Prolicionycion [sic]

¶ Capitulum 16 /

AFter Eugenius vitalianus was pope fourten yere / he sent to the chirches of englonde and to the Archebisshops theo¦dorus monke of Tarseus / Beda li / 3 / ca / 19 / That yere the merces that be now of myddel englond receyued cristēdom vnder her prin¦ce Weda pendas sone· For this weda by consente of his fader had wedded elfleda kyng oswyes doughter vpon a condicion that he shold be a crysten man / and he dyde it with the better wyll for el∣fridus oswyes sonne had wedded oswyes suster kyneburga / ther fore weda had brought with hym four preestes oute of northum¦berlond for to preche hys peple and his men / the prestes were ced adda becti & duina. & kyng penda forbad not to conuerte to cristen feyth all that wold / Also that yere deyde honorius archibisshop of caūterbury / & after one yere· one deus dedit was bisshop ix yere / him comfermed Ithamar bisshop of Rouchestre / W / de / pou. li. 3 / ¶ That yere benet bisshop and the abbot that norysshed beda the preest and was kynge oswyes seruaunt forsooke hows & home his cosyns and alle his kyn for cristes loue and toke the weye to Rome and come efte agayne / Fyne sythes he wente to Rome and broughte bookes and Relyquyes of holy Sayntes

home to his abbayes that were in the brynk of the Ryuer wyre He was the fyrst that brought glasyers crafte in to his coūtrey He buylded two Abbayes of peter and paule vpon the brynkes of the ryuer wyre one in that one syde and another in that other syde / forn ayenst and was abbot of bothe / he toke his noble norye¦beda a childe of seuen yere olde and taught hym while he was a¦lyue Willelmus de regibus libro primo ¶ Beda wondr••th of his pacyence and of his wytte / of his wytte for he brought so ma¦ny bookes and craftes men in to englond· ¶And was pylgrym wel nygh al his lyf tyme / In hym loue of the countrey and ly∣kynge of fayrenes ouercome the strong trauayls· he wondryd of his pacyence for he was made Abbot by the kynge of kente and in possession of thabbay of seynt Austyn of Caunterbury / And at comynge of Adryan he lefte it with good wyll and lete adryan be Abbot there. Also thabbayes of wyre made hem another Ab∣bot while he was absente and he suffred it with good wylle / and dyde obedyence to the newe abbot whan he come home and wor∣shipe as other men dyde· Also he was atte last smyten with a pa∣l••sye and made the thyrdde abbot therto ¶ Also that yere Penda kynge of mercia slough anna kynge of ••est Angles in a bataylle For he hadde fauoured kyng kenwalkus ayenst hym ¶ Also that yere botulphus bylded an abbaye by eest lyncol̄n in a place that hete Icanno ¶Beda libro tercio capitulo quarto ¶That ye¦re deyde penda kynge of mercia / and was slayne he and thyrtty Capytayns that come in to the countrey of northumberlonde for to slee kynge oswy as he had slayne his broder oswald somtyme and spared not for a lye and affynyte that was bytwene theyr sonnes and doughters / netheles kyng oswy prefered hym many grete yeftes for to restorne oute of his londe. but he wolde not ther of ¶Thenne oswy sayde yf this paynym can not resseyue our yef¦tes· thenne we shal profere and offre to hym that can / Thenne kynge oswy made his auowe that yf he hadde the vyctory in that bataylle he wold offre his doughter elfleda to god of heuen and also possession for to bylde twelue abbayes / thenne the bataylle was made in the countrey of ledes not fer from york faste by the Ryuer wynwed· that thēne was hugely arysen and ouerflowed a grete deele of the countrey / In that batayll Penda was slayne and thyrtty dukes and leders of his. and yet he had thryes soo many in his hoost as that other had in his. For they that escaped the swerd were drowned in the Ryuer Thenne Alfridus hadde

