10.38. The king returneth homewards through Westwales, and of the speaking stone at saint Dauids. Chap. 38.

The king returneth homewards through Westwales, and of the speaking stone at saint Dauids. Chap. 38.

Compare 1577 edition: 1 THe king being minded and determined to returne into England, set his realme of Ireland in good order, and left Hugh de Lacie (vnto whom he had giuen in f [...]e the countrie of Meth) with twentie gentlemen, & Fitz stephans & Maurice Fitzgerald with twentie other gentlemen, to be wardens and conestables of Dub|lin. Likewise he left Humfreie de Bohune, Robert Fitzbarnard, and Hugh de Gundeu [...]le, with twen|tie gentlemen, to kéepe and gouerne Waterford. Al|so he left William Fitzaldelme, Philip of Hastings, and Philip de Bruse, to be gouernors and rulers of Wexford: they hauing also twentie gentlemen of seruice appointed vnto them. And on the mondaie in the Easter wéeke, earlie in the morning at the sunne rising, he tooke shipping without the barre of Wex|ford; and the wind being westerlie and blowing a good gale, he had a verie good passage, and arriued a|bout the noonetide of the same daie vnto the ba [...]e of saint Dauids: where he being set on land, he went on foot with a staffe in his hand in pilgrimage, and in great deuotion vnto the church of saint Dauids; whom the cleargie in procession met at the gate cal|led the white gate, and with great honour receiued him. And as they were going verie orderlie and so|lemnlie in procession, there came vnto him a Welsh or a Camber woman; and falling downe at his feet, she made a great complaint against the bishop of that place: which being by an interpretor declared vnto the king, albeit he vnderstood it well, yet he gaue hir no answer.

She thinking that hir sute was not regarded, did wring hir fists, and cried out with a lowd voice; Re|uenge vs this day O Lechlanar, Reuenge vs I say, our kindred, and our nation, from this man. And be|ing willed by the people of that countrie, who vnder|stood hir speach, to hold hir peace, as also did thrust hir out of the companie; she cried the more, trusting and alluding to a certeine blind prophesie of Merlin, which was; that The king of England the conqueror A prophesie of Merlin. of Ireland, should be wounded in Ireland by a man with a red hand, and in his returning homewards through Southwales should die vpon Lechlanar. This (1) Lechlanar was the name of a certeine great stone which laie ouer a brooke, which fléeteth or run|neth on the north side of the churchyard, and was a bridge ouer the same: and by reason of the often and continuall going of the people ouer it, it was verie smooth and slipperie. In length it was of ten foot, in breadth six foot, and in thicknesse one foot. And this word Lechlanar, in the Camber or Welsh [...]oong, is to saie, The speaking stone. For it was an old blind A speaking stone. saieng among the people in that countrie, that on a time there was a dead corps caried ouer that stone to be buried, and the said stone spake, and foorthwith brake and claue asunder in the middle, and which cli [...] so remaineth vnto this daie. And there vpon the peo|ple of that countrie, of a verie vaine and barbarous superstition, haue not since, nor yet will carie anie more dead bodies ouer the same.

The king being come to this stone, and hearing of this prophesie, paused and staied a little while; and then vpon a sudden, verie [...] he went ouer it: which doone, he looked backe vpon the stone, and spake somewhat sharpelie, saieng: Who is he that will be|leeue that lieng Merlin anie more? A man of that place standing thereby, and séeing what had happe|ned, he to excuse Merlin, said with a lowd voice; Thou EEBO page image 25 art not he that shall conquer Ireland, neither dooth Merlin meane it of thée. The king then went into the cathedrall church which was dedicated to saint An|drew and to saint Dauid: and hauing made his prai|ers, and heard diuine seruice, he went to supper, and rode after to Hauerford west to bed, which is about twelue miles from thense.

(1) The writer hereof (of verie purpose) in the yeare 1575, went to the foresaid place to sée the said stone, but there was no such to be found; and the place where the said stone was said to lie, is now an ar|ched bridge, vnder which fléeteth the brooke aforesaid, which brooke dooth not diuide the churchyard from the church, but the churchyard [...] church from the bishops and prebèndaries houses, which houses in times past were verie faire and good hospitalitie kept therein. But as the most part of honses are fallen down and altogither ruinons, so the hospitalitie is also there|with decaied. And for the veritie of the foresaid stone, there is no certeintie affirmed, but a report is remaining amongst the common people of such a stone to haue béene there in times past.

10.39. The submission of king Henrie to the pope, and his reconciliation, as also the agreement betweene him and the French king. Chap. 39.

The submission of king Henrie to the pope, and his reconciliation, as also the agreement betweene him and the French king. Chap. 39.

THe king then tooke his iornie from Ha|uerford homewards along by the sea side, euen the same waie as before he came thi|ther; and foorthwith in all hast he taketh shipping, and sailed into Normandie: and immediat|lie vnderstanding where the popes legats were, he repaired vnto them, and presented himselfe in most humble maner before them. Where & before whome after sundrie altercations passed to and fro betwéene them, he purged himselfe by his oth, that he was gilt|lesse of the death of the archbishop Thomas: neuer|theles he was contented to doo the penance inioined him. For although he did not kill, nor yet know, nor consent to the murthering of him, yet he denied not but that the same was doone for his (1) sake. The am|bassadors & legats hauing thus ended with the king, with much honour returned backe, and homewards to Rome. And then the king trauelled and went to the marches of France, there to talke and haue con|ference with Lewes the French king, betweene whome then was discord and debate. But after sun|drie speeches past betweene them, at length by the meanes and intercession of sundrie good men, and especiallie of Philip earle of Flanders (who was but then returned from Compostella, where he had bene in pilgrimage vnto saint Iames) the same was en|ded; and the displeasure which he had conceiued about and for the death of the archbishop of Canturburie was clerelie released. And by these means, the great malice and secret conspiracies of his sonnes and their confederats was for this time suppressed and quailed, and so continued vntill the yeare following.

