dreffed up one of the late king's fervants, named Maudlin, in royal robes, giving out that he was the depofed monarch, whom they had taken from his prifon, and were willing to replace on the throne. Pity is a paffion for which the English have ever been remarkable; majefty in diftress was an object fufficient, at once, to excite their loyalty and compaffion; and they accordingly flocked in great numbers round the standard of the confpirators. Their army foon became confiderable, and encamped near Cirencefter, while the leaders took up their head-quarters within the city; yet fo careless or inexperienced were they, that they neglected to place proper guards at the gates and the avenues of the place. This was quickly perceived by the mayor of the town, who was in the interefts of the king; this magiftrate affembling four hundred men in the night, fecured the gates, fo as to exclude the army encamped without, and then he attacked the chiefs within. The earls of Kent and Salisbury were taken, af ter an obftinate refiftance, and beheaded on the fpot by the mayor's order. The earls of Huntington, and lord Spenfer, escaped over the tops of the houfes into the camp, in hopes of ftorming the town at the head of their forces; but they quickly had the mortification to find the tents and baggage abandoned, by the foldiers, who, upon hearing the noife and tumult within, had concluded, that a party of the king's army had entered privately to ftrengthen the townímen; and under the conviction of this, they fled with the utmost precipitation.

The two lords perceiving that all hope was over, endeavoured to conceal themfelves feparately; but they were foon after taken, and loft their heads upon the fcaffold by the king's own order. Their deaths were foon after followed by thofe of

Sir

Sir Thomas Blount, and Sir Benedict Sely; and when the quarters of these unhappy men were brought to London, no less than eighteen bishops, and thirty-four mitred abbots, joined the populace, and met them with the most indecent marks of joy and exultation. In this fhocking proceffion. was seen the earl of Rutland carrying the head of lord Spencer, his brother-in-law, in triumph, af-, ter having betrayed him. This mifcreant had been long enured to blood and treachery he was inAtrumental in the murder of his uncle, the duke of Gloucefter, to pleafe Richard; he foon after deferted the fallen fortunes of that monarch, and joined with Henry; not long after, he entered into a confpiracy against this monarch, after having fworn allegiance to him, and now, at laft, betrayed thofe very affociates whom he had feduced into this enterprize, carrying in triumph the marks of his execrable villanies.

But the fuppreffion of a fingle rebellion was not fufficient to give quiet to a kingdom, threatened with foreign invafion, and torn by inteftine difcontents. The king of France had actually raised a vast armament to invade England; but a truce was foon after concluded for eight and twenty years; and it was agreed, that queen Ifabel, who had been married to Richard, but whofe marriage had never been confummated, fhould return to France, her native country. The Scotch, fhortly after, began to renew their antient difturbances; and while the English army marched northward to oppose their incurfions, the Welch, on the other fide under the conduct of Owen Glendour, attacked the kingdom upon the defenceless quarter. Many were the petty victories, gained, and the ravages committed on either part in this conteft. The name of Owen Glendour is refpected

among

among his countrymen to this very day; but as all his conquefts procured no lafting advantage, and as all his victories only terminated in fame, they are scarce worth a place in the page of hiftory. It will be fufficient to observe, that whatever honour the English loft on the fide of Wales, they gained an equivalent on that of Scotland; the Welch maintained their ground although their chieftain, Glendour, was taken prifoner, while the Scotch ftill fled before the English, and would neither fubmit, nor yet give them battle. It was in a fkirmish between the Scotch and the English, that Archibald, earl of Douglafs, with many of the Scotch no1402. bility, were taken prifoners by the earl

A. D.

of Northumberland, and carried to Alnwick caftle. This fuccefs was confidered at first as of fignal advantage; but it was foon attended with confequences that were fatal to the victors. When Henry received intelligence of this victory, he fent the earl orders not to ransom his prifoners, as he intended to detain them, in order to encrease his demands, in making peace with Scotland. This meffage was highly refented by the earl of Northumberland, who, by the laws of war that prevailed in that age, had a right to the ransom of all fuch as he had taken in battle. The command was still more irkfome, as he confidered the king as his debtor, both for fecurity and his crown. Indeed, the obligations which Henry owed him, were of a nature the most likely to prduce ingratitude on the one fide, and difcontent on the other. The prince naturally became jealous of that power which had advanced him to the throne; and the fubject thought himself entitled to every favour the crown had to bestow. Not but that Henry had already conferred the highest honours

upon

upon him; he had made him conftable of the kingdom, and given him feveral other employments; but nothing could fatisfy this nobleman's ambition, while the king had any thing left to give. Accordingly, ftung with this fuppofed injury, he refolved to overturn a throne which he had the chief hand in establishing. A fcheme was laid, in which the Scotch and Welsh were to unite their forces, and to affift Northumberland in elevating Mortimer, as the true heir to the crown of England. When all things were prepared for the intended infurrection, the earl had the mortification to find himself unable to lead on the troops, being feized with a fudden illness at Ber. wick. But the want of his presence was well fupplied by his fon Harry Percy, furnamed Hotspur, who took the command of the troops, and marched them towards Shrewsbury, in order to join his forces with thofe of Glendour, who, fome time before, had been exchanged from prifon, and had now advanced with his forces as far as Shropshire. Upon the junction of these two armies, they publifhed a manifefto, which aggravated their real grievances, and invented more. In the mean time, Henry, who had received no intelligence of their defigns, was at firft greatly surprised at the news of this rebellion. But fortune feemed to befriend him on this occafion; he had a small army in readiness, which he had intended against the Scotch, and knowing the importance of difpatch against fuch active enemies, he inftantly hurried down to Shrewsbury, that he might give the rebels battle.

Upon the approach of the two armies, both fides feemed willing to give a colour to their cause, by fhewing a defire of reconciliation; but when they came to open their mutual demands, the

treaty

treaty was turned into abufe and recrimination. On one fide was objected rebellion and ingratitude; on the other tyranny and ufurpation. The two armies were pretty nearly equal, each confifting of about twelve thoufand men; the animofity on both fides was inflamed to the highest pitch; and no prudence nor military fkill could determine. on which fide the victory might incline. Accordingly, a very bloody engagement enfued, in which, the generals on both fides exerted themselves with great bravery. Henry was feen every where in the thickeft of the fight; while his valiant fon, who was afterwards the renowned conqueror of France, fought by his fide, and, though wounded in the face by an arrow, ftill kept the field, and performed aftonishing acts of valour. On the other fide, the daring Hotfpur fupported that renown, which he had acquired in fo many bloody engagements, and every where fought out the king as a noble object of his indignation. At last, however, his death, from an unknown hand, decided the victory; and the fortune of Henry once more prevailed. On that bloody day, it is faid that no less than two thousand three hundred gentlemen were flain, and about fix thousand private men, of whom two thirds were of Hotfpur's army.

While this furious tranfaction was going forward, Northumberland, who was lately recovered from his indifpofition, was advancing with a body of troops to reinforce the army of the malecontents, and take upon him the command. But hearing by the way of his fon's and his brother's misfortune, he difmiffed his troops, not daring to keep the field with fo fmall a force, before an army fuperior in number, and flufhed with recent victory. The earl, therefore, for a while attempted to find fafety by flight, but at last being preffed