Chronicle and Romance: Froissart, Malory, Holinshed: (The Harvard Classics Series)
History
Chronicle and Romance: Froissart, Malory, Holinshed: (The Harvard Classics Series)
England -- Social life and customs -- 16th century; Great Britain -- History -- Edward III, 1327-1377
in wages with the king of England, called sir Denis Morbeke, who had
served the Englishmen five year before, because in his youth he had
forfeited the realm of France for a murder that he did at
Saint-Omer's. It happened so well for him, that he was next to the
king when they were about to take him: he stept forth into the press,
and by strength of his body and arms he came to the French king and
said in good French, 'Sir, yield you,' The king beheld the knight and
said: 'To whom shall I yield me? Where is my cousin the prince of
Wales? If I might see him, I would speak with him.' Denis answered and
said: 'Sir, he is not here; but yield you to me and I shall bring you
to him. 'Who be you?' quoth the king. 'Sir,' quoth he, 'I am Denis of
Morbeke, a knight of Artois; but I serve the king of England because I
am banished the realm of France and I have forfeited all that I had
there,' Then the king gave him his right gauntlet, saying, 'I yield me
to you,' There was a great press about the king, for every man
enforced him to say,[2] 'I have taken him,' so that the king could not
go forward with his young son the lord Philip with him because of the
press.
[1] This 'and' should be 'by,' but the French text is responsible
for the mistake.
[2] 'S'efforçoit de dire.'
The prince of Wales, who was courageous and cruel as a lion, took that
day great pleasure to fight and to chase his enemies. The lord John
Chandos, who was with him, of all that day never left him nor never
took heed of taking of any prisoner: then at the end of the battle he
said to the prince: 'Sir, it were good that you rested here and set
your banner a-high in this bush, that your people may draw hither, for
they be sore spread abroad, nor I can see no more banners nor pennons
of the French party; wherefore, sir, rest and refresh you, for ye be
sore chafed.' Then the prince's banner was set up a-high on a bush,
and trumpets and clarions began to sown. Then the prince did off his
bassenet, and the knights for his body and they of his chamber were
ready about him, and a red pavilion pight up, and then drink was
brought forth to the prince and for such lords as were about him, the
which still increased as they came from the chase: there they tarried
and their prisoners with them. And when the two marshals were come to
the prince, he demanded of them if they knew any tiding of the French
king. They answered and said: 'Sir, we hear none of certainty, but we
think verily he is other dead or taken, for he is not gone out of the
battles.' Then the prince said to the earl of Warwick and to sir
Raynold Cobham: 'Sirs, I require you go forth and see what ye can
know, that at your return ye may shew me the truth.' These two lords
took their horses and departed from the prince and rode up a little
hill to look about them: then they perceived a flock of men of arms
coming together right wearily:[3] there was the French king afoot in
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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