“And when Glosyter and Hertfurd were,
With their battle approaching near,
Before them all there come riding,
With helm on head and spear in hand,
Sir Henry Boune, the worthy,
That was a wight knight, and a hardy;
And to the Earl of Hertfurd cousin;
Armed in arms good and fine;
Come on a steed, a bow-shot nere,
Before all other that there were.
And knew the King, for that he saw
Him so range his men in row;
And by the crown, that was set
Also upon his bacinet,
And towards him he went on haste.
And the King so apertly
Saw him come, forth all his feres[412]
In hy[413] to him the horse he steers.
And when Sir Henry saw the King
Come on forouting abaysing,[414]
To him he rode in full great hy[415]
He thought that he should well lightly
Win him and have him at his will,
Since he him horsed saw so ill.
Sprent[416] they came unto a ling,[417]
Sir Henry missed the noble king.
And he, that in his stirrups stood,
With the axe, that was hard and good,
With so great mayn[418] reached him a dint,
That neither hat nor helm might stynt,
The hewy dusche[419] that he him gave,
That near the head to the harness clave.
The hand-axe shaft fruschyt[420] in tow;
And he down to the yird gan go
All flatlyngs[421], for him failed might.
This was the first stroke of the fight.”
Barbour, vol. ii. p. 122.
The fine generousness of chivalry was very nobly displayed in another circumstance which preceded the great battle. It was a main object with the English to throw succours into the castle of Stirling; and Edward, therefore, commanded Sir Robert Clifford and eight hundred horsemen to make a circuit by the low grounds to the east, and approach the castle. Bruce, in anticipation of the Englishmen’s purpose, had charged Randolph who commanded his left wing to prevent Stirling from being relieved; and when he saw the English troops holding on their gallant course unchecked, he cried, “A rose has fallen from thy chaplet, Randolph,”[422] and bitterly reproached him for his want of vigilance. Nothing but the utmost desperateness of valour could efface this shame; and gathering round him a few hundred bold spirits, the Scottish General advanced against the English. Clifford, in his pride of chivalry, thought that he could soon disperse a band of lightly armed troops of foot-soldiers, who were now being marshalled into a circle with their spears resting on the ground, the points protruded on every side. The English charged, but the resistance was more gallant than what they had foreseen. Still, however, the Scots seemed gradually sinking under the force of numbers; and Douglas, who saw the peril, requested the King’s permission to go and join him. “You shall not move from your ground,” cried the King: “let Randolph extricate himself as he best may. I will not alter my order of battle, and lose the advantage of my position.” But Douglas reiterated his request, and wrung leave from the King. He flew to the assistance of his friend. But before he reached him he saw that the English were falling into disorder, and that the perseverance of Randolph had prevailed over their impetuous courage. “Halt,” cried Douglas, like a generous knight, “these brave men have repulsed the enemy; let us not diminish their glory by sharing it.”
Of the battle of Bannockburn itself little need be said by me, because there was not much chivalric character about it. Some historians describe the defeat of the English as having been principally occasioned by the Scottish cavalry throwing the rear of their archers into confusion. Others affirm that Bruce, seeing the inadequacy of his own cavalry to cope with that of the English, formed the battles or divisions of his army entirely of foot-soldiers, and dug trenches before his line, slightly covering them with turf and hurdles. The gallant knights of England, with the sun streaming on their burnished helms and gilt shields, advanced to charge the bristled front of the Scots: but the turf sunk beneath the pressure of their horses’ feet, and men and their steeds lay at the mercy of their enemy. One or other of these circumstances turned the event of the battle, and the Scotch reserve being judiciously brought up, completed the victory. In every way the generalship of Bruce was admirable: but the fate of the battle reflects nothing on the personal character of the English chivalry; for they were not worsted in an encounter of lance to lance, and horse to horse. The bravery of one English knight must not pass unrecorded. Sir Giles D’Argentyn, upon seeing some of his friends around him pause in alarm, cried that he was not used to fly, and spurring his war-steed into the thickest of the press, gallantly perished. Nor was this a solitary instance of courage; and even Edward seemed for a moment to be inspired with the fire of the Plantagenets. He dashed into the enemy’s lines, and was by force drawn away by the Earl of Pembroke, when courage was evidently unavailing.[423]
Singular effect of chivalry in his reign.
