Bayard: The Good Knight Without Fear And Without Reproach
by
Christopher Hare
Part 1 out of 2
Produced by Ted Garvin, Andrea Ball, Thomas Ruley and the Online
[Illustration: BAYARD.]
BAYARD
THE GOOD KNIGHT WITHOUT
FEAR AND WITHOUT REPROACH
BY CHRISTOPHER HARE
WITH COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS
BY HERBERT COLE
INTRODUCTION
That courtesy title which flies to the mind whenever the name Bayard is
mentioned--"The Good Knight without Fear and without Reproach"--is no fancy
name bestowed by modern admirers, but was elicited by the hero's merits in
his own day and from his own people.
The most valuable chronicle of the Good Knight's life and deeds was written
with charming simplicity by a faithful follower, who, in single-hearted
devotion to his beloved master's fame, took no thought for himself, but
blotted out his own identity, content to remain for all time a nameless
shadow--merely the LOYAL SERVITOR. It is from his record that the incidents
in the following pages are retold.
The "Loyal Servitor" is now believed from recent research to have been
Jacques de Mailles, his intimate friend and companion-at-arms, probably his
secretary. He certainly learnt from Bayard himself the story of his early
years, which he tells so delightfully, and he writes with the most minute
detail about the later events which happened in his presence, and the
warlike encounters in which he himself took part; and a most vivid and
interesting account he makes of it. In an ancient catalogue of the Mazarine
Library, his book is first set down as the _Histoire du Chevalier Bayard,
par_ Jacques de Mailles, Paris, in 4to, 1514 (probably a mistake for 1524).
The better-known edition, with only the name of the "Loyal Servitor," was
published in 1527, under the title of
THE VERY JOYFUL AND VERY DELIGHTFUL
HISTORY
OF THE LIFE, THE HEROIC DEEDS, THE TRIUMPHS
AND THE VALOUR OF THE GOOD KNIGHT
WITHOUT FEAR AND WITHOUT REPROACH
BAYARD.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
BAYARD
A FINE EXHIBITION OF HORSEMANSHIP
BATTLE OF FORNOVO
BAYARD DEFENDS THE BRIDGE
THE PAGE PRESENTS HIS PRISONER
SEIZURE OF THE SPY
BAYARD PRESENTED TO HENRY VIII
THE DEATH OF BAYARD
[Illustration: LE CHEVALIER BAYARD _Sans peur et sans reproche_.]
THE STORY OF BAYARD
CHAPTER I
Pierre Terrail, the renowned Bayard of history, was born at the Castle of
Bayard, in Dauphine, about the year 1474, when Louis XI. was King of
France. He came of an ancient and heroic race, whose chief privilege had
been to shed their blood for France throughout the Middle Ages.
The lord of Bayard had married Helene Alleman, a good and pious lady of a
noble family, whose brother Laurent was the Bishop of Grenoble. Pierre
Bayard, the hero of this story, was the second son of a large family; he
had three brothers and four sisters. His eldest brother, Georges, was five
or six years older than himself, then came his sisters, Catherine, Jeanne,
and Marie, while younger than himself were Claudie, and two brothers,
Jacques and Philippe.
Like so many other mediaeval strongholds, the Castle of Bayard was built
upon a rocky hill, which always gave an advantage in case of attack. It had
been erected by the great-grandfather and namesake of our Pierre Bayard,
probably on the site of an earlier stronghold, in the year 1404. No better
position could have been chosen, for it commanded a deep valley on two
sides, in a wild and mountainous district of Dauphine, near the village of
Pontcharra in the Graisivaudan. Even now we can still see from its ruins
what a powerful fortress it was in its time, with massive towers three
stories high, standing out well in front of the castle wall, and defended
by a strong drawbridge. Well fortified, it could have stood a siege before
the days of artillery.
But towards the end of the fifteenth century, when Bayard's childhood was
spent here, such castles as these were not looked upon as mainly places of
defence and refuge, they were gradually becoming more like the later
manor-houses--family homes, with comfortable chambers and halls, where once
there had chiefly been the rude dwelling of a garrison used for defence and
stored with missiles and arms.
Each story of the castle, as well as the towers, would contain various
chambers, well lighted with windows pierced in the thick stone walls. On
the first floor, approached by a broad flight of steps from the court, we
find the oratory--scarcely large enough to be dignified by the name of
chapel--the dining-hall, and the private chamber of the lord of the castle.
On the floor above this the lady of Bayard had her own apartment, the
"garde-robe" or closet where her dresses were kept, and the place where her
daughters as they grew up, and any maidens who were brought up under her
care, sat at their needlework, and where they slept at night. On the upper
story were the rooms for the young children with their maids, and the
various guest-chambers.
The ground floor below the dining-halls was a dark place given up to
store-rooms and the servants' quarters, and below this again were cellars
and grim dungeons, which could only be reached by trap-doors. The kitchen,
usually a round building, stood in an outer court, and here great wood
fires could be used for the needful hospitality of a country house. The
stables and the rough quarters for the serving-men were beyond.
The dining-hall was used as a court of justice when the lord of the castle
had to settle any difficulties, to receive his dues, or reprimand and
punish any refractory vassal. At one end of this hall was a great hearth,
where most substantial logs of wood could be laid across the fire-dogs, and
burn with a cheerful blaze to light and warm the company in the long, cold
winter evenings. At meal-times trestle tables were brought in, and on these
the food was served, the long benches being placed on each side of them. On
the special occasions of important visits or unusual festivities, a high
table was set out at the upper end. The floor was covered with fresh
rushes, skins of wolf or bear being laid before the fire, and the walls
were stencilled in white and yellow on the higher part, and hung with serge
or frieze below. Only in the lady's chamber do we find carpets and hangings
of tapestry or embroidery, part of her wedding dowry or the work of her
maidens. Here, too, were a few soft cushions on the floor to sit upon, some
carved chairs, tables, and coffers. The master of the house always had his
great arm-chair with a head, and curtains to keep off the draughts, which
were many and bitterly cold in winter-time.
The chronicler of Bayard, known as the "Loyal Servitor," begins his story
on a spring day of the year 1487.
Aymon Terrail, lord of Bayard, sat by the fireside in his own chamber, the
walls of which were hung with old arms and trophies of the chase. He felt
ill and out of spirits. He was growing old--he had not long to live: so he
assured his good wife.
What was to become of his sons when he was gone? A sudden thought occurred
to him. "I will send for them at once, and we will give them a voice in the
matter."
To this the lady of Bayard agreed, for she never crossed her lord's will,
and at least it would distract his gloomy thoughts. It chanced that all the
four lads were at home, and ready to obey their father's command. As they
entered the room and came forward, one by one, in front of the great chair
by the hearth, somewhat awed by this hasty summons, they were encouraged by
a smile from their mother, who sat quietly in the background with her
embroidery.
The assembled group made a striking picture. The grand old man, a massive
figure seated in his canopied arm-chair, with white hair and flowing beard
and piercing black eyes, was closely wrapped in a long dark robe lined with
fur, and wore a velvet cap which came down over his shaggy brows. Before
him stood his four well-grown, sturdy, ruddy-faced boys, awaiting his
pleasure with seemly reverence, for none of them would have dared to be
seated unbidden in the presence of their father. Aymon de Bayard turned to
his eldest son, a big, strongly-built youth of eighteen, and asked him what
career in life he would like to follow. Georges, who knew that he was heir
to the domain and that he would probably not have long to wait for his
succession, made answer respectfully that he never wished to leave his
home, and that he would serve his father faithfully to the end of his days.
Possibly this was what the lord of Bayard expected, for he showed no
surprise, but simply replied, "Very well, Georges, as you love your home
you shall stay here and go a-hunting to fight the bears."
Next in order came Pierre, the "Good Knight" of history, who was then
thirteen years of age, as lively as a cricket, and who replied with a
smiling face, "My lord and father, although my love for you would keep me
in your service, yet you have so rooted in my heart the story of noble men
of the past, especially of our house, that if it please you, I will follow
the profession of arms like you and your ancestors. It is that which I
desire more than anything else in the world, and I trust that by the help
of God's grace I may not dishonour you."
The third son, Jacques, said that he wished to follow in the steps of his
uncle, Monseigneur d'Ainay, the prior of a rich abbey near Lyons. The
youngest boy, Philippe, made the same choice, and said that he would wish
to be like his uncle, the Bishop of Grenoble.
After this conversation with his four sons the lord of Bayard, not being
able to ride forth himself, sent one of his servants on the morrow to
Grenoble, about eighteen miles distant, with a letter to his brother-in-law
the Bishop, begging him to come to his Castle of Bayard as he had important
things to say to him. The good Bishop, who was always delighted to give
pleasure to any one, readily agreed. He set off as soon as he had received
the letter, and arrived in due time at the castle, where he found Aymon de
Bayard seated in his great chair by the fire. They greeted each other
warmly and spent a very pleasant evening together with several other
gentlemen of Dauphine, guests of the house.
At the end of dinner, the venerable lord of Bayard thus addressed the
company: "My lord Bishop, and you, my lords, it is time to tell you the
reason for which I have called you together. You see that I am so oppressed
with age that it is hardly possible I can live two years. God has given me
four sons, each of whom has told me what he would like to do. My son Pierre
told me that he would follow the calling of arms, and thus gave me singular
pleasure. He greatly resembles my late father, and if he is like him in his
deeds he cannot fail to be a great and noble knight. It is needful for his
training that I should place him in the household of some prince or lord
where he may learn aright his profession. I pray you that you will each
tell me what great House you advise."
Then said one of the ancient knights: "He must be sent to the King of
France." Another suggested that he would do very well with the Duke of
Bourbon; and thus one after another gave his advice. At last the Bishop of
Grenoble spoke: "My brother, you know that we are in great friendship with
the Duke Charles of Savoy, and that he holds us in the number of his
faithful vassals. I think that he would willingly take the boy as one of
his pages. He is at Chambery, which is near here; and if it seems good to
you, and to the company, I will take him there to-morrow morning."
This proposal of the Bishop of Grenoble seemed excellent to all present,
and Pierre Bayard was formally presented to him by his father, who said:
"Take him, my lord, and may God grant that he prove a worthy gift and do
you honour by his life." The Bishop at once sent in haste to Grenoble with
orders to his own tailor to bring velvet, satin, and all things needful to
make a noble page presentable. It was a night to be long remembered in the
castle, for cunning hands were pressed into the service under the eyes of
the master tailor, who stitched away through the long hours in such style
that next morning all was ready. A proud and happy boy was Bayard the next
morning when, after breakfast, clad in his fine new clothes, he rode the
chestnut horse into the courtyard before the admiring gaze, of all the
company assembled to look upon him.
[Illustration: A fine exhibition of horsemanship.]
When the spirited animal felt that he had such a light weight upon his
back, while at the same time he was urged on with spurs, he began to prance
about in the most lively fashion, and everybody expected to see the boy
thrown off. But Bayard kept his seat like a man of thirty, spurred on his
horse, and galloped round and round the court, as brave as a lion, his eyes
sparkling with delight. An old soldier like his father thoroughly
appreciated the lad's nerve and spirit, and could scarcely help betraying
the pride he felt in him. But the wise Bishop probably thought that the lad
had received quite as much notice as was good for him, and announced that
he was ready to start, adding to his nephew: "Now, my friend, you had
better not dismount, but take leave of all the company."
Bayard first turned to his father with a beaming countenance. "My lord and
father, I pray God that He may give you a good and long life, and trust
that before you are taken from this world you may have good news of me."
"My son, such is my prayer," was the old man's reply as he gave the boy his
blessing. Bayard then took leave of all the gentlemen present, one after
the other. Meantime the poor lady his mother was in her tower chamber,
where she was busy to the last moment packing a little chest with such
things as she knew her boy would need in his new life. Although she was
glad of the fair prospect before him, and very proud of her son, yet she
could not restrain her tears at the thought of parting from him; for such
is the way of mothers.
