A. C. 119. haughty prince. The pope gratified him in the first part of his demand, but forbade him to invade the territories of Richard, on pain of excommunication, a prohibition which he had alHoveden. ready refolved to difregard.

Richard obtains two victories

over Sala

dine.

After Philip's departure, the whole charge of the war devolved upon Richard, who found himself in a very perplexed fituation, occafioned by the contest between Guy de Luzignan and Conrade, marquis of Montferrat, about the crown of Jerufalem. An accommodation had been effected by the interpofition of the other princes, and it was agreed, that Guy fhould poffefs the kingdom for life: that the fucceffion should fall to Conrade and his heirs; and that in the mean time they fhould equally share the revenues. Notwithstanding this pacification, Conrade ftill maintained a correfpondence with Saladine, and avoided a junction with the king of England, who having repaired the fortifications of Acon, began his march for Joppa, along the fea-coaft, for the convenience of being fupplied with provifions by the fhipping. Saladine hovered with his army upon the mountains, ready to attack him with the firft favourable opportunity, and at length gave battle to the Chriftians, as they paffed a river in the neighbourhood of Cæfarea. Here he was routed with the flaughter of forty thousand men, chiefly by the valour and conduct of Richard; and he forthwith ordered Cæfarea, Joppa, and Afcalon, to be demolished. The king of England, however, repaired the fortifications of the two first of these towns, and re peopled them with part of the inhabitants of Acon. Then he advanced towards Jerufalem, and defeated Saladine again, in the plains of Rama; when he might have made himself mafter of the city, had not he been diverted from his purpose by the Templars, who, being in the French intereft, perfuaded him to Fened. Ab. neglect the opportunity, and march towards Afcalon, which he fortified at his own expence.

Neubrig.

The mal

While Richard thus gathered laurels in Palestine, his kingadminiftra- dom of England groaned under the oppreffive administration tion, infoof William bifhop of Ely, whom he had left guardian of the lence, and rapacious- realm. Instead of co-operating with the bishop of Durham as nefs of Wil- his colleague, he had arrefted the perfon of that prelate, Jiam bishop who was obliged to purchase his release by delivering into his of Ely, chancellor, hands the caftles of Windfor, Newcastle upon Tyne, the and guardian manor of Sadberg, with the county of Northumberland; and of England. giving his own fon and Gilbert de la Ley, as hostages for

his quiet fubmiffion. Hugh complained of this treatment in letters to the king, who received them at Marseilles, and fent orders to William to reftore the places he had wrested from

the

:

the bishop; but he refused to comply with these instructions, A. C. 11g1. on pretence of knowing the king's mind better than it could be explained in writing; and he demeaned himself in all respects with the moft intolerable pride and arrogance. He expofed every thing to fale with the most shameful venality: he deprived both clergy and laity of their churches, lands, and poffeffions, with which he enriched his own relations and dependants he exhaufted the king's revenue, by making purchafes for himself, infomuch that he bought every estate that was to be fold: the vacant churches and abbeys he either kept for his own ufe, or bestowed on his own creatures, among whom likewise he diftributed caftles and pofts, which he extorted from others by dint of menaces and perfecution. In his vifitation of the religious houfes, he travelled with a party of fifteen hundred horfe, and fuch a retinue of knights, clergy, fervants, minstrels, dogs and horses, that the convent in which he lodged could fcarcely, in three years, recover the damage fuftained in one night's entertainment. The nobility truckled to him with the moft abject complaifance, expreffing the utmost ambition to marry his nieces and relations, though, like himself, fprang from the dregs of the people; and even prince John was treated by him with such indignity, that he appealed to his brother for redrefs. In a word, the civil M. Paris. and legatine powers vested in his person, had elevated him to G. Neubrig. fuch a degree of pride, infolence, and indifcretion, that he acted as if he had thought himself not only a real king, but even a defpotic emperor.

