torment then generous spirits who are for the enduring of honourable danger and speedie death but not provided for torment which they are not acquainted with neither is it the proper object of valour Again it is produced in their behalf that being burned at the stake they denied it at their death though formerly they had confessed it and whose charitie if not stark-blind will not be so tender-eyed as to believe that they would not breath out their soul with a lie and wilfully contract a new guilt in that very instant wherein they were to be arraigned before the Judge of heaven A Templar being to be burned at Burdeaux and seeing the Pope and King Philip looking out at a window cried unto them Clement thou cruell Tyrant seeing there is no higher amongst mortall men to whom I should appeal for my unjust death I cite thee together with King Philip to the tribunall of Christ the just Judge who redeemed me there both to appear within one yeare and a day where I will lay open my cause and justice shall be done without any by-respect In like manner James grand Master of the Templars though by piece-meal he was tortured to death craved pardon of God and those of his Order that forced by extremitie of pain on the rack and allured with hope of life he had accused them of such damnable sinnes whereof they were innocent Moreover the people with their suffrage acquitted them happie was he that could get an handfull of their ashes into his bosome as the Relique of pious martyrs to preserve Indeed little heed is to be given to peoples humours whose judgement is nothing but prejudice and passion and commonly envie all in prosperitie pitie all in adversitie though often both undeservedly And we may believe that the beholding of the Templars torments when they were burned wrought in the people first a commiserating of their persons and so by degrees a justifying of their cause However vulgus non semper errat aliquando elìgit and though it matters little for the gales of a private mans fancie yet it is something when the wind bloweth from all corners And true it is they were generally cryed up for innocents Lastly Pope Clement and King Philip were within the time prefixed summoned by death to answer to God for what they had done And though it is bad to be busie with Gods secrets yet an argment drawn from the event especially when it goeth in company with others as it is not much to be depended on so it is not wholly to be neglected Besides King Philip missed of his expectation and the morsell fell besides his mouth for the lands of the Templars which were first granted to him as a portion for his youngest sonne were afterwards by the Council of Vienne bestowed on the Knights-Hospitallers Chap. 3. A moderate way what is to be conceived of the suppression of the Templars BEtwixt the two extremities of those that count these Templars either Malefactours or Martyrs some find a middle way whose verdict we will parcell into these severall particulars 1. No doubt there were many novices and punies amongst them newly admitted into their Order which if at all were little guiltie for none can be fledge in wickednesse at their first hatching To these much mercy belonged The punishing of others might have been an admonition to them and crueltie it was where there were degrees of offenses to inflict the same punishment and to put all of them to death 2. Surely many of them were most hainous offenders Not to speak what they deserved from God who needeth not pick a quarrel with man but alwayes hath a just controversie with him they are accounted notorious transgressours of humane laws yet perchance if the same candle had been lighted to search as much dust and dirt might have been found in other Orders 3. They are conceived in generall to be guiltlesse and innocent from those damnable sinnes wherewith they were charged Which hainous offenses were laid against them either because men out of modestie and holy horrour should be ashamed and afraid to dive deep in searching the ground-work and bottome of these accusations but rather take them to be true on the credit of the accusers or that the world might the more easily be induced to believe the crimes objected to be true as conceiving otherwise none would be so devilish as to lay such devilish offenses to their charge or lastly if the crimes were not believed in the totall summe yet if credited in some competent portion the least particular should be enough to do the deed and to make them odious in the world 4. The chief cause of their ruine was their extraordinary wealth They were feared of many envied of more loved of none As Naboths vineyard was the chiefest ground for his blasphemie and as in England Sr John Cornwall Lord Fanhop said merrily That not he but his stately house at Ampthill in Bedford-shire was guiltie of high treason so certainly their welath was the principall evidence against them and cause of their overthrow It is quarrell and cause enough to bring a sheep that is fat to the shambles We may believe King Philip would never have tooke away their lives if he might have took their lands without putting them to death but the mischief was he could not get the hony unlesse he burnt the bees Some will say The Hospitallers had great yea greater revenues nineteen thousand Mannors to the Templars nine thousand yet none envied their wealth It is true but then