Randolph and Douglas invade England

The extreme weakness occasioned by this, rendered it impossible for him to take the field in person; but Randolph and Douglas, his two ablest captains, put themselves at the head of an army of ten thousand men, and passing the Tyne near Carlisle, soon showed, that although the king was not present, the skill, enterprise, and unshaken courage which he had inspired, continued to animate his soldiers. This is one of the last great military expeditions of this reign; and as it places in a strong and interesting light the species of warfare by which Bruce was enabled to reconquer and consolidate his kingdom, as contrasted with the gigantic efforts employed against him, we shall make no apology for a somewhat minute detail of its operations. Froissart, too, one of the most delightful and graphic of the old historians, appears now in the field, and throws over the picture the tints of his rich feudal painting.[1:11:03 PM] carolane.ashi: