thrown open, and put under the command of the two kings; and the
government of it was given by them to one called Pierre de Verrault,
the ministers of the king of England having the administration of
affairs.
The men at arms of the dauphin's party, of whom the principal were,
sir Pierre de Bourbon, lord of Prèaulx, Barbasan, and from five to six
hundred noblemen and gentle dames, with the most notable inhabitants,
were by command of the king of England, regent of France, carried
to Paris under a considerable escort, and there imprisoned in the
Châtelet, Bastille, the Temple, and other places.
It was strictly commanded by the two kings, that no persons should
enter the town or castle of Melun, excepting those who had been ordered
so to do, under pain of being beheaded. Among others who suffered this
punishment were two monks of Jouy in Brie, namely the cellar-keeper of
that convent and Dom Symon, formerly monks of Gart.
While this treaty of peace was carrying on, a gentleman of the
household of the king of England, named Bertrand de Chaumont, (who at
the battle of Azincourt, had turned from the French to the English
because he held his lands in Guyenne under the king of England, and
was much beloved by him for his valour,) in an evil hour, and from
being badly advised through avarice, aided the escape of Amerian du
Lau from the town of Melun, who, as it was said, had been concerned
in the murder of the duke of Burgundy. This came to the knowledge of
the king of England, who was troubled thereat, and notwithstanding the
entreaties of his brother the duke of Clarence, and even of the duke
of Burgundy, had him beheaded for this act, telling them not to speak
to him on the subject, for that he would have no traitors in his army,
and that this punishment was for an example to all others,--although
he would willingly have rather given five hundred thousand nobles than
Bertrand should have committed so disloyal an act.
CHAP. XLVI.
AFTER THE SURRENDER OF MELUN, THE TWO KINGS OF FRANCE AND OF ENGLAND,
WITH THEIR QUEENS, AND SEVERAL PRINCES AND GREAT LORDS, GO TO PARIS IN
GRAND POMP.
When the treaty for the surrender of Melun had been concluded, the king
of England and the duke of Burgundy disbanded the greater part of their
men, and marched the remainder of their armies to Corbeil, where the
king of France and the two queens of France and of England resided.
Thence the kings went to Paris, attended by the dukes of Clarence,
Burgundy, Bedford and Exeter, the earls of Warwick, Salisbury, and
other great lords.
A numerous band of the citizens of Paris came out to meet them in
handsome array, and the streets were covered and ornamented with many
rich cloths. On their entrance, carols were sung in all the squares
through which they passed; and the two kings rode together side by
side, the king of England on the right hand. After them came the dukes
of Clarence and Bedford, brothers to king Henry; and on the opposite
side of the street, on the left hand, rode the duke of Burgundy,
dressed in deep mourning, followed by the knights and esquires of his
household.
The other princes and knights rode after the kings in due order, and
they met different processions of the clergy on foot, who halted in the
squares, and then presented the holy relics borne by them to be kissed
by the two kings. On their being first offered to the king of France,
he turned toward the king of England, and made him a sign to kiss them
first; but king Henry, putting his hand to his hood, bowed to king
Charles, and said he would kiss them after him, which was done, and
thus practised all the way to the church of Nôtre Dame, where the kings
and princes dismounted, and entered the church.
When they had finished their prayers and thanksgivings before the grand
altar, they remounted their horses and went to their lodgings,--the
king of France to his hôtel of St Pol, attended by the duke of
Burgundy, who having escorted the king thither, returned to his hôtel
of Artois. The king of England and his two brothers were lodged in the
Louvre, their attendants in different parts of the town, and the men at
arms in the adjacent villages.
The two queens made their entry into Paris on the ensuing day, when
the duke of Burgundy, with many english lords, and the citizens in the
same array as on the day before, went out to meet them. Great joy was
again displayed on the arrival of the queens; but it would take up too
much time were I to relate all the grand presents that were offered by
the city of Paris to the two kings, especially to the king and queen of
England. The whole of that day and night wine was constantly running
through brass cocks in conduits in all the squares, and conducted with
great ingenuity, so that all persons might have wine in abundance; and
more rejoicings were made throughout Paris than tongue can tell, for
the peace that had been made between the two kings.
