BOOK THE FOURTH. (continued 2)

As the king returned from this interview, he spoke to me by the way upon two points: one was, that the King of England had been so easily persuaded to come to Paris. His majesty was not at all pleased with it, and he told me, “He is a very handsome prince, a great admirer of the ladies, and who knows but some of them may appear to him so charming, as may give him a desire of making us a second visit. His predecessors have been too often in Paris and Normandy already; and I do not care for his company so near, though on the other side of the water, I shall gladly esteem him as my friend and brother.” Besides, the king was displeased to find him so obstinate in relation to the Duke of Bretagne, on whom he would fain have made war, and to that purpose made another overture to him by the Lord du Bouchage and the Lord of St. Pierre. But when the King of England saw himself pressed, he gave them this short but generous answer, “That if any prince invaded the Duke of Bretagne’s dominions, he would cross the seas once more in his defence.” Upon which they importuned him no farther.

When the king had arrived at Amiens, and was ready to go to supper, three or four of the English lords, who had attended upon the King of England at the interview, came to sup with his majesty; and the Lord Howard being of the number, he told the king in his ear, that if he desired it, he would find a way to bring his master to him to Amiens, and to Paris too, to be merry with him for some time. Though this offer and proposition were not in the least agreeable to the king, yet his majesty dissembled the matter pretty well, and fell a washing his hands, without giving a direct answer; but he whispered me in the ear, that what he suspected was at last come really to pass. After supper they fell upon the subject again; but the king put it off with the greatest wisdom imaginable, pretending that his expedition against the Duke of Burgundy would require his departure immediately. Though these affairs were of very great importance, and great prudence was used on both sides to manage them discreetly; yet there were some pleasant occurrences among them, worthy to be transmitted to posterity. Nor ought any man to wonder (considering the great mischiefs which the English have brought upon this kingdom, and the recentness of their date), that the King of France should be at so much labour and expense to send them home in a friendly manner, that he might make them his friends for the future, or at least divert them from making war against him.

The next day, a great number of English came to Amiens, some of whom reported that the Holy Ghost had made that peace, and prophecies were produced to confirm it; but their greatest argument to support this opinion was that, during the time of their interview, a white pigeon came and sate upon the King of England’s tent, and could not be frightened away by any noise they could make in the camp. But some gave another reason, and that was, that a small shower of rain having fallen that day, and soon after the sun shining out very warmly, the poor pigeon, finding that tent higher than the rest, came thither only to dry herself. And this reason was given me by a Gascon gentleman, called Louis de Breteilles⁠[478], who was in the King of England’s service. He was very much displeased at this peace; and having been an old acquaintance of mine, he told me privately, that we did but laugh at the King of England. Among the rest of our discourse, I asked him how many battles the King of England had won. He told me nine, and that he had been in every one of them in person. I demanded next how many he had lost? He replied, never but one, and that was the one in which we had outwitted him now; for he was of opinion that the ignominy of his returning so soon, after such vast preparations, would be a greater disgrace and stain to his arms than all the honour he had gained in the nine former victories. I acquainted the king with this smart answer, and the king replied, “He is a shrewd fellow, I warrant him, and we must have a care of his tongue.” The next day he sent for him, and had him to dinner at his own table, and made him very advantageous proposals, if he would quit his master’s service, and live in France; but finding he was not to be prevailed on, he presented him with 1000 crowns, and promised that he would do great things for his brothers in France. Upon his going away, I whispered him in the ear, and desired him to employ his good offices to continue and propagate the love and good understanding which had now begun between the two kings.

The king was in the greatest concern imaginable, for fear he should drop some word or other, that might make the English suspect he had imposed upon them, and laughed at them. The next morning after the interview, his majesty being in his closet, with only three or four of us with him, he began to droll and jest about the wines and presents which he had sent to the English camp; but, turning suddenly round, he perceived a merchant of Gascony, who lived in England, and had come to court to beg leave to export a certain quantity of Bordeaux wines, without paying the duties; the obtaining of which privilege would have been very advantageous to him. The king was much surprised at the sight of him, and wondered how he came thither. The king asked him of what town in Guienne he was; and whether he had married in England? The merchant replied, yes, he had a wife in England, but the estate he had there was but small. Before he went out, the king appointed a person to go with him to Bordeaux, and I had also some discourse with him by his majesty’s express command. The king gave him a considerable employment in the town where he was born, granted him the exemption of the duties upon his wines, and gave him 1000 francs to bring over his wife; but he was to send his brother into England for her, and not go thither to fetch her himself; and this penalty the king imposed upon himself for having used his tongue too freely.

