II. places hath noted, and by the observation of dates may by any oneordi-

^'"i"'^'"'- narily conversant with the French and German histories soon be spied A. I), and discerned. For, First, five bishops, one after another, succeeded ^'^-G- that Gregory IV. upon whom the said twenty-ninth canon is entitled or fathered, before you come to Adrian II. mentioned in the canon, who certainly was made pope, the people having by force taken the election into their own hands ; whereas Gregory (especially to be noted) would not take on him the papacy before that the empe- ror had consented to his election. Secondly, Molinoeus opposeth the authority of Raphael Volateran to the thirtieth canon, which is to be suspected for this reason, that when Eugenius was pope, the successor of that Pascal I. with whom Louis the Pious is stated in the canon to have made a compact, the same Louis with his son Lo- thaire (in the capacity of king of the Romans) made laws at Rome, both for all the subjects of the empire, and also for the Romans themselves ; to say nothing of Lothaire's renewal of the decree of the Lateran synod, lately mentioned.' Then again, how could Leo IV. write to Lothaire and Louis, the emperors, that ' Palea' (or counterfeit or forged decree)'-^ beginning with ' Constitutio,' &:c., when in the same mention is made of Henry the Fowler and of Otho I., who did not come to the empire till more than threescore years after them and How Leo IV. Thirdly, with what face dare this fond fellow Gratian make fnalra"' Otho I. to be the author of the thirty-third canon, when Otho deprived c"a^ian ^ ^^^^ XII. of tlic papacv, and not only subtracted nothing from the is.inforg- imperial jurisdiction over the city of Rome, or over the bishop of Rome, decrees, oi" o^cr any other bishops subject to the Roman empire, but added somewhat more thereunto, as was said before. And yet notwith- standing, so shameless and senseless was this Gratian, that he durst in the compiling of his " Decretum " obtrude and lay before the reader such manifest fraud and evident legerdemain, feigned and made of his own brains (being so necessary, as he thought, for the dominion and primacy of the Roman bishops), in the stead of good and true laws ; not considering that the same must be detected by posterity, and that to his own great discredit. Where ^ also by the way is to be noted, that as this graceless Gratian, to please these holy fathers, and to erect their kingdom, would give so impudent an attempt to the blinding and deceiving of all posterities, inserting for grounded truths and holv decrees such loud lies and detestable doctrine, what may be thought of the rabble of the rest of writers in those days ? what attempts might hope of gain cause them to work, by whom and such-like is to be feared the falsifying of divers other good works now extant, in those perilous times written ? TTie Thus, when the bishops had once wrested this authority out of the
election , ■. , , ,' p-f>i 1 11 1 11-
wrestcri emperor s hands, they then so iortifaed and armed themselves and their em^eron dominion, that although afterwards Frederic I. and his grandson this good emperor Frederic II., as also Louis of Bavaria, and Henry of Luxemburg (as men most studious and careful for tlie dignities of the empire, unfeigned lovers and maintainers of the utility of the commonweal, and most desirous of the preservation and prosperity of
(1) Supra, p. 461.— Kr.
(2) See I)u aiige and Hoflfnanon the term ' Paira,' prefixed to certain chapters of tlit Canon Law. — Ed. (3) This sentence is not in Cisner. — En.
OVERTHROW OF THE CHRISTIANS IN EGYl'T. 465
the church) did all their endeavours, with singular wisdom and energy, insuryof as much as in them lay, to recover again this lost authority of the ^"n"" imperial jurisdiction from the bishops of Rome/ most cruelly and ^">p^^°'-- wickedly abusing their power to the destruction of the empire, the A.D. undoing of the commonwealth, and the utter subversion of the church ^22G. of God ; yet could they not bring the same to pass in those dark and Not with- shadowed times of perverse doctrine and errors of the people, and causl°de- most miserable servitude of civil magistrates. tomuzzfi'
The same and like privilege also in the election of their bishops the people and prelates and disposing of ecclesiastical offices as the emperor of ran'fe.'^ Rome had, every prince and king in their several dominions had ^-vry the like. For by the decree of the council of Toledo, which in prince in the twenty-fifth canon of the sixty-third Distinction is mentioned, verla^'^" the authority of creating and choosincr bishops and prelates in ^}^^' , ,
* o Oil doms lind
Spain was in tlie king of Spain. In like manner by the histories also thi of Clovis, Charlemagne, Louis IX., Philip Augustus, Philip the IheVre"?^ Fair, Charles V., Charles VI., and Charles VII., kings of France, 1^^^^^°^ it is apparent and well known, that all these kings had the chief charge and government of the French church, and not the bishops of Rome.