When their majesties had been a few days in Paris, great complaints
and clamours were made to them by duke Philip of Burgundy, and by
the procurator of the duchess his mother, for the cruel murder that
had been committed on the late duke John of Burgundy. To hear these
complaints, the king of France sat in judgment in the lower hall of
the hôtel of St Pol, and on the same bench with him was the king of
England: near the king of France sat master John le Clerc, chancellor
of France, and further on master Philip de Morvillers, first president
of the parliament, and some other nobles of the king's council.
On the opposite side, and about the middle of the hall, was seated
the duke of Burgundy, supported by the dukes of Clarence and Bedford,
the bishops of Terouenne, of Beauvais, and of Amiens, sir John de
Luxembourg, and many knights and esquires of his council.
When the assembly had been seated, master Nicolas Rolin, on the part
of the duke of Burgundy and the lady-duchess his mother, demanded,
in the usual manner, permission to address the two kings in their
behalf. This having been obtained he charged as guilty of murdering
the late duke John of Burgundy, Charles, calling himself dauphin of
Vienne, the viscount de Narbonne, the lord de Barbasan, Tanneguy du
Châtel, Guillaume Boutiller, Jean Louvet, president of Provence, sir
Robert de Loire, Olivier Layet, and all those who had been concerned
therein. Against each and all of them the advocate prayed judgment,
and that they might be sentenced to be placed in tumbrils, and carried
through all the squares of Paris for three Saturdays, or on festivals,
bare-headed, and holding lighted wax tapers in their hands; and that in
every square they should publicly confess, with a loud voice, that they
had cruelly, wickedly and damnably put the duke of Burgundy to death
through hatred and jealousy, without any other cause whatever. They
were then to be carried to Montereau, where they had perpetrated this
murder, to undergo the same ceremonies, and to repeat the same words.
They were, besides, to cause a church to be erected, and endowed on
the spot where the murder had been committed, for twelve canons, six
chaplains and six clerks, to perform for ever divine service therein.
This church was to be completely furnished with chalices, tables,
ornaments, books, napkins, and every other necessary; and the canons
were to have each a yearly salary of two hundred livres parisis, the
chaplain's salaries of one hundred, and the clerks of fifty, of the
same coin, at the expense of the said dauphin and his accomplices.
The cause of this church being erected was to be inscribed in large
letters, cut in stone, over the principal entrance; and the same
inscription was to be placed in the towns of Rome, Paris, Ghent, Dijon,
St Jago de Compostella and at Jerusalem, where our Saviour suffered
death.
When this sentence had been required, it was again demanded by master
Pierre de Marigny, the king's advocate in parliament, confirming the
accusations of murder against the persons aforesaid. Afterward, master
John l'Archer, doctor of divinity, in the name of the university for
whom he spoke, addressed the two kings with great eloquence, urging
the extreme guilt of the criminals, and exhorting them to do strict
justice on them, and to pay attention to the prayers of the duke and
duchess of Burgundy that the judgment required might be carried into
effect without delay.
The king of France, through his chancellor, replied to what had been
said, 'that in regard to the death of the duke of Burgundy, and those
who had so cruelly murdered him, he would by the grace of God, and
with the assistance of his son and heir, Henry king of England, and
regent of France, do speedy and effectual justice on all who had been
concerned therein.' On this, the assembly broke up, and the two kings
returned to their hôtels.
CHAP. XLVII.
A PARTY OF ENGLISH ARE DEFEATED NEAR MONT-EPILOY.--THE MARRIAGE OF THE
MARQUIS DU PONT WITH A PRINCESS OF LORRAINE.--THE CONDUCT OF SIR JAMES
DE HARCOURT.
While these things were passing, the English quartered at Gournay in
Normandy, at Neuf-Chatel, Anicourt, and other places on the borders,
with sir Mauroy de St Leger, who was posted at Creil, assembled in a
body of about five hundred, and made an incursion into Brie and the
Valois, where they gained great plunder, and made many prisoners.
