f. 21. principal King of Ireland, and desired the King to take the charge of his wife in his absence, for her beauty was such that he feared all men ; which promised to do in his absence; and so the merchant departed. And while the merchant was in his merchandise, Morcke McBren Borow, the King's son, made suit to her, and wan her love, and lay with the merchant's wife. And by chance and fortune the merchant arrived after his long voyage in other realms with seven great ships upon the sudden at Pollbeyeg, by Doubling, in a great fog and mist, in the morning early, and so came to his house, and found the doors set, and did open these same secretly with a privy key, and found Morhewe McBrene in bed with his wife, and did nothing, and after a while paused, and saw them in arms, said nothing, but took the sword of Morhow, and put it in his scabbard, and put his own sword in Morhowe's scabbard, and so departed. *And after, the White Merchant went to Bren Boro the King, to complain, and declared to him the trust he put him in, and how he was deceived by his son, and demand[ed] judgment; who willed the White Merchant to give what sentence or judgment he would, seeing he was his son. The White Merchant said, this was his judgment, and none other, that he would be in the field of Clontarff by that day twelvemonth, to fight there a field with Morhe and all his that would take his part, and there trusted to be revenged on that wrong, and so departed, and went to seek his friends to Denmark, from whence his generation came; and by the day appointed brought a great number of stalworth soldiers out of Denmark, and landed at Clontarff, and there proclaimed a field, and after fought a terrible battle for all the forenoon. The Irish wan, and drove the strangers to seek aid to their ships, and found them borne to Collis. When they saw that they returned again to the battle, and so wan the field by very force of fight, and killed both Bren and left his son Morhowe for dead, be-north the stinkingt stream, lying upon his shield; to whom came a priest called Segert Ne Fenemy, and asked for his son, which told him that he fled in the beginning of the field under a rock that was in the strand beside the field. After the priest found his son, he came to Mourhe, and said he would kill him for that he saw where as he hid him, and fearing that he would tell that he fled. "Well," said Morhow, "before you kill me, take a token from me to my brother Donoghe, that is coming to the field, that he may stay from coming hither;" which promised to do; and so took the butt off the spear in Morhowe's hand that was with the priest's *The rest of this narrative is added by a different hand,-the same as made the additions on f. 1. t "stynging," MS. f. 22. son, and writ certain words thereon, and desired him to deliver this same to his brother, which did accordingly. And after that his brother read that that was written in the spear end, he understood the whole matter. And after the priest's son was taken and examined, he did confess the treason done to Morghe Macke Bren, and how the field was lost, and how he fled. And so he was taken, and brought to a hill twelve mile from Dubling, called the Weyn-gattys, and there put him in the earth, standing; and all the host that there was brought as many stones as they was able to bear, and put it about him; and there doth it rest to this day, a great heap of stones. There was the end of the field of Clontarff, wherein was a soldier of Morhe called Douling of Hertackane, which that day fought best. After Mag Morhowe he was the first that stale in Ireland. The causes that the field was lost. First, the haste that Bren the King made to the field, and did not tarry till his friends came to his aid, as his sons and others, which came 3 days after the field with 7,000 men. This great haste and worse speed may be an example to all men. Another cause was the field was lost, after the Normans landed 5 days, the Danes and Normans made haste to come to Doubling, to win the town; and fearing that, Bren made as much haste and provision to prevent that as he might, and came with the force he had against them, and placed his men in this order. The horsemen was put on the right hand of his woward as nigh the sea as might be, thinking that their enemies should not go to their ships backward. The harnessed and best men was put in battle in the vanguard and foremost afore their horsemen a good distance, that they should break the force of their enemies, which was all afoot and had no horsemen. The left wing was kerne and men with slings, spears, stones, and shields, all naked men, for on that side was a great wood, he-north the stinking stream, the which the Kingt fearing the Normans would take that way to Dublinge. The Normans and Danes, that seeing, divided them in this order, and staid at Clontarff till their men was parted in 3 parts. In the first battle they placed their best men on their left wing, as nigh these as they might, against the King's horsemen, which they doubted most, and fearing that the horsemen would compass them about. These horsemen was the force of the King's army. This woward went foremost, and fought with the main battle of the King's, and by reason of the slimy and deep ground towards the sea, the horsemen did nothing, being there placed causse," MS. afore as their ill fortune was. The second battle of the Normans was all spearmen afoot, meaning thereby, if the King's horsemen should get away behind their woward, that they should be a wall or surance to their back. The third battle was their crossbows and slings, which met so the kerne that they could do little aid to the King. And also the King's horsemen stood him in no stead. By reason thereof the King lost the field and his life, and 11,000 men and his son. It doth appear in Polychronicon that there is certain alliances between the Scots and Irishmen, for that that the Scots came of the Irish blood by marriage.