M. de Vaudeville held prisoner M. de Bauge, brother of M. de
Martigues who died at Hesdin. M. de Bauge was prisoner at Chateau
de La Motte au Bois, belonging to the Emperor; he had been
captured at Therouenne by two Spanish soldiers; and M. de
Vaudeville, when he saw him there, concluded he must be some
gentleman of good family: he made him pull off his stockings, and
seeing his clean legs and feet, and his fine white stockings,
knew he was one to pay a good ransom. He told the soldiers he
would give them thirty crowns down for their prisoner: they
agreed gladly, for they had no place to keep him, nor food for
him, nor did they know his value: so they gave their man into his
hands, and he sent him off at once, guarded by four of his own
soldiers, to Chateau de La Motte au Bois, with others of our
gentlemen who were prisoners.
M. de Bauge would not tell who he was; and endured much hardship,
living on bread and water, with a little straw for his bed. When
Hesdin was taken, M. de Vaudeville sent the news of it to him and
to the other prisoners, and the list of the killed, and among
them M. de Martigues: and when M. de Bauge heard with his own
ears his brother was dead, he fell to crying, weeping, and
lamentation. His guards asked him why he was so miserable: he
told them, for love of M. de Martigues, his brother. When he
heard this, the captain of the castle sent straight to tell M. de
Vaudeville he had a good prisoner: who was delighted at this, and
sent me next day with four soldiers, and his own physician, to
the castle, to say that if M. de Bauge would pay him fifteen
thousand crowns ransom, he would send him home free: and he asked
only the security of two Antwerp merchants that he should name.
M. de Vaudeville persuaded me I should commend this offer to his
prisoner: that is why he sent me to the castle. He told the
captain to treat him well and put him in a room with hangings,
and strengthen his guard: and from that time onward they made a
great deal of him, at the expense of M. de Vaudeville.
M. de Bauge answered that he could not pay his ransom himself: it
depended on M. d' Estampes his uncle, and Mlle. de Bressure his
aunt: he had no means to pay such a ransom. I went back with my
guards, and gave this answer to M. de Vaudeville; who said,
"Possibly he will not get away so cheap": which was true, for
they knew who he was. Then the Queen of Hungary and M. le Duc de
Savoie sent word to M. de Vaudeville that this mouthful was too
big for him, and he must send his prisoner to them (which he
did), and he had other prisoners enough without him. The ransom
paid was forty thousand crowns, without other expenses.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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