The Danes first come to the south of Britain in three ships, and waste the sea-coasts. Charles wasteth the sea-coasts of Spain, and drives the Saracens out of several places. In October, Irene deposed cp Charles beats the Hungarians as far as the river Raah. In August, Constantin puts out his uncles Nicephorus cp and Christopher's eyes. c Syncellus writes his chronology. Alphonsus, a Gothic king of Spain, rebels against the Thudunus, king of the Hunns, yields himself and his August 19, c orders her son Constantin's eyes to be * It has 300 bishops, besides abbots, &c. from all parts of Charles's dominions, c and condemns the worship of images. c p They were her husband's brothers: and thus the race of Leo the Isaurian ends. VII. PERIOD. The Chronology of the English monarchs, from the revival of the Western Empire by Charles the Great, of France, and the beginning of the reign of Egbert First, supreme king of England, in the year of Christ 800; to the death of Queen Elizabeth, and beginning of the reign of James, the first monarch of Great Britain, in 1603; being 802 years, three months. HAVING passed through the most busy and confused period the world has known, we are now arriving at a more settled state of things, especially in the west of Europe. And the end of the year of Christ 800, seems to be one of the most remarkable points of time in history, on these two accounts; first, the revival of the western empire in Charles the Great of France, crowned emperor of the west at Rome, on Dec. 25th, this year. Second, the beginning of the reign of Egbert the Great, as Rapin calls him, about the same time ascending the throne of Wessex;* who in the course of twenty-eight years conquers the five other Saxon kingdoms. in the south part of Britain, and becomes the first supreme king of England. The eastern empire indeed continues 652 years, five months longer; but as this is dwindling away by degrees, and both the powers and transactions in the west of Europe grow more considerable, as well as more nearly affect us, and the successions of the monarchs both of the French and English are pretty certainly adjusted; we shall therefore shift the scene of our Chronology from the eastern to the western parts of the ancient Roman empire, and annex it to the lines of the kings of England. And inasmuch as our introduction is thus drawn out to an unexpected length, and our English histories are in the hands of many, I shall, therefore, spare my readers here, and give them little more than as accurate a list, as I am at present able to compose, of our own monarchs. *Wessex, or the West Saxon kingdom, then contained that part of England, excepting Kent and Cornwall, which lies on the south side of the Thames; the kingdom of Sussex having been subdued and incorporated into Wessex by king Ina, in the year of Christ 722. (Matthew of Westminster.) It But there offers a material difficulty at the very head of the present period, which I must apply myself to solve, as I have met with none that have attempted it before me. concerns the beginning of the reign of Egbert. For, first, some place it in the year of Christ 800; as Ethelwerd, Malmsbury, Huntingdon, Hoveden ;* and from them the following moderns, Polydore, Virgil, Pantaleon, sir H. Savil,† Glover and Mills, Mundy, Speed, Helvicus, Isaacson, Alsted, Boxhornius, Fuller, Milton, Whitlock, the Indices at the end of Littleton and Cambridge dictionaries, Tallents, Eachard, Kapin; and so Baker, Howell, Pointer and Salmon seem to imply. Second, some, in 1801; as Harrison, and Holinshed, Calvisius, Perizonius, Hubner and Anderson. Third, others in 802; as M. of Westminster, Stow, Howes, Daniel and Tyrel. Hoveden says, some begin the reign of Egbert in 802; and Tyrrel says that Asser, S. of Durham, and the bishop of Litchfield, are of the same opinion. To clear this matter, I first observe that Rapin tells us, 'When Egbert was chosen king of Wessex, he was at Rome with Charles the Great, who was soon after invested with the imperial crown; and there he took his leave of that great. Prince,' &c. Though whence Rapin had this intelligence, I should be glad to find. Second, Liecthenaw, Cario,|| Calvisius and Ricciolius inform us, that Charles the Great, travelling from France, entered Rome Nov. 24th, 800, was crowned emperor there, Dec. 25th, and Liecthenaw and Calvisius tell us, he left that city on April 24th, following. By this it seems, first, that Egbert set out with Charles from France some time in October or November, and that Britric king of Wessex was then alive. Second, that between Nov. 24th, and Dec. 25th, Egbert not only heard at Rome of his election, but also set out thence for England. Third, we must therefore place his election about November; and the beginning of his actual reign about the same time with the