JOHN DE VERCHIN, A KNIGHT OF GREAT RENOWN, AND SENESCHAL OF HAINAULT, SENDS, BY HIS HERALD, A CHALLENGE INTO DIVERS COUNTRIES, PROPOSING A DEED OF ARMS.
At the beginning of this year, John de Verchin[31], a knight of high renown and seneschal of Hainault, sent letters, by his herald, to the knights and esquires of different countries, to invite them to a trial of skill in arms, which he had vowed to hold, the contents of which letters were as follows:
‘To all knights and esquires, gentlemen of name and arms, without reproach, I Jean de Verchin, seneschal of Hainault, make known, that with the aid of GOD, of our Lady, of my lord St George, and of the lady of my affections, I intend being at Coucy the first Sunday of August next ensuing, unless prevented by lawful and urgent business, ready on the morrow to make trial of the arms hereafter mentioned, in the presence of my most redoubted lord the duke of Orleans, who has granted me permission to hold the meeting at the above place.
‘If any gentleman, such as above described, shall come to this town to deliver me from my vow, we will perform our enterprise mounted on horseback, on war saddles without girths. Each may wear what armour he pleases, but the targets must be without covering or lining of iron or steel. The arms to be spears of war, without fastening or covering, and swords. The attack to be with spears in or out of their rests; and each shall lay aside his target, and draw his sword without assistance. Twenty strokes of the sword to be given without intermission, and we may, if we please, seize each other by the body.
‘From respect to the gentleman, and to afford him more pleasure, for having had the goodness to accept my invitation, I promise to engage him promptly on foot, unless bodily prevented, without either of us taking off any part of the armour which we had worn in our assaults on horseback: we may, however, change our vizors, and lengthen the plates of our armour, according to the number of strokes with the sword and dagger, as may be thought proper, when my companion shall have determined to accomplish my deliverance by all these deeds of arms, provided, however, that the number of strokes may be gone through during the day, at such intermissions as I shall point out.
‘In like manner, the number of strokes with battle-axes shall be agreed on; but, in regard to this combat, each may wear the armour he pleases. Should it happen (as I hope it will not), that in the performance of these deeds of arms, one of us be wounded, insomuch that during the day he shall be unable to complete the combat with the arms then in use, the adverse party shall not make any account of it, but shall consider it as if nothing had passed.
‘When I shall have completed these courses, or when the day shall be ended, with the aid of GOD, of our Lady, of my lord St George, and of my lady, I shall set out from the said town, unless bodily prevented, on a pilgrimage to my lord St James at Compostella. Whatever gentleman of rank I may meet going to Galicia, or returning to the aforesaid town of Coucy, that may incline to do me the honour and grace to deliver me with the same arms as above, and appoint an honourable judge, without taking me more than twenty leagues from my strait road, or obliging me to return, and giving me assurance from the judge, that the combat, with the aforesaid arms, shall take place within five days from my arrival in the town appointed for it,—I promise, with the aid of GOD and my lady, if not prevented by bodily infirmity, to deliver them promptly on foot, as soon as they shall have completed the enterprise, according to the manner specified, with such a number of strokes with the sword, dagger and battle-axe, as may be thought proper to fix upon.
‘Should it happen, after having agreed with a gentleman to perform these deeds of arms, as we are proceeding toward the judge he had fixed upon, that I should meet another gentleman willing to deliver me, who should name a judge nearer my direct road than the first, I would in that case perform my trial in arms with him whose judge was the nearest; and when I had acquitted myself to him, I would then return to accomplish my engagement with the first, unless prevented by any bodily infirmity. Such will be my conduct during the journey, and I shall hold myself acquitted to perform before each judge my deeds of arms; and no gentleman can enter the lists with me more than once,—and the staves of our arms shall be of equal lengths, which I will provide and distribute when required. All the blows must be given from the bottom of the plate-armour to the head: none others will be allowed as legal.
‘That all gentlemen who may incline to deliver me from my vow may know the road I propose to follow, I inform them, that under the will of God, I mean to travel through France to Bordeaux,—thence to the country of Foix, to the kingdoms of Navarre and Castille, to the shrine of my lord St James at Compostella. On my return, if it please God, I will pass through the kingdom of Portugal,—thence to Valencia, Arragon, Catalonia, and Avignon, and recross the kingdom of France, having it understood if I may be permitted to travel through all these countries in security, to perform my vow, excepting the kingdom of France and county of Hainault.
‘That this proposal may have the fullest assurance, I have put my seal to this letter, and signed it with my own hand, in the year of the incarnation of our Lord, the 1st day of June, 1402.’
The seneschal, in consequence of this challenge, went to Coucy, where he was received very graciously by the duke of Orleans; but no one appeared to enter the lists with him on the appointed day. In a few days, he set out on his pilgrimage to the shrine of St James, during which he performed his deeds of arms in seven places, during seven days, and behaved himself so gallantly that those princes who were appointed judges of the field were greatly satisfied with him.