apparently, that the 'Chronicle' derives its mention of the Winchester treasure being handed over to Rufus (and Eudo).[1]
It is impossible, however, to reconcile the order of events as given in the 'Chronicle' with that which Freeman deduced from the chroniclers of the time. The two outstanding dates are 8 September, when Rufus left his father's deathbed at Rouen, and 26 September, when he was crowned at Westminster. Between these two dates, wrote Freeman, he went, on landing, to Winchester,[2] and thence, possibly, to Canterbury, after which he was crowned. He then returned to Winchester and obtained possession of the treasury.[3] The narrative in Mr. Rye's 'Chronicle' contains, it appears to me, one outstanding absurdity. After the seizure of the royal treasure, we hear no more of William; Eudo fills the stage. He secures, for the new king, Dover, Hastings, and Pevensey, and, until he returns to Winchester, he keeps the Conqueror's death a most profound secret. As a matter of fact, the news of that event is known to have spread like wildfire: to assert that Eudo kept it secret is most obviously absurd.
It would be sheer waste of time to discuss this legend further; but there are still a few points which should not be passed over. At the outset of his 'vindication' of the Chronicle's authority, Mr. Rye complains of the 'very unreasoning and determined prejudice' of Freeman and myself, 'about' 1871, 'against this document', and proceeds to quote instances from our writings. The earliest of mine from which he quotes is of 1892. He does not state from which of Freeman's works his two quotations are taken, but they will be found in his William Rufus (ii. 463), which was published in 1882. Our 'quasi-literary partnership', as he terms it, is illustrated by the dates; for I did not begin to deal with the 'legend' till several years after Freeman had finished doing so. The point, however, that I wish to make is that, although he quotes these passages twice over,[4] he refrains from mentioning the name or date of the work from which he quotes. Had he done so, his readers must have seen that his insistent allegation that Freeman, 'before he died, practically withdrew his case', could not possibly be true; for William
- ↑ 'Claves thesaurorum nactus est', says William (see William Rufus, i. 22 n.; ii. 459–60). 'Claves thesauri Wintonie suscipiunt', we read in the Chronicle.
- ↑ i. 14.
- ↑ p. 17. One must admit that Freeman's narrative, though full, is by no means clear. That of Mr. Davis is far clearer. He holds that William, on landing, 'made it his first concern to seize the royal hoard at Winchester' (p. 70).
- ↑ pp. 36 b, 38 b.
Normans and Angevins, p. 70); but Mr. Poole has explained (Exchequer in the Twelfth Century, pp. 21–2) since then, that 'the word "hoard" is never found as a designation of the king's treasure or treasury. … The statement about the "hoard" … seems to be due to Freeman'.
