Prolicionycion [sic]

¶ Capitulum 25

THe fyfth constantinus after his fader leo was Emperour thre and thyrtty yere / This as his fader vsed toke ymages oute of chirche in euery place and sette hem a fyre / Etheldredus kynge of westsaxons deyde the fourtenth yere of his kyngdome / His cosyn cuthbert was kynge after hym· and werryd oftymes ayenst ethelwaldus kynge of mercia. and regned sixten yere. His cosyn Sygebertus regned after hym two yere / he was prou∣de of the happes of his predecessour and gouerned his subgettis hard and euyl· And torned the lawes at his owne wylle And slough the noble Erle cumbranus euyl and wyckedly / for he had spoke to hym of his euyl berynge and dedes But atte laste for he wold not be amended. he was put oute of his kyngdome. thenne he wente in to a wode· and hidde him self / And a swyneherd of therles that was slayn fonde hym & slough hym. ¶Aboute that tyme deyde Charles marcellus / After hym his two sonnes the second pipinus and charlemayne come to the pryncipate of the kynges hows / ¶ But charlemayne after the fourth yere of his pryncipate lefte of the pryncipate by counceyl of his broder· and toke the wey to Rome· and was shore a monk in pope Zacharyas tyme. And made an Abbeye in the hylle Mount Sarapte / and lyued there somdele long tyme / But atte laste by cause frensshmen come thyderto ofte to hym as to theyr lorde as they dyde somtyme· he wente thennes to mount Cassyn / And they prayd hym thāt he wold sende lettres to the kynge of Fraunce for to restore ageyne seynt benets body to mount Cassyn The pope dyde as he was prayd / And the kynge of Fraunce bad the monkes of floriacio to delyuer seynt Benettes body Thenne the monkes bygan to wepe and to faste / and prayd god besyly that the body must abyde with hem / god herd their prayers

and smote the messagers that were sente / and made hem starke blynde. And soo they fayled of theyr purpoys and wente in to y∣taly ageyne. thenne the second pipinus prefecte of the palays go¦uerned the kyngis hows of Fraunce / Vnder hildericus the sone of theodericus· for he was an vnprofytable man and to esy and resseyued nothyng of the kyngdome / but the name of the kynge∣dome and his liuelode / Pipinus axyd of the pope Zacharyas / yf he shold be kyng that helde him apaid only with the name of king and yaue him to slouthe and dyde none other good / The pope wro¦te ageyn and sayde that he shold haue the name and be kyng that rewleth wel the comynte / the frensshemen were gladde of this an∣swer. and closed hildericus in an abbay and made pipinus kynge And after the eyghtenth yere he was made Emperour by decre of Zacharyas the pope / thenne he compellyd astulphus kynge of yta¦ly that inpugned the right of Rome for to restore that he had ta∣ke and made hym delyuere and yeue plegges / After Gregory Za¦charias was pope twelue yere / this wente on a tyme toward ra∣uenna right in the myddel of Iuyn and was couerd al a daye with a clowde that god had sente / for he shold not be brente with the grete hete of the sonne· And al nyghte that cloude abode beside his tente and aroos ageyne a morowe· Also fyry ostes wente to fore that holy man in the cloudes / The ordre of the Eester was distourbled / Theyonger wylfrydus bisshop of york deyde / and after hym Egbertus kynge egbertus broder was bisshop xxxvj yere Willelmus de regibus libro primo / And de pontificibus li∣bro quarto ¶ By his wytte and sleyghte and his broder the kynges money / he reparayled the see / and amended hit in two sta¦tes / for he was a man of grete herte and of grete wytte / and toke strongly hede that as it is grete pryde to coueyte and desire ought that is not rightful. soo is it grete lewdnes and wrechedines to forgendre what is detty and ryghtful. therfore tharchibisshops pal that the fyrst paulinus that was put out by strengthe of ene¦myes hadde lefte at Rouchestre· and many of his predecessours hadde forgendryd it there. he gate it ageyne by grete Instaunce & money that he made atte court of Rome / ¶ Also he ordeyned at york a noble lyberarye / ¶ The noble doctour of Englissh¦men Alcuinns that was sente to kynge Charles for peas of En∣glysshmen / in his pystle that he sente to holy chirche in to Englond of that lybrarye maketh noble mynde· ¶ Also he wryteth to kynge Charles in this manere. Yeue me bookes

