Part 3

"The king (continues the same chronicler) drew his army towards Fauquenbergh, where he raised the richest tent ever seen; then he moved on Rousseauville, and stayed for two nights in the place where king Henry, the father of his predecessor, had obtained a glorious victory over the French, in the year 1415--_i.e._ at Agincourt; from thence he marched to Blangy, and from Blangy towards Peronne. Supplies came to his army from the countries and lordships of the duke of Burgundy. The English repeatedly passed and repassed the river Somme; and the duke of Burgundy, in person departing from Valenciennes, (where he had been honourably received, and where many pageants had been exhibited and performed before him in compliment to the king of England and himself,) came to view the army of the English, whom he caused to march and countermarch at his orders, to show his desire to lead them. The duke and king Edward, who then kept the field, held a conference for the space of three hours. A dove was observed to remain on the king's tent for a whole day and a half[41]: and after its departure there {xxv} followed a terrible thunder-storm, which did great damage to the army, by the hail stones which fell, as large as walnuts. From that day forward the English were in trouble enough, and began to murmur, saying that the king had kept badly the promises that had been made to them. The time passed away without anything being accomplished. The duke of Burgundy parted from them, and went to Lorraine, where he had left part of his forces, to conquer the duchy and county of Vaudemont."

Our own historians have not discoursed at any length of the campaign made in France on this occasion. It has not offered to them the attractions of a Creci, a Poictiers, or an Agincourt; nor even presented any minor achievement that might have inspired their eloquence or stimulated their researches. Its laurels in fact withered under the wily diplomacy of Louis the Eleventh; and, besides the chapter of Molinet from which the preceding passages have been taken, it is in the pages of that monarch's vivid biographer, Philippe de Commines, that we are most fully informed of its transactions. Its results were entirely in correspondence with the personal characteristics of the three sovereigns concerned. The obstinate self-will of Charles the Rash, the luxurious indolence of king Edward, and the timid but crafty time-serving of Louis the Eleventh, all contributed to work out their natural effects.

When the English began to land in France, the duke of Burgundy, already engaged in warfare with the German princes, was besieging the town of Neuss, upon the Rhine; and, until he could effect his object there, he would not be persuaded to leave the spot, although other projects of far greater political importance were now at stake. Commines states that "the lord Scales (meaning Anthony then earl Rivers, the king's brother-in-law,) was sent twice, with several other ambassadors, to the duke[42]; but the duke was perverse, as if God Almighty had infatuated his senses and understanding; for all his life long he had been labouring to get the English over to invade France, and now, when they were ready, and all things prepared to receive them both in Bretagne and elsewhere, he obstinately persisted in an enterprise in which it was impossible for him to succeed."

{xxvi}

There was an apostolic legate at that time with the emperor, and the king of Denmark was quartered in the same neighbourhood, and they both endeavoured to negociate a peace, by which means the duke of Burgundy might, if he would, have had honourable terms, and thus have been free to join the king of England, but he would not accept their overtures. To the English he excused himself as plausibly as he could, telling them that his honour was engaged, and it would be a lessening to his reputation to raise the siege of Neuss, with other like excuses. "The Englishmen (adds the historian) were not the same who had flourished in his father's days, and had conducted themselves with so much valour and skill in the old wars with France; but these were all raw soldiers, utterly unacquainted with French affairs; so that the duke acted very unwisely, if he had any design to make a future use of them, for in that case he ought to have led them on, as it were step by step, at least during the first campaign."

The earliest bad consequence that resulted to the duke of Burgundy from his lingering at the seige of Neuss, was the loss of the three towns of Montdidier, Roye, and Corbie, which were taken by the king of France, shortly after the termination of his truce with Burgundy, which expired on the 1st of May 1475. Still the duke would not quit the siege of Neuss before the 13th of June.

In the meanwhile, king Edward landed at Calais. His army is described by Commines as "the most numerous, the best mounted, and the best equipped, that ever any king of England had invaded France withal. He was attended by all the lords of England, with few exceptions. He had 1500 men of arms, richly accoutred after the French fashion, well mounted, and most of them barded,[43] and every one of them had several persons on horseback in his retinue. The archers were 15,000, all on horseback; besides a great number of footmen, and others to pitch the tents and pavilions, take care of the artillery, and inclose the camp; and there was not one varlet in the whole army. There was besides a body of 3000 men who were to be landed in Bretagne."