And by our English histories also, as you have heard, it is mani- fest, that the authority of choosing ecclesiastical ministers and bishops was always in the kings of England, till the reign of king Henry I., who by the labour and procurement of Anselm, archbishop of Can- terbury, Avas deprived of the same by Pascal 11.
Also, how the princes of Germany and electors of the emperor, till the time of Henry V., had all (every prince severally in his own province) the same jurisdiction and prerogative, to give and dispose ecclesiastical functions at their pleasure ; and how after that, it appertained to the people and prelates together ; and how at length, in the reign of Frederic, the prelates got unto themselves alone this immunity — John Aventine, in the seventh book of his " Annales Boiorum," doth describe.
Also it is probable, that the kings of Sicily had the same faculty in giving and disposing of their ecclesiastical promotions and charge of churches;' and because Frederic defended himself against the tyranny of the bishop of Rome, therefore (as Fazellus saith) he was excommunicated by Honorius. That Platina and Blondus allege other causes wherefore he was excommunicate of Honorius, I am not ignorant : howbeit, he who will compare their writings with those of others who were contemporary with Honorius and him shall easily find, that they more sought the favour of the Roman bishops than truth. But now again to the history of Frederic.
Nicolas Cisner affirmeth, that whilst Frederic the emperor was Death or in Sicily, his wife Constantia died at Catania. In the mean time tia','w?fe the Christians, who with a great navy had sailed into Egypt and ^1,.*"'^''^' taken the city formerly called Pelusium or Heliopolis, now com- monly called Damietta, and were in good hope to drive the Sultan Great out of Egypt, had a great and marvellous overthrow by the ofThe™" conveyinof of the water of the Nile (which then overflowed into fl^ris- tlieir camp), and were fain to accord an unprofitable truce with Etopt-
(1) What Rome catcheth, that she keepeth. (2) Andreas delsthmia ail prim, const. Neap. nu.l2. VOL. II. H H
466 UKCOXCU.IATIOX I!F.T\V£1;N FREDERIC AND TlIK I'OFE.
jiisioryof ilic Sultau luF ccrtaiu years, and to deliver the city again ; and so
Frederic jj^pj^j-^jj^g q^j ^f Egypt, they were fain to come to Acre and Tyre,
^•"P'l-or. {^Q j],g jj(j small detriment and shame of the christian commonweal.
A.D. Whereupon John, surnamed de Brienne, king of Jerusalem, arrived
1227. in Italv, and prayed aid against his enemies of the emperor, in M'hom
he had great hope to find a remedy for the evils and calamities before
declared ; and from thence he went to Rome to the pope, declaring
unto him the great discomfit and overthrow past, as also the present
peril and calamity that they were in, desiring also his aid therein. By
Frederic mcans of this king John (as Cisner saith) the emperor and the
"'o'lf""' l>ope were again made friends together : that king also gave the em-
luade pcror in marriage lole, his daughter by the daughter of Conrad, king
of Jerusalem and marquis of Montferrat, with whom he had for
dowry the kingdom of Jerusalem, she being right heir thereunto by
her mother (whence those who afterwards obtained the kingdom of
Naples and Sicily used the title of king of Jerusalem) : after which
he promised that as soon as possible he would make an expedition
for the recovery of Jerusalem, and be there himself in person ; which
thing to do for that upon divers occasions he deferred (whereof some
think one thing, some another), pope Honorius, unto whom he was
lately reconciled, purposed to make against him some great and
serious attempt, had he not been by death prevented ; upon whom
were made these verses : —
" O pater Honoii, multorum nate dolori, Est tihi dedecori vivere, vade mori."