they busied themselves in defending of Christendome maintaining the Island of Rhodes against the Turks as the Teutonick order defended Pruss-land against the Tartarian the world therefore never grudged them great wages who did good work These were accounted necessary members of Christendome the Templars esteemed but a superfluous wenne they lay at rack and manger and did nothing who had they betook themselves to any honourable employment to take the Turks to task either in Europe or Asia their happinesse had been lesse repined at and their overthrow more lamented And certain it is that this their idlenesse disposed them for other vices as standing waters are most subject to putrifie I heare one bird sing a different note from all the rest in the wood namely that what specious shews soever were pretended the true cause of their ruine was that they began to desert the Pope and adhere to the Emperour If this was true no doubt they were deeply guiltie and deserved the hard measure they suffered Sure I am how-ever at this time they might turn edge they had formerly been true blades for his Holinesse All Europe followed the copie that France had set them Here in England King Edward the second of that name suppressed the Order and put them to death So by vertue of a writ sent from him to Sir John Wogan Lord chief Justice in Ireland were they served
all other people most to worship the sunne setting Chap. 6. Godfreys death and buriall AUthours differ on the death of this noble King some making him to die of that long-wasting sicknesse others of the plague It may be the plague took him out of the hands of that lingring disease and quickly cut off what that had been long in fretting He died July 18. having reigned one yeare wanting five dayes A Prince valiant pious bountifull to the Church for besides what he gave to the Patriarch he founded Canons in the temple of the Sepulchre and a monastery in the vale of Jehoshaphat We would say his death was very unseasonable leaving the orphane State not onely in its minority but its infancy but that that fruit which to mans apprehension is blown down green and untimely is gathered full-ripe in Gods providence He was buried in the temple of the Sepulchre where his tombe is inviolated at this day whether out of a religion the Turks bear to the place or out of honour to his memory or out of a valiant scorn to fight against dead bones or perchance the Turks are minded as John King of England was who being wished by a Courtier to untombe the bones of one who whilest he was living had been his great enemy Oh no said King John would all mine enemies were as honourably buried Chap. 7. Baldwine chosen King He keepeth Ierusalem in despite of the Patriarch GOdfrey being dead the Christians with a joynt consent dispatched an embassie to Baldwine his Brother Count of Edessa a city in Arabia the lord whereof had adopted this Baldwine to be his heir entreated him to accept of the Kingdome which honourable offer he courteously embraced A Prince whose body Nature cut of the largest size being like Saul higher by the head then his subjects And though the Goths had a law alwayes to choose a short thick man for their King yet surely a goodly stature is most majesticall His hair and beard brown face fair with an eagles nose which in the Persian Kings was anciently observed as a mark of magnanimity Bred he was a scholar entred into Orders and was Prebendary in the churches of Rhemes Liege and Cambray but afterwards turned secular Prince as our Athelwulphus who exchanged the mitre of Winchester for the crown of England Yet Bald wine put not off his scholarship with his habit but made good use thereof in his reign For though bookishnesse may unactive yet learning doth accomplish a Prince and maketh him sway his sceptre the steadier He was properly the first King of Jerusalem his brother Godfrey never accounted more then a Duke and was crowned on Christmas-day The reason that made him assume the name of a King was thereby to strike the greater terrour into the Pagans Thus our Kings of England from the dayes of King John were styled but Lords of Ireland till Henry the 8. first entituled himself King because Lord was sleighted by the seditious rebells As for that religious scruple which Godfrey made to wear a crown of gold where Christ wore one of thorns Baldwine easily dispensed therewith And surely in these things the mind is all A crown might be refused with pride and worn with humility But before his Coronation there was a tough bickering about the city of Jerusalem Dabert the Patriarch on the death of Godfrey devoured Jerusalem and the tower of David in his hope but coming to take possession found the place too hot for him For Garnier Earl of Gretz in the behalf of King Baldwine who was not yet returned from Edessa manned it against him But so it happened that this valiant Earl died three dayes after which by Dabert was counted a just judgement of God upon him for his sacriledge Now though it be piety to impute all events to Gods hand yet to say that this mans death was for such a sinne sheweth too much presumption towards God and too little charity towards our neighbour Indeed if sudden death had singled out this Earl alone it had somewhat favoured their censure but there was then a generall mortality in the city which swept away â— thousands and which is most materiall