Richard evidently anticipated a speedy release, for he sent to England not only for money and hostages, but also for ships, and for the captain of his own ship, Alan Trenchemer; and bade Robert of Turnham proceed thither “with his” (_i. e._ the king’s) “military accoutrements”—as if he expected soon to require them there.[1098] He seems to have really believed that the new agreement secured for him the Emperor’s active support in the matter about which he was most anxious—the impending struggle with Philip. The seneschal and baronage of Normandy, as a body, had rejected the treasonable proposals of John; but there was one traitor among them; on April 12[1099] Gilbert of Vacoeil, the constable of Gisors and Néaufle, surrendered these two castles to the king of France. With these keys of the border in his hands, Philip had no difficulty in entering the duchy. In a few weeks he was master of the whole Vexin, the county of Aumale, and the lands of Vaudreuil, Neufbourg, [Sidenote: _April-May_] Evreux, and Gournay.[1100] He was thus in full career of success when on hearing of the Hagenau agreement he urgently besought the Emperor either to hand Richard over to him free “as his homager,” or to keep him in a German prison as long as possible; and he backed his request with a heavy bribe in money.[1101] Henry saw that he could not make friends of both kings, and he was in doubt which of the two would be the most useful friend or the most dangerous foe; so he staved off the decision for a time, placed Richard in confinement at Worms,[1102] and arranged to hold a conference with Philip at Vaucouleurs on June 24 or 25.[1103] Before that day came, however, the French alliance had ceased to be of much consequence to Henry; for the matter in which he had been most anxious to obtain Philip’s support, his quarrel with his own feudataries, had been settled by other means. Richard, fearing that if Henry and Philip should meet he would be given up to the latter, “exerted himself greatly” that the meeting should be prevented, and, to this end, that the Emperor and the German magnates should come to an agreement; which, “owing to his urgency,” they did.[1104] The result was that instead of a conference with Philip at Vaucouleurs, Henry on June 25 opened at Worms a great Court[1105] which sat for five days, and at which there were present, besides a crowd of his own vassals, spiritual and temporal, four representatives of King Richard—the bishops of Bath and Ely, and two of the justiciars from England[1106]—and on the 29th the whole assembly confirmed by an oath “on the soul of the Emperor” a new agreement between Henry and his royal prisoner.[1107] The money total for the ransom was now raised to a hundred and fifty thousand marks, of which a hundred thousand were to be fetched from England by envoys who were to be despatched thither by both sovereigns immediately. Richard was to give sixty hostages to Henry for thirty thousand marks more, and seven hostages