This story, originally composed in French prose, was written down sometime around 1320. However, there is good evidence that the writer was copying from an earlier version of the story composed in verse. A rhymed version of the story survived into the sixteenth century. The original poem was probably written some time in the thirteenth century (Wright, p. x, conjectures between 1256 and 1264).

There was a genuine Fulk fitz Warren, who appears in the historical record as a rebel against King John and his successor, Henry III, and this romance may well have been written for him or members of his family, perhaps again by a trouvère (minstrel) in the employ of the family.

This kind of romance, which mixed family traditions with fantastic feats and voyages, was popular in the thirteenth century in England, and is known as a "family romance." Other examples of these romances are Bevis of Hampton and Guy of Warwick, although these stories are told about entirely fictional characters. One of the more interesting aspects of Fulk Fitz-Warine is that many of the events in the narrative, as well as the names and roles of some of the characters, are later attached to Robin Hood, another outlaw hero, and were earlier told about Hereward and Eustace the Monk.

The text is given here in its entirety, with some of Wright's notes Wright made extensive use of Leland's report of a Middle English prose version of the text, and I have left these out. He also included charters in Latin, which I have provided in translation. I have inserted all the material given in square brackets, all the subtitles, reparagraphed the text, changed some spellings to standard American usage, and changed some unusual words to more common ones.

In the season of April and May, when fields and plants become green again, and everything living recovers virtue, beauty, and force, hills and vales resound with the sweet songs of birds, and the hearts of all people, for the beauty of the weather and the season, rise up and gladden themselves, then we ought to call to memory the adventures and deeds of prowess of our forefathers who labored to seek honor in loyalty, and to talk of such things as shall be profitable to many of us.

How William the Conqueror gave away lands in the West
Lords, you have heard heretofore how William the Bastard, duke of Normandy, came with a great host and people without number into England, and conquered by force all the land, and slew King Harold, and caused himself to be crowned at London, and established peace and laws at his will, and gave lands to divers people who came with him. At that time Owen Gwynned was prince of Wales,¹ who was a valiant and good warrior, and the king feared him much the more. This Owen had ravaged all the march, and all was waste from Chester to Mount Gilbert.² The king appareled himself very richly, and came with a great host into the county of Shrewsbury, and found all the towns burnt between Chester and Shrewsbury; for the prince claimed all the march for his own and as belonging to Powys.³ The prince retreated, for he dared not await the king.

¹Owen Gwynned, or Gwyneth, ruled North Wales from 1137 to 1169, so that there is here an anachronism of at least fifty-six years.

²Mount Gilbert was the common name, in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, for the Wrekin.

³The Saxon Chronicle places king William's expedition to Wales in 1081.

The king was very wise, and thought that he would give the march lands to the most valiant knights of all his host, in order that they should defend the march from the prince to their profit and to the honor of their lord the king. The king called Roger de Bellême,⁴ and gave him all the county of Shrewsbury very freely, and it was called a county palatine. Roger founded outside the town of Shrewsbury an abbey of St. Peter,⁵ and endowed it very richly; and he held the county all his life. He began a castle at Brugge,⁶ and another castle he began at Dynan;⁷ but he did not finish them.

⁴This is a mistake of the composer of the narrative, who, of course, means Roger de Montgomery, to whom the Conqueror gave the earldom of Shropshire after 1071, but the exact year is not known. The title, de Belesme, belonged to earl Roger's first wife, and from her descended to their eldest son Robert.

⁵Shrewsbury Abbey, dedicated to St. Peter, was the foundation of Roger de Montgomery, as here stated. The building appears to have been commenced in 1087. [It is also famous to modern TV watchers and mystery lovers as the home of Brother Cadfael.]

⁶Bridgnorth. Earl Roger did not begin the castle here; but he built a castle at Quatford, which his son Robert transferred to "Brugge."

⁷Ludlow. The history of the commencement of Ludlow Castle is very obscure, and the territorial division of the district, as stated in Domesday, would seem to contradict the statement of its being begun by earl Roger, or, at least, to render it improbable. Yet I cannot but think that there was some foundation for the statement of our writer, which was evidently the common belief of the locality in the thirteenth century.

After Roger was dead, Robert, his son, had all the county of Shrewsbury;⁸ and Ernald, his youngest son, had Pembroke.⁹ These were very licentious people and very wicked, and greatly misconducted themselves towards their lord King Henry, the son of William the Bastard and brother of King William Rufus; and they completed the castle of Brugge in spite of king Henry's inhibition; for which king Henry disinherited them and condemned them to perpetual exile, and he gave their lands to his knights. The castle of Dynan, and all the country round towards the river of Corve, with all the honor, he gave to Sir Joce, his knight;¹⁰ who thenceforth retained the name of Dynan, and was called everywhere Joce de Dynan. This Joce completed the castle which Roger de Bellême in his time had begun, and he was a strong and valiant knight. Now, the town was a very long time called Dynan, which is now called Ludlow. This Joce caused to be made, below the town of Dynan, a bridge of stone and lime,¹¹ over the river of Teme, into the high road which goes amid the march from Chester to Bristol. Joce made his castle of Dynan of three bails, and surrounded it with a double fosse, one within and one without.¹²

⁸Robert de Bellême, the eldest son of Roger de Montgomery. It was his brother, Hugh de Montgomery, however, who succeeded his father in the Shropshire estates, on whose death they reverted to Robert de Bellême.

⁹Arnulf de Montgomery, Roger's fifth and youngest son, had the custody of Pembroke Castle. [Arnold/Ernald and Arnulf were essentially the same name in the Middle Ages.] The violent and unprincipled lives of these two brothers are related by Ordericus Vitalis. [Orderic Vitalis wrote The Ecclesiastical History, available in a very nice translation with facing Latin, between approximately 1120 and 1139; he was from this part of the country, and his father and older brothers became monks at Shrewsbury. However, because the abbey was new, it could not train children, and so his father sent him to Saint-Evroul in Normandy.] The account of the insurrection alluded to on the next page, will be found in Ordericus, 9:3, and more briefly in Florence of Worcester [now known as John of Worcester], under the years 1101 and 1102.

¹⁰"Ludlow, in all probability came to the hands of Henry I, not by forfeiture of Robert de Bellême, but as an escheat of de Lacy; nor is it at all likely that Joceas de Dinan obtained footing there under the auspices of Henry I, but of Stephen or of the empress." R. W. E.

¹¹This bridge, from the allusions to it further on, must have occupied the site of the present Castle, or Dinham, bridge; but there is no tradition at present of any other than a wooden bridge having crossed the river Teme at this place until recent times. I am informed by old inhabitants of Ludlow that within their recollection the river below Dinham was crossed by a wooden bridge for foot passengers only, that it was a very old one, and that all horses and carriages had to cross a ford, which at times became exceedingly dangerous; in consequence of which, the bridge was replaced by a wooden bridge for carriages, and about thirty years ago this also was taken down, and the present stone bridge erected.

¹²This brief description answers exactly to Ludlow Castle as it now stands, the three baillies being the keep, the inner court, and the outer court. The two fosses were, that which still exists in the outer court, and one which separated the wall of the outer court from the town, now filled up and turned into a promenade.

The Haunted castle of Bran (later renamed Dynan/Ludlow)
When king William the Bastard approached the hills and valleys of Wales, he saw a very large town, formerly inclosed with high walls, which was all burnt and ruined;¹³ and in a plain below the town he caused his tents to be raised, and there he said he would remain that night. Then the king inquired of a Briton what was the name of the town and how it came to be so ruined.

"Sire," said the Briton, "I will tell you. The castle was formerly called Castle Bran; but now it is called the Old March. Formerly there came into this country Brutus, a very valiant knight, and Corineus, from whom Cornwall still retains the name, and many others derived from the lineage of Troy; and none inhabited these parts except very foul people, great giants, whose king was called Geomagog. These heard of the arrival of Brutus, and set out to encounter him; and at last all the giants were killed, except Geomagog, who was marvelously great. Corineus the valiant said that he would willingly wrestle with Geomagog, to try Geomagog's strength. The giant at the first onset embraced Corineus so tightly that he broke his three ribs. Corineus became angry, and struck Geomagog with the foot, that he fell from a great rock into the sea; and Geomagog was drowned. And a spirit of the devil now entered the body of Geomagog, and came into these parts, and defended the country long, that never Briton dared to inhabit it. And long after, king Bran the son of Donwal caused the city to be rebuilt, repaired the walls, and strengthened the great fosses; and he made Burgh and Great March; and the devil came by night, and took away everything that was therein; since which time nobody has ever inhabited there."¹⁴

¹³It is not easy to fix on the site of this ruined city, of whom our writer has preserved the wild legend that follows. Yet I am inclined to think that it may be Old Oswestry. It is worthy, however, of remark, that the articles mentioned below are just such as are commonly found, made of bronze, on Roman sites. The wrestling match between Corineus and Geomagog, or Gogmagog, is well known to every reader of the fabulous British history. [That is, the History of the Kings of Britain of Geoffrey of Monmouth (c. 1135), at the end of the first book. This is only one of the many ways that this text tries to connect itself with Arthurian legend ].

¹⁴[This story come from Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain, book 1.]

Payn Peverel drives out Geomagog
The king marveled much at this story; and Payn Peverel,¹⁵ the proud and courageous knight, the king's cousin, heard it all, and declared that that night he would assay the marvel. Payn Peverel armed himself very richly, and took his shield shining with gold with a cross of azure indented, and fifteen knights, and other attendants; and went into the highest palace, and took up his lodging there. And when it was night, the weather became so foul, black, dark, and such a tempest of lightning and thunder, that all those who were there became so terrified that they could not for fear move foot or hand, but lay on the ground like dead men. The proud Payn was very much frightened; but he put his trust in God, whose sign of the cross he carried with him, and saw that he should have no help but from God. He lay upon the ground, and with good devotion prayed God and his mother Mary that they would defend him that night from the power of the devil.

Hardly had he finished his prayer, when the fiend came in the semblance of Geomagog; and he carried a great club in his hand, and from his mouth cast fire and smoke with which the whole town was illuminated. Payn had good hope in God, and signed himself with the cross, and boldly attacked the fiend. The fiend raised his club, and would have struck Payn, but he avoided the blow. The devil, by virtue of the cross, was all struck with fear and lost his strength; for he could not approach the cross. Payn pursued him, till he struck him with his sword that he began to cry out, and fell flat on the ground, and yielded himself vanquished.

"Knight," said he, "you have conquered me, not by your own strength, but by virtue of the cross which you carry."

"Tell me," said Payn, "you foul creature, who you are, and what you do in this town; I conjure thee in the name of God and of the holy cross."

The fiend began to relate, from word to word, as the Briton had said before, and told that, when Geomagog was dead, he immediately rendered his soul to Belzebub their prince; and he entered the body of Geomagog, and came in his semblance into these parts, to keep the great treasure which Geomagog had collected and put in a house he had made underground in that town. Payn demanded of him what kind of creature he was; and he said that he was formerly an angel, but now is by his forfeit a diabolical spirit.

"What treasure," said Payn, "had Geomagog?"

¹⁵This is another anachronism. Payn Peverel was not a contemporary of William the Conqueror, but he owed his first advancement to Henry I, who gave him the forfeited honor of Brunne, in Cambridgeshire.

"Oxen, cows, swans, peacocks, horses, and all other animals, made of fine gold; and there was a golden bull, which through me was his prophet, and in him was all his belief; and he told him the events that were to come. And twice a year the giants used to honor their god, the golden bull, whereby so much gold is collected that it is wonderful. And afterward it happened that all this country was called the White Land;¹⁶ and I and my companions enclosed the land with a high wall and deep fosse, so that there was no entrance except through this town which was full of evil spirits; and in the land we made jousts and tournaments; and many came to see the marvels, but never one escaped. At length came a disciple of Jesus who was called Augustine, and by his preaching took many from us, and baptized people, and made a chapel in his name; whereby great trouble happened to us."

"Now you shall tell me," said Payn, "where is the treasure of which you have spoken?"

"Vassal," said he, "speak no more of that; for it is destined for others; but you shall be lord of all this honor, and those who shall come after you will hold it with great strife and war.

¹⁶The White Land was evidently the district around Whittington; but I have not met with the name elsewhere applied to it.

When the spirit had said this, he issued out of the body; and there arose such a stink, that Payn thought he should have died through it. And when it was past, the night became light, and the weather fair: and the knights and others, who were overcome with fear, recovered themselves; and they marveled much at the event which had happened to them. Next day the thing was shown to the king and to all the host. And the king caused the body of Geomagog to be carried and thrown into a deep pit outside the town; and he caused the club to be preserved, and long showed it to many people on account of its marvelous magnitude.

¹⁷The boar and the wolf probably refer to the badges of the families to whom this prophecy applied.

¹⁸[This prophetic poem echoes the prophecies of Merlin, which comes in the middle of the story of Arthur in the History of the Kings of Britain of Geoffrey of Monmouth. One of the intentions of this romance is to tie Fulk and his family to the Arthurian legends; this makes a lot of sense as they were marcher lords.]

The King rewards Payn Peverel
The king went thence, and came to a country joining to the White Laund, which belonged formerly to a Briton, Meredus son of Beledins;¹⁹ and beside it is a little castle which is called the Tree of Oswald; but now it is called Osewaldestre (Oswestry).²⁰ The king called a knight, Alan fitz Flaeu,²¹ and gave him the little castle with all the honor appertaining to it; and from this Alan came all the great lords of England who have the surname of Fitz Alan. Subsequently, this Alan caused the castle to be much enlarged.

¹⁹Meredith ap Blethyn. "Meredith ap Blethyn, the person alluded to, was a contemporary of William I, and Prince of North Wales at the time when that king invaded it. He died in 1133. It was his son Madoc whose name became associated with Oswestry, of which he seems to have been possessed during the exile of William fitz Alan, in Stephen's time. Alan fitz Flaald was not a contemporary of William I. He was advanced by Henry I. The same is probably true of Warine de Metz." R. W. E.

²⁰[Oswald was an Anglo-Saxon king of England, and a saint as well. He was killed by pagans, but his arm was preserved uncorrupted and miracles were reported on the place he fell in battle.]

²¹In the abstract of the English poem in Leland he is called Alan Fleilsone.

The king passed the river of Severn, and saw that the country around was good and fair; and he called a knight who was born in Lorraine, in the city of Metz, who was greatly renowned for strength, beauty, and courtesy. And his banner was of a red samit,²² with two peacocks of gold. And he gave him Alberbury,²³ with all the honor appertaining to it.²⁴ And thus gave the king to his best and most trusty knights all the lands, chases, and fees, from Chester to Bristol.

²²The samit was a kind of rich satin, usually interwoven with gold or silver thread, and appears to have been rather a favourite material for banners that were to be more splendid than usual. The oriflamme of France is sometimes spoken of as being of vermeilsamit.

²³Alberbury is a village about seven miles to the west of Shrewsbury, and eleven from Oswestry.

²⁴[An honor was another term for a piece of land held in exchange for military service, sometimes also called a fief.]

The king called Payn Peverel, and gave him the White Laund, with forest, waste, chases, and all the country. And there was a mound surrounded with marsh and water; and there Payn made a fair and strong tower; and the mound was called Waybury; and a river runs by it which took its name from Payn Peverel, and it was called Peverel; but it was afterwards called Pevereyes. The king, when thus he had settled these lands, returned to London, and from London to Normandy, and there died. Then reigned in England William Rufus, his son; and after him Henry, his younger brother, who subsequently detained Robert Curthose, his elder brother, in prison all his life; the cause will not be told you on this occasion.²⁵

²⁵[Robert Curthose was the oldest child of William the Conqueror, but the king passed over him in favor of the second son, William Rufus. Robert became the duke of Normandy instead. When William Rufus died in a hunting accident in 1100, Robert was on crusade and the English throne was seized by the youngest brother, Henry (1100-1135). Robert came back from Crusade fuming, but there was little he could do. Henry raised an army in 1106, invaded Normandy, and captured Robert at the battle of Tinchebray, and made himself duke of Normandy. . Robert was held prisoner for over twenty years.]

Guarin (Warine) de Metz wins the hand of Melette
It happened afterwards that Payn Peverel died in his castle in the Peak;²⁶ and William Peverel, his sister's son, received and had all the heritage of Payn. Subsequently, this William conquered by the sword all the land of Morlas,²⁷ as far as the water of Dee, Ellesmere, Maylour, and Nauhendon.²⁸ This William made in the White Land a tower, and called it White Tower; and the town which is about it is still called White Town, in English Whittington.²⁹ In Ellesmere he made another tower, and on the water of Keyroc another.³⁰

William had two fair nieces, Elen, the elder, and Melette, the younger; and he married Elen to the son of Alan, and gave with her in marriage all the land of Morlas, as far as Keyroc. Melette was the fairest, and for her beauty was the most sought; but nobody was found to please her. William expostulated with her, and begged her to open her mind to him, if there was in the world any knight whom she would take for husband; and if there was no such one, he would aid her to his power.

"Truly, sir," said she, "there is not a knight in the whole world that I would take for the sake of riches and for honor of lands; but if I ever should have one, he shall be handsome, courteous, and accomplished, and the most valiant of his body in all Christendom. Of riches I make no account; for, I may well say, he is rich who has what his heart desires."

William, when he heard this, smiled, and said, "Fair niece, you have said well; and I will aid you to my power to obtain such a lord. And I will give you White-Tower and its appurtenances, with all the honor; for woman who has land in fee will be so much the more sought after."

²⁶"Payn Peverel was never lord of the Peak. His successor, William Peverel, of Dover and of Brun, was either Payn's own son, or his brother's son. William Peverel, of Brun, had no nieces answering this description. His four sisters were his heirs. The wives of the first William fitz Alan were a niece of Robert the Consul, and, on her death, Isabel de Say, baroness of Clun.

²⁷This ought probably to have been rendered "from Morelas to Keyroc."

²⁸The town of Ellesmere is about five miles north of Whittington. The hundred of Maelor was a district in the northwest of Shropshire, but belonging to the Welsh county of Flint. I am not able to identify Nauendon, or Navendon.

²⁹Whittington, a considerable village, about two miles N.N.E. of Oswestry. There are still considerable and picturesque remains of the Castle, said here to have been first built by William Peverel.

³⁰The river Ceiriog is a tributary of the Dee, which it enters on the borders of Denbighshire, a few miles below Llangollen.

Then William made a proclamation in many a land,³¹ in many a city, that all the knights of worth who desired to tourney for love, let them come at the feast of St. Michael to castle Peverel, which is in the Peak; and the knight who shall do best, and shall conquer the tournament, shall have the love of Melette of the White-Tower, and shall be lord and seigneur of White-Town and of all the honor. This proclamation was soon published through various lands. Guarin de Metz, the valiant, had neither wife nor child; but he sent to John duke of Little Britain (Brittany) all the affair of this proclamation, and prayed him for aid and succor in this need. The duke was very valiant; he had ten sons knights, the fairest and most valiant of body that were in all Little Britain; Roger the eldest, Howel, Audoin, Urien, Theobald, Bertram, Amis, Guichard, Gerard, and Guy. The duke sent his ten sons and a hundred knights with them, well mounted and with all accouterments richly furnished, to his cousin Guarin de Metz; and he received them with great honor. Eneas, son of the king of Scotland, came with the earl of Murray, and the Bruces, Dunbars, Umfrevilles, and two hundred knights. Owen, prince of Wales, came with two hundred shields; the duke of Burgundy with three hundred knights. Ydromor, son of the king of Galloway, came with a hundred and fifty knights.³² The knights of England were numbered at three hundred. Guarin de Metz and his company lodged in tents made in the forest near where the tournament should be, well clad all at will in red samite; and their steeds were covered down to the ground in manner of war. Guarin himself, in order to be unknown to the others, had a crest, or.³³ Then resounded the tabors, trumpets, busynes, and saracen horns, till the valleys rebounded with the sound.

Then began the tournament with vigor and force. There might one see knights overthrown from their steeds, and many a hard blow given, and many a stroke. The damsel and a number of ladies had ascended a tower, and saw the fair assemblage of knights, and how each bore himself. To describe their blows and bearings I care not; but Guarin de Metz and his company were this day held the best, handsomest, and most worthy, and above all was Guarin the most praised in all points. Evening now came and the tournament, on account of the night, could last no longer. The knights went away to their inns. Guarin and his companions turned off privately to their tents in the forest, and disarmed, and made great rejoicing. And none of the other lords knew what had become of them, nor who they were, they held themselves so shy; but they were unknown of all.

