The chronicle of Ihon Hardyng in metre, fro[m] the first begynnyng of Engla[n]de, vnto ye reigne of Edwarde ye fourth where he made an end of his chronicle. And from yt time is added with a co[n]tinuacion of the storie in prose to this our tyme, now first emprinted, gathered out of diuerse and sondrie autours of moste certain knowelage [et] substanciall credit, yt either in latin orels in our mother toungue haue writen of ye affaires of Englande.

The .C .lxii. Chapiter.

¶ Howe kyng Wyllyam of Scotlande did homage leege to kyng Iohn at Lyncolne, the duke Arthure of Britayne & all the lordes of Irelande did the same

IN his first yere, kyng Wylliā of Scotlād Made hys homage, in Lyncolne his citee And Arthure duke of Britayne, I vnder∣stande Sone after, made hys homage & feautee At London then, with great humilitee The prince of Wales, there made his homage For Wales then, that was his heritage.

¶ The great a Neele, and Makmurre also And al the lordes, and kynges of Irelande Therles also of Vlster, did right so Of Ormond and Desmond, for there lande And all estates there, as I vnderstande Wer sworne to hym, and to hym did homage For theyr lyuelodes, and theyr heritage

¶ The kyng Philip confedered with Arthure To rebell sore, agayne his eme kyng Iohn And graunte hym men, & power stronge and sure To gette Guyan Poytou and Angeou anon Wherfore kyng Iohn to Normandy gan gone And there he tooke Arthure duke of Britayn In castell Mirable dyed, in mykell payne

¶ Dame Isabell the suster also of Arthure.

In the castell of Bristowe, was then holde And died there in pryson, then full sure As kyng Iohn hir vncle, so it wolde A lady of greate beautee, she was hold Beshet in pryson, in paynes strong So endeth her life, for sorowe liued not long

¶ Thus slewe he both, Athure and Isabell The chyldren of his brother, duke Geffrey To ioye the croune of Englande, as men tell Wherfore moste parte, of all his landes that daye Beyonde the sea, forsoke hym then for ay Retournyng to the kyng of Fraunce in hye To holde of hym and his perpetually

¶ Bishop Hubert of Cauntorbury tho died Wherfore kyng Iohn, vnto the couent sente To chose his clarke, whiche they refused & denied Wherfore the kyng, was wroth in his entente For they disobeyed the lettre, whiche he sent For they had chosen mayster Stephan Langton An worthy clarke, of all disposicion.

¶ Whom kyng Iohn, then wold not admytte For Romayn bull, ne for the prelates prayer But prisoned some, and some to death commytte Some he exiled and theyr eyen clere And all personnes and prelates in fere He then put out and seazed theyr benefice Through all the lande, as his mortall enemyes

The Romyshe byshoppe curssed hym openly And all the realme fully did enterdite

That sacramentes none, therin should occupie And to the kyng of Fraunce, without respite He wrote his letters so full fayre endite To take Englande hole in gouernaunce For kyng Iohn his great misgouernaunce.

¶ Many erles also, and many great barons Vnto the kyng of Fraunce, wrote openly To sende his sonne Lewes, the rebellions To helpe, to whome they promysed sikerly To croune hym kyng of England worthely If that kyng Iohn, would not his trespasse amēd Vnto the churche, in whiche he had offend.

¶ Wherfore y^t kyng of Fraūce, to England sente His sonne Lewes, with hoste and power strong With whom many lordes susteyned his entent And other some, maynteyned kyng Iohn in wrōg Thus stode this lande, Englande & Wales longe Hole enterdite, frō all holy sacramentes That none was done, without priuelegementes

¶ Lewes the sonne, of kyng Philip of Fraunce Had castelles, fees, and citees many one At his good rule, and full wyse gouernaunce In Englande then, well mo, then had kyng Iohn Tyll on a daye, to lordes he made his moone By whose coūcel, vnto y^t Romishe bishop he wrote His letters meke, as best he could theim note

¶ Besekyng hym of mercy, and of grace Of forgeuenesse and absolucion His defautes all to mend, and his trespasse

And vndirguage all his punysion For to release thenterdiccion For whiche the Romishe bishop as he y^t letters see Wepte fore, hauyng full greate pitee

¶ Thenterdiccion fully he releassed And to the kyng of Fraunce, anone sent To ceasse the warre, the peace to be encreassed Betwene hym, and kyng Iohn bayssent To whiche he would, put so all his entent To Lewes then, he sent thesame message And of Englande, to haue his hole costage

¶ And for Lewes, with Lordes of Englande Obeyde not the byshops commaundement He sent Gwalo his legate I vnderstande To cursse Lewes, and all of his assent Then died kyng Iohn, in Christen hole entent At Croxton abbey, and buried was full fayre At Worcester, with lordes and great repayre

¶ Some bookes sayen, he poysoned was to dead Of plummes so syttyng at his meate In thabbey of Cistews at Swynsheade With whiche a monke, there hym did rehete Wenyng of God greate thanke to gette At Newerke died, at Worcester sepultured In chronicles, as is playnly scriptured.

¶ He gate a sōne, that Hēry of Wynchester hight And other after, and Richarde was his name That erle was of Cornwayle, of great might A Worthy knight, and of right noble fame

These sonnes on his wyfe, that noble dame And gate Isabell, the wyfe of Frederyk Emperoure of Rome, a lorde full poletyk.

¶ In his tymes were these earles in Englande Geffry Maundeuile, earle of Essex than Syr Quincy, as I can vnderstande Earle of Winchester, that was a manly man And the earle of Cornewayle that was than Roger of Clare, then earle of Gloucester That in Englande was, none his better.

¶ Roger Bygot, earle of Northfolke then That Marshall was, that tyme of Englande Henry Bowne, then earle of Herforde, as I can Conceyue was then, Constable of the lande Aryght worthy knyght, of his hande And Dauyd, then was of Huntyngdon Willyam Marshall, earle of Penbroke full boon

¶ Randolfe of Chester, the earle of good estate Robert Veer of Oxenforde full wyse Willyam Groos, of Almaryk generate Willyam Lōgspee, earle then, of great enterpryse In actes marcyall, a man knyghtly and wyse Of Salysbury, a mighty lorde that daye Through all Englande, knowen of greate araye.

¶ Willyam, the earle of Arundell that hyght Awbeny by his surname, full well then knowe At Wimondham, in Northfolke buryed ryght Father was of Philyp, full yonge vnknowe That full curteous was, both to hye and lowe

That after hym was earle of Arundell As chronycles wryten, can clerely tell

¶ This kyng Iohn dyed in hole creaunce The yere of Chryste, a. M, was then knawe Two hundreth .xxi. by remembraunce In chronycles, as I haue red and sawe And full cumbreous, bothe to hye and lawe At Worcester, buryed in good araye As a prynce royall of reason, ought that daye.

Notes

• The pite∣ous & lamē table storye of king Ihō who by the Roomyshe byshop and his adherē∣tes was most sham fully & vy∣lanously a∣bused, as by this hy∣story doeth appeare.