From Belt and Spur, Stories of the Knights of the Middle Ages from the Old Chronicles, by E. L. S. (Emma L. Seeley), New York: Scribner and Welford, 1883; pp. 171-180.
CHAPTER X.
THE BLACK PRINCE AT POITIERS.
Now there came from the country of Gascony the valiant and preux Captal de Buch, and he, being great in renown and much loved by all, was received with great joy and much feasting; and he told the King that many valiant knights in Gascony were faithful to his cause, and had fought with much toil and pain for his honour, only they had no chief of his blood to lead them, but that if the King would send one of his sons they would be much emboldened. Then the King assembled his parliament, and all agreed to send the Prince into Gascony, for that he was held in so much honour. And with him should go the noble Earl of Warwick, and the Earl of Salisbury, and Ufford, earl of Suffolk, and the Earls of Oxford and Stafford, and bold Sir Bertram de Burghersh, Sir John de Montague, and Lord Le Despenser, Sir Walter Manny, the good Reginald Cobham, who had been present at many an assault, and there, too, were Chandos and Audley. And they were all ordered to assemble at Plymouth in their ships men-at-arms, and archers, and a great store of victuals; 172 and in two months the Prince took leave of the King his father, and the Queen his mother, and his brothers and sisters, and, amidst much weeping and lamentation, bade them adieu and went on his way. And he rode night and day till he came to Plymouth, and bade them carry on board the ships the victuals and the armour, hauberks, helmets, lances, shields, bows and arrows; and the horses also were put on board. Then he, with all his noble knights, the very flower of chivalry, put to sea and sailed till they came to Bordeaux. The noble barons of that country, little and great, came out to meet him — the Prince d’Albret, the Lord of Montferrat, and, in truth, all the barons of Gascony. And the Prince stayed in Bordeaux until all his array were disembarked and horses refreshed. Then he took the field with more than six thousand fighting-men, and rode towards Toulouse, taking Carcassonne, Beziers, and Narbonne, subduing all before them, and wasting the land, and in winter returned in triumph to Bordeaux, and his troops took up their quarters in the castle. The Earl of Warwick lodged at La Role, and Salisbury near by at St. Foy, and Suffolk with his men at St. Emillion. Chandos and Audley, with the loyal Captal, lodged in the fields, and had oft to fight to hold their ground. And they held the land between Cahors and Agen, and took the Port Ste. Marie, and thus, riding up the river, attacked Perigueux, and lodged there a great part of the winter.
When the summer was come the Prince assembled his forces and marched upon Saintonge, and he took 173 the tower of Romorantin by assault, and took prisoner the Sire de Boucicault and the Lord de Craon, and many others. More than two hundred were taken, men of renown; and he rode on through the land as far as Tours.
Then King John was greatly moved, and assembled all his forces, and no duke nor baron stayed behind. There came to the meeting-place of Chartres more than ten thousand men, and without delay they set forward towards Tours. And when the Prince heard of them he took the road towards Poitiers. On Saturday they were attacked by the Count de Joigny and the Count d’Antoire; but the Frenchmen were all taken or slain. King John and the Prince marched to meet each other, and pitched their tents so near one another that they watered their horses in the same river.
Then there came the Cardinal Perigord and prayed the King’s leave to ride to the Prince and see if he would not make peace, that the blood of so many men might not be shed. And the King answered, ‘Cardinal, we are very willing you should ride to the Prince; but understand well, we will agree to nothing but that he gives up all the castles and land that he has seized since he came from England, and consents to abandon the quarrel altogether.’
So the Cardinal rode to the Prince’s army, and implored him to have pity on the lives of men and listen to the terms of peace. And the Prince answered that his quarrel was just and good, and that his father, King Edward, was the rightful heir of France, of 174 which Philip of Valois had been crowned king; but that he would not hinder the making of peace if it could be effected. ‘But,’ said he, ‘I can do nothing in this matter without the King, my father, further than to agree to a truce and arrange for treating of peace.’
