This was Lionel's last act as viceroy, and he retired, being succeeded by Gerald, fourth Earl of Desmond, known as 'The Poet' by reason of his {38} writings. He was popular, witty, and just, and for two years he ruled the English colony. In 1369, however, Sir William de Windsor, who had been one of the leaders of Prince Lionel's army, was appointed viceroy, and given an annuity of L1,000 until lands producing an equal amount could be settled on him. De Windsor's time was occupied chiefly in repelling attacks on the city of Dublin by the border Irish, but he performed an heroic action by marching to the South of Ireland and rescuing the preceding viceroy, whose poetical temperament and mild manner had not saved him from the hostility of the Irish. In 1371 De Windsor retired for over two years. The appointment of a successor caused Edward great trouble. He was averse to sending a pauper, because that would entail a diminution in the royal receipts from Ireland, while the wealthy men about his court would not accept the post at any price. Ireland to them was a savage country; a stay there tantamount to punishment and exile. There was no prospect of military glory, for they knew that many of the gallant victors of France, Flanders, and Scotland had left their reputations behind them on many a lost battlefield in Ireland. Edward thought that he could compel anybody he chose to go to Ireland, and he selected Sir Richard de Pembridge, who held several very profitable offices under the English Crown. Naturally Pembridge declined the post, and Edward retorted by depriving him of his offices. Pembridge, however, appealed to the Council and to Parliament, and it was decided that it was not the {39} king's prerogative to order anybody to leave the country. Magna Charta distinctly stated that exile from England was the punishment for felony or treason, and that Parliament alone had the power to expel a subject. [Sidenote: The 'Lady of the Sun']