But on their return, they were met by the lord de Gamaches, who was
quartered in Compiégne, and the garrisons from other parts, who rescued
the prisoners, and recovered their plunder near to Mont-Epiloy, killing
full sixty, besides making many prisoners. The rest saved themselves
by flight,--and in this affair the lord de Gamaches acted with great
valour.
At this period, the marriage of René d'Anjou, brother to the king of
Sicily, and marquis du Pont (by the gift of his uncle the cardinal
of Bar), with the daughter and heiress of the duke of Lorraine, was
celebrated in the castle of Nancy. By this alliance, an end was put to
the discords that subsisted between the two duchies of Lorraine and
Bar; for the cardinal had long before declared this nephew his heir to
the duchy of Bar, to the great displeasure of the duke of Mons, who
was likewise his nephew, being son to his sister; but his displeasure
availed him nothing.
On the other hand, sir James de Harcourt, who still pretended
attachment to the duke of Burgundy, maintained a strong garrison in
Crotoy, and thence made grievous war by sea and land, which coming to
the knowledge of the king of England, he was very greatly angered. The
companions of sir James in this warfare were the lord de Rambures,
sir Louis de Thiembronne, and his brother Guichard, sir Coquard de
Combronne, the two brothers of Herselaines, the youths of Chaumont, and
other gentlemen and men at arms of that country.
CHAP. XLVIII.
COMMISSIONERS ARRIVE AT PARIS FROM DIFFERENT TOWNS IN THE KINGDOM
OF FRANCE.--THE TWO KINGS HOLD THERE A COUNCIL OF THE THREE
ESTATES.--OTHER MATTERS.
At this time, deputies arrived at Paris from the three estates of the
principal towns within the realm, according to the orders before given.
Many councils were held in their presence and absence, concerning the
public welfare, at which the gabelles, and other taxes, were renewed,
with the exception of those on grain.
At the feast of the Nativity, the two kings, with their queens and
households, kept open court in Paris,--the king of France, at the hôtel
de St Pol, and the king of England at the Louvre; but their state was
very different, for the king of France was poorly and meanly served,
compared with the pomp with which he used to keep open court in former
times, and attended only on that day by some old servants and persons
of low degree, which must have been very disgusting to all true and
loyal Frenchmen, thus to see by the chance of war this noble kingdom
in the possession and under the government of its ancient enemies, to
whose dominion they were forced to bend themselves.
With regard to the state of the king and queen of England on that day,
it is impossible to detail its magnificence, or that of the princes
who attended them. The french nobility came from all parts to do them
honour, with the utmost humility; and from that day king Henry took on
himself the whole government of the kingdom, appointing officers at
his pleasure, and dismissing those whom the king and the late duke of
Burgundy had given appointments.
He nominated the earl of Kyme, of the name of Umphraville, to the
government of Melun, with a sufficient garrison of men at arms and
archers. The earl of Huntingdon, his cousin-german, was made captain
of Vincennes; and the duke of Exeter was ordered to remain with king
Charles in Paris, with five hundred combatants.
After these appointments had been made, and the feasts concluded, king
Henry set out from Paris with his queen, the dukes of Clarence, of
Bedford, and others of his great barons, for the town of Rouen, where
he remained a considerable time before he returned to England, and held
many councils respecting the future government of the kingdom of France.
Duke Philip of Burgundy departed also from Paris, and went to attend
at Beauvais the feast of enthroning master Pierre Cauchon, doctor of
divinity, the new bishop of that place, who was strongly attached to
the burgundian party.
When the feasts were over, the duke set out for Lille, passing through
Amiens and Dourlens, and from Lille to Ghent, where his duchess
resided, with whom he staid about three weeks.
The red duke of Bavaria, who, as you have heard, had come to serve his
brother-in-law, king Henry, with five hundred combatants, returned
in haste through Cambray to his own country; for he had received
intelligence that the Bohemians, led on and encouraged by an heretical
priest of that country, were risen in rebellion, not only against the
catholic faith, but against the emperor of Germany, and the monarchs
of Hungary and Bohemia, and were waging a murderous war on all their
subjects.
CHAP. XLIX.
KING HENRY SETS OUT FROM ROUEN TO CALAIS WITH HIS QUEEN, AND THENCE TO
ENGLAND, WHERE HE IS RECEIVED WITH GREAT JOY BY ALL RANKS OF PEOPLE.
