The Peace of Bretigny.
England all this time was in a condition of peaceful prosperity; the
king and his court were amusing themselves with tournaments and hunting
parties. Edward III. determined to open the war again, and began his
preparations for leading a mighty army into France. Swarms of
adventurers of all nations gathered at Calais, and offered him their
services. The Duke of Lancaster was also to come to Calais, and bring
with him the English troops which had been fighting for the cause of the
De Montforts in Britany.
On 28th October, 1359, Edward sailed from Sandwich with an army such as
had not been raised in England for more than a hundred years. Froissart
tells us that there was not a knight or a squire, from the age of twenty
to sixty, who did not go. It is interesting to note, that amongst those
who took part in this expedition was Geoffrey Chaucer, then only a young
man, but destined to become famous as the first great name in our list
of English poets. The king took with him the Black Prince, and three of
his other sons, Lionel, John, and Edmund.
On landing at Calais, Edward proceeded to arrange his battalions, that
he might set off at once to meet the Duke of Lancaster. First marched
the King's battalion, and after it an immense baggage train, which
Froissart tells us was two leagues in length. It consisted of more than
five thousand carriages, drawn by horses, and carrying provisions for
the army. They were well provided with all kinds of things which no
English army had ever taken with it before, such as mills to grind their
corn, and ovens to bake their bread. After the King's battalion came the
battalion of the Prince of Wales, who was accompanied by his brothers.
The men-at-arms were all so richly dressed, and rode such fine horses,
that, says Froissart, it was a pleasure to look at them. Both they and
the archers marched in close order, that they might be ready to engage
at any moment, should it be necessary. With the army went five hundred
pioneers, with spades and pickaxes to level the roads, and cut down
trees and hedges, so that the carriages might pass easily. The Duke of
Lancaster's battalion joined them soon after leaving Calais, and the
three battalions proceeded on their march into the heart of France.
They did not advance very quickly, as they had to let all the waggons
keep pace with them. They found no provisions on their way, as
everything had been carried off to supply the garrisons. Moreover the
country had been so pillaged and destroyed that the ground had not been
cultivated for three years. They had hoped to refresh themselves in the
vineyards, and lay in stores of the new wine; but the season was so
rainy that the grapes were worth nothing. Day and night the rain fell in
torrents; but, in spite of all difficulties, and though winter was
coming on, they pressed on to Rheims, avoiding all the other strong
towns; for it was Edward's ambition to be crowned at Rheims, in the
cathedral where the kings of France were always crowned.
Rheims was a strong town, and was well defended by its archbishop.
Edward wished to reduce it by a long siege, not to storm it, for he was
careful of his men. The English army therefore quartered itself in
different villages round the town. The King, the Black Prince, and the
Duke of Lancaster each kept their court in different places, and had
great households. Many of the counts and barons were not so comfortable,
as the rainy weather still continued, and their horses were badly housed
and ill fed. There was a great scarcity of corn of all kinds. One of the
English knights succeeded in taking a little town near Rheims, in which
he found three thousand butts of wine, great part of which he sent to
the King of England and his sons, to their great joy. The knights often
wearied of the siege, and went away on little expeditions by themselves,
and there were many brave passages of arms between them and the French.
For seven weeks Edward III. remained before Rheims, and then began to
tire of the siege. It was hopeless to try and take the city by assault,
for it was well defended. Many of the horses had perished, owing to the
scarcity of fodder; so at last he determined to break up his camp. He
marched south from Rheims to Chalons and Tonnerre. At Tonnerre, he found
very good wines, and in order to enjoy them, stayed there five days. He
then went on further south still, to Flavigny, where he spent the whole
of Lent, because there was a good store of provisions there. His light
troops scoured the country, and constantly brought in fresh provisions.
The men-at-arms amused themselves in many different ways. They had
brought with them from England a number of boats, made, says Froissart,
surprising well, of boiled leather; these would hold three men, who
could then go fishing in little rivers and lakes. They were able to
catch a great deal of fish, which was very useful, as during Lent,
according to the rules of the Church, no meat might be eaten. The King
had with him thirty falconers on horseback, with their hawks, sixty
couple of strong hounds and as many greyhounds, and amused himself every
day with hunting and hawking. Many of his lords also had their hawks and
hounds.
Flavigny was in the Duke of Burgundy's dominions. He was a vassal of the
King of France, but in reality ruled like an independent prince. He
therefore sent ambassadors, and made a treaty with Edward, so that his
country might not be destroyed. When the treaty was signed the English
army broke up their camp, and went on towards Paris by forced marches.
