side that might be victorious. Of all the nobles who followed Richard, scarcely one but the Duke of Norfolk, and his son, the Earl of Surrey, remained faithful to him. Had he delayed the battle, he would probably have been even more completely deserted; and there is no doubt that he saw the danger, but, with a bearing still undaunted, he gave the order, and the struggle commenced. It was fierce but brief; and while it was raging Richard on a sudden put spurs to his horse, and shouting "treason," dashed into the midst of his foes.

He had caught sight of Richmond, and hoped to gain the victory by taking the life of his rival; which was not an unlikely result if he could have reached him, as the tyrant was both skilful in the use of his weapons and personally brave. He cut his way through Richmond's forces till he came close to him, killed his standard-bearer Sir William Brandon, and was aiming a deadly thrust at his foe, when he was overpowered by numbers, thrown from his horse, and dispatched with many wounds. The crown, which it appears he had worn in the battle, was picked up, battered and blood-stained, and placed on the head of Henry of Richmond, who was then saluted as king by the whole army; and the dead body of Richard, after being exposed for a few days, was buried with very little ceremony at the church of the Grey Friars in Leicester. Such was the end of Richard III., after he had possessed for little more than two years the crown he had obtained by so many crimes. With him, too, ended the dynasty of the Plantagenets, and those "Wars of the Roses," as they were called, that had so long desolated the kingdom.

The appellation, so little in accordance with the character of these savage and destructive contests, was derived from the adoption by the respective parties of roses for their emblems, a white one by the Yorkists, and a red by the Lancastrians.

A.D.

REMARKABLE EVENTS OF THE PERIOD.

1400. Death of the poet Chaucer.

1401. A priest burnt for following the doctrines of Wickliffe.

1407. A plague destroyed 30,000 of the inhabitants of London.

1419. The famous Sir Richard Whittington, Lord Mayor for the third time. 1422. The English and French courts spend their Whitsun-holidays together

at Paris.

1429. The siege of Orleans raised by Joan of Arc.

1436. John Guttemberg practises the art of printing at Strasburg.

1442. The African slave trade begun by the Portuguese.

1453. Constantinople taken by Mahomet II., and the Greek empire finally

overthrown.

1455. First battle between the Lancastrians and Yorkists at St. Albans. 1474. Printing introduced into England by William Caxton.

CHAP. XII.

THE RELIGION, GOVERNMENT, AND LAWS, LITERATURE, ARTS, COMMERCE, MANNERS AND CUSTOMS, ETC. OF THIS PERIOD.

THE Lollards and followers of Wickliffe had during this period greatly increased, and they had become formidable to the Romish Church.

At the head of them had stood Lord Cobham, whose character and death have been already recorded; after that event the Archbishop of Canterbury commanded the University of Oxford to appoint a committee of twelve of its most orthodox members to examine the works of the Reformer Wickliffe, and extract from them what they should consider as heretical doctrines; and in compliance with this injunction they transmitted to the primate a report containing no less than 300 of such errors; which he then forwarded to the Pope, with a request for permission to take the bones of Wickliffe from his grave and throw them on a dung-hill, to be trampled upon. The Pope, however, though he condemned the doctrines, would not have the ashes of the Reformer disturbed.

The doctrines continued, notwithstanding the condemnation, to spread both in England and Germany; in both which countries men laid down their lives for the truth, though in the former the Wars of the Roses had had the effect of interrupting the persecution against them, so that the very storm proved their shelter.

The Romish Church seemed now more opposed than ever to the spirit of reform that had arisen; greater stress than before was laid on pilgrimages, processions, and indulgences, and greater power claimed for the priests, though the general character of the clergy in this age was such as to call forth the animadversion even of their own party, by whom they were often declared to be profligate, illiterate, negligent of their duty, lascivious, and rapacious.

Government and Laws.-The constitution, government, and laws of England were considerably improved in this period. Philip de Comines, after describing the disorders that prevailed in the governments of France, Germany, and Italy, and the cruel oppression under which the people of all these countries groaned, remarks: "In my opinion, of all the states of the world that I know, England is the country where the commonwealth is best governed and the people least oppressed.

Besides the improvements in the constitution, several excellent laws were passed for the regulation and encouragement of trade, the security of property, and the liberties of the people. Even the

"bold bad man," Richard III. is said to have been "a good legislator for the ease and solace of the common people, whom he desired much to attach to his cause." His laws were the first written in the English language, all former ones having been in French or Latin, which were not understood by the nation. The laws of Richard III. were also the first printed in England.

Literature. The unsettled state of Britain, France, and other European countries, which were kept in continual agitation by war and revolution, could not but prove unfavourable to the progress of literature and learning. In the church the most valuable livings were often bestowed on men destitute of knowledge, while the best scholars in the kingdom were left to languish in obscurity, or driven to obtain a wretched subsistence by licensed beggary. It was not uncommon, during these deplorable civil commotions, to find men who had been educated at the universities traversing the country as mendicants, with a certificate from the chancellor, setting forth their acquirements. What kind of treatment they sometimes met with from the coarse-minded ignorant nobles to whom they addressed themselves may be imagined from a story told by Anthony Wood, the historian of the University of Oxford. Two itinerant students, he says, having one day presented themselves at a baronial castle, and sought an introduction by the exhibition of their academical credentials, in which they were described as having a talent for poetry, were ordered by the baron to be suspended in two buckets over a draw-well, and dipped alternately into the water, until each should produce a couplet on his awkward situation. A considerable number of duckings had to be given, affording of course good sport to the baron and his menials, before the unfortunate captives had finished their rhymes, and were set at liberty.

