Pope Gregory IX to bestow upon him the benefice then (at the time of the application) vacant. The pope acceded to the request, as has been said, and Mansel applied to the bishop of Lincoln for institution. Bishop Grosseteste had already filled the vacancy by the appointment of one Simon of London. Moreover, when the king's nominee, John Mansel, produced his letters of "provision," Grosseteste found that there was no special mention of the letter of protection, granted to him on 26th January, 1239, by Pope Gregory IX. By this letter, which was issued as an answer to his complaint that owing to the number of papal provisions which had been made in the Lincoln diocese, the work of the See had been much hampered, he was permitted to refuse to put any one in possession of a benefice unless a special mention of the consideration of this privilege was named.1

Grosseteste consequently sent to the king to point out that this letter of protection made the "provision" obtained by the royal agents in Rome of no value. He protested against the idea that any one could force an appointment to a benefice in any diocese without the knowledge and consent of the bishop, even when papal authority was relied upon, "since the lord pope must desire everything to be done in an orderly manner." His messengers added that the bishop was by no means unwilling, on account of the worth of John Mansel himself, and because he would desire to do what the king wished, if possible, to find some other benefice for him; but that he could not consent to this way of acting, and was prepared to issue his excommunication against all invaders of the rights of his diocese should this matter be persisted in by the king and Mansel. Seeing the firm attitude of Grosseteste, John

1 Brit. Mus. Add. MS., 15,354, f. 184.

Mansel resigned all claim to the prebend in dispute, and the king, fearing that the bishop would keep his word, gave way, and accepted his defeat graciously.1

On 22nd August, 1241, Pope Gregory IX died at the age of nearly a hundred years. At the time of his death there were ten cardinals present in Rome, and two more were held as prisoners in Naples by the emperor. At a meeting of the ten then in Rome, it became evident that no agreement on any candidate was possible, and the meeting sent to the emperor to beg that he would release the two cardinals, Otho and James Pecoraria, and allow them to take part in the election of a succesor to Pope Gregory. To this he consented, on condition that when the choice had been made, they should return to their prison. The second meeting of the cardinals, like the first, came to nothing. Two parties in the conclave chose two different cardinals, and for a time no agreement seemed possible. Upon this, Cardinal Otho, acting upon his pledge, returned to his prison in Naples, where the emperor kept him strictly, chiefly because he had excommunicated him whilst legate in England, and had collected money to enable the pope to make war upon him. Later on, the dissensions among the cardinals were sufficiently healed to enable them to unite in electing Geoffrey of Milan, who took the name of Celestine IV. He was, however, a man already weighed down with years, and stricken with infirmities, and so, within seventeen days of his election, he died.

Towards the end of November of this year, 1241, some of the bishops of England met at Oxford to discuss the state of the Church. The archbishop of York presided, and there were present Bishop Grosseteste, Bishop William 2 Ibid., 164; ibid., 170.

1 Matthew Paris, iv. 152-154.

de Raleigh, the bishop of Carlisle, and many other prelates, religious and ecclesiastics. The king, suspecting that the assembly might pass some regulations affecting his interests, appointed a procurator to attend the meeting, and by his letters patent he prohibited discussion or legislation upon anything "against his Crown and dignity." The purpose of the meeting, however, was to consult upon the grave state of the Church in being left so long without a supreme pastor, and to urge upon the English people the need of public prayer and penances to implore that the Lord might deign to assist and restore the Roman Church then destitute of pastoral and papal government. Taking as their precedent the fact that in the Acts of the Apostles it is related that when Peter was in prison the Church prayed without ceasing for him, the faithful were urged to unite in public supplications that God would assist those upon whom the choice depended.

The meeting was also unanimous in determining to send to the emperor to beg "with prayers and tears," that for his soul's sake he would put aside all angry feeling or any desire to act the tyrant, and not interfere with the Roman election. They were to remind him that those who had stirred him up to anger were dead, and that it would be unreasonable, and would be looked upon as vindictive, to continue his hostile attitude to the innocent. When it became, however, a question of who should undertake the office of not only going to the emperor, but of trying to stir up among the prelates of France sentiments similar to those animating their English brethren at this juncture, one after another of the prelates excused themselves from so arduous and difficult a labour "for Christ and his Church." Finally, however, on the principle explained by Juvenal in 1 Wilkins, i. 682.

the line "Cantabit vacuus coram latrone viator," the Dominicans and Franciscans, who were used to travelling, and knew the countries, were deputed to the work. The mission, however, did little good, for upon the messengers conveying the suggestions of the English bishops to the emperor Frederick, he indignantly denied that he had in any way interfered with the papal election, though, he added, that no one need be astonished if he had done so, least of all the English, who had excommunicated him.'

The continued vacancy in the papal Chair was soon felt in the relations between France and England. Since the accession of Henry III to the throne, it was mainly, if not entirely, due to the efforts of the popes that peace had been preserved between the two kingdoms. Truce after truce had been made and renewed by the diplomatic dealing of Honorius and Gregory and their agents in the two countries. When the kings of either peoples seemed inclined to cast prudence to the winds, or to disregard the fatherly admonitions of the successor of St. Peter, a judicious threat of compulsion by means of the spiritual sword had the desired effect, and a breach of the peace, which had constantly appeared imminent, was happily averted. Hardly six months had elapsed from the death of Gregory IX, however, before the peace of more than a quarter of a century was seriously threatened. Early in 1242 Henry felt compelled to call a parliament to consider how best to meet certain difficulties which had arisen with the French. It assembled in London on 28th January; but rumours concerning the business having transpired, the nobles and prelates bound themselves not to grant any subsidy to the king for the purpose of attacking France, to which the count de la Marche was urging him. When Henry had Matthew Paris, iv. 173-174.

laid his design of crossing the sea before them, they refused to sanction a project about which they had never been consulted. Even his attempt to gain their consent to a subsidy by adopting the tactics he had seen succeed when used by the legate Otho, namely, the ruse of taking the nobles individually, failed, and Henry dismissed the assembly. Both nobles and prelates refused even to say what they would do in the event of the French king breaking the truce which had so long bound the two nations to peace. It would be sufficient, they declared, to consider that, when the event occurred. They did not feel disposed to entrust the king with any more money after the great sums they had already given and the large amounts he had obtained through vacant archbishoprics like Canterbury.1

Pressing appeals continuing to come from de la Marche, the king determined to cross over into Poitou, trusting that once he had embarked on the war his nobles would rally to his assistance. He left the archbishop of York in charge of the kingdom, and taking ship at Portsmouth on 15th May, 1242, landed at Royan, in Brittany, three days later. On 8th June he sent letters to the bishops and abbots of England to order special prayers for the success of the English arms, as it was obvious that the threatened breach with France could not now be long delayed. The same day he wrote to the archbishop of York to forward knights and soldiers at once to his assistance, and he was to let it be known that if the royal position was to be saved in France, the king must immediately have money. Finally, the king directs the archbishop as guardian of the kingdom, to see that "of the five hundred poor people whom the king had been wont to feed daily," Rymer i. 245.

1 Matthew Paris, iv. 181 seqq.

2