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Title: Old English Chronicles

Editor: J. A. Giles

Release date: October 25, 2011 [eBook #37848]

Language: English

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BOHN'S ANTIQUARIAN LIBRARY.

Old English Chronicles.
ETHELWERD—ASSER'S LIFE OF ALFRED—GEOFFREY OF
MONMOUTH—GILDAS—NENNIUS—AND
RICHARD OF CIRENCESTER.

GEORGE BELL AND SONS

LONDON: PORTUGAL ST., LINCOLN'S INN.
CAMBRIDGE: DEIGHTON, BELL AND CO.
NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN CO.
BOMBAY: A.H. WHEELER AND CO.

Old English Chronicles,
INCLUDING

ETHELWERD'S CHRONICLE.

ASSER'S LIFE OF ALFRED.

GEOFFREY OF MONMOUTH'S BRITISH HISTORY.

GILDAS. NENNIUS.

TOGETHER WITH THE

SPURIOUS CHRONICLE OF RICHARD OF CIRENCESTER.

EDITED, WITH ILLUSTRATIVE NOTES,

BY J.A. GILES, D.C.L.,
LATE FELLOW OF CORPUS CHRISTI COLLEGE, OXFORD.

LONDON
GEORGE BELL & SONS
1906

[Reprinted from Stereotype plates.]

EDITOR'S PREFACE.
Of the present volume it will be sufficient to inform the reader that it contains Six
Chronicles, all relating to the history of this country before the Norman Conquest, and all
of essential importance to those who like to study history in the very words of
contemporary writers.
We will at once proceed to enumerate them severally.

Chap. I.—ETHELWERD'S CHRONICLE.

The short chronicle, which passes under the name of Ethelwerd, contains few facts which
are not found in the Saxon Chronicle its precursor. Of the author we know no more than he
has told us in his work. "Malmesbury calls him 'noble and magnificent' with reference to
his rank; for he was descended from king Alfred: but he forgets his peculiar praise—that
of being the only Latin historian for two centuries; though, like Xenophon, Cæsar, and
Alfred, he wielded the sword as much as the pen."[1]
Ethelwerd dedicated his work to, and indeed wrote it for the use of his relation Matilda,
daughter of Otho the Great, emperor of Germany, by his first empress Edgitha or Editha;
who is mentioned in the Saxon Chronicle, a.d. 925, though not by name, as given to Otho
by her brother, king Athelstan. Ethelwerd adds, in his epistle to Matilda, that Athelstan
sent two sisters, in order that the emperor might take his choice; and that he preferred the
mother of Matilda.
The chronology of Ethelwerd is occasionally a year or two at variance with other
authorities. The reader will be guided in reckoning the dates, not by the heading of each
paragraph, a.d. 891, 975, &c., but by the actual words of the author inserted in the body of
the text.
I have translated this short chronicle from the original text as well as I was able, and as
closely as could be to the author's text; but I am by no means certain of having always
succeeded in hitting on his true meaning, for such is the extraordinary barbarism of the
style, that I believe many an ancient Latin classic, if he could rise from his grave, would
attempt in vain to interpret it.

FOOTNOTES:
[1] Ingram, p. viii. note

Chap. II.—ASSER'S LIFE OF ALFRED.

This work is ascribed, on its own internal authority, to Asser, who is said to have been
bishop of St. David's, of Sherborne or of Exeter, in the time of king Alfred. Though most
of the public events recorded in this book are to be found in the Saxon Chronicle, yet for
many interesting circumstances in the life of our great Saxon king we are indebted to this
biography alone. But, as if no part of history is ever to be free from suspicion, or from
difficulty, a doubt has been raised concerning the authenticity of this work.[2] There is also
another short treatise called the Annals of Asser, or the Chronicle of St. Neot, different
from the present: it is published in vol. iii. of Gale and Fell's Collection of Historians. And
it has been suspected by a living writer that both of these works are to be looked upon as
compilations of a later date. The arguments upon which this opinion is founded are drawn
principally from the abrupt and incoherent character of the work before us. But we have
neither time nor space to enter further into this question. As the work has been edited by
Petrie, so has it been here translated, and the reader, taking it upon its own merits, will find
therein much of interest about our glorious king, concerning whom he will lament with me
that all we know is so little, so unsatisfying.

FOOTNOTES:
[2] See Wright's Biographia Literaria Anglo-Saxonica, p. 405. Dr. Lingard, however, in his
recent work on the History and Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church, vol. ii. pp. 424-428, has
replied to Mr. Wright's objections, and vindicated the authenticity of Asser's Life.

Chap. III.—GILDAS.

Of Gildas, the supposed author of the third work contained in this volume, little or nothing
is known. Mr. Stevenson, in the preface to his edition of the original Latin, lately
published by the English Historical Society, says: "We are unable to speak with certainty
as to his parentage, his country, or even his name, the period when he lived, or the works
of which he was the author." Such a statement is surely sufficient to excuse us at present
from saying more on the subject, than that he is supposed to have lived, and to have
written what remains under his name, during some part of the sixth century. There are two
legends[3] of the life of St. Gildas, as he is termed, but both of them abound with such
absurdities that they scarcely deserve to be noticed in a serious history. Of the present
translation, the first or historic half is entirely new; in the rest, consisting almost entirely of
texts from Scripture, the translator has thought it quite sufficient to follow the old
translation of Habington, correcting whatever errors he could detect, and in some degree

relieving the quaint and obsolete character of the language. It has been remarked by
Polydore Virgil, that Gildas quotes no other book but the Bible; and it may be added, that
his quotations are in other words than those of the Vulgate or common authorized
translation. The title of the old translation is as follows: "The Epistle of Gildas the most
ancient British Author: who flourished in the yeere of our Lord, 546. And who by his great
erudition, sanctitie, and wisdome, acquired the name of Sapiens. Faithfully translated out
of the originall Latine." London, 12mo. 1638.

FOOTNOTES:
[3] Both these works are given in the appendix to the editor's "History of the Ancient Britons."

Chap. IV.—NENNIUS.

The History of the Britons, which occupies the fourth place in this volume is generally
ascribed to Nennius, but so little is known about the author, that we have hardly any
information handed down to us respecting him except this mention of his name. It is also
far from certain at what period the history was written, and the difference is no less than a
period of two hundred years, some assigning the work to seven hundred and ninety-six,
and others to nine hundred and ninety-four. The recent inquiries of Mr. Stevenson, to be
found in the Preface to his new edition of the original Latin, render it unnecessary at
present to delay the reader's attention from the work itself. The present translation is
substantially that of the Rev. W. Gunn, published with the Latin original in 1819, under the
following title: "The 'Historia Britonum,' commonly attributed to Nennius; from a
manuscript lately discovered in the library of the Vatican Palace at Rome: edited in the
tenth century, by Mark the Hermit; with an English version, facsimile of the original, notes
and illustrations." The kindness of that gentleman has enabled the present editor to reprint
the whole, with only a few corrections of slight errata, which inadvertency alone had
occasioned, together with the two prologues and several pages of genealogies, which did
not occur in the MS. used by that gentleman.

Chap. V.—GEOFFREY OF MONMOUTH.

Geoffrey, surnamed of Monmouth, is celebrated in English literature as the author, or at
least the translator, of Historia Britonum, a work from which nearly all our great
vernacular poets have drawn the materials for some of their noblest works of fiction and

characters of romance. He lived in the early part of the twelfth century, and in the year
1152 was raised to the bishopric of St. Asaph.
The first of his writings, in point of time, was a Latin translation of the Prophecies of
Merlin, which he undertook at the request of Alexander bishop of Lincoln. His next work
was that on which his fame principally rests, the Historia Britonum, dedicated to Robert,
duke of Gloucester, who died in 1147. Into this second work he inserted the Latin
translation above-mentioned, which now appears as the seventh book of Historia
Britonum. A third composition has also been ascribed to Geoffrey, entitled Vita Merlini, in
Latin hexameter verse: but the internal evidence which it affords, plainly proves that it is
the work of a different author.
Although the list of our Chroniclers may be considered as complete, without the addition
of this work, yet we have thought it worthy of a place in our series for many reasons. It is
not for historical accuracy that the book before us is valuable; for the great mass of
scholars have come to the decided conviction that it is full of fables. But it is the romantic
character which pervades the narrative, together with its acknowledged antiquity, which
make it desirable that the book should not sink into oblivion. Those who desire to possess
it as a venerable relic of an early age, will now have an opportunity of gratifying their
wish; whilst others, who despise it as valueless, in their researches after historic truth, may,
nevertheless, find some little pleasure in the tales of imagination which it contains.
The value of this work is best evinced by the attention which was paid to it for many
centuries; Henry of Huntingdon made an abstract of it, which he subjoined as an appendix
to his history: and Alfred of Beverley, a later writer, in his abridgment of this work which
still exists, has omitted Geoffrey's name, though he calls the author of the original,
Britannicus.
An English translation of the work was first published by Aaron Thompson, of Queen's
College, Oxford, [8vo. Lond. 1718.] and lately revised and reprinted by the editor of this
volume, [8vo. Lond. 1842.] A long preface is prefixed to that translation, wherein the
author endeavoured to prove Geoffrey of Monmouth to be a more faithful historian than he
is generally considered to be. His words are as follow:—"I am not unsensible that I expose
myself to the censures of some persons, by publishing this translation of a book, which
they think had better been suppressed and buried in oblivion, as being at present generally
exploded for a groundless and fabulous story, such as our modern historians think not
worthy relating, or at least mention with contempt. And though it is true, several men, and
those of learning too, censure this book who have but little considered it, and whose
studies no ways qualify them to judge of it; yet, I own this consideration has for a long
time deterred me from publishing it: and I should not at last have been able to surmount
this difficulty, without the importunity and encouragement of others, to whom I owe a
singular regard. I had indeed before I entered upon the work perused the principal writers
both for and against this history, the effect of which upon my own judgment, as to the
swaying it to the one side more than the other, was but very small; and I must confess, that
I find the most learned antiquaries the most modest in their opinions concerning it, and
that it seems to me to be a piece of great rashness, to judge peremptorily upon a matter,

whereof at this great distance of time there are no competent witnesses on either side. At
least I cannot but think it a sufficient apology for my publishing this book, to consider
only, that though it seems to suffer under a general prejudice at present, yet it has not long
done so; but that upon its first appearing in the world, it met with a universal approbation,
and that too, from those who had better opportunities of examining the truth of it, as there
were then more monuments extant, and the traditions more fresh and uncorrupted
concerning the ancient British affairs, than any critics of the present age can pretend to;
that it had no adversary before William of Newburgh about the end of the reign of Richard
the First, whose virulent invective against it, we are told, proceeded from a revenge he
thought he owed the Welsh for an affront they had given him; that his opposition was far
from shaking the credit of it with our succeeding historians, who have, most of them, till
the beginning of the last century, confirmed it with their testimonies, and copied after it, as
often as they had occasion to treat of the same affairs: that its authority was alleged by
king Edward the First and all the nobility of the kingdom, in a controversy of the greatest
importance, before Boniface the Eighth; that even in this learned age, that is so industrious
to detect any impostures, which through the credulity of former times had passed upon the
world, the arguments against this history are not thought so convincing, but that several
men of equal reputation for learning and judgment with its adversaries, have written in
favour of it; that very few have at last spoken decisively against it, or absolutely
condemned it; and that it is still most frequently quoted by our most learned historians and
antiquaries. All these considerations, I say, if they do not amount to an apology for the
history itself, show at least that it deserves to be better known than at present it is; which is
sufficient to justify my undertaking the publishing of it."
It is unnecessary in the present day to prove that king Brute is a shadowy personage, who
never existed but in the regions of romance: but as the reader may justly expect to find in
this place some account of the controversy which has existed respecting this work, the
following remarks will not be deemed inappropriate. There seems no good reason for
supposing that Geoffrey of Monmouth intended to deceive the world respecting the history
of which he professed to be the translator; and it may be readily conceived that he did no
more than fulfil the task which he had undertaken, of rendering the book into Latin out of
the original language. But those who, even as late as the beginning of the last century,
supported the authenticity of the history, have grounded their opinions on such arguments
as the following:—
1. That, upon its first appearance in the world, the book met with universal approbation,
and that too from those who had better opportunities of examining the truth of it, as there
were then more monuments extant, and the traditions were more fresh and uncorrupted,
concerning the ancient British affairs, than any critics of the present age can pretend to.
2. That except William of Newburgh, about the end of the reign of Richard I, it met with
no opponents even down to the seventeenth century, but was, on the contrary, quoted by
all, in particular by Edward I, in a controversy before Boniface the Eighth.
3. That we see in this history the traces of venerable antiquity.

4. That the story of Brute, and the descent of the Britons from the Trojans, was universally
allowed by Giraldus Cambrensis and others, and was opposed for the first time by John of
Wethamstede, [Nicolson's Eng. Hist. Lit. 2nd ed. p. 1, c. v.] who lived in the 15th century:
that Polydore Virgil's contempt for it proceeded from his wish to preserve unimpaired the
glory of the Romans, and Buchanan's observations betray his ignorance of the story.
5. That Leland, who lived under Henry the Eighth, Humphrey Lhwyd, Sir John Price, Dr.
Caius, Dr. Powel, and others, have supported the story of Brute, etc.
Such arguments may have satisfied the credulous students of the seventeenth century, but
the more enlightened criticism of the present day will no longer listen to them. It may not,
however, be uninteresting to hear the account which Thompson, the English translator
gives of this work, which in his own words, and with his additional remarks upon it, is as
follows:—"The story, as collected from himself, Leland, Bale, and Pitts, is that Walter
Mapes, alias Calenius, archdeacon of Oxford, who flourished in the reign of Henry I, and
of whom Henry of Huntingdon, and other historians as well as Geoffrey himself, make
honourable mention, being a man very curious in the study of antiquity, and a diligent
searcher into ancient libraries, and especially after the works of ancient authors, happened
while he was in Armorica to light upon a History of Britain, written in the British tongue,
and carrying marks of great antiquity. And being overjoyed at it, as if he had found a vast
treasure, he in a short time after came over to England; where inquiring for a proper
person to translate this curious but hitherto unknown book, he very opportunely met with
Geoffrey of Monmouth, a man profoundly versed in the history and antiquities of Britain,
excellently skilled in the British tongue, and withal (considering the time,) an elegant
writer both in verse and prose; and so recommended this task to him. Accordingly,
Geoffrey, being incredibly delighted with this ancient book, undertook the translating of it
into Latin, which he performed, with great diligence, approving himself, according to
Matthew Paris, a faithful translator. At first he divided it into four books, written in a plain
simple style, and dedicated it to Robert, earl of Gloucester, a copy whereof is said[4] to be
at Bennet College, in Cambridge, which was never yet published; but afterwards he made
some alterations and divided it into eight books, to which he added the book of Merlin's
Prophecies, which he had also translated from British verse into Latin prose, prefixing to it
a preface, and a letter to Alexander, bishop of Lincoln. A great many fabulous and trifling
stories are inserted in the history: but that was not his fault; his business as a translator was
to deliver them faithfully such as they were, and leave them to the judgment of the learned
to be discussed.
"To prove the truth of this relation, and to answer at once all objections against Geoffrey's
integrity, one needs no other argument than an assurance that the original manuscript
which Geoffrey translated, of whose antiquity the curious are able to judge in a great
measure by the character, or any ancient and authentic copy of it, is yet extant. And
indeed, archbishop Usher[5] mentions an old Welsh Chronicle in the Cottonian Library,
that formerly was in the possession of that learned antiquary, Humphrey Lhwyd, which he
says is thought to be that which Geoffrey translated. But if that be the original manuscript,
it must be acknowledged that Geoffrey was not merely a translator, but made some

additions of his own: since, as that most learned prelate informs us, the account that we
have in this History of the British Flamens, and Archflamens, is nowhere to be found in it.
But besides this, there are several copies of it in the Welsh tongue, mentioned by the late
ingenious and learned Mr. Lhwyd in his 'Archæologia Britannica.' And I myself have met
with a manuscript history of our British affairs, written above a hundred years ago by Mr.
John Lewis, and shortly to be published, wherein the author says, that he had the original
of the British History in parchment written in the British tongue before Geoffrey's time, as
he concludes from this circumstance, that in his book Geoffrey's preface was wanting, and
the preface to his book was the second chapter of that published by Geoffrey. My
ignorance of the Welsh tongue renders me unqualified for making any search into these
matters; and though the search should be attended with never so much satisfaction, to
those who are able to judge of the antiquity of manuscripts, yet to the generality of readers,
other arguments would perhaps be more convincing."
The passages which we have here quoted at length, will give the reader the most ample
information concerning the nature of the question, and it only remains to inform the reader
what is my own opinion on this long-agitated literary controversy.
To those who have read the plain and simple statements of Julius Cæsar and the other
classic historians who have described the early state of Britain, it will be morally certain
that all such accounts as we have in Geoffrey of Monmouth are purely fabulous. The
uncertainty of every thing, save the bare fact, connected with the siege of Troy, is so great,
that to connect its fortunes with those of a distant and at that time unheard-of island like
Britain, can be admissible only in the pages of romance. But in the latter part of the work
which contains the history of Britain, during its conquest by the Saxons, we may possibly
find the germs of facts unnoticed elsewhere.
This view does not militate against the veracity of Geoffrey, who professes to have
translated from an original in the British language, but whether any manuscript copy of
this original now exists, is a point which has not been satisfactorily ascertained. In 1811,
the Rev. Peter Roberts published the Chronicle of the Kings of Britain, translated from
Welsh manuscripts, and being in substance almost identically the same as Geoffrey's
History of the Britons,—but it is most likely that these Welsh MSS., which are all
comparatively modern, are themselves re-translations from the Latin of Geoffrey.
If no other arguments could be adduced to prove the utter incredibility of the earlier parts
of this history, the following Chronological Table would furnish quite sufficient arguments
to establish it, by the extraordinary anachronisms which it contains. For instance, between
the reigns of Brutus and Leil, is an interval of 156 years; and yet Geoffrey makes the
capture of the ark contemporaneous with the reign of Brutus, and the building of
Solomon's temple with that of Leil. Now the interval between these two events cannot by
any possibility be extended beyond eighty years. It is, moreover, impossible to bring the
chronology of the British kings themselves into harmony with the dates before Christ, as
there is no mention made of the exact interval between the taking of Troy and Brutus's
landing in Britain.

Geoffrey inscribes his work to Robert, earl of Gloucester, son of Henry the Second.

GENEALOGICAL SUMMARY.

Latinus

= Æneas = Lavinia (——)

Ascanius

Sylvius Pandrasus = (Niece of Lavinia). I. 3.

1. Brutus at the age of 15 kills his father (I. 3.) Reigns
Ignoge =
twenty four years. (II. 1.)
At this time Eli governed Israel, and the ark was taken by
the Philistines, and the
sons of Hector reigned in Troy and Sylvius Æneas, uncle of
Brutus, in Italy. (I. 17.)

Corinæus Albanact Kamber II. 1.

Locrin by Estrildis has Sabre, who
2. Locrin = 3. Guendolœna
being drowned in the Severn, gives
r. 10 yrs. 15 years.
name to that river.

4. Maddan. II. 6. At this time Samuel governed Israel,
40 yrs. and Homer flourished.

5. Mempricius Saul reigns in Judæa, Eurystheus in
Malim
20 yrs. Lacedæmon.

6. Ebraucus
King David—Sylvius Latinus—Gad
40 yrs.
—Nathan and Asaph.
(or 60, quære, II. 7, 8)

7. Brutus II., 12 yrs. and 19 other sons and 30 daughters, II. 8.

8. Leil Solomon—Queen of Sheba—
25 yrs. Sylvius Epitus.

9. Hudibras Capys—Haggai—Amos—Joel—
39 yrs. Azariah.

10. Bladud
Elijah.
20 yrs. II. 10.

11. Leir
60 II. 11. yrs.

12. Gonorilla Regan = Cordeilla =
= Maglaunus, Henuinus, Aganippus,
5 yrs. D. of D. of K. of
Albania. Cornwall. Gaul.

Margan Isaiah—Hosea—Rome
13. Cunedagius
built by Romulus and
33 yrs.
Remus.

14. Rivallo

15. Gurgustius (——)

16. Sisilius 17. Jago

18. Kinmarcus

19. Gorbogudo =
Widen

Ferrex Porrex
Long civil wars.

At length arose Dunwallo Molmutius, son of Cloten, king of Cornwall. II. 17.

20. Dunwallo Molmutius =
Conwenna
40 yrs.

21. Belinus
Brennius
5 yrs. in concert with Brennius.

22. Gurgiunt Brabtruc. III. 11.

23. Guithelin =
Martia

24. Sisillius

26. Danius =
25. Kimarus
Tangustela

27. Morvidus

32.
28. Gorbonian 29. Arthgallo 30. Elidure 31. Vigenius
Peredure

Arthgallo was deposed in favour of Elidure, who, after a reign of
five years, restored his brother, who reigned 10 years afterwards.
Elidure then reigned a second time but was deposed by Vigenius
and Peredure: after whose deaths he reigned a third time.

33. Gorbonian's
son, III. 19.

37.
34. Margan 35. Enniaunus 36. Idwallo
Runno

38. Geruntius

39. Catellus

40. Coillus 41. Porrex 42. Cherin

43. Fulgenius 44. Eldadusx 45. Andragius

46. Urianus

51.
47. Eliud 48. Cledaucus 49. Cletonus 50. Gurgintius
Merianus

52. Bleduno 53. Cap 54. Oenus 55. Sisillius

56. Blegabred 57. Arthmail

61.
58. Eldol 59. Redion 60. Rederchius 62. Pir
Samuilpenissel

63. Capoir III. 19.

64. Cligueillus

65. Heli

66. Lud. III. 20 67. Cassibellaun Nennius

Cæsar's invasion took place during Cassibellaun's reign.

68. Tenuantius

Jesus Christ is born in
69. Kymbelinus the reign of Kymbelinus
or Cymbeline.
Claudius

70. Guiderius 71. Arviragus = Genuissa

72. Marius

73. Coillus

74. Lucius IV. 19.

Lucius embraces Christianity: he dies, a.d. 156.

75. Severus

76. Bassianus or Caracalla

77. Carausius, V.
78. Allectus
3.

79.
80. Coel
Asclepiodotus

Helena = 81.
Constantius
r. 11 yrs.

82. Constantine, emperor
of Rome

83. Octavius assumes the crown of Britain.

(Daughter) = 84. Maximian, V. 11.

85. Gratian Municeps

At this time the Picts and Scots harass the Britons, who apply to the Romans.

86. Constantine, prince of Armorica, comes to assist the Britons.

87. Constans 90. Utherpendragon
89. Aurelius
Igerna
Ambrosius
VIII. 17. = VIII.
VIII. 2.
19.

88. Vortigern usurps the throne (VI. 9) and calls in the
Saxons.

91. Arthur IX. 1. Anne

King Arthur dies, a.d. 542 (XI. 3.)

92. Constantine 93. Aurelius Conan 94. Wortiporius 95. Malgo

96. Careticus 97. Cadwan

Peanda (sister) = 98. Cadwallo

99. Cadwallader

Cadwallader goes to Rome, where he is confirmed in the faith of Christ by pope Sergius,
and dies a.d. 689.

FOOTNOTES:
[4] See Pitts and Voss.
[5] Brit. Eccl. Prim. cap. 5

Chap. VI.—RICHARD OF CIRENCESTER.

The supposed chronicle of Richard of Cirencester was first brought before the public by
Charles Julius Bertram, Professor of the English Language in the Royal Marine Academy,
at Copenhagen, in the year 1757.
Since the publication of the volume, it has been conclusively proved to be a modern
forgery. The editor's remarks on that portion of the volume are therefore omitted, though
the document is retained on the supposition that it may be convenient to some readers to
have the text of a composition which was extensively used before its spurious character
was ascertained.

THE CHRONICLE
OF

FABIUS ETHELWERD,
FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE WORLD TO THE YEAR OF OUR LORD 975.

IN FOUR BOOKS.

To Matilda, the most eloquent and true handmaid of Christ, Ethelwerd the patrician, health
in the Lord! I have received, dearest sister, your letter which I longed for, and I not only
read it with kisses, but laid it up in the treasury of my heart. Often and often do I pray the
grace of the Most High, to preserve you in safety during this life present, and after death to
lead you to his everlasting mansions. But as I once before briefly hinted to you by letter, I
now, with God's help, intend to begin in the way of annals from the beginning of the
world, and explain to you more fully about our common lineage and descent, to the end
that the reader's task may be lightened, and the pleasure of the hearer may be augmented,
whilst he listens to it. Concerning the coming of our first parents out of Germany into
Britain, their numberless wars and slaughters, and the dangers which they encountered on
ship-board among the waves of the ocean, in the following pages you will find a full
description. In the present letter therefore I have written, without perplexity of style, of our
modern lineage and relationship, who were our relations, and how, and where they came
from: as far as our memory can go, and according as our parents taught us. For instance
king Alfred was son of king Ethelwulf, from whom we derive our origin, and who had five
sons, one of whom was king Ethelred[6] my ancestor, and another king Alfred who was
yours. This king Alfred sent his daughter Ethelswitha into Germany to be the wife of
Baldwin,[7] who had by her two sons Ethelwulf and Arnulf, also two daughters Elswid and
Armentruth. Now from Ethelswitha is descended count Arnulf,[8] your neighbour. The
daughter of king Edward son of the above-named king Alfred was named Edgiva, and was
sent by your aunt into Gaul to marry Charles the Simple. Ethilda also was sent to be the
wife of Hugh, son of Robert: and two others were sent by king Athelstan to Otho that he
might choose which of them he liked best to be his wife. He[9] chose Edgitha, from whom
you derive your lineage; and united the other in marriage to a certain king[10] near the
Jupiterean Mountains, of whose family no memorial has reached us, partly from the
distance and partly from the confusion of the times. It is your province to inform us of
these particulars, not only from your relationship, but also because no lack of ability or
interval of space prevents you.[11]

HERE ENDS THE PROLOGUE.

FOOTNOTES:
[6] Ethelred died and Alfred succeeded him a.d. 871.
[7] Baldwin, count of Flanders died a.d. 918. See Malmesbury, p. 121.
[8] Arnulf, count of Flanders, a.d. 965.
[9] The emperor Otho married Edgitha a.d. 930.
[10] Lewis the blind.
[11] The writer adds the barbarous verse, "Esto mihi valens cunctis perhenniter horis," which is
as easy to construe as to scan.

BOOK THE FIRST BEGINS.

The beginning of the world comes first. For on the first day God, in the apparition of the
light, created the angels: on the second day, under the name of the firmament he created
the heavens; &c. &c.[12]
Rome was destroyed by the Goths in the eleven hundred and forty-sixth year after it was
built. From that time the Roman authority ceased in the island of Britain, and in many
other countries which they had held under the yoke of slavery. For it was now four
hundred and eighty-five years, beginning with Caius Julius Cæsar, that they had held the
island above-mentioned, wherein they had built cities and castles, bridges and streets of
admirable construction, which are seen among us even to the present day. But whilst the
people of Britain were living carelessly within the wall, which had been built by Severus
to protect them, there arose two nations, the Picts in the north and the Scots in the west,
and leading an army against them, devastated their country, and inflicted many sufferings
upon them for many years. The Britons being unable to bear their misery, by a wise device
send to Rome a mournful letter[13] ... the army returned victorious to Rome. But the Scots
and Picts, hearing that the hostile army was gone, rejoiced with no little joy. Again they
take up arms, and like wolves attack the sheepfold which is left without a protector: they
devastate the northern districts as far as the ditch of Severus: the Britons man the wall and
fortify it with their arms; but fortune denied them success in the war. The cunning Scots,
knowing what to do against the high wall and the deep trench, contrive iron goads with
mechanical art, and dragging down those who were standing on the wall, slay them
without mercy: they remain victors both within and without; they at once plunder and take
possession; and a slaughter is made worse than all that had been before. Thus ended the
four hundred and forty-fourth year since the incarnation of our Lord.
The Britons, seeing themselves on every side vanquished, and that they could have no
more hopes from Rome, devise, in their agony and lamentations, a plan to adopt. For in

those days they heard, that the race of the Saxons were active, in piratical enterprises,
throughout the whole coast, from the river Rhine to the Danish city,[14] which is now
commonly called Denmark, and strong in all matters connected with war. They therefore
send to them messengers, bearing gifts, and ask assistance, promising them their alliance
when they should be at peace. But the mind of that degraded race was debased by
ignorance, and they saw not that they were preparing for themselves perpetual slavery,
which is the stepmother of all misfortune.

The person who especially gave this counsel was Vurthern,[15] who at that time was king
over all, and to him all the nobility assented. They preferred to procure assistance to them
from Germany. Already two young men, Hengist and Horsa, were pre-eminent. They were
the grandsons of Woden, king of the barbarians, whom the pagans have since raised to an
abominable dignity, and honouring him as a god, offer sacrifice to him for the sake of
victory or valour, and the people, deceived, believe what they see, as is their wont. The
aforesaid youths therefore arrive, according to the petition of the king and his senate, with
three vessels, loaded with arms, and prepared with every kind of warlike stores: the anchor
is cast into the sea, and the ships come to land. Not long afterwards they are sent against
the Scots to try their mettle, and without delay they sheathe their breasts in arms, and
engage in a novel mode of battle. Man clashes with man, now falls a German and now a
Scot: on both sides is a most wretched scene of slaughter: at length the Saxons remain
masters of the field. For this the king aforesaid honours them with a triumph; and they
privately send home messengers, to tell their countrymen of the fertility of the country and
the indolence of its cowardly people. Their countrymen, without delay, listen to their
representations, and send to them a large fleet and army. Forthwith they were
magnificently received by the king of the Britons, and contracted a league of hospitality
with the natives. The Britons promise peace, worthy gifts of alliance and honours,
provided that they might remain in ease under their protection from the attacks of their
enemies, and pay them immense stipends.
Thus much of the alliance and promises of the Britons: now let us speak of their discord
and ill fortune. For seeing the cunningness of the new people, they partly feared and partly
despised them. They break their compact, and no longer render them the honours of
alliance, but instead thereof, they try to drive them from their shores. These being their
designs, the thing is made public, the treaty is openly set aside, all parties fly to arms: the
Britons give way, and the Saxons keep possession of the country. Again they send to
Germany, not secretly as before, but by a public embassy, as victors are wont to do, and
demand reinforcements. A large multitude joined them from every province of Germany;
and they carried on war against the Britons, driving them from their territories with great
slaughter, and ever remaining masters of the field. At last the Britons bend their necks to
the yoke, and pay tribute. This migration is said to have been made from the three
provinces of Germany, which are said to have been the most distinguished, namely, from
Saxony, Anglia, and Giota. The Cantuarians derived their origin from the Giotæ [Jutes],
and also the Uuhtii, who took their name from the island Wihta [Isle of Wight], which lies
on the coast of Britain.

For out of Saxony, which is now called Ald-Sexe, or Old Saxony, came the tribes which
are still called so among the English, the East Saxons, South Saxons, and West Saxons;
that is, those who are called in Latin, the Oriental, Austral, and Occidental Saxons.
Out of the province of Anglia came the East Anglians, Middle Anglians, Mercians, and all
the race of the Northumbrians. Moreover Old Anglia is situated between the Saxons and
Jutes, having a capital town, which in Saxon is called Sleswig, but in Danish Haithaby.
Britain, therefore, is now called Anglia [England], because it took the name of its
conquerors: for their leaders aforesaid were the first who came thence to Britain; namely,
Hengist and Horsa, sons of Wyhrtels:[16] their grandfather was Wecta, and their great-
grandfather Withar, whose father was Woden, who also was king of a multitude of
barbarians. For the unbelievers of the North are oppressed by such delusion that they
worship him as a god even to this day, namely the Danes, the North-men, and the Suevi; of
whom Lucan says,
"Pours forth the yellow Suevi from the North."
So greatly did the invasion of those nations spread and increase, that they by degrees
obliterated all memory of the inhabitants who had formerly invited them with gifts. They
demand their stipends: the Britons refuse: they take up arms, discord arises, and as we
have before said, they drive the Britons into certain narrow isthmuses of the island, and
themselves hold possession of the island from sea to sea even unto the present time.
A. 418. In the ninth year also after the sacking of Rome by the Goths, those of Roman race
who were left in Britain, not bearing the manifold insults of the people, bury their
treasures in pits thinking that hereafter they might have better fortune, which never was
the case; and taking a portion, assemble on the coast, spread their canvas to the winds, and
seek an exile on the shores of Gaul.
A. 430. Twelve years after, bishop Palladius is sent by the holy pope Celestinus to preach
the gospel of Christ to the Scots.

FOOTNOTES:
[12] Here follow several pages, in which the writer, like other annalists, deduces his history
from the creation. It is now universally the custom with modern writers and translators to omit
such preliminary matter.
[13] There is evidently a hiatus in this passage, but see Bede i. 13, p. 22.
[14] Urbs, "city," seems here rather to designate country or territory.
[15] Otherwise called Vortigern.
[16] More commonly called Wihtgila.

[17]
CHAPTER
A. 449. When, therefore, nineteen years had elapsed, Maurice and Valentine[18] became
emperors of Rome; in whose reign Hengist and Horsa at the invitation of Vortigern king of
the Britons arrive at the place called Wipped's-fleet, at first on the plea of assisting the
Britons: but afterwards they rebelled and became their enemies, as we have already said.
Now the number of years, completed since the marvellous incarnation of our Lord Jesus
Christ, was four hundred and forty-nine.
A. 455. In the sixth year after, Hengist and Horsa fought a battle against Vortigern in the
plain of Ægelsthrep. There Horsa was killed, and Hengist obtained the kingdom.
A. 457. But after two years, Hengist and Æsc his son renewed the war against the Britons;
and there fell in that day on the side of the Britons four thousand men. Then the Britons,
leaving Cantia, which is commonly called Kent, fled to the city of London.
A. 465. About eight years after, the same men took up arms against the Britons, and there
was a great slaughter made on that day: twelve chiefs of the Britons fell near a place called
Wipped's-fleet; there fell a soldier of the Saxons called Wipped, from which circumstance
that place took its name; in the same way as the Thesean sea was so called from Theseus,
and the Ægæan sea from Ægeus who was drowned in it.
A. 473. After eight years were completed, Hengist with his son Æsc, a second time make
war against the Britons, and having slaughtered their army, remain victors on the field of
battle, and carry off immense spoils.
A. 477. In the fourth year Ælla landed in Britain from Germany with his three sons, at a
place called Cymenes-Ora, and defeated the Britons at Aldredes-leage.[19]
A. 485. After eight years, the same people fight against the Britons, near a place called
Mearcrædsburn.
A. 488. After this, at an interval of three years, Æsc, son of Hengist, began to reign in
Kent.
A. 492. After three years, Ælla and Assa besieged a town called Andreds-cester, and slew
all its inhabitants, both small and great, leaving not a single soul alive.
A. 495. After the lapse of three more years, Cerdic and his son Cynric sailed to Britain
with five ships, to a port called Cerdic's-ore, and on the same day fought a battle against
the Britons, in which they were finally victorious.
A. 500. Six years after their arrival, they sailed round the western part of Britain, which is
now called Wessex.

A. 501. Also after a year Port landed in Britain with his son Bieda.
A. 508. Seven years after his arrival, Cerdic with his son Cynric slay Natan-Leod, king of
the Britons, and five thousand men with him.
A. 514. Six years after, Stuf and Wihtgar landed in Britain at Cerdic's-ore, and suddenly
make war on the Britons, whom they put to flight, and themselves remain masters of the
field. Thus was completed the fifty-sixth[20] year since Hengist and Horsa first landed in
Britain.
A. 519. Five years after, Cerdic and Cynric fought a battle against the Britons at Cerdic's-
ford,[21] on the river Avene, and that same year nominally began to reign.
A. 527. Eight years after, they renew the war against the Britons.
A. 530. After three years, they took the Isle of Wight, the situation of which we have
mentioned above: but they did not kill many of the Britons.
A. 534. Four years after, Cerdic with his son Cenric gives up the Isle of Wight into the
hands of their two cousins Stuf and Wihtgar. In the course of the same year Cerdic died,
and Cenric his son began to reign after him, and he reigned twenty-seven years.
A. 538. When he had reigned four years, the sun was eclipsed from the first hour of the
day to the third.[22]
A. 540. Again, two years after, the sun was eclipsed for half-an-hour after the third hour,
so that the stars were everywhere visible in the sky.
A. 547. In the seventh year after this, Ida began to reign over the province of
Northumberland, whose family derive their kingly title and nobility from Woden.
A. 552. Five years after, Cenric fought against the Britons near the town of Scarburh [Old
Sarum], and, having routed them, slew a large number.
A. 556. The same, four years afterwards, fought with Ceawlin against the Britons, near a
place called Berin-byrig [Banbury?]
A. 560. At the end of about four years, Ceawlin began to reign over the western part of
Britain, which is now commonly called Wessex. Moreover, Ella the Iffing is sent to the
race of Northumbria, whose ancestry extends up to the highest, namely to Woden.
A. 565. Five years afterwards, Christ's servant Columba came from Scotia [Ireland] to
Britain, to preach the word of God to the Picts.
A. 568. Three years after his coming, Ceawlin and Cutha stirred up a civil war against
Ethelbert, and having defeated him, pursued him into Kent, and slew his two chiefs, Oslaf
and Cnebba, in Wubbandune.[23]

A. 571. After three years, Cuthulf fought against the Britons at Bedanford [Bedford], and
took four royal cities, namely Liganburh [Lenbury], Eglesburh [Aylesbury], Bensingtun
[Benson], and Ignesham [Eynsham].
A. 577. After the lapse of six years, Cuthwin and Ceawlin fight against the Britons, and
slay three of their kings, Comail, Condidan, and Farinmeail, at a place called Deorhamme
[Derham?]; and they took three of their most distinguished cities, Gloucester, Cirencester,
and Bath.
A. 584. After seven years, Ceawlin and Cutha fought against the Britons, at a place called
Fethanleage [Frethern?]: there Cutha fell; but Ceawlin reduced a multitude of cities, and
took immense spoils.
A. 592. In the eighth year there was a great slaughter on both sides, at a place called
Wodnesbyrg [Wemborow?], so that Ceawlin was put to flight, and died at the end of one
more year.
A. 593. After him, Cwichelm, Crida, and Ethelfrid, succeeded to the kingdom.

FOOTNOTES:
[17] Capitulum in the original: but no number is annexed.
[18] This should be Marcian and Valentinian.
[19] Perhaps an error for Andredes-leage, formerly Anderida, in Sussex.
[20] This number should be sixty-six.
[21] Charford, near Fordingbridge, Hants.
[22] That is, from seven till nine o'clock in the morning.
[23] Wimbledon, or Worplesdon, Surrey.

HERE ENDS BOOK THE FIRST.

HERE BEGINS THE PROLOGUE TO BOOK THE SECOND.

In the beginning of this book it will not be necessary to make a long preface, my dearest
sister; for I have guided my pen down through many perplexed subjects from the highest
point, and, omitting those things extracted from sacred and profane history, on which most
persons have fixed their attention, have left higher matters to the skilful reader. And now I
must turn my pen to the description of those things which properly concern our ancestors;
and though a pupil is not properly called a member, yet it yields no little service to the
other members.

We therefore entreat in God's name that our words may not be despised by the malevolent,
but rather that they may give abundant thanks to the King of heaven, if they seem to speak
things of high import.

HERE ENDS THE PROLOGUE;

AND

THE SECOND BOOK BEGINS.

Chap. I.—Of the coming of Augustine, who was sent by the blessed Pope
Gregory. [a.d. 596.]

As Divine Providence, mercifully looking down upon all things from all eternity, is
accustomed to rule them, not by necessity, but by its powerful superintendence, and
remaining always immoveable in itself, and disposing the different elements by its word,
and the human race to come to the knowledge of the truth by the death of his only begotten
Son, by whose blood the four quarters of the world are redeemed, so now by his servant
doth it dispel the darkness in the regions of the west.
Whilst therefore the blessed pope Gregory sat on the episcopal seat, and sowed the seeds
of the gospel of Christ, there stood by him some men of unknown tongue and very comely
to look on. The holy man admiring the beauty of their countenances, asked of them with
earnestness from what country they came. The young men with downcast looks replied,
that they were Angles. "Are you Christians," said the holy man, "or heathens?" "Certainly
not Christians," said they, "for no one has yet opened our ears." Then the holy man, lifting
up his eyes, replied, "What man, when there are stones at hand, lays a foundation with
reeds?" They answer, "No man of prudence." "You have well said," answered he; and he
straightway took them into a room, where he instructed them in the divine oracles, and
afterwards washed them with the baptism of Christ: and further he arranged with them,
that he would go with them into their country. When the Romans heard of this they
opposed his words, and were unwilling to allow their pastor to go so far from home. The
blessed pope Gregory, therefore, seeing that the people were opposed to him, sent with the
men aforesaid one of his disciples, who was well instructed in the divine oracles, by name
Augustine, and with him a multitude of brethren. When these men arrived, the English
received the faith and erected temples, and our Saviour Jesus Christ exhibited innumerable
miracles to his faithful followers through the prayers of the bishop, St. Augustine; at
whose tomb, even to the present day, no small number of miracles are wrought, with the
assistance of our Lord.

Chap. II.—Of king Ethelbert, and of his baptism. [a.d. 597.]

When the man aforesaid arrived, Ethelbert bore rule over Kent, and receiving the faith,
submitted to be baptized with all his house. He was the first king among the English who
received the word of Christ. Lastly Ethelbert was the son of Ermenric, whose grandfather
was Ochta, who bore the prænomen of Eisc,[24] from which the kings of Kent were
afterwards named Esings, as the Romans from Romulus, the Cecropidæ from Cecrops, and
the Tuscans from Tuscus. For Eisc was the father of Hengist, who was the first consul and
leader of the Angles out of Germany; whose father was Wihtgils, his grandfather Witta, his
great-grandfather Wecta, his great-grandfather's father Woden, who also was king of many
nations, whom some of the pagans now still worship as a god. And the number of years
that was completed from the incarnation of our Lord was four years less, than six hundred.
[25]

FOOTNOTES:
[24] See William of Malmesbury, b. i. c. 1, p. 12, note.
[25] a.d. 596.

Chap. III.—Of Ceolwulf, king of the West-Saxons, and of his continued wars.

A. 597. At the end of one year, Ceolwulf began to reign over the Western English.[26] His
family was derived from Woden; and so great was his ferocity that he is said to have been
always at war, either with his own nation or with the Britons, or the Picts or Scots.

FOOTNOTES:
[26] West-Saxons is the more correct term; but Ethelwerd often uses the more general name
Angles or English, for all the tribes settled in England.

Chap. IV.—Concerning Augustine's pall of apostleship sent him by pope
Gregory.

A. 601. When he had reigned four years, pope Gregory sent to Augustine the pall of
apostleship.

Chap. V.—Of the faith of the East-Saxons, and of the decease of the blessed
pope Gregory.

A. 604. After three years, the eastern English[27] also received baptism in the reign of
Sigebert [Sabert] their king.
A. 606. Two years afterwards, the blessed pope Gregory departed this world, in the
eleventh year after he had bestowed baptism on the English by sending among them
Christ's servant Augustine. And the number of years that was completed from the
beginning of the world was more than five thousand and eight hundred.[28]

FOOTNOTES:
[27] Orientales Angli is the expression of Ethelwerd, but it should be Orientales Saxones, whose
king's name is generally written Sabert. See preceding note.
[28] Ethelwerd adopts that system of chronology which makes 5300 to have elapsed before
Christ.

Chap. VI.—Of the reign of king Cynegils, his wars; and of the coming of
[29]
bishop Birinus, of the baptism of the king, and the faith of the East-Saxons,
and of the baptism of Cuthred. [a.d. 615-639.]

Afterwards Cynegils received the kingdom of the West-Angles, and, in conjunction with
Cuichelm, he fought against the Britons at a place called Beandune,[30] and having
defeated their army, slew more than two thousand and forty of them.
A. 629. Fourteen years after, Cynegils and Cuichelm fought against Penda at Cirencester.
A. 635. After six years bishop Birinus came among the Western Angles, preaching to them
the gospel of Christ. And the number of years that elapsed since their arrival in Britain out
of Germany, was about one hundred and twenty. At that time Cynegils received baptism
from the holy bishop Birinus, in a town called Dorchester.
A. 639. He baptized Cuthred also four years after in the same city, and adopted him as his
son in baptism.

FOOTNOTES:
[29] Should be West-Saxons.

[30] Most probably Bampton in Oxfordshire. This battle took place in 614. See the Anglo-Saxon
Chronicle for that year.

Chap. VII.—Of the reign of Kenwalk, and of his actions.

A. 648. When nine years were fulfilled, Kenwalk gave to his relation, Cuthred, out of his
farms, three thousand measures, adjacent to a hill named Esc's dune, [Aston?]
A. 652. Four years after, he fought a battle against his own people, at a place called
Bradford, on the river Afene.[31]
A. 655. Three years afterwards king Penda died, and the Mercians were baptized.

A. 658. After three years more, the kings Kenwalk and Pionna[32] renewed the war against
the Britons, and pursued them to a place called Pederydan.[33]
A. 661. After three years, Kenwalk again fought a battle near the town of Pontesbury, and
took prisoner Wulfhere, son of Penda, at Esc's-dune [Ashdown], when he had defeated his
army.
A. 664. Three years afterwards there was an eclipse of the sun.
A. 670. When six years were fulfilled, Oswy, king of Northumberland, died, and Egfrid
succeeded him.
A. 671. After one year more, there was a great pestilence among the birds, so that there
was an intolerable stench by sea and land, arising from the carcasses of birds, both small
and great.
A. 672. Twelve months after Kenwalk, king of the West-Angles, died; and his wife,
Sexburga, succeeded him in the kingdom, and reigned twelve months.
A. 673. After her Escwin succeeded to the throne, and two years were fulfilled. His family
traces to Cerdic.

FOOTNOTES:
[31] Avon.
[32] This should be "at Pionna," [Pen]. See Saxon Chronicle.
[33] Petherton.

Chap. VIII.—Of Wulfhere and Cenwulf,[*] and of the council held by the
holy father Theodore.

A. 674. After one year, Wulfhere son of Penda, and Cenwalh[34] fought a battle among
themselves in a place called Beadanhead [Bedwin].
A. 677. After three years a comet was seen.

A. 680. At the end of two years a council was held at Hethlege,[35] by the holy archbishop
Theodore, to instruct the people in the true faith. In the course of the same year died
Christ's servant, Hilda, abbess of the monastery called Streaneshalch [Whitby].

FOOTNOTES:
[34]and [*] These names are both wrong; we must read Escwin.
[35] Heathfield or Hatfield.

Chap. IX.—Of king Kentwin and his wars.

A. 682. After two years king Kentwin drove the Britons out of their country to the sea.

A. 684. After he had reigned two years[36] Ina became king of the western English. A
hundred and eighty-eight years were then fulfilled from the time that Cerdic, his sixth
ancestor, received the western part of the island from the Britons.

FOOTNOTES:
[36] There is an error here: Cædwalla is omitted, and three years are lost in the chronology.

Chap. X.—Of Cædwalla's conversion to the faith of Christ.

A. 684. In the course of the same year Cædwalla went to Rome, and received baptism and
the faith of Christ; after his baptism the pope of that year gave him the surname of Peter.
A. 694. About six years afterwards, the Kentish men remembered the cause which they
had against king Ina when they burnt his relation[37] with fire; and they gave him thirty
thousand shillings at a fixed rate of sixteen pence each.

FOOTNOTES:
[37] His name was Mull: the passage is obscure. See the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.

Chap. XI.—Of the acts of Ethelred king of the Mercians.

A. 704. After ten years, Ethelred son of Penda and king of the Mercians assumed the
monastic habit, when he had completed twenty-nine years of his reign.
A. 705. After twelve months died Alfrid king of Northumberland. And the number of years
that was then fulfilled from the beginning of the world was five thousand nine hundred.
A. 709. Four years afterwards died the holy bishop Aldhelm, by whose wonderful art were
composed the words which are now read, and his bishopric was the province which is now
called Selwoodshire [Sherborne].

Chap. XII.—Of the reign of Ina, and of his acts.

A. 710. After a year, the kings and Ina made war against king Wuthgirete;[38] also duke
Bertfrid against the Picts.
A. 714. After four years died Christ's servant Guthlac.
A. 715. After a year Ina and Ceolred fought against those who opposed them in arms at
Wothnesbeorghge [Wanborough.]
A. 721. After seven years Ina slew Cynewulf, and after six months made war against the
Southern English.

FOOTNOTES:
[38] Called Gerent in the Saxon Chronicle, and Gerentius in Aldhelm's works.

Chap. XIII.—Of king Ethelard.

A. 728. When six years were fulfilled he went to Rome, and Ethelard received the
kingdom of the West Saxons. In the first year of his reign he made war against Oswy.[39]
A. 729. At the end of one year a comet appeared, and the holy bishop Egbert died.
A. 731. After two years, Osric king of Northumberland died and Ceolwulf succeeded to
the kingdom.

FOOTNOTES:
[39] Should be Oswald king of Northumberland.

Chap. XIV.—Of the acts of king Ethelbald.

A. 733. Two years after these things, king Ethelbald received under his dominion the royal
vill which is called Somerton. The same year the sun was eclipsed.
A. 734. After the lapse of one year, the moon appeared as if stained with spots of blood,
and by the same omen Tatwine and Bede[40] departed this life.

FOOTNOTES:
[40] It is doubtful whether Bede died in 734 or 735.

Chap. XV.—Of the reign of Eadbert and of his deeds.

A. 738. After four years, Eadbert succeeded to the kingdom of the Northumbrians, and his
brother Egbert discharged the archiepiscopal office; and now they both lie buried in the
city of York, under the shade of the same porch.

Chap. XVI.—Of the rule of king Cuthred.

