Manuscript: Faustina B. IX

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In reditu autem suo rutarii sui ministri diaboli abbatiam de Coldeingam expoliauerunt,
villam etiam de Berwic succenderunt ipso rege incipiente. Domum enim in qua hospitatus est
propria manu ut dicitur contra morem regium indecenter accendit. ¶Eodem anno mense
Februario, dominus A’ rex Scott’ cum manu ualida ⁊ exerceritu1 suo uniuerso post regem An
glie iter arripiens terram illius usque ad Carleolum ⁊ ultra igne uoraci uastauit ⁊ armis.
Hac etiam uice quod dolendum est inuito domino rege ⁊ omnimodis prohibente, ⁊ firmam pacem
suam religiosis concedente, Scotti quidam non magistri malicie,2 sed ministri malicie
domum de Hol\m/cultran, omnibus quecunque potuerunt attingere sacris, uidelicet libris, uesti
mentis, calicibus, equis ⁊ animalibus, utensilibus ⁊ indumentis tam nefaria ⁊ scelerata de
mentia expoliauerunt ut etiam monachum in infirmitorio in extremis positum, cilicio
superpositum pannis quibus indutus erat denudarent, nec ullam reuerentiam sacris alta
ribus exhiberent, quod tamen peccatum non pertransiuit inultum. Nam dum reuerterentur cum
preda submersi sunt in fluuio quodam edena dicto quantum ad estimationem hominum
plusquam mille nongenti Scotti in breui hora diei, ultio digna Dei. ¶Eodem anno men
se Iulio cum exercitu suo uniuerso exceptis Scottis de quibus expensas sumpsit iterum Carleo
lum profectus est, eamque obsedit que uidelicet ciuitas Carleoli vi idus Augusti reddita est
illi. Castellum tamen illa uice non expugnauit. Inde uero progrediens per medium Anglie
cum omni exercitu suo, uiuente ⁊ inuidente Iohanne rege Anglie usque ad Doueram in occur
sum domini Laodouici filii regis Francie progressus est, qui eodem anno ii n’ Maii, cum
multitudine nauium copiosa ad interuentum baronum Anglie ut eis esset in
auxilium amplicuerat.34In hoc itaque procinctu itineris occisus est Eustacius de Vesci, ge
ner ipsius regis in obsidione Castelli Bernardi. ¶Et sciendum quod adueniente
Laodowico in Angliam, Willelmus longa spata, frater ipsius regis anglie, comes Salisbirie, ⁊
alii multi ab ipso rege diuertentes ad Laodowicum se transtulerunt, quod quidem
plus doli quam dilectionis intuitu, plus subuertendi quam succurrendi gratia se fecisse per
seditionem subsecutam innotuit. Hac etiam uice, dominus A’ rex Scott’ in Anglia moram
faciens humagium fecit dicto Laodowico \apud Londonias/ ut dicitur sub ea forma qua barones Anglie
fecerant eidem, ⁊ tam ipse Laodowicus quam ceteri barones Anglie tactis sanctuariis iurauerunt
quod numquam sine ipso rege Scott’ pactum pacis aut concordie cum rege Anglie inirent,
quod tamen omnino non est obseruatum ut patebit inferius. ¶Eodem anno xvii k’ Augusti, pie re
cordationis dominus Inncencius papa tertius ex hac luce domino uocante secessit, anno pontifica
tus sui xixo cui successit vir uenerabilis, tam scientia quam etate maturus dominus Honorius
episcopus ⁊ cardinalis xiiio k’ Augusti. ¶Eodem anno obiit dompnus Henricus abbas Rieuallis
apud Ruhford ibidemque sepultus est, cui successit in regimine dompnus Willelmus abbas
de Melros iio k’ Septembris, loco cuius electus est in abbatem de Melros dompnus Radulfus celler
arius eiusdem domus xviiio kal’ Octobris. Ibidemque a domino Hugone episcopo Dulkeldensi5 benedictionis
sue munus adeptus est iiio k’ Octobris. ¶Dompnus Ricardus ▬▬ abbas de Ne\u/botl suo cessit
officio vi k’ ⊗ Augusti cui successit dompnus Adam cellerarius eiusdem domus xiiio k’ Septembris.
¶Eodem anno xvi kal’ Nouembris obiit Iohannes rex Anglie apud Newerc cuius uiscera
Obiit Johannes rex
Anglie
cui successit
H’ filius eius