Yet when they came and told her, "Madame, if you would like to see your son
he is on horseback all ready to start," the good lady went bravely down to
the little postern door behind the tower and sent for Pierre to come to
her. As the boy rode up proudly at her summons and bending low in his
saddle took off his plumed cap in smiling salutation, he was a gallant
sight for loving eyes to rest upon. Bayard never forgot his mother's
parting words. "Pierre, my boy, you are going into the service of a noble
prince. In so far as a mother can rule her child, I command you three
things, and if you do them, be assured that you will live triumphantly in
this world. The first is that above all things you should ever fear and
serve God; seek His help night and morning and He will help you. The second
is that you should be gentle and courteous to all men, being yourself free
from all pride. Be ever humble and helpful, avoiding envy, flattery, and
tale-bearing. Be loyal, my son, in word and deed, that all men may have
perfect trust in you. Thirdly, with the goods that God may give you, be
ever full of charity to the poor, and freely generous to all men. And may
God give us grace that while we live we may always hear you well spoken
of."
In a few simple words the boy promised to remember, and took a loving
farewell of her. Then his lady mother drew from her sleeve a little purse,
in which were her private savings: six gold crowns and one in small
change,[1] and this she gave to her son. Also, calling one of the
attendants of the Bishop, she entrusted him with the little trunk
containing linen and other necessaries for Bayard, begging him to give it
in the care of the equerry who would have charge of the boy at the Duke of
Savoy's Court, and she gave him two crowns. There was no time for more, as
the Bishop of Grenoble was now calling his nephew. As he set forth on that
Saturday morning, riding his spirited chestnut towards Chambery, with the
sun shining and the birds singing, and all his future like a fair vision
before him, young Bayard thought that he was in paradise.
[Footnote 1: The gold crown was then worth 1 livre 15 sous. Multiplying
this by 31, in order to find its present value, we learn that the sum which
Bayard received from his mother would to-day be worth 266 francs, or about
10 guineas.]
Pierre Bayard had set forth from his home in the early morning, soon after
breakfast, and he rode all day by the side of his uncle until, in the
evening, they reached the town of Chambery, where all the clergy came out
to meet the Bishop of Grenoble, for this was part of his diocese, where he
had his official dwelling. That night he remained at his lodging without
showing himself at Court, although the Duke was soon informed of his
arrival, at which he was very pleased. The next morning, which was Sunday,
the Bishop rose very early and went to pay his respects to the Duke of
Savoy, who received him with the greatest favour, and had a long talk with
him all the way from the castle to the church, where the Bishop of Grenoble
said Mass with great ceremony. When this was over, the Duke led him by the
hand to dine with him, and at this meal young Bayard waited upon his uncle
and poured out his wine with much skill and care. The Duke noticed this
youthful cup-bearer and asked the Bishop, "My lord of Grenoble, who is this
young boy who is serving you?"
"My lord," was the reply, "this is a man-at-arms whom I have come to
present to you for your service if you will be pleased to accept him. But
he is not now in the condition in which I desire to give him to you; after
dinner, if it is your pleasure, you will see him."
"It would be very strange if I refused such a present," said the Duke, who
had already taken a fancy to the boy.
Now young Bayard, who had already received instructions from his uncle,
wasted no time over his own dinner, but hurried back to get his horse
saddled and in good order, then he rode quietly into the courtyard of the
castle. The Duke of Savoy was, as usual, resting after dinner in the long
gallery, or _perron_, built the whole length of the keep, on a level with
the first floor, and overlooking the great courtyard below. It was like a
cloister, with great arched windows, and served for a general meeting-place
or lounge in cold or wet weather. From thence he could see the boy going
through all his pretty feats of horsemanship as if he had been a man of
thirty who had been trained to war all his life. He was greatly pleased,
and turning to the Bishop of Grenoble he said to him, "My lord, I believe
that is your little favourite who is riding so well?"
"You are quite right, my lord Duke," was the answer. "He is my nephew, and
comes of a race where there have been many gallant knights. His father, who
from the wounds he has received in battle, and from advancing age, is
unable to come himself to your Court, recommends himself very humbly to
your good grace, and makes you a present of the boy."
"By my faith!" exclaimed the Duke, "I accept him most willingly; it is a
very fine and handsome present. May God make him a great man!"
He then sent for the most trusty equerry of his stables and gave into his
charge young Bayard, with the assurance that one day he would do him great
credit. The Bishop of Grenoble, having accomplished his business, did not
tarry long after this, but having humbly thanked the Duke of Savoy, took
leave of him and of his nephew, and returned to his own home.
Those spring and summer months spent at the Court of Savoy remained a happy
memory to Bayard all his life. On feast-days and holidays the whole company
would go out into the woods or the meadows, the Duchess Blanche with her
young maidens and attendant ladies, while the knights and squires and pages
waited upon them as they dined under the trees, and afterwards played games
and made the air ring with their merry songs. Or there were hunting and
hawking parties which lasted for more than one day, or river excursions
down as far as the Lake of Bourget, where the Duke had a summer palace. It
must have been on occasions such as these when the gallant young Bayard met
with the maiden who caught his boyish fancy, and to whom he remained
faithful at heart until the end of his days. Yet this pretty old-world
story of boy-and-girl affection made no farther progress, and when the
knight and lady met in the years to come, once more under the hospitable
care of the good Duchess Blanche, they met as congenial friends only. The
fair maiden of Chambery is known to history solely by her later married
name of Madame de Frussasco (or Fluxas), and in the records of chivalry
only by the tournament in which the "Good Knight without Fear and without
Reproach" wore her colours and won the prize in her name.
[Illustration: CHARLES VIII KING OF FRANCE _from a medallion_.]
CHAPTER II
The King heard that the Duke of Savoy was coming to his Court, and he sent
the Comte de Ligny to conduct the Duke on his way, and to receive him with
due honour. They met him about six miles from Lyons, and gave him a warm
welcome, after which the two princes rode side by side, and had much talk
together, for they were cousins and had not met for a long time. Now this
Monseigneur de Ligny was a great general, and with his quick, observant eye
he soon took notice of young Bayard, who was in the place of honour close
to his lord, and he inquired: "Who is that gallant little lad riding his
horse so well that it is quite a pleasure to see him?"
"Upon my word," replied the Duke, "I never had such a delightful page
before. He is a nephew of the Bishop of Grenoble, who made me a present of
him only six months ago. He was but just out of the riding-school, but I
never saw a boy of his age distinguish himself so much either on foot or on
horseback. And I may tell you, my lord and cousin, that he comes of a grand
old race of brave and noble knights; I believe he will follow in their
steps." Then he cried out to Bayard: "Use your spurs, my lad, give your
horse a free course and show what you can do."
The lad did not want telling twice, and he gave such a fine exhibition of
horsemanship that he delighted all the company. "On my honour, my lord,
here is a young gentleman who has the making of a gallant knight,"
exclaimed de Ligny; "and in my opinion you had better make a present of
both page and horse to the King, who will be very glad of them, for if the
horse is good and handsome, to my mind the page is still better."
"Since this is your advice," replied Charles of Savoy, "I will certainly
follow it. In order to succeed, the boy cannot learn in a better school
than the Royal House of France, where honour may be gained better than
elsewhere."
With such pleasant talk they rode on together into the city of Lyons, where
the streets were full of people, and many ladies were looking out of the
windows to see the coming of this noble prince and his gay company. That
night the Duke gave a banquet in his own lodging, where the King's
minstrels and singers entertained the guests, then there were games and
pastimes, ending with the usual wine and spices being handed round, and at
last each one retired to his own chamber until the dawn of day.
The next morning the Duke rose early and set forth to seek the King, whom
he found on the point of going to Mass. The King greeted him at once most
warmly and embraced him, saying, "My cousin, my good friend, you are indeed
welcome, and if you had not come to me I should have had to visit you in
your own country...." Then, after more polite talk, they rode together on
their mules to the convent, and devoutly heard Mass, after which the King
entertained the Duke of Savoy, Monsieur de Ligny, and other nobles to
dinner with him, and they had much merry talk about dogs and falcons, arms
and love-affairs. Presently de Ligny said to the King: "Sire, I give you my
word that my lord of Savoy wishes to give you a page who rides his chestnut
better than any boy I ever saw, and he cannot be more than fourteen,
although his horsemanship is as good as that of a man of thirty. If it
pleases you to go and hear vespers at Ainay you will have your pastime in
the fields there afterwards." "By my faith," cried the King, "I do wish
it!" and he heard the whole story of this wonderful boy from the Duke of
Savoy.
When young Bayard heard that the King was to see him he was as much
delighted as if he had won the city of Lyons; and he went in haste to the
head groom of the Duke of Savoy and prayed him to get his horse ready for
him, offering his short dagger as a present. But this the man refused and
made reply: "Go and comb and clean yourself, my friend, and put on your
best clothes, and if, by God's help, the King of France takes you in
favour, you may some day become a great lord and be able to serve me."
"Upon my faith! You may trust me never to forget all the kindness you have
shown me," replied the boy; "and if God ever gives me good fortune you
shall share it." It seemed a long time to his impatience before the hour
arrived when he rode his horse, attended by his equerry, to the meadow
where he was to await the King and his company, who arrived by boat on the
Saone. As soon as Charles VIII. had landed he cried: "Page, my friend,
touch up your horse with your spurs!" which the lad did at once, and to see
him you would have thought that he had been doing it all his life. At the
end of his race Bayard made his clever horse take a few jumps, and then he
rode straight towards the King and gracefully drew up before him with a low
bow. All the company was delighted with the performance, and the King bade
him do it again. "Picquez! Picquez!" (Prick up your horse!), he cried, and
all the pages shouted: "Picquez! Picquez!" with enthusiasm, so that for
some time the name stuck to him.
Then Charles turned to the Duke of Savoy and said: "I see that my cousin of
Ligny told me the truth at dinner, and now I will not wait for you to give
me this page and his horse, but I demand it of you as a favour."
"Most willingly, my lord," answered the Duke, "and may God give him grace
to do you true service." After this young Bayard was given into the special
charge of the lord of Ligny, who was greatly pleased and felt sure that he
would make of him a noble knight.
Meantime, the Duke of Savoy remained for awhile at the Court of Charles
VIII., with whom he was in great favour, and they were like brothers
together. This young King was one of the best of princes, courteous,
generous, and beloved of all men. At length the day of departure came, and
the good Duke went back to his own country, laden with beautiful and
honourable presents.
During three years young Bayard remained as a page in the service of the
Seigneur de Ligny, being trained with the utmost care in all that would be
needful to him in his profession of arms.
He won so much favour from his lord that at the early age of seventeen he
was raised from his position as a page to that of a squire, and appointed
man-at-arms in the General's company, being retained at the same time as
one of the gentlemen of the household, with a salary of 300 livres. As a
man-at-arms Bayard would have under him a page or varlet, three archers,
and a soldier armed with a knife (called a "coutillier"). Thus, when we
find a company of men-at-arms spoken of, it means for each "lance garnie,"
or man-at-arms, really six fighting men on horseback.
When King Charles VIII. found himself once more in his loyal city of Lyons,
it chanced that a certain Burgundian lord, Messire Claude de Vauldray, a
most famous man-at-arms, came to the King and proposed that he should hold
a kind of tournament, called a "Pas d'Armes," to keep the young gentlemen
of the Court from idleness. He meant by this a mimic attack and defence of
a military position, supposed to be a "pas" or difficult and narrow pass in
the mountains. It was a very popular test of chivalry, as the defender hung
up his escutcheons on trees or posts put up for the purpose, and whoever
wished to force this "pas" had to touch one of the escutcheons with his
sword, and have his name inscribed by the King-at-arms in charge of them.
There was nothing that King Charles VIII. loved better than these
chivalrous tournaments, and he gladly gave his consent. Messire Claude de
Vauldray at once set about his preparations, and hung up his escutcheons
within the lists which had been arranged for the coming tournament.
Young Bayard, whom every one called Picquet, passed before the shields and
sighed with longing to accept the challenge and so improve himself in the
noble science of arms. As he stood there silent and thoughtful, his
companion, called Bellabre, of the household of the Sire de Ligny, asked
him what he was thinking of. He replied: "I will tell you, my friend. It
has pleased my lord to raise me from the condition of page into that of a
squire, and I long to touch that shield, but I have no means of obtaining
suitable armour and horses." Then Bellabre, a brave young fellow some years
older than himself, exclaimed: "Why do you trouble about that, my
companion? Have you not your uncle, that fat Abbe of Ainay? I vow that we
must go to him, and if he will not give you money we must take his cross
and mitre! But I believe that when he sees your courage he will willingly
help you."
