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 kynge of Portyngale with his puissan̄ce assembled with the duke of Lancastre and his puys∣saunce / & howe they coude nat passe the ryuer of Derne / & howe a squyer of Castyle shewed thē the passage. Cap. C.ii. (Book 102)

IT is reason sythe the mater so requyreth / that I retourne agayne to y^e duke of Lācastres iourney / and howe he {per}ceyuered al this season in Galyce / I shall begyn there as I lefte / for I haue great desyre to make an ende of that storie. Whan the duke of Lancastre had won

and conquered the towne and castell of Dau¦ranche in Galyce / and brought it vnder his obeysaunce / and refresshed hym there foure dayes / for there he founde well wherwith. Than the fyfthe day he departed / and sayde he wolde go to the castell of Noy / and so he dyde / and lay four dayes in a fayre medowe alonge a ryuer syde. But the grounde was dried vp by reason of the heate of the sonne / and the water corrupted / so that their horses wolde nat drinke therof / and suche as dyde / dyed. Thanne it was ordayned to dislodge thens / and to tourne agayne to Auranch / for sir Richarde Burle and sir Thomas Mor∣ryaulx marshalles of the hoost / sayd it was nat possyble to get the strong rastell of Noy but by longe siege / by great wysedome and dispence / and moche artillary. And also ty∣dinges came to the duke of Lancastre / that the kynge of Portugale approched with all his hoost / to the nombre of a thousande spea¦res / and tenne thousande able men. So that the two hoostes togyder were lykely to do a great dede / for the duke of Lancastre hadde a fyftene hundred speares knightes and squi¦ers / and a sixe thousande archers. These ty∣dinges reioysed greatly the duke of Lanca∣stre / and so dislodged fro Noy and wente a∣gayne to Auranche in Galyce / and the duke sente for the duchesse his wyfe / and the other ladyes and damoselles: for the duke sayd he wolde abyde there for the kynge of Portu∣gale / and so he dyde.

yE shall knowe / that whan kyng Io¦han of Portugale and his marshal¦les had take the towne of Feroull{is} they rode and aproched Auranch to come to the duke of Lācastre. And in their way they founde the towne of Padrone / whiche rebel∣led against thē / but at their first comyng they yelded them to the kynges obeysaunce. The kynge taryed there and in the marches there about a fyftene dayes / and wasted greatlye the countrey of vitayls / & yet they had great plentie comyng dayly fro Portugale. Thus these two great hoostes were in Galyce / and greatly impouerysshed the countre / and the dayes waxed so hote / y^t no man coude styrre after nyne of the clocke / without he wolde be brent with the sonne. The duke of Lācastre and the duchesse were at Aurache / and their men abrode in the countrey in great pouerie for lacke of vitayls / for thē selfe and for their horses. Nothynge that was good or swete coulde growe out of the grounde / it was so drie / and brent with the sōne / and that grewe was lytell worthe / for the season was so hote that all was brent. And the Englysshe men / if they wolde haue any thynge for them selfs or▪ for their horses / it behoued them or their seruauntes to go a forragyng / a .xii. sixtene / or twentie myles of / which was great payne and daunger. And the Englysshmen founde the wynes there so stronge / hoote / and bryn∣ning that it corrupted their heedes and dried their bowelles / and brente their lightes and lyuers / & they had no remedy / for they coude fynde but lytell good waters to temper their wynes nor to refresshe them / whiche was cō¦trary to their natures. For Englysshe men in their owne coūtreis are swetely norisshed and there they were brēt both within & with out / they endured great pouertie. The great lordes wanted of that they were accustomed vnto in their owne countreis.

wHan the knyghtes and squyers and other of Englande / sawe the daun∣ger and myschefe that they were in / and were likely to be / what for lacke of vy∣tayle and heate of the sonne / whiche dayly en¦creased. Than they began to murmure and to saye in the host in dyuers places. We feare our iourney wyll come to a smal effect & ende We lye to long in one place. that is true sayd other. There is two thynges greatly contra¦rye for vs. We leade in our company women and wyues who desyreth nothyng but rest / & for one dayes iourney by their wylles / they wolde reste fyftene. This distroyeth vs and wyll do / for as soone as we came to Coulon∣gne / if we had gone forwarde we had spedde well / and brought the countre to good obey∣saunce / for none wolde haue ben agaynst vs. But the longe taryeng hath enforced our en∣nemyes / for nowe they haue prouyded them of men of warre out of Fraunce / And by thē their townes / cyties / and passages be kepte and closed agaynst vs. Thus they disconfy∣ted vs withoute batayle: They nede nat to fyght with vs / for the realme of Spayne is nat so pleasaunt a lande to traueyle in / as is Fraunce or Englande / wherin are good vil∣lages /

fayre coūtreis and swete ryuers / faire medowes and attemperate ayre for menne of warre / and here is all the contrarye. What ment oure lorde the duke of Lancastre (if he thought to wynne this countrey) to leade in his company women and chyldren? This is a great let and without reason / for it is kno∣wen in all Spaygne / and els where / that he and his bretherne are the true enherytours of the countrey / at leest their wyfes dough∣ters to kyng Don Peter. As for doyng of a∣ny conquest or tournyng of any townes / the women do lytell therin.

