128 ROGER OF WENDOVEK. [Λ.I). 1103. common, as liad been agreed, and confirmed by oath, between them. Lastly, he. complained that he had at Joppa thrown into the dirt the flag of his relation, the duke of Austria, in contempt of him, and had always insulted his Germans in the Holy Land by oifensive words and conduct. After these and the like charges had been made by the emperor, the English king at once stood forth in the midst of the assembly ; and replying to the charges one by one. spoke so clearly and convincingly, that he was looked upon with admiration and respect by all, and no suspicion of his boing guilty of the offences imputed to him any longer remained in the minds of his hearers. For he plainly proved the truth and order of his words by veritable assertions and likely argument of the ease, so that he quashed all the charges, and did not withhold the truth of wdiat had happened. He firmly disavowed the accusation of treachery, or of his being the plotter of any prince's murder, asserting that he would prove his innocence of such charges as the court of the emperor should decide. After he had for a long time pleaded before the emperor and his nobles, in answer to the charges most ably, the emperor, admiring his eloquence, rose, and sending for the king to come to him, he embraced him, and from that time behaved with kindness and leniency towards him, and treated him with the greatest familiarity.* How king Richard paid a fine of a hundred and forty thousand pounds for his ransom. After these events, on the mediation of friends from time to time, the ransom of the king was for a long time discussed; and at length the result was, that a hundred and forty thousand marks of silver, Cologne weight, were to be paid to the emperor for his ransom money before they could come to any agreement. Accordingly on St. Fetor and St. Paul the apostles' day, the bishops, dukes, and barons, made oath that, as soon as the king should have paid the above-named sum, he should be at liberty to return to his own kingdom. The news of this treaty was brought to England by the. king's chancellor, William bishop of Ely, who brought with him * " The duke of Austria was afterwards excommunicated by our lord the pope and all his cardinals : but on his death-bed, though he did not giu satisfaction; yet, lest he should fail into desperation, lie wusabsolved by h j bishops, and died horribly."—M. J'aris.