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ROYAL HERALDRY. 363
Wales and Scotland, the forces were diverted thither, and Guienne remained
practically the only English possession.
Nothing occurred during the following reign of Edward II., though
a misunderstanding took place in consequence of Lord Basset demolishing
a French castle built on English territory, but this was arranged by
Isabella, who visited her brother for that purpose.
In Edward III.'s time, however, a not unreasonable opportunity
seemed to arise for not only regaining what had been lost, but acquiring
the whole of France. His mother had been the wicked, worthless Isabella,
daughter of Philip the Fair, and sister of Charles le Bel, on whose death,
without male issue to succeed him, Edward claimed the sovereignty in
preference to Philip of Valois, son of Charles, the younger brother,
of Philip
the Fair. According to the ancient law of the Salian Franks, drawn up
probably in the seventh century, no portion of really Salic land should
pass into the possession of women, but it should belong altogether to
the virile sex.* This had, however, never been acted upon, owing to
the uninterrupted male succession, until Isabella's brother, Louis le Hutin,
having died without male issue, Philip the Long, his younger brother,
claimed the throne in preference to his daughter, and was crowned at
Rheims.f But Edward was no doubt watching his opportunity to contest
the matter, and it came. A quarrel took place between the fishermen
of the English " cinque ports " and the fishermen of Normandy, in which
some 800 Frenchmen were killed ;
and Philip cited Edward before his
Court at Paris for wrongs done to his suzerain, and seized Guienne as a
hostage. Edward, busy
with war in Scotland and anxious to avert the
conflict, offered to formally cede Guienne for ;
forty days but the refusal of
the French King to restore the province left him no choice but war, and
Edward, incited thereto by Robert Count of Artois, a fugitive at his Court
from his brother-in-law Philip, boldly asserted his claim to the sovereignty
of France in right of his mother, and on Oct. 7th, 1337, proclaimed himself
King of France.
To strengthen himself, he formed an alliance (1340) with the people
of Flanders, then under the sway of the famous brewer, Van Artevelde,
head of the populace at Ghent " and so a French
;
prince and a Flemish
" burgher prevailed on the King to pursue, as in assertion of his avowed
" rights, the conquest of the kingdom of France. King, prince, and
" burgher fixed Ghent as their place of meeting for the official conclusion of
"the alliance, and there, in January, 1340, the mutual engagement was
" signed and sealed. The King of England assumed the arms of France
" quartered with England, and thenceforth took the title of King of
" France." (Guizot's History of France, p. 142.)
* Guizot. t Guizot's History of France.