grounding himselfe vpon the Kings title to the said Duchie of Britaine which was said to grow by means of a certaine conueiance that Master Iohn of Brosse Lord of Boussac husband to dame Nicole of Britaine daughter and heire to Charles of Blois Earle of Ponthieure had made to the Kings ancestors togither with diuers other titles which were not yet prooued good adding that if the King had no right thereunto it should be a damnable and a tyrannous act to vsurpe another mans countrie that appertained not to him Wherefore his aduice was that according to the request of the ambassadors of Britaine being at Angiers certaine graue and learned men should be appointed to examine the right of both sides This opinion tooke place and according thereunto the King agreed with the ambassadors of Britaine that both he and the Duke would appoint some graue men of their Councell who should meete in some indifferent towne with the charters and writings of both sides to determine in conscience to whom the said Duchie did appertaine and that in the meane time the King should hold all the places in the said Duchie that alreadie he possessed The Duke of Britaine liked this agreement well and bicause the plague was vehement at Nantes he departed thence with his two daughters the Ladie of Laval the Lord of Alebret the Earle of Dunoys the Marshall of Rieux the Earle of Comminges and diuers other Lords to Coiron vpon the riuer of Loyer three leagues beneath Nantes where soone after namely vpon wednesday the seauenth of September in the same yeere 1488. he ended his life thorow a sicknes which he got by a fall leauing the gouernment both of his Duchie of Britaine and of his two daughters to the Marshall of Rieux to whom he appointed the Earle of Comminges for assistant His body was carried to Nantes and buried in the Church of the Carmelites Of the Kings mariage with the Ladie Anne of Britaine whereby Britaine was vnited to the crowne of Fraunce Chap. 6. Soone after the Duke of Britaines death died also Isabell his 1489. yoonger daughter by reason whereof the Ladie Anne remained his sole heire about whose mariage the nobles of Britaine fell at great variance for part of them inclined to the Lord of Alebret a great Lord in Guienne who also as it was reported but falsely was contracted to this yoong Princes with the Duke hir fathers consent but the daie before the Duke died but this faction was soone daunted bicause the yoong Ladie hir selfe vtterly refused this match part openly fauored furthered Maximilian the Emperor Fridericks sonne alleaging that he would not onely be a protector of the libertie of their countrey but also a strong rampier against all French attempts Neither was the King of Fraunce ignorant of this treatie but knew right well that ambassadors had passed to and fro betweene Maximilian and them so far foorth that the said Maximilian supposing al matters to be throughly concluded and agreed on began to imbrace al Britaine in his minde and thought no enterprise too high for him if to his low countries obtained by his first marriage he could now ioine the Duchy of Britaine by his second Great consultation was had in Fraunce how to repulse this terrible storme but Maximilians owne slacknes most furthered their deuises The K. councell in the end resolued that the King should refuse his wife being Maximilians daughter and seeke with all expedition the marriage of the Lady Anne of Britaine alleaging that the neighborhood of so mightie a Prince as Maximilian was could not be but dangerous to his estate of whom he could hope for nothing but dissembled friendship presently and assured war in time to come considering that the said Maximilian forgetting already his league and affinitie with the King stirred vp continually one war after another against him and by that meanes professed himselfe an open enimy to him and his realme Wherefore ambassadors were presently sent to treate of this marriage with the Lady Anne She at the first woondered at the matter and alleaged that she had giuen hir faith to Maximilian which she might not breake and further that she had beene solemnly married to him according to the accustomed maner of Princes by VVolfgangus Poleme of Austrich his proctor purposely sent by him into Britaine to that end But the Lady of Lauat and other noble women of Britaine whose company and familiarity this yoong Princes vsed and greatly delighted in being corrupted with French rewards and promises perswaded hir that this French match should be most for hir safety and auancement alleaging that if she married with Maximilian he should hardly be able to defend Britaine whereof already they had good proofe considering that he had euer disappointed them of the succors he had promised to send them And as touching hir scruple of conscience they said that the Pope who had power ouer all lawes Ecclesiasticall would easily be brought to dispence therwith the rather bicause this match should be best for hir safety and for the preseruation of hir estate The yoong Princesse though she were of a singular wit and rare vertues yet being vanquished by these perswasions yeelded to their request and deliuered both hirselfe and hir countrey into the Kings hands and soone after was the marriage solemnly accomplished to the great reioicing of the French And thus receiued Britaine the French yoake to the great griefe of all the subiects who desired to be gouerned by a particular Duke of their owne as they had euer been in times past Not long after this marriage the Earle of Dunois who had been the principall instrument of the peace a great furtherer of the mariage therby throughly reconciled to the K. suddenly died as he was on horsebacke for want of meat as it was said When the K. had set all things in good order in Britaine he returned into Fraunce and appointed that the Ladie Margaret of Flanders should remaine accompanied with the Princes of Tarent in the castell of Melun vpon the riuer of Seine Maximilian was forewarned of al these French practises and seemed to make no account of them but when he perceiued this marriage to be accomplished it doubled his hatred against the King so far foorth that he openly railed vpon him and vowed himselfe to destroy France with fire and sword and presently inuaded Picardie But the Lord of Cordes gouernor thereof made head against him and valiantly defended the countrey to his owne honor and the profit of Fraunce Further Maximilian meaning a thorow reuenge vpon this realme stirred vp the English men the ancient enimies of the crowne to passe into Fraunce promising them great aide both of men and money out of his dominions Wherefore I wil heere speake a word or two of the affaires of England bicause the Englishmen are our next neighbors and both in peace and war haue euer to do with vs and we with them Of the troubles in
4. cap. 13. Brabant Lambourg Iohn the first of that name Duke of Brabant and Lambourg 1 Lambourg was erected into a Duchie 1172. and Henrie the last Duke thereof who died without issue 1293. solde it to Iohn the first of that name Duke of Brabant But Henrie Earle of Luxembourg father to Henrie the Emperor the Bishop of Colyn and one called the Earle Ghelric inuaded the Duchie of Lambourg with them Duke Iohn fought neere to the castell of Voronc and tooke the Earle Ghelric who pretended title to Lambourg and the Bishop of Colin prisoners the Earle of Luxembourg with two of his brethren was slaine the castell of Voronc razed since the which time Lambourg hath remained quiet vnder the Dukes of Brabant m. Margaret daughter to Guy Earle of Flaunders Iohn Duke of Brabant and Lambourg m. Margaret daughter to Edward the first King of England Iohn Duke of Brabant and Lambourg m. Marie daughter to Philip of Valois King of Fraunce Iane the eldest daughter died 1397. m. Wenceslaus son to Iohn King of Boheme 2 Wenceslaus succeeded Iohn Duke of Brabant but he died 1383. without issue and after his wife dying anno 1393. left Brabant and Lambourg to Anthonie second sonne to Philip the Hardie the said Ianes grand nephew by Margaret hir yoonger sister after whose death and his two sonnes Iohn and Philip Brabant and Lambourg descended to Philip Duke of Burgundie as mentioneth Commines in the place aboue rehearsed died 1383. Margaret m. Lewis Maleaâ—â—â— Earle of Flaundres Margaret m. Philip the hardy Margaret wife to William Earl of Haynault Anthony slaine in the battel of Agincourt m. Iane daughter to Walleran Earle of Saint Paul Ligny the first wife Iohn succeeded his father in Brabant and Lambourg Philip succeeded his brother m. 3 Elizabeth second wife to Anthonie Duke of Brabant was daughter to Iohn Duke of Gorlic brother to the Emperours Wenceslaus and Sigismundus who partly in respect of this marriage partly for money gaue to Duke Anthonie the Duchie of Luxembourg but after his death they and VVilliam Duke of Saxonie who had married Sigismundus daughters daughter sought to dispossesse hir of it but Duke Philip of Burgundie euer defended hir and after hir death succeeded hir as well by hir gift as also as heire to Duke Anthonie his two sonnes being dead who had paid money to VVenceslaus and Sigismundus for it afterward also Charles Duke of Burgundie bought the title of Isabella wife to Cassimirus King of Polonia and neece to the Emperor Sigismund to the Duchie of Luxembourg to hold it without quarrell Elizabeth the second wife Luxembourg Iohn Duke of Burgundie m. Margaret sisteâ— to William Earl of Haynault Holland Namurs Philip Duke of Burgundie 4 As touching Namurs Duke Philip bought it for his money of diuers that pretended title to it especially of Iohn Earle of Namur who sold it to Duke Philip vnder condition to hold it during his life which happened anno 1428. How Holland Hainault and Zeland came to Duke Philip as mentioneth Commines lib. 4. cap. 13. where also the Queenes Maiesties title to the said countries is somwhat touched Holland Hainault Zeland William Earle of Holland Hainault and Zeland m. Iane sister to Philip of Valois after K. of Fraunce Philippa the eldest daughter wife to Edward the third King of England William declared by the Emperor ann 1337. Earle of Holland Zeland Hainault and Lord of Friseland slaine by the Frizons 1345. Margaret daughter as some write to William 1 This Margaret Guicchiardin writeth to haue been daughter to VVilliam the yoonger Earle of Hainault Holland and Zeland but Annales Genealogiques Franciae say that she was sister not daughter to VVilliam as do also other most approoued Authors And if she were but sister then the Queenes Maiestie being descended of Philippa the said VVilliams eldest sister is right heire of all these countries Meyerus lib 12. fol. 140. pag. 2. and fol. 147. pag. 1. saith that Margaret was sister not daughter to Duke VVilliam which also is the more manifestly prooued bicause the wife of this VVilliam was Iane the eldest daughter to Iohn Duke of Brabant who ouerliued hir husband and after married VVenceslaus brother to the Emperor Charles the fourth which woman neuer had issue yet finde we no mention of any other wife that VVilliam the yoonger Earle of Hainault had as others sister m. Lewis of Bauierâ— Emperor William the eldest brother died without issue Albert succeeded his brother m. Margaret daughter to the Duke of Brida William succeeded his father m. Margaret daughter to Philip the Hardy Iaqueline daughter and heire had fower husbands but died without issue and to hir succeeded Philip D. of Burgundie Margaret m. Iohn Duke of Burgundy sonne to Philip the Hardy Philip Duke of Burgundy succeeded Iaqueline in all these Seniories as heere mentioneth Commines A daughter married to the Duke of Iuliers How Margaret of Flaunders was heire of Flaunders Neuers and Rethel as mentioneth Commines lib. 4. cap. 13. lib. 5. cap. 11. the which Margaret married with Philip the Hardy yoongest sonne to Iohn King of Fraunce Ottho yoonger sonne to Hugh the fourth of that name Duke of Burgundy m. Isabella daughter heire of Arnulfe Earle of Neuers which Arnulfe died anno 1243. Neuers Yolande Flaunders m. Robert of Bethune the 22. Earle of Flaunders died 1323. Lewis Earle of Neuers Baron of Douzy died before his father ann 1322. Rethel m. Mary daughter and heire of Iames â— of Rethel Lewis Earle of Flaunders Neuers Rethel slain at the battell of Crecy 1346. m. Margaret yoongest daughter to Philip le Longue King of Fraunce Lewis Earle of FlauÌ„ders surnamed of Malain slain by Iohn Duke of Berry brother to Charles the fift anno 1383. m. Margaret daughter to Iohn the 3. Duke of Brabant Margaret daughter and heire heere mentioned married two Dukes of Burgundie as in the next leafe more at large shall appeere m. Philip Duke and Earle of Burgundy the first husband m. Philip the Hardy yoongest sonne to Iohn K. of Fraunce How Arthois and the County of Burgundy descended to the said Lady Margaret aboue mentioned and how she married two Dukes of Burgundy and how Philip the Hardy hir second husband obtained the Duchy of Burgundie after the death of Philip Duke of Burgundie hir first husband Burgundie Duchie Robert Duke of Burgundy died 1308. m. Agnes daughter to King Saint Lewis Margaret the eldest daughter m. Lewis Huttin King of Fraunce Iane wife to Phillip Earle of Eureux Iane. m. Philip of Valois King of Fraunce Iohn King of Fraunce 3 Touching the Duchie of Burgundie note that after the death of Philip Duke of Burgundie nephew to Ottho the 16. Duke of Burgundie King Iohn of Fraunce being sonne to Iane the said Otthos yoonger sister seazed the Duchie of Burgundie into his hands excluding Iane daughter to Margaret the elder sister as suspected of bastardie and after gaue the said Duchie
great authoritie at that time in Fraunce that for feare of them no Counsellor durst plead his cause wherefore necessitie enforcing him to defend him selfe he pleaded there by the space of two howers being very attentiuely heard by the whole audience and in the end so acquite himselfe that by the Iudges sentence he was discharged Among other things he rehearsed at the bar how sundrie troublesome and daungerous voiages he had sustained for the King and the common wealth How highly King Lewis both had fauoured him and for his faithfull seruice rewarded him for his owne part he said that he neuer had done any thing couetouslie ambitiouslie nor cruelly and further that if he had sought onely to aduance and inrich himselfe he might haue had as goodly possessions as any man in France He was prisoner in almost three yeeres The next yeere after his deliuerie he had a daughter borne named Iane which married with Rene Earle of Pantabria descended of the Dukes of Britaine by whom among diuers other children she had issue Iohn late Duke of Estampes Lieutenant of Britain Knight of the French Kings order and Lord of diuers goodly Seniories But to returne to Commines in prosperity he gaue for his posie this sentence He that will not labour let him not eate but in aduersitie this I sailed into the deepe of the sea and a sudden tempest ouerwhelmed me He died the threescore and fourth yeere of his age the yeere of our Lord 1509. the 17. day of October in his owne house of Argenton in the countrey of Poictu from whence his body was conueighed to Paris and there lieth buried in the Augustine Friers I was heere purposed to haue staied my pen and further not to haue spoken either of Commines historie or his life had I not called to minde diuers accusations of Iacobus Meyerus who in sundrie places of his Annales of Flanders inueigheth verie bitterly as well against Commines life as his historie whose accusations I am forced to laie open to the iudgement of the world to the end it may appeere whether they be grounded vpon iust proofe Notwithstanding before I enter into the examination of them thus much in the commendation of Commines historie I cannot passe ouer in silence that two of the greatest and woorthiest Princes that raigned in Europe these hundred yeeres namely the Emperour Charles the fift and Francis the first King of Fraunce made so great account of this historie that the Emperor caried it continually about with him as Alexander did the workes of Homer no lesse esteeming it than he did them and the King was as much displeased with the printing and publishing thereof as was the same Alexander in times past for the setting foorth of Aristotles workes called Acroamatica as rehearseth Gellius so desirous was he to haue reserued to himselfe and a few of his owne subiects the great treasures of wisedome hidden in this small volume But let vs now heare what Meyer obiecteth against this historie In the 17. booke of his Annales of Flaunders writing of the battell fought at Saintron betweene Charles Duke of Burgundie and the Liegeois he hath these words Pugna commissa caeduntur magno numero profligantur ad nouem millia cecidisse tradit qui interfuit Philippus Cominius Sed Brabantiae scriptor quidam scriptor Flandriae quibus plus habeo fidei tria tantum millia occubuisse memorant For answere heereunto if this place be indifferently weighed it shall appeere to be wholie grounded vpon malice and no colour of reason much lesse iust proofe First bicause Meyer preferreth the credit of these obscure Annalistes that write but vpon report before the credit of him that was an eie witnesse and that no way could aduantage himselfe by reporting a lye Secondarily sir Oliuer de la Marche who liued also in that time and was Steward of the Duke of Burgundies house writeth that a great number of these Liegeois were slaine at this battell and also at the siege of Saintron but that their friends and kinsfolkes trussed vp their dead bodies in vessels full of lime partly to the end the discomfiture might appeere the lesse and partlie that they might be buried among their auncestors in the which feate saith he the Liegeois shewed a woonderfull audacitie and courage whereby it shoulde seeme a great number to haue been thus trussed vp by meanes whereof the dead appeered the fewer and were reported accordingly which deceiued diuers and happilie these Annalists of Brabant and Flaunders The like practise we reade of in diuers authors of the like writeth Meyer also himselfe Lastly the Annales of Burgundy agree with Commines and report the number as he doth so that this answer I hope shall suffice for this point Againe in the same booke fol. 364. Meyer writeth thus Loquitur Cominius de nobili quadam foemina attrebatensis ditionis proditrice patriae cuius aedere non vult nomen falsus in hoc vt in caeteris historicus Sure if it were an vndoubted truth that a Ladie of Artois could not send the King such aduertisement as Commines reporteth that she did or if Meyer were Pythagoras that ipse dixit might passe for proofe the credit of Commines should happilie hang in ballance but if you reade the place in his historie the very circumstances will induce any indifferent man to thinke that which is there written of this Ladie to be no lie Againe fol. 366. Meyer hath these words Hic est Cominius ille transfuga gente Flandrus qui multa de Carolo Lodouico prouinciali lingua bene scripsit sed quaedam etiam scripsit plane mendaciter multaque dicenda infideliter reticuit This is so generall and vncertaine a charge that answer in truth it deserueth none notwithstanding I refer to the iudgement of those that shall reade this historie whether Commines conceale his Masters faults therein or not for that is Meyers meaning in this place True it is that he vttereth them not in such railing barbarous termes as Meyer very vnseemely vseth of so great a Prince as King Lewis was and is offended with Commines for not dooing the like a thing which becommeth Meyer himselfe very ill and would haue become Commines much woorse But our author as he concealeth not his masters faults but laieth them open enough to the vnderstanding of the wise and attentiue Reader so deliuereth he them so sparingly and vnder such termes as truth being vttered the Kings honor be no further impeached than verie necessitie doth enforce a matter verie commendable in a gentleman writing of a Prince a seruant of his Master and a subiect of his Soueraigne Lastly Meyer fol. 365. hath these words refert Cominius exercitum Caroliadeo fuisse extenuatum vt exhibere illum Anglis non auderet sed hoc falsum est But you must beleeue Meyer vpon his word other disproofe of Commines report he can bring none neither grounded vpon any circumstance nor produced out of any good
