'Know ye, that we will that this our order be most strictly obeyed, and that nothing be done to the contrary, to the oppression of our said subjects, or to their hindrance in living under us in peace and tranquillity. For this, and other sufficient reasons which move us, we expressly command you to cause this our pleasure to be publicly proclaimed by sound of trumpet, in all places within your bailiwick where proclamations have been usually made, that no knight or noble esquire, of whatever rank he may be, shall put on arms or attend to the commands of any superior lord whatever to begin and carry on a warfare in any part of our realm, under pain of forfeiture of his goods and estate, unless he shall have our especial commands for so doing.
'All such as you shall find acting contrary to this our order you will punish, so that they may be examples for others; and you will seize on all their goods and chattels for our use, because they have been guilty of disobedience and disloyalty towards us their sovereign lord, without having received our commands. Be careful that this order be obeyed, and not neglected through any fault of yours.
'Given at the Bois de Vincennes, the 22d day of October, in the year of Grace 1413, and of our reign the 33d.'
It was signed by the king in his great council,—present the lord de Preaulx[29], the count de Tancarville, the lords de Montenay and de Cambrillac, Pierre de l'Esclut, and several others. This edict was proclaimed in Amiens the 12th day of November following.
On the Monday preceding the feast of All-saints, the duke of Burgundy gave a grand entertainment at Lille. The Monday and Tuesday, the knights and esquires tilted, namely, the duke himself, his son the count de Charolois, the duke of Brabant and the count de Nevers, his brothers.
Soon after this feast was over, and the company departed, the lord de Dampierre, admiral of France, the bishop of Evreux, and others, came to Lille as ambassadors from the king of France, and commanded the duke, in the king's name, by virtue of their royal orders, not to enter into any treaty or agreement with the king of England, for the marriage of his daughter or otherwise, under pain of having his estates confiscated. They summoned him to surrender to the king three castles which were garrisoned by his men, namely, Cherbourg, Caen, and Crotoy,—and ordered him, on his allegiance, to maintain the peace he had so solemnly sworn to observe with the duke of Orleans, his brothers, their friends and adherents. The duke, on hearing these commands, made no reply whatever to the ambassadors, but called for his boots, and rode off instantly for Oudenarde. The ambassadors returned to Rolaincourt le Châtel, which belonged to the admiral, on the eve of Saint Martin, and thence came to Paris.
FOOTNOTES:
[28] D'Oyrront. Q. D'Orgemont?
[29] James de Bourbon, grand butler of France, son to James I. count de la Marche, and uncle to the present counts de la Marche and Vendôme, and lord of Carency.