quently recalls his previous letters taking the prince under his protection.'

On the eve of the opening of the Council a fire occurred in the papal apartments at Lyons, in which many documents perished. Amongst others of importance, it is said that the Great Charter of King John, by which he undertook to pay the annual tribute to the pope for the kingdom of England, was wholly destroyed. In preparation for the work of the Council, Henry had caused agents in the various counties of England to make inquiries as to the entire amount of yearly revenue which Romans and Italians had at that time in their hands. To the king's astonishment the total came to some sixty thousand marks -more than the annual revenue of the Crown at that time.' Henry determined to make representations to the Curia about these manifest exactions. A letter was consequently composed, protesting, on behalf of the nation, against the tribute of King John, and against the extraordinary powers that had been given to papal collectors and their extravagant demands upon the English. This letter was dispatched to Lyons by certain nobles and others to be discussed in the Council.

Rumours of difficulties and discontent had already reached the ears of the pope. On 10th April, 1245, consequently, he sent a letter, partly of expostulation, partly of explanation to the king. "The Apostolic See, your mother, loving your person above other Catholic kings and Christian princes," only desires to preserve inviolate all those rights and privileges upon which the greatness and safety of a kingdom depends. For this reason it is only proper "that you as a son, blessed in the Lord, should have a filial reverence for the Roman Church, and 2 Matthew Paris, iv. 419.

1 Rymer, i. 255.

Q

show yourself favourable and kind to it, in carrying out its desires." But it has been lately told us that "your Majesty at the suggestion of some, and in particular the nobles of your kingdom, has prohibited Martin, our nuncio, from proceeding to make certain provisions in * your kingdom by our authority, until we should write to you as to our pleasure." Further, you have directed him to remove certain sentences of excommunication and suspension, which by our authority he had issued in regard to these provisions against religious and others. Though willing to do what the king desired, as far as possible, the pope declares that he feels bound to do something for those who have helped him in his difficulties, and he begs that the king will not stand in the way of his recompensing their faithful services with benefices. He asks him, however, to understand that he does not intend to present to any benefices to which lay people have the right of presentation.'

Meanwhile, within a few days after the assembly of the fathers at Lyons, the nobles in England determined to get rid of the papal clerk from England, as his presence was causing great discontent. On 30th June, 1245, they sent to warn him to leave the country within three days. Martin appealed to the king, who professed not to be able to restrain the angry nobles, and advised him to depart as they had ordered him. The papal agent had no choice; and in his fright fled under the care of one of the king's officers to Dover, where he embarked on 15th July, 1245, and coming to the pope at Lyons, stirred the papal anger at the recital of the way he had been compelled to retire from England.

On 15th January, shortly after his arrival at Lyons,

1 Rymer, i. 256.

Innocent IV had consecrated Boniface the archbishop, who had now for more than two years been merely elect of Canterbury.' About the same time the bishops of Chichester and Lichfield also received the episcopal consecration, in spite of the protestations of the proctor of the English king. He was told that for such promotion “the royal assent was not required," that it was merely a privilege the king had been allowed, and one which could be ignored, unless it was used properly. When this reached the ears of Henry, he directed the property of the two dioceses to be confiscated. Innocent addressed a letter to the king explaining his attitude in regard to the appointment to Chichester. Henry had complained that Passelew had been rejected by the archbishop, and that another bishop had been appointed by the archiepiscopal authority without either election or royal assent. The pope declares that, upon examination, he approves of the action of the archbishop-elect in quashing the choice of Passelew: but that whilst approving of the choice made by the elect of Canterbury and confirming it, declares that he does not do so because the archbishop has any powers to "provide" for a See in this way, but. "by the plenitude of his Apostolic powers." For this reason the fact that he has appointed the same individual that Archbishop Boniface had chosen is not to be considered any prejudice to Henry's royal rights.'

1 Gervase of Cant., ii. 202.

2

Rymer, i. 261.

CHAPTER XIII

THE ENGLISH AT THE COUNCIL OF LYONS

ON 2nd December, 1244, Innocent IV arrived at Lyons. He had apparently already determined to convoke a Council to discuss the action of the emperor Frederick in his regard, and to give its general sanction to the extreme ecclesiastical measures it was proposed to take against him. On 22nd December, the feast of St. John, therefore, the pope having said mass in the cathedral, ascended the pulpit and publicly announced the convocation of the Council for the 24th of June following. A week later, some of the letters summoning the prelates were already on their way. Some at least of the pontifical letters, besides directing that the assembly of a general Council should be made known to the faithful, order that the papal excommunication of the emperor should be proclaimed. That this latter command was not always popular, or obeyed with a good grace, appears from a story of a French priest, which Matthew Paris relates. This cleric, feeling bound to carry out the mandate, did so in the following manner: “Listen all of you. I have been ordered to publish a solemn sentence of excommunication against the emperor Frederick, with bell and candle. I do not know why, but there has been a grave quarrel and lasting hatred between them. I know, too, that one has injured the other; which, I do not know. But, as far as my powers go, I excommunicate, and declare excommunicated, one of them; that is, he that has

done the injury, whichever it is, and I absolve the other who has suffered the wrong, for the matter is most hurtful to the whole of Christendom."

Authorities differ as to the number of bishops attending the Council. The partisans of Frederick II desired to maintain that it was by no means an assembly representative of the whole even of western Christendom. They declared that it was for the most part a reunion of French and transalpine bishops, and the numbers vary from 362 archbishops, bishops and other prelates, as stated in the chronicle of Mantua,2 to 144, the number given by Matthew Paris as having been present at the first session on 26th June, 1245.

The number of English dignitaries was certainly small. They had been summoned en masse, and the records show that the archbishop of Canterbury, with the bishops of Lincoln and Worcester, represented the English hierarchy, and the archbishops of Armagh and St. Andrews, those of Ireland and Scotland. The dean of Lincoln was amongst the lesser dignitaries, and during the sitting of the Council he was consecrated bishop of Coventry and Lichfield by the pope. For one reason or another, many English bishops and abbots excused themselves. The king said that he could not spare the bishop of Carlisle nor the abbot of Westminster, as he intended to leave to them the custody of the kingdom during his absence abroad. The bishop of Ely and the abbot of St. Alban's pleaded sickness; the bishop of Llandaff, poverty; the abbot of Edmundsbury was laid up with the gout; and the abbot of Waltham was too old and infirm to travel. Pope Innocent seems to have accepted the excuses readily enough, except in the case of

1 Matthew Paris, iv. 407.

2 Elie Berger, Saint Louis et Innocent IV, 121.