Though the chivalric character was only for one moment of his life sustained by Edward II., yet it was too deeply fixed in the national mind to die on account of its neglect by any particular monarch. There is a singular circumstance on record illustrative of the power of this feeling. During his war with the barons, which his system of unprincipled favouritism had provoked, one of the lords refused the Queen the hospitality of his castle. This act of individual insult had general consequences. Disgusted with a cause which was blended with so much uncourtesy, barons and knights immediately flocked round the standard of the King; his arms completely triumphed, and the Spencers were recalled.[424]
END OF THE FIRST VOLUME.
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INDEX.
Accolade, meaning of the, I. [53]. note.
Adelais, tale of her imprisonment, rescue by an adventurous knight, and subsequent marriage, II. 322.
Albigenses, romance of, I. [48]. note.
Alcantara, order of, its principles, and its comparative rank with other Spanish orders, I. [353].
Alfonso, story of his chivalric bearing, II. 258.
Allegories, fantastic, made on knights and their armour, I. [108]. [110].
Amys and Amylion, Romance of, I. [121].
Anglo-Saxons, state of chivalry among, I. [6]. [9]. [11]. [383].
Antharis, a Lombard king, story of his romantic gallantry, II. 321.
Arabian horses, their repute in chivalric times, I. [111].
Arabic, Spanish historians, account of, II. 242. note.
Archers, excellence of English, II. 12.
Fine passage from Halidon Hill expressive of, II. 13. note.
An English archer in the days of Edward III., 14.
Importance of at battles of Cressy and Poictiers, 15.
Argonautes, order of, purpose of its institution, I. [358].
Aristotle, lay of, I. [215].
Armorial bearings, historical and philosophical sketch of the principles of, I. [86], [87]. [89].
Armour, beauty of ancient, I. [65].
Value of enquiries into the minutiæ of, I. [94].
Uncertainty of the subject, I. [95].
Its general features, I. [99], &c.
Golden armour, [102].
Array, general nature of chivalric, I. [118].
Arthur, his knightly honour, I. [132]. note.
Discovery of his remains at Glastonbury, account of, I. [375].
His court the school of chivalric virtue, [376].
His generosity to his knights, [376]. note.
See [Round Table].
Athenæus, his singular testimony to a state of chivalry, I. [6].
Auberoch, beleagured by the French, and chivalrously relieved by the English, II. 31.
Audley, Sir James, interesting story of his heroic achievements and of his generosity, II. 43.
Axe, the battle, I. [67].
Description of King Richard’s, [68]. note.
B.
Bachelor, various meanings of the word, I. [19]. [45].
Bacinet, I. [91].
Baked meats, fondness of people for them in the olden time, I. [191]. and note.
Ball, the, after a tournament, I. [284].
Band, Spanish order of the, objects of the order, I. [367].
Interesting, as descriptive of the state of Spanish manners, ib.
Its fine chivalry to woman, I. [369].
Banneret, qualification of a knight, I. [16].
His privileges, [17].
See [Chandos].
Bannockburn, battle of, I. [407].
Barriers, description of, I. [124]. note.
Singular battles at the, I. [124]. [127].
Bath, order of, ceremonies used at the ancient creation of knights of, II. 150. 91, &c.
Modern ceremonies, I. [364].
Absurdity of our heralds’ dogmatic positiveness regarding the æra of the order’s foundation, II. 91. note.
Batre, Claude de, a French knight. His joust with Maximilian I. of Germany, II. 315.
Bauldrick, description of the, I. [73].
Bayard, the chivalric, his early years, II. 217.
Enters the service of the kings of France, 218.
His valiancy, ib.
His humanity, 219.
His gallantry, ib.
Holds a tournament in honour of the ladies, 220.
His death, 222.
Beauty, knights fought to assert the superiority of their mistress’s beauty, I. [209].
The practice apparently absurd, but reason why it should not be too severely censured, II. 211.
Black Prince, his conduct at Limoges, I. [132].
His courtesy, II. 11. 16.
His liberality, II. 45.
His deportment to Peter the Cruel, II. 185.
Not a favorite with the nobility in the English possessions in France, II. 191.
