t)6s F ,R A 
Germans ferved not to abate the towering hopes of the 
Franks; and Louis, without experience or caution, ad¬ 
vanced through the fame country to a fimilar fate. The 
vanguard, with the oriflame, or facred banner of St. 
Denys, had ruflied forward with inconfiderate fpeed; 
and the 1 king, who commanded the rear, when he arrived 
in the evening-camp, could no longer difcern his com¬ 
panions through the gloom of the night. Inftead of the 
iocial voices of their countrymen, the French were afto- 
nilhed and difmayed by the diffonant and hoftile fhouts 
of the Turks. Their terror and diforder were increafed 
by the darknefs which involved them ; and they were 
encompalled and overwhelmed by the innumerable holt 
of the infidels. The king himfelf had difplayed his va¬ 
lour in the foremolt ranks, and owed his fafety to the 
darknefs of the night and the prowefs of his own arm. 
In the general difcomfiture he had climbed up a tree, 
and on the dawn of day he efcaped alive, but almoft 
alone, to the camp of the van-guard. The condition of 
this part of the army could afford to Louis but little 
confolation ; the minds of the foldiers were depreffed by 
the irreparable lofs of their companions; the fame fate 
i'eemed to impend over them ; their fainting fteps were 
purfued by myriads of the Turks, inflamed by viftory, 
and infatiate of Chriftian blood. Their fears were aug¬ 
mented by their ignorance of the country ; and the ma¬ 
jority of the guides, which they had brought from Lao- 
dicea, had perilhed in the late difaftrous aCtion. After a 
march, memorable for every fpecies of diftrefs, they be¬ 
held with tranfport the towers of Salia, and haftened to 
fhelter thcmfelves within the friendly walls. The fight 
of the ocean relieved them from the dread of future dan¬ 
gers by land ; and Louis was content to embark in that 
fea-port the wretched remnant of his hoft, and diredt his 
courfe for Antioch. He was received with open arms by 
Raymond of PoiCtiers, who ruled that principality. But 
to public calamity fucceeded the pang of connubial dif- 
honour : it could not be concealed from the eye of a ten¬ 
der hufband, that the fidelity of his queen Eleanor was 
facrificed to repay the hofpitality of Raymond. 
From this fcene of heartfelt diftrefs, Louis, in 1149, 
accompanied by his faithlefs queen, hoifted fail for Jeru- 
falem, and rejoined in that facred city the former rival of 
his glory, and the prefent partner of his diftrefs. Yet the 
ardour of the emperor and the king was not totally ex- 
tinguiflied ; their zeal was revived by the fight of the 
holy fepulchre; and with the (battered remains of their 
forces and the troops of Baldwin III. king of Jerufalem, 
they determined to form the fiegeof Damafcus. But the 
Chriftians of the eaft were jealous of their weftern affo- 
ciates ; their envy induced them to betray the caufe in 
which they had engaged : the convoys were furprifed ; 
the works Were inful ted ; and Conrad and Louis were at 
length compelled to relinquifti the hopelefs enterprife, 
and with the empty fame of piety and courage, they 
eagerly embarked for Europe. 
The return of the French monarch, inftead of being 
adorned with the fpoils of Afia, was accompanied by 
fhame and difappointment ; and the innumerable hoft he 
had led forth w as dwindled to a (lender train of way-worn 
followers. Yet he was received by the loud and heart¬ 
felt acclamations of his people ; and the misfortunes of 
his enterprife were loft in the univerfal joy for the l'afety 
of his perfon. 
The temped of civil war which agitated England, and 
was felt through Normandy, firft attracted the attention 
of Louis; and his fupport was claimed by Stephen, 
vhofe fon Euftace had yielded him homage for the duchy 
of Normandy, and had married his fifter Conltance. But 
his thoughts were foon engrofted by a care of a more ferious 
nature. The levity of his wife Eleanor, and her partiality 
for Raymond, were deeply engraven on his mind, and he 
determined to divorce from his bed this licentious fe¬ 
male. With Eleanor he reft .red her inheritance, the 
fertile counties of Guienne and Poitou ; and the facility 
2 
N C E. 
with which he parted from thefe wealthy provinces, has 
for ever annexed to him the fitrname of Young. The 
princefs threw herfelf, with her valuable poffeffions, ipto 
the arms of Henry Plantagener, fon of the emprefs Ma¬ 
tilda ; while Louis endeavoured to confole. ’himfelf* for 
her lofs, with the charms of Conftance, daughter of Al- 
phonfo king of Caftile, whom he immediately efpoufed. 
