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

¶Howe the Frenche men founde a wylde countrey of Scotlande / and were yuell content with thadmyrall and howe he pacifyed thē with fayre wordes: And howe Fraunces Atre∣man and his company had nere han∣de taken Ardenbourcke in Flaūders. Cap. iii. (Book 3)

THus the scottes sayde in Scotlande / at the comyn¦ge of the frenchmen thyder / for they dyde sette nothynge by them / but hated them in their courage and diframed theym in their language / as moche as they myght / lyke rude people with∣out hououre as they be. All thynges consyde∣red / It was to great an armye of so many no∣ble men to come in to Scotlande / and knewe no reason why / a twentie or thrittie knyghtes of Fraunce / had been better than all that nom∣bre of fyue hūdred or a thousande / and the cau∣se why is this.

¶In Scotlande ye shall fynde no man light / lye of honoure nor gentylnesse: They be lyke wylde and sauage people: They wyll be with no man acquaynted / and are greatly enuyous with the honoure or profyte of any other man / and they dought euer to lese that they haue / for it is a poore countre. And whan the Englysshe men maketh any roode or voyage in to the coū∣trey / as they haue done often before this tyme / If they thynke to lyue / they muste cause their prouysion and vitayle to folowe theym at their backe / for they shall fynde nothyng in that coū∣trey but with moche payne. Nor they shall fyn¦de none yron to showe their horses / nor leddar to make harnesse / sadelles / or bridelles: For all suche thynges cometh to them redy made oute of Flaunders. And whan that prouisyon fay∣leth / there is none to gette in the countrey.

Whan the barownes and knightes of Fraunce who were wonte to fynde fayre hostryes / hal∣les hanged / and goodly castelles and softe bed¦des to reste in: Sawe them selfe in that neces∣site: they began to smyle / and said to the admy¦rall. Sir / What pleasure hath brought vs hy∣der? We neuer knewe what pouertie ment tyll nowe? We fynde nowe / the olde sayeng{is} of our fathers and mothers true: Whan̄e they wolde saye. Go your waye: and ye lyue long / ye shall fynde harde and poore beddes / whiche nowe we fynde. Therfore / lette vs go oure voyage that we be come for. Lette vs ryde in to Englā¦de: The longe taryenge here in Scotlande / is to vs / nother honourable nor profytable. The admyrall apeased them as well as he myght / & sayde. Sirs / it behoueth vs to suffre a lytell / and to speke fayre / sithe we be in this daunger. We haue a great longe waye yet to passe / and by Englande we can nat retourne: Therfore lette vs take in gree that we fynde / We can nat be alwayes at Parys or Dygeon / at Beautie or at Chalous. It behoueth them that wyll ly∣ue in this worlde / thynkynge to haue honoure / to suffre somtyme as well pouertie as welth.

THus sir Iohan of Vien admyrall of Fraunce / apeased to his company¦ons / with these wordes and suche other / whiche I can nat all reherce They acquaynted them as mothe as they might with the barownes of Scotlan¦de / but they were visyted by them but very ly∣tell: For as I haue sayde before / there is in thē lytell honour / & of all people yuell to be aquayn¦ted withall. The moost company that the fren¦che men had was the erle Duglas and the erle Morette. These two lordes dyde theym more solace / than all the resydue of Scotlande. yet there was another thyng that was right harde to the frenchmen / For whan they were in Scot¦lande and wolde ryde they foūde horses to dere for that that was nat worthe tenne florens they coude nat bye vnder threscore or a hūdred / and yet with moche payne to gette any for money / and yet whan they had any horses / than hadde they nother harnesse / sadell / nor bridell / with∣out they had brought it with them out of Flaū¦ders. In this trouble and daunger were the

