route into

Italy by the

Pass

with a favoring wind crossed the sea, and, within the space of a day, landing at Bergen-op-Zoom, in Brabant, the country which I sought, I set my face towards Rome. Thence passing through Diest, Maastricht, Aachen, Cologne, Bonn, Coblentz, Worms, Speyer, Strassburg, Breisach, Basel, Bern, Lucerne The familiar and its wonderful lake, Mount St. Gotthard and the hermitage on its summit (where I was drawn in a cart by an ox, half Rhine and frozen with cold and with mine eyes blindfolded lest I should St. Gotthard see the dangers of the passage), on the eve of Palm Sunday [March 18th] I arrived at Bellinzona, in Lombardy. Thence through Como, Milan, Piacenza, Borgo-San-Donnino, Terenzo, Pontremoli, Pietrasanta, Pisa, Siena, and Viterbo, turning aside from Bologna, Florence, and Perugia, on account of the raging wars and sieges of the duke of Milan (of whom hereafter) and the perils thereof, and halting for two days at every good inn for refreshment of myself and men, and still more of my horses, on the 5th of April, by the favor of God and by the fear caused by our escort, I came safely through all to Rome. And within a fortnight after, being presented, with his recommendation, by the lord Balthasar, cardinal deacon of St. Eustace, afterwards Pope John XXIII, to our lord Pope Boniface IX, by whom I was honorably received to the kiss of foot, hand, and cheek, and then being given over to the cardinal of Bologna, afterwards Pope Innocent VII, to be examined as to my knowledge, and by him approved, I was within a fortnight, by the advice of the pope and the Rota, raised to the dignity of papal chaplain and auditor of the apostolic palace Appointed a and judge of the city and world, being invested by the pope fudge in the chaplain and judge himself with the ensigns of office, namely the cope, rochet, papal service and hat. And within a week after the pope assigned thirty grave cases, which had been referred to his hearing, to me to be determined. . . .

Contrary to the statutes of provisors, the pope conferred on me, the writer of this history, the archdeaconry of Buckingham, with the churches of Knoyle, Tisbury, and Deverill, in England; but, the Welsh war preventing this, he gave me the archdeaconry of Llandaff and Carmarthen, with the church of Llandefailog and the prebend of Llanbister. . . .

These things I heard of at Rome. And there everything was bought and sold, so that benefices were given not for desert, but to the highest bidder. Whence every man who had wealth and was greedy for empty glory kept his money in the merchant's bank to further his advancement. And therefore, as, when under the old dispensation the priests were corrupted with venality, the three miracles ceased, namely, the unquenchable fire of the priesthood, the sweet smell of sacrifice which offendeth not, and the smoke which ever riseth up, so I fear it will come to pass under the new dispensation. And methinks the danger standeth daily knocking at the very doors of the church. . . . In these days, the church of Hereford being vacant, the pope made disposition thereof in favor of me, the writer of this history, but through the envy of the English who opposed me and by letters belied me with poisonous words to the king, whereby I passed four years on sea and land in the miseries of exile, I got not advancement but rather abasement, and suffered the last degree of poverty, stripped of benefices and goods, and, like Joseph, hearing among strangers a foreign tongue, albeit I was paid with gold for my counsel.

Meanwhile in England many parliaments were held, wherein both more stringent statutes were passed against papal provisions, and more than was wont the clergy and people were taxed with heavier taxes. . . . The church of London being vacant, the college of auditors with one accord went up and besought the pope to translate thither the lord Guy de Mona, bishop of St. David's, and to make provision of the church of St. David's to me, the writer of this history. Which thing was very pleasing to him, and he said: "We thank you heartily that you have thus recommended him to us; and we rejoice at so good an occasion of making provision for him of a better church in his own country, for the church is one of dignity. We know his good fame, and we knew also the same Guy de Mona at the time when we were collector in England." But the matter being noised about, my enemies, with mighty clamor and speech declared against it to the king and to the cardinals who held benefices in England, threatening the latter that, if they should allow this thing, they would lose their benefices

by the king's displeasure; and they swore that the king would send me to prison and the gallows. Moreover they forbade the merchants to lend me money, under pain of expelling their partners out of England. And this was the chief hindrance of the matter; and so it fell to the ground.