(1) They which doo write and intreat of the life and death of this archbishop, doo affirme that the king af|ter the death of this man, did send his ambassadors to pope Alexander at Rome, to purge himselfe of this fact. And notwithstanding that he tooke a corporall oth, that he neither did it nor caused it to be doone, nor yet gaue anie consent, or was priuie thereof, nor yet was giltie in anie respect, sauing that he confessed he did not so well fauour the bishop as he had doone in times past: yet could not his ambassadors be admit|ted to the presence and sight of the pope, vntill he had yéelded himselfe to his arbitrement and iudgement: which was that he should doo certeine penance, as al|so to performe certeine iniunctions which were as followeth. That the king at his proper costs and char|ges Iniunctions by the pope to the king of England. should kéepe and susteine two hundred souldiers for one whole yeare, to defend the holie land against the Turke. That he should permit, and that it should be lawfull to all his subiects as often as them listed to appeale to the sée of Rome. That none should be ac|counted thensefoorth to be lawfull king of England, vntill such time as he were confirmed by the Roman bishop. That he should restore to the church of Can|turburie all such goods and possessions as were taken and deteined from the same since the death of the archbishop. That he should suffer all such people as were fled or banished out of the realme for his sake, to returne home without delaie or let, and to inioy and haue againe all such goods and lands whatsoeuer they had before. Other things this Romish anti|christ did demand, and which the king was compelled to grant vnto before he could be released: whereby it dooth appeare how much they doo varie from the cal|ling of Christs apostles; and how that (contrarie to the rule of the gospell) their onelie indeuour was to make and haue princes and kingdoms subiect to their becke and tyrannie.

10.40. The vision which appeared vnto the king at his being at Cardiffe. Chap. 40.

The vision which appeared vnto the king at his being at Cardiffe. Chap. 40.

BUt before we doo proceed anie further, it were not amisse to declare what happened and befell vnto the king in his returning through Wales, after his comming from Ireland. In his iourneie he came to the towne of Cardiffe on the saturdaie in the Easter wéeke, and lodged there all that night. On the morrow being sundaie, and commonlie called little Easter daie or Low sundaie, he went somewhat earlie to the cha|pell of saint Perian, and there heard diuine seruice, but he staied there in his secret praiers behind all his companie, somewhat longer than he was woont to doo: at length he came out, and leaping to his horsse, there stood before him one hauing before him a stake, or a post pitched in the ground. He was of colour somewhat yellowish, his head rounded and a leane face, of stature somewhat high, and aged about fortie yeares; his apparell was white, being close & downe to the ground, he was girded about the middle, and bare footed. This man spake to the king in Dutch, sai|eng; God saue thée O king, and then said thus vnto him: Christ and his mother Marie, Iohn baptist, and Peter the apostle doo salute thée: and doo strictlie charge and command thee, that thou doo forbid, that hensefoorth throughout all thy kingdome and domi|ons, there be no faires nor markets kept in anie place vpon the sundaies: and that vpon those daies no maner or person doo anie bodilie worke, but one|lie to serue God, sauing such as be appointed to dresse the meat. If thou wilt thus doo, all that thou shalt take in hand shall prosper, and thy selfe shalt haue a happie life. The king then spake in French to the gentleman, who held his horsse by the bridle, and whose name was Philip Mertros, a man borne in those parts, and who told me this tale: Aske him whe|ther he dreame or not. Which when he had so doone, the man looking vpon the king said: Whether I dreame or not, marke well and remember what daie this is: for if thou doo not this, and speedilie amend thy wicked life, thou shalt before the yeare come a|bout heare such euill news of those things which thou EEBO page image 26 louest best, and thou shalt be so much vnquieted ther|with, that thou shalt not find anie ease or end vntill thy dieng daie. With this word the king put spur to the horsse and rode awaie towards the towne gate, which was at hand: but thinking vpon the words a|reigned his horsse and said; Call me yonder fellow againe. Wherevpon the foresaid gentleman as also one William, which two were onelie then atten|ding vpon him, first called and then sought him in the chappell, and finding him not there, sought him throughout the court, the towne, and in all the Ins, but could not find him. The king being verie sad and sorie that he had not throughlie talked with the man, went abroad himselfe to seeke him, but finding him not, called for his horsses and rode from thence by Rempinbridge to Newberie. And as this man had before threatned and said, it so came to passe before the yeare was ended: for his eldest sonne Henrie, and his two yoonger sonnes Richard earle of Aqui|taine, and Geffreie erle of Britaine, in the Lent fol|lowing forsooke and shroonke from him, and went to Lewes the French king. Whereof grew and insued vnto him such vexation and vnquietnesse, as he had neuer the like before, and which by one means and o|ther neuer left him vntill his dieng daie. And suerlie it was thought the same by Gods iust iudgement so befell vnto him: for as he had béene and was a diso|bedient sonne to his spirituall father, so his carnall sonnes should be disobedient and rebellious against their carnall father. Manie such forewarnings the king had by Gods mercie and goodnesse sent vnto him before his death, to the end he should repent and be conuerted, and not be condemned: which would to God that euerie prince and other man did not fro|wardlie and obstinatlie condemne, but rather with an humble and a penitent heart they would (as they ought to doo) receiue and imbrace the same! And therefore I haue and mind to write more at large in my booke, concerning the instruction and institu|tion of a christian prince.