The inhabitants of the town of Neelle, belonging to the count de Dammartin, seeing the smoke of Ham, were greatly perplexed, for their garrison had fled; but they, following the example of the town of Athies, waited on the duke of Burgundy, and, with many lamentations, presented him with the keys of their town, offering to submit themselves to his mercy. The duke received them into favour, in the name of the king and his own, on their swearing not to admit any garrison, and to be in future true and loyal subjects to the king, their sovereign lord.
This oath they willingly took; and, having thanked the duke for his mercy, they returned to their town, and by his orders demolished some of their gates and many parts of their walls. They also made their magistrates and principal inhabitants swear to the observance of the treaty which they had made, and for this time they remained in peace.
In like manner, those of the town of Roye, that were but lately become subjects to the king, sent deputies to the duke, at his camp before Ham, to say, that the Orleans party had treacherously entered their town, and had done them much mischief, but that they had departed on hearing of his march, and requesting he would not be displeased with them, as they were ready to receive him, and act according to his pleasure. The duke told them, he should be satisfied if they would promise, on their oaths, never to admit again within their walls any of his adversaries of the Orleans-party. Having obtained this answer, they returned joyous to their town.
The duke now passed the Somme with his army at Ham, leaving that town completely ruined, and marched toward Chauni on the Oise, belonging to the duke of Orleans; but the garrison, hearing of it, quitted the place in haste. The townsmen, greatly alarmed, sent, without delay, to offer him their keys, and humbly supplicated his mercy, saying that their lord’s men at arms had fled on hearing of his approach, from the fear they had of him. The duke received them kindly, and took their oaths, that they would henceforth loyally obey the king their sovereign lord, and himself, and would admit a garrison of his men to defend the town.
After the conclusion of this treaty, the duke advanced to Roye, in the Vermandois, and was lodged in the town, having quartered his army in the country round it. He dispatched thence sir Peter des Essars, knight, and his confidential adviser, to the king of France, to his son-in-law the duke of Acquitaine, and to the citizens of Paris, to make them acquainted with the strength of his army, and with his successes. Sir Peter des Essars was honourably received by the duke of Acquitaine and the Parisians; and in compliment to the duke of Burgundy, he was reinstated in his office of provost, in the room of sir Brunelet de Sainct Cler, who, by the royal authority, was appointed bailiff of Senlis, on the dismission of sir Gastelius du Bost, who was suspected of being a favourer of the Orleans-party.
When sir Peter des Essars had finished the business he had been sent on to Paris, he set out for Rethel to announce to the count de Nevers, who had assembled a considerable force, the march of the duke, and to desire him to advance to the town of Mondidier, where he would have more certain intelligence of his brother. The count de Nevers, on hearing this, used all diligence to assemble his men, and set off to join the duke.
During these transactions, the duke of Orleans, the count d’Armagnac, the constable of France, the master of the cross-bows, with a large body of men at arms and others, came to the town of Melun, where the queen of France and the duke of Berry resided. Having held a conference with the queen and duke, they advanced to La Fertè on the Marne, which belonged to sir Robert de Bar[72], in right of his wife the viscountess de Meaux. They crossed the Marne, and came to Arsy en Mussien, in the county of Valois, dependant on the duke of Orleans, where his brother, the count de Vertus, met him.
The count was accompanied by a numerous body of combatants, among whom were the duke of Bourbon, John son to the duke of Bar, sir William de Coucy, Amé de Sallebruche, sir Hugh de Hufalize, with others from the Ardennes, Lorraine and Germany, who, in the whole, amounted to full six thousand knights and esquires, not including armed infantry and bowmen; and this party was henceforward popularly called Armagnacs, as I have before observed. Each bore on his armour badges similar to those which they had formerly worn when they lay before Paris.
The duke of Orleans marched this army from the Valois, passing by Senlis, toward his county of Beaumont; but Enguerrand de Bournouville, who had been posted in Senlis with a large force of men at arms to guard it, sallied out on their rear, and made a good booty of their baggage as well as prisoners. In doing this, however, he lost some of his men, who were slain or taken, and he then returned to Senlis. The duke of Orleans, with the other princes, were lodged in the castle of Beaumont, and his army in the country surrounding it.
The count de Nevers was prevented from joining his brothers as he intended,—for the Armagnacs, being the strongest, constrained him to conduct his army to Paris.