Illuminated illustrations of Froissart; - Selected from the ms. in the Bibliothèque royale, Paris, and from other sources

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Title: Illuminated illustrations of Froissart; - Selected from the ms. in the Bibliothèque royale, Paris, and from other sources
Author: Froissart, Jean
Language: English
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[Illustration:

ILLUMINATIONS
FROM THE

FROISSART
IN THE
BIBLIOTHEQUE ROYALE
PARIS
AND OTHER SOURCES]

ILLUMINATED

ILLUSTRATIONS OF FROISSART.

SELECTED FROM

The MS.

IN THE BIBLIOTHÈQUE ROYALE, PARIS,

AND FROM OTHER SOURCES.

BY H. N. HUMPHREYS, ESQ.

LONDON:
WILLIAM SMITH, 113, FLEET STREET.

MDCCCXLV.

LIST OF PLATES,

WITH

REFERENCES TO SMITH’S EDITION OF “FROISSART,” IN TWO VOLUMES.

PLATE VOL. PAGE

I. QUEEN ISABELLA ON HER VOYAGE TO ENGLAND I. 10

II. EXECUTION OF SIR HUGH SPENCER I. 13

III. CORONATION OF KING EDWARD THE THIRD I. 14

IV. FUNERAL OF PHILIP OF VALOIS I. 202

V. EDWARD THE THIRD TAKES BERWICK I. 34

VI. SURRENDER OF BRISTOL TO QUEEN ISABELLA I. 11

VII. ROBERT BRUCE DEFIES EDWARD THE THIRD I. 16

VIII. EARL OF PEMBROKE ATTACKED BY THE SPANISH FLEET I. 472

IX. SIR GODFREY DE HARCOURT ENCOUNTERING THE MEN OF AMIENS I. 158

X. FROISSART IN HIS STUDY I. TITLE

XI. A FEMALE ATTENDANT SERVING WINE TO A GROOM II. TITLE

XII. THE DUKE OF BRITTANY AND HIS BARONS I. 592

XIII. PHILIP VAN ARTEVELDE HARANGUING THE PEOPLE I. 724

XIV. TAKING OF OUDENARDE BY FRANCIS ATREMEN II. 8

XV. THE BATTLE OF ROSEBECQUE I. 746

XVI. DEATH OF JOSSE DE HALLEBIN I. 641

XVII. COMBAT BETWEEN NICHOLAS CLIFFORD AND A FRENCH KNIGHT I. 634

XVIII. JACOB VAN ARTEVELDE HOLDING STATE IN GHENT I. 42

XIX. VISIT OF THE QUEEN OF NAPLES TO POPE CLEMENT I. 572

XX. GALEAS VISCONTI ARRESTING HIS UNCLE II. 32

XXI. FUNERAL OF JEHAN DE LYON I. 586

XXII. BEHEADING OF SILVESTER BUDES I. 574

XXIII. DUKE OF BURGUNDY ENTERING CHARTRES I. 324

XXIV. EARL OF FLANDERS SOLICITING AID OF CHARLES VI. OF FRANCE I. 722

XXV. MURDER OF THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY I. 658

XXVI. EDWARD THE THIRD BEFORE RHEIMS I. 274

XXVII. INTERVIEW BETWEEN RICHARD II. AND THE INSURGENTS I. 657

XXVIII. LORD CHARLES OF BLOIS OBTAINING POSSESSION OF JUGON I. 115

XXIX. BATTLE OF POICTIERS I. 217

XXX. ASSASSINATION OF EVAN OF WALES I. 546

XXXI. EARL OF FLANDERS AND CITIZENS OF GHENT I. 594

XXXII. EARL OF FLANDERS REPAIRING OUDENARDE I. 599

XXXIII. EARL OF BUCKINGHAM AND DUKE OF BRITTANY CONCERTING THE SIEGE OF
NANTES I. 618

XXXIV. THE BATTLE OF MONTIEL I. 386

XXXV. THE CANON OF ROBESART TAKING JAFFRE I. 688

XXXVI. JOHN BALL PREACHING I. 654

ADVERTISEMENT.

The volume of Illuminated Illustrations of Froissart, from the
celebrated MS. in the British Museum, has created so much interest in
the subject among the subscribers to that work, that many letters have
been received requesting the publication of another volume to illustrate
the remaining portion of the Chronicles: the MS. in the Museum
containing unfortunately only the fourth book. When that beautiful MS.
went to the British Museum with the Harleian Collection, a sort of
tradition went with it to the effect, that the remaining portion of the
MS. was in the Bibliothèque du Roi, at Paris, and that impression still
prevails among connoisseurs. Having determined, at the solicitation of
our subscribers, to publish a second volume illustrating the remaining
portion of the Chronicles, I went to Paris, in the full hope of
discovering the other portion of the Museum MS., but found that no such
volumes exist in the Bibliothèque du Roi, nor is there any record of
their having been there. That splendid library, however, contains
several MSS. of Froissart; among others, a very beautiful one of the
first book, which is the earliest known, and the standard authority for
that portion of the Chronicles, but it has only one small illumination
on the first page. Many other portions of the Chronicles of different
ages possess no remarkable interest; but one magnificent and perfect MS.
of all four books is a truly splendid work of art, far surpassing, in
many respects, the Museum MS. It is evidently one of the splendid books
executed for Louis of Bruges, Lord of Gruthyse, who died in 1492, and
the MS. was probably executed about 1460 or 70. This Lord of Gruthyse,
as is well known, was one of the greatest patrons of art of that age,
and had a peculiar passion for richly illuminated books, of which he
created a library which, after that of the Duke of Burgundy, was the
most celebrated in all Flanders. Van Praet collected a most interesting
list of the books still in existence which once formed part of this
celebrated library, and classed this MS. of the Chronicles of Froissart
among the most beautiful. The Gruthyse library passed to his son, Jean
of Bruges, and afterwards to Louis XII. of France, who added it to the
library founded at the Château de Blois, by his father Charles of
Orleans; from that library it was brought to the Bibliothèque Royale of
Paris. The arms of Gruthyse have been, in every instance in which they
occur in the illuminations, painted over by those of France; but in some
places the more recent colour has peeled off a little, exposing the
shield beneath, and in every instance the Gruthyse arms may be easily
discerned by holding the parchment to the light.

