THE

CHRONICLES

OF

ENGUERRAND DE MONSTRELET.

The Monday following, sir Robert d'Estouteville[1], knight, lord of Beyne, who[Pg 2] had been provost of Paris during the former reign,—but the king had deprived him of that office, and given it to Jacques de Villiers, lord of l'Isle-Adam,—who was now restored by him to the provostship. He presided this day at the town-house, and the watchword for the night was given to him as provost of Paris.

On the Tuesday, the king supped at the town-hall, where was a handsome service of flesh and fish,—and many of the nobility, with their ladies, were invited to meet him. Before supper, the king addressed some of the heads of the wards, who were come thither for the purpose, and said, that he thanked them all, generally and individually, for their great loyalty, and the services they had done him; that, in return, he was disposed to do every thing possible for them; and that as he had, during the war, remitted several imposts, which some might think was done from the necessity he was then in for their assistance and support, and that after a peace he would renew them, he therefore declared that such was not his intention, for that he had, from his[Pg 3] great affection, freely remitted them, never to be renewed,—and that if there were any other things they wished from him, they need only mention them, and he would grant their requests. He added, that he should leave in their town the lord de Beyne as their provost, to whom they would pay the same obedience as to himself, because he had well served him at the affair of Montlehery, and for other causes, which he told to the provost des marchands, and to the sheriffs of the city of Paris. He begged of them to be always true and loyal to him and to the crown of France, without any partiality being found in their town.

This day, the natural daughter to the king was betrothed to the bastard of Bourbon; and, after supper, dancings and other amusements took place: the lord bastard there danced and made good cheer.

On the ensuing Monday, the 7th of November, sir Robert d'Estouteville was conducted to the Châtelet of Paris, by sir Charles de Melun and master John Dauvet first president of the parliament[Pg 4] of Toulouse, whom the king had ordered to receive the oaths of office from sir Robert, as he had nominated him provost of Paris in the room of Jacques de Villiers, lord of Isle-Adam, who had received the appointment on his joyous entry into Paris, and to institute sir Robert into the same. When the letters of his patent were read before the court of the Châtelet, sir Robert was instituted into the office of provost, without prejudice to any appeal from the said lord de l'Isle Adam.

When this was done, the king summoned before him the presidents of his court of parliament, and addressed them nearly as follows: 'On my coming to the throne, I constituted sir Helie de Thorettes first president of our court of parliament, who soon after died. Our affections were then fixed to replace him by master John Dauvet, our first president of our parliament of Toulouse, now present; but through the importunities of several, and at the particular solicitation of sir John Bureau, we appointed the president de Nanterre, who has enjoyed[Pg 5] the office, until the arrival of some princes of our blood before Paris, who have remonstrated with us on various existing abuses within our realm, and even in our court of parliament; for which, and other causes, we declare the said de Nanterre to be no longer first president of our said court of parliament, but do appoint, in his place, the said master John Dauvet, to hold the same during our good pleasure.'

The next day, Saturday, sir Pierre de Morvilliers, chancellor of France, was dismissed from that office, and sir John Juvenal des Ursins, who had been chancellor at the time of the decease of king Charles, was re-appointed in his stead. At the same time, sir Pierre Puy was displaced from his office of master of requests in ordinary to the king's household, and master Regnault des Dommans succeeded him.

The king set out for Orleans when he had made the above arrangements, and took with him Arnoult L'Huillier, burgher and banker at Paris, charging him expressly always to follow and be near him. He carried also with him[Pg 6] master John Longue-Jove, the younger, who had lately married the damsel Genevieve, daughter to master John Baillet, and made him of his great council. Just as he was leaving Paris, he created master Charles d'Orgemont lord of Mery, treasurer of France, Arnoult L'Huillier treasurer of Carcassonne, and master Pierre Ferteil, the husband of Terteau, master of the requests of his household, but without pay or emolument.

On the Monday following, a great comet appeared at Paris, about six in the morning, and so resplendently bright that a man crossing the square of the Greve at that hour, to hear the mass of the Holy Ghost, was so frightened by it that he lost his senses and became mad.

The king's brother, as I have said, was gone into Normandy, and had arrived at St Catherine's on the mount, near to Rouen, where he remained some days, until the preparations making by the townsmen for his entry into Rouen were ready. During this interval, a great quarrel arose between the duke of Brittany and the count de Dammartin, when it was told to the duke of Normandy, that the two[Pg 7] said lords intended to arrest and carry him into Brittany. Sir John de Lorraine, hearing of this, went instantly to the town-house in Rouen, when the magistrates ordered the inhabitants under arms; and sir John led a numerous body of them to St Catherine's on the Mount, where admittance was at first refused him,—but sir John, in despite of the duke of Brittany and the count de Dammartin, and without much ceremony, made the new duke mount a horse, that had a saddle, indeed, but no housings, and in this simple state, with only a black velvet robe on, led him through the town of Rouen to the church of our Lady, where 'Te Deum laudamus' was chaunted, and thence to the castle of Rouen.

While the king resided at Orleans, he made many ordinances and regulations for the better government of the realm, and displaced several of his captains. Among the rest, he took from Poncet de Riviere, the command of a hundred lances, but made him bailiff of Montferrant; and he acted thus to many others. Poncet de Riviere, on loosing his command, went[Pg 8] on a voyage to Jerusalem, and thence to St Catherine's on mount Sinai. The king re-appointed the lord de Lohéac marshal of France, in the place of the count de Cominges, bastard of Armagnac.

Having done this, the king left Orleans, and marched his whole army, his franc-archers and his artillery, great and small, into Normandy, by way of Argentan, Eynes, Falaise, Caen, and other places, to gain possession of them. At the last town, he met the duke of Brittany, and they were together for some time. The duke of Bourbon, in consequence of the king's orders, had entered another part of Normandy, and came before Evreux, which would not surrender on his first summons; but the garrison afterward capitulated, and the duke and his men were admitted into the town. He thence advanced to Vernon on the Seine, which also demurred at first, but afterwards admitted him. Sir Charles de Melun, grand master of the king's household, took possession of several towns in Normandy, such as Gisors, Gournay, and others: he also overthrew six score Scots,[Pg 9] who were marching to the lord de Bueil[2] for the duke of Normandy,—which affair took place at a village, called Cailly, in the bailiwick of Caen.

At this time, the lord d'Esternay was general of Normandy,—but, for fear of the king's anger, he had fled from Rouen, disguised as a cordelier friar, in company with an augustin monk. They were met, however, by some of the men of the grand master at Pont St Pierre, four leagues from Rouen, who taking them prisoners, they were afterwards searched, and much money and other precious effects found on them and seized. The new duke of Normandy had gone from Rouen to Louviers, expecting to meet the duke of Bourbon; but being disappointed, he instantly returned to Rouen,—when the principal persons conducted him to the town-house, and invested him with the duchy, by placing a ring (as was customary) on his finger, and he promised to preserve and defend all their rights and privileges. He, at[Pg 10] the same time, reduced the taxes they had paid before his investiture to one-half, and the whole assembly of clergy, nobles, and populace swore obedience to him, and to support him, as his loyal subjects, to the last drop of their blood.

They then caused to be read to him aloud an extract from an old chronicle preserved in the town-house, which contained in substance, that there was formerly a king of France who left two sons on his decease, the eldest of whom succeeded to his throne, and the younger had for his appanage the duchy of Normandy, which his brother wanted to annex to his crown, and great wars ensued. The Normans, however, so successfully supported their duke that the king was forced into exile, and the duke was crowned in his stead.

After this had been read, they told him not to be uneasy at any thing, for that henceforward the townsmen would supply him with so many engines of war, and other means of defence, that no harm should come to him or to their town.

On Monday, the last day but one of December, the king of France, returning from lower Normandy, came to Pont Audemer, and thence to la Champagne du Neufbourg, near Conches. He sent the duke of Bourbon to Louviers,—and on the first of January, that town submitted to the duke of Bourbon for the king. This same day the king entered it, in the afternoon when the lord d'Esternay was brought him by the men of the grand master,—and he was immediately after drowned in the river Eure, and the augustin monk with him, by the officer of[Pg 12] the provost-marshal. The body of the lord d'Esternay was afterwards taken out of the river, and buried in the church of our Lady at Louviers, where his obsequies were performed.

At this period, very many officers of Normandy, were executed or drowned by the provost-marshal, on account of their having interfered in the dissensions between the king and his brother. On the king's departure from Louviers, he laid siege to the town of Pont de l'Arche, four leagues distant from Rouen; and on the 6th of January it was proclaimed in Paris, that all purveyors, who had been accustomed to supply the army with provisions, should repair thither instantly with forage,—and, also, that the pioneers should make themselves ready to march from Pont de l'Arche on the morrow, under the command of sir Denis Giber, one of the four sheriffs of Paris who had been appointed to conduct them.

On the Wednesday, a detachment of the king's army, that had gone on a foraging party, took four men at arms belonging[Pg 13] to the duke of Berry, but who had formerly belonged to the king. One was called le Petit Bailiff, and had been in the company of Joachim Rohault marshal of France, and an accomplice in the betraying Pontoise to the Bretons. When brought before the king, they were ordered to be beheaded instantly; but they offered, on their lives being spared, to cause Pont de l'Arche to be surrendered,—and as the duke of Bourbon and other lords seconded their offer, the king pardoned them.

This same day, the king entered Pont de l'Arche with his army, the garrison having retreated from the town into the castle: among them was master John Hebert, superintendant of the french finances. Three days after, the castle likewise surrendered to the king.

In consequence of these surrenders to the king, the town of Rouen sent a deputation to request a conference,—which deputation laid every thing that had been done amiss to the charge of the dukes of Brittany and Bourbon. Their commissioners at the conference made several[Pg 14] requests and remonstrances, insisting, among other things, that the king should declare himself satisfied with them, notwithstanding any acts to the contrary, and that he would not only grant them his full pardon, but similar franchises to those he had lately granted to Paris. They made many other demands, to all of which the king said he would consider on them. While this was going on, several of the king's army passed and repassed into the town without interruption.

The duke of Berry, in the mean time, quitted Rouen, in company with several of his friends, and went to Honnefleur and Caen, where he remained some time. John lord of Lorraine thought also to escape into Flanders; but he was met by a party of the king's army, who made him prisoner, and brought him to the king.

On the departure of the duke of Berry, the town of Rouen surrendered to the king, who, having displaced the greater part of the officers in Normandy, appointed others in their places. He disbanded his franc archers, giving them[Pg 15] leave of absence until the first day of the ensuing month of March, and sent back his artillery to Paris: he himself took the road toward lower Normandy, and to St Michael's Mount.

At this time, Anthony de Chabannes, count de Dammartin, (of whom mention has been often made) accompanied the king, and had the command of one hundred lances of the gens d'armes, which sir Charles de Melun had before had. The king also deprived sir Charles of his office of grand master of the household, and gave it to the lord de Craon, although many persons were of opinion that sir Charles had well served the king, and done him many considerable services,—more especially by his great prudence and activity in the guard of Paris, while the king was absent in the Bourbonnois; for it was observed, that had he not been as diligent as he was, the king and kingdom would have suffered much more. While the king was thus employed, he made an exchange with the count de Dammartin for a castle he had in Gascony called Blancaffort; for which[Pg 16] he gave him, in sovereignty, all the rights and royalties in the towns of Gonesse, Gournay sur Marne, and Crecy in Brie,—and gave orders for his parliament to annex them, in perpetuity, to his said county of Dammartin.

At this same time, the king commanded that the fortress of Chaumont sur Loire, which belonged to sir Pierre d'Amboise, lord of Chaumont, should be set on fire, and razed to the ground, which was done.

Monday, the 4th of February, Gauvain Manniel, who had been lieutenant-general of the bailiff of Rouen, was arrested in that town, and carried prisoner to Pont de l'Arche,—where, by orders of the marshals, a scaffold had been erected, on which the said Gauvain was beheaded for certain crimes laid to his charge. His head was placed on a lance on the said bridge, and his body thrown into the river Seine. At the same time, the dean of the cathedral of Rouen and six of the canons were expelled the town, and banished out of the duchy of Normandy.

The king now departed from Rouen for Orleans, where the queen was, and remained there a long time, making excursions to Gergeau[3] and in that neighbourhood. While he was at Orleans, many embassies came to him from divers countries, on different matters. He also there determined[Pg 18] to send an embassy to England, and selected for this purpose the count de Roussillon, bastard of Bourbon and admiral of France, the lord de la Barde, the duke-bishop of Langres, master John de Poupaincourt, lord of Cercelles, master Olivier le Roy, councellor in the chamber of accounts, and others, who set out for England in April, in the year 1466.

At this time, the officers of justice in Paris, arrested many poor creatures, thieves and other malefactors,—some of whom, for their crimes, were hanged on the gibbet at Montfaucon, and others, less criminal, were whipped at a cart's tail through the streets of Paris.

At this time also, the damsel Isabeau de Cambray, wife to sir William de Colombel, a rich and powerful man, was confined a prisoner in the Conciergerie of the palais-royal at Paris, on the complaint and information of her husband, who charged her with the three following crimes: first, that she had abandoned him, and been faithless to his bed; secondly, that she had robbed him of large sums of money; and, thirdly, that she had compounded divers poisons to compass his death.

[Pg 19]

In consequence of these charges, she was long detained in prison, and put to the torture, to make her confess her guilt. At length, the court of parliament, having taken full cognizance of the evidence, and her confession, declared that the said Colombel had sufficiently proved his accusations,—and she was sentenced to be deprived of all community of effects, and of her dower. With regard to the poisons, she pleaded an error in the suit, and paid into court six score livres parisis, as her pledge for re-appearing.

The 10th day of May, in this year, sir Anthony de Château-neuf lord du Lau, who had had the king's pardon some time since, on certain conditions, was accidentally met by the lord de Chabesnais, and others, in the plains of Clery, near Orleans; and because that he and his attendants were disguised, they made him a prisoner, and carried him before the king, who ordered him and his people to be confined in a castle near Mehun.[4]

On Wednesday, the eve of the Ascension[Pg 20] of our Lord, master John Prevost, notary and secretary to the king, entered the bastile, by the king's direction, in a subtle manner, and took thence one called Mare, who was lieutenant to the lord des Bordes, and lately married to the natural daughter of sir Charles de Melun, son to the lord des Bordes.

On Saturday, the eve of Whitsunday, was proclaimed through all the squares of Paris, with sound of trumpet, a summons from the constable of France, which included one from the king, to declare that he had received information of his ancient enemies the English having raised a very numerous army for the destruction of his kingdom,—and that they had prepared a fleet, accordingly, to invade his coasts; that the king, being resolved to oppose such wicked attempts to the utmost of his power, had ordered his constable to make proclamation thereof in the usual places throughout the realm, that all the noble tenants of the king, as well those of fief as of arriere-fief, of whatever rank, might be properly prepared with arms, horses, and habiliments for war, on[Pg 21] the 15th day of June next ensuing, under pain of corporal punishment and confiscation of effects. All franc-archers and others were, at the same time, ordered to be ready by the said 15th day of June.

The king displaced, at this time, the lord des Bordes from being governor of the bastile of St. Anthony at Paris, and gave it to the lord de Blot, seneschal of Auvergne, who was said to be a man of an excellent character.

At this period, the lord de Montauban[5], who had been admiral of France, grand master of woods and waters, and the principal cause of the disturbances in Brittany, which were followed by those in France, and who had received immense sums of the public money, died at Tours, and was not much lamented. After his death, the king gave the office of lord high admiral to the lord bastard of Bourbon, who had married his natural daughter,—and the office of grand master of[Pg 22] woods and waters to the lord de Châtillon, brother to the marshal of Lohéac.

A truce was now concluded by sea and land with England for twenty-two months, which was every where publicly proclaimed.

At this time, for some particular cause, the king was moved to displace the count du Maine from his government of Languedoc, and give the same to the bastard of Bourbon,—who also received, in consequence of his marriage with Jeanne, the king's natural daughter, the castle and town of Usson[6] in Auvergne, said to be the strongest place in the kingdom, together with the government of Honnefleur, and other places in Normandy.

In the month of June, of this year 1466, the beans were very abundant and good,—nevertheless, very many persons of both sexes lost their senses at this time in Paris. In the number, was a young man named master Marcial d'Auvergne[7], an [Pg 23]attorney in the court of parliament, and notary to the Châtelet. He had been married about three weeks to one of the daughters of master Jacques Fournier, king's counsel in the said court of parliament,—and lost his senses in such wise that, about nine in the morning of St. John Baptist's day, his frenzy seized him, and he threw himself out of the window into the street, broke his thigh, and so bruised his body that he was long in the utmost danger, for his frenzy continued a long time; but at length he recovered.

In the month of July, many prelates, lords, knights, churchmen, and others of the king's council arrived at Paris, by the king's orders, as commissioners to inspect the courts of justice, and to reform whatever they should find irregular, having had very great powers given them for the purpose. They were twenty-one commissioners in all, and the lord John bastard of Orleans, count of Dunois and of Longueville, was their president; but no business could[Pg 25] be transacted unless thirteen members were present, the count de Dunois being always one.

They were called 'The Reformers of the Public Welfare,' and opened their sittings on the 16th day of July; and, that their measures might be salutary, they commenced by hearing a fine mass to the Divine Spirit chaunted in the holy chapel in the palace at Paris. This was celebrated by Juvenel des Ursins, archbishop of Rheims, who had been chosen one of the commissioners. This day twelve-month, the king met the count de Charolois at Montlehery.

On the morrow, some of the pages of the counsellors in the court of parliament, while waiting for their masters, sought a quarrel with the pages of these commissioners, and a great riot and noise ensued, because they had refused to pay their welcome-money at the palace. This quarrel was renewed with more earnestness the next day, when their masters returned to the court, and proceeded at length to blows with fists, knives, and stones; so that many were much beaten and bruised, and some[Pg 26] even had their eyes knocked out,—and force was employed to separate them. Several said, that this was only done as an anniversary of the battle of Montlehery.

This year was very moist, so that although the corn was good in some parts of France, in others it was spoilt and mildewed. There were many tempests, and storms of thunder and lightning, which did much damage in divers places of the kingdom, more particularly in the Soissonnois, where several houses were destroyed, churches unroofed,—and infinite mischief was done to the vineyards and corn-fields.

A serious war now took place between the Liegeois and the duke of Burgundy, who, on this occasion, resumed his arms, and advanced to his army carried in a litter, attended by his son the count de Charolois, with all his nobles, and the whole of his artillery. He began the campaign, by laying siege to Dinant, as has been amply detailed in the chronicles of Monstrelet.

The heat of the weather in the months of August and September, of this year, was so excessive that it brought on a great mortality in and about Paris, insomuch that[Pg 27] more than forty thousand persons of both sexes died. In the number, was master Arnoul, the king's astrologer, a very good kind of man, wise and pleasant. Several physicians, and officers of the king died; and such numbers were buried in the churchyard of the holy Innocents, and the great hospital being full of dead and dying, it was ordered, that in future all buryings should be made in the churchyard of the Holy Trinity, which church was appertaining to the town-house of Paris. This mortality continued until the month of November. Public prayers were offered up to God that it might cease,—and solemn general processions were made by the different parishes, in which were carried holy relics, and the shrines of saints, and even the shrines of our Lady, of Saint Genevieve and Saint Marcel, when the number of deaths decreased some little.

At this period, there were great alarms in Paris, from the number of thieves and housebreakers, who did great mischiefs during the night. Some were arrested and whipped at a cart's tail, and others hanged, for these crimes, on the gibbet at Paris. In this year was hanged at Paris, a large Norman,[Pg 28] a native of Coutantin, in Normandy, for having long cohabited with his own daughter, by whom he had several children, whom they put to death as soon as born. He was hanged,—and she was burnt at Maigny, near Pontoise, where they resided on quitting Normandy. The shrines of St Crespin and St Crespinian were now brought to Paris, in the hopes that they would stop the mortality, and also to solicit alms for the new-roofing of their church at Soissons, which had been destroyed in the summer by lightning, as has been mentioned.

During this time, the king and his ministers resided at Orleans, Chartres, Bourges, Mehun, Amboise, and other places, where he received divers embassies from England, Burgundy, and elsewhere. The king now determined to make war on the duke of Burgundy, and on his son the count de Charolois; and for this purpose issued his summons for the assembly of the ban and arriere-ban, in the different towns of his realm. He created a large body of franc-archers beyond their established number, and[Pg 29] made several regulations for the more effectual defence of his kingdom. He appointed the marshal de Lohéac his lieutenant for the town of Paris and the Isle of France. To the lord de Châtillon was given the guard of Champagne. The care of Normandy was intrusted to the count de Saint Pol, constable of France, who, a little before, had been the king's enemy, in conjunction with the duke of Burgundy and the count de Charolois.

In the month of February, an embassy came to the king from Brittany, who, having heard what they had to say, received them well. They afterwards pursued their journey into Flanders, to wait on the duke of Burgundy and his son. The report was now current, that the king and his brother had made up their quarrel, to the great joy of the nation. I should have mentioned, that, prior to this, the king had sent master John Hebert and the bishop of Troys, with others, on an embassy to the Liegeois.

It happened, about this time, that three sergeants at mace of the Châtelet, of bad[Pg 30] repute, forcibly entered, during the night the chamber of a priest of St Paul's church, while he was quietly asleep, and beat and mutilated him much; but not content with this, they dragged him through the streets, and, having sorely wounded him in many places, went their way. The priest prosecuted them; in consequence of which they were confined in the prisons of the Châtelet, and were sentenced to be banished from France, to have their effects confiscated to the king, and to make an amende honorable. From this sentence, they appealed to the court of parliament, and the king's attorney appealed thither also against the sentence, as being too mild for such an outrage. The court, therefore, confirmed the judgment of the provost at the Châtelet, and condemned them, in addition, to be whipped through all the squares of Paris, which was done.

On Thursday, the 22d day of April, in this same year, Anthony de Chabannes, count of Dammartin, who had escaped out of the bastile, and had afterward done many mischiefs to the king's subjects in Auvergne and elsewhere, on his arrival before Paris with the confederated princes, was created grand master of the royal household in the room of the lord de[Pg 32] Croy,—and letters were granted him by the king, to certify that the said Chabannes had sworn to serve him loyally and faithfully against all the world.

In the month of June, the king set out from Paris for Rouen in Normandy; and during his stay there, he sent for the earl of Warwick, who, for some cause, had been forced to leave England. The earl landed at Harfleur, and thence went in a boat, with his company, to the village of La Bouille on the Seine, five leagues from Rouen. He arrived there on Saturday, the 7th of June, in time for dinner, which he found ready prepared for him; for the king was come thither to receive him, and feasted him and his company very grandly. After dinner, the earl reimbarked in his boat for Rouen, whither the king and his attendants went by land. The inhabitants of the town went out to meet the earl as far as the gate of the Quay St Eloy, where the king had ordered all the parishes to give him a most honourable reception, with banners, crosses, and holy water presented to him by the priests in their[Pg 33] copes. He was thus conducted in procession to the cathedral, where he made his offering, and thence went to the lodgings that had been prepared for him at the Jacobins.

The queen and princesses came likewise to Rouen,—and the king remained there with the earl of Warwick the space of twelve days, when the earl returned to England. On his departure, the king sent with him the lord admiral, the bishop of Laon, master John Poupaincourt his minister, master Olivier le Roux, and others. During his stay at Rouen, the king made him many rich presents; such as pieces of gold plate, and a cup of gold ornamented with precious stones: the lord de Bourbon presented him also with a handsome diamond ring,—and the whole of the expenses of himself and his attendants were defrayed by the king, from his landing at Harfleur to his re-embarkation. The king, on his departure returned to Chartres, where he made some stay.

In the month of June, in this year, died Philip duke of Burgundy, in the town of Bruges: his body was afterward carried[Pg 34] to Dijon, and interred at the carthusian convent. But this has been fully described in the last chapter of the chronicles of Enguerrand de Monstrelet.

The king while at Chartres, ordered the inhabitants of Paris to have banners made, for their respective professions and trades to range themselves under: each banner to have a leader and a deputy-leader, who were to have the management and care of them; and those enrolled under their governance were to be armed in jackets, brigandines, light helmets, and other sorts of offensive and defensive armour, according to their several stations, as well tradesmen as officers, nobles, merchants, churchmen, and persons of other ranks, which was done.

In this same month of June, the king summoned before him at Mellay, near Chartres, some of the principal persons in Paris, among whom was master John Boulenger, president in the court of parliament, master Henry de Livres, counsellor in the said court, sir John Clerbout, master-general of the mint, Jacques Rabours, procurator of the town of Paris, master[Pg 35] Eustache Milet, another counsellor in the aforesaid court, Nicholas Laurens, Guillaume Roger, Jean de Hacqueville, and other principal merchants, whom the king sent to his council at Chartres, where they remained some time.

About this time, two persons, called Robert de la Motte and Jean Raoul, had been long detained prisoners, on the accusation of a monk of Saint Lo, at Rouen, named master Pierre le Marêchal, who had charged them, and others, with being enemies to the king, and with having conspired against his life. These charges he could not however, prove,—and they were found to be nothing but lies; on which the accuser was sentenced to death, and was accordingly drowned the 14th day of July. De la Motte, Raoul, and the others, were acquitted, and sent to their homes.

The king, soon after this, sent an ordinance to be sealed at Paris: it was signed Michel de Ville-Chartre: by which the king villed, for the repeopling of Paris, which had been much depopulated by wars, mortalities, and other events,[Pg 36] that people of all nations and countries might come and freely reside in that town, suburbs, and within its jurisdiction, and enjoy all the privileges attached to the citizens of Paris, relative to the crimes of murder, theft, and all others, excepting that of high treason,—and during their residence they were to bear arms for the service of the king, against all his enemies. This was proclaimed, by sound of trumpet, in all the squares of Paris, according to the privileges granted to such as had been exiled to the towns of St Malo and Valenciennes.

This month, the king issued another proclamation, for all nobles holding fiefs or arriere-fiefs, to be ready in arms; and for those in Paris, and in the Isle of France, to be prepared on the 15th day of August to march whithersoever he might be pleased to lead them.

On the 3rd day of August, a melancholy event happened at Paris. One of the monks of the Temple called friar Thomas Lovecte, who was the receiver of his house, had his throat cut by one of his brethren, named friar Henry, in[Pg 37] consequence of some dispute that had happened between them. Friar Henry on committing the deed, absented himself, and was not discovered until the 10th of that month, when, about 10 o'clock at night, an examiner at the Châtelet called master John Potin, accompanied by three sergeants at mace, made such diligence that he was found hid in a closet in the hôtel of St Pol at Paris, dressed in a rocquet of white cloth, and a black hat on his head. In this state, he was carried prisoner to the Châtelet, and thence surrendered to the court of parliament, to which he had appealed against his arrest,—alleging, that the place whence he had been taken was a place of sanctuary, and claiming to be returned thither. The monks of the Temple claimed him as a priest of their order,—and he was given up to them and led to their prison. On the 12th of August, in the year 1467, the grand prior of France, attended by many great lords, assembled at the Temple to sit in judgment on friar Henry, when he was condemned to a perpetual imprisonment in a dark dungeon, and[Pg 38] had to be fed, so long as he should live, on the bread of pain and water of sorrow.

At this time, the admiral, and those before mentioned, who had accompanied the earl of Warwick to England, returned to France, after having staid there some time and concluded nothing. The king of England sent, however, to the king of France, presents of hunting horns, bottles of leather, and other things, in return for the very rich presents that had been made the earl and his attendants by the king and other lords on his leaving Rouen.

Friday the 18th of August, the king came to Paris about eight o'clock in the evening: he was attended by the duke of Bourbon and many other lords. On Tuesday, the first of September, the queen arrived at Paris by water, and landed near to the church of Nôtre Dame, where she found, in waiting to receive her, all the presidents and counsellors of the court of parliament, the bishop of Paris, and numbers of others of the nobility, handsomely dressed.

[Pg 39]

Near this landing place, several rich pageants had been prepared by the city of Paris,—and when it was known that she approached the city, a grand procession of boats filled with the principal inhabitants, and decorated with silks and tapestries, went out to meet her. In some of these boats were placed choristers of the holy chapel at Paris, who sang most melodiously certain virelays and pastorals adapted to the occasion. There were also numbers of clarions and a band of instrumental music, that saluted the queen and her ladies, as they entered their boats, with a variety of melodies. The citizens had placed in the queen's barge a beautiful stag of confectionary, having her arms emblazoned hanging on his neck. There were likewise plenty of salvers full of sweetmeats and fresh fruits of all sorts, with a quantity of violets and other sweet smelling flowers scattered about every part of the barge. Wines of different sorts were abundantly distributed to all who pleased to partake of them.

The queen, having performed her[Pg 40] prayers in the church of Nôtre Dame, returned to her barge, and was rowed down the river to the gate in front of the church of the Celestins, where she found other pageants. Here she again landed, and, with her ladies, mounted the beautiful hackneys and palfreys that were there, waiting for them, and rode to the king's hôtel at the Tournelles, where, in front of the gate, was another pageant. That night, bonfires were lighted in all the streets, and round tables placed at different squares and open places, where meat and drink was given to all comers.

The Thursday following, the 3rd of September, master Nicholas Balue, brother to the bishop of Evreux was married to the daughter of sir John Bureau, lord of Montglat. The marriage-feast was held at the hôtel de Bourbon, and was abundantly splendid. Great honour was done to this wedding, by the presence of the king, the queen, the duke and duchess of Bourbon, the count de Nevers, madame de Bueil, and all their attendants, who partook of the feast,[Pg 41] and made them many and very rich gifts.

The king and queen afterwards accepted of many invitations to entertainments given by several of their courtiers. Among others, on Thursday, the 10th of the same month, the queen, accompanied by her sister, the lady Bona of Savoy, and the duchess of Bourbon, with other ladies of their attendants, supped at the hôtel of master Jean Dauvet, first president of the parliament, where most handsome preparations were made for their reception,—and among other things were four beautiful baths, in the expectation that the queen would bathe; but she declined it from being unwell, and because the season was unfavourable. In one of them, however, the duchess of Bourbon and the lady Bona bathed, as did madame de Montglat and Perrette de Châlons, a Parisian, in the adjoining one, and made good cheer there.

On the 14th of September, the king ordered all the banners of Paris to be mustered without the walls; and he issued his commands, that on that day all persons, of whatever rank or condition, should appear under their proper banner properly accoutred for war. Nevertheless, should there be any who had not yet prepared their armour, they must make their appearance with defenceable staves, under pain of death.

[Pg 43]

It was a fine sight to see the different banners march out of Paris, each handsomely arrayed, and without noise or confusion. They amounted to from sixty to eighty thousand helmets, of which full thirty thousand were armed in brigandines, plain armour, and jackets. When they were drawn up in battle-array, the king and queen and their court, came out to see them, which they did with much pleasure,—for never was seen so numerous an army issue out of any town before. There were seventy-seven banners of the different trades, without including the standards and guidons of the court of parliament, of the chamber of accounts, of the treasury, of the mint, of the tax offices, of the Châtelet, and of the Hôtel de Ville, under which were as many, if not more, able-bodied men than under all the other banners.

Several tons of wine had been brought from Paris, and placed at different spots for those under muster to refresh themselves with, as their heads had been taken off. They occupied a very large tract of ground; for their line extended[Pg 44] from the dunghills between the gates of St Anthony and the Temple, along the ditches of Paris, and through the vineyards to St Anthony des Champs, and from the walls of St Anthony des Champs to the Grange of Reuilly, and thence as far as Conflans. From Conflans, it returned by the Grange aux Merciers, along the river Seine to the king's bulwark of the tower of Billy, and from thence along the walls as far as the gate of the bastile of St Anthony. It was a marvellous sight to view the great numbers who appeared at this muster,—and several persons maintained, that as many remained in Paris as had come out.

The king set out from Paris on the 22d of September, in the afternoon, on a pilgrimage on foot to St Denis, having with him the bishop of Evreux, the lord de Crussol[8]. Philip L'Huillier, and others. Between Paris and St Denis, he was accosted by three vagabonds, who demanded pardon for having been thieves, robbers on the highways, and murderers,[Pg 45] which the king kindly granted them. He remained the rest of the day at St Denis, until vespers on the morrow, when he returned to his hôtel of the Tournelles, and supped that night at the hôtel of sir Denis de Hasselin, his pantler, and assessor of the taxes at Paris, who had lately become brother-gossip to the king, on account of a daughter his wife had lately been brought to bed of, and to whom the king had been godfather by the proxy of the bishop of Evreux: the godmothers were mesdames de Bueil[9] and de Montglat[10]. The king made good cheer at this supper; and three handsome baths had been prepared for him, richly adorned, in the supposition that he would have taken his pleasure; but he declined doing so, because he had a cold, and because the season was not kindly.

At this time, a serious warfare broke out between the Liegeois and the duke of [Pg 46]Burgundy, in alliance with the bishop of Liege, cousin to the duke of Burgundy and brother to the duke of Bourbon, whom the Liegeois marched to besiege in the town of Huys[11]; and after having been long before it, they gained it,—but the bishop escaped. The king of France, in the mean time, ordered four hundred of his own lances to march to the aid of the Liegeois, under the command of the count de Dammartin, Salazart, Robert de Coniham[12], and Stevenot de Vignoles, together with six thousand franc-archers, taken from Champagne, the Soissonnois, and other parts of the Isle of France.

The duke of Burgundy, hearing of the success of the Liegeois, in the capture of Huys, and that they had killed many Burgundians, assembled his army, with the determination to destroy the whole [Pg 47]country of Liege with fire and sword, and he had it thus notified in his proclamations.

Those who published this notice held in one hand a naked sword, and in the other a burning torch, to signify, that the war about to commence was to be carried on with fire and sword.

In this month of September, the king gave his letters for the abolition of the pragmatic sanction[13] to a legate come from Rome for that purpose: which letters were read and published in the court of the Châtelet of Paris without any opposition. But when master John Balue, on the first of October, carried them, during the vacations, to the court of parliament to do the same, he found there[Pg 48] master John de St Romain, the king's attorney-general, who formerly opposed the effect and execution of these letters, which greatly displeased Balue; and he uttered many menaces against St Romain,—telling him, that the king would be much angered at his conduct, and remove him from his office.

M. de St Romain paid no great attention to his menaces, and replied, that as the king had given him his office, he would exercise it during the king's pleasure; and that when he should please he might displace him; but that he was determined to lose every thing sooner than consent to any act that was detrimental to his own conscience, to the crown, or to the public welfare. He told Balue, that he ought to be greatly ashamed for having brought forward and supported such a measure.

In consequence of this, the heads of the university waited on the legate, and appealed against these letters to a general council. They went thence to the court of Châtelet, where they made a similar appeal, and had their opposition enregistered.

[Pg 49]

The king sent this legate and the bishop of Evreux, who had lately been made cardinal[14] with master John Ladriesche, treasurer of France, and others, to the count de Charolois, to execute some commissions he had charged them with.

On the 8th of October, one called Swestre le Moyne, a native of Auxerre, having been imprisoned at Thiron[15], a long time for certain crimes, was this day drowned in the Seine, near the Grange aux Merciers, according to the sentence of sir Tristan de l'Hermite, provost of the marshals of the king's household.

Sunday the 11th, there was a prodigious storm of thunder and lightning, about eight o'clock at night, and before and after it the most extraordinary heat that had been ever felt at that season, which seemed to all persons very unnatural. The following day, the king went from his hôtel at the Tournelles, to hear vespers at Nôtre Dame,—after which, a procession [Pg 50]was made by the bishop and canons of that church, when the king retired to repose himself some time at the hôtel of his first president of the parliament, John Dauvet.

The king did not leave the president's house until dark night, when, looking up, he perceived a bright star over the hôtel, which followed the king until he had entered the hôtel of the Tournelles, when it disappeared, and was not seen again.

News came to the king, on Thursday the 15th of October, that a large body of Bretons, having gained possession of the town and castle of Caen, had thence marched to Bayeux, and held them both against the king, which vexed him much,—and he sent thither instantly the marshal le Lohéac, then with him, to take proper measures respecting these towns as he had under his charge one hundred lances from Brittany.

The duke of Alençon, who had been convicted of high treason during the reign of the late king, at a court of justice held at Vendôme, and of having practised with the English, the ancient enemies of[Pg 51] France, had been condemned, in consequence of his confessions, to death, saving the good pleasure of the king. His life had been spared, but he remained a close prisoner in the castle of Loches until the present king's accession, when he was fully pardoned, and all proceedings against him were annulled. It happened, that a lame man had been one of the principal evidences against this duke, and was much afraid of his revenge when set at liberty,—to avoid which, he presented himself before the king, and solicited to be taken under his protection. This the king promised, and personally commanded the duke no way to injure this man, his family or his fortune, as he was under his especial protection. The duke engaged to perform all the king wished; but he soon forgot his promises,—and, having had the lame man seized and brought before him, caused him instantly to be put to death. The wife of the murdered man appeared before the king, to make her loss known, and have redress for her injury; in consequence, the king seized on all the towns and lands of the duke,—but it was not long[Pg 52] before they were restored, and he was again pardoned. The duke, to show his gratitude for these repeated marks of favour, offered to give up his towns to the Bretons, and to the duke of Berry, in opposition to the interests of the king.

At this time, sir Anthony de Château-neuf, lord du Lau, grand butler of France, and seneschal of Guienne, who had been chamberlain to the king, and more beloved by him than any other courtier, who had amended his fortune by the king's service, to the amount of three or four hundred thousand golden crowns, had fallen into disgrace, and was confined in the castle of Sully sur Loire[16]; but in the month of October, the king sent sir Tristan de l'Hermite, and master Guillaume Cerisay, lately appointed griffier civil to the parliament, to take the lord du Lau from the prisons at Sully, and to carry him to the castle of Usson[17] in Auvergne. While they were thus transporting him, a report was [Pg 53]spread, and long continued, that the lord du Lau was drowned[18].

Tuesday, the 22d of October, the king left Paris to go into Normandy, and this night lay at Villepreux[19], and on the morrow at Mantes. Prior to his departure, he sent off such of his captains as were then near his person to collect the men under their command, and to follow him with them into Normandy or wherever else he might be. He also published an edict, to declare, that henceforth his pleasure was that all officers should remain in peaceable possession of their places, and that there should be no vacation, but by death, resignation, or confiscation; that should he, through importunities, grant any office contrary to this his declaration, he willed, that it should not be valid, but that strict and equal justice should be done to all.

From Mantes, he went to Vernon sur Seine, where he staid some time; [Pg 54]during which the constable there joined him, and found means to obtain from the king a truce for six months with the count de Charolois, without including the Liegeois, who had already made war against the count, in the expectation of being supported by the king, according to the promises he had made them, and they now found themselves quite abandoned by him. The constable returned to the duke of Burgundy with the intelligence of the truce being signed.

Soon after this, the cardinal of Evreux, and the others who had been sent by the king to Flanders, came to him at Vernon; and he thence went to Chartres, whither he sent for the greater part of his artillery from Orleans, that it might be transported to Alençon, and the other towns of which he wanted to gain the possession. The king again sent master John Prevost to Flanders, with a copy of the aforesaid truce to the duke of Burgundy.

On the 16th of November, the cardinal, the treasurer Ladriesche, master John Berart, and master Geoffry Alnequin, came to Paris to review their banners,[Pg 55] and to execute other commissions given them by the king.

The king left Chartres and went to Orleans, Clery, and other towns thereabouts, and thence to Vendôme and Mont St Michel, having a large train of artillery with him, and a great number of men at arms. During this time, the Bretons issued out in arms from their country, and gained Avranches and other towns in Normandy. They spread over the whole of that part of the country, as far as Caen, Bayeux and Coutances.

The duke of Burgundy, in consequence of the truce with France, wherein the Liegeois were not mentioned, entered that country unmolested,—when, finding that they had been deserted by the king, and that they should be destroyed, they surrendered all their towns to the count de Charolois, on condition of paying him a large sum of money, and having parts of the gates and walls of their towns pulled down.

The cardinal de Balue, and the other commissaries, proceeded in mustering the troops under the parisian banners, in different parts of that town, on the walls, between the gates of the Temple and St Martin within the Temple precincts, on the walls between the tower of wood and the gate of Saint Honoré, in front of the Louvre, and elsewhere.

The king had it proclaimed through Paris, on the 22d of November, that all who had been accustomed to bear arms and had been disbanded without receiving their pay, should appear before certain[Pg 57] commissioners whom he had ordered to settle their accounts, and to relist them for his service in the wars. On the 24th, master John Prevost returned to the king from the count de Charolois, to whom he had carried a copy of the truce, with the count's answer.

On the 26th, a general muster was made out of Paris, fronting the church and abbey of St Germain des Près, unto the river Seine, when great numbers appeared well equipped, both horse and foot. There were the treasurers of France, the counsellors and clerks of the exchequer, the masters of the mint, the officers of the treasury and of taxes, the assessors, the whole court of parliament, the practitioners in the court of the Châtelet: in all, a fine and numerous company. With the above companies were a great body of horse and foot under the standard and guidon of the Hôtel de Ville. The bishop, the heads of the university, the abbots, priors, and other churchmen of Paris, appeared there with a certain number of men, well armed and well appointed.

When these musters were over, the[Pg 58] cardinal, and the other commissaries, left Paris to wait on the king, who was between Mans and Alençon with a very great army, to oppose the further progress of the Bretons; for he was followed by more than one hundred thousand horse, and twenty thousand foot: he had also his train of artillery to besiege Alençon, or any other place, that should refuse him obedience. Truces were now in agitation, which kept the king's army idle, to the great destruction of the country for more than twenty or thirty leagues round Mans and Alençon, which was foraged by the troops.

The count de Charolois, having had complete success over the Liegeois, returned to St Quentin, and issued his summonses for all his vassals to appear there in arms on the 15th day of December, under heavy penalties. He also issued his orders throughout Burgundy, for all nobles, or others bearing arms, to appear before his commissioners at Montsavion, there to receive their pay, and to march from Montsavion on or before the 20th day of December for St Quentin, to aid[Pg 59] him in the support of his very dearly beloved brother the lord Charles of France and the duke of Brittany, against all their enemies and illwishers. Such was the substance of the proclamation. In consequence thereof, those merchants, and others, who had gone into Burgundy on their affairs, returned to Paris as speedily as they could. The count de Charolois issued fresh orders for all his troops to meet him at St Quentin the 4th day of January.

