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LIBRARY FOR 
 YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 A COLLECTION OF THE BEST READING 
 FOR BOYS AND GIRLS 
 
 WALTE R CAM P 
 
 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, ASSISTED BY THE FOLLOWING EDITORIAL STAFF 
 
 CHARLES WELSH 
 ARTHUR T. HADLEY 
 BENJAMIN IDE WHEELER 
 SIR EDWIN ARNOLD 
 ANSON PHELPS STOKES, JR. 
 BLISS CARMAN 
 CYNTHIA WESTOVER ALDEN 
 HOWARD PYLE 
 EDWIN KIRK RAWSON 
 
 RICHARD H. DANA 
 
 LIEUTENANT ROBERT E. PEARY 
 
 EDWARD BROOKS 
 
 PROFESSOR W. P. TRENT 
 
 C. G. D. ROBERTS 
 
 HENRY S. PRITCHETT 
 
 OPIE READ 
 
 ABBIE FARWELL BROWN 
 
 NATHAN H. DOLE 
 
 THOMAS WENTWORTH HIGGINSON 
 
 WITH A GENERAL INTRODUCTION BY MELVIL DEWEY 
 
 ARRANGED BY PHILIP P. WELLS OF THE YALE 
 LAW LIBRARY. AND HARRY T. CLINTON 
 
 ILLUSTRATED IN COLOR AND BLACK AND WHITE 
 
 N EW YORK 
 
 P. F. COLLIER 6? SON 
 
 M CM III 
 
BOARD OF EDITORS 
 
 WALTER CAMP, Editor-in-Chief. 
 
 MELVIL DEWEY, Director of New York State Library. 
 
 PHILIP P. WELLS, Librarian Yale Law School. 
 
 C. G. D. ROBERTS, Editor and Historian. 
 
 CHARLES WELSH, Author, Lecturer, Managing Editor "Young 
 Folks' Library." 
 
 ARTHUR T. HADLEY, President Yale University. 
 
 BENJAMIN IDE WHEELER, President University of California. 
 
 SIR EDWIN ARNOLD, Author, Traveller, and Poet. Author of 
 "The Light of Asia," etc. 
 
 ANSON PHELPS STOKES, Jr., Author and Educator. Secretary 
 Yale University. 
 
 CYNTHIA WESTOVER ALDEN, Author, Editor. Founder Interna- 
 tional Sunshine Society. 
 
 HOWARD PYLE, Artist-Author. Author and Illustrator of "The 
 Merry Adventures of Robin Hood." 
 
 EDWARD KIRK RAWSON, Author. Superintendent Naval War 
 Records. 
 
 BLISS CARMAN, Journalist and Poet. 
 
 HENRY S. PRITCHETT, President Massachusetts Institute of Tech- 
 nology. 
 
 RICHARD HENRY DANA, Lawyer, Author and Lecturer. 
 
 ROBERT E. PEARY, Lieutenant and Civil Engineer, U. S. N. Arctic 
 Explorer, Author and Inventor. 
 
 W. P. TRENT, Professor of English Literature, Columbia University. 
 
 ABBIE FARWELL BROWN, Author of Children's Stories. 
 
 EDWARD BROOKS, Author, Superintendent Public Schools of Phila- 
 delphia. 
 
 THOMAS WENTWORTH HIGGINSON, Author. 
 
 OPIE READ, Journalist and Author. 
 
 NATHAN H. DOLE, Writer and Translator. 
 

 £be Mes of Scores 
 
 "The fight between the 'Revenge' and the 'San Philip,' off Flores." 
 
 —Vol. VIII, p. 474. 
 
Xibrar? foe JJoung people 
 
 GREAT MEN AND 
 FAMOUS DEEDS 
 
 WITH AN 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 BY 
 
 
 
 EDWARD KIRK RAWSON 
 
 
 
 ILLUSTRATED BY 
 
 
 
 
 GEORGE GIBBS 
 
 
 
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 Vol. VIII If 
 
 
 
 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 
 
 
 P. F. COLLIER fcf 
 
 SON 
 
 • 
 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 9°3 
 
 
 
 
 
THE LIBRARY OF 
 CONGRESS, 
 
 Two Copies Received 
 
 JUL 29 1903 
 
 Copyright Entry 
 
 CLASS <X> XXc. No 
 
 COPY B. 
 
 D r 
 
 Copyright 1903 
 By P. F. COLLIER & SON 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 "Great men exist that there may be greater men." — Emerson 
 
 REAT men are those who raise their heads 
 
 if 
 
 above the multitude, not because they are 
 different from other men, but because they 
 have in a greater degree what is common 
 to all. The world of men is like a sea of swimmers, 
 in which only a few can keep their heads up to be 
 seen and known, the rest sink and are forgotten in a 
 common mediocrity. 
 
 "As rich as Croesus" is a proverb. Few think of 
 how precariously he held his vast possessions. Of 
 him we are told that, defeated by Cyrus, the Per- 
 sian king, he was about to be burned to death, when 
 on the funeral pyre in the anguish of his heart he 
 cried, "Solon! Solon! Solon!" and to Cyrus, inquir- 
 ing what he meant, he related how, years before, 
 Solon, the philosopher, had said to him, when he 
 thought that he might rightly be called the happiest 
 of mankind, "No; happiness belongs rather with 
 poverty and virtue," and that Cyrus, struck by the 
 
 1— Vol. 8 
 
Introduction 
 
 remark, forbade his execution and made him his 
 friend until his dying day. It is a pretty story, con- 
 taining a wise philosophy of life and an example of 
 a generous heart. 
 
 There are required for the hero the lofty spirit and 
 the high endeavor. A man can not be called great 
 who is hailed as such by the trumped-up applause of 
 the unthinking multitude. How many such names 
 the advancing years have obliterated as the sun burns 
 off the seed sown in the scant soil of the rock, where 
 no nourishment can give it vitality. 
 
 A name and nothing else! 
 
 No one who desires to know about the great men 
 who have lived in the world can afford to be ignorant 
 of the life of Julius Caesar the Roman, whom Shake- 
 speare called "the foremost man of all the world." 
 Plutarch, the historian, wrote of him in his simple, 
 charming way as he wrote of many another ancient 
 monarch or distinguished man. Emerson said: "We 
 can not read Plutarch without a tingling of the 
 blood." His writings have been the nursery of great 
 men for centuries. 
 
 In order to keep the names of distinguished men 
 alive, cities, temples and monuments have been built 
 and all have perished. Their names have been for- 
 gotten. But the names of the great are kept living in 
 
 !1 
 
Introduction 
 
 the hearts and minds of men, in books which are the 
 true monuments of heroes. 
 
 The imagination is stirred by the alarm felt by 
 the Greeks because of the threatened Persian inva- 
 sion. The Greeks in that perilous time stood for the 
 refinements of civilization. It would have been an 
 irreparable loss had they yielded. They were a 
 feeble folk, but they withstood the advancing hosts 
 of the Persians, a million of men, with great patriotic 
 ardor. Marathon and Salamis are names to stir the 
 blood to-day. "Some things," says Froude, "and some 
 persons deserve to be commemorated eternally." 
 
 Great occasions have inspired the pens of men to 
 the putting forth of great works in the realm of lit- 
 erature. Many a poet who could not wield the sword 
 has written with the pen in glowing, stirring words, 
 in verses like trumpet sounds, to quicken the pulses, 
 like painted pictures which make the old scenes live 
 again. While men do brave and noble deeds the his- 
 torians and biographers and poets are makers of then- 
 fame; especially the poets whose very name in the 
 original Greek is maker. To these men, who have 
 done in order that we may do, we owe a debt of 
 gratitude. 'By their endeavors we are inspirited, 
 by their zeal our hearts burn, by the splendor of their 
 successes our lives shine as by reflected light, and in 
 
 iii 
 
Introduction 
 
 some rude way, it may be, and in poor fashion we 
 may sometimes imitate their bright deeds. Nay, 
 often the supreme quality of their actions, as by a 
 natural succession, descend to later generations. Be- 
 fore they die they hand the torch to some unknown 
 successor; and, as among the torch-bearing Greeks of 
 old the light is kept burning in long line, the evidence 
 as it were of the divine in our human nature. 
 
 As the Greeks of old feared the Persian invasion, 
 so the Englishmen of a later day feared the haughty 
 power of Spain. The Armada w T hich Philip, their 
 king, was building caused many a tremor to pass 
 through the frames of the stout Englishmen. Was 
 it possible that they could withstand the vast array 
 of high-decked, tall-masted galleons? Whether they 
 could or not, they meant to try, and try they did, suc- 
 ceeding well — the tempestuous sea, which wrecked 
 many of the Spanish ships, coming to their aid. But 
 what a time for England! and how the spirits of En- 
 glishmen rose to the occasion as the beacon lights flew 
 from hill to hill throughout the "tight little island," 
 signals of the coming invasion. 
 
 "Far on the deep the Spaniards saw along each southern 
 shire 
 
 Cape beyond cape in endless range those twinkling- points 
 of fire." 
 
 iv 
 
Introduction 
 
 You may search the annals of naval history long 
 and well, and go the world over in your quest, and 
 you will not find in them, on any leaf, a record of a 
 more heroic action than that which took place off 
 the Azores between the English ship the "Revenge" 
 and "an Armada of the navy of Spaine." It is a 
 noteworthy circumstance that the great Sir Walter 
 Raleigh wrote an interesting narrative of this ac- 
 tion and that this account inspired Lord Tennyson 
 to write his spirit-stirring ballad. Of this ballad, 
 read to him by Tennyson, gruff old Thomas Carlyle 
 said: "Eh! Alfred, you have got the grip of it." 
 
 There is an expressive line in the poem, coming 
 as a kind of postlude to the great tragedy: 
 
 "And the sun went down and the stars came out far over the 
 summer sea." 
 
 One night on reading this line, at his home, Ten- 
 nyson turned to his guest, Joachim, the great violinist, 
 and asked him: "Could you do that on your violin?" 
 
 Here is stout old Oliver Cromwell, great in his 
 simplicity, leader of men, praised of noble poets like 
 Milton and ,M arvell, in his own time, and yet his 
 body was taken from the grave and hung on a gibbet 
 at Tyburn as though he were a common malefactor, 
 one who did more for England, it is possible to say, 
 
Introduction 
 
 than any other monarch; and so for two hundred 
 years his name was held in contumely by Church and 
 State until Carlyle raised him up, put him on a pedes- 
 tal, and brought him again to the favor of men. Of 
 his greatness no man can dispute. Within the last 
 three years two most prominent men have essayed to 
 write his life, Theodore Roosevelt in the United 
 States, John Morley in England. With Marvell we 
 
 may say: 
 
 "And if we would speak true 
 Much to this man is due." 
 
 Milton's tribute is significant of the esteem in 
 which he was held by the men of his time — 
 
 "Cromwell, our chief of men, who through a cloud 
 Not of war only, but detractions rude, 
 Guided by faith and matchless fortitude 
 To peace and truth thy glorious way hast plowed." 
 
 One who studies England's naval history finds it 
 full of a panorama of brilliant and heroic actions. 
 For centuries the keels of her ships have furrowed 
 the great waters, her meteor flag has shone on every 
 sea; the thunder of her guns has caused her enemies 
 to tremble. "The Battle of the Baltic" is of double 
 interest to every reader, in that it was a conflict of 
 great importance in England's naval history; and 
 
 also because it was the scene in which the great Nel- 
 
 vi 
 
Introduction 
 
 son played again a conspicuous part. The first two 
 lines of the poem concisely describe it: 
 
 "Of Nelson and the north 
 Sing the glorious day's renown." 
 
 The battle will ever be Nelson's battle, though he was 
 not in chief command. So long as England has a 
 ship to float his memory will be green. 
 
 A little island south of France gave birth to Na- 
 poleon Bonaparte, a great soldier — the greatest sol- 
 dier of modern times. A little island in mid-ocean 
 saw him die. A small town in Belgium, a small 
 European State, witnessed the culmination of his ca- 
 reer. Waterloo has always been another name for de- 
 feat; and yet so great was Napoleon that, notwith- 
 standing his utter defeat, his name survives and is 
 more often on the lips of men than that of his success- 
 ful rival, Wellington. Of Waterloo many men have 
 written. Lord Byron's lines are famous. The con- 
 trast between the gayety at the ball in Brussels on the 
 eve of the battle and the sudden alarm at the signal 
 to arms is finely brought out. And then the battle, a 
 world-battle! How the historians have written of it, 
 searching out its every minute incident. How bril- 
 liantly the English attacked, Yorkshire men and men 
 Df Devon; England, north and south; Scotsmen— 
 
 Vll 
 
Introduction 
 
 Highlanders and Lowlanders; Irishmen, men of Ul- 
 ster and of Cork! How defiantly the French troops 
 fought, veterans of Jena and Austerlitz, of Wagram 
 and of Leipsic! How happily Blucher came with 
 reinforcements, as the gods were wont in pagan times 
 to relieve the despairing hero in desperate straits, to 
 turn the tide against the imperial guard fighting 
 superbly; or how unhappily, it may seem, if one's 
 sympathies are enlisted on the other side! Of that 
 great epoch in European history, the Revolution and 
 the Napoleonic wars, what student of human nature, 
 of political science, or of military warfare ever 
 wearies? 
 
 Tennyson and Longfellow, contemporaneous 
 poets, wrote each a stirring ballad; the English- 
 man, "The Charge of the Light Brigade" ; the Amer- 
 ican, "Paul Revere's Ride." The charge of Balaklava 
 in the Crimean War was a throwing away of brave 
 men's lives, no less to be commemorated, however. 
 "It was magnificent," said General Bosquet; "but it 
 was not war." Paul Revere rode at midnight to let 
 the colonists know that the redcoat soldiers of Great 
 Britain were on the march, to awaken them to the 
 conflict which established a free government to be a 
 blessing to mankind. We read Tennyson's poem to 
 
 learn how brave men may die charging even "the 
 
 viii 
 

 Introduction 
 
 mouth of hell," in desperate valor. We read Long- 
 fellow's poem to understand how alert a brave people 
 were to resent any interference with those rights 
 which their forefathers had won through centuries of 
 conflict. 
 
 There is a famous stanza in Emerson's "Concord 
 Hymn" which American orators are fond of quoting: 
 
 "By the rude bridge that arched the flood, 
 Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, 
 Here once th' embattled farmers stood 
 
 And fired the shot heard round the world." 
 
 He who reads McM aster's "Carmen Bellicosum" 
 can not fail to catch somewhat of "the spirit of 
 '76." The poem has a rhythm of fife and drum, the 
 inspiring melody of a battle march — 
 
 "In their ragged regimentals 
 Stood the old Continentals 
 Yielding not." 
 
 There came to the American people in 1861 the 
 
 Civil War, with its countless brave heroes on either 
 
 side. Men willing to fight for a principle. To all 
 
 their questions of duty the drum answered, "Come." 
 
 Not one regiment only, like the New York Seventh, 
 
 but many marched down Broadway with men like 
 
 Theodore Winthrop at their head and in their ranks, 
 
 to the music of cheering voices. 
 
 ix 
 
Introduction 
 
 
 Barbara Frietchie's gray head won the reverence 
 of men who knew what loyalty to conviction meant. 
 General "Stonewall" Jackson won fame as a soldier | 
 and as a man loyal to his religious convictions; and 
 General Sheridan — Phil Sheridan — showed what can 
 be done when the fortunes of battle are at lowest ebb. 
 The high tide was reached at Gettysburg, the tide of 
 war and as well the culmination of the great Lin- 
 coln's fame, than whom no ruler was ever greater in 
 his simplicity. In addition to simplicity and hon- 
 esty, Lincoln possessed the essential qualities of a 
 heroic nature, courage and self-denial. To these 
 must be added a fortuitous requisite, publicity; for 
 a great man is not great, nor does a man become a 
 hero, until his greatness or his heroism is known. 
 Lincoln was privileged to play his part on a wide 
 stage with all mankind for an audience. At Gettys- 
 burg he delivered a memorable address, a gem of 
 literature, in which occurs this oft-quoted sentence — 
 a counsel of brave doing for all time— "The world 
 will little note nor long remember what we say here, 
 but it can never forget what they did here." 
 
 To these men, who have done in order that we 
 may do, we owe a debt of gratitude. 
 
 Edward Kirk Ranson, 
 

 GREAT MEN AND FAMOUS DEEDS 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 THE STORY OF KING CRCESUS II 
 
 THE TAKING OF BABYLON 52 
 
 THE BATTLE OF MARATHON 60 
 
 XERXES MAKES WAR ON THE GREEKS 78 
 
 THE BATTLE OF THERMOPYLAE 98 
 
 THE BATTLE OF SALAMIS 120 
 
 THE LIFE OF JULIUS CAESAR I42 
 
 SCOTS, WHA HAE Wl' WALLACE BLED IQQ, 
 
 TALES OF A GRANDFATHER 200 
 
 THE CHRONICLES OF FROISSART 3OI 
 
 BALLAD OF AGINCOURT 449 
 
 FLODDEN 453 
 
 THE ARMADA 461 
 
 THE FIGHT ABOUT THE ISLES OF AZORES 467 
 
 THE "REVENGE" 482 
 
 THE BATTLE OF NASEBY 490 
 
 AN HORATIAN ODE 494 
 
 BONNY DUNDEE 499 
 
 SONNET TO THE LORD GENERAL CROMWELL 502 
 
 GLENCOE 5°3 
 
 AFTER BLEMHEIM 5°5 
 
 THE TRIAL OF WARREN HASTINGS 5°7 
 
 HOHENLINDEN 5 2 3 
 
 THE MARINERS OF ENGLAND 5 2 5 
 
 BATTLE OF THE BALTIC 5 2 ^ 
 
 THE BURIAL OF SIR JOHN MOORE AT CORUNNA .... 5 2 9 
 
 THE EVE OF WATERLOO ....*..* 53 1 
 
 9 
 
Contents 
 
 THE LAST CHARGE OF THE FRENCH AT WATERLOO . . . 533 
 
 Till: CHRONICLE OF THE DRUM 535 
 
 the charge of the light brigade 552 
 
 the white pacha 554 
 
 franklin i the plan of union 555 
 
 franklin: braddock's defeat 561 
 
 paul revere's ride 578 
 
 concord fight 583 
 
 carmen bellicosum 583 
 
 soxg of marion's men 586 
 
 the drum 588 
 
 battle-hymn of the republic 590 
 
 babara frietchie 59i 
 
 1 'stonewall' jackson's way" 594 
 
 sheridan's ride 596 
 
 new york seventh regiment 599 
 
 the high tide at gettysburg 633 
 
 address at the dedication of the gettysburg na- 
 tional cemetery 636 
 
 second inaugural address 638 
 
 IO 
 
GREAT MEN AND FAMOUS DEEDS 
 
 THE STORY OF KING CRCESUS 
 
 /^^RGESUS, the son of Alyattes, began to reign over 
 ^- > Lydia, being thirty and five years old. This 
 Croesus made war upon all the Greeks that dwelt in 
 the western parts of Asia, seeking some occasion of 
 quarrel with every city. And if he could find some 
 great matter, he used it gladly; but if not, a little 
 thing would serve his turn. Now, the first of all the 
 cities which he fought against was Ephesus; and 
 when the Ephesians were besieged by him they of- 
 fered their city as an offering to the goddess Artemis, 
 fastening a rope to the wall from her temple. (The 
 space between the temple and the wall was seven 
 furlongs.) All the cities of the Greeks that are on 
 the mainland did Croesus subdue, so that they paid 
 tribute to him. And when he had ended this busi- 
 ness, he purposed in his heart to build ships, and to 
 make war on the Greeks that dwelt in the islands. 
 But when all things were now ready for the building 
 of the ships, there came to Sardis a certain Greek, a 
 man renowned for wisdom. Some say that this 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds / 
 
 Greek was Bias, the wise man of Priene, and some 
 that he was Pittacus of Mitylene. This Greek 
 caused Croesus to cease from his shipbuilding, for 
 when the King would know whether he had any 
 news from Greece, he said to him, "O King, the 
 islanders are buying ten thousand horses, that they 
 may set riders upon them, and so march against thee 
 and thy city of Sardis." When Croesus heard this 
 he was glad, hoping that the man spake truth, and 
 said, "Now may the Gods put this into the hearts of 
 the islanders, that they should make war with horses 
 against the sons of the Lydians." Then the Greek 
 answered and said, "O King, I see that thou prayest 
 with all thy heart that thou mayest find the islanders 
 coming against thee here on the mainland with 
 horses, and verily thou doest well. What then dost 
 thou think that the islanders pray for now that they 
 know thee to be building ships? Surely that they 
 may find the Lydians coming against them on the 
 sea, that so they may take vengeance on thee for their 
 brethren on the mainland, whom thou hast brought 
 into slavery." This saying pleased King Croesus 
 mightily; and because the Greek seemed to him to 
 speak truly, he ceased straightway from his ship- 
 building, and made alliance with the Greeks that 
 dwelt in the islands. 
 
 Now after certain years, when all Asia that lieth 
 to the westward of the river Halys had been subdued 
 by Croesus (only Cydia and Cilicia were not sub- 
 
 12 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 dued), and his kingdom flourished with great wealth 
 and honor, there came to Sardis all the wise men of 
 the Greeks, as many as there were in those days. But 
 the greatest of all that came was Solon of Athens. 
 This Solon had made laws for the Athenians, for 
 they would have him make them, and afterward he 
 dwelt abroad for ten years. And he said that he did 
 this that he might see foreign countries; but in truth 
 he departed that he might not be compelled to change 
 any of the laws that he had made. For the Atheni- 
 ans themselves could not change any, having bound 
 themselves with great oaths to Solon, that they would 
 live for the space of ten years under the laws which 
 he had made for them. 
 
 Solon therefore came to Sardis, and Croesus en- 
 tertained him in his palace. And on the third or 
 fourth day after his coming the King commanded 
 his servants that they should show Solon all the royal 
 treasures. So the servants showed him all the things 
 that the King possessed, a very great store of riches. 
 And when he had seen everything and considered it, 
 and a fitting time was come, the King said to him, 
 "Man of Athens, I have heard much of thee in time 
 past, of thy wisdom and of thy journeyings to and 
 fro, for they say that thou wanderest over many 
 lands, seeking for knowledge. I have therefore a 
 desire to ask of thee one question: Whom thinkest 
 thou to be the happiest of all the men that thou hast 
 seen?' " And this he said hoping that Solon would 
 
 J 3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 
 answer, "Thou, O King, art the happiest man that I 
 have seen." But Solon flattered him not a whit, but 
 spake the truth, saying, "O King, the happiest man 
 that I have seen was Tellus the Athenian." Then 
 Croesus, marvelling much at these words, said, "And 
 why thinkest thou that Tellus the Athenian was the 
 happiest of men?" Then Solon answered, "Tellus 
 saw his country in great prosperity, and he had chil- 
 dren born to him that were fair and noble, and to 
 each of these also he saw children born, of whom 
 there died not one. Thus did all things prosper 
 with him in life, as we count prosperity, and the end 
 of his days also was great and glorious; for when the 
 Athenians fought with certain neighbors of theirs in 
 Eleusis, he came to the help of his countrymen 
 against their enemies, and put these to flight, and so 
 died with great honor; and the whole people of the 
 Athenians buried him in the same place wherein he 
 fell, and honored him greatly." 
 
 But when Solon had ended speaking to the King 
 of Tellus, how happy he was, the King asked him 
 again, "Whom, then, hast thou seen that was next in 
 happiness to this Tellus?" For he thought to him- 
 self, "Surely now he will give me the second place." 
 Then Solon said, "I judge Cleobis and Biton to have 
 been second in* happiness to Tellus." 
 
 Cleobis and Biton were youths of the city of 
 Argos. They had a livelihood such as sufficed them; 
 and their strength was greater than that of other men, 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 For not only did they win prizes of strength, but also 
 they did this thing that shall now be told. The men 
 of Argos held a feast to Here, who hath a great and 
 famous temple in their city; and it must needs be 
 that the mother of the two young men, being priestess 
 of Here, should be drawn in a wagon from the city 
 to the temple ; but the oxen that should have drawn 
 the wagon were not yet come from the fields. Then, 
 as the time pressed and the matter was urgent, the 
 young men harnessed themselves to the wagon and 
 dragged it, and their mother the priestess sat upon 
 it. And the space for which they dragged it was 
 forty and five furlongs; and so they came to the 
 temple. And when they had done this in the eyes 
 of all the assembly, there befell them such a death 
 that nothing could be more to be desired; the Gods, 
 indeed, making it manifest that it is far better for a 
 man to die than to live. For indeed the thing fell 
 out thus. When all the people of Argos came about 
 the woman and her sons, and the men praised the 
 youths for their great strength, and the women 
 praised the mother that she had borne such noble 
 sons, the mother in the joy of her heart stood before 
 the image and prayed that the goddess would give 
 to her sons, even Cleobis and Biton, that which the 
 Gods judge it best for a man to have. And when 
 the priestess had so prayed, and the young men had 
 offered sacrifice, and made merry with their com- 
 panions, they lay down to sleep in the temple, and 
 
 *5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 woke not again, but so ended their days. And the 
 men of Argos commanded the artificers that they 
 should make statues of the young men, and these 
 they offered to the god at Delphi. 
 
 But when Solon thus gave the second place of 
 happiness to these young men, King Croesus was very 
 wroth, and said, "Man of Athens, thou countest my 
 happiness as nothing worth, not deeming me fit to be 
 compared even with common men." Then Solon 
 made answer, "O Croesus, thou askest me about mor- 
 tal life to say whether it be happy or no, but I know 
 that the Gods are jealous and apt to bring trouble 
 upon men. I know also that if a man's years be 
 prolonged he shall see many things that he would 
 fain not see, ay, and suffer many things also. Now 
 I reckon that the years of a man's life are threescore 
 and ten, and that in these years there are twenty and 
 five thousand days and two hundred. For this is 
 the number, if a man reckon not the intercalated 
 month. But if he reckon this, seeing that in three- 
 score and ten years are thirty and five such months, 
 and the days of these months are one thousand and 
 fifty, the then whole sum of the days of a man's life 
 is twenty and six thousand two hundred and fifty. 
 Now of these days, being so many, not one bringeth 
 to a man things like to those which another hath 
 brought. Wherefore, O King, the whole life of 
 man is full of chance. I see indeed that thou hast 
 exceeding great wealth and art king of many men. 
 
 16 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 But as to that which thou askest of me, I call thee 
 not happy, till I shall know that thou hast ended thy 
 days prosperously. For the man that hath exceed- 
 ing great riches is in no wise happier than he 
 that hath sufficient only for the day, unless good 
 fortune also remain with him, and give him all things 
 that are to be desired, even unto the end of his days. 
 For many men that are wealthy beyond measure are 
 nevertheless unhappy, and many that have neither 
 poverty nor riches have yet great happiness, and he 
 that is exceeding rich and unhappy withal, excel- 
 led! him that hath moderate possessions with happi- 
 ness in two things only, but the other excelleth in 
 many things. For the first hath the more strength 
 to satisfy the desires of the soul, and also to bear up 
 against any misfortunes that cometh upon him; but 
 the second hath not this strength; and indeed he 
 needeth it not, for his good fortune keepeth such 
 things far from him. Also he is whole in body, and 
 of good health, neither doth misfortune trouble him, 
 and he hath good children, and is fair to look upon. 
 And if, over and above these things, he also end his 
 life well, then I judge him to be the happy man 
 whom thou seekest. But till he die, so long do I 
 hold my judgment, and call him not happy indeed, 
 but fortunate. It is impossible also that any man 
 should comprehend in his life all things that be good. 
 For even as a country sufficeth not for itself nor pro- 
 duceth all things, but hath certain things of its own 
 
 *7 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and receiveth certain from others, and as that country 
 which produceth the most is counted the best, even 
 so is it with men, for no man's body sufficeth for all 
 things, but hath one thing and lacketh another. 
 Whosoever, O King, keepeth ever the greatest store 
 of things, and so endeth his life in a seemly fashion, 
 this man deserveth in my judgment to be called 
 happy. But we must needs regard the end of all 
 things, how they shall turn out; for the Gods give to 
 many men some earnest of happiness, but yet in the 
 end overthrow them utterly." 
 
 These were the words of Solon. But they pleased 
 not King Croesus by any means. Therefore the King 
 made no account of him, and dismissed him as being 
 a foolish and ignorant person, seeing that he took no 
 heed of the blessings that men have in their hands, 
 bidding them always have regard unto their end. 
 
 Now it came to pass after Solon had departed 
 from Sardis that there came great wrath from the 
 Gods upon King Croesus, and this, doubtless, because 
 he judged himself to be the happiest of all men. 
 And it happened in this wise. He saw a vision in his 
 sleep, that told him of the trouble that should come 
 upon him with respect to his son. For the King had 
 two sons; but the one was afflicted of the Gods, being 
 dumb from his birth, but the other far surpassed his 
 equals of age in all things. And the name of this son 
 was Atys. Now the vision that he saw in his sleep 
 showed him that Atys should be smitten with a spear- 
 
 18 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 point of iron, and so die. Therefore when he woke 
 from his sleep and considered the matter, being much 
 terrified by the dream, he sought how he might best 
 keep his son from this peril. First, then, he married 
 him to a wife; and next, he suffered him not to go 
 forth any more to battle, though he had been wont 
 aforetime to be the captain of the host; and, besides 
 all this, he took away all javelins and spears, and such 
 like things that men are wont to use in battle, from 
 the chambers of the men, and stored them elsewhere, 
 lest perchance one of them should fall from its place 
 where it hung upon the wall and give the youth a 
 hurt. 
 
 Now it chanced that while the matter of the 
 young man's marriage was in hand, there came to 
 Sardis a certain stranger, upon whom there had come 
 the great trouble of blood-guiltiness. The man was 
 a Phrygian by birth, and of the royal house: and he 
 came into the palace of Croesus, after the custom of 
 that country, and sought for one that should cleanse 
 him from his guilt; and Croesus cleansed him. (Now 
 the matter of cleansing is the same, for the most part, 
 among the Lydians as it is among the Greeks.) And 
 when the King had done for him according to all 
 that was prescribed in the law, he would fain know 
 who he was, and whence he had come. Wherefore, 
 he asked him, saying, "My friend, who art thou? and 
 from what city of Phrygia — for that thou art a Phry- 
 gian I know — art thou come, taking sanctuary at my 
 
 19 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 hearth? And what man or woman didst thou slay?" 
 And the man answered, "O King, I am the son of 
 Gordias, the son of Midas, and my name is Adrastus, 
 and I slew my own brother, not wittingly. For this 
 cause am I come to thee, for my father drave me out 
 from my home, and I am utterly bereft of all things." 
 To this King Croesus made reply, "Thou art the 
 son of friends, and to a friend art thou come. Verily 
 as long as thou abidest here thou shalt lack for noth- 
 ing that I can give thee. And as for thy trouble, it 
 will be best for thee to bear it as easily as may be." 
 So the man lived thenceforth in the King's palace. 
 
 Now about this time there was a mighty wild 
 boar in Olympus, that is a mountain of Mysia. It 
 had its den in the mountain, and going out thence did 
 much damage to the possessions of the Mysians; and 
 the Mysians had often sought to slay him, but 
 harmed him not at all, but rather received harm 
 themselves. At the last they sent messengers to the 
 King; who stood before him, and said, "O. King, a 
 mighty monster of a wild boar hath his abode in our 
 country and destroyeth our possessions, and though 
 we would fain kill him we cannot. Now therefore 
 we pray thee that thou wilt send thy son, and chosen 
 youths with him, and dogs for hunting, that they may 
 go with us, and that we may drive this great beast 
 out of our land." But when they made this request 
 Croesus remembered the dream which he had 
 dreamed, and said, "As to my son, talk no more about 
 
 20 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 him, for I will by no means let him go, seeing that 
 the youth is newly married to a wife, and careth now 
 for other things. But chosen youths of the Lydians 
 shall go with you, and all the hunting dogs that I 
 have; and I will bid them to do their utmost to help 
 you, that ye may drive this wild beast out of your 
 land." 
 
 This was the King's answer; and the Mysians 
 were fain to be content with it. But in the mean- 
 while the youth came in, for he had heard what the 
 Mysians demanded of his father; and he spake to the 
 King, saying, "O my father, I was wont aforetime to 
 win for myself great credit and honor going forth to 
 battle and to hunting. But now thou forbiddest me 
 both the one and the other, not having seen any cow- 
 ardice in me or lack of spirit. Tell me, my father, 
 what countenance can I show to my fellows when I 
 go to the market, or when I come from thence? What 
 manner of man do I seem to be to my countrymen? 
 and what manner of man to the wife that I have 
 newly married? What thinketh she of her hus- 
 band? Let me therefore go to this hunting, or, if 
 not, prove to me that it is better for me to live as I 
 am living this day." To this Croesus made answer, 
 "My son, I have seen no cowardice or baseness or any 
 such thing in thee; but there appeared to me a vision 
 in my sleep, and it stood over me and said that thy 
 days should be few, for that thou shouldest die being 
 smitten by a spear-point of iron. For this reason I 
 
 21 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 made this marriage for thee, and send thee not forth 
 on such occasions as I was wont to send thee on, keep- 
 ing thee under guard, if so be that I may shield thee 
 from thy fate at the least so long as I shall live. For 
 thou art now my only son, for of him whom the Gods 
 have afflicted, making him dumb, I take no count." 
 To this the young man made answer, "Thou hast good 
 reason, my father, to keep guard over me, seeing that 
 thou hast had such a dream concerning me; yet I 
 will tell thee a thing that thou hast not understood 
 nor comprehended in the dream. Thou sayest that 
 the vision told thee that I should perish by a spear- 
 point of iron. Consider now, therefore, what hands 
 hath a wild boar and what spear-point of iron, that 
 thou shouldest fear for me? For if indeed the vision 
 had said that I should perish by a tooth, or by anv 
 other thing that is like to a tooth, then thou mightest 
 well do what thou doest; but seeing that it spake of a 
 spear-point, not so. Now, therefore, that we have 
 not to do battle with men, but with beasts, I pray thee 
 that thou let me go." Then said King Croesus, "It is 
 well said, my son; as to the dream, thou hast per- 
 suaded me. Therefore I have changed my purpose, 
 and suffer thee to go to this hunting." 
 
 When he had said this, he sent for Adrastus the 
 Phrygian; and when the man was come into his pres- 
 ence, he spake, saying, "Adrastus, I took thee when 
 thou wast afflicted with a grievous trouble, though 
 indeed with this I upbraid thee not, and I cleansed 
 
 22 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 thee from thy guilt, and received thee into my palace, 
 and sustained thee without any cost of thine. Now, 
 therefore, it is well that thou shouldest make me 
 some return for all these benefits. I would make 
 thee keeper of my son now that he goeth forth to this 
 hunting, if it should chance that any robbers or such 
 folk should be found on the way to do him hurt. 
 Moreover, it becometh thee, for thine own sake, to go 
 on an errand from which thou mayest win renown; 
 for thou art of a royal house and art besides valiant 
 and strong." To this Adrastus made answer, "O 
 King, I had not indeed gone to this sport but for thy 
 words. For he to whom such trouble hath come as 
 hath come to me should not company with happy 
 men ; nor indeed hath he the will to do it. But now, 
 as thou art earnest in this matter, I must needs yield 
 to thy request. Therefore I am ready to do as thou 
 wilt; be sure, therefore, that I will deliver thee thy 
 son, whom thou biddest me keep, safe and unhurt, so 
 far as his keeper may so do." So the young men de- 
 parted, and chosen youths with them, and dogs for 
 hunting. And when they were come to the moun- 
 tain of Olympus they searched for the wild boar, and 
 when they had found it, they stood in a circle about it, 
 and threw their spears at it. And so it fell out that 
 this stranger, the same that had been cleansed from 
 the guilt of manslaying, whose name was Adrastus, 
 throwing his spear at the wild boar and missing his 
 aim, smote the son of Croesus. And the youth died 
 
 23 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of the wound, so that the vision of the King was ful- 
 filled, that he should die by a spear-point. And 
 straightway there ran one to tell the thing to Croesus. 
 And when he had come to Sardis, he told the King 
 how they had fought with the wild boar, and how his 
 son had died. 
 
 Croesus was very grievously troubled by the death 
 of his son; and this the more because he had been 
 slain by the man whom he had himself cleansed from 
 the guilt of blood. And in his great grief he cried 
 out very vehemently against the Gods, and specially 
 against Zeus, the god of cleansing, seeing that he had 
 cleansed this stranger, and now suffered grievous 
 wrong at his hands. He reproached him also as the 
 god of hospitality and of friendship — of hospitality, 
 because he had entertained this man, and knew not 
 that he was entertaining the slayer of his ow T n son; 
 and of friendship, because he had sent him to be a 
 keeper and friend to his son, yet had found him to be 
 an enemy and destroyer. And when he had done 
 speaking there came Lydians bearing the dead body 
 of the young man, and the slayer followed behind. 
 So soon, therefore, as the man was come into the pres- 
 ence of the King, he gave himself up, stretching forth 
 his hands, and bidding the King slay him on the dead 
 body. And he spake of the dreadful deed that he 
 had done before, and that now he had added to it a 
 worse thing, bringing destruction on him that had 
 cleansed him; and he cried out that he was not fit to 
 
 24 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 live. But when Croesus heard him speak, he pitied 
 him, for all that he was in grievous trouble of his 
 own, and spake to him, "I have had from thee, O 
 my friend, all the vengeance that I need, seeing that 
 thou hast pronounced sentence of death against thy- 
 self. But indeed thou art not the cause of this 
 trouble, save only that thou hast brought it to pass 
 unwittingly; some god is the cause, the same that 
 long since foretold to me this very thing that hath 
 now befallen me." So Croesus buried his son with 
 all due rites. But Adrastus the son of Gordias the 
 son of Midas, that had been the slayer of his own 
 brother, and had now slain the son of him that had 
 cleansed him, waited behind till all men had left the 
 sepulchre, and then slew himself upon it; for he 
 knew that of all the men in the world he was the most 
 unhappy. 
 
 For the space of two years did King Croesus sit 
 sorrowing for his son. But in the third year his 
 thoughts were turned to other matters. For he heard 
 that the kingdom of Astyages the son of Cyaxares 
 had been overthrown by Cyrus the son of Cambyses, 
 and that the power of the Persians increased day by 
 day. For which reason it seemed good to him that 
 he should prevent this people, if by any means he 
 could, before they should become too mighty for 
 him. And so soon as he had conceived this purpose 
 in his heart, he made trial of all the oracles that are 
 both in Europe and in Asia, sending messengers to 
 
 25 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Delphi, and to Abae that belongeth to Phocis, and to 
 Dodona. Also he sent to the oracles of Amphiaraus, 
 and of Trophonius, and of Branchidae that is in Mi- 
 letus. These are the oracles in the land of Greece of 
 which he sent to inquire, and in Libya he sent to the 
 oracle of Hammon. First he sent to make trial of 
 all these whether they should be found to know the 
 truth about a certain thing, purposing that if they 
 should be so found he would send to them yet again 
 and inquire whether he should take it in hand to 
 make war against the Persians. Now he had given 
 commandment to the messengers whom he sent to 
 make trial of the oracles, that they should reckon the 
 days diligently from the day whereon they set out 
 from Sardis, and that on the hundredth day they 
 should inquire of the oracles, saying, "What doth 
 Croesus the son of Alyattes, king of Lydia, chance to 
 be doing this day?" and that they should write down 
 the words of the oracle and bring them back to him. 
 Now what the other oracles answered no man knows; 
 but at Delphi, so soon as the Lydians were come into 
 the temple to inquire of the god, the Pythia, for so 
 they called the priestess that uttereth the mind of the 
 god, spake, saying — 
 
 "I know the number of the sand, 
 I know the measures of the sea; 
 The dumb man's speech I understand, 
 
 Though naught he say, 'tis clear to me. 
 I smell a savor new and sweet; 
 
 Strange is the feast the Lydians keep; 
 16 
 
The Story of King CroesuS 
 
 Mingled in brazen caldron meet 
 
 The tortoise flesh and flesh of sheep; 
 Around the burning embers glow, 
 With brass above and brass below." 
 
 These words the Lydians wrote down from the 
 mouth of the Pythia, and so departed, and went their 
 way to Sardis. The other messengers also came, 
 bringing with them the oracles that had been deliv- 
 ered to them. Then the King opened each and read 
 the writing; and not one of them pleased him. But 
 when he knew the answer that had been brought from 
 Delphi, forthwith he prayed and received it with 
 reverence, for he judged that there was no true oracle 
 in the world save that of Delphi only, seeing that it 
 had discovered the very thing that he was doing. For 
 after that he had sent his messengers to the oracles, 
 when the appointed day was come, he devised this 
 device. He imagined something that could not, he 
 thought, by any means be discovered ; for he chopped 
 up together the flesh of a tortoise and the flesh of a 
 lamb, and cooked them himself in a brazen caldron, 
 upon which he had put a lid of brass. This was the 
 answer that came to Croesus from Delphi ; but as to 
 the oracle of Amphiaraus, the answer that it made to 
 the messengers when they had duly inquired of it no 
 man knows, yet did Croesus think that this also was a 
 true oracle. 
 
 Here shall be told the story of Alcmaeon of 
 Athens, to whom Croesus sent bidding him come to 
 
 27 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Sardis, for that he had helped the King's messengers 
 when they inquired of the god at Delphi, furthering 
 their business with all diligence. And when Alc- 
 mseon was come, the King said to him that he should 
 be permitted to go into his treasury, and take there- 
 from for himself all the gold that he could carry on 
 his body. Then Alcmaeon prepared himself for this 
 business. First he clothed himself with a tunic, in 
 which he made a great fold for a pocket; and next he 
 got him the widest and biggest boots that he could 
 find, and so went into the treasury. And lighting on 
 a heap of dust of gold he filled his boots with it as 
 much as they would contain, even up to his knees; 
 and also the fold of his tunic he filled with gold; also 
 into his hair he put so much of the dust as it would 
 contain. Other gold he took into his mouth, and so 
 made his way out of the treasury; but scarcely could 
 he drag his boots after him; and indeed he seemed 
 like to anything rather than to a man, for his mouth 
 was filled out and swollen beyond all a man's sem- 
 blance. And when Croesus saw him he laughed, and 
 gave him all that gold and as much more. This was 
 the beginning of the wealth of the house of Alcmaeon. 
 After this King Croesus sought to propitiate the 
 god that was in Delphi with many and great sacri- 
 fices. For first he sacrificed three thousand beasts 
 of all such as it is lawful to offer to the Gods, and 
 next he buildcd up a great pile of couches that were 
 covered with gold and silver, and of cups of gold, 
 
 28 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 and of purple garments and tunics, and set fire to the 
 pile, for he thought that by so doing he should make 
 the god a friend to him. And he gave command- 
 ment to the Lydians that they should sacrifice in like 
 manner every one of them such things as they had. 
 And when this sacrifice was ended, he melted a great 
 store of gold, and made bricks of it. Of these the 
 bigger sort were six hand-breadths in length, and the 
 smaller three hand-breadths, and all of them a hand- 
 breadth in height. There were one hundred and six- 
 teen of these bricks in all, four of them being of pure 
 gold, and weighing each one talent and half a talent, 
 and the rest of gold that was mixed with alloy; these 
 weighed two talents to the brick. Also he made the 
 image of a lion of pure gold, ten talents in weight. 
 This lion, when the temple of Delphi was burned, 
 fell down from the bricks (for it had been set up on 
 them) ; and how it lieth in the treasury of the Corin- 
 thians, and weigheth seven talents and half a talent. 
 When Croesus had finished casting these bricks, 
 he sent them to Delphi and other things with them; 
 to wit, two very great mixing bowls, of gold the one, 
 and of silver the other. The bowl of gold lieth now 
 in the treasury of the Corinthians, being in weight 
 four talents and half a talent and twelve ounces. And 
 the silver bowl lieth in the corner of the ante-cham- 
 ber. It holdeth six hundred firkins; and the Del- 
 phians mix wine in it at the feast of the Showing of 
 the Images. Also he sent four silver casks, that 
 
 29 
 
 2— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 stand now in the treasury of the Corinthians, and two 
 vessels for sprinkling water, of gold the one, and of 
 silver the other. On the gold bowl are written these 
 words: "This the Lacedaemonians offered to the 
 god." But these words are not true, for a certain 
 man of Delphi (whose name, though it be known, 
 shall not be mentioned in this place) engraved them, 
 thinking to please the Lacedaemonians. Yet the boy, 
 through whose hand the water flows, is an offering of 
 the Lacedaemonians, but of the vessels themselves 
 neither the one nor the other. Other offerings of no 
 great account did Croesus send to Delphi. Yet of 
 one must mention be made; to wit, the golden statue 
 of a woman three cubits in height. This the men of 
 Delphi affirm to be the likeness of the bread-cutter 
 of King Croesus. Also the King offered to the god 
 the necklace of his wife and her girdles also. He sent 
 gifts likewise to the temple of Amphiaraus. 
 
 Now Croesus gave commandment to the Lydians 
 that carried these offerings for him to Delphi and to 
 the temple of Amphiaraus that they should inquire 
 of the oracles whether or no he should make war 
 against the Persians, and whether he should seek to 
 gain for himself any allies that should help him. So 
 when the Lydians that had been sent on this errand 
 were come, they inquired of the oracles, saying, 
 "Croesus, King of the Lydians, and of other nations, 
 holding these to be the only truth-speaking oracles 
 that are among men, sendeth to you gifts that are 
 
 30 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 worthy of your wisdom, and would now inquire of 
 you whether he shall make war against the Persians, 
 and also in what nations he shall seek for allies for 
 himself." These are the things that the messengers 
 of Croesus inquired of the oracles, and the two agreed 
 together in their answers ; for first they said, "If Croe- 
 sus make war against the Persians, he shall bring to 
 the ground a great empire," and next they counselled 
 him to find out who of the Greeks were the most 
 powerful at that season, and to make them his allies. 
 This answer rejoiced the King exceedingly, for he 
 made sure that he should bring the empire of Cyrus 
 and the Persians to the ground. Wherefore he sent 
 again to Delphi, and gave to every man two gold 
 pieces, having first inquired how many men there 
 were in the city; for which bounty the people of Del- 
 phi gave in return to him and all other Lydians that 
 they should have first approach to the oracle, and 
 should be free of tribute, and should have the chief 
 seat at feasts and games. Also that any man of 
 Lydia might, if he so willed, be free of the city of 
 Delphi. 
 
 After he had bestowed this bounty on the men of 
 Delphi, Croesus inquired of the oracle the third time; 
 for now that he had assured himself that it spake the 
 truth, he was instant in using of it. Therefore he in- 
 quired of it again; and this time he would fain know 
 whether his kingdom should remain for many years. 
 To this the oracle answered these words — 
 
 3 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 "Man of Lydia, when the mule 
 O'er the Medians' land shall rule, 
 Think of name and fame no more, 
 Fly by Hermus' stony shore." 
 
 And Croesus, when he heard these words, was yet 
 more exceedingly delighted, for he said to himself, 
 "Surely now a mule shall never be king of the 
 Medes in the place of a man. Wherefore this king- 
 dom shall abide to me and my children after me for- 
 ever." After this he inquired what city of the 
 Greeks was the most powerful at that season; and he 
 found that there were two cities excelling in strength ; 
 to wit, Athens and Sparta, but that of these the city of 
 Athens was much troubled by strife within itself, but 
 that Sparta was prosperous exceedingly, and had of 
 late years subdued unto itself the greater part of the 
 island of Pelops, in which island it is. For these 
 causes he sent messengers to Sparta with gifts, who 
 spake after this manner, "Croesus, King of Lydia and 
 of other nations, hath sent us, saying, 'Men of Lace- 
 daemon, the god, even Apollo, hath commanded me 
 that I should make to myself friends of the Greeks, 
 whomsoever I should find to be the strongest. Now, 
 therefore, seeing that I find you to be the chiefest 
 people in Greece, I do the bidding of the oracle, and 
 come to you, and would have you for my friends and 
 allies in all honesty and good faith." These words 
 King Croesus spake by the mouth of his messengers. 
 And the thing pleased the Lacedaemonians well, for 
 
 3 2 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 they also had heard the words of the oracle; and they 
 made a treaty with Croesus, and confirmed their 
 friendship and alliance with an oath. And indeed 
 there had been certain kindnesses done to their city 
 by King Croesus aforetime. For they had sent mes- 
 sengers to Sardis to buy gold for a certain statue that 
 they would make; but when they sought to buy it, 
 Croesus gave it to them for a gift. For this cause 
 the Lacedaemonians made alliance with Croesus; also 
 they were well pleased that he had chosen them out 
 of all the Greeks to be his friends. So they made 
 themselves ready to help him when he should call 
 upon them; and they prepared a mixing bowl of 
 brass, wrought on the outside of it with divers figures 
 of beasts about the brim. This bowl held three hun- 
 dred firkins; and the Lacedaemonians thought fit to 
 give it to Croesus in return for the things that he had 
 given to them. Now the bowl came never to Sardis ; 
 but as to why it came not some say one thing and 
 some say another. The Lacedaemonians say indeed 
 that when the men that had charge of it were near to 
 the island of Samos, the Samians came forth with 
 ships of war, and assailed them and took away the 
 bowl from them. But the men of Samos say that 
 they who had charge of it, when they found that the 
 time had passed, Sardis being now taken by Cyrus, 
 sold the bowl in Samos, and that certain persons 
 bought it and offered it for an offering in the temple 
 of Here. Perchance the truth of the matter is this, 
 
 33 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 that the men sold it indeed, yet affirmed when they 
 were returned to Sparta that the Samians had taken 
 it by force. And this is the story of the bowl. 
 
 After these things Croesus marched with a great 
 army into the land of Cappadocia, not reading the 
 oracle aright, but hoping that he should bring to the 
 ground the power of Cyrus and the Persians. And 
 while he was yet making preparations for war there 
 came to him a certain man of Lydia whose name was 
 Sandanis. The man had been before accounted 
 wise, but thenceforth had such renown for wisdom 
 among the Lydians as had none beside. The man 
 spake thus, "O King, the men against whom thou art 
 preparing to make war have tunics of leather, and all 
 their other garments also are of leather, and for food 
 they have not what they would but what they can get, 
 and the country wherein they dwell is rocky and bar- 
 ren. Also they use not wine, but drink water only; 
 nor have they figs to eat, nor indeed any good thing. 
 If therefore, O King, thou shalt conquer these men, 
 what wilt thou take from them, for indeed they have 
 nothing. But if they should prevail over thee, think 
 what good things thou wilt lose. For when they 
 have once tasted our good things they will hold fast 
 by them, nor wilt thou drive them away. As for me, 
 I thank the Gods that they have not put it into the 
 hearts of the Persians to march against the land of 
 Lydia." For it was so that the Persians before they 
 conquered the Lydians had no good things of their 
 
 34 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 own. For all that Sandanis prevailed not with King 
 Croesus to turn him from his purpose. 
 
 King Croesus, being steadfastly purposed to make 
 war with the Persians, marched into the land of the 
 Cappadocians, wherein is the river Halys, being the 
 boundary between his kingdom and the kingdom of 
 Cyrus. Now the reasons that King Croesus had for 
 making war were these. First, he desired to enlarge 
 the borders of his dominion, adding thereto the land 
 of the Persians; and next, he had it in his heart to 
 avenge upon Cyrus his sister's husband Astyages; for 
 Cyrus had subdued him, and taken from him his 
 kingdom, as shall be told hereafter. But how it 
 came to pass that Croesus was brother-in-law to Asty- 
 ages shall be told at this present. Certain families 
 of the wandering Scythians, being at variance with 
 their own people, fled into the land of the Medes, the 
 King of the Medes in those days being Cyaxares, the 
 son of Phraortes. This Cyaxares at the first dealt 
 kindly with these Scythians, as being men who were 
 suppliants for his grace. And indeed he made so 
 much of them that he put with them certain children 
 who should learn their language and the art of 
 shooting with the bow, in which they excel. Now 
 the Scythians were wont to go hunting every day, and 
 failed not to bring home venison; but after a while, 
 on a certain day it chanced that they brought home 
 nothing. And when King Cyaxares saw them re- 
 turning with empty hands he was wroth with them, 
 
 35 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and entreated them shamefully, being indeed a man 
 of violent temper. Then the Scythians bethougl 
 them how they might avenge themselves for this dis- 
 honor; whereupon they took one of the children 
 whom they were teaching, and cut him into pieces, 
 and dressed the flesh as they were wont to dress the 
 venison which they took in hunting, and gave it to 
 the King as if it were some wild beast which they had 
 slain. But so soon as they had given it they fled to 
 Alyattes at Sardis; and Cyaxares and his guests eat 
 of the meat which had been prepared in this fashion. 
 Now when the King heard how the Scythians had 
 dealt with him, he sent to Alyattes and demanded 
 that they should be given over to him for punish- 
 ment, but Alyattes would not. After this there was 
 war between the Lydians and the Medes for five 
 years; and in this war the Lydians oftentimes had the 
 advantage, and the Medes also oftentimes. But 
 when they had fought against each other with equal 
 fortune for five years, it so befell that in the sixth 
 year, when they joined battle for the first time, the 
 day became dark as the night. And this change of 
 day into night Thales of Miletus had foretold, and 
 indeed had appointed for it the selfsame year where- 
 in it happened. But when the Lydians and the 
 Medes saw what had befallen, they were the more 
 eager to make peace the one with the other; and they 
 that brought about this agreement were Syennesis of 
 Cilicia, and Labynetus of Babylon. These caused 
 
 3* 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 that the two kings should make a treaty the one with 
 the other and should confirm it with an oath. More- 
 over, they made a covenant that Alyattes should give 
 his daughter Aryenis to the son of Cyaxares to wife, 
 and this son was Astyages; for they knew that such 
 treaties stand not firm without there be some bond by 
 which they that make them are bound. As for these 
 nations they make oaths in the same fashion as do 
 the Greeks; only they add this, that they make a cut- 
 ting upon their arms, and they lick up the blood each 
 man from the arm of the other. 
 
 When Croesus with his army was come to the 
 river Halys, he was in great doubt how he should 
 cross it. But Thales of Miletus, who chanced to be 
 in the camp of the King, contrived a device by which 
 it was done. For he caused that the river, which 
 before had flowed on the left hand of the army, 
 should flow upon the right hand. And this he did by 
 digging a deep ditch into which the river was turned 
 before it came to the place where the army was en- 
 camped; and this, being made of the shape of a cres- 
 cent, was carried in the rear of the army, and so was 
 brought again into the river. Thus was the stream 
 of the Halys divided between the river and the ditch ; 
 md being divided it could easily be crossed. Some 
 itories say that the river was wholly dried up, all 
 :he water flowing into the ditch. But this is alto- 
 gether incredible, for if the whole river had been 
 urned into the ditch, how could King Croesus with 
 
 37 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 his army have crossed it when he returned from the 
 battle with Cyrus to Sardis? And indeed it is 
 scarcely to be believed that the river was so turned, 
 though this story be commonly told among the 
 Greeks, who say that there were no bridges over the 
 Halys in those days, but rather it is to be believed that 
 there were bridges, and that the King led his army 
 across by them. 
 
 When Croesus had crossed the Halys he came to a 
 city of Cappadocia that was called Pterium; and this 
 Pterium was the biggest and strongest city of those 
 parts, lying as near as may be over against Sinope, 
 which is on the Black Sea. This city Crcesus took by 
 assault, and sold all the dwellers therein for slaves, 
 and took also all the towns thereof, and removed out 
 of the place where they dwelt all the people, though 
 indeed they had done him no wrong. When Cyrus 
 heard that King Crcesus was come against him, he 
 also gathered his army together and went to meet 
 him, taking with him as many as dwelt on the way by 
 which he marched. But before that he set out he 
 sent out heralds to the Ionians, bidding them revolt 
 from Crcesus, whom indeed they served unwillingly; 
 but the Ionians would not hearken to him. Cyrus 
 therefore came up and pitched his camp over against 
 the camp of the Lydians, which was near to the city 
 Pterium; and after a while the two kings joined bat- 
 tle. And the battle waxed hot, and many were slain 
 on both sides, but neither gained the advantage; and 
 
 38 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 when it was night they separated perforce. But 
 Croesus was ill content with the number of his army, 
 for it was less by many thousands than the army of 
 Cyrus. For which reason on the next day, seeing 
 that Cyrus came not forth from his camp to assail 
 him, he departed with all haste, returning to Sardis, 
 for he had it in his mind to call the Egyptians to his 
 help, according to his covenant with them, for he had 
 made alliance with Amasis, king of Egypt, before he 
 made alliance with the Lacedaemonians. Also he 
 would send for help to the men of Babylon, for with 
 these also he had alliance; and in those days Laby- 
 netus was king of Babylon. Lastly he sent a sum- 
 mons to the Lacedaemonians that they should send an 
 army to him at the appointed time. For his purpose 
 was that he should gather together all these his allies, 
 and should also collect as great an army as might be 
 of his own people, and so, when the winter was past, 
 and the spring was come again, should march against 
 the Persians. 
 
 Having therefore these thoughts in his heart, so 
 soon as he came to Sardis he sent heralds to Babylon, 
 and to Egypt, and to Sparta, saying that they should 
 send each of them an army to him at Sardis in the 
 fifth month from that time; but as for the soldiers 
 that he had hired with money, these he sent away, 
 suffering them to be altogether scattered, for it did 
 not so much as enter his thoughts that Cyrus, seeing 
 that he had not done more than fight with him on 
 
 39 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 
 equal terms, would march against Sardis. Now 
 while he was busy considering these things there be- 
 fell this marvel, that the whole space before the city 
 was filled with serpents, and that so soon as the ser- 
 pents were seen there the horses, leaving their accus- 
 tomed pasture, fell to and devoured them. This 
 thing Croesus held to be a portent, as indeed it was; 
 and straightway he sent messengers to Telmessus, 
 where there are those that interpret such things. But 
 these messengers, though indeed they went to Tel- 
 messus and heard from the interpreters what the 
 meaning of this portent might be, were not able to 
 show the matter to the King; for before that they 
 came back to Sardis King Croesus had been van- 
 quished and taken prisoner. But the meaning of the 
 portent according to the interpreters of Telmessus 
 was this, "Let Croesus look to see an army of strang- 
 ers in his land ; and let him know that when this army 
 is come to his land it will subdue the inhabitants 
 thereof; for the serpent is a son of the land, but the 
 horse is a stranger and an enemy." This was the 
 answer of the interpreters of Telmessus; and they 
 made it when Croesus was already vanquished, but 
 they knew nothing of that which had befallen Sardis 
 and the king thereof. 
 
 But so soon as Croesus had departed after the bat- 
 tle at Pterium, Cyrus, knowing that he had it in his 
 thought to scatter his army, judged that he should do 
 well if he marched straightway against Sardis be- 
 
 40 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 fore that the Lydians could gather themselves to- 
 gether against him a second time. And this thing 
 he did without delay. For he marched into the land 
 of Lydia with all haste; nor did Crcesus receive any 
 message of his coming before that he saw the King 
 himself with his army. Then was Crcesus sorely 
 perplexed, for the matter had turned out wholly 
 against his expectations. Nevertheless he took heart 
 and led out the Lydians to battle. And indeed in 
 those days there was not in the whole land of Asia any 
 nation that was more stalwart and valiant than the 
 nation of the Lydians. The people were accustomed 
 to fight from horseback, carrying long spears, nor 
 were there any horsemen more skilful. The Lydians 
 therefore and the Persians were arrayed one against 
 the other in the plain that lieth before Sardis, and 
 this plain is very great and wholly bare of trees. But 
 when Cyrus saw the array of the Lydians he was 
 afraid of their horsemen, so many and well equipped 
 were they. Then a certain Mede, Harpagus by 
 name, counselled him what he should do, and Cyrus 
 hearkened to him. He took all the camels that fol- 
 lowed his army, carrying victuals and baggage, and 
 taking their burdens from them, set riders upon them, 
 arming all of them as horsemen. And having so 
 furnished the camels, he commanded that they should 
 go before his army against the horsemen of Crcesus. 
 And behind the camels he put the foot soldiers, and 
 behind the foot soldiers the horsemen. And when 
 
 4 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the whole army was drawn up in battle array, he 
 straightway commanded them that they should slay 
 all else of the Lydians who might fall in their way, 
 but that Croesus himself they should not slay, not even 
 if he should defend himself when they laid hands 
 upon him. Now the reason why he set the camels in 
 array against the horsemen was this. The horse is 
 sore afraid of the camel, and cannot endure to look 
 upon the shape of the beast or to smell the smell. For 
 this cause therefore he used this device, that the King 
 of the Lydians might find no gain from his horse- 
 men, by whom he hoped that he should win a great 
 victory. And indeed so soon as ever the two armies 
 had joined battle, and the horses smelled the smell 
 of the camels and saw them, they turned and fled. So 
 was Croesus utterly disappointed of his hope. Never- 
 theless the Lydians bare themselves bravely; for 
 when they saw what had fallen them, they leaped 
 from their horses and fought with the Persians on 
 foot. But after a while, when many had been slain 
 on both sides, the Lydians were driven into their city, 
 and were besieged therein by the Persians. 
 
 Now it seemed to Croesus that the siege would be 
 of many months. Therefore he sent again other 
 messengers to his allies saying that, whereas he had 
 before bidden them to assemble themselves at Sardis 
 in the fifth month, there was now need that they 
 should come with all the speed that might be, for that 
 the King was besieged. Now of the other allies 
 
 42 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 nothing need be said; but as to the Lacedaemonians, 
 when the messengers of Croesus came to them, they 
 were at variance with their neighbors, the men of 
 Argos. Notwithstanding, they made all haste to 
 come to the help of the King; and were indeed ready 
 to set forth, with ships duly furnished, when there 
 came to them tidings that the city of Sardis was taken 
 and Croesus led into captivity. When they heard 
 this they changed their purpose and went not; never- 
 theless they thought it a grievous thing. 
 
 Now the taking of Sardis was in this wise. On 
 the fourteenth day after the beginning of the siege, 
 Cyrus sent horsemen throughout his army, saying 
 that he would give great gifts to the man who should 
 first mount upon the wall. But when the whole army 
 had attacked the city, and prevailed nothing, a cer- 
 tain Mardian, whose name was Hyroeades, desisted 
 not as did the others, but made his attempt on a cer- 
 tain part of the citadel where no sentinels were set. 
 And none were set because no man had any fear that 
 the citadel could be taken from this quarter, for the 
 place was very steep. And this indeed was the only 
 part of the citadel to which Meles, who had been 
 king of Sardis in old time, had not caused the lion's 
 cub to be carried. Now the story of the lion's cub 
 is this. A woman in Sardis brought forth a young 
 lion, and the interpreters of Telmessus said, "If thou 
 carry the young lion round about its wall, no man 
 shall take Sardis." So Meles caused them to carry 
 
 43 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the cub round about the wall wherever it could be at- 
 tacked, but of this place he took no account, so steep 
 was it and hard of access. Now Hyrceades had seen 
 on the day before that a certain Lydian had come 
 down by this place after a helmet that had rolled 
 down from the top, and had fetched the helmet, and 
 so returned. And having seen this thing he bare it 
 in mind; and the next day he climbed up the same 
 way, and many Persians after him. So Sardis was 
 taken and all the city plundered. As to the King 
 himself, there befell this thing that shall now be told. 
 He had a son, of whom indeed mention has been 
 made before. A goodly youth he was in all other 
 respects, but he was dumb. Now in the days of his 
 prosperity Croesus, having done many other things 
 that the youth might be healed of his infirmity, sent 
 also messengers to the oracle of Delphi to inquire of 
 the god. To these the Pythia made answer in these 
 words — 
 
 "O king of many lands, the thought 
 
 Thou keepest in thy heart is vain: 
 The help with many prayers besought 
 
 Think not to ask of heaven again; 
 For ill the day and full of fear 
 That first thy dumb child's voice shall hear.'* 
 
 Now it came to pass that when the Persians were 
 taking the citadel, one of them made as if he would 
 have slain Croesus, not knowing who he was. And 
 Croesus, though he saw the man coming against him, 
 heeded him not, so great was his trouble; for he 
 
 44 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 thought that it would be well for him to die. But 
 the youth, that had been dumb all his days, when he 
 saw the Persian about to strike, by reason of his fear 
 and of the instant necessity of the thing, cried out, 
 saying, "Fellow, slay not King Croesus." Thus did 
 he speak for the first time ; but afterward, for the rest 
 of his life, he spake even as other men. 
 
 So the Persians gained possession of the city of 
 Sardis. And Croesus himself they took alive, and 
 led him to Cyrus their king; and all the years that he 
 had reigned were fourteen; fourteen also was the 
 number of the days for which his city was besieged. 
 And thus was the prophecy of the oracle fulfilled, 
 that he should bring to an end a great empire ; to wit, 
 his own. Then Cyrus commanded that they should 
 build a great pile of wood, and should set Croesus 
 thereon bound in chains, and with him fourteen men 
 of Lydia, and burn them with fire. But whether in 
 so doing he thought to offer the first-fruits of his vic- 
 tory to some god, or was performing a vow which he 
 had made, or having hear*d that Croesus had been a 
 great worshipper of the Gods, desired now to see 
 whether any god would come and help him in his 
 need, cannot certainly be known. But when Croesus 
 stood upon the pile, and the fire had now been put to 
 it, there came into his thoughts, notwithstanding 
 the great strait wherein he stood, that the saying of 
 Solon was indeed true, and spoken by inspiration of 
 the Gods, when he said that none of living men might 
 
 45 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 be counted happy. And when he thought of this he 
 cried out with a loud voice, having before kept si- 
 lence altogether, "Solon, Solon, Solon!" which when 
 Cyrus heard, he bade the interpreters ask of Croesus 
 who was this that he called upon. But when the 
 interpreters asked this thing, for a time Crcesus kept 
 silence, but afterward, for indeed he was constrained 
 to speak, made this answer, "He is one with whom it 
 would be better than many possessions for all rulers 
 to have speech." Then, as no man could understand 
 these words, they inquired of him again what they 
 might signify. And as they were earnest with him, 
 and would not leave him in peace, he told them how 
 there had come to his court one Solon, a man of 
 Athens, who having seen all his wealth and pros- 
 perity, had made little account of it; and how that 
 there had befallen him all that this same Solon had 
 said, though indeed the man spake not of him in par- 
 ticular but of all mortal men, and especially of those 
 who judged themselves to be happy. 
 
 This was the answer which Crcesus made ; and now 
 the pile had been lighted, and the extremities were 
 on fire. But when Cyrus heard from the interpreters 
 the words of Crcesus, he repented him of his purpose, 
 bethinking him how that he, being but a mortal man, 
 was now giving another man that had aforetime been 
 not less prosperous than himself to be burned with 
 fire, and fearing lest there should come upon him 
 vengeance for such a deed, and considering also that 
 
 4 6 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 there was nothing sure in human affairs. For which 
 reasons he bade them that stood by quench the fire 
 and cause Croesus and the men that were with him to 
 descend from the pile. But these, with all their striv- 
 ing, could not prevail over the fire. Then Croesus — 
 for this is the story of the Lydians — when he saw that 
 Cyrus had repented him of his purpose, and that 
 every one was striving to quench the fire but could 
 not, cried with a loud voice to Apollo, beseeching the 
 god that if he had ever made an offering that was to 
 his liking, he would deliver him from his present 
 peril. This he besought of the god with many tears, 
 and lo! of a sudden, though the day before had been 
 fine and calm, there came a great storm with a most 
 vehement rain, which quenched the fire. Then Cy- 
 rus knew of a surety that Croesus was a good man and 
 dear to the Gods. And having caused him to de- 
 scend from the pile, he asked him, saying, "Tell me, 
 Croesus, what man persuaded thee to lead thy army 
 against my land, and to make me thine enemy, having 
 been before thy friend?" Then Croesus answered, 
 "This I did, O King, for thy good fortune, but to my 
 loss. Nor was it a man that did this, but the god of 
 the Greeks, who encouraged me to make war against 
 thee. For surely no man is so foolish that of his own 
 will he should choose war instead of peace; for in 
 peace the children bury their fathers, but in war the 
 fathers bury their children. But these things have 
 fallen out as the Gods would have them." 
 
 47 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 When he had said these things Cyrus bade them 
 loose his chains, and put him near to himself, and 
 marvelled when he regarded him, both he and the 
 Persians that were with him. And Croesus said noth- 
 ing, thinking about many things. But after a while 
 when he saw the Persians plundering the city of the 
 Lydians, he turned him to King Cyrus, and said, "Is 
 it allowed to me, O King, to speak that which is in 
 my heart, or shall I be silent?" And Cyrus bade 
 him be of courage and speak what he would. Then 
 Croesus asked him, "What is it that this great multi- 
 tude is so busy about?" "They are spoiling thy city," 
 said Cyrus, "and carrying off thy possessions." 
 "Nay," said Croesus, "this is not my city that they 
 spoil, nor my possessions that they carry off; for I 
 have now no share or lot in these things. But the 
 things that they plunder are thine." Then Cyrus took 
 heed of the words which Croesus had spoken to him; 
 and bidding all others leave him, he asked him again 
 what he thought of these matters. Then Croesus 
 made answer, "The Gods have made me thy servant; 
 wherefore I count it right to tell thee if I perceive 
 aught that thou seest not. The Persians are haughty 
 by nature, but they are poor. And if thou sufferest 
 them to plunder in this fashion and to gain for them- 
 selves great wealth, be sure that this will befall thee. 
 That man among them who shall get the most will 
 be he that will rebel against thee. If, therefore, my 
 words please thee, do according to my bidding. Set 
 
 48 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 spearmen as guards at all the gates, and let them take 
 away from all that come out the things that they carry 
 with them, saying at the same time, 'We must needs 
 give tithe to Zeus of all these things.' And they will 
 not hate thee as if thou didst take the things from 
 them by force, but will judge thee to do that which is 
 right, and will give them up willingly." 
 
 When Cyrus heard these words he was pleased 
 with them beyond measure, judging them to have 
 been wisely said. So when he had commended 
 Crcesus for his wisdom, and had given command- 
 ment to the spearmen according to these words, he 
 said, "Thou hast it in thy heart to do good deeds and 
 say good words as befitteth a king; ask, therefore, 
 some boon of me which thou wouldest have granted 
 to thee straightway." Then said Crcesus, "O King, 
 thou canst not please me more, than if thou wilt suf- 
 fer me to send to the god of the Greeks, whom I have 
 honored with gifts more than all Gods beside, and to 
 lay these fetters before him, and ask him whether it 
 is his custom to deceive them that do him honor." 
 
 And when Cyrus would know why he desired to 
 put this question accusing the god, Crcesus set be- 
 fore him the whole matter, both that which he had 
 asked, and the answer of the god, and the offerings 
 which he had made, and how he had made war 
 against the Persians, being encouraged thereto by the 
 god. And when he had ended this tale he besought 
 Cyrus again that he would suffer him to reproach the 
 
 49 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 god with these things. And Cyrus when he heard it, 
 laughed and said, 'This request I grant thee, O 
 Croesus, as I will grant thee everything that thou 
 shalt ask me hereafter." 
 
 And when Croesus heard these words he sent cer- 
 tain Lydians to Delphi, and bade them lay the fetters 
 on the threshold of the temple and inquire of the god 
 whether he was not ashamed to have encouraged 
 Croesus by his oracles to march against the Persians, 
 thinking that he should overthrow the empire of 
 Cyrus, of which undertaking these, the fetters to wit, 
 were the first-fruits, and whether it was the custom of 
 the god of the Greeks to be unfaithful. And when 
 the Lydians did as had been commanded them, the 
 Pythia made this answer, "That which is fated it is 
 by no means possible to avoid, not even to a god. And 
 Croesus hath suffered for the transgressions of his 
 forefather in the fifth generation, who, being a body- 
 guard of the king, slew his master, a woman helping 
 him with her craft, and took his honor to himself, 
 though he had no part or lot in it. And Apollo was 
 very earnest with the Fates that they should not bring 
 this evil upon Sardis in the days of Croesus, but that 
 they should bring it in his son's days. Yet could he 
 not prevail. 
 
 "Nevertheless all that the Fates granted to him 
 that did he for Croesus, delaying the taking of Sardis 
 for the space of three years ; for let Croesus be sure of 
 this, that the taking of Sardis is later by three years 
 
 5° 
 
The Story of King Croesus 
 
 than had been ordained at the first. Also when he 
 was in peril of being burned with fire the god helped 
 him and delivered him. And as for the oracle, 
 Croesus doth not right to blame him, for Apollo fore- 
 told to him that, if he should make war against the 
 Persians, he should bring to the ground a great em- 
 pire. If therefore he had been well advised in this 
 matter, he should have sent again to inquire of the 
 god whether his own empire or the empire of Cyrus 
 were thus signified. But seeing that he understood 
 not the thing which was said, nor inquired a second 
 time, let him blame himself. And as to that which 
 Apollo answered him when he inquired of him the 
 last time, speaking of a mule, this also Croesus under- 
 stood not. For Cyrus was this mule, being born of 
 parents that were not of the same race, his mother 
 also being of the more noble stock and his father of 
 the worse. For she was a woman of the Medes and 
 the daughter of King Astyages, and he was a Persian 
 and no King, but a servant that married the daughter 
 of his master." This was the answer that the priest- 
 ess gave to the Lydians ; and when Croesus heard it he 
 confessed that he had erred and not the god. 
 
 In this way did the empire of the Lydians come to 
 an end. 
 
 5i 
 
THE TAKING OF BABYLON 
 
 YVTHEN Cyrus had overthrown the kingdom of 
 ** the Lydians, and had conquered also such 
 countries and cities as had appertained thereto, he 
 made war in the next place against the Assyrians. 
 Now the Assyrians have many other great and fa- 
 mous cities, but the greatest and famous of all is 
 Babylon, for there, when Nineveh was destroyed, 
 was set up the palace of the King. The city of Baby- 
 lon is built foursquare, and the measure of each side 
 is one hundred and twenty furlongs. Round about 
 the walls there is a ditch, very deep and broad and 
 full of water; and after the ditch there is a wall, of 
 which the breadth is seventy and five feet and the 
 height three hundred feet. On the top of the wall, 
 at the sides thereof, are built houses of one story, 
 being so much apart that a chariot with four horses 
 may turn in the space. And in the wall there are 
 a hundred gates, of brass all of them, with posts and 
 lintels of the same. The city is divided into two 
 parts, between which floweth the river. Now the 
 name of this river is Euphrates, and it cometh out 
 of the land of Armenia, and floweth into the Red 
 Sea. 
 
 On either side the wall is pushed forward into 
 
 52 
 
The Taking of Babylon 
 
 the river; also along each bank of the river there 
 runneth a wall of baked brick. The city is built 
 with houses of three stories or four, these being or- 
 dered in straight streets that cross each other. And 
 wheresoever a street goeth down to the river there 
 are gates of brass in the walls of brick that is by the 
 riverside, gates for each street. Also over and above 
 the outer wall of the city there is an inner wall, of 
 wellnigh equal strength, but in thickness not so 
 great. 
 
 In each part of the city there was a great build- 
 ing, of which one was the King's palace and the other 
 the temple of Belus. This temple hath brazen gates, 
 and is foursquare, being two furlongs every way. In 
 the midst there is a tower which is solid throughout 
 and of the bigness of a furlong each way; and on this 
 tower is built another tower, and yet another upon 
 this, and so forth, seven in all. Round about these 
 towers are built stairs ; and for one who hath climbed 
 half-way a landing-place and chairs where he may 
 rest; and in the topmost tower there is a temple very 
 splendidly furnished, and a couch and a table there- 
 by, but no image. 
 
 There is another temple below, and in it a statue 
 of Zeus sitting, and before it a table of gold; the 
 throne and the steps are also of gold; and the weight 
 of all its eight hundred talents. Outside is a golden 
 altar, on which a thousand talents of frankincense 
 were wont to be burned at the great feast. Here 
 
 53 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 also was a great statue of gold, twelve cubits high, 
 and solid throughout. This statue Darius was 
 minded to take, but dared not; yet did Xerxes take 
 it, and slew the priest that would have hindered 
 him. 
 
 Of this city of Babylon there have been many 
 kings, and two queens. Of these queens the first 
 made for the river great banks, for before her day 
 it used to overflow all the plain of Babylon. The 
 name of this Queen was Semiramis, and the name of 
 the second Queen was Nitetis. This Nitetis, see- 
 ing that the kingdom of the Medes increased daily, 
 and that they were not content with what they had, 
 but sought to subdue others, and had conquered 
 many cities, among which was Nineveh, devised a 
 defence against them. For first she caused that the 
 river Euphrates, which before had flowed in a 
 straight course, should now fetch a compass; and this 
 she did by making for it new channels. And now 
 one that saileth on this river cometh thrice in three 
 days to the self-same village, and the name of this 
 village is Ardericca. Also she made a great lake, 
 digging it out by the side of the river; and the cir- 
 cuit of this lake is four hundred and twenty fur- 
 longs. Now both these things she did for the same 
 end, that the stream of the river might be the slower 
 and the voyage to Babylon a voyage of many wind- 
 ings and that when the voyage on the river should 
 be ended then there should be the voyage on the lake. 
 
 54 
 
The Taking of Babylon 
 
 All this was done on that side of the city which look- 
 eth toward the country of the Medes ; for she would 
 not that the Medes should come into her dominion 
 and learn her affairs. Also she did this great work 
 for the city. There being two parts, and the river 
 flowing between them, the citizens had been wont in 
 days of former kings to cross if they had need, from 
 the one part to the other in boats; and this was a toil 
 to them. She caused her servants to cut very large 
 stones, and when these were finished she commanded 
 that they should turn the river into the lake which she 
 had dug. And while this was a-filling, the old 
 stream being now dry, she embanked with brick the 
 side of the river, and the ways also that led thereto 
 from the gates. But in the middle part of the city 
 she built a bridge with the stones which she had 
 caused to be cut, binding them together with iron 
 and lead. On this bridge there were laid, so long 
 as it was day, four-cornered timbers, on the which 
 the men of Babylon crossed the bridge. But at 
 nightfall the timbers were taken away, so that the 
 people of the city might not steal from each other. 
 And when this was finished she brought the river 
 again into this channel. 
 
 This queen devised this deceit. She made for 
 herself a tomb over that one of the gates by which the 
 people were chiefly wont to go forth. On this tomb 
 she wrote certain words of which the significance 
 was this: "If one of the Kings after me lack money, 
 
 SS 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 let him open this tomb and take what he will. But 
 let him not open it unless he need, for it will be the 
 worse for him." This tomb no man could meddle 
 with till Darius came to the kingdom. Now it 
 seemed a grievous thing to Darius that no man 
 should use the gate, and that money should be there, 
 and that it should call men to take it, yet should not be 
 taken. For no one used the gate because there was 
 a dead body above his head as he went out. Where- 
 fore he opened the tomb ; but having opened it found 
 no money therein, but only the dead body of the 
 queen and these words, saying, "If thou were not 
 insatiate of money and a lover of gain, thou hadst 
 not opened the resting-place of the dead." 
 
 Now the king against whom Cyrus made war 
 was the son of this woman, and his name was Laby- 
 netus; and this had been the name of his father also. 
 Now when the Great King, the King of the Persians, 
 marcheth anywhither he is well provided with food 
 and cattle, and also with water from the river Cho- 
 aspes, which floweth by the city of Susa ; for the King 
 drinketh not of any other river save this only. And 
 many four-wheeled wagons, drawn by mules, follow 
 the army whithersoever it goeth, bearing vessels of 
 silver wherein is the water, having been first boiled. 
 But when Cyrus came in his march to the river 
 Gyndes (this river floweth in to the Tigris) there 
 befell this thing. While he was seeking to cross the 
 river, which is of such bigness that ships can sail 
 
 56 
 
The Taking of Babylon 
 
 thereon, one of the white horses which are sacred 
 would have crossed the river by swimming, and in so 
 doing was drowned. Then Cyrus was very wroth 
 with the river that had done him this wrong; and 
 sware that he would make it so weak that a woman 
 should be able to cross it without wetting her knee. 
 When he had sworn this oath he divided his army 
 into two parts, and commanded each part that it 
 should dig long trenches by the side of the river — 
 one part working on each side — and the number of 
 the trenches should be one hundred and eighty for 
 each part. And as there was a great multitude of 
 men the work was accomplished in no great space 
 of time; nevertheless they consumed the whole sum- 
 mer in this work. So the river Gyndes was made to 
 flow into these trenches, three hundred and sixty in 
 all. And when this was done, and the winter was 
 over, together with the next spring Cyrus led his 
 army to Babylon. And when he came near to the 
 city, the Babylonians came forth to meet him; and 
 when the battle was joined, the Babylonians fled be- 
 fore Cyrus, and were shut up in their city. Now 
 they had gathered provisions for many years, for 
 they knew that Cyrus was a man of war, and sought 
 to conquer all the nations round about. So, there- 
 fore, their walls also being very strong, they took no 
 account of the siege ; but Cyrus was much troubled, 
 for even after a long time he had done nothing in 
 the matter of taking the city. And whether he him- 
 
 57 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 self devised the device, or another devised it for him, 
 cannot be said; but this he did. He divided his 
 army into two portions; and of these he set one above 
 the city where the river floweth into it, and the other 
 he set below it where the river floweth out. To 
 these he gave commandment that when they should 
 see the river so shallow that a man could cross it 
 they should enter the city by it. And when he had 
 thus ordered things, he himself departed with such 
 of the army as were of no account for war, and when 
 he came to the lake which Nitetis, Queen of Baby- 
 lon, had made by the riverside, then did he thus. He 
 made a great trench, and turned the river into the 
 lake, which in those days was a marsh only and not 
 filled with water. And when this had been done the 
 river became shallow, so that a man might cross it, 
 and the Persians to whom the commandment had 
 been given, perceiving what had happened, and that 
 the water now came but up to the middle of a man's 
 thigh, entered the city of Babylon by way of the 
 river. Now if the men of Babylon had known 
 beforehand or perceived the thing that Cyrus was 
 doing, then all these Persians had perished mis- 
 erably, for they would have shut all the gates lead- 
 ing down the river, and would have gone up them- 
 selves on to the walls that were built along the banks 
 of the river, and so would have had the Persians as 
 it were in a fish-trap. But in truth the Persians 
 came upon them unawares. Now the bigness of the 
 
 58 
 
The Taking of Babylon 
 
 city was such that they who dwelt in the middle parts 
 knew not that the outside parts had been taken; but 
 played and danced and delighted themselves, till in- 
 deed they were made to know it in such fashion as 
 they liked not. 
 
 59 
 
THE BATTLE OF MARATHON 
 
 1V/I ARDONIUS, the son of Gobryas, came down 
 *~ * from Susa, and he had a great army and 
 many ships. He was a young man, and he had 
 newly married the daughter of King Darius. When 
 he was come to the land of Cilicia, he took ship and 
 sailed to the coast of Ionia, the other ships follow- 
 ing him. And being in Ionia he did this thing (a 
 marvellous thing, doubtless, in the eyes of them that 
 believe not the story of Otanes, how he would have 
 set up among the Persians the rule of the people) ; 
 he cast down from their place all the lords of the 
 Ionians, setting up in every city the rule of the peo- 
 ple. When he had done this he went with all haste 
 to the Hellespont, whither was gathered together a 
 great multitude of ships and many thousands of men. 
 These crossed the Hellespont in the ships, and so 
 marched through the land of Europe. And their 
 purpose was, as they said, to have vengeance on the 
 cities of Athens and Eretria; but in truth they had it 
 in their minds to subdue as many as they should be 
 able of the cities of the Greeks. First, then, they 
 subdued the Thrasians. These did not so much as 
 lift a hand against the Persians, and so were added 
 to the nations whom they had in slavery. From 
 Thasos they went to Acanthus, and leaving Acanthus 
 
 60 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 they sought to pass round Mount Athos, which is a 
 great promontory, running far out into the sea. Here 
 there fell upon the ships a very mighty wind, such as 
 they could in nowise bear up against, and did them 
 much damage. Men say indeed that there perished 
 of the ships three hundred, and of men more than 
 twenty thousand. For the sea in these parts is full 
 of great monsters, which laid hold on many of the 
 men ; many also were dashed against the rocks, and 
 were so destroyed; and some perished because they 
 could not swim, and some from cold. Thus it fared 
 with the ships. As for Mardonius and his army, 
 the Brygi, that are a tribe of Thracians, assailed him 
 in his camp by night and slew many of his men, and 
 wounded Mardonius himself. Notwithstanding, the 
 Brygi escaped not the doom of slavery, for Mar- 
 donius left not this region till he had utterly sub- 
 dued them. But when he had done this he went 
 back to Asia, for his army had suffered much from 
 the Thracians, and his ships from the storm at Mount 
 Athos. Thus did this great undertaking come to an 
 end with little honor. 
 
 For all this Darius changed not his purpose con- 
 cerning Athens and the other cities of Greece. For 
 every day, at his bidding, did his servant say to him, 
 "Oh, King, remember the Athenians." Also the 
 children of Pisistratus ceased not to speak against 
 the city. The King indeed desired, having for a 
 pretence his quarrel against the Athenians, to subdue 
 
 61 
 
 3— Vol. 3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 all the Greeks that would not give him earth and 
 water; for the giving of these things is to the Per- 
 sians a token of submission. Mardonius, seeing that 
 he had fared badly in his undertaking, the King dis- 
 charged of his office, appointing thereto Datis, that 
 was a Mede, and Artaphernes, his brother's son. 
 These then he sent on the same errand on which he 
 had sent Mardonius, saying to them, "Make slaves 
 of the men of Eretria and of the men of Athens, and 
 bring them to me that I may see them." So these two 
 went down from the city of Susa to Cilicia, having 
 with them a very great army and well-appointed; 
 and while they were encamped here in a plain that 
 is called the Aleian plain, there came also to that 
 country the whole array of ships as had been com- 
 manded, and with the rest ships designed for the 
 carriage of horses, for in the year before the King 
 had commanded the inhabitants that such should be 
 built. On these ships, therefore, they embarked 
 their horses, and on the other ships the rest of the 
 army, and so set sail to Ionia, having in all six hun- 
 dred ships of war. 
 
 x 
 
 But they sailed not along the coast after the for- 
 mer manner, going northward to the Hellesponl 
 and to Thrace, but voyaged through the islands, be- 
 ginning with Samos; and this they did, as it seems, 
 because they feared the going round Mount Athos, 
 remembering what loss and damage they had suf- 
 fered at this place in the former expedition. Also 
 
 62 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 they had Naxos in their mind, for this had not as yet 
 been conquered. They sailed, therefore, first to 
 Naxos, and the people of the island did not abide 
 their coming, but fled forthwith to the mountains. 
 And the Persians made slaves of all on whom they 
 could lay their hands, and burned the temples and 
 the city with fire, and so departed. While they were 
 doing these things the men of Delos left their island 
 of Delos and fled to Tenos. But Datis suffered not 
 the ships of the Persians to come to anchor at Delos, 
 but bade them tarry over against it in Rhenea; and 
 having heard where the men of Delos had bestowed 
 themselves, he sent an herald, saying, "Holy men, 
 why have ye fled from your dwelling-place, and have 
 thought that which is not fitting concerning me? 
 For indeed my own purpose and the commandment 
 also which has been laid upon me by the King is this, 
 that we should do no harm to the land in which the 
 two Great Ones, Apollo and Artemis, were born, 
 neither to it nor to the inhabitants thereof. Return 
 ye therefore to your own dwellings and inhabit your 
 island." This was the message which Datis sent to 
 the men of Delos; and afterward he burned three 
 hundred talents' weight of frankincense upon the 
 altar of their temple. And it came to pass that 
 when he had departed from Delos, the island was 
 shaken by an earthquake. Now it had never been 
 so shaken before, nor hath been since. This thing, 
 without doubt, happened for a sign to the sons of 
 
 63 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 men of the evils that were coming upon them. And 
 indeed, in the days of Darius the son of Hystaspes, 
 and Xerxes the son of Darius, and Artaxerxes the son 
 of Xerxes, that were kings of Persia, the one after the 
 other, there befell the Greeks worse evils than had 
 befallen them for twenty generations before the days 
 of Darius, of which evils some indeed came from 
 the Persians and some from the chief among them- 
 selves when they contended together for the pre- 
 eminence. Therefore it may well be believed that 
 Delos had never been shaken before as it was shaken 
 in these days. 
 
 From Delos the barbarians sailed to the other 
 islands of that sea. And whithersoever they came 
 they took some of the islanders to serve in the army 
 and the ships, and of their children some to be host- 
 ages. But when they came to Carystus, the people of 
 the land would not give hostages, neither were they 
 willing to help in making war upon the cities of their 
 neighbors, meaning thereby Eretria and Athens. 
 Then the Persians besieged the town and laid waste 
 their country till the men of Carystus agreed to do 
 as had been required of them. 
 
