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COyll Westmers sone was crow∣ned kyng after his fader / and he was a good man & a worthy / & of good cōdityons / & well gouerned his londe / & of all men he had loue and peas. And in his tyme was neuer contacke / debate / nor warre in Brytayne. And he regned
in peas all his lyfe. And whan he had regned .xi. yere he dyed & lyeth at Yorke.
CLaudi{us} was emperour at Rome nexte after Gayus / & he regned xiiij. yere & .viij. dayes. This man came in to grete Britayn now called Englond for to chalenge the trybute whiche they dyd deny to y• Romayns. And after grete batayles there was bytwene the empe¦rour Claudius & Armager kyng of Bri¦tayn. And after accordement made that this Armager sholde wedde Claudius doughter / and after they two shold euer lyue in peas / in token wherof this Clau¦dius named ye cite where they were ma¦ryed after hym & called it Claudicestre / we call it now Glocestre. This Claudi{us} had .iij. wyues / & on Petiua ye first wyfe he gate a doughter that hyght Antonia The fyrst wyfe decessed and he wedded Messalinā & gate a sone y• hyght Brita∣nic{us} / & Octauia a doughter. The thyrde he wedded Agrippina / hauynge a sone that hyght Nero. Claudi{us} wedded his doughter Octauia to Nero his wyues sone. This Claudi{us} for loue yt he had to Agrippina his last wyfe he slewe Mes∣salina his secōd wyfe / lest she shold haue helpe Britanicus her sone & his to ye em¦pyre. yet Agrippina ye last wyfe of Clau¦dius drad lest her husbonde wolde haue {pro}ferred Britanic{us} & haue deposed Nero her sone / therfore she poysoned her hus∣bonde Claudius / & Nero was {pro}moted to ye empyre. And this same Nero gaue his moder suche a reward agayn / for he poysoned Britanicus & slewe his owne 〈…〉〈…〉oder & his wyfe Octauia. ¶ Iames the more y• apostle this tyme was slayne of Herode Agrippa / & Peter was pryso∣〈…〉〈…〉d. vt pʐ act .xij. The body of saynt Ia¦mes was brought by myr〈…〉〈…〉 in to Ga∣〈…〉〈…〉 of Spayne. ¶ Nero after Claudi{us} 〈…〉〈…〉s emperour / & he regne•• .xiij. yere & vij. monethes. This Nero was a cur∣sed mā / & made grete waste in y• empyre He wolde not fysshe but with nettes of golde & ropes of sylke. A grete parte of ye lordes of Rome he slewe. He was enemy to good men. He slewe his broder & his wyfe / his moder and his mayster. He slewe also Peter & Paule. He wolde ne∣uer were one cloth two tymes. His hor∣ses & his mules were shod with syluer. And at the last he dyd set a grete part of Rome on fyre / some saye to se how Troy brent / & some saye the Romayns cōplay¦ned ye stretes were to narowe. And whā he had brent a grete parte of Rome / Ne∣ro sayd there was space to buylde y• stre¦tes wyder. Than ye senatours wt the co∣myn people came vpon hym to 〈…〉〈…〉e hym And he fled by nyght in to ye subbarbes of y• cite / & hyd hym amonge ye vynes / & he herde karles & beggers come by hym that sayd / & they wyst where the empe∣rour were / he sholde neuer scape them. Nero thought it sholde be grete deroga∣cion to his name & he were slayne of kar∣les / & on a grete stake he ••an hȳselfe to ye herte & dyed / & there was buryed / & de∣uyls kepte his body many a day after / & dyd grete hurt to ye people / tyll by a my∣racle of our lorde ye body was foūde & ta¦ken away / & than the deuylles voyded. ¶ Seneca was this tyme maister to Ne¦ro. ¶ Iuuenalis poeta. ¶ Lucan{us} poe∣ta. ¶ Iames ye lesse y• apostle bysshop of Ierusalem was slayne of ye Iewes the vj. yere of Nero. ¶ Marcus ye euāgelyst was martyred the fyrst yere of hym.