IV. THE BLACK DEATH AND ITS EFFECTS

The following account of the Black Death was written by Henry Knighton, a clergyman connected with the church at Leicester, who was a boy at the time of its occurrence, but had abundance of direct information concerning it.

account of

Then the grievous plague penetrated the seacoasts from 146. A con Southampton, and came to Bristol, and there almost the whole temporary strength of the town died, struck, as it were, by sudden death; the Black for there were few who kept their beds more than three days, Death or two days, or half a day; and after this the fell death broke forth on every side with the course of the sun. There died at Leicester in the small parish of St. Leonard more than 380; in the parish of Holy Cross, more than 400; in the parish of St. Margaret of Leicester, more than 700; and so in each parish a great number. Then the bishop of Lincoln sent through the whole bishopric, and gave general power to all and every priest, both regular and secular, to hear confessions, and absolve with full and entire episcopal authority except in matters of debt, in which case the dying man, if he could, should pay the debt while he lived, or others should certainly fulfill that duty from his property after his death. Likewise, the pope granted full remission of all sins to whoever was absolved in peril of death, and granted that this power should last till next Easter, and every one could choose a confessor at his will. In the same year there was a great plague of sheep everywhere in the realm, so that in one place there died in one pasturage more than 5000 sheep, and so rotted that neither beast nor bird would touch them. And there were small prices for everything on

Increased

the first

statute of

laborers

account of the fear of death. For there were very few who cared about riches or anything else; for a man could have a horse, which before was worth 40 s., for 6 s. 8 d., a fat ox for 4 s., a cow for 12 d., a heifer for 6 d., a fat wether for 4 d., a sheep for 3 d., a lamb for 2 d., a big pig for 5 d., a stone of wool for 9 d. Sheep and cattle went wandering over fields and through crops, and there was no one to go and drive or gather them, so that the number cannot be reckoned which perished in the ditches and hedges in every district, for lack of herdsmen; for there was such a lack of servants that no one knew what he ought to do. In the following autumn no one could get a reaper for less than 8d. with his food, a mower for less than 12 d. with his food. Wherefore many crops perished in the fields for want of some one to gather them; but in the pestilence year, as is above said of other things, there was such abundance of grain that no one troubled about it. . . .

Meanwhile the king sent proclamation into all the counties wages pro- that reapers and other laborers should not take more than they hibited by had been accustomed to take under a penalty appointed by statute. But the laborers were so lifted up and obstinate that they would not listen to the king's command: if any one wished to have them he had to give them what they wanted, and either lose his fruit and crops, or satisfy the lofty and covetous wishes of the workmen. And when it was known to the king that men had not observed his command, and had given greater wages to the laborers, he levied heavy fines upon abbots, priors, knights, greater and lesser, and other great folk and small folk of the realm, of some 100s., of some 40s., of some 20s., from each according to what he could give. He took from each plowland of the realm 20s., and, notwithstanding this, a fifteenth. And afterwards the king had many laborers arrested and sent them to prison; many withdrew themselves and went into the forests and woods; and those who were taken were heavily fined. Their ringleaders were made to swear that they would not take daily wages beyond the ancient custom, and then were freed from prison. And in like manner it was done with the other craftsmen in the boroughs and villages.... After the aforesaid pestilence many buildings,

great and small, fell into ruins in every city, borough, and village for lack of inhabitants, likewise many villages and hamlets became desolate, not a house being left in them, all having died who dwelt there; and it was probable that many such villages would never be inhabited. In the winter following there was such a want of servants in work of all kinds, that one would scarcely believe that in times past there had ever been such a lack. . . . And so all necessaries became so much dearer that what in times past had been worth a penny was then worth 4 d. or 5 d.

Magnates and lesser lords of the realm who had tenants made abatements of the rent in order that the tenants should not go away on account of the want of servants and the general dearness, some half the rent, some more, some less, some for two years, some for three, some for one year, according as they could agree with them. Likewise, those who received of their tenants day work throughout the year, as is the practice with villains, had to give them more leisure and remit such works, and either entirely to free them or give them an easier tenure at a small rent, so that homes should not be everywhere irrecoverably ruined, and the land everywhere remain entirely uncultivated.

After the renewal of the war in France in 1369, it went so badly that the English might traverse all the country and yet reap nothing but suffering and loss, as described in the following extract from the chronicler Walsingham.

through

In the year 1373 John, duke of Lancaster, the king's son, 147. An expeand brother of the prince of Wales, crossed over to France dition with a great army to try his fortune there a second time. So France (1373) he marched by way of Paris to Burgundy, and indeed through. the length of France, meeting none willing or daring to offer resistance. But in this expedition he inflicted practically no loss upon the French, except that he set some towns and places to ransom; but otherwise he hurt none of the enemy. At last he retired with his army from France where there were abundant provisions and sumptuous meals to be had