year died Louis king of France, and was succeeded by his son Louis, who married Eleanor daughter of the duke of Aquitaine, and by her had two daughters, the elder of whom married Henry eldest son of the count of Flanders, and the younger married Theobald, a younger son of the same prince. Of the enmity of the Scots towards king Stephen. A.D. 1138. Conrad obtained the Roman empire, and reigned fifteen years. The same year king Stephen, on his birth-day, besieged Bedford castle, saying, that " one's enemies should never be let rest for even an hour;" but before he could reduce the castle, the Scots, with their king, led an army into Northumberland, and perpetrated a most execrable deed. For because their king had sworn fealty to the empress, •they now avenged her cause by tearing children from their mother's womb, and tossing them upon the points of their lances : they slew priests upon the altars, cut off the heads of the crucifixes, and placed them on the decapitated corpses, putting in their places the bloody heads of their victims; wherever they went, it was one scene of cruelty and terror ; women shrieking, old men lamenting, and every living being in despair. King Stephen, therefore, marched with his troops towards Scotland ; but before he reached that country, the Scottish king retired into his own dominions and withdrew to his fastnesses. King Stephen, having ravaged the south of Scotland, returned to England. There was at this time so violent a fury against him among the nobles, that he was disturbed on almost every side. "William Talbot held Hereford castle against him; Robert earl of Gloucester, illegitimate son of king Henry, held the castles of Leeds and Bristol ; William Luvell held Castle Cary ; Paganel held Ludlow ; William de Moiun held Dunster castle; Robert of Lincoln held Warham; Eustace Fitz-John held Melton; William Fitz-Alan held Shrewsbury. The king took the last-named of these fortresses by storm, and hanged some of the garrison ; which coming to the ears of Walkeline, who held Dover castle, he immediately surrendered it to the queen who was besieging it. How the king of Scotland again invaded Northumberland. Whilst king Stephen was thus engaged in the south of