Edwd. II. Roger Mortimer was imprisoned in the Tower of A.D. 1322. London, many of the barons were hung, drawn, and

Enormous wealth of the Despensers.

quartered, but Lancaster, out of reverence to his Royal blood, was kept for the King's own judgment.68 He was tried by the King's council, sentenced to death, and was executed at Pontefract on the 21st March, A.D. 1322. His trial was illegal, and in the following reign the sentence of attainder was reversed, he was looked on as a saint, and a church was built on the hill where he was executed.

After the fall of the barons, the King "looking upon himself as lord and master of the whole kingdom, grew much worse than ever he had been before." 69 His first act was, to bring before Parliament the annulling of the sentence against the De

spensers.

Among the grounds for the reversal of the sentence, was a charge against the barons that they had seized the property of the Despensers, and the enumeration of the property thus seized shows the enormous wealth possessed by these favourites. The two Despensers had sixty-three manors, and it was said that the barons had driven away, or seized, 28,000 sheep, 22,000 oxen, cows, and heifers, above 600 horses and mares, and other property to the value of above 30,000l. (equal to nearly 100,000l. of our present money), belonging to the elder Despenser, besides property to almost an equal value belonging to the son.*

With reference to the enormous moveable property possessed by these nobles, it must be recollected that their wealth consisted mainly of corn and cattle, and that they had but little actual money.70 *See note p. 416.

At that time there were comparatively few hus- Edwd. II. bandmen or farmers able to take leases of lands and A.D. 1322. pay a yearly rent for them: hence many of these barons, by means of their stewards and bailiffs, had to farm their own lands, and were necessarily possessed of a large amount of stock.

The King

reverses

tence

After hearing the grounds for the reversal of the sentence against the Despensers, the King himself the sengave judgment; and, as it now suited his purpose, inst appealed to Magna Carta to prove that they had them. been illegally condemned. Of course he reversed the sentence. The King next proceeded to bring about the annulling of the Ordinances, which the subservient Parliament accordingly declared "should be null and void for ever." 71

Four years afterwards, when the barons again got the mastery over the King, all these proceedings were reversed and in their turn pronounced null and void.

invades

but

without

Edward, elated at his recovery of power, again Edward made formidable preparations for the invasion of Scotland, Scotland, and wrote to the Pope "requesting him to give himself no further trouble about a truce with success. the Scots, as he had determined to establish a peace by force of arms." 37 The invasion took place, but Bruce repeated the tactics which on all former occasions had been so successful. He retreated before the invaders, laying waste the country, and so, when Edward had penetrated nearly as far as Edinburgh, he was forced to retreat, and the Scots followed closely at his heels, pursuing him all the way into Yorkshire, where they nearly took him prisoner.

In the following year, Edward was glad to agree to A.D. 1323. a truce with the Scots for thirteen years, but a Truce with permanent peace was prevented by his underhand Scotland.

Edwd. II. intrigues. During Edward's lifetime, however, there A.D. 1323. was no more actual war between the two countries.

The Despensers

The new Favourites and their fatal Influence.

Edward was now called on to do homage to the new King of France, Charles the Fourth, surnamed le Bel, or the Fair, but the evil influence of the Despensers prevented his complying with the demand of the French King. The dark shadow of coming events, fatal alike to the favourites and to their Royal tool, now became distinctly visible, and day by day crept slowly on.

Philip the Long, who had succeeded his brother Louis the Tenth as King of France in A.D. 1316, had died on the 3rd of January, A.D. 1322, and Edward ought at once to have gone over to France to do homage to his brother and successor, Charles the Fair. He did not, however, do so, and Charles therefore sent ambassadors to remind him of his duty, and to summon him to appear. But the Despensers allowed no one to approach the King except themselves, and prevented the ambassadors from seeing the King, concealing the urgency of the business from him. They feared that, if the King who seizes were absent from England, the barons would rise against themselves. Edward therefore paid no attention to the French King's summons, who accordingly took possession of Guienne and Gascony in consequence of his default.

prevent the

King from doing

homage to

the new King of France,

his

dominions.

The Despensers were just then too powerful to give the barons any chance of a successful resistance to their intrigues, but a plot was laid for the release of those who had been imprisoned in Wallingford Castle

on the defeat of the Earl of Lancaster. Unfortu- Edwd. II. nately this plot did not succeed, but Mortimer, who A.D. 1323. was imprisoned in the Tower of London, effected his Mortimer escape, and fled to the Court of France, where he and from prison. others of the barons, who were disgusted at the rapacities of the Despensers, were well received.

escapes

Edward, meanwhile, lulled into fatal security by the evil influence of the Despensers, devoted himself entirely to pleasure, and spent his Christmas at Kenilworth, with great magnificence, in the society of his favourites. The seizure of the King's French dominions, however, could neither be concealed from the barons, nor tamely submitted to by the King. A Parliament was, accordingly, summoned to meet at the beginning of the following year, A.D. 1324, to A.D.1324. consider what should be done. It was settled that the King's brother, the Earl of Kent, and the Archbishop of Dublin, should go over, instead of Edward, to do homage to the new King of France.

A treaty of marriage, between the King's eldest son, afterwards Edward the Third, and the daughter of the Count de Valois, uncle of Charles the Fair and of the Queen of England, was now set on foot. This must have been proposed by the Queen, who was probably desirous of uniting the two Royal families more closely, and thus strengthening her own party. The King, under the existing circumstances, was not likely to entertain such a project, and indeed he did all he could to thwart it.

quarrel

In pursuance of the decision of Parliament, the Further Earl of Kent and the Archbishop of Dublin now between went over to France, to do homage in lieu of the England King. But the King of France refused to accept France. their performance of that duty, and soon afterwards

E E

and

A.D. 1324.

Edwd. II. a fresh quarrel broke out between England and France. The French King had built a castle on the English territory, and Ralph, Lord Basset, the King of England's seneschal of Bourdeaux, demolished it.30 The Earl of Kent proposed to give Basset up to the King of France, but Edward refused to submit to so disgraceful a humiliation, and the King of France therefore sent the Count de Valois to seize Aquitaine and Poitou.

A.D. 1325.

goes to

The enmity between the two Kings was now greatly increased, trade between their subjects was stopped, and Edward vented his spite against the King of France on his own Queen, who was the King's sister. He knew that she hated the Despensers, and looked to her brother as her protector against them, and even against himself. He dismissed all her French servants, seized her manors, and gave her only a small pension, irregularly paid, to live on. She was consequently advised to take the first opportunity of paying a visit to her brother the King of France, and her uncle the Count de Valois, to take their advice against the Despensers. She soon had the wished-for opportunity.

Early in the following year, A.D. 1325, a ParliaThe Queen ment was summoned to consider what should be France to done to recover the English provinces seized by the difficulties. King of France, and it was settled that ambassadors

settle the

should be sent over to negotiate. This was done without success, and Edward then wished to go in person. But the Despensers were afraid of the consequences of his absence, and persuaded him to send the Queen instead. She was kindly received by her brother, who, at once, offered to accept the homage of Edward's son, instead of his father's,