After these particulars, Commines repeats his censures of the duke of Burgundy's infatuated conduct, in throwing away that advantage of English aid, which he had been labouring all his life to procure. He ought (it is remarked) to have known that it was necessary for him to have made at least one campaign with the English, in order to have instructed them in the method of the French wars; for, though no nation is more raw or undisciplined than the English on their first coming over, yet a little time makes them excellent soldiers, equally brave and skilful. But the duke's conduct was just the reverse; and, among other {xxvii} disadvantages which ensued, the season was almost lost, and his own army so worn out and diminished, that he was ashamed they should be seen, for he had lost before Neuss 4000 of his soldiers, the very flower of his army.

The English were, however, assisted in the transport of their horses by the duke of Burgundy providing them five hundred flat-bottomed vessels of Holland and Zeeland; yet, notwithstanding that large number, and all the vessels king Edward could procure from his own ports, the passage of his forces occupied more than three weeks: "from whence one may observe (remarks Commines) with what amazing difficulty the kings of England transport their armies into France; and, if the king of France had understood maritime affairs as well as he did those of the land, king Edward would never have crossed over, at least that year; but king Louis had no skill in naval matters, and those to whom he committed his authority knew less of them than himself; yet one of our men-of-war, belonging to Eu, took two or three of their transports.

"Before the king of England embarked from Dover, he sent one of his heralds, named Garter, who was a native of Normandy,[44] to the king of France, with a letter of defiance, written in such an elegant style, and in such polite language, that I can scarcely believe any Englishman indited it. The contents were, that our king should surrender France to the king of England, as his right and inheritance, to the end that he might restore the church, the nobility, and the people to their ancient liberty, and relieve them from the great oppression and burthens they groaned under; and, if king Louis refused, it was declared that all the ensuing miseries and calamities would lie at his door, according to the forms usual upon such occasions.

"The king of France read the letter to himself, and then, withdrawing into another room, commanded the herald to be called in; to whom he said,--I am very sensible that your master has not made this invasion of his own seeking, but at the importunity of the duke of Burgundy and the commons of England. He then remarked that the season was visibly far spent, and that the duke of Burgundy {xxviii} had returned from Neuss in so weak and miserable a condition, that he would not be in a capacity to assist the invaders; that, as to the constable,[45] he was satisfied he held intelligence with the king of England, who had married his niece,[46] but there was no confidence to be reposed in him, for he would deceive king Edward, as he had often deceived himself; and, after enumerating the favours which he had conferred upon him, Louis added, 'His plan is to live in eternal dissimulation, to traffic with everybody, and to make his advantage of all.' Besides these, the king used several other arguments to induce the herald to persuade his master to an accommodation with him, giving him 300 crowns with his own hand, and promising him 1000 more upon the conclusion of the peace; and afterwards, in public, his majesty ordered him to be rewarded with a fine piece of crimson velvet, thirty ells in length.

"The herald replied, that, according to his capacity, he would contribute all that lay in his power towards a peace, and he believed his master would be glad to entertain the proposal; but nothing could be done until he was landed in France, and then, if king Louis pleased, he might send a herald to desire a passport for his ambassadors, if he had a mind to send any to king Edward; but withal Garter desired the king to address letters to the lords Howard or Stanley,[47] and also to himself, that he might introduce the French herald.

"There was a host of people attending outside during the king's private discourse with the herald, all of them impatient to hear what the king would say, and to see how his majesty looked when he came forth. When he had done, (continues Commines,) he called me, and charged me to entertain the herald till he {xxix} ordered him an escort, that I might keep him from talking privately with anybody; he commanded me likewise to give him a piece of crimson velvet of thirty ells, which I did. After which the king addressed himself to the rest of the company, giving them an account of the letters of defiance; and, having called seven or eight of them apart, he ordered the letters to be read aloud, showing himself very cheerful and valiant, without the least sign of fear in the world; for indeed he was much revived by what he had learned from the herald."

When the duke of Burgundy first came to wait on the king of England at Calais, he was attended only by a small retinue,[48] having dismissed his army into the countries of Barrois and Lorraine to plunder and refresh themselves (the duke of Lorraine having declared himself his enemy). The English had expected him to have joined them at their landing with at least 2500 men at arms, well provided, and a considerable body of horse and foot; and that he should have opened the campaign in France three months before their descent, when they might have found king Louis already harassed with the war and in great distress.