was deputy of Calice and had diuers other great offices so that I haue heard his yeerely reuenewes valued at fower score thousand crownes besides his owne inheritance But in the end he fell at variance with the King his master about a yeere as I gesse before the Duke of Burgundies comming before Amiens which breach the said Duke furthered to the vttermost of his power For the Earles great authority in England much discontented him besides that they two were not friends for the Earle had continuall intelligence with the King our master To be short about this present or not long before the Earle of Warwickes force was so great that he seased the King his master into his hands and put to death diuers personages that he highly fauored namely the Lord of Scales the Queenes father 3 and two of his sonnes the third being also in great danger with them diuers other knights He entertained the King his master for a season very honorably and placed new seruants about him supposing that through simplicity he would soone forget the old The Duke of Burgundy being not a little troubled with this aduenture practised secretly how King Edvvard might escape and they two commune togither which enterprise had so good successe that the King escaped indeede and leuied men and defeated certaine of the Earles bands He was a fortunate Prince in the field for he wan at the least nine great battels fighting himselfe on foote in euery one of them The Earle of Warwicke vnable to make resistance aduertised his friends what they should do and embarked at leisure accompanied with the Duke of Clarence who had married his daughter and tooke part with him notwithstanding that he were King Edwards brother They transported with them both wiues and children and a great band of men and sailed straight towards Calais within the which was the Earles lieutenant named the Lord of Vaucler 4 and diuers of the said Earles houshold seruants who in stead of receiuing their Master presented him the canon Further you shall vnderstand that as they lay at anchor before the towne the Duchesse of Clarence daughter to the Earle of Warwicke was deliuered of a sonne and great intreatie was made before Vaucler and the rest of the towne would suffer two flaggons of wine to be brought foorth to hir which was great extremitie of the seruant towards the master For it is to be supposed that the Earle thought himselfe well assured of this place which is they very key of England and the goodliest captainship in mine opinion in the world at the least in Christendome which I dare boldly auow bicause I was there diuers times during these wars and heard also the Maior of the staple report that he would willingly farme yeerely the deputyship of Calais of the King of England for fifteene thousand crownes For the deputie receiueth the profits of all that they haue on this side the sea and of all safe conducts and placeth also the greatest part of the garrison at his pleasure The King of England fauoured highly the Lord of Vaucler for this refusall made to his Captaine and granted him by his letters patents the office of Deputie which the Earle his master before held for he was a wise and an ancient knight and one of the order of the garter The Duke of Burgundie also who then lay at Saint Omer conceiued a maruellous good opinion of him so far foorth that he sent me to him granting him a yeerely pension of a thousand crownes and desiring him to continue a true and faithfull seruant to the King his Master as he had begun which at my comming thither I found him fully determined to do so that he sware in Staple Inne in Calais laying his hand within mine to be faithfull and true to King Edward and to serue him against all men The like oth all the towne and all the garrison sware also Farther I was by the space of two months almost continually resident at Calais at the least posting daiely betweene Calais and Bullen to entertaine the said Vaucler for you shall vnderstand that during these English troubles the Duke of Burgundie came to Bullen where he prepared a great army by sea against the Earle of Warwick who at his departure from Calais tooke many ships of the Dukes subiects which aduanced forward the war betweene the King of Fraunce and vs. For the Earles men sould the bootie in Normandie whereupon the Duke of Burgundie arrested all the French Marchants that came to the Mart at Andwerp Now bicause it is meete to vnderstand as well the cunning and subtill as the iust and vpright dealings of the world not to practise them but to know how to avoide them I will rehearse vnto you a sleight or subtilitie terme it as you list that was cunningly conueighed Farther I would that men should vnderstand the practises as well of our neighbors as our selues to the end it may appeere that in all places are both good and bad When the Earle of Warwick came before Calais thinking to enter into it as his onely refuge the Lord of Vaucler being a very wise gentleman sent him word that if he entred the towne he should cast away himselfe considering that all England the Duke of Burgundie the people of the towne and a great part of the garrison namely the Lord of Duras Marshall there for the King of England and diuers others that had men in the towne were his enimies wherefore his best way should be to retire into Fraunce and as touching the towne of Calais he willed him not to trouble himselfe for he would yeeld him good account thereof when time and occasion should serue He did his Captaine good seruice by giuing him this aduise but shewed himselfe thereby a very Iudas to his Master For vndoubtedly a more traiterous part was neuer plaied considering both that the King of England had made him Deputie of the towne of Calais and the Duke of Burgundy giuen him so large a pension The Notes 1 Philippa daughter to Iohn Duke of Lancaster was married to Iohn King of Portugale and had issue by him Isabell mother to Duke Charles 2 This was Henry Holland Duke of Exceter whose wife was Anne sister to King Edward the fourth and his grandmother was Elizabeth daughter to Iohn Duke of Lancaster by his first wife but he died without issue 3 Our chronicles name the Queenes father Earle of Riuers and so doth afterward also our Author lib. 5. cap. 15. 4 This Vaucler was a Gascoine borne How by King Lewis his aide the Earle of Warwicke chased King Edward out of England to the Duke of Burgundies great greefe who receiued him into his countries Chap. 5. THe Earle of Warwicke followed Vauclers aduise and landed in Normandie where the King honorably receiued him and furnished him largely of mony for his mens expences and appointed also the bastard of Bourbon Admirall of Fraunce being well accompanied to defend the
to diuorce himselfe from the Ladie Iane the Kings sister as forced vpon him against his will by King Levvis the 11. and to marrie with Anne the Duke of Britains eldest daughter and heire the hope wherof was the cause of this his voiage into Britaine but the selfesame hope entertained also Monseur d' Alebret and drew him to the Duke of Britains part the rather bicause he had receiued assurance of the marriage in writing vnder the hands of all the noble men that were about the said D. of Britaine saue of the D. of Orleans alone Of the war the King made in Britaine and of the Earle of Dunois ambassage to the King for peace Chap. 4. THe onely care of the banished nobles of Britaine was to returne and remaine in safetie in their countrie and the Kings onely desire was to be reuenged of the Duke of Britaine for receiuing the Duke of Orleans Wherefore the King as before is said entred into league with these nobles and in their fauour leuied an armie and began war vpon the Duke of Britaine in the yeere 1486. This armie inuaded Britaine three seuerall waies for the 1486 Lord of Saint André with fower hundred launces and fiue or sixe thousand footemen entred on one side the Earle of Montpensier with a great band vpon another side and Lewis of Trimouille Vicount of Touars who had married Gabriell of Bourbon the said Earle of Montpensiers sister vpon the third in such sort that the countrie of Britaine was couered with French soldiers with whom also the barons of Britaine aboue mentioned were ioined who caused diuers castels in Britaine to be yeelded to the Kings armie by those that were of their faction whereat the Duke of Britaine was greatly astonied But the Duke of Orleans the Earle of Dunois and the Earle of Comminges being with him comforted him and vnder colour of a marriage to be made betweene the Lady Anne the Duke of Britaines eldest daughter and the Lord of Alebret who had a hundred launces vnder his charge and was able to leuie great forces of footemen in Gascoine and Guienne where he was mightie and of goodly reuenues the Earle of Dunois wan the said Lord of Alebret to ioine with them who presently forsooke the Kings seruice and tooke part with them accordingly yet that notwithstanding the Duke of Britaine leauing Nantes in the hands of his cosin the Prince of Orenge retired himselfe to the castell of Malestroit being a strong place where he leuied an armie of sixe hundred launces and 16000. footemen to succour Ploermel distant three or fower leagues from Malestroit which the Kings armie then besieged But as this Britaine armie marched thitherward one of the company brake foorth into these speeches and asked what this war meant and what was the end thereof alleaging that their Duke was wholy gouerned by the French and that the French made the Britaines at their pleasure to reuenge French quarrels vpon the French wherefore he perswaded them to returne home to their wiues and children and not to spend their liues for other mens quarrels Whereupon all the armie disparkled and returned home by meanes whereof Ploermel seeing no hope of succours yeelded by composition and yet notwithstanding was spoiled and the rich men taken prisoners and put to raunsome The Dukes of Britaine and Orleans and the other Lords that were with them at Malestroit being aduertised of the departure of their armie and of the taking of Ploermel went to Vennes vpon Whitson euen being the yeere 1487. whither the Kings armie so speedily followed them that hardly they escaped by sea and went to Croisick and from thence by the riuer of Loire to Nantes being constrained to leaue part of their carriage 1487 in the said towne of Vennes which presently after their departure yeelded without any resistance Further not long after the taking of this towne the French in a skirmish at a place called Ioue betweene Chasteaubrian and Nantes defeated a great band of Britaines led by Amaulry of la Mossay towards Nantes at the which time the King in person lay at Ancenix After the taking of Vennes the Kings armie marched to Nantes and laid the siege before the towne the 19. day of Iune in the said yeere 1487. Within the towne were the Duke of Britaine and his two daughters Anne and Isabell the Duke of Orleans the Prince of Orenge the Lady of Lauall and of Chasteaubrian the Bishop of Nantes called du Chaffault a man of holy life the Earle of Comminges and diuers other Lords all the which dislodged out of the castell and lodged in the towne And bicause the companie had some ielousie of the said bishop of Nantes and the Lady of Lauall that they were not thoroughly to be trusted they were put in garde into certaine of the townes mens hands At this siege were ten thousand French men and great store of artillerie wherewith the wals towers and vaumures of the castell and towne were throughly battered but they without were as well plied by them within both with shot and with salies of valiant men where many a goodly feate of armes was done both on the one side and the other Further you shall vnderstand that the Earle of Dunois being in base Britaine there to embarke towards England to haue aide from thence and perceiuing that the winde would not suffer him so to do brought with him to succour the towne of Nantes aboue fiftie thousand of the commons of Britaine which the French suffered to passe supposing them not to be men of seruice But the King seeing the extreme heate of the weather and perceiuing that he could do no good before the towne leuied his siege the sixt day of August and departed Then marched the Kings armie before the towne of Dolle which they tooke without resistance and spoiled and all the Britaines and soldiers that were within it were taken prisoners Further the Kings armie spoiled all the countrie slue the people and draue away their cattell But the Marshall of Rieux and the greatest part of the banished nobles of Britaine that were in the Kings seruice lamenting the miserable estate of their country waxed wearie of the wars and alleaged that their league with the King was onely to this end that they might recouer their countrie and the French that liued in Britaine be constrained to returne home into theirs Wherfore seeing the French nobles being in Britaine protested that they would willingly returne home if the King would pardon their departure to the Duke and that the Duke on the other side with the consent of all his subiects had offered these banished nobles of Britaine pardon and restitution to all their goods and lands they sawe no cause why the wars should endure but that each partie should returne home in peace but the French and diuers also of the Britaines themselues were little mooued with these allegations Wherefore the said Marshal being Lord of Ancenix a towne very
hired a brother of the captains to kill the said Lodouic as he entred into the castel whom the captaine withheld frō executing the fact for the which cause he now saued his life Notwithstanding if he had been giltie of so heinous a crime as a purpose to yeeld the place to the Emperor who might haue laid claim to it both as Emperor Duke of Austrich for that house pretendeth some title thereunto I thinke he would not haue pardoned him for it would haue made a great alteration in Italie and the whole estate of Milain would haue reuolted in one day For when they liued vnder the Emperors euerie household paid but halfe a ducat for tribute but now they are cruelly and tyrannouslie gouerned both the Spiritualtie Nobilitie and Commons The Lord Lodouic seeing himselfe seized of the castell and all the force of the countrie at his commandement determined to attempt further for he that possesseth Milan possesseth the whole estate both bicause the chiefe of the countrie be resident there and also bicause those that haue the charge and gouernment of the other places be all Milanois borne Sure for the quantitie of this Duchie I neuer saw a pleasanter nor plentifuller peece of ground For if the Prince would content himselfe with the yeerely reuenues of fiue hundred thousand ducats his subiects should be but too rich and the Prince liue in suretie but he leuieth yeerely sixe hundred and fiftie thousand or seuen hundred thousand which is great tyrannie and therefore the people desire nothing more than change of their Prince Which the L. Lodouic considering togither with the other reasons aboue rehearsed and being already married to the Duke of Ferraraes daughter by whom he had many children determined to accomplish his intent and endeuored to win friends not onely in the said Duchie but also abrode in Italie Wherefore first he entred into league with the Venetians for the preseruation of their estate whereunto he was great friend to his father in lawes preiudice from whom the said Venetians not long before had taken a little territorie called the Polesan enuironed with water and maruellously abounding with all kinde of wealth This country being distant but halfe a league from Ferrara the Venetians possesse yet at this day There are in it two prety townes which I haue been in my selfe the one named Rouigue the other Labadie The Duke of Ferrara lost it in the war that himselfe first mooued against the Venetians for notwithstanding that before the end of those wars Alphonse Duke of Calabria his father King Ferrande yet liuing the Lord Lodouic with the force of Milan the Florentines the Pope and the towne of Bolonia came to his aide by meanes whereof the Venetians were brought altogither vnder foote or at the least to great extremitie being vtterly vnfurnished of monie and hauing lost diuers places yet the said Lodouic concluded a treatie to their honor and profit for euery man was restored to his owne saue the poore Duke of Ferrara who was forced to leaue vnto them the Polesan which they yet hold notwithstanding that he had mooued this war at the request of the Lord Lodouic and of King Ferrande whose daughter he had married The report went that Lodouic receiued threescore thousand ducats of the Venetians for making this treatie Whether it were so or no I know not but sure I am that the Duke of Ferrara was once perswaded that it was so for at that time the said Lodouic was not married to his daughter From that day forward amitie euer continued betweene the Venetians and the said Lodouic No seruant nor kinsman of Iohn Galeas Duke of Milan