s land. Thence they
advanced till they came to Bedford; where the men who were within
came out against them, and fought with them, and put them to
flight, and slew a good number of them. Then again, after this,
a great army yet collected itself from East-Anglia and from
Mercia, and went to the town of Wigmore; which they besieged
without, and fought against long in the day; and took the cattle
about it; but the men defended the town, who were within; and the
enemy left the town, and went away. After this, the same summer,
a large force collected itself in King Edward's dominions, from
the nighest towns that could go thither, and went to Temsford;
and they beset the town, and fought thereon; until they broke
into it, and slew the king, and Earl Toglos, and Earl Mann his
son, and his brother, and all them that were therein, and who
were resolved to defend it; and they took the others, and all
that was therein. After this, a great force collected soon in
harvest, from Kent, from Surrey, from Essex, and everywhere from
the nighest towns; and went to Colchester, and beset the town,
and fought thereon till they took it, and slew all the people,
and seized all that was therein; except those men who escaped
therefrom over the wall. After this again, this same harvest, a
great army collected itself from East-Anglia, both of the
land-forces and of the pirates, which they had enticed to their
assistance, and thought that they should wreak their vengeance.
They went to Maldon, and beset the town, and fought thereon,
until more aid came to the townsmen from without to help. The
enemy then abandoned the town, and went from it. And the men
went after, out of the town, and also those that came from
without to their aid; and put the army to flight, and slew many
hundreds of them, both of the pirates and of the others. Soon
after this, the same harvest, went King Edward with the
West-Saxon army to Passham; and sat there the while that men
fortified the town of Towcester with a stone wall. And there
returned to him Earl Thurferth, and the captains, and all the
army that belonged to Northampton northward to the Welland, and
sought him for their lord and protector. When this division of
the army went home, then went another out, and marched to the
town of Huntingdon; and repaired and renewed it, where it was
broken down before, by command of King Edward. And all the
people of the country that were left submitted to King Edward,