not suffering him to take the field, king Uther entrusted the army of Britain to a very brave man, named Loth, consul of Leil. Loth advanced against the enemy, and was many times repulsed by them, because the Britons would not obey his commands. In the year of grace 510, the emperor Anastasius sent Ludovic,* king of the Franks, a letter conferring on him the consulship, and a crown of gold set with precious stones, and from that day he was styled consul. The Saxons destroy the churches of the Britons. In the year of grace 511, the Saxons who inhabited Britain, seeing that Uther-pendragon, the king, was bowed down with infirmity, assembled together with united forces for the purpose of expelling the islanders from their territories, and for ever subjugating their fertile country. Traversing, therefore, many provinces, and finding no one to resist them, they ravaged nearly the whole island from sea to sea ; and sparing neither prelates nor churches, they well nigh totally extirpated Christianity from the island. The islanders therefore, abandoning their infirm king, fled for refuge to the steep mountains and the recesses of the woods ; thereby verifying the old proverb, " When the head is weak, all the members suffer." Uther, borne in a litter, defeats the Saxons. In the year of grace 512, TJther-pendragon, king of the Britons, taking to heart the ruin of Ms kingdom and the affliction of the church, called together the nobles of his kingdom, and upbraiding them sharply with their pride and sloth, swore that he would himself lead them against the enemy, and thereby restore confidence to the minds of the people. Ordering, therefore, a litter to be made for him, because his infirmity did not allow him to travel in any other manner, he proceeded with all the force of the kingdom to Verolamium, where the cruel Saxons were now committing their ravages. On hearing of the approach of the Britons with their king borne in a litter, Octa and Eosa, disdaining to fight with such an opponent, retired contemptuously into the city, leaving the gates open behind them. On which ITther commanded the city to be besieged and the walls to * This is but another form of Clovis.