¶ Of the .xxx. susters that first inhabited this lande & named it Albion, that nowe is Englande Wales & Scotland.

¶ Note that wemen desyre of al thynges soueraynte, & to my conceypt more in this land then in any other, for they haue it of the nature of the saied susters.

¶ Note that Hughe de Genesis a Romayne historiographier declareth in his chronicle all the kyngdomes of the worlde, and all the names of suche kynges as ruled in theim, from Noes floude vnto the byrthe of Christ. In whiche chronicle the foresayed Hughe writeth, that Danays kyng of y ^t Gre­kes had .l. doughters and that Egistus his brother kyng of Egypte had as many sonnes that maryed together, which doughters kylled theyr owne husbandes, and for that cause were banyshed, and saylyng on the sea were dryuen vnto a certain ysle, which, Albina beyng the eldest suster of theim named accordyng to her name Albiō, and Brute after that called it accordyng to his name Brytayne.

¶ Howe these ladies had this Isle in the yere of Aioth .lxxii. in the third age of the world, and she called it Albion of hir name, and toke feauty & seruice of theim all, as souerayne ladie of this Isle, that nowe is Englande, Scotlande and Walis, as Hugh Genesis wryteth in his Dyaloge.

¶ Howe spyrites gatte Giauntes vpō the ladies, which gatte other Giaūtes within this lāde. Before Brute came were xii. M. Giauntes, what in this lāde that nowe is Englāde and the north that nowe is Scotland, and the west y ^t nowe is Wales, as the Scotte Marian saieth in his dialoge.

¶ How the fathers laye by theyr doughters, the brethren by theyr systers, the sonnes by theyr mothers and euery kynde with other, as Hugh Genesis reporteth in his chronicles.

¶ How Brute conquered Albyon & called it Britayne of his The ar­mis of Brute owne name, y ^t now is England Walis and Scotland, and the armes of Brute in whiche he was clade fyrste when he entred this ysle after Genesis the Italyane Chronycler were of Gowlys .ii. Lions crowne of golde Rampant and combattaunt.

¶ A shorte lamentaciō of the maker, for kyng Lamedone lose his life and his estate that might haue stande in peace and suertie, for a litle succour of Iasone in his voiage.

¶ Howe Eneas exyled oute of Troye came to Cecyle and to Affrike to the cytee of Carthage, and fro thence to Italye, & there was made kynge of Tuskayne and of Latene.

¶ Of the house of fame where knightes be rewarded after the merites in armes by Mars the God of armes, some trans­late wich kyrcheues of pleasaunce & some with rynges and onches, their sepulture in the felde of pitee by heuen gates y ^t haue be veraye louers of theyr louers ladyes and neuer panyneles but aye graceles.

¶ Howe Brute came frome Grece into Albion, and named it Britaine and howe he arryued at Totnesse in Deuinshire

¶ Howe Corneus wrastilled with Gogmagog the giaunt of the Isle, and sleugh hym.

¶ Howe he buylded the citee of Troynouaunt, that nowe is called London. London.

¶ Howe Brute sette his lawes & peace of Troye in this Isle without whiche a kyng is no better then his subiecte or his leege manne.

¶ Howe Brute departed Britaine in thre partes to his thre sonnes, the two yonger to holde of the elder, so that Wa­les and Scotlande shulde do homage to Englande by hys ordynaunce by the lawe of Troye.

¶ Howe by lawe Troyane the souerayntie belongeth to the eldest brother or syster.

¶ Kyng Locryne the souerayne lorde of all Britayne had Logres to his parte, to whom his .ii. brethren dyd homage for Albyne and for Cambyr.

¶ Howe kyng Humbar slewe Albanactus, wherfore Locryne and Cambre gathered a great power and disconfyted king Humbar, & ceased Albany by excheter vnto Lo [...]res againe for defaute of an heyre.

¶ Gwendolena. quene of Britaine had Logres and Albayne Guendolena. in peace and reste .xv. yere.

¶ Howe Maddan kynge of Britayne reygned after Gwen­dolena his mother, and reygned .xi. yeres.

¶ Ebranke kyng of Britayne had Logres and Albany. Also he had .xx. wyues .xx. sonnes and .xxx. doughters, he made Yorke, Bamburgh, Edenburgh, Dumbritayne and Al­clude, Also he made an archeflaume at Yorke & his temple that nowe is an archebishoppe.

¶ Howe after the death of Ebranke reygned Brutus greneshilde.

¶ Leyle kyng of Brytayn had Logres & Brytayne, he made at Carlele a temple flamyne and a flaume to rule it.