vefts the

Richard, though informed of these particulars from different The bishop correfpondents, while he refided at Meffina, was fo bigotted of Ely in to his own choice, that he would not depofe this haughty cattle of viceroy; but difpatched Walter archbishop of Rouen, and Lincoln, William Marefchal earl of Strigul, with pofitive orders to the chancellor, implying that nothing fhould be done in the adminiftration without their advice, and that of the counsellors, whom he had appointed before his departure: but, when they arrived, they durft not deliver their credentials; fo that William proceeded in his ufual career. Among other acts of arbitrary power, he divefted Gerard de Camville of the sheriffdom of Lincolnshire, and commanded him to furrender the castle of which he was hereditary caftellan. When he refused to comply with this order, the chancellor began his march with a body of troops to reduce it by force; but, before he could atchieve the enterprize, he received a meffage from prince John, threatening to vifit him at the head of an army, if he would not inftantly defift from his undertaking; and this

was

A. C. 1191. was followed by another piece of intelligence, which effec tually damped his courage. He received information of the pope's death, in confequence of which his legatine power vanifhed fo, that he found himself deprived of the best half of his authority; and, perceiving that the noblemen in his army were well affected towards prince John, he the more willingly Bened. Abb. lent an ear to proposals of accommodation. This was acCompro- cordingly effected, on condition that William fhould retain mifes his the caftles and the administration, but in cafe the king should difpute with prince John. die without iffue, they were to be delivered to John as the facG. Neubrig. ceffor; and this article was ratified by the oaths of all the preBened. Abb. lates and nobility.

of York.

His cruelty, The cruel and arbitrary difpofition of this upftart, appeared infolence, in nothing more flagrant than in his behaviour towards the and ingratiking's natural brother Geoffry, in whose service he had lived, tude, to Geoffry and to whom he was bound by an oath of homage and fealty. archbishop That prelate had appointed him his official in the archdeaconry of Rouen, even contrary to the inclination of the late king, who always regarded Longchamp as a perfidious mifcreant. Geoffry had been for fome time elect of York; but Baldwin of Canterbury claiming the prerogative of confecrating the archbishops of that fee, and the other refufing to give up its independency, the fuffragans were forbid to perform the ceremonies of confecration, and the temporalities were sequeftered in the hands of the chancellor. When queen Eleanor parted with her fon Richard in Sicily, the king defired her to folicit pope Celeftine for the confirmation of Geoffry's election; and that pontiff had ordered the archbishop of Tours to perform the office of his confecration, immediately after which he received the pall with a bull of privilege, exempting the fee of York from the jurifdiction of all legates, except thofe who fhould be fent occafionally into England a Thus confirmed, Geoffry proceeded for Witfand, in order to embark for England; but when he reached the castle of Guifnes, he understood that the countess of Flanders had, at the defire of Longchamp, given orders to prevent his paffage. As this reftriction did not extend to his retinue, they were fent over in a Bologne fhip; and he himself going on board of a small English veffel, landed at Dover, where he was immediately taken into cuftody by the chancellor's directions. He made fhift, however, to efcape from the party by which he had been arrefted, and took refuge in the church of St. Martin, a privileged place belonging to the monks of Canterbury. Here he was invefted by a body of Brabantins, who at length dragged him in his pontificals from the altar, and

im

imprisoned him in the caftle, after they had plundered his A. C. 1191. baggage and fent his horfes to the chancellor.

