Exempla recentium histoinarum, et quomodo rex
A Legacy of Royal Valor
The author reflects on the martial virtues and historical achievements of past English kings, from Cnut to Henry I.
Henry II calmed the storm and turbulence of King Stephen's reign and brought peace to the island. And because the story of Brennus might seem too remote to demonstrate the virtue of a people who lack not nature, but rather training, exercise, skill, and perhaps a leader, I will come closer and present a concise summary of things known to almost everyone. The courage Cnut showed in breaking the Daces and Danes and suppressing the uprisings of the Noricans is clear; because of the merit of the outstanding courage he showed so powerfully and openly, our Kent holds the honor of the first cohort and the first engagement against the enemy in all battles to this very day. The Severian province, known today as Wiltshire, claims the subsidiary cohort by the same right, with Devon and Cornwall added to it. I'll move on to our own times. The English king nicknamed Rufus—a man certainly energetic in arms but not very religious, who seemed to have provoked the sting of envy that suffocated him through the persecution of holy men, especially Saint Anselm of Canterbury—conquered Le Mans and captured the count, yet didn't deign to imprison him; the 'Barbatus' hill, or if you prefer, the 'Barbarus' or 'Barbarorum' hill, will attest to this deed forever. I move on to his successor, Henry, the illustrious king called the Lion of Justice, whom, as is publicly known, not only the cities but also the towers of Gaul feared. But as for how he broke and routed the King of the French in the battle that was joined, because it is very famous and there are many witnesses still living in both kingdoms who took part in that public battle, I knowingly pass over it, lest it be tedious to repeat things that are so well known.
The Rise of a Virtuous King
The narrative shifts to the current king's early life, contrasting his inherent virtue and prudence against the malice of his predecessors.
I believe it's unnecessary to recount how the Duke of the Normans—a warlike man, strong in arms, who had returned after the liberation of Jerusalem—entered the borders of a foreign kingdom under the shadow of his name; for even the younger generation has seen him held in public custody, with due regard for his dignity and bloodline. The Norman nobles bear witness to this, as some were captured, others imprisoned, and others disinherited to this very day; the tomb of the captive duke is here among us. Finally, so that we don't have to look far for examples, even envy itself cannot remain silent or hide the truth about his nephew—a man of the whole age, if the merits of virtues already bestowed have held together in the end—the best king in Britain, the most fortunate Duke of the Normans and Aquitanians, and the first in both the breadth of his realm and the splendor of his virtues; how strong, how magnificent, how prudent and modest he has been from his very infancy, as I might say, is clear from his recent and manifest deeds, and he has extended and continued the titles of his virtue from the borders of Britain to the limits of Spain. Indeed, intelligence and a quick prudence in affairs come before gray hairs; he is skilled in what should be said and what should be kept silent, and he is able to mark the black with vice. For God, wishing to punish the malice of a treacherous people, allowed the favor of newcomers to be exalted after the breaking of the covenant that had been confirmed by the oath of the nobles with the daughter of the Lion of Justice, and permitted a man who was a contemner of good and equity to reign in a foreign kingdom—a man whose counsel was foolish from the beginning, whose cause was founded in iniquity and perfidy, and who was negligent of discipline, so that by his reigning, or rather by his shaking and colliding, the clergy and the people were all provoked to everything; for the measure of justice was force. Invading the kingdom, he disinherited and excluded the lord for whom, if there had been any loyalty in man, he should have died, both for the merits of his predecessors and by the necessity of his oath. He strove to corrupt neighboring nations and contracted marriages and friendships with princes so that, by no benefit of God, the little child still crying in his cradle could reach the claim of his inheritance. Many things were indeed plotted against innocence, but in all these things, iniquity lied to itself.
Divine Justice and the Cost of Treachery
The author examines the downfall of those who acted with treachery and contempt for God, highlighting the king's early triumph over such wickedness.
