If he would give the prisoner into the custody
of Philip and his ally, they would pay a hundred and fifty thousand
marks for the prize.
The offer was a tempting one. It dazzled the mind of the emperor, whose
ideas of honor were not very deeply planted. But the members of the Diet
would not suffer him to break his faith. Their power was great, even
over the emperor's will, and the royal prisoner, after his many weary
months of captivity, was set free.
Word of the failure of his plans came quickly to Philip's knavish ears,
and he wrote in haste to his confederate, "the devil is loose; take care
of yourself," an admonition which John was quite likely to obey. His
hope of seizing the crown vanished. There remained to meet his placable
brother with a show of fraternal loyalty.
But Richard was delayed in his purpose of reaching England, and danger
again threatened him. He had been set free near the end of January,
1194. He dared not enter France, and Normandy, then invaded by the
French, was not safe for him. His best course was to take ship at a
German port and sail for England. But it was the season of storms; he
lay a month at Anvers imprecating the weather; meanwhile, avarice
overcame both fear and honor in the emperor's heart, the large sum
offered him outweighed the opposition of the lords of the Diet, and he
resolved to seize the prisoner again and profit by the French king's
golden bribe.
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