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Popular History of France, to the Death of Louis Xiv
Popular History of France to the Death of Louis Xiv Author:Elizabeth Missing Sewell General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1876 Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million book... more »s for free. Excerpt: 94 Philip's Marriage -- His Polict, Domestic And Foreign. CHAPTER XIV. PHILIP II., AUGUSTUS. A. D. 1180-1223. Philip Augustus -- so called either because he was born in the month of August or because the epithet Augustus is synonymous with ' the Great' or 'the Imperial' -- began his reign by an act opposed to his mother's wishes. He married Isabella of Hainault, niece of the count of Flanders. It was an act of selfish and ambitious policy, for the count of Flanders at once yielded Amiens to the king, and promised him Artois, Valois, and Vermandois; but it was also popular. Isabella was a direct descendant of Charlemagne, and much rejoicing accompanied her coronation, which took place at St. Denis. The new king evidently had a very far-seeing eye as well as wonderful energy of character. The independence of the great vassals was the one almost insurmountable obstacle to his own supreme authority, and at the very outset of his reign he attacked the powerful duke of Burgundy, who hud refused to make amends for acts of violence against the church. A force was sent into Burgundy ; the duke's castle was assaulted and his eldest son taken prisoner ; and a useful lesson was by this means given to any other noble who might be desirous of following such a rebellious example. The next exhibition of energy was far more open to censure, though it was in accordance with the principles of the age. Following the advice of a supposed saintly hermit of Paris, Philip resolved to repel the Jews from his dominions. The debt due to them he remitted, with the exception of the fifth part, which he took for himself, and ...« less