On Sunday, the feast of the holy Innocents, the duke of Bourbon was sent to Paris by the king, to place therein, as well as in other towns, sufficient garrisons to defend them against the Burgundians, and to prevent their making any inroads through the country. The marshal de Lohéac came with him, as it was said, to be lieutenant of Paris; but he departed, two days afterwards, for Rouen, and other towns in Normandy, to put them in a proper state of defence, and remained there some time. The duke of Bourbon staid at Paris, and was[Pg 60] feasted by all the chief persons in that town.

At this time, the town of Alençon was surrendered to the king by the count du Perche, son to the duke of Alençon, as he was in possession of the castle, though the Bretons had gained the town. The king, in the mean time, never quitted Mans; and while there, he sent the pope's legate before mentioned, with Anthony de Chabannes, count of Dammartin, the treasurer Ladriesche, and others, to the lord Charles in Brittany, to negotiate an accommodation.

The king, at length, consented to the assembly of the three estates; and the town of Tours was fixed on for their place of meeting, which was appointed for the first day of April.[20] The king now departed from Mans, and went to Montils les-Tours, Amboise, and other places in that neighbourhood, on account of the holding of the three estates at Tours. The king was present at their opening,—when,[Pg 61] after much discussion on the matters on account of which they were assembled, they were dissolved at Easter-day, in the year 1468. Each person now returned to his home.

There were present at this meeting, besides the king, the king of Sicily, the duke of Bourbon, the count du Perche, the patriarch of Jerusalem, the cardinal of Angers, and many great barons, archbishops, abbots, and deputies from all the different provinces and towns of France.

The question was agitated at this assembly respecting the appanage for the lord Charles, brother to the king,—and after mature deliberation, it was agreed, that he ought to be satisfied with landed property, having the title of duchy or marquisate, of twelve thousand livres tournois yearly rent; and that the king, in addition, should pay him an annual pension of sixty thousand livres, but without serving as a precedent for other children of France, who should hereafter descend from the crown, to demand a similar establishment, the king having granted so very large a sum as sixty thousand livres[Pg 62] from his brotherly affection and his wish for peace; that, in regard to the duchy of Normandy, the lord Charles could not have it, as it was not in the king's power to grant it by dismembering the crown.

Respecting the duke of Brittany, who detained the lord Charles in his duchy, and had taken by force some towns in France, and was suspected of holding intelligence with the English, the ancient enemies of France, it was determined by the three estates that he should be summoned to restore these said towns to the king; and should he refuse to do so, and should the king have certain information of his connexion with the English, he must recover them by force of arms, and attack the duke wherever he might meet him. The three estates promised to support him in these measures, namely, the churchmen with their prayers and temporal effects, and the nobles and commonalty with their lives and fortunes, unto death.

In regard to the want of due justice being administered throughout the realm, the king had a singular desire to accomplish[Pg 63] it, and was willing that sufficiently well informed persons should be elected from all ranks, to provide a remedy for any abuses, and establish order and equity. The three estates were of opinion, that the count de Charolois ought, from his near relation to the king of France, and as a peer of the realm, to exert himself manfully in these measures.

The king on the breaking up of the estates, went to Amboise, and thence sent an embassy to those assembled at Cambray, to know their resolutions in consequence of what had passed at the meeting at Tours.

On Monday, the 5th day of May, the lady Ambroise de Lore, widow of the late sir Robert d'Estouteville, provost of Paris, died about an hour after midnight, and was much lamented; for she was a noble, good, and modest lady,—and all decent, well behaved persons were honourably received at her house. This same day, about nine or ten at night, a mill at Paris, belonging to the prior of St Ladre, took fire, through the[Pg 65] carelessness of a scoundrel-servant, who had stuck his candle against the wall near his bed, which fell thereon and burnt the premises; but this servant escaped, and ran away like a fox.

A tournament was held, on the 15th of this month, in front of the king's hôtel at the Tournelles, by four gentlemen belonging to the company of the grand seneschal of Normandy, who had ordered the lists, and prepared the field. They had caused proclamation to be made, that they would there be ready to break three lances against all comers.

Many Parisians appeared at the lists, on the appointed day: the first was Jean Raguier, overseer of the salt-magazines at Soissons, treasurer of the army in Normandy, and son to master Anthony Raguier, counsellor and treasurer of the king's armies. John Raguier arrived in great haste from Rouen, to be ready for this tournament, and came late in the evening of the day to St Ladre, attended by many gentlemen of the company of Joachim Rohault, marshal of France, and others, to the number of twenty horse.[Pg 66] He remained secretly, and without noise at St Ladre, until the morrow, when his companions conducted him, with the sound of trumpets and clarions, to the lists. He was attended by four footmen, dressed in liveries, who kept close to the side of the courser he rode, ready to serve him and hold his lance. His companions were all uniformly dressed in handsome hoods, embroidered with great letters of gold.

He made several circuits of the lists before the other champions appeared, and behaved gallantly against them,—for he broke five lances, and would have done more, had the judges of the field permitted it. When he had so honourably performed his courses, he paraded round the lists, thanking the ladies and damsels for their presence, and taking his leave of the judges,—from all of whom he acquired much praise.

He was succeeded by an assessor of Paris, called Marc Senamy, and two sons of sir John Sanguin, who all acquitted themselves with courage and address, but did not gain equal praises with their[Pg 67] predecessor. Then came Charles de Louviers, cup-bearer to the king, who carried himself with such gallantry and vigour that he broke several lances, and the prize of the day was adjudged to him. The four champions remained much bruised: two of them carried their arms in scarfs, and another had his hand badly wounded below his gauntlet,—so that the honour of the day belonged to the Parisians.

On the preceding Sunday, the 8th of May, another tournament was performed at Bruges before the duke of Burgundy with great triumph; and there another Parisian, called Jerom of Cambray, attached to the service of the duke, tilted, and carried away the prize[21].

When the tiltings were over at Paris the king left Amboise for that city, bringing with him the lords of Bourbon, of Lyon, of Beaujeu, and other great[Pg 68] barons. He made some stay at Lagny sur Marne, Meaux, and other places in that neighbourhood. On the day of Ascension was an earthquake felt at Tours, Amboise, and in divers parts of Touraine. During the king's stay at Lagny and Meaux, he had his summons proclaimed in Paris, for all nobles and others to be prepared on the eighth day, in arms, to march whithersoever they should be ordered, under the severest penalties.

While he remained at Meaux, a man from the Bourbonnois was there beheaded, on the 27th day of June, for having revealed the king's secrets to his ancient enemies the English. Prior to this, the king had sent the prince of Piedmont, son to the duke of Savoy to Paris, to kindle a bonfire at the Greve, and to set at liberty all who were confined in the prisons of the parliament, the Châtelet, and elsewhere.

About this time, Charles de Melun, a man at arms in the company of the lord admiral, having been made governor of the castle of Usson in Auvergne, had the guard of the person of the lord du[Pg 69] Lau intrusted to him on pain of his life. But this lord made his escape, to the great vexation of the king, who, in consequence, had Charles de Melun confined in the castle of Loches, and afterwards beheaded there for his negligence. A youth called Remmonet, the son of Melun's wife, was also beheaded at Tours for this escape,—and the king's attorney at Usson suffered a similar fate at Meaux for the same cause. The king, on leaving Meaux, went to Senlis, and thence to Creil.

The Burgundians and Bretons still kept possession of Normandy, and one day took prisoner the lord de Merville—which town of Merville is situated between St Sauveur sur Dive and Caen—and forced him to surrender the place, in which was a body of franc-archers. The instant they entered the town, they murdered all they found, hung the lord de Merville, and, having completely pillaged the houses and castle, set the whole on fire.

The king went from Creil to Compiégne, where he made some stay, and then returned to Senlis. The duke of[Pg 70] Burgundy came from Senlis to Paris on the feast of the Assumption of our Lady but the king, before his departure, had sent the lord of Lyon and the lord constable to the duke of Burgundy, to negotiate terms of peace between them.

The king, however, did not fail to order his army into Normandy, under the command of the lord admiral. He was so diligent that in less than a month he drove away the Bretons who had possessed themselves of Bayeux.

On Saturday the 20th of August, sir Charles de Melun lord of Normanville, and lately grand master of the household, who had been imprisoned at the castle of Gaillard[22], under the guard of the count de Dammartin, was tried before the provost of the marshals, for the crimes he was accused of, and was this day taken out of prison, carried to the market-place of Andeli[23], and there publicly beheaded.

[Pg 71]

The king remained at Noyon, Compiègne, Chauny, and other places thereabout, until the 15th of September, when news was brought him that the lord Charles his brother and the duke of Brittany were become good friends and well-wishers to his person; that the lord Charles was willing to accept of the annual pension of sixty thousand francs, and such an appanage as those lords whom he would fix upon as his arbitrators should agree to. His arbitrators were the duke of Calabria and the constable of France.

The duke of Brittany offered to restore to the king the towns his men held in Normandy, if those the king had possession of in Brittany were given in exchange, which was agreed to by the king.[Pg 72] Information of this was sent to the duke of Burgundy then with his army near to Peronne, between Eclusiers and Cappy on the river Somme; but he was unwilling to believe it, until it was confirmed by the lord Charles and the duke of Brittany. And although this reconciliation was afterward certified to him by the herald of the duke of Brittany, he would not disband his army, but marched it to a strong position on the Somme between Eclusiers and Cappy le Doz, which he made stronger by outworks.

During this time, different embassies were sent by the king to the duke of Burgundy by the lord constable, the cardinal of Angers, master Pierre d'Oriole, and others, to negotiate a pacification, which the king was greatly desirous of,—although his captains were of a different opinion, and required of the king to allow them to act, and they would deliver the duke and his whole army into his hands; but this he would never permit,—and even forbade any hostile acts, on pain of death. On the 12th of October, it was publicly known that a truce until[Pg 73] the ensuing month of April had been concluded between them, and that the king, in consequence, had determined to go to Creil and Pontoise, whither he had sent his harbingers; but he afterwards changed his mind, and returned in haste from Compiègne to Noyon, which he had just left.

In this interval, Philip de Savoye, Poncet de Riviere, lord Dulsé, the lord du Lau, with others who had joined them, did very great mischiefs to the country they had overrun. In consequence, a proclamation was made in Paris on the 8th day of October, for all the nobles and other vassals within the provostship and viscounty of Paris, to muster in arms at Gonesse on the Monday following, and be ready to march where-ever they should be ordered. This proclamation greatly alarmed the Parisians, for fear the reports of a truce should prove unfounded.

The king hearing that the duke of Burgundy was gone to Peronne, left Noyon in a hurry to meet him there. He was accompanied by few persons,[Pg 74] having with him only the cardinal of Angers, some few of his household, the duke of Bourbon, and others. Thus privately did he go to Peronne, to the duke of Burgundy, who received him, as he was bound to do, with much respect. They were long in private conversation, and seemed so perfectly satisfied with each other, notwithstanding what had passed before, that a peace was agreed on between them. The duke of Burgundy swore that henceforward he would never do any thing contrary to the king's will, and that he would remain his faithful servant and subject until death.

In concluding this peace, the king confirmed the treaty of Arras,—and other private articles were agreed on, as the king afterwards advertised his nobles, churchmen, court of parliament at Paris, and populace, for which great rejoicings were made, with general processions, and singing of 'Te Deum laudamus,' and other praises to God. Bonfires were made and tables laid out in all the streets for whoever chose to eat or drink.

While this was passing, news came[Pg 75] that the Liegeois had made prisoner and put to death their bishop, with all his officers,—which much angered the king, the dukes of Burgundy and Bourbon, and others of his brothers. This was followed by the intelligence that the duke of Burgundy was preparing to march against them in person to punish them. Immediately different news was brought, namely, that the bishop was neither put to death nor a prisoner, but that the Liegeois had constrained him to chaunt at mass; that ever since they had been well pleased with him, and acknowledged him for their true lord, promising him all obedience in hopes by this conduct to efface from his mind their former behaviour to him.

At this time, the king of France went on a pilgrimage to our Lady at Halle, where he did not remain long. Philip de Savoye and others who had accompanied him made their peace with the king, through the mediation of the duke of Burgundy. When he had performed his pilgrimage at Halle, he went to meet the duke of Burgundy at Namur, and determined to accompany him in his[Pg 77] war against Liege, during which he was lodged for some time in the suburbs of that city. With the king was the duke of Bourbon, the archbishop of Lyon, the lord of Beaujeu and the bishop of Liege, all brothers. The bishop had come out of the town, to endeavour to bring about an accommodation, on the part of the inhabitants, with the duke of Burgundy.

His offers were, to surrender the town, with all its effects, on condition that the inhabitants should have liberty to retire whither they pleased unmolested. The duke not only refused these terms, but swore that he and his army should perish sooner than not have the town and its inhabitants at his pleasure to do by as should to him seem good. He would not suffer the bishop to return, but detained him in his camp, although he had given his word to come back to Liege and live and die there.

Soon after the departure of the bishop from their city, and when they knew that he was prevented from returning, the Liegeois made several sallies on the king's and duke's quarters,—but when any of them were taken, they were instantly put[Pg 78] to death. In spite, however, of all their efforts, the duke of Burgundy gave orders for a general attack on the city between eight and nine in the morning of the 30th day of October, when the Burgundians and the king's troops entered the town without resistance; for the better part of the inhabitants, hearing of the intended attack, had fled, leaving behind only the populace,—women, children, old men and monks, who were indiscriminately killed,—and every violence was displayed as usual in a town taken by storm. Many young women and girls were violated, and afterwards murdered. Although the king, the dukes of Burgundy and of Bourbon, the archbishop of Lyon, the bishop of Liege, and the lord of Beaujeu had entered the city, the greatest and most cruel disorders were continued,—such as forcing convents, killing of children, and priests even while officiating at their altars. When they had satisfied themselves in plundering the churches and houses, they set them on fire, and threw down the walls into the ditches.

When this business was done, the king[Pg 79] returned to Senlis and Compiègne, whither he summoned his courts of parliament and of the exchequer, and others of his council, to whom he gave different instructions; and as he did not intend to stay there long, he ordered the cardinal of Angers to explain to them the treaty he had concluded with the duke of Burgundy, consisting of forty-two articles, which the cardinal specified unto them; telling them from the king, that it was his royal will that each article in the aforesaid treaty should be most punctually observed, and that it should be enregistered without delay or difficulty, under the severest penalties for disobedience.

The king left Compiègne, and stopped at different places near Paris, without inclining to enter that city. Several of his great lords, such as the duke of Bourbon, his brothers the archbishop of Lyon, the lord of Beaujeu, the marquis du Pont, and others, kept him company.

On Saturday, the 19th of November, the treaty concluded with the duke of Burgundy was publicly proclaimed by sound of trumpets throughout Paris; and all persons[Pg 80] were forbidden to publish any thing abusive of the said duke, whether by words, writings, signs, paintings, rondels, ballads, defamatory libels, pantomimic songs, or otherwise, in respect to past circumstances; for that all who should act contrary to this prohibition would be most severely punished for their boldness, as was more particularly explained in the body of the proclamation.

This same day by virtue of a commission from the king addressed to a youth in Paris, called Henry Perdriel, all the tame magpies, jays, jackdaws, and other birds, whether in cages or not, were seized and carried before the king[25]. The places whence they had been taken were registered, as well as all the words they had been taught to speak, such as 'thief—lecher—son of a whore—get away—get away—Perette, give me some drink,' with many other such like expressions.

[Pg 81]

By another order from the king, addressed to Merlin de Cordeboeuf, he was empowered to collect all the stags, hinds, cranes, and other game he could lay hands on, and have them conveyed to Amboise.

The count de Foix arrived at Paris in the month of December following; and while there fell most desperately in love with a very handsome woman, Estiennette de Besançon, the wife of a rich merchant, called Henry of Paris. This dame was much prized and courted by all the respectable ladies of the town, and was invited to the different banquets and entertainments then given at Paris, where she entered into joyous and amorous discourses with the count de Foix. In consequence of proposals and splendid offers made by him, it was agreed on between them, that she should quit her husband's house at Paris the 12th day of that month, and abandon her husband, children, father, mother, brothers and sisters, her relations and friends. Thus foolishly seduced, she went away after the count de Foix with some of his attendants that had been left behind in Paris for the purpose, who conducted her to their[Pg 82] lord, then waiting for her coming, at Blois. Having passed three days with her at Blois, the count went to Tours, to wait on the king, having Estiennette in his company. She was well received at Tours by her uncle Martin Ponchier, a rich burgher; but within a short time she was sent to her aunt, the prioress of the convent of Fontevral, where she was long detained.

The king now fixed his residence at Tours, Amboise, and at other places in that part of his kingdom, waiting for the delivery of the queen, as it was said she was with child,—but it was not so. During this period, he appointed a certain number of lances from his establishment, to march to Arragon, to assist the duke of Calabria in the recovery of his kingdom. With these lances, eight thousand franc-archers and a large train of artillery were ordered on the same service,—but none of them took the field, although such orders had been issued.

In the month of February, ambassadors came to Paris from the duke of Burgundy, for the completion of the articles of the late treaty of peace. The[Pg 83] king sent instant and pressing orders to the provosts, sheriffs, and nobles in Paris, to shew every attention, by entertainments, and otherwise, to these ambassadors, which was done handsomely and abundantly. The first feast was given by the cardinal of Angers; the second, by the first president of the parliament; the third, by master John de Ladriesche, president of the chamber of accounts and treasurer of France; the fourth, by the lord de Mery; the fifth and last, by the provost and burghers of the city, which was plentiful and magnificent. During these entertainments, all their papers were expedited through the courts of law, according to the orders before given by the king.

On Thursday, the 16th of February, Charlot le Tonnellier, surnamed La Hotte, a journeyman hosier living at Paris, was confined in the Châtelet for divers thefts he was charged with. He denied his guilt, and was ordered by the provost of Paris, and the crown-officers at the Châtelet, to be put on his trial. He appealed, and by arrest of judgement, was remanded by the provost; but as he was passing from[Pg 84] his cell to the chamber of torture, he caught up a knife that lay in his way and cut out his tongue. He was, therefore, led back again, without any thing more being done on that day.

At this time, some of the dykes in Holland and Zealand that had been constructed against the sea broke down, and caused so great an inundation in the countries of the duke of Burgundy that many towns and places were utterly destroyed. The damages were said to be much more considerable than what the duke, in his fury, had inflicted on Liege.

When Charlot le Tonnellier was cured of the wounds he had inflicted on himself by cutting out his tongue, he was again brought to the torture-chamber, because he would not confess his guilt. Having been for some time seated on the stool of torture, he said he would confess the truth, and then told the whole history of his life, and the great number of thefts that he had committed. He accused many as his accomplices, and in the number his own brother surnamed Le Gendarme, a locksmith, a silversmith,[Pg 85] a sergeant fieffé[26] named Pierre Moynet, and others, who were all immediately arrested, examined, and confronted with Charlot. Having confessed their guilt, on Tuesday in Passion-week, La Hotte, his brother, the sergeant, the locksmith, a shearman, and an old cloaths man called Martin de Coulogne, were ordered to be hanged on the gibbet at Paris by sentence of the provost of Paris.

They appealed to the parliament against his judgement, and the court confirmed the sentence in regard to four of them, namely, La Hotte, his brother, the shearman, and the locksmith, who were on the following day executed. The two others, namely, the old cloaths man and the sergeant, were detained in prison until after the feast of Easter, when the old cloaths man was given up to the provost, and executed on the eve of Low Sunday.

On Good Friday of this year was much thunder and lightning, which alarmed[Pg 86] many persons, from the old saying, 'that none should say, Alas! if thunder be not heard in March.'

CHAP. X.

The cardinal of Angers, John Balue, who had within a short time received so much wealth and so many honours from the king, by whose recommendation the pope[Pg 87] had created him a cardinal, and for whom the king had done more than for any prince of his blood, having unbounded confidence in him,—this cardinal, forgetful of his God, and unmindful of the honour and profit of the king and kingdom, induced the king to go to Peronne, where he was, through intelligence from the cardinal, joined by the duke of Burgundy; and he there established some sort of a peace, which they mutually swore in his hands to observe. He then prevailed on the king to accompany the duke in his attack on Liege, although that city had risen in arms against the duke through the instigations and promises of the king. The consequence was, the slaughter and destruction of the Liegeois, as has been told. But the worst was, that the king, the duke of Bourbon, and his three brothers, with many of the great lords of France, were in the utmost danger of being slain, which would have been the greatest disgrace France could suffer since its becoming a monarchy.

When the king was returning to Tours, the cardinal prevented him from[Pg 88] entering his good city of Paris, and made him take a circuit of two miles, thinking to make the king believe that Paris was ill inclined towards him, and thereby to excite the king's anger against it.

During the king's residence at Tours and Angers, he satisfied his brother in respect to his appanage, by giving him the duchy of Guienne, and other things, which greatly pleased him. But the cardinal, observing the good understanding that now subsisted between the brothers, attempted again to throw the kingdom into the same confusion he had done before, and to excite a quarrel between the king and the princes of the blood. For this purpose, he sent an especial messenger to the duke of Burgundy with full accounts of all that had passed between the king and the new duke of Guienne, giving him to understand that their present union was grounded solely on his ruin,—and that, so soon as they could collect a sufficient force, they would invade his territories on all sides. He advised, that in order to be beforehand with them, he should assemble the greatest army he possibly[Pg 89] could, and lose no time in declaring war against France. He added a number of other treasonable plans, which he had written and sent by one of his servants to the duke of Burgundy; but his messenger was arrested on the road with all these papers, which were instantly laid before the king.

The moment their contents had been read, the cardinal was arrested and carried prisoner to Montbason[27], where he was left under the guard of monsieur de Torcy and others. All his effects and plate were next seized on for the king, after an inventory had been made of them,—and commissioners were appointed to examine him on the crimes laid to his charge. These were sir Tanneguy du Châtel, governor of Roussillon, sir William Cousinot, the lord de Torcy, and master Pierre d'Oriole, superintendant of the finances, who immediately began to interrogate him on the different charges.

The king made a distribution of the cardinal's effects according to his good[Pg 90] pleasure. His plate was sold, and the amount sent to the treasurers of the army for the king's use. His tapestry was given to the governor of Roussillon: his library to master Pierre d'Oriole; and a fine entire piece of cloth of gold, twenty four ells and a quarter in length, well worth twelve hundred crowns, a quantity of sable furs, with a piece of scarlet cloth from Florence, were given to monsieur de Crussol,—and his wardrobe with some of his furniture were sold to defray the expenses of the commission, and of those who had made the inventory.

About this time, the king and queen of Sicily visited the king at Tours and Amboise, where they were very honourably received by him; after which, the king, accompanied by the duke of Bourbon and other lords, went toward Niort, La Rochelle, and divers parts thereabout, where they met the duke of Guienne,—and, through the blessing of God, and the holy Virgin, the two brothers were completely reconciled, to the great joy of the whole realm. Te Deum was sung for this event, in all the churches; bonfires[Pg 91] were made in the streets, and tables laid out for passengers in all the great towns.

The king returned to the queen at Amboise, who, like a good and noble lady, had exerted herself much in bringing about this happy reconciliation,—and may the Lord, out of his grace, long preserve it! It was now deliberated and determined on by the king in council, to make a conquest of the county of Armagnac, and to give it to the duke of Guienne. To accomplish this, a large train of artillery men at arms and franc-archers, were ordered to march thither; and the king left Amboise for Orleans, where he remained five or six days, and then returned to Amboise. A short time after, these measures had been resolved on, monsieur de Châtillon, grand master, and inspector general of woods and forests, came to Paris, to muster and review the banners, officers and men, that had been enrolled within that city.

On Saturday, the 4th of November in this year, the peace that had been concluded between the kings of France and Spain was proclaimed in Paris,—and[Pg 92] the treaty was publicly read by master John le Cornu, clerk to the provostship of Paris, in the presence of the civil and criminal lieutenants of the said provostship, and the officers of justice attached to the court of the Châtelet. The king after this, resided at Amboise, and other places near, having with him the lord de Bourbon and his usual courtiers, until the 24th of December, when the duke of Guienne arrived at Montils-les-Tours, to wait on the king, attended by a grand company of the nobles of his duchy. The king, queen, and the whole court, were much rejoiced at his arrival, and set off instantly from Amboise, to welcome and entertain the duke at Montils-les-Tours. During this interval, the county of Armagnac was reduced to the king's obedience without any effusion of blood,—and the whole surrendered into the hands of the lord admiral and the count de Dammartin, the commanders in chief of the royal army. The court of France remained with the duke de Guienne at the castle of Montils-les Tours until Christmas, when many feasts and entertainments were given by the king.

[Pg 93]

The duke of Guienne, having taken leave of the king and court departed for La Rochelle and St Jean d'Angeli to hold his estates, to appoint officers for his duchy, and to regulate the government thereof.

When the king was returned again to Amboise, he sent ambassadors to the duke of Brittany with the collar of an order[28] which he had lately instituted, that he might wear it, and swear to the observance of its laws as a knight-companion, as other princes and barons of the realm had done. But although the king did him this honour, at first he refused to accept or wear it,—owing, as was said, to his having accepted the order of the Golden Fleece, and thus becoming the brother and ally to the duke of Burgundy, which much offended the king, and not without reason[29].

Shortly after, the king issued orders for an army of men at arms, archers [Pg 94]and artillery, to be ready to march and make war on the duke of Brittany; but ten days were first allowed the duke, to declare his future intentions, as to his conduct toward the king,—and the 15th of February was the day on which he was to give his positive answer.

On the 14th of that month, a summons from the king, signed 'William de Cerisay,' was published in Paris, by which the king informed the provost, that from certain intelligence he had learnt how king Edward of England had established a peace with all the lords and others who had opposed his government,—and that it had been unanimously resolved in parliament to invade different parts of the French coast, to destroy and conquer the country as they had formerly done: that the king, in consequence, was determined to oppose them by every means in his power, and had ordered his ban and rear ban to be assembled.

He commanded the provost, by these presents, to constrain vigorously, without admittance of excuse, all nobles and others, vassals of the crown, privileged or not,[Pg 95] to appear in arms, and sufficiently equipped, on the first day of March next, on pain of corporal punishment and confiscation of effects. He likewise forbade the provost and all others to receive any excuses, under penalty of losing their offices, with confiscation of effects, any appeals to the contrary notwithstanding. He also declared all such as should fail to make their appearance in arms on the appointed day enemies to his crown, and that their effects should be confiscated, without hopes of pardon.

News was this day brought to Paris, that the duke of Burgundy had been seen, at Ghent, wearing the blue garter[30] on one of his legs, and the red cross on his mantle, the badge of king Edward, which plainly demonstrated his friendship to the English, and that he was a capital enemy to the king of France. The duke, however, sent ambassadors to the king at Tours, who waited there a long time before they were dismissed.—At this[Pg 96] time, the viscount of Villars[31], in Poitou, departed this life: he had, while living, left his fortune to the king of France, to be enjoyed by him immediately on his decease. The king, therefore, went into Poitou, to receive possession of Villars and the other property, and on this account remained there the whole month of April.

In this month master Pierre Durand, nephew to the cardinal Balue, who had been long confined in the castle of Mailly, escaped from prison, and went to Paris, where he was discovered by an apothecary called Chambatin. He was again arrested, and confined in the prison of the Conciergerie of the palais-royal, wherein he remained until the 20th day of April, in the ensuing year, and was then delivered into the hands of the sergeants of the provost of the marshals, to be carried whither they had been ordered.

CHAP. XI.

In the month of May in this year, the earl of Warwick and the duke of Clarence,[Pg 98] whom king Edward had forced to banish themselves, and their families from England, arrived at Honnefleur and Harfleur, with about four score vessels. They found there the lord admiral of France, who received the earl of Warwick, the duke of Clarence, and the count de Vuasanfort[32], and their ladies with every respect. Their vessels were admitted in the harbours; and after a short time, the ladies, with their trains, departed, and went to Valognes, where lodgings had been provided for them.

The duke of Burgundy, hearing of this, wrote to the court of parliament at Paris, to say, that he had received intelligence of the king having admitted the earl of Warwick and his company into some of his towns within the duchy of Normandy contrary to the articles of the treaty of Peronne; and to entreat that the parliament would remonstrate with the king on this subject, to prevent him from favouring the said Warwick and his party, whom he styled his capital[Pg 99] enemy, as well as the enemy of the realm of France,—otherwise he would seek him wherever he could find him, in the kingdom of France, to do with him as should seem to him good.

Nevertheless the earl of Warwick remained some time at Honnefleur, namely, the whole of the month of June,—and during this, several of the king's garrisons made frequent sallies on the borders of Normandy and Picardy, and wasted the country.—In this same month two men at arms under the command of the constable waylaid and murdered two young clerks of the treasurer of the army, in the plains of Beauce, to rob them of the money they were carrying to the troops. Shortly after they were taken at Honnefleur, and carried before the constable at Meaux, who had them hanged on two trees that were by the side of two different roads.

The king all this while resided at Tours, Amboise, Vendôme, and at divers places in that country, whither the English came to him, as did queen Margaret and her son the prince of Wales. They[Pg 100] had many conferences on the causes of their having left England, and on public affairs,—after which, the English returned to Honnefleur, Valognes, St Lo, and other towns in Normandy. The duke of Burgundy, in the mean time, had all the effects of the french merchants in his countries seized, until his own merchants should have restitution made them for the vessels and goods which these English had captured on their voyage to Harfleur.

On Saturday, the last day of June about two or three in the morning the queen of France was brought to bed in the castle of Amboise, of a fair son, who was then baptised by the name of Charles by the archbishop of Lyon, who was his godfather with the prince of Wales, son to king Henry VI. which latter was then detained a prisoner by Edward, calling himself king of England: his godmother was the princess Jeanne of France, duchess of Bourbon. This event was celebrated by Te Deums sung in most of the churches, by bonfires, and public tables in all the streets of the principal towns.

[Pg 101]

Not long after this, the king of Sicily, the duke of Guienne, the duke of Bourbon, the archbishop of Lyon, the lord de Beaujeu, and others went to Angers, Saumur, Pont de Cé, and other places near, to negotiate a pacification between the king and the duke of Brittany,—and they remained until it was accomplished. The king having signed the treaty, returned to the queen at Amboise. Ambassadors were, in consequence of this peace, sent by the duke of Brittany to the duke of Burgundy, to deliver up and cancel the alliance that subsisted between them, which greatly vexed the duke of Burgundy, especially on hearing the good understanding and union that reigned between the duke of Brittany and the king.

The duke of Burgundy hearing that the earl of Warwick was preparing to sail for England, instantly ordered a fleet of ships of war, full of artillery, and manned with English, Picards, Burgundians, and others, to cruize in the channel to intercept him. They sailed close to the norman coast in hopes of falling in[Pg 102] with the earl, and there remained at anchor a considerable time,—during which the king was gone on a pilgrimage to Mont Saint Michael.

Having performed his devotions, he returned to Avranches, Tombelaine[33], Coutances, Caen and Honnefleur; and while on the coast, he ordered the ships Lord Admiral, the Colon, and others, to be victualled, on board of which the earl of Warwick and the duke of Clarence embarked with their company, and a body of franc-archers and men at arms which the king had given them as an escort, and for their defence. On their embarking, they weighed anchor, and set sail in sight of the Burgundians, who had been at anchor, so long without doing any thing but expend all their provision, which forced them to weigh also, and return to their duke with hungry stomachs. This was matter of joy to the king, for they had lost much time in inactivity,—and the victualling[Pg 103] and manning of this fleet had been very expensive.

The wind proving favourable to the french fleet, it soon arrived off the english coast,—and the earl of Warwick and his company landed, during the night at Plymouth and Dartmouth. Warwick, on his landing, instantly dispatched a party of his men ten miles up the country to seize an english baron, who was quietly sleeping in his bed, unsuspicious of this invasion. They brought him to Warwick who ordered him to be immediately beheaded. From Dartmouth, Warwick marched to Bristol, where he was well received,—for it was there he had left his artillery and baggage when he fled to Normandy. When he had remained there about three days, to collect his friends together, he found himself at the head of about sixty thousand men in arms who promised to stand by him until death, and with them he began his march to meet king Edward; but it was more than fifteen days after his landing in England before any intelligence from him reached France.

[Pg 104]

In this interval, the lord d'Argueil son to the prince of Orange[34], who was of the household of the duke of Burgundy, and one of his nearest relatives, having married the sister of the duke of Bourbon, suddenly quitted the service of the duke of Burgundy, and joined the king, who received him with much distinction. The duke, when he heard of his departure, was ready to burst with grief and vexation; and declared, in the presence of the ambassadors from Brittany, that the lord d'Argueil should have all the property he possessed in his territories confiscated,—and he afterwards had all his castles within his dominions razed to the ground.

The king on the 14th of October, sent letters-patent to Paris, which were read and published in all the squares, in the presence of the lieutenants of the provostship of Paris. They contained information of the treaty of peace which he had concluded with Henry VI. of[Pg 105] England, and orders for the admission of all the English of his party into France on their private affairs, or commercial transactions, with or without passports,—but to the exclusion of all who supported the late king Edward IV. his allies and abettors.

This day, news arrived in France, that the duke of Clarence and the earl of Warwick prospered greatly in their enterprises; that they had taken the field in pursuit of Edward,—and that the greater part of the nobles, prelates and gentlemen of England, had joined them, more especially the populace of London, who had gone out to meet Warwick, having turned their backs on Edward; that king Henry, who had been so long detained in confinement by Edward, was fully restored to liberty and to his crown,—that Warwick had been appointed regent of the kingdom,—and that great rejoicings had taken place in London. All the french prisoners were sent home free of ransom; but Warwick had seized on the persons and effects of those who were subjects to the duke of Burgundy. And[Pg 106] the intelligence concluded by saying, that Edward, finding himself thus abandoned, had fled the kingdom, to seek an asylum with his brother in law the duke of Burgundy,—but that his wife and family had remained behind.

The king of France, having made a long stay at Tours and Amboise, moved by devotion, went on a pilgrimage to the church of our Lady at Celles, in Poitou,—whence after a few days, he returned to Amboise.

In the month of November, the king sent letters to Paris, to order all the nobles, clergy, and inhabitants of that city, to make processions in praise of God and the virgin Mary, and to continue them, laying aside all other employments whatever, for three days, to return thanks for the great victory which Henry of Lancaster, king of England, had gained over the earl of March, who had, for a long time usurped his throne, by the support of the duke of Burgundy, and, also, for the happy peace and good understanding that now subsisted between him and the king of England. These processions,[Pg 107] thus ordered, were executed in all the principal towns of France.

Shortly after, he dispatched other letters to Paris, to say, that he should send thither the queen of England, consort to king Henry, with her son the prince of Wales, his princess, daughter to the earl of Warwick, and her mother the countess of Warwick, the lady Wiltshire, and other ladies and damsels that were with the queen of England.

Queen Margaret came thither as the king had given notice, attended, according to his orders, by the counts d'Eu, de Vendôme, and de Dunois, the lord de Châtillon and other noblemen. When she approached Paris, the bishop, the court of parliament, the university, the provosts of Paris, and the court of Châtelet, by express orders from the king, together with the principal inhabitants, came out to meet her, handsomely dressed, and in very numerous bodies.

She made her entry by the gate of St James,—and all the streets through which she passed from that gate to the palace, where apartments had been handsomely[Pg 108] prepared for her, were adorned with hangings of tapestry, and had tents pitched in all the squares. At this time the royal artillery was removed from Tours to the Louvre, wherein it was deposited,—and the king wrote to the provost and sheriffs, that it was his pleasure to hold the feast of his order in their city: having the intention to bring a large company of nobles and knights-companions with him, he willed that lodgings should be provided for them by the inhabitants, according to the choice of his harbingers which was complied with.

In the month of December of this year, sir Arthur de Longueval entered the town of St Quentin, in the name of the king, with the consent of the inhabitants. Afterward, on the 10th day of that month, the constable came thither with two hundred lances and archers; and on the 14th, master John Ladriesche, treasurer of France, master Robert Fessier, master Pierre de Boieuval, and other officers attached to the constable, made a proclamation by sound of trumpet, at the table of marble, in the palace at Paris,[Pg 109] to make known the capture of the town of St Quentin, in the Vermandois, by the lord constable, and ordering the public to return thanks to God, praying him to grant prosperity to the king and to the constable, in the recovery of the other pledged towns, which he intended to wrest from the hands of Charles, styling himself duke of Burgundy: such were the words of the proclamation.

The king left Amboise, in the month of January, for Clery and Orleans, and thence went into Beauce. He lay the first night at Puiset[35], and on the morrow at Palaiseau, near Montlehery. The next day, he dined at Seaux, at the house of master John Baillet, master in ordinary of requests of the king's household, and that evening came to his hôtel of the Tournelles at Paris. He was accompanied by the queen, madam de Bourbon, and other ladies and damsels, their attendants, and remained in Paris until the 26th of January, when he set out for Senlis, Compiégne, and other places[Pg 110] thereabout, where his army was quartered, in readiness to march against the duke of Burgundy. His artillery was sent after him, by land and water, to Compiégne, Noyon, and other parts of Picardy and Flanders. Proclamation was also made in Paris, that all franc-archers and nobles, in the Isle of France, should make themselves ready, and, properly equipped, to follow the king to the army. In the mean time, great quantities of powder and cannons were made and constructed at Paris.

Before the king joined his army, he sent sir Christopher Paillard, member of the chamber of accounts, and sir James Hesselin, comptroller of the salt magazines at Paris, to the town of Auxerre, to summon the inhabitants to surrender the place to the king, and admit a garrison from him. These commissioners made them an eloquent harangue; but they required time for consulting among themselves, and until the Thursday following to give their answer. To wait their answer, the commissioners went to the town of Joigny, six leagues distant, where they staid until[Pg 111] the Thursday, when the townsmen sent them their answer by an inhabitant of Auxerre, said to be a cobbler, who told them, that the inhabitants of Auxerre had garrisoned their town with a steady garrison for the duke of Burgundy, as they were resolved to live and die in his service, and to defend their town for him. The day the duke's garrison was admitted, one of the townsmen, called Guillemin Goutier was killed,—which was a pity, for he suffered from supporting the cause of the king.

On the king's departure from Paris for Senlis, the towns of Amiens, Roye and Mondidier, surrendered to his obedience. The 4th of February, general processions were made at Paris, at which the queen, madame de Bourbon, and the court assisted, to the cathedral church of Nôtre Dame, and thence to our Lady of Recovery at the Carmelites. At both places prayers were offered up for the prosperity of the king and queen.

It was now published, that the three before-mentioned towns had submitted to the king's obedience, to which Abbeville was added,—but this was groundless. Masons, carpenters, and various[Pg 112] other workmen, were now collected at Paris, and sent to the towns that had surrendered, under the care of master Henry de la Cloche, king's attorney at the Châtelet, a good and loyal Frenchman, who conducted them to Roye, where they erected strong outworks and bulwarks, as well as at the other towns. These workmen remained in those parts a considerable time, even unto Easter, when the king agreed to a truce with the duke of Burgundy. The duke had been besieged in his encampment between Bapaumes and Amiens, and was in such misery and distress for provision that, had it not been for the truce, the king might have had his whole army at his pleasure.

Since the commencement of this war, the king had been very successful in his different engagements with the Picards and Flemings, as well against the foraging party from the enemy's camp as against others of the burgundian party. Great damages had been done in the duchy of Burgundy, the county of Charolois, and in the Mâconnois, where the[Pg 113] royal partisans gained much plunder, made many good prisoners, and slew numbers. The lords count-dauphin of Auvergne, of Comminges, of Combrodes, of Charente, sir William Cousinot, and several others of the nobility, would have conquered the whole country had not the king sent to stop them on account of the truce, which was very displeasing to them as well as to many more who had a regard for the king's honour. On this occasion several libels were written and placed in the churchyard of the holy Innocents at Paris and on the town-house, greatly blaming and abusing many of the lords about the king's person.

During the truce, the king, the duke of Guienne, and others of the nobility fixed their quarters at Ham with the constable, whence there were great goings and comings between the ambassadors of the king and those from the duke of Burgundy. Nothing, for a long time, was concluded on; but at length, a truce for one year was signed,—during which, commissioners were to be appointed on each side, to examine into the matters in dispute[Pg 114] between the king and the duke, and between their partisans. The king now left Ham, and every person retired to his home, but the royal army was quartered in the towns he had won prior to the truce.

CHAP. XII.

At this time, there were great dissensions in England between Henry of Lancaster,[Pg 115] king of that country, his son the prince of Wales, the earl of Warwick, and other nobles of that party, against Edward earl of March, who had usurped the throne. A civil war ensued, which was very bloody and murderous on both sides. This warfare lasted until the month of June in this year, when news was brought to the king of France, at Ham, that Edward had landed in England, with a large army of English, Easterlings, Flemings, Picards, and of other nations, which the duke of Burgundy had sent to his aid, and was on his march to meet the powers of Henry, Warwick, and the other lords of the lancastrian party: that several engagements had taken place, in which many were killed on each side,—but that victory had remained with Edward, as at well from treachery on the part of some of Henry's army as from other causes; that the prince of Wales was slain, which was a pity, for he was a very promising and handsome prince; that Warwick was dead,—which was a great loss, as he was singularly disposed to serve the king and his realm, and the[Pg 116] king had been at a very considerable expense in supporting him while in France, and in conveying him back to England. This intelligence was, therefore, most disagreeable to the king.

Having received this bad news, the king departed from Ham, taking with him the duke of Guienne, the count de Dammartin, the president of his chamber of accounts, and several others, to Paris,—where, however, he made no long stay. While he was there, many feasts were given,—and the king himself kindled the bonfire in the place of the Greve, on St John Baptist's day. On leaving Paris, he went to Orleans, where the prince of Piedmont fell so dangerously ill that he died. The king, after this, went to visit the queen and the dauphin at Amboise, and thence to Tours.