Ch. XI.—How the Constable endeavoured to excuse himself to the King of France, upon the Conclusion of the Peace with the English; and how a Truce was likewise made for Nine Years between the Duke of Burgundy and the King of France.—1475.

The next day after the interview, the Constable despatched one of his servants, called Rapine, with letters to the king, who preferred him afterwards for having been faithful to his master; the king ordered the Lord du Lude⁠[479] and myself to receive his message. At the same time the Lord of Contay, whom I have mentioned so often, had returned from the Duke of Burgundy’s court with his head full of designs against the Constable; so that the Constable looked upon himself as ruined and undone, and knew not to which of the saints he should address his devotions. Rapine’s message was very submissive; he told us that his master was very sensible that many accusations and charges had been brought against him to the king, but his majesty would know from experience, that he had no traitorous intentions. However, to give the king greater evidence of his loyalty, he made some proposals to his majesty, that if he pleased to order matters so, he would persuade the Duke of Burgundy to join his forces with the king’s, and destroy the King of England and his whole army on their return; and by his manner of speaking, it seemed to us that his master was in the height of despair. We told him that peace was already concluded with the English, and that we were not desirous of beginning a new war. The Lord du Lude proceeded so far as to ask Rapine if he did not know how his master had disposed of his ready money? I was amazed that this question (for Rapine had the character of being a good servant) did not give him a hint of his master’s impending ruin, discover the designs that were forming against him, and make the Constable fly, especially when he reflected on the danger he had escaped only the year before. But I have seen but very few people in my time, that knew how to fly from danger in time. Some have not profited by the experience they might have had of their neighbours’ misfortunes; others never travelled into foreign countries, which is certainly a great fault in a man of quality, for to have seen the world gives a man great wisdom and presence of mind; others are too passionately fond of their wives, their children, or their estates; and one or other of these reasons has been the ruin of many a brave man.

After we had given his majesty an account of Rapine’s message, he called for one of his secretaries. There were then in his presence only the Lord Howard⁠[480], an English courtier, who knew nothing of our intrigue with the Constable, the Lord of Contay, who was newly returned from the Duke of Burgundy, and we two who had been in discourse with Rapine. The king dictated a letter to the Constable, in which his majesty acquainted him with what had been transacted the day before in relation to the truce. He told him, that at that instant he had many weighty affairs upon his hands, and wanted such a head as his to finish them; and then turning to the English nobleman and the Lord of Contay, he told them, “I do not mean his body—I would have his head with me, and his body where it is.” After the letter was read, it was delivered to Rapine, who was mightily pleased with it, and took it as a great compliment in the king to say, that he wanted such a head as his master’s, for he did not understand the ambiguity of the phrase. The King of England sent two letters, which the Constable had written to him⁠[481], to the King of France, and acquainted his majesty with all the proposals he had ever made him, by which it may easily be discerned into what a miserable condition he had brought himself, when every one of these three great princes desired his destruction.

As soon as the King of England had received his money, and delivered the Lord Howard and Sir John Cheyne, his master of the horse, as hostages, as he had promised till he was landed in England, he retreated towards Calais by long and hasty marches; for he was apprehensive of the Duke of Burgundy’s anger, and of the hatred of the peasants; and indeed if any of his soldiers straggled, some of them were sure to be knocked on the head.

At the beginning of our affairs with the English, you may remember that the King of England had no great inclination to make this descent; and as soon as he came to Dover, and before his embarkation there, he entered into a sort of a treaty with us. But that which prevailed with him to transport his army to Calais, was, first, the solicitation of the Duke of Burgundy, and the natural animosity of the English against the French, which has existed in all ages; and next, to reserve to himself a great part of the money which had been liberally granted him for that expedition; for, as you have already heard, the kings of England live upon their own demesne revenue, and can raise no taxes but under the pretence of invading France. Besides, the king had another stratagem by which to content his subjects, for he had brought along with him ten or twelve of the chief citizens of London, and other towns in England, all fat and jolly, the leaders of the English commons, of great power in their country, such as had promoted the war, and had been very serviceable in raising that powerful army. The king ordered very fine tents to be made for them, in which they lay; but, that not being the way of living they had been used to, they soon began to grow weary of the campaign, for they expected they should come to an engagement within three days after their landing, and the king multiplied their fears and exaggerated the dangers of a war, on purpose that they might be better satisfied with a peace, and aid him to pacify the murmurs of the people upon his return into England; for since Arthur’s days, never King of England invaded France with so great a number of the nobility and such a formidable army. But, as you have heard, he returned immediately into England upon the conclusion of the peace, and reserved the greatest part of the money that had been raised to pay the army for his own private use; so that in reality, he accomplished most of the designs he had in view.⁠[482] The King of England was not of a complexion or turn of mind to endure much hardship and labour, and those any King of England who designs to make any considerable conquest in France, must expect to suffer. Besides our king was in a tolerable posture of defence, though in all places he was not so well prepared as he ought to have been, by reason of the variety and multitude of his enemies. Another great design the King of England had in view, which was the accomplishment of the marriage between our present King Charles VIII. and his daughter⁠[483], and this wedding, causing him to wink at several things, was a great advantage to our master’s affairs.

