Prolicionycion [sic]

¶ Capitulum 13

EGelredus edgards sonne bygoten on his seconde wyf El∣frytha was made kynge after his elder broder Edward at kyngeston / he was a fayr knyght and a louely / Eyght & thyrty yere he besyeged the kyngdome more verely than ruled it / For the cours of his lyf was cruel / and vngracious in the begynnyng / wretched in the myddel / and foule in the ende / For whyle seynt dunstan baptysed hym / he defowled the fontston with the fruyte of his wombe / therfor dunstan sayd by god and by his moder¦thys shal be vnkynde / And in the day of his crownynge he told•• this prophecye / For thou come to the kyngdome by the deth of thy broder· in whos deth Englysshmen conspyred with the wykked woman thy moder / they shal not be withoute bloode and swerde er ther come peple of an vnknowen tonge / ond bryng hem in to the last thraldom / this trespaas shal not be clensed withoute long vengeaunce / whanne this egelredus was a chylde of ten yere ol∣de / and herde telle that his broder edward was soo slayne / he me∣oued so his wode moder with wepyng and with yellyng that she bete hym almost to deth / with tapers / for he shad nought ellys at hand / therfor he hated tapers al his lyf tyme / Also on Ethelgy¦na Erle egbertus doughter he bygate Edmund Ir••nsyde by hi•• surname / and edwyn and ethelstan and one doughter callyd ed¦gyna / Afterward on emma of normandy he bygate Alfred{us} and Edward / Half a nyght a cloude was seen in al Englond now blody now fyry / than it chaunged by dyuers colours and

beames / and wente awey in the dawnynge / That yere southhāp¦ton & the yle of Tanet besydes kente / and saynt petrocus abbaye in Cornewayle / & the prouynce of chestre were destroyed by the∣ues of danes / the cyte of london was brente with fire of the same Cyte / Seynt ethelwold bisshop of wynchestre is deed / he was born at wynchestre / & norysshed vp vnder dūstan at glastenbury & made monke / And he was made abbot at abyngdon in kynge Edredus tyme / And he was made bisshop at wynchestre in Ed∣gars tyme / there he made an abbaye of nonnes / and translated seynt swythynes body oute of the erth / ¶ After hym seynt alphe¦gus abbot of bathe was bisshop / And afterward Archebisshop of Caunterbury / and was slayne of the danes / Of hym Inner more we shal speke / This thyrdde otho the seconde Othoes sonne regned amonge duchemen after his fader eyghten yere / This had a wonder surname and was callyd otho the wondres of the world / Mirabilia mundi / and he was crowned at Rome of the fyfthe pope gregory / And though these thre othones were emperours arewe as it were by kynde herytage / yet afterward it was ordeyned that the Emperour sholde be chosen / by thoffycers of the empyre / tho offycers be seuen / Of hem ben versus made / Maguntmensis / treuerensis / Coloniensis / Qu••l••b••t imperij fit can cellarius horum / Eciam palatinus dapyfer / dnx portitorensis / Marchio prepositus camere pyncerna boemns / Hij statuunt do∣minum per secula summum / these be to meane Bisshop meynse / magunce Treuer and Colonia / thes thre / Euerychone of this is made ryght chaunceler of thempyre / Erle palatinus sewer duc of Oustryche beryth the swerd / marquys is chamberleyn· butiler kynge is of beame / this chosen to men alle the lord hyest for euer / the thyrdde otho hadde a wyf that wolde haue had an hus∣bond man to lygge by hir / but the man wold not assent to anon trye / than he was thretend that his heede sholde be smytē of / with¦oute ony dome / but er he dyed he bad his wyf that she shold after his dethe proue hym gyltles by the doyng of ho••r brennyng yren The day cam whanne the emperour sayd that he wold do ryght / to the faderles and moderles childer and to wydues / This wy∣duc cam and brought with her hyr husbandes heede / and axed what deth he were worthy that had slayne a man wrongfully / He is worthy to leese his heede sayd themperour / thou art that man sayd the wydue / and that I shal proue anone by the do¦me of fyre & brennyng yren / whan the dome was done / thēperour

