"God forbid that the Queen of England should do such a thing! Madam, be of good comfort to yourself and company, for I will keep my promise, and you shall come to see my brother and the countess, his wife, and all their fine children, who will be rejoiced to see you, for I have heard them say so."
The queen answered: "Sir, I find in you more kindness and comfort than in all the world besides; and I give you five hundred thousand thanks for all you have promised with so much courtesy. I and my son shall be forever bound unto you, and we will put the kingdom of England under your management, as in justice it ought to be."
Then Isabella mounted her horse, and set off with her train to follow Sir John to Valenciennes. Many of the citizens of that town came forth to meet her, and she was received very graciously by the Earl of Hainault and his wife, who gave several feasts in her honor.
Isabella spent a week in this hospitable household, during which Sir John's sympathies were so aroused in her behalf that he obtained his brother's permission to accompany her to England. In the meantime he had written to certain knights in other parts of the country, beseeching them to arm in the cause of the distressed Queen of England. The expedition gathered at Dort, where the queen and her suite met them. Here they all embarked, but the fleet was tossed about by a tempest for several hours, and some of the ships were knocked to pieces. At last the queen was brought safely to shore near Harwich, and her knights and attendants built her a tent of carpets, and kindled a great fire of pieces of the wrecked vessels. Then all the horses and arms were taken from the ships which, the wind being favorable by that time, were sent around to the opposite coast. At daybreak the queen marched with her army to the next town, where she found the houses well stocked with all sorts of provisions, though the people had fled in terror, not knowing what to expect.
The advanced guard, meantime, marched through the country, seizing all the cattle and food they could get hold of, and spreading misery in every direction. When Isabella came along the owners complained bitterly, but she paid them most liberally for all they had lost. The money thus distributed made the queen popular, and the people were anxious to supply her with whatever she desired after that.
Although the king had forbidden his subjects to meet Isabella, when she arrived at Harwich a large number of knights, barons, and bishops were assembled to welcome her. Her force numbered two thousand seven hundred and fifty-seven soldiers, commanded by Sir John of Hainault, and Roger Mortimer commanded the English, who joined them after, they landed.
So many false stories had been circulated by the queen's agents of the persecutions she had endured from her husband and his barbarous ministers, and of the way she had been driven into a foreign land by plots against her life, that she was considered the most injured of wives and queens.