In many minds, however, the love of knowledge was still active, prompting them to the most zealous exertion in its behalf. In the course of the fifteenth century no less than forty new universities were founded in Europe; and several new colleges added both to Oxford and Cambridge. Printing also, which has contributed more than almost all other causes to dispel the intellectual darkness in which the world was involved, was introduced into England during this period, about thirty years after it had been first practised on the Continent. William Caxton, originally a mercer of London, had the honour of being the first to practise it in this country. He printed the works of Chaucer, Gower, and Lydgate, as well as translations from Latin, French, and German authors, the greater part consisting of religious works and books of romance and chivalry. Wickliffe's translation of the Old Testament still remained in manuscript.

Arts. — Great improvements were made in architecture during this age, and the style called the Perpendicular Gothic, considered essentially English, was brought to perfection, although the "Continental Gothic was on the decline. Many churches and castles were erected in this style, all elaborately ornamented, and with profuse heraldic decorations. The internal fittings of dwellinghouses were, however, still in a rude state; neither linings nor plaster ceilings were yet introduced, and tapestry and hangings were used to cover the deficiencies of ill-closed doors and windows. One marked feature in the history of architecture of this period is the revived use of brick for building, by which a complete revolution in the art was subsequently effected.

English music began in the fifteenth century to assume a greatly improved form, though still in what would now be thought a very rude and infant state. Such as it was, however, it was practised by every person of rank, and by all who had received a liberal education; so that there was probably at least as much genuine love of music as in our own time. Even the hero of Agincourt was a performer on the organ, as was also his refined contemporary James II. of Scotland. The youths at the universities studied church music, and bachelors' and doctors' degrees were taken in the science. "Minstrels," says Warton, were paid for their services more highly than priests; " though this was only true of a few who excelled in the art. But it is to be observed that it was regularly recognised as a profession, and chartered by Edward IV.; the guild or fraternity of minstrels being governed by a marshal and two wardens annually chosen.

66

Commerce. Much as the English of this age were engaged in war, commerce continued to increase. The articles of export were mostly the same as in the preceding period; but there were some new English manufactured goods, amongst which may be mentioned both gunpowder and guns; and the existence of many opulent merchants clearly indicates the increasing extent of com

merce.

Individuals rose to great wealth, and sometimes even to rank and power, by the successful pursuit of trade. William de la Pole, a merchant who flourished in the time of Edward III., was made chief baron of the Exchequer, and a knight banneret; his descendants became earls, marquises, and dukes of Suffolk, but were finally ruined by a royal alliance and the prospect of succession to the crown. Another of the opulent commercial men of this age was Richard Whittington, famous in story for his adventures in connection with his no less renowned cat; but these must be regarded as belonging rather to the region of poetry and fable than of history; Whittington was not in reality a poor scullion boy,

but the son of Sir William Whittington, knight; he was elected three times Lord Mayor of London, and his almshouse at Highgate still remains as a monument of his wealth and benevolence.

Regular merchants were not the only traders in these times, for frequent mention is made of trading vessels which were the property of kings, nobles, and ecclesiastics of rank. Edward IV. made great profit by his commercial undertakings, and William of Trumpington, Abbot of St. Albans, traded extensively in herrings, and kept agents for the purpose at Yarmouth.

Fish was an article both of export and import; for while herrings were sent into foreign countries, other kinds of fish were procured from Ireland in exchange for cloth, wine, ale, corn, and salt. In connection with the subject of trade and commerce it may be mentioned, that it was at the close of this period that public posts were first established for the conveyance of intelligence in England and France. Letters were forwarded by them at the rate of a hundred miles a day, by means of post-horses changed every twenty miles; but these posts were reserved for the exclusive use of the government. The English coins of this period, with two exceptions, were gold and silver pieces of the same denominations as before. The new ones, which were much admired, both at home and abroad, for their purity and beauty, were called nobles and angels; the former worth nineteen and the latter fourteen shillings of our present money.

Manners, Customs, &c.-As the country advanced in wealth, and intercourse with foreign countries became more extended, improvements of various kinds were introduced in all the accommodations of domestic life. This was especially the case with regard to furniture. Classically-shaped chairs and stools, elaborately worked tables, Arras tapestry (so called from the town of Arras in France), "beds of gold swans,' ""beds of feathers and leopards," reading desks, brass chandeliers, &c., are mentioned in wills and manuscripts of the period. In the earlier part of it the extravagant fashions of dress introduced by Richard II. underwent very little alteration. The principal change appears in the hair, which, instead of being worn long or in natural curls, as it had been from the time of the Conquest, was now cropped close by all but military or aged persons. The fifteenth century was remarkable for a mixture of all the absurdities and extravagances of preceding times, with a few additions. The kings of this period were notorious for their love of finery and dress; and their example was naturally followed by their subjects. For them, however, sumptuary laws were enacted; and in the last year of the reign of Edward IV. cloth of gold or silk of a purple colour was forbidden to all but the royal family; another