Jacob von Artaveld, the citizen of Ghent that was so much attached to the King of England, still maintained the same despotic power over all Flanders. He had promised the King of England that he would give him the inheritance of Flanders, invest his son the Prince of Wales with it, and make it a duchy instead of an earldom. Upon which account the king was at this period--about St. John the Baptist’s Day, 1345--come to Sluys, with a numerous attendance of barons and knights. He had brought the Prince of Wales with him, in order that Jacob von Artaveld’s promises might be realized. The king remained on board his fleet in the harbor of Sluys, where he kept his court. His friends in Flanders came thither to see and visit him; and there were many conferences between the king and Jacob von Artaveld on one side, and the councils from the different capital towns on the other, relative to the agreement before mentioned; as to which, those from the country did not unite in sentiment with the king or with Von Artaveld: they declared they never would consent to such a thing. Jacob von Artaveld remained some little time longer with the King of England, in order to be made acquainted with all his affairs: he, in return, assured him that he would bring his countrymen over to his opinion. But he deceived himself, and did wrong in staying behind and not being at Ghent at the time when the citizens who had been deputed by the corporations of the town arrived there; for as soon as they were returned, taking advantage of the absence of Von Artaveld, they collected a large meeting of high and low in the market-place, and there explained to them the subject of the late conferences at Sluys, and what the King of England had required of them through the advice of Jacob von Artaveld. The whole assembly began to murmur against him. They said that if it pleased God they never would be pointed out, or found so disloyal as to disinherit their natural lord in favor of a stranger. They then left the market-place much discontented and angry with Artaveld. Now see how unfortunately it fell out; for if he had gone to Ghent, instead of Bruges and Ypres, and had urged upon them the cause of the King of England, they would all have consented to his wishes, as those of the two above-mentioned towns had done. But he trusted so much to his prosperity and greatness, that he thought he could recover every thing back in a little time.