A.D. 1233.] THE KING AND THE NOBLES IN DISPUTE. 5G7 tlie crops, in which, to the astonishment of many, the fishes of the rivers were seen ; and mills were standing in various places where they had never before been seen. In the same year, on the 8th of April, about the first hour of the day, on the confines of Hereford and Worcester, there appeared four spurious suns round the real sun, of different colours, some of a semicircular form and others round. These suns formed a wonderful spectacle, and were seen by more than a thousand creditable persons ; and some of thein, in commemoration of this extraordinary phenomenon, painted suns and rings of various colouis on parchment, that such an unusual phenomenon might not escape from the memory of man. This was followed in the same year by a cruel war and terrible bloodshed in those counties, and general disturbances happened throughout Kngland, Wales, and Ireland. About the same time in the month of June, two immense snakes were seen by the inhabitants near the sea-coast in the southern part of Kngland, fighting in the air, and after a severe struggle one overcame the other, and putting him to flight, pursued him to the bottom of the sea, where they were both lost to sight. The election of the archbishop of Canterbury annulled. About the same time, master John, suinamed le Bland, was elected to the archbishopric of Canterbury. It was divulged at Rome, that after bis election he had received a thousand marks of silver as a present from I'eter bishop of Winchester, besides another thousand marks which that bishop had lent him to help him in obtaining his promotion, and it was therefore evident that the friendship of the said bishop was rather injurious than beneficial to him ; besides this the said John, it was reported, had confessed at Rome that he held two benefices, to which the cure of souls was entrusted, in opposition to the decrees of the general council, whereby he incurred the charge of presumption. Hut, inasmuch as the election of three of the archbishops of the church of Canterbury had been annulled lately, the aforesaid church had been for a long time without a pastor, he therefore gave permission to the monks, wdio had come with the rejected archbishop elect, to choose master Edmund, a canon of the church of Salisbury, as the pastor nf their souls, in order that a metropolitan see of such importance might not be any longer without a pastor, and at the same lime sent him the pall. The monks however resolved not to accept of him or of any one else, except by the consent of their whole community. Of discord which arose between the king and the nobles of the kingdom. All this time l'cter bishop of Winchester and his colleague* had so perverted the king's heart with hatred and contempt for his Eng'isli subjects, that be endeavoured by all the means in his power to exterminate them, and invited such legions of people from l'oictou that they entirely filled England, and wherever the king