When king Henry had satisfactorily arranged his affairs at Rouen, and
appointed his brother the duke of Clarence, who was very prudent and
renowned in arms, governor-general of all Normandy, he departed thence,
accompanied by his queen, his brother the duke of Bedford, and six
thousand men at arms. Having passed through Poix, he arrived at Amiens
on the vigil of St Vincent's day, and was lodged in the hôtel of master
Robert le Jeune, who had lately been nominated bailiff of Amiens in the
room of the lord de Humbercourt.
He was very honourably received there, and many presents were made by
the municipality to him and to his queen. He continued his journey
through Dourlens, St Pol and Terouenne, to Calais, where he staid some
days; and then crossed the channel to England, where he was received as
if he had been an angel from God. He lost no time after his arrival in
having his consort crowned queen of England in the city of London, the
metropolis of that kingdom.
The coronation was performed with such splendid magnificence that the
like had never been seen at any coronation since the time of that noble
knight, Arthur, king of the English and Bretons. After this ceremony,
king Henry made a progress to the principal towns of his realm, and
explained to them with much eloquence what grand deeds he had performed
through his prowess in France, and what yet remained to be done for
the complete conquest of that kingdom,--namely, the subjugation of his
adversary the dauphin of Vienne, only son to king Charles, and brother
to his queen, who styled himself heir to the crown and regent of
France, and who kept possession of the greater part of the country.
To complete this conquest, he said, two things were necessary, money
and men; and these requests were so liberally granted that of the first
he very soon collected larger sums than had ever before been seen, and
they could scarcely be counted. Of the second, he enrolled all the most
able youths in the country and the most expert in drawing the bow, and
placing them under the command of his princes, knights and esquires,
composed an army of full thirty thousand combatants, to enable him to
prosecute a vigorous war against his enemy the dauphin.
Before he quitted England, that he might make all things secure, he
renewed the truces with the Scots and Welsh, and consented to the
deliverance of the king of Scotland, who had been long prisoner in
England, on condition that he would marry his cousin-german, sister to
the earl of Somerset, and niece to the cardinal of Winchester, who had
been the principal negotiator in these treaties.
CHAP. L.
A QUARREL TAKES PLACE BETWEEN THE DUKE AND DUCHESS OF BRABANT.--SHE
SEPARATES HERSELF FROM HIM AND PASSES OVER INTO ENGLAND.
In these days, a great quarrel took place between duke John of Brabant
and Jacquilina of Bavaria his duchess, insomuch that she left the
palace of the duke. The principal reasons for her so doing were
commonly reported to be, that she found him of poor understanding, and
that he suffered himself to be governed by persons of low degree. The
duke of Burgundy, who was equally related to both, and the countess
of Hainault, her mother, vainly attempted to reconcile them; but they
could never prevail on her to return to the duke. She declared, she
would find means to effect a divorce, so that she might marry again to
some other person who would pay attentions to her becoming her rank.
The duchess was at this time in the flower of her youth, beautiful,
well made, and as fully accomplished as any lady of her age. She was
much hurt at seeing her days pass in the melancholy way they had done,
and for this cause returned to her hôtel with the countess her mother,
who, in fact, had married her to the duke of Brabant against her
inclinations.
Having remained with her mother a short time, they came together to
Valenciennes, where the duchess took leave of her, and went, as she
said, to amuse herself in her town of Bouchain; but on the morrow she
departed thence very early in the morning, and was met on the plain by
the lord d'Escaillon, a native of Hainault, but who had long been an
Englishman in his heart, and with whom she had held many conferences
while at Valenciennes, and had promised to accompany him to England,
to seek redress from king Henry, and on the means of being finally
separated from her husband.
On meeting the lord d'Escaillon, who had about sixty horsemen with him,
she took the road to Calais, and rode this first day as far as Hêdin,
near to St. Pol, and thence strait to Calais, whence, after some stay,
she crossed over to England, where she was most honourably received by
the king, who made her general promises of aid in all her concerns.
CHAP. LI.
