The Holinshed Project

Holinshed Project Home

The Texts
1577

Previous | Next

Compare 1587 edition: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 The firſt expedition which he tooke in hande,He made an expedition in|to Fife. he made into Fyfe, to recouer that countrey to the crowne of Scotlande. At whoſe entrance into the ſame,The Picts fle [...] into Louthian the Pictes whom the Danes had left in thoſe parties at their departure thence, being ſtrikẽ with feare to fall into the handes of the Scottes their auncient enimies, fled forthwith into Lou|thian, leauing Fife in maner voyde, and without any that woulde offer to defende it agaynſt the Scottes:The king ſet inhabitants in Fife. whereupon Gregorie ſo finding it de|ſolate of inhabitants, he ſent for people out of o|ther partes of his Realme, appoynting them dwellings in that Countrey as hee thought moſt expedient. This done he paſſed into Louthian,He ſubdued Louthian. where taking the fortreſſes and places of defence, EEBO page image 193 ſome by force, and ſome by ſurrender, he eaſily re|duced that Countrey into his ſubiection, ſo that within a fewe dayes, hauing there all at his plea|ſure,The Danes & Pictes ioyne themſelues to|gither. he came vnto Barwike, where there were a great number of Danes ioyned togither with the Pictes, as men not mynding to flee any fur|ther, but to fight with the Scottes euen there, if they ſhould come forward vpon them. But when they ſaw what number the Scottes were of, and herewith doubting the Engliſh men to come on their backs if the matter went not well with thẽ, they thought it beſt yt ſuch Danes as were of any great reputation of Nobilitie ſhoulde withdraw into Barwike before the enimies were at hande,They fed into Northumber|lande. and the reſidue to paſſe ouer Tweede into Nor|thumberlande, there to ioyne with other Danes that in thoſe parties were lately arriued. But the Engliſhmen within Barwik abhorring nothing more than to be vnder ſubiection of the Danes,The Daniſh [...]b li [...]e fled into Barwike. in the euening after the receiuing of the Daniſh no|bles into theyr towne, deliuered it togither with their gueſtes vnto the Scottiſhmen, who ſuffring the Engliſh mẽ at their pleaſure either to go their wayes with all their goodes, or to remaine ſtill in their houſes,The Danes are ſlaine in Bar|wike. ſlue the Danes without ſparing ey|ther man, woman, or childe. Then leauing a ſtrong garriſon of Scottiſhmen within Barwik, Gregorie marched forth with the reſidue of hys people into Northumberlande, to vnite that coũ|trey to other of his dominions that bordered vpon the ſame. In thoſe parties at that ſelfe time there were two armies lodged in the fields, the one of Danes not farre from Yorke, vnder the leading of one Herdunt, who had lately taken and ſacked that Citie, and the other of Engliſh men that lay xx. miles off from the ſayd Danes. Herdunt hea|ring of the ſlaughter which the Scots had made of his countrey men at Barwike,Herdunt threatned the Scottes. threatned ſore that he would not leaue a man aliue of the Scot|tiſh race within any part of all the confines of Al|bion. Which vowe many of the companie follo|wing their Captaines example, likewiſe made. Shortly after hearing of their enimies approche,The Danes prepare to the battaile. the whole hoſt by commaundement of Herdunt iſſued forth of their campe to giue battaile. Here the Scottiſh king ſtanding with his people in or|der of battaile,The Scottes egrely inuade their enimies. had thought to haue vſed ſome cõ|fortable ſpeach vnto them, thereby to encourage them to fight, but ſuche haſt was made by the Scots to preaſe vpon their enimies, that he ſaw it more needfull to take heed to the ordering of them in perfect array, than to ſtand about to exhort thẽ, whome he ſaw readie ynough of theyr owne ac|cord to fight. Therfore he ſaid no more vnto thẽ, as he went amongſt the ranckes,King Gregory his ſaying to the ſouldiers. but only willed them to remember howe cruelly Conſtantine their king was ſometime murthered after he had yeelded himſelfe priſoner to theſe enimies, with whom they ſhould now