A. D. 1272. 423 



Henry's whole reign was a continued extortion of money from his fub- 

 jeds, and a continual profufion of it to foreigners of every defcription. 

 England was, fays Mathew Paris, a vineyard without a wall or a faith- 

 ful keeper, open to the depredations of every vagrant. [M. Paris, pp. 

 S3^, 484, 600, 693, 864, 901, 902, 929. — Stozv's Annales,p, 286, 293, 

 ed. 1600 — Fcedera, V. i, pp. 543, 872.] 



It is very wonderful, that in this age of exportation of money for the 

 benefit of foreign extortioners, paralites, and blood-fuckers, and of fran- 

 tic and ruinous projedts of acquiring kingdoms* and empires, a fmgle 

 penny remained in the country. How were the fountains recruited, 

 which fupplied fuch vaft and unceaiing drains ? Surely by no other 

 means than a large balance conftantly pouring into the country in the 

 filent channels of trade, which brought back fums equal, or even fuper- 

 ior, to the demands of rapacity, and the compliance of folly. 



Though the national revenue was not in antient times fo much con- 

 nected with the commerce of the country as it is in the prefent day, it 

 cannot be deemed impertinent to flate, that the annual revenue of Eng- 

 land was fomewhat under fixty thoufand marks, and the net royal reve- 

 nue was about twenty-three thoufand f . [M. Paris, pp. 658, 859.] 

 Thefe fums may found very trifling in modern ears: but they were 

 probably greater thaxi the revenue of England in the reign of Henry II, 

 who amailed a great treafure out of his favings •. and it may be remem- 

 bered, that the proprietors of the land, and their tenants, conftituted the 

 national army, and ferved for a certain number of days every year at their 

 own expenfe. Thence the duration and expenfe of wars, were trifling 

 in comparifon with thofe of modern times. That part of the revenue of 

 the church, which was in the hands of foreigners, who could not fpeak 



* The clergy, 'n a ftrong remon!lrance againft flatements of even the nioft faithful hiftorians are 



the king's demands for money to anfvver the pope's fcldom correft in the numbers, which may be 



bills on accouut of Sicily, told him, that if the partly owing to their own negleft of critical or 



foil of the whole kingdom were turned into gold, arithmetical examination, and partly to the tran- 



it would be infufficient to accomplifh the conqueft fcribers, numbers expreflcd by letters being much 



of Sicily, which was inacceffible to the military more hable to error than words. The whole of 



force of England. \_Aiin. Burton, p. 375, ed. the grofs national revenue, as here ftated, was not 



Gale.~\ In the year 1265 the Sicilian dream was very much more than fuflicient to pay the fnterell 



abandoned, or rather, to fpeak more properly, the of the king's debts, wliich, according to Mathew 



king was obliged to ftop payment ; whereupon the Paris, was above ^f 36,500 a-year about the year 



pope got Charles, the brother of Louis IX king 1256. See above, p. 406. It is true, that, ac- 



of France, to take up his quarrel againft Manfred, cordingtoHoveden, [y^436b] Hubert, archbilhop 



and accept his kingdom. of Canterbury, ftated to King Richard I, that with- 



-|- When Ifabella, the wife of Edv^ard II, after in two years he had collected for him the prodi- 

 depofing her hufband, made her fon fettle an in- gious fum of i,ico,ooo marks, or 550,000 marks 

 come of twenty thoufand marks (not pounds, as each year. Both Hoveden and Paris arc refpeft- 

 faid by fome authors) upon her, [Rot. pat. prim. 1 able authors : but it is impoffible to reconcile their 

 Ef/iu. Ill, m. 1] there was fcarcely one third of the accounts ; and it is evident that Hoveden's fum is 

 royal revenue left for the young king and queen, incredibly great, and therefor is undoubtedly Cor- 

 as is aflerted by Thomas de la Moor, [/>. 601] a ruplcd. The revenue of England, at the revolu- 

 contcmporary author. tion, was not equal in effeflive value to one third of 



I am obliged to obferve, that the arithmetical tliat aferibed to the reign of Richard I. 



