Will. Malmes. But (as hath béene reported) Dunstane then said that the English people should suffer condigne punishment generallie, with losse of ancient liberties, which before that time they had inioied. Dunstane also long before prophesied of the slouthfulnesse that should remaine in this Egelred. For at what time he ministred the sacrament of baptisme to him; shortlie after he came into this world, he defiled the font with the ordure of his wombe (as hath beene said:) whervpon Dunstane being troubled in mind, "By the Lord (saith he) and his blessed mother, this child shall prooue to be a slouthfull person." It hath beene written also, that when he was but ten yeeres of age, and heard that his brother Edward was slaine, he so offended his mother with wéeping, bicause she could not still him, that hauing no rod at hand, she tooke tapers or sizes that stood before hir, and beat him so sore with them, that she had almost killed him, whereby he could neuer after abide to haue anie such candels lighted before him.
Polydor. This Egelred (as writers say) was nothing giuen to warlike enterprises, but was slouthfull, a louer of idlenesse, and delighting in riotous lusts, which being knowne to all men, caused him to be euill spoken of amongst his owne people, and nothing feared amongst strangers. Ran. Higd. 980. Heerevpon the Danes that exercised rouing on the seas, began to conceiue a boldnesse of courage to disquiet and molest the sea-coasts of the realme, in so much that in the second yéere of this Egelreds reigne, they came with seuen ships on the English coasts of Kent, and Simon Dun. spoiled the Ile of Tenet, the towne of Southampton, and in the yeere following they destroied S. Petroks abbeie in Cornwall, Porthland in Deuonshire, and diuerse other places by the sea side, speciallie in Deuonshire & Cornwall. Also a great part of Cheshire was destroied by pirats of Norway.
982.
983.
Alfer or Elfer duke of Mercia departed this life.
Alfrike or Elfrike duke of Mercia. Fabian.
Wil. Malm.
Matt. West. The same yéere by casualtie of fire, a great part of the citie of London was burnt. In the yeere of our Lord 983, Alfer duke of Mercia departed this life, who was coosen to king Edgar, & his sonne Alfrike tooke vpon him the rule of that dukedome, and within thrée yéeres after was banished the land. About the eight yéere of his reigne, Egelred maried one Elgina or Ethelgina, daughter of earle Egbert. In the ninth yeere of his reigne, vpon occasion of strife betwéene him and the bishop of Rochester, he made warre against the same bishop, wasted his lordships, and besieged the citie of Rochester, till Dunstan procured the bishops peace with paiment of an hundred pounds in gold. And bicause the K. would not agrée with the bishop without moneie at the onelie request of Dunstane, the said Dunstane did send him woord, that sithens he made more account of gold than of God, more of monie than of S. Andrew, patrone of the church of Rochester, and more of couetousnesse than of him being the archbishop, the mischiefs which the Lord had threatned would shortlie fall and come to passe, but the same should not chance whilest he was aliue, who died in the yéere following, on the 25 of Maie, being saturdaie.
Vita Dunstani. Of this Dunstane manie things are recorded by writers, that he should be of such holinesse and vertue, that God wrought manie miracles by him, both whilest he liued heere on earth, and also after his deceasse. Iohn Capgr.
Osborne.
Ran. Higd. He was borne in Westsaxon, his father was named Heorstan, and his mother Cinifride, who in his youth set him to schoole, where he so profited, that he excelled all his equals in age. Afterward he fell sicke of an ague, which vexed him so sore that it draue him into a frensie: and therefore his parents appointed him to the cure and charge of a certeine woman, where his disease grew so on him, that he fell in a trance, as though he had béene dead, and after that he suddenlie arose, & by chance caught a staffe in his hand, and ran vp and downe through hils and dales, and laid about him as though he had béene afraid of mad dogs. The next night (as it is said) he gat him to the top of the church (by the helpe of certeine ladders that stood there for woorkemen to mend the roofe) and there ran vp and downe verie dangerouslie, but in the end came safelie downe, and laid him to sléepe betwéene two men that watched the church that night, & when he awaked, he maruelled how he came there. Finallie, recouering his disease, his parents made him a priest, and placed him in the abbeie of Glastenburie, where he gaue himselfe to the reading of scriptures and knowledge of vertue. But as well his kinsmen as certeine other did raise a report of him, that he gaue not himselfe so much to the reading of scriptures, as to charming, coniuring and sorcerie, which he vtterlie denied: howbeit learned he was in déed, & could doo manie pretie things both in handie woorke and other deuises: he had good skill in musicke and delighted much therein. At length he grew in such fauour, that he was aduanced into the seruice of king Adelstane.
