of his father; and 
 had, by false pretences, seduced the nation into rebel- 
 
 fi. Ypod Neust. T. Walsinghsm. T. de U More. Rymcr, vol. ir. 
 
 Uoa 
 
430 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 lion against their sovereign, whose weakness was his 
 only crime. All these circumstances were so odious in 
 themselves, and formed such a complicated scene of 
 guilt, that the least reflection sufficed to open men's eyes, 
 and make them detest so flagrant an infringement of 
 every public and private duty. 
 
 The earl of Lancaster, formerly earl of Leicester, 
 to whose custody the dethroned monarch had been com- 
 mitted, was soon touched with sentiments of compassion 
 and generosity towards his sovereign j and beside .using 
 him with gentleness and humanity, he was supposed to 
 have entertained more honourable intentions in his fa- 
 vour. The king was therefore taken out of his hands, 
 and delivered over to lord Berkeley, Mautravers, and 
 Gournay, who were entrusted alternately, each for a 
 month, with the charge of guarding him. While in the 
 custody of Berkeley, Edward was still treated with the 
 gentleness and respect due to his rank and his misfor- 
 tunes; but when the turn of Mautravers and Gournay 
 came, every species of indignity was offered him, as if 
 their intention had been to break entirely the unhappy 
 prince's spirit, and to employ his sorrows and afflictions, 
 instead of more violent and more dangerous means, as 
 the instruments of his murder. That method of laying 
 Edward in his grave, however, appearing too slow to 
 tlie impatient Mortimer, he sent orders to Gournay and 
 Mautravers to dispatch the king secretly: and these 
 ruffians contrived to make the manner of his deiath as 
 cruel as possible. Taking advantage of the indisposition 
 of Berkeley, in whose custody he then was, but who 
 was incapacitated by sickness from attending his charge, 
 they came to Berkeley-castle, and put themselves in 
 possession of the king's person. They threw him on a 
 bed: held him down violently with a table, which they 
 flung over him, and thrust into his fundament a horn, 
 through which they burnt his bowels with a red-hot iron. 
 But although outward marks of violence were prevented 
 by this expedient, the atrocious deed was discovered to 
 
 aU 
 
LET. XXXVII.] MODERN EUROPE. 431 
 
 all the guards and attendants by the screams of the agon- 
 izing king^. 
 
 Thus perished the unfortunate Edward II. It is 
 not easy for imagination to figure a man more innocent 
 and inoffensive, or a prince less fitted for governing a 
 fierce and turbulent people. The vigour and capacity 
 of the son made ample amends for his father's weak- 
 ness. But a variety of objects must occupy our atten- 
 tion, before we consider the reign of Edward III. 
 
 IH I W I Wlw J<.HJW. I MJ BI iLmJiaiMILWW 
 
 LETTER XXXVIII. 
 
 THP: GERMAN EMPIRE AND ITS DEPENDENCIES, ROME AND THE 
 ITALIAN STATES, FROM THE ELECTION OF RODULPH 09 
 IIAPSBURGH, TO THE DEATH OF HENYR VII. 
 
 X HE German empire, my dear Philip, as I have 
 already had occasion to observe, could not properly 
 be said to have a head, from the death of Frederic 
 II. till the election of Rodulph count of Hapsburg. 
 This great captain, who had some time 
 exercised the office of grand marshal to ' * 
 Ottocarus king of Bohemia, and was raised to the im- 
 perial dignity on account of his military talents, no 
 sooner found himself in possession of the august throne, 
 than he employed his authority in suppressing the disor- 
 ders which had prevailed during the interregnum; and 
 he succeeded so well in his endeavours, that peace and 
 security were soon generally re-established in Germany. 
 He destroyed in Thuringia sixty castles,which were the 
 retreats of banditti, and ordered ninety-nine highway- 
 men to be hanged at one time in the city of Erfurt'. 
 
 Having thus in some measure settled the interior 
 police of the empire, Rodulph assembled a diet at 
 
 Mentz, where he granted new privileges to 
 
 • • A.D. 1274. 
 
 Goslar and other cities, and confirmed those 
 
 which had been granted by his predecessors. Here 
 7. T. Walsingham. T. de la More. 
 
 also 
 
452 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 also the deliberations of the assembly turned upon the 
 conduct of certain princes, who had protested against 
 the election of the count of Hapsburg. Among these 
 was Ottocarus king of Bohemia, against whom the diet 
 had other causes of dissatisfaction. He had seized 
 upon the duchy of Austria, after the death of Frederic, 
 the last duke ; and the states complained of the oppres- 
 sions which they suffered under this usurper, from whom 
 they begged to be delivered. 
 
 A second diet was summoned on this subject at 
 Augsburg: where Ottocarus not appearing, or doing 
 
 homacre by his embassadors, was declared a 
 A. D. 1275. o J ^ ' ^ 
 
 rebel to the empire. His possession of Aus- 
 tria, Stiria, Carniola, and Carinthia, was adjudged ille- 
 gal: and the emperor was desired to divest him of those 
 territories. 
 
 When this sentence was notified to Ottocarus, he 
 arrogantly exclaimed, " To whom should I do homage! 
 *' — I owe Rodulph nothing; he was formerly my ser- 
 ** vant! and I paid him his wages. My possessions I will 
 *' maintain with the point of my sword*. 
 
 In consequence of this resolution, Ottocarus associ- 
 ated himself with several other German princes, and 
 among the rest with the duke of Bavaria. But they 
 were all at last obliged to submit; and the proud Otto- 
 carus himself not only relinquished the contested terri- 
 tories, but did homage for Bohemia and Moravia. 
 
 This homage was performed in the island of Cam- 
 ^ . berg in the Danube, under a close canopy, 
 in order to save Ottocarus from a public 
 humiliation. He repaired to the place, all covered with 
 gold and jewels. Rodulph, by a superior pride, receiv- 
 ed hina in the most coarse and simple dress; and in the 
 midst of the ceremony, either by accident or design, 
 the curtains of the canopy fell back, and exposed to the 
 eyes of the people, and the armies that lined the banks 
 of the river, the haughty king on his knees, with his 
 hands joined^between those of his conqueror, whom he 
 
 1. Aiutat Boior. Heiss, liv. n, e. 22. 2. Mn Sylv. Hist. Bobem. 
 
 had 
 
*ET. XXXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 4^3 
 
 had so often called his steward, and to whom he now 
 
 became cup-bearer. 
 
 The wife of Ottocarus, a Russian princess, and no 
 
 less haughty than her husband, was so much hurt by 
 
 this mortifying circumstance, that she induced him to 
 
 renounce the treaty he had concluded with ^^w^ 
 
 „,,,,.• A. D. 12//. 
 
 Kodulpn, and again have recourse to arms 
 
 for the recovery of Austria. The emperor immediately 
 
 marched against him; and a battle ensued, in which 
 
 Ottocarus was slain. 
 
 Rodulph now discovered himself to be no less a 
 politician than a warrior. He gave the government of 
 Austria and its appendages to his eldest son, 
 count Albert; whom he afterwards, in a ' * 
 diet at Augsburg, publicly invested with that duchy, 
 which was incorporated with the college of the princes. 
 Hence the rise of the house of Austria. And he at 
 the same time invested Rodulph, another of his sons, 
 with the county of Suabia, which belonged to him in 
 right of his wife. He also wisely resolved to adhere 
 to the articles of the treaty with Ottocarus; and accord- 
 ingly put his infant son Winceslaus under the tutelage 
 of the marquis of Brandenburg*. 
 
 But although Rodulph's authority was now fully 
 established in Germany, he was far from being master 
 in Italy. The imperial crown had indeed been confirm- 
 ed to him by Gregory X. on his ceding to the holy see 
 the lands of the countess Matilda, and all the territories 
 mentioned in the grants made to the church by former 
 emperors. In so doing, Rodulph properly yielded no- 
 thing but the right of receiving homage from noblemen, 
 who never did it without reluctance, and cities which it 
 was not in his power to command. Venice, Genoa, and 
 Pisa, had a greater number of ships than the emperor 
 could muster of ensigns: Florence was become consider- 
 able, and already the nurse of the liberal arts. 
 
 3. Heiss, ubi sup. Du Mont. Corp. Diplom. torn. i. 
 VOL. I. 3 o Rodulph 
 
454 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Rodalph spent the latter part of his reign in establish- 
 ing the grandeur of his family in Austria. He granted 
 privileges to the clergy; bestowed new dignities upon 
 the noblemen; diminished the taxes; built and repaired 
 public edifices; and behaved with so much generosity 
 and moderation, as won the hearts of all men. But not- 
 withstanding his popularity, he could not procure his son 
 Albert, duke of Austria, to be elected king of the Ro- 
 mans; a disappointment which, together 
 " * with the death of his son Rodulph so much 
 chagrined him that he died soon after. He was a prince 
 of great valour, sagacity, and probity; and raised the 
 empire from a state of misery and confusion, to the en- 
 joyment of peace, policy, and riches'^. 
 
 After an interregnum of nine months, which was 
 
 productive of many disorders, the German princes raised 
 
 to the imperial throne Adolphus of Nassau, 
 A. D. 1292. , ^ . . , v.- 1 , J J 1 
 
 on the same prmciple which had made them 
 
 choose his predecessor. He seemed capable of main- 
 taining the glory of the empire at the head of its armies, 
 without being able to enslave it. 
 
 The reign of this prince was one continued scene of 
 troubles, and at last terminated in his deposition. His 
 necessities had made him guilty of several acts of injus- 
 tice; which Albert duke of Austria, dissatisfied at not 
 succeedincc to the imperial throne, took care 
 
 A D. 129/. . • 
 
 to represent in the worst light. A confede- 
 racy was formed against Adolphus ; and he was deposed 
 by the archbishop of Mentz, in the name of the princea 
 of the empire. 
 
 4. Heiss, lib. ii. c. 22. Barre, torn. vi. Annal. dePEmp. torn. it. 
 Nothing can shew in a stronger light Rodulph's resolution and presence 
 of mind, than his behaviour at his coronation. The absence of the impe- 
 rial sceptre, supposed to be that of Charlemagne, which had been mislaid, 
 seemed to afford some disaffected noblemen a pretext for refusing the oath 
 of allegiance; — " This is my sceptre," said Rodulph, seizing a crucifix; 
 and all the princes and nobles instantly took the oath, and did him ho- 
 mage a.s emperor- Hciss, &c. ubi sup. 
 
 "Six 
 
lET. xxxviiT.] MODERN EUROPE. *Sf 
 
 " Six years ago," said the archbishop, " the empire 
 *' being vacant, we canonically elected Adolphus count 
 *' of Nassau, king of the Romans, knowing at that time 
 " no person more worthy of the dignity. At first he con- 
 " ducted himself wisely, following the counsels of the 
 " most prudent electors and princes of his court. But 
 *' he began by degrees to despise their advice, and listen 
 *' to the counsels of young persons without either sense 
 " or experience; then he found himself destitute of means 
 *' and friends to assist him sincerely in bearing the buj-,den 
 *' of government. The electors perceiving his indigene?^ 
 *' and swayed by many other motives have demanded 
 " the pope's consent to depose him, and chuse another 
 *' emperor. We are told that our envoys have obtained 
 '* the consent of his holiness; though those of Adolphus 
 *' affirm the contrary: but we, having no regard to any 
 *' authority except that which is vested in ourselves, and 
 " finding Adolphus incapable of governing the empire, 
 '*' do depose him from the imperial dignity, and elect 
 ^' Albert, duke of Austria, king of the Romans^." 
 
 Adolphus, apprized of this election, raised the siege 
 of Ruffach, in Alsace, and marched towards Spire, where 
 he encamped. He was reinforced by the count Palatine 
 Rodulph, Otho duke of Bavaria, and the cities of Spire 
 and Worms, which had never deserted his cause. Albert 
 advanced towards him, in order to dispute the imperial 
 crown by arms. Thev engaged between Gelnsheim and 
 the cloister of Rosendal, and the battle was maintained 
 with much obstinacy on both sides. In the heat of ac- 
 tion Adolphus singling out his rival, attacked him hand 
 to hand, haughtily exclaiming, " Here you shall resign 
 *'• to me the empire and your life!"—" Both," replied 
 Albert, " are in the hands of (iod;" and immediately 
 struck his competitor with such violence in ihe face, that 
 he fell from his horse, and was instantly slain^'. 
 
 During the reign of Adolphus, and also of his pre- 
 decessor Rodulph, the Jews were persecuted in the 
 
 5. C'hron, Colm. 4 Jl>i4. 
 
 empire 
 
4S6 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 empire with great cruelty, on a supposition that they had 
 slain several Christian children, and committed other 
 crimes, v;^hich excited the hatred of the public. They 
 were accused of having stolen a consecrated host; and 
 the credulous people without examining into the matter, 
 were so much incensed at this pretended sacrilege, that 
 the inhabitants of Nuremberg, Rottemberg, Amberg, and 
 several other towns of Franconia and Bavaria, seized all 
 the unhappy Israelites that fell in their way; committed 
 them to the flames, and drove the rest to such despair, 
 that numbers chose rather to destroy themselves and 
 families than run the hazard of falling into the hands of 
 the merciless Christians. Nor was this unhappy people 
 treated with more indulgence in Holland and Friesland, 
 their present asylum, at that time provinces of the em- 
 pire^. 
 
 Though Albert had been elected king of the Romans 
 before his victory over Adolphus, and consequently be- 
 came emperor on the death of that prince, he chose to 
 have his title confirmed by anew diet; which was accord- 
 ingly assembled for that purpose at Franckfort, 
 'the elector of Triers and the Palatine not hav- 
 ing formerly given their votes: and he was afterwards 
 solemnly crowned at Aix-la-Chapelle. The concourse 
 of people on that occasion was so great, that the duke of 
 Saxony, the emperor's brother, and several other persons, 
 were squeezed to death in the crowd^. 
 
 The first years of Albert's reign were disquieted by a 
 quarrel with the pope and the ecclesiastical electors. 
 Boniface VIII. the last pontiff who pretended to dispose 
 of crowns, and who carried the pretensions of the apos- 
 tolic see as high as any of his predecessors, took part with 
 the three German archbishops, who had refused to answer 
 
 7. Annal Steron. Moslieim, Hist. £ccles. vol. iii. Dr. Mosheim leaves it 
 doubtful whether the accusations against the Jews were true or false ; but 
 his learned and judicious translator, in a note, gives reason to believe 
 they were insidiously forged. 8. Heiss, lib. ii. chap. xxiv. 
 
 the 
 
iiT. XXXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. irf 
 
 the emperor's summons. They were at length, however, 
 
 obliered to submit: and Boniface confirmed the ^ „_ , 
 
 1 • f ^1, u . 1 , A.D. 1303. 
 
 election or Albert, when he wanted to make 
 
 him the instrument of his vengeance against Philip king 
 of France. But the emperor did not obtain this confirma- 
 tion, it is said, till he had declared, that " the empire was 
 *' transferred by £he holy see from the Greeks to the Ger- 
 *' mans; that the sovereign pontiff had granted to certain 
 *' ecclesiastical and secular princes the right of electing a 
 ** king of the Romans, destined to the empire; and that 
 " emperors and kings derive their regal power from the 
 " pope^." 
 
 The most remarkable event in this reign is the rise of 
 the republic of Swisserland. Fortified by their natural 
 situation, surrounded with mountains, torrents, and 
 woods, the Swiss having nothing to fear from strangers, 
 had lived happily in a rugged country, suited only to men 
 who have been accustomed to a frugal and laborious 
 course of life. Equality of condition was the basis of 
 their government. They had been free from time im- 
 memorial; and when any of their nobility attempted to 
 tyrannize, they were either altogether expelled or reduced 
 within bounds by the people. But although the Swiss 
 were extremely jealous of their liberty, they had always 
 been submissive to the empire, on which they depended; 
 and many of their towns were free and imperial. 
 
 "When Rodulph of Hapsburg was elected emperor, 
 several lords of castles formally accused the cantons of 
 Ury, Schwitz, and Underwald, of having withdrawn 
 themselves from their feudal subjection. But Rodulph, 
 who had formerly fought against those petty tyrants, de- 
 cided in favour of the citizens; and thenceforth these 
 three cantons were under the patronage, but not the do- 
 minion of the house of Austria. 
 