sought to impeach and stop the Lord Lodouic from seizing the Duchie into his own hands saue onely the Duchesse his wife who was yoong but a very wise Lady She was daughter to Alfonse Duke of Calabria before mentioned sonne and heire to Ferrande King of Naples In the yeere 1493. the said Lodouic sent to King Charles the 8. now raigning to perswade him to come into Italie to conquer the realme of Naples and to vanquish and subdue those that possessed it for so long as they florished and were of force he durst neuer attempt that which afterward he accomplished At that time the said Ferrande King of Naples and Alphonse his sonne were puissant rich of great experience in the wars and accounted Princes of hautie courages though afterward their actions declared the contrarie The said Lodouic was also a very wise man but maruellous timorous and humble when he stood in feare and void of all faith if the breach thereof might turne to his profit I speake as one that knew him throughly well bicause I haue dealt with him in many matters But to proceede in the yeere 1493. as before I said the Lord Lodouic began to tickle this yoong King Charles being but two and twenty yeeres of age with the ambition and vaineglorie of Italie shewing him what right he had to this goodly realme of Naples which I warrant you he skilfully blazed and painted foorth In all these negotiations he addressed himselfe to Stephan de Vers then newly made Seneschall of Beaucaire and maruellously enriched though not satisfied and to the Generall Brissonet a rich man skilfull in matters of the receit and great friend at that time to the said Seneschall by whose meanes the Lord Lodouic perswaded the said Brissonet to become a priest promising to make him a Cardinall but the Seneschall himselfe he promised to make a Duke And to set all these practises on foote the said Lodouic sent in the same yeere to Paris a goodly ambassage to the King the chiefe whereof was the Earle of Caiazze sonne and heire to the aboue named Robert of Saint Seuerin who found there the Prince of Salerne his cosin for the said Prince was chiefe of the house of Saint Seuerin as I haue alreadie made mention and liued in Fraunce being banished by King Ferrande of Naples as before you haue heard and therfore trauelled earnestly that this voiage to Naples might go forward With the said Earle of Caiazze came also Charles Earle of Belleioyeuse and Master Galeas Viscount of Milan who were both in very good order and well accompanied but openly they vsed salutations onely and generall speeches This was the first great ambassage that came from the Lord Lodouic to the King True it is that he had sent before this one of his Secretaries to negotiate with the King to send his deputie into Italie to receiue homage of his cosin the Duke of Milan for Genua which was granted him against all reason 8 notwithstanding I will not denie but that the King of especiall fauor might assigne one to receiue it of him for when this Duke Galeas was warde to his mother I being then ambassador for King Lewis the 11. receiued his homage in the castell of Milan hauing an expresse commission from the King so to do But Genua was then out of
to his yoongest sonne Philip the hardie for his aduancement in marriage with the Ladie Margaret of Flaunders Philip the hardie second husband to the Ladie Margaret Ottho the 16. Duke of Burgundie m. Iane the eldest daughter Philip died afore his father anno 1346. m. Iane daughter to William Earl of Boloin and Auuergne Philip Duke and Earle of Burgundie succeeded his grandfather died 1361. m. Margaret daughter and heire hir second husband was Philip the hardie Burgundie Countie Othelin Earle of Burgundie died 1303. Arthois m. Maude daughter to Robert Earle of Arthois 1 Touching the title of Arthois this is to be obserued that Robert Earle of Arthois father to Maude had a sonne named Philip who died before his father and left behinde him a sonne named Robert Earle of Beumont who after his grandfathers death demanded the Countrey of Arthois but this Maude by fauor of the French King obtained it bicause she was adiudged neerer heire to the Earle Robert being his daughter than the Earle of Beumont being his sonnes sonne for spite whereof the Earle of Beumont reuolted to the King of England of him are descended the Earles of Eu. Iane succeeded hir mother in hir widowhood and was poisoned immediately after hir mothers death m. Philip the long King of Fraunce Iane the eldest daughter m. Ottho the 16. Duke of Burgundie Philip died afore his father anno 1346. m. Iane daughter to William Earl of Boloin and Auuergne Philip Duke and Earle of Burgundie succeeded his grandfather died 1361. m. Margaret daughter and heire hir second husband was Philip the hardie Margaret 2 This Margaret being in hir widdowhood succeeded in Arthois and the Countie of Burgundie of Philip hir sister Ianes sonnes sonne and husband to Margaret hir sonnes daughter to whom after hir death the said Seigniories descended m. Lewis Earle of Flaunders Lewis of Malain Earle of Flaunders m. Margaret daughter to Iohn D. of Brabant Margaret daughter and heire hir second husband was Philip the hardie m. Philip Duke and Earle of Burgundie succeeded his grandfather died 1361. Blaunch m. Charles le bel K. of Fraunce How the King of Portugale was cosin germane to the Duke of Burgundy as is mentioned Lib. 5. cap. 7. Ferdinand the ninth King of Portugale Iohn a bastard but King of Portugale m. Philippa daughter to Iohn of Gaunt Duke of Lancaster Isabella m. Philip Duke of Burgundie Charles Duke of Burgundy Mary daughter and heire to D. Charles m. Maximilian Emperor Edward King of Portugale m. Iane sister to Alfonse King of Arragon Naples and Sicile Leonora m. Frideric the third Emperor Maximilian Emperor m. Mary daughter and heire to D. Charles Alfonsus King of Portugale the same that came into Fraunce for succours How the Duke of Cleues was the Lady of Burgundies neerest kinsman by his mother as is mentioned Lib. 5. cap. 16. Iohn Duke of Burgundy m. Margaret sister to William Earle of Hainault and Holland Mary m. Adolf the first D. of Cleues Adolfe Lord of Rauastain m. Betrice daughter to Iohn Duke of Cuymbria in Portugale Philip Lord of Rauastain mentioned in many places of this historie m. Mary base daughter to Philip Duke of Burgundy Iohn Duke of Cleues the D. heere mentioned m. Isabella daughter to Iohn E. of Neuers Iohn duke of Cleues the Dukes sonne for whom the marriage with the Lady Mary should haue beene made Philip Duke of Burgundy m. Isabella daughter to Iohn K. of Portugale Charles Duke of Burgundy m. Isabella daughter to Charles Duke of Bourbon Mary Duchesse of Austrich so often mentioeed in this historie m. Maximilian Emperor How King Henry the 7. was right heire of the house of Lancaster contrary to Commines who affirmeth the contrary Lib. 5. cap. 18. togither with the excuse of Commines error Edward the third King of England Iohn of Gaunt Duke of Lancaster m. Blaunch daughter and heire to Henry D. of Lancaster Iohn Duke of Bedford Henry the 4. Rex Angliae Henry the 5. Rex Angliae Henry the 6. Rex Angliae Edward Prince of Wales Thomas D. of ClareÌ„ce Humfrey Duke of Glocester m. Katharine the third wife Iohn Earle of Sommerset Iohn Duke of Sommerset the eldest sonne Margaret countesse of Richmond Henry the 7 Edmund made D of Sommerset bicause his brother died without issue male Henry Duke of Sommerset beheaded by K Edward the fourth Edmund Duke of Sommerset beheaded also by K. Edward the fourth A daughter maried Humfrey Duke of Buckingham Iohn slaine at the battell of Teukesbury The excuse of Commines error The line of Henry the fourth being failed in Prince Edward the right of the house of Lancaster came to the house of Sommerset as heere is set foorth but after the dâ—â—th of Iohn Duke of Sommerset who died without heire male Edmund his brother was made Duke of Sommerset Wherefore Commines knowing Henry the 7. to claime the right of the house of Lancaster as heire of the house of Sommerset and seeing others to be Dukes of Sommerset and not him supposed them to be of the elder house to him yet notwithstanding was Henry the 7. neerer heire than they being by his mother descended of the elder brother though they being of the male line obtained the title of Sommerset before him But this in my fansie bred Commines error and thus much in his excuse The title the Duke of Lorraine had to the realme of Sicilie countie of Prouence and Duchy of Bar mentioned by Commines Lib. 7. cap. 1. and the Kings title thereto togither with the whole quarrell betweene the house of Arragon and Aniou and why the house of Aniou had the best title as mentioneth Commines Lib. 8. Cap. 16. Naples Charles Earle of Aniou and Main brother to King S. Lewis King of Naples and Sicilie Prouence m. Betrice heire of Prouence 2 Charles surnamed the Boiteux King of Naples Hungarie m. Mary daughter heire to Stephen King of Hungary Charles Martell King of Hungarie the eldest brother Cornumbert King of Hungarie Lewis King of Hungarie Andrew strangled by Queen Iane his wife 4 m. Iane succeeded Robert hir grandfather 3 Robert King of Naples the yoonger brother Charles sans terre died before his father 4 Iane succeeded Robert hir grandfather m. Andrew strangled by Queen Iane his wife Mary Boccace his Conc. Margaret 5 m. Charles King of Naples and Hungarie 7 Iane succeeded Ladislaus hir brother died anno 1433. 6 Ladislaus King of Naples died 1414. Lewis D. of Durazzo Charles of Durazzo executed by Lewis King of Hungarie 5 Charles King of Naples and Hungarie m. Margaret 7 Iane succeeded Ladislaus hir brother died anno 1433. 6 Ladislaus King of Naples died 1414. Clementia m. Charles Earle of Valois Philip of Valois King of Fraunce Iohn King of Fraunce Lewis of Aniou adopted by Q. Iane the first slaine an 1385. Lewis of Aniou troubled K. Ladislaus died anno 1417. Bar. Yoland heire of Bar by Yoland hir mother Marie m. Charles the 7 K. of France Lewis
after the abouenamed Ambassadors departure Iohn Duke of Bourbon that last died arriued at the town of Lisle pretending that he came to visit his vncle Duke Philip of Burgundie who aboue all houses loued especially this house of Bourbon and no maruell for this Duke of Bourbons mother was Duke Philips sister She had liued a widow many yeeres and soiourned there at that time with hir brother both hir selfe and diuers of hir children to wit three daughters and one sonne notwithstanding this was not indeed the cause of the Duke of Bourbons arriuall but his comming was to perswade the Duke of Burgundie to suffer an armie to be leuied in his dominions assuring him that all the Princes of Fraunce would do the like meaning thereby to giue the King to vnderstand how euill and vniust gouernment he vsed in his realme purposing to make themselues so strong that they might constraine him by force to redresse this inconuenience if praiers could not preuaile This war was afterward called THE WEALE PVBLIQVE bicause the authors thereof vsed the common wealth for colour of their enterprise The said good Duke Philip for so is he surnamed since his death agreed that an armie should be leuied in his dominions but the bottom of the enterprise was neuer discouered to him for he thought not that the matter shoulde haue come to hand strokes as after it did Immediately began the musters through all the Dukes dominions and the Earle of Saint Paule afterward Constable of Fraunce accompanied with the Marshall of Burgundie being of the house of Neuf-chastell repaired to Cambray where D. Philip then lay to the Earle of Charolois who immediatly after their arriuall assembled his fathers Councill and a great number of his subiects in the Bishops palace at Cambray where he proclaimed all the house of Croy traitors to his father and him And notwithstanding that the Earle of S. Paule alleaged that by this proclamation he should be greatly indamaged bicause long before this he had giuen his daughter in mariage 1 to the L. of Croies sonne yet was the said house of Croy al that notwithstanding forced to abandon the Dukes dominions 2 where they lost great riches With the which dooing Duke Philip was much discontented especially bicause his chiefe chamberlaine afterward Lord of Chimay a yoong man well disposed and nephew to the Lord of Croy was forced for feare of his life to depart without leaue taken of his master being aduertised that if he did otherwise he should either be slaine or apprehended but the Dukes old age caused him to beare this matter more patiently than otherwise he would All this trouble hapned in his house bicause of the restitution of the territories aboue mentioned situate vpon the riuer of Somme which the Duke had restored to King Lewis for the sum of 400000. crownes by the perswasion of this house of Croy as the Earle of Charolois laide to their charge The said Earle after he had pacified his father and reconciled himselfe to him the best that mought be put his whole force incontinent into the field being accompanied with the Earle of S. Paule the principall gouernor of his affaires and he that had the greatest charge in his armie for he had vnder him by the Earle of Charolois commandement 300. men of armes and 4000. archers besides a number of valiant knights and esquires of Artois Haynalt and Flaunders Like bands and as great were also vnder the leading of the L. of Rauastin the D. of Cleues brother and the L. Anthony bastard of Burgundie other captaines for breuitie I passe ouer but aboue all the rest two knights there were especially in great credit with the Earle of Charolois the one named the L. of Hault-bordin an ancient knight bastard brother to the Earle of S. Paule the other the L. of Contay They had both been trained vp in the long wars betweene Fraunce and England at the same time that Henry the 5. of that name King of England raigned in Fraunce being confederate with this Duke Philip of Burgundie They were two valiant and wise knights and had the principall charge of the whole armie of yoong gentlemen there were a number but one especially very famous called master Philip of Lalain issued of a race that hath euer been so valiant and couragious that they haue in maner all died in the wars in their princes seruice The Earles force was great for his men of armes were to the number of 1400. but euill armed and vntrained bicause of the long peace these Princes of Burgundie had liued in For since the treatie of Arras by the space of 36. yeeres and more they neuer had war that indured nor almost taste of war saue a few broyles against the citie of Gaunt which were soone pacified Notwithstanding his men of armes were well mounted and well accompanied for few or none should you haue seene without fiue or sixe great horses of his retinue 3 The archers 4 were eight or nine thousand and when they mustred they were more vnwilling to depart then to giue their names but the ablest were chosen and the rest dismissed 5 The subiects of this house of Burgundie liued then in great prosperitie partly bicause of their long peace and partly bicause of their Princes goodnes who leuied but few subsidies vpon them so that these Seniors seemed comparable to the land of promise in those daies for they flowed in wealth and had continued in great quietnes the space of 23. yeeres to wit till the beginning of these wars now mentioned which till this day endure vnended their expenses in apparell both of men and women were great and superfluous 6 their feasts and banquets more sumptuous and prodigall than in any countrey that euer I sawe their bathes and other pastimes with women wanton and dissolute yea somwhat too shameles I meame of women of low estate To be short the subiects of this house thought at that time no Prince able to withstand them at the least none too mightie for them but at this present I know no countrey in the world in so great miserie and desolation as theirs and I doubt me the sins they committed in their prosperitie cause them now to suffer this aduersitie bicause they acknowledged not all these gifts and benefits to proceede from God who disposeth and bestoweth them as to his heauenly wisdome seemeth best The Earles armie thus furnished euen in a moment of all things necessarie marched forward 7 the whole force being on horseback saue those that conueied the artillerie which was mighty and strong for that time and the straglers appointed for the cariage the which was so great that the Earles owne cariage inclosed the greatest part of his campe he marched first towards Noyon and besieged a little castell called Nesle which was soone taken notwithstanding the resistance made by the garrison that was within it The Marshall Ioachin one of the fower Marshals of Fraunce issuing out of Peronne