The king was much displeased at the defamatory epigrams and libels that had been published against the constable and others; and for the better discovery of their authors, he had it proclaimed throughout Paris, by sound of trumpet, that all persons who had any knowledge of them should instantly[Pg 117] appear and give information thereof to commissioners named for this purpose, who would pay three hundred golden crowns to each informer; and that such as should have any knowledge of the authors, and fail to inform against them, would have their heads cut off. A young scholar of Paris, called Pierre le Mercier, son to a spectacle maker in the palace, was confined on suspicion of having written them, but soon after set at liberty, nothing being proved against him. Master Henry Mariette, who had been lieutenant-criminal in the provost's court, was also confined, as well for these libels as for certain words he had used (as was said) against master John Ladriesche, treasurer of France, but was afterward delivered from the prison of the Conciergerie by the court of parliament.

In the month of July died the count d'Eu. It was a pity: for he was a noble, wise, and good lord, who had ever served the king most loyally, to the utmost of his power. The county of Eu reverted to the crown,—and the king gave it to the constable, to the great disappointment of the count de Nevers, the count d'Eu's brother,[Pg 118] who expected to have this county after his brother's decease, with his other lands, as being his legal heir.

From the month of July to Christmas, nothing particular happened in France, except that there was frequent intercourse between the ambassadors of the king and those of the duke of Burgundy, to establish a permanent peace. This year, the mortality was very great throughout the kingdom from a severe flux, which carried off numbers of persons of distinction in Paris and elsewhere.

The duke of Guienne returned in the course of this year, after he had come back from Picardy to his duchy, discontented with the court. He sent for the count d'Armagnac, who was an exile, and whose estates the king had given to his brother; and on the count d'Armagnac's coming to him, he restored the greater part of them to him, contrary to the will or inclination of the king. The count d'Armagnac, being joined by the count de Foix, made preparations to carry on a war against France. The king, to prevent any damage being done to his realm, dispatched a large body of franc-archers,[Pg 119] artillery, and five hundred lances' to the borders of Guienne, where they were posted some time.

In the mean time, news arrived that the duke of Guienne was dead at Bordeaux,—but it was unfounded. Divers negotiations now took place respecting the truce which expired on the 4th of May; and on the 1st of that month the lord de Craon, master Pierre d'Oriole, and others, were employed on that business.

Pope Paul II. a Venetian, and of a very avaricious character, made a change, this year, in the intervals of the jubilees, which had been before celebrated every fifty[Pg 120] years: he now appointed them to be held every twenty-five years. His reasons were, that as iniquities were become more abundant than ever, it was necessary that there should be more frequent opportunities offered to the people to pray for and obtain from our Lord the remission and pardon of their sins. Many expressions were said to have been used by this pope which ought not to be repeated,—for God is the sovereign Judge, and the only scrutinizer of hearts. He had begun to build a magnificent palace near the church of St Mark, at Rome, but died, the 21st of July, while he was busied about it, having reigned with papal dignity seven years.

Almost immediately on his decease, he was succeeded by pope Sixtus IV.[36] The new pope was, prior to his elevation, called Francis of Savona, in the genoese territory. He was a doctor of divinity, of a good reputation, and decent manners. It was for these excellent qualities, that, while general of the Franciscans, he was created[Pg 121] a cardinal by Paul II. without his solicitation or knowledge.

Shortly after he arrived at his new dignity, Bernardo Justiniani, ambassador from Venice, harangued him on the rapid advances of the Turk, who had despoiled Christendom of two empires, four kingdoms, twenty provinces, and two hundred cities, with the loss of immense numbers of men, women and children,—and Bernardo exhorted the pope to make every exertion to oppose the enemy of the faith.

Pope Sixtus was very assiduous in the reparations of the city of Rome, and restored a bridge over the Tiber, anciently called Pons Judæus, but since called the Sixtine Bridge. He re-established the hospital of the Holy Ghost, where great alms are daily distributed to sick persons and poor orphans. He was zealous for the salvation of souls, and not sparing of his pardons and indulgences to devout Christians in various parts of the world, and did many acts worthy of remembrance.

During the reign of this pope, a young virgin, called Stine, in the town of Hame[37],[Pg 122] in Westphalia, who had lately been converted to the Christian faith, was marked on the hands, feet, and side, with the wounds of our Saviour. About fifteen weeks after her conversion, on the feast of the holy sacrament, (Corpus-Christi-day) she displayed these wounds in the presence of twelve witnesses, and foretold, that within two hours afterward they would be no more seen, which was verified,—for[Pg 123] at that precise time the wounds were all perfectly healed.

CHAP. XIV.

On the first of May, in this year, a general procession was made to the church of Nôtre Dame in Paris, where a solemn sermon was preached by a doctor in divinity,[Pg 124] called master Peter Brete, a native of Tours, who declared, among other things, the king's singular confidence in the blessed Virgin; and he entreated his audience, and the inhabitants of Paris, in his majesty's name, that henceforward, when they should hear the great bell of the church toll at midday, they would fall on their knees, and repeat three Ave Marias for the welfare of the kingdom of France.

Not long after this procession, master John Chartier, bishop of Paris, was taken suddenly ill and died the same day. His loss was much regretted, for he was a devout and good man, and very learned. The episcopal palace was crowded with the populace of Paris, to see his body, which lay in state in the great hall, where they piteously lamented him, and prayed for the salvation of his soul; on going away, the greater part kissed his hands and feet, firmly believing him to be a saint and well beloved by God. On the 15th of May, the king sent letters to the provost and sheriffs, to declare, that the bishop, during his life-time, had been his enemy, and kept up an intelligence with the duke of Burgundy and the[Pg 125] confederate princes when before Paris, and had practised with the inhabitants to favour them. For these causes, he willed, that an epitaph be placed on his tomb, declaratory of his conduct toward his king, which the aforementioned officers ordered to be written for the purpose of being thereon affixed.

The truce between France and Burgundy, which would have expired on the 4th of May, was prolonged until the 15th of the ensuing month of June. In the month of May, the duke of Calabria, nephew to the king of Jerusalem and Sicily, whom the king had honoured by promising him his eldest daughter in marriage, went from his duchy of Lorraine to the duke of Burgundy, to treat of a marriage with the duke's daughter, thus leaving the daughter of the king,—which astonished every one, that he should thus falsify his faith by neglecting a princess of France, to seek to unite himself with a daughter of Burgundy, a subject and vassal to the king of France. Prior to this, the duke of Burgundy had made a severe war on France, in favour of the duke of Guienne, and under[Pg 126] pretence of giving him his daughter in marriage,—which he never accomplished, but acted quite contrary, and abused many others, under shadow of giving them his daughter.

On the 14th of May, an unfortunate accident happened to the church of Nôtre Dame of Clery, near Orleans, which the king had lately rebuilt, and covered with a handsome roof of carpentry, slates, and lead. A plumber at work on the roof had inadvertently come down leaving a fire, which had served to heat his soldering irons, unextinguished, which being blown by the wind, set the wood on fire, and the whole was burnt to the ground.

The king received, this day, certain intelligence by the lord de Malicorne, a confidential servant to the duke of Guienne, that his brother was dead, at Bordeaux. The lord de Craon, master Pierre d'Oriole, master Olivier le Roux, with other ambassadors to the duke of Burgundy, now returned, to inform the king what they had done, and of the truce they had prolonged to the 15th of June. During the truce, the duke, nevertheless, took the field with[Pg 127] his army, and posted his park of artillery between Arras and Bapaumes, at a place called Hubuterne, in Artois.

The king, in consequence of the death of his brother being confirmed, departed from Plessis, near Tours, and proceeded toward Guienne, and appointed new officers in La Rochelle, St Jean d'Angeli, Bordeaux, and other places. He made the lord de Beaujeu, brother to the duke of Bourbon, governor of the duchy of Guienne.

The duke of Burgundy, still persevering in his wickedness, and mad attempts against France, sent his army before the town of Nesle[38], in which was captain for the king one called the Petit Picard, having under him five hundred franc-archers from the Isle of France. They endeavoured to gain it by storm, and make several furious attacks, but were gallantly opposed by Picard and his companions. The next day, about five in the morning, Picard, in company with the countess of Nesle, issued out of the town to meet the bastard of Burgundy, who commanded[Pg 128] the army, and endeavoured to conclude a treaty.

But the bastard would only consent to the following terms of capitulation,—namely, that Picard and his men should be allowed to march away in safety, on surrendering the place, but leaving behind their arms and baggage. On Picard's return to Nesle, he told the franc-archers of the terms he had obtained; but though their lives were spared, they were to leave their horses, arms and baggage; when some of them immediately pulled off their armour, even before the terms were signed,—and, in this interval, the townsmen admitted the Burgundians, who notwithstanding the capitulation, charged these disarmed archers, and murdered all they could. A party fled for safety to the church of Nesle, but were followed by the Burgundians, and barbarously put to death. When this slaughter had been completed, the duke of Burgundy arrived, on horseback, and entered the church, which was half a foot deep of blood, from the poor creatures who there lay naked and dead. On looking around, he said, it was a fine sight! and he was glad to have with him such excellent butchers!!

[Pg 129]

The ensuing day, Saturday the 13th, the petit Picard and others that had been made prisoners, were ordered by the duke to be hanged,—and the town was razed and set on fire. On the morrow, the burgundian army marched from before Nesle to Roye, wherein were fourteen hundred of the company, and under the command of Pierre Aubert, bailiff of Melun and Nugnon. There were also other captains, such as Loiset de Belagny governor of Beauvais, the lord de Mouy, the lord de Rubempré, having full two hundred lances, well appointed. But notwithstanding the fortifications had lately been repaired and strengthened by the king, and the town well victualled, with plenty of artillery on the walls, they surrendered on the 16th, with the loss of all their horses, armour, baggage and artillery, to the detriment of the king of more than one hundred thousand golden crowns. They were obliged to march out naked all but their purpoints, with wands in their hands,—and the duke remained there a long time.

The duke marched from Roye, to lay siege to Beauvais, and arrived before it on[Pg 130] the 27th of June, when he instantly began to attack it. In the course of that night, Guillaume de la Vallée, lieutenant to the seneschal of Normandy, entered the town with two hundred lances, which greatly succoured the garrison and inhabitants, for he arrived very opportunely as the Burgundians were recommencing their attack,—when, mounting the walls, they made them to retreat. On the morrow, there arrived, the lord de Crussol, Joachim Rohault, the company of the lord de Bueil, Guevin le Groing, the lord de Torcy, and other nobles from Normandy, to the amount of more than three hundred lances. They made a vigorous defence, and were strongly supported by the city of Paris, who sent thither a body of pioneers, with pickaxes, shovels, flour, wine, gunpowder, and plenty of all sorts of stores, which were of great relief to those in the town. Several sallies and skirmishes took place before the town, in which many Burgundians were killed and wounded.

At this time, a number of the inhabitants of Auxerre sallied out of their town on a foraging party, to collect cattle and[Pg 131] whatever else they should find in the countries attached to the king, for the victualling of Auxerre, and advanced as far as Joigny, and Seignelay[39]. The bastard of Seignelay, the lord de Plancy, and others, to the number of three hundred, took the field to fight them,—and they no sooner came in sight than these gentlemen charged them so vigorously that eight score were killed, and four score made prisoners; the rest escaped by flight, or were drowned.

As the Burgundians had approached so near to Paris as Beauvais[40], sir Denis Hesselin, pantler to the king and provost of the merchants, made great preparations against them,—such as repairing the walls and the battlements, cutting deep and wide trenches, having the chains to barricade the streets in good order, walling up some of the gates, strengthening others, and causing abundance of cannon to be prepared.

On the 2d of July, the lord de Rubempré, arrived at Paris from Beauvais, [Pg 132]with letters from the captains in that town to the lord de Gaucourt, lieutenant for the king in Paris, and to the provosts and sheriffs, to inform them, that there was such scarcity in the burgundian camp that a loaf of bread, worth two farthings in Beauvais, was of the value of three sols parisis to the enemy; and that the duke of Burgundy was in such despair that he had determined to gain the town or lose the greater part of his army. They therefore desired that there might be sent them, without delay, small artillery, cross-bows, and provision,—all of which was done, under the conduct of the bastard de Rochechouart, lord of Meru, who carried thither sixty cross-bowmen, cross-bows, artillery and provisions, from Paris.

About seven in the morning of the 9th of July, after the duke of Burgundy had kept up a brisk fire, from his artillery, against the walls of Beauvais, at the gate of the general hospital, a large detachment entered the ditches with faggots, and other materials, to fill them, and erected their ladders against the wall near the hospital-gate, which they vigorously[Pg 133] attacked. The guard of this gate was intrusted to the care of sir Robert d'Estouteville lord of Beine, and provost of Paris, who with his company behaved themselves most gallantly. This attack lasted from seven in the morning until near eleven in the forenoon; and the Burgundians were so roughly treated that, including those thrown down from the walls, killed and wounded, their loss amounted from fifteen to sixteen hundred men: it would have been much more considerable, if the besieged could have made a sally; but all the gates on the side of the enemy's camp were walled up.

This was a great vexation to those nobles, and valiant captains, in the town,—such as the count de Dammartin, Joachim Rohault, marshal of France, Salazart, Guillaume de la Valleé, Mery de Coué, Guerin le Groing, the lord de Beine, the brothers de Torcy, and several more, who had under their command from fourteen to fifteen thousand combatants.

During this attack, through the mercy of God, only three or four of the royalists[Pg 134] were slain, and it was said that this was owing to their own rashness. And although the burgundian artillery kept up a continued fire until the 9th of July, not more than four persons were killed by it. On the day succeeding this attack, sir Denis Hesselin sent from Paris to Beauvais, by daybreak, a fresh supply of arrows, cross-bows, gunpowder, and surgeons to attend the wounded.

Saturday the 21st day of July, a messenger of the king's household was confined in the prison of the Châtelet for having published in several parts of Paris, that the constable had drawn out of Beauvais the principal captains, under pretence of holding a council to consider on the means of defending that town, during which the burgundian army had been well victualled, which would not have happened if these captains had been left in Beauvais. This charge was highly offensive to the constable; and on his complaining thereof, the messenger was, by the king's orders, delivered into the hands of master Miles, usher of the household to the constable, and conducted to him, to make good his accusations against him.

[Pg 135]

The besieged in Beauvais made a deep trench, on the day after the late attack, to enable them to sally out undiscovered,—by which means, Salazart and others of his company, one morning at daybreak, entered the enemy's camp, and killed all they met. They burnt three tents, and all within them. In one were slain two persons of rank, although they offered a large sum for their ransoms. The alarm being now spread, and the shouting of 'Salazart for ever!' having roused the Burgundians, it was necessary for him to retreat toward Beauvais; but in doing so, he carried off some handsome artillery, particularly some mortars that had done much mischief to the town,—and as they were heavy, they threw them into the ditch. They brought into the town two fine serpentines and a large brass cannon, called One of the Twelve Peers, which the king had lost at the battle of Montlehery.

Salazart was very closely pursued, and much beaten and wounded; and though his horse had suffered greatly from the pikes of the Flemings it carried him into Beauvais, when it dropped down[Pg 136] dead. From this sally to the 21st, nothing material occurred,—when the inhabitants of Orleans sent, by way of Paris, to Beauvais one hundred tuns of wine from their vineyards, as a present to the lords and the garrison, to invigorate them against the Burgundians. They sent thither, at the same time, large supplies of arrows, cross-bows, and gunpowder, under the escort of some of the burghers of Orleans.

At this time, the Parisians were mustered and reviewed by the lord de Gaucourt, lieutenant for the king in Paris, master John de Ladriesche, and sir Denis Hesselin, king's pantler. It was a fine show to see them all under arms, and so handsomely[Pg 138] equipped; but it would have been finer, if all the banners and cross-bows that had been detached to Beauvais had been present.

Further detachments were demanded by the captains in Beauvais, to the number of three thousand men, fully equipped; but they were refused on account of the numbers already sent thither, and because it would not only put the inhabitants to great expense but much weaken the defence of Paris. Sir Denis Hesselin remonstrated so ably with the captains in Beauvais on this subject that they were satisfied with the support already given, but requested that one hundred cross-bowmen and gunners might be sent to them which was done.

About three o'clock in the morning of Magdalen-day, the duke of Burgundy commenced a disgraceful retreat from before Beauvais, having done nothing, during the twenty-six days he was encamped there, but fire his artillery day and night against the town without materially damaging it, or hurting the inhabitants. He made two violent attacks, in which he lost numbers of his most valiant warriors,[Pg 139] besides a great quantity of artillery won by the king's garrison in Amiens.

On the departure of the Burgundians, they destroyed all the villages on their line of march, until they came before St Valery, which was instantly surrendered to them, because there was not a force within it sufficient for resistance. They then marched to Eu, which was also surrendered for the same cause.

The constable of France, the grand master of the household, and the other captains in Beauvais, marched thence, with eight hundred lances, on the 29th of July, for Arques, Monstiervillier, and the country of Caux, on the supposition that the Burgundians would advance thither, which in fact they did, and with a view of being beforehand with them. The Burgundians encamped at the village of Ferrieres, between Eu and Dieppe, and remained there some time, but without conquering any place except the new castle of Nicourt[41], which they entered, as there were none to oppose them. They held it for three days,—and on their[Pg 140] departure set fire to the castle and town which was a pity, for it was a large and handsome place. They afterwards burnt Longueville, Fahy, and many other places in the bailiwick of Caen, which all his wealth would be insufficient to restore. These were all the noble duke's acts of valour until the first day of December.

During this interval, the king had remained inactive in Brittany, with about fifty thousand combatants, because he had been amused with different embassies from that duke, and entertained hopes of a pacification without bloodshed or loss of men; for he was much more anxious for the preservation of his subjects' lives than the duke of Burgundy, who was cruel and obstinate, as he had shown and was daily demonstrating.

The duke, having done great damages by fire to the towns and villages of that country of Caux, now advanced toward Arques and Dieppe; but his army was there so beaten that he quitted that part of the country and marched for Rouen, where he was more roughly treated than before; insomuch that, from the frequent and courageous sallies made from that town, he was[Pg 141] forced to retreat in disgrace for Abbeville spreading abroad a report that he intended to attack Noyon, and take it by storm. The lord de Crussol hastened thither for its defence, and was joined by others of the king's captains to repulse his cursed fury; but one misfortune he was the cause of,—for these captains, to secure the town and prevent the Burgundians from posting themselves in the suburbs, caused them to be burnt and destroyed—which was a needless loss, as the enemy never appeared there.

About this time, sir Robert de Estouteville, provost of Paris, left Beauvais with the nobles of his provostship and a certain number of franc-archers, and posted himself in the suburbs of Eu, on the side of Abbeville. The same day, the marshal de Rohault took possession of the other suburbs leading toward Dieppe,—and they immediately summoned the Burgundians to surrender. They were so much frightened at the appearance of the royalists that they instantly accepted of terms,—namely, that all the knights should march away mounted on a common hackney,[Pg 142] and that the other Burgundians should depart with nothing but wands in their hands, leaving behind all their arms, horses, and baggage, and pay, as a ransom, the sum of ten thousand crowns.

Sir Robert and the marshal lost no time in marching to St Valery, which surrendered on similar terms, and paying six thousand crowns. They thence proceeded to Rambures[42], a handsome and strong castle, in which were some Burgundians, but who came out of the castle and surrendered it to the French, on condition of being allowed to march away in safety with their arms and baggage.

While these things were passing, the partisans of Burgundy, such as the count de Roussi[43], son to the constable, and others, took the field in Burgundy, and overran the country of Tonnerre, without meeting any resistance. They destroyed that country and attempted to gain Joigny,—but by timely reinforcements sent thither by the king, were prevented. They then advanced[Pg 143] to Troyes,—but their only acts of valour consisted in setting fire to all the villages and barns on their march. These acts were retaliated, on the part of the king, by the count dauphin of Auvergne, and other nobles in his company, who burnt and destroyed several small towns and villages in Burgundy. They did irreparable damages, in revenge for what the Burgundians had done to the subjects of the king, their supreme and true sovereign, to whom they had behaved as rebels.

In the month of September, the king, who had been some time in Brittany, concluded a truce with the duke, in which were included all his allies; and in the number, he declared the duke of Burgundy to be one, who accepted of this truce,—but he had comprehended his allies also, whom he declared to be the emperor of Germany, the kings of England, Scotland, Portugal, Spain, Arragon, Sicily, and other kings, to the number of seven, with several dukes and great lords.

At this time, the queen of France was delivered of a son, called Francis Duke of Berry, but he did not live long.

[Pg 144]

Toward the end of October, it happened, as the lord de Beaujeu, brother to the duke of Bourbon, was travelling, by the king's orders, through the county of Armagnac, as governor of Guienne, well attended by nobles and gentlemen, that while he was residing in the city of Lectoure[44], he was betrayed into the hands of the count de Armagnac,—by which means, the said count regained his city of Lectoure. Having thus won it, he set at liberty many of the lords who had accompanied the lord of Beaujeu; but they were soon after arrested by the king, on suspicion of having betrayed their governor, and some were imprisoned in the castle of Loches. The king was much grieved at the capture of the lord de Beaujeu, and, to obtain his liberty, he sent a considerable army, with artillery against that city, while he himself went to Poitiers, La Rochelle, and thereabout, until St Andrew's day, when he returned to Angers.

[Pg 145]

Among those who had been imprisoned at Loches, on suspicion of treason against the lord de Beaujeu, was a gentleman, his servant, called Jean Deymer, who was condemned and quartered for it in the town of Tours, having confessed his treachery against the king and his master. At his execution, he spoke most honourably of the lord de Beaujeu, declaring his loyalty and ignorance of the treason plotted against him, and laid the whole blame on the younger son of the d'Albret family, lord of St Basile, in whom the lord de Beaujeu had great confidence, he having been brought up in the family of Bourbon, and having received many favours from that house.

The king made a long stay in Poitou, and on the borders of Brittany, until the day fixed for the meeting between him and the duke of Brittany. Oudet de Rie, lord de l'Escun, to whom the king had been very bountiful, had taken great pains to bring this about,—and when it took place, the king gave to the duke the county of Montfort, besides a large sum of money. When the business had[Pg 146] been concluded, the duke of Brittany sent information of it to the duke of Burgundy, and demanded to have returned the treaty of alliance that had been made between them.

On the 3rd of February, in this year, there appeared, about six in the evening, great lights in the sky resembling candles, whence issued brilliant flashes, to the terror of many; but they did not last long. On the 7th of the same month, the bishop of Paris, son to monsieur de la Forest, made his entry, as bishop, into the city.

After the service in the cathedral, he entertained, handsomely and abundantly, at dinner, the churchmen, the members of the university, of the parliament, chamber of accounts, masters of requests, secretaries, the provost, sheriffs, and principal inhabitants.

During the siege of Lectoure, a serpentine was fired from the walls, which killed the king's commander of the artillery and four gunners.

At this time, the duke of Alençon was made prisoner by sir Tristan de l'Hermite, provost of the marshals, and brought before the king, for having, as it was said quitted his country to sell and deliver[Pg 147] up to the duke of Burgundy all his possessions in La Perche and Normandy, together with his duchy of Alençon.

On the 5th of March following, the count d'Armagnac had negotiated a capitulation for the surrender of Lectoure with sir Yves du Fau, whom the king had sent thither on purpose,—and it was agreed that the count, his lady, family and attendants, should be allowed to depart in safety. But it happened otherwise,—for the count was murdered by the king's army who stormed the town. The cause was this: several of the royalists, under cover of the capitulation, had entered the town,—which when the count saw, he would have put them to death in spite of the treaty. The French, seeing this cried out to their companions for assistance, when the seneschal of Limousin, and great numbers, forced an entrance where the breach had been made, and killed the count d'Armagnac and so many of the inhabitants, that the countess of Armagnac with three women and three or four men were the only persons who escaped death. The town was pillaged,—and the lord de Beaujeu[Pg 148] with the other lords and gentlemen whom the count had detained in his prisons, were set at liberty, and waited on the king.

The first intelligence the king received of this event was brought by one of his post-expresses, called John d'Auvergne; and the king was so well pleased with his diligence that he appointed him his herald, and gave him one hundred crowns of gold.

The cardinal of Arras[45] having behaved with great gallantry at the siege of Lectoure, entered the town, which was afterwards burnt, and the walls razed to the ground. When news of this conquest and of the death of the count d'Armagnac, reached the king of Arragon at Perpignan, he fled thence further into his own dominions, as well on this account as because he heard that Philip of Savoy was marching an army, from Dauphiny and Savoy, against him, to offer him battle, and to recover the town of Perpignan,[Pg 149] which he had taken from the king of France.

On Saturday morning, the 14th of March, the king, who then resided at Plessis du Parc, formerly called Montils les Tours, set off very early, and with few attendants, for Bordeaux and Bayonne. That no person living might follow him, he ordered the gates of Tours to be closed until ten o'clock had struck, and had a bridge broken down near to Tours, to prevent any one crossing the river. For further security, he commanded the lord de Gaucourt, the captain of the gentlemen in his household, to remain in Tours for the same purpose.

On the 7th of April, just before Easter, the younger son of the count d'Albret, who had betrayed the lord de Beaujeu into the hands of the count d'Armagnac, and who, on the capture of Lectoure, had been made prisoner, was brought to Poitiers, where he was tried and condemned for this offence to be beheaded, and was then executed; after which, his body was put into a coffin, covered with a pall emblazoned with his arms, and carried by[Pg 150] the four orders of mendicant friars in Poitiers for interment, when a handsome service was performed. In this month of April, the truce between the king and the duke of Burgundy was prolonged to the end of the ensuing year.

CHAP. XVI.

About the end of April, in the year 1473, the king of Arragon made an attack on the town of Perpignan, and gained it from the lord du Lau, who had the guard of it; but the castle remained unconquered,—and[Pg 151] the garrison held it for the king of France a long time after the capture of the town.

When Lectoure had been destroyed, the king ordered the army to Perpignan, in which were besieged the king of Arragon and his son. With the nobles and captains of this army was the cardinal of Alby who behaved himself most prudently and courageously. This siege lasted long, even until the month of June,—when the king, to hasten it, sent thither a reinforcement of four hundred lances from Amiens and the adjacent towns, together with a large train of artillery and cannoniers.

The duke of Alençon, who had been confined in the castle of Loches, was brought to Paris, and arrived at the castle of the Louvre between nine and ten at night, the 16th day of June. He disembarked from the boats that had brought him from Corbeil, under the guard of the lord de Gaucourt and the lord de la Chaloterie, master of the household to the king, having with them fifty archers of the guards, and twenty-four gentlemen[Pg 152] of the household. When they had left him in the castle of the Louvre, they all returned to the king, except the lord de la Chaloterie, who had the care of him,—and he was guarded by the archers of the town of Paris. The first night, he was lodged at the Silver Lion, in the street of St Honoré: and the following day, which was Corpus-Christi-day, he was brought back to the Louvre at the same hour, between nine and ten in the evening.

During this long siege of Perpignan, the king's troops had suffered greatly from the excessive heats, and from want of provisions,—which made them agree to a truce, for a short time, with the besieged, when each party was supplied as to their greatest wants. In this interval the king sent another reinforcement of men at arms, artillery and provisions, under the command of the lord de Gaucourt. He also ordered master John Bouvré and the banker of the treasury to buy up all the provisions they could lay hands on, and send them to Perpignan.

About this time, in the month of[Pg 153] July, died the last born child of the king, called the lord Francis duke of Berry. The king was so much grieved that for six hours no one dared to speak to him.

In this same month, the duke of Calabria died of the plague, in his duchy of Lorraine. Immediately after his decease, news was brought, that a german, the commander of the late duke's forces, had taken prisoner the count de Vaudemont heir to the duchy of Lorraine, with the avowal and by the instigation of the duke of Burgundy. In order to obtain the count de Vaudemont's liberty, a youth, nephew to the emperor of Germany, and then a student at Paris, was arrested by way of reprisal, and as an hostage for the count's safety. A conference was appointed to be holden this month at Senlis, between commissioners from the king and the duke of Burgundy, to settle their differences.

The king sent thither the count de Dammartin, who went in great pomp, the lord chancellor, the lord de Craon, the first president of the parliament of Paris, master Guillaume de Cerisay, and[Pg 154] master Nicholas Bataille, who after remaining there until the middle of August, returned without having done any thing.

At this period, the duke of Burgundy marched an army into Guelderland, to subdue and take possession of it.

On the 8th of August, as the king was coming out of the castle of Alençon, by accident a very large stone fell from the battlements on his sleeve: he narrowly escaped being killed by it, but was saved by his confidence in God, and the blessed Virgin Mary, in whom he put his whole trust.

The commissioners from the king and the dukes of Burgundy and Brittany now left Senlis without having accomplished any of the points they had met on.

In regard to the weather of this year, it was exceedingly hot from the month of June to December, more so than had been felt in the memory of any man living,—which caused the wines to be of such bad qualities that quantities were thrown away,—and there was not any frost until after Candlemas-day.

As there were now reports, that the[Pg 155] Burgundians were marching for Lorraine and the Barrois, the king sent thither five hundred lances, under the command of the lord de Craon, whom he made his lieutenant-general. He also ordered the nobles from the Isle of France and Normandy, with the franc-archers cantoned in divers parts of Champagne, to advance toward Lorraine, where they remained for more than two months, and then returned without having seen the enemy.

The duke of Burgundy brought the emperor of Germany to Luxembourg, whence he went to the town of Metz, to exhort the inhabitants to admit the duke of Burgundy and his forces: but as they refused to comply, he returned to Luxembourg and thence into Germany.

At this time, the duke of Burgundy sent to Venice to negotiate a loan, that he might subsidize, for three months, six hundred lances from that country. These troops passed through the duchy of Milan, and proceeded to the upper parts of Burgundy, to form a junction with the subjects of the said duke, whose army was not sufficiently[Pg 156] strong to meet that of the king which lay upon his frontiers. The king now married his eldest daughter[46], whom he had promised to the late duke of Calabria, to the lord de Beaujeu, brother to the duke of Bourbon. The Burgundians, by treason and otherwise, suddenly invaded the country of the Nivernois, and took several towns belonging to the count de Nevers, such as La Roche, Châtillon, and others.

The king's commissioners, who had before been at Senlis, now went to Compiégne, in expectation of meeting those from Burgundy, who had promised to come thither; but after waiting some time in vain, they returned to Paris, and went thither again on the 15th of January. It was now currently reported, that the duke of Burgundy, seeing he could not by open force destroy the kingdom of France, notwithstanding all the pains he had taken to accomplish it, had formed[Pg 157] a conspiracy to poison the king; in which business he employed a person called master Ythier Marchant, who had been a servant to the late duke of Guienne, and another called John Hardy, servant to this Ythier, who, after the death of the duke of Guienne, had sought protection from the duke of Burgundy.

John Hardy undertook to manage this affair, and consequently, the poisons, were delivered to him, with promises of great wealth on his success: at the same time, fifty thousand crowns were paid him down, for him to distribute among such as he should judge able to, assist him. He had also money given him for his expenses; and this madman, Hardy, not having the fear of God before his eyes, nor foreseeing, that had his plot succeeded, (which, thanks to God, it did not) the whole of the noble realm of France would have been destroyed, set out on his journey to the place of the king's residence.

On his arrival at Amboise, forgetting that the king had formerly kindly received him and given him great sums[Pg 158] of money, in order to execute his damnable enterprise, he addressed himself to a person who had the charge of making sauces in the royal kitchen, with whom Hardy was acquainted during the time they were both in the service of the duke of Guienne. Hardy communicated to him his plan, and offered him twenty thousand crowns if he would assist him to accomplish it. The saucemaker listened to him, but said he could not engage in the business without the consent of Colinet, the king's head cook, who had likewise been in the same service with themselves. He promised to mention the matter to Colinet, and urge him to join them,—but desired Hardy to give him the poisons to show the head cook. Soon after, the saucemaker and head cook having discussed the business together, went and informed the king of the plot, who was very much alarmed, but most honourably and handsomely rewarded them for having discovered it. John Hardy had set out for Paris, but was instantly followed and overtaken near Estampes, where he was arrested and brought back to the king,[Pg 159] who interrogated him, and had him examined by others, as to the charges made against him,—all of which he confessed to be true.

To make the matter public, and that his trial might have the greater notoriety, the king set out from Amboise for Chartres, Meulanc, Creil, and other places in the Beauvoisis, followed by Hardy, chained with heavy irons, in a low cart, under the guard of John Blosset, esquire, captain of one hundred archers of the dauphin's guard, fifty of whom always surrounded the cart. Thus guarded, he was sent to Paris, to be delivered up to the provost and sheriffs, where he arrived on Thursday the 20th day of January, about three o'clock in the afternoon; when sir Denis Hesselin, the provost, and others, went out to receive him in the suburbs, beyond the gate of St Denis. With sir Denis were the four sheriffs, their officers and great crowds of people, and the archers of the town in handsome array.

Hardy was placed on a high chair in the middle of the cart, that he might be seen by the populace, who were strictly[Pg 160] forbidden to abuse him by words or deeds. Thus was he conducted along the great street of St Denis, to the town-house, when he was delivered up, by John Blosset, to the provost and sheriffs, under whose guard the king had ordered him to be placed, that they might have the honour of trying and executing him.

While the king was at Creil, he issued an edict respecting the gens d'armes of his realm, by which he declared that each lanceman should not have more than six horses,—namely, three horses for himself, his page and his armour-bearer; the two archers have two horses, and one for the varlet; but they were no longer to have panniers to carry their arms. They were not to remain longer than one day in any village when on their march. And proclamation was made to forbid all merchants from selling or affording to any of the gens d'armes cloths of silk or camlets, on pain of forfeiting the money these gens d'armes might give or owe for them; and no woollen cloths were to be sold them of a higher price than thirty-two sols parisis the ell.

[Pg 161]

At the same time, he issued another edict touching the coin, and ordered the grands blancs to be exchanged for eleven deniers although before they had only been worth ten deniers,—the targes, eleven deniers tournois, that had been worth twelve,—the crown, thirty sols three deniers tournois; and so on with the rest, for the whole value of the coin was changed.

On the 20th of January, a reconciliation took effect between the king and the constable. He had possessed himself of the town of St Quentin, and driven out the lord de Creton, who there commanded one hundred lances for the king. By this reconciliation, the constable remained not only master, as before, of St Quentin, but the town of Meaux and other places were given up to him, of which he had before been deprived. Commissioners were also appointed to inquire after those who had spoken disrespectfully of the constable relative to his taking St Quentin, that they might be brought to punishment. Money was likewise given him for the pay of his troops, which[Pg 162] was the means of preventing his town of St Quentin from being taken.

The king about this time, left Amboise for Senlis, where he remained while his commissioners and those from Burgundy were labouring to bring about a peace. At length, the truce was prolonged to the middle of the ensuing May, in the expectation of a more lasting agreement being concluded before then. The king went from Senlis to Ermenonville in Santerre, belonging to master Pierre L'Orfevre, counsellor in the chamber of accounts where he staid a month,—during which time, the duke of Bourbon, whom the king had repeatedly sent for, came at last, but did not remain more than ten or twelve days, and returned, with the king's leave, to his own country, to celebrate Easter, promising to come back the Sunday after Easter which he did.

On the 30th of March, John Hardy, before mentioned, was condemned by the court of parliament to be taken to the gate of the prisons of the Conciergerie, and there put into a tumbrel and drawn before the town-house, where a scaffold[Pg 163] had been erected for the quartering of his body, according to the sentence, which was executed. His head, placed on the point of a lance, was to remain in front of the town-house, and his four quarters were sent to four of the principal towns, at the extremities of the kingdom,—on each of which an inscription was to be put, declaring the cause why they were thus placed,—and the body was ordered to be burnt, and reduced to cinders at the place of execution. All the houses of the said John Hardy, particularly that in which he had been born, were to be razed to the ground, and no buildings were to be thereon erected in future; an inscription was also to be placed on the spot, declaratory of the enormity of the offence, and why these buildings had been destroyed. Hardy was executed in the presence of the lord de Gaucourt, king's lieutenant, the first president of the parliament Boulenger, the two provosts, and sheriffs, and other principal persons of the town; and he had a celebrated doctor in divinity, called doctor Hue, assigned to him for the care of his soul. On[Pg 164] the Saturday following, the head of Hardy, which had been placed on a lance before the town-house, was taken down, nobody knew how, and thrown into a cellar hard by.

This day, a handsome embassy came to Paris from the king of Arragon, and was honourably received there by the count de Penthievre[47], the lord de Gaucourt and others, who feasted them well in divers parts of Paris until Palm Sunday, when their festivities ceased on account of the approaching Passion-week. The king arrived at Paris after Easter, the 16th day of April, in the year 1474.

CHAP. XVII.

The king ordered a review of the Parisians on Saturday the 20th of April. They were drawn up from the bastile of St Anthony, along the ditches, to the tower of Billy,—and thence, in battle-array, to the Grange aux Merciers: there was another division formed on the opposite side of the[Pg 166] town. They made a brilliant and formidable appearance,—for the whole number was estimated at one hundred and four thousand men, all in uniforms, with red hoods and white crosses. A large train of artillery was also drawn out of Paris, which added much to the beauty of the spectacle.

The king was accompanied at this review by the arragonian ambassadors, who were astonished at the numbers of men under arms that Paris alone had sent forth. The king was attended by his guards, the gentlemen of his household, the count de Dammartin in great pomp, Philip of Savoy count of Bresse, the lord du Perche, Salazart, and several other captains and gentlemen of renown. After the review, the king went to Vincennes to supper, taking with him the arragonian embassy; and shortly after, he gave to the two principal ambassadors two cups of fine gold, embossed with figures, which weighed forty marcs, and had cost three thousand two hundred crowns of gold.

The king left Paris for Senlis, where he made some stay; and during that time two embassies came to him, one from Brittany and another from Germany,—the[Pg 167] chief of which last was the duke of Bavaria. With the embassy from Brittany came Philip des Essars, lord of Thieux, master of the household to the duke of Brittany, who had been very active against the king. He was, however, kindly received by him, presented with ten thousand crowns, and appointed general inquisitor and inspector of waters and forests in Champagne and Brie,—which office the lord de Châtillon had held, but it was taken from him to be given to Philip des Essars.

While the king was at Senlis, Ermenonville, and other places in that district, an embassy arrived from the duke of Burgundy, which remained long, but concluded nothing. The king then departed for Compiégne, Noyon, and divers places thereabout,—when a meeting was appointed between him and the constable, to settle some differences between them, near a village[49], where a bridge was thrown over a river, and each had a large party of guards for his personal security. Their mutual accusations [Pg 168]were discussed, and particularly the capture the constable had made, by force, of St Quentin, by driving thence the lord de Creton and his garrison,—which had greatly angered the king, who, for this reason, had stopped the payments due to the constable's troop of four hundred lances, for the months of April, May, and June.

After a long conversation, the king ordered the arrears of pay to be made good, and continued as before, and they parted good friends. Peace was likewise made between the constable and the count de Dammartin,—and the king, on his going away, freely pardoned the constable, who promised and swore never to commit any more faults, but to serve him henceforward faithfully against all, without any exception whatever.

During this period, the king passed some time at Senlis, Ermenonville, Pont St Maixence, and other places near. He went almost daily to the abbey de la Victoire, to adore the statue of the Virgin, which was there in great request,—and in honour to her, made the prior very rich gifts, in money, to the amount of ten thousand[Pg 169] golden crowns. This year, from his singular love to his people, and his wish to avoid the shedding of human blood, he agreed to a truce with his adversary the duke of Burgundy for one year, to expire the first of April in the year 1475; although several embassies had come from the emperor of Germany, humbly to desire that he would not conclude any truce, for that he would reduce the duke by force of arms to sue for his mercy,—and that whatever conquests the emperor should make, he would give to the king, without his putting himself to the smallest cost. Notwithstanding these flattering proposals, the king assented to a truce with the duke of Burgundy, to the great displeasure of all his good and loyal subjects.

The Burgundians, nevertheless, and in contempt of the truce, at first committed many outrages on the king's territories and subjects, without making any reparation; and it was scandalous thus to see a vassal of the king injure, with impunity, the country and subjects of his sovereign lord.

In the beginning of July, the king returned to Paris, but only lay there one[Pg 170] night. On the morrow, he went to the church of Nôtre Dame, and thence to the holy chapel in the palace. He dined in the apartments of master John de Ladriesche, president of the chamber of accounts, in the conciergerie of the palace; and about four in the afternoon he embarked in a boat at the point of the palace, and went to the tower of Nesle, where he mounted his horse and rode to Chartres, Amboise,—and thence to Nôtre Dame de Behuart, in Poitou.

In this year, the king sent a very large army, with franc-archers and others, and a considerable train of artillery to conquer the kingdom of Arragon. Prayers were offered up that God would give them grace to behave well, and return in health; for it was commonly said, that Arragon was the churchyard of Frenchmen.

Monday, the 18th day of July, the duke d'Alençon was brought before the court of Parliament,—when the chancellor, master Pierre d'Oriole, recapitulated his former crimes, and the sentence that had been passed upon him by the court held at Vendôme, under the late king Charles,[Pg 171] (whose soul may God pardon!) and the grace the present king had shown him, not only by granting him his life, but his liberty and estates, for which favours he had shown the blackest ingratitude. The present accusations were then brought forward, when he was found guilty of high treason, and condemned by the chancellor to be beheaded at Paris, saving the good pleasure of the king to order otherwise; and all his effects, hereditary and acquired, were confiscated to the king's use.

The duke, having heard his sentence, was led back to his prison in the Louvre, under the guard of sir Denis Hesselin, sir James Hesselin his brother, sir John de Harclay, commander of the night-guard in Paris, and others appointed by the king for this purpose.

When this affair was finished, the king went toward Angers, and took possession of that town and all other places and lordships in Anjou belonging to the king of Sicily, for certain reasons moving him thereto; and the government and administration of them was given to master Guillaume de Cerisay, greffier civil in the court of parliament.[Pg 172] The king then returned through Beauce to Chartres, and to Bois-de-Malesherbes, where he staid a long time, hunting stags, wild boars, and other beasts, of which he found such plenty that he was very fond of this part of his kingdom; although otherwise, it is but a poor country.