This magnificent work of middle-age art will furnish most of the
Illustrations in the present volume. But a few will be added from other
sources, which will add to the variety and interest of the work even if
inferior in execution.

I may here mention that I searched all the other public libraries of
Paris, in hope of meeting with the lost volumes of our museum MS.,
finding in that of the Arsenal a very beautiful and complete MS. of the
Chronicles, with the borders in colours and gold, but the miniatures
only in black and white, of about the same date as the Museum MS. The
remaining volumes of _that_ MS., however, could nowhere be discovered,
and it is to be feared are lost. But the Gruthyse MS., being undoubtedly
a finer work, will no doubt afford our subscribers greater gratification
than the lost books, could they have been found.

H. N. H.

LONDON,

_January, 1844_.

[Illustration: Isabella, Queen of Edward II. on her voyage to England,
with Sir John of Hainault.]

PLATE I.

QUEEN ISABELLA ON HER VOYAGE TO ENGLAND.

Before commencing the History of Edward III., with which Froissart
commences his Chronicles, he devotes a few short chapters to the latter
events of the previous reign. In Chapters VIII. and IX. he relates the
arrival of Isabella, Queen of Edward II., in Hainault, and the
determination of Sir John of Hainault, brother to the Earl, to accompany
her to England with an armed force, and restore her and her son to their
rank and influence, usurped by the Spencers, the favourites of the weak
monarch. The Illumination,[1] which is most beautifully executed,
represents the Queen on her voyage; Sir John of Hainault is conversing
with her; and she is accompanied by several ladies of her suite. Many
interesting details of costume are carefully and accurately executed,
and the whole miniature forms a most pleasing composition.

[Illustration: Execution of Sir Hugh Spencer.]

PLATE II.

EXECUTION OF SIR HUGH SPENCER.

Froissart relates that so many powerful Barons joined the party of Queen
Isabella and her son, that they determined to besiege the city of
Bristol, where the King and the Spencers then were. The King and the
younger Spencer retired to the Castle, whilst the elder Spencer, then
ninety years of age, and the Earl of Arundel, who had married his
grand-daughter, remained in the town; which being surrendered by the
citizens, they were taken prisoners and executed in front of the Castle,
in sight of the King and the younger Spencer. The weak King and his
favourite, seeing no other chance of escape, embarked secretly in a
small boat at the back of the Castle, thinking to gain the coast of
Wales, but being driven back by stress of weather, they were perceived
and captured. The King was sent under strong guard to Berkely Castle, by
the advice of the Barons, where he remained a prisoner till his death;
thus closing one of the most inglorious reigns of the English annals.
Sir Hugh Spencer was led to Hereford, where the feast of All Saints was
celebrated with great magnificence, in honour of the noble foreigners,
who had so mainly contributed to the successful termination of the cause
of the Queen and Prince Edward. Chapter XIII., at the head of which is
the Illumination represented in Plate II., commences “Quant la feste fut
passée le Messᵉ Huon, qui point nestoit aimé la,” &c. &c.--“_when the
feast was over, Sir Huon, who was not beloved in those parts_, was
brought before the Queen and the assembled Barons and Knights.” He was
condemned to death, and executed with horrible mutilation, being affixed
to a high ladder in the market-place, in order that the disgusting
ceremony might be visible to all the assembled populace[2].

The Illumination is executed with exquisite care and neatness, and the
whole page surrounded with an elaborately wrought border of great
beauty. Our plate only takes in a portion of one column and the
adjoining angle of the border.

[Illustration: Coronation of Edward III. on Christmas day 1326.]

PLATE III.

THE CORONATION OF KING EDWARD III.

Edward II. being formally deposed in a general assembly of the great
Barons, his eldest son was called to the throne, and crowned on
Christmas-day, 1326, in the sixteenth year of his age, “during the
lifetime of his father.”

The Illumination only represents the group immediately surrounding the
King, but is very carefully executed; the white draperies in particular
being very elaborately finished. The chair or throne bears sufficient
resemblance to that (so called) of Edward the Confessor, in Westminster
Abbey, as to lead one to suppose that a description, or perhaps a rough
sketch, had been furnished to the artist.

[Illustration: The funeral of Philip of Valois, King of France.]

PLATE IV.

THE FUNERAL OF PHILIP OF VALOIS, KING OF FRANCE.

Charles, son of Philip the Fair, having died in the year 1326 without
heirs male, though thrice married, the twelve Peers and Barons of France
assembled at Paris, and with one consent gave the throne to Philip of
Valois, nephew of Philip the Fair, to the exclusion of Isabella, Queen
of England, and her son, who stood in the more direct line, she being
sister to the late king; the Council, however, determined, according to
Froissart, “that the kingdom of France was of such great nobleness, that
it ought not to fall by succession to a female;” thus, says Froissart,
“as it seemed to many people, the succession went out of the right line,
which has been the occasion of the most destructive wars and
devastations of countries, as well in France as elsewhere, as you will
learn hereafter; the real object of this history being to relate the
great enterprises and deeds of arms achieved in these wars; for, from
the time of good Charlemagne, King of France, never were such feats
performed.”