His cruelty to Du Guesclin, ib.
Blois, Charles of, his contention with Jane de Mountfort for the duchy of Brittany, I. [239].
Blue, the colour of constancy in days of chivalry, I. [275]. note.
See [Stocking].
Bonaparte, his generousness to a descendant of Du Guesclin, II. 203.
Bonnelance, Sir John, his remarkable courtesy to the ladies, I. [199].
Boucmell, John, his joust with an English squire, I. [294].
Bourbon, singular mode by which a Duke of, gained a fortress, I. [59].
——, order of, account of, I. [371].
Boucicant, Marshal, his outrageous reverence for women, I. [223]. note.
His joust at St. Ingelbertes, near Calais, [303], &c.
Bovines, importance of squires at the battle of, I. [47].
Break-across, to, meaning of the phrase, I. [278], [279]. note.
Britomart, the perfection of chivalric heroines, I. [253].
Brittany, revered for its chivalric fame, II. 174.
Bruce, Robert, his chivalric humanity, II. 69.
Burgundy, Bastard of, his joust with Lord Scales, I. [314].
His skill in other jousts, II. 214.
——, court of, splendour of its tournaments, II. 213.
The most chivalric country in Europe during middle of fifteenth century, ib.
Chivalric circumstance at the court of, II. 351.
C.
Calais, stories regarding, II. 17-21.
Calatrava, order of, its origin and history, I. [349].
Calaynos, the Moor, praised by the Spaniards, II. 234.
Carlisle, Sir Anthony Harclay, Earl of, ceremonies of his degradation from knighthood, I. [62-64].
Carpet-knights, meaning of the term, II. 156.
Carpio, Bernardo del, account of, II. 243.
Cavalry, the principal arm of military power during the middle ages, I. [2].
Caxton, his lamentation over the decline of chivalry, II. 99.
His exaggeration of the evil, 102.
Celts, humility of Celtic youths, I. [6].
Cervantes, curious error made by, I. [20].
Censures the chivalric custom of making vows, [129]. note.
Satirises chivalric contempt of bodily pain, [368]. note.
Ridicules the vigil of arms, I. [49]. note.
and the pride of knights, I. [393]. note.
Accuracy of his pictures, II. 297.
Cesena, noble defence of, by Marzia degl’ Ubaldini, I. [249].
Chandos, Sir John, story with the Earl of Oxenford, I. [38].
History of his heroism, II. 46.
Gallantry, 47.
Tenacious of his armorial bearings, ib.
Exploits at Auray, 49.
Tries to dissuade the Black Prince from the Spanish war, 50.
Ceremonies on his becoming a knight-banneret, ib.
His remarkable generousness, 52.
His death before the bridge of Lusac, 60, &c.
General grief thereat, 63.
Character, bluntness of the old English, shown at the creation of knights of the Bath, II. 165.
Charity, a great chivalric virtue, instance of, I. [161].
Charter-house, the, founded by Sir Walter Manny, II. 42. and note.
Charlemagne, state of chivalry in his time, I. [10].
His expedition into Spain, II. 244.
Chargny, Lord of, a famous jouster, II. 298.
His passage of arms near Dijon, I. [328].
Cherbury, Edward Herbert, Lord of, memoir of him, II. 138.
Chivalric fame of his family, ib.
His vanity, 140-145.
Made a knight of the Bath, 141.
His curious adventures in France, 142.
The disgusting vanity of his infidelity, 147.
His general character, 148.
His inferiority to the heroes of the reign of Edward III., 149.
Chess, the high favour of this game in days of chivalry, I. [163].
A story of a knight’s love of chess, [164].
Chivalry, general oath of, I. [50].
Form used in Scotland, II. 70.
Exhortations to perform chivalric obligations, I. [51], [52].
Beauty of chivalric costume, I. [65].
First ages of, interesting to the reason, but not pleasing to the fancy, I. [1].
Difference between feudal and moral chivalry, I. [3].
Origin of, ib.
Nature of, [2].
Modified by Christianity, [9], [13].
Early ceremonies of inauguration, [4]. [11], [12].
Personal nobility of, not to be confounded with feudal territorial nobility, [16].
Morals of chivalric times unjustly censured, [229].
Real state of them, ib. &c.