Gregory After wliom succccdcd Gregory IX. a.d. 1227, as great an enemy piiaran ^^ Frcdcric as was Honorius ; which Gregory came of the race whom eiu-iny to the cmpcror, as before ye heard, condemned of treason which they as Ho'no- wTouglit against him. This Gregory was scarcely settled in his papacy, ""'■ when that he threatened Frederic, and that greatly, with excommuni- cation, unless he would prepare himself to go into Asia, according to his promise (as ye heard before) to king John of Jerusalem ; and what Frederic the cause was why the pope so hastened the journey of Frederic into to'^Hri^nto Asia, you shall hear hereafter. In effect, he could not well bring that Asia at ^q pjjgs whicli iu his mischievous mind he had devised, unless the em-
tne pope s ' nip i • -v • i t n i • • i i i
biddiiiK. pcror were lurther irom him. JNotwithstandmg, 1-iredcric, it sliould The pope ^qq^xx, smclliug a rat, or mistrusting somewhat (as well he might),
alleged divers causes and lets, as lately and truly he did to Honorius. The cause Fazellus saitli, that the special cause of the emperor's stay was, for stayoaiie the Oath of truth and peace during certain years, which was made Jo™mey'^ bctwccn the Saracens and Christians (as you heard), which time was into Asia, not yct expired.
The same Fazellus also writeth thus of king John of Jerusalem, that when his daughter was brought to Rome, the emperor and the pope were reconciled together. And being called up to Rome to cele- brate the marriage, pope Gregory, as the manner of those proud prelates is, offered his right foot unto the emperor to kiss. But the emperor, not stooping so low, scarcely with his lip touched the upper part of his knee, and would not kiss his foot ; which thing the pope took in very evil part, and was therewith marvellously offended. But for that no opportunity at that time served to revenge his conceived grudge and old malice, he dissembled the same as he might for that time,
PREPARATIONS FOR WAR AGAINST THK TURKS. 407
thinking to recompense at the full, as time would serve and fall out nhioryo there-for. ""''I'r
After this, the emperor hearing how the Christians Avcre oppressed ^■''"i>^'i-'^>: by the Sultan in Syria, and that by his instigation Arsacidas' had sent a. D. persons into Europe to assassinate the Christian kings, and that the 1227. French king had received letters warning him of the plot, he made the more haste, and was the more desirous to set forward his jour- ney into Asia. Wherefore, assembling the nobility of the empire at Ravenna and Cremona, he gave in commandment to Henry, Prcpara- his son, whom not long before he had caused to be created Cfesar, voyage of that he should excite the nobles and princes of the empire : who all ^nj 's7ay engaged to be ready to put their helping hands, in furthering this thereof, his journey and enterprise. This writeth Fazellus ; howbeit, some others affirm that these things Avere done in the time of Honorius. But howsoever the matter is, this thing is manifest; that Frederic, to satisfy the pope's desire, who never would lin,' but by all means sought to provoke him forward, gave him at length his promise, that by a certain time he would prepare an army, and fight himself against those who kept from him the city of Jerusalem (which thing he also con- fesseth himself in his epistles, and also how he desired and obtained of the peers and nobility of the empire their aid thereunto) ; and he also appointed a convenient time when they should be at Brundusium.'
