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"Au dit sacre fut toujours près et presente la dicte Jehanne la Pucelle, tout armée à blanc, et tenant son estandard en le main, et bien y devoit estre, comme celle qui estait principallement cause de l'ordonnance et volunte de Dieu d'icelluy sacre."

"At the said inauguration was always near and present the said Jeanne la Pucelle, completely armed in polished steel, and holding her standard in her hand, as by good right, she having been the principal cause of the order and will of God concerning the said coronation."

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Page 102. She (Jeanne) thus addressed herself unto him (the king), shedding warm tears.

After the coronation of Charles, Dubreton, at page 282, thus narrates the conduct of Jeanne:

"That done, the Pucelle, whom all the world listened to, looked at and admired, as if an angel spake from God, having in the presence of all the princes knelt down at the king's feet, told him: That she had rendered to him and to his kingdom her first duties; and exhorted him to reign as wisely and as virtuously as he had been legitimately summoned to the crown.""

Page 104.

I have accomplished all that MESSIRES commanded me.

By this term Messires (sirs or gentlemen) Jeanne implied those saints who had visited her from heaven; being a term which appears very singular to apply to celestial emissaries, at the present period of time.

Page 105. When the duke of Bedford, &c. knew that the king was in the plains in the vicinity of Dampmartin, &c.

Grafton, at pages 538 and 539, when describing the then situation of affairs between the regent duke of Bedford, and Charles VII., gives the ensuing statement, which by no means coincides with the text of the Diary, from whence it should seem that the English were averse to give battle to the French, the direct opposite of which is asserted by our chronicler :

"The duke of Bedford, hearing that these townes had returned to the part of his adversaries, and that Charles, late dolphin, had taken upon him the name and estate of the king of Fraunce, and also seeing that daylie cities and townes returned from the English part, and became French, as though the Englishe men had nowe lost all their hardie chiefetaynes and valyaunt men of warre, espied and evidently perceived that the last and uttermost point of recovery, was driven onely to overcome by battayle, and to subdue by force. By which victorie (as he put his confidence in God) he trusted not onely to scourge and plague the cities, which were so sodainely chaungeable, but also to asswage and caulme the haute courage of the newe sacred French king and his companions. Wherefore he having together ten thousand good Englishe men (besides Normans), departed out of Paris in warlike fashion, and passed through Brie to Monstrell Faultyow, and there sent by Bedford his herault letters to the French king, alleging to him that he, contrary to the laws of God and

man, yea, and contrary to the finall conclusion taken, concorded, and agreed betweene his noble brother king Henry V. and king Charles VI., father to the sayde now usurper, leavyng all humaine reason and honest communication (which sometime appeaseth debates and pacefyeth strifes) onely allured and entysed by a devilish witch, and a fanaticall enchaunteresse, had not onely falsely and craftely taken upon him the name, title, and dignity of the king of France; but also had, by murder, stealing, craft, and deceitfull meanes, violently gotten, and wrongfully kept, divers cities and townes belonging to the king of England, his most best beloved lorde, and most deerest nephew. For proof whereof, he was come downe from Paris with his armie, into the countrie of Brye, by dent of sword, and stroke of battayle, to prove his wryting and cause true, willing his enemie to chose the place, and he in the same would give him battayle.

"The newe French king, departyng from his solempne ceremonies at Reins, and removing from thence to Dampmartine, studiyng howe to compasse the Parisians, either with money, or with promise, was somewhat troubled with this message; howbeit, he made a good countenance and a French bragge, aunswering to the herault, that he would sooner seeke hys master the duke, than that the duke should pursue him. The duke of Bedford, hering his aunswere, marched toward him, and pitched his field in a strong place, and sent out divers of his raungers, to provoke the Frenche men to come forward. The French king was in manner determined to abide the battayle, but when he heard saye by his espialles, that the power and number of the Englishe men were to his army equall in

power, he determined that it was more for his profite to abstaine from battayle without daunger, then to enter into the conflict with jeopardie: fearing least that with a rashe courage he might overthrowe all his affayres, which so effectuously proceeded. And so well advised, he turned with his armie a little out of the way. The duke of Bedford perceyving his faint courage, followed him by mountaynes and dales, till he came to a towne in Barre, not farre from Senlis, where he found the French king and his army. Wherefore he ordered his battayle, lyke a man expert in marciall science, setting the archers before, and himselfe with the noble men in the mayne battayle, and put the Normans on both sides for the wings. The French king also ordered hys battayles, according to the devise of his capitaynes. Thus these two armies, without any great doing (except a fewe skirmishes, in the which the duke's light horse men did very valyauntly,) laye eche in sight of other, by the space of two dayes and two nightes. But when the French king sawe, and perceyved, how glad, howe diligent and couragious the Englishe men were to fight and geve battayle, he imagined that by his taryeng, one of these two things must nedes chaunce; that is to say, eyther he should fight against his will, or lye still like a coward, to his great rebuke and infamie. Wherefore in the dead of the night (as prively as he could) he brake up his campe and fled to Bray. When this flight was perceyved in the morning, the regent could scarce refraine his people, from folowyng the French army, calling them cowardes, dastardes, and loutes; and therefore, he perceyving that by no meanes he could allure the newe French king to abide battayle, mistrusting the Parisians,

and giving no great credite to their fayre, swete, and flattering wordes, returned agayne to Paris, to assemble together a greater power, and so to prosecute his · enemies."

Page 106. At about this period, proceeded many French lords unto the city of Beauvais.

The city of Beauvais is of great antiquity, and the principal town of the Oise; being celebrated for the siege it sustained in 1472, under Jeanne Hachette, who headed the women of the place, against the duke of Burgundy, commanding eighty thousand men. The inhabitants, to the present moment, pride themselves on their city's never having been taken. One curious circumstance appertaining to Beauvais it may not be amiss to record, which was, that, on the fourteenth of January, annually, was celebrated the Ass's festival, or holiday, being a representation of the Virgin's flight into Egypt. Upon this solemn occasion, all the clergy of the city being assembled in the cathedral, a beautiful damsel was presented to them, placed upon an ass most sumptuously caparisoned; and thus conducted from the principal church. to that of Saint Stephen, into the chancel of which the maid and her bearer were escorted, and stationed on the right side of the altar. During the service which followed, the whole congregation at intervals imitated the brayings of a jack-ass; and at the conclusion of the mass, the deacon, in lieu of repeating the ita missa est, articulated three stentorian brays, whereto his auditors

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