1339.
Ri. Southwell.
The castell of Dunbar beseiged.
An. Reg. 12.
About the feast of saint Martine in winter, there came vnto London two cardinals, sent by the pope to treat for a peace betwixt the kings of England, and France. ¶ The archbishop of Canturburie, with the bishops of Winchester, Elie, Chichester, Couentrie, & the cōmoners of the citie of London met them on Shooters hill. The duke of Cornewall with the earle of Surrie, and manie other of the nobilitie receiued them a mile without the citie. The king himselfe receiued them at the lesser hall doore of his palace at Westminster, and brought them into the painted chamber, where they declared their message: wherevpon the king caused a parlement to be summoned at London, to begin the morrow after Candlemasse day. The king held his Christmasse at Gildford, and within the octaues of the same feast he tooke his iournie towards Scotland, or rather (as other haue) he sent thither the earles of Salisburie, Glocester, Derbie, and Anegos, with thrée barons, the lords Percie, Neuill, and Stafford, the which with twentie thousand men besieged the castell of Dunbar.
A parlement.
Croxden.
A subsidie.
The cardinals returne.
This siege began euen in the beginning of the twelfth yeare of king Edwards reigne, and continued for the space of ninetéene wéeks, with small gaine and lesse honour to the Englishmen, in so much that the same brake vp vnder a colour of a truce, when there was no hope of winning the place, and that the noble men that laie there at siege, hasted to make an end, that they might attend the king in his iournie ouer into Brabant. The morrow after Candlemasse day the parlement began, in which there was a grant made to the king by the laitie of the one halfe of their woolles through the whole realme for the next summer, which he receiued, and likewise he leuied of the cleargie the whole, causing them to paie nine marks of euerie sacke of the best wooll. But after the rate of the one halfe he tooke in whose hands so euer it was found, aswell merchants as others. After this, he tooke a fiftéenth of all the communaltie of his realme in wooll, the price of euerie stone containing fouretéene pounds rated at two shillings. The one and twentith of March the two cardinals tooke the sea at Douer, and in their companie went ouer the archbishop of Canturburie, the bishop of Durham to treat of a peace, if by any good means the two kings might be made fréends. But as it appeared, their trauell was in vaine, for although they abode togither for a time on the frontiers, dooing their best indeuor, yet their trauell nothing auailed, as by that which followeth is most manifest.