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King Ste-phen crown-ed:

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1136.

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King Ste-phen grantsgreat Privi-ieges to theClergy and■People.

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Stephen. Nam! Expeditions ,

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with the Heiress of Boulogne, and forthe Younger, the Bishoprics of Win-'ehejlert\ By this, he hoped, the Em-press his. Daughter would be well sup-ported, 5 rh Cafe the Englifi should scru-ple to own her as their Queen ; For noSettlement having been made hithertoof the Succession, he apprehended, thatthey would refuseObedience to a Woman.But this Precaution only tended to putStephen in a Capacity to supplant her.Notwithstanding all the Measures hisUncle had taken to secure the Succes-sion to the Empress his Daughter, (towhom Fealty had been more thanonce most solemnly sworn.) Stephen,With the Assistance of his Brother, theBishop of Winchejier, and his Party,obtained the Crown. He had private-ly aspired to it, even in Henry's Life-time, tho’ he had taken great Care toconceal his Designs, and none had ap-peared more forward in taking the Oathto Matilda. No sooner was Henrydead, than Stephen hastened with theutmost Expedition into England, in' asingle light Ship, from Whitfands. TheInhabitants of Dover and Canterbury,fortified themselves against him; But :London opened her Gates to receive him.On the six and twentieth (or, as W. ofMalmsbury fays, the two and twentieth)of December, being St. Stephen's Day, hewas crowned at Westminster: And thetwenty-firstof March following,Matilda,his Queen, was crowned likewise.

Stephen had gained his Point sofar by his fair Promises ; But to secureit, he soon perceived, it would be neces-sary to bring, at least, some of hisPromises to Effect- He had hithertomet with no Opposition; But he hadReason to fear he soon might. ThePretensions which Matilda, and herHusband Geoffrey, had to the Crown,were too well grounded to think theywould sit still, and not attempt the Re-covery of their Right. In Order there-fore, to win the Affection of the Peo-ple, he signed the Charter he had pro-mised , by which he acknowledged,that he derived his Right to the Crownfrom the Election of the Clergy andPeople. He confirmed the Privilegesand Immunities of the Church and Cler-gy. He abolished all Laws relating

to Hunting, and the Forests. He re- 1136.hounced Dan-geld for ever : And re-vived the Saxon Laws. Fie allowedthe Barons to fortify their Castles, andto build new ones. Thus was Matildadeprived of her Right by those veryPersons, whom the late King, her Far-ther, had most depended on to maintainit. An anonymous Author tells us, thatupon King Henry's Death the Barons

t p J phani, apud

not only found it needful, and tor the i)- a chelae.common Benefit and Tranquillity of theNation, to proceed to the Election ofa King, whose Valour and Worth mightprotect it; But thought they had aRight to provide a Successor of theBlood Royal.

In the Year 1x37- Stephen, upon sI 37»his Recovery from a dangerous Illness, Etuntingd,found the Normans, supposing him past WalfinghRecovery, and to avoid being reduced Ord. Vital,to the Yoke of the Earl of Anjou, had Uolmsli.called in Theobald, Earl of Blois, theKing’s elder Brother. He, therefore, The Kingpassed over into Normandy, and having $T S in to 'prevailed upon the Chiefs of the Coun- 1 : ° rmancJ y>try to abandon the Earl of Blois, set-tled all Things in Peace and Tranquil-lity- This done to secure himselffrom any farther Troubles on that Side,and to please the King of France, he Brompton.resigned Normandy to his eldest Son, ^ Pans 'Eujtace, who did Hommage for it tothat Monarch.

Stephen hoped now to enjoy hisDominions in Peace, when News wasbrought him, that some factious Lordsin England > taking Advantage of hisAbsence, were in Arms. (a) Upon And returns-this he immediately took Shipping, tho’in the Midst of Winter, and returnedto England, where be quelled the Re-bellion for the present: But Divisions 1x38.between the King and the Bishops en- Brompton.suing, it broke out again with greater England? ’Eury the Year following. These Trou- 1139.hies were not a little heigbtned upon Ord. Vital,the Arrival of the Empress Matilda, (b) Fk, Par | s -who, with her Brother Robert, landed nEimprestin September, at PortJmouth, and went Matildas-directly to Arundel.

She brought only an inconsiderableBody of one Hundred and forty Persons Gervas.with her • But her Party soon en creased, M. Parisand all the Miseries of a Civil War en- Brady 'sued. Battles and Sieges; Taking and

Retaking

rtves in En*land.

-(a) William of Malmeshury relates, that “ ver be called {Rex ejetfus) an abdicated King.when King Stephen heard of the Revolt of these ( h ) Holinshead places this in July, 1x40. Holinlh .Lords, he said, “Since they have chosen me Butthe Jtfa Regia agree with our other Histori- MfaRA a '" their King, Why do they now forsake me? ans. Gerya.s places it in July,non. and Malmesb. r-„ r r., n s e .

“ By the Birth of God (his usual Oath) I'll ne- the thirtieth of September of that Yeas. 'Maltlesb-