A. 750. After twelve years king Cuthred began to make war against duke Ethelhun, for
some state-jealousy.

A. 752. Again after two years he drew his sword against king Ethelbald at a place called
Beorgforda.[41]
A. 753. After another year he gratified the fierce propensities of his nature by making war
against the Britons: and after another year he died, a.d. 754.

FOOTNOTES:
[41] Without doubt this is Burford in Oxfordshire.

Chap. XVII.—Of the acts of king Sigebert and of his reign.

Furthermore Sigebert received the kingdom of the western English.
A. 756. At the end of one year after Sigebert began to reign, Cynewulf, invading his
kingdom, took it from him, and drew away all the wise men of the west country, in
consequence of the perverse deeds of the aforesaid king; nor was any part of his kingdom
left to him except one province only, named Hamptonshire [Hampshire]. And he remained
there no long time; for, instigated by an old affront, he slew a certain duke, and Cynewulf
drove him into the wilds of Andred: and so he fled from thicket to thicket, until he was at
last slain by a herdsman at a place named Pryffetesflodan,[42] and so the blood of duke
Cumbra was avenged.

FOOTNOTES:
[42] Privett, Hampshire.

Chap. XVIII.—Of the reign of Cynewulf, his war and deeds.

A. 755. These things having been premised, Cynewulf frequently fought no slight battles
against the Britons. For when thirty-one years had passed, he tried to expel from his
territories a certain chief named Cyneard, brother to Sigebert, whose deeds have been
related above. He was afterwards besieged by this prince, for it was told him that he was in
company of a certain courtezan at a place called Meranton [Merton], and though he had
with him only a few men, who knew nothing of the matter, he surrounded the house with
arms. The king, seeing how he was situated, leaped to the door, and bravely repelled their
weapons; but making up his mind he rushed upon the prince, and inflicted no slight

wounds upon him; his companions, not forgetting his threats, raised their weapons and
slew the king. The report being spread, the king's soldiers, who had been in his company,
each for himself, as was their custom, made an attack, uttering shouts. But the prince,
soothing them, promised them gifts and ample honours. They desire death, now that their
lord is dead; nor do they attend to his promises, but rush with one accord upon death.
None of them escaped with life except one British hostage, and he had received severe
wounds. When, therefore, the day dawned, it became known to the soldiers, who had
remained behind the king's back, they assembled together and set forth, and with them
Osric the duke and Wigferth the knight. They found the prince in the house, where their
master was lying dead. The doors are beleaguered on both sides. Within are the one party,
and the other party are without. The prince asks a truce, and makes ample promises; his
object is future sovereignty. The king's friends spurn these offers, and rather seek to
separate from the prince their relations who were in his company. These reject their
proposals; on the contrary they answer their friends thus:[43] "No tie is so powerful as that
which binds us to our lord; and whereas you ask us to depart, we tell you that we made the
same proposal to those who were slain with your king, and they would not accede to it."
To this the other party rejoined, "But you will remain unhurt, if you only depart, nor share
in the vengeance which we shall inflict for those who were slain with the king." They
returned no answer to this, but silently begin the battle; shield punishes shield, and arms
are laced in bucklers, relation falls by his kinsman; they smash the doors, one pursues after
another, and a lamentable fight ensues. Alas! they slay the prince; all his companions are
laid low before his face, except one, and he was the baptismal son of duke Osric, but half
alive, and covered with wounds.
Now Cynewulf reigned thirty-one years, and his body lies entombed in the city of
Winchester. The above-named prince also reposes in the church commonly called
Axanminster.[44] Both their families trace to Cerdic.
A. 755. In the same year Ethelbald, king of Mercia, was slain at a place called
Seccandune,[45] and his body rests in a monastery called Reopandune.[46] Bernred
succeeded to the kingdom, and not long after he also died.

FOOTNOTES:
[43] This is a sort of paraphrase rather than a translation: the original is not only bad in style and
ungrammatical, but exceedingly corrupt and very obscure.
[44] Now Axminster. The syllable an or en occurs similarly in many ancient Saxon towns; thus
Bedanford, Oxenford, &c., and Seccandune, Reopandune below.
[45] Now Seckington.
[46] Now Repton.

Chap. XIX.—Of the reign of king Offa and of his deeds.

A. 756. In the revolution of the same year, Offa succeeded to the kingdom, a remarkable
man, son of Thingferth; his grandfather was Enwulf, his great-grandfather Osmod, his
great-grandfather's father Pybba, his great-grandfather's grandfather was Icel, his sixth
ancestor Eomær, the seventh Angeltheow, the eighth Offa, the ninth Wærmund, the tenth
Wihtlæg, the eleventh Woden.
A. 773. Also after seventeen years, from the time that Cynewulf took the kingdom from
Sigebert, the sign of our Lord's cross appeared in the heavens after sun-set, and in the
same year a civil contest[47] took place between the people of Kent and Mercia, at a place
called Cittanford:[48] and in those days some monstrous serpents were seen in the country
of the Southern Angles, which is called Sussex.
A. 777. About four years after, Cynewulf and Offa fought a battle near the town of
Bensington, which was gained by Offa.
A. 779. Two years afterwards, the Gauls and Saxons stirred up no slight contests with one
another.
A. 783. In short, after four years, Cyneard slays king Cynewulf, and is himself also slain
there.

FOOTNOTES:
[47] The term 'civile bellum'—civil war is used by Ethelwerd, to denote a battle between the
kindred Anglo-Saxon kingdoms; the classical reader will also note the use of the word 'bellum'
for 'prœlium.'
[48] This should be Ottanford, or Otford, in Kent, a place of great antiquity.

Chap. XX.—Of the acts of Bertric, king of the West-Saxons.

A. 783. In the same year Bertric received the kingdom of the West-Angles, whose lineage
traces up to Cerdic.
A. 786. After three years, he took in marriage Offa's daughter Eadburga.

HERE ENDS BOOK THE SECOND,

AND

THE PROLOGUE OF BOOK THE THIRD BEGINS.

After what has been written in the foregoing pages, it remains that we declare the contents
of our third book. We exhort you, therefore, most beloved object of my desire, that the
present work may not be thought tedious by you for its length of reading, since to thee
especially I dedicate this. Wherefore, the farther my mind digresses, the more does my
affectionate love generate and expand itself.

HERE ENDS THE PROLOGUE,

AND THE BOOK BEGINS.

Whilst the pious king Bertric was reigning over the western parts of the English, and the
innocent people spread through their plains were enjoying themselves in tranquillity and
yoking their oxen to the plough, suddenly there arrived on the coast a fleet of Danes, not
large, but of three ships only: this was their first arrival. When this became known, the
king's officer, who was already stopping in the town of Dorchester, leaped on his horse and
gallopped forwards with a few men to the port, thinking that they were merchants rather
than enemies, and, commanding them in an authoritative tone, ordered them to be made to
go to the royal city; but he was slain on the spot by them, and all who were with him. The
name of the officer was Beaduherd.
A. 787. And the number of years that was fulfilled was above three hundred and thirty-
four, from the time that Hengist and Horsa arrived in Britain, in which also Bertric married
the daughter of king Offa.
A. 792. Moreover, it was after five years that Offa king of the Mercians commanded the
head of king Ethelbert to be struck off.
A. 794. After two years Offa also died, and Egfert his son succeeded to the kingdom, and
died in the same year. Pope Adrian also departed this life. Ethelred, king of the
Northumbrians, was slain by his own people.

Chap. I.—Of Kenulf, king of the Mercians, and of his wars.

A. 796. After two years, Kenulf, king of the Mercians, ravaged Kent and the province
which is called Merscwari,[49] and their king Pren was taken, whom they loaded with

chains, and led as far as Mercia.
A. 797. Then after a year, the enraged populace of Rome cut out the tongue of the blessed
pope Leo, and tore out his eyes, and drove him from his apostolical seat. But suddenly, by
the aid of Christ, who is always wonderful in his works, his sight was restored, and his
tongue regifted with speech, and he resumed his seat of apostleship as before.
A. 800. After three years, king Bertric died.

FOOTNOTES:
[49] The Merscwari are thought to have been the inhabitants of Romney, in Kent, and its
vicinity.

Chap. II.—Of the reign of Egbert, and his deeds.

Therefore Egbert is raised to the kingdom of the West Saxons. On the very same day, as
king Ethelmund was passing through a farm, Wiccum, intending to go to a ford called
Cynemæresford [Kempsford], duke Woxstan met him there with the centuries of the
inhabitants of the province of Wilsætum [Wiltshire]. Both of them fell in the battle, but the
Wilsætæ remained the victors.
Also, down to the time that Egbert received the kingdom, there were completed from the
beginning of the world 5995 years, from the incarnation of our Lord 800 years, from the
coming of Hengist and Horsa into Britain 350 years, from the reign of Cerdic, the tenth
ancestor of king Egbert, when he subdued the western part of Britain, 300 years, and from
the coming of Augustine, who was sent by the blessed pope Gregory to baptize the English
nation, 204 years: and in the tenth year afterwards the holy father Gregory died.
A. 805. After king Egbert had reigned five years, was the death of Cuthred king of Kent.
A. 812. In the seventh year Charles, king of the Franks, departed this life.
A. 814. After two years, the blessed pope Leo passed from one virtue to another.
A. 819. After five years, Kenulf king of the Mercians died.
A. 821. His successor was Ceolwulf, who was deprived of the kingdom two years
afterwards.

A. 822. A year afterwards a great synod was held at a place called Cloveshoo,[50] and two
dukes were there slain Burhelm and Mucca.

A. 823. After one year a battle was fought against the Britons in the province of Defna
[Devonshire], at a place called Camelford. In the same year king Egbert fought a battle
against Bernulf king of the Mercians at Ellendune,[51] and Egbert gained the victory: but
there was a great loss on both sides; and Hun duke of the province of Somerset was there
slain: he lies buried in the city of Winchester. Lastly, king Egbert sent his son Ethelwulf
with an army into Kent, and with him bishop Ealstan and duke Wulfherd. They defeated
the Kentish army, and pursued their king Baldred into the northern parts beyond the
Thames. To whom the men of Kent are afterwards subjected, and also the provinces of
Surrey and Sussex, that is, the midland and southern Angles.
A. 824. For in the course of the same year the king of the East-Angles with the wise men
of his realm, visits king Egbert, for the sake of peace and protection, on account of his fear
of the Mercians.
A. 825. In the course of that year the aforesaid East-Angles made war against Bernulf king
of the Mercians, and having defeated his army they slew him and five dukes with him. His
successor was Withlaf.
A. 827. Two years afterwards, the moon was eclipsed on the very night of Christ's nativity.
And in the same year king Egbert reduced under his power all that part of the kingdom
which lies to the south of the river Humber: he was the eighth king in Britain who was
famous for his great power. For the first was Ælla king of the South-Angles, who
possessed the same dominions as Egbert; the second was Ceawlin king of the West-
Angles; the third Ethelbert king of Kent; the fourth Redwald king of the East-Angles; the
fifth Edwin king of Northumbria; the sixth Oswald; the seventh Oswy brother of Oswald;
after whom the eighth Egbert, of whom we have made mention above. He led his army
against the Northumbrians, who also bent their necks and submitted to him.
A. 828. At the end of a year therefore, Withlaf again received the kingdom. At that time
also, king Egbert led his army against the northern Britons, and when he had subdued all
of them, he returned in peace.
A. 832. After four years therefore the pagans devastated the territories of a place called
Sceapige.[52]
A. 833. After one year Egbert fought against the pagan fleet, in number thirty-five vessels,
at a place called Carrum [Charmouth]: and the Danes obtained the victory.
A. 836. Lastly after three years, a large army of Britons approached the frontiers of the
West-Saxons: without delay they form themselves into a compact body, and carry their
arms against Egbert king of the Angles. Egbert therefore having ascertained the state of
things beforehand, assembled his army and twice imbued their weapons in the blood of the
Britons at Hengeston,[53] and put them to flight.
A. 837. At the end of a year the powerful king Egbert died.

FOOTNOTES:
[50] Near Rochester, Kent.
[51] Wilton.
[52] The Isle of Sheppey.
[53] Hengston-hill, Cornwall.

Chap. III.—Of the reign of Ethelwulf and of his deeds.

After his death, Athulf[54] succeeded to the throne of his father Egbert, and he delivered up
the kingdom of Kent to his son Athelstan, together with East-Saxony, South-Saxony, and
Surrey, i.e. the eastern, southern and midland parts.
A. 838. After one year, duke Wulfherd fought with the pagan fleet near the town of
Hamptun [Southampton], and having slain many of them gained the victory: the number
of ships in the fleet was thirty-three. After this exploit the duke himself died in peace. The
same year duke Ethelhelm, with the people of the province of Dorset, fought another battle
against the pagan army at Port, and pursued them some distance: but afterwards the Danes
were victorious, and slew the duke and his companions with him.

A. 839. After one year duke Herebert was slain by the Danes at Merswarum;[55] and the
same year a great slaughter was made by that army in the city of Lindsey, and in the
province of Kent, and in East Anglia.
A. 840. Also after one year, the same thing took place in the city of London, in Quintanwic
[Canterbury], and in the town of Rochester.
A. 841. Meanwhile, after one year king Ethelwulf fought against the Danes at a place
called Charmouth, by whom also he was vanquished, and the victors kept possession of
the ground.
A. 844. Three years afterwards duke Eanwulf, who governed the province of Somerset,
and bishop Ealstan also, and Osric duke of Dorset, fought a battle against the pagans at the
mouth of the Parret before-mentioned; where they gained the victory, having defeated the
Danish army. Also in the same year king Athelstan and duke Elchere fought against the
army of the above-mentioned nation in the province of Kent, near the town of Sandwich,
where they slew many of them, put their troops to flight, and took nine ships.
A. 851. After seven years Ceorl duke of Devon fought a battle against the pagans at
Wembury,[56] where they slew many of the Danes and gained the victory. In the course of
the same year, the barbarians wintered first in the isle of Thanet, which lies not far from

Britain, and has fruitful but not large corn fields. That year was not yet finished, when a
large fleet of pagans arrived, 350 ships, at the mouth of the river Thames, commonly
called Thames-mouth, and destroyed the city of Canterbury and the city of London, and
put to flight Berthwulf king of Mercia, having defeated his army. After the battle they
returned beyond the river Thames towards the south through the province of Surrey, and
there king Ethelwulf with the Western Angles met them: an immense number was slain on
both sides, nor have we ever heard of a more severe battle before that day: these things
happened near Ockley Wood.
A. 854. After three years king Burhred asked assistance from king Ethelwulf to subdue the
Northern Britons: he granted it, and having collected his army, passed through the Mercian
kingdom to go against the Britons: whom he subdued and made tributary. In the same year
king Ethelwulf sent his son Alfred to Rome, in the days of our lord pope Leo,[57] who
consecrated him king and named him his son in baptism, when we are accustomed to name
little children, when we receive them from the bishop's hand. In the same year were fought
battles in the isle of Thanet against the pagans; and there was a great slaughter made on
both sides, and many were drowned in the sea. The same year also after Easter king
Ethelwulf gave his daughter in marriage to king Burhred.
A. 855. After a year the pagans wintered in Sheppey. In the same year king Ethelwulf gave
the tenth of all his possessions to be the Lord's portion, and so appointed it to be in all the
government of his kingdom. In the same year he set out to Rome with great dignity, and
stayed there twelve months. As he returned home, therefore, to his country, Charles, king
of the Franks, gave him his daughter in marriage, and he took her home with him to his
own country.
A. 857. Lastly, after a year king Ethelwulf died, and his body reposes in the city of
Winchester. Now the aforesaid king was son of king Egbert, and his grandfather was
Elmund, his great-grandfather Eafa, his great-grandfather's father was Eoppa, and his
great-grandfather's grandfather was Ingild, brother of Ina, king of the Western-Angles,
who ended his life at Rome; and the above-named kings derived their origin from king
Kenred. Kenred was the son of Ceolwald, son of Cuthwin, son of Ceawlin, son of Cynric,
son of Cerdic, who also was the first possessor of the western parts of Britain, after he had
defeated the armies of the Britons: his father was Elesa, son of Esla, son of Gewis, son of
Wig, son of Freawin, son of Frithogar, son of Brond, son of Beldeg, son of Woden, son of
Frithowald, son of Frealaf, son of Frithuwulf, son of Finn, son of Godwulf, son of Geat,
son of Tætwa, son of Beaw, son of Sceldi, son of Sceaf. This Sceaf came with one ship to
an island of the ocean named Scani, sheathed in arms, and he was a young boy, and
unknown to the people of that land; but he was received by them, and they guarded him as
their own with much care, and afterwards chose him for their king. It is from him that king
Ethelwulf derives his descent. And then was completed the fiftieth year from the beginning
of king Egbert's reign.

FOOTNOTES:

[54] Generally called Ethelwulf by modern writers.
[55] Romney Marsh.
[56] Near Plymouth.
[57] Leo the Fourth.

HERE ENDS THE THIRD BOOK,

AND THE PROLOGUE OF THE FOURTH BOOK HERE BEGINS.

Three books are now finished, and it remains to guide my pen to the fourth, in which also
will be found greater gain, and the origin of our race is more clearly intimated. And,
although I may seem to send you a load of reading, dearest sister of my desire, do not
judge me harshly, but as my writings were in love to you, so may you read them.
And may God Almighty, who is praised both in Trinity and in Unipotence ever preserve
you under the shadow of his wings, and your companions with you. Amen!

HERE ENDS THE PROLOGUE.

Chap. I.—Of the reign of the sons of king Ethelwulf, namely Ethelbald and
Ethelbert.

Meanwhile, after the death of king Ethelwulf, his sons were raised to the kingdom, namely
Ethelbald over the Western Angles, and Ethelbert over the men of Kent, and the Eastern,
Southern, and Midland Angles.
A. 861. When five years were completed, king Ethelbald died, and his brother Ethelbert
succeeded to the possessions of both. In those days a large fleet of pagans came to land,
and destroyed the royal city which is called Winton. They were encountered by Osric duke
of Hampshire, and Ethelwulf duke of Berkshire: a battle ensued; the pagans were routed,
and the English gained the victory.
A. 865. After four years, from the death of king Ethelbald, the pagans strengthened their
position in the isle of Thanet, and promise to be at peace with the men of Kent, who on
their part prepare money, ignorant of the future. But the Danes break their compact, and
sallying out privately by night, lay waste all the eastern coast of Kent.
A. 866. After one year king Ethelbert died, and his body rests peaceably in the monastery
named Sherborne.

Chap. II.—Of the reign of king Ethelred.

Ethelred succeeded to the throne after the death of his brother Ethelbert. In the same year
the fleets of the tyrant Hingwar arrived in England from the north, and wintered among the
East Angles, and having established their arms there, they get on their horses, and make
peace with all the inhabitants in their own neighbourhood.
A. 867. After one year that army, leaving the eastern parts, crossed the river Humber into
Northumberland to the city of Evoric, which is now commonly called the city of Eoferwic
[York]. For there was then a great civil dissension between the inhabitants of that land, and
they were so enraged that they also expelled their king Osbert from his seat; and having
confirmed their resolves, they chose an obscure person for their king; and after some delay
they turned their thoughts to raise an army and repulse those who were advancing. They
collected together no small bodies of troops, and reconnoitred the enemy: their rage was
excited: they joined battle, a miserable slaughter took place on both sides, and the kings
were slain. Those of them who were left made peace with the hostile army.
In the same year died Eanwulf, duke of Somerset; also bishop Ealstan, fifty years after his
succession to the bishopric, in the diocese called Sherborne. There also his body now
reposes; and that of the above-named duke in the monastery called Glastonbury.
A. 868. After one year therefore, the army of the pagans, of whose arrival we have spoken
above, measured out their camp in a place called Snotingaham [Nottingham], and there
they passed the winter, and Burhred king of the Mercians, with his nobles, consented to
their remaining there without reproach.
A. 869. At the end of a year therefore, the army was transported to York, and there also
they measured out their camp in the winter season.
A. 870. Again after a year they departed, and passed through Mercia into East-Anglia, and
there measured out their camp for the winter at Thetford. King Edmund carried on war
against them for a short time, but he was slain there by them, and his body lies entombed
at a place called Beodoricsworthe,[58] and the barbarians obtained the victory, but with the
loss of their king soon afterwards: for king Hingwar died the same year; archbishop
Ceolnoth also died that same year, and is buried in the city of Canterbury.
A. 871. After one year therefore the army of the barbarians above-mentioned set out for
Reading, and the principal object of the impious crew was to attack the West-Saxons; and
three days after they came, their two consuls, forgetting that they were not on board their
fleet, rode proudly through fields and meadows on horseback, which nature had denied to
them.[59]
But duke Ethelwulf met them, and though his troops were few, their hearts resided in
brave dwellings: they point their darts, they rout the enemy, and triumph in abundant

spoils. At length four days after their meeting, Ethelred arrives with his army; an
indescribable battle is fought, now these, now those urge on the fight with spears
immoveable; duke Ethelwulf falls, who a short time before had obtained the victory: the
barbarians at last triumph. The body of the above-named duke is privately withdrawn, and
carried into the province of the Mercians, to a place called Northworthig, but Derby in the
language of the Danes. Four days after king Ethelred with his brother Alfred fought again
with all the army of the Danes at Æscendune;[60] and there was great slaughter on both
sides: but at last king Ethelred obtained the victory. But it is proper that I should declare
the names of those chiefs who fell there: Bagsac king, the veteran Sidrac their consul, the
younger Sidrac also, the consul Osbern, the consul Frene, the consul Harold; and, so to
speak, all the flower of the barbarian youth was there slain, so that neither before nor since
was ever such destruction known since the Saxons first gained Britain by their arms.
Fourteen days after, they again took courage and a second battle was fought at a place
called Basing: the barbarians came and took part over against them; the fight began, and
hope passed from the one side to the other; the royal army was deceived, the enemy had
the victory, but gained no spoils.
Furthermore after two months the aforesaid king Ethelred renewed the battle, and with him
was his brother Alfred, at Merton, against all the army of the barbarians, and a large
number was slain on both sides. The barbarians obtained the victory; bishop Heahmund
there fell by the sword, and his body lies buried at Cægineshamme.[61] Many others also
fell or fled in that battle, concerning whom it seems to be a loss of time to speak more
minutely at present. Lastly, after the above-mentioned battle, and after the Easter of the
same year, died king Ethelred, from whose family I derive my origin.
And now I have followed up my plan, dear cousin Matilda, and will begin to consolidate
my subject; and like a ship which, having sailed a long way over the waves, already
occupies the port, to which in her patient voyage she had been tending: so we, like sailors,
are already entering, and as I briefly intimated to you in my former epistle, so also in the
prefaces to this present book, and without any impropriety I again remind you, and though
I cut short the course of that which is visionary, not impelled by necessity, but through
love of your affection, I now send it you again more fully to be meditated upon concerning
the origin of our family, and sufficiently embrace the study of your sincerity.[62]
Thus far then: I will now leave obscurity and begin to speak concerning the sons of
Ethelwulf. They were five in number: the first was Ethelstan, who also shared the kingdom
with his father: the second was Ethelbald, who also was king of the Western English: the
third was Ethelbert, king of Kent: the fourth was Ethelred, who after the death of Ethelbert
succeeded to the kingdom, and was also my grandfather's grandfather: the fifth was Alfred,
who succeeded after all the others to the whole sovereignty, and was your grandfather's
grandfather. Wherefore I make known to you, my beloved cousin Matilda, that I receive
these things from ancient tradition, and have taken care in most brief style to write the
history of our race down to these two kings, from whom we have taken our origin. To you
therefore, most beloved, I devote this work, compelled by the love of our relationship: if

others receive them with haughtiness, they will be judged unworthy of the feast; if
otherwise, we advise all in charity to gather what is set before them. Let us return then to
the story that we broke off, and to the death of the above-named Ethelred. His reign lasted
five years, and he is buried in the monastery which goes by the name of Wimborne.

FOOTNOTES:
[58] Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk.
[59] I shall be glad if my readers will find a better translation for this obscure
and inflated passage.
[60] See William of Malmesbury, b. ii. c. 3, p. 111, note.
[61] Keynsham.
[62] I must again request the reader to pardon the obscurity which so frequently
occurs in our author's style, and my inability to deal with such passages; the
above is a tolerably close translation of the original.

Chap. III.—Of the reign of king Alfred.

A. 871. After these things, Alfred obtained the kingdom when his brothers
were dead,—he also was the youngest son of king Ethelwulf—over all the
provinces of Britain.
There came a summer-army innumerable to Reading, and were eager to
fight against the army of the West-Angles: to their aid also came those who
had already long time been ravaging. But the army of the Angles at that
time was small on account of the king's absence, who at the same time had
performed his brother's obsequies, and although their ranks were not full,
yet their hearts were firm in their breasts, they rejoice in the fight, and repel
the enemy: but at length oppressed with fatigue, they cease from the fight.
The barbarians hold possession of a sterile field of battle: afterwards also
they spread themselves and ravage the country. During their foul
domination, there were three battles fought by the Angles, besides the
battles before-mentioned, and eleven of their consuls, whom they call
"earls," were slain, and one of their kings. Lastly, in the same year the
Eastern Angles made peace with them. And the number of years to the
encamping of the barbarian army in Reading and to the death of king
Ethelred and the succession of his brother Alfred was the seventy-first from
the time that Egbert had first consolidated the kingdom, and forty-seven

from the time that the Mercians and Western Angles carried on civil wars at
the place called Ellandune,[63] and king Egbert received the name of victor
twenty-six years from the time that the battle was fought in Pedredan
[Petherton]; and twenty years after the contest which was waged near the
wood called Ockley, and lastly five years from the arrival of the pagans in
the country of the East Angles: and without long delay, they then went to
Reading.
A. 872. After a year had elapsed from the time of their coming to Reading,
they measured out their camp in the neighbourhood of the city of London.
But the Mercians ratify a treaty with them, and pay a stipend.
A. 873. After one year the barbarians change their position to the
neighbourhood of the city of Lindsey in a place called Torksey. The
Mercian people renew their treaty with them.
A. 874. After the lapse of a year, the barbarians at length remove to a place
called Repton, and drive king Burhred from the kingdom beyond the sea.
Twenty and two years are enumerated from the time that he first occupied
his father's kingdom. They now break the peace, and devastate the lands of
the Mercians. The above-named king did not abandon his hope in Christ,
but made a journey to Rome and died there, and his body, laid in a worthy
mausoleum, reposes in the temple of Christ's blessed mother, which is now
called the school of the English. At the same time Ceolwulf possessed the
kingdom of the Mercians.
A. 875. Lastly after a year, the barbarians divide the kingdom into two
parts: and Halfdene the leader of the barbarians took one part, namely the
kingdom of the Northumbrians, and there he chose his winter-quarters near
the river called the Tyne, and they ravaged the country there on every side.
But they also made frequent wars on the Picts and the men of Cumberland.
Oskytel also, and Gothrun, and Anwiund, their three kings, with an
immense army, came from Repton to a place called Grantabridge
[Cambridge], and there remained twelve months. Furthermore in the
summer of the same year, king Alfred came out with his army on board a
fleet by sea, and the barbarians met them with seven tall vessels. A battle
ensues, and the Danes are routed: the king takes one of their ships.

A. 876. After one year, the tyrant Halfdene obtained the kingdom of the
Northumbrians, all of whom he reduced to subjection. And in the course of
the same year, the army which had been at Cambridge made a junction with
the western army, a thing which they had not done before, near the town
which is called Wareham, and ravaged the greater part of that province.
Also the king ratified a treaty of peace with them and gave them money.
But they gave him hostages chosen out of their army, and made oath to him
on their sacred bracelet which they had never done to the kings of the other
districts, that they would quickly leave their territories.
A. 877. But they broke the peace and contravened their engagements, and
the following year extended their troops into the province of Devon, where
they passed the winter at Exeter. Lastly their fleets put to sea and spread
their sails to the wind: but a lamentable storm came on, and the greatest part
of them, namely a hundred of their chief ships, were sunk near the rock
which is called Swanwich. The barbarians renew their fraud and offer
peace: hostages were given, more than were demanded, to the effect that
they would withdraw out of the territories of king Alfred; and they did so.
They devastate the kingdom of the Mercians and drive out all the free men.
They erect their huts in the town of Gloucester.
A. 878. At the end of that year therefore this foul mob broke the compact
which they had before solemnly made with the Western Angles, and they
take up their winter-quarters at Chippenham. The people were everywhere
unable to resist: some of them were driven by the impious wretches over the
sea into Gaul. King Alfred was at this time straitened more than was
becoming. Ethelnoth also duke of Somerset lived with a narrow retinue in a
certain wood, and they built a stronghold in the island of Athelingay,[64]
which seems to have been situated in a marsh. But the aforesaid king fought
daily battles against the barbarians, having with him the province of
Somerset only; no others assisted him, except the servants who made use of
the king's pastures. In the same year arrived Halfdene brother of the tyrant
Hingwar with thirty galleys, in the western parts of the Angles, and
besieged Odda duke of Devon in a certain castle, and war was stirred up on
all sides. The king of the barbarians fell, and eighty decads with him. At last
the Danes obtain the victory.

Meanwhile, after the Easter[65] of that year, king Alfred fought against the
army that was in Chippenham, at a place called Ethandune,[66] and they
obtain the victory. But after the decision of the battle, the barbarians
promise peace, ask a truce, give hostages, and bind themselves by oath:
their king submits to be baptized, and Alfred the king receives him from the
laver in the marshy isle of Alney.[67] Duke Ethelnoth also purified the same
at a place called Wedmore, and king Alfred there bestowed upon him
magnificent honors.
A. 879. After a year from the time of the pagan army leaving Gloucester,
they marched to Cirencester, and there wintered. In the course of the same
year the sun was eclipsed.
A. 880. A year after the eclipse, the aforesaid army struck their tents, and
leaving Cirencester went into the country of the East Angles, and pitching
their camp, reduced all the inhabitants of those parts to subjection. And it
was now fourteen years since the barbarians first wintered in the country
aforesaid, and ravaged it. In the same year, when they had reduced the
district aforesaid, they went in a vessel to Gaul and took up a position at a
place called Ghent: the same men who had formerly measured out their
camp at a place called Fulham.
A. 881. After a year, they attempt to proceed further; but the armies of the
Franks assail them and gain the victory; the barbarians were put to flight.
A. 882. After a year the aforesaid army passed into the upper districts of the
Maese and measured out their camp at a place called Escelum.[68] In the
same year king Alfred put to sea and fell in with four ships; which he
defeated, and destroyed two, the others surrendered.
A. 883. The next year the aforesaid army entered the parishes of the Scald,
[69]
to a place called Cundath;[70] and there measured out their camp for the
winter.
A. 884. After one year had expired, that pestilential army aforesaid removed
to the higher districts of the Somme, to a place called Embenum,[71] and
there wintered.

A. 885. After a year they divide themselves into two parts: one to Sofenum,
[72]
the other to Rochester; and they laid siege to those towns. They also
construct other smaller camps. Defeat prevails among the inhabitants until
the arrival of king Alfred with an army. The foul plague was vanquished,
and sought reinforcement....[73] Some of them made for the sea-coasts. The
same year they renewed their league, and gave hostages to the English, and
twice in the year they counted the spoil which they had obtained by fraud,
in the land which borders on the southern bank of the Thames. The filthy
crew which were then in possession of the East Angles, suddenly removed
to a place called Bamfleet; and there the allied band divided; some of them
remained, and some of them went beyond the sea. In the same year,
therefore, the aforesaid king Alfred sent his fleet into the country of the East
Angles, and immediately on their arrival, there met them at a place called
Stourmouth sixteen ships, which they forthwith ravaged, and slew the
captains with the sword. The rest of the pirate-crew met them; they ply their
oars, their armour shines over the constrained waters, the barbarians obtain
the victory. In the same year died Charles the Magnificent king of the
Franks, cut off by death before the revolution of one year; after him came
his uterine brother who ruled over the western coasts of Gaul. Both were
sons of Louis, who had formerly possessed the sole sovereignty: his life had
reached its termination during the eclipse of the sun aforesaid. He was son
of the great king Charles, whose daughter Ethelwulf king of the English had
taken to wife. In the course of that year, a great number of barbarians
landed and filled the coasts of the Old Saxons; two battles were fought soon
after: the Saxons were the victors, and the Frisons also were present in the
contest. In the same year Charles the Younger succeeded to the sovereignty
of all the western parts of Gaul as far as the Tyrrhenian sea, and, if I may so
speak, of the dominions of his grandfather, except the province of the
Lidwiccas.[74] His father was Lodwicus, brother of the middle Charles
whose daughter was married to Ethelwulf king of the English. And both of
these were sons of Lodwicus, namely, Lodwicus was son of Charlemagne
who was the son of Pepin.

In the same year died the blessed pope Martin,[75] who also gave freedom to
the school of the English, by the appointment of king Alfred, and sent as a
present part of the thrice blessed cross of Christ, who is the salvation of the
world. In the course of that year, the above-named pestilential crew broke

their engagements, and marched in arms against king Alfred. Lastly, after a
year, they went to the lower parts of Gaul, and fixed on a place to winter
near the river Seine. Meanwhile, the city of London was fortified by king
Alfred, whom no civil discord could subdue, either by cunning or by force:
all men received him as a saviour, and particularly the Saxons—except the
barbarians—and those who were then held prisoners in their hands. Also,
after his army was strengthened, Ethered was appointed leader there by the
aforesaid king, to guard the citadel.
A. 887. Now the army which were at that time ravaging the country of Gaul
cut their way through the bridge of the citadel of Paris, and devastated the
whole country along the Seine, as far as the Marne, and above its vertex, as
far as Catsig [Chezy], where they thrice fixed their winter quarters. In the
same year also died Charles, king of the Franks, and his cousin Arnulf
succeeded to the kingdom, seven years before his uncle's death. The
kingdom was then divided into five, and so many kings in the same: but all
things are done by the permission of king Arnulf, and they promised to be
all under his subjection, because they were not like him, descended from
the paternal stock; and he lived after this on the eastern side of the river
Rhine. But Rodulf occupied the middle parts of the kingdom, Oda the
western parts, and Beorngar with Witha held the kingdom of the Lombards
from the division of the Jovian mountain.[76] There they began a civil war;
people assailed people; the lands of both were continually disturbed, nor
was there any hope of quiet.
The same year, in which the barbarians had settled on the bridge of Paris,
duke Ethelhelm received no small part of the money paid from the diocese
of the English by the king for the people, and went to Rome. In the same
year died queen Ethelswith.
A. 888. In the lapse of the same year also, archbishop Athelred deceased,
and Ethelwold, commander in Kent.
A. 889. After one year, abbat Bernhelm carried to Rome the alms for the
people, and principally those of the western English and of king Alfred.
Then also Gothrun, king of the northern English, yielded his breath to
Orcus; he had taken the name of Athelstan, as he came out of the baptismal

laver, from his godfather, king Alfred, and had his seat among the East-
Angles, since he there also had held the first station.
In the same year, the aforesaid army of barbarians removed from the river
Seine to a place called Santlaudah,[77] situated between the Bretons and the
Franks; but the Bretons met them in arms, and obtained the victory, and
followed them to the windings of a certain river, and there not a few of
them were drowned in the waters.
A. 891. One year afterwards, the bands of the aforesaid army visited the
eastern parts of France; king Arnulf met them; a fight of cavalry took place
before the fleets arrived. An army of eastern Franks came up, Saxons and
Bavarians; the pagans spread their sails to flee. In the same year, three
chosen men of Hibernian race, burning with piety, leave their country: they
privately form a boat by sewing ox-hides; they put into it provisions for a
week; they sail seven days and seven nights, and arrive on the shores of
Cornwall: here they left their fleet, which had been guided, not by the
strength of their arms, but by the power of Him who rules all things, and set
out for the court of king Alfred, who with his senate rejoice in their coming.
From thence they proceed to Rome, and, as is customary with teachers of
Christ, they essay to go thence to Jerusalem:[78] ... Their names were,
Dubslane, the first; Macbeth, the second; Maelinmun, the third, flourishing
in the arts, skilled in letters, and a distinguished master of the Scots. Also in
the same year, after Easter a comet appeared, which some think to be an
omen of foul times, which have already past; but it is the most approved
theory of philosophers, that they foretel future things, as has been tried in
many ways.
A. 893. One year after the barbarians fought against king Arnulf, they go to
Boulogne, and there build a fleet, and pass over into England. There they
station their fleet in the Limnean port, at a place called Apoldre [Appledore,
in the eastern part of Kent,] and destroy an ancient castle, because there was
but a small band of rustics within, and there they make their winter camp.
In the course of this year, a large fleet belonging to Hasten arrives on the
banks of the river Thames, and found a citadel on the coasts of Kent, at a
place called Middleton [Milton]: they encamp there the whole winter; and
the number of years that had elapsed from the glorious nativity of our
Saviour was nine hundred, all but seven.

After the Easter of that year, the army which had come from Gaul leave
their camp, and trace the intricacies of a certain immense wood, which is
called Andred, and they extend as far as the Western Angles. Slowly as they
go, they ravage the adjoining provinces, Hampshire and Berkshire: these
things were told to the heir of Edward, son of king Alfred, who had been
exercising himself in the southern parts of England. After this they reach the
Western Angles, who meet them with threatening arms and dense array at
Farnham: they exult, freed by the arrival of the prince, like sheep under the
protection of the shepherd; the tyrant is wounded, and his troops are driven
across the river Thames into the northern countries.
Meanwhile, the Danes are held besieged in Thorney isle. Earl Ethered,
setting out from the city of London, lent his aid to the prince. The
barbarians asked peace and a treaty: hostages are given, they promise by
oath to leave the kingdom of the aforesaid king; their words and deeds
agree together without delay. Lastly, they set out for the country of the East-
Angles, formerly governed by the king Saint Edmund, and their ships fly
round to them from the Limnean port to Meresige [Mersey], a place in
Kent.
In the course of the same year, Hasten breaks away with his band from
Bamfleet, and devastates all Mercia, until they arrive at the end of Britain.
The army, which was then in the eastern part of the country, supplied them
with reinforcements, and the Northumbrian, in the same way. The
illustrious duke Ethelm, with a squadron of cavalry, and duke Ethelnoth,
with an army of Western-Angles, followed behind them, and Ethered, earl
of the Mercians, pressed after them with great impetuosity. The youth of
both people join battle, and the Angles obtain the victory. These things are
said by ancient writers to have been done at Buttington, and the exertions of
the Danes appeared futile; they again ratify peace, give hostages, and
promise to leave that part of the country. In the same year Danaasuda,[79] in
Bamfleet, was destroyed by the people, and they divide the treasure among
them.
After this, Sigeferth, the pirate, lands from his fleet in Northumbria, and
twice devastates the coast, after which he returns home.

A. 895. When two years were completed, from the time that an immense
fleet came from Boulogne to Limnæ, a town of the Angles, duke Ethelnoth
set out from the western parts of the Angles, and goes from the city of York
against the enemy, who devastate no small tracts of land in the kingdom of
the Mercians, on the west of Stanford; i.e. between the courses of the river
Weolod[80] and a thick wood, called Ceoftefne.
A. 896. In the course of one year also, died Guthfrid, king of the
Northumbrians, on the birthday of Christ's apostle, St. Bartholomew, whose
body is buried at York, in the high church.
A. 900. Meanwhile, after four years, from the time that the above-named
king died, there was a great discord among the English, because the foul
bands of the Danes still remained throughout Northumberland. Lastly, in
the same year, king Alfred departed out of this world, that immoveable
pillar of the Western Saxons, that man full of justice, bold in arms, learned
in speech, and, above all other things, imbued with the divine instructions.
For he had translated into his own language, out of Latin, unnumbered
volumes, of so varied a nature, and so excellently, that the sorrowful book
of Boethius seemed, not only to the learned, but even to those who heard it
read, as it were, brought to life again. The monarch died on the seventh day
before the solemnity of All Saints, and his body rests in peace in the city of
Winton. Pray, O reader, to Christ our Redeemer, that he will save his soul!

FOOTNOTES:
[63] Allington, Wiltshire.
[64] Athelney, no longer an island, is situated near Borough-bridge in
Somersetshire.
[65] Easter Day was the 23rd of March in the year 878.
[66] Heddington.
[67] Some suppose that this is Aller near Athelingay, or Athelney; but Athelney
itself is called Alney by the common people; it is therefore more likely that
Athelingay and Alney were the same place, as they are at present.
[68] Aschloha, or Ascloha, is on the Maese, about fourteen miles from the Rhine.
[69] The Scheldt.

[70] Condé.
[71] More commonly Ambiani, now Amiens.
[72] Louvain.
[73] I acknowledge my inability to translate this and many other passages of this
obscure author. The events which here follow for the next half page are referred
by the Saxon Chronicle to the year 894.
[74] Armorica, or Bretagne.
[75] This should be Marinus, not Martinus.
[76] Mount St. Barnard.
[77] Saint Lo.
[78] I omit this obscure passage rather than run the risk of misleading the reader
by an inaccurate translation of it.
[79] This must be the fortress which Hasten's men built in Bamfleet.
[80] Welland, Northamptonshire.

Chap. IV.—Of the reign of king Edward, and of his wars.

A. 901. The successor to the throne was Edward, son of the above-named
king. He was elected by the nobles, and crowned with the royal crown on
Whitsunday, one hundred years having elapsed since his great grandfather,
Egbert, had gained his present territories. In the same year Ethelbald
received, in the city of London, the bishopric of the city of York; and, it
appears, that the number of years completed, since Christ came in the flesh,
was nine hundred full.

A. 902. After two years was the battle of Holme.[81] ... Five days after the
festival of the blessed mother, they lock together their shields, brandish
their swords, and vibrate their lances in both hands. There fell duke Siwulf
and Sigelm, and almost all the Kentish nobility: and Eohric, king of the
barbarians, there descended to Orcus: two princes of the English, in the
flower of their youth, there yield up the breath of life, and explore the
foreign regions, under the waves of Acheron, and numbers of full-grown

men fall on both sides. The barbarians remain victors, and triumph on the
field of battle.
A. 905. At length, after three years, the number of years completed since the
beginning of the world, was six thousand and one hundred.
A. 908. After three years archbishop Plegmund inaugurized, in the city of
Winchester, a lofty tower, which had been recently founded in honour of
Mary, the mother of God. The pontiff aforesaid, in the course of the same
year carried to Rome the alms for the people, and for king Edward.
A. 909. After one year the barbarians break their compact with king
Edward, and with earl Ethered, who then ruled the provinces of
Northumberland and Mercia. The lands of the Mercians are laid waste on
all sides by the hosts aforesaid, as far as the streams of the Avon, where
begins the frontier of the West-Saxons and the Mercians. Thence they pass
over the river Severn into the western regions, and gained by their
devastations no little booty. But when they had withdrawn homewards,
rejoicing in their rich spoils, they passed over a bridge on the eastern side of
the river Severn, at a place commonly called Cantabridge,[82] the troops of
the Mercians and West-Saxons met them: a battle ensued, and in the plain
of Wodnesfield the English obtained the victory: the Danish army fled,
overwhelmed by the darts of their enemies: these things are said to have
been done on the fifth day of August; and their three kings fell there in that
turmoil or battle, namely, Halfdene, Ecwils, and Hingwar: they lost their
sovereignty, and descended to the court of the infernal king, and their elders
and nobles with them.
A. 910. After one year, Ethered, who survived of the Mercians, departed
this life, and was buried peacefully in the city of Gloucester.
A. 912. After two years, died Athulf in Northumbria; he was at that time
commander of the town called Bebbanburgh.[83]
A. 913. After a year, a fleet entered the mouth of the river Severn, but no
severe battle was fought there that year. Lastly, the greater part of that army
go to Ireland, formerly called Bretannis by the great Julius Cæsar.

A. 914. After one year, the day of Christ's nativity fell on a Sunday; and so
great was the tranquillity of that winter, that no one can remember anything
like it either before or since.
A. 917. After three years, Ethelfled the king's sister departed this life, and
her body lies buried at Gloucester.
A. 926. Also in the ninth year died Edward, king of the English. This was
the end; his name and his pertinacity here ceased.

FOOTNOTES:
[81] The particulars recorded in this passage, concerning the battle of Holme, are
ascribed, by Florence of Worcester and the Saxon Chronicle, to another battle,
fought three years later. This caused Petrie to suppose, that the paragraph in
question had slipped out of its real place.
[82] Cambridge, in Gloucestershire.
[83] Bambrough.

Chap. V.—Of the reign of king Athelstan, his wars and deeds.

A. 926. The year in which the stout king Athelstan gained the crown of the
kingdom, was the nine hundred and twenty-sixth from the glorious
incarnation of our Saviour.
A. 939. Therefore, after thirteen years, a fierce battle was fought against the
barbarians at Brunandune,[84] wherefore that fight is called great even to the
present day: then the barbarian tribes are defeated and domineer no longer;
they are driven beyond the ocean: the Scots and Picts also bow the neck; the
lands of Britain are consolidated together, on all sides is peace, and plenty
of all things, nor ever did a fleet again come to land except in friendship
with the English.
A. 941. Two years afterwards the venerated king Athelstan died.

FOOTNOTES:
[84] Brumby, Lincolnshire.

Chap. VI.—Of the reign of king Edmund.

After him Edmund succeeded to the neglected kingdom.
A. 948. After seven years, therefore, bishop Wulfstan and the duke of the
Mercians expelled certain deserters, namely, Reginald and Anlaf from the
city of York, and gave them into the king's hand. In the same year died also
queen Elfgiva, wife of king Edmund, and afterwards was canonized. In her
tomb, with God's assistance, even to the present day, miracles are
performed in the monastery called Shaftesbury. In the same period also died
king Edmund on the solemnity of Augustine the Less, who also was the
apostle of the English: and he held the kingdom six years and a half.

Chap. VII.—Of the reign of king Edred.

Edmund's successor was Edred his brother, to whom all the Northumbrians
became subject; and the Scots also give oaths of allegiance and immutable
fidelity. Not long after these things he also departed in peace, on the
birthday of the blessed pope and martyr Clement. He had held the kingdom
nine years and half.

Chap. VIII.—Of king Edwy.

His successor to the throne was Edwy, who, on account of his great
personal beauty, was called Pankalus by the people. He held the sovereignty
four years, and was much beloved.

Chap. IX.—Of the reign of king Edgar.

A. 959. After this, Edgar was crowned, and he was an admirable king.[85*]
Moreover from the nativity of our Lord and Saviour was then completed the
number of 973 years.[85]

FOOTNOTES:
[85] and [85*] Here follow two sets of Latin verses, of a most obscure and
angrammatical character, and altogether untranslatable.

HERE HAPPILY ENDS THE FOURTH BOOK OF

FABIUS ETHELWERD,

QUESTOR AND PATRICIAN.

ANNALS OF THE REIGN
OF

ALFRED THE GREAT.

ANNALS OF THE REIGN
OF

ALFRED THE GREAT,
FROM A.D. 849 TO A.D. 887.

BY ASSER OF SAINT DAVID'S.