On the king's departure, he went to Pont de Chamois, the residence of the lord de Beaujeu, were he remained until the 6th of October, and thence went to Montereau-faut-Yonne. During his absence, the members of his grand council went daily to Pont de Chamois.

The duke of Burgundy had now declared war against the Germans, and had marched an army to lay siege to Nuys, a good town near Cologne, on the Rhine, where he and his army remained long. The king sent an embassy into Brittany, composed of the chancellor, Philip des Essars, and others, who on their return, brought with them sir Pierre de Morvilliers, formerly chancellor of France, who had attached himself to the late duke of Guienne, and on his death had sought an asylum in Brittany.

[Pg 173]

The Burgundians, notwithstanding the truce, took the city of Verdun, in Lorraine, of which the king was protector; and to recover it, he sent thither three hundred lances, and four thousand franc-archers, under the command of the lord de Craon, and others. The Burgundians took also by storm a town in the Nivernois called Molins en Gibers, whither, likewise, the king sent men at arms and artillery. The Burgundians, however, regardless of the truce, never failed, when any favourable opportunities offered, to oppress the subjects, towns, and countries of the king of France.

King Edward about this time, sent his heralds to the king of France, to summon him to restore the duchies of Guienne and Normandy, which he claimed as his property,—and in case of refusal, to declare war against him. The king gave his answer to these heralds, and sent by them, to king Edward, the handsomest courser in his stables; and he, moreover, sent him by Jean[Pg 175] de Laslier, his harbinger, an ass, a wolf, and a wild boar, with which the heralds returned to their own country.

In November, the king came near to Paris, and was lodged at Ablon sur Seine, at Vincennes, Haubervilliers, and other places. He thence went to the house of master Dreux Budé, examiner to the court of chancery, called Bois-le-Comte, while the archbishop of Lyon, the lord de Beaujeu, and others of his court, were lodged at Mietry, in the Isle of France. The king, from Bois-le-Comte, went with the above-named lords to Château Thierry, where he made some stay. About the 12th of December, he came to Paris, for the feast of Christmas, and performed his devotions on that day in the church of Nôtre Dame.

Intelligence was brought to the king, on St Stephen's day, that the English were in great force at sea, and near to the coast of Normandy, at St Michel. He instantly ordered a body of archers, which he had just raised, and called The Dauphin's Guard, to mount their horses and hasten into Normandy.

[Pg 176]

Nearly at the same time, he heard from his army in Arragon, that they had taken a place near Perpignan, called Gonne, in which were several gentlemen, inhabitants of Perpignan, whom they would have put to death, had they not promised to cause the town of Perpignan to be surrendered to the king's arms within a certain time by them named. But as they failed in their promise, some of them were beheaded: in the number was one called Bernard de Douys. Soon after, an agreement was made between the king and the Arragonians, by which Roussillon was again restored to him.

In the month of January, some burgundian adventurers collected together, and made several inroads on France, even so far as Compiégne, plundering or killing all they met. They attempted to build themselves a place of security at Arson, near Roye, whither they had brought a number of pioneers. When the king heard of this, he sent orders for the garrisons of Amiens, Beauvais, and other places, to assemble with the company of the grand master, the cross-bows and archers of Paris, and to[Pg 177] put themselves under the command of sir Robert d'Estouteville, provost of Paris, and destroy these Burgundians and their strong hold. But the Burgundians no sooner heard of these orders than they packed up their plunder, and ran away, like thieves as they were.

This same month, a franc-archer of Meudon was confined in the prisons of the Châtelet, in Paris, for divers robberies, and even sacrilege in the church of Meudon. He was condemned, for these crimes, to be hanged at Montfaucon,—but he appealed to the court of parliament, whither he was led for trial. That court dismissed his appeal, and confirmed the sentence of the provost of Paris, to whom he was remanded for execution; but the surgeons and physicians of Paris petitioned the king, that as a variety of persons were afflicted with the stone and other internal disorders, and that as this franc-archer had complaints similar to those of which the lord de Bouchage[50] now lay dangerously ill, it was requisite[Pg 178] that the internal parts of a living man should be examined, and that no better subject could have offered than this franc-archer under sentence of death. The physicians and surgeons, in consequence of the king's permission, opened his body,—and having examined his bowels, replaced them, and sewed up the body. By the king's orders, every care was taken of him; and within fifteen days, he was perfectly cured, and was not only pardoned for his crimes but had a sum of money given to him.

On the 28th of January, the king, having a particular affection and reverence for the exalted and devout virtues of St Charlemagne, ordered, that henceforward his feast should on that day be celebrated, which was done in the city of Paris like unto a Sunday, and continued on every succeeding 28th of January.

The town of Nuys was revictualled by the Germans from Cologne, and other places under the obedience of the emperor, notwithstanding the duke of Burgundy had been so long before it, and had placed a considerable fleet on the Rhine to hinder[Pg 179] any reinforcements, or stores, from entering the town. The duke's fleet was destroyed, and from six to seven thousand persons, that were on board of it, were killed or drowned. The Burgundians, before this, had suffered great losses in the army that was besieging Nuys.

In the month of March, the king ordered four hundred lances from the garrisons of Amiens, Beauvais, and other parts, to make an inroad on the territories of the duke of Burgundy, to retaliate the damages done by his partisans on the country round Roye, Peronne, and Mondidier, in contempt of the truce. The royalists, in consequence, invaded Artois, and advanced even to the suburbs of Arras, in which they lodged one whole night. By means of flails, and portable windmills, they thrashed and ground all the corn they could find in the barns throughout Artois and Picardy; which, together with great numbers of cattle, prisoners, and utensils, were carried off by Salazart and the other captains to Amiens, and their different garrisons.

During this, the king never stirred from Paris, but kept his Lent there, making[Pg 180] good cheer, and, as he said, being healthy and well satisfied. In this month, a youth, son to a brigandine maker, who had been partly brought up by a fresh-water fisherman of Paris, named Jean Pensart, knowing that this fisherman had acquired a large sum of money by the sale of his fish during Lent, which he gained by purchasing from different lords the produce of the ponds by wholesale, and being instigated by the devil, entered the house of this fisherman, and seeing where he kept his money, opened the door of the house after midnight to three Scotsmen, in order that they might rob the said Pensart. One was called Mortimer, surnamed the Esquire, and the name of another was Thomas Clark. By the assistance of this youth, they carried off the money, amounting to two thousand five hundred livres tournois.

The fisherman made such diligence to recover his money that, on the same day the youth was found within sanctuary at the Carmelites in Paris. He was instantly dragged thence, and carried to the prisons of the Châtelet, for the weight of his irons[Pg 181] prevented his walking,—and he there confessed that the Scotsmen had taken all the money. Great activity was used in seeking them; and Mortimer was seized, and would have been carried to prison, by orders of master Philip du Four, had not two of the scots guards attacked him and his sergeants, and effected the rescue of Mortimer. Thomas Clark was afterward discovered, having taken sanctuary in the church of St Catherine-du-Val-des-ėcoliers, and was made prisoner,—but not before he had courageously defended himself against the officers of the provost of Paris, having wounded several. At length he was over-powered, and confessed, at the prison, that he was guilty of this robbery,—and great part of the money was restored, which he had hidden near St Estienne des Gres.

For this and other offences, the provost condemned him to the gallows; but he appealed from this sentence to the parliament,—which appeal was dismissed, and he was sent back to the provost, who was ordered to execute his sentence, which was done on the 16th of March, on the gibbet of Paris, in the presence of sir Denis Hesselin[Pg 182] and master Jean de Ruel, as commissioners for the lieutenant-criminal La Dehors, on account of a severe illness that prevented his personal attendance.

At this time, the town of Perpignan surrendered to the king's obedience; when the inhabitants were permitted to go whither they pleased with their effects,—but the artillery, which was very handsome and of great value, was detained.

CHAP. XIX.

On the 7th day of April, in this year, an alliance was concluded between the emperor[Pg 184] of Germany and the king,—which he ordered to be proclaimed first in front of the hôtels of monsieur du Maine, duke of Calabria, and of the ambassadors from Brittany, and then throughout the streets and squares of Paris. There arrived at Paris, in the course of this month, two embassies; one from Florence, and the other from the emperor of Germany; which were most honourably received and feasted, as well by the king as by other great lords of his court.

Early in April, the king left Paris for Vernon-sur-Seine, where he had appointed the rendezvous for the admiral and his other captains, to determine on the manner of concluding the war that was about to take place, for the truce would expire the last day of April. He then returned to Paris on the 14th,—and on the 25th he departed for Pont St Maixence, to prepare his army. The king took with him, besides the officers of his household, eight hundred lances well equipped, and a large train of great and small artillery, in which were five very large bombards: four of them were named London, Brabant, Bourg-en-Bresse, and St[Pg 185] Omer. In addition to the above, he had his french and scots guard, his gentlemen, and a great company of franc-archers from the Isle of France and Normandy. Provisions were sent from all parts, for the constant supply of the army.

On the first of May, the king departed from the abbey of La Victoire, whither he had gone from Pont St Maixence, to arrange the plan of his war against the Burgundians; and detachments were sent against Tronquoy[51] and Mondidier. On the 10th, the archbishop of Lyon joined the king from Paris, where he had been appointed the king's lieutenant in the council, and reported, that a very devout and general procession had taken place at Paris on the 3d, the feast of the holy Cross.

All the children in Paris walked in procession, each holding a taper in his hand to fetch the holy Innocent, and carry it to Nôtre Dame. The archbishop of Lyon and the chancellor walked beside each other, followed by the lord de Gaucourt, lieutenant for the king in Paris, the provosts and sheriffs,[Pg 186] the presidents and counsellors of the parliament and chamber of accounts, and such numbers of the populace that they were estimated at more than one hundred thousand persons. The holy Innocent was borne, in this procession, by the first president of the parliament, Nanterre president in the same court, Ladriesche president of the chamber of accounts, and by the provost of marchands. All the archers of the town were drawn out to preserve order, and prevent noise and rioting.

The 2d of May, the king sent to summon the town of Tronquoy to surrender,—but the Burgundians killed those who summoned them; upon which the king ordered the batteries to be opened,—and the artillery played with such success that, by five in the evening of the same day, a breach was made, and the town taken by storm. All within were killed or hanged except one, called Motin de Caulers, whom the king caused to be spared, and made him an assessor extraordinary at Paris. The place, however, was not taken without having made a strong defence, by which the governor of Pontoise, who was said to have been an excellent officer,[Pg 187] and many of the king's troops were killed. The town was afterward destroyed and razed to the ground.

On the 3d, the royal army marched for Mondidier, because it had refused to surrender,—and on the 5th it was won by capitulation, on condition that the inhabitants might depart in safety, leaving their effects behind. This place was also destroyed. On the 6th, Roye surrendered,—and the Burgundians marched away with their baggage in safety. The castle of Moreul followed the example of Roye.

These victories caused such dismay that had the king marched his army further he would soon have reduced to his obedience all the towns of the duke of Burgundy, as well in Flanders as in Picardy, for every one fled before him. To interrupt the career of this grand army, the king received information from different quarters, and even from the lord constable, that it would be necessary for him to look to the defence of Normandy, for that the English were preparing to make a landing on that coast. The constable likewise wrote to him, that he might boldly advance to Normandy[Pg 188] without paying any attention to Abbeville and Peronne, for that during his absence he would reduce these towns to his obedience. The king followed this advice, and went into Normandy, taking with him the lord admiral, five hundred lances, and the nobles and franc-archers: the rest of the troops were disbanded and sent to their homes. But when he arrived in Normandy he heard nothing of the English, although he went along the coast to Harfleur, Dieppe, Caudebec, and other places. During this excursion, nothing was done for the king, as was promised by the constable: on the contrary, his subjects on the borders suffered very much from his absence, by the inroads of the Burgundians.

The king went on a pilgrimage to the church of our Lady of Ecouis[52], and thence to a house called Gaillarbois[53], belonging to Colon, lieutenant to the lord admiral, where he made some stay; and while he was there, he received intelligence from the constable of the arrival and landing of the English at [Pg 189]Calais,—and that the duke of Burgundy had raised the siege of Nuys. It had been reported that the duke had gained possession of that town with the consent of the emperor, and that they had united their forces to make war on the king of France, which was afterward found to be exactly the reverse of truth.

In this interval, an english herald, called Scales, was made prisoner, and many letters found on him, addressed to different persons. These letters the king saw; and the herald assured him, that a large body of English had disembarked at Calais,—and that king Edward was to be there in person on the 22d of June, at the head of twelve or thirteen thousand combatants. He besides assured him, that the duke of Burgundy had made his peace with the emperor, and was returned to Brussels, the whole of which turned out to be falsehoods. The king was also informed, while at Ecouis, that the constable had sent to the duke of Bourbon his sealed engagement, to attempt to suborn and induce him to take arms against the king, and unite himself with the duke of Burgundy, all of which greatly[Pg 190] surprised him. He instantly sent for the duke of Bourbon, and repeated his summons to come to him by the bishop of Mende, by whom the duke of Bourbon had sent the first intelligence of this treason, with the constable's sealed proposals.

The king heard, nearly at the same time, that the duke of Bourbon, whom he had appointed his lieutenant-general against the Burgundians, had, with his army, fallen in with the enemy at Guy, near to Château Chinon[54], and had defeated them with very great loss in killed and prisoners. Two hundred lances from Lombardy were slain,—and among the dead were the lord de Conches and several others. The prisoners were the count de Roussy, the marshal of Burgundy, the lord de Longy, the bailiff of Auxerre, the lord de L'Isle, the banner-bearer of the lord de Beauchamp, the son of the count de St Martin, sir Louis de Montmartin, sir John de Digoigne, the lord de Rugny, the lord de Cheligny, the two sons of the lord de Vitaulx, one of[Pg 191] whom was count de Joigny, and others. This defeat happened on Tuesday the 20th of June.

In contradiction to the intelligence the king had received from the constable, the king heard from the emperor, that he had revictualled and reinforced the town of Nuys for one year; that he had taken thence all the sick and wounded, and replaced them with fresh troops; and that he had reduced the duke of Burgundy to a nonplus, having taken from him great part of his artillery, his service of plate, and other baggage.

On the 27th of June, the lord admiral, who had been ordered by the king to invade and lay waste Picardy and Flanders with fire and sword, advanced thither with his troops, and put to death all he met, ravaging, at the same time, the whole of the country. He one day posted some ambushes near to Arras, and then dispatched about forty lances to appear before the walls, who were no sooner espied by the garrison than a grand sally was eagerly made, in the expectation of discomfiting them. The forty lances, on being[Pg 192] attacked, retreated toward the ambuscades, so that the men from Arras were surrounded and put to flight, leaving on the field from twelve to fifteen hundred dead. The horse of the lord de Romont, son to the count of Savoy, and brother to the queen of France, was killed, but he himself escaped. The governor of Arras, sir James de St Pol, with other lords of name and renown, were made prisoners, whom the lord admiral caused to be led before the walls of Arras, and summoned the inhabitants to surrender the town to the king's obedience, otherwise he would order his prisoners to be beheaded in their sight.

The king had held the prince of Orange some time his prisoner, whose ransom was set at thirty thousand crowns: but in the month of June the king restored him to his liberty without ransom: in gratitude for which, he became the king's vassal, and did him homage for his principality of Orange. The king sent him home at his own expense, with powers to coin money of gold and silver, of the same alloy as the coin of Dauphiny, and to grant pardons and remissions of all offences excepting heresy and treason. The king presented to the nobleman who[Pg 193] had made the prince prisoner ten thousand crowns in ready money.

In the month of June, the king sent orders to the provost of Paris to cause public notice to be given of the arrival of the English at Calais, and to command all the vassals of the crown to hold themselves in readiness on the 3rd of July, and to assemble on that day between Paris and Vincennes, to march whithersoever they should be ordered, notwithstanding any privileges to the contrary, which, on this occasion, must be waived. In consequence of this proclamation, the Parisians sent a large body of men at arms, well mounted and equipped, to join their provost in the Soissonnois.

The king passed some time in Normandy, at Nôtre Dame de Ecouis and Gaillarbois, whence he departed from Nôtre Dame de la Victoire, and after a short stay went to Beauvais. In this month of July, the duke of Burgundy, who had been before Nuys for twelve months, decamped by night, and in disgrace, without having gained any advantages. He returned to his own country with great losses in men[Pg 194] and baggage, to meet his brother-in-law king Edward of England, whom he had prevailed on to come thither, in pursuance of his wicked designs against the king of France and his kingdom.

At this time, the countries of the duke of Burgundy suffered much from the destruction caused by the French, in burning towns and laying waste every part they passed through. The king had sent repeatedly for the duke of Bourbon, who at length came to him while he was at Nôtre Dame de la Victoire. The duke arrived at Paris in the month of August, triumphantly accompanied by nobles and gentlemen, to the amount of five hundred horse, and departed thence on the 14th to wait on the king. Having staid some time with him, he set out for Senlis, on his way to Clermont.

The king received, in the month of August, an embassy from the king of England, whose ambassadors were lodged at Lihons in Santerre; and after some conferences had been held with the king, he sent his chancellor, and the minister of his finances, to Paris, to borrow a sum of money under promise of repayment on[Pg 195] All-saints-day. The sum lent by the town was seventy-five thousand crowns of gold, which was given to the english ambassadors, in consideration of a treaty which they had concluded with the king. The town of Paris sent him, at the same time, a large body of men at arms well dressed and mounted, and paid by the town.

On the 29th of August, the king in company with the archbishop of Lyon, the duke of Bourbon, and a great body of his nobility and men at arms, to the number, as estimated, of one hundred thousand horse, set out from Amiens to Pecquigny[55], to meet king Edward of England, who came thither, attended by his van and rear battalions (the main army remained behind in battle-array), to hold a conference. Two sheds of wood had been erected for the purpose, by the king's orders, on the bridge of Pecquigny, fronting each other, but divided, from top to bottom, by a trellis of wood-work, through which the two kings might thrust their hands. The king of[Pg 196] France came to his shed the first; and instantly an english baron, there in waiting, set off to inform the king of England, who was in his camp, a good league distant from Pecquigny, where were twenty thousand English, well furnished with artillery.

King Edward soon arrived and entered his shed having twenty-two lancemen that had followed him, posted in the river, beside the bridge, the whole time the two kings were in conference. During this, a very heavy fall of rain came on, to the great vexation of the french lords, who had dressed themselves and their horses in their richest habiliments, in honour to king Edward. The king of England, on approaching the king of France, put one knee on the ground twice; and the king of France received him kindly, and made him rise[56]. A general conversation now ensued between the kings, the archbishop of Lyon, the duke of Bourbon,[Pg 197] the minister of the finances, and others, to the number of a hundred persons, whom the king of France had with him. After this general conversation, the company retired, and the two kings remained alone for some time in private conference. On their parting, it was published, that a treaty had been concluded on the following terms:—A truce was agreed to for seven years, to commence the 29th day of August, 1475, and to expire on the same day in the year 1482. By this truce, all Englishmen were allowed to enter France, whether armed or not, provided there were not more than one hundred persons in any one company. The truce was proclaimed at Paris, Amiens, and in other parts of the realm. The king of England then acknowledged the receipt of seventy-five thousand golden crowns; and the king made very liberal presents to all the courtiers of Edward, to the heralds and trumpets, who made great rejoicings for the same, crying out, 'Largesse au très noble et puissant roy de France! Largesse, Largesse!' The king of France, moreover, promised to pay king[Pg 198] Edward an annual pension of fifty thousand crowns[57] for these seven years.

The king of France paid great court to the duke of Clarence, brother to the king of England, and made him many rich gifts. Edward now collected the troops he had sent to Abbeville, Peronne, and elsewhere, and, having packed up bag and[Pg 199] baggage, marched back to Calais, to cross the sea to England. He was escorted to Calais by master Hesberge, bishop of Evreux. King Edward left with the king of France two of his barons the lord Howard, and his master of the horse[58] until certain things that Edward was to send him from England should arrive. These two barons were the confidential servants of Edward, and had been greatly instrumental in negotiating the truce and other treaties between the two kings, and were in consequence much feasted at Paris.

The king of France and his lords before mentioned now left Amiens for Senlis, where he made some stay. While he was there, he ordered the officers of his household, and particularly sir Denis Hesselin, to show these two barons all the curiosities in Paris, of which he acquitted himself so as to deserve the king's thanks. They remained in Paris eight days, during which they were daily feasted, and carried to the forest of Vincennes for their amusement. Among other entertainments, a[Pg 200] grand one was given them at the king's palace of the Tournelles, to which were invited many ladies, damsels, and citizens' wives and daughters, to add to its brilliancy. These two barons now left Paris, to wait on the king at the abbey de la Victoire near Senlis.

This month the king departed from the abbey de la Victoire for the Soissonnois, and stopped at the abbey of Nôtre Dame de Liesse. During this journey, he took possession of the town of St Quentin, which the constable had seized by driving out the royal garrison; for the constable had now deserted the king, and joined the duke of Burgundy. But what was worse, he had written letters to king Edward, after he had crossed the sea to England, in which he called him a coward, a pitiful and poor sovereign, for having made a treaty with a king who would not keep one of his promises, and that in the end he would find himself completely duped. King Edward, on the receipt of these letters, discovered the treachery of the constable to his sovereign.

The king gave his permission for[Pg 201] the lord Howard and the master of the horse to return to England, and presented them, on their departure, with many valuable gifts, as well in money as in gold and silver plate. He caused proclamation to be made in Paris, that they were at liberty to carry away with them as much wine as they pleased, on paying for it.

The king passed the month of October at Verdun, and other places on the borders of Lorraine, and then returned to Senlis and to the abbey de la Victoire, where ambassadors met him from Brittany, who concluded a peace between him and their duke, on his renouncing all the engagements and alliances he had formed against the king. The duke of Burgundy accepted of a truce similar to that which had been concluded with the English.

On the 16th of October, this truce was proclaimed by sound of trumpet throughout Paris. It was to commence the 14th of the preceding month, and to continue for nine years; and the merchandise of both countries was to have a free passage and entrance in and throughout[Pg 202] each of them,—and during this period, every one had liberty to repossess his landed property.

The king returned to St Denis, and thence to Sauvigny near Montlehery, to Malesherbes, to Orleans, Tours and Amboise.

On the 20th of November, a gentleman called Regnault de Valoux, a native of Poitou, and greatly in the confidence of the count du Maine, was, by sentence of the court of parliament, brought to Paris to be executed and quartered, for having made many journies to divers great lords of the realm, to induce them to form conspiracies against the king, and to the prejudice of the kingdom and the public welfare. By orders of the court, great attention was paid to the future salvation of the soul of Regnault; for the curate of the Magdalen-church at Paris a very able divine, and two learned clerks, cordelier friars, were allowed him. His members were hung on four of the gates at Paris, and his body on the gibbet.

In one of the articles of the truce, between the king of France and the duke of Burgundy,[Pg 204] was a stipulation for the delivery of the constable de St Pol into the hands of the king's officers. This was complied with by the duke; and the constable was given in charge to the lord admiral bastard of Bourbon, the lord de St Pierre, the lord de Bouchaige, master Guillaume de Cerisay, and others, by whom he was carried prisoner to Paris. They led him on the outside of the walls to the entrance of the bastile from the fields; but as that gate was closed, they took him to the gate of St Anthony, and thence through part of the town to that fortress.

The constable had on a short cloak of camlet, lined with black velvet, in which he was wrapped up, and mounted on a small courser in fine condition. When he dismounted, he was met in the court of the bastile by the lord chancellor, the first president of the court of parliament, and all the other presidents and councellors of that court; there was also sir Denis Hesselin, master of the king's household, to receive him. Those who escorted him delivered him over to the care of Philip L'Huillier, governor of the bastile: but[Pg 205] the lord admiral, before their departure, addressed the chancellor and the presidents, in the presence of the constable, nearly in the following words: 'My lords who are here present, behold the lord de Saint Pol, whom the king ordered me to demand from the duke of Burgundy, in consequence of an article in the last truce concluded between them, and who performed his promise by delivering him into my hands. I have taken every care of him, and now surrender him up to you, for you to proceed on his trial with as much diligence as may be,—for this the king has charged me to say to you.' After which, the lord admiral quitted the bastile.

The constable being thus left in the hands of his judges, they lost no time in proceeding to his trial, and examined him on the various charges laid against him. To the interrogatories he made verbal answers, as to the different points of his imputed crimes, which were all put down in writing, copied out fair, and sent to the king.

On the 4th of December, one of the king's heralds, called Montjoye, a native[Pg 206] of Picardy, and who had resided mostly with the count de St Pol, while constable, came to Paris with his son, to wait on master John de Ladriesche, president of the chamber of accounts, and treasurer of France, who was from the country of Brabant. He brought to him letters from the count de Marle, his wife and children, to induce him to aid, with all his interest, the constable, father to the count de Marle.

The president refused to receive the letters brought by the herald, except in presence of the lord chancellor and the other ministers of the king,—and, for this reason, carried the herald to the chancellor, that the letters might be opened and examined. But as John de Ladriesche remained long in conference with the chancellor, the herald and his son returned to their lodgings, and, mounting their horses, set out for Bourget[59]; although they told their host to say, if any one should inquire after them, that they were gone to sleep at Bourg la Reine. When John de Ladriesche had quitted the chancellor, he sought Montjoye, to have[Pg 207] the letters, and, not finding him, sent for him to Bourg la Reine, where he had never been; but two archers of Paris discovered him at Bourget, and brought him and his son back to Paris. They were carried to the town-hall, and examined separately by some of the king's council, and their depositions were reduced to writing by sir Denis Hesselin. They were then delivered over to the care of Denis Baudart, an archer of Paris, in whose house they were confined twenty-five days, and strictly guarded by three archers of Paris.

At the beginning of December, the count de Roussy[60] was conducted, as a prisoner of war from the great tower in Bourges to Plessis du Parc, formerly called Montils les Tours, where the king then resided. The king remonstrated sharply with him on the foolish conduct he had long persevered in, and the great and manifold outrages he had done to his country and subjects as marshal of Burgundy for the duke, and how disgracefully he had been made prisoner,[Pg 208] while bearing arms against his sovereign, by the duke of Bourbon. The count had pledged his word to the lord de Combronde, from whom the duke of Burgundy had purchased him for twenty-two thousand golden crowns. Of all this the king reminded him,—and frightened him so effectually that the count's blood ran cold.

At length, however, the king agreed to his ransom, for forty thousand crowns,—but only two months were allowed him for the payment; and he was assured, that on his failure he would be put to death.

The trial of the constable now proceeded rapidly before the chancellor, presidents, and councellors of the court of parliament, the lord de St Pierre, and others nominated for the purpose. It was ordered that on Tuesday the 19th of December, the constable should appear before the parliament, to hear his sentence read. On Tuesday morning, the lord de St Pierre, who had the care of him, came into his chamber, in the prison of the bastile, and said, 'My lord, what are you about? are you asleep?' The constable replied, 'Oh[Pg 209] no! It is long since I have slept; but I am amusing myself with thinking, and other fancies.' St Pierre then said, that he must rise to appear before the court of parliament to answer some questions which the members wanted to put to him, and which could not be well done out of court. In saying this, St Pierre added, that it had been ordered that he should accompany him, as well as sir Robert d'Estouteville, the provost of Paris. This somewhat alarmed the constable for two reasons, which he then declared.

First, because he thought it was intended by this measure to take him from under the guard of Philip L'Huillier, governor of the bastile, by whom he had been attentively treated, and place him in the hands of d'Estouteville, whom he reputed his enemy, and who, he thought, would use him harshly; and, secondly, he was afraid of being insulted, should he pass through the populace of Paris.

These alarms were removed by the lord de St Pierre, who assured him, that it was not intended to carry him to another prison,—and he engaged to convey him,[Pg 210] without insult, to the court of parliament. On this he mounted his horse, and set out from the bastile, and went to the palace of justice riding between the lords de St Pierre and d'Estouteville, who made him dismount at the steps, opposite the Porte aux Merciers in the court.

As he mounted the steps, he met the lord de Gaucourt and Hesselin, who saluted him, and bade him welcome. The constable returned their salutes, and, when at the top, was led to the 'tour criminelle' of the court of parliament, where he found the lord chancellor, who addressed him nearly as follows:—'My lord of St Pol, you have hitherto been reputed a knight of the utmost courage and fortitude: since that has been your character, you will now have greater need to display it than ever.' He then added, 'My lord, you must take from your neck the collar of the king's order, which you now wear.' The count replied, that he would willingly do so, and applied his hand to take it off his neck; but as it was fastened by a pin behind, he desired St Pierre to aid him, which he did. He then kissed it, and delivered it to the chancellor.[Pg 211] He was then asked by the chancellor for the sword which had been given him when he was created constable: he replied, that he had it not,—for when he was arrested, and carried to the bastile, every thing was taken from him but what he now appeared in. The chancellor held him excused for not producing the sword, and departed.

Immediately after came master John de Poupaincourt, one of the presidents of the court of parliament, and spoke as follows:—'My lord, you know, that, by the king's orders, you have been confined in the bastile for certain crimes that have been laid to your charge. These crimes have been inquired into, and you have been heard, and you have put in your answers and justification. But after long and mature deliberations on the evidence on both sides, I am to declare to you, that in the judgement of the court, you have been guilty of high treason, and, in consequence, are sentenced to death by the said court, without delay,—that is to say, you are to be beheaded in the course of the day, in front of the town-house of this city,—and[Pg 212] all your effects, personal and real, are confiscated to the king's use, together with all your lordships, and every sort of inheritance, hereditary or acquired.'

This sentence greatly astonished him, for he did not imagine that either the king or the parliament would have adjudged him to death; and he said, 'Ah, God be praised! this is a very harsh sentence,—and I supplicate and entreat that he would give me the grace to acknowledge all his bounties this day.' Then, turning to the lord de St Pierre, he said, 'This is contrary to all you have before told me would happen.' He was then transferred to four doctors in divinity, one of whom was a cordelier friar, called master John de Sordun,—another an augustin monk,—the third, the grand penitentiary of Paris,—and the fourth, master John Hugh, rector of St André des Arts, and dean of the faculty of theology in Paris. He requested of them and of the chancellor, that he might have the sacrament administered to him, which was not granted; but he had a mass chaunted, with which he was forced to content himself. They gave him holy water and holy bread, of[Pg 213] which he ate some, but never drank of any thing from that time.

He remained with these his confessors until one or two o'clock after midday, when he descended from the palace, and mounted his horse, to go to the town-house, where the scaffolds were erected for his execution. He was attended by the greffier and ushers of the court of parliament,—and on his arrival at the town-house, he dismounted, and was conducted into the office, against which a large scaffold had been placed, from whence a gallery of wood led to a smaller scaffold, which was to be the place of his execution. He made, during his stay in the office, many pitiful lamentations to his confessors, and dictated his last will, under the good pleasure of the king, to sir Denis Hesselin, who wrote down his dispositions[61]. Having staid in the office until three o'clock, he advanced on the scaffold,—and throwing himself on his knees, with his face to the church of Nôtre Dame, he was long at his prayers with much devotion[Pg 214] and contrition; during which, master John Sordun held a crucifix before him, which he often kissed with the utmost reverence, and crying bitterly. When his prayers were ended, he rose up, and one called Petit Jean, son to Harry Cousin, the chief executioner at Paris, came to him, and, with a small cord, tied his hands, which he most patiently suffered; after which, he led him further on to the small scaffold, where he stopped and looked at the chancellor, the lord de Gaucourt, the provost of Paris, the lord de St Pierre, the greffier civil of the parliament, sir Denis Hesselin, and others the king's officers in great numbers, praying for the king, and entreating them to pray for his soul,—'not,' as he said, 'if it should cost them any thing, and be any way injurious to their interests.' He then turned to the populace, and besought them to pray for his salvation. Having done this, he placed his two knees on a small woolen cushion, having on it the arms of the town, and moved it with one of his feet more conveniently. His eyes were now bandaged by Little John, while he was praying to God, talking to his confessors,[Pg 215] and earnestly kissing the cross. Little John now took the sword, which was given to him by his father, and instantly made his head fly from his shoulders so expeditiously that the body fell at the same time on the scaffold with the head.

Little John took up the head, and, having washed it in a pail of water placed there for the purpose, fixed it on the rails of the scaffold for the view of the spectators, who amounted, as was thought, to more than two hundred thousand persons. After some little time, the body was stripped, and, with the head, wrapped in a fine linen cloth, and put in a wooden coffin which sir Denis Hesselin had caused to be prepared. A body of cordelier friars now approached, to carry away the corpse, to inter it in their church at Paris,—to whom sir Denis Hesselin ordered forty torches to be given, to convoy the body to their church, where, on the morrow, a handsome funeral service was performed. Another was also celebrated in the church of Saint John en Grève, where a grave had been dug, on the supposition that his body would have been there buried. Indeed, this[Pg 216] would have been the case, had not master John Sordun told the constable, that a countess de St Pol, had been buried in their church which made it desirable that he should be there interred likewise. This the count assented to, and prayed his judges that his body might be carried to the church of the Cordeliers.

After the execution, the whole of the crimes of the said constable, and the sentence passed on him, were publicly read in the court of parliament, with open doors, when divers enormous treasons by him committed, were now divulged. Among others, it was declared, that the duke of Burgundy in conjunction with the count de St Pol had sent ambassadors, namely, sir Philip Bouton and sir Philip Pot, knights, on the part of the duke, with Hector de l'Ecluse, on the part of the constable to the duke of Bourbon, to prevail on him to join them in arms against the king, and abjure his allegiance to him; and although the lord de Fleurac had told them, that their attempt was vain, for that the duke would rather die than forfeit his loyalty, the said L'Ecluse[Pg 217] had again returned thither with information from the constable, that the English were about invading France, and, with the assistance of the duke of Burgundy and the constable, would doubtless conquer the kingdom. He strongly advised the duke of Bourbon, that, to avoid the ruin that must ensue to his towns and country, he should join them as he would find it most profitable so to do,—for should any misfortunes befal him after this notice, he would have himself solely to blame for them. The duke of Bourbon replied to L'Ecluse, that he should not follow his advice,—for that he would rather die, with the loss of all he possessed, and be reduced to the poverty of Job, than consent, in art or part, to any thing that should be to the prejudice of the king or his kingdom. Hector, therefore, went back again as unsuccessful as before.

The duke of Bourbon had, during these negotiations, transmitted the constable sealed proposals to the king, which clearly discovered the constable's treason in this instance, and also in others which he had confessed on his trial. The examinations[Pg 218] were all read,—but as they were of great length, I omit them for the sake of brevity.

After the constable had confessed himself, and was preparing to mount the scaffold, he told his confessors, that he had sewed up in his doublet seventy half-crowns of gold, which he took out and gave to the Cordelier, to be distributed in charity from his love to God and for the ease of his conscience. The Cordelier replied, that they would be well employed if distributed among the poor novices of his convent: the Augustin said the same. In order to satisfy them, he desired that they would divide the sum among themselves, and make such distribution in charities as their consciences should approve of. He then took a gold ring set with a diamond from his finger, and, giving it to the penitentiary, desired that he would offer it to the image of the virgin Mary, and place it on her finger, which he promised to perform. Addressing himself to master John Sordun, he said, 'Reverend father, here is a stone that I have long worn round my neck, and which I loved[Pg 219] much for its virtue of preserving the wearer from all poison and pestilence,—which stone I beg of you to bear to my young son, to whom you will say, that I entreat he will be careful of it, out of love to me.' The friar promised to obey his wishes.

After his execution, the chancellor demanded of the four confessors if he had given them any thing; and they informed him of the half-crowns, the ring, and the stone. The chancellor said, that in regard to the half-crowns and the ring, they must obey the injunctions of the deceased; but as to the stone, it must be delivered to the king, for him to do with it according to his pleasure. In consequence of the execution of the constable the following short epitaph was made:

'Mille quatre cens l'année de Grace
Soixante quinze, en la grande place,
A Paris, que l'on nomme Gréve,
L'an que fut fait aux Anglois treve,
De Decembre le dix-neuf,
Sur un échauffaut fait de neuf,
[Pg 220]
'Fut amenè le connetable,
Accompagnié grand et notable,
Comme le veut Dieu et raison,
Pour sa grande trahison:
Et là il fut décapité,
En cette très noble cité.'

On Saturday, the 23d of December, an edict was published at Paris, by sound of trumpet, to notify the displacing of the master and officers of the mint, and the causes for the same. In their places, the king appointed only four persons, namely, sir Germain de Merle, Nicholas Potier, Denis le Breton, and Simon Ausoran. It was ordered by this edict, that the crowns of gold bearing the stamp of the king, and which had been current for twenty-four sols parisis three deniers tournois; should be current for thirty-five unzains, equivalent to twenty-five sols eight deniers parisis; and that the other crowns that were marked with a crescent instead of a crown, should pass for thirty-six unzains, worth twenty-six sols six deniers parisis,—and the new twelve-penny pieces were to pass for twelve pennies tournois.

[Pg 221]

This day, by permission from the king the remains of Regnault Veloux, who had been executed for treason, were collected together,—his body from the gibbet of Montfaucon and his head from the lance to which it had been affixed, fronting the town-house,—and carried to the church of the Cordeliers for interment, where a handsome funeral service was performed for the salvation of his soul, all at the cost and expenses of the friends and relatives of the late Regnault Veloux.

On St Stephen's day, in this year there appeared before the town-house in Paris a lombard knight, called sir Boufillé, who had been challenged to mortal combat on foot by an arragonian knight, but who had failed to keep his engagement on the day appointed for the combat. To obtain such damages as in reason he ought to have, the said Boufillé had come before the count de Dammartin, whom the king had nominated judge to decide the differences between them. Boufillé appeared in full armour, with his battle-axe on his wrist ready for the combat, and was preceded by his banner and three[Pg 222] trumpets, followed by many servants, one of whom bore another battle-axe. After he had stated his case, and made his appeal to the count de Dammartin, he retired to his lodgings at the sign of the Great Cup, near to the town-house.

Sunday the 28th of December, the duke of Alençon, who had long been confined in the prisons of the Louvre, was, by orders from the king, taken thence about six in the evening, to be lodged in any private house that should be by his guards thought sufficiently secure. Sir Denis Hesselin, Jacques Hesselin his brother, and sir John de Harlay, commander of the night-guard of Paris, were appointed to conduct him; which they did, to the house of the late Michael L'Huillier, whither he was preceded by four lighted torches.

In the month of January following, the king caused proclamation to be made in Paris, that whereas, from long antiquity, the kings of France had been allowed by the different popes to assemble every five years, the prelates of France for the reformation of the church; and whereas this had been neglected for some[Pg 223] years, the king, desirous to guard and preserve the rights of the gallican church, now ordered a council of the prelates and churchmen to be holden at Lyon, or in some town near; and for this purpose the king commanded all archbishops, bishops, and other dignitaries, to be resident in their several dioceses, that they might be in readiness to attend this council at whatever place it should be appointed to be holden, under pain of having all their temporal property seized on by the king, should they fail of obeying this edict as to their residence, within six months after the proclamation of the said edict.

Another proclamation followed the above, stating, that whereas the king, to answer some urgent demands respecting the public welfare, had ordered a crown to be paid for every pipe of wine that was exported and that all other provision, was to pay in proportion, which taxes had for some time been neglected to be raised: he therefore ordered the tax of a crown to be paid from one extremity of the kingdom to the other, on every[Pg 224] pipe of wine exported, but that the taxes on other provision were to cease and be annulled. Master Laurence Herbelot, king's counsellor, and Denis Chevalier, formerly notary to the Châtelet, were appointed to collect this tax,—although the king had, a little before, nominated master Pierre Jouvelin inspector of accounts, who was now displaced by this new appointment.

In the month of February, the king left Tours and Amboise for the Bourbonnois and Auvergne. He there performed a nine-days devotion at the church of our Lady at Puy, and afterwards went into the Lyonnois and Dauphiny. During his stay at Puy, he received intelligence that the Swiss had met the duke of Burgundy and his army as they were on their march to enter Swisserland, and had defeated him with the loss of sixteen or eighteen thousand men, and taken all his artillery.

It was thus told:—When the duke of Burgundy had won the town of Granson, he marched his army along the lake of Neufchâtel, toward Fribourg, and[Pg 225] found means to gain two castles at the entrance of Swisserland. The Swiss though informed of this as well as of the capture of Granson, kept advancing to meet him, and, on the Friday preceding the first Sunday in Lent, surrounded these castles so effectually that none could come out. They posted two ambuscades in a small wood hard by, and near to the main body of the Burgundians. On the morrow very early, the duke began his march with the artillery; but he had no sooner passed the ambuscades than the Swiss, who did not amount to more than six thousand infantry armed with culverins, began to fire with such success on the enemy that the duke's van, panicstruck, took to flight with very great loss[62]. The Swiss charged the main body, which fled also; and the duke himself escaped with great difficulty, attended by only four persons: he never stopped, but often looked behind him, until he came to Joigné, which was eight country leagues from the[Pg 226] place of his defeat, and equal to sixteen leagues of pretty France, which may God preserve and guard! The duke lost the greater part of his best captains,—and there was great slaughter among the Burgundians. After this disgraceful flight, and after the Swiss had taken all his artillery, plate, and baggage[63], they won[Pg 227] the two castles, and hanged all the Burgundians within them. They also regained the town of Granson, and took down from the gibbets the Swiss and Germans, to the number of five hundred and twelve, whom the duke had caused to be hanged, and buried them. At the same time, they seized on an equal number of Burgundians then in Granson, and tied them up with the same ropes, and at the same places where the Germans and Swiss had been hanged.

The king, during the month of March had sent the lord of Beaujeu to besiege the duke of Nemours, in the town of Carlat in Auvergne, with a considerable force and a large train of artillery. The duke surrendered himself into the hands of the lord of Beaujeu, who conducted him to the king then in Dauphiny,—whence he was, by the king's orders, carried prisoner to the castle of Vienne. During the siege of Carlat, the duchess of Nemours, daughter to Charles d'Anjou duke of Maine, was brought to bed in the castle,—but whether from vexation at the situation of her husband's affairs,[Pg 228] or from illness in childbirth, she died: it was a pity, for she was a good and honourable lady. The duke was afterwards removed from the castle of Vienne to Pierre-en-cise, near Lyon.

