Richard II. having, as related in the description of Plate XVIII., decoyed his Uncle from his castle of Pleshy, under pretence of wishing his presence at a conference with the citizens, proceeds, conversing with him, towards London, when, on arriving at Stratford, at the top of a lane leading to the Thames, where an ambuscade had been prepared, he suddenly galloped forward, leaving the Duke behind, who was instantly surrounded by a body of men, under the command of the Earl Marshal, who said, “I arrest you in the King’s name!” The Duke, panic-struck on seeing himself thus betrayed, called loudly after the King, who, without turning his head, made off towards London, followed by his attendants. A boat was waiting in the river, and the Duke having been forced on board was carried over to Calais. Finding that he was closely imprisoned in the castle of Calais, he questioned the Earl Marshal as to the intentions of the King and the cause of his arrest. The Earl merely informed him that he must remain in banishment for a time; but the Duke suspected the worst, and requested a priest who had said mass before him, to confess him. His fears were not groundless; for Froissart relates, that, “on the point of sitting down to dinner, when the tables were laid and he was about to wash his hands, four men rushed out from an adjoining chamber, and, throwing a towel round his neck, strangled him.” This is not exactly the fact; as, by the subsequent confession of one of the murderers, it was known that he was smothered with pillows. It was given forth that the Duke of Gloucester had died in his bed at the castle of Calais, and the treacherous Earl Marshal, his near relative, put on mourning, as did all the knights and squires in Calais. Froissart tells us, that some believed and others disbelieved this story; but it is clear that it was generally disbelieved; for, among other acts of treachery, it no doubt led to his deposition, and, there is every reason to suspect, to a similar end. In the Illumination there is a happy attempt at expression, though not of the most elevated kind; it is, however, highly characteristic, particularly the features of the Duke calling anxiously to the King, whose supercilious nonchalance, as he coolly rides off, is very happily portrayed. The back ground, however, does not very felicitously represent the sort of country where an ambuscade or surprise could be executed with very good effect, and looks exceedingly like the suburbs of a Dutch or Flemish village of the present day. [Illustration: Richard IIⁿᵈ setting out upon his invasion of Ireland.] PLATE XXI. RICHARD II. SETTING OUT ON HIS EXPEDITION TO IRELAND.