The son of Isabella, when crowned King Edward III., was soon persuaded
to lay claim to the throne of Philip, who, during a reign of twenty-four
years, maintained the war with various success, suffering among his
reverses the ever-memorable defeat of Crecy. He died at Nogent-le-roi,
in the year 1350, and his burial, which took place at St. Denis, is
graphically delineated in the accompanying Illumination.

The architectural portion of the picture is very carefully drawn, and
the dresses of the figures bearing the coffin are executed in a very
beautiful manner. The style of arrangement is somewhat different from
many other of the Illuminations in this noble MS.; the figures being
fewer and larger in proportion to the picture, and the landscape portion
made quite subordinate, whilst it is generally treated with extreme care
as a principal feature of the composition.

[Illustration: Edward the third takes Berwick.]

PLATE V.

EDWARD III. TAKES BERWICK.

Froissart commences the XXVIth Chapter of his first Book as follows,
“You have heard related all that passed between the English and Scotch,
during the three years that the truce lasted:--and for one year more the
two nations were at peace. This had not happened before for two hundred
years, during which they had been constantly at war with each other. It
fell out that king Edward was informed that the young king David of
Scotland, who had married his sister, kept possession of Berwick, which
of right belonged to his kingdom, and which king Edward his ancestor had
held, and the king his father also, very peaceably for a long time
afterwards. He was also informed, that the kingdom of Scotland was
dependant on his crown as a fief, and that the young king of Scots, his
brother-in-law, had never acknowledged it, or done homage for it. The
king of England therefore sent ambassadors to the king of Scots, to
request that he would withdraw his people from the city of Berwick and
give him possession of it, as it was his just inheritance, and had
always appertained to the kings of England his predecessors. They also
summoned him to come and do his homage for the kingdom of Scotland,
which he ought to hold from the crown of England as a fief----”

The answers of the King of Scotland, a youth of fifteen, being
unsatisfactory, it was determined, on the meeting of Parliament, that
the King should lead a powerful army into Scotland: an invasion
consequently took place, the King passed Berwick, penetrating as far as
Dunbarton, and laying waste the country in every direction,--then making
a “handsome retreat,” as our Chronicler describes it, he came before
Berwick, which, after an obstinate resistance, was compelled to
surrender. “The king,” continues Froissart, “made his public entry into
Berwick with great pomp and sounding of trumpets, and tarried there
twelve days. He appointed as governor thereof a knight called Sir Edward
Baliol, with whom he left, when he quitted Berwick, many young knights
and esquires, to assist him in keeping the conquests he had made from
the Scots, and to guard the frontiers. The king and all his people then
returned towards London, and gave full liberty for every man to go to
his own home. He himself went to Windsor, where he chiefly resided.”

The Illumination is in the same style as the surrender of Bristol,
exhibiting great care in the landscape, to the picturesque features of
which the artist seems to have paid peculiar attention. His castles, for
instance, are never represented as new, as in many other MSS. is always
the case; but the weather stains are introduced with clever and pleasing
tinting, and the parasitic weeds or climbing plants, the tenants of old
walls, are made to minister to the general picturesqueness of the
composition, each in its proper situation, with almost the skill of a
modern landscape painter.

[Illustration: Bristol surrenders to Queen Isabella &c&c.]

PLATE VI.

BRISTOL SURRENDERS TO QUEEN ISABELLA.

This Illumination represents a group of citizens, assembled at one of
the principal gates, in the act of surrendering the city to the Queen
and her party. The whole picture forms a beautiful and spirited
representation of the period;--the town gate, the turreted walls, the
house roofs, with the gray cathedral towering above them--the civic
costumes of the citizens, the brilliant armour and rich housings of the
knights and their horses, surrounding the Queen, and the characteristic
treatment of the distant landscape--all tend to exhibit with wonderful
faithfulness the striking features of an epoch, of which we have no
other pictorial record than the Illuminations contained in the wonderful
manuscripts of the period.

[Illustration: Robert Bruce sends a defiance to Edward III.]

PLATE VII.

ROBERT BRUCE, KING OF SCOTLAND, DEFIES KING EDWARD III.

“It happened that Robert, King of Scotland, who, though brave, had
suffered much in his wars with England, having often been defeated by
King Edward, grandfather of the young king, being at this time very old,
and afflicted with leprosy, hearing that the King (Edward II.) had been
taken prisoner, and deposed, and his counsellors put to death, thought
this a favourable opportunity to send a defiance to the present King, as
yet a youth, whose barons were not on good terms with each other, and to
attempt the conquest of some part of England. About Easter, 1327, he
sent a defiance to King Edward and all the country; informing them that
he would enter the kingdom, and burn it as far as he had done before,
after the defeat of Stirling.”

The Illumination represents the King receiving the messenger of Bruce in
an open vestibule or pavilion, who, on one knee, delivers the defiance
of his master to the English nation. In the background, the river Thames
is seen, with the Scottish vessel at anchor. The whole is executed with
great care and neatness.

Great armies were raised on either side, but, like most of the wars of
that period, conducted without any settled object. The affair ended
without any gain to either party--the great suffering of the unfortunate
people of the Borders being the only permanent result. A truce for three
years shortly followed, during which King Robert, of Scotland, died.

[Illustration: The Earl of Pembroke attacked by the Spanish Fleet,
before la Rochelle.]

