his wish or advice, and that the said Richard had sent word to him, by John, archbishop of Dublin, that he had done nothing in respect thereof, but by the advice of the king of France.

In the same year, the Patriarch of the city of Antioch wrote to the king of England to the following effect :

The Letter of the Patriarch of Antioch to Henry, king of

England.

"By the grace of the Holy God, and of the Apostolic See, the Patriarch of Antioch, to Henry, by the same grace, the most illustrious king of the English, his beloved lord and friend— may he govern in Him, through whom kings govern. With tears and with sighs by these presents we announce to your excellency, the dire and inexpressible grief which we feel for the unexpected and terrible disaster that has lately befallen us, or, indeed, all Christendom we may rather say. Let all the world listen, with yourself, to this our grief, that it may know whence proceed our tears and our lamentations, or what is their end. On the fourth day of the month of July, in the year of the Word made incarnate one thousand one hundred and eightyseven, Saladin, having gathered together a multitude of our foreign foes, engaged with those of the Christians who were in the land of Jerusalem, and, having routed their forces, triumphed over them to his heart's content; the vivifying Cross being exposed to the ridicule of the Turks; the king being taken prisoner, and the Master of the Temple, as also prince Raymond, being slain by this accursed Saladin with his own hands; while bishops, Templars, and Hospitallers, in all a multitude of nearly twelve hundred, and thirty thousand foot were slaughtered in the defence of the Holy Cross, besides a considerable number who were afterwards slain, or made prisoners in the cities which he took. After this, being quite satiated with the blood of the Christians, he took Tiberias and fortified it; and then, he had laid siege to the noble city of Acre, to Caiphas, Cæsarea, Joppa, Nazareth, Sebaste, Neapolis, Lydda, Ramatha, Assur, Hebron, Bethlehem, and, last of all, the Holy City of Jerusalem, and the Sepulchre of our Lord, vowing that he would cut it into pieces and throw its fragments into the deep. As for the rest, fearful anxiety possesses us every day and every hour, amid our doubts whether these various places may not be subjugated to his dominion, and their inhabitants slain or made captive, especially as it is well

known that they are deprived of provisions, horses, munitions of war, and defenders. By reason of this mighty anger and indignation of God poured forth upon us from above, with tears we eat our bread, and are alarmed with dreadful apprehensions, lest the Sepulchre of our Lord may be delivered to strange nations, and lest we few, who still remain in this Christian land, may, if succours are tardy in their arrival, and our enemies press on, have to bow our necks to the swords of the smiters. Now as, in prudence, counsel, and riches, you surpass the other kings of the West, your aid we have always looked for; and we therefore pray that you will hasten to bring your powerful succour to the Holy Land. If you delay so to do, then the Sepulchre of the Lord, with the noble city of Antioch, and the territory adjacent thereto, will exist as an everlasting reproach to foreign nations. Be mindful of your glories and of your name, that so, God, who has raised you to a throne, may through you be exalted; and if you are ready to give your assistance to so worthy an object, either coming yourself to us, or sending to us the wished-for succours, then to you, after God, will be imputed the liberation of the Holy Land. We ourselves, with all possible contrition, and smiting our guilty breast, cry unto God that He will give to you both the will and the ability of thus acting to the praise and glory of His name; wherefore, at this, the last gasp of life, in your clemency lend your aid to the Holy Land and to ourselves. Otherwise, we who, subjected to various perils, have been afflicted with a lingering illness, shall have nothing to expect but immediate death for ourselves, and that after the blood of the Christians has been poured forth, the Sepulchre of our Lord, with the noble city of Antioch, and the country thereto adjacent, will, to the eternal disgrace of foreign nations, be captured. We do further entreat, that you will receive our recommendations of our dearly beloved brethren, the bishops of Gabalus and Valenia, whom on this matter we have despatched to you. Farewell."

The Letter of Henry, king of England, to the Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Antioch, and Raymond, prince of Antioch.

"To the venerable fathers in Christ, and his friends, A. and E., the Patriarchs of Antioch and Jerusalem, and to Raymond, prince of Antioch, and to all the Christian people of the Church in the East, Henry, by the same grace, king of England, duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, and earl of Anjou, health and consolation in Christ. Inasmuch as, our sins so requiring it,