beginning of Charles's empire. Or, however, to define this period more precisely, from the end of the last to the end of this; that is, from the imperial coronation of Charles at Rome, to the death of queen Elizabeth, the last mere * Hoveden says, Anno Gratiæ 800, vel ut quidam velunt 802. † In his Fasti Regum Angliæ, &c. And yet M. of Westminster sets the death of Egbert in 837, after a reign of thirty-seven years, seven months, which raises the beginning to 800. In his Chronicon, chiefly made by Melancthon and Peucer. monarch of England, and beginning of the reign of James the First, of Great Britain, is exactly 802 years, three months. SECTION I. TO THE DISCOVERY OF THE NEW WORLD BY COLUMBUS IN 1492. Having compared above thirty noted lists and histories of our kings, both in English and Latin, I found so many inconsistencies and mistakes among them, especially in the years before the Norman conquest, that I was forced to lay by all the late historians, and betake myself entirely to those more ancient and original authors Ethelwerd, Ingulphus, Malmsbury, Huntingdon, Hoveden, M. of Westminster, and R. of Chester, who are the only old writers on that former part of the period I can hear of in this country; the six first in Latin, the last translated out of that language into English by Trevisa in 1357, as Trevisa and Caxton tell us. And as I have carefully perused them, I shall draw the following list entirely from them as far as they go; excepting, where they are wanting in the preciser notes of time. I shall then take out of Holinshed, Stow, Speed, Tyrrel, Eachard, Rapin, or any other wherever I find them. N. B. Wherever I use the words elect, elected, chose or chosen, they are so expressed in the original authors cited. I. THE WEST SAXON LINE. No. 1. Y. C. 800.-Egbert, descended from Cerdic, begins to reign over Wessex. e m hn hv Reigns after Charles's coronation thirty-seven years, one month, ten days.t Y. C. 809. He reduces Cornwall and adds it to his kingdom. w Y. C 814. (That is, 813, 14) Jan. 28th, Charles the Great dies, cp aged 71, p and his son Lewis reigns. cp Y. C. 824.-Egbert subdues the kingdoms of Kent and Essex, and adds them to his own, e m hn hv and the kingdom of the East Angles submits to his protection. e hn hv Y. C. 827. He makes the kings of Mecia and Northumberland his vassals. e hn hv Y. C. 828.-He makes the kings of Wales his tributaries. e hn hv Y. C. 837.-(That is, 837, 8) He dies, e m hn hv w Feb. 4th. sp ec In the margin of Malmsbury, we therefore read 838 m and No. 2.-Ethelulph, son of Egbert, e m hn hv w reigns nineteen years, eleven months, nine days. Y. C. 838-The Scots extirpate the Pictish nation. pl be Y. C. 840.-June 20th, Lewis emperor dies, upon which his three sons divide the western empire: Charles, the youngest, taking France; Lewis, Germany; and Lotharius, the eldest, Italy, Burgundy and Lorrain, with the imperial dignity. cp Y. C 849.-Alfred born to Ethelulph. hv w Y. C. 857.-(That is, 857, 8.) Ethelulph dies, em w Jan. 13th, ch and No. 3.-Ethelbald, first surviving son of Ethelulph, e w ch reigns two years, eleven months, seven days, after the death of his father.‡ Y. C. 861.-He dies, e w Dec. 20th, sp ec and No. 4.-Ethelbert, second surviving son of Ethelulph, e w ch reigns five years. em hn hv Y. C. 866.-He dies, e hv w that is, at the end of 866, and No. 5-Ethelred I. third surviving son of Ethelulph, e w ch reigns five years, and a little more. hn Y. C. 872. He dies, e im hv April 23d, w ch so that the reign of Ethelbert and Ethelred amount exactly to ten years, four months, three days, and No. 6.-Alfred, fourth surviving son of Ethelulph, e m w ch reigns twentynine years, six months, five days, though his elder brother's son Ethelwald was living all the while. m w Y. C. 901.-He dies, em hn Oct. 26th, e or rather Wednesday, Oct. 28th, hu w § and No. 7.-Edward I. son of Alfred, e m hn hy w elected king, e hv w reigns twenty-three years, m hn w though his father's elder brother's son Ethelwald was living, and claimed the crown. m w Y. C. 924.-He dies, m w and (Ethelward) first legitimate son of Edward begins to reign; but dies a few No. 1. Y. C. 800 —That is, first king of the Saxon line-and year of Christ 800. He was the seventeenth successive king of Wessex, though not in a direct descent, and with a queen Dowager made queen Regent, he was the eighteenth successive monarch. m hn hv w e Ethelwerd. m Malmsbury. hn Huntingdon. hv Hoveden. w M. of Westminster. c Calvisius. p Petavius. sp Speed. ec Eachard. pl Polydorus Vergilius. b Buchanan. ch R. of Chester. More, Helvicus, and Daniel, strangely omit him, i Ingulphus. § Hoveden says, 899, Indiction four; but Indiction four, is 901. And Westminster says, Wednesday Oct. 28th, 900, Indiction five; but Wednesday Oct. 28th, is in 901, Indiction four. |