 9. Hist, de Demel. de Borif. VIII. avcc PkHip !e Bel. Moshcim, 
 Ecclet. Miit. vol. iii. 
 
 Rodulph 
 
458 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Rodulph always treated the Swiss with great indul. 
 gence, and generously defended their rights and privi- 
 leges against the noblemen who attempted to infringe 
 them. Albert's conduct in these respects, was just the 
 reverse of his father's : he wanted to govern the Swiss 
 as an absolute sovereign, and had formed a scheme for 
 erecting their country into a principality for one of his 
 sons. In order to accomplish this purpose, he endeavoured 
 to persuade the cantons of Ury, Schwitz, and Under- 
 wald, to submit voluntarily to his dominion. In case of 
 compliance, he promised to rule them with great lenityj 
 but finding them tenacious of their independency, and 
 deaf to all his solicitations, he resolved to tame them by 
 rougher methods, and appointed governors, who domir 
 neered over them in the most arbitrary manner. 
 
 The tyranny of these governors exceed all belief. 
 Geisler, governor of Uri, ordered his hat to be fixed up- 
 on a pol^ in the market-place of AUorf, and every passen- 
 ger was commanded, on pain of death, to pay obeisance 
 to it. But the independent spirit of William Tell, who 
 among others had projected the deliverance of his 
 country, disdained to pay that absurd homage. On this 
 the governor ordered him to be hanged; but remitted 
 the punishment, on condition that he should strike an 
 apple from his son's head with an arrow. Tell, who 
 was an excellent marksman, accepted the alternative, and 
 had the good fortune to strike off the apple without hurt- 
 ing his son. But Geisler perceiving a second arrow un? 
 der William's coat, inquired for what purpose that was 
 intended: " It was designed for thee," replied the in? 
 dignant Swiss, " if I had killed my son." For that heroic 
 answer he was doomed to perpetual imprisonment, 
 though fortune happily put it out of the governor's 
 power to carry this sentence into execution. 
 
 This and other acts of wanton tyranny determine^ 
 Arnauld Melchtat, a native of Underwald, Werner Straf* 
 facher of Schwiz, and Walter Furtz, of Ury, to put in 
 jcxecution those measures which they had concerted for 
 
 delivering 
 
LET. XXXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 439 
 
 delivering themselves and their country from the Austri- 
 an dominion. Naturally bold and enterprising, and unit- 
 ed by a long intimacy of friendship, they had frequent- 
 ly met in private to deliberate upon this interesting 
 subject: each associated three others ; and these twelve 
 men accomplished their important enter- 
 
 .' , *i 1 r • , ^■l A. D. 1308. 
 
 prize, without the loss or a single liie. 
 Having prepared the inhabitants of their several cantons 
 for a revolt, they surprised the Austrian governors, and 
 conductedthem tothe frontiers, obligingthem topromise 
 upon oath never more to serve against the Helvetian 
 nation, then dismissed them'"; an instance of mode- 
 ration not perhaps to be equalled in the history of man- 
 kind, of a people incensed against their oppressors, and 
 who had them in their power! 
 
 Thus, my clear Philip, these three cantons, Ury, 
 Schwitz, and Underwald, delivered themselves from 
 the Austrian yoke, and established that liberty which 
 they still enjoy. The other cantons soon engaged in 
 this confederacy, which gave birth to the republic of 
 Swisserland. Never did any people fight longer or 
 harder for their liberty than the Swiss. They have 
 purchased it, as we shall have occasion to see, by above 
 sixty battles against the Austrians; and it is to be 
 hoped they will long preserve it, for never were the 
 beneficial effects oi liberty more remarkable than in 
 Swisserland. The change of government seems to have 
 produced a change in the face of the country. The 
 rude soil, which lay neglected under cruel and tyranni- 
 cal masters, now appears cultivated; the craggy rocks 
 are covered with vines; and the wild heath, tilled by 
 the hands of freemen, is become a fruitful plain. 
 
 When Albert was ready to hazard his forces against 
 that courage which is inspired by the enthusiasm of 
 new-born liberty, he fell a sacrifice to his rapacity and 
 injustice. His own nephew, John, who could not ob- 
 
 10. Stetler, Annal. Hthefle. 
 
 tain 
 
440 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 tain from him the enjoyment of his patrimony, resolved 
 to make sure of his revenge. This injured youth, con- 
 federating with three others, stabbed the emperor in 
 presence of his court and army, on the banks of the 
 river Prus, in the neighbourhood of Swisserland". 
 
 No sovereign was ever less regretted, though fevr 
 have died more tragically. He did not want valour, 
 or abilities ; but a desire of aggrandizing his family 
 influenced his whole conduct, and made him violate 
 every public and private tie. 
 
 The imperial throne continued vacant for seven 
 months after the assassination of Albert. At length 
 the electors assembled at Frankfort, and chose Henry 
 ^ count of Luxembourg; who Avas crowned, 
 
 without opposition, at Aix-la-Chapelle. A 
 diet was soon after held at Spire ; where sentence of 
 death was pronounced against prince John for the mur- 
 der of his uncle, the late emperor; whose sons, at the 
 same time, demanded the investiture of Austria and 
 the other hereditary dominions of their father, which 
 Henry intended to seize. They obtained their de- 
 mand, on making him sensible, that as the house of 
 Austria had already sent two emperors out of the world, 
 it might yet prove fatal to a third, if he did not desist 
 from his unjust pretensions'^. 
 
 At this assembly also appeared Elizabeth, daughter 
 and heiress of Winceslaus king of Bohemia. She had 
 been contracted to John, count of Luxembourg, son of 
 the present emperor, Henry VII. and now king of Bo- 
 hemia. But the marriage had been delayed, from time 
 to time, under different pretences. The princess there- 
 fore demanded, that the contract might be fufiUed, or 
 cause shewn why the nuptials should not be solemn- 
 ized: and understanding that a report had been spread 
 to the disadvantage of her chastity, she repaired to 
 
 11. Rebdorf. ad ann. 1308, 
 
 12. Heifis, lib. ii. chap. 25. 
 
 the 
 
LET. xKxviii.j MODERN EUROPE. 441 
 
 the emperor's anti-chamber, undressed herself to the 
 shift, in presence of the ladies there a;;sembled, and 
 approaching Henry in that condition, requested that 
 she might be immediately examined by m. irons. She 
 was accordingly committed to the inspection of some 
 experienced ladies and midwives, who unanimously de- 
 clared her an unspotted virgin; and, in consequence of 
 their testimony, the nuptials were solemnized with great 
 magnificence, in presence of the electors and other 
 princes and noblemen of the diet'^. 
 
 This is a point on which our modern physicians 
 would have had many consultations. They pretend 
 that the signs of virginity are altogether precarious, 
 though every old woman affirms them infallible. And 
 fortunately the daughter of Winceslaus was judged by 
 old women: for so scrupulous were the bridegrooms of 
 those days on the article of chastity, that the slightest 
 suspicion in regard to it was sufficient to obstruct the 
 marriage, or ruin the happiness of a couple for life. 
 
 The emperors from the time of Frederic II. seem^ 
 ed to have lost sight of Italy. But Henry VII. as soon 
 as he had settled the afHxirs of the north, resolved to re- 
 establish the imperial authority in that country. With 
 this view a diet was held at Frankfort j 
 
 . - A. D. lolU, 
 
 where proper supplies being granted lor 
 the empe.or's journey, well known by the name of the 
 Roman Expedition, he set out for Italy, accompanied 
 by the dukes of Austria and Bavaria, the archbishop of 
 Triers, the bishop of Liege, the counts of Savoy and 
 Flanders, with other noblemen, and the militTa of alt 
 the imperial towns. 
 
 Italy was still divided by the factions of the Guelphs 
 and Ghibellines, who butchered one another without hu- 
 ir.anity or remorse. But their contest was no longer the 
 same: it was not now a straggle between the empire and 
 %he priesthood, but betv/een faction and faction, inflam- 
 
 13. Id. ibid. 
 VOL. I. 2 ¥ cd 
 
44ft THE HISTORY OF [fart r. 
 
 eel by mutual jealousies and animosities. Pope Clement 
 V. bad been obliged to leave Rome, wbich was distract- 
 ed by the anarchy of popular government. 1 he Colon- 
 nas, the Ursini, and the Roman barons divided the city; 
 and this division was the cause oi the long abode of the 
 popes in France, as v* e shall have occasion to see in the 
 history of that kingdom; so that Rome seemed equally 
 lost to the popes and the emperors. Sicily was in the 
 possess-ion of the house of Arragon, in consequen^ce of 
 the famous massacre called the Sicilian Vespers, which 
 delivered that island from tlie tyranny of the French, as 
 shall be afterward more fully related. Carobert, king 
 of flungary, disputed the kingdom of Naples with his 
 uncle Robert, son of Charles II, of the house of An- 
 jou. T' - house of Este had established itself at Fer- 
 rara: ai the Venetians wanted to make themselves 
 masters oi" that country. The old league of the Italian 
 cities no longer subsisted. It had been formed with no 
 other viev/ than to oppose the emperors: and since they 
 had neglected Italy, the cities were wholly employed in 
 aggrandizing themselves at the expense of each other. 
 The Florentines and the Genoese made war upon the 
 republic of Pisa. Every city was also divided into 
 faction within itself; Florence between the blacks and 
 the whites^ and Milan, between the Visconti and the 
 Turriani. 
 
 In the midst of these troubles Henry VII. appeared 
 in Italy, and caused himself to be crowned 
 king of Lombardy at Milan. The Guelphs 
 had concealed the old iron crown of the Lombard kings, 
 as if the right of reigning were attached to a particular 
 circlet of metal. But Henry, contemning such a thought, 
 ordered a new crown to be made, with v/hich the cere- 
 monv of inauguration was performed'*. 
 
 Cremona Vv'as the first place that ventured to oppose 
 the emperor. He reduced it by force, and laid it under 
 
 14. Struv. period, ix. sect. 4. 
 . heavy 
 
T.iiT. XXXVIII.] MODERN EUROPE. 44S 
 
 heavy contributions. Parma, Vicenza, and Plaeen-tia, made 
 peace with him on reasonal)le conditions. Padua paid a 
 hundred thousand crowns., and received an imperial of- 
 ficer as governor. The Venetians presented lienrj' with 
 a large sum of money, an imperial crown of gold enriched 
 with diamonds, and a chain of very curious workmanship. 
 Brescia made a desperate resistance, and sustained a very 
 long siege; in the course of which the emperor's brother 
 was slain, and his army diminished to such a degree, that 
 the inhabitants ventured to march out, under the com- 
 mand of their prefect, Thibault de Drussati, and give 
 him battle. But they \vev< repulsed with great loss, after 
 tin obstinate engagement, -and at last obliged to submit. 
 Their city was dismantled. 
 
 From Brescia Henry marched to Genoa, where he was 
 received with expressions of joy, and splendid- 
 ly entertained. He next proceeded to Rom^e;" ' 
 where, after much bloodshed, he received the imperial 
 crown froin the hands of the cardinals. Clement V. who 
 had originally invited Henry into Italy, growing jealous 
 of his success, had leagued with Robert king of Naples, 
 and the Ursini faction, to oppose his entrance into Rome. 
 He entered it in spite of them, by the assistance of the 
 Colcnnas^-j. 
 
 Now master of that ancient city, Henry appotntcd it 
 a governor; and ordered, that all the cities and states of 
 Italy should pa}- him an annual tribute. In this order he 
 comprehended the kingdom of Naples, to which he was 
 going to make good his claim of superiority by i ^ < ^ 
 
 arms, v/hen he died at Benevento, of poison as * * 
 it is commonly supposed, given him by a DomiKicaft 
 friar, in the consecrated wine of the sacrament'^. 
 
 During the last years of the reign of Henry VII. who 
 •was a valiant and politic prince, the knights of the 
 Teutonic order aggrandized themselves, by making war 
 upon the Pagans of the north. They possessed them- 
 
 J5. Struv. ul)i tup. Cuspin, Vit. Hck. Vll. It'. Id. il)i(]. 
 
 selves 
 
4«4 THE HISTORY OF [?art i. 
 
 selves, of Samogitia, after butchering all the inhabitants 
 v.'ho refused to embrace Christianity: they took Dantzick, 
 and purchased Pomerellia of a marquis of Brandenburg, 
 to whora it then belonged. But while the order was 
 making these acquisitions in Europe, it lost all its pos- 
 sessions in Asia '^. 
 
 The affairs of France now claim our attention. 
 
 LETTER XXXIX. 
 
 FRANCE, FROM THE DEATH OF LEWIS IX. TILL THE ACCESSIOW 
 OF THE HOUSE OF VAtOIS. 
 
 Y OU have already, my dear Philip, seen the' 
 pious Lewis IX. perish on the coast of Africa, in a se- 
 cond expedition against the infidels. The 
 'most remarkable circumstance in the reign of 
 his son and successor, Philip III. surnamed the Hardy, 
 a prince of some merit, but much inferior to his father, 
 is the interest that he took in the affairs of his uncle 
 Charles of Anjou, king of Naples and Sicily. This cir- 
 cumstance naturally leads us to an account of the famous 
 Sicilian Vespers, and of the war between France and 
 "Arragon. 
 
 Charles, by the severity of his government, had not 
 only rendered himself, but his family odious to the Si- 
 cilians; and the insolence and debauchery of the French 
 troops had excited an irreconcileable aversion against the^ 
 whole nation. At the same time the boundless ambition 
 of this prince, who was actually preparing to attack the 
 Greek emperor, Michael Paleogus, and was suspected to 
 f^ have an eye to the German empire, raised a general 
 jealousy of him among his neighbours. Of that num- 
 
 17. Pet. de Diiisburgh, Chronic. Truffx. Soligrac, Hist, de Fologne. 
 Barre, Hist. d'A'.lemagr.c, torn, vi, 
 
 ber 
 
LEf. XXXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 44y 
 
 ber was pope Nicholas III. who particularly dreaded 
 Charles's power ; and, if he is not slandered by the 
 French historians, contrived the scheme of his humilia- 
 tion, though it did not take effect till after the death of his 
 holiness. It was conducted by John di Prodica, a Sicilian 
 nobleman, who had secretly prepared the minds of hia 
 countrymen for a revolt: and an accident gave it birth. 
 
 On the evening of Easter-day, as the French and 
 Sicilians were going in procession to the ioqo 
 
 church oi JMontreale, m the neighbourhood 
 of Palermo, a bride happened to pass by with her train; 
 when one Droguet, a Frenchman, instantly ran to her, 
 and began to use her in a very rude manner, under 
 pretence of searching for concealed arms. A young Si- 
 cilian, flaming with resentment, stabbed Droguet to the 
 heart; a tumult ensued, and two hundred Frenchmen 
 were slain on the spot. The enraged populace now ran 
 to the city, crying aloud, " Kill the French', kill the 
 *' French!" — and, without any distinction of age or sex, 
 murdered every person of that nation found in Palermo. 
 The same fury spread itself through the whole island, and 
 produced a general massacre. The rage of the conspi- 
 rators was so great, that they did not even spare their 
 own relations, but ript up women with child by French- 
 men, and dashed the half-formed infants against the 
 walls; while the priests, catching the general frenzy, 
 butchered all their French penitents'. 
 
 Peter, king of Arragon, who had married the daughter 
 of Mainfroy, the former usurper of Sicily, supported the 
 Sicilians in their rebellion, and openly claimed the king- 
 dom in right of his wife. The Sicilians received him with 
 open arms. He was crowned at Palermo; and Charles 
 of Anjou was obliged to abandon the island, after having 
 besieged Messina for six weeks in vain. He had now 
 no hopes but from France, v/here the nobility in general 
 were well affected to him, and readily offered to furnish 
 
 1. Sponda.n. Malcspina. Giannone, Hist, dl Napol. 
 
 troops 
 
446 THE HISTORY OF [part 
 
 I. 
 
 troops for his support. In this disposition they were en- 
 couraged bj' Philip III. Martin IV. who had succeed- 
 ed Nicholas III. in the see of Rome, Vv-as also entirely 
 in the interest of Charles; who might probably have 
 recovered Sicily, had he not imprudently agreed to de- 
 cide the dispute with Peter by single combat. 
 
 The king of Arragon, who had the duel very little at 
 heart, was by that means enabled to amuse his rival, and 
 fix his own family on the throne of Sicily, which became 
 a separate kingdom from Naples. In the mean time the 
 pope excommunicated Peter, and gave his dominions to 
 any of the younger sons of France that the king should 
 I'^o'^ choose to name. Philip III. flattered by this 
 * proposal, declared his son Charles of Valois 
 king of Arragon and Valentia, and count of Barcelona. 
 He put himself at the head of a numerous army, in order 
 to realize these honours; and he furnished, at the same 
 time, his uncle Charles of Anjou with a fleet and army 
 for the recovery of Sicily. Splendid projects! which 
 proved the ruin of both. 
 
