344 A. D. 1 177. 



and Ireland), gave to the republic, as a wife to be under the dominion 

 and protedion of her hufband *. From that time the dukes of Venice 

 have annually renewed the ceremony of the marriage, by throwing a 

 gold ring into the bofom of their fpoufe from the deck of a fuperb vef- 

 lel called the Bucentaur. • 



1180 — Notwithftanding the attention of Henry I! to the ftate of the 

 current money in the beginning of his reign, it was now again fo much 

 debafed, that he was under the neceflity of making another entire new 

 coinage of round money. Though the goldfmiths and filverfmiths of 

 England were famous throughout Europe, Henry on this occafion chofe 

 to bring an artift, called Philip Aymari, from Tours (a city in his pater- 

 nal territories on the continent, which gives its name to the current 

 money of France) to execute his coinage. But Aymari, being found 

 guilty of debafing the llandard of the coin, was difmifled with difgrace ; 

 and the Englifh coiners, whofe frauds had produced the neceffity of the 



recoinage, were punifhed. \_R. de Diccto, col. 611 Gerv. Dorob. col. 1457. 



— Hoveden, f. 341 a.] 



1 181 — King Henry, in his Affife of arms, flrictly commanded that no 

 one fhould buy or fell any fhip to be carried out of England, or engage 

 any feaman (' maireman') to go into foreign fervice. \Hoveden,f. 350 b.] 

 As the order was merely a military precaution, it feems going too far 

 to infer from it that Englifti-buik veflels were efteemed fuperior to 

 thofe of other nations, or were coveted by foreigners. England needs 

 not claim any doubtful naval renown. But Henry's attention to that 

 befl; fafeguard of his kingdom muft alfo, though unintentionally, have 

 been beneficial to the commerce of England. 



1 189 — There is good reafon to believe that England was in a prof- 

 perous condition, and that its manufadlures and commerce were in a 

 progredive ftate of improvement during the long reign of Henry II. 

 Heni-y of Huntingdon, who wrote in the early part of his reign, begins 

 his Hiftory with a florid defcription of Britain, or England, (for with 

 him thefe names are fynonymous) wherein he fays, that mines of cop- 

 ]ier, iron, tin, and lead, are abundant, and that there are fome, though 

 but few, mines of filver f . Silver, however, is brought from Germany 

 by way of the River Rhine fof our wonderful plenty of flefh and filh 

 (tlie abundance of herrings and oyfters is particularly noted), our moll 

 pretious wool, our milk (probably converted into butter and cheele), 



* His holinefs maJe a tad Lliiiider with rcfpeft of filvcr in England. Biit it would be mucli moit 



to the fexcs of the parties. An aiuiciit poet would important and iatisfaftory, were there not reafon 



have married tiie god Hadria, the fon of Neptune, to apprehend that he writes, not from his own 



to the nymph Venctia, the daughter of tlie river knowlege, but from Bede. At tliis lime tliere was 



god Medoaeuo. In claflleal or poetical language a rich lilver mine in Wales between Lanelwy (J/. 



Hadria, the name of that fea, is niafculinc, and all David's) and Balingwerk. [G'/V. Cunilr. Itin. 



republics are of the feminine gender. CambrU, L. ii, f. lo. J I have already, unucr the 



f This affertion of Henry may be alleged againft year 1 153, notiei.d a lilvcr mine in Cumberland, 



thofe writers who affirm thai there were no mines belonging to David king of Scotland. 



