or the like particulars referring to Election are commonly consider'd of on the Feast day in the Chapter held immediately before Vespers wherein it is most usually Ordered That the Scruteny shall be taken in the said Chappel that following Afternoon and so was it Decreed on St. George's day anno 5. E. 6. viz. That the Elections of Knights should be taken that Evensong and in the Chappel After this the Chancellor begins to collect the Knights-Companions Votes and this is frequently termed the taking of a Scruteny To the full understanding the nature of this Action and Ceremony we shall proceed to certain considerations preparatory thereunto beginning with what concerns the Nomination of the Persons to be proposed to Election SECT VI. That Knights only present in Chapter ought to Nominate THE Nomination of those persons proposed to the Soveraign's Election belongs only to such of the Knights-Companions as are present in Chapter when the Scruteny is taken for therein not only all the Bodies of the Statutes are positive but Entrances to that purpose are made in sundry places of the Annals insomuch that from the Institution of this most Noble Order it hath not been otherwise used that we can collect And it is observable that anno 26. Eliz. the Feast of St. George being celebrated at Greenwich the Earl of Warwick and Lord Burley Lord Treasurer of England fell both ill of the Gout upon the Feast day which occasioned their absence at Evening Prayer whilst the Scruteny was taken whereupon we find their indisposition of body and absence noted in that Scruteny instead of and in those peculiar places where their Nominations should else have been entred had they been present at the taking thereof And beside this we meet with an observation made upon the same occasion by Robert Cooke Esquire then Clâ—renceux King of Armsâ— That as for those Knights-Companions who happen to be absent when the Scruteny is taken although this absence be occasioned by accident of sickness or with the Soveraign's license nevertheless in regard of this their absence at that very time their Votes may not be received Those Knights-Companions that come late to the Chapter lose also the priviledge of giving their Votes for that time which so hapned to Prince Rupert and the Earl of Strafford at the Chapter held for the Election of Iames Duke of Monmouth in the Privy-Chamber at Whitehall the 29. of March an Dom. 1663. Now though none of the absent Knights-Companions can give a Proxy to Vote or otherwise send their suffrages into the Chapter or Chappel there to pass in Nomination yet anciently about the Reigns of King Henry the Fifth and King Henry the Sixth when divers of the Knights-Companions were frequently employed in the Wars of France and consequently so strictly obliged to their several Commands that they could not personally attend the celebration of the Feast of St. George at Windesor it was usual for the Commander there in chief with consent of those Knights-Companions to make a formal Certificate or Presentment but not to pass it by way of Nomination or Vote for that the Law of the Order did not permit to the Soveraign of the Order or his Lieutenant and Knights-Companions assembled at the Feast of such persons famous for martial Valor and Virtue with an account of their notable services and atchievements attested by other persons of honor also as were at that time and in that Kingdom employed in the Soveraign's service and seemed worthy the honor of Election to the end that famous and deserving men might be preferr'd to so noble a Dignity Which manner of Recordation we having most happily lighted upon among the Collections made by the great industry of William Dugdale Esquire now Norroy King of Arms and esteeming it to carry the just reputation both of authority for informing us of this custom and of antiquity for the hand of that time cannot without injury to its due worth omit My Lord the Duc of Bedford remembrith as by the Statutes of the Diver of the Gartice the Election of the Stalls voyde be saith in the voyce of the Brethren and of the Fellowship beyng at the tyme at the Fest in the presence of the Soverain or hys Deputy Yt thinkyth to my said Lord that for hys acquital to Knighthood yt fytteth hym to give in knowledge to the Kyng Soverain of the Ordre and to his Fellowship of the same Ordre the great honours of the notable Knights that from tyme to tyme exercyseth and have exercysed in Knighthood and especially in the service of their Soveraign Lord and of such notable Knyghts as my Lord of Bedford for the tyme remembreth hym of he hath by the advyce of them of the Fellowshyp of the Order being now in France in the Kyngs service and givyng in charge to the said Garter Kyng of Arms of the Order to shew theyr â—ames to the Kyng and to expound part of theyr Deeds Acts and of theyr worthynesse First to expose the honour of Sir John Radeclyff that hath contynowed all the tyme of the victorious Kyng that last dyed whom Chryste absolve at the first landing of hym at Quies-de Caux where the sayd Radeclyff receyved the order of a Knyght and after continowed the Seige of Hareflew And after with my Lord of Excester at the Battaile of Vallemont and of Quies-de Caux And also sythen the deth of the sayd victorious Kyng Radeclyff being Seneschall of Guyen hath brought by hys labour in Knyghthood to hys Soveraign Lord's obeysance within the Duchie of Guyen many dyverse Cities Towns and Fortresses And in especial deserved great and notable merits at the Seige of the City of Bazates whych Seige was accorded appointed and set day of Battaile and of Rescous the whych day was kept and houlden with great power on both sydes and under Banners displayed the Enemyes doubtyng to fyght wyth Radeclyff required hym of apoyntment they to depart under saufe conduit from the said feild the whych saufe conduit he graunted them for the term of eight days like as they required The honour and the empruise rested in the sayd Radeclyff and to hys hygh meryte for incontynent followying was delyvered to hym the reddyssion and possession of the sayd Cytty of Bazates And also the sayd Radeclyff was at the Battaile of Assincourt and hath contynowed and exercysed the Armys the space of xxviij Wynter unreprothed And in the tyme of his Esquierhood was at the Battaile of Shrewsbury and at the Journey of Husks wyth the Lord Grey at the discomfiture and taking of Owenson Syr Thomas Ramston Syr William Oldegall Syr Rauff Butler Syr Ro. Harlyng Syr Gilbert Halsall Item my Lord the Duc of Bedford beseecheth the Kyng Soveraign of the Order to have also for recommendyd to his good grace and highnesse other of his Subjects and Servants now being in hys service in his Realme of France whych hath doon and yet doth take great
defence of Mastricht then lately besieged by the Hollanders and remained faithful to the Spanish interest to wit to those of them that were Gentlemen the title of Knights and to others that of Gentlemen Having thus briefly shewed the various forms of Creation of Knights Batchelors if any be further desirous to know what were the ancient Rites and Ceremonies used at the making of Knights Banerets among us the Example of Sir Iohn Chandos in the Reign of King Edward the Third will give sufficient information which being at large recorded by Sir Iohn Froisard and from him by Cambden and Selden it will be needless to transcribe them hither With what Ceremony also the Duke of Burgundy made the Seigneur de Sans Baneret in Flanders is reported by Andrew Favin But in later times it appears that he that was advanced to this Honor in the Field went between two senior Knights with Trumpets before them the Heralds carrying a long Banner called a Penon with his Arms painted thereon and so was brought unto the King or his Lieutenant who bidding him good success commanded the end or tip of the Banner to be cut off that of an oblong it might become a square like the Banner of a Baron this done he returned back to his Tent conducted as before In the last place there are many and various Ceremonies performed at the Creation of a Knight of the Bath as appears by the Formulary thereof in old French inserted by Sir Edward Bysshe among his Notes upon Vpton and in English by William Dugdale Esquire Norroy King of Arms into his Antiquities of Warwick-shire to which we refer our Reader for a full view as we do in all other like Cases where things at large may be readily had purposely to avoid the swelling of this discourse beyond what is necessary We shall therefore close with this observation that the Knights of the Bath made by the present Sovereign of the most Noble Order of the Garter to attend him at his Coronation were created with the principal of all those Ceremonies noted in this Section and appointed to Knights Batchellors both in former and later times which to compleat their Honor were jointly united and placed upon them for they Watched and Bathed they took an Oath they were girded with a Sword and Belt and lastly Dubbed by the King with the Sword of State SECT X. Of the Dignity Honor and Renown of Knighthood BEfore we conclude this Chapter it will be necessary to subjoin something concerning the Dignity Honor and Renown appropriate to the Knightly Order whereunto though enough might be said to fill a Volume yet to avoid tediousness we shall touch only upon the principal and most material Of all Virtues those that have gain'd the highest honor and repute are the Military hereupon saith G. Acacius Evenkelius a Noble modern Writer It is not without great reason that in all renowned and famous Common-wealths which ever were great honors and profits have been proposed to military persons and in consequence we hear of several Prerogatives Priviledges and proper Rights granted to them above other men yea it will appear not only living but also after death having died for the Common-wealth they are still honored in a high degree and ever to be honored And to the great honor of Baldwinus Pulchrobarbus Earl of Flanders it is remembred that he conferr'd many Prerogatives upon the Knightly Dignity But of all the Titles of Honor Knighthood being a Degree above common Honor must be acknowledged the first and most principal derived from the field and military services whose very Name and Title as Mennenius affirms seemed to include somewhat of magnificence beyond what he was able to express and something more excellent than Nobility it self and which as it were mounting the Royal Throne becomes the assertor of civil Nobility and sits as Judge at the Tribunal thereof Our learned Cambden notes from some of our Law Books that Knight is a Name of Dignity but Baron is not so and he there adds the reason For if heretofore a Baron had not received the Order of Knighthood he was written simply and plainly by his Christian Name and the Name of his Family without any addition but that of Dominus which term is as much attributed to a Knight But the Title of Knight seems to be an adjunct of Honor since Kings Dukes Marquesses Earls and Barons have coveted the Dignity together with the Name And to this the aforesaid Mennenius for the greater Honor observes that in ancient Charters the Titles and Names of Knights may be seen to be set before Barons The Degree of Knighthood is of so great splendor and fame that it bestows Gentility not only upon a man meanly born but also upon his descendants and very much encreaseth the honor of those who are well descended 'T is a Maxim laid down by a learned Civilian That Knighthood enobles inasmuch that whosoever is a Knight it necessarily follows that he is also a Gentleman For where a King gives the Dignity to an ignoble person whose merit he would thereby recompence He is understood to have conferr'd whatsoever is requisite for the compleating of that which he bestows And therefore in some instances before where though this Honor had been conferr'd on Vassals no way capable thereof and for which both the Givers and Receivers were put to Fine the Knights were esteemed so enobled by the action as to be adjudged fit to keep and retain the Dignity and to remain free from Vassalage and Servitude Hereto also agrees the Common Law of England which saith If a Villain be made a Knight he is thereby immediately infranchised and consequently accounted a Gentleman And this is the same with the Roman Laâ— where the donation of a Gold Ring the Symbol of Knighthood to a slave enobled him with all the Priviledges belonging to one Free-born as hath been before observed It is manifest of what reputation and esteem the Equestrian Dignity among the Romans was with Maecenas who though his descent was great and high and though the Custody of the City was for a long time committed to him by Augustus whose Chancellor he also was and that he lived his chief Favorite yet would he not rise beyond that Dignity but dyed a Companion of that noble Order and is by Horace called the honor and glory of the Roman Knights In later Ages it hath been accounted so full and so compleat an Honor that men were not so often advanced from Knighthood as from a meaner degree to higher Titles and Dignities and that those of the chiefest quality and rank even Kings and Princes have been so far from taking it to be a diminution to their Honor that such of them as were invested with this Order took it as an accession thereunto their other Titles shewing more