 Charles had left his son of the same name at Naples, 
 with strict orders to risk nothing until his return with 
 succours from France. But that young prince, provoked 
 by the Arragonese fleet, sailed out with the force under 
 
 <^^. his command, and was defea.ted and taken 
 A. D. 1284. . , c X- f I, ^ 
 
 prisoner before his father s return; a circum- 
 stance which so much affected the king, that he is said 
 to have strangled himself with a halter, a death sufiicient- 
 ly mild for such a tyrant*. 
 
 Meanwhile the French army, under the command of 
 Philip, had penetrated into Catalonia, and laid siege to Gi- 
 ronne, which made a gallant defence. The king of Arragon 
 being in the neighbourhood with a small army, attacked a 
 convoy going to the French camp, and received a mortal 
 wound. Gironne surrendered; and Philip having put a 
 
 2. Id. ibid. 
 
 good 
 
LET. XXXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 447 
 
 good garrison into it, dismissed part of his fleet, which 
 had been principally hired iVom the Italian states. Roger 
 di Loria, the Arragonese admiral, who durst not attack 
 the French fleet while entire, burnt and destroyed it 
 when divided, seizin?: all the money and pro- ^nn^ 
 
 , , ■ r' ^ A. D. 128j. 
 
 visions intended lor the support ot the army; 
 and these losses sunk so deeply into the mind of Philip, 
 that he secretly repassed the Pyrennees, and died a few- 
 days after at Perpignan\ 
 
 Philip HI. was the first French monarch who granted 
 letters of nobility, which he bestowed on Ralph the 
 Goldsmith. In so doing, he only restored the ancient 
 constitution of the Franks j who, being all of one blood, 
 were esteemed equally noble, and alike capable of the 
 highest offices. The notion of a particular and distinct 
 noblesse took its rise tov/ards the close of the second race, 
 when many of the officers of the crown had usurped, and 
 converted into hereditary dignities, the offices and juris, 
 dictions which they received from royal favour*. 
 
 The reign of Philip IV. surnamed the Fair, the son 
 and successor of Philip the Hardy, forms an sera in the 
 history of France, by the civil and political regulations 
 to v/hich it gave birth; the institution of the supreme 
 tribunals, called Parliaments, and the formal admission 
 of the commons, or third estate, into the general assemblies 
 of the nation. How the French commons came after- 
 wards to be excluded from these assemblies, we shall 
 have occasion to see in the course of our narration. 
 
 The first care of Philip was to compose all differences 
 with his neighbours, as he found his finances exhausted: 
 and this hi was enabled to eftect by the mediation ot 
 Edward I. of England, against whom he afterwards- 
 ungenerously commenced hostilities, while that monarch 
 was engaged in a war with Scotland. Philip also at- 
 tempted, at the expense of much blood and treasure, to 
 sei^e the country of Flanders, which had leagued with 
 
 3. Naj. Chrttn. 4. Henault. torn. i. 
 
 England. 
 
448 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 England. But as these wars were neither distinguished 
 by any remarkable event, nor followed by any conse- 
 quence that altered the state of either country, I shall 
 proceed to the transactions between Philip and the see of 
 Rome, and the extinction of the order of Knights 
 Templars. 
 
 Pope Boniface VIII. of whose arrogance I have al- 
 ready had occasion to speak, prohibited the clergy in 
 general from granting any aids or subsidies to princes 
 without his leave. Philip IV. who was no less haughty 
 than his holiness, and very needy, thought the clergy, as 
 being the richest order of the state, ought to contribute 
 to the wants of the crown, when the situation of affairs 
 made it necessary, and without any application to Rome; 
 he therefore encountered the pope's bull by an edict, 
 forbidding any of the French clergy to send money abroad 
 without the royal permission. Tiiis was the first cause 
 of the famous quarrel between Boniface and Philip; and 
 the insolence of a bishop of Pamiers threw things into 
 a still greater ferment. 
 
 This man, named Bernard Saissetti, who had re- 
 belled against the king in his diocese, was appointed by 
 
 Boniface legate to the French court. An 
 A, D. 1303. , . ^ ,. , . . 1 -.u 1- 
 
 obnoxious subject thus mvested wuh a chg- 
 
 nity, which, according to the see of Rome, made him 
 equal to the sovereign himself, came to Paris and braved 
 Philip, threatening his kingdom with an interdict. A 
 layman, who had behaved in such a manner, would have 
 been punished with death, but the person of a church- 
 man was sacred; and Philip was satisfied with delivering 
 this incendiary into the hands of his metropolitan, the 
 archbishop of Narbonne, not daring to treat him as a 
 criminal. 
 
 Pope Boniface, enragedattheconfinementofhislegate, 
 issued a bull, declaring, " That" the vicar of Christ is 
 *' vested with full authority over the kings and kingdoms 
 " of the earth:" and the clergy of France received, at the 
 same time, an order from his holiness to repair to Rome. 
 
 A 
 
lET. XXXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 449 
 
 A French archdeacon carried this bull, and these orders 
 to the king; commanding him under pain of excommu- 
 nication, to acknowledge the pope as his temporal sove- 
 reign. This insolence was answered with a moderation 
 little suited to the character of Philip. He contented 
 himself with ordering the pope's bull to be thrown into 
 the fire, and prohibiting the bishops from departing the 
 kingdom. Forty of them, however, with many of the 
 heads of religious orders, w^ent to Rome, notwithstanding 
 the king's prohibition. For this trespass he seized all 
 their temporalities. 
 
 While Boniface and his council were considering 
 the conduct of Philip, and by means of his confessor 
 brought his most secret thoughts under review., that 
 politic prince assembled the states of his kingdom. They 
 acknowledged his independent right to the sovereignity 
 of France, and disavowed the pope's claim. It was oa 
 this occasion, that the representatives of cities were first 
 regularly summoned to the national assembly-''. \ 
 
 Philip was now at full liberty to treat the pope as an 
 open enemy. He accordingly leagued with the family 
 of Colonna, and sent William de Dogaret, a celebrated 
 lawyer, into Italy, with a sum of money, in order to raise 
 troops. A body of desperadoes were suddenly and se- 
 cretly collected, with which William and Sciarra Colonna 
 surprised Boniface at Anagni, a town in his own territo- 
 ries, and the place of his birth, exclaiming, ^' Let the 
 " pope die! and long live the king of France!" Boni- 
 face, however, did not lose his courage. He dressed 
 himself in his cope, put the tiara upon his head: and, 
 holding the keys in one hand, and the cross in the other, 
 presented himself with an air of majesty before his con- 
 querors. On this occcasion, it is said, Sciarra had the 
 brutality to strike him, crying out, " Tyrant! renounce 
 " the pontificate, which thou hast dishonoured." — " I 
 " am pope," replied Boniface, with a look of intrepidity, 
 
 5. Henawlt, ubi sup. Du Chesne. F«lyd. Virj. 
 YOL. I. 3 q, " and 
 
450 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 ** and I will die pope 1" This gallant behaviour had 
 such an eftect on the minds of the inhabitants, that they 
 rose against his enemies, and rescued him from their 
 hands. But Boniface was so much affected by the in- 
 dignities which had been offered him, that he died in a 
 few days". 
 
 On the death of Boniface, the cardinals elected 
 Nicholas Boccacini, who took the name of Bene- 
 dict XI. He was a mild and good man; and being de- 
 sirous of using his power for the promoting of peace, he 
 revoked the sentence of excommunication, which his 
 predecessor had fulminated against Philip the Fair. He 
 also pardoned the Colonnas; and shewed a great dispo- 
 sition, to reform that corruption which had spread 
 itself through the dominions of the church. But these 
 proceedings, so notorious in themselves, excited the ha- 
 tred of his licentious and vindictive country- 
 men, who suddenly took him off by poison. 
 He was succeeded by Clement V. who being a French- 
 man, and entirely in the interest of Philip, fixed his resi- 
 dence in France. By means of this pope the 
 * French monarch hoped to have obtained the 
 empire for his brother, Charles of Valois, and 
 
 A. D. 1310. ^ ,, • 1 1 • r T I-- 
 
 actually re-united the city oi L.yons to his 
 kingdom^ 
 
 But although this was justly considered as a great 
 acquisition, Philip had occasion for the assistance of 
 Clement in an affair that lay nearer his heart. I allude 
 to the suppression of the order of Knights Templars. 
 That religious and military order, which took its rise, 
 as has been already observed, during the first fervour 
 of the crusades, had made rapid advances in credit and 
 authority; and had acquired, from the piety of the faith- 
 ful, ample possessions in every Christian country, but 
 more Especially in France, The great riches of those 
 
 6. A. Baillet, Sist. de Demelez du Boniface VIII. awe Philip U Bel. 
 ?. Trivet. Annai. ^wt.Meniir. Sonc. de Lyont, 
 
 knights 
 
LKT. XXXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 451 
 
 knights, and other concurring causes, had, however, 
 relaxed the severity of their discipline. Convinced by- 
 experience, by fatigues, and by dangers, of the folly of 
 their fruitless expeditions into Asia, they chose rather 
 to enjoy in ease their opulent fortunes in Europe; and 
 b^ing all men of birth, they scorned the ignoble occupa- 
 tions of a monastic life, and passed their time wholly in 
 the fashionable amusements of hunting, gallantry, and 
 the pleasures of the table. By these means the Tem- 
 plars had in a great measure lost that popularity, which 
 first raised them to honour and distinction. But the 
 immediate cause of their destruction proceeded from 
 the cruel and vindictive spirit of Philip the Fair. 
 
 The severity of the taxes, and the mal-administra- 
 tlon of Philip and his council in regard to the coin, 
 which they had repeatedly altered in its value, occa- 
 sioned a sedition in Paris. The Knights Templars 
 were accused of being concerned in the tumult. They 
 were rich, as has been observed ; and Philip was no less 
 avaricious than vindictive. He determined to involve 
 the whole order in one undistinguished ruin; and on no- 
 better information than that of two knights, condemned 
 by their superiors to perpetual imprisonment for their 
 vices, he ordered all the Templars in France to be 
 committed to prison, on one day, and imputed to them 
 such enormous and absurd crimes, as are sufficient of 
 themselves to destroy all the credit of the accusation. 
 They were universally charged with murder, robbery, 
 and the vices most shocking to nature; and it was pre- 
 tended that every one whom they received into their 
 order was obliged to renounce his Saviour, to spit upon 
 the cross, and to join to this impiety the superstition 
 of worshipping a gilded head, which was secretly kept 
 in one of their houses at Marseilles. The novice was 
 also said to be initiated by many infamous rites, v/hich 
 could serve no other purpose but to degrade the order 
 in his eyes: and, as Voltaire very justly observes, it 
 shews a very indifferent knowledge of mankind, to sup- 
 pose 
 
4SS THE HISTORY OF [part x. 
 
 pose there can be any societies that support thtmstlvc* 
 by the badness of their morals, or who make a law to 
 enforce the practice of impudence and obscenity. Every 
 society endeavours to render itself respectable to those 
 who are desirous of becoming members of it. 
 
 Absurd, however, as these accusations appear, above 
 one hundred knights were put to the rack, in order to 
 extort from them a confession of their guilt. The more 
 obstinate perished in the hands of their tormentors. Se- 
 veral, in the violence of their agonies, acknowledged 
 whatever was desired of them. Forged confessions 
 were imputed to others; and Philip, as if 
 
 A, D. loll. ....,, , . , . 
 
 their guilt haa now been certam, proceeded 
 to a confiscation of all their treasures. But no sooner 
 were these unhappy men relieved from their lO'-tures, 
 than they disavowed their forced confessions; exclaimed 
 against the forgeries; justified the innocence of their 
 order, and appealed to the many gallant actions per- 
 formed by them, as a fall apology lor their conduct. 
 
 Enraged at this disappointment, and thinking him- 
 self bound in honour to proceed to extremities, Philip 
 ordered fifty-four Templars, whom he branded as re- 
 lapsed heretics, to perish by the punishment of fire in 
 his capital. Great numbers expired, after a like manner, 
 in different parts of ihc kingdom: and when the t\ rant 
 found that the persever;mce of those unhappy victims, 
 in justif}'ing to the last their innocence, had made deep 
 impression on the minds of the peopU', he endeavoured 
 to overcome the constancy of the i cmplars by new in- 
 humanities. John de Molav, the gr.iod-master of the 
 
 order, and anorher Q-reat oilicer, brother to 
 ii. D. 1312. . . 
 
 the sovereign of Dauphiny, were conducted 
 
 to a scaffold, erected before the church oi Notre Dame, 
 
 at Paris. A full pardon was offered them on one hand, 
 
 a fire destined for their execution was shewn them on 
 
 the other. But these gallant noblemen persisted in the 
 
 protestatiott 
 
LIT. XXXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. 439 
 
 protestation of their own innocence and that of their 
 order; and as the reward of their fortitude, they were 
 instantly hurried into the flames by the public execu- 
 tioner^. 
 
 In all this barbarous injustice, Clement V. who then 
 resided at Poitiers, fully concurred: and, by the pleni- 
 tude of his apostolic power, in a general council held at 
 Vienne, without examining a single witness, or making 
 any enquiry into the truth of facts, he abolished the 
 whole order. The Templars all over Europe were 
 thrown into prison; their conduct underwent a strict 
 scrutiny, and the power of their enemies still pursued 
 and oppressed them. But no where, except in France, 
 were the smallest traces of their guilt pretended to be 
 found. Some countries sent ample testimony of their 
 piety and morals: but as the order was now annihilated, 
 their lands in France, Italy, England, and Germany, 
 were given to the Knights Hospitallers. In Spain, 
 they were given to the knights Calatrava, an order 
 established to combat the Moors'^. 
 
 Philip, soon after the suppression of this order, re- 
 vived his quarrel with the count of Flanders, whose 
 dominions he again imsuccessfuUy attempted to unite to 
 the crown of France. The failure of that pmjtct, to- 
 gether wiih some domestic mislortunes, threw him into 
 a languishing consumption, which carried 
 him off in the thirtieth year ol his reign, 
 and the forty-seventh of his age. He was certainh- a 
 prince of great talents; and notwithstanding his vices, 
 France ought to reverence his memory. By fixuig 
 the parliaments, or supreme courts of judicature, he 
 secured the ready execution of justice to ail his sub- 
 jects; and, though his motive might not be the most 
 generous for calling in the third estate into the national 
 council, he by that measure put it in the power of the 
 French nation to have established a free government. 
 
 8. Piireau. Hist, de la Condeninat. de Ttmplars. I\ic. Garticr. Ui^t. 
 Templar. S-^eph. Ealuz. Vit. Pontif. Aveni-m. 
 
 9 Id. ibid. Rymer, vol. iii, Vertot. Jiiit. Chev. Mclth. torn. .'■. 
 
 Lewi.'^ 
 
4S# THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Lewis X. surnamed Hutin, the son and successor 
 of Philip the Fair, began his reign with an act of injus-^ 
 tice. At the instigation of his unele, the count of Va» 
 lois, he caused his prime minister Marigny 
 * to be executed, on account of many pre- 
 tended crimes^ and magic among the rest; but in reality 
 on account of his supposed riches, which were confis- 
 cated to the crown. 
 
 But neither the confiscation of Marigny *s effects, 
 nor of those who Avere styled his accomplices, being 
 sufficient for the king's wants, he extorted money from 
 the nobility, under various pretences: he levied a tenth 
 upon the clergy: he sold enfranchisements to the slaves 
 employed in cultivating the royal domains; and when 
 they would not purchase their freedom, he declared 
 them free, whether they would or not, and levied the 
 money by force'"'. He died, like his father, 
 after an unsuccessful attempt upon Flan- 
 ders. 
 
 On the death of Lewis X. a violent dispute arose 
 in regard to the succession. The king left one daugh- 
 ter, by his first wife, Margaret of Burgundy, and his 
 queen, Clemence of Hungary, pregnant. Clemence 
 was brought to bed of a son, who lived only eight days. 
 It had long been a prevailing opinion, that the crown 
 of France could never descend to a female; and as na- 
 tions in accounting for principles which they regard as 
 fundamental, and as peculiar to themselves, are fond 
 of grounding them on primary laws rather than on blind 
 custom, it had been usual to derive this maxim (though, 
 according to the best antiquarians, falsely) from a 
 clause in the Salian Code, the body of laws of an an- 
 cient tribe among the Franks. In consequence of this 
 opinion, and precedents founded on it, Philip V. sur- 
 named the Long, brother to Lewis X. was proclaimed 
 king; and as the duke of Burgundy made some oppo- 
 sition, and asserted the right of his niece, the states of 
 
 10. Le Gcndre. Dupleix. 
 
 the 
 
LET. XXXIX.] MODERN EUROPE. «5S 
 
 the kingdom, by a solemn and deliberate decree, exclud- 
 ed her, and declared all femaks forever incapable of 
 succeeding to the crown of France". The 
 
 • 1 r ^ • ^ • • ^ , A. D. 1317. 
 
