The chronicle of Iohn Hardyng. Containing an account of public transactions from the earliest period of English history to the beginning of the reign of King Edward the Fourth. Together with the continuation by Richard Grafton, to the thirty fourth year of King Henry the Eighth. The former part collated with two manuscripts of the author's own time; the last, with Grafton's duplicate edition. To which are added a biographical and literary preface, and an index, by Henry Ellis.

The. lxvii. Chapiter.

¶ Howe Vortiger, kynge of Britayne, reigned. xviii. yere, through his falshed and treason cōspired with Peightes to slea his kyng. And howe Engist and Horsus, paiens, landed in Kent, and were beloued with Vortiger. And how Wednisdaye and Frydaye had name, and what goddes and goddisses they honoured. Howe and when Engist and Horsus lāded in Kēte, & made Thoncastre & Horne Castre in the coūtre of Lyncolne. & howe Engist sent for his doughter, & maried her to kyng Vortiger, and brought in with her greate multitude of paiens, that accombred all the realme both of warre & of Christen fayth, wherfore the Britons crowned the kynges sonne.

THis Vortiger thē crowned kyng of might, [Vortiger, kynge of Britayn, reygned. xviii. yeres.] The Peightes [Pictes.] and Scottes for he there kyng [kyn.] so kylled, They sclaundred hym, that [mikell good] [right grete goodes.] he hight, Vnto Peightes [his Pictes.] , [the kyng haue slayn] [that Constance slew and.] and spilled, By suche treason his will they so fulfilled; And after, by his preuy ordinaunce, He made thesame be slayne, for thesame chaunce.

¶ For whiche they aroose [rose.] on hym to been auēged, With ful great hoste destroyed [destroyinge.] both corn & towne,

And brent his [the.] lande, and felly reuenged [it reuenged.] In whiche tyme came into this region Engist and Horsus [Horne.] , dukes of great renoune; By sort sent out all voyde of Saxonye, With menne of warre also of Germanye.

¶ In shyppes thre [there. edit. alt.] arryued [arroue.] so then in Kent, [Fol. lv.] When Vortyger at Caunterbury laye, Whiche [whome.] he withhelde anon, and farre [for. edit. alt. MS.] him sent, To [warre on the] [to werre with him on.] Scottes and Pyeghtes [Pictes.] aye, That brente his lande and noyed [noyed it.] day by daye. Peynemis they were, and trowyd of [on.] Mercury, And on Venus theyr goddes [goddesse.] of Payanie.

¶ That Mercurie Woden, in their language, Was called so by his propre name, For whome they honoured of olde [and age,] [usage.] The fourth daye in euery weke at hame [home.] , [And so of Mercury geuing it a name;] [In Germanye frome whens that they come.] And of Wodē called [they called it.] it Wednisdaye, [* Wednysdaye, wherof it was named.] Of olde custome as they haue vsed alwaye.

¶ And Venus, also, was [was called.] theyr hygh goddesse. For whome alwaye they halowed the sixte daye Of euery weke in prayer and holynesse, Who in theyr tonge Friday [Fry.] was called alwaye, For whose honoure, that named was Frydaye. The Sonne, the Moone, Iubiter and Saturne [Satoure.] , And Mars, the god of armes, they dyd adorne [honoure.] .

¶ The yere [after] of Christes incarnacyon, Foure hundreth [full fourty] [fully fifty.] and syxe also, Was when Engyst into this regyon Firste came, and hauen [Horne.] w^t thre shippes and no mo, As saynte Bede sayeth in [De.] Gestis Anglorum so: With Scottes & Pieghtes [Pictes.] they faught ful mightely, And droue theim oute and had the victorye.

¶ This Engist [had then none habitacyon,] [then hade noone inhabitacion.] Desyringe so a castell in to dwell, Hym and his men to kepe frome [all] aduersacyon, Of Scottes & Peyghtes [Pictes.] y^t enemyes were then fell, [As all olde chronyclers canne you tell:] [And for that he the enemyse dide so quell.] Asked as much ground as a bulleis skyn thonge, [Myght cyrcuyte fully of brede and longe,] [Myght fully compase as it was brode and longe.]

¶ Whiche the [which so.] king him graunted then anone. [He made a thonge then] [Engiste then made a thong.] of a bullys skyn, So small and longe that rounde about dyd gone A stony grounde to set his castell in: [And thus by subtelte and his sleghty gyn,] [So stronge it was that no man myght it wynne.] Where then he made Thongcastre [Thongcastell.] as men tolde, In Lyndesey, that nowe is [Castre of] [the castell on.] the Wolde.

¶ Engyst then sent for his doughter Rowan [Rowayn.] , [That came anone, with shyppes eyghtene,] [Whiche come anoone with shippes grete eightene.] Well stuffed of men, for [they were] [the werre.] of Britayne Agayne the Scottes and Peightes [Pictes.] to opteyne, Whome Vortiger then thought ful longe to sene; She proferred him a drynke and sayde "Wassayle;" As he was learned, he sayde to her "Drynke hayle:"

¶ Which wordes fyrst came vp [so into] [than in.] this land. With that he set his herte her for [so.] to loue, That he her wed by all [kyndes of] [manner.] lawfull bonde, As then the church [could best hym learne] [hym dide avise.] & moue, [And thus the Saxons by Vortiger set aboue;] [Hir to forsake his lawfull wife to loue.] For whiche his sonnes, and all the Baronage Hym hated sore, [ryght for his] [for that wronge.] maryage

¶ Of paynimes [Payans.] bloodde; for to their ydolatrye Greate people were then turned and peruerte, And greate [grete partie.] also in Pilagien heresye [Fol. lvi.] Were accombred, and [hole] to it aduerte;

Wherfore his sonne, the people to conuerte, For Lupus sent, and his felowe Germayne, Christen fayth to preache in all Britayne.

Which bishoppes. ii. the folke conuert [did] againe By processe so, and home agayne then went. This Engyst then, to please the kyng full fayne, For his sonne Occa [Octa.] to Germany sent [than sent.] , For Ebissa and Cherdryk by consent [assent.] Of Vortiger, that. iii. C. shyppes brought, Of [with.] men of warre, the best that might be sought.

Of whiche his sonne, that then hight Vortimer, Of his fyrste wyfe, and also [als.] the barons all, Of suche multytude of people affrayed were, And to the kyng, as then it did befall, Compleyned had, without helpe in generall; Wherfore anone together they dyd consent [assent.] , This Vortymer to crowne by hole assent. [consent.] .