And the Cardinal returned to the King, and the King assembled the barons of both sides, and laid the matter before them. And there was the Count of Tancarville, archbishop of Sens, De Thalrus, Chargny, Boucicault, and Clermont; and on the English side the Earls of Warwick and Suffolk, Sir Bertram de Burghersh, Audley, and Chandos. What was counselled I know not, but they could not be accorded. And when they were about to depart one from the other, Sir Geoffroy de Chargny said, ‘Since we cannot make peace, let a hundred be chosen from each side, and let them fight together. And the hundred that is discomfited let all that army be counted discomfited, and leave the quarrel and depart from the field. It will be better thus than that so many be killed.’ And to that the Earl of Warwick replied, ‘Sir, what would you gain by that? You know well that you have four times as many men-at-arms as we have, and we are on your land. Here is the field, and a fit place. Let every one do his best, for I will agree to no other way and may God uphold the right!’
So they returned each man to his army, and on both sides it was said that the Cardinal had betrayed them; but he departed grieving, and rode to Poitiers.
Then the King of France put his army in array, 175 fearing that the Prince would escape him. And he called the Marshal de Clermont, and d’Audenham, and the noble chieftain, the Duke of Athens, and gave them the command of the vanguard, with three thousand men and two thousand servants, with swords and lances and two thousand arbalesters, and bade them show no mercy to the English. Then he called his son, the Duke of Normandy, and said to him, ‘Fair son, you will be King of France after me, therefore lead the second division, and the Duke of Bourbon you shall have as companion, and the Lord of St. Venant and the good Tristan de Magnelers will carry your banner. Cry, “For John!” and spare no Englishman, small nor great. Put them all to death, that none of them may ever dare to cross the sea again.’
So the army of the Dauphin was put in array, with banners and pennons resplendent with purple, gules and ermine unfurled to the wind, and the trumpets and drums sounded till the earth rang again. And it took up its place on one side; four thousand of them there were, and many a good knight among them.
The rear-guard he gave to the Duke of Orleans, his brother, with three thousand fighting-men, and bade him ‘show no mercy to the English, but put them all to death, for they have done us much harm and burnt and destroyed our land.’
And when the noble King John had arrayed his forces he went to the fourth division, and three of his sons were with him, and the Dukes of Anjou and 176 Berry, and Philippe le Hardi, who was very young, and Jacques de Bourbon, and many more than I can name, for there were twenty-three banners. And there were four thousand armed horses, all knights of the best escutcheons, led by Guichard d’Angle, and the Lord d’Aubigny, and Eustace de Ribaumont.
And on the other side the Prince put his men in array, but if he could he would have avoided a battle. Then he called the Earl of Warwick to him, and said, ‘Sir, since we must fight, I pray you to take the vanguard, and with you shall be the noble Lord de Pomiers, and all his brothers, who are valiant and bold. Pass the road and protect our baggage. I will ride after you with all my knights, and support you, and the Earl of Salisbury will follow you with the rear-guard.’ So they passed the night with little rest, for there was constant skirmishing. When morning came the brave Prince sent for Sir Eustace d’Abrichecourt and the Lord of Courton, who was as brave as a lion, and bade them go reconnoitre the French army. Then each mounted his horse, but they rode too near, and were both of them taken, at which the Prince was much grieved.
Then a great noise arose, and the Prince left his quarters and mounted his horse; but he hoped still to avoid a battle. But the French cried aloud to their King that the English fled, and that they would escape. And they mounted and began to advance; and the Maréchal d’Audenham cried, ‘We shall lose them all if we do not fall upon them at once;’ but 177 the Maréchal de Clermont answered, ‘Nay, brother, you make too much haste, — the English flee not; rather will they soon be here.’ ‘If you linger thus,’ said d’Audenham, ‘we shall lose them all.’ Then Clermont answered in anger, ‘Maréchal, you are too bold; but by Saint Denis, I will be so far in front of you this day that the point of your lance shall not reach my horse’s saddle!’ Thus in anger they rode on, and the battle was joined, and each side began to assail the other. The Prince had given the rear-guard to the Earl of Salisbury, but he was that day the first engaged, for the marshals came down upon him in fury; and when he saw the battle turning his way, he cried aloud, ‘Advance, sirs; since we who were the last are now become the first; let us do as shall win us honour.’ And they approved themselves well; but it was a marvellously hard fight, and many a man met his end. The archers drew their arrows to the head, and never did arrows fly more straight. They were posted on each side of the road by the side of the men-at-arms. Then came pricking the preux chevalier, Sir Guichard d’Angle, right into the mêlée, and the Maréchal Clermont, and Eustace de Ribaumont, and the Lord d’Aubigny; but the Earl of Salisbury and his companions, brave as lions, discomfited the marshals and their armed knights before the vanguard could turn to help them, for they were on the other side of the road. And there they joined, and in one company fell upon the Dauphin; and so fierce was the attack that the French, dismayed, began to give ground and to turn their backs and 178 mount their horses. Then rose a shout of ‘Guienne Saint George!’ and the Dauphin turned and fled, and his men gave way, and many were killed and taken.