and the Duke of Burgundies onely daughter and heire for sonne he had none which matter they had often mooued to the Duke who in words shewed himselfe not vnwilling thereunto yet notwithstanding would neuer conclude it but entertained others also in hope thereof Now marke how these men sought to atchieue their enterprise by constraining the Duke of Burgundy to this marriage Immediately after these two towns were taken and the Duke gon to Arras to leuy forces with al speed the Duke of Guienne sent a secret messenger to him who brought him three lines written with the said Dukes owne hand foulded vp in a small lumpe of waxe and conteining these words Endeuor your selfe to appease your subiects and you shall not faile of friends Farther the Duke of Burgundy being at the first in exceeding great feare sent to the Cōstable desiring him to shew himself fauorable not to presse forward this war begun without any defiance made At the which message the Constable greatly reioiced supposing that he now held the Duke in such feare as he desired which to increase he sent him a speedy discomfortable answere the effect wherof was that his state stoode in maruellous danger so far foorth that he saw no way for him to winde himselfe out of these troubles but one Namely by giuing his daughter in mariage to the D. of Guienne which if he would do he should than be succoured with great forces for both the Duke of Guienne and diuers others Lords would declare themselues for him against the King and he also would restore him Saint Quintine and take his part otherwise he said he durst do nothing considering how strong the K. was hauing both his army very wel appointed also great intelligence in the Dukes dominions This was the answer he sent with diuers other fearefull messages But I neuer knew man in my life come to good end that sought to put in feare and hold in subiection his master or any other great Prince with whom he had to do as in the end the Constables example shall well declare For notwithstanding that the King were then his master and that the greatest part of his reuenues lay and all his children were resident in the Duke of Burgundies dominions yet continued he these practises against both these Princes with intent to hold them both in feare each by other which cost him deere in the end and no maruel For notwithstanding that euery man desire to liue out of subiection and feare and that all men naturally hate these that hold them in awe yet none so extremely as Princes For I neuer knew Prince that hated not mortally all those that sought to put him feare After the D. of Burgundy had receaued the Constables answer he perceaued wel no friendship to be in him farther that he was the only author of this war Wherupon he conceaued so extreme hatred against him that after this he could neuer brooke him especially bicause by these fearfull messages he fought to constraine him to mary his daughter at his pleasure a vaine attempt For before the returne of the Constables answer the Duke had recouered his spirits and had a great army with him You may easely perceaue both by the message sent by the Duke of Guienne first and the Constables answer afterwarn that this was a compact matter between them and the rather for that the like message or a more dreadfull came soone after from the Duke of Britaine who sent also to the Kings seruice a hundred Britons all men of armes vnder the leading of the Lord of Lescut Wherefore we may boldly say that this war was mooued onely to constraine the Duke of Burgundy to conclude this mariage and that they did but abuse the King in perswading him to begin war for they were all in maner lies that they told him of their intelligences in the Dukes dominions Notwithstanding in this voiage the Constable did the King great seruice and shewed extreme malice against the Duke of Burgundy knowing that the Duke had conceaued mortal hatred against him The Duke of Guienne also serued the King in these wars very well accompanied so that the Duke of Burgundy stood vpon hard tearmes But if at the first he would haue assured his daughter to the Duke of Guienne both the said Duke of Guienne the Constable and diuers other noble men with all their adherents would haue reuolted to him against the King and done their endeuor to haue pulled him vpon his knees But whatsoeuer man purposeth in such cases God disposeth afterward of them at his pleasure How the Duke of Burgundie tooke Piquigny and afterward found meanes to make truce with the King for a yeere to the Constables great griefe Chap. 3. YOu haue heard at large the cause of this war at the beginning whereof both the Princes were blinded inuading each other and neither of them knowing the cause why which was a maruellous cunning of the contriuers of this enterprise For a man might haue pronounced the old Prouerbe of these two Princes that the one part of the world was not acquainted with the others maners nor actions All these affaires aboue rehersed since the beginning of these wars chanced in very short space for within lesse then fifteene daies after the taking of Amiens the Duke put himselfe into the field neere to Arras for farther he retired not and from thence marched toward the riuer of Somme and so straight to Piquigny but vpon the waie thither he met with a messenger of the Duke of Britaine on foote who aduertised him from the Duke his Master that the King had giuen his said Master to vnderstand of diuers secrets and among others of intelligences he had in many great towns of his dominions namely Andwerp Bruges and Bruxelles adding also that the King was determined to come and besiege him into what towne soeuer he should retire were it euen into Gaunt All the which aduertisements I suppose the Duke of Britain sent in fauour of the Duke of Guienne hoping thereby to further much the marriage aboue mentioned But the Duke of Burgundie tooke this message in euill part and foorthwith dispatched the messenger willing him to tell his master that he was misinformed by some euill seruants about him who put these feares and doubts into his head to the end he should not aide him as he was bound by their league And farther that he knew not what townes Gaunt and the other cities were in the which he said the King would come to besiege him for they were too great to be besieged He bad him farther to informe his Master in what sort he found him accompanied and to aduertise him that the world went otherwise with him then he supposed for he was determined to passe the riuer of Somme and to fight with the King if he would come to stop him vpon the way Laste of all he willed him to desire his Master on his behalfe to ioine with
him against the King and to shew himselfe a friend to the Duke of Burgundie as he had shewed himselfe to him by the treatie of Peronne The next day the Duke of Burgundie approched neere to a towne vpon the riuer of Somme called Piquigny the seat whereof was meruellous strong There he determined to make a bridge to passe the said riuer but fower or fiue hundred franke archers and certaine gentlemen who by chance lodged at that present in the towne seeing the Duke passe by salied out to the skirmish vpon a long causey and issued foorth so far from the place that thereby they gaue the Dukes men occasion to pursue them who folowed them so speedily that they slue a great number of them before they could retire into the towne and tooke the suburbes into the which the causey lead Then fower or fiue peeces of artilery were bent against the towne notwithstāding that it were impregnable on that side for that the riuer ran between the towne and the Dukes battery But these franke archers fearing bicause they saw the bridge in hand to be besieged also on the other side abandoned the place and fled The castle held two or three daies and than yeelded also by composition and the soldiers departed in their doblets and their hose The good successe of this small exploit so much encouraged the Duke that he led his army before Amiens where he built two or three lodgings saying that he would keepe the field to see if the King durst come to fight with him and in the end approched with his artillerie so neer the towne that it shot at randon ouer and into it in the which estate he laie there at the least six weeks Within the towne was the Constable and al the great officers of the realme namely the Lord great Master Admirall Marshall Seneshals and others accompanied with foureteene hundred men of armes and foure thousand francke archers The King in the meane time lying at Beauuais made a great muster being accompanied with the Duke of Guienne his brother and Nicolas Duke of Calabria sonne and heire to Iohn Duke of Calabria and Lorraine and onely heire of the house of Aniou Farther all the nobles of the realme subiect to the Arriereban were come thither to him who trauelled earnestly as I haue beene since informed to vnderstand the bottome of this enterprise for they saw the troubles so farre from pacification that the King was now more busied with wars then euer They within Amiens determined to assaile the Duke of Burgundie and his army if the King would send his forces being at Beauuais to ioine with them But the King being aduertised of this enterprise sent foorthwith to countermand it for notwithstanding that in all apparance the successe thereof was like to be good yet was it not altogither voide of danger especially for those that should haue salied for considering that they must all haue issued foorthwith on foote and at two gates one of the which was hard by the Dukes campe if happily they had beene repulsed they should haue put both the towne and themselues in great hazard In the meane time the Duke sent one of his Pages to the King called Simon of Quincy afterward Bailife of Troy with a letter of sixe lines written with his owne hand wherein he humbled himselfe to him saying that he was very sorie he had thus inuaded him for other mens pleasures which he supposed he would not haue done if he had beene well informed of their practises The Kings army sent into Burgundy 1 had defeated all the force of the countrie in battell and taken many prisoners The number of the dead was not great but the discomfiture was great in such sort that the Kings forces had already taken some places and besieged other some wherewith the Duke was somwhat abashed notwithstanding he made the contrary to be bruted in his campe saying that his army had obtained the victorie When the King had read the Dukes letter aboue mentioned he reioiced much thereat both bicause of the reason aboue alleaged 2 and also for that he soon waxed wearie of all long enterprises Wherefore he gaue him a speedy answer and directed a commission to certaine in Amiens authorising them thereby to treate of truce Whereupon diuers truces were concluded one after another for fower and fiue daies and in the end one so far as I remember for a yeere to the Constables great discontentation for vndoubtedly whatsoeuer men haue thought or can thinke to the contrarie he was then mortal enimie to the Duke and many hauty words passed betweene them in such sort that after this they neuer were friends as the sequele well declared True it is that they sent afterward one to another but all for practise sake and each to make his profit by the other For all that the Duke did was onely to recouer Saint Quintine which the Constable euer when he stood in feare of the King promised to restore and some of these treaties betweene them I haue knowen so far aduanced that the Dukes men vpon the Constables promise to be receiued haue come within two or three leagues of the towne But when the matter should be executed he euer continued in his accustomed dissimulation and sent a countermaund which his double dealing cost him deere in the end He thought bicause of the seate of the towne the great number of men he had vnder his charge paid out of the Kings cofers and the variance betweene these two Princes which himselfe nourished to hold them both in feare but his enterprise was too too dangerous for they were both too great too strong and too subtile When these armies were dismissed the King returned into the countrie of Touraine the Duke of Guienne into his owne countrie and the Duke of Burgundy into his in the which estate these affaires remained awhile The said Duke of Burgundy assembled all the estates of his dominions 3 and declared vnto them what damage he had receiued by not hauing soldiers in ordinarie pay as the King had alleaging that if there had beene but fiue hundred men in a readines to defend the frontires the King would neuer haue mooued this war but they should haue liued in peace He shewed further what great dangers they were like to fall into if this inconuenience were not speedily redressed and pressed them earnestly for the paiment of eight hundred light horse In the end they agreed to giue him a subsidie of sixe score thousand crowns 4 ouer and aboue all other duties they yeerly paid him in the which subsidie Burgundie was not comprehended But his said subiects for diuers respects feared to put themselues into such subiection and slauerie as they saw the realme of Fraunce in by reason of these men of armes which their feare was not without cause for after the Duke had obtained fiue or sixe hundred men of armes in ordinarie he sought continually to encrease the number and
command his army that lay in Champaigne and Barrois to enter incontinent into Burgundie during this great feare and astonishment of the people and hauing seazed all the countrie into his hands he meant to aduertise the Duke that he did it onely to saue it for him and defend it from the Almaines For bicause the said Duchie was held of the crowne he would for no good that it should be a pray for them but whatsoeuer he had taken he would faithfully restore as vndoubtedly he would though many happily will not credite it And no maruell for they know not the reasons that would haue mooued him thereunto but he altered this determination when he vnderstood of the Dukes death Immediately after the King being at Tours had receiued the letters aboue mentioned which reported nothing of the Dukes death he sent into the towne for all his captaines and diuers noble men to whom he read these letters whereat they seemed in apparance greatly to reioice but those that looked narrowlier into their behauiour perceiued that a great many of them forced their mirth and wished with all their harts notwithstanding their outward shew that the world had gone otherwise with the Duke The reason wherof peraduenture was bicause the K. heretofore had liued in great feare but now they doubted seeing him deliuered of so many enimies that he would alter many things especially offices and pensions For there were a great number in the companie that had borne armes against him both in the war called THE WEALE PVELIKE whereof you haue heard in the beginning of this historie and in diuers other broiles betweene him and the Duke of Guienne his brother After he had communed a while with these noble men and captaines he went to masse which being ended he caused the table to be couered in his chamber and made them all dine with him the Lord Chauncellor and certaine others of his counsell being also present All dinner-while he talked of these affaires but I and diuers others marked with what appetite those that sate at the table dined And vndoubtedly there was not one of them I wot not whether for ioy or sorrow that ate halfe a meales meate yet were they not ashamed to eate in the Kings presence for euery one of them had often before dined at his table When the King was risen from dinner he withdrew himselfe and gaue to diuers certaine of the Duke of Burgundies lands if he were dead and soone after dispatched the Admirall of Fraunce called the bastard of Bourbon and my selfe giuing vs commission to receiue into his allegeance as many as would become his subiects and further commanding vs to depart incontinent and to open all courriers packets that we should meet with to the end we might be certainly informed whether the Duke were dead or aliue We departed in great haste though in the extreamest colde weather that euer I felt and when we had ridden about halfe a daies iourney we met with a Poste whom we commanded to deliuer vs his letters the contents whereof were that the Duke was found among the dead bodies 1 and knowne by an Italian Page that serued him and by his Phisition called Master Louppe a Portugale borne who sent word to Monseur de Cran of the Duke his Masters death who incontinent aduertised the King thereof The Notes 1 By what markes the Dukes body was knuwne read Annal. Burgund How the King after the Duke of Burgundies death seazed into his hands the towne of Abbeuille and of the answer they of Arras gaue him Chap. 11. WHen we vnderstood these newes we rid foorthwith to the subburbs of Abbeuille and were the first that brought word of the Dukes death into those parts At our arriual we foūd the towns men in treaty with Monseur de Torcy whom they had loued of long time But the soldiers and those that had been the Dukes officers treated with vs about the deliuery of the towne by a messenger whom we sent thither before vs so far foorth that vpon our promises they caused fower hundred launces to depart the towne which the townes men seeing immediately opened the gates to Monseur de Torcy greatly to the hinderance of the captaines and the other officers of the towne to seauen or eight of the which we had promised both money and pensions for we had commission from the Kïng so to do wherof nothing was performed bicause the towne was not yeelded by their meanes This towne of Abbeuille was parcell of those lands that King Charles the seauenth engaged to Duke Philip of Burgundy at the treaty of Arras vnder this condition that for default of heire male they should returne to the crowne Wherefore it is not to be maruelled if so lightly they opened to vs their gates From Abbeuille we rid to Dourlans and sent to sommon Arras the chiefe towne of Artois the ancient inheritance of the Earles of Flaunders which hath alwaies descended as wel to the heires females as males Monseur de Rauastain and Monseur de Cordes who were within the towne condescended to come treat with vs at an abbey neere the towne called Mont Saint Eloy bringing with them certaine of the towne To the which treaty we agreed that I should go and certain with me for bicause we supposed they would not yeeld to our requests it was thought good that the Admirall should not go Immediately after my arriuall at the place assigned the Lords of Rauastaine and Cordes being accompanied with diuers gentlemen and certaine also of the towne repaired thither Among those that came to negotiate with vs for the towne was their Recorder called Master Iohn de la Vaquerie since that time chiefe president in the court Parlament at Paris We required them at this meeting to open vs the gates and to receiue vs into the towne for the King saying that he claimed both towne and countrey as his by way of confiscation adding that if they refused so to do they were like to be forced thereunto seeing both their Prince was slaine and their countrey vtterly vnfurnished of men of war bicause of these three battels they had lost The Lords aboue named made vs answer by the said Master Iohn de la Vaquerie that this countie of Artois appertained of right to the Lady of Burgundie daughter and heire to Duke Charles and descended to hir by inheritance from the Lady Margaret somtime Countesse of Flaunders Artois Burgundie Neuers and Retell the which married with Philip the first Duke of Burgundie sonne to King Iohn of Fraunce 1 and yoongest brother to King Charles the fift wherefore they humbly besought the King to keepe the truce concluded betweene him and the late Duke Charles Our communication was but short for we supposed before our meeting that this should be our answer But the chiefe cause of my going into those parts was to commune with certaine of mine acquaintance there and to draw them to the Kings seruice with