PLATE VIII.

THE EARL OF PEMBROKE ATTACKED BY THE SPANISH FLEET.

This is one of the finest Illuminations of the splendid MS. in the
Bibliothèque Royale, and exhibits, in a most striking manner, the great
features of a naval combat of the period. The immense number of figures,
all in appropriate and energetic action, and the general effect of
multitude and movement, forcibly call to mind the celebrated, though
uncompleted, picture of Raphael, of the Battle of Constantine and
Maxentius, so ably finished by his great pupil, Julio. But it is
impossible, in a plate coloured in by hand in large numbers, to convey
an adequate idea of the extreme beauty and careful execution of every
minute part of this beautiful Illumination; though our Plate will convey
an excellent general idea of the composition and effect.

The Earl of Pembroke was appointed by King Edward III., in 1372, to
command an expedition sent to the assistance of the Gascons and
Poitevins.[3]

[Illustration: Sir Godfrey de Harcourt encounters the men of Amiens on
their way to Paris.]

PLATE IX.

SIR GODFREY DE HARCOURT ENCOUNTERING THE MEN OF AMIENS.

Sir Godfrey de Harcourt, who had espoused the cause of the English, in
consequence of his disgrace and banishment by the court of France,
performed many deeds of great bravery, but was eventually defeated and
slain at the battle of Coutantin. Froissart gives the following spirited
account of his death:--“The army of Sir Godfrey would not keep the order
he had appointed, according to the promise made to him; but the greater
part fled, and could not withstand the French. Sir Godfrey, on seeing
this, declared, that he would prefer death to being taken; and arming
himself with a battle-axe, halted where he was; he placed one foot
before the other, to be firmer; for he was lame of one leg, though very
strong in his arms. In this position he fought a long time most
valiantly, so that few dared to encounter his blows: when two Frenchmen
mounted their horses, and placing their lances in their rests, charged
him at the same time, and struck him to the ground: some men-at-arms
immediately rushed upon him with their swords, which they ran through
his body, and killed him on the spot. The greater part of his army were
slain or made prisoners, and those who were able to escape returned to
Saint Sauveur le Viscomte. This happened in the winter of 1356, about
Martinmas.”

The Illumination (one of the most beautifully drawn and executed of the
MS.), represents the defeat, by Sir Godfrey, of a body of men from
Amiens, on their march to join the King of France.

[Illustration: Froissart in his Study.]

PLATE X.

FROISSART IN HIS STUDY.

This Illumination is taken from an odd volume of a MS. of Froissart’s
Chronicles, among the royal MSS. now in the British Museum. It contains
few illuminations beyond the present subject, which forms a sort of
frontispiece, or title-page, in which the illuminator has not, as usual,
represented the principal event of the first chapter, but has thought it
more appropriate to picture the author of the book in his study. He is
just receiving a letter from some person of note, (as appears from the
bearer wearing the arms or badge of his lord upon his breast,) whilst a
clerk, or amanuensis, is busily employed in transcribing what we may
suppose to be a portion of the famous Chronicles. The present plate only
represents a portion of the original illumination, in which, not only
the interior of Froissart’s study is exhibited by the usual device, an
excision of a portion of the wall, but also the exterior of the
building, with a side-entrance, court-yard, and a distant view; a
portion of which is given in the next plate.

The present plate conveys a very vivid and pleasing impression of a
comfortably furnished apartment of the fifteenth century; the whole
being executed with great care; but the figures are inferior to many
works of the period, and are principally interesting on account of the
costume.

[Illustration: A female attendant serving wine to a groom.]

PLATE XI.

A FEMALE ATTENDANT SERVING WINE TO A GROOM.

This subject is another portion of illumination, partly given in the
previous plate, and forms the principal part of the exterior view. A
groom is holding the horse of the messenger, who, in the previous plate,
delivers the letter, whilst a female attendant is serving him with wine,
from a tankard of precisely similar form to those still used in many
parts of Belgium. Though, in some respects, rudely drawn, it forms a
very characteristic group, and serves to convey an idea of the entire
Illumination, which is surrounded by a rich border, the whole, nearly
occupying the entire page of a large folio volume; leaving space only
for an enriched capital, and four or five lines of the beginning of the
chapter.

[Illustration: The Duke of Brittany and his Barons.]

PLATE XII.

THE DUKE OF BRITTANY AND HIS BARONS.

This Illumination is from another volume, containing a portion of
Froissart’s Chronicles, among the Royal MSS. in the British Museum, from
which several of the ensuing subjects will be selected, some with
remarkably rich borders. The present subject represents a meeting of the
Barons of Brittany to remonstrate with their Lord, the Duke.

[Illustration: Philip van Artevelde preaching.]

PLATE XIII.

PHILIP VAN ARTEVELDE HARANGUING THE PEOPLE.

The story of Philip van Artevelde, the Rienzi of Flanders, has been
rendered popular, in the highest sense of the term, by the noble drama
of Mr. Taylor. In the present Illumination, we see him exhibited, by a
nearly contemporary artist, haranguing the people in the market-place of
Ypres. The artist, although in a rude manner, has attempted to exhibit
the scene at the moment when Philip, at the close of his oration,
exclaimed:--“Let all those who are determined to remain true to the
cause, according to the oath they took, gallantly lift up their hands to
heaven as a token of their loyalty;”--an example, if one were wanting,
that at public meetings then, as now, a majority was determined by a
show of hands.