Bayard at once went and touched the shield, whereupon Mountjoy, King-at-arms,
who was there to write down the names, began to reason with him. "How is
this, Picquet, my friend; you will not be growing your beard for the next
three years, and yet you think of fighting against Messire Claude, who is
one of the most valiant knights of all France?" But the youth replied
modestly: "Mountjoy, my friend, what I am doing is not from pride or
conceit, but my only desire is to learn how to fight from those who can
teach me. And if God pleases He will grant that I may do something to
please the ladies." Whereupon Mountjoy broke out into a hearty laugh,
which showed how much he enjoyed it.
The news soon spread through Lyons that Picquet had touched the shield of
Messire Claude, and it came to the ears of the Sire de Ligny, who would not
have missed it for ten thousand crowns. He went at once to tell the King,
who was greatly delighted and said: "Upon my faith! Cousin de Ligny, your
training will do you honour again, if my heart tells me true." "We shall
see how it will turn out," was the grave reply; "for the lad is still very
young to stand the attack of a man like Messire Claude."
But that was not what troubled young Bayard; it was the question how to
find money for suitable horses and accoutrements. So he went to his
companion, Bellabre, and asked for his help. "My friend, I beg of you to
come with me to persuade my uncle, the Abbe of Ainay, to give me money. I
know that my uncle, the Bishop of Grenoble, would let me want for nothing
if he were here, but he is away at his Abbey of St. Sernin at Toulouse,
which is so far off that there would be no time for a man to go there and
back." "Do not trouble," said his friend, "you and I will go to Ainay, and
I trust we shall manage it." This was some comfort, but the young warrior
had no sleep that night. He and Bellabre, who shared the same bed, rose
very early and took one of the little boats from Lyons to Ainay. On their
arrival, the first person they met in the meadow was the Abbe himself,
reading his prayers with one of his monks. The two young men advanced to
salute him, but he had already heard of his nephew's exploit, and received
him very roughly. "Who made you bold enough to touch the shield of Messire
Claude?" he asked angrily. "Why, you have only been a page for three years,
and you can't be more than seventeen or eighteen. You deserve to be flogged
for showing such great pride." To which his nephew replied: "Monseigneur, I
assure you that pride has nothing to do with it, but the desire and will to
follow in the steps of your brave ancestors and mine. I entreat you, sir,
that, seeing I have no other friends or kindred near, you will help me with
a little money to obtain what is needful."
"Upon my word!" exclaimed the Abbe, "go and seek help elsewhere; the funds
of my abbey are meant to serve God and not to be spent in jousts and
tournaments." Bellabre now put in his word and remonstrated.
"Monseigneur, if it had not been for the virtue and the valour of your
ancestors you would never have been Abbe of Ainay, for by their merits and
not yours it was gained. Your nephew is of the same noble race, and
well-beloved of the King; it is absolutely necessary that you should help
him...." After more talk of this kind the Abbe at last consented, and took
the two squires into his own room, where he opened a little cupboard, and
from a purse which was inside he took out a hundred crowns and gave them to
Bellabre, saying: "I give you this to buy two horses for this brave
man-at-arms, for he has not enough beard to handle money himself. I will
also write a line to Laurencin,[1] my tailor, to supply him with needful
accoutrements." "You have done well, my lord," said Bellabre, "and I assure
you that every one will honour you for this." When the young gentlemen had
their letter they took leave with many humble thanks, and returned at once
to Lyons in their little boat, highly pleased with their success.
[Footnote 1: The most important and wealthy merchant of Lyons.]
"We are in good luck," said Bellabre, "and we must make the most of it. Let
us go at once to the merchant before your good uncle changes his mind, for
he will soon remember that he has put no limit to your expenses, and he can
have no idea what a proper outfit will cost. You may be sure that you will
never see any more of his money." So they took their boat on to the
market-place, found the merchant at home, lost no time in telling of the
good Abbe's generosity, and encouraged Laurencin to exert himself to the
utmost in the way of splendid suits of clothing and armour, to do honour to
his patron's gallant nephew, for there seemed to be no question of economy.
Bayard was measured and fitted with cloth of silver, velvet, and satin,
and then went gaily home with his friend, both of them thinking it an
excellent jest.
When the Abbe of Ainay bethought himself later of what he had done, and
sent a messenger in haste to the tailor, he found that it was too late and
that his bill would come to hundreds of crowns. He was furious, and vowed
that his nephew should never have another penny from him; but that did not
mend matters, for the story got about, to the intense amusement of the King
and his Court, and the rich old miser met with no sympathy.
The young men were fortunate enough to buy two excellent horses for much
less than their value from a brave knight who had broken his leg, and not
being able to figure in the contests himself, was willing to help so
gallant a youth.
The time was drawing near for the great tournament, which would be a high
festival for the town and was looked forward to with much eagerness and
excitement. The course on which the knights were to fight was surrounded
and duly laid out with richly-painted posts. At one side of this enclosed
field, stands were put up and made very bright and gay with coloured
hangings, carpets, embroidered banners, and escutcheons. It was here that
the royal and noble company would sit and watch the proceedings.
Meantime, by permission of the King, Messire Claude de Vauldray had caused
it to be published and declared throughout the city that he would hold the
"pas" against all comers, both on foot and on horseback, on the approaching
Monday.
A tournament was always a gorgeous and brilliant spectacle, but on this
occasion, being held by the King's desire and graced by his presence, it
was more splendid than usual. In our day, when it is the custom of men to
avoid all show and colour in their dress, we can scarcely picture to
ourselves the magnificence of those knights of the Renaissance. When the
gallant gentleman actually entered the lists for fighting, he wore his suit
of polished armour, often inlaid with gold or silver, a coloured silken
scarf across his shoulders richly embroidered with his device, and on his
head a shining helmet with a great tuft of flowing plumes. But in the
endless stately ceremonies which followed or preceded the tournament, the
knight wore his doublet of fine cloth, overlaid with his coat-of-arms
embroidered in silk or gold thread, and an outer surcoat of velvet, often
crimson slashed with white or violet satin, made without sleeves if worn
over the cuirass and finished with a short fluted skirt of velvet. Over
this a short cloak of velvet or satin, even sometimes of cloth of gold, was
worn lightly over one shoulder.
If this was the usual style of costume, which had also to be varied on
different festivals, we can easily understand how impossible it was for
young Bayard to procure such costly luxuries on his small means, and we can
almost forgive him for the audacious trick he played on his rich relation
the Abbe of Ainay. Not only was the knight himself richly clad, but we are
told that to appear in a grand tournament even the horse had to have
sumptuous trappings of velvet or satin made by the tailor. We have not
mentioned the suit of armour, which was the most expensive item of all;
being made at this period lighter and more elaborate, with its flexible
over-lying plates of thin, tempered steel, it was far more costly than it
had ever been before. The bravest knights at the Court were proud to try
their fortune against Messire Claude. It was the rule that after the
contest each champion was to ride the whole length of the lists, with his
visor raised and his face uncovered, that it might be known who had done
well or ill. Bayard, who was scarcely eighteen and had not done growing,
was by nature somewhat thin and pale, and had by no means reached his full
strength. But with splendid courage and gallant spirit, he went in for his
first ordeal against one of the finest warriors in the world. The old
chronicler cannot tell how it happened, whether by the special grace of God
or whether Messire Claude took delight in the brave boy, but it so fell out
that no man did better in the lists, either on foot or on horseback, than
young Bayard, and when it came to his turn to ride down with his face
uncovered, the ladies of Lyons openly praised him as the finest champion of
all. He also won golden opinions of all the rest of the company, and King
Charles exclaimed at supper:
"By my faith! Picquet has made a beginning which in my opinion promises a
good end." Then, turning to the Sire de Ligny, he added: "My cousin, I
never in my life made you so good a present as when I gave him to you."
"Sire," was the reply, "if he proves himself a worthy knight it will be
more to your honour than mine, for it is your kind praise which has
encouraged him to undertake such a feat of arms as this. May God give him
grace to continue as he has begun." Then the General added, turning round
with a smile to the assembled company:
"But we all know that his uncle, the Abbe of Ainay, does not take great
pleasure in the youth's exploits, for it was at the old gentleman's expense
that he procured his accoutrements." This remark was received with a roar
of laughter, in which the King himself joined, for he had already heard the
story and was very much amused at it. Soon after the tournament the Sire
de Ligny sent for young Bayard one morning and said to him: "Picquet, my
friend, you have begun with rare good fortune; you must carry on the
pursuit of arms, and I retain you in my service with three hundred francs a
year and three war-horses, for I have placed you in my company. Now I wish
you to go to the garrison and meet your companions, assuring you that you
will find as gallant men-at-arms there as any in Christendom; they often
have jousts and tournaments to keep in practice of arms and acquire honour.
It seems to me that while awaiting any rumour of war you cannot do better
than stay there."
Bayard, who desired nothing more, replied: "My lord, for all the goods
and honours which you have bestowed upon me I can only at this present
time return you thanks.... My greatest desire is to go and join the
company which you speak of, and if it is your good pleasure I will start
to-morrow." "I am quite willing," said the Sire de Ligny; "but you must
first take leave of the King, and I will bring you to him after dinner."
Which was done, and the youth was thus presented: "Sire, here is your
Picquet, who is going to see his companions in Picardy, and he is come to
say good-bye to you." Young Bayard knelt before the King, who said to him
with a smile: "Picquet, my friend, may God continue in you that which I
have seen begun, and you will be a gallant knight; you are going into a
country where there are fair ladies, be courteous and chivalrous to them,
and farewell, my friend." After this, all the princes and lords crowded
round to take leave of the young soldier, with much affection and regret at
losing him. When he reached his lodging, he found that the King had sent
him a purse of three hundred crowns, and also one of the finest war-horses
in the royal stable. With his usual impulsive generosity Bayard gave
handsome presents to the messengers, and then went to spend the evening
with the Sire de Ligny, who treated him as though he were his own son,
giving him wise advice for his future life, and above all bidding him keep
honour always before his eyes. This command did he keep in very truth until
his death. At last, when it grew late, de Ligny said to him: "Picquet, my
friend, I think you will be starting to-morrow morning before I have risen,
may God bless you!" and embraced him with tears, while Bayard on his knees
said good-bye to his kind master.
More presents awaited him, for that night there arrived two complete and
costly suits from the Sire de Ligny, who also sent his own favourite
chestnut horse, so that when the young squire set forth at daybreak he was
splendidly equipped in every way with horses, servants, armour, and clothes
suitable to his position. As we have seen, dress was a very expensive thing
in those days, when gentlemen of rank wore velvet, brocade, and satin, both
for evening and riding costume as a matter of course.
It was a slow journey into Picardy, for Bayard wished his horses to arrive
in good condition, and only travelled a moderate distance every day. When
he arrived at the little town of Aire, his destination, all the young
officers of the garrison came out to meet him, for the fame of his jousting
with Messire Claude de Vauldray had already reached them. They would not
listen to his modest disclaimers, but feasted and made much of their new
comrade. One lively young noble of the company, probably quite deceived by
the fine show that Bayard made with all his handsome parting gifts, and
taking him for a man of wealth, said to him: "My good companion, you must
make people talk about you, and endeavour to acquire the good favour of
all the fair ladies of this country, and you cannot do better than give us
a tournament, for it is a long time since we have had one in this town."
The poor boy must have been somewhat taken aback by this suggestion, but he
was far too plucky to show it, so he replied with ready goodwill, "On my
faith, Monsieur de Tardieu, is that all? You may be sure that this will
please me even more than yourself. If you will have the goodness to send me
the trumpeter to-morrow morning, and if we have leave of our captain, I
will take care that you shall be satisfied."
All that night Bayard was too excited to sleep, and when Tardieu came
to his lodging in the morning with the trumpeter of the company, he
had already settled exactly what he would do and had written out his
announcement, which ran thus: "Pierre de Bayard, young gentleman and
apprentice of arms, native of Dauphine, of the army of the King of France,
under the high and puissant lord the Sire de Ligny--causeth to be
proclaimed and published a tournament to be held outside the town of Aire,
close to the walls, for all comers, on the 20th day of July. They are to
fight with three charges of the lance without 'lice'" (meaning in this
instance a barrier), "with sharpened point, armed at all points; afterwards
twelve charges with the sword, all on horseback. And to him who does best
will be given a bracelet enamelled with his arms, of the weight of thirty
crowns. The next day there shall be fought on foot a charge with the lance,
at a barrier waist-high, and after the lance is broken, with blows of the
axe, until it is ended at the discretion of the judges and those who keep
the camp. And to him who does best shall be given a diamond of the value of
forty crowns."