some of the which I spake who soone after became his faithfull seruants accordingly These countries were in marruellous feare and astonishment and not without cause for I thinke that in eight daies they could not haue leuied eight men of armes Further in all those quarters were not aboue 1500. soldiers horsemen and footmen which lay towards Namur in Henault were of those that escaped out of the battel where the Duke was slain Their woonted termes and maner of speech were now cleane altered for they spake lowly and humbly which I write not to accuse them as though in times past their words had been more arrogant than became them but the truth is when I was there they thought so well of themselues that they vsed not such reuerent language neither to the King nor of the King as they haue done sithence Wherefore if men were wise they would vse such faire speech in time of prosperitie that in aduersitie they should not neede to change their termes I returned to the Admirall to make report of my negotiation immediately whereupon we were aduertised that the King was at hand for he set foorth soone after vs and commanded letters to be written both in his owne name and diuers of his seruants names to cause certaine to repaire to him by whose meanes he trusted to bring all these seniories vnder his obedience The Notes 1 The pedegree in the end of this worke will shew how all these titles descended to this Lady Margaret A discourse not appertaining to the principall matters of the greatioie the King was in to see himselfe deliuered of so many enimies and of the error he committed touching the reducing of these countries of Burgundy to his obedience Chap. 12. THe King reioiced not a little to see himselfe thus deliuered of all those whom he hated and were his principall enimies of some of the which he had taken the reuenge himselfe namely the Constable of Fraunce the Duke of Nemours and diuers others his brother the Duke of Guyenne was dead whose inheritance was fallen to him In like maner all they of the house of Aniou were dead namely King Rene of Sicilie the Dukes of Calabria Iohn and Nicholas and their cosin the Earle of Maine and afterward of Prouence the Earle of Armignac was slaine at Lestore and all their lands and goods fallen to the King But bicause this house of Burgundie was greater and mightier than the rest and had made sharpe war with the English mens aide vpon his father K. Charles the seuenth thirtie two yeers without truce and had their dominions bordring vpon his and their subiects alwaies desirous to make war vpon him and his realme therefore he reioiced more at their Princes death than at the death of all the rest Further he now fully perswaded himselfe that during his life no man neither within his realme nor in the countries bordering vpon it would once lift vp his finger against him For he was in peace as you haue heard with the English men the which he trauelled to the vttermost of his power to continue But although he were thus void of all feare yet did not God permit him to take the wisest course for the atchieuing of this his enterprise being of so great importance And sure it appeereth both by that God shewed then and hath shewed since that he meant sharply to punish this house of Burgundy as wel in the person of the Prince as of the subiects and of those that liued amongst them For if the King our Master had taken the best course the wars that haue consumed them since had neuer hapned For if he had done as he ought to haue done he should haue sought to ioine to the crowne all those great Seniories whereunto he could pretend no title either by mariage or by courteous dealing with the subiects which thing he might then easily haue accomplished seeing the great feare miserie and distresse these countries were in at that time And if he had thus done he should both haue rid them of many troubles inlarged and enriched his owne realme through long peace which by this meanes had beene easily obtained He might also heereby haue eased his realme diuers waies especially of the charge of men of armes who continually rode vp and down from one corner of the realme to another oftentimes vpon small occasion While the Duke of Burgundy yet liued he eftsoones debated with me what were best to be done if the said Duke hapned to die And then he discoursed maruellous wisely thereof saying that he would trauell to make a mariage betweene the King his sonne now raigning and the Dukes daughter afterward Duches of Austrich which if she refused bicause of the Daulphin his sons yoong age then he would attempt to win hir to mary some yoong Lord of this realme to obtaine thereby hir friendship and hir subiects and recouer without blowes that he claimed to be his in the which minde he continued till eight daies before he vnderstood of the Dukes death But this wise deliberation he began somwhat to alter the selfe same day he receiued newes therof and the very instant that he dispatched the Admirall and me Notwithstanding he discouered not his purpose therein but made promise to diuers of lands and lordships that had been in the Dukes possession How Han Bohain Saint Quintin and Peronne were yeelded to the King and how he sent Master Oliuer his barber to practise with them of Gaunt Chap. 13. THe King being on the way comming after vs receiued good newes from all parts for the castels of Han and Bohain were yeelded vnto him and the citizens of Saint Quintins of their own accord receiued Monseur de Mouy their neighbor into the towne for him Further he assured himselfe of Peronne which VVilliam of Bische held and was put in hope both by vs and others that Monseur de Cordes would reuolt to him Further he had sent his barber called Master Oliuer to Gaunt in a village neere to the which he was borne and had dispatched diuers others into other places being in great hope of them all but the most part of them serued him rather with words then deedes When he drew neer to Peronne I went to meet him and found him in a village whither M. VVilliam of Bische and certain others came presented him the keies of the town wherof he was right glad The King abode there that day and I dined with him after mine accustomed maner for his pleasure was that seuen or eight at the least somtimes more should ordinarily sit at his owne table But after dinner he withdrew himselfe and seemed to be discontented with the small exploit the Admirall and I had done saying that he had sent Master Oliuer his barber to Gaunt to bring that towne to his obedience and Robinet Dodenfort to Saint Omers who was well friended there and those he commended as fit men to receiue the keies of a towne
Prince of Wales sonne to King Henry attempt to set vp againe the house of Lancaster passe with the said Prince into England discomfited in the field and slaine both he his brethren and kinsfolks and diuers other noble men of England who in times past had done the like to their enimies After all this the children of these when the world turned reuenged themselues and caused in like maner the others to die which plagues we may be assured hapned not but by the wrath of God But as before I said the realme of England hath this speciall grace aboue all other realmes and dominions that in ciuill wars the people is not destroied the towns be not burned nor razed but the lot of fortune falleth vpon the soldiers especially the gentlemen whom the people enuy to too beyond reason for nothing is perfect in this world After King Edvvard was quiet in his realme and receiued yeerely out of Fraunce fifty thousand crownes paid him in the tower of London and was growen so rich that richer he could not be he died suddenly as it were of melancholy bicause of our Kings mariage that now raigneth with the Lady Margaret the Duke of Austriches daughter For so soone as he was aduertised thereof he fell sicke and began then to perceiue how he had been abused touching the mariage of his daughter whom he made to be named the Lady Daulphinesse Then also was the pension which he receiued out of Fraunce taken from him which he called tribute although indeed it were neither the one nor the other as before I haue declared 10 K. Edward left by his wife two goodly sonnes one Prince of Wales the other D. of Yorke and two daughters The D. of Glocester his brother tooke vpon him the gouernment of his nephew the Prince of Wales being about ten yeeres of age and did homage to him as to his soueraigne Lord and lead him to London pretending that he would there crowne him King hoping by that meanes to get the other brother out of the Sanctuary at London where he was with his mother who began already to be iealous of his proceedings To be short by meanes of the Bishop of Bathe who hauing been somtime of K. Edwards Councell fell afterward into his disgrace and was put in prison and made to fine for his deliuerance the D. of Glocester executed this exploit which you shall now heare This Bishop aduertised the Duke that K. Edvvard being in loue with a certaine Lady promised hir mariage vpon condition that he might lie with hir wherunto she consented so far foorth that the said Bishop maried them togither none being present but they two and he himselfe Which matter this Bishop being a iolly courtier neuer disclosed during K. Edvvards life but caused also the said Lady to conceale it so that it was kept secret After this the said King falling againe in loue maried the daughter of an English knight called the Lord Riuers being a widow and mother of two sonnes But after K. Edvvards death this Bishop of Bathe reuealed this matter to the D. of Glocester whereby he egged him forward not a little to the executing of his mischieuous pretended enterprise For the said D. murthered his two nephewes crowned himselfe King by the name of Richard the third proclaimed his brothers two daughters bastards in open parlament tooke from them their armes and put to death all the faithull seruants of the late King his brother at the least as many as he could lay hands on But this cruelty remained not long vnpunished for when the said King Richard thought himselfe safest and liued in greater pride than any King of England did these hundred yeeres hauing put to death the Duke of Buckingham and hauing a great army in a readines God raised vp an enimy against him of no force I meane the Earle of Richmond then prisoner in Britaine but now King of England of the house of Lancaster though not This error of Commines touching K. Henry the 7. you shall finde controuled by the peâ—egree in the end of this booke the neerest to the crowne 11 whatsoeuer men say at the least so far as I can learne The said Earle told me a little before his departure out of this realme that from the fift yeere of his age he had liued continually like a prisoner a banished man And indeed he had been fifteene yeeres or therabout prisoner in Britaine to Duke Frances that last died into whose hands he fell by tempest of the sea as he fled into Fraunce accompanied with the Earle of Pembroke his vncle I my selfe saw them when they arriued for I was come of a message to the D. at the same time The Duke entreated them gently for prisoners after King Edwards death lent the said Earle great force of men a great nauie with the which he sent him hauing intelligence with the Duke of Buckingham who for this cause was afterward put to death to lande in England but the winde was against him and the seas so rough that he was forced to returne to Diepe and from thence by land into Britaine From whence soone after he departed with his band into Fraunce without taking leaue of the Duke partly bicause he feared to ouercharge the Duke for he had with him fiue hundred English men and partly bicause he doubted lest the Duke would agree with King Richard to his preiudice for he knew that King Richard practised with him to that ende Soone after the King that now is appointed three or fower thousand men to waft him ouer onely and deliuered those that accompanied him a good summe of money and certaine peeces of artillerie and thus passed he ouer in a ship of Normandie to land in Wales where he was borne King Richard foorthwith marched against him but a kinght of England called the Lord Stanley who was married to the Earles mother ioined himselfe with the Earle and brought vnto him at the least 26000. men 12 The battell was giuen King Richard slaine and the Earle crowned King in the field with the said Richards crowne Will you saie that this was fortune No no it was the iudgement of God and for further proofe thereof marke this also Immediately after the King had murthered his two nephews he lost his wife whom some say he murthered also Further he had but one onely sonne who died in like maner incontinent after this murther This example would haue serued better heereafter when I shall speake of King Edwards death for he was yet liuing at the time my former Chapter treateth of but I haue rehearsed it heere to continue my discourse which I am fallen into In like maner we haue seene of late the crowne of Spaine altered after the death of Dom Henry that last died For the said Dom Henry had to wife the King of Portugales sister last deceased by whom he had issue a goodly daughter which notwithstanding succeeded not hir father but was
and the Queene his wife had so greatly desired that they would neuer credit any man that aduertised them to the contrarie were he English man or stranger For the Councell of England had debated this matter with him at the same time that the King conquered that part of Picardie that ioineth to Calice alleaging that after he had subdued that he might easily attempt to take Calice and Guisnes The like was also told him by the ambassadors resident in England for the Duke and Duchesse of Austriche and by the Britons and diuers others but he beleeued no whit of all this which incredulitie turned much to his losse Notwithstanding I suppose it proceeded rather of couetousnes than ignorance for he feared the losse of the fiftie thousand crownes the King paid him besides that he was loth to leaue his ease and pleasures whereunto he was maruellously addicted About the conclusion of this marriage an assembly was held at Halots in Flaunders whereat the Duke of Austriche now King of Romans was present togither with certaine deputies for the three estates of Flaunders Brabant and the other countries belonging to the saide Duke and his children The citizens of Gaunt did many things there contrarie to the Dukes minde for some they banished and some they remooued from about his sonne in the end they told him how great desire they had to see this marriage accomplished therby to obtaine peace forced him to consent therunto The Duke was very yoong and accompanied with few noble men for all the subiects of this house of Burgundie very few excepted I meane of great personages that could haue giuen him counsell or aide in these affaires were as you haue heard either dead or reuolted to the King As touching himselfe he was come thither very slenderly accompanied and now hauing lost his wife being Lady of the countrie he durst not giue them so stout language as before he was accustomed To be short the King being aduertised of all these actions by Monseur de Cordes reioiced much thereat and a day was appointed when this Lady should be brought to Hedin Not long before the conclusion of this marriage to wit in the yeere 1481. the towne of Ayre was yeelded for a summe of monie to Monseur de Cordes by the Lord of Croy of the countrie of Artois who held it for the Duke of Austriche and the Lord of Beures his captaine The towne is very strong situate in the countrie of Artois and the deliuerie thereof increased the Flemmings desire to further this marriage bicause it standeth vpon the very entrance into Flaunders For notwithstanding that they wished the weakening of their Prince yet were they not willing to haue the King so neere a neighbor to their frontiers After these matters aboue mentioned were fully concluded ambassadors came to the King out of Flaunders and Brabant but all depended vpon them of Gaunt both bicause of their force bicause the children were in their hands and for that they were alwaies the ringleaders of all tumults There came also from the King of Romanes for the pacifying of his dominions certaine Knights yoong men like himselfe and of small experience whose names were Master Iohn de Bergues and Master Baudouin de Launoy and certaine Secretaries The King was brought maruellous low with sicknes so that hardly he suffered himselfe to be seene and made great difficultie to sweare the treatie bicause he was loth to come abrode in sight notwithstanding in the end he sware it It was very auantageous for him for in all assemblies that had beene held heeretofore about this marriage he neuer required but the countie of Artois or Burgundie one of the two but now the Lords of Gaunt as he termed them caused them both to be yeelded vnto him togither with the counties of Masconnois Charolois and Auxerrois yea and if it had lien in them to haue put into his hands Hainault and Namur and all the seniories of this house of Burgundie being of the French language they would willingly haue done it thereby to affeeble their Prince The King our Master being a wise Prince vnderstood well that no account was to be made of Flaunders nor the Earle thereof without he had the countrie of Artois which lying betweene the King of Fraunce and the Flemmings is as it were a bridle to them For in the countrie of Artois are leuied very good soldiers to scourge the Flemmings when they play the fooles Wherefore by taking away from the Earle of Flaunders the countrie of Artois he left him the poorest Prince in the world and without all obedience of his subiects saue onely at the pleasure of them of Gaunt After this ambassage was returned home the said Lady was led to Hedin and deliuered into the hands of Monseur de Cordes in the yeere 1483. She was conueied thither by the Lady of Rauastain bastard daughter to Duke Philip of Burgundie and was receiued there by the Duke and Duchesse of Bourbon that now are and by the Lord of Albret and diuers others sent thither by the King who led hir to Amboise where the Daulphin lay If the Duke of Austriche could haue rescued hir before she was passed out of his dominions from them that conueied hir he would willingly haue done it but they of Gaunt had sent hir well accompanied And as touching the said Duke all his subiects began to disobey him so far foorth that a great number tooke part with them of Gaunt bicause they had his sonne in their hands and remooued from him and placed about him such as pleased them and among the rest that were resident at Gaunt was the Lord of Rauastain brother to the Duke of Cleues principall gouernor of the said yoong infant called Duke Philip who is yet liuing and like to be a great Prince if God spare him life Whosoeuer reioiced at this marriage the King of England was highly displeased therewith for he accounted it great reproch and dishonor to be thus deluded and feared both the losse of the pension the King paid him which the English men called Tribute and also that the contempt heereof would stir his subiects to rebellion against him bicause he would giue no eare to good aduice Further he saw the King with great force neere to his dominions for the which causes he conceiued such inward griefe when he heard these newes that soone after he ended his life some say of a catarrhe But whatsoeuer his disease were the report goeth that the sorrow conceiued of this marriage caused the disease whereof he died soone after in the moneth of Aprill anno 1483. It is a foule fault in a Prince to trust more to his owne braine than to the aduice of a great number for it causeth oftentimes both great sorrow and also losse irrecouerable Immediately after King Edvvards death the King our Master was aduertised therof and seemed nothing ioifull of the newes but soone after receiued letters from the D. of