 When the Eretrians heard that the Persians were 
 coming against them with a great host and many 
 ships, they sent to the Athenians praying for help. 
 This the Athenians refused not to give, but sent to 
 such of their citizens as had had land allotted to them 
 in the country of the horse-breeding Chalcidians that 
 
 6 4 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 they should go to the help of the men of Eretria. 
 But these, though they sent this message to the 
 Athenians, had no steadfast or worthy purpose in 
 the matter. Some of them indeed were for leaving 
 the city, that they might flee to the hill country of 
 Eubcea, but others, looking only to their own gain, 
 and thinking that they should best get this from the 
 Persians, made ready to betray their country. This, 
 when ^Eschines the son of Nothus, than whom there 
 was none greater in Eretria, heard, he told to the 
 Athenians that had come the whole matter, and said 
 to them: "Depart ye straightway to your own coun- 
 try, lest ye also perish." And the Athenians heark- 
 ened to the counsel of iEschines and departed, cross- 
 ing the Oropus, and so got safe away. After this 
 the ships of the Persians came to the land of Eretria, 
 and put out the horses that they carried, and made 
 ready as if they would fight with the enemy. But 
 the Eretrians had no mind to come out of their walls 
 and fight; only they hoped that they might perchance 
 keep these against the enemy, for as to the counsel 
 of leaving their city and fleeing to the hills, this they 
 had given up. Then the Persians attacked the wall 
 with great fury; and for six days they fought, many 
 being slain on both sides ; but on the seventh day, two 
 men, of good repute among the citizens, whose names 
 were Euphorbus and Philagrus, betrayed Eretria to 
 the Persians; and these, entering into the city, first 
 burned the temples, thereby revenging the burning 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of the temples of Sardis, and next made slaves of all 
 the people, according as King Darius had given them 
 commandment. 
 
 When they had thus dealt with Eretria, they sailed 
 against Athens, having no doubt that they should 
 speedily deal with this also after the same fashion. 
 And seeing that Marathon was the most convenient 
 for their purpose, and nearest also to Eretria, thither 
 did Hippias the son of Pisistratus lead them. And 
 the Athenians, so soon as they heard of their coming, 
 marched with their whole force to Marathon. Ten 
 generals they had, of whom the tenth was Miltiades 
 the son of Cimon, the son of Stesagoras. 
 
 This Cimon had been banished from Athens by 
 Pisistratus. And it chanced to him that as he went 
 into banishment he won the prize at Olympia for the 
 race of four-horse chariots. This same prize his 
 half-brother Miltiades had also won. And in the 
 next games at Olympia, being five years afterward, 
 he won again with the same mares; but granted to 
 Pisistratus that his name should be proclaimed as the 
 winner. Because he did this he came back to Athens 
 under safe-conduct. And yet again he won the same 
 prize with the same mares at the games next follow- 
 ing; and having done this he was slain by the sons of 
 Pisistratus, for Pisistratus himself was not yet alive. 
 In the commonhall was he slain by men that were 
 sent against him at night. He is buried before the 
 City, beyond the road that is called the Hollow 
 
 66 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 Road; and over against him are buried the mares 
 that won for him these prizes. This same thing was 
 done by other four mares, belonging to Evagoras the 
 Lacedaemonian, but besides these none other have 
 done it. This Cimon had two sons, of whom the 
 elder, Stesagoras, was brought up by his friends in 
 the Chersonese, and the }^ounger, being named Milti- 
 ades, after this same uncle, was with his father in 
 Athens. 
 
 This Miltiades then the Athenians had chosen 
 with nine others to be general. But before this he 
 had but narrowly escaped death. For first the 
 Phoenicians pursued him so far as Imbros, being 
 very desirous to lay hands upon him and to take him 
 to the King. And when he had escaped from these, 
 and, coming to his own country, believed that he was 
 now in safety, his enemies brought him into judg- 
 ment by reason of the lordship which he had had in 
 the Chersonese. But these, too, he escaped, and the 
 people chose him for their general. 
 
 First of all the generals, before they led forth 
 their army out of the city, sent a herald to Sparta, 
 Pheidippides by name, who was an Athenian by 
 birth, and by profession a runner, and one who had 
 diligently exercised himself, and was very swift of 
 foot. This man affirmed and declared to the Athe- 
 nians that when he came in his running to Mount 
 Parthenius, which is above Tegea, there met him 
 the god Pan, and that Pan called him by his name, 
 
 67 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Pheidippides, and said to him : "Say to the Athenians, 
 Why do they take no heed of me, though I am their 
 friend, and have often done them good service in 
 time past, and will do so hereafter." The Athenians, 
 believing that this story was true, afterward, when 
 things had gone well with them, built a temple to 
 the god Pan under the Acropolis, and honored him 
 with yearly sacrifices and a procession of torches. 
 Pheidippides then, being thus sent by the generals, 
 came to Sparta on the next day (between Athens and 
 Sparta there are one hundred and thirty and seven 
 miles). And so soon as he was come he went to the 
 rulers and said: "O men of Sparta, the Athenians 
 pray you that ye come and help them, and suffer 
 not the most ancient city in the land of Greece to be 
 brought into slavery by the barbarians. Already 
 have they brought the men of Eretria into slavery, 
 and Greece hath become the weaker by a famous 
 city." This message did Pheidippides deliver to the 
 Spartans. And to them when they heard it seemed 
 good that they should help the men of Athens. Only 
 they could not go to their help forthwith, because 
 they would not break the law. For it was then but 
 the ninth day of the moon; and on the ninth day it 
 was unlawful for them, they said, to march, because 
 the moon was not yet full. Therefore they waited 
 for the full moon. 
 
 In the meantime Hippias the son of Pisistratus 
 led the Persians to Marathon ; and the prisoners from 
 
 68 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 Eretria he landed on the island that is called ./Egileia- 
 And when the barbarians had disembarked from the 
 ships, he busied himself with the setting of them in 
 order. In the doing of this it happened to him to 
 sneeze and cough with much violence; and, he being 
 an old man, his teeth for the most part were griev- 
 ously shaken, and one of them he spat forth. This 
 tooth fell into the sand, and he made much ado to 
 find it, but could not. Seeing this he groaned, and 
 said to them that stood by: "This land is not ours, 
 neither shall we be able to subdue it; as for the share 
 of it that was mine this tooth has taken it." 
 
 By this time the army of the Athenians was 
 drawn up in the precinct of Hercules. To them 
 being there there came the men of Plataea, every man 
 that was able to bear arms. For the Plataeans had 
 before this time given themselves over to Athens, and 
 the Athenians had by this time had no small trouble 
 on their behalf. 
 
 The cause of the Plataeans so giving themselves 
 over was this. At the first, when they were pressed 
 hard by the Thebans, they came to King Cleomenes, 
 who chanced to be in their country, and would have 
 given themselves over to him and the Lacedaemo- 
 nians. But Cleomenes and his people would not 
 receive them, saying: "We dwell in a country that 
 is very far from you, and our help would be but of 
 small avail to you. For indeed it might happen to 
 you, and not once only, that ye should be made slaves, 
 
 69 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 before any of us could so much as hear of the mat- 
 ter. Therefore we counsel you to give yourselves 
 over to the men of Athens; seeing that they dwell 
 close at hand and are good to help." This was the 
 counsel of the Lacedaemonians, which they gave, not 
 because they had any love for the men of Plataea, but 
 thinking that the Athenians would have trouble with- 
 out end if by these means they should be set at en- 
 mity with the Thebans. The men of Plataea will- 
 ingly hearkened to their counsel, and sent envoys, 
 who, journeying to Athens, sat themselves down on 
 the altar and surrendered themselves, the Athenians 
 keeping at this time the festival of the twelve gods. 
 When the Thebans heard what had been done they 
 marched against the men of Plataea; and on the other 
 hand the Athenians came to their help. When these 
 were now about to join battle, the Corinthians — for 
 they chanced to be there — would not suffer them so 
 to do, but made an agreement between them, both 
 consenting thereunto. This agreement was that if 
 any of the dwellers in Bceotia wished not to come 
 into the league of Thebes, it should be lawful for 
 them to stand aloof. When the Corinthians had 
 given this sentence they departed to their own city. 
 The Athenians also departed; but as they were on 
 their way, the Thebans set upon them, but were 
 worsted in the battle. Then the Athenians were no 
 longer willing to abide by the boundaries which the 
 Corinthians had determined for the men of Platasa, 
 
 70 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 but took instead the river Asopus to be the boundary 
 between them and the Thebans. So now the men of 
 Plataea, being willing to make a return to the Athe- 
 nians for the benefit which they had received, came 
 to their help at Marathon. 
 
 The generals of the Athenians were divided in 
 their opinion, some being unwilling that they should 
 join battle with the Persians, for they considered how 
 few in numbers they were to stand against so great 
 a host; but others, among whom was Miltiades, were 
 for joining battle. Then, there being this divi- 
 sion, as it seemed likely that the worse counsel would 
 prevail, Miltiades went to the war-archon, whose 
 name was Callimachus, a man of Aphidnae. The 
 war-archon among the Athenians was appointed 
 by lot, and in former days it was the custom that he 
 should vote together with the ten generals. To him 
 therefore went Miltiades, and spake to him these 
 words: "Thou hast it in thine hands, O Callimachus, 
 either to bring Athens under the yoke of slavery, or 
 to make it free for evermore, and in so doing to gain 
 for thyself a name that shall never die, and glory 
 such that not even Harmodius and Aristogeiton won 
 for themselves. For indeed never since Athens was 
 a city has it come into such danger as that wherein it 
 now stands. For if it bow its neck to the yoke of the 
 barbarian and be given over to this Hippias, what it 
 will sutler thou knowest very well ; but if it escape 
 this danger, then will it become the very first city in 
 
 7 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the land of Greece. And now I will set forth to 
 thee how these things may pass, and also how it lies 
 with thee to determine whether they shall turn out 
 for the better or the worse. We generals are ten in 
 number,and our opinions are divided, for some would 
 have us join the battle with the Persians, and others 
 would not. Now hear what will take place if we 
 join not battle with these strangers forthwith. There 
 will be a great dispute in the city, and the counsels 
 of men will be turned aside from the right, so that the 
 partyof the Persians will prevail. But if we join battle 
 before this evil begin to show itself, then I doubt not, 
 if the Gods deal fairly with us, that we shall prevail 
 in battle, and so be safe. And now all this lies upon 
 thee, whether it shall be so or no. If thou wilt add 
 thy vote to my vote, then shall this thy native country 
 be free, and shall be the first city in all Greece. But 
 if, on the other hand, they that be unwilling to fight 
 shall gain the day, then shall happen to us the con- 
 trary of all the good things of which I have spoken." 
 With these words Miltiades persuaded Callimachus; 
 and when the vote of the war-archon was given to 
 them that counselled battle, it was agreed that battle 
 should be given. After this, each one of those gen- 
 erals that had given his vote for joining battle, when 
 his turn of command came round — for each man 
 commanded in turn day by day — gave up his turn 
 to Miltiades. Nevertheless Miltiades made not use 
 of any of their turns, but waited till his own proper 
 
 72 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 turn came round. And when this was come then 
 the Athenians were drawn up in order of battle ; their 
 right wing was led by Callimachus — for in those days 
 it was the custom among the Athenians that the war- 
 archon should lead the right wing — and after him 
 came the tribes of the Athenians, one after the other, 
 in their order, according to their numbers, and last of 
 all, upon the left wing, were the men of Plataea. 
 And ever since the battle that was fought upon this 
 day it has been the custom among the Athenians, 
 when they hold their sacrifice and solemn convoca- 
 tion in the fifth year, that the herald of the Athenians 
 should pray aloud in these words: "May the Gods 
 send all blessings to the men of Athens and to the 
 men of Plataea." Now the Athenians sought to 
 make their line of battle equal to the line of the 
 Persians; and that they might do so they took away 
 men from the centre, so that this was the weakest 
 part of the army, the wings being the strongest. And 
 so, so soon as the battle had been set in array, and the 
 sacrifice being made appeared to be favorable, then 
 the Athenians, being let go, charged the Persians at 
 a running pace, the space between the two armies 
 being eight furlongs or thereabouts. And the Per- 
 sians, when they saw them coming against them at a 
 run, made ready to receive them, but thought that 
 they must be possessed with utter madness and frenzy, 
 seeing that they were so few in number and yet were 
 running to meet them, and this though they had 
 
 73 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 neither horsemen nor archers. So the barbarians 
 judged; but not the less the Athenians, joining battle 
 in one body with their enemies, quitted themselves 
 in a manner worthy of all praise. For indeed never 
 before had Greeks so charged against their enemies 
 in battle at a running pace, nor had any before en- 
 dured to see without fear men clad and armed in the 
 fashion of the Medes. For indeed before that day 
 the very name of the Medes had been a terror to the 
 Greeks to hear. Long time did the barbarians and 
 Athenians fight together in Marathon. In the mid- 
 dle of the line the barbarians prevailed, for there the 
 Persians and the Sacae had their place. These broke 
 the line of the Greeks, and pursued them for some 
 space toward the mountains. But on each of the two 
 wings the Greeks prevailed, the Athenians being on 
 the one wing and the men of Plataea upon the other. 
 These, having broken their enemies, suffered them to 
 flee, and when wheeling round the two wings upon 
 the barbarians that had broken the middle of the 
 line, they prevailed over these also. Then the Per- 
 sians fled to their ships, and the Athenians pursued 
 them, smiting them and slaying them; and when 
 they, pursuing them, came to the sea, they called 
 for fire and would have burned the ships. In this 
 part of the battle fell Callimachus, the war-archon, 
 who had shown himself that day a man of valor. 
 Also there fell Stesilaus, son of Thrasilaus, being one 
 of the ten generals. Also Cynaegirus, son to Eupho- 
 
 74 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 rion, whose brother was ^Eschylus the poet, was slain 
 at this time; for, laying hold of the stern ornament of 
 one of the ships of the Persians, he had his hand cut 
 off by the blow of an axe; and there perished with 
 him other Athenians also of note and name. Never- 
 theless the Athenians took seven of the ships at this 
 time. With the rest the barbarians pushed off from 
 the shore, and having taken up the prisoners from 
 Eretria from the island whereon they had left them, 
 they sailed round the promontory of Sunium, hoping 
 that they should come to the citv before that the army 
 of the Athenians should be able to return thither. 
 In this matter the house of the sons of Alcmaeon were 
 accused by their fellow countrymen, who said that 
 they had held up a shield for a signal to the Persians ; 
 and that it had been covenanted that they should do 
 so, that the Persians might take the city unawares and 
 empty of men. So the Persians sailed round Cape 
 Sunium; and the Athenians marched with all the 
 speed that they could that they might defend the city; 
 and when they were come they encamped in the pre- 
 cinct of Hercules, that is at Cynosargae; and it sb 
 chanced that they came from the precinct of Her- 
 cules that is in Marathon. For a while the ships 
 of the barbarians lay off Phalerum, which was in 
 those days the port of Athens, but in no long time 
 sailed back to Asia. 
 
 In this battle that was fought in Marathon there 
 were slain of the barbarians six thousand and four 
 
 75 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 hundred or thereabout, and of the Athenians one 
 hundred and ninety and two. In the battle also there 
 happened this marvel. A man of Athens, Epizelus 
 by name, the son of Couphagoras, fighting in the 
 press, and bearing himself bravely, was of a sudden 
 smitten with blindness, and this without being 
 wounded anywhere in the body or stricken at all. 
 And he was blind for the remainder of his days. 
 Now the story which this man told about the matter 
 was this. "I saw," he said, "a man of great stature 
 fully armed stand over against me, and he had a 
 great beard that covered his whole shield. Me in- 
 deed he passed by, but the man that stood next to me 
 he smote and slew." 
 
 When Datis was on his way to Asia, being at 
 Myconos, he saw a vision in his sleep. What this 
 vision was no man knows; but this is certain that so 
 soon as the day dawned he caused a search to be made 
 in all the ships; and in a certain Phoenician ship he 
 found an image of Apollo that was covered with 
 gold, and would know whence it had been brought. 
 And when he knew from what temple it had been 
 taken, he sailed with his own ship to Delos. And he 
 put the image in the temple and laid a command 
 upon the men of Delos — for they had by this time 
 come back to their island — that they should carry 
 back the image to the Delian temple of the Thebans. 
 (This temple stands on the seashore over against 
 Chalcis). When he had given these commands 
 
 7 6 
 
The Battle of Marathon 
 
 Datis departed, but the men of Delos neglected 
 to do as he had said; but twenty years after the 
 Thebans, having been warned by an oracle, fetched 
 it themselves. 
 
 When Datis and Artaphernes were come to Asia 
 they took the people of Eretria whom they had car- 
 ried away captive and brought them up to Susa, to 
 King Darius. Now King Darius had before this 
 been greatly enraged against the people of Eretria, 
 holding that they had done him wrong without prov- 
 ocation; but when he saw them thus brought before 
 him and in his power, he did them no harm, but set- 
 tled them in a station of his own in the land of the 
 Cissia. This station was called Ardericca, and it is 
 distant from Susa twenty and six miles or thereabout. 
 Five miles from this Ardericca is a great well whence 
 they got three things, to wit, bitumen, salt, and oil. 
 Here then King Darius settled the people of Eretria, 
 and here they remained many years afterward still 
 speaking their own language. 
 
 When the full moon was past there came to 
 Athens two thousand Lacedaemonians, having 
 marched with all speed, so that they came to Ath- 
 ens on the third day after they had set out from 
 Sparta. These, though they had come too late for 
 the battle, much desired to see the Persians that had 
 been slain. So they went to Marathon, and when 
 they had seen them and had greatly praised the 
 Athenians, they departed to their own home. 
 
 77 
 
XERXES MAKES WAR ON THE GREEKS 
 
 W7HEN King Darius heard tidings of the battle 
 " at Marathon his wrath, which was already 
 hot against the Athenians by reason of their doings 
 at Sardis, waxed yet more fierce, so that he was more 
 earnest than ever to make war against Greece. And 
 straightway he sent messengers to all the cities in his 
 dominions, bidding them gather together soldiers — 
 and of these many more than he had commanded be- 
 fore — and with these, ships and horsemen and food 
 and vessels of transport. And for the space of three 
 years after these commands had been given, all Asia 
 was in an uproar, seeing that the bravest of her chil- 
 dren were being chosen to march against the Greeks, 
 and were making ready to go. But in the fourth 
 year the Egyptians, who had been enslaved by Cam- 
 byses, revolted. Then was Darius more zealous than 
 before to march both against the Athenians and the 
 Egyptians. But while he was making ready so to 
 do, there came a great disputing among his sons who 
 should be King after him; for the law of the Per- 
 sians is that the King declares who shall reign after 
 him before he goes to the war. Now Darius had 
 had three sons born to him by his wife, the daughter 
 of Gobryas; and these were born before that he was 
 made King: and after that he was made King he had 
 
 78 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 four others born to him of Atossa, that was the daugh- 
 ter of Cyrus. Of the first three Artabazanes was the 
 eldest, and of the four Xerxes. These disputed 
 among themselves, and Artabazanes claimed the 
 kingdom because he was the eldest of all, and because 
 it was the custom over all the world that the eldest 
 should have the pre-eminence; but Xerxes claimed 
 it because his mother was daughter to Cyrus, and it 
 was Cyrus that had established the kingdom of the 
 Persians. Now while Darius doubted about the 
 matter, there came up to Susa Demaratus the son of 
 Ariston. The same had been deprived of his king- 
 dom in Sparta and had fled from the city. When 
 this man knew what it was that the sons of Darius 
 disputed about, he came forward, according to re- 
 port, and gave counsel to Xerxes that over and above 
 the words that he had said he should say also this, 
 that he had been born when Darius was already King 
 and had dominion over all the Persians, but that 
 Darius was a subject only when Artabazanes was 
 born. "And indeed at Sparta," said Demaratus, 
 "the law is this, that if a king have children that are 
 born before he be made King, and also a child that 
 is born after, then he that is born after is preferred." 
 Of these words of Demaratus Xerxes made such use 
 that King Darius declared that he should be King in 
 his room. But in the year after it so befell that while 
 he was preparing to make war both against the 
 Greeks and against the Egyptians, King Darius died, 
 
 79 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 having reigned over the Persians thirty and six years 
 in all; and Xerxes, his son, reigned in his stead. 
 Now at the first Xerxes by no means desired to make 
 war against the Greeks, but against the Egyptians 
 he made great preparations. Then said Mardonius 
 the son of Gobryas, who was cousin to the King 
 being sister's son to King Darius, "My lord, it is by 
 no means fitted that the Athenians, seeing that they 
 have done grievous wrong to the Persians, shoulc 
 thus go unpunished. Do therefore first the thing 
 that thou hast now in hand, and when thou has 
 humbled the Egyptians go forth against the Greeks 
 So shalt thou have great renown throughout th 
 world, and men shall fear hereafter to trouble th} 
 land." And besides thus speaking of vengeanc 
 Mardonius would also add that Europe was a very 
 beautiful land, bearing all manner of fruitful trees 
 and of an excellent fertility, and altogether such tha 
 no man but the King was worthy to possess it. Al 
 this he said because he was a lover of change anc 
 adventure; also he hoped to be made ruler over the 
 land of Greece. And at last he had his way, per 
 suading Xerxes to take the matter in hand. Ther 
 were other things that helped him persuading Xerxe 
 to this act. First there came envoys from the hous 
 of Aleuas, that was King in Thessaly, who woulc 
 fain have the King come against the land of Greece 
 and showed all zeal in his cause. Also certain o 
 the house of Pisistratus that had come up to Sus 
 
 80 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 held the same language. These had with them one 
 Onomacritus, a man of Athens, that was a soothsayer, 
 and one that had set in order the prophecies of Mu- 
 saeus. Once, indeed, there had been enmity between 
 the son of Pisistratus and this Onomacritus; for Hip- 
 parchus had banished him from Athens, having 
 found that he had added to the prophecies of Mu- 
 saeus a certain prophecy how that an island which 
 lies near unto Lemnos should one day be swallowed 
 up in the sea. A certain Leros had found him out in 
 this, and Hipparchus banished him, having been 
 wont to consult him continually. But now the sons 
 of Pisistratus were reconciled to him, and took him 
 in their company to Susa, and talked much of him 
 and of his wisdom. And so soon as he was brought 
 before the King, he repeated to him certain of the 
 prophecies. If there were any prophecy that spake 
 of disaster to the Persians, of this he would make no 
 mention, but such as seemed to promise them success 
 he would set forth, how that it was in the fates that a 
 Persian should bridge over the Hellespont. Thus 
 did Onomacritus make much of his prophecies, and 
 the sons of Pisistratus and the sons of Aleuas set forth 
 their opinions to the same purpose. 
 
 So King Xerxes was persuaded to make war upon 
 the Greeks. 
 
 All things being now ready, the host of Xerxes 
 crossed over from Asia into Europe, the foot soldiers 
 and the horsemen going over the bridge that was 
 
 81 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 toward the Black Sea, and the servants of the army 
 and the beasts of burden the bridge that was toward 
 the i^Egean. First came the Ten Thousand, all of 
 them wearing crowns; and after them came a mixed 
 host of all nations. These passed over on the first 
 day; and on the next day passed over the horsemen, 
 and they that carried their spears turned toward the 
 ground. These also had crowns on their heads. 
 After these came the sacred horses and the sacred 
 chariot; and next to these Xerxes and the spearmen 
 and the thousand horsemen, and after these the rest 
 of the army. And all the ships sailed to the shore 
 over against Abydos. 
 
 When Xerxes had crossed over, he watched his 
 army crossing over under the lash, and this they did 
 without pause or rest for seven days and seven nights. 
 It is reported that when Xerxes had passed over a 
 man that dwelt in these parts cried out, "O Zeus, 
 why art thou come in the likeness of a Persian, and 
 calling thyself Xerxes and not Zeus, with the whole 
 race of men following thee, to destroy the Greeks, 
 when thou couldst have destroyed them without so 
 doing;?" 
 
 When they had all crossed over there happened 
 a great marvel, of which Xerxes took no account, 
 though indeed it was easy to understand. The mar- 
 vel was this, that a mare brought forth a hare. And 
 what was to be understood from it was this — that 
 Xerxes was leading against the Greeks a great host 
 
 82 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 and splendidly equipped, and yet before many days 
 he would come again to the same place as one that 
 fled for life. 
 
 Then Xerxes went on his way, the fleet sailing 
 along by the coast. And when he came to Doriscus 
 he had a desire to know the number of his army. 
 What indeed were the numbers of the several nations 
 can not be said ; but the number of the whole host was 
 found to be a thousand thousand and seven hundred 
 thousands. These were numbered in a way that 
 shall now be told. They brought ten thousand men 
 into one place; these they placed together as closely 
 as they could, and having done this, they drew a 
 circle about them; and when they had done this cir- 
 cle and let the ten thousand go, they made a heap 
 about the circle, so high as the middle of a man. 
 When they had so done they brought others into the 
 place that was thus hedged about till they had filled 
 it. When they had numbered the host they set it in 
 order nation by nation. 
 
 These nations were many in number. First of 
 all were the Persians, wearing turbans on their heads 
 and about their bodies tunics with sleeves of divers 
 colors, having iron scales like to the scales of a fish. 
 On their legs they had trews, and their shields were 
 of wicker. For arms they had short spears and long 
 bows and arrows of reed; also they had daggers 
 hanging from their girdles by the right thigh. The 
 Medes were accoutred in the same way; and in* 
 
 83 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 
 deed this fashion of armor is Median rather than 
 Persian. 
 
 The Assyrians had helmets of brass, wrought in 
 a strange fashion. These had shields and spears 
 and daggers like to the Egyptians; and besides they 
 had clubs of wood with knots of iron and linen 
 corslets. 
 
 The Scythians had trews. These carried bows 
 and daggers, and battle-axes also. The Indians were 
 clad in cotton, with bows of cane, and arrows also 
 of cane pointed with iron. As for the Arabians they 
 had long cloaks bound about the waist with girdles, 
 and at their right side they carried bows bending 
 backward. They that came from Ethiopia were 
 clad in skins of panthers and lions. Their bows 
 were of the stems of palm leaves, four cubits and 
 more in length ; their arrows were small and of reed, 
 having heads of stone for iron. (This same stone 
 is used for engraving of seals.) They had spears 
 also, with the horns of antelopes made sharp for 
 spear-heads, and knotted clubs also. When they 
 were about to go into battle they would paint the 
 one half of their bodies with chalk and the other 
 with vermilion. There were also Eastern Ethio- 
 pians (these had straight hair, while they of the 
 West had hair more woolly than the hair of other 
 men) equipped like to the others, but having the 
 scalps of horses on their heads. These they flay off 
 with the ears and mane. The ears stand upright 
 
 84 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 and the mane is for a crest. For shields they have 
 bucklers made of the skins of cranes. 
 
 Many nations came from the Lower Asia, as 
 Phrygians and Paphlagonians, and Lydians, these 
 last being clad and armored very much in Greek 
 fashion. There were also Mysians (who in old 
 time came forth from Lydia, but then dwelt in the 
 Mysian Olympus). These had helmets and buck- 
 lers and staves of wood with one end hardened in 
 the fire. Also the Bithynians came from this land, 
 having before dwelt about the Strymon, in Thrace. 
 These had skins of foxes on their heads, and tunics 
 with long cloaks of many colors about their bodies, 
 and buskins of fawn skins about their legs and feet; 
 and for arms javelins and light shields and short 
 daggers. 
 
 From these and many other nations of Asia and 
 Africa came the footmen of the host. They had cap- 
 tains of tens and of hundreds and of thousands and 
 of ten thousands; and over all six generals, Mar- 
 donias, Tritantaechmes, son of Artabanus, Mega- 
 byzus, son of Zopyrus, the same that took the city of 
 Babylon for King Darius, and three others. 
 
 These six commanded all the footmen save only 
 the Ten Thousand. These Ten Thousand were 
 'Persians all of them, chosen men. These Hydarnes 
 led, and they were called the Immortals, because if 
 any man among them die or fall sick, straightway 
 another is chosen into his place, so that they are ten 
 
 8< 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 thousand always, neither more nor less. Of all the 
 host the Persians were the bravest and most splen- 
 didly equipped. 
 
 The horsemen came from many nations. Among 
 these were the Sagartians, a wandering people. 
 These are wont to have no arms either of iron or 
 bronze, save only a dirk. But they have lassoes of 
 leathern thongs and trust to these. They fight in 
 this fashion. When they go into battle, they cast 
 their lassoes having nooses at the end ; and that which 
 is entangled in the noose they draw toward them, be 
 it man or horse, and slay it. 
 
 Of the Indians some rode in chariots drawn by 
 wild asses. The Arabians rode on camels that were 
 as swift as horses. These were set last, because the 
 horses could not endure the sight of the camels. Of 
 horsemen there were in all eighty thousand. 
 
 The number of the ships of war was one thousand 
 and two hundred and seven. Of these the Phoeni- 
 cians furnished three hundred and the Egyptians 
 two hundred, and the men of Cyprus one hundred 
 and fifty, and the men of Cilicia one hundred. The 
 Ionians and the iEolians and the Greeks that dwelt 
 about the Hellespont and the Black Sea furnished 
 two hundred and sixty and seven. And on all the 
 ships there were fighting men, Persians and Medes 
 and Sacae. The best of all the ships were the Phoeni- 
 cian, and of the Phoenician ships the best they that 
 came from Sidon. 
 
 86 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 As to the names of them that commanded the 
 ships, there is no need to tell them. For indeed they 
 were not commanders but slaves, even as the others. 
 But the Persians that commanded were Ariabignes 
 son of Darius, and Megabazus, with two others. Of 
 smaller ships and transports and the like there were 
 three thousand in all. 
 
 One of the generals must needs be mentioned, 
 namely Artemisia, the daughter of Lygdamis. She, 
 her husband being dead and her son but a lad, had 
 the lordship of her city, even Halicarnassus; and she 
 went with Xerxes against Greece, not of necessity, 
 but of her own free will, so valiant was she and of so 
 manlike a spirit. She furnished five ships to the 
 king, and in all the fleet there were none better, save 
 only those of the Sidonians; nor was there one of the 
 allies that gave better counsel to the King than did 
 this Artemisia. 
 
 When Xerxes had numbered the host and the 
 fleet, and had set them in order, it seemed good to 
 him to go through them and see them for himself. 
 This therefore he did. First he rode on a chariot, 
 driving from nation to nation, and inquiring about 
 each many things; and there followed scribes, who 
 wrote down that which was answered. This he did 
 till he came to the very end of the footmen and of the 
 horsemen. After this he left his chariot and em- 
 barked on a ship of Sidon, and sitting under a tent 
 of gold sailed along by the prows of the ships, these 
 
 87 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 all having been launched and being drawn up about 
 four hundred feet from the shore, and the righting 
 men upon them, some ready armed as for battle. The 
 King sailed between the ships and the shore; aad 
 the scribes followed him and wrote as before. 
 
 When he had ended these things he sent for 
 Demaratus, the son of Ariston, that had been King 
 in Sparta, and had been banished thence, and asked 
 him, saying: "Demaratus, it is my pleasure to ask 
 thee a certain question. Thou art a Greek; and as I 
 hear from thee and from other of thy people, thou 
 comest of a city that is by no means the least or weak- 
 est in the land of Greece. Tell me, then, will the 
 Greeks abide our coming, and lift a hand against us? 
 For, as it seems to me, not all the Greeks, nor all the 
 barbarians of the west, if they were gathered to- 
 gether, could stand up against me when I come 
 against them, if they were not of one mind. But tell 
 me, what thinkest thou?" 
 
 Then said Demaratus: "Shall I answer thee that 
 which is true or that which is pleasant?" 
 
 The King said: "Speak that which, is true. It 
 shall not be the worse for thee." 
 
 When Demaratus heard this, he said: "O King, 
 thou biddest me speak the truth, so that I may not be 
 found hereafter to have lied unto thee. With us 
 Greeks poverty is born and bred ; and we have gotten 
 for ourselves valor by help of wisdom and law, and by 
 valor we keep ourselves both from poverty and from 
 
 88 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 servitude. Now that which I am about to say re- 
 gards the Spartans only, though indeed I honor all 
 the Greeks that dwell in the Dorian country. Know 
 then, in the first place, that the Spartans will receive 
 no conditions from thee that shall bring slavery upon 
 Greece; and in the second, that they will surely come 
 forth to meet thee in battle, yea, though all the 
 Greeks besides be on thy side. But as to their num- 
 ber there is no need to inquire; for if there be a thou- 
 sand that shall march out to battle, or if there be 
 more or less these will surely fight." 
 
 When Xerxes heard this he laughed, and said: 
 "What is this that thou hast said, Demaratus? Shall 
 a thousand men fight with a whole army? Tell me 
 now. Thou hast been, thou sayest, King of these 
 Spartans. Wilt thou then forthwith fight singly 
 with ten men? Yet if all thy nation be such as thou 
 sayest, thou being their King shouldst, according to 
 your custom, contend against as many again; so that 
 if a common man be a match for ten men of my army 
 thou shouldst be a match for twenty. But if they 
 that so boast themselves are no bigger or stronger 
 than the Greeks that I have seen, thyself, to wit, and 
 others, then is this talk but empty words. Consider 
 now the likelihood of the thing. How could a thou- 
 sand, or ten thousand, or even fifty thousand, stand 
 up against such an army, the more so if they be free 
 and not under the rule of one man? For say that 
 there be five thousand of them, yet shall we have 
 
 89 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 more than a thousand to one. If, indeed, they were 
 under the rule of one man after our fashion, then 
 might they for fear of him be valiant even beyond 
 their nature, and fight few against many, being driven 
 thereto by the lash. But being free, and left to 
 choose, they will do neither the one nor the other. I 
 verily believe that Greeks could scarce stand up in 
 battle against Persians, the number being equal. But 
 as to this, that one man can fight against many, we 
 have indeed a few such in our army, but a few only, 
 for some of my spearmen would not refuse to fight 
 one man against three Greeks. But about this thou 
 knowest nothing, and so talkest idly." 
 
 To this Demaratus made answer: u O King, I 
 knew at the beginning that if I should speak the truth 
 I should not please thee. But the truth thou wouldst 
 have me speak; therefore I told thee the things that 
 concerned the Spartans. And yet I love them not, as 
 thou knowest very well, seeing that they took from 
 me the place and dignity that came to me from my 
 father, and drove me out into banishment, whereas 
 thy father Darius received me and gave me suste- 
 nance and a home to dwell in; and it is not to be be- 
 lieved that a wise man would scorn such kindness, but 
 rather that he would cherish it in his heart. For my- 
 self I engage not to fight with ten men, nor yet with 
 two, nor indeed would I willingly fight with one ; yet 
 if there should be any necessity or great cause, I 
 would gladly fight with any of the men who say 
 
 90 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 they are a match for three Greeks. And as for the 
 Spartans, when they fight singly they are as good as 
 any men in the world; and when they fight together 
 they are better than any. For though they be free, 
 yet are they not wholly free. For they have a master 
 over them, even Law, whom they fear more than 
 thy people fear thee. Whatsoever this master com- 
 mands, that they do. And he commands them that 
 they turn not their backs in battle, how many soever 
 be their enemies, but abide in their place, and con- 
 quer or die. If thou thinkest that these things that I 
 say are naught, then will I hold my peace hereafter. 
 Howbeit, I pray that all things may be as thou 
 wouldst have them, O King." 
 
 This was the answer of Demaratus. And the 
 King laughed, and sent him away in peace. 
 
 Now it must be remembered that Xerxes, though 
 he said that he was marching against Athens, had it 
 in his mind to subdue all Greece. And this the 
 Greeks knew beforehand, though indeed they did not 
 all regard the matter in the same way. For some 
 had no fear of the barbarians, as having given them 
 earth and water, and thinking therefore that they 
 should receive from them no harm; but others, hav- 
 ing not given these things, were in great fear. For 
 whereas they thought that all the ships in Greece 
 were not enough to meet the Persians, so also they 
 knew that the greater part of the cities would take no 
 part in the war, but greatly favored the enemy. 
 
 9* 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 
 And here must be said a thing which because it 
 is true ought to be said, though most men will mis- 
 like it. If the Athenians, for fear of the danger that 
 was coming upon them, had left their country, or, 
 not leaving it, had submitted themselves to Xerxes, 
 then certainly none would have sought to withstand 
 the Persians by sea; and if none had withstood the 
 Persians by sea, then there would have come to pass 
 on the land what shall now be set forth. Though 
 many breastworks had been built across the Isth- 
 mus, yet would the Lacedaemonians have been be- 
 trayed by their allies; not of their free will, indeed, 
 but because their cities would have been taken, one 
 after the other, by the fleet of the barbarians. So 
 would they in the end have been left alone, and being 
 so left alone, after many deeds of valor, would have 
 perished with great glory. Or if not, then seeing be- 
 forehand that all the other Greeks were submitting 
 themselves to the Persians, they also would have 
 made an agreement with Xerxes. So, in either case, 
 would Greece have been made subject to the bar- 
 barians. For what would have been the profit of 
 walls built across the Isthmus while the king had the 
 mastery by sea? If a man then should say that in 
 truth the Athenians were the saviors of Greece, he 
 would speak truly; for to whichever side they had 
 inclined that would have been the weightier. And 
 they, having a fixed purpose that Greece should be 
 free, stirred up all the nations that had not submit- 
 
 92 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 ted themselves to the Persians, and so, next to the 
 Gods, drove back the enemy. 
 
 And this they did though they were sorely terri- 
 fied by the oracle. For when they sent messengers 
 to inquire of the god at Delphi, and these had of- 
 fered sacrifices after the custom, and were now come 
 into the shrine, the priestess gave to them this an- 
 swer. (The name of the priestess was Aristonice). 
 
 ''Why sit ye still? Fly, wretched race, 
 To earth's far bounds the fatal place. 
 Fly hearth and home and craggy hill, 
 
 Round which the wheel-like city stands ; 
 Through all her being fares she ill, 
 
 Body, and head, and feet, and hands. 
 The fire consumes them, and from far, 
 Wild Ares drives his Syrian car. 
 Full many a tower, both fair and tall, 
 Not thine alone, before him fall ; 
 Full many a holy place and shrine 
 
 The fire's devouring flames shall seize ; 
 Cold stands the sweat on face divine, 
 
 And shake with fear the trembling knees ; 
 From high-pitched roof the blood-drops fall, 
 
 Fell signs of storm and coming woe ; 
 Leave, suppliant band, Apollo's hall, 
 Prepare you for the fate ye know." 
 
 When the messengers from Athens heard these 
 words they were greatly troubled. But Timon, the 
 son of Androbulus, a chief man among the citizens 
 of Delphi, seeing how utterly cast down they were 
 
 93 
 
 4— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 by the evil that was prophesied concerning tHeir 
 country, counselled them that they should take 
 tokens of suppliants in their hands, and in this guise 
 go and inquire of the oracle once more. This then 
 the Athenians did, and spake, saying, "O King, 
 prophesy unto us some better thing about our coun- 
 try, having regard to these tokens of suppliants 
 which we bring into thy presence. Else will we 
 not depart from thy sanctuary, but will abide here 
 till the day of our death." Then the priestess 
 prophesied to them a second time, using these 
 
 words: 
 
 "Pallas desires with deep desire 
 To change the purpose of her sire. 
 Again entreats him, and again; 
 But vain her prayers, her counsel vain. 
 Yet sons of Athens, hear once more 
 
 The firm, unyielding word of fate; 
 
 Whene'er the fair Cecropian state, 
 From bound to bound and shore to shore 
 Before the foeman's might shall bow, 
 One boon will Zeus All-wise allow 
 To Pallas' prayer — that ne'er shall fall 
 Fair Athens' stay, her wooden wall : 
 Think not to wait that evil hour 
 Horsemen or footmen's dark array; 
 Fly, fly their host ; yet comes the hour 
 Ye stand to meet the foemen's power. 
 Thou, holy Salami s, shalt bring 
 
 Dark death to sons of women born, 
 Or when abroad the seed they fling, 
 
 Or when they pluck the ripened corn. ,, 
 
 94 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 These words seemed to be, as indeed they were, 
 milder than the former words. So the envoys wrote 
 them down, and returned with them to Athens. 
 
 When the messengers told the words that they 
 had heard and written down to the people, there 
 were many and various opinions among those who 
 sought to interpret the oracle. Some of the older 
 men said that it seemed to them that the god bade 
 them fortify the citadel, for that in old time the 
 citadel of Athens had been surrounded with a fence. 
 And this fence they supposed to be the "wooden 
 wall." And there were others that said the "wooden 
 wall" signified their ships; but these were con- 
 founded by the last words of the oracle: 
 
 "Thou, holy Salamis, shalt bring 
 
 Dark death to sons of women born, 
 Or when abroad the seed they fling, 
 Or when they pluck the ripened corn." 
 
 These words troubled them much, for the read- 
 ers of oracles declared that it was signified by them 
 that they should fight in ships and be worsted at 
 Salamis. 
 
 Now there was at Athens a certain man that 
 was but newly risen into the front rank of the citi- 
 zens. This was Themistocles the son of Neocles. 
 He then coming forward affirmed that the oracle- 
 readers did not read the words aright, for that, if 
 they had been really spoken concerning the Athe- 
 
 9S 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 nians, the god would have said, a Sad Salamis," rather 
 than "Holy Salamis," it being decreed that the 
 dwellers in the land should die there. It was mani- 
 fest therefore, he said, to one that interpreted the 
 words aright that they were spoken concerning the 
 barbarians, and not concerning the Athenians. 
 Wherefore he advised his fellow-citizens that they 
 should make ready to fight in ships, for that these 
 were their "wooden wall." When Themistocles had 
 set forth these opinions, the Athenians judged them 
 to be better than the opinions of the oracle-readers. 
 For these would have hindered them from fighting 
 in ships, yea, from so much as lifting up their hands 
 against the enemy, and would have had them leave 
 their country, and find some other wherein to 
 dwell. 
 
 Before this, another counsel of this same The- 
 mistocles had been given excellently in season. It so 
 chanced that the Athenians had much money in their 
 public treasury, having received it from their mines 
 at Laurium. This they were about to divide among 
 the citizens, man by man, so that each should have 
 ten drachmae; but Themistocles persuaded the Athe- 
 nians that this division should not be made, but that 
 they should use the money for the building of two 
 hundred ships for the war that they had on hand, that 
 is to say, the war against ^Egina. This war indeed it 
 was that was the saving of Greece, for it compelled 
 the Athenians to become seafaring men. As for the 
 
 96 
 
Xerxes Makes War on the Greeks 
 
 two hundred ships, they were not used for the end 
 for the which they were made; but they were a help 
 to Greece when she most needed them. So many 
 ships had the Athenians ready before the war; and 
 they began to build others. And now, after hearing 
 the oracle and consulting thereupon, they judged it 
 well to put their whole force on shipboard, even as 
 the god commanded them; and so, together with 
 such of the Greeks as were of the same mind, to give 
 battle to the barbarians. 
 
 97 
 
THE BATTLE OF THERMOPYL^: 
 
 I£ ING XERXES brought with him from Asia 
 *^ twelve hundred and seven great ships ; and in 
 each ship there were two hundred rowers and thirty 
 fighting men. Also he had of smaller ships, having 
 fifty oars or under, three thousand, and in each of 
 these, taking one with another, there were eighty 
 men. Therefore the whole number of the men that 
 served on the ships was five hundred and seventeen 
 thousand and six hundred. Of foot soldiers there 
 were seventeen hundred thousand, and of horsemen 
 eighty thousand, and of Arabs riding on camels and 
 of Libyans that fought from chariots twenty thou- 
 sand. There were also one hundred and twenty 
 ships of Greeks that dwelt in Thrace and in the isl- 
 ands thereof, and in these twenty and four thousand 
 men. To these must be added foot soldiers of the 
 Thracians, the Paeonians, the Macedonians, and oth- 
 ers. And the sum of the whole was two million six 
 hundred and forty-one thousand six hundred and ten. 
 And of all this great host there was none fitter to be 
 the ruler for beauty and great stature than King 
 Xerxes himself. Of those that followed the camp, 
 and of the crews of the provision ships and other 
 vessels of transport, the number was more rather than 
 less the number of the fighting men. As for the 
 
 98 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 women that ground the corn, and others that came 
 with the army, and the horses, and the beasts of bur- 
 den, and the dogs, their number can not be told. 
 
 King Xerxes pitched his camp in the region of 
 Trachis, and the Greeks pitched their camp in the 
 Pass. (This Pass is called Thermopylae, that is to 
 say, the Hot Gates, by the greater part of the Greeks, 
 but the inhabitants of the country call it Pylae, that is 
 to say, the Gates.) Here then the two armies were 
 set over against each other, the one being master of 
 all the country from the Pass northward, and the 
 other having that which lay to the southward. Now, 
 the Greeks that abode the coming of the Persians in 
 this place were these — three hundred Spartans, 
 heavy-armed men; and men of Tegea and Matinea 
 a thousand, from each five hundred, and from Orcho- 
 menus one hundred and twenty, and from the rest of 
 Arcadia a thousand. From Corinth there came four 
 hundred, and from Phlius two hundred, and from 
 Mycenae eighty. So many came from the Pelopon- 
 nesus; of the Boeotians there came seven hundred 
 from Thespiae and four hundred from Thebes. Be- 
 sides these there had come at the summons the Lo- 
 crians of Opus with all the men that they had, and 
 a thousand Phocians. For these the other Greeks 
 had summoned to their help, saying to them by mes- 
 sengers, "We all that are here are come but as the 
 vanguard of the host; as for the others, we look for 
 their coming day by day. The sea also is in safe 
 
 99 
 
 .Lore. y 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 keeping, being watched by the men of Athens and 
 the men of iEgina, and such others as have been ap- 
 pointed to this work. Remember also that he who 
 now comes against Greece is no god, but a man only; 
 nor is there any mortal, nor ever will be, with 
 whom from the very day of his birth misfortune is 
 not always close at hand, and the greater the man 
 the greater also the misfortune. Wherefore it may 
 be believed that he who now comes against us, being 
 but a mortal man, may fail of his purpose." When 
 the Phocians and Locrians heard these words, they 
 came to the help of the Greeks at Trachis. All of 
 these had commanders of their own, for every city 
 one; but he that was most admired and had the chief 
 command of the army was a Spartan, Leonidas by 
 name, being the twenty-first in descent from Her- 
 cules, and having obtained the kingdom in Sparta 
 contrary to expectation. For he had two brothers 
 that were older than he, to wit, Cleomenes and Do- 
 rieus, and so had no thoughts of the kingdom. Nev- 
 ertheless, when Cleomenes died without male off- 
 spring, and Dorieus also was dead, having perished 
 in Sicily, the kingdom came to Leonidas, for he was 
 older than Cleombrotus. (This Cleombrotus was 
 the youngest of the sons of Anaxandrides.) This 
 Leonidas had to wife Gorgo, the daughter of Cle- 
 omenes; and now he went to Thermopylae, taking 
 with him three hundred men, according to the cus- 
 tom of the Kings of Sparta. These three hundred he 
 
 100 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 had chosen from such as had male children. On his 
 way) he took with him the four hundred men of 
 Thebes, their commander being Leontiades. Now, 
 the cause why Leonidas made much account of tak- 
 ing these men rather than any other of the Greeks 
 was this. It was commonly laid to the charge of the 
 Thebans that they favored the cause of the Per- 
 sians. For this cause he summoned them to the war, 
 seeking to know whether they would send the men 
 or would plainly refuse the alliance of the preeks. 
 And the Thebans, though they wished otherwise, 
 nevertheless sent the men. The Spartans indeed 
 sent on Leonidas and his company beforehand, pur- 
 posing themselves to follow. For they thought that 
 when the allies knew that these were already gone, 
 they would also make ready; and they feared lest 
 these should favor the Persians, if they themselves 
 should be seen to linger. And they purposed, when 
 they should have kept the feast — for it chanced to be 
 the feast of the Carneia — to leave a garrison in 
 Sparta, and to follow with their whole force. And 
 the rest of the allies were minded to do the same 
 thing; and it so befell that the festival of Olympia 
 was being kept at this time. But when they sent 
 these men before them, they had no thought that 
 matters at Thermopylae would be brought to an end 
 so speedily. 
 
 Now, the Greeks that were at Thermopylae, 
 when they saw that the Persians were now near to 
 
 IOI 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the mouth of the Pass, were sore afraid, and took 
 counsel together whether they should not depart. 
 The Peloponnesians, for the most part, desired to 
 return to the Peloponnesus and guard the Isthmus; 
 but Leonidas, seeing that the Phocians and Locrians 
 were greatly vexed at this counsel, gave his sentence 
 that they should remain, and should send messengers 
 to the cities of the Greeks, bidding them send all 
 the help that they could, for that they were over few 
 to stand up against so great a host. 
 
 While the Greeks were holding a council on this 
 matter, Xerxes sent a scout, a horseman, to see how 
 many in number they were, and what they were do- 
 ing. Now, the man heard, while he was yet in 
 Thessaly, that a small company of men were gath- 
 ered together in this place, the chief of them being 
 Spartans, and the leader King Leonidas, of the house 
 and lineage of Hercules. And when he rode up to 
 the place where the army was encamped, he saw a 
 part of the men. The whole army he saw not, for 
 they had built again the wall that was across the 
 Pass, and were guarding it; and they that were with- 
 in the wall he saw not; but they that were without 
 the wall, having their arms piled beside them, he 
 saw. Now it so chanced that they who had their 
 place at the time without the wall were the Spar- 
 'tans. These the horseman saw busy w T ith exercises 
 and combing their hair. All this he much marvelled 
 to see, finding also how few they were in number. 
 
 1 02 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 And when he had learned everything for certain, he 
 rode back again in peace; for no one pursued after 
 *him, or indeed paid him any heed whatsoever. And 
 when he was come back he told Xerxes all the things 
 that he had seen. But when Xerxes heard these 
 things he could by no means understand that which 
 was indeed the truth; how these men were making 
 ready to slay as many as might be of their enemy, 
 and so perish. Thinking therefore that the whole 
 thing was but foolishness, he sent for Demaratus, for 
 the man was yet with the army. And when De- 
 maratus stood before him he asked him about these 
 things, desiring to know what they signified. And 
 Demaratus said, "Thou hast heard from me, O King, 
 the truth concerning these men before this, even 
 when we were first beginning this war; but when 
 thou heardest it thou didst but laugh at me, though 
 I told thee that which I knew would surely come to 
 pass. For indeed, O King, I strive always with my 
 whole heart to tell thee the truth. Hear, therefore, 
 yet again what I say. These men are come hither 
 to contend with us for the Pass; and this they now 
 prepare to do; and they have this custom among 
 them, that when they are about to put their lives in 
 peril they adorn their heads with exceeding care. 
 Know, also, O King, that if thou canst subdue these 
 men, and such others of their nation as have been left 
 behind in Sparta, there is no nation upon the earth 
 that will abide thy coming or lift up a hand against 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 thee ; for this city that thou now tightest against is the 
 most honorable in all Greece, and these men are the 
 bravest." 
 
 But these things seemed to Xerxes to be wholly 
 beyond belief; and he asked again the second time, 
 "In what manner will these men, being so few, as we 
 know them to be, fight with my great army?" 
 
 But Demaratus answered this only, "O King, 
 deal with me as with a liar if everything fall not out 
 even as I have said." Notwithstanding, he could not 
 persuade the King that it was so in truth. 
 
 Four days, therefore, did the King suffer to pass, 
 hoping always that the Greeks would flee away from 
 their place. But on the fifth day, seeing that they 
 were not departed, but were full, as it seemed to him, 
 of impudence and folly, he grew angry, and sent 
 against them the Medes and the Cissians, giving them 
 a command that they should take these Greeks alive 
 and bring them before him. But when these men 
 came up and fell upon the Greeks, many of them 
 were slain. Then others came up into their places 
 and ceased not from fighting, though indeed they 
 suffered a very grievous slaughter, so that it was 
 manifest to all men, and more especially to the King, 
 that though he had very many that bore arms, yet 
 had he but few men of war. And this battle endured 
 throughout the whole day. 
 
 The Medes, having been thus roughly handled, 
 fell back, and the Persians took up the fighting in 
 
 104 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 their place, even the Ten Thousand, that had the 
 name of the Immortals, whom Hydarnes com- 
 manded. These men thought to finish the matter 
 very speedily. Nevertheless, when they came to deal 
 with the Greeks, they accomplished nothing more 
 than had the Medes, but fared just as ill, for indeed 
 they fought in a narrow place, and their spears were 
 shorter than the spears of the Greeks, and their num- 
 bers availed them not at all. As for the Spartans, 
 they fought in a notable way, showing themselves 
 more skilful by far in battle than were their ene- 
 mies. Then they would sometimes turn their backs, 
 and make as though they were all fled; and when the 
 barbarians saw them flee they would pursue after 
 them with much shouting and uproar. Then the 
 Spartans would turn again and stand face to face 
 with the barbarians; and when they turned they 
 would slay such multitudes as could not be counted. 
 Here also there fell certain of the Spartans, but a few 
 only. In the end, when the Persians after many 
 trials could not by any means gain the Pass, neither 
 by attacking in division nor by any other means, they 
 went back to their camp. And twice, while these 
 battles were being fought, did Xerxes leap from his 
 seat in great fear for his army. 
 
 The next day also the barbarians fought, but 
 fared no better than before; for they hoped that the 
 Greeks, being few in number, had been overcome 
 with their wounds, and would not be able any more 
 
 105 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 to stand up against them. But these had been or- 
 dered in companies, according to their nations, and 
 so fought; the one coming in the place of another. 
 Only the Phocians did not fight, being set over the 
 mountain that they might guard the path. Where- 
 fore the Persians, finding that they prevailed not one 
 whit more than before, turned back to the camp. 
 
 The King, therefore, was greatly perplexed what 
 he should do. But while he considered there came 
 to him a certain Ephialtes, a man of Malea, and de- 
 sired to talk with him. This man, hoping to receive 
 a great reward from the King, discovered to him the 
 path that led over the mountain to Thermopylae. 
 Thus did he bring to destruction the Greeks that 
 abode in the Pass. In after time, for fear of the 
 Spartans, this man fled into Thessaly. And when he 
 fled the wardens of the Pass put a price upon his 
 life. This they did when the Amphictyons met at 
 Pylae. And as time went on Ephialtes came back 
 from banishment and went to Anticyra. There a 
 certain Athenades slew him; not for this treachery, 
 but for some other cause. But the Spartans honored 
 Athenades not the less on this account. This was the 
 end of Ephialtes. As for the other story, that there 
 were two others, to wit, Phanagoras and Corydallus, 
 that led the Persians by this path, it is not believed. 
 For the wardens of the Pass set a price not on these 
 two, but on Ephialtes, having without doubt a per- 
 fect knowledge of the whole matter, Also it is well 
 
 tq6 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 known that Ephialtes went into banishment for this 
 cause. Let him therefore be named as having done 
 this great wickedness. 
 
 The King was greatly pleased at the thing which 
 this man undertook, that is to say, the showing of the 
 path ; and he sent Hydarnes and the Ten Thousand 
 that were called the Immortals. These setting out 
 from the camp about the time of the lighting of the 
 lamps, crossed over the river Asopus, and marched 
 all night, having GEta on their right and Trachis on 
 their left. And when it was morning they were 
 found close to the top of the mountain. At the first, 
 indeed, the Phocians that had been set to guard the 
 path knew not of their coming for the whole of the 
 mountain was covered with a wood of oak trees. But 
 when they came near, the morning being calm, there 
 was heard a loud rustling, as indeed could not but be, 
 the Persians treading the leaves under their feet. 
 Then the Phocians leaped up and took their arms, 
 and forthwith the barbarians appeared; and the Pho- 
 cians, when they saw the armed men, were greatly 
 astonished; for when they had not thought to deal 
 with any enemy whatsoever, lo! there was an army 
 at hand. Hydarnes indeed was much troubled, fear- 
 ing that the men that he saw were Spartans. And he 
 inquired of Ephilates who they might be; and when 
 he knew the certainty of the matter he commanded 
 the Persians to make them ready for battle. Then 
 the Phocians, finding that the arrows fell very thickly 
 
 107 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 upon them, and thinking that the Persians were set 
 upon their destruction, fled to the top of the moun- 
 tain, and prepared to meet their death. But Hy- 
 darnes and Ephialtes took no heed of them, and went 
 down the side of the mountain with all the speed they 
 could. 
 
 As for the Greeks that were in the Pass, they 
 knew of the doom that should come upon them so 
 soon as the day appeared; first of all from the sooth- 
 sayer Megistias (for Megistias learned it from the 
 sacrifices). Afterward came in certain deserters 
 with tidings that the Persians had made a compass by 
 the path across the mountains; lastly, when the day 
 was breaking, came the scouts running down from 
 the hills. Then the Greeks held a council, consid- 
 ering what they should do; and they were divided; 
 for some would not leave the post where they had 
 been set, and others were very eager to depart. And 
 when the council was broken up, some departed, go- 
 ing each to their own cities, and others made ready 
 to abide in the Pass with Leonidas. Some say indeed 
 that Leonidas sent away them that departed, having 
 a care for their safety; but it did not become him and 
 the Spartans that were with him, he said, to leave 
 their post that they had come to keep at the first. 
 And indeed it seems fit to be believed that Leonidas, 
 seeing that the others were fainthearted and would 
 not willingly abide the peril, bade them go, but that 
 he himself held it to be a shameful thing to depart. 
 
 108 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 For he knew that he should get for himself great 
 glory by abiding at his post, and that the prosperity 
 of Sparta should not be destroyed. For when the 
 Spartans at the very beginning of the war sent to 
 inquire of the Pythia, seeking to know what should 
 befall them, there was given to them an oracle, that 
 one of two things must come to pass, to wit, that 
 Sparta must perish, or that one of their kings must 
 fall in battle. 
 
 And that oracle was this — 
 
 "Dwellers in Sparta's proud domains, 
 Hear what the will of fate ordains : 
 Or falls your noble city low 
 Beneath the feet of Persian foe; 
 Or all your borders shall bewail 
 
 A Zeus-descended monarch slain; 
 Nor bull nor lion shall avail 
 
 The foe's fierce onset to restrain; 
 Lo ! onward moves his dark array, 
 Mighty as Zeus, and will not stay 
 Till King or city be his prey." 
 
 Remembering therefore this oracle, and desir- 
 ing to get for the Spartans all the glory of this mat- 
 ter, Leonidas sent away the others. This is rather to 
 be believed than that they had a controversy in the 
 council, and so departed in an unseemly fashion and 
 without order. 
 
 And that this was so is manifest both from other 
 things and also from what befell Megistias the sooth- 
 
 109 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 sayer. This Megistias was an Acarnanian and of 
 the house, it was reported, of Melampus; and Leon- 
 idas would have sent him away together with the oth- 
 ers, lest he should perish with them. Megistias in- 
 deed would not depart, but he sent away his son 
 who chanced to be with the army; for indeed he had 
 no other son but him only. 
 
 The others thereupon hearkened to the words of 
 Leonidas and departed; but the Thespians and the 
 Thebans only abode with the Spartans. This the 
 Thebans indeed did against their will, for Leonidas 
 kept these to be as hostages; but the Thespians re- 
 mained of their own free will, affirming that they 
 would not leave Leonidas and his companions. 
 Wherefore they abode in the Pass and perished to- 
 gether with the Spartans. Their leader was De- 
 mophilus. 
 
 So soon as the sun was risen Xerxes made liba- 
 tions ; and about the time when the market begins to 
 fill he commanded that the army should advance. 
 This he had been bidden to do by Ephialtes, because 
 the way for them that descended the mountain was 
 shorter by far than the way for them that ascended. 
 Now, when the Persians were seen to approach, 
 Leonidas and his companions, as knowing that their 
 end was near, went further than they had gone on 
 the days before into that part which is broader. For 
 before they had been wont to guard the wall, and 
 advancing therefrom to fight in the narrows of the 
 
 no 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 Pass. But now they joined battle with the barba- 
 rians in the open space, slaying great multitudes of 
 them. As for these, indeed, the captains of their 
 companies standing behind them and having great 
 whips, drove them forward. And many were thrust 
 into the sea by the press and so perished; and many 
 were trodden down by their companions. Nor did 
 any one take any count of them that perished. And 
 the Greeks, knowing that death was at hand, now 
 that the barbarians had come round over the moun- 
 tains, recked not of their lives, but fought with rage 
 that was beyond all measure. By this time the 
 spears of the greater part were already broken, so 
 that they smote down the Persians with their swords. 
 While they thus fought King Leonidas was slain, 
 having done many deeds of valor; and there fell 
 many other Spartans with him, men of renown. 
 Many famous Persians also were slain at this time, 
 and among them were two sons of Darius. And 
 there was an exceeding fierce fight between the Spar- 
 tans and Persians concerning the body of Leonidas; 
 but in the end the Spartans prevailed, so great was 
 their valor, and carried it away, and they drove back 
 the Persians four times. But when the Greeks per- 
 ceived that the Persians that followed Ephialtes were 
 at hand, they returned to the narrows of the Pass, be- 
 yond the wall, and gathered themselves together in 
 the company on the mound that is at the entering in 
 of the Pass, where in aftertime there was set a lion 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of stone over the grave of King Leonidas. Here such 
 as had swords yet remaining to them unbroken, de- 
 fended themselves with them; and the rest fought 
 with their hands and teeth, till at the last the bar- 
 barians, some pulling down the walls and assailing 
 them in front and others surrounding them on every 
 side, overwhelmed them with stones and arrows. 
 
 All the Spartans and Thespians showed them- 
 selves right valiant; but the bravest of all was Die- 
 neces, a Spartan. It was this Dieneces that spake a 
 very noteworthy saying before the Spartans joined 
 battle with the Persians. And the saying was this. 
 A man of Trachis affirmed that when the Persians 
 shot off their arrows the sun was darkened by the 
 number of them. But Dieneces was not one whit as- 
 tonished at the matter, but, taking no heed at all of 
 the multitude of the Persians, made answer, saying, 
 "This is good news that the stranger from Trachis 
 brings us, for if the Persians so hide the sun then 
 shall we fight in the shade." Many such like sayings 
 did this Dieneces speak. Next after this Dieneces 
 were two brothers, Alpheus and Maron; and of the 
 Thespians the bravest was one Dithyrambus. 
 
 All these were buried even where they were slain. 
 On them that died before that Leonidas had sent 
 away a part of his army, there was written this 
 epitaph — 
 
 "Four times a thousand men from Pelops' land 
 Three thousand times a thousand did withstand." 
 
 112 
 

 The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 But over the Spartans by themselves there was writ- 
 ten — 
 
 "Go, tell the Spartans, thou that passest by, 
 That here, obedient to their laws, we lie." 
 
 And over the soothsayer was this — 
 
 "Here lies the great Megistias, whom of yore 
 The Persian host, from swift Asopus shore 
 Ascending, slew. The seer his doom could read, 
 Yet left not Sparta's chieftains in their need." 
 
 The other columns, indeed, and that which was writ- 
 ten upon them did the Amphictyons set up ; but the 
 column of Megistias the seer and the inscription 
 thereon Simonides set up for friendship's sake. 
 
 Of the three hundred two, Eurytus and Aris- 
 todemus, were absent from their companions on the 
 day of the battle. Now, these two might, if they had 
 been willing to agree, either have returned both of 
 them to Sparta, for Leonidas had sent them away 
 from the army and they lay at Alpeni, grievously af- 
 flicted with sickness of the eyes, or if they were not 
 willing so to return, have died along with the oth- 
 ers. As for Eurytus, when he knew that the Per- 
 sians had come round by the path, he called for his 
 arms and put them on him, and bade his helot lead 
 him into the battle. So the helot led him to the bat- 
 tle, and then turned and fled, and Eurytus thrust 
 himself into the press of the battle, and so perished. 
 But as for Aristodemus, his courage failed him, and 
 
 "3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 he tarried at Alpeni. Now, if Aristodemus only had 
 been sick and so returned alive to Sparta, or if they 
 two had so returned together, it may well be believed 
 that the Spartans would have had no indignation 
 against them ; but seeing that, both being in the same 
 case, one perished, but the other was not willing to 
 die, it could not but be that they should have great 
 indignation against him that still lived. 
 
 Such is the story that some tell about Aristode- 
 mus ; but others say that, having been sent as a mes- 
 senger from the army, when he might have returned 
 before the battle, he lingered on the way of set pur- 
 pose, but that his fellow messenger returned and was 
 slain. This Aristodemus, going back to Sparta, was 
 held in great shame and dishonor. For no Spartan 
 would give him fire, nor would any talk with him, 
 but they called him "Aristodemus the Coward. 5 ' 
 Notwithstanding at the battle of Plataea he did away 
 with all his disgrace. 
 
 As for the Thebans that were with Leonidas, for 
 a while they fought together with the other Greeks 
 against the Persians, doing this by compulsion. But 
 when the barbarians prevailed, and the Greeks gath- 
 ered themselves together at the mound, then the The- 
 bans separated themselves from them, and stretch- 
 ing forth their hands came near to the barbarians, 
 and cried, speaking indeed the veriest truth, that they 
 had yielded themselves to the Persians, and had 
 given earth and water to the King, none sooner, and 
 
 114 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 that they had come to Thermopylae under compul- 
 sion, and were without guilt for the loss that had be- 
 fallen the King's army. Thus they were saved alive, 
 and, indeed, they had the Thessalians to witness for 
 them that they spake the truth. Nevertheless they 
 were not altogether fortunate, for some of them were 
 slain by the barbarians as they approached, and the 
 others were branded with the King's mark, for such 
 was the command of Xerxes. The first that suffered 
 this was their general Leontiades. The son of this 
 Leontiades, Eurymachus, was afterward slain by the 
 men of Plataea when he) came with four hundred 
 other Thebans seeking to take their city. 
 
 These things being finished, the King sent for 
 Demaratus and spake to him, saying, "Demaratus, 
 thou art a good. man, as I know by thy speaking of 
 the truth, for indeed all things have turned out ac- 
 cording to thy saying. Tell me now how many in 
 number are the Spartans that yet remain? and how 
 many of them are such as they that have now fought 
 against us?" 
 
 Then said Demaratus, "O King, there are many 
 Lacedaemonians; but in this country of Lacedaemon 
 there is a certain city, Sparta, wherein are, as near as 
 may be, eight thousand men as brave as them that 
 fought in the Pass. The other Lacedaemonians are 
 not a match for these ; but they are brave men." 
 
 Xerxes said, "Tell me now, Demaratus, how shall 
 we best get the mastery over these men? Speak, for 
 
 "5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 thou wast a King among them and must needs know 
 all their counsels." 
 
 Demaratus made answer, "Since thou seekest 
 counsel of me so earnestly, O King, I will tell thee, 
 as is right, the best thing thou canst do. Send three 
 hundred of thy ships against the land of the Lace- 
 daemonians. Now there lieth over against this land 
 a certain island, Cythera, concerning which island 
 one Chilon, a very wise man that once dwelt among 
 us, was wont to say that it would be far better for 
 the Spartans that it should be sunk under the sea 
 than that it should be above the sea. This he said 
 because he feared always lest some such thing should 
 be done as I am now about to tell thee. And he 
 said it knowing nothing of thy coming against 
 Greece, but fearing all coming of strangers to this 
 place. Send men therefore to this island, and let 
 them harass the Spartans from thence. And it shall 
 be that if they have a war of their own close at home 
 they will not be a trouble to thee, so as to help the 
 other Greeks when thy army seeks to subdue them. 
 And when thou hast subdued the rest of Greece, the 
 Spartans, being left alone, will be feeble. But if 
 thou wilt not follow this counsel then know that 
 there shall come to pass that which I now tell thee. 
 When thou comest to the Peloponnesus thou wilt 
 find a narrow neck of land; and at this neck all the 
 men of the Peloponnesus that are leagued together 
 against thee will be gathered together, and there wilt 
 
 116 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 thou have to fight battles fiercer by far than that 
 which thou hast now seen." 
 
 Now it so chanced that Achaemenes, who was 
 brother to King Xerxes, and had command of the 
 fleet, was present when Demaratus thus spake. Fear- 
 ing then that the King might follow this counsel, he 
 brake in, "I see, O King, that thou listenest to the 
 counsels of a man that envies thy good fortune, and 
 seeks to betray thee. This indeed is ever the man- 
 ner of the Greeks; they envy good fortune, and hate 
 that which is stronger than themselves. If now, 
 when we have lost four hundred ships by shipwreck, 
 three hundred more shall be sent away from the fleet 
 to sail round the Peloponnesus, then will our ene- 
 mies be a match for us. But if we keep our whole 
 fleet together, then will it be such as they will not 
 dare to encounter. Consider also that if that which 
 we have on the land and that which we have on the 
 sea advance together, the one will be able to help the 
 other. But if thou part them asunder, the fleet will 
 not be able to help thee, nor thou to help the fleet. 
 Only order thine own affairs well, and take no 
 thought about thine enemies, whether they will join 
 battle with thee, or what they will do, or how many 
 they be in number. Surely they without us can man- 
 age their own affairs and we ours without them. As 
 to the Spartans, if they come out to fight against us, 
 they will in no wise heal this great wound that they 
 have now received at our hands." 
 
 117 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 To this the King made answer, "This is well said, 
 Achaemenes, and I will follow thy counsel. For 
 though Demaratus saith what he deems the best for 
 me, his judgment is worse than thine. But this I will 
 not believe, that he has not good will for me and my 
 fortunes. So much I know from the counsel that he 
 has given me before, and also from his own affairs. 
 For that a many may envy a fellow-citizen that is 
 more fortunate than he, and may hate him secretly, 
 and if he be asked for counsel will not speak the 
 thing that is best, is to be believed, unless indeed he 
 be of a very rare and excellent virtue. But a friend 
 rejoices in the prosperity of a friend that is of an- 
 other country, and gives him counsel according to the 
 best of his power. Now, this Demaratus is my 
 friend, and I warn all men that hereafter they keep 
 themselves from speaking evil of him." 
 
 When Xerxes had thus spoken, he went to see 
 the bodies of them that had been slain. And when 
 he came to the body of Leonidas, knowing him to 
 have been the captain and King of the Spartans, he 
 commanded that they should cut the head from it 
 and put it on a cross, which may be taken for a proof 
 that there was no man that Xerxes hated so much as 
 he hated Leonidas while he was yet alive ; for else he 
 had not done this dishonor to his dead body. For the 
 Persians are wont, for the most part, more than other 
 men, to show honor to them that have shown them- 
 selves good men in war. 
 
 118 
 
The Battle of Thermopylae 
 
 It must yet be told how the Spartans first knew 
 that the King had it in his mind to bring an army 
 against Greece. This Demaratus, of whom mention 
 has been made, was not friendly, it would appear, to 
 them that had driven him forth. Wherefore it may 
 be doubted whether he did this thing that shall now 
 be told from goodwill or from insolence. So soon as 
 Xerxes had fixed it in his mind to march against 
 Greece, Demaratus, being then in the city of Susa, 
 and hearing the matter, desired to send tidings of it 
 to the Spartans. And the way which he devised of 
 sending them was this, for there was great peril lest 
 he should be discovered. This, therefore, was his 
 contrivance. He took a tablet that had two leaves, 
 and having cleared away from it the wax, he wrote 
 upon the wood the purpose of the King. And having 
 done this he melted the wax again over the writing, 
 knowing that the guards of the road would not 
 trouble themselves about a tablet that was seen to be 
 empty. But when the tablet was brought to Sparta 
 no one could understand the matter, till Gorgo, that 
 was daughter to Cleomenes and wife to Leonidas, 
 discovered it to them, for she said, "Scrape the wax 
 ( from off the tablet and you will of a surety find writ- 
 ing upon the wood." Thus did the Spartans hear of 
 the coming of the King, and forthwith sent tidings 
 of it to the other Greeks. 
 
 119 
 
THE BATTLE OF SALAMIS 
 
 HPHE ships of the Greeks, having departed from 
 ^ Artemisium, came to Saiamis. The Athenians 
 had besought them to do this that they might carry 
 their women and children out of their country, and 
 might also take counsel together what was best to be 
 done. For indeed things had not happened accord- 
 ing to their expectations. For they had thought to 
 find the men of the Peloponnese drawn up. with their 
 whole force in the land of Bceotia to do battle with 
 the barbarians. But now they heard that these pur- 
 posed to build a wall across the Isthmus, and so de- 
 fend their own country, suffering the rest of Greece 
 to take thought for itself. And this the Greeks did. 
 And so soon as they were come thither there flowed 
 to them no small force that had been gathered to- 
 gether at Pogon, the haven of the Trcezenians. For 
 the word had gone forth that all who would fight for 
 Greece should be gathered together at Pogon. All 
 these the same Euribiades that was at Artemisium 
 commanded, being a Spartan but not of the house of 
 the Kings. Of all the ships the best were the ships 
 of the Athenians, being in number one hundred and 
 eighty. These were now altogether manned by their 
 own people, for the men of Plataea had gone to carry 
 away their wives and children from their city. The 
 
 1 20 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 men of /Egina sent thirty ships, leaving certain others 
 to defend their city. From the island of Naxos 
 there came four. These indeed had been sent by 
 their people to help the Persians, but they made light 
 of the command and helped the Greeks. This they 
 did at the instance of Democritus, a notable man 
 among the Naxians and captain of a ship. The men 
 of Seriphos and Siphnos and Melos also helped the 
 Greeks, being the only islanders that had not given 
 earth and water to the barbarians. These three sent 
 in all four ships of fifty oars. And of all the coun- 
 tries beyond the sea the men of Crotona only came 
 to the help of the Greeks in their great peril. These 
 sent one ship which Phayllus, a man that had been 
 crowned at the Pythian games, commanded. Now 
 the number of the ships in all was three hundred and 
 seventy and eight; but in this number the ships of 
 fifty oars were not reckoned. 
 
 Meanwhile there had been made a proclamation 
 among the Athenians that each man should save his 
 children and his household as best he could. The 
 most part sent them away to Troezen; but some sent 
 them to iEgina, and some to Salamis. This they did 
 with all speed, desiring to obey the words of the 
 oracle, and also for another reason which shall now 
 be told. The Athenians say that in their citadel in 
 the temple there dwells a great snake that is the 
 guardian of the place. And indeed they set out for 
 this snake a monthly provision of food, as for a veri- 
 
 121 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 table creature; and the monthly provision is a honey 
 cake. This honey cake which before had always 
 been eaten, was now seen to be untouched. When 
 the priestess told these things to the people they were 
 more earnest than before to leave the city, as thinking 
 that the goddess Athene had deserted the citadel. 
 Nevertheless they did not all depart, for the Per- 
 sians, when they came, found the city indeed desolate 
 of inhabitants, but in the citadel certain men, that 
 were either ministers of the temple or of the poorer 
 sort that for lack of means had not departed with the 
 rest of the people to Salamis. But some of them 
 went not, thinking that they rightly understood the 
 oracle of the Pythia when she said, "The wooden 
 wall shall not be taken;" for that by this wall was 
 signified, not the ships, but a veritable wall of wood. 
 These therefore had fenced about the citadel with 
 doors and pieces of wood, and so aw 7 aited the coming 
 of the Persians. 
 
 The Persians indeed encamped on the hill that 
 is over against the citadel (this hill the Athenians 
 call the hill of Ares) and began the siege, shooting 
 at the Greeks arrows with burning tow upon them 
 that so they might set fire to the barricade. Never- 
 theless the men held out, though indeed they were in 
 evil case, and their wooden wall had failed them; 
 nor would they hearken to the words of the sons of 
 Pisistratus when these would have them surrender, 
 but they rolled down great stones upon the bar- 
 
 122 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 barians as these came up to the gates, and so kept the 
 place. And for many days Xerxes was in great 
 doubt, and knew not how he should prevail over 
 them; but at last they discovered a way of access. 
 For it must needs be that the oracle should be ful- 
 filled, that all the country of the Athenians upon the 
 mainland should be conquered by the barbarians. 
 Certain Persians climbed up the hill where there 
 was -no watch, no one believing that any man could 
 mount by that way, so steep was it. (The place is 
 on the face of the cliff, behind the gates and the way 
 by which men commonly ascend.) So soon as the 
 Athenians saw them now already on the top, some 
 threw themselves from the wall and so perished; and 
 some fled for refuge to the sanctuary. But the Per- 
 sians, when they had opened the gates of the citadel 
 for their fellows, slew all them that had taken sanct- 
 uary; and afterward they plundered the temple and 
 burned all the citadel with fire. Then Xerxes, be- 
 ing now wholly master of Athens, sent off a messen- 
 ger, a horseman, to Artabanus, to tell him of his good 
 success. Also, on the second day after the sending 
 of the herald, he commanded the Athenian exiles 
 that had followed in his train to go up to the citadel 
 and do sacrifice in the place according to the custom 
 of their country. This he did either by reason of a 
 dream, or because it repented him that he had burned 
 the temple. And the exiles did as the King com- 
 manded. And when they were come to the citadel 
 
 I2 3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 they found a marvellous thing. There was in the 
 citadel a temple of Erectheus, whom the Athenians 
 call the "earth-born," and in the temple an olive tree, 
 which Athene left for a memorial of her when she 
 contended with Poseidon for the land of the Athe- 
 nians. Now this olive had been burned with other 
 things in the temple, but when the Athenians went 
 up, according to the King's commandment, they 
 found that there had sprung forth from the trunk 
 a fresh shoot of a cubit in length. 
 
 So soon as tidings came to the Greeks of Salamis 
 of the things that had befallen Athens and its citadel, 
 there came upon them such fear that some of the 
 captains would not wait till the council should have 
 voted, but embarked in their vessels with all haste, 
 and hoisted up their sails, as though they would fly 
 without delay. And such as stayed at the council 
 voted that the fleet should give battle to the Persians 
 at the Isthmus. Afterward, it being now night, the 
 captains departed, each man to his own vessel. 
 
 And when Themistocles was come to his ship 
 there met him a certain Mnesiphilus, an Athenian, 
 who asked him what the council had decreed. And 
 when Themistocles said, "They have decreed that we 
 should sail to the Isthmus, and there fight for the 
 Peloponnese," Mnesiphilus made answer, "If these 
 men take away their ships from Salamis, there will 
 be no one country for which ye may fight. For the 
 Greeks will depart each to his own city, and neither 
 
 124 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 Eurybiades nor any other man shall be able to hin- 
 der them from so scattering themselves. So shall 
 Greece perish by the folly of their children. If, 
 therefore, there be any device by which thou canst 
 deliver us from this end, haste and make trial of it. 
 Happily thou mayest persuade Eurybiades to change 
 his purpose and remain in this place." 
 
 This counsel pleased Themistocles well. To 
 DYinesiphilus indeed he answered nothing, but he 
 went straightway to the ship of Eurybiades, and said 
 that he had a matter concerning the common weal 
 about which he would speak with him. Then said 
 Eurybiades, "Come into my ship if thou hast aught 
 to say." So Themistocles sat by his side and told 
 him all that he had heard from Mnesiphilus — only 
 he said these things as if from himself — and added 
 also many other things. So urgent was he that at 
 the last Eurybiades went forth and gathered together 
 the other captains to council. So soon then as these 
 were gathered together, before that Eurybiades had 
 set forth the matter wherefore they were assembled, 
 Themistocles, as one that was wholly intent on his 
 purpose, said many things, so that Adeimantus of 
 Corinth cried out to him, "Themistocles, in the 
 games they that start too soon are scourged." "Yea," 
 said Themistocles, excusing himself, "but they that 
 linger are not crowned." Thus he answered the 
 Corinthian softly. And to Eurybiades he spake, not 
 indeed after his former manner, how that the ships 
 
 125 
 
 5 _Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 would be scattered from where he should have sailed 
 to the Isthmus, for the allies were present, and he 
 thought it not seemly to say this thing in their ears, 
 but rather in some such fashion as this: "It is in 
 thy hands to save Greece, if thou wilt hearken unto 
 me and abide in this place, and so give battle to the 
 barbarians, not heeding those who would have thee 
 depart hence to the Isthmus with thy ships. For 
 hear now, and set these two things one against the 
 other. If the host give battle at the Isthmus, then 
 shall we fight in the open sea, than which there could 
 be nothing less to our advantage, seeing that our 
 ships are fewer in number and these heavier. Also 
 we shall lose Salamis and Megara and iEgina, 
 though we prosper in the battle. For remember that 
 the army of the barbarians will follow, together with 
 their fleet, and that thou wilt thus bring both the one 
 and the other to the Peloponnesus, and so put all 
 Greece upon the hazard. But if thou wilt hearken 
 unto me, see what we shall gain. First we shall do 
 battle in a narrow space, a thing much to our advan- 
 tage and to the harm of our enemies. And secondly, 
 we shall yet keep Salamis, where we have put our 
 wives and children, and Megara also and JEgina. 
 And at Salamis, saith the oracle, we shall prevail 
 over the barbarians." 
 
 When Themistocles had thus spoken, Adeiman- 
 tus of Corinth reproached him again, bidding him 
 be silent, because he was a man without a city (for 
 
 126 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 Athens had been destroyed by the barbarians) . Then 
 Themistocles brake out against him and the Corin- 
 thians with many bitter words, and saying, "Nay, 
 but we have a city and a land greater than yours, for 
 we have two hundred ships well manned, whose at- 
 tack no city of the Greeks would be able to with- 
 stand." Then he turned to Eurybiades, and said 
 with all earnestness, "If thou wilt abide here and 
 bear thyself bravely all will be well; but if not, then 
 wilt thou bring Greece to ruin. For verily we will 
 take our wives and children and go straightway to 
 Siris in Italy, which is ours. Verily, when ye have 
 lost our help, ye will remember what I have said this 
 day." 
 
 When Eurybiades heard these words, he changed 
 his purpose, knowing that if the Athenians should 
 depart, the rest of the fleet should not be able to with- 
 stand the Persians. Wherefore he made his resolve 
 that he would stay and give battle at Salamis. Then 
 all the captains made ready for battle. After this, 
 at daybreak there was an earthquake, and it seemed 
 good to the Greeks to make supplications to the Gods, 
 and to call the sons of iEacus to their help. And this 
 they did, for they put up prayers, and sent a ship to 
 Salamis to fetch iEacus and his children. 
 
 A certain Dicaeus, an exile of Athens and a man 
 of repute among the barbarians, told this tale of 
 what he saw about this time. He chanced to be with 
 Demaratus the Spartan in the plain of Thria, the 
 
 127 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 land of Attica having been by this time laid waste 
 by the army of Xerxes, and he saw coming from 
 Eleusis a great cloud of dust, such as a host of thirty 
 thousand men might make in their march. And 
 while the two marvelled who these could be that 
 could cause such dust, he heard voices and the sound, 
 as it seemed to him, of the hymn to Bacchus. Now r 
 Demaratus heard the voices, and asked what they 
 were saying, for he knew nothing of the mysteries 
 of Eleusis. Then said Dicaeus, "O Demaratus, of a 
 truth some great trouble will overtake the army of 
 the King. For seeing that Attica is void of inhabi- 
 tants, these that sing are surely gods, and they come 
 from Eleusis to help the Athenians and their allies. 
 If therefore this that we see turn to the Pelopon- 
 nese, there will be peril to the King and to his army, 
 but if to Salamis, then there will be peril to the 
 fleet. For know that year by year the Athenians 
 keep a feast to the Mother and Daughter, and the 
 voices which thou heardst were singing the hymn of 
 the feast." Then said Demaratus, "See that thou 
 tell the matter to no man. For if the King hear it, 
 thou wilt surely perish. Hold thou thy peace there- 
 fore; the Gods will order as they please with the 
 army of the King." 
 
 By this time the ships of the barbarians were 
 come to Phalerum, which is a haven of Athens. 
 And it seemed good to Xerxes to learn the judgment 
 of them that had command in the fleet. Wherefore 
 
 128 
 
The Battle of Sal amis 
 
 he went on board and sat on a seat of honor, and all 
 the kings and the captains sat before him, each in 
 his place, after the pleasure of the King. The King 
 of Sidon sat in the first place, and in the second the 
 King of Tyre. Then Xerxes sent Mardonius, bid- 
 ding him ask each in his order what he counselled, 
 whether they should fight or no. To this all made 
 answer in the same words that they should fight, 
 save Artemisia of Halicarnassus only, who spake 
 after this fashion, "Say to the King, O Mardonius, 
 what I now say to thee. Seeing that I bare myself 
 not less bravely than the others in the battles at the 
 island of Euboea, I have the right to speak what I 
 judge to be most for thy advantage. I say then spare 
 thy ships and fight not. These men are better than 
 thine upon the sea, even as men are better than 
 women. Art thou not master of Athens, for which 
 thou earnest hither? Doth any man resist thee? Or if 
 thou art not yet satisfied, thou canst easily accomplish 
 all that is in thine heart to do. These men will not 
 long abide in their place, and indeed they have, I 
 fear, no store of food in the island; and if thou 
 goest forward toward the Peloponnese, they will be 
 scattered each to his own city, for the men of the 
 Peloponnese will not care to fight for the Athenians. 
 But I fear me much that some great evil will befall 
 thee, if thou art resolved to join battle with the 
 Greeks by sea. For remember that good masters 
 have ever evil servants, and evil masters good ser- 
 
 129 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 vants; thou indeed art the best of men, but thy ser- 
 vants are evil. For these thy allies, as they are called, 
 these men of Egypt and of Cyprus and of Cilicia 
 and of Pamphylia, are of no account." 
 
 When Artemisia spake these words all that wished 
 her well were much troubled, for they thought that 
 she would surely be cruelly dealt with by the King, 
 because she counselled him not to give battle; but 
 all that were enemies to her rejoiced, and they that 
 envied her for the honor which the King had done to 
 her beyond all the allies, thinking that she would 
 perish. Nevertheless Xerxes, when the words of all 
 the kings and the captains were told to him, was not 
 pleased with any so much as with the words of Arte- 
 misia. Nevertheless it seemed good to him to fol- 
 low the counsel of the greater number, and to give 
 battle; for he thought that the ships had not done 
 their best at Euboea because he himself had been 
 absent, and was minded to see the battle that should 
 now be fought with his own eyes. 
 
 So the ships of the barbarians sailed to Salamis 
 and took their places, as they had been commanded, 
 no man hindering them; for the Greeks, especially 
 the men of the Peloponnese, were greatly troubled, 
 fearing lest they should be shut up in Salamis while 
 their own country was left without defence. 
 
 The same night the army of the barbarians went 
 forward to the Peloponnese. There indeed all things 
 had been done that the Persians might not be able to 
 
 130 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 come into the country. For so soon as there came 
 the tidings how that Leonidas and his companions 
 had fallen at the Pass, straightway the inhabitants 
 assembled from their cities and pitched their camp 
 at the Isthmus, their commander being Cleombrotus, 
 who was brother to Leonidas. First they blocked up 
 the way of Susa, that leads from Megara to Corinth; 
 and afterward they built a wall across the Isthmus. 
 This work they wrought in a few days only, for there 
 were many thousands of men, and they worked with- 
 out ceasing either by night or by day. Now the na- 
 tions that were gathered at the Isthmus were these: 
 the Lacedaemonians, all the Arcadians, the Corinth- 
 ians, the men of Elis, the men of Sicyon, and of Epi- 
 daurus, and of Philus, and of Trcezen, and of Her- 
 mione. But the other nations, as the Achaeans and 
 the Argives, came not to the Isthmus, nor gave help 
 to the Greeks, but rather, if the truth is to be told, 
 gave help to the Persians. 
 
 Meanwhile there was much doubt and fear among 
 the Greeks at Salamis. For a time indeed the cap- 
 tains talked privately the one with the other, mar- 
 velling at the ill counsel of Eurybiades that he left 
 the Peloponnese without defence; but at the last their 
 discontent brake forth, and the assembly was called 
 together, in which many things were said to the same 
 purpose as in the former assembly, some affirming 
 that they ought to sail away to the Peloponnese that 
 they might defend it, it being a vain thing, they said, 
 
 I3 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 to remain at Salamis and fight for that which was al- 
 ready in the power of their enemies and the men of 
 Athens and of iEgina and of Megara being urgent 
 that they should remain and give battle. 
 
 Then Themistocles, perceiving that his counsel 
 should not prevail against the counsel of the men of 
 the Peloponnese, went out secretly from the assembly 
 and sent straightway a messenger in a boat to the 
 camp of the Persians. (The name of the messenger 
 was Sicinnus, he was servant to Themistocles and 
 tutor to his children ; and after the war Themistocles 
 caused him to become a citizen of Thespiae, for the 
 Thespians were admitting strangers to citizenship, 
 and gave him great riches.) This Sicinnus therefore 
 going in a boat to the camp of the barbarians, spake 
 to their captains, saying, "The commander of the 
 Athenians has sent me, without the knowledge of the 
 rest of the Greeks, to say that the Greeks are in great 
 fear and purpose to fly from their place, and that ye 
 have a great occasion of destroying them utterly, if 
 only ye will not suffer them to escape. For indeed 
 they are not of one mind, nor will they withstand 
 you any more, but ye will see them fighting the one 
 against the other, they that are on your side being 
 opposed to them that are against you. And this my 
 master does because he is a friend to the King, and 
 because he would rather that you should prevail than 
 that the Greeks should have the mastery." 
 
 When Sicinnus had thus spoken he departed 
 
 132 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 straightway. And the Persians, because they be- 
 lieved what Sicinnus had told them, first landed 
 many of their men on Psyttaleia, which is a little 
 island between Salamis and the mainland; and next, 
 about midnight, they moved the westernmost wing of 
 their ships to Salamis, and those that were posted at 
 Ceos and Cynosura set sail also, and filled all the 
 strait even as far as Munychia. This they did that 
 the Greeks might not be able to escape, but might 
 be shut up within Salamis, and so pay the penalty of 
 what they had done at Artemisium. As for the land- 
 ing of the Persians at Psyttaleia, it was done for this 
 cause, that when the battle was joined, and the broken 
 ships and shipwrecked men should be carried down 
 by the current to the island — which must needs be 
 the case, seeing that it was in the very way of the 
 battle that should be fought — these soldiers might 
 be able to save their friends and slay their enemies. 
 All this the barbarians did in silence, lest haply the 
 Greeks should hear of the thing that had been done, 
 So the Persians made ready for the battle, taking no 
 rest, but toiling through all the night. 
 