Vpon a time, as he came to a gentlewomans house with his harpe, and hoong the same on the wall, while he shaped a priests stole, the harpe suddenlie began to plaie a psalme, which draue the whole houshold in such feare, that they ran out and said, he was too cunning, and knew more than was expedient: wherevpon he was accused of necromancie, and so banished out of the court. After this he began to haue a liking to women, and when Elfeagus then bishop of Winchester and his coosen, persuaded him to become a moonke, he refused it, for he rather wished to haue maried a yoong damesell, whose pleasant companie he dailie inioied. But being soone after striken with such a swelling disease in his bellie, that all his bodie was brought into such state, as though he had béene infected with a foule leprosie, he bethought him selfe, and vpon his recouerie sent to the bishop, who immediatlie shore him a moonke, in which life he liued in so great opinion of holinesse, as he in time became abbat of Glastenburie: where on a time as he was in his praiers before the altar of S. George, he fell asléepe: and imagining in his dreame, that an vglie rough beare came towards him with open mouth, and set his forefeet vpon his shoulders readie to deuoure him, he suddenlie wakening for feare, caught his walking staffe which he commonlie went with, and laid about him, that all the church rang Polychron. thereof, to the great woonder of such as stood by. The common tale of his plucking the diuell by the nose with a paire of pinsors, for tempting him with women, while he was making a chalice: the great loue that the ladie Elfleda néere kinswoman to king Adelstane bare him to hir dieng day, with a great manie of other such like matters, I leaue as friuolous, and wholie impertinent to our purpose: onelie this I read, that through declaring of his dreames and visions, he obteined in the time of king Edgar, first the bishoprike of Worcester, after of London, & last of all the archbishoprike of Canturburie. But leauing Dunstane and the fond deuises depending vpon the commemoration of his life, we will now returne to the dooings of Egelred, and speake of such things in the next chapter as chanced in his time.
The Danes inuade England on each side, they are vanquished by the English, Goda earle of Deuonshire slaine; the Danes in a battell fought at Maldon kill Brightnod earle of Essex and the most of his armie, ten thousand pounds paid to them by composition that they should not trouble the English subjects, they cease their crueltie for a time, but within a while after fall to their bloudie bias, the English people despaire to resist them, Egelred addresseth a nauie against the Danes vnder the erles Alfrike and Turold, Alfrike traitorouslie taketh part with the Danes, his ship and souldiers are taken, his sonne Algar is punished for his fathers offense, the Danes make great wast in many parts of this Iland, they besiege London and are repelled with dishonor, they driue king Egelred to buy peace of them for 16000 pounds; Aulafe king of Norwey is honorablie interteined of Egelred, to whome he promiseth at his baptisme neuer to make warre against England, the great zeale of people in setting forward the building of Durham towne and the minster.
THE SECOND CHAPTER.
Wil. Malm.
Matt. Westm. The Danes inuade this land. Shortlie after the decease of Dunstane, the Danes inuaded this realme on each side, wasting and spoiling the countrie in most miserable wise. They arriued in so manie places at once, that the Englishmen could not well deuise whither to go to encounter first with them. Some of them
Alias Wecederport.
H. Hunt.
Simon Dun. spoiled a place or towne called Wichport, and from thence passing further into the countrie, were met with by the Englishmen, who giuing them battell, lost their capteine Goda: but yet they got the victorie,
Danes vanquished.
Simon Dun. and beat the Danes out of the field, and so that part of the Danish armie was brought to confusion. Simon Dunel. saith, that the Englishmen in déed wan the field here, but not without great losse. For besides
Goda earle of Deuonshire slain.
Matt. West. Goda (who by report of the same author was Earle of Deuonshire) there died an other valiant man of warre named Strenwold. In the yeere 991, Brightnod earle of Essex, at Maldon gaue battell to an armie of Danes (which vnder their leaders Iustine and Guthmond had spoiled Gipswich) and was there ouercome and slaine with the most part of his people, and so the Danes obteined in that place the victorie.
991. In the same yéere, and in the 13 yeere of, king Egelreds reigne, when the land was on each side sore afflicted, wasted and haried by the Danes, which couered the same as they had béene grashoppers: by the aduise of the archbishop of Canturburie Siricius (which was the second of that sée after Dunstane) a composition was taken with the Danes, so Ten thousand pounds paid to the Danes.
Danegilt. that for the sum of ten thousand pounds to be paied to them by the king, they should couenant not to trouble his subjects anie further. This monie was called Danegilt or Dane monie, and was leuied of the people. Although other take that to be Danegilt, which was giuen vnto such Danes as king Egelred afterwards reteined in his seruice, to defend the land from other Danes and enimies that sought to inuade his dominions. But by what name so euer this monie (which the Danes now receiued) was called, true it is that herevpon they ceassed from their Wil. Malm. 992. most cruell inuasions for a time. But shortlie after they had refreshed themselues, and recouered new strength, they began to play their old parts againe, dooing the like mischéefe by their semblable inuasions, as they had vsed before. By reason hereof such feare came vpon the English people, that they despaired to be able to resist the enimies.