hereupon the King made his Charter of Donation dated at Almason in Ianuary in the Aera of Caesar 1196. to wit of Christ 1158. whereby he gave to God to the blessed Virgin Mary to the Congregation of Cistertians and to Don Raymond and all his Brethren as well present as future the Village called Calatrava with all its Bounds and Territories particularly described in the Grant to possess and enjoy by right of inheritance for ever This Don Raymond after he had received possession according to the tenor of the Charter together with his Associates and other assistance from Castile and Toledo fell to fortifying of the Castle and hence arose the Order of Knights of Calatrava instituted by King Don Sanchio in the year of our Lord 1158. in the Town of Calatrava and therefore called at first Militia de Calatrava the foresaid Don Raymond and Don Velasquez being the first movers of this excellent work of whom the former is in another place called also a joint Founder with King Sanchio After this Don Raymond considering the richness and fertility of the Soil returned to his Monastery and from its neighbouring Countries drew 20000 men with their Families and Goods to plant in and about Calatrava which so greatly strengthened the Country that the Moors durst never after attempt besieging of the Castle This Order was approved by Pope Alexander the Third the 25. of September anno Dom. 1164. under the Discipline of the Cistertian Order It was confirmed afterwards by Pope Innocent the Third in the year 1199. and at length grew on till it gained exceeding great reputation in Spain At the first Institution the Knights wore their Robes and Scapulars of a White Colour Sansovin and Genebrand saith Black as did the Cistertian Monks and on the breast thereof a plain Red Cross but Pope Benedict the Thirteenth anno 1396. dispensed with that Monastick Habit and assigned them a Cross Flory So anciently they were prohibited Marriage yet Paul the Third permitted them one Wife but not a second After the death of the last Master Don Lopez de Padilla anno 1487. Don Diego Garcia de Castillo being the Commendador Major caused a general Chapter to be summoned in the Convent of Calatrava for the Election of another Master in which there fell out great contest among the Electors and the chief that stood was the said Commendador Major and Don Alonso Pacheco Commendador de Villa Franca Upon notice of this the Catholick Kings Don Ferdinando and Donna Isabella sent to the Convent a Knight of their Court with a Bull from Pope Innocent the Eighth wherein he declared that he had reserved to himself the providing of a Master and therewith required them not to proceed in the Election until his further Commands were made known in obedience to which the Election ceased Afterwards anno Dom. 1489. the Pope gave the Mastership of this Order in Administration to King Don Ferdinando during life but he did not give it with the Title of Master because the King had never received the Habit of this Order neither was he capable of it being a married man but chiefly because the King then endeavoured to obtain the other two Masterships of St. Iames and Alcantara and he could not hold them all three with the Title of Master King Don Ferdinando and Isabella his Wife governed this Order with the Title of Administrators very worthily and reformed the stare thereof visiting it by the Abbot of Claravalle of the Cistertian Order then called Don Pedro who came on that imployment with a Commission from Pope Innocent at the desire of the said Kings and of the general Chapter in the year of our Lord 1491. Upon the death of King Don Ferdinando anno 1516. the Chapter of this Order met at Guadalupe with intention to elect a new Master of which Cardinal Adrian having notice who then governed the Kingdoms first sent then went to the Electors to desire they would not proceed because the Pope had given the Administration of the Order to Prince Charles afterwards Emperor by the name of Charles the Fifth but they seemed unwilling to depart before they had made an Election and thereupon elected that Prince Master or Administrator of their Order which was afterwards confirmed by Pope Leo the Tenth But it seemed much for the interest of the Crowns of Castile and Leon to have the Mastership or Administration of this Order and those other of St. Iames and Alcantara for life made perpetual and annexed to them for ever hereupon great suit was made to the Pope by the Emperor for obtaining thereof and among the inducements some of them were these That great alteration often hapned in those Kingdoms upon the Election of these Masters to the damage of persons of all sorts relating to those Orders That in regard the Masters were so powerful in those Kingdoms they several times gave aid and assistance to particular Factions that arose so that Civil War often followed That the Peace and Quiet since the Administration was in the hands of the King much exceeded that which was in the times of the Masters These and other things being considered of Pope Adrian the Sixth granted the Emperors desire and annexed the Mastership of these three Orders perpetually to the Crowns of Castile and Leon. The form of admittance into this Order and manner of their profession is set down at large by Marquez The Order of the Holy Ghost in Saxia at Rome 22. They are called by Marquez the Brothers of the Hospital of the Holy Ghost who though not invested with Sword and Spurs as other Knights be are nevertheless reckoned among the Military Orders because bound to bring Certificate of their Gentility before they can be accepted or admitted Their chief Seat is the sumptuous Hospital of the Holy Ghost founded neer the Church of St. Mary in Saxia by the River Tyber in Rome a place so called from the Saxons a People of Germany who anciently inhabited there by Pope Innocent the Third in the year of our Lord 1198. or 1201. But it appears by another of this Popes Bulls dated anno 1204. for uniting of the Hospital of the Holy Ghost at Montpelier in France unto this at Rome that the ancient Foundation was at Montpelier though in process of time this other became the principal They of this Fraternity profess Chastity Poverty and Obedience as also the service of the Poor living under the Rule of St. Augustine and have a Praeceptor or Master The Ensign of this Order is a White Patriarchal Cross with twelve points sewed to their Breast and on the left side of their Black Mantle The manner of giving the Habit and making their Profession is recorded by Ios. Mich. Marquez In this Hospital care is taken for the nursing and bringing up exposed
21. Oct. an 18. H. 8. and to make room for his Instalment in the second Stall on the Soveraign's side which hitherto had been possessed by the Duke of Richmond both the said Duke and Marquess of Dorset were removed lower the Duke into the said Marques's Stall and the Marquess into the Earl of Northumberlaâ—ds then lately void by death And this was now so done that the Soveraign might express what honor he could to a King between whom and him there had lately past so great endearments All the rest of the Stalls may be observed to stand ranked as they did the year before and the void Stall on the Soveraign's side to be here supplied by the Installation of the Earl of Oxford Elected in the same Chapter with the French King In the 20.21 and 22. years of King Henry the Eighth the Stalls received no alteration and but little an 23. of the same King when the death of the Marquess Dorset occasioned advancing the Duke of Suffolk into his void Stall and placing the Earl of Arundel in the Dukes Whereupon the Earl of Northumberland Elected in the room of the Marquess Dorset was Installed in that which the Earl of Arundel relinquished and in this order they continued the 24. and 25. years of this King Nor was there any removal made an 26. H. 8. for albeit the Earls of Beaumont and Newblâ—nke French Noblemen were elected in a Chapter held at Callire the 27. of Oct. an 24. H. 8. yet at their Installation they were placed in the two Stalls then void by the death of two of the Knights-Companions viz. the first in the Stall of the Lord Dudley and the other in that of Sir Henry Guilford But the alterations became yet more considerable and extended almost to a general Translation which were made in the Stalls an 27. H. 8. upon the admission of Iames the Fifth King of Scotland one Stall being then void by the death of the Lord Montjoy for there remained unchanged only these five viz. the Earl of Rutland and Earl of Beaumont but called only Lord Beaumont in the Warrant for Translation on the Soveraign's side and the Emperor the King of Bohemia and Duke of Suffolk on the Princess side Nevertheless this so great an alteration was not made but upon consultation in Chapter held at Greenwich on St. George's day in the aforesaid year where the Soveraign with the assent of the rest of the Knights-Companions present thought it expedient that forasmuch as the said King of Scots was newly admitted into the Society of the Order and that there ought to be assigned a Stall answerable to his greatness that the Stalls of the Knights-Companions should be translated so as the said King should be placed next to the King of the Romans and the rest to be ranked according to the Soveraign's pleasure and thereupon it was given in charge to Garter to see the same accordingly performed The setlement of the Stalls at this time as it was sub-signed by the Soveraign coming to our hands we have exactly transcribed hither The Kings Highness appointment for the Stall of the King of Scots An. R. sui 27.23 April 1535. 1. The Soveraign 1. The Emperor 2. The French King 2. The King of the Romans 3. The King of Scotland 3. The Duke of Richmond 4. The Duke of Norfolk 4. The Duke of Suffolk 5. The Marquess of Exceter 5. The Earl of Shrewsbury 6. The Earl of Arundel 6. The Earl of Essex 7. The Earl of Northumberland 7. The Earl of Westmerland 8. The Earl of Wiltshire 8. The Earl of Sussex 9. The Earl of Rutland 9. The Earl of Oxenford 10. The Lord Beaumond 10. The Viscount Lysle 11. The Lord Burgaveny 11. The Earl of Newblanke 12. The Lord Ferrars 12. The Lord Darcy 13. The Lord Sandys 13. Sir William Fitz William  Henry R. In this Scheme we find the King of Scots placed in the Duke of Richmond's Stall who with the Duke of Norfolk the Earls of Shrewsbury Arundel Essex Northumberland Westmerland and Sussex were all removed into the next Stall below that which each of them sat in before whether it were on the Soveraign's or Princes side The Marquess of Exeter to the next below his own on the Soveraign's side Viscount Lisle from the seventh to the tenth Stall on the Prince's side the Lord Abergaveny from the eighth on the Prince's side to the eleventh on the Soveraign's side the Lord Ferrars from the ninth on the Prince's side to the twelfth on the Soveraign's side the Lord Darcy from the tenth on the Prince's side to the twelfth on the same and the Lord Sandys from the twelfth on the Prince's side to the thirteenth on the Soveraign's And as these before mentioned Knights Companions were removed lower so the Earls of Oxford Wilts and Newblanke were honored with higher Stalls than they before possest for the first of them was advanced from the eleventh Stall on the Soveraign's side to the ninth on the Prince's the second from the eleventh on the Prince's side to the eighth on the Soveraign's and the third from the thirteenth of the Prince's to the eleventh on the same side So that in this last example though many of the Knights-Companions were removed lower yet it may be observed that the English Nobility were now ranked according to their Degrees first Dukes next a Marquess then Earls next Viscounts afterwards Barons and last of all Knights Some few removals were made in the following years of this King but none of so great note as this last mentioned and therefore we need not enlarge our Instances Nor were there any considerable translations in the Reigns of King Edward the Sixth or Queen Mary But immediately after Queen Elizabeth came to the Crown by consent of the Knights-Companions in Chapter held the 12. of Ianuary an 1. Eliz. the Atchievments of Philip King of Spain late Soveraign of the Order were removed to the Stall of the Emperor Ferdinand void by his being advanced into the Princes Stall for which Garter had then command given him And when the French King Charles the Ninth was Elected into this Order to wit on the morrow after St. George's day an 6. Eliz. it occasioned the Soveraign then to alter some Stalls to leave one vacant for him and the better to observe this alteration which was considerable we shall first shew how they stood ranked on the Eve of the said Feast Elizabeth R.  1. The Soveraign 1. The Emperor Ferdinand 2. The King of Spain 2. The Duke of Savoy 3. The Constable of France 3. The Duke of Holstein 4. The Earl of Arundel 4. The Marquess of Winchester 5. The Earl of Derby 5. The Earl of Penbroke 6. The Duke of Norfolk 6. The Lord Clynton 7. Void 7. The Marquess of Northampton 8. Void 8. Void 9. The Lord Effingham 9. The Earl of Sussex 10. The Earl of Shrewsbury 10. The Lord Hastings 11. The Viscount