In the year of our Lord's incarnation 849, was born Alfred, king of the
Anglo-Saxons, at the royal village of Wanating,[86] in Berkshire, which
country has its name from the wood of Berroc, where the box-tree grows
most abundantly. His genealogy is traced in the following order. King
Alfred was the son of king Ethelwulf, who was the son of Egbert, who was
the son of Elmund, was the son of Eafa, who was the son of Eoppa, who the
son of Ingild. Ingild, and Ina, the famous king of the West-Saxons, were
two brothers. Ina went to Rome, and there ending this life honourably,
entered the heavenly kingdom, to reign there for ever with Christ. Ingild
and Ina were the sons of Coenred, who was the son of Ceolwald, who was
the son of Cudam, who was the son of Cuthwin, who was the son of
Ceawlin, who was the son of Cynric, who was the son of Creoda, who was
the son of Cerdic, who was the son of Elesa, who was the son of Gewis,
from whom the Britons name all that nation Gegwis,[87] who was the son of
Brond, who was the son of Beldeg, who was the son of Woden, who was
the son of Frithowald, who was the son of Frealaf, who was the son of
Frithuwulf, who was the son of Finn of Godwulf, who was the son of Geat,
which Geat the pagans long worshipped as a god. Sedulius makes mention
of him in his metrical Paschal poem, as follows:—
When gentile poets with their fictions vain,
In tragic language and bombastic strain,
To their god Geat, comic deity,
Loud praises sing, &c.
Geat was the son of Tætwa, who was the son of Beaw, who was the son of
Sceldi, who was the son of Heremod, who was the son of Iterinon, who was
the son of Hathra, who was the son of Guala, who was the son of Bedwig,
who was the son of Shem, who was the son of Noah, who was the son of

Lamech, who was the son of Methusalem, who was the son of Enoch, who
was the son of Malaleel, who was the son of Cainan, who was the son of
Enos, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Adam.
The mother of Alfred was named Osburga, a religious woman, noble both
by birth and by nature; she was daughter of Oslac, the famous butler of king
Ethelwulf, which Oslac was a Goth by nation, descended from the Goths
and Jutes, of the seed, namely, of Stuf and Wihtgar, two brothers and
counts: who, having received possession of the Isle of Wight from their
uncle, king Cerdic, and his son Cynric their cousin, slew the few British
inhabitants whom they could find in that island, at a place called
Gwihtgaraburgh;[88] for the other inhabitants of the island had either been
slain or escaped into exile.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 851, which was the third after the birth
of king Alfred, Ceorl, earl of Devon, fought with the men of Devon against
the pagans at a place called Wicgambeorg;[89] and the Christians gained the
victory; and that same year the pagans first wintered in the island called
Sheppey, which means the Sheep-isle, and is situated in the river Thames
between Essex and Kent, but is nearer to Kent than to Essex; it has in it a
fine monastery.[90]
The same year also a great army of the pagans came with three hundred and
fifty ships to the mouth of the river Thames, and sacked Dorobernia,[91]
which is the city of the Cantuarians, and also the city of London, which lies
on the north bank of the river Thames, on the confines of Essex and
Middlesex; but yet that city belongs in truth to Essex; and they put to flight
Berthwulf, king of Mercia, with all the army, which he had led out to
oppose them.
After these things, the aforesaid pagan host went into Surrey, which is a
district situated on the south bank of the river Thames, and to the west of
Kent. And Ethelwulf, king of the West-Saxons, and his son Ethelbald, with
all their army, fought a long time against them at a place called Ac-lea,[92]
i.e. the Oak-plain, and there, after a lengthened battle, which was fought
with much bravery on both sides, the greater part of the pagan multitude
was destroyed and cut to pieces, so that we never heard of their being so
defeated, either before or since, in any country, in one day; and the

Christians gained an honourable victory, and were triumphant over their
graves.
In the same year king Athelstan, son of king Ethelwulf, and earl Ealhere
slew a large army of pagans in Kent, at a place called Sandwich, and took
nine ships of their fleet; the others escaped by flight.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 853, which was the fifth of king
Alfred, Burhred, king of the Mercians, sent messengers, and prayed
Ethelwulf, king of the West-Saxons, to come and help him in reducing the
midland Britons, who dwell between Mercia and the western sea, and who
struggled against him most immoderately. So without delay, king Ethelwulf,
having received the embassy, moved his army, and advanced with king
Burhred against Britain,[93] and immediately, on entering that country, he
began to ravage it; and having reduced it under subjection to king Burhred,
he returned home.
In the same year, king Ethelwulf sent his son Alfred, above-named, to
Rome, with an honourable escort both of nobles and commoners. Pope Leo
[the fourth] at that time presided over the apostolic see, and he anointed for
king the aforesaid Alfred, and adopted him as his spiritual son. The same
year also, earl Ealhere, with the men of Kent, and Huda with the men of
Surrey, fought bravely and resolutely against an army of the pagans, in the
island, which is called in the Saxon tongue, Tenet,[94] but Ruim in the
British language. The battle lasted a long time, and many fell on both sides,
and also were drowned in the water; and both the earls were there slain. In
the same year also, after Easter, Ethelwulf, king of the West-Saxons, gave
his daughter to Burhred, king of the Mercians, and the marriage was
celebrated royally at the royal vill of Chippenham.[95]
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 855, which was the seventh after the
birth of the aforesaid king, Edmund the most glorious king of the East-
Angles began to reign, on the eighth day before the kalends of January, i.e.
on the birthday of our Lord, in the fourteenth year of his age. In this year
also died Lothaire, the Roman emperor, son of the pious Lewis Augustus. In
the same year the aforesaid venerable king Ethelwulf released the tenth part
of all his kingdom from all royal service and tribute, and with a pen never
to be forgotten, offered it up to God the One and the Three in One, in the

cross of Christ, for the redemption of his own soul and of his predecessors.
In the same year he went to Rome with much honour; and taking with him
his son, the aforesaid king Alfred, for a second journey thither, because he
loved him more than his other sons, he remained there a whole year; after
which he returned to his own country, bringing with him Judith, daughter of
Charles, the king of the Franks.
In the meantime, however, whilst king Ethelwulf was residing beyond the
sea, a base deed was done, repugnant to the morals of all Christians, in the
western part of Selwood. For king Ethelbald [son of king Ethelwulf] and
Ealstan, bishop of the church of Sherborne, with Eanwulf, earl of the
district of Somerton, are said to have made a conspiracy together, that king
Ethelwulf, on his return from Rome, should never again be received into his
kingdom. This crime, unheard-of in all previous ages, is ascribed by many
to the bishop and earl alone, as resulting from their counsels. Many also
ascribe it solely to the insolence of the king, because that king was
pertinacious in this matter, and in many other perversities, as we have heard
related by certain persons; as also was proved by the result of that which
follows.
For as he was returning from Rome, his son aforesaid, with all his
counsellors, or, as I ought to say, his conspirators, attempted to perpetrate
the crime of repulsing the king from his own kingdom; but neither did God
permit the deed, nor would the nobles of all Saxony consent to it. For to
prevent this irremediable evil to Saxony, of a son warring against his father,
or rather of the whole nation carrying on civil war either on the side of the
one or the other, the extraordinary mildness of the father, seconded by the
consent of all the nobles, divided between the two the kingdom which had
hitherto been undivided; the eastern parts were given to the father, and the
western to the son; for where the father ought by just right to reign, there
his unjust and obstinate son did reign; for the western part of Saxony is
always preferable to the eastern.
When Ethelwulf, therefore, was coming from Rome, all that nation, as was
fitting, so delighted in the arrival of the old man, that, if he permitted them,
they would have expelled his rebellious son Ethelbald, with all his
counsellors, out of the kingdom. But he, as we have said, acting with great
clemency and prudent counsel, so wished things to be done, that the

kingdom might not come into danger; and he placed Judith, daughter of
king Charles, whom he had received from his father, by his own side on the
regal throne, without any controversy or enmity from his nobles, even to the
end of his life, contrary to the perverse custom of that nation. For the nation
of the West-Saxons do not allow a queen to sit beside the king, nor to be
called a queen, but only the king's wife; which stigma the elders of that land
say arose from a certain obstinate and malevolent queen of the same nation,
who did all things so contrary to her lord, and to all the people, that she not
only earned for herself exclusion from the royal seat, but also entailed the
same stigma upon those who came after her; for in consequence of the
wickedness of that queen, all the nobles of that land swore together, that
they would never let any king reign over them, who should attempt to place
a queen on the throne by his side.
And because, as I think, it is not known to many whence this perverse and
detestable custom arose in Saxony, contrary to the custom of all the
Theotiscan nations, it seems to me right to explain a little more fully what I
have heard from my lord Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, as he also had
heard it from many men of truth, who in great part recorded that fact.
There was in Mercia, in recent times, a certain valiant king, who was feared
by all the kings and neighbouring states around. His name was Offa, and it
was he who had the great rampart made from sea to sea between Britain[96]
and Mercia. His daughter, named Eadburga, was married to Bertric, king of
the West-Saxons; who immediately, having the king's affections, and the
control of almost all the kingdom, began to live tyrannically like her father,
and to execrate every man whom Bertric loved, and to do all things hateful
to God and man, and to accuse all she could before the king, and so to
deprive them insidiously of their life or power; and if she could not obtain
the king's consent, she used to take them off by poison: as is ascertained to
have been the case with a certain young man beloved by the king, whom
she poisoned, finding that the king would not listen to any accusation
against him. It is said, moreover, that king Bertric unwittingly tasted of the
poison, though the queen intended to give it to the young man only, and so
both of them perished.
Bertric therefore being dead, the queen could remain no longer among the
West-Saxons, but sailed beyond the sea with immense treasures, and went

to the court of the great and famous Charles, king of the Franks. As she
stood before the throne, and offered him money, Charles said to her,
"Choose, Eadburga, between me and my son, who stands here with me."
She replied, foolishly, and without deliberation, "If I am to have my choice,
I choose your son, because he is younger than you." At which Charles
smiled and answered, "If you had chosen me, you would have had my son;
but as you have chosen him, you shall not have either of us."
However, he gave her a large convent of nuns, in which, having laid aside
the secular habit and taken the religious dress, she discharged the office of
abbess during a few years; for, as she is said to have lived irrationally in her
own country, so she appears to have acted still more so in that foreign
country; for being convicted of having had unlawful intercourse with a man
of her own nation, she was expelled from the monastery by king Charles's
order, and lived a vicious life of reproach in poverty and misery until her
death; so that at last, accompanied by one slave only, as we have heard from
many who saw her, she begged her bread daily at Pavia, and so miserably
died.
Now king Ethelwulf lived two years after his return from Rome; during
which, among many other good deeds of this present life, reflecting on his
departure according to the way of all flesh, that his sons might not quarrel
unreasonably after their father's death, he ordered a will or letter of
instructions to be written, in which he ordered that his kingdom should be
divided between his two eldest sons, his private inheritance between his
sons, his daughters, and his relations, and the money which he left behind
him between his sons and nobles, and for the good of his soul. Of this
prudent policy we have thought fit to record a few instances out of many for
posterity to imitate; namely, such as are understood to belong principally to
the needs of the soul; for the others, which relate only to human
dispensation, it is not necessary to insert in this work, lest prolixity should
create disgust in those who read or wish to hear my work. For the benefit of
his soul, then, which he studied to promote in all things from the first
flower of his youth, he directed through all his hereditary dominions, that
one poor man in ten, either native or foreigner, should be supplied with
meat, drink, and clothing, by his successors, until the day of judgment;
supposing, however, that the country should still be inhabited both by men
and cattle, and should not become deserted. He commanded also a large

sum of money, namely, three hundred mancuses, to be carried to Rome for
the good of his soul, to be distributed in the following manner: namely, a
hundred mancuses in honour of St. Peter, specially to buy oil for the lights
of the church of that apostle on Easter eve, and also at the cock-crow: a
hundred mancuses in honour of St. Paul, for the same purpose of buying oil
for the church of St. Paul the apostle, to light the lamps on Easter eve and at
the cock-crow; and a hundred mancuses for the universal apostolic pontiff.

But when king Ethelwulf was dead, and buried at Stemrugam,[97] his son
Ethelbald, contrary to God's prohibition and the dignity of a Christian,
contrary also to the custom of all the pagans, ascended his father's bed, and
married Judith, daughter of Charles, king of the Franks, and drew down
much infamy upon himself from all who heard of it. During two years and a
half of licentiousness after his father he held the government of the West-
Saxons.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 856, which was the eighth after
Alfred's birth, the second year of king Charles III, and the eighteenth year
of the reign of Ethelwulf, king of the West-Saxons, Humbert, bishop of the
East-Angles, anointed with oil and consecrated as king the glorious
Edmund, with much rejoicing and great honour in the royal town called
Burva, in which at that time was the royal seat, in the fifteenth year of his
age, on a Friday, the twenty-fourth moon, being Christmas-day.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 860, which was the twelfth of king
Alfred's age, died Ethelbald, king of the West-Saxons, and was buried at
Sherborne. His brother Ethelbert, as was fitting, joined Kent, Surrey, and
Sussex also to his dominion.
In his days a large army of pagans came from the sea, and attacked and
destroyed the city of Winchester. As they were returning laden with booty to
their ships, Osric, earl of Hampshire, with his men, and earl Ethelwulf, with
the men of Berkshire, confronted them bravely; a severe battle took place,
and the pagans were slain on every side; and, finding themselves unable to
resist, took to flight like women, and the Christians obtained a triumph.
Ethelbert governed his kingdom five years in peace, with the love and
respect of his subjects, who felt deep sorrow when he went the way of all

flesh. His body was honourably interred at Sherborne by the side of his
brothers.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 864, the pagans wintered in the isle of
Thanet, and made a firm treaty with the men of Kent, who promised them
money for adhering to their covenant; but the pagans, like cunning foxes,
burst from their camp by night, and setting at naught their engagements,
and spurning at the promised money, which they knew was less than they
could get by plunder, they ravaged all the eastern coast of Kent.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 866, which was the eighteenth of king
Alfred, Ethelred, brother of Ethelbert, king of the West Saxons, undertook
the government of the kingdom for five years; and the same year a large
fleet of pagans came to Britain from the Danube, and wintered in the
kingdom of the Eastern-Saxons, which is called in Saxon East-Anglia; and
there they became principally an army of cavalry. But, to speak in nautical
phrase, I will no longer commit my vessel to the power of the waves and of
its sails, or keeping off from land steer my round-about course through so
many calamities of wars and series of years, but will return to that which
first prompted me to this task; that is to say, I think it right in this place
briefly to relate as much as has come to my knowledge about the character
of my revered lord Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, during the years that
he was an infant and a boy.
He was loved by his father and mother, and even by all the people, above all
his brothers, and was educated altogether at the court of the king. As he
advanced through the years of infancy and youth, his form appeared more
comely than that of his brothers; in look, in speech, and in manners he was
more graceful than they. His noble nature implanted in him from his cradle
a love of wisdom above all things; but, with shame be it spoken, by the
unworthy neglect of his parents and nurses, he remained illiterate even till
he was twelve years old or more; but he listened with serious attention to
the Saxon poems which he often heard recited, and easily retained them in
his docile memory. He was a zealous practiser of hunting in all its branches,
and hunted with great assiduity and success; for skill and good fortune in
this art, as in all others, are among the gifts of God, as we also have often
witnessed.

On a certain day, therefore, his mother[98] was showing him and his brother
a Saxon book of poetry, which she held in her hand, and said, "Whichever
of you shall the soonest learn this volume shall have it for his own."
Stimulated by these words, or rather by the Divine inspiration, and allured
by the beautifully illuminated letter at the beginning of the volume, he
spoke before all his brothers, who, though his seniors in age, were not so in
grace, and answered, "Will you really give that book to one of us, that is to
say, to him who can first understand and repeat it to you?" At this his
mother smiled with satisfaction, and confirmed what she had before said.
Upon which the boy took the book out of her hand, and went to his master
to read it, and in due time brought it to his mother and recited it.
After this he learned the daily course, that is, the celebration of the hours,
and afterwards certain psalms, and several prayers, contained in a certain
book which he kept day and night in his bosom, as we ourselves have seen,
and carried about with him to assist his prayers, amid all the bustle and
business of this present life. But, sad to say, he could not gratify his most
ardent wish to learn the liberal arts, because, as he said, there were no good
readers at that time in all the kingdom of the West-Saxons.
This he confessed, with many lamentations and sighs, to have been one of
his greatest difficulties and impediments in this life, namely, that when he
was young and had the capacity for learning, he could not find teachers;
but, when he was more advanced in life, he was harassed by so many
diseases unknown to all the physicians of this island, as well as by internal
and external anxieties of sovereignty, and by continual invasions of the
pagans, and had his teachers and writers also so much disturbed, that there
was no time for reading. But yet among the impediments of this present life,
from infancy up to the present time, and, as I believe, even until his death,
he continued to feel the same insatiable desire of knowledge, and still
aspires after it.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 867, which was the nineteenth of the
life of the aforesaid king Alfred, the army of pagans before mentioned
removed from the East-Angles to the city of York, which is situated on the
north bank of the river Humber.

At that time a violent discord arose, by the instigation of the devil, among
the inhabitants of Northumberland; as always is used to happen among a
people who have incurred the wrath of God. For the Northumbrians at that
time, as we have said, had expelled their lawful king Osbert, and appointed
a certain tyrant named Ælla, not of royal birth, over the affairs of the
kingdom; but when the pagans approached, by divine Providence, and the
union of the nobles for the common good, that discord was a little appeased,
and Osbert and Ælla uniting their resources, and assembling an army,
marched to York. The pagans fled at their approach, and attempted to
defend themselves within the walls of the city. The Christians, perceiving
their flight and the terror they were in, determined to destroy the walls of
the town, which they succeeded in doing; for that city was not surrounded
at that time with firm or strong walls, and when the Christians had made a
breach as they had purposed, and many of them had entered into the town,
the pagans, urged by despair and necessity, made a fierce sally upon them,
slew them, routed them, and cut them down on all sides, both within and
without the walls. In that battle fell almost all the Northumbrian warriors,
with both the kings and a multitude of nobles; the remainder, who escaped,
made peace with the pagans.
In the same year, Ealstan, bishop of the church of Sherborne, went the way
of all flesh, after he had honourably ruled his see four years, and he was
buried at Sherborne.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 868, which was the twentieth of king
Alfred's life, there was a severe famine. Then the aforesaid revered king
Alfred, but at that time occupying a subordinate station, asked and obtained
in marriage a noble Mercian lady, daughter of Athelred, surnamed Mucil,
[99]
earl of the Gaini.[100] The mother of this lady was named Edburga, of
the royal line of Mercia, whom we have often seen with our own eyes a few
years before her death. She was a venerable lady, and after the decease of
her husband, she remained many years a widow, even till her own death.
In the same year, the above-named army of pagans, leaving
Northumberland, invaded Mercia and advanced to Nottingham, which is
called in the British tongue, "Tiggocobauc," but in Latin, the "House of
Caves," and they wintered there that same year. Immediately on their
approach, Burhred, king of Mercia, and all the nobles of that nation, sent

messengers to Ethelred, king of the West-Saxons, and his brother Alfred,
suppliantly entreating them to come and aid them in fighting against the
aforesaid army. Their request was easily obtained; for the brothers, as soon
as promised, assembled an immense army from all parts of their dominions,
and entering Mercia, came to Nottingham, all eager for battle, and when the
pagans, defended by the castle, refused to fight, and the Christians were
unable to destroy the wall, peace was made between the Mercians and
pagans, and the two brothers, Ethelred and Alfred, returned home with their
troops.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 869, which was the twenty-first of king
Alfred's life, there was a great famine and mortality of men, and a
pestilence among the cattle. And the aforesaid army of the pagans,
galloping back to Northumberland, went to York, and there passed the
winter.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 870, which was the twenty-second of
king Alfred's life, the above-named army of pagans, passed through Mercia
into East-Anglia, and wintered at Thetford.
In the same year Edmund, king of the East-Angles, fought most fiercely
against them; but, lamentable to say, the pagans triumphed, Edmund was
slain in the battle, and the enemy reduced all that country to subjection.
In the same year Ceolnoth, archbishop of Canterbury, went the way of all
flesh, and was buried peaceably in his own city.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 871, which was the twenty-third of
king Alfred's life, the pagan army, of hateful memory, left the East-Angles,
and entering the kingdom of the West-Saxons, came to the royal city, called
Reading, situated on the south bank of the Thames, in the district called
Berkshire; and there, on the third day after their arrival, their earls, with
great part of the army, scoured the country for plunder, while the others
made a rampart between the rivers Thames and Kennet on the right side of
the same royal city. They were encountered by Ethelwulf, earl of Berkshire,
with his men, at a place called Englefield;[101] both sides fought bravely,
and made long resistance. At length one of the pagan earls was slain, and
the greater part of the army destroyed; upon which the rest saved
themselves by flight, and the Christians gained the victory.

Four days afterwards, Ethelred, king of the West-Saxons, and his brother
Alfred, united their forces and marched to Reading, where, on their arrival,
they cut to pieces the pagans whom they found outside the fortifications.
But the pagans, nevertheless, sallied out from the gates, and a long and
fierce engagement ensued. At last, grief to say, the Christians fled, the
pagans obtained the victory, and the aforesaid earl Ethelwulf was among the
slain.
Roused by this calamity, the Christians, in shame and indignation, within
four days, assembled all their forces, and again encountered the pagan army
at a place called Ashdune,[102] which means the "Hill of the Ash." The
pagans had divided themselves into two bodies, and began to prepare
defences, for they had two kings and many earls, so they gave the middle
part of the army to the two kings, and the other part to all their earls. Which
the Christians perceiving, divided their army also into two troops, and also
began to construct defences. But Alfred, as we have been told by those who
were present, and would not tell an untruth, marched up promptly with his
men to give them battle; for king Ethelred remained a long time in his tent
in prayer, hearing the mass, and said that he would not leave it, till the priest
had done, or abandon the divine protection for that of men. And he did so
too, which afterwards availed him much with the Almighty, as we shall
declare more fully in the sequel.
Now the Christians had determined that king Ethelred, with his men, should
attack the two pagan kings, but that his brother Alfred, with his troops,
should take the chance of war against the two earls. Things being so
arranged, the king remained a long time in prayer, and the pagans came up
rapidly to fight. Then Alfred, though possessing a subordinate authority,
could no longer support the troops of the enemy, unless he retreated or
charged upon them without waiting for his brother. At length he bravely led
his troops against the hostile army, as they had before arranged, but without
awaiting his brother's arrival; for he relied in the divine counsels, and
forming his men into a dense phalanx, marched on at once to meet the foe.
But here I must inform those who are ignorant of the fact, that the field of
battle was not equally advantageous to both parties. The pagans occupied
the higher ground, and the Christians came up from below. There was also a
single thorn-tree, of stunted growth, and we have with our own eyes seen it.

Around this tree the opposing armies came together with loud shouts from
all sides, the one party to pursue their wicked course, the other to fight for
their lives, their dearest ties, and their country. And when both armies had
fought long and bravely, at last the pagans, by the divine judgment, were no
longer able to bear the attacks of the Christians, and having lost great part
of their army, took to a disgraceful flight. One of their two kings, and five
earls were there slain, together with many thousand pagans, who fell on all
sides, covering with their bodies the whole plain of Ashdune.
There fell in that battle king Bagsac, earl Sidrac the elder, and earl Sidrac
the younger, earl Osbern, earl Frene, and earl Harold; and the whole pagan
army pursued its flight, not only until night but until the next day, even until
they reached the stronghold from which they had sallied. The Christians
followed, slaying all they could reach, until it became dark.
After fourteen days had elapsed, king Ethelred, with his brother Alfred,
again joined their forces and marched to Basing to fight with the pagans.
The enemy came together from all quarters, and after a long contest gained
the victory. After this battle, another army came from beyond the sea, and
joined them.
The same year, after Easter, the aforesaid king Ethelred, having bravely,
honourably, and with good repute, governed his kingdom five years,
through much tribulation, went the way of all flesh, and was buried in
Wimborne Minster, where he awaits the coming of the Lord, and the first
resurrection with the just.
The same year, the aforesaid Alfred, who had been up to that time only of
secondary rank, whilst his brothers were alive, now, by God's permission,
undertook the government of the whole kingdom, amid the acclamations of
all the people; and if he had chosen, he might have done so before, whilst
his brother above-named was still alive; for in wisdom and other qualities
he surpassed all his brothers, and moreover, was warlike and victorious in
all his wars. And when he had reigned one month, almost against his will,
for he did not think he could alone sustain the multitude and ferocity of the
pagans, though even during his brothers' lives, he had borne the woes of
many,—he fought a battle with a few men, and on very unequal terms,
against all the army of the pagans, at a hill called Wilton, on the south bank

of the river Wily, from which river the whole of that district is named, and
after a long and fierce engagement, the pagans, seeing the danger they were
in, and no longer able to bear the attack of their enemies, turned their backs
and fled. But, oh, shame to say, they deceived their too audacious pursuers,
and again rallying, gained the victory. Let no one be surprised that the
Christians had but a small number of men, for the Saxons had been worn
out by eight battles in one year, against the pagans, of whom they had slain
one king, nine dukes, and innumerable troops of soldiers, besides endless
skirmishes, both by night and by day, in which the oft-named Alfred, and all
his chieftains, with their men, and several of his ministers, were engaged
without rest or cessation against the pagans. How many thousand pagans
fell in these numberless skirmishes God alone knows, over and above those
who were slain in the eight battles above-mentioned. In the same year the
Saxons made peace with the pagans, on condition that they should take their
departure, and they did so.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 872, the twenty-fourth of king Alfred's
life, the above-named army of pagans went to London, and there wintered.
The Mercians made peace with them.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 873, the twenty-fifth of king Alfred,
the above-named army, leaving London, went into the country of the
Northumbrians, and there wintered in the district of Lindsey; and the
Mercians again made treaty with them.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 874, the twenty-sixth since the birth of
king Alfred, the army before so often mentioned left Lindsey and marched
to Mercia, where they wintered at Repton. Also they compelled Burhred,
king of Mercia, against his will, to leave his kingdom and go beyond the sea
to Rome, in the twenty-second year of his reign. He did not long live after
his arrival, but died there, and was honourably buried in the school of the
Saxons, in St. Mary's church, where he awaits the Lord's coming and the
first resurrection with the just. The pagans also, after his expulsion,
subjected the whole kingdom of the Mercians to their dominion; but by a
most miserable arrangement, gave it into the custody of a certain foolish
man, named Ceolwulf, one of the king's ministers, on condition that he
should restore it to them, whenever they should wish to have it again; and to

guarantee this agreement, he gave them hostages, and swore that he would
not oppose their will, but be obedient to them in every respect.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 875, which was the 27th of king
Alfred, the above-named army leaving Repton, divided into two bodies, one
of which went with Halfdene into Northumbria, and having wintered there
near the Tyne, reduced all Northumberland to subjection; they also ravaged
the Picts and the Strath-Clydensians.[103] The other division, with Gothrun,
Oskytel, and Anwiund, three kings of the pagans, went to a place called
Grantabridge,[104] and there wintered.
In the same year, king Alfred fought a battle by sea against six ships of the
pagans, and took one of them; the rest escaped by flight.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 876, being the twenty-eighth year of
king Alfred's life, the aforesaid army of the pagans, leaving Grantabridge by
night, entered a castle called Wareham, where there is a monasterium of
holy virgins between the two rivers Fraun[105] and Trent, in the district
which is called in British Durngueis, but in Saxon Thornsæta, placed in a
most secure situation, except that it was exposed to danger on the western
side from the nature of the ground. With this army Alfred made a solemn
treaty, to the effect that they should depart out of the kingdom, and for this
they made no hesitation to give as many hostages as he named; also they
swore an oath over the Christian relics,[106] which with king Alfred were
next in veneration after the Deity himself, that they would depart speedily
from the kingdom. But they again practised their usual treachery, and caring
nothing for the hostages or their oaths, they broke the treaty, and sallying
forth by night, slew all the horsemen that the king had round him, and
turning off into Devon, to another place called in Saxon Exanceaster,[107]
but in British Caer-wisc, which means in Latin, the city of Ex, situated on
the eastern bank of the river Wisc, they directed their course suddenly
towards the south sea, which divides Britain and Gaul, and there passed the
winter.
In the same year, Halfdene, king of those parts, divided out the whole
country of Northumberland between himself and his men, and settled there
with his army. In the same year, Rollo with his followers penetrated into
Normandy.

This same Rollo, duke of the Normans, whilst wintering in Old Britain, or
England, at the head of his troops, enjoyed one night a vision revealing to
him the future. See more of this Rollo in the Annals.[108]
In the year 877, the pagans, on the approach of autumn, partly settled in
Exeter, and partly marched for plunder into Mercia. The number of that
disorderly crew increased every day, so that, if thirty thousand of them were
slain in one battle, others took their places to double the number. Then king
Alfred commanded boats and galleys, i.e. long ships, to be built throughout
the kingdom, in order to offer battle by sea to the enemy as they were
coming. On board of these he placed seamen, and appointed them to watch
the seas. Meanwhile he went himself to Exeter, where the pagans were
wintering, and having shut them up within the walls, laid siege to the town.
He also gave orders to his sailors to prevent them from obtaining any
supplies by sea; and his sailors were encountered by a fleet of a hundred
and twenty ships full of armed soldiers, who were come to help their
countrymen. As soon as the king's men knew that they were fitted with
pagan soldiers, they leaped to their arms, and bravely attacked those
barbaric tribes: but the pagans, who had now for almost a month been
tossed and almost wrecked among the waves of the sea, fought vainly
against them; their bands were discomfited in a moment, and all were sunk
and drowned in the sea, at a place called Suanewic.[109]
In the same year the army of pagans, leaving Wareham, partly on horseback
and partly by water, arrived at Suanewic, where one hundred and twenty of
their ships were lost;[110] and king Alfred pursued their land-army as far as
Exeter; there he made a covenant with them, and took hostages that they
would depart.
The same year, in the month of August, that army went into Mercia, and
gave part of that country to one Ceolwulf, a weak-minded man, and one of
the king's ministers; the other part they divided among themselves.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 878, which was the thirtieth of king
Alfred's life, the army above-mentioned left Exeter, and went to
Chippenham, a royal villa, situated in the west of Wiltshire, and on the
eastern bank of the river, which is called in British, the Avon. There they
wintered, and drove many of the inhabitants of that country beyond the sea

by the force of their arms, and by want of the necessaries of life. They
reduced almost entirely to subjection all the people of that country.
At the same time the above-named Alfred, king of the West-Saxons, with a
few of his nobles, and certain soldiers and vassals, used to lead an unquiet
life among the woodlands[111] of the county of Somerset, in great
tribulation; for he had none of the necessaries of life, except what he could
forage openly or stealthily, by frequent sallies, from the pagans, or even
from the Christians who had submitted to the rule of the pagans, and as we
read in the Life of St. Neot, at the house of one of his cowherds.
But it happened on a certain day, that the countrywoman, wife of the
cowherd, was preparing some loaves to bake, and the king, sitting at the
hearth, made ready his bow and arrows and other warlike instruments. The
unlucky woman espying the cakes burning at the fire, ran up to remove
them, and rebuking the brave king, exclaimed:—
Ca'sn thee mind the ke-aks, man, an' doossen zee 'em burn?
I'm boun thee's eat 'em vast enough, az zoon az 'tiz the turn.[112]
The blundering woman little thought that it was king Alfred, who had
fought so many battles against the pagans, and gained so many victories
over them.
But the Almighty not only granted to the same glorious king victories over
his enemies, but also permitted him to be harassed by them, to be sunk
down by adversities, and depressed by the low estate of his followers, to the
end that he might learn that there is one Lord of all things, to whom every
knee doth bow, and in whose hand are the hearts of kings; who puts down
the mighty from their seat and exalteth the humble; who suffers his servants
when they are elevated at the summit of prosperity to be touched by the rod
of adversity, that in their humility they may not despair of God's mercy, and
in their prosperity they may not boast of their honours, but may also know,
to whom they owe all the things which they possess.
We may believe that the calamity was brought upon the king aforesaid,
because, in the beginning of his reign, when he was a youth, and influenced
by youthful feelings, he would not listen to the petitions which his subjects
made to him for help in their necessities, or for relief from those who

oppressed them; but he repulsed them from him, and paid no heed to their
requests. This particular gave much annoyance to the holy man St. Neot,
who was his relation, and often foretold to him, in the spirit of prophecy,
that he would suffer great adversity on this account; but Alfred neither
attended to the reproof of the man of God, nor listened to his true
prediction. Wherefore, seeing that a man's sins must be corrected either in
this world or the next, the true and righteous Judge was willing that his sin
should not go unpunished in this world, to the end that he might spare him
in the world to come. From this cause, therefore, the aforesaid Alfred often
fell into such great misery, that sometimes none of his subjects knew where
he was or what had become of him.

In the same year the brother[113] of Hingwar and Halfdene, with twenty-
three ships, after much slaughter of the Christians, came from the country
of Demetia,[114] where he had wintered, and sailed to Devon, where, with
twelve hundred others, he met with a miserable death, being slain while
committing his misdeeds, by the king's servants, before the castle of Cynuit
(Kynwith[115]), into which many of the king's servants, with their followers,
had fled for safety. The pagans, seeing that the castle was altogether
unprepared and unfortified, except that it had walls in our own fashion,
determined not to assault it, because it was impregnable and secure on all
sides, except on the eastern, as we ourselves have seen, but they began to
blockade it, thinking that those who were inside would soon surrender
either from famine or want of water, for the castle had no spring near it. But
the result did not fall out as they expected; for the Christians, before they
began to suffer from want, inspired by Heaven, judging it much better to
gain victory or death, attacked the pagans suddenly in the morning, and
from the first cut them down in great numbers, slaying also their king, so
that few escaped to their ships; and there they gained a very large booty,
and amongst other things the standard called Raven; for they say that the
three sisters of Hingwar and Hubba, daughters of Lodobroch, wove that flag
and got it ready in one day. They say, moreover, that in every battle,
wherever that flag went before them, if they were to gain the victory a live
crow would appear flying on the middle of the flag; but if they were
doomed to be defeated it would hang down motionless, and this was often
proved to be so.

The same year, after Easter, king Alfred, with a few followers, made for
himself a stronghold in a place called Athelney, and from thence sallied
with his vassals and the nobles of Somersetshire, to make frequent assaults
upon the pagans. Also, in the seventh week after Easter, he rode to the stone
of Egbert,[116] which is in the eastern part of the wood which is called
Selwood,[117] which means in Latin Silva Magna, the Great Wood, but in
British Coit-mawr. Here he was met by all the neighbouring folk of
Somersetshire, and Wiltshire, and Hampshire, who had not, for fear of the
pagans, fled beyond the sea; and when they saw the king alive after such
great tribulation, they received him, as he deserved, with joy and
acclamations, and encamped there for one night. When the following day
dawned, the king struck his camp, and went to Okely,[118] where he
encamped for one night. The next morning he removed to Edington, and
there fought bravely and perseveringly against all the army of the pagans,
whom, with the divine help, he defeated with great slaughter, and pursued
them flying to their fortification. Immediately he slew all the men, and
carried off all the booty that he could find without the fortress, which he
immediately laid siege to with all his army; and when he had been there
fourteen days, the pagans, driven by famine, cold, fear, and last of all by
despair, asked for peace, on the condition that they should give the king as
many hostages as he pleased, but should receive none of him in return, in
which form they had never before made a treaty with any one. The king,
hearing that, took pity upon them, and received such hostages as he chose;
after which the pagans swore, moreover, that they would immediately leave
the kingdom; and their king, Gothrun, promised to embrace Christianity,
and receive baptism at king Alfred's hands. All of which articles he and his
men fulfilled as they had promised. For after seven weeks Gothrun, king of
the pagans, with thirty men chosen from the army, came to Alfred at a place
called Aller, near Athelney, and there king Alfred, receiving him as his son
by adoption, raised him up from the holy laver of baptism on the eighth day,
at a royal villa named Wedmore,[119] where the holy chrism was poured
upon him.[120] After his baptism he remained twelve nights with the king,
who, with all his nobles, gave him many fine houses.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 879, which was the thirty-first of king
Alfred, the aforesaid army of pagans leaving Chippenham, as they had
promised, went to Cirencester, which is called in British Cair Cori, and is

situate in the southern part of the Wiccii,[121] and there they remained one
year.
In the same year, a large army of pagans sailed from foreign parts into the
river Thames, and joined the army which was already in the country. They
wintered at Fulham near the river Thames.
In the same year an eclipse of the sun took place, between three o'clock and
the evening, but nearer to three o'clock.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 880, which was the thirty-second of
king Alfred, the above-named army of pagans left Cirencester, and went
among the East Angles, where they divided out the country and began to
settle.
The same year the army of pagans, which had wintered at Fulham, left the
island of Britain, and sailed over the sea to the eastern part of France, where
they remained a year at a place called Ghent.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 881, which was the thirty-third of king
Alfred's life, the aforesaid army went higher up into France; and the French
fought against them; and after the battle the pagans obtained horses and
became an army of cavalry.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 882, the thirty-fourth of king Alfred's
life, the above-named army steered their ships up into France by a river
called the Mese [Meuse] and there wintered one year.
In the same year Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, fought a battle by sea
against the pagan fleet, of which he captured two ships, having slain all who
were on board; and the two commanders of two other ships, with all their
crews, distressed by the battle and the wounds which they had received, laid
down their arms and submitted to the king.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 883, which was the thirty-fifth of king
Alfred's life, the aforesaid army went up the river called Scald [Scheldt] to a
convent of nuns called Cundoht [Condé] and there remained a year.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 884, which was the thirty-sixth of king
Alfred's life, the aforesaid army divided into two parts; one body of them

went into East France, and the other coming to Britain entered Kent, where
they besieged a city called in Saxon Rochester, and situated on the eastern
bank of the river Medway. Before the gate of the town the pagans suddenly
erected a strong fortress, but yet they were unable to take the city, because
the citizens defended themselves bravely, until king Alfred came up to help
them with a large army. Then the pagans abandoned their fortress, and all
their horses which they had brought with them out of France, and leaving
behind them in the fortress the greater part of their prisoners, on the arrival
of the king, fled immediately to their ships, and the Saxons immediately
seized on the prisoners and horses left by the pagans; and so the pagans,
compelled by stern necessity, returned the same summer to France.
In the same year Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, led his fleet, full of
fighting men, out of Kent to the country of the East Angles, for the sake of
plunder;[122] and, when they had arrived at the mouth of the river Stour,[123]
immediately thirteen ships of the pagans met them, prepared for battle; a
fierce fight ensued, and all the pagans, after a brave resistance, were slain;
all the ships, with all their money, were taken. After this, while the royal
fleet were reposing, the pagans, who lived in the eastern part of England,
assembled their ships, met the same royal fleet at sea in the mouth of the
same river, and, after a naval battle, the pagans gained the victory.
In the same year, also, Carloman, king of the Western Franks, whilst
hunting a wild boar, was miserably killed by a large animal of that species,
which inflicted a dreadful wound on him with its tusk. His brother Louis
[III], who had also been king of the Franks, died the year before. These two
brothers were sons of Louis, king of the Franks, who had died in the year
above-mentioned, in which the eclipse of the sun took place; and it was he
whose daughter Judith was given by her father's wish in marriage to
Ethelwulf, king of the West Saxons.
In the same year also a great army of the pagans came from Germany into
the country of the ancient Saxons, which is called in Saxon Ealdseaxum.
[124]
To oppose them the said Saxons and Frisons joined their forces, and
fought bravely twice in that same year. In both those battles the Christians,
with the merciful aid of the Lord, obtained the victory.

In the same year also, Charles, king of the Almains, received, with universal
consent, all the territories which lie between the Tyrrhenian sea and that
gulf which runs between the old Saxons and the Gauls, except the kingdom
of Armorica, i.e. Lesser Britain. This Charles was the son of king Louis,
who was brother of Charles, king of the Franks, father of the aforesaid
queen Judith; these two brothers were sons of Louis, but Louis was the son
of the great, the ancient, and wise Charlemagne, who was the son of Pepin.
In the same year pope Martin, of blessed memory, went the way of all flesh;
it was he who, in regard for Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, and at his
request, freed the school of the Anglo-Saxons resident at Rome from all
tribute and tax. He also sent many gifts on that occasion, among which was
no small portion of the holy and venerable cross on which our Lord Jesus
Christ was suspended, for the general salvation of mankind.
In the same year also the army of pagans, which dwelt among the East
Angles, disgracefully broke the peace which they had concluded with king
Alfred.
Wherefore, to return to that from which I digressed, that I may not be
compelled by my long navigation to abandon the port of rest which I was
making for, I propose, as far as my knowledge will enable me, to speak of
the life and character and just conduct of my lord Alfred, king of the Anglo-
Saxons, after he married the above-named respected lady of Mercian race,
his wife; and, with God's blessing, I will despatch it succinctly and briefly,
as I promised, that I may not offend the delicate minds of my readers by
prolixity in relating each new event.
His nuptials were honourably celebrated in Mercia, among innumerable
multitudes of people of both sexes; and after continual feasts, both by night
and by day, he was immediately seized, in presence of all the people, by
sudden and overwhelming pain, as yet unknown to all the physicians; for it
was unknown to all who were then present, and even to those who daily see
him up to the present time,—which, sad to say! is the worst of all, that he
should have protracted it so long from the twentieth to the fortieth year of
his life, and even more than that through the space of so many years,—from
what cause so great a malady arose. For many thought that this was
occasioned by the favour and fascination of the people who surrounded

him; others, by some spite of the devil, who is ever jealous of the good;
others, from an unusual kind of fever. He had this sort of severe disease
from his childhood; but once, divine Providence so ordered it, that when he
was on a visit to Cornwall for the sake of hunting, and had turned out of the
road to pray in a certain chapel, in which rests the body of Saint Guerir,[125]
and now also St. Neot[126] rests there,—for king Alfred was always from his
infancy a frequent visitor of holy places for the sake of prayer and
almsgiving,—he prostrated himself for private devotion, and, after some
time spent therein, he entreated of God's mercy, that in his boundless
clemency he would exchange the torments of the malady which then
afflicted him for some other lighter disease; but with this condition, that
such disease should not show itself outwardly in his body, lest he should be
an object of contempt, and less able to benefit mankind; for he had great
dread of leprosy or blindness, or any such complaint, as makes men useless
or contemptible when it afflicts them. When he had finished his prayers, he
proceeded on his journey, and not long after he felt within him that by the
hand of the Almighty he was healed, according to his request, of his
disorder, and that it was entirely eradicated, although he had first had even
this complaint in the flower of his youth, by his devout and pious prayers
and supplications to Almighty God. For if I may be allowed to speak
briefly, but in a somewhat preposterous order, of his zealous piety to God,
in the flower of his youth, before he entered the marriage state, he wished to
strengthen his mind in the observance of God's commandments, for he
perceived that he could with difficulty abstain from gratifying his carnal
desires; and, because he feared the anger of God, if he should do anything
contrary to his will, he used often to rise in the morning at the cock-crow,
and go to pray in the churches and at the relics of the saints. There he
prostrated himself on the ground, and prayed that God in his mercy would
strengthen his mind still more in his service by some infirmity such as he
might bear, but not such as would render him imbecile and contemptible in
his worldly duties; and when he had often prayed with much devotion to
this effect, after an interval of some time, Providence vouchsafed to afflict
him with the above-named disease, which he bore long and painfully for
many years, and even despaired of life, until he entirely got rid of it by his
prayers; but, sad to say! it was replaced, as we have said, at his marriage by
another which incessantly tormented him, night and day, from the twentieth
to the forty-fourth year of his life. But if ever, by God's mercy, he was

relieved from this infirmity for a single day or night, yet the fear and dread
of that dreadful malady never left him, but rendered him almost useless, as
he thought, for every duty, whether human or divine.
The sons and daughters, which he had by his wife above mentioned were
Ethelfled the eldest, after whom came Edward, then Ethelgiva, then
Ethelswitha, and Ethelwerd, besides those who died in their infancy, one of
whom was Edmund. Ethelfled, when she arrived at a marriageable age, was
united to Ethered, earl of Mercia; Ethelgiva also was dedicated to God, and
submitted to the rules of a monastic life. Ethelwerd the youngest, by the
divine counsels and the admirable prudence of the king, was consigned to
the schools of learning, where, with the children of almost all the nobility of
the country, and many also who were not noble, he prospered under the
diligent care of his teachers. Books in both languages, namely, Latin and
Saxon, were both read in the school. They also learned to write; so that
before they were of an age to practice manly arts, namely, hunting and such
pursuits as befit noblemen, they became studious and clever in the liberal
arts. Edward and Ethelswitha were bred up in the king's court and received
great attention from their attendants and nurses; nay, they continue to this
day, with the love of all about them, and showing affability, and even
gentleness towards all, both natives and foreigners, and in complete
subjection to their father; nor, among their other studies which appertain to
this life and are fit for noble youths, are they suffered to pass their time idly
and unprofitably without learning the liberal arts; for they have carefully
learned the Psalms and Saxon books, especially the Saxon poems, and are
continually in the habit of making use of books.
In the meantime, the king, during the frequent wars and other trammels of
this present life, the invasions of the pagans, and his own daily infirmities
of body, continued to carry on the government, and to exercise hunting in
all its branches; to teach his workers in gold and artificers of all kinds, his
falconers, hawkers and dog-keepers; to build houses, majestic and good,
beyond all the precedents of his ancestors, by his new mechanical
inventions; to recite the Saxon books, and especially to learn by heart the
Saxon poems, and to make others learn them; and he alone never desisted
from studying, most diligently, to the best of his ability; he attended the
mass and other daily services of religion; he was frequent in psalm-singing
and prayer, at the hours both of the day and the night. He also went to the

churches, as we have already said, in the night-time to pray, secretly, and
unknown to his courtiers; he bestowed alms and largesses on both natives
and foreigners of all countries; he was affable and pleasant to all, and
curiously eager to investigate things unknown. Many Franks, Frisons,
Gauls, pagans, Britons, Scots, and Armoricans, noble and ignoble,
submitted voluntarily to his dominion; and all of them, according to their
nation and deserving, were ruled, loved, honoured, and enriched with
money and power. Moreover, the king was in the habit of hearing the divine
scriptures read by his own countrymen, or, if by any chance it so happened,
in company with foreigners, and he attended to it with sedulity and
solicitude. His bishops, too, and all ecclesiastics, his earls and nobles,
ministers and friends, were loved by him with wonderful affection, and
their sons, who were bred up in the royal household, were no less dear to
him than his own; he had them instructed in all kinds of good morals, and
among other things, never ceased to teach them letters night and day; but as
if he had no consolation in all these things, and suffered no other annoyance
either from within or without, yet he was harassed by daily and nightly
affliction, that he complained to God, and to all who were admitted to his
familiar love, that Almighty God had made him ignorant of divine wisdom,
and of the liberal arts; in this emulating the pious, the wise, and wealthy
Solomon, king of the Hebrews, who at first, despising all present glory and
riches, asked wisdom of God, and found both, namely, wisdom and worldly
glory; as it is written, "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,
and all these things shall be added unto you." But God, who is always the
inspector of the thoughts of the mind within, and the instigator of all good
intentions, and a most plentiful aider, that good desires may be formed,—
for he would not instigate a man to good intentions, unless he also amply
supplied that which the man justly and properly wishes to have,—instigated
the king's mind within; as it is written, "I will hearken what the Lord God
will say concerning me." He would avail himself of every opportunity to
procure coadjutors in his good designs, to aid him in his strivings after
wisdom, that he might attain to what he aimed at; and, like a prudent bird,
which rising in summer with the early morning from her beloved nest,
steers her rapid flight through the uncertain tracks of ether, and descends on
the manifold and varied flowers of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, essaying that
which pleases most, that she may bear it to her home, so did he direct his

eyes afar, and seek without, that which he had not within, namely, in his
own kingdom.
But God at that time, as some consolation to the king's benevolence,
yielding to his complaint, sent certain lights to illuminate him, namely,
Werefrith, bishop of the church of Worcester, a man well versed in divine
scripture, who, by the king's command, first turned the books of the
Dialogues of pope Gregory and Peter, his disciple, from Latin into Saxon,
and sometimes putting sense for sense, interpreted them with clearness and
elegance. After him was Plegmund, a Mercian by birth, archbishop of the
church of Canterbury, a venerable man, and endowed with wisdom;
Ethelstan also, and Werewulf, his priests and chaplains, Mercians by birth,
and erudite. These four had been invited out of Mercia by king Alfred, who
exalted them with many honours and powers in the kingdom of the West-
Saxons, besides the privileges which archbishop Plegmund and bishop
Werefrith enjoyed in Mercia. By their teaching and wisdom the king's
desires increased unceasingly, and were gratified. Night and day, whenever
he had leisure, he commanded such men as these to read books to him; for
he never suffered himself to be without one of them, wherefore he
possessed a knowledge of every book, though of himself he could not yet
understand anything of books, for he had not yet learned to read any thing.
But the king's commendable avarice could not be gratified even in this;
wherefore he sent messengers beyond the sea to Gaul, to procure teachers,
and he invited from thence Grimbald,[127] priest and monk, a venerable
man, and good singer, adorned with every kind of ecclesiastical discipline
and good morals, and most learned in holy scripture. He also obtained from
thence John,[128] also priest and monk, a man of most energetic talents, and
learned in all kinds of literary science, and skilled in many other arts. By
the teaching of these men the king's mind was much enlarged, and he
enriched and honoured them with much influence.
In these times, I also came into Saxony out of the furthest coasts of Western
Britain; and when I had proposed to go to him through many intervening
provinces, I arrived in the country of the Saxons, who live on the right
hand, which in Saxon is called Sussex, under the guidance of some of that
nation; and there I first saw him in the royal vill, which is called Dene.[129]
He received me with kindness, and among other familiar conversation, he

asked me eagerly to devote myself to his service and become his friend, to
leave every thing which I possessed on the left, or western bank of the
Severn, and he promised he would give more than an equivalent for it in his
own dominions. I replied that I could not incautiously and rashly promise
such things; for it seemed to me unjust, that I should leave those sacred
places in which I had been bred, educated, and crowned,[130] and at last
ordained, for the sake of any earthly honour and power, unless by
compulsion. Upon this, he said, "If you cannot accede to this, at least, let
me have your service in part: spend six months of the year with me here,
and the other six in Britain." To this, I replied, "I could not even promise
that easily or hastily without the advice of my friends." At length, however,
when I perceived that he was anxious for my services, though I knew not
why, I promised him that, if my life was spared, I would return to him after
six months, with such a reply as should be agreeable to him as well as
advantageous to me and mine. With this answer he was satisfied, and when
I had given him a pledge to return at the appointed time, on the fourth day
we left him and returned on horseback towards our own country.
After our departure, a violent fever seized me in the city of Winchester,
where I lay for twelve months and one week, night and day, without hope of
recovery. At the appointed time, therefore, I could not fulfil my promise of
visiting him, and he sent messengers to hasten my journey, and to inquire
the cause of my delay. As I was unable to ride to him, I sent a second
messenger to tell him the cause of my delay, and assure him that, if I
recovered from my infirmity, I would fulfil what I had promised. My
complaint left me, and by the advice and consent of all my friends, for the
benefit of that holy place, and of all who dwelt therein, I did as I had
promised to the king, and devoted myself to his service, on the condition
that I should remain with him six months in every year, either continuously,
if I could spend six months with him at once, or alternately, three months in
Britain and three in Saxony.[131] For my friends hoped that they should
sustain less tribulation and harm from king Hemeid.[132] who often
plundered that monastery and the parish of St. Deguus,[133] and sometimes
expelled the prelates, as they expelled archbishop Novis,[134] my relation,
and myself; if in any manner I could secure the notice and friendship of the
king.

