A Function, or an Act of Worship, undertaken and carried out in this spirit, cannot be regarded otherwise than most seriously. Let us turn to the actual manner in which the Ordeal by Battle was conducted.
The accused began by denying the whole accusation word by word. He then offered to prove his innocence by his body. If the Judge accepted the offer and decided that the duel should take place, he made the parties exchange gloves. They then had to find pledges that they would appear on the day of battle. Fines were paid to the King for permission to fight, for recreancy on failure to appear, for refusing to fight, for not holding the ordeal properly, or as a bribe to allow a fight.
For the following rules in the preparation of the ground, I am indebted to the learned pen of my friend Prof. Skeat, whose Notes to his Chaucer and his Piers Plowman are a treasure-house of learning:—
“The King shall find the field to fight in, and the lists shall be made and devised by the constable; and it is to be observed, that the list must be 60 paces long and 40 paces broad, set up in good order, and the ground within hard, stable, and level, without any great stones or other impediments; also, that the lists must be made with one door to the east, and another to the west; and strongly barred about with good bars 7 feet high or more, so that a horse may not be able to leap over them.”
It appears that there were an immense number of ordeals by battle; indeed, in such an age, when every man was a soldier, one can very well understand that this method would seem to an innocent man far superior to any form of trial. In one year of Henry the Second’s reign, there were thirty-four ordeals. Not only to an innocent man, but to the guilty the ordeal by battle commended itself; many a sturdy rogue, having little fear of God’s vengeance before his eyes, preferred the chance of battle to the certainty of the gallows; so much was this the case that criminals were sometimes pardoned on condition of fighting so many battles successfully and ridding the country of so many malefactors. The ordeal by battle brought into existence, as might have been expected, a kind of gladiator, the champion or hired fighter, who risked his neck with every fight.
BOSS FROM THE RUINS OF THE EAST CLOISTER OF ST. BARTHOLOMEW’S PRIORY
These are the rules for the arming of a knight (Arch. Journal, iv.):—
“How a man shalle be armyd at his ese, when he schal fighte on foote. He schal have noo schurte up-on him, but a dowbelet of Fustean lynyd with satene, cutte fulle of hoolis; the dowbelet must be strongeli bounden there the poyntis muste be sette aboute the greet of the arme, and the beste before and behynde: and the gussetis of mayle muste be sowid unto the dowbelet in the bought of the arme, and undir the arme: the armynge poyntis muste be made of fyne twyne, suche as men make stryngis for crossebowes, and they muste be trussid smalle, and poyntid as poyntis. Also they muste be waxid with cordeweneris coode and than they wolle neythir recche nor breke. Also a payre hosyne of stamyn sengille, and a peyre of shorte bulwerkis of thynne blanket to put aboute his kneys, for chawfynge of his lighernes. Also a payre of shone of thikke cordewene, and they muste be frette with smal whipcorde; thre knottis up-on a corde; and thre coordis muste be faste sowid un-to the hele of the shoo, and fyve cordis in the myddille of the soole of the same shoo: and that ther be betwene the frettis of the heele and the frettis of the myddille of the shoo the space of thre fyngris.
Two arme a man: Firste, ye muste sette on Sabatones and tye hem upon the shoo with smale poyntis that wol breke. And then griffus, and then quisses, and then the breche of mayle. And then touletis. And then brest. And then vambras. And then rerebras. And then glovys. And then hange his daggere upon his right side. And then his shorte swerde upon the lyfte side in a rounde rynge, alle nakid, to pulle it oute lightli. And then putte his cote upon his bak. And then his basinet pynnid upon two greet staplis before the breste with a dowbille bokille behynde upon the bak, for to make the basinet sitte juste. And then his longe swerde in his hande. And then his pensille in his hande, peyntid of seynt George, or of oure lady, to blesse him with as he gooth towarde the felde, and in the felde.
The day that the Pelaunt and the defendant shalle fighte what they shal have with hem into the felde.
A tente muste be pight in the felde
Also a cheyre
Also a basyne
Also vj loves of bread
Also ij galones of wyne
Also a messe of mete, flesshe or fisshe
Also a borde and a peyre trestelis, to sette his mete and drynke on
Also a borde clothe
Also a knyf for to kutte his mete
Also a cuppe to drynke of
Also a glass with a drynke made
Also a dosen tresses of armynge poyntis
Also a hamyr and pynsones, and a bicorne
Also smale nayles a dosene
Also a long swerde, shorte swerde, and daggar
Also a kerchief to hele the viser of his basinet
Also a penselle to bere in his hande of his avowryre.