180. The

of St. Albans

Whenne the kyng herde of thayre commyng, they that were aboute hym counseyled hym to gadre a power for to wythestand theym, and enformed hym that they came for to dystroy hymme. Thenne lay the quene at Eglishale, and anone by hire stiryng the kyng assembled a grete power whereof the Lorde Audeley was chyef and had the ledyng of thaym, and wente forthe in to the felde called Blorehethe; by the whyche the sayde duk of York and the erl most nedes passe. And there bothe hostes mette and countred to gedre, and faught mortally. And there was the Lorde Audeley sleyne, and meny of the notable knyghtes and squyers of Chesshyre that had resceved the lyvery of the swannes; and there were take prysoners, the erlles two sones of Salisbury, Thomas and Johan, and Sir Thomas Haryngtone, and enprysoned in the castelle of Chestre; but sone after they were delyvered.

Two years after the events just described, the king being in the possession of the Yorkists, the second battle of St. Albans was fought. It went against the Yorkists, and the poor imbecile king fell into the hands of his wife and other friends. The cruel execution of captured opponents was characteristic of the times, but the harsh sentence put into the mouth of the ten-year-old prince by his mother, according to the following contemporary account, was extreme even then, and was believed at the time to be avenged when he was himself murdered after the battle of Tewkesbury, fought the next year.

When the earl of Warwick perceived that things were going second battle ill, he bethought him to seek the king, but he could not for the people who were fleeing. And thus the king was taken under a great oak, where he was laughing greatly at what had occurred, and he begged those who came to him that they should do no hurt to the person of Monsieur Kyriel, which they promised; but Lovelace, the disloyal traitor, led the king, Sir Thomas, and his son to the queen, who was right glad to meet the king. Then she spoke to Sir Thomas Kyriel and his son,

and called them traitors several times, to which the good knight replied: "Greatly redoubted lady, never have I thought nor done treason, neither has any ill reproach touched me; it would grieve me much if in my old age I were so reputed." At these words the queen looked at him very haughtily, and swearing by her allegiance to the king that she would be revenged, she called her son, the prince of Wales, and asked him, "Fair son, by what manner of death shall these knights die ?" And the young prince answered that their heads should be chopped off. Whereat answered Sir Thomas, saying, "May Execution of God punish whomsoever taught thee to speak thus." And Yorkist lords shortly afterwards their heads were cut off, which was great pity.

V. THE REIGNS OF EDWARD IV AND RICHARD III

Notwithstanding the unfavorable results of this battle, the duke of York pressed on to London, which was then being besieged by the Lancastrians, entered it, and laid claim to the throne, as described by John Whethamstede. His coronation soon followed.

(1461)

When these words had been spoken, surrounded by a great 181. Seizure number of people, Edward, duke of York, mounted his horse, of the throne by Edward IV and taking his way towards London, came there under lucky circumstances and without any hindrance on the eighth day after the battle of St. Albans. Arriving there and entering the city freely and without pay, he was received by all, as well by the mayor as by the aldermen, as well by the clergy as by every workman of the city. With the greatest rejoicings and delight he was led to the palace of the bishop, in which he delayed for several days. Daily he consulted and planned with the prelates in person, the nobility, and other solid and intelligent men what he himself should do to be more useful in carrying out their plans after they had been adopted. After the conclusion of this he hastened, on the fourth day of the month of March, to the royal palace of Westminster, and entering, advanced to the throne of the king erected there at the time of

York takes possession of

Palace

self on the

throne in

The duke of the parliament. Summoning an assembly there, he declared before all the people in a very fluent speech, the claim vested Westminster in his own person, his birth, his title, as well as his right to the name and government of the kingdom. After assuming it for himself in the two ways, as well in the name of king as in the command of the kingdom, he hastened on to the church of the He seats him monks, where he was received by the abbot and the brethren with the bestowal of the royal scepter and other ornaments. Then he was conducted through the middle of the choir to the high altar, thence to the shrine; then after the customary sacrifice had been offered before each place, he returned again to the choir; then after looking again at the throne erected for the royal person, he ascended it, and, seating himself, declared again the source of his claim so clearly, distinctly, and openly that all were better able to understand how he was the true heir of the kingdom, and how the management of this kingdom ought to come to him by law.

Westminster

Abbey

182. The invention of benevolences

(1473)

Edward introduced more thrifty financial methods into the government than had been used before. The following are two instances described in Fabyan's Chronicle.

