As well in this kings daies, as in the time of his brother William Rufus, men forgetting their owne sex and state, transformed themselues into the habit and forme of women, [Sidenote: The abuse of wearing long haire.] by suffering their haire to grow in length, the which they curled and trimmed verie curiouslie, after the maner of damosels and yong gentlewomen: insomuch that they made such account of their long bushing perukes, that those which would be taken for courtiers, contended with women who should haue the longest tresses, and such as wanted, sought to amend it with art, and by knitting wreathes about their heads of those their long and side locks for a brauerie. [Sidenote: 1127.] [Sidenote: _Matth. West._] Yet we read that king Henrie gaue commandment to all his people to cut their haire, about the 28. yeare of his reigne. Preachers indeed inueied against such vnseemlie maners in men, as a thing more agréeable and seemelie for the contrarie sex. Wil. Malm. reciteth a tale of a knight in those daies that tooke no small liking of himselfe for his faire and long haire, who chanced to haue a verie terrible dreame. For it séemed to him in his sléepe that one was about to strangle him with his owne haire (which[18] he wrapped about his throte and necke) the impression whereof sanke so deepelie into his mind, that when he awaked out of his sléepe, he streightwaies caused so much of his haire to be cut as might seeme superfluous. A great number of other in the realme followed his commendable example, but the remorse of conscience herein that thus caused them to cut their haire, continued not long, for they fell to the like abuse againe, so as within a twelue moneths space they excéeded therein as farre beyond all the bounds of séemelie order as before. ¶ In this Henrie ended the line of the Normans as touching the heires male, and then came in the Frenchmen by the title of the heires generall, after that the Normans had reigned about 69. yeares: for so manie are accounted from the comming of William Conquerour, vnto the beginning of the reigne of king Stephan, who succéeded the said Henrie. Thus farr the succession and regiment of the Normans; namelie, William Conquerour the father, William Rufus, and Henrie Beauclerke the sonnes. Transcriber's notes There are no footnotes in the original. The original spelling and punctuation have been retained, with the exception of obvious errors which have been corrected by reference to the 1587 edition of which the original is a transcription. [1] Original reads 'Robert de Bélesme'; changed to 'Robert de Belesme'. [2] Original reads 'conuient'; changed to 'conuenient'. [3] Original reads 'according to'; changed to '(according to'. [4] Original reads 'York'; changed to 'Yorke'. [5] The passage referred to is in the section on William the Conqueror, in Anno. Reg. 6. 1073. [6] The passage referred to is in the section on William the Conqueror, in Anno. Reg. 6. 1073.