In the month of April, the count de Campo Basso[64], a Lombard or Milanese, who had the command of two hundred lombard lances at the siege of Nuys, and had also been with the duke at the defeat at Granson, left the duke of Burgundy, and went to Brittany, claiming[Pg 229] relationship with that duke, under pretence of going on a pilgrimage to the shrine of Saint James in Gallicia. The duke of Brittany received him well, and made him handsome presents in money. Campo Basso published abroad, that the duke of Burgundy was cruel and inhuman,—that all his enterprises would prove abortive,—and that he was only losing time, people, and money by his foolish obstinacy.

CHAP. XXI.

In the month of May, in this year, the duke of Burgundy, smarting from the[Pg 231] defeat at Granson, was more eager than ever to be revenged on the Swiss and Germans, and determined to lay siege to the town of Strasbourg; but this he was unable to do without reinforcements of men, and without obtaining a loan of money from his different towns. To succeed in this business, he dispatched his chancellor, master William Gounet, and other delegates to the number of twelve, to the principal towns under his government, to relate to them his distress from the defeat at Granson, and to express his determination to be revenged on the Swiss, which induced him to apply to them for money and men. He wanted them to advance him a sixth part of their property, and six men each town, one of whom was to be equipped in armour.

The towns in Ghent, Bruges, Brussels, Lille, and the estates of Flanders, replied to this application from the delegates, that in regard to the duke of Burgundy, whom they considered as their natural lord, if he were hardly oppressed by the Germans, or had not a sufficiency of men to return to his own country in[Pg 232] safety, they would expose their lives and fortunes in the bringing of him home; but in respect to continuing the war, they had resolved not to afford him any further assistance in men or money.

In this interval, the king of France had made Lyon his chief residence, making good cheer; and thither came to him his uncle the king of Sicily, to whom he gave a cordial reception on his arrival, carrying him to see the fair and the handsome citizens' wives and daughters of Lyon. Thither also came a cardinal, nephew to the pope, who had committed some outrages against the king at Avignon, and also against the archbishop of Lyon legate from the pope. The cardinal waited some time for an audience,—but at length the disputes between him, the king, and the archbishop, were amicably settled.

At the same time, the king of Sicily entered into engagements with the king, that the county of Provence after his decease, should revert, with all its rights and privileges, to the king, and be united for ever to the crown. In return for this, queen Margaret of England[Pg 233] daughter to the king of Sicily, and widow of Henry VI. was released from her imprisonment by the king of France who paid king Edward fifty thousand golden crowns for her ransom. In consequence, queen Margaret joined in the cession of the county of Provence to the king after her father's death, on having a sufficient pension secured to her annually for her life.

On the 13th day of June, the seneschal of Normandy, count of Maulevrier, and son to the late sir Pierre de Brézé, killed at the battle of Montlehery, went to the village of Romiers, near Dourdan, which belonged to him, for the sake of hunting. He took with him his lady, the princess Charlotte of France, natural daughter of the late king Charles VII. by Agnes Sorel. After the chace, when they were returned to Romiers to sup and lodge, the seneschal retired to a single-bedded room for the night. His lady retired also to another chamber,—when, moved by her disorderly passions (as the husband said), she called to her a gentleman from Poitou, named Pierre de la Vergne, who was head[Pg 234] huntsman to the seneschal, and made him lie with her. This was told to the seneschal by the master of his household, called Pierre l'Apothicaire; when he instantly arose, and, taking his sword, broke open the door of the chamber where his lady and the huntsman were in bed. The huntsman started up in his shirt,—and the seneschal gave him first a severe blow with his sword on the head, and then thrust it through his body, and killed him on the spot. This done, he went into an adjoining room where his children lay; and, finding his wife hid under the coverlid of their bed, dragged her thence, by the arms, along the ground, and struck her between the shoulders with his sword. On her raising herself on her knees, he ran his sword through her breast, and she fell down dead. He sent her body for interment to the abbey of Coulons, where her obsequies were performed,—and he caused the huntsman to be buried in the garden of the house wherein he had been killed.

While the king was at Lyon, he kept a large army, ready for any event, in that neighbourhood,—and there heard that the[Pg 235] duke of Lorraine had joined the Swiss, Berners, and Germans, in their opposition to the duke of Burgundy, who, in his madness and folly, had again entered Swisserland. He had with him a considerable train of artillery, and a great number of merchants, who, bringing provisions, followed the army, that was encamped before a little town in Swisserland, called Morat, with the intent to besiege it.

On the 22nd day of June, very early in the morning, the duke of Lorraine made an attack on the duke's van, and defeated the whole of it. This van consisted of more than twelve thousand combatants, and was under the command of the count de Romont[66], who, in great haste, found means to escape with eleven others.

The Swiss that were in Morat now joined the troops of the duke of Lorraine, forced the camp of the Burgundians, and put to death all they met without mercy[67]. The duke of Burgundy was glad [Pg 236]to retreat with the few of his army who had escaped this general slaughter, and again fled, frequently looking behind him to Joigné, which was distant fifteen or twenty french leagues from the field of battle. He again lost all his baggage, which consisted of his plate, tapestries, and numberless valuables. The Swiss and Germans, in consideration of the great services the duke of Lorraine had done them, presented him with all the burgundian artillery that had been taken, to make him amends for his artillery which the duke of Burgundy had carried off from Nancy when he had stormed that town.

According to the accounts of the heralds and pursuivants who examined the field of battle, there were twenty thousand seven hundred men slain this day, as well within as without the encampment.

The Swiss pursued the Burgundians after the defeat, and slew many on their flight to Joigné,—and set fire to and destroyed the whole of the county of Romont,[Pg 237] and put to death without mercy all who fell into their hands.

When this business was done, the duke of Lorraine withdrew to Strasbourg, and departed thence with four thousand combatants, to lay siege to his town of Nancy, in which were from a thousand to twelve hundred men in garrison for the duke of Burgundy. Having formed his siege, he went into Swisserland, and returned thither with a strong reinforcement of men.

The king, having made a long stay at Lyon, went to Plessis les Tours, to the queen and dauphin, and remained there some time. He thence made a pilgrimage to the church of our Lady of Behuart, to offer up his thanksgivings that his affairs had prospered so well during his stay at Lyon. He sent also many rich gifts to churches wherein the holy Virgin was particularly worshipped. Among others, he gave two hundred golden crowns to the church of our Lady at Ardembourg in Flanders. On his return from Lyon, he was accompanied by two dames of that town as far as Orleans: one was called La Gigonne, who[Pg 238] had been married to a merchant of Lyon,—the other was named La Passefillon, wife to another merchant of the same place called Anthony Bourcier. The king, in order to do honour to these two women, made them very handsome presents,—and married La Gigonne to a young Parisian, named Geoffry de Caulers, to whom he gave money and offices. The husband of La Passefillon he appointed counsellor in the chamber of accounts at Paris, in the room of master John Reilhac, whom, for this purpose, he displaced. On leaving Orleans, he put these women under the protection of Isabeau de Caulers, wife to master Philip le Begue, examiner of accounts in the exchequer at Paris, to conduct them to that city.

The king went from Orleans to Amboise and Tours, where the queen and the dauphin were, and thence on a pilgrimage to our Lady of Behuart, and other places of devotion, and then returned again to Plessis les Tours.

When the town of Nancy had been some time besieged by the duke of Lorraine, it was surrendered to him on capitulation,[Pg 239] that the Burgundians should march away in safety with their baggage. It was not more than a month after the duke of Lorraine had revictualled and regarrisoned Nancy, before the duke of Burgundy, who, on his defeat at Morat, had retreated to the town of Rivieres, near Salines, in Burgundy, where he had assembled as large a force as he was able, appeared before it, to besiege it in his turn. The duke of Lorraine, in the mean time, had gone into Swisserland, to collect a sufficiency of troops to succour Nancy, and to raise the siege.

About this period, the king of Portugal, who laid claim to the crown of Spain in right of his queen, left Portugal, and came to Lyon, and thence to Tours, to solicit the aid of the king in the recovery of his lawful rights. He was kindly received by the king, and remained some time at Tours, where he was handsomely feasted by many of the nobles, but all at the king's expense. On leaving the king, he went to Orleans, where he was well received, and thence came to Paris, and made his public entry.

[Pg 240]

He arrived on Saturday, the 23d of November, between two and three in the afternoon, at the gate of St Jacques; but the different ranks in Paris went out to meet him as far as the windmill, dressed in their holyday clothes, and in the same manner as if he had been king of France. The provost of marchands and the sheriffs issued out first, dressed in robes of cloth and white and red damask, trimmed with martin skins: they were accompanied by the burghers and officers of the town. After them came sir Robert d'Estouteville, provost of Paris, attended by his lieutenants, civil and criminal, the king's counsellors, and practitioners at the Châtelet, who were very numerous, and decently dressed. Then came the lord chancellor d'Oriole, the presidents and counsellors of the court of parliament and of the exchequer, and the officers of the mint and of the treasury, followed by numbers of prelates, archbishops, bishops, and other noble persons.

Thus attended, the king of Portugal entered the gate of St Jacques, where he again met the provost of marchands and[Pg 241] the sheriffs, who presented him with a very handsome canopy, emblazoned at each corner with his royal arms, and in the center with the arms of Spain. Having this canopy supported over him, he was conducted to the church of St Estienne des Grecs, where he found the rectors of the university, who harangued him on his welcome to Paris. He then advanced to the church of Nôtre Dame, and was there received most honourably by the bishop. Having finished his prayers, he proceeded across the bridge of Nôtre Dame, and was met at the entrance of Marchepalu by fifty lighted torches, that placed themselves around the canopy. At the end of the bridge of Nôtre Dame, a large scaffold was raised against the house of a mantua-maker, named Motin, on which was represented a pageant, allusive to his arrival at Paris; and then he was conducted to his lodgings, at the house of master Laurence Herbelot, in the rue des Prouvaires, where he was well received.

Many rich presents were made him, as well by the city as by other persons,—and he was carried to see all that was remarkable[Pg 242] at Paris and in its neighbourhood. He way first taken to the court of parliament, which was very resplendent,—for all the chambers were adorned and hung with tapestries. In the great chamber, he was met by the lord chancellor d'Oriole, the presidents, prelates, and counsellors, handsomely dressed; and a cause was pleaded before him, touching the patronage of the crown, by master François Hasle, archdeacon of Paris, and the attorney-general, who were opposed by master Pierre de Brabant, advocate in that court, and the curate of St Eustache. The pleadings of the two advocates were very eloquent and pleasant to hear: after which, he was shown the different chambers and apartments of the court.

On another day, he was carried to the hall in the bishop's palace, to be present at a theological disputation; and thence he went to see the prisons and court of the Châtelet, which was likewise hung with tapestry,—and all the officers of the court were dressed each in his official robe.

Sunday, the first of December, all the members of the university passed in procession[Pg 243] under the windows of his lodgings, to attend high mass at the church of St Germain l'Auxerrois. In his different visits, he was always attended by the lord de Gaucourt, who gave him, at his hôtel, a magnificently rich supper, to which was invited a very numerous company of both sexes.

In the month of October, it was discovered, at Tours, that a person called Jeanbon, a native of Wales, who had a handsome pension from the king, and who was married to a woman from Mantes with a good fortune, had conspired, at the solicitation of the duke of Burgundy (as he himself had confessed), to poison the dauphin of France. For this crime, he was condemned, by the provost of the king's household, to be beheaded. At the place of execution, he was asked if he wished to say any thing more; he replied, Nothing, except that he hoped the king would be pleased to have compassion on his wife and children. The prisoner was then told, that he might have the choice of being beheaded or of having his eyes put out. He chose the last; and it was done by the provost, who then gave him up to his wife,—and[Pg 244] the king ordered that his pension should be continued in her name.

In the month of December, and during the feasts of Christmas, the duke of Milan[68] was unfortunately assassinated by a gentleman[Pg 245] of that country. He had accosted him in the great church of Milan, under pretence of speaking with him, while he was walking there with a foreign ambassador, and had thrust his knife through the slashes of his robe, three or four times, into his lower belly—so that he fell down instantly dead, without saying a word. The cause of this action was, that the gentleman, his relatives and friends had employed all their money to purchase a vacant abbey for one of their kindred,—and the duke had deprived him of it, to bestow it on another, and would not suffer their relative by any means to enjoy it. The gentleman, having made many fruitless requests to the duke on this business, determined to put him to death, which he did as above related.

Had this gentleman failed, he had a companion bent on the same business, who would have killed the duke of Milan, because he had detained his wife as a mistress against her inclinations. By the judges and nobles of Milan, it was resolved that the whole of the families of these two persons, males and females, should be put[Pg 246] to death, wherever they should be found,—their habitations demolished, and razed to the ground,—all their possessions destroyed,—and even their trees bearing fruit should be pulled up by their roots; and this sentence was carried into execution!

In the month of December, the lady Agnes of Bourbon departed this life, at the castle of Moulins, in the Bourbonnois. She was the widow of the late prince Charles duke of Bourbon and of Auvergne, by whom he had a noble issue, as well males as females,—namely, the present noble prince John duke of Bourbonnois and Auvergne, who married the most excellent princess Jeanne of France, eldest daughter to the late king Charles of France; Louis lord of Beaujeu, who died young; Charles archbishop of Lyon, primate of France and cardinal of Bourbon; Pierre lord of Beaujeu, married to the eldest daughter of the present king of France; the prince bishop of Liege; the lord James who died at Bruges; the lady Jeanne, married to the prince of Orange lord of Arlay; the lady Margaret, married to Philip of Savoy lord[Pg 247] of Bresse[69]. The defunct lady had long lived a holy life, and her loss was much regretted and bewailed by her children, family and friends, and by all the inhabitants of the Bourbonnois and Auvergne,—and may her soul be blessed! Her remains were interred in the church of Souvigny.

The duke of Burgundy, as before related, had marched to besiege the town of Nancy, and had reduced it to such distress, by famine, that negotiations were opened for its capitulation. But on the eve of Epiphany, the duke of Lorraine arrived with twelve or fourteen thousand Swiss and Germans to raise the siege, combat the Burgundians, and secure Nancy.

Four days before his arrival, which was on the 5th of January, the count of Campo Basso, the lord Ange, and the lord de Montfort, quitted the duke of Burgundy, and abandoned his camp,—and, prior to the battle, the count of Campo Basso carried away with him full nine score men at arms. On the Saturday following, the other two captains, before named, took[Pg 248] with them six score men at arms, who were all resolved to turn to the french party,—but this was kept secret on account of the existing truce; and it was ordered, by those to whom they had addressed themselves, that, for the present, they should march into Lorraine. This was done, with the exception of a party which remained for the guard of Condé[70], on the Moselle, through which place all the provisions for the Burgundian army passed, from the vale of Metz and the country of Luxembourg.

The count of Campo Basso[71] joined the duke of Lorraine, and informed him minutely of the exact state of the burgundian force. On this day, the 4th of January, the duke of Lorraine arrived at St Nicholas de Varangeville with his reinforcement of Swiss, who amounted, from an account taken, to ten thousand five hundred. Of Germans, there were also many, beside Lorrainers and other fighting men.

On Sunday, the 5th, the duke of Lorraine[Pg 249] dislodged, about eight in the morning, and marched the Swiss to Neuville, and beyond a pond, when they formed their army in array. The Swiss were formed in two divisions; the one commanded by the count d'Abstain and the governors of Fribourg and Zurich,—the other, by the governors of Berne and Lucerne. About midday, the whole began to advance,—one division along the river side, and the other on the great road leading from Neuville to Nancy.

The duke of Burgundy had already drawn up his army in battle-array without his camp, having in front a rivulet that was by the hospital called La Magonne, between two strong hedges, and between him and the Swiss. On the great road by which the other division of the Swiss was advancing, he had posted the main body of his artillery. Thus, as the two divisions of the Swiss were advancing, the Burgundians fired on them when within cross-bowshot, and did them some mischief; but that division which had taken the main road, wheeling through a small wood, fell on the duke of Burgundy's flank.

[Pg 250]

While this was passing, the duke ordered his archers, who were on foot, to wheel and front the Swiss, and formed two wings of his men at arms to give them battle,—one wing under the command of Jacques Galiot, an italian captain, and the other under sir Josse de Lalain, high bailiff of Flanders. When the Swiss found themselves on the duke's flank, and on higher ground, they made as desperate a charge as ever men made, discharging, on their advance, their portable culverins. This discharge (which was not like a tax-gatherer's) threw the duke's army into confusion, and was followed by their flight.

This division of Swiss now attacked the wing commanded by Jacques Galiot, and defeated it instantly. The other wing, under sir Josse de Lalain, had advanced on the Swiss, but were so courageously received that the infantry were soon put to flight, and followed by the cavalry as fast as spurs could make them. They made for the bridge of Bridores, half a league from Nancy, and on the road to Thionville and Luxembourg. But here their hopes of passing were destroyed by the treachery of[Pg 251] Campo Basso, who had barricaded the passage of this bridge with carts and waggons, and was with his men drawn up under arms on the opposite side; so that when the Burgundians were thus checked and overtaken by the Lorrainers, who followed at their heels, they were forced to attempt fording the river,—and there the slaughter was much more than on the field of battle, for such as attempted to pass the river were either killed by the Swiss or drowned: very few escaped death, or being made prisoners.

Some, on noticing this ambuscade of Campo Basso, fled to the woods: but they were pursued by the peasants,—and for four leagues round nothing was to be seen but dead bodies. The pursuit after the Burgundians lasted during two hours after nightfall; and the duke of Lorraine inquired, on all sides, what was become of the duke of Burgundy; whether he had fled, was slain, or made prisoner: but at that moment no one could answer his questions. The duke of Lorraine, on this, dispatched a confidential servant to John Dais, town-clerk of Metz, to learn if the duke of Burgundy had passed through that[Pg 252] town; and on the morrow, John Dais sent for answer, that assuredly he had not passed that way,—and that no one knew what was become of him, for he had not taken the road to Luxembourg.

On the morrow, Epiphany-day, the count of Campo Basso brought to the duke of Lorraine a page, who had been made prisoner, named Baptiste, a native of Rome, and of the Colonna family, in the employ of the count de Châlon a Neapolitan, who was with the duke of Burgundy. On being interrogated, the page led a large company of Lorrainers to the place where the duke of Burgundy lay dead[72], and naked, with fourteen others in the same state, but at[Pg 253] some distance from each other. The duke had received a blow from a halbert on the side of his head, above the ear, which had pierced to his jaw: a pike had been thrust through his thighs, and another pike had passed through his fundament. This body was known to be the duke's from six marks: the first, and principal, was the loss of all his upper teeth, which had been caused by a fall: the second, by the scar of a wound that he had received on the right side of his throat at the battle of Montlehery; the third, by his long nails, which he wore of a greater length than any other person of his court: the fourth, by a scar of a carbuncle, which he had formerly had on his shoulder; the fifth, by an ulcer at the lower part of his belly, on the right groin,—and, sixthly, by a nail that was wanting to one of his toes. By all these marks, he was acknowledged to be the duke of Burgundy by his own physician, a Portuguese, named Matthieu, and also by the grooms of his bed chamber, the great bastard of Burgundy, sir Olivier de la Marche, his chaplain, and others of his court, prisoners to the duke of Lorraine.

[Pg 254]

The body having been so clearly ascertained to be that of the duke of Burgundy, it was carried into Nancy, washed and cleaned, and then placed on a table, and dressed in a vesture of cloth from the neck to the feet, with a pall of black velvet over the body, in a dark chamber hung with black velvet. Under his head was a pillow of black velvet; and at the four corners of the table were large lighted tapers, with the crucifix and holy water at his feet.

While he lay in this state, the duke of Lorraine came to see him, dressed in mourning, and wearing a large golden beard, that descended to his girdle, in imitation of the ancient Preux, and in honour of the victory he had gained over him. Having taken one of his hands from under the pall, he said,—'May God receive your soul! You have done us many and grievous injuries and vexations.' After-which, he took some holy water and sprinkled it over the corpse. All who pleased now entered to see him; and the duke of Lorraine had him handsomely interred, and caused a solemn service to be said over him.

In consequence of the death and defeat[Pg 255] of the duke of Burgundy and his army, the duke of Lorraine and his captains held a council, and determined instantly to enter the duchy and county of Burgundy, and other parts under the dominion of the late duke, to reduce them to the king's obedience, which was accomplished without any resistance. Those of the country of Auxerre submitted also, and took the oaths of allegiance to the king.—In this battle, the greater part of those who had accompanied the duke were slain. The great bastard of Burgundy was made prisoner, whom the duke of Lorraine afterwards carried to the king of France in Picardy. The bastard Baldwin of Burgundy and several other great lords were also taken prisoners.

The king of France being assured of the death of the duke of Burgundy, and the events that had subsequently taken place, left Tours on a pilgrimage of devotion. He returned by Chartres Villepreux[73] and Aubervilliers[73], to Nôtre Dame de la Victoire, and thence to Noyon and Compiégne. In this interval, very many of the places that had been occupied by the duke of Burgundy,[Pg 256] were surrendered to him; such as Mondidier, Peronne, Abbeville, Montrieul sur mer, and others near to Arras. But those in this last town, at first, refused to submit, and fortified themselves with men at arms, provisions and artillery. Many agents were sent by them to the king, who at last succeeded in obtaining a truce; during which, the king made the greatest preparations of gens d'armes, artillery, and of warlike stores, that had been seen, waiting the determination of those in Arras—whether they would submit peaceably, or renew the war. To defray the expenses of so large an armament, the king borrowed great sums from Paris and the other principal towns in his kingdom.

The king, however, found means of gaining possession of the city of Arras[74], into which he made his entry on the 4th of May, and fortified it more strongly against the town of Arres,—into which a number[Pg 257] of persons attached to the burgundian party had thrown themselves, and even many from those towns that had lately submitted to the king, who, though for the most part adventurers, and without any leader of note had strengthened the fortifications, and uttered daily blasphemies against the king. To these they added all manner of insults,—such as erecting gibbets in the town and on the walls, on which they hung his badge of the white cross, showing their naked posteriors to him, and other indecencies.

During these insulting follies, some of the inhabitants of the town waited on the king, to endeavour to obtain a pacification; and although these adventurers had persevered over long in their impudence, the king agreed to accept the submission of those in Arras, as offered to their sovereign lord, for neglect of proper homage and of different dues; and that the revenues of the said towns should be collected by his commissioners, and in his name, until the princess of Burgundy should have performed her homage by proxy. The king also promised not to send any body of men at arms into[Pg 258] the town of Arras without the consent of the inhabitants.

These matters being settled, the king sent into the town the lord cardinal of Bourbon, the lord chancellor, sir Guiot Pot bailiff of the Vermandois, sir Philip de Crevecoeur lord Desquerdes, governor of the said town, with other nobles, to receive the oaths of the inhabitants of Arras; but while this was doing, some of the townsmen rebelled, and came in arms to the abbey of St Waast, where the cardinal and the other lords were at dinner, bawling out, 'Kill, kill them!' The commissioners were more frightened than they had ever been in their lives,—but at this time no mischief happened.

When they returned to the city of Arras, the king departed to celebrate Easter at Therouenne. He thence went to Hêdin, when the town surrendered: but some pillagers of the Burgundy-party seized on the castle, against which the king ordered his artillery to play, and a wide breach was soon made; but as the royalists were preparing to enter it, those within surrendered on having their lives and fortunes spared,[Pg 259] and on being permitted to march away in safety.

A.D. MCCCCLXXVII.

Early in the above year, after Hêdin had been gained, some of the inhabitants of Arras under pretence of going to the king of France, obtained passports from the lord admiral. He, however, suspected their intentions, and caused them to be followed,—when it was found that they were going to Flanders to the princess of Burgundy, and were in consequence arrested and brought back to Hêdin, where they were tried. It was now discovered that the object of their journey was treasonable; and they were accordingly sentenced to be beheaded in the market-place of Hêdin, to the number of eighteen: among them was master Oudart de Bucy, attorney-general of the town of Arras and country of Artois. His head was cut off in a hood of scarlet cloth lined with fur: both were nailed fast to the top of a pole, that the head might not be carried away; and under the hood was written, 'This is the head of master[Pg 260] Oudart de Bucy, king's councellor in his court of parliament at Paris[75].'

When these examples had been made, the king went on a pilgrimage to our Lady of Boulogne. He was very indignant at the rebellious conduct of the inhabitants of Arras, and declared that the town should be destroyed. To effect this, he ordered a large force to march and besiege it, which was done, and the artillery began to play on the town, when the king returned to the city about the end of April. The fortifications were much battered, and the bulwark which those in the town had erected against the city was so completely destroyed that the view of the interior of the town was laid open.

The inhabitants now gave themselves up for lost; but they found means to obtain the king's mercy, although he had abandoned[Pg 261] the town to be plundered by his men at arms and franc-archers, who were very much discontented thereat, considering that the pillage of the town had been solemnly promised to them. As the men of Arras had persevered in their rebellion, had insulted the king, and proceeded from bad to worse by killing many of his troops, they thought them undeserving of mercy. However, the capitulation was signed: and the royal army marched into Arras on Sunday, the 4th of May.

This matter being settled, the king went to the abbey of Nôtre Dame de la Victoire; and the lord admiral, the nobles and franc-archers separated for their own homes. While the king was at the above mentioned abbey, news was brought that fifty of his archers had been refused admittance into Peronne, whither they had carried five prisoners in his name. He went, therefore, to Peronne, thinking that a rebellion was intended, and staid there some time. Having had information that the Flemings were arming, with the intent to invade his country, he issued a proclamation, which was published at Paris on Sunday the 18th[Pg 262] of May, for all persons, of every description whether privileged or not, to be ready in arms to resist the invasion of the Flemings.

The king went to Cambray, which surrendered on capitulation, and remained there until Trinity Sunday, to recruit his men at arms.

The king sent his letters-patent to Paris, to order the presidents and councellors of his parliament, and the masters of requests[Pg 263] of his household, to come to Noyon, and form there a court of justice in his presence, and, in conjunction with the princes of his blood, to try the duke of Nemours, who had long been confined in the bastile of St Anthony at Paris. The parliament, in obedience to this order, set out from Paris on the 2d of June, to arrive at Noyon the ensuing day, which had been appointed for this trial.

On the 14th of June, a person who had been of the king's household was imprisoned for having forged the king's signet, and that of one of his secretaries, by which means he had sent letters to divers towns, and obtained large sums of money, which he had appropriated to his own use. He was tried before the provost, or his lieutenant, of the royal household, and sent to Paris, to have the following sentence executed upon him, namely, to be pilloried with a paper cap on his head, then burnt in the forehead, his right hand cut off, to be banished the kingdom, and all his effects and inheritances to be confiscated to the king.

In this month of June, the king gave[Pg 264] the command of an army to the lord de Craon[76], to march into the country of Burgundy, and make war on the prince of Orange[77] for some injuries which the lord de Craon had complained of having been done him by the prince, who was not of the same family with himself. The king, also, who had appointed the prince governor of that country, displaced him, and gave it to the lord de Craon, although he had been the means of reducing it to the king's obedience.

The prince of Orange detached into Burgundy a knight of that country called sir Claude de Vaudray, who made head against the lord de Craon for some time, until it was known that the prince had entered[Pg 265] a town called Guy[78], when the lord de Craon advanced to besiege it. He remained before it two days,—when learning that the lord de Château Guyon[79], brother to the prince of Orange, was marching to his relief, he advanced in battle-array to meet him, and a great conflict ensued, insomuch that there were killed on both sides from fourteen to fifteen hundred combatants. To return thanks for this defeat, the king ordered a general procession to be made at Paris, to the church of St Martin des Champs.

In the course of the month of July, the duke of Gueldres had marched from fourteen to fifteen hundred Germans against the town of Tournay, thinking to burn the suburbs, and quarter himself at Pont d'Epierre, near the town. Two sallies were made from the town: in the first, the duke was mortally wounded, and his body was carried into Tournay. In the second sally, four hundred of the king's[Pg 266] lances and some of the townsmen attacked and put to flight the Germans and Flemings,—two thousand of whom were slain, and seven or eight hundred made prisoners. Te Deum laudamus was chaunted at Paris, and bonfires were made in all the streets for this signal victory.

On Monday, the 3d day of August of this year, messire Jacques d'Armagnac, duke of Nemours and count de la Marche, having been conducted as a prisoner to the bastile of St Anthony on the 4th day of August in the preceding year, by reason of certain offences and crimes by him committed and perpetrated,—during which time of his imprisonment in the said bastile, many interrogatories were put to him concerning the said charges, to which he answered verbally and in writing, on many different days, as well before the chancellor of France, named Pierre d'Oriole, as others, the presidents and counsellors of the court of parliament, and also before certain great clerks of the kingdom, dwelling in divers cities and towns of the said kingdom, summoned and assembled for this purpose in the city of Noyon, with and in company[Pg 267] of the said officers of the parliament, and in presence of the lord de Beaujeu, then representing the person of the king,—the proceedings held by the court aforesaid against the said duke of Nemours were examined, and also the defence by him made, and, after mature deliberation, it was decreed, that sir John le Boulenger, first president of the parliament, accompanied by the greffier criminel of the court and sir Denis Hesselin, master of the king's household, should instantly set out for the bastile, and declare to the duke of Nemours, that the court, having fully considered the charges laid against him, and the whole of his defence and confessions, have found him guilty of high treason, and sentence him to be beheaded for the same, this day, in the market-place at Paris, and all his effects and inheritances to be confiscated to the king. The execution took place at three in the afternoon of that day, on a scaffold erected in the market-place. After he was beheaded, the corpse and head were put into a bier, and delivered to the cordelier friars, to be buried in their church. About seven or eight score Cordeliers came[Pg 268] in procession to fetch the body, and forty torches were given to them to escort the bier to their church.

The king was this month at Therouenne, and thence detached part of his army to drive away a body of Flemings who had encamped near to Blanfossé[80]. They no sooner heard of this order than they immediately decamped, but not before the royalists arrived, and slew upwards of two thousand of them. They were also pursued far into Flanders; and the king's army passed by Mont de Cassel to Fiennes and other places, which they razed, or took possession of, and killed full two thousand more of the Flemings. Many solemn processions were made at Paris for these successes.

In the month of August, the son of Henry Cousin, the chief executioner at Paris, called Petit John, (who had already done several notable deeds in the way of his profession, and, among others, had beheaded the late constable of St Pol) was murdered in Paris at the instigation of a[Pg 269] carpenter, named Oudin du Bust, a native of Picardy. This Oudin had conceived a mortal hatred against Petit John, because he had some time before beaten him, in consequence of a quarrel that had arisen between them. The cause of this quarrel was Oudin having demanded the amount of a deed for money he had lent Petit John which had been repaid all but the expenses of the bond. To be revenged, Oudin had formed an acquaintance with three disorderly youths of Paris; one was called l'Empereur du Houlx, sergeant at mace; the other, Jean du Foing, a plumber,—and the third, Regnault Goris, a silversmith and son to Martin Goris, broker of jewelry. All these four having determined on their plan, waylaid Petit John, and attacked him at the corner of the rue des Grenelles, near the hôtel of the Moulinet.

The first that came up to him was l'Empereur du Houlx, who, under the mask of friendship, took him firmly under the arm; telling him not to be afraid of the others, for they would do him no mischief. As he said this, Regnault Goris approached, and hit Petit John on the head[Pg 270] with a stone, that made him stagger. His pretended friend then let go his hold,—and John du Foing thrust a javelin through his body, so that he fell dead on the spot. When he was dead, Oudin du Bust came and cut off his legs, and then they all four separated and took sanctuary within the church of the Celestines; whence, on the following night, they were taken, by orders from sir Robert d'Estouteville, provost of Paris, and the members of the council, in consequence of the informations that had been laid before them, clearly proving the murder to have been committed by a preconcerted plan. The Celestins appealed against this, as a breach of their privileges, but the court of parliament dismissed their appeal, and declared the murderers incapable of being received in sanctuary. The bishop afterward claimed them as his clerks; but the parliament published an edict, to declare that they should not enjoy the privilege of clerks, and returned the matter to the provost, who sentenced them all to be hanged.

They appealed against this sentence to the court of parliament, who confirmed it,—and they were all four executed on the[Pg 271] gibbet of Paris by the hands of Henry Cousin, father to the late Petit John, who was thus avenged on them for the murder of his son, the 28th day of August. They were hanged in a row: first, l'Empereur du Houlx, then John du Foing, Regnault Goris, and, last of all, Oudin du Bust. The three first were handsome youths; and for this business a young son of a shoemaker was publicly flogged and banished the realm, for having conspired the death of Petit John, although he was not actually present when he was killed.

About this time, and soon after the death of the duke of Milan, a violent conspiracy was formed in the city of Florence, by the family of Pazzi, of which Francesco di Pazzi was the leader, against the family of the Medici. Francesco, accompanied by several of good family in Florence, and other conspirators, assassinated, with a dagger, Giuliano de Medici in the church of Santa Maria di Fuori, during the celebration[Pg 273] of the mass. His elder brother, Lorenzo de Medici, was also wounded but recovered[81].

For this crime the reverend father in God Nicholas, cardinal of Saint George, and nephew[82] to count Jerome, was detained in close confinement; and Francesco Salviati, archbishop of Pisa, was publicly hanged in his archiepiscopal robes at the gates of the Medici-palace. Several of the conspirators, and their relatives, were hanged at the same time and place, and others executed in divers manners.

Pope Sixtus IV. in revenge for these executions, fulminated, in the name of the cardinals in consistory, an excommunication and interdict against the city of Florence, and incited a cruel war against Tuscany, in the name of the church,—in which war numbers lost their lives.

During this time, an ambassador from the republic of Venice obtained the liberty [Pg 274]of the cardinal of St George, who returned to Rome: nevertheless, the war was still continued between the church and the Florentines, but it was at length ended, and the excommunication and interdict were taken off.

The Jews, about this time, stole a child of twelve years of age, called Symon, in the city of Trent, whom they crucified, and caused to suffer the mysteries of the passion, in ridicule of what our Saviour had suffered,—for which they were most severely punished, according to their deserts. The body of the child was carried in procession, as a martyr, to the cathedral, whither great crowds of people flocked from all parts; for through the devotion of this child many miracles were performed in remembrance of the passion of our Lord.

A similar crime was committed by the Jews in the city of Opiterge[83], within the principality of Venice, where they martyred a youth in like manner. They were brought to Venice, and having confessed their[Pg 275] guiltiness of this abominable crime, were burnt alive between the two marble columns in the place of St Marco.

At this time, a girl was born at Verona, which had one head, two feet, and four arms: two were larger than the others, which she could move,—but the others were smaller, and motionless. She had two bellies joined to the stomach, and two openings through which she passed her excrements, and other natural superfluities. In this state, she was carried throughout Italy, begging money of all that were desirous to see and examine her.

About this time, there were great inundations with very high winds, that overthrew many buildings.

The grand Turk now led a numerous and puissant army by sea and land to besiege the city of Rhodes, which he bombarded at several places, and slew very many Christians. He surrounded the city on all sides, and advanced even to the tower of St Nicholas, which was thought impregnable; but he was on the point of taking it, and ready to shout, 'Town won!' when the grand master displayed from the walls[Pg 276] a great banner, painted with the representation of the blessed cross; which banner was no sooner displayed than the Turks became blinded, and, by the Divine aid of our blessed Saviour, were repulsed. They made no further attempts on the city,—but there were numbers slain on both sides.

The Turks, on their ill success at Rhodes, invaded part of the kingdom of Sicily, and gained many towns. They put the inhabitants to death, and seized their effects, so that they were become a cruel pestilence to Christendom. They took the city of Otranto, and slew almost all the inhabitants, on account of their religion, which they suffered with singular patience for the honour of God,—and at length they seized the archbishop, whom they put to death by sawing him in two.

A devout Hermit, who resided in Swisserland near Underwalden, subsisted for the space of fifteen years on the holy wafer, which he received at the monthly sacrament, without taking any other food. This has been attested by many persons, witnesses of the fact.

I have forgotten to mention a marvellous[Pg 277] comet that appeared in the year 1477, on St Agnes-day, in the month of January,—and therefore the bloody wars that took place between different princes, with the great miseries that ensued, need not be wondered at. This comet was visible at Cologne, in the opposite direction to the constellation Libra, having an immense tail, thirty degrees in length. On St Blaise's day, the 3d of February, it remained stationary in the constellation of Aries, throwing its tail to the eastward, near the Pleiades. It was of different colours,—sometimes white, at others all on fire, inclining to a lemon colour. The astrologers considered it as indicative of battle, epidemic disorders, and plagues: and in consequence, the following summer was hotter than had been remembered by any then living. In some parts, subterraneous fires broke forth, from the vehemence of which may God preserve us!

We will now return to notice events that happened in France, Flanders, Burgundy and England, at the period we quitted them to make mention of the surprising circumstances contained in this chapter.

The king of France, before he left Picardy, appointed the lord bastard of Bourbon, admiral of France, his lieutenant-general for the management of the war in that country. He assigned, for the cantonments of his men, the cities and towns of Arras, Tournay, Lens, La Bassée, and other places on[Pg 279] the frontiers of Flanders, which still held out for the princess of Flanders, daughter to the late duke of Burgundy. Having arranged these matters, the king went to pay his devotions to Nôtre Dame de la Victoire, whose image was richly ornamented, and thence proceeded to Paris. As he arrived on the feast-day of St Denis, from his reverence to the saint, he delivered all the prisoners confined in the Châtelet.

The king made no long stay in Paris, but went to Tours, Amboise, and places in that district, where he the more willingly resided.

During this interval, the Burgundians and other enemies to the king, under the prince of Orange, and sir Claude de Vaudray, committed great devastations in Burgundy, and defeated many parties of the royal forces, more especially at the town of Gray sur Saone, wherein they were quartered. The Burgundians killed a number of gentlemen of the companies of Salazart and Coninghame, a scots captain.

The king had this year great devotion for St Louis and St Charlemagne, and ordered that their statues of stone, which[Pg 280] had been placed in their rank with those of the other kings of France in the great hall of the palace, should be removed and placed beside the chapel at the upper end of the said hall,—which was done, and the expenses of their removal were paid by Robert Cailletel, receiver of taxes in the city of Paris.

In the month of December, the king, to increase his artillery, ordered twelve great bombards to be cast of a prodigious length and weight. Three of them were to be cast at Paris, three at Tours, three at Orleans, and three at Amiens; and at the same time a quantity of iron bullets were cast at the founderies at Creil, of which charge was given to master John de Reilhac his secretary. In the quarries near to Peronne, were also made many stone bullets for the bombards,—and great stores of scaling ladders and small pieces of ordnance were constructed, for the attack of several towns in Flanders and Picardy that remained to be reduced.

At this period, king Edward of England, having been assured that his brother the duke of Clarence had intentions of[Pg 281] crossing the sea to give assistance to his sister. The widowed duchess of Burgundy, ordered him to be arrested and confined in the tower of London, where he remained for some time. During his confinement, the king assembled his council, who condemned him to be drawn on a sledge from the tower to a gibbet, and thereon hanged,—after which, his entrails were to be thrown into a fire, his head cut off, and his body quartered. But this sentence was changed at the intercession of his mother, and the execution deferred until the month of February following, when he was taken out of prison, and, after he had confessed himself, was thrown alive into a butt of malmsey Madeira, which had one of its ends taken off, and held therein, with his head downwards, until he expired. He was then taken out: his head was cut off, and carried to be buried at the Carmelite's church, beside his duchess, daughter to the late earl of Warwick, who had been slain at the battle of Coventry, at the same time when the prince of Wales, son to the sainted Henry of Lancaster, fell[84].

[Pg 282]

An event happened at this time, at Paris, that made some noise. Daniel de Bar, servant to master Olivier le Daim[85],[Pg 283] first barber and valet de chambre to the king, was arrested and imprisoned by the court of parliament, in consequence of several informations laid against him, and[Pg 284] especially on the complaint of Marion, the wife of Colin Panier, and another dissolute woman, who charged the said Daniel with having forced them and with having committed[Pg 285] upon them the beastly and abominable sin of sodomy. When the parliament and the provost began to examine more minutely into these charges, the women contradicted[Pg 286] themselves, and denied the facts, confessing that they had been induced to make such accusations at the instance of Panier, the husband of Marion, and of another called[Pg 287] Janvier, enemies of the said Daniel, in order to be revenged on him. The two women were therefore sentenced, by the provost, to be whipped naked and banished the realm; and their effects were to be confiscated to the king, out of which sufficient damages should first be taken for the said Daniel, as an indemnification for these false charges. This sentence was executed in all the squares of Paris, on Wednesday, the 11th day of March.

In this month, the king came from Tours toward Paris, and staid two days at Ablon sur Seine, at the house of Marc Senamy, assessor of Paris; whence he came[Pg 288] to his palace of the Tournelles, and on the morrow morning, paid his devotions at the cathedral to the blessed virgin Mary. This done, he went to Louvres, and places in that neighbourhood, where he staid some time, and then proceeded to Hêdin, Amiens, and other towns in Picardy. While he was there, the lord Howard came to him from the king of England, to endeavour to conclude a peace between him and the Flemings. The king appointed the lord de St Pierre to confer with him on the subject; and in the interval, the king marched the whole of his army and artillery into Picardy.

A.D. MCCCCLXXVIII.

After Low Sunday, in the month of March of the above year, the duchess of Orleans arrived at Paris, in company with the duke of Orleans,—a young son of the duke of Cleves, nephew to the duchess,—madame de Narbonne, daughter to the late duke of Orleans, and wife to the viscount of Narbonne, son to the count of Foix,—the son of the count of Vendôme, and a[Pg 289] number of lords, gentlemen, ladies and damsels, who were twice most magnificently feasted in the city of Paris.

The first entertainment was given by the cardinal of Foix, in the hôtel d'Estampes, near the bastile,—and the second, by the lord cardinal of Bourbon, at his hôtel, where he gave a grand supper on Wednesday the last day in March. At this supper, there was the greatest plenty of every delicacy that could be procured, with music and singing, mummeries, farces, and other gallant amusements. This supper was served up in the gilt gallery, where all the guests attended but madame de Narbonne,—who, on account of her being far gone with child, and to be more at her ease, supped with her husband and seven more, in the lower apartments of the said hôtel, belonging to John Roye, secretary to the duke of Bourbon, who had the care of his hôtel.