³¹"The pretended tournament at Peak Castle may be a tradition of some similar affair at William Peverel's castle of Whittington. If, however, Owen, prince of Wales, was there, it will have happened after his accession in 1137, and before William Peverel's death in 1147. But Warine de Metz must have been married long before, for his sons Roger and Fulk attest deeds early in Stephen's reign. There is some reason to believe that the Fitz Warines and Lestranges were related." R. W. E.

³²Perhaps it will be the safest to consider all this story of the tournament as romance, and not attempt to identify the persons mentioned in it.

³³[That is, a golden crest.]

Next day was proclaimed everywhere a joust. Then came Guarin to the jousts dressed with leaf of ere(?) all green out of the forest, as he who was adventurous and all unknown. When the duke of Burgundy had seen him, he immediately rushed upon him, and struck him a great blow with a spear. Guarin returned the blow, so that he rolled over from his horse in the middle of the place; then another, then the third. Melette of the White-Tower sent him her glove, and requested that he would defend her. He said that he would do it to his power; and then repaired into the forest, and armed himself with his red arms, and came with his companions in the field, and conquered the tournament, and held the field against all people who should come there; whereupon judgment was taken among all the great lords and heralds and umpires, that Guarin, who was the knight adventurous, should by right have the prize of the tournament and Melette of the White-Tower. And he, with great joy, took her, and she him. They sent for the bishop of the country, and, in sight of all, she married him. William Peverel held a very rich feast at the marriage; and, when the feast was over, Guarin took his wife and his company, and went to White-Town, and remained there with great rejoicing forty days. Then the ten brothers with their hundred knights returned to Britain the Less; but Guy, the youngest brother, remained in England, and conquered with the sword many fair lands, and he was called Guy the Estrange (the foreigner), and from him came all the great lords of England who have the surname of Estrange.³⁴

³⁴"Guy Lestrange, if, indeed, he were father of the three well known brothers of Henry II's time, is mentioned here with circumstances of some probability; but it is the only notice we have of the father of those three brothers. We know, upon better evidence, that their mother was an Englishwoman." R. W. E.

Guarin de Metz held long in great honor the lordship of White-Town; but Yervard, the son of Owen, prince of Wales,³⁵ did him great injury, killing his people and spoiling his lands. At last they made a day of battle, where many a good man lost his life. In the end, the loss turned to Yervard; for he lost many of his people, and quitted the field, and fled away in dishonor. Then Guarin appointed a knight very strong and bold, Guy son of Candelou of Porkington,³⁶ to guard the honor of White-Town and his other lands.

³⁵Jorwerth ap Owen, otherwise known as Jorwerth Drwyndwn, or Jorwerth (Edward) with the broken nose, from a damage on his face, on account of which he was not allowed to succeed his father Owen as prince of Powys. The English poem, as abridged by Leland, tells this incident somewhat differently.

³⁶Porkington is a hamlet about three miles from Whittington.

Fulk fitz-Warine I is fostered by Joce of Dynan
The lady became pregnant with a child. When she was delivered, at the time ordained by God, they called the child Fulk.³⁷ And when the child was seven years old, they sent it to Joce de Dynan to teach and nourish; for Joce was a knight of good accomplishment.³⁸ Joce received him with great honor and great affection, and educated him in his chambers with his own children; for he had two daughters, the younger of which was of the same age as Fulk, and was called Hawyse. The elder was called Sibylle. At this time there was great discord and war between Sir Joce de Dynan and Sir Walter de Lacy, who then dwelt much at Ewyas;³⁹ for which discord many a good knight and many a brave man lost his life; for each invaded the other, burnt their lands, plundered and robbed their people, and did much other damage. When Fulk was eighteen years of age, he was very handsome, strong, and large.

³⁷"Warine de Metz had two sons, Roger and Fulk. The last eventually succeeded him, and died about 1171, leaving Fulk II his son and heir. It was Fulk II who married Hawyse, daughter and coheir of Joceas de Dynan. Fulk II died about 1197, leaving Fulk III his son and heir. It is of Fulk II and Fulk III principally that this narrative speaks, though it combines in the former much that can be true only of his father. There is no probability whatever that Joceas de Dynan and Walter de Lacy were antagonists in Ireland, or anywhere. The former must have been an old man, and deceased before the latter attained his majority." R. W. E.

³⁸It was the practice among the Normans, almost as generally as among the Celtic race, for the chiefs to send their children to be educated or "fostered" in the families of other chiefs, thus establishing relationships more intimate even than those of blood. [We've already seen this relationship in the life of Pryderi.]

³⁹The castle of Ewyas, in Herefordshire, named from this family Ewyas Lacy, was the head seat of Walter de Lacy's barony.

Sir Joce is attacked by Walter de Lacy
One summer's day, Sir Joce rose early in the morning, and ascended a tower in the middle of his castle, to survey the country; and he looked towards the hill which is called Whitcliff, and saw the fields covered with knights, squires, sergeants, and valets, some armed on their steeds, some on foot; and he heard the horses neigh, and saw the helms glittering. Among whom he saw the banner of Sir Walter de Lacy, blazing new with gold, with a fess of gules across.⁴⁰ Then he called his knights, and ordered them to arm and mount their steeds, and take their arblasters and their archers, and go to the bridge below the town of Dynan, and defend the bridge and the ford that none passed it. Sir Walter and his people thought to pass safely; but the people of Sir Joce drove them back, and many on both sides were wounded and killed. At length came Sir Joce and his banner all white with silver, with three lions passant, of azure, crowned with gold;⁴¹ with five hundred with him, knights and servants on horse and foot, besides the burgesses and their servants, who were good. Then with great force Joce passed the bridge, and the hosts encountered body to body. Joce struck Godebrand, who carried the banner of Lacy, through the body with a spear. Then the Lacy lost his banner. Then the people exchanged blows, and many on both sides were slain. But the Lacy had the worst; for he went off flying and discomfited, and took his way beside the river of Teme. The lady, with her daughters and her other damsels, had ascended a tower;⁴² whence they saw all the battle, and prayed God devoutly to save their lord and his people from hurt and defeat.

⁴⁰[Sir Walter's arms are a gold background with a red horizontal band across the middle of the shield.]

⁴¹[Three blue lions, walking sideways with the front paw further away raised, wearing gold crowns on a silver background.]

⁴²Probably one of the towers on the northeast side of the castle.

Fulk rescues Sir Joce from Sir Walter de Lacy and captures Sir Walter and Arnold de Lys
Joce de Dynan knew Walter de Lacy by his arms, and saw him flying all alone; for he had great fear of losing his life. He struck his steed with his spurs, and passed hills and vales, and in a short time overtook the Lacy in a valley under the wood, towards Bromfield,⁴³ and commanded him to turn. The Lacy saw nobody but Joce alone, and returned very boldly. And they fought fiercely; for neither cared to spare the other. They exchanged great and heavy blows. It seemed to Joce that the encounter lasted too long, and he raised his sword with ire, and struck the Lacy on the shield, that he clove it through the middle, and gave him an ugly wound on the left arm.

⁴³Literally the Broom-field. The village of Bromfield is hardly two miles from Ludlow. This is an exact description of the scene, as it may be viewed from Ludlow Castle, the banks of the Teme, the wood of Whiteliff descending towards them, and Bromfield in the distance.

Joce attacked him eagerly, and had nearly captured him, when Sir Godard de Bruce⁴⁴ and two knights with him came to succor the Lacy. Sir Godard and his companions very boldly assailed Sir Joce on all sides, and he defended himself against them like a lion. The lady and her daughters in the tower see their lord so pressed that he could hardly endure, and cry, faint, and make great lamentation; for they never expected to see their lord alive. Fulk fitz Warine was left in the castle, for he was only eighteen years old, and he heard the cry in the tower, ascended in haste, and saw the lady and all the others crying. He went to Hawyse, and asked what ailed her, and why she made such sorrowful cheer.

"Hold your tongue," cried she, "you resemble little your father who is so bold and strong, and you are coward, and always will be. See you not there my lord, who has cherished you and nursed you affectionately, is in peril of death for want of help? And you, wretch, go up and down unhurt, and care nothing for him."

⁴⁴The Bruces were located in the marches, and were much concerned in the border wars during the twelfth century. William de Bruce, lord of Brecon, was one of the most turbulent of the border barons towards the end of that century.

The valet, for the reproof she had given him, was all filled with anger and ire; and at once went down from the tower, and found in the hall an old rusty hauberk, and put it on as well as he knew how; and took a great Danish axe in his hand. He came to a stable which was near the postern by which they go towards the river, and found there a cart horse. He now mounted the cart horse, and went out by the postern, and soon passed the river, and came to the field where his lord was struck down from his steed and in point to be killed, if he had not arrived. Fulk had a foul helmet, which almost covered his shoulders. And at his first onset he struck Godard de Bruce, who had seized his lord, with his axe, and cut his backbone in two parts, and remounted his lord. Fulk turned towards Sir Andrew de Preez, and gave him with his axe on his helm of white steel, that he split it all down to the teeth. Sir Arnold de Lys⁴⁵ saw well that he could in no manner escape, for he was sorely wounded, and he surrendered to Sir Joce. The Lacy defended himself but he was soon taken.

⁴⁵I have not been able to ascertain who this individual was, or if he be merely a name of romance. The name, literally Arnold of the Lilly, sounds rather poetical.

Now is Sir Walter de Lacy taken and Sir Arnold de Lys, and they are led over the river towards the castle of Dynan. Then spoke Sir Joce: "Friend burgess, you are very strong and valiant; and if it had not been for you, I should have been dead before this. I am much bound to you, and shall be always. You shall live with me, and I will never fail you." Joce thought he had been a burgess; for burgesses really have put armor on, and those which the lad had were rusty and foul.⁴⁶

Then the lad answered and said: "Sir, I am no burgess; do you not know me? I am Fulk, your foster-child."

⁴⁶This is an allusion to one of the strong prejudices of feudal chivalry. As Joce says, there were instances of "burgers" having shown themselves worthy of bearing the armor of a knight; and such instances are made the subject of one or two of the medieval romances, but it generally turns out that the upstart had come some way or other of gentle blood.

"Fair son," said he, "blessed be the time that ever I nourished you! for a man will never lose his labor which he does for a brave man." Then they carried Sir Walter and Sir Arnold into a tower which is called Pendover;⁴⁷ and there caused their wounds to be healed, and guarded them in great honor. And the lady and her daughters and their damsels every day comforted and solaced Sir Walter and Sir Arnold de Lys.

⁴⁷From the sequel, it is evident that this tower must have stood at the eastern extremity of the north front of the castle.

Sir Arnold and Sir Walter escape with the help of Marion of the Heath
Sir Arnold was a young bachelor and handsome, and he was greatly overtaken with the love of Marion of the Heath, a very pretty damsel, who was the chief chamber-maid of the lady of the castle of Dynan.⁴⁸ Sir Arnold and the damsel often conversed together; for she used to come every day into the tower with her lady, to comfort Sir Walter de Lacy and Sir Arnold. It happened that Sir Arnold, when he saw an opportunity, pleaded with the damsel, and told her that she was the thing which he loved most, and that he was so much overtaken with her love, that he could have no rest day or night unless she yield to him; for she could give him relief from all his sorrows. And, if she would do it, he would make her a surety at her own will that never would he love another but her; and, as soon as he should be set at liberty, he would take her for his wife.

The damsel heard the fair promise, and yielded him to do his will in all things, and took surety of him that he would hold with her according to his promise. The damsel promised them that she would help them in all points secretly, that they might be delivered from prison. And she took towels and sheets, and carried them into the tower, and sewed them together, and by means of these she let down Sir Walter and Sir Arnold from the tower, and she prayed them to keep their faith and the promise which they had made her. And they told her that they would behave faithfully towards her, without breaking any covenant, and bid her adieu. Sir Walter and Sir Arnold all alone went their way on foot; and, at the dawn of day, came to Ewyas, to the castle of Sir Walter de Lacy. And when his people saw their lord returned sound and well, it need not be asked if they were joyful; for they thought they had lost him for ever.

There are still several places named the Heath in the neighborhood of Ludlow, from some one of which Marion may have taken her name. Chaunbrere is perhaps not well represented by the modern English chamber-maid. The maidens attendant upon the ladies of knights and barons were damsels of gentle blood, who were placed with them to learn good manners and the forms of courtesy, as well as the accomplishments which could only be learnt there. They were often numerous, and lived with their lady in her chamber (whence their title), where they worked with her at embroidery, spinning, weaving, needlework, etc.

Joce de Dynan rose early, and went to his chapel within the castle, which was made and dedicated in honor of the Magdalene,⁴⁹ the day of dedication of which is the day of St. Cyriac and seventy days of pardon.⁵⁰ He heard the service of God; and, when he had done that, he mounted the highest tower in the third bail of the castle, which is now called by many Mortimer.⁵¹ And it has the name of Mortimer for this reason, that one of the Mortimers was in it a good while imprisoned. Joce surveyed the country, and saw nothing but what was well. He descended from the tower, and caused the horn to be sounded for washing, and sent for his prisoner Sir Walter.⁵² For he honored him so much that he would never wash or eat before he did the same. The prisoners were sought everywhere. It was in vain; for they were escaped. Sir Joce made no semblance of being sorry for their going, and took no care of it.

⁴⁹This allusion is no doubt to the round chapel in the inner court of Ludlow Castle, the walls of which still remain, with some good Norman arches. It appears from this account to have been dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene.

⁵⁰The day of St. Cyriac, or Ciriac, was the 8th of August. The seventy days of pardon were of course to be the reward of those who offered up a prayer for the founder.

⁵¹It is curious that a tower in the outer court (third bailey) of the castle is still popularly known by the name of Mortimer's Tower, which it thus seems to have retained since the thirteenth century; for I think there is no room for doubt that it is identical with the one alluded to in the text.

⁵²The regularity with which all the domestic operations were carried on in the middle ages is well known to readers of the literature of that period; it was the more necessary from the number of persons who had to act in unison. The usual signal for meals, etc., was the blowing of a horn.

Peace is made between Sir Walter and Sir Joce and Sir Joce marries his daughter Hawyse to Fulk
Sir Walter thought that he would revenge himself or die; he sent for his people from Ireland,⁵³ and took into his pay knights and others, so that there was strong contest and hard battle between Sir Walter and Sir Joce. The earls and barons of England saw the great mortality and hurt which had happened, and which still happened between them daily; they arranged a loveday between Sir Walter and Sir Joce;⁵⁴ and there all grievances were redressed, and the parties were accorded, and embraced each other before the great lords.

Joce de Dynan sent his letters to Guarin de Metz and Melette his good lady, the father of the youth Fulk. Fulk was of a dark complexion, and therefore he was called by many Fulk the Brown. Guarin and Melette with a great retinue came to the castle of Dynan, and were received there with great honor and joy, and remained there a week. Joce spoke very courteously to Guarin, and said to him: "Sir," said he, "you have here a son whom I have fostered for you. I trust that he will be a brave man and valiant; and he will be your heir, if he survive you. And I have two daughters, who are my heirs; and, if it please you, my wish is that we enter into alliance of marriage, and then we should hardly fear any great lord in England, that our party should not be maintained with right and reason. And, if you will agree to it, I will that Fulk the Brown marry Hawyse, my younger daughter, and he shall be heir to the moiety of all my land."

⁵³The Lacies had large possessions in Ireland in the conquest of which, Hugh de Lacy, the father of Walter de Lacy, took an active part, and he was rewarded with a grant of the whole county of Meath.

⁵⁴Love days (dies amoris) were days agreed upon for settling differences by umpire, instead of having recourse to violence, or to legal proceedings. They appear to have been sometimes a means of hindering justice, and the ecclesiastics seem generally to have managed them, and to have made them a source of profit and of temporary enjoyment, for they appear usually to have been accompanied with a feast.[Wright notes that love days are mentioned in the fourteenth-century poem, Piers Ploughman , l. 6217, and also in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, l. 260.]

Guarin thanked him much for his fair offer, and said that he would agree to all according to his own will. Next day they sent to Hereford for the bishop Robert de ...⁵⁵ The bishop came, and with great honor performed the marriage ceremony. Joce held great festivity during fifteen days. When the feast was ended, Sir Joce and Sir Guarin and their households all went towards Hertland; for they wished to sojourn there a while.

⁵⁵The scribe, for some reason or other, has left a blank for the name in the MS. There were three Roberts, bishops of Hereford, in the twelfth century; Robert de Betun, from 1131 to 1148; Robert de Melun, from 1162 to 1167; and Robert Foliot, from 1174 to 1186. The prelate alluded to was probably the latter, who must have been bishop about the time of the marriage of the second Fulk fitz Warine.

Marion unwittingly betrays Dynan to Arnold de Lys and Sir Walter takes Dynan
And Marion of the Heath feigned sickness, and took to her bed, and said that she was so ill that she could not move except with great difficulty. And she remained at the castle of Dynan. Joce commanded that she should be carefully attended to. And, for fear of the Lacy and other people, he took into his pay thirty knights and seventy sergeants and valets, and delivered them his castle to keep until his return into the country. When Joce was gone, next day Marion sent a messenger to Sir Arnold de Lys, and prayed him, for the great friendship that was between them, that he would not forget the covenants which were made between them, and that he come hastily to talk with her at the castle of Dynan, for the lord and the lady and the strength of their household are gone to Hertland,⁵⁶ and that he come to the same place where last he escaped from the castle. When Sir Arnold had heard the message of his mistress, he immediately sent back the same messenger, and prayed that for his love she would measure the height of the window by which he last escaped out of the castle, and that she should send him back information by the said messenger what kind of people, and how many, and what household their lord had left behind him. The damsel, who had no suspicion of treason, took a silk cord, and let it down through the window to the ground, and sent information of all the condition of the castle to Sir Arnold. Then Sir Arnold sent back to his mistress that on the fourth day, before it struck midnight, he would be at the same window through which he passed; and begged that she would wait for him there.

Sir Arnold de Lys caused to be made a ladder of leather of the same length as the silk cord which his mistress had sent him. Then went Sir Arnold to his lord, Sir Walter de Lacy, and told him how Fulk, the son of Guarin de Metz, had espoused Hawyse, the daughter of Sir Joce de Dynan, and how Sir Guarin and Sir Joce had left provision in the castle of Dynan, and were gone to Hertland to seek soldiers, and to assemble there their men, and to collect a host and people without number." And, when all the host shall be assembled, they will come at once to Ewyas, and will burn and take your lands. And if they can take your body, you will be cut in small pieces, and you and yours will be deprived of your inheritance for ever. She whom you know well has sent me this information; for she knows and has heard the truth."

When Sir Walter heard this news, he became pale with vexation, and said, "Truly, I cannot believe that Sir Joce would do me such a deceit, since we are accorded, and there are many witnesses to our having embraced each other; and I was provoked much that our peers said the accord would be broken on my part, and Sir Joce is held a loyal knight."

"Sir," said Sir Arnold, "you are my lord; I warn you of your hurt; for I know the truth through her who has heard the counsel. And tell me not another time that I knew of your hurt and would not warn you of it, or that I have belied my faith to you."

Sir Walter became very thoughtful, and he knew no good counsel for this matter. At length he said: "Sir Arnold, what do you advise me to do?"

"Sir," said he, "trust my counsel, and you will do well. I will go myself, with my company, and I will take by cunning the castle of Dynan; and when Sir Joce shall have lost his stronghold, he will grieve you the less and will give up his design; and so far you will be revenged of him for the disgrace which he has often inflicted upon us. And, sir, consider that, be it by right or by wrong, one ought to revenge oneself of his enemy." Sir Walter yielded himself entirely to the counsel of Sir Arnold, and supposed that he had told him truth in what he had said; but he lied like a false knight.

⁵⁶Hartland in Devonshire. It appears that Leland read it Ireland.

Sir Arnold prepared his company, which was numerous; for he had in his company, knights, squires, and sergeants, more than a thousand. And he came to the castle of Dynan by night, and caused part of his company to remain in the wood, near Whitcliff,⁵⁷ and part to lay in ambush below the castle, in the gardens. The night was very dark, so that they were not perceived by the watch, or by any one else. Sir Arnold took a squire, who carried the ladder of leather, and went to the window where Marion was waiting for them. And when she saw them, she was never so joyful; and she let down a cord, and drew up the ladder of leather, and fastened it to a battlement of the wall. And Arnold mounted easily and lightly the tower, and took his mistress between his arms and kissed her; and they made great joy, and went thence into another chamber, and supped, and then went to bed, and left the ladder hanging.