Mountagu 11. The Lord Robert Dudley 12. The Earl of Northumberland 12. The Earl of Warwick 13. Void 13. The Lord Hunsdon The 14. of May following being appointed for the Installation of Francis Earl of Bedford and Sir Henry Sidney Elected at the same time with the French King the Stalls were removed by the Soveraign's appointment and setled in the following order Elizabeth R. Â 1. The Soveraign 1. The Emperor Ferdinand 2. The King of Spain 2. Void 3. The Duke of Savoy 3. The Constable of France 4. The Earl of Arundel 4. The Duke of Holstein 5. The Marquess of Winchester 5. The Earl of Derby 6. The Earl of Penbroke 6. The Duke of Norfolk 7. The Lord Clynton 7. The Marquess of Northampton 8. The Lord Effingham 8. The Earl of Sussex 9. The Earl of Shrewsbury 9. The Lord Hastings 10. The Viscount Mountagu 10. The Lord Robert Dudley 11. The Earl of Northumberland 11. The Earl of Warwick 12. The Lord Hunsdon 12. The Earl of Bedford 13. Void 13. Sir Henry Sidney Where beside the translation of the Stranger Princes whom we shall mention a little below we see the Marquess of Winchester the Earls of Derby and Penbroke the Duke of Norfolk and the Lord Clynton were each of them seated in the next lower Stall to that they enjoyed before And by the advancement of the Lord Effingham Earl of Shrewsbury Viscount Mountagu and Earl of Northumberland each a Stall higher on the Soveraign's side and the like advance of the Earl of Sussex Lord Hastings Lord Dudley and Earl of Warwick on the Princes side the eighth Stall on the Soveraign's side and that opposite thereunto on the Princes were now filled up The Lord Hunsdon was likewise advanced from the lowest Stall on the Princes side to the twelfth on the Soveraign's and lastly the two Elect-Knights were installed in the twelfth and thirteenth Stall on the Prince's side Beside the power established upon the Soveraign's of this most Noble Order of translating Stalls when a vacancy hapned King Henry the Eighth further added this larger Prerogative That the Soveraign once in his life might if it pleased him make a general Translation of all the Stalls at his pleasure except of Emperors Kings Princes and Dukes who being setled in Stalls agreeable to their Dignities should keep their Stalls and Places if such a general Translation happened unless advanced to a higher Room and Stall In which Translation the long continuance in the Order and the praises worthiness and merits of the Knights-Companions were to be considered and remembred But this branch of the Soveraign's Prerogative in the Order was never yet made use of as we can find though that Translation an 27. H. 8. came somthing neer it perhaps lest it might raise too great animosities among the Knights Subjects forasmuch as that of translating only when there hapned a vacancy Begot great emulations which at length introduced an alteration and to which we shall pass after we have taken notice of a Clause added in the 22. Article of King Henry the Eighth's Statutes relating to Stranger Princes Here therefore it is to be observed that the ancient Law of succeeding in Stalls was also in relation to them whollyaltered For King Henry the Eighth upon the establishment of his Body of Statutes not only appointed those Strangers then present of the Order to be seated next himself but that all Emperors Kings and Princes should hold their Stalls after their Estates and the very next unto the Soveraign though Knights-Subjects upon vacancy became removeable at pleasure Hereupon the Emperor Maximilian the Second and after him Rudolph the Second his Son had the Princes Stall assigned them after their Election into the Order The French Kings Francis the First Henry the Second Charles the Ninth Henry the Third and Henry the Fourth were Installed in the next below being the second on the Soveraign's side And when there were more then one King at a time in the Order the second Stall on the Prince's side was assigned to him of whom the former had precedency allowed him in relation to his State and Dignity not of antiquity in the Order as it was by the King of Bohemia an 19. H. 8. The King of Spain an 8. Eliz. So also upon the same Rule and for the same Reason was somtimes the third Stall on the Soveraign's side possest by Kings as in the cases of Iames the Fifth King of Scotland an 27. H. 8. and Frederick the Third King of Denmark an 25. Eliz. And lastly we find that Princes Strangers were placed next to Kings according to their state as were the Dukes of Savoy Montmorency and Holstein an 3. Eliz. Iohn Casimire Count Palatine of the Rhine an 25. Eliz. and Frederick Prince Palatine and Maurice Prince of Orange an 11. Iac. Regis But notwithstanding these Assignments of Stalls to Strangers they were nevertheless subject to removal somtime to Stalls higher than their own upon the death of a Stranger who died possest of a superior Stall and somtimes again to others lower for the advancing a Knight of greater dignity where the upper Stalls were already fill'd else could they not be placed or hold their Stalls according to their respective States as the Statute doth enjoin nor indeed would any Stranger King since the ancient manner of succeeding in Stalls received alteration have accepted of Election into the Order unless room had been made to seat him in a Stall sutable to his Dignity Instances of Advancement in translation of Stalls are of Ferdinand Emperor of Germany who after the death of the Emperor Charles the Fifth his Brother was advanced from the second Stall on the Prince's side into the Prince's Stall an 1. Eliz. Of Philip the Second King of Spain advanced from the second on the Prince's side to the second on the Soveraign's an 2. Eliz. after the death of the French King Henry the Second Of Henry the Fourth of France advanced from the second on the Soveraign's side to the Prince's Stall an 1. Iac. R. Of Christerne the Fourth King of Denmark an 9. Iac. R. from the second on the Soveraign's side to the said Princes Stall after the death of the French King Henry the Fourth And of Christierne the Fifth King of Denmark advanced from the fourth Stall on the Prince's side to the second on the Soveraign's an 22. Car. 2. Among the Princes Strangers we find Emanuel Duke of Savoy advanced from the third on the Prince's side to the second of the same side an 2. Eliz. Iohn Casimire Count Palatine from the fourth on the Soveraign's side to the third on the â—rince's an 32. Eliz. four years after the Duke of Holstein's death Frederick Prince Palatine an 1. Car. 1. was advanced from the second on the Prince's to the second on the Soveraign's side And Henry Frederick Prince
brought the persons to whom they related was it that the late Soveraign of ever blessed memory thought fit to perpetuate the Solemnity of the present Soveraign's Installation by certain Medals whereof the forms and inscriptions were these SECT XI Of setting up the Knights Atchievments THE last thing to be done at this great Solemnity is setting up the Helm Crest Sword Banner and Plate of the new installed Knight over his Stall in the Chappel of St. George at Windsor to which purpose they are to be provided in readiness according to the directions before given This though it be no part of the Ceremony of Installation yet is it a consequent thereunto and an unseparable appendix and therefore proper enough to be added here The setting up of Trophies Ensigns and Atchievements of honor anciently in Churches as well in the life time of such worthy and deserving men who had performed some gallant action as on their Tombs and Monuments after their death was chiefly designed to this end that the Beholders thereby put in mind of their great virtues might be excited to the imitation and pursuit of true Nobility Valour and Virtue Hereupon at the Institution of this most Noble Order the Atchievements of the Knights-Companions were thought fit to be set up in the Choire of the said Chappel and hence also the remarkable Plates wherein their Escotcheons of Arms curiously wrought in enamel were fastned to the back of their Stalls Not that the outward form of such things have in them any great force but that the memory of great actions done beget that ardour in the breasts of excellent persons which never is at rest till some eminent atchievements of theirs have over-taken the others fame and glory By the Statutes of Institution it is ordained that the time for setting up the Atchievements shall be when the Elect-Knight comes to Windesor Casilâ— that is to his Installation and not before and the reason is there likewise given lest it should happen he not coming within the time limited for his Installation and consequently the vacating his Election thereupon ensuing that a new Election being made those Military Ensigns might seem to be disgracefully withdrawn and an occasion of dishonor given which otherwise could not be avoided if they should be suddenly taken down from a place so high Now 't is most clear that the intention of this Article extends to the â—inishing the Ceremonies of Installation before the Atchievements ought to be set up by so carefully providing against the dishonor of taking them down in case the Election should become void which must certainly happen if the Knight-â—lect died but the hour before he were compleatly installed And accordingly in the ancient Deputation both to Sir William Philip and Sir Iohn Fasiâ—lâ— power is given their Proctors first to demand receive and obtain their Principals Stalls and next to tender their Helms and Swords to be hung up in the Choire of Windesor according to custom and for clearer information of the order and course in this Ceremony it may be observed that the Soveraign impowered his Commissioners first to give the Deputy possession of his Principals Stall and aâ—ter to receive the Atchievements and place them over it Herewith it may be considered That the Atchievements are set up in memorial of the Knight-Elect's being installed a Companion of the Order and 't is incongruous in the rules of Honor to have the sign or memorial of an action precede the action it self Again the Statutes of this most Noble Order expresly provide That the Knights Atchievements shall not be permitted to be hung up until all the Duties and Fees enjoined by the Statutes to be paid the Colledge be first discharged but 't is certain there are no Fees due and consequently cannot be challenged till the Ceremonies upon which they become due are compleatly â—inished And it is remembred as the Custom in Queen Elizabeth's Reign for the Elect-Knights Steward or some other of his Servants to bring money with them to Windesor and there pay the Fees at the Chappel door so soon as the Installation was dispatcht to the end the Atchievements might immediately after be set up But to clear all doubts which may arise upon this point it was in a Chapter held at Whitehall the 4. of February an 22. Car. 2. Ordained and Decreed That not any of the Atchievements of an Elect-Knight shall be set up in the Chappel at Windesor before he be Installed and the Fees of Installation paid It should seem that though anciently they did not set up the Elect-Knights Atchievements before he was installed yet were they prepared and brought to Windesor and disposed of or set before his Stall and in case of his not coming to receive Installation then being no otherwise placed might be the easier removed without the Choire in as decent a manner as could be that so the honor of Knighthood might be preserved entire nevertheless to be thenceforth kept for publick use and benefit of the Colledge Where we find mention made in the Annals of any person employed to set up the Atchievements of a Knight it is to be understood that he was his Proctor and installed on the behalf of that Knight whose Atchievements he so hung up And the Lord Fitz Hugh who set up the Atchievements of the King of Denmark an 9. H. 6. took also possession of that Kings Stall for and on his behalf and in his name There is but a single instance as we remember where one man hung up a Knights Atchievements and another was installed for him and this hapned an 29. H. 6. where the Lord Ryvers having been Elected to the Stall of the Lord Hungerford the 4. of August that year his Sword and Helm were hung up on the 8. of September next after by William Bobden his Esq and Guyen Herald and he installed the 30. of October following by Sir William Crafford his Proctor But this was contrary to the Law of the Order Moreover where the setting up of a Knights-Atchievements is barely mentioned without taking notice of the Installation it is to be understood that such Knights Installation was also solemnized at that time as in the case of the King of Portugal concerning whom the Annals only note that he had taken care to set up over his Stall his Helm Sword and Banner and all things belonging thereunto at the Feast celebrated at Windesor an 2. H. 6. In what manner and order these Atchievements are fixed will partly appear from the Statutes viz. the Helm and Crest are thereby appointed to be set over each Knight-Companion's Stall and the Sword to hang directly underneath them But the Plate is nailed to the Back of the Knights Stall And here for a Corollary to this Chapter let us add That as the Statutes of two of the most noted Orders of Knighthood in Christendom have in
could not be celebrated in any part of the year following the aforesaid 29. of April because the Grand Feast it self was then already past In like manner King Henry the Seventh in the 20. year of his Reign went on St. George's day in solemn Procession and very great State to the forementioned Cathedral yet notwithstanding on the 4. of May following the Grand Feast was observed at Windesor by the Earl of Arundel deputed by the Soveraign and four other of the Knights-Companions appointed for his Assistants Again an 8. H. 8. the Soveraign being at Eltham on St. George's day it was in a Chapter there held Decreed That the accustomed celebration of the Feast of St. George should be observed at Windesor upon Sunday next after Trinity Sunday being the 25. of May ensuing and the Marquess Dorset was then also appointed Lieutenant to the Soveraign for holding thereof and the Earl of Essex in whose room the Lord Poynings was afterwards substituted with the Lords La Ware Mountegle and Lovell his Assistants And from this time it became annually customary especially all the subsequent years of King Henry the Eighth's Reign Queen Mary's and unto the 9. of Queen Elizabeth to keep the day of St. George wheresoever the Soveraign at that time abode which for the most part was at Greenewich or Whitehall on which day as also on the Eve and morning after the day the usual Solemnities were observed and a noble Feast provided as hath been said But as to the celebration of the Grand Festival it self that was in one of the Chapters held during the foresaid celebrations and most commonly on St. George's day adjourned unto some further time and then solemnized at Windesor by Prorogation not by the Soveraigns themselves but by their Lieutenants and their Assistants especially deputed and appointed for that purpose But to proceed with the causes of Prorogation which were either for some considerable reasons or upon emergent occasions An. 1. Mariae the Soveraign celebrating the day of St. George at her Mannor of St. Iames's Philip then Prince of Spain and Henry Earl of Sussex were on the morrow after elected into the Order whereupon it was also decreed That the inauguration of these two Knights-Elect should be prorogued until the Prince came over into England which hapning upon the 21. day of Iuly following the Grand Feast together with that of the Elect-Knights Installations were appointed to be celebrated together to which purpose a Letter was afterwards sent unto the Knights-Companions for their repair thither against the 5. of August then next following Again an 3. 