THus as I haue shewed you the peo∣ple langled in the duke of Lancasters hoost / one to another. Than tidynges came to the duke that the kyng of Portugale apro¦ched nere wherof he was ioyfull. And whan the kynge was within two leages / the duke with his knyghtes mounted on their horses and rode to mete hym / and there they mette a¦miably and all their companyes. The kyn∣ges hole hoost was nat there but taryed be∣hynde / in the guydyng of sixe great lordes of Portugale / as Ponnase of Congne / Vase Martyn de merlo / Posdiche de asne degouse Salnase de Merlo / sir Anlne Perrier mar∣shall / and Iohan Radighes Desar / and dy∣uers other / and the kyng had with him a thre hundred speares. So at Aurāche the kynge and the duke were togyder. a fyue dayes and toke counsayle toguyder. The fynall conclu∣syon was / that they shulde ryde togyder and enter in to the countrey of Campe and to go to the towne of Arpent / where sir Olyuer of Clesquyne constable of Spaygne was / but they wyst nat how to passe y^e ryuer of Derne whiche was fell and orgulous at certayne ty¦mes / & specially rather in somer than in wyn¦ter / for whan the snowe and froste melteth on the moūtayns by reason of the sonne / than is the ryuer moost depest & most dangerous to passe / for in wynter it is frosyn / & than the ry∣uers are but base and lowe. yet for all y^t they concluded to ryde in to the coūtre of Campe / trustyng at some place to fynde some passage This conclusyon was publysshed throughe all their hoostes / wherof euery man was ioy¦full / for they had lyen along space sore oppres¦sed and in great daunger at Auranche & ther about / and many were sore diseased.

Thus the kyng of Portugale and y^t duke of Lācastre departed fro Auranche and rode toguyder / but their hostes were seperated in to two partes / bycause none of them vnder∣stode other / nor had no maner of aqueyntāce toguyder: And also to eschewe riottes or de∣bates that myght haue fallen bytwene them / for portugales are hote & hastye / and in lyke∣wise Englysshmen be dispytefull and fierse. Thus they were apoynted by the man hals of bothe hostes to lodge and to forrage in di∣uers partes / and nat toguyder. Thus they rode forthe and were of chat. puyssaunce able to fyght for a iourney with kynge Iohan of Castell / and all his adhenrentes. So longe they iourneyed that they came to they ryuer of Derne / whiche was nat easy to passe / for it was depe and with highe bankes / and full of great broken stones / so that but at certayne bridges whiche were broken / or elles so well kepte / y^t it was in maner impossyble to passe they might nat gette ouer. So these two ho∣stes had great ymaginaciōs how they might passe. Than so it fell that sir Iohn̄ Holande who was constable of the Englysshe hoost / and the marshalles / sir Richarde Butle and sir Thomas Moreaulx / and their forragers as they rode before / they encountred a squier of Castell / called Donnage Bangher. He knewe well all the passages of the countrey / and he knewe where there was one passage / that bothe horsmen and fote men might ease∣lye passe the riuer / & he came ouer at the same passage / and was taken and brought to the sayd lordes / of whom they were ryght glad. And there he was so streitly examyned / & also by the wordes of the constable / who sayde to hym / howe he wolde quyte his raūsome and gyue hym a good rewarde if he wolde shewe them where they myght passe surely the ry∣uer / for they sayde they had herde howe there was one sure passage ouer the ryuer. The squyer who toke but lyght aduysement / and was couetous of the constables offre / & was gladde to be delyuered out of their handes / sayd. Sirs / I knowe well the passage / and I shall shewe it you and shalbe your guyde where as ye and all youre menne maye passe without any daunger.

Of this the constable and marshalles had great ioye & so rode forthe toguyder / and sent

worde of this tydinges to the duke of Lanca∣stre / and so folowed the vowarde / and the con¦stables and marshalles came to the passage. Than the spanysshe squyer entred firste in to the ryuer / & shewed them the way. And whan they sawe the passage so pleasaunt they were ryght ioyfull / and so euery man passed ouer. And whan the vowarde was ouer / they lod∣ged there to gyue knowledge to all other that folowed after. Than the constable kepte his promyse with the squyer that was their gyde. And so he departed fro them and rode to Me¦dena del campo / where the kynge of Castyle lay / a good towne in the countrey of Campe. Than the kynge of Portugale and the duke of Lancastre came to the passage / which was called Plasce ferarde / bycause the grauell and sande there was firme and stable / and without parell. There they and their hoostes passed o∣uer / and the next day the rerewarde / and than they all lay in the coūtrey of Campe. Tydin∣ges came to them of Ruelles / of Cateseris / of Medena / of Vyle arpente / of saynt Phagon / and to other cyties / townes / and castels of the countrey of Campe and Spayne / howe the englysshemen and portugaloyse were passed ouer the ryuer of Derne / and had founde the passed / wherof euery man had maruayle and sayd. This can nat be done without trayson / for they shulde neuer haue founde out the pas∣sage / but if some of the countre had shewed it to them. The kynge of castelles lordes knewe how the squier of Castyle had shewed it them / and was their guyde. Thervpon he was ta∣ken and knowledged the trouth / as he hadde done. Thanne he was iuged to dye / and was brought to Vyle arpent and there beheeded.