Part 46

BIBLIOGRAPHY.--The above sketch is largely based on the present writer's essay on Bede's Life and Works, prefixed to his edition of Bede's _Historia Ecclesiastica, &c._ (2 vols., Clarendon Press, 1896). _Beda der Ehrwurdige und seine Zeit_, by Dr Karl Werner (Vienna, 1875), is excellent. Gehle, _Disputatio ... de Bedae vita et Scriptis_ (Leiden, 1838), is still useful. Dr William Bright's _Chapters of Early English Church History_ (3rd ed., Clarendon Press, 1897) is indispensable. See also Ker, _Dark Ages_, pp. 141 ff. Of the collected works of Bede the most convenient edition is that by Dr Giles in twelve volumes (8vo., 1843-1844), which includes translations of the _Historical Works_. The Continental folio editions (Basel, 1563; Cologne, 1612 and 1688) contain many works which cannot by any possibility be Bede's. The edition of Migne, _Patralogia Latina_ (1862 ff.) is based on a comparison of the Cologne edition with Giles and Smith (see below), and is open to the same criticism. On the chronology and genuineness of the works commonly ascribed to Bede, see Plummer's ed., i., cxlv-clix.

On the MSS. early editions and translations of the _Historia Ecclesiastica_, see Plummer, u.s., i., lxxx-cxxxii. The edition of Whelock (Cambridge, fol. 1643-1644) is noteworthy as the first English edition of the Latin text, and as the _editio princeps_ of the Anglo-Saxon version ascribed to King Alfred (see ALFRED THE GREAT). Smith's edition (Cambridge, fol. 1722) contained not only these, but also the other historical works of Bede, with notes and appendices. It is a monument of learning and scholarship. The most recent edition is that with notes and introduction by the present writer, u.s. It includes also the _History of the Abbots_, and the Epistle to Egbert. Of books iii. and iv. only, there is a learned edition by Professors Mayor and Lumby of Cambridge (3rd ed., 1881). A cheap and handy edition of the text alone is that by A. Holder (Freiburg im Breisgau, 1882, &c.). The best-known modern English translation is that by the Rev. L. Gidley (1870). Of the minor historical works a good edition was edited by Rev. J. Stevenson for the Eng. Hist. Soc. in 1841; and a translation by the same hand was included in _Church Historians of England_, vol. i., part ii. (1853). See also Plummer's edition, pp. cxxxii-cxlii. (C. Pl.)

BEDE, CUTHBERT, the pen-name of Edward Bradley (1827-1889), English author, who was born at Kidderminster on the 25th of March 1827. He entered University College, Durham, in 1845, and later studied at Oxford, where he made the acquaintance of J.G. Wood, the naturalist. He took holy orders, and eventually became rector of Stretton in Rutlandshire. Here he gained a reputation as a humorist and numbered among his friends Cruikshank, Frank Smedley, Mark Lemon and Albert Smith. He wrote for various magazines and, in the pages of the _Illustrated London News_, introduced the double acrostic. He is chiefly known as the author of _The Adventures of Mr Verdant Green, an Oxford Freshman_ (1853), which he also illustrated and of which a third part appeared in 1856. Several well-known Oxford characters of the time are depicted in its pages, such as Dr Plumptre the vice-chancellor, Dr Bliss the registrar, and the waiter at the Mitre. The book abounds in innocent fun. In 1883 he was given the living of Lenton, or Lavington, Lincolnshire, where he died on the 12th of December 1889.