After all the English, except their hostages, were landed in England, the King of France retired towards Laon, to a little town called Vervins, bordering upon the marshes of Hainault; for the Chancellor of Burgundy and other ambassadors were at Avesnes in Hainault with the Lord of Contay, with a commission from the Duke of Burgundy to treat of an accommodation; and the king himself had a great desire to obtain a general peace. The vast numbers of the English had put him into great alarm; he had seen enough of their exploits in his time in his kingdom, and had no mind to see any more of them. The Chancellor, who was one of the Duke of Burgundy’s plenipotentiaries, as you have heard, sent news to the king, that if he pleased to send his ambassadors to a bridge half way between Avesnes and Vervins, he and his colleagues would certainly meet them there. The king sent them word he would come thither himself; and though some persons whom he consulted endeavoured to dissuade his majesty from it, yet he went, and took the English hostages along with him; and they were present when the king gave audience to the ambassadors, who had a strong guard of archers and other soldiers; but no business was despatched then, only the king took them to dinner with him.

One of the English that was there began to repent of the peace, and told me at the window, that had they seen many such men of the Duke of Burgundy’s before, perhaps the peace had not been concluded so soon. The Viscount of Narbonne⁠[484] (now called the Lord of Fouez) overhearing him, replied, “Could you be so weak as to believe the Duke of Burgundy had not great numbers of such soldiers? he had only sent them into quarters of refreshment, but you were in such haste to be at home again, that six hundred pipes of wine and a pension from our king sent you quickly back into England.” The Englishman was in a passion, and answered with much warmth, “I plainly see, as everybody said, that you have done nothing but cheat us. Do you call the money your king has given us a pension? It is a tribute, and, by St. George, you may prate so much as will bring us back again to prove it.” I interrupted their discourse, and turned it into a jest; but the Englishman would not understand it so, and I informed the king of it, and his majesty was highly offended with the Viscount of Narbonne.

The King of France had but a short conference with the Chancellor and the rest of the plenipotentiaries at that time; for it was agreed they should wait on his majesty at Vervins, and so they did. When they were at Vervins, the king appointed Tanneguy du Chastel, and Pierre Doriole, Chancellor of France, to negotiate with them, and committed the whole management of the affair to them. Great representations were made, and both sides were very zealous for the advantage of their masters. The king’s ambassadors made their report and acquainted his majesty that the Duke of Burgundy’s commissioners had been haughty in their language, but they had given them as good as they brought, and then repeated their answers. The king was not pleased with them, and told them there had been too many of those smart answers already; and that as the debate was only about a truce, not a final peace, he would have no more such expressions used, and therefore he would treat with them himself. Whereupon his majesty requested the Chancellor and the rest of the Duke of Burgundy’s plenipotentiaries to attend him in his chamber, where none of his court being present but the Lord Admiral, the late Bastard of Bourbon, the Lord du Bouchage, and myself, he concluded a truce with them for nine years to come⁠[485], whereby all things were to be restored that had been taken: but the ambassadors desired the king that it might not yet be proclaimed by sound of trumpet, as the usual manner was, in order to save the duke’s oath to the King of England (when he swore in his passion he would not accept of the benefit of the truce till the king had been in England three months), lest he should think their master had spoken otherwise than he designed.