In the mean season, he with all his endeavour made speedy pre- paration for the Avar. He rigged and manned a puissant navy ; he made a levy of soldiers through the whole kingdom, and made war- like provision and furniture for every thing that to such a voyage and expedition appertained. Neither was the matter slacked, but at the time appointed great bands both of German soldiers and others had, under the command of Louis, landgrave of Thuringia, and Sigi- bert, bishop of Augsburg, assembled and mustered at Brundusium ;' where they for a long time lying and waiting for the emperor's coming, who was let by infirmity and sickness, great pestilence and sundry diseases molested them, by reason of the great heat and intemperance oreat of that country, and many a soldier there lost his life, among Avhom also f^'^\lll^'^ died the landgrave of Thuringia, one of the generals. The emperor, emperor's when he had somewhat recovered his health, with all his navy launched ^^^'^' out, and set forward from Brundusium. And when he came to the straits betAveen Peloponnesus and the island of Crete, and there for lack of convenient Avind Avas stayed, suddenly the emperor (his diseases groAving upon him again) fell sick ; and sending forward all or the most part of his bands and ships into Palestine, promising them most assuredly to folloAv them so soon as he might recover, he himself Avith a few ships returned and came to Brundusium, and from thence Avent into Apulia,
When tidings hereof came to the pope^s ear, he sent out his thun- The poj.t dering curses and ncAv excommunications against the emperor.* The n'^u,"|"' causes Avhereof I find thus noted and mentioned in his oAvn letters; that ^j^'^'^jj^'^ is, for that, he had robbed and taken at Brundusium the deceased for stay- landgrave of Thuringia's horses, his money, and very valuable baggage, voya't'e.
(1) Prince of a curious fanatical tribe near Damascus, sometimes called the Old Man of tlio Mountain. See Appendix. — Ed. (2) " Lin," to give over. — Ed.
(3) Frederic in his letters says Hydruntum, i.e. Otranto: the same remark applies to the other instances in this and the next page, where Brundusium is mentioned. — En.
ll) Sept. 29th, A.D. 1227. L'Art de A'erifier des Dates.— Eu.
H II 2
4CS FREDERIC EEPELS THE CHARGES BROUGHT AGAIKST HIM.
jihioryof and had then sailed for Asia, not for the intent to make war against the
"ir" Turk, but to conceal and convey away his prey that he had taken at
^"'P"'"'- Brundusiuni ; and that, neglecting his oath and promise which he had
A. D. made, and feigning himself to be sick, he came home again ; and that
1228. ijy ],is (K-fauit also Damietta was lost, and the host of the Christians
sore afflicted. I'\izellus, besides these causes spoken of before, doth
write that the pope alleged these also ; that he seduced a certain
damsel who was in the queen's nursery, and then whipped and put to
death in prison his wife lolc, for declaring this mischievous act to her
father king John. But all the writers, and also Blondus himself,
declare, that this lole died after the publication of the proscript and
excommunication ; ' wherefore the pope could not allege as the cause
thereof the death of lole : the settled belief is, that she, of her son
The era- Courad, died in childbed. Then Frederic, to refel and avoid the
purt'eth aforesaid slanders, sendeth the bishop of Brundusium and other ambas-
of'c'rlmes sadors to Romc ; whom the pope would not suffer to come to his
^*'i^'=]i'^'.|j^ presence, neither yet to the council of the cardinals, to make his pur-
agaiiist gation. Wherefore the emperor, to purge himself of the crimes which
ilirieturs the pope did so falsely accuse him of, both to all christian kings, and
fo air"^*^ especially to the princes of Germany and all the nobles of the empire,
christian ■\vriteth liis letter (which is to be seen), that those things are both
princes. ^^^^^ _^^j ^^^ ^^ ^j^^ pope''s own head feigned and invented ; and
showeth, how that his ambassadors with his purgation could not be
suffered to come to the pope''s presence ; also doth largely intreat,
liow unthankful and ungrateful the bishops of Rome were towards
him for the great benefits which both he and also his predecessors
liad bestowed upon them and the Roman church ; which letter, for
that it is over-tedious here to place, considering the discourse of the
history is somewhat long, the sum of the purgation is this : —
He protestcth and declareth universally, that he had always great care for the christian commonwealth, and that he had determined even from his youth to fight against the Turks and Saracens ; that he made a vow and promise on his coronation at Aix-la-Chapelle, that he would take the war upon him ; and that afterwards he had renewed his promise at Rome, when he was consecrated of Honorius : since which he had married the daughter of the king of Jerusalem, who was heir to the same ; so that it was become a matter of personal interest to him, that that kingdom should be defended from the in- juries of enemies: accordingly, he had prepared a huge navy, and gathered a strong army, neither had he neglected any thing that be- longed to the furniture of war: but when the time was come, and his band was gathered together, his sickness would not suffer him to be there ; and afterwards, when he had recovered from the same and had come to Brundusium, and from thence without injuring any one had forthwith put to sea, he fell into the same sickness again, by the Avhich he was let of his purpose, which thing (saith he) he is able to prove by sufficient testimony : that the pope, moreover, laid the losing of Damietta, and other things which prospered not well, to his charge unjustly ; whereas he had made great provision for that journey, both of soldiers and of other necessary things. But he that will understand those things more plainly, among other epistles of
(1) A.D. 122S. L'Art de Ver. des D.— Ed.