BEDELL, WILLIAM (1571-1642), Anglican divine, was born at Black Notley in Essex, in 1571. He was educated at Cambridge, became fellow of Emmanuel in 1593, and took orders. In 1607 he was appointed chaplain to Sir H. Wotton, then English ambassador at Venice, where he remained for four years, acquiring a great reputation as a scholar and theologian. He translated the _Book of Common Prayer_ into Italian, and was on terms of closest friendship with the reformer, Sarpi (Fra Paolo). In 1616 he was appointed to the rectory of Horningsheath (near to Bury St Edmunds, where he had previously laboured), which he held for twelve years. In 1627 he became provost of Trinity College, Dublin, and, in 1629, bishop of Kilmore and Ardagh. He set himself to reform the abuses of his diocese, encouraged the use of the Irish language, and personally undertook the duties generally discharged by the bishop's lay chancellor. In 1633 he resigned his see. In 1641, when the Protestants were being massacred, Bedell's house was not only left untouched, but became the place of refuge for many fugitives. In the end, however, the rebels insisted upon the dismissal of all who had taken shelter in his house, and on the bishop's refusal he was seized and imprisoned with some others in the ruined castle of Loughboughter. Here he was detained for several weeks, and when released, rapidly sank from the effects of exposure, and died on the 7th of February 1642.

His life was written by Bishop Gilbert Burnet in 1685, and also by his elder son (ed. T.W. Jones, for the Camden Society, 1872).

BEDESMAN, or BEADSMAN (Med. Eng. _bede_, prayer, from O. Eng. _biddan_, to pray; literally "a man of prayer"), generally a pensioner or almsman whose duty it was to pray for his benefactor. In Scotland there were public almsmen supported by the king and expected in return to pray for his welfare and that of the state. These men wore long blue gowns with a pewter badge on the right arm, and were nicknamed Blue Gowns. Their number corresponded to the king's years, an extra one being added each royal birthday. They were privileged to ask alms throughout Scotland. On the king's birthday each bedesman received a new blue gown, a loaf, a bottle of ale, and a leathern purse containing a penny for every year of the king's life. On the pewter badge which they wore were their name and the words "pass and repass," which authorized them to ask alms. In 1833 the appointment of bedesmen was stopped. In 1863 the last payment was paid to a bedesman. In consequence of its use in this general sense of pensioner, "bedesman" was long used in English as equivalent to "servant." The word had a special sense as the name for those almsmen attached to cathedral and other churches, whose duty it was to pray for the souls of deceased benefactors. A relic of pre-Reformation times, these old men still figure in the accounts of English cathedrals.

BEDFORD, EARLS AND DUKES OF. The present English title of duke of Bedford comes from a line of earls and dukes in the Russell family. In January 1550 John, Baron Russell, was created earl of Bedford, and in May 1694 his descendant, William, the 5th earl, became duke of Bedford. The Russell line is dealt with in the later part of this article. The title of duke of Bedford had, however, been previously held, notably by the third son of Henry IV.; and the earlier creations may first be considered here.