At that time, and long before, all the countries on the right hand side of
Britain belonged to king Alfred and still belong to him. For instance, king
Hemeid, with all the inhabitants of the region of Demetia, compelled by the
violence of the six sons of Rotri, had submitted to the dominion of the king.
Howel also, son of Ris, king of Gleguising, and Brocmail and Fernmail,
sons of Mouric, kings of Gwent, compelled by the violence and tyranny of
earl Ethered and of the Mercians, of their own accord sought king Alfred,
that they might enjoy his government and protection from him against their
enemies. Helised, also, son of Tendyr, king of Brecon, compelled by the
force of the same sons of Rotri, of his own accord sought the government of
the aforesaid king; and Anarawd, son of Rotri, with his brother, at length
abandoning the friendship of the Northumbrians, from which he received no
good but harm, came into king Alfred's presence and eagerly sought his
friendship. The king received him honourably, received him as his son by
confirmation from the bishop's hand, and presented him with many gifts.
Thus he became subject to the king with all his people, on the same
condition, that he should be obedient to the king's will in all respects, in the
same way as Ethered with the Mercians.
Nor was it in vain that all these princes gained the friendship of the king.
For those who desired to augment their worldly power, obtained power;
those who desired money, gained money; and in like way, those who
desired his friendship, or both money and friendship, succeeded in getting
what they wanted. But all of them gained his love and guardianship and
defence from every quarter, even as the king with his men could protect
himself.
When therefore I had come into his presence at the royal vill, called
Leonaford, I was honourably received by him, and remained that time with
him at his court eight months; during which I read to him whatever books
he liked, and such as he had at hand; for this is his most usual custom, both
night and day, amid his many other occupations of mind and body, either
himself to read books, or to listen whilst others read them. And when I
frequently asked his leave to depart, and could in no way obtain it, at length
when I had made up my mind by all means to demand it, he called me to
him at twilight, on Christmas eve, and gave me two letters, in which was a
long list of all the things which were in two monasteries, called in Saxon,
Ambresbury[135] and Banwell;[136] and on that same day he delivered to me

those two monasteries with all the things that were in them, and a silken
pall of great value, and a load for a strong man, of incense, adding these
words, that he did not give me these trifling presents, because he was
unwilling hereafter to give me greater; for in the course of time he
unexpectedly gave me Exeter, with all the diocese which belonged to him in
Saxony[137] and in Cornwall, besides gifts every day, without number, in
every kind of worldly wealth, which it would be too long to enumerate here,
lest they should make my reader tired. But let no one suppose that I have
mentioned these presents in this place for the sake of glory or flattery, or to
obtain greater honour. I call God to witness, that I have not done so; but that
I might certify to those who are ignorant, how profuse he is in giving. He
then at once gave me permission to ride to those two rich monasteries and
afterwards to return to my own country.
In the year of our Lord's incarnation, 886, which was the thirty-eighth since
the birth of Alfred, the army so often before-mentioned again fled the
country, and went into the country of the Western Franks, directing their
ships to the river called the Seine, and sailed up it as far as the city of Paris,
and there they wintered and measured out their camp. They besieged that
city a whole year, as far as the bridge, that they might prevent the
inhabitants from making use of it; for the city is situated on a small island in
the middle of the river; but by the merciful favour of God, and the brave
defence of citizens, the army could not force their way inside the walls.
In the same year, Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, after the burning of
cities and the slaying of the people, honourably rebuilt the city of London,
and made it again habitable. He gave it into the custody of his son-in-law,
Ethered, earl of Mercia, to which king all the Angles and Saxons, who
before had been dispersed everywhere, or were in captivity with the pagans,
voluntarily turned and submitted themselves to his dominion.
[138]
[In the same year there arose a foul and deadly discord at Oxford,
between Grimbald, with those learned men whom he had brought with him,
and the old scholars whom he had found there, who, on his arrival, refused
altogether to embrace the laws, modes, and forms of prælection instituted
by the same Grimbald. During three years there had been no great
dissension between them, but there was a secret enmity, which afterwards
broke out with great atrocity, clearer than the light itself. To appease this

quarrel, that invincible king Alfred, having been informed of the strife by a
messenger from Grimbald, went to Oxford to put an end to the controversy,
and endured much trouble in hearing the arguments and complaints which
were brought forwards on both sides. The substance of the dispute was this:
the old scholars contended, that literature had flourished at Oxford before
the coming of Grimbald, although the number of scholars was smaller than
in ancient time, because several had been driven away by the cruelty and
tyranny of the pagans. They also proved and showed, by the undoubted
testimony of ancient annals, that the orders and institutions of that place had
been sanctioned by certain pious and learned men, as for instance by Saint
Gildas, Melkinus, Nennius, Kentigern, and others, who had all grown old
there in literature, and happily administered everything there in peace and
concord; and also, that Saint Germanus had come to Oxford, and stopped
there half a year, at the time when he went through Britain to preach against
the Pelagian heresy; he wonderfully approved of the customs and
institutions above-mentioned. The king, with unheard-of humility, listened
to both sides carefully, and exhorted them again and again with pious and
wholesome admonitions to cherish mutual love and concord. He therefore
left them with this decision, that each party should follow their own
counsel, and preserve their own institutions. Grimbald, displeased at this,
immediately departed to the monastery at Winchester,[139] which had been
recently founded by king Alfred, and ordered a tomb to be carried to
Winchester, in which he proposed, after this life, that his bones should be
laid in the vault which had been made under the chancel of St. Peter's
church in Oxford; which church the same Grimbald had built from its
foundations, of stone polished with great care.]
In the year of our Lord's incarnation 887, which was the thirty-ninth of king
Alfred's life, the above-mentioned army of the pagans, leaving the city of
Paris uninjured, because they could not succeed against it, sailed up the
river Seine under the bridge, until they reached the mouth of the river
Materne [Marne]; where they left the Seine, and, following for a long time
the course of the Marne, at length, but not without much labour, they
arrived at a place called Chezy, a royal vill, where they wintered one year.
In the following year they entered the mouth of the river Ionna [Yonne], not
without doing much damage to the country, and there remained one year.

In the same year Charles, king of the Franks, went the way of all flesh; but
Arnulf, his brother's son, six weeks before he died, had expelled him from
his kingdom. After his death five kings were appointed, and the kingdom
was split into five parts; but the principal rank in the kingdom justly and
deservedly devolved on Arnulf, save only that he committed an unworthy
offence against his uncle. The other four kings promised fidelity and
obedience to Arnulf, as was proper; for none of these four kings was
hereditary on his father's side in his share of the kingdom, as was Arnulf;
therefore, though the five kings were appointed immediately on the death of
Charles, yet the empire remained in the hands of Arnulf.
Such, then, was the division of the kingdom; Arnulf received the countries
on the east of the river Rhine; Rodulf the inner parts of the kingdom; Oda
the western part; Beorngar and Guido, Lombardy, and those countries
which are in that part of the mountains; but they did not keep these large
dominions in peace, for they twice fought a pitched battle, and often
mutually ravaged their kingdoms, and drove each other out of their
dominions.
In the same year in which that [pagan] army left Paris and went to Chezy,
Ethelhelm, earl of Wiltshire, carried to Rome the alms of king Alfred and of
the Saxons.
In the same year also Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, so often before
mentioned, by divine inspiration, began, on one and the same day, to read
and to interpret; but that I may explain this more fully to those who are
ignorant, I will relate the cause of this long delay in beginning.
On a certain day we were both of us sitting in the king's chamber, talking on
all kinds of subjects, as usual, and it happened that I read to him a quotation
out of a certain book. He heard it attentively with both his ears, and
addressed me with a thoughtful mind, showing me at the same moment a
book which he carried in his bosom, wherein the daily courses and psalms,
and prayers which he had read in his youth, were written, and he
commanded me to write the same quotation in that book. Hearing this, and
perceiving his ingenuous benevolence, and devout desire of studying the
words of divine wisdom, I gave, though in secret, boundless thanks to
Almighty God, who had implanted such a love of wisdom in the king's

heart. But I could not find any empty space in that book wherein to write
the quotation, for it was already full of various matters; wherefore I made a
little delay, principally that I might stir up the bright intellect of the king to
a higher acquaintance with the divine testimonies. Upon his urging me to
make haste and write it quickly, I said to him, "Are you willing that I should
write that quotation on some leaf apart? For it is not certain whether we
shall not find one or more other such extracts which will please you; and if
that should so happen, we shall be glad that we have kept them apart."
"Your plan is good," said he, and I gladly made haste to get ready a sheet, in
the beginning of which I wrote what he bade me; and on that same day, I
wrote therein, as I had anticipated, no less than three other quotations which
pleased him; and from that time we daily talked together, and found out
other quotations which pleased him, so that the sheet became full, and
deservedly so; according as it is written, "The just man builds upon a
moderate foundation, and by degrees passes to greater things." Thus, like a
most productive bee, he flew here and there, asking questions, as he went,
until he had eagerly and unceasingly collected many various flowers of
divine Scriptures, with which he thickly stored the cells of his mind.
Now when that first quotation was copied, he was eager at once to read, and
to interpret in Saxon, and then to teach others; even as we read of that
happy robber, who recognized his Lord, aye, the Lord of all men, as he was
hanging on the blessed cross, and, saluting him with his bodily eyes only,
because elsewhere he was all pierced with nails, cried, "Lord, remember me
when thou comest into thy kingdom!" for it was only at the end of his life
that he began to learn the rudiments of the Christian faith. But the king,
inspired by God, began to study the rudiments of divine Scripture on the
sacred solemnity of St. Martin [Nov. 11], and he continued to learn the
flowers collected by certain masters, and to reduce them into the form of
one book, as he was then able, although mixed one with another, until it
became almost as large as a psalter. This book he called his Enchiridion or
Manual, because he carefully kept it at hand day and night, and found, as
he told me, no small consolation therein.
But as has already been written by a certain wise man,
"Of watchful minds are they whose pious care
It is to govern well,"

so must I be watchful, in that I just now drew a kind of comparison or
similarity, though in dissimilar manner, between that happy robber and the
king; for the cross is hateful to every one, wherever there is suffering. But
what can he do, if he cannot save himself or escape thence? or by what art
can he remain there and improve his cause? He must, therefore, whether he
will or no, endure with pain and sorrow that which he is suffering.
Now the king was pierced with many nails of tribulation, though placed in
the royal seat; for from the twentieth year of his age to the present year,
which is his fortieth,[140] he has been constantly afflicted with most severe
attacks of an unknown complaint, so that he has not a moment's ease either
from suffering the pain which it causes, or from the gloom which is thrown
over him by the apprehension of its coming. Moreover, the constant
invasions of foreign nations, by which he was continually harassed by land
and sea, without any interval of quiet, were a just cause of disquiet. What
shall I say of his repeated expeditions against the pagans, his wars, and
incessant occupations of government? Of the daily embassies sent to him by
foreign nations, from the Tyrrhenian sea to the farthest end of Ireland?[141]
For we have seen and read letters, accompanied with presents, which were
sent to him by Abel the patriarch of Jerusalem. What shall I say of the cities
and towns which he restored, and of others which he built, where none had
been before? of the royal halls and chambers, wonderfully erected by his
command, with stone and wood? of the royal vills constructed of stone,
removed from their old site, and handsomely rebuilt by the king's command
in more fitting places? Besides the disease above-mentioned, he was
disturbed by the quarrels of his friends, who would voluntarily endure little
or no toil, though it was for the common necessity of the kingdom; but he
alone, sustained by the divine aid, like a skilful pilot, strove to steer his
ship, laden with much wealth, into the safe and much desired harbour of his
country, though almost all his crew were tired, and suffered them not to
faint or hesitate, though sailing amid the manifold waves and eddies of this
present life.
For all his bishops, earls, nobles, favourite ministers, and prefects, who,
next to God and the king, had the whole government of the kingdom, as is
fitting, continually received from him instruction, respect, exhortation, and
command; nay, at last, when they were disobedient, and his long patience
was exhausted, he would reprove them severely, and censure at pleasure

their vulgar folly and obstinacy; and in this way he directed their attention
to the common interests of the kingdom. But, owing to the sluggishness of
the people, these admonitions of the king were either not fulfilled, or were
begun late at the moment of necessity, and so ended less to the advantage of
those who put them in execution; for I will say nothing of the castles which
he ordered to be built, but which, being begun late, were never finished,
because the hostile troops broke in upon them by land and sea, and, as often
happened, the thwarters of the royal ordinances repented when it was too
late, and blushed at their non-performance of his commands. I speak of
repentance when it is too late, on the testimony of Scripture, whereby
numberless persons have had cause for too much sorrow when many
insidious evils have been wrought. But though by these means, sad to say,
they may be bitterly afflicted and roused to sorrow by the loss of fathers,
wives, children, ministers, servant-men, servant-maids, and furniture and
household stuff, what is the use of hateful repentance when their kinsmen
are dead, and they cannot aid them, or redeem those who are captive from
captivity? for they are not able even to assist those who have escaped, as
they have not wherewith to sustain even their own lives. They repented,
therefore, when it was too late, and grieved at their incautious neglect of the
king's commands, and they praised the royal wisdom with one voice, and
tried with all their power to fulfil what they had before refused, namely,
concerning the erection of castles, and other things generally useful to the
whole kingdom.
Of his fixed purpose of holy meditation, which, in the midst of prosperity
and adversity he never neglected, I cannot with advantage now omit to
speak. For, whereas he often thought of the necessities of his soul, among
the other good deeds to which his thoughts were night and day turned, he
ordered that two monasteries should be built, one for monks at Athelney,
which is a place surrounded by impassable marshes and rivers, where no
one can enter but by boats, or by a bridge laboriously constructed between
two other heights; at the western end of which bridge was erected a strong
tower, of beautiful work, by command of the aforesaid king; and in this
monastery he collected monks of all kinds, from every quarter, and placed
them therein.
For at first, because he had no one of his own nation, noble and free by
birth, who was willing to enter the monastic life, except children, who could

neither choose good nor avoid evil in consequence of their tender years,
because for many previous years the love of a monastic life had utterly
decayed from that nation as well as from many other nations, though many
monasteries still remain in that country; yet, as no one directed the rule of
that kind of life in a regular way, for what reason I cannot say, either from
the invasions of foreigners which took place so frequently both by sea and
land, or because that people abounded in riches of every kind, and so
looked with contempt on the monastic life. It was for this reason that king
Alfred sought to gather monks of different kinds to place in the same
monastery.

First he placed there as abbat, John[142] the priest and monk, an old Saxon
by birth, then certain priests and deacons from beyond the sea; of whom,
finding that he had not as large a number as he wished, he procured as many
as possible of the same Gallic race, some of whom, being children, he
ordered to be taught in the same monastery, and at a later period to be
admitted to the monastic habit. I have myself seen a young lad of pagan
birth who was educated in that monastery, and by no means the hindmost of
them all.
There was also a deed done once in that monastery, which I would utterly
consign to oblivion, although it is an unworthy deed; for throughout the
whole of Scripture the base deeds of the wicked are interspersed among the
blessed deeds of the just, as tares and darnel are sown among the wheat:
good deeds are recorded that they may be praised and imitated, and that
their imitators may be held in all honour; wicked deeds are there related,
that they may be censured and avoided, and their imitators be reproved with
all odium, contempt, and vengeance.
For once upon a time, a certain priest and a deacon, Gauls by birth, and two
of the aforesaid monks, by the instigation of the devil, and excited by some
secret jealousy, became so embittered in secret against their abbat, the
above mentioned John, that, like Jews, they circumvented and betrayed
their master. For whereas he had two servants, whom he had hired out of
Gaul, they taught these such wicked practices, that in the night, when all
men were enjoying the sweet tranquillity of sleep, they should make their
way into the church armed, and shutting it behind them as usual, hide
themselves therein, and wait for the moment when the abbat should enter

the church alone. At length, when he should come alone to pray, and,
bending his knees, bow before the holy altar, the men should rush on him
with hostility, and try to slay him on the spot. They then should drag his
lifeless body out of the church, and throw it down before the house of a
certain harlot, as if he had been slain whilst on a visit to her. This was their
machination, adding crime to crime, as it is said, "The last error shall be
worse than the first."
But the divine mercy, which always delights to aid the innocent, frustrated
in great part the wicked design of the wicked men, so that it should not turn
out in every respect as they had proposed.
When, therefore, the whole of the evil counsel had been explained by those
wicked teachers to their wicked agents, and the night which had been fixed
on as most fit was come, the two armed ruffians were placed, with a
promise of impunity, to await in the church for the arrival of the abbat. In
the middle of the night John, as usual, entered the church to pray, without
any one's knowing of it, and knelt before the altar. The two ruffians rushed
upon him with drawn swords, and dealt him some severe wounds. But he,
being a man of a brave mind, and, as we have heard say, not unacquainted
with the art of self-defence, if he had not been a follower of a better calling,
no sooner heard the sound of the robbers, before he saw them, than he rose
up against them before he was wounded, and, shouting as loud as he could,
struggled against them, crying out that they were devils and not men; for he
himself knew no better, as he thought that no men would dare to attempt
such a deed. He was, however, wounded before any of his people could
come to his help. His attendants, roused by the noise, were frightened when
they heard the word devils, and both those two who, like Jews, sought to
betray their master, and the others who knew nothing of the matter, rushed
together to the doors of the church; but before they got there those ruffians
escaped, leaving the abbat half dead. The monks raised the old man, in a
fainting condition, and carried him home with tears and lamentations; nor
did those two deceitful monks shed tears less than the innocent. But God's
mercy did not allow so bold a deed to pass unpunished; the ruffians who
perpetrated it, and all who urged them to it, were taken and put in prison,
where, by various tortures, they came to a disgraceful end. Let us now
return to our narrative.

Another monastery, also, was built by the same king as a residence for
nuns, near the eastern gate of Shaftesbury; and his own daughter, Ethelgiva,
was placed in it as abbess. With her many other noble ladies bound by the
rules of the monastic life, dwell in that monastery. These two edifices were
enriched by the king with much land, as well as personal property.
These things being thus disposed of, the king began, as was his practice, to
consider within himself, what more he could do to augment and show forth
his piety; what he had begun wisely, and thoughtfully conceived for the
public benefit, was adhered to with equally beneficial result; for he had
heard it out of the book of the law, that the Lord had promised to restore to
him tenfold; and he knew that the Lord had kept his promise, and had
actually restored to him tenfold. Encouraged by this example, and wishing
to exceed the practices of his predecessors, he vowed humbly and faithfully
to devote to God half his services, both day and night, and also half of all
his wealth, such as lawfully and justly came annually into his possession;
and this vow, as far as human discretion can perceive and keep, he skilfully
and wisely endeavoured to fulfil. But, that he might, with his usual caution,
avoid that which scripture warns us against: "If you offer aright, but do not
divide aright, you sin," he considered how he might divide aright that which
he had vowed to God; and as Solomon had said, "The heart of the king is in
the hand of God," that is, his counsel he ordered with wise policy, which
could come only from above, that his officers should first divide into two
parts the revenues of every year.
When this division was made, he assigned the first part to worldly uses, and
ordered that one-third of it should be paid to his soldiers, and also to his
ministers, the nobles who dwelt at court where they discharged divers
duties; for so the king's family was arranged at all times into three classes.
The king's attendants were most wisely distributed into three companies, so
that the first company should be on duty at court for one month, night and
day, at the end of which they returned to their homes, and were relieved by
the second company. At the end of the second month, in the same way, the
third company relieved the second, who returned to their homes, where they
spent two months, until their services were again wanted. The third
company also gave place to the first in the same way, and also spent two
months at home. Thus was the threefold division of the companies arranged
at all times in the royal household.

To these therefore was paid the first of the three portions aforesaid, to each
according to their respective dignities and peculiar services; the second to
the operatives, whom he had collected from every nation, and had about
him in large numbers, men skilled in every kind of construction; the third
portion was assigned to foreigners who came to him out of every nation far
and near, whether they asked money of him or not, he cheerfully gave to
each with wonderful munificence according to their respective merits,
according to what is written: "God loveth a cheerful giver."
But the second part of all his revenues, which came yearly into his
possession, and was included in the receipts of the exchequer, as we
mentioned a little before, he, with ready devotion, gave to God, ordering his
ministers to divide it carefully into four parts, on the condition that the first
part should be discreetly bestowed on the poor of every nation who came to
him; and on this subject he said that, as far as human discretion could
guarantee, the remark of pope St. Gregory should be followed: "Give not
much to whom you should give little, nor little to whom much, nor
something to whom nothing, nor nothing to whom something." The second
of the four portions was given to the two monasteries which he had built,
and to those who therein had dedicated themselves to God's service, as we
have mentioned above. The third portion was assigned to the school, which
he had studiously collected together, consisting of many of the nobility of
his own nation. The fourth portion was for the use of all the neighbouring
monasteries in all Saxony and Mercia, and also during some years, in turn,
to the churches and servants of God dwelling in Britain [Wales], Cornwall,
Gaul, Armorica, Northumbria, and sometimes also in Ireland; according to
his means, he either distributed to them beforehand, or afterwards, if life
and success should not fail him.
When the king had arranged these matters, he remembered that sentence of
divine scripture, "Whosoever will give alms, ought to begin from himself,"
and prudently began to reflect what he could offer to God from the service
of his body and mind; for he proposed to consecrate to God no less out of
this than he had done of things external to himself. Moreover, he promised,
as far as his infirmity and his means would allow, to give up to God the half
of his services, bodily and mental, by night and by day, voluntarily, and
with all his might; but, inasmuch as he could not equally distinguish the
lengths of the hours by night, on account of the darkness, and ofttimes of

the day, on account of the storms and clouds, he began to consider, by what
means and without any difficulty, relying on the mercy of God, he might
discharge the promised tenor of his vow until his death.
After long reflection on these things, he at length, by a useful and shrewd
invention, commanded his chaplains to supply wax in a sufficient quantity,
and he caused it to be weighed in such a manner that when there was so
much of it in the scales, as would equal the weight of seventy-two pence,
[143]
he caused the chaplains to make six candles thereof, each of equal
length, so that each candle might have twelve divisions[144] marked
longitudinally upon it. By this plan, therefore, those six candles burned for
twenty-four hours, a night and day, without fail, before the sacred relics of
many of God's elect, which always accompanied him wherever he went; but
sometimes when they would not continue burning a whole day and night,
till the same hour that they were lighted the preceding evening, from the
violence of the wind, which blew day and night without intermission
through the doors and windows of the churches, the fissures of the
divisions, the plankings, or the wall, or the thin canvass of the tents, they
then unavoidably burned out and finished their course before the appointed
time; the king therefore considered by what means he might shut out the
wind, and so by a useful and cunning invention, he ordered a lantern to be
beautifully constructed of wood and white ox-horn, which, when skilfully
planed till it is thin, is no less transparent than a vessel of glass. This
lantern, therefore, was wonderfully made of wood and horn, as we before
said, and by night a candle was put into it, which shone as brightly without
as within, and was not extinguished by the wind; for the opening of the
lantern was also closed up, according to the king's command, by a door
made of horn.
By this contrivance, then, six candles, lighted in succession, lasted four and
twenty hours, neither more nor less, and, when these were extinguished,
others were lighted.
When all these things were properly arranged, the king, eager to give up to
God the half of his daily service, as he had vowed, and more also, if his
ability on the one hand, and his malady on the other, would allow him,
showed himself a minute investigator of the truth in all his judgments, and
this especially for the sake of the poor, to whose interest, day and night,

among other duties of this life, he ever was wonderfully attentive. For in the
whole kingdom the poor, besides him, had few or no protectors; for all the
powerful and noble of that country had turned their thoughts rather to
secular than to heavenly things: each was more bent on secular matters, to
his own profit, than on the public good.
He strove also, in his own judgments, for the benefit of both the noble and
the ignoble, who often perversely quarrelled at the meetings of his earls and
officers, so that hardly one of them admitted the justice of what had been
decided by the earls and prefects, and in consequence of this pertinacious
and obstinate dissension, all desired to have the judgment of the king, and
both sides sought at once to gratify their desire. But if any one was
conscious of injustice on his side in the suit, though by law and agreement
he was compelled, however reluctant, to go before the king, yet with his
own good will he never would consent to go. For he knew, that in the king's
presence no part of his wrong would be hidden; and no wonder, for the king
was a most acute investigator in passing sentence, as he was in all other
things. He inquired into almost all the judgments which were given in his
own absence, throughout all his dominion, whether they were just or unjust.
If he perceived there was iniquity in those judgments, he summoned the
judges, either through his own agency, or through others of his faithful
servants, and asked them mildly, why they had judged so unjustly; whether
through ignorance or malevolence; i.e., whether for the love or fear of any
one, or hatred of others; or also for the desire of money. At length, if the
judges acknowledged they had given judgment because they knew no
better, he discreetly and moderately reproved their inexperience and folly in
such terms as these: "I wonder truly at your insolence, that, whereas by
God's favour and mine, you have occupied the rank and office of the wise,
you have neglected the studies and labours of the wise. Either, therefore, at
once give up the discharge of the temporal duties which you hold, or
endeavour more zealously to study the lessons of wisdom. Such are my
commands." At these words the earls and prefects would tremble and
endeavour to turn all their thoughts to the study of justice, so that,
wonderful to say, almost all his earls, prefects, and officers, though
unlearned from their cradles, were sedulously bent upon acquiring learning,
choosing rather laboriously to acquire the knowledge of a new discipline
than to resign their functions; but if any one of them from old age or

slowness of talent was unable to make progress in liberal studies, he
commanded his son, if he had one, or one of his kinsmen, or, if there was no
other person to be had, his own freedman or servant, whom he had some
time before advanced to the office of reading, to recite Saxon books before
him night and day, whenever he had any leisure, and they lamented with
deep sighs, in their inmost hearts, that in their youth they had never
attended to such studies; and they blessed the young men of our days, who
happily could be instructed in the liberal arts, whilst they execrated their
own lot, that they had not learned these things in their youth, and now,
when they are old, though wishing to learn them, they are unable. But this
skill of young and old in acquiring letters, we have explained to the
knowledge of the aforesaid king.[145]

FOOTNOTES:
[86] Wantage.
[87] The Gewissæ, generally understood to be the West-Saxons.
[88] Carisbrooke, as may be conjectured from the name, which is a combination
of Wight and Caraburgh.
[89] Wembury.
[90] Minster.
[91] Canterbury.
[92] Ockley, in Surrey.
[93] This is one the few instances to be met with of the name Britannia applied
to Wales.
[94] Thanet.
[95] Wilts.
[96] Offa's dyke, between Wales and England.
[97] Ingram supposes this to be Stonehenge. Stæningham, however, is the
common reading, which Camden thinks is Steyning, in Sussex. The Saxon
Chronicle, a.d. 855, states, that Ethelwulf was buried at Winchester.
[98] We must understand this epithet as denoting his mother-in-law, Judith,
rather than his own mother, who was dead in a.d. 856, when Alfred was not yet
seven years old. When his father brought Judith from France Alfred was thirteen
years old.
[99] This nobleman occurs as a witness [Mucil, dux] to many Mercian charters,
dated from a.d. 814 to 866.
[100] Inhabitants of Gainsborough.
[101] Englefield Green is about four miles from Windsor
[102] Aston, in Berkshire.
[103] Stratclyde Britons.
[104] Cambridge.
[105] The Frome.
[106] They swore oaths to Alfred on the holy ring, says the Saxon Chronicle, p.
355. The most solemn manner of swearing among the Danes and other northern
nations was by their arms. Olaus Magnus, lib. viii. c. 2.
[107] Exeter.

[108] It is necessary to inform the reader that many passages of this work are
modern interpolations, made in the old MS. by a later hand. The "Annals"
referred to in the text are supposed not to be a genuine work of Asser.
[109] Swanwich, in Dorsetshire.
[110] This clause is a mere repetition of the preceding. See a former note in this
page.
[111] Athelney, a morass formed by the conflux of the Thone and the Parret. See
Saxon Chron. p. 356, and Chronicle of Ethelwerd, p 31.
[112] The original here is in Latin verse, and may therefore be rendered into
English verse, but such as every housewife in Somersetshire would understand.
[113] Probably the sanguinary Hubba.
[114] Or South Wales.
[115] Kynwith castle stood on the river Taw. Camden, p. 35.
[116] Now called Brixton Deverill, in Wilts.
[117] Selwood Forest extended from Frome to Burham, and was probably much
larger at one time.
[118] Or Iglea. Supposed to be Leigh, now Westbury, Wilts.
[119] Wedmore is four miles and three quarters from Axbridge, in
Somersetshire.
[120] In the Saxon Chronicle (a.d. 878) it is said, that Gothrun was baptized at
Aller, and his chrism-loosing was at Wedmore. The chrismal was a white linen
cloth put on the head at the administration of baptism, which was taken off at the
expiration of eight days.
[121] Inhabitants of Gloucester, Worcester, and part of Warwickshire.
[122] This expression paints in strong colours the unfortunate and divided state
of England at this period, for it shows that the Danes had settled possession of
parts of it. In fact, all traces of the heptarchy, or ancient division of the island
into provinces, did not entirely disappear until some years after the Norman
conquest.
[123] Not the river Stour, in Kent; but the Stour which divides Essex from
Suffolk. Lambard fixes the battle at Harwich haven.
[124] Or, Old Saxons.
[125] St. Guerir's church was at Ham Stoke, in Cornwall.
[126] An interesting account of St. Neot will be found in Gorham's History And
Antiquities of Eynesbury and St. Neot's.
[127] Grimbald was provost of St. Omer's.
[128] John had been connected with the monastery of Corbie.

[129] East Dene [or Dean] and West Dene are two villages near Chichester.
There are also other villages of the same name near East Bourne.
[130] This expression alludes to the tonsure, which was undergone by those who
became clerks. For a description of the ecclesiastical tonsure see Bede's Eccles.
Hist. p. 160
[131] The original Latin continues, "Et illa adjuvaretur per rudimenta Sancti
Degui in omni causa, tamen pro viribus," which I do not understand, and
therefore cannot translate.
[132] A petty prince of South Wales.
[133] Or St. Dewi. Probably by the parish of St. Deguus is meant the diocese of
St. David's. Hence it is said, that Alfred gave to Asser the whole parish (omnis
parochia) of Exeter.
[134] Archbishop of St. David's.
[135] Amesbury, in Wilts.
[136] In Somersetshire.
[137] Wessex.
[138] The whole of this paragraph concerning Oxford is thought to be an
interpolation, because it is not known to have existed in more than one MS.
copy.
[139] Hyde Abbey.
[140] This must consequently have been written in a.d. 888.
[141] Wise conjectures that we ought to read Hiberiæ, Spain, and not Hiberniæ,
Ireland, in this passage.
[142] Not the celebrated John Scotus Eregina.
[143] Denarii.
[144] Unciæ pollicis.
[145] Some of the MSS. record, in a note or appendix written by a later hand,
that king Alfred died on the 26th of October, a.d. 900, in the thirtieth of his
reign. "The different dates assigned to the death of Alfred," says Sir Francis
Palgrave, "afford a singular proof of the uncertainty arising from various modes
of computation. The Saxon Chronicle and Florence of Worcester agree in
placing the event in 901. The first 'six nights before All Saints;' the last, with
more precision, 'Indictione quarta, et Feria quarta, 5 Cal. Nov.' Simon of
Durham, in 889, and the Saxon Chronicle, in another passage, in 900. The
concurrents of Florence of Worcester seem to afford the greatest certainty, and
the date of 901 has therefore been preferred."

GEOFFREY OF MONMOUTH'S

BRITISH HISTORY.

GEOFFREY OF MONMOUTH'S

BRITISH HISTORY.
BOOK I.

Chap. I.—The epistle dedicatory to Robert earl of Gloucester.
[146]

Whilst occupied on many and various studies, I happened to light upon the
History of the Kings of Britain, and wondered that in the account which
Gildas and Bede, in their elegant treatises, had given of them, I found
nothing said of those kings who lived here before the Incarnation of Christ,
nor of Arthur, and many others who succeeded after the Incarnation; though
their actions both deserved immortal fame, and were also celebrated by
many people in a pleasant manner and by heart, as if they had been written.
Whilst I was intent upon these and such like thoughts, Walter, archdeacon
of Oxford,[147] a man of great eloquence, and learned in foreign histories,
offered me a very ancient book in the British tongue, which, in a continued
regular story and elegant style, related the actions of them all, from Brutus
the first king of the Britons, down to Cadwallader the son of Cadwallo. At
his request, therefore, though I had not made fine language my study, by
collecting florid expressions from other authors, yet contented with my own
homely style, I undertook the translation of that book into Latin. For if I had
swelled the pages with rhetorical flourishes, I must have tired my readers,
by employing their attention more upon my words than upon the history. To
you, therefore, Robert earl of Gloucester, this work humbly sues for the
favour of being so corrected by your advice, that it may not be thought to be
the poor offspring of Geoffrey of Monmouth, but when polished by your
refined wit and judgment, the production of him who had Henry the
glorious king of England for his father, and whom we see an accomplished
scholar and philosopher, as well as a brave soldier and expert commander;
so that Britain with joy acknowledges, that in you she possesses another
Henry.

FOOTNOTES:
[146] Robert, earl of Gloucester was the natural son of king Henry I, by whose
command he swore fealty to the empress Matilda, daughter of that monarch. To
prove his fidelity, he rebelled against king Stephen, and mainly contributed to
the success of Henry son of the empress, afterwards Henry II.
[147] Thought to be Walter Mapes the poet, author of several ludicrous and
satirical compositions.

Chap. II.—The first inhabitants of Britain.

Britain, the best of islands, is situated in the Western Ocean, between
France and Ireland, being eight hundred miles long, and two hundred broad.
It produces every thing that is useful to man, with a plenty that never fails.
It abounds with all kinds of metal, and has plains of large extent, and hills
fit for the finest tillage, the richness of whose soil affords variety of fruits in
their proper seasons. It has also forests well stored with all kinds of wild
beasts; in its lawns cattle find good change of pasture, and bees variety of
flowers for honey. Under its lofty mountains lie green meadows pleasantly
situated, in which the gentle murmurs of crystal springs gliding along clear
channels, give those that pass an agreeable invitation to lie down on their
banks and slumber. It is likewise well watered with lakes and rivers
abounding with fish; and besides the narrow sea which is on the Southern
coast towards France, there are three noble rivers, stretching out like three
arms, namely, the Thames, the Severn, and the Humber; by which foreign
commodities from all countries are brought into it. It was formerly adorned
with eight and twenty cities,[148] of which some are in ruins and desolate,
others are still standing, beautified with lofty church-towers, wherein
religious worship is performed according to the Christian institution. It is
lastly inhabited by five different nations, the Britons, Romans, Saxons,
Picts, and Scots; whereof the Britons before the rest did formerly possess
the whole island from sea to sea, till divine vengeance, punishing them for
their pride, made them give way to the Picts and Saxons. But in what

manner, and from whence, they first arrived here, remains now to be related
in what follows.[149]

FOOTNOTES:
[148] The names of thirty-three cities will be found in Nennius's History of the
Britons, § 7.
[149] This brief description of Britain is taken almost word for word from the
more authentic historians, Bede, Orosius, &c.

Chap. III.—Brutus, being banished after the killing of his
parents, goes into Greece.

After the Trojan war, Æneas, flying with Ascanius from the destruction of
their city, sailed to Italy. There he was honourably received by king Latinus,
which raised against him the envy of Turnus, king of the Rutuli, who
thereupon made war against him. Upon their engaging in battle, Æneas got
the victory, and having killed Turnus, obtained the kingdom of Italy, and
with it Lavinia the daughter of Latinus. After his death, Ascanius,
succeeding in the kingdom, built Alba upon the Tiber, and begat a son
named Sylvius, who, in pursuit of a private amour, took to wife a niece of
Lavinia. The damsel soon after conceived, and the father Ascanius, coming
to the knowledge of it, commanded his magicians to consult of what sex the
child should be. When they had satisfied themselves in the matter, they told
him she would give birth to a boy, who would kill his father and mother,
and after travelling over many countries in banishment, would at last arrive
at the highest pitch of glory. Nor were they mistaken in their prediction; for
at the proper time the woman brought forth a son, and died of his birth; but
the child was delivered to a nurse and called Brutus.
At length, after fifteen years were expired, the youth accompanied his father
in hunting, and killed him undesignedly by the shot of an arrow. For, as the
servants were driving up the deer towards them, Brutus, in shooting at
them, smote his father under the breast. Upon his death, he was expelled

from Italy, his kinsmen being enraged at him for so heinous a deed. Thus
banished he went into Greece, where he found the posterity of Helenus, son
of Priamus, kept in slavery by Pandrasus, king of the Greeks. For, after the
destruction of Troy, Pyrrhus, the son of Achilles, had brought hither in
chains Helenus and many others; and to revenge on them the death of his
father, had given command that they should be held in captivity. Brutus,
finding they were by descent his old countrymen, took up his abode among
them, and began to distinguish himself by his conduct and bravery in war,
so as to gain the affection of kings and commanders, and above all the
young men of the country. For he was esteemed a person of great capacity
both in council and war, and signalized his generosity to his soldiers, by
bestowing among them all the money and spoil he got. His fame, therefore,
spreading over all countries, the Trojans from all parts began to flock to
him, desiring under his command to be freed from subjection to the Greeks;
which they assured him might easily be done, considering how much their
number was now increased in the country, being seven thousand strong,
besides women and children. There was likewise then in Greece a noble
youth named Assaracus, a favourer of their cause. For he was descended on
his mother's side from the Trojans, and placed great confidence in them,
that he might be able by their assistance to oppose the designs of the
Greeks. For his brother had a quarrel with him for attempting to deprive
him of three castles which his father had given him at his death, on account
of his being only the son of a concubine; but as the brother was a Greek,
both by his father's and mother's side, he had prevailed with the king and
the rest of the Greeks to espouse his cause. Brutus, having taken a view of
the number of his men, and seen how Assaracus's castles lay open to him,
complied with their request.[150]

FOOTNOTES:
[150] It is unnecessary to remind the classical reader that the historians of
Greece and Italy make no mention of Brutus and his adventures. The minuteness
of detail, so remarkable in the whole story, as related by Geoffrey, is an obvious
objection to its authenticity.

Chap. IV.—Brutus's letter to Pandrasus.

Being, therefore, chosen their commander, he assembled the Trojans from
all parts, and fortified the towns belonging to Assaracus. But he himself,
with Assaracus and the whole body of men and women that adhered to him,
retired to the woods and hills, and then sent a letter to the king in these
words:—
"Brutus, general of the remainder of the Trojans, to Pandrasus, king of the
Greeks, sends greeting. As it was beneath the dignity of a nation descended
from the illustrious race of Dardanus, to be treated in your kingdom
otherwise than the nobility of their birth required, they have betaken
themselves to the protection of the woods. For they have preferred living
after the manner of wild beasts, upon flesh and herbs, with the enjoyment of
liberty, to continuing longer in the greatest luxury under the yoke of slavery.
If this gives your majesty any offence, impute it not to them, but pardon it;
since it is the common sentiment of every captive, to be desirous of
regaining his former dignity. Let pity therefore move you to bestow on them
freely their lost liberty, and permit them to inhabit the thickest of the woods,
to which they have retired to avoid slavery. But if you deny them this
favour, then by your permission and assistance let them depart into some
foreign country."

Chap. V.—Brutus falling upon the forces of Pandrasus by
surprise, routs them, and takes Antigonus, the brother of
Pandrasus, with Anacletus, prisoner.

Pandrasus, perceiving the purport of the letter, was beyond measure
surprised at the boldness of such a message from those whom he had kept
in slavery; and having called a council of his nobles, he determined to raise
an army in order to pursue them. But while he was upon his march to the
deserts, where he thought they were, and to the town of Sparatinum, Brutus
made a sally with three thousand men, and fell upon him unawares. For
having intelligence of his coming, he had got into the town the night before,

with a design to break forth upon them unexpectedly, while unarmed and
marching without order. The sally being made, the Trojans briskly attack
them, and endeavour to make a great slaughter. The Greeks, astonished,
immediately give way on all sides, and with the king at their head, hasten to
pass the river Akalon,[151] which runs near the place; but in passing are in
great danger from the rapidity of the stream. Brutus galls them in their
flight, and kills some of them in the stream, and some upon the banks; and
running to and fro, rejoices to see them in both places exposed to ruin. But
Antigonus, the brother of Pandrasus, grieved at this sight, rallied his
scattered troops, and made a quick return upon the furious Trojans; for he
rather chose to die making a brave resistance, than to be drowned in a
muddy pool in a shameful flight. Thus attended with a close body of men,
he encouraged them to stand their ground, and employed his whole force
against the enemy with great vigour, but to little or no purpose; for the
Trojans had arms, but the others none; and from this advantage they were
more eager in the pursuit, and made a miserable slaughter; nor did they give
over the assault till they had made nearly a total destruction, and taken
Antigonus, and Anacletus his companion prisoners.

FOOTNOTES:
[151] The Achelous, or perhaps the Acheron.

Chap. VI.—The town of Sparatinum besieged by Pandrasus.

Brutus, after the victory, reinforced the town with six hundred men, and
then retired to the woods, where the Trojan people were expecting his
protection. In the meantime Pandrasus, grieving at his own flight and his
brother's captivity, endeavoured that night to re-assemble his broken forces,
and the next morning went with a body of his people which he had got
together, to besiege the town, into which he supposed Brutus had put
himself with Antigonus and the rest of the prisoners that he had taken. As
soon as he was arrived at the walls, and had viewed the situation of the

castle, he divided his army into several bodies, and placed them round it in
different stations. One party was charged not to suffer any of the besieged
to go out; another to turn the courses of the rivers; and a third to beat down
the walls with battering rams and other engines. In obedience to those
commands, they laboured with their utmost force to distress the besieged;
and night coming on, made choice of their bravest men to defend their
camp and tents from the incursions of the enemy, while the rest, who were
fatigued with labour, refreshed themselves with sleep.

Chap. VII.—The besieged ask assistance of Brutus.

But the besieged, standing on the top of the walls, were no less vigorous to
repel the force of the enemies' engines, and assault them with their own, and
cast forth darts and firebrands with a unanimous resolution to make a
valiant defence. And when a breach was made through the wall, they
compelled the enemy to retire, by throwing upon them fire and scalding
water. But being distressed through scarcity of provision and daily labour,
they sent an urgent message to Brutus, to hasten to their assistance, for they
were afraid they might be so weakened as to be obliged to quit the town.
Brutus, though desirous of relieving them, was under great perplexity, as he
had not men enough to stand a pitched battle, and therefore made use of a
stratagem, by which he proposed to enter the enemies' camp by night, and
having deceived their watch to kill them in their sleep. But because he knew
this was impracticable without the concurrence and assistance of some
Greeks, he called to him Anacletus, the companion of Antigonus, and with a
drawn sword in his hand, spake to him after this manner:—
"Noble youth! your own and Antigonus's life is now at an end, unless you
will faithfully perform what I command you. This night I design to invade
the camp of the Greeks, and fall upon them unawares, but am afraid of
being hindered in the attempt if the watch should discover the stratagem.
Since it will be necessary, therefore, to have them killed first, I desire to
make use of you to deceive them, that I may have the easier access to the
rest. Do you therefore manage this affair cunningly. At the second hour of
the night go to the watch, and with fair speeches tell them that you have

brought away Antigonus from prison, and that he is come to the bottom of
the woods, where he lies hid among the shrubs, and cannot get any farther,
by reason of the fetters with which you shall pretend that he is bound. Then
you shall conduct them, as if it were to deliver him, to the end of the wood,
where I will attend with a band of men ready to kill them."

Chap. VIII.—Anacletus, in fear of death, betrays the army of the
Greeks.

Anacletus, seeing the sword threatening him with immediate death while
these words were being pronounced, was so terrified as to promise upon
oath, that on condition he and Antigonus should have longer life granted
them, he would execute his command. Accordingly, the agreement being
confirmed, at the second hour of the night he directs his way towards the
Grecian camp, and when he was come near to it, the watch, who were then
narrowly examining all the places where any one could hide, ran out from
all parts to meet him, and demanded the occasion of his coming, and
whether it was not to betray the army. He, with a show of great joy, made
the following answer:—"I come not to betray my country, but having made
my escape from the prison of the Trojans, I fly thither to desire you would
go with me to Antigonus, whom I have delivered from Brutus's chains. For
being not able to come with me for the weight of his fetters, I have a little
while ago caused him to lie hid among the shrubs at the end of the wood,
till I could meet with some one whom I might conduct to his assistance."
While they were in suspense about the truth of this story, there came one
who knew him, and after he had saluted him, told them who he was; so that
now, without any hesitation, they quickly called their absent companions,
and followed him to the wood where he had told them Antigonus lay hid.
But at length, as they were going among the shrubs, Brutus with his armed
bands springs forth, and falls upon them, while under the greatest
astonishment, with a most cruel slaughter. From thence he marches directly
to the siege, and divides his men into three bands, assigning to each of them
a different part of the camp, and telling them to advance discreetly, and
without noise; and when entered, not to kill any body till he with his

company should be possessed of the king's tent, and should cause the
trumpet to sound for a signal.

Chap. IX.—The taking of Pandrasus.

When he had given them these instructions, they forthwith softly entered
the camp in silence, and taking their appointed stations, awaited the
promised signal, which Brutus delayed not to give as soon as he had got
before the tent of Pandrasus, to assault which was the thing he most desired.
At hearing the signal, they forthwith draw their swords, enter in among the
men in their sleep, make quick destruction of them, and allowing no quarter,
in this manner traverse the whole camp. The rest, awaked at the groans of
the dying, and seeing their assailants, were like sheep seized with a sudden
fear; for they despaired of life, since they had neither time to take arms, nor
to escape by flight. They run up and down without arms among the armed,
whithersoever the fury of the assault hurries them, but are on all sides cut
down by the enemy rushing in. Some that might have escaped, were in the
eagerness of flight dashed against rocks, trees, or shrubs, and increased the
misery of their death. Others, that had only a shield, or some such covering
for their defence, in venturing upon the same rocks to avoid death, fell
down in the hurry and darkness of the night, and broke either legs or arms.
Others, that escaped both these disasters, but did not know whither to fly,
were drowned in the adjacent rivers; and scarcely one got away without
some unhappy accident befalling him. Besides, the garrison in the town,
upon notice of the coming of their fellow soldiers, sallied forth, and
redoubled the slaughter.

Chap. X.—A consultation about what is to be asked of the captive
king.

But Brutus, as I said before, having possessed himself of the king's tent,
made it his business to keep him a safe prisoner; for he knew he could more
easily attain his ends by preserving his life than by killing him; but the party
that was with him, allowing no quarter, made an utter destruction in that
part which they had gained. The night being spent in this manner, when the
next morning discovered to their view so great an overthrow of the enemy,
Brutus, in transports of joy, gave full liberty to his men to do what they
pleased with the plunder, and then entered the town with the king, to stay
there till they had shared it among them; which done, he again fortified the
castle, gave orders for burying the slain, and retired with his forces to the
woods in great joy for the victory. After the rejoicings of his people on this
occasion, their renowned general summoned the oldest of them and asked
their advice, what he had best desire of Pandrasus, who, being now in their
power, would readily grant whatever they would request of him, in order to
regain his liberty. They, according to their different fancies, desired
different things; some urged him to request that a certain part of the
kingdom might be assigned them for their habitation; others that he would
demand leave to depart, and to be supplied with necessaries for their
voyage. After they had been a long time in suspense what to do, one of
them, named Mempricius, rose up, and having made silence, spoke to them
thus:—
"What can be the occasion of your suspense, fathers, in a matter which I
think so much concerns your safety? The only thing you can request, with
any prospect of a firm peace and security to yourselves and your posterity,
is liberty to depart. For if you make no better terms with Pandrasus for his
life than only to have some part of the country assigned you to live among
the Greeks, you will never enjoy a lasting peace while the brothers, sons, or
grandsons of those whom you killed yesterday shall continue to be your
neighbours. So long as the memory of their fathers' deaths shall remain,
they will be your mortal enemies, and upon the least trifling provocation
will endeavour to revenge themselves. Nor will you be sufficiently
numerous to withstand so great a multitude of people. And if you shall
happen to fall out among yourselves, their number will daily increase, yours
diminish. I propose, therefore, that you request of him his eldest daughter,
Ignoge, for a wife for our general, and with her, gold, silver, corn, and

whatever else shall be necessary for our voyage. If we obtain this, we may
with his leave remove to some other country."

Chap. XI.—Pandrasus gives his daughter Ignoge in marriage to
Brutus, who, after his departure from Greece, falls upon a desert
island, where he is told by the oracle of Diana what place he is to
inhabit.

When he had ended his speech, in words to this effect, the whole assembly
acquiesced in his advice, and moved that Pandrasus might be brought in
among them, and condemned to a most cruel death unless he would grant
this request. He was immediately brought in, and being placed in a chair
above the rest, and informed of the tortures prepared for him unless he
would do what was commanded him, he made them this answer:—
"Since my ill fate has delivered me and my brother Antigonus into your
hands, I can do no other than grant your request, lest a refusal may cost us
our lives, which are now entirely in your power. In my opinion life is
preferable to all other considerations; therefore, wonder not that I am
willing to redeem it at so great a price. But though it is against my
inclination that I obey your commands, yet it seems matter of comfort to me
that I am to give my daughter to so noble a youth, whose descent from the
illustrious race of Priamus and Anchises is clear, both from that greatness of
mind which appears in him, and the certain accounts we have had of it. For
who less than he could have released from their chains the banished
Trojans, when reduced under slavery to so many great princes? Who else
could have encouraged them to make head against the Greeks? or with so
small a body of men vanquished so numerous and powerful an army, and
taken their king prisoner in the engagement? And, therefore, since this
noble youth has gained so much glory by the opposition which he has made
to me, I give him my daughter Ignoge, and also gold, silver, ships, corn,
wine, and oil, and whatever you shall find necessary for your voyage. If you
shall alter your resolution, and think fit to continue among the Greeks, I will
grant you the third part of my kingdom for your habitation; if not, I will

faithfully perform my promise, and for your greater security will stay as a
hostage among you till I have made it good."
Accordingly he held a council, and directed messengers to all the shores of
Greece, to get ships together; which done, he delivered them to the Trojans,
to the number of three hundred and twenty-four, laden with all kinds of
provision, and married his daughter to Brutus. He made also a present of
gold and silver to each man according to his quality. When everything was
performed the king was set at liberty; and the Trojans, now released from
his power, set sail with a fair wind. But Ignoge, standing upon the stern of
the ship, swooned away several times in Brutus's arms, and with many sighs
and tears lamented the leaving her parents and country, nor ever turned her
eyes from the shore while it was in sight. Brutus, meanwhile, endeavoured
to assuage her grief by kind words and embraces intermixed with kisses,
and ceased not from these blandishments till she grew weary of crying and
fell asleep. During these and other accidents, the winds continued fair for
two days and a night together, when at length they arrived at a certain island
called Leogecia, which had been formerly wasted by the incursions of
pirates, and was then uninhabited. Brutus, not knowing this, sent three
hundred armed men ashore to see who inhabited it; but they finding nobody,
killed several kinds of wild beasts which they met with in the groves and
woods, and came to a desolate city, in which they found a temple of Diana,
and in it a statue of that goddess which gave answers to those that came to
consult her. At last, loading themselves with the prey which they had taken
in hunting, they return to their ships, and give their companions an account
of this country and city. Then they advised their leader to go to the city, and
after offering sacrifices, to inquire of the deity of the place, what country
was allotted them for their place of settlement. To this proposal all assented;
so that Brutus, attended with Gerion, the augur, and twelve of the oldest
men, set forward to the temple, with all things necessary for the sacrifice.
Being arrived at the place, and presenting themselves before the shrine with
garlands about their temples, as the ancient rites required, they made three
fires to the three deities, Jupiter, Mercury, and Diana, and offered sacrifices
to each of them. Brutus himself, holding before the altar of the goddess a
consecrated vessel filled with wine, and the blood of a white hart, with his
face looking up to the image, broke silence in these words:—

"Diva potens nemorum, terror sylvestribus apris;
Cui licet amfractus ire per æthereos,
Infernasque domos; terrestria jura resolve,
Et dic quas terras nos habitare velis?
Dic certam sedem qua te venerabor in ævum,
Qua tibi virgineis templa dicabo choris?"