But while the English were pursuing, the King of France advanced upon them with a great force, but the Prince, putting his trust in Heaven, cried, ‘Advance, banners! and let every man think of his honour!’ and by his side were the two brave knights, Chandos and Audley. And as the fight began, Audley prayed the Prince humbly, and said, ‘Sir, I have made a vow that when I shall see the banner of the King of France, I will be the first to charge. I pray you give me leave, for it is high time.’ And the Prince answered, ‘James, have your will.’ And Sir James, without delay, rode forward a spear’s length before the others and fell fiercely on the enemy. But the others were not slow to follow with lowered lances, and bravely fought Chandos, Warwick, and Le Despenser, Montagu, Sir Ralph de Cobham, good Bertram de Burghersh; and in another part, Lord Salisbury and Lord Oxford, and the Gascon captain Captal. Many a marvellous blow was given and many a man fell, and the fight lasted long; but again and again sounded the voice of the Prince, ‘Advance, sirs! win this place as we value life and honour!’ And at last the victory turned to him, and his enemies gave way and fled; and King John, fighting bravely with his knights round him, was taken, and Philip his son, and many a high banneret whose name I cannot tell, but there were a good sixty of them; and of others, more than a thousand. 179 Of those who died, were the Duke of Bourbon, and the noble Duke of Athens, the Maréchal Clermont, and many others; more than three thousand lay dead. And the English rejoiced, shouting, ‘Guienne Saint George!’ And this battle was fought in the year one thousand three hundred and fifty-six, on the nineteenth day of September.
Then to the noble Prince, preux chevalier in word and deed, was brought King John; and the Prince entertained him well, and to honour him more, himself aided him to disarm. That night the Prince lodged on the field, in a little pavilion among the dead, with his men round him; but little anyone slept. And the next morning they set out on the road to Bordeaux with their prisoners. And when they reached Bordeaux, all the people came out to meet them with processions and crosses, chanting orisons, and the women and girls, young and old: there was marvellous great joy. There the Prince remained all the winter; and he sent a messenger to the King, his father, and the Queen, his mother, with news of his doings, and prayed that vessels might be sent in which the King of France might be conveyed to England.
When the news reached the King, he rejoiced greatly, and, joining his hands, thanked God; and the Queen also thanked God that she had a son so brave: and the vessels were sent to Bordeaux. The Prince made no long delay, but put on board all his array, and the King and the other prisoners, and sailed to England. When the King heard that they had 180 landed, he summoned his barons to go and meet them, and went himself with more than twenty earls and conveyed the Prince to London. Never was such joy seen before. There was the great King, and the Queen his wife, and his mother, and many a lady and fair damsel; and there was dancing, and feasting, and jousting, as in the days of King Arthur.
And Kind Edward collected a large army and crossed over to France, and rode through Artois, Picardy, Champagne, and Burgundy, and came before Paris and drew up in battle array, but they fought not, for peace was made and the two kingdoms were accorded. King John was delivered from prison and Guienne given up to the noble Prince. And this peace was made in the year one thousand three hundred and sixty, in the sweet month of May, when the nightingale sings and birds are no longer sad. And the two kings met at Calais, with the Prince and all the chivalry of England and France, and there they swore on the Book and on the Holy Sacrament that they would keep the peace without falsehood and without any renewing of the war. So the King of France returned to his kingdom, and the noble King Edward and the Prince, with great joy to England.