Burton The History of the Kingdom of Scotland

1. Auflage 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5312-8857-0
Verlag: Charles River Editors
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 257 Seiten

The History of the Kingdom of Scotland

Autoren/Hrsg.

Burton, Richard

Leseproben

TO ETIUS, THRICE CONSUL, THE ROMAN LIEUTENANT IN GALLIA; THE LAMENTABLE COMPLAINT OF THE BRITAINS.
.................. “WHEN FIRST OUR ANCESTORS BECAME subjects to the Romans, they judged the Senate of Rome by their worthy acts and glorious achievements, to have been a safe refuge and support to all who submitted to them; but we their posterity, by the pernicious designs of the tyrant Maximin, have been deprived of all means for our safety and resistance, whereby we are in great danger of losing both our kingdom and our lives, by the terrible invasions of our most cruel enemies the Scots and Picts. In this our deplorable condition we humbly applied ourselves to the Roman empire for succour, with assured confidence of relief, according as our faithfulness and loyalty hath deserved; notwithstanding which, we find ourselves utterly neglected and disregarded, so that we are delivered up as a prey to those barbarous nations to be ruined, destroyed, and murdered at their pleasure, whereby it is evident, either that the Romans have lost their former virtue and gallantry, or else that their most large empire is by the wrath of Heaven given up to be over-run by a foreign people. But if it be now the fatal time wherein the kingdom of Britain is irrecoverably to be taken from the Romans, and brought under the subjections of some barbarous nation, we declare that we neither abhor nor refuse the government of any, the Scots and Picts, the most cruel of all others, only excepted; of whose un mercifulness we have long since tasted, and by their renewed strength, after the loss of our goods, and our walls being destroyed, we know not how to secure our lives; for now they violently rush in upon us, they destroy our fields, burn our houses, towns and villages, beat down and raze to the ground our castles and towers; their bloody swords spare neither innocent children, women, nor impotent old age, besides vast numbers of men whom they have slain fighting in their own defence; and for the poor remainder of our nation, they are driven to the sea, and because they can get no passage over, are again forced back upon their adversaries, so that we are hereby doubly destroyed, being either drowned by the raging floods, or else murdered by our bloody enemies: therefore if the honour of the Roman empire, if our fidelity thereto for above five hundred years have any power to move you to consider our miseries, we humbly pray and beseech you to send us convenient succours, lest we should seem to be more cruelly betrayed by the Romans than abused by our barbarous neighbours, and all people may be thereby deterred from putting any trust or confidence in the protection or friendship of the Romans.” Etius returned answer, that the calamities of the Britains did very much disturb him, but that the present invasions made upon the empire by several nations did at present hinder him for sending them any relief, but he advised them they should make the best resistance they could, and when the empire was settled they should be fully revenged of all the injuries they had received. At the same time the Britains having sent ambassadors to the Scots to treat of peace, they returned with this answer, “That unless the Britains wholly submitted themselves, and became their subjects, they would make no peace;” which the Britains took in such indignation that they mustered up all the forces possible, and met the Scots in the field, but were beaten with the loss of fifteen thousand, and four thousand Scots and Picts; after which they were forced to sue again for peace, which was granted upon these hard conditions: That the Britains should upon no account receive any aid from Rome, nor suffer any enemy of the Scots or Picts to pass through their country; that they should enter into no league with any city or nation without their consent, and should be ready to assist the Scots upon all occasions; that all Britain, as far as Hull or Humber, should he resigned wholly to the Scots; that as a trophy of conquest they should pay the Scots sixty thousand pounds; and lastly, that they should deliver an hundred hostages for performing these conditions, which articles being so very severe, were kept no longer than till the Britains had an opportunity to break them, and that was soon after; for Eugenius having reigned thirty years, and much enlarged the Scottish dominions, died; III. To whom Dongard, his brother, succeeded in 470, who followed his brother’s example, in preserving justice and peace among his subjects, in whose reign the Britains being weary of their servitude, by the persuasion of Conanus, resolved to free themselves, and sent into Armorica, now Brittany, in France, for aid, which Androneus, King thereof, soon agreed to, sending his son