¶ Rudhudebras kyng of Brytayne had Logres and Albany he made Caunterbury, Wynchester and Shaftesbury, and three temples and three flaumes of theim.

¶ Bladud kynge of Britayne had Logres and Albany. He made an vniuersitee and a study at Stamforde & a flaume and his temple at Bathe his citee, whiche vniuersitee dured to the commyng of saynt Augustyne, and the byshoppe of Roome enterdited it for heresyes that fell emong the Sa­xones and the Britons together mixte.

¶ Kyng Leyr of Brytaine gaue away with his doughter all his lande and had it all again, and dyed kyng possessid.

¶ Howe Leyr made a temple, and a Flamyne to rule at all Laiceter.

¶ Howe Cordell quene of Fraunce and doughter of kyng Leyr, reigned after the death of hir father.

¶ Morgan kyng of Albanie, that cla [...]nyd all Briteyne, but this Isle of Britayne was departed, for this kyng had but Albany.

¶ Condage kyng of Logres Cambre, and duke of Corne­waile, gatte all Bryteine againe, and made a temple w ^t a Flamyne at Bangor,

¶ Clotane, Pynner, Ruddan & Stater reigned with barōs warres .xl. yere, howe this Isle of Brytaine was departed in foure parties & stood departed .xl. yere in barōs warres.

¶ The conseipt of the maker of this booke touchyng barrons warres, in defaute of peace and lawe.

¶ Dunwallo Moluncyus kyng of Cornewayle conquerid Logers, Lambry, and Albanie as right heire of Brytayne he gaue fraunchises to the temple, plough, merkettes, feyres and hie wayes, so that none should disturbe by lawe nor by [Page xxvii] wrong, he made sixe temples in Logers Cambre & Albanie and also many Flāynes to rule theim of estate as bishop­pes nowe dooen.

¶ Belyne kyng of Brytain who gaue to Brenny his brother, Albany that made hym homage for it, and sone after made hym greate warre and was false to hym and after frendes againe in other landes, but not in Englande ne in Scotlande.

¶ These. [...]i. brethren wanne all Fraunce & all Italie to Rome and besieged Rome, gatte it and wer Emperours of it.

¶ He made the hye wayes through out Britayn, and he founded three archeflamynes, at London one for Logres, ano­ther at Yorke for Albany that nowe is Scotlande for that tyme fro Humbre north that was that tyme Scotlande, & the thyrde at Laklion in Wales, for all Wales.

¶ Howe Guytelyn kyng of Britayne wedded Marcian to wife, that Mercian lawes made by her great wisedome.

¶ Howe Moruile kyng of Britaine was slayne by his owne immoderate Ire, withoute knowledge of eny man with a fysshe bestyall of the sea.

¶ Howe this kyng was crowned in defaute of his elder bro­ther, and after of pure pytee crowned his brother agayne.

¶ Howe Eledoure was y ^t seconde tyme crowned king of Britayne for his good rule.

¶ Eledour kyng of Brytein thrise crouned, for his good rule and good condicions.

¶ Elynguellus kyng of Brytein had greate will to here all mēne whē thei came to hym, whiche is a vertue. For greate cunnyng maketh a manne wyse and to knowe muche, and for mischefes to fynde remedies, as my lorde Vmfrewill commended neuer a manne, that putteth a mischief and canne fynde no remedie therfore.

¶ Lud kyng of Brytain buylded frome London stone to Lud gate & called that parte Luds toune, & after by processe, was called London by turnyng of tongues.

¶ How Iulius Caesar came to Britayn, that nowe is Eng­lande, and arryued in Thamis, and fled to Fraunce for newe succour.

¶ Howe, whan Iulius Caesar failed power, he gatte newe power by wily polycy, to haue his purpose, and came again to Brytayn and fled the seconde tyme.

¶ Howe Iulius Caesar came agayne to Britayne the thyrde tyme & accorded with the kyng and had truage of hym.

¶ Howe Aruiragus kynge of Britayne reygned .xliiii. yere. And howe in his tyme Cladeus Emperour had truage of this lande, and maryed his doughter to the kynge.

¶ Howe Ioseph Aramathie came vnto Britayne with Vas­pasyan, and chrystened a parte of this lande.

