1452.—The Duke of York, at Brent Heath, near Dartford, “encamped his army very strongly bothe with trenches and artillery.”—Hall’s _Chronicles_, fo. 163. 1454.—In the thirty-second year of Henry VI. the castle of Calais, and the castles and fortresses in the marches of it, were directed to be provided with “vitaile ordonnance habiliments of werre and artillerie.”—5 _Rot. Parl._ fo. 255. 1455.—At the first battle of St. Albans, the Yorkists are mentioned, in the _Rolls of Parliament_, as being assembled, “with grete multitude of people harneised, and other abillementis of werre, as gonnes and other, and come to the toune of Seint Albones,” &c.—_Rot. Parl._ 38 Henry VI. vol. fo. 347. 1457–8.—A letter has been published from John Bokking, to Sir John Fastolf, of Norfolk, {234} from which the following is an extract:—“And my lord of Caunt’bury tolde me yat ye Frenche men have ben before yow, and yt ye shotte many gonnes, and so he tolde all ye lords, I have desirid hym to move ye counsell for refreshing of ye toun of Yermowth wt stuff of ordnance and gonnes and gonne powdre, and he said he wolde.”—Fenn’s _Collection of Original Letters_ (_occasionally called the Paston Letters_), vol. i. p. 156. 1459.—The act of attainder of the 38th year of the reign of Henry VI., mentions the encampment of the Yorkists at Ludford, near Ludlow, and states that they “traiterously raunged in bataill, fortefied their chosen ground, their cartes with gonnes sette before their batailles;” * * * “and than and there shotte their seid gonnes, and shotte as wele at youre most roiall persone, as at youre lordes and people with you than and there beying.”—_Rot. Parl._ 38th Henry VI. vol. v. fo. 348. 1459.—At the Duke of Somerset’s repulse from Calais, “the artillarie shot so fierseley both out of the toune and Risebancke,” &c.—_Hall_, fo. 175. Same year.—Attack by Sir John Denham upon Sandwich, where he “tooke the principall shippes of the Kynge’s navie then liying at the port, well furnished with ordinaunce and artillarie,” &c.—Same, fo. 175. From the above passage it seems not unreasonable to infer that cannons were at that date used on shipboard by the English. Same year.—Osbert Mountforth was sent towards Guisnes, to assist the Duke of Somerset, and was attacked and captured whilst lying in Sandwich, by John Denham and John Wenlock, and the former was badly wounded in the thigh, by a bombard, “in crure cum bombardo.”—_Annales W. Wyrcestrii_. 1460.—At the siege of the Tower of London, which was defended by the Lancastrians under Lord Scales, who “dayly shote their ordenaunce out, and had likewise great ordinaunce shott at them.”—Hall’s _Chronicles_, fo. 176.