ments, and

The whole nation exclaimed against this unprovoked vio- He is diveft. lence, offered to the perfon of an archbishop who was uni- ed of his employverfally beloved. The bishop of Lincoln excommunicated all concerned in the outrage; a fentence which was afterwards obliged to confirmed by the reft of the prelates at Reading, where prince quit the kingdom in John, commonly ftiled count of Mortaign, fummoned a ge-difgrace, neral affembly. He had likewife efpoufed the caufe of Geoffry; and the bishops of London, Coventry, and Norwich, threatened the land with an interdict, in cafe of his being detained in prison: fo that Longchamp thought proper to fet him at liberty, and he repaired with the other prelates to Reading. Here Walter, archbishop of Rouen, read the king's letters appointing him to fuperintend the election for filling up the fee of Canterbury, and with his colleagues to affift William in the adminiftration. As the chancellor had prevented the vacancy from being filled, he refufed to admit him and his colleagues into his councils, in diametrical oppofition to the king's pleasure; oppreffed the people, and, in particular, treated the archbishop of York with fuch indignity, he proposed that Longchamp fhould be depofed from the government, according to the tenour of the king's letters, which he produced; and William, then refiding at Windfor, was fummoned to meet them the next day at Lodbridge, between that place and Reading. William promised to meet them at the appointed rendezvous, and had actually proceeded two or three miles with an armed force, when his heart failing him, he took thẻ road to London, and fhut himself up in the Tower, the fortifications of which he himfelf had repaired: but being invested by the nobility and citizens before he could fupply the place with a fufficient ftore of provifions, he endeavoured to engage prince John in his intereft by dint of magnificent promifes. That expedient mifcarrying, he was forced to fubmit to the judgment of the prelates and nobility, who, after a full hearing, deprived him of his pofts and caftles, except thofe of Dover, Cambridge, and Hereford, which he poffefsed before the king's departure; and the places of chancellor and jufticiary were fupplied by the archbishop of Rouen, a prelate of uncommon abilities and untainted integrity. William, unwilling to part with the caftles which he had ufurped, retired to Dover, from whence he endeavoured to make his efcape beyond fea, in woman's apparel; but, being detected by the populace, to whom he had rendered himfelf extremely odious, they treated him with great indignity, and, at laft, confined VOL. II.

C

him

A. C. 1191. him to a dark cellar. The archbishop of Rouen pitying his condition, fent an order to release him, with a licence to leave

the kingdom; in confequence of which he croffed over to NorGul. Newb. mandy, where he was received as an excommunicated person, Dueto Col. all divine service ceafing wherefoever he refided.

He returns

to England pope

with a new

He no fooner arrived on the continent, than he follicited Celestine to renew his legation, and complained in letters legatine to his holiness, and the king, that he had been deprived of power; but the adminiftration by the faction of John, count de Mortaign, is fain to re- who had a defign upon the kingdom. The pope, believing treat again. his remonftrances, appointed him legate of England, and

ordered the bifhops of the realm to excommunicate the count and all that were concerned in the privation of Longchamp. Of these William fent over a lift to Hugh bishop of Lincoln, together with the pope's mandates; which, however, no prelate would execute. On the contrary, the jufticiaries feized all the rents of the fee of Ely, in the king's name, as fome fort of fatisfaction for two years royal revenue which he had embezzled. Mean while he found means to purchase John's favours, and refolved to repair to England with his legatine dignity. He accordingly took fhipping and landed at Dover, from whence he fent meffengers to the queen-mother to notify his legation and arrival. A council was immmediately af fembled, and John discovered his partiality in fuch a manner as fcandalized Eleanor, who reprimanded him publicly for his attachment to fuch a villain. It was judged proper, however, to take off the edge of this attachment with a fubfidy of two thousand marks from the exchequer; then the prince viewed the matter in a different light; and it was unanimoufly decreed that an appeal fhould be made to the pope against the legation of Longchamp, who was ordered to quit the kingdom immediately as a difturber of the public peace. William, being informed of this determination, laid his own diocese under interdict, and returned in great confusion into Bened. Ab. Normandy, where he exerted all his endeavours with the court of Rome and the king of France to the prejudice of England.

Angl. Sacr.

Hoveden. John's intrigues with

Philip the French king, immediately after his return from Philip, king Palestine, propofed a conference with William Fitzralph, of France. fenefchal of Normandy, and the prelates and nobility of that dukedom; a conference was accordingly held in the usual place, where he demanded his fifter Adelais, with the caftle of Gifors, and the counties of Eu and Aumale, which he pretended were ceded to him by the treaty of Meffina. The Normans replied, that they had no orders on that fubject, and

there