be with his fader· but egfridus was holden in hostage with Pen¦das wif / thenne odyle wald oswaldes sonne had be with penda but he stode a syde for to see what ende the batayl sholde haue / Whan this vyctory was don kynge oswy bytoke his doughter of thre yere old to the loore of hilda thabbesse of hertesye that is her∣tes ylond. But afterward she was abbesse of stremshalt that is the bosome or lappe of corne that nowe is callyd whitby and is thyrtty myle from york / there was elfleda abbesse afterward Thenne oswy yaf possessions for to buylde abbayes as he hadde promysed / six in the prouynce of deyra and six in the prouynce of Brenicia· and he yaue to weda that had wedded his doughter the kyngdom of southmercia that conteyneth as it is sayd fyue thou¦sandes housholdes and meynees / and is departed fro north mercia by the water of Trent but weda after thre yere of his kyngdom was soone lost by treason of his owne wif. Whan weda was dede the mercyes wexe rebelle ayenst kynge oswy / and toke wolferus pendas sonne that they hadde secretely kepte and made hem theyr kyng / he was the fyrst cristen man of al the kinges of mercia. & wedded ••rmenylda ercombes doughter kyng of caunterbury. and gate on her keneredus / and wereburga and ouercome nobly ken walcus kinge of westsaxons and wan the Ile of wighte and yaue it afterward to the kinge of ceste Angles for to be a cristen man and was his godfader whan he was cristned. and atte last after the seuententh yere of his kingdome he was buryed at ly∣chefeld ¶ Clodonens after his fader dagobertus regned in fraū¦ce sixten yere. By entysyng of the deuil he made cutte of seint de∣nis arme ¶Also that yere deide seint wandregesilus thabbot· ¶ Aboute that tyme grimaldus kynge of Longobardes espyed that his knight bertaricus was fledde to cacanus kynge of the a∣nares and sente to kyng cacanus word and saide that he shold le¦ue bertaricus or he shold haue noo pees with the longobardes Bertaricus herde therof and wente in to ytaly agayne / And by helpe of his frende hunulphus he was reconciled and made at one with the kynge Somme wicked men sawe that bertaricus hadde good semblaunt of many men and made suggestion to the kynge and saide but yf soo were that bertaricus were slain / the Kinge sholde lese his kingdome / the kinge herde that and sette knightes and other men to bisette bertaricus hows for he sholde not escape· And hunulphus aspied that and ded a burthen of bedclothes on bertaricus necke / and bete him with his fiste / and shufte him

and put hym forth thurgh the myddel of the cyte to the walles & lefte hym there and bertaricus fled in to Fraunce· whan men ax¦yd of hunulphus why he dyde soo / he answerd and sayde / by cau¦se my seruaunt wolde haue bedded me in the dronken Bertaricus bedchambre whiche plesyd me not· therfore I haue made hym to bere his clothes agayne to myn own hows / And so the knyghtes were begyled and fonde nothynge in bertaricus chambre / And they toke bertaricus seruaunt that wyste of this escapynge and was assentynge therto and drough hym oute by the heer and brought hym to the kyng / the seruaunt was dampned to the deth But yet the kyng praysed hym and hunulphus gretely by cau¦se they were so stydfast and trusty· And yaue hem choys whether hem were leuer abyde with hym in his courte for euermore / or wende to theyr lyef frende Bertaricus / thenne they wente in to Fraunce with Bertaricus with al that they hadde / Also that yere Egf••ydus kyng oswyes sonne spoused feynt etheldreda that was to fore honde wedded to erle Todbar to kyssyng / clyppynge and flesshely lykyng and yet she preserued her a clene vyrgyne / and was departed from egfrydus and wente in to the abbaye of Ely and was made abbesse there / and dyde many fayr myracles and grete ¶Aboute that tyme hunarus prince of Sarasyns in Siria buylded a newe temple that is now in Ierusalem. there the sarasyns worshipe god and make theyr prayers Beda li∣bro quarto capitulo primo Ercombertus kynge of caunterbury deyde and his sonne egbertus was kynge after hym nyne yere· Also that yere deyd tharchebisshop that hete deus dedit Thenne the kynge of kente and the kynge of northumberlonde by one as¦sente sente wychardus to pope vitalianus for to be Archibisshop of caunterbury· But he and almooste al his company deyde in the grete pestylence that was soo stronge in alle Englond / And the pope ordeined one theodorus a monke gouernour of the chirches of englond Beda libro tercio capitulo visesimo primo ¶Also that yere fylle a grete pestylence in al Brytayne and byganne in the south contreyes. In that pestylence byfyll that / that is rad of Egbertus the monke that wexe seke that tyme / This man felt that he was seke and wente priuely oute of his bed at matyn ty¦me and was very contryte and sorowful in his herte and praid god besyly that he shold not deye at that tyme er he had ful clen∣sed him of his synnes that he had doo to fore honde. And he ma∣de his auowe that yf he might escape that pestilence / he wold deye

in pylgremage / And that aboue the ful seruice he wolde saye euery daye the sawter but yf sekenes of body letted hym· And that euery weeke he wolde faste one daye and the nyght therto / whan this was done he wente priuely to his bedde ageyne. But with somme maner rustlynge that he made in lyyng doune· his fe∣lawe awoke and spak to hym and sayde / Egbert what hast thou doone / I hoped that we tweyne sholde haue gone to gyder to reste But what thou hast prayd it is graunted to the / Thenne that fe¦lawe deyde. And thus Egbertus lengthed his owne lyf to the yere of his four score and ten· But he dyde more than his fyrste auowe. And fasted in the yere thryes fourty dayes continuelly to brede / and thynne mylk. Fourty dayes in the Aduente· Four¦ty dayes in the lente / and fourty dayes to fore wytsontyde. But al the creme and fatnes of that mylke that he hadde to his brede sholde be ouerblowe and take away ¶ Beda libro sexto capitulo visesimo quinto