Frederic's lktteii to the king of exgiand. 469
Petrus de Vineis, written in the name of Frederic, let him read Hutoryof those especially which begin thus: "In admirationem,"" " Ut jus- ^''fj"'^ titiam, et innocentiam," and " Lcvate oculos." And truly, even as ^"'p^''"''- Frederic the emperor declareth in his letters concerning this matter, A. D. all the old writers of Germany do accord and agree in the same. 1-28.
Matthew Paris ^ also brieHy collcctcth the effect of another letter which he wrote to the king of England, complaining unto him of the excommunication of the pope against him, whose words arc these : —
And amongst other catholic princes (saith he) he also wrote his letters unto ^ letter the king of England, einbuUed with gold; declaring in the same, that the oitheem- church of Rome was so inflamed with tlie fire of avarice and manifest concn- h''™k-'° piscence, that she was not contented with the goods of the churcii, but also of Eng- shamed not to disherit emperors, kings, and princes, and bring them under 'anil- tribute and subjection to herself; and that the king of England himself had experience thereof, whose father (that is to say, king John) she so long held excommunicate, till she had brought both him and his dominions under oi)li- gation to pay her tribute ; also, that all men had example of the same by the Many earl of Toulouse and divers other princes, whose persons and lands she so long kin-fdoms held under interdict, till she brought them also into like servitude. " I pass perjent^" by " (saith he) " the simonies and sundry sorts of exactions (the like whereof was of tlie never yet heard of) which daily are used toward ecclesiastical persons, to notice P"!"^'? their gross usury, so cloaked indeed hitherto to the simple sort, that therewithal they infect the whole world; also the fair speeches, sweeter than honey and smoother than oil, of these insatiable horse-leeches, saying, that the court of Rome is the church, our mother and nurse, whereas it is indeed the most polling court in the whole world, the root and origin of all mischief, using and The exercising the doings not of a mother but of a wicked step-dame, making suf- cliurch of ficient proof thereof by her manifest fruits to all the world apparent. Let the moUicr of noble barons of England consider these things, whom, fortified by his bulls. Pope mischief. Innocent encouraged to rise and rebel against king John, as an obstinate enemy to the church. But, after that the aforesaid king had monstrously humbled King himself, and, like an effeminate person, had enslaved both himself and his g^J^^'-^ kingdom to the church of Rome ; then the aforesaid pope, setting aside all sion to shame of the world and fear of the Lord, trampled on those very barons when they ''' were exposed to death and miserable confiscation, whom he had before main- tjJ'")',^ tained and stirred up, in order that, after the Roman manner, he might, alas ! draw emperor, the fatness unto his own greedy, gaping jaws ; by whose greedy avarice it came to pass, that England, the prince of provinces, was brought under miserable subjec- tion and tribute. Behold the manners of our Roman bishops; behold the snares wlierewith these prelates do seek to entangle us, one and all, to wring our money from us, to make slaves of freemen, to disquiet such as would live in peace, being clothed with sheep's clothing when inwardly they be but ravening wolves, sending their legates hither and thither with power to excommunicate, suspend, and punish whom they list, not that they may sow seed, that is the Who be word of God, to fructify, but that they may extort and gather money, and reap *.'^^,i^f,^ that which they never did sow. Thus cometh it to pass, that they spoil the wohcsin holy churches of God, which should be a refuge for the poor, and the mansion- slieci>'s houses of saints; which our devout and simple parents for that purpose founded °'
that they might be for the refection of poor men and pilgrims, and for the sus- tentation of such as were well disposed and religious. But these degenerate varlets, whose own letters alone prove them to be mad, do strive and gape to be both kings and emperors.