4. Ph. Mar. at a Chapter held at Westminster upon the 22. of April the Feast of St. George together with the Installation of three Knights at that time Elected was appointed to be held at Windesor on the 9. day of May following and by a Chapter summoned at the same place the 3. of May before the appointed day for keeping the Feast the same was prorogued unto the 5. of December following because of the manifold and urgent affairs of the King and Queen But before that designed time another Chapter was held at Saint Iames's upon the last day of October in the 4. and 5. years of their Reigns wherein it was again prorogued unto the first Sunday after Twelfth-day viz. the 9. of Ianuary then following if by that time the King who it seems was gone out of Flanders should return into England but there appearing afterwards no hopes of his coming over against that prefixed time another Chapter was summoned and held at Greenewich the 5. of Ianuary wherein it was Decreed urgent Affairs requiring that the said Feast should be further prorogued unto the 20. of February next coming and then the Lieutenant and Assistants appointed to the first Prorogation should celebrate this solemn Feast at Windesor in manner as it was Decreed the 22. of April preceding Nevertheless the sixth day of February after in another Chapter the Soveraign and Knights-Companions Decreed to prorogue the last mentioned Prorogation unto St. George's day then next following Because both in respect of the meeting of the Parliament and other Affairs of great importance as also by reason of the War that was begun the said Feast could not conveniently be before observed In like manner an 2. Eliz. upon the 24. of April it was Decreed that on Sunday the 5. of May the Feast of St. George should be observed with the accustomed celebrations but that morning in a Chapter held at Whitehall for very high and important causes was it prorogued until Sunday the 12. day of May immediately following on which day it was solemnized at Windesor Again King Iames having designed his Journey into Scotland to begin the 20 of March an 14. regni sui he assembles a Chapter at Whitehall the second day of that Month and therein by reason that for the cause aforesaid Saint George's Feast for the year ensuing could not conveniently be kept on the accustomed day and place decreed to celebrate the same at Windesor the 13. day of September next following where it was accordingly observed So also for causes of another but sadder nature an 17. Iac. R. viz. Queen Anne's death and the Soveraign's dangerous sickness which had brought him also neer to the gates of death was the Grand Feast prorogued from St. George's day to the 26. of May in the same year and then celebrated at Greenewich And an 1. Car. 1. the Soveraign not thinking sit for several causes at that time to keep the Grand Feast prorogued it from the 22.23 and 24. days of April unto the 16.17 and 18. of August following thence again until the 4.5 and 6. of October and lastly to the 23. 24. and 25. of November in the same year and then observed it at Windesor Sometimes this Feast hath been put off out of a respect unto the day whereon it fell as an 22. Iac. R. St. George's day then hapning upon a Friday the Soveraign therefore prorogued it until the 26. 27. and 28. days of April at which time it was celebrated at Windesor And the authority unto which regard was had in this place was that Clause in the 8. Article of King Henry the Eighth's Statutes wherein the keeping of St. George's Feast was prohibited if it fell upon any Fish or Fasting days So also an 22. Car. 2. it falling upon a Saturday was prorogued to the 27. 28. and 29. days of April following And albeit in times past this Feast hath been for the most part upon Prorogations observed upon a Sunday yet of late in veneration to this day it hath been likewise prohibited as an 2. Car. 1. St. George's day falling upon a Sunday thereupon the Solemnity was put off until Wednesday
living as the dead For the Living that in Peace and War they might manage all their Affairs with piety prudence and good success For the Dead that having obtained remission they might reign together in eternal bliss And not knowing what dangers might surround them the living thought themselves obliged the more servently to assist them with their Prayers supposing it uncertain whether they were in glory or torment That by pious Prayers they might endeavour to turn Gods vengeance due for the many sins committed in this life into clemency inasmuch as continual supplication was indeed very prevalent and might reach the ears of the Almighty That this kind of commemoration moved the greatest Princes to be so expensive in sumptuous Structures for the assembling such as should continually pray therein as also inferiour persons according to their abilities to promote their own and others salvation And that the Princes reflecting on the uncertainty of their own lives and considering that many were in their Services cut off amidst the hazards of War and how doubtful such a departure was endeavoured to assist them in the next World since they could no longer do it in this which if by any thing was to be performed by Prayer Out of these perswasions that this was availaable they had their recourse thereto and so began to institute persons and places for the making of Prayers to that end With what hath been delivered concerning the motive of this Office for the dead it may be also observed that the Founder of the Order admitted into its Institution the commemoration of the departed Souls of the Knights-Companions and thereupon it came to be ordained That assoon as the Soveraign should have true and certain intelligence brought him of the Death of any of the Knights-Companions he should cause to be celebrated for the Soul of a Defunct Knight a thousand Masses And that all the rest of the Knights-Companions might upon like notice contribute to the relief of the Soul of their deceased Fellow and Companion the Proportions were in like manner stated in the same Article of the Statutes thus A Stranger King 800. Masses The Prince 700. Masses Every Duke 600. Masses Each Earl 300. Masses Every Baron 200. Masses And a Knight Batchellour 100. Masses Afterwards when the Titles of Marquess and Viscount were introduced among us the proportion of Masses imposed upon the former was 450. as being a Degree of Dignity between those of a Duke and an Earl on the latter 250. And the numbers of all these Masses were rated proportionable to the Fees enjoined to be paid for setting up the Knights-Companions Atchievements over their Stalls Now to prevent the neglect in performance of this duty incumbent upon the Soveraign and surviving Knights-Companions by this Article of the Statutes it was thought fit to set down for penalty a compleat doubling of the number of those Masses to which at first they were enjoined according to their qualities and Degrees if they were not celebrated within three Months after notice given of the deceased Knights Death as aforesaid And if the neglect extended to half a year together they were obliged to quadruple their number and so from time to time until the years end But if after all this they should not within the whole year perform what they were so enjoined the Statute further bound them to double the Masses from year to year after the foresaid manner But to provide against any omission of the Soveraigns part it was added to the Registers Duty an 31 H. 8. to put the Soveraign in mind of giving Order herein if at any time it should happen to be forgotten by him to the end he might forthwith take care to have the Masses celebrated according to the said Injunction And because it was at length thought convenient to withdraw this burthen from Stranger Kings and Princes that branch of the Statute relating to them was made null and in a Chapter held at Windesor the 8. of May an 13 H. 6. the same was by the Soveraign placed upon himself and his Successours Soveraigns of this most Noble Order But because all the surviving Knights-Companions might the better perform this Injunction and cause the full number of Masses to be celebrated care was taken by the Soveraign to send Letters to every one of them at first as well to Knights-Strangers as Subjects immediately after the decease of any Knight to signify the time of his Death and put them in mind of the Injunction which the Statutes laid upon them Of which Letters some Precedents may be seen in the Appendix The difference between those Letters sent to the Knights-Companions beyond Sea and these at home was only this that in these directed to the latter in regard of their nearness to the Court and consequently in greater readiness to appear at an Election The Letters contained a summons also to come to the Election of a new Knight on such a day as the Soveraign had therein appointed And it seems it was the custom for those Religious Houses whether the Soveraign sent directions to celebrate either part or all the Masses due to each deceased Knight to make a formal return in writing under their Common Seal of what they had done therein which Certificates were also by the Register reported in Chapter to the Soveraign or his Lieutenant For an 18 H. 8. we find him acquaint the Soveraigns Lieutenant with several such Certificates signifying the Celebration of 1000. Masses upon the Soveraigns account for each of these Knights defunct namely the Earls of Arundel Shrewsbury Essex and Rutland the Viscount Fitz-walter and Lord Abergaveny and at other times siting the Chapter there wâ—re brought in such like authentick Letters certifying the celebration of the Masses for the Souls of other defunct Knights This course of celebrating these Masses for defunct Knights was constantly observed and so continued until the 32 d. year of King Henry the Eighth at which time upon a motion made concerning those suffrages for the Dead in a Chapter held in his Palace at Westminster on the 24 th of May in the aforesaid year this Decree passed That every one of the Knights-Companions in lieu of the said Masses should for the future after the Death of any of their Brethren according to the rates of their Degrees hereafter mentioned and immediately upon demand made for the same by the Register and Dean of Windesor or one of them pay the several sums of money here specified  l. s. d. The Soveraign 08 06 08. A Stranger King 06 08 04. The Prince 05 16 08. A Duke 05 00 00. A Marquess 03 16 00. An Earl 02 10 00. A Viscount 01 01 08. A Baron 01 13 04. A Batchellor Knight 00 16 08. The monies collected upon this Account called Obit monies were by the aforesaid Decree appointed to be distributed and imployed in Alms Deeds
of Chartain and of Drouais And then all the County of Montsort to be surrendred to King Edward within a Month after Or otherwise Hostages In Berry and Bourbonoys The Fortresses of Brisansoys of St. Torete le Priague also Chabries Espunell Beamein Briance Masbres the Abbey of Diverlaks Thos Bruyll Ameron Vierson Mausey Bourseront the Roche Tnay Blotueres Villers Montempny Beauuoirs Beau Ien Voderon In Tourrayne Lisle Bouchart the Roche of Fowsey Piry Milieres Roulet Piergu Veres de Desrubay the Pleyssers Dinone Langere Osem Palnau and all other Fortresses in the party of Auvergne of Bourbonoys d' Amascon of Lyon of Berry and of Touraine And within a Month after the French King was to deliver up the Country of Angoulesmois or Hostages In Normandy Anjou and Mayne The Fortresses de Donefront in Passais Neuim Mirebel upon the Loyre the Toures de Villers Saintwast the Brois Demaine Conde upon Noire and another Fortress thereby called Messe Tynchebray Annillers the new Boure the Ferte freswel the Roche Doryvall the Morle Racul the Tower of St. Christopher Villerais Husron Honnesfleth Trisenay the Vicount of Plessoys Buret la Rouche dire le Port Ioulein la Flesche Willie Viez Passavant Roussailes And within one Month the French King was to surrender Santes and the County of Santoigne or Hostages And all the Fortresses in Pierregort Coursin and Agenoys For the surrender of all which the King made forth Commissions to several persons bearing date as aforesaid at Calais The two Kings then also made a League for them their Heirs and Successors of perpetual friendship and alliance to become faithful friends to assist each other against all persons whatsoever except the Pope and the Emperor and moreover made a solemn Renunciation to all Wars against each other their Heirs and Successors Realms and Subjects to both which League and Renunciation their eldest and other Sons signed and divers of the Nobility on both sides were sworn A Proclamation then also issued from King Edward directed to Thomas Holland Earl of Kent and all other Captains of Towns c. held for the King in France to give notice to all places within their Command of this Peace and final accord made as aforesaid All things relating to this Peace being thus concluded and the French Hostages arrived at Calais King Edward entertained King Iohn at a great Supper in the Castle where the Kings Sons the Duke of Lancaster and other of the chief Nobility of England served the Kings bare-headed and when Supper was ended both Kings took leave of each other The next morning King Iohn and his Attendants went a foot on pilgrimage to our Lady of Bouloigne the Prince of Wales and his Brothers accompanied him thither where in the Church of our Lady they all made their Offerings and thence went to the Abby and having taken leave of King Iohn they returned to Calais the next day Soon after King Edward the Prince and French Hostages took shipping for England where they arrived on the Eve of the Feast