what this Patriarch interpreted sacriledge others accounted loyalty to his Sovereign As for that donation of the city of Jerusalem and tower of David which Godfrey gave to the Patriarch some thought that this gift overthrew it self with its own greatnesse being so immoderately large others supposed it was but a personall act of Godfrey and therefore died with the giver as conceiving his successours not obliged to perform it because it was unreasonable that a Prince should in such sort fetter and restrain those which should come after him Sure it is that Baldwine having both the stronger sword and possession of the citie kept it perforce whilest the Patriarch took that leave which is allowed to loosers to talk chafe and complain sending his bemoaning letters to Boemund Prince of Antioch inviting him to take arms and by violence to recover the Churches right but from him received the uselesse assistance of his pity and that was all Chap. 8. The Church-story during this Kings reigne A chain of successive Patriarchs Dabert Ebremare Gibelline and Arnulphus Their severall characters AFterwards this breach betwixt the King and Patriarch was made up by the mediation of some friends but the skinne onely was drawn over not dead flesh drawn out of the wound and Arnulphus whom we mentioned before discontented for his losse of the Patriarchs place still kept the sore raw betwixt them At last Dabertus the Patriarch was fain to flee to Antioch where he had plentifull maintenance allowed him by Bernard Patriarch of that See But he was too high in the instep to wear another mans shoes and conceived himself to be but in a charitable prison whilest he lived on anothers benevolence Wherefore hence he hasted to Rome complained to the Pope and received from his Holinesse a command to King Baldwine to be reestablished in the Patriarchs place but returning home died by the way at Messana in Sicily being accounted seven years Patriarch four at home and three in banishment Whilest Dabert was thrust out one Ebremarus was made Patriarch against his will by King Baldwine An holy and devout man but he had more of the dove then the serpent and was none of the deepest reach He hearing that he was complained of to the Pope for his irregular election posted to Rome to excuse himself shewing he was chosen against his will and though preferment may not be snatched it needs not be thrust away But all would not do It was enough to put him out because the King put him in Wherefore he was commanded to return home and to wait the definitive sentence which Gibellinus Archbishop of Arles and the Popes Legate should pronounce in the matter Gibellinus coming to Jerusalem concluded the election
not out in the election of their Prince being in a manner all equall amongst themselves We see elective States in Christendome though bound with the straitest laws often sagge aside into schismes and factions whereas this strange Empire in their choice had no dangerous discords but such as were quenched in the kindling Lastly who ever knew a wall that had no better cement to stand so sure and so long Two hundred sixty and seven years this State endured and yet had it to do with strong and puissant enemies Some Kingdomes ow their greatnesse not so much to their own valour and wisdome as to the weaknesse of their neighbours but it fared not thus with the Mammalukes To omit Prester John who neighboured them on the south on all other sides they were encompassed with potent opposers From whom right valiantly they defended themselves till in the yeare 1517 they were overcome by Selimus the great Turkish Emperour To conclude As for the Amazons and their brave atchievements with much valour and no manhood they and their State had onely being in the brains of fabulous writers As for the Assasines or regiment of rogues it never spread to the breadth of any great countrey nor grew to the height of a Kingdome but being the jakes of the world was cast out in a place betwixt barren hills But this Empire of vassals was every way wonderfull stretching so farre over all Egypt and most of Syria and lasting so long A strange State wherein slavery was the first step to their throne and apostasle the first article in their religion Chap 20. The manner of the death of Frederick King of Ierusalem His Will and posterity after him An interregnum both in Germanie and the Kingdome of Ierusalem IN this same yeare Frederick King of Jerusalem and Emperour of Germanie ended his troublesome dayes A Prince who in the race of his life met with many rubs some stumbles no dangerous fall Besides the Turk he had to do with the Pope the Pope immortall in his succession And though his Holinesse was unfit for warre as being alwayes old and never ripe for that place till almost rotten yet he used his own head and commanded the hands of others whereby he kept Frederick in a continuall warre Yet never could he have beaten him with fair play had he not used a weapon if not against the law of Arms against the law of God and against which no guard Arming his subjects against him and Dispensing with the oath of allegeance But he gave Frederick the mortall wound in setting himself against himself I mean Henry his eldest sonne And though Frederick easily conquered that rebellious youth and made him fast enough keeping him in prison in Apulia where he died yet he carried the grief hereof