The king of France departed from Louviers, attended by the king of Sicily and his nobles, and advanced to Pont de l'Arche,--when the inhabitants came out with great joy, to welcome him on his arrival. He thence sent heralds without delay to summon Rouen to surrender, that all oppressions might be avoided by a voluntary submission: but the english garrison, aware on what embassy the heralds came, would not let them approach the walls, nor would they hear their summons, ordering them, at the same time, to make haste and return, under pain of death. They reported to the king all they had seen and heard, who, having learnt the answers the English had given to his heralds, commanded the army to cross the bridge at Pont de l'Arche, which was done under the conduct of the count de Dunois, and thence to proceed to Rouen. They remained before that city for three days with a multitude of men at arms and soldiers of all descriptions; but during these three days, the army suffered so greatly from the continual rains and storms that the whole was nearly destroyed. Notwithstanding the severity of the weather, the garrison made many sallies, in which very gallant deeds of prowess were done; and a french esquire, called the bastard de Forbier, was made prisoner by reason of his horse falling under him. The french lords drew their army up in battle-array before the walls, and sent the king's heralds, a second time to summon the city to surrender; but as the English would not suffer them to approach near enough to be heard by the people, they were forced to return as before, which was quite contrary to every rule of chivalry; for heralds are always allowed the liberty of freely going and coming, to deliver their messages, provided such messages do not contain any thing treasonable. The heralds, having made their report to the count de Dunois on their return, and he having considered that there seemed at present no chance that the city would surrender, and that the severity of the weather had much weakened his army, and worse was to be expected during the winter, which was nigh at hand, marched back to Pont de l'Arche, and quartered his men in the villages round that town. On the day of this retreat, the king of France had come with the king of Sicily to a nunnery within a league and a half of Rouen; but the king of France returned to his former quarters at Pont de l'Arche, while the king of Sicily remained until all the companies had marched for their cantonments near to Pont de l'Arche. Shortly after, the king received intelligence that some of the inhabitants of Rouen had gained two towers that commanded part of the walls, and that they would admit them by this way into the city. On this information, the count de Dunois was ordered with the army to undertake the business, who marched off, on the 16th day of October, in handsome array.