Raphael Holinshed

“ They againe on the other side made themselues strong, the better to resist him, choosing for their chéefe capteines and leaders, the earles Edwine & Edgar Etheling, who valiantlie resisted the Normans, and slue many of them with great rage and crueltie. And as they thus procéeded in their matters, king William being a politike prince, forward and painefull in his businesse, suffered them not altogither to escape cléere awaie, but did sore annoy and put them oft to remediles losses, though he abode in the meane time many laborious iournies, slaughters of his people, and damages of his person. ”

“ The king perceiuing his estate to be now in no small danger, is in a great perplexitie what to doo, in the end, he counselleth with the said Lanfranke archbishop of Canturburie, how he might remedie the matter; who told him that in such a desperate case, the best waie for him should be to séeke by faire words and friendly offers to pacifie the English Nobilitie, which by all meanes possible would neuer ceasse to molest him in the recouerie of their liberties. ”

“ For it may please them to consider, that no one can be eie-witnesse to all that is written within our time; much lesse to those things which happened in former times, and therefore must be content with reports of others. ”

“ Whereupon all the people rather choosing to end their vnfortunate life, than to submit themselues to an vnaccustomed yoke of seruitude and bondage, with a common consent determined to méet duke William, and to fight with him for the lawes of their countrie. Also, the foresaid Stigand the archbishop, and the abbat Egelsin, choosing rather to die in battell, than to see their nation in so euill an estate, being encouraged by the examples of the holie Machabées, became capteins of the armie. ”

“ The bishop of Durham Egelwinus with his cleargie fled into holy Iland with S. Cuthberts bodie, and other iewels of the Simon Dun. church of Durham, where they tarried three moneths and od daies, before they returned to Durham againe. The kings armie comming into the countrie that lieth betwixt the riuers Theise and Tine, found nothing but void feelds and bare walles; the people with their goods and cattell being fled and withdrawne into the woods and mountaines, if any thing were forgotten behind, these new gests were diligent inough to find it out. ”

“ Great hurt was doone in manie places of the realme by fire, and speciallie in London, where vpon the 7. daie of Julie a sudden flame began, which burnt Paules church, and a great part or the citie downe to the verie ground.
Now when K. William had taken the oth of fealtie and loialtie of all his lords, Edgar Etheling, who was reconciled vnto his fauour (as you haue heard) obteining licence of him to depart the realme for a season, sailed into Puglia with two hundred souldiers: of whose acts there and returne into England I spare to speake, bicause I find little or nothing of moment recorded. ”

“ But howsoeuer the matter went with the Danes, certain it is by the whole consent of writers, that king William hauing thus subdued his enimies in the north, he tooke so great displeasure with the inhabitants of the countrie of Yorkeshire and Northumberland, that he wasted all the land betwixt Yorke Wil. Malms. and Durham, so that for the space of threescore miles, there was left in maner no habitation for the people, by reason whereof it laie wast and desert for the space of nine or ten yeares. ”

“ The vse of the long bowe (as Iohn Rous testifieth) came first into England with this king William the Conquerour: for the English (before that time) vsed to fight with axes and such hand weapons: and therefore in the oration made by the Conquerour before he gaue battel to king Harold, the better to encourage his men, he told them they should encounter with enimies that wanted shot.
In the yeare of our Lord 1542. Monsieur de Castres bishop of Baieulx and abbat of Saint Estienne in Caen, caused the Sepulchre of this William to be opened, wherein his bodie was found whole, faire and perfect ”

“ Earle Walteof, who had fought most manfullie in that battell, & slaine manie Normans with his owne hands, was reconciled into the kings fauour: but the residue Hen. Hunt. Wil. Malm. were for the most part taken prisoners, and killed. William of Malmesburie writeth, that king William comming at that time into the north parts, besieged the citie of Yorke, and putting to flight a great armie of his enimies that came to the succour of them within, not without great losse of his owne souldiers, at length the citie was deliuered into his hands ”

“ King William héereby perceiuing daily how vnwilling the Englishmen were to be vnder his obeisance, was in feare of rebellious commotions; and therefore to subdue them the better, he builded foure castels, one at Notingham, Two at York, wherein he left fiue hundred men in garrison. another at Lincolne, the third at Yorke, and the fourth néere vnto Hastings, where he landed at his first comming into England.
Moreouer, to reduce the English people the sooner vnto obedience and awe, he tooke Simon Dun. The Conquerour taketh frō the Englishmen their armour. from them all their armour and weapons. ”

“ At his coronation he caused the bishops and barons of the realme to take their oth, that they should be his true and loiall subiects (according to the maner in that case accustomed.) And being required thereto by the archbishop of Yorke, he tooke his personall oth before the altar of S. Peter at Westmister, to defend the holie church, and rulers of the same, to gouerne the people in iustice as became a king to doo, to ordeine righteous lawes & kéepe the same, so that all maner of bribing, rapine, and wrongful iudgements should for euer after be abolished. ”

