what had been done. The said pope also gave orders to the before-named archbishop, so to give consecration to the said Giraldus, the bishop elect of Saint David's, as not to exact from him the unlawful oath which his predecessors had been in the habit of extorting from the bishop of Saint David's, namely, as to not asserting their metropolitan rights against the church of Canterbury, but solely canonical obedience according to the usual form. The said pope also commanded the bishops of Lincoln, Durham, and Ely, if the archbishop of Canterbury should delay to consecrate Giraldus, so often named, that they, supported therein by the Apostolic authority, should not delay to consecrate him themselves.

In the year of grace 1200, which was the second year of the reign of king John, that king was at Burun, in Normandy, on the day of the Nativity of our Lord, which fell on Saturday; and this was the first Feast of the Nativity of our Lord after the first coronation of king John. After the Nativity of our Lord, the said John, king of England, and Philip, king of France, met to hold a conference between Andely and Gaillon; at which interview, it was agreed between them, that Louis, son of the king of France, should take to wife the daughter of Alphonso, king of Castille, and niece of John, king of England; on which, king John would give and quitclaim to the said son of the king of France, together with his said niece, the city of Evreux, together with the whole county thereof, and all the fortresses and castles which the king of France had in Normandy, on the day on which Richard, king of England, was living and dead; besides which, he was to give him thirty thousand marks of silver. He also made oath, that he would give no aid to his nephew Otho, either in money or in men, for the purpose of gaining the Roman empire.

All these matters, however, were put off until the octave of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist. After the conference, John, king of England, sent his mother, Eleanor, to Alphonso, king of Castille, to obtain his daughter in marriage for Louis, son of Philip, king of France.

In the meantime, John, king of England, crossed over from Normandy into England, and levied from each carucate throughout all England the sum of three shillings as an aid. At Lent, king John came to York, expecting that William, king of the Scots, would come to him, as he had commanded

him; the king of the Scots, however, did not come; on which, the king of England returned to Normandy.

In the same year, pope Innocent, on hearing of the tribulations of the Christians in the land of Jerusalem, which the Lord had brought upon them, our sins demanding the same, wrote to all the prelates of Holy Mother Church, to the following effect:

The Letter of pope Innocent on giving succour to the land of

Jerusulem.

"Innocent, the bishop, servant of the servants of God, to all the prelates of the Holy Mother Church to whom these letters shall come, health and the Apostolic benediction. The sad miseries of the lands of the East, and their urgent necessities, we now are, our sins demanding the same, compelled to lament rather than recount; inasmuch as it is a matter of necessity that succour should be given thereto, in their present state, (if state, indeed, the train of calamities can be called, which with grief we recite), and that resistance should be offered to the attempts of the pagans. It may, indeed, be supposed, that but

few of the Christians who had devoted themselves to the defence of the inheritance of the Lord, and to obedience to Him crucified, will make drunk the arrows of the enemy with the shedding of their blood, and expose their throats to the swords of the pagans, inasmuch, as by this, nearly all the pilgrims have returned from those parts, as so many remnants of the desolation of that land, to be totally lost without any hope of human aid, and to fall into the possession of the foe. Hitherto, indeed, our Lord Jesus Christ, to the end that He might the more strongly prove our faith, and might find who are His own, has, in His mercy, prevented this, by turning their hands against themselves, and allowing them, in their various dissensions, to vent their rage upon each other, in order that, in the meantime, the Christians being aroused to the aid of the said land, a more easy means might be granted them of recovering what was lost, and of triumphing over the foe. For we have received letters from our venerable brethren, the Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Antioch, and from the archbishops and bishops of both provinces, as also, in like manner, from our most dearly beloved sons in Christ, Aimeric, king of Jerusalem, and Leo, king of Armenia, and our own dearly beloved sons, the Masters of the Hospital and of the knights of the Temple, and many

others, fully explaining the miseries and necessities of that land, and asking for the aid that was so long looked for; for that there, strong hopes were entertained, the Lord so disposing, that at the present time a few would be of more avail, in consequence of the dissensions among the Saracens, than hitherto a numerous army had been. It was also added, that, as arrangements were being made among the Saracens for the establishment of peace, if a full reconciliation should be effected among them before assistance should be given to the province of Jerusalem, inasmuch as it is almost entirely destitute of men and resources, unless God alone should interpose, there would be no one able to withstand their violent attacks. Wherefore we, with our brethren, summoning also the bishops and other religious men who were then staying at the Apostolic See, after considering the mode of succouring that land, in order that we might not seem to be laying heavy burdens on the shoulders of those who bore them, and not to be willing to touch the same even with our finger, talking only, and, as the saying is, doing little or nothing, in order that an example might be set by ourselves to you, and then by you to the laity, in doing good, after the example of Him who began to do and to teach [at the same time], made it our care to set aside the tenth part of all our revenues, and of all our receipts, for the assistance of the Eastern lands, withdrawing not the slightest portion therefrom for our necessities, to which indeed, inasmuch as they are more pressing than usual, and on that account demand a more heavy expenditure, our present means do not suffice; to the end that, although we were giving nothing of our own, we might, at least, repay to Him a small portion of what is His, who, in His mercy, has bestowed all things upon us. And not only in resources, but also in personal attendance, did we make it our anxious endeavour to provide the requisite aid for the Holy Land; for we determined to dispatch thither our dearly beloved sons, Stephen, cardinal priest and titular of Saint Praxedes, and Peter, cardinal deacon and titular of Saint Mary in Viâ Latâ, as legates of the Apostolic See, on whom we had already placed the sign of the Cross, in order that they might act in our behalf in preceding the army of the Lord, and that, to them, as to a single head, all might resort. But, inasmuch as we look upon this as slight, aye, slight indeed, and as by no means sufficing to the necessities so numerous of that land, we do, by these Apostolic writings, command the whole of you, and I, in be