Notes

1 JRD: Read exercitu (an additional –er abbreviation above the c). The scribe perhaps began to write the medieval spelling excercitu but changed his mind and used the classical spelling exercitu, forgetting to delete the extra –er abbreviation.
2 JRD: Originally written malicie. If milicie intended, i not supplied; ChrL non magistri sed ministri militia.
3 JRD: ChrL applicuerat.
4 JRD: Paragraph mark added by contemporary editor.
5 JRD: Read Dunkeldensi.
On his return, his routiers—those servants of the devil—plundered the abbey of Coldingham; they also set light to the town of Berwick, and the king himself began it; for it is said that, contrary to kingly behaviour and in an unseemly way, he set fire by his own hand to the house in which he lodged. ¶In February of the same year the lord A[lexander], king of the Scots, set out after the king of England with a mighty hand1 and all his army; and with devouring fire and arms laid waste that king’s land as far as Carlisle and beyond. On this occasion, however, one must lament that against the lord king’s will—for he had by all means forbidden it, granting instead his firm peace to the religious orders—certain Scotsmen, not soldiers of the Master but servants of malice,2 despoiled the monastery of Holme Cultram of everything they were able to lay their hands on, sacred books, vestments, chalices, horses and livestock, utensils and clothing. Such was their abominable and sacrilegious madness that they even stripped off the rags in which a monk who was laid in the infirmary was clothed, covered with sack cloth at the point of death; nor did they show any reverence to the sacred altars. This transgression nonetheless did not pass unpunished; for as they were returning with the spoils they were drowned in a river called the Eden, more than 1900 Scotsmen in one brief hour of the day (so far as one could estimate), by the just vengeance of God. ¶In July of that year, with the whole of his army, except the Scots from whom he took expenses, King Alexander marched again to Carlisle and took possession of it; that is to say, the city of Carlisle was surrendered to him on 8 August; but he did not capture the castle at that time. Advancing from there through the middle of England with all his army (while King John was still alive and looking on in indignation), he proceeded as far as Dover to meet the lord Louis, the son of the king of France, who in that year, on 6 May, had landed with a very great number of ships, having been prevailed upon by the barons of England to come to their aid. ¶At the outset of this expedition, Eustace de Vescy, the king’s brother-in-law,3 was slain during the siege of Barnard Castle. ¶It should be known that when Louis arrived in England, William Longespée, the king of England’s own brother and earl of Salisbury, and many others who turned away from the king, transferred their allegiance to Louis; indeed it was made clear by the subsequent sedition that they committed that this was more for the sake of deceit than devotion, more in respective of sedition than support. And now, this time, when the lord A[lexander], king of the Scots, was sojourning in England, he did homage to the said Louis, \at London/ so it is said, under the same form as the barons of England had done to him; and both Louis himself, as well as the barons of England, swore upon sacred relics that they would never enter into any peace treaty or agreement with the king of England without the king of the Scots himself; this was not altogether respected, however, as will be shown below. ¶On 16 July in the same year, the lord pope, Innocent III of beloved memory, called by the Lord, departed from this light in the 19th year of his pontificate; a venerable man, the lord Honorius, bishop and cardinal, as ripe in knowledge as in age, succeeded him on 20 July. ¶Dom Henry, abbot of Rievaulx, died in the same year at Rufford, and was buried there; Dom William, abbot of Melrose, succeeded him in the rule on 31 August; and in his place as abbot of Melrose, Dom Ralph, the cellarer of that house, was elected on 14 September; and he gained his faculty of consecration from the lord Hugh, bishop of Dunkeld, on 29 September. ¶Dom Richard, ▬▬ abbot of Newbattle, resigned his office on 27 ⊗ July; Dom Adam, cellarer of the same place, succeeded him on 20 August. ¶On 17 October in the same year, John, king of England, died at Newark; his innards  
John king of
England died
H[enry] his
son succeeded him

Notes

1 JRD: Manu ualida, meaning ‘with a mighty hand or strong army’, is a common biblical phrase: 4 Rg 18. 17, Baruch 2. 11, Ezekiel 20. 34, 1 Maccabees 11. 15, 2 Esdras 1. 10.
2 JRD: A play on words: (i) cf. magistros malicie in 1216 at the end of Cotton MS Faustina B IX, f. 32v; (ii) note the juxtaposition of magistri milicie and ministri malicie; (iii) magistri milicie could represent either ‘soldiers of the Master [i.e. Christ]’, ‘commanders of an army’, or ‘teachers of knighthood’.
3 JRD: Here gener means brother-in-law rather than son-in-law; Eustace was married to Margaret, half-sister of King Alexander II.