Here begynneth the table of the rubryshys of the boke of the fayt of armes and of chyualrye whiche sayd boke is departyd in to foure partyes ...

¶Deuyseth after vegece of vij maneres of arrengyng of an oost and of fyghtyng ¶Capitulo / xxv^o· (Book 25)

Yet after vegece in hys thirde boke in the eyght and twen¦ti chapytre there ben / vij / maneres of wayes how an oost shal fight in a felde and vij maneres of ordynaunces of bataylles / the whiche wayes and manere how be it he gy¦ueth hem derkly ynoughe for to be vndrestanden / but onely of suche that ben excersyced in thoffyce & maystrye of armes they ben declared here as foloweth / The first manere of rengynge of folke in a felde is that whiche is to be made wyth a longe fore fronte as men doo nowe / but this mane¦re of way as it is said is not ryght gode / by cause that the space of the grownde muste be longe and that the oost be al stratched in lengthe / and hit happeth not alwayes that the place of the felde is founde propyce nor mete so for to doo / ¶And when there ben dyches or dales or som euyll pathes the bataylle is lyghtly broken by the same / And wyth this thaduersaryes yf they be eny grete nombre of folke they shall goo to the ryght syde or to the left syde and so they shal enuyrone and close the bataylle a boute wherby many a grete parell may be fall / as thauctour sheweth that saythe that if cas be that thou haue more foison of peple than thin enemye hath / take of the best of thy folke & enuyrone thyn

aduersaryes yf thou may wythin the bosom of thyn ooste / Te secunde manere is beste for yf thou ordeyne by the same a fewe of thy folke mooste valyaunte and wel assayed in som place covenable thou shalt mowe haue lyghtly the vic∣torye / thoughe thyn enemye hath more peple / of the whyche manere the waye of fyghtynge / is suche / that whan the ba∣taylles comen for to assemble togider / thou shalt chaunge thenne thy lyfte wynge from hyr place in to another to then¦de that thou mayste see ferre vnto the ryght cornere of thyn enemye / and thy ryght wynge thou shalt Ioyne wyth the lefte wynge of thyn aduesaryes / and there by the best men of thyn ost thou shalt begynne the bataylle sharply and stronge / And by grete strengthe bothe an horsbake and on fote / the sayd lyfte wynge of thyn enemyes shal be assayl∣led of thy men that shal goo a boute shouynge and rennyng vpon tyl that they comme at the backe of thyn enemyes / ¶And yf thou mayst ones departe a sounder thyn ene∣myes that ben so comyng vpon thy folke wythout doubte thou shalt obteyne the vyctorye / ¶And that one parte of thyn ost that thou shalt haue withdrawen from the other shal be sure / ¶Thys manyere of bataylle is ordeyned after the lykenes of thys lettre / A / And yf thyn enemyes ordeyne theyre bataylle after thys manere of waye and ma∣ke yssue fyrst oute / then shalt thou putte thy men in a lon∣ge rowe that shal marche forthe all of a fronte wyth thy wynges all in a gode ordynaunce atte the lyfte corner of thyne oost and by thys manere of waye thou shalt wyth∣stande thyn ennemyes / ¶The thyrde maniere is lyke vnto the seconde and noo dyfference is there betwene / But that thou muste sette fyrst wyth the lefte corner of thy bataylle vpon the Ryght corner of thyn ennemyes

¶ And yf thy lefte wynge is bettre than thy ryght wynge / than shalt thou putte with hit som ryght strong and best fyghting men bothe on horsbake and on fote and see that thou first of all whan it commeth to assemble togider hand to hande / that thy lyfte / wynge be Ioyned and sette vpon the ryght wynge of thin enemyes / and asmuche as thou caust / putte from the a backe y^e ryght hande of thyn aduersaryes / and make haste for to enuyrone theym / And that other parte of thyn oost whyche thou knowest not so stronge / dysseuere theym asmuche as thou caust from that other contrary wynge / so that sperys nor dartes may not lyght vpon theym / And thou muste take kepe that thyn ene¦myes make not a plowmpe of theyre folke to entre and bre¦ke thy bataylle in trauers / In thys manere thenne men fyghten profytably / and in specyall yf the fall happeth that the lefte corner of thyn enemye be of lesse strengthe than is the thyne / The fourth manere of fightyng in a felde is su¦che whan thou shalt haue ordeyned thy bataylles with fou∣re or fyue hondred fyghtyng men / or euer thou make eny approche vpon thin enemies thou shalt so sodaynly doo mo∣eue thin oost secretly with bothe thy wynges in a gode ordy¦naunce / that from bothe the corners of thyn enemyes as nought purueyed shal be constrayned for to tourne theyre backis and flee awaie / and yf swyftly thou caust do so thou shalt haue victorye / But this maniere / al be it so that thou haue men ryght stronge and wel excersiced in armes / I hol∣de hit peryllouse / For yf the half of thy bataylle is constray¦ned to desseuere and departe thyn oost in two partyes / and that thyn enemyes be not ouercome at the first comynge on they shal haue occasion to assaylle thy men of armes that thus ben deuyded / ¶The fyfthe manere of fyghtyng is

lyke vnto the fourth but so moche more it is / that y^e archers and they that ben lyghtly armed shalbe ordeyned by fore the fyrst bataylle / to thende that they be not broken out of ordy¦naunce / And shal also assaylle & enuaysshe wyth the ryght cornere of hys bataylle / the lefte cornere of hys enemye / and wyth the lyfte the ryght / And yf thou mayst do so / thou shal soone ouercome theym / But the myddell bataylle is not in peryll by cause it is deffēded by them that ben lyghtly armed and by the archers / The sixth manere of fyghtynge is right gode and almost lyke vnto the seconde / And with the same are wont the good fyghters to helpe semself in hope of vycto¦rye how wel that they be but a fewe folke for to ordeyne wel theyre bataylles / The bataylle of the enemyes thenne al ren¦ged in a rowe / thou shalt Ioyne thy ryght cornere to theyre lyfte / & there thou shalt begynne the bataylle wyth the best men that thou hast on horsbacke and a fote / And that other parte of the ost shal folowe of ferre the bataylle of thyn ene¦mye / the whyche parte shal be spred all streyght / and yf thou canst come to the lyfte wynge of thyn enemyes they muste nedes tourne theyre backys / and thaduersary may not be so¦coured of hys ryght wynge nor wyth hys myddle batayll he can not helpe the other / For the taylle of the ooste is exce∣ded vnto the lyknes of the moost long lettre / L / & fro ferre hyt departeth from hys enemye /