The commencement of the chapter, given under the Illumination,
is--“Cestui meschret se passa, on le mist en oubliance et Phle’
Dartevelle se parti de Bruges et vint a Ypre ou il fut recuelli a grand
joye et pietre du Bois sen vint a Commines ou le plat pays etoit
assemble et la entendi a ses besoignes et fut tous.” Of which the
following is Johnes’s translation:--“This affair passed off, and was
soon forgotten. Philip van Artevelde departed from Bruges, and came to
Ypres, where he was most joyfully received. Peter Du Bois went to
Comines, where all the inhabitants of the flat country were assembled,
and instantly began his preparations, and all--” which relates to the
destruction of the bridges, to oppose the entry of the army of the King
of France into Flanders.[4]

[Illustration: The taking of Oudenarde by Francis Atremen.]

PLATE XIV.

THE TAKING OF OUDENARDE, BY FRANCIS ATREMEN.

Froissart tells us that Francis Atremen, Peter du Bois, Peter le Nuitre,
and other captains of the Artevelde party, having returned from the
siege of Ypres, “were daily and nightly imagining how they could annoy
their enemies.” Among their various plans the favourite one was the
taking of Oudenarde, which had successfully resisted all their former
attempts. The men of Oudenarde holding the Ghent men in contempt, were
grown somewhat careless; and the governor, Gilbert de Lienegen, being
absent, no doubt causing the watch and general discipline to be still
more lax, Francis Atremen and his followers stormed the place by
surprise, with ladders, as represented in the Illumination. The
operation was much facilitated by the ditches being dry, the inhabitants
having emptied them of water to get the fish. The captors pillaged the
town, sending out all the women and children in the meanest dress they
had, who were forced to take refuge in Mons, Arras, and other places.

[Illustration: The Battle of Rosebecque.]

PLATE XV.

THE BATTLE OF ROSEBECQUE.

The Illuminator, in this attempt to convey an idea of the battle of
Rosebecque, has not omitted the story of the White Dove, related by
Froissart, who tells that he heard from the Lord d’Estonnenort, who
witnessed it as well as many others, that when the oriflamme was
displayed, a white dove hovered round, and making several circles,
settled on one of the banners of the King of France; which was
considered an omen of victory. The Chronicle informs that it was the
general opinion among men of arms, that the defeat and death of Philip
van Artevelde, at the battle of Rosebecque, was owing to his having, in
over-confidence in his numbers and anxiety to engage more quickly,
quitted a strong position, which he had taken up with great judgment, to
fight at a disadvantage in one where the compact mass of his Flemish
infantry could be assailed on all sides by the cavalry of France. The
consequence was the well-known defeat and slaughter of Rosebecque, in
which disastrous conflict Froissart states the loss of the Flemings to
have exceeded, in the battle and pursuit, upwards of thirty thousand.
When once seized with panic, they were unable to offer any resistance,
and in one dense disorderly crowd were slain without mercy. Froissart
describes the pursuit by the French, as making a noise “greater than if
all the armourers of Bruxelles and Paris had been there working at their
trade,” so constant was the clattering of maces and battle-axes on the
helmets of the unfortunate Flemings, making a din that prevented any
other sound being heard. Such was the last scene in the career of Philip
van Artevelde, whose bold but ill-matured and irregular attempt to free
Flanders from the despotic government of its feudal tyrants could
scarcely have been successful under any circumstances at that period.
His body was sought among the slain, and hanged upon a tree.

Froissart exhibits strongly the aristocratic prejudices of the time in
his concluding remarks on this event; which, he says, was “very
honourable to all Christendom as well as to the nobility and gentry; for
had those lowbred peasants succeeded, there would have been unheard-of
cruelties practised, to the destruction of all gentlemen, by the common
people.[5] The banners of the Flemings in illumination are very
interesting, as exhibiting the implements of the different trades,
precisely as in the flags of trades-unions of the present day.

[Illustration: Messire Josse de Hallebin, killed before Ghent.]

PLATE XVI.

DEATH OF JOSSE DE HALLEBIN.

This Illumination represents the death of Sir Josse de Hallebin, at the
passage of Long-pont, one of the innumerable encounters and disasters
consequent upon the revolt of Flanders.

[Illustration: Combat between Nicolas Clifford and a French Knight.]

PLATE XVII.

COMBAT BETWEEN NICHOLAS CLIFFORD AND A FRENCH KNIGHT.

This Illumination has been selected as exhibiting the mode and
ceremonial of a single combat, and though coarsely and somewhat
carelessly executed, it portrays, with considerable graphic effect, the
arrangements, and positions of the witnesses, judges, and combatants, on
such occasions.

It is intended to represent the encounter between an English esquire,
named Nicholas Clifford, and a French knight, the latter of whom was
slain.

[Illustration: Jacob Van Arteveld holding his state in Ghent.]

PLATE XVIII.

JACOB VAN ARTEVELDE HOLDING STATE IN GHENT.

Though so frequently occurring in illuminated manuscripts of the
fifteenth century, it has so happened that our selection of subjects has
not fallen on one containing a portraiture of the Fool or Jester--a
prominent figure in the social groups of that period.

In the present miniature the artist has attempted to exhibit the great
state kept by Jacob van Artevelde, who, after assuming the supreme power
in Flanders, surrounded himself with men-at-arms, numerous attendants,
not omitting the Jester, it would seem, and such a train of retainers as
was usual with the great Lords and Sovereigns of that time.

[Illustration: The Queen of Naples visits Pope Clement at Rome.]

PLATE XIX.

VISIT OF THE QUEEN OF NAPLES TO POPE CLEMENT.

