The Regent, whose degrading of Fastolfe and vituperation of Joan of
Arc did not serve to help, applied to his powerful brother-in-law, the
Duke of Burgundy, for aid. Burgundy came to the Regent's assistance,
bringing a small force with him from Picardy. Then Bedford bethought
him of his powerful relation in England, Henry Beaufort, the Bishop of
Winchester. Most opportunely for the Regent, the Bishop had collected
an army for the suppression of the Bohemian Hussites. The Regent
implored his uncle, the Bishop, to send this army for the defence of
the English and their interests, now in such dire jeopardy. Winchester
was a mean, avaricious prince, and his aid had to be bought. A treaty
was signed on the 1st of July, in which Winchester promised to bring
his troops to his nephew's assistance; but he delayed stirring till
the middle of that month. It pleased the crafty Bishop to know that
his great wealth made him all-powerful in England; for the English
Protector, the Duke of Gloucester, was a mere cipher compared to
Winchester; and now that his other nephew, the Protector of France,
was in distress, he could dictate his own terms to both. It was not
until the 25th of July that Winchester at length arrived with his army
in Paris. Then Bedford breathed more freely, and left the capital with
an army of observation to watch the movements of the French King.
It was now the earnest wish of Joan of Arc that Charles should march
direct on Paris, and perhaps had he done so he might have entered
that city with as little difficulty as he had entered Rheims; for if
once the King of France had appeared in person, many of the wealthy
citizens, as well as the majority of the common people, would have
welcomed him. Charles, however, as usual vacillated, and the precious
moment slipped by.
Philip (called 'the Good'), Duke of Burgundy, was at this time one of
the most powerful princes of Christendom. In addition to his titular
domain, he held the wealthy provinces of Burgundy, including Brabant,
Flanders, Franche-Comte, Holland, Namur, Lower Lorraine, Luxembourg,
Artois, Hainault, Zealand, Friesland, Malines, and Salines. This
much-territoried potentate was at the present juncture coquetting both
with Bedford and with Charles, playing one against the other. To the
former he promised an army, but only contributed a handful of men; to
the latter he made advances of friendship, as false as the man who
made them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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