King Edward (by the stages already described from Molinet,) marched to Peronne, a town belonging to the duke of Burgundy. The English, however, except in small companies, were not received within its gates, but they formed their encampment in the adjacent fields.[49] At this place a messenger arrived from the constable of France, bringing letters both for the duke and the king.[50] To the former he made strong professions of friendship and service, declaring that he would assist him and his allies, and particularly the king of England, against all persons and princes whatever. In his letter to king Edward he referred his good-meaning to the duke of Burgundy's testimony. The duke communicated also to the king the contents of his own letter from the constable, somewhat exaggerating them, and assuring Edward that the constable would receive him into the town of St. Quentin, and all the other towns under his control; and king Edward really believed it, because he had married the constable's niece, and he thought him so terribly afraid of the king of France, that he would not venture to break his promise to the duke and himself. Nor was the duke of Burgundy less credulous than king Edward. {xxx} But neither the perplexities of the constable, nor his dread of the king of France, had as yet carried him so far; his design was only to wheedle and amuse them (according to his custom), and suggest to them such plausible reasons as might prevail with them not to force him to declare himself openly.

"The king of England and his nobility (remarks Commines,) were not so well skilled in artifice and subtlety as the lords of France, but went more bluntly and ingenuously about their business; so that they were not so sharp at discovering the intrigues and deceptions common on this side of the water. The English that have never travelled are naturally headstrong, as the people generally are in all cold countries."

Commines next relates how the English, when they attempted to occupy the town of St. Quentin, were driven off with the loss of some killed and others taken prisoners; and how on the following morning the duke of Burgundy took his leave of king Edward, in order to return to his forces in Barrois, pretending he would do great feats for the English; but the English, being naturally of a jealous temper, novices on this side of the water, and astonished at this kind of proceeding, began to entertain an ill opinion of their ally, and were not satisfied he had any army at all; besides, the duke of Burgundy could not reconcile them to the constable's manner of receiving them, though he endeavoured to persuade them all was well, and that what was done would turn to their advantage; but all the duke of Burgundy's arguments did not pacify them, and, being disheartened at the approach of winter, they seemed by their expressions to be more inclinable to peace than war.

Meanwhile, king Louis was thinking upon the suggestions which had been made to him by Garter king of arms; and a message he received from the lords Howard and Stanley by a dismissed prisoner determined him to put them in action. With the assistance of Commines, he tutored a clever servant to act as a herald, equipping him for the occasion in a coat of arms formed from the banner of a trumpeter,--for king Louis was not so stately nor so vain as to maintain a herald in his train as other princes did.

The man was sent off to the English camp, where, on his arrival, he was immediately conducted to the tent of king Edward. Being asked his business, he said he was come with a message from the king of France to the king of England, and had orders to address himself to the lords Howard and Stanley. He was taken into a tent to dinner, and very gently entertained. When king Edward had dined, he sent for the herald, who then said that his errand was to acquaint his majesty that the king of France had long desired to be at amity with him, that {xxxi} both their kingdoms might be at ease, and enjoy the blessings of peace; that, since his accession to the crown of France, he had never made war or attempted anything against king Edward or his kingdom; and, as for having formerly entertained the earl of Warwick, he had done that more from opposition to the duke of Burgundy than from any quarrel with the king of England. He next proceeded to represent that the duke of Burgundy had invited king Edward over, only in order to make his own terms the better with France; and, if others had joined with him, it was to secure themselves against their former offences, or to advance their private objects; which when they had once compassed, they would not regard the interests of the king of England, provided they had attained their own ends. He represented likewise the lateness of the season, that winter was approaching, that his master was sensible of the great charges king Edward had been at, and that he knew that in England there were many, both of the nobility and merchants, who were desirous of a war on this side of the water; yet, if the king should be inclined to a treaty, his master would not refuse to come to such terms as should be agreeable both to himself and to his subjects; and if the king of England had a mind to be more particularly informed of these matters, on his giving a passport for 100 horse, his master would send ambassadors to him with full instructions: or, if king Edward should prefer to depute certain commissioners, king Louis would gladly consent to that arrangement, and send them a passport to hold a conference in some village between the two armies.

The king of England and part of his nobility were extremely pleased with these proposals; a passport was given to the herald according to his request, and, having been rewarded with four nobles in money, he was attended by a herald from the king of England to obtain the king of France's passport in the same form as the other; which being given, the next morning the commissioners met in a village near Amiens. On the part of the king of France, there were the Bastard of Bourbon admiral of France, the lord of St. Pierre, and the bishop of Evreux. On the king of England's side, there were the lord Howard, doctor Morton then master of the rolls and afterwards archbishop of Canterbury, William Dudley dean of the king's chapel, and Thomas Selynger.[51] Many overtures passed between these negociators. The English at first demanded, according to their custom, the crown of France; and then gradually fell to Normandy and Guienne. The French commissioners replied as became them; so that the demands were well urged on the one side, and well refused on the other: yet, from the very first day {xxxii} of the treaty there was great prospect of an accommodation, for both parties seemed very inclinable to hearken to reasonable proposals.

