THE DUCHESS OF BOURBON COMES TO RESIDE WITH HER BROTHER THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY.—THE KING OF FRANCE GRANTS SUCCOURS TO THE QUEEN OF ENGLAND.—OTHER EVENTS THAT HAPPENED IN DIVERS PARTS.
At this time, the widowed duchess of Bourbon came to visit the noble duke of Burgundy, accompanied by three or four of her sons and two of her daughters,—for she had had by her late husband six boys and five girls. The eldest son, John, succeeded his father in the dukedom; the second was married to a daughter of the king of Cyprus, but died of leprosy before he went thither; the third, Charles, was archbishop of Lyons, on the Rhône, and abbot of St Vaast at Arras; the fourth, named Louis, was bishop of Liege; the fifth was lord of Beaujeu, and married to a daughter of the duke of Orleans; the sixth, James, died when young.
Of the daughters, one was married to the duke of Calabria, by whom she had a fair son, but died shortly after: the second married her cousin-german, the count de Charolois, and had only a daughter, when the good lady died: the third espoused the duke of Gueldres, nephew to the duke of Burgundy: another was afterward married to the lord d'Arquel,—and another was then to be married; for the duke of Burgundy, their uncle, had always very earnestly promoted the advancement of his friends and relatives.
About this period, the king of France sent two thousand combatants to England, to the aid of queen Margaret, under the command of the lord de Varennes, high seneschal of Normandy, who, under the late king's reign, had governed every thing, and it was reported that king Louis had given him this command for the chance of his being slain: nevertheless, he bore himself well, and conquered several places, in the expectation of being joined by the duke of Somerset, who had promised to come to him with a large body of Scots and others; but he failed,—for he had found means to make his peace with king Edward, who had restored to him his estates and honours.
The French were now besieged in the places they had won by the earl of Warwick, and were glad to return to France with their lives spared.—All were not so fortunate, for many were slain or captured in the different skirmishes that had passed between them.[25]
The duke of Burgundy now sent one hundred men at arms and four hundred archers to the aid of the bishop of Mentz, who was engaged in a destructive warfare with one of the princes of Germany, insomuch that the extent of three or four days journey of the flat country was burnt and totally ruined.
On the 21st day of November, in this year, was an eclipse of the sun; and shortly after there were tiltings and other entertainments at Brussels, in honour of the arrival of the duchess of Bourbon, and of her children, whom she had brought with her. To these feasts the duke of Burgundy came with great pomp, and most superbly dressed.
About the same time, the count de Charolois had three men and an apothecary imprisoned at Brussels,—which three men had caused the apothecary to make three images of wax, of the form of men and women; three of each for some sort of sorcery, and even, as it was said, touching the said count de Charolois. This was found out from the apothecary telling some of the count's servants what he had made, and that those who had ordered them would do wonders with them; that they would make these images talk and walk, which would be miraculous: in short, so much was said, that it came at length to the ears of the count, who ordered the three men to be arrested, who belonged to the count d'Estampes. The apothecary was also arrested, but soon set at liberty, because he was ignorant for what purposes these images had been made. A gentleman of the household of the count d'Estampes fled, but was retaken, and carried prisoner to Quesnoy-le-Comte in Hainault: his name was Charles de Noyers. It was rumoured, that these four persons had been closely interrogated, and had confessed wonderful things; but they were kept so secret that few knew what to say about them. The prisoners, however, remained very long in confinement.
FOOTNOTES:
[25] Henry says, that the French fleet appeared off Tinmouth; that many of their ships were driven on shore near Bamborough in a storm; that the French took shelter in Holy Island, where they were attacked and beaten by a superior force; that sir Pierre de Brézé, their commander, and the rest, saved themselves in Berwick.—Hist. of England, A.D. 1461.