. England, from earliest times to the Great Charter . vain. The loss of Normandy seemed almost toincrease his strength. The towns were in the main with force of law had grown so that the nobility was unablesuccessfully to oppose him. The Exchequer was by nowso far developed as to enable the King to hire mercenaries iffeudal levies failed. Neither loved nor respected, John wasstill supreme. The King Excommunicated Iimocent had as yet, however, by no means exhausted hismeans of attack. The interdict had simply hurt an innocentpeople and had caused heavy loss to Church property. Thenext b
. England, from earliest times to the Great Charter . vain. The loss of Normandy seemed almost toincrease his strength. The towns were in the main with force of law had grown so that the nobility was unablesuccessfully to oppose him. The Exchequer was by nowso far developed as to enable the King to hire mercenaries iffeudal levies failed. Neither loved nor respected, John wasstill supreme. The King Excommunicated Iimocent had as yet, however, by no means exhausted hismeans of attack. The interdict had simply hurt an innocentpeople and had caused heavy loss to Church property. Thenext blow was aimed at the King himself. John was declaredexcommunicate. Again the blow glanced off. No bishopwas to be found to read the sentence in England, and thenews only reached the kingdom by way of rumour. Johnhimself, utterly irreligious as he was, cared nothing at beingconsigned to eternal damnation or at beir^ excluded from thecompany of all Christian men. His brothel Court held fewwho would hesitate to speak with one outside the pale of the562. LOSS AND GAIN Church. His ministers were either his creatures or werecompelled to serve him and give him coimsel. The Arch-deacon . of Norwich, who desired to be excused service at theExchequer on the ground that John was excommunicate, wasdragged in chains to prison, shut up in a tiny room, and pressedto death under a cope of lead. Bishop Robert of Bangor hadhis cathedral town burnt to the ground for a like Court held at Christmas 1209, two months after thesentence had been pronounced at Rome, was well following years saw John at the height of his power. John Supreme Already in 1207 John had quarrelled with the importantmarcher house of de Breose, either because money had beenwithheld or because Matilda, the wife of William de Breose,refused to give up her son as hostage to the murderer ofArthur.^ William de Breose was required to surrender allhis lands, which John handed over to FauTkes de
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