of the King of France. He thought to obtain Normandy thereby;
but he sped little, and by good right; for he was an evil man.
Wherever he was, he did more evil than good; he robbed the lands,
and levied heavy guilds upon them. He brought his wife to
England, and put her into the castle at... (166) Good woman she
was; but she had little bliss with him; and Christ would not that
he should long reign. He therefore soon died, and his mother
also. And the Earl of Anjou died; and his son Henry took to the
earldom. And the Queen of France parted from the king; and she
came to the young Earl Henry; and he took her to wife, and all
Poitou with her. Then went he with a large force into England,
and won some castles; and the king went against him with a much
larger force. Nevertheless, fought they not; but the archbishop
and the wise men went between them, and made this settlement:
That the king should be lord and king while he lived, and after
his day Henry should be king: that Henry should take him for a
father; and he him for a son: that peace and union should be
betwixt them, and in all England. This and the other provisions
that they made, swore the king and the earl to observe; and all
the bishops, and the earls, and the rich men. Then was the earl
received at Winchester, and at London, with great worship; and
all did him homage, and swore to keep the peace. And there was
soon so good a peace as never was there before. Then was the
king stronger than he ever was before. And the earl went over
sea; and all people loved him; for he did good justice, and made
peace.

A.D. 1154. In this year died the King Stephen; and he was buried
where his wife and his son were buried, at Faversham; which
monastery they founded. When the king died, then was the earl
beyond sea; but no man durst do other than good for the great
fear of him. When he came to England, then was he received with
great worship, and blessed to king in London on the Sunday before
midwinter day. And there held he a full court. The same day
that Martin, Abbot of Peterborough, should have gone thither,
then sickened he, and died on the fourth day before the nones of
January; and the monks, within the day, chose another of
themselves, whose name was William de Walteville, (167) a good
clerk, and good man, and well beloved of the king, and of all
good men. And all the monks buried the abbot with high honours.
And soon the newly chosen abbot, and the