Bayard: the Good Knight Without Fear and Without Reproach — John Shaqi
Bayard: the Good Knight Without Fear and Without ReproachHare, Christopher
History
Bayard: the Good Knight Without Fear and Without Reproach
Hare, Christopher
Bayard, Pierre Terrail, seigneur de, approximately 1473-1524; Knights and knighthood
The spy saw that he was caught, so he knelt down and begged for mercy,
which was again positively promised him. Then he told the whole story from
beginning to end of the proposed treachery; how Manfroni would have an
ambush of two hundred men-at-arms and two thousand foot-soldiers to make
sure of Bayard's destruction. The spy owned that he had been to the house
of Baptiste to tell him of this enterprise, and to advise him to find means
some night to have one of the city gates opened to the Venetians, but he
added that Baptiste had refused to do this.
When he had made an end of his confession the Good Knight said to him:
"Vizentin, my money has certainly been wasted upon you, for you are a bad
and treacherous man ... You have deserved death, but I will keep my promise
and you shall be safe with me, but I advise you to keep out of sight, for
others may not spare you."
The spy was taken away to be closely guarded, and Bayard said to his
friend, the Burgundian captain:
"What shall we do to this Captain Manfroni who thinks to take us by a
trick? We must pay him out, and if you do what I ask you we will carry out
one of those splendid adventures which were done a hundred years ago." "My
lord, you have only to command and you will be obeyed," was the simple
reply.
"Then go at once to the lodging of the Prince of Hainault, and with my
compliments tell him the whole story. Then you must persuade him to send us
to-morrow morning two thousand of his 'landsknechte,' and we will take them
with us and leave them somewhere in ambush. If something wonderful does not
result you may blame me!"
Hannotin de Sucker started at once and went to the quarters of the Prince,
who was asleep in bed. He was roused immediately and soon heard all that
his visitor had to tell. This courteous Prince, who loved war better than
anything else, was also such a devoted admirer of the Good Knight that he
could have refused him nothing. He replied that he only wished he had heard
of this sooner, as he would have joined the party himself, but Bayard could
dispose of his soldiers as if they were his own. He instantly sent his
secretary to four or five of his most trusted captains, who, to make a long
story short, were ready at daybreak to meet the men-at-arms who had known
of the expedition overnight. They all met at the city gate and set forth
from the city towards Isola della Scala, and the Good Knight said to
Hannotin: "You and the 'landsknechte' must remain in ambush at Servode (a
little village two miles from Isola), and do not be uneasy for I will draw
our foes under your very nose, so that you will have plenty of honour
to-day if you are a gallant comrade."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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