This sounds more like real war than courtly pastime, and we see how
terribly in earnest this young soldier was. The allusion to "those who keep
the camp" is to the marshals of the tournament and the heralds-at-arms who
kept a very close watch on the combatants. They also maintained on this
miniature battlefield the laws of chivalry and courtesy, giving help to
those who needed it.
When a young squire first entered the lists he was warned by the cry:
"Remember of what race you come and do nothing contrary to your honour."
There were many strict rules to be observed; for instance, it was forbidden
to strike your adversary with the point, although it was usually blunted
(but not in this tournament of Bayard's). It was forbidden to attack the
horse of your opponent, and this we can quite understand, for in those
days, when a knight wore complete and heavy armour, if his horse were
killed he was absolutely at the mercy of his enemy. It was always made a
ground of complaint against the Spaniards that they attacked the horses of
the foe. In a tournament it was the rule only to strike at the face or the
chest, both well protected by the visor and the breastplate, and to cease
at once if the adversary raised the visor of his helmet. Also no knight was
to fight out of his rank when making a rush together. This was very
important when the champions were divided into two companies under the
order of two chiefs, and were placed exactly opposite each other, at the
two ends of the arena. On a signal made by the marshals of the tournament,
they charged impetuously upon each other, with their horses at full gallop.
They held the lances straight out until the signal came, then lowering the
lances, they rushed forward amid a cloud of dust with loud war-cries and
the fight became a furious scuffle. The knights who had stood the first
shock without being unhorsed or wounded, pressed forward and fought with
the sword, until one of the marshals threw his wand of office into the
arena to show that the contest was over.
In these tournaments the horses were frequently armed as well as their
riders, and they were often gaily caparisoned with emblazoned housings,
sometimes of very costly material, such as satin embroidered with gold or
silver.
At the time when young Bayard joined his company at Aire, there were
stationed in Picardy at no great distance about seven or eight hundred
men-at-arms in these regulation companies (compagnies d'ordonnance) as they
were called. When they were not actually employed on duty, they were very
glad to take their pleasure in all sorts of warlike games. As we may
suppose, they were delighted to take part in the proposed tournament.
Amongst these companies there were some of the famous Scotch Guards, who
had first been taken into the service of France by Charles VII.
The time fixed was only eight days off, but all the same about forty or
fifty men-at-arms gave in their names. Fortunately, before the expected
day, that gentle knight, the Captain Louis d'Ars, arrived, and he was much
delighted to have come in time for this entertainment. When Bayard heard of
his captain's arrival he went to pay his respects to him at once, and was
most warmly welcomed, for the boy's fame had gone before him. To make the
festival more complete, his friend Bellabre also appeared, having been
delayed by waiting for two splendid horses which he expected from Spain. At
length the eventful day arrived, and the gentlemen who wished to take part
in the tournament were divided into two equal ranks, there being
twenty-three on one side and twenty-three on the other. The judges chosen
were the Captain Louis d'Ars and the lord of St. Quentin, captain of the
Scotch company.
At this point it will be interesting to give a full account of the details
needful for a tournament of this period, the close of the fifteenth
century. These tournaments were first started as training-schools for the
practice of arms, and were later tempered by the rules of chivalry. Jousts
were single combats, often a succession of them, for a prize or trial of
skill, while the tourney was troop against troop. These warlike games were
very popular in France especially, but very strict rules had to be made to
prevent the "joust of peace" becoming the deadly "joust a l'outrance" (to
the death).
The "lists," or tournament grounds, were in Bayard's time usually of a
square shape rather longer than broad, and were surrounded by palisades,
often adorned with tapestry and heraldic devices. The marshals of the lists
took note of all that happened and enforced the rules of chivalry. Varlets
were in attendance to help the esquires in looking after their masters, and
helping them up, with their heavy armour, if unhorsed.
It was common to hold a "passage of arms" for three days: two for the
contest on horseback, first with lances, second with swords and maces;
while on the third day, on foot, pole-axes were used. A specially heavy
kind of armour was worn, sometimes nearly 200 lbs. in weight, so that a
knight once unhorsed lay on the ground absolutely helpless, and could not
rise without help. This armour was made still stronger by "reinforcing
armour"--pieces screwed on over the left side, chiefly, which received most
blows--making a double defence for the head, chest, and left shoulder.
"Pauldrons" or shoulder-guards buckled on, that on the right arm being
smaller to leave freedom for using the lance. Then we have brassards or
arm-guards; the rere-brace for the upper arm, the vam-brace for the lower,
and the elbow-piece called a "coudiere."
When all was ready on the appointed day for the tournament at Aire, the
trumpet sounded, and then the order of the Tourney was declared aloud.
Bayard had to appear first in the lists, and against him rode forth a
neighbour of his in Dauphine, by name Tartarin, a powerful man-at-arms.
They rushed at each other so vehemently that Tartarin broke his lance half
a foot from the iron, and Bayard struck him above the arm-piece of his
armour and broke his lance into five or six pieces, upon which the trumpets
sounded forth triumphantly, for the joust was wonderfully good. After
having finished their first attack they returned to face each other for the
second. Such was the fortune of Tartarin that with his lance he forced in
Bayard's arm-piece, and every one thought that he had his arm pierced. But
he was not hurt, and succeeded in returning the attack by a stroke above
the visor, which carried off the bunch of plumes from his adversary's
helmet. The third bout with the lance was as good or even better than the
others, for the lance was more completely shivered into fragments.
When these two knights had finished, next came the lord of Bellabre, and
against him a Scotch man-at-arms, named the Captain David of Fougas, and
these likewise did with their three jousts of the lance all that it was
possible for gentlemen to do. Thus, two by two, all the company went
through the same contest.
This jousting with the lance was one of the most popular exercises for
knights of that day, and the proper use of this weapon was one of the most
important accomplishments for a warrior. We shall often notice, in the
accounts of Bayard's adventures on the field of battle, how extremely
expert he was with his lance. The supreme triumph with this weapon was to
use such skill and force as to break the lance shaft--made of ash or
sycamore--into as many pieces as possible; in fact, to "shiver" it
completely, and thus break as many lances as possible. The tilting lance
was often made hollow, and was from 12 to 15 feet long; but the lance used
with the object of unhorsing instead of splintering was much stronger,
heavier, and thicker in the stem, and instead of a pointed head had a
"coronal," which was blunt.
The first part of the tournament having come to an end, then followed the
battle of the swords. According to the rules, this began with Bayard, who,
on the third stroke he gave, broke his sword into two pieces, but he made
such good use of the stump that he went through the number of strokes
commanded, and did his duty so well that no man could have done better.
After this came the others according to their order, and for the rest of
that day there was such a succession of vigorous fighting that the two
judges declared "never had there been finer lance work or contests with the
sword." When the evening came they retired to young Bayard's lodging, where
a great supper was prepared, to which came many ladies, for within ten
miles round all those of Picardy, or the greater number, had come to see
this fine tournament. After the supper there were dances and other
entertainments, and the company was so well amused that it struck one hour
after midnight before they broke up. It was late next morning before they
woke up, and you may believe that they were never weary of praising Messire
de Bayard, as much for his skill at arms as for his good hospitality.
The next morning, in order to complete that which had begun so well, all
the soldiers assembled at the dwelling of their Captain Louis d'Ars, where
Bayard had already arrived, having come to invite him to dinner at his
lodging, in company with the ladies of the previous evening. First they all
went to hear Mass, and when that was over, "you should have seen the young
gentlemen taking the ladies' arms, and with much pleasant talk leading them
to Bayard's lodging, where if they had supped well the night before, at
dinner they did still better." There was no lingering after this meal, and
towards two o'clock all those who were to take part in the second day's
tournament retired to arm themselves and make ready to fight. The
combatants all approached on horseback, and gravely went round to salute
the company before the contest began.
It was Bayard's place to begin, and against him came a gentleman from
Hainault, Hannotin de Sucker, of great repute. They fought with their
lances, one on each side of the barrier, and gave such tremendous strokes
that the lances were soon broken to pieces; after this they took their
battle-axes, which each of them had hanging by their sides, and dealt each
other great and terrible blows. This appears to us an extremely rough form
of entertainment, but we must remember that these knights were clad in
armour, and so thoroughly covered up from head to foot that there was not
supposed to be a place where a pin could pierce between the joints of the
armour. Under the helmet a smaller close-fitting steel cap was often worn.
This fierce contest went on until Bayard gave his opponent a blow near the
ear, which caused him to waver, and worse still, to fall on his knees,
when, pursuing his success, the victor charged again over the barrier, and
caused Hannotin to kiss the ground.
When the judges saw this they cried, "Hola! Hola! that is enough; now you
may retire." After these two came Bellabre and Arnaulton of Pierre Forade,
a gentleman of Gascony, who did wonders with their lances until they were
both broken; and then they came to the battle-axes, but Bellabre broke his,
after which the judges parted them. After these two came Tardieu and David
the Scotchman, and they did their duty very well. So did others in turn, so
that it was seven o'clock before it was all finished and, for a small
tournament, the lookers-on never saw better jousting in their lives.
When all was over, each man went to his lodging to disarm and change; then
they all came to Bayard's lodging, where the banquet was ready, and there
were also the two judges, the lords of Ars and of St. Quentin, and all the
ladies. After supper it had to be decided and declared by the judges who
should have the prizes. Some of the gentlemen most experienced in arms were
asked to give their opinion "on their faith," and afterwards the ladies on
their conscience, without favouring one more than another. At last it was
agreed that, although each one had done his duty well, yet in their
judgment during the two days Messire de Bayard had done best of all;
wherefore they left it to him, as the knight who had gained the prizes, to
give his presents where it seemed good to him. There was a discussion
between the judges as to who should pronounce sentence, but the Captain
Louis d'Ars persuaded the lord of St. Quentin to do so.
The trumpet was sounded to command silence, and St. Quentin said: "My lords
who are here assembled, and especially those who have been in the Tourney
of which Messire Pierre Bayard has given the prizes for two days ... we
would have you know that after due inquiry of the virtuous and brave
gentlemen who were present and saw the contests, and of the noble ladies
here present ... we have found that although each one has very well and
honestly done his duty, yet the common voice is that the lord of Bayard has
done best in these two days; wherefore the lords and ladies leave to him
the honour of giving the prizes where it seems good to him." Then he added:
"My lord of Bayard, decide where you will give them." The young knight
blushed modestly and was quite troubled. Then he said:
"My lord, I do not know why this honour should come to me, for I think that
others have deserved it more than I. But as it pleases the lords and ladies
that I should be judge, I hope that the gentlemen, my companions, will not
be displeased if I give the prize for the first day to my lord of Bellabre,
and for the second day to the Captain David of Scotland." He therefore gave
the gold bracelet to his friend Bellabre, and the diamond to the Scotch
Captain David, and his decision was greatly applauded. There was again
feasting and dancing afterwards, and the ladies could not say enough in
praise of their gallant young host. We may imagine the penniless condition
in which all this extravagant generosity left him, but his extreme
liberality appears to have been one great feature of his character which
made him beloved through life by all who had to do with him.
He never could see one of his companions thrown without giving him another
horse; if he had a crown left, every one shared it. He never refused the
request of any man if he could possibly grant it, and in his gifts was
always gentle and courteous. His chronicler makes a special point of his
piety from early youth; the first thing when he rose in the morning was
always a prayer to God, as he had promised his mother.
[Illustration: LOUIS XII KING of FRANCE _from a medallion_.]
CHAPTER III
During two years Bayard remained with the garrison at Aire, and made great
progress in all warlike training. At the end of this time, in the year
1494, Charles VIII. undertook his first expedition to Italy, and as the
company of the Count de Ligny was commanded to join him, young Bayard
looked forward with great delight to his first taste of real warfare.
The young King of France, in his eager desire for military glory, forsook
the wise policy of his father, Louis XI., and resolved to claim the kingdom
of Naples, in assertion of the rights bequeathed to him by Rene of Anjou.