The King of England being highly disgusted at the Duke of Burgundy’s rejection of his truce, and present endeavour to make a separate peace with the king, despatched a great favourite of his, called Sir Thomas Montgomery, to the king at Vervins, and he happened to arrive there at the very time the king was negotiating with the Duke of Burgundy’s envoys. Sir Thomas desired, on behalf of the King of England, his master, that the King of France would not consent to any other truce with the duke than what was already made. He also pressed his majesty not to deliver St. Quentin into the duke’s hands; and, as farther encouragement, he offered to pass the seas next spring with a powerful army to assist him, provided his majesty would continue the war against the Duke of Burgundy, and compensate him for the prejudice he should sustain in his duties upon wool at Calais, which would be worth little or nothing in war time (though at other times they were valued at 50,000 crowns a year). He proposed, likewise, that the King of France should pay one half of his army, and he would pay the other himself. The King of France returned the King of England abundance of thanks, and made Sir Thomas a present of plate; but as to the continuation of the war, he begged to be excused, for the truce was already concluded, and upon the same terms as that which had been agreed to between them; only the Duke of Burgundy pressed mightily to have a separate truce by himself⁠[486]; which he excused as well as he could, to please and satisfy the English ambassador, who with this answer returned into England, and the hostages with him. The king was extremely surprised at the King of England’s offers, which were delivered only before me: he conceived it would be very dangerous to bring the King of England into France again, for between those two nations (when together) any trifling accident might raise some new quarrel, and they might easily make friends again with the Duke of Burgundy,—which consideration greatly forwarded the conclusion of the treaty with the Burgundians.

A Treaty or Truce of Commerce made for Nine Years between Louis XI. and Charles, the last Duke of Burgundy, at Vervins, September 13. 1475.

1. That there shall be a good and firm truce concluded; and all hostilities cease, both by sea and land and on fresh waters, between the king and the duke, their heirs, successors, territories, and subjects, from the 13th day of September, for nine years—viz., to 1484, without any manner of contravention on either side, under the pretence of letters of mark, countermark, reprisals, debts, or otherwise whatsoever; and supposing anything done contrary hereunto, restitution shall be made without delay, that is, within eight days after the imparting of the fact by one party to the other; and if that be not done, the party aggrieved shall by force of arms recover such places as have been voluntarily given, or taken from him, and the other shall make no resistance; and yet the truce shall not be violated thereby; and the party that shall not make the said restitution, shall bear all the other’s charge.

2. All the subjects and servants on either side, of what quality, condition, or nation soever they be, shall follow their occupations peaceably, and quietly, and without any molestation whatsoever, as in time of peace.

3. No manner of hostilities shall be committed during the truce, but all persons whatsoever, without distinction, shall go, sojourn, converse, or trade in the dominions of each other without any safe-conduct, and without any molestation or injury whatsoever; only armed soldiers shall not enter into each other’s territories in a greater number than fourscore or a hundred horse.

4. All persons of all ranks and vocations, during the truce, shall return to the enjoyment and possession of their benefices, places, lands, signiories, and other estates, in the condition wherein they shall find them; and shall be admitted without any molestation or delay, without being obliged to do homage anew, but either in person or by their substitutes making oath before the proper officer that they will do nothing in prejudice to the party to whom they belong; and upon the expiration of the truce they shall be left in full obedience to the party whose they are at present: nevertheless, the king is content to give up Rambures entirely to the lord of it, without putting any guard into it, upon condition he swears and signs before the person who shall make that restitution, that during the truce, and after the expiration of it, he shall do nothing that is prejudicial to the king and his dominions, nor to the Duke of Burgundy and his territories, nor put any garrison into the place, that shall endamage either party.

5. As to the fortresses of Beaulieu and Vervins, the duke consents, that upon the actual restitution of the town and bailiwick of St. Quentin, and the places concerning which treaties have been made between the king and himself, they shall be demolished, and the revenue and lordships remain in the possession of the lords of them.

6. The lands and signiories of La Fere, and Chastellez, Vandeul, and St. Lambert, depending on the Count of Marle, shall remain under the king’s obedience; but the signiory and revenue thereof are to be the count’s.

7. The castles, towns, territories, and chastellanies of Marle, Jassy, Montcornet, St. Goubain, and Assy, shall be under the duke’s obedience; but the revenue shall belong to the said count.

8. As to this truce, so far as it concerns persons returning to their possessions on either side, the Bastard of Burgundy, the Sieur de Renty, Jean de Chassa, and Philip de Commines, are wholly excepted.

9. All infractions made on either side of this truce, shall be severely punished according to the demerits of them, and reparation shall be made, within six days after they come to be known, by the conservators of the truce on either side.

10. The conservators are on the king’s part: for the county of Eu, St. Valery, and the adjacent places, the Marshal de Gamaches; for Amiens, Beauvoisis, and the neighbouring marches, Monsieur de Torcy; for Compiègne, Noyon, and those marches, the Bailiff of Vermandois; for the county of Guyse, La Tierache, and Rathelois, the Sieur de Villiers; for the chastellany of La Fere and Laon, the Provost of the city of Laon; for all Champagne, the governor thereof; for the countries of the king about the marches of Burgundy, Monsieur de Beaujeu; for the bailiwick of Lyonnois, the Bailiff of Lyon; for all the sea-coast of France, the lord admiral.