the Duke of Milans hands and held by Master Baptist de Campefourgouse but at this present the Lord Lodouic had recouered it and gaue to certaine of the Kings chamber eight thousand ducats for the inuesture thereof who by receiuing the monie greatly preiudiced the King For before the graunt of the said inuesture they might haue seized Genua to the Kings owne vse if they had would 9 but seeing they meant to take monie for it they ought to haue demanded more for Duke Galeas paide at one time for it to King Lewis my Master fiftie thousand ducats whereof the King whose soule God pardon gaue me thirtie thousand crownes in reward Notwithstanding they said they receiued these eight thousand ducats with the Kings consent and Stephan de Vers Seneschall of Beaucaire was one of those that tooke the monie happily to entertaine the better the Lord Lodouic for this enterprise which he so much both fauored and furthered After audience giuen openly at Paris to the ambassadors aboue mentioned the Earle of Caiazze had secret communication with the King The said Earle was in great credit at Milan but his brother Master Galeas of Saint Seuerin in greater especially in martiall affaires His Master could now dispose of the estate of Milan as of his owne for the which cause he offered the King great seruices and aide as well of men as mony affirming the enterprise to be of no difficultie This done he and Master Galeas Viscount tooke their leaue and departed leauing behinde them the Earle Charles of Belleioyeuse to entertaine the sute who incontinent put himselfe into French apparell and trauelled so earnestly in this busines that many began to like of the enterprise The King sent into Italie to Pope Innocentius to the Venetians and to the Florentines one named Peron of Basche who had been brought vp in the house of Aniou vnder Duke Iohn of Calabria and was maruellously affectioned to this voiage These practises and runnings to and fro continued the space of seuen or eight moneths and those that vnderstood of this enterprise communed among themselues diuersly of it but none thought that the King would go in person into Italie The Notes 1 Antonel of Saint Seuerin Prince of Salerne and Bernardin Prince of Besignan were brethren Guicciar 2 He meaneth by Kings of Fraunce those Kings of the house of Fraunce that had held the realme of Naples to wit the Dukes of Aniou 3 Viscomte in both these places and diuers others is a proper name not a name of honor and signifieth as much as Biscomte that is tvvise Earle bicause the Viscomti were Lords of Angiera and Milan 4 This captaine meant no treason to the children as the others did but consented to this deede bicause he thought the children in more safetie vvith him than vvith their foolish mother 5 The sense in mine opinion were better to read it qu'il luy feroit then qu'il leur feroit that is that he vvould smite off the captaines head if the place vvere not yeelded for they vvithin vvere out of Lodouics povver 6 The French had it in this sense And another vvho said that he had been a messenger betvveene them but vndoubtedly the place is corrupted and to be read as I haue amended it 7 The Duke of Ferrara had married King Ferrandes daughter named Elenor. 8 Duke Galeas ought to haue come into Fraunce to haue done homage to the King in person but bicause Lodouic vvould not let him depart out of his custodie he found means that it should be done to one sent thither by the King as his deputie for that purpose 9 Genua vvas forfeited and vnder colour thereof the Lord Lodouic had recouered it but bicause it vvas held of the King for the Genuois had giuen themselues to Charles the sixt anno 1394. vvho sent thither for gouernor Iohn de Maingre and aftervvard to Charles the seuenth anno 1446. it could be forfeited to none but to the King but by giuing avvay this inuesture he gaue avvay his right How King Charles the eight made peace with the King of Romanes and the Archduke of Austrich restoring to them the Lady Margaret of Flaunders before he made his voiage to Naples Chap. 3. DVring this delaie aboue mentioned peace was treated of at Senlis betweene the King and the Archduke of Austriche heire of the house of Burgundie for notwithstanding that they were in truce yet a breach happened betweene them bicause the King refused the King of Romaines daughter sister to the said Archduke being verie yoong and married the daughter of Frauncis Duke of Britaine to enioie peaceablie thereby the Duchie of Britaine all the which at the time of this treatie he held saue the towne of Renes and the said daughter being within in it the which was gouerned by the Prince of Orenge hir vncle who had made a marriage betweene hir and the King of Romaines 1 and openly solemnised it in the church by a Practor All the which happened in the yeere 1492. To this treatie aboue mentioned came a great ambassage in fauoure of the Duke of Austriche from the Emperor Frederick who offered to be a mediator for the peace the King of Romains sent thither also 2 and so did the Palzgraue and the Swissers to pacifie this controuersie being all of opinion that it would kindle a great fire for the King of Romains seemed aboue all measure to be iniuried hauing at one time hir taken from him whom he accounted his wife and his daughter sent backe to him which many yeeres had beene Queene of Fraunce but in the end the matter was quietly shut vp and peace concluded For all parties were wearie of war especially Duke Philips subiects who had sustained so many troubles partly bicause of wars with this realme and partly through their owne priuate diuisions that they could no more The peace was concluded but for fower yeeres whereunto the King of Romaines agreed to the end he might repose his subiects and receiue againe his daughter whom some that were about the King and the said daughter made difficultie to restore At this treatie I was present my selfe with the rest of the Kings Commissioners being these Peter Duke of Bourbon the Prince of Orenge the Lord of Cordes and diuers other noble personages and promise was there made to restore to the said Duke Philip all that the King held in Artois for so was it agreed when this mariage was treated of in the yeere 1482. that if it were not accomplished all the landes that were giuen with this Ladie in maraige should returne againe with hir or be restored to Duke Philip. But the said Archdukes men had alreadie surprised Arras and Saint Omer so that onely Hedin Aire and Betune remained to be restored the possession and seniorie whereof were presently deliuered them and they put officers into them but the King held still the castels and might place garrisons in them till the fower yeeres were expired which ended at
the feast of Saint Iohn Baptist in the yeere 1498. at which time he was bound to restore them also to the said Archduke and so he promised and sware to do Whether the alteration of these mariages agreed with the lawes of holy Church or no let others iudge for many Doctors of diuinitie said yea and many nay but were these lawfull or vnlawfull sure all these Ladies were vnfortunate in their issue Our Queene had three sonnes successiuely one after another in fower yeeres one of them 3 liued almost three yeeres and then died and the other two be dead also The Lady Margaret of Austriche was afterward married to the Prince of Castile onely sonne to the King and Queene of Castile and heire both of Castile and diuers other realmes The said Prince died the first yeere of his marriage in the yeere of our Lord 1497. leauing his wife great bellied 4 who immediately after hir husbands death fell in trauel before hir time and was deliuered of a dead borne childe which misfortune the King and Queene of Castile and their whole realme lamented a long time The King of Romanes immediately after this change aboue mentioned married the daughter of Galeas Duke of Milan sister to Duke Iohn Galeas before named the which marriage was made by the Lord Lodouics onely procurement but it displeased greatly both the Princes of the Empire and many also of the King of Romanes friends bicause she was not of a house noble ynough in their opinion to match with their Emperor For as touching the Viscounts of whom the Dukes of Milan are descended small nobilitie is in them and lesse yet in the Sforces for the first of that house was Francis Sforce Duke of Milan whose father was a shoomaker 5 dwelling in a little towne called Cotignoles but a very valiant man though not so valiant as his sonne who by meanes of the great fauour the people of Milan bare his wife being bastard daughter to Duke Philip Marie made himselfe Duke and conquered and gouerned the whole countrie not as a tyrant but as a good and iust Prince so that in woorthines and vertue he was comparable to the noblest Princes that liued in his daies Thus much I haue written to shew what followed the change of these marriages neither know I what may yet heerafter ensue further thereof The Notes 1 Annal. Burgund vvrite vvith Philip the King of Romaines sonne but the best vvriters agree vvith our author 2 Maximilian vvas chosen King of Romaines anno 1486. Funccius 3 Of this childes death he vvriteth lib. 8. cap. 13. 4 Of this Princes death he vvriteth at large lib. 8. cap. 17. 5 Francis Sforces father as some write vvas first a cooke in the campe after he became a soldier and lastly for his valor vvas made a captaine and a knight How the King sent to the Venetians to practise with them before he enterprised his voiage to Naples and of the preparation that was made for the said voiage Chap. 4. NOw to returne to the principall matter you haue heard of the Earle of Caiazzes the other ambassadors departure from the King at Paris and of diuers practises entertained in Italy and how the King as yoong as he was greatly affected this voiage notwithstanding that as yet he discouered his meaning but to the Seneschall and generall onely Further he required the Venetians to giue him aide and counsell in this enterprise who answered him that he should be welcome into Italy but that aide him they could not bicause they stood in doubt of the Turke yet were they in peace with him and as touching counsell it should be too great presumption in them to giue counsell to so wise a Prince hauing so graue a counsell about him but they promised rather to helpe him than hinder him This they tooke to be a wise answer and so was it I confesse But notwithstanding that they gouerne their affaires more circumspectly than any Prince or commonaltie in the world yet God will alwaies haue vs to know that wisedome and forecast of man auaile nought when he is purposed to strike the stroke For he disposed of this enterprise far otherwise than they imagined for they thought not that the King would haue come in person into Italy neither stoode they in any feare of the Turke notwithstanding their forged excuse for the Turke then raigning was a man of no valor 1 but they hoped by this meanes to be reuenged of the house of Arragon which they hated extremely both the father and the sonne bicause by their perswasion as they said the Turke came to Scutary 2 I meane the father of this Turke called Mahumet Ottoman who tooke Constantinople and greatly endammaged the said Venetians But apart to Alphonse D. of Calabria they had many other quarrels for they charged him first as the onely author of the war the D. of Ferrara mooued against them wherin they consumed such infinit treasure that it had well neere cleane vndone them of the which war a word or two hath been spoken before Secondarily that he had sent a man purposely to Venice to poison their cesterns at the least as many as might be come vnto for diuers of them be enclosed and locked They vse there none other water for they are inuironed with the sea and sure that water is very good 3 as my selfe can witnes for twice I haue been at Venice and in my last voiage dranke of it eight moneths togither But the chiefe cause of their hatred against this house of Arragon was none of these aboue rehersed but for that the said house kept them frō growing great as well in Italy as Greece on both the which countries they had their eies fixed notwithstanding they had lately conquered the I le of Cyprus vpon no title in the world 4 For all these considerations the Venetians thought it their profit that war should arise betweene the King and the house of Arragon but they supposed that it could not haue ended so soon as it did that it shuld but weaken their enimies not vtterly destroy them and further that if the woorst fell either the one partie or the other to haue their helpe would giue them certaine townes in Pouille lying vpon their sea coast as also in the end it hapned but they had well neere misreckoned themselues Lastly as touching the calling of the King into Italy they thought it could not be laid to their charge seeing they had giuen him neither counsell nor aide as appeered by their answer to Peron of Basche In the yeere 1494. the King went to Lyons to attend to his affaires but no man 1494. thought he would passe the mountaines Thither came to him the aboue named Master Galeas of Saint Seuerin brother to the Earle of Caiazze with a goodly traine sent from the Lord Lodouic whose lieutenant and principall seruant he was He brought with him a great number of braue horses and armours to run in
and ran himselfe and that very well for he was a yoong and a gallant knight The King entertained him very honorably feasted him sumptuously and gaue him his order This done he returned into Italy But the Earle of Belleioyeuse remained still with the King to hasten the voiage At Genua they began to arme a great nauie whither the King sent the Lord of Vrfé Master of his horse with diuers others In the end he remooued to Vienna in Daulphine about the beginning of August in the same yeere whither the nobles of Genua resorted daily to him wherefore to Genua he sent Lewis Duke of Orleans now King of this realme a yoong gentleman of goodly personage but much giuen to his pleasures of whom in this history ample mention shal be made It was then thought that the said Duke of Orleans should haue led this armie by sea to land in the realme of Naples by the conduct and direction of the aboue named banished Princes of Salerne Bisignan The whole nauie was fowerteene ships of Genua besides a great number of gallies and galleons and the King was as well obeied there in this case as he should haue been at Paris for Genua was vnder the state of Milan where the Lord Lodouic gouerned all hauing none to gainsay him saue onely the Duchesse his nephewes wife daughter to King Alphonse for about this present his father King Ferrande died But the said Lady preuailed little or nothing both bicause men sawe the King in a readines either to passe into Italy himselfe or to send his forces and also bicause hir husband was a very simple man and disclosed all hir dooings to the Lord Lodouic his vncle who had already caused a messenger to be drowned sent by hir to hir father This nauie did no seruice notwithstanding that the charges thereof amounted to three hūdred thousand franks for all the treasure that the K. could leuy was imploied that way by means whereof he was vnfurnished as before I said both of good counsell of money and of al things necessary for such an enterprise yet God of his meere grace as manifestly he declared gaue it good successe I meane not that the King was not wise of his age but he was but two and twenty yeeres old newly crept out of the shell The two aboue named that gouerned him in all this voiage to wit Stephen de Vers Seneschall of Beaucaire and the generall Brissonnet now Cardinall of Saint Malo were men of meane estate and of no experience whereby so much the more appeered the woonderfull worke of God our enimies on the other side were accounted wise of great experience in the wars rich accompanied with wise men and good captaines and in possession of the realme I meane King Alphonse lately crowned by Pope Alexander a Spaniard borne in the realme of Arragon who had the Florentines ioined with him and great intelligence with the Turke He had also a son bearing armes called Dom Ferrande a courteous yoong gentleman of the age of two or three and twenty yeeres who was welbeloued in the realme and a brother also named Dom Frederic who succeeded the said Ferrande in this our age and was a very wise man and led their army vpon the sea He had been long trained vp on this side the mountaines and of him you had often assured me my Lord of Vienna by your knowledge in Astrologie that he should be King so that he once promised me fower thousand franks of yeerely reuenewes in the said realme when that came to passe which promise was made twenty yeeres before the prophesie tooke effect Now to proceede the King altered his minde 5 through the Duke of Milans earnest sollicitation made both by letters by the Earle Charles of Belleioyeuse his ambassador and by the two aboue named Notwithstanding the Generall in the end began to draw backe seeing all men of wisedome and vnderstanding to mislike this voiage for many respects and especially bicause the Kings forces lay abrode in camp in August vnfurnished of monie and all other things necessarie but the Seneschall alone carried the credit from them all so far foorth that the King shewed a countenance of displeasure to the Generall three or fower daies but he soone recouered his fauour againe At this present died one of the Seneschals seruants of the plague as men said for the which cause he durst not repaire to the Kings presence to his great griefe for no man sollicited the voiage but on the contrarie side the D. Duchesse of Bourbon were there laboring all that in them lay to ouerthrow it whereunto also the said Generall encouraged them by means whereof one day the voiage was dashed and another reuiued In the end the King resolued to go and I my selfe mounted on horsebacke with the foremost hoping to passe the mountains the more commodiously with small companie but I receiued a countermand whereby I was aduertised that all was altered againe The selfesame day were borrowed fiftie thousand ducats of a merchant of Milan but the Lord Lodouic deliuered the money vpon assurance made to the said merchant for the repaiment my selfe stood bound for six thousand and others for the rest but this monie was lent without interest The King had borrowed before of the banke of Soly at Genua a hundred thousand franks the interest wherof amounted in fower moneths to 14. thousand franks 6 But some said that the two aboue named had part both in the principall and also in the interest The Notes 1 This Turke was Baiazet the second 2 Scodra in Latin a towne in that part of Dalmatia now called Albania 3 This is rainewater he meaneth 4 VVhy they had no title appeereth by the Pedegree in the end of the worke 5 For he was not minded at the first to haue gone in person 6 That is after the rate of starling money 14. pound in the hundred for fower moneths How King Charles departed from Vienna in Daulphin to conquer the realme of Naples in person and what his nauie vpon the sea did vnder the leading of the Duke of Orleans Chap. 5. TO be short the King departed from Vienna the 23. of August in the yeere 1494. and marched straight towards Ast 1 At Suze Master Galeas of S. Seuerin came to him in poste from whence the King remooued to Thurin where he borrowed all the Duchesse of Sauoyes iewels who was daughter to the late Lorde VVilliam Marques of Montferrat and Duke Charles of Sauoyes widowe the which he engaged for twelue thousand ducats A few daies after he went to Casall to the Marques of Montferrats widow being a wise yoong Lady daughter to the King of Seruia The Turke had conquered hir countrie and the Emperor whose kinswoman she was hauing as I suppose taken hir into his protection had bestowed hir in this house of Montferrat She lent also hir iewels the which were in like maner engaged for twelue thousand ducats Heereby you may perceiue what
