1.4. What ſundry Nations haue inhabited in this Iſlande. Cap. 3.

What ſundry Nations haue inhabited in this Iſlande. Cap. 3.

Compare 1587 edition: 1 AS fewe or no Nations can iuſtly boaſte themſelues to haue continued ſithence their countrie was firſt repleniſhed;No Nati|on voide of myxture, more or leſſe. wythout any myxture, more or leſſe, wyth other peo|ple, no more can this our Iſlande, whoſe ma|nifolde commodities haue oft allured ſundry Princes and famous captaynes of the world to conquere and ſubdue the ſame vnto theyr owne ſubiection. Many ſorts of people there|fore EEBO page image 11 haue comen hither and ſettled thẽſelues here in thys Iſle, and firſt of all other a per|cell of the image and poſteritie of Iapheth, brought in by Samothes in the 1910.Samothe|ans. after the creation of Adam. Howbeit in proceſſe of tyme, and after they had indifferently reple|nyſhed and furnyſhed this Iſlande with peo|ple (which was done in the ſpace of 335. yea|res) Albion the Gyaunt afore mencioned re|payred hither with a companye of his owne race procéeding from Cham, Chemmi|nites. and not onely ſubued the ſame to his owne dominion, but brought all ſuch in lyke ſort as he found here of the lyne of Iaphet, into miſerable ſerui|tude and thraldome. After hym alſo, and wythin leſſe than ſixe hundred yeares came Brute with a great traine of the poſteritie of the diſperſed Troianes in 324.Britaines ſhyppes: who rendring the lyke curteſie vnto the Chemmi|nites as they had done before vnto the ſéede of Iaphet, brought them alſo wholye vnder his rule and gouernaunce, and diuided the whole lande among ſuch Princes and Cap|taynes as he in his arriuall here had led out of Grecia with him.

Compare 1587 edition: 1 Romaines.From henceforth I doe not finde any ſound report of other natiõ, whatſoeuer that ſhuld aduenture hither to dwell, vntill the Romane Emperours ſubdued it to their dominion, ſa|uing of a fewe Galles; (and thoſe peraduen|ture of Belgie) who firſt comming ouer to robbe and pilfer vpon the coaſtes, did after|warde plant themſelues for altogither neare vnto the ſea, and there buylded ſundry cities and townes which they named after thoſe of the maine, from whence they came vnto vs. But after the comming of the Romaynes, it is harde to ſay with how many ſortes of peo|ple we were dayly peſtered, almoſt in euery ſtéede. For as they planted their forworne Legions in the moſt fertile places of the Realme, and where they might beſt lye for the ſafegarde of their conqueſtes: ſo their ar|mies did commonly conſiſt of many ſorts of people, and were as I may call them, a con|fuſed mixture of all other coũtries. Howbeit, I thinke it beſt, bicauſe they did all beare the tytle of Romaynes, to retayne onely that name for them all, albeit they were wofull gueſtes to this our Iſlande: ſith that wyth them came in all maner of vice and vicious liuing, all ryot and exceſſe of behauior, which their Legions brought hyther from eche cor|ner of their dominions, for there was no pro|uince vnder them from whence they had not ſeruitours.

Scottes Pictes.How and when the Scottes ſhould arriue here out of Irelande, and from whence the Pictes ſhoulde come vnto vs, as yet it is vn|certaine. For although their hiſtories doe ca|rie great countenance of their antiquitie and continuance in this Iſlande: yet (to ſay fréely what I thinke) I iudge them rather to haue ſtollẽ in hither, not much before the Saxons, than that they ſhould haue bene ſo long here, as from the one hundreth yeare after Chriſt. Reynulph Higden is of the opinion that the Pictes did come into this Iſland in the days of Seuerus, and that Fulgentius their cap|tayne was brother to Martia, the mother of Baſsianus. He addeth furthermore howe the Pictes forſooke Baſsianus, Li. 4. ca. [...] and held with Carauſius, who gaue thẽ a portion of Scot|lande to inhabite, and thus wryteth he. But if Herodian be well reade, you ſhal find that y^e Pictes were ſettled in thys Iſle, before the time of Seuerus, & yet not ſo ſoone as that Ta|cicus can make any mention of thẽ in the cõ|queſt that Agricola his father in law made of y^e North parts of this Iſland. Neyther doe I reade of the Scots or Pictes before the time of Antoninus Verus, in the begynning of whoſe thirde yere (which concurred with the xvij. of Lucius king of Britaine) they inuaded thys South part of the Iſle, and were redu|ced to obedience by Trebellius the Legate. Certes the tyme of Samothes and Albion haue ſome likely limitation, and ſo we maye gather of the cõming in of Brute. The voy|age that Caeſar made likewyſe is certainely knowne to fall out in the 54. before the birth of Chriſt. In lyke ſort that the Saxons arry|ued here in the 449. The Danes, and with them the Gothes, Vandales, Norwegians, &c. in the 791. Finally the Normans in 1066. And Flemminges in the tyme of Henry the firſt (although they came not in by conqueſt, but vppon their humble ſute had a place in Wales aſſigned them to inhabite in, by king Henry then reigning, after the drowning of their countrie) it is eaſie to be prooued.

