The genuine history of the Britons asserted against Mr. Macpherson ...

THE BRITONS ASSERTED. 217
called Britannia by Sulpicius Severus, at a time
when it appears to have been equally called Ar-
inorica. Sulpicius wrote within 10 years only
after the expedition of Maximus ;
and yet he re-
cites the name without any note of its novelty,
and even in fpeaking of the times antecedent to
that expedition ^ And in the fame manner,
within 1 2 years only from the firft poffible mi-
gration of the iflanders in confequence of the
Saxon invalion, and within 4 only after the
Saxons had made themfelves mafters of a fmgle
county ^, even in the year 461, and even in the
public afts of a Synod, the Prelate of Armo-
rica fubfcribes himfelf, without hefitation, without
explanation, Manfuetus Biihop of the Britons s.
Each argument feparately proves, and the a61ual
and exacl concurrence of both gives a great ad-
ditional weight to the proof, that the names of
Armorica and Britannia were equally the appel-
lations of the country, long before the forces of
* Carte, p. 6— 7. a note. ^ Sax. Chron.
3 Ufher, p, 226.—Mr. Carte has ftrangely fuppofed fuch
.1 number of Britons to have retired from Kent, that Hengill
was obliged to bring a body of his countrymen, about 300,000,
from Germany to fupply their place (V. I. p. 195.).—
And Dr. Borlafe, IHU more ftrangely, fuppofes the Britons to
have retired Into Armorica " when tl.e Saxons had conquered
*' the greateft part of the illand" (P. 39. edit. 2d.), though
the name of the Biitous occurs in Armorica io many years
before that period.
Maximus