Whilst Edward was in Burgundy, England had been alarmed by the
appearance of a French fleet, which ravaged the English coast, and even
took and pillaged Winchelsea. With great difficulty the English
succeeded in raising a small fleet, before which the French retired, and
the English revenged themselves for the French outrages by ravaging the
coast of France. When news of this French invasion reached Edward, it
must doubtless have made him more anxious than ever to force a peace
from the French, so that he might not lose any of the advantages which
he had already won. He established himself at a short distance from
Paris, and sent heralds to the Dauphin, who was in the city, offering
him battle; but the Dauphin would not venture outside the walls of
Paris. This greatly enraged the King, and he allowed Sir Walter Manny
and other knights to assault the barriers of Paris; but they could not
do much, as the city was well defended. The army was exhausted by the
sufferings endured on account of the rainy winter, and the scarcity of
provisions. Edward determined, therefore, to take them along the Loire
to Britany to recruit and refresh themselves; and then after the
vintage, which promised to be a very good one, to bring them again to
lay siege to Paris.
Meanwhile, Pope Innocent VI. had been doing his utmost to persuade the
Dauphin to make peace, who at last consented to send commissioners after
the King of England to try and arrange terms. It was hard to persuade
Edward to give up his ambition to be king of France; but at last he
listened to the arguments of his cousin, the Duke of Lancaster, whom he
much loved and trusted, and who showed him how doubtful it was that he
could hope to succeed in his ambitious desires, whilst the war might
easily last out his lifetime.
Froissart tells us that a sudden storm of hail and thunder so frightened
the English army, that they thought the world was come to an end.
Edward, looking upon it as a judgment from God, vowed to the Virgin to
accept terms of peace.
At last, at the little village of Bretigny, near Chartres, a treaty was
signed on May 8th, 1360. This peace, known as the peace of Bretigny, is
most important in history; it serves as a sort of landmark in the midst
of the wars and struggles of the middle ages. In this treaty Edward
promised to give up for ever his claim to the throne of France, and to
all the dominions of the Angevine kings north of the Loire--Anjou,
Maine, Tourraine, and Normandy; he retained only Calais. On the other
hand, the kings of France were to give up for ever all right of exacting
homage for the English provinces of Guienne and Gascony. Britany was
not included in the treaty, and England and France were both at liberty
to assist either of the competitors for the Duchy. King John was to be
ransomed for 3,000,000 golden crowns, equal to about £30,000,000 of our
money, a part of which was to be paid at once, and hostages given for
the remainder.
When the treaty was signed, Edward and his son immediately hastened to
England. They then accompanied King John to Calais that the final
conference with the Dauphin might be held. After many more discussions,
the peace was ratified. When all was arranged, and the hostages had
arrived at Calais, who were to go to England till John's ransom was all
paid, Edward gave a magnificent supper to King John in the castle. The
King's sons, and all the greatest barons of England, waited bareheaded
on the two kings. After the supper, Edward and John took leave of one
another in the most affectionate manner. The Black Prince accompanied
John to Boulogne. They went on foot, as the French king wished to make a
pilgrimage to our Lady of Boulogne. There they met the Dauphin, and all
went together to the church and made their offerings, and afterwards to
the abbey of Boulogne, where the Black Prince spent the day with the
French, and returned next day to Calais. The English were not long in
returning to England, taking with them all the French hostages.
Amongst these hostages were two sons of King John, the Dukes of Anjou
and Berry, and his brother, the Duke of Orleans. Edward commanded his
officers and courtiers to treat them courteously, and to be very careful
to preserve peace with them, as they were under his care. They were
allowed a great deal of liberty, and might go where they liked in the
city of London and its neighbourhood. Froissart tells us that "they
hunted and hawked according to their pleasure, and rode out as they
pleased to visit the ladies without any constraint, for the king was
right courteous and amiable."
The King of France was most joyfully welcomed by his subjects on his
return. When he reached Paris, all the clergy came out to meet him, and
conducted him to the palace, where he and his nobles partook of a
magnificent dinner. So overjoyed were both people and nobles to see him,
that they all made him rich gifts and entertained him at sumptuous
feasts.
There was a good deal of difficulty in carrying out the articles of the
treaty of Bretigny. Many of the French towns and strongholds which had
to be given over to the English objected very strongly, and the King of
France had to use much persuasion before they would consent to yield.
The town of La Rochelle only yielded with difficulty, the principal
inhabitants of the town saying, "We will honour and obey the English,
but our hearts shall never change." On the other hand there were many
small towns and fortresses in France which were held by English and
Gascon nobles. These had to be given up to the King of France, and the
soldiers who were turned out thought they could not better employ
themselves than by forming themselves into robber bands, and pillaging
the country. More than ever was France overrun by the free companies.
The King of France was at last obliged to send an army against the
largest of these companies, called the "Great Company;" but they
defeated his army, and proceeded to threaten the Pope in Avignon, who
was obliged to hire soldiers to oppose them.
Edward had appointed Sir John Chandos as regent and lieutenant of his
possessions in France; and in the name of the King of England, Chandos
received the homage of the nobles of Poitou, and the Duchy of Aquitaine.
He made Niort his head-quarters, and kept a great establishment there.
He was a brave and accomplished knight, amiable and sweet-tempered, and
was beloved and esteemed by the king, and all who knew him.