In order to prevent any opposition from Spain he yielded to King Ferdinand
the provinces of Roussillon and Cerdagne, and on the same principle gave up
to the Emperor Maximilian, Artois and Franche-Comte. Having made these real
sacrifices as the price of a doubtful neutrality, he set forth on his wild
dreams of conquest at a distance, which could be of no permanent advantage
to him.
Charles VIII. had soon collected a magnificent army and crossed the Alps
in August 1494; it was composed of lances, archers, cross-bow men, Swiss
mercenaries, and arquebusiers. These last used a kind of hand-gun which had
only been in common use for about twenty years, since the battle of Morat.
The arquebus had a contrivance, suggested by the trigger of the cross-bow,
to convey at once the burning match to the trigger. Before that the match
had been held in the hand in using the hand-gun as well as the hand-cannon.
Many of these arquebusiers were on horseback. Besides a number of small
pieces of artillery, the French army had 140 big cannons. The use of these
fire-arms in war had been gradually increasing since the days when Louis
XI. made such use of his "bombards" in the wars in Flanders.
When we read of the wonderful success which at first attended the French
army, we must remember how greatly superior it was to the troops which
opposed it in Italy, which were mostly bands of adventurers collected by
mercenary leaders, named Condottieri, who fought for gain rather than for
glory, and had no special zeal or loyalty for the prince who employed them.
The soldiers in their pay were, for the time being, their own personal
property, and their great desire was to save them "to fight another day,"
while it was not to their interest to kill the men of another band (who
might be on the same side next time), and they only sought to make
prisoners for the sake of their ransom. The impetuosity and real warlike
spirit of the French was a new and alarming thing in Italy, which had been
so long accustomed to the mere show of war.
Charles passed as a conqueror through Pisa and Florence to Rome, then
victorious at Capua, he entered Naples in triumph. During the spring months
of 1495, spoilt by his easy victory, he gave himself up to pleasure in
that fair southern land, idly dreaming of distant conquest. His success
awakened the jealous alarm of Europe, and a formidable league was formed
against him by all the Italian States, the Emperor Maximilian, and the
Kings of Spain and England. Suddenly roused to a sense of his danger,
Charles VIII. left his new kingdom in the charge of his cousin, Gilbert de
Montpensier, with a few thousand men, and hastily set forth on his homeward
way. He left garrisons in various conquered cities, and his army consisted
of barely 10,000 men. They crossed the Apennines with great labour and
difficulty, to find their passage barred by the confederates on the Emilian
plain near the village of Fornovo.
[Illustration: Battle of Forvono.]
Never was battle more fiercely contested than on that Monday, 6th July,
when the French succeeded in breaking through the host of their enemies.
The actual fighting lasted little more than an hour, amid a scene of the
wildest confusion, which was increased by a storm of thunder and lightning,
with rain falling in torrents. We are told that Bayard, the Good Knight,
who had accompanied the King through the whole campaign, distinguished
himself in the first charge at the head of de Ligny's company, and had two
horses killed under him, then continued fighting on foot, and in the thick
of the battle he took the standard of the horsemen opposing him, and
covered himself with glory. The King, hearing afterwards of his gallant
deed, sent him a present of five hundred crowns. Charles could appreciate a
kindred spirit as he too fought with splendid courage on that eventful day.
The French camp, with all its rich treasures of armour, gorgeous clothing,
rare tapestries and plate, was looted; but Charles VIII. and the greater
part of his army, with all the artillery, made good their passage through
an overwhelming host of foes and raised the siege of Novara, where Lodovico
Sforza was besieging the Duke of Orleans.
The French King was soon to receive news of the defeat and destruction of
the small army he had left to hold Naples, and the death of the gallant
Viceroy, Gilbert de Montpensier. Such was the sad ending of the first of
those glorious and fatal expeditions to Italy, in which four kings wasted
in vain so much treasure and so many precious lives. Charles VIII. did not
long survive this bitter disappointment. He died at Amboise on 7th April
1498, at the age of twenty-eight. As he left no children he was succeeded
by his cousin, the Duke of Orleans, under the name of Louis XII. Louis XII.
was crowned on the 1st of July 1498.
If there was one trait of character which, more than any other,
distinguished Bayard the Good Knight, it was his absolute loyalty towards
the lord he served, and his undying gratitude for any kindness which he had
received. He never forgot those six happy months he had spent at the Court
of Savoy when he first went there to take up the profession of arms as a
young lad of thirteen. It was not by his own choice that he left the
service of his earliest master, who in a fit of generosity had presented
his favourite page to the King, in the hope that by so doing he would best
further the career of Bayard.
But Charles I., Duke of Savoy, did not live to see this, for he had died in
1490, and the Duchess, his widow, had left Chambery and retired to her
dower house in the pleasant town of Carignano, in Piedmont, about seventeen
miles to the south of Turin. This lady, Blanche Paleologus, had been a most
kind friend to young Bayard, and when she heard that he was stationed in
the neighbourhood, she invited him to visit her, and received him with the
utmost courtesy, treating him as if he were a member of her family. She was
greatly beloved and honoured in Carignano, where she was lady suzerain, and
where there may still be seen, in the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, a
splendid monument to her memory.
We may imagine the satisfaction with which the good Duchess found that her
page of bygone days had blossomed out into a valiant and famous knight, and
they must both have had much to hear and tell of all that had happened
since they parted. Here Bayard also met with another friend, the young lady
who had been one of the maids-of-honour of the Duchess at Chambery and who
had won the boyish affection of the Good Knight. If the young folks had
been able to follow their inclinations it is probable that in time to come,
when they were of suitable age, marriage would have followed, so the "Loyal
Servitor" tells us in his chronicle. But circumstances parted them, as
Bayard went to the King's Court, and the fair maiden was married later to a
very good and honourable gentleman, the Seigneur de Frussasco (or Fluxas),
who was governor of the household to the Duchess of Savoy, a man of wealth
and high position.
We have a simple, touching story of the delight with which the lady of
Frussasco welcomed her dear friend, the Good Knight, of their eager talk
about old times, and their high ideal of honour and duty. She told him how
she had followed the story of his achievements, from his first joust with
Messire Claude de Vauldray, his tournament at Aire in Picardy, and the
honour which he received on the day of Fornovo, which had spread his fame
throughout France and Italy, and she gave him so much praise and honour
that the poor gentleman blushed for very shame.
Then the lady said to him: "Monseigneur de Bayard, my friend, this is the
great house in which you were first brought up; would it not be well for
you to distinguish yourself here as you have done so nobly elsewhere?"
The Good Knight made answer: "Madame, you know how from my youth I have
always loved and honoured you, and I hold you to be so wise and so kind
that you would only advise me for my good. Tell me, therefore, if you
please, what you would have me do to give pleasure to my good mistress, the
Duchess Blanche, to you above all, and to the rest of the noble company
here at this time?"
Then the lady of Frussasco said: "It seems to me, my lord of Bayard, that
you would do well to arrange some tournament in this town for the honour of
Madame of Savoy, who will be very grateful to you. You have here in the
neighbourhood many French gentlemen, your companions, and there are other
gentlemen of this country who I am assured would all most willingly join
you."
"If it is your wish," replied the Good Knight, "it shall be done. You
are the one lady in this world who has first conquered my heart by your
grace and kindness.... I pray of you that you will give me one of the
under-sleeves from your dress, as I have need of it."[1] The lady gave it
him, and he put it into the sleeve of his doublet without a word.
[Footnote 1: This was fastened with a little lacing under the hanging
sleeve, and was the usual favour asked for and worn by the knight on his
helmet.]
The Duchess Blanche was never weary of talking with the Good Knight, who
had always been so great a favourite of hers. But Bayard could not sleep
all that night, for his mind was full of plans for carrying out the request
of his lady. When the morning came he sent a trumpeter round to all the
towns of the neighbourhood where there were garrisons, to make known to
the gentlemen that if they would make their way within four days, on the
next Sunday, to the town of Carignano, in the costume of men-at-arms, he
would give a prize, which was the cuff of his lady, from whence hung a ruby
of the value of a hundred ducats, to him who should be victorious in three
encounters with the lance, without a barrier, and twelve turns with the
sword.
On the appointed day, about an hour after noon, the Good Knight was at his
place in the ranks, armed at all points, with three or four of his
companions, but only those were with him who were prepared to take part in
the coming contest. Bayard began first, and against him came the lord of
Rovastre, a gallant gentleman who bore the ensign of the Duke Philibert of
Savoy. He was a very hardy and skilful knight, who gave a fine thrust with
his lance to begin with, but the Good Knight gave him such a blow on the
broad band, which protected his right arm, that he disarmed him, and caused
his lance to fly in five or six pieces. The lord of Rovastre regained his
band and tilted with the second lance, with which he did his duty
thoroughly ... but the Good Knight struck him on the visor, and carried off
his plume of feathers (panache) and made him tremble, although he kept his
seat on horseback. At the third lance the lord of Rovastre missed his aim,
and Bayard broke his lance, which went to pieces.
After them came Mondragon and the lord of Chevron, who did their tilting so
well that everybody applauded. Then came two others, and so on until all
the company were satisfied.
The lances being broken it was now time for the contest with swords; but
the Good Knight had only struck two blows when he broke his own, and sent
that of his opponent flying out of his hand. The gracious Duchess
requested the lord of Frussasco to invite all the gentlemen who had taken
part in the tournament to supper. After supper the hautboys sounded, and
the minstrels began to tune up in the gallery, but before the dancing
began, it was decided to award the prize to him who had gained it. The
lords of Grammont and Frussasco were the judges, and they asked all the
company--gentlemen, ladies, and the combatants themselves--and they were
all of opinion that the Good Knight himself, by right of arms, had gained
the prize. But when they presented it to him he said that he did not
deserve it, but that if he had done anything well, Madame de Frussasco was
the cause, as she had lent him her sleeve, and that it was her place to
give the prize as she chose.
The lady, who was well versed in the laws of honour and chivalry, humbly
thanked the Good Knight for the honour which he had done her, and said: "As
M. de Bayard has shown me this courtesy I will keep the sleeve all my life
for love of him, while as for the ruby, I advise that it should be given to
M. de Mondragon, for he is considered to have done the next best."
This was accomplished as she wished, to the content of all, and the Duchess
Blanche rejoiced greatly in the success of the Good Knight, who had begun
his career in her household. The Good Knight took leave of his noble
mistress, the lady of Savoy, telling her that he owed her service and
obedience next to the King, his sovereign lord. Then he said farewell to
the lady who had been his first love, and they parted with much regret, but
their warm friendship lasted till death. We do not hear that they ever met
again, but not a year passed without presents being sent from one to the
other.
[Illustration: LUDOVICO SFORZA DUKE of MILAN _from a medallion_.]
CHAPTER IV
While the French army felt such absolute security of their dominion in
Italy as to suffer the young captains to join in amusements, the fugitive
Duke Lodovico Sforza of Milan, who had lost his duchy by treachery, was
watching events and preparing to return.
When Lodovico arrived he was received with acclamation, and entered Milan
in triumph.
If this sudden revolution took all Italy by surprise, we can understand the
dismay of Louis XII., who found that he had all his work to do over again.
For not only had Milan rebelled, but all the other towns which he had
conquered.
King Louis sent the Sire de Ligny as his chief general, and as a matter of
course the Good Knight went with him. I must tell you the story of an
adventure he had. He was in a garrison about twenty miles from Milan with
other young men-at-arms, and they were constantly making small expeditions.
One day Bayard heard that in the little town of Binasco, near the Certosa
di Pavia, there were about three hundred good horses, which he thought
might be easily taken, and therefore he begged his companions to join him
in this adventure. He was so much beloved that forty or fifty gentlemen
gladly accompanied him. But the castellan of the fortress at Binasco had
news of this through his spies, and laid a trap for the Frenchmen; he had a
strong troop placed in ambuscade on the road, and made sure of success.
But, though taken by surprise, the Good Knight fought like a lion, and with
cries of "France! France!" led his little company again and again to the
attack, for, as he told them, if news of this reached Milan not one would
escape. In fact, so fierce was their charge that they drove back the
defenders mile after mile to the very gates of Milan. Then one of the older
soldiers, who saw the enemy's plan, shouted, "Turn, men-at-arms, turn!" and
the others heard in time, but the Good Knight, thinking only of pursuing
his foes, entered pell-mell with them into the city, and followed them to
the very palace of the lord Lodovico. As he was wearing the white cross of
France, he was soon surrounded on all sides and taken prisoner. Lodovico
had heard the cries, and sent for this brave foe, who was disarmed before
being taken to the palace.
