 CHAPTER XII. When the Black Prince had been created Duke of Akiten the barons and knights of that country were very anxious that he should come and live amongst them, and they often entreated the king that he would allow him to do so. The English Parliament also, seeing the large sums of money which were necessary to keep up the magnificent establishments of the king and his sons in England, represented to Edward that if the Black Prince were to set up his court in Akiten, this rich and fertile country would supply all his expenses. The Black Prince himself was nothing loath to go there and set to work to make the necessary preparations for his journey. His wife was to accompany him as well as many English barons and knights, and he intended to establish his court in Akiten with all the magnificence of an independent prince. Akiten had been now for more than two hundred years in the hands of the English, and some of the English kings had given a good deal of attention to means for promoting the prosperity of the country. Edward I had begun a course of policy which, if it had been continued, might have done much to strengthen the ties which bound Akiten to England. He had founded many new towns which he endowed with special privileges so as to induce inhabitants to flock to them. As these towns owned no intermediate lord, and owed all their privileges to the English crown, the inhabitants naturally regarded the English rule with favour. Edward I's towns were all built on a regular plan, and to this day are sometimes called English towns. When founded they were called Bastide. They had two parallel streets at a short distance from one another connected by many short narrow lanes. In the middle of the town was the marketplace, in one corner of which stood the church. Here was the market hall, with a great weighing machine to weigh the merchandise. Here also was the well or fountain of the town. The houses round the marketplace, as was the custom in southern climates, were built in arcades which protected the merchants from the hot rays of the sun whilst conducting their business. In fifty years, fifty of these towns had been founded. Many of them were named after the English officers who superintended their foundation. Charters were given them, and as they were free towns and had no overlord, they were regarded with great jealousy by the other towns. Liburn was the most important and flourishing of these Bastides, and excited the jealousy of Borgdó itself. Edward III renewed its charters and further allowed its inhabitants to have free trade with England, releasing them from all custom duties at Borgdó. At the death of Edward I, the English ceased to found Bastides, but they carried down a policy likely to be equally successful in winning the affections of the people. They annexed to the crown a large number of towns, freeing them from their overlords and granting them charters. This freedom from overlords was what all the towns of the Middle Ages were struggling to get. As the towns had grown up on land belonging to some baron, they owed him, like other inferior vassals, certain dues and money payments. They had no corporate and independent existence until they could obtain a charter of liberties from their overlord. The struggle of towns to obtain charters was going on in all countries during the course of the Middle Ages. As a rule, the monarchs favored the towns, hoping thereby to get their support and aid in their struggles against the nobles. Edward III committed a mistake by departing from the policy of his predecessors and giving back many of the towns in Akiten to the chief Gaskin lords who belonged to the English Party. He was anxious by this means to win the aid of the nobles in his wars against France, but he forgot that if he wished to keep any permanent hold on the Duchy of Akiten, he must secure the affections of the people. The nobles were ready to fight for anyone who would give them wealth and sufficient opportunities for plunder, and France might easily outbid Edward. The people could only be won by a wise and liberal government. The towns could not hope for much from Edward. They saw him disregard their dearest wishes and interests and give them back into the hands of their overlords. Akiten must have represented a flourishing appearance when the Black Prince arrived to take up his abode there. The rich and fertile country was covered with vineyards and the Bastides of Edward I with their regular streets and fine marketplaces had increased into flourishing towns. The wine trade with England was carried on very vigorously, though here as in many other cases Edward III's over-busy legislation was a hindrance rather than a benefit. At one time he would allow no English merchants to go to Gaskini to buy wine, but enacted that all the wine must be brought to England by Gaskin merchants. When complaints were raised that large quantities of wine lay unsold in Akiten for want of English buyers he revoked his prohibition, but forbade the English merchants to carry the wine to any other country but England. The Black Prince drew most of his revenue from the duties on wine so that it was of no small importance to him that the trade should flourish. The Black Prince with his wife, the Princess Joan, and all his followers arrived at La Rochelle in the beginning of the year 1363. Here they were met by Sir John Chandos who had come from Nio to receive them. He was followed by a large number of knights and squires who all greeted the prince with great joy. They spent four days at Rochelle in feastings and merriment and then went to Poitiers where the prince received the homage of all the knights of Poitiers and Saint-Ange. Then he rode on to Bordeaux and at every city on his way the knights and barons crowded to do a homage. At Bordeaux he and his wife established their court and received all the nobles of Aquitaine who came to pay them their respects. The court at Bordeaux was very brilliant. The prince had his father's love for feasting and fine clothes. Splendid merrimaking was the fashion of the age and life at the Black Prince's court was a succession of revels and tournaments. He was a right noble host and knew how to make all around him happy. Here says Chandos the Herald, since the birth of Christ was there such good and honourable entertainment. Every day at his table he had more than eighty knights and four times as many squires. There they made jousts and revels, though all of them were subjects, yet were they all free, for he made them quite welcome. All who were about his person valued and loved him, for liberality was his staff and nobleness his director. Many might men say that search the whole world you could find no such prince. It is no wonder that the Gaskin lords crowded to his court. Even the greatest of them all, the Count Safois and Armagnac, came to visit him and they found that his court was as splendid as that of the King of France himself. But we must not let our eyes be dazzled by all this magnificence. To meet the expenses of his court the prince allowed the resources of his country to be drained. Though we may admire his noble hospitality and his princely courtesy to all comers, we cannot altogether consider him a wise governor. His mind seems only to have been occupied, with the desire of making his court gay and pleasant, instead of furthering the true interests of the people whom he was called upon to govern. Here again he may be taken as a type of his age. We must not judge him by any standard of our own, but by the standard of his days. But the time was fast coming when it would be no longer possible for the rulers to forget the interests of the people, when the people would at last succeed in making their voice heard, and we shall see that at the end of his days the black prince did not refuse to hear them. In 1364 there were great rejoicings at the birth of the prince's first son Edward. This little prince only lived to be seven years old, but in 1366 the princess of Wales bore another son called Richard O'Borkdove from his birthplace who ruled England as Richard II. The prince had not long set up his court at Borkdove before it seemed likely that peace would again be disturbed. In his new dominions he had become the neighbor of Spain, and he was now called upon to interfere in Spanish affairs. Up to this time Spain had been of little importance in the general affairs of Europe. The energies of its people had been entirely spent in fighting one long crusade against their Moorish conquerors. The disunion between the small Christian kingdoms long hindered their success against the Moors, but in 1230 the Christian kingdoms of Castile and Lyon were united under one ruler, who being wise and powerful succeeded in winning back a large territory from the Muslim. The kings of Portugal and Aragón had also been successful in the west and east of the peninsula, and at last nothing was left to the Mohammedan power in Spain save the kingdom of Granada. It is easy to understand that whilst the kingdoms of Spain were disunited and were engaged in this desperate struggle against the Moors on which their very existence as a nation depended they had no time to interfere in the affairs of Europe, and except for the connection of the kings of Aragón with Naples and Sicily, remained almost entirely outside European politics. Now however things were more settled in Spain. It was divided into five kingdoms, the four Christian kingdoms of Castile, Aragón, Portugal and Navarre, and the Mohammedan kingdom of Granada. Of these, Castile was the largest and had from its neighborhood to the Duchy of Aquitaine been connected with the kings of England. A daughter of Henry II of England had been married to the king of Castile and Edward I had married Eleanor of Castile who had known well how to gain the love and veneration of the English people. As dukes of Aquitaine it was the policy of the English kings to be on friendly terms with the kings of Castile. Contending commercial interests had provoked discord from time to time as we have seen in speaking of the great sea fight of Winchelsea when Edward III defeated the fleet of the maritime cities of Biscay, but this was in no way a quarrel between the two monarchs and their friendly relations remained unchanged. So what happened that when the king of Castile, Don Pedro, was chased from his throne on account of his cruelty and tyranny he turned naturally to the black prince hoping to find in him a friend. He had been engaged to marry the princess's sister, the princess Joan who had died of the plague at Bogdó on her way to Spain. He called himself therefore the prince's brother-in-law and considered that he had acclaimed to the prince's friendship. This Don Pedro was cruel and wicked and by his tyranny had gained the hatred of his subjects. He had caused many of the proudest Spanish nobles to be secretly assassinated or executed for some pretended crime and had even caused the death of his own wife who was a French princess. Moreover he was regarded with abhorrence by the pope because he oppressed the church and lived on friendly terms with the Moorish king of Granada. The pope therefore legitimized his bastard brother, Henry of Trostamara, a bold and valiant knight and encouraged him to rest the kingdom from Don Pedro. Henry had special reasons to hate Don Pedro for one of the tyrant's first victims had been Henry's mother, Leonora de Guzmán, and it was only with difficulty that Henry himself and his brother Don Teilo had escaped from Pedro's hands when he seized and executed the other members of their family. Neither was it difficult for Henry of Trostamara to find friends and supporters. Within his own dominions Pedro had no friends and in Charles V who had been king of France since the death of his father King John Henry found a ready ally. Charles had various reasons for animosity to Pedro. He resented bitterly the murder of his kin's woman, Pedro's queen, and saw in Pedro an ally of England. Charles V was a wise and cautious man, though he writhed under the burdensome obligations of the peace of Bretigny. He felt that he was not yet strong enough to reopen the war with England. Now he hoped that by aiding Henry of Trostamara he might strike a blow at the English power through their ally. Another important reason influenced him in this direction. France as we have seen was devastated by the free companies who were daily growing more powerful. The Pope at Avignon trembled before them, and it was equally important to both Charles V and the Pope to get rid of them. The two therefore joined together in hiring these companies to aid Henry. A treaty was concluded with the leaders of the companies who were only too glad to engage on a military expedition in which they might hope for plenty of