To be short their behauiour was such on both sides that their amitie could not long endure but we babbled much more than they not the King himselfe but certaine of his neerest kinsmen 3 In this castell of Pauie was Iohn Galeas Duke of Milan and his wife daughter to King Alphonse in very pitious estate for hir husband being sicke was held in this castell as vnder garde and hir sonne who is yet liuing with a daughter or two The childe was then about fiue yeeres old and him euery man might see but no man might see the Duke for my selfe passed that way three daies before the King and could by no meanes be suffered to come to him Euery body said he was extreme sicke notwithstanding the King spake with him for he was his cosin germane 4 and he hath told me that their communication was onely generall talke bicause he would in no wise offend the Lord Lodouic notwithstanding that he were very desirous to haue aduertised his said cosin of diuers matters At the same time the Duchesse fell vpon hir knees before the said Lodouic desiring him to haue pitie vpon hir father and brother He answered that it could not be But to say the truth she might better haue intreated for hir husband and hir selfe being at that time a goodly yoong Lady From thence the King remooued to Plaisance where the said Lodouic receiued letters that his nephewe the Duke Milan lay at the point of death wherefore he tooke his leaue of the King to go to him The King desired him to returne and so he promised to do Before he came to Pauie the Duke died whereupon he rid incontinent as it were in poste to Milan Al these newes I vnderstood by a letter that the Venetian ambassador resident with the said Lodouic sent to Venice wherein also he aduertised the Seniorie that he meant to make himselfe Duke whichboth the Duke of Venice and the Seniorie vtterly misliked so far foorth that they asked me whether the King would not defend the childe which though reason required that he should yet I made the matter doubtfull considering how necessary an instrument the said Lord Lodouic was at that time for the Kings affaires To be short he made himselfe to be receiued at Milan as Duke which was the onely end as some said why he had caused vs to passe the mountaines Manie also charged him with his nephewes death whose kinsfolkes and friends in Italy were in armes to haue taken the gouernment from him which they would easily haue done had not the Kings comming stopped them For they were already in Romaine as you haue heard But the Earle of Caiazze and the Lord of Aubigny made them to retire For the said Lord of Aubigny had with him a company of a hundred fifty or two hundred men of armes French and a good band of Swissers Dom Ferrande and his forces retired towards their friends dislodging euer halfe a daies iourney before our men and marched towards Furly 5 which belonged to a Lady being a bastard of Milan and widow of the Earle Hieronime nephew to Pope Sixtus 6 This Lady fauored them as the report went notwithstanding after our men had taken by assault a little towne of hirs being first beaten halfe a day with the canon she reuolted to vs being indeed well affected to vs before Further the people of Italy began in all places to take hart and to desire change and alteration for they sawe that which before they had neuer seene I meane the feate of artillerie which they were vnacquainted with which in Fraunce was neuer more practised than at that time The said Dom Ferrande approched still neerer and neerer to his realme and went to Sesenne a faire citie of the Popes in the Marque of Anconne but the people spoiled his carriage stuffe whensoeuer they tooke his men at aduantage And through all Italy they would haue rebelled if the wars had been ordered on our side without spoile but all was done cleane contrary to my great griefe bicause of the honor and renowme the French nation might haue obtained by this voiage For at our first arriuall the people honored vs as saints supposing all faith and vertue to be in vs but their opinion endured not long partly bicause of the disorder and spoile our men vsed and partly bicause of the slanderous reports our enimies made of vs in all places charging vs that we forced women and robbed and carried away money and whatsoeuer we could lay hands on of heinouser crimes they could not haue accused vs in Italy for no nation is so ielous and couetous as the Italian As touching women they belied vs but the rest was not altogither vntrue The Notes 1 He meaneth bicause he vvas a man of no vertue as before is said 2 VVhat right the Duke of Orleans had to it the petegree in the end of the booke will declare 3 He meaneth the Earle of Ligny the King and vvho vvere sisters children 4 King Charles his mother vvas Charlotte and this Dukes mother Bonne both daughters to the Duke of Sauoy 5 It vvas corruptly in the French Sorly for Furly vvhich the old Romaines called Forum liuii 6 Octauian sonne to Hieronime of Riare vvas Lord of Furly and Imola vvith title of Vicar of the Church but he vvas vnder the gouernment of Katherin Sforce his mother heere mentioned Guicciar How Peter of Medices yeelded fower of the Florentines strongest places to the King and how the King restored Pisa being one of them to their ancient liberty Chap. 7. THe King as before you haue heard was at Plaisance where he caused a solemne funerall to be made for his cosin germaine the Duke of Milan for other thing wist he not what to do the new Duke of Milan being departed from him They that best vnderstood the course of these affaires haue told me that the whole cōpany desired to returne home aswel for that they were vnprouided of all things necessarie as also bicause of diuers doubts that were arisen for certaine that at the first seemed to haue great good liking of this voiage began now vtterly to disallow thereof namely the Lord of Vrfé Master of the horse who was not with the King but lay sicke at Genua whence he wrote him a letter giuing him therein to vnderstand of diuers doubts and iealousies whereof he was aduertised But as before I haue said in diuers places God manifestly declared that he himselfe gouerned this enterprise For suddenly in the necke of this letter newes came to the King that the Duke of Milan would shortly return and that the Florentines began to fauor vs in hatred of Peter de Medicis who gouerned them as if he had been their Prince to the great discontentation both of many of his owne neere kinsmen and of diuers also the best citizens namely the Capons the Sonderini 1 the Nerly and in maner the whole citie Wherefore the King departed from
Orleans and his company who as before you haue heard had giuen no order at all for their victuals at their first entrie into Nouarre And sure the Duke should haue done much better in following the aduise I gaue him at the Kings returne to Ast as before is mentioned which was to depart out of Nouarre putting all that were vnable to do seruice out of the towne and to repaire himselfe to the King for his presence would much haue furthered his affaires at the least those that he had left behinde him should not haue suffered such extreme famine as they did for he would haue made a composition sooner when he had seene no remedie But the Archbishop of Rouen who had been with him in Nouarre from the very beginning and for the furtherance of his affaires was come to the King and present at the debating of all matters sent him word daily not to depart bicause shortly he should be succoured grounding himselfe wholy vpon the Cardinall of Saint Malos promise who had all the credit with the King Good affection caused him to write thus but I was well assured of the contrarie For no man would returne to the battell vnlesse the King went in person and as touching him he desired nothing lesse for this was but a priuate quarrell for one towne which the Duke of Orleans would needes retaine and the Duke of Milan needes haue restored bicause it is but ten leagues from Milan so that of necessitie one of them must haue had all For there are in the Duchie of Milan nine or ten great cities the one neere to the other Further the Duke of Milan said that in restoring Nouarre and not demanding Genua he would do any thing for the King We sent meale oftentimes to Nouarre whereof the halfe was euer lost vpon the way and once sixtie men of armes were defeated going thither being led by a yoong gentleman of the Kings house named Chastillon some of them were taken some entred the towne and the rest hardly escaped It is impossible to expresse the great miserie of our men within Nouarre for euery day some died of famine and two parts of them were sicke so that pitious letters came from thence in cipher though with great difficultie They receiued euer faire promises and all was but abuse But those that gouerned the Kings affaires desired the battell not considering that no man was of that opinion but themselues for all the best men of war in the armie namely the Prince of Orenge lately arriued and to whom the K. gaue great credit in martiall affairs and all the other captains desired to make a good end by treatie For winter approched we were vnfurnished of monie the number of the French was small and many of them sicke so that they departed daily some with the Kings leaue and some without leaue but notwithstanding all these inconueniences all the wise men in the campe could not disswade those aboue mentioned from sending word to the Duke of Orleans not to depart the towne whereby vndoubtedly they greatly endangered him And this they did bicause they trusted vpon the great force of Almaines whereof the Bailife of Digeon assured them to whom also certaine of them sent word to bring as many as he could leuie To be short their companie was diuided and euery man said and writ what him listed Those that would haue no peace nor meeting to treate thereof alleaged that the enimies ought to make the first ouuerture and not the K. but they on the other side said that they would not first begin in the meane time the misery of our men in Nouarre daily increased in such sort that now their letters made mention only of those that died daily for hunger and that they could hold the towne but ten daies and afterward eight daies yea and once they came to three daies but they had first passed their day before prefixed To be short so great extremitie hath not been seene of long time no I am sure that a hundred yeeres before we were borne neuer men sustained so great famine as they In the meane time died the Marchionesse of Montferrat a great friend to the French wherupon some strife arose in that countrey for the gouernment the which on the one side the Marques of Saluce demanded and on the other the Lord Constantine vnckle to the said Marchionesse who was a Greeke and she a Greekesse daughter to the King of Seruia but the Turke had destroied them both The said Lord Constantine had fortified himselfe in the castell of Casal and had in his hands the late Marques his two sonnes begotten of this wise and beautiful Lady the which died the 29. yeere of hir age hir eldest sonne being but nine yeeres old Other particular men also aspired to the gouernment so that great part taking arose about that matter in our campe The King commanded me to to thither and determine the controuersie for the childrens safetie and to the contentation of the greatest part of the people For he feared that this variance would make them call the Duke of Milan into their countrey greatly to our discontentment for the friendship of this house of Montferrat stood vs in great stead I was loth to depart before I had brought into better tune those that contraried the peace for I considered both the inconueniences aboue rehearsed and also that winter approched and feared least these Prelats should perswade the King to aduenture another battell whose power was small vnlesse great force of Swissers hapned to come and though so many came as they vaunted of yet seemed it to me a dangerous case to put the King and his estate into their hands Further our enimies were mightie and lodged in a strong place and well fortified Wherefore all these points being well weighed I aduentured to perswade the King not to hazard his person and estate for a trifle I desired him to remember the great danger he was in at Fornoue which could not then be auoided bicause necessitie forced him to fight but now I said there was no such necessitie I aduised him further not to refuse a good end bicause of this fond obiection that he ought not first to breake the ice for if it so pleased him I would finde meanes that ouuertures should be made in such sort that the honor of both parties should be saued He bad me repaire to the Cardinall and so I did but the Cardinall gaue me strange answers and desired the battell assuring himselfe of the victorie and further alleaging that the Duke of Orleans had promised him ten thousand ducats of yeerly reuenues for one of his sonnes if he obtained the Duchie of Milan The next day as I went to take my leaue of the King to depart to Casal being distant from thence about a daies iourney and a halfe I met with Monseur de la Trimoille by the waie whom I aduertised of my communication had with the King and
of Naples as of the Duchie of Milan failed for lacke of sending thither and how another enterprise against Genua sped euill also Chap. 15. THe King after his returne from Naples abode at Lyons a long time as before you haue heard holding iusts turneies It greeued him to lose the places in Italy aboue mentioned which he yet held neither cared he what treasure he spent in defence of them but he would take no paines himselfe in gouerning his owne affaires Moreouer he was aduertised daily of diuers practises entertained on his behalfe in Italy which notwithstanding that they were both dangerous and chargeable yet was he of power sufficient to haue atchieued them bicause his realme is populous plentifull of graine in Prouence and Languedoc and hath also a number of other wealthie countries where money might haue been leuied But if any other Prince besides the King of Fraunce should attend to these Italian practises and aduenture to entermebdle in their enterprises he should but vndoe himselfe spend his treasure and bring nothing to effect For the Italians neither do nor can serue but for money except it be a Duke of Milan or one of the greatest Seniories but a poore captaine be he neuer so well affectioned to the seruice of a King of Fraunce pretending title to the realme of Naples or the Duchie of Milan be he neuer so faithfull and trustie yet shal he not be able to do him seruice any long time after his paiment faileth bicause his men will forsake him and the poore captaine shall be vtterly vndone for the greatest part of them liue onely vpon the credit they win by the seruice of their soldiors who are paied by their captaine and he of him whom he serueth which is the cause why they desire in Italy nothing but factions and ciuile wars But as touching the practises aboue mentioned you shall vnderstand that they began before the towne of Caietta was lost to wit immediately after the King perceiued that the Duke of Milan would not performe the conditions of the treatie of Verceil and continued after the losse of the said towne the whole space of two yeeres after the Kings returne home As touching the said Duke of Milan he brake not his promise altogither vpon malice and trecherie but partly for feare for he doubted that the King would destroy him if he obteined the realme of Naples besides that he accounted the King to be a Prince in whom was no constancie nor assurance But to proceede one of these enterprises aboue mentioned was to inuade the Duchie of Milan after this sort Order was giuen that the Duke of Orleans should go to Ast to enter with a good band of men on that side whom I sawe once so neere his departure that his train was already gone We were sure of the Duke of Ferrareas friendship for he had promised to aide vs notwithstanding that he were the Duke of Milans father in lawe with fiue hundred men of armes and two thousand footemen which his promise vndoubtedly he would haue performed to the end he might haue rid himselfe of the danger he was in lying iust in the midst betweene the Venetians and the said Duke for not long before as I haue already made mention the Venetians had taken from him the Polesan and sought wholy his destruction wherefore he would haue preferred his owne safetie and his childrens before his sonne in lawes friendship yea and peraduenture he thought that the Duke of Milan seeing himselfe in this extremitie would make some appointment with the King 1 Moreouer by the said D. of Ferraraes meanes the Marques of Mantua was become our friend who lately had been and yet was generall of the Venetians but in great ielousie with them and he likewise being discontented with