and decrees, that the king of France, like
other Christian princes, ought to acknowledge the temporal as well as
the spiritual sovereignty of the Apostolic Chair; and for this he sent
into France as his legate a Roman priest, archdeacon of Narbonne, that
he might protest against and admonish the king under pain of
excommunication to comply thereto, and acknowledge him; and if he
would not do this, he was to excommunicate him and leave him under an
interdict. And when the said legate came to the city of Paris, the
king would not allow him to publish his letters and privileges, nay
rather they were taken from him by the king's people, and he himself
was dismissed from the realm. And when the said papal letters came
before the king and his barons in the temple, the Count d'Artois,
which was then living, threw them into the fire and burnt them in
despite, whence great judgment came upon him; and the king ordered
that all the entrances to his kingdom should be guarded, so that no
message nor letter from the Pope should enter into France. When Pope
Boniface heard this, he pronounced sentence of excommunication against
the said Philip, king of France; and the king of France to justify
himself, and to make his appeal, summoned in Paris a great council of
clerics and prelates and of all his barons, excusing himself, and
bringing many charges against Pope Boniface of heresy, and simony, and
murders, and other base crimes, by reason whereof he ought to be
deposed from the papacy. But the abbot of Citeaux would not consent
to the appeal, rather he departed, and returned into Burgundy in
despite of the king of France. In such wise began the strife between
Pope Boniface and the king of France, which had afterwards so ill an
end; whence afterwards arose great strife between them, and much evil
followed thereupon, as hereafter we shall make mention.

In these times there came to pass a very notable thing in Florence,
for Pope Boniface having presented to the commonwealth of Florence a
fine young lion, which was confined by a chain in the court of the
palace of the Priors, there came in thither an ass laden with wood,
which when it saw the said lion, either through the fear he had of him
or through a miracle, straightway attacked the lion fiercely, and so
struck him with his hoofs that he died, notwithstanding the help of
many men which were there present. This was held for a sign of great
changes to come, and such like, which certainl