¶ Howe Ioseph conuerted this kyng Aruiragus & gaue hym a shelde of y ^t armes that wee call sainct George his armes whiche armes he bare euer after, & thus became that armes to bee y ^t kynges armes of this lāde, lōg afore sainct George was gotten or borne, and as Maryan the profounde chro­nicler saieth, he bare of siluer in token of clennes, a crosse of goules significacion of the bloodde that Christe bleedde on y ^e crosse, and for it muste nedes of reason by called a crosse.

¶ Marius the kyng of Brytain reigned sixty yere and three, howe the peightes inhabited firste in Albany y ^t is Sotclāde nowe in these dayes, in Catenes & thei wer the North peightes, and a parte of theim inhabited sone after bytwyxt the Scottes sea and tweid that were called South peightes.

¶ Howe Scottes came of Scota kyng Pharois doughter y ^t came after many daye into Albanye so y ^t of peightes Irish & of Pharois people collect togethers wer Scottes named For at the tauerne or at a gatheryng of people or of mony is called a scotte and so came first y ^e name of Scottes which Scottes inhabited theim by twixt catnes & y ^e Scottishe sea.

¶ Lucius kyng of Britayn reigned .liiii. yere, and was the se­conde Christened kyng of Britayn by Faggan & Dubyan that baptized all this lande, and for the same cause bare the same armes after he was baptized. Also he made of .iiii. archeflamynes in Britayn three archebyshoppes at Lon­don, Yorke and Carlion.

¶ Howe that ther was Britons warre .iiii. yere after the death of Lucius.

¶ Howe Seuer made a dike with a wall on it, of turues and soddes to kepe the Pightes and the Scottes from the Bri­tons, ouertwharte the land frō the east sea vnto y ^t west sea.

¶ Carense kyng of Britayne reigned .iiii. yere by treason, borne of lowe bloodde and rose vp of robery by the sea.

¶ The wordes of the maker of this booke vnto my Lorde of yorke touchynge gouernaunce of this lande, by example of this kyng Caranse through robbery refen of poore bloude to royall estate.

¶ Asclepiadote kynge of Britayne reygned .x. yere, in whose tyme was great persecucyon in Britayne, sayncte Albons slayne and many thousandes slayne for Chrystes sake.

¶ This persecucion was in y ^t yere of Christes birth a C. lxxx and .iiii. yere, and the .x. yere of kyng Asclepiadote.

¶ Kyng Coyle of Briteyne reygned .xi. yere, that was father to saynte Elyne.

¶ Howe Constancius Senatoure and Emperour of Rome wedded saynt Elyne, and by her was kyng of this lande.

¶ Constantyne kyng of Britayne sonne of Constaunce and of saynte Elyn, by. xxxiiii, yere, was fyrst kynge of Bry­tayne, and afterwarde Emperoure of Rome.

¶ Thanswere of Constantyne whā he was a leper & should haue been heled with the bloodde of innocentes, and howe he sent his mother sainct Elyn to seke the holy crosse. And howe he gaue his palis and dignite emperiall of Roome to Siluester. And howe he went to Besaūce and builded it all newe, & called it Constantyne & destroyed all the Aryanes heresies and dyed there at sainct Nychomede whose daye is halowed with the Grekes in the twenty and one daye of Maye.

¶ Gracian kyng of Britayne, in whose tyme kyng Malga & Gwaymes distroyed all Britayne

¶ The Senate of Rome sente a legion of knyghtes into Britayn, who made the Britons to make a walle of lyme and stone from the easte sea vnto the weste sea and called it the peight wall.

¶ Constaunce kyng of Britayne reigned but one yere, that was monke first and after made kyng, and was not wyse but an ideote, whome Vortiger crowned to that entent to make hymselfe kyng by false cōtryuyng, seyng the kyng full symple to rule the lande.

¶ Howe Vortiger kynge of Britayne reigned .xviii. yere through his falshed and treason cōspired with Peightes, to slea his kyng. And howe Engist and Horsus paiens landed in Kent and were beloued with Vortiger, and howe wed­nisdaye and frydaye had name, and what goddes and god­disses they honoured. Howe and when Engist and Horsus lāded in Kēte, & made Thoncastre & horne castre in the coū tre of Lyncolne, & howe Engist sent for his doughter & ma­ried her to kyng Vortiger, and brought in with her greate multitude of paiens, that accombred all the realme both of warre & of Christen fayth, wherfore the Britons crowned the kynges sonne.

¶ Howe Vortymer the sonne of kynge Vortyger, kynge of Brytayne to withstande the power of Engyste, and of Saxons was twyes crowned. Howe this Engyst vnder treaty slewe all the Baronage of Brytons on y ^t playne of Salysburye.