⁵⁷The wood adjacent to Whitcliff will be familiar to every one who has visited Ludlow. The gardens belonging to the castle lay in the meadows to the north, at the foot of the rock, and bordering on the river Teme, perhaps extending to the river Corve, which runs into the Teme, at a very short distance from the castle.

The esquire who carried it went for the knights and the great company who were in ambush in the lord's garden and elsewhere, and brought them to the ladder. And a hundred men, well armed, mounted by means of the ladder of leather, and went down from the tower of Pendover, and went along the wall behind the chapel.⁵⁸ And they found the watch sleeping, for he seemed to be heavy under the presentiment of death; and they took him immediately, and would have thrown him down from his tower into the deep fosse; but he cried for mercy, and begged that they would suffer him to whistle one note before he died. And they granted it him; but he did it in order that the knights within should be warned. But it was all in vain. While he whistled the greater part of the knights and sergeants were being cut to pieces; and they screamed and cried in their beds that God might have pity. But the companions of Sir Arnold were without pity; for all who were therein they put to a foul death, and many a sheet which was white at even, was all reddened with blood. At last they threw the watch into the deep fosse, and broke his neck.

Marion takes revenge on Sir Arnold
Marion of the Heath lay in bed beside her love, Sir Arnold, and knew nothing of the treason which Sir Arnold had perpetrated; she heard a great noise in the castle, rose from the bed, and looked down into the castle, heard the noise and cry of the wounded, and saw knights in arms and white helms and hauberks. Now she perceived that Sir Arnold had deceived and betrayed her, and began to weep very affectingly, and said piteously: "Alas!" said she, "that ever I was born of mother; for by my fault, my lord, Sir Joce, who fostered me tenderly, has lost his castle and his good people; and had I never been, nothing would have been lost. Alas! that ever I believed this knight; for by his flattery he has deceived me, and my lord, which is still more to me."

Marion, all weeping, drew the sword of Sir Arnold and said, "Sir knight, awake; for you have brought strange company into the castle of my lord without leave. But if you, Sir, and your esquire, were lodged by me, the others, who have come in through your means, were not. And, since you have deceived me, you cannot rightly blame me if I render you service according to your desert; but you shall never boast to any mistress you shall have, that by my deceit you have gained the castle of Dynan and the country."

⁵⁸The parapet along the wall behind the chapel was the direct way from the towers on the north-east of the inner court to the entrance of the keep tower, in which the knights who guarded the castle, and their attendants, appear to have had their lodgings. The watchman must have been stationed at this entrance of the keep, just over the gateway leading into the outer court, and, therefore, into the town. The object of the assailants was, by securing this watchman before he could give an alarm, to obtain an easy entrance into the keep tower, and take the knights by surprise and in a defenseless condition, as they had done before he had whistled his "one note."

The knight raised himself erect. Marion, with the sword which she held drawn in her hand, struck the knight through the body, and the knight died immediately. Marion knew well that if she were taken, she should be delivered to an evil death, and knew not what to do; so she let herself fall from a window towards Linney,⁵⁹ and broke her neck.

⁵⁹The name of Linney is still preserved, and its position, just below that part of the castle where the rock is steepest and highest, fixes that of the tower of Pendover, the scene of Marion's adventures. The state apartments were placed here because it was least exposed to attack, and this circumstance would also facilitate the enterprise of Sir Arnold de Lis, as, on account of the impossibility of any one entering the castle on that side, except by such an act of treason as that here described, no watchmen would be stationed there.

The Destruction of the town of Dynan
The knights who were in the castle unfastened the doors, and went into the town, and opened the gate of Dynan towards the river, and admitted all their people.⁶⁰ They placed at the end of each street in the town a great number of people, and caused the town to be set on fire; and in each street they made two fires. The burgesses and the sergeants of the town, when they saw the fire, rose from their beds, some naked, others clothed, and knew not what to do, for they were almost mad. The knights and esquires of Lacy fell upon them, and cut them to pieces and slew them in great numbers. The burgesses had no power or, thought to defend themselves; for all who were met with there cut to pieces or burnt in the fire. The damsels went along the lanes, saw their fathers and their brothers lie slaughtered in the streets, fell upon their knees, and implored mercy and pardon of their life. It was in vain, as the history says;⁶¹ men, women, or children, young and great, all were slain, either by weapon or by fire.

At last day came; then they sent to their lord that he, with all his power, should come to the castle of Dynan. And so he did, and caused his banner to be raised on the Pendover in sign of victory that he had gained the spot in which he was formerly put in prison; but the town with all that was in it was burnt to black charcoal.

⁶⁰The gate of the town, called, in modern times Dinham Gate. The majority of Sir Arnold's men had been left outside; and now that the castle had been surprised and taken, they were admitted into the town. The original town of Dynan was built under the immediate protection of the castle, and probably occupied only that part of the present town in and adjacent to what is still called Dinham. No doubt one of the two names is only a corruption of the other.

⁶¹"As it is related in the original narrative, of which this is a paraphrase.[In the] English metrical history...there appears to have been mention of at least one individual, Owen of Cornwall, who does not figure in our Anglo-Norman history. It may be remarked, that the Cornwalls were established in this neighborhood, but not till the century following.

Sir Joce, Guarin, and Fulk attack Dynan, but cannot retake it
When the news came to Sir Joce and Guarin de Metz, they were much grieved, sad, and sorrowful. They sent to all their kinsmen, friends, and to their own people, so that they had within a month seven thousand men well provided. And they came to castle Key,⁶² which is intrenched upon a knoll, a league's distance from Dynan. But castle Key was old at that time, and its gates were decayed; for no people had inhabited it for a hundred years past. For Key, the steward of my lord Arthur the king,⁶³ had made it, and all the country belonged to him, and it still retains his name, for the people of the country call it Keyenhom (Cainham). Joce and Guarin and Fulk the Brown, with their people, go on the morrow towards the castle of Dynan, and attack it very fiercely from all sides. Sir Walter and his knights defend very courageously the crenels and the walls; after which Sir Walter and his Irishmen sallied from the castle, and made a fierce attack on those who were outside. Joce, Guarin, and Fulk, attack them on all sides, and slay them in great numbers. The Irish lay cut to pieces in the fields and gardens, so that Sir Walter and his had the worst of it; he and his people retreated and entered the castle and defended the walls. And, if they had remained outside, they would soon have heard very hard news. Sir Joce and Sir Guarin returned to their lodgings and disarmed; and, after they had eaten, they were merry together.

⁶²Caynham camp, a well-known entrenched hill, about two miles to the eastward of Ludlow. There are still traces of the remains of building upon it, and pieces of mortar are picked up in the ground, of very ancient character, I think not improbably Saxon. It is curious that at the early period of this history it should be already a ruin. There was a well towards the eastern end of the inclosure, which has only been filled up at a very recent period. I think it not improbable that it was originally a Roman post.

⁶³Sir Key, or Cay, the well-known seneschal or steward of king Arthur's court, holds a very prominent place in the romances of this cycle. The way in which the legend has here, and in other parts of this history, been located on the border, is extremely curious.

On the morrow they attacked the castle very fiercely from all sides, but could not take it. And all they could find outside, they cut them to pieces. This siege lasted long. Subsequently it happened that, by the assent of a king of England, the gates of the castle, which were treble,⁶⁴ were burnt and consumed by fire which was lighted with bacons and grease, and the tower over the gate burnt in. And the high tower which is in the third bail of the castle, which was so strong and well built that no stronger or better tower was at that time known, was in great part beaten down, and that bail almost entirely destroyed

Guarin dies and Fulk succeeds him
Sir Guarin fell ill, and took leave of Sir Joce, and went to Alberbury only with one esquire, and died. Fulk the Brown, after his father's death, came to Alberbury, and took homage and fealty of all the people who held of his father; and he took leave of Melette, his mother, and Hawise, his wife, and returned to Sir Joce, and related to him what had happened to his father, at the news of which Joce was much grieved.

⁶⁴I may mention, that in one or two instances in this book, I have been obliged to translate a word rather by guess than with a certain knowledge of its meaning, and I am not sure that the interpretation I have given to this word is correct.

Sir Walter sends to the Welsh prince, Jervard Droyndoun for help against Fulk and Sir Joce
Sir Walter was sorrowful and angry that he had lost his people, and he feared much to be beaten and conquered, and after anxious consideration he sent a letter to Jervard Droyndoun, prince of Wales,⁶⁵ as to his lord, friend, and kinsman, and informed him by letter that Sir William Peverel, who held Maelor and Ellesmere, is dead; and he said that those lands are of the lordship belonging to Powys, and Sir William held them by gift of the king of England wrongfully, and the king will seize them into his hand. "And, if he does so, he will be a very bad neighbor to you, for he does not love you. And therefore, sir, come and challenge your right; and, if you please, send me succor, for I am closely besieged in the castle of Dynan."

⁶⁵"Jorwerth Drwyndwn, eldest son of Owen Gwyneth, was never prince of North Wales. His and his son's exclusion from the government, if not originally suggested by the contrivance of Henry II, was perpetuated by the policy of that king, and of Richard I. The narrative in this part, and indeed throughout, gives a glimmering allusion to facts which we know, from other sources, to have had an existence. The way in which such facts are combined is, on the other hand, in defiance of all chronology. For instance, the inveterate hostility of Jorwerth Drwyndwn to the English king, the disaffection of Walter de Lacy, the sometime possession of Ellesmere by the last William Peverel of Brun, are, all facts; but the earliest and latest of these facts were separated by an interval of half a century." R. W. E.

Jervard, when he heard the news, caused to assemble Welsh, Scots, and Irish, more than twenty thousand; and he hastened towards the march, burnt the towns, plundered the people, and he had such a great host that the country could not withstand them. Joce was wary and got intelligence of the approach of Jervard; and he and his people and Fulk armed, and boldly attacked Roger de Powys⁶⁶ and Jonas his brother, who came with the vanguard of Jervard's host, and slew many of their men. Roger and Jonas were not able to withstand the attack, and retreated. At length came Jervard armed, and his arms were of or, quartered with gules, and in each quarter a leopard;⁶⁷ and he assailed Sir Joce and Fulk. And they defended themselves long, and slew many of their people; but they (the Welsh) had so many people that Sir Joce could not maintain the contest, and he fell back upon Castle Key, at a league from Dynan. But it was very disastrous to him; for he had lost many of his people.

Sir Joce is captured and Fulk wounded
Jervard and the Lacy, who was now glad, pursued Sir Joce and Fulk, and besieged them in the little castle, and assailed them very fiercely. Joce, Fulk, and their knights, during three days, without drinking or eating, defended their weak and old little castle against all the host. On the fourth day, Sir Joce said that it would be greater honor to leave the castle and die in the field with honor, than to die in the castle of hunger and with dishonor; and thereupon they went into the field and slew at their first encounter more than three hundred, knights, esquires, and sergeants. Jervard Droyndoun and the Lacy and their people assailed Sir Joce and his people, and they defended themselves like lions; but so many people hemmed them in that they could not hold out long; for the horse of Sir Joce was killed, and he himself severely wounded; and his knights, some taken, some slain. Then they took Sir Joce and his knights, and sent them to prison to the castle of Dynan, there where he used to be lord and master.

⁶⁶Roger de Powys and his brother Jonas were both in the service and pay of king Henry II. Roger had two sons, Meredyth and Meurich, the latter of whom was the Morice of our history. Roger and his eldest son died between 1179 and 1187. Meurich fitz Roger went with king Richard to Normandy in 1194, and was under the constant patronage of that king; he seems to have died about A.D. 1200, which proves the inaccuracy of several passages in the narrative. His son, Wrenock, succeeded him, and was deprived of Whittington in consequence of king John's reconciliation with the Fitz Warines; but he was in the pay of the English crown till 1224. Wianus, son of Jonas de Powys, occurs as receiving favors from kings Richard and John from 1194 to 1209.

⁶⁷[That is, a gold shield divided in four by a red cross, with a leopard in each of the four fields.]

When Fulk saw Sir Joce taken and led away, he went almost mad with grief and anger; he struck his horse with the spurs, and struck a knight who led him through the body with a lance. Then came Owen Keveylloke,⁶⁸ a bold and fierce knight, and with a lance of ash struck Fulk through the hollow of his body, and the lance broke, and the piece remained in his body; but his entrails were not touched. Fulk felt himself terribly wounded, and could no longer defend himself; he took to flight, and the others hunted him two leagues or more, and, not being able to catch him, they returned and seized all the lands which Fulk had. And they took Guy, the son of Candelou of Porkington, who was Fulk's constable, and sent him to prison at Rhuddlan,⁶⁹ and his seven sons with him.

⁶⁸Owen Cyveilioc was the nephew of Madoc ap Meredydh, prince of Powys, and held considerable estates in that principality. Owen was prince of Higher Powys, Madoc of Powys Vadoc, or Lower Powys. He was one of the chiefs who acknowledged the sovereignty of England; but he often sided with the Welsh princes against the English king, and on either side he was an active partizan.

⁶⁹Rhuddlan, in Flintshire.

Fulk seeks help from King Henry
Fulk was in great grief for his lord; and, as he had heard that King Henry was dwelling at Gloucester,⁷⁰ he went thither direct. As he approached the town, the king was going after supper to divert himself in the meadow,⁷¹ and saw Fulk coming armed on horseback, and riding very painfully; for he was weak, and his steed weary. "Let us wait," said the king, "we shall now hear news."

Fulk came all on horse to the king, for he could not dismount, and told the king entirely the whole affair. The king rolled his eyes very fiercely, and said that he would revenge himself of such evildoers in his realm. And he asked him who he was, and from whom descended. Fulk related to the king where he was born, and of what race, and that he was the son of Guarin de Metz.

"Fair son," said the king, "you are welcome to me; for you are of my blood, and I will help you." The king caused his wounds to be doctored. And he sent for Melette, his mother, and Hawise, his wife, and the rest of their household, and retained them with him, and caused Hawise and Melette to dwell in the queen's chambers. Hawise was advanced in pregnancy, and when her time came she was delivered of a child, and they caused the child to be named Fulk. He in his time was greatly renowned, and it was with good reason; for he was peerless in strength, courage, and goodness.

⁷⁰It would perhaps be a fruitless labor to trace the exact visit of king Henry to Gloucester, here alluded to; he was there in the year 1175, when, in consequence of the troubled state of the border, king Henry held a great council in that city. Many of the Welsh princes came to him here, and made their peace, and Jorwerth Drwyndwn himself at last followed their example. At a council held in 1177 at Oxford, David, prince of North Wales, Rhys ap, Gryffydh, and Owen Cyveilioc, and other chieftains in Powys, came upon Henry's summons to confer with him on the state of their country. It was on this occasion that the king granted Ellesmere to David, prince of North Wales, and the territory of Merioneth to Rhys ap Gryffydh. The king appears to have been at Gloucester again in 1179 and in 1184, and perhaps in other years.

⁷¹It must be borne in mind, that the hours of the domestic meals differed very widely from those of the present day. The king's hour of supper was probably four o'clock in the afternoon, his dinner hour being ten in the morning. These continued during several centuries to be the regular hours of dinner and supper both in England and France. So late as the year 1510, a letter, written from the court of Louis XII, tells us,—"Apres souper, environ entre quatre et cinq, nous allasmes avec le roy chasser au parcq." [After supper, between around four and five, we go hunt in the park with the king.]

When Fulk the Brown was healed of his wound, King Henry sent a letter to Sir Walter de Lacy, and commanded him on pain of life and member to deliver Joce de Dynan, his knight, and his knights, whom he holds wrongfully in his prison; and, if he did not do it, he will come and seek them himself, and will do such justice that all England shall talk of it. When Sir Walter heard the message, he was much frightened at it; and he set Sir Joce and his knights at liberty, and clothed and mounted them very honorably, and conducted them through a postern towards the river of Teme and beyond the ford of Teme and beyond Whitcliff,⁷² until they came to the high road to Gloucester.

⁷²The original high road down the border was of course the Roman road, which is still called the Watling Street (though it is not the real Watling Street), and ran through Clungunford, Leintwardine, Wigmore, and Aymestrey, and so on direct to Hereford, or rather to Kenchester. At an early period, a part of this road, to the north of Wigmore, seems to have been deserted, and travelers turned down the valley of the Oney, to Bromfield, and thence apparently on the western side of the Teme to Ludlow Castle; they appear then to have turned over Whitcliff hill, and to have joined the old road again at Wigmore. Ludlow Castle thus protected as well as commanded the road, and merchants and travelers might be subjected to any exactions as they passed. Fulk fitz Warine, when he escapes from a skirmish, which is represented as taking place between Caynham and Ludlow, goes "over" or "beyond" Whiteliff, on his way to Gloucester, which he would not have done by the present road from Ludlow to Leominster and Hereford. Giraldus Cambrensis [Gerald of Wales, the author of a number of books, including The Topography of Wales] seems to have passed by Bromfield, under Ludlow Castle (without entering the town), and onward to Leominster, by this road.

When Sir Joce came to Gloucester, the king received him very gladly, and promised him law and right. Joce resided with the king as long as he pleased, and then took leave and went to Lambourne,⁷³ and resided there; and soon after died, and was interred there. God have mercy on his soul!

⁷³Lamburne, in Berkshire.

Fulk I receives new lands and is honored by the king
King Henry called Fulk, and made him constable of all his host;⁷⁴ and placed under his command all the force of his land, and that he should take people enough and go to the march, and drive thence Jervard Droyndoun and his power out of the march. Thus was Fulk made master over all; for he was strong and courageous. The king remained at Gloucester; for he was ailing, and not in a condition for labour. Jervard had taken entirely the whole march from Chester to Worcester, and he had disinherited all the barons of the march. Sir Fulk, with the king's host, gave many fierce assaults to Jervard; and in a battle near Hereford, at Wormeslow,⁷⁵ made him fly and quit the field. But before he fled, many were killed on both sides. Fierce and hard war between Fulk and the prince lasted four years, until at the request of the king of France a loveday was taken at Shrewsbury between the king and Jervard the prince, and they embraced mutually and came to an agreement. And the prince restored to the barons of the march all the lands which he had taken from them, and restored Ellesmere to the king; but for no gold would he render White-Town and Maelor.

⁷⁴This is probably an error: we have no evidence that this office was ever given to Fulk fitz Warine, and all the facts we know lead us to believe the contrary.

⁷⁵It is not easy to decide whether this be meant for Wormlow, about five miles to the southwest, or Wormseley, about eight miles to the northeast of Hereford; but probably the latter. The battle is not recorded in any of the chronicles.

"Fulk," said the king, "since you have lost White-Town and Maelor, I give you instead Alleston⁷⁶ and all the honor which belongs to it, to hold for ever." Fulk thanked him dearly. King Henry gave to Lewis, the son of Jervard, a child of seven years, little Joan, his daughter;⁷⁷ and he gave them in marriage Ellesmere and many other lands, and carried Lewis with him to London. The prince Jervard, with his retinue, took leave of the king, and went to Wales; and he gave White-Town and Maelor to Roger de Powys. Roger subsequently gave Maelor to Jonas, his younger brother.

⁷⁶"The allusion is to Alveston, in Gloucestershire, undoubtedly a manor of the Fitz Warines, but given to them much earlier than the period indicated. The first Fulk fitz Warine held it in capite in 1156." R. W. E.

⁷⁷The lady to whom prince Lewis was married was a natural daughter of king John, and not of Henry II, and the marriage took place in 1204, many years after the events here related. It is true that the lordship of Ellesmere was given with the princess as her dower; but other parts of the statement are inaccurate. "It was Henry II who gave Whittington to Roger de Powys. It is hardly possible that the claim of the Fitz Warines on Whittington arose from any blood relationship to the Peverels, but much more probably by feoffment. It may confidently be asserted, that from 1140 to 1200 no Fitz Warine was tenant in capite of Whittington. neither, as under tenant, was any Fitz Warine of the twelfth century the sole tenant of Whittington. A portion thereof was held by d'Engaine, independently of Fitz Warine, and d'Engaine's tenure was certainly by feoffment of (not by inheritance from) Peverel." R. W. E.

