ch gave rise to the establishment of the Order
of the Garter is generally allowed to have taken place at Wark Castle.
The young king of Scotland, David Bruce, had "ridden a raid" into
England, and ravaged and plundered on his way as far as Auckland, after
having burnt the town of Alnwick, amongst others, but having been
repulsed before the castle. King Edward III. was at Stamford when he
heard of the invasion; but hurrying northward he reached Newcastle in
four days. The Scots, retreating before him, passed Wark Castle, which
was held by the Countess of Salisbury and her nephew, in the absence of
her husband. The young man was loth to let so much English booty be
carried off under his very eyes, so he fell upon the rearguard, and
succeeded in bringing a number of packhorses to the castle. On this the
whole Scottish array turned back, and a siege of the castle began; but
the Countess spiritedly held out, and Edward meanwhile drew nearer. Some
of the Scotsmen were captured, and from them the Countess's nephew
heard that Edward had reached Alnwick. He stole out of the castle before
dawning in heavy rain, to let the King know where his help was urgently
needed; and by noon of the same day Edward was at Wark, only to find his
quarry flown, the Scots having retreated a few hours earlier. The King
was joyfully received and thanked by the grateful Countess; and he in
his turn was much struck by the beauty and grace of the high-spirited
lady, and showed his admiration plainly. In the evening, according to
tradition, a ball was held, at which the incident occurred, so often
related, of the accidental losing of her garter by the fair chatelaine,
and the restoration of it by the King, with the remark, as a rebuke to
the smiling bystanders,--"_Honi soit qui mal y pense._" This he
afterwards adopted as the motto of the Order he established in honour of
the beautiful Countess.

The Garter is the most exclusive of Orders, and consists of the reigning
Sovereign and twenty-five Companions, of whom the Prince of Wales is
always one; and it takes precedence of all other titles, ranking next to
royalty. It is a matter of great pride to all Northumbrians that perhaps
the only instance of its having been bestowed on any except a peer of
the realm or a foreign Sovereign, has occurred recently in the bestowal
of the coveted decoration on Sir Edward Grey, a member of the ancient
and important Northumbrian house of that name.

Every King of Engl