[A.D. 1465.]
THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY PARDONS HIS SON.—HE ORDERS A LARGE BODY OF MEN TO BE RAISED FOR THE ASSISTANCE OF THE DUKE OF BERRY AGAINST HIS BROTHER THE KING OF FRANCE.—OTHER EVENTS THAT HAPPENED AT THAT TIME.
On Good Friday, a learned friar preached an excellent sermon before the duke of Burgundy and his household, at Brussels, on the blessings of mercy and pity, in order to induce the duke to pardon his son, the count de Charolois, for having offended him, which hitherto he had not been inclined to do. When the sermon was ended, several knights of the Golden Fleece approached the duke, and humbly entreated him, that, in consequence of the able discourse and reasoning of the preacher, he would pardon his son for having offended him,—so that on the morrow, Easter-eve, the count de Charolois came to his father about noon, and, falling on his knee, said in substance as follows: 'My most redoubted lord and father, I beseech you, in honour of the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you would be pleased to forgive my having displeased you. What I did was for the preservation of my life, and of your dominions, as I will more fully detail hereafter.' Much more he said, to the edification and satisfaction of all who heard him.
The duke took hold of him by the elbow, and, looking him full in the face, said, 'Charles, my son, for all that you may have done to displease me to this day, I freely forgive you: be my good son, and I will be to you a good father.' In saying these words, the duke's eyes filled with tears,—and those of the company present were in a like situation, notwithstanding that there were there hardy knights, lords, and others out of number.
When the feasts of Easter were over, which commenced the year 1465, the duke ordered the three estates of his country to assemble at Brussels the 24th of April; and when they were met, he bade the bishop of Tournay read to them the letter he had received from the duke of Berry. He then told them, that it was his intention to raise the largest army he had ever done, to assist the duke of Berry, and that he should give the command of it to the count de Charolois, his son, who would require that it should be in readiness to march on the 8th day of May. This could not be done without a great expense; and for this purpose he demanded from the county of Artois eighteen thousand francs, and from his other territories sums in proportion to their abilities. The 12th of May was fixed on for the payments, when the county of Artois granted the eighteen thousand francs, and the other countries each according to its extent and wealth.
During this time, the count Louis de St Pol, his three sons, James de St Pol his brother, the lord de Ravenstein, nephew to the duke of Burgundy, the two bastards of Burgundy, sir Anthony de Baudoin, and almost all the knights and nobles, vassals to the duke in Artois, the Boulonnois, Hainault, Flanders, Brabant, Holland and Zealand, made their preparations to accompany the count de Charolois, and were in such numbers that they were estimated at four thousand combatants, consisting of fourteen hundred lances, eight thousand archers, and cross-bowmen, carbineers, and other warriors, not including those who attended the baggage, who were very numerous, each being armed with a leaden mace. In this army were none from Burgundy, as they were to form a separate body until they joined the count. They amounted to upward of six hundred lances, and other troops, under the command of the marshal of Burgundy, the prince of Orange, the lord d'Arqueil, the lords de Chargny, de Toulongeon, and other great barons of that country.
While these preparations were making, John de Longueval, captain of the archers of sir Anthony de Burgundy, having with him a body of troops, went and took possession of the towns of Arleux and Crevecoeur, which the king had formerly given to the bastard, but had since wrested from him.—He summoned the governor of the castle of Crevecoeur to surrender it amicably, or he would take it by storm; and the governor yielded it up, on having his life and fortune spared, and returned to his own country of Normandy. John de Longueval, having performed this exploit, left a sufficient garrison in each for its defence, and then returned to his other companions with the main army.
When the king of France was assured of this great force which the count de Charolois had raised, he dispatched his chancellor to Amiens, and to Abbeville, where he met the counts d'Eu and de Nevers,—and they issued a proclamation, in the king's name, for all who had been accustomed to bear arms to be in readiness to serve him; and every one was forbidden to bear arms, or to serve any other lord than the king, on pain of corporal punishment and confiscation of effects. Notwithstanding this, many of the knights and nobles of that country, who had always been attached to the house of Burgundy, joined the count de Charolois, leaving it to chance how they were to be treated for what they held under the king. There were others who served the king.