Now you have heard how Joce de Dynan, his daughters Sibylle the elder and Hawise the younger, were disinherited of the castle and honor of Dynan, which Sir Walter de Lacy holds wrongfully; but the town of Dynan was afterwards repaired and restored, and was called Ludlow. And you have heard too how Sir Fulk, the son of Guarin de Metz, is disinherited of White-Town and Maelor. Sibylle, the elder sister, was subsequently married to Pain Fitz John, a very valiant knight.⁷⁸

⁷⁸This is another error. " Sibil, the eldest daughter and co-heir of Joceas de Dynan, was wife of Hugh de Plugenai. Both Sibil and Hawyse were widows in 1199, their respective husbands having died within the five years previous. As to Sibil, wife of Pain fitz John, though I cannot undertake to name her parentage, she was married before 1125, and her husband was killed in 1136." R. W. E.

The Quarrel between Fulk II and Prince John
Fulk and Hawise dwelt so long with the king, that he had five sons, Fulk, William, Phillip the Red, John, and Alan. King Henry had four sons, Henry, Richard Coeur-de-Lion, John, and Jeffrey, who was afterwards earl of Lesser Britain. Henry was crowned during his father's life time, but he died before his father; and after the death of his father, Richard was crowned; and after Richard, John, his brother, who all his life was wicked and ill-grained and envious. Young Fulk was bred with the four sons of King Henry, and much beloved by them except John; for he used often to quarrel with John. It happened that John and Fulk were sitting all alone in a chamber, playing at chess.⁷⁹ John took the chessboard, and struck Fulk a great blow. Fulk felt himself hurt, raised his foot, and struck John in the middle of the stomach, that his head flew against the wall, and he became all weak and fainted. Fulk was in consternation; but he was glad that there was nobody in the chamber but they two, and he rubbed John's ears, who recovered from his fainting-fit, and went to the king, his father, and made a great complaint.

"Hold your tongue, wretch," said the king, "you are always quarreling. If Fulk did anything but good to you, it must have been by your own desert." And he called his master, and made him beat him finely and well for complaining. John was much enraged against Fulk; so that he could never afterwards love him heartily.

⁷⁹Chess was the fashionable game at this period, and indeed generally, from the time the Western Christians first became acquainted with the Saracens, to the introduction of cards. The Anglo-Norman princes and barons were great chess players. The game of the Anglo-Saxons was tœfel, something of the nature of our backgammon.

Fulk II proves himself and succeeds his father
When King Henry, the father, died, then reigned King Richard, who loved dearly Fulk the Brown, fitz Warine, for his loyalty; and he called before him at Winchester the five sons of Fulk the Brown, little Fulk, Phillip the Red, William, John, and Alan, and their cousin, Baldwin de Hodnet,⁸⁰ and dubbed them very richly, and made them knights.

The young Sir Fulk and his brothers with their company passed the sea, to seek praise and renown; and they heard talk of no tournament or jousts but he would be there. And he obtained so much reputation everywhere, that people said commonly that he was peerless in strength, goodness, and courage; for he had such grace, that he came to no encounter in which he was not held and reputed for the victor.

⁸⁰Baldwin de Hodnet was hereditary seneschal of Montgomery castle, and held Hodnet in capite by that service. He also held Westbury, under the barons Corbet of Caus, and Fitz Warine was vassal of the same barons at Alderbury. It is very probable that Fitz Warine and he were relations, as here stated; they are found attesting jointly deeds of the Corbets, and Baldwin's participation in Fitz Warine's rebellion and forfeiture is proved by the contemporary records. "The narrative here begins to be much more consistent with chronological probability. Baldwin de Hodnet is introduced under circumstances wonderfully consonant with what else is known of him. The time of the death of Fulk fitz Warine II, and his son's succession, are also correctly indicated (allowing for the writer's ignorance of the existence of Fulk I)." R. W. E.

It happened that Fulk the Brown, their father, died.⁸¹ King Richard sent his letters to Sir Fulk that he should come into England and receive his lands, for his father was dead. Fulk and his brothers were much grieved that Fulk the Brown, their good father, was dead: and they returned to London to King Richard, who was very glad of them, and delivered to them all the lands of which Fulk the Brown died seized.⁸² The king made himself ready towards the Holy Land,⁸³ and he entrusted all the march to the keeping of Sir Fulk. The king loved him much, and cherished him for his loyalty and for the great renown which he had, and Fulk was very well with the king all the life of King Richard.

⁸¹Fulk II died before 1199, but after king Richard's return from the Holy Land.

⁸²[That is, all the lands Fulk I held of the king when he died.]

⁸³[That is, the third crusade.]

King John grants Sir Morris White-Town
After his death, John, the brother of King Richard, was crowned king of England. Then he sent to Sir Fulk that he should come to him to talk and treat of divers matters touching the march, and said that he would go visit the march; and he went to castle Baldwin, which is now called Montgomery.⁸⁴ And when Morris, the son of Roger de Powys, lord of White-Town, knew that king John was on his way to the march, he sent the king a fat and fair steed, and a gerfalcon all white.⁸⁵ The king thanked him much for his present. Then came Morris to talk with the king;⁸⁶ and the king requested him to dwell with him and be of his council, and made him keeper of all the march. When Morris saw his time, he spoke to the king, and prayed him, if he pleased, that he would confirm to him by charter the honor of White-Town, to him and his heirs, as King Henry, his father, had before confirmed it to Roger de Powys, his father. The king knew well that Sir Fulk had right to White Town, and he called to mind the blow which Fulk had formerly given him, and thought that he would now be avenged; and he granted that whatever Morris would put in writing, he would seal it to him. And, for doing this, Morris promised him a hundred pounds of silver.

⁸⁴Montgomery is still called by the Welsh Baldwin's town (Tref Faldwyn).

The falcons and hawks of Wales were highly prized, at a time when falconry was so much in fashion. They were often, therefore, given as most acceptable presents by the Welsh chieftains to the kings of England, or exacted by the latter as tribute or fines. When, on the invasion of Wales by king John, the bishop of Bangor was taken prisoner, his ransom was fixed at two hundred hawks.

Meurich, the son of Roger de Powys, did fine with king John for Whittington, but the fine, instead of a hundred pounds, was fifty or sixty marks. A subsequent fine of his son Wrenoch is variously stated at eighty marks and two palfreys, or a hundred pounds and four palfreys.

There was close by a knight, who had heard all the conversation between the king and Morris; and he went in haste to Sir Fulk, and told him that the king was about to confirm by his charter to Sir Morris the lands to which he had right. Fulk and his four brothers came before the king, and prayed that they might have the common law and the lands to which they had claim and right, as the inheritance of Fulk; and they prayed that the king would receive from them a hundred pounds,⁸⁷ on condition that he should grant them the award of his court of gain and loss. The king told them that what he had granted to Sir Morris he would hold to it, whoever might be offended, or who not.

Sir Morris insults Fulk and Fulk becomes an outlaw
At length Sir Morris spoke to Sir Fulk, and said: "Sir knight, you are a great fool to challenge my lands. If you say that you have right to White-Town, you lie; and, if we were not in the king's presence, I would prove it on your body."

Sir William, Fulk's brother, without a word more, sprang forwards, and struck Sir Morris with his fist in the middle of his face, that it became all bloody. Knights interfered, that no more hurt was done. Then said Sir Fulk to the king; "Sir king, you are my liege lord, and to you was I bound by fealty, as long as I was in your service, and as long as I held lands of you; and you ought to maintain me in right, and you fail me in right and common law; and never was he a good king who denied his frank tenants law in his courts; wherefore I return you your homages." And with this word he departed from the court, and went to his hostel.

Fulk and his brothers armed immediately, and Baldwin de Hodnet likewise; and when they were gone half a league from the city, there came after them fifteen knights well mounted and armed, the strongest and most valiant of all the king's household, and commanded them to turn back, and said that they had promised the king their heads. Sir Fulk turned back, and said: "Fair sirs, you were great fools to give what you cannot have." Then they encountered with lances and swords, so that four of the most valiant of the king's knights were killed outright, and all the others wounded almost to death, except one, who saw the danger and took to flight. He came to the city; the king asked him if Warine were taken.

"No," said he, "nor nothing hurt; he and all his companions are gone; and we were all slain, except me, who with great difficulty have escaped."

⁸⁷"Fulk fitz Warine's counter-fine of £100 is as correctly stated as if the writer had seen the Oblata roll." R. W. E.

Said the king: "Where is Gerard de France, Piers d'Avignon, and Sir Amis the Marquis?"⁸⁸

"Sire, slain."

At length came ten knights all on foot, for Sir Fulk carried off their steeds. Some of the knights had lost their noses, others their chins; and they were all ill treated. The king swore a great oath that he would be revenged of them and of all their lineage.

(Some things to think about: Compare how Fulk becomes an outlaw to how Eustace the Monk becomes an outlaw. In both stories, the men who pursue the outlaw are badly wounded: what do the stories have in common and what is different? What does this tell us about the expectations of the audiences in each case?)

⁸⁸These names sound so much like those of heroes of romance, that we should hardly look for them in sober history.

Fulk came to Alberbury, and related to dame Hawise his mother how they had fared at Winchester.⁸⁹ Fulk took great treasure from his mother, and went, he and his brothers, and their cousins, into Brittany, and sojourned there as long as they pleased. King John seized into his hand all the lands Fulk had in England, and did great damage to all his friends.

⁸⁹King John was at Winchester on the 6th and 7th of May, 1201, and he was not there again until after the date of Fulk fitz Warine's pardon.

Fulk takes to the woods and is attacked there by Sir Morris
Fulk and his four brothers, Aldulf de Bracy, his cousin,⁹⁰ and Baldwin de Hodnet, his cousin, took leave of their friends and cousins in Britain the Less, and came into England. By day they reposed themselves in woods and in moors, and by night they wandered and labored; for they dared not await the king, as they had not power to resist him. At last they came to Huggeford,⁹¹ to Sir Walter de Huggeford, who had married dame Vileine, daughter of Guarin de Metz; but her right name was Emeline,⁹² and she was the aunt of Sir Fulk. Afterwards Fulk went his way towards Alberbury; and when he came there, the people of the country told him that his mother was buried, for which Fulk made great grief, and prayed very piteously for her soul.

⁹⁰"Audulf de Bracy was of Meole, near Shrewsbury. Several generations of the family bore the same christian name of Audulf. The individual here mentioned was, in the time of king John, involved in a great litigation with his suzerain, Roger de Mortimer, of Wigmore, as to the tenure of the manor of Meole, which is still known as Meole Brace." R. W. E.

⁹¹Huggeford is Higford, near Shiffnall. "Sir Walter de Huggeford was lord of this manor in king John's time, but dame Emeline was more probably the widow of his father, another Walter." R. W. E.

⁹²Emeline, or Elvina, de Huggeford was a widow before the death of Richard I, so that Fulk could not have repaired to her husband at the time of which we are now speaking.

Sir Fulk and his men that night go into a forest which is called Babbing,⁹³ which is near White-Town, to spy Morris Fitz Roger. At length there came a valet of Morris's household, who perceived them, and went back, and related to Morris what he had seen. Morris armed himself very richly, and took his green shield, with two boars of beaten gold; the bordure was of argent, with fleurs-de-lis of azure.⁹⁴ And he had in his company the nine sons of Guy of the Mountain and the three sons of Aaron de Clairfontaine,⁹⁵ so that there were thirty well mounted and five hundred footmen. When Fulk saw Morris he issued in haste from the forest. There was begun between them a hard contest, and there was Morris wounded through the shoulder, and many knights and footmen were killed. And at last Morris fled towards his castle, and Fulk pursued him, and thought to have struck him on the helm as he fled; but the blow fell on the crupper of his steed. At length came Morgan Fitz Aaron, and shot from the castle, and struck Fulk through the leg with an arrow. Fulk was much grieved that he could not avenge himself as he would on Sir Morris, and paid no attention to the wound in his leg.

(Compare this conflict between Fulk and Sir Morris with the conflict between Humphrey and Eustace the Monk. What do they have in common? What is different? Why are they different? Robin Hood and Eustace the Monk also set up shop in the woods. What is similar/different about their situations?)

Sir Morris made his complaint to the king that Sir Fulk was returned into England and had wounded him through the shoulder. The king became so incensed that it was wonderful; and he appointed a hundred knights with their company to go through all England, to seek and take Fulk and deliver him to the king alive or dead. And they shall have all their costs from the king; and if they could take him, the king would give them lands and rich fees. The knights go through all England to seek Sir Fulk; but then when they heard that Sir Fulk was there, they would not go for any king; for they feared him excessively, some for love they had for him, others for fear of his strength and of his noble knighthood, lest damage or death might happen to them by his strength and boldness.

⁹³Perhaps this is what is now called Babies Wood, about a mile and a half to the south-east of Whittington, the modern name being a corruption of the old one.

⁹⁴[The green part of the shield with the gold boars was surrounded by a border of silver, with blue fleurs-de-lis on it.]

⁹⁵These are perhaps translations of well known names on the border, which it would not be very easy to identify. They appear to have been Welshmen.

Fulk robs the king's merchants
Sir Fulk and his company came to the forest of Bradene;⁹⁶ and they dwelt there secretly, for they dared not do it openly on account of the king. Then came from abroad ten burgher merchants, who had bought with the money of the king of England the richest cloths, furs, spices, and gloves, for the body of the king and the queen of England; and they were carrying them under the forest towards the king, and thirty-four sergeants armed followed to guard the king's treasure.⁹⁷ When Fulk perceived the merchants, he called his brother John, and told him to go and talk with those people and inquire of what land they were. John struck his steed with his spurs, and came to the merchants, and demanded what folks they were and from what land. A spokesman proud and fierce sprang forward, and demanded what business it was of his to inquire what folk were there. John demanded of them to come in love to speak with his lord in the forest, or if not they should come in spite of themselves. Then a sergeant sprang forward, and struck John a great blow with a sword. John struck him again on the head, that he fell to the ground insensible.

Then came Sir Fulk and his company, and assailed the merchants; and they defended themselves very vigorously. In the end they surrendered, for they were forced to do so. Fulk led them into the forest, and they related to him that they were merchants of the king; and when Fulk heard that, he was very glad. And he said to them: "Sirs merchants, if you should lose these goods, on whom will the loss turn? tell me the truth."

"Sir," said they, "if we should lose it by our cowardice or by our own bad keeping, the loss would turn upon us; and if we lose it in other manner, by danger of the sea or by people's force, the loss will turn upon the king."

"Say you the truth?"

"Yes, sir," said they. Sir Fulk, when he heard that the loss would be the king's, caused the rich cloth and rich skins to be measured with his spear, and clothed all those who were with him, little and great, with that rich cloth, and gave to each according to what he was; but every one had large measure enough. Of the rest of the goods each took at his will. When evening was come, and the merchants had eaten well, he bade them adieu, and prayed them to salute the king from Fulk Fitz Warine, who thanked him much for his good robes. Fulk nor any of his, during the whole time that he was outlawed, would ever do hurt to any one, except to the king and to his knights.

When the merchants and their sergeants came wounded and maimed before the king, and related to the king Fulk's message and how Fulk had taken his goods, he almost went mad with rage. And he caused it to be cried through the kingdom, that whoever would bring him Fulk alive or dead, he would give him a thousand pounds of silver, and besides that he would give him all the lands which were Fulk's in England.

(What does this story mean? Compare it to Eustace's encounter with the merchant in Eustace the Monk )

⁹⁶Leland calls this forest Holt, as will be seen in the extract in a subsequent note, mistaking the English word holt, a wood, for a proper name.

⁹⁷In giving the literal representative of this word in the translation, I hope the general reader will not be led into any misunderstanding. The word sergeant, derived from the Latin serviens, belonged properly to a class of men at arms who were bound to a particular service; but it was also applied more usually to hired fighting men or guards, and was generally employed almost in the sense of our soldiers.

"Sir," said the messenger, "he is very sparing of his goods, who will not give a chaplet of roses at the request of a knight." And he gave the chaplet to Fulk; who gave him twenty sols for his pay. The messenger knew him well, for he had often seen him.

The messenger came to Canterbury; and met the hundred knights who had sought Fulk through all England, and said to them: "Lords, whence come ye? Have you found that which you have sought by command of our lord the king and for your advancement?"

"No," say they.

"What will you give me," said he, "and I will take you to the place where I saw him and spake to him yesterday?"

They gave and promised so much to the messenger that he told them where he had seen him, and how he had given him twenty sols for the chaplet which he gave him gratis. The hundred knights caused all the country to be summoned in haste, knights, esquires, and sergeants, and beset the forest all round; and set starters and receivers as if they were hunters, and placed old people and others all over the field, with horns, to raise the cry upon Fulk and his companions, when they should have issued from the forest.

⁹⁸The wearing of garlands or chaplets of flowers, especially of roses, was a very common piece of gallantry, or of foppery, in the middle ages, and is frequently alluded to in the old writers.

Fulk was in the forest, and knew nothing of this matter. At length he heard a knight sound a great bugle, and had suspicion, and commanded his brothers to mount their steeds, William, Philip, John, and Alan. His brothers mounted at once. Aldulf de Bracy and Baldwin de Hodnet, with John Malveysin,⁹⁹ mounted also. The three brothers of Cosham, Thomas, Pierce, and William, were good arblasters,¹⁰⁰ and all the rest of Fulk's people were soon ready for the attack.

Fulk and his companions issued from the forest, and saw, before all the others, the hundred knights who had sought them through England. And they charged among them, and slew Gilbert de Mountferrant and Jordan de Colchester and many other knights of the company; and they passed through the midst of the hundred knights, and sometimes returned among them, and struck them down in numbers. At length there came upon them so many knights, esquires, burghers, sergeants, and people without number, that Fulk saw well he could not support the contest, and returned into the forest; but his brother John was wounded in the head through the helm. But before they turned to the forest, many a good knight, squires, and sergeants, were cut up.

Fulk and his companions struck their steeds with their spurs, and fled. The people everywhere raised the hue and cry upon them, and everywhere pursued them with the country. At length they entered in a way, and saw but one raising the hue and cry with a horn. One of the company struck him through the body with an arrow; upon which he left the cry and the pursuit.

Fulk and his companions quitted their horses, and all on foot fled towards an abbey which was near at hand. When the porter saw them, he ran to shut the gates. Alan was very tall; and passed at once over the walls, and the porter began to fly. "Wait," said Alan. And he ran after him, and took the keys from him; and he struck him with the staff on which the keys hung a blow that fairly stopped his flying. Alan let all the brothers come in. Fulk took a habit of an old monk, and immediately dressed himself in it; and took a great club in his hand, and went out at the gate, and caused the gate to be shut after him, and goes away. He goes limping with one foot, supporting all his body on the great club. At length came knights and sergeants, with much people.

Then said a knight: "Sir old monk, have you seen any knights armed pass by here?"

"Yes, sir; may God repay them the hurt they have done!"

"What have they done to you?"

"Sir," said he, "I am aged, and can no longer help myself, I am so decrepit; and there came seven on horseback, and about fifteen on foot; and because I could not quickly get out of their way, they took no care of me, but made their horses run over me, and little did they reek of what they had done."

"Say no more," said he, "you shall be well revenged before the day is over."

The knights and all the others passed forwards in haste to pursue Fulk, and were soon a league's distance from the abbey.

⁹⁹William Malveissin is mentioned in the records, which will be given in a subsequent note, as one of the outlaws of Fulk's party, who received his pardon of king John at the same time as his chief. "There were Mauveysyns in Shropshire, lords of Berwich, near Atcham, still known as Berwich Maviston. I know of no other interest of theirs, more immediately connecting them with the border. Their tenure of Berwich was, however, under Fitz Alan. The Mauveysyn who was lord of Berwich in John's reign was not John, nor yet William." R. W. E.

¹⁰⁰I have not been able to ascertain who these three brothers were; and it would be in vain to try to identify several of the persons who are mentioned in the following pages.

Sir Fulk raised himself on his feet, to see more. At length came Sir Girard de Malfée¹⁰¹ and ten companions, knights well mounted, for they were come from abroad; and they brought with them horses of value. Then said Girard in mockery: "Here is a monk who is stout and tall; and he has a belly large enough to hold two gallons inside."

Fulk's brothers were within the gate, and had heard and seen all Fulk's proceedings. Fulk, without more words, lifted up the great club, and struck Sir Girard under the ear, that he fell quite stunned to the earth. Fulk's brothers, when they saw this, rushed out at the gate, and took the ten knights and Sir Girard and all their equipments, and bound them very tight in the porter's lodge, and took all their harness and their good steeds; and went their way, so that they never ceased wandering till they came to Huggeford. And there John was healed of his wound.