“ Englishman, they receiued a stranger, insomuch that vpon king William his comming vnto Beorcham, Aldred archbishop of Yorke, Wolstane bishop of Worcester, and Walter bishop of Hereford, Edgar Etheling, and the foresaid earles Edwin and Marchar came and submitted themselues vnto him, whom he gentlie receiued, and incontinentlie made an agréement with them, taking their oth and hostages (as some write) and yet neuerthelesse he permitted his people to spoile and burne the countrie. ”

“ Polydor.
The hard deling of K. William against the Englishmen. About this time the archbishop Stigand, and Alexander bishop of Lincolne fled to Scotland, where they kept themselues close for a season. But the king still continued in his hard procéeding against the Englishmen, insomuch that now protesting how he came to the gouernance of the realme only by plaine conquest, he seized into his hands most part of euery mans possessions, causing them to redeeme the same at his hands againe, and yet reteined a propertie in the most part of them ”

“ After this battell, king William being thus accorded with his sonne, returned with him into England, and immediatlie sent him against Malcolme king of Scotland, who hauing broken the truce in time of the trouble betwixt king William and his sonne, had doone much hurt by forraies vpon the English borders, wasting all Northumberland euen to the riuer of Tine. Howbeit, when he heard that Robert approched with his armie towards him, he retired into Scotland. Robert Curthuze then lodged with his armie vpon the The foundation of New castell upon Tine, which before that season was called Moncaster. ”

“ They on the other part make as stout resistance; and perceiuing that it stood them vpon, either to vanquish or to fall into vtter ruine, they raise a mightie strong host, and make Edgar Etheling their capteine, a comelie gentleman and a valiant, in whome also the whole hope of the English nation was reposed, as appeareth by this his accustomed by-word, Edgar Etheling Englands dearling. Amongst other noble men that were chiefe dooers in the assembling of this armie, Frederike abbat of S. Albons, a prelate of great wealth and no lesse puissance, was a principall. ”

“ But the countesse Gita, the sister of Sweine K. of Denmarke, and sometime wife to earle Goodwine, and mother to the last K. Harold, with diuers other that were got into that citie, found meanes to flie, and so escaped ouer into Flanders. King William hauing passed his businesse in such wise in Deuonshire, hasted backe towards Yorke, being aduertised in the waie, that the Northumbers hauing knowledge by their spials, that Robert generall of the Normans being come to Durham, did not so diligentlie cause watch and ward to be kept about the towne in the night season This chaunced the 28. ”

“ In the meane time, those of the English Nobilitie, which could escape this his outragious tyrannie, got awaie, and amongst other, Edgar Etheling fled againe into Scotland: but Edwin was slaine of his owne souldiers, as he rode toward Scotland. Earle Marchar, and Ran. Higa. H. Hunt. Matth. Paris. one Hereward, with the bishop of Durham named Egelwinus, got into the Ile of Elie, in purpose there to defend themselues from the iniurie of the Normans, for they tooke the place (by reason of the situation) to be of no small strength. ”

“ Polydor. crueltie, not onelie mortall men liuing here on earth, but also the earth it selfe might seeme to detest, as by a woonderfull signification it séemed to declare, by the shaking and roaring of the same, which chanced about the 14. yeare of his reigne (as writers haue recorded.) There be that suppose how the king made that part of the realme waste and barren vpon a policie, to the intent that if his chance were to be expelled by ciuill wars, and he compelled to leaue the land, there should be no inhabitants in that part of the Ile to resist his arriuall vpon his new returne. ”

“ For the names of persons, townes, and places, as I haue beene diligent to reforme the errours of other (which are to be ascribed more to the vnperfect copies than to the authors) so may it be that I haue some-where committed the like faults, either by negligence or want of skill to restore them to their full integritie as I wished. But what I haue performed, aswell in that behalfe as others, the skilfull reader shall easily perceiue, and withall consider (I trust) what trauell I haue bestowed to his behoofe in this huge volume ”

“ Moreouer, he raised great taxes and subsidies through the realme: nor any thing regarded th' English Nobilitie, so that they who before thought themselues to be made for euer by bringing a stranger into the realme, doo now see themselues troden vnder foot, to be despised, and to be mocked on all sides, insomuch that many of them Matth. ”

“ True it is that king William had promised long afore to resigne the gouernment of Normandie vnto the said Robert his sonne. Wherevpon the yoong man, being of an ambitious nature, and now pricked forward by the sinister counsell of his adherents, seeketh to obteine that by violence, which he thought would be verie long yer he should atteine by curtesie. King William hereof aduertised, was not a little mooued against his disobedient Simon Dun. Matth. Paris. sonne, and curssed both him and the time that euer he begat him. ”

“ The Romans hauing once got possession of the continent that faceth this Ile, could not rest (as it appeareth) till they had brought the same also vnder their subiection: and the sooner doubtlesse, by reason of the factions amongst the princes of the land, which the Romans (through their accustomed skill) could turne verie well to their most aduantage. They possessed it almost fiue hundreth yeares, and longer might haue doone, if either their insufferable tyrannie had not taken awaie from them the loue of the people as well here as else-where ”