It was at the midnight, when the moon shone right south, Arthur with his host marched to the burgh; the folk was as still as if they would steal; forth they proceeded until they saw Lincoln. Thus gan he call, Arthur the keen man: "Where be ye, my knights, my dear-worthy warriors? See ye the tents, where Childric lieth on the fields; Colgrim and Baldulf, with bold strength; the Alemainish folk, that us hath harmed, and the Saxish folk, that sorrow to us promiseth; that all hath killed the highest of my kin; Constance and Constantine, and Uther, who was my father, and Aurelie Ambrosie, who was my father's brother, and many thousand men of my noble kindred? Go we out to them, and lay to the ground, and worthily avenge our kin and their realm; and all together forth-right now ride every good knight!" Then Arthur gan to ride, and the army gan to move, as if all the earth would be consumed; and smote in the fields among Childric's tents. That was the first man, that there gan to shout—-Arthur the noble man, who was Uther's son—-keenly and loud, as becometh a king: "Now aid us, Mary, God's mild mother! And I pray her son, that he be to us in succour!" Even with the words they turned their spears; pierced and slew all that they came nigh. And the knights out of the burgh marched against them (the enemy); if they fled to the burgh, there they were destroyed; if they fled to the wood, there they slaughtered them; come wherever they might come, ever they them slew. It is not in any book indited, that ever any fight were in this Britain, that mischief was so rife; for folk it was most miserable, that ever came to the land! There was mickle blood-shed, mischief was among the folk; death there was rife; the earth there became dun! Childric the kaiser had a castle here, in Lincoln's field, where he lay within, that was newly wrought, and exceeding well guarded; and there were with him Baldulf and Colgrim, and saw that their folk suffered death. And they anon forth-right, on with their burnies, and fled out of the castle, of courage bereft; and fled forth-right anon to the wood of Calidon. They had for companions seven hundred riders; and they left forty thousand slain, and deprived of life-day, felled to the ground; Alemainish men, with mischief destroyed, and the Saxish men, brought to the ground! Then saw Arthur, noblest of kings, that Childric was flown, and into Calidon gone, and Colgrim and Baldulf with him were gone into the high wood, into the high holm. And Arthur pursued after with sixty thousand knights of British people; the wood he all surrounded; and on one side they it felled, full seven miles, one tree upon another, truly fast; on the other side he surrounded it with his army, three days and three nights;—-that was to them mickle harm.