Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden maonachi Cestrensis; together with the English translations of John Trevisa and of an unknown writer of the fifteenth century.

Capitulum vicesimum primum.

Hardeknute comynge to Engelond, regned þre yere. Never|þeles he dede noþing þat was worþy of lovynge of fame; for why also sone he sente away Alfricus archebisshop of ȝork wiþ Godewyn bisshop of Londoun; he made þe body of

kyng Harold newely i-buried in vengeaunce of his modir wronges, and þe heved i-kutte of to be cast into Tempse; but fisshers fyndynge his body, ȝaf it to covenable sepulture. Also Hardeknute, of the unportable tribute of Engelond, made viii. marc to be paide to every steresman of his navy; alle þe governaunce of his reme commytted he to þe counseil of his modir and Goodwyn. Þis kyng whiles he put a tribut to Eng|lisshe men þat myȝte nouȝt be borne, two [to MS.] mynystres of þe kyng for þat erand were slayn at Worcestre, for whiche cause þe citee was destroyed and brend. Willelmus de Regibus, libro 2^o. Also þis kyng coupled to Henry emperour Gonnyld his suster, a ful faire womman i-getten of Canute and Emme, de|sired moche of many gentiles in his moder tyme, bot not i-graunted ne geten; whiche was longtyme after accused of avow|trye; sche putte hir nurri, whiche sche had brouȝt with hir out of Engelond, for to fiȝte aȝenst þe accuser, a man of ageantȝ mochilnesse, whiche þoruȝ Goddes grace, þe hamme i-kut and hoxened, overcome þe accusour. Guynuld glad for þat, and gaf to hire housbonde a perpetuel dyvorsynge and forsakynge, ne for no prayere assented to her housbonde halsynges, but took þe holy veyle. Henricus, libro 6^o, et Marianus. In þe tyme of þis Hardeknute, Alfrede and Edward, þe sones of Egelrede

somtyme and of Emmes, after longe dwellynge in Normandie, i-taken many knyȝtes of Normandie, come to Wynchestre to speke wiþ þer moder. Godwyne þynkynge byfore for to marie his douȝter to Edward, as to þe ȝonge and þe more symple, and þat Alfrede wolde sette suche weddynge at litel, schewed to þe gentiles of Engelond, þat it was nouȝt siker if any man under colour and geting of kynrede schulde brynge so greet plente of straungers and deceyvable folk, wherfore it byhoved hem þat were i-comen be punsched. Þerfore at Gildeforde he slew sixe hondred men, ffor why of the Nor|mandes þat war i-brouȝt þider nyne evermore i-heveded þe tenþe abood; but ȝit when hym þouȝte þat þere was lefte to manye, he made ȝit þe tenþe parte to be tiþed, of þe whiche he made þe firste endes of her bowels to be festned to stakes reised up, and þanne þe bodies for to be led aboute unto þe laste of þaire entreilles were drawen out. Alfridus forsoþe after his blyndynge sent unto Hely liffed over but fewe dayes. Þis þing i-herd, Emme sent hastily Edward hir sone to Normandie. Godwyne forsoþe, blamed aftirward of þe kyng Hardeknute and þe gentiles of þise þinges, swore þat he didde nevere suche þinges, bot constreyned by þe force of kyng Harold. Þe em|perour Conrade þe firste deide, succeded Henry þe secounde,

his sone-in-lawe, of whom above and wiþynne ben red wonder|ful þinges, and he regnede seventene yere, forsoþe he gaf to pore folk. [The scribe has made some omission here. See Harl. below.] Willelmus de Regibus, libro 2^o. He also hadde a suster a nonne, and he loved hire so moche þat unneþe any tyme wolde he suffre hir be fro his side; wherfore whiles uppon a nyght a clerk of þe court hadde i-sleped wiþ hire unto þe mornynge, and snow had covered al þe erþe, by counseil avised atwixe hem, þe clerk made hire for to bere hym on hir bak out of þe court, whiche þe kyng sawe out at a wyndowe whiles he rose for to pisse. He hilde hym stille unto þe tyme þat a bisshopriche was vacant, and þan he seide unto þe clerk þus: "Take þis bisshopriche, and loke þat over þis tyme þou ride not on a wommans bak." And eftsones an abbey of nonnes vacant, he seide to his suster, "Take þis abbay, [Bis in MS.] take þis abbay, and loke þat þou bere nevere no clerk rydynge." Þey forsoþe taken absteyned þaym ever aftirward. Also þe emperour comynge ones on þe Sonday of Quynquagesme to a chapel beside þe forest, þat he myȝte prively here a masse, where a foule and unschaply preost mynistred, þe kyng forsoþe marveilled why God, þat was so