Peculiar fineness of chivalric feeling, [277]. note.
Declined in France before the common use of gunpowder, II. 213.
Recapitulation of the circumstances which gave birth to, 341.
Its general nature, 342.
Exact time of its influence difficult to mark, 346.
Its merits, 348.
Its effects, 358.
Application of chivalric honours to men in civil stations, 155.
Connected with feudalism, I. [384].
A compulsory honour in England, [386].
Christianity, its improvements on Gothic chivalry, I. [10].
Cid, the, his birth, II. 246.
His early ferocious heroism, ib.
His singular marriage, 247.
Enters the service of King Ferdinand, 249.
His chivalric gallantry, ib.
Ceremony of his being knighted, 251.
Death of the King ib.
Becomes the knight of Sancho, King of Castile, and his campeador, 252.
Mixture of evil and good in his character, ib.
Supports the King in his injustice, 253.
His romantic heroism, ib.
His virtuous boldness, 256.
His second marriage, 260.
Is banished from the court of Alfonso, the brother of Sancho, 261.;
but recalled ib.
Is banished again, 263.
Story of his unchivalric meanness, ib.
His history in exile, 264.
His nobleness and generosity, 267.
Is recalled, 269.
Captures Toledo, 270.;
and Valentia, 271.
Unjust conduct to the Moors, 274.
Marriage of his daughters, 276.
His death, 284.;
and character, 285.
Claremont, the Lord of, his dispute with Sir John Chandos regarding armorial cognisances, II. 47.
Clary, the Lord of, singular story of the censure on him by the court of France for want of courtesy to Sir Peter Courtenay, I. [154-157].
Clergy, the weapons they used in battle, I. [68].
A gallant fighting priest promoted to an archdeaconry, II. 80.
Often turned knights, I. [350].
Clermont, council of, sanctions chivalry, I. [12].
Clifford, Nicholas, his joust with John Boucmell, I. [294], &c.
Cloth of gold, chivalric circumstances at the field of, II. 111.
Cochetel, battle of, II. 178.
Cognisances, I. [87].
Coliseum, Moorish and chivalric sports in, II. 329.
Inferiority of the old Roman games in, to those of chivalry, I. [260].
Colombe, Ernalton of Sainte, bravery of him and his esquire, I. [46].
Companions in arms, nature of such an union, I. [118-123].
Conde, D. José Antonio, value of his searches into Arabic Spanish historians, II. 242. note.
Constancy, a greater virtue in chivalric times than in the present day, I. [206].
Spenser’s exhortation to, [207].
Constantine, fabulous order of, I. [374].
Conversation of knights, its subjects, I. [175].
Courage of the knight, I. [124-130].
Courtenay, Sir Peter, his adventures in France, I. [154], &c.
Courtesy, a knightly virtue, I. [160].
Courtesy of a dragon, [161]. note.
At tournaments, [268].
Cousines, dame des belle, her reproof of a young page for his not being in love, I. [32].
Crawford, Sir David de Lindsay, Earl of, his joust with Lord Wells, I. [290].
Cross, every military order had its, I. [362].
Wretched taste in concealing the cross of the order of the Bath by a star, ib.
Cyclas, I. [85].
Cyneheard, his story, I. [5].
D.
Dagger of mercy, description of it, I. [92].
Story of its use, [93].
Dambreticourt, Lord Eustace, his chivalry inspired by the lady Isabella, I. [204].
His valour at the battle of Poictiers, II. 44.
Dames and Damsels. See [Lady].
Degradation, ceremonies of, I. [60].
Derby, Earl of, the sort of death he desired, I. [147].
Devices, what they were, I. [78].
Worn in tournaments, [272-275].
Discipline, chivalric array not inconsistent with feudal discipline, I. [145].
Douglas, story of the perilous castle of, I. [205].
Generousness of the good Lord James of, I. [206], [402].
His character, ib. note.
The Douglas of the sixteenth century, II. 67.
Wins the pennon of Hotspur, 77.
His heroism and noble death, 80.
Archibald, at Shrewsbury, ib.
Dress of ladies in chivalric times, I. [185].
Importance of modesty of, [186].
Dub, meaning of the word, I. [53]. note.
