|
Matilda cleverly promised Bishop Henry first place among her advisors. And in return he rallied the church to her cause. In April 1141, Bishop Henry convened a special counsel of the church at Winchester. Among those who attended was the chronicler, William of Malmesbury. This is a translation of William's chronicle and it's an extraordinary thing more than 800 years later to read an eye witness account. It turned out that the Bishop was a master of political spin. He explained to the council that when King Henry died, he had left his crown to his daughter. "But," he said, "because it seemed tedious to wait for the lady who made delays in coming to England since her residence was in Normandy, thought was taken for the peace of the country and my brother allowed to reign." This was a piece of breath-taking revisionism but the Bishop didn't stop there. |