¶ Howe Engist caused Logres to bee called then En­gestlande, of whiche the commons putte gest awaye in their common speache, and call [...] it England for shortenes of speache.

¶ Aurelius Ambrose kyng of Brytain the seconde soonne of Constantyne,

¶ Vter Pendragō kyng of Brytain and of his armes that he bare.

¶ Howe the kyng was an amoured of the duke of Gorloys wyfe, and how he gatte on her kyng Arthure.

¶ Arthure kyng of Britayne, reygned .xxvi. yere. Howe the kynge bare syxe banners in his warre, and howe he renew­ed and increased the table rounde, and helde vp royally the rule of it, and howe he conquered Irelande and Denmarks with all the ysles of theim.

¶ Howe kyng Arthure conquered Fraunce, and sleugh kyng Frolle of fraūce, and wan many lādes thither­ward, and when he had wone Fraunce and ruled it nyne yere, he came to Carlion and he and the quene were crouned there again with greate solempnite & dewe seruice dooen by his homagers.

¶ A good cause to make knightes worthy and coragious, and ladies and gentilwomen to lyue in great clennes.

¶ Howe Galaad came to kyng Arthure and atheued y ^t seege pereleous in the roūd table, & howe the saynt Graal apered at supper in y ^t hal, wherfore he made a vowe, neuer to abide two nightes in one place, to tyme he knewe what it was, and that he might se it agayne.

¶ Howe Galaad and the knightes of the rounde table made theyr auowes to seke the saynt Graal, some tyll thei found it, and some for a yere.

¶ The lamentacion of kyng Arthure for his knightes vpon theyr departyng from hym, & of the rule whiche Galaad made emōg the knightes in the quee [...] of the saynt Graal, and howe at A [...]elon he found a shilde of thesame armes, a speare & a swcorde that Ioseph lefte there for hym, which armes, Aruiragus, Lucyus and Constantyne bare of siluer a crosse of Goules.

¶ Howe the embassado of the Emperoure Lucius was recey­ued solemplye, and presented the Emperours letters vnto kynge Arthure, and also of the tenoure of the same letters, the whiche Lucius sent to hym.

¶ The letter that kyng Arthure sent again to Lucius themperour of Roome.

¶ He gaue to thambassatours royall giftes, and sent his [Page] letters with his ambassatis to passe to Roome with theim in cōpaignie & he with his hoost folowed sone after theim.

¶ Howe the senate and the citee of Roome, mette hym in seuen processions, and crouned hym and there wintred hym by all the whole winter.

¶ Howe that tydynges came to the kynge at Roome, that Mordred had wedded his wyfe, and vsurped the crowne of Englande, for the whiche he came home agayne, and gaue Mordred batayll at Douer, where Arthure pre­uayled, and after again at Wynchester, wher the round table began and fell for euer.

¶ The battayll of Camblayn, where Arthure preuayled and s [...]ewe Mordred, and Arthure had his deathes wounde, and howe Arthure died and was buried in the Blacke chapel of Glastenbury.

¶ The commendacion of Arthure, after the conceipte of the maker of this booke in fewe woordes, and also the compleynte and lamentacion of the sayde maker for the death of Arthure

¶ Constantyne, kynge of Britayne, sonne of duke Cador of Cornewayle reygned foure yere.

¶ Howe Gurmounde kynge of Affrycans, conquered Bry­tayne, and departed it in seuen kyngdomes, to Saxons, [...] Englyshe, and went to wynne moo landes, & made Gur­monde Chester.

¶ Ethelbert kyng of Saxons.

¶ Howe kynge Ethelfryde of Northumberlande had ser­uyce of Aydan kyng of Scottes, the yere of Christ .vi. hundreth and three, after saynt Bede.

¶ Cadwan kynge of Britayne, that firste was prince of Northwales. This Cadwan was crowned in the yere of Christ syxe hundreth and thre, and after Bede by. xiii yere reigned ouer the Britons, in the west parties of all Wales and Cornwayll.

¶ Howe Cadwall fled, and was dryuen from his realme by kynge Edwyn, and helde it in subieccion, and was bapty­zed by saynt Pawlyn archbyshop of Yorke.

¶ Howe Cadwall and Penda slewe kyng Edwyn, and reig­ned ouer Brytons agayne.

¶ Howe Oswolde kynge of Englande reygned ouer Bry­tons, Scottes, and Peightes, Iryshe, and ouer all Logres and Cambre.

¶ Howe an hermite proued sainct Oswold his wife at [Page xc] his desire by biddyng of sainct Oswold