And so it became clear that God is truthful, for the loyalty he failed to show to his God and his earthly lord, he never found in his own subjects; for he was paid back with the same measure he had used for others, as if everyone had learned from Ennius: 'I have not given, and I do not give, loyalty to any faithless man.' But while he did many things badly and a few things well, he acted most wickedly in laying hands on the Lord’s anointed in contempt of God, not without the mark of treachery and betrayal, which he earned by his own heinous actions in the eyes of all, so that from then on no one could safely approach his court. He didn't just seize the bishops, though they were the first to be taken to his ruin; he set traps for everyone he suspected of betraying him. But the seizure of the bishops was the beginning of his troubles, and from that day on, the sword never left his side, and the man's final state was always worse than his first. Why say more? In his days, evils multiplied on the earth to such an extent that if anyone were to summarize them, it might even exceed the history of Joseph. Nevertheless, the boy’s virtue stood against them, and almost before he reached the proper age or military duty, he broke the momentum of the wicked in such a way that he was sometimes said to be no less than the younger Theodosius—whom historians compare to Alexander—and I only hope he is never found to be inferior. Without delay, in the first years of his adolescence, while still a boy, he took up the military life, and with a fiercer look and the stronger hand of divine help, he shook and broke the hearts of his enemies.
Military Triumphs and Political Restoration
The king's military prowess and strategic successes are detailed, showing how he restored order and secured his rightful inheritance.
The kings of the Franks and the English immediately gathered their forces and rose up against him, joined by an enemy more formidable than either: Eustace, the brother-in-law of the King of the Franks, who was pursuing his own agenda—striving to preserve the ancestral crown not so much for his father as for himself. Our Neoptolemus not only withstood them manfully but, for the most part, powerfully overcame them. Deeply moved in his heart, Eustace—whom I mentioned earlier—departed from human affairs, having done the best thing he ever did in his life; for as the good rejoiced and those who congratulated the public fortune were glad, because another scourge of the fatherland was looming, there was a great celebration among the troupes of flute players, quacks, beggars, mimes, buffoons, and that whole crowd. Yet, so that his death would not detract in any way from the glory of our duke, he was present and witnessed the surrender of Craumersia, to whose aid he had come with his father, armed and equipped with a strong force and a larger number of soldiers. The duke, however, warned by the counsel of one man, placed his own army—though it was far smaller—between the castle the king had fortified and the king's forces. Yet, so that foreigners would not attribute this to their own strength, he relied primarily on our soldiers. In the end, the one who had occupied the kingdom was driven by his own mounting faults to the point where he was forced to disinherit his son, cede the succession of the kingdom to the duke, and bind the nobles and the military of the entire realm by a sworn oath of loyalty. I pass over the siege of Chinon, for everyone knows that the English and Normans—whom a complex alliance had already united—were the most distinguished and strenuous in the capture of that castle.
The Promise of a Future Reign
The author concludes by acknowledging the king's ongoing achievements and expressing hope for his continued grace and wisdom.
I'll pass over Nantes and the whole county of Lower Brittany—though it's a large province—which would still be in rebellion today if the strength of the English people weren't a source of fear to them. Whether moved by fear or drawn by love and virtue—it's hard to say which—the illustrious Count of Blois and Chartres restored to the Duchy of Normandy the castles that had been lost during his childhood. It would take too long to list the famous deeds of such a prince; while everyone must admire them, it's impossible to describe them fully. I don't claim the strength for this myself; if prosperity continues to follow him for a long time in accordance with the course of grace he has already received, writers like Orosius, Egesippus, and Trogus will be the ones to labor over it. However, the outcome of his youth is a cause for suspicion to some, and I only hope that the good have reason to fear it in vain.
