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her, What Men would conjeHure of her, upon her lojlng herGarter in fuch a manner ?

Both Relations are far diftant from Fad $ never-theless it has thus far’d with other Orders of Sove-reign Foundation, and an amorous, inftead of an ho-nourable Account, has been falfly render’d of theirInftitution 5 as for Ioftance, The Order of the Annun-ciade, and that of The Golden Fleece.

There is a third Opinion grounded on a Relationmade of King Rich. I. who, whilft his Forces wereemploy’d againft Cyprus and Aeon, and extremely tir’dand harrafs’d with the Siege, he, by the A Alliance andMediation of St. George (as imagin’d ) was infpir’d withfrefh Courage, and bethought himfelf of a new Device,which was to tie about the Legs of a Number ofKnights, a Leathern Thong Garter, for fuch had hethen at hand, whereby they being emulated to futureGlory, with Aflurance of Reward if they prov’d victo-rious, they might be excited to behave themfelves in-trepidly and well, much after the Examples of the oldRomans, among whom were diftributed various Crownsfor feveral Caufes, to adorn the Soldiers : But if KingRichard I. did make ufe of this Device in the Holy Land,as a Signal or Mark of Di Hindi on of a Party, uponfeme warlike Exploit, yet that he took Occafion tocreate a diftind Order of Knighthood thereupon, thereis not fufficient warrant to believe 3 ( for it is onlyput down in the Preface of the Blacll Booh, but notin any Part of the Annals of the Order 5 nor can itplead higher Antiquity than the Reign of King Hen.VIII. when written.) All the Advantage that can bemade of it, is, to heighten the Reputation of that Saintamong the Englifh, by which Means the Garter cameto be dedicated to him, and not that it contributed to,its Inftitution.

§2. The true Motive was therefore, neither theLadies Garter, or King Richard’s Leathern Thong,that it owes it Original to: But King Edward, beinga Perfon of confummate Vertue, gave himfelf up tomilitary Affairs ; and being engag’d in War for reco-vering his Right to France, made ufe of the beft M ar '

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