Constantine with considerable forces, who landing at Totnes, in Devonshire, he was received with great joy, and proclaimed King of Britain, whereupon he assured them he would to the uttermost of his power endeavour to regain their freedoms; whereby they were so encouraged that they quickly assembled all able to bear arms, wherewith they marched against the Picts and Scots, and a bloody battle was fought, sixteen thousand Britains being killed, and thirteen thousand Scots, with Dongard, who was slain by Constantine, fighting valiantly in the midst of his troops; upon which the English marched southward, and the Scots homeward, with their dead king, in the year 465. IV. Constantine, another brother of Eugenius, was crowned King after him, a prince altogether unlike his two predecessors, giving himself up to lust and wantonness, deflowering virgins, and ravishing wives, a great favourer of backbiters and slanderers, and never pleased nor merry but in the company of buffoons and jesters; and though of the same name with the British King, yet of very different qualities, the one studying to promote the good and advantage of his people, the other minding nothing but lasciviousness and sensuality. He granted peace to the Britains without their asking it, releasing not only the tribute, but secretly delivering up divers castles upon the river Humber into their hands: these, with several other things which he acted to the prejudice of the realm, enraged the nobility and people against him, so that they resolved to make an insurrection, but by the persuasion of Dongall, a discreet nobleman of Galloway, who declared the great inconveniences which would unavoidably follow, they were persuaded to suffer patiently his disorderly government. The Picts observing the ill conduct of the Scotch King, were afraid that if the King of Britain should endeavour to revenge the injuries he had received from them, they were not able to resist him singly, and were like to have small assistance from the Scots: they therefore sent three British villains into Britain, who treacherously slew that King; but being taken, they were cast into a mighty fire, and burned to ashes. Neither did Constantine of Scotland long survive him; for having ravished the daughter of a nobleman of the Isles, he was by him murdered, after he had reigned infamously seventeen years, in 481. V. After him Dongal, or Congal, his nephew, son of his brother Dongald, was proclaimed King, who endeavoured to reform the abuses in the commonwealth. In his time Constantinus, the eldest son of Constantine, was taken out of an abbey, wherein he was a monk, and advanced to the kingdom of Britain, whereby being unfit to govern, the ordering of all things was committed to Vortigern, who thereupon renewed the league with the Picts and Scots, choosing a guard to the King’s person out of them, but soon after he procured Constantius to be murdered by some of them, and then put them all to death, as well the innocent as guilty, at which the Scotch and Pictish Kings were so enraged that they made several inroads upon the British borders; upon which Vortigern raised a very great army, who were commanded by Gitellus, Prince of Wales, wherewith he took five hundred of these borderers, and immediately hanged them up. The Scots and Picts soon after marched toward them with strong forces, where a great battle was fought, wherein there were slain of the Britains, (saith the Scotch historian,) twenty thousand, and of the Scotch four thousand. This great loss much discouraged the Britains, so that Vortigern being afraid of the people, designed to have left the kingdom. But upon consultation with some British Lords, it was concluded to send for succour from Germany, which was done accordingly, and Hengist and Horsus, two Saxon Princes, came over with ten thousand soldiers, and were received joyfully by Vortigern and the Britains; they were no sooner refreshed but they fell upon the Scots before they knew of their arrival, wherewith being much amazed, a multitude of them were slain. Divers other victories they obtained for the Britains, and great numbers of Saxons daily arriving, the Britains began to suspect they designed upon their liberties, which happened accordingly; for, after a while, Hengist having notice that Aurelius Ambrosius, and Uter Pendragon, the sons of Constantine, designed to bring abundance of Britains and French from Brittany to claim the crown as lawfully descended from their father, he, with the assistance of Vortigern, endeavoured what he could to hinder them, and getting possession of York, caused divers of the nobles and gentry to be slain, under pretence they would have betrayed several forts and castles to the Scots, which he then got into his own hands. The Britains, to prevent these growing mischiefs, deposed Vortigern, and placed his son Vortimer in his stead, and then sent ambassadors to the Scots and Picts, requiring their assistance against the cruel oppressions of the Saxons, who by several indirect ways endeavoured not only to usurp the...