spoils. The French general Bertrand de Gheclin, whose fame had grown in the Breton War, was ransom from captivity in Brittany that he might lead the free companies into Spain. Among the chiefs of the companies were many English and Gascon who went, in spite of Edward III's commands to the contrary, they marched over the Pyrenees into Spain and were met at Barcelona by Henry of Trostamara. There was no one found to take up the cause of the hated Pedro who lost his throne without a battle and was obliged to fly with his two daughters to the fortress of Coruna and then to Bayonne. Thence he sent letters to the Black Prince asking for his protection and aid. We may be surprised that the Black Prince listened for a moment to the entreaties of a man whose own crimes had lost him his throne and whose wickedness drew on him universal abhorrence. But on the other hand there were many things which recommended Pedro to his pity. He was the ally of England and as a helpless fugitive asked for aid. It was always the part of a true night to sucker the distressed. Again there was a very strong feeling in favor of the legitimate sovereign, however great his crimes might be, and we cannot wonder at one ruler feeling sympathy for the misfortunes of another. The whole situation appealed strongly to the chivalric spirit of the Prince. As a Christian night it was his duty, without any further thought of policy, to receive the fugitive hospitably and help him to win back his rightful inheritance. Some motives of policy also came into influence him. Should an ally of France be placed on the throne of Castile the Black Prince would be awkwardly placed in Akiten, with a declared enemy on one side and a probable enemy on the other. Possibly also he indulged in some hope that he might get substantial advantages from aiding Pedro and that he might even be able to annex the maritime province of Biscayre with all its thriving commercial cities, whose spirit of enterprise led them to compete even with England herself. Still the policy which could lead the Black Prince to help Pedro was not very far sighted. He might have seen that it would be impossible to establish firmly on the throne a ruler so much hated as was Pedro. In the end the opposite party must triumph and then he would find that he had embittered them against himself by helping their enemy. His wisest course would have been to do all in his power to secure the friendship of Henry of Trastamara. But this was opposed to all his feelings of what was due to an ally in distress. On receiving Dom Pedro's letters the Black Prince immediately sent for Sir John Chandos and Sir William Felton, his chief advisors, and said to them, smiling, My Lords, here is great news from Spain. He then told them what he had heard and begged them to tell him frankly what they thought he ought to do. They advised him to send a body of soldiers to bring Dom Pedro safely to Bayon that they might learn his condition from his own mouth. Their advice pleased the Prince and he sent Sir William Felton and a number of other knights to fetch Dom Pedro. They met him at Bayon and treating him with the utmost honor brought him to Bogdó. The Prince rode out of the town at the head of his knights to meet the Fugitive King. He greeted him respectfully and led him into the city with great courtesy. An apartment had been prepared for him and in all things he was treated with the honor due to a reigning sovereign. Feasts and tournaments were held and everything was done which could make him forget his miserable condition. Dom Pedro on his side did all he could to attach the Prince to his interests. He had nothing but promises to give and of these he was most liberal, promising rich gifts of money and lands to the Prince and all his knights if they would help his cause. There were not wanting wise men amongst the Prince's counselors to dissuade him from giving Dom Pedro any help. They spoke to him of his secure and prosperous condition, telling him that he could want for nothing more and that to try for more might endanger what he already possessed. They showed him the unworthiness of Pedro, how he was an enemy to religion, had oppressed his subjects, and was hated by all men. But all this made no impression on the Prince. He could not shut his eyes to Dom Pedro's distress nor forget that he had come as a fugitive to ask his help. Before deciding upon anything however he assembled a great council of all the barons of his duchy to ask their advice. Many of the council were eager for the enterprise as knights in those days longed for anything which might win the monor. They agreed however to send ambassadors to England and ask the advice of the King. When the answer came back it appeared that Edward III in his council were clearly of the same opinion as the Prince. They advised him to aid Dom Pedro with all the force at his command. The expedition was determined upon, but next arose the question of payment. The barons of Akiten were not willing to engage in this enterprise at their own expense. Dom Pedro assured the Prince that there need be no difficulty on this head. Once restored to the throne of Castile he would have abundant treasure at his command and would pay all the expenses of the war. The Black Prince put such trust in his word that he made himself answerable for the expenses of the war, believing that Pedro would not fail to pay him. Chandos and Felton, however, advised the Prince to melt down some of his plate of which he possessed an enormous quantity for immediate expenses. Swords and coats of mail were forged at Borgdó in preparation for the expedition. Letters were sent to the leaders of the English Free Company, so it accompanied Henry of Trostamara into Spain, bidding them return and aid in this expedition. It was a matter of perfect indifference to these companies for whom they fought, provided they had pay and booty enough. Though they had helped Henry of Trostamara to the throne, they were quite willing to serve under the banner of the Black Prince and to pull down the King whom they had set up. It was necessary to obtain permission from the King of Navarre to pass through his dominions which lay between Akiten and Castile. Charles the Bad had pledged himself to Henry of Trostamara not to let any troops pass through his kingdom, but he was soon persuaded by the promise of a large sum of money to break his word. CHAPTER XIII. SPANISH CAMPAIGN. The troops were to collect at docks for the expedition. The Black Prince did his utmost to attach the Free Companies firmly to him by distributing amongst them the money which he had raised by melting down his plate. His father, learning his want of money, had consented to send him the yearly payment made by the French in consideration of the sum of money still due for King John's ransom. This money also was distributed amongst the Companies. On Wednesday the Feast of the Epiphany, when the Black Prince's preparations for leaving Bokdó were already complete, he was rejoiced by the birth of his son Richard. He stayed to see his child baptized by the Archbishop of Bokdó and on the following day his wife had to take leave of him. She was filled with anxiety in his departure, as the expedition was considered to be full of danger, and the Herald Chandos tells us that she bitterly lamented his departure saying, Alas, what will happen to me if I shall lose the true flower of gentleness, the flower of magnanimity, him who in the world has no equal to be named for courage. I have no heart, no blood, no veins, but every member fails me when I think of his departure. But when the Prince heard her lamentation he comforted her, and said, Lady, cease your lament and be not dismayed, for God is able to do all things. Then he took his leave of her very tenderly and said lovingly, Lady, we shall meet again in such case, that we shall have joy, both we and all our friends, for my heart tells me this. Then they embraced with many tears, and all the dames and damsels of the court wept also, some weeping for their lovers, some for their husbands. The Prince and his knights left Bokdó on January 10th and went to Docks, where the troops were collecting. A few days afterwards the Prince's brother, John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, arrived at Bokdó with a body of troops which he had brought from England to aid in the expedition. He was welcomed with great joy by the Princess and her ladies. He would not stay, however, but pressed on to Docks where his brother waited his coming. Fwasak tells us that the two brothers were very happy in this meeting, for they had much affection for each other, and many proofs of affection passed between them and their men. Meanwhile Henry of Trostamara had not been idle in preparing for his invasion. All Spain was on his side and the French King had sent troops to his assistance under his general Bertrand de Geclin. Much romance has been woven around the history of this famous man, who was to be the arm by which Charles V should free himself from the English, and who himself at one time, the leader of a free company, was to deliver France from the scourge of the companies. It is difficult in the story of his life to separate truth from romance. He was a Breton and in those days it was said that none in France were good soldiers except the Bretons and the Gascans. His origin is obscure and he is supposed to have been the son of a peasant. Even his most enthusiastic admirers allow him to have been a rough, rude man, extremely ugly, of middle height with a dark complexion and green eyes, long arms, and large shoulders. As a tactician he was far in advance of such simple soldiers as Edward III and the Black Prince. He had advanced beyond the ideas of chivalry where the one aim was to fight bravely. He preferred to win by cunning, if possible, and did not care how often he broke his plighted word. He was one of a new race of soldiers who sought to win by tactics rather than by hard fighting, to avoid a battle rather than risk one. Still if it were necessary to fight he was always foremost and knew no fear. He gave no quarter and thirsted for revenge against his foes. The characteristic way in which he always plunged into the thickest of the battle without thinking of his own safety is shown by the fact that he was twice in his life taken prisoner. When he had money he was prodigal of it, but he was at all times eager for booty and pillage. He had fought with success in Brittany against the Mouffor and the English, and was now ready to measure his strength with the most renowned captain of his age, the Black Prince. Charles V, King of France, to whom history has given the name of the wise, only complied with the conditions of the Peace of Brittany, that time might strengthen his resources while it weakened those of his enemies. Not a brave soldier himself. In the Battle of Poitiers he was one of those who first sought safety and flight. He had no ambition to command his own armies as the other monarchs of his age had done, but his wisdom had made him lay his hand upon du Géclin as the fit person to be general. In spite of the agreement which the English had made with the King of Navarre they were still afraid of him, for they heard that he had again begun to treat with Henry of Trostamara. The Black Prince ordered two of the frontier towns of Navarre to be invested with English troops and compelled the King of Navarre to accompany the army until it had safely passed through his dominions. They crossed the Pyrenees by the Pass of Rolfsvall. The passage through these narrow defiles was most dangerous and difficult, as it was now the middle of winter. The entire army was almost overwhelmed by a frightful snowstorm which overtook them in the mountains. They suffered great loss both in men and beasts, but at last reached the valley of Pamplona where they stopped to recruit their forces. Whilst they were waiting there the King of Navarre as he was riding about was taken prisoner by a French captain. He was supposed to have purposely allowed this to happen, that he might be freed from all further personal responsibilities as to the war. One of his knights, however, conducted the Prince through the Kingdom of Navarre and provided guides for the army through the difficult mountain roads. The army crossed the deep and rapid Ebro by the bridge at Logrono and encamped near the little town of Navarrete. Don Henry and Dugetclan were not far off and camped near Nahera on the little river Naheria. From Navarrete the Black Prince sent his manifesto to Don Henry. In this he stated that he had come to restore the legitimate King to his throne and expressed his amazement that Henry who had sworn allegiance to his brother should have ventured afterwards to take up arms against him and drive him from