of All-Saints The Peace thus setled endured all the life of King Iohn who took all possible care to have it entirely preserved and himself ever after kept good correspondence with King Edward to whom he gave all evidence of affection and love insomuch that about the end of the year 1363. he came into England only upon a visit to King Edward After his landing he rode first to Eltham and there dined with the King 24. Ian. 37. E. 3. and thence that afternoon to the Savoy in the Strand where he lodged and was entertained with all possible kindness but about the beginning of March following he fell sick and dyed the 8. of April an 38. E. 3. for whose death the King appointed solemn obsequies in divers places and conducted his Body out of England with a Royal magnificence About these times the Reputation of the King grew so great that several foreign Kings and Princes came hither to his Court either to visit him or congratulate his Victories or to obtain his assistance and relief and these were the foresaid King Iohn Peter King of Cyprus and David King of Scots an 37. E. 3. as also Wuldemer King of Denmark and Albert Duke of Bavaria his Letters of safe Conduct being dated the 6. of Dec. and to continue in force till Mid-summer after But Charles King Iohns Son and Successor who had sworn to and sealed the Treaty at Chartres was soon perswaded to violate the Peace though with great artifice he dissembled his intentions for some time For though he readily gave ear to the Complaints of some of the discontented Nobility of Gascoigne who quitting their Homage to the Prince fled to Paris and complained to him as their Supreme Lord of the Fouage imposed on that Country by the Prince pretending that King Iohn had not power to release them of their Homage to the Crown of France or deliver over their Country to the King of England Yet he forbore laying hold on this occasion at least for one year after their complaint But then all of a sudden King Edward not suspecting any fraud but thinking himself sufficiently secured by the Treaty of Peace made at Britagne the French King sent him a defiance and by the time it was thought to be delivered Guy Earl of St. Paul one of the French Hostages who had slipt out of the Kingdom without taking leave as had also the Duke of Anjou and some others of them and Sir Hugh de Castilion entred Ponthieu with an Army and were received into Abeville afterwards took St. Valery and Crotoy and immediately all Ponthieu revolted Hereupon the King assembled a Parliament at Westminster and about the end of May the Lords and Commons declared That whereas the French King had broke the foresaid Peace in not delivering the Countries nor paying the monies agreed on there and had usurped the Resort and Superiority which ought to appertain to the King of England and his Heirs in the Lands surrendred to him by the foresaid agreement by summoning the Prince and some of the Nobility of the Kings Allies to answer certain Appeals at Paris and surprised and taken divers Castles c. in Ponthieu and Gascoigne and was setting forth a Fleet to invade England contrary to his Oath and the form of the Peace therefore with their whole consent it was agreed That the King should resume the name of King of England and France as he had done before the Peace and for the future so call himself in his Letters and under his Seals Hereupon on Monday being St. Barnaby's day there were several new Seals provided in one of which was inscribed Edwardus Rex Angliae Franciae c. and in another Edwardus Rex Franciae Angliae c. Shortly after he sent an Army under the Command of the Earls of Cambridge and Penbroke into Aquitain who landing
through France to Bourdeux and there he arrived about Christmas in which Voyage though the French durst not fight him and all the way avoided the hazard of a Battel yet through the scarcity of Victuals many dyed not to mention the loss of 30000 Horse About the beginning of the following Summer at the Pope's instance a Truce was made by this Duke and the Duke of Anjou to continue till the last of August wherein it was agreed that in the beginning of September there should meet in Picardy on the English part the Duke of Lancaster and other Commissioners to treat of Peace with the Duke of Anjou and others on the French part where also the Popes Legate should appear as Mediatour and in pursuance thereof the Duke of Lancaster took Shipping the 8. of Iuly an 48 E. 3. after whose departure all Poictou and Aquitaine fell from their Allegiance except Bourdeux and Bajon In this year the Earl of Cambridge and the Duke of Bretagne were constituted the Kings Lieutenants in France after which Commands were sent forth to arrest Ships for their passage thither to be at Dertmouth and Plimouth with all speed But notwithstanding these preparations yet they went not till the following Spring having then in their retinue many of the English Nobility and for whose good success publick Prayers were appointed to be made In this Expedition the Duke recovered many of his Towns but being included in the Truce made by the Duke of Lancaster he was thereby obliged to lay down his Arms. For upon the mediation of the Bishops of Roan and Carpentras the Pope's Nuncios there had been a Treaty set on Foot at Bruges in Flanders this Year managed chiefly by Iohn Duke of Lancaster who with Simon Bishop of London William Earl of Salisbury Sir Iohn Cobham Sir Franke de Hale Sir Arnold Savage Mr. Iohn de Shepeye and Mr. Simon de Molton were commissionated to carry on that Affair on King Edwards part and by Philip Duke of Burgundy on the behalf of his Brother Charles the French King which though it brought not forth a compleat Peace yet in effect it put an end to the present War for it produced a Truce to hold for a year viz. to the last of Iune an 50 E. 3. to give notice of which to the English Subjects a Proclamation was set forth And a quarter of a year before its expiration at another meeting at the same place this Truce was inlarged to the first of April an 51 E. 3. and thereupon another Proclamation issued to make it known But it appears that the French were gotten to Sea sometime before the expiration of this latter Truce and had done much hurt upon the Sea-Coasts Of this design of theirs the King had timely intelligence and therefore he endeavoured to enlarge the Truce to which end he empowred Iohn Bishop of Hereford Sir Iohn de Cobham of Kent Iohn Monteacute Bannerets and Iohn Shepeye Doctor of the Laws to Treat with the Earl of Salebruch Monsieur Chatillon and Philebert le Spoit where the Pope's Legats were also present as Mediators But nothing was done thereupon only the Legate proposed a Marriage between Richard Prince of Wales and the Lady Mary Daughter to the French King which begot a private meeting shortly after at Montrevile by the Sea and there Sir Richard Dangle Sir Richard Stan and Sir Geoffry Chaucer Commissioners for King Edward with the Lord Coucy and other Commissioners for the French King spent the time chiefly to found one anothers intentions and so departed without any other effect saving that of Proroguing the Truce to May day following The 26 of April another Commission was made for the same purpose to Adam Bishop of St. Davids Iohn Bishop of Hereford William Earl of Salisbury Robert de Ashton the Kings Chamberlain Guichard Dangle Banneret Aubrey de Vere Hugh de Segrave Knights Walter Skirlow Dean of St. Martins le Grand and the foresaid Iohn Shepeye which gave them power to treat and compose all differences Wars and contentions They thereupon came to Calais and the Lord Coucy and Sir William Dormer Chancellor of France came to Montrevile but by reason of the suspicion the Commissioners had of each other they could not agree of an indifferent place to meet at and so the time limitted by the Truce spinning on absolutely expired And in this posture the Affairs relating to France stood to wit in open hostility till the Death of King Edward Thus we see that from the breach of the Treaty and Entry upon King Edwards Territories to the time of his Death he all along steered against the Tide of adverse Fortune and what with Invasions Revolts and disastrous accidents though no pitch'd Battel was fought nothing of his great Conquests remained to him but only Calais and the small Territory adjoining But of the strange unsuccessfulness of these subsequent years there might be three main causes First the loss of so many stout and well disciplin'd Souldiers as upon their disbanding after the Peace made near Chartres joyned themselves to the Companions and marcht into Spain Italy and Germany to which number may be added those who perished in the Princes expedition into Spain of whom scarce the fifth man returned a sort of people so inur'd to War and such as had gained so great experience therein that the very Common Souldiers among them were men of good conduct The French King knew well enough how much King Edwards power was weakned through the want of those men and that as to such as might be raised a-new few of them having been trained up in the former Wars he thought he might the better deal with them in regard that many of his own disbanded Souldiers were still within his Kingdom and lay ready at his service A second cause might be that the King declining in years and the Prince of Wales growing daily worse and worse of a lingering sickness without hope of Recovery the French King took the more heart and began now not to fear either them or their Fortunes which before had proved so terrible to France And therefore he supposed if he could make a shift but to keep his Forces on Foot against their declining power he might deal well enough with those who should succeed them none of King Edwards other Sons having given such proof of their success in martial affairs as to be feared by him and much less was any such thing to be expected when an Infant King was likely to succeed Lastly His supplies of Money from his Subjects who before had freely enough opened their Purses to carry on the War began to fail him For being tyred out with the prosecution of it they complained of Poverty and thence it came that the Forces raised to recover what was lost were inconsiderable in comparison of the former Royal Armies levied
Lancaster in Chief Command behind him to whom they did fealty and Homage in the Princes presence and kist his mouth The Affairs of these Countries being thus Ordered the Prince and Princess their young Son Richard the Earls of Cambridge and Penbroke took Shipping for England and arrived at Plimouth about the beginning of Ianuary whence they rode to the King at Windesor where after some stay he took his leave and retired to his own House and about two years after surrendred the Dignity of Prince of Guynne and his whole right therein to his Father King Edward While he was yet in Minority there were several matches designed for him as first being but a year old a Commission was given to Iohn Darcy and William Trussell Knights to treat and agree with Philip King of France or his Deputies upon espousals and Matrimony between this young Prince and King Philips Daughter but the quarrel breaking out afterwards with that King there was no further progress made in his Affair The next proposal was for Margaret one of the Daughters of Iohn Duke of Brabant and Lorraine to which purpose a Commission was made out to Henry Bishop of Lincoln and William de Bohun Earl of Northampton to treaâ— with the said Duke or his Deputies upon this matter and for which in regard they were both within the third Degree of Consanguinity the Popes Dispensations was several times endeavoured to be obtained by Letters sent from the King but he could not be induced to do any thing therein Another match was proposed with a Daughter of the King of Portugal and thereupon the King Commissionated Mr. Andrew Offord Richard de Soham and Philip de Barton to treat of a Marriage not only between the Prince but any other of his Sons and any one of the Daughters of the said King That also taking no effect there was another Commission issued to Robert de Stratton Canon of Chichester and Richard de Soham to treat with the said King concerning a marriage between the Prince and his Daughter Leonora But none of these which were of others providing took effect but at length an 35. E. 3. he married with a Lady of his own choice namely Ioan Countels of Kent Sister and Heir to Iohn Plantagenet Earl of Kent and the Relict of Sir Thomas Holland one of the first Founders of this most Noble Order commonly called for her Excellent Beauty the fair Maid of Kent And because the Prince had married her notwithstanding nearness of Kindred between them and of his Christning her eldest Son it was thought requisite to have a Papal Absolution from Excommunication and Dispensation for Marriage both which were obtained from Pope Innocent the Sixth in the 9. year of his Popedom By her he had two Sons namely Edward the Eldest born at Angoulesme in Feb. 1365. Leland saith 1364. who dyed in Gascoigne at 7. years of Age and Richard the second Son born at Bordeaux on Twelfth-Day being Wednesday at three a Clock in the Afternoon 1366. and had three Kings to his Godfathers viz. of Spain Navarre and Portugal Besides these he had two Natural Sons Iohn Sounder and Sir Roger de Clarendon to the latter of these he gave by his Will a Silk Bed with all thereunto belonging This Roger was after made one of the Knights of the Chamber to King Richard the Second to whom the said King the first of October 13. R. 2. gave for life 100 l. per annum out of the Issues of his Subsidies in the Counties of Bristol Gloucester Somerset Dorset and Cornwall His Disease contracted in Spain grown now uncurable and he drawing near to his end made his Will in the Kings great Chamber at Westminster the 7. of Iune an 50. E. 3. and disposed of his Body to be buried in the Cathedral Church of the Trinity in Canterbury And such was his care of those who had done him service that he charged his Son Richard by his Will to continue the