While this was passing, the duke ordered his archers, who were on foot, to wheel and front the Swiss, and formed two wings of his men at arms to give them battle,—one wing under the command of Jacques Galiot, an italian captain, and the other under sir Josse de Lalain, high bailiff of Flanders. When the Swiss found themselves on the duke's flank, and on higher ground, they made as desperate a charge as ever men made, discharging, on their advance, their portable culverins. This discharge (which was not like a tax-gatherer's) threw the duke's army into confusion, and was followed by their flight.
This division of Swiss now attacked the wing commanded by Jacques Galiot, and defeated it instantly. The other wing, under sir Josse de Lalain, had advanced on the Swiss, but were so courageously received that the infantry were soon put to flight, and followed by the cavalry as fast as spurs could make them. They made for the bridge of Bridores, half a league from Nancy, and on the road to Thionville and Luxembourg. But here their hopes of passing were destroyed by the treachery of Campo Basso, who had barricaded the passage of this bridge with carts and waggons, and was with his men drawn up under arms on the opposite side; so that when the Burgundians were thus checked and overtaken by the Lorrainers, who followed at their heels, they were forced to attempt fording the river,—and there the slaughter was much more than on the field of battle, for such as attempted to pass the river were either killed by the Swiss or drowned: very few escaped death, or being made prisoners.
Some, on noticing this ambuscade of Campo Basso, fled to the woods: but they were pursued by the peasants,—and for four leagues round nothing was to be seen but dead bodies. The pursuit after the Burgundians lasted during two hours after nightfall; and the duke of Lorraine inquired, on all sides, what was become of the duke of Burgundy; whether he had fled, was slain, or made prisoner: but at that moment no one could answer his questions. The duke of Lorraine, on this, dispatched a confidential servant to John Dais, town-clerk of Metz, to learn if the duke of Burgundy had passed through that town; and on the morrow, John Dais sent for answer, that assuredly he had not passed that way,—and that no one knew what was become of him, for he had not taken the road to Luxembourg.
On the morrow, Epiphany-day, the count of Campo Basso brought to the duke of Lorraine a page, who had been made prisoner, named Baptiste, a native of Rome, and of the Colonna family, in the employ of the count de Châlon a Neapolitan, who was with the duke of Burgundy. On being interrogated, the page led a large company of Lorrainers to the place where the duke of Burgundy lay dead[72], and naked, with fourteen others in the same state, but at some distance from each other. The duke had received a blow from a halbert on the side of his head, above the ear, which had pierced to his jaw: a pike had been thrust through his thighs, and another pike had passed through his fundament. This body was known to be the duke's from six marks: the first, and principal, was the loss of all his upper teeth, which had been caused by a fall: the second, by the scar of a wound that he had received on the right side of his throat at the battle of Montlehery; the third, by his long nails, which he wore of a greater length than any other person of his court: the fourth, by a scar of a carbuncle, which he had formerly had on his shoulder; the fifth, by an ulcer at the lower part of his belly, on the right groin,—and, sixthly, by a nail that was wanting to one of his toes. By all these marks, he was acknowledged to be the duke of Burgundy by his own physician, a Portuguese, named Matthieu, and also by the grooms of his bed chamber, the great bastard of Burgundy, sir Olivier de la Marche, his chaplain, and others of his court, prisoners to the duke of Lorraine.
The body having been so clearly ascertained to be that of the duke of Burgundy, it was carried into Nancy, washed and cleaned, and then placed on a table, and dressed in a vesture of cloth from the neck to the feet, with a pall of black velvet over the body, in a dark chamber hung with black velvet. Under his head was a pillow of black velvet; and at the four corners of the table were large lighted tapers, with the crucifix and holy water at his feet.
While he lay in this state, the duke of Lorraine came to see him, dressed in mourning, and wearing a large golden beard, that descended to his girdle, in imitation of the ancient Preux, and in honour of the victory he had gained over him. Having taken one of his hands from under the pall, he said,—'May God receive your soul! You have done us many and grievous injuries and vexations.' After-which, he took some holy water and sprinkled it over the corpse. All who pleased now entered to see him; and the duke of Lorraine had him handsomely interred, and caused a solemn service to be said over him.
In consequence of the death and defeat of the duke of Burgundy and his army, the duke of Lorraine and his captains held a council, and determined instantly to enter the duchy and county of Burgundy, and other parts under the dominion of the late duke, to reduce them to the king's obedience, which was accomplished without any resistance. Those of the country of Auxerre submitted also, and took the oaths of allegiance to the king.—In this battle, the greater part of those who had accompanied the duke were slain. The great bastard of Burgundy was made prisoner, whom the duke of Lorraine afterwards carried to the king of France in Picardy. The bastard Baldwin of Burgundy and several other great lords were also taken prisoners.
The king of France being assured of the death of the duke of Burgundy, and the events that had subsequently taken place, left Tours on a pilgrimage of devotion. He returned by Chartres Villepreux[73] and Aubervilliers[73], to Nôtre Dame de la Victoire, and thence to Noyon and Compiégne. In this interval, very many of the places that had been occupied by the duke of Burgundy, were surrendered to him; such as Mondidier, Peronne, Abbeville, Montrieul sur mer, and others near to Arras. But those in this last town, at first, refused to submit, and fortified themselves with men at arms, provisions and artillery. Many agents were sent by them to the king, who at last succeeded in obtaining a truce; during which, the king made the greatest preparations of gens d'armes, artillery, and of warlike stores, that had been seen, waiting the determination of those in Arras—whether they would submit peaceably, or renew the war. To defray the expenses of so large an armament, the king borrowed great sums from Paris and the other principal towns in his kingdom.
The king, however, found means of gaining possession of the city of Arras[74], into which he made his entry on the 4th of May, and fortified it more strongly against the town of Arres,—into which a number of persons attached to the burgundian party had thrown themselves, and even many from those towns that had lately submitted to the king, who, though for the most part adventurers, and without any leader of note had strengthened the fortifications, and uttered daily blasphemies against the king. To these they added all manner of insults,—such as erecting gibbets in the town and on the walls, on which they hung his badge of the white cross, showing their naked posteriors to him, and other indecencies.
During these insulting follies, some of the inhabitants of the town waited on the king, to endeavour to obtain a pacification; and although these adventurers had persevered over long in their impudence, the king agreed to accept the submission of those in Arras, as offered to their sovereign lord, for neglect of proper homage and of different dues; and that the revenues of the said towns should be collected by his commissioners, and in his name, until the princess of Burgundy should have performed her homage by proxy. The king also promised not to send any body of men at arms into the town of Arras without the consent of the inhabitants.