the Lord has in our times visited our iniquities with the rod of His vengeance, and has, by the Divine judgment, permitted the land which was redeemed with His own blood to be polluted by the hands of the unbelievers; it is therefore becoming, that we, and all who belong to the Christian religion, and are professors of that name, should attend with pious zeal to the desolate state of the said land, and make it our endeavour with all our might to impart thereto our aid and counsel. Wherefore, as A., by the grace of God, the venerable bishop of Valenia, has, with a profusion of tears and deep sighs, disclosed unto us the griefs and calamities with which the Eastern Church is afflicted, the greater the danger we behold impending, the more strenuous and immediate is the assistance which we are prompted by compassion to give. Having, therefore, faith and confidence in Him, who never forsakes those who put their trust in Him, act manfully, and let your hearts be strengthened in the Lord; for we believe that now is the prophecy of Isaiah fulfilled; "Jerusalem, lift up thine eyes round about and see; all they gather themselves together, they come to thee Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee."83 For now, Lord, who looks down upon the sons of men, that He may see if man is of good understanding or seeks God, has so aroused the feelings of the Christians, which were before asleep, to His own service, that every one who is of the Lord's side, has now girded his sword to his thigh, and each one reckons himself as blessed and faithful, who leaves his father and his mother and all things besides, that he may be able to avenge the injuries done to Christ, and to the Holy Land. Wherefore, be ye firm, and you shall speedily see the assistance of the Lord which is now preparing for you. For sooner than you could believe, such vast multitudes of the faithful will by land and sea come to your rescue, as 'Eye hath not seen nor ear heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive;' and whom the Lord has prepared for the deliverance of your land. Among other princes as well, I and my son, rejecting the pomps of this world, and setting at nought all its pleasures, and all things that belong to this world being laid aside, will shortly, by the assistance of the Lord, visit you in our own persons. Farewell."

the

In the same year, Philip, king of France, levying a large

83 Is. Ix 4, 5.

army, entered Berry, and took Chateau Raoul, which the burgesses surrendered to him; and, proceeding thence, nearly the whole of Berry was delivered up to him, with the exception of Luches, and the other castles, demesnes of the king of England. Buchard of Vendôme also surrendered to the king of France, with his lands and castles, and became his adherent. On the king of England making enquiry why this was done, he was told that the king of France was acting thus in revenge for the injuries that Richard, earl of Poitou, had done to himself and the count of Saint Gilles. Having, therefore, held counsel with his trusty advisers, the king of England sent Baldwin, archbishop of Canterbury, and Hugh, bishop of Lincoln, to the king of France; that they might, at least, by words and exhortations, assuage the anger and indignation which, in his mind, he had conceived against him.

These prelates being unable to succeed in their object, the king of England crossed over from England to Normandy, and landed at Harfleur on the fifth day before the ides of July; and going thence to Alençon, levied a great army in Normandy and the rest of his territories. Many of the Welch also accompanied him to Normandy as mercenaries. In the meantime, Richard, earl of Poitou, having raised a considerable force, marched into Berry; on hearing of whose approach, the king of France gave Chateau Raoul into the charge of William des Barres, and he himself returned into France. On this, earl Richard ravaged the lands of the earls and barons who had given in their adhesion to the king of France, and took many of them prisoners. The king of France, however, in consequence of the arrival of the king of England, did not dare to move out of France, but directed his army to lay waste the territories of the king of England.

On this, Philip, bishop of Beauvais, entered Normandy with an army, and ravaged with fire Blangeville, a town belonging to the earl of Auch, and Aumarle, a castle of William, earl of Mandeville, together with the adjoining provinces. The king of France also burned the town of Trou, and the whole of the fortress there, but could not gain possession thereof; however, he took forty of the knights of the king of England. On the other hand, Richard, earl of Poitou, took an extremely well fortified place, which is called Les Roches, beyond Trou, towards Vendôme, and captured in that place twenty-five knights and sixty yeomen.

On this, Henry, king of England, sent Walter, archbishop of Rouen, John, bishop of Evreux, and William Marshal to the king of France, to demand reparation for the injuries which he and his people had done him; and if he should refuse to restore what he had taken away, he defied him. To this the king of France made answer that he would not desist from his purpose until the whole of Berry, and the whole of the Norman vexin should have been subjected to himself and to his kingdom. Having, therefore, now got an excuse, by reason of the injuries done to him by the king of France, Henry, king of England, levying a large army, entered the lands of the king of France, on the Tuesday after the beheading of Saint John the Baptist, and, burning many villages, rode the same day to the town of Mante, where the king of France was said to be. Here William des Barres and Drago de Merlou, accompanied by a few French knights, met Richard, earl of Poitou, and William, earl of Mandeville, and some others of the household of the king of England; upon which, William des Barres was taken prisoner by earl Richard, and given in charge to his men; but while the people of the king of England were intent on other matters, the said William des Barres made his escape upon his page's horse.

On the Wednesday following, the king of England made a halt at Ivery, on which earl Richard set out for Berry, promising the king his father that he would serve him well and faithfully. On the Thursday after, being the feast of Saint Gilles, the Welch troopers of the king of England entered the territories of the king of France, and burned Daneville, the castle of Simon Daneth, together with many villages, and carried off considerable booty, after slaying many men. The same day, earl William de Mandeville burned the town of Saint Clair, which belongs to the demesnes of the king of France, and laid waste a very fine shrubbery which the king himself had planted.

On the same day, the king of England, having with a few knights entered the territories of the king of France, that he might ascertain the weak points of those parts, there came to him envoys from the king of France to sue for peace, and offer him the lands which he had taken from him in Berry. Upon this, a conference was held between them at Gisors, where they were unable to come to terms as to making peace; the king of France, aroused to anger and indignation thereat, cut down a very fine elm situate between Gisors