determined that he should take some other way than A.D. 1415. the Blanche Tache; for they believed the affirmation of the Gascon to be true. It is to be supposed that the said Gascon carried out this deception through the desire that he had for a fight, for the French were not yet mustered, nor were they till eight days afterwards. Notwithstanding this, King Henry and his people, giving credence to the words of the Gascon, marched up the river Somme, expecting from day to day to find a passage over it. And the same day that the Gascon was taken the king and his army lodged pretty near Abbeville, at Mareul, Pont-Remy, and other villages thereabouts, burning and destroying wherever they passed. And on the second day that the King of England had taken the road up the river Somme, he thought to obtain a crossing at a narrow part; but the Lords of Waucourt and Pont-Remy, accompanied by several Frenchmen, prevented him; besides, the river there was very deep; so the host passed on, and went to lodge at Croy, Neige, and other villages near Picquigny. The third day the English arranged themselves in order of battle on a fine plain before the town of Amiens; then took their way to Bouves, where they lodged. On this land there were numerous vineyards in which was a great quantity of wine in tubs and wine presses; and there many of the archers and comrades went to seek wine, with which the king was displeased, and he kept them from it as much as he could. And they asked him why he did so, and said it was fit that brave men should fill their bottles. To which he replied that most of them made bottles of their bellies without measure, and that he feared they would intoxicate themselves. This village is situated on the river, where he had plenty of lodging places;

1 The text is defective. MS. H. supplies the necessary words.

u 17967.

N

A.D. 1415. and upon a little rock is seated a fine castle, which town and fortress of Bouves are in the county of Vaudemon. Here the English were in great want of bread; and the said village was taxed at eight baskets of bread, each carried by two men, which were presented by Sir John de Matringuehem, captain of the said fortress, to the King of England, who had two gentlemen of his household whom he gave to the said Sir John in re payment, and he was to pay two hackneys as their ransom. And the said captain

of Bouves conducted himself in such wise towards the King of England that afterwards it was worth more to him.

On turning out from Bouves the English, riding on in the usual manner, and always keeping along the river, went into night-quarters at a large village named Cays, near Nelle, in Vermendois, and next day on leaving that the king passed before Nelle, where the people of the town had covered their walls with hangings, which were for the most part scarlet. And about a league and a half beyond Nelle the English of the vanguard found the river rather small. The bridge indeed was broken, but the arches were pretty near each other, so the King of England and the whole force drew up to this spot with the view of crossing over the river. At Abbeville there were, as the Gascon esquire had said, Sir Charles de Labrech, constable of France, Marshal Boucicault, the Count of Vendôme, grand master of the king's household, the Lord of Dompierre, styling himself Admiral of France, the Duke of Alençon, and the Count of Richemont, and with them notable chivalry, who, hearing daily tidings of the way the English were pursuing, went to Corbye, and thence to Peronne, keeping their men always pretty near them on the road, and endeavouring to secure all the crossings of the Somme water against the English. The King of England then came down from the fields to the river,

for the people of St. Quentin, who had been charged to A.D. 1415, demolish all the crossings, had not in this acquitted themselves well, and had never believed that the English would advance so far on this side.

Then the English began to demolish houses, to take rafters, benches, staircases, doors, windows, and everything that could serve them to make a bridge upon the said arches; and they ceased not to labour at the said passage from eight o'clock in the morning till daylight failed. Very early next day they began to cross in the following manner :-First, there crossed two hundred archers on foot, and then five or six hundred gentlemen, with an ensign; and when they had crossed in sufficient numbers, a standard crossed; afterwards there was given them an emblazoned pennon, and then a banner; and when the vanguard had all crossed on foot their horses were taken over, and in the same manner the main body and the rear guard crossed, and the daylight failed when they had all got over, and they had no disturbance, for none of the French appeared to annoy them. It was the day after St. Luke's that the King of England and his whole army crossed the river Somme, and quite dark as it was they marched forward; and the king went to lodge at Moncy-la-Gace, on the river Miramont. And the lords of France above named remained at Bapaume, and their men in the neighbourhood, a great force. When they learned that the English had crossed the river they were greatly displeased with the people of St. Quentin, to whom, as has been said, it had been commanded on behalf of the King of France that they should demolish the passage by which the English had crossed.

Then the Dukes of Orleans and Bourbon, the constable, and the other great lords of France who were there, sent three military officers to the King of England, to let him know that the said dukes and

A.D. 1415. constables were ready to meet his wish, which was, to battle with the French; and that for this purpose these three princes of the house of the King of France announced to him that they were ready to fulfil his desire, and that which he sought, and if he would accept a day and place to fight they were agreeable, the place to be chosen by some appointed delegates, and not more advantageous for one than the other, provided that this was the good pleasure of the King of France, their sovereign lord. Such was in substance what the letters contained.

These three French officers the King of England received very courteously, and gave them rich and handsome gifts at parting; but concerning the answer touching their said letters, he sent word to the three French princes that since his departure from his town of Harfleur he had sought, and sought daily, to get back to his kingdom of England, and had not lain in any walled town or fortress; wherefore if they or others wished to fight with him there was no necessity to fix day or place, for any day they could find him in the open fields without any inclosure or advantage. To this answer of the king the heralds made no reply, but thanking him for his gifts they took leave of him gracefully, and returned to their masters, to whom they made this report, and who therefore sent immediately to the King of France to announce these tidings, and how the English had crossed over the river Somme.

When the King of England was apprised how the French were preparing in every direction to fight him, he rode clothed in armour, and made all the lords he had with him do the same; likewise he ordered that each archer in front should be furnished with a stake sharpened at both ends, and thus he rode from day to day till the day of battle.

How the French determined to fight the King of AD. 1415.
England, and how the King of France sent to

the Count of Charolois, only son of Duke John
of Burgundy, that he might be at the battle.
CHAPTER VIII.

2

THUS, as you have heard, the King of England and his battalions crossed the water of Somme, during which time the King of France and his son, the Duke of Guienne, came to Rouen, at which place, on the twenty-fifth day of October, a council was held to know what was to be done touching the present expedition of the King of England. At this council were present 1 the Dukes of Guienne, Berry, and Brittany, the Count of Ponthieu, youngest son of the king, the chancellors of France and Aquitaine, and several other notable counsellors to the number of thirty-five. After many things had been proposed and debated in the presence of the king, thirty of the above number finally concluded that the King of England and his force should be fought; the other five, for many reasons which they explained, advised that, according to the best of their opinion, they should not fight on a stated day; but finally the opinion of the great majority was adopted, and immediately the King of France expressly commanded his constable and the other princes and lords with him, by letters signed with his hand, that they should quickly gather together, with the greatest force that they could obtain, and fight as they could the King of England and his men.

This being done, it was proclaimed throughout the kingdom of France that all noble men accustomed to

1 King Louis of Sicily, H.

2 And of his Highness the Dauphin his son, H.