When Henry became of age he entered upon a course of extravagant
expenditure. This, with unwise and unsuccessful wars, finally piled
up debts to the amount of nearly a million of marks, or, in modern
money, upwards of 13,000,000 pounds. To satisfy the clamors of his
creditors, he mortgaged the Jews (S119), or rather the right of
extorting money from them, to his brother Richard.
He also violated the chaters and treaties in order to compel those who
benefited from them to purchase their reissue. On the birth of his
first son, Prince Edward, he showed himself so eager for
congratulatory gifts, that one of the nobles present at court said,
"Heaven gave us this child, but the King sells him to us."