THE DUKE OF BRITTANY IS MADE PRISONER BY THE COUNT DE PENTHIEVRE,
AND DETAINED BY HIM FOR A CONSIDERABLE TIME.--A WAR TAKES PLACE IN
CONSEQUENCE THEREOF.
We must now speak of a wonderful event that happened this year in
Brittany. It has been told by some historians, especially by master
John Froissart, how the ancestors of John de Montfort, the present duke
of Brittany, and those of Olivier de Bretagne, count de Penthievre, had
in former times great quarrels and wars respecting the succession to
the dukedom of Brittany, each of them claiming it as his right.
At length, the duchy was given up to the Montforts, by means of certain
compensations that were made to the family of Penthievre, the mention
of which I shall pass over, as these events are anterior to my history,
and they had possessed the duchy peaceably ever since.
The present count de Penthievre, however, notwithstanding he showed
great outward marks of affection to the duke of Brittany, had not
forgotten these ancient quarrels, as you will soon perceive. In truth,
what with the hope of regaining the duchy, and with the exhortations
of his mother, who was daughter to the late sir Olivier de Clisson,
constable of France, the count de Penthievre obtained a sealed order
from the dauphin to arrest and imprison the duke of Brittany; although
he was married to his sister; but he was ill pleased with the duke,
because he and the estates of the duchy had refused to assist him in
his war against the English and Burgundians.
When the count had obtained this order, he considered how he could
the most easily carry it into effect, and thought his best way would
be to invite the duke to dinner at Chantoceau. He went, therefore, to
pay a visit to the duke at Nantes; and after some conversation, he
earnestly pressed him to come and amuse himself at Chantoceau, and dine
there, adding, that his mother would be delighted to see him, and would
entertain him to the best of her power. The duke consented to both
proposals, not imagining that any evil designs could have been devised
against him, and the day fixed on was the 4th of February.
When that day was come, the duke set out from le Lorrons Bocqteriaux,
where he had slept, and took the road to Chantoceau. His maitres
d'hôtel and harbingers preceded him, as is customary, to have all
things in readiness for him on his arrival. When they appeared before
the castle, the count and all his household mounted their horses, and
advanced to meet the duke so far as a bridge called the Bridge à la
Tuberbe, which is thrown over a small river.
The duke crossed this bridge, accompanied by his brother Richard, and
some knights and esquires of his household, followed at a distance
by the rest of his attendants, for he never suspected the mischief
that was intended him. When he had passed the bridge, one of the
count's attendants who counterfeited being a fool, dismounted and
threw the planks of the bridge into the water by way of amusement,
which prevented the retinue of the duke that had remained behind from
crossing it.
The duke, still unsuspecting, laughed heartily at this trick of the
fool; but in the mean time, Charles lord of Avaugour, brother to the
count, who had lain in ambush with about forty men at arms, sallied
out against the duke, who, seeing this, said to the count, 'Fair
cousin, what means this? and who are these people?' 'My lord, they
are my people, and I arrest you in the name of the dauphin,' at the
same time laying hands on him. The duke, greatly surprised, said, 'Ah!
fair cousin, you act wickedly; for I came hither at your request, not
suspecting you had any evil designs.'
Some of his people, however, drew their swords in his defence; but they
soon perceived they were too inferior in numbers to do any good. At
the same time, those who had been placed in ambuscade advanced on the
duke with drawn swords, when one of the duke's gentlemen, called John
de Beaumanoir, had his wrist cut through, and another, named Thibault
Buisson was wounded in the hand. One of the count's household, called
Henry l'Alemand, wanted to strike the duke with his sword; but the
count defended him, and ordered his men to cease fighting, for that he
should carry the duke prisoner to the dauphin.
The duke's attendants on the other side of the bridge, seeing the
situation of their lord, were much distressed that they could not
come to his aid, and knew not how to act. Shortly after, the count de
Penthievre, his brother, and his men at arms hastily carried off the
duke and his brother Richard toward Poitou, to Bressaire, and thence to
Lusignan, to Bournouiau, to Châteaumur, and other places. He was thus a
prisoner for six or seven months, without being confined in any prison
or treated personally ill; but he was closely watched, and had only one
of his domestics to wait on him. His brother Richard was detained a
prisoner with him.