 Wisdom ot this decree is too evident to need 
 being pointed out. It not only prevents those evils 
 which necessarily prooceed from female caprices and 
 tender partialities, so apt to make a minister from love, 
 and degrade him from whim, but is attended with this 
 peculiar advantage, that a foreigner can never become 
 sovereign of France by marriage; a circumstance al- 
 ways dangerous, and often productive of the most fatal 
 revolutions. 
 
 The reign of Philip the Long, and also of his bro- 
 ther Charles IV. surnamed the Fair, were both short; 
 nor was either distinguished by any memorable event, 
 Charles left only one daughter, and consequently no 
 heir to the crown; but as his queen was pregnant, 
 Philip de Valois, the next male heir, was appointed re- 
 cent, with a declared richt of succession, if 
 
 . A. D. 1328. 
 
 the issue should prove female. I'he queen 
 
 of France was delivered of a daughter: the regency 
 ended; and Philip de Valois was unanimously placed 
 on the throne of France. 
 
 This prince was cousin-german to the deceased 
 king, and incontestably the nearest heir-male descended 
 from a male: but Edward III. as we shall soon have 
 occasion to see, took up the dispute upon other grounds. 
 In the mean time I must make you acquainted with 
 the more early part of the reign of that illustrious mo- 
 narch. 
 
 11. Mczeray. Du Tillet. P. Henault. P.Daniel. 
 
 LETTER 
 
45ft THE HISTORY OF [part. i. 
 
 LETTER XL. 
 
 ENGLAND, SCOTLAND, FRANCE, AND SPAIN, DURING THE 
 REIGN OF EDWARD III. 
 
 X HE reign of Edward IIL my dear Philip, opens 
 a wide field of observation, and involves whatever is 
 great or interesting in the history of Europe 
 during that period. But before we enter 
 on the foreign transactions of this prince, I must inform 
 you of the domestic; and for this purpose, it will be 
 necessary to recapitulate a little. 
 
 You have already been witness to the miserable 
 death of the second Edward, by the inhuman emissaries 
 of Roger Mortimer the queen's gallant, who was become 
 the object of public odium. The hatred of the nation 
 daily encreased both against him and queen Isabella, 
 Conscious of this, they subjected to their vengeance 
 whomsoever they feared, in oider to secure their usurp- 
 ed power. The earl of Kent, the young king's uncle, was 
 iniquitously condemned and executed; the earl of Lan- 
 caster, Kent's brother, was thrown into prison; and 
 many of the prelates and nobility were prosecuted under 
 different pretences'. 
 
 These abuses could not long escape the observation 
 of a prince of so much discernment as young Edward, 
 nor fail to rouse his active spirit against the murderer 
 of his father, and the dishonourer of his mother. But 
 he was besieged in such a manner by the creatures of 
 Mortimer, that it became necessary to conduct the pro- 
 ject of bringing that felon to justice with as much secre- 
 cy and caution as if he had been forming a conspiracy 
 
 acrainst his sovereign. He communicated 
 A. D. 1 330. . 
 
 his intentions, however, to some of the no- 
 bility, who readily entered into his views; and they 
 surprised the usurper in the castle of Nottingham, and 
 
 1. W. Hemming, T. Walsingham. 
 
 dragged 
 
LET. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. ASf 
 
 dragged him from an apartment adjoining to the queen's, 
 %vh'ile she, in the most pathetic manner, implored her 
 son to spare the gentle Mortimer! — A parliament was 
 immedediately summoned for his condemnation ; and he 
 was sentenced to die, from the supposed notoriety of his 
 crimes, without any form of trial. He perished b)^ the 
 hands of the hangman, at the Elmes, near London : and 
 the queen was confined, during life, to her liouse at 
 Risings; where she languished out twenty-five years of 
 sorrow rather than of penitence^ 
 
 Edward having now taken the reins of government 
 into his own hands, applied himself with industry and 
 judgment, to redress all those grievances which had 
 either proceeded from want of authority in ^■-^.^ 
 
 the crown, or the late abuse of it. He issued 
 writs to the judges, enjoining them to administ-er justice, 
 without paying any regard to the arbitrary orders of the 
 great: and as thieves, robbers, murderers, and criminals 
 of all kinds, had multiplied to an enormous degree du- 
 ring the public convulsions, and were openly protected 
 by the powerful barons, who made use of them against 
 their enemies, the king set himself seriously to remedy 
 the evil, after exacting from the peers a solemn promise 
 in parliament, that they would break off all connexion, 
 with such malefactors^ The ministers of justice ani- 
 mated by his example, employed the utmost diligence 
 in discovering, pursuing, and punishing criminals: and 
 the disorder was by degrees corrected. 
 
 In proportion as the government acquired authority 
 at home, it became formidable to the neighbouring 
 nations; and the ambitious spirit of Edward sought, and 
 soon found an occasion of exerting itself. The wise and 
 valiant Robert Bruce, king of Scotland, who had recover- 
 ed by arms the independency of his country, and fixed it 
 by treaty, was now dead, and had left David, his son, a 
 
 2. Knyghton. Walsingham. 3. Cotton's Abridgment. 
 
 VOL. I. 3 R minor, 
 
458 THE HISTORY OF [paut u 
 
 minor, under the guardianship of Randolph earl of Mur- 
 ray, the companion of his victories. About this time 
 Edward Baliol son of John, formerly crowned king of 
 Scotland, was discovered in a French prison by lord 
 Beaumont, an English baron, who, in the right of his 
 wife, claimed the earldom of Buchan in Scotland; and 
 deeming Baliol a proper instrument for his purpose, pro- 
 cured him his liberty, and induced him to revive his 
 claim to the Scottish crown. 
 
 Many other English noblemen, who had obtained 
 estates during the subjection of Scotland, were in the 
 same situation with Beaumont. They also saw the utility 
 of Baliol, and began to think of recovering their posses- 
 sions by arms : and they applied to Edward for his con- 
 currence and assistance. Edward was ashamed to avow 
 their enterprize. He was afraid that violence and injus- 
 tice would every where be imputed to him, if he attacked 
 with superior force a minor king, and a brother-in-law, 
 whose independent title had been so lately acknowledged 
 by solemn treaty : but he secretly encouraged Baliol in 
 his claim, connived at his assembling forces in the north, 
 and crave countenance to the nobles who were 
 * disposed to join him. A force of near three 
 thousand men was assembled, with which Ealiol and his 
 adherents landed on the coast of Fife. 
 
 Scotland Avas now in a very different situation from 
 that in which it had appeared under the victorious Robert. 
 Besides the loss of that great monarch, whose genius and 
 authority preserved entire the whole political fabric, and 
 maintained union among the unruly barons, lord Douglas, 
 impatient of rest, had gone over to Spain in a crusade 
 against the Moors, and there perished in battle. The earl 
 of Murray, long declining through years and infirmities, 
 had lately died, and been succeeded in the regency by 
 Donald earl of Mar, a man much inferior in talents ; so 
 that the military spirit of the Scots, though still unbroken, 
 was left without a guide. Baliol had valour and activity, 
 and his followers being firmly united by their common 
 
 object, 
 
LIT. XL.] MODERN EUROPJ:. 459 
 
 object, drove back the Scots v/ho opposed his landing. 
 He marched into the heart of the country; and with his 
 small party defeated an army of forty thousand men, 
 under the earl of Mar, of wh-'m twelve thousand ar» 
 said to have be^n slain. 
 
 Baliol, soon after this victory, made himself master 
 of Perth, and was crowned at Scone; while young Bruce, 
 his competitor, was sent over to France with his betroth- 
 ed wife Jane, sister to king Edward. Scotland was sub- 
 dued by a handful of men; but Baliol lost the kingdom 
 by a revolutionas sudden as that by which he had acquired 
 it. His Imprudence, or his necessities, making him dis- 
 miss part of his English followers, he was unexpectedly 
 attacked near Annan by Sir Archibald Douglas, and 
 other chieftains of Bruce's party. He was routed : his 
 brother John Baliol was slain; and he himself was chased 
 into England in a miserable plighf^. 
 
 In this extremity, Baliol had again recourse to the 
 English monarch, without whose assistance he was now 
 become sensible he could neither recover nor keep pos- 
 session of his throne. He offered to acknow- 
 
 . . , A.D. 1333. 
 
 ledge Edward's superiority ; to renew the 
 
 homage for Scotland ; and to espouse the princess Jane, 
 if the pope's consent could be obtained for dissolving 
 her former marriage, which was not yet consummated. 
 Ambitious of retrieving that important superiority re- 
 linquished by Mortimer during his minority, Edward 
 willingly accepted the offer, and put himself at the head 
 of a powerful army, in order to reinstate Baliol in his 
 throne. The Scots met him with an army more numerous, 
 but less united, and worse supplied with arms and 
 provisions. A battle was fought at Halidown-hill, a 
 little north of Berwick ; where about thirty thousand of 
 the Scots fell, and all the chief nobility were either kill- 
 ed or taken prisoners^ 
 
 4. Hemming. Knyghton. Walsingham. Buchanan. Fordun. 5. Ibid- 
 
 After 
 
460 THE HISTORY OF [fart u 
 
 After this fatal blo\y, the Scottish nobles had no re- 
 source but in submission. Baliol was acknowledged king 
 by a parliament assembled at Edinburgh; the superiority 
 of England was again recognized: many ol the Scottish 
 nobility swore fealty to Edward; who, leaving a cnnsi- 
 derable body of troops with Baliol to complete the con- 
 quest of the kingdom, returned to England 
 with the remainder of liis army. But the 
 English forces were no sooner withdrawn than the Scots 
 revolted against Baliol, and returned to their former al- 
 legiance under Bruce. Edward was again obliged to 
 assemble an armv, and to march into Scotland. The 
 Scots, taught by experience, withdrew into 
 their hills and fastnesses. He destroyed the 
 houses an-d ravaged the estates of those whom he called 
 rebels. But this severity only confirmed them more in 
 their obstinate antipathy to England and to Baliol ; and 
 being now rendered desperate, they soon re-conquered 
 their country from the English. Edward 
 made anew his appearance in Scotland, and 
 with like success. He found every thing hostile in the 
 kingdom, except the spot on which he was encamped ; 
 and although he marched uncontrolled over the low 
 countries^ the nation itself was farther than ever from 
 being broken or subdued. Besides being supported by 
 their pride or anger, passions difficult to tame, the Scots 
 were encouraged amid all their calamities, with daily 
 promises of relief from France ; and as a war was nov/ 
 likely to break out between that kingdom and England, 
 they had reason to expect a division of the force which 
 had so long overwhelmed and oppressed them*^. 
 
 These transactions naturally bring us back to Edward's 
 claim to the crown of France ; on which depended the 
 most memorable events not only of this long and active 
 reign, but of the whole English and French history, 
 
 6. Rymer, vol. iv. Leland's CoZ/fCf. vol. ii. W. Hemming. T. Walsing- 
 ham* 
 
 during 
 
lET. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. 461 
 
 during more than a centnry. A notion weaker or worse 
 grounded than that claim cannot well be imagined. He 
 admitted the general principle., that females could not in- 
 herit the crown of Erance. But, in so doing, he only set 
 aside his mother's right, to establish his own; for although 
 he acknowledged females incapable of inheriting, he 
 asserted that males descending from females were liable 
 to no such objection, but might claim by right of pro- 
 pinquity. This plea, hov/ever, was not only more fa- 
 vourable to Charles king of Navarre, descended from a 
 daughter of Lewis X. but contrary to the established rules 
 of succession in every European country, Edward's claim 
 was therefore disregarded, and the title of Philip of Va- 
 lois universally recognized and acknowledged^ 
 
 But although the youthful and ambitious mind of 
 Edward had rashly entertained this false idea, he did not 
 carry his pretensions so far as to engage in hostilities 
 with so pov/erful a monarch as Philip VI. On the con- 
 trary, he went over to Amiens, and did homage for 
 Guienne^. By that compliance he indirectly acknowledg- 
 ed Philip's title to the crown of France. His own claim 
 indeed was so unreasonable, and so thoroughly disavow- 
 ed by the whole French nation, that to insist on it was 
 no better than to pretend to the violent conquest of the 
 kingdom; and it would probably never have been farther 
 thought of, had it not been for some incidents Nvhich after- 
 wards excited an animosity between the tv/o monarchs. 
 
 Robert of Artois, a prince of great talents and credit, 
 who had married Philip's sister, had fallen into disgrace 
 at the court of France. Plis brotlier-in-law not only 
 abandoned him, but prosecuted him with ^or,>^ 
 
 violence. He came over to England, and 
 was favourably received by Edward. Now resigning him- 
 self to all the movements of rage and revenge, Robert 
 endeavoured to revive in the mind of the English mo- 
 
 7. Froissard, torn. j. D. Specileg, torn. iii. 8. Ryraer, vol. iv. 
 
 narch 
 
462 THE HISTORY OF [paut i. 
 
 narch his supposed title to the crown of France ; and 
 even flattered him, that it was not impossible for a prince 
 of his valour and abilities to render this claim effectual, 
 *' I made Philip de Valois king of France," added he, 
 *' and with your assistance, I will depose him for his in- 
 " gratitude^." 
 
 Edward was the more disposed to listen to such 
 suggestions, as he had reason to complain of Philip's 
 conduct with regard to Guienne, and because that mo- 
 narch had both given protection to the exiled David 
 Bruce, and encouraged the Scots in their struggles 
 for independency. Resentment gradually filled the 
 breasts of both monarchs, and made them incapable of 
 hearkening to any terms of accommodation. Philip 
 thought he should be wanting to the first principles of 
 policy, if he abandoned Scotland; and Edward pretend- 
 ed that he must renounce all claim to generosity, if he 
 withdrew his protection from Robert of Artois. Alliances 
 were formed on both sides, and great preparations were 
 made for war. 
 
 On the side of England was the count of Hainault, 
 the king's father-in-law, the duke of Brabant, the arch- 
 bishop of Cologne, the duke of Guelder, the marquis 
 of Juliers, and the count of Namur. These princes could 
 supply, either from their own states, or from the border- 
 ing countries, great numbers of warlike troops: and 
 nothing was wanting to make Edward's alliance on that 
 quarter truly formidable but the accession of Flanders, 
 which he obtained by means somewhat extraordinary. 
 
 The Flemings, the first people in the north of Europe 
 that successfully cultivated arts and manufactures, begaa 
 now to emerge from that state of vassalage, or rather 
 slavery, into which the common people had been univer- 
 sally thrown by the abuses of the feudal polity; and the 
 lower class of men among them had risen to a degree of 
 
 9. Froissard, liv. i. Mtm. de Robert d' Artois. 
 
 riches 
 
LET. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. 463 
 
 riches unknown elsewhere to those of their station in that 
 comparatively barbarous age. It was impossible for such 
 men not to resent any act of tyranny; and acts of tyranny 
 were likely to be practised by a sovereign and nobility 
 accustomed to domineer. Ihey had risen in tumults j 
 they had insulted the nobles, and driven their earl into 
 France '°. 
 
 In every such revolution there is always some leader 
 or demagogue to whose guidance the people blindly de- 
 liver themselves. And on his character entirely depends 
 the happines or misery of those who have put themselves 
 under his care ; for every such man has it in his power 
 to be a despot: so narrow are the boundaries between 
 liberty and slavery: — The present leader of the Flemings 
 was James d'Arteville, a brewer of Ghent, who governed 
 them with a more absolute sway than had ever been as- 
 sumed by any of their lawful sovereigns. He placed and 
 displaced the magistrates at pleasure. He was constantly 
 attended by a guard: who, on the least signal from him, 
 instantly assassinated any man that happened to fall under 
 his displeasure. All the cities of Flanders were full of 
 his spies; and it was immediate death to give him the 
 smallest umbrage. This was the man to whom Edward 
 addressed himself for bringing over the Flemings to his 
 interests". 
 
