ether with
himself, for he too was a great master in divinity and in decretals,
to draw up the Sixth Book of the Decretals, which is as it were the
light of all the laws and the decretals. A man of large schemes was
he, and liberal to folk which pleased him, and which were worthy, very
desirous of worldly pomp according to his estate, and very desirous
of wealth, not scrupulous, nor having very great or strict conscience
about every gain, to enrich the Church and his nephews. He made many
of his friends and confidants cardinals in his time, among others two
very young nephews, and his uncle, his mother's brother; and twenty of
his relations and friends of the little city of Anagna, bishops and
archbishops of rich benefices; and to another of his nephews and his
sons, which were counts, as we afore made mention, to them he left
almost unbounded riches; and after the death of Pope Boniface, their
uncle, they were bold and valiant in war, doing vengeance upon all
their neighbours and enemies, which had betrayed and injured Pope
Boniface, spending largely, and keeping at their own cost 300 good
Catalan horsemen, by force of which they subdued almost all the
Campagna and the district of Rome. And if Pope Boniface, while he was
alive, had believed that they could be thus bold in arms and valorous
in war, certainly he would have made them kings or great lords. And
note, that when Pope Boniface was taken prisoner, tidings thereof were
sent to the king of France by many couriers in a few days, through
great joy; and when the first couriers arrived at Sion, beyond the
mountain of Brieg [Sion under Brieg], the bishop of Sion, which then
was a man of pure and holy life, when he heard the news was, as it
were, amazed, and abode some while in silent contemplation, by reason
of the wonderment which took him at the capture of the Pope; and
coming to himself he said aloud, in the presence of many good folk:
"The king of France will rejoice greatly on hearing these tidings, but
I have it by Divine inspiration, that for this sin he is judged by
God, and that great and strange perils and adversities, with shame to
him and his lineage, will overtake him very swiftly, and he and his
sons will be cast out from the inheritance of the realm." And this we
learned a little while after, when we passed by Sion, from persons
worthy of belief, which were present to hear. Which sentence was a
prophecy in all its parts, as afterwards the truth will show