JOHN PLANTAGENET, duke of Bedford (1389-1435), third son of Henry IV., king of England, was born on the 20th of June 1389. He received various dignities after his father became king in 1399, and gained his early experiences in warfare when he undertook the office of warden of the east marches of Scotland in 1404; he was fairly successful in this command, which he held until September 1414. In the previous May his brother, the new king Henry V., had created him duke of Bedford, and after resigning the wardenship he began to take a leading part in the royal councils. He acted as lieutenant of the kingdom during Henry's expedition to France in 1415, and in August 1416 commanded the ships which defeated the French fleet at the mouth of the Seine, and was instrumental in relieving Harfleur. Again appointed lieutenant in July 1417, he marched against the Scots, who abandoned the siege of Berwick at his approach; and on his return to London he brought Sir John Oldcastle to trial and was present at his execution. He appears to have governed the country with considerable success until December 1419, when he resigned his office as lieutenant and joined the king in France. Returning to England, he undertook the lieutenancy for the third time in June 1421, and in the following May conducted the queen to join Henry in Normandy. He then took his brother's place and led the English troops to the relief of Cosne, but on hearing of the king's serious illness he left the army and hurried to his side. Henry's last wish was that Bedford should be guardian of the kingdom and of the young king, and that Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, should act as regent in France. But when Philip declined to undertake this office, it too was assumed by Bedford, who, after the death of the French king Charles VI. in October 1422, presided at a session of the parlement of Paris, and compelled all present to take an oath of fidelity to King Henry VI. Meanwhile the English parliament had decided that Bedford should be "protector and defender" of the kingdom, and that in his absence the office should devolve upon his brother Humphrey, duke of Gloucester. Confining himself to the conduct of affairs in France the protector took up Henry V.'s work of conquest, captured Meulan and other places, and sought to strengthen his position by an alliance with Philip of Burgundy. This task was rendered more difficult as Gloucester had just married Jacqueline, countess of Holland and Hainaut, a union which gave the English duke a claim on lands which Philip hoped to secure for himself. Bedford, however, having allayed Philip's irritation, formed an alliance with him and with John VI., duke of Brittany, at Amiens in April 1423, and himself arranged to marry Anne, a sister of the Burgundian duke. This marriage was celebrated at Troyes in the following June, and the war against Charles, the dauphin of France, was prosecuted with vigour and success. Bedford sought to restore prosperity to the districts under his rule by reforming the debased coinage, granting privileges to merchants and manufacturers, and removing various abuses. He then granted some counties to Philip to check the growing hostility between him and Gloucester, and on the 17th of August 1424 gained a great victory over a combined army of French and Scots at Verneuil. But in spite of the efforts of the protector the good understanding between England and Burgundy was partially destroyed when Gloucester invaded Hainaut in October 1424. The ambition of his brother gave Bedford trouble in another direction also; for on his return from Hainaut Gloucester quarrelled with the chancellor, Henry Beaufort, bishop of Winchester, and the council implored Bedford to come to England to settle this dispute. He reached London in January 1426, and after concluding a bond of alliance with Gloucester effected a reconciliation between the duke and the chancellor; and knighted the young king, Henry VI. Bedford then promised to act in accordance with the will of the council, and in harmony with the decision of this body raised a body of troops and returned to France in March 1427. Having ordered Gloucester to desist from a further attack on Hainaut, he threatened Brittany and compelled Duke John to return to the English alliance; and the success of his troops continued until the siege of Orleans, to which he consented with reluctance, was undertaken in October 1428. Having assured himself that Philip was prepared to desert him, Bedford sent orders to his army to raise the siege in April 1429. He then acted with great energy and judgment in attempting to stem the tide of disasters which followed this failure, strengthened his hold upon Paris, and sent to England for reinforcements; but before any engagement took place he visited Rouen, where he sought to bind the Normans closer to England, and after his return to Paris resigned the French regency to Philip of Burgundy in accordance with the wish of the Parisians. Retaining the government of Normandy Bedford established himself at Rouen and directed the movements of the English forces with some success. He did not interfere to save the life of Joan of Arc. He was joined by Henry VI. in April 1430, when the regency was temporarily suspended, and he secured Henry's coronation at Paris in December 1431. In November 1432 his wife Anne died, and in April 1433 he was married at Therouanne to Jacqueline, daughter of Pierre I., count of St Pol. But notwithstanding Bedford's vigour the English lost ground steadily; and the death of Anne and this marriage destroyed the friendly relations between England and Burgundy. Negotiations for peace had no result, and when the duke returned to England in June 1433 he told parliament that he had come home to defend himself against the charge that the losses in France were caused by his neglect, and demanded that his detractors should make their accusations public. The chancellor replied that no such charges were known to the king or the council, and the duke was thanked for his great services. His next act was to secure an inquiry into the national finances; and when asked by the parliament to stay in England he declared that his services were at the king's disposal. As chief councillor he offered to take a smaller salary than had been previously paid to Gloucester, and undertook this office in December 1433, when his demands with regard to a continual council were conceded. Bedford, who was anxious to prosecute the war in France, left England again in 1434, but early in 1435 was obliged to consent to the attendance of English r epresentatives at a congress held to arrange terms of peace at Arras. Unable to consent to the French terms the English envoys left Arras in September, and Philip of Burgundy made a separate treaty with France. Bedford only lived to see the ruin of the cause for which he struggled so loyally. He died at Rouen on the 14th of September 1435, and was buried in the cathedral of that city. He left a natural son, Richard, but no legitimate issue. Bedford was a man of considerable administrative ability, brave and humane in war, wise and unselfish in peace. He was not responsible for the misfortunes of the English in France, and his courage in the face of failure was as admirable as his continued endeavour to make the people under his rule contented and prosperous.