" Doubtless the primitive church was builded and laid in poverty and sim- Christ s plicity of life, and then as a fruitful mother begat she those her holy children, buiid'c^in wliom the catalogue of saints now maketii mention of; and verily no other humility, foundation can be laid of any church, than that which is laid by Jesus Christ. But this church, as it swimmeth and walloweth in all superfluity of riches, and doth build and raise the frame in all superfluous wealth and glory, so is it to he feared lest the walls thereof in time fall to decay, and when the walls be
fl) The extract from M. Paris is not in Cisner. — Ed.
no I'KACK hktwekv thi: ciiimstians and sakackao.
ithtoryoj down, Utter ruin and subversion follow after. He who is the Searcher of all
Frederic Jjearts kiioweth how furiously these men raj^e against ourselves, saying, that
Emperor. I did not choose to cross the seas as I had promised at the term prefixed ;
whereas many unavoidable and arduous matters, pertaining to the pope himself,
A. D. as well as to tlic church ot' God, and also to the empire, besides the annoyance
1229. of mine infirmity and sickness, did detain me at home, but especially the
ZT insolency of the rebellious Sicilians. For we did not think it sound policy as
pope's to our empire, nor expedient for the christian state, that we should take our
church 19 journey into Asia, leaving behind us at home an intestine and civil war; no
fluiiy^*^' more than for a surgeon to lay a healing plaister to a wound in which the
ergo, the weapon is still slicking." In conclusion, he addeth an admonition to all the
W*-"'^ princes of the world to beware of like peril and danger to themselves from
is not such avarice and iniquity, because that, as the proverb is, " It behoveth him
Christ's to look about, that seeth his neighbour's house on fire."' church.
But now, tliat Frederic the emperor might in very deed stop the slanders of tlie cruel pope, who did jiersist and go forward still in his excommunication against him ; and that he might declare to the whole jo"niey world, how that the last year he foreslowed^ not his journey l>y his emperor ^^^ Voluntary will, but by necessity ; Avhen he had devised and prc- 10 Jcru- pared all tilings meet for the war, and had again gathered a large army and refitted his fleet, he departed from Brundusium, com- mitting the government of his kingdom to the son of Kcginald, duke of Spoleto, and to Anselm, baron of Justingcn, and came by sea to Cyprus, with his host.
From Cyprus the emperor with liis whole navy sailed to Joppa, which city he fortified : but, for that the passages by land were stopped and kept of the enemies, and by sea might he not pass nor travel by reason of the tcmpestuousness of the weather, thereby it came to pass, that within short space they lacked victuals, and were sorely peror'^op^ alfljctcd witli famine. Then fell they to prayer, and made their fam^n^e"'^ humble supplicatiou to God ; with whose tears his wrath being and by appcascd, ilic loug-continued foul and tempestuous weather ceased, niTracu- wlicrcby (thc seas now being calm) they had both victual in great reiiel^ed. plcuty and all other necessary things for their need brought unto them ; whereby immediately it came to pass, that both the emperor and his army, as also the inhabitants of Joppa, were greatly refreshed and animated, and on the other side their enemies, being disap- pointed of their purpose, were greatly discouraged ; insomuch that thc sultan of Egypt, who with a great power, accompanied by Scarapho, his brother, prince of Gaza, and the prince of Damascus, their nephew, with many other dukes and nobles, had encamped themselves within one day's journey of Joppa, thinking to besiege the same, were contented, upon the coming of the emperor*'s heralds to them, to treat of a peace ; whereupon ambassadors were sent unto them with the emperor's demands, right profitable to the christian Veacc commonweal. The Saracens, immediately consulting upon the
during ' •' or
ten ye.ir3, samc, granted thereunto ; so that a peace lor ten years was con- theTurks cludcd, and confirmed by solemn oath on the behalf of both princes,' f "L^"*"*" according to their several usages and manner : the form and conditions of which peace, briefly collected, are these : —