Wo be to that préest yborne, That will not cleanelie wéed his corne, And preach his charge among: Wo be to that shepheard (I saie) That will not watch his fold alwaie, As to his office dooth belong: Wo be to him that dooth not kéepe, From rauening Romish wolues his shéepe, With staffe and weapon strong. This (as not impertinent to the purpose) I haue recorded, partlie to shew the palpable blindnes of that age wherein king John liued, as also the religion which they reposed in a rotten rag, estéeming it as a Scala coeli or ladder to life; but speciallie inferred to this end, that we may fetch some light from this cléere candle (though the same séeme to be duskish & dim) whereby we may be lead to conceiue in reason and common sense, that the interrement of the king was according to the custome then in vse and request, and therefore by all likelihoods he was buried as the péeres and states of the land were woont to be in those daies, after the maner aboue mentioned. [Sidenote: King Johns children.] But to let this passe as a cold discourse of a coffen of bones cottered with clods of claie; you shall vnderstand that he left behind him posteritie of both sexes. For he had issue by his wife quéene Isabell two sonnes, Henrie who succéeded him in the kingdome, and Richard; thrée daughters, Joane married to Alexander king of Scotland, Isabell coupled in matrimonie with the emperour Frederike the second, and Elianor whome William earle of Glocester had to wife. He had also another daughter (as some haue left in writing) called Elianor. He was comelie of stature, but of looke and countenance displeasant and angrie, somewhat cruell of nature, as by the writers of his time he is noted, and not so hardie as doubtfull in time of perill and danger. But this séemeth to be an enuious report vttered by those that were giuen to speake no good of him whome they inwardlie hated. Howbeit some giue this witnesse of him (as the author of the booke of Bernewell abbeie and other) that he was a great and mightie prince, but yet not verie fortunate, much like to Marius the noble Romane, tasting of fortune both waies: bountifull and liberall vnto strangers, but of his owne people (for their dailie treasons practised towards him) a great oppressour, so that he trusted more to forreners than to them, and therfore in the end he was of them vtterlie forsaken.