He promised to do so, and urged the queen to put herself at the head of her army and march to Winchester. At her approach, the prelate retired to his castle in the suburbs, and a blockade was established that made the empress tremble in her palace. No doubt, during the two months of famine and warfare that succeeded, she regretted more than once the scorn with which she had repulsed her cousin's humble appeal. At last, when at least twenty-five churches and monasteries had been destroyed, and the empress knew that her position was becoming daily more dangerous, she prevailed on her brother, the Duke of Gloucester, to assist her to escape. He and the King of Scotland attempted to do so by forcing their way through the besiegers. The Duke of Gloucester fought bravely, but was compelled to surrender at last, when he was made captive and conducted before Queen Matilda. The King of Scotland escaped with the empress, and got as far as Devizes, where the queen's soldiers pursued them so closely that they would certainly have been captured but for a stratagem to which the empress was compelled to resort for safety. She had herself rolled in a winding-sheet, and placed in a coffin, and was in this manner carried on the shoulders of some of her faithful partisans to the fortress of Gloucester, which belonged to her brother. There she was deposited at last, after many hours of travel, worn out with fasting and terror. [[A.D. 1141.]] The Duke of Gloucester was so necessary to his party, that the empress opened communication with Queen Matilda to effect his release. But the only terms {085} [Illustration: 0089] {087}to which the devoted wife would listen, were those that would secure the restoration of her husband. Consequently, after many propositions had been made on one side and rejected on the other, and after Queen Matilda had threatened severe measures against Gloucester, the illustrious prisoners were exchanged. This important event took place in November, 1141. Stephen had another attack of his old malady soon after his release, but he recovered with the tender care bestowed upon him by his loving wife, and then entered the field again, determined to fight more desperately than ever. Then the party of the empress thought they would claim the assistance of her husband, the Count of Anjou, for which purpose the Duke of Gloucester was despatched to Normandy. Before leaving England, however, he saw his sister established at the Castle of Oxford, where he felt perfectly certain of her safety.