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John he was still excommunicate. On 16 July, however, the archbishop and the exiled bishops landed at Dover, and, as the king avoided meeting them, went to him at Winchester, where he repeated his promise of restitution, renewed the oath of his consecration, pledged himself to do justice to all, and observe the laws of Henry I. He fell at their feet, and with many tears implored their mercy. Accordingly they pronounced absolution on the 20th, and conducted him into the church during the service of the mass. A council was summoned to meet at St. Albans in August to assess the damages suffered by the prelates, and an embassy was sent to the pope on divers matters. John renewed his request that the barons would join in an invasion of Poitou. The northern lords answered that they were not bound to go beyond sea, and returned home. John having embarked with his personal following, sailed as far as Jersey and then came back in anger at having been deserted. He marched northwards with the intention of punishing the lords who had left him. At Northampton he was overtaken by Archbishop Stephen, who reminded him of his oath at Winchester to proceed against no one without the judgment of his court. Nevertheless he went on in a fury towards Nottingham, followed by Stephen, who at last prevailed on him to appoint a day for the barons to appear at his court. John went on to York and thence to Durham, and returned to London by the end of September. While he was absent the council met at St. Albans on 4 Aug. 1213. It was attended not only by bishops and magnates, but by representatives from the townships in the king's demesne, each sending the reeve and four men. Besides inquiring into the losses of the prelates it discussed the state of the kingdom, and the promise of the king to observe the laws of Henry I. On the 25th another council was held at St.Paul's, at which the archbishop produced and read Henry's charter, and all the barons swore before him that they would, if need be, fight for the liberties therein contained, and the archbishop promised them his help. On 2 Oct. Geoffrey FitzPeter the justiciar died. John disliked and feared him, both because he restrained him from evil, and because he was widely connected with baronial families. On hearing of his death John declared that he and the late archbishop would meet in hell, and swore by God's feet that he was now for the first time king and lord of England. He gave the justiciarship to Peter des Roches, the Poitevin bishop of Winchester, and the barons were much displeased at the appointment of a foreigner. On the 3rd he delivered the deed surrendering his kingdom to the pope to the legate, Nicolas of Tusculum, before an assembly gathered in St. Paul's. As he failed to meet a council appointed to be held at Reading, the bishops and magnates adjourned to Wallingford, where they found him on 3 Nov. There he promised to make restitution to the bishops, and was reconciled to the northern barons (Annals of Dunstable, iii. 40). Probably, in consequence of this meeting, he sent out a summons on the 7th for a council to meet at Oxford, to which were to come, along with the barons and knights, four discreet men as representatives from each county, to advise with him on the affairs of the kingdom. It is not known whether the council met; the writ marks an important stage in the rise of parliamentary representation (Constitutional History, i. 528; Select Charters, pp. 278, 279). John was, of course, aware of the resolve of the barons to insist on a reform, and was further deeply mortified at being forced by the pope to be reconciled to the archbishop and bishops; he is said to have tried to bribe Innocent to desert their cause. Matthew Paris says that about this time he sent an embassy to the emir of Morocco, offering to place himself and his kingdom under his suzerainty, to pay him tribute, and even to adopt Mahometanism. That an embassy was sent to the emir seems fairly certain, though the particulars of the story are probably embellishments added either by the chronicler or his informant, Robert of London, one of the envoys. John held another council at Reading on 8 Dec., about the losses of the bishops. In obedience to a letter received from the pope some progress was made in filling up the vacant benefices throughout the country. The legate accepted the king's candidates.

The alliances built up by his father and brother gave John a strong position as against France, and he became the centre of continental opposition to Philip. On the east and north-east of France he was in alliance against Philip with his nephew the emperor, Otto IV, with the Counts of Boulogne, Flanders, and Holland, with the Dukes of Limburg, Brabant, and Louvain, and with other lords. He now had a large force acting in Flanders under his natural brother, William de Longespée, earl of Salisbury (1196-1226) [q. v.], in conjunction with his allies. Raymond VI, count of Toulouse, who had been despoiled of his dominions, came to him in England, did homage to him for Toulouse, and like other enemies of Philip received money from him. He determined to invade Poitou while Philip was engaged with the allied armies in Flanders, and on