Queen Joan of Naples, the daughter of Louis of Sicily, remaining without
heirs, having been four times married, determined to fulfil the last
request of her father, to the effect that, should she die without
offspring, she should surrender Naples, and all her other possessions,
to the church. For this purpose she met Clement, Pope of Avignon, at
Fondi, which interview is represented in the accompanying Illumination.
Pope Clement, as is well known, made over these possessions to the Duke
of Anjou, brother to the King of France.

[Illustration: Galeas of Milan surprises and imprisons his Uncle.]

PLATE XX.

GALEAS VISCONTI ARRESTS HIS UNCLE.

Galeas Visconti, count of Vertus, imagining that his uncle, Sir Bernabo
Visconti, duke of Milan, had some intention of dispossessing him of his
Lordships, proved himself the keener politician of the two, by being
beforehand with his uncle and arresting him. He the more easily formed a
party for this purpose, as Sir Bernabo had cruelly oppressed that part
of Lombardy over which he ruled. Sir Galeas fixed upon the opportunity
of his uncle’s passing from one castle to another, to waylay him, by
three ambuscades, as represented in the Illumination, which it was
impossible to escape. The person of Sir Bernabo being thus treacherously
secured, he was thrown into prison, where he died shortly after, as it
is supposed, by foul means.

The cotemporary opinion respecting events of this description may be
inferred from the circumstance that Galeas Visconti, becoming thus duke
of Milan, was enabled to marry his daughter to the then most powerful
prince in Europe, Charles VI., king of France.

[Illustration: The Funeral of Jehan de Lyon.]

PLATE XXI.

THE FUNERAL OF JEHAN DE LYON.

Froissart enters into great detail upon the subject of the petty
quarrels which he supposes led to the revolt of Ghent. The favour of
Jehan de Lyon with the Earl of Flanders, and his subsequent disgrace, he
makes one of the principal causes. It is well known that Jehan de Lyon
was the leader of the first serious rising, and the founder of the
association called White-hoods. After the taking of Bruges, he was
seized with sudden illness, at the small town of Damme, “after having
supped in great revelry with the ladies of the place,” whence he was
carried on a litter to Ardenburg, where he died. From the swelling of
his body and other symptoms, it is supposed he was poisoned by some
agent of the Earl of Flanders. “His body was conveyed to Ghent, where he
was much beloved by all except the party of the earl. The clergy went
out to meet the body, and conducted it into the town with as much
solemnity as if it had been that of the earl himself.” This is the
passage illustrated by the Illuminator.

[Illustration: The beheading of Silvester Budes.]

PLATE XXII.

BEHEADING OF SILVESTER BUDES.

Silvester Budes, marching against Pope Urban the Sixth, was defeated by
Sir John Hawkwood, who commanded the Papal forces, and carried prisoner
to Rome: he was in daily expectation of being put to death, when he
effected his escape, and took shelter with the rival Pope--Clement, at
Avignon; he was, however, unfavourably received, and at the instigation
of the Cardinal of Amiens, whose baggage and plate he had formerly
plundered to pay his soldiers, he was beheaded in the city of Mascon.
The Illumination represents the headsman performing his office with a
two-handed sword, in the presence of the Pope and Cardinal.

[Illustration: The Duke of Burgundy and his Army.]

PLATE XXIII.

THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY ENTERING CHARTRES.

The Duke of Burgundy having received the command of an expedition from
his brother, Charles the Fifth of France, after taking several towns and
castles, retired to Chartres to recruit his forces: his entrance into
that town appears to be the subject of the present Illumination, which,
surrounded by a rich border, forms the frontispiece to a manuscript of
the Chronicles of Froissart, which are unfortunately incomplete, the
first volume only being preserved in the collection of the British
Museum. The background, and some unimportant features, have been
slightly compressed, to accommodate the subject to the size of our work;
in other respects, the Plate is an exact copy of the original, which
exhibits in an interesting manner the party-coloured uniform of the
Archers, and many other details of contemporary costume.

[Illustration: The Earl of Flanders soliciting the aid of
Charles VI. of France.]

PLATE XXIV.

THE EARL OF FLANDERS SOLICITING AID OF CHARLES VI. OF FRANCE.

The Earl of Flanders, finding his own force insufficient to cope with
his revolted subjects, sought the aid of the young Charles the Sixth of
France, whose assistance, readily granted, led to the defeat of the
Flemings, and the death of Philip Van Artevelde, at the famous battle of
Rosbecque. The Illumination represents the Earl soliciting the aid of
the King of France at Peronne, where the interview took place.

[Illustration: The Murder of the Archbishop of Canterbury.]

PLATE XXV.

THE MURDER OF THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY.

In the revolt headed by Wat Tyler, John Ball, and others, many excesses
were committed; among others, the murder of the Archbishop of
Canterbury, in the Tower, which, according to Froissart, happened in the
following manner:--“The king having agreed to a parley with the rebels
in a meadow at Mile End, passed out of the Tower with his retinue, for
the purpose of proceeding there; the mob, taking advantage of the open
gates, rushed in, and running from chamber to chamber, at last found the
Archbishop of Canterbury, who was Chancellor of England, and put him
instantly to death.” They also murdered the Prior of St. John’s, and a
Franciscan Friar, a doctor of physic, as represented in the
Illumination.

[Illustration: Edward III. before Rheims.]

PLATE XXVI.

EDWARD III. BEFORE RHEIMS.

