Cameos from English History, from Rollo to Edward II | Page 6

so offended the old
sea-king, that he quitted the army that night, and never again appeared
in France. The wisdom of his advice was the next morning made
evident, by the total defeat of the French, and the advance of the
Northmen, who in a short space after appeared beneath the walls of
Paris.
Failing in their attempt to take the city, they returned to Rouen, where
they fortified themselves, making it the capital of the territory they had
conquered.
Fifteen years passed away, the summers of which were spent in
ravaging the dominions of Charles the Simple, and the winters in the
city of Rouen, and in the meantime a change had come over their leader.
He had been insensibly softened and civilized by his intercourse with
the good Archbishop Franco; and finding, perhaps, that it was not quite
so easy as he had expected to conquer the whole kingdom of France, he
declared himself willing to follow the example which he had once
despised, and to become a vassal of the French crown for the duchy of
Neustria.
Charles, greatly rejoiced to find himself thus able to put a stop to the
dreadful devastations of the Northmen, readily agreed to the terms
proposed by Rollo, appointing the village of St. Clair-sur-Epte, on the
borders of Neustria, as the place of meeting for the purpose of receiving
his homage and oath of fealty. It was a strange meeting which there
took place between the degenerate and almost imbecile descendant of
the great Charles, with his array of courtly followers and his splendor
and luxury, and the gigantic warrior of the North, the founder of a line
of kings, in all the vigor of the uncivilized native of a cold climate, and

the unbending pride of a conqueror, surrounded by his tall warriors,
over whom his chieftainship had hitherto depended only on their own
consent, gained by his acknowledged superiority in wisdom in council
and prowess in battle.
The greatest difficulty to be overcome in this conference, was the
repugnance felt by the proud Northman to perform the customary act of
homage before any living man, especially one whom he held so cheap
as Charles the Simple. He consented, indeed, to swear allegiance, and
declare himself the "King's man," with his hands clasped between those
of Charles; but the remaining part of the ceremony, the kneeling to kiss
the foot of his liege lord, he absolutely refused, and was with difficulty
persuaded to permit one of his followers to perform it in his name. The
proxy, as proud as his master, instead of kneeling, took the King's foot
in his hand, and lifted it to his mouth, while he stood upright, thus
overturning both monarch and throne, amid the rude laughter of his
companions, while the miserable Charles and his courtiers felt such a
dread of these new vassals that they did not dare to resent the insult.
On his return to Rouen, Rollo was baptized, and, on leaving the
cathedral, celebrated his conversion by large grants to the different
churches and convents in his new duchy, making a fresh gift on each of
the days during which he wore the white robes of the newly baptized.
All of his warriors who chose to follow his example, and embrace the
Christian faith, received from him grants of land, to be held of him on
the same terms as those by which he held the dukedom from the King;
and the country, thus peopled by the Northmen, gradually assumed the
appellation of Normandy.
Applying themselves with all the ardor of their temper to their new way
of life, the Northmen quickly adopted the manners, language, and
habits which were recommended to them as connected with the holy
faith which they had just embraced, but without losing their own bold
and vigorous spirit. Soon the gallant and accomplished Norman knight
could scarcely have been recognized as the savage sea-robber, once too
ferocious and turbulent even for his own wild country in the far North,
while, at the same time, he bore as little resemblance to the cruel and

voluptuous French noble, at once violent and indolent. The new
war-cry of Dieu aide was as triumphant as that of Thor Hulfe had been
of old, and the Red Cross led to as many victories as the Raven
standard.
It is said that the word "Exchequer" is derived from the court of justice
established by Rollo, so called from the word "_Schicken_" signifying,
in his native tongue, to send, because from it judges were sent to try
causes throughout the dukedom. It is also said that the appeal from
them to the Duke himself, made in these terms, "J'appelle a Rou," is the
origin of the cry "_Haro_" by which, for centuries after his descendants
had