payment of those Pensions which he had given them The Executors nominated therein were his Brother of Spain the Duke of Lancaster William Bishop of Winchester Iohn Bishop of Bath William Bishop of St. Asaph Robert de Walsham his Confessor Hugh de Segrave Steward of his Lands Aleyn de Stokes and Iohn de Fordham The next day after his Will was made being Trinity Sunday this Noble Prince the Flower of Chevalry and delight of the English Nation departed the World his body being imbalmed was wrapt in Lead and kept till Michaelmas the Parliament being then to meet to be interred with greater Solemnity which was performed at Canterbury near the Shrine of Thomas Becket over whose Grave a stately Monument was erected for him which yet remains undefaced 3 Henry Earl of Lancaster THE second Stall on the Soveraign's side was assigned to Henry then Earl of Lancaster and Derby Son to Henry Earl of Lancaster Brother and Heir of Thomas Earl of Lancaster Beheaded at Pontefract on Monday before our Lady-Day an 15. E. 2. and Maude Daughter and Heir to Sir Patrick Cadurces or Chaworth Knight Lord of Kidwelly and Ogmore in Wales The first considerable Military Honor conferred on him was that of Commander in Chief of all the King's Forces sent into Scotland an 10. E. 3. for the Truce with the Scots having been upon the request both of the Pope and King of France and earnest sollicitation of their Ambassadors several times prorogued between the 23. of Nov. an 9. E. 3. and the Sunday next after Ascension day following it then expired before which the King had intelligence of their confederacies abroad and great preparations for War and being engaged to assist and defend Edward Baliol King of Scots who had done him Homage for that Kingdom he thereupon raised an Army for that purpose and gave this noble Knight command thereof by the name of Henry de Lancaster only though I find him in another place relative to this employment called Henry de Lancastre Banneret And by another Commission he gave him power to receive to Faith and Peace the Scots or their adherents and to grant them pardon Shortly after he aâ—â— Tho. Beauchamp Earl of Warwick Henry de Bellomont Earl of Bogham and William de Bohun had Commission given them to treat with Sir Andrew Murrese a Scotch Knight about a Truce between the King and his Subjects in Scotland and the said Sir Andrew and other the Scots to hold till Midsummer following Towards the latter end of this year David Bruys then in France had obtained that Kings assistance and gotten together a great Navy with which he did much mischief to the Merchants about the Isle of Wight besides he had entred the Isles of Gerusey and Iarsey and killed divers of the Inhabitants The King therefore gave Commission to the Archbishop of Canterbury and others
speed Immediately after his arrival in Gascoigne he took the Field and laid Siege to Bosyll which surrendred to him The Castle of Rochemyllone being well fortified he took by assault and slew all but those that fled into the Church the next day he laid Siege to the Town of Mountsegur and battered it with great Engines for 15 days together and at length it was yielded to him upon Composition After this the strong Castle of Aguillon was yielded up to him and then he laid Siege to Reole which surrendred on mercy but the Castle stood out 11 weeks and then also surrendred After his taking of Reole he marched to Mountpesance Castle which he took by Storm and then he sat down before Mauleon and took it by the stratagem of an Ambush He took also the Ville Franche in Agenois with its Castle by assault after which he marched through the Country and took many other Towns and Castles with little difficulty At the end of three days Siege Myremont yielded to him and some of his Forces took Thomynes on the River Garonne and the strong Castle Damasan Last of all Augoulesme yielded to him after a Months Siege and thence he retired to his Winter Quarter at Bordeaux This Winter the Duke of Normandy entred Gascoigne with 100000 men and shortly after Christmas took the Field in this Expedition he regained several places from the English and sat down before Aiguillon but after the Battel at Cressy being sent for back by the French King he was constrained to raise his Siege Shortly after the retreat of the Duke of Normandy this Earl the King having sent to the Prior of the Order of the Friers Preachers in London to offer up Prayers that God would please to protect and defend him and give his Forces Victory over his Enemies with 1200 men at Arms 2000 Archers and 3000 Foot passed the River Garonne towards Xantonge and took Myrabel by Storm as also the Town and Castle of Alaay and Sargeres and Benon He likewise took Mortagne on the Sea side in Poictou by assault and burnt Lusignen and took the Town and Castle of Taillebourge at length he lay Siege to St. Iean d' Angely which surrendred to him upon Conditions after which he took Maxinent by assault and won the Town of Monstrevil Bonnin he thence marched to Poicters and that he took by Assault where 700 of the Inhabitants were slain and some Churches spoiled and more had been but that this pious Earl commanded the contrary on pain of death Nevertheless they plundred the Town and left it desolate and here the Soldiers got so great Wealth that nothing was of value but Gold Silver and Feathers for the Troops From hence he returned to St. Iean d' Angely and thence to Bordeaux and in this Expedition he gained so great esteem that he was reported to be the Noblest Prince that ever rode on Horseback Having behaved himself so gallantly and faithfully in prosecuting and recovering of the King 's right in these parts the first of Febr. an 21. E. 3. the King sent for him back to be near unto himself for the future upon all occasions and to direct and assist in his Martial and other Affairs whereupon he returned into England and because King Edward understood that the French King was making great preparations to draw down to Calais about Whitsontide he enjoyned him speedily to repair to his assistance in reference to whose passage Command was sent to Io. de Montgomery Admiral of the Fleet Westward to provide Ships in readiness at Sandwich and Dover for the Transportation of the Army he had raised with all speed and immediately upon his coming thither and consideration had of his victorious Successes and good Services done the King in the Dukedom of Aquitain and parts adjoining the King granted to him and his Heir Males by Charter the Castle Town and Place of Brageriac in Diocess Petragoriensis with the whole Castellany and all Iurisdiction high and low Royal Authority absolute and mixt as also the Coinage of Money there To which he afterward added a grant of the Examination of the Assay with both the Criminal and Civil punishment of all Offenders for coyning Money And because this Town and Castle stood upon the Frontiers of the Enemy the King granted that during the War there should remain in that Garrison 100 men of Arms and 200 Foot at the King's pay subject nevertheless to the Command of the Steward of Gascoigne to be drawn out upon occasion by him leaving sufficient strength to defend the same This Earl having taken divers Prisoners at the Town of St. Iohn d' Angely and reduced it to the obedience of the King he therefore granted to him all the Lands Tenements Vines and other Goods of those Prisoners until their Ransoms were fully paid And a little after granted unto him and his Heirs for ever the Houses Lands c. of Bernard Barram Burgess of that Town to hold by the Service of rendring to the King and his Heirs one Rose annually at Midsummer Moreover on the 10. of November following he had further granted the Castle of Horston with the appurtenances in the County of Derby and 40 l. per an out of the Farm of the Town of Derby to him and his Heirs Males then the same to revert to the King and his Heirs All these Grants were made to him upon the account of his good and grateful services formerly performed Upon the French King 's coming towards Calais in Iuly before with design to relieve it the King appointed him to keep Newland bridge for by securing that passage the French could not pass on that side unless through the Marches which were not to be attempted without danger His order in keeping this place was much commended by the four French Commissioners who passed by it when they came from their King to King Edward to demand a place to fight in At this time the Pope having sent two Cardinals to the King they obtained his condescention to treat with King Philip whose Commissioners were the Dukes of Burgoigne and Burbone the Lord Lewis de Savoy and the Lord Iohn of Henalt otherwise called Lord Beaumont and on King Edwards part were the Noble Earls of Derby and Northampton the Lords Cobham and Mannie but three days being spent without coming to any conclusion the Treaty broke up and the Cardinal Mediators departed He was after made choice of by the King and Ralph Earl of Eu and Guynes Constable of France by the French King to agree upon a Truce in hopes of a Peace to hold for 6. Weeks throughout Picardy Normandy Artois Boulogne and Flanders to commence the 13. of the same September The 25. day of September following he was constituted the Kings Lieutenant as well in the parts of Flanders and Calais as
elsewhere in the Kingdom of France and therein power was given him to treat and agree with any of the Kings Adversaries or their Adherents or other persons whatsoever And after by a particular Commission he and William Bishop of Norwich the Earls of Suffolk and Huntington and others were impowred to Treat and agree with the Earl of Flanders and his Allies touching any difference between the King and them and it seems their Endeavours took so good effect that an Agreement was made with that Earl the 10. of December following whereupon he was sent to Denemere and there received the said Earls Fealty and Homage As to his transactions relating to France He with the Bishop of Norwich the Earl of Suffolk and Sir Walter Many agreed to the Prorogation of the Truce from the 18. of November to the first of September following Upon the Death of his Father which fell out an 19. E. 3. he succeeded him in the Titles of the Earldoms of Lancaster and Leicester and for that a great part of the Lands sometimes the Earl of Lincolns were come to his possession the King Created him also Earl of Lincoln He had by his Charter of Creation granted unto him the Creation annuity of 20 l. to be paid him by the Sheriff of Lincolnshire for the time being in lieu of the third penny of that County for ever as Thomas late Earl of Lincoln his Uncle had to enjoy whilst he lived About 8. days after the King renued his Commission for being his Captain and Lieutenant in Aquitain and the parts adjacent with all Powers requisite for the better Government of those Dominions whether he shortly after pass'd And by other Letters Patent he constituted him his Captain and Lieutenant in Poicters with full power to exercise all things which appertained to that Command But for further increase of Honor the King Created him Duke of Lancaster and granted that during life he should have within that Country his Chancellor and Iustice as well to the Pleas of the Crown as other Pleas whatsoever to be held according to Law and the Executions of them and likewise all other Liberties and Royal Jurisdiction to a County Palatine appertaining as freely and wholly as the Earl of Chester was known to enjoy in the County of Chester the tenths and fifteenths and all other payments granted by the Clergy or Canons and pardons for life and members to the King excepted The 8. of March ensuing he was constituted Admiral of the Fleet from the mouth of the River Thames Westward and two days after the King Assigned him several Lieutenants namely Reginald de Ferers on the River Thames and Medway Robert Ledred Serjeant at Arms within the Cinque-Ports Philip de Wetton and Walter de Harewell Serjeants at Arms in the Port of Seford and in every part and place thence by the Sea-Coast to Fowy Richard Lengles in the Port of Fowy and thence to Bristol and there and in the Port of Chepstow and River of Severn and Ralph de Lullebrock in all places and Ports from Chepstow to Chester and there and in all Parts and Maritine places in Wales Upon a Rumor that the French had provided an Army and Navy to invade England among the Maritine Counties on the South of England Hants Wilts Somerset and Dorset were committed to this Duke to secure and to resist the Enemy So also was the Maritine parts of Lancashire And because the King had occasion to raise men for Land Service he gave him Commission to array 300. Archers within that Dutchy before the Quindena of the Holy Trinity then next following to be ready to march in the Kings Service The Scots also designing to invade England the following year this Duke had Commission to array all able men in Lancashire between the Age of 1â— and 60 to march against them in case they should presume to enter the Kingdom The like Commission was given him the 26. of February an 29. â— 3. The 14. of September an 29. E. 3. this noble Duke was constituted Lieutenant for the King and Iohn Duke of Bretagne then under age And by other Letters Patent of the same date Command was given to Sir Thomas Holland the Kings late Lieutenant to deliver up to him all the Castles Forts Cities Towns and other Places Lands Tenements and Rents in the said Dukedom under his custody with all the Corn Victuals Money and Issues of the said Dukedom as also all Victuals Engines Arms and other Ammunition in the said Castles c. which belonged to the King in Bretagne The 8. of August an 30. E. 6. he was by the Kings Letters Patent constituted Lieutenant and Captain in the Dukedom of Bretagne and parts adjacent for the good Government thereof both for the King and the said Iohn de Montford Duke of Bretagne then under age and in the King's custody from Michaelmas following for one year Froissard saith this Duke was in Normandy and with him the Lord Philip of Navarre and the Lord Godfrey of Harecourt carrying on the War in that Country under the Title of the King of Navar at such time as the Prince was foraging of Berry and used all endeavour to have joined his Forces with the Prince at Poicters but the passages being so well kept on the River Loire he could not pass and having heard that the Prince had got the Victory there he returned into England In this Voyage being 4000 strong they marched to Lisieux to Orbeâ— to Ponteau and relieved that Castle besieged above two Months but the Enemy hearing of the approach of the English raised their Siege in such hast that they left behind them their Ensigns and Artillery This Duke then marched to Breteuil which he relieved next to Verneuil in Perche took both Castle and Town and burnt a great part of it Upon the information of which the French King raised a mighty Army with design to fight him but he withdrawing to Laigle and the King being come within two Leagues of it found the Forest so thick and hazardous that he thought it not safe to pass further and in his return took from the Navarrois the Castles of Tilliers and Breteuil and so marched forward towards the Prince then harrasing Berry About the middle of May an 31. E. 3. he took the Field in Bretagne with 1000 men at Arms and 500 Archers and laid Siege to Rennes which though well defended was at length surrendred and the 25. of Iuly his Commission of Lieutenancy both for the King and Duke of Bretagne was renued for another year to commence at Michaelmas following but the 8. of August before the expiration thereof Sir Robert Herle and Iohn de Buckenham Clerk were appointed to succeed him being jointly and severally constituted Captains and Lieutenants both to the King and Duke for the following year from Michaelmas then next ensuing
