The Parochial History of Cornwall, Volume 2 (of 4)
History
The Parochial History of Cornwall, Volume 2 (of 4)
Cornwall (England : County) -- History; Geology -- England -- Cornwall (County)
Whereupon John, his second son, succeeded, and was the 13th Earl of
Oxford, who married Margaret daughter of Richard Nevill, Earl of
Salisbury, who, as his father had done before, adhered to the interest
of King Henry VI., against Edward IV., and was at the battle of Barnet
Heath 1471, and had, with the Marquess Montacute, the command of the
right wing of King Henry’s horse, under Richard Earl of Warwick,
general of his army; and when in the battle, it appeared the vanward
of King Henry’s horse had somewhat worsted King Edward’s party, by the
valour of the Earl of Oxford, the news presently fled to London that
Warwick had obtained the victory; but, alas! Fama est mendax; for
immediately after a strange misfortune befel the Earl of Oxford and
his men in the latter part of this encounter. They having a star with
streams on their liveries, as King Edward’s soldiers had the sun, the
General Warwick’s men, by reason of a great mist, (raised as was
thought by the magic art of Friar Bungey) mistaking the badges, shot
at the Earl of Oxford’s men, which were of their own party, to their
great hurt and destruction; whereupon the Earl, seeing how matters
went, cried out treason, and forthwith fled with 800 men, whose
departure gave King Edward opportunity to obtain a total victory over
his enemies.
Whereupon the Duke of Somerset and this Earl of Oxford fled to Jasper
Earl of Pembroke, in Wales, for safety and protection; from whence
Oxford, and a convenient number of men of arms, shipped themselves
from Milfordhaven, and with a fair wind sailed down St. George’s
Channel, turned the Land’s End, and came safely at anchor in this
Mount’s Bay. Where, as soon as the Earl and his men had disguised
themselves in pilgrims’ and friars’ apparel, under which all had
lodged a small sword and a dagger, they went on shore, pretending that
they were pilgrims that had come a long pilgrimage from the remotest
part of this kingdom, to perform the penance imposed upon them by
their father confessors, and to perform their vows, make orisons and
oblations to the altar of St. Michael, who presided there; upon which
pious pretext the monks and inhabitants opened their gates and let
them into the castle, where they were no sooner entered, but, as de la
Pomeray had done before, they shewed their weapons, discovered their
impious fraud, and made known who they were, and their designs to kill
all persons that made resistance or opposed King Henry VI. for whom
the Earl of Oxford was come to take possession of this Mount, and
would keep it to his use; whereupon, the monks and the small garrison
were necessitated to comply with their demands, and yield them a quiet
possession thereof; which forthwith the Earl put in better repair, and
by the interest of King Henry and the Earl’s friends and relations in
those parts, his grandmother as aforesaid being Sir Guy St. Aubyn’s
widow and Sergeaulx’s coheir, he soon got ammunition, provision, and
soldiers sufficient for their defence.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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