Chronicles 1 (of 6): The Historie of England 5 (of 8): The Fift Booke of the Historie of England.Holinshed, Raphael
History
Chronicles 1 (of 6): The Historie of England 5 (of 8): The Fift Booke of the Historie of England.
Holinshed, Raphael
Great Britain -- History -- Anglo-Saxon period, 449-1066
This Gurmundus appointing his brother Turgesius to pursue the conquest
of Ireland, came and arriued heere in Britaine, making such cruell
warre in aid of the Saxons against the Britains, that Careticus was
constreined to kéepe him within the citie of Chicester or Cirencester,
and was there besieged, and at length by continuall assalts and
skirmishes, when he had lost manie of his men, he was glad to forsake
that citie, and fled into Wales. This Gurmundus tooke Cirencester or
Chichester, and destroied it in most cruell maner. Some write, that
he tooke this citie by a policie of warre, in binding to the féet of
sparrowes which his people had caught, certeine clewes of thred or
matches, finelie wrought & tempered with matter readie to take fire,
so that the sparrowes being suffered to go out of hand, flue into the
towne to lodge themselues within their neasts which they had made in
stacks of corne, and eues of houses, so that the towne was thereby
set on fire, and then the Britains issuing foorth, fought with their
enimies, and were ouercome and discomfited.
But whilest the battell continued, Careticus stale away, and got him
into Wales. After this, the foresaid Gurmundus destroied this land
throughout in pitifull wise, and then deliuered it in possession to
the Saxons, the which thankfullie receiued it: and because they were
descended of those that first came ouer with Hengist, they changed the
name of the land, and called it Hengistland, accordinglie as the
same Hengist had in times past ordeined: the which name after for
shortnesse of spéech was somewhat altered, and so lastlie called
England, and the people Englishmen. But rather it may be thought, that
sith a great part of those people which came ouer into this land out
of Germanie with the said Hengist, and other capteins, were of
those Englishmen which inhabited Germanie, about the parts of
[Sidenote: _Matt. West._]
Thoringhen, they called this land England, after their name, when they
had first got habitation within it: and so both the land and people
tooke name of them, being called _Angli_, a long time before they
entered into this Ile, (as before is shewed out of Cornelius Tacitus
and others.) But now to returne where we left.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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