The Duke of Milan was surprised to see such a young warrior, and asked him
what brought him into the city. The Good Knight, who was never put out by
anything, replied, "By my faith, my lord, I did not think I was coming in
alone, but believed my companions were following me. They understood war
better than I did, otherwise they would have been prisoners as I am...."
Then Lovodico asked him how big was the French army, and he made answer,
"As far as I know, my lord, there must be fourteen or fifteen hundred
men-at-arms and sixteen or eighteen thousand men on foot; but they are all
picked men, quite determined to win back the State of Milan for the King,
our master. And it seems to me, my lord, that you would be much safer in
Germany than you are here, for your men are not fit to fight us."
He spoke with so much confidence that Lodovico was much amused, and
remarked that he should like to see the two armies face to face. "And so
indeed should I, my lord, if I were not a prisoner." "Really, if that is
all," replied the Duke, "I will at once set you free, and make it up to the
captain who took you prisoner. But tell me, if you desire anything else I
will give it to you."
The Good Knight bent his knee in thanks for this generous offer, and
replied: "My lord, I ask nothing else save that of your courtesy you will
be good enough to return to me my horse and my arms which I brought into
this town; and if you will send me to my garrison, which is twenty miles
from here, you will thus render me a great service, for which I shall be
grateful all my life; and saving my honour and the service of my King, I
would do anything you command in return."
"On my faith!" exclaimed the lord Lodovico, "you shall have what you ask
for at once." Then he turned to the Seigneur Jean Bernardin who had taken
him prisoner. "Do you hear, captain, he is to have his horse, his arms, and
all his accoutrements at once"
"My lord," was the reply, "that is a very easy matter for all is at my
lodging." So he sent two or three servants, who brought the horse, and the
armour, which the Duke caused to be put on before him. This arming took
place in the great courtyard, at least as far as the gallant prisoner was
disarmed, and when Bayard was fully accoutred he sprang on his horse
without touching the stirrup, and asked for his lance, which was given
him--a steel-headed weapon about fourteen feet long, the shaft being of
ash or sycamore with a little flag (pennoncelle) waving at the top. Then,
raising his visor, he said to the Duke: "My lord, I thank you for the great
courtesy you have shown me. May God repay you!"
The Good Knight spurred his horse, who pranced about in the most wonderful
way, and then Bayard gave a small exhibition of his skill with the lance
which amazed the bystanders and did not please the lord Lodovico overmuch,
for he remarked: "If all the French men-at-arms were like this one I should
have a poor chance." However, he took gracious leave of the Good Knight,
and sent him forth with a trumpeter in attendance to conduct him back to
his garrison.
They had not gone very far, only about twelve miles from Milan, when they
met the main body of the French army. Every one was greatly surprised to
see Bayard, for there had been great sorrow at the rumour that the gallant
knight had been too rash and had been taken prisoner through his youthful
boldness and rashness. When he reached the camp he found that the news of
his exploit had preceded him, for the Sire de Ligny, his good leader, came
forward to meet him with a smile, saying: "Hallo! Picquet, who has got you
out of prison? Have you paid your ransoms' I was on the point of sending
one of my trumpeters to pay it and fetch you back."
"My lord," replied the Good Knight, "I thank you humbly for your good will;
but the lord Lodovico set me free by his great courtesy."
It was at Novara that Lodovico Sforza met the army of France. The Duke's
forces were composed of different races--German "landsknechte," Burgundians
who were commanded by the same Claude de Vauldray who had fought with the
Good Knight in his first tournament, and Swiss mercenaries. There were
bands of Swiss fighting on the side of the French, and those within the
city declared that they would not fight against their fellow-countrymenn in
the other camp. They laid down their arms, and neither threat nor promise
availed. Soon it was discovered that one of the gates of Novara had been
opened by treachery, and that the French were entering the city. Then, as a
last hope, Lodovico and his companions put on the dress of common soldiers
and mixed with them in the ranks. But the unfortunate Duke was betrayed by
one of the Swiss captains, who was put to death later by his own countrymen
as a traitor.
On the occasion of Louis' former conquest of this land he had given several
important towns and estates to his general, the Sire de Ligny. These had
revolted with the rest of the duchy, to the great annoyance of de Ligny,
and a report reached the citizens of Tortona and Voghera that their homes
were to be sacked and pillaged. This was of course in those days the usual
penalty of rebellion, but the French general was a generous and merciful
man who had no such cruel intentions. However, the inhabitants of Voghera
took counsel together, and twenty of the chief merchants went forth to meet
their lord and humbly pray for mercy, two miles outside the city gates. But
de Ligny took no notice of them and rode on in silence with his men-at-arms
to his lodging within the city. One of his captains, to whom they appealed,
Louis d'Ars, promised to do his best for them, and advised that they should
plead again on the morrow. This time about fifty of the chief men came to
him as suppliants, bare-headed, and fell on their knees before the General.
They made a long and lamentable petition, ending with the offer of the
richest silver plate, cups, goblets, bowls, and precious vessels to the
value of more than three hundred marks.
Without deigning to look at the presents they had brought, their offended
lord turned upon them, reproached them bitterly for their treachery in
rebelling against him before the usurper, Lodovico, had even approached
their walls. What fate was too terrible for such cowards and traitors? The
kneeling citizens trembled and thought their last hour had come, when the
captain, Louis d'Ars, pleaded for mercy as a special favour to himself,
promising that henceforth they would prove themselves faithful and loyal
subjects. Then at length de Ligny suffered his anger to cool down, and
yielded to the wish of his good captain by granting a pardon. "But as for
your present, I do not deign to accept it for you are not worthy," he
exclaimed. Then, looking round the hall, his eyes fell upon the Good
Knight, to whom he said: "Picquet, take all this plate, I give it you for
your kitchen." To which he made instant reply: "My lord, I thank you humbly
for your kindness, but with God's help the goods of such evil-doers shall
never enter my house for they would bring me misfortune."
Thereupon the Good Knight took one piece of silver after another from the
table and made a present of it to each one of the assembled company, not
keeping a single thing for himself, to the amazement of every one. When he
had given away everything, he quietly left the chamber, as did many of the
others. The Sire de Ligny turned to those who remained and asked: "What do
you think of this, gentlemen? Did you ever see such a generous soul as my
Picquet? God should have made him king over some great realm. Believe me
that he will some day be one of the most perfect knights in the world."
All the company agreed, and could not praise young Bayard enough. And when
the Sire de Ligny had thought over the matter, he sent him next morning a
beautiful costume of crimson velvet lined with satin brocade, a most
excellent war-horse, and a purse with three hundred crowns--which did not
last him long, for he shared it all with his companions.
Louis XII. had been so much engaged with his conquest of Milan that for a
time he had not done much towards recovering the kingdom of Naples. This
had been lost after the retreat of Charles VIII., who died before he had
been able to make another fight for it, after the disastrous fate of his
viceroy, Gilbert de Montpensier, and his brave little army. At this time
Frederick of Aragon was King of Naples, having succeeded his nephew,
Ferdinand II., in 1496.
The king gave the command of his great army to the lord of Aubigny, who had
brought back the broken ranks of the first expedition to Naples. The
company of de Ligny, under his lieutenant, Captain Louis d'Ars, was ordered
to form part of it. Bayard, the Good Knight, who could not bear to be left
behind when fighting was going on, asked the permission of his dear master
to accompany the lieutenant's men.
On this important occasion Louis XII., doubtful of his own strength, made
the great mistake of forming an alliance with Ferdinand, King of Spain.
King Frederick of Naples knew nothing of the secret compact between France
and Spain, and he expected Gongalvo de Cordova, known as the Great Captain,
to come to his help with the troops of Spain.
As the alliance between France and Spain was founded on treachery, we
cannot be surprised that they soon fell out over the division of their
spoils. King Ferdinand of Aragon was never bound by any contract which did
not profit him, and by his orders the Great Captain, Gonzalvo de Cordova,
invaded the province of Naples itself. The lord of Aubigny had placed his
various companies as garrisons in different towns, and those which belonged
to the Count de Ligny were in the hands of his company, amongst whom, as we
know, was Bayard, the Good Knight. We shall now understand how it was that
he found himself at war with the Spaniards, who had been at first the
allies of France.
Pierre de Bayard, the Good Knight, had been placed in command of a garrison
at a place called Monervine, by his captain, Louis d'Ars. There had been no
fighting in his neighbourhood for some little time, and he began to get
rather weary. So he said one evening to his companions: "Gentlemen, it
seems to me that we have been too long in one place without seeing our
foes. We shall grow weak for want of using our arms, and our enemies will
grow bolder than ever, thinking that we dare not go out of our fort. So I
propose that to-morrow we ride out towards the nearest Spanish garrisons,
Andria or Barletta, and have a little fighting if possible." The others
readily agreed, and about thirty of them arranged to start early the next
morning. It was a merry party of young gentlemen who galloped over the
country at daybreak, and it so chanced that the same idea had occurred
to a Spanish knight of Andria, Don Alonzo of Soto-Mayor, who wished to
exercise his company of men-at-arms. Such was the fortune of the two
captains, that as they turned a corner by some rising ground they suddenly
came within arrow-shot of each other, and joyful indeed they were to have
such a chance. When the Good Knight saw the red crosses he turned to his
followers and cried: "My friends, here is our chance to win honour ...
we will not wait for them to attack!"
With a shout of delight they all lowered their visors, and crying,
"_France, France_!" they galloped forward and charged their foes,
who came proudly on to meet them with the cry of "_Spain! St. Iago_!"
gaily receiving them on the point of their lances. In the shock of this
first meeting many on both sides were borne to earth. The combat lasted a
good half-hour before either side seemed to have the best of it, for they
were well matched in numbers and strength. But in the end one side must
win, and it chanced that the courage and skill of the Good Knight, and the
enthusiasm with which he inspired his men, at last succeeded in breaking
the ranks of the Spaniards, of whom about seven were killed and the same
number taken prisoner, while the rest took to flight, and amongst them
their captain, Don Alonzo. The Good Knight pursued, crying out to him:
"Turn, man-at-arms, it would be a shame to die while running away."
Presently Alonzo, like a fierce lion, turned against his pursuer with
terrible force; and they fought desperately with sword-thrusts.
At length the horse of Don Alonzo backed and refused to advance any more,
when the Good Knight, seeing that all the other Spaniards were gone,
leaving their captain alone, said, "Surrender, man-at-arms, or you are
dead." "To whom must I surrender?" he asked. "To the Captain Bayard," was
the reply. Then Don Alonzo, who had already heard of that famous name, and
knew that he had no chance of escape, gave up his sword and was taken with
the other prisoners to the garrison, where with his usual chivalrous
courtesy, the Good Knight gave Don Alonzo one of the best rooms of the
castle, and supplied him with all that he needed, on receiving his parole
that he would make no attempt to escape.
The Spanish captain was treated with the greatest kindness, being suffered
to join in all the doings of the other gentlemen, and his ransom was fixed
at 1000 crowns. But after a fortnight or more he grew tired of this life
and persuaded an Albanian in the garrison to procure him a horse and help
him to gain his freedom, for it was only fifteen or twenty miles to his own
quarters. The man agreed, tempted by a high bribe, and Don Alonzo, who was
allowed to come and go as he pleased, had no difficulty in passing out
through the gateway in the early morning, when he and his companion put
spurs to their horses and felt assured of success. But if the Good Knight
was courteous he was not careless, and when he paid his usual morning call
on his prisoner he was nowhere to be found. The watch was sounded, and the
absence of the Albanian was also discovered, whereupon Bayard sent off in
instant pursuit and Don Alonzo was overtaken within two miles of Andria,
where he had dismounted to fasten the girth of his saddle which was broken.
The Albanian managed to reach the Spanish quarter, for he knew that the
penalty of his treachery would be hanging, and the Spanish knight was
brought back to Monervine.