Dynadan, Sir, a merry knight of the Round Table, his pretended dislike of women, I. [196]. note.
E.
Edward I., his chivalric character, I. [395].
A chivalric anecdote of, I. [142].
Edward II., state of chivalry in his reign, I. [402]. [409].
Edward III., state of armour in his time, I. [97]. [100].
Chivalry in his reign, II. 4, &c.
Eloisa, the Lady, a heroine of chivalry, I. [235].
England, antiquity of the sarcasm of its not being the country of original invention, II. 48. note.
The melancholy of its mirth curiously noticed, ib.
Errantry, facts relating to the knight-errantry of the middle ages, I. [140]. [145].
English knights-errant, [225].
General facts and usages, [226], &c.
F.
Falconry. See [Hawking].
Falcons, placed on perches above knights at chivalric entertainments, I. [281].
Father in chivalry, the respect which a knight bore to the cavalier that knighted him, I. [54].
Festivals, description of chivalric, I. [176]. [379].
At tournaments, [281].
Fidelity to obligations, a great virtue in knights, I. [151].
Flodden, chivalric circumstances at battle of, II. 121.
Flowers, Romance of, remarks on, I. [315]. note.
Forget-me-not, romantic story of this flower: joust concerning it, I. [315].
France, state of, after the death of Du Guesclin, II. 203.
Chivalry in baronial castles, II. 169.
Knighthood given to improper persons, 211.
Extinction of chivalry in, 226.
Ridiculous imitation of chivalry by the profligate soldiers of a profligate king, 228.
Francis I., his chivalric qualities, II. 223.
Circumstances which disgraced his chivalry, 224.
Knighted by Bayard, 225.
Fraternity, origin and history of the spirit of, I. [4].
Encouraged by the institutions of Arthur, [379].
Froissart, character of his history, [Preface].
Frojaz, Don Rodrigo, a Spanish knight, chivalric mode of his death, I. [71].
Furs, fondness of people in the middle ages for them, I. [49]. [85]. note.
G.
Gallantry, its origin, I. [7-9].
Absurdity of antiquarians respecting, [175]. note.
Garter, order of the, objects of, I. [360].
Its resemblance to a religious order, [361].
Reasons of its being established, [360].; II. 4.
Commonly ascribed origin a vulgar fable, 6.
Meaning of the motto, 7.
The collar, 8.
Gawain, Sir, a knight of Arthur’s Round Table, character of, I. [378].
Generousness of knights, high estimation of this quality, I. [153].
Instances, [153-157].
Gennet, order of the, I. [374].
George, Saint, the person that was understood by this name, II. 9.
Germans, superior virtue of German women owned by Tacitus, I. [7].
Instances of this virtue, [7], [8].
Political chivalry had no influence in Germany, II. 303.
German knights quailed before undisciplined troops, 304.
When and where tournaments were held, I. [262].
Heraldic pride of the, [263]. note.
Singular matter regarding the, [265]. note.
Inferiority of to Italian condottieri, [305].
Intolerance and cruelty of German knights, [306].
Their education, [307].
Cruelty to their squires, [308].
Their avarice, [310].
Little influence of German chivalry, [311].
Singular exception, [312].
Destruction of chivalry, [317].
Gonfanon, what it was, I. [67].
Gonsalez, Count Fernan de, a fabulous hero of Spanish chivalry, II. 245.
Gordon, Adam, his chivalry, I. [56].
Graville, Sir William, loses a fortress out of his love for chess-playing, I. [165].
Green-field, knights of the Fair Lady in the, story of their chevisance, I. [223].
Gueldres, Duke of, story of his regard for knightly honour, I. [138].
Guesclin, Bertrand du, his birth, II. 174.
Became a cavalier in opposition to paternal wishes, 175.
His knightly conduct at Rennes, ib.
Amusing interview with the Duke of Lancaster, 177.
His gallant bearing at Cochetel, and the consequent recovery of the fame of the French arms, 178.
Taken prisoner at Aurai, 180.
Redeemed, 182.
His chivalry in Spain, 184, &c.
Taken prisoner again, 189.
Treated with cruelty by the Black Prince, 191.
Ransomed, 209.
Made Constable of France, 194.
Recovers the power of the French monarchy, ib.
His companionship in arms with Olivier de Clisson, 195.