The present Plate represents King Edward the Third before the city of
Rheims, whence it appears his followers proceeded to pillage the country
round to a considerable distance in every direction, which our
chronicler naïvely terms, “seeking adventures.” After seven weeks, the
siege was abandoned, without attempting any serious assault; and the
scene of operations transferred to Troyes and other places in Champagne,
where a similar mode of warfare was carried on. The illuminator has
bestowed extraordinary pains in the enrichment of the tents and in
delineating the cannon and other preparatives for a siege. This Plate is
from the fine Manuscript in the Bibliothèque Royale, Paris.

[Illustration: Interview on the Thames between Richard II and the
Insurgents.]

PLATE XXVII.

INTERVIEW BETWEEN RICHARD II. AND THE INSURGENTS.

In the commencement of the Wat Tyler rebellion, an interview was
attempted between the king and the rebels at Rotherhithe, which is thus
described by Froissart:--

“On Corpus Christi day, King Richard heard mass in the Tower of London,
with all his Lords, and afterwards entered his barge, attended by the
Earls of Salisbury, Warwick, and Suffolk, with other knights. He rowed
down the Thames towards Rotherhithe, a manor belonging to the Crown,
where were upwards of ten thousand men, who had come from Blackheath to
see the king and to speak to him: when they perceived his barge
approach, they set up such shouts and cries as if all the devils in hell
had been in their company. They had their knight, Sir John Newtoun, with
them: for in case the king did not come and they found he had made a
jest of them, they would, as they threatened, have cut him to pieces.
When the king and his lords saw this crowd and the wildness of their
manner, there was not one among them so bold and determined but felt
alarmed: the king was advised by his barons not to land, but to have his
barge rowed up and down the river. ‘What do you wish for?’ demanded the
king; ‘I am come hither to hear what you have to say.’ Those near him
cried out, ‘We wish thee to land, when we will remonstrate with thee and
tell thee more at our ease what our wants are.’ The Earl of Salisbury
then replied for the king, and said, ‘Gentlemen, you are not properly
dressed, or in fit condition for the king to talk with you.’ Nothing
more was said; for the king was advised to return to the Tower of
London, from whence he had set out.”

[Illustration: Lord Charles of Blois obtains possession of the town of
Jugon.]

PLATE XXVIII.

LORD CHARLES OF BLOIS OBTAINING POSSESSION OF JUGON.

Between the feasts of St. Remy and All Saints in the year 1342, a rich
merchant of Jugon was taken prisoner by a follower of the Lord Charles
of Blois. Being in fear of his life, he agreed to betray the town into
the hands of the Lord Charles, upon being set free; and he had every
opportunity of doing so, as he was so much respected that none had any
suspicion of his intentions. The gate was thrown open at midnight, and
Lord Charles obtained possession of the place, but the citizens having
retreated to the castle, and with them the treacherous merchant, his
treason was soon discovered, and he was hanged outside the battlements
before the surrender of the castle.

[Illustration: The Battle of Poictiers.]

PLATE XXIX.

BATTLE OF POICTIERS.

The present beautiful Illumination is a spirited composition full of
movement and invention, representing the great victory of Poictiers
gained by the Black Prince over King John of France, whose army numbered
seven to one of the English. The Illumination is especially intended to
exhibit the great havoc and confusion caused by the English archers
among the French horsemen, which, as Froissart asserts, mainly
contributed to the fortune of the day.

[Illustration: EVAN of Wales assassinated before Mortmain-sur-mer.]

PLATE XXX.

ASSASSINATION OF EVAN OF WALES.

“Evan of Wales,” says Froissart, “was the son of a Prince of Wales, whom
King Edward, for some reason I am ignorant of, had put to death, and
seized his principality, which he had given to his son the Prince of
Wales.” Evan having gone to France to lay his complaint before the
French King, received the command of a body of men, and much annoyed the
English on many occasions; he eventually laid siege to the town of
Mortmain in Poitou; during the siege it was his custom to seat himself
in the open air, to have his hair combed and plaited, attended only by
one John Lamb, by whom, on one of these occasions, he was treacherously
stabbed to death with a short Spanish dagger, and not the singular
weapon represented by the illuminator. It appears from an entry relating
to the expenses of the war, that Lamb received a hundred francs
recompense for this deed, as one exceedingly agreeable to the Prince of
Wales.

[Illustration: The Earl of Flanders receives the men of Ghent.]

PLATE XXXI.

EARL OF FLANDERS AND CITIZENS OF GHENT.

This Illumination represents an interview between the citizens of Ghent
and the Earl of Flanders, and is very carefully executed in every
detail. It was principally selected, however, for the purpose of
introducing a portion of the rich border which surrounds the page of
which it forms a part.

[Illustration: The Earl of Flanders directing the Repairs of
Oudenarde.]

PLATE XXXII.

THE EARL OF FLANDERS REPAIRS OUDENARDE.

This Illumination has been selected for the purpose of showing masons at
work in the fifteenth century, which it does in a very graphic and
interesting manner.

[Illustration: The Duke of Brittany and the Earl of Buckingham
concerting the Siege of Nantes.]

PLATE XXXIII.

THE EARL OF BUCKINGHAM AND THE DUKE OF BRITTANY CONCERT THE SIEGE OF
NANTES.

The Earl of Buckingham (the Compte de Bouquinghé, as he is called in the
Chronicles,) being appointed to the command of a force despatched to the
assistance of the Duke of Brittany, their meeting is thus described by
Froissart:--

“Fair brother of Brittany,” said the Earl, “it shall not be long, if you
follow my advice, before you punish these rebels; for, with the forces
which you have yourself, and those we have brought, with the additional
reinforcements that may arrive from England every day, we shall bring
your subjects into such a state of submission that they will gladly
throw themselves on your mercy. With these, and such like speeches, they
conversed for a long time, when each returned to his hotel. On the
morrow they rode out together; it was then settled that the council,”
&c. &c.