his rightful throne. He called God and sent George to witness that he was willing, even now, to settle the dispute by mediation. But if that were refused it was nothing left for it but to fight. Henry answered on the following day. He said that the whole Kingdom had fallen away from Don Pedro and attached themselves to him, that it was Heaven's doing and no one had a right to interfere. He also in God's name and Santiago's had no desire for a battle. But he forbade the enemy to press any further into his country. On their march to Legrono the Prince's army had suffered much from want of provisions. He was therefore eager for a battle as soon as possible. But the enemy waited to attack till all their troops should have arrived. Sir William Felton went with a body of men to reconnoitre the enemy, but was attacked by a large number of French and Spaniards and was slain after a most valiant fight. Sir Hugh Calvly another of the bravest English knights was also surprised and slain by a large body of Spaniards who had gone out under Don Teio, Henry's brother, to reconnoitre the English army. These successes filled the Spaniards with joy and confidence. Henry said to his brother, I will reward you handsomely for this, and I feel all the rest of our enemies must at last come to this pass. But on this one of the French knights spoke up and baited him not to be too confident, for with the Black Prince was the flower of chivalry of the whole world, all hearty and tough combatants, who would die rather than think of flying. But he added, if you follow my advice, you can take them all without striking a blow. He then advised Henry simply to keep watch over all the passes and defiles so that no provisions could be brought to the English army, and when famine had done its work, to attack them as they retreated. This advice was very sound, and would doubtless have been successful if it had been followed. But Henry was far too impetuous a knight to be content to pursue a policy of an action. He crossed the Little River Naharia with his army and spread out his forces in a beautiful open plain, which was broken neither by tree nor bush for a great distance. The army was divided into three battalions, and their front was covered by men who threw stones with slings. When all was formed in order Henry mounted a handsome mule, and rode through the ranks exhorting and encouraging the men. The Black Prince meanwhile was not very far off. The previous night he had been encamped at a distance of only two leagues from the enemy, and was now marching to meet him in full battle array. He crossed a hill to reach the plain where Henry's army lay in advance down a long deep valley. The sun was just rising when the two armies came in sight of one another, and it was a beautiful sight, says Foixar, to see the battalions as they advanced to meet their brilliant armor glittering in the sunbeams. The Prince mounted a hill that he might see the Spaniards, and after observing them, ordered his army to halt and spread out in line of battle. Immediately before the battle he raised Sir John Chandos to the rank of a Knight Bannerette, to the great joy of those knights and squires who fought under Sir John. Then the Prince spoke a few words to the army. Today, sirs, he said, has, as you well know, no other termination but infamon, for want of food we are well night taken. See there are your enemies, who have food enough, bread and wine and fish, salt and fresh from the river and the sea. These we must now obtain by dint of lance and sword, now let us do such a day's work that we may part from our foes with honor. Then he knelt down and prayed, O very sovereign Father who has made and fashioned us, so truly as thou knowest that I am not come hither but to defend the right, for prowess and for liberty, that my heart leaps and burns to obtain a life of honor, I pray thee that on this day thou wilt guard me and my people. After which he rose and exclaimed, Advanced Spanners, God defend the right. Then turning to Dom Pedro he took him by the hand and said, Certainly Sir King, today you shall know if ever you shall recover Castile, have firm trust in God. Then the battle began. The first battalion of the English army commanded by John of Gaunt and Chandos engaged the French contingent of the Spanish army commanded by Dugetclan. John of Gaunt encouraged his men shouting, Advanced Spanners, Advanced, let us take God to our rescue and each to his honor. Meanwhile the Prince, near whom rode Dom Pedro, attacked the second division of the Spanish army commanded by Donteo. At the first encounter the Spanish troops were seized with terror and fled in wild confusion so that the Prince was at liberty to engage the main body of the enemy commanded by Henry. Here the Spaniards encouraged by the presence of their king fought with much greater bravery. The stones thrown with great force from the slings of the Spanish foot soldiers did much harm to their opponents and many were unhorsed by them, but the English arrows flew straighter than rain in winter time and the Spanish cavalry began to break before them. Thrice Henry rallied his men but at last it was hopeless and he was obliged to fly. Dugetclan and his French soldiers also gave the dukes of Lancaster and Chandos plenty to do. Chandos was unhorsed and only saved his life by his great coolness and presence of mind. The French knights bore themselves most valiantly. Dugetclan who would never fly, even though he saw the day was lost, was surrounded and taken prisoner. The Spaniards and French fled across the river to the town of Nahara. Many were killed in crossing the bridge so that the river was dyed red with the blood of men and horses. The English and Gaskins entered the town with them and took many of the knights and killed many of the people. In Henry's lodgings they found much plate and jewels for he had come there with great splendor. The English victory was complete. At noon the battle was over and the Black Prince ordered his banner to be fixed in a bush on a little height as a rallying point for his men on the return from the pursuit. The Duke of Lancaster and others among the knights did the same and the men soon gathered round the different banners in good order. The Prince bade that they should look among the dead for the body of Henry of Trostamara and also discover what men of rank had been slain. He then descended with Don Pedro and his knights to King Henry's lodgings. There they found plenty of everything at which they rejoiced greatly for they had suffered great want before. When the men returned from searching the battlefield Don Pedro was much displeased at hearing that his brother was not among the slain. The slaughter had been very great amongst the common soldiers. Besides those lying dead on the battlefield many were drowned in the river. That night the army rested in ease and luxury enjoying plenty of food and wine. Next morning which was Palm Sunday Pedro's mind was already full of thoughts of revenge. He came to the Prince and asked that he should give up to him all the Spanish prisoners, the traitors of his country, that he might cut off their heads. But the Prince answered him, Sir King, I entreat and beg of you to pardon all the ill which your rebellious subjects have done against you. Thus you will do an act of kindness and generosity and will remain in peace in your kingdom. Pedro was not in a position to refuse the Prince's request since he owed everything to him and he had to pardon all the Spanish nobles except in one who in some manner had earned his special anger and whom the Prince gave up to him. He was beheaded in front of Don Pedro's tent before his very eyes. The next day the army set out on its march toward Burgos and the citizens who knew that resistance was useless opened their gates to Don Pedro. The Prince and his army encamped in the plain outside the town as there was not comfortable quarters for them all inside. Here the return of Don Pedro was celebrated with tournaments, banquets and processions, and the Black Prince presided as judge over all the tournaments. All Cuth deal yielded to Don Pedro and the Black Prince might congratulate himself that he had done his work speedily and well. He exhorted Pedro on every occasion to treat his people well and pardoned their revolt from his rule, saying to him, I advise you for your good if you would be king of Castile that you send forth word that you have consented to give pardon to all those who have been against you. Pedro promised everything he asked and as long as the Black Prince stayed by his side he did not dare to indulge his desire for vengeance. But when the Prince had been a month at Burgos he began to be impatient to return to his own dominions. He had as yet received none of the promised money from Pedro in payment of the expenses of the campaign. He therefore told the king that he was anxious to return and disband his army and demanded the money to pay his troops. Pedro said that he fully intended to pay as he had promised but at that moment he had no money. At Seville however he had a large treasure and if the Black Prince would allow him to depart he would go and fetch it. Meanwhile he proposed that the Prince and his army should quarter themselves in the fertile country round Valladolid. He promised to bring him the money at Witsentide. The Black Prince, himself always honest and straightforward, was ever ready to trust to others and easily agreed to do as Pedro proposed. It was a fatal step. For once away from Pedro's side he lost all hold upon him. The Prince's army established itself round Valladolid and the free companies supported themselves by pillaging the peasants. The summer drew on and the army began to suffer from the hot climate. Disease broke out in the camp and it is said that four out of every five of the soldiers died. Witsentide came but brought no money from Pedro. The Prince grew more and more uneasy. At last he sent three of his knights to the Spanish King to ask him why he did not keep his promise. To them Pedro professed great sorrow that he had not been able to send the money sooner and repeated his promises but said that he could not drain his people of money and above all he could not send any money so long as the free companies were in the country for they did so much harm. If the Prince would send the companies away and only let some of his knights remain he would soon send the money. When this answer was brought back to the Prince he became very sad for he saw clearly that Don Pedro did not mean to keep his promises. His own health was failing. He had been attacked by an illness which was never to leave him. Bad news was brought him from Bucto. The Princess wrote that Henry of Trastamara was attacking the frontiers of Aquitaine. His army was rapidly dwindling before his eyes. Man after man died from the effects of the climate. There was nothing for it but to return to Bucto. In sadness he gathered his troops together and felt thankful that he was allowed to pass peaceably through Navarre and the dangerous passes of the Pyrenees. At Bayon he disbanded his army, now only a miserable remnant of the magnificent array of troops which he had led into Spain. He bade them come to Bucto to receive the payment due to them. He said to them that Don Pedro had not kept his engagements it did not become him to act in like manner to those who had served him so well. On his arrival at Bucto he was received with solemn processions, the priests coming out to meet him bearing crosses. The Princess followed with her eldest son Edward then three years old, surrounded by her ladies and knights. They were full of joy at meeting one another again and embraced most tenderly and then walked together hand in hand to their abode. Soon after the Princess assembled all the nobles of Aquitaine who had joined in this expedition, thanked them heartily for their help, and distributed among them rich presence of gold and silver and jewels. His victory in Spain had caused him to be esteemed as the greatest among the princes and generals of Europe. The news of it had been received in England with enthusiastic joy, bonfires, rejoicings, and thanksgivings in the churches had celebrated all over the country. But what was the result? The Prince had restored for a moment a bloodthirsty tyrant to the throne, and in return for that had impoverished his exchequer and shattered his health. He returned to Boc d'eau a disappointed man. Don Pedro had failed in all his promises, and the only results of this expedition to the Prince were broken health and crippled resources. A change seems to have come over the Prince's character after this. He lost his bright confidence and cheerful fearlessness and became morose and discontented. He was pressed by the want of the necessary