go Hen. III. Naval Expeditions , &c. of the English, Book I

1242,

Ypod.

Wal singh,M. Paris.M. Westm.Henry de-clares WaragainstFrance.

But-, aftersome Losses,makes aTruce,

J nd returns.

May , the fifteenth, at Portsmouth, with

1248.

’'Expeditionof the\Ear I<>/'Salisburyand others tothe HolyI/and.Hacklvyt,

P. II. p. 33.& feq.

MS. in Bibl.Cotton. Ju-I'us, A. f. 8.Holinshead.

I2 53 *

MagnaCharta con-firmed.

M. Paris.An. Burton.An.Waverl.T.Wikes.

The Kinggees toG af-er ony.

Prince Ed-ward mar-ries the Kingof Castile’iSifter.

1254.M. Paris.An.Waverl.M. Westm.

a very small Force, and landed atXaintonge, where he was joined by somePoiSlevin Gentlemen : But this Expedi-tion turned as little to Henry's Honour asthe former. It ended, after several.Losses on his Side, in a Truce for fiveYears. The King passed his Winter atBourdeaux, where he again lavilhed theRemains of his Treasure, in as muchJollity, as if he had gained great Ad-vantages by a victorious Campaign, anddid not return to England till the nextY ear.

In the Year 1248. William LongeJ-pee, Earl of Salisbury, with the Bishopof Worcester, and many other Persons ofDistinction, together with two HundredKnights, and a Band of English Soldiers,went over into Asia, where, after per-orming many gallant Actions against theSaracens, theEarl lost his Life : Holinsheadhowever places this Expedition in theYear 1249. and the Death of the Earlin 1250. in the unfortunate Battle, inwhich the Saracens routed the wholeChristian Army, and took Lewis, theFrench King, Prisoner.

In the Year 1253. King Henry, ob-tained anAid of his Parliament, on Con-dition that he would promise to govern,for the future, wholly by Law, andconfirm the Magna Charta, and otherCharters and Liberties of the People,which he did in the most solemn Man-ner. (V) This Aid was demanded underPretext of his going to th eHoly W 374 Buthe laid it out in Preparations for a Warin Guienne. When all was ready he wentto Portsmouth, where he had orderedhis Troops to meet him, and embarking,the sixth of August, (/) arrived thefifteenth at Bourdeaux. This Expediti-on was designed to reduce theRebelliousGascons, who were upheld by AlphonsoKing of Ca/tile. In this Henry succeed-ed, and a Peace was made between himand Alphonso, by the Marriage of PrinceEdward, Henry's eldest Son, with Elea-nor, Alphonso's Sister, (g) The Mar-riage being solemnized, the Year follow-ing, Henry prepared to return to England-,But, having asked Leave of the King of

France to pass thro' his Dominions, wentfirst with his whole Court to Parts,where they were magnificently enter-tained for eight Days together.

Holinshead relates a very odd Sto-ry under this Year, and I find the famein M. Westm , which, as it has someRelation to Maritime Affairs, I shallinsert here, tho’ I do not find it in ourother Historians, and shall thereforegive it in his own Words: " About this" Season {fays he,) were certain Ships" driven by Force of Wind and Wea-" ther, into certainHavens,on the North" Coasts of England, towards Berwick,(( which Ships were of a very strange,e Form and Fashion, but mighty and" strong, t The Men that were aboard" the same Ships were of some far" Country, for their Language was un-" known, and not understandable to" any Man that could be brought to“■ talk with them. The Freight and" Ballast of the Ships were Armour and" Weapons, as Habergeons, Helmets," Spears, Bows, Arrows, Cross-bows" and Darts, with great Store of Victuals." There lay also without the Havens," on the Coasts, diverse other Ships of" like Form, Mold, and Fashion." Those that were driven into the Ha-" vens were stayed for a Time by the" Bailiffs of the Ports. But finally," when it could not be known what" they were,nor fromwhence theycame," they were licensed to depart, with-tc out Loss or Harm, in Body or" Goods.

Henry came to England about newYears Day. The remaining seventeenYears of this King’s long Reign werechiefly spent in his Civil Wars with hisBarons, and the troublesome, as wellas chargeable Affair of Sicily, whichafford little or no Matter for this Histo-ry, I shall therefore only hint at two orthree Transactions, and so concludethis Reign.

j In the Year 1260. King Henry wentover into France , and demanded theRestitution of Normandy, which how-ever he did not obtain: But rather, wasprevailed upon to quit all Claim to that

Duchy,

1254.Henry en-tertained a ’Paris, andreturns toEngland.Holinsh.

M. Westm-

I 255 -*

I26<2'Rapin AsTind.AWf;Henry A*to France-

M. Paris. 00 T H . E King's Oath upon this Occasion wasexpressed in the following Words : “ So may GodJffa Regia. “ ^ e ‘P we, as I inviolably observe all these" Things ; which I promise, as I am a Man, as1 " f 2w a Christian, as I am Knight, and as I am" King, crowned and anointed: But the Parlia-ment was no sooner dissolved, than the King de-M$- in Bibl. fired the Pope to give him a Dispensation from hisCotton. JuR Oath. See Copies of the Charters so confirmed inA. IX.tS. the Cotton Library.

//)- T £ E ^ eet ’ * n which the King embarked Holinsh■with Ihs Troops, consisted of three Hundred Sailof great Ships, besides a Number of other smallerVessels.

is) Holinshead in one place, fays the Kingof Spain’s Daughter; but he, in another Place, Ttndd 5 .contradicts himself, and says Sister. Rapin runs Tranfi» tl0into the fame Mistake, but it is corrected in Mr. 0 fRapi*Tindah Translation.