, as his
ambassadors to Rome. The archbishop also repaired thither to plead his
own cause; and the affair was finally compromised by an exchange, in
virtue of which, the castles were allowed to stand, and the secular
seigniory of Andelys was ceded to the duke, who, in return for this
acquisition, and to obtain his reconciliation to the church, gave up to
the primate the towns and lordships of Dieppe and Louviers, the land and
forest of Alihermont, the land and lordship of Bouteilles, and the mills
of Rouen."--The contract was considered of so much importance, that the
archbishop of Canterbury, together with several other English prelates,
as well as almost all those of Normandy, and many of the principal
abbots and noblemen of the province, were summoned to sanction the
execution of it by their presence. Such were the benefits it was
supposed to bestow upon the church, that it has passed in ecclesiastical
history, under the significant appellation of the _celebris permutatio_.

But the king also congratulated himself, and not without reason, upon
having opposed an impregnable barrier to the inroads of his more
powerful, and scarcely less active, neighbor. He delighted in Chateau
Gaillard, the very name of which is said to have had its origin in proud
mockery and defiance; and he himself, in his public acts, designated it
his "_beautiful castle of the rock_." Many of his charters bear date
from this fortress; so that, though only begun three years before the
death of the monarch, it is plain that it was already habitable in his
life-time. It may likewise safely be inferred, that it was then quite
finished; for his dastardly successor, engaged either in distant wars,
or in intrigues at home, from the moment of his mounting the throne, had
bestowed no thought upon the strengthening of his hereditary continental
dominions, till he found himself, in the year 1202, attacked by
Philip-Augustus at the head of an overwhelming army, while his own
subjects were but little disposed to assist a prince, whose hands were
reeking with his nephew's blood.

It was at this time that Chateau Gaillard supported the siege which will
render its name for ever memorable in history. Long, and curious, and
interesting details of the occurrences connected with the capture of the
castle, are given by Father Daniel: Du Moulin also briefly enumerates a
few of the many stratagems to which the French king was obliged to have
recourse. But those who de