11. On the part of the Duke of Burgundy: for the country of Ponthieu and Vimeux, Monsieur Philip de Crevecœur, Lord des Cordes; for Corbie and the provostship of Feüilloy and Beauquesne, the Lord of Contay; for Peronne, and the provostship of Peronne, the Lord of Clary, and in his absence the Lord de la Hargerie, and likewise for the provostships and towns of Montdidier, Roye, and the adjacent countries; for Artois, Cambresis, and Beaurevoir, John de Longueval, Lord of Vaux; for the country of Marle, the Lord of Humbercourt; for the country of Hainault, the Lord of Aimeries, Grand Bailiff of Hainault; for the country of Liege and Namur, the Lord of Humbercourt; for the country of Luxembourg, the governor of the said country of Luxembourg, the Marquis of Rothelin; for the country of Burgundy, duchy and county, &c., subject to the duke, the Marshal of Burgundy; for the country of Mâconnois and adjacent places, Monsieur de Clessy, Governor of Mâconnois; for the country of Auxerre and places adjacent, Monsieur Tristan de Toulonjon, Governor of Auxerre; for the town and chastellany of Bar-sur-Seine, the Sieur d’Eschauez; for the sea of Flanders, Monsieur de Lalain, admiral; for the sea of Holland, Zealand, Artois, and Boulonnois, the Count of Boukam, admiral of those parts.

12. If any of the conservators of the truce on either side shall contravene the same, the king and the duke shall appoint others well instructed in the premises, in the room of them.

13. The conservators, or their deputies in their lawful absence, shall meet once a week alternately, on the borders of the territories of each prince, to hear complaints and to redress them; and if great difficulty should arise, they are to refer the same to the superior councils, who shall determine them.

14. The decisions of the conservators are to be obeyed, without any appeals whatsoever.

15. The allies on both sides are comprehended in this truce, if they have a mind to it, and if they intimate the same in due time; but if any of the king’s allies shall, for themselves, or in favour of him, make war on the said Duke of Burgundy, he is free to oppose them with his arms, and the king is to give them no manner of assistance, without making an infraction of the truce: and the king is in the same position in respect to the allies of the Duke of Burgundy.

16. The king shall declare himself in favour of the Duke of Burgundy against the Emperor of the Romans, the citizens of Cologne, and all that shall assist them; and he promises to give them no manner of aid against the duke and his territories.

17. Seeing this treaty has been on foot since the month of May, 1474, all the places the king has taken since that time from the duke shall be restored.

18. Narcy and Gerondenelles shall be demolished, if that be not already done, and the lands remain in the possession of the rightful owners.

19. The king, in consideration of this truce, and in order to a perpetual peace, will deliver up the town and bailiwick of St. Quentin to the duke or his commissaries, only the king is to take away the artillery he brought thither, but not to meddle with the artillery of the town, nor any other that was in it before the Duke of Burgundy lost the possession of it; and the duke may appoint persons to make an inspection hereof; but is obliged to maintain the inhabitants in their rights and privileges, and to treat them as good subjects.

20. As to all other things and places, not expressly mentioned, they are to remain in their present state during the truce.

21. Lastly, if the king does not deliver up St. Quentin as aforesaid, the duke is not obliged to the observance of the nine years’ truce any longer than to the 1st of May, 1476.

Ch. XII.—How the King of France and the Duke of Burgundy swore the Death of the Constable, who, retiring into the Duke’s Country, was, by his Command, delivered to the King, and publicly executed.—1475.

Immediately upon the conclusion of the truce, they proceeded in their designs against the constable; and, to shorten the process, they began where they left off at Bouvines, and the agreement in writing was renewed on both sides. For the duke’s concurrence in this affair, it was stipulated that he should enjoy St. Quentin, Ham, Bohain, and whatever else the constable held under the said duke, besides all the constable’s moveable goods, wherever they could be found.⁠[487] In the next place, they arranged how he was to be besieged in Ham, where at that time he was; and it was resolved, that whoever of the two should have the fortune to take him first, should see justice executed upon him within eight days, or surrender him to the other. Everybody began immediately to have some suspicion of this confederacy, and the constable’s chief servants began to forsake him, as for instance, Monsieur de Genly, and several others of his principal companions. The constable having received information that the King of England had delivered his letters, and discovered all his secret practices, and knowing they were his enemies who had promoted the truce, grew extremely fearful about his condition, and sent a message to the Duke of Burgundy that, if he would please to give him a safe-conduct, he would wait on his highness, and impart several things to him of great importance concerning his own affairs. The duke hesitated at first, but at last he sent him one.