to his grave For now he knew not where or in whom to place any confidence as suspecting the single cord of Loyalty would not hold in others which brake in his own sonne though twisted with Naturall affection The greatnesse of his spirit was a great hastening of his death and being of a keen eager and active nature the sharpnesse of the sword cut the scabbard the sooner asunder Bow he could not break he must What-ever is reported he died of no other poison then sorrow which ushered him into a wasting ague grief being a burden whereof the strongest shoulders can bear the least As for the same that Maufred his base son should stifle him with a pillow though I must confesse he might be taken on suspicion as likely enough to play such a devilish prank yet it is unreasonable that he who is acquitted by the Authours of the same time should be condemned on the evidence of the writers of after-ages He died at Florence in an obscure castle on S. Lucies day having reigned King of Jerusalem three and twenty years By his Will he bequeathed many ounces of gold to the Knights Templars and Hospitallers in recompence of the wrongs they had received by him He left a great summe of money for the recovery of the Holy land to be disposed at the discretion of the foresaid knights He forbad any stately funerall for himself though in his life immoderately excessive in pomp as if he would do penance for his pride after death A Prince who had he not been hindred with domesticall discords would have equallized Caesar himself For if thus bravely he â—aid about him his hands being tied at home with continuall dissentions what would he have done if at liberty A scandal is raised since his death That he was but a millers sonne but he would have ground them to powder who in his life-time durst have averred it Indeed he was very happy in mechanicall matters such as we may term Liberall handicrafts as casting founding carving in iron and brasse Nether did this argue a low soul to dabble in such mean imployments but rather proved the amplitude and largenesse thereof of so generall acquaintance that no Art was a stranger to him But the suspicion of his birth rose from the almost miraculous manner of it Constantia his mother bearing him when welnigh sixty years of age But both in Scripture and other writers we may see the sonnes of long barren-mothers to have been fruitfull in famous atchievements Pity it was that he had some faults yea pity it had been if he had not had some But his vices indeed were notorious and unexcusable Many wives and concubines he had and by them many children His wives His legitimate children Their preferment 1. Constantia Queen of Aragon Henry who rebelled against him King of the Romanâ—s 2. Iole daughter to John Bren. Conrade Duke of Suevia 3. Agnes daughter to the Marquesse of Moravia childlesse divorced 4. Rutina 5. Isabella of Bavaria Agnes Married to Conrade Landâ—grave of Hessen 6. Mawd daughter to John King of England Constance Wife to Lewis Landâ—grave of Hessen  His base sonnes His concubine Blanch. 1. Henzius King of Sardinâ—a 2. Maufred Usurper of Sicily 3. Frederick Prince of Antioch It is much that succession adventured in so many severall bottoms should miscarry Yet these foure sonnes dying left no lasting issue and in the third generation Fredericks stock and that whole raâ—e of Suevian Princes was extinct Which in the judgement of some men was a judgement of God on him for his lasciviousnesse We must not forget a memorable passage which happened more then twenty yeares after Fredericks death One Tylo Colupp a notable juggler sometime brought up at the Court cunningly sowing together all the old shreds of his Courtship and stretching them out with impudency pretended to be Frederick the Emperour long detained in captivity in Palestine The difference betwixt their aâ—pects was easily reconciled for few Physâ—ognomy marks are so deeply fixed in any face but that age and misery will alter them The credulity of the vulgar sort presently betrayed them to be couzened by him yea some
and numerous familie of the Douglasses in Scotland whereof at this day are one Marquesse two Earls and a Vice count give in their Arms a mans Heart ever since Robert Bruce King of Scotland bequeathed his heart to James Douglasse to carry it to Jerusalem which he accordingly performed To instance in particulars were endlesse we will only summe them up in generals Emblemes of honour born in Coats occasioned by the Holy warre are reducible to these heads 1. Scallop-shells which may fitly for the workmanship thereof be called artificium naturae It seemeth Pilgrimes carried them constantly with them as Diogenes did his dish to drink in I find an order of Knights called Equites Cochleares wearing belike Cocle or Scallop-shells belonging to them who had done good sea-service especially in the Holy warre and many Hollanders saith my Authour for their good service at the siege of Damiata were admitted into that Order 2. Saracens heads It being a maxime in Heraldrie that it is more honourable to bear the head then any other part of the bodie They are commonly born either black or bloudie But if Saracens in their Arms should use Christians heads I doubt not but they would shew ten to one 3. Pilgrimes or Palmers Scrips or Bags the Arms of the worshipfull family of the Palmers in Kent 4. Pilgrimes Staves and such like