Edward I. of the ties which bound him to the King. He comA.D. 1280. plained too of the oppressions of the English, and pretended that Edward had broken the conditions of peace. The oppressions were probably only the improvements of the laws, and the substitution of those of England for the ancient institution of Wales. But Llewellyn was of a restless nature, and doubtless he and his mountain subjects were uneasy at the loss of their independence. Still, his faithlessness cannot be excused. His brother David's perfidy is even less pardonable; notwithstanding Edward's many favours, David joined his brother, took command of the Welsh and seized the Castles of Rhuddlan and Ha

Edward again

invades

Wales.

army,

warden.

The King, at once, acted with his usual energy. He summoned a council of the nobility to meet him at Worcester on Midsummer-day, and ordered them all to be ready, with their horses and arms, at the end of August. Again he removed his Courts from Westminster to Shrewsbury.

On his approach, the Welsh retreated fom Rhuddlan, but in South Wales they had more success.

Edward now sent the Archbishop of Canterbury to offer peace, in answer to which Llewellyn put forth a long list of grievances. These were, mainly, complaints that English law was put in the place of Welsh. The King demanded absolute submission, but at the entreaty of the Archbishop a compromise was proposed. The chief conditions were, that Llewellyn should give up the whole of his kingdom, and that a handsome pension should be settled on him. As might be expected, Llewellyn refused; so the Archbishop gave up all attempts at mediation, and excommunicated Llewellyn and his friends.

The year was now far spent, and Edward retired Edward I. to Worcester for Christmas.

A.D. 1281.

Edward

summons a

large army

At the beginning of the following year, A.D. 1282, A.D. 1282. he again began the war, but with so little success, that, at the end of November, he issued writs from Rhuddlan Castle, ordering "all those who have 201. (2401. of our money) a year and upwards, who are able and fit to bear arms, and who are not at present with us in our expedition against the Welsh," and also "four knights of each county," and "two men of every city, borough, and mercate town," to meet him at Northampton on the 20th January, A.D. 1283.

They were summoned "to hear and to do things, which, on our behalf, we shall cause to be shown unto them," relative to this Welsh rebellion. In these writs, the King urgently set forth his difficulties, saying, "we propose finally to repress their rebellion, and instability; so as it shall not be in their power to disturb the peace of the nation when they please, although that it seems to be a very great charge, and a most difficult undertaking."

On

to invade

But before this council could meet, the war was nearly ended. These writs were issued at the end of November, A.D. 1282. In the beginning of that month, the English met with some reverses. November 6th, the King marched forth from Rhuddlan Castle, intending to attack the Welsh in their stronghold of Snowdonia, as the district round Snowdon was called. He crossed the river Conway Again by a bridge of boats, and then, thinking it wise again Angles-ey. to conquer the Isle of Angles-ey, before going into the mountains, he sent part of his army over to the island in ships. After reducing the island to submission, he built a bridge of boats, across the Menai Straits,

U

invades

builds a bridge of

boats to return.

bridge destroyed.

Welsh

attack the English.

Edward L opposite Bangor, for the passage of his army. Some A.D. 1282. of the bolts and rings may be seen fixed to the rocks to this day. Part of his army passed over before the bridge was quite finished, that is before the end was firmly fixed to the mainland. It was low water when they crossed, and when the tide flowed, the bridge was carried away. The soldiers who had crossed, were thus separated from their comrades, and left at the mercy of the Welsh, who rushed down from the mountains furiously, and slew great numbers of them. Llewellyn, encouraged by Merlin's prophecy about round and square money, was much elated with this success. He dared not however attack the Llewellyn King, but marched off to South Wales, where the English were gaining great advantages. He marched into the cantred, or division, of Radnorshire, called Builth; and, having crossed the Wye, he encountered the English under the command of Lord Edward Mortimer. Llewellyn was not present at the fight; having gone, with one attendant only, to confer with some of the Welsh leaders. During his absence, his soldiers guarded the bridge of Orewyn, by which he had crossed the Wye. The soldiers were betrayed by one of the natives; who showed the English a ford, by which they crossed the river, and, falling on the Welsh, put them to the rout.

goes to

South
Wales.

Llewellyn was now on his way back to join his soldiers, little thinking what had happened. He was met by one Stephen Francton, who knew not who he was; but, taking for granted that he was a Welshman Llewellyn and an enemy, he fought with him and slew him. It was afterwards discovered that this unknown foeman, thus slain in a casual fight, was no other than the Prince of Wales. The Welsh rebellion was thus put down by a mere accident. Llewellyn's followers were

killed.

discouraged and scattered; there was no longer a Edward I. trusted chief to lead them on, and the rebellion was at an end.

A.D. 1282.

End of

wars with

This last expedition took Edward, in person, more Wales. than a year to bring to a successful issue.

Llewellyn's head was cut off, sent to London, and carried down Cheapside in triumph. The whole of Wales now submitted. The bridge over the Menai was finished, and the English army passed over. David tried in vain to carry on the war, but he was soon taken prisoner; tried for treason; hung, drawn, and quartered. This was the only savage punishment inflicted on any of the Welsh insurgents.

remains in

King Edward now passed through all Wales, esta- Edward blishing English law, and rebuilding the castles— Wales. among others those of Conway and Caernarvon. He A.D. 1283. stayed in North Wales nearly the whole of this and the following year. During the latter, A.D. 1284, the A.D. 1284. Queen gave birth, in the fortified town of Caernarvon,

to a son, who was afterwards (A.D. 1301) created Prince of the Prince of Wales. Since that time the King's Wales. eldest son has always, with the exception of Edward the Third, the sons of Henry the Fifth, of Henry the Eighth, of Charles the First, and of James the Second, been created Prince of Wales.* The King's eldest son is not so by birthright, but by creation; and the Earldom of Chester has, since the time of Henry the Fourth, always been granted in conjunction with the Principality of Wales.† Since the time of Edward the Black Prince the King's eldest son has always been by birthright Duke of Cornwall.‡

At the beginning of the following year, A. D. 1285, A.D. 1285. the King returned to London; having been absent

See Note A, p. 336. † See Note B, p. 336. See Note C, p. 337.

to

A.D. 1288.

Edward goes to France.

Edward L nearly three years. He remained in England the A.D. 1286 whole of the year, but the next year he went to France, where he stayed for three years. The matters which mainly occupied him abroad, and which detained him so long, have but little bearing on the history of England, and are not in themselves of any great interest or importance. They were, first, his demand of the provinces taken from King John and King Henry the Third; next the homage due from him to Philip the Fourth, called the Fair, King of France, who had lately succeeded to his father, Philip the Third, called the Hardy; and lastly an agreement he had undertaken to make between the Houses of Arragon and Anjou, concerning the kingdom of Sicily.

During the King's absence, most important events occurred in Scotland, which almost entirely occupied the King during the rest of his reign. These will be relating to related in due order, but I must here mention a few facts, relative to the internal history of England,

Matters

social life

in Eng

land.

Westmin

finished.

which belong to this time.

It was at this time, that is in the year A.D. 1285, ster Abbey that the now existing Abbey Church of Westminster was finished, having been begun forty years previously, in the reign of Henry the Third, on the site of a more ancient church. The previous church was built by Edward the Confessor, on the ruins of a church and monastery, built by Sebert, King of the West Saxons, and destroyed by the Danes. This church was completed A.D. 1065. On the 16th May, A.D. 1220, Henry the Third laid the first stone of a new chapel (on the site of which Henry the Seventh's Chapel was afterwards built); and in A.D. 1245, he began to pull down the Confessor's church in order to rebuild it entirely. On October the 13th, A.d.