Page:The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (Giles).djvu/161

A.D.1067. namely that she should increase the glory of God in this land, lead the king out of the wrong into the right path, bring him and his people to a better way, and suppress all the bad customs which the nation formerly followed. These things she afterwards accomplished. The king therefore married her, though against her will, and was pleased with her manners, and thanked God who had given him such a wife. And being a prudent man he turned himself to God and forsook all impurity of conduct, as St. Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles, says: "Salvabitur vir," &c. which means in our language "Full oft the unbelieving husband is sanctified and healed through the believing wife, and so belike the wife through the believing husband." The queen above-named afterwards did many things in this land to promote the glory of God, and conducted herself well in her noble rank, as always was her custom. She was sprung from a noble line of ancestors, and her father was Edward Etheling, son of king Edmund. This Edmund was the son of Ethelred, who was the son of Edgar, the son of Edred; and so on in that royal line. Her maternal kindred traces up to the emperor Henry, who reigned at Rome.

This year Harold's mother, Githa, and the wives of many good men with her, went to the Steep Holmes, and there abode some time; and afterwards went from thence over sea to St. Omer's.

This Easter the king came to Winchester; and Easter was then on the tenth day before the Kalends of April. Soon after this the lady Matilda came to this country, and archbishop Eldred consecrated her queen at Westminster on Whitsunday. It was then told the king, that the people in the North had gathered together and would oppose him there. Upon this he went to Nottingham, and built a castle there, and then advanced to York, where he built two castles: he then did the same at Lincoln, and everywhere in those parts. Then earl Cospatric and all the best men went into Scotland. During these things one of Harold's sons came with a fleet from Ireland unexpectedly into the mouth of the river Avon, and soon plundered all that neighbourhood. They went to Bristol, and would have stormed the town, but the inhabitants opposed them bravely. Seeing they could get nothing from the town, they went to their ships with the