But when the Pictes and Scottes ſhould enter, neither doe our hyſtories make any re|port, neyther their owne agrée among thẽ|ſelues by manye hundreth yeares. Where|fore as the tyme of their arriuall here is not to be founde out, ſo it ſhall ſuffice to gyue notice that they are but ſtrangers, and ſuch as by obſcure inuaſion haue neſtled in thys Iſlande.

Compare 1587 edition: 1 The Saxons became firſt acquainted with thys Iſle,Saxons by meanes of the pyracie which they daily practiſed vpon our coaſtes (after they had once begunne to aduenture themſel|ues alſo vpon the ſeas, thereby to ſéeke out more wealth then was nowe to begotten in theſe weſt partes of the mayne, which they & their neighbors had alreadie ſpoyled in moſt EEBO page image 3 lamentable and barbarous maner) howbeit they neuer durſt preſume to inhabite in this Iſland, vntill they were ſent for by Vortiger to ſerue him in his warres agaynſt y^e Pictes & Scottes, after that the Romaines had gi|uen vs ouer, & left vs wholy to our owne de|fence & regiment. Being therefore comen in thrée bottomes or kéeles, & in ſhort time eſpi|ing the ydle & negligent behauiour of y^e Bry|tons and fertilitie of our ſoyle, they were not a little inflamed to make a full conqueſt of ſuch as they came to ayde and ſuccour. Here|vpon alſo they fell by little and little to the winding in of greater nũbers of their coun|trymen with their wyues and children into this region, ſo that within a whyle they be|gan to moleſt the homelings (for ſo I finde y^e word Indigena, to be engliſhed in an old booke that I haue, wherin Aduena is tranſlated al|ſo an homeling) and ceaſed not from time to time to cõtinue their purpoſe, vntill they had gotten poſſeſſion of the whole, or at the leaſt|wiſe the greateſt part of our coũtry, the Bri|tons in the meane ſeaſon being driuen eyther into Wales & Cornewall, [...]n altogither out of the Iſlande to ſéeke newe inhabitations.

Compare 1587 edition: 1 2 Danes.In like maner the Danes (the next nation that ſuccéeded) came at the firſt onely to pil|fer & robbe vpon the frontiers of our Iſland, till that in the end being let in by the Welch|men or Brytons to reuenge them vpon the Saxons, they no leſſe plagued the one then the other, their friendes, then their aduerſa|ries, ſéeking by all meanes poſſible, to eſta|bliſh themſelues in the ſure poſſeſſiõ of Bry|tayne. But ſuch was their ſucceſſe, that they proſpered not long in their deuiſe, for ſo great was their lordlineſſe, their crueltie, and inſa|tiable deſire of riches, beſide their deteſtable abuſing of chaſt matrones, & young virgines (whoſe huſbandes and parentes were daily inforced to become their drudges and ſlaues whyleſt they ſate at home and fed like Drone bées of the ſwéet of their trauayle & labours) that God I ſay would not ſuffer thẽ to con|tinue any while ouer vs, but when he ſaw his time he remooued their yoke, and gaue vs li|bertie, as it were to breath vs, thereby to ſée whether this his ſharpe ſcourge coulde haue mooued vs to repentaunce and amendement of our lewde and ſinnefull liues, or not. But whẽ no ſigne therof appeared in our hearts, he called in an other nation to vexe vs [...] meane the Normans,The Nor|mans. a people of whom it is woorthily doubted, whether they were more harde and cruell to our countrymen then the Danes, or more heauye and intollerable to our Iſlande then the Saxons or Romaynes, yet ſuch was our lotte, in theſe dayes by the deuine appointed order, that we muſt néedes obey, ſuch as the Lorde dyd ſet ouer vs, & ſo much the rather, for that all power to reſiſte was vtterly taken from vs, and our armes made ſo weake and féeble, that they were not now able to remooue the importable loade of the Normanes from our ſurburdened ſhoul|ders: And this onely I ſay agayne, bycauſe we refuſed grace offred in time and woulde not heare when God by his Preachers did call vs ſo fauourably vnto him.

Compare 1587 edition: 1 Thus we ſée howe from time to time this Iſlande hath not onely bene a praye, but as it were a common receptacle for ſtraungers, the naturall homelinges being ſtill cut ſhor|ter and ſhorter, as I ſayde before, till in the ende they came not onely to be driuen into a corner of this region, but in tyme alſo verie like vtterly to haue ben extinguiſhed. For had not king Edward ſurnamed the ſainct in his time after grieuous warres, made vppon them (wherein Earle Harald, ſonne to Good|wine & after king of Englande was his ge|nerall) permitted the remnaunt of their wo|men to ioyne in maryage with the Engliſh|men (when the moſt part of their huſbandes & male children were ſlayne with the ſworde) it coulde not haue bene otherwyſe choſen, but their whole race muſt néedes haue ſuſtayned the vttermoſt confuſion, and thereby the me|morie of the Britons vtterly haue periſhed.