When Bayard met him he said: "How is it that you have broken your faith, my
lord Don Alonzo? I will trust you no more, for it is not a knightly deed to
escape from a place when you are on parole." The prisoner tried to excuse
himself by vowing that he only went to fetch his ransom as he was troubled
by receiving no news of his own people. But this did not avail him much,
for he was kept in close confinement in a tower, but otherwise very well
treated in the way of food and drink. After about another fortnight a
trumpeter arrived to announce that the ransom was coming, and when this was
duly paid, Don Alonzo took a friendly leave of his captors, having had time
to notice that the Good Knight kept not a penny of the money for himself,
but divided it all amongst his soldiers.
But the story does not end here, for this recreant knight was ungrateful
enough to complain to his friends in the most outrageous manner of the
treatment which he had received during his captivity. When this came to the
knowledge of the Good Knight he was justly indignant, as were all his
companions, and he at once wrote a letter to Don Alonzo, calling upon him
to withdraw these untrue words, or to accept a challenge to mortal combat.
This he sent by a trumpeter, and also offered his foe the choice of
weapons, and whether the contest should be on foot or on horseback.
The Spanish captain sent back an insolent answer, saying that he would not
withdraw anything he had said, and that he would prove his words in mortal
combat within twelve days, two miles from the walls of Andria. In fixing
this date he knew that Bayard was ill at the time with a quartan fever. But
the Good Knight would not let such a small matter interfere with his
knightly honours, and when the day arrived he rode to the spot appointed,
with the Sire de la Palisse and his friend Bellabre as his seconds, and
about two hundred men-at-arms as a guard of honour.
Bayard was clothed in white as a mark of humility and rode a splendid
horse, but as Don Alonzo had not appeared, a trumpeter was sent to hasten
his coming. When he was told that the Good Knight was on horseback with
the usual armour, he exclaimed: "How is this? I was to choose the arms.
Trumpeter, go and tell him that I will fight on foot." He said this,
thinking that the illness of Bayard would make it quite impossible for him;
and the trumpeter was greatly surprised, as all had been arranged for a
duel on horseback, and this looked like a way of retreat for the Spaniard.
Ill as he was Bayard showed no hesitation, and with the courage of a lion
declared that he was willing to avenge his honour in any guise. The arms
chosen were a sharp-pointed sword or rapier and a poignard, while the
armour used included a throat-piece (gorgerin) and a secrete.[1]
[Footnote 1: Secrete, a kind of steel skull-cap, often worn under the
helmet.]
When the camp was duly prepared and the champions in face of each other,
Bayard knelt down and made his prayer to God, then he bent to kiss the
earth, and rising, made the sign of the cross before he advanced to meet
his enemy. Don Alonzo addressed him in these words: "Lord of Bayard, what
do you seek from me?" And he replied: "I wish to defend my honour." Then
began the mortal combat between these two valiant men-at-arms, and never
was seen more splendid skill and courage. The rapier of the Good Knight
slightly wounded the face of Don Alonzo, who carefully guarded this most
vulnerable part, but his foe waited until he raised his arm for the next
attack, and then aimed at his neck, and notwithstanding the tempered steel
of his armour, Bayard's onslaught was so tremendous that the throat-piece
(gorgerin) was pierced and the rapier, having no sharp edges (it was only
used for thrusting) was driven in so far that it could not be withdrawn.
Don Alonzo, feeling himself wounded unto death, dropped his sword and
seized the Good Knight in his arms, the two wrestling fiercely until they
both fell on the ground.
The terrible struggle lasted for some time, until Bayard struck his foe on
the visor with his poignard and cried: "Don Alonzo, recognise your fault
and cry for mercy to God...." But the Spanish knight made no reply, for he
was already dead.
Then his second, Don Diego, said: "Seigneur Bayard, he is dead, you have
conquered;" which was proved, for they took off his visor and he breathed
no more. This was a sad trouble to the victor, for he would have given all
he had in the world to have vanquished him alive. Then the Good Knight
knelt down and thanked God humbly for his success. Afterwards he turned to
the dead knight's second and asked: "My lord Don Diego, have I done
enough?"
"Too much, indeed, my lord Bayard, for the honour of Spain," was the
pitiful reply. Then the Good Knight gave leave that honourable burial
should be accorded to Don Alonzo, and his friends bore away the body of
their champion with sad lamentation. But we may imagine the joy and triumph
with which the noble company present and the French men-at-arms accompanied
their hero back to the castle of Monervine.
This duel and the passages-of-arms before with Don Alonzo spread the fame
of Bayard throughout all Europe; indeed, his wonderful renown as the flower
of all chivalry really dates from this time. You may imagine how bitter the
Spaniards were and how they sought for revenge.
After the battle of Cerignola, fought on April 28, 1503, Gonzalvo, the
Great Captain, entered Naples in triumph. When this disastrous news reached
France, Louis XII. hastened to send a fresh army, commanded by la
Tremouille, to reinforce the troops already in Apulia and Calabria. The
French general fell ill, and his authority passed into the hands of the
Marquis of Mantua, who found himself opposed and beaten back at every point
by the genius of Gonzalvo.
At length the two armies came to a stand on either side of the River
Garigliano, one of the broadest rivers of Southern Italy, falling into the
Gulf of Gaeta. The French had possession of the right bank of the river,
close to the rising ground, and had therefore a more favourable position
than the marshy swamp on the lower side, in which the Spanish forces
remained encamped for fifty days. It was a fearful time, in the dead of
winter, with excessive rains, and the soldiers in both camps were driven to
the last verge of endurance, while numbers sickened and died. Under these
depressing circumstances the bright, cheerful spirit of Bayard, the Good
Knight, was invaluable, and his mere presence kept his company in hope and
courage. He never missed an opportunity of engaging in any feat of arms,
and his famous defence of the bridge is perhaps the best known of all his
exploits.
There was a bridge across the Garigliano which was in the hands of the
French, and one day a certain Don Pedro de Pas, a Spanish captain, small
and dwarfish in body but great in soul, conceived a plan for obtaining
possession of it. With about a hundred horsemen he set off to cross the
river by a ford which he knew of, and behind each horseman he had placed a
foot-soldier, armed with an "arquebuse." Don Pedro did this in order to
raise an alarm in the French camp, so that the whole army might rush to
defend it, and leave unprotected the bridge, which would then be seized by
the Spaniards. Bayard, who always chose the post of danger, was encamped
close to the bridge, and with him was a brave gentleman, named le Basco.
When they heard the noise they armed themselves at once, and mounted their
horses in haste to rush to the fray. But as the Good Knight happened to
look across the river he caught sight of about two hundred Spanish horsemen
riding straight towards the bridge, which they would certainly have taken
without much resistance, and this would have meant the total destruction of
the French army.
[Illustration: Bayard defends the Bridge.]
Then the Good Knight cried to his companion, "My lord the Equerry, my
friend, go instantly and fetch our men to guard this bridge, or we are all
lost; meantime I will do my best to amuse them until you come, but make all
haste." This he did, and the Good Knight, lance in rest, galloped across
the bridge to the other end, where the Spaniards were on the point of
passing. But, like a lion in his rage, Bayard rushed at them with so
furious an onset that two or three of the foremost men were driven back and
hurled into the water, from whence they rose no more, for the river was
wide and deep. For a moment they were driven back, but seeing there was
only one knight they attacked him so furiously that it was a marvel he
could resist them. But he came to a stand against the barrier of the bridge
that they might not get behind him, and made so desperate a fight with his
sword, raining blows on all who came near, that he seemed to the Spaniards
more a demon than a man.
In vain they cast pikes, lances, and other arms against him; the Good
Knight seemed to bear a charmed life. In fact, so well and so long did he
defend himself that his foes began to feel a superstitious dread of this
invincible champion when, after the space of full half an hour, his friend,
le Basco, arrived with a hundred men-at-arms.
The historian Champier adds that when Bayard saw help approaching he
cried, with a loud voice, "Haste ye, noble Frenchmen, and come to my help."
Not satisfied with driving back the Spaniards from the bridge, the gallant
little company pursued them for a good mile, and would have done more but
they saw in the distance a great company of seven or eight hundred Spanish
horsemen.
With all his dauntless courage, Bayard had the instinct of a good general,
and he said to his companions: "Gentlemen, we have done enough to-day in
saving the bridge; let us now retire in as close order as possible." His
advice was taken, and they began to retreat at a good pace, the Good Knight
always remaining the last and bearing all the brunt of the rear attack.
This became more difficult every minute, as his horse, on which he had
fought all that day, was so worn out that it could scarcely stand.
All of a sudden there was a great rush of the enemy, sweeping like a
flood over the French men-at-arms, so that many were thrown to the ground.
The horse of the Good Knight was driven back against a ditch, where he
was surrounded by twenty or thirty horsemen, who cried: "Surrender,
surrender, my lord!" Still fighting to the last, he could only make answer:
"Gentlemen, I must indeed yield to you, for, being alone, I can no longer
fight against your might."
If all the accounts of contemporary historians did not agree on the subject
we could hardly believe that one hero could keep back two hundred men at
the narrow entrance of the bridge for close upon half an hour. That after
so tremendous a fight Bayard could pursue the enemy, and defend the rear of
his retiring companions, is indeed a marvellous achievement. The wonder is
not that he was taken prisoner at last, but that he should have held out so
long.
Meantime all his companions had ridden straight to their bridge, believing
that the Good Knight was amongst them, but of a sudden a certain gentleman
from Dauphine exclaimed: "We have lost all, my friends! The Captain Bayard
is dead or taken, for he is not in our company. I vow to God that if I am
to go alone I will return and seek him...." On hearing this the whole troop
turned their horses and set off at full gallop after the Spaniards, who
were bearing away with them the flower of all chivalry. But they did not
know it, for Bayard was aware that if they heard his name he should never
escape alive, and to all their inquiries he only made answer that he was a
gentleman. They had not even taken the trouble to disarm him.
Of a sudden he heard his companions arrive in pursuit, shouting: "France!
France! Turn, turn, ye Spaniards; not thus shall you carry away the flower
of chivalry." Taken by surprise, the enemy received the French charge with
some disorder, and as men and horses gave way, the Good Knight saw his
opportunity, and without putting his foot in the stirrup, sprang upon a
fine horse whose rider was thrown, and as soon as he was mounted, cried:
"France! France! Bayard! Bayard! whom you have let go!" When the Spaniards
heard the name and saw what a mistake they had made to leave him his
arms (without requiring his parole, which he would certainly have kept),
they lost heart and turned back towards their camp, while the French,
overjoyed at having recovered their "Good Knight without Fear and without
Reproach"--their one ideal of chivalry and honour--galloped home over the
famous bridge. We do not wonder that for many days after they could talk of
nothing but this thrilling adventure and the gallant exploits of Bayard.
[Illustration: The Page presents his Prisoner.]
[Illustration: THE EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN
_from the portrait by Albert Durer_.]
CHAPTER V
The wars of Italy had a wonderful fascination for Louis XII., and he
eagerly united with the Emperor, the King of Spain, and the Pope in the
League of Cambray against Venice, hated for her great wealth and success.
In the spring of 1509 the King collected another army, in which he made a
great point of the foot-soldiers, whose importance he fully appreciated,
and for the first time he chose captains of high renown to command them. He
sent for Bayard and said to him: "You know that I am crossing the mountains
to fight the Venetians, who have taken Cremona from me, and other places. I
am giving you the command of a company of men-at-arms ... but that can be
led by your lieutenant, Captain Pierre du Pont, while I wish you to take
charge of a number of foot-soldiers."
"Sire," replied the Good Knight, "I will do what you wish; but how many
foot-soldiers do you propose to give me?"
"One thousand," said the King; "no man has more."
But Bayard suggested that five hundred of these soldiers, carefully
chosen, would be quite enough for one man to command if he did his duty
thoroughly, and to this the King agreed, bidding the Good Knight bring them
to join his army in the duchy of Milan.
The important city of Padua, which had been restored to the Emperor
Maximilian, was left through his carelessness with a small garrison of only
800 "landsknechte" (German foot-soldiers). Two Venetian captains contrived
an ingenious stratagem for recovering the city. It was the month of July by
this time, and immense waggons of hay, from the second mowing, were
entering Padua every day. A number of Venetians made an ambush under some
thick trees about a bow-shot from the walls, then they hid behind the
hay-waggons and crept in through the gates, which at a given signal they
opened to their comrades. The German soldiers, taken by surprise, were put
to death, and the command was given to the brave General Pitigliano, who
repaired and strengthened the fortifications, knowing of what immense
importance this city was to his Republic.