money to keep up the expenses of his extravagant court, and this and his illness weighed down his spirits. To his enemies, who had so long trembled before him, it seemed that the hour had come when they might safely attack him. By the Treaty of Bretigny, Edward III had promised to renounce forever his claim to the French crown, and in return the French King had promised to renounce his sovereignty over the English provinces and France, which were henceforth to be held as independent possessions owing no right of allegiance to the French crown. Time had passed on, and for one reason or another the formal renunciation of these claims had never been made. It was perhaps only natural that both sides should put off as long as possible the moment when they must definitely give up what they had so long clung to. Charles V, King of France, had probably never really intended to conform to the Peace of Bretigny. It had been concluded in his father's lifetime and had been wrung from him only by the miserable condition of France after the Battle of Poitiers. For the moment he was ready to agree to anything and wait for the time when he might be able to win back what he had lost. Part of the ransom of King John was still unpaid. With characteristic generosity Edward had allowed many of the hostages to go to France on giving their word that they would come back. But most of them never returned, and his demands to Charles for payment of the rest of the money passed unheeded. Charles, who was quietly gathering strength whilst he waited a favourable moment for attacking the Black Prince, must have seen with delight the false step which his enemy took in aiding Pedro the Cruel. It soon became clear how fruitless the Spanish expedition had been. The Prince had hardly reached Bordeaux when Henry of Trostamara who had been attacking the frontiers of Aquitaine would grew his army-dance and crossed the Pyrenees into Arojon to prepare for a second invasion of Cthulhu. He was anxious to have again the aid of Dugetclin, but Dugetclin, unfortunately, was still a prisoner in the Black Prince's hands and knew not how to raise the money wanted for his ransom. One day when the Prince was in good humour he called Dugetclin to him and asked him how he was. I was never better, my Lord, was the answer. I cannot be otherwise than well, for I am, though in prison, the most honoured night in the world. How so ask the Prince? They say in France as well as in other countries answered Dugetclin that you are so much afraid of me and have such a dread of my gaining my liberty that you dare not set me free, and this is my reason for thinking myself so much valued and honoured. The Prince did not like this for he knew that it was partly the truth. He had once offered Dugetclin his liberty for a much smaller sum than had been asked before. His counsel tried to dissuade him from keeping this agreement but the Prince speaking like a good and loyal knight said, since we have granted it we will keep it and not act in any way contrary. It was not long before Dugetclin was able to pay the money and hastened to join Henry, who was already successfully invading Cthulhu. Most of the towns opened their gates to him and he defeated Pedro in battle and pursued him to the fortress of Montiel. Here by some means or other Pedro and Henry met face to face. So great was their hatred for one another that Pedro immediately threw himself upon his brother and being the stronger threw him down upon the ground under himself. But Henry, managed to draw his long Spanish knife and plunging it into Pedro killed him on the spot. After this he was secure in his possession of the throne of Castile and had no longer to fear any rival. This event of course entirely destroyed any hopes the Black Prince might still have of getting the money due from Pedro. He had not enough money himself to pay more than half of what was due to the companies which had fought under his banner. They on being disbanded went off to ravage the French territory which did not tend to make the French feel more friendly to the Black Prince's rule. In truth it is impossible to deny that he showed little talent as an administrator in his position as ruler of Aquitaine. His subjects were rapidly growing more and more discontented and many of the chief nobles who had at first crowded to swear allegiance to him, through mere terror of his name, now began secretly to draw near to France. By a fatal mistake of policy he managed to estrange his subjects still further. He was deeply in debt and had no money either to defray the expenses of his court or to prepare for a long struggle with France which he felt must soon be inevitable. He felt therefore that it was necessary to impose the tax upon his subjects and he hit upon the most burdensome tax he could have discovered. He proposed to the assembly of the states of his duchy that a hearth tax should be levied for five years. That is for every fire upon the hearth an annual duty should be paid. This kind of tax was particularly oppressive as it fell unequally. The poor paid more in proportion to their small means than did the rich. Hence the tax caused great discontent especially among the gas conveyance, the lords of Armagnac, D'Arbre, Comang, and many others. The whole province seemed too weary of the English rule. The people resented naturally enough the ravages and extortions of the three companies and complained that the English nobles were arrogant and overbearing. The King of France watched eagerly this growing discontent, but he remained quiet until he had concluded an offensive and defensive alliance with Henry of Trostamara. The gaspin lords in their discontent at the new tax claimed to have a right of appeal to the King of France as if he had still been the feudal superior of the duchy to whom the vassals might carry their complaints against their lord. This claim of appeal greatly angered the black prince for in the Treaty of Bretigny the King of France had agreed to renounce all rights over Aquitaine and therefore should receive no appeals. But the gaspin said that it was not in the power of the King of France to renounce these rights without the consent of the barons and cities of Aquitaine and this consent had never been given and would never be given. The dispute, as was natural, only increased the ill will between the prince and his subjects. From all sides the King of France was advised to seize this favorable moment for attacking the prince. He was told that as soon as he declared war all the barons and cities of Aquitaine would turn to his side for all were discontented with the English rule. At last on the 25th January 1369 he summoned the black prince to appear before the court of his peers at Paris and answered the complaints brought against him by his vassals. This proceeding was of course entirely contrary to the Treaty of Bretigny. It was treating the prince as if he were a vassal of France whereas according to the treaty the King of France had entirely renounced his claim to the allegiance of Aquitaine. By treating the black prince as a vassal he therefore distinctly threw down the gauntlet of war. Great was the anger of the prince when this summons reached him. When the commissioners who had brought the letter had read it to him he looked at them for a moment in silence and then burst forth in rage. We will willingly come to Paris on the day appointed, he said, but it will be with our helmet on our head and sixty thousand men at our back. He would give no other answer to the commissioners and after they had gone his anger burnt so hot against them that he sent some of his knights after them to seize them and to bring them back to prison. Let them not, he said, go and tell their prattle to the Duke of Anjou who loves us little and say how they have summoned us personally in our own palace. The King of France was indignant when he heard of the answer of the black prince and of the treatment which his commissioners had met with. He made immediate preparations for war. He sent a challenge to the King of England by a common valet, a kitchen boy, that he might make it as insulting as possible. Both England and its King were sunk in the enjoyments of peace. The King was growing old and loved ease and luxury. The country was weary of war and absorbed in trade and manufacture. Still, the challenge of the King of France stung their pride and threw Edward III into a mighty passion. He determined to reassert his claim to the Crown of France and opened the war with vigor. He sent the Duke of Lancaster with an army to Calais to invade the north of France and his son Edmund, Duke of Cambridge, with troops to assist the black prince in Aquitaine. The black prince established his camp at Angoulême. The services of the various free companies were eagerly bid for by both the combatants and many were engaged on either side. The French soon began their inroads upon the prince's territory. He lay at Angoulême, helpless from illness, and almost wild with vexation at hearing of the advance of his enemies. A desultory warfare began in which neither side gained any considerable advantage, but the French seemed to be pressing on further whilst the disaffection of the chief nobles and the illness of the prince tended more and more to break up the unity of the English provinces. In the north, the Duke of Lancaster did nothing but burn and ravage the enemy's country. The French army which had been sent against him had been expressly ordered not to engage battle. The remembrance of the English victories was still too vivid in the minds of the French. The death in a chance skirmish of his valued friend and wise consular, Sir John Chandos, was a serious blow to the prince. He was Sénéchal of Poitou and was very anxious to drive back the French who had taken some strong places there. He attacked a body of the enemy much superior in number to his own force and fell upon them with scoffs and jeers. But, as he was advancing on foot, he slipped on the ground, made slippery by the frost. He was entangled in the long robe of white Samite which he wore under his armor according to the fashion of those days and stumbled. A French squire seized this opportunity to make a thrust at him. Sir John had lost an eye five years before, and the thrust being made on his blind side he could not see toward it off. To the dismay of his followers he fell back rolling in death agony on the ground. They fought desperately, eager to revenge his fall, but owing to their small number were obliged to surrender to the French. Soon after they were released by the arrival of a large body of English troops to whom the French in their turn had to yield. Chandos was discovered lying so severely wounded that he was unable to speak. Great were the lamentations of the English for all loved and revered him. There was no knight more valiant or courteous than he. His servants gently disarmed him and he was laid on a litter made of shields and targets, and so was slowly carried at a foot pace to Mortemet, the nearest fort. He only lived one day and night and was buried by his friends at Mortemet. On his tomb was written this epitaph in French. I, John Chandos, in English knight, Senochal of all Poit-II, against the French king, oft did fight on foot and horseback many slew. Bertrand du Goclin, prisoner too by me, was taken in a veil. At L'Ensoc did the foe prevail. My body then at Mortemet, in a fair tomb, did my friends in Turr, in the year of grace divine, thirteen hundred, sixty-nine. Foissa says of Chandos that never since a hundred years did there exist one more courteous nor fuller of every virtue and good quality. What the English cause lost by his death can hardly be estimated. His valor and wisdom might have prevented the loss of Akiten. It was early in thirteen seventy that Chandos was in the first lane. That year, Charles V determined to strike a decisive blow. Two armies under his brothers, the Ducs of Anjou and Berri, the former assisted by the great general du Goclin, were to invade Akiten at the same time. They advanced with great success, taking one city after another. Limoges, the capital of Limousin, was surrendered into their hands by its bishop who turned traitor. News of the loss of this important city was brought to the Black Prince as he lay upon his bed of sickness. In a frenzy of rage he sat up in his bed and exclaimed, The French hold me dead, but if God give me relief and I can once leave this bed I will again make them feel. Now that it was too late to gain the affections of his people, he had, at the advice of Edward III, remitted the hearth tax, but this seemed to the people only a sign of weakness. He also offered in the name of his father the royal pardon to all those who had revolted if they would return to their