In the month of April, Guerin le Groin bailiff of St Pierre-le-Monstier, and Robinet du Quesnoy, who had each the command of one hundred lances for the king, received information, while cantoned in Picardy, that the Flemings were sending a large sum of money to Douay for the pay of their troops and the support of the town. These captains took the[Pg 291] field to intercept this money, which they did, killing many, and making prisoners of others of the escort. Intelligence of this was instantly carried to the garrisons in Lille and Douay, who made all haste to recover the money and prisoners; but although they were in great numbers the French not only saved themselves but slew four score, or better, and carried off the money in safety,—their loss not amounting to more than twenty-six or twenty-seven men.

The king arrived in Picardy during the month of May,—but nothing of consequence passed except gaining from the Burgundians the little town of Condé, which was inconveniently situated for sending provisions and stores to Tournay. A garrison for the duke of Austria was in the place, who defended it for a short time; but when they saw the great army that was advancing to besiege it, they surrendered the town and castle to the king, on being allowed to march away in safety with their arms and baggage.

In this year, a cordelier friar, a native of Ville-Franche, in the Beaujolois,[Pg 292] came to preach against the profligate manners of the times at Paris. He preached long and strongly on the vices which blemished the creatures of God, and with such good effect that many women, who had abandoned themselves to carnal pleasures, and other debaucheries, changed their course of life. Some gave themselves up to religious pursuits, abandoning those pleasures they had of late so wildly followed. He blamed all ranks, and preached on the justice and government of the king, the princes, and great lords of the realm; adding, that the king was ill served,—that he had about his person servants who were traitors,—and that, if he did not discard them, they would destroy him and the kingdom also. The king when told of this, ordered that the friar should be forbidden to preach; and for this purpose, master Olivier le Daim, the king's barber, came to Paris to see that he was put under an interdict. This was very displeasing to several of both sexes, who were much inclined to follow him, for the sake of his sermons; and for fear any insult should be[Pg 293] offered him, they had him watched, night and day, in the convent of the Cordeliers in Paris. It was said that numbers of women went to him secretly, by day and night, with knives and staves hidden under their clothes, to spike such as should endeavour to hurt him, or hinder him from preaching: telling him not to be afraid for that they would perish sooner than any mischief should befal him.

During this time, a legate from the pope came to the king in Picardy, to remonstrate with him on the enormous evils the infidels were doing to Christendom, and to exhort him to make peace with the duke of Austria, and unite in opposing the further progress of the Turks. By this means the war against the Burgundians was somewhat relaxed, in the hope of establishing a peace; but although the war ceased on the part of the king it was still continued by the enemy in the county and duchy of Burgundy, where several towns were recovered from the king, and numbers of his troops killed.

On Tuesday the 26th day of May, a public proclamation was made by sound[Pg 294] of trumpet, which was the ancient custom, in all the squares of Paris, to forbid all persons, whatever might be their rank, to cause any assemblies of the people in Paris without the express leave and licence of the king,—for that, of late, many persons had assembled, under pretence of hearing certain sermons preached in the said town by friar Anthony Fradin, of the order of Cordeliers; and that numbers had also assembled at the convent of the Cordeliers to guard the said friar, to whom no insult whatever had been offered by the officers of his majesty's justice, but to whom some of the king's counsellors had been sent, to interrogate him on certain secret matters of which the king was desirous to know the truth: that persons had remained for nights in the said convent, under pretext of guarding, as they said, the above friar, which was matter of great scandal.

In consequence thereof, and by the advice of the court of parliament, and of the provost of Paris, all persons, of whatever rank or condition, were henceforward forbidden to hold such assemblies[Pg 295] in the convent of the Cordeliers, or elsewhere, under pain of corporal punishment and confiscation of effects. In regard to those who might at that time be assembled at the Cordeliers, they were ordered instantly, on this proclamation being made, to depart thence to their own homes, under pain of the aforesaid penalties. All husbands were strictly charged to forbid their wives going thither, and to hold similar assemblies in future.

When this proclamation was read, many of the auditors, by way of derision, said that it was all nonsense; that the king was ignorant of the business, and that it was very ill judged to issue so foolish a proclamation.

Monday, the 2d of June, the first president of the parliament and others, who said they were so charged by the king, declared to friar Anthony Fradin that he was banished the kingdom of France ordering him instantly to quit the realm. This he did on the following day; but when he left his convent great crowds of the populace sighed and cried on account of his departure. They were so[Pg 296] much angered thereat that, in their rage, they uttered many marvellous and scandalous things. Numbers of both sexes followed him far beyond Paris, and then returned.

The king remained in Picardy, with the intent of reducing to his obedience such towns and places as the duke of Burgundy was possessed of at the time of his death, and which he had acquired by his rebellious conduct. For this purpose, he had with him the handsomest train of artillery, and finest body of men at arms, franc-archers, and other soldiers, that had been seen in France. He was long inactive, in the expectation of receiving some propositions from the Flemings and Maximilian duke of Austria, who, by his marriage with the princess Mary of Burgundy, was their lord.

Ambassadors at length came from the duke of Austria to the king, while at Arras and at Cambray, who proposed to restore peaceably to the king the counties of Artois and of Bologne, with the towns of Lille, Douay, Orchies, St Omer and others, together with the entire duchy[Pg 297] of Burgundy. In return for these, the king was to give up the possession of Cambray, Quesnoy le Comte, Bouchain, and some other towns. For the more ready communication on the above matters, the duke of Austria marched his army, which was said to consist of twenty thousand combatants, between Douay and Arras, where he encamped. Under pretence of these exchanges, the duke amused the king with fine promises until the end of June, when the king did not gain any one thing that had been promised, although he had liberally restored to Maximilian all the towns on his part, thinking that the duke would as liberally keep the engagements on his side,—but he had been completely deceived throughout.

The army which the king had sent to upper Burgundy, to recover the towns in that district, under the command of sir Charles d'Amboise[86], governor of Champagne, had been very successful. He reduced to the king's obedience the towns of Verdun, Monsavion, and Semur-en-Auxois,[Pg 298] by assault or capitulation. He laid siege to the town of Beaune, which lasted some time; but in the month of July, its inhabitants surrendered on condition that they should have their lives and fortunes spared, on payment of a fine of forty thousand crowns for their rebellion. They were also condemned to make restitution to the merchants of Paris and other towns in the kingdom for all wines sold, but not delivered, and for all the sums of money they had borrowed. The garrison were allowed to march, with their baggage, whithersoever they pleased.

In the month of July, a grand embassy came to the king, in Arras, from duke Maximilian of Austria, and the chief towns in Flanders. They were heard by the king in council,—and, after mature deliberation, a truce was agreed on, to last for one whole year, during which a free intercourse was to be allowed to the merchants of France and Flanders with their merchandise. When this was settled the king departed for Paris,—but did not enter the town, as he was told that an epidemical disorder carried off numbers[Pg 299] of the inhabitants. He went, therefore, to Vendôme, where he staid some time, and thence went to Behuart, and to other places of pilgrimage[87].

The king, on his return from Picardy, made many rich presents to divers churches and saints. When he was at the abbey of Nôtre Dame de la Victoire, near Senlis he gave two thousand francs to be employed in procuring silver lamps to hang before the altar of the Virgin. He covered the shrine of St Fiacre with silver,[Pg 301] which amounted to the weight of seven or eight score marcs. From his great and singular faith in St Martin, he ordered a handsome trellis of silver to be made round his shrine, in his church at Tours,—which was done, and weighed from sixteen to seventeen thousand marcs, and cost, when finished and put up, full two hundred thousand francs. It should be known, that to furnish silver sufficient for all these great works, commissioners were appointed to seize on all the plate they could find in Paris and other towns, which was reasonably well paid for; but notwithstanding this, great quantities were hidden and no longer seen in those places where they were used to be visible,—and henceforward, on this account, when any weddings or other feasts took place, where much silver plate was wont to be exhibited, nothing was seen but handsome cups of glass and dishes of earthen ware.

About this period, the king held a grand council of prelates, churchmen, and learned men, as well from the universities of Paris and Montpellier as elsewhere, in the town of Orleans, to consult on the best means of[Pg 302] recovering the pragmatic sanction, and of preventing the money for the vacant benefices being sent out of the kingdom to Rome. At this assembly the lord de Beaujeu presided, as representative for the king,—and the lord chancellor, with other lords of the council, attended.

The lord chancellor, in the presence of the lord de Beaujeu and the rest, opened the meeting, by declaring the cause of this assembly being held at Orleans, and the reasons which had moved the king to call them together. He was replied to by master John Hue, dean of the faculty of theology, in the name of the university of Paris, who made many remonstrances on the subject, and spoke loudly and boldly, because he was supported by the university. Another learned clerk spoke also, as representative of the university of Montpellier. When this assembly had continued some time, the king came to pay his devotions to our Lady at Clery[88], and thence came to Orleans, where he only staid half a day. The assembly now broke up, without having concluded[Pg 303] any thing,—and it was adjourned to Lyon, to be there holden on the first day of May following.

While the king was in Touraine, he sent sealed letters to his good citizens of Paris, to make known to them, that having sent ambassadors to the king of Castille and Leon, respecting some differences that had arisen between them, they had reported, on their return, that the king of Castille was perfectly satisfied with what the ambassadors had said from the king, and had promised and sworn to observe a strict alliance with him. For this the king was desirous that public thanksgivings should be offered up to God and to the blessed Virgin; that a general procession should be made at Paris, with bonfires in all the streets. A procession was, consequently, made from the church of Nôtre Dame to that of St Genevieve, where a sermon was preached by the prior of the carmelite friars, in which he detailed at length the honourable intentions of the king, and the contents of his letter.

A gentleman in Auvergne having kept a tame lion, he, after some time, escaped,[Pg 304] and was the terror of the country,—for he devoured men, women, and children, whenever he chanced to meet them. The country people rose against him, to kill him, and his master accompanied them. On meeting the lion, he recognised his master, and came up to him, when he was instantly put to death. Another extraordinary event happened also in Auvergne, by a spring bursting forth where no water had been before, which event was preceded by an earthquake.

In the month of November of this year, Simon Courtois, whom the king had made his attorney-general for the county of Artois, taking advantage of the truce, left Arras, under pretence of looking after his concerns in Flanders; instead of which, he went to the princess of Flanders, consort to Maximilian of Austria, and, unmindful of the honour the king had just conferred on him, by making him his attorney-general, told the princess that he was her very humble servant, as all his family had been. He added, that if she would accept of his allegiance, and make him her attorney-general, Artois should be restored to her,—for[Pg 305] he would rather that it was in her hands than in the king's. This was told to the king's governor in Arras, who had Simon Courtois arrested and sent to Tours, where, having confessed the above, he was beheaded.

A great bombard, that had been cast at Tours, was brought to Paris the Monday before Epiphany to be proved, and was, for this purpose, drawn out into the fields in front of the bastile of St Anthony. It was pointed toward Charenton, and when first fired threw the ball as far as the gallows on the bridge of Charenton; but as those present did not think it had discharged all the powder that had been put into the chamber, they ordered it to be recharged, and the chamber perfectly cleaned of all that remained within it, which was done, and an iron ball, weighing five hundred weight, put into its mouth, before which stood John Maugué the founder of it. As the ball rolled down the bombard, by some unknown accident the powder in the chamber took fire before the match was put to it, and by its discharge tore in pieces John Maugué and fourteen other persons, whose[Pg 306] heads, legs, arms and bodies, were blown into the air. The ball killed a poor innocent bird-catcher that was attending his nets in the fields; and the bursting of the bombard maimed fifteen or sixteen others, several of whom died; so that by this accident twenty-two or twenty-three persons lost their lives. The remains of John Maugué were collected, put on a bier, and carried to St Merry for interment; and proclamation was made through the streets of Paris, that all people should pray for the soul of John Maugué, who had lost his life in the king's service.

The 22d of May, the body of Laurence Garnier, of the town of Provins[89], which, by sentence of the court of parliament, had been hanged on the gibbet a year and half, for his having murdered a receiver of taxes in the town of Provins (but for which a pardon had been granted, though not confirmed by the court,) was taken down, at the request of his brother, by Henry Cousin, the executioner at Paris. The body was put on a bier, covered with a pall, and from the gibbet carried into Paris by the[Pg 307] gate of St Denis; four of the town-criers preceded the body, ringing their bells, and having the arms of Garnier emblazoned on their breasts. Round the bier were four wax-tapers, and eight lighted torches, borne by men in mourning, having on their breasts similar arms to the criers. In this state was the body carried through Paris to the gate of St Anthony, when it was placed on a mourning car, to be conveyed for interment at Provins. One of the before named criers went first, crying aloud, 'Good people, say your Pater-nosters for the soul of Laurence Garnier, who, while living, resided at Provins, and whose body has been lately found dead under an oak, that God may have mercy on his soul!'

On the 18th of March, a gentleman of Gascony, named Oriole, was brought prisoner to Tours. He had commanded a company of one hundred lances for the king: but his company having been lately broken with some others, he was disgusted,—and it was reported to the king that he had used threatening language, and that he was plotting with his lieutenant to quit the service and attach himself to the duke of Austria.[Pg 308] He was convicted of high treason, and, for this and other offences, was beheaded at Tours, in company with his lieutenant. After the execution, master Henry Cousin, who had beheaded them, carried their heads and part of their members to be fastened to the gates of Bethune and Arras.

The lord de Mauves, whose company of a hundred lances had been broken, was also confined a prisoner in Paris. He was arrested at the hôtel du Cornet, near to St Jean en Gréve, by Philip L'Huillier, governor of the bastile, and was afterward carried by him or others to the king at Tours, where he was set at liberty, as innocent of the crimes laid to his charge.

CHAP. XXVIII.

The king of France, immediately after Easter, made preparations for a renewal of the war, as the truce with Maximilian was nearly expired, and as no ambassadors had arrived from Austria to propose a prolongation[Pg 310] of the truce, or to conclude a definitive peace, as had been hinted during the last conference.

In the month of May following, although the truce was not expired, the inhabitants of Cambray admitted into their town Flemings, Picards, and other enemies to the king, of the party of the duke of Austria, who drove out the royalist garrisons of the town and castle, notwithstanding the king had given the guard of it to the lord de Fiennes. Soon after, three or four hundred lances, Flemings, and Picards, appeared before Bouchain, in which were only sixteen lances as garrison for the king. They instantly retired into the castle, observing that the townsmen were determined to admit their enemies as soon as they should appear. The Flemings had no sooner gained possession of the town than they attacked the king's lances, whom they took, and put all to death, except one, who escaped by hiding himself in a chamber, and then dropping down, through one of the privies, into the ditch. The king was very indignant at this conduct, and not without reason, for the truce had been violated[Pg 311] without the smallest blame attaching to him or his subjects.

He lost no time in sending large trains of artillery to the duchy and franche comté of Burgundy, and great reinforcements of men at arms and franc-archers to the governor of Champagne, whose appointment of lieutenant-general he had renewed. The governor exerted himself diligently, and took by storm the castle of Rochefort, killing all within it, and plundering it of its effects. He thence proceeded to Dole[90], which, after battering it some time, he also won by storm, when many of the chief merchants were slain, and the town was razed to the ground.

In the month of June, sir Robert d'Estouteville, lord of Beyne, departed this life, at Paris, having been provost of the same for forty-three years. He was succeeded in this office by Jacques d'Estouteville, son to the deceased, in recompense, as the king said, for his loyal services at the battle of Montlehery, and in other affairs. While the king was at Montargis, he was much rejoiced[Pg 312] at the good news that was there brought him from sir Charles d'Amboise, and set out for the abbey of Nôtre Dame des Victoires, near Senlis, and make his offerings and thanksgivings. He thence came to the castle of Vincennes, where he only staid a night, and set out for Provins, on his road to Champagne, Langres and other places.

In the mean time, great stores of artillery, powder, saltpetre, and particularly sixteen very large bombards, were embarked on the Seine, to be transported to Châlons, Champagne and Bar le Duc, to attempt the conquest of Luxembourg,—but that expedition did not take place.

Saturday the 3d of July, a handsome embassy from Spain arrived at Paris, under the care of the bishop of Lombez and the abbot of St Denis, by orders from the king. The provost of marchands, and the sheriffs went out of the town to meet them, accompanied by different ranks of people. Having made their entrance into Paris, they went to St Denis, where they were grandly feasted by the abbot, having been entertained on their passage through Paris by certain of the king's officers.

[Pg 313]

In this year, the duke of Albany came to Paris, having been driven out of Scotland by the king his brother, to seek a refuge with the king of France[91]. Great honours were paid him; and the lord de Gaucourt, as king's lieutenant, with all the professions of Paris, went out to meet him, and accompany him on his entry into Paris, by the gate of St Anthony, on the road leading to Vincennes. He was lodged in the rue St Martin, although he had not more than ten or twelve horse in his company: and the king ordered that Monipenny and Concressault, two Scotsmen of rank in the french service, should attend upon him[92].

[Pg 314]

In the month of August, the Flemings, who were quartered in the frontier towns of Flanders, took the field with the intent to combat the king's forces, and advanced toward Therouenne. They battered the town much with their artillery; but it was gallantly defended by the lord de St André, lieutenant of a hundred lances under the duke of Bourbon, and other lords and captains of the king's army. While this was passing, the different royal garrisons in Picardy, collected together for the relief of Therouenne; and having taken the field, they came in sight of the flemish army within one league of Therouenne. This army was very numerous, and was said to have consisted of sixty thousand combatants, under the command of the duke of Austria, the count de Romont, and others of that party. A sally was made from Therouenne by the garrison the moment their friends were near, by several companies of lancemen, under the command of the lord des Cordes and other captains; and their attack was so rapid and vigorous that the vanguard of[Pg 315] the duke of Austria was defeated, with great slaughter and loss of baggage.

While the van of the enemy were pursued, some of the king's franc-archers too busily employed themselves in plundering their baggage; and the count de Romont who had from fourteen to fifteen thousand infantry under his command, fell on them, and slew the greater part. It was said that the loss on both sides, that day, amounted to nearly fifteen thousand men, of which from eleven to twelve thousand were Burgundians. The French likewise made nine hundred or a thousand prisoners; and in the number was the son of the king of Poulaine, and another youth said to be the favourite of the duke of Austria, with many others of good family and large fortunes[93].

On the king's side, the captain Beavoisien, and Vaast de Mompedon, bailiff of Rouen, were killed, and about three[Pg 316] hundred of the franc-archers. After this defeat, the duke of Austria, the count de Romont, and others of their captains, having rallied their men, marched to a place, called Malaunoy, in which was a gascon captain, called le Cadet Remonnet, having with him seven or eight score gascon cross-bows. The Burgundians attacked the place, which was for some time well defended by the Gascons; but at length it was stormed and the greater part of the garrison put to death: the rest saved themselves by leaping into the ditches. With regard to Remonnet he was made prisoner, and, on assurance of his life, carried to the duke of Austria, who, regardless of the assurance that had been given, had him hanged, three days afterward, in cold blood. The king of France was so enraged at this that he ordered fifty of the principal prisoners that had been taken to be hanged by the provost marshal, by way of revenge. Seven of the chief prisoners were hanged on the spot where Remonnet had been executed,—ten before Douay, ten before St Omer, ten before Arras, and ten before Lille. The provost was escorted, to perform these executions,[Pg 317] by eight hundred lances and six thousand franc-archers, who afterwards advanced into the country of Guines and Flanders, where they took seventeen towns or strong holds, burning and destroying the country, and carrying off cattle, sheep, horses, and every thing portable, to their different garrisons.

At this time, Coulon and other adventurers at sea from the coasts of Normandy captured four score flemish vessels, which were on their voyage to fetch rye from Prussia, to victual their country, and the produce of the herring fishery for that year. It was the greatest loss that had befallen the Flemings at sea for upwards of an hundred years, and they suffered much from it.

CHAP. XXIX.

At the commencement of this year, the lord Howard, a prothonotary, and other ambassadors from England, crossed the channel to wait on the king of France respecting the maintaining of the truce. They were handsomely received, and magnificently feasted by the king, who, on their return, made them rich presents in money and in silver plate.

[Pg 319]

In this year, the king issued a commission to master John Avais, counsellor in his court of parliament, and to John Doyac of the town of Cusset[94], in Auvergne, to examine into different charges that had been made against the duke of Bourbon his towns, officers, and subjects. These two men accepted their commission with pleasure, in the hope of destroying the duke of Bourbon, against all truth and justice, but in order to gain the good graces of the king, and to force the duke into banishment. In obedience to the commission, they summoned all the principal officers of the duke, such as his chancellor, his attorney-general, the captain of his guard, and others, to appear personally before the court of parliament on an appointed day, when they were severally interrogated by commissaries, and detained long in Paris. Master Francis Hasle, the king's advocate, pleaded against them, and wanted stronger measures to be pursued,—but they were all set at[Pg 320] liberty by the court, and returned to their homes.

Master John Hebert, bishop of Constance, was next summoned to appear before the parliament, to answer to certain crimes of which he was accused. On his appearance, he was examined, and, by orders of the court, was committed as a prisoner to the prisons of the Conciergerie,—and all his temporal effects were confiscated to the king's use.

In the month of August, a truce was concluded with the duke of Austria for seven months: during three of them a free intercourse was to be allowed for merchants and merchandise to pass and repass from each country: three others were to be void of all warfare,—and the seventh for consideration as to war or peace.

Monday the 4th of September, the cardinal of St Pietro ad vincula[95], legate from the pope, arrived at Paris, and was most honourably received there by all ranks of people, who went out to meet[Pg 321] him by the gate of St Jacques. All the streets through which he passed to the church of Nôtre Dame, where he made his devotions, were hung with tapestry. When these were finished he proceeded to the lodgings that had been prepared for him at the college of St Denis near the Augustins, accompanied by the cardinal of Bourbon.

On the Tuesday master Olivier le Diable, called le Daim, the king's barber, feasted the legate, the cardinal of Bourbon, and many other prelates and nobles, as grandly as possible. When dinner was over, he carried them to the park of Vincennes, to amuse themselves in hunting deer; after which, they returned to their different homes.

On Thursday and Friday, the vigil and feast of the nativity of the blessed Virgin, the legate attended vespers in the church of Nôtre Dame; and great crowds were there to see the ceremonies observed on the occasion, which were solemn and magnificent.

On Sunday the legate dined and supped with the cardinal of Bourbon at[Pg 322] his hôtel. There were present, at these entertainments, many archbishops, bishops, and nobles of high rank; such as the archbishops of Besançon and Sens, the bishops of Chartres, Nevers, Therouenne, Amiens, Aleth[96], and others; the lord de Curton, Moireau, master of the household to the king, and many more.

Monday the 14th, the legate went to St Denis, where he was feasted by the abbot, and thence into Picardy and Flanders, to attempt bringing about a peace between the king and the duke of Austria. He staid some time at Peronne, thinking he should have an easy access into Flanders, whither the king sent master Francis Hasle, the provost of Paris, and others, who returned without having done any thing.

The legate came back to Paris on the 21st of December, and went to the hôtel of Bourbon, where he was entertained by the cardinal at supper, and lay there that night. On the morrow he left the hôtel of Bourbon by the golden[Pg 323] gate, and crossed the river to the hôtel of Neelle, where he mounted his horse, which was waiting for him, and proceeded, with his attendants, to Orleans, and there remained until the king had set at liberty the cardinal Ballue, who came to the legate at Orleans.

The king had remained almost the whole of the winter in Touraine. About the Epiphany he went to Poitiers, and other places, and returned to Tours, and to Forges[97], the end of January. It was about this time that the king reduced the whole body of franc-archers in France, and substituted, in their place, the Swiss with their pikes; and he caused a prodigious quantity of pikes, halberds, and large daggers, to be made, by all the cutlers in his kingdom.

The winter, this year, began late: there was no frost until St Stephen's day, and it lasted only until the 8th of February. But, if it began late, it was[Pg 324] most severe; for the oldest persons did not remember the frost so sharp: the river Seine, Yonne, Marne, and all that fell into the Seine, were so hard frozen that all kinds of carriages passed over, as on dry land. Great mischiefs were done to several bridges by the thaw: some were quite ruined, and carried away on the before-named rivers,—and large pieces of ice drove many boats against the bridges of Nôtre Dame and Saint Michel at Paris. They, however, for some hours, formed a rampart, and perhaps saved these bridges; but the danger was thought so great that all who lived upon them carried away every thing of value out of their houses. The ice broke seven of the large piles at the Temple-mill. During this hard weather, no floats of wood came down the river,—which raised the price excessively, insomuch that the billet cost seven or eight sols parisis. To relieve the poorer sorts, the country people of the neighbouring villages daily brought green wood in carts or on horses' backs to Paris. The wood would have been dearer if the astrologers had told[Pg 325] truth, for they predicted that this frost would last until the 8th of March: the thaw, however, began three weeks sooner than they had foretold,—but the weather continued extremely cold until May was far advanced, which destroyed all the buds of the early vines, and the fruit-blossoms were cut off.

In the course of the winter, and even during the month of April, when the truce with the Flemings expired, no hostilities took place; for the duke of Austria, had sent an embassy to the king, at Tours, and a prolongation of the truce was agreed on for one year, in the expectation that in the interval means might be found for a general peace. Another embassy came likewise from England respecting the truce; and the king took the trouble of going as far as Château Regnault[98], to meet the ambassadors and hear their business. This being settled, they returned to king Edward,—and on their departure, it was publicly said, that the[Pg 326] truce between France and England had been renewed for a very long time.

In the month of March, the king was suddenly taken ill while at Plessis le Parc, near Tours, and was for some time in very great danger; but, by the grace of God, his health was restored, and he was soon perfectly recovered.

CHAP. XXX.

Early in this year the king ordered an inclosed camp, which he had caused to[Pg 327] be made of wood, to be erected on a large plain near Pont de l'Arche, to be ready when he should take the field against his enemies, and went thither to see it. Within were posted a numerous body of men armed with pikes and halberds, according to his new regulations. The command of these troops was given to sir Philip de Crevecoeur, lord des Cordes, and to master William Picard, bailiff of Rouen. The king ordered the men to remain in this camp the space of a month, to see how it would answer, and what sorts of provision would be the most suitable to them.

This camp was ordered to be ready on the 15th of June; and the king on his way thither, celebrated the feast of Whitsuntide at the church of our Lady in Chartres. Thence he came to Pont de l'Arche, and to this large inclosure, which was formed between Pont de l'Arche and Pont de Saint Pierre. One side of the inclosure had a ditch on the outside,—and within were pitched tents and pavilions, with the artillery and all requisite stores. The king judged from its[Pg 328] proportions what quantity of provision would be necessary were the space completely filled with all he intended to send. When he had visited and fully examined it, he departed, very well satisfied for Chartres, Selome, Vendôme, and Tours, having ordered the troops that had been encamped to march back to their former quarters.

The duke of Brittany had sent, in the course of this year, to purchase armour at Milan; such as cuirasses, salades, &c. which were packed up with cotton to prevent their rattling, and like bales of silks. These packages were put on mules, and arrived in safety until they came to the mountains of Auvergne, when the officers of John Doyac[99] seized them and sent instant information thereof to the king, who, by way of recompense, gave the armour to John Doyac and his servants.

The vines almost universally failed this year throughout France,—and the[Pg 329] wines of the preceding year, though of little worth, were sold, in consequence, at an extravagant price: what at the beginning of the year was sold for four deniers the bottle at taverns now rose to twelve. Some merchants of Paris, who had preserved their wines at Champigny sur Marne and other places, sold it by retail very dear, viz. at not less than two sols parisis the bottle, which was at the rate of thirty-six livres the hogshead. The scarcity was so great that the wine-merchants were obliged to fetch wine from the farther parts of Spain, which was brought to Paris.

The garrisons on the frontiers of Picardy and Flanders, regardless of the truce, made constant inroads on each other, carrying on a deadly warfare; for whatever prisoners were made, they were unmercifully hanged by both parties, without ever accepting of ransoms.

The king, when recovering from his late illness, set out from Tours for Thouars, where he had a relapse, and was in great danger of dying. To obtain better health, he sent great offerings, and large[Pg 330] sums of money, to divers churches, and made many religious foundations. Among others, he founded in the holy chapel at Paris, a perpetual mass, to be daily chaunted at seven o'clock in the morning, in honour of St John, by eight choiristers from Provence, who had belonged to the chapel of the late Réné king of Sicily, and on his decease had been taken into the service of the king of France. He established one thousand livres parisis as the fund for this mass, to be received annually from the receipt of taxes on all sea-fish sold in the markets at Paris.

The king had also vowed to make a pilgrimage to St Claude[100], which he undertook, but went first to make his offerings to our Lady of Clery, and thence departed for St Claude. For the security of his person, he was escorted by eight hundred lances, and a large force of infantry, amounting, in all, to six thousand combatants. Before he set out from Touraine, he went to Amboise to see his son the dauphin, whom he had but little[Pg 331] noticed, gave him his blessing, and put him under the care of the lord de Beaujeu, whom he made lieutenant-general of the kingdom during his absence. The king declared to the dauphin that he must obey the lord de Beaujeu in whatever he should order him, the same as if he himself were present and gave the orders.

Corn was exceedingly dear this year throughout France, more especially in the Lyonnois, Bourbonnois, and in Auvergne, insomuch that great numbers of people died of famine; and had it not been for the profuse alms and succours from such as had corn, the mortality would have been more than doubled. Crowds of poor people left the above-named provinces, and came to Paris and other great towns. They were lodged in the barn and convent of St Catherine-du-Val-des-ėcoliers, whither the good citizens of both sexes came from Paris to relieve and nurse them. They were at length carried to the great hospital, where the most part of them died; for when they attempted to eat they could not, having fasted so long that their stomachs were ruined.

CHAP. XXXI.

On Thursday the 4th of May, between four and five in the afternoon, that noble example of good morals and virtue, the lady Jane of France, wife to John duke of the Bourbonnois and Auvergne, departed this life, in her castle of Moulins in the Bourbonnois, in consequence of a fever[Pg 333] which the art of medicine could not subdue. She was buried in the church of our Lady at that town, and was greatly lamented by her lord, her servants, and indeed by all in France who were any way acquainted with her virtues and the many excellent qualities she was endowed with.

Some little time prior to this event died the countess of Flanders and of Artois, sole child to the late Charles duke of Burgundy, wife to the duke of Austria, and niece to the duke of Bourbon. She left issue two children, a son and a daughter, who remained at Ghent under the guardianship of the Flemings.

In this same year of 1482, many noble persons of both sexes died of fevers and other incurable disorders. In the number were the archbishops of Narbonne and Bourges, the bishop of Lisieux, master John le Boulenger, first president of the parliament, sir Charles de Gaucourt, lieutenant for the king in the town of Paris, who was much regretted,—for he was a handsome frank knight, a prudent man and very learned. Several counsellors and[Pg 334] advocates of the parliament died also: among others, master Nicolle Bataille, who was said to be the greatest lawyer in all France, a good and pleasant companion, and was, not without reason, much lamented. It was said that he died of indignation and grief at the conduct of his wife the daughter of the late master Nicolle Erlaut, who had been treasurer of Dauphiny. Notwithstanding that she had enjoyed all possible pleasure with her husband, had brought him twelve children, and he was not more than forty-four years of age when he died, yet she conducted herself most wantonly, and like a common strumpet, with several rakish fellows during her marriage. In the number, she was particularly attached to a young lad called Regnault la Pie, son to a woman who sold sea-fish in the Paris-market. He had been formerly in great confidence with the king, as his valet de chambre, but had been dismissed for some faults and irregularities, of which Olivier le Diable, called Le Daim, his companion, and barber to the king, had accused him.

[Pg 335]

This woman became passionately fond of him, and for his support sold or pawned her jewels, and the plate of her husband,—and even robbed her husband of money to give to her lover. Of all this, the husband was informed: and anger and grief thereat caused his death, which was a great loss. May his soul rest in repose in the kingdom of Heaven!

The king returned from St Claude to the abbey of our Lady at Clery very ill. He performed nine days devotion there; and by the grace of the blessed Virgin, in whom he had singular faith, he went away greatly recovered and eased of his complaints. During his stay at Clery, there was great mortality in his household: among others, died a doctor of divinity, whom he had lately appointed his counsellor and almoner: he was the son of a butcher, a native of Tours, and his name was doctor Martin Magistri. The king on leaving Clery went to Mehun sur Loire, and to St Laurens des Eaux, and remained thereabouts until the middle of August, when he returned to Clery to celebrate the feast of the Virgin. While at Clery, an handsome[Pg 336] embassy came to him from Flanders, who explained to his ministers that the cause of their coming was to endeavour to obtain a conference to be holden,—for that the sole wish of the country of Flanders was to have a lasting peace with the king. These ambassadors were well received by him,—and he gave such answers as satisfied them. On their return to Flanders, they were, by the king's orders, conducted by the lord de St Pierre to Paris, and well feasted by the provost of marchands and sheriffs: thence they set out for Ghent, and the other towns in Flanders whence they had come.

After the return of the Flemish ambassadors, the king ordered the troops that were in garrison in Picardy to take the field under the command of the lord des Cordes. This army made a fine appearance, consisting of fourteen hundred well furnished lances, six thousand Swiss, and eight thousand pikes. They marched triumphantly, but without noise, to lay siege to the town of Aire, which is a considerable place between St Omer and Therouenne, and was garrisoned by a party from the duke of Austria. The French soon opened their batteries and frightened[Pg 337] the inhabitants; but some of the captains of the garrison, having a good understanding with the lord des Cordes, concluded a capitulation for the surrender of the place to him. It was managed by a knight called the lord des Contrans[101], who was of Picardy, and governor of the town for the duke of Austria. On his surrendering the place, he took the oaths of allegiance to serve the king faithfully,—and the king, as a recompence, gave him the command of a hundred lances. He also received thirty thousand golden crowns in ready money.

In the months of August and September of this year, sir William de la Mark, surnamed the Wild Boar of the Ardennes, conspired to levy a bloody war against that noble prince, and reverend father in God, the lord Louis de Bourbon, bishop of Liege, by whom he had been brought up and educated. His object was to assassinate the bishop, that his brother might succeed him in the bishoprick. To assist him in his abominable enterprise, the king of France supplied him with men; and he collected[Pg 338] in and about Paris a body of three thousand good-for-nothing fellows, whom he clothed in scarlet jackets, having on their left sleeve the figure of a boar's head. They were lightly armed; and in this state he led them into the country of Liege, where, on his arrival, having intelligence with some traitors in the city, he urged them to excite the bishop to march out of the town, that he might accomplish his ends on him.

Under pretence, therefore, of attachment to his person, they advised him strongly to march against the enemy at the gates, and assured him that they would all follow him in arms, and support and defend him to the last drop of their blood, and there was not the smallest doubt but the wild boar would be defeated with disgrace. The bishop complied with their advice, sallied cut of Liege, and advanced to where La Mark was posted. La Mark, observing this, quitted his ambush, and marched strait to the bishop; and the traitors of Liege, now finding their bishop in the hands of his enemy, fled back to their town without striking a blow. The bishop was greatly dismayed at this,—for he had now no one[Pg 339] with him but his servants and vassals, while La Mark came up to him, and without saying a word, gave him a severe cut across the face, and then killed him with his own hand. This done, La Mark had the body stripped and placed naked in front of the cathedral church of St Lambert in Liege, where he was shown dead to all the inhabitants who wished to see him. Almost immediately after his death, the duke of Austria, the prince of Orange, and the count de Romont arrived with troops to succour him; but on hearing of his unfortunate fate, they marched away without doing any thing.

The king was again so dangerously ill, at Plessis le Parc, that he was much afraid of dying, and, for this reason, was carried to Amboise, to see his son. He made many wise remonstrances to him on the state of his kingdom,—and as he thought his was an incurable disorder, he exhorted him, after his decease, to have some of his most faithful servants, whom he would name, in his good remembrance. He mentioned first master Olivier le Diable, called le Daim, his barber, and John de Doyac, governor of Auvergne,[Pg 341] as having served him loyally,—and that Olivier had done him most essential services which he could never have accomplished himself without his aid: that Olivier was a foreigner,—and he advised him to make use of him and keep him in those offices which he had given him. The king recommended also the lord du Bocage, and sir Guyot Pot, bailiff of the Vermandois, charging the dauphin to follow their counsels, which he had always found good and prudent. He desired of his son that he would not dismiss any from their offices, and that he would pay every attention to his poor people, whom he had reduced to great distress and poverty. He remonstrated with him on many other subjects, which were afterward made public in the court of parliament, and in the principal of towns of the realm.[102]

The king advised the dauphin to give the command of his troops to the lord des Cordes, whom he had always found able and trusty, of excellent conduct, and a notable knight. Having held this discourse[Pg 342] the king then returned to Plessis near Tours.

At this time, the king sent for a number of musicians, who played on low-toned instruments, whom he lodged at St Côme near to Tours. They were about six score in number, and, with some shepherds from Poitou that played on their pipes, assembled before the king's apartments, but never saw him, and there played for his amusement and to prevent him from falling asleep. On the other hand, he collected a great many devout people of both sexes, such as hermits and others of holy lives, to pray incessantly to God that his days might be prolonged[103].

In the months of October and November, an embassy arrived from Flanders,—and the king referred them to master John de la Vacquerie, a native of Picardy, and who had lately been appointed first president of the court of parliament, the lord des Cordes, and others. They held frequent conferences, and at length agreed to a treaty of peace between the king and the Flemings,—and by one of the articles, the dauphin[Pg 343] was to marry the daughter of the duke of Austria, then under the guardianship of the town of Ghent. The king was much rejoiced at this, and was very willing to sign the treaty. Te Deums were chaunted throughout the realm, for joy of this event, and bonfires made in all the streets of Tours.[104]

It was now reported, that the flemish ambassadors were gone to Ghent, to bring back to Paris their countess, and that the king had ordered the lady of Beaujeu his eldest daughter, the countess of Dunois,[105] sister to the queen, the lady of Thouars, the lady of the lord admiral, and other ladies and damsels to be ready to receive her, as it was expected she would arrive at Paris about the 8th of December: but her arrival was postponed until some trifling matters of dispute, that had arisen on the part of the Flemings, should be settled.

In this year, a war broke out between the kings of England and Scotland; and the Scots advanced very far into England, [Pg 344]where they did much mischief: but notwithstanding the Scots were one hundred thousand men more than the English, a treaty was entered into by means of the duke of Albany, brother to the king of Scotland. The duke of Albany had laid claim to the crown of Scotland, which he said his brother had usurped from him; for that they were twin-children, and he had been the first that was delivered on earth, and therefore, by right of seniority, the crown was his. The duke of Albany had concluded a treaty with the English, which had prevented any battle being fought: and the scots army returned to their country, and the English to their garrisons[106].

In the month of January, the flemish ambassadors, who had concluded a peace by means of the marriage of the dauphin with the lady Margaret of Austria, returned[Pg 345] to France. By orders from the king, the principal persons of Paris went out to meet them, having at their head the bishop of Marseilles, the king's lieutenant in Paris, the provost of marchands, and the sheriffs. A doctor in divinity, named Scourable, made the ambassadors a fine harangue, which pleased them greatly. On the morrow, which was Sunday, the 4th of January, they attended high mass at the church of Nôtre Dame, whither a general procession was made,—and the doctor, Scourable, preached an excellent sermon, which gave much satisfaction. Te Deum was sung, and bonfires were made, and public tables were spread in the principal streets. When the church-service was over, the ambassadors were grandly entertained by the city of Paris in the town-hall.

The lord cardinal of Bourbon was as much, if not more, rejoiced than any one, on peace being restored: and in honour of it, had a splendid morality, or farce, exhibited at his hôtel of Bourbon, which numbers of the Parisians went to see, and were much delighted with their entertainment. It would have been more brilliant;[Pg 346] but the weather was very rainy and wet, which damaged the tapestry and other decorations that adorned the court of the hôtel, for it was covered and hung with tapestry, of which the cardinal had very great abundance. The ambassadors, having been spectators of this entertainment, departed from Paris, on the ensuing day, to wait on the king at Amboise. They had a most gracious reception, and saw the dauphin twice, who treated them very kindly. On their quitting Tours, whither they had afterward gone, the king ordered thirty thousand crowns, stamped with the sun, to be given them to defray their expenses, besides a handsome service of plate which he presented to them. On the return of the ambassadors to Paris, they had all the articles of the peace publicly read, with open doors, in the court of parliament, and then enregistered. After this act, master William Picard, bailiff of Rouen, conducted them from the court of parliament to his house, in the rue de Quinquempoix, where he entertained them, and a large company, with a most plentiful dinner.

The king wrote letters addressed to all[Pg 347] ranks in Paris, by which he earnestly besought them instantly to go to the church of St Denis, and pray to him to make intercession with our Lord Jesus Christ, that the north wind might not blow,—because, according to the opinions of physicians, the north wind did much harm to the health of mankind, and to the fruits of the earth. By the king's orders, numerous processions were made at divers times from Paris to St Denis, where public prayers were offered up for his recovery, and many masses chaunted.

CHAP. XXXIII.

On Saturday, the 19th day of April, after Easter, the lord and lady de Beaujeu arrived at Paris, on their way to Picardy, to receive the dauphiness from the hands of the Flemings, who, by the late treaty of peace, were to deliver her into the hands of the lord de Beaujeu, as representative of the king. The lady of Beaujeu made her entry into Paris, as the king's daughter, and created some new corporations of trades. She and her[Pg 349] lord were handsomely accompanied by great barons and their consorts, such as the lord d'Albret, the lord de St Valier, and others,—the lady of the lord high admiral, and many more ladies and damsels,—who staid three days in Paris, during which they were magnificently entertained by the cardinal of Bourbon.

In this month of April, Edward king of England died,—as some said, of an apoplexy, and others, that he was poisoned by drinking too much of the good wine of Challuau, which he had received as a present from the king of France. It was said, however, that he was not carried off immediately, but lived long enough to secure the crown to his eldest son. In this same month, died also the lady Margaret of Bourbon, countess of Bresse, wife to Philip of Savoy, of a lingering illness, which her physicians could not check: it was a pity, for she was a good lady, full of virtue, and much beloved.