faire, wolde suffre his creature, þat was so foule, for to trete and handele his sacramentes; when forsoþe it was comen toward þe tracte in whiche it is songen, Scitote quoniam Dominus ipse est Deus,—þat is, "Wete ȝe oure Lord hym self is God," þe preost, as it ware blamynge þe dulnes and sleuþe of his clerk, byholdynge to þe emperour, seide, Ipse fecit nos, et non ipsi nos,—þat is, "He made us, and nouȝt we oureself." Þe whiche i-seide, þe emperour i-smyten aȝen promoted hym sone into a bisshop; whiche honested with worþy maneres his place and his degre. For why he parted and dissevered a riche man þat hadde ladde away a nonne from hir, [Sic in MS.] and restored here aȝen to hir abbay. Bot afterward þe same man fallynge aȝen, he cursed hym and alle þo þat comuned with him; he forsoþe dwellynge so in his gardyne unto his laste infirmite, prayed þe bisshop þat he wolde assoyle hym. To whome he answerde, "If þat cursed man leve þat cursed woman, assoilede be he; and if he wil nouȝt, þis day twelf|monþe, what houre I die, he schal die, and answere byfore hiȝe God of his dede:" whiche þing was i-doo; for why suche a day þe ȝere overtorned þey boþe deide. The same kyng hadde in his chapel a clerk passing in konnynge of lettrure and semelynes of voyce, but travailled wiþ freeltee of flesche, whome þe emperour in a solempne day commaunded to rede þe gospel, but he refused it, for in þe nyȝt byfore he

viled hym self with a comoun womman. "Þan," seide þe emperoure, "ouþer rede it, or forsake my lond." Also sone his bagges and harneys i-gadred to gidre, he made hym redy for to goo, þe emperour forsoþe commaunded to his mynistres þat prively sche [Sic in MS.] schulde folwe hym, and if he wente away þat þey schulde calle hym aȝen; whiche whiles it was i-done þe kyng seide unto hym, "I am glad of þy stedfastnesse, þat þu settest more by þe drede of God þan be my lond and my contre, and more reward of hevenly wreþþe þan of my manassynges, þerfore leve þat wode love þat þou labourest with, and I schal make the a bisshop." Also þis Henry whan he was in þe court of Conrad, he took fro a clerk a silver pipe, as childre be wont to playe wiþ, for the whiche he hiȝt to þe clerk by covenant a bisshopriche whan he were emperour; at þe laste, whan he was emperor, þe þing þat was somtyme hiȝt was asked and graunted. Sone after þe emperour was i-smyte with a grevous seeknes, so þat adaies he felt noþing ne tasted. At þe laste, after þe prayers of good men þat stood beside he i-quykned aȝen, called to hym þe clerk þat was so promoted, and þoruȝ sentence of counseile he made hym be deposed. He knowleched forsoþe þat by þe space of þo þre dayes he was dissesed of þe develes, whiche kest on hym þoruȝ myddes of þat pipe most brennynge flamme, in reward of whiche flamme

oure fire is but lewk. Bot a ȝong man comynge to hym wiþ a chalice of gold filled ful of water, with sprinkelynge of þe water quenched þoo brennynges. Þat ȝong man, he seide, was seint Laurence, whos chirche dissolved and lowsed þoruȝ longe rotnes he reparailde and made aȝen, and ȝaf a chalys. Martinus. In tyme of þis Henry, so moche scismacye was in þe chirche of Rome, þat þre men were chosen popes, for why a preost, Gracianus by name, gat þe popehode for money i-giffen; bote þogh al þis Gracianus by name profred a crowne of golde to þis Henry comynge to Rome for to cese þe cismacie, neverþeles he was convicte of symonye and deposed, and anoþer i-ordeyned and underput. Also in þe dayes of þis emperour was i-founde at Rome þe body of Pallantes, unroten and incorupt, wiþ openynge and gapynge of a wounde of foure feet and an half, his body overcomen þe heiȝt of þe wal; at his heved was a lanterne unquenchable, þat myȝt nouȝt be quenched nouþer wiþ wynde ne wiþ none moysture ne wetnes, unto þe tyme þat a litel hole y-made under þe flamme þe eyer entred in. His epithphy [Sic in MS.] —þat is, writynge on his grave—helde þese two vers: Filius Evandri Pallas, quem lancea Turni militis [militus, MS.] occidit, more suo jacet hic;—þat is, "Pallas Evandre sone, [sone] bis in MS.] whom knyȝte Turnus spere slew, lieth here on his manere." Willelmus de Regibus, libro 2^o. I trowe þat þise vers was nouȝt made þan whenne þis geaunt was i-buryed, þouȝ alle Carment, Evandre modir, fonde first Latines lettres; bot raþer I trowe þat þey were i-made aftirward, of Ennyo or som oþer poete. And in

processe of tyme þat body y-wette wiþ dewy droppes knowe þe comoun corrupcioun of dedly men, þe snowe [Sic in MS.; lege senowe.] folwynge and þe skyn y-loused.