In the meantime, this great man was irresolute and wavering in his mind, and could not tell whither he should fly for security: for he had received information from all hands of his intended ruin, and had seen copies of the agreement signed against him at Bouvines. Sometimes he consulted his Lorraine servants, and then he resolved to go with them into Germany, and (there being no danger of travelling that way) to carry such a sum of money with him as would purchase some place upon the Rhine, where he might live securely till he could make his peace either with the king or the Duke of Burgundy. Another time, he was for staying in the fine Castle of Ham, which he had been at vast expense in fortifying, on purpose to defend himself in such a case of necessity; and indeed it was as well provided with ammunition and provision as any castle that I ever knew; but he had no soldiers that he could depend on, for all his garrison were subjects either of the king or of the Duke of Burgundy; and perhaps his fear was so great, he durst not discover his condition to them; for I verily believe if he had, he would have been deserted only by a very few; nor would it have been so dangerous for him to have been besieged by both princes at once as by one, for it would have been impossible for their two armies to have agreed. At last he resolved to put himself into the Duke of Burgundy’s hands, upon the strength of his safe-conduct; and accordingly, attended only by fifteen or twenty horse, he went⁠[488] directly to Mons, in Hainault, of which the Lord of Aimeries, who was his particular friend, was governor. He stayed with him till he could hear further from the Duke of Burgundy, who had begun a war against the Duke of Lorraine, for sending him a defiance as he lay in his trenches before Nuz, and for the ravages and devastations he had committed in the province of Luxembourg.

The king having received information of the constable’s departure, resolved to attempt some action that might prevent his reconciliation with the Duke of Burgundy; wherefore he marched with all expedition towards St. Quentin⁠[489], with a detachment of 700 or 800 men-at-arms, whom he had assembled on a sudden, being privately advised of what number of troops the garrison consisted. Upon the king’s approach, some of the citizens came out to meet his majesty, and submitted themselves to him. The king commanded me to enter the town, and order the garrison to evacuate their quarters, which I did; and our men-at-arms having entered, the king himself followed, and was well received by the inhabitants; upon which some of the constable’s party fled after him into Hainault. As soon as the king was in possession of St. Quentin, he immediately despatched a courier with the news of it to the Duke of Burgundy, to let him understand that all hope of recovering it by the constable’s interest was now entirely lost. Upon receiving this news, the Duke of Burgundy sent his commands to the Lord of Aimeries (his grand bailiff in Hainault) to keep such guards in Mons that the constable might not escape, and in the meantime to confine him to his house. The bailiff durst not disobey the duke’s orders, yet his guards were not so strict but the constable might have escaped if he had pleased.

What account can we give of Fortune in this place? This person was seated between the territories of these rival princes; he was possessed of several strong castles, had 400 men-at-arms well paid, and all his own creatures, under his control, and had had the command of them a dozen years: he was a person of great wisdom and valour, was very rich, and had great experience; and yet none of all these powerful advantages could, in the time of danger and distress, either afford him relief, or inspire him with courage enough to attempt his escape. One may say (and not without reason) that deceitful Fortune had assumed another air, and begun to regard him with a frowning aspect: but alas! Fortune is nothing but a poetical fiction; such surprising mysteries as these are far above her power to effect; and, when I reflect upon what, has already been said, and what may farther be urged, I cannot help thinking but that God had forsaken him; and if it were no offence in any man to judge (which it would be, and especially for me), I should maintain that the most probable cause of all his misfortunes, was his restless endeavours and designs to foment and continue the war between the king and the Duke of Burgundy, upon which alone his authority and power depended; nor indeed was this very difficult to accomplish, upon account of their humours and dispositions, which were naturally in themselves so vastly different.

That person would indeed be guilty of the greatest ignorance, who should believe Fortune or Chance had such an influence over human affairs as to force a man of his experience in the world, to incur the simultaneous displeasure of two such mighty princes, who in their lives never agreed in any one point but his ruin and destruction; and it would be more astonishing still, that she should have created an enmity between him and the King of England, who had married his niece⁠[490], and had a great value and respect for all his wife’s relations, and particularly for those of the house of St. Paul. To speak impartially (neither can it be otherwise), God had withdrawn His grace from him, or else he would never have incensed these three powerful princes, and have managed his affairs so ill as not to have one friend left that would give him a night’s entertainment in his distress; so that God Himself was the Fortune that did this: and as it has happened formerly, so it will happen to many hereafter, who, after a long continuance of ease and prosperity, must expect to fall into great misfortunes and adversity.