of loore suche as I had in my countrey of englonde by the wytte of my mayster egbertus· & I shal sende to you somme of our chil¦dren that shal take therof what is nedefull. And brynge in to Fraunce the floures of brytayne / For alone an orchard y closed shal be at york / And at turoyn the spryngynge of paradys / That yere deyde seynt danyel bisshop of wynchestre / After hym cam humfrious· After zacharyas steuen was pope fyue yere / This enoynted pipinus two sonnes and made hem emperours Charle∣man and the grete charles / Syth that tyme thempire of Rome passyd fro the grekes to frensshmen and thenne to germans Kenulphus of cerdicus kynde in the fyfth degree pendas neuew goten of kenwalcus was a grete man / his vertues passyd his fa¦me / By helpe of the westsaxons he put Sygebertus oute of that kyngdome for the gretenes of his euil dedes / and regned in his stede thyrtty yere / but he graūted hym the prouynce of hampton til he had slayne duc cumbranus / thenne he was putte awaye & hid in a wode and was slayne of the dukes swynherd· Ethelwoldus kynge of Mercia was slayne at Sygeswold of beoruredes the tyraunt & was buryed at rypindon / but not long afterwarde offa ethelwaldus neuewe slough beoruredus & reg∣ned in his stede xxxix yere in mercia / this ouercome in a batayll the northumbres the westsaxons / and kentysshmen / Soo that ••e tourned tharchebisshops see oute of Caunterbury in to lychefeld in the prouince of mercia. Also he translated seynt Albons bones to the more abbaye that he had bylded / he yaf to the pope Peters v••ca••y a rent by yere of euery hous of his kyngdom. he made al so a grete dyche that is euer seen to departe bytwene wales & the kyngdome of mercia / the whiche dyche is yet named offedyche Thou shalt fynde more herof in the fyrst book capitulo de platris regalibus ¶ w / de r li / 1. This offa fonded to gete frend ship •• of kynges / and maryed his doughter ethelburga to bryghtrycus kynge of westsaxons. he sente alcuinus doctour of Englysshmen to Charles kynge of Fraunce for to procoure pees· For ther was soo grete discorde and stryf bytwene the kyngdoms / that passage of marchauntes was forbode on eyther syde.

Organs come fyrst in to Fraunce sente fro Constantyn the Em∣perour kyng of gre••e to pipinus kyng of Fraunce

Egbertus· kynge of northumberlond was shorn monke / and his sone ofwulphus regned after hym and was slayn in thende of his fyrst yere of the northumbres / ¶ After hym mol•• that was

called ethelwold also regned seuen yer Mar / ¶ After stephen paul was pope ten yere a mylde man in alle thynges. In his ty¦me gengulphus was in his floures in Burgoyn. In a tyme he bought a welle in Fraunce and prayd god and had it graunted that thylke welle myght sprynge oute in burgoyn / This man lefte his wyf for she had broken spouseed and was slayne of the clerk that had lay by his wyf. whan he was dede god shewde ma¦ny myracles for him. but his wyf spake euyl of the myracles & sayde whā gengulph{us} myn husbond doth myracles myn arse shal synge / & so it was do. For as ofte / as she spak afterward her ar•• wold synge w••th a fowle noyse / Mull kynge of northumberlond lefte the kyngdome. And Aluredus regned after hym nyne yere This Aluredus had two sones / ofredus that was the thyrd that regned after hym in his stede / and seynt Alcum••dus that was slayn afterward whan he halp the men of mercia ayenst the west sax••us ¶ Paul the pope deyde and Constantyn a lewd man was made pope by maystrye and by strengthe and was pope one yere and dyde sklaunder to al holy chirche / But by chierte of cri¦sten men he was put of the chirche and his eyen were put oute That yere deyde pipinus kyng of Fraunce in an euyll that was bytwene fell and flessh after that he had regned eyght and twen¦ty yere