Read the original Latin
Henricus secundus tempestatem et procdlas regis Stephani serenauerit et pacauerit insulam. Et quia Brenni historia alicni forte nimis remota uidebitur ad demonstrandam uirtutem gentis cui non natura sed doctrina exercitium ars et forte dux deest, aceedo propius et ea quae sunt fere omnibus nota compendioso sermone proponam. Cnudus quanta uirtute Anglorum Dacos Danosue fregerit motusque compescuerit Noricorum uel ex eo perspicuum a est quod, ob egregiae uirtutis meritum quam ibidem potenter et patenter exercuit, Cantia nostra primae cohortis honorem et primos congressus hostium usque in hodiemum diem in omnibus praeliis optinet. Prouincia quoque Seueriana, quae moderno usu et nomine ab incolis Wiltesira uocatur, eodem iure sibi uendicat cohortem subsidiariam adiecta sibi Deuonia et Comubia. Ad tempora nostra descendo. Rex Anglorum qui RufFus cognominatus est, armis quidem strenuus sed parum religiosus et qui persecutione sanctorum et praecipue sancti Anselmi Cantuariensis spiculum inuidiae quo suffocatus est in se uisus est prouocasse, is, inquam, Cenomannum expugnauit, comitem cepit nec tamen dignatus est eum carcerali custodiae mancipare; tantoque operi attestabitur in perpetuum mons Barbatus aut, si alio nomine censere malueris, dicatur mons Barbarus aut Barbarorum. Transeo ad successorem eius Henricum inclitum regem, qui leo iustitiae appellatus est, quem, sicut publice notum est, non modo urbes sed et turres Gallicae timuerunt. Sed qualiter regem Francorum commisso praelio fregerit et fugauerit, quia percelebre est et uictoriae illius in utroque regno qui publico praelio interfuerunt plurimi testes extant, ne replicare notissima tediosum sit, scienter praetereo.
Normannorum ducem, uirum bellicosum, armis strenuum, qui lerosolima liberata redierat, sub umbra nominis quomodo ceperit alieni terminos regni ingressus, referre superuac caneum credo, cum etiam iuniores eundem captum uiderint in custodia publica, habita tamen aestimatione dignitatis et sanguinis. Testantur hoc Normannorum proceres, alii eapti, alii incarcerati, alii exheredati in hodiemum diem; sed et sepulchrum captiui ducis apud nos est. Postremo, ne longe petantur exempla, nepos illius, totius eui, si collatae iam gratiae uirtutum in fine coheserint merita, rex optimus apud Britannias, Normannorum et Aquitanorum dux felicissimus et primus tam amplitudine renim quam splendore uirtutum, quam strenuus, quam magnificus, quam prudens et modestus ab ipsa, ut ita dicam, infantia fuerit, nec ipse liuor silere aut dissimulare potest, cum opera recentia et manifesta sint, et a Britanniarum finibus ad Hispaniae limites uirtutis suae protenderit et continuauerit titulos. Scilicet ingenium et rerum prudentia uelox ante pilos uenit, dicenda tacendaque callet, et potis est nigrum uitio praefigere teta. Volens namque Deus gentis praeuaricatricis punire malitiam rupto federe quod iuramento procerum cum filia leonis iustitiae firmatum fuerat, nouorum permisit sullimari fauorem et in regno alieno regnare hominem contemptorem boni et aequi, cuius consilium infatuatum est ab initio, cuius causa in iniquitate et perfidia fundata est, negligentem disciplinae ut eo non tam regnante quam concutiente efc a collidente clerum et populum prouocarentur omnes ad omnia; mensura namque iuris uis erat. Inuadens ergo regnum exheredauit exclusit dominum, pro quo quidem, si fides esset in homine, et decessorum meritis et ex necessitate iuramenti sibi fuerat moriendum. Vicinas studuit corrumpere nationes, cum principibus matrimonia contraxit et amicitias, ne quo Dei beneficio paruulus, qui adhuc uagiebat in cunis, ad petitionem hereditatis posset accedere. Plurima quidem aduersus innocentiam machinabantur sed in omnibus his mentita est iniquitas sibi.
