supplied him with large sums of money, some of which were

expended in preparations, but still more of which remained in the coffers of the tenacious monarch, much to his personal advantage.

An occasion soon arose for pleasing the people by dealing a bye-blow at France, while, at the same time benefiting commerce, and obliging the Archduke 5Iaximilian. A subject of the latter, Philip yon Kleve-Ravenstein, was in rebellion against his sovereign, and, aided by citizens of Ghent and :Bruges, had sei.ed the town of Sluis, and h;;d formed a piraticM stronghold there. It is supposed that he was in receipt of some countenance from France, for his master, 5Iaximilian, was, like Heury, on unfriendly terms with Charles, and Philip hinself subsequently entered the French service. :Be this as it may, it is certain that the pirate chief had done much harm to English trade and shipping in the North Sea, and that for this reason, if for no other, Hemj was glad to tender his help to Maximili'n against the rebel. A squadron of twelve ships was in consequence fitted out, and the command of it was entrusted to Sir Edward Poynings.

Sir Edw;rd cruised at sea for a few days, and then approached Sinis, where he learnt that the place was besieged on the land side by the Elector of Saxony. He therefore blockaded it by water, and attacked it on that side. Its main alefences consisted of two towers or castles, which were connected by a bridge of boats. Poynings made attempts on one or other of these castles every day for twenty days in succession; but failed to produce any impression, and suffered considerable losses, until he succeeded, dmqng a night assault, in bm'ning the bridge of boats. This brought about the surrender of the town to the elector, and of the castles to the English. In the course of the siege, a brother of the Lord High A&niral, the Earl of Oxford, lost his life.

In the sane year (149u), on October nd, Hems' reached Dover with an army of twenty-five thousand men aud sixteen hundred horses, and was transported to Calais, by the aid of a large fleet which had been assembled for the puq)ose. About October 19th, he laid siege to :Boulogne; but he had not been many days before the town ere peace with France was in principle agreed on. Peace

Second son of Robert, 5th and last Lord I'oynings under writ of 11 Edw. 11I. He was a lilblong kiend of lIem'y VII. He died in 14 Hen. VI1 I. a K.G. One of his natural sons, 'l'hon, was created Baron Pt,ynings in 1545.