 Meanwhile there was much angry talk among the 
 captains at Salamis, for they knew not yet that they 
 were shut in by the barbarians. But while they were 
 assembled there came over from JEgin^i a certain 
 Aristides, a man of Athens, that had been banished 
 by the people (yet was he the best and most righteous 
 man in Athens). This Aristides, coming to the coun- 
 
 *33 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 cil, would have Themistocles called out to speak 
 with him. Now Themistocles was no friend to Aris- 
 tides, but an enemy and very bitter against him; 
 nevertheless, for the great trouble that had come 
 upon the land, he took no count of this enmity, but 
 came and called for him, wishing to speak with him. 
 And when Themistocles was come forth, Aristides 
 said to him, "We two, O Themistocles, have con- 
 tended together aforetime concerning other things, 
 but now let us contend who shall do the better service 
 to his country. What I am now come to say is this : 
 Let the men of the Peloponnese say little or say much 
 about sailing hence, it is all one. For I affirm, of my 
 own knowledge, that the Corinthians and Eurybiades 
 himself cannot now depart, if they would, for that 
 the barbarians have closed us in. But go thou and 
 tell this thing to the captains." And Themistocles 
 made answer, "This is good news thou hast brought, 
 telling of your own knowledge the things that I 
 greatly desired should come to pass. What the bar- 
 barians have done was indeed of my doing, because 
 if the Greeks would not fight of their free will there 
 was a necessity that they should be made to fight 
 against their will. But as thou hast brought good 
 news, tell it to the captains thyself, for if I tell it 
 they will deem that I am lying to them. Tell it 
 therefore thyself, and if they believe thee, well; but 
 if not, yet can they not escape, if, as thou sayest, the 
 Persians have closed us in." 
 
 134 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 Then Aristides went in to the assembly and told 
 them that he was come from ^Egina, having barely 
 escaped the watch ships of the barbarians; and that 
 they were closed in by the Persians. And he coun- 
 selled them to make ready for the battle. Having 
 so spoken he departed. Then there arose a great 
 disputing, the greater part of the captains not be- 
 lieving these tidings. But while they doubted there 
 came a ship of war from Tenos, which a certain 
 Panaetius commanded. This man told them the 
 whole truth of the matter. For this cause the men 
 of Tenos were written on the offering among them 
 that destroyed the barbarians. And now the number 
 of the ships of the Greeks was made up to three 
 hundred and eighty. 
 
 The Greeks, learning that the words of the men 
 of Tenos were true, made themselves ready for bat- 
 tle. And when it was morning there was called an 
 assembly of the crews, and Themistocles spake to 
 them very noble words, how that men should always 
 choose good rather than evil, and honorable things 
 rather than base things. When he had ended his 
 speech he bade them embark on their ships; and 
 while they were embarking there came from JEgina 
 the ships that brought the children of iEacus. Then 
 all the Greeks began to move their ships from their 
 place. But so soon as they began to move them the 
 Persians advanced against them, and the Greeks 
 backed. their oars, so that they would have beached 
 
 *35 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the ships, only one Ameinias, a man of Athens, bade 
 his men row forward, and coming forth before the 
 line, drave his ship against a ship of the barbarians. 
 Then others went to the help of Ameinias, and so the 
 battle was begun. This is what the Athenians say; 
 but the men of iEgina affirm that the ship that went 
 to fetch the children of iEacus first began the battle. 
 Also this story is told, that there was seen the likeness 
 of a woman who cried with a loud voice, so that all 
 the Greeks could hear her, "How long, ye simple 
 ones, will ye back your oars?" 
 
 The order of the battle was this. The Phoenicians 
 were on the right wing, toward the west and toward 
 Eleusis, and the Athenians were ranged over against 
 them; and the Ionians were on the left, toward the 
 east and toward the Piraeus, having the Lacedae- 
 monians over against them. Of the Ionians a few 
 only followed the counsel of Themistocles, and held 
 back from the fighting; for many of their captains 
 took ships of the Greeks, of whom was Theomestor, 
 that for this service was made lord of Samos by the 
 Persians, and Phylacus, who also was of Samos, that 
 had lands given to him and was written among the 
 benefactors of the King. But for the most part the 
 ships of the Persians were destroyed by the Greeks, 
 and especially by the Athenians and the men of 
 yEgina. For the Greeks fought in good order and 
 kept their plans, but the barbarians were without 
 order, neither had they any purpose in what they 
 
 136 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 did. Wherefore they must needs have been worsted 
 in the battle. Nevertheless they this day surpassed 
 themselves, bearing themselves more bravely than at 
 Euboea; for every man was very zealous, having the 
 fear of the King before his eyes, and deeming that 
 the King saw what they did. 
 
 How the rest of the Greeks and of the barbarians 
 behaved themselves cannot be described, but of Ar- 
 temisia of Halicarnassus this story is told. The fleet 
 of the King being now in great confusion, it so 
 chanced that the ship of Artemisia was pursued by 
 an Athenian ship. And she, not being able to es- 
 cape, for she was the nearest of all to the ships of 
 the enemy, and had many of her own friends in front 
 of her, devised this means of saving herself, and also 
 accomplished it. She drave her ship against the 
 ship of the lord of Calyndus, being one of the fleet 
 of the King (whether she had a quarrel against this 
 man, or the ship chanced to be in her way is not 
 known for certain), and had the good fortune to 
 sink it. And thus she gained a double gain. For 
 when the captain of the Athenian ship saw what she 
 did, judging that her ship was of the fleet of the 
 Greeks, or that it had deserted from the King, he left 
 pursuing her; and also, having done this ill service 
 to the Persians, yet she got the greatest glory from 
 the King. For Xerxes, as he looked upon the battle, 
 saw not her ship smite another. And one said to 
 him, "O King, seest thou how bravely Queen Arte- 
 
 137 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 misia bears herself, sinking a ship of the enemies?" 
 Then said the King, "Was this verily the doing of 
 Artemisia?" And they affirmed that it was, know- 
 ing the token of her ship ; but the ship that was sunk 
 they judged to be one of the Greeks. It so chanced 
 also, that her good fortune might be complete, that 
 not a man of the ship of Calyndus was left to tell 
 the truth. As for Xerxes, he is reported to have said, 
 "My men have become women, and my women have 
 become men." 
 
 In this battle fell Ariabignes, being brother to the 
 King, and also many other famous men of the Medes 
 and the Persians. Of the Greeks indeed there per- 
 ished not many; for even though their ships were 
 destroyed, yet being able to swim they saved them- 
 selves; but of the barbarians the greater part per- 
 ished, for they were not able to swim. And so soon 
 as the first of the Persian ships began to fly before 
 the Greeks then there followed a great destruction. 
 For they that were behind pressed forward, seeking 
 to show some deed of valor before the eyes of the 
 King, and drave against the ships that fled, and so 
 both did and received great damage. This thing 
 also happened. Certain of the Phoenicians, whose 
 ships had perished, came to the King and made a 
 complaint against the Ionians that they had betrayed 
 them. But while they were yet speaking, a ship of 
 Samothrace drave against an Athenian ship and sank 
 it; then there came a ship of iEgina against the ship 
 
 138 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 of Samothrace and wounded it sorely; notwithstand- 
 ing, while it was sinking the Samothracians, being 
 throwers of javelins, smote down the men of ^Egina, 
 and boarded their ship and took possession of it. 
 This thing was the salvation of the Ionians. For 
 Xerxes, seeing that these Greeks had wrought a great 
 deed and being in great vexation of spirit, and ready 
 to blame all men, commanded that they should cut 
 off the heads of the Phoenician captains, that they 
 might not any more bring accusations against men 
 that were better than they. All the time of the bat- 
 tle the King sat on the hill that is over against Sala- 
 mis, and when any deed of valor was done by his 
 ships, he would ask the name of the captain, and the 
 scribes wrote it down, with the names also of his 
 father and of his city. 
 
 Such of the ships of the barbarians as sought to 
 escape by way of Phalerum the men of Mg'ma dealt 
 with, waiting in the strait, and behaving themselves 
 most valorously. For the Athenians destroyed such 
 as yet fought and such as fled, and the men of ^Egina 
 fell upon them that would sail out, so that if any 
 escaped from the Athenians they fell into the hands 
 of the men of ^Egina. 
 
 In this battle the men of /Egina were judged to 
 have shown most valor, and next to them the Athe- 
 nians ; and among the men of /Egina Polycritus, and 
 among the Athenians Eumenes and Ameinias. It 
 was this Ameinias that pursued Artemisia. And 
 
 139 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 indeed, had he known whom he pursued, he would 
 not have left following her till he had taken her, or 
 himself been taken; for there was proclaimed a re- 
 ward of ten thousand drachmas to the man that 
 should take Artemisia alive, the Athenians being 
 very wroth that a woman should presume to bear 
 arms against their city. 
 
 Of Adeimantus the Corinthian the Athenians tell 
 this story, that in the very beginning of the battle, 
 being wholly mastered with fear, he hoisted his sails 
 and fled; and that the other Corinthian ships, seeing 
 the ship of their commander flying, fled also; and 
 that when they were come in their flight over against 
 the temple of Athene of Sciron, they met there a 
 pinnace, that came not by any bidding of men; and 
 that when it was close to their ships the men in the 
 pinnace cried out, "Thou indeed art flying, O Adei- 
 mantus, and showing thyself traitor to the Greeks; 
 but they are winning the victory over their enemies." 
 When Adeimantus would not believe, the men said 
 that they were willing to answer for it with their 
 lives that their words were true. Then Adeimantus 
 turned back his ship, and he and his companions 
 came to Salamis when the battle was now finished. 
 This is the story of the Athenians concerning the 
 Corinthians; but the Corinthians deny it, affirming 
 that they fought among the first. And in this they 
 are confirmed by the testimony of the other Greeks. 
 
 On that day Aristides the Athenian did good 
 
 140 
 
The Battle of Salamis 
 
 service. He took with him many men at arms, 
 Athenians, that had been drawn up along the shore 
 of Salamis, and landed them on the island of Psyt- 
 taleia, so that they slew all the Persians that had been 
 set to keep the place. 
 
 When the battle was ended the Greeks drew to 
 Salamis such of the broken ships as yet floated, and 
 prepared to fight yet again, for they thought that 
 the King would not fail to use the ships that remained 
 to him. But many of the wrecks the wind — for it 
 chanced to blow from the west — carried to the shore 
 of Attica, which is called the shore of Colias. Thus 
 was fulfilled a certain oracle of Lysistratus the 
 Athenian. 
 
 "That Colian dames their bread may bake, 
 Full many an oar that day shall break." 
 
 And this came to pass after the King had departed. 
 
 141 
 
THE LIFE OF JULIUS CiESAR 
 
 BY PLUTARCH 
 
 TRANSLATED BY SIR THOMAS NORTH 
 
 THE government of the province of Spain being 
 fallen unto Caesar for that he was Praetor, his 
 creditors came and cried out upon him, and were im- 
 portunate of him to be paid. Caesar being unable 
 to satisfy them, was compelled to go unto Crassus, 
 who was the richest man of all Rome, and that stood 
 in need of Caesar's boldness and courage to with- 
 stand Pompey's greatness in the commonwealth. 
 Crassus became his surety unto his greediest creditors 
 for the sum of eight hundred and thirty talents: 
 whereupon they suffered Caesar to depart to the gov- 
 ernment of his province. In his journey it is re- 
 ported, that passing over the mountains of the Alps, 
 they came through a little poor village that had not 
 many households, and yet poor cottages. There, his 
 friends that did accompany him, asked him merrily, 
 if there were any contending for offices in that town, 
 and whether there were any strife there among the 
 noblemen for honor. Caesar speaking in good ear- 
 nest, answered : I cannot tell that, said he, but for my 
 part I had rather be the chiefest man here than the 
 second person in Rome. Another time also when he 
 was in Spain, reading the history of Alexander's acts, 
 
 142 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 when he had read it, he was sorrowful a good while 
 after, and then burst out in weeping. His friends 
 seeing that, marvelled what should be the cause of 
 his sorrow. He answered them: Do ye not think, 
 said he, that I have good cause to be heavy, when 
 King Alexander being no older than myself is now, 
 had in old time won so many nations and countries : 
 and that I hitherto have done nothing worthy of my 
 self? Therefore when he was come into Spain, he 
 was very careful of his business, and had in few days 
 joined ten new ensigns more of footmen, unto the 
 other twenty which he had before. Then marching 
 forward against the Calai'cans and Lusitanians, he 
 conquered all, and went as far as the great sea Oce- 
 anus, subduing all the people which before knew not 
 the Romans for their lords. There he took order for 
 pacifying of the war, and did as wisely take order for 
 the establishing of peace. For he did reconcile the 
 cities together, and made them friends one with an- 
 other, but specially he pacified all suits of law, and 
 strife, between the debtors and creditors, which grew 
 by reason of usury. For he ordained that the creditors 
 should take yearly two parts of the revenue of their 
 debtors, until such time as they had paid themselves : 
 and that the debtors should have the third part to 
 themselves to live withal. 
 
 All these things they say he did, before the wars 
 with the Gauls. But the time of the great armies and 
 conquests he made afterward, and of the war in 
 
 H3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 which he subdued all the Gauls (entering into an- 
 other course of life far contrary unto the first) made 
 him to be known for as valiant a soldier and as ex- 
 cellent a captain to lead men, as those that afore him 
 had been counted the wisest and most valiantest gen- 
 erals that ever were, and that by their valiant deeds 
 had achieved great honor. For whosoever would 
 compare the house of the Fabians, of the Scipios, of 
 the Metellians, yea those also of his own time, or long 
 before him, as Sulla, Marius, the two Lucullians, and 
 Pompey self, 
 
 Whose fame ascendeth up unto the heavens : 
 
 It will appear that Caesar's prowess and deeds of 
 arms did excel them altogether. The one, in the 
 hard countries where he made wars: another, in en- 
 larging the realms and countries which he joined 
 unto the empire of Rome: another, in the multitude 
 and power of his enemies whom he overcame: an- 
 other, in the rudeness and austere nature of men with 
 whom he had to do, w r hose manners afterward he 
 softened and made civil : another, in courtesy and 
 clemency which he used unto them whom he had con- 
 quered: another, in great bounty and liberality be- 
 stowed upon them that served under him in those 
 wars: and in fine, he excelled them all in the num- 
 ber of battles he had fought, and in the multitude of 
 his enemies he had slain in battle. For in less than 
 ten years' war in Gaul he took by force and assault 
 
 144 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 above eight hundred towns, he conquered three hun- 
 dred several nations : and having before him in battle 
 thirty hundred thousand soldiers, at sundry times he 
 slew ten hundred thousand of them, and took as many 
 more prisoners. Furthermore, he was so entirely be- 
 loved of his soldiers, that to do him service (where 
 otherwise they were no more than other men in any 
 private quarrel) if Caesar's honor were touched, they 
 were invincible, and would so desperately venture 
 themselves, and with such fury, that no man was able 
 to abide them. 
 
 The first war that Caesar made with the Gauls, 
 was with the Helvetians and Tigurinians, who hav- 
 ing set fire of all their good cities, to the number of 
 twelve, and four hundred villages besides, came to 
 invade that part of Gaul which was subject to the 
 Romans, as the Cimbri and Teutons had done be- 
 fore: unto whom for valiantness they gave no place, 
 and they were also a great number of them (for they 
 were three hundred thousand souls in all) whereof 
 there were a hundred four-score and ten thousand 
 fighting men. Of those, it was not Caesar himself that 
 overcame the Tigurinians, but Labienus his lieuten- 
 ant, that overthrew them by the river of Arar. But 
 the Helvetians themselves came suddenly with 
 their army to set upon him, as he was going toward a 
 city of his confederates. Caesar perceiving that, 
 made haste to get him some place of strength, and 
 there did set his men in battle ray. When one 
 
 *45 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 
 brought him his horse to get up on which he used in 
 battle, he said unto them: When I have overcome 
 mine enemies, I will then get up on him to follow the 
 chase, but now let us give them charge. Therewith 
 he marched forward on foot, and gave charge: and 
 there fought it out a long time, before he could make 
 them fly that were in battle. But the greatest trouble 
 he had was to distress their camp, and to break their 
 strength which they had made with their carts. For 
 there, they that before had fled from the battle, did 
 not only put themselves in force, and valiantly fought 
 it out: but their w T ives and children also fighting for 
 their lives to the death, were all slain, and the battle 
 was scant ended at midnight. Now if the act of this 
 victory was famous, unto that he also added another 
 as notable, or exceeding it For of all the barbarous 
 people that had escaped from this battle, he gathered 
 together again above a hundred thousand of them, 
 and compelled them to return home into their coun- 
 try which they had forsaken, and into their towns 
 also which they had burned: because he feared the 
 Germans would come over the river of Rhine, and 
 occupy that country lying void. The second war he 
 made was in defence of the Gauls against the Ger- 
 mans: although before he himself had caused Ario- 
 vistus, their king, to be received for a confederate of 
 the Romans. Notwithstanding, they were grown 
 very unquiet neighbors, and it appeared plainly, that 
 having any occasion offered them to enlarge their 
 
 146 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 territories they would not content them with their 
 own, but meant to invade and possess the rest of Gaul. 
 Caesar perceiving that some of his captains trembled 
 for fear, but specially the young gentlemen of noble 
 houses of Rome, who thought to have gone to the 
 wars with him, as only for their pleasure and gain: 
 he called them to council, and commanded them that 
 were afraid, that they should depart home, and not 
 put themselves in danger against their wills, sith they 
 had such womanish faint hearts to shrink when he 
 had need of them. And for himself, he said, he 
 would set upon the barbarous people, though he had 
 left him but the tenth legion only, saying, that the 
 enemies were no valianter than the Cimbri had been, 
 nor that he was a captain inferior unto Marius. This 
 oration being made, the soldiers of the tenth legion 
 sent their lieutenants unto him, to thank him for the 
 good opinion he had of them: and the other legions 
 also fell out with their captains, and all of them to- 
 gether followed him many days' journey with good- 
 will to serve him, until they came within two hun- 
 dred furlongs of the camp of the enemies. Ariovis- 
 tus' courage was well cooled when he saw Caesar 
 was come, and that the Romans came to seek out the 
 Germans, where they thought, and made accompt, 
 that they durst not have abidden them: and therefore 
 nothing mistrusting it would have come so to pass, 
 he wondered much at Caesar's courage, and the more 
 when he saw his own army in a maze withal. But 
 
 147 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 much more did their courages fall, by reason of the 
 foolish women prophesiers they had among them, 
 which did foretell things to come: who, considering 
 the waves and trouble of the rivers, and the terrible 
 noise they made running down the stream, did fore- 
 warn them not to fight until the new moon. Caesar 
 having intelligence thereof, and perceiving that the 
 barbarous people thereupon stirred not: thought it 
 best then to set upon them, being discouraged with 
 this superstitious fear, rather than losing time, he 
 should tarry their leisure. So he did skirmish with 
 them even to their forts, and little hills where they 
 lay, and by this means provoked them so, that with 
 great fury they came down to fight. There he over- 
 came them in battle, and followed them in chase, with 
 great slaughter, three hundred furlongs, even unto the 
 river of Rhine: and he filled all the fields thitherto 
 with dead bodies and spoils. Howbeit Ariovistus 
 flying with speed, got over the river of Rhine, and 
 escaped with a few of his men. It is said that there 
 were slain four-score thousand persons at. this battle. 
 After this exploit, Caesar left his army among the 
 Sequans to winter there : and he himself in the mean- 
 time, thinking of the affairs at Rome, went over the 
 mountains into Gaul about the river of Po, being part 
 of his province which he had in charge. For there, 
 the river called Rubicon divideth the rest of Italy 
 from Gaul on this side the Alps. Caesar lying there, 
 did practice to make friends in Rome, because many 
 
 148 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 came thither to see him: unto whom he granted their 
 suits they demanded, and sent them home also, partly 
 with liberal rewards, and partly with large promises 
 and hope. Now during all this conquest of the 
 Gauls, Pompey did not consider how Caesar inter- 
 changeably did conquer the Gauls with the weapons 
 of the Romans, and won the Romans again with the 
 money of the Gauls. Caesar being advertised that the 
 Belgae (which were the warlikest men of all the 
 Gauls, and that occupied the third part of Gaul) 
 were all up in arms, and had raised a great power of 
 men together: he straight made toward them with all 
 possible speed, and found them spoiling and over- 
 running the country of the Gauls, their neighbors, 
 and confederates of the Romans. So he gave them 
 battle, and they fighting cowardly, he overthrew the 
 most part of them which were in a troop together, 
 and slew such a number of them, that the Romans 
 passed over deep rivers and lakes on foot, upon their 
 dead bodies, the rivers were so full of them. After 
 this overthrow, they that dwelt nearest unto the sea- 
 side, and were next neighbors unto the ocean, did 
 yield themselves without any compulsion or fight: 
 whereupon, he led his army against the Nervians, the 
 stoutest warriors of all the Belgae. They dwelling 
 in the wood country, had conveyed their wives, chil- 
 dren and goods into a marvellous great forest, as far 
 from their enemies as they could: and being about 
 the number of six-score thousand fighting men and 
 
 149 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 more, they came one day and set upon Caesar, when 
 his army was out of order, and fortifying of his 
 camp, little looking to have fought that day. At the 
 first charge, they broke the horsemen of the Romans, 
 and compassing in the twelfth and seventh legion, 
 they slew all the centurions and captains of the bands. 
 And had not Caesar self taken his shield on his arm, 
 and flying in among the barbarous people, made a 
 lane through them that fought before him: and the 
 tenth legion also seeing him in danger, run unto him 
 from the top of the hill where they stood in battle, 
 and broken the ranks of their enemies : there had not 
 a Roman escaped alive that day. But taking example 
 of Caesar's valiantness, they fought desperately be- 
 yond their power, and yet could not make the Ner- 
 vians fly, but they fought it out to the death, till they 
 were all in manner slain in the field. It is written 
 that of three-score thousand fighting men, there es- 
 caped only but five hundred: and of four hundred 
 gentlemen and counsellors of the Romans, but three 
 saved. The Senate understanding it at Rome, or- 
 dained that they should do sacrifice unto the gods, and 
 keep feasts and solemn processions fifteen days to- 
 gether without intermission, having never made the 
 like ordinance at Rome, for any victory that ever was 
 obtained. Because they saw the danger had been 
 marvellous great, so many nations rising as they did 
 in arms together against him: and further, the love 
 of the peo-pLe unto him made his victory much more 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 famous. Then Caesar returning into Gaul beyond 
 the Alps unto his army, found there a great war in 
 the country. For two great nations of Germany had 
 not long before passed over the river of Rhine, to 
 conquer new lands: and the one of these people were 
 called Ipes, and the other Tenteritae. Now touch- 
 ing the battle which Caesar fought with them, he 
 himself doth describe it in his Commentaries, in this 
 sort. That the barbarous people having sent ambas- 
 sadors unto him, to require peace for a certain time, 
 they notwithstanding, against law of arms, came and 
 set upon him as he travelled by the way, insomuch as 
 eight hundred of their men of arms overthrew five 
 thousand of his horsemen, who nothing at all mis- 
 trusted their coming. Again, that they sent him 
 other ambassadors to mock him once more: but that 
 he kept them, and therewith caused his whole army to 
 march against them, thinking it a folly, and madness, 
 to keep faith with such traitorous barbarous breakers 
 of leagues. Canutius writeth, that the Senate ap- 
 pointing again to do new sacrifice, processions, and 
 feasts, to give thanks to the gods for this victory: 
 Cato was of contrary opinion, that Caesar should be 
 delivered into the hands of the barbarous people, for 
 to purge their city and commonwealth of this breach 
 of faith, and to turn the curse upon him, that was the 
 author of it. Of these barbarous people, which came 
 over the Rhine (being about the number of four 
 hundred thousand persons) they were all in manner 
 
 *S l 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 slain, saving a very few of them, that flying from the 
 battle got over the river of Rhine again, who were 
 received by the Sicambrians, another people of the 
 Germans. Caesar taking this occasion against them, 
 lacking no good-will of himself besides, to have the 
 honor to be counted the first Roman that ever passed 
 over the river of Rhine with an army: he built a 
 bridge over it. This river is marvellous broad, and 
 runneth with great fury. And in that place specially 
 where he built his bridge, for there it is of a great 
 breadth from one side to the other, and it hath so 
 strong and swift a stream besides: that men casting 
 down great bodies of trees in to the river (which the 
 stream bringeth down with it) did with the great 
 blows and force thereof marvellously shake the posts 
 of the bridge he had set up. But to prevent the 
 blows of those trees, and also to break the fury of 
 the stream : he made a pile of great wood above the 
 bridge a good way, and did forcibly ram them into 
 the bottom of the river, so that in ten days' space he 
 had set up and finished his bridge of the goodliest 
 carpenter's work, and most excellent invention to see 
 to, that could be possibly thought or devised. Then 
 passing over his army upon it, he found none that 
 durst any more fight with him. For the Suevians, 
 which were the warlikest people of all Germany, had 
 gotten themselves with their goods into wonderful 
 great valleys and bogs, full of woods and forests. 
 Now when he had burned all the country of his ene- 
 
 152 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 mies, and confirmed the league with the confederates 
 of the Romans: he returned back again into Gaul 
 after he had tarried eighteen days at the most in 
 Germany, on the other side of the Rhine. The jour- 
 ney he made also into England was a noble enter- 
 prise, and very commendable. For he was the first 
 that sailed the West Ocean with an army by sea, and 
 that passed through the sea Atlanticum with his 
 army, to make war in that so great and famous isl- 
 and: (which many ancient writers would not believe 
 that it was so indeed, and did make them vary about 
 it, saying that it was but a fable and a lie) and was 
 the first that enlarged the Roman empire, beyond the 
 earth inhabitable. For twice he passed over the nar- 
 row sea against the firm land of Gaul, and fighting 
 many battles there, did hurt his enemies more than 
 enrich his own men: because, of men hardly brought 
 up, and poor, there was nothing to be gotten. Where- 
 upon his war had not such success as he looked for: 
 and therefore taking pledges only of the king, and 
 imposing a yearly tribute upon him, to be paid unto 
 the people of Rome, he returned again into Gaul. 
 There he was no sooner landed, but he found letters 
 ready to be sent over the sea unto him: in the which 
 he was advertised from Rome, of the death of his 
 daughter, that she was dead with child by Pompey. 
 For the which Pompey and Caesar both were marvel- 
 lous sorrowful: and their friends mourned also, 
 thinking that this alliance which maintained the com- 
 
 153 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 monwealth (that otherwise was very tickle) in good 
 peace and concord, was now severed, and broken 
 asunder, and the rather likely, because the child lived 
 not long after the mother. So the common people 
 at Rome took the corpse of Julia, in despite of the 
 Tribunes, and buried it in the field of Mars. Now 
 Caesar being driven to divide his army (that was 
 very great) into sundry garrisons for the winter-time, 
 and returning again into Italy as he was wont: all 
 Gaul rebelled again, and had raised great armies in 
 every quarter to set upon the Romans, and to assay if 
 they could distress their forts where they lay in gar- 
 rison. The greatest number and most warlike men 
 of these Gauls, that entered into action of rebellion, 
 were led by one Ambiorix: and first did set upon the 
 garrisons of Cotta and Titurius, whom they slew, 
 and all the soldiers they had about thern. Then they 
 went with three-score thousand fighting men to be- 
 siege the garrison which Quintus Cicero had in his 
 charge, and had almost taken them by force, because 
 all the soldiers were every man of them hurt: but they 
 were so valiant and courageous, that they did more 
 than men (as they say) in defending of themselves. 
 These news being come to Caesar, who v/as far from 
 thence at that time, he returned with all possible 
 speed, and levying seven thousand soldiers, made 
 haste to help Cicero that was in such distress. The 
 Gauls that did besiege Cicero, understanding of 
 Caesar's coming, raised their siege incontinently, to 
 
 J 54 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 go and meet him : making account that he was but a 
 handful in their hands, they were so few. Caesar to 
 deceive them, still drew back, and made as though he 
 fled from them, lodging in places meet for a captain 
 that had but a few, to fight with a great number of his 
 enemies, and commanded his men in nowise to stir 
 out to skirmish with them, but compelled them to 
 raise up the ramparts of his camp, and to fortify the 
 gates, as men that were afraid, because the enemies 
 should the less esteem of them : until that at length he 
 took opportunity, by their disorderly coming to as- 
 sail the trenches of his camp (they were grown to 
 such a presumptuous boldness and bravery) and then 
 sallying out upon them, he put them all to flight with 
 slaughter of a great number of them. This did sup- 
 press all the rebellions of the Gauls in those parts, 
 and furthermore, he himself in person went in the 
 midst of winter thither, where he heard they did 
 rebel : for that there was come a new supply out of 
 Italy of three whole legions in their room, which he 
 had lost: of the which, two of them Pompey lent him, 
 and the other legion, he himself had levied in Gaul 
 about the river of Po. During these stirs, broke 
 forth the beginning of the greatest and most danger- 
 ous war that he had in all Gaul, which had been se- 
 cretly practiced of long time by the chiefest and most 
 warlike people of that country, who had levied a 
 wonderful great power. For everywhere they levied 
 multitudes of men, and great riches besides, to fortify 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 their strongholds. Furthermore the country where 
 they rose was very ill to come unto, and specially at 
 that time being winter, when the rivers were frozen, 
 the woods and forests covered with snow, the mead- 
 ows drowned with floods, and the fields so deep of 
 snow, that no ways were to be found, neither the 
 marishes nor rivers to be discerned, all was so over- 
 flown and drowned with water: all which troubles 
 together were enough (as they thought) to keep 
 Caesar from setting upon the rebels. Many nations 
 of the Gauls were of this conspiracy, but two of the 
 chiefest were the Arvernians and Carnutes : who had 
 chosen Vercingetorix for their lieutenant-general, 
 whose father the Gauls before had put to death, be- 
 cause they thought he aspired to make himself king. 
 This Vercingetorix dividing his army into divers 
 parts, and appointing divers captains over them, had 
 gotten to take his part, all the people and countries 
 thereabout, even as far as they that dwell toward the 
 sea Adriatick, having further determined (under- 
 standing that Rome did conspire against Caesar) to 
 make all Gaul rise in arms against him. So that if 
 he had but tarried a little longer, until Caesar had en- 
 tered into his civil wars: he had put all Italy in as 
 great fear and danger, as it was when the Cimbri 
 did come and invade it. But Caesar,that was valiant 
 in all assays and dangers of war, and that was very 
 skilful to take time and opportunity: so soon as he un- 
 derstood the news of the rebellion, he departed with 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 speed, and returned back the selfsame way which he 
 had gone, making the barbarous people know that 
 they should deal with an army invincible, and which 
 they could not possibly withstand, considering the 
 great speed he had made with the same in so sharp 
 and hard a winter. For where they would not pos- 
 sibly have believed, that a post or currer could have 
 come in so short a time from the place where he was, 
 unto them: they wondered when they saw him burn- 
 ing and destroying the country, the towns and strong 
 forts where he came with his army, taking all to 
 mercy that yielded unto him: until such time as the 
 Edui took arms against him, who before were wont 
 to be called the brethren of the Romans, and were 
 greatly honored of them. Wherefore Caesar's men 
 when they understood that they had joined with the 
 rebels, they were marvellous sorry, and half discour- 
 aged. Thereupon, Caesar departing from those parts, 
 went through the country of the Lingones, to enter 
 the country of the Burgonians, who were confeder- 
 ates of the Romans, and the nearest unto Italy on that 
 side, in respect of all the rest of Gaul. Thither the 
 enemies came to set upon him, and to environ him of 
 all sides, with an infinite number of thousands of 
 fighting men. Caesar on the other side tarried their 
 coming, and fighting with them a long time, he made 
 them so afraid of him that at length he overcame the 
 barbarous people. But at the first, it seemeth not- 
 withstanding, that he had received some overthrow: 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 for the Arvernians showed a sword hanged up in one 
 of their temples, which they said they had won from 
 Caesar. Insomuch as Caesar self coming that way 
 by occasion, saw it, and fell a-laughing at it. But 
 some of his friends going about to take it away, he 
 would not suffer them, but bade them let it alone, and 
 touch it not, for it was a holy thing. Notwithstand- 
 ing, such as at the first had saved themselves by flying, 
 the most of them were gotten with their king into the 
 city of Alexia, which Caesar went and besieged, al- 
 though it seemed inexpugnable, both for the height 
 of the walls, as also for the multitude of soldiers they 
 had to defend it. But now during this siege, he fell 
 into a marvellous great danger without, almost in- 
 credible. For an army of three hundred thousand 
 fighting men of the best men that were among all the 
 nations of the Gauls, came against him, being at the 
 siege of Alexia, besides them that were within the 
 city, which amounted to the number of three-score 
 and ten thousand fighting men at the least : so that per- 
 ceiving he was shut in between two so great armies, 
 he was driven to fortify himself with two walls, the 
 one against them of the city, and the other against 
 them without. For if those two armies had joined 
 together, Caesar had been utterly undone. And 
 therefore, this siege of Alexia, and the battle he won 
 before it, did deservedly win him more honor and 
 fame than any other. For there, in that instant and 
 extreme danger, he showed more valiantness and wis- 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 dom than he did in any battle he fought before. But 
 what a wonderful thing was this! that they of the 
 city never heard anything of them that came to aid 
 them, until Caesar had overcome them: and further- 
 more, that the Romans themselves which kept watch 
 upon the wall that was built against the city, knew 
 also no more of it, than they, but when it was done, 
 and that they heard the cries and lamentations of men 
 and women in Alexia, when they perceived on the 
 other side of the city such a number of glistering 
 shields of gold and silver, such store of bloody corse- 
 lets and armors, such a deal of plate and movables, 
 and such a number of tents and pavilions after the 
 fashion of the Gauls, which the Romans had gotten 
 of their spoils in their camp. Thus suddenly was 
 this great army vanished, as a dream or vision : where 
 the most part of them were slain that day in battle. 
 Furthermore, after that they within the city of Alexia 
 had done great hurt to Caesar, and themselves also: in 
 the end, they all yielded themselves. And Vercin- 
 getorix (he that was their king and captain in all this 
 war) went out of the gates excellently well armed, 
 and his horse furnished with rich caparison accord- 
 ingly, and rode round about Caesar, who sat in his 
 chair of estate. Then lighting from his horse, he 
 took off his caparison and furniture, and unarmed 
 himself, and laid all on the ground, and went and sat 
 down at Caesar's feet, and said never a word. So 
 Caesar at length committed him as a prisoner taken 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 in the wars, to lead him afterward in his triumph at 
 Rome. Now Caesar had of long time determined to 
 destroy Pompey, and Pompey him also. For Cras- 
 sus being killed among the Parthians, who only did 
 see, that one of them two must needs fall: nothing 
 kept Caesar from being the greatest person, but be- 
 cause he destroyed not Pompey, that was the greater: 
 neither did anything let Pompey to withstand that it 
 should not come to pass, but because he did not first 
 overcome Caesar, whom only he feared. For till then, 
 Pompey had not long feared him, but always before 
 set light by him, thinking it an easy matter for him to 
 put him down when he would, sith he had brought 
 him to that greatness he was come unto. But Caesar 
 contrarily, having had that drift in his head from the 
 beginning, like a wrestler that studieth for tricks to 
 overthrow his adversary: he went far from Rome, to 
 exercise himself in the wars of Gaul, where he did 
 train his army, and presently by his valiant deeds did 
 increase his fame and honor. By these means became 
 Caesar as famous as Pompey in his doings, and lacked 
 no more to put his enterprise in execution, but some 
 occasions of color, which Pompey partly gave him, 
 and partly also the time delivered him, but chiefly, 
 the hard fortune and ill government at that time of 
 the commonwealth at Rome. 
 
 When they both came into the country of Phar- 
 salia, and both camps lay before the other, Pompey 
 returned again to his former determination, and the 
 
 1 60 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 rather, because he had ill signs and tokens of misfor- 
 tune in his sleep. For he thought in his sleep that 
 when he entered into the theatre all the Romans re- 
 ceived him with great clapping of hands. Where- 
 upon, they that were about him grew to such bold- 
 ness and security, assuring themselves of victory: that 
 Domitius, Spinther, and Scipio, in a bravery con- 
 tended between themselves, for the chief bishoprick 
 which Caesar had. Furthermore, there were divers 
 that sent unto Rome to hire the nearest houses unto 
 the market-place, as being the fittest places for Prae- 
 tors, and Consuls: making their account already, that 
 those offices could not scape them, incontinently after 
 the wars. But besides those, the young gentlemen 
 and Roman knights were marvellous desirous to 
 fight, that were bravely mounted, and armed with 
 glistering gilt armors, their horses fat and very finely 
 kept, and themselves goodly young men, to the num- 
 ber of seven thousand, where the gentlemen of 
 Caesar's side were but one thousand only. The num- 
 ber of his footmen also were much after the same 
 reckoning. For he had five-and-forty thousand 
 against two-and-twenty thousand. Wherefore Caesar 
 called his soldiers together, and told them how Cor- 
 nificius was at hand, who brought two legions, and 
 that he had fifteen ensigns led by Calenus, the which 
 he made to stay about Megara and Athens. Then he 
 asked them if they would tarry for that aid or not, or 
 whether they would rather themselves alone venture 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 battle. The soldiers cried out to him, and prayed 
 him not to defer battle, but rather to devise some 
 fetch to make the enemy fight as soon as he could. 
 Then as he sacrificed unto the gods, for the purifying 
 of his army: the first beast was no sooner sacrificed, 
 but his soothsayer assured him that he should fight 
 within three days. Caesar asked him again, if he saw 
 in the sacrifices any lucky sign or token of good 
 luck. The soothsayer answered : For that, thou shalt 
 answer thyself better than I can do: for the gods do 
 promise us a marvellous great change and alteration 
 of things that are now, unto another clean contrary. 
 For if thou beest well now, doest thou think to have 
 worse fortune hereafter? and if thou be ill, assure 
 thyself thou shalt have better. The night before the 
 battle, as he went about midnight to visit the watch, 
 men saw a great firebrand in the element, all of a 
 light fire, that came over Caesar's camp, and fell down 
 in Pompey's. In the morning also when they re- 
 lieved the watch, they heard a false alarm in the 
 enemy's camp, without any apparent cause: which 
 they commonly call a sodain fear, that makes men 
 beside themselves. This notwithstanding, Caesar 
 thought not to fight that day, but was determined to 
 have raised his camp from thence, and to have gone 
 toward the city of Scotusa: and his tents in his camp 
 were already overthrown when his scouts came in 
 with great speed, to bring him news that his enemies 
 were preparing themselves to fight. Then he was 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 very glad, and after he had made his prayers unto the 
 gods to help him that day, he set his men in battle 
 ray, and divided them into three squadrons, giving 
 the middle battle unto Domitius Calvinus, and the 
 left wing unto Antonius, and placed himself in the 
 right wing, choosing his place to fight in the tenth 
 legion. But seeing that against that, his enemies had 
 set all their horsemen: he was half afraid when he 
 saw the great number of them, and so brave besides. 
 Wherefore he closely made six ensigns to come from 
 the rearward of his battle, whom he had laid as an 
 ambush behind his right wing, having first appointed 
 his soldiers what they should do, when the horsemen 
 of the enemies came to give them charge. On the 
 other side, Pompey placed himself in the right wing 
 of his battle, gave the left wing unto Domitius, and 
 the middle battle unto Scipio,his father-in-law. Now 
 all the Roman knights (as we have told you before) 
 were placed in the left wing, of purpose to environ 
 Caesar's right wing behind, and to give their hottest 
 charge there, where the general of their enemies was : 
 making their account, that there was no squadron of 
 footmen how thick soever they were, that could re- 
 ceive the charge of so great a troop of horsemen, and 
 'that at the first onset they should overthrow them 
 all, and march upon their bellies. When the trump- 
 ets on either side did sound the alarm to the battle, 
 Pompey commanded his footmen that they should 
 stand still without stirring, to receive the charge of 
 
 l6 3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 their enemies, until they came to throwing of their 
 darts. Wherefore Caesar afterward said that Pom- 
 pey had committed a foul fault not to consider that 
 the charge which is given running with fury, besides 
 that it giveth the more strength also unto their blows, 
 doth set men's hearts also afire : for the common hurl- 
 ing of all the soldiers that run together, is unto them 
 as a box on the ear that sets men afire. Then Caesar 
 making his battle march forward to give the onset, 
 saw one of his captains (a valiant man, and very skil- 
 ful in war, in whom he had also great confidence) 
 speaking to his soldiers that he had under his charge, 
 encouraging them to fight like men that day. So he 
 called him aloud by his name, and said unto him: 
 "Well, Caius Crassinius, what hope shall we have 
 to-day? How are we determined, to fight it out man- 
 fully?" Then Crassinius casting up his hand, an- 
 swered him aloud: "This day, O Caesar, we shall 
 have a noble victory, and I promise thee ere night 
 thou shalt praise me alive or dead." When he had 
 told him so, he was himself the foremost man that 
 gave charge upon his enemies, with his band follow- 
 ing of him, being about six-score men, and making 
 a lane through the foremost ranks, with great slaugh- 
 ter he entered far into the battle of his enemies: un- 
 til that valiantly fighting in this sort, he was thrust in 
 at length in the mouth with a sword, that the point of 
 it came out again at his neck. Now the footmen of 
 both battles being come to the sword, the horsemen 
 
 164 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 of the left wing of Pompey did march as fiercely 
 also, spreading out their troops, to compass in the 
 right wing of Caesar's battle. But before they began 
 to give charge, the six ensigns of footmen which 
 Caesar had laid in ambush behind him, they began to 
 run full upon them, not throwing away their darts 
 far off as they were wont to do ; neither striking their 
 enemies on the thighs nor on the legs, but to seek to 
 hit them full in the eyes, and to hurt them in the face, 
 as Caesar had taught them. For he hoped that these 
 lusty young gentlemen that had not been often in the 
 wars, nor were used to see themselves hurt, and the 
 which, being in the prime of their youth and beauty, 
 would be afraid of those hurts, as well for the fear of 
 the present danger to be slain, as also for that their 
 faces should not for ever be deformed. As indeed it 
 came to pass, for they could never abide that they 
 should come so near their faces, with the points of 
 their darts, but hung down their heads for fear to be 
 hit with them in their eyes, and turned their backs, 
 covering their face, because they should not be hurt. 
 Then, breaking of themselves, they began at length 
 cowardly to fly, and were occasion also of the loss of 
 all the rest of Pompey's army. For they that had 
 broken them, ran immediately to set upon the squad- 
 ron of the footmen behind, and slew them. Then 
 Pompey seeing his horsemen from the other wing of 
 his battle, so scattered and dispersed, flying away: 
 forgot that he was any more Pompey the Great which 
 
 i6 5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 he had been before, but rather was like a man whose 
 wits the gods had taken from him, being afraid and 
 amazed with the slaughter sent from above, and so 
 retired into his tent speaking never a word, and sat 
 there to see the end of this battle. Until at length all 
 his army being overthrown, and put to flight, the 
 enemies came, and got up upon the rampers and de- 
 fence of his camp, and fought hand to hand with 
 them that stood to defend the same. Then as a man 
 come to himself again, he spake but this only word: 
 'What, even into our camp?" So in Kasfe, casting off 
 his coat armor and apparel of a general, he shifted 
 him, and put on such as became his miserable for- 
 tune, and so stole out of his camp. Furthermore, what 
 he did after this overthrow, and how he had put him- 
 self into the hands of the Egyptians, by whom he was 
 miserably slain: we have set it forth at large in his 
 life. Then Caesar entering into Pompey's camp, and 
 seeing the bodies laid on the ground that were slain, 
 and others also that were a-killing, said, fetching a 
 great sigh: "It was their own doing, and against my 
 will." For Caius Caesar, after he had won so many 
 famous conquests and overcome so many great bat- 
 tles, had been utterly condemned notwithstanding, if 
 he had departed from his army. Asinius Pollio 
 writeth that he spake these words then in Latin, 
 which he afterward wrote in Greek, and saith fur- 
 thermore, that the most part of them which were put 
 to the sword in the camp were slaves and bondmen, 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 and that there were not slain in all at this battle, 
 above six thousand soldiers. As for them that were 
 taken prisoners, Caesar did put many of them among 
 his legions, and did pardon also many men of esti- 
 mation, among whom Brutus was one, that afterward 
 slew Caesar himself; and it is reported that Caesar 
 was very sorry for him when he could not immedi- 
 ately be found after the battle, and that he rejoiced 
 again, when he knew he was alive, and that he came 
 to yield himself unto him. Caesar had many signs 
 and tokens of victory before this battle, but the no- 
 tablest of all other that happened to him was in the 
 city of Tralles. For in the temple of victory, within 
 the same city, there was an image of Caesar, and the 
 earth all about it very hard of itself, and was paved 
 besides with hard stone; and yet some say that there 
 sprang up a palm hard by the base of the same image. 
 In the city of Padua, Caius Cornelius, an excellent 
 soothsayer (a countryman and friend of Titus Livius 
 the historiographer) was by chance at that time set 
 to behold the flying of birds. He (as Livy report- 
 eth) knew the very time when the battle began, and 
 told them that were present: "Even now they give 
 the onset on both sides, and both armies do meet at 
 this instant." Then sitting down again to consider of 
 the birds, after he had bethought him of the signs, he 
 suddenly rose up on his feet, and cried out as a man 
 possessed with some spirit: "Oh, Caesar, the victory 
 is thine," Every man wondering to see him, he took 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the crown he had on his head, and made an oath that 
 he would never put it on again till the event of his 
 prediction had proved his art true. Livy testifieth, 
 that it so came to pass. Caesar afterward giving free- 
 dom unto the Thessalians, in respect of the victory 
 which he won in their country, he followed after 
 Pompey. When he came into Asia, he gave freedom 
 also unto the Gnidians for Theopompus' sake, who 
 had gathered the fables together. He did release 
 Asia also the third part of the tribute which the in- 
 habitants paid unto the Romans. Then he came into 
 Alexandria, after Pompey was slain, and detested 
 Theodotus that presented him Pompey's head, and 
 turned his head aside because he would not see it. 
 Notwithstanding, he took his seal, and beholding it, 
 wept. Furthermore, he courteously used all Pom- 
 pey's friends and familiars, who wandering up and 
 down the country, were taken of the king of Egypt, 
 and won them all to be at his commandment. Con- 
 tinuing these courtesies, he wrote unto his friends at 
 Rome, that the greatest pleasure he took of his vic- 
 tory was that he daily saved the lives of some of his 
 countrymen that bare arms against him. And for 
 the war he made in Alexandria, some say, he needed 
 not have done it, but that he willingly did it for the 
 love of Cleopatra, wherein he won little honor, and 
 besides did put his person in great danger. From 
 thence he went into Syria, and so going into Asia, 
 there it was told him that Domitius was overthrown 
 
 168 
 
The Life of Julius Cassar 
 
 in battle by Pharnaces the son of King Mithridates, 
 and was fled out of the realm of Pont, with a few 
 men with him, and that this King Pharnaces, greed- 
 ily following his victory, was not contented with the 
 winning of Bithynia, and Cappadocia, but further 
 would needs attempt to win Armenia the Less, pro- 
 curing all those kings, princes, and governors of the 
 provinces thereabout to rebel against the Romans. 
 Thereupon Caesar went thither straight with three 
 legions, and fought a great battle with King Phar- 
 naces by the city of Zela, where he slew his army, 
 and drove him out of all the realm of Pont. And 
 because he would advertise one of his friends of the 
 suddenness of this victory, he only wrote three words 
 unto Anicius at Rome: Veni, Vidi, Vici: to wit, I 
 came, I saw, I overcame, These three words ending 
 all with like sound and letters in the Latin, have a 
 certain short grace, more pleasant to the ear, than can 
 be well expressed in any other tongue. After this, he 
 returned again into Italy, and came to Rome, ending 
 his year for the which he was made Dictator the sec- 
 ond time, which office before was never granted for 
 one whole year, but unto him. Then he was chosen 
 Consul for the year following. Afterward he was 
 very ill spoken of, for that his soldiers in a mutiny 
 having slain two Praetors, Cosconius and Galba, he 
 gave no other punishment for it, but instead of call- 
 ing them soldiers, he named them citizens, and gave 
 unto every one of them a thousand drachmas a man, 
 
 169 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and great possessions in Italy. He was much mis- 
 liked also for the desperate parts and madness of 
 Dolabella, for the covetousness of Anicius, for the 
 drunkenness of AntoniusandCornificius,which made 
 Pompey's house be pulled down and builded up 
 again, as a thing not big enough for him, wherewith 
 the Romans were marvellously offended. Caesar 
 knew all this well enough, and would have been con- 
 tented to have redressed them; but to bring his mat- 
 ters to pass he pretended he was driven to serve his 
 turn by such instruments. After the battle of Phar- 
 salia, Cato and Scipio being fled into Africa, King 
 Juba joined with them, and levied a great puissant 
 army. Wherefore Caesar determined to make war 
 with them, and in the midst of winter he took his 
 journey into Sicily. There, because he would take all 
 hope from his captains and soldiers to make any long 
 abode there, he went and lodged upon the very sands 
 by the seaside, and with the next gale of wind that 
 came, he took the sea with three thousand footmen, 
 and a few horsemen. Then having put them a-land, 
 unwares to them, he hoised sail again, to go fetch the 
 rest of his army, being afraid lest they should meet 
 with some danger in passing over, and meeting them 
 midway, he brought them all into his camp. Where, 
 when it was told him that his enemies trusted in an 
 ancient oracle, which said, that it was predestined 
 unto the family of the Scipios to be conquerors in 
 Africa: either of purpose to mock Scipio the general 
 
 170 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 of his enemies, or otherwise in good earnest to take 
 the benefit of this name (given by the oracle) unto 
 himself, in all the skirmishes and battles fought, he 
 gave the charge of his army unto a man of mean 
 quality and account, called Scipio Sallution, who 
 came of the race of Scipio African, and made him al- 
 ways his general when he fought. For he was eft- 
 soons compelled to weary and harry his enemies: for 
 that neither his men in his camp had corn enough, 
 nor his beasts forage, but the soldiers were driven to 
 take seaweeds, called alga: and (washing away the 
 brackishness thereof with fresh water, putting to it a 
 little herb called dog's-tooth) to cast it so to their 
 horse to eat. For the Numidians (which are light, 
 horsemen, and very ready of service) being a great 
 number together, would be on a sodain in every 
 place, and spread all the fields over thereabout, so 
 that no man durst peep out of the camp to go for for- 
 age. And one day as the men of arms were staying 
 to behold an African doing notable things in dancing 
 and playing with the flute: they being set down 
 quietly to take their pleasure of the view thereof, 
 having in the meantime given their slaves their horses 
 to hold, the enemies stealing suddenly upon them, 
 compassed them in round about, and slew a number 
 of them in the field, and chasing the other also that 
 fled, followed them pell-mell into their camp. Fur- 
 thermore had not Caesar himself in person, and As- 
 inius Pollio with him gone out of the camp to the 
 
 171 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 rescue, and stayed them that fled, the war that day had 
 been ended. There was also another skirmish where 
 his enemies had the upper hand, in the which it is 
 reported that Caesar taking the ensign-bearer by the 
 collar that carried the eagle in his hand, stayed him 
 by force, and turning his face, told him: "See, there 
 be thy enemies." These advantages did lift up Scip- 
 io's heart aloft, and gave him courage to hazard 
 battle, and leaving Afranius on the one hand of him, 
 and King Juba on the other hand, both their camps 
 lying near to other, he did fortify himself by the city 
 of Thapsus, above the lake, to be a safe refuge for 
 them all in this battle. But while he was busy 
 intrenching of himself, Caesar having marvellous 
 speedily passed through a great country full of wood, 
 by by-paths which men would never have mistrusted : 
 he stale upon some behind, and sodainly assailed the 
 other before, so that he overthrew them all, and made 
 them fly. Then following this first good hap he had, 
 he went forthwith to set upon the camp of Afranius, 
 the which he took at the first onset, and the camp of 
 the Numidians also, King Juba being fled. Thus in 
 a little piece of the day only, he took three camps, 
 and slew fifty thousand of his enemies, and lost but 
 fifty of his soldiers. In this sort is set down the ef- 
 fect of this battle by some writers. Yet others do 
 write also, that Caesar self was not there in person at 
 the execution of this battle. For as he did set his 
 men in battle ray, the falling sickness took him, 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 whereunto he was given, and therefore feeling it 
 coming, before he was overcome withal, he was car- 
 ried into a castle not far from thence, where the bat- 
 tle was fought, and there took his rest till the ex- 
 tremity of his disease had left him. Now, for the 
 Praetor and Consuls that escaped from this battle, 
 many of them being taken prisoners, did kill them- 
 selves, and others also Caesar did put to death: but 
 he being specially desirous of all men else to have 
 Cato alive in his hands, he went with all possible 
 speed unto the city of Utica, whereof Cato was gov- 
 ernor, by means whereof he was not at the battle. 
 Notwithstanding being certified by the way that Cato 
 had slain himself with his own hands, he then made 
 open show that he was very sorry for it, but why or 
 wherefore, no man could tell. But this is true, that 
 Caesar said at that present time: O Cato, I envy thy 
 death, because thou didst envy my glory, to save thy- 
 self. This notwithstanding, the book that he wrote 
 afterward against Cato being dead, did show no very 
 great affection nor pitiful heart toward him. For 
 how could he have pardoned him, if living he had 
 had him in his hands: that being dead did speak so 
 vehemently against him? Notwithstanding, men 
 suppose he would have pardoned him, if he had 
 taken him alive, by the clemency he showed unto 
 Cicero, Brutus, and divers others that had borne arms 
 against him. Some report, that he wrote that book, 
 not so much for any private malice he had to his 
 
 173 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 death, as for civil ambition, upon this occasion. 
 Cicero had written a book in praise of Cato, which 
 he entitled "Cato." This book in likelihood was 
 very well liked of, by reason of the eloquence of the 
 orator that made it, and of the excellent subject 
 thereof. Caesar therewith was marvellously offended, 
 thinking that to praise him, of whose death he was 
 author, was even as much as to accuse himself: and 
 therefore he wrote a letter against him, and heaped 
 up a number of accusations against Cato, and entitled 
 the book "Anticato." Both these books have fa- 
 vorers unto this day, some defending the one for the 
 love they bear to Caesar, and others allowing the 
 other for Cato's sake. Caesar being now returned 
 out of Africa, first of all made an oration to the peo- 
 ple, wherein he greatly praised and commended this 
 his last victory, declaring unto them, that he had 
 conquered so many countries unto the empire of 
 Rome, that he could furnish the commonwealth year- 
 ly, with two hundred thousand bushels of wheat, and 
 twenty hundred thousand pound weight of oil. Then 
 he made three triumphs, the one for Egypt, the other 
 for the kingdom of Pont, and the third for Africa: 
 not because he had overcome Scipio there, but King 
 Juba. Whose son being likewise called Juba, being 
 then a young boy, was led captive in the show of this 
 triumph. But this his imprisonment fell out happily 
 for him: for where he was but a barbarous Numid- 
 ian, by the study he fell unto when he was prisoner, 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 he came afterward to be reckoned one of the wisest 
 historiographers of the Grecians. After these three 
 triumphs ended, he very liberally rewarded his sol- 
 diers: and to curry favor with the people, he made 
 great feasts and common sports. For he feasted all 
 the Romans at one time, at two-and-twenty thousand 
 tables, and gave them the pleasure to see divers 
 sword-players to fight at the sharp, and battles also by 
 sea, for the remembrance of his daughter Julia, 
 which was dead long before. Then after all these 
 sports, he made the people (as the manner was) to be 
 mustered: and where there were at the last musters 
 before, three hundred and twenty thousand citizens, 
 at this muster only there were but a hundred and 
 fifty thousand. Such misery and destruction had this 
 civil war brought unto the commonwealth of Rome, 
 and had consumed such a number of Romans, not 
 speaking at all of the mischiefs and calamities it had 
 brought unto all the rest of Italy and to the other 
 provinces pertaining to Rome. After all these 
 things were ended, he was chosen Consul the fourth 
 time, and went into Spain to make war with the sons 
 of Pompey: who were yet but very young, but- had 
 notwithstanding raised a marvellous great army to- 
 gether, and showed to have had manhood and cour- 
 age worthy to command such an army, insomuch as 
 they put Caesar himself in great danger of his life. 
 The greatest battle that was fought between them in 
 all this war, was by the city of Munda. For then 
 
 i7S 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Caesar seeing his men sorely distressed, and having 
 their hands full of their enemies: he ran into the 
 press among his men that fought, and cried out unto 
 them: "What, are ye not ashamed to be beaten and 
 taken prisoners, yielding yourselves with your own 
 hands to these young boys? And so, with all the 
 force he could make, having with much ado put 
 his enemies to flight, he slew above thirty thousand 
 of them in the field, and lost of his own men a 
 thousand of the best he had. After this battle he 
 went into his tent and told his friends. That he had 
 often before fought for victory, but this last time 
 now, that he had fought for the safety of his own 
 life. He won this battle on the very feast day of 
 the Bacchanalians, in the which men say that Pom- 
 pey the Great went out of Rome, about four years 
 before, to begin this civil war. For his sons, the 
 younger escaped from the battle : but within few days 
 after, Didius brought the head of the elder. This 
 was the last war that Caesar made. But the triumph 
 he made into Rome for the same did as much offend 
 the Romans, and more, than anything that ever he 
 had done before: because he had not overcome cap- 
 tains that were strangers, nor barbarous kings, but 
 had destroyed the sons of the noblest man in Rome, 
 whom fortune had overthrown. And because he 
 had plucked up his race by the roots, men did not 
 think it meet for him to triumph so, for the calamities 
 of his country, rejoicing at a thing for the which he 
 
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 had but one excuse to allege in his defence, unto the 
 gods and men : that he was compelled to do that he 
 did. And the rather they thought it not meet, be- 
 cause he had never before sent letters nor messengers 
 unto the commonwealth at Rome, for any victory 
 that he had ever won in all the civil wars: but did 
 always for shame refuse the glory of it. This not- 
 withstanding, the Romans inclining to Caesar's pros- 
 perity, and taking the bit in the mouth, supposing 
 that to be ruled by one man alone, it would be a 
 good mean for them to take breath a little, after so 
 many troubles and miseries as they had abidden in 
 these civil wars: they chose him perpetual Dictator. 
 This was a plain tyranny: for to this absolute power 
 of Dictator, they added this, never to be afraid to 
 be deposed: Cicero propounded before the Senate, 
 that they should give him such honors as were meet 
 for a man : howbeit others afterward added to, hon- 
 ors beyond all reason. For, men striving who should 
 most honor him, they made him hateful and trouble- 
 some to themselves that most favored him, by reason 
 of the unmeasurable greatness and honors which they 
 gave him. Thereupon, it is reported, that even 
 they that most hated him were no less further- 
 ers of his honors than they that most flattered 
 him: because they might have greater occasions to 
 rise, and that it might appear they had just cause 
 and color to attempt that they did against him. And 
 now for himself, after he had ended his civil wars, 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 he did so honorably behave himself, that there was 
 no fault to be found in him: and therefore methinks, 
 among other honors they gave him, he rightly de- 
 served this, that they should build him a temple of 
 clemency, to thank him for his courtesy he had used 
 unto them in his victory. For he pardoned many of 
 them that had borne arms against him, and, further- 
 more, did prefer some of them to honor and office 
 in the commonwealth : as among others, Cassius and 
 Brutus, both the which were made Praetors. And 
 where Pompey's images had been thrown down, he 
 caused them to be set up again: whereupon Cicero 
 said then, That Caesar setting up Pompey's images 
 again he made his own to stand the surer. And 
 when some of his friends did counsel him to have 
 a guard for the safety of his person, and some also 
 did offer themselves to serve him: he would never 
 consent to it, but said, It was better to die once, than 
 always to be afraid of death. But to win himself 
 the love and good-will of the people, as the honor- 
 ablest guard and best safety he could have: he made 
 common feasts again, and general distributions of 
 corn. Furthermore, to gratify the soldiers also, he 
 replenished many cities again with inhabitants, which 
 before had been destroyed, and placed them there 
 that had no place to repair unto: of the which the 
 noblest and chiefest cities were these two, Carthage 
 and Corinth, and it chanced also, that like as afore- 
 time they had been both taken and destroyed to- 
 
 i 7 8 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 gether, even so were they both set afoot again, and 
 replenished with people, at one self time. And as 
 for great personages, he won them also, promising 
 some of them to make them Praetors and Consuls in 
 time to come, and unto others, honors and prefer- 
 ments, but to all men generally good hope, seeking 
 all the ways he could to make every man contented 
 with his reign. Insomuch as one of the Consuls 
 called Maximus, chancing to die a day before his 
 Consulship ended, he declared Caninius Rebilius 
 Consul only for the day that remained. So, divers 
 going to his house (as the manner was) to salute him, 
 and to congratulate with him of his calling and pre- 
 ferment, being newly chosen officer: Cicero pleasant- 
 ly said, Come, let us make haste, and be gone thither 
 before his Consulship come out. Furthermore, Cae- 
 sar being born to attempt all great enterprises, and 
 having an ambitious desire besides to covet great 
 honors: the prosperous good success he had of his 
 former conquests bred no desire in him quietly to en- 
 joy the fruits of his labors, but rather gave him hope 
 of things to come, still kindling more and more in 
 him thoughts of greater enterprises, and desire of 
 new glory, as if that which he had present were stale 
 and nothing worth. This humor of his was no other 
 but an emulation with himself as with another man, 
 and a certain contention to overcome the things he 
 prepared to attempt. For he was determined, and 
 made preparation also, to make war with the Per- 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 sians. Then when he had overcome them, to pass 
 through Hyrcania (compassing in the sea Caspium, 
 and Mount Caucasus) into the realm of Pontus, and 
 so to invade Scythia: and overrunning all the coun- 
 tries, and people adjoining unto high Germany, and 
 Germany itself, at length to return by Gaul into 
 Italy, and so to enlarge the Roman empire round, 
 that it might be every way compassed in with the 
 great sea Oceanus. But while he was preparing for 
 this voyage, he attempted to cut the bar of the strait 
 of Peloponnesus, in the place where the city of Co- 
 rinth standeth. Then he was minded to bring the 
 rivers of Anien and Tiber, straight from Rome, unto 
 the city of Circeii, with a deep channel and high 
 banks cast up on either side, and so to fall into the sea 
 at Terracina, for the better safety and commodity of 
 the merchants that came to Rome to traffic there. 
 Furthermore, he determined to drain and seaw all 
 the water of the marshes between the cities of Nomen- 
 tum and Setium, to make it firm land, for the benefit 
 of many thousands of people: and on the seacoast 
 next unto Rome, to cast great high banks, and to 
 cleanse all the haven about Ostia, of rocks and stones 
 hidden under the water, and to take away all other 
 impediments that made the harbor dangerous for 
 ships, and to make new havens and arsenals meet to 
 harbor such ships, as did continually traffic thither. 
 All these things were purposed to be done, but took 
 no effect. But, the ordinance of the calendar, and 
 
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 reformation of the year, to take away all confusion of 
 time, being exactly calculated by the mathematicians, 
 and brought to perfection, was a great commodity 
 unto all men. For the Romans using then the an- 
 cient computation of the year, had not only such un- 
 certainty and alteration of the month and times, that 
 the sacrifices and yearly feasts came by little and lit- 
 tle to seasons contrary for the purpose they were or- 
 dained: but also in the revolution of the sun (which 
 is called Annus Solaris) no other nation agreed with 
 them in account: and of the Romans themselves, only 
 the priests understood it. And therefore when they 
 listed, they sodainly (no man being able to control 
 them) did thrust in a month above their ordinary 
 number, which they called in old time, Mercedonius. 
 Some say, that Numa Pompilius was the first, that 
 devised this way, to put a month between: but it was 
 a weak remedy, and did little help the correction of 
 the errors that were made in the account of the year, 
 to frame them to perfection. But Caesar committing 
 this matter unto the philosophers, and best expert 
 mathematicians at that time, did set forth an excel- 
 lent and perfect calendar, more exactly calculated 
 than any other that was before: the which the Ro- 
 mans do use until this present day, and do nothing err 
 as others, in the difference of time. But his enemies 
 notwithstanding that envied his greatness did not 
 stick to find fault withal. As Cicero the orator, 
 when one said, To-morrow the star Lyra will rise: 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Yea, said he, at the commandment of Caesar, as if 
 men were compelled so to say and think, by Caesar's 
 edict. But the chiefest cause that made him mor- 
 tally hated, was the covetous desire he had to be 
 called king: which first gave the people just cause, 
 and next his secret enemies, honest color to bear him 
 ill-will. This notwithstanding, they that procured 
 him this honor and dignity, gave it out among the 
 people that it was written in the Sybilline prophecies, 
 how the Romans might overcome the Parthians, if 
 they made war with them, and were led by a king, 
 but otherwise that they were unconquerable. And 
 furthermore they were so bold besides, that Caesar 
 returning to Rome from the city of Alba, when they 
 came to salute him, they called him king. But the 
 people being offended, and Caesar also angry, he said 
 he was not called king, but Caesar. Then every man 
 keeping silence, he went his way heavy and sorrow- 
 ful. When they had decreed divers honors for him 
 in the Senate, the Consuls and Praetors accompanied 
 with the whole assembly of the Senate, went unto 
 him in the market-place, where he was set by the 
 pulpit for orations, to tell him what honors they had 
 decreed for him in his absence. But he sitting still 
 in his majesty, disdaining to rise up unto them when 
 they came in, as if they had been private men, an- 
 swered them: That his honors had more need to be 
 cut off than enlarged. This did not only offend the 
 Senate, but the common people also, to see that he 
 
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 should so lightly esteem of the magistrates of the 
 commonwealth: insomuch as every man that might 
 lawfully go his way departed thence very sorrow r - 
 fully. Thereupon also Caesar rising, departed home 
 to his house, and tearing open his doublet collar, 
 making his neck bare, he cried out aloud to his 
 friends, That his throat was ready to offer to any man 
 that would come and cut it. Notwithstanding, it is 
 reported, that afterward to excuse this folly, he im- 
 puted it to his disease, saying, That their wits are not 
 perfect which have his disease of the falling evil, 
 when standing on their feet they speak to the com- 
 mon people, but are soon troubled with a trembling of 
 their body, and a sodain dimness and giddiness. But 
 that was not true. For he would have risen up to the 
 Senate, but Cornelius Balbus one of his friends (but 
 rather a flatterer) would not let him, saying: What, 
 do you not remember that you are Caesar, and will 
 you not let them reverence you, and do their duties? 
 Besides these occasions and offences, there followed 
 also his shame and reproach, abusing the Tribunes 
 of the people in this sort. At that time, the feast 
 Lupercalia was celebrated, the which in old time 
 men say was the feast of shepherds or herd men, and 
 is much like unto the feast of the Lycaeans in Arcadia. 
 But howsoever it is, that day there are divers noble- 
 men's sons, young men (and some of them magis- 
 trates themselves that govern then), which run naked 
 through the city, striking in sport them they meet in 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 their way, with leather thongs, hair and all on, to 
 make them give place. And many noblewomen and 
 gentlewomen also go of purpose to stand in their 
 way, and do put forth their hands to be stricken, as 
 scholars hold them out to their schoolmaster, to be 
 stricken with the ferule : persuading themselves that 
 being with child, they shall have good delivery, and 
 also being barren, that it will make them to conceive 
 with child. Caesar sat to behold that sport upon the 
 pulpit for orations, in a chair of gold, apparelled in 
 triumphing manner. Antonius, who was Consul at 
 that time, was one of them that ran this holy course. 
 So when he came into the market-place, the people 
 made a lane for him to run at liberty, and he came to 
 Caesar, and presented him a diadem wreathed about 
 with laurel. Whereupon there rose a certain cry of 
 rejoicing, not very great, done only by a few, ap- 
 pointed for the purpose. But when Caesar refused 
 the diadem, then all the people together made an out- 
 cry of joy. Then Antonius offering it him again, 
 there was a second shout of joy, but yet of a few. 
 But when Caesar refused it again the second time, 
 then all the whole people shouted. Caesar having 
 made this proof, found that the people did not like 
 of it, and thereupon rose out of his chair, and com- 
 manded the crown to be carried unto Jupiter in the 
 Capitol. After that, there were set up images of 
 Caesar in the city with diadems upon their heads, like 
 kings. Those, the two Tribunes, Flavius and Ma- 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 rullus, went and pulled down: and furthermore, 
 meeting with them that first saluted Caesar as king, 
 they committed them to prison. The people followed 
 them rejoicing at it, and called them Brutes: because 
 of Brutus, who had in old time driven the kings out 
 of Rome, and that brought the kingdom of one per- 
 son, unto the government of the Senate and people. 
 Caesar was so offended withal, that he deprived Ma- 
 rullus and Flavius of their Tribuneships, and accus- 
 ing them, he spake also against the people, and called 
 them Bruti, and Cumani, to wit, beasts, and fools. 
 Hereupon the people went straight unto Marcus 
 Brutus, who from his father came of the first Brutus, 
 and by his mother, of the house of the Servilians, a 
 noble house as any was in Rome, and was also nephew 
 and son-in-law of Marcus Cato. Notwithstanding, 
 the great honors and favor Caesar showed unto him, 
 kept him back that of himself alone he did not con- 
 spire nor consent to depose him of his kingdom. For 
 Caesar did not only save his life, after the battle of 
 Pharsalia when Pompey fled, and did at his request 
 also save many more of his friends besides: but 
 furthermore, he put a marvellous confidence in him. 
 For he had already preferred him to the Praetorship 
 for that year, and furthermore was appointed to be 
 Consul, the fourth year after that, having through 
 Caesar's friendship obtained it before Cassius, who 
 likewise made suit for the same : and Caesar also, as it 
 is reported, said in this contention, Indeed Cassius 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 hath alleged best reason, but yet shall he not be 
 chosen before Brutus. Some one day accusing 
 Brutus while he practiced this conspiracy, Caesar 
 would not hear of it, but clapping his hand on his 
 body, told them, Brutus will look for this skin : mean- 
 ing thereby, that Brutus for his virtue deserved to 
 rule after him, but yet, that for ambition's sake, he 
 would not show himself unthankful or dishonorable. 
 Now they that desired change, and wished Brutus 
 only their prince and governor above all other: they 
 durst not come to him themselves to tell him what 
 they would have him to do, but in the night did cast 
 sundry papers into the Praetor's seat where he gave 
 audience, and the most of them to this effect Thou 
 sleepest Brutus, and art not Brutus indeed. Cassius 
 finding Brutus' ambition stirred up the more by these 
 seditious bills, did prick him forward, and tgg him 
 on the more, for a private quarrel he had conceived 
 against Caesar: the circumstance whereof, we have set 
 down more at large in Brutus' life. Caesar also had 
 Cassius in great jealousy, and suspected him much : 
 whereupon he said on a time to his friends, What 
 will Cassius do, think ye? I like not his pale looks. 
 Another time when Caesar's friends complained unto 
 him of Antonius and Dolabella, that they pretended 
 , some mischief toward him : he answered them again, 
 As for those fat men and smooth-combed heads, 
 quoth he, I never reckon of them: but these pale- 
 visaged and carrion lean people, I fear them most, 
 
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 meaning Brutus and Cassius. Certainly, destiny may 
 easier be foreseen than avoided: considering the 
 strange and wonderful signs that were said to be 
 seen before Caesar's death. For, touching the fires 
 in the element, and spirits running up and down in 
 the night, and also the solitary birds to be seen at 
 noondays sitting in the great market-place: are not 
 all these signs perhaps worth the noting, in such a 
 wonderful chance as happened? But Strabo the 
 Philosopher writeth, that divers men were seen go- 
 ing up and down in fire: and furthermore, that there 
 was a slave of the soldiers, that did cast a marvellous 
 burning flame out of his hand, insomuch as they that 
 saw it thought he had been burned, but when the fire 
 was out, it was found he had no hurt. Caesar self 
 also doing sacrifice unto the gods, found that one of 
 the beasts which was sacrificed had no heart: and that 
 was a strange thing in nature, how a beast could live 
 without a heart Furthermore, there was a certain 
 soothsayer that had given Caesar warning long time 
 afore, to take heed of the day of the Ides of March 
 (which is the fifteenth of the month) , for on that day 
 he should be in great danger. That day being come, 
 Caesar going unto the Senate-house, and speaking 
 merrily unto the soothsayer, told him, The Ides of 
 March be come: So be they, softly answered the 
 soothsayer, but yet are they not past. And the very 
 day before, Caesar supping with Marcus Lepidus, 
 sealed certain letters as he was wont to do at the 
 
 187 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 board: so talk falling out among them, reasoning 
 what death was best: he preventing their opinions, 
 cried out aloud, Death unlooked for. Then going 
 to bed the same night as his manner was, and lying 
 with his wife Calpurnia, all the windows and doors 
 of his chamber flying open, the noise awoke him, and 
 made him afraid when he saw such light: but more, 
 when he heard his wife Calpurnia, being fast asleep, 
 weep and sigh, and put forth many fumbling lamen- 
 table speeches. For she dreamed that Caesar was 
 slain, and that she had him in her arms. Others also 
 do deny that she had any such dream, as among other, 
 Titus Livius writeth, that it was in this sort. The 
 Senate having set upon the top of Caesar's house, for 
 an ornament and setting forth of the same, a certain 
 pinnacle: Calpurnia dreamed that she saw it broken 
 down, and that she thought she lamented and wept 
 for it. Insomuch that Caesar rising in the morning, 
 she prayed him if it were possible, not to go out of 
 the doors that day, but to adjourn the session of the 
 Senate, until another day. And if that he made no 
 reckoning of her dream, yet that he w r ould search 
 further of the soothsayers by their sacrifices, to know 
 what should happen him that day. Thereby it seemed 
 that Caesar likewise did fear and suspect somewhat, 
 because his wife Calpurnia until that time was never 
 given to any fear or superstition: and then, for that 
 he saw her so troubled in mind with this dream she 
 had. But much more afterward, when the sooth- 
 
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The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 sayers having sacrificed many beasts one after an- 
 other, told him that none did like them : then he de- 
 termined to send Antonius to adjourn the session of 
 the Senate. But in the meantime came Decius 
 Brutus, surnamed Albinus, in whom Caesar put such 
 confidence, that in his last will and testament he had 
 appointed him to be his next heir, and yet was of the 
 conspiracy with Cassius and Brutus: he fearing that 
 if Caesar did adjourn the session that day, the con- 
 spiracy would out, laughed the soothsayers to scorn, 
 and reproved Caesar, saying: That he gave the Senate 
 occasion to mislike with him, and that they might 
 think he mocked them, considering that by his com- 
 mandment they were assembled, and that they were 
 ready willingly to grant him all things, and to pro- 
 claim him king of all the provinces of the empire of 
 Rome out of Italy, and that he should wear his dia- 
 dem in all other places both by sea and land. And 
 furthermore, that if any man should tell them from 
 him, they should depart for that present time, and 
 return again when Calpurnia should have better 
 dreams: what would his enemies and ill-willers say, 
 and how could they like of his friends' words? And 
 who could persuade them otherwise, but that they 
 would think his dominion a slavery unto them, and 
 tyrannical in himself? And yet if it be so, said he, 
 that you utterly mislike of this day, it is better that 
 you go yourself in person, and saluting the Senate, 
 to dismiss them till another time. Therewithal he 
 
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 7— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 took Caesar by the hand, and brought him out of his 
 house. Caesar was not gone far from his house, but 
 a bondman, a stranger, did what he could to speak 
 with him: and when he saw he was put back by the 
 great press and multitude of people that followed 
 him, he went straight into his house, and put himself 
 into Calpurnia's hands to be kept, till Caesar came 
 back again, telling her that he had great matters to 
 impart unto him. And one Artemidorus, also born 
 in the Isle of Gnidos, a doctor of rhetoric in the 
 Greek tongue, who by means of his profession was 
 very familiar with certain of Brutus' confederates, 
 and therefore knew the most part of all their prac- 
 tices against Caesar: came and brought him a little 
 bill written with his own hand, of all that he meant 
 to tell him. He marking how Caesar received all the 
 supplications that were offered him, and that he gave 
 them straight to his men that were about him, pressed 
 nearer to him, and said : Caesar, read this memorial to 
 yourself, and that quickly, for they be matters of 
 great weight, and touch you nearly. Caesar took it 
 of him, but could never read it, though he many 
 times attempted it, for the number of people that did 
 salute him ; but holding it still in his hand, keeping it 
 to himself, went on withal into the Senate-house. 
 Howbeit other are of opinion, that it was some man 
 else that gave him that memorial, and not Arte- 
 midorus, who did what he could all the way as he 
 went to give it Caesar, but he was always repulsed by 
 
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 the people. For these things, they may seem to come 
 by chance: but the place where the murder was pre- 
 pared, and where the Senate were assembled, and 
 where also there stood up an image of Pompey dedi- 
 cated by himself among other ornaments which he 
 gave unto the theatre : all these were manifest proofs 
 that it was the ordinance of some god, that made this 
 treason to be executed, specially in that very place. 
 It is also reported, that Cassius (though otherwise he 
 did favor the doctrine of Epicurus) beholding the 
 image of Pompey, before they entered into the action 
 of their traitorous enterprise: he did softly call upon 
 it, to aid him. But the instant danger of the present 
 time, taking away his former reason, did suddenly 
 put him into a furious passion, and made him like a 
 man half beside himself. Now Antonius, that was a 
 faithful friend to Caesar, and a valiant man besides 
 of his hands, him Decius Brutus Albinus enter- 
 tained out of the Senate-house, having begun a long 
 tale of set purpose. So Caesar coming into the house, 
 all the Senate stood up on their feet to do him honor. 
 Then part of Brutus' company and confederates stood 
 round about Caesar's chair, and part of them also 
 came toward him, as though they made suit with 
 Metellus Cimber, to call home his brother again 
 from banishment: and thus prosecuting still their 
 suit, they followed Caesar, till he was set in his chair. 
 Who, denying their petitions, and being offended with 
 them one after another, because the more they were 
 
 191 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 denied, the more they pressed upon him, and were 
 the earnester with him: Metellus at length, taking 
 his gown with both his hands, pulled it over his neck, 
 which was the sign given the confederates to set upon 
 him. Then Casca behind him struck him in the neck 
 with his sword, howbeit the wound was not great nor 
 mortal, because it seemed, the fear of such a devilish 
 attempt did amaze him, and take his strength from 
 him, that he killed him not at the first blow. But 
 Caesar turning straight unto him, caught hold of his 
 sword, and held it hard: and they both cried out, 
 Caesar in Latin: O vile traitor Casca, what doest 
 thou? And Casca in Greek to his brother, Brother, 
 help me. At the beginning of this stir, they that 
 were present, not knowing of the conspiracy, were 
 so amazed with the horrible sight they saw : they had 
 no power to fly, neither to help him, not so much as 
 once to make any outcry. They on the other side 
 that had conspired his death, compassed him in on 
 every side with their swords drawn in their hands, 
 that Caesar turned him nowhere, but he was stricken 
 at by some, and still had naked swords in his face, 
 and was hacked and mangled among them, as a wild 
 beast taken of hunters. For it was agreed among 
 them, that every man should give him a wound, be- 
 cause all their parts should be in this murder: and 
 then Brutus himself gave him one wound about his 
 body. Men report also, that Caesar did still de- 
 fend himself against the rest, running every way with 
 
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 his body: but when he saw Brutus with his sword 
 drawn in his hand, then he pulled his gown over his 
 head, and made no more resistance, and was driven 
 either casually, or purposely, by the counsel of the 
 conspirators, against the base whereupon Pompey's 
 image stood, which ran all of a gore-blood till he was 
 slain. Thus it seemed, that the image took just re- 
 venge of Pompey's enemy, being thrown down on 
 the ground at his feet, and yielding up his ghost there, 
 for the number of wounds he had upon him. For 
 it is reported, that he had three-and-twenty wounds 
 upon his body: and divers of the conspirators did 
 hurt themselves, striking one body with so many 
 blows. When Caesar was slain, the Senate (though 
 Brutus stood in the midst among them, as though he 
 would have said somewhat touching this fact) pres- 
 ently ran out of the house, and flying, filled all the 
 city with marvellous fear and tumult. Insomuch as 
 some did shut-to their doors, others forsook their 
 shops and warehouses, and others ran to the place to 
 see what the matter was : and others also that had seen 
 it ran home to their houses again. But Antonius 
 and Lepidus, which were two of Caesar's chiefest 
 friends, secretly conveying themselves away, fled into 
 other men's houses, and forsook their own. Brutus 
 and his confederates on the other side, being yet hot 
 with this murder they had committed, having their 
 swords drawn in their hands, came all in a troop 
 together out of the Senate, and went into the market- 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 place, not as men that made countenance to fly, but 
 otherwise boldly holding up their heads like men of 
 courage, and called to the people to defend their lib- 
 erty, and stayed to speak with every great personage 
 whom they met in their way. Of them, some fol- 
 lowed this troop, and went among them, as if they 
 had been of the conspiracy, and falsely challenged 
 part of the honor with them : among them was Caius 
 Octavius, and Lentulus Spinther. But both of them 
 were afterward put to death, for their vain covetous- 
 ness of honor, by Antonius and Octavius Caesar the 
 younger: and yet had no part of that honor for the 
 which they were put to death, neither did any man 
 believe that they were any of the confederates, or of 
 counsel with them. For they that did put them to 
 death took revenge rather of the will they had to 
 offend than of any fact they had committed. The 
 next morning, Brutus and his confederates came into 
 the market-place to speak unto the people, who gave 
 them such audience, that it seemed they neither 
 greatly reproved, nor allowed the fact: for by their 
 great silence they showed that they were sorry for 
 Caesar's death, and also that they did reverence 
 Brutus. Now the Senate granted general pardon 
 for all that was past, and to pacify every man, or- 
 dained besides, that Caesar's funerals should be hon- 
 ored as a god, and established all things that he had 
 done: and gave certain provinces also, and conven- 
 ient honors unto Brutus and his confederates, where- 
 
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 by every man thought all things were brought to 
 good peace and quietness again. But when they had 
 opened Caesar's testament, and found a liberal legacy 
 of money, bequeathed unto every citizen of Rome, 
 and that they saw his body (which was brought into 
 the market-place) all bemangled with gashes of 
 swords: then there was no order to keep the multi- 
 tude and common people quiet, but they plucked up 
 forms, tables, and stools, and laid them all about the 
 body, and setting them afire, burned the corpse. 
 Then when the fire was well kindled, they took the 
 firebrands, and went unto their houses that had slain 
 Caesar, to set them afire. Others also ran up and 
 down the city to see if they could meet with any of 
 them, to cut them in pieces : howbeit they could meet 
 with never a man of them, because they had locked 
 themselves up safely in their houses. There was one 
 of Caesar's friends called Cinna, that had a marvel- 
 lous strange and terrible dream the night before. He 
 dreamed that Caesar bade him to supper, and that he 
 refused, and would not go: then that Caesar took him 
 by the hand, and led him against his will. Now 
 Cinna hearing at that time that they burned Caesar's 
 body in the market-place, notwithstanding that he 
 feared his dream, and had an ague on him besides : 
 he went into the market-place to honor his funerals. 
 When he came thither, one of the mean sort asked 
 him what his name was? He was straight called by 
 his name. The first man told it to another, and that 
 
 *95 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 other unto another, so that it ran straight through 
 them all, that he was one of them that murdered 
 Caesar (for indeed one of the traitors to Caesar was 
 also called Cinna as himself), wherefore taking him 
 for Cinna the murderer, they fell upon him with 
 such fury that they presently despatched him in the 
 market-place. This stir and fury made Brutus and 
 Cassius more afraid than of all that was past, and 
 therefore within few days after they departed out of 
 Rome: and touching their doings afterward, and 
 what calamity they suffered till their deaths, we have 
 written it at large in the life of Brutus. Caesar died 
 at six-and-fifty years of age: and Pompey also lived 
 not passing four years more than he. So he reaped 
 no other fruit of all his reign and dominion, which 
 he had so vehemently desired all his life, and pur- 
 sued with such extreme danger: but a vain name only 
 and a superficial glory, that procured him the envy 
 and hatred of his country. But his great prosperity 
 and good fortune that favored him all his lifetime, 
 did continue afterward in the revenge of his death, 
 pursuing the murderers both by sea and land, till 
 they had not left a man more to be executed, of all 
 them that were actors or counsellors in the conspir- 
 acy of his death. Furthermore, of all the chances 
 that happen unto men upon the earth, that which 
 came to Cassius above all other is most to be won- 
 dered at. For he being overcome in battle at the 
 journey of Philippi, slew himself with the same 
 
 196 
 
The Life of Julius Caesar 
 
 sword, with the which he struck Caesar. Again, of 
 signs in the element, the great comet which seven 
 nights together was seen very bright after Caesar's 
 death, the eighth night after was never seen more. 
 Also the brightness of the sun was darkened, the 
 which all that year through rose very pale, and 
 shined not out, whereby it gave but small heat: there- 
 fore the air being very cloudy and dark, by the weak- 
 ness of the heat that could not come forth, did cause 
 the earth to bring forth but raw and unripe fruit, 
 which rotted before it could ripe. But above all, 
 the ghost that appeared unto Brutus showed plainly 
 that the gods were offended with the murder of 
 Caesar. The vision was thus. Brutus being ready 
 to pass over his army from the city of Abydos, to the 
 other coast lying directly against it, slept every night 
 (as his manner was) in his tent, and being yet 
 awake, thinking of his affairs (for by report he was 
 as careful a captain, and lived with as little sleep, as 
 ever man did) , he thought he heard a noise at his tent 
 door, and looking toward the light of the lamp that 
 waxed very dim, he saw a horrible vision of a man, 
 of a wonderful greatness, and dreadful look, which 
 at the first made him marvellously afraid. But 
 when he saw that it did him no hurt, but stood by his 
 bedside, and said nothing: at length he asked him 
 what he saw. The image answered him : I am thy ill 
 angel, Brutus, and thou shalt see me by the city of 
 Philippi. Then Brutus replied again, and said: 
 
 197 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Well, I shall see thee then. Therewithal, the spirit 
 presently vanished from him. After that time Brutus 
 being in battle near unto the city of Philippi, against 
 Antonius and Octavius Caesar, at the first battle he 
 won the victory, and overthrowing all them that 
 withstood him, he drove them into young Caesar's 
 camp, which he took. The second battle being at 
 hand, this spirit appeared again unto him, but spake 
 never a word. Thereupon Brutus knowing he 
 should die, did put himself to all hazard in battle, 
 but yet fighting could not be slain. So seeing his 
 men put to flight and overthrown, he ran unto a lit- 
 tle rock not far off, and there setting his sword's point 
 to his breast, fell upon it, and slew himself, but yet as 
 it is reported, with the help of his friend that de- 
 spatched him. 
 
 198 
 
SCOTS, WHA HAE WI' WALLACE BLED 
 
 SCOTS, wha hae wi' Wallace bled, 
 Scots, wham BRUCE has aften led, 
 Welcome to your gory bed, 
 
 Or to Victorie! 
 Now's the day, and now's the hour; 
 See the front o' battle lour; 
 See approach proud Edward's power- 
 Chains and Slaverie! 
 
 Wha will be a traitor knave? 
 Wha can fill a coward's grave? 
 Wha sae base as be a Slave? 
 
 Let him turn and flee! 
 Wha, for Scotland's King and Law, 
 Freedom's sword will strongly draw, 
 Free-man stand, or Free-man fa' 
 
 Let him on wi' me! 
 
 By Oppression's woes and pains! 
 By your sons in servile chains! 
 We will drain our dearest veins, 
 
 But they shall be free! 
 Lay the proud Usurpers low! 
 Tyrants fall in every foe! 
 Liberty's in every blow! — 
 
 Let us Do — or Die! 
 
 — Robert Burns 
 199 
 
TALES OF A GRANDFATHER 
 
 BY SIR WALTER SCOTT 
 THE STORY OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE 
 
 T TOLD you, my dear Hugh, that Edward the 
 * First of England had reduced Scotland almost 
 entirely to the condition of a conquered country, al- 
 though he had obtained possession of the kingdom 
 less by his bravery than by cunningly taking advan- 
 tage of the disputes and divisions that followed among 
 the Scots themselves after the death of Alexander the 
 Third. 
 
 The English, however, had in point of fact ob- 
 tained possession of the country, and governed it 
 with much rigor. The Lord High Justice Ormesby 
 called all men to account, who would not take the 
 oath of allegiance to King Edward. Many of the 
 Scots refused this, as what the English King had no 
 right to demand from them. Such persons were 
 called into the courts of justice, fined, deprived of 
 their estates, and otherwise severely punished. Then 
 Hugh Cressingham, the English Treasurer, tor- 
 mented the Scottish nation, by collecting money from 
 them under various pretexts. The Scots were al- 
 ways a poor people, and their native kings had treated 
 them with much kindness, and seldom required them 
 
 200 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 to pay any taxes. They were, therefore, extremely 
 enraged at finding themselves obliged to pay to the 
 English Treasurer much larger sums of money than 
 their own good kings had ever demanded from them; 
 and they became exceedingly dissatisfied. 
 
 Besides these modes of oppression, the English 
 soldiers, who, I told you, had been placed in garri- 
 son in the different castles of Scotland, thought them- 
 selves masters of the country, treated the Scots with 
 great contempt, took from them by main force what- 
 ever they had a fancy to, and if the owners offered to 
 resist, abused them, beat and wounded and some- 
 times killed them; for which acts of violence the 
 English officers did not check or punish their soldiers. 
 Scotland was, therefore, in great distress, and the in- 
 habitants, exceedingly enraged, only wanted some 
 leader to command them, to rise up in a body against 
 the English, or Southern men, as they called them, 
 and recover the liberty and independence of their 
 country, which had been destroyed by Edward the 
 First. 
 
