Page:Medieval Military Architecture in England (volume 1).djvu/79

 Castles in the Reign of Henry IL 63 that honour to Malcolm King of Scotland. While there he fortified Wark Castle, the sheriff's charge for which was £2. 8s. I id. At Nottingham he gave to Richard de Haia the custody " castelli mei de Lincoln," showing that he claimed it for the Crown. In August he embarked at Ports- mouth or Southampton for Normandy ; and while abroad took the castles of Thouars, Amboise, Fretevel, Moulins, and Bon-MouHns. In 1159 he was occupied three months at the siege of Thoulouse, which he failed to take. Other castles in Normandy he took and repaired ; others, again, he destroyed ; and he built a few altogether new. In January, 1163, Becket came to England with the King, and gave great offence to the baronage by claiming Ton- bridge Castle for his see. Towards the close of the year Henry deprived him of the charge of the castles of Eye and Berkhampstead ; and in December admitted him to a per- sonal interview at Oxford Castle. In this year Henry was again at Peak Castle, and in March, 1164, at Porchester. Soon afterwards the strong castle of Tickhill fell to the Crown by escheat; and Henry spent Christmas at Marl- borough, a royal castle. In 1 165, after a short visit to Normandy, during which the Queen visited Sherborne Castle, Henry was at Rhuddlan, and caused Basingwerk and the Flintshire castles to be again put in order. This was fortunate, for the campaign was unsuccessful. Expenses on that occasion were allowed at Oswestry (then called Blancmont), Shrawardine, and Chirk Castles. This was an assertion of ownership on the part of the Crown, although Oswestry was part of the private estate of William Pltz-Alan, then a minor. Henry retired to Shrewsbury, and soldiers were brought up from Worcester and Abergavenny, some of whom were quartered in the Corbet Castle at Caus. Grosmont, Llantilio or White Castle, and Scenfrith, the Monmouthshire trilateral, also contributed soldiers. From Shrewsbury, Henry, reinforced, advanced into Powis-land, and encamped on the Berwyn Mountain, where he was near being cut off by the Welsh, and had to take refuge at Shotwick Castle, a small fortress on the root of the peninsula of Wirrall, whence he retired to Chester, and returned to London. In February or March, 1166, was compiled the return of military fiefs and tenants in chief, known as the Liber Niger, and which professes to represent the feudal military force of the kingdom, though so far only as the division of the land into military fees was then completed. The Liber Ruber states the fees, in the reign of Richard I., to have been