Here begynneth the first volum of sir Iohan Froyssart of the cronycles of Englande, Fraunce, Spayne, Portyngale, Scotlande, Bretayne, Flau[n]ders: and other places adioynynge. Tra[n]slated out of frenche into our maternall englysshe tonge, by Iohan Bourchier knight lorde Berners: at the co[m]maundement of oure moost highe redouted souerayne lorde kyng Henry the. viii. kyng of Englande and of Fraunce, [and] highe defender of the christen faythe. [et]c.

¶ Howe the frenche men coulde nat passe by the bridge of Comynes / and how they passed without knowled∣ge of the flemynges. Cap. iiii. C .xiii. (Book 413)

AS it was thus ordey∣ned euery thynge was done and the next day / they of the vowarde dyslodged & went toward Comines / and they foūde the wayes redy made for y^e lord of Fransures and sir Joyse of Helwyn / had taken great laboure to make the wayes redy / & this was on a mon∣day / and whan the constable and marshals and they of the vowarde were come to the bridge of Comynes / there they were fayne to stoppe / for they foūde the bridge so broken that it was nat possyble to make it agayne / if any defēce were made to the contrarie. And the flemyng{is} were beyond the ryuer puyssaunt ynough. To lette them and to kepe the passage agaynst any that wolde scrimysshe or assaut them / for they were ••o than .ix. thousande. And there was Peter de Boyse capitayne / who made good semblant to defende the bridge. for he and his men were by the bridge on the causey / raynging on bothe sydes. Than the constable and the other lordes of Fraunce behelde the maner of the countrey. And ymagined well / that it was a thynge im∣possyble to passe that way / without the bridge were newe made. Thafie they caused some to ryde vp and downe by the ryuer syde a myle or two / to se if there were any passage / and they so dyde / and retourned agayne and shewed their maysters / that they coulde nat fynde no place / where as their horses coude take any lande on the other syde of the ryuer. Than the constable was sore dyspleased and sayde. We haue bene but yuell coūsayled to take this way. yet it had bene better to haue gone by saynt Omers / than to byde in this dāger. Orels to haue passed the ryuer of Lescaulte at Tourney / as the lorde of Coucy sayde. And so to haue gone the streyght way to And warpe / & to haue fought ther with our enemyes / sythe we must fight with thē and wyll. They be so proude / that they wolde haue bydden vs at theirsege. Than sir Loyes of sā∣xere sayd. I counsayle let vs lodge here for this daye / and cause our people to lodge as well as they can whan they come. And lette vs sende to Lyle by the ryuer / and gette some shyppes and nayles. And with them lette vs make a bridge to morowe agaynst y^e fayre ••aedowes / sithe we can do none otherwyse. Than sir Joys of Hal¦wyn sayd. Sir / we haue well aduysed / howe y^e there is a great let bytwene this and Lysle. sir / the ryuer is called Menyn. And by this ryuer the shyppes or barkes must passe / if they shulde come hyder. And sir / the flemynges haue bro∣ken y^e bridge / and haue put in bytwene the ioy∣stes great tymbre and stakes / that it is impossy¦ble for any vessell to passe by. I can nat tel than {quod} the constable what we shall do. it were good we toke the way to Ayre / and ther passe the ry∣uet of Lyse / sythe we can haue no passage here. In the meane season that the constable / and the marshals of Fraunce and of Burgoyne / were about Comynes in this abusyon / and wyst nat what to do / there were a certayne knightes and squiers enterprised valiantly to assay to passe this ryuer by some meanes / & to go fyght with the flemynge / and to wynne the towne and pas∣sage of Comynes / as ye shall here after.

THus as the vowarde was cōe fro Lyle to Comynes / the lorde of sait Pye and dyuers other knyghtes. Of Heynalt / of Flaunders / of Ar∣thoyse / and also of Fraunce / with∣out knowledge of the constable or marshalles. They were determyned togyder and sayd. We wyll go gette two or thre lytell botes / & launche them in to the ryuer of Lyse beneth Comynes / in some couerte place. And we wyll sette great stakes on bothe sydes of the ryuer to tye ropes therto / for the ryuer is nat very large. And by that meanes / we shall get ouer a great nombre of men in a shorte space. And than we may go and assayle our enemyes behynde them or they beware / and wyn the passage. And acordynge to this counsayle / the lorde of saynt Pye made to be brought out of Lysle / a barke and ropes with other necessaries. Also sir Herbert of bel∣perche / and sir Johan of Roy / who were com∣panyons toguyther in that voyage / broughte with theym another barke. Also sir Henry of Manny / sir Johan of Malestrayt / & sir John̄ Chaudronne bretons / brought another. The lorde of saynt Pye was the firste that entredde with his barke cordes / and stakes. And there he pytched a great planke and stake on the one syde / and tyed a corde therto. Than̄e thre var∣lettes passed ouer to the farther syde with the barke / and caryed the other ende of the Corde with them. And there they sette another great stake / and tyedde that ende of the Corde to the