Maximilian was extremely annoyed by the loss of Padua, and collected a
great army, composed of men from all the allies, to besiege it. He also
brought to bear against it the strongest artillery ever used--one hundred
and six pieces of cannon and six immense mortars, "so heavy that they could
not be raised on gun-carriages, they could only be loaded with stones, and
were fired off not more than four times a day." The city was strongly
fortified and defended, and it was decided to attack the most important
gate which led to Vicenza. This being a most perilous enterprise, the
command was given to Bayard of the attacking party. The gate was approached
by a long, straight road between deep ditches, and there were four great
barriers at two hundred steps from each other, all thoroughly defended.
There was a fierce contest at every one of these barriers, and many gallant
knights fell in the attack, but the last one was the worst, for it was only
a stone's-throw from the battlements. The besieged rained stones on them
with their artillery, and the assault lasted more than an hour with pike
and battle-axe.
Then the Good Knight, seeing that this became tedious, cried to his
companions: "Gentlemen, these men give us too much play; let us charge on
foot and gain this barrier." Thirty or forty men-at-arms sprang from their
horses and with raised visors dashed at the barrier with their lances, but
the Venetians met them again and again with fresh relays of men. Then
Bayard shouted: "At this rate, gentlemen, they will keep us here for six
years; we must give them a desperate assault and let each man do as I do!"
This they promised, and the trumpet was sounded, when with one tremendous
rush they drove back the defenders by the length of a lance, and with a
ringing war-cry Bayard sprang over the barrier followed by his friends.
When the French saw the danger in which these gallant men were, there was
such a charge against the final barrier that the enemy was driven back in
disorder into the town. Thus the approaches were gained, and the Emperor's
artillery was brought forward, and remained there for six weeks until the
siege was raised.
A few days later the Good Knight heard, through one of his spies, that in
the castle of Bassano, about thirty miles off, there was a strong company
of cross-bowmen and horsemen, who made a point of sallying out from the
castle and seizing all the supplies of cattle which were on the way to the
camp. They were said to have four or five hundred oxen and cows already
within their walls. Bayard felt that this must be put a stop to, and his
picked companions readily joined him, for this fighting was their very life
and they asked for nothing better. So they set forth an hour before
daybreak and rode steadily towards Bassano, till they reached a place where
the spy pointed out to them a little wooden bridge which the band from
Treviso would have to cross, where two men could keep five hundred in
check. This the Good Knight left to be defended by a few men-at-arms and
archers, who were to remain in ambush until they had seen the troop from
Treviso go by, and await their return. Then Bayard gave directions to one
of his company to take thirty archers with him, and when he saw the enemy
well on their way he was to advance as though to skirmish with them, then
suddenly pretend to be frightened and ride off at full gallop in the
direction where the main French force was hidden behind rising ground. This
was all carried out, and the Good Knight with his men rushed forth upon the
pursuers, taking many prisoners, while the rest escaped in the direction of
Treviso, but were stopped at that wooden bridge and compelled to fight or
yield.
When the fighting was over, Bayard said: "Gentlemen, we really must take
that castle with all the spoils in it." When it was pointed out to him that
it was very strong and they had no artillery, he remarked that he knew a
way by which they might possess it in a quarter of an hour. So he sent for
the two captains who were taken and said to them: "I insist that the castle
be surrendered to me at once, for I know that you have the power to command
it, otherwise you will lose your heads." They saw that he was in earnest,
and one, who was the seneschal, sent orders to his nephew and the gates
were opened.
The Good Knight took possession of the castle, and within the walls of
Treviso found more than five hundred head of cattle and much other booty,
which was all sold later at Vicenza and divided amongst the victors. As
Bayard sat at table with the two Venetian captains, a young page of his,
named Boutieres, came in to show a prisoner he had taken during the
fighting--a big man twice his size. The boy had seen this standard-bearer
trying to escape, had made a rush at him with his lance, struck him to the
ground, and called upon him to surrender. He had given up his sword, to
Boutieres' great delight, and the lad of sixteen, with the standard he had
taken and his sturdy-looking prisoner, had caused great amusement in the
French company. When he was thus brought into the dining-hall before his
own captains, the standard-bearer looked very much ashamed of himself, and
protested that he had simply yielded to the force of numbers, not to that
boy. Thereupon Boutieres offered to give the man back his horse and his
arms and to fight him in single combat. If the standard-bearer won he
should go free without ransom; but if the young page won the man should
die. The Good Knight was delighted at this brave offer, but the Venetian
was afraid to accept it, and all the honour remained with the boy, who was
known to come of a brave race and proved himself worthy in the days to
come.
Most of the French army retired into the duchy of Milan, but Bayard appears
to have remained behind with the garrison of Verona. By one of those rapid
changes so common in Italian politics, before the end of the year Louis
XII. found himself deserted by most of the allies, the Pope, the King of
Spain, Henry VIII., and the Swiss having joined the "Holy League" to drive
the French out of Italy.
[Illustration: ANDREA GRITTI DOGE _of_ VENICE
_from the portrait by Titian Vecelli_.]
CHAPTER VI
While Bayard was with the garrison at Verona, in command of three or four
hundred men-at-arms who had been lent to the Emperor by the King of France,
he had some stirring adventures. It was winter time, and that year, 1509,
was long remembered for its severity. The soldiers in the town were obliged
to send for their horses' forage sometimes to a great distance, and they
were constantly losing both horses and varlets, who were waylaid by the
enemy, so that a large escort was necessary, for not a day passed without
some encounter.
Now there was a village called San Bonifacio about fifteen miles from
Verona, where a certain Venetian captain, named Giovanni Paolo Manfroni,
was stationed with a number of men, and he amused himself by chasing the
foraging parties up to the very gates of Verona. The Good Knight at last
became very angry at this bold defiance, and he resolved to put an end to
these raids by going out with the escort himself the next time that hay was
fetched from the farms round. He kept his plans as secret as possible, but
Manfroni had a spy in the city who managed to let him know what was on
foot, and he resolved to take so strong a force that he would make sure of
capturing the famous Bayard.
One Thursday morning the foragers set forth from Verona as usual, and in
their train were thirty or forty men-at-arms and archers under the command
of the captain, Pierre du Pont, a very wise and capable young man. The
party soon left the highroad to look out for the farms where they were to
receive the usual loads of hay. Meantime, the Good Knight, not suspecting
that his plan was betrayed, had taken a hundred men-at-arms and gone to a
little village called San Martino about six miles from Verona. From thence
he sent out some scouts, who were not long in returning with the news that
the enemy was in sight, about five hundred horsemen, who were marching
straight after the foragers. The Good Knight was delighted to hear it, and
at once set out to follow them with his company.
But Manfroni, who had heard of the whole manoeuvre from his spy, had
prepared an ambush in a deserted palace near, where he had about six
hundred pikemen and arquebusiers. These men were not to stir until they saw
him and his party in retreat, pretending to flee from the French pursuit;
then they were at once to follow and so completely enclose and defeat
Bayard's company.
The Good Knight had not gone two miles through the fields when he overtook
the Venetians and marched straight towards them, shouting, "Empire and
France!" They made some show of resistance, but soon began to retreat along
the lane towards their ambush, where they halted just beyond it, crying
"Marco! Marco!" and began to make a valiant defence. On hearing the
familiar cry of Venice, the foot-soldiers gave a tremendous shout and
rushed furiously upon the French, shooting with their arquebuses, a shot
from which struck Bayard's horse between the legs and killed him. Seeing
their dear master on the ground, his men-at-arms, who would all have died
for him, made a mighty charge, and a gentleman of Dauphine, named Grammont,
sprang from his horse and fought side by side with Bayard. But the two were
of no avail against the Venetians, who took them prisoners and were about
to disarm them.
Captain Pierre du Pont, who was with the forage party, heard the noise and
instantly galloped up, finding his captain and Grammont in evil case; for
already they were being drawn out of the crowd to be taken to a place of
safety. He was only just in time, but he struck out at the captors like a
lion, and the men, taken by surprise, let their prisoners escape, and
retreated to their troop, which was having a furious fight with the French.
The Good Knight and Grammont were soon on horseback again, and hastened
back to the relief of their men, who were now attacked front and back, with
four to one against them, and the arquebusiers were doing them a lot of
damage. Then the Good Knight said to his nephew, Captain Pierre du Pont:
"My friend, we are lost if we do not gain the highroad, but if we are once
there, we will retire in spite of them, and shall be saved, with the help
of God."
"I agree with you," replied his nephew. Then they began to retreat
steadily, step by step, towards the highroad, fighting all the way, and
they reached it at last, though not without much trouble, while the enemy
lost both foot-soldiers and horsemen. When the French at length reached the
highroad which led to Verona, they closed in together, and began to retire
very gently, turning upon the foe with a gallant attack every two hundred
feet.
But all the time they had those arquebusiers at their heels constantly
firing upon them, so that at the last charge once more the Good Knight
had his horse killed under him. Before it fell he sprang to the ground
and defended himself in a wonderful way with his sword; but he was
soon surrounded and would have been killed, but at that moment his
standard-bearer, du Fay, with his archers, made so desperate a charge that
he rescued his captain from the very midst of the Venetians, set him upon
another horse, and then closed in with the others.
The night was drawing near, and the Good Knight commanded that there should
be no more charging, as they had done enough for their honour, and the
gallant little party found a safe refuge in the village of San Martino, in
the midst of cypresses, whence they had started in the morning. This was
about four miles from Verona, and the Venetian captain felt that further
pursuit would be dangerous as help would probably arrive from Verona. So he
caused the retreat to sound, and set out to return to San Bonifacio, but on
the way his foot-soldiers, who were quite worn out, having fought for about
five hours, begged to be allowed to stay at a village some miles short of
San Bonifacio. Manfroni did not much approve of this, but he let them have
their way, while he and his horsemen rode on to their usual quarters,
feeling much disgusted that they had been galloped about all day with so
little to show for it.
That night the French lodged in the village of San Martino, and they
feasted joyfully upon such provisions as they could find, feeling very
proud of their success, for they had scarcely lost any men in comparison
with the enemy. They were still at supper when one of their spies arrived
from San Bonifacio, and he was brought before Bayard, who asked what the
Venetians were doing. He replied:
"Nothing much; they are in great force inside San Bonifacio, and the rumour
goes that they will soon have Verona, for they have a strong party within
the city. As I was starting the Captain Manfroni arrived, very hot and
angry, and I heard him say that he had been fighting against a lot of
devils from hell and not men. As I was coming here I passed through a
village which I found quite full of their foot-soldiers, who are spending
the night there, and to look at them I should say that they are quite tired
out."
Then said the Good Knight: "I warrant that those are their foot-soldiers we
fought against to-day, who would not walk any further. If you feel disposed
we will go and take them. The moon is bright to-night, let us feed our
horses and at about three or four o'clock we will go and wake them."
This suggestion was quite approved of; they all did their best with the
horses, and after having set the watch, they all went to rest. But Bayard
was too full of his enterprise to take any sleep; so towards three hours
after midnight he quietly roused his men and set forth with them on
horseback, riding in perfect silence to the village where the Venetian
foot-soldiers were staying. He found them, as he had expected, fast asleep
"like fat pigs," without any watch as far as he could see. The new-comers
began to shout, "Empire! Empire! France! France!" and to this joyous cry
the bumpkins awoke, coming one by one out of their shelter to be slain like
beasts. Their captain, accompanied by two or three hundred men, threw
himself into the market-place and tried to make a stand there; but no time
was given him, for he was charged from so many directions that he and all
his men were attacked and defeated, so that only three remained alive.
These were the captain and two other gentlemen, who were brothers, and
afterwards were exchanged for French gentlemen who were in prisons at
Venice.
Having accomplished their work, the Good Knight and his company made their
way back to Verona, where they were received with great honour. On the
other hand, when the Venetians heard of the loss of their men they were
furious, and the Doge Andrea Gritti sharply blamed Manfroni for leaving
them behind.
We may mention here that this Giovanni Paolo Manfroni was a splendid
soldier and one of the finest captains of men-at-arms in Italy at this
period.
Manfroni had a certain spy, who often went backwards and forwards between
Venona and San Bonifacio, and who served both him and the Good Knight; but
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