 Such a leader arose in the person of WILLIAM 
 WALLACE, whose name is still so often mentioned in 
 Scotland. It is a great pity we do not know exactly 
 the history of this brave man ; for, at the time when 
 he lived, every one was so busy fighting, that there 
 was no person to write down the history of what took 
 place; and afterward, when there was more leisure 
 for composition, the truths that were collected were 
 
 20I 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 greatly mingled with falsehood. What I shall tell 
 you of him is generally believed to be true. 
 
 William Wallace was none of the high nobles of 
 Scotland, but the son of a private gentleman, called 
 Wallace of Ellerslie, in Renfrewshire, near Paisley. 
 He was very tall and handsome, and one of the 
 strongest and bravest men that ever lived. He had a 
 very fine countenance, with a quantity of fair hair, 
 and was particularly dexterous in the use of all weap- 
 ons which were then employed in battle. Wallace, 
 like all Scotsmen of high spirit, had looked with 
 great indignation upon the usurpation of the crown 
 by Edward, and upon the insolences which the En- 
 glish soldiers committed on his countrymen. It is 
 said, that when he was very young, he went a-fishing 
 for sport in the river of Irvine, near Ayr. He had 
 caught a good many trouts, which were carried by a 
 boy, who attended him with a fishing-basket, as is 
 usual with anglers. Two or three English soldiers, 
 who belonged to the garrison of Ayr, came up to 
 Wallace, and insisted, with their usual insolence, on 
 taking the fish from the boy. Wallace was con- 
 tented to allow them a part of the trouts, but he re- 
 fused to part with the whole basketful. The soldiers 
 insisted, and from words came to blows. Wallace 
 had no better weapon than the but-end of his fishing- 
 rod ; but he struck the foremost of the Englishmen so 
 hard under the ear with it that he killed him on the 
 spot; and getting possession of the slain man's sword, 
 
 202 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 he fought with so much fury that he put the others to 
 flight, and brought home his fish safe and sound. The 
 English governor of Ayr sought for him, to punish 
 him with death for this action; but Wallace lay con- 
 cealed among the hills and great woods till the mat- 
 ter was forgotten, and then appeared in another part 
 of the country. He is said to have had other adven- 
 tures of the same kind, in which he gallantly de- 
 fended himself, sometimes when alone, sometimes 
 with very few companions, against superior numbers 
 of the English, until at last his name became gen- 
 erally known as a terror to them. 
 
 But the action which occasioned his finally rising 
 in arms, is believed to have happened in the town of 
 Lanark. Wallace was at this time married to a lady 
 of that place, and residing there with his wife. It 
 chanced, as he walked in the market-place, dressed 
 in a green garment, with a rich dagger by his side, 
 that an Englishman came up and insulted him on 
 account of his finery, saying a Scotsman had no busi- 
 ness to wear so gay a dress, or carry so handsome a 
 weapon. It soon came to a quarrel, as on many for- 
 mer occasions; and Wallace, having killed the En- 
 glishman, fled to his own house, which was speedily 
 assaulted by all the English soldiers. While they 
 were endeavoring to force their way in at the front 
 of the house, Wallace escaped by a back door, and 
 got in safety to a rugged and rocky glen, near Lanark, 
 called the Cartland Crags, all covered with bushes 
 
 203 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and trees, and full of high precipices, where he knew 
 he should be safe from the pursuit of the English 
 soldiers. In the meantime, the governor of Lanark, 
 whose name was Hazelrigg, burned Wallace's house, 
 and put his wife and servants to death ; and by com- 
 mitting this cruelty, increased to the highest pitch, as 
 you may well believe, the hatred which the champion 
 had always borne against the English usurper. Ha- 
 zelrigg also proclaimed Wallace an outlaw, and of- 
 fered a reward to any one who should bring him to 
 an English garrison, alive or dead. 
 
 On the other hand, Wallace soon collected a body 
 of men, outlawed like himself, or willing to become 
 so, rather than any longer endure the oppression of 
 the English. One of his earliest expeditions was di- 
 rected against Hazelrigg, whom he killed, and thus 
 avenged the death of his wife. He fought skir- 
 mishes with the soldiers who were sent against him, 
 and often defeated them ; and in time became so well 
 known and so formidable, that multitudes began to 
 resort to his standard, until at length he was at the 
 head of a considerable army, with which he proposed 
 to restore his country to independence. 
 
 About this time is said to have taken place a mem- 
 orable event, which the Scottish people called the 
 Barns of Ayr. It is alleged that the English gov- 
 ernor of Ayr had invited the greater part of the Scot- 
 tish nobility and gentry in the western parts, to meet 
 him at some large buildings called the Barns of Ayr, 
 
 204 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 for the purpose of friendly conference upon the af- 
 fairs of the nation. But the English Earl enter- 
 tained the treacherous purpose of putting the Scottish 
 gentlemen to death. The English soldiers had hal- 
 ters with running nooses ready prepared, and hung 
 upon the beams which supported the roof; and as the 
 Scottish gentlemen were admitted by two and two at 
 a time, the nooses were thrown over their heads, and 
 they were pulled up by the neck, and thus hanged 
 or strangled to death. Among those who were slain 
 in this base and treacherous manner, was, it is said, 
 Sir Reginald Crawford, Sheriff of the county of Ayr, 
 and uncle to William Wallace. 
 
 When Wallace heard of what had befallen, he 
 was dreadfully enraged, and collecting his men in a 
 wood near the town of Ayr, he resolved to be re- 
 venged on the authors of this great crime. The En- 
 glish in the meanwhile made much feasting, and 
 when they had eaten and drank plentifully, they lay 
 down to sleep in the same large barns in which they 
 had murdered the Scottish gentlemen. But Wal- 
 lace, learning that they kept no guard or watch, not 
 suspecting there were any enemies so near them, di- 
 rected a woman who knew the place, to mark with 
 chalk the doors of the lodgings where the English- 
 men lay. Then he sent a party of men, who, with 
 strong ropes, made all the doors so fast on the out- 
 side, that those within could not open them. On the 
 outside the Scots had prepared heaps of straw, to 
 
 205 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 which they set fire, and the Barns of Ayr, being them- 
 selves made of wood, were soon burning in a bright 
 flame. Then the English were awakened, and en- 
 deavored to get out to save their lives. But the doors, 
 as I told you, were secured on the outside, and bound 
 fast with ropes ; and, besides, the blazing houses were 
 surrounded by the Scots, who forced those who got 
 out to run back into the fire, or else put them to death 
 on the spot; and thus great numbers perished miser- 
 ably. Many of the English were lodged in a con- 
 vent, but they had no better fortune than the others ; 
 for the Prior of the convent caused all the friars to 
 arm themselves, and, attacking the English guests, 
 they put most of them to the sword. This was called 
 the "Friar of Ayr's Blessing." We cannot tell if this 
 story of the Barns of Ayr be exactly true ; but it is 
 probable there is some foundation for it, as it is uni- 
 versally believed in that country. 
 
 Thus Wallace's party grew T daily stronger and 
 stronger, and many of the Scottish nobles joined with 
 him. Among these was Sir William Douglas, the 
 Lord of Douglasdale, and the head of a great family 
 often mentioned in Scottish history. There was also 
 Sir John the Grahame, who became Wallace's bosom 
 friend and greatest confidant. Many of these great 
 noblemen, however, deserted the cause of the country 
 on the approach of John de Warenne, Earl of Sur- 
 rey, the English governor, at the head of a numerous 
 and well-appointed army. They thought that Wal- 
 
 206 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 lace would be unable to withstand the attack of so 
 many, disciplined soldiers and hastened to submit 
 themselves to the English, for fear of losing their 
 estates. Wallace, however, remained undismayed, 
 and at the head of a considerable army. He had 
 taken up his camp upon the northern side of the river 
 Forth, near the town of Stirling. The river was there 
 crossed by a long wooden bridge, about a mile above 
 the spot where the present bridge is situated. 
 
 The English general approached the banks of 
 the river on the southern side. He sent two clergy- 
 men to offer a pardon to Wallace and his followers, 
 on condition that they should lay down their arms. 
 But such was not the purpose of the high-minded 
 champion of Scotland. 
 
 "Go back to Warenne," said Wallace, "and tell 
 him we value not the pardon of the King of England. 
 We are not here for the purpose of treating of peace, 
 but of abiding battle, and restoring freedom to our 
 country. Let the English come on; — we defy them 
 to their very beards!" 
 
 The English, upon hearing this haughty answer, 
 called loudly to be led to the attack. The Earl of 
 Surrey hesitated, for he was a skilful soldier, and he 
 saw that to approach the Scottish army, his troops 
 must pass over the long, narrow wooden bridge; so 
 that those who should get over first might be attacked 
 by Wallace with all his forces, before those who re- 
 mained behind could possibly come to their assist- 
 
 207 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 ance. He therefore inclined to delay the battle. But 
 Cressingham the Treasurer, who was ignorant and 
 presumptuous, insisted that it was their duty to fight, 
 and put an end to the war at once, and Surrey gave 
 way to his opinion, although Cressingham, being a 
 churchman, could not be so good a judge of what was 
 fitting as he himself, an experienced officer. 
 
 The English army began to cross the bridge, 
 Cressingham leading the van, or foremost division 
 of the army; for, in those military days, even clergy- 
 men wore armor and fought in battle. That took 
 place which Surrey had foreseen. Wallace suffered 
 a considerable part of the English army to pass the 
 bridge, without offering any opposition; but when 
 about one-half were over, and the bridgewas crowded 
 with those who were following, he charged those who 
 had crossed with his whole strength, slew a very great 
 number, and drove the rest into the river Forth, 
 where the greater part were drowned. The re- 
 mainder of the English army, who were left on the 
 southern bank of the river, fled in great confusion, 
 having first set fire to the wooden bridge, that the 
 Scots might not pursue them. Cressingham was 
 killed in the very beginning of the battle; and the 
 Scots detested him so much that they flayed the skin 
 from his dead body, and kept pieces of it, in memory 
 of the revenge they had taken upon the English 
 Treasurer. Some say they made saddle-girths of 
 this same skin; a purpose for which I do not think 
 
 208 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 it could be very fit. It must be owned to have been 
 a dishonorable thing of the Scots to insult thus the 
 dead body of their enemy, and shows that they must 
 have been then a ferocious and barbarous people. 
 
 The remains of Surrey's great army fled out of 
 Scotland after this defeat, and the Scots, taking arms 
 on all sides, attacked the castles in which the English 
 soldiers continued to shelter themselves, and took 
 most of them by force or stratagem. Many wonder- 
 ful stories are told of Wallace's exploits on these oc- 
 casions, some of which are no doubt true, while 
 others are either invented or very much exaggerated. 
 It seems certain, however, that he defeated the En- 
 glish in several combats, chased them almost en- 
 tirely out of Scotland, regained the towns and castles 
 of which they had possessed themselves, and recov- 
 ered for a time the complete freedom of the country. 
 He even marched into England and laid Cumber- 
 land and Northumberland waste, where the Scottish 
 soldiers, in revenge for the mischief which the En- 
 glish had done in their country, committed great 
 cruelties. Wallace did not approve of their killing 
 the pepole who were not in arms, and he endeavored 
 to protect the clergymen and others who were not 
 able to defend themselves. "Remain with me," he 
 said to the priests of Hexham, a large town in North- 
 umberland, a for I cannot protect you from my sol- 
 diers when you are out of my presence." — The 
 troops who followed Wallace received no pay, be- 
 
 209 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 cause he had no money to give them, and that was 
 one great reason why he could not keep them under 
 restraint, or prevent their doing much harm to the 
 defenceless country people. He remained in Eng- 
 land more than three weeks, and did a great deal of 
 mischief to the country. 
 
 Indeed, it appears that, though Wallace disap- 
 proved of slaying priests, women and children, he 
 partook of the ferocity of the times so much, as to 
 put to death without quarter all whom he found in 
 arms. In the north of Scotland the English had 
 placed a garrison in the strong Castle of Dunnottar, 
 which, built on a large and precipitous rock, over- 
 hangs the raging sea. Though the place is almost 
 inaccessible, Wallace and his followers found their 
 way into the castle, while the garrison in great terror 
 fled into the church or chapel, which was built on the 
 very verge of the precipice. This did not save them, 
 for Wallace caused the church to be set on fire. The 
 terrified garrison, involved in the flames, ran some 
 of them upon the points of the Scottish swords, while 
 others threw themselves from the precipice into the 
 sea and swam along to the cliffs, where they hung 
 like sea-fowl, screaming in vain for mercy and as- 
 sistance. 
 
 The followers of Wallace were frightened at this 
 dreadful scene, and falling on their knees before the 
 priests who chanced to be in the army, they asked 
 forgiveness for having committed so much slaughter 
 
 210 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 within the limits of a church dedicated to the service 
 of God. But Wallace had so deep a sense of the in- 
 juries which the English had done to his country that 
 he only laughed at the contrition of his soldiers. — 
 "I will absolve you all myself," he said. "Are you 
 Scottish soldiers, and do you repent for a trifle like 
 this, which is not half what the invaders deserved at 
 our hands?" So deep-seated was Wallace's feeling 
 of national resentment that it seems to have overcome 
 in such instances the scruples of a temper which was 
 naturally humane. 
 
 Edward I. was in Flanders when all these events 
 took place. You may suppose he was very angry 
 when he learned that Scotland, which he thought 
 completely subdued, had risen into a great insurrec- 
 tion against him, defeated his armies, killed his 
 Treasurer, chased his soldiers out of their country, 
 and invaded England with a great force. He came 
 back from Flanders in a mighty rage, and deter- 
 mined not to leave that rebellious country until it was 
 finally conquered, for which purpose he assembled 
 a very fine army and marched into Scotland. 
 
 In the meantime the Scots prepared to defend 
 themselves, and chose Wallace to be Governor, or 
 Protector of the kingdom, because they had no King 
 at the time. He was now titled Sir William Wal- 
 lace, Protector, or Governor, of the Scottish nation. 
 But although Wallace, as we have seen, was the best 
 soldier and bravest man in Scotland, and therefore 
 
 211 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the most fit to be placed in command at this critical 
 period, when the King of England was coming 
 against them with such great forces, yet the nobles of 
 Scotland envied him this important situation, because 
 he was not a man born in high rank, or enjoying a 
 large estate. So great was their jealousy of Sir 
 William Wallace, that many of these great barons 
 did not seem very willing to bring forward their 
 forces, or fight against the English, because they 
 would not have a man of inferior condition to be gen- 
 eral. This was base and mean conduct, and it was 
 attended with great disasters to Scotland. Yet, not- 
 withstanding this unwillingness of the great nobility 
 to support him, Wallace assembled a large army; for 
 the middling, but especially the lower classes, were 
 very much attached to him. He marched boldly 
 against the King of England, and met him near the 
 town of Falkirk. Most of the Scottish army were 
 on foot, because, as I already told you, in those days 
 only the nobility and great men of Scotland fought 
 on horseback. The English King, on the contrary, 
 had a very large body of the finest cavalry in the 
 world, Normans and English, all clothed in com- 
 plete armor. He had also the celebrated archers of 
 England, each of whom was said to carry twelve 
 Scotsmen's lives under his girdle; because every 
 archer had twelve arrows stuck in his belt, and was 
 expected to kill a man with every arrow. 
 
 The Scots had some good archers from the Forest 
 
 212 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 of Ettrick, who fought under command of Sir John 
 Stewart of Bonkill; but they were not nearly equal 
 in number to the English. The greater part of the 
 Scottish army were on foot, armed with long spears; 
 they were placed thick and close together, and laid 
 all their spears so close, point over point, that it 
 seemed as difficult to break through them, as through 
 the wall of a strong castle. When the two armies 
 were drawn up facing each other, Wallace said to his 
 soldiers, "I have brought you to the ring, let me see 
 how you can dance" ; meaning, I have brought you to 
 the decisive field of battle, let me see how bravely 
 you can fight. 
 
 The English made the attack. King Edward, 
 though he saw the close ranks, and undaunted ap- 
 pearance, of the Scottish infantry, resolved never- 
 theless to try whether he could not ride them down 
 with his fine cavalry. He therefore gave his horse- 
 men orders to advance. They charged accordingly, 
 at full gallop. It must have been a terrible thing to 
 have seen these fine horses riding as hard as they 
 could against the long lances, which were held out 
 by the Scots to keep them back; and a dreadful cry 
 arose when they came against each other. 
 
 The first line of cavalry was commanded by 
 the Earl Marshal of England, whose progress was 
 checked by a morass. The second line of English 
 horse was commanded by Antony Beck, the Bishop 
 of Durham, who, nevertheless, wore armor, and 
 
 213 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 fought like a lay baron. He wheeled round the 
 morass; but when he saw the deep and firm order of 
 the Scots, his heart failed, and he proposed to Sir 
 Ralph Basset of Drayton, who commanded under 
 him, to halt till Edward himself brought up the re- 
 serve. "Go say your mass, Bishop," answered Bas- 
 set contemptuously, and advanced at full gallop with 
 the second line. However, the Scots stood their 
 ground with their long spears; many of the foremost 
 of the English horses were thrown down, and the 
 riders were killed as they lay rolling, unable to rise, 
 owing to the weight of their heavy armor. But the 
 Scottish horse did not come to the assistance of their 
 infantry, but, on the contrary, fled away from the 
 battle. It is supposed that this was owing to the 
 treachery or ill-will of the nobility, who were jealous 
 of Wallace. But it must be considered that the Scot- 
 tish cavalry were few in number; and that they had 
 much worse arms, and weaker horses, than their en- 
 emies. The English cavalry attempted again and 
 again to disperse the deep and solid ranks in which 
 Wallace had stationed his foot soldiers. But they 
 were repeatedly beaten off with loss, nor could they 
 make their way through that wood of spears, as it 
 is called by one of the English historians. King Ed- 
 ward then commanded his archers to advance ; and 
 these approaching within arrow-shot of the Scottish 
 ranks, poured on them such close and dreadful vol- 
 leys of arrows, that it was impossible to sustain the 
 
 214 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 discharge. It happened at the same time that Sir 
 John Stewart was killed by a fall from his horse; and 
 the archers of Ettrick Forest, whom he was bringing 
 forward to oppose those of King Edward, were slain 
 in great numbers around him. Their bodies were 
 afterward distinguished among the slain, as being 
 the tallest and handsomest men of the army. 
 
 The Scottish spearmen being thus thrown into 
 some degree of confusion, by the loss of those who 
 were slain by the arrows of the English, the heavy 
 cavalry of Edward again charged with more success 
 than formerly, and broke through the ranks, which 
 were already disordered. Sir John Grahame, Wal- 
 lace's great friend and companion, was slain, with 
 many other brave soldiers; and the Scots, having lost 
 a very great number of men, were at length obliged 
 to take to flight. 
 
 This fatal battle was fought upon the twenty-sec- 
 ond of July, 1298. Sir John the Grahame lies buried 
 in the churchyard of Falkirk. A tombstone was laid 
 over him, which has been three times renewed since 
 his death. The inscription bears, "That Sir John 
 the Grahame, equally remarkable for wisdom and 
 courage, and the faithful friend of Wallace, being 
 slain in battle by the English, lies buried in this 
 place." A larke oak-tree in the adjoining forest was 
 long shown as marking the spot where Wallace slept 
 before the battle, or, as others said, in which he hid 
 himself after the defeat. Nearly forty years ago, 
 
 215 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Grandpapa saw some of its roots ; but the body of the 
 tree was even then entirely decayed, and there is not 
 now, and has not been for many years, the least ves- 
 tige of it to be seen. 
 
 After this fatal defeat of Falkirk, Sir William 
 Wallace seems to have resigned his office of Gov- 
 ernor of Scotland. Several nobles were named 
 Guardians in his place, and continued to make re- 
 sistance to the English armies ; and they gained some 
 advantages, particularly near Roslin, where a body 
 of Scots, commanded by John Comyn of Badenoch, 
 who was one of the Guardians of the kingdom, and 
 another distinguished commander, called Simon 
 Fraser, defeated three armies, or detachments, of 
 English in one day. 
 
 Nevertheless, the King of England possessed so 
 much wealth, and so many means of raising soldiers, 
 that he sent army after army into the poor oppressed 
 country of Scotland, and obliged all its nobles and 
 great men, one after another, to submit themselves 
 once more to his yoke. Sir William Wallace, alone, 
 or with a very small band of followers, refused either 
 to acknowledge the usurper Edward, or to lay down 
 his arms. He continued to maintain himself among 
 the woods and mountains of his native country for no 
 less than seven years after his defeat at Falkirk, and 
 for more than one year after all the other defenders 
 of Scottish liberty had laid down their arms. Many 
 proclamations were sent out against him by the En- 
 
 216 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 glish, and a great reward was set upon his head; for 
 Edward did not think he could have any secure pos- 
 session of his usurped kingdom of Scotland while 
 Wallace lived. At length he was taken prisoner; 
 and, shame it is to say, a Scotsman, called Sir John 
 Menteith, was the person by whom he was seized and 
 delivered to the English. It is generally said that he 
 was made prisoner at Robroyston, near Glasgow; 
 and the tradition of the country bears, that the signal 
 made for rushing upon him and taking him at un- 
 awares, was, when one of his pretended friends, who 
 betrayed him, should turn a loaf, which was placed 
 on the table, with its bottom or flat side uppermost. 
 And in after times it was reckoned ill-breeding to 
 turn a loaf in that manner, if there was a person 
 named Menteith in company; since it was as much 
 as to remind him that his namesake had betrayed Sir 
 William Wallace, the Champion of Scotland. 
 
 Whether Sir John Menteith was actually the per- 
 son by whom Wallace was betrayed is not perfectly 
 certain. He was, however, the individual by whom 
 the patriot was made prisoner and delivered up to 
 the English, for which his name and his memory 
 have been long loaded with disgrace. 
 
 Edward, having thus obtained possession of the 
 person whom he considered as the greatest obstacle 
 to his complete conquest of Scotland, resolved to 
 make Wallace an example to all Scottish patriots 
 who should in future venture to oppose his ambitious 
 
 217 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 projects. He caused this gallant defender of his 
 country to be brought to trial in Westminster Hall, 
 before the English judges, and produced him there, 
 crowned in mockery, with a green garland, because 
 they said he had been king of outlaws and robbers 
 among the Scottish woods. Wallace was accused of 
 having been a traitor to the English crown; to which 
 he answered, "I could not be a traitor to Edward, for 
 I was never his subject." He was then charged with 
 having taken and burned towns and castles, with hav- 
 ing killed many men and done much violence. He 
 replied, with the same calm resolution, "that it was 
 true he had killed very many Englishmen, but it was 
 because they had come to subdue and oppress his na- 
 tive country of Scotland; and far from repenting 
 what he had done, he declared he was only sorry that 
 he had not put to death many more of them." 
 
 Notwithstanding that Wallace's defence was a 
 good one, both in law and in common sense (for 
 surely every one has not only a right to fight in de- 
 fence of his native country, but is bound in duty to 
 do so), the English judges condemned him to be exe- 
 cuted. So this brave patriot was dragged upon a 
 sledge to the place of execution, where his head was 
 struck off, and his body divided into four quarters, 
 which, according to the cruel custom of the time, 
 were exposed upon spikes of iron on London Bridge, 
 and were termed the limbs of a traitor. 
 
 No doubt King Edward thought that by exercis- 
 
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Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 ing this great severity toward so distinguished a 
 patriot as Sir William Wallace, he should terrify all 
 the Scots into obedience, and so be able in future to 
 reign over their country without resistance. But 
 though Edward was a powerful, a brave, and a wise 
 king, and though he took the most cautious, as well 
 as the most strict measures, to preserve the obedience 
 of Scotland, yet his claim, being founded in injustice 
 and usurpation, was not permitted by Providence to 
 be established in security or peace. Sir William 
 Wallace, that immortal supporter of the indepen- 
 dence of his country, was no sooner deprived of his 
 life, in the cruel and unjust manner I have told you, 
 than other patriots arose to assert the cause of Scot- 
 tish liberty. 
 
 THE RISE OF ROBERT THE BRUCE 
 
 I HOPE, my dear child, that you have not forgot- 
 ten that all the cruel wars in Scotland arose out of 
 the debate between the great lords who claimed the 
 throne after King Alexander the Third's death, which 
 induced the Scottish nobility rashly to submit the 
 decision of that matter to King Edward of England, 
 and thus opened the way to his endeavoring to seize 
 the kingdom of Scotland to himself. You recollect 
 also, that Edward had dethroned John Baliol, on 
 account of his attempting to restore the independence 
 
 219 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of Scotland; and that Baliol had resigned the crown 
 of Scotland into the hands of Edward as Lord Para- 
 mount. This John Baliol, therefore, was very little 
 respected in Scotland; he had renounced the king- 
 dom, and had been absent from it for fifteen years, 
 during the greater part of which time he remained 
 a prisoner in the hands of the King of England. 
 
 It was therefore natural that such of the people 
 as were still determined to fight for the deliverance 
 of their country from the English yoke, should look 
 around for some other king, under whom they might 
 unite themselves, to combat the power of England. 
 The feeling was universal in Scotland, that they 
 would not any longer endure the English govern- 
 ment; and therefore such great Scottish nobles as 
 believed they had right to the crown, began to think 
 of standing forward to claim it. 
 
 Among these, the principal candidates (suppos- 
 ing John Baliol, by his renunciation and captivity, 
 to have lost all right to the kingdom) were two pow- 
 erful noblemen. The first was ROBERT BRUCE, Earl 
 of Carrick, the grandson of that elder Robert Bruce, 
 who disputed the throne with John Baliol. The 
 other was John Comyn, or Cuming, of Badenoch, 
 usually called the Red Comyn, to distinguish him 
 from his kinsman, the Black Comyn, so named from 
 his swarthy complexion. These two great and pow- 
 erful barons had taken part with Sir William Wal- 
 lace in the wars against England ; but, after the de- 
 
 220 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 feat of Falkirk, being fearful of losing their great 
 estates, and considering the freedom of Scotland as 
 beyond the possibility of being recovered, both Bruce 
 and Comyn had not only submitted themselves to 
 Edward, and acknowledged his title as King of 
 Scotland, but even borne arms, along with the En- 
 glish, against such of their countrymen as still con- 
 tinued to resist the usurper. But the feelings of 
 Bruce concerning the baseness of this conduct, are 
 said, by the old tradition of Scotland, to have been 
 awakened by the following incident. In one of the 
 numerous battles, or skirmishes, which took place at 
 the time between the English and their adherents on 
 the one side, and the insurgent or patriotic Scots upon 
 the other, Robert the Bruce was present, and assisted 
 the English to gain the victory. After the battle was 
 over, he sat down to dinner among his southern 
 friends and allies, without washing his hands, on 
 which there still remained spots of the blood which 
 he had shed during the action. The English lords, 
 observing this, whispered to each other in mockery, 
 "Look at that Scotsman,who is eating his own blood!" 
 Bruce heard what they said, and began to reflect that 
 the blood upon his hands might be indeed called his 
 own, since it was that of his brave countrymen, who 
 were fighting for the independence of Scotland, 
 while he was assisting its oppressors, who only 
 laughed at and mocked him for his unnatural con- 
 duct. He was so much shocked and disgusted, that 
 
 221 
 8— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 he arose from table, and, going into a neighboring 
 chapel, shed many tears, and asking pardon of God 
 for the great crime he had been guilty of, made a 
 solemn vow that he would atone for it, by doing all 
 in his power to deliver Scotland from the foreign 
 yoke. Accordingly, he left, it is said, the English 
 army, and never joined it again, but remained watch- 
 ing an opportunity for restoring the freedom of his 
 country. 
 
 Now, this Robert the Bruce was a remarkably 
 brave and strong man; there was no man in Scotland 
 that was thought a match for him except Sir William 
 Wallace; and now that Wallace was dead, Bruce 
 was held the best warrior in Scotland. He was very 
 wise and prudent, and an excellent general; that is, 
 he knew how to conduct an army, and place them in 
 order for battle, as well or better than any great man 
 of his time. He was generous, too, and courteous 
 by nature; but he had some faults, which perhaps 
 belonged as much to the fierce period in which he 
 lived as to his own character. He was rash and pas- 
 sionate, and in his passion, he was sometimes relent- 
 less and cruel. 
 
 Robert the Bruce had fixed his purpose, as I told 
 you, to attempt once again to drive the English out 
 of Scotland, and he desired to prevail upon Sir John 
 the Red Comyn, who was his rival in his pretensions 
 to the throne, to join with him in expelling the for- 
 eign enemy by their common efforts. With this 
 
 222 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 purpose, Bruce posted down from London to Dum- 
 fries, on the borders of Scotland, and requested an 
 interview with John Comyn. They met in the church 
 of the Minorites in that town, before the high altar. 
 What passed between them is not known with cer- 
 tainty; but they quarrelled, either concerning their 
 mutual pretensions to the crown, or because Comyn 
 refused to join Bruce in the proposed insurrection 
 against the English ; or, as many writers say, because 
 Bruce charged Comyn with having betrayed to the 
 English his purpose of rising up against King Ed- 
 ward. It is, however, certain that these two haughty 
 barons came to high and abusive words, until at 
 length Bruce, who I told you was extremely passion- 
 ate, forgot the sacred character of the place in which 
 they stood, and struck Comyn a blow with his dagger. 
 Having done this rash deed, he instantly ran out of 
 the church and called for his horse. Two gentle- 
 men of the country, Lindesay and Kirkpatrick, 
 friends of Bruce, were then in attendance on him. 
 Seeing him pale, bloody, and in much agitation, 
 they eagerly inquired what was the matter. 
 
 "I doubt," said Bruce, "that I have slain the Red 
 Comyn." 
 
 "Do you leave such a matter in doubt?" said 
 Kirkpatrick. "I will make sicker!" — that is, I will 
 make certain. 
 
 Accordingly, he and his companion Lindesay 
 rushed into the church, and made the matter cer- 
 
 223 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 tain with a vengeance, by despatching the wounded 
 Comyn with their daggers. His uncle, Sir Robert 
 Comyn, was slain at the same time. 
 
 This slaughter of Comyn was a rash and cruel 
 action; and the historian of Bruce observes that it 
 was followed by the displeasure of Heaven; for no 
 man ever went through more misfortunes than Rob- 
 ert Bruce, although he at length rose to great honor. 
 
 After the deed was done, Bruce might be called 
 desperate. He had committed an action which was 
 sure to bring down upon him the vengeance of all 
 Comyn's relations, the resentment of the King of 
 England, and the displeasure of the Church, on ac- 
 count of having slain his enemy within consecrated 
 ground. He determined, therefore, to bid them all 
 defiance at once, and to assert his pretensions to the 
 throne of Scotland. He drew his own followers 
 together, summoned to meet him such barons as still 
 entertained hopes of the freedom of the country, and 
 was crowned king at the Abbey of Scone, the usual 
 place where the kings of Scotland assumed their 
 authority. 
 
 Everything relating to the ceremony was hastily 
 performed. A small circlet of gold was hurriedly 
 made, to represent the ancient crown of Scotland, 
 which Edward had carried off to England. The 
 Earl of Fife, descendant of the brave Macduff, whose 
 duty it was to have placed the crown on the king's 
 head, would not give his attendance, but the cere- 
 
 224 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 monial was performed by his sister, Isabella, Coun- 
 tess of Buchan, though without the consent either of 
 her brother or husband. A few barons, whose names 
 ought to be dear to their country, joined Bruce in his 
 attempt to vindicate the independence of Scotland. 
 
 Edward was dreadfully incensed when he heard 
 that, after all the pains which he had taken, and all 
 the blood which had been spilled, the Scots were 
 making this new attempt to shake off his authority. 
 Though now old, feeble, and sickly, he made a sol- 
 emn vow, at a great festival, in presence of all his 
 court, that he would take the most ample vengeance 
 upon Robert the Bruce and his adherents; afterwhich 
 he would never again draw a sword upon a Chris- 
 tian, but would only fight against the unbelieving 
 Saracens for the recovery of the Holy Land. He 
 marched against Bruce accordingly, at the head of 
 a powerful army. 
 
 The commencement of Bruce's undertaking was 
 most disastrous. He was crowned on the twenty- 
 ninth of March, 1306. On the eighteenth of May 
 he was excommunicated by the Pope, on account of 
 the murder of Comyn within consecrated ground, a 
 sentence which excluded him from all benefits of 
 religion, and authorized any one to kill him. Fi- 
 nally, on the nineteenth of June, the new king was 
 completely defeated near Methven by the English 
 Earl of Pembroke. Robert's horse was killed under 
 him in the action, and he was for a moment a pris- 
 
 225 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 oner. But he had fallen into the power of a Scottish 
 knight, who, though he served in the English army, 
 did not choose to be the instrument of putting Bruce 
 into their hands, and allowed him to escape. The 
 conquerors executed their prisoners with their usual 
 cruelty. Among these were some gallant young men 
 of the first Scottish families — Hay, ancestor of the 
 Earls of Errol, Somerville, Fraser, and others, who 
 were mercilessly put to death. 
 
 Bruce, with a few brave adherents, among whom 
 was the young Lord of Douglas, who was afterward 
 called the Good Lord James, retired into the High- 
 land mountains, where they were chased from one 
 place of refuge to another, often in great danger, 
 and suffering many hardships. The Bruce's wife, 
 now Queen of Scotland, with several other ladies, 
 accompanied her husband and his few followers dur- 
 ing their wanderings. There was no other way of 
 providing for them save by hunting and fishing. It 
 was remarked that Douglas was the most active and 
 successful in procuring for the unfortunate ladies 
 such supplies as his dexterity in fishing or in killing 
 deer could furnish to them. 
 
 Driven from one place in the Highlands to an- 
 other, starved out of some districts, and forced from 
 others by the opposition of the inhabitants, Bruce 
 attempted to force his way into Lorn ; but he found 
 enemies everywhere. The M'Dougals, a powerful 
 family, then called Lords of Lorn, were friendly to 
 
 226 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 the English, and putting their men in arms, attacked 
 Bruce and his wandering companions as soon as they 
 attempted to enter their territory. The chief of these 
 M'Dougals, called John of Lorn, hated Bruce on 
 account of his having slain the Red Comyn in the 
 church at Dumfries, to whom this M'Dougal was 
 nearly related. Bruce was again defeated by this 
 chief, through force of numbers, at a place called 
 Dairy; but he showed, amid his misfortunes, the 
 greatness of his strength and courage. He directed 
 his men to retreat through a narrow pass, and placing 
 himself last of the party, he fought with and slew such 
 of the enemy as attempted to press hard on them. 
 Three followers of M'Dougal, a father and two sons, 
 called M'Androsser, all very strong men, when they 
 saw Bruce thus protecting the retreat of his fol- 
 lowers, made a vow that they would either kill this 
 redoubted champion, or make him prisoner. The 
 whole three rushed on the king at once. Bruce was 
 on horseback, in the strait pass we have described, 
 between a precipitous rock and a deep lake. He 
 struck the first man who came up and seized his 
 horse's rein, such a blow with his sword, as cut off 
 his hand and freed the bridle. The man bled to 
 death. The other brother had grasped Bruce in the 
 meantime by the leg, and was attempting to throw 
 him from horseback. The king, setting spurs to his 
 horse, made the animal suddenly spring forward, so 
 that the Highlander fell under the horse's feet, and, 
 
 227 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 as he was endeavoring to rise again, Bruce cleft his 
 head in two with his sword. The father, seeing his 
 two sons thus slain, flew desperately at the king, and 
 grasped him by the mantle so close to his body that 
 he could not have room to wield his long sword. But 
 with the heavy pommel of that weapon, or, as others 
 say, with an iron hammer which hung at his saddle- 
 bow, the king struck his third assailant so dreadful 
 a blow, that he dashed out his brains. Still, how- 
 ever, the Highlander kept his dying grasp on the 
 king's mantle ; so that, to be freed of the dead body, 
 Bruce was obliged to undo the brooch, or clasp, by 
 which it was fastened, and leave that, and the mantle 
 itself, behind him. The brooch, which fell thus into 
 the possession of M'Dougal of Lorn, is still preserved 
 in that ancient family, as a memorial that the cele- 
 brated Robert Bruce once narrowly escaped falling 
 into the hands of their ancestor. Robert greatly re- 
 sented this attack upon him; and when he was in 
 happier circumstances did not fail to take his re- 
 venge on M'Dougal, or, as he is usually called, John 
 of Lorn. 
 
 The king met with many such encounters amid 
 his dangerous and dismal wanderings; yet, though 
 almost always defeated by the superior numbers of 
 the English, and of such Scots as sided with them, 
 he still kept up his own spirits and those of his fol- 
 lowers. He was a better scholar than was usual 
 in those days, when, except clergymen, few people 
 
 228 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 learned to read and write. But King Robert could 
 do both very well; and we are told that he some- 
 times read aloud to his companions, to amuse them 
 when they were crossing the great Highland lakes 
 in such wretched leaky boats as they could find for 
 that purpose. Loch Lomond, in particular, is said 
 to have been the scene of such a lecture. You may 
 see by this how useful it is to possess knowledge 
 and accomplishments. If Bruce could not have read 
 to his associates, and diverted their thoughts from 
 their dangers and sufferings, he might not perhaps 
 have been able to keep up their spirits, or secure 
 their continued attachment. 
 
 At last dangers increased so much around the 
 brave King Robert, that he was obliged to separate 
 himself from his queen and her ladies; for the win- 
 ter was coming on, and it would be impossible for the 
 women to endure this wandering sort of life when 
 the frost and snow should set in. So Bruce left his 
 queen, with the Countess of Buchan and others, in 
 the only castle which remained to him, which was 
 called Kildrummie, and is situated near the head of 
 the river Don in Aberdeenshire. The king also left 
 his youngest brother, Nigel Bruce, to defend the 
 castle against the English; and he himself, with his 
 second brother Edward, who was a very brave man, 
 but still more rash and passionate than Robert him- 
 self, went over to an island called Rachrin, on the 
 coast of Ireland, where Bruce and the few men who 
 
 229 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 followed his fortunes passed the winter of 1306. In 
 the meantime, ill luck seemed to pursue all his 
 friends in Scotland. The castle of Kildrummie was 
 taken by the English, and Nigel Bruce, a beautiful 
 and brave youth, was cruelly put to death by the 
 victors. The ladies who had attended on Robert's 
 queen, as well as the queen herself, and the Countess 
 of Buchan, were thrown into strict confinement, and 
 treated with the utmost severity. 
 
 The Countess of Buchan, as I before told you, 
 had given Edward great offence by being the person 
 who placed the crown on the head of Robert Bruce. 
 She was imprisoned within the Castle of Berwick, 
 in a cage made on purpose. Some Scottish authors 
 have pretended that this cage was hung over the 
 walls with the poor countess, like a parrot's cage out 
 at a window. But this is their own ignorant idea. 
 The cage of the Lady Buchan was a strong wooden 
 and iron piece of frame-work, placed within an 
 apartment, and resembling one of those places in 
 which wild beasts are confined. There were such 
 cages in most old prisons to which captives were 
 consigned, who, either for mutiny, or any other 
 reason, were to be confined with peculiar rigor. 
 
 The news of the taking of Kildrummie, the cap- 
 tivity of his wife, and the execution of his brother, 
 reached Bruce while he was residing in a miserable 
 dwelling at Rachrin, and reduced him to the point 
 of despair. 
 
 230 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 It was about this time that an incident took place, 
 which, although it rests only on tradition in families 
 of the name of Bruce, is rendered probable by the 
 manners of the times. After receiving the last un- 
 pleasing intelligence from Scotland, Bruce was lying 
 one morning on his wretched bed, and deliberating 
 with himself whether he had not better resign all 
 thoughts of again attempting to make good his right 
 to the Scottish crown, and, dismissing his followers, 
 transport himself and his brothers to the Holy Land, 
 and spend the rest of his life in fighting against the 
 Saracens; by which he thought, perhaps, he might 
 deserve the forgiveness of Heaven for the great sin 
 of stabbing Comyn in the church at Dumfries. But 
 then, on the other hand, he thought it would be both 
 criminal and cowardly to give up his attempts to re- 
 store freedom to Scotland while there yet remained 
 the least chance of his being successful in an under- 
 taking, which, rightly considered, was much more 
 his duty than to drive the infidels out of Palestine, 
 though the superstition of his age might think other- 
 wise. 
 
 While he was divided between these reflections, 
 and doubtful of what he should do, Bruce was look- 
 ing upward to the roof of the cabin in which he lay; 
 and his eye was attracted by a spider, which, hang- 
 ing at the end of a long thread of its own spinning, 
 was endeavoring, as is the fashion of that creature, 
 to swing itself from one beam in the roof to another, 
 
 231 
 

 Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 for the purpose of fixing the line on which it meant 
 to stretch its web. The insect made the attempt 
 again and again without success; at length Bruce 
 counted that it had tried to carry its point six times, 
 and been as often unable to do so. It came into his 
 head that he had himself fought just six battles 
 against the English and their allies, and that the 
 poor persevering spider was exactly in the same 
 situation with himself, having made as many trials 
 and been as often disappointed in what it aimed at. 
 "Now," thought Bruce, "as I have no means of 
 knowing what is best to be done, I will be guided 
 by the luck which shall attend this spider. If the 
 insect shall make another effort to fix its thread, and 
 shall be successful, I will venture a seventh time to 
 try my fortune in Scotland; but if the spider shall 
 fail, I will go to the wars in Palestine, and never 
 return to my native country more." 
 
 While Bruce was forming this resolution the 
 spider made another exertion with all the force it 
 could muster, and fairly succeeded in fastening its 
 thread to the beam which it had so often in vain 
 attempted to reach. Bruce, seeing the success of the 
 spider, resolved to try his own fortune ; and as he had 
 never before gained a victory, so he never afterward 
 sustained any considerable or decisive check or de- 
 feat. I have often met with people of the name of 
 Bruce, so completely persuaded of the truth of this 
 story, that they would not on any account kill a 
 
 232 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 spider, because it was that insect which had shown 
 the example of perseverance, and given a signal of 
 good luck, to their great namesake. 
 
 Having determined to renew his efforts to obtain 
 possession of Scotland, notwithstanding the smallness 
 of the means which he had for accomplishing so great 
 a purpose, the Bruce removed himself and his fol- 
 lowers from Rachrin to the island of Arran, which 
 lies in the mouth of the Clyde. The king landed 
 and inquired of the first woman he met what armed 
 men were in the island. She returned for answer 
 that there had arrived there very lately a body of 
 armed strangers, who had defeated an English offi- 
 cer, the governor of the castle of Brathwick, had 
 killed him and most of his men, and were now 
 amusing themselves with hunting about the island. 
 The king, having caused himself to be guided to the 
 woods which these strangers most frequented, there 
 blew his horn repeatedly. Now, the chief of the 
 strangers who had taken the castle was James Doug- 
 las, whom we have already mentioned as one of the 
 best of Bruce's friends, and he was accompanied by 
 some of the bravest of that patriotic band. When 
 he heard Robert Bruce's horn, he knew the sound 
 well, and cried out, that yonder was the king, he 
 knew by his manner of blowing. So he and his com- 
 panions hastened to meet King Robert, and there was 
 great joy on both sides ; while at the same time they 
 could not help weeping when they considered their 
 
 3-33 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 own forlorn condition, and the great loss that had 
 taken place among their friends since they had last 
 parted. But they were stout-hearted men, and looked 
 forward to freeing their country in spite of all that 
 had yet happened. 
 
 The Bruce was now within sight of Scotland, and 
 not distant from his own family possessions, where 
 the people were most likely to be attached to him. 
 He began immediately to form plans with Douglas 
 how they might best renew their enterprise against 
 the English. The Douglas resolved to go disguised 
 to his own country, and raise his followers in order 
 to begin their enterprise by taking revenge on an 
 English nobleman called Lord Clifford, upon whom 
 Edward had conferred his estates, and who had taken 
 up his residence in the castle of Douglas. 
 
 Bruce, on his part, opened a communication with 
 the opposite coast of Carrick, by means of one of his 
 followers called Cuthbert. This person had direc- 
 tions, that if he should find the countrymen in Car- 
 rick disposed to take up arms against the English he 
 was to make a fire on a headland, or lofty cape, called 
 Turnberry, on the coast of Ayrshire, opposite to the 
 island of Arran. The appearance of a fire on this 
 place was to be a signal for Bruce to put to sea with 
 such men as he had, who were not more than three 
 hundred in number, for the purpose of landing in 
 Carrick and joining the insurgents. 
 
 Bruce and his mm watched eagerly for the sig- 
 
 234 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 nal, but for some time in vain. At length a fire on 
 Turnberry-head became visible, and the king and 
 his followers merrily betook themselves to their ships 
 and galleys, concluding their Carrick friends were 
 all in arms and ready to join with them. They land- 
 ed on the beach at midnight, where they found their 
 spy Cuthbert alone in waiting for them with very 
 bad news. Lord Percy, he said, was in the country 
 with two or three hundred Englishmen, and had ter- 
 rified the people so much, both by actions and threats, 
 that none of them dared to think of rebelling against 
 King Edward. 
 
 "Traitor!" said Bruce, "why, then, did you make 
 the signal?" 
 
 "Alas," replied Cuthbert, "the fire was not made 
 by me, but by some other person* for what purpose I 
 know not; but as soon as I saw it burning, I knew 
 that you would come over, thinking it my signal, and 
 therefore I came down to wait for you on the beach 
 to tell you how the matter stood." 
 
 King Robert's first idea was to return to Arran 
 after this disappointment; but his brother Edward 
 refused to go back. He was, as I have told you, a 
 man daring even to rashness. "I will not leave my 
 native land," he said, "now that I am so unexpect- 
 edly restored to it. I will give freedom to Scotland, 
 or leave my carcass on the surface of the land which 
 gave me birth." 
 
 Bruce, also, after some hesitation, determined that 
 
 2 35 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 since he had been thus brought to the mainland of 
 Scotland, he would remain there, and take such ad- 
 venture and fortune as Heaven should send him. 
 
 Accordingly, he began to skirmish with the En- 
 glish so successfully, as obliged the Lord Percy to 
 quit Carrick. Bruce then dispersed his men upon 
 various adventures against the enemy, in which they 
 were generally successful. But then, on the other 
 hand, the king, being left with small attendance, or 
 sometimes almost alone, ran great risk of losing his 
 life by treachery or by open violence. Several of 
 these incidents are very interesting. I will tell you 
 some of them. 
 
 At one time, a near relation of Bruce's, in whom 
 he entirely confided, was induced by the bribes of the 
 English to attempt to put him to death. This vil- 
 lain, with his two sons, watched the king one morn- 
 ing, till he saw him separated from all his men, ex- 
 cepting a little boy, who waited on him as a page. 
 The father had a sword in his hand, one of the sons 
 had a sword and a spear, and the other had a sword 
 and a battle-axe. Now, when the king saw them so 
 well armed, when there were no enemies near, he 
 began to call to mind some hints which had been 
 given to him, that these men intended to murder 
 him. He had no weapons excepting his sword; but 
 his page had a bow and arrow. He took them both 
 from the little boy, and bade him stand at a distance; 
 "for," said the king, "if I overcome these traitors, 
 
 236 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 thou shalt have enough of weapons; but if I am slain 
 by them, you may make your escape, and tell Doug- 
 las and my brother to revenge my death." The boy 
 was very sorry, for he loved his master; but he was 
 obliged to do as he was bidden. 
 
 In the meantime the traitors came forward upon 
 Bruce, that they might assault him at once. The 
 king called out to them, and commanded them to 
 come no nearer, upon peril of their lives; but the 
 father answered with flattering words, pretending 
 great kindness, and still continuing to approach his 
 person. Then the king again called to them to 
 stand. "Traitors," said he, "ye have sold my life 
 for English gold; but you shall die if you come one 
 foot nearer to me." With that he bent the page's 
 bow, and as the old conspirator continued to ad- 
 vance, he let the arrow fly at him. Bruce was an 
 excellent archer; he aimed his arrow so well that it 
 hit the father in the eye, and penetrated from that 
 into his brain, so that he fell down dead. Then the 
 two sons rushed on the king. One of them fetched 
 a blow at him with an axe, but missed his stroke and 
 stumbled, so that the king with his great sword cut 
 him down before he could recover his feet. The 
 remaining traitor ran on Bruce with his spear; but 
 the king, with a sweep of his sword, cut the steel 
 head ofT the villain's weapon, and then killed him 
 before he had time to draw his sword. Then the 
 little page came running, very joyful of his master's 
 
 237 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 victory; and the king wiped his bloody sword, and, 
 looking upon the dead bodies, said, "These might 
 have been reputed three gallant men, if they could 
 have resisted the temptation of covetousness." 
 
 In the present day, it is not necessary that gen- 
 erals, or great officers, should fight with their own 
 hand, because it is only their duty to direct the move- 
 ments and exertions of their followers. The artil- 
 lery and the soldiers shoot at the enemy; and men 
 seldom mingle together and fight hand to hand. 
 But in the ancient times kings and great lords were 
 obliged to put themselves into the very front of the 
 battle and fight like ordinary men, with the lance 
 and other weapons. It was, therefore, of great conse- 
 quence that they should be strong men, and dexterous 
 in the use of their arms. Robert Bruce was so re- 
 markably active and powerful that he came through 
 a great many personal dangers, in which he must 
 otherwise have been slain. I will tell you another of 
 his adventures which I think will amuse you. 
 
 After the death of these three traitors, Robert the 
 Bruce continued to keep himself concealed in his 
 own earldom of Carrick, and in the neighboring 
 country of Galloway, until he should have matters 
 ready for a general attack upon the English. He 
 was obliged, in the meantime, to keep very few men 
 with him, both for the sake of secrecy, and from the 
 difficulty of finding provisions. Now, many of the 
 people of Galloway were unfriendly to Bruce. They 
 
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Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 lived under the government of one M'Dougal, re- 
 lated to the Lord of Lorn, who, as I before told you, 
 had defeated Bruce at Dairy, and very nearly killed 
 or made him prisoner. These Galloway men had 
 heard that Bruce was in their country, having no 
 more than sixty men with him; so they resolved to 
 attack him by surprise, and for this purpose they got 
 two hundred men together, and brought with them 
 two or three bloodhounds. These animals were 
 trained to chase a man by the scent of his footsteps, 
 as foxhounds chase a fox, or as beagles and harriers 
 chase a hare. Although the dog does not see the 
 person whose trace he is put upon, he follows him 
 over every step he has taken. At that time these 
 bloodhounds, or sleuthhounds(so called from slot, or 
 sleut, a word which signifies the scent left by an ani- 
 mal of chase) , were used for the purpose of pursuing 
 great criminals. The men of Galloway thought 
 themselves secure, that if they missed taking Bruce, 
 or killing him at the first onset, and if he should es- 
 cape into the woods, they would find him out by 
 means of these bloodhounds. 
 
 The good King Robert Bruce, who was always 
 watchful and vigilant, had received some informa- 
 tion of the intention of this party to come upon him 
 suddenly and by night. Accordingly, he quartered 
 his little troop of sixty men on the side of a deep 
 and swift-running river, that had very steep and 
 rocky banks. There was but one ford by which this 
 
 239 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 river could be crossed in that neighborhood, and 
 that ford was deep and narrow, so that two men could 
 scarcely get through abreast; the ground on which 
 they were to land on the side where the king was, 
 was steep, and the path which led upward from the 
 water's edge to the top of the bank, extremely narrow 
 and difficult. 
 
 Bruce caused his men to lie down to take some 
 sleep, at a place about half a mile distant from the 
 river, while he himself, with two attendants, went 
 down to watch the ford, through which the enemy 
 must needs pass before they could come to the place 
 where King Robert's men were lying. He stood 
 for some time looking at the ford, and thinking 
 how easily the enemy might be kept from passing 
 there, provided it was bravely defended, when he 
 heard at a distance the baying of a hound, which 
 was always coming nearer and nearer. This was the 
 bloodhound which was tracing the king's steps to 
 the ford where he had crossed, and the two hundred 
 Galloway men were along with the animal, and 
 guided by it. Bruce at first thought of going back 
 to awaken his men; but then he reflected that it 
 might be only some shepherd's dog. "My men," 
 said he, "are sorely tired; I will not disturb their 
 sleep for the yelping of a cur, till I know something 
 more of the matter." So he stood and listened ; and 
 by and by, as the cry of the hound came nearer, he 
 began to hear a trampling of horses, and the voices 
 
 240 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 of men, and the ringing and clattering of armor, and 
 then he was sure the enemy were coming to the river 
 side. Then the king thought, "If I go back to give 
 my men the alarm, these Galloway men will get 
 through the ford without opposition; and that would 
 be a pity, since it is a place so advantageous to make 
 defence against them." So he looked again at the 
 steep path, and the deep river, and he thought that 
 they gave him so much advantage, that he himself 
 could defend the passage with his own hand, until 
 his men came to assist him. His armor was so good 
 and strong, that he had no fear of arrows, and there- 
 fore the combat was not so very unequal as it must 
 have otherwise been. He therefore sent his fol- 
 lowers to waken his men, and remained alone by 
 the bank of the river. 
 
 In the meanwhile, the noise and trampling of the 
 horses increased; and the moon being bright, Bruce 
 beheld the glancing arms of about two hundred men, 
 who came down to the opposite bank of the river. 
 The men of Galloway, on their part, saw but one 
 solitary figure guarding the ford, and the foremost 
 of them plunged into the river without minding him. 
 But as they could only pass the ford one by one, the 
 Bruce, who stood high above them on the bank where 
 they were to land, killed the foremost man with a 
 thrust of his long spear, and with a second thrust 
 stabbed the horse, which fell down, kicking and 
 plunging in his agonies, on the narrow path, and so 
 
 241 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 prevented the others who were following from get- 
 ting out of the river. Bruce had thus an opportu- 
 nity of dealing his blows at pleasure among them, 
 while they could not strike at him again. In the 
 confusion, five or six of the enemy were slain, or, 
 having been borne down the current, were drowned 
 in the river. The rest were terrified, and drew back. 
 
 But when the Galloway men looked again, and 
 saw they were opposed by only one man, they 
 themselves being so many, they cried out that their 
 honor would be lost forever if they did not force 
 their way; and encouraged each other, with loud 
 cries, to plunge through and assault him. But by 
 this time the king's soldiers came up to his assist- 
 ance, and the Galloway men retreated, and gave up 
 their enterprise. 
 
 I will tell you another story of this brave Robert 
 Bruce during his wanderings. His adventures are 
 as curious and entertaining as those which men invent 
 for story books, with this advantage, that they are all 
 true. 
 
 About the time when the Bruce was yet at the 
 head of but few men, Sir Aymer de Valence, who 
 was Earl of Pembroke, together with John of Lorn, 
 came into Galloway, each of them being at the head 
 of a large body of men. John of Lorn had a blood- 
 hound with him, which it was said had formerly be- 
 longed to Robert Bruce himself; and having been 
 fed by the king with his own hands, it became at- 
 
 242 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 tached to him, and would follow his footsteps any- 
 where, as dogs are well known to trace their master's 
 steps, whether they be bloodhounds or not. By means 
 of this hound, John of Lorn thought he should cer- 
 tainly find out Bruce, and take revenge on him for 
 the death of his relation Comyn. 
 
 When these two armies advanced upon King 
 Robert, he at first thought of fighting the English 
 Earl; but becoming aware that John of Lorn was 
 moving round with another large body to attack him 
 in the rear, he resolved to avoid fighting at that 
 time, lest he should be oppressed by numbers. For 
 this purpose, the king divided the men he had with 
 him into three bodies, and commanded them to re- 
 treat by three different ways, thinking the enemy 
 would not know which party to pursue. He also 
 appointed a place at which they were to assemble 
 again. But when John of Lorn came to the place 
 where the army of Bruce had been thus divided, the 
 bloodhound took his course after one of these di- 
 visions, neglecting the other two, and then John of 
 Lorn knew that the king must be in that party; so 
 he also made no pursuit after the two other divisions 
 of the Scots, but followed that which the dog pointed 
 out, with all his men. 
 
 The king again saw that he was followed by a 
 large body, and being determined to escape from 
 them if possible, he made all the people who were 
 with him disperse themselves different ways, think- 
 
 243 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 ing thus that the enemy must needs lose trace of him. 
 He kept only one man along with him, and that was 
 his own foster-brother, or the son of his nurse. When 
 John of Lorn came to the place where Bruce's com- 
 panions had dispersed themselves, the bloodhound, 
 after it had snuffed up and down for a little, quitted 
 the footsteps of all the other fugitives, and ran bark- 
 ing upon the track of two men out of the whole num- 
 ber. Then John of Lorn knew that one of these two 
 must needs be King Robert. Accordingly, he com- 
 manded five of his men that were speedy of foot to 
 chase after him, and either make him prisoner or 
 slay him. The Highlanders started off accordingly, 
 and ran so fast, that they gained sight of Robert and 
 his foster-brother. The king asked his companion 
 what help he could give him, and his foster-brother 
 answered he was ready to do his best. So these two 
 turned on the five men of John of Lorn, and killed 
 them all. It is to be supposed they were better 
 armed than the others were, as well as stronger and 
 more desperate. 
 
 But by this time Bruce was very much fatigued, 
 and yet they dared not sit down to take any rest; for 
 whenever they stopped for an instant, they heard the 
 cry of the bloodhound behind them, and knew by 
 that, that their enemies were coming up fast after 
 them. At length they! came to a wood, through 
 which ran a small river. Then Bruce said to his 
 foster-brother, "Let us wade down this stream for a 
 
 244 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 great way, instead of going straight across, and so this 
 unhappy hound will lose the scent; for if we were 
 once clear of him, I should not be afraid of getting 
 away from the pursuers." Accordingly, the king 
 and his attendant walked a great way down the 
 stream, taking care to keep their feet in the water, 
 which could not retain any scent where they had 
 stepped. Then they came ashore on the further side 
 from the enemy, and went deep into the wood before 
 they stopped to rest themselves. In the meanwhile, 
 the hound led John of Lorn straight to the place 
 where the king went into the water, but there the 
 dog began to be puzzled, not knowing where to go 
 next; for you are well aware that the running water 
 could not retain the scent of a man's foot, like that 
 which remains on turf. So, John of Lorn seeing the 
 dog was at fault, as it is called, that is had lost the 
 track of that which he pursued, he gave up the chase, 
 and returned to join with Aymer de Valence. 
 
 But King Robert's adventures were not yet ended. 
 His foster-brother and he had rested themselves in 
 the wood, but they had got no food, and were become 
 extremely hungry. They walked on, however, in 
 hopes of coming to some habitation. At length, in 
 the midst of the forest, they met with three men who 
 looked like thieves or ruffians. They were well 
 armed, and one of them bore a sheep on his back, 
 which it seemed as if they had just stolen. They sa- 
 luted the king civilly; and he, replying to their salu- 
 
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 Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 tation, asked them where they were going. The men 
 answered, they were seeking for Robert Bruce, for 
 that they intended to join with him. The king an- 
 swered, that if they would go with him, he would 
 conduct them where they would find the Scottish 
 king. Then the man who had spoken changed coun- 
 tenance, and Bruce, who looked sharply at him, be- 
 gan to suspect that the ruffian guessed who he was, 
 and that he and his companions had some design 
 against his person, in order to gain the reward which 
 had been offered for his life. 
 
 So he said to them, "My good friends, as we are 
 not well acquainted with each other, you must go 
 before us, and we will follow near to you." 
 
 "You have no occasion to suspect any harm from 
 us," answered the man. 
 
 "Neither do I suspect any," said Bruce; "but this 
 is the way in which I choose to travel." 
 
 The men did as he commanded, and thus they 
 travelled till they came together to a waste and 
 ruinous cottage, where the men proposed to dress 
 some part of the sheep, which their companion was 
 carrying. The king was glad to hear of food; but 
 he insisted that there should be two fires kindled, 
 one for himself and his foster-brother at one end of 
 the house, the other at the other end for their three 
 companions. The men did as he desired. They 
 broiled a quarter of mutton for themselves, and gave 
 another to the king and his attendant. They were 
 
 246 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 obliged to eat it without bread or salt; but as they 
 were very hungry, they were glad to get food in any 
 shape, and partook of it very heartily. 
 
 Then so heavy a drowsiness fell on King Robert, 
 that, for all the danger he was in, he could not resist 
 an inclination to sleep. But first, he desired his 
 foster-brother to watch while he slept, for he had 
 great suspicion of their new acquaintances. His fos- 
 ter-brother promised to keep awake, and did his best 
 to keep his word. But the king had not been long 
 asleep ere his foster-brother fell into a deep slumber 
 also, for he had undergone as much fatigue as the 
 king. When the three villains saw the king and his 
 attendant asleep, they made signs to each other, and 
 rising up at once, drew their swords with the purpose 
 to kill them both. But the king slept but lightly, 
 and little noise as the traitors made in rising, he was 
 awakened by it, and starting up, drew his sword, and 
 went to meet them. At the same moment he pushed 
 his foster-brother with his foot, to awaken him, and 
 he got on his feet; but ere he got his eyes cleared to 
 see what was about to happen, one of the ruffians that 
 were advancing to slay the king, killed him with a 
 stroke of his sword. The king was now alone, one 
 man against three, and in the greatest danger of his 
 life; but his amazing strength, and the good armor 
 which he wore, freed him once more from this great 
 peril, and he killed the three men, one after another. 
 He then left the cottage, very sorrowful for the 
 
 247 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 death of his faithful foster-brother, and took his di- 
 rection toward the place where he had appointed his 
 men to assemble after their dispersion. It was now 
 near night, and the place of meeting being a farm- 
 house, he went boldly into it, where he found the 
 mistress, an old true-hearted Scotswoman, sitting 
 alone. Upon seeing a stranger enter, she asked him 
 who and what he was. The king answered that he 
 was a traveller journeying through the country. 
 
 "All travellers," answered the good woman, "are 
 welcome here, for the sake of one." 
 
 "And who is that one," said the king, "for whose 
 sake you make all travellers welcome?" 
 
 "It is our rightful king, Robert the Bruce," an- 
 swered the mistress, "who is the lawful lord of this 
 country; and although he is now pursued and hunted 
 after with hounds and horns, I hope to live to see 
 him king over ail Scotland." 
 
 "Since you love him so well, dame," said the 
 king, "know that you see him before you. I am 
 Robert the Bruce." 
 
 "You!" said the good woman, in great surprise; 
 "and wherefore are you thus alone? — where are all 
 your men?" 
 
 "I have none with me at this moment," answered 
 Bruce, "and therefore I must travel alone." 
 
 "But that shall not be," said the brave old dame,' 
 "for I have two stout sons, gallant and trusty men, 
 who shall be your servants for life and death." 
 
 248 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 So she brought her two sons, and though she well 
 knew the dangers to which she exposed them, she 
 made them swear fidelity to the king; and they 
 afterward became high officers in his service. 
 
 Now, the loyal old woman was getting every- 
 thing ready for the king's supper, when suddenly 
 there was a great trampling of horses heard round 
 the house. They thought it must be some of the 
 English, or John of Lorn's men, and the good wife 
 called upon her sons to fight to the last for King 
 Robert. But shortly after, they heard the voice of 
 the Good Lord James of Douglas, and of Edward 
 Bruce, the king's brother, who had come with a hun- 
 dred and fifty horsemen to this farmhouse, accord- 
 ing to the instructions that the king had left with 
 them at parting. 
 
 Robert the Bruce was right joyful to meet his 
 brother, and his faithful friend Ltord James, and 
 had no sooner found himself once more at the head 
 of such a considerable body of followers, than for- 
 getting hunger and weariness, he began to inquire 
 where the enemy who had pursued them so long had 
 taken up their abode for the night; "for," said he, 
 "as they must suppose us totally scattered and fled, 
 it is likely that they will think themselves quite se- 
 cure, and disperse themselves into distant quarters, 
 and keep careless watch." 
 
 "That is very true," answered James of Douglas, 
 "for I passed a village where there are two hundred 
 
 249 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of them quartered, who had placed no sentinels ; and 
 if you have a mind to make haste, we may surprise 
 them this very night, and do them more mischief 
 than they have been able to do us during all this 
 day's chase." 
 
 Then there was nothing but mount and ride; and 
 as the Scots came by surprise on the body of English 
 whom Douglas had mentioned, and rushed suddenly 
 into the village where they were quartered, they 
 easily dispersed and cut them to pieces; thus, as 
 Douglas had said, doing their pursuers more injury 
 than they themselves had received during the long 
 and severe pursuit of the preceding day. 
 
 The consequence of these successes of King Rob- 
 ert was, that soldiers came to join him on all sides, 
 and that he obtained several victories both over Sir 
 Aymer de Valence, Lord Clifford, and other En- 
 glish commanders ; until at length the English were 
 afraid to venture into the open country as formerly, 
 unless when they could assemble themselves in con- 
 siderable bodies. They thought it safer to lie still in 
 the towns and castles which they had garrisoned, and 
 wait till the King of England should once more 
 come to their assistance with a powerful army. 
 
 250 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 THE EXPLOITS OF DOUGLAS AND RANDOLPH 
 
 When King Edward the First heard that Scot- 
 land was again in arms against him, he marched 
 down to the Borders, as I have already told you, with 
 many threats of what he would do to avenge himself 
 on Bruce and his party, whom he called rebels. 
 But he was now old and feeble, and while he was 
 making his preparations, he was taken very ill, and 
 after lingering a long time, at length died on the 
 sixth of July, 1307, at a place in Cumberland called 
 Burgh upon the Sands, in full sight of Scotland, and 
 not three miles from its frontier. His hatred to that 
 country was so inveterate that his thoughts of re- 
 venge seemed to occupy his mind on his death-bed. 
 He made his son promise never to make peace with 
 Scotland until the nation was subdued. He gave 
 also very singular directions concerning the disposal 
 of his dead body. He ordered that it should be boiled 
 in a caldron till the flesh parted from the bones, and 
 that then the bones should be wrapped up in a bull's 
 hide, and carried at the head of the English army, 
 as often as the Scots attempted to recover their 
 freedom. He thought that he had inflicted such dis- 
 tresses on the Scots, and invaded and defeated them 
 so often, that his very dead bones would terrify 
 them. His son, Edward the Second, did not choose 
 to execute this strange injunction, but caused his 
 
 251 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 father to be buried in Westminster Abbey, where his 
 tomb is still to be seen, bearing for an inscription, 
 HERE LIES THE HAMMER OF THE SCOTTISH NATION. 
 And, indeed, it was true, that during his life he did 
 them as much injury as a hammer does to the sub- 
 stances which it dashes to pieces. 
 
 Edward the Second was neither so brave nor so 
 wise as his father; on the contrary, he was a weak 
 prince, fond of idle amusements and worthless fav- 
 orites. It was lucky for Scotland that such was his 
 disposition. He marched a little way into Scotland 
 with the large army which Edward the First had 
 collected, but went back again without fight- 
 ing, which gave great encouragement to Bruce's 
 party. 
 
 Several of the Scottish nobility now took arms 
 in different parts of the country, declared for King 
 Robert, and fought against the English troops and 
 garrisons. The most distinguished of these was the 
 Good Lord James of Douglas, whom we have often 
 mentioned before. Some of his most memorable ex- 
 ploits respected his own Castle of Douglas, in which, 
 being an important fortress and strongly situated, the 
 English had placed a large garrison. James the 
 Douglas saw, with great displeasure, his castle filled 
 with English soldiers, and stored with great quanti- 
 ties of corn, and cattle, and wine, and ale, and other 
 supplies which they were preparing, to enable them 
 to assist the English army with provisions. So he 
 
 252 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 resolved, if possible, to be revenged upon the captain 
 of the garrison and his soldiers. 
 
 For this purpose, Douglas went in disguise to the 
 house of one of his old servants, called Thomas Dick- 
 son, a strong, faithful, and bold man, and laid a 
 scheme for taking the castle. A holiday was ap- 
 proaching, called Palm Sunday. Upon this day, it 
 was common, in the Roman Catholic times, that the 
 people went to church in; procession, with green 
 boughs in their hands. Just as the English soldiers, 
 who had marched down from the castle, got into 
 church, one of Lord James's followers raised the cry 
 of Douglas, Douglas! which was the shout with 
 which that family always began battle. Thomas 
 Dickson, and some friends whom he had collected, 
 instantly drew their swords, and killed the first En- 
 glishman whom they met. But as the signal had 
 been given too soon, Dickson was borne down and 
 slain. Douglas and his men presently after forced 
 their way into the church. The English soldiers at- 
 tempted to defend themselves; but, being taken by 
 surprise and unprepared, they were, for the greater 
 part, killed or made prisoners, and that so suddenly, 
 and with so little noise, that their companions in the 
 castle never heard of it. So that when Douglas and 
 his men approached the castle gate, they found it 
 open, and that part of the garrison which were left 
 at home, busied cooking provisions for those that 
 were at church. So Lord James got possession of 
 
 9— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 his own castle without difficulty, and he and his men 
 eat up all the good dinner which the English had 
 made ready. But Douglas dared not stay there, lest 
 the English should come in great force and besiege 
 him; and therefore he resolved to destroy all the pro- 
 visions which the English had stored up in the castle, 
 and to render the place unavailing to them. 
 
 It must be owned he executed this purpose in a 
 very cruel and shocking manner, for he was much en- 
 raged at the death of Thomas Dickson. He caused 
 all the barrels containing flour, meal, wheat, and 
 malt, to be knocked in pieces, and their contents 
 mixed on the floor; then he staved the great hogs- 
 heads of wine and ale, and mixed the liquor with the 
 stores; and, last of all, he killed his prisoners, and 
 flung the dead bodies among this disgusting heap, 
 which his men called, in derision of the English, 
 the Douglas Larder. Then he flung dead horses 
 into the well to destroy it — after which he set fire to 
 the castle; and finally marched away, and took ref- 
 uge with his followers in the hills and forests. "He 
 loved better," he said, "to hear the lark sing than the 
 mouse squeak." That is, he loved better to keep in 
 the open field with his men, than to shut himself and 
 them up in castles. 
 
 When Clifford, the English general, heard what 
 had happened, he came to Douglas Castle with a 
 great body of men, and rebuilt all the defences 
 which Lord James had destroyed, and cleared out 
 
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Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 the well, and put a good soldier, named Thirlwall, 
 to command the garrison, and desired him to be on 
 his guard, for he suspected that Lord James would 
 again attack him. And, indeed, Douglas, who did 
 not like to see the English in his father's castle, was 
 resolved to take the first opportunity of destroying 
 this garrison, as he had done the former. For this 
 purpose he again had recourse to stratagem. He 
 laid a part of his followers in ambush in the wood, 
 and sent fourteen men, disguised like countrymen, 
 driving cattle past the gates of the castle. As soon 
 as Thirlwall saw this, he swore that he would plun- 
 der the Scots drovers of their cattle, and came out 
 with a considerable part of his garrison, for that pur- 
 pose. He had followed the cattle past the place 
 where Douglas was lying concealed, when all of a 
 sudden the Scotsmen threw off their carriers' cloaks, 
 and appeared in armor, cried the cry of Douglas, 
 and, turning back suddenly, ran to meet the pur- 
 suers; and before Thirlwall could make any defence, 
 he heard the same war-cry behind him, and saw 
 Douglas coming up with those Scots who had been 
 lying in ambush. Thirlwall himself was killed, 
 fighting bravely in the middle of his enemies, and 
 only a very few of his men found their way back to 
 the castle. 
 
 When Lord James had thus slain two English 
 commanders or governors of his castle, and was 
 known to have made a vow that he would be re- 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 venged on any one who should dare to take possession 
 of his father's house, men became afraid ; and the for- 
 tress was called, both in England and Scotland, the 
 Perilous Castle of Douglas, because it proved so dan- 
 gerous to any Englishman who was stationed there. 
 Now, in those warlike times, Master Littlejohn, you 
 must know, that the ladies would not marry any man 
 who was not very brave and valiant, so that a coward, 
 let him be ever so rich or high-born, was held in 
 universal contempt. And thus it became the fashion 
 for the ladies to demand proofs of the courage of 
 their lovers, and for those knights who desired to 
 please the ladies, to try some extraordinary deed of 
 arms, to show their bravery and deserve their favor. 
 At the time we speak of, there was a young lady 
 in England, whom many knights and noblemen asked 
 in marriage, because she was extremely wealthy, and 
 very beautiful. Once upon a holiday she made a 
 great feast, to which she asked all her lovers, and 
 numerous other gallant knights; and after the feast 
 she arose, and told them that she was much obliged 
 to them for their good opinion of her, but as she de- 
 sired to have for her husband a man of the most in- 
 contestable bravery she had formed her resolution 
 not to marry any one save one who should show his 
 courage by defending the Perilous Castle of Douglas 
 against the Scots for a year and a day. Now this 
 made some silence among the gentlemen present; for 
 although the lady was rich and beautiful, yet there 
 
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Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 was great danger in placing themselves within the 
 reach of the Good Lord James of Douglas. At last 
 a brave young knight started up and said that for the 
 love of that lady he was willing to keep the Perilous 
 Castle for a year and a day, if the king pleased to 
 give him leave. The King of England was satisfied, 
 and well pleased to get a brave man to hold a place 
 so dangerous. Sir John Wilton was the name of 
 this gallant knight. He kept the castle very safely 
 for some time; but Douglas, at last, by a stratagem, 
 induced him to venture out with a part of the gar- 
 rison, and then set upon them and slew them. Sir 
 John Wilton himself was killed, and a letter from 
 the lady was found in his pocket. Douglas was sorry 
 for his unhappy end, and did not put to death any of 
 the prisoners as he had formerly done, but dismissed 
 them in safety to the next English garrison. 
 
 Other great lords, besides Douglas, were now ex- 
 erting themselves to attack and destroy the English. 
 Among those was Sir Thomas Randolph, whose 
 mother was a sister of King Robert. He had joined 
 with the Bruce when he first took up arms. After- 
 ward being made prisoner by the English, when the 
 king was defeated at Methven, as I told you, Sir 
 Thomas Randolph was obliged to join the English 
 to save his life. He remained so constant to them, 
 that he was in company with Aymer de Valence and 
 John of Lorn, when they forced the Bruce to dis- 
 perse his little band; and he followed the pursuit so 
 
 257 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 close, that he made his uncle's standard-bearer pris- 
 oner, and took his banner. Afterward, however, he 
 was himself made prisoner, at a solitary house on 
 Lyne-water, by the Good Lord James Douglas, who 
 brought him captive to the king. Robert reproached 
 his nephew for having deserted his cause; and Ran- 
 dolph, who was very hot-tempered, answered inso- 
 lently, and was sent by King Robert to prison. 
 Shortly after, the uncle and nephew were recon- 
 ciled, and Sir Thomas Randolph, created Earl of 
 Murray by the king, was ever afterward one of 
 Bruce's best supporters. There was a sort of ri- 
 valry between Douglas and him, which should do the 
 boldest and most hazardous actions. I will just men- 
 tion one or two circumstances, which will show you 
 what awful dangers were to be encountered by these 
 brave men, in order to free Scotland from its enemies 
 and invaders. 
 
 While Robert Bruce was gradually getting pos- 
 session of the country, and driving out the English, 
 Edinburgh, the principal town of Scotland, re- 
 mained, with its strong castle, in possession of the 
 invaders. Sir Thomas Randolph was extremely de- 
 sirous to gain this important place; but as you well 
 know, the castle is situated on a very steep and lofty 
 rock, so that it is difficult or almost impossible even 
 to get up to the foot of the walls, much more to 
 climb over them. 
 
 So while Randolph was considering what was to 
 
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Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 be done, there came to him a Scottish gentleman 
 named Francis, who had joined Bruce's standard, 
 and asked to speak with him in private. He then 
 told Randolph, that in his youth he had lived in the 
 Castle of Edinburgh, and that his father had then 
 been keeper of the fortress. It happened at that time 
 that Francis was much in love with a lady, who lived 
 in a part of the town beneath the castle, which is 
 called the Grassmarket. Now, as he could not get 
 out of the castle by day to see his mistress, he had 
 practiced a way of clambering by night down the 
 castle rock on the south side, and returning at his 
 pleasure; when he came to the foot of the wall, he 
 made use of a ladder to get over it, as it was not very 
 high at that point, those who built it having trusted 
 to the steepness of the crag; and, for the same reason, 
 no watch was placed there. Francis had gone and 
 come so frequently in this dangerous manner, that, 
 though it was now long ago, he told Randolph he 
 knew the road so well that he would undertake to 
 guide a small party of men by night to the bottom of 
 the wall ; and as they might bring ladders with them, 
 there would be no difficulty in scaling it. The great 
 risk was, that of their being discovered by the watch- 
 men while in the act of ascending the cliff, in which 
 case every man of them must have perished. 
 
 Nevertheless, Randolph did not hesitate to at- 
 tempt the adventure. He took with him only thirty 
 men (you may be sure they were chosen for activity 
 
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Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and courage), and came one dark night to the foot 
 of the rock, which they began to ascend under the 
 guidance of Francis, who went before them, upon 
 his hands and feet, up one cliff, down another, and 
 round another, where there was scarce room to sup- 
 port themselves. All the while, these thirty men 
 were obliged to follow in a line, one after the other, 
 by a path that was fitter for a cat than a man. The 
 noise of a stone falling, or a word spoken from one 
 to another, would have alarmed the watchmen. They 
 were obliged, therefore, to move with the greatest 
 precaution. When they were far up the crag, and 
 near the foundation of the wall, they heard the 
 guards going their rounds, to see that all was safe in 
 and about the castle. Randolph and his party had 
 nothing for it but to lie close and quiet, each man 
 under the crag, as he happened to be placed, and 
 trust that the guards would pass by without noticing 
 them. And while they were waiting in breathless 
 alarm they got a new cause of fright. One of the 
 soldiers of the castle, willing to startle his comrades, 
 suddenly threw a stone from the wall, and cried out, 
 "Aha, I see you well!" The stone came thundering 
 down over the heads of Randolph and his men, who 
 naturally thought themselves discovered. If they 
 had stirred, or made the slightest noise, they would 
 have been entirely destroyed; for the soldiers above 
 might have killed every man of them, merely by 
 rolling down stones. But being courageous and 
 
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 chosen men, they remained quiet, and the English 
 soldiers, who thought their comrade was merely 
 playing them a trick (as, indeed, he had no other 
 meaning in what he did and said) passed on without 
 further examination. 
 
 Then Randolph and his men got up and came in 
 haste to the foot of the wall, which was not above 
 twice a man's height in that place. They planted the 
 ladders they had brought, and Francis mounted first 
 to show them the way; Sir Andrew Grey, a brave 
 knight, followed him, and Randolph himself was 
 the third man who got over. Then the rest fol- 
 lowed. When once they were within the walls, there 
 was not so much to do, for the garrison were asleep 
 and unarmed, excepting the watch, who were speed- 
 ily destroyed. Thus was Edinburgh Castle taken in 
 March, 1312-13. 
 
 It was not, however, only by the exertions of 
 great and powerful barons, like Randolph and 
 Douglas, that the freedom of Scotland was to be 
 accomplished. The stout yeomanry, and the bold 
 peasantry of the land, who were as desirous to enjoy 
 their cottages in honorable independence as the 
 nobles were to reclaim their castles and estates from 
 the English, contributed their full share in the efforts 
 which were made to deliver the country from the in- 
 vaders. I will give you one instance among many. 
 
 There was a strong castle near Linlithgow, or 
 Lithgow, as the word is more generally pronounced, 
 
 261 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 where an English governor, with a powerful gar- 
 rison, lay in readiness to support the English cause, 
 and used to exercise much severity upon the Scots in 
 the neighborhood. There lived at no great distance 
 from this stronghold, a farmer, a bold and stout man, 
 whose name was Binnock, or, as it is now pronounced, 
 Binning. This man saw with great joy the progress 
 which the Scots were making in recovering their 
 country from the English, and resolved to do some- 
 thing to help his countrymen, by getting possession, 
 if it were possible, of the Castle of Lithgow. But 
 the place was very strong, situated by the side of a 
 lake, defended not only by gates, which were usually 
 kept shut against strangers, but also by a portcullis. 
 A portcullis is a sort of door formed of cross-bars of 
 iron, like a grate. It has not hinges like a door, but 
 is drawn up by pulleys, and let down when any dan- 
 ger approaches. It may be let go in a moment, and 
 then falls down into the doorway; and as it has great 
 iron spikes at the bottom, it crushes all that it lights 
 upon; thus in case of a sudden alarm, a portcullis 
 may be let suddenly fall to defend the entrance, 
 when it is not possible to shut the gates. Binnock 
 knew this very well, but he resolved to be provided 
 against this risk also when he attempted to surprise 
 the castle. So he spoke with some bold, courageous 
 countrymen, and engaged them in his enterprise, 
 which he accomplished thus. 
 
 Binnock had been accustomed to supply the gar- 
 
 262 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 rison of Linlithgow with hay, and he had been or- 
 dered by the English governor to furnish some cart- 
 loads, of which they were in want. He promised to 
 bring it accordingly; but the night before he drove 
 the hay to the castle, he stationed a party of his friends 
 as well armed as possible, near the entrance, where 
 they could not be seen by the garrison, and gave them 
 directions that they should come to his assistance as 
 soon as they should hear him cry a signal, which was 
 to be — "Call all, call all!" Then he loaded a great 
 wagon with hay. But in the wagon he placed eight 
 strong men, well armed, lying flat on their breasts, 
 and covered over with hay, so that they could not be 
 seen. He himself walked carelessly beside the wag- 
 on; and he chose the stoutest and bravest of his ser- 
 vants to be the driver, who carried at his belt a 
 strong axe or hatchet. In this way Binnock ap- 
 proached the castle early in the morning; and the 
 watchmen, who only saw two men, Binnock being 
 one of them, with a cart of hay, which they expected, 
 opened the gates and raised up the portcullis, to per- 
 mit them to enter the castle. But as soon as the cart 
 had gotten under the gateway, Binnock made a sign 
 to his servant, who with his axe suddenly cut asunder 
 the soam, that is, the yoke which fastens the horses 
 to the cart, and the horses finding themselves free, 
 naturally started forward, the cart remaining behind. 
 At the same moment, Binnock cried, as loud as he 
 could, "Call all, call all!" and drawing the sword, 
 
 263 
 

 Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 which he had under his country habit, he killed the 
 porter. The armed men then jumped up from under 
 the hay where they lay concealed, and rushed on the 
 English guard. The Englishmen tried to shut the 
 gates, but they could not, because the cart of hay re- 
 mained in the gateway, and prevented the folding- 
 doors from being closed. The portcullis was also 
 let fall, but the grating was caught on the cart, and 
 so could not drop to the ground. The men who were 
 in ambush near the gate, hearing the cry, "Call all, 
 call all," ran to assist those who had leaped out from 
 among the hay; the castle was taken, and all the En- 
 glishmen killed or made prisoners. King Robert 
 rewarded Binnock by bestowing on him an estate, 
 which his posterity long afterward enjoyed. 
 
 Perhaps you may be tired, my dear child, of such 
 stories ; yet I will tell you how the great and impor- 
 tant Castle of Roxburgh was taken from the En- 
 glish, and then we will pass to other subjects. 
 
 You must know Roxburgh was then a very large 
 castle, situated near where two fine rivers, the Tweed 
 and the Teviot, join each other. Being within five 
 or six miles of England, the English were extremely 
 desirous of retaining it, and the Scots equally eager 
 to obtain possession of it. I will tell you how it was 
 taken. 
 
 It was upon the night of what is called Shrove- 
 tide, a holiday which Roman Catholics paid great 
 respect to, and solemnized with much gayety and 
 
 264 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 feasting. Most of the garrison of Roxburgh Castle 
 were drinking and carousing, but still they had set 
 watches on the battlements of the castle, in case of 
 any sudden attack; for, as the Scots had succeeded in 
 so many enterprises of the kind, and as Douglas was 
 known to be in the neighborhood, they conceived 
 themselves obliged to keep a very strict guard. 
 
 An Englishwoman, the wife of one of the officers, 
 was sitting on the battlements with her child in her 
 arms; and looking out on the fields below, she saw 
 some black objects, like a herd of cattle, straggling 
 near the foot of the wall, and approaching the ditch 
 or moat of the castle. She pointed them out to the 
 sentinel, and asked him what they were. — "Pooh, 
 pooh," said the soldier, "it is farmer such a one's 
 cattle" (naming a man whose farm lay near to the 
 castle) ; "the good man is keeping a jolly Shrovetide 
 and has forgot to shut his bullocks in their yard; but 
 if the Douglas come across them before morning, he 
 is likely to rue his negligence." Now these creeping 
 objects which they saw from the castle wall were no 
 real cattle, but Douglas himself and his soldiers, who 
 had put black cloaks above their armor, and were 
 creeping about on hands and feet, in order, without 
 being observed, toi get so near to the foot of the 
 castle wall as to be able to set ladders to it. The poor 
 woman, who knew nothing of this, sat quietly on the 
 wall, and began to sing to her child. You must know 
 that the name of Douglas had become so terrible to 
 
 26$ 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the English, that the women used to frighten their 
 children with it, and say to them when they behaved 
 ill, that they "would make the Black Douglas take 
 them." And this soldier's wife was singing to her 
 child: 
 
 "Hush ye, hush ye, little pet ye, 
 Hush ye, hush ye, do not fret ye, 
 The Black Douglas shall not get ye." 
 
 "You are not so sure of that," said a voice close 
 beside her. She felt at the same time a heavy hand, 
 with an iron glove, laid on her shoulder, and when 
 she looked round, she saw the very Black Douglas 
 she had been singing about, standing close beside her, 
 a tall, swarthy, strong man. At the same time, an- 
 other Scotsman was seen ascending the walls, near the 
 sentinel. The soldier gave the alarm, and rushed at 
 the Scotsman, whose name was Simon Ledehouse, 
 with his lance; but Simon parried the stroke, and 
 closing with the sentinel, struck him a deadly blow 
 with his dagger. The rest of the Scots followed up 
 to assist Douglas and Ledehouse, and the castle was 
 taken. Many of the soldiers were put to death, but 
 Douglas protected the woman and the child. I dare 
 say she made no more songs about the Black Douglas. 
 
 While Douglas, Randolph, and other true-heart- 
 ed patriots, were thus taking castles and strongholds 
 from the English, King Robert, who had now a con- 
 siderable army under his command, marched through 
 
 266 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 the country, beating and dispersing such bodies of 
 English as he met on his way. He went to the north 
 country, where he conquered the great and powerful 
 family of Comyn, who retained strong ill-will against 
 him for having slain their relation, the Red Comyn, 
 in the church at Dumfries. They had joined the 
 English with all their forces; but now, as the Scots 
 began to get the upper-hand, they were very much 
 distressed. Bruce caused more than thirty of them 
 to be beheaded in one day, and the place where they 
 are buried is called "the Grave of the headless 
 Comyns." 
 
 Neither did Bruce forget or forgive John M'Dou- 
 gal of Lorn, who had defeated him at Dairy, and 
 very nearly made him prisoner, or slain him, by the 
 hands of his vassals, the M'Androssers, and had after- 
 ward pursued him with a bloodhound. When John 
 of Lorn heard that Bruce was marching against him, 
 he hoped to defend himself by taking possession of a 
 very strong pass on the side of one of the largest 
 mountains in Scotland, Cruachen Ben. The ground 
 was very straight, having lofty rocks on the one hand, 
 and on the other deep precipices, sinking down on a 
 great lake called Lochawe; so that John of Lorn 
 thought himself perfectly secure, as he could not be 
 attacked except in front, and by a very difficult path. 
 But King Robert, when he saw how his enemies were 
 posted, sent a party of light-armed archers, under 
 command of Douglas, with directions to go, by a dis- 
 
 267 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 tant and difficult road, around the northern side of 
 the hill, and thus to attack the men of Lorn in the 
 rear as well as in front; that is, behind, as well as be- 
 fore. He had signals made when Douglas arrived 
 at the place appointed. The king then advanced 
 upon the Lorn men in front, when they raised a shout 
 of defiance, and began to shoot arrows and roll stones 
 down the path, with great confidence in the security 
 of their own position. But when they were attacked 
 by the Douglas and his archers in the rear, the sol- 
 diers of M'Dougal lost courage and fled. Many 
 were slain among the rocks and precipices, and many 
 were drowned in the lake, and the great river which 
 runs out of it. John of Lorn only escaped by means 
 of his boat, which he had in readiness upon the lake. 
 Thus King Robert had full revenge upon him, and 
 deprived him of a great part of his territory. 
 
 The English now possessed scarcely any place of 
 importance in Scotland, excepting Stirling, which 
 was besieged, or rather blockaded, by Edward Bruce, 
 the king's brother. To blockade a town or castle 
 is to quarter an army around it, so as to prevent those 
 within from getting provisions. This was done by 
 the Scots before Stirling, till Sir Philip Mowbray, 
 who commanded the castle, finding that he was like 
 to be reduced to extremity for want of provisions, 
 made an agreement with Edward Bruce that he 
 would surrender the place, provided he were not re- 
 lieved by the King of England before midsummer, 
 
 268 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 Sir Edward agreed to these terms, and allowed 
 Mowbray to go to London, to tell King Edward of 
 the conditions he had made. But when King Rob- 
 ert heard what his brother had done, he thought it 
 was too great a risk, since it obliged him to venture 
 a battle with the full strength of Edward the Second, 
 who had under him England, Ireland, Wales, and 
 great part of France, and could within the time al- 
 lowed assemble a much more powerful army than the 
 Scots could, even if all Scotland were fully under the 
 king's authority. Sir Edward answered his brother 
 with his naturally audacious spirit, "Let Edward 
 bring every man he has, we will fight them, were 
 they more." The king admired his courage, though 
 it was mingled with rashness. — "Since it is so, 
 brother," he said, "we will manfully abide battle, and 
 assemble all who love us, and value the freedom of 
 Scotland, to come with all the men they have, and 
 help us to oppose King Edward, should he come with 
 his army to rescue Stirling." 
 
