Dulcius est ære pretiosum nomen habere)
and to méet with the archbishops malice. And herewith diuerse things were rehersed to the archbishops reproch, which he should doo, procure, and suffer to be doone, by his euill and sinister counsell, whilest he had the rule of the realme in his hands vnder the king: wherein he had shewed himselfe not onelie an acceptor of gifts, but also of persons, in gratifieng diuerse that nothing had deserued sundrie waies foorth, and presuming to doo rashlie manie other things to the detriment of the kings roiall state, and hurt of his regall dignitie, and to no small damage of the people, abusing the authoritie and office to him committed, so that if he persisted in his obstinate wilfulnesse, and rebellious contumacie, the king by those his letters signified, that he meant to declare it more apparantlie in due time and place, and therefore commanded the said deane and chapiter of Paules, to publish all those things openlie, in places where they thought conuenient, according to their wisedome giuen to them by God, so as he might haue cause to commend therein their carefull diligence. ¶ This letter was dated at Westminster the tenth of Februarie, in the fiftéenth yeare of his reigne ouer England, and second ouer France.
Where the Londoners would not permit the kings iustices to sit within the citie of London, contrarie to their liberties, the king appointed them to sit in the tower; and when they would not make anie answer there, a great tumult was raised by the commons of the citie, so that the iustices being in some perill (as they thought) feigned themselues to sit there till towards Easter. Wherevpon, when the king could not get the names of them that raised the tumult, no otherwise but that they were certeine light persons of the common people, he at length pardoned the offense. After this, those iustices neither sat in the tower, nor elsewhere, of all that yeare.
A parlement.
Adam Merimuth.
In the quindene of Easter, the king held a parlement at London, in the which, the prelats, earls, barons, and commons, presented manie petitions; as to haue the great charter of liberties, and the charter of forrests dulie obserued, and that they which brake the same should be discharged of their offices, if they were the kings officers, and that the high officers of the king should be elected and chosen by their péeres in parlement. The king withstood these petitions a certeine time, yet at length he granted to some of them; but as concerning the election of his officers, he in no wise would consent, but yet he was contented that they should receiue an oth in parlement, to doo iustice to all men in their offices, &c. Vpon which article and others, a statute was made and confirmed with the kings seale.
The emperor woone frō the king of Englands fréendship.
The emperor offereth to be a meane to cōclude a peace.
In the meane while, the French king had with bribes wonne Lewes of Bauaria, that named himselfe emperour, from further fauouring the king of England; in so much that, vnder a colourable pretense of finding himselfe gréeued, for that the king of England had without his knowledge taken truce with the French king, he reuoked the dignitie of being vicar in the empire, from the king of England, but yet signified to him, that where the French king had at his request put the matter in controuersie betwixt him and the king of England into his hands, to make an end thereof, if it so pleased the king of England, that he should treat as an indifferent arbitrator betwixt them, he promised to doo his indeuour, so as he doubted not, but that by his means he should come to a good agréement in his cause, if he would follow his aduise. And to receiue answer hereof, he sent his letters by one Eberhard a chapleine of his, the reader of the friers heremits to S. Augustins order, requesting the king of England to aduertise him by the same messenger, of his whole mind in that behalfe.
The kings answer.