frenchemen: yea and moreouer / Whan̄e their varlettes went forthe a forragynge / and hadde charged their horses with suche as they coulde gette / In their retouruynge home / the scottes them selfe laye in wayte for theym / and all that they had taken from them / and they well beten and some slayne: so that there was none that durste go a forragynge for feare to be slayne. For in a moneth the frenche men loste of their varlettes mo than a hundred: For if they went forthe thre or foure toguyder / they neuer retur¦ned agayne. Thus the frenche men were han∣deled: And besyde that / the kynge of Scottes was desyred to comeforthe / and so were the o∣ther lordes / knightes / and squyers of the real∣me. But they aunswered and sayd: Howe they wolde make no warre in to Englande / as at that tyme. And that they sayd / to thentent that the Frenche men shulde paye well for their co∣myng. For or the kyng wolde come out of the wylde scottysshe to Edenboroughe / he demaū∣ded to haue a great somme of money / for hym and for his people: And the admyrall of Fraū∣ce was sayne to promyse and to seale / that the kynge shulde haue a certayne somme of money or he and his company auoyded the Realme: It he had nat done thus / he shulde haue hadde none ayde of the scottes: He was fayne to ma∣ke that marchaundise or elles a worse. And yet whan he had made the best accorde and a••oynt¦ment that he coude make with theym / he hadde by them but lytell profyte nor helpe / as ye shall here further in the hystorie.

¶But nowe a lytell I wyll retourne and tell of the aduentures of Flaunders and of the ma∣ryage of the yonge frenche kyng / and howe Ar¦denbourcke hadde nere been taken by stelthe / where as the Vycont of Meaulx and sir Iohn̄ of Ieumont laye in garyson.

AFter the disconfyture that sir Ry∣flarte of Flaunders had made in the lande of the foure craftes with out Gaunt / than he came to Ardē∣bourcke: And thyder was sente in garyson sir Robert of Bethune vycoūt of Me¦aulx / and there he foūde sir Iohan of Iumont and his company: And thyder was sente a .xl. speares knightes and squiers / suche as desyred to seke aduentures. Whan̄e the Vycount was come thider / he entended to fortify and repayre the towne in all poyntes. Fraunces Atreman and they of Gaunte / subtelly ymagyned night and day / howe they might anoye and do doma¦ge to their enemyes / as they shewed rightwell to their neighbours / as And warp / Teremōde Ardenbourcke / Bruges / Danne•• and Scluse. They euer ymagined / howe to wynne any of them by crafte: And to say the trouth / they had suche cōpany as were mete to execute suche de∣des. So it fortuned / about the ende of Maye Fraūces Atreman and a seuyn thousande with hym departed fro Gaunt / to thentent to wynne Ardenbourke by stelth / and all the knight{is} and squyers therin: And specially they desyred to haue the capitayne sir Iohan Iumont / bycau∣se he had done them many great domages / as in takyng and sleyng / and puttyng out of their cyen / and cuttyng of handes / fete / and eares of their men. So thus on a Wednisdaye aboute the dawnynge of they day / they came to Ardē∣bourcke / and had with them scalynge leddars redy. The Vycounte of Meaulx / sir Iohan Iu¦mount / sir Ryflarte of Flaunders / the lorde of Damert / sir Tercelette of Montigny / and sir Parducas of Pount saint Marke / the lorde of Langueuall and sir Iohan his sonne / sir Hewe Desnell / the lorde de Lalayne / sir Reynolde of Lōmye / and dyuers other lay slepyng in their beddes / on trust of the watche. Nowe beholde what aduēture they were in. The watche that had watched all nyght / was as than departed / and their reliefe nat come as than. The same season Fraunces Atreman & the gaūtoise with their ladders were redy come in to the dikes / & so cāe to the walles & dressed vp their ladders / and began to mount. The same season by aduēture / there was walkynge within the wall / the lorde of saynt Albyne / and with hym a squyer of Picardy named Enguerant zēdequyn a pi∣carde with a morespike. I thynke they had ben of the watche the same night / & was nat as than departed / To say the trouthe and they had nat ben / Ardenbourcke had been taken / and all the knightes in their beddes. ∴ ∴