Page:The parochial history of Cornwall.djvu/380

338 King Arthur, temp. Henry IV. John Litigate, a monk of St. Edmondsbury, who wrote a tract of King Arthur's Round Table, anno Dom. 1470, William Caxton, the author of that Chronicle called Fructus Temporum, who also wrote the history of King Arthur, 1484, Nicholas Upton, Canon of the Cathedral Church of Wells 1440, and others.

King Arthur's three admirals at sea, as appears from the book of Thriades in British, were Gerint ab Erbyn, a nobleman of Cornwall, for then Cornwall and Devon were one county or province, slain at Lhongporth, now London, by the Saxons, anno Dom. 540; March ab Meircyon, and Gwenwynwyn ab Nau.

There is yet extant in the British tongue an elegy upon the death of this Gerint, which amongst others contains those words. Ray Rhytharmaur mab Erbin.

Yn Longborth yllas Gerint, Gur deur o godir Dyfneint, Wyntwys yn Lladhgyt as ledeint Yn Llongborth llas y Arthur, Guyr deur Kymmuvint o dur Amheravdyr llywyadyr llauur. In Longporth was slain Gerint, A man beloved of Devon, Overcome in fight or vanquished In Longporth where he was slain for Arthur, A man beloved, that commanded over the water, Admiral or General of a fleet great.

King Arthur also, by reason of the great schism in the Church between the Arian and Catholic Clergy, instituted the order of Knights of the Holy Trinity, and built the Chapel of Trinity at Restormell.

Pierce Gaveston being made Earl of Cornwall by King Edward II. and afterwards banished for his wicked practices, and put to death by licence of that king, took out of the jewel house a table of gold, and tressells of the same, that once belonged to King Arthur, and delivered them to Amery of Friscoband, a merchant, to be carried into Gascoigne, where they were sold at a great price to his own private advantage, as our chronologers tell us.