According to the resolution that had been taken, at about ten o’clock at night, the 600 men from Franchemont sallied forth by the breaches of the walls, seized upon the most of our outguards and put them to the sword (among whom there were three gentlemen of the household of the Duke of Burgundy), and certainly if they had marched on directly, and made no noise till they had arrived at the place where they designed, they had slain both those princes in their beds, without any great opposition. Behind the Duke of Burgundy’s quarters there was a tent in which the present Duke of Alençon[256] lay, and with him the Lord of Craon[257]; they stopped there for some time, thrust their pikes through the tent, and killed some of the servants. This giving an alarm to the whole army, some few ran to their arms, several got up, and leaving their tents, ran immediately to the two houses, where the king and the duke were quartered. The barn I mentioned before, where the duke had posted 300 men-at-arms, being close to both houses, they gave them some thrusts with their pikes out of the holes which had been made for the convenience of their sallies. Not full two hours before this attack, these gentlemen had pulled off their arms to refresh and prepare themselves for the assault the next day, so that most of them were unarmed, though some few had clapped on their cuirasses upon the uproar at the Duke of Alençon’s tent, and attacked the invaders through the doors and the holes which they had made, and were the only body of troops that preserved those two great princes; for by this delay, several others had time enough to arm, and make head against them. I and two gentlemen more of his bed-chamber lay that night in the Duke of Burgundy’s chamber (which was very small), and above us there were twelve archers upon the guard, all of them in their clothes, and playing at dice. His main guard was at a good distance, and towards the gate of the town. In short, the master of the house where the duke was quartered, having drawn out a good party of the Liegeois, came so suddenly upon the duke, that we had scarce time to put on his cuirass and breast-plate and clap a steel cap upon his head: as soon as we had done it, we ran down the stairs into the street, but we found our archers engaged with the enemy, and much ado they had to defend the doors and the windows against them. In the street there was a terrible noise and uproar, some crying out, “Vive le Roi!” others, “Vive Bourgogne!” and others, “Vive le Roi, et tuez!” It was some time before our archers and we could beat the enemy from the doors, and get out of the house: we knew not in what condition the king was, nor whether he was for or against us, which put us into a great consternation. As soon as we were got into the street, by the help of two or three torches we discovered some few of our men, and could perceive people fighting round about us, but the action there lasted not long, for the soldiers from all parts