His death before Randan, 199.
Character, 201.
H.
Harald, the valiant, account of, I. [9].
Hawking, a knowledge of, a necessary part of a knight’s education, I. [29].
A great chivalric amusement, [161].
Hawkwood, Sir John, story of his origin, and allusions to his battles, I. [23].
Helmets, I. [88].
Various sorts of, I. [89].
Hennebon, noble defence of, by the Countess of Mountfort, I. [242-246].
Henry I. and II., state of chivalry in their respective reigns, [387]. [389]. [395].
Henry II., of France, killed in a tournament, account of the circumstances, II. 226. and note.
Henry, Prince, son of James I., his love of chivalric exercises, II. 137.
Henry IV., chivalric parley between him and the Duke of Orleans, II. 83.
His unchivalric deportment at Shrewsbury, 88.
Henry V., his love of chivalry, II. 85. 96.
His chivalric modesty, 98.
Henry VIII., account of his tournaments, II. 104, &c.
Heroines, nature of female heroism in days of chivalry, and stories of, I. [234], &c.
Hita, Genez Perez de, nature of his volume on the fall of Grenada, II. 288. note.
Homildon Hill, interesting knightly story regarding battle at, I. [55].
Honour, curious story of knightly, I. [138].
The knights’ pursuit of, I. [144].
See, too, [277]. note.
Horn, King, romance of, I. [27].
Horse of the knight, I. [111].
What horses were preferred, [112].
The famous horse of the Cid, ib. II. 287.
Armour of the horse, I. [114].
Always very splendidly adorned, [115].
Horsemanship, care with which knights were trained to, I. [44].
Hotspur fights with the Douglas, II. 77.
His gallant deportment at Otterbourn, 79.
And at Shrewsbury, 87.
Humanities of chivalric war, I. [129]. [135].
Humility, a knightly virtue, I. [158].
Hunting, young squires instructed in the art of, I. [29].
A part of the amusements of chivalry, [161].
Huntingdon, Sir John Holland, Earl of, his skill in jousting, I. [307].
I.
Inauguration, ceremony of, into knighthood, when and where performed, I. [50].
Its circumstances, [50-54].
Ingelbertes, Saint, joust at, I. [302-314].
Ipomydon, romance of, I. [28].
Isabella, the Lady, a heroine of chivalry, I. [235].
Italian armour, excellence of, I. [105].;
II. 293. note, 330.
Italy, but little martial chivalry in, II. 324.
Chivalric education, 321.
Changes of the military art in, 325.
Chivalry in the north of, 329.
Esteem in which the word of knighthood was held, ib.
Chivalry in the south of, 331.
Mode of creating knights in, 334.
Religious and military orders in, 335.
Political use of knighthood, 336.
Folly of an Italian mob regarding knighthood, ib.
School of Italian Generals, 328.
Chivalric sports in, 338.
Ivanhoe, errors of the author of, regarding Anglo-Saxon and Norman chivalry, I. [383]. note;
and concerning the Knights Templars, [387]. note;
and also concerning the nature and names of chivalric sports, [327].
J.
James, Saint, his popularity in Spain, I. [345]. note; II. 230.
Order of, I. [344].
James II., of Arragon, gallantry of one of his decrees, II. 289.
James IV., of Scotland, chivalric and romantic circumstances of his life, II. 118-124.
Jealousy, no part of chivalric love, I. [207].
Joanna of Naples, a chivalric anecdote regarding, II. 352.
Joust, nature of the, to the utterance, I. [289].
For love of ladies, [291].
Various, à l’outrance, [289-297].
A plaisance, [297], &c.
Romance of, [324].; II. 215.
Use of jousts, I. [330].
K.
Knights, their privileges, I. [17].
Expensive equipment of, necessary to the dignity, [16].
Preparations for knighthood, [48].
His war-cry and escutcheon, [18].
Qualifications, [19].
Gentle birth not regarded when valour conspicuous, [22].
By whom created, ib.
(For his education, see [Squire] and [Page].)
Often turned priests, I. [14].
Associations of, in defence of the ladies, [223-225].
Stipendiary knights in England, [385].
No resemblance between and the equites of Rome, [14].
Made in the battle-field, and in mines, [56-59].