grief knows not how to, indeed cannot, be buried in the recesses of the breast! I bid your fatherly goodness farewell." The Rescript of pope Celestinus, to Philip, bishop of Beauvais. "Celestinus, the bishop, servant of the servants of God, to his dearly beloved brother, Philip, bishop of Beauvais, health, and a speedy return from his course of error. That it has turned out unfortunately for you, is not to be wondered at. For 'He deserves the hatred of all men, who shows himself to be the common enemy of all.' For, throwing aside the peaceful bishop, you have assumed the warlike knight,—in your rashness perverting the order and course of things, you have borne the shield in place of the chasuble, the sword in place of the stole, the hauberk for the alb, the helmet for the mitre, and the banner for the pastoral staff; not wishing, as you allege, to repel violence but valour, by violence; not fighting for your country, but against your country. For, as to your Gaul, we may now publicly declare, Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child 60 For he, having corporeally made oath to the king of the English, was bound to observe the same, as faithfully maintaining the integrity of his cities and of his territories, at least until his return from his pilgrimage. Whereas, shamefully contravening his plighted faith and his oath, coming to the cities of the aforesaid king, he has violently seized them, and, with hostile hand, has cruelly laid waste his territories. Returning at length from the scene of his labours, that king has manfully met your king, placing his trust not in multitudes, but in the Lord; for not by the amount of men or of might, but by the virtue of the cause is the battle gained. In behalf of the king of England, humility has hitherto been fighting against pride, justice and equity against injustice, moderation and modesty against arrogance and intemperance. For, defended by numerous virtues and not by men, do persons gain the victory. The laws and ordinances permit an injury, when done by arms, to be repelled by the remedy of arms; consequently, at last, late though it be, the king of England has manifested himself and his anger; inasmuch as it is hardly possible that valour, closed up, can lie concealed, the warmth of anger be extinguished and the small spark of prowess be shut up; for valour knows not how to lie concealed, and the smothered fire breaks forth into flame. Added to this, you have shown yourself not only the unbridled 60 Eccles. x. 16. counsellor of your master's frenzy, but also an accomplice as foolish as insolent; you sought and you have found; you struck, and struck again, you have been levelled with the ground; into the pit which you have made you have deservedly fallen; where you have been found, there you have been judged accordingly. According as we understand from the tenor of your letters directed to us, imputing to us the excesses of your country, you strive to throw the fault upon us, asserting that we are luke-warm and dissemblers. What now, is to be the consequence if the sheep turn upon the shepherd, if the son rises against the father? There will not be a shepherd who will not have cause to repent that he fed the sheep, not a father who will not regret that he brought up his son. Wherefore it is a hurtful weapon for a man, to soften down malignant craftiness under the guise of simplicity. Still, we have addressed letters of entreaty to the king of England in your behalf; for after examining most thoroughly the circumstances of your captivity, we cannot and ought not in such a case to command, but only to entreat. The conqueror then must be overcome by the resources of wisdom, for it is written, 'Wisdom excels folly.'1 For which reason it is that we entreat in your behalf not importunately, but opportunely. For an importunate urging of entreaty is a proof of distrust, and patient waiting gains its object more easily than importunate demands extort the same. But in the meantime, consigned to chains and lamentations, do you resignedly and patiently endure those chains, according to the words of the poet, 'Whatever you endure deservedly, you must bear resignedly; the punishment that comes undeservedly, comes as a cause for grief;'62 and that deservedly requires to be expiated with lamentations, which the belly has gained at the expense of its shame. Given, &c." In the same year died William, bishop of Poitiers, and, although his life had seemed to men very reprehensible, still after his death he was distinguished by miracles. In the same year, Philip, king of France, and Richard, king of England, agreed upon a truce for one year from the feast of Saint Hilary, intending once more to make between them a peace and final 61 Eccles. ii, 13. "Leniter ex merito quicquid patiare, ferendum est: reconciliation. After this, Baldwin, earl of Flanders, came into England on a pilgrimage to Saint Thomas the Martyr, of Canterbury. In the same year, the son of Henry, emperor or the Romans, whom the empress Constance, daughter of Roger, the former king of Sicily, had borne to him, was baptized, and his name was called Frederic. In the same year, Jordan de Courcy, brother of John de Courcy, prince of the kingdom of Ulster, in Ireland, was slain by an Irishman, a member of his household. For the purpose of avenging his death, the before-named John, his brother, fought a battle with the petty kings of Ireland, of whom he put some to flight, slew others, and subjugated their territories; of which he gave no small part to Dunecan, son of Gilbert, the son of Fergus, who, at the time that the said John was about to engage with the Irish, came to assist him with no small body of troops. In the same year, Nicholas, bishop of Wic, in Norway, fought a battle with Swere Birkebain, and being routed by him, took to flight, nearly all his followers being slain. In the same year, the before-named bishop of Orleans, who had gone to Rome to procure the liberation of his brother Philip, died at Sens la Vielle. In the same year, Henry, emperor of the Romans, sent a great army into the land of Sulia, under the