As soon as the king was informed of the constable’s being arrested in Hainault by the Duke of Burgundy’s order, he sent to require the duke either to deliver him up to him, or perform their agreement. The duke promised he would, and accordingly he caused the constable to be removed to Peronne, and placed a strong guard upon him. The Duke of Burgundy had made himself master of several places in Lorraine and Barrois, and had formally invested Nancy⁠[491], which made a vigorous defence. The king had a considerable army in Champagne, of which the duke was extremely afraid; for by the truce he had no liberty to invade the Duke of Lorraine’s territories, who had put himself under the king’s protection. The Lord du Bouchage and the other ambassadors strongly pressed the Duke of Burgundy to perform his agreement. The duke told them always he would, and yet the eight days (by which time the constable was to be either executed or delivered to the king) were expired a month since. At last, finding himself hard pressed, and fearing the king might put a stop to his conquests in Lorraine, which he extremely desired to complete, in order to open a passage through Luxembourg into Burgundy, and join all his territories together (for if this little duchy were once subdued, he might go from Holland almost as far as Lyons, without leaving his own dominions); for these reasons he wrote to his chancellor and to the Lord of Humbercourt (both of them the constable’s inveterate enemies) immediately to repair to Peronne, and on a certain day to deliver the constable⁠[492] to such ambassadors as the king should send to receive him (for in the duke’s absence, they two had the administration of all his affairs); and he sent the Lord of Aimeries orders to deliver him to them.

In the meantime the Duke of Burgundy vigorously pushed the siege of Nancy, in which town there was a strong garrison that made a brave defence. One of the Duke of Burgundy’s captains, called the Count of Campobasso (born in Naples, but banished that kingdom upon account of his having espoused the interest of the house of Anjou), had lately entered into a correspondence⁠[493] with the Duke of Lorraine (a near relation and next heir to the house of Anjou, after the death of King René⁠[494], his maternal grandfather), and promised to prolong the siege by not providing the army with ammunition, and other things that were necessary for the taking of the town by force. It was indeed in his power, for he was then a person of the greatest influence in the army, and therefore his villany and perfidiousness to his master were the greater, as you shall hear hereafter; and this was a kind of earnest of all the misfortunes that happened afterwards to the duke. I really believe the duke expected he would have been master of the town before the day came on which he would be obliged to deliver up the constable, and then he would not have done it. Besides, if the king had had him sooner, his majesty would have attempted something more in favour of the Duke of Lorraine than he did; for the king was informed of his intrigue with Campobasso. But the king would not engage in the quarrel between them, though he was not bound by treaty to stand still, and let the Duke of Burgundy overrun Lorraine. Besides, he had a considerable army upon the frontiers, but, for several reasons of state, he thought it better to stand neutral.

The Duke of Burgundy not being able to take Nancy⁠[495] before the day on which the constable was to be delivered up, and that day being come, those who were commissioned to deliver him (being the constable’s mortal enemies), delivered him willingly at the gates of Peronne into the hands of the Bastard of Bourbon, Admiral of France, and the Lord of St. Pierre, who conducted him to Paris. I have been since informed by several persons, that within three hours messengers came post from the duke with orders to the Lord of Aimeries not to deliver up the constable till after the taking of Nancy; but they arrived too late. Immediately upon his arrival at Paris his trial began⁠[496], and the duke sent all his papers and whatever he thought might be brought in evidence against him. The king pressed the court to despatch, and persons were appointed to manage his trial: so that upon the proofs that the King of England had before given in against him, and those that the Duke of Burgundy now furnished, the constable was found guilty, condemned, executed, and all his estates confiscated.

Ch. XIII.—A Digression concerning the Duke of Burgundy’s Error in delivering up the Constable to the King, contrary to the Safe-conduct which he had given him; and what happened to him afterwards.—1475.

The whole management of this affair was very strange. I do not speak it either to excuse the constable’s faults, or to upbraid the duke or the king, for both of them had been sufficiently injured by him: but there was no necessity for the Duke of Burgundy, who was so potent a prince and of such an illustrious and honourable family, to have given him his protection in order to imprison him; and without dispute, it was the highest act of injustice and severity imaginable to deliver him up to a person who, he was sure, would put him to death, especially upon the account of avarice. After this dishonourable action the duke’s good fortune was strangely altered; so that by reflecting upon what God has done in our time, and does still every day, it is evident He will not let injustice go long unpunished, and that all these strange dispensations proceed solely from Him; for these sudden chastisements are beyond the power of nature, especially when they are inflicted on such as commit violence or cruelty, who are commonly great persons, as kings, princes, or potentates. The house of Burgundy had been in a very prosperous and flourishing condition for a long time, and for a hundred years, or thereabouts, four of that family had reigned in as great splendour and reputation as any house in Christendom. Others, perhaps, were more potent, but they were involved in wars and afflictions, whilst this family enjoyed an uninterrupted career of peace and plenty.