 THE BATTLE OF BANNOCKBURN 
 
 King Edward the Second, as we have already 
 said, was not a wise and brave man like his father, 
 but a foolish prince, who was influenced by un- 
 worthy favorites, and thought more of pleasure 
 than of governing his kingdom. His father, Ed- 
 
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 Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 ward the First, would have entered Scotland at the 
 head of a large army, before he had left Bruce time 
 to conquer back so much of the country. But we 
 have seen, that, very fortunately for the Scots, that 
 wise and skilful, though ambitious king, died when 
 he was on the point of marching into Scotland. His 
 son Edward had afterward neglected the Scottish 
 war, and thus lost the opportunity of defeating Bruce, 
 when his force was small. But now when Sir Philip 
 Mowbray, the governor of Stirling, came to London, 
 to tell the king, that Stirling, the last Scottish town 
 of importance which remained in possession of the 
 English, was to be surrendered if it were not relieved 
 by force of arms before midsummer, then all the 
 English nobles called out it would be a sin and 
 shame to permit the fair conquest which Edward 
 the First had made, to be forfeited to the Scots for 
 want of fighting. It was, therefore, resolved, that 
 the king should go himself to Scotland, with as great 
 forces as he could possibly muster. 
 
 King Edward the Second, therefore, assembled 
 one of the greatest armies which a King of England 
 ever commanded. There were troops brought from 
 all his dominions. Many brave soldiers from the 
 French provinces which the King of England pos- 
 sessed in France — many Irish, many Welsh — and all 
 the great English nobles and barons, with their fol- 
 lowers, were assembled in one great army. The 
 number was not less than one hundred thousand men. 
 
 270 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 King Robert the Bruce summoned all his nobles 
 and barons to join him, when he heard of the great 
 preparations which the King of England was mak- 
 ing. They were not so numerous as the English by 
 many thousand men. In fact, his whole army did 
 not very much exceed thirty thousand, and they 
 were much worse armed than the wealthy English- 
 men; but then, Robert, who was at their head, was 
 one of the most expert generals of the time; and the 
 officers he had under him, were his brother Edward, 
 his nephew Randolph, his faithful follower the 
 Douglas, and other brave and experienced leaders, 
 who commanded the same men that had been ac- 
 customed to fight and gain victories under every dis- 
 advantage of situation and numbers. 
 
 The king, on his part, studied how he might sup- 
 ply, by address and stratagem, what he wanted in 
 numbers and strength. He knew the superiority of 
 the English, both in their heavy-armed cavalry, 
 which were much better mounted and armed than 
 that of the Scots, and in their archers, who were bet- 
 ter trained than any others in the world. Both these 
 advantages he resolved to provide against. With 
 this purpose, he led his army down into a plain near 
 Stirling, called the Park, near which, and beneath 
 it, the English army must needs pass through a boggy 
 country, broken with water-courses, while the Scots 
 occupied hard, dry ground. He then caused all the 
 ground upon the front of his line of battle, where 
 
 271 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 cavalry were likely to act, to be dug full of holes, 
 about as deep as a man's knee. They were filled with 
 light brushwood, and the turf was laid on the top, 
 so that it appeared a plain field, while in reality it 
 was all full of these pits as a honeycomb is of holes. 
 He also, it is said, caused steel spikes, called cal- 
 throps, to be scattered up and down in the plain, 
 where the English cavalry were most likely to ad- 
 vance, trusting in that manner to lame and destroy 
 their horses. 
 
 When the Scottish army was drawn up, the line 
 stretched north and south. On the south, it was ter- 
 minated by the banks of the brook called Bannock- 
 burn, which are so rocky, that no troops could at- 
 tack them there. On the left, the Scottish line ex- 
 tended near to the town of Stirling. Bruce reviewed 
 his troops very carefully; all the useless servants, 
 drivers of carts, and such like, of whom there were 
 very many, he ordered to go behind a height, after- 
 ward, in memory of the event, called the Gillies' hill, 
 that is, the Servants' hill. He then spoke to the sol- 
 diers, and expressed his determination to gain the 
 victory, or to lose his life on the field of battle. He 
 desired that all those who did not propose to fight 
 to the last, should leave the field before the battle be- 
 gan, and that none should remain except those who 
 were determined to take the issue of victory or death, 
 as God should send it. 
 
 When the main body of his army was thus placed 
 
 272 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 in order, the king posted Randolph, with a body of 
 horse, near to the Church of St. Ninian's, command- 
 ing him to use the utmost diligence to prevent any 
 succors from being thrown into Stirling Castle. He 
 then despatched James of Douglas, and Sir Robert 
 Keith, the Mareschal of the Scottish army, in order 
 that they might survey, as nearly as they could, the 
 English force, which was now approaching from 
 Falkirk. They returned with information, that the 
 approach of that vast host was one of the most beau- 
 tiful and terrible sights which could be seen — that the 
 whole country seemed covered with men-at-arms on 
 horse and foot, that the number of standards, banners, 
 and pennons (all flags of different kinds) made so 
 gallant a show, that the bravest and most numerous 
 host in Christendom might be alarmed to see King 
 Edward moving against them. 
 
 It was upon the twenty-third of June (13 14) the 
 King of Scotland heard the news, that the English 
 army were approaching Stirling. He drew out his 
 army, therefore, in the order which he had before re- 
 solved on. After a short time, Bruce, who was look- 
 ing out anxiously for the enemy, saw a body of En- 
 glish cavalry trying to get into Stirling from the 
 eastward. This was the Lord Clifford, who, with 
 a chosen body of eight hundred horse, had been de- 
 tached to relieve the castle. 
 
 "See, Randolph," said the king to his nephew, 
 "there is a rose fallen from your chaplet." By this 
 
 273 
 

 Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 he meant, that Randolph had lost some honor, by 
 suffering the enemy to pass where he had been sta- 
 tioned to hinder them. Randolph made no reply, 
 but rushed against Clifford with little more than 
 half his number. The Scots were on foot. The 
 English turned to charge them with their lances, and 
 Randolph drew up his men in close order to receive 
 the onset. He seemed to be in so much danger, that 
 Douglas asked leave of the king to go and assist him. 
 The king refused him permission. 
 
 "Let Randolph," he said, "redeem his own fault; 
 I cannot break the order of battle for his sake." Still 
 the danger appeared greater, and the English horse 
 seemed entirely to encompass the small handful of 
 Scottish infantry. "So please you," said Douglas to 
 the king, "my heart will not suffer me to stand idle 
 and see Randolph perish — I must go to his assist- 
 ance." He rode off accordingly; but long before 
 they had reached the place of combat, they saw the 
 English horses galloping off, many with empty sad- 
 dles. 
 
 "Halt!" said Douglas to his men, "Randolph has 
 gained the day; since we were not soon enough to 
 help him in the battle, do not let us lessen his glory by 
 approaching the field." Now, that was nobly done; 
 especially as Douglas and Randolph were always 
 contending which should rise highest in the good 
 opinion of the king and the nation. 
 
 The van of the English army now came in sight, 
 
 ^74 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 and a number of their bravest knights drew near to 
 see what the Scots were doing. They saw King 
 Robert dressed in his armor, and distinguished by a 
 gold crown, which he wore over his helmet. He 
 was not mounted on his great war-horse, because he 
 did not expect to fight that evening. But he rode 
 on a little pony up and down the ranks of his army, 
 putting his men in order, and carried in his hand a 
 sort of battle-axe made of steel. When the king saw 
 the English horsemen draw near, he advanced a little 
 before his own men, that he might look at them more 
 nearly. 
 
 There was a knight among the English, called 
 Sir Henry de Bohun, who thought this would be a 
 good opportunity to gain great fame to himself, and 
 put an end to the war, by killing King Robert. The 
 king being poorly mounted, and having no lance, 
 Bohun galloped on him suddenly and furiously, 
 thinking, with his long spear, and his tall powerful 
 horse, easily to bear him down to the ground. King 
 Robert saw him, and permitted him to come very 
 near, then suddenly turned his pony a little to one 
 side, so that Sir Henry missed him with the lance- 
 point, and was in the act of being carried past him 
 by the career of his horse. But as he passed, King 
 Robert rose up in his stirrups, and struck Sir Henry 
 on the head with his battle-axe so terrible a blow, 
 that it broke to pieces his iron helmet as if it had been 
 a nut-shell, and hurled him from his saddle. He 
 
 275 
 

 Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 was dead before he reached the ground. This gal- 
 lant action was blamed by the Scottish leaders, who 
 thought Bruce ought not to have exposed himself 
 to so much danger, when the safety of the whole 
 army depended on him. The king only kept look- 
 ing at his weapon, which was injured by the force 
 of the blow, and said, "I have broken my good 
 battle-axe." 
 
 The next morning, being the twenty-fourth of 
 June, at break of day, the battle began in terrible 
 earnest. The English as they advanced saw the Scots 
 getting into line. The Abbot of InchafTray walked 
 through their ranks bare-footed, and exhorted them 
 to fight for their freedom. They kneeled down as 
 he passed, and prayed to Heaven for victory. King 
 Edward, who saw this, called out, "They kneel down 
 — they are asking forgiveness." "Yes," said a cele- 
 brated English baron, called Ingelram de Umphra- 
 ville, "but they ask it from God, not from us — these 
 men will conquer, or die upon the field." 
 
 The English king ordered his men to begin the 
 battle. The archers then bent their bows, and began 
 to shoot so closely together, that the arrows fell like 
 flakes of snow on a Christmas day. They killed 
 many of the Scots, and might, as at Falkirk, and 
 other places, have decided the victory; but Bruce, 
 as I told you before, was prepared for them. He 
 had in readiness a body of men-at-arms, well mount- 
 ed, who rode at full gallop among the archers, and 
 
 276 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 as they had no weapons save their bows and arrows, 
 which they could not use when they were attacked 
 hand to hand, they were cut down in great numbers 
 by the Scottish horsemen and thrown into total 
 confusion. 
 
 The fine English cavalry then advanced to sup- 
 port their archers, and to attack*the Scottish line. But 
 coming over the ground which was dug full of pits, 
 the horses fell into these holes, and the riders lay 
 tumbling about, without any means of defence, and 
 unable to rise, from the weight of their armor. 
 The Englishmen began to fall into general disor- 
 der; and the Scottish king, bringing up more of 
 his forces, attacked and pressed them still more 
 closely. 
 
 On a sudden, while the battle was obstinately 
 maintained on both sides, an event happened which 
 decided the victory. The servants and attendants on 
 the Scottish camp had, as I told you, been sent be- 
 hind the army to a place afterward called the Gil- 
 lies' hill. But when they saw that their masters were 
 likely to gain the day, they rushed from their place 
 of concealment with such weapons as they could get, 
 that they might have their share in the victory and in 
 the spoil. The English, seeing them come suddenly 
 over the hill, mistook this disorderly rabble for a new 
 army coming up to sustain the Scots, and, losing all 
 heart, began to shift every man for himself. Edward 
 himself left the field as fast as he could ride. A val- 
 
 277 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 iant knight, Sir Giles de Argentine, much renowned 
 in the wars of Palestine, attended the king till he 
 got him out of the press of the combat. But he would 
 retreat no further. "It is not my custom," he said, 
 "to fly." With that he took leave of the king, set 
 spurs to his horse, and calling out his war-cry of Ar- 
 gentine! Argentine! he rushed into the thickest of the 
 Scottish ranks, and was killed. 
 
 The young Earl of Gloucester was also slain, 
 fighting valiantly. The Scots would have saved him, 
 but as he had not put on his armorial bearings, they 
 did not know him, and he was cut to pieces. 
 
 Edward first fled to Stirling Castle, and entreated 
 admittance; but Sir Philip Mowbray, the governor, 
 reminded the fugitive sovereign that he was obliged 
 to surrender the castle next day, so Edward was fain 
 to fly through the Torwood, closely pursued by 
 Douglas with a body of cavalry. An odd circum- 
 stance happened during the chase, which showed 
 how loosely some of the Scottish barons of that day 
 held their political opinions: As Douglas was riding 
 furiously after Edward, he met a Scottish knight, 
 Sir Laurence Abernethy, with twenty horse. Sir 
 Laurence had hitherto owned the English interest, 
 and was bringing this band of followers to serve King 
 Edward's army. But learning from Douglas that the 
 English king was entirely defeated, he changed sides 
 on the spot, and was easily prevailed upon to join 
 Douglas in pursuing the unfortunate Edward, with 
 
 278 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 the very followers whom he had been leading to 
 join his standard. 
 
 Douglas and Abernethy continued the chase, not 
 giving King Edward time to alight from horseback 
 even for an instant, and followed him as far as Dun- 
 bar, where the English had still a friend, in the gov- 
 ernor, Patrick Earl of March. The earl received 
 Edward in his forlorn condition, and furnished him 
 with a fishing skiff, or small ship, in which he es- 
 caped to England, having entirely lost his fine army, 
 and a great number of his bravest nobles. 
 
 The English never before or afterward, whether 
 in France or Scotland, lost so dreadful a battle as that 
 of Bannockburn, nor did the Scots ever gain one of 
 the same importance. Many of the best and bravest 
 of the English nobility and gentry, as I have said, lay 
 dead on the field ; a great many more were made pris- 
 oners; and the whole of King Edward's immense 
 army was dispersed or destroyed. 
 
 The English, after this great defeat, were no 
 longer in a condition to support their pretensions to 
 be masters of Scotland, or to continue, as they had 
 done for nearly twenty years, to send armies into that 
 country to overcome it. On the contrary, they be- 
 came for a time scarce able to defend their own fron- 
 tiers against King Robert and his soldiers. 
 
 There were several battles fought within Eng- 
 land itself, in which the English had greatly the 
 worst. One of these took place near Mitton, in York- 
 
 279 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 shire. So many priests took part in the fight, that the 
 Scots called it the Chapter of Mitton — a meeting of 
 the clergymen belonging to a cathedral being called 
 a Chapter. There was a great slaughter in and af- 
 ter the action. The Scots laid waste the country of 
 England as far as the gates of York, and enjoyed a 
 considerable superiority over their ancient enemies, 
 who had so lately threatened to make them subjects 
 of England. 
 
 Thus did Robert Bruce arise from the condition 
 of an exile, hunted with bloodhounds like a stag or 
 beast of prey, to the rank of an independent sov- 
 ereign, universally acknowledged to be one of the 
 wisest and bravest kings who then lived. The nation 
 of Scotland was also raised once more from the situ- 
 ation of a distressed and conquered province to that 
 of a free and independent state, governed by its own 
 laws, and subject to its own princes; and although 
 the country was after the Bruce's death often sub- 
 jected to great loss and distress, both by the hostility 
 of the English, and by the unhappy civil wars among 
 the Scots themselves, yet they never afterward lost 
 the freedom for which Wallace had laid down his 
 life, and which King Robert had recovered, not less 
 by his wisdom than by his weapons. And therefore 
 most just it is, that while the country of Scotland re- 
 tains any recollection of its history, the memory of 
 those brave warriors and faithful patriots should be 
 remembered with honor and gratitude. 
 
 280 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 CONCERNING THE EXPLOITS OF EDWARD 
 
 BRUCE, RANDOLPH, EARL OF MURRAY, 
 
 AND THE DEATH OF ROBERT BRUCE 
 
 You will naturally be curious to hear what be- 
 came of Edward, the brother of Robert Bruce, who 
 was so courageous, and at the same time so rash. 
 You must know that the Irish, at that time, had been 
 almost fully conquered by the English; but becom- 
 ing weary of them, the Irish chiefs, or at least a great 
 many of them, invited Edward Bruce to come over, 
 drive out the English, and become their king. He 
 was willing enough to go, for he had always a high 
 courageous spirit, and desired to obtain fame and do- 
 minion by fighting. Edward Bruce was as good a 
 soldier as his brother but not so prudent and cau- 
 tious; for, except in the affair of killing the Red 
 Comyn, which was a wicked and violent action, Rob- 
 ert Bruce, in his latter days, showed himself as wise 
 as he was courageous. However, he was well con- 
 tented that his brother Edward, who had always 
 fought so bravely for him, should be raised up to be 
 King of Ireland. Therefore King Robert not only 
 gave him an army to assist in making the conquest, 
 but passed over the sea to Ireland himself in person, 
 with a considerable body of troops to assist him. The 
 Bruces gained several battles, and penetrated far into 
 Ireland; but the English forces were too numerous, 
 and so many of the Irish joined with them rather 
 
 281 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 than with Edward Bruce, that King Robert and his 
 brother were obliged to retreat before them. 
 
 The chief commander of the English was a great 
 soldier, called Sir Edmund Butler, and he had as- 
 sembled a much greater army than Edward Bruce 
 and his brother King Robert had to oppose him. 
 The Scots were obliged to retreat every morning, 
 that they might not be forced to battle by an army 
 more numerous than their own. 
 
 I have often told you that King Robert the Bruce 
 was a wise and a good prince. But a circumstance 
 happened during this retreat, which showed he was 
 also a kind and humane man. It was one morning, 
 when the English and their Irish auxiliaries were 
 pressing hard upon Bruce, who had given his army 
 orders to continue a hasty retreat; for to have risked 
 a battle with a much more numerous army, and in 
 the midst of a country which favored his enemies, 
 would have been extremely imprudent. On a sud- 
 den, just as King Robert was about to mount his 
 horse, he heard a woman shrieking in despair. 
 "What is the matter?" said the king; and he was 
 informed by his attendants, that a poor woman, a 
 laundress, or washerwoman, mother of an infant who 
 had just been born, was about to be left behind the 
 army, as being too weak to travel. The mother was 
 shrieking for fear of falling into the hands of the 
 Irish, who were accounted very cruel, and there were 
 no carriages nor means of sending the woman and her 
 
 282 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 infant on in safety. They must needs be abandoned if 
 the army retreated. 
 
 King Robert was silent for a moment when he 
 heard this story, being divided between the feelings 
 of humanity, occasioned by the poor woman's distress, 
 and the danger to which a halt would expose his 
 army. At last he looked round on his officers, with 
 eyes which kindled like fire. "Ah, gentlemen," he 
 said, "never let it be said that a man who was born 
 of a woman, and nursed by a woman's tenderness, 
 should leave a mother and an infant to the mercy of 
 barbarians! In the name of God, let the odds and 
 the risk be what they will, I will fight Edmund But- 
 ler rather than leave these poor creatures behind me. 
 Let the army, therefore, draw up in line of battle, in- 
 stead of retreating." 
 
 The story had a singular conclusion; for the En- 
 glish general, seeing that Robert the Bruce halted 
 and offered him battle, and knowing that the Scottish 
 king was one of the best generals then living, con- 
 ceived that he must have received some large supply 
 of forces, and was afraid to attack him. And thus 
 Bruce had an opportunity to send off the poor woman 
 and her child, and then to retreat at his leisure, with- 
 out suffering any inconvenience from the halt. 
 
 But Robert was obliged to leave the conquest of 
 Ireland to his brother Edward, being recalled by 
 pressing affairs to his own country. Edward, who 
 was rash as he was brave, engaged, against the advice 
 
 283 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of his best officers, in battle with an English general, 
 called Sir Piers de Birmingham. The Scots were 
 surrounded on all sides, but continued to defend 
 themselves valiantly, and Edward Bruce showed the 
 example by fighting in the very front of the battle. 
 At length a strong English Champion, called John 
 Maupas, engaged Edward hand to hand; and they 
 fought till they killed each other. Maupas was 
 found lying after the battle upon the body of Bruce; 
 both were dead men. After Edward Bruce's death, 
 the Scots gave up further attempts to conquer Ire- 
 land. 
 
 Robert Bruce continued to reign gloriously for 
 several years, and was so constantly victorious over 
 the English, that the Scots seemed during his gov- 
 ernment to have acquired a complete superiority over 
 their neighbors. But then we must remember, that 
 Edward the Second, who then reigned in England, 
 was a foolish prince, and listened to bad counsels; 
 so that it is no wonder that he was beaten by so wise 
 and experienced a general as Robert Bruce, who had 
 fought his way to the crown through so many dis- 
 asters, and acquired in consequence so much renown, 
 that, as I often said, he was generally accounted one 
 of the best soldiers and wisest sovereigns of his time. 
 
 In the last year of Robert the Bruce's reign, he 
 became extremely sickly and infirm, chiefly owing to 
 a disorder called the leprosy, which he had caught 
 during the hardships and misfortunes of his youth, 
 
 284 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 when he was so frequently obliged to hide himself 
 in the woods and morasses, without a roof to shelter 
 him. He lived at a castle called Cardross, on the 
 beautiful banks of the river Clyde, near to where it 
 joins the sea ; and his chief amusement was to go upon 
 the river, and down to the sea in a ship, which he 
 kept for his pleasure. He was no longer able to sit 
 upon his war-horse, or to lead his army to the field. 
 
 While Bruce was in this feeble state, Edward the 
 Second, King of England, died, and was succeeded 
 by his son Edward the Third. He turned out after- 
 ward to be one of the wisest and bravest kings whom 
 England ever had ; but when he first mounted the 
 throne he was very young, and under the entire man- 
 agement of his mother, who governed by means of a 
 wicked favorite called Mortimer. 
 
 The war between the English and the Scots still 
 lasting at the time, Bruce sent his two great com- 
 manders, the Good Lord James Douglas, and 
 Thomas Randolph, Earl of Murray, to lay waste the 
 counties of Northumberland and Durham, and dis- 
 tress the English as much as they could. 
 
 Their soldiers were about twenty thousand in 
 number, all lightly armed, and mounted on horses 
 that were but small in height, but excessively active. 
 The men themselves carried no provision, except a 
 bag of oatmeal; and each had at his saddle a small 
 plate of iron called a girdle, on which, when they 
 pleased, they could bake the oatmeal into cakes. They 
 
 285 
 
 10— Vol. S 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 killed the cattle of the English, as they travelled 
 through the country, roasted the flesh on wooden 
 spits, or boiled it in the skins of the animals them- 
 selves, putting in a little water with the beef, to pre- 
 vent the fire from burning the hide to pieces. This 
 was rough cookery. They made their shoes, or 
 rather sandals, in as coarse a way; cutting them out 
 of the raw hides of the cattle, and fitting them to their 
 ankles, like what are now called short gaiters. As 
 this sort of buskin had the hairy side of the hide out- 
 ermost, the English called those who wore them 
 rough-footed Scots, and sometimes, from the color of 
 the hide, red-shanks. 
 
 As such forces needed to carry nothing with them, 
 either for provisions or ammunition, the Scots moved 
 with amazing speed, from mountain to mountain, 
 and from glen to glen, pillaging and destroying the 
 country wheresoever they came. In the meanwhile, 
 the young King of England pursued them with a 
 much larger army; but, as it was encumbered by the 
 necessity of carrying provisions in great quantities, 
 and by the slow motions of men in heavy armor, they 
 could not come up with the Scots, although they saw 
 every day the smoke of the houses and villages which 
 they were burning. The King of England was ex- 
 tremely angry; for, though only a boy of sixteen years 
 old, he longed to fight the Scots, and to chastise them 
 for the mischief they were doing to his country; and 
 at length he grew so impatient, that he offered a 
 
 286 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 large reward to any one who would show him where 
 the Scottish army were. 
 
 At length, after the English host had suffered se- 
 vere hardships, from want of provisions, and fa- 
 tiguing journeys through fords, and swamps, and 
 morasses, a gentleman named Rokeby came into the 
 camp, and claimed the reward which the king had 
 offered. He told the king that he had been made 
 prisoner by the Scots, and that they said they should 
 be as glad to meet the English king as he to see them. 
 Accordingly, Rokeby guided the English army to the 
 place where the Scots lay encamped. 
 
 But the English king was no nearer to the battle 
 which he desired; for Douglas and Randolph, know- 
 ing the force and numbers of the English army, had 
 taken up their camp on a steep hill, at the bottom of 
 which ran a deep river, called the Wear, having a 
 channel filled with large stones, so that there was no 
 possibility for the English to attack the Scots with- 
 out crossing the water, and then climbing up the 
 steep hill in the very face of their enemy; a risk 
 which was too great to be attempted. 
 
 Then the king sent a message of defiance to the 
 Scottish generals, inviting them either to draw back 
 their forces, and allow him freedom to cross the river, 
 and time to place his army in order of battle on the 
 other side, that they might fight fairly, or offering, if 
 they liked it better, to permit them to cross over to 
 his side without opposition, that they might join bat- 
 
 287 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 tie on a fair field. Randolph and Douglas did noth- 
 ing but laugh at this message. They said, that when 
 they fought, it should be at their own pleasure, and 
 not because the King of England chose to ask for a 
 battle. They reminded him, insultingly, how they 
 had been in his country for many days, burning, tak- 
 ing spoil, and doing what they thought fit. If the 
 king was displeased with this, they said, he must 
 find his way across the river to fight them, the best 
 way he could. 
 
 The English king, determined not to quit sight of 
 the Scots, encamped on the opposite side of the river 
 to watch their motions, thinking that want of provis- 
 ions would oblige them to quit their strong position 
 on the mountains. But the Scots once more showed 
 Edward their dexterity in marching, by leaving their 
 encampment, and taking up another post, even 
 stronger and more difficult to approach than the first 
 which they had occupied. King Edward followed, 
 and again encamped opposite to his dexterous and 
 troublesome enemies, desirous to bring them to a bat- 
 tle, when he might hope to gain an easy victory, hav- 
 ing more than double the number of the Scottish 
 army, all troops of the very best quality. 
 
 While the armies lay thus opposed to each other, 
 Douglas resolved to give the young King of England 
 a lesson in the art of war. At the dead of night, he 
 left the Scottish camp with a small body of chosen 
 horse, not above two hundred, well armed. He 
 
 288 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 crossed the river in deep silence, and came to the 
 English camp, which was but carelessly guarded. 
 Seeing this, Douglas rode past the English sentinels 
 as if he had been an officer of the English army, say- 
 ing: "Ha, Saint George! you keep bad watch here." 
 In those days, you must know, the English used to 
 swear by Saint George, as the Scots did by Saint 
 Andrew. Presently after, Douglas heard an English 
 soldier, who lay stretched by the fire, say to his com- 
 rade, "I cannot tell what is to happen to us in this 
 place; but, for my part, I have a great fear of the 
 Black Douglas playing us some trick." 
 
 "You shall have cause to say so," said Douglas to 
 himself. 
 
 When he had thus got into the midst of the En- 
 glish camp without being discovered, he drew his 
 sword, and cut asunder the ropes of a tent, calling 
 out his usual war-cry, "Douglas, Douglas! English 
 thieves, you are all dead men." His followers im- 
 mediately began to cut down and overturn the tents, 
 cutting and stabbing the English soldiers as they en- 
 deavored to get to arms. 
 
 Douglas forced his way to the pavilion of the 
 king himself, and very nearly carried the young 
 prince prisoner out of the middle of his great army. 
 Edward's chaplain, however, and many of his house- 
 hold, stood to arms bravely in his defence, while the 
 young king escaped by creeping away beneath the 
 canvas of his tent. The chaplain and several of the 
 
 289 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 king's officers were slain; but the whole camp was 
 now alarmed and in arms, so that Douglas was 
 obliged to retreat, which he did by bursting through 
 the English at the side of the camp opposite to that by 
 which he had entered. Being separated from his 
 men in the confusion, he was in great danger of being 
 slain by an Englishman who encountered him with a 
 huge club. This man he killed, but with consider- 
 able difficulty; and then blowing his horn to collect 
 his soldiers, who soon gathered around him, he re- 
 turned to the Scottish camp, having sustained very 
 little loss. 
 
 Edward, much mortified at the insult which he 
 had received, became still more desirous of chastising 
 those audacious adversaries; and one of them at least 
 was not unwilling to afford him an opportunity of re- 
 venge. This was Thomas Randolph, Earl of Mur- 
 ray. He asked Douglas, when he returned to the 
 Scottish camp, "What he had done?" "We have 
 drawn some blood." — "Ah," said the earl, "had we 
 gone all together to the night attack, we should have 
 discomfited them." — "It might well have been so," 
 said Douglas, "but the risk would have been too 
 great." — "Then will we fight them in open battle," 
 said Randolph, "for if we remain here, we shall in 
 time be famished for want of provisions." — "Not so," 
 replied Douglas; "we will deal with this great army 
 of the English as the fox did with the fisherman in 
 the fable." — "And how was that?" said the Earl of 
 
 290 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 Murray. Hereupon the Douglas told him this 
 story: 
 
 "A fisherman," he said, "had made a hut by a 
 river side, that he might follow his occupation of 
 fishing. Now, one night he had gone out to look af- 
 ter his nets, leaving a small fire in his hut; and when 
 he came back, behold there was a fox in the cabin, 
 taking the liberty to eat one of the finest salmon he 
 had taken. 'Ho, Mr. Robber!' said the fisherman, 
 drawing his sword, and standing in the doorway to 
 prevent the fox's escape, 'you shall presently die the 
 death.' The poor fox looked for some hole to get 
 out at, but saw none; whereupon he pulled down 
 with his teeth a mantle, which was lying on the bed, 
 and dragged it across the fire. The fisherman ran to 
 snatch his mantle from the fire — the fox flew out at 
 the door with the salmon; and so," said Douglas, 
 "shall we escape the great English army by subtlety, 
 and without risking battle with so large a force." 
 
 Randolph agreed to act by Douglas's counsel, and 
 the Scottish army kindled great fires through their 
 encampment, and made a noise and shouting, and 
 blowing of horns, as if they meant to remain all night 
 there, as before. But in the meantime, Douglas had 
 caused a road to be made through two miles of a 
 great morass which lay in their rear. This was 
 done by cutting down to the bottom of the bog, and 
 filling the trench with fagots of wood. Without 
 this contrivance it would have been impossible that 
 
 291 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the army could have crossed; and through this pas- 
 sage, which the English never suspected, Douglas and 
 Randolph, and all their men, moved at the dead of 
 night. They did not leave so much as an errand- 
 boy behind, and so bent their march toward Scot- 
 land, leaving the English disappointed and affronted. 
 Great was their wonder in the morning, when they 
 saw the Scottish camp empty, and found no living 
 men in it, but two or three English prisoners tied to 
 trees, whom they had left with an insulting message 
 to the King of England, saying: "If he were dis- 
 pleased with what they had done, he might come 
 and revenge himself in Scotland." 
 
 The place where the Scots fixed this famous en- 
 campment was in the forest of Weardale, in the 
 bishopric of Durham; and the road which they cut 
 for the purpose of their retreat is still called the 
 Shorn Moss. 
 
 After this a peace was concluded with Robert 
 Bruce, on terms highly honorable to Scotland; for 
 the English king renounced all pretensions to the 
 sovereignty of the country, and, moreover, gave his 
 sister, a princess called Joanna, to be wife to Robert 
 Bruce's son, called David. This treaty was very ad- 
 vantageous to the Scots. It was called the treaty of 
 Northampton, because it was concluded at that town, 
 in the year 1328. 
 
 Good King Robert did not long survive this joy- 
 ful event. He was not aged more than four-and-flfty 
 
 292 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 years, but, as I said before, his bad health was caused 
 by the hardships which he sustained during his youth, 
 and at length he became very ill. Finding that he 
 could not recover, he assembled around his bedside 
 the nobles and counsellors in whom he most trusted. 
 Fie told them, that now, being on his death-bed, he 
 sorely repented all his misdeeds, and particularly, 
 that he had, in his passion, killed Comyn with his 
 own hand, in the church and before the altar. He 
 said that if he had lived, he had intended to go to 
 Jerusalem, to make war upon the Saracens who held 
 the Holy Land, as some expiation for the evil deeds 
 he had done. But since he was about to die, he re- 
 quested of his dearest friend and bravest warrior, and 
 that was the Good Lord James Douglas, that he 
 should carry his heart to the Holy Land. 
 
 To make you understand the meaning of this re- 
 quest, I must tell you, that at this time a people called 
 Saracens, who believed in the false prophet Ma- 
 homet, had obtained by conquest possession of Jeru- 
 salem, and the other cities and places which are men- 
 tioned in the Holy Scripture; and the Christians of 
 Europe, who went thither as pilgrims to worship at 
 these places, where so many miracles had been 
 wrought, were insulted by these heathen Saracens. 
 Hence many armies of Christians went from their 
 own countries out of every kingdom of Europe, to 
 fight against these Saracens; and believed that they 
 were doing a great service to religion, and that what 
 
 293 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 sins they had committed would be pardoned by God 
 Almighty, because they had taken a part in this 
 which they called a holy warfare. You may remem- 
 ber that Bruce thought of going upon this expedi- 
 tion when he was in despair of recovering the crown 
 of Scotland; and now he desired his heart to be car- 
 ried to Jerusalem after his death, and requested Lord 
 James of Douglas to take charge of it. Douglas wept 
 bitterly as he accepted this office — the last mark of 
 the Bruce's confidence and friendship. 
 
 The king soon afterward expired; and his heart 
 was taken out from his body and embalmed, that is, 
 prepared with spices and perfumes, that it might re- 
 main a long time fresh and uncorrupted. Then the 
 Douglas caused a case of silver to be made, into 
 which he put the Bruce's heart, and wore it around 
 his neck, by a string of silk and gold. And he set 
 forward for the Holy Land, with a gallant train of 
 the bravest men in Scotland, who, to show their value 
 and sorrow for their brave King Robert Bruce, re- 
 solved to attend his heart to the city of Jerusalem. It 
 had been much better for Scotland if the Douglas 
 and his companions had stayed at home to defend 
 their own country, which was shortly afterward in 
 great want of their assistance. 
 
 Neither did Douglas ever get to the end of his 
 journey. In going to Palestine, he landed in Spain, 
 where the Saracen king, or Sultan of Granada, 
 called Osmyn, was invading the realms of Alphonso, 
 
 294 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 the Spanish King of Castile. King Alphonso re- 
 ceived Douglas with great honor and distinction, and 
 people came from all parts to see the great soldier, 
 whose fame was well known through every part of 
 the Christian world. King Alphonso easily per- 
 suaded the Scottish earl that he would do good ser- 
 vice to the Christian cause by assisting him to drive 
 back the Saracens of Granada before proceeding on 
 his voyage to Jerusalem. Lord Douglas and his fol- 
 lowers went accordingly to a great battle against 
 Osmyn, and had little difficulty in defeating the Sara- 
 cens who were opposed to them. But being ignorant 
 of the mode of fighting among the cavalry of the 
 East, the Scots pursued the chase too far, and the 
 Moors, when they saw them scattered and separated 
 from each other, turned suddenly back, with a loud 
 cry of Allah illah Allah, which is their shout of bat- 
 tle, and surrounded such of the Scottish knights and 
 squires as had advanced too hastily, and were dis- 
 persed from each other. 
 
 In this new skirmish, Douglas saw Sir William 
 St. Clair, of Roslyn, fighting desperately, surrounded 
 by many Moors, who were hewing at him with their 
 sabres. "Yonder worthy knight will be slain," 
 Douglas said, "unless he have instant help." With 
 that he galloped to his rescue, but presently was him- 
 self also surrounded by many Moors. When he 
 found the enemy press so thick round him, as to leave 
 him no chance of escaping, the earl took from his 
 
 295 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 neck the Bruce's heart, and speaking to it, as he 
 would have done to the king had he been alive: 
 "Pass first in fight," he said, "as thou wert wont to 
 do, and Douglas will follow thee, or die." He then 
 threw the king's heart among the enemy, and rush- 
 ing forward to the place where it fell, was there slain. 
 His body was found lying above the silver case, as if 
 it had been his last object to defend the Bruce's heart. 
 This Good Lord James of Douglas was one of 
 the best and wisest soldiers that ever drew a sword. 
 He was said to have fought in seventy battles, being 
 beaten in thirteen, and victorious in fifty-seven. The 
 English accused him of being cruel; and it is said 
 that he had such a hatred of the English archers, that 
 when he made one of them prisoner, he would not 
 dismiss him until he was either blinded of his right 
 eye, or had the first finger of his right hand struck 
 off. The Douglas's Larder also seems a very cruel 
 story; but the hatred at that time between the two 
 countries was at a high pitch, and Lord James was 
 much irritated at the death of his faithful servant 
 Thomas Dickson; on ordinary occasions he was mild 
 and gentle to his prisoners. The Scottish historians 
 describe the Good Lord James as one who was never 
 dejected by bad fortune, or unduly elated by that 
 which was good. They say he was modest and gen- 
 tle in time of peace, but had a very different coun- 
 tenance upon a day of battle. He was tall, strong, 
 and well made, of a swarthy complexion, with dark 
 
 296 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 hair, from which he was called the Black Douglas. 
 He lisped a little in his speech, but in a manner which 
 became him very much. Notwithstanding the many 
 battles in which he had fought, his face had escaped 
 without a wound. A brave Spanish knight at the 
 court of King Alphonso, whose face was scarred by 
 the marks of Moorish sabres, expressed wonder that 
 Douglas's countenance should be unmarked with 
 wounds. Douglas replied modestly, he thanked God, 
 who had always enabled his hands to guard and pro- 
 tect his face. 
 
 Many of Douglas's followers were slain in the 
 battle in which he himself fell. The rest resolved 
 not to proceed on their journey to Palestine, but to 
 return to Scotland. Since the time of the Good Lord 
 James, the Douglases have carried upon their shields 
 a bloody heart, with a crown upon it, in memory of 
 this expedition of Lord James to Spain with the 
 Bruce's heart. In ancient times men painted such 
 emblems on their shields that they might be known 
 by them in battle, for their helmet hid their face; and 
 now, as men no longer wear armor in battle, the de- 
 vices, as they are called, belonging to particular 
 families, are engraved upon their seals, or upon their 
 silver plate, or painted upon their carriages. 
 
 Thus, for example, there was one of the brave 
 knights who was in the company of Douglas, and was 
 appointed to take charge of Bruce's heart homeward 
 again, who was called Sir Simon Lockhard of Lee. 
 
 297 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 He took afterward for his device, and painted on his 
 shield, a man's heart, with a padlock upon it, in 
 memory of Bruce's heart, which was padlocked in the 
 silver case. For this reason, men changed Sir Si- 
 mon's name from Lockhard to Lockheart, and all 
 who are descended from Sir Simon are called Lock- 
 hart to this day. Did you ever hear of such a name, 
 Master Hugh Littlejohn? 
 
 Well, such of the Scottish knights as remained 
 alive returned to their own country. They brought 
 back the heart of the Bruce, and the bones of the 
 Good Lord James. These last were interred in the 
 church of St. Bride, where Thomas Dickson and 
 Douglas held so terrible a Palm Sunday. The 
 Bruce's heart was buried below the high altar in 
 Melrose Abbey. As for his body, it was laid in the 
 sepulchre in the midst of the church of Dunfermline, 
 under a marble stone. But the church becoming af- 
 terward ruinous, and the roof falling down with age, 
 the monument was broken to pieces, and nobody 
 could tell where it stood. But a little while before 
 Master Hugh Littlejohn was born, which I take to 
 be six or seven years ago, when they were repairing 
 the church at Dunfermline, and removing the rub- 
 bish, lo! they found fragments of the marble tomb of 
 Robert Bruce. Then they began to dig further, 
 thinking to discover the body of this celebrated mon- 
 arch ; and at length they came to the skeleton of a tall 
 man, and they knew it must be that of King Robert, 
 
 298 
 
Tales of a Grandfather 
 
 both as he was known to have been buried in a wind- 
 ing sheet of cloth of gold, of which many fragments 
 were found about this skeleton, and also because the 
 breastbone appeared to have been sawed through, in 
 order to take out the heart. So orders were sent from 
 the King's Court of Exchequer to guard the bones 
 carefully, until a new tomb should be prepared, into 
 which they were laid with profound respect. A 
 great many gentlemen and ladies attended, and al- 
 most all the common people in the neighborhood; 
 and as the church could not hold half the numbers, 
 the people were allowed to pass through it, one after 
 another, that each one, the poorest as well as the rich- 
 est, might see all that remained of the great King 
 Robert Bruce, who restored the Scottish monarchy. 
 Many people shed tears; for there was the wasted 
 skull, which once was the head that thought so wisely 
 and boldly for his country's deliverance; and there 
 was the dry bone, which had once been the sturdy 
 arm that killed Sir Henry de Bohun, between the two 
 armies, at a single blow, on the evening before the 
 battle of Bannockburn. 
 
 It is more than five hundred years since the body 
 of Bruce was first laid into the tomb; and how many 
 many millions of men have died since that time, 
 whose bones could not be recognized, nor their names 
 known, any more than those of inferior animals! It 
 was a great thing to see that the wisdom, courage, and 
 patriotism of a king, could preserve him for such a 
 
 299 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 long time in the memory of the people over whom he 
 once reigned. But then, my dear child, yo*u must re- 
 member, that it is only desirable to be remembered 
 for praiseworthy and patriotic actions, such as those 
 of Robert Bruce. It would be better for a prince to 
 be forgotten like the meanest peasant, than to be 
 recollected for actions of tyranny or oppression. 
 
 300 
 
THE CHRONICLES OF FROISSART 
 
 How the Duke of Normandy laid siege to Aiguillon 
 with a hundred thousand men 
 
 npHE Duke of Normandy and these lords of France 
 * did so much that they came to the castle of 
 Aiguillon. There they laid their siege about the fair 
 meadows along by the river able to bear ships, every 
 lord among his own company and every constable by 
 himself, as it was ordained by the marshals. This 
 siege endured till the feast of Saint Remy : there were 
 well a hundred thousand men of war, a-horseback 
 and afoot: they made lightly every day two or three 
 assaults and most commonly from the morning till it 
 was near night without ceasing, for ever there came 
 new assaulters that would not suffer them within to 
 rest. The lords of France saw well they could not 
 well come to the fortress without they passed the 
 river, which was large and deep. Then the Duke 
 commanded that a bridge should be made, whatso- 
 ever it cost, to pass the river: there were set awork 
 more than three hundred workmen, who did work 
 day and night. When the knights within saw this 
 bridge more than half made over the river, they 
 decked three ships, and entered into them a certain, 
 and so came on the workmen and chased them away 
 
 301 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 with their defenders; and there they brake all to 
 pieces, that had been long a-making. When the 
 French lords saw that, then they apparelled other 
 ships, to resist against their ships, and then the work- 
 men began again to work on the bridge, on trust of 
 their defenders. And when they had worked half 
 a day and more, Sir Gaultier of Manny and his com- 
 pany entered into a ship, and came on the workmen 
 and made them to leave work and to recule back, and 
 brake again all that they had made. This business 
 was nigh every day; but at last the Frenchmen kept 
 so well their workmen, that the bridge was made per- 
 force: and then the lords and all their army passed 
 over in manner of battle, and they assaulted the cas- 
 tle a whole day together without ceasing, but nothing 
 they won ; and at night they returned to their lodg- 
 ings : and they within amended all that was broken, 
 for they had with them workmen enough. 
 
 The next day the Frenchmen divided their assault- 
 ers into four parts, the first to begin in the morning 
 and to continue till nine, the second till noon, the 
 third to even-song time, and the fourth till night. Af- 
 ter that manner they assailed the castle six days to- 
 gether: howbeit they within were not so sore trav- 
 ailed, but always they defended themselves so val- 
 iantly, that they without won nothing, but only the 
 bridge without the castle. Then the Frenchmen took 
 other counsel: they sent to Toulouse for eight great 
 engines, and they made there four greater, and they 
 
 3° 2 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 made all twelve to cast day and night against the 
 castle; but they within were so well pavised, that 
 never a stone of their engines did them any hurt: it 
 brake somewhat the covering of some houses. They 
 within had also great engines, which brake down all 
 the engines without, for in a short space they brake 
 all to pieces six of the greatest of them without. 
 
 During this siege oftentimes Sir Walter of Manny 
 issued out with a hundred or six score companions, 
 and went on that side the river a-foraging^ and re- 
 turned again with great preys in the sight of them 
 without. On a day the Lord Charles of Montmo- 
 rency, marshal of the host, rode forth with a five hun- 
 dred with him, and when he returned, he drave be- 
 fore him a great number of beasts that he had got 
 together in the company to refresh the host with vic- 
 tual: and by adventure he encountered with Sir 
 Gaultier of Manny. There was between them a great 
 fight and many overthrown, hurt and slain: the 
 Frenchmen were five against one. Tidings thereof 
 came unto Aiguillon: then every man that might 
 issued out, the Earl of Pembroke first of all and his 
 company; and when he came, he found Sir Gaultier 
 of Manny afoot enclosed with his enemies, and did 
 marvels in arms. Incontinent he was rescued and re- 
 mounted again, and in the mean season some of the 
 Frenchmen chased their beasts quickly into the host, 
 or else they had lost them, for they that issued out of 
 Aiguillon set so fiercely on the Frenchmen, that they 
 
 303 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 put them to the flight and delivered their company 
 that were taken and took many Frenchmen prisoners, 
 and Sir Charles of Montmorency had much work to 
 scape. Then the Englishmen returned into Aiguil- 
 lon. 
 
 Thus every day almost there were such rencount- 
 ers beside the assaults. On a day all the whole host 
 armed them, and the duke commanded that they of 
 Toulouse, of Carcassonne, of Beaucaire should make 
 assault from the morning till noon, and they of 
 Rouergue, Cahors and Agenois from noon till night; 
 and the duke promised, whosoever could win the 
 bridge of the gate should have in reward a hundred 
 crowns. Also the duke, the better to maintain this 
 assault, he caused to come on the river divers ships 
 and barges : some entered into them to pass the river, 
 and some went by the bridge : at the last some of them 
 took a little vessel and went under the bridge, and 
 did cast great hooks of iron to the drawbridge, and 
 then drew it to them so sore, that they brake the 
 chains of iron that held the bridge, and so pulled 
 down the bridge perforce. Then the Frenchmen 
 leaped on the bridge so hastily, that one overthrew 
 another, for every man desired to win the hundred 
 crowns. They within cast down bars of iron, pieces 
 of timber, pots of lime, and hot water, so that many 
 were overthrown from the bridge into the water and 
 into the dikes, and many slain and sore hurt. How- 
 beit the bridge was won perforce, but it cost more 
 
 3°4 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 than it was worth, for they could not for all that win 
 the gate. Then they drew aback to their lodgings, 
 for it was late: then they within issued out, and new 
 made again their drawbridge, stronger than ever it 
 was before. 
 
 The next day there came to the duke two cunning 
 men, masters in carpentry, and said: "Sir, if ye will 
 let us have timber and workmen, we shall make four 
 scaffolds as high or higher than the walls." The 
 duke commanded that it should be done, and to get 
 carpenters in the country and to give them good 
 wages: so these four scaffolds were made in four 
 ships, but it was long first, and cost much or they 
 were finished. Then such as should assail the castle 
 in them were appointed and entered; and when they 
 were passed half the river, they within the castle let 
 go four martinets, that they had newly made to resist 
 against these scaffolds. These four martinets did 
 cast out so great stones, and so often fell on the scaf- 
 folds, that in a short space they were all to broken, 
 so that they that were within them could not be pav- 
 ished by them, so that they were fain to draw back 
 again, and or they were again at land one of the scaf- 
 folds drowned in the water, and the most part of 
 them that were within it; the which was great dam- 
 age, for therein were good knights, desiring their 
 bodies to advance. 
 
 When the duke saw that he could not come to his 
 intent by that means, he caused the other three scaf- 
 
 305 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 folds to rest. Then he could see no way how he 
 might get the castle, and he had promised not to de- 
 part thence till he had it at his will, without the king 
 his father did send for him. Then he sent the Con- 
 stable of France and the Earl of Tancarville to Paris 
 to the king, and there they showed him the state of 
 the siege of Aiguillon. The king's mind was that the 
 duke should lie there still, till he had won them by 
 famine, sith he could not have them by assault. 
 
 How the King of England came over the sea again, 
 to rescue them in Aiguillon 
 
 The King of England, who had heard how his 
 men were sore constrained in the castle of Aiguillon, 
 then he thought to go over the sea into Gascoyne 
 with a great army. There he made his provision 
 and sent for men all about his realm and in other 
 places, where he thought to speed for his money. In 
 the same season the Lord Godfrey of Harcourt came 
 into England, who was banished out of France: he 
 was well received with the king and retained to be 
 about him, and had fair lands assigned him in Eng- 
 land to maintain his degree. Then the king caused 
 a great navy of ships to be ready in the haven of 
 Hampton, and caused all manner of men of war to 
 draw thither. About the feast of Saint John Baptist 
 the year of our Lord God MCCCXLVI., the king de- 
 parted from the queen and left her in the guiding of 
 
 306 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 the Earl of Kent his cousin; and he established the 
 Lord Percy and the Lord Nevill to be wardens of 
 his realm with [the Archbishop of Canterbury], the 
 Archbishop of York, the Bishop of Lincoln and the 
 Bishop of Durham; for he never voided his realm 
 but that he left ever enough at home to keep and de- 
 fend the realm, if need were. Then the king rode to 
 Hampton and there tarried for wind: then he en- 
 tered into his ship and the Prince of Wales with him, 
 and the Lord Godfrey of Harcourt, and all other 
 lords, earls, barons and knights, with all their com- 
 panies. They were in number a four thousand men 
 of arms and ten thousand archers, beside Irishmen 
 and Welshmen that followed the host afoot. 
 
 Now, I shall name you certain of the lords that 
 went over with King Edward in that journey. First, 
 Edward his eldest son, Prince of Wales, who as then 
 was of the age of thirteen years or thereabout, the 
 earls of Hereford, Northampton, Arundel, Corn- 
 wall, Warwick, Huntingdon, Suffolk, and Oxford; 
 and of barons the Lord Mortimer, who was after 
 Earl of March, the Lords John, Louis and Roger of 
 Beauchamp, and the Lord Raynold Cobham; of 
 lords the Lord of Mowbray, Ros, Lucy, Felton, 
 Bradestan, Multon, Delaware, Manne, Basset, 
 Berkeley, and Willoughby, with divers other lords; 
 and of bachelors there was John Chandos, Fitz- 
 Warin, Peter and James Audley, Roger of Weten- 
 hale, Bartholomew of Burghersh, and Richard of 
 
 3°7 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Pembridge, with divers other that I cannot name. 
 Few there were of strangers: there was the Earl 
 Hainault, Sir Wulfart of Ghistelles, and five or six 
 other knights of Almaine, and many others that I 
 cannot name. 
 
 Thus they sailed forth that day in the name of 
 God. They were well onward on their way toward 
 Gascoyne, but on the third day there rose a contrary 
 wind and drave them on the marches of Cornwall, 
 and there they lay at anchor six days. In that space 
 the king had other counsel by the means of Sir God- 
 frey Harcourt: he counselled the king not to go into 
 Gascoyne, but rather to set aland in Normandy, and 
 said to the king: "Sir, the country of Normandy is 
 one of the plenteous countries of the world: sir, on 
 jeopardy of my head, if ye will land there, there is 
 none that shall resist you; the people of Normandy 
 have not been used to the war, and all the knights and 
 squires of the country are now at the siege before 
 Aiguillon with the duke. And, sir, there ye shall 
 find great towns that be not walled, whereby your 
 men shall have such winning, that they shall be the 
 better thereby twenty year after; and, sir, ye may 
 follow with your army till ye come to Caen in Nor- 
 mandy: sir, I require you to believe me in this voy- 
 age." 
 
 The king, who was as then but in the flower of his 
 youth, desiring nothing so much as to have deeds of 
 arms, inclined greatly to the saying of the Lord Har- 
 
 308 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 court, whom he called cousin. Then he commanded 
 the mariners to set their course to Normandy, and he 
 took into his ship the token of the admiral the Earl 
 of Warwick, and said how he would be admiral for 
 that viage, and so sailed on before as governor of that 
 navy, and they had wind at will. Then the king ar- 
 rived in the Isle of Cotentin, at a port called Hogue 
 Saint-Vaast. 
 
 Tidings anon spread abroad how the English- 
 men were aland: the towns of Cotentin sent word 
 thereof to Paris to King Philip. He had well heard 
 before how the King of England was on the sea with 
 a great army, but he wist not what way he would 
 draw, other into Normandy, Bretayne or Gas- 
 coyne. 
 
 As soon as he knew that the King of England was 
 aland in Normandy, he sent his constable the Earl of 
 Guines, and the Earl of Tancarville, who were but 
 newly come to him from his son from the siege at 
 Aiguillon, to the town of Caen, commanding them 
 to keep that town against the Englishmen. They 
 said they would do their best: they departed from 
 Paris with a good number of men of war, and daily 
 there came more to them by the way, and so came to 
 the town of Caen, where they were received with 
 great joy of men of the town and of the country 
 thereabout, that were drawn thither for surety. 
 These lords took heed for the provision of the town, 
 the which as then was not walled. The king thus 
 
 3°9 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 was arrived at the port Hogue Saint-Vaast near to 
 Saint-Saviour the Viscount the right heritage to the 
 Lord Godfrey of Harcourt, who as then was there 
 with the King of England. 
 
 How the King of England rode in three battles 
 through Normandy 
 
 When the King of England arrived in the Hogue 
 Saint-Vaast the king issued out of his ship, and the 
 first foot that he set on the ground, he fell so rudely, 
 that the blood brast out of his nose. The knights 
 that were about him took him up and said: "Sir, for 
 God's sake enter again into your ship, and come not 
 aland this day, for this is but an evil sign for us." 
 Then the king answered quickly and said: "Where- 
 fore? This is a good token for me, for the land de- 
 sireth to have me." Of the which answer all his men 
 were right joyful. So that day and night the king 
 lodged on the sands, and in the meantime discharged 
 the ships of their horses and other baggages: there 
 the king made two marshals of his host, the one the 
 Lord Godfrey of Harcourt and the other the Earl 
 of Warwick, and the Earl of Arundel constable. 
 And he ordained that the Earl of Huntingdon should 
 keep the fleet of ships with a hundred men of arms 
 and four hundred archers: and also he ordained 
 three battles, one to go on his right hand, closing to 
 the sea-side, and the other on his left hand, and the 
 
 310 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 king himself in the midst, and every night to lodge 
 all in one field. 
 
 Thus they set forth as they were ordained, and 
 they that went by the sea took all the ships that they 
 found in their ways: and so long they went forth, 
 what by sea and what by land, that they came to a 
 good port and to a good town called Barfleur, the 
 which incontinent was won, for they within gave up 
 for fear of death. Howbeit, for all that, the town 
 was robbed, and much gold and silver there found, 
 and rich jewels: there was found so much riches, that 
 the boys and villains of the host set nothing by good 
 furred gowns : they made all the men of the town to 
 issue out and to go into the ships, because they would 
 not suffer them to be behind them for fear of rebel- 
 ling again. After the town of Barfleur was thus 
 taken and robbed without brenning, then they spread 
 abroad in the country and did what they list, for 
 there was not to resist them. At last they came to a 
 great and a rich town called Cherbourg: the town 
 they won and robbed it, and brent part thereof, but 
 into the castle they could not come, it was so strong 
 and well furnished with men of war. Then they 
 passed forth and came to Montebourg, and took it 
 and robbed and brent it clean. In this manner they 
 brent many other towns in that country and won so 
 much riches, that it was marvel to reckon it. Then 
 they came to a great town well closed called Caren- 
 tan, where there was also a strong castle and many 
 
 3ii 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 soldiers within to keep it. Then the lords came out 
 of their ships and fiercely made assault: the bur- 
 gesses of the town were in great fear of their lives, 
 wives and children : they suffered the Englishmen to 
 enter into the town against the will of all the soldiers 
 that were there; they put all their goods to the En- 
 glishmen's pleasures, they thought that most advan- 
 tage. When the soldiers within saw that, they went 
 into the castle: the Englishmen went into the town, 
 and two days together they made sore assaults, so 
 that when they within saw no succor, they yielded 
 up, their lives and goods saved, and so departed. 
 The Englishmen had their pleasure of that good 
 town and castle, and when they saw they might not 
 maintain to keep it, they set fire therein and brent it, 
 and made the burgesses of the town to enter into their 
 ships, as they had done with them of Barfleur, Cher- 
 bourg and Montebourg, and of other towns that they 
 had won on the sea-side. All this was done by the 
 battle that went by the sea-side, and by them on the 
 sea together. 
 
 Now let us speak of the king's battle. When 
 he had sent his first battle along by the sea-side, as 
 ye have heard, whereof one of his marshals, the Earl 
 of Warwick, was captain, and the Lord Cobham 
 with him, then he made his other marshal to lead 
 his host on his left hand, for he knew the issues and 
 entries of Normandy better than any other did there. 
 The Lord Godfrey as marshal rode forth with five 
 
 312 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 hundred men of arms, and rode off from the king's 
 battle as six or seven leagues, in brenning and exiling 
 the country, the which was plentiful of everything — 
 the granges full of corn, the houses full of all riches, 
 rich burgesses, carts and chariots, horse, swine, mut- 
 tons and other beasts: they took what them list and 
 brought into the king's host; but the soldiers made 
 no count to the king nor to none of his officers of the 
 gold and silver that they did get; they kept that to 
 themselves. Thus Sir Godfrey of Harcourt rode 
 every day off from the king's host, and for most part 
 every night resorted to the king's field. The king 
 took his way to Saint-Lo in Cotentin, but or he came 
 there he lodged by a river, abiding for his men that 
 rode along by the sea-side; and when they were 
 come, they set forth their carriage, and the Earl of 
 Warwick, the Earl of Suffolk, Sir Thomas Holland 
 and Sir Raynold Cobham, and their company rode 
 out on the one side and wasted and exiled the coun- 
 try, as the Lord Harcourt had done; and the king 
 ever rode between these battles, and every night they 
 lodged together. 
 
 Of the great assembly that the French king made to 
 resist the King of England 
 
 Thus by the Englishmen was brent, exiled, 
 robbed, wasted and pilled the good, plentiful coun- 
 try of Normandy. Then the French king sent for 
 
 3^ 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the Lord John of Hainault, who came to him with 
 a great number: also the king sent for other men of 
 arms, dukes, earls, barons, knights and squires, and 
 assembled together the greatest number of people 
 that had been seen in France a hundred year before. 
 He sent for men into so far countries, that it was 
 long or they came together, wherefore the king of 
 England did what him list in the mean season. The 
 French king heard well what he did, and sware and 
 said how they should never return again unfought 
 withal, and that such hurts and damages as they had 
 done should be dearly revenged; wherefore he had 
 sent letters to his friends in the Empire, to such as 
 were farthest off, and also to the gentle king of Bo- 
 hemia and to the Lord Charles his son, who from 
 thenceforth was called king of Almaine; he was 
 made king by the aid of his father and the French 
 king, and had taken on him the arms of the Empire : 
 the French king desired them to come to him with 
 all their powers, to the intent to fight with the king 
 of England, who brent and wasted his country. 
 These princes and lords made them read}^ with great 
 number of men of arms, of Almains, Bohemians and 
 Luxemburgers, and so came to the French king. 
 Also King Philip sent to the Duke of Lorraine, who 
 came to serve him with three hundred spears: also 
 there came the Earl [of] Salm in Saumois, the Earl 
 of Sarrebruck, the Earl of Flanders, the Earl 
 William of Namur, every man with a fair company. 
 
 3H 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 Ye have heard herebefore of the order of the 
 Englishmen, how they went in three battles, the 
 marshals on the right hand and on the left, the king 
 and the Prince of Wales his son in the midst. They 
 rode but small journeys and every day took their 
 lodgings between noon and three of the clock, and 
 found the country so fruitful, that they needed not 
 to make no provision for their host, but all only for 
 wine; and yet they found reasonably sufficient there- 
 of. It was no marvel though they of the country 
 were afraid, for before that time they had never seen 
 men of war, nor they wist not what war or battle 
 meant. They fled away as far as they might hear 
 speaking of the Englishmen, and left their houses 
 well stuffed, and granges full of corn, they wist not 
 how to save and keep it. The King of England and 
 the prince had in their battle a three thousand men 
 of arms and six thousand archers and a ten thousand 
 men afoot, beside them that rode with the marshals. 
 
 Thus as ye have heard, the king rode forth, wast- 
 ing and brenning the country without breaking of his 
 order. He left the city of Coutances and went to a 
 great town called Saint-Lo, a rich town of drapery 
 and many rich burgesses. In that town there were 
 dwelling an eight or nine score burgesses, crafty 
 men. When the king came here, he took his lodg- 
 ing without, for he would never lodge in the town 
 for fear of fire: but he sent his men before and anon 
 the town was taken and clean robbed. It was hard 
 
 3*5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 to think the great riches that there was won, in 
 clothes specially; cloth would there have been sold 
 good cheap, if there had been any buyers. 
 
 Then the king went toward Caen, the which was 
 a greater town and full of drapery and other mer- 
 chandise, and rich burgesses, noble ladies and damo- 
 sels, and fair churches, and specially two great and 
 rich abbeys, one of the Trinity, another of Saint 
 Stephen ; and on the one side of the town one of the 
 fairest castles of all Normandy, and captain therein 
 was Robert of Wargny, with three hundred Geno- 
 ways, and in the town was the Earl of Eu and of 
 Guines, Constable of France, and the Earl of 
 Tancarville, with a good number of men of war. 
 The King of England rode that day in good or- 
 der and lodged all his battles together that night, 
 a two leagues from Caen, in a town with a little 
 haven called Austrehem, and thither came also all 
 his navy of ships with the Earl of Huntingdon, who 
 was governor of them. 
 
 The constable and other lords of France that 
 night watched well the town of Caen, and in the 
 morning armed them with all them of the town : then 
 the constable ordained that none should issue out, 
 but keep their defences on the walls, gate, bridge 
 and river, and left the suburbs void, because they 
 were not closed; for they thought they should have 
 enough to do to defend the town, because it was not 
 closed but with the river. They of the town said 
 
 3*6 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 how they would issue out, for they were strong 
 enough to fight with the King of England. When 
 the constable saw their good wills, he said: "In the 
 name of God be it, ye shall not fight without me." 
 Then they issued out in good order and made good 
 face to fight and to defend them and to put their 
 lives in adventure. 
 
 Of the battle of Caen, and how the Englishmen took 
 
 the town 
 
 The same day the Englishmen rose early and 
 apparelled them ready to go to Caen. The king 
 heard mass before the sun-rising and then took his 
 horse, and the prince his son, with Sir Godfrey of 
 Harcourt marshal and leader of the host, whose 
 counsel the king much followed. Then they drew 
 toward Caen with their battles in good array, and so 
 approached the good town of Caen. When they of 
 the town, who were ready in the field, saw these 
 three battles coming in good order, with their ban- 
 ners and standards waving in the wind, and the arch- 
 ers, the which they had not been accustomed to see, 
 they were sore afraid and fled away toward the town 
 without any order or good array, for all that the 
 constable could do: then the Englishmen pursued 
 them eagerly. When the constable and the Earl 
 rTancarville saw that, they took a gate at the entry 
 and saved themselves and certain with them, for the 
 
 3*7 
 
 ii— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Englishmen were entered into the town. Some of 
 the knights and squires of France, such as knew the 
 way to the castle, went thither, and the captain there 
 received them all, for the castle was large. The 
 Englishmen in the chase slew many, for they took 
 none to mercy. 
 
 Then the constable and the Earl of Tancarville, 
 being in the little tower at the bridge foot, looked 
 along the street and saw their men slain without 
 mercy: they doubted to fall in their hands. At last 
 they saw an English knight with one eye called Sir 
 Thomas Holland, and a five or six other knights 
 with him: they knew them, for they had seen them 
 before in Pruce, in Granade, and in other viages. 
 Then they called to Sir Thomas and said how that 
 they would yield themselves prisoners, Then Sir 
 Thomas came thither with his company and mounted 
 up into the gate, and there found the said lords with 
 twenty-five knights with them, who yielded them to 
 Sir Thomas, and he took them for his prisoners and 
 left company to keep them, and then mounted again 
 on his horse and rode into the streets, and saved 
 many lives of ladies, damosels, and cloisterers from 
 defoiling, for the soldiers were without mercy. It 
 fell so well the same season for the Englishmen, that 
 the river, which was able to bear ships, at that time 
 was so low, that men went in and out beside the 
 bridge. They of the town were entered into their 
 houses, and cast down into the street stones, timber 
 
 3i8 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 and iron, and slew and hurt more than five hundred 
 Englishmen, wherewith the king was sore dis- 
 pleased. At night when he heard thereof, he com- 
 manded that the next day all should be put to the 
 sword and the town brent; but then Sir Godfrey 
 of Harcourt said: "Dear sir, for God's sake assuage 
 somewhat your courage, and let it suffice you that 
 ye have done. Ye have yet a great voyage to do or 
 ye come before Calais, whither ye purpose to go; 
 and, sir, in this town there is much people who will 
 defend their houses, and it will cost many of your 
 men their lives, or ye have all at your will; whereby 
 peradventure ye shall not keep your purpose to Cal- 
 ais, the which should redound to your rack. Sir, 
 save your people, for ye shall have need of them or 
 this month pass; for I think verily your adversary 
 King Philip will meet with you to fight, and ye shall 
 find many strait passages and rencounters; where- 
 fore your men, an ye had more, shall stand you in 
 good stead : and, sir, without any further slaying ye 
 shall be lord of this town; men and women will put 
 all that they have to your pleasure." Then the king 
 said: "Sir Godfrey, you are our marshal, ordain 
 everything as ye will." Then Sir Godfrey with his 
 banner rode from street to street, and commanded in 
 the king's name none to be so hardy to put fire in any 
 house, nor to slay any person. When they of the 
 town heard that cry, they received the Englishmen 
 into their houses and made them good cheer, and 
 
 3 l 9 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 some opened their coffers and bade them take what 
 them list, so they might be assured of their lives; 
 howbeit there were done in the town many evil 
 deeds, murders and robberies. Thus the English- 
 men were lords of the town three days and won great 
 riches, the which they sent by barks and barges to 
 Saint-Saviour by the river of Austrehem, a two 
 leagues thence, whereas all their navy lay. Then 
 the king sent the Earl of Huntingdon with two hun- 
 dred men of arms and four hundred archers, with 
 his navy and prisoners and riches that they had got, 
 back again into England. And the king bought of 
 Sir Thomas Holland the constable of France and the 
 Earl of Tancarville, and paid for them twenty thou- 
 sand nobles. 
 
 How Sir Godfrey of Harcourt fought with them of 
 Amiens before Paris 
 
 THUS the King of England ordered his business, 
 being in the town of Caen, and sent into England 
 his navy of ships charged with clothes, jewels, ves- 
 sels of gold and silver, and of other riches, and of 
 prisoners more than sixty knights and three hundred 
 burgesses. Then he departed from the town of Caen 
 and rode in the same order as he did before, bren- 
 ning and exiling the country, and took the way to 
 Evreux and so passed by it; and from thence they 
 rode to a great town called Louviers : it was the chief 
 town of all Normandy of drapery, riches, and full of 
 
 320 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 mercHandise. The Englishmen soon entered therein, 
 for as then it was not closed; it was overrun, spoiled 
 and robbed without mercy: there was won great 
 riches. Then they entered into the country of 
 Evreux and brent and pilled all the country except 
 the good towns closed and castles, to the which the 
 king made none assault, because of the sparing of 
 his people and his artillery. 
 
 On the river of Seine near to Rouen there was 
 the Earl of Harcourt, brother to Sir Godfrey of 
 Harcourt, but he was on the French party, and the 
 Earl of Dreux with him, with a good number of men 
 of war: but the Englishmen left Rouen and went to 
 Gisors, where was a strong castle: they brent the 
 town and then they brent Vernon and all the coun- 
 try about Rouen and Pont-de-1'Arche and came to 
 Mantes and to Meulan, and wasted all the country 
 about, and passed by the strong castle of Rolleboise; 
 and in every place along the river of Seine they 
 found the bridges broken. At last they came to 
 Poissy, and found the bridge broken, but the arches 
 and joists lay in the river: the king lay there a five 
 days: in the mean season the bridge was made, to 
 pass the host without peril. The English marshals 
 ran abroad just to Paris, and brent Saint-Germain in 
 Laye and Montjoie, and Saint-Cloud, and petty 
 Boulogne by Paris, and the Queen's Bourg: they of 
 P?.ris were not well assured of themselves, for it was 
 not as then closed. 
 
 321 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Then King Philip removed to Saint-Denis, and 
 or he went caused all the pentices in Paris to be 
 pulled down; and at Saint-Denis were ready come 
 the King of Bohemia, the Lord John of Hainault, 
 the Duke of Lorraine, the Earl of Flanders, the Earl 
 of Blois, and many other great lords and knights, 
 ready to serve the French king. When the people 
 of Paris saw their king depart, they came to him 
 and kneeled down and said : "Ah, sir and noble king, 
 what will ye do? leave thus this noble city of Paris?" 
 The king said: "My good people, doubt ye not: the 
 Englishmen will approach you no nearer than they 
 be." "Why so, sir?" quoth they; "they be within 
 these two leagues, and as soon as they know of your 
 departing, they will come and assail us; and we not 
 able to defend them: sir, tarry here still and help to 
 defend your good city of Paris." "Speak no more," 
 quoth the king, "for I will go to Saint-Denis to my 
 men of war: for I will encounter the Englishmen 
 and fight against them, whatsoever fall thereof." 
 
 The King of England was at Poissy, and lay in 
 the nunnery there, and kept there the feast of our 
 Lady in August and sat in his robes of scarlet furred 
 with ermines; and after that feast he went forth in 
 order as they were before. The Lord Godfrey of 
 Harcourt rode out on the one side with five hundred 
 men of arms and thirteen hundred archers; and by 
 adventure he encountered a great number of bur- 
 gesses of Amiens a-horseback, who were riding by 
 
 32a 
 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 the king's commandment to Paris. They were 
 quickly assailed and they defended themselves val- 
 iantly, for they were a great number and well armed : 
 there were four knights of Amiens their captains. 
 This skirmish dured long: at the first meeting many 
 were overthrown on both parts; but finally the bur- 
 gesses were taken and nigh all slain, and the English- 
 men took all their carriages and harness. They were 
 well stuffed, for they were going to the French king 
 well appointed, because they had no* seen him a 
 great season before. There were slain in the field 
 a twelve hundred. 
 
 Then the King of England entered into the coun- 
 try of Beauvoisis, brenning and exiling the plain 
 country, and lodged at a fair abbey and a rich called 
 Saint-Messien near to Beauvais: there the king tar- 
 ried a night and in the morning departed. And 
 when he was on his way he looked behind him and 
 saw the abbey a-fire: he caused incontinent twenty 
 of them to be hanged that set the fire there, for he 
 had commanded before on pain of death none to vio- 
 late any church nor to bren any abbey. Then the 
 king passed by the city of Beauvais without any as- 
 sault giving, for because he would not trouble his 
 people nor waste his artillery. And so that day he 
 took his lodging betime in a little town called Milly. 
 The two marshals came so near to Beauvais, that 
 they made assault and skirmish at the barriers in 
 three places, the which assault endured a long space ; 
 
 3*3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 but the town within was so well defended by the 
 means of the bishop, who was there within, that fi- 
 nally the Englishmen departed, and brent clean hard 
 to the gates all the suburbs, and then at night they 
 came into the king's field. 
 
 The next day the king departed, brenning and 
 wasting all before him, and at night lodged in a good 
 village called Grandvilliers. The next day the king 
 passed by Dargies: there was none to defend the cas- 
 tle, wherefore it was soon taken and brent. Then 
 they went forth destroying the country all about, and 
 so came to the castle of Poix, where there was a good 
 town and two castles. There was nobody in them 
 but two fair damosels, daughters to the Lord of Poix; 
 they were soon taken, and had been violated, an two 
 English knights had not been, Sir John Chandos and 
 Sir Basset-; they defended them and brought them to 
 the king, who for his honor made them good cheer 
 and demanded of them whither they would fainest 
 go. They said, "To Corbie," and the king caused 
 them to be brought thither without peril. That 
 night the king lodged in the town of Poix. They of 
 the town and of the castles spake that night with the 
 marshals of the host, to save them and their town 
 from brenning, and they to pay a certain sum of 
 florins the next day as soon as the host was departed. 
 This was granted them, and in the morning the king 
 departed with all his host except a certain that were 
 left there to receive the money that they of the town 
 
 3 2 4 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 had promised to pay. When they of the town saw 
 the host depart and but a few left behind, then they 
 said they would pay never a penny, and so ran out 
 and set on the Englishmen, who defended themselves 
 as well as they might and sent after the host for suc- 
 cor. When Sir Raynold Cobham and Sir Thomas 
 Holland, who had the rule of the rearguard, heard 
 thereof, they returned and cried, "Treason, treason!" 
 and so came again to Poix-ward and found their 
 companions still fighting with them of the town. 
 Then anon they of the town were nigh all slain, and 
 the town brent, and the two castles beaten down. 
 Then they returned to the king's host, who was as 
 then at Airaines and there lodged, and had com- 
 manded all manner of men on pain of death to do no 
 hurt to no town of arsyn, for there the king was 
 minded to lie a day or two to take advice how he 
 might pass the river of Somme; for it was necessary 
 for him to pass the river, as ye shall hear after. 
 
 How the French king followed the king of England 
 
 in Beauvoisinois 
 
 Now let us speak of King Philip, who was at 
 Saint-Denis and his people about him, and daily in- 
 creased. Then on a day he departed and rode so 
 long that he came to Coppegueule, a three leagues 
 from Amiens, and there he tarried. The King of 
 England being at Airaines wist not where for to pass 
 
 3 2 S 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the river of Somme, the which was large and deep, 
 and all bridges were broken and the passages well 
 kept. Then at the king's commandment his two 
 marshals with a thousand men of arms and two thou- 
 sand archers went along the river to find some pas- 
 sage, and passed by Longpre, and came to the bridge 
 of Remy, the which was well kept with a great num- 
 ber of knights and squires and men of the country. 
 The Englishmen alighted afoot and assailed the 
 Frenchmen from the morning till it was noon; but 
 the bridge was so well fortified and defended, that 
 the Englishmen departed without winning of any- 
 thing. Then they went to a great town called Foun- 
 tains on the river of Somme, the which was clean 
 robbed and brent, for it was not closed. Then they 
 went to another town called Long-en-Ponthieu; they 
 could not win the bridge, it was so well kept and de- 
 fended. Then they departed and went to Pic- 
 quigny, and found the town, the bridge, and the cas- 
 'tle so well fortified, that it was not likely to pass 
 there: the French king had so well defended the pas- 
 sages, to the intent that the King of England should 
 not pass the river of Somme, to fight with him at his 
 advantage or else to famish him there. 
 
 When these two marshals had assayed in all 
 places to find passage and could find none, they re- 
 turned again to the king, and shewed how they could 
 find no passage in no place. The same night the 
 French king came to Amiens with more than a hun- 
 
 326 
 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 dred thousand men. The King of England was 
 right pensive, and the next morning heard mass be- 
 fore the sun-rising and then dislodged; and every 
 man followed the marshals' banners, and so rode in 
 the country of Vimeu approaching to the good town 
 of Abbeville, and found a town thereby, whereunto 
 was come much people of the country in trust of a 
 little defence that was there; but the Englishmen 
 anon won it, and all they that were within slain, and 
 many taken of the town and of the country. The 
 king took his lodging in a great hospital that was 
 there. The same day the French king departed 
 from Amiens and came to Airaines about noon; and 
 the Englishmen were departed thence in the morn- 
 ing. The Frenchmen found there great provision 
 that the Englishmen had left behind them, because 
 they departed in haste. There they found flesh ready 
 on the broaches, bread and pasties in the ovens, wine 
 in tuns and barrels, and the tables ready laid. 
 There the French king lodged and tarried for his 
 lords. 
 
 That night the King of England was lodged at 
 Oisemont. At night when the two marshals were 
 returned, who had that day overrun the country to 
 the gates of Abbeville and to Saint-Valery and made 
 a great skirmish there, then the king assembled to- 
 gether his council and made to be brought before 
 him certain prisoners of the country of Ponthieu and 
 of Vimeu. The king right courteously demanded 
 
 327 ' 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of them, if there were any among them that knew 
 any passage beneath Abbeville, that he and his host 
 might pass over the river of Somme : if he would 
 show him thereof, he should be quit of his ransom, 
 and twenty of his company for his love. There was 
 a varlet called Gobin Agace who stepped forth and 
 said to the king: "Sir, I promise you on the jeopardy 
 of my head I shall bring you to such a place, where- 
 as ye and all your host shall pass the river of Somme 
 without peril. There be certain places in the passage 
 that ye shall pass twelve men afront two times be- 
 tween day and night: ye shall not go in the water to 
 the knees. But when the flood cometh, the river 
 then waxeth so great, that no man can pass ; but when 
 the flood is gone, the which is two times between day 
 and night, then the river is so low, that it may be 
 passed without danger both a-horseback and afoot. 
 The passage is hard in the bottom with white stones, 
 so that all your carriage may go surely; therefore the 
 passage is called Blanche-taque. An ye make ready 
 to depart betimes, ye may be there by the sun-rising." 
 The king said : "If this be true that ye say, I quit thee 
 thy ransom and all thy company, and moreover shall 
 give thee a hundred nobles." Then the king com- 
 manded every man to be ready at the sound of the 
 trumpet to depart. 
 
 328 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 Of the battle of Blanche-taque between the King of 
 England and Sir Godemar du Fay 
 
 The King of England slept not much that night, 
 for at midnight he arose and sowned his trumpet: 
 then incontinent they made ready carriages and all 
 things, and at the breaking of the day they departed 
 from the town of Oisemont and rode after the guid- 
 ing of Gobin Agace, so that they came by the sun- 
 rising to Blanche-taque; but as then the flood was 
 up, so that they might not pass : so the king tarried 
 there till it was prime; then the ebb came. 
 
 The French king had his currours in the coun- 
 try, who brought him word of the demeanor of the 
 Englishmen. Then he thought to close the King 
 of England between Abbeville and the river of 
 Somme, so to fight with him at his pleasure. And 
 when he was at Amiens he had ordained a great 
 baron of Normandy, called Sir Godemar du Fay, to 
 go and' keep the passage of Blanche-taque, where the 
 Englishmen must pass or else in none other place. 
 He had with him a thousand men of arms and six 
 thousand afoot, with the Genoways: so they went by 
 Saint-Riquier in Ponthieu and from thence to Cro- 
 toy, whereas the passage lay; and also he had with 
 him a great number of men of the country, and also 
 a great number of them of Montreuil, so that they 
 were a twelve thousand men one and other. 
 
 3 2 9 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 When the English host was come thither, Sir 
 Godemar du Fay arranged all his company to de- 
 fend the passage. The King of England let not for 
 all that; but when the flood was gone, he commanded 
 his marshals to enter into the water in the name of 
 God and Saint George. Then they that were hardy 
 and courageous entered on both parties, and many 
 a man reversed. There were some of the French- 
 men of Artois and Picardy that were as glad to joust 
 in the water as on the dry land. 
 
 The Frenchmen defended so well the passage at 
 the issuing out of the water, that they had much to 
 do. The Genoways did them great trouble with 
 their cross-bows: on the other side the archers of 
 England shot so wholly together, that the French- 
 men were fain to give place to the Englishmen. 
 There was a sore battle, and many a noble feat of 
 arms done on both sides. Finally the Englishmen 
 passed over and assembled together in the field. The 
 king and the prince passed, and all the lords; then 
 the Frenchmen kept none array, but departed, he 
 that might best. When Sir Godemar saw that dis- 
 comfiture, he fled and saved himself: some fled to 
 Abbeville and some to Saint-Riquiers. They that 
 were there afoot could not flee, so that there were 
 slain a great number of them of Abbeville, Mon- 
 treuil, Rue and of Saint-Riquiers: the chase endured 
 more than a great league. And as yet all the En- 
 glishmen were not passed the river, and certain cur- 
 
 33° 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 rours of the King of Bohemia and of Sir John of 
 Hainault came on them that were behind and took 
 certain horses and carriages and slew divers, or they 
 could take the passage. 
 
 The French king the same morning was departed 
 from Airaines, trusting to have found the English- 
 men between him and the river of Somme: but when 
 he heard how that Sir Godemar du Fay and his com- 
 pany were discomfited, he tarried in the field and de- 
 manded of his marshals what was best to do. They 
 said, "Sir, ye cannot pass the river but at the bridge 
 of Abbeville, for the flood is come in at Blanche- 
 taque:" then he returned and lodged at Abbeville. 
 
 The King of England when he was past the river, 
 he thanked God and so rode forth in like manner as 
 he did before. Then he called Gobin Agace and did 
 quit him his ransom and all his company, and gave 
 him a hundred nobles and a good horse. And so the 
 king rode forth fair and easily, and thought to have 
 lodged in a great town called Noyelles; but when he 
 knew that the town pertained to the Countess d'Au- 
 male, sister to the Lord Robert of Artois, the king as- 
 sured the town and country as much as pertained to 
 her, and so went forth ; and his marshals rode to Cro- 
 toy on the sea-side and brent the town, and found in 
 the haven many ships and barks charged with wines 
 of Poitou, pertaining to the merchants of Saintonge 
 and of Rochelle : they brought the best thereof to the 
 king's host. Then one of the marshals rode to the 
 
 33i 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 gates of Abbeville and from thence to Saint-Ri- 
 quiers, and after to the town of Rue-Saint-Esprit. 
 This was on a Friday, and both battles of the mar- 
 shals returned to the king's host about noon and so 
 lodged all together near to Cressy in Ponthieu. 
 
 The King of England was well informed how 
 the French king followed after him to fight. Then 
 he said to his company; "Let us take here some plot 
 of ground, for we will go no further till we have 
 seen our enemies. I have good cause here to abide 
 them, for I am on the right heritage of the queen 
 my mother, the which land was given at her mar- 
 riage: I will challenge it of mine adversary Philip 
 of Valois." And because that he had not the eighth 
 part in number of men as the French king had, there- 
 fore he commanded his marshals to chose a plot of 
 ground somewhat for his advantage: and so they 
 did, and thither the king and his host went. Then 
 he sent his currours to Abbeville, to see if the French 
 king drew that day into the field or not. They went 
 forth and returned again, and said how they could 
 see none appearance of his coming: then every man 
 took their lodging for that day, and to be ready in 
 the morning at the sound of the trumpet in the same 
 place. This Friday the French king tarried still 
 in Abbeville abiding for his company, and sent his 
 two marshals to ride out to see the dealing of the 
 Englishmen, and at night they returned, and said 
 how the Englishmen were lodged in the fields. That 
 
 33* 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 night the French king made a supper to all the chief 
 lords that were there with him, and after supper the 
 king desired them to be friends each to other. The 
 king looked for the earl of Savoy, who should come 
 to him with a thousand spears, for he had received 
 wages for a three months of them at Troyes in 
 Champagne. 
 
 Of the order of the Englishmen at Cressy, and how 
 they made three battles afoot 
 
 On the Friday, as I said before, the King of Eng- 
 land lay in the fields, for the country was plentiful 
 of wines and other victual, and if need had been, 
 they had provision following in carts and other car- 
 riages. That night the king made a supper to all 
 his chief lords of his host and made them good 
 cheer; and when they were all departed to take their 
 rest, then the king entered into his oratory and 
 kneeled down before the altar, praying God devout- 
 ly, that if he fought the next day, that he might 
 achieve the journey to his honor: then about mid- 
 night he laid him down to rest, and in the morning 
 he rose betimes and heard mass, and the prince his 
 son with him, and the most part of his company 
 were confessed and houselled; and after the mass 
 said he commanded every man to be armed and to 
 draw to the field to the same place before appointed. 
 Then the king caused a park to be made by the wood 
 
 333 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 side behind his host, and there was set all carts and 
 carriages, and within the park were all their horses, 
 for every man was afoot; and into this park there was 
 but one entry. Then he ordained three battles: in 
 the first was the young Prince of Wales, with him 
 the Earl of Warwick and Oxford, the Lord Godfrey 
 of Harcourt, Sir Raynold Cobham, Sir Thomas Hol- 
 land, the Lord Stafford, the Lord of Mohun, the 
 Lord Delaware, Sir John Chandos, Sir Bartholo- 
 mew de Burghersh, Sir Robert Nevill, the Lord 
 Thomas Clifford, the Lord Bourchier, the Lord de 
 Latimer, and divers other knights and squires that 
 I cannot name : they were an eight hundred men of 
 arms and two thousand archers, and a thousand of 
 other with the Welshmen: every lord drew to the 
 field appointed under his own banner and pennon. 
 In the second battle was the Earl of Northampton, 
 the Earl of Arundel, the Lord Ros, the Lord Lucy, 
 the Lord Willoughby, the Lord Basset, the Lord of 
 Saint-Aubin, Sir Louis Tufton, the Lord of Mul- 
 ton, the Lord Lascelles and divers other, about an 
 eight hundred men of arms and twelve hundred 
 archers. The third battle had the king: he had 
 seven hundred men of arms and two thousand 
 archers. Then the king leaped on a hobby, with 
 a white rod in his hand, one of his marshals on the 
 one hand and the other on the other hand: he rode 
 from rank to rank desiring every man to take heed 
 that day to his right and honor. He spake it so 
 
 334 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 sweetly and with so good countenance and merry 
 cheer, that all such as were discomfited took courage 
 in the seeing and hearing of him. And when he 
 had thus visited all his battles, it was then nine of 
 the day: then he caused every man to eat and drink 
 a little, and so they did at their leisure. And after- 
 ward they ordered again their battles: then every 
 man lay down on the earth and by him his salet and 
 bow, to be the more fresher when their enemies 
 should come. 
 
 The order of the Frenchmen at Cressy, and how they 
 beheld the demeanor of the Englishmen 
 
 This Saturday the French king rose betimes and 
 heard mass in Abbeville in his lodging in the Abbey 
 of Saint Peter, and he departed after the sun-rising. 
 When he was out of the town two leagues, approach- 
 ing toward his enemies, some of his lords said to 
 him: "Sir, it were good that ye ordered your battles 
 and let all your footmen pass somewhat on before, 
 that they be not troubled with the horsemen." Then 
 the king sent four knights, the Moine [of] Bazeilles, 
 the Lord of Noyers, the Lord of Beaujeu and the 
 Lord d'Aubigny to ride to aview the English host; 
 and so they rode so near that they might well see part 
 of their dealing. The Englishmen saw them well 
 and knew well how they were come thither to aview 
 them : they let them alone and made no countenance 
 
 33S 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 toward them, and let them return as they came. And 
 when the French king saw these four knights re- 
 turn again, he tarried till they came to him and said: 
 "Sirs, what tidings?" These four knights each of 
 them looked on other, for there was none would 
 speak before his companion; finally the king said to 
 [the] Moine, who pertained to the king of Bohemia 
 and had done in his days so much that he was reputed 
 for one of the valiantest knights of the world: "Sir, 
 speak you." Then he said: "Sir, I shall speak, sith 
 it pleaseth you, under the correction of my fellows. 
 Sir, we have ridden and seen the behaving of your 
 enemies : know ye for truth they are rested in three 
 battles abiding for you. Sir, I will counsel you as 
 for my part, saving your displeasure, that you and all 
 your company rest here and lodge for this night: for 
 or they that be behind of your company be come hith- 
 er, and or your battles be set in good order, it will be 
 very late, and your people be weary and out of array, 
 and ye shall find our enemies fresh and ready to re- 
 ceive you. Early in the morning ye may order your 
 battles at more leisure and advise your enemies at 
 more deliberation, and to regard well what way ye 
 will assail them ; for, sir, surely they will abide you." 
 Then the king commanded that it should be so 
 done. Then his two marshals one rode before, an- 
 other behind, saying to every banner: "Tarry and 
 abide here in the name of God and Saint Denis." 
 They that were foremost tarried, but they that were 
 
 336 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 behind would not tarry, but rode forth, and said how 
 they would in no wise abide till they were as far for- 
 ward as the foremost : and when they before saw them 
 come on behind, then they rode forward again, so 
 that the king nor his marshals could not rule them. 
 So they rode without order or good array, till they 
 came in sight of their enemies: and as soon as the 
 foremost saw them, they reculed then aback without 
 good array, whereof they behind had marvel and 
 were abashed, and thought that the foremost com- 
 pany had been fighting. Then they might have had 
 leisure and room to have gone forward, if they had 
 list: some went forth and some abode still. The 
 commons, of whom all the ways between Abbeville 
 and Cressy were full, when they saw that they were 
 near to their enemies, they took their swords and 
 cried: "Down with them! let us slay them all." 
 There is no man, though he were present at the 
 journey, that could imagine or show the truth of the 
 evil order that was among the French party, and yet 
 they were a marvellous great number. That I write 
 in this book I learned it specially of the Englishmen, 
 who well beheld their dealing; and also certain 
 knights of Sir John of Hainault's, who was always 
 about King Philip, showed me as they knew. 
 
 331 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Of the battle of Cressy between the King of England 
 and the French King 
 
 The Englishmen, who were in three battles lying 
 on the ground to rest them, as soon as they saw the 
 Frenchmen approach, they rose upon their feet fair 
 and easily without any haste and arranged their bat- 
 tles. The first, which was the prince's battle, the 
 archers there stood in manner of a herse and the men 
 of arms in the bottom of the battle. The Earl of 
 Northampton and the Earl of Arundel with the sec- 
 ond battle were on a wing in good order, ready to 
 comfort the prince's battle, if need were. 
 