¹⁰¹[Many of the names in this poem mean something. Sir Girard is "of bad faith"---like Draco Malfoy of Harry Potter fame. However, some of the names are also real, so one needs to be careful. The poet is not always trying to say something about someone by choosing a name!]]

Fulk marries Maude de Caus
After they had dwelt there awhile, there came a messenger who had been very long seeking Sir Fulk, and saluted him on the part of Hubert archbishop of Canterbury,¹⁰² and begged him in haste to come and talk with him. Fulk took his people, and came near Canterbury, in the forest where he had been before; and left all his company there, except his brother William. Fulk and William dressed themselves as merchants, and came to Canterbury to bishop Hubert.

¹⁰²Hubert Walter was archbishop of Canterbury from 1193 to 1205.

The archbishop Hubert le Botiler said to them, "Fair sons," said he, "you are very welcome to me. You know well that Sir Theobald le Botiler,¹⁰³ my brother, is departed to God, and had espoused dame Maude de Caus, a very rich lady and the fairest in all England, and king John lusts after her so much for her beauty, that she can with difficulty be kept from him. And I have her here within, and you shall see her. And I pray you, dear friend Fulk, and command you on my benediction that you take her to wife!"

¹⁰³Theobald Walter, the brother of archbishop Hubert, accompanied Henry II into Ireland in 1171, and that monarch conferred upon him the office of chief butler of Ireland. He also accompanied prince John into Ireland in 1185. It was his son, however, who first assumed the surname of Le Botiler, or Butler, in 1221. This Theobald Walter was the ancestor of the dukes and marquises of Ormond. He is said to have died in 1206, which would overthrow the whole of this romantic story of the manner of the marriage of Fulk fitz Warine with his widow. The latter was the daughter and heir of Robert Vavasour, a Yorkshire baron.

Fulk saw her; and knew well that she was fair, good, and of good repute; and that she had in Ireland strong castles,¹⁰⁴ cities, lands, and rents, and extensive homages. With the assent of his brother William, and by the counsel of archbishop Hubert, he married the lady Maude de Caus.²⁰⁵ Fulk remained two days there, and then took leave of the bishop, and left his wife there, and returned to the wood to his companions, and told them all he had done. They made game of him and laughed, and called him husband; and asked him where he should take the fair lady, whether to castle or to wood; and made merry together. But they did everywhere great damage to the king; and to no other, but to those who were openly their enemies.

(Compare this marriage to how Guarin marries Melette and Fulk I marries Hawyse. Why would Fulk's companions tease him about his marriage? Fulk is an outlaw; what is the author trying to show by placing his marriage at this point in his story?)

¹⁰⁴It need hardly be stated that the Butlers were among the great Irish barons. Thcobald Walter possessed the baronies of Upper and Lower Ormond, besides numerous other territories.

¹⁰⁵Of this marriage there can be no doubt, as appears by the following documents taken from the Close Rolls of the ninth of king John, that is A.D. 1207, which seem to confirm the statement that Theobald Walter died in 1206. ["The King, to William of Bruse, etc. We order that you give to Fulk fitz-Warine and Matilda, who was the wife of Theobald Walter, or to their appointed messenger, the reasonable dower that belongs that that same Matilda, namely the third part of the free tenements which that same Theobald Walter held of us in Ireland, because we have granted to the aforementioned Fulk and Matilda that same Matilda's dowry and dower whole, just as we have earlier conceded these things to Robert Vavasseur, the father of that same Matilda. Witness G. (William) son of Peter, at Winchester, the first day of October. This has been written in the same form to Walter de Lacy. This has been written in the same form to Count William the Marshal. The same Fulk has letters to the justiciar of Ireland, in the same form as those which Theobald Walter had to the same justiciar." Wright includes a second letter as well: "The king to the viscount of Norfolk, etc. We order you that you shall grant to Fulk fitz-Warine and his wife Matilda, who was the wife of Theobald Walter, all of her third of the lands which belonged to Theobald Walter in your bailliwick without delay. Witness G. (William) son of Peter, at Winchester, the first day of October."]

The False Fulk
A knight who was called Robert Fitz Sampson was dwelling in the march of Scotland, and used very often to receive Sir Fulk and his people and lodge them with great honor; and he was a man of great wealth. And his wife was called the lady Anable, and was a very courteous lady. At that time there was a knight in the country who was called Piers de Bruvile.¹⁰⁶ This Piers used to collect all the sons of gentlemen of the country who were wild, and other ribald people; and used to go about the country, and slew and robbed loyal people, merchants, and others. This Piers, when he with his country went to rob people, caused himself to be called Fulk Fitz Warine, whereby Fulk and his companions gained very ill fame for that of which they were not guilty.

Fulk, who could not, for fear of king John, remain too long in one place, came by night into the march of Scotland, and came very near the court of Sir Robert Fitz Sampson. And he saw a great light within the court, and heard talking within and frequent mention of his name; and he made his companions halt outside. Fulk himself boldly entered the court, and then the hall, and saw Piers de Bruvile and other knights sitting at supper; and Robert Fitz Sampson and his good lady and the household bound and cast on one side of the hall. And Sir Piers and his companions were all masked; and all who served within bent the knee before Sir Piers, and called him their lord Sir Fulk.

The lady, who lay bound near her lord in the hall, said very piteously: "Ha! Sir Fulk," said she, "for God's mercy, I never did you hurt, but have always loved you to my power."

Sir Fulk stood up on his feet, and had heard all that he had said; but when he heard the lady speak, who had done him great kindness, for nothing in the world could he longer contain himself. All without companion he stepped forward, with his sword drawn in his hand, and said: "Now, peace! I command you, all whom I see in here, that no one stir the least." And he swore a great oath that, if any one was so bold as to stir, he would cut him into small pieces. Piers and his companions felt themselves overreached.

"Now," said Fulk, "which of you causes himself to be called 'Fulk'?"

"Sir," said Piers, "I am a knight, and am called Fulk."

"By God," said he, "Sir Fulk, rise quickly, and bind well and tight all your companions, or if not, you shall be the first to lose your head."

Piers was much terrified with the threat, and rose; and he unbound the lord and the lady and all the rest of the household, and bound well and tight all his companions. And when all were bound, Fulk made him cut off the heads of all those whom he had bound. And when he had beheaded all his companions, [said Fulk], "You recreant knight who cause yourself to be called Fulk, you lie in doing so. I am Fulk, and that you shall know well; and I will pay you off for falsely procuring me the reputation of a robber." And he immediately cut off his head; and when he had done that, he called his companions, and they supped, and enjoyed themselves much. And thus Sir Fulk saved Sir Robert and all his treasure, that nothing was lost.

¹⁰⁶He is called Bromeville by Leland.

Fulk leaves a false trail
The king very often did great damage to Sir Fulk. And Sir Fulk, strong and bold as he was, was also prudent and crafty; for the king and his people very often pursued Sir Fulk by the footmarks of his horses; and Sir Fulk very often caused his horses to be shoed with the shoes reversed,¹⁰⁷ so that the king was deceived and tricked in the pursuit. Many a hard battle Fulk endured before he gained his heritage.

¹⁰⁷We are told that when the Scottish patriot, Robert Bruce, fled from London to head a rising of his countrymen, he adopted this same expedient of having his horse shoed with the shoes turned backward, in order to deceive his pursuers. It seems to have been not an uncommon trick in the middle ages. [And you know who does it also!.]

John of Rampaigne disguises himself as a minstrel
Sir Fulk took leave of Sir Robert Fitz Sampson, and went to Alberbury, and caused his lodging to be made in a forest near the river. Fulk called John de Rampaigne; "John," said he, "you know enough of minstrelsy and jongleury;¹⁰⁸ dare you go to White-Town, and play before Morris Fitz Roger, and spy how things are going on?"

"Yea," said John. He caused a herb to be crushed and put it in his mouth; and his face began to enlarge and swell very great, and became all discolored that his own companions hardly knew him. John dressed himself very poorly, and took his box with his instruments of jongleury and a great staff in his hand; came to White-Town, and said that he was a jongleur. The porter took him before Sir Morris Fitz Roger; and Morris asked him where he was born.

"Sir," said he, "in the march of Scotland."

"And what news?"

"Sir, I know none, except of Sir Fulk Fitz Warine, who has been killed in a robbery which he was executing at the house of Sir Robert Fitz Sampson."

"Do you say the truth?"

"Yes, certainly," said he, "all the people of the country say so."

"Minstrel," said he, "for your news I will give you this cup of fine silver." The minstrel took the cup, and thanked very much his good lord.

John de Rampaigne was very ill-favored in face and body; and on this account the ribalds of the household made game of him and treated him roughly and pulled him by his hair and by his feet. He raised his staff, and struck a ribald on the head, that his brain flew into the midst of the place.

"Wretched ribald," said the lord, "what have you done?"

"Sir," said he, "for God's mercy, I cannot help it; I have a disease which is very grievous, which you may see by my face which is so much swollen. And this disease takes entire possession of me at certain hours of the day, whereby I have not power to govern myself."

Morris swore a great oath, that if it were not for the news he had brought, he would have his head cut off immediately. The jongleur hastened his departure, for the time he remained there seemed very long. He returned to Fulk, and told him from word to word how he had proceeded, and said that he had heard in the court that Sir Morris and his fifteen knights and his household would go on the morrow to the castle of Shrewsbury, for he was keeper of all the march. When Sir Fulk knew that, he was very glad and his companions also.

¹⁰⁸The jongleur, or minstrel, was so welcome a guest wherever he went, that he was often employed as a spy, or the guise of a minstrel adopted for that purpose. The account given here is an admirable and correct picture of a minstrel of this period. [Minstrels or jongleurs or troubadours came in a number of different flavors. At the top of the heap were highly educated individuals, who often could read Latin as well as the vernacular, who were frequently employed by a single lord. They might perform the songs of others (including, sometimes, the compositions of the great lords who employed them), as well as their own, and were court poets, although not the only kind to be found in a great court. They might be from the lowest ranks of the nobility (and usually younger sons) or from common backgrounds. Blondin, the troubadour of Richard the Lionheart of England, fell into this category; he found Richard when Richard was being held in captivity by the German Emperor Philip by wandering through the empire singing a song that Richard, an accomplished poet, had himself composed. Other minstrels were itinerant, and led a more chancy existence.]

Fulk rose early on the morrow, and was armed all at his will, and his companions likewise. Morris came towards Shrewsbury, and fifteen knights with him, and the four sons of Guy Fitz Candelou of Porkingtone, and the rest of his household. And when Fulk saw him, he was very glad; and he was much angered against him, because he detained from him his inheritance by force. Morris looked towards the pass of Nesse,¹⁰⁹ and saw a shield quartered with gules and indented argent, and by his arms knew that it was Fulk. "Now know I well," said Morris, "that jongleurs are liars; for there is Fulk."

Morris and his knights were very courageous; and they boldly attacked Fulk and his companions, and called them thieves, and said that before evening their heads should be placed on the high tower of Shrewsbury. Fulk and his brothers defended themselves very vigorously; and there were Morris and his fifteen knights and the four sons of Guy Fitz Candelou of Porkingtone slain; and by so many had Fulk the fewer enemies.

¹⁰⁹Ness is a parish about seven miles to the north-west of Shrewsbury, through which the road runs from that town to Oswestry and Whittington. The scene of this adventure was perhaps the neighborhood of the hill called Ness-cliff, which overlooks the road, and in the state of the country at that time was probably the best position along the road for laying in ambush to intercept a party going to Shrewsbury.

Fulk takes refuge with Prince Lewis of Wales
Fulk and his companions went their way thence toward Rhuddlan to talk with Sir Lewis,¹¹⁰ the prince, who had married Joan, the daughter of King Henry, sister of King John; for the prince and Sir Fulk and his brothers were educated together in the court of King Henry. The prince was very glad of Sir Fulk's visit, and asked him what accord there was between the king and him

"Sir," said Fulk, "none, for I cannot have peace for anything; and therefore, sir, am I come to you and to my good lady to have your peace."

"Truly," said the prince, "my peace I grant and give you, and from me you shall have good protection. The king of England knows not how to have peace with you or me or anyone else."

"Sir," said Fulk, "much thanks; for I trust me much in you and in your great loyalty. And, since you have granted me your peace, I will tell you another thing; truly, sir, Morris Fitz Roger is dead; for I have slain him."

When the prince knew that Morris was dead, he was much enraged; and said that, if he had not given him his peace, he would have had him drawn and hanged, because Morris was his cousin. Then came the good lady, and brought about an accord between the prince and Sir Fulk, so that they embraced each other and all offences were forgiven.

¹¹⁰Lewys, we must of course understand Llewellyn, the prince of Wales, who married King John's illegitimate daughter, Joan.

At this time there was great discord between Prince Lewis and Gwenwynwyn, the son of Owen Keveyloc;¹¹¹ and to this Gwenwynwyn great part of the country of Powys belonged, and he was very proud, haughty, and fierce, and would not submit to the prince in anything, but made great destruction in his land. The prince by force had totally demolished the castle of Metheyn,¹¹² and had taken into his hand Mochnant,¹¹³ Lannerth,¹¹⁴ and other lands which belonged to Gwenwynwyn. The prince entrusted the mastery of all his land to Fulk, and commanded him to go against Gwenwynwyn and destroy all his lands. Fulk was prudent and cautious, and knew well that the wrong was on the prince's side; so he said to him in fair manner: "Sir, for God's sake," said he, "pardon! if you do that which you have devised, you will be much blamed in foreign kingdoms by everybody. And, sir, if you please, be not offended that I tell it to you, all people say that you have sinned against him. And therefore, sir, for God's sake have mercy towards him, and he will return to his service to you at your will, and will serve you with gladness. And you do not know when you will have need of your barons." Fulk preached and talked so much to the prince, that the prince and Gwenwynwyn were reconciled; and the prince restored to him all his lands which had been before taken from him.

King John was at Winchester. At length came news to him that Fulk had slain Morris Fitz Roger, and that he was dwelling with Prince Lewis, who had married Joan, his sister; upon which he became very thoughtful, and for a good while uttered not a word. Then he said: "Ha! St. Mary! I am king, rule England, am duke of Anjou and Normandy, and all Ireland is in my lordship; and I cannot find or have in all my dominion, give what I will, anyone who will avenge me for the injury and shame that Fulk has done me. But I will not fail to avenge myself of the prince."

¹¹¹Gwenwynwyn succeeded to the sovereignty of the higher Powys on the death of his father, Owen Cyveilioc, in 1197. In 1201, Llewelyn prince of North Wales, at peace with king John, called a great council of the Welsh chieftains to receive their fealties as their suzerain, at which Gwenwynwyn refused to attend. Llewelyn, with the authority of the whole assembly of chieftains, made war upon the prince of Powys, and invaded his territories ; but through the mediation of mutual friends, a reconciliation was effected, and Gwenwynwyn made his submission. These events occurred just about the time of this part of the adventures of Fulk fitz Warine, and seem to be those alluded to in the text.

¹¹²Probably Mathrafal, in Montgomeryshire, an ancient palace of the princes of Powys, where a castle was built early in John's reign.

¹¹³The wild romantic valley of Mochnant, on the borders of the counties of Denbigh and Merioneth, is well-known to travellers in search of Welsh scenery, on account of its lofty cataract, the celebrated Pistyl-Rhaiadr.

¹¹⁴Llanerch, in Denbighshire.

King John attacks Fulk and Lewis
He caused to be summoned to Shrewsbury all his earls and barons and his other knights, that they should be on a certain day at Shrewsbury with all their people.¹¹⁵ And when they were come to Shrewsbury, Lewis was warned by his friends that King John would stir up great war against him; and he called Fulk, and showed him all the circumstances.

¹¹⁵At Shrewsbury. King John himself was not at Shrewsbury until the latter days of the month of January 1209, long after Fulk and his companions had been pardoned, so that, so far as relates to the presence of the king in these transactions, the narrative here cannot be correct. The narrator may, however, have inserted here the traditional account of events which really occurred in King John's expedition against the Welsh at a subsequent date. The king was, however, on the border immediately after his coronation. He was at Gloucester on the 29th and 30th of October, 1200; at Westbury, on the 30th and most of the same month; at St. Briavells, from the 1st to the 3rd of November; at Hereford, on the 4th and 5th at Ledbury, on the 6th at Upton Bishop, on the 7th at Feckenham, on the 8th and 9th at Bridgenorth, from the 11th to the 14th; and on the 15th at Haywood, in Nottinghamshire, on his return.

Fulk caused to assemble at castle Balaham in Pentlyn thirty thousand good men;¹¹⁶ and Gwenwynwyn, the son of Owen, came with his men, who were strong and bold. Fulk was skillful enough in war, and knew well all the passes by which it behooved king John to pass. And the pass was very narrow, closed in by woods and marshes, so that he could pass only by the high way. And the pass is called the Ford of Gymele.¹¹⁷ Fulk and Gwenwynwyn and their people came to the pass, and caused a long, deep, and broad ditch to be dug across the highway; and they caused the ditch to be filled with water, so that, what for the ditch and the marsh, nobody could pass. And beyond the ditch they made a defense of pales very well fortified; and the ditch may still be seen.

King John with all his army came to the ford, and thought to pass it safely; but they saw on the other side more than ten thousand knights in arms, who guarded the passage. Fulk and his companions had passed the ford by a secret road which they had made, and were on that side where the king was, and Gwenwynwyn and many other knights with them. The king cried Fulk, and the king's knights on all sides assailed Fulk; but it was much to their disadvantage, that they could not come at him except in front by the causeway. Fulk and his companions defended themselves like lions, and were often dismounted and often remounted; and many of the king's knights were slain; and Gwenwynwyn was sorely wounded in the head through the helm.

When Fulk saw that he and his people could not long hold out on the outside of their ditch, they returned by their secret way, and defended their pales and the ditch, and hurled and threw quarrels and other darts on the king's people, and slew a great number, and wounded people beyond measure. This fierce and hard battle lasted till evening. When the king saw so many of his people slain and wounded, he was so grieved that he knew not what to do; but he returned to Shrewsbury.

King John was a man without conscience, wicked, quarrelsome, and hated by all good people, and lecherous; and if he could hear of any handsome lady or damsel, wife or daughter of earl or baron or other, he would have her at his will; either seducing her by promise or gift, or ravishing her by force. And therefore he was the more hated; and for this reason many of the great lords of England had thrown up their homages to the king; for which the king was the less feared.

¹¹⁶It is called Balaha below, and was no doubt Bala, in Merionethshire, called by Powell, sub annis 1202-3, "Bala, in Penlhyn."

¹¹⁷The description is not sufficiently precise to make it easy to identify the locality here alluded to, though it is a question well worth investigation. The dyke spoken of was probably an ancient earthwork. The haut chemyn, which is spoken of as a causeway, was perhaps a Roman road, which seems to have run along the valley of the Dee.

Lewis grants Fulk White-Town
John Lestrange, lord of Knokyn and of Ruton,¹¹⁸ held always with the king, and did damage to the prince's people. And therefore the prince caused the castle of Ruton to be demolished, and took his people and imprisoned them; at which John was much grieved. The prince came to castle Balaham, and called Fulk, and gave and restored to him all White-Town, his inheritance, and Estrat, and Dinorben. Fulk thanked him much, and took those he would and went to White-Town; and caused the castle to be thoroughly fortified and repaired.

¹¹⁸Knockin and Ruyton are respectively about eight miles SSE and twelve miles SE of Oswestry. The Lestranges of Knockin are said to have been descended from the youngest of the sons of the Guy Lestrange who figures in the earlier pages of this history, of whom the John Lestrange, here mentioned, was a grandson. The truth of the statement that his castles had been destroyed in the border wars of King John's reign, is proved by the circumstance, that in the 3rd of Henry III, he obtained the king's precept to the sheriff of Shropshire for aid to rebuild his castle of Knockin. John Lestrange's steady adherence to King John is proved by abundant evidence, and this fidelity is spoken of years afterwards by Henry III in granting Wrockwardine to his son.

Fulk is attacked at White-Town, his brother wounded, and Sir Audulf de Bracy captured
John Lestrange went to the king and told him how Fulk had caused him great loss of his people and demolished his castle of Ruton; and prayed the king (for he was in favor with him) that he would aid him with power, and he would avenge him effectually on Fulk and his people. The king called Sir Henry de Audley, who was lord and first conqueror of Red Castle and of the honor;¹¹⁹ and commanded him to take ten thousand knights of the most valiant in England, and that he and his knights should be in all things obedient to Sir John Lestrange. Sir Henry and Sir John and their knights proceeded towards White-Town; and, in their progress, slew all they found, men and women, and robbed the country. The cry was raised everywhere. Fulk was at White-Town, and entertained there a fair company, because he had then now entry into his lands; and there were there from Wales seven hundred knights, and many sergeants.

