but they did not allege against him oppressive exactions and merciless proscription; yet was his fate one of the hardest recorded in history.

A.D. 1307. Edward is received as king, at Carlisle, Saturday, July 8a; he shortly after proceeds towards Dumfries, where some of the Scottish nobility do homage to him, early in August.

He appoints Aymer de Valence guardian and lieutenant in Scotland, Aug. 30o, and returns to England. Gaveston is recalled; many of the king's council are driven from the court, and some imprisonedd.

A.D. 1308. The king appoints Gaveston regent, and passes into France, where he marries Isabella (daughter of Philip IV., king of France), at Boulogne, Jan. 28; he returns to England, and is crowned at Westminster Feb. 25e.

A parliament assembles, April 28; great complaints are made of the conduct of Gaveston, and he is banished, May 18. The king appoints him governor of Ireland,

a From this day his regnal years are computed.

b Valence resigned the office almost immediately, and it was bestowed on John de Dreux, earl of Richmond, and cousin to the king, being son of John II. duke of Britanny, and Beatrice, daughter of Henry III.

He was soon created earl of Cornwall, but was so unpopular that hardly any one could be found to give him the title in ordinary conversation; the king was unwise enough to issue a proclamation on the subject, which was universally disregarded.

a The chancellor (Ralph Baldock, bishop of London), several of the judges, the barons of the exchequer, and the treasurer, were all displaced.

• Gaveston bore the crown in the procession, and Roger Mortimer and Hugh Despenser, with two others, carried a great "table," on which royal robes were displayed.

where he shews courage and skill in dealing with the turbulent English and the unsubdued Irish1.

A.D. 1309. A truce concluded with Scotland, which

lasts till August, 1310.

A parliament held at Stamford, July 26, which agrees to the return of Gaveston.

A.D. 1310. The barons generally refuse to meet the king in a parliament which is summoned at York in January; Gaveston absconds in February.

The parliament meets at Westminster in Lent, when the archbishop of Canterbury (Robert Winchelsey), seven other bishops, and thirteen barons, are appointed to draw up ordinances for the "better regulation of the king's household "."

The time of his stay in Ireland is uncertain, but it was probably short, as a writ exists, professing to be attested by him at Langley, Dec. 5, 1308.

Their appointment was by virtue of letters patent, dated March 16, 1310, and they were sworn into office four days after.

The head of the party was the king's cousin, Thomas, earl of Lancaster, who was the son of Edmund

Crouchback by Blanche, granddaughter of Louis VIII. of France; he became president of the council, assisted at the death of Gaveston, and long had all the power of the kingdom in his hands, his great ally being the earl of Hereford, the king's brother-in-law. He procured the banishment of the new favourite, Despenser, but was soon after forsaken by many of his adherents in consequence of a quarrel with his wife (Alice, the heiress of the earl of Lincoln); he then formed a league with the king of

Scotland, and marched northward to join Arms of Thomas, earl of Lancaster. him. He was intercepted at Boroughbridge

by Sir Andrew Harcla, defeated, and taken prisoner. Being hurried before the king, he was at once condemned to death, and executed with many circumstances of insult and cruelty, March 22, 1322, and buried at Pomfret. By the people in general he was regarded as a martyr, attempts were made to procure his canonization, and offerings long continued to be made at his tomb.

The king invades Scotland in September; he meets but little opposition; he winters at Berwick, and is there joined by Gaveston.

A.D. 1311. The king returns to England, placing Gaveston in Bamborough castle for security.

The parliament meets, and remains in session from August to October. The "ordinances" are accepted by the king, Oct. 5; the principal ones providing for the banishment of Gaveston from Nov. 1, the resumption of the king's grants to him, and the observance of the Charters.

The castle of Linlithgow captured by stratagem by the Scots.

A.D. 1312. Perth is surprised by Robert Bruce, Jan. 8.

The king recalls Gaveston, and regrants him his estates, Feb. 24.

The order of Templars formally suppressed by the pope's bull, April 3h.

The barons, headed by Thomas, earl of Lancaster, take up arms. The king advances against them, first placing Gaveston in Scarborough castle.

Gaveston is besieged, and obliged to surrender, May 19; he is executed, in the presence of the earl of Lancaster and other nobles, at Blacklow Hill, near Warwick, June 19i.

The king's forces desert him, when he is obliged to

In England their lands were granted to the Knights Hospitallers, in 1324 [17 Edw. II. c. 3.]

i His body was buried by the Minorites in their church at Oxford, but it was shortly after removed to Langley, by order of the king.

make

peace with the barons, and to promise them pardon for the death of Gaveston, Dec. 20.

A.D. 1313. The strong castles of Roxburgh and Edinburgh captured by the Scots, and Stirling (almost the only remaining fortress in the hands of the English) besieged.

The king and his queen go to France, to be present at the coronation of Louis X.; which occasions a delay of the promised pardons, and greatly incenses the barons.

The parliament meets in September; general and also special pardons are granted, Oct. 16, and the adherents of Gaveston are included.

The king prepares for an expedition against Scotland.

A.D. 1314. He marches with a very large force into Scotland, in June; but is totally defeated at Bannockburn (near Stirling), June 24; he flees to Berwick.

Robert Bruce's relatives, and some Scottish ecclesiastics, are set at liberty in exchange for some of the chief English prisoners taken at Bannockburn.

The earl of Lancaster takes the control of the kingdom.

A.D. 1315. Edward Bruce (brother of Robert) invades Ireland, in May; he is warmly received by the natives. The Scots ravage Northumberland, and besiege Carlisle, in August.

The earl of Pembroke ravages Scotland, but is obliged to retire.

The Welsh take up arms, under Llewelyn ap Madoch, and form an alliance with Edward Bruce; they are subdued before the end of the next year.

A.D. 1316. The king proposes a fresh invasion of Scotland, but the earl of Lancaster and his partisans refuse to join the royal army, and it is abandoned.

The Irish are defeated with vast slaughter at Athenree, in the west, by the English, Aug. 10.

Robert Bruce passes into Ireland, to the assistance of his brother, September.

A.D. 1317. The Scots traverse Ireland, as far as Limerick, early in the year, but lose many men in their return to the north; Robert Bruce retires.

The pope (John XVI.) attempts to negotiate a peace between England and Scotland. Bruce being only styled "governor of Scotland," refuses to treat, or to admit the papal legates; he is excommunicated, and his kingdom placed under an interdict.

The earl of Lancaster's power shaken by a quarrel with the earl Warrenne.

A.D. 1318. Bruce retakes Berwick, April 2; the Scots ravage Yorkshireh.

A parliament held in July, when a council of sixteen is appointed to "assist the king."

The Irish appeal to the pope against the tyranny of the English settlers, and desire either to be left independent, or to hold their lands immediately of the king. The pope expostulates with the king, and procures a promise of better government for the future.

Edward Bruce is defeated and killed, near Dundalk, Oct. 14.

Their expeditions were conducted with such daring, that at one time the queen, at another the king, very narrowly escaped falling into their hands.