Henry III. coignes understood, they, dreading the earl's great A.D. 1253. courage, by degrees returned to their allegiance. Yet the King continued all this winter in France." 28b The King's struggle with the barons goes on. extremities The King's Struggles with the Barons. During the whole of this time, while the struggle for the recovery of the French provinces was going on, the King was continually engaged in quarrels with his barons for supplies, and in oppressions to The King's extort money. He was occasionally reduced to great for money. extremities. In 1248 he was obliged to sell his jewels, his plate, and even his household utensils.24 It is probable that his ordinary revenue was not enough for his necessary expenditure; but yet, regardless of his straits for money, and regardless of the promises by which alone he had obtained grants of supplies, he increased his expenses by his favours to foreigners, by his constant wars with France, and by his ambitious Refusal of projects for his sons. His Parliaments were, however, continually willing to grant him supplies on supplies becomes the constitutional mode of obtaining grievances. condition of his redressing their grievances, and abiding by his promises to rule according to the redress of Charter. But, unfortunately, whenever he got the money he forgot the grievance; and so prepared the way for the coming rebellion. Thus too he laid the foundations of the constitutional mode of obtaining redress of grievances, which prevails to this very day. In A.D. 1248, he caused a new fair to be proclaimed privilege of at Westminster. These fairs, as I have already stated, proclaim- were privileges belonging, some to the King, and others to the barons and nobles of the land, and were sources of considerable revenue, and also of great oppression. When Henry proclaimed this new The King abuses his ing fairs. fair at Westminster, which was to last for fifteen Henry III. days, "he prohibited all other fairs, that used to be kept at that time of year, throughout all England, and also all trading in the city of London, both within doors and without, during that time, that so this fair at Westminster might be the more plentifully stored and frequented with all sorts of people and commodities; which oppression highly incensed the city at that time." 24 Two years after, in 1252, he again proclaimed this fair at Christmas, and thus increased the anger of the citizens at his oppressions. "He made them shut up their shops fifteen days together, and carry their commodities to St. Edward's fair, and there to remain all day in tents and booths, exposed to the rain and cold (it being presently after Christmas). These things caused great heartburnings and discontents among the citizens." 28 laws ad severity. The forest laws were administered, too, with great The forest severity. In 1250 Henry sent an officer to inquire ministered into transgressions against the forest laws, "which with great charge," says an old chronicler, "he executed with that violence and extortion as exceeded belief, clapping up gentlemen in prison for but muttering against his unjust proceedings, and ruining divers of the best quality for killing but a deer or a hare, albeit it were in the very highway." 25 It is indeed sad to relate the history of this reign, as it is nothing but a history of the King's oppressions and treachery on the one side, and of the persevering resistance of the barons on the other. While the contest with France was proceeding, the King endeavoured to raise money for another purpose. He had vowed to undertake an expedition to the Holy Land, and, about Easter in A.D. 1253, he Henry III called a Parliament together, and demanded a great A.D. 1253. sum of money for this purpose. The money was Solemn scene on the occa King again swearing to observe the Charter. granted, after much altercation, on condition that the King should govern according to the Charter, and a day was appointed when he and his nobles might take a solemn oath to that effect. Accordingly, on the 3rd of May, the following solemn scene took place. sion of the The Archbishop of Canterbury, and the rest of the bishops, assembled in their full robes, holding lighted candles in their hands, and excommunicated and anathematised, with bell, book, and candle, all those that opposed, violated, diminished, or changed the Liberties and Customs of the kingdom. The King laid his hand on his breast, and said, "So may God help me, as I inviolably observe all these things;" but he refused to hold a candle. The bishops and the nobles, who also held lighted candles, then put out their candles, and threw them smoking on the ground, in token, that those who broke their oaths, might so smoke and stink in hell. No sooner, however, was the Council dissolved, than the King contrived how he might break through all those things he had lately granted.28 a The King again breaks his oath. The kingdom of Henry's ambitious Projects for his Son. I must now give an account of Henry's foolish Sicily offer- ambition for the aggrandisement of his son Edmund. ed to Henry's son. The kingdoms of Sicily and the South of Italy, called Apulia, were made fiefs of the Holy See by their Norman conquerors; that is, the Pope became their feudal lord. These kingdoms had been held of the Pope by Frederic, Emperor of Germany; but in consequence of his wars with the Pope he was adjudged to have forfeited them, although he kept possession of HENRY'S AMBITIOUS PROJECTS FOR HIS SON. 203 Henry at first refuses the offer, them till his death in 1250. The Emperor left three Henry III. sons-Conrad, King of Germany, by his first wife; Henry, by his second wife, who was sister of Henry the Third of England; and an illegitimate son, Manfred. The Pope was desirous that the throne should not again be occupied by an Emperor of Germany; and offered the kingdoms to the Earl of Cornwall. On his refusal to accept them, the Pope made a similar offer to the King for his son Edmund. Henry refused, as he did not wish to oppose the claims of his nephew, and, doubtless also, because he had no money to spare. The Emperor's eldest son, Conrad, was determined not to give up his claim to the throne without an effort, and marched from Germany at the head of his army. He took Apulia, and was preparing to invade Sicily when his brother Henry died. The Pope immediately urged the King of England to but at last take advantage of this circumstance, and to accept the accepts it, crown for his son; to which the King foolishly agreed. But he was unable to fulfil his agreement, as the barons money to refused to supply the necessary means. Conrad now died, and Manfred seized the throne, defeating the session. Pope's troops, who had resisted Manfred's pretensions during the negotiations with Henry. The Pope still endeavoured to persuade Henry to raise an army, and march to his assistance, offering to absolve him from a vow he had made to engage in a crusade to the Holy Land if he would consent. Henry would willingly have complied, but he could get no money from the barons. Nevertheless, Henry would not give up the Sicilian crown, and promised to land with an army Neverthethe following year. He also bound himself to pay all the expenses of the war, which had, up to that time, been incurred by the Pope. The year 1256 came; Р but cannot grant of enable him to take pos less he binds him self to pay the Pope's expenses, Henry III. but the King was unable to send an army, or to pay A.D. 1256. the Pope's debts. The Pope complained of Henry's nonpayment, and the King tried by every means to raise the money. But the barons very properly disapproved of his making a war, which he could not afford, to place his son on the throne of Sicily; and and extorts they could not be moved. Henry then, assisted by threats of excommunication by the Pope, compelled the clergy to furnish the required sum, and they were forced by every kind of extortion to provide the money. the money from the clergy. The beginning of the end. The Barons determine to insist on Reform. All these things now began to produce their fruit. The King's favouritism, his partiality to foreigners, his oppressions, and his faithlessness, could be borne no The barons longer. The barons resolved to make a determined stand; and a circumstance which now occurred gave them an opportunity of more easily carrying their plans into execution. make a de termined stand. The Earl of Cornwall Romans, Henry's brother, Richard Earl of Cornwall, was being made elected, in 1256, King of the Romans. He was beKing of the lieved to be the richest Prince in Europe; having carefully husbanded his revenues; and he was unable to resist the temptation of being made a king. Early in 1257, he went over to Aix-la-Chapelle to be crowned, and in the following year he took possession of his new dominions. Richard had frequently joined with the barons in opposing his brother, but he always supported what he considered the just rights of the Crown. His absence therefore left the barons free to follow their own course, and under the guidance of the Earls of Hereford and Gloucester, and of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, they associated themselves together to reform the state. the barons are left to follow their own courses without control. |