command of the bishop of Mentz, Henry, duke of Saxony, count palatine of the Rhine, the duke of Louvaine, the duke de Saringes, the duke of Austria, son of duke Leopold, the duke of Suabia, the duke of Bavaria, Walran, brother of the duke of Lemburg, and many counts. The said Walran landed with his forces, before the rest, in the land of Jerusalem, and immediately attacked the pagans, and, slaying as many of the pagans as he could, violated the peace and truce which the king of England, at his departure from the land of Jerusalem, had agreed to between the Christians and the pagans. Saphadin, the brother of Saladin, and the other pagans, being greatly enraged at this, slew all the Christians they could find, and laid siege to Joppa. On this, Henry, count of Champagne, who, by the election of the kings of France and of England, and of the Templars and Hospitallers, had the chief command in the land of Jerusalem, assembled the army of the Christians for the purpose of raising the siege; but while he was leaning against the pillar of a window in an upper room, addressing the multitude, the pillar gave way, and, falling to the ground, he broke his neck, and expired; shortly after, the Saracens took Joppa, and slew in it more than twenty thousand Christians. After the death of Henry, count of Champagne, the duke of Louvaine, and Henry, duke of Saxony, withdrew to the city of Acre; but they were in possession of no territory beyond the gates of the city, and no provisions could be brought to them, through fear of the pagans. In the meanwhile, the army of the emperor, which had proceeded by sea on its road to Jerusalem from Germany and other parts of his territories, made its way past Normandy and England; and then, holding straight onward in its course for Spain, rescued the city of Silves from the hands of the pagans; which, however, they utterly destroyed, not leaving stone upon stone; for they feared that if they should give it into the charge of the king of Portugal, he would lose it as he had done before. In this pilgrimage of the troops of the people of the said emperor, an unusual miracle occurred, and one unheard-of by mankind. It so happened that two Germans, who were neighbours and friends, engaging in a partnership, agreed that during the pilgrimage to Jerusalem they would go together, sharing their lodging and their expenses. When the time for departure was close at hand, one of them came to the house of the other to lodge there that night; and after he had shown to the master of the house the money which he was going to take with him upon the journey, the latter, by the advice of his wife murdered him, and took his money, and then placing the body of the murdered man on his shoulders, set out for the purpose of throwing him into a river; but [on arriving there] he could by no possible means cast him away; so returning at daybreak with the body fast upon his shoulders, he lay in concealment for three days. However, when he could endure this no longer, he went to the bishop for the purpose of consulting him, what was to be done by him in the matter; on which the bishop enjoined him, in virtue of the obedience he owed him, to carry the body with him to the land of Jerusalem, that so, expiating his crimes, he might restore his soul to the abodes of heaven. Accordingly, induced by a feeling of penitence, he proceeded with the other pilgrims, carrying the dead man on his shoulders, to the praise of the good and the terror of the wicked. In the same year, Henry, emperor of the Romans, arrested the nobles of Sicily, and threw some of them into prison, while others he put to death, after inflicting upon them various tortures. He also caused the eyes to be put out of Margarite, the admiral, to whom he had given the dukedom of Durazzo, and the principality of Tarento; and after that had him emasculated. On this, the empress Constance, seeing the evils that the emperor had inflicted upon her people, formed a conspiracy against her husband the emperor, and, proceeding to Palermo, seized the emperor's treasures which the kings of Sicily had laid up from a distant period. In consequence of this, the principal men of the kingdom, becoming emboldened, laid hands on the German followers of the emperor, and slew them; upon which, the emperor, taking to flight, shut himself up in a strong fortress, intending, if he possibly could, to return to his own country; but his adversaries had so obstructed the paths against him, that in no direction was there safe egress for him. In the meantime, Saphadin, the brother of Saladin, after the capture of Joppa, collecting a large army of pagans, fought a battle with the chiefs before-mentioned, and the counts and army of the emperor of the Romans, which he had sent into the land of Jerusalem; and the army of the Christians prevailed, and in the battle the Christians took the two sons of Saladin, and more than sixty admirals, and Saphadin, the brother of Saladin, being mortally wounded, made his escape with difficulty. The Christians also took the city of Sidon, and Laliche, and the greater Gybel; and they were in hopes that the son of Saladin, who held the city of Jerusalem, would become a Christian, for news had been brought to that effect by the messengers that carried the communications between them. In the meantime, the pagans who were in the city of Baruth, fearing an attack of the Christians, levelled the walls of the city, and drew into the castle provisions, necessaries, and arms, with the stones of the walls for the defence of the castle. One day, however, while they were intent with the greatest diligence upon this object, having left only five Christian captives, in fetters, and a single Saracen gate-keeper in the castle, the archbishop of Mentz, chancellor of the emperor of the Romans, suddenly came upon them with a great naval force, and Aimeric, lord of the isle of Cyprus, and the before-named leaders and chieftains, with an army of horse and foot. The Christians who were in the castle, seeing this, ran as well as they could, and, shutting the gates of the castle, slew the Saracen gate |