sumptuously every day, and prolonging his morning slumbers till dinner-time.”  It seems that shortly afterward the Queen returned to Chinon, and that in the middle of January, 1203, the enemies at Angers were discovered to be planning an attempt to capture her there.  John hurried to Le Mans, only stopping at Alencon to dine with Count Robert and endeavor to secure his suspected loyalty by confirming him in all his possessions.  No sooner had they parted, however, than Robert rode off to the French court, did homage to Philip, and admitted a French garrison into Alencon.  While John, thus placed between two fires, was hesitating whether to go on or to go back, Peter des Preaux succeeded in getting the Queen out of Chinon and bringing her to her husband at Le Mans; thence they managed to make their way back in safety to Falaise.

This incident may have suggested to John that it was time to take some decisive step toward getting rid of Arthur’s claims.  According to one English chronicler, some of the King’s counsellors had already been urging this matter upon him for some time past.  They pointed out that so long as Arthur lived, and was neither physically nor legally incapacitated for ruling, the Bretons would never be quiet, and no lasting peace with France would be possible.  They therefore suggested to the King a horrible scheme for rendering Arthur incapable of being any longer a source of danger.  The increasing boldness of the Bretons at last provoked John into consenting to this project, and he despatched three of his servants to Falaise to put out the eyes of the captive.  Two of these men chose to leave the King’s service rather than obey him; the third went to Falaise as he was bidden, but found it impossible to fulfil his errand.  Arthur’s struggles were backed by the very soldiers who guarded him, and the fear of a mutiny drove their commander, Hubert de Burgh, to prevent the execution of an order which he felt that the King would soon have cause to regret.  He gave out, however, that the order had been fulfilled, and that Arthur had died in consequence.

The effect of this announcement proved at once the wisdom of Hubert and the folly of those to whose counsel John had yielded.  The fury of the Bretons became boundless; they vowed never to leave a moment’s peace to the tyrant who had committed such a ghastly crime upon their Duke, his own nephew, and Hubert soon found it necessary, for John’s own sake, to confess his fraud and demonstrate to friends and foes alike that Arthur was still alive and uninjured.  John himself now attempted to deal with Arthur in another way.  Being at Falaise at the end of January, 1203, he caused his nephew to be brought before him, and “addressed him with fair words, promising him great honors if he would forsake the King of France and cleave faithfully to his uncle and rightful lord.”  Arthur, however, rejected these overtures with scorn, vowing that there should be no peace unless the whole Angevin dominions, including England, were surrendered to him as Richard’s lawful heir.  John retorted by transferring his prisoner from Falaise to Rouen and confining him, more strictly than ever, in the citadel.