them soiourned with three hundred men of armes with his father in law the Duke of Ferrare for you shall vnderstand that he then had and yet hath to wife the Duches of Milans sister daughter to the said Duke of Ferrara Master Iohn Bentiuoille who gouerneth Bolonia and is as it were Lord thereof promised to aide vs with a hundred and fiftie men of armes and a good band of footemen and to send to the Kings seruice two of his sonâ—â—s who were captaines of certaine companies of horsemen and such was the seat 〈◊〉 countrey that he might haue done great seruice against the Duke of Milan The â—â—orentines who sawe themselues vtterly vndone vnlesse by large expences they recouered their losses fearing to be disseased of Pisa and the other places aboue mentioned 2 would haue furnished eight hundred men of armes and fiue thousand footemen vpon their owne proper costes and charges and had already prouided their paiments for sixe moneths The Vrsins and the Prefect of Rome brother to the Cardinall Saint Peter ad Vincula so often before named being in paie with the King would haue furnished a thousand men of armes but you shall vnderstand that their men of armes are not accompanied with archers as ours be but their wages and ours are much a like for a yeeres pay of one of their men of armes amounteth to a hundreth ducats and the wages of one of ours is double as much bicause of his archers These mercenary soldiers the King should haue paid but as touching the Florentines they should haue paid their forces themselues The Duke of Ferrara also the Marques of Mantua and Bentiuoille offered this aide vpon their owne charge for they hoped to conquer in the Duchie of Milan as much as should counteruaile their coste And if the Duke of Milan had been suddenly inuaded by the Duke of Orleans and all these aboue rehearsed at one instant his confederates namely the Venetians could not haue succoured him though they would haue spent all their treasure in his defence before he must haue been forced to reuolt to the K who would haue kept these Italians in the field a long time And the Duchy of Milan being once woon the realme of Naples would haue yeelded of it selfe The stay of this goodly enterprise proceeded of the Duke of Orleans who suddenly altered his minde the night before he should haue departed for he had already sent before him all things necessarie for his person and none remained to depart but himselfe onely for the army was in a readines their wages paid them they all gone before to Ast being to the number of eight hundred men of armes French and sixe thousand footemen among the which were fower hundred Swissers But the said Duke of Orleans being thus suddenly altered besought the King twice to propound this matter againe to his counsell and so he did I my selfe was present at the debating of it both the times and the whole Counsell concluded that he should go not one man speaking to the contrarie notwithstanding that there were present at each time ten or twelue Counsellors at the least And sure so had it beene most conuenient considering
Francesco Gonzaga 2 Nicholas succeeded Borso but his vncle Hercules right heire expelled him and seeking to recouer the state he was taken and beheaded by Sigismundus his other vncle 1 Borso a bastard succeeded his brother bicause his brothers son was yoong he was created the first Duke of Ferrara by the Emperor Frederic 3 Hercules expelled Nicholas his nephew he was generall to the Florentines Venetians and Milanois This is he so often mentioned in this historie m. Leonora daughter to Ferdinand King of Naples Betrice married Lodouic Sforce Duke of Milan Alfonse m. Lucretia daughter to Alexander the 6. Biâ—â—op of Rome Franciscus Hippolitus a Cardinall 5 Hercules m. Renee daughter to Lewis the 12. King of Fraunce 6 Alfonsus D. of Ferrara Luigi Cardinall of Este m. Laura Alfonsus Alfonsinus â— Elizabeth married Francis Gonzaga the Marquesse of Mantua mentioned in this storie Sigismundus The pedegree of Francis Marques of Mantua so often mentioned in this historie The familie of Gonzagua had gouerned Mantua before this Francis from the yeer 1328. vnder this Francis Iohn Galliazzo besieged Mantua a yeere but preuailed not this Francis serued the Duke of Milan and the Venetians Francis died anno 1407. Iohn Francis first Marques of MaÌ„tua made by the Emperor Sigismundus was thrice generall to the Venetians died anno 1443. m. Paola daughter to Malatesta Lord of Rimini Luigi liued in the time of Frederick the third m. Barbara daughter to the Marques of Brandenburg Luigi Francis a cardinall Frederick was generall to the Duke of Milan and the Venetians m. Margarita Tedesca Francis in the age of 38. yeeres fought with Charles the 8. at Laro died 1520. m. Elizabeth daughter to Hercules Duke of Ferrara Hercules a Cardinall Frederick made general of the Church by Pope Leo and so confirmed by his successors made D. by Charles the fift he died 1539. Montferrat m. Margaret daughter and heire of William Paleologus marques of Montferrat William Francis Lewis Frederick Ferdinandus generall of Milan to the Emperor Charles the fift Iohn Francis Rodolfe m. Margaret daughter to the Duke of Bauiera Charles troubled his brother but was chased away by him died in very poore estate Lucedus was mishapen Alexander croked backed was a monke How Ferdinand King of Arragon had more right to the realme of Naples than the Kings of the house of Arragon that possessed it as writeth Commines Lib. 8. cap. 17. 1 Iohn the first of that name King of Castile m. Daughter to Ferdinand the first King of Portugale Castile 2 Henry the third King of Castile and Leon. Mary wife to Alfonse King of Arragon and Naples 3 Iohn the second 4 Henry the fourth married a daughter of the King of Portugale Elizabeth put froÌ„ the crowne by hir aunt Commin Lib. 5. cap. 7. 5 Elizabeth succeeded hir brother putting hir neece from the crowne as a bastard Castile and Arragon vnited 4 m. Ferrand King of Arragon and Castile by his wife so often mentioned in these Italian wars Katharine wife to Henry the eight King of England Iane married Philip Archduke of Austrich 6 Charles the fift Emperor Iohn married Margaret daughter to Maximilian the Emperor died before his father m. Elenor daughter to Peter King of Arragon Arragon 1. Ferrand Earle of Medina del Campo K. of Arragon This Ferrande obtained the realme of Arragon anno 1407. bicause his mother was daughter to king Peter whose heire male failed in Martin his nephew and notwithstanding that Martin had a daughter yet Ferrande obtained the crowne to hir preiudice 3 Iohn succeeded his brother in Arragon but in Naples Ferrand his brothers bastard succeeded Ferrand King of Arragon and Castile by his wife so often mentioned in these Italian wars Castile and Arragon vnited 4 m. 5 Elizabeth succeeded hir brother putting hir neece from the crowne as a bastard Katharine wife to Henry the eight King of England Iane married Philip Archduke of Austrich 6 Charles the fift Emperor Iohn married Margaret daughter to Maximilian the Emperor died before his father Charles King of Nauarre sans issue Iane Queene of Portugale Mary married Iohn the secoÌ„d K. of Castile 2 1 Naples Alfonse adopted by Iane Queene of Naples who after adopted Lewis Duke of Aniou 2 Ferrande the bastard succeeded his father in the realme of Naples died a little before King Charles came into Italy 5 Frederick succeeded his nephew Ferdinand led after into Fraunce by Lewis the 12. Ferdinand married Germain widow to King Ferdinand of Arragon 3 Alfonse fled when K. Charles came into Italy 4 Ferdinand chased from Naples by King Charles but after recouered the realme died sans issue Isabella wife to Iohn Galeas Duke of Milan Elizabeth wife to Hercules Duke of Ferrara The King of Spaine had better right to Naples than Alfonse that possessed it when King Charles came into Italie bicause Alfonses father was a bastard King Ferrands father being the first Alfonses brother ought to haue succeeded him before his base sonne Further you shall vnderstand that after Frederick was led into Fraunce by Lewis the 12. the said K Lewis enioied Naples but within fower yeeres Ferrande King of Arragon by the great captaine Consaluo chased King Lewis out of the realme and left it to his nephew Charles the Emperor from whom the French K. could neuer recouer it but at this day it is in the possession of the King of Spaine sonne to the said Emperor Charles FINIS Faults escaped Page 3. line 1. reade to wit a pag. 7. lin 13. r. armie Of ead lin dele lin 28. r. Seniories pag. 8. l. 9. dele and ead p. l. vlt. r. of Coulches p. 11. l. 28. r. with them p. 13. l. 22. r. the best ead p. l. vlt. r. Seniories p. 14. l. 41. r. and La Marche p. 17. l. 8. r. flying p. 18. l. 12. r. them not ead p. l. 13. r. before My ead p. l. 32. r. aduise p. 19. l. 21. r. and in a p. 24. l. 46. r. of Aniou p. 27. l. 4. r. 6. of September ead p. l. 38. r. quirace p. 28. l. 32. r. this companie p. 29. l. 5. r. scouts p. 31. l. 43. r. ditch notwithstanding the truce No p. 38. l. 5. r. florens ead p. l. 26. r. cordingly p. 39. l. 31. dele with p. 40. l. 2. r. his campe p. 46. l. 9. r. the canon ead p. l. 44. r. Noone drew p. 47. l. 8. r. stayning ead p. l. 31. r. 6 ead p. l. 32. r. 5 p. 49. l. 7. r. vpon our ead p. l. 38. r. After these p. 50. l. 4. r. of the which p. 54. l. 32. r. goodly p. 59. l. 2. r. rased their wals but ead p. l. 35. r. Romont p. 61. l. 36. r. Angien p. 63. l. 42. r. or Herbart p. 64. l. 38. r. Estelle p. 66. l. 5. r. Ferrette p. 68. l. 34. r. haue had but ead lin r. sixtie thousand p. 69. l. 25. r. hardinesse ead p. l. 43. r. bounds of p. 74. l. 47. r. foorthwith p. 77. l. 1. r. touching the p. 78. l. 23. r. and Desmeries p. 79. l. 9. r. Polence p. 80. l. 13. r. bounds p. 82. l. 4. r. to Gaunt p. 83. l. 9. r. his principall ead p. l. 24. r. to repaire p. 84. l. 41. r. and receiued p. 85. l. 48. r. in feare p. 87. l. 44. r. foorth on foote p. 91. l. 24. r. the very p. 94. l. 13. r. what port the ead p. l. 38. r. three thousand p. 98. l. 35. r. the others p. 106. l. 20. r. cause p. 107. l. 2. r. foade p. 109. l. vlt. r. six score soldiers p. 111. l. 12. r. the onely p. 117. l. 17. r. these Dutch p. 118. l. 5. r. than in any p. 120. l. 2. r. church Then ead p. l. 7. r. 1474. Meyer p. 127. l. 2 r. is it p. 134. l. 2. r. stoutly denied p. 138. l. 43. r. a marrish p. 139. l. 32. r. whereof p. 150. l. 23. r. debebant p. 154. l. 21. r. preparation p. 155. l. 38. r. most of the which p. 16◠〈…〉 p. 164. 〈…〉 p. 165. l. 32. r. great p. 176. l. vlt. r. Burgund pa. 988. p. 179. l. 13. r. ride p. 186. l. 36. r. had good p. 196. l. 33. r. begin p. 201. l. 39. r. to the king his p. 205. l. 40. r. Burgundish p. 208. l. 21. dele had p. 224 l. 6. r. This second p. 227. l. 23. r. in the towne p. 240. l. 16. r. to proceed p. 243. l. 18. r. a number ead p. l. 37. r. which is called p. 253. l. 33. r. vantmures p. 254. l. 25. r. Fougieres p. 260. l. 45. r. was sent p. 261. l. 30. r. Dabecsin p. 263. l. 16. r. commendation p. 267. l. vlt. r. foorth to p. 274. l. 17. r. Proctor ead p. l. vlt. r. they lawfull p. 276. l. 21. r. first voiage p. 278. l. 41. r. Treuâ—ul p. 280. l. vlt. dele Duke p. 281. l. 3. dele Duke p. 284. l. 21. r. also of the p. 291. l. 16. r. Caballiau p. 292 l. 40. r. Caballiau p. 293. l. 19. r. vantmure ead p. l. 43. r. Rosanes p. 294. l. 9. r. Picinino p. 295. l. 12. r. ride about p. 296. l. 14. r. for cruell p. 297. l. 4. r. Aenaria p 306. l 38. r. their other ead p. l. 48. r. places than they p. 307. l. 8. r. accompanie ead p. l 31. r. Otrante p. 313. l. 4. r. or Musiua p. 316. l. 17. r. and two p. 318. l. 16 r. and voluntarily p. 319. l. 39. r. Luques p. 325. l. 18 r. Albanie p. 335. l. 7. r. the Florentines p. 342. l. 4. r. enimies nauie p. 350. l. 3. r. they might p. 380. r. Iane daughter heire to Robart of Bar E. of Marle p. 391. r. Cosmus died the 80. yeere of his age We must intreate the Readers patience for these faults escaped and that he will amend the booke according to this table before he enter into the reading thereof
put from the crowne vnder colour of adulterie committed by hir mother But the matter ended not without great contention and war for the King of Portugale tooke part with his neece and diuers great Lords of Castile ioined with him yet notwithstanding the said Dom Henries sister wife to the son of Dom Iohn King of Arragon obtained the crowne and possesseth it yet at this day and thus this partage was made in heauen as diuers others are Further you haue seene of late daies the King of Scotland and his sonne being thirteene yeeres of age in battell the one against the other the sonne and his faction preuailed and the King was slaine vpon the place 13 This King murthered his owne brother and was charged with diuers other crimes namely the death of his sister and such like You see also the Duchy of Gueldres out of the right line and haue heard what impietie the Duke last deceased vsed against his father Diuers other examples I could rehearse which should manifestly appeere to be punishments and scourges of God which scourges are the principall cause of wars whereof insue mortality and famine all the which euils proceede of lacke of faith Wherefore I conclude considering the wickednes of men especially of great men who know not themselues neither beleeue that there is a God that it is necessarie for euery Prince and gouernor to haue an aduersary to keepe him in feare and humilitie otherwise no man should be able to liue vnder them or neere them The Notes 1 He meaneth that this towne of Gaunt is situate where it is for a plague to the whole countrey of Flaunders which otherwise bicause of the great abundance thereof would soone forget God 2 Fregosi and Fregosini in other histories 3 This diuision began anno 1309. betweene the Abbot of Einsidlen and the village of Suitz and the said Abbot demanded aide of Leopolde Duke of Austrich 4 As for example Leopolde Duke of Austrich brothers sonne to the former that began this diuision whom they slue at the battell of Sempache 9. Iulij ann 1386. 5 The reason heerof reade in Aristot Politic. lib. 1. cap. 2. Problem Anthonii Zimarae 12. 6 Shame commeth of knowledge so that if a man do a fault and for lacke of learning know not that it is a fault he can neuer be ashamed of it nor seeke to amend it 7 1800000. franks are 225000. pound starling after eight souse to the English shilling and the French liuer at two shillings sixe pence starling 8 4700000. franks are 587500. pound starling 9 That is 2500000. franks which amounteth to 312500. pound starling 10 For it was due by the conditions of the treatie 11 How King Henry the seuenth was next heire of the house of Lancaster the pedegree in the end of the worke will declare where also Philip de Commines error is controlled 12 Our Chronicles say but 3000. and some 5000. 13 This King that slue his father in battell was Iames the 4. who married Margaret sister to King Henry the 8. THE SIXT BOOKE How the Duchie of Burgundie was yeelded to the King Chap. 1. NOw to returne to the principal matter and to proceede in this historie written at your request my Lorde of Vienna while the King brought vnder his subiection the places and townes aboue named in the marches of Picardie his armie lay in Burgundie the generall wherof in apparance was the Prince of Orenge 1 that now is who was borne in the countie of Burgundie and a subiect thereof but lately reuolted the second time from Duke Charles wherefore the King vsed his helpe for he was a great Lord well friended and well beloued both in the said countie and also in the Duchie of Burgundie But the Lord of Cran was the Kings lieutenant and he it was in truth that had the charge of the whole armie and in whom the King reposed his principall trust and sure he was a wise man and faithfull to his Master but somwhat too greedie of his owne gaine The said Lord of Cran when he drew neere the countrie of Burgundie sent the Prince of Orenge before him with certaine others to Digeon to perswade with the citizens to become the Kings subiects which enterprise so well they atchieued by the said Princes meanes that the towne of Digeon and all the other places of the Duchie of Burgundie yeelded to the King Aussonne and certaine castels excepted which held yet for the Ladie of Burgundie The King had promised the Prince of Orenge many goodly estates and to restore him to all his grandfathers inheritance in the countie of Burgundie for the which he was in sute with the Lords of Chauuerguion his vncles 2 whom as he said Duke Charles had fauored to his preiudice For this cause had been often pleaded before him with great solemnitie and once the Duke being accompanied with a number of lawyers gaue iudgement against the Prince at the least thus he reported wherefore he forsooke the Dukes seruice and went to the King But Monseur de Cran after he was entred into all these townes aboue mentioned and had gotten into his hands all the best places that should descend to the said Prince by right of inheritance refused to yeeld them to him notwithstanding both the Kings promise and the said Princes request The King also wrote often to him about this matter without all collusion knowing that he much misused the Prince notwithstanding he feared to displease the said de Cran bicause he had the charge of the whole countrie neither thought he that the Prince either would or could haue caused the countrie of Burgundie to rebel as afterward he did at the lest the greatest part therof But I will heere leaue these Burgundies affaires till another conuenient place shall serue to speake further thereof The Notes 1 This Prince of Orenge was Iohn de Chaslons the Prince of Orenge that now is is of the house of Nassaw 2 The olde copie hath Chasteauguion Annal. Burgund Chaumergnon Annal. Franc. Chauuerguion and so vndoubtedly it is to be read for Chasteauguion was brother to this Prince of Orenge Gaguin How the King entertained the English men after the death of Charles Duke of Burgundie to the end they should not hinder his conquest of the said Dukes dominions Chap. 2. THose that heerafter shall reade this historie and happily vnderstand the affaires both of this realme and the countries bordering vpon it better than my selfe will maruell that since the death of Duke Charles I haue hitherto by the space almost of one whole yeere made no mention of the English men and will woonder that they suffered the King to take the townes bordering so neere vpon them namely Arras Bolloin Ardres and Hedin with diuers other castels and to lie so long with his campe before Saint Omer 1 But you shall vnderstand that the reason thereof was for that our King in wisedome and sense surmounted far Edward King of England then