King Louis was exceedingly pleased when matters had taken this favourable turn, and he employed all his arts to bring the negociation to a peaceful termination. He sent every hour to entertain and wheedle the treacherous constable, and prevent him from doing any harm. He resolved to raise without delay the money required to buy off the invaders,[52] declaring that he would do any thing in the world to get the king of England out of France, except putting any towns into his possession, for, rather than do that, which had been suggested by the constable, he would hazard all.

The conclusion of the terms of the treaty was made on the 13th of August, king Edward being then "in his felde beside a village called Seyntre,[53] within Vermondose, a litell from Peronne," attended by his brothers the dukes of Clarence and Gloucester, the dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk, the bishop of Lincoln his chancellor, the marquess of Dorset, the earls of Northumberland, Riviers, and Pembroke, the lords Grey de Ruthyn, Scrope, Grey of Codnor, Stanley, Hastings, Ferrers, Howard, the earl Douglas, lord Lisle, the master of the Rolls, the dean of the king's chapel, the deans of Wells and Westminster, sir Thomas Mountgomery, sir Thomas Borough, sir William Parre, sir Richard Tunstall, Thomas Selynger, and John Elkyngton treasurer of the king's wars; most of whom signed the public declaration[54] of the king's determination, which is stated to have been founded on these three considerations,--"the povertie of his armyes, the nygh approachyng of wynter, and small assistance of his allies."

It was at the same time agreed, that the two kings should have an interview, and swear mutually to the performance of certain articles; after which the king of England should return to his own country, upon the receipt of 72,000 crowns (as stated by Commines, but the amount finally settled was 75,000), leaving the lord Howard and sir John Cheyne as hostages until his arrival in England. In addition, pensions amounting to 16,000 crowns were promised to the privy councillors {xxxiii} of the king of England, viz. to the lord Hastings[55] 2000 crowns a-year, to the chancellor (Rotherham) 2000, and the remainder to the lord Howard, the master of the horse (Cheyne), Thomas St. Leger, sir Thomas Mountgomery, and several others, besides a great deal of ready money and plate[56] that was distributed among the rest of the king of England's retinue.

Louis contrived to carry his corruption through every grade of his adversaries. He purchased from one of the English secretaries for sixty silver marks two letters which had been addressed by the seigneur d'Urfe, who was then in the duke of Bretagne's service, (and afterwards master of the horse of France,) one directed to the king of England, and the other to the lord Hastings, lord chamberlain of England. They were shown to Commines, who noticed in them this, among other expressions, That the duke of Bretagne would do more by his intelligence in a month, than the king of England and the duke of Burgundy both, with all the force they could make.

The duke of Burgundy, who was then at Luxembourg, having intimation of these negociations, came in great haste to the king of England, attended only with sixteen horse.[57] King Edward was much surprised at his unexpected arrival, and inquired what it was that had brought him, for he saw by his countenance that he was angry. The duke told him that he came to talk with him. The king of England asked whether it should be in public or private? Then the duke demanded whether he had made a peace? The king replied, that he had made a truce for nine years, in which the duke of Bretagne and himself were {xxxiv} comprehended,[58] and his desire was that they should accept of that comprehension. The duke fell into a violent passion, and in English, a language that he spoke very well, began to recount the glorious achievements of Edward's predecessors on the throne of England, who had formerly invaded France, and how they had spared no pains, nor refused any danger, that might render them famous, and gain them immortal honour and renown abroad. Then he inveighed against the truce, and told the king he had not invited the English over into France out of any necessity he had of their assistance, but only to put them in a way of recovering their own right and inheritance; and, to convince them he could subsist without their alliance, he was resolved not to make use of the truce until the king had been three months in England. Having unburthened himself in this manner, the duke took his leave, and returned to Luxembourg. The king of England and his council were extremely irritated by his language, but others who were adverse to the peace highly extolled it.

But, however dissatisfied the duke was with the truce, the constable of France had cause to be still more so: for, having deceived all parties, he could expect nothing but inevitable ruin. He made one more attempt to ingratiate himself with king Edward, by offering him the towns of Eu and St. Valery for winter quarters, and a loan of 50,000 crowns; but king Louis immediately received intimation of this, and at once ordered the two towns to be burned. King Edward returned to the constable this answer, "That the truce was already concluded, and could not be altered; but, had the constable performed his former promise (as to the town of St. Quentin), the truce would never have been made." This answer stung the constable to the very soul, and made him desperate on all sides.