allegiance. The Duke of Lancaster had arrived in Akiten to aid him in the conduct of affairs on account of his broken health. The Black Prince's authority in Akiten seemed to be gone, but the French successes, the loss of Limoges and the treachery of its bishop roused him to make a last effort. He swore by the soul of his father that he would have Limoges back again and would make the inhabitants pay dearly for their treachery. He mustered his forces at Cognac and prepared to march toward Limoges. When he took the field and all his men at arms were drawn out in battle array the whole country was filled with fear. His name had not yet lost its terror. He could not mount on horseback, but was obliged to be carried in a litter. He found Limoges well defended, but he made his army and camp all rounded and swore he would never leave the place till he had taken it. The Maj was too well garrisoned to be taken by assault, and the English, therefore, prepared to lay siege to it. They had with them a large body of miners, and the Prince gave orders that the walls should be mined. After a month all was ready. The garrison of the town tried by counter-mining to destroy the work of the Prince's miners, but failed, and the miners having filled their mines with combustibles set fire to them. The explosion threw down a large piece of the wall. The English, who were already and waiting for the right moment, rushed in through the breach whilst others attacked the gates. So quickly was it done that the French had no time to resist. Then the Prince, born on his litter, and John of Gaunt and the other nobles rushed into the town with their men. The soldiers, eager for booty, ran through the town, killing men, women, and children, according to the orders given by the Prince from his litter. It was almost melancholy business as foie sa, for all ranks, ages, and sexes cast themselves on their knees before the Prince begging for mercy, but he was so inflamed with passion and revenge that he listened to none, but all were put to the sword wherever they could be found. The garrison, meanwhile, had drawn themselves up in a body and stood with their backs to an old wall, determined to fight to the last. The Duke of Lancaster in the Earl of Cambridge advanced to attack them, and in order to be on an equality with them, dismounted from their horses before they began the fight. The English were greatly superior in number, but the French fought so bravely that they were able to hold their own for some little time. The Prince watched the combat with deep interest. The sight of the bravery of the knights at last roused again his nobler and more generous emotions, and he shouted out that the lives of those French knights who would surrender should be spared. Whereupon the French gave up their swords and yielded themselves prisoners. The Bishop was also taken prisoner. The whole town was burnt and pillaged and utterly destroyed. The Black Prince, worn out with suffering and disease, seemed to wish to revenge himself by one act of relentless cruelty for the loss of all his power and authority in France. The sack of Limoges shows us the dark side of chivalry. We must not blame the Black Prince too severely for it. In sacrificing the innocent inhabitants of a whole city to his revenge, he was only acting in accordance with the spirit of the age in which he lived. The views of life in which he had been educated had taught him no respect for human life as such. His generous emotions were not called out by the piteous suffering of women and children, but by the brave fighting of men at arms. This was what chivalry led to, and all its bright features cannot make us forgive its disregard of human suffering. Doubtless this terrible sack is a blot upon the Black Prince's character, but we could hardly have hoped to find him superior to his age. In this as much as in his nobler deeds he is the true type of chivalry, and shows us how very partial and one-sided was its civilizing effect. We must remember also in his excuse that he was at that time suffering from a severe and painful illness, and suffering even more bitterly in mind at the loss of his proud position and the break-up of his dominions. But whilst trying to see what may be said in his excuse, we must not shut our eyes to the enormity of the crime. The massacre of this innocent population could do no good, and could have no beneficial result. What the Black Prince did was to sacrifice all the inhabitants of a prosperous city to his own thirst for revenge. After the sack he returned to Kanyak where he had left the princess. There he disbanded his forces feeling too ill for any further enterprise. This one exertion seems to have had a bad effect upon him for he became rapidly worse to the great alarm of all around him. His physicians ordered him to return at once to England, and in sadness of heart he prepared to leave his duchy. Just before he left he had the misfortune also to lose his eldest son Edward. He left his authority in Akiten to his brother John of Gaunt, and sailed from Bokdo with his wife and his son Richard in the beginning of the year 1371. The voyage was prosperous. He soon reached England and went to Windsor to meet the king. He had left his country full of hope and confidence. He returned broken down in health and spirits. The tide of English prosperity had turned, and it is melancholy to compare the bright beginning of Edward III's power with the last sad years of his reign. Section 17 of Edward the Black Prince by Louise Creighton. The England to which the Black Prince returned was in many ways different from the England which he had left. The country had suffered one great loss. The good Queen Philippa, so long the faithful wife of Edward III, had died in 1369. By her wisdom and virtue she had been of great use to the king and had been beloved through all the kingdom. Deprived of her counsel Edward fell under the influence of one of the ladies of her bedchamber, Alice Perrors, a woman of great wit and beauty, who ruled him at her will and who was used as a tool by the different political parties. It was a melancholy end for the bright, vigorous king to come to. The external splendor and glory of his reign was gone. His court had lost its brilliancy. He himself seemed almost to have sunk into a premature dotage. But though the last years of his reign were not as brilliant as the former years, they are perhaps more important for the history of our country, for in them we see the beginning of a great political struggle which left most important traces upon the development of our constitution, and we are also able to trace the remarkable increase of the power and influence of parliament. In these struggles the black prince for the first time in his life appeared as a politician, and the part which he took in them earned for him as much glory as his victories of Poitiers or Naharaith. All through Edward's reign parliament had been increasing in power, but we shall not be able to understand the way in which it had developed unless we go back and try to find out what it was at the beginning of Edward's reign. There had always been, under the Norman kings, a great council composed of the chief men of the kingdom, by whose assent and consent the crown acted. But besides the advice of these nobles the kings felt the need of the money of their people and to obtain this the more easily they summoned some of them to sit side by side with their advisors in the great council. The old arrangement of the shires and the shire courts gave a means of getting representatives. First, knights to be chosen from every shire were summoned to the meetings of the great council, and finally Simone de Moefort, in 1264, summoned also burgesses from the chief cities. Edward I's pressing need for money drove him to follow the example of Simone de Moefort and summon these representatives to parliament for the purpose of obtaining from them more easily grants of money. This privilege, however, of sending representatives to parliament was not one which the towns were eager to grasp. The burgesses did not care to leave their business and undertake an expensive and dangerous journey to attend the parliament. When they got there, they had nothing to do but vote grants of money. It was only slowly and without any outward struggle that the knights who represented the shires and the burgesses who represented the cities came to take any part in legislation. It was in this respect that the reign of Edward III saw a great change. In the parliaments of Edward I each order had deliberated separately. The clergy, the barons, the knights and the burgesses made their grants separately. At first the barons and the knights whose interests were very similar tended to combine. The importance of the burgesses, however, increased during the reign of Edward II as the barons needed their aid in the struggle against the crown. As they increased in importance, the knights of the shire seemed to have broken off their connection with the barons and joined with the burgesses. In the beginning of the reign of Edward III we find the knights and burgesses combined together under the name of the commons. That the knights of the shire united with the burgesses and not with the barons is a fact of immense importance in our constitutional history. Had they united with the barons the aristocratic party would have been the strongest in the state. As it was, the commons were to be the strongest. In the reign of Edward III therefore we find parliament divided very much as it now is, into the upper and lower houses. Edward I had included representatives of the clergy in his parliament, but the clergy, though forced to obey his summons, had objected to sit with the other members. They would only vote supplies in their own provincial convocations, that is, assemblies of the clergy of the two ecclesiastical divisions or provinces of York and Canterbury. The clergy wished to keep themselves apart as a privileged order, and so did not seize the opportunity given them by Edward I of forming part of the national parliament. Only the spiritual peers, that is the members of the higher clergy, who by holding land directly from the crown were in the same position as the barons, sat in the upper house of parliament. It was during the reign of Edward III that the commons first began to feel their power and importance, and really to desire the privilege of sitting in parliament. This is one of the signs of the progress they made at this time. They were eager to make laws, and the king himself shared their eagerness, and in consequence, this reign is marked by fussy legislation on many different points. Trade and manufacturers were the great interests of the age, and they were represented by the commons, whose desire was to benefit them, as they thought, by making laws for their regulation. They had not learned the great lesson that trade prospers best when it is left alone by lawmakers. Continually, the laws when made were found to have quite different results to what the lawmakers had expected and had to be repealed the next year. This restless desire to interfere in everything was very harmful to trade and industry. There were so many changes that people found it difficult to know what the law really was. Many of the laws were not attended to at all, as it was impossible to watch over the people narrowly enough to see that they were obeyed. We have seen how parliament tried to fix the price of labor. In the same way, it tried to fix the price of everything else. It fixed the price at which tailors should make clothes, at which poultry, meat, bread, and other articles of ordinary consumption were to be sold. Even the number of dishes which a man might have for dinner was fixed by law. These laws have left no permanent impression on English history and are interesting only as giving indications of the manners and customs of the times. They serve also to show how greatly the energy of parliament increased in this reign. There are other and more important things which show us the great increase of its power. It had always been the theory of the English Constitution that the king could not raise money without the consent of the great council of the realm, but this had often been little more than a theory. In this reign, it became a clearly recognized fact that no money could be raised except with the consent of parliament, and we find Edward III always appealing to parliament in his necessities. Parliament also established its right to petition against grievances and insisted upon the necessity of both houses agreeing before any change could be made in the laws. Edward III held frequent parliaments and made it his practice to consult them on all matters, even on what had been always supposed to belong entirely