stake. & that done / than the varlettes retourned with the barke to their maysters. and so it was that the constable of Fraunce and the two mar¦shals who were at the bridge fote of Comynes were anone enformed of the said besynes. than the cōstable sayd to sir Loys of Sāxere one of the marshals. sir go your way / & se if it be possi¦ble to passe the ryuer by y^• meanes / as ye haue herde deuysed. And if ye se that it be possyble / than fynde y^• meanes to get mo barkes. and so these sayde knyghtes prepared thē selfe redy to passe whan they sawe the barkes redy. & ther w^t ther came to them the sayd marshall of Fraūce with a great rout / & he behelde well the maner. Than the lorde of saynt Pye sayd to hym. sir / may it please you that we shall passe. it pleaseth me right well {quod} the marshall. Howbeit ye put yourselfe in a great aduenture / for if your ene∣myes at Comynes knowe of you / they may do you great domage. sir {quod} the lorde of saynt Py¦he that nothyng aduētureth nothynge getteth. In the name of god and saint Denys / we trust to passe / so y^• ar to morowe at night we trust to fight with our enemyes. than the lorde of saynt Pye set his penon in the barke and entred hym¦selfe first / and with hym to the nōbre if .ix. and a none they were laūched for the by the corde that was tyed on the other syde of the ryuer. & than they issued out and wēt in to a lytell wode there besyde / bycause they wolde nat be sene. & they on the rerewage drue agayne to thē the barke. Than entred therle of Cōuersant sir Dāghien and his baner with him / & also the lorde of Uer¦tayne his brother. and so .ix. of thē passed & no mo / and agayne the thirde tyme ther passed as many. And therwith there cāe two other bark{is} with sir Herbert of Belperch & sir John̄ of roy and with the bretons. & anone they were lāged in to the ryuer / and ordred as the other were. & so knigh••{is} passed. and ther was none that pas∣sed but good men of armes / & they passed with so good wyll / that it was great marueyle to be holde them. And there was suche prese to passe that and the marshall had nat bene there / they wolde haue ouer charged the barkes.

Tidynges came to the cōstable and to the lor¦des of Frāce beyng at Comynes / how their pe¦ple passed as ye haue herde. than the constable sayd to the seneshall of Reur. go I requyre you and se yonder passage / & whider our people do passe as it is sayd or nat. This knight was ne∣uer so ioyouse of nothyng that euer he herde. & so strake his horse with the spurres / & in his cō∣pany .xl. men of armes. and whan he cāe to the passage and sawe the maner therof / & how that ther were passed all redy / to the full nōbre of a C. and .l. Than he a lighted and sayd. howe he wolde passe in lykewise / the marshall of Frāce coude nat let hym. Tidynges came to the cōsta¦ble / howe that his cosyn the lorde of Rieux was passed ouer y^• ryuer. Than the cōstable a lytell began to muse & sayd. Cause the cros bowes to come forthe and scrimyssh with these flemyng{is} beyond the bridge to kepe thē busy / to thentent that they take no hede to our men that are pas∣syng the ryuer. for if they knewe it / they wolde ryn to thē and distroy their passage. ye / and sle all them that are passed / y^• whiche I had rather dye / than it shulde cōe to passe. Than the cros∣bowes and men a fote & gonners / shote ouer y^• brige in to the towne. And so ther began a sore strimysshe / & they made semblaunt to passe the bridge. And the flemynges who were well pa∣uessed / made thē redy to defende the passage. & thus they endured all that monday / & anone it was night / for the dayes were as than but short and styll ther passed men of armes by the sayd barkes. & as they were ouer / they drue togyder in a lytell groue ther besyde in couert. Nowe beholde all thynges cōsydred / whan parell and harde aduenture that they were in. For if they within Comynes had {per}ceyued them / they had bene distroyed / or the moost parte of them / and had lost bothe their barkes and ropes. but god dyde for them / to thentent to abate the pride of the flemynges.