The chief contemporary authorities for Bedford's life are: _Vita et gesta Henrici Quinti_, edited by T. Hearne (Oxford, 1727); E. de Monstrelet, _Chronique_, edited by L.D. d'Arcq. (Paris, 1857-1862); William of Worcester, _Annales rerum Anglicarum_, edited by J. Stevenson (London, 1864). See also _Proceedings and Ordinances of the Privy Council of England_, edited by J.R. Dasent (London, 1890-1899); W. Stubbs, _Constitutional History_, vol. iii. (Oxford, 1895); P.A. Barante, _Histoire des ducs de Bourgogne_ (Paris, 1824).

In 1470 GEORGE NEVILL (c. 1457-1483), son of John, earl of Northumberland, was created duke of Bedford; but after his father's attainder and death at the battle of Barnet in 1471 he was degraded from the peerage.

The next duke of Bedford was JASPER TUDOR (c. 1430-1495), half-brother of King Henry VI. and uncle of Henry VII. He was made earl of Pembroke in 1453. Having survived the vicissitudes of the Wars of the Roses he was restored to his earldom and created duke of Bedford in 1485. The duke, who was lord-lieutenant of Ireland from 1486 to 1494, died without legitimate issue on the 21st of December 1495.

JOHN RUSSELL, 1st earl of Bedford (c. 1486-1555), was a son of James Russell (d. 1509). Having travelled widely, he attained some position at the court of Henry VII., and was subsequently in great favour with Henry VIII. In 1513 he took part in the war with France, and, having been knighted about the same time, was afterwards employed on several diplomatic errands. He was with Henry at the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520, and, returning to military service when the French war was renewed, lost his right eye at the siege of Morlaix in 1522. He was soon made knight marshal of the royal household, and in 1523 went secretly to France, where he negotiated a treaty between Henry and Charles, duke of Bourbon, who was anxious to betray the French king Francis I. After a short visit to England Russell was sent with money to Bourbon, joining the constable at the siege of Marseilles. In 1524 he visited Pope Clement VII. at Rome, and, having eluded the French, who endeavoured to capture him, was present at the battle of Pavia in February 1525, returning to England about the close of the year. In January 1527 he was sent as ambassador to Clement, who employed him to treat on his behalf with Charles de Lannoy, the general of Charles V. The next few years of Russell's life were mainly spent in England. He was member of parliament for Buckingham in the parliament of 1529, and although an opponent of the party of Anne Boleyn, retained the favour of Henry VIII. He took an