The first great person of this family was Philip the Bold⁠[497], brother to Charles V., King of France⁠[498], who married the daughter and heiress of the Earl of Flanders, countess of that country, Artois, Burgundy, Nevers, and Rethel. The second was John. The third was Philip the Good, who annexed to his hereditary territories the duchies of Brabant, Luxembourg, Limbourg, Holland, Zealand, Hainault, and Namur. The last was Charles, who after his father’s death was reputed to be one of the richest and most powerful princes in Christendom, and possessed, in jewels, plate, household stuff, and books, more than any other three houses of Europe could boast of. Of ready money I have seen more elsewhere (for Duke Philip the Good had levied no taxes for a long time), and yet he left his son above 300,000 crowns in ready cash, and at peace with all his neighbours; but that was of no long continuance. Yet I will not lay the beginning of the wars solely to his charge, for there were other persons as deeply concerned in that affair as himself.

Immediately upon the death of his father, his subjects, upon very little importunity, willingly granted him a supply for ten years, each country by itself; which could not amount to less than 350,000 crowns per annum, besides the revenue of Burgundy; and at the time of the constable’s being delivered up to the king, he had raised an additional 300,000 crowns, and had by him in his coffers 300,000 more. All the goods he could obtain of the constable’s were not worth 80,000 crowns (for in money he had but 76,000), and yet for so poor and inconsiderable an advantage, he committed so base and dishonourable an act. But he paid dearly for it; for God stirred up a new enemy⁠[499] against him, who was impotent and inconsiderable both in power, years, and experience; and made him jealous of his subjects, and suspicious of his best servants, and place his greatest confidence in another⁠[500], who constantly betrayed him. And are not these the same steps and methods in which God Almighty proceeded in the Old Testament with those whose fortunes he intended to change from better to worse, from prosperity to adversity? Yet the duke’s heart never relented: but to the end he imputed all his success to his own wisdom and sagacity, and before his death was more potent and in greater renown than any of his predecessors.

Yet before the surrendering of the constable, he was grown very diffident and distrustful of his best subjects, and seemed to hate and despise them; for he had sent for 1000 Italian lances, and had numbers of them in his army before Nuz. The Count of Campobasso had 400 Italian men-at-arms under his command, but no revenue of his own; for, as I said before, being a partisan of the house of Anjou, upon account of the wars which they had raised in the kingdom of Naples, he was banished, and having lost all his estate, he had served ever since either in Provence or Lorraine under René, King of Sicily, or Nicholas the son of John, Duke of Calabria; after whose death the Duke of Burgundy entertained most of his servants, and particularly all the Italians, and among the rest this count, and one James Galeot, a gentleman of great courage, honour, and loyalty.

When this Count of Campobasso went into Italy to raise his men, he received from the duke 40,000 crowns by way of advance. Passing by Lyons, he accidentally fell into the acquaintance of a certain physician called Simon of Pavia, by whom he signified to the king that, if his majesty would comply with his demands, at his return he would betray the Duke of Burgundy into his hands; and he made the same proposals to the Lord of St. Priest⁠[501], the king’s ambassador at that time in Piedmont. When he came back, and was quartered with his forces in the county of Marle, he offered the king, upon his arrival at the duke’s camp, either to kill him, or make him prisoner, which he designed to execute thus:—The duke was accustomed to ride about the camp upon a little ambling nag, attended but by few of his guards, which, as he said truly, would be a fair opportunity of effecting his purpose. If this was disapproved of, he had another offer to make, which was, that when the king and the Duke of Burgundy should be drawn up in order of battle, and ready to engage, he would come over to the king’s side with his whole battalion, upon certain conditions which he stated. But the king utterly abhorred his treachery⁠[502], and sent the Lord of Contay very generously to acquaint the duke of his intentions to betray him; but the duke was so far from believing it, that he looked upon it as an artifice of the king’s, and showed the count greater favour than before. From whence it is evident, that God Almighty had infatuated his understanding, in not suffering him to believe the clear proof given by the king. But though Campobasso was treacherous and disloyal, James Galeot was quite of another stamp; and having acquired great reputation in the world, died at last with as much honour as he had lived.