people shall arise against people, and a kingdom against another. They have lain many years upon their right side, and they shall lie yet on their left side seventy years, in which times will be great battles, great pestilence, and great murrain, great earthquakes, great hunger and great dearth through all the world.' Of which saying of the king they greatly marvelled, and anon they sent to the emperor to know if there were any such city or hill in his land in which such seven men should sleep. Then the emperor, marvelling, sent to the same hill and there found the cave and the seven martyrs sleeping as they had been dead, lying on the left side every one. And then the emperor was greatly abashed of that sight, and commended greatly the holiness of S. Edward, the king of England, which had the spirit of prophecy. For after his death began great insurrections through all the world. For the paynims destroyed a great part of Syria, and threw down both monasteries and churches, and what by pestilence and stroke of sword, streets, fields, and towns lay full of dead men. The prince of Greece was slain, the emperor of Rome was slain, the king of England and the king of France were slain, and all the other realms of the world were greatly troubled with divers diseases.
When the blessed King Edward had lived many years, and was fallen into great age, it happed he came riding by a church in Essex called Havering, which was at that time in hallowing and should be dedicated in the honour of our Lord and S. John the Evangelist; wherefore the king for great devotion