 Proud of advances from so great a prince, and sen- 
 sible that the Flemings were naturally inclined to main- 
 tain connections with the English, on account 
 
 . A. D. 1338 
 
 of the advantages of trade, their demagogue 
 
 embraced the cause of Edward, and invited him over to 
 the Low Countries. Edward repaired to Flanders, at- 
 tended by several of his nobility, and a body of English 
 forces; but before the Flemings, who were vassals of 
 France, would take up arms against their liege lord, 
 Edward was obliged to assume the title of king of 
 France, and to challenge their assistance for dethroning 
 
 10. Froissard. liv. i. 11. Id, ibid. 
 
 -4- ' " > r- . Philip 
 
464 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 Philip de Valois, the usurper of his kingdom^-. This step, 
 which was taken by the advice of d'Arteville, as he knew 
 it would produce an irreconcileablc breach between the 
 two monarchs (a further motive for joining the cause of 
 Edward,) gave rise to that animosity which the English 
 and French nations, but more especially the former, have 
 ever since borne ag;unst each other, an animosity Vv'hich 
 had, for some centuries, so visible an influence on all 
 their transactions, and which still continues to inflame 
 the heart of many an honest Englishman. 
 
 Let philosophers blame this prejudice an inconsistent 
 with the liberality of the human mind ; let moralists 
 mourn its severity, and Aveak politicians lament its de- 
 structive rage — you, my dear Philip, as a lover of your 
 country, will ever, I hope, revere a passion that has so 
 often given victory to the arms of England, and humbled 
 her haughty rival ; which has preserved and continues to 
 preserve, the independency of Great Britain ! 
 
 The French monarch made great preparations against 
 the attack from the English ; and his foreign alliances 
 were both more natural and powerful than those which 
 were formed by his antagonist. The king of Navarre, 
 the duke of Britanny, the count of Bar, were entirely in 
 the interests of Philip; and on the side of Germany, the 
 king of Bohemia, the palatine of the Rhine, the dukes of 
 Lorrain and Austria, the bishop of Liege, the counts of 
 
 ^ ^ ^ Deuxponts, Vaudemont, and Geneva. A 
 A. D. 1339. . ' ' , ' . , £ , , 
 
 mighty army was brought into the held on 
 
 both sides. ConferenceR and mutual defiances, however, 
 Were all that the first campaign produced, and Edward, 
 distressed for want of money, was obliged to disband his 
 army, and return to En gland* 3. 
 
 But this illustrious prince had too much spirit to be dis- 
 couraged by the first difficulties of an undertaking. He was 
 
 12. W. Hemming. T. Walsmgham. Rymer, vol.v. 
 
 13 Froissaru, ui)i siili. W. Hemming. T. Waltingham. 
 
 anxious 
 
LiiT. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. ^S 
 
 anxious to retrieve his honour by more successful and 
 more gallant enterprizes; and next season iqio 
 
 proved somewhat more fortunate. The Eng- 
 lish, under the command of Edward, gained an im- 
 portant advantage over the French by sea. Two 
 hundred and thirty French ships were taken, thirty 
 thousand Frenchmen were killed, with two of their ad- 
 mirals. The lustre of this victory increased the king's 
 reputation among his allies, who assembled their forces 
 with expedition, and joined the English army; and 
 Edward marched to the frontiers of France at the 
 head of above one hundred thousand men. The French 
 monarch had collected an army still more numerous: yet 
 he continued to adhere to the prudent resolution he had 
 formed, of putting nothing to hazard, hoping by that 
 means to weary out the enemy. This conduct had, in 
 some measure, the desired effect. Edward, fatigued 
 with fruitless sieges, and irritated at the disagreeable 
 prospect that lay before him, challenged Philip to de- 
 cide their claims to the crown of France by single com- 
 bat ; by an action of one hundred against one hundred, or 
 by a general engagement. Philip replied with his usual 
 coolness, that it did not become a vassal to challenge 
 his liege lord ; and Edward found it necessary to con- 
 clude a truce for one year'^. 
 
 This truce would in all likelihood have been convert- 
 ed into a solid peace, and Edward would have drop- 
 ped his claim, had not an unexpected circumstance 
 opened to him more promising views, and given his 
 enterprizing genius a full opportunity to display itself. 
 The count de Mountfort, the heir male of Brltanny, 
 had seized that duchy in opposition to Charles of Blois, 
 the French king's nephew, who had married 
 the daughter of the late duke. Sensible that 
 he could expect no favour from Philip, Mountfort made 
 a voyage to England, on pretence of soliciting his claim 
 
 14. Ibid. 
 TOL.. I. 2 c to 
 
466 THE HISTORY OF [part 5. 
 
 to the earldom of Richmond, v/hicli had devolved tat 
 him by his brother's deatli; and then oflering to do ho- 
 mage to Edward, as king of France, for the duchy of 
 Britanny, he proposed a strict alliance for the support 
 of each other's pretensions. 
 
 Little negociatioH was necessary to conclude a treaty 
 between tv*o princes connected by their immediate in- 
 terests. But the captivity of the count de Mountfort^, 
 which happened soon after, seemed to put an end to all 
 the advantages naturally to be expected from such air 
 alliance. The affairs of Britanny, however, were ub- 
 expectedly retrieved by Jane of Inlanders, countess of 
 Mountfort, the most extraordinary woman of her time. 
 Roused by th« captivity of her husband from those do- 
 mestic cares to which she had hitherto confined herself, 
 she boldly undertook to support the fallen fortunes of 
 
 ^ ^ ^ her family. She went from place to place- 
 
 A. D". 1342. . . I r r 
 
 encouraging the garrisons, providing them; 
 
 with every thing necessary for subsistence, and con- 
 certing the proper plans of defence;, and having put the 
 whole province in a good posture, she shut herself up 
 in Hennebone, where she waited v/ith impatience the 
 arrival of those succours which Edward had promised 
 her. 
 
 Charles of Blois, anxious to make himself master of 
 this important fortress, sat down before the place with 
 a great army, and conducted the attack with indefatiga- 
 ble industry. The defence was no less vigorous. The 
 besiegers were repulsed in every assault. Frequent 
 sallies were made by the garrison ;^ and the countess 
 herself being the most forward on all occasions, every 
 one was asliamed not to exert himself to the utmost. 
 The reiterated r.ttacks of the besiegers, however, had 
 at length made several breaches in the walls; and it was 
 apprehended that a general assault, which was dreaded 
 every hour, might bear down the garrison. It became 
 necessary to treat of a capitulation: and the bishop of La- 
 
 on 
 
tET, XL.] MODERN EUROPE. 467 
 
 ©n was already engaged in a conferciice on that subject 
 with Charles of iiiois, when the countess, who had 
 mounted a high tower, and was anxiously looking toward 
 the sea for relief, descried some sails at a distance. 
 *' Behold the succours!" exclaimed she; — " the Eng- 
 *' lish succours! — No capitulation." They consisted of 
 six thousand aaxhers, and some cavalry, under the com- 
 mand of sir Walter Manny, one of the bravest captains 
 ©f England: and having entered the harbour, and in- 
 spired fresh courage into the garrison, immediately sal- 
 lied forth, beat the besiegers from Uieir posts, and 
 obliged them to decamp'^. 
 
 Notwithstanding this success, the troops under sir 
 Walter Manny were found insufficient for the support 
 of the countess of Mountfort, who was still ready to be 
 overpowered by numbers- Edward therefore sent over 
 a reinforcement under Robert of Artois, and afterwards 
 
 went to her assistance in person, Robert ^ . . ^ 
 
 A. D. 1343, 
 was killed in the defence of Vannes: and 
 
 Edward concluded a truce of three years, on honourable 
 terms, for himself and the countess. 
 
 This truce, however, was of much shorter duration 
 than the term specified in the articles, and each monarch 
 endeavoured to throw on the other the blame of its infrac- 
 tion. The English parliament entered warmly 
 into the quarrel, advised the king not to be ' ° 
 amused by a fraudulent truce, and granted bim supplies 
 for the renewal of hostilities. The earl of Dei^by was 
 «ent over for the protection of Gtiienne, where he behaved 
 with great gallantry^ and Edward invaded 
 Normandy with an army of thirty thousand 
 
 men. He took several towns, and ravag- ^ ,^ 
 
 ■ . , , . \ ,. ^ A. D. 1346. 
 
 cd the whole provmce, carrymg his ex- 
 cursions even to the gates of Paris. At length Philip 
 advanced against him at the head of an hundred thou- 
 sand men, and Edward, afx'aid of being surrounded in 
 the enemy ""s country, retreated towards Flanders"^. 
 
 IS. Froissard, liv. i. 16. R. de Averburg. Froissard, ubi sup. 
 
 ^ In 
 
468 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 In this retreat happened the famous passage of the 
 Somnie, which was followed by the still more celebrated 
 battle of Cressy. When Edward approached the Somme, 
 he found all the bridges either broken down or strongly 
 guarded. An army of twenty thousand men, vmder the 
 command of Godamar de Faye was stationed on the op- 
 posite bank ; and Philip was advancing on him, at the 
 same time, from behind. In this extremity he was in- 
 formed of a place that was fordable: he hastened thither, 
 but saw de Faye ready to obstruct his passage. A man 
 of less resolution, or more coolness, would have hesitat- 
 ed: Edward deliberated not a moment, but threw him- 
 self into the river sword in hand, at the head of his 
 troops ; drove the enemy from their station, and pursued 
 them to a distance on the plain. Philip and his forces 
 arrived at the ford, when the rear-guard of the English 
 army was passing ; and the rising of the tide only pre- 
 vented that incensed monarch from following them. On 
 the lapse of so few moments depended the fate of Ed- 
 ward! — and these, by his celerity, were turned from ruin 
 into victory 1 yet if he had been unfortunate in his pas- 
 sage, or if the French army had arrived somewhat sooner, 
 how many pretended philosophers would have told us that 
 he was an inconsiderate prince, and the attempt would 
 have been branded as absurd! — So much, my dear Phi- 
 lip, does the reputation of events depend on success, and 
 the characters of men on the situations in which they arc 
 engaged. 
 
 Edward by his fortunate passage gained some 
 ground of the enemy, a3 Philip was obliged to take his 
 route by the bridge of Abbeville; but he still saw the 
 danger of precipitating his march over the plains of Pi- 
 cardy, and of exposing his rear to the insults of the 
 numerous cavalry, in which the French camp abounded. 
 He therefore embraced the prudent resolution of wait- 
 ing the arrival of the enemy, and chose his ground ad- 
 vantageously near the village of Cressy; where he 
 4rew up his army in excellent order, and divided into 
 
 three 
 
LKT. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. 46S 
 
 three lines. The first line was commanded by the 
 prince of Wales, commonly called the Black Prince, 
 from the colour of his armour; the second by the earls 
 of Arundel and Northampton; and the king himself took 
 the direction of the third, which was intended as an 
 auxiliary force. The French army, which now consisted 
 of above an hundred and twenty thousand men, was also 
 formed into three lines; but as Philip had made a hasty 
 and confused march from Abbeville, the troops were fa- 
 tigued and disordered. The first line, consisting of fif- 
 teen thousand Genoese cross-bow men, was commanded 
 by Anthony Doria and Charles Grimaldi: the second 
 was led by the count d'Alencon; and the king 
 in person was at the head of the third. The 
 battle began about three o'clock, and continued till 
 towards evening; when the whole French army took to 
 flight, and was followed and put to the sword with great 
 slaughter till the darkness of night put an end to the 
 pursuit- Almost forty thousand of the French were 
 slain, among whom were many of the principal nobility, 
 twelve hundred knights, and fourteen hundred gentle- 
 men. On his return to the camp Edward flew into the 
 arms of the prince of Wales, who had distinguished 
 himself in a remarkable manner. " My brave sonl" 
 cried he, " persevere in your honourable course. 
 *' You are my son! for valiantly have you acquitted 
 *' yourself to-day. You have shewn yourself worthy of 
 *' empire'^." 
 
 This victory is partly ascribed to some pieces of 
 artillery which Edward is said to have planted in his 
 front, and which gave great alarm to the enemy'^; but 
 we cannot suppose they did much execution. The in- 
 vention was yet in its infancy ; and cannon were at first 
 so clumsy, and of such difficult management, that they 
 were rather incvimbrances than those terrible instru- 
 ments of desolation which we now behold them. They 
 had never before been made use of on any memorable 
 occasion in Europe. This may, therefore, be regarded 
 
 17. Froissard, lib. i. Walsingham. Kn) gViton. Avcrburg. 18. Villani, lib. xii. 
 
 as 
 
4ro THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 as the sera of one of the most important discoveries 
 that has been made among menj a discovery which 
 changed by degrees the whole military science, and of 
 course many circumstances in the political government 
 of Europe; which has brought nations more on a level ; 
 has made success in war a matter of calculation , and 
 though seemingly contrived for the destruction of 
 mankind, and the overthrow of empires has in the issue 
 rendered battles less bloody, and conquests less frequent, 
 by giving greater security to states, and interesting the 
 passions of men less in the struggle for victor)'. 
 
 A weak mind is elated with the smallest success: 
 a great spirit is little affected by any turn of fortune. 
 Edward, instead of expecting that the victory at Cressy 
 would be immediately followed by the total subjection of 
 the disputed kingdom, seemed rather to moderate his 
 views. He prudently limited his ambition to the con- 
 quest of Calais; by which he hoped to secure such an 
 easy entrance into France, as might afterwards open 
 the way to more considerable advantages. He therefore 
 marched thither with his victorious army, and presented 
 himself before the place. 
 
 In the mean time David Bruce, king of Scotland, 
 whom his countrymen had recalled, was strongly solicit- 
 ed by his ally, Philip to invade the northern counties of 
 England. He accordingly assembled a great army, and 
 
 ^ ^ carried his ravages as far as Durham. He was 
 OCT. 17. 
 
 there met by queen Philippa, at the head of a 
 
 body of twelve thousand men, which she conimitted to the 
 
 command of lord Percy. A fierce engagement ensued; 
 
 and the Scots were broken and chased off the field 
 
 with great slaughter. Fifteen thousand of them were 
 
 slain, among whom were the chancellor and earl-marshal. 
 
 The king himself was taken prisoner, together with ma^- 
 
 ny of the principal nobility'^. 
 
 As soon as Philippa had secured her royal prisoner, 
 
 the crossed the sea at Dover, and was received in the 
 
 10. Avcrburg. Knyghton, Froissard, ul>i sup. 
 
 English 
 
I.ET. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. 4.71 
 
 English camp before Calais with all the eclat due to her 
 rank, her merit, and her success. This was the age of 
 chivalry and gallantry. Edward's courtiers excelled 
 in these accomplishments no less than in policy and war; 
 and the extraordinary qualities of the women of those 
 times, the necessary consequence of respectful admira- 
 tion, form the best apology' for the super- ^hak 
 . . , . , . , , -J A. D. 134/. 
 stitious devotion which was then paid to 
 
 the softer sex. Calais was taken, after an obstinate 
 siege of almost twelve months. The inhabitants were 
 expelled; and it v/as peopled anew with English sub- 
 jects, and made the staple of wool, tin, and lead; 
 the four chief commodities of England, and the only 
 ones for which there was yet any demand in foreign 
 
 markets. A truce was soon afterwards ^o^o 
 
 ,,,.,„ , , , A. D. 1348. 
 
 concluded with France, through the me- 
 diation of the pope's legate, and Edward returned in 
 triumph to England^". 
 
 Here a few observations seem necessary. The great 
 success of Edward in his foreign wars had excited a 
 strong emulation among the English nobility; and their 
 animosity against France, and respect to their prince, 
 had given a new and more useful turn to that ambition, 
 which had so often been turned by those turbulent 
 barons against the crown, or which discharged its fury 
 on their fellow-subjects. This prevailing I'^^O 
 
 spirit was farther promoted by the institu- 
 tion of the military Order of the Garter, in emulation 
 of some orders of knighthood, of a like nature, which 
 had been established in different parts of Europe. — A 
 story prevails, though not supported by ancient autho- 
 rity, that Edward's mistress, commonly supposed to be 
 the countess of Salisbury, dropped her garter at a court 
 ball; that the king stooped, and took it up; when observ- 
 ing some of his courtiers to smile, as if they had sus- 
 pected another intention, -he held up the trophy, and 
 called out, Honi soit qui maly pense: " Evil to him that 
 *' evil thinks." — And as every incident of gallantry in 
 
 20. Id. ibid 
 
 those 
 
4n THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 those times was magnified into a matter of importance, 
 he instituted the Order of the Garter in commemoration 
 of this event, though not without political views, and 
 ^ve these words as the motto of the order. Frivolous 
 as such an origin may seem, it is perfectly suitable to 
 the manners of that age; and, as a profound historian 
 remarks, it is difficult by any other means to account 
 for the seemingly unmeaning terms of the motto, or the 
 peculiar badge of the garter, which appears to have no 
 reference to any purpose either of military use or orna- 
 ment-'. , 
 
 A damp, however, was suddenly thrown over tho 
 triumphant festivity of the English court, by a destruc- 
 tive pestilence which about this time invaded Britain, 
 after having desolated the greatest part of the earth. It 
 made its appearance first in the north of Asia; encircled 
 all that \t\st continent; visited Africa; made its progress 
 from one end of Europe to the other; and is computed 
 to have swept away near a third of the inhabitants in 
 every country through which it passed. Above fifty 
 thousand persons are said to have perished by it in 
 London alone. This grievous calamity, more than the 
 pacific disposition of the princes, served to prolong the 
 truce between England and France. 
 