to the king, the making of war and peace. He seemed to wish to throw upon parliament the responsibility of his expensive wars. Probably he hoped that if the war was ostensibly carried on by the advice of parliament it would be easier to obtain grants of money for its expenses. The commons however were not very eager to advise on these difficult points, saying that they were too simple and ignorant to be able to do so, and promising to agree to anything which the king and his council might decide upon. In raising money for his wars Edward III drew largely from the clergy, whose wealth made them very tempting subjects for taxation. The clergy had long claimed immunity from taxation and from all the burdens of the state, but in this age they could not hope to enforce such a claim. They were the wealthiest class in the land. When the French wars increased the necessities of the crown and obliged Edward to demand large subsidies from parliament, all eyes were turned to the clergy, as the body who though not touched by the general taxes was yet most able to contribute money. The clergy could not refuse the king's demands, but when they had to pay money to the king they became more unwilling to send the pope the subsidies which he demanded. The popes at this time were both poorer and more avaricious than they had been before. They regarded England as their great source of wealth and demanded large sums of money from the clergy. The effect of this was to put the English clergy as a body in opposition to the pope and to make them more national in their feelings than they had been before. They placed the interests of their country far before the interests of the papacy. This was a time of great degradation for the papacy which had sunk solo as almost to lose men's reverence. The cause of this degradation lay in the struggle which had taken place some time before between Philip the Fair, King of France, and Pope Boniface VIII. Boniface's ambition had led him to try and set up the power of the papacy over the affairs of every country of Europe. But Philip the Fair would not brook his interference in France. He quarreled with him and sent men to seize and ill-treat him in his own palace. Boniface died through rage and despair at this insult. Philip, after trying in vain to get complete submission out of the next pope, at last succeeded in getting a pope of his own choosing and Clement V. He promised obedience to Philip and fixed his abode at Avignon instead of Rome, that he might be nearer the French king. Avignon was in Provence, just outside the French border in the dominions of the King of Naples. For seventy years the seat of the papacy remained there, and this has been called the time of the Babylonish captivity. The popes during this period acted in the interests of the French king. Most of them were French by birth. All of them were French in their sympathies. Their European positions seemed lost, and with it the awe and reverence with which they had been regarded. The English at war with France were not likely to bear the encroachments made by a French pope, and clergy, laity, and king, joined together to repel them. END OF SECTION XVII The first great statue directed against the interference of the pope was the statute against provisors passed in 1351. The pope was in the habit of making provisions for vacant benefices by appointing to them men of his own choice, and it was against this custom that the statute was directed. It naturally seemed very unjust to Englishmen that English benefices should be given away to cardinals and other members of the papal court, who drew the revenues from their benefices without ever coming near them, but we must remember that at this time great benefices were not bestowed upon men as rewards for spiritual eminence. They were the prizes which were given to great statesmen, to courtiers, and royal favorites. The ecclesiastics appointed by the king of England had no more intention of residing on their benefices than the ecclesiastics appointed by the pope. The pope only claimed the right to reward his servants in the same way as the king did. This arrangement by which pope and king alike used the church revenues for their own purposes was too convenient for Edward III to make him really eager for any reformation. The statute of provisors might forbid papal provisions, but it was never strictly kept, nor did the statute which followed it, called from its first word in the original Latin, the statute of primuniere proved more successful. This statute forbade any appeals being made from the king's courts to the papal court and forbade the introduction of papal bulls into England without royal permission. The great interest of these statutes lies in the fact that they expressed the growing hostility aroused in the laity by the ambition and wealth of the clergy. The writings of the times are filled with complaints of the abuses among the clergy. Langlin tells us in a fine passage in the vision of Piers Plowman the miserable pass that religion had come to in those days, and now is religion a rider, a roamer by streets, a leader of love-days and a land-buyer, a pricker on a pal free from manor to manor, and heap of hounds at his ears as he a lord wore. And but if his knave kneel that shall his cap bring, he lowereth on him and asketh him who taught him courtesy. The whole poem is full of illusions to the manner of life of the clergy, their ill-gotten wealth and the neglect of their duties. In another place, he says, bishops and bachelors, both masters and doctors, that have cure under Christ and crowning in token, and sign that they should strive their parishioners, preach and pray for them in the poor faith, live in London in Lent and other times, some serve the king, and his silver talon in checker and in chancery. In an extravagant age the clergy were especially marked by their wild and foolish extravagance, their love for fine clothes, for the chase, for show and pageantry of all kinds. Even the mendicant orders partook of this in the Franciscan friars who had pledged themselves to the most absolute poverty, amassed wealth, and only obeyed the dictates of their order by abstaining from all labor. As the political ballad of the time says, full wisely do they preach and say, but as they preach, nothing do they. And even of their preaching, Langlin says, I find these friars, all the four orders, preach to the people for profit of themselvin, glossed the gospel as them good liked. The church seemed to have lost all its early simplicity and to have departed entirely from the teaching of the apostles. The clergy absorbed all the chief offices of state. This had come about naturally from the fact that till now they had been the only educated body in the state, and so they only had been fit to transact its business. But now learning had become more general, a new class that of the lawyers was springing up, and men were no longer willing to see everything in the hands of the clergy. The great opponent of their power was John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, the king's third son. He was an ambitious and unscrupulous man, and his aim was to get the entire control of affairs during the last years of Edward III's reign. His opposition to the clergy sprung only from his own personal ambition. He wished to exclude the clergy from the offices of the state that he might fill them with his own creatures. The power of the commons was as hateful in his eyes as the power of the clergy. He put himself at the head of a reactionary body of great barons who wished to bring back the old order of things and restore the power of their own class. With John of Gaunt was united a man of a very different stamp. This was John Wycliffe, who by his learning had risen into importance in the University of Oxford. He had shown himself an eager student well versed in logic and metaphysics, deeply learned it in theology, and delighting in the mathematical and natural sciences. The University had not been slow to recognize his distinction. He had been made fellow of Merton, then the leading college, afterwards he was master of Balliol Hall, and lastly he had been made warden of Canterbury Hall, the new college founded by Simonus Slip, Archbishop of Canterbury. He was first called into political prominence in 1366 when Edward III called upon him to answer the demand made by Pope Urban VI for the homage of England and the tribute promised by King John. In his answer, whilst calling himself the humble and obedient son of the Roman Church, he clearly showed how determined he was to take the national side and resist papal encroachments. He was equally opposed to the ambition and wealth of the clergy and this was the cause of his connection with John of Gaunt. It is impossible to believe that there can have been any real sympathy between the two men. Whitcliffe, the zealous student and austere reformer, and John of Gaunt, the complete man of the world, corrupt in his life, narrow and unscrupulous in his policy, absorbed in selfish ambition. They had, however, this in common, that each wished to destroy the power of the clergy, though from very different motives. John of Gaunt wished to humiliate the Church, Whitcliffe wished to purify it. John of Gaunt resented the official arrogance of the bishops and their large share of temporal power. Whitcliffe hoped to restore the long lost apostolic purity of the Church. It was in the Parliament of 1371 that the first great blow at the power of the clergy was struck. The Duke of Lancaster was a wayanachitan, but we cannot doubt that Parliament was inspired by his influence when it petitioned the King that only secular men might be employed in his court and household. Chief amongst the clergy in high office at that time was William of Wickham, Bishop of Winchester, the Lord High Chancellor. He had first become important as the King's surveyor and architect at Windsor. Here the King had undertaken important and extensive works for the improvement and extension of the castle. Wickham had a strong natural taste for architecture and seems moreover to have been a wise and practical man of business. He became the King's chaplain, his principal secretary and the keeper of the privy seal. In 1367 he was elevated to the Sea of Winchester and appointed Lord Chancellor. He was a most liberal man and had the interests of the people sincerely at heart. To posterity he is chiefly known by his munificence in founding Winchester School and New College at Oxford, two foundations which have greatly promoted the cause of learning. He seems in all cases to have used his power and his wealth for the public good. But John of Gaunt and his party hated him on account of his wealth and position, whilst in Wickliffe's eyes he was not spiritual enough for a bishop. Wickliffe thought that no ecclesiastic ought to hold office or busy himself in secular affairs. He no doubt alludes to Wickham when he says bitterly, Beneficies, instead of being bestowed on poor clerks, are heaped on one wise in building castles or in worldly business. It was against Wickham that the petition of Parliament against giving office to ecclesiastics was chiefly directed. He was forced to resign the seals. The other ecclesiastics in office had to give up their posts, and laymen, creatures of John of Gaunt were appointed to fill them. Sir Richard List Group was appointed Treasurer and Sir Robert Thorpe Lord Chancellor. The same Parliament also petitioned the King about the unsatisfactory State of the Navy and granted a subsidy for putting it into a proper condition, but no great expedition was planned to reconquer the lost possessions in France. The war went on in a desultory way and nothing particular was gained on either side. The Commons were growing tired of paying for it. They further showed their animosity to the clergy by decreeing that the tax which was to be levied to provide the subsidy voted for the King was to be raised also from all those lands which had passed into the hands of the clergy before the twentieth year of Edward I. The clergy met together in convocation in 1373 to consider what course they should take under these circumstances. They met at St. Paul's where Whittlesey Archbishop of Canterbury presided. He was too weak both in mind and body to take an important part in the proceedings. He summoned all his strength to preach the opening sermon, after which he sunk down exhausted. Simon Sudbury, Bishop of London, a man of the Duke of Lancaster's Party, succeeded him as President of Convocation. The conduct of the clergy was marked by moderation. They had no wish to resist obstinately the demands of the Commons, but they complained that they already had to tax themselves heavily to provide subsidies for the King and to meet the demands of the