yaue hym self to the woman / for she sholde punysshe hym as she wold / but atte prayeng of bisshops / fyrst of ten dayes were groū¦ted / and than of eyght / and than of seuen / and atte laste of sixe In the whiche dayes the emperour examyned the cause atte full and brente his owne wyf / and for his raunsonne he yaue to the wydue four castel townes in the Bysshopryche of Brynensis / that yet haue the names & be cleped by the first dayes / ten / eight seuen and six The fourtenthe iohan was pope eyght monethes ¶After hym the fyftenth iohan four monethes / After hym the sixtenth iohan was pope ten yere Willelmus vbi supra / ¶Kyng Egelredus for stryf that was bytwene hym and the Bisshop of Rouchestre besyeged the cyte of Rouchestre / Dunstan sende to hym that he sholde leue his wodenesse / ānd that he shold not offende seynt andrew patrone of that place / The kyng rought not of bare wordes / than dunstan hight and arayed his heest fair with money / ānd sente hym an honderd pounde for he shold bre∣ke the siege / the moneye was receyued and dunstan wondred of the mannes couetyse and sente hym worde by messagers in this manere / for thou hast putte gold byfore god and syluer byfore the apostle / and couetyse byfore me / ryght sone euyll happes shal come vpon the / but not whyle I am alyue· Than two yere after came the danes whanne dunstan was deede / that yere twey pesty¦lences that were vnknowen byfore / fylle in Englond For men hadde the feuers / and beestes the flyxe / ¶Seynt dunstan ended his lyf ful of vertues & of wondres / as descryued osbertus monk of Caunterbury / he tellith in seynt dunstans lyf / that while seynt dunstan hyghted the ymages of appostles and martirs with the stole of a preeste / An harpe that henge vpon the walle was herde make swetely melodye withoute mannes hande / the melodye was the note of this anteme of the martres / Gaudent in celis a∣nime sanctorum / that is to saye hooly mennes soules make ioye in heuen / Also he tellyth thkt dunstan couth many craftes / and wrought with his handes / and made on a tyme a chalis by gold smythes craft in a celle fast by glastenbury / there the fende cam in lykenes of a woman and tempted hym by fantasyes of dy∣uers lykynge / Dunstan in his spyryte was war therof / and caught hym by the nose with his fyre hote tong / so that dede was knowen of neyghbours aboute with cryeng•• and yellynge of the fende / Also on a tyme dunstan was slepy and herde angels synge full swetely / Kyryeleyson / Xprysteleyson / the melodye of

that note / and armonye / is yet famous among englysshe men / & vsed on that kyrye / kyrye rex splendens / than whan dūstā was dede / the danes come in to euery hauen of englond / so that me wist not where me myght met hem / therfor mē myght not put hem a∣way with yren / and put hem awey with syluer / and payd hem the fyrst yere ten thousand pound by counseylle of Syrycus that was Archebisshop nexte after dunstan / ¶ And the seconde yere sixten thousande pound / the thyrdde yere twenty thousand / l̄i / the iiij / yere / xxiiij / M / l̄i / the / v / yere / xxx / M / l̄ / atte last xl M / l̄i till all the money fayled / than the danes bygan ayene to robbe & to reue / and yet herto one elfricus māyster of the kynges shippis fledde to the enemyes as a vyle flemed harlot / the nyght bifore the batayle / and warned hem of whome they sholde take heed & bewar / For that dede men toke his sonne algarus / and put oute both his eyen / And yet elfricus come ayene / but he fayled ayene / Thenne the danes spoylled and robbed al northumberlond / and besieged london / and made the kynge pay trybute by strengthe / The mene tyme elphegus the bisshop of wynchestre yaue pledgis and brought Anlaf kyng of danes to kyng ••gelredus / & kyng egelredus receyued hym of cold water / & the bisshop confermed hym / therafter he wente to his own & dyd no harme / but yet so cesed not harme / But as the hedes of Idra whan somme enemy¦es were awey come vp other enemyes / and destroyed the coun∣traye. ¶ The Capytayns presence is moche worth to be knowen in werre and in bataylle / soo is hardynesse vse and loore of de∣des of Armes / these fayled that tyme among englysshmen / For yf the hoost were ony tyme gadryd yf Shippes were made / noo thyng spedde a ryght / For our men were not chasted / they yaue them to thefte and to robbery / For they were not comforted / they wold lyghtly flee / Our shippes were destroyed with grete tem∣pest / ¶ One wylnotus that the kynge hadde exyled occupyed the shippes that were lefte and drenched hem owther brente hem / If the lordes come to counseyll ony tyme / they were not of one assent But they treated more of discorde and stryfe that was among hem self than of the comune profyt / & yf ony good counseyll and profytable were yeuen / anone theyr enemyes shold wytte For withoute the forsaide Elfrycus one Edrycus / that the kyn∣ge hadde made lorde of mercia a ryght fals traytour and slye that couth wel feyne hym self true frende though he were fals

He espyed the kynges counsayle as he were true and trusty

and warned the enemyes therof / as a fals gybeful traytour / In the mene tyme / mescheue / & hunger encreaced fast / ¶ Enemyes myght go frely fyfty myle / & take prayes and lede to her shippis Thenne they payd more trybute to the danes / the kyng had suche a condicion that he wold lyghtly dyssheryte englysshmen / & feyne trespaas for to haue her money and her good / he was so froward to his wyf emma. that she selde come in his bedde / he walowed in lechery with strompettis / and with comune wymmen /