* * * * *

Elfleda the sister of king Edward highlie commended for government, what a necessarie staie she was vnto him in hir life time, what townes she builded and repared, hir warlike exploits against the Danes, hir death and buriall; the greatest part of Britaine in K. Edwards dominion, he is a great builder and reparer of townes, his death, the dreame of his wife Egina, and the issue of the same, what children king Edward had by his wiues, and how they were emploied, the decay of the church by the meanes of troubles procured by the Danes, England first curssed and why; a prouinciall councell summoned for the reliefe of the churches ruine, Pleimond archbishop of Canturburie sent to Rome, bishops ordeined in sundrie prouinces; dissention among writers what pope should denounce the foresaid cursse; a succession of archbishops in the see of Canturburie, one brother killeth another.

THE XVIIJ.  CHAPTER.

Not without good reason did king Edward permit vnto his sister Elfleda the gouernment of Mercia, during hir life time:  for by hir wise and politike order vsed in all hir dooings, he was greatlie furthered & assisted; but speciallie in reparing and building of townes & castels, [Sidenote:  Hen.  Hunt. Matth.  West. Simon Dun.] wherein she shewed hir noble magnificence, in so much that during hir government, which continued about eight yeeres, it is recorded by writers, that she did build and repare these towns, whose [Sidenote:  Tamwoorth was by hir repared, anno 914.  Eadsburie and Warwike. 915.] names here insue:  Tamwoorth beside Lichfield, Stafford, Warwike, Shrewsburie, Watersburie or Weddesburie, Elilsburie or rather Eadsburie, in the forrest of De la mere besides Chester, Brimsburie bridge vpon Seuerne, Rouncorne at the mouth of the riuer Mercia with other.  Moreouer, by hir helpe the citie of Chester, which by Danes had [Sidenote:  Chester repared, 905. Sim.  Dun.] beene greatlie defaced, was newlie repared, fortified with walls and turrets, and greatlie inlarged.  So that the castell which stood without the walls before that time, was now brought within compasse of the new wall.

Moreouer she boldlie assalted hir enimies which went about to trouble the state of the countrie, as the Welshmen and Danes.  She sent an armie into Wales, and tooke the towne of Brecknocke with the queene [Sidenote:  Queene of the Welshmen taken.  Brecenamere. Ran.  Higd. Hen.  Hunt. 918.  Darbie won from the Danes.] of the Welshmen at Bricenamere.  Also she wan from the Danes the towne of Darbie, and the countrie adioining.  In this enterprise she put hir owne person in great aduenture:  for a great multitude of Danes that were withdrawen into Darbie, valiantlie defended the gates and entries, in so much that they slue foure of hir chiefe men of warre, which were named wardens of hir person, euen fast by hir at the verie entrie of the gates.  But this notwithstanding, with valiant fight hir people entered, and so the towne was woon:  she got diuerse other places out of their hands, & constreined them of Yorkeshire to agree with hir, so that some of them promised to become hir subiects:  some vowed to aid hir, and some sware to be at hir commandement.