¹¹⁹Henry de Audley, or Alditheley, the founder of the great family of the Audleys, was distinguished by his attachment to the cause of king John during the whole of his wars with the barons. Henry de Audley built Redcastle, in Shropshire, in the reign of Henry III.

When the news came to Fulk that Sir John and Sir Henry were approaching those parts, they armed at once and went privately to the pass of Mudle.¹²⁰ And when Sir John saw Sir Fulk, he spurred his steed, and struck Sir Fulk with his lance that it flew into little pieces. And Sir Fulk in return struck Sir John in the face through the helm, that the blow was apparent all his life; and Sir John fell all flat on the ground. Sir John was very valiant; he jumped up quickly on his feet, and shouted very loud: "Now, lords, all at Fulk!"

¹²⁰Middle is a village about seven miles to the north of Shrewsbury, at which are the remains of a castle erected there to command the valley or pass.

Fulk replied proudly: "Right," said he, "and Fulk at all!" Then the knights on both sides encountered each other. Fulk and Sir Thomas Corbet¹²¹ and his other companions slew many. Alan Fitz Warine and Philip, his brother, were wounded. When Fulk saw his brothers wounded, he went almost mad with rage. Sir Fulk put himself in the thick of the fight, and whomever he reached, he could have no succor from death. Sir Fulk had that day but seven hundred knights, and the others were ten thousand and more; wherefore Fulk could not conquer in the battle, but returned towards White-Town. Sir Audulf de Bracy was dismounted in the press, and defended himself very courageously; but at length he was taken and carried to Shrewsbury. Sir Henry and Sir John were very glad of the capture; and came to Shrewsbury to the king's presence, and gave up Sir Audulf to the king, who questioned him very proudly, and swore a great oath that he would have him drawn and hanged, because he was his traitor and his thief, and had slain his knights, burnt his cities, and demolished his castles. Audulf replied to him boldly, and said that he was never traitor, nor any of his lineage.

¹²¹The Corbets were lords of Caus in Shropshire. Thomas Corbet was eldest son of Robert Corbet, baron of Caus; but as his father survived king John, he was not himself lord of Caus during that king's reign. Thomas Corbet's disaffection, however, which lasted till the end of John's reign, was made the ground of proceedings against the father, and his castle of Caus was seized to the crown, and was not restored until the third of Henry 111. "If Thomas Corbet were in arms with Fitz Warine at the very beginning of the thirteenth century, he must have lived to an extraordinary age, for he died, I think, in 1273. I do not, however, question the accuracy of the chronicle in this matter, and there are other evidences of Thomas Corbet's entry upon active life, at least as early as the time here implied." R. W. E.

John de Rampaigne rescues Sir Audulf
Fulk was at White-Town, and caused his brothers and his other people to be washed and doctored. At length he bethought him of Sir Audulf, and caused him to be sought everywhere; and when he could not be found, he thought he should never see him again, and made so great lamentation that one could not do more. At last came John de Rampaigne, and saw Fulk making this lamentation.¹²²

"Sir," said he, "leave this mourning; and, if God please, before prime to-morrow you will hear good news of Sir Audulf de Bracy; for I myself will go and talk with the king."

John de Rampaigne knew enough of tabor, harp, fiddle, citole, and jongleury; and he attired himself very richly, like an earl or baron. And he caused his hair and all his body to be entirely dyed as black as jet, so that nothing was white except his teeth. And he hung round his neck a very fair tabor; then mounted a handsome palfrey and rode through the town of Shrewsbury to the gate of the castle; and by many a one was he looked at. John came before the king, and placed himself on his knees, and saluted the king very courteously. The king returned his salutation, and asked him whence he was?

"Sire," said he, "I am an Ethiopian minstrel, born in Ethiopia."

Said the king: "Are all the people in your land of your color?"

"Yea, my lord, man and woman."

"What do they say in foreign realms of me?"

"Sire," said he, "you are the most renowned king of all Christendom; and, for your great renown, am I come to see you."

"Fair sir," said the king, "you are welcome."

"Sire, my lord, great thanks." John said he was more renowned for wickedness than goodness; but the king heard him not.

John during the day made great minstrelsy of tabor and other instruments. When the king was gone to bed, Sir Henry de Audley sent for the black minstrel, and led him into his chamber. And they made great melody; and when Sir Henry had drunk well, then he said to a valet, "Go and fetch Sir Audulf de Bracy, whom the king will put to death to-morrow; for he shall have a good night of it before his death."

¹²²The whole of these adventures of John de Rampaigne furnish a most interesting picture of the manners of the minstrels in the middle ages, and the anecdote of his making himself known to the prisoner by a song, will remind the reader of the story of Richard I, when in prison, and the troubadour, Blondel de Nesle.

The valet soon brought Sir Audulf into the chamber. Then they talked and played. John commenced a song which Sir Audulf used to sing; Sir Audulf raised his head, looked at him full in the face, and with great difficulty recognized him. Sir Henry asked for some drink; John was very serviceable, jumped nimbly on his feet, and served the cup before them all. John was sly; he threw a powder into the cup, which nobody perceived, for he was a good juggler;¹²³ and all who drunk became so sleepy that soon after drinking they lay down and fell asleep. And when they were all asleep, John took a fool whom the king had, and placed him between the two knights who had the custody of Sir Audulf. John and Sir Audulf took the towels and sheets which were in the chamber; and, by a window towards Severn, escaped and went to White-Town, which was twelve leagues from Shrewsbury.¹²⁴ The thing could not be long concealed; for next day the whole truth was told to the king, who was much enraged at the escape.

Fulk had risen early on the morrow, for he had slept little during the night; he was looking towards Shrewsbury, and saw Sir Audulf and John coming. It need not be asked if he was glad when he saw them; he ran to embrace and kiss them. He asked them what news; and Sir Audulf related to him how John had acted and how they escaped; on which Fulk, who was before sorrowful, made great solace and great joy.

¹²³[The word "juggler" is the same in French as "jongleur" and it reflects the variety of entertaining skills that jongleurs might be expected to have.]

¹²⁴Whittington is sixteen miles from Shrewsbury; so that this would give about a mile and a half of our present measure to the league, according to the estimate of the thirteenth century.

How the king tried to seize Maude de Caus, Fulk's wife and about Fulk and Maude's children
Now let us leave Fulk and talk of Dame Maude de Caus. When the king, who had so much lusted for her, knew of a truth that she was married to Sir Fulk, his enemy, by the counsel of archbishop Hubert, he did great damage to the archbishop and to the lady; for he wanted to have her carried off by force. And she fled to the church,¹²⁵ and was there delivered of a daughter, whom the archbishop baptized by the name of Hawise, and who was afterwards lady of Wem.¹²⁶ Fulk and his companions came one night to Canterbury, and conducted the lady from thence to Hugford, and she remained awhile there. Then she became again with child, and was residing privately at Alberbury. And the king set spies upon her, and she went thence privately to Shrewsbury; and there she was followed by the spies, and she was too big to support the labor of removing from thence. And she took refuge in the church of Our Lady at Shrewsbury;¹²⁷ and was there delivered of a daughter who was baptized Joan, who was afterwards married to Sir Henry de Pembridge. Subsequently Maude had a son, who was born on a mountain in Wales, and was baptized John in a brook which comes from the Maidens' well. The lady and the child were very weak; for the child was born two months before its term. And when the child was confirmed by the bishop, it was named Fulk. The lady and the child, who were weak, were carried from the Mountain to a grange, which was that at Carreganant.

Prince Lewis makes peace with King John and Fulk leaves the country
When the king could in nowise avenge himself of Fulk, or put the lady to shame and take her, he wrote a letter to the Prince Lewis, who had married his sister Joan, and prayed him out of love to expel from his household his mortal enemy and his felon (that was, Fulk); and he would restore to him all the lands which his ancestors had ever taken from his lordship, on condition that he should cause him to have the body of Fulk. The prince called into his chamber Joan, his wife, and showed her the letter which the king her brother had sent him. When the lady had heard the letter, she sent privately to Sir Fulk all the tenor of it and that the king wanted to accord with her lord. When Fulk heard this news, he was much grieved and feared treason; he sent dame Maude by Baldwin de Hodnet privately to the bishop of Canterbury, and assigned Baldwin to come to him at Dover. Fulk and his four brothers and Audulf and John de Rampaigne armed themselves at their will, and their other people, and came to castle Balaha before the prince.

"Sire," said Fulk, "I have served you to my power loyally; but now, sir, one knows not in whom to put trust; for, in return for the king's great promise, you intend to desert me. And the king has sent you a letter, which, sir, you have concealed from me; wherefore, sir, I fear the more."

"Fulk," said the prince, "remain with me; for, truly, I had no thought of committing treason against you."

¹²⁵To the minster or cathedral of Canterbury.

¹²⁶"Hawise must have married William Pantulf, baron of Wem. This is the only record I have met with of the marriage, which is, however, very probable; for on the death of William Pantulf, in 1233, Fulk fitz Warine purchased the wardship and marriage of his infant heirs (Fines, vol. i, p. 237)." R. W. E.

¹²⁷St. Mary's is one of the most interesting churches in Shrewsbury, and a great part of the building is the same which was standing at the time when the lady Maude is said to have taken refuge in it.

¹²⁸This statement is correct. Sir Henry de Pembridge (of Pembridge in Herefordshire) was sheriff of that county in the 42nd and 43rd Henry III. Pembridge is a village about halfway between Leominster and Kington.

¹²⁹Leland, from the English poem, calls this the Maiden-frith; but I can identify neither it nor Carreganant, mentioned in connection with it.

"Truly, sir," said Fulk, "I believe it full well; but, sir, I will not remain in any wise." And he took leave of the prince and of all his companions. From thence he wandered so day and night that he came to Dover; and there he met Baldwin, who had conducted the lady to the archbishop. And they put themselves to sea, and arrived at Wissant.¹³⁰

¹³⁰[In the county of Boulogne; in other words, Fulk is arriving in Eustace's neck of the woods and more or less in Eustace's day.]

Fulk resides incognito at the court of King Philip of France
Fulk and his brothers and his other companions, when they came to Paris, saw King Philip of France,¹³¹ who was come to the fields to see the knights of France joust. Fulk remained silent, and so did his companions; when they saw so fair an assemblage, they remained to see the jousts. When the French saw the knights of England, they labored much the more to do well. Then Sir Druz de Montbener, a very proud Frenchman, sent to Sir Fulk and asked him to joust with him; and Fulk immediately granted him his request. Fulk and his brothers armed and mounted their good steeds. John de Rampaigne was very richly attired and well mounted; and he had a very rich tabor, and he struck the tabor at the entrance of the lists, that the hills and valleys rebounded and the horses became joyful.

When the king saw Sir Fulk armed, he said to Sir Druz de Montbener: "Be on your guard; for this English knight is very able and valiant, and this is very apparent."

"Sire," said he, "there is not a knight in all the world whom I dare not encounter, on horse or on foot, body against body."

"God be with you!" said the king.

Fulk and Sir Druz spurred their steeds and encountered each other. Fulk struck him with his lance in the middle of the shield and pierced his good hauberk, and through the shoulder, that the lance flew in pieces; and Sir Druz fell all flat on the ground. Fulk took the horse of Sir Druz; he led it away, and sent it as a present to air Druz, for Sir Fulk had no desire to keep the horse. At last came a French knight, who volunteered to avenge Sir Druz; he struck Fulk with his lance in the middle of the shield, that his lance broke. Fulk returned the blow in the middle of his helm, that he all bruised his lance; and the knight quitted his saddle, whether he would or not. Fulk's brothers and his companions were ready to joust; but the king would not suffer it. The king came pricking to Fulk, and said to him: "English knight, God bless you; for you have demeaned yourself right well." And he invited him to remain with him. Fulk thanked the king much, and consented to be at his will. Fulk that day was by many a one regarded, praised, and esteemed everywhere. Fulk had such favor that he came never to any place where courage, knighthood, prowess, or goodness was, that he was not held the best and without equal.

¹³¹Philip II, who occupied the French throne from 1180 to 1223. The known hostility of Philip to King John, gives a great air of probability to this part of the story, and at the time at which it may be supposed to have occurred, there was a temporary but insincere peace between the two monarchs, which ended after the murder of Arthur of Britany, in 1202. It is hardly worth the labor to attempt to ascertain if such a person as Sir Druz de Montbener ever existed, or who he was. [However, the word "druz" means lover in French, so the knight's name might be translated as "Sir Lover." That suggests that the author is making a little fun of courtly love ideals, in which being in love was supposed to make one a better fighter.]

Fulk remained with King Philip of France, and was loved and honored by the king and the queen and all good people. The king asked him what was his name; Fulk said that he was called Amis du Bois.¹³²

"Sir Amis," said the king, "you know Fulk Fitz Warine, of whom they say much good every where?"

"Yes, sire," said he, "I have often seen him."

"Of what stature is he?"

"Sire, to my estimation, he is of the same stature as I am."

Said the king, "It may well be, for you are both valiant."

Fulk could hear of no tournament or jousts in all France but he would be there; and everywhere he was prized, loved, and honored, for his prowess and his liberality.

¹³²The name thus assumed by Fulk fitz Warine, which means literally Amys of the Wood, is quite in character with his position as an outlaw. [In fact, it is the name of the hero of the epic Amis et Amiles, which dates from the early 13th century, although the legend was current from the 11th century.]

When the king of England knew that Sir Fulk was residing with king Philip of France, he sent to the king and prayed him, if he pleased, that he would expel from his household and from his suite Fulk Fitz Warine, his mortal enemy. When the king of France had heard the letter, he declared by St. Denis¹³³ that no such knight was in his retinue; and this was the answer he sent to the king of England.

When Sir Fulk heard this news, he came to the king of France and asked leave to go. Said the king, "Tell me if anything is wanting to you, and I will cause full amends to be made for anything that gives you cause to leave me."

"Sire," said he, "I have heard such news as compels me to go." And by this speech the king understood that he was Fulk.

Said the king: "Sir Amis du Bois, I think that you are Fulk Fitz Warine."

"Truly, my lord, yes."

Said the king: "You shall dwell with me, and I will give you richer lands than ever you had in England."

"Truly, sire," said he, "he is not worthy to receive lands of another's gift, who cannot hold rightfully those which are his own by direct heritage."

Fulk takes ship with Mador the Mariner
Fulk took leave of the king, and came to the sea; and he saw the ships afloat on the sea, and no wind was towards England, though the weather was fair enough. Fulk saw a mariner, who seemed bold and courageous, and he called him to him and said: "Fair sir, is this ship yours?"

"Sir," said he, "yes."

"What is your name?"

"Sir," said he, "Mador of the mount of Russia, where I was born."

"Mador," said Fulk, "do you know well this business, and to carry people by sea into divers regions?"

"Truly, sir, there is not a land of any renown in Christendom, whither I could not conduct a ship well and safely."

¹³³[St. Denis was the patron saint of France.]

"Truly," said Fulk, "you have a very perilous occupation. Tell me, Mador, fair sweet brother, of what death died your father?"¹³⁴

Mador replied to him that he was drowned in the sea.

"How your grandfather?"

"The same."

"How your great grandfather?"

"In the same manner; and all my relations that I know to the fourth degree."

"Truly," said Fulk, "you are very fool-hardy that you dare go to sea."

"Sir," said he, "wherefore? Every creature will have the death which is destined for him. Sir," said Mador, "if you please, answer my question: where did your father die?"

"Truly, in his bed."

"Where your grandfather?"

"The same."

"Where your great-grandfather?"

"Truly, all of my lineage that I know died in their beds."

"Truly, sir," said Mador, "since all your lineage died in beds, I marvel greatly that you have dared to go into any bed." And then Fulk perceived that the mariner had told him the truth, that every man shall have such death as is destined for him, and he knows not which, on land or in water.

Fulk takes up the pirate's life
Fulk spoke to Mador, who knew the manner of ships, and prayed him for love and for money that he would devise and ordain a ship, and he would pay the costs. Mador agreed to it. The ship was made in a forest beside the sea, according to the design of Mador in all points, and all the ropes and other furniture that belonged to it, so well and so richly as was wonderful; and it was exceedingly well provisioned. Fulk and his brothers and his men put to sea, and coasted England. Then saw Mador a ship well fitted for fighting coming towards them; and when the ships approached each other, a knight spoke to Mador and said: "Master mariner, whose is that ship which is in your governance? for none such is accustomed to pass here."

"Sir," said Mador, "it is mine."

"Faith!" said the knight, "it is not; you are thieves, and I know it well by the quartering of the sail, which is the arms of Fulk Fitz Warine; and he is in the ship, and before today is past I will deliver his body to King John."

"Faith!" said Fulk, "you will not do so; but if you desire anything of ours, you shall have it willingly."

"I will have," said he, "you all, and whatever you have, in spite of you."

"Faith!" said Fulk, "you shall be proved a liar."

Mador, who was a good and bold mariner, let his ship sail; and he ran right into the middle of the other ship, so that the sea entered it. And thus the ship perished; but many a hard blow was given first. And when the ship was conquered, Fulk and his companions took great riches and provisions, and brought it into their ship. At last the other ship perished and sank.

Fulk clears out a nest of pirates on an island and rescues the daughter of the lord of Orkney
Fulk all that whole year continued coasting England; and he desired to injure nobody but King John; and he often took his goods, and whatever he could get of his. Fulk began to sail towards Scotland; at last there came from the west a favoring wind, which drove them three days from Scotland. At length they saw an island that was very pleasant and fair, as they judged, and they proceeded to it, and found good port. Fulk and his four brothers and Audulf and Baldwin went on land to observe the country and to victual their ship. At last they saw a lad keeping sheep; and when he saw the knights, he went forwards to them and saluted them in a corrupt Latin. Fulk asked him if he knew of any meat to sell in the country.

"Truly, sir," said he, "no; for it is an isle which is inhabited by no people, except a few, and these people live by their beasts. But if you please to come with me, such meat as I have you shall have willingly." Fulk thanked him, and went with him; the youth led them into a cavern under ground, which was very fair, and made them be seated, and showed them good countenance enough. "Sir," said the youth, "I have a servant in the mountain; be not annoyed if I sound the horn for him; and we will soon eat."

"In God's name, let it be so!" said Fulk. The lad went outside the cavern, blew six moots, and returned into the cavern.

Soon there came six great and tall clowns and fierce, clad in coarse and filthy tabards, and each had in his hand a great staff which was hard and strong. And when Fulk saw them, he had suspicion of their ill designs. The six clowns entered a chamber, and put off their tabards, and dressed themselves in a green scarlet and shoes of orfrey; and in all articles of dress they were as richly attired as any king could be. And they returned to the hall, and saluted Sir Fulk and his companions, and there was brought to them a very rich chessboard with chessmen of fine gold and silver. Sir William sat to a game; but he lost it immediately. Sir John sat to another; it was immediately lost. Philip, Alan, Baldwin, and Audulf, one after the other, sat to a game, and each lost his game.

Then said one of the fiercest of the shepherds to Fulk, "Will you play?"

"No," said he.

"Faith!" said the shepherd, "you shall play or wrestle, in spite of your will."

"Faith!" said Sir Fulk, "wretched clown of a shepherd, you lie in that; and, since I must wrestle or play in spite of my will, I will play with you in the manner I have learnt." And he jumped up, drew his sword, and struck him with it that his head flew into the middle of the place; then another, then the third, until Fulk and his companions slew all the clownish rascals.

Fulk entered a chamber, and found an old woman seated; and she had a horn in her hand, and often put it to her mouth; but she could not blow it at all. When she saw Fulk, she cried for mercy; and he asked her what use the horn would be, if she could sound it. The old woman told him that, if the horn were sounded, succor would come to her in abundance. Fulk took the horn, and passed into another chamber. Then he saw seven damsels, who were wonderfully beautiful; and they were very richly dressed, and were working very rich work. And when they saw Fulk, they threw themselves on their knees, and cried him mercy. Fulk asked them whence they were; and one said to him, "Sir," said she, "I am the daughter of Aunflorreis of Orkney; and my lord dwelling in a castle of his in Orkney, which is called castle Bagot, and is on the sea, beside a very fair forest, it happened that I and these damsels, with four knights and others, entered a boat in the sea, and went to solace ourselves. At last came upon us the seven sons of the old woman within, with their company, in a ship; and they slew all our people, and brought us hither, and have dishonored our bodies, against our will, God knows; wherefore we pray in the name of God, in whom you believe, that you will help us from this captivity, if you can escape hence; for I see well, by your appearance, that you are not dwellers in this country."

