The Hainaulters were again at York in the following January, on the occasion of the marriage festivities of King Edward and Queen Philippa.
The foreigners distinguished themselves by firing the suburbs of the city, and by insulting the wives, daughters, and female servants of the citizens, who challenged them to mortal combat. The foreigners lost 527 men, slain by the sword or the waters of the Ouse, and slaughtered 242 Englishmen.
Several Parliaments were held at York in Edward’s reign, and when David Bruce invaded Northumbria in 1346, Queen Philippa raised her standard in the city. The Scots kept York under observation for some time, and attacked the suburbs.
The impending battle was fought near Durham on the 17th of October. After a vain attempt to cut off the English archers, the Scots closed in a hand-to-hand conflict, and fought under a deadly hail of arrows. The English steadily won ground, and the Scots began to break before repeated repulses and attacks. The King fought like a lion; his banner disappeared; the Earl of March and the Great Steward retired their divisions, believing the King was slain. He still fought on; eighty loyal gentlemen supporting him. He was surrounded, wounded in the leg, two spears were entangled in his harness, his sword was dashed out of his hand, and he was called upon to surrender. Maddened by mortification and pain, he struck out with his gauntleted fist. John Copeland lost two teeth by the King’s hand, but was gratified by receiving his surrender.
After Edward’s days of warfare and pride came to an end, Richard II. reigned in his stead. Some little ferment occurred in Beverley and Scarborough, but Wat Tyler’s death prevented the movement from spreading.
In 1385 Richard quartered his army at Beverley, during an expedition to Scotland. A Bohemian knight, Sir Meles, was insulted by two of Sir John Holland’s squires, and protected by two archers, retainers of Lord Ralph Stafford. A heated dispute was settled by the death of one of the squires, who was shot by an arrow. The guilty archer appealed to Lord Ralph Stafford for protection, and Lord Ralph at once sought Sir John Holland, who was also out in quest of Sir Meles, vowing to avenge the death of his favourite squire. Knight and lord met in a narrow lane, and, it being dark, did not recognise each other until the challenge passed, when Holland drew his sword, exclaimed, “Stafford, I was inquiring for you; thy servants have murdered my squire, whom I loved so much;” then he smote the young lord, and laid him dead at his feet.
Holland took sanctuary at Beverley, and King Richard confiscated his possessions, and declared that he should be executed if he ventured out of bounds.
Holland was the King’s half-brother by their mother Joan, the widow of the Black Prince, and she besought pardon for the guilty knight, and so bitterly bewailed his peril, that, after three days of continuous weeping, she expired. Holland was then pardoned. He was afterwards raised to the rank of Earl of Huntingdon, and being seized by the vassals of the late Duke of Gloucester, whom he had held in deadly hatred, he was delivered to the headsman’s axe.