His [Edward II.’s] most fatal mistake, however, was to place all his archers in the front line,[602] without any protecting body of horsemen (‘Art of War in the Middle Ages,’ p. 101).The worst point of all was that in each corps the archers had been placed behind[603] the horsemen ... condemned from the first to almost entire uselessness (‘History of the Art of War,’ p. 575).

Poor Edward! He is first made to place his archers in front of his horsemen, and blamed for his folly in doing so; and then he is made to place them behind, and again blamed for his folly.

It is the same with the battle of Creçy (1346). Let any one compare the four narratives given in succession by Mr. Oman,[604] together with the three ground plans, and he will be fairly bewildered. The only thing of which we can be sure is that when Mr. Oman has adopted a view, he will himself afterwards abandon it. It is the same, again, with the numbers also. Mr. Oman, in his second narrative (as apparently in his first), reckons the English host at some 9,300 men (6,000 archers, 2,300 men-at-arms, 1,000 Welsh). In his fourth they exceed 20,000 (11,000 archers, 3,900 men-at-arms, 5,000 or 5,500 Welsh).

Need I pursue further this endless contradiction? It has been my object to warn the reader of Mr. Oman’s works on the Art of War to compare his successive views before adopting a single one of them. Whether on the field of Bannockburn or of Hastings we need a guide who knows, at least, his own mind, and whose “cocksureness” is not proportionate to the mutability of his views.

XV
The Marshalship of England

In his valuable essay on a document of which the origin has long been discussed, the ‘Modus tenendi Parliamentum,’[605] M. Bémont has drawn attention to the close association of this treatise, in the MSS. which contain it, with the coronation of Richard II. and with a treatise on the Marshal’s office. So close, indeed, is this association that

Coke affirme avoir vu de ce traité [the Modus] un exemplaire “écrit au temps de Henri II. qui contient la manière, la forme et l’usage de Gilbert de Scrogel, maréchal d’Angleterre, et qui indique comment il s’acquittait alors de son office.”

M. Bémont explains that Coke confused the ‘Modus’ with the treatise on the Marshal’s office, but this is not, we shall find, quite the right explanation; nor is it the case that the Gilbert in question “vivait au temps de Richard II., non de Henri II.” As Coke’s error as to Gilbert has been very widely followed, it may be well to dispose of it once for all by tracing it to the source of his error.

We must turn for this to two MSS., the Cottonian Nero D. vi., and the MS. lat. 6,049 in the Bibliothèque Nationale (from which is taken Hardy’s, and consequently Dr. Stubbs’, text of the ‘Modus.’) Although M. Bémont has given us a brief analysis of both, he seems not to have observed that, for all purposes, they are duplicates, giving the same documents, as they do, in the same order. Now, the very fine Cottonian MS., which is of the time of Richard II., contains the claims to do service at his coronation (1377) as made before John of Gaunt sitting as High Steward.[606] Among them was that of Margaret, daughter and heiress of Thomas “of Brotherton,” marshal of England, who claimed to discharge that office by her deputy. I have italicised the important words:

Item quoad officium marescalli Anglie Margareta Marschall Comitissa Norff’ porrexit peticionem suam coram prefato Domino Senescallo in hec verba “A tres honure seignur le Roy de Castille et de Leon, Duc de Lancastre, et Seneschall’ Dengleterre supplie Margarete file et heir Thomas Brotherton’ nadgaires Conte de Norff’ et mareschall dengleterre destre accepte a loffice de mareschalcie ore al coronement nostre sr le Roy come a son droit heritage apres la mort le dit Thomas son piere fesante loffice par son depute come Gilbert Mareschall Conte de Strogoil fist as coronement le Roy Henri second, cestassavoir de paiser debatz en meson le Roy au iour de son coronement et faire liveree des herbergages et de garder les hoesses du chambre le Roy, pernant de chescun Baron et Conte faitz Chivaler au cel iour un palfrey ove une sele.” Supra quo audita peticione predicta, dictum fuit pro domino Rege ibidem quod officium illud in persona domini Regis in feodo remansit ad assignandum et contulendum cuicumque ipsi Regi placeret. Et supra hoc auditis tam pro domino quam pro prefata Comitissa pluribus racionibus et allegacionibus in hac parte pro eo quod curie quod finalis discussio negocii predicti propter temporis brevitatem ante coronacionem predictam fieri non potuit Henricus de Percy ex assensu et precepto ipsius Regis assignatus fuit ad officium predictum faciendum, etc., etc. (fo. 65d).