The History of Great Britain Author:Robert Henry Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: judicious and elegant hiftorian of-Charles V. that they had a contrary effect8. That the fciences, as well as the .arts, were in a more flourifhing ftate in the ... more »Greek empire, and the Eaftj than in thofe countries which had com- pofed the weftern empire, is acknowledged on all hands. It feems therefore highly probable, thatfome of tho/e ingenious and inquifuive men, of which the number was not (mall, who accompanied the Croifaders in their expeditions into the Eaft, acquired fome fciences which they could not have acquired in their own countries, and that they communicated their acquifuioqs to their countrymen on their return home. SECTION II. Wtftory of the moft learned men who flourijhed in Britain, from A. D. 1066, to A. D. 1216. THOUGH the circle of the fciences was Learning enlarged, and learning was cultivated with m"ngyth greater affiduity in this than in the former pe- clergy, riod; yet this was chiefly, or rather almoft only, by the clergy. The great body of the people, and even the far greateft part of the nobility, ftill continued illiterate, or had but a very flight acquaintance with letters. Of this, if it were 88 HiftoireLiteraire de Ja France, torn. 9. p. 6. Dr. Robertfon's Hiftory of Charles V. yp], i. p, 26, neceffary, neecflary, many proofs might be produced; but the following one, it is prefumed, will be fuffi- cient. After the flight of arohbifhop Becket out of England, A. D. 1164, Henry II. fent a moft fplendid embafly to the pope, confifling of one archbifhop, four bifhops, three of his own chaplains, the earl of Arundel, and other three of the greatett barons of the kingdom. When thefe ambafladors were admitted to an audience, and four of the prelates had harangued the pope and cardinals in Latin, the earl of Arundel ftood up, and made a f...« less