Pope. They said that they would willingly give more to the King if he would free them from the exactions of the Pope. The King caused an embassy to be sent to the Pope stating the grievances of the clergy, but the Pope would do nothing but promise to send ambassadors to a Congress to be held at some future time. The Duke of Lancaster's Party was now in complete possession of all power in the Kingdom. It remained to be seen how far they would be able to win the confidence of the people. In the conduct of the war they had been by no means successful. The Duke himself had not mended matters by marrying Constance, daughter of Pedro the Cruel, and assuming in her right the title of King of Castile. This only through Henry of Trastamara more than ever on the side of France. In 1372 the Earl of Pembroke was sent with an English fleet to assist the Duke of Lancaster, but now the folly of having turned Spain into a bitter enemy became apparent. The English fleet was intercepted by a Spanish fleet and completely defeated. Pembroke himself was taken prisoner and the English naval power received a blow from which it took long to recover. Disaster followed disaster in Aquitaine. Rochelle was seized by the French. Tuar, one of the last places of importance remaining to the English was besieged and hard-pressed. When news of all these misfortunes reached Edward III he was roused from his lethargy and determined to make one last effort to recover what he had lost. A fleet was equipped in which Edward himself and even the Black Prince, whose health was now somewhat better embarked. But the fleet never reached France. It was beaten about by contrary winds for some weeks and at last was obliged to return to England. There was now nothing to be done except to ask for a truce. In 1374 the Duke of Lancaster returned to England, leaving all the English possessions except Bordeaux and Bayonne in the hands of the French. It was determined that a general Congress should be held at Bruges to discuss terms of peace with France. To this Congress the Pope and Edward III were also to send commissioners to discuss the points at issue between England and the Papacy. John of Gaunt was chief amongst the English ambassadors who went to Bruges to try and arrange a peace. John Wycliffe went as one of the ecclesiastical commissioners of whom the Bishop of Bangor was head. There were great difficulties in the way of any peace between England and France. The French wished Edward to give up Calais, but the English would not hear of this. It was only the earnest endeavors of the Pope Gregory XI, a sincere lover of peace which finally brought about a truce to last until June 1376. Meanwhile the ecclesiastical commissioners were also very busy and all waited eagerly to see the result of this conference. If Wycliffe had allowed himself to hope that it would lead to any reform in the Church he must have been bitterly disappointed. We do not know what part he took in it, but he must have soon seen with disgust that his fellow commissioners had no desire for reform and that the King himself was not more zealous than they. In September six lengthy bulls arrived in England from the Pope stating the conclusions arrived at by the conference. These bulls showed that nothing really had been agreed upon. The Pope made no promises for the future but only arranged some informalities in the past. It seemed as if the King and the Pope had come to an agreement purely for their own personal advantage. Each was really to do pretty much as he liked and the great questions which involved the interests of the Church and the Nation were left untouched. The man who had been foremost in making this compact, the Bishop of Bangor, was rewarded by translation by People Provision to the Sea of Hereford. This was what the lay ministry, the Church of England and the Church of England, had hoped for reform in the Church and all they obtained was a compact with the papacy for the maintenance of old abuses. The man who had been foremost in making this compact, the Bishop of Bangor, was rewarded by This was what the lay ministry had done for the Church after all its promises of reform in what had become of the money which they had voted for the Continuance of the War. How had the War been conducted? A few short years before France had lain, crushed and humbled at the feet of England. Now nothing remained of all that the Black Prince had won in France except Bayonne, Bordeaux, Calais, and a few other unimportant places. The English navy had been annihilated, the English coasts had been insulted by the enemy, never had England known such degradation. Men had believed in the Duke of Lancaster and this was what he had led them to. Now men saw his personal aims, his selfish ambition. All the tide of popular fury was turned against him and his ministers. He was accused, whether justly or not we cannot say, of designs on the throne, since he knew that his brother the Black Prince could not live long. When he was dead nothing would stand between Lancaster and the throne but the young Prince Richard. There was no man more unpopular than he in England for he was regarded as the opponent of the people's hero, the Prince of Wales. But the people alone could do nothing against the power and influence of the Duke. In their hour of need however they found a leader in the man who so often led their armies victoriously against the enemy in the Black Prince himself. Parliament met at Westminster in the spring of 1376. It was three years since it had last met, an unusually long interval considering the frequent parliaments held in this reign. The Black Prince had moved to the royal palace at Westminster that he might be able to watch over the proceedings. The King opened Parliament on the 28th of April, and on the following day the Lord Chancellor Neavitt addressed the Lords and the Commons assembled in the Great Chamber at Westminster. He told them briefly the reasons for which they had been summoned. First, to advise on the good government and peace of the Kingdom of England. Secondly, to consider for the external defence of the Kingdom by land as well as by sea, and thirdly, to make arrangements for the continuation of the war with France. The Commons were then bidden to retire and deliberate apart in their own chamber in the chapter house of the Abbey of Westminster. At the demand of the Commons certain bishops and barons were appointed to deliberate with them and give them their advice on the subject of the subsidy to be granted to the King. The next point was the choice of a speaker, and the election made by the Commons was in itself a mark of opposition to the Duke of Lancaster. Peter de la Mer, the man chosen, was the steward of Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March, who had married Philippa, the only child of Lionel, Duke of Clarence, Lancaster's elder brother. Philippa had a prior right to the throne to that of John of Gaunt, and therefore she and her husband necessarily opposed his ambitious schemes. Peter de la Mer's policy was sure to be opposition to the Duke. He was a contemporary chronicler, tells us, a man of abundant wisdom and courage, a lover of justice and truth, neither the bribes nor the threats of his enemies could deter him from the right course. With regard to the demand for a subsidy, the Commons consented to grant the same sum as they had given three years before. More they would not give on account of the great scarcity throughout the land produced by the plague, the murain amongst the cattle and the failure of the crops. This matter once settled the Commons proceeded to what they considered the chief business of the session, the petitions about grievances. Headed by Peter de la Mer, they carried their answer about the subsidy to the council and the barons. Then, standing before the nobles, amongst whom John of Gaunt stood foremost, the speaker began to declare the grievances of the country. The people he complained were exceedingly weighed down by taxes, but even this they would have borne patiently had the money been usefully employed. Yet, in spite of the great expenditure the wars had not prospered. The Commons demanded an account of the way in which the money had been spent. Neither is it credible, concluded the speaker, that the King should want such an infinite treasure if they were faithful that served him. Great was the indignation of Lancaster at this insolence of the Commons, as he called it. Full of wrath he declared his intention of silencing them next day by a show of his power, but his followers pointed out to him that the Commons had the support of the Black Prince his brother and that he could not crush them. Afraid lest they should go further and allow disclosures to be made about the evil manner of his own life, he appeared before them next day seemingly mild and gracious. Then the Commons went on with their proceedings. They stated that on account of the great wars abroad the present Council was insufficient to manage the affairs of the State, and they asked that ten or twelve bishops, lords, and others be added to strengthen the Council. They next unfolded a long list of grievances which showed the disordered condition and the maladministration of the country. They petitioned, first of all, that the King's guilty officers be punished. They insisted that such heavy taxation would not have been necessary considering the immense amount of money that had come into the Kingdom as ransoms for French prisoners if only it had been properly and honestly administered. They promised that the King should have no difficulty in getting plenty of money for the war and his other necessities if he would first dismiss and punish his ministers. They attacked Richard Lyons, a London merchant and a creature of the Dukes. He had had patents granted him by members of the Council to buy up merchandise and sell it again at his own price. He had also caused customs to be put upon wool and other commodities, which he levied principally for his own profit. It was no wonder that the Duke, who interfered in this way with the trade of London, should draw upon himself the hatred of the Londoners. Lyons tried to save himself by sending a bribe to the Prince of Wales in the shape of a barrel containing a thousand pounds. The Prince refused it with scorn, but afterwards regretted his refusal, saying that he would have done a good deed by sending it to the knights that travail for the realm. Lyons then sent his money to the King, who kept it, saying that he took the same and part payment of the money that was owing to him, for this and much more he owed him and had not presented him with anything but his own. Lyons could not save himself. He was ordered to be imprisoned at the King's pleasure to lose the freedom of the city and have all his goods seized. Next followed the impeachment of Lord Latimer, another creature of the Dukes, who was Chamberlain and Privy Councilor and Governor of a Castle in Brittany, where he had appropriated large sums of money and had taken bribes to surrender places to the French. He was also sentenced to be fined and imprisoned. Other accusations followed, all founded on much the same charge, appropriation of the public money. One man, William Ellis, an accomplice of Lyons, had extorted money at Yarmouth from ships driven by stress of weather into the port. Another, John Peachy, had obtained from Lyons a patent giving him the exclusive right of selling sweet wines in London. Sir John Neville was sentenced to be fined and imprisoned because he had allowed some soldiers whom he was conducting to France to ravage the country all the way to Southampton. The Commons declared in plain terms that the people of England would no longer consent to have their interests trampled upon and their trade interfered with for the sake of enriching a greedy baronage and its creatures. In all this they were firmly supported and encouraged by the Prince of Wales and the good bishop William of Wickham, who was quite restored to the favour of the people. In fact, the Black Prince had seen that the best policy would be to attempt to unite against the baronage the Commons and the national clergy. The Commons were quite ready to welcome the clergy back to office, for they now saw only too well the selfish policy which had made John of Gaunt wish to drive them out. But the Commons did not stop short with attacking the evil councillors of John of Gaunt. They went on to impeach Alice Perers, the woman who had gained such an unworthy influence over the king in his old age. They passed an ordinance against certain women of the court and especially Alice Perers, who interfered with the course of justice in the kingdom, sitting side by side on the bench with the judges. Alice Perers was examined before the nobles and