The policy of Henry had already pervaded the ducliy of 
Normandy ; the cities had opened their gates, and re¬ 
ceived him as their prince ; and with Guienne and Poitou, 
the fruits of his marriage with Eleanor, his poffeffions in 
France were of no inconfideruble extent. To balance 
the influence he had attained, and the dominion he had 
acquired, the French monarch clofely connected himfelf 
with his brother-in-law Euftace; and thedefultory incur- 
fions into Normandy were followed, on the part of France, 
by an inglorious truce. 
Louis had no fooner eftablifhed the tranquillity of his 
kingdom, than he undertook a pilgrimage to the tomb of 
St. James, at Compoftella, the capital of Galicia; and 
the devout expedition was attended by an interview with 
his father-in-law, the king of Caftile, and with Sanchq V. 
king of Navarre. On his return, in 1156, Louis aflembled 
a fplendid council at Soiffons, diftinguifhed by the pre¬ 
fence of the duke of Burgundy, the counts of Flanders, 
Troyes, Nevers, and Soiffons, and a long train of power¬ 
ful and noble vaffals ; but (till more memorable by the 
influence of the fovereign, who engaged the haughty 
barons to fwear to a ten years’ peace, and to fubmit their 
differences during that fpace to the decilion of juftice, 
inftead of appealing to the fword. 
In the mean time the peace of France was difturbed 
by the claims of Henry II. king of England, who, in the 
middle of the twelfth century appears to have pofleffed 
nearly an equal (hare of the empire of France with even 
Louis himfelf. To his former poffeffions, he now claimed 
to add the city and diocefe of Touloufe ; and which, in 
1158, he inverted with a numerous army. But that city 
was defended by the count of Touloufe in perfon ; and 
the undaunted refolution which he difplayed in repelling 
the attacks of the befiegers, was increafed by his juft ex¬ 
pectations of fuccour and fupport from the king of 
France. He had married Conftance the widow of Euftace, 
and fifter to Louis; and that monarch hefitated not to 
march to the immediate relief of his kinfman. In a fuc- 
cefsful aCtion he cut his way through the lines of the 
Englifli troops, and by his prefence revived the drooping 
fpirits of the befieged. Henry, convinced that the en¬ 
terprife was hopelefs from the firft moment that the ftic- 
cours entered the town, abandoned the (lege, having firft, 
by a compliment, allured the king of France, that he 
could not think of purfuing his attacks againft a city 
which was honoured by his perfonal protection. From 
Touloufe, the king of England poured the torrent of his 
arms over the proftrate country of Beauvais, razed the 
ftrong fortrefsof Gerberoy, and extended his devaluations 
within fight of the walls of Paris. F'or two fucceftive 
years, the inhabitants of France and Normandy were af¬ 
flicted by the defultory incurfions of their refpeCtive 
princes. The exhaufted ftate of both kingdoms induced 
them at length ferioufly to negociate a peace. The ori¬ 
gin of the war, the claim of Henry to the city of Tou¬ 
loufe, was buried in a ftudied filence; and that prince 
was left to refume, as occafion offered, his powerful pre- 
tenfions. This, in faCt, was but too early carried into 
execution ; and the frequent wars between thefe two 
rival princes, oceafioned chiefly by the proximity of their 
poffeffions, and by the intrigues and confequent fall of 
Thomas a Becket, having been already detailed under 
the article England, vol. vi. p- 57 °- 57 6 > v, ’ e be g leave 
to refer the reader to that volume for particulars. 
An anxious regard for the fucceffion of his crown, and 
the tranquillity of his kingdom, had induced Louis to the 
choice of a third wife, the amiable Adelaide, daughter 
of Thibaud earl of Champagne. By her, his wilhes 
were 
