A copie of that writing sundrie waies so well seruing to the truth of the storie was thought right necessarie héere to be added, thus.

Omnibus ad quos hoc præsens scriptum peruenerit, Iohānes de Bromley miles, capitaneus generalis de Dampfront, senescallus & magnus constabularius de Bosseuile le Rosse & March ibidem, salutem. Sciatis quòd pro bono & fideli seruitio quod dilectus consanguineus meus Gualterus de Audeley mihi fecerit, tam infra regnum Angliæ quàm extra, & præcipuè contra Francos: dedisse & concessisse, & hac præsenti charta mea confirmasse eidem Gualtero vnum annualem redditum viginti librarum, exeuntem de manerio meo de Bromley, & omnibus alijs terris & tenementis meis infra regnum Angliæ, vna cum herbagio pro quatuor equis habendo infra boscos meos de Bromley & Willoughbridge, & octo carucatis fœni capiendis infra prata mea de Shurlebrooke & Foordsmedo annuatim, durante tota vita prædicti Gualteri, in festo sancti Iacobi apostoli. Et si contingat prædictum annualem redditum, a retrò fore in aliquo festo, durante termino prædicto; tunc bene licebit eidem Gualtero, in manerio meo, & omnibus alijs terris meis prædictis distringere, & districtiones inde captas penes se retinere, quousq; de redditu prædicto, vna cum arreragijs (si quæ fuerint) plenariè fuerit persolutum & satisfactum. Et vlteriùs volo, quòd prædictus Gualterus habebit liberum egressum & regressum cum equis suis prædictis, & ad asportandum fœnum predictū, quandocunq; voluerit, per omnes semitas & vias, sine aliqua contradictione mei prædicti Iohannis, aut hæredum meorum aliquali. Reddendo inde mihi ipsi Gualtero annuatim in festo sancti Georgij martyris, si tunc fuerim infra regnum Angliæ, vnum par calcarium deauratorum, pro omnibus. Et etiam volo & concedo quòd prædictus Gualterus liber sit, durante tota vita sua, ad volandum, venandum, piscandum, & alias commoditates percipiendum, tam infra manerium meum de Bromley quàm in omnibus alijs manerijs, terris, & tenementis meis infra regnum Angliæ, sine aliqua contradictione vel impedimento mei præfati Iohannis de Bromley militis, hæredum, aut assignatorum meorum aliquali. Et vt fidele testimonium præsentibus habeatur, sigillum meum apposui: hijs testibus Roberto de Bruyn milite, Iohanne de Holland, Gulihelmo de Brereton, Richardo le Greuill, Iohanne de Egerton, Richardo le Beston, Thoma le Creu, & alijs. Datum apud Dampfront prædicto, 12 die mensis Augusti, anno regni regis Henrici quinti post conquestum sexto.

The old armes of the house of Bromley being quarterlie gules and ore per fesse indented, had in the seale to this déed, an inscutchen charged with a griffin surgiant; his creast, out of a crowne, a demilion supporting a standard charged with a lion passant gardant; about the shield was ingrauen, Sigillum Iohannis de Bromley militis. That inscutchen and creast (as like is) giuen him in laudable remembrance for his valiant recouerie of the standard at the sharpe and bloodie skirmish by Corbie. The earle of Warwike, and the lord Talbot, after the winning of this fortresse, made spéed to come vnto the siege of Rone, where they were imploied, as after shall appeare. And in like manner, the duke of Glocester, hauing once got the possession of Chierburgh, hasted towards the same siege: for the better furnishing of which enterprise, he had first caused an armie of fiftéene thousand men to be brought ouer to him vnder the leading of his vncle the duke of Excester, who imbarking with the same, about the feast of the holie Trinitie, was appointed by the king to besiege the citie of Eureux, as the earle of Angus, otherwise called earle of Kime, was sent to win the castell of Millie Leuesche. These townes being deliuered to the kings vse, the duke ordeined capteine of Eureux sir Gilbert Halsall knight.

The king now determining with all spéed to besiege Rone, prepared all things necessarie for his purpose. Into this citie the Normans had conueied out of euerie part their monie, iewels, and houshold stuffe, as into the most sure and strongest place of the whole duchie. For since his arriuall, they had not onlie walled that citie, and fortified it with rampiers and strong bulworks, but also furnished it with valiant capteins, and hardie soldiers, to the number of foure thousand, beside such of the citizens as were appointed for the warre, according to their estates, of the which there were at the least fiftéene thousand readie to serue in defense of the citie, as soldiers, and men of warre in all places where they should be assigned. King Henrie to haue the countrie frée, before he would besiege this citie, thought good first to win such townes as laie in his waie, and therefore departing from Caen (where he had kept the feast of saint George) the ninth daie of Iune, he marched streight vnto the towne of Louiers, and laid his siege about the same.

Titus Liuius.

Louiers besieged.

Louiers yéelded vp.

They within the towne, being well furnished of all things necessarie for the defending of a siege, manfullie resisted the Englishmens inforcements, which spared not to deuise all waies and means how to approch the walles, and to batter the same with their great artillerie, till at length they brought the Frenchmen̄ to that extremitie, that they were contented to yéeld the towne on these conditions; that if by the thrée and twentith of Iune there came no succour from the French king to raise the siege, the towne should be deliuered into the kings hands, the soldiers of the garrison should serue vnder the king for a time, and the townesmen should remaine in their dwellings as they did before, as subiects to the king: but the gunners that had discharged anie péece against the Englishmen should suffer death. When the daie came, and no aid appeared, the couenants were performed accordinglie. From thence went the king with all spéed vnto Point de Larch, standing vpon the riuer of Seine, eight miles aboue Rone towards Paris: he came thither about the seauen and twentith of Iune.

