These made somewhat forward, before whome there went an old knight sir Thomas Erpingham (a man of great experience in the warre) with a warder in his hand; and when he cast vp his warder, all the armie shouted, but that was a signe to the archers in the medow, which therwith shot wholie altogither at the vauward of the Frenchmen, who when they perceiued the archers in the medow, and saw they could not come at them for a ditch that was betwixt them, with all hast set vpon the fore ward of king Henrie, but yer they could ioine, the archers in the forefront, and the archers on that side which stood in the medow, so wounded the footmen, galled the horsses, and combred the men of armes, that the footmen durst not go forward, the horssemen ran togither vp[=o] plumps without order, some ouerthrew such as were next them, and the horsses ouerthrew their masters, and so at the first ioining, the Frenchmen were foulie discomforted, and the Englishmen highlie incouraged. [Sidenote: The vauward of the French discomfited.] [Sidenote: Their battell beaten.] When the French vauward was thus brought to confusion, the English archers cast awaie their bowes, & tooke into their hands, axes, malls, swords, bils, and other hand-weapons, and with the same slue the Frenchmen, vntil they came to the middle ward. Then approched the king, and so incouraged his people, that shortlie the second battell of the Frenchmen was ouerthrowne, and dispersed, not without great slaughter of men: howbeit, diuerse were reléeued by their varlets, and conueied out of the field. The Englishmen were so busied in fighting, and taking of the prisoners at hand, that they followed not in chase of their enimies, nor would once breake out of their arraie of battell. Yet sundrie of the Frenchmen stronglie withstood the fiercenesse of the English, when they came to handie strokes, so that the fight sometime was doubtfull and perillous. Yet as part of the French horssemen set their course to haue entered vpon the kings battell, with the stakes ouerthrowne, they were either taken or slaine. Thus this battell continued thrée long houres. [Sidenote: A valiant king.] [Sidenote: The French rereward discomfited.]