 The lords and knights of France came not to the 
 assembly together in good order, for some came be- 
 fore and some came after in such haste and evil order 
 that one of them did trouble another. When the 
 French king saw the Englishmen, his blood changed, 
 and said to his marshals : "Make the Genoways go on 
 before and begin the battle in the name of God and 
 Saint Denis." There were of the Genoways cross- 
 bows about a fifteen thousand, but they were so weary 
 of going afoot that day a six leagues armed with their 
 cross-bows, that they said to their constables: "We 
 be not well ordered to fight this day, for we be not in 
 the case to do any great deed of arms : we have more 
 need of rest." These words came to the Earl of 
 Alengon, who said: "A man is well at ease to be 
 
 33% 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 charged with such a sort of rascals, to be faint and 
 fail now at most need." Also the same season there 
 fell a great rain and a clipse with a terrible thunder, 
 and before the rain there came flying over both bat- 
 tles a great number of crows for fear of the tempest 
 coming. Then anon the air began to wax clear, and 
 the sun to shine fair and bright, the which was right 
 in the Frenchmen's eyes and on the Englishmen's 
 backs. When the Genoways were assembled to- 
 gether and began to approach, they made a great 
 leap and cry to abash the Englishmen, but they stood 
 still and stirred not for all that: then the Genoways 
 again the second time made another leap and a fell 
 cry, and stepped forward a little, and the English- 
 men removed not one foot: thirdly, again they leaped 
 and cried, and went forth till they came within shot; 
 then they shot fiercely with their cross-bows. Then 
 the English archers stepped forth one pace and let 
 fly their arrows so wholly [together] and so thick, 
 that it seemed snow. When the Genoways felt the 
 arrows piercing through heads, arms and breasts, 
 many of them cast down their cross-bows and did 
 cut their strings and returned discomfited. When 
 the French king saw them fly away, he said: "Slay 
 these rascals, for they shall let and trouble us with- 
 out reason." Then ye should have seen the men of 
 arms dash in among them and killed a great number 
 of them: and ever still the Englishmen shot whereas 
 they saw thickest press; the sharp arrows ran into the 
 
 339 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 men of arms and into their horses, and many fell, 
 horse and men, among the Genoways, and when they 
 were down, they could not relieve again, the press 
 was so thick that one overthrew another. And also 
 among the Englishmen there were certain rascals that 
 went afoot with great knives, and they went in among 
 the men of arms, and slew and murdered many as 
 they lay on the ground, both earls, barons, knights 
 and squires, whereof the King of England was after 
 displeased, for he had rather they had been taken 
 prisoners. 
 
 The valiant King of Bohemia called Charles of 
 Luxembourg, son to the noble Emperor Henry of 
 Luxembourg, for all that he was nigh blind, when 
 he understood the order of the battle, he said to them 
 about him: "Where is the Lord Charles my son?" 
 His men said: "Sir, we cannot tell; we think he be 
 fighting." Then he said: "Sirs, ye are my men, my 
 companions and friends in this journey: I require 
 you bring me so far forward, that I may strike one 
 stroke with my sword." They said they would do 
 his commandment, and to the intent that they should 
 not lose him in the press, they tied all their reins of 
 their bridles each to other and set the king before to 
 accomplish his desire, and so they went on their 
 enemies. The Lord Charles of Bohemia his son, 
 who wrote himself King of Almaine and bare the 
 arms, he came in good order to the battle; but when 
 he saw that the matter went awry on their party, he 
 
 340 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 departed, I cannot tell you which way. The king 
 his father was so far forward that he strake a stroke 
 with his sword, yea and more than four, and fought 
 valiantly and so did his company; and they adven- 
 tured themselves so forward, that they were there all 
 slain, and the next day they were found in the place 
 about the king, and all their horses tied each to 
 other. 
 
 The Earl of Alencon came to the battle right or- 
 dinately and fought with the Englishmen, and the 
 Earl of Flanders also on his part. These two lords 
 with their companies coasted the English archers and 
 came to the prince's battle, and there fought valiantly 
 long. The French king would fain have come 
 thither, when he saw their banners, but there was a 
 great hedge of archers before him. The same day 
 the French king had given a great black courser to 
 Sir John of Hainault, and he made the Lord Thierry 
 of Senzeille to ride on him and to bear his banner. 
 The same horse took the bridle in the teeth and 
 brought him through all the currours of the English- 
 men, and as he would have returned again, he fell in 
 a great dike and was sore hurt, and had been there 
 dead, an his page had not been, who followed him 
 through all the battles and saw where his master lay 
 in the dike, and had none other let but for his horse, 
 for the Englishmen would not issue out of their bat- 
 tle for taking of any prisoner. Then the page 
 alighted and relieved his master: then he went not 
 
 34i 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 back again the same way that they came, there was 
 too many in his way. 
 
 This battle between Broye and Cressy this Satur- 
 day was right cruel and fell, and many a feat of arms 
 done that came not to my knowledge. In the night 
 divers knights and squires lost their masters, and 
 sometime came on the Englishmen, who received 
 them in such wise that they were ever nigh slain; for 
 there was none taken to mercy nor to ransom, for so 
 the Englishmen were determined. 
 
 In the morning the day of the battle certain 
 
 Frenchmen and Almains perforce opened the archers 
 
 of the prince's battle and came and fought with the 
 
 men of arms hand to hand. Then the second battle 
 
 of the Englishmen came to succor the prince's battle, 
 
 the which was time, for they had as then much ado; 
 
 and they with the prince sent a messenger to the king, 
 
 who was on a little windmill hill. Then the knight 
 
 said to the king: "Sir, the Earl of Warwick and the 
 
 Earl of Oxford, Sir Raynold Cobham and other, such 
 
 as be about the prince your son, are fiercely fought 
 
 withal and are sore handled; wherefore they desire 
 
 you that you and your battle will come and aid them ; 
 
 for if the Frenchmen increase, as they doubt they 
 
 will, your son and they shall have much ado." Then 
 
 the king said : "Is my son dead or hurt or on the earth 
 
 felled?" "No, sir," quoth the knight, "but he is 
 
 hardly matched; wherefore he hath need of your 
 
 aid." "Well," said the king, "return to him and to 
 
 342 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 them that sent you hither, and say to them that they 
 send no more to me for any adventure that falleth, as 
 long as my son is alive : and also say to them that they 
 suffer him this day to win his spurs; for if God be 
 pleased, I will this journey be his and the honor 
 thereof, and to them that be about him." Then the 
 knight returned again to them and showed the king's 
 words, the which greatly encouraged them, and re- 
 poined in that they had sent to the king as they did. 
 
 Sir Godfrey of Harcourt would gladly that the 
 Earl of Harcourt his brother might have been saved ; 
 for he heard say by them that saw his banner how 
 that he was there in the field on the French party: 
 but Sir Godfrey could not come to him betimes, for 
 he was slain or he could come at him, and so was also 
 the Earl of Aumale, his nephew. In another place 
 the Earl of Alengon and the Earl of Flanders fought 
 valiantly, every lord under his own banner; but 
 finally they could not resist against the puissance of 
 the Englishmen, and so there they were also slain, 
 and divers other knights and squires. Also the Earl 
 Louis of Blois, nephew to the French king, and the 
 Duke of Lorraine fought under their banners, but at 
 last they were closed in among a company of En- 
 glishmen and Welshmen, and there were slain for all 
 their prowess. Also there was slain the Earl of 
 Auxerre, the Earl of Saint-Pol and many other. 
 
 In the evening the French king, who had left 
 about him no more than a three-score persons, one 
 
 343 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 
 and other, whereof Sir John of Hainault was one, 
 who had remounted once the king, for his horse was 
 slain with an arrow, then he said to the king: "Sir, 
 depart hence, for it is time ; lose not yourself wilfully : 
 if ye have loss at this time, ye shall recover it again 
 another season." And so he took the king's horse by 
 the bridle and led him away in a manner perforce. 
 Then the king rode till he came to the castle of Broye. 
 The gate was closed, because it was by that time 
 dark: then the king called the captain, who came to 
 the walls and said: "Who is that calleth there this 
 time of night?" Then the king said: "Open your 
 gate quickly, for this is the fortune of France." The 
 captain knew then it was the king, and opened the 
 gate and let down the bridge. Then the king en- 
 tered, and he had with him but five barons, Sir John 
 of Hainault, Sir Charles of Montmorency, the Lord 
 of Beaujeu, the Lord d'Aubigny and the Lord of 
 Montsault. The king would not tarry there, but 
 drank and departed thence about midnight, and so 
 rode by such guides as knew the country till he came 
 in the morning to Amiens, and there he rested. 
 
 This Saturday the Englishmen never departed 
 from their battles for chasing of any man, but kept 
 still their field, and ever defended themselves against 
 all such as came to assail them. This battle ended 
 about evensong time. 
 
 344 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 How the next day after the battle the Englishmen 
 discomfited divers Frenchmen 
 
 On this Saturday, when the night was come and 
 that the Englishmen heard no more noise of the 
 Frenchmen, then they reputed themselves to have the 
 victory, and the Frenchmen to be discomfited, slain 
 and fled away. Then they made great fires and 
 lighted up torches and candles, because it was very 
 dark. Then the king avaled down from the little hill 
 whereas he stood; and of all that day till then his 
 helm came never on his head. Then he went with all 
 his battle to his son the prince and embraced him in 
 his arms and kissed him, and said: "Fair son, God 
 give you good perseverance; ye are my good son, 
 thus ye have acquitted you nobly: ye are worthy to 
 keep a realm." The prince inclined himself to the 
 earth, honoring the king his father. 
 
 This night they thanked God for their good ad- 
 venture and made no boast thereof, for the king 
 would that no man should be proud or make boast, 
 but every man humbly to thank God. On the Sun- 
 day in the morning there was such a mist, that a man 
 might not see the breadth of an acre of land from 
 him. Then there departed from the host by the com- 
 mandment of the king and marshals five hundred 
 spears and two thousand archers, to see if they might 
 see any Frenchmen gathered again together in any 
 
 345 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 place. The same morning out of Abbeville and 
 Saint-Riquiers in Ponthieu the commons of Rouen 
 and of Beauvais issued out of their towns, not know- 
 ing of the discomfiture the day before. They met 
 with the Englishmen weening they had been French- 
 men, and when the Englishmen saw them, they set 
 on them freshly, and there was a sore battle; but at 
 last the Frenchmen fled and kept none array. There 
 were slain in the ways and in hedges and bushes more 
 than seven thousand, and if the day had been clear 
 there had never a one scaped. Anon after, another 
 company of Frenchmen were met by the English- 
 men, the Archbishop of Rouen and the great Prior 
 of France, who also knew nothing of the discomfiture 
 the day before; for they heard that the French king 
 should have fought the same Sunday, and they were 
 going thitherward. When they met with the En- 
 glishmen, there was a great battle, for they were a 
 great number, but they could not endure against the 
 Englishmen; for they were nigh all slain, few es- 
 caped; the two lords were slain. This morning the 
 Englishmen met with divers Frenchmen that had lost 
 their way on the Saturday and had lain all night in 
 the fields, and wist not where the king was nor the 
 captains. They were all slain, as many as were met 
 with; and it was showed me that of the commons and 
 men afoot of the cities and good towns of France 
 there was lain four times as many as were slain the 
 Saturday in the great battle. * 
 
 346 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 How the next day after the battle of Cressy they that 
 were dead were numbered by the Englishmen 
 
 The same Sunday, as the King of England came 
 from mass, such as had been sent forth returned and 
 showed the king what they had seen and done, and 
 said: "Sir, we think surely there is now no more ap- 
 pearance of any of our enemies." Then the king 
 sent to search how many were slain and what they 
 were. Sir Raynold Cobham and Sir Richard Staf- 
 ford with three heralds went to search the field and 
 country: they visited all them that were slain and 
 rode all day in the fields, and returned again to the 
 host as the king was going to supper. They made 
 just report of that they had seen, and said how there 
 were eleven great princes dead, fourscore banners, 
 twelve hundred knights, and more than thirty thou- 
 sand other. The Englishmen kept still their field all 
 that night: on the Monday in the morning the king 
 prepared to depart: the king caused the dead bodies 
 of the great lords to be taken up and conveyed to 
 Montreuil, and there buried in holy ground, and 
 made a cry in the country to grant truce for three 
 days, to the intent that they of the country might 
 search the field of Cressy to bury the dead bodies. 
 
 Then the king went forth and came before the 
 town of Montreuil-by-the-Sea, and his marshals ran 
 toward Hesdin and brent Waben and Serain, but they 
 
 347 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 did nothing to the castle, it was so strong and so well 
 kept. They lodged that night on the river of Hesdin 
 toward Blangy. The next day they rode toward 
 Boulogne and came to the town of Wissant : there the 
 king and the prince lodged, and tarried there a day 
 to refresh his men, and on the Wednesday the king 
 came before the strong town of Calais. 
 
 How the King of England laid siege to Calais, and 
 
 how all the poor people were put out 
 
 of the town 
 
 In the town of Calais there was captain a knight 
 of Burgoyne called Sir John de Vienne, and with 
 him was Sir Arnold d'Audrehem, Sir John de Surie, 
 Sir Baldwin de Bellebrune, Sir Geoffrey de la 
 Motte, Sir Pepin de Wierre and divers other knights 
 and squires. When the King of England was come 
 before Calais, he laid his siege and ordained bastides 
 between the town and the river: he made carpenters 
 to make houses and lodgings of great timber, and set 
 the houses like streets and covered them with reed 
 and broom, so that it was like a little town ; and there 
 was everything to sell, and a market-place to be kept 
 every Tuesday and Saturday for flesh and fish, mer- 
 cery ware, houses for cloth, for bread, wine and all 
 other things necessary, such as came out of England 
 or out of Flanders; there they might buy what they 
 list. The Englishmen ran oftentimes into the coun- 
 
 348 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 try of Guines, and into Ternois, and to the gates 
 of Saint-Omer's, and sometime to Boulogne; they 
 brought into their host great preys. The king would 
 not assail the town of Calais, for he thought it but a 
 lost labor: he spared his people and his artillery, and 
 said how he would famish them in the town with 
 long siege, without the French king come and raise 
 his siege perforce. 
 
 When the Captain of Calais saw the manner and 
 the order of the Englishmen, then he constrained all 
 poor and mean people to issue out of the town, and on 
 a Wednesday there issued out of men, women and 
 children more than seventeen hundred; and as they 
 passed through the host, they were demanded why 
 they departed, and they answered and said, because 
 they had nothing to live on : then the king did them 
 that grace that he suffered them to pass through his 
 host without danger, and gave them meat and drink 
 to dinner, and every person two pence sterling in 
 alms, for which divers many of them prayed for the 
 king's prosperity. 
 
 How Sir Gaultier of Manny rode through all France 
 by safe conduct to Calais 
 
 IT was not long after, but that Sir Gaultier of 
 Manny fell in communication with a knight of Nor- 
 mandy, who was his prisoner, and demanded of him 
 what money he would pay for his ransom. The 
 
 349 
 
 12— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 knight answered and said he would gladly pay 
 three thousand crowns. "Well," quoth the Lord 
 Gaultier, "I know well ye be kin to* the Duke of Nor- 
 mandy and well beloved with him [so], that I am 
 sure, an if I would sore oppress you, I am sure ye 
 would gladly pay ten thousand crowns; but I shall 
 deal otherwise with you. I will trust you on your 
 faith and promise : ye shall go to the duke your lord, 
 and by your means get a safe-conduct for me and 
 twenty other of my company to ride through France 
 to Calais, paying courteously for all our expenses. 
 And if ye can get this of the duke or of the king, I 
 shall clearly quit you your ransom with much thank, 
 for I greatly desire to see the king my master; nor I 
 will lie but one night in a place till I come there. 
 And if ye cannot do this, return again hither within a 
 month, and yield yourself still as my prisoner." The 
 knight was content and so went to Paris to the duke 
 his lord, and he obtained this passport for Sir Gaul- 
 tier of Manny and twenty horse with him all only. 
 This knight returned to Aiguillon and brought it to 
 Sir Gaultier, and there he quitted the knight Nor- 
 man of his ransom. Then anon after, Sir Gaultier 
 took his way and twenty horse with him, and so rode 
 through Auvergne; and when he tarried in any 
 place, he showed his letter and so was let pass: but 
 when he came to Orleans, for all his letter he was ar- 
 rested and brought to Paris and there put in prison in 
 the Chatelet. 
 
 35° 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 When the Duke of Normandy knew thereof, he 
 went to the king his father and showed him how Sir 
 Gaultier of Manny had his safe-conduct, wherefore 
 he required the king as much as he might to deliver 
 him, or else it should be said how he had betrayed 
 him. The king answered and said how he should be 
 put to death, for he reputed him for his great enemy. 
 Then said the duke: "Sir, if ye do so, surely I shall 
 never bear armor against the King of England, nor 
 all such as I may let." And at his departing he said 
 that he would never enter again into the king's host. 
 Thus the matter stood a certain time. 
 
 There was a knight of Hainault called Sir Man- 
 sart d'Esne: he purchased all that he might to help 
 Sir Walter of Manny, and went often in and out to 
 the Duke of Normandy. Finally the king was so 
 counselled, that he was delivered out of prison and 
 all his costs paid; and the king sent for him to his 
 lodging of Nesle in Paris, and there he dined with 
 the king, and the king presented him great gifts and 
 jewels to the value of a thousand florins. Sir Gaul- 
 tier of Manny received them on a condition, that 
 when he came to Calais, that if the King of England 
 his master were pleased that he should take them, 
 then he was content to keep them, or else to send them 
 again to the French king, who said he spake like a 
 nobleman. Then he took his leave and departed, and 
 rode so long by his journeys that he came into Hain- 
 ault, and tarried at Valenciennes three days; and so 
 
 3S l 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 from thence he went to Calais and was welcome to 
 the king. But when the king heard that Sir Gaultier 
 of Manny had received gifts of the French king, he 
 said to him: "Sir Gaultier, ye have hitherto truly 
 served us, and shall do, as we trust. Send again to 
 King Philip the gifts that he gave you; ye have no 
 cause to keep them. We thank God we have enough 
 for us and for you : we be in good purpose to do much 
 good for you according to the good service that ye 
 have done. Then Sir Gaultier took all those jewels 
 and delivered them to a cousin of his called Mansart, 
 and said: "Ride into France to the king there and 
 recommend me unto him, and say how I thank him a 
 thousand times for the gift that he gave me ; but show 
 him how it is not the pleasure of the king my master 
 that I should keep them ; therefore I send them again 
 to him." This knight rode to Paris and showed all 
 this to the king, who would not receive again the 
 jewels, but did give them to the same knight Sir 
 Mansart, who thanked the king and was not in will 
 to say nay. 
 
 How the King of Scots during the siege before 
 Calais came in England with a great host 
 
 It is long now- sith we spake of King David of 
 Scotland: howbeit till now there was none occasion 
 why, for the truce that was taken was well and truly 
 kept: so that when the King of England had besieged 
 
 35* 
 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 Calais and lay there, then the Scots determined to 
 make war into England and to be revenged of such 
 hurts as they had taken before. For they said then 
 how that the realm of England was void of men of 
 war; for they were, as they said, with the King of 
 England before Calais, and some in Bretayne, Poitou 
 and Gascoyne. The French king did what he could 
 to stir the Scots to that war, to the intent that the 
 King of England should break up his siege and re- 
 turn to defend his own realm. 
 
 The King of Scots made his summons to be at 
 Saint-John's town on the river of Tay in Scotland: 
 thither came earls, barons, and prelates of Scotland, 
 and there agreed that in all haste possible they should 
 enter into England. To come in that journey was de- 
 sired John of the out Isles, who governed the wild 
 Scots, for to him they obeyed and to no man else. He 
 came with a three thousand of the most outrageoust 
 people in all the country. When all the Scots were 
 assembled, they were of one and other a fifty thou- 
 sand fighting men. They could not make their as- 
 sembly so secret but that the Queen of England, who 
 was as then in the marches of the North about York, 
 knew all their dealing. Then she sent all about for 
 men and lay herself at York: then all men of war 
 and archers came to Newcastle with the queen. In 
 the mean season the King of Scots departed from 
 Saint-John's town and went to Dunfermline the first 
 day. The next day they passed a little arm of the sea 
 
 3 S3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and so came to Stirling, and then to Edinburgh. 
 Then they numbered their company, and they were 
 a three thousand men of arms, knights and squires, 
 and a thirty thousand of other on hackneys. Then 
 they came to Roxburgh, the first fortress English on 
 that part: captain there was Sir William Montague. 
 The Scots passed by without any assault making, and 
 so went forth brenning and destroying the country of 
 Northumberland; and their currours ran to York 
 and brent as much as was without the walls, and re- 
 turned again to their host within a day's journey of 
 Newcastle-upon-Tyne. 
 
 Of the battle of Newcastle-upon-Tyne between the 
 Queen of England and the King of Scots 
 
 The Queen of England, who desired to defend 
 her country, came to Newcastle-upon-Tyne and there 
 tarried for her men, who came daily from all parts. 
 When the Scots knew that the Englishmen assembled 
 at Newcastle, they drew thitherward and their cur- 
 rours came running before the town; and at their 
 returning they brent certain small hamlets there- 
 about, so that the smoke thereof came into the town 
 of Newcastle. Some of the Englishmen would a 
 issued out to have fought with them that made the 
 fires, but the captains would not suffer them to is- 
 sue out. 
 
 The next day the King of Scots with, a forty 
 
 354 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 thousand men one and other came and lodged within 
 three little English mile of Newcastle in the land of 
 the Lord Nevill ; and the king sent to themwithin the 
 town, that if they would issue out into the field, he 
 would fight with them gladly. The lords and prel- 
 ates of England said they were content to adventure 
 their lives with the right and heritage of the King of 
 England their master. Then they all issued out of 
 the town, and were in number a twelve hundred 
 men of arms, three thousand archers and seven 
 thousand of other with the Welshmen. Then the 
 Scots came and lodged against them near together: 
 then every man was set in order of battle: then the 
 queen came among her men and there was ordained 
 four battles, one to aid another. The first had in 
 governance the Bishop of Durham and the Lord 
 Percy; the second the Archbishop of York and the 
 Lord Nevill ; the third the Bishop of Lincoln and the 
 Lord Morbray; the fourth the Lord Edward de Bal- 
 liol, Captain of Berwick, the Archbishop of Canter- 
 bury and the Lord Ros : every battle had like number 
 after their quantity. 
 
 The queen went from battle to battle desir- 
 ing them to do their devoir to defend the honor 
 of her lord the King of England, and in the name 
 of God every man to be of good heart and cour- 
 age, promising them that to her power she would 
 remember them as well or better as though her lord 
 the king were there personally. Then the queen de- 
 
 3SS 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 parted from them, recommending them to God and 
 to Saint George. 
 
 Then anon after, the battles of the Scots began to 
 set forward, and in likewise so did the Englishmen. 
 Then the archers began to shoot on both parties, but 
 the shot of the Scots endured but a short space, but 
 the archers of England shot so fiercely, so that when 
 the battles approached, there was a hard battle. They 
 began at nine and endured till noon: the Scots had 
 great axes sharp and hard, and gave with them many 
 great strokes. Howbeit finally the Englishmen ob- 
 tained the place and victory, but they lost many of 
 their men. There were slain of the Scots the Earl 
 of Fife, the Earl of Buchan, the Earl of Patrick, the 
 Earl of Sutherland, the Earl of Strathern, the Earl of 
 Mar, the Earl John Douglas, and the Lord Alexan- 
 der Ramsay, who bare the king's banner, and divers 
 other knights and squires. And there the king was 
 taken, who fought valiantly and was sore hurt. A 
 squire of Northumberland took him, called John 
 Copeland; and as soon as he had taken the king, he 
 went with him out of the field with eight of his ser- 
 vants with him, and so rode all that day, till he was a 
 fifteen leagues from the place of the battle, and at 
 night he came to a castle called Orgulus; and then 
 he said he would not deliver the King of Scots to no 
 man nor woman living, but all only to the King of 
 England his lord. The same day there was also 
 taken in the field the Earl Moray, the Earl of March, 
 
 3S 6 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 trie Lord William of Douglas, the Lord Robert 
 tVersy, the Bishop of Aberdeen, the Bishop of Saint 
 Andrews, and divers other knights and barons. And 
 there were slain of one and other a fifteen thousand, 
 and the other saved themselves as well as they might. 
 This battle was beside Newcastle, the year of our 
 Lord MCCCXLVI., the Saturday next after Saint 
 Michael. 
 
 How John Copeland had the King of Scots prisoner, 
 and what profit he got thereby 
 
 When the Queen of England being at Newcastle 
 understood how the journey was for her and her men, 
 she then rode to the place where the battle had been. 
 Then it was shewed her how the King of Scots was 
 taken by a squire called John Copeland, and he had 
 carried away the king no man knew whither. Then 
 the queen wrote to the squire commanding him to 
 bring his prisoner the King of Scots, and how he had 
 not well done to depart with him without leave. All 
 that day the Englishmen tarried still in the same 
 place and the queen with them, and the next day they 
 returned to Newcastle. When the queen's letter was 
 brought to John Copeland, he answered and said, 
 that as for the King of Scots his prisoner, he would 
 not deliver him to no man nor woman living, but 
 all only to the King of England his sovereign lord: 
 as for the King of Scots, he said he should be safely 
 kept, so that he would give account for him. 
 
 357 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Then the queen sent letters to the king to Calais, 
 whereby the king was informed of the state of his 
 realm : then the king sent incontinent to John Cope- 
 land, that he should come over the sea to him to the 
 siege before Calais. Then the same John did put his 
 prisoner in safe keeping in a strong castle, and so 
 rode through England till he came to Dover, and 
 there took the sea and arrived before Calais. When 
 the King of England saw the squire, he took him 
 by the hand and said: "Ah I welcome, my squire, that 
 by your valiantness hath taken mine adversary the 
 King of Scots." The squire kneeled down and said: 
 "Sir, if God by his grace have suffered me to take the 
 King of Scots by true conquest of arms, sir, I think 
 no man ought to have any envy thereat; for as well 
 God may send by his grace such a fortune to fall 
 to a poor squire as to a great lord: and, sir, I require 
 your grace, be not miscontent with me, though I did 
 not deliver the King of Scots at the commandment of 
 the queen. Sir, I hold of you, as mine oath is to you, 
 and not to her but in all good manner." The king 
 said: "John, the good service that ye have done and 
 your valiantness is so much worth, that it must coun- 
 tervail your trespass and be taken for your excuse, 
 and shame have they that bear you any evil will there- 
 for. Ye shall return again home to your house, and 
 then my pleasure is that ye deliver your prisoner to 
 the queen my wife ; and in a reward I assign you near 
 to your house, whereas ye think best yourself, five 
 
 358 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 hundred pound sterling of yearly rent to you and to 
 your heirs forever, and here I make you squire for 
 my body." Then the third day he departed and 
 returned again into England; and when he came 
 home to his own house, he assembled together his 
 friends and kin, and so they took the King of Scots 
 and rode with him to the city of York, and there 
 from the king his lord he presented the King of Scots 
 to the queen, and excused him so largely that the 
 queen and her council were content. 
 
 Then the queen made good provision for the city 
 of York, the castle of Roxburgh, the city of Dur- 
 ham, the town of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and in all 
 other garrisons on the marches of Scotland, and left 
 in those marches the Lord Percy and the Lord Nevill 
 as governor there: then the queen departed from 
 York toward London. Then she set the King of 
 Scots in the strong tower of London, and the Earl 
 Moray and all other prisoners, and set good keeping 
 over them. Then she went to Dover and there took 
 the sea, and had so good wind, that in a short space 
 she arrived before Calais, three days before the feast 
 of All Saints; for whose coming the king made a 
 great feast and dinner to all the lords and ladies that 
 were there. The queen brought many ladies and 
 damosels with her, as well to accompany her as to 
 see their husbands, fathers, brethren and other 
 friends, that lay at siege there before Calais and had 
 done a long space. 
 
 359 
 
Great Men and Eamous Deeds 
 
 How the young Earl of Flanders ensured the king's 
 daughter of England 
 
 The siege before Calais endured long, and many 
 things fell in the mean season, the which I cannot 
 write the fourth part. The French king had set 
 men of war in every fortress in those marches, in the 
 county of Guines, of Artois, of Boulogne, and about 
 Calais, and had a great number of Genoways, Nor- 
 mans and other on the sea, so that when any of the 
 Englishmen would go a-foraging, other afoot or 
 horseback, they found many times hard adventures, 
 and often there was skirmishing about the gates and 
 dikes of the town, and oftentimes some slain and 
 hurt on both parties; some day the one part lost and 
 some day the other. The King of England caused 
 engines to be made to oppress them within the town, 
 but they within made other again to resist them, so 
 that they took little hurt by them ; but nothing could 
 come into the town but by stealth, and that was by the 
 means of two mariners, one called Marant and the 
 other Mestriel, and they dwelt in Abbeville. By 
 them two they of Calais were oftentimes recomforted 
 and freshed by stealth; and oftentimes they were in 
 great peril, chased and near taken, but always 
 they scaped, and made many Englishmen to be 
 drowned. 
 
 All that winter the king lay still at the siege, and 
 
 360 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 thought and imagined ever to keep the commonty 
 of Flanders in friendship; for he thought by their 
 means the sooner to come to his intent. He sent 
 oftentimes to them with fair promises, saying that 
 if he might get Calais, he would help them to 
 recover Lille and Douay with all their appurte- 
 nances; so by occasion of such promises, while the 
 king was in Normandy toward Cressy and Calais, 
 they went and laid siege to Bethune, and their cap- 
 tain was Sir Oudart de Renty, who was banished 
 out of France. They held a great siege before that 
 town and sore constrained them by assault; but with- 
 in were four knights captains set there by the French 
 king to keep the town, that is to say, Sir Geoffrey of 
 Charny, Sir Eustace of Ribemont, Sir Baudwin 
 d'Annequin and Sir John of Landas: they defended 
 the town in such wise, that the Flemings won nothing 
 there, but so departed and returned again into Flan- 
 ders. But while the King of England lay at siege 
 before Calais, he sent still messengers to them of 
 Flanders, and made them great promises to keep 
 their amity with him and to oppress the drift of the 
 French king, who did all that he could to draw them 
 to his opinion. 
 
 The King of England would gladly that the Earl 
 Louis of Flanders, who was as then but fifteen years 
 of age, should have in marriage his daughter Isabel. 
 So much did the king that the Flemings agreed 
 thereto; whereof the king was glad, for he thought 
 
 361 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 by that marriage the Flemings would the gladlier 
 help him; and the Flemings thought, by having of 
 the King of England on their party, they might well 
 resist the Frenchmen ; they thought it more necessary 
 and profitable for them, the love of the King of 
 England, rather than the French king. But the 
 young earl, who had been ever nourished among 
 the noblemen of France, would not agree, and said 
 plainly, he would not have to his wife the daughter 
 of him that slew his father: also Duke John of Bra- 
 bant purchased greatly that the Earl of Flanders 
 should have his daughter in marriage, promising 
 him that if he would take her to his wife, that he 
 would cause him to enjoy the whole earldom of 
 Flanders, other by fair means or otherwise: also the 
 duke said to the French king, "Sir, if the Earl of 
 Flanders will take my daughter, I shall find the 
 means that all the Flemings shall take your part and 
 forsake the King of England" : by the which promise 
 the French king agreed to that marriage. When 
 the Duke of Brabant had the king's good-will, then 
 he sent certain messengers into Flanders to the bur- 
 gesses of the good towns, and shewed them so fair 
 reasons, that the counsels of the good towns sent to 
 the earl their natural lord, certifying him that if he 
 would come into Flanders and use their counsel, they 
 would be to him true and good friends and deliver 
 to him all the rights and jurisdictions of Flanders, 
 as much as ever any earl had. The earl took counsel 
 
 362 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 and went into Flanders, where he was received with 
 great joy and given to him many great presents. 
 
 As soon as the King of England heard of this, he 
 sent into Flanders the Earl of Northampton, the Earl 
 of Arundel and the Lord Cobham. They did so 
 much with the officers and commons of Flanders, 
 that they had rather that their lord the earl should 
 take to his wife the King of England's daughter than 
 the daughter of the Duke of Brabant; and so to do 
 they affectuously desired their lord, and shewed him 
 many fair reasons to draw him to that way, so that 
 the burgesses that were on the Duke of Brabant's 
 party durst not say the contrary. But then the earl 
 in no wise would consent thereto, but ever he said he 
 would not wed her, whose father had slain his, 
 though he might have half of the whole realm of 
 England. When the Flemings saw that, they said 
 how their lord was too much French and evil coun- 
 selled, and also said how they would do no good to 
 him, sith he would not believe their counsels. Then 
 they took and put him in courteous prison, and said 
 how he should never depart without he would follow 
 and believe their counsels. Also they said that the 
 earl his father believed and loved too much the 
 Frenchmen; for if he would a believed them, he 
 should have been the greatest lord in all Christen- 
 dom, and recovered again Lille, Douay and Bethune, 
 and yet alive. Thus the matter abode a certain space: 
 the King of England lay still at the siege before 
 
 363 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Calais and kept a great court that Christmas; and 
 about the beginning of Lent, came thither out of 
 Gascoyne the Earl of Derby, the Earl of Pembroke, 
 the Earl of Oxford and divers other knights and 
 squires, that had passed the sea with the earl. 
 
 Thus the Earl of Flanders was long in danger 
 among the Flemings in courteous prison, and it 
 greatly annoyed him. Then at last he said he would 
 believe their counsel ; for he knew well, he said, that 
 he should have more profit there than in any other 
 country. These words rejoiced greatly the Flem- 
 ings: then they took him out of prison and suffered 
 him to go a-hawking to the river, the which sport the 
 earl loved well ; but ever there was good watch laid 
 on him, that he should not steal away from them, 
 and they were charged on their lives to take good 
 heed to him, and also they were such as were favor- 
 able to the King of England. They watched him 
 so near, that he could do nothing without their 
 knowledge. This endured so long that at last the 
 earl said that he would gladly have to his wife the 
 King of England's daughter. Then the Flemings 
 sent word thereof to the king and to the queen, and 
 pointed a day that they should come to Bergues, in 
 the abbey, and to bring their daughter with them, 
 and they would bring thither their lord the Earl of 
 Flanders; and there to conclude up the marriage. 
 The king and the queen were glad thereof, and said 
 that the Flemings were good men: so to Bergues 
 
 364 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 between Newport and Gravelines came the most 
 saddest men of the good towns in Flanders, and 
 brought with them the earl their lord in great es- 
 tate. The King of England and the queen were 
 there ready: the earl courteously inclined to the 
 king and to the queen : the king took the earl by the 
 right hand right sweetly, and led him forth, saying: 
 "As for the death of the earl your father, as God 
 help me, the day of the battle of Cressy nor the next 
 day after I never heard word of him that he should 
 be there." The young earl by semblant made as 
 though he had been content with the king's excuse. 
 Then they fell in communication of the marriage: 
 there were certain articles agreed unto by the King 
 of England and the Earl Louis of Flanders, and 
 great amities there was sworn between them to be 
 holden ; and there the earl fianced Isabel the King of 
 England's daughter, and promised to wed her. So 
 that journey brake off, and a new day to be appointed 
 at more leisure: the Flemings returned into Flanders 
 with their lord, and the King of England with the 
 queen went again to the siege of Calais. 
 
 Thus the matter stood a certain time, and the 
 king and the queen prepared greatly again the mar- 
 riage for jewels and other things to give away, ac- 
 cording to their behaviors. The Earl of Flanders 
 daily passed the time at the river, and made sem- 
 blant that this marriage pleased him greatly; so the 
 Flemings thought that they were then sure enough 
 
 365 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of him, so that there was not so great watch made 
 on him as was before. But they knew not well the 
 condition of their lord, for whatsoever countenance 
 he made outward, his inward courage was all 
 French. So on a day he went forth with his hawks, 
 the same week that the marriage should have been 
 finished: his falconer cast of! a falcon to an heron 
 and the earl cast off another. So these two falcons 
 chased the heron, and the earl rode after, as to follow 
 his falcon. And when he was a good way off and 
 had the advantage of the fields, he dashed his spurs 
 to his horse and galloped forth in such wise, that his 
 keepers lost him. Still he galloped forthright, till 
 he came into Artois, and there he was in surety; and 
 so then he rode into France to King Philip and 
 shewed him all his adventure. The king and the 
 Frenchmen said how he had dealt wisely; the En- 
 glishmen on the other side said how he had betrayed 
 and deceived them: but for all that, the king left not 
 to keep the Flemings in amity, for he knew well the 
 earl had done this deed not by their counsel, for they 
 were sore displeased therewith; and the excuse that 
 they made the king soon believed it in that behalf. 
 
 How the town of Calais was given up to the King 
 
 of England 
 
 After that the French king was thus departed 
 from Sangate, they within Calais saw well how their 
 
 366 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 succor failed them, for the which they were in great 
 sorrow. Then they desired so much their captain, 
 Sir John of Vienne, that he went to the walls of the 
 town and made a sign to speak with some person of 
 the host. When the king heard thereof, he sent 
 thither Sir Gaultier of Manny and Sir Basset. Then 
 Sir John of Vienne said to them: "Sirs, ye be right 
 valiant knights in deeds of arms, and ye know well 
 how the king my master hath sent me and other to 
 this town and commanded us to keep it to his behoof 
 in such wise that we take no blame, nor to him no 
 damage; and we have done all that lieth in our pow- 
 er. Now our succors hath failed us, and we be so 
 sore strained, that we have not to live withal, but that 
 we must all die or else enrage for famine, without 
 the noble and gentle king of yours will take mercy 
 on us: the which to do we require you to desire him, 
 to have pity on us and to let us go and depart as we 
 be, and let him take the town and castle and all the 
 goods that be therein, the which is great abundance." 
 Then Sir Gaultier of Manny said: "Sir, we know 
 somewhat of the intention of the king our master, 
 for he hath shewed it unto us: surely know for truth 
 it is not his mind that ye nor they within the town 
 should depart so, for it is his will that ye all should 
 put yourselves into his pure will, to ransom all such 
 as pleaseth him and to put to death such as he list; 
 for they of Calais hath done him such contraries and 
 despites, and hath caused him to dispend so much 
 
 367 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 good, and lost many of his men, that he is sore grieved 
 against them." Then the captain said: "Sir, this is 
 too hard a matter to us. We are here within, a small 
 sort of knights and squires, who hath truly served 
 the king our master as well as ye serve yours in like 
 case. And we have endured much pain and unease; 
 but we shall yet endure as much pain as ever knights 
 did, rather than to consent that the worst lad in the 
 town should have any more evil than the greatest of 
 us all : therefore, sir, we pray you that of your hu- 
 mility, yet that ye will go and speak to the King of 
 England and desire him to have pity on us; for we 
 trust in him so much gentleness, that by the grace of 
 God his purpose shall change." 
 
 Sir Gaultier of Manny and Sir Basset returned 
 to the king and declared to him all that had been 
 said. The king said he would none otherwise but 
 that they should yield them up simply to his pleasure. 
 Then Sir Gaultier said: "Sir, saving your displeas- 
 ure, in this ye may be in the wrong, for ye shall give 
 by this an evil ensample: if ye send any of us your 
 servants into any fortress, we will not be very glad 
 to go, if ye put any of them in the town to death 
 after they be yielded ; for in likewise they will deal 
 with us, if the case fell like." The which words 
 divers other lords that were present sustained and 
 maintained. Then the king said : "Sirs, I will not be 
 alone against you all ; therefore, Sir Gaultier of Man- 
 ny, ye shall go and say to the captain that all the 
 
 368 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 grace that he shall find now in me is that they let 
 six of the chief burgesses of the town come out bare- 
 headed, bare-footed, and bare-legged, and in their 
 shirts, with halters about their necks, with the keys 
 of the town and castle in their hands, and let them 
 six yield themselves purely to my will, and the res- 
 idue I will take to mercy." 
 
 Then Sir Gaultier returned and found Sir John 
 of Vienne still on the wall, abiding for an answer. 
 Then Sir Gaultier shewed him all the grace that he 
 could get of the king. "Well," quoth Sir John, "sir, 
 I require you tarry here a certain space, till I go into 
 the town and shew this to the commons of the town, 
 who sent me hither. Then Sir John went unto the 
 market-place and sowned the common bell : then in- 
 continent men and women assembled there: then the 
 captain made report of all that he had done, and 
 said, "Sirs, it will be none otherwise; therefore now 
 take advice and make a short answer." Then all the 
 people began to weep and to make such sorrow, that 
 there was not so hard a heart, if they had seen them, 
 but that would have had great pity of them : the cap- 
 tain himself wept piteously. At last the most rich 
 burgess of all the town, called Eustace of Saint- 
 Pierre, rose up and said openly: "Sirs, great and 
 small, great mischief it should be to suffer to die such 
 people as be in this town, other by famine or other- 
 wise, when there is a mean to save them. I think he 
 or they should have great merit of our Lord God 
 
 3^9 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 that might keep them from such mischief. As for 
 my part, I have so good trust in our Lord God, that 
 if I die in the quarrel to save the residue, that God 
 would pardon me: wherefore to save them I will be 
 the first to put my life in jeopardy." When he had 
 thus said, every man worshipped him and divers 
 kneeled down at his feet with sore weeping and sore 
 sighs. Then another honest burgess rose and said: 
 "I will keep company with my gossip Eustace." He 
 was called John d'Aire. Then rose up Jaques of 
 Wissant, who was rich in goods and heritage; he 
 said also that he would hold company with his two 
 cousins. In likewise so did Peter of Wissant his 
 brother: and then rose two other; they said they 
 would do the same. Then they went and apparelled 
 them as the king desired. 
 
 Then the captain went with them to the gate: 
 there was great lamentation made of men, women 
 and children at their departing: then the gate was 
 opened and he issued out with the six burgesses and 
 closed the gate again, so that they were between the 
 gate and the barriers. Then he said to Sir Gaultier 
 of Manny: u Sir, I deliver here to you as captain of 
 Calais by the whole consent of all the people of the 
 town these six burgesses, and I swear to you truly 
 that they be and were to-day most honorable, rich 
 and most notable burgesses of all the town of Calais. 
 Wherefore, gentle knight, I require you pray the 
 king to have mercy on them, that they die not." 
 
 37o 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 Quoth Sir Gaultier : "I cannot say what the king will 
 do, but I shall do for them the best I can." Then 
 the barriers were opened, the six burgesses went to- 
 wards the king, and the captain entered again into 
 the town. 
 
 When Sir Gaultier presented these burgesses to 
 the king, they kneeled down and held up their hands 
 and said : "Gentle king, behold here we six, who were 
 burgesses of Calais and great merchants; we have 
 brought to you the keys of the town and of the castle 
 and we submit ourselves clearly into your will and 
 pleasure, to save the residue of the people of Calais, 
 who have suffered great pain. Sir, we beseech your 
 grace to have mercy and pity on us through your 
 high nobless." Then all the earls and barons and 
 other that were there wept for pity. The king 
 looked felly on them, for greatly he hated the people 
 of Calais for the great damages and displeasures they 
 had done him on the sea before. Then he com- 
 manded their heads to be stricken off: then every 
 man required the king for mercy, but he would hear 
 no man in that behalf: then Sir Gaultier of Manny 
 said: "Ah, noble king, for God's sake refrain your 
 courage: ye have the name of sovereign nobless; 
 therefore now do not a thing that should blemish 
 your renown, nor to give cause to some to speak of 
 you villany. Every man will say it is a great cruelty 
 to put to death such honest persons, who by their own 
 wills put themselves into your grace to save their 
 
 37 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 company." Then the king wryed away from him 
 and commanded to send for the hangman, and said: 
 "They of Calais have caused many of my men to be 
 slain, wherefore these shall die in likewise." Then 
 the queen, being great with child, kneeled down and 
 sore weeping said: "Ah, gentle sir, sith I passed the 
 sea in great peril, I have desired nothing of you; 
 therefore now I humbly require you in honor of the 
 Son of the Virgin Mary and for the love of me that 
 ye will take mercy of these six burgesses." The king 
 beheld the queen and stood still in a study a space, 
 and then said: "Ah, dame, I would ye had been as 
 now in some other place ; ye make such request to me 
 that I cannot deny you. Wherefore I give them to 
 you, to do your pleasure with them." Then the 
 queen caused them to be brought into her chamber, 
 and made the halters to be taken from their necks, 
 and caused them to be new clothed, and gave them 
 their dinner at their leisure: and then she gave each 
 of them six nobles and made them to be brought out 
 of the host in safe-guard and set at their liberty. 
 
 How the King of England repeopled the town of 
 Calais with Englishmen 
 
 Thus the strong town of Calais was given up to 
 King Edward of England the year of our Lord God 
 MCCCXLVI. in the month of August. The King of 
 England called to him Sir Gaultier of Manny and 
 
 372 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 his two marshals, the Earl of Warwick and the Earl 
 of Stafford, and said to them: "Sirs, take here the 
 keys of the town and castle of Calais: go and take 
 possession there and put in prison all the knights that 
 be there; and all other soldiers that came thither 
 simply to win their living cause them to avoid the 
 town, and also all other men, women and children, 
 for I would repeople again the town with pure En- 
 glishmen." So these three lords with a hundred with 
 them went and took possession of Calais, and did put 
 in prison Sir John de Vienne, Sir John of Surie, Sir 
 Baldwin of Bellebrune and other. Then they made 
 all the soldiers to bring all their harness into a 
 place appointed and laid it all on a heap in 
 the hall of Calais. Then they made all manner 
 of people to void, and kept there no more persons 
 but a priest ar?d two other ancient personages, such 
 as knew the customs, laws and ordinances of the 
 town, and to sign out the heritages how they were 
 divided. Then they prepared the castle to lodge the 
 king and queen, and prepared other houses for the 
 king's company. Then the king mounted on his 
 horse and entered into the town with trumpets, ta- 
 bours, nacaires and hormyes, and there the king lay 
 till the queen was brought a-bed of a fair lady named 
 Margaret. 
 
 The king gave to Sir Gaultier of Manny divers 
 fair houses within the town, and to the Earl Stafford, 
 to the Lord of Cobham, to Sir Bartholomew of 
 
 373 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Burghersh and to other lords, to repeople again the 
 town. The king's mind was, when he came into 
 England to send out of London a thirty-six good 
 burgesses to Calais to dwell there, and to do so much 
 that the town might be peopled with pure English- 
 men ; the which intent the king fulfilled. Then the 
 new town and bastide that was made without the 
 town was pulled down, and the castle that stood on 
 the haven rashed down, and the great timber and 
 stones brought into the town. Then the king or- 
 dained men to keep the gates, walls and barriers, and 
 amended all things within the town; and Sir John 
 de Vienne and his company were sent into England 
 and were half a year at London, then they were put 
 to ransom, Methink it was great pity of the bur- 
 gesses and other men of the town of Calais, and 
 women and children, when they were fain to for- 
 sake their houses, heritages and goods, and to bear 
 away nothing, and they had no restorement of the 
 French king, for whose sake they lost all. The most 
 part of them went to Saint-Omer's. 
 
 The Cardinal Guy de Boulogne, who was come 
 into France in legation and was with the French king 
 his cousin in the city of Amiens, he purchased so 
 much that a truce was taken between the Kings of 
 England and of France, their countries and heri- 
 tages, to endure two years. 
 
 374 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 Of the great host that the French king brought to 
 the battle of Poitiers 
 
 AFTER the taking of the castle of Romorantin and 
 of them that were therein, the prince then and his 
 company rode as they did before, destroying the 
 country, approaching to Anjou and to Touraine. 
 The French king, who was at Chartres, departed 
 and came to Blois and there tarried two days, and 
 then to Amboise and the next day to Loches: and 
 then he heard how that the prince was at Touraine 
 and how that he was returning by Poitou: ever the 
 Englishmen were coasted by certain expert knights 
 of France, who always made report to the king what 
 the Englishmen did. Then the king came to the 
 Haye in Touraine and his men had passed the river 
 of Loire, some at the bridge of Orleans and some 
 at Meung, at Saumur, at Blois, and at Tours and 
 whereas they might: they were in number a twenty 
 thousand men of arms beside other; there were a 
 twenty-six dukes and earls and more than sixscore 
 banners, and the four sons of the king, who were but 
 young, the Duke Charles of Normandy, the Lord 
 Louis, that was from thenceforth Duke of Anjou, 
 and the Lord John Duke of Berry, and the Lord 
 Philip, who was after Duke of Burgoyne. The 
 same season, Pope Innocent the Sixth sent the Lord 
 Bertrand, Cardinal of Perigord, and the Lord Nich- 
 
 375 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 olas, Cardinal of Urgel, into France, to treat for a 
 peace between the French king and all his enemies, 
 first between him and the King of Navarre, who was 
 in prison : and these cardinals oftentimes spake to the 
 king for his deliverance during the siege at Bretuel, 
 but they could do nothing in that behalf. Then the 
 Cardinal of Perigord went to Tours, and there he 
 heard how the French king hasted sore to find the 
 Englishmen: then he rode to Poitiers, for he heard 
 how both the hosts drew thitherward. 
 
 The French king heard how the prince hasted 
 to return, and the king feared that he should scape 
 him and so departed from Haye in Touraine, and all 
 his company, and rode to Chauvigny, where he tar- 
 ried that Thursday in the town and without along by 
 the river of Creuse, and the next day the king passed 
 the river at the bridge there, weening that the En- 
 glishmen had been before him, but they were not. 
 Howbeit they pursued after and passed the bridge 
 that day more than threescore thousand horses, and 
 divers other passed at Chatelleraut, and ever as they 
 passed they took the way to Poitiers. 
 
 On the other side the prince wist not truly where 
 the Frenchmen were; but they supposed that they 
 were not far off, for they could not find no more 
 forage, whereby they had great fault in their host 
 of victual, and some of them repented that they had 
 destroyed so much as they had done before when they 
 were in Berry, Anjou and Touraine, and in that they 
 
 376 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 had made no better provision. The same Friday 
 three great lords of France, the Lord of Craon, the 
 Lord Raoul of Coucy and the Earl of Joigny, tar- 
 ried all day in the town of Chauvigny, and part of 
 their companies. The Saturday they passed the 
 bridge and followed the king, who was then a three 
 leagues before, and took the way among bushes with- 
 out a wood side to go to Poitiers. 
 
 The same Saturday the prince and his company 
 dislodged from a little village thereby, and sent be- 
 fore him certain currours to see if they might find 
 any adventure and to hear where the Frenchmen 
 were. They were in number a threescore men of 
 arms well horsed, and with them was the Lord Eu- 
 stace d'Aubrecicourt and the Lord John of Ghis- 
 telles, and by adventure the Englishmen and French- 
 men met together by the foresaid wood side. The 
 Frenchmen knew anon how they were their enemies; 
 then in haste they did on their helmets and dis- 
 played their banners and came a great pace toward 
 the Englishmen : they were in number a two hundred 
 men of arms. When the Englishmen saw them, and 
 that they were so great a number, then they deter- 
 mined to fly and let the Frenchmen chase them, for 
 they knew well the prince with his host was not far 
 behind. Then they turned their horses and took 
 the corner of the wood, and the Frenchmen after 
 them crying their cries and made great noise. And 
 as they chased, they came on the prince's battle or 
 
 377 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 they were ware thereof themselves; the prince tar- 
 ried there to have word again from them that he sent 
 forth. The Lord Raoul de Coucy with his banner 
 went so far forward that he was under the prince's 
 banner : there was a sore battle and the knight fought 
 valiantly; howbeit he was there taken, and the Earl 
 of Joigny, the Viscount of Brosse, the Lord of Chau- 
 vigny and all the other taken or slain, but a few that 
 scaped. And by the prisoners the prince knew how 
 the French king followed him in such wise that he 
 could not eschew the battle: then he assembled to- 
 gether all his men and commanded that no man 
 should go before the marshals' banners. Thus the 
 prince rode that Saturday from the morning till it 
 was against night, so that he came within two little 
 leagues of Poitiers. Then the Captal de Buch, Sir 
 Aymenion of Pommiers, the Lord Bartholomew of 
 Burghersh and the Lord Eustace d'Aubrecicourt, all 
 these the prince sent forth to see if they might know 
 what the Frenchmen did. These knights departed 
 with two hundred men of arms well horsed: they 
 rode so far that they saw the great battle of the king's, 
 they saw all the fields covered with men of arms. 
 These Englishmen could not forbear, but set on the 
 tail of the French host and cast down many to the 
 earth and took divers prisoners, so that the host be- 
 gan to stir, and tidings thereof came to the French 
 king as he was entering into the city of Poitiers. 
 Then he returned again and made all his host do the 
 
 378 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 same, so that Saturday it was very late or he was 
 lodged in the field. The English currours returned 
 again to the prince and shewed him all that they saw 
 and knew, and said how the French host was a great 
 number of people. "Well," said the prince, "in the 
 name of God let us now study how we shall fight 
 with them at our advantage." That night the En- 
 glishmen lodged in a strong place among hedges, 
 vines and bushes, and their host well watched, and so 
 was the French host. 
 
 Of the order of the Frenchmen before the battle of 
 
 Poitiers 
 
 On the Sunday in the morning the French king, 
 who had great desire to fight with the Englishmen, 
 heard his mass in his pavilion and was houselled, 
 and his four sons with him. After mass there came 
 to him the Duke of Orleans, the Duke of Bourbon, 
 the Earl of Ponthieu, the Lord Jaques of Bourbon, 
 the Duke of Athens, Constable of France, the Earl 
 of Tancarville, the Earl of Sarrebruck, the Earl of 
 Dammartin, the Earl of Ventadour, and divers other 
 great barons of France and of other neighbors hold- 
 ing of France, as the Lord Clermont, the Lord Ar- 
 nold d'Audrehem, Marshal of France, the Lord of 
 Saint- Venant, the Lord John of Landas, the Lord 
 Eustace Ribemont, the Lord Fiennes, the Lord 
 Geoffrey of Charny, the Lord Chatillon, the Lord of 
 
 379 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Sully, the Lord of Nesle, Sir Robert Duras and 
 divers other; all these with the king went to counsel. 
 Then finally it was ordained that all manner of men 
 should draw into the field, and every lord to display 
 his banner and to set forth in the name of God and 
 Saint Denis: then trumpets blew up through the host 
 and every man mounted on horseback and went into 
 the field, where they saw the king's banner wave 
 with the wind. There might a been seen great 
 nobless of fair harness and rich armory of banners 
 and pennons ; for there was all the flower of France, 
 there was none durst abide at home without he would 
 be shamed forever. Then it was ordained by the 
 advice of the constable and marshals to be made 
 three battles, and in each ward sixteen thousand men 
 of arms all mustered and passed for men of arms. 
 The first battle the Duke of Orleans to govern, with 
 thirty-six banners and twice as many pennons, the 
 second the Duke of Normandy and his two brethren 
 the Lord Louis and the Lord John, the third the 
 king himself: and while that these battles were set- 
 ting in array, the king called to him the Lord Eu- 
 stace Ribemont, the Lord John of Landas and the 
 Lord Richard of Beaujeu, and said to them: "Sirs, 
 ride on before to see the dealing of the Englishmen 
 and advise well what number they be and by what 
 means we may fight with them, other afoot or 
 a-horseback." These three knights rode forth and 
 the king was on a white courser and said a-high to 
 
 380 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 his men: "Sirs, among you, when ye be at Paris, at 
 Chartres, at Rouen or at Orleans, then ye do threat 
 the Englishmen and desire to be in arms out against 
 them. Now ye be come thereto: I shall now show 
 you them : now show forth your evil will that ye bear 
 them and revenge your displeasures and damages 
 that they have done you, for without doubt we shall 
 fight with them." Such as heard him said: "Sir, in 
 God's name so be it; that would we see gladly." 
 
 Therewith the three knights returned again to 
 the king, who demanded of them tidings. Then Sir 
 Eustace of Ribemont answered for all and said: "Sir 
 we have seen the Englishmen : by estimation they be 
 two thousand men of arms and four thousand archers 
 and a fifteen hundred of other. Howbeit they be in 
 a strong place, and as far as we can imagine they are 
 in one battle; howbeit they be wisely ordered, and 
 along the way they have fortified strongly the hedges 
 and bushes : one part of their archers are along by the 
 hedge, so that none can go nor ride that way, but 
 must pass by them, and that way must ye go an ye 
 purpose to fight with them. In this hedge there is 
 but one entry and one issue by likelihood that four 
 horsemen may ride afront. At the end of this hedge, 
 whereas no man can go nor ride, there be men of 
 arms afoot and archers afore them in manner of a 
 herse, so that they will not be lightly discomfited." 
 "Well," said the king, "what will ye then counsel us 
 to do?" Sir Eustace said: "Sir, let us all be afoot, 
 
 381 
 
 13— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 except three hundred men of arms, well horsed, of 
 the best in your host and most hardiest, to the intent 
 they somewhat to break and to open the archers, and 
 then your battles to follow on quickly afoot and so to 
 fight with their men of arms hand to hand. This 
 is the best advice that I can give you: if any other 
 think any other way better, let him speak." 
 
 The king said: "Thus shall it be done": then the 
 two marshals rode from battle to battle and chose out 
 a three hundred knights and squires of the most ex- 
 pert men of arms of all the host, every man well 
 armed and horsed. Also it was ordained that the 
 battles of Almains should abide still on horseback to 
 comfort the marshals, if need were, whereof the Earl 
 of Sarrebruck, the Earl of Nidau and the Earl of 
 Nassau were captains. King John of France was 
 there armed, and twenty other in his apparel; and 
 he did put the guiding of his eldest son to the Lord 
 of Saint- Venant, the Lord of Landas and the Lord 
 Thibault of Vaudenay; and the Lord Arnold of 
 Cervolles, called the archpriest, was armed in the 
 armor of the young Earl of Alengon. 
 
 How the Cardinal of Perigord treated to make 
 agreement between the French King and the 
 Prince before the Battle of Poitiers 
 
 When the French king's battles was ordered and 
 every lord under his banner among their own men, 
 
 382 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 then it was commanded that every man should cut 
 their spears to a five foot long and every man to put 
 off their spurs. Thus as they were ready to ap- 
 proach, the Cardinal of Perigord came in great 
 haste to the king. He came the same morning from 
 Poitiers; he kneeled down to the king and held up 
 his hands and desired him for God's sake a little to 
 abstain setting forward till he had spoken with him: 
 then he said : "Sir, ye have here all the flower of your 
 realm against a handful of Englishmen as to regard 
 your company, and, sir, if ye may have them ac- 
 corded to you without battle, it shall be more profit- 
 able and honorable to have them by that manner 
 rather than to adventure so noble chivalry as ye have 
 here present. Sir, I require you in the name of God 
 and humility that I may ride to the prince and show 
 him what danger ye have him in." The king said: 
 "It pleaseth me well, but return again shortly." The 
 cardinal departed and diligently he rode to the 
 prince, who was among his men afoot: then the car- 
 dinal alighted and came to the prince, who received 
 him courteously. Then the cardinal after his salu- 
 tation made he said: "Certainly, fair son, if you and 
 your council advise justly the puissance of the French 
 king, ye will suffer me to treat to make a peace be- 
 tween you, an I may." The prince, who was young 
 and lusty, said : "Sir, the honor of me and of my peo- 
 ple saved, I would gladly fall to any reasonable 
 way." Then the cardinal said: "Sir, ye say well, 
 
 3*3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and I shall accord you, an I can; for it should be 
 great pity if so many noblemen and other as be here 
 on both parties should come together by battle." 
 Then the cardinal rode again to the king and said: 
 "Sir, ye need not to make any great haste to fight 
 with your enemies, for they cannot fly from you 
 though they would, they be in such a ground : where- 
 fore, sir, I require you forbear for this day till to- 
 morrow the sun-rising." The king was loath to 
 agree thereto, for some of his council would not con- 
 sent to it; but finally the cardinal showed such rea- 
 sons, that the king accorded that respite : and in the 
 same place there was pight up a pavilion of red silk 
 fresh and rich, and gave leave for that day every 
 man to draw to their lodgings except the constable's 
 and marshals' battles. 
 
 That Sunday all the day the cardinal travailed in 
 riding from the one host to the other gladly to agree 
 them: but the French king would not agree without 
 he might have four of the principallest of the En- 
 glishmen at his pleasure, and the prince and all the 
 other to yield themselves simply: howbeit there were 
 many great offers made. The prince offered to ren- 
 der into the king's hands all that ever he had won in 
 that voyage, towns and castles, and to quit all prison- 
 ers that he or any of his men had taken in that sea- 
 son, and also to swear not to be armed against the 
 French king in seven year after; but the king and his 
 council would none thereof: the uttermost that he 
 
 384 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 would do was, that the prince and a hundred of his 
 knights should yield themselves into the king's 
 prison; otherwise he would not: the which the prince 
 would in no wise agree unto. 
 
 In the mean season that the cardinal rode thus 
 between the hosts in trust to do some good, certain 
 knights of France and of England both rode forth 
 the same Sunday, because it was truce for that day, 
 to coast the hosts and to behold the dealing of their 
 enemies. So it fortuned that the Lord John Chandos 
 rode the same day coasting the French host, and in 
 like manner the Lord of Clermont, one of the French 
 marshals, had ridden forth and aviewed the state of 
 the English host; and as these two knights returned 
 toward their hosts, they met together: each of them 
 bare one manner of device, a blue lady embroidered 
 in a sunbeam above on their apparel. Then the Lord 
 Clermont said: "Chandos, how long have ye taken 
 on you to bear my device?" "Nay, ye bear mine," 
 said Chandos, "for it is as well mine as yours." "I 
 deny that," said Clermont, "but an it were not for 
 the truce this day between us, I should make it good 
 on you incontinent that ye have no right to bear my 
 device." "Ah, sir," said Chandos, "ye shall find me 
 to-morrow ready to defend you and to prove by feat 
 of arms that it is as well mine as yours." Then Cler- 
 mont said: "Chandos, these be well the words of you 
 Englishmen, for ye can devise nothing of new, but 
 all that ye see is good and fair." So they departed 
 
 3*S 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 without any more doing, and each of them returned 
 to their host. 
 
 The Cardinal of Perigord could in no wise that 
 Sunday make any agreement between the parties, 
 and when it was near night he returned to Poitiers. 
 That night the Frenchmen took their ease; they had 
 provision enough, and the Englishmen had great de- 
 fault; they could get no forage, nor they could not 
 depart thence without danger of their enemies. That 
 Sunday the Englishmen made great dikes and 
 hedges about their archers, to be the more stronger; 
 and on the Monday in the morning the prince and 
 his company were ready apparelled as they were be- 
 fore, and about the sun-rising in like manner were 
 the Frenchmen. The same morning betimes the 
 cardinal came again to the French host and thought 
 by his preaching to pacify the parties; but then the 
 Frenchmen said to him: "Return whither ye will: 
 bring hither no more words of treaty nor peace: an 
 ye love yourself depart shortly." When the cardi- 
 nal saw that he travailed in vain, he took leave of the 
 king and then he went to the prince and said: "Sir, 
 do what ye can : there is no remedy but to abide the 
 battle, for I can find none accord in the French 
 king." Then the prince said: "The same is our in- 
 tent and all our people: God help the right!" So 
 the cardinal returned to Poitiers. In his company 
 there were certain knights and squires, men of arms, 
 who were more favorable to the French king than to 
 
 386 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 the prince : and when they saw that the parties should 
 fight, they stole from their masters and went to the 
 French host; and they made their captain the chate- 
 lain of Amposte, who was as then there with the car- 
 dinal, who knew nothing thereof till he was come 
 to Poitiers. 
 
 The certainty of the order of the Englishmen was 
 showed to the French king, except they had ordained 
 three hundred men a-horseback and as many arch- 
 ers a-horseback to coast under covert of the moun- 
 tain and to strike into the battle of the Duke of 
 Normandy, who was under the mountain afoot. This 
 ordinance they had made of new, that the French- 
 men knew not of. The prince was with his battle 
 down among the vines and had closed in the weakest 
 part with their carriages. 
 
 Now will I name some of the principal lords and 
 knights that were there with the prince: the Earl of 
 Warwick, the Earl of Suffolk, the Earl of Salisbury, 
 the Earl of Oxford, the Lord Raynold Cobham, the 
 Lord Spencer, the Lord James Audley, the Lord 
 Peter his brother, the Lord Berkeley, the Lord Bas- 
 set, the Lord Warin, the Lord Delaware, the Lord 
 Manne, the Lord Willoughby, the Lord Bartholo- 
 mew de Burghersh, the Lord of Felton, the Lord 
 Richard of Pembroke, the Lord Stephen of Cosing- 
 ton, the Lord Bradetane and other Englishmen; and 
 of Gascon there was the Lord of Pommiers, the Lord 
 of Languiran, the Captal of Buch, the Lord John of 
 
 387 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Caumont, the Lord de Lesparre, the Lord of Rau- 
 zan, the Lord of Condon, the Lord of Montferrand, 
 the Lord of Landiras, the Lord Soudic of Latrau 
 and other that I cannot name; and of Hainowes the 
 Lord Eustace d'Aubrecicourt, the Lord John of 
 Ghistelles, and two other strangers, the Lord Daniel 
 Pasele and the Lord Denis of Morbeke: all the 
 prince's company passed not an eight thousand men 
 one and other, and the Frenchmen were a sixty thou- 
 sand fighting men, whereof there were more than 
 three thousand knights. 
 
 Of the Battle of Poitiers between the Prince of Wales 
 and the French King 
 
 When the prince saw that he should have battle 
 and that the cardinal was gone without any peace or 
 truce making, and saw that the French king did set 
 but little store by him, he said then to his men: 
 "Now, sirs, though we be but a small company as in 
 regard to the puissance of our enemies, let us not be 
 abashed therefor; for the victory lieth not in the 
 multitude of people, but whereas God will send it. 
 If it fortune that the journey be ours, we shall be the 
 most honored people of all the world ; and if we die 
 in our right quarrel, I have the king my father and 
 brethren, and also ye have good friends and kins- 
 men; these shall revenge us. Therefore, sirs, for 
 God's sake I require you do your devoirs this day; 
 
 388 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 for if God be pleased and Saint George, this day ye 
 shall see me a good knight." These words and such 
 other that the prince spake comforted all his people. 
 The Lord Sir John Chandos that day never went 
 from the prince, nor also the Lord James Audley of 
 a great season; but when he saw that they should 
 needs fight, he said to the prince: "Sir, I have served 
 always truly my lord your father and you also, and 
 shall do as long as I live. I say this because I made 
 once a vow that the first battle that other the king 
 your father or any of his children should be at, how 
 that I would be one of the first setters on, or else to 
 die in the pain: therefore I require your grace, as in 
 reward for any service that ever I did to the king 
 your father or to you, that you will give me licence 
 to depart from you and to set myself thereas I may 
 accomplish my vow." The prince accorded to his 
 desire and said, "Sir James, God give you this day 
 that grace to be the best knight of all other," and so 
 took him by the hand. Then the knight departed 
 from the prince and went to the foremost front of all 
 the battles, all only accompanied with four squires, 
 who promised not to fail him. This Lord James 
 was a right sage and a valiant knight, and by him 
 was much of the host ordained and governed the day 
 before. Thus Sir James was in the front of the bat- 
 tle ready to fight with the battle of the marshals of 
 France. In like wise the Lord Eustace d'Aubreci- 
 court did his pain to be one of the foremost to set on. 
 
 389 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 When Sir James Audley began to set forward to his 
 enemies, it fortuned to Sir Eustace d'Aubrecicourt 
 as ye shall hear after. Ye have heard before how 
 the Almains in the French host were appointed to 
 be still a-horseback. Sir Eustace being a-horseback 
 laid his spear in the rest and ran into the French bat- 
 tle, and then a knight of Almaine, called the Lord 
 Louis of Recombes, who bare a shield silver, five 
 roses gules, and Sir Eustace bare ermines, two ha- 
 medes of gules, — when this Almain saw the Lord 
 Eustace come from his company, he rode against him 
 and they met so rudely, that both knights fell to the 
 earth. The Almain was hurt in the shoulder, there- 
 fore he rose not so quickly as did Sir Eustace, who 
 when he was up and had taken his breath, he came 
 to the other knight as he lay on the ground ; but then 
 five other knights of Almaine came on him all at 
 once and bare him to the earth, and so perforce 
 there he was taken prisoner and brought to the Earl 
 of Nassau, who as then took no heed of him; and I 
 cannot say whether they sware him prisoner or no, 
 but they tied him to a chare and there let. him stand. 
 Then the battle began on all parts, and the bat- 
 tles of the marshals of France approached, and they 
 set forth that were appointed to break the array of 
 the archers. They entered a-horseback into the way 
 where the great hedges were on both sides set full of 
 archers. As soon as the men of arms entered, the 
 archers began to shoot on both sides and did slay and 
 
 390 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 hurt horses and knights, so that the horses when they 
 felt the sharp arrows they would in no wise go for- 
 ward, but drew aback and flang and took on so 
 fiercely, that many of them fell on their masters, so 
 that for press they could not rise again; insomuch 
 that the marshals' battle could never come at the 
 prince. Certain knights and squires that were well 
 horsed passed through the archers and thought to 
 approach to the prince, but they could not. The 
 Lord James Audley with his four squires was in the 
 front of that battle and there did marvels in arms, 
 and by great prowess he came and fought with Sir 
 Arnold d'Audrehem under his own banner, and there 
 they fought long together and Sir Arnold was there 
 sore handled. The battle of the marshals began to 
 disorder by reason of the shot of the archers with 
 the aid of the men of arms, who came in among them 
 and slew of them and did what they list, and there 
 was the Lord Arnold d'Audrehem taken prisoner by 
 other men than by Sir James Audley or by his four 
 squires; for that day he never took prisoner, but 
 always fought and went on his enemies. 
 
 Also on the French party the Lord John Cler- 
 mont fought under his own banner as long as he 
 could endure: but there he was beaten down and 
 could not be relieved nor ransomed, but was slain 
 without mercy: some said it was because of the 
 words that he had the day before to Sir John Chan- 
 dos. So within a short space the marshals' battles 
 
 39 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 were discomfited, for they fell one upon another 
 and could not go forth; and the Frenchmen that 
 were behind and could not get forward reculed back 
 and came on the battle of the Duke of Normandy, 
 the which was great and thick and were afoot, but 
 anon they began to open behind ; for when they knew 
 that the marshals' battle was discomfited, they took 
 their horses and departed, he that might best. Also 
 they saw a rout of Englishmen coming down a little 
 mountain a-horseback, and many archers with them, 
 who brake in on the side of the duke's battle. True 
 to say, the archers did their company that day great 
 advantage; for they shot so thick that the French- 
 men wist not on what side to take heed, and little and 
 little the Englishmen won ground on them. 
 
 And when the men of arms of England saw that 
 the marshals' battle was discomfited and that the 
 duke's battle began to disorder and open, they leaped 
 then on their horses, the which they had ready by 
 them: then they assembled together and cried, "Saint 
 George! Guyenne!" and the Lord Chandos said to 
 the prince: "Sir, take your horse and ride forth; this 
 journey is yours: God is this day in your hands: get 
 us to the French king's battle, for there lieth all the 
 sore of the matter. I think verily by his valiantness 
 he will not fly: I trust we shall have him by the grace 
 of God and Saint George, so he be well fought with- 
 al: and, sir, I heard you say that this day, I should 
 see you a good knight." The prince said, "Let us 
 
 392 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 go forth; ye shall not see me this day return back," 
 and said, "Advance, banner, in the name of God and 
 of Saint George." The knight that bare it did his 
 commandment: there was then a sore battle and a 
 perilous, and many a man overthrown, and he that 
 was once down could not be relieved again without 
 great succor and aid. As the prince rode and en- 
 tered in among his enemies, he saw on his right hand 
 in a little bush lying dead the Lord Robert of Duras 
 and his banner by him, and a ten or twelve of his 
 men about him. Then the prince said to two of his 
 squires and to three archers: "Sirs, take the body of 
 this knight on a targe and bear him to Poitiers, and 
 present him from me to the cardinal of Perigord, 
 and say how I salute him by that token." And this 
 was done. The prince was informed that the cardi- 
 nal's men were on the field against him, the which 
 was not pertaining to the right order of arms, for 
 men of the church that cometh and goeth for treaty 
 of peace ought not by reason to bear harness nor to 
 fight for neither of the parties; they ought to be 
 indifferent: and because these men had done so, the 
 prince was displeased with the cardinal, and there- 
 fore he sent unto him his nephew the Lord Robert of 
 Duras dead: and the chatelain of Amposte was taken, 
 and the prince would have had his head stricken off, 
 because he was pertaining to the cardinal, but then 
 the Lord Chandos said: "Sir, suffer for a season: in- 
 tend to a greater matter: and peradventure the car- 
 
 393 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 dinal will make such excuse that ye shall be con- 
 tent." 
 
 Then the prince and his company dressed them 
 on the battle of the Duke of Athens, constable of 
 France. There was many a man slain and cast to 
 the earth. As the Frenchmen fought in companies, 
 they cried, "Mountjoy! Saint Denis!" and the En- 
 glishmen, "Saint George! Guyenne!" Anon the 
 prince with his company met with the battle of Al- 
 mains, whereof the Earl ofi Sarrebruck, the Earl 
 Nassau and the Earl Nidau were captains, but in a 
 short space they were put to flight: the archers shot 
 so wholly together that none durst come in their 
 dangers : they slew many a man that could not come 
 to no ransom: these three earls were there slain, and 
 divers other knights and squires of their company, 
 and there was the Lord d'Aubrecicourt rescued by 
 his own men and set on horseback, and after he did 
 that day many feats of arms and took good prisoners. 
 When the Duke of Normandy's battle saw the prince 
 approach, they thought to save themselves, and so 
 the duke and the king's children, the Earl of Poitiers 
 and the Earl of Touraine, who were right young, be- 
 lieved their governors and so departed from the field, 
 and with them more than eight hundred spears, that 
 strake no stroke that day. Howbeit the Lord Gui- 
 chard d' Angle and the Lord John of Saintre, who 
 were with the Earl of Poitiers, would not fly, but en- 
 tered into the thickest press of the battle. The king's 
 
 394 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 three sons took the way to Chauvigny, and the Lord 
 John of Landras and the Lord Thibauld of Vaude- 
 nay, who were set to await on the Duke of Nor- 
 mandy, when they had brought the duke a long 
 league from the battle, then they took leave of the 
 duke and desired the Lord of Saint- Venant that he 
 should not leave the duke, but to bring him in safe- 
 guard, whereby he should win more thanks of the 
 king than to abide still in the field. Then they met 
 also the Duke of Orleans and a great company with 
 him, who were also departed from the field with 
 clear hands: there were many good knights and 
 squires, though that their masters departed from the 
 field, yet they had rather a died than to have had any 
 reproach. 
 
 Then the king's battle came on the Englishmen: 
 there was a sore fight and many a great stroke given 
 and received. The king and his youngest son met 
 with the battle of the English marshals, the Earl of 
 Warwick and the Earl of Suffolk, and with them of 
 Gascons the Captal of Buch, the Lord of Pommiers, 
 the Lord Amery of Tastes, the Lord of Mussidan, 
 the Lord of Languiran and the Lord de Latrau. To 
 the French party there came time enough the Lord 
 John of Landras and the Lord of Vaudenay; they 
 alighted afoot and went into the king's battle, and a 
 little beside fought the Duke of Athens, Constable of 
 France, and a little above him the Duke of Bourbon 
 and many good knights of Bourbonnais and of Pi- 
 
 395 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 cardy with him, and a little on the one side there 
 were the Poitevins, the Lord de Pons, the Lord cf 
 Partenay, the Lord of Dammartin, the Lord of Tan- 
 nay-Bouton, the Lord of Surgieres, the Lord John 
 Saintre, the Lord Guichard d'Angle, the Lord Ar- ' 
 genton, the Lord of Linieres, the Lord of Montendre 
 and divers other, also the viscount of Rochechouart 
 and the Earl of Aunay; and of Burgoyne the Lord 
 James of Beaujeu, the Lord de Chateau-Vilain and 
 other: in another part there was the Earl of Venta- 
 dour and of Montpensier, the Lord James of Bour- 
 bon, the Lord John d'Artois and also the Lord 
 James his brother, the Lord Arnold of Cervolles, 
 called the archpriest, armed for the young Earl of 
 Alengon; and of Auvergne there was the Lord of 
 Mercceur, the Lord de la Tour, the Lord of Chalen- 
 gon, the Lord of Montaigu, the Lord of Rochfort, 
 the Lord d'Acier, the Lord d'Acon; and of Limou- 
 sin there was the Lord de Melval, the Lord of Ma- 
 reuil, the Lord of Pierrebuffiere ; and of Picardy 
 there was the Lord William of Nesle, the Lord Ar- 
 nold of Rayneval, the Lord Geoffrey of Saint-Dizier, 
 the Lord of Chauny, the Lord of Helly, the Lord of 
 Montsault, the Lord of Hangest and divers other: 
 and also in the king's battle there was the Earl 
 Douglas of Scotland, who fought a season right val- 
 iantly, but when he saw the discomfiture, he de- 
 parted and saved himself; for in no wise he would 
 be taken of the Englishmen, he had rather been there 
 
 396 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 slain. On the English part the Lord James Audley 
 with the aid of his four squires fought always in the 
 chief of the battle: he was sore hurt in the body and 
 in the visage: as long as his breath served him he 
 fought; at last at the end of the battle his four 
 squires took and brought him out of the field and 
 laid him under a hedge side for to refresh him; and 
 they unarmed him and bound up his wounds as well 
 as they could. On the French party King John was 
 that day a full right good knight: if the fourth part 
 of his men had done their devoirs as well as he did, 
 the journey had been his by all likelihood. How- 
 beit they were all slain and taken that were there, 
 except a few that saved themselves, that were with 
 the king. There was slain the Duke Peter of Bour- 
 bon, the Lord Guichard of Beaujeu, the Lord of 
 Landas, and the Duke of Athens, Constable of 
 France, the Bishop of Chalons in Champagne, the 
 Lord William of Nesle, the Lord Eustace of Ribe- 
 mont, the Lord de la Tour, the Lord William of 
 Montaigu, Sir Grismouton of Chambly, Sir Bau- 
 drin de la Heuse, and many other, as they fought by 
 companies; and there were taken prisoners the Lord 
 of Vaudenay, the Lord of Pompadour, and the arch- 
 priest, sore hurt, the Earl of Vaudimont, the Earl of 
 Mons, the Earl of Joinville, the Earl of Vendome, 
 Sir Louis of Melval, the Lord Pierrebuffiere and the 
 Lord of Serignac: there were at that brunt slain and 
 taken more than two hundred knights. 
 
 397 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Of two Frenchmen that fled from the Battle of Poi- 
 tiers, and two Englishmen that followed them 
 
 AMONG the battles, recounterings, chases and 
 pursuits that were made that day in the field, it for- 
 tuned so to Sir Oudart of Renty that when he de- 
 parted from the field because he saw the field was 
 lost without recovery, he thought not to abide the 
 danger of the Englishmen; wherefore he fled all 
 alone and was gone out of the field a league, and an 
 English knight pursued him and ever cried to him 
 and said, "Return again, sir knight, it is a shame to 
 fly away thus." Then the knight turned, and the 
 English knight thought to have stricken him with his 
 spear in the targe, but he failed, for Sir Oudart 
 swerved aside from the stroke, but he failed not the 
 English knight, for he strake him such a stroke on 
 the helm with his sword, that he was astonied and 
 fell from his horse to the earth and lay still. Then 
 Sir Oudart alighted and came to him or he could 
 rise, and said, "Yield you, rescue or no rescue, or else 
 I shall slay you." The Englishman yielded and 
 went with him, and afterward was ransomed, Also 
 it fortuned that another squire of Picardy called 
 John de Hellenes was fled from the battle and met 
 with his page, who delivered him a new fresh horse, 
 whereon he rode away alone. The same season 
 there was in the field the Lord Berkeley of England, 
 
 398 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 a young lusty knight, who the same day had reared 
 his banner, and he all alone pursued the said John 
 of Hellenes. And when he had followed the space 
 of a league, the said John turned again and laid his 
 sword in the rest instead of a spear, and so came run- 
 ning toward the Lord Berkeley, who lift up his 
 sword to have stricken the squire; but when he saw 
 the stroke come he turned from it so that the En- 
 glishman lost his stroke and John strake him as 
 he passed on the arm, that the Lord Berkeley's 
 sword fell into the field. When he saw his sword 
 down, he lighted suddenly off his horse and came to 
 the place where his sword lay, and as he stooped 
 down to take up his sword, the French squire did 
 pike his sword at him, and by hap strake him through 
 both the thighs, so that the knight fell to the earth 
 and could not help himself. And John alighted off 
 his horse and took the knight's sword that lay on the 
 ground, and came to him and demanded if he 
 would yield him or not. The knight then demanded 
 his name. "Sir," said he, "I hight John of Hellenes; 
 but what is your name?" "Certainly," said the 
 knight, "my name is Thomas and am Lord of Berke- 
 ley, a fair castle on the river of Severn in the marches 
 of Wales." "Well, sir," quoth the squire, "then ye 
 shall be my prisoner, and I shall bring you in safe- 
 guard and I shall see that you shall be healed of your 
 hurt." "Well," said the knight, "I am content to 
 be your prisoner, for ye have by law of arms won 
 
 399 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 me." There he sware to be his prisoner, rescue or 
 no rescue. Then the squire drew forth the sword 
 out of the knight's thighs and the wound was open : 
 then he wrapped and bound the wound and set him 
 on his horse and so brought him fair and easily to 
 Chatelleraut, and there tarried more than fifteen 
 days for his sake and did get him remedy for his 
 hurt: and when he was somewhat amended, then he 
 gat him a litter and so brought him at his ease to his 
 house in Picardy. There he was more than a year 
 till he was perfectly whole; and when he departed 
 he paid for his ransom six thousand nobles, and so 
 this squire was made a knight by reason of the profit 
 that he had of the Lord Berkeley. 
 
 How King John was taken prisoner at the Battle 
 
 of Poitiers 
 
 Oftentimes the adventures of amours and of 
 war are more fortunate and marvellous than any 
 man can think or wish. Truly this battle, the which 
 was near to Poitiers in the fields of Beauvoir and 
 IMaupertuis, was right great and perilous, and many 
 deeds of arms there was done the which all came not 
 to knowledge. The fighters on both sides endured 
 much pain: King John with his own hands did that 
 day marvels in arms: he had an axe in his hands 
 wherewith he defended himself and fought in the 
 breaking of the press. Near to the king there was 
 
 400 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 taken the Earl of Tancarville, Sir Jaques of Bour- 
 bon Earl of Ponthieu, and the Lord John of Artois 
 Earl of Eu, and a little above that under the banner 
 of the Captal of Buch was taken Sir Charles of Ar- 
 tois and divers other knights and squires. The chase 
 endured to the gates of Poitiers: there were many 
 slain and beaten down, horse and man, for they of 
 Poitiers closed their gates and would suffer none to 
 enter; wherefore in the street before the gate was 
 horrible murder, men hurt and beaten down. The 
 Frenchmen yielded themselves as far of! as they 
 might know an Englishman : there were divers En- 
 glish archers that had four, five or six prisoners: the 
 Lord of Pons, a great baron of Poitou, was there 
 slain, and many other knights and squires; and there 
 was taken the Earl of Rochechouart, the Lord of 
 Dammartin, the Lord of Partenay, and of Saintonge 
 the Lord of Montendre and the Lord John of Sain- 
 tre, but he was so sore hurt that he had never health 
 after: he was reputed for one of the best knights in 
 France. And there was left for dead among other 
 dead men the Lord Guichard d'Angle, who fought 
 that day by the king right valiantly, and so did the 
 Lord of Charny, on whom was great press, because 
 he bare the sovereign banner of the king's: his own 
 banner was also in the field, the which was of gules, 
 three scutcheons silver. So many Englishmen and 
 Gascons came to that part, that perforce they opened 
 the king's battle, so that the Frenchmen were so min- 
 
 401 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 gled among their enemies that sometime there was 
 five men upon one gentleman. There was taken 
 the Lord of Pompadour and the Lord Bartholomew 
 de Burghersh, and there was slain Sir Geoffrey of 
 Charny with the king's banner in his hands: also the 
 Lord Raynold Cobham slew the Earl of Dammar- 
 tin. Then there was a great press to take the king, 
 and such as knew him cried, "Sir, yield you, or else 
 ye are but dead." There was a knight of Saint- 
 Omer's, retained in wages with the King of Eng- 
 land, called Sir Denis Morbeke, who had served the 
 Englishmen five year before, because in his youth he 
 had forfeited the realm of France for a murder that 
 he did at Saint-Omer's. It happened so well for 
 him, that he was next to the king when they were 
 about to take him: he stepped forth into the press, 
 and by strength of his body and arms he came to the 
 French king and said in good French, "Sir, yield 
 you." The king beheld the knight and said: "To 
 whom shall I yield me? Where is my cousin the 
 Prince of Wales? If I might see him, I would 
 speak with him." Denis answered and said: "Sir, 
 he is not here; but yield you to me and I shall bring 
 you to him." "Who be you?" quoth the king. "Sir," 
 quoth he, "I am Denis of Morbeke, a knight of Ar- 
 tois ; but I serve the King of England because I am 
 banished the realm of France and I have forfeited 
 all that I had there." Then the king gave him his 
 right gauntlet, saying, "I yield me to you." There 
 
 402. 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 was a great press about the king, for every man en- 
 forced him to say, "I have taken him," so that the 
 king could not go forward with his young son the 
 Lord Philip with him because of the press. 
 
 The Prince of Wales, who was courageous and 
 cruel as a lion, took that day great pleasure to fight 
 and to chase his enemies. The Lord John Chandos, 
 who was with him, of all that day never left him nor 
 never took heed of taking of any prisoner: then at the 
 end of the battle he said to the prince: "Sir, it were 
 good that you rested here and set your banner a-high 
 in this bush, that your people may draw hither, for 
 they be sore spread abroad, nor I can see no more 
 banners nor pennons of the French party; where- 
 fore, sir, rest and refresh you, for ye be sore chafed." 
 Then the prince's banner was set up a-high on a 
 bush, and trumpets and clarions began to sown. 
 Then the prince did off his bassenet, and the knights 
 for his body and they of his chamber were ready 
 about him, and a red pavilion pight up, and then 
 drink was brought forth to the prince and for such 
 lords as were about him, the which still increased 
 as they came from the chase: there they tarried and 
 their prisoners with them. And when the two mar- 
 shals were come to the prince, he demanded of them 
 if they knew any tidings of the French king. They 
 answered and said: "Sir, we hear none of certainty, 
 but we think verily he is other dead or taken, for he 
 is not gone out of the battles." Then the prince said 
 
 403 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 to the Earl of Warwick and to Sir Raynold Cob- 
 ham: "Sirs, I require you go forth and see what ye 
 can know, that at your return ye may show me the 
 truth." These two lords took their horses and de- 
 parted from the prince and rode up a little hill to 
 look about them : then they perceived a flock of men 
 of arms coming together right wearily: there was the 
 French king afoot in great peril, for Englishmen 
 and Gascons were his masters; they had taken him 
 from Sir Denis Morbeke perforce, and such as were 
 most of force said, "I have taken him;" "Nay," quoth 
 another, "I have taken him:" so they strave which 
 should have him. Then the French king, to eschew 
 that peril, said: "Sirs, strive not: lead me courte- 
 ously, and my son, to my cousin the prince, and strive 
 not for my taking, for I am so great a lord to make 
 you all rich." The king's words somewhat appeased 
 them ; howbeit ever as they went they made riot and 
 brawled for the taking of the king. When the two 
 foresaid lords saw and heard that noise and strife 
 among them, they came to them and said: "Sirs, 
 what is the matter that ye strive for?" "Sirs," said 
 one of them, "it is for the French king, who is here 
 taken prisoner, and there be more than ten knights 
 and squires that challengeth the taking of him and 
 of his son." Then the two lords entered into the 
 press and caused every man to draw aback, and com- 
 manded them in the prince's name on pain of their 
 heads to make no more noise nor to approach the 
 
 404 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 king no nearer, without they were commanded. 
 Then every man gave room to the lords, and they 
 alighted and did their reverence to the king, and 
 so brought him and his son in peace and rest to the 
 Prince of Wales. 
 
 Of the gift that the prince gave to the Lord Audley 
 after the Battle of Poitiers 
 
 As soon as the Earl of Warwick and the Lord 
 Cobham were departed from the prince, as ye have 
 heard before, then the prince demanded of the 
 knights that were about him for the Lord Audley, 
 if any knew anything of him. Some knights that 
 were there answered and said: "Sir, he is sore hurt 
 and lieth in a litter here beside." "By my faith," 
 said the prince, "of his hurts I am right sorry: go 
 and know if he may be brought hither, or else I will 
 go and see him thereas he is." Then two knights 
 came to the Lord Audley and said: "Sir, the prince 
 desireth greatly to see you, other ye must go to him 
 or else he will come to you." "Ah, sir," said the 
 knight, "I thank the prince when he thinketh on so 
 poor a knight as I am." Then he called eight of his 
 servants and caused them to bear him in his litter to 
 the place whereas the prince was. Then the prince 
 took him in his arms and kissed him and made him 
 great cheer and said: "Sir James, I ought greatly to 
 honor you, for by your valiance ye have this day 
 
 405 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 achieved the grace and renown of us all, and ye are 
 reputed for the most valiant of all other." "Ah, sir," 
 said the knight, "ye say as it pleaseth you: I would 
 it were so : and if I have this day anything advanced 
 myself to serve you and to accomplish the vow that 
 I made, it ought not to be reputed to me an prow- 
 ess." "Sir James," said the prince, "I and all ours 
 take you in this journey for the best doer in arms, 
 and to the intent to furnish you the better to pursue 
 the wars, I retain you for ever to be my knight with 
 five hundred marks of yearly revenues, the which I 
 shall assign you on mine heritage in England." 
 "Sir," said the knight, "God grant me to deserve the 
 great goodness that ye show me :" and so he took his 
 leave of the prince, for he was right feeble, and so 
 his servants brought him to his lodging. And as 
 soon as he was gone, the Earl of Warwick and the 
 Lord Cobham returned to the prince and presented 
 to him the French king. The prince made lowly 
 reverence to the king and caused wine and spices to 
 be brought forth, and himself served the king in sign 
 of great love. 
 
