and of the higheft extraction. • He fell in love with a german lady, one of the attendants of the prefent queen; and, by his folicitations at the court of Rome, pope Urban VI. granted him a divorce from the lady Philippa, without any title of juftice, but through prefumption and indifference, when he married this lady. King Richard confented thereto ; for he was fo blinded by the duke of Ireland that, if he had declared that black was white, the king would not have faid to the contrary. The mother of the duke was mightily enraged with him for this conduct, and took the lord de €oucy*s daughter to her home and made her her own companion. The duke certainly aâed ill, and evil befel him for it, as this was one of the principal caufes of the hatred all England bore Mm*. It is" but juft that what is conceived in evil (hould have an unfortunate end ; and this duke confided fo much in the affection of the king, he thought n# one would dare to injure him. * Walfwgbam, fpeaking of this tranfa&ion, fays,—* Accidit his diebus, ut Robertas Vere, elatus de honoribua quo* rex im-' pendebat eidem jugiter, fuam repudiaret uxorem javenculam, nobilem, atque pulchram, genitara dc illuftrk £dwardi régi» ilia Iiabella, et aliam duceret, quae cum regina Anna venerat de Bocmia (ut fcrtur) cujufdam Ccllaril fiHam, ignobiiem prorfus atque fcedam : ob quam caufam magna furrepfît oecafio fcan-dalorum (cujiis nomen erat in vuigaria idiomate Lancecrona). Favcbat fibi in his omnibus ipiè rex, nolens ipfuro in altquo con* triftare, vel potins (prout dicitur) non valens fuis votts aliqualitct obviare, quia maleficiis cujufdam fratria (qui cum dicto Roberto fuît) rex impeditus nequaquam quod bonum eftj et honeftum fernere. vcl feâajri vaiebat.' . • 311