-The 37. Chapter, and also in Fabian. In the province of Leinster there is 7 counties, viz., the countie[s] of Dublin, Kildare, Catherlagh, Kylkenny, and Wexford, the Queen's County and King's County; and besides them the country of Upper Ossorie, the Byrnes, and Ranalaghes, and others, which do contain as much ground as well may make up two counties more; so as the whole province of Leinster within itself may make, being turned into shire ground, nine shires. Now the barony of Carbrye, being just the 10th part of the county of Kyldare, containeth 35 small ploughland[s], so as by that reckoning the whole county of Kyldare containeth 350 small ploughland[s], being just the 9th part of Leinster. The county of Kyldare containing so much, the province of Leinster containeth nine times so much, which maketh just 3,150 small ploughland[s], making in all 31 cantreds and a half or 31 tche and a half, as the Irish calleth it, which agreeth with Sirt Finton's survey within 50 ploughland[s] more found by this; so as this reckoning of the ploughland[s] in Leinster being just cast, the other parts and provinces of Ireland being also cast according unto that rate, contain 159 cantreds, viz., in Mownster 73, in Conaght 321, in Ulster 35, in Meathe, 18; which, being all added unto the 31 cantreds and a half in Leinster, make in all 191 cantreds, which amount in small ploughlands to 19,050 ploughlands. And every ploughland containeth six plough tilths at the least, so as 19.050 ploughlands containeth 114,300 plough tilths; and that is the number of ploughland [s] and plough tilths within this Island. The Description of Ireland. Also every cantred containeth 160 plowlands, and every town containeth 8 plowlands arable, besides the pasture of This leaf was inserted at a later period, the handwriting being entirely different from that of the rest of the book. f. 1 b. A cantred is called a barony or a hundred. Lagenia. Canacia. Hultonia. Mulmonia. Media. 300 kine in every town; and none of them shall a-near to other; the sum of all the arable plowlands being 53,000 and 80, beside river-meadows, moors, pastures, hills, and woods. And every plowland containeth 120 acres, and every acre containeth in breadth 4 roods or 4 perch[es], and in length 40 perch[es], and every perch containeth 21 foot of polles foot, and three foot is a yard. And if Ireland were reconciled English, as England is to the King's obeisance, and inhabited and occupied with Englishmen, the King might have every year of common subsidy of the land 6d. or 8d. of every plowland; summa totalis in the year 22,000l. and 40 marks, beside customs of his havens and ports and fishing, which was of old time a 100,000 mark[s] by year, besides rents of old inhabitants of Ullister, Connaght, Mith, Leynster, and Monester, which was in the old Earl of March's days 22,000l., beside all other things, as of avoidance of churches and wards of marriages. Also Ireland is divided in 5 great portions after the old extent and division; that is to say, Leynester, Mounester, Connoght, Mithe, and Ulester. In Leinster there be 5 shires, Kylkenny, Wexford, Carlaghe, Kyldare, and Dulinge. In Mounster been contained Wormon, Dessemonde, and Tomonde, and 5 English shires, Waterford, Tepperary, Corke, Lymricke, Keyry. In Connoght being contained 5 shires. In Ullester be 5 shires. Which portions above-written the King of England and of France by inheritance and Lord of Ireland in substance hath beside the title of the Crown, that is to say, the earldom of Ullester, all whole Lord of all Connoght, L. of all Mithe, L. of the 4. part of Leynester, L. of the 4. part of Mounester. There is in Ireland 5,530 towns, that is to say, in Leynester 930, in Connoght 900, in Mounester 2,000,* in Ullester 1,060, in Meth 500.† The Description of Ireland.‡ Ireland containeth 9 score and 14 cantreds, which was divided in 5 parts, viz., Mounster, Ulster, Leynester, Connoght, and Mithe; of the which Mounster is the third part of Ireland, and 8 cantreds, and 24 knights' fees. Ulster is the fifth part, except one cantred, and 24 knights' fees, and the 5th part of a knight['s] fee. Leynester containeth 40 knights' fees, which is the 7th part. Conn[o]ght containeth the 6th part, having 24 knights' fees. Meithe truly containeth the 10th part, except 48 knights' fees. Item, every knight's fee is 110 acres, which is one plough tilth, every acre valued at 8d., with so much pasture as shall feed 24 kine, and so every knight's fee is valued by the year 10l. And 13 knights' fee[s] 2. belongeth to a baron. Item, every cantred containeth 20 knights' fees. Mounster containeth 70 cantreds, Leynester 31, Mithe 18 cantreds, Ulster 35, Connoght 30; and every cantred containeth 100 towns or villages; and every village containeth 8 car[ucates] of land arable, that is to say, 16 taches. The cantreds in Ireland are 184; the villages are 18,400. Item, every car[ucate] of land is 60 acres. Every village may sustain 300 kine in pasture. This was the order taken and accepted in Ireland, but since it is altered.* Under the Pope were 3 patriarchs, 121 archbishops, of bishops 843; of the which in Ireland are 10 (?) archbishops and 30 bishops. Under the Pope also were 14 kingdoms, that is, Jerusalem, France, England, Sicily, Denmark, Hungary, Legione, Norway, Castille, Soemye,† Portugal, Scotland, Navarre, and Aragon. The Description of Henry the Second; and f. 26. Men shall understand this King, being called Henry the Second, his beginning, and whereof he came, both in father and mother's side, also of the condition of his life, and whom he gat his sons. First, Geffray Plantagenet came of the children of a Countess of Angeo, that was married only for fairness of body. She would seldom come at church, and then scarce she would abide the secret of the mass. The Earl, her husband, took heed thereof, and ordained four knights to hold her in the church. And she threw away her mantle that she was holden by, and left there her two sons under the right side of the mantle, and with her two sons that she had under her left side of her mantle she flew out at the church window in sight of all men, and was never seen after that time. Afterward, Richard King of England told oft this tale, and said that it wa no wonder that they that came of such kind grieved every other, as they that came of the Devil should go to the Devil. Also in a time King Henry sent a clerk to his son Calfrid Earl of Brittany for to reform him, and make full peace; and the son answered the clerk in this manner :- 66 Why art thou come to disherit me of my kindly birth? Knowest thou not that it longeth to us properly by kind, and it is pight‡ on us by kind of our forefathers that none of us should love other? Then travailest thou in way to put away kind?" Also this King Henry's mother was wedded to this Geffray, living her first husband, that was a pilgrim, and lived as an hermit. And this King Henry was of them two in this later |