other implements and accoutrements belonging unto them 5. But the chiefest of all is the Crosse which though born in Arms before yet was most commonly and generally used since the Holy warre The plain Crosse or S. Georges Crosse I take to be the mother of all the rest as plain-song is much seniour to any running of division Now as by transposition of a few letters a world of words are made so by the varying of this Crosse in form colour and metall ringing as it were the changes are made infinite severall Coats The Crosse of Ierusalem or five crosses most frequently used in this warre Crosse Patée because the ends thereof are broad Fichée whose bottom is sharp to be fixed in the ground Wavée which those may justly wear who sailed thither through the miseries of the sea or sea of miseries Molinée because like to the rind of a mill Saltyrée or S. Andrews Crosse Florid or garlanded with flowers the Crosse crossed Besides the divers tricking or dressing as piercing voiding fimbriating ingrailing couping And in fansie and devices there is still a plus ultra insomuch that Crosses alone as they are variously disguised are enough to distinguish all the severall families of Gentlemen in England Exemplary is the Coat of George Villiers Duke of Buckingham five Scallop-shells on a plain Crosse speaking his predecessours valour in the Holy warre For Sir Nicolas de Villiers Knight followed Edward the first in his warres in the Holy land and then and there assumed this his new Coat For formerly he bore Sable three Cinquefoils Argent This Nicolas was the ancestour of the Duke of Buckingham lineally descended from the ancient familie of Villiers in Normandie then which name none more redoubred in this service For we find John de Villiers the one and twentieth Master of the Hospitallers and another Philip de Villiers Master of Rhodes under whom it was surrendred to the Turks a yielding equall to a conquest Yet should one labour to find a Mysterie in all Arms relating to the qualitie or deserts of the owners of them like Chrysippus who troubled himself with a great contention to find out a Stoicall assertion of Philosophie in every fiction of the Poets he would light on a labour in vain For I believe be it spoken with loyaltie to all Kings of Arms and Heralds their Lieutenants in that facultie that at the first the will of the bearer was the reason of the bearing or if at their originall of assuming them there were some speciall cause yet time since hath cancelled it And as in Mythologie the morall hath often been made since the Fable so a sympathy betwixt the Arms and the bearer hath sometimes been of later invention I denie not but in some Coats some probable reason may be assigned of bearing them But it is in vain to digge for mines in every ground because there is lead in Mendip hills To conclude As great is the use of Arms so this especially To preserve the memories of the dead Many a dumbe monument which through time or sacriledge hath lost his tongue the epitaph yet hath made such signes by the scutcheons about it that Antiquaries have understood who lay there entombed Chap. 25. Some offers of Christian Princes for Palestine since the end of the Holy warre by Henry the fourth of England Charles the eighth of France and Iames the fourth of Scotland AS after that the bodie of the sunne is set some shining still surviveth in the West so after this Holy warre was expired we find some straggling rayes and beams of valour offering that way ever and anon the Christian Princes having a bout with that design To collect the severall essayes of Princes glancing on that project were a task of great pains and small profit specially some of them being umbrages and State-representations rather then realities to ingratiate Princes with their subjects or with the oratorie of so pious a project to wooe money out of peoples purses or thereby to cloke and cover armies levied to other intents Besides most of their designes were abortive or aborsive rather like those untimely miscarriages not honoured with a soul or the shape and lineaments of an infant Yet to save the Readers longing we will give him a tast or two and begin with that of our Henry the fourth of England The end of the reign of this our Henry was peaceable and prosperous For though his title was builded on a bad foundation yet it had strong buttresses most of the Nobilitie favoured and fenced it And as for the house of York it appeared not its best bloud as yet ranne in feminine veins and therefore was the lesse active Now King Henry in the sunne-shine evening of his life after a stormy day was disposed to walk abroad and take in some forrein aire He pitched his thoughts on the Holy warre for to go to Jerusalem and began to provide for the same One principall motive which incited him was That it was told him he should not die till he had heard Masse in Jerusalem But this proved not like the revelation told to old Simeon for King Henry was fain to sing his Nunc dimittis before he expected and died in the chamber called Ierusalem in Westminster By comparing this prophesie with one of Apollo's oracles we may conclude them to be brethren they are so alike and both begotten of the father of lies for the Devil eartheth himself in an homonymie as a fox in the ground if he be stopped at one hole he will get out at another How-ever the Kings purpose deserveth