On the 3d of May, by orders from the king, all ranks in Paris, from the highest to the lowest, went in solemn procession to St Denis, to pray for the prosperity of the[Pg 350] king, the queen, the dauphin, and all the princes of the blood, and also to return thanks for the flourishing appearance of the fruits of the earth.

Monday the 2d of June, the dauphiness made her public entry into Paris about five o'clock in the afternoon, accompanied by the lady of Beaujeu, and many others. She entered by the gate of St Denis, where three stages were erected: on the uppermost was a representation of the king, as sovereign: on the second were two beautiful children, dressed in white damask, to represent the dauphin and the lady Margaret of Flanders: on the lower one were representations of the lord and lady of Beaujeu. On each side of the different personages were hung escutcheons of their arms emblazoned. There were likewise four figures, to represent the peasantry, the clergy, the tradesmen and the nobility, each of whom addressed a couplet to her as she passed. All the streets were hung with tapestry, and there were other pageants allegorical to the dauphin and dauphiness. In honour of her arrival, all the prisoners in the different gaols were set at liberty, and several new corporations of trades were made.

[Pg 351]

On the 7th of June was a great thunder storm at Paris between eight and nine at night. A flash of lightning set fire to the steeple of the church of St Genevieve, burnt all the wood-work, which had lasted nine hundred years, and melted all the covering of lead, and the bells within the steeple. It was supposed that one hundred weight of lead on the steeple was destroyed,—so that it was pitiful to see the damages done.

During the month of July, the marriage-feast of the dauphin and the lady Margaret of Flanders was celebrated in the town of Amboise; at which were present the most noble persons of the kingdom, who had come thither by the king's orders, from the cities and principal towns of his realm.

In the course of this year, the king determined to have the holy ampulla brought to him from Rheims: which had descended filled with oil, by the Divine grace, by means of a white dove, in the year 500, to good St Remy of Rheims, to anoint and consecrate king Clovis of France, the first Christian king, who died in the same year,—and his body is interred in the church of St Genevieve at Paris.

This sacred ampulla had remained in the church of St Remy, for 983 years, when it was taken thence by Claude de Montfaulcon, governor of Auvergne, whom the king had especially commissioned for the purpose. It was brought to Paris on the[Pg 353] last day of July, and was carried with much reverence, and in procession, to repose in the holy chapel of the palace, where it remained until the morrow, and was then conveyed to the king at Plessis le Parc. It was accompanied by the rods of Moses and Aaron, and the cross of victory, which had been sent to the good king St Charlemagne, that he might obtain a conquest over the infidels. They had remained undisturbed in the holy chapel, with other relics, until they were removed, on this first day of August, by the bishop of Sees, and others appointed by the king to bring them to him at Plessis.

The 25th of August, the king's illness so much increased that he lost his speech and senses. News was brought to Paris, on the 27th, that he was dead, by letters from master John Briçonnet, which obtained belief, from the writer being a man of honesty and credit. In consequence of this intelligence, the provost and sheriffs, to provide against accidents, ordered a strong guard at each of the gates, to prevent any persons from entering into or going out of the town. This caused it to be currently rumoured[Pg 354] that the king was dead, but the report was unfounded,—for he recovered his speech and senses, ate and drank, and lingered on until the 30th of August, when, between six and seven in the evening, he gave up the ghost; and his corpse was instantly abandoned by those who had been so obsequious to him during his life.

His body was dressed as usual in such cases, and carried from Plessis to the church of our lady at Clery for interment, as he had thus ordered it before his decease; for he would not be buried with the noble kings of France, his predecessors, in the habitual church of St Denis,—but would never give any reason that induced him to refuse being there interred. It was, however, generally thought that it was owing to his attachment to the church of our lady at Clery, to which he had been a very great benefactor.

During his reign, there were some low persons always about him, such as Olivier le Diable, called le Daim, John de Doyac, and others, who had committed very many acts of injustice, in whom he had greater confidence than in all his ministers or kindred. They had so overloaded the people[Pg 355] with taxes that, at the time of his death they were almost in despair; for the wealth he gained from his subjects he expended upon churches, in bestowing great pensions among ambassadors, and people of low degree, to whom he could not resist making great gifts, insomuch that he had alienated the greater part of the domain of the crown.

Notwithstanding the many serious affairs he had had upon his hands during his reign, he brought all his enemies under subjection; and he was so feared and redoubted that there were none so great in France, not even those of his blood, who slept in safety in their houses.

Before his decease, he was sorely afflicted with different disorders,—for the cure of which his physicians prescribed many extraordinary remedies. May these afflictions be the means of preserving his soul, and gain him admittance into paradise, through the mercy of Him who reigns for ever and ever! Amen.

PROLOGUE.

I cannot sufficiently wonder, when I consider the extraordinary mutability of fortune in this transitory life, nor hinder the tears from filling my eyes. I had determined to write a chronicle of the life of that most illustrious king, prince Charles VIII. of France, in the expectation that it might have been of great length; but although he was a magnanimous prince, full of prowess and victorious, the fickleness of Dame Fortune having allowed him several praiseworthy and triumphant conquests, resigned him into the hands of Atropos in the thirty-eighth year of his age, and in the prime of manhood.

[Pg 357]

As a commencement to this chronicle, I must say, that king Louis XI. departed this life in the month of August, in the year 1483, and that his only son, king Charles, VIII. succeeded him; who, in his youth, was somewhat tender and of delicate health,—but, as he grew up, he gave signs of a good understanding, that could distinguish between vice and virtue,—and, in the course of a few years, he became a man of greater ability by putting a check to his voluptuousness. From this, it may easily be foreseen how worthy he would probably have become if death had not carried him off so early.

His father, the late king, would not allow him to learn the latin tongue, as he thought polite literature would prove an hinderance to his attending to the well governing of his kingdom,—more especially as the father perceived that his son had quick parts, and being well informed in some things, he thought applying to letters would also prove dangerous in his delicate state of health; for, in his early years, he would have been unable to have gone through any laborious course of study.

[Pg 358]

However, not long after the death of his father, he willingly began to read books in the french language, and also made an attempt to learn the latin. He commenced his reign, like a pious prince, by paying his devotions toward his God, and by listening to the counsels of wise men, that he might be instructed how to govern his kingdom with uprightness. He was naturally affectionate to all his kindred, and earnest that they might unite with him for the general welfare of his people and kingdom.

CHAP. XXXVI.

In the year 1484, king Charles, being fourteen years of age, was conducted by the noble princes of his blood, namely the duke of Orleans, the count of Angoulême, the count of Foix, the count of Vendôme, the lord of Beaujeu, the lord of Dunois, the duke of Lorraine, and numbers of other princes, barons, and gentlemen, to the city of Rheims, to be consecrated and anointed with the holy oil. He was also attended by the twelve peers of France, or their substitutes, who all appeared to serve him in their different functions, according to ancient usage, in such cases established.[Pg 360] After the ceremony of the consecration, he departed from Rheims, to visit some of the adjoining towns, where he was received with all due honours: the streets were hung with tapestries,—and the clergy, with all ranks of people came out to meet him,—and bonfires and every demonstration of joy at his arrival were displayed in every town he came to.

About this time, one Daniel, a native of Flanders, and servant to master Olivier le Daim, was condemned for certain crimes by him committed, to be hanged on the gibbet at Paris[107], which was done. And not long after, his master Olivier, who had been in the confidence of the late king, was sentenced to a similar punishment for having acted criminally, and been too bold in his wickedness. Another of the late king's favourites, John de Doyac, was, within a short time, condemned by the court of parliament to be publicly whipt by the hangman, and to have one of his ears cut off, and his tongue bored with a hot iron in the pillory, at the market-place of Paris, for having[Pg 361] made too free with the effects of some of the princes, and for having insulted them. He was afterward carried from Paris to Montferrant, where he was again whipt, and had the other ear cut off.

After king Charles had been consecrated at Rheims, he was conducted to the abbey of St Denis to be crowned, and to perform the accustomed ceremonies. Thence he was carried by the aforesaid lords to Paris, and made his entry as follows: On the 6th of July, all ranks in Paris issued out in handsome order, each person well dressed, and according to his estate, to wait on the king at St Denis, and to do him the honour and reverence belonging to him. The bishop of Paris and all his clergy were among them, together with the whole court of parliament, the provost of Paris, all the officers of the courts of justice and of accounts, the provost of marchands, the sheriffs, dressed in their robes of state. This procession advanced a little beyond the chapel of St Ladre, where it met the king, accompanied by the duke of Orleans and the lords before named. The provost and sheriffs having paid due obeisance, presented to the[Pg 362] king the keys of the gate of St Denis, through which he was to make his entry into Paris. Each company having paid their respects, and made offers of all appertaining to their different professions, withdrew to the rear, to follow the king according to their rank.

Thus accompanied, the king entered Paris on a courser, having rich trappings of cloth of gold, armed in brilliant armour excepting his helmet of parade, which was triumphantly borne before, on a courser of great value, and caparisoned in the same manner as that he rode on. Instead of a helmet, he wore a most brilliant crown, adorned with precious stones, to show that he was king,—and a rich canopy of cloth of gold was carried over him. The princes and the other lords, were richly armed,—and their horses were superbly decorated in divers manners, to do honour to the king on his entrance into the capital of his realm. The gentlemen and pages of honour were likewise superbly dressed, and so numerous that it is impossible to notice them.

Many pageants, mysteries, and other devices, were displayed by the town, having an allegorical allusion to the king's name[Pg 363] of Charles. The streets were all hung with tapestries: and there were persons appointed in the principal ones to offer meat and wine to all passengers. In short, every one exerted himself to show his loyalty, and his cordial love to the king. He was conducted by the clergy in their robes, many bearing relics, and rich jewels, to the church of Nôtre Dame. At the corner of the rue neuve de Nôtre Dame, he was met by the rector of the university of Paris, attended by all the doctors and other persons of science, who, having made his reverence, delivered an eloquent oration. The king then proceeded to the cathedral, and offered up his thanksgivings; which being done, he was conducted to the palace, where a magnificent and plentiful supper was served up in the great hall to the king, the princes of the blood, and other great lords. He lay that night at the palace, and remained in Paris some days.

After his entry the king held a royal session in his court of parliament; and he sojourned several days in the city of Paris, where he daily displayed the great love he had for his people, and for the general welfare of his kingdom. He had been[Pg 364] well instructed in his youth as to religion, and ever remained a good Catholic, beloved by his subjects. Many councils were held during the king's stay at Paris, of the princes of the blood and great lords, on the most effectual means for the relief of his subjects,—and when the conduct of the late king in granting such prodigal pensions, in the profusion he was accustomed to do, was laid before them, it was considered that the revocation of these grants, and applying them to the use of the state, would be the best and speediest mode of affording ease to the people. These affairs being settled, sumptuous jousts and tournaments took place, on the joyful arrival of king Charles in his town of Paris.

The king, on quitting Paris, went to visit other towns, such as Rouen, Troyes, and Orleans, into which he made his public entry attended by his princes and nobility. These and other towns which he visited received him most honourably, and tried to rival each other in their exertions to display greater magnificence and more splendid entertainments on the king's coming among them, so much was he respected and beloved throughout his kingdom.

In the course of the latter end of this year pope Sixtus IV. died at Rome: he had been general of the Franciscans, and had well and catholicly ruled the holy see during the space of nearly thirteen years. He had been very solicitous about the public welfare, in the reparation of churches, and in embellishing the city of Rome, without sparing his private purse where he thought the honour of God was any way interested.[108]

[Pg 366]

On the 13th of August, he was succeeded in the papal dignity by Innocent VIII.[109] He was from Genoa, of parents in the middle ranks, but much respected and beloved. His father's name was Aaron, but his own was John Baptista,—and he was a cardinal-priest, under the title of Cardinal of St Cecilia, but commonly called the cardinal of Melfe. He was the poorest and most humane of the whole college of cardinals, and was deserving of his election to the papal chair for his benignity and humility.

He was magnanimous, and very prudent in all his actions,—and from his conduct during his legation at Sienna, he gave a good example to his brother-cardinals, and of what might be expected from him if raised to the popedom. On that event[Pg 367] taking place, he opened the treasures of the church to all faithful Christians for the remission of their sins. He lived in good union with the Romans and all other people in Christendom.

At this period, king Charles, with the advice of his council, made arrangements for the war in Picardy. The command of that army was given to sir Philip de Crevecoeur, lord des Cordes; for Maximilian duke of Austria, who had married the heiress of the late duke of Burgundy, had raised a powerful army, to enable him to demand with success the country of Artoise, and other parts in Burgundy, although they had been occupied by the late king, Louis XI. and were since peaceably possessed by his son, the present king.

The lord des Cordes was therefore ordered into Picardy, to resist any hostile attempts that should be there made, and to oppose Maximilian. According to the chronicle of master Robert Gaguin, a severe war broke out in the year 1485, in Brittany, which was so prudently conducted on the part of king Charles that he victoriously gained almost the whole of that duchy.[Pg 368] During this war, duke Francis of Brittany died, leaving two daughters: the one called Anne succeeded shortly after to the duchy, on the death of her sister. The king now took the field in person, and attended by many great lords and valiant captains, made several attacks on the town of Nantes, to prevent these daughters of the late duke of Brittany from marrying without his consent. This campaign, however, was not very successful: for king Henry VII. of England had sent a large force to the assistance of the Bretons, although, a short time before this, Henry had fled from that country as a fugitive, and sought an asylum with king Charles. He remained with him some time, as he was liberally aided with money and men, with whom he crossed the sea to England, where, after the death of king Richard, he peaceably enjoyed that kingdom, by means of the aid he had received from king Charles, which clearly shows the ingratitude of the english monarch[110].

The before-mentioned master Robert

[Pg 369]

Gaguin was sent on an embassy on this subject to England, in company with the lord Francis de Luxembourg and Charles de Marigny[111]. However, after all, the french army, under their king, was victorious, more especially at the battle of St Aubin[112], while the king was at Laval, when the Bretons and English were totally routed, with very great slaughter. The French gained the field of battle,—and for two leagues around, nothing was to be seen but dead bodies. Near to where the battle was fought was a wood in which the Bretons had lodged a great deal of gunpowder; and thinking that the French would attempt posting an ambuscade therein they played their artillery, which set fire to this powder, and it blew up, to the great astonishment of the French, who, by Divine Providence (the true Protector of the French blood) had not entered this wood. The explosion alarmed a stag, who ran out of the [Pg 370]wood, with eyes full of tears, and made for the french army as for a place of refuge.

It should be noticed, that prior to the engagement, large flecks of pies and jays were seen to fight with such obstinacy in the air, at a place called La Croix de Malere, that when victory declared for one party, the roads and fields were covered with the vanquished, which seemed to the French a very extraordinary circumstance.

After the battle of St Aubin, a pursuit took place, when many prisoners were made, and others driven to seek shelter in some of their strong places, to save their lives. The French in consequence of their victory, conquered the greater part of Brittany.

The principal lords of Brittany now began to consider on the means of establishing a lasting peace with the king of France; and as they thought his projected union with the lady Margaret of Flanders was not agreeable to him, since war with Maximilian her father had hitherto been the only fruits of it, they proposed that[Pg 371] he should marry the duchess Anne of Brittany,—and by this means that duchy would be firmly united to the crown of France, and would form an alliance of the utmost utility to all parties.

When the king was returned from his expedition into Brittany, and had concluded a treaty with the Bretons on the terms before mentioned, he generously[Pg 372] restored to Ferdinand king of Arragon the county of Roussillon, and gave him a free acquittance of the sums of money this county had been mortgaged for,—and for the accomplishment of this, he sent thither, as his ambassador, the lord Louis d'Ambois, bishop of Alby. There were some, however, who thought that this county should not have been restored,—and, to appease all murmurings on the subject, the king had it published that he had only acted in conformity to the orders given by his late father, king Louis, when dying. It was therefore the opinion of many, that a perpetual friendship should now be established between the kings of France and of Arragon.

In the year 1494 was established the order of repentant women and girls, who had been public strumpets at Paris. The institution of this order, in honour of the blessed Mary Magdalen, was commenced by a devout sermon preached by friar John Tisserant, a Franciscan monk,—and a house that belonged to the family of Orleans was granted to them, wherein reside many devout women.

[Pg 373]

After the restoration of the county of Roussillon, the lord des Cordes was so active with his army, in Picardy, that he gained by force of arms, for the king, the town of St Omer. He valiantly passed the breach into the town, his battle-axe hanging on his wrist, and followed by numbers of gallant men at arms, shouting out, 'Vive le roi!' which so astonished the inhabitants that they submitted to his pleasure.

Some days after this, the king of England, ungrateful for the services he had received from the king of France, as has been mentioned, landed a large force at Calais, and marched it to lay siege to Boulogne. The lord des Cordes, imagining that the English would make great efforts to gain Boulogne, he being governor of Artois, left St Omer, having well garrisoned it and other towns, in company with the bastard Cardon captain of Arras, and hastened, with a body of French, to throw himself into Boulogne, to oppose the English, and force them to raise their siege. In consequence of this, only Carquelevant, a Breton, remained in the[Pg 374] castle of Arras,—and that town was given up traitorously to the archduke, as shall be more amply detailed hereafter.

When the lord des Cordes[113] and Cardon had shown their resistance to the king of England's troops before Boulogne they found means to conclude a peace which was very advantageous to the kingdom of France: for the English were to recross the sea without interfering more in the quarrel with the archduke.

Master Gaguin tells us, in his chronicle, that this peace was very agreeable to the king of England; for he loved the French in his heart, but had been constrained by his subjects to send this armament to Boulogne,—and by his advice and remonstrances he had prevented its advancing farther into the kingdom; but that he had been obliged to dissemble, to avoid being suspected by the English of having too strong an inclination to king Charles, whose former kindnesses he could never forget, and this treaty of peace[Pg 375] was not long in being ratified by the two kings.

Within two or three days after this peace had been concluded, the town of Arras was won by a party from Maximilian's army during the night, owing to the treason or neglect of Carquelevant. He had entrusted the keys of the gates to some of his people,—so that the enemy entered the place without meeting any resistance whatever, while he was asleep in bed. They first plundered all the principal persons, and then the churches; and according to Gaguin, these Germans committed such destruction that it seemed as if they were come not to take possession of the town but utterly to destroy it.

After some months, Maximilian demolished a large tower in the market-place, and several other fortifications, which Louis XI. had erected to defend the city against the town of Arras. He also caused the walls of the city to be destroyed, and fortified the town against it, which was not displeasing to several of the inhabitants, as they hated even the french name, although, from the remotest[Pg 376] antiquity, they had been always dependant on the kings of France, as their sovereign lords.

Shortly after, Maximilian found means to obtain a truce, that he might again employ his army on similar expeditions,—for the truce on his side was only a pretence. It was not long before a party from the garrison of Arras appeared under the walls of Amiens at midnight, thinking to take it by surprise; but the French garrison and the townsmen were too well on their guard, and made such good use of their bows and artillery that they repulsed the enemy with vigour, so that they were glad to retreat from the suburbs of St Pierre, where they had formed a lodgement, and return in all haste to Arras, whence they had come. Had the lord de Rubempré been allowed to follow his inclinations, he would have sallied out after them, for he was very eager to defeat them; but sir Anthony Clabaut, then mayor of the town, and the council would not permit him, saying, that in their opinion it was fully sufficient to defend the town well when attacked.

[Pg 377]

The principal lords of France, in conjunction with those of Picardy, solicited the king to conclude a lasting peace with the archduke: terms were, in consequence, agreed on,—and the county of Artois was restored to Maximilian; by which means all Picardy was in perfect union with France, and remains so to this day, which is of very great advantage to the whole realm.

When king Charles had espoused Anne duchess of Brittany, as a proof of his affection and love, he willed that she should[Pg 378] be crowned queen of France with every magnificence. The ceremony began by a grand mass chaunted in the abbey-church of St Denis by a reverend cardinal, assisted by the archbishop of Sens and other bishops. When this was done the queen was solemnly crowned; after which, a magnificent dinner was served and an open court was kept. Having made a short stay at St Denis, she prepared for her public entry into Paris, where she was received with all due honours.

The whole of the clergy in their copes of cloth of gold, and bearing holy relics, came out to meet her, as did the bishop of Paris, the provost of marchands, the sheriffs, and all the companies of trades in their holyday dresses. When they had paid their obeisances, the queen entered Paris in triumph. All the streets were hung with tapestries: many pageants and mysteries were exhibited,—and bonfires, and all other usual demonstrations of joy, were made on her arrival. She was conducted in great state toward the cathedral of Nôtre Dame; and at the[Pg 379] corner of the rue neuve Nôtre Dame, the rector of the university, attended by all his doctors, was waiting to make his oration; after which, she proceeded to the cathedral to offer up her prayers. She was then conducted to the palace where apartments had been handsomely fitted up for her, becoming her state.

During the queen's residence in Paris, a variety of amusements took place, such as justings, tournaments, dancings and feasts. The king lived with her in the greatest harmony and love; and, in course of time, they had three fine boys, who were spared to them but a short time; for they all died in their infancy, during the expedition to Naples, according to the Divine will. May God give them grace to pray for us!

When peace was concluded with the archduke, the king resolved to visit Picardy, which he did at divers times, accompanied by some of the princes of the blood, his lords, and valiant captains. He made a public entry into several towns wherein he was most honourably received and grandly feasted,—for they were delighted[Pg 380] to see their king. Although every town tried to surpass the other, yet the entertainments at Amiens were the most sumptuous and magnificent. The barons, and common people, of Picardy were exceedingly pleased that the king had come to visit them, and were more ardent than before in their affections to so benign a prince.

On the morrow of Corpus-Christi-day, to the great scandal of all Paris, a priest called master John L'Anglois, while in the chapel of St Crispin and St Crispinian in the church of Nôtre Dame, moved and instigated by the devil, approached the priest saying mass,—and after the consecration of the host, this wicked priest tore it furiously from the hands of him who had just consecrated it, and threw it on the ground with contempt, thinking to trample it with his feet. He was instantly seized and carried to prison, wherein he was some time detained for examination. When this took place, he persevered in his iniquity and refused to adjure his errors; for which he was publicly degraded from his priesthood[Pg 381] in the church of Nôtre Dame, and delivered over into the hands of master Pierre de la Porte, then lieutenant criminel for the provost of Paris. De la Porte sentenced him to be drawn on a hurdle to the pig-market, there to have his tongue cut out, and his body burnt until consumed to ashes,—which sentence was executed.

About this time, pope Innocent died at Rome. He had peacefully governed the church during his papacy, and was full of mercy, for he absolved the Venetians from the censure which had been fulminated against them by his predecessor Sixtus. Roderigo Borgia was elected pope in his stead, and took the name of Alexander VI. The new pope was a Spaniard by birth, and of a robust and courageous disposition: he had been vice-chancellor to Innocent, and was full of enterprise and revenge against his enemies. During the reign of this pope, king Charles made a most victorious expedition into Italy, as shall be more fully related hereafter.

When king Charles had, by his prudence, subjugated or reduced to peace all the countries that were immediately on his frontiers, so that he had not any disturbances to apprehend from those quarters, like a magnanimous prince, and full of prowess, he turned his thoughts to regain the kingdoms of Naples and of Sicily, which legally and justly belonged to him. Although he was small in body, he had a great mind,—and from the time he had determined on his project, nothing could dissuade him from it.

Master Robert Gaguin declares, in his chronicle, that he would never listen to the ambassadors that were sent to him by the Parisians, to entreat him to lay aside the expedition to Naples: on the contrary, he assembled, with all diligence,[Pg 383] a most numerous army of horse and foot, and selected able captains to command them.

The king was strongly excited to this measure by pope Alexander and Ludovico Sforza, who both hated Alphonso, for having, as it was said, usurped the crown of Naples, and done many injuries to the barons of that country. For this reason, the pope and Ludovico had invited Charles to invade Italy. The king, for the more readily assembling of his men at arms, made the city of Lyon his chief residence, to be near at hand for the march of his army.

Before king Charles had shown any intentions of marching into Italy, friar[Pg 385] Jerome Savonarola preached publicly in the year 1493, in several towns of Italy, the invasion of king Charles, which caused him to be looked up to by the Florentines as a true prophet.

While the king was at Lyon, regulating the plans he should pursue in his intended attempt to recover the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily, he sent the duke of Orleans forward over the Alps, in company with many other lords and captains and a large detachment of troops, as ambassadors to Milan, Genoa, Venice, Florence, Lucca, Pisa, Viterbo and Rome, and to different towns in Lombardy, to learn whether they would keep their promises to the king, and support him in his expedition to Naples. Having been honourably received every where, the duke of Orleans returned to his county of Asti, when the promises of support were again repeated.

At this time, the lord des Querdes (more commonly called des Cordes) fell dangerously[Pg 386] ill at Lyon, as he was preparing to cross the Alps with the king. Being advised by the physicians to return and try his native air of Picardy, he took leave of the king and departed from Lyon, but was unable to proceed further than the town of Bresle, three leagues from Lyon, where he died. By the king's command, great honours were paid to his body, which was put into a leaden coffin; in all the towns it passed through, processions came out to meet it; and it was carried to the church of our Lady at Bologne-sur-mer for interment, according to the orders he had given.

King Charles, before he left Lyon, held several councils respecting the appointment of a regency to govern the kingdom in his absence. Duke Peter of Bourbon, who had married the lady Anne of France, was nominated sole regent of the kingdom: the lord de Baudricourt was made governor of Burgundy,—the lords de Avaugour and of Rohan, governors of Brittany,—the lord d'Orval, governor of Champagne,—the lord de Graville, governor of the country of Caux, Normandy and all Picardy—and the lord d'Angoulême, governor of[Pg 387] that county and of Guienne. All these lords, having taken their leave of the king, set out for their respective governments.

The king remained, some days after their departure, enjoying the good cheer and pleasures of Lyon,—and the beauty of the Lyonnoises, was also one great inducement to detain him there; but an epidemical disorder having appeared, he set out from Lyon with his queen and court for Vienne, which is seven leagues below Lyon. When the king and queen left the ancient town of Vienne, they passed through Villeneuve, and other towns, wherein they were received with due honours, to Grenoble.

On Saturday, the 23d of August, in the year 1493, king Charles accompanied by his queen, and numbers of princes, lords, ladies and damsels, made his entry into the town of Grenoble; which entry was very magnificent, as well on the part of the clergy, who came out to meet him in rich copes and bearing relics, as on the part of the court of parliament in that town, and the nobles and inhabitants, all well dressed according to their different ranks, some in handsome liveries, others[Pg 388] with divers devices, as their fancy led them. Those who had been deputed to present the keys of the town to the king, made an eloquent harangue in his praise. A rich canopy was carried over his head, and another over that of the queen; and they were thus conducted into the town, where all the streets were hung with tapestries. Several allegorical pageants and mysteries were displayed, in honour of the king and queen. When this procession arrived at the cathedral, their majesties dismounted to offer up their prayers, and were thence conducted to their lodgings, in the palace of the court of parliament.

The king and queen staid six whole days at Grenoble, where several councils were held relative to the greater security of passing the Alps with the army. It was thought advisable to send back the carriages that were there in waiting to transport the king's baggage, and other stores for the troops, and in their stead a number of mules were collected for this purpose, otherwise too much time would have been lost,—for this is the usual mode of transporting merchandise across the mountains.

Proper persons were selected to fix on[Pg 389] the quarters for the king and his army, so that as little confusion as possible might arise; and the chief manager in this business was Pierre de Valetaut,—and a better chief could not have been fixed on, for he was perfectly well acquainted with the whole country the army was to march through. Purveyors were also appointed to go from town to town to collect provisions for the cavalry and infantry, every article of which was to be paid for at a regulated price,—and no pillaging of any kind was to be permitted with impunity. Those among them were to have the titles of marshals, maitres d'hôtels, and provosts, accordingly as they behaved themselves well.

To preserve the friendship of those italian towns which had promised support, and to keep them to their engagements, the following persons were sent to them (as their fidelity was not overmuch to be depended upon), namely, John de Cardonne, master of the household, to Florence; the lord Charles Brillart to Genoa; Gaulcher de Tinteville to Sienna; La Ville Rigault d'Oreilles to Milan; Adrian de L'Isle to[Pg 390] Pisa; the lord de Louan to Lucca,—and others to Viterbo. With each of these envoys, were sent gentlemen of the long robe, to make harangues, should there be necessity. On the same business, the following persons were sent ambassadors to the different regencies and princes of Lombardy and Italy: the lord de la Trimouille to the king of the Romans; Louis Lucas to Ludovico Sforza, at Milan; the lord du Bocage to the Venetians; the lord d'Aubigny to Rome, accompanied by the lord d'Autun, the president Grusnay, and the general de Bidont, as ambassadors to the pope; the lord d'Argenton, in company with Monstreau, was sent elsewhere.

The commanders of the king's army were the princes of the blood and others, namely, the duke of Orleans, the lord de Montpensier, the lord de Foués, the lord de Luxembourg, the lord de Vendôme, the lord Angillebert of Cleves, the lord John Jacques, the prince of Salerne, the lord de Miolens, the lord de Piennes, the marquis de Saluces, de Vienne, de Rothelin, the marshals de Gié and de Rieux, the seneschals of Beaucaire and of Normandy,[Pg 391] together with numbers of other barons, knights, captains of renown, and loyal gentlemen.

The following nobles were nominated for attendants in the king's company: de Bourdillon, de Châtillon, de la Palice, George Edouille,—together with some of his household, such as Paris, Gabriel, d'Yjon, and others of his domestics. They also served as masters of the household, in the room of those who had been sent forward as ambassadors or envoys. Guyot Lousiers had the command of the artillery. The lord de Chaudoyt had charge of the fleet, together with the bailiff of Vitry, Jehannot du Tertre, Perot de Baché, the lord de Villeneuve, René Parent, the bailiff of St Pierre du Monstier, John Château Dreux, Herné du Chesnoy, John de Lasnay, the lord du Fau, Adam de L'Isle, Giraut and Charles de Susaine, the lord de la Brosse, Honoré lord du Chef: and likewise the officers in ordinary to the king, such as butlers, cup-bearers, valets, grooms, ushers of the chamber, and many more, suitably to the state of so great a monarch on this occasion.

[Pg 392]

When king Charles had staid six days in Grenoble for the arrangement of his affairs, he took leave of the queen, who departed thence, for France, most honourably accompanied.

On Friday, the 29th of August, the king, having heard mass and taken leave of his queen, set out from Grenoble to dine at a place called La Meure, a village dependant on a barony belonging to the count of Dunois. He thence went to sup and lie at the small town of Escoy, where he was honourably received by the burghers and inhabitants. On the morrow, he dined at St Bonnet, and went to lodge at a small city in Dauphiny, called Gap. The next day he dined at Forges, and supped at Embrun[115], where he was joyfully received[Pg 393] by all ranks, and lodged at the bishop's palace, who was then absent on an embassy from the king to the pope.

On Monday morning, having heard mass in the church of our Lady, the king left Embrun for St Crespin, where he lay, and thence went to Briançon[116]. He was received with every honour by the clergy and people, and conducted to an immense inn without the town, as the most convenient lodgings for him. He and his company were there served with plentiful cheer, and excellent wines. On the 2d of September the king dined at Serzene; and in the evening was at the provostship of Ourse, where, after his repast, a tall man, native of la Poille, was brought before him, as charged with being one of the 'principaux maistres de la vau-perte[117].' After the king had heard what he had to say, he delivered him into the hands of his officers of justice, who, having duly examined the charge laid against him, caused him to be publicly hanged on a tree.

[Pg 394]

The ensuing day, the king dined at Chaumont, and immediately after entered Savoy, to lie at Suse. The duchess of Savoy, accompanied by many lords, ladies, and damsels, had come thither to meet him, and entertained him handsomely. On quitting Suse, he dined at St Jousset, entered Piedmont, and lodged at Villanne[118],—and wherever he came, he was received with all due honours. On the morrow, he made preparations for his entry into Turin, as described in the following chapter.

On the 5th of September, as king Charles approached Turin, he was met by a procession of the clergy, accompanied by the nobles[Pg 395] and inhabitants of that city, the university, and by the noble lady the princess of Piedmont, most magnificently dressed in cloth of gold frize, after an antique fashion, ornamented with large sapphires, diamonds, rubies, and other precious stones. She had on her head a heap of gold ornaments, intermixed with carbuncles, jacinths, and tufts of fine gold. On her neck she wore collars, with wide rockets, decorated with large oriental pearls, having also bracelets of the same. Thus richly dressed, she was mounted on a palfrey led by six lackeys, well equipped in cloth of gold, and attended by a company of damsels most elegantly dressed, and numbers of lords, knights, esquires and pages of honour.

In this manner did the king enter Turin, the streets of which were all decorated with cloths of gold or of silk; and in different places were stages erected, on which mysteries were represented from the Old and New Testaments, and upon historical subjects. The king was conducted to the castle, where he was received by the aforesaid lady of Piedmont, the duke her son, his uncle the lord of Bresse,[Pg 396] and other great barons, to the melodious sounding of trumpets, clarions and other instruments. Every offer of service and support was made to the king in his expedition to Naples; and it must not be omitted, that public tables were laid out in all the principal streets, for the refreshment of every one that chose to sit down at them.

The ensuing day, the princess of Piedmont led her son into the king's apartment, where they dined joyously together; and after the repast the king took his leave of them and the other lords to sup and lie at Quiers[119], whither orders had been previously sent for his handsome reception, which was accordingly done: and he was so well pleased that he remained in Quiers three days amusing himself in feasting, and with the ladies.[120]

On Tuesday the 9th of September, the king, after thanking the lords and ladies of Quiers for the honourable reception they had given him, departed for Villa-nuova; and thence went to supper in the town of Asti, belonging to the duke of Orleans, where he was received by all ranks of inhabitants with greater magnificence than at any other town, considering their means. The king was lodged at the house of one John Roger, and the other lords in different houses.

The duke was absent on the coast of Genoa, on the king's business, and to provide for the security of his expedition. The morning after the king's arrival, a false messenger arrived at Asti, with every mark[Pg 398] of bringing hasty news,—and it was instantly rumoured that the French had been defeated at sea. The king immediately assembled his council, to consider how to act in consequence of this unfortunate event; but the messenger was not now to be found, to hear the particulars from him; and within a short time another messenger arrived with better news, for he brought certain information that the duke of Orleans, whilst cruizing in the gulph of Rapallo, near Genoa, had defeated the army of the prince of Tarentum, and taken forty thousand prisoners, and that the slaughter of the enemies of France had been so great that the numbers were not known: a few had escaped over the mountains: and among the prisoners were a son to sir John Fregoso[121], and a nephew to the cardinal of Genoa: Frederic[122], who was the commander of the neapolitan army, had expired through fear. The flower of the italian nobility was in this battle.

[Pg 399]

The duke of Orleans had with him, at this glorious victory, the lord de Piennes, John de la Grange, Charles de Brillac, who was then knighted, the bailiff of Dijon, the lord Guyot de Lousiers, with numbers of other nobles and gentlemen of name. After the victory, the duke of Orleans was seized with a fever, which forced him to return to Asti, where the king still was.

To Asti came also, from Milan, Ludovico Sforza, and his consort, the daughter of the duke of Ferrara, who brought with her a profusion of rich dresses and jewels to display before the king. They conversed together, like old friends,—for the traitor Ludovico had not then manifested the iniquity of his malignant mind, as he afterwards did, but for which, in the end he was severely punished[123].

When king Charles had staid some time at Asti, he was much indisposed for two or three days[124], and removed from his lodgings to more airy apartments in [Pg 400]the convent of the Jacobins, that overlooked their gardens. It was there the duke of Orleans and the other lords of the council arranged many things for the furtherance of his expedition, and also for the general welfare of his kingdom. During this interval, Ludovico went back to Milan, but shortly returned, although his support was but feigned and full of deceit.

It was about this time that three or four french gentlemen in Genoa, went to the sea shore to bathe, and were shortly afterward joined by another, who stripped himself to bathe with them,—when lo, a large fish rose from the bottom of the sea, and bit the latter gentleman until the blood came. Perceiving himself wounded, he attempted to escape by driving off the fish, but he, having tasted his blood, returned again, bit him in several places, and at length dragged him by force under the water, and he was never seen afterward, which seemed a very marvellous event to many persons in Genoa.

The king having remained in Asti from the 9th of September until the 6th of October, departed from it for ever, to accomplish the object of his expedition.

[Pg 401]

On the morning of the 6th, having heard mass as usual, and taking some refreshments, he set out from Asti, dined at La Fariniere, and lodged at Monçal[125], which is the first town on the road toward Lombardy, and of a tolerable size. It belonged to the late marquis of Montferrat, and the king was honourably received there by the marchioness, his widow, her eldest son the present marquis, and her second, called Constantine. She showed him the whole extent of the fortifications of the town and castle, and how well they were provided with artillery and military stores. She also pointed out to him the heads of three traitors who had been, a short time before, executed for having caused a war between Ludovico of Milan and her husband, the late marquis.

The marchioness treated the king with the greatest hospitality and kindness, making offers of every thing she had for his service,—and tenderly reminding him how her deceased lord had left her and her children under his especial protection. The king[Pg 402] behaved to her very affectionately; and on the morrow he departed from Moncalvo, to dine and sup at Casal, the capital of the possessions of the marquis of Montferrat.

The king of France left Moncalvo on the 7th of October; and on his arrival at Casal, he was received with all demonstrations of joy, and conducted to the castle, where his lodgings had been prepared. At the gate of the castle was the marchioness of Montferrat, richly dressed, with her son, who having humbly saluted the king, and not knowing the french language perfectly well, the count de Foix and the lord Louis made their harangue, which was in substance what the lady had before said,—and that they placed all their possessions, without[Pg 403] exception, under his protection,—that now they gave him possession of the town and castle of Casal, with all other their strong places. The king benignantly accepted of the trust, and entered the castle of Casal to the sound of trumpets and horns.

The lady feasted the king and his company most plentifully with all sorts of meats, wines and hypocras, so that nothing could have been better. On the morrow, the king presented the young marquis with new and rich dresses, in the french fashion, demonstrating, by his liberality, that he received him under his protection,—and he remained three days in this town.

On Friday, at sunrise, the king departed from Casal, to dine at Consse, and sup at Mortare, where he was well received, lodged in the castle, and handsomely feasted. The next day he went to take up his quarters in the town of Vigeue[126], and was triumphantly received there by Ludovico Sforza and his lady, with other lords of that county. After the usual ceremonies were over, and they had discoursed[Pg 404] sufficiently, he was conducted to his apartments in the castle, which was pleasantly situated, and himself and his company were well entertained.

On Monday, the 23d of October, the king went to see the Granges, half a league from Vige-vano. These Granges belong to the lord of Milan, are beautifully situated, and hold immense quantities of corn and cattle, and are the place of receipt for all rents due to him in kind. In the first, there is a spacious court of stables, the roof of which is supported on handsome columns, for stallions of great value, and adjoining were others for mares and colts. At this time, in other stables were full eighteen hundred horned cattle,—such as fat oxen, cows, and buffaloes. In the sheep-folds, were about fourteen thousand sheep and goats. In short, it was a place excellently contrived, and of great value.

THE KING OF FRANCE ENTERS PAVIA.—HIS RECEPTION THERE.

The king, having left the Granges, advanced toward Pavia,—and when he was near that city, the clergy came out in handsome procession, to meet him. They conducted him in this state to the principal church, called Il Duomo, and thence to his apartments in the castle, which was large and well situated. The duchess and her young son were waiting there to welcome him on his happy arrival; and he and his company were well feasted with a variety of meats and wines, from the 14th until the 17th, when he took his departure, after hearing mass, to dine at Beriofle, and sup and lie at Castel San Joanne. On the morrow, he dined at Roqueste, and thence resolved to make his entry into Piacenza.

As the king approached Piacenza in the afternoon of the 18th of October, the clergy, judges, officers, and principal inhabitants came out to meet him in a handsome[Pg 406] procession, as all the other towns had done, and led him in triumph to the apartments that had been prepared for his reception. While he was in this town, a messenger came to him in haste with letters, containing in substance, that on that day the young duke of Milan had died, which much afflicted and vexed the king. Tears filled his eyes, without any dissembling, and to perform his duty to God, he ordered on the morrow a solemn funeral service to be celebrated,—after which were distributed large sums in alms to the poor, all at the king's expense, and chiefly under the direction of the lord Reginald d'Oreilles. It should not be forgotten, that the king invited the nobles and principal inhabitants to this funeral service: and that they, in gratitude for his benignant humanity, presented him with several immense cheeses, as large as our greatest millstones, which he sent to France, as a gift to the queen. The king, having staid six days in Piacenza, departed.

After the king had heard mass at Piacenza, on the 23d of October, he set out to dine and sup at the little town of Fiorenzuola[127], where the people received him very affectionately. On Friday, he lay at another small town called Borgo San Domino[128], where he was equally well received. On the 25th, he was quartered at Fornove[129], which is of tolerable size, having a large abbey, and lies at the foot of the Appenines.

On the Sunday, he went to Borgo di Val di Taro[130]; and the next day, after hearing mass, he went to Beers, where he and his [Pg 408]train were much straitened for room; but it was necessary to exercise patience according to the country they were in. On Tuesday he left Beers to lie at Pontremoli[131], where he was received with processions, and lighted tapers and torches, as in the preceding towns. At this place, Pietro de Medici waited on the king with intelligence from Florence, and placed himself under his protection. To obviate any attempts of those who were inimical, he promised to place in his hands a small town called Sarsina[132]; and he afterwards delivered up another good place of the Florentines, called Sarsonella, near to Sarsane.

On Wednesday, the king visited the church of Nôtre Dame des Miracles, near to the town of Pontremoli, and dined at Yole. This day owing to some quarrel, several Germans were killed in Pontremoli, for which their countrymen revenged themselves severely on their return from Naples. The whole army marched on the 30th into Sarsina, and there halted for six days, on [Pg 409]account of a rebellion among the Florentines. Ludovico Sforza, who was already beginning to form his plans of treachery, came again to visit the king at this place, and returned suddenly to Milan.