Goddess of woods, tremendous in the chase
To mountain boars, and all the savage race!
Wide o'er the ethereal walks extends thy sway,
And o'er the infernal mansions void of day!
Look upon us on earth! unfold our fate,
And say what region is our destined seat?
Where shall we next thy lasting temples raise?
And choirs of virgins celebrate thy praise?
These words he repeated nine times, after which he took four turns round
the altar, poured the wine into the fire, and then laid himself down upon the
hart's skin, which he had spread before the altar, where he fell asleep. About
the third hour of the night, the usual time for deep sleep, the goddess
seemed to present herself before him, and foretell his future success as
follows:—
"Brute! sub occasum solis trans Gallica regna
Insula in oceano est undique clausa mari:
Insula in oceano est habitata gigantibus olim,
Nunc deserta quidem, gentibus apta tuis.
Hanc pete, namque tibi sedes erit illa perennis:
Sic fiet natis altera Troja tuis.
Sic de prole tua reges nascentur: et ipsis
Totius terræ subditus orbis erit."

Brutus! there lies beyond the Gallic bounds
An island which the western sea surrounds,
By giants once possessed; now few remain
To bar thy entrance, or obstruct thy reign.
To reach that happy shore thy sails employ;
There fate decrees to raise a second Troy,

And found an empire in thy royal line,
Which time shall ne'er destroy, nor bounds confine.
Awakened by the vision, he was for some time in doubt with himself,
whether what he had seen was a dream or a real appearance of the goddess
herself, foretelling to what land he should go. At last he called to his
companions, and related to them in order the vision he had in his sleep, at
which they very much rejoiced, and were urgent to return to their ships, and
while the wind favoured them, to hasten their voyage towards the west, in
pursuit of what the goddess had promised. Without delay, therefore, they
returned to their company, and set sail again, and after a course of thirty
days came to Africa, being ignorant as yet whither to steer. From thence
they came to the Philenian altars, and to a place called Salinæ, and sailed
between Ruscicada and the mountains of Azara,[152] where they underwent
great danger from pirates, whom, notwithstanding, they vanquished, and
enriched themselves with their spoils.

FOOTNOTES:
[152] It is probably impossible to discover whether these names describe
existing places, or are purely the invention of the author.

Chap. XII.—Brutus enters Aquitaine with Corineus.

From thence, passing the river Malua, they arrived at Mauritania, where at
last, for want of provisions, they were obliged to go ashore; and, dividing
themselves into several bands, they laid waste the whole country. When
they had well stored their ships, they steered to the Pillars of Hercules,
where they saw some of those sea monsters, called Syrens, which
surrounded their ships, and very nearly overturned them. However, they
made a shift to escape, and came to the Tyrrhenian Sea, upon the shores of
which they found four several nations descended from the banished Trojans,
that had accompanied Antenor[153] in his flight. The name of their
commander was Corineus, a modest man in matters of council, and of great

courage and boldness, who, in an encounter with any person, even of
gigantic stature, would immediately overthrow him, as if he were a child.
When they understood from whom he was descended, they joined company
with him and those under his government, who from the name of their
leader were afterwards called the Cornish people, and indeed were more
serviceable to Brutus than the rest in all his engagements. From thence they
came to Aquitaine, and entering the mouth of the Loire, cast anchor. There
they stayed seven days and viewed the country. Goffarius Pictus, who was
king of Aquitaine at that time, having an account brought him of the arrival
of a foreign people with a great fleet upon his coasts, sent ambassadors to
them to demand whether they brought with them peace or war. The
ambassadors, on their way towards the fleet, met Corineus, who was come
out with two hundred men, to hunt in the woods. They demanded of him,
who gave him leave to enter the king's forests, and kill his game; (which by
an ancient law nobody was allowed to do without leave from the prince.)
Corineus answered, that as for that matter there was no occasion for asking
leave; upon which one of them, named Imbertus, rushing forward, with a
full drawn bow levelled a shot at him. Corineus avoids the arrow and
immediately runs up to him, and with his bow in his hand breaks his head.
The rest narrowly escaped, and carried the news of this disaster to
Goffarius. The Pictavian general was struck with sorrow for it, and
immediately raised a vast army, to revenge the death of his ambassador.
Brutus, on the other hand, upon hearing the rumour of his coming, sends
away the women and children to the ships, which he took care to be well
guarded, and commands them to stay there, while he, with the rest that were
able to bear arms, should go to meet the army. At last an assault being
made, a bloody fight ensued: in which after a great part of the day had been
spent, Corineus was ashamed to see the Aquitanians so bravely stand their
ground, and the Trojans maintaining the fight without victory. He therefore
takes fresh courage, and drawing off his men to the right wing, breaks in
upon the very thickest of the enemies, where he made such slaughter on
every side, that at last he broke the line and put them all to flight. In this
encounter he lost his sword, but by good fortune, met with a battle-axe,
with which he clave down to the waist every one that stood in his way.
Brutus and every body else, both friends and enemies, were amazed at his
courage and strength, for he brandished about his battle-axe among the
flying troops, and terrified them not a little with these insulting words,

"Whither fly ye, cowards? whither fly ye, base wretches? stand your
ground, that ye may encounter Corineus. What! for shame! do so many
thousands of you fly one man? However, take this comfort for your flight,
that you are pursued by one, before whom the Tyrrhenian giants could not
stand their ground, but fell down slain in heaps together."

FOOTNOTES:
[153] See Virgil's Æneid i, 241.

Chap. XIII.—Goffarius routed by Brutus.

At these words one of them, named Subardus, who was a consul, returns
with three hundred men to assault him; but Corineus with his shield wards
off the blow, and lifting up his battle-axe gave him such a stroke upon the
top of his helmet, that at once he clave him down to the waist; and then
rushing upon the rest he made terrible slaughter by wheeling about his
battle-axe among them, and, running to and fro, seemed more anxious to
inflict blows on the enemy than careful to avoid those which they aimed at
him. Some had their hands and arms, some their very shoulders, some again
their heads, and others their legs cut off by him. All fought with him only,
and he alone seemed to fight with all. Brutus seeing him thus beset, out of
regard to him, runs with a band of men to his assistance: at which the battle
is again renewed with vigour and with loud shouts, and great numbers slain
on both sides. But now the Trojans presently gain the victory, and put
Goffarius with his Pictavians to flight. The king after a narrow escape went
to several parts of Gaul, to procure succours among such princes as were
related or known to him. At that time Gaul was subject to twelve princes,
who with equal authority possessed the whole country. These receive him
courteously, and promise with one consent to expel the foreigners from
Aquitaine.

Chap. XIV.—Brutus, after his victory with Goffarius, ravages
Aquitaine with fire and sword.

Brutus, in joy for the victory, enriches his men with the spoils of the slain,
and then, dividing them into several bodies, marches into the country with a
design to lay it waste, and load his fleet with the spoil. With this view he
sets the cities on fire, seizes the riches that were in them, destroys the fields,
and makes dreadful slaughter among the citizens and common people,
being unwilling to leave so much as one alive of that wretched nation.
While he was making this destruction over all Aquitaine, he came to a place
where the city of Tours now stands, which he afterwards built, as Homer
testifies. As soon as he had looked out a place convenient for the purpose,
he pitched his camp there, for a place of safe retreat, when occasion should
require. For he was afraid on account of Goffarius's approach with the kings
and princes of Gaul, and a very great army, which was now come near the
place, ready to give him battle. Having therefore finished his camp, he
expected to engage with Goffarius in two days' time, placing the utmost
confidence in the conduct and courage of the young men under his
command.

Chap. XV.—Goffarius's fight with Brutus.

Goffarius, being informed that the Trojans were in those parts, marched day
and night, till he came within a close view of Brutus's camp; and then with
a stern look and disdainful smile, broke out into these expressions, "Oh
wretched fate! Have these base exiles made a camp also in my kingdom?
Arm, arm, soldiers, and march through their thickest ranks: we shall soon
take these pitiful fellows like sheep, and disperse them throughout our
kingdom for slaves." At these words they prepared their arms, and advanced
in twelve bodies towards the enemy. Brutus, on the other hand, with his
forces drawn up in order, went forth boldly to meet them, and gave his men
directions for their conduct, where they should assault and where they
should be upon the defensive. At the beginning of the attack, the Trojans
had the advantage, and made a rapid slaughter of the enemy, of whom there

fell near two thousand, which so terrified the rest, that they were on the
point of running away. But, as the victory generally falls to that side which
has very much the superiority in numbers, so the Gauls, being three to one
in number, though overpowered at first, yet at last joining in a great body
together, broke in upon the Trojans, and forced them to retire to their camp
with much slaughter. The victory thus gained, they besieged them in their
camp, with a design not to suffer them to stir out until they should either
surrender themselves prisoners, or be cruelly starved to death with a long
famine.
In the meantime, Corineus the night following entered into consultation
with Brutus, and proposed to go out that night by by-ways, and conceal
himself in an adjacent wood till break of day; and while Brutus should sally
forth upon the enemy in the morning twilight, he with his company would
surprise them from behind and put them to slaughter. Brutus was pleased
with this stratagem of Corineus, who according to his engagement got out
cunningly with three thousand men, and put himself under the covert of the
woods. As soon as it was day Brutus marshalled his men and opened the
camp to go out to fight. The Gauls meet him and begin the engagement:
many thousands fall on both sides, neither party giving quarter. There was
present a Trojan, named Turonus, the nephew of Brutus, inferior to none but
Corineus in courage and strength of body. He alone with his sword killed
six hundred men, but at last was unfortunately slain himself by the number
of Gauls that rushed upon him. From him the city of Tours derived its name,
because he was buried there. While both armies were thus warmly engaged,
Corineus came upon them unawares, and fell fiercely upon the rear of the
enemy, which put new courage into his friends on the other side, and made
them exert themselves with increased vigour. The Gauls were astonished at
the very shout of Corineus's men, and thinking their number to be much
greater than it really was, they hastily quitted the field; but the Trojans
pursued them, and killed them in the pursuit, nor did they desist till they
had gained a complete victory. Brutus, though in joy for this great success,
was yet afflicted to observe the number of his forces daily lessened, while
that of the enemy increased more and more. He was in suspense for some
time, whether he had better continue the war or not, but at last he
determined to return to his ships while the greater part of his followers was
yet safe, and hitherto victorious, and to go in quest of the island which the

goddess had told him of. So without further delay, with the consent of his
company, he repaired to the fleet, and loading it with the riches and spoils
he had taken, set sail with a fair wind towards the promised island, and
arrived on the coast of Totness.

Chap. XVI.—Albion divided between Brutus and Corineus.

The island was then called Albion,[154] and was inhabited by none but a few
giants. Notwithstanding this, the pleasant situation of the places, the plenty
of rivers abounding with fish, and the engaging prospect of its woods, made
Brutus and his company very desirous to fix their habitation in it. They
therefore passed through all the provinces, forced the giants to fly into the
caves of the mountains, and divided the country among them according to
the directions of their commander. After this they began to till the ground
and build houses, so that in a little time the country looked like a place that
had been long inhabited. At last Brutus called the island after his own name
Britain, and his companions Britons; for by these means he desired to
perpetuate the memory of his name. From whence afterwards the language
of the nation, which at first bore the name of Trojan, or rough Greek, was
called British. But Corineus, in imitation of his leader, called that part of the
island which fell to his share, Corinea, and his people Corineans, after his
name; and though he had his choice of the provinces before all the rest, yet
he preferred this country, which is now called in Latin Cornubia, either
from its being in the shape of a horn (in Latin Cornu), or from the
corruption of the said name.[155] For it was a diversion to him to encounter
the said giants, which were in greater numbers there than in all the other
provinces that fell to the share of his companions. Among the rest was one
detestable monster, named Goëmagot, in stature twelve cubits, and of such
prodigious strength that at one shake he pulled up an oak as if it had been a
hazel wand. On a certain day, when Brutus was holding a solemn festival to
the gods, in the port where they at first landed, this giant with twenty more
of his companions came in upon the Britons, among whom he made a
dreadful slaughter. But the Britons at last assembling together in a body, put
them to the rout, and killed them every one but Goëmagot. Brutus had given

orders to have him preserved alive, out of a desire to see a combat between
him and Corineus, who took a great pleasure in such encounters. Corineus,
overjoyed at this, prepared himself, and throwing aside his arms, challenged
him to wrestle with him. At the beginning of the encounter, Corineus and
the giant, standing, front to front, held each other strongly in their arms, and
panted aloud for breath; but Goëmagot presently grasping Corineus with all
his might, broke three of his ribs, two on his right side and one on his left.
At which Corineus, highly enraged, roused up his whole strength, and
snatching him upon his shoulders, ran with him, as fast as the weight would
allow him, to the next shore, and there getting upon the top of a high rock,
hurled down the savage monster into the sea; where falling on the sides of
craggy rocks, he was torn to pieces, and coloured the waves with his blood.
The place where he fell, taking its name from the giant's fall, is called Lam
Goëmagot, that is, Goëmagot's Leap, to this day.[156]

FOOTNOTES:
[154] The earliest real notice of Albion occurs in a work attributed to Aristotle
[De Mundo, sec. 3], who wrote, before Christ 340, "Beyond the Pillars of
Hercules is the ocean which flows round the earth. In it are two very large
islands, called Britannic; these are Albion and Ierne," &c.
[155] The etymology of the word Cornwall, as if Cornu-Galliæ or Walliæ, is
equally imaginary.
[156] It is now called the Haw, and is near Plymouth.

Chap. XVII.—The building of new Troy by Brutus, upon the
river Thames.

Brutus, having thus at last set eyes upon his kingdom, formed a design of
building a city, and with this view, travelled through the land to find out a
convenient situation, and coming to the river Thames, he walked along the
shore, and at last pitched upon a place very fit for his purpose. Here,
therefore, he built a city, which he called New Troy; under which name it

continued a long time after, till at last, by the corruption of the original
word, it come to be called Trinovantum. But afterwards when Lud, the
brother of Cassibellaun, who made war against Julius Cæsar, obtained the
government of the kingdom, he surrounded it with stately walls, and towers
of admirable workmanship, and ordered it to be called after his name, Kaer-
Lud, that is, the City of Lud.[157] But this very thing became afterwards the
occasion of a great quarrel between him and his brother Nennius, who took
offence at his abolishing the name of Troy in this country. Of this quarrel
Gildas the historian has given a full account; for which reason I pass it over,
for fear of debasing by my account of it, what so great a writer has so
eloquently related.

FOOTNOTES:
[157] This is the city now called London, and it is evident that the writer wishes
it to be supposed that the modern name is derived from the ancient, as if it were
Lud-ton or Lud-don. The first notice of London found in authentic history occurs
in Tacitus, Annal. lib. xiv. c. 33, the second notice in Ptolemy, a.d. 120, lib. i. 15.

Chap. XVIII.—New Troy being built, and laws made for the
government of it, it is given to the citizens that were to inhabit it.

After Brutus had finished the building of the city, he made choice of the
citizens that were to inhabit it, and prescribed them laws for their peaceable
government. At this time Eli the priest governed in Judea, and the ark of the
covenant was taken by the Philistines. At the same time, also, the sons of
Hector, after the expulsion of the posterity of Antenor, reigned in Troy; as in
Italy did Sylvius Æneas, the son of Æneas, the uncle of Brutus, and the
third king of the Latins.[158]

FOOTNOTES:

[158] From this statement it would follow that the arrival of Brutus in Britain is
to be placed about the year 1100 before Christ.

BOOK II.

Chap. I.—After the death of Brutus, his three sons succeed him
in the kingdom.

During these transactions, Brutus had by his wife Ignoge three famous sons,
whose names were Locrin, Albanact, and Kamber. These, after their father's
death, which happened in the twenty-fourth year after his arrival, buried
him in the city which he had built, and then having divided the kingdom of
Britain among them, retired each to his government. Locrin, the eldest,
possessed the middle part of the island, called afterwards from his name,
Loegria. Kamber had that part which lies beyond the river Severn, now
called Wales, but which was for a long time named Kambria; and hence that
people still call themselves in their British tongue Kambri. Albanact, the
younger brother, possessed the country he called Albania, now Scotland.
After they had a long time reigned in peace together, Humber, king of the
Huns, arrived in Albania, and having killed Albanact in battle, forced his
people to fly to Locrin for protection.

Chap. II.—Locrin, having routed Humber, falls in love with
Estrildis.

Locrin, at hearing this news, joined his brother Kamber, and went with the
whole strength of the kingdom to meet the king of the Huns, near the river
now called Humber, where he gave him battle, and put him to the rout.
Humber made towards the river in his flight, and was drowned in it, on
account of which it has since borne his name. Locrin, after the victory,
bestowed the plunder of the enemy upon his own men, reserving for himself

the gold and silver which he found in the ships, together with three virgins
of admirable beauty, whereof one was the daughter of a king in Germany,
whom with the other two Humber had forcibly brought away with him,
after he had ruined their country. Her name was Estrildis, and her beauty
such as was hardly to be matched. No ivory or new-fallen snow, no lily
could exceed the whiteness of her skin. Locrin, smitten with love, would
have gladly married her, at which Corineus was extremely incensed, on
account of the engagement which Locrin had entered into with him to
marry his daughter.

Chap. III.—Corineus resents the affront put upon his daughter.

He went, therefore, to the king, and wielding a battle-axe in his right hand,
vented his rage against him in these words: "Do you thus reward me,
Locrin, for the many wounds which I have suffered under your father's
command in his wars with strange nations, that you must slight my
daughter, and debase yourself to marry a barbarian? While there is strength
in this right hand, that has been destructive to so many giants upon the
Tyrrhenian coasts, I will never put up with this affront." And repeating this
again and again with a loud voice, he shook his battle-axe as if he was
going to strike him, till the friends of both interposed, and after they had
appeased Corineus, obliged Locrin to perform his agreement.

Chap. IV.—Locrin at last marries Guendolœna, the daughter of
Corineus.

Locrin therefore married Corineus's daughter, named Guendolœna, yet still
retained his love for Estrildis, for whom he made apartments under ground,
in which he entertained her, and caused her to be honourably attended. For
he was resolved at least to carry on a private amour with her, since he could
not live with her openly for fear of Corineus. In this manner he concealed

her, and made frequent visits to her for seven years together, without the
privity of any but his most intimate domestics; and all under a pretence of
performing some secret sacrifices to his gods, by which he imposed on the
credulity of every body. In the meantime Estrildis became with child, and
was delivered of a most beautiful daughter, whom she named Sabre.
Guendolœna was also with child, and brought forth a son, who was named
Maddan, and put under the care of his grandfather Corineus to be educated.

Chap. V.—Locrin is killed; Estrildis and Sabre are thrown into a
river.

But in process of time, when Corineus was dead, Locrin divorced
Guendolœna, and advanced Estrildis to be queen. Guendolœna, provoked
beyond measure at this, retired into Cornwall, where she assembled
together all the forces of that kingdom, and began to raise disturbances
against Locrin. At last both armies joined battle near the river Sture, where
Locrin was killed by the shot of an arrow. After his death, Guendolœna took
upon her the government of the whole kingdom, retaining her father's
furious spirit. For she commanded Estrildis and her daughter Sabre to be
thrown into the river now called the Severn, and published an edict through
all Britain, that the river should bear the damsel's name, hoping by this to
perpetuate her memory, and by that the infamy of her husband. So that to
this day the river is called in the British tongue Sabren, which by the
corruption of the name is in another language Sabrina.

Chap. VI.—Guendolœna delivers up the kingdom to Maddan, her
son, after whom succeeds Mempricius.

Guendolœna reigned fifteen years after the death of Locrin, who had
reigned ten, and then advanced her son Maddan (whom she saw now at
maturity) to the throne, contenting herself with the country of Cornwall for

the remainder of her life. At this time Samuel the prophet governed in
Judæa, Sylvius Æneas was yet living, and Homer was esteemed a famous
orator and poet.[159] Maddan, now in possession of the crown, had by his
wife two sons, Mempricius and Malim, and ruled the kingdom in peace and
with care forty years. As soon as he was dead, the two brothers quarrelled
for the kingdom, each being ambitious of the sovereignty of the whole
island. Mempricius, impatient to attain his ends, enters into treaty with
Malim, under colour of making a composition with him, and, having
formed a conspiracy, murdered him in the assembly where their
ambassadors were met. By these means he obtained the dominion of the
whole island, over which he exercised such tyranny, that he left scarcely a
nobleman alive in it, and either by violence or treachery oppressed every
one that he apprehended might be likely to succeed him, pursuing his hatred
to his whole race. He also deserted his own wife, by whom he had a noble
youth named Ebraucus, and addicted himself to sodomy, preferring
unnatural lust to the pleasures of the conjugal state. At last, in the twentieth
year of his reign, while he was hunting, he retired from his company into a
valley, where he was surrounded by a great multitude of ravenous wolves,
and devoured by them in a horrible manner. Then did Saul reign in Judæa,
and Eurystheus in Lacedæmonia.

FOOTNOTES:
[159] It is only necessary to compare such passages as these with the Grecian or
Roman Histories, and we cannot avoid perceiving the legendary character of
Geoffrey of Monmouth's History.

Chap. VII.—Ebraucus, the successor of Mempricius, conquers
the Gauls, and builds the towns Kaerebrauc, &c.

Mempricius being dead, Ebraucus, his son, a man of great stature and
wonderful strength, took upon him the government of Britain, which he
held forty years. He was the first after Brutus who invaded Gaul with a

fleet, and distressed its provinces by killing their men and laying waste their
cities; and having by these means enriched himself with an infinite quantity
of gold and silver, he returned victorious. After this he built a city on the
other side of the Humber, which, from his own name, he called Kaerebrauc,
that is, the city of Ebraucus,[160] about the time that David reigned in Judæa,
and Sylvius Latinus in Italy; and that Gad, Nathan, and Asaph prophesied in
Israel. He also built the city of Alclud[161] towards Albani, and the town of
mount Agned,[162] called at this time the Castle of Maidens, or the
Mountain of Sorrow.

FOOTNOTES:
[160] York seems to be a corruption of Ebrauc. It is first mentioned by Ptolemy
(ii. 3.) a.d. 120.
[161] Alclud or Alcluith is unknown to the classic writers: it is first mentioned
by Gildas, and is thought to be the modern Dumbarton.
[162] Edinburgh.

Chap. VIII.—Ebraucus's twenty sons go to Germany, and his
thirty daughters to Sylvius Alba, in Italy.

This prince had twenty sons and thirty daughters by twenty wives, and with
great valour governed the kingdom of Britain sixty years. The names of his
sons were, Brutus surnamed Greenshield, Margadud, Sisillius, Regin,
Morivid, Bladud, Lagon, Bodloan, Kincar, Spaden, Gaul, Darden, Eldad,
Ivor, Gangu, Hector, Kerin, Rud, Assarach, Buel. The names of his
daughters were, Gloigni, Ignogni, Oudas, Guenliam, Gaudid, Angarad,
Guendoloe, Tangustel, Gorgon, Medlan, Methahel, Ourar, Malure,
Kambreda, Ragan, Gael, Ecub, Nest, Cheum, Stadud, Gladud, Ebren,
Blagan, Aballac, Angaes, Galaes, (the most celebrated beauty at that time in
Britain or Gaul,) Edra, Anaor, Stadial, Egron. All these daughters their
father sent into Italy to Sylvius Alba, who reigned after Sylvius Latinus,
where they were married among the Trojan nobility, the Latin and Sabine

women refusing to associate with them. But the sons, under the conduct of
their brother Assaracus, departed in a fleet to Germany, and having, with the
assistance of Sylvius Alba, subdued the people there, obtained that
kingdom.

Chap. IX.—After Ebraucus reigns Brutus his son, after him Leil,
and after Leil, Hudibras.

But Brutus, surnamed Greenshield, stayed with his father, whom he
succeeded in the government, and reigned twelve years. After him reigned
Leil, his son, a peaceful and just prince, who, enjoying a prosperous reign,
built in the north of Britain a city, called by his name, Kaerleil;[163] at the
same time that Solomon began to build the temple of Jerusalem, and the
queen of Sheba came to hear his wisdom; at which time also Sylvius Epitus
succeeded his father Alba, in Italy. Leil reigned twenty-five years, but
towards the latter end of his life grew more remiss in his government, so
that his neglect of affairs speedily occasioned a civil dissension in the
kingdom. After him reigned his son, Hudibras, thirty-nine years, and
composed the civil dissension among his people. He built Kaerlem or
Canterbury, Kaerguen or Winchester, and the town of Mount Paladur, now
Shaftesbury. At this place an eagle spoke, while the wall of the town was
being built; and indeed I should have transmitted the speech to posterity,
had I thought it true, as the rest of the history. At this time reigned Capys,
the son of Epitus; and Haggai, Amos, Joel, and Azariah, were prophets in
Israel.

FOOTNOTES:
[163] Now Carlisle.

Chap. X.—Bladud succeeds Hudibras in the kingdom, and
practises magical operations.

Next succeeded Bladud, his son, and reigned twenty years. He built
Kaerbadus, now Bath, and made hot baths in it for the benefit of the public,
which he dedicated to the goddess Minerva; in whose temple he kept fires
that never went out nor consumed to ashes, but as soon as they began to
decay were turned into balls of stone. About this time the prophet Elias
prayed that it might not rain upon earth; and it did not rain for three years
and six months. This prince was a very ingenious man, and taught
necromancy in his kingdom, nor did he leave off pursuing his magical
operations, till he attempted to fly to the upper region of the air with wings
which he had prepared, and fell down upon the temple of Apollo, in the city
of Trinovantum, where he was dashed to pieces.

Chap. XI.—Leir the son of Bladud, having no son, divides his
kingdom among his daughters.

After this unhappy fate of Bladud, Leir,[164] his son was advanced to the
throne, and nobly governed his country sixty years. He built upon the river
Sore a city, called in the British tongue, Kaerleir, in the Saxon, Leircestre.
[165]
He was without male issue, but had three daughters, whose names were
Gonorilla, Regau, and Cordeilla, of whom he was dotingly fond, but
especially of his youngest, Cordeilla. When he began to grow old, he had
thoughts of dividing his kingdom among them, and of bestowing them on
such husbands as were fit to be advanced to the government with them. But
to make trial who was worthy to have the best part of his kingdom, he went
to each of them to ask which of them loved him most. The question being
proposed, Gonorilla, the eldest, made answer, "That she called heaven to
witness, she loved him more than her own soul." The father replied, "Since
you have preferred my declining age before your own life, I will marry you,
my dearest daughter, to whomsoever you shall make choice of, and give
with you the third part of my kingdom." Then Regau, the second daughter,
willing, after the example of her sister, to prevail upon her father's good

nature, answered with an oath, "That she could not otherwise express her
thoughts, but that she loved him above all creatures." The credulous father
upon this made her the same promise that he did to her eldest sister, that is,
the choice of a husband, with the third part of his kingdom. But Cordeilla,
the youngest, understanding how easily he was satisfied with the flattering
expressions of her sisters, was desirous to make trial of his affection after a
different manner. "My father," said she, "is there any daughter that can love
her father more than duty requires? In my opinion, whoever pretends to it,
must disguise her real sentiments under the veil of flattery. I have always
loved you as a father, nor do I yet depart from my purposed duty; and if you
insist to have something more extorted from me, hear now the greatness of
my affection, which I always bear you, and take this for a short answer to
all your questions; look how much you have, so much is your value, and so
much do I love you." The father, supposing that she spoke this out of the
abundance of her heart, was highly provoked, and immediately replied,
"Since you have so far despised my old age as not to think me worthy the
love that your sisters express for me, you shall have from me the like
regard, and shall be excluded from any share with your sisters in my
kingdom. Notwithstanding, I do not say but that since you are my daughter,
I will marry you to some foreigner, if fortune offers you any such husband;
but will never, I do assure you, make it my business to procure so
honourable a match for you as for your sisters; because, though I have
hitherto loved you more than them, you have in requital thought me less
worthy of your affection than they." And, without further delay, after
consultation with his nobility, he bestowed his two other daughters upon the
dukes of Cornwall and Albania, with half the island at present, but after his
death, the inheritance of the whole monarchy of Britain.
It happened after this, that Aganippus, king of the Franks, having heard of
the fame of Cordeilla's beauty, forthwith sent his ambassadors to the king to
demand her in marriage. The father, retaining yet his anger towards her,
made answer, "That he was very willing to bestow his daughter, but without
either money or territories; because he had already given away his kingdom
with all his treasure to his eldest daughters, Gonorilla and Regau." When
this was told Aganippus, he, being very much in love with the lady, sent
again to king Leir, to tell him, "That he had money and territories enough,
as he possessed the third part of Gaul, and desired no more than his

daughter only, that he might have heirs by her." At last the match was
concluded; Cordeilla was sent to Gaul, and married to Aganippus.

FOOTNOTES:
[164] King Lear, the hero of Shakespeare's drama.
[165] Leicester.

Chap. XII.—Leir, finding the ingratitude of his two eldest
daughters, betakes himself to his youngest, Cordeilla, in Gaul.

A long time after this, when Leir came to be infirm through old age, the two
dukes, on whom he had bestowed Britain with his two daughters, fostered
an insurrection against him, and deprived him of his kingdom, and of all
regal authority, which he had hitherto exercised with great power and glory.
At length, by mutual agreement, Maglaunus, duke of Albania, one of his
sons-in-law, was to allow him a maintenance at his own house, together
with sixty soldiers, who were to be kept for state. After two years' stay with
his son-in-law, his daughter Gonorilla grudged the number of his men, who
began to upbraid the ministers of the court with their scanty allowance; and,
having spoken to her husband about it, she gave orders that the numbers of
her father's followers should be reduced to thirty, and the rest discharged.
The father, resenting this treatment, left Maglaunus, and went to Henuinus,
duke of Cornwall, to whom he had married his daughter Regau. Here he
met with an honourable reception, but before the year was at an end, a
quarrel happened between the two families, which raised Regau's
indignation; so that she commanded her father to discharge all his
attendants but five, and to be contented with their service. This second
affliction was insupportable to him, and made him return again to his
former daughter, with hopes that the misery of his condition might move in
her some sentiments of filial piety, and that he, with his family, might find a
subsistence with her. But she, not forgetting her resentment, swore by the
gods he should not stay with her, unless he would dismiss his retinue, and

be contented with the attendance of one man; and with bitter reproaches she
told him how ill his desire of vain-glorious pomp suited his age and
poverty. When he found that she was by no means to be prevailed upon, he
was at last forced to comply, and, dismissing the rest, to take up with one
man only. But by this time he began to reflect more sensibly with himself
upon the grandeur from which he had fallen, and the miserable state to
which he was now reduced, and to enter upon thoughts of going beyond sea
to his youngest daughter. Yet he doubted whether he should be able to move
her commiseration, because (as was related above) he had treated her so
unworthily. However, disdaining to bear any longer such base usage, he
took ship for Gaul. In his passage he observed he had only the third place
given him among the princes that were with him in the ship, at which, with
deep sighs and tears, he burst forth into the following complaint:—
"O irreversible decrees of the Fates, that never swerve from your stated
course! why did you ever advance me to an unstable felicity, since the
punishment of lost happiness is greater than the sense of present misery?
The remembrance of the time when vast numbers of men obsequiously
attended me in the taking the cities and wasting the enemy's countries, more
deeply pierces my heart than the view of my present calamity, which has
exposed me to the derision of those who were formerly prostrate at my feet.
Oh! the enmity of fortune! Shall I ever again see the day when I may be
able to reward those according to their deserts who have forsaken me in my
distress? How true was thy answer, Cordeilla, when I asked thee concerning
thy love to me, 'As much as you have, so much is your value, and so much
do I love you.' While I had anything to give they valued me, being friends,
not to me, but to my gifts: they loved me then, but they loved my gifts
much more: when my gifts ceased, my friends vanished. But with what face
shall I presume to see you, my dearest daughter, since in my anger I married
you upon worse terms than your sisters, who, after all the mighty favours
they have received from me, suffer me to be in banishment and poverty?"
As he was lamenting his condition in these and the like expressions, he
arrived at Karitia,[166] where his daughter was, and waited before the city
while he sent a messenger to inform her of the misery he was fallen into,
and to desire her relief for a father who suffered both hunger and nakedness.
Cordeilla was startled at the news, and wept bitterly, and with tears asked
how many men her father had with him. The messenger answered, he had

none but one man, who had been his armour-bearer, and was staying with
him without the town. Then she took what money she thought might be
sufficient, and gave it to the messenger, with orders to carry her father to
another city, and there give out that he was sick, and to provide for him
bathing, clothes, and all other nourishment. She likewise gave orders that he
should take into his service forty men, well clothed and accoutred, and that
when all things were thus prepared he should notify his arrival to king
Aganippus and his daughter. The messenger quickly returning, carried Leir
to another city, and there kept him concealed, till he had done every thing
that Cordeilla had commanded.

FOOTNOTES:
[166] Calais.

Chap. XIII.—He is very honourably received by Cordeilla and
the king of Gaul.

As soon as he was provided with his royal apparel, ornaments, and retinue,
he sent word to Aganippus and his daughter, that he was driven out of his
kingdom of Britain by his sons-in-law, and was come to them to procure
their assistance for recovering his dominions. Upon which they, attended
with their chief ministers of state and the nobility of the kingdom, went out
to meet him, and received him honourably, and gave into his management
the whole power of Gaul, till such time as he should be restored to his
former dignity.

Chap. XIV.—Leir, being restored to the kingdom by the help of
his son-in-law and Cordeilla, dies.

In the meantime Aganippus sent officers over all Gaul to raise an army, to
restore his father-in-law to his kingdom of Britain. Which done, Leir
returned to Britain with his son and daughter and the forces which they had
raised, where he fought with his sons-in-law and routed them. Having thus
reduced the whole kingdom to his power, he died the third year after.
Aganippus also died; and Cordeilla, obtaining the government of the
kingdom, buried her father in a certain vault, which she ordered to be made
for him under the river Sore, in Leicester, and which had been built
originally under the ground to the honour of the god Janus. And here all the
workmen of the city, upon the anniversary solemnity of that festival, used to
begin their yearly labours.

Chap. XV.—Cordeilla, being imprisoned, kills herself. Margan,
aspiring to the whole kingdom, is killed by Cunedagius.

After a peaceful possession of the government for five years, Cordeilla
began to meet with disturbances from the two sons of her sisters, being both
young men of great spirit, whereof one, named Margan, was born to
Maglaunus, and the other, named Cunedagius, to Henuinus. These, after the
death of their fathers, succeeding them in their dukedoms, were incensed to
see Britain subject to a woman, and raised forces in order to raise a
rebellion against the queen; nor would they desist from hostilities, till, after
a general waste of her countries, and several battles fought, they at last took
her and put her in prison, where for grief at the loss of her kingdom she
killed herself. After this they divided the island between them; of which the
part that reaches from the north side of the Humber to Caithness, fell to
Margan; the other part from the same river westward was Cunedagius's
share. At the end of two years, some restless spirits that took pleasure in the
troubles of the nation, had access to Margan, and inspired him with vain
conceits, by representing to him how mean and disgraceful it was for him
not to govern the whole island, which was his due by right of birth. Stirred
up with these and the like suggestions, he marched with an army through
Cunedagius's country, and began to burn all before him. The war thus
breaking out, he was met by Cunedagius with all his forces, who attacked

Margan, killing no small number of his men, and, putting him to flight,
pursued him from one province to another, till at last he killed him in a
town of Kambria, which since his death has been by the country people
called Margan to this day. After the victory, Cunedagius gained the
monarchy of the whole island, which he governed gloriously for three and
thirty years. At this time flourished the prophets Isaiah and Hosea, and
Rome was built upon the eleventh before the Kalends of May by the two
brothers, Romulus and Remus.[167]

FOOTNOTES:
[167] About the year before Christ, 753.

Chap. XVI.—The successors of Cunedagius in the kingdom.
Ferrex is killed by his brother Porrex, in a dispute for the
government.

At last Cunedagius dying, was succeeded by his son Rivallo, a fortunate
youth, who diligently applied himself to the affairs of the government. In
his time it rained blood three days together, and there fell vast swarms of
flies, followed by a great mortality among the people. After him succeeded
Gurgustius his son; after him Sisillius; after him Jago, the nephew of
Gurgustius; after him Kinmarcus the son of Sisillius; after him Gorbogudo,
who had two sons, Ferrex and Porrex.
When their father grew old they began to quarrel about the succession; but
Porrex, who was the most ambitious of the two, forms a design of killing
his brother by treachery, which the other discovering, escaped, and passed
over into Gaul. There he procured aid from Suard king of the Franks, with
which he returned and made war upon his brother; coming to an
engagement, Ferrex was killed and all his forces cut to pieces. When their
mother, whose name was Widen, came to be informed of her son's death,
she fell into a great rage, and conceived a mortal hatred against the survivor.

For she had a greater affection for the deceased than for him, so that
nothing less would appease her indignation for his death, than her
revenging it upon her surviving son. She took therefore her opportunity
when he was asleep, fell upon him, and with the assistance of her women
tore him to pieces. From that time a long civil war oppressed the people,
and the island became divided under the power of five kings, who mutually
harassed one another.

Chap. XVII.—Dunwallo Molmutius gains the sceptre of Britain,
from whom came the Molmutine laws.

At length arose a youth of great spirit, named Dunwallo Molmutius, who
was the son of Cloten king of Cornwall, and excelled all the kings of Britain
in valour and gracefulness of person. When his father was dead, he was no
sooner possessed of the government of that country, than he made war
against Ymner king of Loegria, and killed him in battle. Hereupon
Rudaucus king of Kambria, and Staterius king of Albania, had a meeting,
wherein they formed an alliance together, and marched thence with their
armies into Dunwallo's country to destroy all before them. Dunwallo met
them with thirty thousand men, and gave them battle; and when a great part
of the day was spent in the fight, and the victory yet dubious, he drew off
six hundred of his bravest men, and commanded them to put on the armour
of the enemies that were slain, as he himself also did, throwing aside his
own. Thus accoutred he marched up with speed to the enemy's ranks, as if
he was of their party, and approaching the very place where Rudaucus and
Staterius were, commanded his men to fall upon them. In this assault the
two kings were killed and many others with them. But Dunwallo
Molmutius, fearing lest in this disguise his own men might fall upon him,
returned with his companions to put off the enemy's armour, and take his
own again; and then encouraged them to renew the assault, which they did
with great vigour, and in a short time got the victory, by dispersing and
putting to flight the enemy. From hence he marched into the enemy's
countries, destroyed their towns and cities, and reduced the people under his
obedience. When he had made an entire reduction of the whole island, he

prepared for himself a crown of gold, and restored the kingdom to its
ancient state. This prince established what the Britons call the Molmutine
laws, which are famous among the English to this day. In these, among
other things, of which St. Gildas wrote a long time after, he enacted, that the
temples of the gods, as also cities, should have the privilege of giving
sanctuary and protection to any fugitive or criminal, that should flee to them
from his enemy. He likewise enacted, that the ways leading to those temples
and cities, as also husbandman's ploughs, should be allowed the same
privilege. So that in his day, the murders and cruelties committed by
robbers were prevented, and every body passed safe without any violence
offered him. At last, after a reign of forty years spent in these and other acts
of government, he died, and was buried in the city of Trinovantum, near the
temple of Concord, which he himself built, when he first established his
laws.

BOOK III.

Chap. I.—Brennius quarrels with Belinus his brother, and in
order to make war against him, marries the daughter of the king
of the Norwegians.

After this a violent quarrel happened between his two sons Belinus and
Brennius, who were both ambitious of succeeding to the kingdom. The
dispute was, which of them should have the honour of wearing the crown.
After a great many sharp conflicts that passed between them, the friends of
both interposed, and brought them to agree on the division of the kingdom
on these terms: that Belinus should enjoy the crown of the island, with the
dominions of Loegria, Kambria, and Cornwall, because, according to the
Trojan constitution, the right of inheritance would come to him as the elder:
and Brennius, as being the younger, should be subject to his brother, and
have for his share Northumberland, which extended from the river Humber
to Caithness. The covenant therefore being confirmed upon these
conditions, they ruled the country for five years in peace and justice. But
such a state of prosperity could not long stand against the endeavours of

faction. For some lying incendiaries gained access to Brennius and
addressed him in this manner:—
"What sluggish spirit has possessed you, that you can bear subjection to
Belinus, to whom by parentage and blood you are equal; besides your
experience in military affairs, which you have gained in several
engagements, when you so often repulsed Cheulphus, general of the Morini,
in his invasions of our country, and drove him out of your kingdom? Be no
longer bound by a treaty which is a reproach to you, but marry the daughter
of Elsingius, king of the Norwegians, that with his assistance you may
recover your lost dignity." The young man, inflamed with these and the like
specious suggestions, hearkened to them, and went to Norway, where he
married the king's daughter, as his flatterers had advised him.

Chap. II.—Brennius's sea-fight with Guichthlac, king of the
Dacians. Guichthlac and Brennius's wife are driven ashore and
taken by Belinus.

In the meantime his brother, informed of this, was violently incensed, that
without his leave he had presumed to act thus against him. Whereupon he
marched into Northumberland, and possessed himself of that country and
the cities in it, which he garrisoned with his own men. Brennius, upon
notice given him of what his brother had done, prepared a fleet to return to
Britain with a great army of Norwegians. But while he was under sail with a
fair wind, he was overtaken by Guichthlac, king of the Dacians,[168] who
had pursued him. This prince had been deeply in love with the young lady
that Brennius had married, and out of mere grief and vexation for the loss of
her, had prepared a fleet to pursue Brennius with all expedition. In the sea-
fight that happened on this occasion, he had the fortune to take the very ship
in which the lady was, and brought her in among his companions. But
during the engagement, contrary winds arose on a sudden, which brought
on a storm, and dispersed the ships upon different shores: so that the king of
the Dacians, being driven up and down, after a course of five days, arrived
with the lady at Northumberland, under dreadful apprehensions, as not

knowing upon what country this unforeseen casualty had thrown him.
When this came to be known to the country people, they took them and
carried them to Belinus, who was upon the sea-coast, expecting the arrival
of his brother. There were with Guichthlac's ship three others, one of which
had belonged to Brennius's fleet. As soon as they had declared to the king
who they were, he was overjoyed at this happy accident, while he was
endeavouring to revenge himself on his brother.

FOOTNOTES:
[168] The Danes.

Chap. III.—Belinus in a battle routs Brennius, who thereupon
flees to Gaul.

A few days after appeared Brennius, with his fleet again got together, and
arrived in Albania; and having received information of the capture of his
wife and others, and that his brother had seized the kingdom of
Northumberland in his absence, he sent his ambassadors to him, to demand
the restitution of his wife and kingdom; and if he refused them, to declare
that he would destroy the whole island from sea to sea, and kill his brother
whenever he could come to an engagement with him. On the other hand,
Belinus absolutely refused to comply with his demands, and assembling
together the whole power of the island, went into Albania to give him battle.
Brennius, upon advice that he had suffered a repulse, and that his brother
was upon his march against him, advanced to meet him in a wood called
Calaterium, in order to attack him. When they were arrived on the field of
battle, each of them divided his men into several bodies, and approaching
one another, began the fight. A great part of the day was spent in it, because
on both sides the bravest men were engaged; and much blood was shed by
reason of the fury with which they encountered each other. So great was the
slaughter, that the wounded fell in heaps, like standing corn cut down by
reapers. At last the Britons prevailing, the Norwegians fled with their

shattered troops to their ships, but were pursued by Belinus, and killed
without mercy. Fifteen thousand men fell in the battle, nor were there a
thousand of the rest that escaped unhurt. Brennius with much difficulty
securing one ship, went as fortune drove him to the coasts of Gaul; but the
rest that attended him, were forced to sculk up and down wherever their
misfortunes led them.

Chap. IV.—The king of Dacia, with Brennius's wife, is released
out of prison.

Belinus, after this victory, called a council of his nobility, to advise with
them what he should do with the king of the Dacians, who had sent a
message to him out of prison, that he would submit himself and the
kingdom of Dacia to him, and also pay a yearly tribute, if he might have
leave to depart with his mistress. He offered likewise to confirm this
covenant with an oath, and the giving of hostages. When this proposal was
laid before the nobility, they unanimously gave their assent that Belinus
should grant Guichthlac his petition upon the terms offered. Accordingly he
did grant it, and Guichthlac was released from prison, and returned with his
mistress into Dacia.

Chap. V.—Belinus revives and confirms the Molmutine laws,
especially about the highways.

Belinus now finding no body in the kingdom of Britain able to make head
against him, and being possessed of the sovereignty of the whole island
from sea to sea, confirmed the laws his father had made, and gave
command for a settled execution of justice through his kingdom. But above
all things he ordered that cities, and the roads leading to them, should enjoy
the same privilege of peace that Dunwallo had established. But there arose a
controversy about the roads, because the limits determining them were

unknown. The king, therefore, willing to clear the law of all ambiguities,
summoned all the workmen of the island together, and commanded them to
pave a causeway of stone and mortar, which should run the whole length of
the island, from the sea of Cornwall, to the shores of Caithness, and lead
directly to the cities that lay along that extent. He commanded another to be
made over the breadth of the kingdom, leading from Menevia, that was
situated upon the Demetian Sea, to Hamo's Port, and to pass through the
interjacent cities. Other two he also made obliquely through the island, for a
passage to the rest of the cities.[169] He then confirmed to them all honours
and privileges, and prescribed a law for the punishment of any injury
committed upon them. But if any one is curious to know all that he decreed
concerning them, let him read the Molmutine laws, which Gildas the
historian translated from British into Latin, and king Alfred into English.

FOOTNOTES:
[169] This seems to be a false account of the Roman roads in Britain.

Chap. VI.—Brennius, being made duke of the Allobroges,
returns to Britain to fight with his brother.

While Belinus was thus reigning in peace and tranquillity, his brother
Brennius, who (as we said before) was driven upon the coasts of Gaul,
suffered great torments of mind. For it was a great affliction to him to be
banished from his country, and to have no power of returning to retrieve his
loss. Being ignorant what course to take, he went among the princes of
Gaul, accompanied only with twelve men; and when he had related his
misfortune to every one of them, but could procure assistance from none, he
went at last to Seginus, duke of the Allobroges, from whom he had an
honourable reception. During his stay here, he contracted such an intimacy
with the duke, that he became the greatest favourite in the court. For in all
affairs, both of peace and war, he showed a great capacity, so that this
prince loved him with a paternal affection. He was besides of a graceful

aspect, tall and slender in stature, and expert in hunting and fowling, as
became his princely birth. So great was the friendship between them, that
the duke resolved to give him his only daughter in marriage; and in case he
himself should have no male issue, he appointed him and his daughter to
succeed him in his dukedom of the Allobroges after his death. But if he
should yet have a son, then he promised his assistance to advance him to the
kingdom of Britain. Neither was this the desire of the duke only, but of all
the nobility of his court, with whom he had very much ingratiated himself.
So then without farther delay the marriage was solemnized, and the princes
of the country paid their homage to him, as the successor to the throne.
Scarcely was the year at an end before the duke died; and then Brennius
took his opportunity of engaging those princes of the country firmly in his
interest, whom before he had obliged with his friendship. And this he did by
bestowing generously upon them the duke's treasure, which had been
hoarded up from the times of his ancestors. But that which the Allobroges
most esteemed him for, was his sumptuous entertainments, and keeping an
open house for all.

Chap. VII.—Belinus and Brennius being made friends by the
mediation of their mother, propose to subdue Gaul.

When he had thus gained universal affection, he began to consult with
himself how he might take revenge upon his brother Belinus. And when he
had signified his intentions concerning it to his subjects, they unanimously
concurred with him, and expressed their readiness to attend him to whatever
kingdom he pleased to conduct them. He therefore soon raised a vast army,
and having entered into a treaty with the Gauls for a free passage through
their country into Britain, fitted out a fleet upon the coast of Neustria, in
which he set sail, and with a fair wind arrived at the island. Upon hearing
the rumour of his coming, his brother Belinus, accompanied with the whole
strength of the kingdom, marched out to engage him. But when the two
armies were drawn out in order of battle, and just ready to begin the attack,
Conwenna, their mother, who was yet living, ran in great haste through the
ranks, impatient to see her son, whom she had not seen for a long time. As

soon, therefore, as she had with trembling steps reached the place where he
stood, she threw her arms about his neck, and in transports kissed him; then
uncovering her bosom, she addressed herself to him, in words interrupted
with sighs, to this effect:—
"My son, remember these breasts which gave you suck, and the womb
wherein the Creator of all things formed you, and from whence he brought
you forth into the world, while I endured the greatest anguish. By the pains
then which I suffered for you, I entreat you to hear my request: pardon your
brother, and moderate your anger. You ought not to revenge yourself upon
him who has done you no injury. As for what you complain of,—that you
were banished your country by him,—if you duly consider the result, in
strictness can it be called injustice? He did not banish you to make your
condition worse, but forced you to quit a meaner that you might attain a
higher dignity. At first you enjoyed only a part of a kingdom, and that in
subjection to your brother. As soon as you lost that, you became his equal,
by gaining the kingdom of the Allobroges. What has he then done, but
raised you from a vassal to be a king? Consider farther, that the difference
between you began not through him, but through yourself, who, with the
assistance of the king of Norway, raised an insurrection against him."
Moved by these representations of his mother, he obeyed her with a
composed mind, and putting off his helmet of his own accord, went straight
with her to his brother. Belinus, seeing him approach with a peaceable
countenance, threw down his arms, and ran to embrace him; so that now,
without more ado, they again became friends; and disarming their forces
marched with them peaceably together to Trinovantum. And here, after
consultation what enterprise to undertake, they prepared to conduct their
confederate army into the provinces of Gaul, and reduce that entire country
to their subjection.

