SI4 Mi\ BdsJiam on Dr. Lcland''s Hiftoiy of Ireland. [Nov. 1 , 



cnce with Glocefter (fo Dr. Leland in- 

 forms us), " ablblutely refufed to be 

 bound to any fjiccial compofition or con- 

 ditions. By tliis infolencc tiic pride of 

 llichard was fo i'cvercly wounded, that 

 ht: paffionately vowed never to depart 

 from Ireland until lie had pnllefifed hiin- 

 felf of this rebel, alive or dead." \'ol. 

 i. p. 3o2. 



Thd exigency of the king's affairs, 

 howev'fcr, foon afterwards compelled him, 

 rotwjihllaudiiig his ralh vow, to return 

 to L/ :iand, his revenge unaccnniphlhed : 

 previous to which (p. '654) " ho commit- 

 ted the young Lord of Glocclier, arid 

 Lord Henry of Luncafter, prifoners to 

 the callle of Trim." But what nol)loman 

 bearinj; the title of Glocolier, or of the 

 young Lord of (Jlfjicclter, ran ihia narra- 

 tive refer to ? Thomas of Vi oodC.ock, 

 Duke of Gloccfter, uncle to the kin;:, 

 had ill the year lof)? been arrefted on 

 fufpicion of tieafonahlc practices, and 

 being conveyed to Calais, was there mur- 

 dered, according to the uaiverfal behcf, 

 by order of tlic monarch : and this 

 prince appears not to h;ive loft any fon 

 or young Lord of Gloceftcr to inherit liis 

 title. On the contrary, his cllate, as 

 devolving to the crown, was divided 

 among the royal favourites ; and tlie title 

 of the Eiu-1 of Glocclk-r w.is conferred 

 on Thomas Lord De Spencer, who, as 

 well as John de Holland, Earl of Hun- 

 titiedon, created at the fame time Duke 

 of Exeter, )niplit, indeed very ])robably, 

 nccompajiy the kinj; to Ireland : but this 

 jiobleinan could not be the young Lord 

 of GIficefter, comiuitted at ihe fame time 

 with Prince Henry of Lancailer to the 

 cadle of Trim. King Richard II. was 

 tlepofed in parliament, .September 28, 

 . 1399. 



II. Soon after the accelTion of King 

 Henry IV,, Dr. Lvland f'utcs, " that the 

 ii'cond fon of the king, Thomas Duke of 

 Lancailer, was appoiiiteil vicercgcnt, and 

 feut into Ireland, to give weii;ht aiidxlii.- 

 iiit3' to the government by insyorfonui 

 adininilh-ation." (\'ol. ii. p. 3). But at 

 the accellion of this monarch, the duchy 

 of I>ancalter was annexed to the crown, 

 from wiiich it has never iince been fopa- 

 rattd ; and the ficond fon of the kiug, 

 Tlionias of l.aiicalur, as he is fomctiaies 

 called, wascieatcd, but not till the year 

 141'2, Duke of Clarence : anil at this 

 perkid he could not be more than eleven 

 or twelve years of age. The iiiftorian of 

 Ireland further tells us (p. ti), " Thattlie 

 Duke of Lancafler was ajipoiiitcd a fe- 

 «j»ud time (0 the jjovermuuit in the year 



1408, armed with extenfive pflwers ; and 

 that he was pcrfonally engaged, and 

 wounded, in a battle fought under the 

 very walls of Dublin." Thomas of Lan- 

 cafler, afterwards Duke of Clarence, the 

 perfonagc here intended, was at this 

 time about eighteen or nineteen years of 

 age ; and he lived to the year 1421, when 

 he was llain bravely fighting at the bh;;)dy 

 battle of Bauge, eaiiied by the French 

 over the Englilh, by the feafonahlc aid 

 of a body nf (iOOO Scots, commanded by 

 the Earl of Buchan, for which Itnnice 

 that nobleman was advanced to the high 

 dignity of Conllable of Trance. 



111. At the a'la of the depofition of 

 King Richard II., Edmund Earl of^ 

 INliirch, the true heir of the crown ac- 

 cording to the ertal)lilhcd laws of fuc- 

 celVion, was an infant of fcven years of 

 age ; and he was for fome time, with his 

 younger brother, detained by Henry in 

 an honourable cullody at Windfor Cadlc. 

 Being at length entrufied to the keeping 

 of his uncle. Sir Edmimd Mortimer, who 

 rcfided on the borders of Wales, he t«ok 

 the field at nine years of age, under his 

 guidance, agaiiilt the renowned Owcii 

 Glendower, by whom Sir Ednuind was 

 totally dei'eated, and beth he and his 

 nephew, the young Earl, were carried 

 into captivity. In this (late of durance, 

 however, they experienced the molt cour- 

 teous and generous treatment ; and the 

 Welch Prince, at once difceruing and 

 embracing the advantage he polfefl'ed, 

 perfuaded Mortimer, on whom he be- 

 llowed his daughter in marriage, to be- 

 come a jiarty in the confpiracy now 

 formed againll Henry by Cilendower, in 

 conjunction with the Percies, with a view 

 to eftaiilifli his own independency, and 

 eventually to redore the crown of Eng- 

 laiiil to the houfe of March. 



On the firft capture of the carl, the 

 king was folicited by the friends of that 

 houfe to pay Glendower the ranfoni de- 

 manded by him for his prifoner, \\hicli 

 was no doubt fixed at a very high fum : 

 but the king, Iccrctly pleafed with this 

 event, refufccl his alfcnt to the applica- 

 tion; alleging, that Sir Edmund .Morti- 

 Uicr hf.d not a6led by order frcnr him, 

 and infiiuiating ihat'hc had voiuntaril/ 

 put hinilelf :ip.d his nephew in tiie power 

 of Glendower. It does not appear at 

 what prccife time the earl m as relcafeii 

 from Ins captiviiv. The manifeflo ifl'ued 

 A. D. 1404, by tiio Duke of Norillk and 

 the Archbilhop of York, againll Henry, 

 coritains an article importing that, not- 

 w ithltaudinj: the frequaut iullauccs of fr- 