On the 6th of November, the king marched his army to Massa, a burgh with a castle having deep ditches all around it: near to it is a mountain whence white and black marble is dug,—and from it is seen the sea, about half a league off. He was honourably received by the lady of the place.—On Friday, he left Massa, and took up his quarters at Pietra Santa[133], a small town belonging to the Florentines; but the king having been duly informed that it formed part of the duchy of Genoa, and that the inhabitants had put themselves under the Florentines for their better security, and through subtilty, he placed in the castle a strong garrison of gens d'armes until his return.

OF THE ENTRY AND RECEPTION OF THE KING OF FRANCE IN THE TOWN OF LUCCA.

When the king made his entry into Lucca, he was met by the clergy, and principal townsmen in procession, a league distant,—and what was most singular, the greater part of them were dressed in fine cloths of gold, or in velvets. After they had all paid their respects to the king, they conducted him into the town, which was richly decorated with tapestries, and divers pageants. He was lodged in the bishop's palace, where he and his company were grandly entertained.

The king left Lucca on the following morning, after hearing mass, to dine at Primat, and in the evening entered Pisa, having been met by the clergy, governor and chief inhabitants. It was doubtless here that he received the truest marks of affection,—for the very children in the streets as well as others of higher ranks, shouted out, 'Liberty for ever!' They submitted themselves unreservedly to his will, for they were greatly molested by the Florentines; and it was melancholy to hear their complaints of them. The king assured them of his support in maintaining their liberty, which gave greater joy than I can describe,—and it need not be wondered at if, in consequence, the king and his company were so magnificently feasted. The next morning, he marched from Pisa, to dine at Pont Codere, and lodged at Empoli[134].

[Pg 412]

On the 11th of November, the king went to lie at Pont-de-Signe, which is a very pleasant place, and tarried there five or six days, because the Florentines had rebelled against Pietro de Medici, who had delivered up to the king some strong places and castles. But so firm a countenance was shown to the said Florentines, and the royal artillery were so well prepared to march against Florence and such as were the most active in rebellion, that they sent ambassadors to offer their obedience to the king, to sue for pardon for their transgressions, and to entreat that he would come to their town.

On Monday, the 17th of November, the king, having assembled his whole army and train of artillery, advanced to a large[Pg 413] palace near to Florence, where he dined. The florentine nobles, with numbers of the lower ranks, came thither to pay him their respects; which they having done, and presented him with the keys of their gates, the french army marched into the town of Florence by companies, each under its own captain, and with displayed banners, in handsome order. This lasted a long time, for there were a greater body of men under arms than the Florentines had ever before seen.

When the companies had all passed, the king, accompanied by his princes and nobles, entered the town completely armed, with his body guard and his hundred gentlemen all in armour. He was conducted, having a handsome canopy borne over his head, to the cathedral, and thence to the lodgings that had been prepared for him in the mansion of Pietro de Medici, where he and his company were more sumptuously entertained than can be imagined.

The king, the better to subjugate and keep the Florentines in check, remained some days in Florence. He marched away[Pg 414] on the 21st, and was lodged at a large palace not far distant. The next day, Saturday, he went to St Cassant, where he remained the Sunday; and on the Monday, he advanced to Poggiobonzi[135], which is a prettily situated town, and, though small, well peopled. On the morrow, the king dined at the abbey of Aye, and thence went to his quarters in the city of Sienna.

THE KING MAKES HIS ENTRY INTO SIENNA, VITERBO, AND OTHER TOWNS.

When the king was within a league of Sienna, he was met by a procession of the clergy and inhabitants, who having made an harangue, presented him with the keys of their town, as an acknowledgement of his being the lord thereof. He was afterwards conducted thither with great solemnity,—and the streets had been gaily decorated[Pg 415] to welcome him. He was lodged in the palace of the bishop, near the cathedral, where he and his company were entertained. On Thursday, the king departed from Sienna, dined at Buonconvento, and lay at St Clerico, where he tarried all Friday. On Saturday, he dined at Ricoure, and lay at La Paille. Having heard mass on Sunday, he proceeded to Acquapendente, a town situated on a height, and belonging to the pope; notwithstanding which, the king was very honourably received, with processions, and the keys of the gates were presented to him. On Wednesday, the 10th of December, the king crossed Monte-Fiascone, and fixed his quarters for the night at Viterbo, a handsome town, belonging also to the pope. The inhabitants, however, made a splendid entry for him, submitting themselves to his obedience; they conducted him to his lodgings at the bishop's palace, a spacious and pleasantly situated mansion, near to the gate leading to Rome.

The king remained five days in Viterbo; and, during that time, frequently visited the shrine of St Rosa, whose body was[Pg 416] in complete preservation as to flesh and bones. He placed the lord de Gaiasche, with a good garrison, in the castle, and dispatched the lord de la Trimouille to pope Alexander, who promised fidelity to the king, and, for greater assurance thereof, dismissed some of his cardinals, and even his confessor.

On Monday, the 15th of December, the king left Viterbo, dined at the small town of Roussillon[136], and lay at a little town called Naples[137], where he halted until Friday, when he advanced to Bracciano, belonging to the lord Virgilio d'Orsini, where he dined and lay. He there encamped, and while thus occupied, he received an embassy from the pope to agree to his entering Rome with his army.

During this interval, the lord de Ligny marched a strong detachment of Germans, to take possession of Ostia, a strong place at the mouth of the Tiber, and a convenient seaport. The duke of Calabria was at this time in Rome, and, from his [Pg 417]boastings, it was thought he would achieve wonders against the French,—but he was soon forced to make a precipitate retreat into La Puglia; and immediately after, the lord de la Trimouille and the marshal de Gié marked the quarters for the army in Rome as undisturbed as they would have been in any town of France.

On the last day of December, king Charles, with his princes, lords, and gens d'armes, entered the city of Rome as a conqueror, with his whole army, and train of artillery, in such handsome array as astonished the Romans. But as it was nearly night, an immense number of torches were lighted, and he entered the city by the Porta Flaminia, near to the church of Santa Maria del Populo. He traversed part of Rome to his lodgings in the palace of San Marco,[Pg 418] where he had his park of artillery, and the rest of his army marched to the quarters that had been marked for them by the before mentioned lords.

Pope Alexander VI. hearing of the great army which the king of France had marched into the city, shut himself up in the castle of St Angelo, fearing some commotions. But by advice of the council, the king sent to him the counts of Foix, of Bresse, and of Ligny, with the marshal of Gié and master John de Rely bishop of Angers, who harangued the pope in such wise that he took courage,—and henceforward there was a good intelligence between the king, the pope, and the other nobles.

The king, though daily occupied by his council on the business he was engaged in, found means to visit the churches and holy places in Rome, with much devotion; and he was shown wonderful relics and precious treasures, to which he and his company paid singular respect. The king displayed his sovereignty in Rome by having three or four gallows erected, and by ordering some thieves and malefactors to be[Pg 419] thereon hanged. He caused others to be whipped, drowned, or deprived of their ears, to demonstrate that, as a true son of the church and most Christian king, he enjoyed the same powers of executing justice in Rome as in his town of Paris.

At this time, a very large piece of the wall of the castle of St Angelo fell, of itself, into the ditch, to the great vexation and fright of the pope. The Romans, on the other hand, thought it a miracle. The king visited the Coliseum, and other curiosities in Rome.

Friday the 16th of January, the king, attended by all his nobles, heard mass in St Peter's; and the pope, to show his affection, conversed most familiarly with him, the king and he walking arm in arm, like brothers. In short, such was their friendship that the bishop of St Malo[138] was[Pg 420] created a cardinal,—and the king remaining with the pope some days.

Tuesday, the 20th, the king heard mass in the french chapel, and afterwards touched and cured many afflicted with the king's evil, to the great astonishment of the Italians, who witnessed the miracle. This same day, the pope chaunted high mass at the great altar in St Peter's, in the presence of the king, his nobles, and principal officers. There were twenty-five cardinals, about thirty archbishops, forty bishops, and a number of other prelates and churchmen. When mass was done, the pope and the king came together to a place that had been prepared for them at the entrance of St Peter's, when a bishop displayed the impression of our Saviour's face on the holy handkerchief three times,—and all the people cried aloud, 'Mercy!' The pope was then carried to a scaffold in front of the church, where the king was seated beside him, and the cardinals according to their ranks, and next to them the french princes of the blood. The pope then ordered the Confiteor to be said for the full remission of sins, as in the year of[Pg 421] jubilee, which was proclaimed by three cardinals in three different languages, namely, in Latin, French, and Italian. When the pope gave his benediction for the jubilee, he had his left hand on the king's shoulder, and thus were all persons absolved from every sin and crime they might have committed.

At this time, there was a Turk[139] in the castle of St Angelo, whom all the people were admitted to see, to his great vexation.

After the ceremony of St Peter's, every one returned to his lodgings rejoicing, and the king visited the seven privileged churches which are in or near Rome. On the Sunday following, the pope and the king, to prove on what friendly terms they were, rode together through Rome,—when the king showed, to him and his cardinals, his fine army and train of artillery: a pleasing sight to his friends, but a terror to[Pg 422] his enemies. On the 27th of January, the king gave orders for the army to be in readiness to march from Rome; and he went to take his humble leave of pope Alexander and his cardinals, who had all given him a handsome reception.

The king of France breakfasted and dined with the pope on the 28th of January; and after they had long conversed together on certain particular affairs, the pope gave him his benediction,—when he set out from Rome, carrying the Turk away with him. The cardinal of Valencia, son to the pope, accompanied the king, as a hostage for the pope, who went that night not further than Marina, a small town seven or eight miles from Rome. On the morrow, he lay at Veletri, which is a city, and was[Pg 423] lodged in the bishop's palace: he staid there some days,—during which, the cardinal, like a traitor, abandoned the king. The king, while at Veletri, received, on the last day of January, by a messenger, certain intelligence, that the lord Angilbert of Cleves, a renowned german captain, had won by assault, in spite of all resistance, the town and castle of Monte Fortino[140], belonging to the lord James Conti, who had broken his engagements with the king,—and on this account, the place was destroyed by fire and sword. Many prisoners were made there by the lord Angilbert, and in the number were two sons of James Conti.

The king remained in Veletri on Sunday, the first of February, and also on Monday, as it was the feast of the purification of the Virgin, attended by four cardinals and six archbishops. On Tuesday and Wednesday following, he passed through Valmontone, to La Botine. On the 5th, he came to Fiorentino, where he halted, because a jew had humbly supplicated him[Pg 424] that he might be baptised. The king therefore, instantly led him by the hand to the church, had him baptised by his confessor, the bishop of Angers, the king giving his own name Charles, and settled a handsome income on him. In this town is an abbey, in which it is said lies the body of St Amboise.

The king advanced on Friday to Verlic, where he dined and lay,—and the lords of the town came to meet and offer him the keys of it, as a proof of their obedience. It is said, that the body of Santa Maria Jacobi, the sister of the Virgin, is interred there; on which account, as the king wished to see it, he staid there until Monday, when he proceeded to Bahut to dinner. In the afternoon, the king, like a valiant prince, armed himself, and went to visit the siege which the French were carrying on against a strong town, and still stronger castle called Mont St Jean. Many violent assaults were made, and as gallantly opposed by a garrison from all nations, who wounded numbers of the French. The king, on his arrival, ordered the place to be stormed on all sides, which was done with great[Pg 425] effect, and lasted for eight hours. A breach was at length made in the wall, through which the French instantly rushed, and put all the garrison, to the number of nine hundred and fifty-five to the sword,—but not without having many of their men killed and wounded.

The government of this town and castle was given to the lord of Taillebourg, who guarded it to his honour. It was esteemed to be impregnable; and not long before this, Alphonso of Naples had remained before it for seven years, but was unable with all his forces, to conquer it. The king returned from this place to Verbie, and thence to Bahut, where he lay,—and there heard that the duke of Calabria had fled from St Germain[141], on learning the fate of St Jean. St Germain, from its situation, is the key to the kingdom of Naples, the town being very strong, with two or three castles well fortified, and the whole is crowned by a very large monastery, in which reposes the body of St Benedict.

On Thursday, the 12th of February,[Pg 426] the king lay at the small town of St Cyprienne, and dined the next day at Aquino, the birthplace of the celebrated doctor and saint Thomas of Acquino, and thence went to lie at St Germain. On the morrow, he lay at Mignano. Monday, the 16th, he dined at Nôtre Dame di Correggio, and supped at Tiano, where he was joyfully received, and there heard the welcome news, that the duke of Calabria had also fled from Capua. The inhabitants of Capua here waited on him with the keys of their town, and, with uplifted hands, supplicated him to have mercy on them.

The king remained the whole of the next day at Couy, and on the Wednesday, made his public entry into Capua, and was lodged in the castle, which as well as the town, was of great strength. The ensuing day, he entered Aversa, and was equally well received, and took up his lodgings in the palace of the bishop. On the Friday, the citizens and inhabitants of Naples came to salute the king at Aversa, to assure him, that king Alphonso had embarked and sailed for Sicily, to present him with the keys of their town, and to submit themselves[Pg 427] to his good pleasure and obedience. Upon this, the king sent thither the marshal de Gié and other lords, who were allowed to enter the city, with all their attendants, according to their pleasure.—The king left Aversa on Saturday, to dine at Poggio-Réalé, which is a beautiful place, much more extensive than the park of Vincennes, with a variety of fine trees, and curious birds and game of all sorts, both small and great, fountains, meads, and wines of the finest flavour. It would take too much time to relate all its magnificence.

END OF VOL. XI.

[Pg 428]

Page 3. line 19. Bastard of Bourbon.] Joanna, youngest of the king's four natural daughters, married to Louis de Bourbon, count of Rousillon afterwards admiral of France.

Page 7. line 2. Sir John de Lorraine.] Qu. John count of Harcourt, brother of Frederic count of Vaudemont? See before, vol. x. page 303.

Page 7. line 19 from the bottom. Mehun.] The first place of his confinement was Sully sur Loire, from whence he was removed to the castle of Usson in Auvergne. He was afterwards restored to favour and made governor of Rousillon.

Page 20. line 7. Lord des Bordes.] Philip de Melun lord des Bordes, was governor of the bastille, and father of Charles de Melun the grand master before mentioned. Both father and son were involved in the same disgrace. But the former, more fortunate in being less elevated, was only dismissed from his office, while the latter was soon afterwards brought to the scaffold.[Pg 430] The government of the bastille was now committed to Hugh de Chavigny Seigneur de Bloc.

Page 46. line 12. Stevenot de Vignoles.] This Stevenot de Vignoles was probably a son of Amadour de Vignoles the brother of La Hire who was killed at Creil in 1434 and continued the posterity of the lords de Vignoles in Languedoc.

Page 48. line 14. Him.] He was accordingly displaced, though not till some years after, and the reason assigned was the opposition he made in the affair of the pragmatic sanction. Du Clos.

Page 49. line 9. Thiron.] Many historians speak of the number of secret executions performed at the command of Louis by this Tristan l'Hermite, whom he usually called by the familiar appellation of "mon Compère." This cruel man, not content with mere obedience, executed every mandate in the most barbarous manner. Louis may well be reproached for the favour with which he honoured this minister of his wrath whom he should not have looked upon in any other light than that of a necessary instrument of justice. Du Clos.

Page 54. line 13. Cardinal of Evreux.] Balue obtained the cardinal's hat at the earnest solicitations of his master, and as a recompense for his services in the affair of the pragmatic sanction[Pg 431] when he was so nobly checked by St Romain. Pope Paul the second was afterwards thoroughly ashamed of having been prevailed on to elevate to the sacred dignity a person of so thoroughly scandalous and depraved a character, and excused himself on the ground of compulsion. Du Clos.

Page 67. line 6 from the bottom. Lyon.] The archbishop of Lyons. See after, p. 284.

Page 75. last line. Him.] The progress of the war with the Liegeois is detailed very much at length in the second book of Philip de Commines, where also the reader will find all the particulars of an affair which is not even hinted at in this place. The king had himself excited the commotions in Liége, the intelligence of which is here said to have so disturbed him by means of his secret envoys. After having done this, he had the imprudence (most unaccountable in one of his consummate craft) to come and meet the duke of Burgundy in the duke's own town of Peronne. The treaty between them was already far advanced when news arrived of this disturbance, and then also intelligence was brought to the duke of the infamous intrigues by which it had been occasioned. The duke immediately ordered the gates of the town to be closed and made Louis his prisoner, and in this state the king remained for some days in hourly apprehension of the death which[Pg 432] his duplicity and treachery towards the duke had richly merited. But next to the folly of the king, the most extraordinary circumstance in the whole transaction is the weakness of the duke; who, as if he had never known by experience that the king was neither to be bound by treaties, nor by obligations, had no sooner suffered his first rage to cool than he humbled himself on his knees before his prisoner, and asking forgiveness of him whom on the contrary he ought not himself to have forgiven, permitted him to depart in safety upon his simple engagement to renounce the league he had made with the inhabitants of his rebellious city.

Page 79. line 6. Cardinal of Angers.] Balue, who at this time held both the bishopricks of Angers and Evreux. The former he obtained from the Pope by means of the most treacherous proceedings against Jean de Beauveau, its bishop, and his former patron and benefactor. See Du Clos.

Page 87. line 12. Observe.] See before page 75. The circumstance of the king's imprisonment seems to be most studiously avoided by this historian. Perhaps he did not know of it; for Louis who, to the latest hour of his life, reflected on his extreme imprudence and imminent danger with the utmost shame, not only was careful never to mention it himself[Pg 433] but was highly offended if he heard or suspected that it was ever mentioned by others. Comines, who gives the relation, was present at Peronne and in the very chamber next to that where the king was confined at the time of the adventure.

Page 89. line 10 from the bottom. Sir Tanneguy du Châtel.] Youngest son of Olivier lord du Châtel, and nephew of Tanneguy du Châtel provost of Paris who died in 1449. Tanneguy the younger was viscount of Belliére in right of his wife Jane de Raguenel, lady of Malestroit, and viscountess of Belliére. He is celebrated in history for his generous attention to the funeral of Charles the seventh, which was shamefully neglected by his attendants. Louis the eleventh rewarded this service by a suitable care of his obsequies. He was killed at the siege of Bouchain in 1477, and left issue two daughters.

Page 91. line 7. Long preserve it!] From this expression it should appear that the writer of this chronicle committed every event to writing as soon as he was informed of it and never afterwards revised his annals with a reference to subsequent affairs.

Page 96. last line. Viscount of Villars. Q. if not Thouars.] Louis d'Amboise viscount of Thouars dying without issue male, his daughter brought the titles Thouars and Talmont into[Pg 434] the family of Tremoille by marriage with Louis I. count of Guînes, &c. who died in 1483.

Page 106. line 6. Behind.] This sudden revolution seems to have been effected solely by the over-powering influence of the Nevils. The marquis of Montacute, who had been lately forced to resign the earldom of Northumberland on the reconciliation between Edward and the house of Percy, and who was too fond of actual power to think the title of marquis a compensation for one of the greatest earldoms of England, was easily persuaded to join the party of his brother, and on his defection, Edward was seized with a panic, and leaving his army at Nottingham fled beyond seas. Stowe, 1470.

Page 113. line 4. Combrodes.] Combrodes, Qu. Comborn? John I. viscount of Comborn, counsellor and chamberlain to Charles the seventh, married Jane of Rochechouart and died about 1482. Who was count or lord of Charente I cannot tell. But qu. does this mean James de Bourbon lord of Charency? He married into the family of la Tour d'Auvergne, which renders it the more probable.

Page 116. line 5. King.] It is evident that these events are related in a very confused and hurried manner. Edward landed in the Humber during the winter of 1470. On the 14th of April, being Easter-day, 1471, was fought the[Pg 435] battle of Barnet in which Warwick fell, and with him Bouchier lord Cromwell, sir John Lisle, and others. Montacute also was killed by his brother's men, being detected in a treacherous manœuvre to join king Edward's party. Holland, duke of Exeter, was left for dead on the field; but he found means to escape and got over to Burgundy where he was seen by Philip de Commines following in the train of duke Charles from place to place, a barefooted mendicant. On the 4th of May following queen Margaret having landed with a considerable force in Devonshire and thence marched up the country, was met by king Edward at Tewkesbury when the decisive battle was fought, which as is well known, terminated with the utter overthrow of all the hopes of the Lancastrian party. Besides prince Edward (who is said to have been murdered in cold blood after the engagement was over) there fell Courtney earl of Devonshire, lord John Somerset, (a brother of the duke's) lord Wenlock, and many knights and gentlemen of name. The duke of Somerset (with several others) was treacherously made to quit sanctuary under promise of pardon and afterwards beheaded; but he at least deserved his fate for having fled from the prince of Wales's side during the battle and left him to be made a prisoner. Stowe.

Page 116. line 12. Died.] By this must[Pg 436] be meant Amadeus IX. count of Savoy, who succeeded his father Louis in 1465 and died this year. He was succeeded by his son Philibert I. who died 1476 without issue by Blanche of Milan his wife. Philibert was succeeded by his brother Charles I. who died in 1488 leaving issue by Blanche of Montferrat one son, Charles II, who died without issue in 1495, upon which Philip count of Bresse the brother of Amadeus the ninth, (mentioned before, vol. x. p. 158) succeeded to the dukedom, and died shortly after. See p. 35.

Page 117. line 8 from the bottom. Count d'Eu.] Charles count d'Eu, the last prince of the blood of the line of Artois. His character is thus given by Du Clos. "Il avoit toutes les vertus solides, sans en affecter l'éclat; peu touché d'une fausse gloire, il pensoit que celle d'un prince qui n'est pas né sur le trone, est d'en être l'appui et trouva sa véritable gloire dans sa fidelité pour son roi, et ses services pour l'etat." It is a strange mistake to call the count de Nevers his brother, in which case there could have been no pretence for the king's giving away his honours and estates. The count de Nevers was his nephew, being the son of Bona of Artois and Philip count of Nevers her husband.

Page 120. line 16. Years.] He died of a stroke of apoplexy brought on, as Platina says,[Pg 437] by good living, suddenly in his chamber. This historian, (who, however, suffered from some persecution under his authority) is not very favourable to his memory. His luxury and pride he represents to have been inordinate. Among other stories told of him, it is said that he prided himself excessively on his comeliness of person and wished at his accession to have assumed the name of Formosus, but was deterred by some of his cardinals who, being more conversant in history than himself, reminded him of the miserable fate of the only pontiff who had borne that name. He then chose that of Paul, but could never afterwards esteem himself completely happy, from his wish in that important particular having been frustrated. It was reported of him that he used to paint his face like the ladies, whenever he appeared in public. He wished, at another time, to issue a papal bull ordaining that all cardinal's hats for the future should be made of silk: but in this also he was over-ruled by the common sense of those about him. He was at least as great an enemy to learning and learned men as his predecessor had been a promoter and encourager of both; but here again it is the learned Platina who speaks. He was notorious for having one living witness at least of his amours, which became the[Pg 438] subject of an epigram somewhat more pointed than is usual on such occasions.

Pontificis Pauli testes ne Roma requiras.
Filia quam genuit, sat docet, esse marem.
Sanctum non possum, patrem te dicere possum,
Cum video natam, Paule secunde, tuam.

Page 126. line 18. Lord de Malicorne.] Guy de Sourches, lord of Malicorne.

Page 128. last line. Butchers] Audi alteram partem. "The duke of Burgundy sent a trumpet to the inhabitants of Nesle commanding them to open their gates to him. They ask a truce for a few days to consult concerning the terms of capitulation to be proposed. But leave being granted, while the business was still in agitation, they rise upon the duke's trumpeter and his companions and murder them when peaceably walking in the streets. Moved to excessive anger by this act of treachery, the duke commands the lady of Nesle to quit the place, and no sooner was she departed than he gave orders for a general massacre." Heuterus. Thus, though the historian of Burgundy admits the massacre, (stating at the same time a provocation by which it is almost justified) he says not a word about the violation of sanctuary, or about the savage expressions which the duke is here said to have uttered.

Page 130. line 11. Lord de Crussol.] Charles[Pg 439] de Crussol, seneschal of Poitou, grand pannetier, and knight of St Michael; one of the few servants of Louis who were faithful to the king without abusing their trusts. He was made governor of Dauphiné the ensuing year and died soon after. As grand pannetier he was succeeded by his son James de Crussol, and in his new government by John de Daillon seigneur du Lude. Du Clos. In Morery he is called Louis.

Page 145, line 6 from the bottom. Lord de l'Escou.] Should be Odet Daidie, lord de Lescun. He has been mentioned before in the course of this work. As bailiff of the Cotentin he rendered considerable services to the crown in the wars of Charles VII. Among the sweeping changes made by Louis on his accession, Lescun was deprived of his office and retired into Bretagne where he was much in the confidence of the duke and also of the unfortunate duke of Guienne. But it does not appear that in a single instance he acted contrary to the interests of the crown. He has been charged by some writers with (and sometimes as an instrument, at others as a principal in) the supposed poisoning of the king's brother. But besides that there is no good reason to believe that this prince was poisoned at all, it is not consistent with any other action of Lescun's life to imagine him in any manner[Pg 440] concerned in such an act of villainous iniquity. He was afterwards in favour with the king who gave him the county of Comminges on the death of the bastard d'Armagnac; and this, perhaps, was the only motive for the absurd suspicion.

Page 147. line 6 from the bottom. Count d'Armagnac.] John V. count of Armagnac, whose life was but a tissue of crimes, of murder, incest, and treason. His sister he seduced, and afterwards pretended to make his wife, under circumstances of scandalous imposition. He was killed by a soldier named Gorgia whom the king afterwards promoted to the office of archer de la garde. A writer of the reign of Charles VIII. pretends that he was assassinated while the treaty was on foot; but the present account seems to contradict that report. See Du Clos.

Page 148. line 2 from the bottom. John Joffroy then bishop of Alby.] Joffredy. See note, vol. x. p. 139.

Page 149. line 10 from the bottom. Count d'Albret.] Charles d'Albret lord of St Basile, commonly called le cadet d'Albret. It seems there was sufficient proof of his guilt; but James de Lomagne lord of Montignac, the governor of Leitoure, though the principal person concerned in the same transactions, was pardoned in consideration of the testimony he could produce against others.

[Pg 441]

Page 153. line 6. Duchy of Lorraine.] Nicholas, only son of John duke of Calabria (who died, greatly regretted for his princely virtues, three years before) and grandson of René king of Sicily. For some time before his death, this young prince had been in treaty with the duke of Burgundy, for a marriage with Mary his only daughter and presumptive heir to his vast dominions. This negotiation was most obnoxious to Louis; and the interruption of it by the young man's death just then when there appeared to be no farther obstacle to its accomplishment gave occasion to the suspicion of another poisoning which on some accounts seems to be attended with greater probability than that to which the death of the king's brother was attributed. By the death of this duke of Calabria, the male line of René became extinct and the inheritance of Lorraine passed to Iolante the daughter of René who by her marriage with Frederic count of Vaudemont (dead in 1470) had issue René count of Vaudemont and afterwards duke of Lorraine; whom the duke of Burgundy (probably enraged at the failure of his hope of uniting the duchies of Burgundy and Lorraine by the marriage of his daughter) imprudently as well as unjustly contrived to make prisoner as related in the text; but he was very shortly obliged to set him at liberty.

Page 154. line 6. It.] The cause of this expedition was briefly as follows. Some years[Pg 442] before, Adolphus the son of Arnold duke of Gueldres rebelled against his father, deposed and imprisoned him and took possession of his estates. Complaint of this outrage being made at the papal and imperial courts, the duke of Burgundy was appointed umpire and awarded to the old duke a portion only of the hereditary state for his maintenance, with which he seemed to be well satisfied. His son on the contrary swore "that he would rather throw the old man into a well and himself afterwards than acquiesce in such a sentence." Justly indignant at this monstrous ingratitude, the duke upon this deprived the unnatural villain of his estates which he thereupon purchased of the father at the price of 92,000 florins. Arnold died five years afterwards, having by his last will disinherited his son and confirmed his sale to the duke of Burgundy. The duke of Juliers however, had some claims to the succession which it was more difficult to compromise; and these, together with the opposition made by some of the towns of Guelderland and Zutphen to the duke's possession involved him in an expensive and sanguinary warfare. Du Clos.

Page 190. line 19. Lord de L'isle.] Qu. William de l'Isle lord of Marivaux, &c. maître d'hôtel to the cardinal of Bourbon in 1484, who died in 1511.

Page 190. line 5 from the bottom. Count de Joigny.] John de Châlons lord of Viteaux was[Pg 443] second son of John, and brother of Louis prince of Orange. He married Jane sister and heir of Louis de la Tremouille, count of Joigny who died s. p. in 1467; and his eldest son by this lady had the title of count de Joigny in right of his mother.

Page 192. line 5. Count of Savoy.] James, one of the youngest sons of Louis count of Savoy, was count of Romont. He married Mary daughter of Peter de St Pol and of Margaret of Savoy his sister. Philip de Comines exclaims against these incestuous marriages, which he says, were very common in the house of Savoy.

Page 199. last line. Sir John Cheam and Chaney.] "Sir John Cheyney." Stowe.

Page 216. line 8. Cordeliers.] The posterity of the constable de St Pol will be best understood by the following table.

[Pg 444]

Besides these three sons, who were temporal princes, the constable had two others, John his eldest, who was called count of Marle and Soissons, and killed at the battle of Morat, in the life-time of his father, and Charles bishop of Laon who died in 1509. His daughters were Jacqueline the wife of Philip de Croy, count of Porcien, Helen the wife of Janus of Savoy count of Geneva, Philippa abbess of Moncel, and Jane a nun. Of all these children, Louis and Jane were the offspring of his second marriage with Mary of Savoy, the sister of Margaret the[Pg 445] wife of his eldest surviving son Peter. The constable had besides, a numerous illegitimate progeny—John bishop of Angouleme, Jane married to Anthony d'Ailly lord of Varennes, Margaret the wife of Philip d'Inchy castellan of Douay, &c. &c.

Page 229. line 11. Obstinacy.] To explain the occasions and consequences of the several wars in which the duke of Burgundy was engaged down to the period of his death, would be to overload this meagre chronicle with a profusion of commentary which it hardly seems to deserve. It is better to refer generally to the histories of the times, especially to Comines, for all these particulars.

Page 233. line 10. Life.] This is entirely a mistake. Queen Margaret had been set at liberty in November 1475 and on the 7th of March following, she renounced all her claims to the county in favour of the king. This was two months before the treaty with king René was concluded. Du Clos.

Page 249. line 8. Lucerne.] The army of the duke of Lorraine is thus divided according to Du Clos. The infantry commanded by Guillaume Harfer, general of the Swiss, the cavalry by the count of Tierstein. The corps de Bataille consisted of 8000 infantry supported by 1500 horse on the right, and 500 on the left wing. The rear-guard was composed of[Pg 446] only 800 foot. René commanded the whole army in person and had with him the counts of Linange and Salins, the lords of Bassompierre, Blamont, &c. &c.

Page 254. line 12. Slain.] Among them the lords of Bievres, Contay, and la Viefville. The two bastards, Anthony and Baldwin, the counts of Nassau, Retel, Chimay, Oliver de la Marche, and others, were made prisoners.

Page 265. line 15. Duke of Gueldres.] See note to page 154. The duke of Gueldres (Adolphus) had been confined a prisoner in the castle of Courtray ever since the events which are there mentioned. But, on occasion of the king's imprudent invasion of the duke of Burgundy's territory, the Flemings brought him out of his prison to command their forces and become the husband of their young sovereign Mary of Burgundy. His death put an end to this design; and the competitors for the hand of the heiress were then reduced to three, viz. the dauphin of France, John son of the duke of Cleves, and Maximilian son of the emperor Frederic and king of the Romans. The violent conduct of Louis towards the states of Burgundy blasted the expectations which he might otherwise have very reasonably entertained for his son. Mary is said to have felt a personal repugnance to the heir of Cleves, and an equal partiality for her imperial suitor. In his favour[Pg 447] therefore the die was ultimately cast; and their marriage took place on the 18th of August in this same year, 1477.

Page 268. line 3. Church.] This nobleman would have fallen unpitied had it not been for the execrable inhumanity which accompanied his execution, his children being brought to the scaffold and made to stand there in such a position that the blood of their father might sprinkle their bodies.

Mary of Anjou his wife, died in childbirth of the effects of the shock which she experienced on hearing of his captivity. Of his three sons, Louis only lived to the age of manhood. He was restored to his father's honours and fell at the battle of Cerignole on the 28th of April 1503. Of his daughters, Margaret was the wife of the mareschal de Gié, Catherine married John duke of Bourbon, and Charlotte, Charles de Rohan.

Page 281. line 19. Expired.] This improbable story is, I believe, satisfactorily refuted and justly ridiculed by historians.

Page 287. last line. With.] Heuterus relates a story, something similar, of a governor of a town under Charles duke of Burgundy, upon whom that prince afterwards caused exemplary punishment to be inflicted for his crime. The alleged crime of Kirke, is, I believe, now pretty generally admitted to be a fabrication,[Pg 448] and was probably founded on the Burgundian anecdote by some anti-jacobite writer.

Page 313. line 19. Brother.] Say rather, "Should have been charged with the murder of their brothers." The duke of Guienne is believed by the best historians to have died a natural death; and the earl of Mar (youngest brother of James III.) met his fate, according to the account adopted by Drummond of Hawthornden, in a manner merely accidental. The execution of George duke of Clarence, though it may well be said that the king ought to have pardoned his brother, yet, as it was the consequence of actual treason fully proved in the regular course of law, certainly does not merit the appellation of a murder.

Page 315. line 17. King of Poulaine.] Who this imaginary personage may be intended for I cannot tell. If for Maximilian, it is entirely a mistake. He was not made prisoner. Nor was there any other prince or son of a king present at the engagement.

Page 332. line 10. Niece to the duke of Bourbon.] Her death was occasioned by a fall from her horse while hunting. Maximilian was really much attached to her. But if he had not been so, his sorrow for her loss could scarcely have been the less sincere as the death of their natural sovereign left him with very[Pg 449] little personal claim on the affections of the states of Flanders and other parts of her remaining dominions. Her only son was Philip of Austria duke of Burgundy who, by his marriage with Joanna the heiress of Castille and Arragon, transmitted the kingdom of Spain to his posterity. Her daughter Margaret was first affianced to the dauphin, but afterwards most imprudently rejected by him for Ann of Bretagne. She was then affianced to John prince of Spain; but he died before the solemnization of the nuptials. At last she found a husband in Philibert the fair, duke of Savoy, but had no children by him, and after his death (which happened within three years from the time of their union) she retired to the court of the emperor her father, and became, towards the end of her life, justly celebrated as the governess of the low countries. She died in 1532.

Page 337. line 15. Sir William de la Mark.] Third son of John the first, count of Aremberg and brother of Robert de la Marck, first duke of Bouillon. He married Jane of Arschot baroness of Schonhouen, by whom he had John baron of Lumain who died 1526.

Page 339. line 16. Thing.] Louis XI. is exculpated by Du Clos, in the account which he gives of this transaction, from any concern in the bishop's murder other than that of having furnished "the Wild Boar" with the means of[Pg 450] raising a force for the purpose of securing a passage through the territories of Liege for the French armies in any future attempts to subdue the country of Brabant. When the bishop was so treacherously abandoned by his followers, "the Wild Boar" advanced directly to him and thus addressed him. "Louis of Bourbon, I have sought thy friendship and thou hast refused it to me." Saying this, he clove his head with a battle-axe and ordered his body to be thrown into the Meuse. The crime did not pass unpunished, the murderer being executed at Utrecht two years afterwards by order of Maximilian.

Page 349. line 3. Lord d'Albret.] Alan, lord of Albret, father of John who was afterwards king of Navarre.

Page 355. last line. Amen.] The only surviving children of Louis XI, were Charles VIII, Anne the wife of Peter de Bourbon lord of Beaujeu, and Jane the wife of Louis duke of Orleans, afterwards Louis XII.

Page 385. line 5 from the bottom. Lord des Querdes.] Philip de Crevecoeur lord des Querdes marshal of France in 1483.

Page 386. line 7 from the bottom. Lord de Baudricourt.] John de Baudricourt lord of Choiseul, marshal of France in 1418.

Page 386. line 5 from the bottom. Lord d'Avaugour.] Francis bastard son of duke Francis[Pg 451] the second of Bretagne, count of Vertus barons of Avaugour, lord of Clisson.

Page 386. line 5 from the bottom. Rohan.] John viscount de Rohan married to Mary daughter of Francis I. duke of Bretagne.

Page 387. line 4 from the bottom. Lord d'Orval.] John d'Albret, lord of Orval, who by his marriage with Charlotte daughter of John count of Nevers, and sister of Elizabeth duchess of Cleves acquired the county of Rethel in Champagne as her coparcenary share.

Page 390. line 9 King of Romans.] Louis II. de la Tremouille, viscount Thouars and prince of Talmont, grandson of George count of Guisnes and Boulogne. He was killed at the battle of Pavia.

Page 390. line 14. Lord d'Argenton.] Philip de Comines, the historian.

Page 320. line 20. Lord de Montpensier.] Gilbert de Bourbon, lord of Montpensier, father of Charles duke of Bourbon and constable of France. He married the daughter of the marquis of Mantua and died in 1496.

Page 390. line 7 from the bottom. Lord de Vendôme.] Francis de Bourbon count of Vendôme married to a daughter of the constable de St Pol. He died in 1496, and was father of Charles, and grandfather of Anthony, duke of Vendôme and king of Navarre.

Page 390. line 6 from the bottom. Lord[Pg 452] Angiliebert of Cleves.] Engilbert, second son of John duke of Cleves, and Elizabeth heiress of Nevers, afterwards called duke of Nevers.

Page 390. line 6 from the bottom. Lord John Jacques.] John James Trivulzio, marquis of Vige-vano, one of the greatest generals of his age.

Page 390. line 5 from the bottom. Prince of Salerno.] Anthony de San Severino prince of Salerno, son of the famous Robert de San Severino.

Page 390. line 3 from the bottom. Marquis de Saluces.] Louis II. marquis of Saluces died in 1504.

Page 390. line 3 from the bottom. De Vienne.] Vienne. This family was divided into so many branches that I cannot fix on the person here meant.

Page 390. line 2 from the bottom. Marshal de Gié.] Peter de Rohan, lord of Gié, marshal of France, in 1475.

Page 390. line 2 from the bottom. De Rieux.] John V. lord of Rieux and Rochefort, marshal of France.

Page 390. last line. Seneschal of Beaucaire.] Stephen de Vers, seneschal of Beaucaire, chamberlain to the king, a native of Languedoc of mean extraction, through whose instigation principally, this extravagant expedition was undertaken. Brissonnet, another court favourite,[Pg 453] afterwards a cardinal, was the second promoter of the enterprise. See Comines.

Page 390, last line. Seneschal of Normandy.] Louis Després, lord of Montpezat, seneschal of Normandy.

Page 391. line 6. De Bourdillon.] Qu. Imbert de la Platière, youngest son of Philibert de la Platière lord des Bordes? He was a great favourite with Francis I. and Henry II. and was mareschal of France in 1562. He died in 1567 s. p. But more probably this was his uncle or some other relation.

Page 391. line 6. De la Palice.] James de Chabannes, lord of la Palice, marshal in 1515.

Page 391. line 16. Perot de Beché.] Perron de Baschi, Maître d'hôtel to Charles VIII, one of the sons of Berthold de Baschi lord of Vitozzo, squire to king Louis III. of Sicily, and lineally descended from Hugolino de Baschi, sovereign lord of Orvieto, who in 1322 was driven from his seignory and afterwards entering into the service of the republic of Pisa, beat the Florentines at the battle of Bagno in 1363. The descendants of this family settling in France, became marquisses of Aubais in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Page 391. line 7 from the bottom. Lord de la Brosse.] René de la Brosse, count of Penthievre, son of John count of Penthievre, and son-in-law to the historian Philip de Comines.[Pg 454] He was killed at the battle of Pavia in 1524.

Page 392. line 3. Duchess of Savoy.] Blanche, daughter of William the ninth marquis of Montferrat, and widow of Charles the first duke of Savoy, protectress of the dukedom for her son Charles the second, then an infant.

Page 398. note. Frederic—was brother to Alphonso king of Naples.] But it is entirely a mistake that he died of the fright, since he outlived both his brother and his nephew, and enjoyed for a short time the title of king of Naples. He did not die before the year 1504.

Page 401. line 7. Marquis of Montferrat.] Boniface the fifth, of the house of Palæologus, died in 1493, and was succeeded by his eldest son William IX. The marchioness, his widow, here mentioned, died at the age of 29, while these negotiations were going on; and upon her death the marquis of Saluces and Constantine prince of Servia, her brother, disputed the tutelage of the young marquis. Philip de Comines was sent to Casal for the purpose of accommodating this dispute; and his decision was in favour of Constantine. That prince is, in the text, erroneously called the second son of the marchioness, when in fact, he was her brother. John George, who was himself marquis of Montferrat after the death of William, was the only younger son of Boniface the fifth. See Guicciardini. lib. 2.

[Pg 455]

Page 405. line 4. Pavia.] The king went to Pavia to visit the young duke of Milan, John Galease, who was then lying dangerously ill in the castle of that place. He had lately married Isabel of Arragon who (with her only child, Francis, then but a few months old) went out to meet the king as here mentioned. The death of the duke which happened before the king left him was universally attributed to poison, administered by Ludovico Sforza his uncle who had long governed the dukedom in his nephew's name, and upon his death assumed the title also of duke, in prejudice of the infant son of John Galease. See Guicciardini, lib. i.

Page 416. line 12. Naples.] Q. Nepi, half way between Viterbo and Rome?

Page 416. line 14. Lord Virgilio d'Orsini.] Count of Tagliacozzo, ancestor of the dukes of Bracciano. He was a general in the Neapolitan service and died in 1497.

Page 416. line 9 from the bottom. Ligny.] Ligny. See note p. 109. vol. xii.

H. Bryer, Printer,
Bridge-street, Blackfriars, London.