This year this king, intending to make a voyage over sea into France, called before him his lords severally, both spiritual and temporal, to know their good minds, what of their free wills they would aid and give him toward the said voyage. And after he had so known their good disposition toward him, he then sent for the mayor of London and his brethren the aldermen and them severally examined and exhorted to aid and assist him toward the said journey, of which the mayor for his part granted £30, and of the aldermen some 20 marks, and the least £10. And that done, he sent for all the trusty commoners within the said city, and them exhorted in like manner, which for the more part granted to him half the wages of a man for a year, the which amounted to £4 11s. 4d. And after that he rode about the greater part of the land, and used the people in such fair manner that he raised thereby notable sums of money, the which way of the levying of his money was after named a benevolence.

cial arrange

He resumed possession of nearly all the royal estates, re- 183. Edward's gardless of those to whom they had been granted, and applied shrewd finanthe whole thereof to the support of the expenses of the crown. ments Throughout all the ports of the kingdom he appointed inspectors of the customs, men of remarkable shrewdness, but too hard, according to general report, upon the merchants. The king himself, also, having procured merchant ships, loaded them with the finest wool, cloth, tin, and other products, and, like a private individual living by trade, bartered his merchandise with both Italians and Greeks through his agents. The revenues of vacant prelacies, which, according to Magna Carta, cannot be sold, he would only part with at a stated sum, and on no other terms whatever. He also examined the register and rolls of Chancery, and exacted heavy fines from those whom he found to have entered into possession of their estates without prosecuting their rights in legal form, by way of return for the rents which they had meanwhile received; added to which he had a yearly payment of £10,000 from France, and numerous tenths from the clergy. Thus in a few years he became an extremely wealthy prince.

One of the first pieces of English historical writing of a modern character was Sir Thomas More's Historie of Kynge Richarde the Thirde, from which the following extracts are taken.

of Richard

III

Whereupon sone after, that is on the Friday the 13 day 184. History of June, many lordes assembled in the Tower, and there sat in counsaile, devising the honorable solempnite of the kinges coronacion, of which the time appointed then so nere approched, that the pageauntes and suttelties were in making day and night at Westminster, and much vitaile killed therfore, that afterward was cast away. These lordes so sytting togyther comoning of thys matter, the protectour came in among them, fyrst aboute nine of the clock, saluting them curtesly, and excusying hymself that he had ben from them so long, saieng merely that he had bene a slepe that day. And after a little talking with them, he sayd unto the bishop of

Elye: My lord, you have very good strawberies at your gardayne in Holberne; I require you let us have a messe of them. Gladly my lord, quod he; woulde God I had some better thing as redy to your pleasure as that. And therwith in al the hast Richard's he sent hys servant for a messe of strauberies. The protectour pretense of sette the lordes fast in comoning, and therupon prayeng them anger to spare hym for a little while departed thence. And sone, after one hower, betwene ten and eleven he returned into the chamber among them, al changed, with a wonderful soure angrye countenaunce, knitting the browes, frowning and froting and knawing on hys lippes, and so sat him downe in hys place; al the lordes much dismaied and sore merveiling of this maner of sodain chaunge, and what thing should him aile. Then when he had sitten still awhile, thus he began; What were they worthy to have, that compasse and ymagine the distruccion of me, being so nere of blood unto the king and protectour of his riall person and his realme? At this question, al the lordes sat sore astonied, musyng much by whome thys question should be ment, of which every man wyst himselfe clere. Then the lord chamberlen, as he that for the love betwene them thoughte he might be boldest with him, aunswered and sayd, that thei wer worthye to bee punished as heighnous traitors, whatsoever they were. And al the other affirmed the same. That is (quod he) yonder sorceres my brother's wife and other with her, meaning the quene. At these wordes many of the other lordes were gretly abashed that favoured her. But the lord Hastinges was in his minde better content, that it was moved by her, then by any other whom he loved better. Albeit hys harte somewhat grudged, that he was not afore made of counsell in this mater, as he was of the taking of her kynred, and of their putting to death, which were by his assent before devised to bee byhedded at Pountfreit, this selfe same day, in which he was not ware that it was by other devised, that himself should the same day be behedded at London. Then said the protectour : ye shal al se in what wise that sorceres and that other witch of her counsel, Shoris wife, with their affynite, have by their sorcery and witchcraft wasted my body. And therwith he plucked up hys doublet sleve to his elbow upon his left arme,