 How the Lord James Audley gave to his four squires 
 
 the five hundred marks of revenues that 
 
 the prince had given him 
 
 When Sir James Audley was brought to his 
 lodging, then he sent for Sir Peter Audley his 
 brother and for the Lord Bartholomew of Burg- 
 
 406 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 hersh, the Lord Stephen of Cosington, the Lord of 
 Willoughby and the Lord Ralph Ferrers, all these 
 were of his lineage, and then he called before him 
 his four squires, that had served him that day well 
 and truly. Then he said to the said lords: "Sirs, 
 it hath pleased my lord the prince to give me five 
 hundred marks of revenues by years in heritage, for 
 the which gift I have done him but small service with 
 my body. Sirs, behold here these four squires, who 
 hath always served me truly and specially this day: 
 that honor that I have is by their valiantness. 
 Wherefore I will reward them: I give and resign 
 into their hands the gift that my lord the prince hath 
 given me of five hundred marks of yearly revenues, 
 to them and to their heirs for ever, in like manner 
 as it was given me. I clearly disherit me there- 
 of and inherit them without any repeal or condi- 
 tion." The lords and other that were there, every 
 man beheld other and said among themselves: "It 
 cometh of a great nobleness to give this gift." They 
 answered him with one voice: "Sir, be it as God 
 will; we shall bear witness in this behalf whereso- 
 ever we be come." Then they departed from him, 
 and some of them went to the prince, who the same 
 night would make a supper to the French king and 
 to the other prisoners, for they had then enough to 
 do withal, of that the Frenchmen brought with them, 
 for the Englishmen wanted victual before, for some 
 in three days had no bread before. 
 
 407 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 How the prince made a supper to the French king 
 the same day of the Battle 
 
 The same day of the battle at night the prince 
 made a supper in his lodging to the French king 
 and to the most part of the great lords that were 
 prisoners. The prince made the king and his son, 
 the Lord James of Bourbon, the Lord John d'Ar- 
 tois, the Earl of Tancarville, the Earl of Estampes, 
 the Earl Dammartin, the Earl of Joinville and the 
 Lord of Partenay to sit all at one board, and other 
 lords, knights and squires at other tables; and always 
 the prince served before the king as humbly as he 
 could, and would not sit at the king's board for any 
 desire that the king could make, but he said he was 
 not sufficient to sit at the table with so great a prince 
 as the king was. But then he said to the king: "Sir, 
 for God's sake make none evil nor heavy cheer, 
 though God this day did not consent to follow your 
 will; for, sir, surely the king my father shall bear 
 you as much honor and amity as he may do, and shall 
 accord with you so reasonably that ye shall ever be 
 friends together after. And, sir, methink ye ought 
 to rejoice, though the journey be not as ye would 
 have had it, for this day ye have won the high re- 
 nown of prowess and have passed this day in valiant- 
 ness all other of your party. Sir, I say not this to 
 mark you, for all that be on our party, that saw 
 
 408 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 every man's deeds, are plainly accorded by true sen- 
 tence to give you the prize and chaplet." There- 
 with the Frenchmen began to murmur and said 
 among themselves how the prince had spoken nobly, 
 and that by all estimation he should prove a noble 
 man, if God send him life and to persevere in such 
 good fortune. 
 
 How the prince returned to Bordeaux after the Bat- 
 tle of Poitiers 
 
 When supper was done, every man went to his 
 lodging with their prisoners. The same night they 
 put many to ransom and believed them on their faiths 
 and troths, and ransomed them but easily, for they 
 said they would set no knight's ransom so high, but 
 that he might pay at his ease and maintain still his 
 degree. The next day, when they had heard mass 
 and taken some repast and that everything was 
 trussed and ready, then they took their horses and 
 rode toward Poitiers. The same night there was 
 come to Poitiers the Lord of Roye with a hundred 
 spears : he was not at the battle, but he met the Duke 
 of Normandy near to Chauvigny, and the duke sent 
 him to Poitiers to keep the town till they heard other 
 tidings. When the Lord of Roye knew that the En- 
 glishmen were so near coming to the city, he caused 
 every man to be armed and every man to go to his 
 defence to the walls, towers and gates; and the En- 
 
 409 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 glishmen passed by without any approaching, for 
 they were so laded with gold, silver and prisoners, 
 that in their returning they assaulted no fortress; they 
 thought it a great deed if they might bring the 
 French king, with their other prisoners and riches 
 that they had won, in safeguard to Bordeaux. They 
 rode but small journeys because of their prisoners 
 and great carriages that they had : they rode in a day 
 no more but four or five leagues and lodged ever be- 
 times, and rode close together in good array saving 
 the marshals' battles, who rode ever before with 
 five hundred men of arms to open the passages as 
 the prince should pass ; but they found no encounter- 
 ed, for all the country was so frayed that every man 
 drew to the fortresses. 
 
 As the prince rode, it was showed him how the 
 Lord Audley had given to his four squires the gift of 
 the five hundred marks that he had given unto him: 
 then the prince sent for him and he was brought in 
 his litter to the prince, who received him courteously 
 and said: "Sir James, we have knowledge that the 
 revenues that we gave you, as soon as ye came to 
 your lodging, you gave the same to four squires : we 
 would know why ye did so, and whether the gift was 
 agreeable to you or not." "Sir," said the knight, 
 "it is of truth I have given it to them, and I shall 
 show you why I did so. These four squires that be 
 here present have a long season served me well and 
 truly in many great businesses, and, sir, in this last 
 
 410 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 battle they served me in such wise that an they had 
 never done else, I was bound to reward them, and 
 before the same day they had never nothing of me 
 in reward. Sir, I am but a man alone; but by the 
 aid and comfort of them I took on me to accomplish 
 my vow long before made. I had been dead in the 
 battle an they had not been: wherefore, sir, when I 
 considered the love that they bare unto me, I had not 
 been courteous if I would not a rewarded them. I 
 thank God I have had and shall have enough as long 
 as I live:I will never be abashed for lack of good. 
 Sir, if I have done this without your pleasure, I re- 
 quire you to pardon me, for, sir, both I and my 
 squires shall serve you as well as ever we did." Then 
 the prince said: "Sir James, for anything that ye 
 have done I cannot blame you, but can you good 
 thank therefor; and for the valiantness of these 
 squires, whom ye praise so much, I accord to them 
 your gift, and I will render again to you six hundred 
 marks in like manner as ye had the other." 
 
 Thus the prince and his company did so much 
 that they passed through Poitou and Saintonge with- 
 out damage, and came to Blaye, and there passed the 
 river of Gironde and arrived in the good city of Bor- 
 deaux. It cannot be recorded the great feast and 
 cheer that they of the city with the clergy made to 
 the prince, and how honorably they were there re- 
 ceived. The prince brought the French king into 
 the abbey of Saint Andrew's, and there they lodged 
 
 411 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 both, the king in one part and the prince in the other. 
 The prince bought of the lords, knights and squires 
 of Gascoyne the most part of the earls of the realm 
 of France, such as were prisoners, and paid ready 
 money for them. There was divers questions and 
 challenges made between the knights and squires of 
 Gascoyne for taking of the French king; howbeit 
 Denis Morbeke by right of arms and by true tokens 
 that he showed challenged him for his prisoner. An- 
 other squire of Gascoyne called Bernard of Truttes 
 said how he had right to him: there was much ado 
 and many words before the prince and other lords 
 that were there, and because these two challenged 
 each other to fight in that quarrel, the prince caused 
 the matter to rest till they came in England and that 
 declaration should be made but afore the King of 
 England his father; but because the French king 
 himself aided to sustain the challenge of Denis Mor- 
 beke, for he inclined more to him than to any other, 
 the prince therefore privily caused to be delivered 
 to the said Sir Denis two thousand nobles to maintain 
 withal his estate. 
 
 Anon after the prince came to Bordeaux, the Car- 
 dinal of Perigord came thither, who was sent from 
 the pope in legation, as it was said. He was there 
 more than fifteen days or the prince would speak 
 with him because of the chatelain of Amposte and 
 his men, who were against him in the battle of Poi- 
 tiers. The prince believed that the cardinal sent 
 
 412 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 them thither, but the cardinal did so much by 
 the means of the Lord of Caumont, the Lord of 
 Montferrand and the Captal of Buch, who were 
 his cousins, they showed so great reasons to the 
 prince, that he was content to hear him speak. 
 And when he was before the prince, he excused 
 himself so sagely that the prince and his coun- 
 cil held him excused, and so he fell again into the 
 prince's love and redeemed out his men by rea- 
 sonable ransoms; and the chatelain was set to his 
 ransom of ten thousand franks, the which he paid 
 after. Then the cardinal began to treat on the de- 
 liverance of the French king, but I pass it briefly 
 because nothing was done. Thus the prince, the 
 Gascons and the Englishmen tarried still at Bor- 
 deaux till it was Lent in great mirth and revel, and 
 spent foolishly the gold and silver that they had won. 
 In England also there was great joy when they heard 
 tidings of the battle of Poitiers, of the discomfiting 
 of the Frenchmen and taking of the king: great so- 
 lemnities were made in all churches and great fires 
 and wakes throughout all England. The knights 
 and squires, such as were come home from that jour- 
 ney, were much made of and praised more than 
 other. 
 
 4i3 
 
 14— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 How the prince conveyed the French king from Bor- 
 deaux into England 
 
 The same winter the Prince of Wales and such 
 of England as were with him at Bordeaux ordained 
 for ships to convey the French king and his son and 
 all other prisoners into England. And when the 
 time of his departure approached, then he com- 
 manded the Lord d'Albret, the Lord of Mussidan, 
 the Lord de Lesparre, the Lord of Pommiers and the 
 Lord of Rauzan to keep the country there till his 
 return again. Then he took the sea, and certain 
 Lords of Gascoyne with him. The French king was 
 in a vessel by himself, to be the more at his ease, ac- 
 companied with two hundred men of arms and two 
 thousand archers; for it was showed the prince that 
 the three estates by whom the realm of France was 
 governed had laid in Normandy and Crotoy two 
 great armies, to the intent to meet with him and to 
 get the French king out of his hands, if they might; 
 but there were no such that appeared, and yet they 
 were on the sea eleven days, and on the twelfth day 
 they arrived at Sandwich. Then they issued out of 
 their ship and lay there all that night and tarried 
 there two days to refresh them, and on the third day 
 they rode to Canterbury. When the King of Eng- 
 land knew of their coming, he commanded them of 
 London to preoare them and their city to receive 
 
 414 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 such a man as the French king was. Then they of 
 London arrayed themselves by companies and the 
 chief mesters [with] clothing different [each] from 
 the other. At Saint Thomas of Canterbury the 
 French king and the prince made their offerings and 
 there tarried a day, and then rode to Rochester and 
 tarried there that day, and the next day to Dartford 
 and the fourth day to London, where they were hon- 
 orably received, and so they were in every good town 
 as they passed. The French king rode through Lon- 
 don on a white courser well apparelled, and the 
 prince on a little black hobby by him. Thus he was 
 conveyed along the city, till he came to the Savoy, 
 the which house pertained to the heritage of the 
 Duke of Lancaster. There the French king kept 
 his house a long season, and thither came to see him 
 the king and the queen oftentimes and made him 
 great feast and cheer. Anon after by the command- 
 ment of Pope Innocent the Sixth there came into 
 England the Lord Talleyrand, Cardinal of Peri- 
 gord, and the Lord Nicholas, Cardinal of Urgel : 
 they treated for a peace between the two kings, but 
 they could bring nothing to effect, but at last by good 
 means they procured a truce between the two kings 
 and all their assisters, to endure till the feast of Saint 
 John the Baptist in the year of our Lord MCCCLIX. ; 
 and out of this truce was excepted the Lord Philip 
 of Navarre and his allies, the Countess of Montfort 
 and the Duchy of Bretayne. Anon after the French 
 
 4i5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 king was removed from the Savoy to the castle of 
 Windsor, and all his household, and went a-hunting 
 and a-hawking thereabout at his pleasure, and the 
 Lord Philip his son with his: and all the other pris- 
 oners abode still at London and went to see the king 
 at their pleasure and were received all only on their 
 faiths. 
 
 How the Earl of Cambridge departed out of Eng- 
 land to go into Portugal; and how the commons 
 of England rebelled against the noblemen 
 
 In the mean season while this treaty was, there 
 fell in England great mischief and rebellion of mov- 
 ing of the common people, by which deed England 
 was at a point to have been lost without recovery. 
 There was never realm nor country in so great ad- 
 venture as it was in that time, and all because of the 
 ease and riches that the common people were of, 
 which moved them to this rebellion, as sometime they 
 did in France, the which did much hurt, for by such 
 incidents the realm of France hath been greatly 
 grieved. 
 
 It was a marvellous thing and of poor foundation 
 that this mischief began in England, and to give en- 
 sample to all manner of people I will speak thereof 
 as it was done, as I was informed, and of the inci- 
 dents thereof. There was an usage in England, and 
 yet is in divers countries, that the noblemen hath 
 
 416 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 great franchise over the commons and keepeth them 
 in servage, that is to say, their tenants ought by custom 
 to labor the lords' lands, to gather and bring home 
 their corns, and some to thresh and to fan, and by 
 servage to make their hay and to hew their wood 
 and bring it home. All these things they ought to 
 do by servage, and there be more of these people in 
 England than in any other realm. Thus the noble- 
 men and prelates are served by them, and specially 
 in the county of Kent, Essex, Sussex and Bedford. 
 These unhappy people of these said countries began 
 to stir, because they said they were kept in great ser- 
 vage, and in the beginning of the world, they said, 
 there were no bondmen, wherefore they maintained 
 that none ought to be bond, without he did treason 
 to his lord, as Lucifer did to God ; but they said they 
 could have no such battle, for they were neither an- 
 gels nor spirits, but men formed to the similitude of 
 their lords, saying why should they then be kept so 
 under like beasts; the which they said would no 
 longer suffer, for they would be all one, and if they 
 labored or did anything for their lords, they would 
 have wages therefor as well as other. And of this 
 imagination was a foolish priest in the country of 
 Kent called John Ball, for the which foolish words 
 he had been three times in the Bishop of Canter- 
 bury's prison: for this priest used oftentimes on the 
 Sundays after mass, when the people were going out 
 of the minster, to go into the cloister and preach, and 
 
 4i7 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 made the people to assemble about him, and would 
 say thus : "Ah, ye good people, the matters goeth not 
 well to pass in England, nor shall not do till every- 
 thing be common, and that there be no villains nor 
 gentlemen, but that we may be all unied together, 
 and that the lords be no greater masters than we be. 
 What have we deserved, or why should we be kept 
 thus in servage? We be all, from one father 
 and one mother, Adam and Eve: whereby can they 
 say or show that they be greater lords than we be, 
 saving by that they cause us to win and labor for that 
 they dispend? They are clothed in velvet and cam- 
 let furred with grise, and we be vestured with poor 
 cloth : they have their wines, spices and good bread, 
 and we have the drawing out of the chaff and drink 
 water: they dwell in fair houses, and we have the 
 pain and travail, rain and wind in the fields ; and by 
 that that cometh of our labors they keep and main- 
 tain their estates: we be called their bondmen, and 
 without we do readily them service, we be beaten; 
 and we have no sovereign to whom we may com- 
 plain, nor that will hear us nor do us right. Let us 
 go to the king, he is young, and show him what ser- 
 vage we be in, and show him how we will have it 
 otherwise, or else we will provide us of some remedy; 
 and if we go together, all manner of people that be 
 now in any bondage will follow us to the intent to be 
 made free; and when the king seeth us, we shall have 
 some remedy, either by fairness or otherwise." Thus 
 
 418 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 John Ball said on Sundays, when the people issued 
 out of the churches in the villages; wherefore many 
 of the mean people loved him, and such as intended 
 to no goodness said how he said truth; and so they 
 would murmur one with another in the fields and in 
 the ways as they went together, affirming how John 
 Ball said truth. 
 
 The Archbishop of Canterbury, who was in- 
 formed of the saying of this John Ball, caused him 
 to be taken and put in prison a two or three months 
 to chastise him: howbeit, it had been much better at 
 the beginning that he had been condemned to per- 
 petual prison or else to have died, rather than to 
 have suffered him to have been again delivered out 
 of prison; but the bishop had conscience to let him 
 die. And when this John Ball was out of prison, 
 he returned again to his error, as he did before. 
 
 Of his words and deeds there were much people 
 in London informed, such as had great envy at them 
 that were rich and such as were noble; and then they 
 began to speak among them and said how the realm 
 of England was right evil governed, and how that 
 gold and silver was taken from them by them that 
 were named noblemen : so thus these unhappy men of 
 London began to rebel and assembled them together, 
 and sent word to the foresaid countries that they 
 should come to London and bring their people with 
 them, promising them how they should find London 
 open to receive them and the commons of the city to 
 
 419 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 be of the same accord, saying how they would do so 
 much to the king that there should not be one bond- 
 man in all England. 
 
 This promise moved so them of Kent, of Essex, 
 of Sussex, of Bedford and of the countries about, that 
 they rose and came toward London to the number 
 of sixty thousand. They had a captain called Water 
 Tyler, and with him in company was Jack Straw and 
 John Ball: these three were chief sovereign captains, 
 but the head of all was Water Tyler, and he was in- 
 deed a tiler of houses, an ungracious patron. When 
 these unhappy men began thus to stir, they of Lon- 
 don, except such as were of their band, were greatly 
 affrayed. Then the Mayor of London and the rich 
 men of the city took counsel together, and when they 
 saw the people thus coming on every side, they 
 caused the gates of the city to be closed and would 
 suffer no man to enter into the city. But when they 
 had well imagined, they advised not so to do, for 
 they thought they should thereby put their suburbs 
 in great peril to be brent; and so they opened again 
 the city, and there entered in at the gates in some 
 place a hundred, two hundred, by twenty and by 
 thirty, and so when they came to London / they entered 
 and lodged : and yet of truth the third part of these 
 people could not tell what to ask or demand, but fol- 
 lowed each other like beasts, as the shepherds did of 
 old time, saying how they would go conquer the Holy 
 Land, and at last all came to nothing. In like wise 
 
 420 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 these villains and poor people came to London, a 
 hundred mile off, sixty mile, fifty mile, forty mile 
 and twenty mile off, and from all countries about 
 London, but the most part came from the countries 
 before named, and as they came they demanded ever 
 for the king. The gentlemen of the countries, knights 
 and squires, began to doubt, when they saw the peo- 
 ple began to rebel ; and though they were in doubt, it 
 was good reason ; for a less occasion they might have 
 been affrayed. So the gentlemen drew together as 
 well as they might. 
 
 The same day that these unhappy people of Kent 
 were coming to London, there returned from Canter- 
 bury the king's mother, Princess of Wales, coming 
 from her pilgrimage. She was in great jeopardy to 
 have been lost, for these people came to her chare 
 and dealt rudely with her, whereof the good lady 
 was in great doubt lest they would have done some 
 villany to her or to her damosels. Howbeit, God 
 kept her, and she came in one day from Canterbury 
 to London, for she never durst tarry by the way. The 
 same time King Richard her son was at the Tower of 
 London : there his mother found him, and with him 
 there was the Earl of Salisbury, the Archbishop of 
 Canterbury, Sir Robert of Namur, the Lord of Gom- 
 megnies and divers other, who were in doubt of these 
 people that thus gathered together, and wist not what 
 they demanded. This rebellion was well known in 
 the king's court, or any of these people began to stir 
 
 421 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 out of their houses; but the king nor his council did 
 provide no remedy therefor, which was great mar- 
 vel. And to the intent that all lords and good peo- 
 ple and such as would nothing but good should take 
 ensample to correct them that be evil and rebellious, 
 I shall show you plainly all the matter, as it was. 
 
 The evil deeds that these commons of England did 
 to the king's officers, and how they sent a knight 
 to speak with the king 
 
 The Monday before the feast of Corpus Christi 
 the year of our Lord God a thousand three hundred 
 and eighty-one these people issued out of their houses 
 to come to London to speak with the king to be made 
 free, for they would have had no bondman in Eng- 
 land. And so first they came to Saint Thomas of 
 Canterbury, and there John Ball had thought to 
 have found the Bishop of Canterbury, but he was at 
 London with the king. When Wat Tyler and Jack 
 Straw entered into Canterbury, all the common peo- 
 ple made great feast, for all the town was of their 
 assent; and there they took counsel to go to London 
 to the king, and to send some of their company over 
 the river of Thames into Essex, into Sussex and into 
 the counties of Stafford and Bedford, to speak to the 
 people that they should all come to the further side 
 of London and thereby to close London round about, 
 so that the king should not stop their passages, and 
 
 422 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 that they should all meet together on Corpus Christi 
 day. They that were at Canterbury entered into 
 Saint Thomas' Church and did there much hurt, and 
 robbed and broke up the bishop's chamber, and in 
 robbing and bearing out their pillage they said: "Ah, 
 this chancellor of England hath had a good market 
 to get together all this riches : he shall give us now 
 account of the revenues of England and of the great 
 profits that he hath gathered sith the king's corona- 
 tion." When they had this Monday thus broken 
 the Abbey of Saint Vincent, they departed in the 
 morning and all the people of Canterbury with 
 them, and so took the way to Rochester and sent their 
 people toi the villages about. And in their going 
 they beat down and robbed houses of advocates and 
 procurers of the king's court and of the archbishop, 
 and had mercy on none. And when they were come 
 to Rochester, they had there good cheer; for the peo- 
 ple of that town tarried for them, for they were of 
 the same sect, and then they went to the castle there 
 and took the knight that had the rule thereof, he was 
 called Sir John Newton, and they said to him: "Sir, 
 it behoveth you to go with us and you shall be our 
 sovereign captain and to do that we will have you." 
 The knight excused himself honestly and showed 
 them divers considerations and excuses, but all 
 availed him nothing, for they said unto him: "Sir 
 John, if ye do not as we will have you, ye are but 
 dead." The knight, seeing these people in that fury 
 
 423 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and ready to slay him, he then doubted death and 
 agreed to them, and so they took him with them 
 against his inward will; and in like wise did they of 
 other countries in England, as Essex, Sussex, Staf- 
 ford, Bedford and Warwick, even to Lincoln; for 
 they brought the knights and gentlemen into such 
 obeisance, that they caused them to go with them, 
 whether they would or not, as the Lord Moylays, a 
 great baron, Sir Stephen of Hales and Sir Thomas 
 of Cosington and other. 
 
 Now behold the great fortune. If they might 
 have come to their intents, they would have de- 
 stroyed all the noblemen of England, and thereafter 
 all other nations would have followed the same and 
 have taken foot and ensample by them and by them of 
 Gaunt and Flanders, who rebelled against their lord. 
 The same year the Parisians rebelled in like wise and 
 found out the mallets of iron, of whom there were 
 more than twenty thousand, as ye shall hear after in 
 this history*; but first we will speak of them of Eng- 
 land. 
 
 When these people thus lodged at Rochester de- 
 parted, and passed the river and came to Brentford, 
 alway keeping still their opinions, beating down be- 
 fore them and all about the places and houses of ad- 
 vocates and procurers, and striking off the heads of 
 divers persons. And so long they went forward till 
 they came within a four mile of London, and there 
 lodged on a hill called Blackheath; and as they went 
 
 424 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 they said ever they were the king's men and the noble 
 commons of England: and when they of London 
 knew that they were come so near to them, the 
 mayor, as ye have heard before, closed the gates and 
 kept straitly all the passages. This order caused the 
 mayor, who was called Nicholas Walworth, and 
 divers other rich burgesses of the city, who were not 
 of their sect; but there we're in London of their un- 
 happy opinions more than thirty thousand. 
 
 Then these people thus being lodged on Black- 
 heath, determined to send their knight to speak with 
 the king and to show him how all that they have done 
 or will do is for him and his honor, and how the 
 realm of England hath not been well governed a 
 great space for the honor of the realm nor for the 
 common profit by his uncles and by the clergy, and 
 specially by the Archbishop of Canterbury his chan- 
 cellor; whereof they would have account. This 
 knight durst do none otherwise, but so came by the 
 river of Thames to the Tower. The king and they 
 that were with him in the Tower, desiring to hear 
 tidings, seeing this knight coming made him way, 
 and was brought before the king into a chamber; and 
 wfth the king was the princess his mother and his 
 two brethren, the Earl of Kent and the Lord John 
 Holland, the Earl of Salisbury, the Earl of War- 
 wick, the Earl of Oxford, the Archbishop of Canter- 
 bury, the Lord of Saint John's, Sir Robert of Na- 
 mur, the Lord of Vertaing, the Lord of Gommeg- 
 
 425 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 nies, Sir Henry of Senzeille, the Mayor of London 
 and divers other notable burgesses. This knight Sir 
 John Newton, who was well known among them, for 
 he was one of the king's officers, he kneeled down 
 before the king and said: "My right redoubted lord, 
 let it not displease your grace the message that I 
 must needs show you, for, dear sir, it is by force and 
 against my will." "Sir John," said the king, "say 
 what ye will: I hold you excused." "Sir, the com- 
 mons of this your realm hath sent me to you to de- 
 sire you to come and speak with them on Black- 
 heath; for they desire to have none but you: and, sir, 
 ye need not to have any doubt of your person, for 
 they will do you no hurt; for they hold and will hold 
 you for their king. But, sir, they say they will show 
 you divers things, the which shall be right necessary 
 for you to take heed of, when they speak with you ; 
 of the which things, sir, I have no charge to show 
 you: but, sir, an it may please you to give me an 
 answer such as may appease them and that they may 
 know for truth that I have spoken with you; for 
 they have my children in hostage till I return again 
 to them, and without I return again, they will slay 
 my children incontinent." 
 
 Then the king made him an answer and said: 
 "Sir, ye shall have an answer shortly." Then the 
 king took counsel what was best for him to do, and 
 it was anon determined that the next morning the 
 king should go down the river by water and without 
 
 426 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 fail to speak with them. And when Sir John New- 
 ton heard that answer, he desired nothing else and 
 so took his leave of the king and of the lords and re- 
 turned again into his vessel, and passed the Thames 
 and went to Blackheath, where he had left more 
 than threescore thousand men. And there he an- 
 swered them that the next morning they should send 
 some of their council to the Thames, and there the 
 king would come and speak with them. This an- 
 swer greatly pleased them, and so passed that night 
 as well as they might, and the fourth part of them 
 fasted for lack of victual, for they had none, where- 
 with they were sore displeased, which was good 
 reason. 
 
 All this season the Earl of Buckingham was in 
 Wales, for there he had fair heritages by reason of 
 his wife, who was daughter to the Earl of North- 
 umberland and Hereford; but the voice was all 
 through London how he was among these people. 
 And some said certainly how they had seen him there 
 among them; and all was because there was one 
 Thomas in their company, a man of the county of 
 Cambridge, that was very like the earl. Also the 
 lords that lay at Plymouth to go into Portugal were 
 well informed of this rebellion and of the people 
 that thus began to rise; wherefore they doubted lest 
 their viage should have been broken, or else they 
 feared lest the commons about Hampton, Winches- 
 ter and Arundel would have come on them: where- 
 
 427 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 fore they weighed up their anchors and issued 
 out of the haven with great pain, for the wind was 
 sore against them, and so took the sea and there cast 
 anchor abiding for the wind. And the Duke of 
 Lancaster, who was in the marches of Scotland be- 
 tween Moorlane and Roxburgh entreating with the 
 Scots, where it was showed him of the rebellion, 
 whereof he was in doubt, for he knew well he was 
 but little beloved with the commons of England; 
 howbeit, for all those tidings, yet he did sagely de- 
 mean himself as touching the treaty with the Scots. 
 The Earl Douglas, the Earl of Moray, the Earl of 
 Sutherland and the Earl Thomas Versy, and the 
 Scots that were there for the treaty knew right well 
 the rebellion in England, how the common people in 
 every part began to rebel against the noblemen; 
 wherefore the Scots thought that England was in 
 great danger to be lost, and therefore in their treaties 
 they were the more stifTer again the Duke of Lan- 
 caster and his council. 
 
 Now let us speak of the commons of England and 
 how they persevered. 
 
 How the commons of England entered into London, 
 and of the great evil that they did, and of the 
 death of the Bishop of Canterbury and divers 
 other 
 
 In the morning on Corpus Christi day King 
 Richard heard mass in the Tower of London, and 
 
 428 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 all his lords, and then he took his barge with the 
 Earl of Salisbury, the Earl of Warwick, the 
 Earl of Oxford and certain knights, and so rowed 
 down along the Thames to Rotherhithe, whereas 
 was descended down the hill a ten thousand men 
 to see the king and to speak with him. And when 
 they saw the king's barge coming, they began to 
 shout, and made such a cry, as though all the devils 
 of hell had been among them. And they had brought 
 with them Sir John Newton to the intent that, if the 
 king had not come, they would have stricken him all 
 to pieces, and so they had promised him. And when 
 the king and his lords saw the demeanor of the peo- 
 ple, the best assured of them were in dread; and so 
 the king was counselled by his barons not to take any 
 landing there, but so rowed up and down the river. 
 And the king demanded of them what they would, 
 and said how he was come thither to speak with 
 them, and they said all with one voice: "We would 
 that ye should come aland, and then we shall show 
 you what we lack." Then the Earl of Salisbury 
 answered for the king and said: "Sirs, ye be not in 
 such order nor array that the king ought to speak 
 with you." And so with those words no more said : 
 and then the king was counselled to return again to 
 the Tower of London, and so he did. 
 
 And when these people saw that, they were in- 
 flamed with ire and returned to the hill where the 
 great band was, and there showed them what answer 
 
 429 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 they had and how the king was returned to the Tower 
 of London. Then they cried all with one voice : "Let 
 us go to London," and so they took their way thither; 
 and in their going they beat down abbeys and houses 
 of advocates and of men of the court, and so came 
 into the suburbs of London, which were great and 
 fair, and there beat down divers fair houses, and spe- 
 cially they broke up the king's prisons, as the Mar- 
 shalsea and other, and delivered out all the prisoners 
 that were within : and there they did much hurt, and 
 at the bridge foot they threat them of London be- 
 cause the gates of the bridge were closed, saying how 
 they would bren all the suburbs and so conquer 
 London by force, and to slay and bren all the com- 
 mons of the city. There were many within the city 
 of their accord, and so they drew together and said: 
 "Why do we not let these good people enter into the 
 city? They are our fellows, and that that they do 
 is for us." So therewith the gates were opened, and 
 then these people entered into the city and went into 
 houses and sat down to eat and drink. They desired 
 nothing but it was incontinent brought to them, for 
 every man was ready to make them good cheer and to 
 give them meat and drink to appease them. 
 
 Then the captains, as John Ball, Jack Straw and 
 Wat Tyler, went throughout London and a twenty 
 thousand with them, and so came to the Savoy in the 
 way to Westminster, which was a goodly house and 
 it pertained to the Duke of Lancaster. And when 
 
 43o 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 they entered, they slew the keepers thereof and robbed 
 and piled the house, and when they had so done, then 
 they set fire on it and clean destroyed and brent it. 
 And when they had done that outrage, they left not 
 therewith, but went straight to the fair hospital of 
 the Rhodes called Saint John's, and there they brent 
 house, hospital, minster and all. Then they went 
 from street to street and slew all the Flemings that 
 they could find in church or in any other place, there 
 was none respited from death. And they broke up 
 divers houses of the Lombards and robbed them and 
 took their goods at their pleasure, for there was none 
 that durst say them nay. And they slew in the city 
 a rich merchant called Richard Lyon, to whom be- 
 fore that time Wat Tyler had done service in France ; 
 and on a time this Richard Lyon had beaten him, 
 while he was his varlet, which Wat Tyler then re- 
 membered, and so came to his house and struck off 
 his head and caused it to be borne on a spear-point 
 before him all about the city. Thus these ungracious 
 people demeaned themselves like people enraged and 
 wood, and so that day they did much sorrow in Lon- 
 don. 
 
 And so against night they went to lodge at Saint 
 Katherine's before the Tower of London, saying how 
 they would never depart thence till they had the king 
 at their pleasure and till he had accorded to them 
 all [they would ask, and] that they would ask ac- 
 counts of the chancellor of England, to know where 
 
 43 « 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 all the good was become that he had levied through 
 the realm, and without he made a good account to 
 them thereof, it should not be for his profit. And so 
 when they had done all these evils to the strangers all 
 the day, at night they lodged before the Tower. 
 
 Ye may well know and believe that it was great 
 pity for the danger that the king and such as were 
 with him were in. For some time these unhappy 
 people shouted and cried so loud, as though all the 
 devils of hell had been among them. In this evening 
 the king was counselled by his brethren and lords and 
 by Sir Nicholas Walworth, mayor of London, and 
 divers other notable and rich burgesses, that in the 
 night time they should issue out of the Tower and en- 
 ter into the city, and so to slay all these unhappy peo- 
 ple, while they were at their rest and asleep; for it 
 was thought that many of them were drunken, where- 
 by they should be slain like flies; also of twenty of 
 them there was scant one in harness. And surely 
 the good men of London might well have done this at 
 their ease, for they had in their houses secretly their 
 friends and servants ready in harness, and also Sir 
 Robert Knolles was in his lodging keeping his treas- 
 ure with a sixscore ready at his commandment; in 
 likewise was Sir Perducas d'Albret, who w 7 as as then 
 in London, insomuch that there might well [have] 
 assembled together an eight thousand men ready in 
 harness. Howbeit, there was nothing done, for the 
 residue of the commons of the city were sore doubted, 
 
 43 2 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 lest they should rise also, and the commons before 
 were a threescore thousand or more. Then the Earl 
 of Salisbury and the wise men about the king said: 
 "Sir, if ye can appease them with fairness, it were 
 best and most profitable, and to grant them every- 
 thing that they desire, for if we should begin a thing 
 which we could not achieve, we should never recover 
 it again, but we and our heirs ever to be disherited." 
 So this counsel was taken and the mayor counter- 
 manded, and so commanded that he should not stir; 
 and he did as he was commanded, as reason was. 
 And in the city with the mayor there were twelve al- 
 dermen, whereof nine of them held with the king and 
 the other three took part with these ungracious peo- 
 ple, as it was after well known, which they full dearly 
 bought. 
 
 And on the Friday in the morning the people, be- 
 ing at Saint Katherine's near to the Tower, began to 
 apparel themselves and to cry and shout, and said, 
 without the king would come out and speak with 
 them, they would assail the Tower and take it by 
 force, and slay all them that were within. Then the 
 king doubted these words and so was counselled that 
 he should issue out to speak with them : and then the 
 king sent to them that they should all draw to a fair 
 plain place called Mile-end, whereas the people of 
 the city did sport them in the summer season, and 
 there the king to grant them that they desired; and 
 there it was cried in the king's name, that whosoever 
 
 433 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 would speak with the king let him go to the said 
 place, and there he should not fail to find the king. 
 Then the people began to depart, specially the com- 
 mons of the villages, and went to the same place: but 
 all went not thither, for they were not all of one con- 
 dition; for there were some that desired nothing but 
 riches and the utter destruction of the noblemen and 
 to have London robbed and pilled ; that was the prin- 
 cipal matter of their beginning, which they well 
 showed; for as soon as the Tower gate opened and 
 that the king was issued out with his two brethren 
 and the Earl of Salisbury, the Earl of Warwick, the 
 Earl of Oxford, Sir Robert of Namur, the Lord of 
 Vertaing, the Lord Gommegnies and divers other, 
 then Wat Tyler, Jack Straw and John Ball and more 
 than four hundred entered into the Tower and broke 
 up chamber after chamber, and at last found the 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, called Simon, a valiant 
 man and a wise, and chief chancellor of England, 
 and a little before he had said mass before the king. 
 These gluttons took him and struck of! his head, and 
 also they beheaded the Lord of Saint John's and a 
 friar minor, master in medicine, pertaining to the 
 Duke of Lancaster, they slew him in despite of his 
 master, and a sergeant-at-arms called John Leg; and 
 these four heads were set on four long spears and 
 they made them to be borne before them through the 
 streets of London and at last set them a-high on Lon- 
 don bridge, as though they had been traitors to the 
 
 434 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 king and to the realm. Also these gluttons entered 
 into the princess' chamber and broke her bed, where- 
 by she was so sore afraid that she swooned ; and there 
 she was taken up and borne to the water side and put 
 into a barge and covered, and so conveyed to a 
 place called the Queen's Wardrobe; and there she 
 was all that day and night like a woman half dead, 
 till she was comforted with the king her son, as ye 
 shall hear after. 
 
 How the Nobles of England were in great peril to 
 
 have been destroyed, and how these. Rebels were 
 
 punished and sent home to their own houses 
 
 When the king same to the said place of Mile- 
 end without London, he put out of his company his 
 two brethren, the Earl of Kent and Sir John Hol- 
 land, and the Lord of Gommegnies, for they durst 
 not appear before the people: and when the king and 
 his other lords were there, he found there a three- 
 score thousand men of divers villages and of sundry 
 countries in England; so the king entered in among 
 them and said to them sweetly: "Ah, ye good people, 
 I am your king: what lack ye? what will ye say?" 
 Then such as understood him said: "We will that ye 
 make us free for ever, ourselves, our heirs and our 
 lands, and that we be called no more bond nor so re- 
 puted." "Sirs," said the king, "I am well agreed 
 thereto. Withdraw you home into your own houses 
 
 435 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and into such villages as ye came from, and leave 
 behind you of every village two or three, and I shall 
 cause writings to be made and seal them with my 
 seal, which they shall have with them, containing 
 everything that ye demand; and to the intent that ye 
 shall be the better assured, I shall cause my banners 
 to be delivered into every bailiwick, shire and coun- 
 tries." 
 
 These words appeased well the common people, 
 such as were simple and good plain men, that were 
 come thither and wist not why. They said: "It was 
 well said, we desire no better." Thus these people 
 began to be appeased and began to withdraw them 
 into the city of London. And the king also said a 
 word, which greatly contented them. He said : "Sirs, 
 among you good men of Kent ye shall have one of my 
 banners with you, and ye of Essex another, and ye of 
 Sussex, of Bedford, of Cambridge, of Yarmouth, of 
 Stafford, and of Lynn, each of you one; and also I 
 pardon everything that ye have done hitherto, so that 
 ye follow my banners and return home to your 
 houses." They all answered how they would so do : 
 thus these people departed and went into London. 
 Then the king ordained more than thirty clerks the 
 same Friday, to write with all diligence letter patents 
 and sealed with the king's seal, and delivered them 
 to these people ; and when they had received the writ- 
 ing, they departed and returned into their own coun- 
 tries : but the great venom remained still behind, for 
 
 43 6 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 Wat Tyler, Jack Straw, and John Ball said, for all 
 that these people were thus appeased, yet they would 
 not depart so, and they had of their accord more than 
 thirty thousand. So they abode still and made no 
 press to have the king's writing nor seal, for all their 
 intents was to put the city to trouble in such wise as 
 to slay all the rich and honest persons and to rob and 
 pill their houses. They of London were in great fear 
 of this, wherefore they kept their houses privily with 
 their friends and such servants as they had, every man 
 according to his puissance. And when these said 
 people were this Friday thus somewhat appeased, 
 and that they should depart as soon as they had their 
 writings, every man home into his own country, then 
 King Richard came into the Royal, where the queen 
 his mother was, right sore afTrayed : so he comforted 
 her as well as he could and tarried there with her all 
 that night. 
 
 Yet I shall show you of an adventure that fell by 
 these ungracious people before the city of Norwich, 
 by a captain among them called Guilliam Lister of 
 Stafford. The same day of Corpus Christi that these 
 people entered into London and brent the Duke of 
 Lancaster's house, called the Savoy, and the hospital 
 of Saint John's and broke up the king's prisons and 
 did all this hurt, as ye have heard before, the same 
 time there assembled together they of Stafford, of 
 Lynn, of Cambridge, of Bedford and of Yarmouth; 
 and as they were coming toward London, they had a 
 
 437 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 captain among them called Lister. And as they 
 came, they rested them before Norwich, and in their 
 coming they caused every man to rise with them, so 
 that they left no villains behind them. The cause 
 why they rested before Norwich I shall show you. 
 There was a knight, captain of the town, called Sir 
 Robert Sale. He was no gentleman born, but he had 
 the grace to be reputed sage and valiant in arms, and 
 for his valiantness King Edward made him knight. 
 He was of his body one of the biggest knights in all 
 England. Lister and his company thought to have 
 had this knight with them and to make him their 
 chief captain, to the intent to be the more feared and 
 beloved : so they sent to him that he should come and 
 speak with them in the field, or else they would burn 
 the town. The knight considered that it was better 
 for him to go and speak with them rather than they 
 should do that outrage to the town : then he mounted 
 on his horse and issued out of the town all alone, and 
 so came to speak with them. And when they saw 
 him, they made him great cheer and honored him 
 much, desiring him to alight off his horse and to 
 speak with them, and so he did : wherein he did great 
 folly; for when he was alighted, they came round 
 about him and began to speak fair to him and said: 
 "Sir Robert, ye are a knight and a man greatly be- 
 loved in this country and renowned a valiant man; 
 and though ye be thus, yet we know you well, ye be no 
 gentleman born, but son to a villain such as we be. 
 
 438 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 Therefore come you with us and be our master, and 
 we shall make you so great a lord, that one-quarter of 
 England shall be under your obeisance." When the 
 knight heard them speak thus, it was greatly con- 
 trarious to his mind, for he thought never to make 
 any such bargain, and answered them with a felonous 
 regard: "Fly away, ye ungracious people, false and 
 evil traitors that ye be: would you that I should for- 
 sake my natural lord for such a company of knaves 
 as ye be, to my dishonor for ever? I had rather ye 
 were all hanged, as ye shall be; for that shall be your 
 end." And with those words he had thought to have 
 leaped again upon his horse, but he failed of the stir- 
 rup and the horse started away. Then they cried all 
 at him and said: "Slay him without mercy." When 
 he heard those words, he let his horse go and drew 
 out a good sword and began to scrimmish with them, 
 and made a great place about him, that it was pleas- 
 ure to behold him. There was none that durst ap- 
 proach near him: there were some that approached 
 near him, but at every stroke that he gave he cut off 
 other leg, head or arm: there was none so hardy 
 but that they feared him: he did there such deeds of 
 arms that it was marvel to regard. But there were 
 more than forty thousand of these unhappy people: 
 they shot and cast at him, and he was unarmed: to 
 say truth, if he had been of iron or steel, yet he must 
 needs have been slain; but yet, or he died, he slew 
 twelve out of hand, beside them that he hurt. Fi- 
 
 439 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 nally he was stricken to the earth, and they cut off his 
 arms and legs and then struck his body all to pieces. 
 This was the end of Sir Robert Sale, which was 
 great damage; for which deed afterward all the 
 knights and squires of England were angry and sore 
 displeased when they heard thereof. 
 
 Now let us return to the king. The Saturday the 
 king departed from the Wardrobe in the Royal and 
 went to Westminster and heard mass in the church 
 there, and all his lords with him. And beside the 
 church there was a little chapel with an image of our 
 Lady, which did great miracles and in whom the 
 kings of England had ever great trust and confidence. 
 The king made his orisons before this image and did 
 there his offering; and then he leaped on his horse, 
 and all his lords, and so the king rode toward Lon- 
 don ; and when he had ridden a little way, on the left 
 hand there was a way to pass without London. 
 
 The same proper morning Wat Tyler, Jack 
 Straw, and John Ball had assembled their company 
 to common together in a place called Smithfield, 
 whereas every Friday there is a market of horses; 
 and there were together all of affinity more than 
 twenty thousand, and yet there were many still in 
 the town, drinking and making merry in the taverns 
 and paid nothing, for they were happy that made 
 them best cheer. And these people in Smithfield 
 had with them the king's banners, which were deliv- 
 ered them the day before, and all these gluttons were 
 
 440 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 in mind to overrun and to rob London the same day; 
 for their captains said how they had done nothing as 
 yet. "These liberties that the king hath given us is 
 to us but a small profit: therefore let us be all of one 
 accord and let us overrun this rich and puissant city, 
 or they of Essex, of Sussex, of Cambridge, of Bed- 
 ford, of Arundel, of Warwick, of Reading, of Ox- 
 ford, of Guildford, of Lynn, of Stafford, of Yar- 
 mouth, of Lincoln, of York, and of Durham do come 
 hither. For all these will come hither; Baker and 
 Lister will bring them hither; and if we be first lords 
 of London and have the possession of the riches that 
 is therein, we shall not repent us ; for if we leave it, 
 they that come after will have it from us." 
 
 To this counsel they all agreed; and therewith 
 the king came the same way unware of them, for he 
 thought to have passed that way without London, 
 and with him a forty horse. And when he came be- 
 fore the abbey of Saint Bartholomew and beheld all 
 these people, then the king rested and said how he 
 would go no further till he knew what these people 
 ailed, saying, if they were in any trouble, how he 
 would rappease them again. The lords that were 
 with him tarried also, as reason was when they saw 
 the king tarry. And when Wat Tyler saw the king 
 tarry, he said to his people: "Sirs, yonder is the king: 
 I will go and speak with him. Stir not from hence, 
 without I make you a sign; and when I make you 
 that sign, come on and slay all them except the king; 
 
 44 i 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 but do the king no hurt, he is young, we shall do 
 with him as we list and shall lead him with us all 
 about England, and so shall we be lords of all the 
 realm without doubt." And there was a doublet- 
 maker of London called John Tycle, and he had 
 brought to these gluttons a sixty doublets, which they 
 ware : then he demanded of these captains who should 
 pay him for his doublets; he demanded thirty mark. 
 Wat Tyler answered him and said: "Friend, appease 
 yourself, thou shalt be well paid or this day be ended. 
 Keep thee near me; I shall be thy creditor.' 5 And 
 therewith he spurred his horse and departed from his 
 company and came to the king, so near him that his 
 horse head touched the croup of the king's horse, and 
 the first word that he said was this: "Sir king, seest 
 thou all yonder people?" "Yea truly," said the king, 
 "wherefore sayest thou?" "Because," said he, "they 
 be all at my commandment and have sworn to me 
 faith and truth, to do all that I will have them." "In 
 a good time," said the king, "I will well it be so." 
 Then Wat Tyler said, as he that nothing demanded 
 but riot: "What believest thou, king, that these peo- 
 ple and as many more as be in London at my com- 
 mandment, that they will depart from thee thus with- 
 out having thy letters?" "No," said the king, "ye 
 shall have them: they be ordained for you and shall 
 be delivered every one each after other. Wherefore, 
 good fellows, withdraw fair and easily to your people 
 and cause them to depart out of London; for it is our 
 
 442 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 intent that each of you by villages and townships 
 shall have letters patents, as I have promised you." 
 With those words Wat Tyler cast his eye on a 
 squire that was there with the king bearing the king's 
 sword, and Wat Tyler hated greatly the same squire, 
 for the same squire had displeased him before for 
 words between them. "What," said Tyler, "art thou 
 there? Give me thy dagger." "Nay," said the 
 squire, "that will I not do: wherefore should I give 
 it thee?" The king beheld the squire and said : "Give 
 it him; let him have it." And so the squire took it 
 him sore against his will. And when this Wat Tyler 
 had it, he began to play therewith and turned it in 
 his hand, and said again to the squire: "Give me also 
 that sword." "Nay," said the squire, "it is the king's 
 sword : thou art not worthy to have it, for thou art 
 but a knave ; and if there were no more here but thou 
 and I, thou durst not speak those words for as much 
 gold in quantity as all yonder abbey. "By my faith," 
 said Wat Tyler, "I shall never eat meat till I have 
 thy head." And with those words the mayor of Lon- 
 don came to the king with a twelve horses well armed 
 under their coats, and so he broke the press and saw 
 and heard how Wat demeaned himself, and said to 
 him: "Ha, thou knave, how art thou so hardy in the 
 king's presence to speak such words? It is too much 
 for thee so to do." Then the king began to chafe and 
 said to the mayor: "Set hands on him." And while 
 the king said so, Tyler said to the mayor: "A God's 
 
 443 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 name what have I said to displease thee?" "Yes 
 truly," quoth the mayor, "thou false stinking knave, 
 shalt thou speak thus in the presence of the king my 
 natural lord? I commit never to live, without thou 
 shalt dearly abye it. And with those words the 
 mayor drew out his sword and struck Tyler so great 
 a stroke on the head, that he fell down at the feet of 
 his horse, and as soon as he was fallen, they environed 
 him all about, whereby he was not seen of his com- 
 pany. Then a squire of the king's alighted, called 
 John Standish, and he drew out his sword and put it 
 into Wat Tyler's belly, and so he died. 
 
 Then the ungracious people there assembled, per- 
 ceiving their captain slain, began to murmur among 
 themselves and said: "Ah, our captain is slain, let us 
 go and slay them all." And therewith they arranged 
 themselves on the place in manner of battle, and 
 their bows before them. Thus the king began a 
 great outrage; howbeit, all turned to the best: for 
 as soon as Tyler was on the earth, the king departed 
 from all his company and all alone he rode to these 
 people, and said to his own men: "Sirs, none of you 
 follow me; let me alone." And so when he came be- 
 fore these ungracious people, who put themselves in 
 ordinance to revenge their captain, then the king 
 said to them: "Sirs, what aileth you? Ye shall have 
 no captain but me: I am your king: be all in rest 
 and peace." And so the most part of the people that 
 heard the king speak and saw him among them, were 
 
 444 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 shamefast and began to wax peaceable and to depart; 
 but some, such as were malicious and evil, would not 
 depart, but made semblant as though they would do 
 somewhat. 
 
 Then the king returned to his own company and 
 demanded of them what was best to be done. Then 
 he was counselled to draw into the field, for to fly 
 away was no boot. Then said the mayor: "It is good 
 that we do so, for I think surely we shall have shortly 
 some comfort of them of London and of such good 
 men as be of our part, who are purveyed and have 
 their friends and men ready armed in their houses." 
 And in the meantime voice and bruit ran through 
 London how these unhappy people were likely to 
 slay the king and the mayor in Smithfield; through 
 which noise all manner of good men of the king's 
 party issued out of their houses and lodgings well 
 armed, and so came all to Smithfield and to the field 
 where the king was, and they were anon to the num- 
 ber of seven or eight thousand men well armed. And 
 first thither came Sir Robert Knolles and Sir Per- 
 ducas d'Albret, well accompanied, and divers of the 
 aldermen of London, and with them a six hundred 
 men in harness, and a puissant man of the city, who 
 was the king's draper, called Nicholas Bramber, and 
 he brought with him a great company; and ever as 
 they came, they ranged them afoot in order of battle: 
 and on the other part these unhappy people were 
 ready ranged, making semblance to give battle, and 
 
 445 
 15— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 they had with them divers of the king's banners. 
 There the king made three knights, the one the mayor 
 of London Sir Nicholas Walworth, Sir John Stand- 
 ish, and Sir Nicholas Bramber. Then the lords said 
 among themselves: 'What shall we do? We see 
 here our enemies, who would gladly slay us, if they 
 might have the better hand of us." Sir Robert 
 Knolles counselled to go and fight with them and 
 slay them all ; yet the king would not consent thereto, 
 but said: "Nay, I will not so: I will send to them 
 commanding them to send me again my banners, and 
 thereby we shall see what they will do. Howbeit, 
 other by fairness or otherwise, I will have them." 
 "That is well said, sir," quoth the Earl of Salisbury. 
 Then these new knights were sent to them, and these 
 knights made token to them not to shoot at them, and 
 when they came so near them that their speech might 
 be heard, they said: "Sirs, the king commandeth you 
 to send to him again his banners, and we think he 
 will have mercy of you." And incontinent they de- 
 livered again the banners and sent them to the king. 
 Also they were commanded on pain of their heads, 
 that all such as had letters of the king to bring them 
 forth and to send them again to the king; and so many 
 of them delivered their letters, but not all. Then the 
 king made them to be all to-torn in their presence; 
 and as soon as the king's banners were delivered 
 again, these unhappy people kept none array, but the 
 most part of them did cast down their bows, and so 
 
 446 
 
The Chronicles of Froissart 
 
 broke their array and returned into London. Sir 
 Robert Knolles was sore displeased in that he might 
 not go to slay them all : but the king would not con- 
 sent thereto, but said he would be revenged of them 
 well enough ; and so he was after. 
 
 Thus these foolish people departed, some one way 
 and some another; and the king and his lords and all 
 his company right ordinately entered into London 
 with great joy. And the first journey that the king 
 made he went to the lady princess his mother, who 
 was in a castle in the Royal called the Queen's Ward- 
 robe, and there she had tarried two days and two 
 nights right sore abashed, as she had good reason; 
 and when she saw the king her son, she was greatly 
 rejoiced and said: "Ah, fair son, what pain and great 
 sorrow that I have suffered for you this day!" Then 
 the king answered and said: "Certainly, madam, I 
 know it well; but now rejoice yourself and thank 
 God, for now it is time. I have this day recovered 
 mine heritage and the realm of England, which I 
 had near lost." Thus the king tarried that day with 
 his mother, and every lord went peaceably to their 
 own lodgings. Then there was a cry made in every 
 street in the king's name, that all manner of men, not 
 being of the city of London and have not dwelt there 
 the space of one year, to depart; and if any such be 
 found there the Sunday by the sun-rising, that they 
 should be taken as traitors to the king and to lose 
 their heads. This cry thus made, there was none that 
 
 447 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 durst brake it, and so all manner of people departed 
 and sparkled abroad every man to their own places. 
 John Ball and Jack Straw were found in an old house 
 hidden, thinking to have stolen away, but they could 
 not, for they were accused by their own men. Of the 
 taking of them the king and his lords were glad, and 
 then struck of! their heads and Wat Tyler's also, and 
 they were set on London bridge, and the valiant 
 men's heads taken down that they had set on the 
 Thursday before. These tidings anon spread abroad, 
 so that the people of the strange countries, which 
 were coming toward London, returned back again to 
 their own houses and durst come no further. 
 
 44 8 
 
BALLAD OF AGINCOURT 
 
 CAIR stood the wind for France, 
 * When we our sails advance, 
 Nor now to prove our chance 
 
 Longer will tarry; 
 But putting to the main, 
 At Caux, the mouth of Seine, 
 With all his martial train, 
 
 Landed King Harry. 
 
 And, taking many a fort, 
 Furnished in warlike sort, 
 Marcheth tow'rds Agincourt 
 
 In happy hour, 
 (Skirmishing day by day, 
 With those oppose his way) 
 Where the French general lay 
 
 With all his power. 
 
 Which in his height of pride, 
 King Henry to deride, 
 His ransom to provide 
 
 To the king sending; 
 Which he neglects the while, 
 As from a nation vile, 
 Yet with an angry smile 
 
 Their fall portending, 
 449 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 And, turning to his men, 
 Quoth our brave Henry then : 
 Though they to one be ten, 
 
 Be not amazed! 
 Yet have we well begun ; 
 Battles so bravely won, 
 Have ever to the sun 
 
 By fame been raised. 
 
 And for myself (quoth he) — 
 This my full rest shall be, 
 England ne'er mourn for me, 
 
 Nor more esteem me; — 
 Victor I will remain, 
 Or on this earth lie slain : 
 Never shall she sustain 
 
 Loss to redeem me. 
 
 Poitiers and Cressy tell, 
 
 When most their pride did swell, 
 
 Under our swords they fell ; 
 
 No less our skill is 
 Than when our grandsire great, 
 Claiming the regal seat, 
 By many a warlike feat 
 
 Lopp'd the French lilies. 
 
 The Duke of York so dread 
 The eager vanward led, 
 
 45° 
 
Ballad of Agincourt 
 
 With the main Henry sped, 
 Amongst his henchmen. 
 Exceter had the rear, 
 A braver man not there — 
 O Lord! how hot they were, 
 On the false Frenchmen ! 
 
 They now to fight are gone : 
 Armor on armor shone, 
 Drum now to drum did groan- 
 To hear was wonder; 
 That with the cries they make, 
 The very earth did shake ; 
 Trumpet to trumpet spake — 
 Thunder to thunder. 
 
 Well it thine age became, 
 O noble Erpingham! 
 Which didst the signal aim 
 
 To our hid forces — 
 When from a meadow by, 
 Like a storm suddenly, 
 The English archery 
 
 Stuck the French horses. 
 
 With Spanish yew so strong, 
 Arrows a cloth-yard long, 
 That like to serpents stung, 
 Piercing the weather — 
 
 45 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 None from his fellow starts, 
 But, playing manly parts, 
 And like true English hearts 
 Stuck close together. 
 
 When down their bows they threw, 
 And forth their bilboes drew, 
 And on the French they flew, 
 
 Not one was tardy; 
 Arms from the shoulders sent, 
 Scalps to the teeth were rent, 
 Down the French peasants went — 
 
 Our men were hardy. 
 
 This while our noble king, 
 His broadsword brandishing, 
 Into the host did fling, 
 
 As to overwhelm it, 
 And many a deep wound lent, 
 His arms with blood besprent, 
 And many a cruel dent 
 
 Bruised his helmet. 
 
 Gloster, that duke so good, 
 Next of the royal blood, 
 For famous England stood, 
 With his brave brother; 
 Clarence, in steel so bright, 
 452 
 
Flodden 
 
 Though but a maiden knight 
 Yet in that furious fight 
 Scarce such another. 
 
 Warwick in blood did wade ; 
 Oxford the foe invade, 
 And cruel slaughter made 
 
 Still as they ran up; 
 Suffolk his axe did ply; 
 Beaumont and Willoughby 
 Bare them right doughtily, 
 
 Ferrars and Fanhope. 
 
 Upon Saint Crispin's day 
 Fought was this noble fray, 
 Which fame did not delay 
 
 To England to carry. 
 O when shall Englishmen, 
 With such acts fill a pen, 
 Or England breed again 
 
 Such a King Harry? 
 
 — M. Drayton 
 
 FLODDEN 
 
 TVTEXT morn the Baron climbed the tower, 
 ^ ^ To view afar the Scottish power 
 
 Encamped on Flodden edge: 
 The white pavilions made a show, 
 
 453 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Like remnants of the winter snow, 
 
 Along the dusky ridge. 
 Long Marmion looked: at length his eye 
 Unusual movement might descry 
 
 Amid the shifting lines: 
 The Scottish host drawn out appears, 
 For flashing on the hedge of spears 
 
 The eastern sunbeam shines. 
 Their front now deepening, now extending; 
 Their flank inclining, wheeling, bending, 
 Now drawing back, and now descending, 
 The skilful Marmion well could know, 
 They watched the motions of some foe 
 Who traversed on the plain below. 
 
 Even so it was. From Flodden ridge 
 The Scots beheld the English host 
 Leave Barmore-wood, their evening post, 
 And heedful watched them as they crossed 
 
 The Till by Twisel bridge. 
 
 High sight it is and haughty, while 
 They dive into the deep defile; 
 Beneath the caverned clifl they fall, 
 Beneath the castle's airy wall. 
 
 By rock, by oak, by hawthorne-tree, 
 Troop after troop are disappearing; 
 Troop after troop their banners rearing 
 
 Upon the eastern bank you see. 
 
 Still pouring down the rocky den, 
 
 454 
 
Flodden 
 
 Where flows the sullen Till, 
 And rising from the dim-wood glen, 
 Standards on standards, men on men, 
 
 In slow succession still, 
 And sweeping o'er the Gothic arch, 
 And pressing on in ceaseless march, 
 
 To gain the opposing hill. 
 That morn to many a trumpet clang, 
 Twisel! thy rocks deep echo rang; 
 And many a chief of birth and rank, 
 Saint Helen! at thy fountain drank. 
 Thy hawthorn glade, which now we see 
 In spring-tide bloom so lavishly, 
 Had then from many an axe its doom, 
 To give the marching columns room. 
 
 And why stands Scotland idly now, 
 Dark Flodden! on thy airy brow, 
 Since England gains the pass the while, 
 And struggles through the deep defile? 
 What checks the fiery soul of James? 
 Why sits that champion of the dames 
 
 Inactive on his steed, 
 And sees between him and his land, 
 Between him and Tweed's southern strand, 
 
 His host Lord Surrey lead? 
 What Vails the vain knight-errant's brand? 
 O, Douglas, for thy leading wand! 
 
 Fierce Randolph, for thy speed! 
 
 455 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 O for one hour of Wallace wight, 
 Or well-skilled Bruce, to rule the fight, 
 And cry "Saint Andrew and our right!" 
 Another sight had seen that morn, 
 From Fate's dark book a leaf been torn, 
 And Flodden had been Bannockburn! 
 The precious hour has passed in vain, 
 And England's host has gained the plain; 
 Wheeling their march, and circling still, 
 Around the base of Flodden hill. 
 
 "But see! look up — on Flodden bent 
 The Scottish foe has fired his tent." 
 
 And sudden, as he spoke, 
 From the sharp ridges of the hill, 
 All downward to the banks of Till 
 
 Was wreathed in sable smoke. 
 Volumed and fast, and rolling far, 
 The cloud enveloped Scotland's war, 
 
 As down the hill they broke; 
 Nor martial shout nor minstrel tone 
 Announced their march; their tread alone, 
 At times one warning trumpet blown, 
 
 At times a stifled hum, 
 Told England, from his mountain-throne 
 
 King James did rushing come. 
 Scarce could they hear, or see their foes, 
 Until at weapon-point they close. 
 
 456 
 
Flodden 
 
 They close in clouds of smoke and dust, 
 With sword-sway and with lance's thrust; 
 
 And such a yell was there 
 Of sudden and portentous birth, 
 As if men fought upon the earth 
 
 And fiends in upper air; 
 O life and death were in the shout, 
 Recoil and rally, charge and rout, 
 
 And triumph and despair. 
 Long looked the anxious squires; their eye 
 Could in the darkness naught descry. 
 
 At length the freshening western blast 
 Aside the shroud of battle cast; 
 And first the ridge of mingled spears 
 Above the brightening cloud appears; 
 And in the smoke the pennons flew, 
 As in the storm the white sea-mew. 
 Then marked they, dashing broad and far, 
 The broken billows of the war, 
 And plumed crests of chieftains brave 
 
 Floating like foam upon the wave; 
 
 But naught distinct they see : 
 Wide raged the battle on the plain; 
 
 Spears shook, and falchions flashed amain; 
 
 Fell England's arrow-flight like rain ; 
 
 Crests rose, and stooped, and rose again, 
 Wild and disorderly. 
 
 Amid the scene of tumult, high 
 
 457 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 They saw Lord Marmion's falcon fly: 
 And stainless Tunstall's banner white 
 And Edmund Howard's lion bright 
 Still bear them bravely in the fight: 
 
 Although against them come 
 Of gallant Gordons many a one, 
 And many a stubborn Badenoch-man, 
 And many a rugged Border clan, 
 
 With Huntly and with Home. 
 
 Far on the left, unseen the while, 
 Stanley broke Lennox and Argyle; 
 Though there the western mountaineer 
 Rushed with bare bosom on the spear, 
 And flung the feeble targe aside, 
 And with both hands the broadsword plied. 
 'Twas vain : but Fortune, on the right. 
 With fickle smile cheered Scotland's fight. 
 Then fell that spotless banner white, 
 
 The Howard's lion fell ; 
 Yet still Lord Marmion's falcon flew 
 With wavering flight, while fiercer grew 
 
 Around the battle-yell. 
 The Border slogan rent the sky! 
 A Home! a Gordon! was the cry: 
 
 Loud were the clanging blows; 
 Advanced, forced back, now low, now high, 
 
 The pennon sank and rose; 
 As bends the bark's mast in the gale, 
 
 458 
 
Flodden 
 
 When rent are rigging, shrouds, and sail, 
 It wavered 'mid the foes. 
 
 By this, though deep the evening fell, 
 Still rose the battle's deadly swell, 
 For still the Scots, around their King, 
 Unbroken, fought in desperate ring. 
 Where's now their victor vaward wing, 
 
 Where Huntly, and where Home? 
 O for a blast of that dread horn, 
 On Fontarabian echoes borne, 
 
 That to King Charles did come, 
 When Roland brave, and Olivier, 
 And every paladin and peer, 
 
 On Roncesvalles died! 
 Such blast might warn them, not in vain, 
 To quit the plunder of the slain, 
 And turn the doubtful day again, 
 
 While yet on Flodden side 
 Afar the Royal Standard flies, 
 And round it toils, and bleeds, and dies 
 
 Our Caledonian pride! 
 
 But as they left the dark'ning heath, 
 More desperate grew the strife of death. 
 The English shafts in volleys hailed, 
 In headlong charge their horse assailed; 
 Front, flank, and rear, the squadrons sweep 
 To break the Scottish circle deep 
 
 459 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 That fought around their King. 
 But yet, though thick the shafts as snow, 
 Though charging knights like whirlwinds go, 
 Though bill-men ply the ghastly blow, 
 
 Unbroken was the ring; 
 The stubborn spear-men still made good 
 Their dark impenetrable wood, 
 Each stepping where his comrade stood, 
 
 The instant that he fell. 
 No thought was there of dastard flight; 
 Linked in the serried phalanx tight, 
 Groom fought like noble, squire like knight, 
 
 As fearlessly and well ; 
 Till utter darkness closed her wing 
 O'er their thin host and wounded King. 
 Then skilful Surrey's sage commands 
 Led back from strife his shattered bands; 
 And from the charge they drew, 
 As mountain waves from wasted lands 
 
 Sweep back to ocean blue. 
 Then did their loss his foemen know; 
 Their King, their Lords, their mightiest low, 
 They melted from the field, as snow, 
 When streams are swoln and south winds 
 blow, 
 
 Dissolves in silent dew. 
 Tweed's echoes heard the ceaseless plash, 
 
 While many a broken band 
 Disordered through her currents dash, 
 
 460 
 
The Armada 
 
 To gain the Scottish land; 
 To town and tower, to town and dale, 
 To tell red Flodden's dismal tale, 
 And raise the universal wail. 
 Tradition, legend, tune, and song 
 Shall many an age that wail prolong: 
 Still from the sire the son shall hear 
 Of the stern strife and carnage drear 
 
 Of Flodden's fatal field, 
 Where shivered was fair Scotland's spear, 
 
 And broken was her shield! 
 
 — Scott 
 
 THE ARMADA 
 
 A TTEND, all ye who list to hear our noble Eng- 
 **■ land's praise; 
 I tell of the thrice famous deeds she wrought in 
 
 ancient days, 
 When that great fleet invincible against her bore in 
 
 vain 
 The richest spoils of Mexico, the stoutest hearts of 
 
 Spain. 
 It was about the lovely close of a warm summer day, 
 There came a gallant merchant-ship full sail to 
 
 Plymouth Bay; 
 Her crew hath seen Castile's black fleet, beyond 
 
 Aurigny's isle, 
 
 461 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 At earliest twilight, on the waves lie heaving many 
 
 a mile. 
 At sunrise she escaped their van, by God's especial 
 
 grace ; 
 And the tall "Pinta," till the noon, had held her close 
 
 in chase. 
 Forthwith a guard at every gun was placed along the 
 
 wall; 
 The beacon blazed upon the roof of Bdgecumbe's 
 
 lofty hall ; 
 Many a light fishing-bark put out to pry along the 
 
 coast, 
 And with loose rein and bloody spur rode inland 
 
 many a post. 
 With his white hair unbonneted, the stout old sheriff 
 
 comes ; 
 Behind him march the halberdiers; before him sound 
 
 the drums; 
 His yeomen round the market cross make clear an 
 
 ample space; 
 For there behooves him to set up the standard of Her 
 
 Grace. 
 And haughtily the trumpets peal, and gayly dance 
 
 the bells, 
 As slow upon the laboring wind the royal blazon 
 
 swells. 
 Look how the Lion of the sea lifts up his ancient 
 
 crown, 
 
 462 
 
The Armada 
 
 And underneath his deadly paw treads the gay lilies 
 
 down! 
 So stalked he when he turned to flight, on that famed 
 
 Picard field, 
 Bohemia's plume, and Genoa's bow, and Caesar's 
 
 eagle shield. 
 So glared he when at Agincourt in wrath he turned 
 
 to bay, 
 And crushed and torn beneath his claws the princely 
 
 hunters lay. 
 Ho! strike the flagstaff deep, Sir Knight: ho! scatter 
 
 flowers, fair maids: 
 Ho! gunners, fire a loud salute: ho! gallants, draw 
 
 your blades: 
 Thou sun, shine on her joyously: ye breezes, waft her 
 
 wide; 
 Our glorious SEMPER EADEM, the banner of our pride. 
 
 The freshening breeze of eve unfurled that ban- 
 ner's massy fold; 
 
 The parting gleam of sunshine kissed that haughty 
 scroll of gold; 
 
 Night sank upon the dusky beach and on the purple 
 sea, 
 
 Such night in England ne'er had been, nor e'er again 
 shall be. 
 
 From Eddystone to Berwick bounds, from Lynn to 
 Milford Bay, 
 
 463 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 That time of slumber was as bright and busy as the 
 
 day; 
 For swift to east and swift to west the ghastly war- 
 flame spread, 
 High on St. Michael's Mount it shone: it shone on 
 
 Beachy Head. 
 Far on the deep the Spaniard saw, along each south- 
 ern shire, 
 Cape beyond cape, in endless range, those twinkling 
 
 points of fire. 
 The fisher left his skiff to rock on Tamar's glittering 
 
 waves : 
 The rugged miners poured to war from Mendip's 
 
 sunless caves ! 
 O'er Longleat's towers, o'er Cranbourne's oaks, the 
 
 fiery herald flew: 
 He roused the shepherds of Stonehenge, the rangers 
 
 of Beaulieu. 
 Right sharp and quick the bells all night rang out 
 
 from Bristol town, 
 And ere the day three hundred horse had met on 
 
 Clifton down; 
 The sentinel on Whitehall gate looked forth into the 
 
 night, 
 And saw o'erhanging Richmond Hill the streak of 
 
 blood-red light: 
 Then bugle's note and cannon's roar the death-like 
 
 silence broke, 
 
 464 
 
The Armada 
 
 And with one start, and with one cry, the royal city 
 
 woke. 
 At once on all her stately gates arose the answering 
 
 fires; 
 At once the wild alarum clashed from all her reeling 
 
 spires; 
 From all the batteries of the Tower pealed loud the 
 
 voice of fear; 
 And all the thousand masts of Thames sent back a 
 
 louder cheer; 
 And from the furthest wards was heard the rush of 
 
 hurrying feet, 
 And the broad streams of pikes and flags rushed 
 
 down each roaring street; 
 And broader still became the blaze, and louder still 
 
 the din, 
 As fast from every village round the horse came 
 
 spurring in. 
 And eastward straight from wild Blackheath the 
 
 warlike errand went, 
 And roused in many an ancient hall the gallant 
 
 squires of Kent. 
 Southward from Surrey's pleasant hills flew those 
 
 bright couriers forth; 
 High on bleak Hampstead's swarthy moor they 
 
 started for the north; 
 And on, and on, without a pause, untired they 
 
 bounded still: 
 
 465 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 All night from tower to tower they sprang; they 
 
 sprang from hill to hill : 
 Till the proud Peak unfurled the flag o'er Darwin's 
 
 rocky dales, 
 Till like volcanoes flared to heaven the stormy hills 
 
 of Wales, 
 Till twelve fair counties saw the blaze on Malvern's 
 
 lonely height, 
 Till streamed in crimson on the wind the Wrekin's 
 
 crest of light, 
 Till broad and fierce the star came forth on Ely's 
 
 stately fane, 
 And tower and hamlet rose in arms o'er all the 
 
 boundless plain; 
 Till Belvoir's lordly terraces the sign to Lincoln 
 
 sent, 
 And Lincoln sped the message on o'er the wide vale 
 
 of Trent; 
 Till Skiddaw saw the fire that burned on Gaunt's em- 
 battled pile, 
 And the red glare on Skiddaw roused the burghers 
 
 of Carlisle. 
 
 — Macau I ay 
 
 4 66 
 
THE FIGHT ABOUT THE ISLES OF 
 
 AZORES 
 
 BY THE HONORABLE SIR WALTER RALEIGH, KxNIGHT 
 
 13ECAUSE the rumors are diversely spread, as 
 ^-* well in England as in the Low Countries and 
 elsewhere, of this late encounter between her Maj- 
 esty's ships and the Armada of Spain; and that the 
 Spaniards, according to their usual manner, fill the 
 world with their vain-glorious vaunts, making great 
 appearance of victories when, on the contrary, them- 
 selves are most commonly and shamefully beaten and 
 dishonored; it is agreeable with all good reason, for 
 manifestation of the truth, to overcome falsehood and 
 untruth, that the beginning, continuance, and suc- 
 cess of this late honorable encounter of Sir Richard 
 Grenville and other her Majesty's Captains with the 
 Armada of Spain should be truly set down and pub- 
 lished without partiality or false imaginations. And 
 it is no marvel that the Spaniard should seek by false 
 and slanderous pamphlets, advisoes, and letters, to 
 cover their own loss, and to derogate from others 
 their due honors, especially in this fight performed 
 far off; seeing they were not ashamed in the year 
 1588, when they proposed the invasion of this land, 
 to publish in sundry languages in print great vic- 
 
 467 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 tories in words, which they pleaded to have obtained 
 against this realm, and spread the same in a most false 
 sort over all parts of France, Italy, and elsewhere. 
 When shortly after, it was happily manifested in very 
 deed to all nations how their navy, which they termed 
 invincible, consisting of one hundred and forty sail 
 of ships, not only of their own kingdom but strength- 
 ened with the greatest argosies — Portugal caracks, 
 Florentines, and huge hulks of other countries — 
 were by thirty of her Majesty's own ships of war, and 
 a few of our own merchants, by the wise, valiant, and 
 advantageous conduct of the Lord Charles Howard, 
 high Admiral of England, beaten and shuffled to- 
 gether, even from the Lizard in Cornwall, first to 
 Portland, where they shamefully left Don Pedro de 
 Valdes with his mighty ship; from Portland to 
 Calais, where they lost Hugo de Moncado with the 
 galleys of which he was captain; and from Calais, 
 driven with squibs from their anchors, were chased 
 out of the sight of England, round about Scotland 
 and Ireland. Where for the sympathy of their re- 
 ligion hoping to find succor and assistance, a great 
 part of them were crushed against the rocks, and 
 those other that landed, being very many in number, 
 were, notwithstanding, broken, slain, and taken, and 
 so sent from village to village, coupled in halters, to 
 be shipped into England, Where her Majesty, of her 
 princely disposition, disdaining to put them to death, 
 and scorning either to retain or entertain them, sent 
 
 468 
 
The Fight About the Isles of Azores 
 
 them all back again to their countries, to witness and 
 recount the worthy achievements of their invincible 
 and dreadful navy: of which the number of soldiers, 
 the fearful burthen of their ships, the commanders' 
 names of every squadron, with all their magazines of 
 provisions, were put in print as an army and navy 
 unresistible, and disdaining prevention. With all 
 which so great and terrible an ostentation, they did 
 not in all their sailing round about England so much 
 as sink, or take, one ship, bark, pinnace, or cockboat 
 of ours, or ever burned so much as one sheepcote of 
 this land. Whenas, on the contrary, Sir Francis 
 Drake with only eight hundred soldiers not long be- 
 fore landed in their Indies and forced Sant-Iago, 
 Santo Domingo, Carthagena, and the forts of Flor- 
 ida. And after that, Sir John Norris marched from 
 Peniche in Portugal with a handful of soldiers to the 
 gates of Lisbon, being above forty English miles. 
 Where the Earl of Essex himself and other valiant 
 gentlemen braved the city of Lisbon, encamped at 
 the very gates; from whence, after many days' abode, 
 they made retreat by land, in despite of all their gar- 
 risons, both of horse and foot. 
 
 In this sort I have a little digressed from my first 
 purpose only by the necessary comparison of their 
 and our actions; the one covetous of honor without 
 vaunt of ostentation; the other so greedy to purchase 
 the opinion of their own affairs, and by false rumors 
 to resist the blasts of their own dishonors, that they 
 
 469 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 will not only not blush to spread all manner of un- 
 truths, but even for the least advantage, be it but for 
 the taking of one poor adventurer of the English, 
 will celebrate the victory with bonfires in every town 
 — always spending more in fagots than the purchase 
 was worth they obtained. Whenas we never thought 
 it worth the consumption of two billets, when we 
 have taken eight or ten of their Indian ships at one 
 time, and twenty of the Brazil fleet. Such is the dif- 
 ference between true valor and ostentation, and be- 
 tween honorable actions and frivolous, vain-glorious 
 vaunts. But now to return to my purpose. 
 
 The Lord Thomas Howard with six of her Maj- 
 esty's ships, six victuallers of London, the bark "Ra- 
 leigh," and two or three other pinnaces riding at an- 
 chor near unto Flores, one of the westerly islands of 
 the Azores, the last of August in the afternoon, had 
 intelligence by one Captain Middleton of the ap- 
 proach of the Spanish Armada. Which Middleton, 
 being in a very good sailer, had kept them company 
 three days before, of good purpose, both to discover 
 their forces the more, as also to give advice to my 
 Lord Thomas of their approach. He had no sooner 
 delivered the news than the fleet was in sight. Many 
 of our ships' companies were on shore; some provid- 
 ing ballast for their ships, others filling of water and 
 refreshing themselves from the land with such things 
 as they could either for money or by force recover. 
 By reason whereof our ships were all pestered, and 
 
 470 
 
The Fight About the Isles of Azores 
 
 rummaging everything out of order, very light for 
 want of ballast, and that which was most to our disad- 
 vantage, the one-half part of the men of every ship 
 sick and utterly unserviceable: for in the "Revenge" 
 there were ninety diseased; in the "Bcnaventure" not 
 so many in health as could handle her mainsail. The 
 rest, for the most part, were in little better state. The 
 names of her Majesty's ships were these as followeth : 
 the "Defiance," which was admiral; the "Revenge," 
 vice-admiral; the "Bonaventure," commanded by 
 Captain Crosse; the "Lion," by George Fenner; the 
 "Foresight," by M. Thomas Vavasour; and the 
 "Crane," by Duffield. The "Foresight" and the 
 "Crane" being but small ships : only the other were of 
 the middle size; the rest, besides the bark "Raleigh," 
 commanded by Captain Thin, were victuallers, and 
 of small force or none. 
 
 The Spanish fleet, having shrouded their ap- 
 proach by reason of the island, were now so soon at 
 hand that our ships had scarce time to weigh their 
 anchors; but some of them were driven to let slip 
 their cables and set sail. Sir Richard Grenville was 
 the last that weighed — to recover the men that were 
 upon the island, which otherwise had been lost. The 
 Lord Thomas, with the rest, very hardly recovered 
 the wind: which Sir Richard Grenville, not being 
 able to do, was persuaded by the master and others to 
 cut his mainsail and cast about, and to trust to the 
 sailing of the ship; for the squadron of Seville were 
 
 471 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 on his weather bow. But Sir Richard utterly refused 
 to turn from the enemy, alleging that he would rather 
 choose to die than to dishonor himself, his country, 
 and her Majesty's ship, persuading his company that 
 he would pass through the two squadrons in despite 
 of them, and enforce those of Seville to give him way. 
 Which he performed upon divers of the foremost, 
 who, as the mariners term it, sprang their luff and 
 fell under the lee of the "Revenge." But the other 
 course had been the better, and might right well have 
 answered in so great an impossibility of prevailing. 
 Notwithstanding, out of the greatness of his mind, he 
 could not be persuaded. In the meanwhile, as he 
 attended those which were nearest him, the great 
 "San Philip" being in the wind of him and coming 
 toward him, becalmed his sails in such sort that the 
 ship could neither make way nor feel the helm — so 
 huge and high was the Spanish ship, being of a 
 thousand and five hundred tons. Who after laid 
 the "Revenge" aboard. When he was thus bereft of 
 his sails, the ships that were under his lee, luffing 
 up, also laid him aboard. The said "Philip" carried 
 three tier of ordnance on a side, and eleven pieces in 
 every tier. She shot eight forth right out of her 
 chase, besides those of her stern ports. 
 
 After the "Revenge" was entangled with this 
 "Philip," four others boarded her, two on her lar- 
 board and two on her starboard. The fight, begin- 
 ning at three of the clock in the afternoon continued 
 
 472 
 
The Fight About the Isles of Azores 
 
 very terrible all that evening. But the great "San- 
 Philip" having received the lower tier of the "Re- 
 venge," discharged with a cross bar-shot, shifted her- 
 self with all diligence from her sides, utterly mis- 
 liking her first entertainment. Some say that the 
 ship foundered, but we can not report it for truth 
 unless we are assured. The Spanish ships were 
 filled with companies of soldiers, in some two hun- 
 dred besides the mariners; in some fivt y in others 
 eight hundred. In ours there were none at all be- 
 sides the mariners but the servants of the com- 
 manders and some few voluntary gentlemen only. 
 After many interchanged volleys of great ordnance 
 and small shot, the Spaniards deliberated to enter 
 the "Revenge," and made divers attempts, hoping to 
 force her by the multitude of their armed soldiers, 
 but were repulsed again and again, and at all times 
 beaten back into their own ships, or into the seas. In 
 the beginning of the fight, the "George Noble" of 
 London having received some shot through her from 
 the Armada, fell under the lee of the "Revenge," 
 and asked Sir Richard what he would command her, 
 being one of the victuallers and of small force. Sir 
 Richard bade her save herself and leave him to his 
 fortune. After the fight had thus, without intermis- 
 sion, continued while the day lasted and some hours 
 of the night, many of our men were slain or hurt, 
 and one of the greatest galleons of the Armada and 
 the admiral of the hulks both sank: and in many 
 
 473 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 other of the Spanish ships great slaughter was made. 
 Some write that Sir Richard was very dangerously 
 hurt almost in the beginning of the fight, and lay 
 speechless for a time ere he recovered. But two of 
 the "Revenge's" own company, brought home in a 
 ship of Lime from the islands (examined by some of 
 the lords and others), affirmed that he was never so 
 wounded as to forsake the upper deck till an hour 
 before midnight: and then being shot into the body 
 with a musket, as he was a-dressing, he was again 
 shot into the head, and withal his surgeon was wound- 
 ed to death. This agreeth also with an examination 
 taken by Sir Francis Godolphin of four other mari- 
 ners of the same ship being returned, which examina- 
 tion the said Sir Francis sent unto Master William 
 Killigrew, of her Majesty's privy chamber. 
 
 But to return to the fight: the Spanish ships which 
 attempted to board the "Revenge," as they were 
 wounded and beaten ofT, so always others came in 
 their places (she having never less than two mighty 
 galleons by her sides and aboard her) so that ere the 
 morning, from three of the clock the day before, 
 there had fifteen several armadas assailed her; and 
 all so ill approved their entertainment, that they 
 were by the break of day far more willing to hearken 
 to a composition than hastily to make any more as- 
 saults or entries. But as the day increased, so our 
 men decreased: and as the light grew more and 
 more, by so much more grew our discomforts. For 
 
 474 
 
The Fight About the Isles of Azores 
 
 none appeared in sight but enemies, saving one small 
 ship called the "Pilgrim," commanded by Jacob 
 Whiddon, who hovered all night to see the success; 
 but in the morning, bearing with the "Revenge," was 
 hunted like a hare among many ravenous hounds, 
 but escaped. 
 
 All the powder of the "Revenge," to the last bar- 
 rel was now spent, all her pikes broken, forty of her 
 best men slain, and the most part of the rest hurt. 
 In the beginning of the fight she had but one hun- 
 dred free from sickness, and fourscore and ten sick 
 laid in hold upon the ballast. A small troop to man 
 such a ship, and a weak garrison to resist so mighty 
 an army! By those hundred all was sustained — the 
 volleys, boardings, and enterings of fifteen ships of 
 war, besides those which beat her at large. On the 
 contrary, the Spanish were always supplied with 
 soldiers brought from every squadron: Ml manner 
 of arms and powder at will. Unto ours there re- 
 mained no comfort at all, no hope, no supply either 
 of ships, men, or weapons: the masts all beaten over- 
 board, all her tackle cut asunder, her upper work 
 altogether razed, and in effect evened she was with 
 the water, but the very foundation or bottom of a 
 ship, nothing being left overboard either for flight 
 or defence. 
 
 Sir Richard finding himself in this distress, and 
 unable any longer to make resistance, having en- 
 dured in this fifteen hours' fight the assault of fifteen 
 
 475 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 several armadas (all by turns aboard him) and by 
 estimation eight hundred shot of great artillery, be- 
 sides many assaults and entries; and finding himself 
 and the ship must needs be possessed by the enemy, 
 who were now all cast in a ring round about him 
 (the "Revenge" not able to move one way or the 
 other, but as she was moved with the waves and 
 billows of the sea), commanded the master gunner, 
 whom he knew to be a most resolute man, to split 
 and sink the ship that thereby nothing might re- 
 main of glory or victory to the Spaniards — seeing in 
 so many hours' fight and with so great a navy they 
 were not able to take her, having had fifteen hours' 
 time, above ten thousand men, and fifty and three 
 sail of men-of-war to perform it withal — and per- 
 suaded the company, or as many as he could induce, 
 to yield themselves unto God and to the mercy of 
 none else; but as they had, like valiant resolute 
 men, repulsed so many enemies, they should not now 
 shorten the honor of their nation by prolonging their 
 own lives for a few hours or a few days. The master 
 gunner readily condescended, and divers others; but 
 the captain and the master were of another opinion, 
 and besought Sir Richard to have care of them, al- 
 leging that the Spaniards would be as ready to enter- 
 tain a composition as they were willing to offer the 
 same, and that there being divers sufficient and val- 
 iant men yet living, whose wounds were not mortal, 
 they might do their country and prince acceptable 
 
 476 
 
The Fight About the Isles of Azores 
 
 service hereafter. And whereas Sir Richard had 
 alleged that the Spaniards should never glory to 
 have taken one ship of her Majesty, seeing they had 
 so long and so notably defended themselves, they 
 answered that the ship had six feet of water in hold, 
 three shot under w r ater (which were so weakly 
 stopped that with the first working of the sea she 
 must needs sink, and was besides so crushed and 
 bruised that she could never be removed out of the 
 place. 
 
 While the matter was thus in dispute and Sir 
 Richard was refusing to hearken to any of their 
 reasons, the master of the "Revenge" (for the cap- 
 tain had won unto himself the greater party) was 
 convoyed aboard the "General" of Don Alphonso 
 Bagan, who, finding none over-hasty to enter the 
 "Revenge" again, doubting lest Sir Richard would 
 have blown them up and himself, and perceiving by 
 the report of the master of the "Revenge" his dan- 
 gerous disposition, yielded that all their lives should 
 be saved, the company sent to England, and the bet- 
 ter sort to pay such reasonable ransom as their estate 
 would bear; and in the mean season they were to be 
 free from galleys or imprisonment. To this he so 
 much the rather condescend as well, as I have said, 
 for fear of further loss and mischief to themselves 
 as also for the desire he had to recover Sir Richard 
 Grenville whom for his notable valor he seemed 
 greatly to honor and admire. 
 
 477 
 
 16— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 When this answer was returned — that safety of 
 life was promised — the common sort being now at 
 the end of their peril, the most drew back from Sir 
 Richard and the master gunner. It was no hard 
 matter to dissuade men from death to life. The 
 master gunner finding himself and Sir Richard thus 
 prevented and mastered by the greater number would 
 have slain himself with a sword, had he not been by 
 force withheld and locked into his cabin. Then the 
 general sent many boats aboard the "Revenge," and 
 divers of our men, fearing Sir Richard's disposition, 
 stole away aboard the "General" and other ships. 
 Sir Richard thus overmatched was sent unto by Al- 
 phonso Bagan to remove out of the "Revenge," the 
 ship being marvellous unsavory, filled with blood and 
 bodies of dead and wounded men like a slaughter 
 house. Sir Richard answered that he might do with 
 his body what he list, for he esteemed it not, and as 
 he was carried out of the ship he swooned: and, re- 
 viving again, desired the company to pray for him. 
 The general used Sir Richard with all humanity, 
 and left nothing unattempted that tended to his re- 
 covery, highly commending his valor and worthiness 
 and greatly bewailing the danger wherein he was, 
 being unto them a rare spectacle and a resolution 
 seldom approved, to see one ship turn toward so 
 many enemies, to endure the charge and boarding of 
 so many huge armadas, and to resist and repel the as- 
 saults and entries of so many soldiers. All which 
 
 478" 
 
The Fight About the Isles of Azores 
 
 and more is confirmed by a Spanish captain cf the 
 same armada and a present actor in the fight, who, 
 being severed from the rest in a storm, was by the 
 "Lion of London," a small ship, taken, and is now 
 prisoner in London. 
 