## active part in suppressing the Pilgrimage of Grace in 1536, and was one

of the commissioners appointed to try the Lincolnshire prisoners. Honours now crowded upon him. His appointment as comptroller of the king's household in 1537 was followed by that of a privy councillor in 1538; then he was made lord high admiral, high steward of the duchy of Cornwall and a knight of the garter. In March 1539 he was created Baron Russell of Chenies, and in 1542 became high steward of the university of Oxford, and keeper of the privy seal. In 1539, when Charles V. and Francis I. were threatening to invade England, he was sent into the west, and crossed to France when Henry attacked Francis in 1544. He was in command of an army in the west of England in 1545, and when Henry died in January 1547 was one of the executors of his will. Under Edward VI. Russell was lord high steward and keeper of the privy seal, and the defeat which he inflicted on the rebels at Clyst St Mary near Exeter in August 1549, was largely instrumental in suppressing the rising in Devonshire. In January 1550 he was created earl of Bedford, and was one of the commissioners appointed to make peace with France in this year. He opposed the proposal to seat Lady Jane Grey on the throne; supported Queen Mary, who reappointed him lord privy seal; and assisted to prevent Sir Thomas Wyat's rising from spreading to Devonshire. In 1554 he went to Spain to conclude the marriage treaty between Mary and Philip II., and soon after his return died in London on the 14th of March 1555. By extensive acquisitions of land Bedford was the founder of the wealth and greatness of the house of Russell. Through his wife, Anne (d. 1550), daughter of Sir Guy Sapcote, whom he married in 1526, he obtained Chenies, and in 1539 was granted the forest of Exmoor, and also Tavistock, and a number of manors in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset, which had formerly belonged to the abbey of Tavistock. In 1549 he received Thorney, the abbey of Woburn, and extensive lands in the eastern counties; and in 1552 Covent Garden and seven acres of land in London, formerly the property of the protector Somerset. He left an only son, Francis, who succeeded him in the title.

See _Letters and Papers of Henry VIII._ (London, 1862-1901); _State Papers during the Reign of Henry VIII._ (London, 1831-1852); _Calendar of State Papers, Edward VI. and Mary_ (London, 1861); J.H. Wiffen, _Historical Memoirs of the House of Russell_ (London, 1833); J.A. Froude, _History of England, passim_ (London, 1881 fol.).

FRANCIS RUSSELL, 2nd earl of Bedford (c. 1527-1585), was educated at King's Hall, Cambridge. He accompanied his father to the French war in 1544, and from 1547 to 1552 was member of parliament for Buckinghamshire, being probably the first heir to a peerage to sit in the House of Commons. He assisted to quell the rising in Devonshire in 1549, and after his father had been created earl of Bedford in January 1550, was known as Lord Russell, taking his seat in the House of Lords under this title in 1552. Russell was in sympathy with the reformers, whose opinions he shared, and was in communication with Sir Thomas Wyat; and in consequence of his religious attitude was imprisoned during the earlier part of Mary's reign. Being released he went into exile; visited Italy; came into touch with foreign reformers; and fought at the battle of St Quentin in 1557. Afterwards he seems to have enjoyed some measure of the royal favour, and was made lord-lieutenant of the counties of Devon, Cornwall and Dorset early in 1558. When Elizabeth ascended the throne in November 1558 the earl of Bedford, as Russell had been since 1555, became an active figure in public life. He was made a privy councillor, and was sent on diplomatic errands to Charles IX. of France and Mary queen of Scots. From February 1564 to October 1567 he was governor of Berwick and warden of the east marches of Scotland, in which capacity he conducted various negotiations between Elizabeth and Mary. He appears to have been an efficient warden, but was irritated by the vacillating and tortuous conduct of the English queen. When the northern insurrection broke out in 1569, Bedford was sent into Wales, and he sat in judgment upon the duke of Norfolk in 1572. In 1576 he was president of the council of Wales, and in 1581 was one of the commissioners deputed to arrange a marriage between Elizabeth and Francis, duke of Anjou. Bedford, who was made a knight of the garter in 1564, was lord warden of the Stannaries from 1553 to 1580. He appears to have been a generous and popular man, and died in London on the 28th of July 1585. He was buried at Chenies. His first wife was Margaret (d. 1562), daughter of Sir John St John, by whom he had four sons and three daughters. His three eldest sons predeceased their father. His second wife was Bridget (d. 1601), daughter of John, Lord Hussey. He was succeeded as 3rd earl by his grandson, EDWARD (1572-1627), only son of Francis, Lord Russell (c. 1550-1585). The 3rd earl left no children when he died on the 3rd of May 1627, and was succeeded by his cousin.