Although this motion séemed onelie to increase loue and continuall amitie betwéene the princes; yet the Frenchmen, hauing in their perfect remembrance the innumerable damages and hurts, which they of late daies had susteined by the English nation (whereby continuall hatred increased against them in France) thought by policie and wisedome, with faire words and friendlie countenance, to put by this request, and to motion them rather to depart homeward, than to pricke them forward to Paris; where peraduenture they might be so interteined at this time, that they would at another come thither, both vndesired and vnwelcomed. This peace was said to be made onelie by the Holie-ghost, bicause that on the daie of méeting, a white dooue sat on the top of the king of Englands tent: whether she sate there to drie hir, or came thither as a token giuen by God, I referre it to your iudgment. At this treatie and méeting was not the duke of Glocester, nor other lords which were not content with this truce, but the duke came afterwards to Amiens, with diuerse other lords of England, to the French king, which both highlie feasted them, and also presented them with plate and horsses well garnished.
King Lewes, considering what gaine the Englishmen had gotten by making warre in France; and what miserie, what calamitie, and what pouertie the French nation had suffered, and manie yeares susteined, by reason of the said warres; determined clearelie rather to pacifie and interteine the English nation by faire words and great rewards (although it were to his great charge) than by too much hardinesse to put himselfe, his nobilitie & realme in hazard, by giuing them battell, as his predecessors had vnwiselie doone at Poitiers, and at Agincourt. Wherefore to buie peace, he granted king Edward for a yearelie tribute fiftie thousand crownes, to be paied at London; which, accounting a crowne at foure shillings, amounteth to ten thousand pounds. And to haue the fauour and good will of his chiefe councellors, he gaue great pensions, amounting to the summe of sixteene thousand crownes a yeere, that is to saie: to his chancellor, to the lord Hastings his chiefe chamberleine, a man of no lesse wit than vertue, and of great authoritie with his maister, and that not without cause; for he had as well in time of aduersitie, as in the faire flattering world, well and trulie serued him: and to the lord Howard, to sir Thomas Montgomerie, to sir Thomas Sentleger, to sir Iohn Cheinie maister of the kings horsses, to the marques Dorsset, sonne to the queene, and diuerse other, he gaue great and liberall rewards, to the intent to keepe himselfe in amitie with England, while he wan and obteined his purpose and desire in other places.
These persons had giuen to them great gifts, beside yearelie pensions. For Argenton his councellor affirmed of his owne knowledge, that the lord Howard had in lesse than the tearme of two yeares, for reward in monie and plate, foure and twentie thousand crownes; & at the time of this méeting, he gaue to the lord Hastings the kings chiefe chamberleine, (as the Frenchmen write) an hundred markes of siluer, made in plate, whereof euerie marke is eight ounces sterling. But the English writers affirme, that he gaue the lord Hastings foure and twentie doozen bolles, that is to saie, twelue doozen gilt, & twelue doozen vngilt, euerie cup weieng seuentéene nobles: which gift, either betokened in him a great liberall nature, or else a great and especiall confidence that he had reposed in the said lord chamberleine. Beside this, he gaue him yearelie two thousand crownes pension, the which summe he sent to him by Piers Cleret, one of the maisters of his house, giuing him in charge to receiue of him an acquittance for the receipt of the same pension, to the intent that it should appeare in time to come, that the chancelor, chamberleine, admerall, maisters of the horsses to the king of England, and manie other of his councell, had bin in fée and pensionaries of the French king, whose yearelie acquittances (the lord Hastings onelie excepted) remaine of record to be shewed in the chamber of accounts in the palace of Paris.
When Piers Cleret had paied the pension to the lord Hastings, he gentlie demanded of him an acquittance for his discharge. Which request when he denied, he then onlie asked of him a bill of thrée lines to be directed to the king, testifieng the receipt of the pension: to the intent that the king your maister should not thinke the pension to be imbeselled. The lord Hastings, although he knew that Piers demanded nothing but reason, answered him: "Sir this gift commeth onelie of the liberall pleasure of the king his maister, and not of my request: if it be his determinat will that I shall haue it, then put you it into my sléeue; and if not, I praie you render to him his gift againe: for neither he nor you shall haue either letter, acquittance, or scroll signed with my hand of the receipt of anie pension, to the intent to brag another daie, that the kings chamberleine of England hath béene pensionarie with the French king, & shew his acquittance in the chamber of accounts, to his dishonor." Piers left his monie behind, and made relation of all things to his maister: which although that he had not his will, yet he much more praised the wisdome and policie of the lord Hastings, than of the other pensionaries, cōmmanding him yearlie to be paied, without anie discharge demanding.
K. Edward returneth into England.
Edw. Hall fol. Ccxxxvj.
Edw. Hall fol. Ccxxxvj.
When the king of England had receiued his monie, and his nobilitie their rewards, he trussed vp his tents, laded his baggage, and departed towards Calis. [But yer he came there, he remembring the craftie dissimulation, and the vntrue dealing of Lewes earle of saint Paule, high constable of France, intending to declare him to the French king in his verie true likenesse and portrature, sent vnto him two letters of credence, written by the said constable, with the true report of all such words and messages as had béene to him sent, and declared by the said constable and his amdassadours. Which letters the French king gladlie receiued, and thankefullie accepted, as the cheefe instrument to bring the constable to his death; which he escaped no long season after, such is the end of dissemblers.] When king Edward was come to Calis, and had set all things in an order, he tooke ship, and sailed with a prosperous wind into England, and was roiallie receiued vpon Blackheath by the maior of London and the magistrates, and fiue hundred commoners apparrelled in murrie, the eight and twentith daie of September, and so conueied through the citie of Westminster, where for a while (after his long labour) he reposed himselfe [euerie daie almost talking with the queene his wife of the marriage of his daughter, whome he caused to be called Dolphinesse: thinking nothing surer than that mariage to take effect, according to the treatie. The hope of which marriage caused him to dissemble, and doo things which afterward chanced greatlie to the French kings profit, & smallie to his.]
Sir Thomas Mōtgomerie.
About the same season, the French king, to compasse his purpose for the getting of the constable into his hands, tooke truce with the duke of Burgognie for nine yeares as a contractor in the league, and not comprehended as an other princes alie. The king of England aduertised hereof, sent ouer sir Thomas Montgomerie to the French king, offering to passe the seas againe the next summer in his aid, to make warres on the duke Burgognie; so that the French king should paie to him fiftie thousand crownes for the losse which he should susteine in his custome, by reason that the woolles at Calis (bicause of the warres) could haue no vent, and also paie halfe the charges and halfe the wages of his souldiers and men of warre. The French king thanked the king of England for his gentle offer, but he alledged that the truce was alreadie concluded, so that he could not then attempt anie thing against the same without reproch to his honour.