banished from the court. She was obliged to swear that she would keep away from the king. It was by its vigorous attack upon these abuses and its desire to restore an orderly and discreet administration that this parliament earned for itself the name of the Good Parliament. It established the right of parliament to demand the redress of grievances and to impeach the king's ministers. When we remember that at the beginning of the reign of Edward III the one function of the Commons was to vote subsidies, we shall realize how great the increase of the power and influence of parliament must have been during the reign to admit of such proceedings as those of the Good Parliament taking place. Parliament was now strong enough to cause the ministers of the crown to be removed and new ones more pleasing to it to take their place. Nivet, the Lord Chancellor, was the only one of the old ministry who was retained. For the moment the people's cause had triumphed in parliament, meanwhile the people's friend was slowly passing away. The Black Prince had been afflicted for five years with a grievous malady, but he had never been heard to murmur against the will of God. His sufferings had been very great. He was often so ill that his servant took him for dead. He had rallied his last strength that he might give parliament his support in its struggle against the Duke of Lancaster. For this purpose he had, as we have seen, moved to the royal palace of Westminster. There he lay in his father's great chamber and felt that his end was drawing very near. Two contemporary chroniclers have given us an account of his death so that we are able to form a tolerably accurate picture of the scene around his deathbed. He bade them open the door of his room that all his followers might come in. When all those who had served him were gathered round his bed he said to them, Sirs, pardon me that I cannot give you, who have so loyally served me a reward fitting your services, but God and his saints will render it to you. They all wept bitterly for every one of them loved him tenderly. Then he gave them all rich gifts and prayed the King that he would ratify these gifts, and calling his little son to his bedside he bade him never change or take away the gifts which he had given to his servants. Then turning again to the earls and barons and all his other followers who stood around his bedside he said to them in a clear voice, I commend to you my son who is yet but young and small, and pray that as you have served me so from your heart you would serve him. He called also his father and his brother the Duke of Lancaster and commended to them his wife and his son. All promised him truly that they would comfort his son and maintain him in his right. Soon his sufferings became too great for him to see any one and it was forbidden that any more should enter his room where he lay prostrate in the pangs of death. One man, Richard Sturry, a political opponent of the princes, is said to have forced his way in for what end we can hardly tell, perhaps to ask his forgiveness, but the prince roused himself in the midst of his sufferings to abrade him saying, now you see what you have long desired, but I pray God that he will make an end of your evil deeds. After this outburst the prince sank back half fainting. Then the bishop of Bangor approached and bade him forgive all those who had offended him and ask God for forgiveness of his own sins, praying also all those whom he had offended for forgiveness, but the only answer he could get from the prince was, I will. The good old bishop thought there must be some evil spirits present, who prevented him saying more and so he began sprinkling the four corners of the room with holy water. Suddenly the prince lifted up his eyes to heaven and said, God I give thee thanks for all thy benefits. In all my prayers I beg thy pity and that thou wouldest grant me pardon for those sins which against thee I have wickedly wrought. Moreover also, from all men whom knowingly or unknowingly I have offended, I beg with all my heart the favor of forgiveness. With these words he fell back and died and with him, says the chronicler, all hopes of Englishmen departed. Bitter was the lamentation for his death. An old chronicler who lived in the prince's day says, him being present they feared not the incursions of any enemies nor the forcible meeting in battle. Truly unless God hold under his blessed hand that the miserable Englishman be not trodden down, it is to be feared that our enemies, who compass us on every side, will rage upon us even unto our utter destruction and will take our place in country. Arise, Lord, help us and defend us for thy namesake. Only the day before his death the prince had signed his will. In it he appointed William of Wickham one of his executors which shows us what confidence he placed in the bishop. His will contains the most minute directions as to his funeral. It was his express desire that he should be buried in the great cathedral of Canterbury, near the famous English saint Thomas of Canterbury. His body was therefore carried from the palace at Westminster where he died to Canterbury. There as it entered the gates it was met by a warrior mounted on a prancing steed. He was armed for war and bore the prince's arms quartered. Then came four men carrying banners, each of whom wore on his head a cap with the prince's arms. A few steps further on the funeral procession was met by a second night. He also rode a stately steed but he was armed for peace and bore the prince's badge of ostrich feathers. Preceded by these warriors the funeral procession advanced to the city till it reached the cathedral. Then the body of the brave prince was laid before the high altar and vigils and masses were set in honor of it till the time came when it must be carried to its last resting place in the Ladychapel. There it was buried at a distance of ten feet from the shrine of the martyr saint Thomas, whom the prince, when alive, had always delighted to honor. Over it soon rose the noble monument which still marks the spot where lie the remains of the great warrior. Respecting his tomb also he had left minute directions. The tomb is of marble, sculptured all round with twelve shields each a foot high. On six of the shields are his arms and on the other six his badge of ostrich feathers. On the top lies his recumbent figure worked in relief and copper guilt. He is represented in full armor wearing his helmet with his crest of a leopard engraved upon it. He himself composed the epitaph which is graven on his tomb and it gives us a faithful picture of the mind of the man who wrote it. It is written in French and may be translated. All ye that pass with closed mouth by where this body reposes hear this that I shall tell you just as I know to say it. Such as thou art such was I. You shall be such as I am. Of death I never thought so long as I had life. On earth I had great riches of which I made great nobleness, land, houses and great wealth, clothes, horses, silver and gold. But now I am poor and wretched. Deep in the earth I lie my great beauty is all gone. My flesh is all wasted. Right narrow is my house. With me not but truth remains. And if now ye should see me I do not think that you would say that ever I had been a man. So totally am I changed. For God's sake pray the heavenly king that he have mercy on my soul. All they who pray for me or make accord to God for me, God give them his paradise where no men are wretched. We need fine no difficulty in reading a right the character of the black prince. There are no contradictions to be accounted for. All is plain and straightforward. He was a simple God fearing man who did his duty and led a life in accordance with the highest ideal of his times. He was not in advance of his day. We owe no great reforms, no marked steps in our national progress to him. But he is the type of the noblest spirit of his times. He shows us the stuff of which Englishmen were made in those days. Friend and foe alike counted him the bravest warrior of that age. In battle he knew no fear and had that kind of courage and energy which inspired the meanest man in his ranks to fight boldly like his prince. He was not only brave but was a skillful general and knew how to dispose his troops to the best advantage. In each of his three great victories he fought against fearful odds and his success was due quite as much to the skillful grouping of his troops as to his bravery. In the treatment of his prisoners he shows the beautiful courtesy of a true knight. Though we must blame him severely for his cruelty in the massacre of Limage, we must remember that he only showed himself to be on a level with the morality of his day. Moreover, he was aggravated by ill health and suffering and by the treachery of his subjects. In private life he seems to have shown great kindness and consideration for others. He was beloved by all who came in contact with him. The noblest of English knights, Chandos, Felton and many others accompanied him on all his campaigns and clung to him with a devotion which only personal love can have prompted. He forgot none of his servants, either on his deathbed or in his will. When in his last days he saw that the English people were suffering from misgovernment and from the tyranny of his brother, moved with noble pity, he gathered his last strength that he might show himself their friend and save them from oppression. As far as we can judge from the scanty records of the chroniclers he seems to have been much beloved by his wife, the fair maid of Kent, and to have lived with her in great happiness. He was a sincerely religious man, his special devotion to the Holy Trinity is repeatedly mentioned by the chroniclers, and we have seen how he never engaged in battle without earnest prayer. His good qualities are throughout those of a simple warrior. He had the genius of his soldier, not the genius of a ruler. When he first became ruler of Akiten he seemed to be all powerful. His name inspired such fear that no one would have ventured to attack him. It seemed an easy task to attach his subjects to himself and form a well-consolidated principality which might safely resist the attacks of his enemies. But he lacked the qualities which would have enabled him to do this. He was no politician. He did not understand how to govern with economy and develop his resources. Before a wise and crafty man like Charles V of France he was powerless. He engaged in the fatal Spanish expedition which ruined his health and drained his coffers. His dominions crumbled away. They were lost one by one without any battles whilst he looked on helplessly at the ruin. In reality his great victories were fruitless and the wonderful success of the first half of Edward III's reign brought no lasting result. Edward III was no more of a politician than his son. Instead of being content with what he had won and making it secure, he indulged in wild schemes of ambition, and whilst dreaming about the French crown he lost the Duchy of Akiten. It seems impossible to doubt that if Edward III and his son had said about it in the right way they might have secured for themselves the possession of Akiten. As it was they not only lost what they had gained but with it also what had come down to them from their fathers. Yet we need not deplore this. For the progress of England it was far better that she should not be hampered with external possessions. The most important thing was that England herself should grow strong before she thought of extending her dominions. Edward III's wars were useful to the progress of England, not because of the glory which they shed round his name, but because the great outlay which they involved drove him to call frequent parliaments that he might raise supplies. Thus a marked increase in the power and importance of parliament is the only beneficial result of this war. In the main its results were most disastrous and no wise and farsighted ruler would ever have engaged in it. It caused the best energies of the country to be devoted to the pursuit of a chimerical object, the crown of France. For this object the resources of the country were drained and the interests of the people were disregarded whilst heavy taxes were laid upon them which crippled their commerce and their industries. The bright promise of the opening of Edward III's reign found no fulfillment in the end. The chief legacy he left to his successors was enmity with France and a restless desire to win back what he had lost. So whilst we admire the valor and energy of the Black Prince in the conduct of the wars, we cannot praise his father's wisdom in engaging in them. But we must remember that though in wisdom he was not before his age, in valor he surpassed his countrymen of all ages.