Carlisle, dared to speak fearlessly and bitterly of the usurpation. This bold prelate was instantly seized and committed to the Tower. The vote being taken, it was resolved without a negative that the throne was vacant. Eight nobles rose, and proceeding to the daïs, declared Richard degraded from the dignity of royalty. Then for the first time the Duke of Lancas ter stood up amid deep silence, the whole assembly rising in deference to his authority. He solemnly made the sign of the cross, and, after a moment of deliberation, distinctly and calmly spoke: "In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. I, Henry, Duke of Lancaster, Duke of Hereford, and Earl of Derby, do challenge this realm of England, on three grounds. First, that I am descended by the right line of blood from the good King Henry the Third, inasmuch as my ancestor, Edmund, Duke of Lancaster, was the eldest son, hence entitled to the throne. Secondly, that I have conquered the realm, and that by the will of the people thereof. Thirdly, that Richard of Bordeaux hath freely resigned the crown into my hands. I therefore conjure you, my lords, knights, and gentlemen, to pronounce your opinion and will upon this my claim."

The response was unanimously favorable to his pretensions. The Primate advanced, and taking Henry by the hand, brought him to the foot of the throne. The Duke knelt a moment in prayer, arose, and, placing Richard's signet upon his finger, seated himself beneath the royal canopy. The throne was so elevated that all could see him; and when he did this certain act of sovereignty, the applause was loud and prolonged. Archbishop Arundel, as soon as order was restored in the excited assemblage, harangued

them with a disquisition on the virtues of their new ruler. Henry followed briefly and to the point: "Sirs, I thank God, and you, and all the estates of the land. I would have you think that I should disinherit no man but for the good of this realm. I will try to rule justly-as a father over children, rather than as a king over subjects."

The Parliament was then dissolved. Its members were summoned to a new Parliament in six days. Henry named his officers of state, and received their oaths of allegiance. The ceremonies at Westminster being at an end, the new King, whilst heralds in gorgeous array proclaimed HENRY THE FOURTHI from every elevation, and the acclamations of the people resounded along the narrow streets through the city, went in royal state to the palace of his ancestors. As the deserted and stricken Richard stood at his window in the Tower, he saw streams of soldiers and people in vast confusion filling the streets beneath, and the iron entered his heart as the cry, "Long live our gracious King Henry!" assailed his ears from every quarter, and drove the last hope from his breast.

Thus the House of Lancaster was elevated to the sovereignty of England, by the consent of the people and of Parliament, peacefully, by a revolution as quiet and bloodless as that which ushered in William of Orange three centuries later. There can be no doubt that the usurpation of Henry was pleasing to the nation. The contrast between his character and that of Richard made him more beloved than he would otherwise have been, and Richard more hated. The new monarch represented, too, an element theretofore foreign-a popular choice. It was the first time that Englishmen had had a voice in designating the pos

sessor of the crown. The hereditary succession was interrupted by that new and startling power-popular election. It was the will of the people that Richard should be deposed, that Lancaster should reign. By their aid Henry made the bloodless conquest, and their representatives placed the crown upon his head. Through the concurrence of both estates, the popular estate and the baronial estate, Henry was able to begin his reign without constitutional opposi tion, almost unchecked by a single dissenting voice.

We will now proceed to ascertain how the new prince used this power, and in what manner he suc ceeded in establishing his descendants upon the throne. We shall find the same ambitions, rivalries, jealousies, heroisms, and treasons filling the record, that universally appeared to sway the fate of the nations in the middle ages. We shall find the courageous and moderate Bolingbroke subject to many of the tempta tions which beset royalty, and attacked by the fury of feudal audacity as his predecessors had been. But, if we mistake not, we shall see through this short and pregnant reign, a spirit worthy of a descent from Edward the Great, moving the destiny of England, and sustaining the royal dignity with a constant vigor and watchfulness such as is rare among those who are born to reign.

CHAPTER III.

"O majesty!

When thou dost pinch thy bearer, thou dost sit

Like a rich armor, worne in heat of day,

That scalds with safety."

THE REIGN OF KING HENRY THE FOURTH, SURNAMED BOLING. BROKE.

THIS prince, who by so peaceful, and yet so complete a revolution, had placed the crown upon his own head, was no ordinary man. The most salient features of his character are not to be inferred from those qualities which are usually most conspicuous in those who have successfully usurped and revolutionized kingdoms. In some respects he was ill-fitted to be the leader of an insurrection; but where he was wanting, circumstances rendered the deficiency no obstacle to his triumph. In other respects he was far more capable than the leaders of popular disquiet are apt to be; for, as he afterward proved, he knew the wisdom of moderation, he forgot to revenge personal enmities when his enemies became his subjects, and, it seems, he had learned the art of governing well. He was far superior to most princes of that age, both in culture of mind, and in habits of thought and study. His nature was a contemplative one; it was also a religious one. From early boyhood he had been precocious as a student both of languages and of theol

ogy. But, while he was engaging himself in pursuits so well fitted to refine his intellect, he was constantly mingling in the vivid activity of the royal court, listening to the debates of the King's councillors, drinking in from his father's lips the narratives of heroic valor and the achievements of armies, taking a hearty share in the varied festivities and the stately pageants of the palace, and partaking with intense interest in those exercises which strengthened his sinews, and prepared him to imitate, in due time, the ambitious designs for which his ancestors had so long been famous. He was thus, in his youth, both quiet and active. He sought to take advantage of each opportunity which his high position opened to him. Always temperate and abstemious, he yet joined in the gay excitements which surrounded him; and while he refused to give way to excess, enlivened by his cheerful disposition, and gave a higher tone to the conversation by the elegant learning of which he had become possessed. He had in no common degree that facility of temperament by which he could turn with ease from the grave topics of sober contemplation, to the world which bustled so gayly and so boisterously around him, taking part in each with equal zest.

When he grew to manhood, he was at once one of the most popular and one of the most highly respected of the nobility. John of Gaunt frequently took him into his counsel, and learned to pay that defer ence to his son's suggestions which would have honored older men. The aim of Henry continued, to improve himself in every direction. He observed with a critical eye the events which were being enacted before him. He read carefully both the history and the traditions of England. He weighed the characters