Fabyans cronycle newly prynted, wyth the cronycle, actes, and dedes done in the tyme of the reygne of the moste excellent prynce kynge Henry the vii. father vnto our most drad souerayne lord kynge Henry the .viii. To whom be all honour, reuere[n]ce, and ioyfull contynaunce of his prosperous reygne, to the pleasure of god and weale of this his realme amen

Francia. THE .CLIX. CHAPITER.

LOdouicus y^e fyrst of that name, and sonne of Charlis the great / began hys reygne ouer y^e realme of Fraū¦ce, & also his em∣pyre ouer the Ro¦maynes, in the yere of grace .viii. hū¦dred and .xv / and the .xx. yere of Eg∣bertus then kynge of westsaxons. Thys for his mekenesse was callyd Lewys the mylde or meke.

In tyme of hys fathers decease he was occupyed in Guyan / the whych he before tyme hadde the rule and do¦mynyon of by commaundement of his father. But when he was aduer∣tised of his faders deth, he anon sped hym toward Aquisgrani / so y^t y^e .xxx. day after hys departyng out of Guy¦an he came vnto the foresayde cytye, where he was mette wyth all the no∣bles and barons of Fraūce. And fyrst or he medled or toke vpon hym any cure or charge of hys owne besynes / he with most deuocyon causyd great obseruaunces and myche dyuyne ser¦uyce to be done aboute the sepulture of his father, whyche obseruaunce & prayers fynyshed and endyd / y^e sayde Lewes commaundyd to come before hym dyuerse ambassadours, that frō dyuerse prynces were sent vnto hys father Charlis, and to theym gaue answers concernyng theyr legacyōs and messagis / and then proceded vn¦to the nedes of his realm for y^e weale therof and of his people.

wherein he beynge besyed / worde was brought to hym of an ambassad royall, y^t was comen from Michael the emperour of Constantyne the no¦ble. Agayne the whyche he sent cer∣tayne of hys lordes to receyue them / and so wyth all honour to bryng thē vnto hys presence. Of whose com∣mynge the entente was, to presente hym wyth certayne ryche gyftes, and to desyre hym of his amyte and frendshyppe.

Also soone after came vnto hym messengers from the Beneuētanys / offerynge vnto his magnyfycence ob¦ligacyons and bondes to be his true lyeges, and to paye to hym yerely in way of trybute .vi. thousande duca∣tes of gold. A ducate is of sondry va∣luys / but the leste in value is .iii.s.iii.d. ob, and the beste .iiii.s.vii.d.

Then the Soysons or Saxons that were so dyuerse of condycyon /

beganne to murmoure and rebell a∣gayne this Lowys. wherfore or he wolde assemble any people agayne theym / he sent thyder certayne per∣sones to know y^e cause of theyr rebel¦lyon. And when he was enfourmed, that yt was for the takynge awaye from them of certayne lādes and pos¦sessyons by hys father / he then resto¦red agayne the sayde landes / and so recouncylyd the countrey to his sub¦ieccyon. For this dede some of his lor¦des grudged / and sayde such mylde∣nes was not to be vsyd to people of suche obstynacy and sternesse / but to haue forcyd them by dynte of sworde to haue lyued in due obedyence.

In thys passetyme dyed pope Ste¦phan the fourth of that name / after whose deth was elected to that dy∣gnyte the fyrste Pascall, wythout cō¦sente or knowlege of this Lowys, & somdeale to the dyscontentynge of his mynde & pleasure. But in shorte tyme after he receyued such wordes and presentes from the sayde pope, that he was well satysfyed and plea∣syd. And for at those days in Fraūce was vsyd of prestes and men of the chyrche precyouse and shewynge ve∣sture, and golden and riche starynge gyrdelles, with rynges and other or∣namentes of gold / the sayde Lowys purchasyd of the pope a correccyon for all suche as vsyd suche dysordy∣nate apparell / and causyd theym to vse and were browne & sad colours, accordynge to theyr honoures and sadnes.

This Lowys hadde thre sonnes, that is to saye Lothayre, whome he made felowe of the empyre / Pepyn the seconde, whome he made duke of Guyan / and Lowys the thyrde, to whom he betoke the rule of Bayton. To this yongeste sonne worde was broughte, that Bernarde a ruler in Italy had assembled a great power / & wyth y^e aydes of two other captay¦nes named Iylys and Reyner, the whyche Charlis the great by his lyfe greatly fauouryd / occupyed y^e strēg∣thys of the mountaynes, and enten∣dyd to kepe the countrey of Italye from the subieccyon of his father the emperoure. wherof he gyuynge his father knowlege / strong power was gaderyd, as well by the father as by Lothayre his sonne, and sped theym towarde the mountayns. But when the sayde Bernarde was ware of the emperours commyng wyth so great a strength / and consyderyd his lacke of power to mayntayn his purpose / wyth also the great mercy and pytye that he knew to be in the emperour: he submytted hym holy to hys grace and mercy, and dyscoueryd to hym the authours of that rebellyon / the whyche thys Lowys causyd vnder safe kepynge to be hadde vnto the cy¦tye of Aquisgrany. The whyche re∣bellys were the byshop of Mylayne, the byshop of Cremoun, and the bys¦shoppe of Orleaunce.

The kynge passed all the wynter folowyng at the foresayde cytye / and lastely caused to be broughte before hym the foresayde transgressours, & examyned the cyrcumstaunce of the foresayd treason, and after remytted them to the rygour of Lowes / where by processe they were condemnyd to deth as many of them as were tem∣porall men.

Then the emperour hauynge com¦passion of the forenamed Bernarde, for so myche as he was the sonne of Pepyn laste kynge of Italy, and his nere kynnesman / transmutyd the sen¦tence of deth vnto perpetuyte of pry∣son and losynge of hys syghte. But for the sayde Bernarde, Reyner, and other, chase rather to dye thē to lyue in pryson wyth that deformyte / they passyd by dinte of the sworde, & were

beheddyd within or nere to the sayd cytye of Aquisgrani. And the sayde bysshoppes were depryued of theyr dygnyteys & put into pryuate hou∣ses of relygyon.

And whyle thys Lewys was oc∣cupyed in lytell Brytayne, in subdu∣ynge of that countrey / Lothayre the eldest sonne of thys Lewys was sent to rule the lōdes of y^e empyre. where he bare hym ryght nobly, and execu∣ted dyuers actes for the weale of the empyre. But in thys season .ii. fren∣des of hys father and hys / were for certeyne crymes to them put, moste cruelly condēpned to vyle deth with in the cytye of Rome. wherof heryng Lothayre than beyng at the cytye of Papy, sent worde therof to hys fa∣ther in all hasty wyse / the which was lyke to haue turnyd y^e pope to greate trowble, yf he by polytyke and wyse meanes had not shortly pacifyed the mater. That one of the foresayd two persones so condempned was scrybe to the pope, and that other was Donar.

ye shall vnderstande that thys Le¦wys hadde two wyues / by the fyrste he had the forenamed thre sonnes, and of the seconde he receyued a son and named hym Charlys / the which whan he came to mannes stature, was surnamed Charlys y^e bolde. He loued entyerly thys Charlys, & wold often kysse hym in the presence of his brethern. For the whych they enuyed theyr sayd brother / and also dysday∣ned theyr father as here after shall appere.

Thus in processe of tyme Lewys gaue vnto thys Charlys the coūtrey of Neustria or Normādy / the which causyd greate dyscencyon amonge the bretherne / and also for thys and other causes, Lotharius toke partye agayne hys father.