Here begynneth the thirde and fourthe boke of sir Iohn̄ Froissart of the cronycles of Englande, Fraunce, Spaygne, Portyngale, Scotlande, Bretayne, Flaunders, and other places adioynyng, translated out of Frenche in to englysshe by Iohan Bourchier knyght lorde Berners, deputie generall of ye kynges towne of Calais and marchesse of the same, at the co[m]maundement of our most highe redouted souerayne lorde kyng Henry the eyght, kynge of Englande and of Fraüce [sic] [and] highe defender of the Christen faithe. [et]c

¶Of the great army and viage that the Frenche kynge purposed to ma∣ke in to Bretayne agaynst the duke / bycause he susteyned sir Peter of cra¦on: and howe in that viage the kyn∣ge fell sicke / wherby the viage brake Cap. C.lxxxvii. (Book 187)

TIdynges came to the Frenche kynge as he laye at Parys / that the duke of Bretayne hadde receyued sir Peter of Craon. than the kyng was counsayled by suche as were of his pri¦uye Counsayle / that he shulde incontynent sende in to Bretaygne to the duke / cōmaun∣dynge hym on his faythe and homage / that he ought to the crowne of Fraunce / to take the traytour sir Peter of Craon and to sende hym to Parys. These letters were written / sealed and delyuered to a squiet / and he rode so long that he came in to Bretayne / & foūde the duke at his castell of Ermyne / and there delyuered his letters. The duke toke & reed them. Than he said to the messanger that he wolde write agayne to the kyng / and so dyd in excusyng of hymselfe: Sayeng that as of sir Peter of Craon he knewe nothynge / nor where he was / nor wolde nat knowe / nor it aparteyned nat to hym to knowe: Nor as for the hatered nor warre that was bytwene sir Olyuer of Clysson and sir Peter of craon he toke no regarde therto / for it touched him nothynge. And therfore in those maters / he prayed the kyng to holde hym excused. This letter was sealed & delyuered to the kynges messanger / & so he retourned agayne to Pa∣rys / and there foūde the kyng & his coūsayle who were sore desyrous to here tidinges out of Bretaygne. Than the messanger delyue∣red his letters to the kynge who toke & reed them. Than the kynge sayd to his brother & to his counsayle. This excusacion of the du¦kes is nat suffycient. It semeth well the du∣ke of Bretayne hath caused all this busynes This dispyre and outrage is so great / that it ought nat to be suffred / for it toucheth gret¦lye myne honoure. The same season the du∣ke of Berrey was at Parys / and often ty∣mes the kynge wolde speke to hym of this trespasse / and the duke sayd. Sir / surely he hath done a great outrage: if he myght be founde / it were reasone he made amendes. Fayre vncle quod the kynge / he is in Bre∣taygne with the duke. We wyll go and seke hym there / and ye shall go with vs. The du¦ke dissymuled the mater and sayd. Sir / as it shall please you / but ye must haue also my brother of Burgoyne with you. We wyll ha¦ue hym with vs quod the kyng / for without hym we wyll make no voyage. We wyll go in to Bretayne with suche an armye / able to resyst all our ennemyes. We maye se nowe openly / that this duke loueth nor setteth by vs but lytell: He is proude and presumptu∣ous / and we shall entende to nothynge / tyll we haue brought hym to reasone. Thus the Frenche kyng deuised with the duke of Ber∣rey / and manysshed greatly the duke of Bre∣tayne and his assysters. The duke of Berrey acorded to all his sayeng / but he dissymuled / for he thought the contrary.

THe Frenche kyng hadde great affe∣ction to be reuenged / of the dispyte that was done to his cōstable / wher¦fore he prepared hym selfe to go in to Bre∣tayne / and fyrst to go in to Aniou to distroye and beate downe sir Peter of Craons castel les / for all that the duke of Bretayne sayd he had bought them. yet the kyng and his coun¦sayle sayd it was no poynt of the dukes heri¦tage but that the duke sayde so to excuse and to susteyne sir Peter of Craon / wherfore per¦sonally he was in the kynges indignacyon. yet in the same season a treatie of maryage was had bytwene the duke of Bretaygnes son̄e and the kynges doughter.

IN the meane season whyle this voy¦age was thus ordred / & great brute therof spoken throughe all Frauce. There retourned to Paris the bysshoppe of Noyon and the lorde de la Ryuer fro Foize and Bierne / and there shewed the kyng and his counsayle howe they had spedde. They were well herde / but the voyage in to Bre∣tayne busyed so the kyng and his counsayle / that they had no leysar to entēde to any other mater. And the kynge wolde gladly that the constable had ben hole / that he might be able to ryde. and or the kyng went fro Parys / he cōmaunded to be beaten downe sir Peter of Craōs house / that stode in the churche yarde of saynt Iohans / and than the kynge dyde gyue the groūde to make a churche yarde of to burye in deed bodyes. The Frenche kyng made his prouisyon in the waye to Aniou / to Mayne / to Bretayne / and in to Thourayne on the ryuer of Loyre / to the entent to go in to Bretayne / none durst speke the contrary.

REnome was throughout all Paris and (it was well knowen) that sir Olyuer of Clisson cōstable of Fraū¦ce / whan he laye thus sicke of his hurt{is} made his testament / to the entente that his heyres shulde knowe y^e trouthe of euery thyng that he had / and where it was. His heyres were two doughters / the one was maryed to Io∣han of Bretayne erle of Ponthieur. It was he that sir Olyuer had quytte out of prisone in Englāde / and payde for hym sixscore thou sande frankes to the duke of Irelande / as it hath ben shewed here before in this hystorie. And his seconde doughter was or shulde be vicoūtes of Rohan by reason of her husbāde The somme of the testament mounted to the sōme of seuyntene hundred thousande fran∣kes besyde his heritage. Euery man y^t herde therof had great marueyle / howe he shulde gather toguider / suche richesse / and specially the dukes of Berrey and Burgoyne / & their counsayls / had great marueyle therof / and spake largely & sayd. What the deuyll howe maye it be that the constable hath gadered to guider so many floreyns / and suche mouable goodes? the kyng hym selfe hath nat so mo∣che. It maye well be beleued and knowen / that he hath nat won all this by no iust mea¦nes. Thus the mater passed / but suche as lo∣ued hym nat thought neuerthelesse. Thus all suche as the kynge had written vnto pre∣pared them selfe to go with hym in to Bre∣taygne. This voiage pleased nothynge the duke of Burgoyn / he sayd this was a warre without reason / and that the conclusion ther of coulde take no good ende / nor the realme of Fraunce / nor the duchy of Bretayne / nor the lordes / knightes and squyers / in thē had nothynge to do with the warre bytwene sir Olyuer of Clysson and sir Peter of Craon. What nede they quod he to take payne or tra¦ueyle to make warre in their quarelles? We shulde rather suffre them and their owne mē to greue and make warre eche vpon other. The duke of Berrey was of the same opiny∣on / but they coude nat be herde nor beleued / for the kyng was coūsayled contrary to their opinyons / by suche as the kyng loued better than them. These dukes coude nat tell howe to breke that enterprice / and whan they sawe none other remedy / they obeyed / But that was slouthfully / howe be it by the promo∣cyon of the duke of Burgoyne / the erle of Ostrenaunt was written vnto by the kynge to go with hym in this iourney with thre hū¦dred speares. The erle who loued dedes of armes prouyded hym to go with the kynge / and whan̄e he was redy / and had assembled toguyder his company to his great cost and charge. Than he was countermaun∣ded agayne / and that in no wyse he shulde styrre. ∵