Fulk comforted the damsels, and said that he would aid them to his power. Fulk and his companions found great riches, victual, and armor, and there Fulk found the haubergeon, which he held so rich and which he loved so much, which he used to use privately, and which he would not in all his life for any consideration sell or give.

¹³⁴This anecdote is not new, but was, if I remember right, taken from one of the old classical writers. The adventures of Fulk in the Northern Seas are rather too marvelous in character to invite much critical investigation, and I may merely observe, that they are in perfect accordance with the general knowledge (or rather, in this case, ignorance) and belief of people of that age with regard to the regions he is said to have visited.

Fulk furnished his ship richly; and carried the damsels to his ship, and made them as much at their ease as he could. And then he commanded all his people to arm in haste; and when they were all armed at will, then Fulk raised the hue and cry with the little horn which he had taken from the old woman, and then there came running over the fields more than two hundred of the thieves of the country. Fulk and his company run at them, and they defended themselves vigorously. There were slain more than two hundred of the robbers and thieves; for there was no people in all that island but robbers and thieves,¹³⁵ who used to slay all they could reach or take by sea. Fulk asked Mador if he knew how to conduct him by sea into the realm which they call Orkney.

"Yes, truly," said he; "it is but an isle; and castle Bagot is very near the port."

Fulk said: "At that castle would I be."

"Sir, within this day you shall be there."

When Fulk was arrived, then he asked the damsels if they had knowledge of the country.

"Truly, sir," said the one, "this is the realm of Aunflour my father."

Fulk came to the castle, and restored to the king his daughter and the damsels; and he received them with great honor, and gave Fulk rich gifts.

¹³⁵The reader need hardly be informed that piracy was a general occupation of the inhabitants of the Northern Islands) the descendants of the old vikings.

Fulk's ocean voyages
Fulk has sailed so much, to see marvels and adventures, that he has gone round the seven isles of the ocean, Little Britain, Ireland, Gothland, Norway, Denmark, Orkney, and Great Eschanie.¹³⁶ In Eschanie dwells no man but serpents and other foul beasts. And there Fulk saw horned serpents, and the horns were very sharp-pointed; and they have four feet, and fly like birds. One of these serpents assailed Fulk, and struck him with his horn, and pierced through his shield in the middle. Fulk wondered much at the blow; and he perceived very well that, when the serpent struck him in the shield, he could not quickly withdraw his horn; and Fulk stabbed him through the heart with his sword.

¹³⁶Scania, or Scandia, or, as we now call it, Scandinavia.

Then saw Fulk a venomous animal which had the head of a mastiff, a thick beard like a goat, and ears like a hare; and many other animals which St. Patrick drove out of Ireland, and inclosed them there through the virtue of God; for the good man St. Patrick was in favor with him. And still no venomous animal inhabits the land of Ireland except lizards without tails.¹³⁷

¹³⁷The story of the expulsion of the venomous animals from Ireland by St. Patrick, is so well known, that it is hardly necessary to illustrate this passage. Giraldus Cambrensis, Topog. Hibern., c. 21) says, ["Among all types of vermin, Ireland rejoices solely in those that are not harmful; it lacks all venomous ones. It lacks serpents and snakes; it lacks toads and frogs, it lacks tortoises and scorpions and it also lacks dragons. It has, however, spiders, has leeches and has lizards, but only harmless ones."]

Fulk and his men rescue the daughter of the duke of Cartagena from a dragon
Fulk goes sailing towards the north over the ocean sea, beyond Orkney, and found so much cold and ice, that one could not endure the cold, nor could the ship pass forward in the sea for the ice. Fulk turned back towards England. At length came a very hideous tempest, whereby all expected to perish by the tempest, and they cried devoutly to God and St. Clement¹³⁸ to be delivered from the storm. This tempest lasted them fifteen days. They then saw land, but knew not what.

Fulk went ashore, and saw a very fair castle. He entered the castle, for the gate was unclosed, and he found within neither man nor beast living, nor in all the country. And he wondered much that so fair a place should be inhabited by no one. He returned to his ship, and told it to his company.

"Sir," said Mador, "let us leave the ship and go ashore, except those who shall guard our provisions; and soon, perhaps, we shall hear from somebody what is the matter with this country."

¹³⁸St. Clement was the patron of sailors, and is generally figured with an anchor.

When they came on shore, they met a peasant. Mador asked him what land it was, and how it was named, and why it was not inhabited. The peasant told them that, "It is the kingdom of Iberie, and this country is called Cartagena. This castle belongs to the duke of Cartagena, who holds of the king of Iberie. This duke had a daughter, the fairest maiden that one knew in the kingdom of Iberie. This damsel mounted one day the principal tower of the castle. Then came a flying dragon, and took the damsel, and carried her to a high mountain in the sea, and ate her. This dragon has slain and destroyed all this country; on which account no man has dared to inhabit the country, nor has the duke dared to enter this castle, the dragon is so hideous."

Fulk returned to his galley, and sailed forward. Then they saw a great mountain in the sea.

"Sir," said Mador, "it is the mountain where the dragon dwells; now we are all in great peril!"

"Hold your peace," said Fulk, "as yet you see nothing but good. Master Mador, will you be dead of fear? Many a dragon we have seen, and God has easily delivered us from danger. We were never yet in peril from which, thank God, we have not well escaped. Your bad comfort would put a coward to death."

Fulk took Audulf de Bracy, and by steps ascended the mountain, which was very high; and when they came to the summit of the mountain, they saw many a good hauberk, helm and swords and other arms, lying there, and they saw beside the arms nothing but people's bones. And they saw a large and fair tree, and a fountain beneath it running with fair and clear water. Fulk looked about him, and saw a hollow rock; raised his right arm and crossed himself in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost; drew his sword, and very boldly entered, as one who trusted entirely in God. And he saw a very fair damsel weeping and making great lamentation. Fulk asked her whence she was.

"Sir," said she, "I am daughter of the duke of Cartagena; and I have been in here seven years. And I never saw a Christian herein, unless he came against his will, and, if you have the power, for God's sake, go away; for if the dragon come from within, you will never escape."

"Truly," said Fulk, "I will not go hence till I hear and see more. Damsel," said Fulk, "what does the dragon do with you? Does he do you no harm?"

"Sir," said she, "the dragon is fierce and strong; and he would carry an armed knight to these mountains, if he could take him in his claws; and many a one has he brought and eaten, of whom you may see there outside the bones; and he likes human flesh better than any other. And when his hideous face and his beard are covered with blood, then he comes to me, and makes me wash with clear water his face and his beard and his breast. And when he wants to sleep, he goes to his couch which is all of fine gold; for such is his nature that he is very hot in the extreme, and gold is very cold by nature; and, to cool himself, he lies on gold. And when he goes to his couch, he takes a great stone, as you may see there, and puts it before the door, for fear of me lest I should kill him when asleep; for he has the sense of a man and fears me greatly. And, in the end, I know well that he will slay me."

"By God!" said Fulk, "if it please God, he shall not do it."

Fulk took the damsel, and gave her in charge to Sir Audulf, and they came out from the rock. And they had not long come out when they saw the flying dragon in the air come towards them, and it cast forth from its mouth, which was hot, smoke and flame very horrible. And it was a very foul beast; and it had a great head, teeth squared, sharp claws, and long tail. The dragon, when it saw Fulk, aimed at him, and with its claw in flying struck him on the shield that it tore it through the middle. Fulk raised his sword, and struck the dragon on the head as hard as he could. And the blow did not hurt him at all, nor did he at all flinch at the blow, so hard had he both bone and skin. The dragon took his run from afar to strike hard; and Fulk, who could not withstand the blow, shrunk behind the tree which stood beyond the fountain.

Fulk perceived that he could not hurt the dragon in front, so he contrived, at a return which the dragon made, to strike him well in the body upon the tail, and cut it in two. The dragon began to cry and roar; jumps at the damsel, and would take her and carry her elsewhere; and Sir Audulf defended her. The dragon took Sir Audulf with his claw so tightly that, if Fulk had not come very hastily, he would have crushed him. Then came Fulk, and cut off his paw, and with great difficulty set Sir Audulf free, for he had fixed him hard with his paw through the hauberk. Fulk struck the dragon through the middle of the mouth with his sword, and by that slew him.

Fulk was very weary, and reposed himself awhile; then he went to the dragon's sleeping place, and took all the gold he found there and caused it to be carried to his galley. John de Rampaigne examined the wound of Sir Audulf, and doctored it; for he knew much of medicines. Mador turned back his ship towards Cartage, and they arrived in the country, and restored to the duke his daughter, who was very glad when he saw her. The damsel related to her lord what life she had led, and how Fulk slew the dragon. The, duke fell down at Fulk's feet, and thanked him for his daughter; and prayed him, if he pleased, that he would dwell in the country, and he would give him all Cartage with his daughter in marriage. Fulk thanked him finely and heartily for his fair offer, and said that he would willingly take his daughter, if his Christianity would suffer it; for he had already a married wife. This said, Fulk dwelt there until Audulf was whole of his wound; and then he took leave of the duke, who was very sorrowful for his departure. The duke gave them many a good jewel and fair, and steeds very handsome and swift, and to everyone he gave rich gifts.

Fulk disguises himself as a charcoal burner and traps King John
Fulk and his companions sailed towards England. When they arrived at Dover, they went on shore, and left Mador with the ship in a certain place where they could find him when they would. Fulk and his companions had learnt from the people who passed them that king John was at Windsor,¹³⁹ and they set out privily on the way towards Windsor. By day they slept and reposed, and by night they wandered, until they came to the forest; and there they lodged in a certain place where they used before to be in the forest of Windsor, for Fulk knew all the parts there. Then they heard huntsmen and men with hounds blow the horn, and by that they knew that the king was going to hunt. Fulk and his companions armed themselves very richly. Fulk swore a great oath that for fear of death he would not abstain from revenging himself on the king, who forcibly and wrongfully had disinherited him, and from challenging loudly his rights and his heritage. Fulk made his companions remain there; and himself, he said, would go and look out for adventures.

¹³⁹One incident in the adventures in Windsor forest, that with the collier, bears rather a close resemblance to one in the French metrical history of Eustace le Moine [No kidding!].

Fulk disguises himself as a collier
Fulk went his way, and met an old collier carrying a triblet¹⁴⁰ in his hand; and he was dressed all in black, as a collier ought to be. Fulk prayed him for love that he would give him his clothes and his triblet for money. "Sir,"said he, "willingly." Fulk gave him ten besants,¹⁴¹ and begged him for his love that he would not tell anybody of it. The collier went away. Fulk remained, and now dressed himself in the attire which the collier had given him, and went to his coals, and began to stir up the fire. Fulk saw a great iron fork, which he took in his hand, and arranged here and there the pieces of wood. At length came the king with three knights, all on foot, to Fulk where he was arranging his fire. When Fulk saw the king, he knew him well enough, and he cast the fork from his hand, and saluted his lord, and went on his knees before him very humbly. The king and his three knights had great laughter and game at the breeding and bearing of the collier; they stood there very long.

Fulk captures king John
"Sir villain," said the king, "have you seen no stag or doe pass here?"

"Yes, my lord, a while ago."

"What beast did you see?"

" Sir, my lord, a horned one; and it had long horns."

"Where is it?"

"Sir, my lord, I know very well how to lead you to where I saw it."

¹⁴⁰I have translated this by the word triblet, as the only one I could get which seems to answer to it. It was, perhaps, a rod of iron, used in arranging the wood for burning; though it is by no means impossible that we ought to read crible, a sieve. In the manuscripts it is impossible to distinguish between c and t.

¹⁴¹The value of a besant is variously estimated at from ten to twenty sols. It was a foreign coin of gold, receiving its name from Byzantium, and it is therefore quite in character that it should be the money which the adventurers would possess on their return from their strange wanderings abroad.

"Onward, then, sir villain;¹⁴² and we will follow you."

"Sir," said the collier, "shall I take my fork in my hand? For, if it were taken, I should have thereby a great loss."

"Yea, villain, if you will."

Fulk took the great fork of iron in his hand, and led the king to shoot; for he had a very handsome bow.

"Sir, my lord," said Fulk, "will you please to wait, and I will go into the thicket, and make the beast come this way by here?"

"Yea," said the king. Fulk hastily sprang into the thick of the forest, and commanded his company hastily to seize upon King John, "For I have brought him there, only with three knights; and all his company is on the other side of the forest."

Fulk and his company leaped out of the thicket, and cried upon the king, and seized him at once.

"Sir king," said Fulk, "now I have you in my power; such judgment will I execute on you as you would on me if you had taken me."

The king trembled with fear, for he had great dread of Fulk. Fulk swore that he should die for the great damage and disinheriting which he had done to him and to many a good man in England. The king implored his mercy, and begged his life of him for the love of God; and he would restore him entirely all his heritage and whatever he had taken from him and from all his people, and would grant him his love and peace for ever, and of this he would make him in all things such security as he might himself choose to devise. Fulk soon yielded his demand, on condition that he gave him, in presence of his knights, his faith to keep this covenant. The king pledged his faith that he would hold the covenant, and he was very glad that he could thus escape.

¹⁴²[Villain is an old term for an unfree peasant.]

And he returned to his palace, and caused his knights and his courtiers to assemble, and told them from word to word how Sir Fulk had deceived him; and he said that he had made that oath through force, and therefore he would not hold it; and commanded that they should all arm in haste to take those felons in the park. At length Sir James of Normandy,¹⁴³ who was the king's cousin, prayed that he might have the advanced guard; and said that, "The English, nearly all the men of rank, are cousins to Sir Fulk, and for that are traitors to the king, and will not take those felons."

¹⁴²I can find no account of this near relative to royalty.

Then said Randulf earl of Chester:¹⁴⁴ "In faith, sir knight! Saving the honor of our lord the king, not yours, you lie." And he would have struck him with his fist, and it not being for the earl marshal; and said that they neither are nor never were traitors to the king nor to his, but he said right that all the men of rank and the king himself were cousins to Sir Fulk.

Then said the earl marshal: "Let us go and pursue Sir Fulk; the king will then see who will flinch for his cousenage."

Fulk wins a battle over Sir James of Normandy, but his brother is wounded
Sir James of Normandy and fifteen knights his companions armed themselves very richly and all in white armor, and were all nobly mounted on white steeds; and he hurried forward with his company, to have the capture.

Now John de Rampaigne had spied all their proceedings, and told them to Sir Fulk, who could in no manner escape except by battle. Sir Fulk and his companions armed themselves very richly, and put themselves boldly against Sir James, and defended themselves vigorously, and slew all his companions except four, who were almost wounded to death; and Sir James was taken. Sir Fulk and his companions now armed themselves with the arms of Sir James and of the other Normans; and mounted their good steeds, which were white, for their own steeds were tired and lean; and they armed Sir James with the arms of Sir Fulk; and bound his mouth, that he could not speak, and put his helm on his head; and rode towards the king. And when he saw them, he knew them by their arms, and thought that Sir James and his companions were bringing Sir Fulk.

Then Sir Fulk presented Sir James to the king, and said that it was Sir Fulk. The earl of Chester and the earl marshal, when they saw this, were very sorry. The king, for the present, commanded him that he should kiss him; Sir Fulk said that he could not wait to take off his helm, for he must go and pursue the other Fitz-Warines. The king descended from his good steed, and commanded him to mount it, for it was fleet to pursue his enemies. Sir Fulk descended, and mounted the king's steed, and went his way towards his companions, and they fled soon to a distance of six leagues from thence. And there they disarmed in a wood, and washed their wounds; and they bandaged the wound of William, his brother, who was severely wounded by one of the Normans, and they held him for dead, for which they all made excessive lamentations.

The king commanded on the spot to hang Sir Fulk. At length came Emery de Pin, a Gascon, who was kinsman to Sir James, and said that he would hang him; and took him, and led him a little from thence and caused his helm to be taken off; and now he saw that it was James, and unbound his mouth. And he told him all that had happened between him and Sir Fulk. Emery came immediately to the king, and brought Sir James, who told him how Sir Fulk had served him. And when the king perceived that he was thus deceived, he was much vexed, and swore a great oath that he would not divest himself of his hauberk until he had taken these traitors. And of this Sir Fulk knew nothing.

Fulk is Wounded and his brother William captured
The king and his earls and barons pursued them by the footmark of their horses, until they came almost to the wood where Fulk was. And when Fulk perceived them, he wept and lamented for William his brother, and held himself lost for ever. And William begged of them that they would cut off his head and carry it with them, that the king, when he found his body, might not know who he was. Fulk said that he would not do that for the world, and prayed very tenderly and in tears that God for his pity would be to them in aid; and such grief as was among them, you never saw greater made.

Ranulf, earl of Chester, came in the first place; and when he perceived Sir Fulk, he commanded his company to halt, and went alone to Sir Fulk, and prayed him for the love of God to yield himself to the king, and he would answer for him for life and limb, and his peace would be easily made with the king. Fulk replied that he would not do that for all the wealth in the world; "But, sir cousin, for the love of God, I pray you for my brother, who is there, when he is dead, that you cause his body to be buried, that wild beasts may not devour it, and ours too, when we are dead. And return to your lord the king, and do your duty to him without cowardice, and without having regard to us, who are of your blood; and we will receive now here the destiny which is ordained for us." The earl, all weeping, returned to his company. Fulk remained, who very tenderly wept with pity for his brother, whom he was compelled to leave there; and prays God to succor and aid them.

¹⁴⁴This was the celebrated Ranulf earl of Chester, who, having been born at Oswestry, and being so much connected with the border, could not but feel an interest in the Fitz Warines. The knight of Normandy was quite correct in his estimate of the great connections which the Fitz Warines had among the English barons. Earl Ranulf remained steady to the royal cause during his wars with the barons. The earl marshal mentioned here, was the no less celebrated Hugh Bigot.

The earl commanded his retinue and his company to the assault, and they laid on vigorously. The earl himself attacked Sir Fulk; but at last the earl lost his horse, and his retinue were in great part slain. Fulk and his brothers defended themselves bravely; and as Fulk was defending himself, Sir Berard de Blées²⁴⁵ came behind him, and struck him with his sword in the side, and believed he had killed him. At length Fulk turned round, and returned the blow on his left shoulder with both his hands, and cut through his heart and lung, and he fell dead from his steed. Fulk had bled so much that he fainted on the neck of his steed, and his sword fell from his hand. Then began grief wonderfully among the brothers. John, his brother, leapt behind Fulk on the steed, and held him up that he could not fall; and they took to flight, for they had not power to remain. The king and his retinue pursued them, but they could not take them. Then they wandered all the night, till on the morrow morning they came to the sea to Mador the mariner. Then Fulk revived, and asked where he was, and in whose power; and his brothers comforted him in the best way they could, and laid him in bed in the ship in a very fair bed, and John de Rampaigne doctored his wounds.

The earl of Chester had lost greatly of his people, and saw near him William Fitz-Warine almost dead, and took the body and sent it to an abbey to be doctored. In the end he was discovered there, and the king caused him to be brought in a litter to Windsor before him, and caused him to be thrown into a deep prison, and was much angered against the earl of Chester because he concealed him. Said the king: "Fulk is mortally wounded, and this one have I now here; the others I shall easily take, be they where they will. Truly, I am greatly annoyed at the pride of Fulk; for had it not been for his pride, he would have been still alive. And as long as he was alive there was not such a knight in all the world; wherefore it is a great loss to lose such a knight."

¹⁴⁵Blées is of course Blois.

Fulk is accidentally abandoned by his companions
In the sea near Spain is an island entirely closed in with high rock, and there is only one entrance; it is called Beteloye,¹⁴⁶ half a league long and as much broad, and there was neither man nor beast inhabiting it. The sixth day they came to this isle. Fulk began then to sleep, for during six days before he had not slept. His brother and his retinue went on shore; and he himself alone slept in the ship, which was attached to the rock. At length came a hideous wind, and broke the cords of the ship, and carried the ship out into the open sea. When Fulk awoke and saw the stars and the firmament, he called his brother John and his other companions; and nobody answered him, and he saw that he was alone on the open sea. And then he began to weep, and to curse his destiny, which was so hard, and he regretted his brothers. Then a slumber seized upon him, and soon his ship arrived in the land of Barbary, at the city of Tunis.