 During this truce Philip de Valois died, without 
 being able to re-establish the affairs of France, which 
 his unsuccessful war with England had thrown into 
 much disorder. This monarch had, during the first 
 years of his reign, obtained the appellation of Fortunate, 
 and acquired the character of Prudent: but he ill main- 
 tained either the one or the other; less indeed from his 
 own fault, than because he was overmatched by the su- 
 perior fortune and superior genius of Edward. But the 
 incidents in the reign of his son John, gave the French 
 cause to lament even the calamitous times of Philip. 
 John was distinguished by many virtues, but particu- 
 larly by a scrupulous honour and fidelity. He was not 
 
 21. Hume, Ilitt, England, chap- xv. 
 
 de^cicnt 
 
LET XL.] MODERN EUROPE. 473 
 
 deficient in personal courage ; but as he wanted that 
 masterly prudence and foresight, which his difficult situa- 
 tion required, hia kingdom was at tlie same time disturb- 
 ed by intestine commotions, and oppressed by foreign 
 wars. 
 
 The principal author of these calamities was Charles 
 king of Navarre, surnamed the Had, and whose conduct 
 fully entitled him to that appellation. He was descended 
 from males of the blood royal of France. His mother 
 was daughter of Lewis X. and he had himself married a 
 daughter of the reigning king; but all these ties, which 
 ought to have connected him with the throne, gave him 
 only greater povver to shake and overthrow it. He se- 
 cretly entered into a correspondence with the king of 
 England; and he seduced, by his address, Charles after- 
 wards surnamed the Wise, the king of France's eldest 
 son, and the first who bore the title of Dauphin, by the 
 re-union of the province of Dauphiny to the crown. 
 This young prince, however, made sensible of the dan- 
 ger and folly of such connections, promised to make 
 atonement for the offence by the sacrifice of his associates. 
 In concert with his father, he accordingly invited the 
 king of Navarre, and other noblemen of the party, to a 
 feast at Rouen, where they v/ere betrayed into 
 the hands of John. Some of the most ob- * * * 
 noxious v/ere immediately led to execution, and the 
 king of Navarre was thrown into prison. But this 
 stroke of severity in the French monarch, and of trea- 
 chery in the Dauphin, was far from proving decisive in 
 restoring the royal authority. Philip of Navarre, bro- 
 ther to Charles the Bad, and Geoffery d'Harcourt, put 
 all the towns and castles belonging to that prince in a 
 posture of defence; and they had immediate recourse to 
 ^England in this desperate extremity-^. 
 
 The truce between the two kingdoms, which had 
 always been ill observed on both sides, was now expir- 
 ed; so that Edward was at liberty to support the French 
 
 J2. Froissard, \'\v. 1. 
 
 YOL. I. ,3t male contents. 
 
47.4 THE HISTORY OF [part i, 
 
 malecontents. The war was again renewed; and after 
 a variety of fortunes, but chiefly in favour of the En- 
 glish, an event happened which nearly proved fatal to 
 the French monarchv. 
 
 The prince of Wales, encouraged by the success of 
 
 , „ ^ the first campaic-n, took the held with an ar- 
 A.D. 1356, r t , u 1 , • . 
 
 my or only twelve thousand men; ami with 
 
 that small body he ventured to penetrate into the heart 
 of France. King John, provoked at the insult offered 
 him by this incursion, collected an arirty of sixty thou- 
 sand combatants, and advanced by hasty marches to in- 
 tercept his enemy. The prince, not aware of Johns's 
 near approach, lost some days, on his march, before the 
 castle of Remorantin, and thereby gave the French mo- 
 narch an opportunity of overtaking him. The 
 pursuers came within sight at Maupertuis, 
 near Poictiers; and young Edward, sensible that his re- 
 treat was now become impracticable, prepared for bat- 
 tle with all the courage of a hero, and all the prudence 
 of an expfcrienced general. No degree of prudence or 
 courage, however, could have saved him, had the king- 
 of France knoAvn how to make use of his present ad- 
 vantages. John's superiority in numbers enabled him 
 to surround the English camp, and by intercepting all 
 provisions, to reduce the prince to the necessity of sur- 
 rendering at discretion. But the impatient ardour of 
 the French nobility prevented this idea from striking 
 any of the commanders; so that they immediately took 
 measures for the assault, with full assurance of victory. 
 But they found themselves miserably mistaken. The 
 English adventurers received them with desperate va- 
 lour, put their army to flight, and took their king pri- 
 soner. 
 
 The Black prince, who had been carried away in pur- 
 suit of the living enemy, finding the field entirely clear on 
 his return, had ordered a tent to be pitched, and was re- 
 posing himself after the toils of battle, when informed of 
 the fate of the French monarch. John had long refused 
 to surrender himself to any one, but his " cousin the 
 
 prince 
 
i.ET. XL.] MODERN EUROPE, 47S 
 
 ^' prince of Wales*3." Here commences the real and 
 unexampled heroism of young Edward — the triumph 
 of humanity and moderation over insolence and pride, 
 in the heart of a young warrior, elated by as extra- 
 ordinary and as unexpected success as had ever crowned 
 the arms of any commander. He came forth to meet 
 the captive king with all the marks of regard and sym- 
 pathy; administered comfort to him amidst his mis- 
 fortunes; paid him the tribute of praise due to his 
 valour; and ascribed his own victory merely to the 
 blind chance of war, or to a superior Providence, 
 which controuls ail the efforts of human force and 
 prudence. He ordered a repast to be prepared m 
 his tent for the royal prisoner; and he himself serv^ed 
 at the captive's table, as if he had been one of his 
 retinue. All his father's pretensions to the crown of 
 France were now buried in oblivion. John, in cap- 
 tivity, received the honours of a king, which were re- 
 fused him when seated on the throne of Clovis. His 
 misfortunes, not his right, were respected: and the 
 French prisoners, conquered by this elevation of mind, 
 more than by the English arms, burst into tears of 
 admiration; which were only checked by the reflec- 
 tion, that such exalted heroism in an enemy, must 
 make him doubly dangerous to the independency of 
 their native country^4. 
 
 The prince of Wales conducted hi« royal prisoner 
 
 to Bourdeaux; and, after concluding a 
 
 r 111- A. D. 1357. 
 
 truce tor two years, brought him over to 
 
 England. Here the king of France, besides the gene- 
 rous treatment which he met with, had the melancholy 
 consolation of meeting a brother in affliction. The 
 king of Scotland had been for eleven years a captive 
 in the hands of Edward, whose superior genius and 
 fortune had reduced at once the two neighbouring po- 
 tentates with whom he was engaged in war, to the 
 condition of prisoners in his capitaL Finding, how- 
 
 23. R/mer, vol. vi. Froissard, liv. i. 24. Ibid, ubi -sup. 
 
 ever. 
 
476 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 ev'T, that the conquest of Scotland was nowise ad- 
 vanced by the captivity of its sovereign, Edward con- 
 sented to restore David Bruce to his liberty, for the 
 ransom of one hundred thousand marks sterling; and 
 that prince delivered the sons of all his principal nobi- 
 lity, as hostages for the payment'^ 
 
 Meanwhile the captivity of the French monarch, 
 joined to the preceding disorders of the kingdom, 
 had produced an almost total dissolution of civil au- 
 thority, and occasioned the most horrible and destruc- 
 tive violences ever experienced in any age or country. 
 The Dauphin, now about nineteen years of age, natu- 
 rally assumed the reins of government, during his 
 father's captivity; but although endowed with an ex- 
 cellent judgment, even in such early years, he pos- 
 sessed neither experience nor ability sufficient to reme- 
 dy the prevailing evils. In order to obtain supplies, 
 he assembled the states of the kingdom. 
 
 A. D. 1JJ8. . . 
 
 But that national assembly, instead of 
 supporting his administration, were themselves seized 
 witli the spirit of licentiousness ; and laid hold of the 
 present opportunity to demand limitations of the regal 
 power, the punishment of past malversations, and the 
 liberty of the king of Navarre. Marcel, provost of 
 the merchants of Paris, and first magistrate of that citv, 
 put himself at the head of the unruly populace; and 
 from the violence and temerity of his character, pushed 
 them to commit the most criminal outrages against the 
 royal authority. They detained the Dauphin in a kind 
 of captivity: they murdered in his presence Robert 
 de Clermont and John de Conflans, mareschals of 
 France : they threatened all the other ministers with 
 the like fate; and when Charles, who had been obliged 
 to temporize and dissemble, made his escape from 
 their hands, they levied war against him, and openly 
 erected the standard of rebellion. The other cities of 
 ih^ kipgdom, in imitation of the capital, shook off the 
 
 • 55. Bjmer, vol. i. 
 
 Dauphin's 
 
LET. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. 4,77 
 
 Dauphin's authority ; took the government into their 
 own hands, and spread the contagion into every pro- 
 vince. The wild state of nature seemed to be renewed in 
 the bosom of society: every man was thrown loose and 
 independent of his fellow-citizens. 
 
 The nobles, whose inclinations led them to adhere to 
 the crown, and were naturally disposed to check these 
 turnuUs, had lost all their influence. The troops, who 
 could no longer be retained in discipline, by reason of the 
 want of pa}', throwing off all regard to their officers, 
 sought the means of subsistence by pillage and robbery; 
 and associating with them all the disorderly people, with 
 whom that age abounded, infested every qLiarlcr of the 
 kingdom in numerous bodies. They desolated the open 
 country, burned and plundered the villages ; and by cutting 
 off" all means of communication or subsistence, reduced to 
 necessity even the inhabitants of the fortified towns. 
 
 The peasants, formerly oppressed, and now left un- 
 protected by their masters, became desperate from their 
 present misery; and, rising every where in arms, carried 
 to the last extremity those disorders, which were derived 
 from the sedition of the citizens and disbanded soldiers. 
 The gentry, hated for their tyranny, were every where 
 exposed to the violence of popular rage ; and, instead of 
 meeting with the respect due to their rank, became only 
 on that account, the object of more wanton insult to the 
 mutinous rustics. They were hunted like wild beasts, and 
 put to the sword without mercy. Their castles were con- 
 sumed with fire, and levelled with the ground; while their . 
 wives and daughters were subject to violation, and then 
 murdered. 
 
 A body of nine thousand of these savage boors broke 
 into Meaux, where the wife of the Dauphin, the dutchess 
 of Orleans, and above three hundred other ladies, had 
 taken shelter. The most brutal treatment and fatal con- 
 sequences were apprehended by this fair and helpless 
 company; when the count de Foix and the captal de 
 Buche, with the assistance of only sixty knights, animat- 
 ed 
 
4rs THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 ed with the true spirit of chivalry, flew to the rescue of 
 the ladies, and beat off the brutal and rapacious peasants 
 with great slaughter^'. 
 
 Asnidst these disorders the king of Navarre made his 
 escape from prison, and presented a dangerous leader to 
 the furious malecontents. He revived his pretensions to 
 the crown of France; but in all his operations he acted 
 more like a captain of banditti tlian one who aspired to 
 be the head of a regidar p;overninent, and who v/as en- 
 gaged by his station to endeavour tl^ie re-establishment 
 ol order in tlie community. Ail the French, therefore, 
 who wished to restore peace to their desolated country, 
 turned their eyes towards the Dauphin; who, though not 
 remarkable for his military talents, daily gained by his 
 prudence and vigilance, the ascendant over his enemies. 
 Marcel, the seditious provost of Paris, was slain in 
 attempting to deliver that city to the king of Navarre, 
 The capital immediately returned to its duty; the most 
 considerable bodies of the mutinous peasants were dis- 
 persed, or put to the sword; some bands of military rob- 
 bers underwent the same fate, and France began once 
 more to assume the appearance of civil government^^ 
 
 Edward appeared to have a favourable opportunity of 
 
 pushing his conquests, during the confusion in the 
 
 Dauphin's affairs; but his hands were tied by the truce, 
 
 and the state of the English finances made a cessation 
 
 ^ ^ ^ of arms necessary. The truce, however, 
 ^ D. 135 . 
 
 no sooner expired than he invaded France 
 
 anew with the whole military force of England. He ra- 
 vaged the country without opposition; pillaged many 
 towns, and levied contributions upon others; but finding 
 that he could not subsist his army in a kingdom wasted 
 
 by foreign and domestic enemies, he prudently 
 A. D. 1360. ■^ ° ... 
 
 'concluded the peace of Bretigni, which seem- 
 ed to secure essential advantages to his crown. By this 
 peaxe, it was stipulated, that John should pay three 
 
 26. Frolssard, liv. i. St. Pelaye ttir I'AkcIoi Cbivalrie. 
 
 27. Froissard, ubi suW. 
 
 millions 
 
LET. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. 47§ 
 
 millions of crowns of gold for his ransom; that Edwai'd 
 
 should forever renounce all claim to the crown of France, 
 
 and to the provinces of Normandy, Maine, Tourraine, 
 
 and Anjou, possessed by his ancestors; in exchange for 
 
 which lie should receive the provinces of Poiiou Xaia- 
 
 tonge, I'Angcnois, Perigord, the Liniousin, Quercy, 
 
 Rovergue, PAngoumois, and other districts in that 
 
 quarter, together widr Calais, Guisnes, Montreuil, and 
 
 the county of Ponthieu, on the other side of France; 
 
 that the full sovereignty of these provinces, as well as 
 
 of Guicnne, should be vested in the crown of England; 
 
 and that France should renounce all title to feudal 
 
 jurisdiction, homage, or appeal from them^^. 
 
 In consequence of this treaty, the king of France was 
 
 restored to his liberty; but many difficulties arising with 
 
 rospect to the execution of some of the articles, he took 
 
 the honourable resolution of coming over to .„^^ 
 
 T, , , . . , ,-1 A- D. 13G3. 
 
 England in person in order to adjust them. 
 
 His council endeavoured to dissuade him from this de- 
 sign, which they represented as rash and impolitic; and 
 insinuated, that he ought to elude as far as possible 
 the execution of so disadvantageous a treaty. " Though 
 " justice and good faith," replied John, " were banish- 
 *' ed from the rest of the earth, they ought still to 
 " retain their habitation in the breasts of 
 " princes!" And he accordingly came over 
 to his former lodgings in the Savoy; vvhe.re he soon after 
 sickened and died'^. 
 
 John was succeeded in the throne of France by his 
 son, Charles V, a prince educated in the school of ad- 
 versity, and well qualified, by his prudence and experi- 
 ence, to repair the losses which the kingdom had sustained 
 from the errors of his predecessors. Contrary to the 
 practice of all the great princes of those times, who held 
 nothing in estimation but military courage, he seems to 
 have laid it down as a maxim, never to appear at the head 
 
 28. Rvmer, vol. vi. 29. Fioissard, ub'i sup. 
 
 of 
 
480 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 of his armies. He was the first European monarch, that 
 
 shewed the advantage of policy and foresight over a rash 
 
 and precipitate valour. 
 
 Before Charles could think of counterbalancing so 
 
 great a power as England, it was necessary for him to 
 
 remedy the many disorders to which his own kingdom 
 
 was exposed. He accordingly turned his arms against 
 
 the king of Navarre, the great disturber of France during 
 
 that age ; and he defeated that prince, and reduced him to 
 
 terms, by the valour and conduct of Bertrand du Guesclin, 
 
 one of the most accomplished captains of those times, 
 
 ^ ^ whom Charles had the discernment to chuse 
 A.u. 1365. , . ^, . . . Ti 1 
 
 as the instrument or his victories, rle also 
 
 settled the affairs of Britanny, by acknowledging the title 
 of Mountfort, and receiving homage for his dominions. 
 But much was yet to do. 
 