first designed for Gascoigne an 20. E. 3. he was made Admiral of the Fleet but the King altering his course upon the advice of Sir Godfry de Harecourt took into his own Ship the Admirals Colours and sailed towards Normandy Where landing at Hoges this Earl made the first attempt with one Esquire and six Archers against 100 Normans whereof 60 were slain upon the place and by this valiant action made way for the Kings Army to land Upon this he was constituted one of the Marshals of the Kings Army and Sir Godfry de Harecourt the other And upon the Kings advance to Cressy he was one of the Commanders under the Prince of Wales who led the Van of his Army in that famous battel He attended the King at the Siege of Calais with 3 Bannerets 61 Knights 160 Esquires 154 Archers on Horseback and upon its surrender he with the Earl of Stafford and Sir Walter Manny had the Keys of the Town delivered them by the King and were appointed to take possession of it for him And for his great services in this Voyage into France the King gave him 1366 l. 11. s. 8 d. and after assigned him 1000 Marks per annum for life out of the Customs of London Lynn and St. Botolphs and these partly in recompence for his great services and partly for wages due for attendance on his person with 100 men at Arms according to certain Indentures of Covenants made betwixt them He was also in that Naval fight against the Spanish Fleet near Winchelsey quarto Calendas Septembris an 24. E. 3. where the English took 26 of their best Ships the rest fled or were sunk King Edward having received intelligence that the French King threatned an Invasion this Earl was constituted Admiral of the Sea from the River Thames Westward and Philip de Witton made his Lieutenant The same year he was constituted one of the Commissioners assigned for the Arraying all able men as well Knights and Esquires as others within the Counties of Warwick Leicester and Worcester for defence of the Realm The Prince being constituted the King's Lieutenant in Aquitaine he attended him thither and there staid with him that year and the year after And that the Town of Vattes in Bretagne might be made defensible he had command to take care of the fortifying it and to furnish the Magazin with stores In the Battel at Poictiers the French King and his eldest Son encountred the Battel of the English Marshals led by the Earls of Warwick and Suffolk And after the Victory the Prince sent this Earl and Sir Reignold Cobham to discover what was become of the French King who after some time espied a Company of Souldiers together and riding towards them found the French King on foot in great danger between the English and Gascoigners for they had taken him from Sir Denis Morbeck to whom the King first yielded himself and in token thereof had given him his right Gauntlet there being above 10 Knights and Esquires among them who challenged him for their Prisoner but this Earl entring the throng commanded the Souldiers to fall back and brought King Iohn to the Prince In this Battel the Earl himself took William de Melleun Archbishop of Seinz Prisoner for whose Ransom he after received 8000 l. and therein behaved himself most valiantly and got great renown having fought so long that his hand was galled with the management of his Sword and Poleax This Earl was in the Gascoigne War an 31. E. 3. he also attended the King in his Expedition into France an 33. E. 3. And after the Peace was agreed upon at Bretigny near Chartres and the King returned to England he gave this Earl the Command of all the Forces he left behind him in Guyenne or any other place on that side the Sea An. 36. E. 3. he marched in the Retinue of Iohn Duke of Bretagne The following year he attended the Prince of Wales into Gascoigne and had an allowance of 452 l. in recompence of his expences and loss sustained by stay of himself and Men at Arms at Southampton After he had been a while in Gascoigne he began his Travels into other Countries having a Train of 300 Horse consisting of Knights Esquires Archers and Servants In this Journey he spent 3 years having made great proof of his Valour in the East Countries against the Pagans and in his return for England brought along with him the King of Lituania's Son to whom being christened in London this Earl was Godfather and named him Thomas His Commission for Marshal of England was renewed to him an 40. E. 3. and the following year he and the Bishop of Durham and some others were impowered to supervise the Marches of Scotland and to treat with David de Bruys about the rupture of the Truce formerly made at Berwick and several injuries done by the Scots He married Katherine one of the Daughters of Roger Mortimer Earl of March who dyed some few weeks before him He had by her these Children Guy his eldest Son who died in France Thomas who succeeded him in his Earldom Reynburn William Lord Bergaveny and Roger. His Daughters were Maud the Wife of Roger Lord Clifford Philippa of Hugh Earl of Stafford Alice of Iohn Beauchamp of Hach Ioane of Ralph Lord Basset of Drayton Isabel of Iohn Lord Strange of Blackmere Margaret of Guy de Montfort Agnes of Cokesey Iulian and Katherine This noble Earls last action was in the Isle of Caux an 43. E. 3. for passing over to Calais in assistance of the Duke of Lancaster as is mentioned the French having intelligence of his coming presently withdrew in great confusion from Chalke-hill where they had pitcht their Tents and upon his arrival understanding that the English had only faced the French and not fought them he could not forbear to condemn their slackness and out of a high sence and indignation thereof said I will go on and fight before the English bread which we have eaten be digested and forthwith past into the Isle of Caux in Normandy which he entred with Fire and Sword but returning to Calais he fell sick of the Pestilence then vulgarly called the Third Mortality and died on the 13. of November His Body was brought over into England and interred in the middle of the Choire of the Collegiate Church at Warwick the Sculp of whose Monument is to be seen in the Antiquities of Warwickshire 5 Piers Capitow de la Bouch. We are yet to seek who this person was notwithstanding there hath wanted no pains in the search That his name was Peter is most evident from the Inscription under his Plate yet remaining in Windesor Chappel in these very Syllables Le Capitow de la Bouch Monsieur Piers But whether Peter de Greilly
the King of France and entred Bretagne this Sir Iohn with some few Forces left Aquitaine and came to the assistance of Iohn Earl of Montford who received him with great joy having so great an opinion of his Valour and Conduct that he conceived no misfortune could fall upon him while he stayed with him By his advice and valour as all acknowledged the French were defeated Sir Bertrand de Guesclin taken Prisoner by an English Esquire under Sir Iohn's Standard Charles de Bloys there slain and the Enemy pursued 8 Leagues even to the Gates of Rennes This Battel was fought on Michaelmas day an 38. E. 3. where were taken two Earls 27 Lords and 1500 men at Arms. The news of the Victory being brought to the King then at Dover by a Pursuivant of Arms who had been in the Battel the King for his good service created him a Herald by the name of Windesor there was also an Herald who had the addition of Chandos given him in honor of this noble Knight whom he employed in Aquitaine upon several occasions This good success begat a Treaty which setled the Earl of Montfort in the Dukedom of Bretagne by the King of France to whom he did Homage as the Dukes before had done In the Prince's Voyage to Spain he had command in the Van led by the Duke of Lancaster and immediately before the joining of the Battel this noble Knight was created Banneret which honor was not only well bestowed but by his valiant carriage in the Fight as well deserved for he and his men hapning to encounter Sir Bertrand de Guesclin who had been ransomed from his former imprisonmeâ—â— at 100000 Franks and the Marshal Sir Arnold Dandrehen they took them both Prisoners and defeated their Battel After his return out of Spain he obtained leave to reside at St. Saviour le Viscount but when the French invaded Gascoigne the Prince sent for him back and employed him in the conduct of that War wherein he behaved himself most valiantly and in a word recovered and kept Aquitaine the particulars of whose famous actions from hence to his death may be seen in Sir Iohn Froissard out of whom we are loth to cloy our Reader with too much of transcription and shall therefore only note that in this time he was made Constable of Poictou and Marshal of Aquitaine He had the Barony of St. Saviours le Viscount of Domvers and Dongeville and the Lands and Tenements of St. Mary de Monte de Farsellis and de Romelly and all the Lands which were formerly Sir Godfry de Harecourts in Normandy given him and his heirs for ever by King Edward to whom the said Sir Godfry had sold them to be possessed after his death which being not comprised in the Treaty of Peace near Chartres the Homage for them became due to the King of France but there having passed so great Testimonies of affection and respect between King Edward and King Iohn the latter at the request of King Edward before he went from Calais sealed to Sir Iohn Chandos a confirmation of King Edward's grant to possess them as his inheritance for ever Whereupon command was sent to Sir Thomas Holland then Captain and Custos thereof forthwith to deliver the Castles Baronies and all the Lands and Tenements to the said Iohn And hereupon he was sometimes stiled Baro Sancti Salvatoris le Viscount and at other Vicecomes Sancti Salvatoris in Normania The last martial action of this most famous Knight and which proved fatal to him was near to St. Salvin an Abbey in Poictou which having been betrayed to the French by a Monk who hated the Abbot he endeavoured to recover it the last of December in the night an 44. E. 3. but missing of his design and intending to return to Poictou he encountred a party of the French at Lusach-bridge where the way being slippery he fell down and as he was rising one Iaques de St. Martyn an Esquire struck him under his Eye into the brain with a Glave for having lost the sight of that Eye five years before as he was hunting a Hart neer Bordeaux he saw not the blow come The French knew him by his Surcoat of Arms and endeavoured to get his body but his Uncle Edward Clyfford bestrid him and defended it and other relief coming in the French men were taken Prisoners He was thence carried to Mortymer Fortress where he lay a day and night speechless and then died and lies there buried His death was exceedingly lamented by all and when the French King heard of it he was very much troubled saying there was now no Knight left alive that was able to make Peace between the Kings and Kingdoms of France and England so much was he feared so highly esteemed and so generally beloved He was never married but we find he had three Sisters Elizabeth who died 9. R. 2. Alionora the Wife of Roger Colinge and Margaret 22. Sir Iames Audeley THis noble Knight was Son and Heir of Nicholas Lord Audeley and of Iane Sister and Heir of William the Son of William Martyn and was born an 7. E. 2. He was no sooner come of age but he entred upon Martial Employments wherein for several years he became engaged in the Wars against the Scots and there did the King so great service that in recompence thereof and the great charge he had been at in supporting himself in those Wars he forgave him the sum of 10000 Marks which he was engaged to pay Roger Mortimer Earl of March by whose attainder it became forfeited to the King An. 16. E. 3. he was made Custos of the Town of Berwick upon Twede during pleasure and by other Letters Patent of the same date constituted the Kings Iustice of the said Town and of all other the Kings Lands in the parts of Scotland to execute all things appertaining to that Office according to the Law and Custom of Scotland Not long after he was engaged to go beyond Sea in the Kings Service with Nicholas Audeley Earl of Gloucester and thereupon the Kings Letters of Protection were obtained for him to hold till Easter following The 20. of December after the Kings special Letter was directed to him to provide 20. Men at Arms and 20. Archers to be sent to Portsmouth by the first of March ensuing and thence to pass in the Kings Service with the Earls of Arundel and Huntingdon An. 18. E. 3. he went into Gascoigne with the Earl of Derby in his Expedition thither The following year he received Command personally to attend the King and to serve him with his Retinue for defence of this Kingdom against the French at the Kings charge And when the King made his Royal Voyage into France an 20. E. 3. he attended him thither He was sent over from the