The Illumination exhibits the arms of Brittany and England correctly;
and the rich housings of the leaders’ horses are executed with good
effect.

[Illustration: The Battle of Montiel.]

PLATE XXXIV.

THE BATTLE OF MONTIEL.

Don Pedro, King of Castille, having been excommunicated by the Pope, and
his bastard brother, Don Henry, having been legitimated and declared
king, a fierce contention commenced between them--Pedro seeking
alliances among the Moors and Jews of Spain; and Henry assistance from
the free companies of France and Brittany. After many vicissitudes and
battles, gained and lost, on both sides, a decisive engagement took
place near Montiel, which ended in the complete rout of the army of
Pedro. Froissart thus commences his description of this famous
battle:--“This battle, of Spaniards against Spaniards, and two brother
kings with their allies, near Montiel, was very grand and horrible. Many
were the good knights on King Henry’s side; such as Sir Bertrand du
Guesclin, Sir Godfrey Ricon, Sir Arnold de Simonsin, Sir Gauvain de
Bailleul, Le Bègue de Villaines, Alain de St. Pot, Aliot de Calais, and
the Bretons who were there. From the kingdom of Arragon were the
Viscount de Rocabarti, the Viscount de Rodais, and many other good
knights and squires, whom I cannot name, who performed various gallant
deeds of arms, as, in truth, they had full need: they had strange people
to encounter, such as Moors and Portuguese. The Jews who were there very
soon turned their backs, and would not fight; but those from Granada and
Bellmarine fought valiantly: they were armed with bows and lances, of
which they made good use, and behaved themselves right well. Don Pedro
was in the midst, and, with intrepid courage, fought valiantly with his
battle-axe, that scarcely any dared to come near him.” Seeing all hope
of escape vain, Pedro surrendered himself to the Bègue de Villaines, who
promised not to give him up to his brother, and concealed him in his own
tent; but “he had not been there an hour, when King Henry and the
Viscount de Rocabarti, with their attendants, but not in great numbers,
came hither. As soon as King Henry had entered the chamber where Don
Pedro was, he said, ‘Where is the son of a Jewish whore, who calls
himself King of Castille!’ Don Pedro, who was a bold as well as a cruel
man, stepped forward, and said, ‘Why, thou art the Son of a whore, and I
am the son of Alphonso.’ On saying this, he caught hold of King Henry in
his arms, began to wrestle with him, and being the strongest, threw him
down under him upon a ‘materat de soye,’ and placing his hand on his
poniard, he would infallibly have killed him, if the Viscount de
Rocabarti had not been present, who, seizing Don Pedro by the legs,
turned him over, by which means, King Henry being uppermost, immediately
drew a long poniard, which he wore in his sash, and plunged it into his
body. His attendants entered the tent, and helped to despatch him. * * *
Thus died Don Pedro, King of Castille, who had formerly reigned in great
prosperity. Those who had slain him, left him three days unburied, which
was a pity, for the sake of humanity; and the Spaniards made their joke
upon him.”

This is one of the finest and most elaborate Illuminations of the famous
MS. of the Bibliothèque Royale;--the number of single combats, the
picturesque costumes of the Moors, and the general rush and confusion of
the _melée_, (in the midst of which Pedro is seen wielding his
formidable battle-axe,) are most capitally pourtrayed, and every part is
finished with the greatest care and precision. The landscape exhibits
the romantic, rocky character which distinguish nearly all the finest of
the pictures in these beautiful volumes; and in the present instance it
is treated with great care and finish.

[Illustration: The Chanoine of Robesart takes Jaffre.]

PLATE XXXV.

THE CANON OF ROBESART SURPRISES THE TOWN OF JAFFRE.

This Illumination represents one of the exploits of the warlike Canon of
Robesart. To convey an idea of surprise, the illuminator has exhibited
an inhabitant of the town coming out of the gate, fingering his
walking-stick with an air of self-satisfaction that evidently shows he
has no idea even of the approach of the enemy--who already stand ranged
close to the walls, with a formidable piece of artillery, which looks as
likely to be detrimental to themselves as their adversaries.

[Illustration: John Ball Preaching.]

PLATE XXXVI.

JOHN BALL PREACHING.

John Ball, a priest, was one of the chief instigators of the rebellion
of 1381. He harangued the people of his village every Sunday after mass;
and as he preached equality of rank and property, he was soon popular
among the lower orders; and when the men of Kent, Essex, &c., &c.,
marched to London, he, with Jack Straw, and Wat Tyler, became one of
their leaders. After the fall of Wat Tyler, and the dispersion of the
rebels in Smithfield, John Ball and Jack Straw concealed themselves in a
ruin, but were betrayed by their own men, and beheaded. In this
Illumination the names of John Ball and Waultre le Tieullier are written
in white on the respective dresses, which would seem to render it
probable that they are actual portraits.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] This and the following Illuminations are from the famous Gruthyse
MS. in the Paris Library.

[2] See Smith’s Edition of Froissart, vol. i., page 13.

[3] For a most interesting account of his meeting with the Spanish
fleet off Rochelle, his defeat, captivity, and death, see Smith’s
edition of Froissart, Vol. I. pp. 470, 471, 475, and 501.

[4] See Smith’s edition of Froissart, vol. i. page 724.

[5] See Smith’s edition of Froissart, vol. i. p. 746.

*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Illuminated illustrations of Froissart; - Selected from the ms. in the Bibliothèque royale, Paris, and from other sources" ***

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