Chap. VIII.—Belinus and Brennius, after the conquest of Gaul,
march with their army to Rome.

They accordingly passed over into Gaul the year after, and began to lay
waste that country. The news of which spreading through those several
nations, all the petty kings of the Franks entered into a confederacy, and
went out to fight against them. But the victory falling to Belinus and
Brennius, the Franks fled with their broken forces; and the Britons and
Allobroges, elevated with their success, ceased not to pursue them till they
had taken their kings, and reduced them to their power. Then fortifying the
cities which they had taken, in less than a year they brought the whole
kingdom into subjection. At last, after a reduction of all the provinces, they
marched with their whole army towards Rome, and destroyed the cities and
villages as they passed through Italy.

Chap. IX.—The Romans make a covenant with Brennius, but
afterwards break it, for which reason Rome is besieged and taken
by Brennius.

In those days the two consuls of Rome were Gabius and Porsena,[170] to
whose care the government of the country was committed. When they saw
that no nation was able to withstand the power of Belinus and Brennius,
they came, with the consent of the senate to them, to desire peace and
amity. They likewise offered large presents of gold and silver, and to pay a
yearly tribute, on condition that they might be suffered to enjoy their own in
peace. The two kings therefore, taking hostages of them, yielded to their
petition, and drew back their forces into Germany. While they were
employing their arms in harassing that people, the Romans repented of their
agreement, and again taking courage, went to assist the Germans. This step
highly enraged the kings against them, who concerted measures how to
carry on a war with both nations. For the greatness of the Italian army was a
terror to them. The result of their council was, that Belinus with the Britons
stayed in Germany, to engage with the enemy there; while Brennius and his
army marched to Rome, to revenge on the Romans their breach of treaty. As
soon as the Italians perceived their design, they quitted the Germans, and
hastened to get before Brennius, in his march to Rome. Belinus had
intelligence of it, and speedily marched with his army the same night, and

possessing himself of a valley through which the enemy was to pass, lay hid
there in expectation of their coming. The next day the Italians came in full
march to the place; but when they saw the valley glittering with the enemy's
armour, they were struck with confusion, thinking Brennius and the Galli
Senones were there. At this favourable opportunity, Belinus on a sudden
rushed forth, and fell furiously upon them: the Romans on the other hand,
thus taken by surprise, fled the field, since they neither were armed, nor
marched in any order. But Belinus gave them no quarter, and was only
prevented by night coming on, from making a total destruction of them.
With this victory he went straight to Brennius, who had now besieged
Rome three days. Then joining their armies, they assaulted the city on every
side, and endeavoured to level the walls: and to strike a greater terror into
the besieged, erected gibbets before the gates of the city, and threatened to
hang up the hostages whom they had given, unless they would surrender.
But the Romans, nothing moved by the sufferings of their sons and
relations, continued inflexible, and resolute to defend themselves. They
therefore sometimes broke the force of the enemy's engines, by other
engines of their own, sometimes repulsed them from the walls with showers
of darts. This so incensed the two brothers, that they commanded four and
twenty of their noblest hostages to be hanged in the sight of their parents.
The Romans, however, were only more hardened at the spectacle, and
having received a message from Gabius and Porsena, their consuls, that
they would come the next day to their assistance, they resolved to march
out of the city, and give the enemy battle. Accordingly, just as they were
ranging their troops in order, the consuls appeared with their re-assembled
forces, marching up to the attack, and advancing in a close body, fell on the
Britons and Allobroges by surprise, and being joined by the citizens that
sallied forth, killed no small number. The brothers, in great grief to see such
destruction made of their fellow soldiers, began to rally their men, and
breaking in upon the enemy several times, forced them to retire. In the end,
after the loss of many thousands of brave men on both sides, the brothers
gained the day, and took the city, not however till Gabius was killed and
Porsena taken prisoner. This done, they divided among their men all the
hidden treasure of the city.

FOOTNOTES:

[170] The absurdity of describing Porsena king of Etruria, as one of the Roman
consuls, must be apparent to every reader. No less evident is it that the whole of
this fictitious account is founded upon the known fact that Rome was taken by
the Gauls commanded by one Brennus.

Chap. X.—Brennius oppresses Italy in a most tyrannical manner.
Belinus returns to Britain.

After this complete victory, Brennius stayed in Italy, where he exercised
unheard-of tyranny over the people. But the rest of his actions and his
death, seeing that they are given in the Roman histories, I shall here pass
over, to avoid prolixity and meddling with what others have treated of,
which is foreign to my design. But Belinus returned to Britain, which he
governed during the remainder of his life in peace; he repaired the cities
that were falling to ruin, and built many new ones. Among the rest he built
one upon the river Uske, near the sea of the Severn, which was for a long
time called Caer-osc, and was the metropolis of Dimetia;[171] but after the
invasion of the Romans it lost its first name, and was called the City of
Legions, from the Roman legions which used to take up their winter
quarters in it. He also made a gate of wonderful structure in Trinovantum,
upon the bank of the Thames, which the citizens call after his name
Billingsgate to this day. Over it he built a prodigiously large tower, and
under it a haven or quay for ships. He was a strict observer of justice, and
re-established his father's laws everywhere throughout the kingdom. In his
days there was so great an abundance of riches among the people, that no
age before or after is said to have shown the like. At last, when he had
finished his days, his body was burned, and the ashes put up in a golden
urn, which they placed at Trinovantum, with wonderful art, on the top of the
tower above-mentioned.

FOOTNOTES:
[171] Newport, the principal town of South Wales.

Chap. XI.—Gurgiunt Brabtruc, succeeding his father Belinus,
reduces Dacia, which was trying to shake off his yoke.

He was succeeded by Gurgiunt Brabtruc, his son, a sober prudent prince,
who followed the example of his father in all his actions, and was a lover of
peace and justice. When some neighbouring provinces rebelled against him,
inheriting with them the bravery of his father, he repressed their insolence
in several fierce battles, and reduced them to a perfect subjection. Among
many other things it happened, that the king of the Dacians, who paid
tribute in his father's time, refused not only tribute, but all manner of
homage to him. This he seriously resented, and passed over in a fleet to
Dacia, where he harassed the people with a most cruel war, slew their king,
and reduced the country to its former dependence.

Chap. XII.—Ireland is given to be inhabited by the Barclenses,
who had been banished out of Spain.

At that time, as he was returning home from his conquest through the
Orkney islands, he found thirty ships full of men and women; and upon his
inquiring of them the occasion of their coming thither, their leader, named
Partholoim, approached him in a respectful and submissive manner, and
desired pardon and peace, telling him that he had been driven out of Spain,
and was sailing round those seas in quest of a habitation. He also desired
some small part of Britain to dwell in, that they might put an end to their
tedious wanderings; for it was now a year and a half since he had been
driven from his country, all of which time he and his company had been out
at sea. When Gurgiunt Brabtruc understood that they came from Spain, and
were called Barclenses, he granted their petition, and sent men with them to
Ireland, which was then wholly uninhabited, and assigned it to them. There
they grew up and increased in number, and have possessed that island to
this very day. Gurgiunt Brabtruc after this ended his days in peace, and was

buried in the City of Legions, which, after his father's death, he ornamented
with buildings and fortified with walls.

Chap. XIII.—Guithelin, reigning after Gurgiunt Brabtruc, the
Martian law is instituted by Martia, a noble woman.

After him Guithelin wore the crown, which he enjoyed all his life, treating
his subjects with mildness and affection. He had for his wife a noble lady
named Martia, accomplished in all kinds of learning. Among many other
admirable productions of her wit, she was the author of what the Britons
call the Martian law. This also among other things king Alfred translated,
and called it in the Saxon tongue, Pa Marchitle Lage. Upon the death of
Guithelin, the government of the kingdom remained in the hands of this
queen and her son Sisilius, who was then but seven years old, and therefore
unfit to take the government upon himself alone.

Chap. XIV.—Guithelin's successors in the kingdom.

For this reason the mother had the sole management of affairs committed to
her, out of a regard to her great sense and judgment. But on her death,
Sisilius took the crown and government. After him reigned Kimarus his son,
to whom succeeded Danius his brother. After his death the crown came to
Morvidus, whom he had by his concubine Tangustela. He would have been
a prince of extraordinary worth, had he not been addicted to immoderate
cruelty, so far that in his anger he spared nobody, if any weapon were at
hand. He was of a graceful aspect, extremely liberal, and of such vast
strength as not to have his match in the whole kingdom.

Chap. XV.—Morvidus, a most cruel tyrant, after the conquest of
the king of the Morini, is devoured by a monster.

In his time a certain king of the Morini[172] arrived with a great force in
Northumberland, and began to destroy the country. But Morvidus, with all
the strength of the kingdom, marched out against him, and fought him. In
this battle he alone did more than the greatest part of his army, and after the
victory, suffered none of the enemy to escape alive. For he commanded
them to be brought to him one after another, that he might satisfy his cruelty
in seeing them killed; and when he grew tired of this, he gave orders that
they should be flayed alive and burned. During these and other monstrous
acts of cruelty, an accident happened which put a period to his wickedness.
There came from the coasts of the Irish sea, a most cruel monster, that was
continually devouring the people upon the sea-coasts. As soon as he heard
of it, he ventured to go and encounter it alone; when he had in vain spent all
his darts upon it, the monster rushed upon him, and with open jaws
swallowed him up like a small fish.

FOOTNOTES:
[172] The people who lived near Boulogne.

Chap. XVI.—Gorbonian, a most just king of the Britons.

He had five sons, whereof the eldest, Gorbonian, ascended the throne.
There was not in his time a greater lover of justice and equity, or a more
careful ruler of the people. The performance of due worship to the gods,
and doing justice to the common people, were his continual employments.
Through all the cities of Britain, he repaired the temples of the gods, and
built many new ones. In all his days, the island abounded with riches, more
than all the neighbouring countries. For he gave great encouragement to
husbandmen in their tillage, by protecting them against any injury or
oppression of their lords; and the soldiers he amply rewarded with money,

so that no one had occasion to do wrong to another. Amidst these and many
other acts of his innate goodness, he paid the debt of nature, and was buried
at Trinovantum.

Chap. XVII.—Arthgallo is deposed by the Britons, and is
succeeded by Elidure, who restores him again his kingdom.

After him Arthgallo, his brother, was dignified with the crown, and in all his
actions he was the very reverse of his brother. He everywhere endeavoured
to depress the nobility, and advance the baser sort of the people. He
plundered the rich, and by those means amassed vast treasures. But the
nobility, disdaining to bear his tyranny any longer, made an insurrection
against him, and deposed him; and then advanced Elidure, his brother, who
was afterwards surnamed the pious, on account of his commiseration to
Arthgallo in distress. For after five years' possession of the kingdom, as he
happened to be hunting in the wood Calaterium, he met his brother that had
been deposed. For he had travelled over several kingdoms, to desire
assistance for the recovery of his lost dominions, but had procured none.
And being now no longer able to bear the poverty to which he was reduced,
he returned back to Britain, attended only by ten men, with a design to
repair to those who had been formerly his friends. It was at this time, as he
was passing through the wood, his brother Elidure, who little expected it,
got sight of him, and forgetting all injuries, ran to him, and affectionately
embraced him. Now as he had long lamented his brother's affliction, he
carried him with him to the city Alclud, where he hid him in his bed-
chamber. After this, he feigned himself sick, and sent messengers over the
whole kingdom, to signify to all his prime nobility that they should come to
visit him. Accordingly, when they were all met together at the city where he
lay, he gave orders that they should come into his chamber one by one,
softly, and without noise: his pretence for which was, that their talk would
be a disturbance to his head, should they all crowd in together. Thus, in
obedience to his commands, and without the least suspicion of any design,
they entered his house one after another. But Elidure had given charge to his
servants, who were set ready for the purpose, to take each of them as they

entered, and cut off their heads, unless they would again submit themselves
to Arthgallo his brother. Thus did he with every one of them apart, and
compelled them, through fear, to be reconciled to Arthgallo. At last the
agreement being ratified, Elidure conducted Arthgallo to York, where he
took the crown from his own head, and put it on that of his brother. From
this act of extraordinary affection to his brother, he obtained the surname of
Pious. Arthgallo after this reigned ten years, and made amends for his
former mal-administration, by pursuing measures of an entirely opposite
tendency, in depressing the baser sort, and advancing men of good birth; in
suffering every one to enjoy his own, and exercising strict justice towards
all men. At last sickness seizing him, he died and was buried in the city
Kaerleir.

Chap. XVIII.—Elidure is imprisoned by Peredure, after whose
death he is a third time advanced to the throne.

Then Elidure was again advanced to the throne, and restored to his former
dignity. But while in his government he followed the example of his eldest
brother Gorbonian, in performing all acts of grace; his two remaining
brothers, Vigenius and Peredure, raised an army, and made war against him,
in which they proved victorious; so that they took him prisoner, and shut
him up in the tower[173] at Trinovantum, where they placed a guard over
him. They then divided the kingdom betwixt them; that part which is from
the river Humber westward falling to Vigenius's share, and the remainder
with all Albania to Peredure's. After seven years Vigenius died, and so the
whole kingdom came to Peredure, who from that time governed the people
with generosity and mildness, so that he even excelled his other brothers
who had preceded him, nor was any mention now made of Elidure. But
irresistible fate at last removed him suddenly, and so made way for Elidure's
release from prison, and advancement to the throne the third time; who
finished the course of his life in just and virtuous actions, and after death
left an example of piety to his successors.

FOOTNOTES:
[173] The tower of London was built or at least repaired and enlarged by
William Rufus. The story of its having been originally constructed by Julius
Cæsar is an absurd fiction irreconcilable with the Commentaries of that general.
See William of Malmesbury, p. 341.

Chap. XIX.—The names of Elidure's thirty-three successors.

Elidure being dead, Gorbonian's son enjoyed the crown, and imitated his
uncle's wise and prudent government. For he abhorred tyranny, and
practised justice and mildness towards the people, nor did he ever swerve
from the rule of equity. After him reigned Margan, the son of Arthgallo,
who, being instructed by the examples of his immediate predecessors, held
the government in peace. To him succeeded Enniaunus, his brother, who
took a contrary course, and in the sixth year of his reign was deposed, for
having preferred a tyrannical to a just and legal administration. In his room
was placed his kinsman Idwallo, the son of Vigenius, who, being
admonished by Enniaunus's ill success, became a strict observer of justice
and equity. To him succeeded Runno, the son of Peredure, whose successor
was Geruntius, the son of Elidure. After him reigned Catellus, his son; after
Catellus, Coillus; after Coillus, Porrex; after Porrex, Cherin. This prince had
three sons, Fulgenius, Eldadus, and Andragius, who all reigned one after
another. Then succeeded Urianus, the son of Andragius; after whom reigned
in order, Eliud, Cledaucus, Cletonus, Gurgintius, Merianus, Bleduno, Cap,
Oenus, Sisilius, Blegabred. This last prince, in singing and playing upon
musical instruments, excelled all the musicians that had been before him, so
that he seemed worthy of the title of the God of Jesters. After him reigned
Arthmail, his brother; after Arthmail, Eldol; to whom succeeded in order,
Redion, Rederchius, Samuilpenissel, Pir, Capoir, and Cligueillus the son of
Capoir, a man prudent and mild in all his actions, and who above all things
made it his business to exercise true justice among his people.

Chap. XX.—Heli's three sons; the first of whom, viz. Lud, gives
name to the city of London.

Next to him succeeded his son Heli, who reigned forty years. He had three
sons, Lud, Cassibellaun,[174] and Nennius; of whom Lud, being the eldest,
succeeded to the kingdom after his father's death. He became famous for the
building of cities, and for rebuilding the walls of Trinovantum, which he
also surrounded with innumerable towers. He likewise commanded the
citizens to build houses, and all other kinds of structures in it, so that no city
in all foreign countries to a great distance round could show more beautiful
palaces. He was withal a warlike man, and very magnificent in his feasts
and public entertainments. And though he had many other cities, yet he
loved this above them all, and resided in it the greater part of the year; for
which reason it was afterwards called Kaerlud, and by the corruption of the
word, Caerlondon; and again by change of languages, in process of time,
London; as also by foreigners who arrived here, and reduced this country
under their subjection, it was called Londres. At last, when he was dead, his
body was buried by the gate which to this time is called in the British
tongue after his name, Parthlud,[175] and in the Saxon, Ludesgata. He had
two sons, Androgeus and Tenuantius, who were incapable of governing on
account of their age: and therefore their uncle Cassibellaun was preferred to
the kingdom in their room. As soon as he was crowned, he began to display
his generosity and magnificence to such a degree, that his fame reached to
distant kingdoms; which was the reason that the monarchy of the whole
kingdom came to be invested in him, and not in his nephews.
Notwithstanding Cassibellaun, from an impulse of piety, would not suffer
them to be without their share in the kingdom, but assigned a large part of it
to them. For he bestowed the city of Trinovantum, with the dukedom of
Kent, on Androgeus; and the dukedom of Cornwall on Tenuantius. But he
himself, as possessing the crown, had the sovereignty over them, and all the
other princes of the island.

FOOTNOTES:
[174] The British name of this prince is probably Caswallon.

[175] In Latin Porta Lud.

BOOK IV.

Chap. I.—Julius Cæsar invades Britain.

About this time it happened, (as is found in the Roman histories,) that Julius
Cæsar, having subdued Gaul, came to the shore of the Ruteni. And when
from thence he had got a prospect of the island of Britain, he inquired of
those about him what country it was, and what people inhabited it. Then
fixing his eyes upon the ocean, as soon as he was informed of the name of
the kingdom and the people, he said:[176] "In truth we Romans and the
Britons have the same origin, since both are descended from the Trojan
race. Our first father, after the destruction of Troy, was Æneas; theirs,
Brutus, whose father was Sylvius, the son of Ascanius, the son of Æneas.
But I am deceived, if they are not very much degenerated from us, and
know nothing of the art of war, since they live separated by the ocean from
the whole world. They may be easily forced to become our tributaries, and
subjects to the Roman state. But before the Romans offer to invade or
assault them, we must send them word that they pay tribute as other nations
do, and submit themselves to the senate; for fear we should violate the
ancient nobility of our father Priamus, by shedding the blood of our
kinsmen." All which he accordingly took care to signify in writing to
Cassibellaun; who in great indignation returned him an answer in the
following letter.

FOOTNOTES:
[176] It is ridiculous to suppose that Cæsar said any thing of the kind, for he
knew well the slender historical evidence on which the Trojan story depended.

Chap. II.—Cassibellaunus's letter to Julius Cæsar.

"Cassibellaun, king of the Britons, to Caius Julius Cæsar. We cannot but
wonder, Cæsar, at the avarice of the Roman people, since their insatiable
thirst for money cannot let us alone, though the dangers of the ocean have
placed us in a manner out of the world; but they must have the presumption
to covet our substance, which we have hitherto enjoyed in quiet. Neither is
this indeed sufficient: we must also choose subjection and slavery to them,
before the enjoyment of our native liberty. Your demand, therefore, Cæsar,
is scandalous, since the same vein of nobility flows from Æneas in both
Britons and Romans, and one and the same chain of consanguinity unites
us: which ought to be a band of firm union and friendship. It was that,
which you should have demanded of us, and not slavery: we have learned to
admit of the one, but never to bear the other. And so much have we been
accustomed to liberty, that we are perfectly ignorant what it is to submit to
slavery. And if even the gods themselves should attempt to deprive us of
our liberty, we would, to the utmost of our power, resist them in defence of
it. Know then, Cæsar, that we are ready to fight for that and our kingdom,
if, as you threaten, you shall attempt to invade Britain."

Chap. III.—Cæsar is routed by Cassibellaun.

On receiving this answer, Cæsar made ready his fleet, and waited for a fair
wind to execute his threats against Cassibellaun. As soon as the wind stood
fair, he hoisted his sails, and arrived with his army at the mouth of the river
Thames. The ships were now just come close to land, when Cassibellaun
with all his forces appeared on his march against them, and coming to the
town of Dorobellum, he consulted with his nobility how to drive out the
enemy. There was present with him Belinus, general of his army, by whose
counsel the whole kingdom was governed. There were also his two
nephews, Androgeus, duke of Trinovantum, and Tenuantius, duke of
Cornwall, together with three inferior kings, Cridious, king of Albania,
Guerthaeth of Venedotia, and Britael of Dimetia, who, as they had
encouraged the rest to fight the enemy, gave their advice to march directly

to Cæsar's camp, and drive them out of the country before they could take
any city or town. For if he should possess himself of any fortified places,
they said it would be more difficult to force him out, because he would then
know whither to make a retreat with his men. To this proposal they all
agreed, and advanced towards the shore where Julius Cæsar had pitched his
camp. And now both armies drew out in order of battle, and began the fight,
wherein both bows and swords were employed. Immediately the wounded
fell in heaps on each side, and the ground was drenched with the blood of
the slain, as much as if it had been washed with the sudden return of the
tide. While the armies were thus engaged, it happened that Nennius and
Androgeus, with the citizens of Canterbury and Trinovantum, whom they
commanded, had the fortune to meet with the troop in which Cæsar himself
was present. And upon an assault made, the general's cohort was very
nearly routed by the Britons falling upon them in a close body. During this
action, fortune gave Nennius an opportunity of encountering Cæsar.
Nennius therefore boldly made up to him, and was in great joy that he could
but give so much as one blow to so great a man. On the other hand, Cæsar
being aware of his design, stretched out his shield to receive him, and with
all his might struck him upon the helmet with his drawn sword, which he
lifted up again with an intention to finish his first blow, and make it mortal;
but Nennius carefully prevented him with his shield, upon which Cæsar's
sword glancing with great force from the helmet, became so firmly fastened
therein, that when by the intervention of the troops they could no longer
continue the encounter, the general was not able to draw it out again.
Nennius, thus becoming master of Cæsar's sword, threw away his own, and
pulling the other out, made haste to employ it against the enemy.
Whomsoever he struck with it, he either cut off his head, or left him
wounded without hopes of recovery. While he was thus exerting himself, he
was met by Labienus, a tribune, whom he killed in the very beginning of
the encounter. At last, after the greatest part of the day was spent, the
Britons poured in so fast, and made such vigorous efforts, that by the
blessing of God they obtained the victory, and Cæsar, with his broken
forces, retired to his camp and fleet. The very same night, as soon as he had
got his men together again, he went on board his fleet, rejoicing that he had
the sea for his camp. And upon his companions dissuading him from
continuing the war any longer, he acquiesced in their advice, and returned
back to Gaul.

Chap. IV.—Nennius, the brother of Cassibellaun, being wounded
in battle by Cæsar, dies.

Cassibellaun, in joy for this triumph, returned solemn thanks to God; and
calling the companions of his victory together, amply rewarded every one
of them, according as they had distinguished themselves. On the other hand,
he was very much oppressed with grief for his brother Nennius, who lay
mortally wounded, and at the very point of death. For Cæsar had wounded
him in the encounter, and the blow which he had given him proved
incurable; so that fifteen days after the battle he died, and was buried at
Trinovantum, by the North Gate. His funeral obsequies were performed
with regal pomp, and Cæsar's sword put into the tomb with him, which he
had kept possession of, when struck into his shield in the combat. The name
of the sword was Crocea Mors (Yellow Death), as being mortal to every
body that was wounded with it.

Chap. V.—Cæsar's inglorious return to Gaul.

After this flight of Cæsar, and his arrival on the Gallic coast, the Gauls
attempted to rebel and throw off his yoke. For they thought he was so much
weakened, that his forces could be no longer a terror to them. Besides, a
general report was spread among them, that Cassibellaun was now out at
sea with a vast fleet to pursue him in his flight; on which account the Gauls,
growing still more bold, began to think of driving him from their coasts.
Cæsar, aware of their designs, was not willing to engage in a doubtful war
with a fierce people, but rather chose to go to all their first nobility with
open treasures, and reconcile them with presents. To the common people he
promised liberty, to the dispossessed the restitution of their estates, and to
the slaves their freedom. Thus he that had insulted them before with the
fierceness of a lion, and plundered them of all, now, with the mildness of a
lamb, fawns on them with submissive abject speeches, and is glad to restore
all again. To these acts of meanness he was forced to condescend till he had

pacified them, and was able to regain his lost power. In the meantime not a
day passed without his reflecting upon his flight, and the victory of the
Britons.

Chap. VI.—Cassibellaun forms a stratagem for sinking Cæsar's
ships.

After two years were expired, he prepared to cross the sea again, and
revenge himself on Cassibellaun, who having intelligence of his design,
everywhere fortified his cities, repaired the ruined walls, and placed armed
men at all the ports. In the river Thames, on which Cæsar intended to sail
up to Trinovantum, he caused iron and leaden stakes, each as thick as a
man's thigh, to be fixed under the surface of the water, that Cæsar's ships
might founder. He then assembled all the forces of the island, and took up
his quarters with them near the sea-coasts, in expectation of the enemy's
coming.

Chap. VII.—Cæsar a second time vanquished by the Britons.

After he had furnished himself with all necessaries, the Roman general
embarked with a vast army, eager to revenge himself on a people that had
defeated him; in which he undoubtedly would have succeeded, if he could
but have brought his fleet safe to land; but this he was not able to do. For in
sailing up the Thames to Trinovantum, the ships struck against the stakes,
which so endangered them all on a sudden, that many thousands of the men
were drowned, while the ships being pierced sank into the river. Cæsar,
upon this, employed all his force to shift his sails, and hastened to get back
again to land. And so those that remained, after a narrow escape, went on
shore with him. Cassibellaun, who was present upon the bank, with joy
observed the disaster of the drowned, but grieved at the escape of the rest;
and upon his giving a signal to his men, made an attack upon the Romans,

who, notwithstanding the danger they had suffered in the river, when
landed, bravely withstood the Britons; and having no other fence to trust to
but their own courage, they made no small slaughter; but yet suffered a
greater loss themselves, than that which they were able to give the enemy.
For their number was considerably diminished by their loss in the river;
whereas the Britons being hourly increased with new recruits, were three
times their number, and by that advantage defeated them. Cæsar, seeing he
could no longer maintain his ground, fled with a small body of men to his
ships, and made the sea his safe retreat; and as the wind stood fair, he
hoisted his sails, and steered to the shore of the Morini. From thence he
repaired to a certain tower, which he had built at a place called Odnea,
before this second expedition into Britain. For he durst not trust the
fickleness of the Gauls, who he feared would fall upon him a second time,
as we have said already they did before, after the first flight he was forced
to make before the Britons. And on that account he had built this tower for a
refuge to himself, that he might be able to maintain his ground against a
rebellious people, if they should make insurrection against him.

Chap. VIII.—Evelinus kills Hirelglas. Androgeus desires
Cæsar's assistance against Cassibellaun.

Cassibellaun, elevated with joy for this second victory, published a decree,
to summon all the nobility of Britain with their wives to Trinovantum, in
order to perform solemn sacrifices to their tutelary gods who had given
them the victory over so great a commander. Accordingly, they all appeared,
and prepared a variety of sacrifices, for which there was a great slaughter of
cattle. At this solemnity they offered forty thousand cows, and a hundred
thousand sheep, and also fowls of several kinds without number, besides
thirty thousand wild beasts of several kinds. As soon as they had performed
these solemn honours to their gods, they feasted themselves on the
remainder, as was usual at such sacrifices, and spent the rest of the day and
night in various plays and sports. Amidst these diversions, it happened that
two noble youths, whereof one was nephew to the king, the other to duke
Androgeus, wrestled together, and afterwards had a dispute about the

victory. The name of the king's nephew was Hirelglas, the other's Evelinus.
As they were reproaching each other, Evelinus snatched up his sword and
cut off the head of his rival. This sudden disaster put the whole court into a
consternation, upon which the king ordered Evelinus to be brought before
him, that he might be ready to undergo such punishment as the nobility
should determine, and that the death of Hirelglas might be revenged upon
him, if he were unjustly killed. Androgeus, suspecting the king's intentions,
made answer that he had a court of his own, and that whatever should be
alleged against his own men, ought to be determined there. If, therefore, he
was resolved to demand justice of Evelinus, he might have it at
Trinovantum, according to ancient custom. Cassibellaun, finding he could
not attain his ends, threatened Androgeus to destroy his country with fire
and sword, if he would not comply with his demands. But Androgeus, now
incensed, scorned all compliance with him. On the other hand,
Cassibellaun, in a great rage, hastened to make good his threats, and ravage
the country. This forced Androgeus to make use of daily solicitations to the
king, by means of such as were related to him, or intimate with him, to
divert his rage. But when he found these methods ineffectual, he began in
earnest to consider how to oppose him. At last, when all other hopes failed,
he resolved to request assistance from Cæsar, and wrote a letter to him to
this effect:—
"Androgeus, duke of Trinovantum, to Caius Julius Cæsar, instead of
wishing death as formerly, now wishes health. I repent that ever I acted
against you, when you made war against the king. Had I never been guilty
of such exploits, you would have vanquished Cassibellaun, who is so
swollen with pride since his victory, that he is endeavouring to drive me out
of his coasts, who procured him that triumph. Is this a fit reward for my
services? I have settled him in an inheritance; and he endeavours to
disinherit me. I have a second time restored him to the kingdom: and he
endeavours to destroy me. All this have I done for him in fighting against
you. I call the gods to witness I have not deserved his anger, unless I can be
said to deserve it for refusing to deliver up my nephew, whom he would
have condemned to die unjustly. Of which, that you may be better able to
judge, hear this account of the matter. It happened that for joy of the victory
we performed solemn honours to our tutelary gods, in which after we had
finished our sacrifices, our youth began to divert themselves with sports.

Among the rest our two nephews, encouraged by the example of the others,
entered the lists; and when mine had got the better, the other without any
cause was incensed, and just going to strike him: but he avoided the blow,
and taking him by the hand that held the sword, strove to wrest it from him.
In this struggle the king's nephew happened to fall upon the sword's point,
and died upon the spot. When the king was informed of it, he commanded
me to deliver up the youth, that he might be punished for murder. I refused
do it; whereupon he invaded my provinces with all his forces, and has given
me very great disturbance; flying, therefore, to your clemency, I desire your
assistance, that by you I may be restored to my dignity, and by me you may
gain possession of Britain. Let no doubts or suspicion of treachery in this
matter detain you. Be influenced by the common motive of mankind; let
past enmities beget a desire of friendship; and after defeat make you more
eager for victory."

Chap. IX.—Cassibellaun, being put to flight, and besieged by
Cæsar, desires peace.

Cæsar, having read the letter, was advised by his friends not to go into
Britain upon a bare verbal invitation of the duke, unless he would send such
hostages as might be for his security. Without delay, therefore, Androgeus
sent his son Scæva with thirty young noblemen nearly related to him. Upon
delivery of the hostages, Cæsar, relieved from his suspicion, re-assembled
his forces, and with a fair wind arrived at the port of Rutupi. In the
meantime Cassibellaun had begun to besiege Trinovantum and ravage the
country towns; but finding that Cæsar was arrived, he raised the siege and
hastened to meet him. As soon as he entered a valley near Dorobernia,[177]
he saw the Roman army preparing their camp: for Androgeus had
conducted them to this place, for the convenience of making a sudden
assault upon the city. The Romans, seeing the Britons advancing towards
them, quickly flew to their arms, and ranged themselves in several bodies.
The Britons also put on their arms, and placed themselves in their ranks.
But Androgeus with five thousand men lay hid in a wood hard by, to be
ready to assist Cæsar, and spring forth on a sudden upon Cassibellaun and

his party. Both armies now approached to begin the fight, some with bows
and arrows, some with swords, so that much blood was shed on both sides,
and the wounded fell down like leaves in autumn. While they were thus
engaged, Androgeus sallied forth from the wood, and fell upon the rear of
Cassibellaun's army, upon which the hopes of the battle entirely depended.
And now, what with the breach which the Romans had made through them
just before, what with the furious irruption of their own countrymen, they
were no longer able to stand their ground, but were obliged with their
broken forces to quit the field. Near the place stood a rocky mountain, on
the top of which was a thick hazel wood. Hither Cassibellaun fled with his
men after he found himself worsted; and having climbed up to the top of the
mountain, bravely defended himself and killed the pursuing enemy. For the
Roman forces with those of Androgeus pursued him to disperse his flying
troops, and climbing up the mountain after them made many assaults, but
all to little purpose; for the rockiness of the mountain and great height of its
top was a defence to the Britons, and the advantage of higher ground gave
them an opportunity of killing great numbers of the enemy. Cæsar hereupon
besieged the mountain that whole night, which had now overtaken them,
and shut up all the avenues to it; intending to reduce the king by famine,
since he could not do it by force of arms. Such was the wonderful valour of
the British nation in those times, that they were able to put the conqueror of
the world twice to flight; and being ready to die for the defence of their
country and liberty, they, even though defeated, withstood him whom the
whole world could not withstand. Hence Lucan in their praise says of
Cæsar,
"Territa quæsitis ostendit terga Britannis."
With pride he sought the Britons, but when found,
Dreaded their force, and fled the hostile ground.
Two days were now passed, when Cassibellaun having consumed all his
provision, feared famine would oblige him to surrender himself prisoner to
Cæsar. For this reason he sent a message to Androgeus to make his peace
with Julius, lest the honour of the nation might suffer by his being taken
prisoner. He likewise represented to him, that he did not deserve to be
pursued to death for the annoyance which he had given him. As soon as the
messengers had told this to Androgeus, he made answer:—"That prince

deserves not to be loved, who in war is mild as a lamb, but in peace cruel as
a lion. Ye gods of heaven and earth! Does my lord then condescend to
entreat me now, whom before he took upon him to command? Does he
desire to be reconciled and make his submission to Cæsar, of whom Cæsar
himself had before desired peace? He ought therefore to have considered,
that he who was able to drive so great a commander out of the kingdom,
was able also to bring him back again. I ought not to have been so unjustly
treated, who had then done him so much service, as well as now so much
injury. He must be mad who either injures or reproaches his fellow soldiers
by whom he defeats the enemy. The victory is not the commander's, but
theirs who lose their blood in fighting for him. However, I will procure him
peace if I can, for the injury which he has done me is sufficiently revenged
upon him, since he sues for mercy to me."

FOOTNOTES:
[177] Canterbury

Chap. X.—Androgeus's speech to Cæsar.

Androgeus after this went to Cæsar, and after a respectful salutation
addressed him in this manner:—"You have sufficiently revenged yourself
upon Cassibellaun; and now let clemency take place of vengeance. What
more is there to be done than that he make his submission and pay tribute to
the Roman state?" To this Cæsar returned him no answer: upon which
Androgeus said again; "My whole engagement with you, Cæsar, was only
to reduce Britain under your power, by the submission of Cassibellaun.
Behold! Cassibellaun is now vanquished, and Britain by my assistance
become subject to you. What further service do I owe you? God forbid that
I should suffer my sovereign, who sues to me for peace, and makes me
satisfaction for the injury which he has done me, to be in prison or in
chains. It is no easy matter to put Cassibellaun to death while I have life;
and if you do not comply with my demand, I shall not be ashamed to give

him my assistance." Cæsar, alarmed at these menaces of Androgeus, was
forced to comply, and entered into peace with Cassibellaun, on condition
that he should pay a yearly tribute of three thousand pounds of silver. So
then Julius and Cassibellaun from this time became friends, and made
presents to each other. After this, Cæsar wintered in Britain, and the
following spring returned into Gaul.[178] At length he assembled all his
forces, and marched towards Rome against Pompey.

FOOTNOTES:
[178] "Cæsar's expedition against the Britons was of singular boldness; for he
was the first who proceeded with a fleet to the Western Ocean, and sailed over
the Atlantic Sea, conducting an army to war; and being desirous of possessing an
island, for its size hardly believed in, and giving occasion for much controversy
to various writers, as if a name and a tale had been invented of a place which
never had been nor was yet in existence, he advanced the dominion of the
Romans beyond the limits of the known world; and having twice sailed over to
the island from the opposite coast of Gaul, and having rather worsted his
enemies in many battles, than advantaged his own soldiers, for there was nothing
worth taking from men who had a bare subsistence and were poor, he terminated
the war not in the way he wished; but taking hostages from the king, and
appointing tributes, he departed from the island."—Plutarch. This is the
language of a writer favourable to the reputation of Cæsar, and may teach us
how worthless are the old British or rather Welsh legends in comparison with the
classic historians.
But the classic historians deal sometimes in fables. Witness the following
quotation from Polyænus:
"Cæsar attempting to pass a large river in Britain, Cassolaulus, king of the
Britons, obstructed him with many horsemen and chariots. Cæsar had in his train
a very large elephant, an animal hitherto unseen by the Britons. Having armed
him with scales of iron, and put a large tower upon him, and placed therein
archers and slingers, he ordered them to enter the stream. The Britons were
amazed at beholding a beast till then unseen, and of an extraordinary nature. As
to the horses, what need to write of them! since even among the Greeks, horses
fly on seeing elephants even without harness, but thus towered and armed, and
casting darts and slinging, they could not endure even to look upon the sight.
The Britons therefore fled with their horses and chariots. Thus the Romans
passed the river without molestation, having terrified the enemy by a single
animal."

Chap. XI.—Tenuantius is made king of Britain after
Cassibellaun.

After seven years had expired, Cassibellaun died and was buried at York.
He was succeeded by Tenuantius, duke of Cornwall, and brother of
Androgeus: for Androgeus was gone to Rome with Cæsar. Tenuantius
therefore, now wearing the crown, governed the kingdom with diligence.
He was a warlike man, and a strict observer of justice. After him
Kymbelinus his son was advanced to the throne, being a great soldier, and
brought up by Augustus Cæsar. He had contracted so great a friendship with
the Romans, that he freely paid them tribute when he might have very well
refused it. In his days was born our Lord Jesus Christ, by whose precious
blood mankind was redeemed from the devil, under whom they had been
before enslaved.

Chap. XII.—Upon Guiderius's refusing to pay tribute to the
Romans, Claudius Cæsar invades Britain.

Kymbelinus, when he had governed Britain ten years, begat two sons, the
elder named Guiderius, the other Arviragus. After his death the government
fell to Guiderius. This prince refused to pay tribute to the Romans; for
which reason Claudius, who was now emperor, marched against him. He
was attended in this expedition by the commander of his army, who was
called in the British tongue, Leuis Hamo, by whose advice the following
war was to be carried on. This man, therefore, arriving at the city of
Portcester, [Portchester,] began to block up the gates with a wall, and
denied the citizens all liberty of passing out. For his design was either to
reduce them to subjection by famine, or kill them without mercy.

Chap. XIII.—Leuis Hamo, a Roman, by wicked treachery kills
Guiderius.

Guiderius, upon the news of Claudius's coming, assembled all the soldiery
of the kingdom, and went to meet the Roman army. In the battle that
ensued, he began the assault with great eagerness, and did more execution
with his own sword than the greater part of his army. Claudius was now on
the point of retreating to his ships, and the Romans very nearly routed,
when the crafty Hamo, throwing aside his own armour, put on that of the
Britons, and as a Briton fought against his own men. Then he exhorted the
Britons to a vigorous assault, promising them a speedy victory. For he had
learned their language and manners, having been educated among the
British hostages at Rome. By these means he approached by little and little
to the king, and seizing a favourable opportunity, stabbed him while under
no apprehension of danger, and then escaped through the enemy's ranks to
return to his men with the news of his detestable exploit. But Arviragus, his
brother, seeing him killed, forthwith put off his own and put on his brother's
habiliments, and, as if he had been Guiderius himself, encouraged the
Britons to stand their ground. Accordingly, as they knew nothing of the
king's disaster, they made a vigorous resistance, fought courageously, and
killed no small number of the enemy. At last the Romans gave ground, and
dividing themselves into two bodies, basely quitted the field. Cæsar with
one part, to secure himself, retired to his ships; but Hamo fled to the woods,
because he had not time to get to the ships. Arviragus, therefore, thinking
that Claudius fled along with him, pursued him with all speed, and did not
leave off harassing him from place to place, till he overtook him upon a part
of the sea-coast, which, from the name of Hamo, is now called
Southampton. There was at the same place a convenient haven for ships,
and some merchant-ships at anchor. And just as Hamo was attempting to get
on board them, Arviragus came upon him unawares, and forthwith killed
him. And ever since that time the haven has been called Hamo's port.

Chap. XIV.—Arviragus, king of Britain, makes his submission to
Claudius, who with his assistance conquers the Orkney islands.

In the meantime, Claudius, with his remaining forces, assaulted the city
above-mentioned, which was then called Kaerperis, now Portcestre, and

presently levelled the walls, and having reduced the citizens to subjection,
went after Arviragus, who had entered Winchester. Afterwards he besieged
that city, and employed a variety of engines against it. Arviragus, seeing
himself in these straits, called his troops together, and opened the gates, to
march out and give him battle. But just as he was ready to begin the attack,
Claudius, who feared the boldness of the king and the bravery of the
Britons, sent a message to him with a proposal of peace; choosing rather to
reduce them by wisdom and policy, than run the hazard of a battle. To this
purpose he offered a reconciliation with him, and promised to give him his
daughter, if he would only acknowledge the kingdom of Britain subject to
the Roman state. The nobility hereupon persuaded him to lay aside thoughts
of war, and be content with Claudius's promise; representing to him at the
same time, that it was no disgrace to be subject to the Romans, who enjoyed
the empire of the whole world. By these and many other arguments he was
prevailed upon to hearken to their advice, and make his submission to
Cæsar. After which Claudius sent to Rome for his daughter, and then, with
the assistance of Arviragus, reduced the Orkney and the provincial islands
to his power.[179]

FOOTNOTES:
[179] Claudius never was in Orkney; he spent only sixteen days altogether in
Britain. Of certain sacred isles in the neighbourhood of Britain, Plutarch gives
the following account, showing how little the Greeks knew of Britain eighty
years after the reign of Claudius:
"A short time before Callistratus celebrated the Pythian games, two holy men
from the opposite parts of the habitable earth came to us at Delphos, Demetrius
the grammarian from Britain, returning home to Tarsus, and Cleombrotus the
Lacedæmonian.... But Demetrius said, that there are many desert islands
scattered around Britain, some of which have the name of being the islands of
genii and heroes: that he had been sent by the emperor, for the sake of describing
and viewing them, to that which lay nearest to the desert isles, and which had but
few inhabitants; all of whom were esteemed by the Britons sacred and
inviolable. Very soon after his arrival there was great turbulence in the air, and
many portentous storms; the winds became tempestuous, and fiery whirlwinds
rushed forth. When these ceased, the islanders said that the departure of some
one of the superior genii had taken place. For as a light when burning, say they,
has nothing disagreeable, but when extinguished is offensive to many; so
likewise lofty spirits afford an illumination benignant and mild, but their
extinction and destruction frequently, as at the present moment, excite winds and
storms, and often infect the atmosphere with pestilential evils. Moreover, that

there was one island there, wherein Saturn was confined by Briareus in sleep: for
that sleep had been devised for his bonds; and that around him were many genii
as his companions and attendants.
"Asclepiades asserts, that after their thirtieth year the Ethiopians, being scorched
by the sun, quickly grow old, in consequence of their bodies being overheated;
whereas in Britain they advance to an hundred and twenty years, in consequence
of the coldness of the place and their retaining within themselves the vital heat:
for the bodies of the Ethiopians are more slender from their being relaxed by the
sun, whereas the inhabitants of the north are thick set in their persons, and on
this account longer lived."

Chap. XV.—Claudius gives his daughter Genuissa for a wife to
Arviragus, and returns to Rome.

As soon as the winter was over, those that were sent for Claudius's daughter
returned with her, and presented her to her father. The damsel's name was
Genuissa, and so great was her beauty, that it raised the admiration of all
that saw her. After her marriage with the king, she gained so great an
ascendant over his affections, that he in a manner valued nothing but her
alone: insomuch that he was desirous to have the place honoured where the
nuptials were solemnized, and moved Claudius to build a city upon it, for a
monument to posterity of so great and happy a marriage. Claudius
consented to it, and commanded a city to be built, which after his name is
called Kaerglou, that is Gloucester, to this day, and is situated on the
confines of Dimetia and Loegria, upon the banks of the Severn. But some
say that it derived its name from Duke Gloius, a son that was born to
Claudius there, and to whom, after the death of Arviragus, fell the dukedom
of Dimetia. The city being finished, and the island now enjoying peace,
Claudius returned to Rome, leaving to Arviragus the government of the
British islands. At the same time the apostle Peter founded the Church of
Antioch; and afterwards coming to Rome, was bishop there, and sent Mark,
the evangelist, into Egypt to preach the gospel which he had written.

Chap. XVI.—Arviragus revolting from the Romans, Vespasian is
sent into Britain.

After the departure of Claudius, Arviragus began to show his wisdom and
courage, to rebuild cities and towns, and to exercise so great authority over
his own people, that he became a terror to the kings of remote countries.
But this so elevated him with pride that he despised the Roman power,
disdained any longer subjection to the senate, and assumed to himself the
sole authority in every thing. Upon this news Vespasian was sent by
Claudius to procure a reconciliation with Arviragus, or to reduce him to the
subjection of the Romans. When, therefore, Vespasian arrived at the haven
of Rutupi,[180] Arviragus met him, and prevented his entering the port. For
he brought so great an army along with him, that the Romans, for fear of his
falling upon them, durst not come ashore. Vespasian upon this withdrew
from that port, and shifting his sails arrived at the shore of Totness. As soon
as he was landed, he marched directly to besiege Kaerpenhuelgoit, now
Exeter; and after lying before it seven days, was overtaken by Arviragus
and his army, who gave him battle. That day great destruction was made in
both armies, but neither got the victory. The next morning, by the mediation
of queen Genuissa, the two leaders were made friends, and sent their men
over to Ireland. As soon as winter was over, Vespasian returned to Rome,
but Arviragus continued still in Britain. Afterwards, when he grew old, he
began to show much respect to the senate, and to govern his kingdom in
peace and tranquillity. He confirmed the old laws of his ancestors, and
enacted some new ones, and made very ample presents to all persons of
merit. So that his fame spread over all Europe, and he was both loved and
feared by the Romans, and became the subject of their discourse more than
any king in his time. Hence Juvenal relates how a certain blind man,
speaking of a turbot that was taken, said:—
"Regem aliquem capies, aut de temone Britanno
Decidet Arviragus."[181]

Arviragus shall from his chariot fall,
Or thee his lord some captive king shall call.

In war none was more fierce than he, in peace none more mild, none more
pleasing, or in his presents more magnificent. When he had finished his
course of life, he was buried at Gloucester, in a certain temple which he had
built and dedicated to the honour of Claudius.[182]

FOOTNOTES:
[180] Richborough.
[181] Juven. Sat. iv. 26.
[182] Although this narrative of the reign of Arviragus is purely imaginative, yet
it is not impossible that Gloucester may have been a station founded by
Claudius, and hence called Claudii Castrum, or Caer Glan.

Chap. XVII.—Rodric, leader of the Picts, is vanquished by
Marius.

His son Marius, a man of admirable prudence and wisdom, succeeded him
in the kingdom. In his reign a certain king of the Picts, named Rodric, came
from Scythia with a great fleet, and arrived in the north part of Britain,
which is called Albania, and began to ravage that country. Marius therefore
raising an army went in quest of him, and killed him in battle, and gained
the victory; for a monument of which he set up a stone in the province,
which from his name was afterwards called Westmoreland, where there is
an inscription retaining his memory to this day. He gave the conquered
people that came with Rodric liberty to inhabit that part of Albania which is
called Caithness, that had been a long time desert and uncultivated. And as
they had no wives, they desired to have the daughters and kinswomen of the
Britons. But the Britons refused, disdaining to unite with such a people.
Having suffered a repulse here, they sailed over into Ireland, and married
the women of that country, and by their offspring increased their number.
But let thus much suffice concerning them, since I do not propose to write
the history of this people, or of the Scots, who derived their original from
them and the Irish. Marius, after he had settled the island in perfect peace,

began to love the Roman people, paying the tribute that was demanded of
him; and in imitation of his father's example practised justice, law, peace,
and every thing that was honourable in his kingdom.

Chap. XVIII.—Marius dying, is succeeded by Coillus.

As soon as he had ended his days, his son Coillus took upon him the
government of the kingdom. He had been brought up from his infancy at
Rome, and having been taught the Roman manners, had contracted a most
strict amity with them. He likewise paid them tribute, and declined making
them any opposition, because he saw the whole world subject to them, and
that no town or country was out of the limits of their power. By paying
therefore what was required of him, he enjoyed his kingdom in peace: and
no king ever showed greater respect to his nobility, not only permitting
them to enjoy their own with quiet, but also binding them to him by his
continual bounty and munificence.

Chap. XIX.—Lucius is the first British king that embraces the
Christian faith, together with his people.