Eoque innotuit quia Deus uerax est, quod fidem, quam Deo suo dominoque terreno non seruauit, eam nequaquam repperit in subiectis; eadem namque mensura remensum est ei qua ipse aliis praeb mensus fuerat; ac si omnes apud Ennium didicissent: Neque dedi neque do infideli cuiquam fidem. Sed cum multa male, pauca bene, illud quidem pessime egit, quod in contemptum Dei in christos eius manus iniecit non sine nota perfidiae et proditionis quam nefarii operis merito contraxit apud omnes ut ad curiam eius exinde nemo secure accederet. Non tamen solos etsi primos ad pemiciem sui cepit episcopos sed omnibus quos suspectos habuit proditionis suae tetendit insidias. At in captione episcoporum initium malorum fuit et ab ea die non defuit gladius lateri eius et facta sunt semper nouissima hominis deteriora prioribus. Quid multa? In diebus eius multiplicata sunt mala in terra ut, si quis ea summatim recenseat, historiam losephi possit excedere. Verumtamen se illis pueri uirtus opposuit et fere ante etatem aut munus militare sic malignantium impetum fregit ut Theodosio minore, quem historiae conferunt Alexandro, quandoque dictus sit non esse et utinam numquam inueniatur inferior. Nec mora; in primis adolescentiae annis impubes adhuc militiam aggressus est uultuque ferociori et fortiori manu diuini auxilii hostium corda concussit et fregit.
Statimque insurrexerunt in eum reges Francorum et Anglorum coUectis uiribus suis et utroque immanior hostis Eustachius ille, sororius regis Francorum, qui propriam agens causam non tam patri quam sibi paternum diadema conseruare nited batur. Et eos quidem non modo uiriliter Neoptolemus noster sustinuit sed ex maxima parte potenter superauit. Vnde tactus dolore cordis intrinsecus Eustachius quem praedixi, quod in uita optimum fecit, rebus excessit humanis, quem letantibus bonis et publicae fortunae congratulantibus, quoniam hic flagellum aliud patriae imminebat, luxerunb ambubaiarum collegia, pharmocopolae, mendici, mimae, balatrones, hoc genus omne. Ne tamen obitus eius gloriae ducis nostri quicquam detraheret, deditionem Craumersiae, in cuius subsidium cum patre uenerat in manu ualida et numero ampliori, uiuus, a armatus, militum instructus copia, sustinuit praesens et uidit. Dux autem, consilio unius praemonitus, inter castrum quod rex munierat et regis copias suum sed longe minorem exercitum interiecit. Ne tamen hoc alienigenae ascribant uiribus suis, nostro praecipue milite nitebatur. Ad hoc demum exigentibus culpis perductus est qui regnum occupauerat, ut cogeretur exheredare filium et duci cedere regni successionem et totius regni proceres et miHtiam fidelitate praestita obligare. Transeo ad obsidionem Chinonis, quia ibi Anglos et Normannos, quos iam multiplex confederatio uniuit, praecipuos et magis strenuos in captione castri extitisse nullus ignorat.
Nam sileo de Namneto et toto minoris Britanniae, quamuis grandis prouincia sit, comitatu, qui rebellis esset in hodiernum diem nisi robur gentis Anglorum esset formidini. Hoc ipsum aut ueritus aut amore et uirtute allectus (incertum enim est), illustris Blesensium et Camotensium comes castra, quae pupillaris etatis tempore amissa fuerant, ducatui Normannorum restituit. Longum est si inclita gesta tanti principis enumerare contendam, quae, sicut omnes admirari necesse est, ita plene describere impossibile. Nec ego uiribus meis arrogo, in quo, si iuxta praecedentis gratiae cursum sibi diu successerint prospera, sudare poterunt Orosius Egesippus et Trogus. Ceterum adolescentiae exitus aliquibus suspectus est, et utinam frustra a bonis timeatur.
Policraticus companion
Study the argument weekly; pray the tradition daily
Pair the outline with the Chosen Portion app, which serves short daily portions from the same royal devotional tradition — free on iOS.
John of Salisbury argued that rulers must keep the law of God before their eyes daily; Chosen Portion gives modern readers that same daily discipline in five minutes a morning.
- 8 weeks, one book per week, with the 3-4 key chapters flagged in each
- Discussion questions usable for a reading group from week one
- A daily 5-minute companion portion in the app alongside your weekly study