 On the conclusion of the peace of Bretigni, a multitude 
 of military adventurers, who had followed the prosperous 
 fortunes of Edward, being dispersed into the several pro- 
 vinces of France, and possessed of strong-holds, refused 
 to lay down their arms, or relinquish a course of life to 
 which they were now accustomed, and by which alone 
 they could earn a subsistence. They, therefore, associat- 
 ed themselves with the banditti, who were already inured 
 to the habits of rapine and violence ; and under the name 
 of Companies and Companions^ became a terror to the 
 peaceable inhabitants. Some English and Gascon gentle- 
 men of character were not ashamed to take the command 
 of these ruffians, whose number amounted to near forty 
 thousand, and who bore the appearance of regular armies 
 rather than bands of robbers^". As Charles was not able 
 by force to redress so enormous a grievance, he was led 
 by necessity, and by the turn of his character, to correct it 
 by policy; to discover some method of discharging into 
 foreign countries this dangerous and intestine evil. And 
 an occasion now offered. 
 
 30. Ihid. 
 
 Alphonsa 
 
XET. XL.] MODERN EUROPE. -Ml 
 
 Alphonso XI. king of Castile, who took the city 
 of Algezira from the Moors, after a famous siege of 
 two years, had been succeeded, in 1350, by his son 
 Peter I. surnamcd the Cruel, a prince equally perfi- 
 dious, debauched, and bloody. He began his reign 
 with the murder of his father's mistress, Leonora de 
 Gusman : his nobles fell every day the victims of his 
 severity : he put to death his cousin, and one of his 
 natural brothers, from a groundless jealousy ; and he 
 caused his queen, Blanche de Bourbon, of the royal 
 blood of France, to be thrown into prison, and after- 
 Vards poisoned, that he might enjoy in quiet the em- 
 braces of Mary de Padella, with whom he was vio- 
 lently enamoured. 
 
 Henry, count of Transtamara, the l:ing of Spain's 
 natural brother, alarmed at the fate of his 
 family, and dreading his own, took arms 
 against the tyrant; but having failed in the attempt, 
 he fled into France, where he found the minds of men 
 inflamed against Peter, oil account of the murder of 
 the French princess. He asked permission of Charles 
 to enlist the Companies in his service, and to lead them 
 into Castile against his brother. The French monarch, 
 charmed with the project, emplo3'^ed du Guesclin in 
 negociating with the leaders of these banditti. The 
 treaty was soon concluded: and du Guesclin having 
 completed his levies, led the army first to Avignon, 
 where the pope then resided, and demanded, sword in 
 Land, absolution for his ruffian soldiers, who had been 
 excommunicated, and the sum of two hundred thou- 
 sand livres for their subsistence. The first was readily 
 promised him, but some difficulty being made with 
 respect to the second, du Guesclin replied, " My 
 *' fellows, I believe, may make shift to do without 
 " your absolution: but the money is absolutely neces- 
 " sary." His holiness now extorted froni the inhabi- 
 tants of the city and its neighbourhood the sum of one 
 hundred thousand livres, and off'ered it to Guesclin. "It 
 '■'' is not my purpose," said that generous warrior, " to 
 *' oppress the innocent people. The pope and his 
 " cardinals can spare me double the sum from their 
 VOL. I. 3 u ow« 
 
4t82 THE lUSTORY OF [part i. 
 
 *' own pockets. I therefore insist, that this money be 
 " restored to the owners: and if I hear they are de- 
 ^' frauded of it, I will myself return from the other side 
 *' of the Pyrenees, and oblige you to make them resti- 
 ** tution." The pope found the necessity of submit- 
 ting, and paid from his own treasury the sum demand- 
 ed^'. I'hus, hallowed by the blessings, and enriched by 
 the spoils of the church, du Guesclin and his army 
 proceeded on their expedition! 
 
 A body of experienced and hardy soldiers, con- 
 ducted by so able a general, easily prevailed over the 
 king of Castile, whose subjects were ready to join the 
 enemy against their oppressor. Peter fled 
 from his dominions, took shelter in Gui- 
 cnne, and craved the protection of the Black Prince, 
 whom the king of England had invested with the sove- 
 reignty of the ceded provinces, under the title of the 
 principality of Aquitaine. The prince promised his 
 assistance to the dethroned monarch; and having ob- 
 tained his father's consent, he levied an army, and set 
 out on his enterprize. 
 
 The first loss which Henry of Transtamara suffered 
 from the interposition of the prince of Wales, was the 
 recalling of the Companies from his service: and so 
 much reverence did they pay to the name of Edward, 
 that great numbers of them immediately withdrew 
 from Spain, and enlisted under his standard. Henry, 
 however, beloved by his new subjects, and supported 
 by the king of Arragon, was able to meet the enemy 
 with an army of one hundred thousand men, three 
 times the number of those commanded by the Black 
 Prince; yet du Guesclin, and all his experienced offi- 
 cers, advised him to delay a decisive action; so high 
 was their opinion of the valour and conduct of the 
 English hero I — But Henry, trusting to his numbers. 
 Ventured to give Edward battle on the banks of the 
 Ebro, between Najara and Navarette ; where the 
 French and Spaniards were defeated, with the loss of 
 
 21. niit. dt Guesctia, 
 
 above 
 
XE*. Lx.] MODERN EUROPE. 483 
 
 above twenty thousand men^ and du Gaesclin and many 
 other officers of distinction taken prisoners. All Cas- 
 tile submitted to the victor: Peter was restored to the 
 throne ; and Edward returned to Guienne with his 
 usual glory: having not only overcome the greatest 
 general of his age, but restrained the most blood-thirsty 
 tyrant from executing vengeance on his prisoners3-. 
 
 But this gallant warrior had soon reason to repent 
 his connections with a prince like Peter, lost to all 
 sense of virtue and honour. That ungrateful monster 
 refused the stipulated pay to the English forces. Ed- 
 ward abandoned him. He treated his subjects with 
 the utmost barbarity ; their animosity was roused' 
 against him; and du Guesclin, having obtained his 
 ransom, returned to Castile with the count of Transta- 
 mara, and some forces levied anew in France. They 
 were joined by the Spanish malecontents; and having 
 no longer the superior genius, and the superior fortune 
 
 of the Black Prince to encounter, they 
 
 A. D 1368 
 gamed a complete victory over Peter in 
 
 the neighbourhood of Toledo. The tyrant now took 
 refuge in a castle, where he was soon after besieged 
 by the victors, and taken prisoner, in endeavouring to 
 make his escape. He was conducted to his brother 
 Henry; against whom he is said to have rushed, in a 
 transport of rage, disarmed as he was. Henry slew 
 him with his own hand, in resentment of his cruelties-; 
 and, though a bastard, was honoured with the crown 
 of Castile, which he transmitted to his posterity33. 
 
 In the mean time the affairs of the Black Prince 
 were fallen into some disorder. He had involved him- 
 self so much in debt by his Spanish expedition, that 
 he found it necessary, on his return, to impose on hia 
 foreign principality a new tax, which some of the no- 
 bility paid with extreme reluctance, and to which others 
 absolutely refused to submit. They carried their com- 
 plaints to the king of France, as their lord paramount; 
 
 32. Froissard, liv. L 22. Id. ibid. 
 
484 THE HISTORY OF [part u 
 
 and, as the renunciations agreed to in the treaty of 
 Bretigni, had never been made, Charles seized this 
 opportunity to renew his claim of superiority over the 
 English provinces34. In this resolution he was encou- 
 raged by the declining years of Edward ill. and the 
 languishing state of the prince of Wales's health: he 
 therefore sent the prince a summons to appear at his 
 court at Paris, and justify his conduct towards his vas- 
 sals. The prince replied, that he would come to Paris, 
 but it should be at the head of sixty thousand men. 
 War was renewed between Trance and England, and 
 with singular reverse of fortune. The low state of the 
 prince of Wales's health not permitting him to exert 
 his usual activity, the French were victorious in almost 
 
 everv action: and when he was obliged, 
 
 A. D. 1370. , , . . '. . ^ . . ^ M ^ ' 
 
 by his increasing infirmities, to throw up 
 
 the command, and return to his native country, the 
 aifairs of the English went to total ruin on the conti- 
 nent. They were stripped in a few years of all their 
 ancient possessions in France, except Bourdeaux and 
 Bayonne; and of all their conquests, except Calais'^. 
 These misfortunes abroad were followed by the 
 decay of the king's authority at home. This was 
 chiefly occasioned by his extravagant attachment to 
 Alice Pierce, a young lady of wit and beauty, whose 
 influence over him had given such general disgust, 
 as to become the object of parliamentary remonstrance. 
 The indolence naturally attendant on years and infir- 
 mities, had also made Edward resign the administra- 
 tion into the hands of his son, the duke of Lancaster, 
 whose unpopular manners and proceedings weakened ex- 
 tremely the aflfections of the English to their sovereign. 
 Meanwhile the prince of Wales died; leav- 
 * ing behind him a character adorned with 
 every eminent virtue, and which would throw lustre on 
 the most shining period of ancient or modern history. 
 
 84. T. Walsitigham. Froissard, ubi sup. 33. Ibid. 
 
 The 
 
LET. XL.] MOERN EUROPE. 485 
 
 The king survived that melancholy incident onlj^ about 
 
 twelve months. He expired in the sixty-fifth .^w- 
 
 . A. D. 1377 
 
 year of his age and the fifty-first of his reign; 
 
 one of the longest and most glorious in the English annals. 
 
 His latter days were indeed somewhat obscured, by the 
 
 infirmities and the follies of old age; but he was no 
 
 sooner dead, than the people of England were sensible 
 
 of their irreparable loss, and posterity considers him as 
 
 the greatest and most accomplished prince of his time. 
 
 The domestic government of Edward was even more 
 worthy of admiration than his foreign victories. By the 
 prudence and vigour of his administration, England en- 
 joyed a longer term of interior peace and tranquillity than 
 it had been blest with in any former period, or than it ex- 
 perienced for many ages after. He gained the affections 
 of the great, yet curbed their licentiousness. His affa- 
 ble and obliging behaviour, his munificence and generosi- 
 ty, made them submit Avith pleasure to his dominion : his 
 valour and conduct made them successful in most mili- 
 tary enterprizes; and their unquiet spirits, directed 
 against a public enemy, had no leisure to breed those 
 private feuds to which they were naturally so much dis- 
 posed. This internal tranquillity was the chief benefit 
 that England derived from Edward's continental expe- 
 ditions : and the miseries of hissuccessor made the nation 
 fully sensible of the value of the blessing. 
 
 But before I speak of the administration of Richard 
 11, the unhappy son of the Black Prince, I must carry 
 forward the affairs of the German empire. At present, 
 however, it will be proper to observe, that the French 
 monarch, Charles V. whose prudent conduct had acqui- 
 red him the surname oiWise^ died soon after Edward III. 
 while he was attempting to expel the English from the 
 few places which they still retained in France, and left 
 his kingdom to a minor son of the same name, Charles 
 VI. so that England and France were now both under the 
 government of minors. And both experienced the mis- 
 fortunes of a turbulent and divided regency. 
 
 LETTER 
 
THE HISTORY OF [part, i. 
 
 LETTER XLI. 
 
 THE GKRMAN EMPIRE AND ITS nEPENDENCIES, ROJIE AND 
 THE ITALIAN STATES, FROM THE ELECTION OE LEWIS OF 
 BAVARIA TO THE DEATH OF CHARLES IV. 
 
 W E now, my dear Philip, approach to that sfcra 
 
 in the history of the German empire, when the famous 
 
 constitution, called the Golden Bull, was established j 
 
 tirhich, among other things, settled the number and the 
 
 rights of the electors, as yet uncertain, and productive 
 
 of many disorders. 
 
 Henry VII. as you have already seen, struggled hard 
 
 to recover the sovereignty of Italy j but he died before 
 
 he was able to accomplish his purpose. His death was 
 
 followed by an interregnum of fourteen months, which 
 
 were employed in the intrigues of Lewis of Bavaria, 
 
 ^„^^ and of Frederic the Handsome, duke of 
 A. D. 1315. A • T . 1,11 
 
 Austria. Lewis was elected by the greater 
 
 number of the princes; but Frederic being chosen and 
 supported by a faction, disputed the empire with him. A 
 furious civil war, which long desolated both Italy and 
 Germany, was the consequence of this op- 
 * position. At last the two competitors met 
 near Muldorf, and agreed to decide their important dis- 
 pute by thirty champions, fifteen against fifteen. The 
 champions accordingly engaged in presence of both ar- 
 mies, and fought with such fury, that in a short time not 
 one of them was left alive. A general action followed, 
 in which the Austrians were worsted. But this victory 
 was not decisive. Frederic soon repaired his loss, and 
 
 ^ ^ even ravaged Bavaria. The Bavarian assem- 
 A. D. 1 322 
 
 * bled a powerful army, in order to oppose his 
 
 rival; and the battle of Vechivis, in which the duke of 
 
 Austria was taken prisoner, fixed the imperial crown on 
 
 the head of Lewis V. 
 
 1. Avent. Annal. Bo'ur. lib. rii. 
 
 During, 
 
VET. xLi] MODERN EUROPE. nm 
 
 During the course of these struggles was fought, be- 
 tween the Swiss and Austrians, the memorable battle of 
 Morgart; which established the liberty of Swisserland, as 
 the victory of Marathon had formerly done that of Greece : 
 and Attic eloquence only was wanting to render it equally 
 famous. Sixteen hundred Swiss, from the cantons of Uri, 
 Schwitz, and Underwald, defeated an army of twenty 
 thousand Austrians, in passing the mountains near 
 INiorgart, in 1315, and drove them out of the country with 
 terrible slaughter. The alliance which these three cantons 
 had entered into for the term of ten years, was now con- 
 verted into a perpetual league ; and the other cantons occa- 
 sionally joined it^ 
 
 Lewis V. had no sooner humbled the duke of Austria 
 than a new antagonist started up: — he had the pope to 
 encounter. The reigning pontiff at that time was John 
 XXII. wbo had been elected at Lyons in 1315, by the 
 influence of Philip the Long, king of France. John was 
 the son of a cobler, and one of those men who, raised to 
 power by chance or merit, are haughty in proportion to 
 the meanness of their hirth. He had not hitherto, how- 
 ever, interfered in the affairs of the empire; but now, all 
 at once, he set himself up as its judge and master. He 
 declared the election of Lewis void: he main- 
 tained, that it was the right of the sovereign 
 pontiff to examine and confirm the election of emperors; 
 that the government, dtiring a vacancy, belonged to him: 
 and he commanded the emperor, by virtue of his apostolic 
 power, to lay aside the imperial ensigns, until he should 
 receive permission from the holy see to reassume them^. 
 
 Several attempts were made by Lewis towards a re- 
 conciliation with his holiness, but in vain: the proud 
 pontiff was inflexible, and would listen to no reasonable 
 conditions. The emperor, therefore, jealous of the in- 
 dependency of his crown, endeavoured to strengthen his 
 
 2. Simler, fife Fepulf. Hehetic. 
 
 3. Steph. Baluzii. Vit. Pontiff. Avenion. vol. i. 
 
 interest 
 
488 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 interest both in Italy and Germanv. He continued the 
 government of INIilan in the familv of the Visconti, who 
 were rather masters than magistrates of that city; and 
 he conferred the government of Lucca on Castruccio 
 Castruccani, a celebrated captain, whose life is pompous- 
 ly written by INIachiavel. The German princes were 
 mostly in his interest, and no less jealous than he of the 
 dignity of the empire. 
 
 Enraged at such firmness, pope John excommunicated 
 ,^^_ and deposed the emperOr Lewis, and en- 
 ' deavoured to get Charles the Fair, king of 
 France, elected in his room. But this attempt miscarried. 
 None of the German princes, except Leopold of Austria, 
 came to the place appointed for an interview with the 
 French monarch; and the imprudent and ambitious 
 Charles returned chagrined and disappointed into his 
 ow^n dominions'. 
 
 Thus freed from a dangerous rival, the emperor 
 „ marched into Italy, in order to establish his 
 
 A. D. i32r. . . ' 
 
 * authority in that country. He was crowned 
 at INIilan, and afterwards at Rome; where he ordered 
 the following proclamation to be made three times by an 
 Augustan friar: " Is there any one who will defend 
 *' the cause of the priest of Cahors, who calls himself 
 *' pope John r" — And no person appearing, sentence was 
 
 immediately pronounced against his holiness. 
 
 * Lewis declared him convicted of heresy, 
 deprived him of all his dignities and benefices, and de- 
 livered him over to the secular power, in order to suifer 
 the punishment of fire; and Peter Rainaucci, a Neapoli- 
 tan cordelier, was created pope under the name of 
 Nicholas V^. 
 