time remembred and provided against to secure such from passing through the Soveraign's Election For this cause also were the words ut minimum That he be at least a Knight before he be elected added as a special Item to give a more than ordinary caution when the Soveraign comes to make his Choice And to make it clear that the second Article in the Statutes hath long since received this construction we shall insert an eminent case which fell out an 17. H. 8. where the Soveraign keeping the Feast of St. George at Greenwich having Elected the Lord Roos created Earl of Rutland the 18. of Iune following into the Society of this most Noble Order and being advertised on the morrow after St. Georges day while the Mass of Requiem was celebrating that he had not before received the dignity of Knighthood according to the Statutes which positively enjoin That whosoever is elected into this Society should be in degree at least a Knight that is actually Knighted beforehand for so the words ut minimum here in this place also of the Annals vouched ought justly to be understood in regard the Lord Roos was at the time of his Election a Baron of this Realm and consequently stated in a higher degree of honor than a Knight The Soveraign therefore immediately after Mass recalled the Knights-Companions to a new consultation whereat he declared the Election void for the reason before alledged and commanded the Ensigns of the Order the Garter and George so lately received to be withdrawn which being accordingly done He in the same place drew his Sword and therewith dubbed him Knight and then proceeded with the Knights-Companions present to a new Election wherein the said Lord Roos was with their unanimous consent again Elected a Companion and so declared by the Soveraign's own mouth by whose command also the aforesaid Ensigns and Ornaments were restored unto and placed upon him by the Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk And declaratory to this is it since recorded in the Red Book of the Order That none of the English Scotch or Welch Nation how considerable soever otherwise in the prerogative of Blood or Virtue can be Elected into this most honorable Society but that he ought to be first ennobled and rendred capable by this first Degree of Knightly honor But in reference to Foreign Princes being in their own Country this Law hath now no force for by a Decree made at Whitehall in a Chapter there held the 18. day of April an 13. Car. 1. it being the day whereon the Feast of St. George was also celebrated these words ut minimum are explained to relate to all Subjects of what Degree soever within the Soveraign's Dominions not Foreign Princes who before their Election at least if not Nomination ought to be Knighted as the Basis and first Degree of Chivalry And as they ought to be Knights so as well Knights free from Infamy or Reproach for so the Statutes of Institution enjoin In Henry the Fifth's Statutes it is thus rendred Chivalier sans reproche which is the same with Eques irreprehensus And we find it one of the Arguments used by Iohn Duke of Bedford on the behalf of Sir Iohn Radcliff to promote his Election That he had continued and exercised the Armies the space of eight and twenty Winters unreproached But for as much as the points of Reproach may be accounted many and diverse and through their incertainty and number rather become Traps to enshare than Rules for caution and direction King Henry the Eighth determined and limited them to Three only The first species or point of Reproach is where a Knight hath been convicted of Heresie against the Catholique faith or suffered any publique punishment for such offence Here we may see Heresie is reckoned among those defects that deprive men of Honor in as much as bending its force against the Catholique Church it not only renders a man in the ballance of Honor of no weight but more than all other sins makes him infamous And therefore when either by Tongue Pen or Actions a man endeavours to trample under foot the sacred Law scandalizeth Government seduceth others or in like execrable wickednesses discovers himself he is judged void of Conscience and â—quity and a most notorious destroyer of that divine part of man the Soul and consequently deserving not of external infamy alone which the guilt of this Offence justly coâ—tracts but other punishments extending to life The second Point of Reproach is where any Knight hath been arraigned convicted and attainted of Treason Nevertheless Queen Elizabeth qualifies this point by a Decree in Chapter held at the Tower the 12. of Ianuary in the first year of her Reign which we conceive was made upon occasion of restoring in Blood William Marquess of Northampton and the Lord Robert Dudley after created Earl of Leicester who with others had been attainted of high Treason in the first of Queen Mary and the attainder confirmed by Parliament the same year viz. That in case any Person so convicted were pardoned by the Soveraign and restored in Blood every such Gentleman in Name Arms and Blood and descended as aforesaid being otherwise qualified according to the ancient Statutes of the Order should be thenceforth accounted Eligible and might be chosen a Companion And we find that the very next St. George's Feast held the 22.23 and 24. of April following the said Marquess of Northampton and the Lord Robert Dudley who during the remaining part of Queen Maries Reign lay under the burden of a heavy fate had now recovered the Priviledges of Honor and were preferr'd in Nomination and on the last day of the said Feast Elected into this most Illustrious Society And here may further notice be taken of the said Marquess of Northampton's case who having been restored in Blood and his restauration to the honor of this most Noble Order also designed for he had been formerly an 35. H. 8. Elected and Installed it was thought necessary to descend to a new Nomination and Election which as may be collected from the aforesaid Decree ought now to be done and was in him accordingly performed the 3. of Iune anno primo Eliz. The third and last Point of Reproach is where a Knight-Companion hath fled from Battel in which the Soveraign or his Lieutenant or other Captain having the Kings authority were present when Banners were displayed and both sides proceeded to fight Now for a man to carry himself cowardly in the Field abandon his Colours leave his Prince Friends and Companions in hazard of life are undoubtedly things highly reproachful and draw dishonor upon the Order the Soveraign and Knights-Companions and a sufficient testimony that he valueth more his life than his honor and prefers an infamous safety before an honorable death If we look back into ancient History we shall meet with a
great Example of Honor and Courage in Iudas Maccabeus who though he had but 800 of 3000 men left him the rest being fled out of fear to encounter Bacchides Army consisting of 20000 Foot and 2000 Horse and those 800 too forward to follow after yet rather than cowardly forsake the Field whereby in all likehood he might have saved his life which was there loss he encouraged his Soldiers to receive the onset of his Enemies with these words God forbid that I should do this thing and flee away from them if our time be come let us die manfully for our Brethren and let us not stain our Honor. And to say truth the resolution of a right Martialist ought to be either to return with Honor or die upon the Bed of Honor. By the Laws of King Edward the Confessor where a Soldier in any expedition either by Land or Sea runneth from his Colours his life and Estate was made liable to answer the Offence And sad experience having from time to time made appear the inconvenience danger and loss occasioned by such cowardly and dishonourable departure out of the Field at length our Parliaments taking the same into serious consideration made it Fellony without benefit of Clergy forasmuch as this Offence tended to the hurt and jeopardy of the King the Nobility and all the Common-wealth And to secure our Naval Forces as well as Land Armies Queen Elizabeth extended the Statute of 18. H. 6. cap. 19. no less to Mariners and Gunners to all intents and purposes than to other Soldiers But much greater may the danger be and far more dishonorable to them than private Soldiers where a Commander in chief or other Officers having the conduct of an Army or any part of it shall herein offend of which there is a notable example in Thomas Earl of Lancaster who an 12. E. 2. was proclaimed Traitor for leaving the Army at the Seige of Berwick the consequence whereof proved the loss of the whole design And therefore whoever is culpable of any of these three points of Reproach is altogether uncapable of Election into this most Noble Order Ere we pass further let us take notice of an Error which Polydore Virgil hath linked with one justly observed and refuted by the learned Pen of Doctor Heylin and which Erhardus Celius hath transcribed from the said Polydore namely that the Knights-Companions have certain Laws belonging to their Order whereby they are obliged To defend and help one another and in time of Battel never to betake themselves to shameful flight But the first of these Clauses is not in truth any part of the Statute-Law of the Order nor is the latter otherwise to be taken than as one of those points of Reproach laid down in the second Article of King Henry the Eight's Statutes which renders the person nominated uncapable of Election if known guilty thereof Now that which gives some umbrage to the Knights mutual assistance and defence is an Article of the Statutes which prohibits the arming themselves one against another For to avoid begetting of Feuds among them whereby brotherly love might be extinguished a thing in all Societies specially to be preserved it was not the Founder's least care to provide against so great a mischief And therefore he Ordained which since the ensuing Bodies of Statutes have confirmed That none of the Knights-Companions should Arm themselves against any of their Fellows unless either in the cause of his Soveraign or his own just quarrel Upon this Clause some of them took hold when in the great and fatal controversie between the Houses of York and Lancaster they divided themselves to either side and both pretended to take part with the King some sticking close to Henry the Sixth whom they accounted Soveraign of the Order both de facto and de jure others taking part with Edward the Fourth as esteeming him Soveraign de jure though not de facto But to make the obligation and tye of this most Noble Fraternity more strong and to preserve a perpetual unity among the Companions thereof left they should unhappily engage in factions one against another specially to the effusion of blood it was further Ordained That if a Knight-Companion should happen to be retained in the service of a Foreign Prince to take up Arms in his quarrel and after his Adversary desired to entertain another Knight-Companion on his side also he that was last invited was bound to wave the proffer and in no wise to give his consent And therefore in all Reteynors of War the Knight-Companion was obliged to make a special precaution that his engagement should become void if any of his Fellows were before retained on the other side And if at the time of his reteynor he knew not that another of his Fellows had been engaged with the Adversary so soon as it came to his knowledge he was obliged to relinquish the service he before undertook Besides these three points of Reproach in a Manuscript of the Statutes in English which hath before it the whole preamble to Henry the Eight's Statutes and did belong to Henry Grey third Marquess Dorset Duke of Suffolk as appears by his Coat of Arms painted in the beginning of it within a Garter and his Name subscribed with his own hand under the Coat we find a fourth point of Reproach added to these other Three in these words The fourth point of Reproach is That if any Knight of the Order from henceforth by prodigality or ryot wilfully and negligently mis-spend sell aliene or do away his Patrimony or Livelihood by reason whereof be shall not be able honourably to maintain himself and his Estate in such honorable manner as may conserve the honor of the said Order and of himself In this case he shall be summoned by the Usher of Arms of the Order called the Black Rod by Commandment of the Soveraign his Lieutenant or Deputy to appear before his Majesty or his Commissioners and the Knights of the Order at the next Chapter ensuing there to be examined before the Soveraign or his said Commissioners and the Knights and Companions of the said Order and if he be found in such great default of Prodigality insolent Riot or wilful negligence That then the Soveraign with the advice of the Company of the said Order may deprive and degrade him of the said Order at the said Chapter if it be their pleasure But this point of Reproach is not inserted into King Henry the Eighth's Statutes nevertheless the substance thereof appears to have been approved of before for we find among some Orders prepared in the Chapters held at Windesor by the Marquess of Exiter and other Knights-Companions then present the 25. and 26. days of May an 8. H. 8. one of them was something to this purpose SECT XIII Of other Inducements for Election AMong the number of these Candidates the Soveraign is to regard those