The English armie passeth the riuer of Seine.

When the Frenchmen which kept the passage there heard of the kings approach, they gathered togither a great number of men of warre, minding to defend the passage against him, appointing an other band of men (if they failed) to kéepe the further side of the bridge; and to watch, that neither by boate nor vessell he should come ouer the riuer by anie maner of meanes. At his comming néere to the towne, he perceiued that it was not possible to passe by the bridge without great losse of his people, and therfore he retired almost a mile backeward, where, in a pleasant and commodious place by the riuer side he pitched his campe, and in the night season, what with boates and barges, and what with hogsheads and pipes, he conueied ouer the broad riuer of Seine a great companie of his soldiers, without anie resistance made by his enimies. For they which were on the hither side of Seine, thinking that the Englishmen had gone to winne some other place, followed them not, but studied how to defend their towne, which was inough for them to doo.

A good policie.

And to put the French men in doubt, least the Englishmen should séeke passage somewhere else, the king appointed certeine of the soldiers which had skill in swimming, to go to a place thrée miles from the siege by the riuer side, and there to enter into the water, making great clamor and noise, as though they had meant to haue passed; but they had in commandement not to trauerse past halfe the riuer, so to procure the Frenchmen to make thitherwards, whilest the king in one place, and his brother the duke of Clarence in another, got ouer their men, and that in such number, before the Frenchmen had anie vnderstanding thereof, that when they made towards them, and perceiued that they were not able to incounter them, they fled backe, and durst not abide the English footmen, which would faine haue béene dooing with them.

Pont de larch rendred vp to the Englishmē.

When the king saw that his men were on the other side of the water, he (the next daie earlie) returned to the towne, & assaulted it on both sides. When the inhabitants therefore saw themselues compassed on both sides, contrarie to their expectation, with humble heart and small ioy they rendered vp the towne vnto the kings hands. After this, the king hauing no let nor impediment, determined foorthwith to besiege the citie of Rone, and first sent before him his vncle the duke of Excester, with a great companie of horssemen & archers to view the place, & thervpon with banner displaied came before the citie, and sent Windsore an herauld at armes to the capteins within, willing them to deliuer the citie vnto the king his maister, or else he would pursue them with fire and sword. To whome they proudlie answered, that none they receiued of him, nor anie they would deliuer him, except by fine force they were therevnto compelled: and herewith there issued out of the towne a great band of men of armes, and incountered fiercelie with the Englishmen, the which receiuing them with like manhood, and great force, draue the Frenchmen into the towne againe to their losse, for they lett thirtie of their fellowes behind prisoners and dead in the field.

Rone besieged by K. Henrie.

The duke returned with this good spéed and proud answer of the Frenchmen vnto the king, who remained yet at Pont de Larch, and had giuen the towne of Louiers to his brother the duke of Clarence, which made there his deputie sir Iohn Godard knight. After that the duke of Excester was returned to Pont Larch, the French capteins within Rone set fire on the suburbs, beat downe churches, cut downe trées, shred the bushes, destroied the vines round about the citie, to the intent that the Englishmen should haue no reléefe nor comfort either of lodging or fewell. When the king heard of these despitefull dooings, he with his whole armie remooued from Pont Larch, and the last daie of Iulie came before the citie of Rone, and compassed it round about with a strong siege. This citie was verie rich in gold, siluer, and other pretious things, in so much that when the same was taken and seized vpon by the English, the spoile was verie great and excéeding aduantagable: which the compiler of Anglorum prælia hath verie well noted, in a few lines, but pithie; saieng

Angl. præl. sub.

Hen. 5.

Before Pont S. Hiliarie.

Titus Liuius.

The order of the siege.

Before the gate called Markeuile.

Titus Liuius.

Salisburie & Huntington on the other side of the riuer of Seine.

The king laie with a great puissance at the Chartreux house, on the east side of the citie, and the duke of Clarence lodged at S. Geruais before the port of Caux on the west part. The duke of Excester tooke his place on the north side: at port S. Denis, betwéene the dukes of Excester and Clarence, was appointed the earle marshall, euen before the gate of the castell; to whome were ioined the earle of Ormond, and the lords Harington and Talbot, vpon his comming from Dampfront: and from the duke of Excester toward the king were incamped the lords Ros, Willoughbie, Fits Hugh, and sir William Porter, with a great band of northerne men, euen before the port of saint Hilarie. The earles of Mortaigne and Salisburie were assigned to lodge about the abbie of saint Katharine. Sir Iohn Greie was lodged directlie against the chappell called mount S. Michaell: sir Philip Léech treasurer of the warres kept the hill next the abbeie, and the baron of Carew kept the passage on the riuer of Seine, and to him was ioined that valiant esquier Ienico Dartois.

The lord Talbot.

W. P.

On the further side of the riuer were lodged the earles of Warren and Huntington, the lords Neuill and Ferrers, sir[2] Gilbert Umfreuile with a well furnished companie of warlike soldiers directlie before the gate called Port de Pont. And to the intent that no aid should passe by the riuer toward the citie, there was a great chaine of iron deuised at Pont Larch, set on piles from the one side of the water to the other: and beside that chaine, there was set vp a new forced bridge, sufficient both for cariage and passage, to passe the riuer from one campe to another. The erle of Warwike that had latelie woone Dampfront, was sent to besiege Cawdebecke, a towne standing on the riuer side, betwéene the sea and the citie of Rone. A memorable feat in seruice néere to that place was doone at that time by a well minded man then noted soone after in writing: which matter vnable to be better reported than by him that had so well marked it, nor like to be more trulie expressed than by the ancient simplicitie (and yet effectuall) of the selfe same words wherein they were written, therefore thought méetest to haue them rehearsed as they were in order, thus.