half of Almighty God, do, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, under pain of God's judgment, strictly command, that each of you shall appropriate the fortieth part of all ecclesiastical revenues and profits, (interest, however, being first deducted therefrom, of which payment cannot be avoided), for the aid of the Holy Land. To all clerks, subordinates as well as prelates, who shall spontaneously and faithfully pay such fortieth part, trusting in the mercy of Almighty God, and in the authority of the blessed Apostles, Saint Peter and Saint Paul, we do remit one fourth part of the penance that has been enjoined them, supposing always, that no fraud is made use of, and that pious devotion is supported thereby. For know, that he is acting culpably and obdurately, and shows himself obdurately culpable, who refuses to give so small an aid, in such an emergent necessity, to his Creator and Redeemer, from whom he has received his body and his soul, and all the blessings that he enjoys; and we, who, unworthy as we are, act as His vicar upon earth, can on no account conceal the obduracy of such an offence. And you must not by any means suppose that, by these means, it is our wish to establish a law at the expense of yourselves, in order that, in future, the fortieth part may be required of you, as due and customary; for, on the contrary, we wish nothing whatever to result herefrom to your prejudice, as we grieve that a case of such great necessity has occurred to us and to you, and it is our wish that, in future, the like may not occur. We do further will, and by this our precept command you, that you, brother archbishops and bishops, shall make it your care, without delay, to meet in your metropolitan church, or, if it cannot be done there, by reason of disagreements or any other evident impediment, in two or three other places of your province, and there consider among yourselves, according to the tenor of the Apostolic mandate, the succour of that land; and, after each of you shall have returned into his diocese, he is to convene a synod without delay, and there, relying upon our authority, enjoin the abbats and priors, both exempt as well as others, as also the archdeacons, deans, and all others whatsoever of the clergy throughout his diocese, appointed by a fair assessment to tax their revenues and profits, and within three months after the command so given to them, not to delay to send to some fitting place in his diocese the fortieth part of 45 Exempt from the episcopal government.

45

the value thereof; employing, nevertheless, for the sake of greater precaution, the services of some faithful and discreet laymen therein which, also, brother archbishops and bishops, we do strictly command you to do. From these general terms, however, we have excepted the Cistercian monks, the Præmonstratensian canons, and the recluses of Grammont and Canterbury, to whom we give, relative to this matter, especial commands. We are also unwilling that those who have taken diligent care to value their revenues and profits shall incur the penalty of transgressing the strict injunctions above given; but those who shall not of their certain knowledge, but rather through ignorance, have subtracted from their fortieth part, shall still, when they shall have afterwards found it out, fully make up for the deficiency they have so made in their payment. If, also, which God forbid, any person shall withdraw, of his own certain knowledge, any portion of the fortieth part so to be paid, the same person, when he shall have made due satisfaction, shall be entirely free from any penalty for such transgression. And let not any one be surprised, or even wonder, that we order this with such strictness, inasmuch as it is an extreme necessity that demands it. For, although obedience to the Divine will ought to be a pleasure, we still read in the Gospel that, of those invited to the marriage feast, the Lord gave orders that they should be compelled to go in to the same. We do further command that you, brother archbishops and bishops, after exacting and collecting the said fortieth part throughout your dioceses, shall faithfully cause the same, according to the manner above stated, to be deposited in a place of safety, and shall, so soon as can possibly be done, signify unto us, by your letters, and through special messengers, the amount of the whole thereof. For this purpose, we do order that a hollow chest shall be placed in each of your churches, fastened with three keys; the first to be in the hands of the bishop, the second with the priest of the church, and the third with some pious layman, by them to be kept; and each of the faithful is to be moved to deposit therein alms for the remission of their sins, according as the Lord shall have inspired their minds in relation thereto; and in all churches mass shall be publicly said once a week for the remission of sins, and especially of those who shall make offerings. We do also grant unto you, brother archbishops and bishops, that, in relation to those who shall be willing with their property