Fulk becomes the champion of the king of Barbary
And there at that time was Messobryns, king of Barbary, with four kings and six admirals, who were all Saracens. The king leaned on a tower towards the sea, and saw this marvelous galley arrive in his land, and commanded two sergeants to go and see what it was. The two sergeants entered the ship; they found nothing but the knight, who was still asleep. The one pushed him with his feet, and commanded him to awake. The knight jumped up like a man in a fright, and struck him with his fist that he fell overboard into the middle of the sea; the other took to flight, and came to tell the king how it had happened to him. The king commanded a hundred knights to go and take that ship, and bring the knight to him. The hundred knights, all armed, came to the ship, and assailed it on all sides. Fulk defended himself courageously against them all; but at last he surrendered on condition that he should have no hurt. They led him before the king, who commanded that he should be served well in a chamber.

¹⁴⁶Perhaps this name is made up from one of the names Beetulo or Betuli, placed in Spain by the ancient geographers. Now that Fulk and his companions proceed abroad, the whole becomes again a mere romance, and we might as well imagine ourselves reading Guy of Warwick, or Bevis of Hampton, or any other romance of that class, some of which perhaps furnished the incidents of our story.

Isorie, the king's sister, used often to visit and comfort him, and was a very fair and gentle damsel; and she saw that he was wounded in the side, and prayed him for love that he would tell her how he was named, and from what land he was, and in what manner he was wounded. He replied that he was named Marin le Perdu¹⁴⁷ of France, and that he loved tenderly from his heart a damsel, daughter of an earl of his country, and she made him in return great semblance of love; but she loved more another. "And it happened that she and I one day were together through great love, and she held me in her arms very tight; at length came the other whom she loved more, and struck me here with a sword; and then they placed me in a galley on the sea for dead, and the galley brought me into these parts."

"Truly," said Isorie, "that damsel was not overly courteous." Isorie took her harp, which was very rich, and made descants and notes to solace Fulk; for she saw that he was handsome, and of courtly breeding.

Fulk asked of Isorie the fair what was the noise that was before the king in the hall.

¹⁴⁷["Lost sailor"]

"Truly," said she, "I will tell you. In the land of Iberie was a duke who was called duke of Cartagena, and he had a very fair daughter, Ydoine of Cartagena. She during her father's life dwelt in his castle of Cartagena. At length came a dragon, and took her and carried her to a high mountain in the sea; and held her more than seven years, when there came to the mountain a knight of England, who was called Fulk Fitz-Warine de Metz, and slew the dragon, and restored her to her father. Soon after the duke died, and she holds all the duchy. The king, my brother, sent messengers to her that he would take her to wife, and she refused him; and for shame which the king had, he caused a great multitude to be assembled, and destroyed her cities and beat down her castles. The damsel fled thence into a foreign country to seek succor; but now she is returned with people without number, and begins fiercely to make war upon the king, and she is ready to do battle against host, or knight against knight, so that if hers be vanquished she shall go to her own country; and if ours be vanquished, the king, my brother, shall make good all her damages. And upon this there came today proud messages; and may it please the god Muhammad¹⁴⁸ that you were such as you dare take the battle for the king my brother; for great honor would accrue to you."

"Truly, my damsel, I am greatly obliged to my lord the king, and especially to you; but I will never take battle for Saracen against Christian, though I should lose my life. But if the king will relinquish his faith, and become a Christian, and be baptized, I will take the battle, and will save his land and his people, and will cause him to have that damsel of whom you have told me."

Isorie went to tell to Messobryn, her brother, the king of Barbary, all that Fulk, who had assumed the name of Marin le Perdu of France, had promised her. The king at once granted all that he would order, if Fulk could so carry out this business.

Fulk fights his brother
The day of the battle was ordained, the king armed Sir Fulk very richly, and Isorie herself served him very willingly. The king and his Barbarines, his admirals, and all his other people, were richly armed, and much people with them; and they put forward his knight Fulk, who was to do the battle; and the duchess put forward her (knight). The knights, who were fierce, urged their horses with spurs, and struck with their lances, that the pieces flew about the field; then drew their swords, and encountered each other courageously. Fulk struck the horse of his companion, so that he fell dead, but he had wished to have smitten the knight. When the knight was on the ground then he said; "Wicked heathen, bad Saracen of an ill faith, may the God of heaven curse you; why have you killed my horse?"

Fulk dismounted on foot and they fought together fiercely all the day; when it was near the evening said the knight to Fulk; "Sir pagan, you are strong and active; for the love of me where were you born?"

"If you want to know my nation I will not tell you, unless you tell me first about yours and I will grant it you."

The knight said that he was a Christian born in England, the son of Warine de Metz, and he was called Philip le Rous. And he told word by word in order entirely all his life and that of his brothers, and how the duchess came in a ship by the island of Betloye, and how she removed them in the ship and saved them. For they were there half a year and more, and they ate their horses for hunger. "And when the countess saw us, she knew us at once, and found us whatever we needed; and told us that she came from England, and that she had sought us there to maintain her war; and such hard life have we led."

"Fair brother Philip the Red, do you not know me? I am Fulk, your brother."

"Nay, truly, Sir Saracen, you are not; but now you would deceive me. By God! you shall not do it!"

Then Fulk told him a true mark, by which he knew him well. Then they made great joy, and postponed the battle till the morrow. Philip told the duchess that it was Fulk his brother with whom he had fought, so that by the counsel of Fulk and Philip and his other brothers, the king and all his household were baptized, and the king married the duchess with great honor.

Fulk and his brothers and his retinue remained a while with the king, then prepared them very richly towards England. The king gave them gold, silver, horses, arms, and all the riches that they would have or desire; and they filled their ship with so much riches as was wonderful.

¹⁴⁸[This was a very common medieval Christian misconception, that Muslims worshiped Muhammad, as well as other gods. What is particularly interesting, is that there is some evidence that Christians of the tenth and eleventh centuries, when they knew anything about Muslims at all, had a more accurate picture of their beliefs. In the thirteenth century, the Qur'an was translated into Latin (for use by Christian missionaries), so some more educated people actually knew that Muslims worshiped God, as they did.]

John de Rampaigne disguises himself as a merchant
When they had arrived secretly in England, Fulk ordered that John de Rampaigne should make himself a merchant and inquire where king John was,¹⁴⁹ and if William, his brother, were alive or not. John dressed himself very richly in guise of a merchant, came to London, and lodged in the house of the mayor, and caused himself to be served very richly, and obtained the acquaintance of the mayor and all his household, and gave them fair gifts; and prayed the mayor that he would cause him to have knowledge of the king, so that he could bring his ship to the shore in his land. And what he talked was corrupt Latin;¹⁵⁰ but the mayor understood it well. The mayor conducted him to the presence of King John at Westminster, and the merchant very courteously saluted him in his language. The king understood it well, and asked who he was and whence he came.

¹⁴⁹At this place the manuscript of the English poem used by Leland broke off abruptly, from mutilation.

During this period of his outlawry, Fulk fitz Warine appears to have been deserted by some of his comrades, who had no doubt joined him as an ally in circumstances similar to those in which he had been thrown. We find in the patent rolls that on the 30th April, 1202, Eustache de Kidwelly, one of Fulk's companions, obtained his own pardon. ["King, etc., to his justiciars, viscounts, and all bailiffs and faithful men of his in England, etc. Know in as much as it pertains to us that we have pardoned Eustace de Kidwelly concerning the escape he made and the outlawry promulgated against him upon the downfall of Fulk fitz Warine, whose companion he was. And we permit him to return to our land of England and he shall have our peace there. However, he should make peace with those against whom he brought harm and because of whom he took flight; he should either stand trial directly if anyone wishes to speak against him or he may freely and without impediment leave our land of England if he does not wish to do this. Witness, H. the archbishop of Canterbury, our chancellor, at Ponte-de-l'Arche, 30th day of April."] The king was at this time in Normandy, at Pont-de-l'Arche.

¹⁵⁰This has been already mentioned as the language in which Fulk conversed with the pirates of Orkney, and it is alluded to in other medieval writings as a dialect in which people of different countries understood one another, especially merchants. It was, in fact, something like the Lingua Franca of the Mediterranean in modern times. It was quite in the character of a minstrel who traveled from country to country to understand it. [It would be surprising, however, for a king to admit to understanding it!]

"Sir," said he, "I am a merchant of Greece, and have been in Babylon,¹⁵¹ Alexandria, and India the Greater, and have a ship laden with avoirdupois, rich cloths, pearls, horses, and other riches which might be of great worth to this kingdom."

"I will," said the king, "that you and yours come to shore well in my land, and I will be your warrant." And they were commanded to stay and eat. The mayor and the merchant ate together before the king. At last came two sergeants-at-mace, and conducted into the hall a tall knight, stout, with a long and black beard, and meanly clad, and they seated him in the midst of the area, and gave him to eat. The merchant asked the mayor who he was; and he told him a knight named Sir William Fitz Warine, and related to him entirely all the affair of him and his brothers. And when he heard him named, then he was very glad that he saw him alive; but much grieved in his heart that he saw him so ill at ease. The merchant, as soon as he could, hastened to Sir Fulk, and told him all his proceedings, and caused them to bring the ship as near the city as they could. On the morrow the merchant took a white palfrey (there was not so beautiful a one in all the kingdom), and presented it to king John, who received it very joyfully on account of its beauty. The merchant gave so liberally, that he made himself beloved by all, and could do in court what he pleased.

William fitz Warine is rescued
One day he took his companions, and they armed themselves well, and then put on their gowns as is the custom with mariners, came to Westminster to court, and were there nobly received, and saw William Fitz Warine who was led by his keepers towards the prison. The merchant and his companions, in spite of the keepers, took him by force and carried him to their boat, which was afloat pretty near below the palace, and put themselves in. The keepers raised the hue and cry, and pursued them; but the merchants were well armed, and defended themselves courageously, and escaped to their galley, and sailed towards the high sea. When Fulk saw William, his brother, and John de Rampaigne, who was merchant, it need not be asked if he was joyful; they kissed each other, and each told the other his adventures and his griefs. And when the king heard that he was taken in by the merchant, he was very much mortified.

¹⁵¹The city known as Babylon in the middle ages was Cairo in Egypt, the capital of the Egyptian califs. This city, and that of Alexandria, were the great emporia of the medieval trade with the East, and especially with India.

Fulk and his companions are pardoned by King John
Fulk and his companions arrived in Britanny, and dwelt there half a year and more, with his kinsmen and cousins. At length he thought that nothing should hinder him from going into England. And when he came into England, in the New Forest,¹⁵² where he used to haunt, he fell in with the king, who was pursuing a boar. Fulk and his companions took him and six knights with him, and carried him into their galley. The king and all his were much abashed. There were many words; but at last the king pardoned them all his spite, and restored them all their inheritance, and promised them in good faith that he would cause their peace to be proclaimed through all England; and for the doing of this he left his six knights with them as hostages, until the peace was proclaimed.

¹⁵²[So called, because William the Conqueror had created it by razing villages.]

The king went thence to Westminster, and caused to assemble earls, barons, and the clergy, and told them openly that he had of his own will granted his peace to Fulk Fitz Warine and his brothers and all his adherents, and commanded that they should be honorably received through all the kingdom, and granted them entirely all their heritage. When Hubert the archbishop heard this, he was very glad, and sent his letters immediately to Fulk and to the earl of Gloucester, and to Randulf earl of Chester, and to Hugh earl-marshal, that they should come in haste to him at Canterbury; and when they were come, they ordained that Fulk and his brothers should surrender themselves at London to the king. Fulk and his brothers and the three earls with their power appareled themselves as richly as they knew how and were able, and came through London with noble apparel, and knelt before the king at Westminster, and rendered themselves to him.¹⁵³ The king received them, and restored to them all that was theirs in England, and commanded them to remain with him; which they did a whole month. Then Fulk took leave, and, remained with the earl-marshall; and the earl gave him on Ashdown, Wanting, and other lands. Fulk and his brothers armed themselves to their liking, and came to Abingdon, and removed thence all that they could find to sell, and caused it to be taken and carried to Wanting, and he made there a fair and a market town,¹⁵⁵ which has been since held there and is still.

Fulk kills a giant in Ireland
Fulk took leave of the earl-marshal, and went thence to earl Ranulf of Chester, who was appareling himself with much people towards Ireland to defend his rights there. When they arrived, they saw a great assemblage of their enemies. The earl commanded that all should arm; and the earl had with him three youthful brothers who were people of great valor and force and were armed and well mounted, and with them was Fulk. At length they saw a hideous giant among their enemies, who was well armed, all on foot, hideous, black, and horrible, longer than any other by twelve feet; and he cried: "Earl of Chester, send me the most valiant knight you have to advocate your right." The three youths, who heard it, encountered him each after the other; and he slew them immediately with the axe he held. At last Fulk let go his horse, and would have struck him with his lance; and the giant flinched a little, and struck at Fulk that he had almost killed him. Fulk feared him much and watched him well, until with his lance he struck him through the body; he fell to the ground, and as he fell struck Fulk's horse and cut off two of his feet. Fulk fell to the ground, and sprung up again, and drew his sword and cut off his head; and he carried his axe to White-Town, where Fulk had caused to be built in the marsh a strong and fair castle. And thus conquered the earl all his lands and castles in Ireland. And when he had remained there, he replenished his lands, and then returned to England.

¹⁵³It may be well to observe here, that none of these adventures can be correctly told, as far as regards the presence of the king, as we learn from the dates of the records on the rolls, that John was absent, engaged in his wars in Normandy, from the end of May 1201, till the 7th of December, 1203, when he returned to Portsmouth, that is, during nearly the whole period of Fulk fitz Warine's outlawry.

¹⁵⁴[This note is much shortened.] According to the records, Fulk and his companions owed their pardon to the bishop of Norwich and the earl of Salisbury, and not to Hubert Walter; but the archbishop, who held the two important offices of lord chancellor and grand justiciary, may still have been the real and primary mediator. There is a greater error in laying the scene of this last act of the adventures of the outlaws at Westminster, for the king was all this time in Normandy, and did not return to Westminster until the 22nd of January, 1204, more than two months after the pardon was given. According to the patent rolls, it was on the 20th of August, 1203, that king John first gave Fulk and his companions a safe conduct for a fortnight to come to the court, then at Verneuil, in Normandy. On the 12th of September, the king, then at Herbetot, granted another safe-conduct, for a week, to Fulk fitz Warine and Baldwin de Hoduet and their companions. On the 2nd of October, another safe-conduct for a fortnight was granted to Fulk fitz Warine and such as he might bring with him, the king being then at Montfort. At length, on the 15th of November, Fulk fitz Warine received his pardon from the king, who was then at Caen.

On the 11th of November, the king, then at Rouen, gave a similar pardon to Vivian de Prestecotes, one of Fulk's companions, who had been outlawed for some act of violence against Jorvet de Hulton. Whittington was restored to Fulk fitz Warine soon afterwards, as we know from the same records.

The same records give us as follows, the names of those of Fulk's companions who received their pardon at the same time, distinguishing them into those who had originally joined in Fulk's rebellion, and those who, having been outlawed for other causes, afterwards joined him. The first list contains the names of several borderers: Baldwin de Hodenet, William fitz-Fulk, John de Tracy, Roger de Preston, Philip fitz-Warine, Yves fitz-Warine, Ralph Gras, Stephen de Hodenet, Henry of Pontesbury, Herbert Branche, Henry le Norreis, William Malveissin, Ralph fitzWilliam, Abraham Passavaut, Matthew de Dulvustiria, Hugh Rufus, William Gernun, Walter of Alwestana, John de Preston, Richard de Preston, Philip de Hauewuda, Hamo of Wakefield(?), Arfin Marnur, Adam de Creckefergus, Walter le Sumter, Gilbert de Dover, William de Eggremundia, John de Lamborne, Henry Walenger, John Descunsit, William Fet, William Cook, Geoffrey his son, Phillip de Wemma, Richard Scott, Thomas de Lidetuna, Henry of Gloucester.

These were outlawed for their crimes and afterward came to that same Fulk and were restored on account of the petition of the lord bishop of Norwich and W. count of Salisbury, the brother of the lord king: Hugh Fressellus, Orun de Prestecotes, Roger de Waletona, Reynold fitzReynold, William fitzWilliam, William son of Richard de Bertona, Richard of Wakefield, Henry son of Robert le Kinge of Uffington, John son of Toke, Henry le Francets, Walter Godric, Thomas his brother, Roger de Onderoude, Roger de la Hande, William fitzJohn.]

¹⁵⁵Wanting in Berkshire, now called Wantage, is supposed to have been originally a Roman station, and was a place of some importance in Saxon times, being well known as the birth-place of King Alfred. The manor was given from the crown in the reign of Richard 1, to Baldwin de Bethune earl of Albemarle, from whom it passed to William de Valence earl of Pembroke, and his eldest daughter carried it by marriage to Hugh Bigot, the earl marshal. Hugh Bigot, as here stated, granted this manor to Fulk fitz Warine, but the grant was made in reward for military services, and its date was 1215, long after that at which it appears here to be placed.

Fulk does penance for his sins and dies
Fulk came to White-Town, and found there Maude, his wife, and his children, who were very glad of his coming; and they made great joy between them. Then Fulk caused his treasures and his riches to be brought; gave lands and horses to his sergeants and friends very largely, and maintained his land in great honor. Fulk bethought him that he had greatly sinned against God, as by slaughter of people and other great offences; and, in remission of his sins, founded a priory in the honor of our lady St. Mary of the order of Grandmont near Alberbury,¹⁵⁶ in a wood, on the river Severn; and it is called the New Abbey. And not long after died dame Maude de Cause,¹⁵⁷ his wife, and was interred in this priory.

¹⁵⁶The king's charter confirming the foundation of this abbey at Alburbury, is dated at Hereford, on the 12th day of December, in the 17th Henry 11, that is in the year 1171. It must therefore have been founded by Fulk fitz Warine, the father of him of whom we are now speaking, as, according to the abstract given in Leland, was stated more correctly in the early English metrical version of the history.

¹⁵⁷I have been able to obtain no information relating to this lady, or to Clarice de Auberville, or the pretended marriage of Eve with the prince of Wales, so that we can only take the events as they are here told.

And a good while after the lady was dead, Fulk married a very gentle lady, lady Clarice de Auberville; and by his two wives he begat fair children and very valiant. When Lady Joan, wife of Lewis prince of Wales, who was the daughter of king Henry of England, was dead, for the great renown of prowess and goodness that Sir Fulk had, he sent to him for Eve his daughter; and he gave her to him, and they were married with great honor and solemnity. But Lewis only lived a year and a half after; he died and was buried at Aberconway,¹⁵⁸ without heir begotten of Eve. And afterwards she was married to the lord of White-Minster,¹⁵⁹ who was a knight of great breeding, courageous and bold.

Fulk and Lady Clarice, his wife, one night were sleeping together in their chamber; the lady was asleep, and Fulk was awake and thought of his youth, and repented much in his heart for his trespass. At length he saw in the chamber so great a light that it was wonderful, and he thought what could it be. Then he heard a voice as it were of thunder in the air, and it said: "Vassal, God has granted thee thy penance, which is better here than elsewhere." At that word, the lady awoke, and saw the great light, and covered her face for fear. At length this light vanished. And after this light, Fulk could never see more; but he was blind all his days. This Fulk was very hospitable and liberal; and he caused the king's road to be turned through his hall at his manor of Alleston, in order that no stranger might pass there without having meat or lodging or other honor or goods of his. Merlin says that

¹⁵⁸Llewelyn died in 1240, and was buried in the Cistercian abbey of Conway, which he had founded.

¹⁵⁹Blanc-Mostiers, or White-Minster, means, probably, Whitchurch in Shropshire, though I think it has been interpreted to mean Oswestry.

This Fulk remained seven years blind, and suffered well his penance. Lady Clarice died, and was buried at the New Abbey; after whose death, Fulk lived but a year, and died at White-Town.¹⁶⁰ And in great honor was he interred at the New Abbey; on whose soul may God have mercy. Near the altar lies the body. God have mercy on us all, alive and dead! Amen.

¹⁶⁰The date of the death of this Fulk fitz Warine is not known. It is probable that he was alive in 1256, as the Fulk fitz Warine who was drowned at the battle of Lewes in 1264, and who was no doubt his son, is described in January 1256, as Fulk fitz Warine junior.