 But Lewis, notwithstanding this mighty parade, 
 ■was soon obliged, like his predecessors, to quit Italy, 
 in order to quell the troubles of Germany and pope 
 
 4. Villani, lib. Ki. 5. Balluzii, ubi sup. 
 
 John, 
 
i.ET. xLi.J MODERN EUROPE. 489 
 
 John, though a refugee on the banks of the Rhone, re- 
 covered his authority in Rome. The Impe- i « ,r» 
 rialists were expelled the city, and Nicholas 
 V. the emperor's pope, was carried to Avignon, where, 
 with a rope about his neck, he publicly implored forgive- 
 ness of his rival, and ended his days in a prison''. 
 
 The emperor, in the mean time, remained in peace 
 at Munich, having settled the affairs of Germany. But 
 he still lay under the censures of the church, and the pope 
 continued to solicit the princes of the empire to revolt 
 against him. Lew is was preparing to assemble a general 
 council in order to depose his holiness a second 
 time, when the death of John made such a mea- 
 sure unnecessary, and relieved the emperor from all dread 
 of the spiritual thunder. This turbulent pope, who first 
 invented the taxes for dispensations and mortal sins, died 
 immensely rich. He was succeeded in the papacy by 
 James Fournier, surnamed the White Cardinal, who as- 
 sumed the name of Benedict XII". 
 
 The new pope, who seemed desirous to tread in the 
 steps of his predecessor, confirmed all the bulls which had 
 been issued by John against the emperor. But Lewis 
 had now affairs of more importance to engage his atten- 
 tion than those important fulminations. John of Luxem- 
 burg, second son of the king of Bohemia, had married 
 Margaret, surnamed Great Mouth, heiress of Carinthia; 
 and that princess accusing her husband of impotency, a 
 bishop of Frisingen dissolved the marriage, and she 
 espoused the margrave of Brandenburg, son of the em- 
 peror Lewis, who readily consented to a match that 
 added Tyrol and Carinthia to the possessions of his fa- 
 mily. This marriage produced a war between the houses 
 of Bavaria and Bohemia, which lasted only one year, but 
 
 occasioned abundance of bloodshed; and the .^,^ 
 
 , , A. D. 1336. 
 
 parties came to a very smgular accommoda- 
 tion. John of Luxemburg confessed that his wife had 
 
 6. lb; J. 7. Baluz. Vit. Pontif. Avenion. 
 
 ▼ OL. I, 8 X reason 
 
490 TilE HISTORY OF . [parti. 
 
 reason to forsake him, renounced all claim to her, and ra- 
 tified her marriage with the margrave of Brandenburg*^. 
 This affair being settled, Lewis exerted all his en- 
 deavours to appease the domestic troubles of the empire, 
 which were still kept alive by the intrigues of the pope; 
 and notwithstanding all the injuries and insults he had 
 sustained, he made several attempts towards an accom.- 
 modation with the holy see. But these negociations 
 being rendered ineffectual by the influence of France, the 
 princes of the empire, ecclesiastical as well as secular, 
 
 ^„„ assembled at FranTcfort, and established that 
 A. D. 1338. f . . , , . , . 
 
 lamous constitution, by which it was irrevoc- 
 
 tihly fixed, " That the plurality of the suffrages of the 
 
 " electoral college confers the empire, without the con- 
 
 " sent of the holy see; that the pope has no superiority 
 
 " over the emperor of Germany, nor any right to ap- 
 
 " prove or reject his election; and that to maintain the 
 
 " contrary is high-treason." They also refuted the absurd 
 
 claim of the popes to the government of the empire 
 
 during a vacancy; and declared, that this right appertains, 
 
 by ancient custom, to the count Palatine of the Rhine'. 
 
 Germany now enjoyed for some years what it had 
 seldom known, the blessings of peace; which was again 
 interrupted by the court of Avignon. Benedict XII. was 
 succeeded in the papacy by Clement VI. a native of 
 France, and so haughty and enterprising as to affirm that 
 his " predecessors did not know what it was to be popes." 
 He began his pontificate with renewing all the bulls issued 
 against Lewis; with naming a vicar-general of the empire 
 in Lombardv, and endeavouring to make all Italy shake 
 off the emperor's authority. 
 
 Lewis, still desirous of an accommodation with the 
 holy see, amidst all these acts of enmity, sent ambassadors 
 to the court of Avignon. But the conditions prescribed by 
 his holiness were so unreasonable, that they were reject- 
 
 8. Hist, a'e Luxemburg. 9-. Heiss, llv. ii. chap. 26. 
 
 ed 
 
LET. xLi.J BiODERN EUROPE. 49t 
 
 ed with disdain b)- a diet of the empire, as an insult upon 
 the imperial dignity. Clement, more incensed than ever 
 at this instance of disregard, fulminated new excommuni- 
 cations against the emper^jr. " May the wrath ^ 
 " of God," says the enraged pontiff in one of ' * ^ 
 his bulls, " and of St. Peter and St. Paul, crush him in 
 " this world, and that which is to cornel May the earth 
 " open and swallow him alive; may his memory perish, 
 " and all the elements be his enemies; and may his 
 *' children fall into the hands of his adversaries, even in 
 " the sight of their father'"." 
 
 Clement issued another bull for the election of a new 
 emperor; and Charles of Luxemburg, margrave of Mo- 
 ravia, afterwards known b}- the name of Charles IV. 
 son and heir of John, king of Bohemia, having made the 
 necessary concessions to his holiness, was elected king 
 
 of the Romans by a faction. Levvis, however, ^ ^_ 
 
 11- u • Ml I- .1 1 • 1 -'^' ^- 1347. 
 
 mamtamed his authority till his death, which 
 
 happened soon after the election of his rival ; when 
 Charles, rather by his money than his valour, got pos- 
 session of the imperial throne. 
 
 While these things were transacting in Germany, a 
 singular scene was exhibited in Italy. Nicholas Rienzi, 
 a private citizen of Rome, but an eloquent, bold, enter- 
 prising man, and a patriot, seeing that city abandoned by 
 the emperors and the popes, set himself up as the rec 
 storer of the Roman liberty and the Roman power. Pro- 
 claimed tribune by the people, and put in possession of 
 the Capitol, he declared all the inhabitants of Italy free, 
 and denizens -of Rome. But these convulsive struggles 
 of long-expiring freedom, like many others, proved in- 
 ■effectual. Rienzi, who styled himself " the severe though 
 " merciful deliverer of Rome, the zealous assertor of the 
 "" Jiberties of Italy, and the lover of all mankind," as he 
 
 JO Annal. de l' Emt). torn. ii. 
 
 attempted 
 
492 THE HISTORY OF [part i. 
 
 attempted to imitate the Gracchi, met the same fate, 
 being murdered by the patrician faction". 
 
 A scene no less extraordinary was about this time 
 exhibited at Naples. The kingdom of Naples and Sicily 
 still continued to be ruled by foreigners. Naples was 
 governed by the house of France, and Sicily by that of 
 Arragon. Robert of Anjou, son of Charles the Lame, 
 though he had failed in his attempt to recover possession 
 of Sicily, had made Naples a flourishing kingdom. He 
 died in 1343, and left his crown to Joan, his grand- 
 daughter, who had married her relation Andrew, brother 
 to Lewis of Anjou, elected king of Hungary; a match 
 which seemed to cement the happiness and prosperity 
 of that house, but proved the source of all its mis- 
 fortunes. Andrew pretended to reign in his own right ; 
 and Joan, though but eighteen years of age, insisted that 
 lie should only be considered as the queen's husband. A 
 Franciscan friar, called Brother Robert, by whose advice 
 Andrew was wholly governed, lighted up the flames of 
 hatred and discord between the royal pair ; and the 
 Hungarians, of whom Andrew's court was chiefly com- 
 posed, excited the jealousy of the Neapolitans, who con- 
 sidered them as barbarians. It was therefore resolved, 
 in a council of the queen's favourites, to put Andrew to 
 death. He was accordingly strangled in his wife's anti- 
 chamber: and Joan married the prince of Tarentum, who 
 had been publicly accused of the murder of her husband, 
 and was well known to have been concerned in that 
 bloody deed. How strong a presumption of her own guilt ! 
 In the niean time Lewis king of Hungary, brother to 
 the murdered Andrew, wrote to Joan, that he would re- 
 venge the death of that unfortunate prince on her and her 
 accomplices. He accordingly set out for 
 Naples by the way of Venice and Rome. At 
 Rome he publicly accused Joan, before the tribune Rienzi; 
 
 11. Id. ibid. 
 
 who 
 
i.ET. xLi.] MODERN EUROPE. 493 
 
 who, during the existence of his transitory power, be- 
 held several kings appealing to his tribunal, as was 
 customary in the limes of the ancient republic. Kien- 
 zi, however, declined giving his decision; a modera- 
 tion by which he at least gave one example of his pru- 
 dence: and Lewis advanced towards Naples, carrying 
 along with him a black standard, on which were painted 
 the most striking circumstances of Andrew's murder. 
 He ordered a prince of the blood, and one of the ac- 
 complices in the regicide, to be beheaded. Joan and 
 her husband fled into Provence; where, finding herself 
 utterly abandoned by her subjects, she waited on pope 
 Clement VI. at Avignon, a city of which she was so- 
 vereign, as countess of Provence, and which she sold 
 to that pontiff, together with its territories, for eighty 
 thousand florins in gold, which a celebrated historian 
 tells us were never paid. Here she pleaded her cause 
 in person before the pope, and was acquitted. But per- 
 haps the desire of possessing Avignon had some influ- 
 ence upon the judgment of his holiness. 
 
 Clement's kindness did not stop here. In order to 
 engage the king of Hungary to quit Naples, he pro- 
 posed that Joan should pay liim a sum of money; but 
 as ambition or avarice had no share in I^ewis's enter- 
 prize, he generously replied, " I am not come hither 
 
 *' to sell my brother's blood, but to revenp-e 
 
 . A. D. 1352 
 
 it!" and as he had partly effected his pur- 
 pose, he went away satisfied, though the kingdom of 
 Naples was in his power ". Joan recovered her domi- 
 nions, but only to become more wretched. Of her ii;;:- 
 happy fate I shall afterwards have occasion to speak. 
 
 We must now return to the affairs of the emperor 
 Charles IV. This prince, wlio was equally distingLiisli- 
 ed by his weakness and pride, had no sooner settled 
 the affairs of Germany, than he went 
 to receive the imperial crown at Rome, 
 where he behaved in a manner more pusillanimous 
 
 12. Villani, lib. xii. 
 
 than 
 
494 THE HISTORY OF [parti. 
 
 than any of his predecessors. The coronation cere- 
 mony was no sooner performed than he retired without 
 the walls, in consequence of an agreement which he 
 had made with the pope; though the Romans came 
 to offer him the government of their city, as his here- 
 ditary right, and entreated him to re-establish their 
 ancient liberty. Kc told the deputies he would delibe- 
 rate on the proposal. But being apprehensive of some 
 treachery, he sneaked off in the evening, under pre- 
 tence of going to take the diversion of hunting. And 
 he afterwards ratified and confirmed many promises 
 extorted from him by Clement VI. very much to the 
 prejudice of the empire in Italy''. 
 
 The poet Petrarch, so highly celebrated for his 
 
 <„^^ love-verses, wrote a letter to Charles 
 
 A. D. 1356. , . ' . . , . , r J 
 
 upon this occasion, in which are tound 
 
 these spirited v/orcls: " You have then promised upon 
 *' oath, never to return to Rome! — What shameful 
 " conduct in an emperor to be compelled by a priest 
 " to content himself with the bare title of Csesar, and 
 " to exile himself forever from the habitation of the 
 '' CsesarsI to be crowned emperor, and then prohibited 
 •■' reigning, or acting as head of the empire! — What 
 "• an insult upon him who ought to command the uni- 
 "• verse, to be no longer master of himself, but reduced 
 " to obey his own vassal ^ 
 
 This emperor seenied to have renounced entirely 
 the politics of his predecessors; for he not only discou- 
 raged and rejected the proffers of the Ghibelincs, but 
 affected to treat them as enemies to religion, and actu- 
 ally supported the Gueiphs. By these means he pro- 
 cured the favour of the pope and his dependents, who 
 flattered him with* the most fulsome adulation; but the 
 Italians, in general, viev/ed him with contempt, and 
 the greatest part of the towns attached to the empire, 
 shut their gates against him. At Cremona he was 
 obliged to wait two hours without the walls, before he 
 
 13. Fleury, tom. xx. iiv. 96. 14. Be Vit. Solit. lib. ii. 
 
 received 
 
iET. XLi,] MODERN EUROPE. 495 
 
 received the answer of the magistrates ; who, at 
 last, only permitted him to enter as a simple stranger, 
 without arms or retinue' 5. 
 
 Charles IV. made a more respectable figure after his 
 return to Germany. The number of electorates had 
 been fixed since the time of Henry VII. more by custom 
 than by laws, but not the number of electors. The duke of 
 Bavaria presumed he had a right to elect as well as the 
 coimt Palatine, the elder branch of their family; and the 
 younger brothers of the house of Saxony believed them- 
 selves entitled to vote as well as the elder. The emperor, 
 therefore, resolved to settle these points, that due 
 subordination might take place, and future elections 
 be conducted without confusion or disorder. For this 
 purpose he ordered a diet to be held at Nuremburg, 
 where the famous constitution, called the Golden Bull^ 
 was established, in the presence, and with the consent 
 of all the princes, bishops, abbots, and the deputies of the 
 imperial cities. 
 
 The style of that celebrated charter partakes. strongly 
 of the spirit of the times. It begins with an apostrophe to 
 Satan, anger, pride, luxury; and it says that it is necessary 
 the number of electors should be seven, in order to 
 oppose the seven mortal sins. It speaks or the fall of all 
 the angels, of a heavenly paradise, of Fompey, and of 
 Csesar; and it asserts that the government of Germany 
 is founded on the three theological virtues, as on the 
 Trinity. The seven electors were, as formerly premised, 
 the archbishops of Mentz, Cologne, and Triers, the king 
 of Boiiemia, the count Palatine, the duke of Saxony, and 
 the margrave of Brandenburg. 
 
 The imperial dignity, which of itself then conferred 
 little real power, never shewed more of that lustre which 
 dazzles the eyes of the people, than^n the publication 
 of this famous edict. The three ecciesiaslicr.! electors, 
 all three arch-chancellors, appeared in the procession 
 
 15, Barre, torn. ii. SponJ. dentin Baron, torn. i. 
 
 witli 
 
496 ^ THE HISTORY, &c. [part i. 
 
 with the seals of the empire ; the archbishop of Mentz 
 carried that of Germany, the archbishi^p o' Cologne that 
 of Italy, and the archbishop of Triers, that of Gaul j 
 though the empire now possessed nothing in Gaul, except 
 a claim to empty homage for the remains of the kingdoms 
 of Aries, Provence, and Dauphin^- How little power 
 Charles had in Italy, we have already seen. Besides 
 granting to the pope all the lands claimed by the holy see, 
 he left the family of Visconti in the quiet possession of 
 Milan and Lombardy, which they had usurped froaPL 
 him, and the Venetians in that of Padua, Vicenza, and 
 Verona ^. I must now return to the ceremonial. 
 
 The duke cjf Luxemburg and Brabant, who represent- 
 ed the king of Bohemia, as great cup-bearer, presented 
 the emperor with his drink, poured from a golden flaggon 
 into a cup of the same metal; the duke of Saxony, as 
 grand marshal, appeared with a silver measure filled 
 with oats; the elector of Brandenburg presented the 
 emperor and empress with water to wash in a golden 
 ewer, placed in a golden bason; and the count Palatine 
 served up the victuals in golden dishes, in presence of 
 all the great officers of the empire '^ 
 
 The latter part of the reign of Charles IV. was 
 distinguished by no remarkable transaction except the 
 sale of the imperial jurisdictions in Italy ; which were 
 
 airain resumed and acain sold. Charles who 
 A. D. 1378. ^ , 1 • u * 1 
 
 v.as reputed a good prmce, but a weak em- 
 peror, was succeded in all his possessions and dignities 
 by his son Winceslaus, whom I shall afterward have 
 occasion to mention. V/e must now return to the affairs 
 of England ; remarking by the way, that Charles IV. 
 was an encouragtr of letters, and founded the university 
 of Prague. 
 
 16. Id. ibid. 17. Heiss, liv. ii. chap. 27. 
 
 END OF THE VIRST VOLUME.. 
 
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