William the Conqueror

[1] Rēowliċ þing hē dyde, and rēowlicor him ġelamp. [2] Hū rēowlicor? Him ġeyfelade and þæt him stranglīċe eġlade. [3] Hwæt mæġ iċ tellan? Se scearpa dēað, þe ne forlēt ne rīċe menn ne hēane, se hine ġenam. [4] Hē swealt on Normandiġe on þone nēxtan dæġ æfter Natiuitas Sancte Marie, and man bebyrġede hine on Caþum æt sancte Stephanes mynstre. [5] Ǣror hē hit ārǣrde, and syððan mænifealdlīċe ġegōdade.

[6] Ēalā, hū lēas and hū unwrēst is þysses middaneardes wela! [7] Se þe wæs ǣror rīċe cyng and maniġes landes hlāford, hē næfde þā ealles landes būton seofon fōtmǣl; and se þe wæs hwīlon ġescrīd mid golde and mid ġimmum, hē læġ þā oferwrogen mid moldan. [8] Hē lǣfde æfter him þrȳ suna. [9] Rodbeard hēt se yldesta, se wæs eorl on Normandiġe æfter him. [10] Se ōðer hēt Willelm, þe bær æfter him on Englalande þone cynehelm. [11] Se þridda hēt Hēanriċ, þām se fæder becwæð gersuman unātellendliċe.

[12] Ġif hwā ġewilniġað tō ġewitanne hū ġedōn mann hē wæs oððe hwilċne wurðscipe hē hæfde oððe hū fela landa hē wǣre hlāford, ðonne wille wē be him āwrītan swā swā wē hine āgēaton ðe him on lōcodon and ōðre hwīle on his hīrede wunodon. [13] Se cyng Willelm, þe wē embe specað, wæs swīðe wīs man and swīðe rīċe, and wurðfulra and strengra þonne ǣniġ his foregenġa wǣre. [14] Hē wæs milde þām gōdum mannum þe God lufodon and ofer eall ġemett stearc þām mannum þe wiðcwǣdon his willan. [15] On ðām ilcan stede þe God him ġeūðe þæt hē mōste Englaland ġegān, hē ārǣrde mǣre mynster and munecas þǣr ġesette and hit well ġegōdade. [16] On his dagum wæs þæt mǣre mynster on Cantwarebyriġ ġetymbrad and ēac swīðe maniġ ōðer ofer eall Englaland. [17] Ēac þis land wæs swīðe āfylled mid munecum, and þā leofodan heora līf æfter Sanctus Benedictus regule; and se Cristendōm wæs swilċ on his dæġe þæt ǣlċ man hwæt his hāde tō belumpe folgade se þe wolde.

[18] Ēac hē wæs swȳðe wurðful. [19] Þrīwa hē bær his cynehelm ælċe ġeare, swā oft swā hē wæs on Englalande: [20] on Ēastron hē hine bær on Winċeastre, on Pentecosten on Westmynstre, on middanwintre on Glēaweċeastre; [21] and þænne wǣron mid him ealle þā rīċe men ofer eall Englaland: arcebiscopas and lēodbiscopas, abbodas and eorlas, þeġnas and cnihtas.

[22] Swilċe hē wæs ēac swȳðe stearc man and rēðe, swā þæt man ne dorste nān þing onġēan his willan dōn. [23] Hē hæfde eorlas on his bendum þe dydon onġēan his willan. [24] Biscopas hē sette of heora biscoprīċe and abbodas of heora abbodrīċe and þeġnas on cweartern; and æt nēxtan hē ne sparode his āgenne brōðor, Odo hēt. [25] Hē wæs swīðe rīċe biscop on Normandiġe. [26] On Baius wæs his biscopstōl, and wæs manna fyrmest tōēacan þām cynge; and hē hæfde eorldōm on Englalande, and þonne se cyng wæs on Normandiġe, þonne wæs hē mǣst on þisum lande; and hine hē sette on cweartern.

[27] Betwyx ōðrum þingum nis nā tō forġytanne þæt gōde frið þe hē macode on þisum lande, swā þæt ān man þe him sylf āht wǣre mihte faran ofer his rīċe mid his bōsum full goldes unġederad, [28] and nān man ne dorste slēan ōðerne man, næfde hē nǣfre swā myċel yfel ġedōn wið þone ōðerne. [29] And ġif hwilċ carlman hǣmde wið wimman hire unðances, sōna hē forlēas þā limu þe hē mid plegode.

[30] Hē rīxade ofer Englaland and hit mid his ġēapscipe swā þurhsmēade þæt næs ān hīd landes innan Englalande þæt hē nyste hwā hī hæfde oððe hwæs hēo wurð wæs, and syððan on his ġewrit ġesette. [31] Brytland him wæs on ġewealde and hē þǣrinne castelas ġewrohte and hæfde þæt manncynn mid ealle on ġewealde. Swilċe ēac Scotland hē him underþēodde for his myċele strengþe. [32] Normandiġe þæt land wæs his ġecynd, and ofer þone eorldōm þe Mans is ġehāten hē rīxade, and ġif hē mōste þā ġȳt twā ġēar libban hē hæfde Ȳrland mid his werscipe ġewunnen, and wiðūtan ǣlcum wǣpnum.

[33] Witodlīċe on his tīman hæfdon men myċel ġeswinc and swīðe maniġe tēonan.

[43] Ðās þing wē habbað be him ġewritene, ǣġðer ġe gōde ġe yfele, þæt þā gōdan men nimon æfter þǣre gōdnesse and forlēon mid ealle yfelnesse, and gān on ðone weġ þe ūs lǣtt tō heofonan rīċe.