s oath broken.--Pretext for invading
Normandy.--Proposed marriage of John and Alice.--Richard's return
unannounced.--Sailing from Palestine.--Richard's apostrophe to the
Holy Land.

One of the chief objects which Richard had in view in concluding the
truce with Saladin was to be able to have an honorable pretext for
leaving the Holy Land and setting out on his return to England. He had
received many letters from his mother urging him to come, and giving
him alarming accounts of the state of things both in England and
Normandy.

In England, the reader will perhaps recollect that Richard, when he
set out on the Crusade, had appointed his brother John regent, in
connection with his mother Eleanora, but that he had also, in order to
raise money, appointed several noblemen of high standing and influence
to offices of responsibility, which they were to exercise, in a great
measure, independent of John. And, not content with appointing a
suitable number of these officers, he multiplied them unnecessarily,
and in some instances conveyed the same jurisdiction, as it were, to
different persons, thus virtually selling the same office to two
different men. Of course, this was not done openly and avowedly. The
transactions were more or less covered up and concealed under
different disguises. For example, after selling the post of chief
justiciary, which was an office of great power and emolument, to one
nobleman, and receiving as much money for it as the nobleman was
willing to pay, he afterward appointed other noblemen as assistant
justiciaries, exacting, of course, a large sum of money from each of
them, and granting them, in consideration of it, much the same powers
as he had bestowed upon the chief justiciary. Of course, such a
proceeding as this could only result in continual contentions and
quarrels among the appointees, to break out as soon as Richard should
be gone. But the king cared little for that, so long as he could get
the money.

The quarrels did break out immediately after Richard sailed. There
were various parties to them. There were Eleanora and John, each
claiming to be the regent. Then there were two powerful noblemen, both
maintaining that they had been invested with the supreme power by
virtue of the offices which they held. The name of one of them was
Longchamp. He contrived to place himself, for a time, quite at the
head of affairs, and the whole country was distracted by the wars
which were waged betw