In this twelfth yeare of king Edwards reigne at a councell holden at Northampton by the duke of Cornewall, lord warden of England in absence of the king his brother, and by manie of the prelats and barons of the realme, there was granted to the king a subsidie in wooll, to the great burthen of the commons: but for so much as the cleargie of the land was not present at that councell, it was ordeined that they should be called, and so they assembled in a conuocation at London the first day of October, in which the cleargie granted to the king a tenth for the third yeare then to come, ouer and besides the two tenths before granted, and that the tenth of this present yeare should be paid in shorter time than it was appointed: but they flatlie denied to grant their wools, which neuerthelesse the laitie paid, and that to their great hinderance, for it rose double to a fiftéene. From the beginning of October, to the beginning of December this yeare, fell such abundance of raine that it hindered greatlie the husbandmen in sowing of their winter corne: and in the beginning of December came such a vehement frost continuing the space of twelue wéeks, that it destroied vp all the séed almost that was sowne, by reason whereof small store of winter corne came to proofe in the summer following: but though there was no plentie, yet all kinds of graine were sold at a reasonable price, through want of monie. [Sidenote: The Frenchmen inuade ye coasts of this land.] [Sidenote: Plimmouth burnt.] [Sidenote: The earle of Deuonshire.] [Sidenote: _Rich. South._] The Frenchmen by sea sore troubled the sea coasts of this realme, speciallie where the champion countries stretch towards the sea coasts. At Hastings in the feast of Corpus Christi, they burnt certeine fishermens houses, and slue some of the inhabitants. Also in the hauens about Deuonshire and Cornewall, and towards Bristow, they tooke and burnt certeine ships, killing the mariners that came to their hands, and in the Whitsunwéeke they landed at Plimmouth, and burnt the more part of the towne: but Hugh Courtnie earle of Deuonshire, a man almost fourescore yeares of age, and other knights and men of the countrie came against these Frenchmen, sleaing such as came into their hands to the number of fiue hundred, as was estéemed, and chased the residue. ¶ The Scots also about the same time did much hurt and great mischéefe to the Englishmen both by sea and land. [Sidenote: William Dowglas.] [Sidenote: _Hect. Boetius._] [Sidenote: A floud.]