IN CONSEQUENCE OF THE CAPTURE OF FOUGERES, THE ALLIES OF THE DUKE OF BRITTANY GAIN THE TOWN AND CASTLE OF PONT DE L'ARCHE FROM THE ENGLISH.—GERBEROY IS AFTERWARDS TAKEN.
ON the 16th day of May, in this year, while the commissioners from the king of France and the duke of Somerset were assembled, according to appointment, in the town of Louviers, some of the friends and allies of the duke of Brittany found means to gain the town and castle of Pont de l'Arche, on the river Seine, four leagues distant from Rouen.
This capture was owing to a travelling merchant from Louviers observing, in his frequent crossing of Pont de l'Arche, that it was but slightly guarded, and giving information thereof to the before mentioned friends of the duke of Brittany. He offered to take the place, if they would give him a sufficiency of men at arms,—and having explained his plans, which seemed feasible, they fixed on a day to meet him at a tavern in the suburbs of that town.
On the day appointed, several of those who had been ordered on this expedition, came to the said tavern, one after another, to avoid suspicion; two of whom were dressed as carpenters, each with his hatchet swung round his neck. Shortly after, the carrier arrived, with his cart laden with provisions. About midnight, they seized the tavern-keeper and his servants, and shut them up in a room, to prevent them from making any discovery, and then told their intentions, with which the master of the house seemed very well pleased, for he said he had been lately beaten by some of the garrison.
During the night, the lord de Brésé came thither with some men on foot, whom he placed in ambush near to the gate of St Ouen: he was followed by the bailiff of Evreux with four or five hundred horse, whom he posted in the wood on the side of Louviers.
When these measures had been taken, Jacques de Clermont and the carrier approached the drawbridge with his cart, and entreated the porter to let him pass, as he was in haste to get to Rouen, and return that night to Louviers, offering him at the same time, a present for so doing. The two pretended carpenters were with him, and the carrier pledged himself for them. The porter, through avarice, called to him another Englishman, and let down the bridge. When the carrier had his cart on the first bridge, he took out of his purse two bretons and a placque[148], to pay the Englishmen: but he let fall one breton to the ground, which the porter stooping to pick up, the carrier drew a dagger and stabbed him dead. In like manner, the two carpenters slew his companion on the second bridge.
On a signal that this was done, the ambuscade of horse and foot sallied forth, and, passing the bridges, entered the town, shouting, 'St Yves for Brittany! All the English were asleep when this happened, and were made prisoners, to the amount of a hundred or six score; among whom was the lord Falconbridge, an english knight, who had only arrived the preceding day, and his ransom was worth twenty thousand crowns. He was carried to Louviers for greater safety,—and the conquerors remained in the place for its guard, until other arrangements should be made.
When the English heard of this capture, they were much troubled and enraged. On its being told to king Charles, as he was desirous of the welfare of his nephew the duke of Brittany, he consented, after many conferences at Louviers, that mutual restitutions should take place, namely, that Fougeres should be given back to the duke of Brittany, with sixteen hundred thousand crowns, according to the estimate of damages done, and Pont de l'Arche yielded up to the English, together with the lord Falconbridge, who had been there made prisoner.
The English, however, peremptorily refused to agree to such terms, which was a most unreasonable conduct: and the king's commissioners employed apostolical and imperial notaries to draw up the offer they had made, and the english commissioners' refusal of it, that God and all the world might see how handsomely the king had acted, and that if a war should ensue, which God forbid! the blame could not fall on him. The english commissioners departed, on their return to the duke of Somerset, to relate what had been the result of these conferences.
The king of France, to proceed with greater security, sent the count de Dunois, and others, with ample powers to his nephew of Brittany, whom he met at Rennes, where he had assembled the greater part of his connexions, prelates, barons and knights of the duchy. A treaty was concluded, by which the duke promised to serve the king in person against the English, by sea and land, and never to make peace, or any alliance with them, but with the approbation of the king; in confirmation of which, he gave letters patent, signed with the hands and seals of himself and the barons of the duchy.
The said relatives and barons also promised, by putting their hands within the hands of the count de Dunois, punctually to maintain all the articles contained in the above-mentioned letters patent; and the count de Dunois engaged that the king should ratify the said treaty, which he afterwards did by letters to the duke. In these he promised to make the quarrel his own, and not to conclude any treaty with the enemy without comprehending him and his duchy, nor until the English should have restored what they had taken from him. In case the English should not, before the end of the ensuing month of July, surrender to the duke the town and castle of Fougeres, with an adequate sum for the plunder, the king would openly declare war against them.
At this time, the town of Gerberoy[149], in the Beauvoisis, was taken by scalado, by the lord de Mouy, governor of that country; and all the English within it, to the number of thirty, were put to the sword. Their captain was John Harper, who that day had gone to Gournay[150]. Thus was the place reduced under the obedience of the king of France.
A short time after this, the town of Conches[151] was won by Robert de Flocques, called Flocquet, bailiff of Evreux. About the same period, a gascon gentleman called Verdun, by the advice and consent of the duke of Brittany, took by storm the towns of Coignac[152] and St Maigrin[153], under the command of an esquire, called Mondoch de Lansac, for the king of England. He himself was made prisoner, as he was coming from Bordeaux to Coignac,—for he imagined that it was still under his command as before. In both towns many prisoners were taken.
When the English heard of these towns being lost, the archbishop of Bordeaux and the magistrates sent a pursuivant at arms to the king of France at Chinon, to request that Coignac and St Maigrin might be restored, and that he would send them passports, pretending that they would come to him; but nothing was done, for reasons known to the king and his council. In like manner, the duke of Somerset and lord Talbot sent to the king at Chinon, to require that the towns of Pont de l'Arche, Conches, Coignac and St Maigrin should be restored; to which the king answered, that if they would restore to his nephew of Brittany his town of Fougeres, and the effects taken away from thence, he would exert his endeavours that the duke of Brittany should give back the places that had been won by him, or by those who had taken them on his advice.
The english ambassadors said that they had no powers to interfere in the surrender of Fougeres, and therefore returned to the duke of Somerset at Rouen without effecting any thing.
Soon afterwards, another conference was holden at the abbey of Bonport[154], when the commissioners from France made offer to those on the part of England, that if they would, on a day to be appointed, surrender, for the duke of Brittany, the town and castle of Fougeres into the hands of the king of France, and pay the sum of sixteen hundred thousand crowns, the estimated value of the damages, all places that had been taken from the English should be restored, and even the lord Falconbridge, who had been made prisoner at Pont de l'Arche, and that all hostilities should cease on both sides. This the English refused; and the french commissioners returned to their king as before.
King Charles, having heard the report of all that had passed, and examined the instruments drawn up by the apostolical notaries, stating the damages the English had done to his relative the duke of Brittany: that they had very frequently infringed the truce, without making any reparations of restitution of places or effects, and their peremptory refusal of all the offers he had made them for the preservation of peace and the satisfaction of his conscience; resolved, after mature deliberation, that having done his duty most loyally, and the English obstinately refusing all his offers for peace, he was fully justified in taking every proper step for the defence of his country and of his allies, as well as for the recovery of such places as had been conquered from him or from his predecessors, the possession of which the English had so long usurped. He was advised to declare war against them, which would be just in the eyes of God, of reason, and of his conscience, otherwise he would not do his duty. It was concluded, that he should send ambassadors to the duke of Brittany, to concert measures accordingly.
END OF VOL. VIII.