Coillus had but one son, named Lucius, who, obtaining the crown after his
father's decease, imitated all his acts of goodness, and seemed to his people
to be no other than Coillus himself revived. As he had made so good a
beginning, he was willing to make a better end: for which purpose he sent
letters to pope Eleutherius, desiring to be instructed by him in the Christian
religion. For the miracles which Christ's disciples performed in several
nations wrought a conviction in his mind; so that being inflamed with an
ardent love of the true faith, he obtained the accomplishment of his pious
request. For that holy pope, upon receipt of this devout petition, sent to him
two most religious doctors, Faganus and Duvanus, who, after they had
preached concerning the incarnation of the Word of God, administered

baptism to him, and made him a proselyte to the Christian faith.
Immediately upon this, people from all countries, assembling together,
followed the king's example, and being washed in the same holy laver, were
made partakers of the kingdom of heaven. The holy doctors, after they had
almost extinguished paganism over the whole island, dedicated the temples,
that had been founded in honour of many gods, to the one only God and his
saints, and filled them with congregations of Christians. There were then in
Britain eight and twenty flamens, as also three archflamens, to whose
jurisdiction the other judges and enthusiasts were subject. These also,
according to the apostolic command, they delivered from idolatry, and
where they were flamens made them bishops, where archflamens,
archbishops. The seats of the archflamens were at the three noblest cities,
viz. London,[183] York, and the City of Legions, which its old walls and
buildings show to have been situated upon the river Uske in
Glamorganshire. To these three, now purified from superstition, were made
subject twenty-eight bishops, with their dioceses. To the metropolitan of
York were subject Deira and Albania, which the great river Humber divides
from Loegria. To the metropolitan of London were subject Loegria and
Cornwall. These two provinces the Severn divides from Kambria or Wales,
which was subject to the City of Legions.

FOOTNOTES:
[183] This fabulous story of the flamens and archflamens, and of the substitution
of bishops and archbishops in their places, led, in later years, to serious disputes
between the bishops of Canterbury, York, and London.

Chap. XX.—Faganus and Duvanus give an account at Rome, of
what they had done in Britain.

At last, when they had made an entire reformation here, the two prelates
returned to Rome, and desired the pope to confirm what they had done. As
soon as they had obtained a confirmation, they returned again to Britain,

accompanied with many others, by whose doctrine the British nation was in
a short time strengthened in the faith. Their names and acts are recorded in
a book which Gildas wrote concerning the victory of Aurelius Ambrosius;
and what is delivered in so bright a treatise, needs not to be repeated here in
a meaner style.[184]

FOOTNOTES:
[184] This treatise has not been preserved, and most probably never was written.
The only information which has come down to us about king Lucius, at all likely
to be of an authentic character, is a brief notice of him in Bede's Ecclesiastical
History, p. 10.

BOOK V.

Chap. I.—Lucius dies without issue, and is a benefactor to the
churches.

In the meantime, the glorious king Lucius highly rejoiced at the great
progress which the true faith and worship had made in his kingdom, and
permitted the possessions and territories which formerly belonged to the
temples of the gods, to be converted to a better use, and appropriated to
Christian churches. And because a greater honour was due to them than to
the others, he made large additions of lands and manor-houses, and all kinds
of privileges to them. Amidst these and other acts of his great piety, he
departed this life in the city of Gloucester, and was honourably buried in the
cathedral church, in the hundred and fifty-sixth year after our Lord's
incarnation. He had no issue to succeed him, so that after his decease there
arose a dissension among the Britons, and the Roman power was much
weakened.

Chap. II.—Severus, a senator, subdues part of Britain: his war
with Fulgenius.

When this news was brought to Rome, the senate despatched Severus, a
senator, with two legions, to reduce the country to subjection. As soon as he
was arrived, he came to a battle with the Britons, part of whom he obliged
to submit to him, and the other part which he could not subdue he
endeavoured to distress in several cruel engagements, and forced them to
fly beyond Deira into Albania. Notwithstanding which they opposed him
with all their might under the conduct of Fulgenius, and often made great
slaughter both of their own countrymen and of the Romans. For Fulgenius,
brought to his assistance all the people of the islands that he could find, and
so frequently gained the victory. The emperor, not being able to resist the
irruptions which he made, commanded a wall to be built between Deira and
Albania, to hinder his excursions upon them; they accordingly made one at
the common charge from sea to sea, which for a long time hindered the
approach of the enemy. But Fulgenius, when he was unable to make any
longer resistance, made a voyage into Scythia, to desire the assistance of the
Picts towards his restoration. And when he had got together all the forces of
that country, he returned with a great fleet into Britain, and besieged York.
Upon this news being spread through the country, the greatest part of the
Britons deserted Severus, and went over to Fulgenius. However this did not
make Severus desist from his enterprise: but calling together the Romans,
and the rest of the Britons that adhered to him, he marched to the siege, and
fought with Fulgenius; but the engagement proving very sharp, he was
killed with many of his followers: Fulgenius also was mortally wounded.
Afterwards Severus was buried at York, which city was taken by his
legions.[185] He left two sons, Bassianus and Geta, whereof Geta had a
Roman for his mother, but Bassianus[186] a Briton. Therefore upon the death
of their father the Romans made Geta king, favouring him on account of his
being a Roman by both his parents: but the Britons rejected him, and
advanced Bassianus, as being their countryman by his mother's side. This
proved the occasion of a battle between the two brothers, in which Geta was
killed; and so Bassianus obtained the sovereignty.

FOOTNOTES:

[185] The following is an extract from the true account of the expedition of
Severus into Britain taken from Herodian:
"[Severus] received letters from the præfect of Britain relating that the
barbarians there were in a state of insurrection, overrunning the country, driving
off booty, and laying every thing waste; so that for the defence of the island there
was need either of greater force, or of the presence of the emperor himself.
Severus heard this with pleasure, by nature a lover of glory, and anxious, after
his victories in the east and north and his consequent titles, to obtain a trophy
from the Britons: moreover, willing to withdraw his sons from Rome, that they
might grow up in the discipline and sobriety of a military life, far removed from
the blandishments and luxury prevalent in Rome, he orders an expedition against
Britain, although now old and labouring under an arthritic affection; but as to his
mind, he was vigorous beyond any youth. For the most part he performed the
march carried in a litter, nor did he ever continue long in one place. Having
completed the journey with his sons, and crossed over the sea more quickly than
could be described or expected, he advanced against the Britons, and having
drawn together his soldiers from all sides, and concentrated a vast force, he
prepared for the war.
"The Britons, much struck with the sudden arrival of the emperor, and learning
that such a mighty force was collected against them, sent ambassadors, sued for
peace, and were willing to excuse their past transgressions. But Severus,
purposely seeking delay that he might not again return to Rome without his
object, and, moreover, desirous to obtain from Britain a victory and a title, sent
away their ambassadors without effecting their purpose, and prepared all things
for the contest. He more especially endeavoured to render the marshy places
stable by means of causeways, that his soldiers, treading with safety, might
easily pass them, and, having firm footing, fight to advantage. For many parts of
the British country, being constantly flooded by the tides of the ocean, become
marshy. In these the natives are accustomed to swim and traverse about being
immersed as high as their waists: for going naked as to the greater part of their
bodies, they contemn the mud. Indeed they know not the use of clothing, but
encircle their loins and necks with iron; deeming this an ornament and an
evidence of opulence, in like manner as other barbarians esteem gold. But they
puncture their bodies with pictured forms of every sort of animals; on which
account they wear no clothing, lest they should hide the figures on their body.
They are a most warlike and sanguinary race, carrying only a small shield and a
spear, and a sword girded to their naked bodies. Of a breast-plate or an helmet
they know not the use, esteeming them an impediment to their progress through
the marshes; from the vapours and exhalations of which the atmosphere in that
country always appears dense.
"Against such things, therefore, Severus prepared whatever could be serviceable
to the Roman army, but hurtful and detrimental to the designs of the barbarians.
And when every thing appeared to him sufficiently arranged for the war, leaving
his younger son, named Geta, in that part of the island which was subjugated to
the Romans, for the purpose of administering justice and directing other civil
matters of the government, giving him as assessors the more aged of his friends;
and taking Antoninus with himself, he led the way against the barbarians. His
army having passed beyond the rivers and fortresses which defended the Roman

territory, there were frequent attacks and skirmishes and retreats on the side of
the barbarians. To these, indeed, flight was an easy matter, and they lay hidden
in the thickets and marshes through their local knowledge; all which things
being adverse to the Romans, served to protract the war."
[186] Otherwise called Caracalla.

Chap. III.—Carausius advanced to be king of Britain.

At that time there was in Britain one Carausius, a young man of mean birth,
who, having given proof of his bravery in many engagements, went to
Rome, and solicited the senate for leave to defend with a fleet the maritime
coasts of Britain, from the incursions of barbarians; which if they would
grant him, he promised to do more for the honour and service of the
commonwealth, than by delivering up to them the kingdom of Britain. The
senate, deluded by his specious promises, granted him his request, and so,
with his commission sealed, he returned to Britain. Then by wicked
practices getting a fleet together, he enlisted into his service a body of the
bravest youths, and putting out to sea, sailed round the whole kingdom,
causing very great disturbance among the people. In the meantime he
invaded the adjacent islands, where he destroyed all before him, countries,
cities, and towns, and plundered the inhabitants of all they had. By this
conduct he encouraged all manner of dissolute fellows to flock to him in
hope of plunder, and in a very short time was attended by an army which no
neighbouring prince was able to oppose. This made him begin to swell with
pride, and to propose to the Britons, that they should make him their king;
for which consideration he promised to kill and banish the Romans, and
free the whole island from the invasions of barbarous nations. Accordingly
obtaining his request, he fell upon Bassianus and killed him, and then took
upon him the government of the kingdom. For Bassianus was betrayed by
the Picts, whom Fulgenius his mother's brother had brought with him into
Britain, and who being corrupted by the promises and presents of
Carausius, instead of assisting Bassianus, deserted him in the very battle,
and fell upon his men; so that the rest were put into a consternation, and not
knowing their friends from their foes, quickly gave ground, and left the
victory to Carausius. Then he, to reward the Picts for this success, gave

them a habitation in Albania, where they continued afterwards mixed with
the Britons.

Chap. IV.—Allectus kills Carausius, but is afterwards himself
slain in flight by Asclepiodotus.

When the news of these proceedings of Carausius arrived at Rome, the
senate commissioned[187] Allectus, with three legions, to kill the tyrant, and
restore the kingdom of Britain to the Roman power. No sooner was he
arrived, than he fought with Carausius, killed him, and took upon himself
the government. After which he miserably oppressed the Britons, for having
deserted the commonwealth, and adhered to Carausius. But the Britons, not
enduring this, advanced Asclepiodotus, duke of Cornwall, to be their king,
and then unanimously marched against Allectus, and challenged him to
battle. He was then at London, celebrating a feast to his tutelary gods; but
being informed of the coming of Asclepiodotus, he quitted the sacrifice, and
went out with all his forces to meet him, and engaged with him in a sharp
fight. But Asclepiodotus had the advantage, and dispersed and put to flight
Allectus's troops, and in the pursuit killed many thousands, as also king
Allectus himself. After this victory, Livius Gallus, the colleague of Allectus,
assembled the rest of the Romans, shut the gates of the city, and placed his
men in the towers and other fortifications, thinking by these means either to
make a stand against Asclepiodotus, or at least to avoid imminent death.
But Asclepiodotus seeing this laid siege to the city, and sent word to all the
dukes of Britain, that he had killed Allectus with a great number of his men,
and was besieging Gallus and the rest of the Romans in London; and
therefore earnestly entreated them to hasten to his assistance, representing
to them withal, how easy it was to extirpate the whole race of the Romans
out of Britain, provided they would all join their forces against the
besieged. At this summons came the Dimetians, Venedotians, Deirans,
Albanians, and all others of the British race. And as soon as they appeared
before the duke, he commanded vast numbers of engines to be made, to
beat down the walls of the city. Accordingly every one readily executed his
orders with great bravery, and made a violent assault upon the city, the

walls of which were in a very short time battered down, and a passage made
into it. After these preparations, they began a bloody assault upon the
Romans, who, seeing their fellow soldiers falling before them without
intermission, persuaded Gallus to offer a surrender on the terms of having
quarter granted them, and leave to depart: for they were now all killed
except one legion, which still held out. Gallus consented to the proposal,
and accordingly surrendered himself and his men to Asclepiodotus, who
was disposed to give them quarter; but he was prevented by a body of
Venedotians, who rushed upon them, and the same day cut off all their
heads upon a brook within the city, which from the name of the commander
was afterwards called in the British tongue Nautgallim, and in the Saxon
Gallembourne.

FOOTNOTES:
[187] Roman history must have been very little known in England, when such a
statement as this could be put forth as true. Eutropius [ix. 22] says "Carausius,
after seven years, was murdered by his companion Allectus, who after him held
the government three years longer."

Chap. V.—Asclepiodotus obtains the crown. Diocletian's
massacre of the Christians in Britain.

The Romans being thus defeated, Asclepiodotus,[188] with the consent of the
people, placed the crown upon his own head, and governed the country in
justice and peace ten years, and curbed the insolence and outrages
committed by plunderers and robbers. In his days began the persecution of
the emperor Diocletian; and Christianity, which from the time of king
Lucius had continued fixed and undisturbed, was almost abolished over the
whole island. This was principally owing to Maximianus Herculius, general
of that tyrant's army, by whose command all the churches were pulled
down, and all the copies of the Holy Scriptures that could be found, were
burned in the public markets. The priests also, with the believers under their
care, were put to death, and with emulation pressed in crowds together for a

speedy passage to the joys of heaven, as their proper dwelling place. God
therefore magnified his goodness to us, forasmuch as he did, in that time of
persecution, of his mere grace, light up the bright lamps of the holy martyrs,
to prevent the spreading of gross darkness over the people of Britain; whose
sepulchres and places of suffering might have been a means of inflaming
our minds with the greatest fervency of divine love, had not the deplorable
impiety of barbarians deprived us of them. Among others of both sexes who
continued firm in the army of Christ, and suffered, were Alban of Verulam,
and Julius and Aaron, both of the City of Legions. Of these, Alban, out of
the fervour of his charity, when his confessor, Amphibalus, was pursued by
the persecutors, and just ready to be apprehended, first hid him in his house,
and then offered himself to die for him; imitating in this Christ himself, who
laid down his life for his sheep. The other two, after being torn limb from
limb, in a manner unheard of, received the crown of martyrdom, and were
elevated up to the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem.

FOOTNOTES:
[188] Asclepiodotus is hardly mentioned in the authentic history of this period.
He was præfectus prætorio under Constantius Chlorus, who was the general that
really recovered Britain from Allectus.

Chap. VI.—An insurrection against Asclepiodotus, by Coel,
whose daughter Helena Constantius marries.

In the meantime Coel,[189] duke of Kaercolvin or Colchester, made an
insurrection against king Asclepiodotus, and in a pitched battle killed him,
and took possession of his crown. The senate, hearing this, rejoiced at the
king's death, who had given such disturbance to the Roman power: and
reflecting on the damage which they had sustained by the loss of this
kingdom, they sent Constantius the senator, a man of prudence and courage,
who had reduced Spain under their subjection, and who was above all the
rest industrious to promote the good of the commonwealth. Coel, having

information of his coming, was afraid to engage him in battle, on account of
a report, that no king was able to stand before him. Therefore, as soon as
Constantius was arrived at the island, Coel sent ambassadors to him with
offers of peace and submission, on condition that he should enjoy the
kingdom of Britain, and pay no more than the usual tribute to the Roman
state. Constantius consented to this proposal, and so, upon their giving
hostages, peace was confirmed between them. The month after Coel was
seized with a very great sickness, of which he died within eight days. After
his decease, Constantius himself was crowned, and married the daughter of
Coel, whose name was Helena. She surpassed all the ladies of the country
in beauty, as she did all others of the time in her skill in music and the
liberal arts. Her father had no other issue to succeed him on the throne; for
which reason he was very careful about her education, that she might be
better qualified to govern the kingdom. Constantius, therefore, having made
her partner of his bed, had a son by her called Constantine.[190] After eleven
years were expired, he died at York, and bestowed the kingdom upon his
son, who, within a few years after he was raised to this dignity, began to
give proofs of heroic virtue, undaunted courage, and strict observance of
justice towards his people. He put a stop to the depredations of robbers,
suppressed the insolence of tyrants, and endeavoured everywhere to restore
peace.

FOOTNOTES:
[189] This king seems to be the same as the hero of the old popular ditty, "Old
king Coel was a merry old soul," &c.
[190] Constantine was born long before Constantius Chlorus went to Britain.
See the Roman Historians.

Chap. VII.—The Romans desire Constantine's assistance against
the cruelty of Maxentius.

At that time there was a tyrant at Rome, named Maxentius,[191] who made it
his endeavour to confiscate the estates of all the best of the nobility, and
oppressed the commonwealth with his grievous tyranny. Whilst he,
therefore, was proceeding in his cruelty, those that were banished fled to
Constantine in Britain, and were honourably entertained by him. At last,
when a great many such had resorted to him, they endeavoured to raise in
him an abhorrence of the tyrant, and frequently expostulated with him after
this manner:—"How long, Constantine, will you suffer our distress and
banishment? Why do you delay to restore us to our native country? You are
the only person of our nation that can restore to us what we have lost, by
driving out Maxentius. For what prince is to be compared with the king of
Britain, either for brave and gallant soldiers, or for large treasures? We
entreat you to restore us to our estates, wives, and children, by conducting
us with an army to Rome."

FOOTNOTES:
[191] Maxentius was son of Maximian who abdicated. The skeleton of this part
of the history is taken from the authentic writers: but the details are entirely
fictitious.

Chap. VIII.—Constantine, having reduced Rome, obtains the
empire of the world. Octavius, duke of the Wisseans, is put to
flight by Trahern.

Constantine, moved with these and the like speeches, made an expedition to
Rome, and reduced it under his power, and afterwards obtained the empire
of the whole world. In this expedition he carried along with him three
uncles of Helena, viz. Leolin, Trahern, and Marius, and advanced them to
the degree of senators. In the meantime Octavius, duke of the Wisseans,
rebelled against the Roman proconsuls, to whom the government of the
island had been committed, and having killed them, took possession of the
throne. Constantine, upon information of this, sent Trahern, the uncle of

Helena, with three legions to reduce the island. Trahern came to shore near
the city, which in the British tongue is called Kaerperis, and having assailed
it, took it in two days. This news spreading over the whole country, king
Octavius assembled all the forces of the land, and went to meet him not far
from Winchester, in a field called in the British tongue Maisuriam, where he
engaged with him in battle, and routed him. Trahern, upon this loss, betook
himself with his broken forces to his ships, and in them made a voyage to
Albania, in the provinces of which he made great destruction. When
Octavius received intelligence of this, he followed him with his forces, and
encountered him in Westmoreland, but fled, having lost the victory. On the
other hand, Trahern, when he found the day was his own, pursued Octavius,
nor ever suffered him to be at rest till he had dispossessed him both of his
cities and crown. Octavius, in great grief for the loss of his kingdom, went
with his fleet to Norway, to obtain assistance from king Gombert. In the
meantime he had given orders to his most intimate adherents to watch
carefully all opportunities of killing Trahern, which accordingly was not
long after done by the magistrate of a certain privileged town, who had a
more than ordinary love for him. For as Trahern was one day upon a
journey from London, he lay hid with a hundred men in the vale of a wood,
through which he was to pass, and there fell upon him unawares, and killed
him in the midst of his men. This news being brought to Octavius, he
returned back to Britain, where he dispersed the Romans, and recovered the
throne. In a short time after this, he arrived to such greatness and wealth
that he feared nobody, and possessed the kingdom until the reign of Gratian
and Valentinian.

Chap. IX.—Maximian is desired for a king of Britain.

At last, in his old age, being willing to settle the government, he asked his
council which of his family they desired to have for their king after his
decease. For he had no son, and only one daughter, to whom he could leave
the crown. Some, therefore, advised him to bestow his daughter with the
kingdom upon some noble Roman, to the end that they might enjoy a firmer
peace. Others were of opinion that Conan Meriadoc, his nephew, ought to

be preferred to the throne, and the daughter married to some prince of
another kingdom with a dowry in money. While these things were in
agitation among them, there came Caradoc, duke of Cornwall, and gave his
advice to invite over Maximian[192] the senator, and to bestow the lady with
the kingdom upon him, which would be a means of securing to them a
lasting peace. For his father Leolin, the uncle of Constantine, whom we
mentioned before, was a Briton, but by his mother and place of birth he was
a Roman, and by both parents he was descended of royal blood. And there
was a sure prospect of a firm and secure peace under him, on account of the
right which he had to Britain by his descent from the emperors, and also
from the British blood. But the duke of Cornwall, by delivering this advice,
brought upon himself the displeasure of Conan, the king's nephew, who was
very ambitious of succeeding to the kingdom, and put the whole court into
confusion about it. However, Caradoc, being unwilling to recede from his
proposal, sent his son Mauricius to Rome to acquaint Maximian with what
had passed. Mauricius was a person of large and well-proportioned stature,
as well as great courage and boldness, and could not bear to have his
judgment contradicted without a recourse to arms and duelling. On
presenting himself before Maximian, he met with a reception suitable to his
quality, and had the greatest honours paid him of any that were about him.
There happened to be at that time a great contest between Maximian and the
two emperors, Gratian and Valentinian, on account of his being refused the
third part of the empire, which he demanded. When, therefore, Mauricius
saw Maximian ill-treated by the emperors, he took occasion from thence to
address him in this manner: "Why need you, Maximian, stand in fear of
Gratian, when you have so fair an opportunity of wresting the empire from
him? Come with me into Britain, and you shall take possession of that
crown. For king Octavius, being now grown old and infirm, desires nothing
more than to find some such proper person, to bestow his kingdom and
daughter upon. He has no male issue, and therefore has asked the advice of
his nobility, to whom he should marry his daughter with the kingdom; and
they to his satisfaction have past a decree, that the kingdom and lady be
given to you, and have sent me to acquaint you with it. So that if you go
with me, and accomplish this affair, you may with the treasure and forces of
Britain be able to return back to Rome, drive out the emperors, and gain the
empire to yourself. For in this manner did your kinsman Constantius, and
several others of our kings who raised themselves to the empire."

FOOTNOTES:
[192] Maximus is the correct name of this usurper.

Chap. X.—Maximian, coming into Britain, artfully declines
fighting with Conan.

Maximian was pleased with the offer, and took his journey to Britain; but in
his way subdued the cities of the Franks, by which he amassed a great
treasure of gold and silver, and raised men for his service in all parts.
Afterwards he set sail with a fair wind, and arrived at Hamo's Port; the news
of which struck the king with fear and astonishment, who took this to be a
hostile invasion. Whereupon he called to him his nephew Conan, and
commanded him to raise all the forces of the kingdom, and go to meet the
enemy. Conan, having made the necessary preparations, marched
accordingly to Hamo's Port, where Maximian had pitched his tents; who,
upon seeing the approach of so numerous an army, was under the greatest
perplexities what course to take. For as he was attended with a smaller body
of men, and had no hopes of being entertained peaceably, he dreaded both
the number and courage of the enemy. Under these difficulties he called a
council of the oldest men, together with Mauricius, to ask their advice what
was to be done at this critical juncture. "It is not for us," said Mauricius, "to
hazard a battle with such a numerous and powerful army: neither was the
reduction of Britain by arms the end of our coming. Our business must be to
desire peace and a hospitable treatment, till we can learn the king's mind.
Let us say that we are sent by the emperors upon an embassy to Octavius,
and let us with artful speeches pacify the people." When all had shown
themselves pleased with this advice, he took with him twelve aged men
with grey hairs, eminent beyond the rest for their quality and wisdom, and
bearing olive-branches in their right hands, and went to meet Conan. The
Britons, seeing they were men of a venerable age, and that they bore olive-
branches as a token of peace, rose up before them in a respectful manner,
and opened a way for their free access to their commander. Then presenting

themselves before Conan Meriadoc, they saluted him in the name of the
emperors and the senate, and told him, that Maximian was sent to Octavius
upon an embassy from Gratian and Valentinian. Conan made answer: "Why
is he then attended with so great a multitude? This does not look like the
appearance of ambassadors, but the invasion of enemies." To which
Mauricius replied: "It did not become so great a man to appear abroad in a
mean figure, or without soldiers for his guard; especially considering, that
by reason of the Roman power, and the actions of his ancestors, he is
become obnoxious to many kings. If he had but a small retinue, he might
have been killed by the enemies of the commonwealth. He is come in
peace, and it is peace which he desires. For, from the time of our arrival, our
behaviour has been such as to give no offence to any body. We have bought
necessaries at our own expenses, as peaceable people do, and have taken
nothing from any by violence." While Conan was in suspense, whether to
give them peace, or begin the battle, Caradoc, duke of Cornwall, with
others of the nobility, came to him, and dissuaded him from proceeding in
the war after this representation; whereupon, though much against his will,
he laid down his arms, and granted them peace. Then he conducted
Maximian to London, where he gave the king an account of the whole
proceeding.

Chap. XI.—The kingdom of Britain is bestowed on Maximian.

Caradoc, after this, taking along with him his son Mauricius, commanded
everybody to withdraw from the king's presence, and then addressed him in
these words: "Behold, that which your more faithful and loyal subjects have
long wished for, is now by the good providence of God brought about. You
commanded your nobility to give their advice, how to dispose of your
daughter and kingdom, as being willing to hold the government no longer
on account of your great age. Some, therefore, were for having the kingdom
delivered up to Conan your nephew, and a suitable match procured for your
daughter elsewhere; as fearing the ruin of our people, if any prince that is a
stranger to our language should be set over us. Others were for granting the
kingdom to your daughter and some nobleman of our own country, who

should succeed you after your death. But the greater number recommended
some person descended of the family of the emperors, on whom you should
bestow your daughter and crown. For they promised themselves a firm and
lasting peace, as the consequence of such a marriage, since they would be
under the protection of the Roman state. See then! God has vouchsafed to
bring to you a young man, who is both a Roman, and also of the royal
family of Britain; and to whom, if you follow my advice, you will not delay
to marry your daughter. And indeed, should you refuse him, what right
could you plead to the crown of Britain against him? For he is the cousin of
Constantine, and the nephew of king Coel, whose daughter Helena
possessed the crown by an undeniable hereditary right." When Caradoc had
represented these things to him, Octavius acquiesced, and with the general
consent of his people bestowed the kingdom and his daughter upon him.
Conan Meriadoc, finding how things went, was beyond expression
incensed, and, retiring into Albania, used all his interest to raise an army,
that he might give disturbance to Maximian. And when he had got a great
body of men together, he passed the Humber, and wasted the provinces on
each side of it. At the news whereof, Maximian hastened to assemble his
forces against him, and then gave him battle, and returned with victory. But
this proved no decisive blow to Conan, who with his re-assembled troops
still continued to ravage the provinces, and provoked Maximian to return
again and renew the war, in which he had various success, being sometimes
victorious, sometimes defeated. At last, after great damages done on both
sides, they were brought by the mediation of friends to a reconciliation.

Chap. XII.—Maximian overthrows the Armoricans: his speech to
Conan.

Five years after this, Maximian, proud of the vast treasures that daily
flowed in upon him, fitted out a great fleet, and assembled together all the
forces in Britain. For this kingdom was now not sufficient for him; he was
ambitious of adding Gaul also to it. With this view he set sail, and arrived
first at the kingdom of Armorica, now called Bretagne, and began hostilities
upon the Gallic people that inhabited it. But the Gauls, under the command

of Imbaltus, met him, and engaged him in battle, in which the greater part
being in danger, they were forced to fly, and leave Imbaltus with fifteen
thousand men killed, all of them Armoricans. This severe overthrow was
matter of the greatest joy to Maximian, who knew the reduction of that
country would be very easy, after the loss of so many men. Upon this
occasion he called Conan aside from the army, and smiling said:—"See, we
have already conquered one of the best kingdoms in Gaul: we may now
have hopes of gaining all the rest. Let us make haste to take the cities and
towns, before the rumour of their danger spread to the remoter parts of
Gaul, and raise all the people up in arms. For if we can but get possession
of this kingdom, I make no doubt of reducing all Gaul under our power. Be
not therefore concerned that you have yielded up the island of Britain to
me, notwithstanding the hopes you once had of succeeding to it; because
whatever you have lost in it, I will restore to you in this country. For my
design is to advance you to the throne of this kingdom; and this shall be
another Britain, which we will people with our own countrymen, and drive
out the old inhabitants. The land is fruitful in corn, the rivers abound with
fish, the woods afford a beautiful prospect, and the forests are everywhere
pleasant; nor is there in my opinion anywhere a more delightful country."
Upon this, Conan, with a submissive bow, gave him his thanks, and
promised to continue loyal to him as long as he lived.

Chap. XIII.—Redonum taken by Maximian.

After this they marched with their forces to Redonum,[193] and took it the
same day. For the citizens, hearing of the bravery of the Britons, and what
slaughter they had made, fled away with haste, leaving their wives and
children behind them. And the rest of the cities and towns soon followed
their example; so that there was an easy entrance into them for the Britons,
who wherever they entered killed all they found left of the male sex, and
spared only the women. At last, when they had wholly extirpated the
inhabitants of all those provinces, they garrisoned the cities and towns with
British soldiers, and made fortifications in several places. The fame of
Maximian's exploits spreading over the rest of the provinces of Gaul, all

their dukes and princes were in a dreadful consternation, and had no other
hopes left but in their prayers to their gods. Maximian, finding that he had
struck terror into them, began to think of still bolder attempts, and by
profusely distributing presents, augmented his army. For all persons that he
knew to be eager for plunder, he enlisted into his service, and by plentifully
bestowing his money and other valuable things among them, kept them firm
to his interest.

FOOTNOTES:
[193] Rennes.

Chap. XIV.—Maximian, after the conquest of Gaul and
Germany, makes Triers the seat of his empire.

By these means he raised such a numerous army, as he thought would be
sufficient for the conquest of all Gaul. Notwithstanding which he suspended
his arms for a time, till he had settled the kingdom which he had taken, and
peopled it with Britons. To this end he published a decree, for the
assembling together of a hundred thousand of the common people of
Britain, who were to come over to settle in the country; besides thirty
thousand soldiers, to defend them from hostile attack. As soon as the people
were arrived according to his orders, he distributed them through all the
countries of Armorica, and made another Britain of it, and then bestowed it
on Conan Meriadoc. But he himself, with the rest of his fellow soldiers,
marched into the further part of Gaul, which, after many bloody battles, he
subdued, as he did also all Germany, being everywhere victorious. But the
seat of his empire he made at Triers, and fell so furiously upon the two
emperors, Gratian and Valentinian, that he killed the one, and forced the
other to flee from Rome.

Chap. XV.—A fight between the Aquitanians and Conan.

In the meantime, the Gauls and Aquitanians gave disturbance to Conan and
the Armorican Britons, and harassed them with their frequent incursions;
but he as often defeated them, and bravely defended the country committed
to him. After he had entirely vanquished them, he had a mind to bestow
wives on his fellow soldiers, by whom they might have issue to keep
perpetual possession of the country; and to avoid all mixture with the Gauls,
he sent over to the island of Britain for wives for them. In order to
accomplish this, messengers were sent to recommend the management of
this affair to Dianotus, king of Cornwall, who had succeeded his brother
Caradoc in that kingdom. He was a very noble and powerful prince, and to
him Maximian had committed the government, while he was employed in
affairs abroad. He had also a daughter of wonderful beauty, named Ursula,
with whom Conan was most passionately in love.

Chap. XVI.—Guanius and Melga murder eleven thousand
virgins. Maximian is killed at Rome.

Dianotus, upon this message sent him by Conan, was very ready to execute
his orders, and summoned together the daughters of the nobility from all
provinces, to the number of eleven thousand; but of the meaner sort, sixty
thousand; and commanded them all to appear together in the city of
London. He likewise ordered ships to be brought from all shores, for their
transportation to their future husbands. And though in so great a multitude
many were pleased with this order, yet it was displeasing to the greater part,
who had a greater affection for their relations and native country. Nor,
perhaps, were there wanting some who, preferring virginity to the married
state, would have rather lost their lives in any country, than enjoyed the
greatest plenty in wedlock. In short, most of them had views and wishes
different from one another, had they been left to their own liberty. But now
the ships being ready, they went on board, and sailing down the Thames,
made towards the sea. At last, as they were steering towards the Armorican
coast, contrary winds arose and dispersed the whole fleet. In this storm the

greater part of the ships foundered; but the women that escaped the danger
of the sea, were driven upon strange islands, and by a barbarous people
either murdered or made slaves. For they happened to fall into the hands of
the cruel army of Guanius and Melga, who, by the command of Gratian,[194]
were making terrible destruction in Germany, and the nations on the sea-
coast. Guanius was king of the Huns, and Melga of the Picts, whom Gratian
had engaged in his party, and had sent him into Germany to harass those of
Maximian's party along the sea-coasts. While they were thus exercising
their barbarous rage, they happened to light upon these virgins, who had
been driven on those parts, and were so inflamed with their beauty, that they
courted them to their brutish embraces; which, when the women would not
submit to, the Ambrons fell upon them, and without remorse murdered the
greatest part of them. This done, the two wicked leaders of the Picts and
Huns, Guanius and Melga, being the partizans of Gratian and Valentinian,
when they had learned that the island of Britain was drained of all its
soldiers, made a speedy voyage towards it; and, taking into their assistance
the people of the adjacent islands, arrived in Albania. Then joining in a
body, they invaded the kingdom, which was left without either government
or defence, and made miserable destruction among the common people. For
Maximian, as we have already related, had carried away with him all the
warlike youth that could be found, and had left behind him only the
husbandmen, who had neither sense nor arms, for the defence of their
country. Guanius and Melga, finding that they were not able to make the
least opposition, began to domineer most insolently, and to lay waste their
cities and countries, as if they had only been pens of sheep. The news of
this grievous calamity, coming to Maximian, he sent away Gratian
Municeps,[195] with two legions, to their assistance; who, as soon as they
arrived, fought with the enemy, and after a most bloody victory over them,
forced them to fly over into Ireland. In the meantime, Maximian was killed
at Rome by Gratian's friends;[196] and the Britons whom he had carried with
him were also slain or dispersed. Those of them that could escape, went to
their countrymen in Armorica, which was now called the other Britain.

FOOTNOTES:

[194] That is, Gratian the emperor, and brother of Valentinian, not Gratian
Municeps.
[195] This Gratian was called Municeps, because he was a citizen of Britain.
[196] Maximus was besieged in Aquileia, and slain by Theodosius, emperor of
the East, a.d. 388.

BOOK VI.

Chap. I.—Gratian, being advanced to the throne, is killed by the
common people. The Britons desire the Romans to defend them
against Guanius and Melga.

But Gratian Municeps,[197] hearing of the death of Maximian, seized the
crown, and made himself king. After this he exercised such tyranny that the
common people fell upon him in a tumultuous manner, and murdered him.
When this news reached other countries, their former enemies returned back
from Ireland, and bringing with them the Scots, Norwegians, and Dacians,
made dreadful devastations with fire and sword over the whole kingdom,
from sea to sea. Upon this most grievous calamity and oppression,
ambassadors are despatched with letters to Rome, to beseech, with tears and
vows of perpetual subjection, that a body of men might be sent to revenge
their injuries, and drive out the enemy from them. The ambassadors in a
short time prevailed so far, that, unmindful of past injuries, the Romans
granted them one legion, which was transported in a fleet to their country,
and there speedily encountered the enemy. At last, after the slaughter of a
vast multitude of them, they drove them entirely out of the country, and
rescued the miserable people from their outrageous cruelty. Then they gave
orders for a wall to be built between Albania and Deira, from one sea to the
other, for a terror to the enemy, and safeguard to the country. At that time
Albania was wholly laid waste, by the frequent invasions of barbarous
nations; and whatever enemies made an attempt upon the country, met with
a convenient landing-place there. So that the inhabitants were diligent in

working upon the wall,[198] which they finished partly at the public, partly
upon private charge.

FOOTNOTES:
[197] There was also one Marcus at this time, whom the soldiers in Britain
advanced to the sovereignty; but he was soon got rid of.
[198] It was unnecessary for the Britons to build a wall, because there was one
built for them by Severus 200 years before.

Chap. II.—Guethelin's speech to the Britons when the Romans
left them.

The Romans, after this, declared to the Britons, that they should not be able
for the future to undergo the fatigue of such laborious expeditions; and that
it was beneath the dignity of the Roman state to harass so great and brave
an army, both by land and sea, against base and vagabond robbers; but that
they ought to apply themselves to the use of arms, and to fight bravely in
defending to the utmost of their power, their country, riches, wives,
children, and, what is dearer than all these, their liberty and lives. As soon
as they had given them this exhortation, they commanded all the men of the
island that were fit for war, to appear together at London, because the
Romans were about to return home. When, therefore, they were all
assembled, Guethelin, the metropolitan of London, had orders to make a
speech to them, which he did in these words:—
"Though I am appointed by the princes here present to speak to you, I find
myself rather ready to burst into tears, than to make an eloquent oration. It
is a most sensible affliction to me to observe the weak and destitute state
into which you are fallen since Maximian drew away with him all the forces
and youth of this kingdom. You that were left were people wholly
inexperienced in war, and occupied with other employments, as tilling the
ground, and several kinds of mechanical trades. So that when your enemies
from foreign countries came upon you, as sheep wandering without a

shepherd, they forced you to quit your folds, till the Roman power restored
you to them again. Must your hopes, therefore, always depend upon foreign
assistance? And will you never use yourselves to handle arms against a
band of robbers, that are by no means stronger than yourselves, if you are
not dispirited by sloth and cowardice? The Romans are now tired with the
continual voyages wherewith they are harassed to defend you against your
enemies: they rather choose to remit to you the tribute you pay them, than
undergo any longer this fatigue by land and sea. Because you were only the
common people at the time when we had soldiers of our own, do you
therefore think that manhood has quite forsaken you? Are not men in the
course of human generation often the reverse of one another? Is not a
ploughman often the father of a soldier, and a soldier of a ploughman? Does
not the same diversity happen in a mechanic and a soldier? Since then, in
this manner, one produces another, I cannot think it possible for manhood to
be lost among them. As then you are men, behave yourselves like men: call
upon the name of Christ, that he may inspire you with courage to defend
your liberties."
No sooner had he concluded his speech, than the people raised such a shout,
that one would have thought them on a sudden inspired with courage from
heaven.

Chap. III.—The Britons are again cruelly harassed by Guanius
and Melga.

After this the Romans encouraged the timorous people as much as they
could, and left them patterns of their arms. They likewise commanded
towers, having a prospect towards the sea, to be placed at proper distances
along all the south coast, where their ships were, and from whence they
feared the invasions of the barbarians. But, according to the proverb, "It is
easier to make a hawk of a kite, than a scholar of a ploughman;" all learning
to him is but as a pearl thrown before swine. Thus, no sooner had the
Romans taken their farewell of them, than the two leaders, Guanius and
Melga, issued forth from their ships, in which they had fled over into

Ireland, and with their bands of Scots, Picts, Norwegians, Dacians, and
others, whom they had brought along with them, seized upon all Albania as
far as the very wall. Understanding, likewise, that the Romans were gone,
never to return any more, they now, in a more insolent manner than before,
began their devastations in the island. Hereupon the country fellows upon
the battlements of the walls sat night and day with quaking hearts, not
daring to stir from their seats, and readier for flight than making the least
resistance. In the meantime the enemies ceased not with their hooks to pull
them down headlong, and dash the wretched herd to pieces upon the
ground; who gained at least this advantage by their speedy death, that they
avoided the sight of that most deplorable calamity, which forthwith
threatened their relations and dearest children. Such was the terrible
vengeance of God for that most wicked madness of Maximian, in draining
the kingdom of all its forces, who, had they been present, would have
repulsed any nation that invaded them; an evident proof of which they gave,
by the vast conquests they made abroad, even in remote countries; and also
by maintaining their own country in peace, while they continued here. But
thus it happens when a country is left to the defence of country clowns. In
short, quitting their high wall and their cities, the country people were
forced again to fly, and to suffer a more fatal dispersion, a more furious
pursuit of the enemy, a more cruel and more general slaughter than before;
and like lambs before wolves, so was that miserable people torn to pieces
by the merciless barbarians. Again, therefore, the wretched remainder send
letters to Agitius, a man of great power among the Romans, to this effect.
"To Agitius,[199] thrice consul, the groans of the Britons." And after some
few other complaints they add: "The sea drives us to the barbarians, and the
barbarians drive us back to the sea: thus are we tossed to and fro between
two kinds of death, being either drowned or put to the sword."
Notwithstanding this most moving address, they procured no relief, and the
ambassadors returning back in great heaviness, declared to their
countrymen the repulse which they had suffered.

FOOTNOTES:
[199] Ætius is the name of this general in the classic writers.

Chap. IV.—Guethelin desires succours of Aldroen.

Hereupon, after a consultation together, Guethelin, archbishop of London,
passed over into Lesser Britain, called then Armorica, or Letavia, to desire
assistance of their brethren. At that time Aldroen reigned there, being the
fourth king from Conan, to whom, as has been already related, Maximian
had given that kingdom. This prince, seeing a prelate of so great dignity
arrive, received him with honour, and inquired after the occasion of his
coming. To whom Guethelin:—
"Your majesty can be no stranger to the misery which we, your Britons,
have suffered (which may even demand your tears), since the time that
Maximian drained our island of its soldiers, to people the kingdom which
you enjoy, and which God grant you may long enjoy in peace. For against
us the poor remains of the British race, all the people of the adjacent
islands, have risen up, and made an utter devastation in our country, which
then abounded with all kinds of riches; so that the people now are wholly
destitute of all manner of sustenance, but what they can get in hunting. Nor
had we any power or knowledge of military affairs left among us to
encounter the enemy. For the Romans are tired of us, and have absolutely
refused their assistance. So that now, deprived of all other hope, we come to
implore your clemency, that you would furnish us with forces, and protect a
kingdom, which is of right your own, from the incursions of barbarians. For
who but yourself, ought, without your consent, to wear the crown of
Constantine and Maximian, since the right your ancestors had to it is now
devolved upon you? Prepare then your fleet, and go with me. Behold! I
deliver the kingdom of Britain into your hands."
To this Aldroen made answer: "There was a time formerly when I would not
have refused to accept of the island of Britain, if it had been offered me; for
I do not think there was anywhere a more fruitful country while it enjoyed
peace and tranquillity. But now, since the calamities that have befallen it, it
is become of less value, and odious both to me and all other princes. But
above all things the power of the Romans was so destructive to it, that
nobody could enjoy any settled state or authority in it, without loss of
liberty, and bearing the yoke of slavery under them. And who would not

prefer the possession of a lesser country with liberty, to all the riches of that
island in servitude? The kingdom that is now under my subjection I enjoy
with honour, and without paying homage to any superior; so that I prefer it
to all other countries, since I can govern it without being controlled.
Nevertheless, out of respect to the right that my ancestors for many
generations have had to your island, I deliver to you my brother Constantine
with two thousand men, that with the good providence of God, he may free
your country from the inroads of barbarians, and obtain the crown for
himself. For I have a brother called by that name, who is an expert soldier,
and in all other respects an accomplished man. If you please to accept of
him, I will not refuse to send him with you, together with the said number
of men; for indeed a larger number I do not mention to you, because I am
daily threatened with disturbance from the Gauls." He had scarcely done
speaking before the archbishop returned him thanks, and when Constantine
was called in, broke out into these expressions of joy: "Christ conquers;
Christ commands; Christ reigns: behold the king of desolate Britain! Be
Christ only present, and behold our defence, our hope and joy." In short, the
ships being got ready, the men who were chosen out from all parts of the
kingdom, were delivered to Guethelin.

Chap. V.—Constantine, being made king of Britain, leaves three
sons.

When they had made all necessary preparations, they embarked, and arrived
at the port of Totness; and then without delay assembled together the youth
that was left in the island, and encountered the enemy; over whom, by the
merit of the holy prelate, they obtained the victory. After this the Britons,
before dispersed, flocked together from all parts, and in a council held at
Silchester, promoted Constantine to the throne, and there performed the
ceremony of his coronation. They also married him to a lady, descended
from a noble Roman family, whom archbishop Guethelin had educated, and
by whom the king had afterwards three sons, Constans, Aurelius
Ambrosius, and Uther Pendragon. Constans, who was the eldest, he
delivered to the church of Amphibalus in Winchester, that he might there

take upon him the monastic order. But the other two, viz. Aurelius and
Uther, he committed to the care of Guethelin for their education. At last,
after ten years were expired, there came a certain Pict, who had entered in
his service, and under pretence of holding some private discourse with him,
in a nursery of young trees where nobody was present, stabbed him with a
dagger.

Chap. VI.—Constans is by Vortigern crowned king of Britain.

Upon the death of Constantine, a dissension arose among the nobility, about
a successor to the throne. Some were for setting up Aurelius Ambrosius;
others Uther Pendragon; others again some other persons of the royal
family. At last, when they could come to no conclusion, Vortigern, consul of
the Gewisseans, who was himself very ambitious of the crown, went to
Constans the monk,[200] and thus addressed himself to him: "You see your
father is dead, and your brothers on account of their age are incapable of the
government; neither do I see any of your family besides yourself, whom the
people ought to promote to the kingdom. If you will therefore follow my
advice, I will, on condition of your increasing my private estate, dispose the
people to favour your advancement, and free you from that habit,
notwithstanding that it is against the rule of your order." Constans,
overjoyed at the proposal, promised, with an oath, that upon these terms he
would grant him whatever he would desire. Then Vortigern took him, and
investing him in his regal habiliments, conducted him to London, and made
him king, though not with the free consent of the people. Archbishop
Guethelin was then dead, nor was there any other that durst perform the
ceremony of his unction, on account of his having quitted the monastic
order. However, this proved no hindrance to his coronation, for Vortigern
himself performed the ceremony instead of a bishop.

FOOTNOTES:
[200] It is true that Constans, the son of Constantine, entered into the sacerdotal
profession, but both he and his father Constantine were slain in Gaul, which they

had made the seat of their empire, to the entire neglect of Britain.

Chap. VII.—Vortigern treacherously contrives to get king
Constans assassinated.

Constans, being thus advanced, committed the whole government of the
kingdom to Vortigern, and surrendered himself up so entirely to his
counsels, that he did nothing without his order. His own incapacity for
government obliged him to do this, for he had learned any thing else rather
than state affairs within his cloister. Vortigern became sensible of this, and
therefore began to deliberate with himself what course to take to obtain the
crown, of which he had been before extremely ambitious. He saw that now
was his proper time to gain his end easily, when the kingdom was wholly
intrusted to his management; and Constans, who bore the title of king, was
no more than the shadow of one; for he was of a soft temper, a bad judge in
matters of right, and not in the least feared, either by his own people, or by
the neighbouring states. And as for his two brothers, Uther Pendragon and
Aurelius Ambrosius, they were only children in their cradles, and therefore
incapable of the government. There was likewise this farther misfortune,
that all the older persons of the nobility were dead, so that Vortigern seemed
to be the only man surviving, that had craft, policy, and experience in
matters of state; and all the rest in a manner children, or raw youths, who
only inherited the honours of their parents and relations that had been killed
in the former wars. Vortigern, finding a concurrence of so many favourable
circumstances, contrived how he might easily and cunningly depose
Constans the monk, and immediately establish himself in his place. But in
order to do this, he waited until he had first well established his power and
interest in several countries. He therefore petitioned to have the king's
treasures, and his fortified cities, in his own custody; pretending there was a
rumour, that the neighbouring islanders designed an invasion of the
kingdom. This being granted him, he placed his own creatures in those
cities, to secure them for himself. Then having formed a scheme how to
execute his treasonable designs, he went to the king, and represented to him
the necessity of augmenting the number of his domestics, that he might

more safely oppose the invasion of the enemy. "Have not I left all things to
your disposal?" said Constans. "Do what you will as to that, so that they be
but faithful to me." Vortigern replied, "I am informed that the Picts are
going to bring the Dacians and Norwegians in upon us, with a design to
give us very great annoyance. I would therefore advise you, and in my
opinion it is the best course you can take, that you maintain some Picts in
your court, who may do you good service among those of that nation. For if
it is true that they are preparing to begin a rebellion, you may employ them
as spies upon their countrymen in their plots and stratagems, so as easily to
escape them." This was the dark treason of a secret enemy; for he did not
recommend this out of regard to the safety of Constans, but because he
knew the Picts to be a giddy people, and ready for all manner of
wickedness; so that, in a fit of drunkenness or passion, they might easily be
incensed against the king, and make no scruple to assassinate him. And
such an accident, when it should happen, would make an open way for his
accession to the throne, which he so often had in view. Hereupon he
despatched messengers into Scotland, with an invitation to a hundred
Pictish soldiers, whom accordingly he received into the king's household;
and when admitted, he showed them more respect than all the rest of the
domestics, by making them several presents, and allowing them a luxurious
table, insomuch that they looked upon him as the king. So great was the
regard they had for him, that they made songs of him about the streets, the
subject of which was, that Vortigern deserved the government, deserved the
sceptre of Britain; but that Constans was unworthy of it. This encouraged
Vortigern to show them still more favour, in order the more firmly to
engage them in his interest; and when by these practices he had made them
entirely his creatures, he took an opportunity, when they were drunk, to tell
them, that he was going to retire out of Britain, to see if he could get a
better estate; for the small revenue he had then, he said, would not so much
as enable him to maintain a retinue of fifty men. Then putting on a look of
sadness, he withdrew to his own apartment, and left them drinking in the
hall. The Picts at this sight were in inexpressible sorrow, as thinking what
he had said was true, and murmuring said one to another, "Why do we
suffer this monk to live? Why do not we kill him, that Vortigern may enjoy
his crown? Who is so fit to succeed as he? A man so generous to us is
worthy to rule, and deserves all the honour and dignity that we can bestow
upon him."

Chap. VIII.—Aurelius Ambrosius and Uther Pendragon flee
from Vortigern, and go to Lesser Britain.

