RICHARD THE FIRST,

Second sonne to Henrie the second.

An. Reg. 1.
1189. Richard the first of that name, and second sonne of Henrie the second, Wil. Paruus. began his reigne ouer England the sixt day of Julie, in the yere of our Lord 1189. in the seauen and thirteeth yeare of the emperour Frederike the first, in the eleuenth yere of the reigne of Philip the second king of France, and king William surnamed the Lion as yet liuing in the gouernement of Scotland.

This Richard, immediatlie after the solemnities of his fathers funerals were ended, made hast to Rouen, where he was ioifullie receiued, and proclamed duke of Normandie, receiuing the inuesture according to the Matt. Paris. custome, on the twentith day of Julie. Then studieng to set all things in good order on that side the sea, he made search where his fathers Stephan de Turnham committed to prison. treasure was preserued, and therevpon attached Stephan de Turnham, who was seneschall or gouernour (as we may call him) of Aniou, and committing him to prison, compelled him to make deliuerie of all such summes of monie as he had hid and laid vp in certeine castels by the commandement of the late king his father.

Matth. Paris. Polydor. Whilest he was thus occupied, his brother John came to him, to whom he ioifullie gaue the welcome, and besides all other things which his father had bequeathed vnto him by his testament in England, amounting to the value of foure thousand pounds of yearelie rent, with the earledome of Mortaigne, he procured a marriage for him (being now a widower) for Isabell daughter to the earle of Glocester married to John y^e kings brother.
She is named by diuerse authors Hauisia. Matth. Paris. R. Houed. his further aduancement with the ladie Isabell, daughter to Robert earle of Glocester, which earle had appointed the said John to be his heire as before is mentioned, although Baldwine the archbishop of Canturburie forbad the mariage, bicause they were coosens in the third degree of consanguinitie. To Robert earle of Leicester also he restored all his lands which had béene taken from him, and such persons as his father had disherited, he restored likewise to their former rights and possessions, howbeit those had forsaken his father, and taken part with him against his said father, he séemed now so much to mislike, that he remooued them vtterlie from his presence, and contrariwise preferred such as had continued faithfull vnto his father in time of the troubles.

Matt. Paris. At length, king Richard remembring himselfe of his mother quéene Elianor, who had béene separated from the bed of hir husband for the space of sixtéene yeares, and was as yet deteined in prison in England, wrote his letters vnto the rulers of the realme, commanding them to set The kings mother set at libertie. hir againe at libertie, and withall appointed hir by his letters patents, to take vpon hir the whole gouernment of the kingdome in his absence. The quéene being thus deliuered, and hauing now the cheefe authoritie & rule in hir hands, rode in progresse about the realme, to sée the estate thereof; and as she passed from place to place, she shewed gladsome countenance to the people wheresoeuer she came, dooing also what she could to pleasure them, that she might thereby win their good willes to hir, and to hir sonne: but speciallie remembring by hir late experience and tast thereof, what an irksome & most gréeuous thing imprisonment was, she caused the gailes to be opened, and foorthwith set no small number of prisoners at libertie by the way as she passed through the countries, according to the verse of Virgil,

In the meane time, king Richard concluding a league with Philip king of France, receiued all those places againe which were taken from his father by the same Philip, togither with his wife Adela, whom vpon suspicion that she had beene dishonested in hir person before, without anie sufficient proofe thereof had, he forsooke, & sent hir home with hir dowrie, and otherwise with great and princelie gifts, most bountifullie inriched, hauing alreadie concluded a marriage with the ladie Berengaria, daughter to Garsias king of Nauarre, who was sent into Sicill vnto hir sister Joane, that he might marrie hir there, as he passed that waie towards the holie land.

Whilest these things passed thus in these parties, the christians in The 2. kings of England & France determine to go into the holie land the holie land dailie sent hither for aid, wherevpon the two kings of France and England tooke counsell togither, and determined with all conuenient speed to ioine their powers, & with ships prepared for that purpose to saile into Syria. Hauing thus concluded, they went about to prepare themselues of necessarie prouision for so long a iournie. Now when king Richard had set in order his affaires in Normandie and France, At Southhampton the 21 of August saith Ger. Dor. Rog. Houed. Matth. Paris. he came ouer into England, landing at Portesmouth the 13. of August. With him also came his brother John, vnto whom he assigned the castels of Marlebridge, Lutegareshall, Peake, Bollesour, the honor of Wallingford, Tikehill and Eie, with the earledoms of Mortaigne, Dorset, Sumerset, Notingham, Derbie, Deuonshire, and Cornewall, with the earledome of Lancaster, intituling him earle of the same, whereby he was so exalted in state and degree, that he séemed in manner of a tetrarch, hauing as it were a fourth part of the realme in gouernance: but yet the king held some of the castels (in those counties and honors thus giuen to his brother) in his owne hands. Moreouer, vnto William Marshall he gaue in marriage the daughter of Richard earle of Chepstow, togither with the earledome which hir father possessed: and to Gilbert Fitz Roger the sonne of Rainfrey he gaue the daughter of William de Lancaster. After he was landed (as before ye haue heard) he hasted to Winchester, where his mother quéene Elianor with the most part of the English nobilitie had laine a good space to attend his comming, and there on the euen of the assumption of our ladie, the king was by them receiued with great ioy and triumph.

¶ Here is to be noted, that whilest the quéene and lords laie in Winchester waiting for the kings arriuall, Geffrey Riddle the bishop of Elie departed this life. He is named by Geruasius Dorobernensis the proud bishop of Elie: but he might rather haue named him the rich bishop, for he left in his cofers no small quantitie of treasure, of the which thrée thousand and two hundred marks came to the kings part towards the charges of his coronation. No maruell though Geruasius spake somewhat in his dispraise, for (as he himselfe confesseth) he was no fréend but an enimie to moonks.

But to let this passe, soone after the kings comming into England, he was informed that the Welshmen had broken into the English marshes, and destroyed certeine townes; to represse whose presumptuous attempts he made towards them, but was yet staied for that time, & reuoked by his His fathers treasure. mother. At Salisburie he found his fathers treasure, highlie reioising, for that the summe was far greater than he thought it would haue prooued, for besides the pretious stones, apparell, and