ioyne. The Scots here|vpon running to the battaile with no leſſe ſtout|neſſe [figure appears here on page 193] of minde than violent force, gaue their eni|mies vneth ſpace to charge their weapõs, but bare them downe with long ſpeares and iauelins, and withall the Bilmen following them made great ſlaughter on eche ſide,The Danes fled to their campe. ſo that there needed neither exhortation of captaines, nor diligence of wit [...]ers to kepe them in aray. For the wrathfull ſtomacks of the ſouldiers only wrought the feat in ſuch ſort that the Danes were quickly put to flight & cha|ſed: thoſe that could not eſcape to the campe, got thẽ vnto the next mountaines, who chanced vpon better lucke than thoſe that eſcaped to the campe, for the egreneſſe of the Scots was ſuch in chaſing the enimies, that neither ditch nor rampire coulde ſtay them from entring the campe vpon ye Danes where they made greater ſlaughter than they had done in the field.Herdunt aſ|ſembled his men togither. The next day Herdunt goeth a|bout to aſſemble his men togither againe beeing EEBO page image 194 diſperſed here and there, but when he vnderſtoode how he had loſt the more halfe of his whole hoſt, he curſed that vnhappy day,Herdunt went toward Raſin, chief generall of the Danes in England. and determined to re|tire vnto Raſin, who as then was captain gene|rall of all the Danes that were in Englande: but Herdunt by reaſon of his wounded men, whom he was faine to carie with him, could not make for|ward with any great ſpeede, ſo that he was vneth xl. miles got forth on his way when word came to him, that Raſine fighting with the Engliſhe men vnwarely, at a place called Helcades, chaun|ced to be ſlaine with a great multitude of his peo|ple: and therevnto his head was caried abrode vp and downe the countrey from towne to towne to be ſeene. By ſuch miſhaps the proſperitie of the Danes ſo much flouriſhing of late, began nowe manifeſtly to decay.Herdunt re|mayned in campe. Herdunt although he was not a little diſcoraged herewith, yet he choſe forth a plot of ground moſt meet for his purpoſe, where he determined to remaine in campe till he might vnderſtand what the Danes in other places were minded to do. But Gregorie K. of Scots hauing thus expulſed the Danes forth of Northumber|land,King Gregory ſuffred the in|habitants of Northumber|land to inioy their landes brought that countrey vnder his ſubiection: neuertheleſſe he permitted the inhabitants to en|ioy all their poſſeſſions ſtill, only receyuing of thẽ in name of ſoueraintie a yearely tribute. So that within a few dayes after, he brake vp his armie, & went himſelf vnto Barwike,King Gregory wintered at Barwike. where he remayned all the winter ſeaſon in conſultation with his no|bles about the publike affayres of the realme. In the beginning of the next Sommer, he prepared againe for warre, and rayſing an armie, he purpo|ſed to make a iourney againſt the Brytains,King Gregory prepared an ar|mie againſt the Brytaines. who held as before ye haue herd) a great part of Scot|land. But he was not driuen to vſe any force in this warre, for the Brytaines being vexed afore this time with warre by the Danes, had cõpoun|ded with them for an huge ſumme of money to haue truce for .xx. yeares ſpace, but the Danes without regard to their promiſe, ſhortly after with a greater power than at the firſt, entred into the Brytiſh borders, renuing ye warre ſo fiercely, that notwithſtanding their force was ſore enfeebled, by reaſon of the two laſt mẽtioned ouerthrowes,The Brytaines ſend to king Gregorie. yet the Brytaines doubting the worſt, feared to encounter with them, and therfore after conſulta|tion had, they thought it beſt to aſſay if they might happely allure the Scottes of their enimies to be|come their friends. And herevpon ſending vnto the Scottiſh King an Heraulde, they requyre to ioyne with them in armes agaynſte the Danes, common enimies to both theyr Countreys, pre|miſing that if they woulde ſo doe, they woulde willingly ſurrender into his handes all ſuch poſ|ſeſſions which they helde at any time belonging vnto the Scottiſh kingdome.

Previous | Next