After this, breaking into Constans' bed-chamber, they fell upon him and
killed him, and carried his head to Vortigern. At the sight of it, he put on a
mournful countenance, and burst forth into tears, though at the same time
he was almost transported with joy. However, he summoned together the
citizens of London, (for there the fact was committed,) and commanded all
the assassins to be bound, and their heads to be cut off for this abominable
parricide. In the meantime there were some who had a suspicion, that this
piece of villany was wholly the contrivance of Vortigern, and that the Picts
were only his instruments to execute it. Others again as positively asserted
his innocence. At last the matter being left in doubt, those who had the care
of the two brothers, Aurelius Ambrosius, and Uther Pendragon, fled over
with them into Lesser Britain, for fear of being killed by Vortigern. There
they were kindly received by king Budes, who took care to give them an
education suitable to their royal birth.

Chap. IX.—Vortigern makes himself king of Britain.

Now Vortigern, seeing nobody to rival him in the kingdom, placed the
crown on his own head, and thus gained the pre-eminence over all the rest
of the princes. At last his treason being discovered, the people of the
adjacent islands, whom the Picts had brought into Albania, made
insurrection against him. For the Picts were enraged on account of the death
of their fellow soldiers, who had been slain for the murder of Constans, and
endeavoured to revenge that injury upon him. Vortigern therefore was daily
in great distress, and lost a considerable part of his army in a war with them.
He had likewise no less trouble from another quarter, for fear of Aurelius
Ambrosius, and his brother Uther Pendragon, who, as we said before, had
fled, on his account, into Lesser Britain. For he heard it rumoured, day after
day, that they had now arrived at man's estate, and had built a vast fleet,

with a design to return back to the kingdom, which was their undoubted
right.

Chap. X.—Vortigern takes the Saxons that were new-comers, to
his assistance.

In the meantime there arrived in Kent three brigandines, or long galleys,
full of armed men, under the command of two brothers, Horsa and Hengist.
[201]
Vortigern was then at Dorobernia, now Canterbury, which city he used
often to visit; and being informed of the arrival of some tall strangers in
large ships, he ordered that they should be received peaceably, and
conducted into his presence. As soon as they were brought before him, he
cast his eyes upon the two brothers, who excelled all the rest both in
nobility and gracefulness of person; and having taken a view of the whole
company, asked them of what country they were, and what was the
occasion of their coming into his kingdom. To whom Hengist (whose years
and wisdom entitled him to a precedence), in the name of the rest, made the
following answer:—
"Most noble king, Saxony, which is one of the countries of Germany, was
the place of our birth; and the occasion of our coming was to offer our
service to you or some other prince. For we were driven out of our native
country, for no other reason, but that the laws of the kingdom required it. It
is customary among us, that when we come to be overstocked with people,
our princes from all the provinces meet together, and command all the
youths of the kingdom to assemble before them; then casting lots, they
make choice of the strongest and ablest of them, to go into foreign nations,
to procure themselves a subsistence, and free their native country from a
superfluous multitude of people. Our country, therefore, being of late
overstocked, our princes met, and after having cast lots, made choice of the
youth which you see in your presence, and have obliged us to obey the
custom which has been established of old. And us two brothers, Hengist and
Horsa, they made generals over them, out of respect to our ancestors, who
enjoyed the same honour. In obedience, therefore, to the laws so long

established, we put out to sea, and under the good guidance of Mercury
have arrived in your kingdom."
The king, at the name of Mercury, looking earnestly upon them, asked them
what religion they professed. "We worship," replied Hengist, "our country's
gods, Saturn and Jupiter, and the other deities that govern the world, but
especially Mercury, whom in our language we call Woden, and to whom
our ancestors consecrated the fourth day of the week, still called after his
name Wodensday. Next to him we worship the powerful goddess, Frea, to
whom they also dedicated the sixth day, which after her name we call
Friday." Vortigern replied, "For your credulity, or rather incredulity, I am
much grieved, but I rejoice at your arrival, which, whether by God's
providence or some other agency, happens very seasonably for me in my
present difficulties. For I am oppressed by my enemies on every side, and if
you will engage with me in my wars, I will entertain you honourably in my
kingdom, and bestow upon you lands and other possessions." The
barbarians readily accepted his offer, and the agreement between them
being ratified, they resided at his court. Soon after this, the Picts, issuing
forth from Albania, with a very great army, began to lay waste the northern
parts of the island. When Vortigern had information of it, he assembled his
forces, and went to meet them beyond the Humber. Upon their engaging,
the battle proved very fierce on both sides, though there was but little
occasion for the Britons to exert themselves, for the Saxons fought so
bravely, that the enemy, formerly so victorious, were speedily put to flight.

FOOTNOTES:
[201] It is the generally received opinion that Hengist and Horsa landed in
Britain a.d. 449.

Chap. XI.—Hengist brings over great numbers of Saxons into
Britain, his crafty petition to Vortigern.

Vortigern, therefore, as he owed the victory to them, increased his bounty to
them, and gave their general, Hengist, large possessions of land in Lindesia,
[202]
for the subsistence of himself and his fellow soldiers. Hereupon
Hengist, who was a man of experience and subtilty, finding how much
interest he had with the king, addressed him in this manner:—"Sir, your
enemies give you disturbance from all quarters, and few of your subjects
love you. They all threaten you, and say, they are going to bring over
Aurelius Ambrosius from Armorica, to depose you, and make him king. If
you please, let us send to our country to invite over some more soldiers, that
with our forces increased we may be better able to oppose them. But there
is one thing which I would desire of your clemency, if I did not fear a
refusal." Vortigern made answer, "Send your messengers to Germany, and
invite over whom you please, and you shall have no refusal from me in
whatever you shall desire." Hengist, with a low bow, returned him thanks,
and said, "The possessions which you have given me in land and houses are
very large, but you have not yet done me that honour which becomes my
station and birth, because, among other things, I should have had some
town or city granted me, that I might be entitled to greater esteem among
the nobility of your kingdom. I ought to have been made a consul or prince,
since my ancestors enjoyed both those dignities." "It is not in my power,"
replied Vortigern, "to do you so much honour, because you are strangers
and pagans; neither am I yet so far acquainted with your manners and
customs, as to set you upon a level with my natural born subjects. And,
indeed, if I did esteem you as my subjects, I should not be forward to do so,
because the nobility of my kingdom would strongly dissuade me from it."
"Give your servant," said Hengist, "only so much ground in the place you
have assigned me, as I can encompass with a leathern thong, for to build a
fortress upon, as a place of retreat if occasion should require. For I will
always be faithful to you, as I have been hitherto, and pursue no other
design in the request which I have made." With these words the king was
prevailed upon to grant him his petition; and ordered him to despatch
messengers into Germany, to invite more men over speedily to his
assistance. Hengist immediately executed his orders, and taking a bull's
hide, made one thong out of the whole, with which he encompassed a rocky
place that he had carefully made choice of, and within that circuit began to
build a castle, which, when finished, took its name from the thong

wherewith it had been measured; for it was afterwards called, in the British
tongue, Kaercorrei; in Saxon, Thancastre, that is, Thong Castle.[203]

FOOTNOTES:
[202] Or Lindsey. See Bede's Eccles. Hist. p. 99, note.
[203] Now called Caistor, twenty-three miles N.N.E. from Lincoln.

Chap. XII.—Vortigern marries Rowen,[204] the daughter of
Hengist.

In the meantime, the messengers returned from Germany, with eighteen
ships full of the best soldiers they could get. They also brought along with
them Rowen, the daughter of Hengist, one of the most accomplished
beauties of that age. After their arrival, Hengist invited the king to his
house, to view his new buildings, and the new soldiers that were come over.
The king readily accepted of his invitation, but privately, and having highly
commended the magnificence of the structure, enlisted the men into his
service. Here he was entertained at a royal banquet; and when that was over,
the young lady came out of her chamber bearing a golden cup full of wine,
with which she approached the king, and making a low courtesy, said to
him, "Lauerd[205] king wacht heil!" The king, at the sight of the lady's face,
was on a sudden both surprised and inflamed with her beauty; and calling to
his interpreter, asked him what she said, and what answer he should make
her. "She called you, 'Lord king,'" said the interpreter, "and offered to drink
your health. Your answer to her must be, 'Drinc heil!'" Vortigern
accordingly answered, "Drinc heil!" and bade her drink; after which he took
the cup from her hand, kissed her, and drank himself. From that time to this,
it has been the custom in Britain, that he who drinks to any one says,
"Wacht heil!" and he that pledges him, answers "Drinc heil!" Vortigern
being now drunk with the variety of liquors, the devil took this opportunity
to enter into his heart, and to make him in love with the damsel, so that he

became suitor to her father for her. It was, I say, by the devil's entering into
his heart, that he, who was a Christian, should fall in love with a pagan. By
this example, Hengist, being a prudent man, discovered the king's levity,
and consulted with his brother Horsa and the other ancient men present,
what to do in relation to the king's request. They unanimously advised him
to give him his daughter, and in consideration of her to demand the
province of Kent. Accordingly the daughter was without delay delivered to
Vortigern, and the province of Kent to Hengist, without the knowledge of
Gorangan, who had the government of it. The king the same night married
the pagan lady, and became extremely delighted with her; by which he
quickly brought upon himself the hatred of the nobility, and of his own
sons. For he had already three sons, whose names were Vortimer, Catigern,
and Pascentius.

FOOTNOTES:
[204] More commonly and elegantly called Rowena; Ronwen and Ronwenna
occur in some of the MSS.
[205] That is, Lord.

Chap. XIII.—The bishops, Germanus and Lupus, restore the
Christian faith that had been corrupted in Britain. Octa and
Ebissa are four times routed by Vortimer.

At that time came St. Germanus, bishop of Auxerre, and Lupus, bishop of
Troyes, to preach the gospel to the Britons. For the Christian faith had been
corrupted among them, partly by the pagans whom the king had brought
into society with them, partly by the Pelagian heresy, with the poison
whereof they had been a long time infected. But by the preaching of these
holy men, the true faith and worship was again restored, the many miracles
they wrought giving success to their labours. Gildas has in his elegant
treatise given an account of the many miracles God wrought by them. The
king being now, as we have said, possessed of the lady, Hengist said to him:
"As I am your father, I claim the right of being your counsellor: do not
therefore slight my advice, since it is to my countrymen you must owe the
conquest of all your enemies. Let us invite over my son Octa and his
brother Ebissa, who are brave soldiers, and give them the countries that are
in the northern parts of Britain, by the wall, between Deira and Albania. For
they will hinder the inroads of the barbarians, and so you shall enjoy peace
on the other side of the Humber." Vortigern complied with his request, and
ordered them to invite over whomsoever they knew able to assist him.
Immediately upon the receipt of this message, came Octa, Ebissa, and
Cherdich, with three hundred ships filled with soldiers, who were all kindly
received by Vortigern, and had ample presents made them. For by their
assistance he vanquished his enemies, and in every engagement proved
victorious. Hengist in the meantime continued to invite over more and more
ships, and to augment his numbers daily. Which when the Britons observed,

they were afraid of being betrayed by them, and moved the king to banish
them out of his coasts. For it was contrary to the rule of the gospel that
Christians should hold fellowship, or have any intercourse, with pagans.
Besides which, the number of those that were come over was now so great,
that they were a terror to his subjects; and nobody could now know who
was a pagan, or who a Christian, since pagans married the daughters and
kinswomen of Christians. These things they represented to the king, and
endeavoured to dissuade him from entertaining them, lest they might, by
some treacherous conspiracy, prove an overmatch for the native inhabitants.
But Vortigern, who loved them above all other nations on account of his
wife, was deaf to their advice. For this reason the Britons quickly desert
him, and unanimously set up Vortimer his son for their king; who at their
instigation began to drive out the barbarians, and to make dreadful
incursions upon them. Four battles he fought with them, and was victorious
in all: the first upon the river Dereuent;[206] the second upon the ford of
Epsford, where Horsa and Catigern, another son of Vortigern, met and, after
a sharp encounter, killed each other;[207] the third upon the sea-shore, where
the enemies fled shamefully to their ships, and betook themselves for refuge
to the Isle of Thanet. But Vortimer besieged them there, and daily distressed
them with his fleet. And when they were no longer able to bear the assaults
of the Britons, they sent king Vortigern, who was present with them in all
those wars, to his son Vortimer, to desire leave to depart, and return back
safe to Germany. And while a conference upon this subject was being held,
they in the meantime went on board their long galleys, and, leaving their
wives and children behind them, returned back to Germany.

FOOTNOTES:
[206] The Dereuent seems to be the Darent, a stream which gives its name to
Dartford.
[207] The very remarkable monument, called Kit Cotty's house, is traditionally
supposed to mark the grave of Catigern.

Chap. XIV.—Vortimer's kindness to his soldiers at his death.

Vortimer, after this great success, began to restore his subjects to their
possessions which had been taken from them, and to show them all marks
of his affection and esteem, and at the instance of St. Germanus to rebuild
their churches. But his goodness quickly stirred up the enmity of the devil
against him, who entering into the heart of his stepmother Rowen, excited
her to contrive his death. For this purpose she consulted with the poisoners,
and procured one who was intimate with him, whom she corrupted with
large and numerous presents, to give him a poisonous draught; so that this
brave soldier, as soon as he had taken it, was seized with a sudden illness,
that deprived him of all hopes of life. Hereupon he forthwith ordered all his
men to come to him, and having shown them how near he was to his end,
distributed among them all the treasure his predecessors had heaped up, and
endeavoured to comfort them in their sorrow and lamentation for him,
telling them, he was only going the way of all flesh. But he exhorted those
brave and warlike young men, who had attended him in all his victories, to
persist courageously in the defence of their country against all hostile
invasion; and with wonderful greatness of mind, commanded a brazen
pyramid to be placed in the port where the Saxons used to land, and his
body when dead to be buried on the top of it, that the sight of his tomb
might frighten back the barbarians to Germany. For he said none of them
would dare approach the country, that should but get a sight of his tomb.
Such was the admirable bravery of this great man, who, as he had been a
terror to them while living, endeavoured to be no less so when dead.
Notwithstanding which, he was no sooner dead, than the Britons had no
regard to his orders, but buried him at London.

Chap. XV.—Hengist, having wickedly murdered the princes of
Britain, keeps Vortigern prisoner.

Vortigern, after the death of his son, was again restored to the kingdom, and
at the request of his wife sent messengers into Germany to Hengist, with an
invitation to return into Britain, but privately, and with a small retinue, to

prevent a quarrel between the barbarians and his subjects. But Hengist,
hearing that Vortimer was dead, raised an army of no less than three
hundred thousand men, and fitting out a fleet returned with them to Britain.
When Vortigern and the nobility heard of the arrival of so vast a multitude,
they were immoderately incensed, and, after consultation together, resolved
to fight them, and drive them from their coasts. Hengist, being informed of
their design by messengers sent from his daughter, immediately entered into
deliberation what course to pursue against them. After several stratagems
had been considered, he judged it most feasible, to impose upon the nation
by making show of peace. With this view he sent ambassadors to the king,
to declare to him, that he had not brought so great a number of men for the
purpose either of staying with him, or offering any violence to the country.
But the reason why he brought them, was because he thought Vortimer was
yet living, and that he should have occasion for them against him, in case of
an assault. But now since he no longer doubted of his being dead, he
submitted himself and his people to the disposal of Vortigern; so that he
might retain as many of them as he should think fit, and whomsoever he
rejected Hengist would allow to return back without delay to Germany. And
if these terms pleased Vortigern, he desired him to appoint a time and place
for their meeting, and adjusting matters according to his pleasure. When
these things were represented to the king, he was mightily pleased, as being
very unwilling to part with Hengist; and at last ordered his subjects and the
Saxons to meet upon the kalends of May, which were now very near, at the
monastery of Ambrius,[208] for the settling of the matters above-mentioned.
The appointment being agreed to on both sides, Hengist, with a new design
of villany in his head, ordered his soldiers to carry every one of them a long
dagger under their garments; and while the conference should be held with
the Britons, who would have no suspicion of them, he would give them this
word of command, "Nemet oure Saxas;" at which moment they were all to
be ready to seize boldly every one his next man, and with his drawn dagger
stab him. Accordingly they all met at the time and place appointed, and
began to treat of peace; and when a fit opportunity offered for executing his
villany, Hengist cried out, "Nemet oure Saxas," and the same instant seized
Vortigern, and held him by his cloak. The Saxons, upon the signal given,
drew their daggers, and falling upon the princes, who little suspected any
such design, assassinated them to the number of four hundred and sixty
barons and consuls; to whose bodies St. Eldad afterwards gave Christian

burial, not far from Kaercaradoc, now Salisbury, in a burying-place near the
monastery of Ambrius, the abbat, who was the founder of it. For they all
came without arms, having no thoughts of anything but treating of peace;
which gave the others a fairer opportunity of exercising their villainous
design against them. But the pagans did not escape unpunished while they
acted this wickedness; a great number of them being killed during this
massacre of their enemies. For the Britons, taking up clubs and stones from
the ground, resolutely defended themselves, and did good execution upon
the traitors.

FOOTNOTES:
[208] Ambresbury.

Chap. XVI.—Eldol's valiant exploit. Hengist forces Vortigern to
yield up the strongest fortifications in Britain, in consideration of
his release.

There was present one Eldol, consul[209] of Gloucester, who, at the sight of
this treachery, took up a stake which he happened to find, and with that
made his defence. Every blow he gave carried death along with it; and by
breaking either the head, arms, shoulders, or legs of a great many, he struck
no small terror into the traitors, nor did he move from the spot before he
had killed with that weapon seventy men. But being no longer able to stand
his ground against such numbers, he made his escape from them, and
retired to his own city. Many fell on both sides, but the Saxons got the
victory; because the Britons, having no suspicion of treachery, came
unarmed, and therefore made a weaker defence. After the commission of
this detestable villany, the Saxons would not kill Vortigern; but having
threatened him with death and bound him, demanded his cities and fortified
places in consideration of their granting him his life. He, to secure himself,
denied them nothing; and when they had made him confirm his grants with
an oath, they released him from his chains, and then marched first to

London, which they took, as they did afterwards York, Lincoln, and
Winchester; wasting the countries through which they passed, and
destroying the people, as wolves do sheep when left by their shepherds.
When Vortigern saw the desolation which they made, he retired into the
parts of Cambria, not knowing what to do against so barbarous a people.

FOOTNOTES:
[209] This term must be considered as equivalent to comes, count, or earl.

Chap. XVII.—Vortigern, after consultation with magicians,
orders a youth to be brought that never had a father.

At last he had recourse to magicians for their advice, and commanded them
to tell him what course to take. They advised him to build a very strong
tower for his own safety, since he had lost all his other fortified places.
Accordingly he made a progress about the country, to find out a convenient
situation, and came at last to Mount Erir, where he assembled workmen
from several countries, and ordered them to build the tower. The builders,
therefore, began to lay the foundation; but whatever they did one day the
earth swallowed up the next, so as to leave no appearance of their work.
Vortigern being informed of this again consulted with his magicians
concerning the cause of it, who told him that he must find out a youth that
never had a father, and kill him, and then sprinkle the stones and cement
with his blood; for by those means, they said, he would have a firm
foundation. Hereupon messengers were despatched away over all the
provinces, to inquire out such a man. In their travels they came to a city,
called afterwards Kaermerdin, where they saw some young men, playing
before the gate, and went up to them; but being weary with their journey,
they sat down in the ring, to see if they could meet with what they were in
quest of. Towards evening, there happened on a sudden a quarrel between
two of the young men, whose names were Merlin and Dabutius. In the
dispute, Dabutius said to Merlin: "You fool, do you presume to quarrel with

me? Is there any equality in our birth? I am descended of royal race, both
by my father and mother's side. As for you, nobody knows what you are, for
you never had a father." At that word the messengers looked earnestly upon
Merlin, and asked the by-standers who he was. They told him, it was not
known who was his father; but that his mother was daughter to the king of
Dimetia, and that she lived in St. Peter's church among the nuns of that city.

Chap. XVIII.—Vortigern inquires of Merlin's mother concerning
her conception of him.

Upon this the messengers hastened to the governor of the city, and ordered
him, in the king's name, to send Merlin and his mother to the king. As soon
as the governor understood the occasion of their message, he readily obeyed
the order, and sent them to Vortigern to complete his design. When they
were introduced into the king's presence, he received the mother in a very
respectful manner, on account of her noble birth; and began to inquire of
her by what man she had conceived. "My sovereign lord," said she, "by the
life of your soul and mine, I know nobody that begot him of me. Only this I
know, that as I was once with my companions in our chambers, there
appeared to me a person in the shape of a most beautiful young man, who
often embraced me eagerly in his arms, and kissed me; and when he had
stayed a little time, he suddenly vanished out of my sight. But many times
after this he would talk with me when I sat alone, without making any
visible appearance. When he had a long time haunted me in this manner, he
at last lay with me several times in the shape of a man, and left me with
child. And I do affirm to you, my sovereign lord, that excepting that young
man, I know no body that begot him of me." The king full of admiration at
this account, ordered Maugantius to be called, that he might satisfy him as
to the possibility of what the woman had related. Maugantius, being
introduced, and having the whole matter repeated to him, said to Vortigern:
"In the books of our philosophers, and in a great many histories, I have
found that several men have had the like original. For, as Apuleius informs
us in his book concerning the Demon of Socrates, between the moon and
the earth inhabit those spirits, which we will call incubuses. These are of the

nature partly of men, and partly of angels, and whenever they please
assume human shapes, and lie with women. Perhaps one of them appeared
to this woman, and begot that young man of her."

Chap. XIX.—Merlin 's speech to the king's magicians, and
advice about the building of the tower.

Merlin in the meantime was attentive to all that had passed, and then
approached the king, and said to him, "For what reason am I and my mother
introduced into your presence?"—"My magicians," answered Vortigern,
"advised me to seek out a man that had no father, with whose blood my
building is to be sprinkled, in order to make it stand."—"Order your
magicians," said Merlin, "to come before me, and I will convict them of a
lie." The king was surprised at his words, and presently ordered the
magicians to come, and sit down before Merlin, who spoke to them after
this manner: "Because you are ignorant what it is that hinders the
foundation of the tower, you have recommended the shedding of my blood
for cement to it, as if that would presently make it stand. But tell me now,
what is there under the foundation? For something there is that will not
suffer it to stand." The magicians at this began to be afraid, and made him
no answer. Then said Merlin, who was also called Ambrose, "I entreat your
majesty would command your workmen to dig into the ground, and you
will find a pond which causes the foundation to sink." This accordingly was
done, and then presently they found a pond deep under ground, which had
made it give way. Merlin after this went again to the magicians, and said,
"Tell me ye false sycophants, what is there under the pond." But they were
silent. Then said he again to the king, "Command the pond to be drained,
and at the bottom you will see two hollow stones, and in them two dragons
asleep." The king made no scruple of believing him, since he had found true
what he said of the pond, and therefore ordered it to be drained: which
done, he found as Merlin had said; and now was possessed with the greatest
admiration of him. Nor were the rest that were present less amazed at his
wisdom, thinking it to be no less than divine inspiration.

BOOK VII.

CONCERNING THE PROPHECIES OF MERLIN.

Chap. I.—Geoffrey of Monmouth's preface to Merlin's prophecy.

I had not got thus far in my history, when the subject of public discourse
happening to be concerning Merlin, I was obliged to publish his prophecies
at the request of my acquaintance, but especially of Alexander, bishop of
Lincoln, a prelate of the greatest piety and wisdom. There was not any
person, either among the clergy or laity, that was attended with such a train
of knights and noblemen, whom his settled piety and great munificence
engaged in his service. Out of a desire, therefore, to gratify him, I translated
these prophecies, and sent them to him with the following letter.

Chap. II.—Geoffrey's letter to Alexander, bishop of Lincoln.

"The regard which I owe to your great worth, most noble prelate, has
obliged me to undertake the translation of Merlin's prophecies out of British
into Latin, before I had made an end of the history which I had begun
concerning the acts of the British kings. For my design was to have finished
that first, and afterwards to have taken this work in hand; lest by being
engaged on both at once, I should be less capable of attending with any
exactness to either. Notwithstanding, since the deference which is paid to
your penetrating judgment will screen me from censure, I have employed
my rude pen, and in a coarse style present you with a translation out of a
language with which you are unacquainted. At the same time, I cannot but
wonder at your recommending this matter to one of my low genius, when
you might have caused so many men of greater learning, and a richer vein
of intellect, to undertake it; who, with their sublime strains, would much
more agreeably have entertained you. Besides, without any disparagement
to all the philosophers in Britain, I must take the liberty to say, that you

yourself, if the business of your high station would give you leisure, are
capable of furnishing us with loftier productions of this kind than any man
living. However, since it was your pleasure that Geoffrey of Monmouth
should be employed in this prophecy, he hopes you will favourably accept
of his performance, and vouchsafe to give a finer turn to whatever you shall
find unpolished, or otherwise faulty in it."

Chap. III.—The prophecy of Merlin.

As Vortigern, king of the Britons, was sitting upon the bank of the drained
pond, the two dragons, one of which was white, the other red, came forth,
and, approaching one another, began a terrible fight, and cast forth fire with
their breath. But the white dragon had the advantage, and made the other fly
to the end of the lake. And he, for grief at his flight, renewed the assault
upon his pursuer, and forced him to retire. After this battle of the dragons,
the king commanded Ambrose Merlin to tell him what it portended. Upon
which he, bursting into tears, delivered what his prophetical spirit suggested
to him, as follows:—[210]
"Woe to the red dragon, for his banishment hasteneth on. His lurking holes
shall be seized by the white dragon, which signifies the Saxons whom you
invited over; but the red denotes the British nation, which shall be
oppressed by the white. Therefore shall its mountains be levelled as the
valleys, and the rivers of the valleys shall run with blood. The exercise of
religion shall be destroyed, and churches be laid open to ruin. At last the
oppressed shall prevail, and oppose the cruelty of foreigners. For a boar of
Cornwall shall give his assistance, and trample their necks under his feet.
The islands of the ocean shall be subject to his power, and he shall possess
the forests of Gaul. The house of Romulus shall dread his courage, and his
end shall be doubtful. He shall be celebrated in the mouths of the people;
and his exploits shall be food to those that relate them. Six of his posterity
shall sway the sceptre, but after them shall arise a German worm. He shall
be advanced by a sea-wolf, whom the woods of Africa shall accompany.
Religion shall be again abolished, and there shall be a translation of the

metropolitan sees. The dignity of London shall adorn Dorobernia, and the
seventh pastor of York shall be resorted to in the kingdom of Armorica.
Menevia shall put on the pall of the City of Legions, and a preacher of
Ireland shall be dumb on account of an infant growing in the womb. It shall
rain a shower of blood, and a raging famine shall afflict mankind. When
these things happen, the red one shall be grieved; but when his fatigue is
over, shall grow strong. Then shall misfortunes hasten upon the white one,
and the buildings of his gardens shall be pulled down. Seven that sway the
sceptre shall be killed, one of whom shall become a saint. The wombs of
mothers shall be ripped up, and infants be abortive. There shall be a most
grievous punishment of men, that the natives may be restored. He that shall
do these things shall put on the brazen man, and upon a brazen horse shall
for a long time guard the gates of London. After this, shall the red dragon
return to his proper manners, and turn his rage upon himself. Therefore
shall the revenge of the Thunderer show itself, for every field shall
disappoint the husbandmen. Mortality shall snatch away the people, and
make a desolation over all countries. The remainder shall quit their native
soil, and make foreign plantations. A blessed king shall prepare a fleet, and
shall be reckoned the twelfth in the court among the saints. There shall be a
miserable desolation of the kingdom, and the floors of the harvests shall
return to the fruitful forests. The white dragon shall rise again, and invite
over a daughter of Germany. Our gardens shall be again replenished with
foreign seed, and the red one shall pine away at the end of the pond. After
that, shall the German worm be crowned, and the brazen prince buried. He
has his bounds assigned him, which he shall not be able to pass. For a
hundred and fifty years he shall continue in trouble and subjection, but shall
bear sway three hundred. Then shall the north wind rise against him, and
shall snatch away the flowers which the west wind produced. There shall be
gilding in the temples, nor shall the edge of the sword cease. The German
dragon shall hardly get to his holes, because the revenge of his treason shall
overtake him. At last he shall flourish for a little time, but the decimation of
Neustria shall hurt him. For a people in wood and in iron coats shall come,
and revenge upon him his wickedness. They shall restore the ancient
inhabitants to their dwellings, and there shall be an open destruction of
foreigners. The seed of the white dragon shall be swept out of our gardens,
and the remainder of his generation shall be decimated. They shall bear the
yoke of slavery, and wound their mother with spades and ploughs. After this

shall succeed two dragons, whereof one shall be killed with the sting of
envy, but the other shall return under the shadow of a name. Then shall
succeed a lion of justice, at whose roar the Gallican towers and the island
dragons shall tremble. In those days gold shall be squeezed from the lily
and the nettle, and silver shall flow from the hoofs of bellowing cattle. The
frizzled shall put on various fleeces, and the outward habit denote the
inward parts. The feet of barkers shall be cut off; wild beasts shall enjoy
peace; mankind shall be grieved at their punishment; the form of commerce
shall be divided; the half shall be round. The ravenousness of kites shall be
destroyed, and the teeth of wolves blunted. The lion's whelps shall be
transformed into sea-fishes; and an eagle shall build her nest upon Mount
Aravius. Venedotia shall grow red with the blood of mothers, and the house
of Corineus kill six brethren. The island shall be wet with night tears; so
that all shall be provoked to all things. Woe to thee, Neustria, because the
lion's brain shall be poured upon thee: and he shall be banished with
shattered limbs from his native soil. Posterity shall endeavour to fly above
the highest places; but the favour of new comers shall be exalted. Piety
shall hurt the possessor of things got by impiety, till he shall have put on his
Father: therefore, being armed with the teeth of a boar, he shall ascend
above the tops of mountains, and the shadow of him that wears a helmet.
Albania shall be enraged, and, assembling her neighbours, shall be
employed in shedding blood. There shall be put into her jaws a bridle that
shall be made on the coast of Armorica. The eagle of the broken covenant
shall gild it over, and rejoice in her third nest. The roaring whelps shall
watch, and, leaving the woods, shall hunt within the walls of cities. They
shall make no small slaughter of those that oppose them, and shall cut off
the tongues of bulls. They shall load the necks of roaring lions with chains,
and restore the times of their ancestors. Then from the first to the fourth,
from the fourth to the third, from the third to the second, the thumb shall
roll in oil. The sixth shall overturn the walls of Ireland, and change the
woods into a plain. He shall reduce several parts to one, and be crowned
with the head of a lion. His beginning shall lay open to wandering affection,
but his end shall carry him up to the blessed, who are above. For he shall
restore the seats of saints in their countries, and settle pastors in convenient
places. Two cities he shall invest with two palls, and shall bestow virgin-
presents upon virgins. He shall merit by this the favour of the Thunderer,
and shall be placed among the saints. From him shall proceed a lynx

penetrating all things, who shall be bent upon the ruin of his own nation;
for, through him, Neustria shall lose both islands, and be deprived of its
ancient dignity. Then shall the natives return back to the island; for there
shall arise a dissension among foreigners. Also a hoary old man, sitting
upon a snow-white horse, shall turn the course of the river Periron, and
shall measure out a mill upon it with a white rod. Cadwallader shall call
upon Conan, and take Albania into alliance. Then shall there be a slaughter
of foreigners; then shall the rivers run with blood. Then shall break forth the
fountains of Armorica, and they shall be crowned with the diadem of
Brutus. Cambria shall be filled with joy; and the oaks of Cornwall shall
flourish. The island shall be called by the name of Brutus: and the name
given it by foreigners shall be abolished. From Conan shall proceed a
warlike boar, that shall exercise the sharpness of his tusks within the Gallic
woods. For he shall cut down all the larger oaks, and shall be a defence to
the smaller. The Arabians and Africans shall dread him; for he shall pursue
his furious course to the farther part of Spain. There shall succeed the goat
of the Venereal castle, having golden horns and a silver beard, who shall
breathe such a cloud out of his nostrils, as shall darken the whole surface of
the island. There shall be peace in his time; and corn shall abound by reason
of the fruitfulness of the soil. Women shall become serpents in their gait,
and all their motions shall be full of pride. The camp of Venus shall be
restored; nor shall the arrows of Cupid cease to wound. The fountain of a
river shall be turned into blood; and two kings shall fight a duel at Stafford
for a lioness. Luxury shall overspread the whole ground; and fornication not
cease to debauch mankind. All these things shall three ages see; till the
buried kings shall be exposed to public view in the city of London. Famine
shall again return; mortality shall return; and the inhabitants shall grieve for
the destruction of their cities. Then shall come the board of commerce, who
shall recall the scattered flocks to the pasture they had lost. His breast shall
be food to the hungry, and his tongue drink to the thirsty. Out of his mouth
shall flow rivers, that shall water the parched jaws of men. After this shall
be produced a tree upon the Tower of London, which, having no more than
three branches, shall overshadow the surface of the whole island with the
breadth of its leaves. Its adversary, the north wind, shall come upon it, and
with its noxious blast shall snatch away the third branch; but the two
remaining ones shall possess its place, till they shall destroy one another by
the multitude of their leaves; and then shall it obtain the place of those two,

and shall give sustenance to birds of foreign nations. It shall be esteemed
hurtful to native fowls; for they shall not be able to fly freely for fear of its
shadow. There shall succeed the ass of wickedness, swift against the
goldsmiths, but slow against the ravenousness of wolves. In those days the
oaks of the forests shall burn, and acorns grow upon the branches of teil
trees. The Severn sea shall discharge itself through seven mouths, and the
river Uske burn seven months. Fishes shall die with the heat thereof; and of
them shall be engendered serpents. The baths of Badon shall grow cold, and
their salubrious waters engender death. London shall mourn for the death of
twenty thousand; and the river Thames shall be turned into blood. The
monks in their cowls shall be forced to marry, and their cry shall be heard
upon the mountains of the Alps."

FOOTNOTES:
[210] The prophecy which follows has been commented on by various writers,
who have taken the trouble to point out the events in English history which
answer to the various predictions which it contains. Such labour seems to be
altogether superfluous in the present day: the prophecy may be allowed to
remain as an illustration of the absurd credulity of former times.

Chap. IV.—The continuation of the prophecy.

"Three springs shall break forth in the city of Winchester, whose rivulets
shall divide the island into three parts. Whoever shall drink of the first, shall
enjoy long life, and shall never be afflicted with sickness. He that shall
drink of the second, shall die of hunger, and paleness and horror shall sit in
his countenance. He that shall drink of the third, shall be surprised with
sudden death, neither shall his body be capable of burial. Those that are
willing to escape so great a surfeit, will endeavour to hide it with several
coverings, but whatever bulk shall be laid upon it, shall receive the form of
another body. For earth shall be turned into stones; stones into water; wood
into ashes; ashes into water, if cast over it. Also a damsel shall be sent from
the city of the forest of Canute to administer a cure, who, after she shall

have practised all her arts, shall dry up the noxious fountains only with her
breath. Afterwards, as soon as she shall have refreshed herself with the
wholesome liquor, she shall bear in her right hand the wood of Caledon,
and in her left the forts of the walls of London. Wherever she shall go, she
shall make sulphureous steps, which will smoke with a double flame. That
smoke shall rouse up the city of Ruteni, and shall make food for the
inhabitants of the deep. She shall overflow with rueful tears, and shall fill
the island with her dreadful cry. She shall be killed by a hart with ten
branches, four of which shall bear golden diadems; but the other six shall be
turned into buffalo's horns, whose hideous sound shall astonish the three
islands of Britain. The Daneian wood shall be stirred up, and breaking forth
into a human voice, shall cry: Come, O Cambria, and join Cornwall to thy
side, and say to Winchester, the earth shall swallow thee up. Translate the
seat of thy pastor to the place where ships come to harbour, and the rest of
the members will follow the head. For the day hasteneth, in which thy
citizens shall perish on account of the guilt of perjury. The whiteness of
wool has been hurtful to thee, and the variety of its tinctures. Woe to the
perjured nation, for whose sake the renowned city shall come to ruin. The
ships shall rejoice at so great an augmentation, and one shall be made out of
two. It shall be rebuilt by Eric, loaden with apples, to the smell whereof the
birds of several woods shall flock together. He shall add to it a vast palace,
and wall it round with six hundred towers. Therefore shall London envy it,
and triply increase her walls. The river Thames shall encompass it round,
and the fame of the work shall pass beyond the Alps. Eric shall hide his
apples within it, and shall make subterraneous passages. At that time shall
the stones speak, and the sea towards the Gallic coast be contracted into a
narrow space. On each bank shall one man hear another, and the soil of the
island shall be enlarged. The secrets of the deep shall be revealed, and Gaul
shall tremble for fear. After these things shall come forth a hern from the
forest of Calaterium, which shall fly round the island for two years together.
With her nocturnal cry she shall call together the winged kind, and assemble
to her all sorts of fowls. They shall invade the tillage of husbandmen, and
devour all the grain of the harvests. Then shall follow a famine upon the
people, and a grievous mortality upon the famine. But when this calamity
shall be over, a detestable bird shall go to the valley of Galabes, and shall
raise it to be a high mountain. Upon the top thereof it shall also plant an
oak, and build its nest in its branches. Three eggs shall be produced in the

nest, from whence shall come forth a fox, a wolf, and a bear. The fox shall
devour her mother, and bear the head of an ass. In this monstrous form shall
she frighten her brothers, and make them fly into Neustria. But they shall
stir up the tusky boar, and returning in a fleet shall encounter with the fox;
who at the beginning of the fight shall feign herself dead, and move the
boar to compassion. Then shall the boar approach her carcass, and standing
over her, shall breathe upon her face and eyes. But she, not forgetting her
cunning, shall bite his left foot, and pluck it off from his body. Then shall
she leap upon him, and snatch away his right ear and tail, and hide herself
in the caverns of the mountains. Therefore shall the deluded boar require
the wolf and bear to restore him his members; who, as soon as they shall
enter into the cause, shall promise two feet of the fox, together with the ear
and tail, and of these they shall make up the members of a hog. With this he
shall be satisfied, and expect the promised restitution. In the meantime shall
the fox descend from the mountains, and change herself into a wolf, and
under pretence of holding a conference with the boar, she shall go to him,
and craftily devour him. After that she shall transform herself into a boar,
and feigning a loss of some members, shall wait for her brothers; but as
soon as they are come, she shall suddenly kill them with her tusks, and shall
be crowned with the head of a lion. In her days shall a serpent be brought
forth, which shall be a destroyer of mankind. With its length it shall
encompass London, and devour all that pass by it. The mountain ox shall
take the head of a wolf, and whiten his teeth in the Severn. He shall gather
to him the flocks of Albania and Cambria, which shall drink the river
Thames dry. The ass shall call the goat with the long beard, and shall
borrow his shape. Therefore shall the mountain ox be incensed, and having
called the wolf, shall become a horned bull against them. In the exercise of
his cruelty he shall devour their flesh and bones, but shall be burned upon
the top of Urian. The ashes of his funeral-pile shall be turned into swans,
that shall swim on dry ground as on a river. They shall devour fishes in
fishes, and swallow up men in men. But when old age shall come upon
them, they shall become sea-wolves, and practise their frauds in the deep.
They shall drown ships, and collect no small quantity of silver. The Thames
shall again flow, and assembling together the rivers, shall pass beyond the
bounds of its channel. It shall cover the adjacent cities, and overturn the
mountains that oppose its course. Being full of deceit and wickedness, it
shall make use of the fountain Galabes. Hence shall arise factions

provoking the Venedotians to war. The oaks of the forest shall meet
together, and encounter the rocks of the Gewisseans. A raven shall attend
with the kites, and devour the carcasses of the slain. An owl shall build her
nest upon the walls of Gloucester, and in her nest shall be brought forth an
ass. The serpent of Malvernia shall bring him up, and put him upon many
fraudulent practices. Having taken the crown, he shall ascend on high, and
frighten the people of the country with his hideous braying. In his days shall
the Pachaian mountains tremble, and the provinces be deprived of their
woods. For there shall come a worm with a fiery breath, and with the
vapour it sends forth shall burn up the trees. Out of it shall proceed seven
lions deformed with the heads of goats. With the stench of their nostrils
they shall corrupt women, and make wives turn common prostitutes. The
father shall not know his own son, because they shall grow wanton like
brute beasts. Then shall come the giant of wickedness, and terrify all with
the sharpness of his eyes. Against him shall arise the dragon of Worcester,
and shall endeavour to banish him. But in the engagement the dragon shall
be worsted, and oppressed by the wickedness of the conqueror. For he shall
mount upon the dragon, and putting off his garment shall sit upon him
naked. The dragon shall bear him up on high, and beat his naked rider with
his tail erected. Upon this the giant rousing up his whole strength, shall
break his jaws with his sword. At last the dragon shall fold itself up under
its tail, and die of poison. After him shall succeed the boar of Totness, and
oppress the people with grievous tyranny. Gloucester shall send forth a lion,
and shall disturb him in his cruelty, in several battles. He shall trample him
under his feet, and terrify him with open jaws. At last the lion shall quarrel
with the kingdom, and get upon the backs of the nobility. A bull shall come
into the quarrel, and strike the lion with his right foot. He shall drive him
through all the inns in the kingdom, but shall break his horns against the
walls of Oxford. The fox of Kaerdubalem shall take revenge on the lion,
and destroy him entirely with her teeth. She shall be encompassed by the
adder of Lincoln, who with a horrible hiss shall give notice of his presence
to a multitude of dragons. Then shall the dragons encounter, and tear one
another to pieces. The winged shall oppress that which wants wings, and
fasten its claws into the poisonous cheeks. Others shall come into the
quarrel, and kill one another. A fifth shall succeed those that are slain, and
by various stratagems shall destroy the rest. He shall get upon the back of
one with his sword, and sever his head from his body. Then throwing off his

garment, he shall get upon another, and put his right and left hand upon his
tail. Thus being naked shall he overcome him, whom when clothed he was
not able to deal with. The rest he shall gall in their flight, and drive them
round the kingdom. Upon this shall come a roaring lion dreadful for his
monstrous cruelty. Fifteen parts shall he reduce to one, and shall alone
possess the people. The giant of the snow-white colour shall shine, and
cause the white people to flourish. Pleasures shall effeminate the princes,
and they shall suddenly be changed into beasts. Among them shall arise a
lion swelled with human gore. Under him shall a reaper be placed in the
standing corn, who, while he is reaping, shall be oppressed by him. A
charioteer of York shall appease them, and having banished his lord, shall
mount upon the chariot which he shall drive. With his sword unsheathed
shall he threaten the East, and fill the tracks of his wheels with blood.
Afterwards he shall become a sea-fish, who, being roused up with the
hissing of a serpent, shall engender with him. From hence shall be produced
three thundering bulls, who having eaten up their pastures shall be turned
into trees. The first shall carry a whip of vipers, and turn his back upon the
next. He shall endeavour to snatch away the whip, but shall be taken by the
last. They shall turn away their faces from one another, till they have
thrown away the poisoned cup. To him shall succeed a husbandman of
Albania, at whose back shall be a serpent. He shall be employed in
ploughing the ground, that the country may become white with corn. The
serpent shall endeavour to diffuse his poison, in order to blast the harvest. A
grievous mortality shall sweep away the people, and the walls of cities shall
be made desolate. There shall be given for a remedy the city of Claudius,
which shall interpose the nurse of the scourger. For she shall bear a dose of
medicine, and in a short time the island shall be restored. Then shall two
successively sway the sceptre, whom a horned dragon shall serve. One shall
come in armour, and shall ride upon a flying serpent. He shall sit upon his
back with his naked body, and cast his right hand upon his tail. With his cry
shall the seas be moved and he shall strike terror into the second. The
second therefore shall enter into confederacy with the lion; but a quarrel
happening, they shall encounter one another. They shall distress one
another, but the courage of the beast shall gain the advantage. Then shall
come one with a drum, and appease the rage of the lion. Therefore shall the
people of the kingdom be at peace, and provoke the lion to a dose of physic.
In his established seat he shall adjust the weights, but shall stretch out his

hands into Albania. For which reason the northern provinces shall be
grieved, and open the gates of the temples. The sign-bearing wolf shall lead
his troops, and surround Cornwall with his tail. He shall be opposed by a
soldier in a chariot, who shall transform that people into a boar. The boar
shall therefore ravage the provinces, but shall hide his head in the depth of
Severn. A man shall embrace a lion in wine, and the dazzling brightness of
gold shall blind the eyes of beholders. Silver shall whiten in the
circumference, and torment several wine presses. Men shall be drunk with
wine, and, regardless of heaven, shall be intent upon the earth. From them
shall the stars turn away their faces, and confound their usual course. Corn
will wither at their malign aspects; and there shall fall no dew from heaven.
The roots and branches will change their places, and the novelty of the
thing shall pass for a miracle. The brightness of the sun shall fade at the
amber of Mercury, and horror shall seize the beholders. Stilbon of Arcadia
shall change his shield; the helmet of Mars shall call Venus. The helmet of
Mars shall make a shadow; and the rage of Mercury pass his bounds. Iron
Orion shall unsheath his sword: the marine Phœbus shall torment the
clouds; Jupiter shall go out of his lawful paths; and Venus forsake her stated
lines. The malignity of the star Saturn shall fall down in rain, and slay
mankind with a crooked sickle. The twelve houses of the star shall lament
the irregular excursions of their guests; and Gemini omit their usual
embraces, and call the urn to the fountains. The scales of Libra shall hang
obliquely, till Aries puts his crooked horns under them. The tail of Scorpio
shall produce lightning, and Cancer quarrel with the Sun. Virgo shall mount
upon the back of Sagittarius, and darken her virgin flowers. The chariot of
the Moon shall disorder the zodiac, and the Pleiades break forth into
weeping. No offices of Janus shall hereafter return, but his gate being shut
shall lie hid in the chinks of Ariadne. The seas shall rise up in the twinkling
of an eye, and the dust of the ancients shall be restored. The winds shall
fight together with a dreadful blast, and their sound shall reach the stars."

BOOK VIII.

Chap. I.—Vortigern asks Merlin concerning his own death.

Merlin, by delivering these and many other prophecies, caused in all that
were present an admiration at the ambiguity of his expressions. But
Vortigern above all the rest both admired and applauded the wisdom, and
prophetical spirit of the young man: for that age had produced none that
ever talked in such a manner before him. Being therefore curious to learn
his own fate, he desired the young man to tell him what he knew concerning
that particular. Merlin answered:—"Fly the fire of the sons of Constantine,
if you are able to do it: already are they fitting out their ships: already are
they leaving the Armorican shore: already are they spreading out their sails
to the wind. They will steer towards Britain: they will invade the Saxon
nation: they will subdue that wicked people; but they will first burn you
being shut up in a tower. To your own ruin did you prove a traitor to their
father, and invite the Saxons into the island. You invited them for your
safeguard; but they came for a punishment to you. Two deaths instantly
threaten you; nor is it easy to determine, which you can best avoid. For on
the one hand the Saxons shall lay waste your country, and endeavour to kill
you: on the other shall arrive the two brothers, Aurelius Ambrosius and
Uther Pendragon, whose business will be to revenge their father's murder
upon you. Seek out some refuge if you can: to-morrow they will be on the
shore of Totness. The faces of the Saxons shall look red with blood, Hengist
shall be killed, and Aurelius Ambrosius shall be crowned. He shall bring
peace to the nation; he shall restore the churches; but shall die of poison.
His brother Uther Pendragon shall succeed him, whose days also shall be
cut short by poison. There shall be present at the commission of this treason
your own issue, whom the boar of Cornwall shall devour." Accordingly the
next day early, arrived Aurelius Ambrosius and his brother, with ten
thousand men.

Chap. II.—Aurelius Ambrosius, being anointed king of Britain,
burns Vortigern besieged in a tower.

As soon as the news of his coming was divulged, the Britons, who had been
dispersed by their great calamities, met together from all parts, and gaining
this new accession of strength from their countrymen, displayed unusual

vigour. Having assembled together the clergy, they anointed Aurelius king,
and paid him the customary homage. And when the people were urgent to
fall upon the Saxons, he dissuaded them from it, because his desire was to
pursue Vortigern first. For the treason committed against his father so very
much affected him, that he thought nothing done till that was first avenged.
In pursuance therefore of this design, he marched with his army into
Cambria, to the town of Genoreu, whither Vortigern had fled for refuge.
That town was in the country of Hergin, upon the river Gania, in the
mountain called Cloarius. As soon as Ambrosius was arrived there, bearing
in his mind the murder of his father and brother, he spake thus to Eldol,
duke of Gloucester.
"See, most noble duke, whether the walls of this city are able to protect
Vortigern against my sheathing this sword in his bowels. He deserves to die,
and you cannot, I suppose, be ignorant of his desert. Oh most villainous of
men, whose crimes deserve inexpressible tortures! First he betrayed my
father Constantine, who had delivered him and his country from the inroads
of the Picts; afterwards my brother Constans whom he made king on
purpose to destroy him. Again, when by his craft he had usurped the crown,
he introduced pagans among the natives, in order to abuse those who
continued stedfast in their loyalty to me: but by the good providence of
God, he unwarily fell into the snare, which he had laid for my faithful
subjects. For the Saxons, when they found him out in his wickedness, drove
him from the kingdom; for which nobody ought to be concerned. But this I
think matter of just grief, that this odious people, whom that detestable
traitor invited over, has expelled the nobility, laid waste a fruitful country,
destroyed the holy churches, and almost extinguished Christianity over the
whole kingdom. Now, therefore, my countrymen, show yourselves men;
first revenge yourselves upon him that was the occasion of all these
disasters; then let us turn our arms against our enemies, and free our
country from their brutish tyranny."
Immediately, therefore, they set their engines to work, and laboured to beat
down the walls. But at last, when all other attempts failed, they had
recourse to fire, which meeting with proper fuel ceased not to rage, till it
had burned down the tower and Vortigern in it.