 The general commander of the "Armada" was 
 Don Alphonso Bacan, brother to the Marquis of 
 Santa Cruz. The admiral of the Biscayan squad- 
 ron was Britandona; of the squadron of Seville, the 
 Marquis of Arumburch. The hulks and flyboats 
 were commanded by Luis Coutinho. There were 
 slain and drowned in this fight well near one thou- 
 sand of the enemies and two special commanders, 
 Don Luis de St. John, and Don George de Prunaria 
 de Malaga, as the Spanish captain confesseth, besides 
 divers others of special account, whereof as yet re- 
 port is not made. 
 
 The "Admiral" of the hulks and the "Ascension" 
 of Seville were both sunk by the side of the "Re- 
 venge;" one other recovered the road of Saint Mich- 
 ael and sank also there; a fourth ran herself with the 
 shore to save her men. Sir Richard died, as it is 
 said, the second or third day aboard the "General": 
 and was by them greatly bewailed. What became 
 of his body, whether it was buried in the sea or on 
 the land we know not. The comfort that remaineth 
 to his friends is, that he hath ended his life honor- 
 ably in respect of the reputation won to his nation 
 and country, and of the same to his posterity, and 
 
 479 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 that, being dead, he hath not outlived his own 
 honor. 
 
 For the rest of her majesty's ships that entered 
 not so far into the fight as the "Revenge," the rea- 
 sons and causes were these. . . . The island of 
 Flores was on the one side, fifty-three sail of the 
 Spanish, divided into squadrons, on the other, all 
 as full filled with soldiers as they could contain. Al- 
 most the one half of our men sick and not able to 
 serve; the ships grown foul, unrummaged, and 
 scarcely able to bear any sail for want of ballast, hav- 
 ing been six months at the sea before. If all the rest 
 had entered, all had been lost, for the very hugeness 
 of the Spanish fleet, if no other violence had been of- 
 fered, would have crushed them between them into 
 shivers. Of which the dishonor and loss to the 
 queen had been far greater than the spoil or harm 
 that the enemy could any way have received. Not- 
 withstanding, it is very true that the "Lord Thomas" 
 would have entered between the squadrons, but the 
 rest would not condescend : and the master of his own 
 ship offered to leap into the sea rather than to con- 
 duct that her majesty's ship and the rest, to be a prey 
 to the enemy where there was no hope nor possibil- 
 ity either of defence or victory. Which also in my 
 opinion had ill sorted or answered the discretion and 
 trust of a general — to commit himself and his charge 
 to an assured destruction without hope or any likeli- 
 hood of prevailing, thereby to diminish the strength 
 
 480 
 
The Fight About the Isles of Azores 
 
 of her majesty's navy, and to enrich the pride and 
 glory of the enemy. The "Foresight," of the queen's, 
 commanded by M. Thomas Vavasour, performed a 
 very great fight and stayed two hours as near the 
 "Revenge" as the weather would permit him, not 
 forsaking the fight till he was likely to be encom- 
 passed by the squadrons, and with great difficulty 
 cleared himself. The rest gave divers volleys of shot 
 and entered as far as the place permitted, and their 
 own necessities to keep the weather gage of the ene- 
 my, until they were parted by night. A few days 
 after the fight was ended and the English prisoners 
 dispersed into the Spanish and Indian ships, there 
 arose so great a storm from the west and northwest 
 that all the fleet was dispersed, as well as the Indian 
 fleet which was then come unto them, as the rest of 
 the Armada that attended their arrival, of which 
 fourteen sail, together with the "Revenge," and in 
 her two hundred Spaniards, were cast away upon 
 the island of Saint Michael. So it pleased them to 
 honor the burial of that renowned ship, the "Re- 
 venge," not suffering her to perish alone for the great 
 honor she had achieved in her lifetime. 
 
 481 
 
THE "REVENGE" 
 
 A BALLAD OF THE FLEET 
 
 A T Flores in the Azores Sir Richard Grenville lay, 
 
 ** And a pinnace, like a fluttered bird, came flying 
 from far away: 
 
 "Spanish ships of war at sea! we have sighted fifty- 
 three!" 
 
 Then sware Lord Thomas Howard : " 'Fore God I 
 am no coward ; 
 
 But I can not meet them here, for my ships are out of 
 gear, 
 
 And the half my men are sick. I must fly, but follow 
 quick. 
 
 We are six ships of the line ; can we fight with fifty- 
 three?" 
 
 II 
 
 Then spake Sir Richard Grenville: "I know you are 
 
 no coward; 
 You fly them for a moment to fight with them again. 
 But I've ninety men and more that are lying sick 
 
 ashore. 
 I should count myself the coward if I left them, m$ 
 
 Lord Howard, 
 To these Inquisition dogs and the devildoms of 
 
 Spain." 
 
 482 
 
The "Revenge" 
 
 in 
 
 So Lord Howard past away with five ships of war 
 
 that day, 
 Till he melted like a cloud in the silent summer 
 
 heaven; 
 But Sir Richard bore in hand all his sick men from 
 
 the land 
 Very carefully and slow, 
 Men of Bideford in Devon, 
 And we laid them on the ballast down below; 
 For we brought them all aboard, 
 And they blest him in their pain, that they were not 
 
 left to Spain, 
 To the thumbscrew and the stake, for the glory of 
 
 the Lord. 
 
 IV 
 
 He had only a hundred seamen to work the ship and 
 
 to fight, 
 And he sailed away from Flores till the Spaniard 
 
 came in sight, 
 With his huge sea-castles heaving upon the weather 
 
 bow. 
 "Shall we fight or shall we fly? 
 Good Sir Richard, tell us now, 
 For to fight is but to die! 
 There'll be little of us left by the time this sun be 
 
 set." 
 
 483 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 And Sir Richard said again: "We be all good En- 
 glish men. 
 
 Let us bang these dogs of Seville, the children of the 
 devil, 
 
 For I never turn'd my back upon Don or devil yet." 
 
 V 
 
 Sir Richard spoke and he laugh'd, and we roar'd a 
 hurrah, and so 
 
 The little "Revenge" ran on sheer into the heart of 
 the foe, 
 
 With her hundred fighters on deck, and her ninety 
 sick below; 
 
 For half of their fleet to the right and half to the left 
 were seen, 
 
 And the little "Revenge" ran on thro' the long sea- 
 lane between. 
 
 VI 
 
 Thousands of their soldiers look'd down from their 
 
 decks and laugh'd, 
 Thousands of their seamen made mock at the mad 
 
 little craft 
 Running on and on, till delay'd 
 By their mountain-like "San Philip" that, of fifteen 
 
 hundred tons, 
 And up-shadowing high above us with her yawning 
 
 tiers of guns, 
 Took the breath from our sails, and we stay'd. 
 
 484 
 
The " Revenge" 
 
 VII 
 
 And while now the great "San Philip" hung above 
 us like a cloud 
 
 Whence the thunderbolt will fall 
 
 Long and loud, 
 
 Four galleons drew away 
 
 From the Spanish fleet that day, 
 
 And two upon the larboard and two upon the star- 
 board lay, 
 
 And the battle-thunder broke from them all. 
 
 VIII 
 
 But anon the great "San Philip," she bethought her- 
 self and went 
 
 Having that within her womb that Had left her ill 
 content; 
 
 And the rest they came aboard us, and they fought 
 us hand to hand, 
 
 For a dozen times they came with their pikes and 
 musketeers, 
 
 And a dozen times we shook 'em off as a dog that 
 shakes his ears 
 
 When he leaps from the water to the land. 
 
 IX 
 
 And the sun went down, and the stars came out far 
 
 over the summer sea, 
 But never a moment ceased the fight of the one and 
 
 the fifty-three. 
 
 485 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Ship after ship, the whole night long, their high- 
 built galleons came, 
 
 Ship after ship, the whole night long, with her bat- 
 tle-thunder and flame; 
 
 Ship after ship, the whole night long, drew back 
 with her dead and her shame. 
 
 For some were sunk and many were shattered, and so 
 could fight us no more — 
 
 God of battles, was ever a battle like this in the world 
 before? 
 
 X 
 
 For he said "Fight on! fight on!" 
 
 Tho' his vessel was all but a wreck; 
 
 And it chanced that, when half of the short summer 
 
 night was gone, 
 With a grisly wound to be drest he had left the deck, 
 But a bullet struck him that was dressing it suddenly 
 
 dead, 
 And himself he was wounded again in the side and 
 
 the head, 
 And he said "Fight on ! fight on !" 
 
 XI 
 
 And the night went down, and the sun smiled out far 
 
 over the summer sea, 
 And the Spanish fleet with broken sides lay round 
 
 us all in a ring; 
 But they dared not touch us again, for they fear'd 
 
 that we still could sting, 
 
 486 ' 
 
The "Revenge" 
 
 So they watch'd what the end would be. 
 
 And we had not fought them in vain, 
 
 But in perilous plight were we, 
 
 Seeing forty of our poor hundred were slain, 
 
 And half of the rest of us maim'd for life 
 
 In the crash of the cannonades and the desperate 
 
 strife; 
 And the sick men down in the hold were most of 
 
 them stark and cold, 
 And the pikes were all broken or bent, and the 
 
 powder was all of it spent ; 
 And the masts and the rigging were lying over the 
 
 side; 
 But Sir Richard cried in his English pride, 
 "We have fought such a fight for a day and a night 
 As may never be fought again! 
 We have won great glory, my men! 
 And a day less or more 
 At sea or ashore, 
 We die — does it matter when? 
 Sink me the ship, Master Gunner — sink her, split 
 
 her in twain! 
 Fall into the hands of God, not into the hands of 
 
 Spain!" 
 
 XII 
 
 And the gunner said "Ay, ay," but the seamen made 
 
 reply: 
 "We have children, we have wives, 
 
 487 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 And the Lord hath spared our lives. 
 
 We will make the Spaniards promise, if we yield, 
 
 to let us go ; 
 iWe shall live to fight again and to strike another 
 
 blow." 
 And the lion there lay dying, and they yielded to the 
 
 foe. 
 
 XIII 
 
 And the stately Spanish men to their flagship bore 
 
 him then, 
 Where they laid him by the mast, old Sir Richard 
 
 caught at last, 
 And they praised him to his face with their courtly 
 
 foreign grace ; 
 But he rose upon their decks, and he cried: 
 "I have fought for Queen and Faith like a valiant 
 
 man and true; 
 I have only done my duty as a man is bound to do : 
 With a joyful spirit I Sir Richard Grenville die!" 
 And he fell upon their decks, and he died. 
 
 XIV 
 
 And they stared at the dead that had been so valiant 
 
 and true, 
 And had holden the power and glory of Spain so 
 
 cheap 
 
The "Revenge" 
 
 That he dared her with one little ship and his En- 
 glish few; 
 
 Was he devil or man? He was devil for aught they 
 knew, 
 
 But they sank his body with honor down into the 
 deep, 
 
 And they mann'd the "Revenge" with a swarthier 
 alien crew, 
 
 And away she sail'd with her loss and long'd for her 
 own; 
 
 When a wind from the lands they had ruin'd awoke 
 from sleep, 
 
 And the water began to heave and the weather to 
 moan, 
 
 And or ever that evening ended a great gale blew, 
 
 And a wave like the wave that is raised by an earth- 
 quake grew, 
 
 Till it smote on their hulls and their sails and their 
 masts and their flags, 
 
 And the whole sea plunged and fell on the shot-shat- 
 ter'd navy of Spain, 
 
 And the little "Revenge" herself went down by the 
 island crags 
 
 To be lost evermore in the main. 
 
 — Alfred, Lord Tennyson 
 
 489 
 
THE BATTLE OF NASEBY 
 
 BY OBADIAH BIND-THEIR-KINGS-IN-CHAINS-AND- 
 THEIR-NQBLES-WITH-LINKS-OF-IRON, SER- 
 GEANT IN IRETON'S REGIMENT 
 
 OH! wherefore come ye forth, in triumph from 
 the North, 
 With your hands, and your feet, and your raiment 
 all red? 
 And wherefore doth your rout send forth a joyous 
 shout? 
 And whence be the grapes of the wine-press which 
 ye tread? 
 
 Oh evil was the root, and bitter was the fruit, 
 
 And crimson was the juice of the vintage that we 
 trod; 
 For we trampled on the throng of the haughty and 
 the strong, 
 Who sate in the high places, and slew the saints of 
 God. 
 
 It was about the noon of a glorious day of June, 
 That we saw their banners dance, and their cui- 
 rasses shine, 
 And the Man of Blood was there, with his long 
 essenced hair, 
 And Astley, and Sir Marmaduke, and Rupert of 
 the Rhine. 
 
 490 
 
The Battle of Naseby 
 
 Like a servant of the Lord, with his Bible and his 
 sword, 
 The General rode along us to form us to the fight, 
 When a murmuring sound broke out, and swell'd 
 into a shout 
 Among the godless horsemen upon the tyrant's 
 right. 
 
 And hark! like the roar of the billows on the shore, 
 
 The cry of battle rises along their charging line! 
 
 For God! for the Cause! for the Church, for the 
 
 Laws! 
 
 For Charles King of England, and Rupert of the 
 
 Rhine! 
 
 The furious German comes, with his clarions and his 
 
 drums, 
 
 His bravoes of Alsatia, and pages of Whitehall; 
 
 They are bursting on our flanks. Grasp your pikes, 
 
 close your ranks, 
 
 For Rupert never comes but to conquer or to fall. 
 
 They are here! They rush on! We are broken! 
 We are gone! 
 Our left is borne before them like stubble on the 
 blast. 
 O Lord, put forth thy might! O Lord, defend the 
 right! 
 Stand back to back, in God's name, and fight it to 
 the last. 
 
 491 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Stout Skippon hath a wound; the centre hath given 
 ground: 
 Hark! hark!— What means the trampling of 
 horsemen on our rear? 
 Whose banner do I see, boys? 'Tis he, thank God, 
 'tis he, boys. 
 Bear up another minute: brave Oliver is here. 
 
 Their heads all stooping low, their points all in 
 a row. 
 Like a whirlwind on the trees, like a deluge on the 
 dikes, 
 Our cuirassiers have burst on the ranks of the Ac- 
 curst, 
 And at a shock have scattered the forest of his 
 pikes. 
 
 Fast, fast, the gallants ride, in some safe nook to 
 hide 
 Their coward heads, predestined to rot on Temple 
 Bar: 
 And he — he turns, he flies: — shame on those cruel 
 eyes 
 That bore to look on torture, and dare not look on 
 war. 
 
 Ho! comrades, scour the plain; and, ere ye strip the 
 slain, 
 First give another stab to make your search secure, 
 
 492 
 
The Battle of Naseby 
 
 Then shake from sleeves and pockets their broad- 
 pieces and lockets, 
 The tokens of the wanton, the plunder of the poor. 
 
 Fools? your doublets shone with gold, and your 
 hearts were gay and bold, 
 When you kissed your lily hands to your lemans 
 to-day; 
 And to-morrow shall the fox, from her chambers in 
 the rocks, 
 Lead forth her tawny cubs to howl above the prey. 
 
 Where be your tongues that late mocked at heaven 
 and hell and fate, 
 And the fingers that once were so busy with your 
 blades, 
 Your perfum'd satin clothes, your catches and your 
 oaths, 
 Your stage-plays and your sonnets, your diamonds 
 and your spades? 
 
 Down, down, forever down with the mitre and the 
 crown, 
 With the Belial of the Court, and the Mammon 
 of the Pope; 
 There is woe in Oxford Halls; there is wail in Dur- 
 ham's Stalls: 
 The Jesuit smites his bosom: the Bishop rends his 
 cope. 
 
 493 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 And She of the seven hills shall mourn her children's 
 ills, 
 And tremble when she thinks on the edge of Eng- 
 land's sword; 
 And the king's of earth in fear shall shudder when 
 they hear 
 What the hand of God hath wrought for the 
 Houses and the Word. 
 
 — Lord Macaulay 
 
 AN HORATIAN ODE 
 
 UPON OLIVER CROMWELL'S RETURN FROM IRELAND 
 
 TPHE forward youth that would appear, 
 * Must now forsake his Muses dear; 
 Nor in the shadows sing 
 His numbers languishing. 
 
 'Tis time to leave the books in dust, 
 And oil the unused armor's rust; 
 
 Removing from the wall 
 
 The corselet of the hall. 
 
 So restless Cromwell could not cease 
 In the inglorious arts of peace, 
 
 But through adventurous war 
 
 Urged his active star; 
 494 
 
 
An Horatian Ode 
 
 And like the three-forked lightning, first 
 Breaking the clouds where it was nurst, 
 
 Did thorough his own side 
 
 His fiery way divide. 
 
 For 'tis all one to courage high, 
 The emulous, or enemy; 
 
 And, with such, to inclose, 
 
 Is more than to oppose. 
 
 Then burning through the air he went, 
 
 And palaces and temples rent; 
 And Caesar's head at last 
 Did through his laurels blast. 
 
 'Tis madness to resist or blame 
 The face of angry heaven's flame; 
 
 And, if we would speak true 
 
 Much to the man is due, 
 
 Who, from his private gardens, where 
 He lived reserved and austere, 
 
 (As if his highest plot 
 
 To plant the bergamot,) 
 
 Could by industrious valor climb 
 To ruin the great work of time. 
 
 And cast the kingdoms old 
 
 Into another mold! 
 
 495 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Though justice against fate complain, 
 And plead the ancient rights in vain — 
 But those do hold or break, 
 As men are strong or weak. 
 
 Nature, that hateth emptiness, 
 
 Allows of penetration less, 
 
 And therefore must make room 
 Where greater spirits come. 
 
 What field of all the civil war, 
 Where his were not the deepest scar? 
 
 And Hampton shows what part 
 
 He had of wiser art: 
 
 Where, twining subtile fears with hope, 
 He wove a net of such a scope 
 
 That Charles himself might chase 
 To Carisbrook's narrow case; 
 
 That thence the royal actor borne, 
 The tragic scaffold might adorn. 
 While round the armed bands 
 Did clap their bloody hands, 
 
 He nothing common did or mean 
 Upon that memorable scene; 
 
 But with his keener eye 
 
 The axe's edge did try: 
 49 6 
 
An Horatian Ode 
 
 Nor called the gods, with vulgar spite, 
 To vindicate his helpless right; 
 
 But bowed his comely head 
 
 Down, as upon a bed. 
 
 This was that memorable hour, 
 Which first assured the forced power; 
 
 So, when they did design 
 
 The capital's first line, 
 
 A bleeding head, where they begun, 
 Did fright the architects to run ; 
 
 And yet in that the state 
 
 Foresaw its happy fate. 
 
 And now the Irish are ashamed 
 To see themselves in one year tamed ; 
 So much one man can do, 
 That does both act and know. 
 
 They can affirm his praises best, 
 And have, though overcome, confest 
 How good he is, how just, 
 And fit for highest trust: 
 
 Nor yet grown stiffer with command, 
 But still in the republic's hand, 
 
 How fit he is to sway 
 
 That can so well obey. 
 497 
 

 Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 He to the commons' feet presents 
 A kingdom for his first year's rents, 
 And (what he may) forbears 
 His fame to make it theirs : 
 
 And has his sword and spoils ungirt, 
 To lay them at the public's skirt: 
 
 So when the falcon high 
 
 Falls heavy from the sky, 
 
 She, having killed, no more doth search 
 But on the next green bough to perch, 
 Where, when he first does lure, 
 The falconer has her sure. 
 
 What may not then our isle presume, 
 While victory his crest does plume? 
 What may not others fear 
 If thus he crowns each year? 
 
 As Caesar, he, ere long, to Gaul ; 
 To Italy an Hannibal; 
 
 And to all states not free 
 
 Shall climacteric be. 
 
 The Pict no shelter now shall find 
 Within his party-colored mind ; 
 But, from this valor sad, 
 Shrink underneath the plaid — 
 498 
 
Bonny Dundee 
 
 Happy, if in the tufted brake 
 The English hunter him mistake, 
 
 Nor lay his hounds in near 
 
 The Caledonian deer. 
 
 But thou, the war's and fortune's son, 
 March indefatigably on; 
 
 And, for the last effect, 
 
 Still keep the sword erect! 
 
 Besides the force it has to fright 
 The spirits of the shady night, 
 
 The same arts that did gain 
 
 A power, must it maintain. 
 
 — Andrew Marvel! 
 
 BONNY DUNDEE 
 
 'T'O the Lords of Convention 'twas Claver'se who 
 #* spoke, 
 
 "Ere the King's crown shall fall there are crowns to 
 
 be broke; 
 So let each Cavalier who loves honor and me, 
 Come follow the bonnet of Bonny Dundee. 
 
 "Come fill up my cup, come fill up my can, 
 Come saddle your horses, and call up your men; 
 Come open the West Port, and let me gang free, 
 And it's room for the bonnets of Bonny Dundee!'' 
 
 499 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Dundee he is mounted, he rides up the street, 
 
 The bells are rung backward, the drums they are 
 
 beat; 
 But the Provost, douce man, said, "Just e'en let 
 
 him be, 
 The Gude Town is weel quit of that Deil of 
 
 Dundee." 
 
 As he rode down the sanctified bend of the Bow, 
 
 Ilk carline was flyting and shaking her pow; 
 
 But the young plants of grace they looked couthie 
 
 and slee, 
 Thinking, luck to thy bonnet, thou Bonny Dundee ! 
 
 With sour-featured Whigs the Grassmarket was 
 
 crammed, 
 As if half the West had set tryst to be hanged ; 
 There was spite in each look, there was fear in each 
 
 e'e, 
 As they watched for the bonnets of Bonny Dundee. 
 
 These cowls of Kilmarnock had spits and had spears, 
 
 And lang-hafted gullies to kill Cavaliers; 
 
 But they shrunk to close-heads, and the causeway was 
 
 free, 
 At the toss of the bonnet of Bonny Dundee. 
 
 He spurred to the foot of the proud Castle rock, 
 And with the gay Gordon he gallantly spoke; 
 
 500 
 
Bonny Dundee 
 
 "Let Mons Meg and her marrows speak twa words 
 
 or three 
 For the love of the bonnet of Bonny Dundee." 
 
 The Gordon demands of him which way he goes : 
 "Where'er shall direct me the shade of Montrose! 
 Your Grace in short space shall hear tidings of me, 
 Or that low lies the bonnet of Bonny Dundee. 
 
 "There are hills beyond Pentland, and lands beyond 
 
 Forth, 
 If there's lords in the Lowlands, there's chiefs in the 
 
 North ; 
 There are wild Duniewassals three thousand times 
 
 three, 
 Will cry hoigh! for the bonnet of Bonny Dundee. 
 
 "There's brass on the target of barkened bull-hide; 
 There's steel in the scabbard that dangles beside; 
 The brass shall be burnished, the steel shall flash free 
 At a toss of the bonnet of Bonny Dundee. 
 
 "Away to the hills, to the caves, to the rocks, 
 Ere I own an usurper, I'll couch with the fox; 
 And tremble, false Whigs, in the midst of your glee. 
 You have not seen the last of my bonnet and me!" 
 
 He waved his proud hand, and the trumpets were 
 
 blown, 
 The kettle-drums clashed, and the horsemen rode on, 
 
 501 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Till on Ravelston's cliffs and on Clermiston's lee 
 Died away the wild war-notes of Bonny Dundee. 
 
 Come fill up my cup, come fill up my can, 
 Come saddle the horses and call up the men, 
 Come open your gates, and let me gae free, 
 For it's up with the bonnets of Bonny Dundee 
 
 — Sir Walter Scott 
 
 SONNET 
 
 TO THE LORD GENERAL CROMWELL 
 
 /~* ROMWELL, our chief of men, who through 
 
 ^-^ a cloud 
 
 Not of war only, but detractions rude, 
 
 Guided by faith and matchless fortitude, 
 
 To peace and truth thy glorious way hast plowed, 
 
 And on the neck of crowned Fortune proud 
 
 Hast reared God's trophies, and his work pursued, 
 While Darwen stream with blood of Scots imbrued, 
 And Dunbar field resounds thy praises loud, 
 
 And Worcester's laureate wreath. Yet much remains 
 To conquer still ; Peace hath her victories 
 No less renowned than War : new foes arise, 
 
 Threatening to bind our souls with secular chains. 
 Help us to save free conscience from the paw 
 Of hireling wolves, whose Gospel is their maw. 
 
 — John Milton 
 502 
 
GLENCOE 
 
 OTELL me, Harper, wherefore flow 
 Thy wayward notes of wail and woe 
 Far down the desert of Glencoe, 
 
 Where none may list their melody? 
 Say, harp'st thou to the mists that fly, 
 Or to the dun-deer glancing by, 
 Or to the eagle that from high 
 
 Screams chorus to thy minstrelsy?" 
 
 — "No, not to these, for they have rest: — 
 The mist-wreath has the mountain-crest, 
 The stag his lair, the erne her nest, 
 
 Abode of lone security. 
 But those for whom I pour the lay, 
 Not wild-wood deep, nor mountain gray, 
 Not this deep dell, that shrouds from day, 
 
 Could screen from treacherous cruelty. 
 
 "Their flag was furl'd, and mute their drum 
 The very household dogs were dumb, 
 Unwont to bay at guests that come 
 
 In guise of hospitality. 
 His blithest notes the piper plied, 
 Her gayest snood the maiden tied, 
 The dame her distaff flung aside, 
 
 To tend her kindly housewifery. 
 
 5°3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 "The hand that mingled in the meal, 
 At midnight drew the felon steel, 
 And gave the host's kind breast to feel 
 
 Meed, for his hospitality! 
 The friendly hearth which warm'd that hand, 
 At midnight arm'd it with the brand, 
 That bade destruction's flames expand 
 
 Their red and fearful blazonry. 
 
 "Then woman's shriek was heard in vain, — 
 
 Nor infancy's unpitied plain 
 
 More than the warrior's groan, could gain 
 
 Respite from ruthless butchery! 
 The winter wind that whistled shrill, 
 The snows that night that cloked the*hill, 
 Though wild and pitiless, had still 
 
 Far more than Southron clemency. 
 
 "Long have my harp's best notes been gone, 
 Few are its strings, and faint their tone; 
 They can but sound in desert lone . 
 
 Their gray-hair'd master's misery. 
 Were each gray hair a minstrel string, 
 Each chord should imprecations fling, 
 Till startled Scotland loud should ring, 
 
 'Revenge for blood and treachery!' " 
 
 —Sir W. Scott 
 
 504 
 
AFTER BLENHEIM 
 
 r T was a summer evening; 
 * Old Kaspar's work was done, 
 And he before his cottage door 
 
 Was sitting in the sun ; 
 And by him sported on the green 
 His little grandchild Wilhelmine. 
 
 She saw her brother Peterkin 
 Roll something large and round 
 
 Which he beside the rivulet 
 In playing there had found; 
 
 He came to ask what he had found 
 
 That was so large and smooth and round, 
 
 Old Kaspar took it from the boy, 
 
 Who stood expectant by ; 
 And then the old man shook his head, 
 
 And with a natural sigh 
 " 'Tis some poor fellow's skull," said he, 
 "Who fell in the great victory. 
 
 "I find them in the garden, 
 For there's many here about; 
 
 And often when I go to plow 
 The plowshare turns them out. 
 
 For many thousand men," said he, 
 
 "Were slain in that great victory/ 
 
 5o5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 "Now tell us what 'twas all about," 
 
 Young Peterkin he cries; 
 And little Wilhelmine looks up 
 
 With wonder-waiting eyes ; 
 "Now tell us all about the war, 
 And what they fought each other for?" 
 
 "It was the English," Kaspar cried, 
 "Who put the French to rout; 
 
 But what they fought each other for 
 I could not well make out. 
 
 But everybody said," quoth he, 
 
 "That 'twas a famous victory. 
 
 "My father lived at Blenheim then, 
 
 Yon little stream hard by; 
 They burned his dwelling to the ground, 
 
 And he was forced to fly: 
 So with his wife and child he fled, 
 Nor had he where to rest his head. 
 
 "With fire and sword the country round 
 
 Was wasted far and wide, 
 And many a childing mother then 
 
 And new-born baby died : 
 But things like that, you know, must be 
 At every famous victory. 
 
 "They say it was a shocking sight 
 After the field was won ; 
 
 506 
 
The Trial of Warren Hastings 
 
 For many thousand bodies here 
 
 Lay rotting in the sun : 
 But things like that, you know, must be 
 After a famous victory. 
 
 "Great praise the Duke of Marlboro' won 
 And our good Prince Eugene ;" 
 
 — "Why, 'twas a very wicked thing!" 
 Said little Wilhelmine; 
 
 "Nay . . nay . . my little girl," quoth he, 
 
 "It was a famous victory! 
 
 "And everybody praised the Duke 
 Who this great fight did win." 
 
 — "But what good came of it at last?" 
 Quoth little Peterkin: — 
 
 "Why, that I can not tell," said he, 
 
 "But 'twas a famous victory." — R. Southey 
 
 THE TRIAL OF WARREN HASTINGS 
 
 LORD MACAULAY 
 
 WITHIN a week after Hastings landed at 
 Plymouth (1785), Burke gave notice in the 
 House of Commons of a motion seriously affecting 
 a gentleman lately returned from India. . . . 
 
 Hastings, it is clear, was not sensible of the danger 
 of his position. Indeed that sagacity, that judg- 
 ment, that readiness in devising expedients, which 
 
 5°7 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 had distinguished him in the East, seemed now to 
 have forsaken him; not that his abilities were at all 
 impaired; not that he was not still the same man who 
 had triumphed over Francis and Nuncomar, who had 
 made the Chief Justice and the Nabob Vizier his 
 tools, who had deposed Cheyte Sing and repelled 
 Hyder Ali. But an oak, as Mr. Grattan finely said, 
 should not be transplanted at fifty. A man who, 
 having left England when a boy, returns to it after 
 thirty or forty years passed in India, will find, be his 
 talents what they may, that he has much both to learn 
 and to unlearn before he can take a place among En- 
 glish statesmen. 
 
 The working of a representative system, the war 
 of parties, the arts of debate, the influence of the 
 press, are startling novelties to him. Surrounded on 
 every side by new machines and new tactics, he is as 
 much bewildered as Hannibal would have been at 
 Waterloo, or Themistocles at Trafalgar. His very 
 acuteness deludes him. His very vigor causes him 
 to stumble. The more correct his maxims, when 
 applied to the state of society to which he is accus- 
 tomed, the more certain they are to lead him astray. 
 This was strikingly the case with Hastings. . . . 
 
 The zeal of Burke was still fiercer; but it was far 
 purer. Men unable to understand the elevation of 
 his mind have tried to find out some discreditable 
 motive for the vehemence and pertinacity which he 
 showed on this occasion. . . . 
 
 508 
 
The Trial of Warren Hastings 
 
 The plain truth is that Hastings had committed 
 some great crimes, and that the thought of those 
 crimes made the blood of Burke boil in his veins. 
 For Burke was a man in whom compassion for suf- 
 fering, and hatred of injustice and tyranny, were as 
 strong as in Las Casas or Clarkson. And although 
 in him, as in Las Casas and in Clarkson, these noble 
 feelings were alloyed with the infirmity which be- 
 longs to human nature, he is, like them, entitled to 
 this great praise, that he devoted years of intense 
 labor to the service of a people with whom he had 
 neither blood, nor language, neither religion nor man- 
 ners, in common, and from whom no requital, no 
 thanks, no applause could be expected. 
 
 His knowledge of India was such as few, even of 
 those Europeans who have passed many years in that 
 country, have attained, and such as certainly was 
 never attained by any public man who had not 
 quitted Europe. He had studied the history, the 
 laws, and the usages of the East with an industry such 
 as is seldom found united to so much genius and so 
 much sensibility. Others have perhaps been equally 
 laborious, and have collected an equal mass of ma- 
 terials. But the manner in which Burke brought his 
 higher powers of intellect to work on statements of 
 facts, and on tables of figures, was peculiar to him- 
 self. In every part of those huge bales of Indian in- 
 formation which repelled almost all other readers, 
 his mind, at once philosophical and poetical, found 
 
 5°9 
 
 17— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 something to instruct or to delight. His reason an- 
 alyzed and digested those vast and shapeless masses; 
 his imagination animated and colored them. Out 
 of darkness, and dulness, and confusion, he drew a 
 rich abundance of ingenious theories and vivid pic- 
 tures. He had, in the highest degree, that noble 
 faculty whereby man is able to live in the past and 
 in the future, in the distant and in the unreal. India 
 and its inhabitants were not to him, as to most En- 
 glishmen, mere names and abstractions, but a real 
 country and a real people. The burning sun, the 
 strange vegetation of the palm and the cocoa tree, the 
 rice-field, the tank, the huge trees, older than the 
 Mogul empire, under which the village crowds as- 
 semble, the thatched roof of the peasant's hut, the 
 rich tracery of the mosque where the imaum prays 
 with his face to Mecca, the drums, and banners, and 
 gaudy idols, the devotee swinging in the air, the 
 graceful maiden, with the pitcher on her head, de- 
 scending the steps to the river-side, the black faces, 
 the long beards, the yellow streaks of sect, the turbans 
 and the flowing robes, the spears and the silver maces, 
 the elephants with their canopies of state, the gor- 
 geous palanquin of the prince, and the close litter of 
 the noble lady — all those things were to him as the 
 objects amid which his own life had been passed — 
 as the objects which lay on the road between Beacons- 
 field and St. James's Street. All India was present 
 to the eye of his mind, from the halls where suitors 
 
 510 
 
The Trial of Warren Hastings 
 
 laid gold and perfumes at the feet of sovereigns, to 
 the wild moor where the gypsy camp was pitched; 
 from the bazaars, humming like bee-hives with the 
 crowd of buyers and sellers, to the jungle where the 
 lonely courier shakes his bunch of iron rings to scare 
 away the hyenas. He had just as lively an idea of 
 the insurrection at Benares as of Lord George Gor- 
 don's riots, and of the execution of Nuncomar as of 
 the execution of Dr. Dodd. Oppression in Bengal 
 was to him the same thing as oppression in the 
 streets of London. 
 
 He saw that Hastings had been guilty of some 
 most unjustifiable acts. All that followed was nat- 
 ural and necessary in a mind like Burke's. . . . He 
 began his operations by applying for Papers. Some 
 of the documents for which he asked were refused 
 by the ministers, who, in debate, held language such 
 as strongly confirmed the prevailing opinion that they 
 intended to support Hastings. In April the charges 
 were laid on the table. They had been drawn by 
 Burke with great ability, though in a form too much 
 resembling that of a pamphlet. Hastings was fur- 
 nished with a copy of the accusation; and it was in- 
 timated to him that he might, if he thought fit, be 
 heard in his own defence at the bar of the Commons. 
 
 Here again Hastings was pursued by the same 
 fatality which had attended him ever since the day 
 when he set foot on English ground. It seemed to 
 be decreed that this man, so politic and so successful 
 
 5 1 * 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 in the East, should commit nothing but blunders in 
 Europe. Any judicious adviser would have told 
 him that the best thing which he could do would be 
 to make an eloquent, forcible, and affecting oration 
 at the bar of the House; but that, if he could not 
 trust himself to speak, and found it necessary to read, 
 he ought to be as concise as possible. Audiences ac- 
 customed to extemporaneous debating of the highest 
 excellence are always impatient of long written com- 
 positions. Hastings, however, sat down as he would 
 have done at the Government House in Bengal, and 
 prepared a paper of immense length. That paper, 
 if recorded on the consultations of an Indian admin- 
 istration, would have been justly praised as a very 
 able minute. But it was now out of place. It fell 
 flat, as the best written defence must have fallen flat, 
 on an assembly accustomed to the animated and 
 strenuous conflicts of Pitt and Fox. . . . 
 
 On the thirteenth of February, 1788, the sittings 
 of the Court commenced. There have been spec- 
 tacles more dazzling to the eye, more gorgeous with 
 jewelry and cloth of gold, more attractive to grown- 
 up children than that which was then exhibited at 
 Westminster; but, perhaps, there never was a spec- 
 tacle so well calculated to strike a highly cultivated, 
 a reflecting, an imaginative mind. All the various 
 kinds of interest which belong to the near and to the 
 distant, to the present and to the past, were collected 
 on one spot and in one hour. All the talents and all 
 
 512 
 
The Trial of Warren Hastings 
 
 the accomplishments which are developed by liberty 
 and civilization, were now displayed, with every ad- 
 vantage that could be derived both from co-opera- 
 tion and from contrast. Every step in the proceed- 
 ings carried the mind either backward, through 
 many troubled centuries, to the days when the foun- 
 dations of our constitution were laid, or far away, 
 over boundless seas and deserts, to dusky nations liv- 
 ing under strange stars, worshipping strange gods, 
 and writing strange characters from right to left. 
 The High Court of Parliament was to sit, according 
 to forms handed down from the days of the Plantag- 
 enets, on an Englishman accused of exercising tyr- 
 anny over the lord of the holy city of Benares, and 
 over the ladies of the princely house of Oude. 
 
 The place was worthy of such a trial. It was the 
 great hall of William Rufus, the hall which had re- 
 sounded with acclamations at the inauguration of 
 thirty kings, the hall which had witnessed the just 
 sentence of Bacon and the just absolution of Somers, 
 the hall where the eloquence of Strafford had for 
 a moment awed and melted a victorious party in- 
 flamed with just resentment, the hall where Charles 
 had confronted the High Court of Justice with the 
 placid courage which has half redeemed his fame. 
 Neither military nor civil pomp was wanting. The 
 avenues were lined with grenadiers. The streets 
 were kept clear by cavalry. The peers, robed 
 in gold and ermine, were marshalled by the her- 
 
 S*3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 aids under Garter King-at-arms. The judges, in 
 their vestments of state, attended to give advice 
 on points of law. Near a hundred and seventy 
 lords, three-fourths of the Upper House as the 
 Upper House then was, walked in solemn or- 
 der from their usual place of assembling to 
 the tribunal. The junior baron present led the 
 way, George Eliott, Lord Heathfleld, recently en- 
 nobled for his memorable defence of Gibraltar 
 against the fleets and armies of France and Spain. 
 The long procession was closed by the Duke of Nor- 
 folk, Earl Marshal of the realm, by the great digni- 
 taries, and by the brothers and sons of the king. 
 Last of all came the Prince of Wales, conspicuous 
 by his fine person and noble bearing. The gray old 
 walls were hung with scarlet. The long galleries 
 were crowded by an audience such as has rarely ex- 
 cited the fears or the emulation of an orator. There 
 were gathered together, from all parts of a great, 
 free, enlightened, and prosperous empire, grace and 
 female loveliness, wit and learning, the representa- 
 tives of every science and of every art. There were 
 seated round the Queen the fair-haired young daugh- 
 ters of the house of Brunswick. There the Ambas- 
 sadors of great Kings and Commonwealths gazed 
 with admiration on a spectacle which no other coun- 
 try in the world could present. There Siddons, in 
 the prime of her majestic beauty, looked with emo- 
 tion on a scene surpassing all the imitations of the 
 
 5 J 4 
 
The Trial of Warren Hastings 
 
 stage. There the historian of the Roman Empire 
 thought of the days when Cicero pleaded the cause 
 of Sicily against Verres, and when, before a Senate 
 w 7 hich still retained some show of freedom, Tacitus 
 thundered against the oppressor of Africa. There 
 were seen, side by side, the greatest painter and the 
 greatest scholar of the age. The spectacle had al- 
 lured Reynolds from that easel which has preserved 
 to us the thoughtful foreheads of so many writers 
 and statesmen, and the sweet smiles of so many noble 
 matrons. It had induced Parr to suspend his labors 
 in that dark and profound mine from which he had 
 extracted a vast treasure of erudition — a treasure too 
 often buried in the earth, too often paraded with in- 
 judicious and inelegant ostentation, but still precious, 
 massive, and splendid. There appeared the volupt- 
 uous charms of her to whom the heir of the throne 
 had in secret plighted his faith. There too was she, 
 the beautiful mother of a beautiful race, the Saint 
 Cecilia, whose delicate features, lighted up by love 
 and music, art has rescued from the common decay. 
 There were the members of that brilliant society 
 which quoted, criticised, and exchanged repartees, 
 under the rich peacock-hangings of Mrs. Montague. 
 And there the ladies whose lips, more persuasive than 
 those of Fox himself, had carried the Westminster 
 election against palace and treasury, shone round 
 Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire. 
 
 The Sergeants made proclamation. Hastings ad- 
 
 5i5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 vanced to the bar, and bent his knee. The culprit 
 was indeed not unworthy of that great presence. He 
 had ruled an extensive and populous country, had 
 made laws and treaties, had sent forth armies, had 
 set up and pulled down princes. And in his high 
 place he had so borne himself, that all had feared 
 him, that most had loved him, and that hatred itself 
 could deny him no title to glory, except virtue. He 
 looked like a great man, and not like a bad man. A 
 person small and emaciated, yet deriving dignity 
 from carriage which, while it indicated deference 
 to the court, indicated also habitual self-possession 
 and self-respect, a high and intellectual forehead, a 
 brow pensive, but not gloomy, a mouth of inflexible 
 decision, a face pale and worn, but serene, on which 
 was written, as legibly as under the picture in the 
 council-chamber at Calcutta, Mens aequa in arduis; 
 such was the aspect with which the great Proconsul 
 presented himself to his judges. 
 
 His counsel accompanied him, men all of whom 
 were afterward raised by their talents and learning 
 to the highest posts in their profession — the bold and 
 strong-minded Law, afterward Chief-Justice of the 
 King's Bench ; the more humane and eloquent Dallas, 
 afterward Chief-Justice of the Common Pleas; and 
 Plomer, who, nearly twenty years later, successfully 
 conducted in the same high court the defence of Lord 
 Melville, and subsequently became Vice-chancellor 
 and Master of the Rolls. 
 
 516 
 
The Trial of Warren Hastings 
 
 But neither the culprit nor his advocates attracted 
 so much notice as the accusers. In the midst of the 
 blaze of red drapery, a space had been fitted up with 
 green benches and tables for the Commons. The 
 managers, with Burke at their head, appeared in full 
 dress. The collectors of gossip did not fail to re- 
 mark that even Fox, generally so regardless of his 
 appearance, had paid to the illustrious tribunal the 
 compliment of wearing a bag and sword. Pitt had 
 refused to be one of the conductors of the impeach- 
 ment; and his commanding, copious, and sonorous 
 eloquence was wanting to that great muster of va- 
 rious talents. Age and blindness had unfitted Lord 
 North for the duties of a public prosecutor; and his 
 friends were left without the help of his excellent 
 sense, his tact, and his urbanity. But in spite of the 
 absence of these two distinguished members of the 
 Lower House, the box in which the managers stood 
 contained an array of speakers such as perhaps had 
 not appeared together since the great age of Athe- 
 nian eloquence. There were Fox and Sheridan, the 
 English Demosthenes and the English Hyperides. 
 There was Burke, ignorant, indeed, or negligent of 
 the art of adapting his reasonings and his style to 
 the capacity and taste of his hearers, but in ampli- 
 tude of comprehension and richness of imagination 
 superior to every orator, ancient or modern. There, 
 with eyes reverentially fixed on Burke, appeared the 
 finest gentleman of the age, his form developed by 
 
 5*7 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 every manly exercise, his face beaming with' intelli- 
 gence and spirit, the ingenious, the chivalrous, the 
 high-souled Windham. Nor, though surrounded by 
 such men, did the youngest manager pass unnoticed. 
 At an age when most of those who distinguish them- 
 selves in life are still contending for prizes and fel- 
 lowships at college, he had won for himself a con- 
 spicuous place in Parliament. No advantage of for- 
 tune or connection was wanting that could set off to 
 the height his splendid talents and his unblemished 
 honor. At twenty-three he had been thought worthy 
 to be ranked with the veteran statesmen who ap- 
 peared as the delegates of the British Commons, at 
 the bar of the British nobility. All who stood at that 
 bar, save him alone, are gone, culprit, advocates, 
 accusers. To the generation which is now in the 
 vigor of life, he is the sole representative of a great 
 age which has passed away. But those who, within 
 the last ten years, have listened with delight, till the 
 morning sun shone on the tapestries of the House of 
 Lords, to the lofty and animated eloquence of Charles 
 Earl Grey, are able to form some estimate of the 
 powers of a race of men among whom he was not the 
 foremost. 
 
 The charges and the answers of Hastings were 
 first read. The ceremony occupied two whole days, 
 and was rendered less tedious than it would other- 
 wise have been by the silver voice and just emphasis 
 of Cowper, the clerk of the court, a near relation 
 
 5 i8 
 
The Trial of Warren Hastings 
 
 of the amiable poet. On the third day Burke rose. 
 Four sittings were occupied by his opening speech, 
 which was intended to be a general introduction to 
 all the charges. With an exuberance of thought and 
 a splendor of diction which more than satisfied the 
 highly raised expectation of the audience, he de- 
 scribed the character and institutions of the natives 
 of India, recounted the circumstances in which the 
 Asiatic empire of Britain had originated, and set 
 forth the constitution of the Company and of the 
 English Presidencies. Having thus attempted to 
 communicate to his hearers an idea of Eastern so- 
 ciety as vivid as that which existed in his own mind, 
 he proceeded to arraign the administration of Hast- 
 ings as systematically conducted in defiance of mo- 
 rality and public law. The energy and pathos of the 
 great orator extorted expressions of unwonted admi- 
 ration from the stern and hostile Chancellor, and, for 
 a moment, seemed to pierce even the resolute heart of 
 the defendant. The ladies in the galleries, unaccus- 
 tomed to such displays of eloquence, excited by the 
 solemnity of the occasion, and perhaps not unwilling 
 to display their taste and sensibility, were in a state 
 of uncontrollable emotion. Handkerchiefs were 
 pulled out; smelling-bottles were handed round; hys- 
 terical sobs and screams were heard: and Mrs. Sheri- 
 dan was carried out in a fit. At length the orator 
 concluded. Raising his voice till the old arches of 
 Irish oak resounded, "Therefore," said he, u hath it 
 
 5*9 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 with all confidence been ordered by the Commons of 
 Great Britain, that I impeach Warren Hastings of 
 high crimes and misdemeanors. I impeach him in 
 the name of the Commons House of Parliament, 
 whose trust he has betrayed. I impeach him in the 
 name of the English nation, whose ancient honor he 
 has sullied. I impeach him in the name of the peo- 
 ple of India, whose rights he has trodden under foot, 
 and whose country he has turned into a desert. 
 Lastly, in the name of human nature itself, in the 
 name of both sexes, in the name of every age, in the 
 name of every rank, I impeach the common enemy 
 and oppressor of all." 
 
 When the deep murmur of various emotions had 
 subsided, Mr. Fox rose to address the Lords respect- 
 ing the course of proceeding to be followed. The 
 wish of the accusers was that the Court would bring 
 to a close the investigation of the first charge before 
 the second was opened. The wish of Hastings and 
 of his counsel was that the managers should open all 
 the charges, and produce all the evidence for the 
 prosecution, before the defence began. The Lords 
 retired to their own House to consider the question. 
 The Chancellor took the side of Hastings. Lord 
 Loughborough, whowas now in opposition, supported 
 the demand of the managers. The division showed 
 which way the inclination of the tribunal leaned. 
 A majority of near three to one decided in favor of 
 the course for which Hastings contended. 
 
 520 
 
The Trial of Warren Hastings 
 
 When the Court sat again, Mr. Fox, assisted by 
 Mr. Grey, opened the charge respecting Cheyte Sing, 
 and several days were spent in reading papers and 
 hearing witnesses. The next article was that relat- 
 ing to the Princesses of Oude. The conduct of this 
 part of the case was intrusted to Sheridan. The curi- 
 osity of the public to hear him was unbounded. His 
 sparkling and highly finished declamation lasted two 
 days ; but the Hall was crowded to suffocation during 
 the whole time. It was said that fifty guineas had 
 been paid for a single ticket. Sheridan, when he 
 concluded, contrived, with a knowledge of stage ef- 
 fect which his father might have envied, to sink back, 
 as if exhausted, into the arms of Burke, who hugged 
 him with the energy of generous admiration. 
 
 June was now far advanced. The session could 
 not last much longer; and the progress which had 
 been made in the impeachment was not very satis- 
 factory. There were twenty charges. On two only 
 of these had even the case for the prosecution been 
 heard; and it was now a year since Hastings had 
 been admitted to bail. 
 
 The interest taken by the public in the trial was 
 great when the Court began to sit, and rose to the 
 height when Sheridan spoke on the charge relating 
 to the Begums. From that time the excitement went 
 down fast. The spectacle had lost the attraction of 
 novelty. The great displays of rhetoric were over. 
 What was behind was not of a nature to entice men 
 
 521 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 of letters from their books in the morning, or to tempt 
 ladies who had left the masquerade at two to be out 
 of bed before eight. There remained examinations 
 and cross-examinations. There remained statements 
 of accounts. There remained the reading of papers, 
 filled with words unintelligible to English ears, with 
 lacs and crores, zemindars and aumils, sunnuds and 
 perwannahs, jaghires and nuzzurs. There remained 
 bickerings, not always carried on with the best taste 
 or with the best temper, between the managers of 
 the impeachment and the counsel for the defence, 
 particularly between Mr. Burke and Mr. Law. 
 There remained the endless marches and counter- 
 marches of the Peers between their House and the 
 Hall: for as often as a point of law was to be dis- 
 cussed, their Lordships retired to discuss it apart; 
 and the consequence was, as a Peer wittily said, that 
 the Judges walked and the trial stood still. . . . 
 
 At length, in the spring of 1795, the decision was 
 pronounced, near eight years after Hastings had 
 been brought by the Sergeant-at-arms of the Com- 
 mons to the bar of the Lords. On the last day of 
 this great procedure the public curiosity, long sus- 
 pended, seemed to be revived. Anxiety about the 
 judgment there could be none ; for it had been fully 
 ascertained that there was a majority for the defen- 
 dant. Nevertheless many wished to see the pageant, 
 and the Hall was as much crowded as on the first 
 day. But those who, having been present on the first 
 
 522 
 
Hohenlinden 
 
 day, now bore a part in the proceedings of the last, 
 were few; and most of those few were altered 
 men. . . . 
 
 Only twenty-nine Peers voted. Of these only six 
 found Hastings guilty on the charges relating to 
 Cheyte Sing and to the Begums. On other charges 
 the majority in his favor was still greater. On some 
 he was unanimously absolved. He was then called 
 to the bar, was informed from the woolsack that the 
 Lords had acquitted him, and was solemnly dis- 
 charged. He bowed respectfully and retired. 
 
 HOHENLINDEN 
 
 f"^\N Linden, when the sun was low, 
 ^^ All bloodless lay th' untrodden snow; 
 And dark as winter was the flow 
 Of Iser, rolling rapidly. 
 
 But Linden saw another sight, 
 When the drum beat, at dead of night 
 Commanding fires of death to light 
 The darkness of her scenery. 
 
 By torch and trumpet fast array' d 
 Each horseman drew his battle-blade, 
 And furious every charger neigh'd 
 To join the dreadful revelry. 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Then shook the hills with thunder riven; 
 Then rush'd the steed to battle driven, 
 And louder than the bolts of Heaven, 
 Far flash'd the red artillery. 
 
 But redder yet that light shall glow 
 On Linden's hills of stained snow; 
 And bloodier yet the torrent flow 
 Of Iser, rolling rapidly. 
 
 'Tis morn, but scarce yon level sun 
 Can pierce the war-clouds, rolling dun, 
 Where furious Frank, and fiery Hun, 
 Shout in their sulphurous canopy. 
 
 The combat deepens. On, ye brave 
 Who rush to glory, or the grave! 
 Wave, Munich ! all thy banners wave, 
 And charge with all thy chivalry! 
 
 Few, few, shall part, where many meet! 
 The snow shall be their winding-sheet, 
 And every turf beneath their feet 
 Shall be a soldier's sepulchre. 
 
 — T. Campbell 
 
 524 
 
THE MARINERS OF ENGLAND 
 
 \^E mariners of England 
 * That guard our native seas! 
 Whose flag has braved, a thousand years, 
 The battle and the breeze! 
 Your glorious standard launch again 
 To match another foe: 
 And sweep through the deep, 
 While the stormy winds do blow; 
 While the battle rages loud and long 
 And the stormy winds do blow. 
 
 The spirits of your fathers 
 Shall start from every wave — 
 For the deck it was their field of fame, 
 And Ocean was their grave: 
 Where Blake and mighty Nelson fell 
 Your manly hearts shall glow, 
 As ye sweep through the deep, 
 While the stormy winds do blow; 
 While the battle rages loud and long 
 And the stormy winds do blow. 
 
 Britannia needs no bulwarks, 
 No towers along the steep ; 
 Her march is o'er the mountain waves, 
 Her home is on the deep. 
 5 2 5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 With thunders from her native oak 
 
 She quells the floods below — 
 
 As they roar on the shore, 
 
 When the stormy winds do blow; 
 
 When the battle rages loud and long, 
 
 And the stormy winds do blow. 
 
 The meteor-flag of England 
 
 Shall yet terrific burn; 
 
 Till danger's troubled night depart 
 
 And the star of peace return. 
 
 Then, then, ye ocean-warriors! 
 
 Our song and feast shall flow 
 
 To the fame of your name, 
 
 When the storm has ceased to blow; 
 
 When the fiery fight is heard no more, 
 
 And the storm has ceased to blow. 
 
 — T. Campbell 
 
 BATTLE OF THE BALTIC 
 
 C~\F Nelson and the North, 
 
 ^-^ Sing the glorious day's renown, 
 When to battle fierce came forth 
 All the might of Denmark's crown, 
 And her arms along the deep proudiyl 
 
 shone; 
 By each gun the lighted brand, 
 526 
 
Battle of the Baltic 
 
 In a bold determined hand, 
 And the Prince of all the land 
 Led them on. — 
 
 Like leviathans afloat, 
 
 Lay the bulwarks on the brine; 
 
 While the sign of battle flew 
 
 On the lofty British line: 
 
 It was ten of April morn by the chime: 
 
 As they drifted on their path, 
 
 There was silence deep as death ; 
 
 And the boldest held his breath 
 
 For a time. — 
 
 But the might of England flushed 
 
 To anticipate the scene; 
 
 And her van the fleeter rush'd 
 
 O'er the deadly space between. 
 
 "Hearts of oak!" our captains cried, when 
 
 each gun 
 From its adamantine lips 
 Spread a death-shade round the ships, 
 Like the hurricane eclipse 
 Of the sun. 
 
 Again! again! again! 
 And the havoc did not slack, 
 Till a feeble cheer the Dane, 
 To our cheering sent us back; 
 
 5*7 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Their shots along the deep slowly boom — 
 Then ceased — and all is wail, 
 As they strike the shatter' d sail; 
 Or, in conflagration pale, 
 Light the gloom. 
 
 Out spoke the victor then 
 
 As he hail'd them o'er the wave ; 
 
 "Ye are brothers! ye are men! 
 
 And we conquer but to save : — 
 
 So peace instead of death let us bring; 
 
 But yield, proud foe, thy fleet 
 
 With the crews, at England's feet, 
 
 And make submission meet 
 
 To our King." 
 
 Then Denmark bless'd our chief 
 
 That he gave her wounds repose; 
 
 And the sounds of joy and grief 
 
 From her people wildly rose, 
 
 As death withdrew his shades from the da} 
 
 While the sun look'd smiling bright 
 
 O'er a wide and woful sight, 
 
 Where the fires of funeral light 
 
 Died away. 
 
 Now joy, old England, raise! 
 For the tidings of thy might, 
 By the festal cities' blaze, 
 
 528 
 
Battle of the Baltic 
 
 iWhilst the wine-cup shines in light; 
 And yet amidst that joy and uproar, 
 Let us think of them that sleep, 
 Full many a fathom deep, 
 By thy wild and stormy steep, 
 Elsinore! 
 
 Brave hearts! to Britain's pride 
 
 Once so faithful and so true, 
 
 On the deck of fame that died; 
 
 With the gallant good Riou; 
 
 Soft sigh the winds of heaven o'er their 
 
 grave ! 
 While the billow mournful rolls, 
 And the mermaid's song condoles, 
 Singing Glory to the souls 
 Of the brave! 
 
 — T. Campbell . 
 
 THE BURIAL OF SIR JOHN MOORE AT 
 
 CORUNNA 
 
 1V[ OT a drum was heard, not a funeral note, 
 ^^ As his corpse to the rampart we hurried; 
 Not a soldier discharged his farewell shot 
 O'er the grave where our hero we buried. 
 
 We buried him darkly at dead of night, 
 The sods with our bayonets turning; 
 
 529 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 By the struggling moonbeam's misty light 
 And the lantern dimly burning. 
 
 No useless coffin inclosed his breast, 
 
 Not in sheet nor in shroud we wound him ; 
 
 But he lay like a warrior taking his rest 
 With his martial cloak around him. 
 
 Few and short were the prayers we said, 
 And we spoke not a word of sorrow; 
 
 But we steadfastly gazed on the face that was 
 dead, 
 And we bitterly thought of the morrow. 
 
 We thought as we hollow'd his narrow bed 
 And smoothed down his lonely pillow, 
 
 That the foe and the stranger would tread o'er 
 his head, 
 And we far away on the billow! 
 
 Lightly they'll talk of the spirit that's gone' 
 And o'er his cold ashes upbraid him — 
 
 But little he'll reck, if they let him sleep on 
 In the grave where a Briton has laid him. 
 
 But Half of our Heavy task was done 
 
 When the clock struck the hour for retiring; 
 
 And we heard the distant and random gun 
 That the foe was sullenly firing. 
 
 '53° 
 
The Eve of Waterloo 
 
 Slowly and sadly we laid him down, 
 
 From the field of his fame fresh and gory; 
 
 We carved not a line, and we raised not a stone- 
 But we left him alone with his glory. 
 
 — C. Wolfe 
 
 THE EVE OF WATERLOO 
 
 'T'HERE was a sound of revelry by night, 
 ** And Belgium's capital had gathered then 
 Her beauty and her chivalry, and bright 
 
 The lamps shone o'er fair women and brave men. 
 
 A thousand hearts beat happily; and when 
 Music arose with its voluptuous swell, 
 
 Soft eyes looked love to eyes which spake again, 
 And all went merry as a marriage bell; 
 But hush! hark! a deep sound strikes like a rising 
 knell! 
 
 Did ye not hear it? — No; 'twas but the wind, 
 Or the car rattling o'er the stony street; 
 
 On with the dance! let joy be unconfined; 
 
 No sleep till morn, when youth and pleasure meet 
 To chase the glowing hours with flying feet. 
 
 But hark! — that heavy sound breaks in once more, 
 As if the clouds its echo would repeat; 
 
 And nearer, clearer, deadlier than before; 
 
 Arm! arm! it is — it is — the cannon's opening roar! 
 
 S3* 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Within a windowed niche of that high hall 
 
 State Brunswick's fated chieftain; he did hear 
 That sound the first amidst the festival, 
 
 And caught its tone with death's prophetic ear; 
 
 And when they smiled because he deemed it 
 near, 
 His heart more truly knew that peal too well 
 
 Which stretched his father on a bloody bier, 
 And roused the vengeance blood alone could quell ; 
 He rushed into the field, and, foremost fighting, fell. 
 
 Ah! then and there was hurrying to and fro, 
 
 And gathering tears, and tremblings of distress, 
 And cheeks all pale, which, but an hour ago, 
 
 Blushed at the praise of their own loveliness. 
 
 And there were sudden partings, such as press 
 The life from out young hearts, and choking sighs 
 
 Which ne'er might be repeated; who would guess 
 If ever more should meet those mutual eyes, 
 Since upon night so sweet such awful morn could 
 rise! 
 
 And there was mounting in hot haste ; the steed, 
 
 The mustering squadron, and the clattering car, 
 Went pouring forward with impetuous speed, 
 
 And swiftly forming in the ranks of war; 
 
 And the deep thunder, peal on peal afar; 
 And near, the beat of the alarming drum 
 
 Roused up the soldier ere the morning star; 
 
 S3* 
 
Last Charge of the French at Waterloo 
 
 While thronged the citizens with terror dumb, 
 Or whispering, with white lips — "The foe! they 
 come! they come!" 
 
 — Lord Byron 
 
 THE LAST CHARGE OF THE FRENCH 
 AT WATERLOO 
 
 /^N came the whirlwind — like the last 
 ^-^ But fiercest sweep of tempest-blast — 
 On came the whirlwind — steel-gleams broke 
 Like lightning through the rolling smoke ; 
 
 The war w T as waked anew, 
 Three hundred cannon-mouths roar'd loud, 
 And from their throats, with flash and cloud, 
 
 Their showers of iron threw. 
 Beneath their fire, in full career, 
 Rush'd on the ponderous cuirassier, 
 The lancer couch'd his ruthless spear, 
 And hurrying as to havoc near, 
 
 The cohorts' eagles flew. 
 In one dark torrent, broad and strong, 
 The advancing onset roll'd along, 
 Forth harbinger'd by fierce acclaim, 
 That, from the shroud of smoke and flame, 
 Peal'd wildly the imperial name! 
 
 But on the British heart were lost 
 The terrors of the charging host; 
 
 S33 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 For not an eye the storm that view'd 
 
 Changed its proud glance of fortitude; 
 
 Nor was one forward footstep stay'd, 
 
 As dropp'd the dying and the dead. 
 
 Fast as their ranks the thunders tear, 
 
 Fast they renew'd each serried square ; 
 
 And on the wounded and the slain 
 
 Closed their diminished files again, 
 
 Till from their line scarce spears 5 lengths 
 
 three, 
 Emerging from the smoke they see 
 Helmet, and plume, and panoply — 
 
 Then waked their fire at once! 
 Each musketeer's revolving knell, 
 As fast, as regularly fell, 
 As when they practice to display 
 Their discipline on festal day. 
 
 Then down went helm and lance, 
 Down were the eagle-banners sent, 
 Down reeling steeds and riders went, 
 Corslets were pierced, and pennons rent; 
 
 And to augment the fray, 
 Wheel'd full against their staggering flanks, 
 The English horsemen's foaming ranks 
 
 Forced their resistless way. 
 Then to the musket-knell succeeds 
 The clash of swords — the neigh of steeds — 
 As plies the smith his clanging trade, 
 Against the cuirass rang the blade ; 
 
 534 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 And while amid their close array 
 The well-served cannon rent their way, 
 And while amid their scattered band 
 Raged the fierce rider's bloody brand, 
 Recoil'd in common rout and fear 
 Lancer and guard and cuirassier, 
 Horsemen and foot — a mingled host! 
 Their leaders fall'n — their standards lost. 
 
 — Sir W. Scott 
 
 THE CHRONICLE OF THE DRUM. 
 
 PART I 
 
 A T Paris, hard by the Marine barriers, 
 **' Whoever will choose to repair, 
 'Midst a dozen of wooden-legged warriors 
 
 May haply fall in with old Pierre. 
 On the sunshiny bench of a tavern 
 
 He sits and he prates of old wars, 
 And moistens his pipe of tobacco 
 
 With a drink that is named after Mars. 
 
 The beer makes his tongue run the quicker, 
 And as long as his tap never fails, 
 
 Thus over his favorite liquor 
 Old Peter will tell his old tales. 
 S3S 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Says he: "In my life's ninety summers 
 Strange changes and chances I've seen — 
 
 So here's to all gentlemen drummers 
 That ever have thumped on a skin. 
 
 "Brought up in the art military 
 
 For four generations we are; 
 My ancestors drummed for King Harry, 
 
 The Huguenot lad of Navarre. 
 And as each man in life has his station 
 
 According as Fortune may fix, 
 While Conde was waving the baton, 
 
 My grandsire was trolling the sticks. 
 
 "Ah! those were the days for commanders! 
 
 What glories my grandfather won, 
 Ere bigots and lackeys and panders 
 
 The fortunes of France had undone! 
 In Germany, Flanders, and Holland — 
 
 What foeman resisted us then? 
 No; my grandsire was ever victorious, 
 
 My grandsire and Monsieur Turenne. 
 
 "He died: and our noble battalions 
 The jade, fickle Fortune, forsook; 
 
 And at Blenheim, in spite of our valiance, 
 The victory lay with Malbrook. 
 
 The news it was brought to King Louis ; 
 Corbleu! how his Majesty swore, 
 S3& 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 When he heard they had taken my grandsire: 
 And twelve thousand gentlemen more. 
 
 "At Namur, Ramillies, and Malplaquet, 
 
 Were we posted, on plain or in trench : 
 Malbrook only need to attack it, 
 
 And away from him scampered we French. 
 Cheer up! 'tis no use to be glum, boys — 
 
 'Tis written, since righting begun, 
 That sometimes we fight and we conquer, 
 
 And sometimes we fight and we run. 
 
 "To fight and to run was our fate: 
 
 Our fortune and fame had departed. 
 And so perished Louis the Great — 
 
 Old, lonely, and half broken-hearted. 
 His coffin they pelted with mud, 
 
 His body they tried to lay hands on ; 
 And so having buried King Louis 
 
 They loyally served his great-grandson. 
 
 "God save the beloved King Louis! 
 
 (For so he was nicknamed by some,) 
 And now came my father to do his 
 
 King's orders and beat on the drum. 
 My grandsire was dead, but his bones 
 
 Must have shaken, I'm certain, for joy, 
 To hear daddy drumming the English 
 
 From the meadows of famed Fontenoy. 
 537 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 "So well did he drum in that battle 
 
 That the enemy showed us their backs ; 
 Corbleu! it was pleasant to rattle 
 
 The sticks and to follow old Saxe! 
 We next had Soubise as a leader, 
 
 And as luck hath its changes and fits, 
 At Rossbach, in spite of dad's drumming, 
 
 'Tis said we were beaten by Fritz. 
 
 "And now daddy crossed the Atlantic, 
 
 To drum for Montcalm and his men; 
 Morbleu! but it makes a man frantic, 
 
 To think we were beaten again! 
 My daddy he crossed the wide ocean, 
 
 My mother brought me on her neck, 
 And we came in the year fifty-seven 
 
 To guard the good town of Quebec. 
 
 "In the year fifty-nine came the Britons — 
 
 Full well I remember the day — 
 They knocked at our gates for admittance, 
 
 Their vessels were moored in our bay. 
 Says our general : 'Drive me yon red-coats 
 
 Away to the sea whence they come!' 
 So we marched against Wolfe and his bull- 
 dogs, 
 
 We marched at the sound of the drum. 
 
 "I think I can see my poor mammy 
 With me in her hand as she waits, 
 
 538 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 And our regiment, slowly retreating, 
 Pours back through the citadel gates. 
 
 Dear mammy, she looks in their faces, 
 And asks if her husband is come? 
 
 — He is lying all cold on the glacis, 
 
 And will never more beat on the drum. 
 
 "Come, drink, 'tis no use to be glum, boys! 
 
 He died like a soldier in glory; 
 Here's a glass to the health of all drum-boys, 
 
 And now I'll commence my own story. 
 Once more did we cross the salt ocean, 
 
 We came in the year eighty-one ; 
 And the wrongs of my father the drummer 
 
 Were avenged by the drummer his son. 
 
 "In Chesapeake Bay we were landed. 
 
 In vain strove the British to pass; 
 Rochambeau our armies commanded, 
 
 Our ships they were led by De Grasse. 
 Morbleu! how I rattled the drumsticks 
 
 The day we marched into Yorktown! 
 Ten thousand of beef-eating British 
 
 Their weapons we caused to lay down. 
 
 "Then homeward returning victorious, 
 In peace to our country we came, 
 
 And were thanked for our glorious actions 
 By Louis Sixteenth of the name. 
 539 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 What drummer on earth could be prouder 
 Than I, while I drummed at Versailles 
 
 To the lovely court ladies in powder, 
 And lappets and long satin tails? 
 
 "The princess that day passed before us, 
 
 Our countrymen's glory and hope; 
 Monsieur, who was learned in Horace, 
 
 D'Artois, who could dance the tight-rope. 
 One night we kept guard for the Queen, 
 
 At her Majesty's opera-box, 
 While the King, that majestical monarch, 
 
 Sat filing at home at his locks. 
 
 "Yes, I drummed for the fair Antoinette, 
 
 And so smiling she looked, and so tender, 
 That our officers, privates, and drummers, 
 
 All vowed they would die to defend her. 
 But she cared not for us honest fellows, 
 
 Who fought and who bled in her wars, 
 She sneered at our gallant Rochambeau, 
 
 And turned Lafayette out of doors. 
 
 "Ventrebleu! then I swore a great oath 
 No more to such tyrants to kneel. 
 
 And so, just to keep up my drumming, 
 One day I drummed down the Bastile! 
 
 Ho, landlord! a stoup of fresh wine. 
 Come, comrades, a bumper we'll try, 
 540 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 And drink to the year eighty-nine 
 And the glorious fourth of July! 
 
 "Then bravely our cannon it thundered 
 
 As onward our patriots bore. 
 Our enemies were but a hundred, 
 
 And we twenty thousand or more. 
 They carried the news to King Louis. 
 
 He heard it as calm as you please, 
 And, like a majestical monarch, 
 
 Kept filing his locks and his keys. 
 
 "We showed our republican courage, 
 
 We stormed and we broke the great gate in, 
 And we murdered the insolent governor 
 
 For daring to keep us a-waiting. 
 Lambesc and his squadrons stood by; 
 
 They never stirred finger or thumb. 
 The saucy aristocrats trembled 
 
 As they heard the republican drum. 
 
 "Hurrah! what a storm was a-brewing! 
 
 The day of our vengeance was come ; 
 Through scenes of what carnage and ruin 
 
 Did I beat on the patriot drum! 
 Let's drink to the famed tenth of August: 
 
 At midnight I beat a tattoo, 
 And woke up the pikemen of Paris 
 
 To follow the bold Barbaroux. 
 541 
 
 !8— Vol. S 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 "With pikes, and with shouts, and with 
 torches 
 
 Marched onward our dusty battalions, 
 And we girt the tall castle of Louis, 
 
 A million of tatterdemalions! 
 We stormed the fair gardens where towered 
 
 The walls of his heritage splendid. 
 Ah, shame on him, craven and coward, 
 
 That had not the heart to defend it! 
 
 "With the crown of his sires on his head, 
 
 His nobles and knights by his side, 
 At the foot of his ancestors' palace 
 
 'Twere easy, methinks, to have died. 
 But no: when we burst through his barriers, 
 
 'Mid heaps of the dying and dead, 
 In vain through the chambers we sought 
 him — 
 
 He had turned like a craven and fled. 
 
 "You all know the Place de la Concorde? 
 
 'Tis hard by the Tuileries wall ; 
 'Mid terraces, fountains, and statues, 
 
 There rises an obelisk tall. 
 There rises an obelisk tall, 
 
 All garnished and gilded the base is: 
 'Tis surely the gayest of all 
 
 Our beautiful city's gay places. 
 542 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 "Around it are gardens and flowers, 
 
 And the Cities of France on their thrones, 
 Each crowned with her circlet of flowers 
 
 Sits watching this biggest of stones! 
 I love to go sit in the sun there, 
 
 The flowers and fountains to see, 
 And to think of the deeds that were done there 
 
 In the glorious year ninety-three. 
 
 " 'Twas here stood the Altar of Freedom, 
 
 And though neither marble nor gilding 
 Was used in those days to adorn 
 
 Our simple republican building, 
 Corbleu! but the MERE GUILLOTINE 
 
 Cared little for splendor or show, 
 So you gave her an axe and a beam, 
 
 And a plank and a basket or so. 
 
 "Awful, and proud, and erect, 
 
 Here sate our republican goddess. 
 Each morning her table we decked 
 
 With dainty aristocrats' bodies. 
 The people each day flocked around 
 
 As she sat at her meat and her wine : 
 Twas always the use of our nation 
 
 To witness the sovereign dine. 
 
 "Young virgins with fair golden tresses, 
 Old silver-haired prelates and priests, 
 543 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Dukes, marquises, barons, princesses, 
 Were splendidly served at her feasts. 
 
 Ventrebleu! but we pampered our ogress 
 With the best that our nation could bring, 
 
 And dainty she grew in her progress, 
 And called for the head of a King! 
 
 "She called for the blood of our King, 
 
 And straight from his prison we drew him; 
 And to her with shouting we led him, 
 
 And took him, and bound him, and slew 
 him. 
 'The monarchs of Europe against me 
 
 Have plotted a godless alliance : 
 I'll fling them the head of King Louis,' 
 
 She said, 'as my gage of defiance.' 
 
 "I see him as now, for a moment, 
 
 Away from his jailers he broke, 
 And stood at the foot of the scaffold, 
 
 And lingered, and fain would have spoke. 
 'Ho, drummer! quick, silence yon Capet,' 
 
 Says Santerre, 'with a beat of your drum.' 
 Lustily then did I tap it, 
 
 And the son of St. Louis was dumb." 
 
 544 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 PART II 
 
 "The glorious days of September 
 
 Saw many aristocrats fall; 
 'Twas then that our pikes drank the blood 
 
 In the beautiful breast of Lamballe. 
 Pardi, 'twas a beautiful lady! 
 
 I seldom have looked on her like; 
 And I drummed for a gallant procession, 
 
 That marched with her head on a pike. 
 
 "Let's show the pale head to the Queen, 
 
 We said — she'll remember it well. 
 She looked from the bars of her prison, 
 
 And shrieked as she saw it, and fell. 
 We set up a shout at her screaming, 
 
 We laughed at the fright she had shown 
 At the sight of the head of her minion; 
 
 How she'd tremble to part with her own! 
 
 "We had taken the head of King Capet, 
 
 We called for the blood of his wife; 
 Undaunted she came to the scaffold, 
 
 And bared her fair neck to the knife. 
 As she felt the foul fingers that touched her, 
 
 She shrunk, but she deigned not to speak: 
 She looked with a royal disdain, 
 
 And died with a blush on her cheek! 
 545 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 " 'Twas thus that our country was saved ; 
 
 So told us the safety committee! 
 But psha! I've the heart of a soldier, 
 
 All gentleness, mercy, and pity. 
 I loathed to assist at such deeds, 
 
 And my drum beat its loudest of tunes 
 As we offered to justice offended 
 
 The blood of the bloody tribunes. 
 
 "Away with such foul recollections! 
 
 No more of the axe and the block; 
 I saw the last fight of the sections, 
 
 As they fell 'neath our guns at Saint Rock 
 Young Bonaparte led us that day; 
 
 When he sought the Italian frontier, 
 I followed my gallant young captain, 
 
 I followed him many a long year. 
 
 "We came to an army in rags, 
 
 Our general was but a boy 
 When we first saw the Austrian flags 
 
 Flaunt proud in the fields of Savoy. 
 In the glorious year ninety-six, 
 
 We marched to the banks of the Po ; 
 I carried my drum and my sticks, 
 
 And we laid the proud Austrian low. 
 
 "In triumph we entered Milan, 
 We seized on the Mantuan keys; 
 
 546 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 The troops of the Emperor ran, 
 
 And the Pope he fell down on his knees." — 
 Pierre's comrades here called a fresh bottle, 
 
 And clubbing together their wealth. 
 They drank to the Army of Italy, 
 
 And General Bonaparte's health. 
 
 The drummer now bared His old breast, 
 
 And showed us a plenty of scars, 
 Rude presents that Fortune had made him, 
 
 In fifty victorious wars. 
 "This came when I followed bold Kleber — 
 
 'Twas shot by a Mameluke gun; 
 And this from an Austrian sabre, 
 
 When the field of Marengo was won. 
 
 "My forehead has many deep furrows, 
 
 But this is the deepest of all: 
 A Brunswicker made it at Jena, 
 
 Beside the fair river of Saal. 
 This cross, 'twas the Emperor gave it; 
 
 (God bless him!) it covers a blow; 
 I had it at Austerlitz fight, 
 
 As I beat on my drum in the snow. 
 
 " 'Twas thus that we conquered and fought; 
 
 But wherefore continue the story? 
 There's never a baby in France 
 
 But has heard of our chief and our glory — 
 547 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 But has heard of our chief and our fame, 
 His sorrows and triumphs can tell, 
 
 How bravely Napoleon conquered, 
 How bravely and sadly he fell. 
 
 "It makes my old heart to beat higher, 
 
 To think of the deeds that I saw; 
 I followed bold Ney through the fire, 
 
 And charged at the side of Murat." 
 And so did old Peter continue 
 
 His story of twenty brave years; 
 His audience followed with comments — 
 
 Rude comments of curses and tears. 
 
 He told how the Prussians in vain 
 
 Had died in defence of their land; 
 His audience laughed at the story, 
 
 And vowed that their captain was grand! 
 He had fought the red English, he said, 
 
 In many a battle of Spain; 
 They cursed the red English, and prayed 
 
 To meet them and fight them again. 
 
 He told them how Russia was lost, 
 Had winter not driven them back; 
 
 And his company cursed the quick f fost, 
 And doubly they cursed the Cossack. 
 
 He told how the stranger arrived ; 
 They wept at the tale of disgrace ; 
 548 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 And they longed but for one battle more, 
 The stain of their shame to efface ! 
 
 "Our country their hordes overrun, 
 
 We fled to the fields of Champagne, 
 And fought them, though twenty to one, 
 
 And beat them again and again! 
 Our warrior was conquered at last; 
 
 They bade him his crown to resign ; 
 To fate and his country he yielded 
 
 The rights of himself and his line. 
 
 "He came, and among us he stood, 
 
 Around him we pressed in a throng, 
 We could not regard him for weeping, 
 
 Who had led us and loved us so long. 
 'I have led you for twenty long years,' 
 
 Napoleon said, ere he went; 
 'Wherever was honor I found you, 
 
 And with you, my sons, am content. 
 
 " Though Europe against me was armed, 
 Your chiefs and my people are true; 
 
 I still might have struggled with fortune, 
 And baffled all Europe with you. 
 
 " 'But France would have suffered the while; 
 
 Tis best that I suffer alone; 
 I go to my place of exile, 
 
 To write of the deeds we have done. 
 549 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 " 'Be true to the king that they give you. 
 
 We may not embrace ere we part; 
 But, General, reach me your hand, 
 
 And press me, I pray, to your heart.' 
 
 "He called for our old battle standard ; 
 
 One kiss to the eagle he gave. 
 'Dear eagle!' he said, 'may this kiss 
 
 Long sound in the hearts of the brave P 
 'Twas thus that Napoleon left us ; 
 
 Our people were weeping and mute, 
 As he passed through the lines of his guard, 
 
 And our drums beat the notes of salute. 
 • • • • • • • . 
 
 "I looked when our drumming was o'er, 
 
 I looked, but our hero was gone ; 
 We were destined to see him once more, 
 
 When we fought on the Mount of St. John. 
 The Emperor rode through our files ; 
 
 'Twas June, and a fair Sunday morn. 
 The lines of our warriors for miles 
 
 Stretched wide through the Waterloo corn. 
 
 "In thousands we stood on the plain, 
 
 The red-coats were crowning the height; 
 
 'Go scatter yon English,' he said; 
 'We'll sup, lads, at Brussels to-night.' 
 
 We answered his voice with a shout; 
 Our eagles were bright in the sun ; 
 
 55o 
 
The Chronicle of the Drum 
 
 Our drums and our cannon spoke out, 
 And the thundering battle begun. 
 
 "One charge to another succeeds, 
 
 Like waves that a hurricane bears; 
 All day do our galloping steeds 
 
 Dash fierce on the enemy's squares. 
 At noon we began the fell onset: 
 
 We charged up the Englishman's hill; 
 And madly we charged it at sunset — 
 
 His banners were floating there still. 
 
 u 
 
 — Go to! I will tell you no more; 
 
 You know how the battle was lost. 
 Ho! fetch me a beaker of wine, 
 
 And, comrades, I'll give you a toast. 
 I'll give you a curse on all traitors, 
 
 Who plotted our Emperor's ruin; 
 And a curse on those red-coated English, 
 
 Whose bayonets helped our undoing. 
 
 "A curse on those British assassins 
 
 Who ordered the slaughter of Ney; 
 A curse on Sir Hudson, who tortured 
 
 The life of our hero away. 
 A curse on all Russians — I hate them — 
 
 On all Prussian and Austrian fry; 
 And O! but I pray we may meet them, 
 
 And fight them again ere I die." 
 
 — William Makepeace Thackeray 
 
 55 1 
 
THE CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE 
 
 Half a league, half a league, 
 
 Half a league onward, 
 All in the valley of Death 
 
 Rode the six hundred. 
 "Forward, the Light Brigade! 
 Charge for the guns!" he said: 
 Into the valley of Death 
 
 Rode the six hundred. 
 
 "Forward, the Light Brigade!" 
 Was there a man dismay'd? 
 Not tho' the soldier knew 
 
 Some one had blunder'd: 
 Theirs not to make reply, 
 Theirs not to reason why, 
 Theirs but to do and die: 
 Into the valley of Death 
 
 Rode the six hundred. 
 
 Cannon to right of them, 
 Cannon to left of them, 
 Cannon in front of them 
 
 Volley' d and thunder'd; 
 Storm'd at with shot and shell, 
 Boldly they rode and well, 
 Into the jaws of Death, 
 Into the mouth of Hell 
 
 Rode the six hundred. 
 
The Charge of the Light Brigade 
 
 Flash'd all their sabres bare, 
 Flash'd as they turn'd in air 
 Sabring the gunners there, 
 Charging an army, while 
 
 All the world wonder'd; 
 Plunged in the battery-smoke 
 Right thro' the line they broke; 
 Cossack and Russian 
 Reel'd from the sabre-stroke 
 
 Shatter'd and sunder'd. 
 Then they rode back, but not, 
 
 Not the six hundred. 
 
 Cannon to right of them, 
 Cannon to left of them, 
 Cannon behind them 
 
 Volley'd and thunder'd; 
 Storm'd at with shot and shell, 
 While horse and hero fell, 
 They that had fought so well 
 Came thro' the jaws of Death, 
 Back from the mouth of Hell, 
 All that was left of them, 
 
 Left of six hundred. 
 
 iWhen can their glory fade? 
 O the wild charge they made! 
 All the world wonder'd. 
 
 SS3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Honor the charge they made! 
 Honor the Light Brigade, 
 Noble six hundred. 
 
 — Alfred, Lord Tennyson 
 
 THE WHITE PACHA 
 
 Vain is the dream! However Hope may rave, 
 He perished with the folk he could not save, 
 And though none surely told us he is dead, 
 And though perchance another in his stead, 
 Another, not less brave, when all was done, 
 Had fled unto the southward and the sun, 
 Had urged a way by force, or won by guile 
 To streams remotest of the secret Nile, 
 Had raised an army of the Desert men, 
 And, waiting for his hour, had turned again 
 And fallen on that False Prophet, yet we know 
 GORDON is dead, and these things are not so ! 
 Nay, not for England's cause, nor to restore 
 Her trampled flag — for he loved Honor more — 
 Nay, not for Life, Revenge, or Victory, 
 Would he have fled, whose hour had dawned to 
 
 die. 
 He will not come again, whate'er our need, 
 He will not come, who is happy, being freed 
 From the deathly flesh and perishable things, 
 
 554 
 
Franklin : The Plan of Union 
 
 And lies of statesmen and rewards of kings. 
 Nay, somewhere by the sacred River's shore 
 He sleeps like those who shall return no more, 
 No more return for all the prayers of men — 
 Arthur and Charles — they never come again! 
 They shall not wake, though fair the vision seem: 
 rWhate'er sick Hope may whisper, vain the dream! 
 
 — Lang 
 
 FRANKLIN: THE PLAN OF UNION. 
 
 T N 1754, war with France being again appre- 
 * hended, a congress of commissioners from the 
 different colonies was, by an order of the Lords of 
 Trade, to be assembled at Albany, there to confer 
 with the chiefs of the Six Nations concerning the 
 means of defending both their country and ours. 
 Governor Hamilton, having received this order, ac- 
 quainted the House with it, requesting they would 
 furnish proper presents for the Indians, to be given 
 on this occasion; and naming the speaker (Mr. Nor- 
 ris) and myself to join Mr. Thomas Penn and Mr. 
 Secretary Peters as commissioners to act for Penn- 
 sylvania. The House approved the nomination, and 
 provided the goods for the present, though they did 
 not much like treating out of the provinces; and we 
 met the other commissioners at Albany about the 
 middle of June. 
 
 In our way thither, I projected and drew a plan 
 
 555 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 for the union of all the colonies under one govern- 
 ment, so far as might be necessary for defence and 
 other important general purposes. As we passed 
 through New York, I had there shown my project to 
 Mr. James Alexander and Mr. Kennedy, two gen- 
 tlemen of great knowledge in public affairs, and, be- 
 ing fortified by their approbation, I ventured to lay 
 it before the Congress. It then appeared that sev- 
 eral of the commissioners had formed plans of the 
 same kind. A previous question was first taken, 
 whether a union should be established, which passed 
 in the affirmative unanimously. A committee was 
 then appointed, one member from each colony, to 
 consider the several plans, and report. Mine hap- 
 pened to be preferred, and, with a few amendments, 
 was accordingly reported. 
 
 By this plan the general government was to be 
 administered by a president-general, appointed and 
 supported by the crown, and a grand council was to 
 be chosen by the representatives of the people of the 
 several colonies, met in their respective assemblies. 
 The debates upon it in Congress went on daily, hand 
 in hand with the Indian business. Many objections 
 and difficulties were started, but at length they were 
 all overcome, and the plan was unanimously agreed 
 to, and copies ordered to be transmitted to the Board 
 of Trade and to the assemblies of the several prov- 
 inces. Its fate was singular: the assemblies did not 
 adopt it, as they all thought there was too much pre- 
 
 556 
 
Franklin : The Plan of Union 
 
 rogative in it, and in England it was judged to have 
 too much of the democratic. The Board of Trade 
 therefore did not approve of it, nor recommend it for 
 the approbation of his majesty; but another scheme 
 was formed, supposed to answer the same purpose 
 better, whereby the governors of the provinces, with 
 some members of their respective councils, were to 
 meet and order the raising of troops, building of 
 forts, etc., and to draw on the treasury of Great Brit- 
 ain for the expense, which was afterward to be re- 
 funded by an act of Parliament laying a tax on 
 America. My plan, with my reasons in support of 
 it, is to be found among my political papers that 
 are printed. 
 
 Being the winter following in Boston, I had 
 much conversation with Governor Shirley upon both 
 the plans. Part of what passed between us on the 
 occasion may also be seen among those papers. The 
 different and contrary reasons of dislike to my plan 
 makes me suspect that it was really the true medium; 
 and I am still of opinion it would have been happy 
 for both sides the water if it had been adopted. The 
 colonies, so united, would have been sufficiently 
 strong to have defended themselves; there would 
 then have been no need of troops from England ; of 
 course, the subsequent pretence for taxing America, 
 and the bloody contest it occasioned, would have 
 been avoided. But such mistakes are not new: his- 
 tory is full of the errors of states and princes. 
 
 557 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 "Look round the habitable world, how few 
 Know their own good, or, knowing it, pursue !" 
 
 Those who govern, having much business on their 
 hands, do not generally like to take the trouble of 
 considering and carrying into execution new proj- 
 ects. The best public measures are therefore seldom 
 adopted from previous wisdom, but forced by the 
 occasion. 
 
 The Governor of Pennsylvania, in sending it 
 down to the Assembly, expressed his approbation of 
 the plan, "as appearing to him to be drawn up with 
 great clearness and strength of judgment, and there- 
 fore recommended it as well worthy of their closest 
 and most serious attention." The House, however, 
 by the management of a certain member, took it up 
 when I happened to be absent, which I thought not 
 very fair and reprobated it without paying any at- 
 tention to it at all, to my no small mortification. 
 
 In my journey to Boston this year, I met at New 
 York with our new governor, Mr. Morris, just ar- 
 rived there from England, with whom I had been 
 before intimately acquainted. He brought a com- 
 mission to supersede Mr. Hamilton, who, tired with 
 the disputes his proprietary instructions subjected 
 him to, had resigned. Mr. Morris asked me if I 
 thought he must expect as uncomfortable an adminis- 
 tration. I said, "No ; you may, on the contrary, have 
 a very comfortable one, if you will only take care not 
 to enter into any dispute with the Assembly." "My; 
 
 5*8 
 
Franklin : The Plan of Union 
 
 dear friend," says he, pleasantly, "how can you ad- 
 vise my avoiding disputes? You know I love dis- 
 puting; it is one of my greatest pleasures; however, 
 to show the regard I have for your counsel, I promise 
 you I will, if possible, avoid them." He had some 
 reason for loving to dispute, being eloquent, an acute 
 sophister, and therefore generally successful in argu- 
 mentative conversation. He had been brought up to 
 it from a boy, his father, as I have heard, accustom- 
 ing his children to dispute with one another for his 
 diversion, while sitting at table after dinner; but I 
 think the practice was not wise; for, in the course of 
 my observation, these disputing, contradicting, and 
 confuting people are generally unfortunate in their 
 affairs. They get victory sometimes, but they never 
 get good will, which would be of more use to them. 
 We parted, he going to Philadelphia, and I to Boston. 
 In returning, I met at New York with the votes of 
 the Assembly, by which it appeared that, notwith- 
 standing his promise to me, he and the House were 
 already in high contention; and it was a continual 
 battle between them as long as he retained the gov- 
 ernment. I had my share of it; for, as soon as I got 
 back to my seat in the Assembly, I was put on every 
 committee for answering his speeches and messages, 
 and by the committees always desired to make the 
 drafts. Our answers, as well as his messages, were 
 often tart, and sometimes indecently abusive; and 
 as he knew I wrote for the Assembly, one might have 
 
 559 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 imagined that, when we met, we could hardly avoid 
 cutting throats; but he was so good-natured a man 
 that no personal difference between him and me was 
 occasioned by the contest, and we often dined to- 
 gether. 
 
 One afternoon, in the height of this public quar- 
 rel, we met in the street. "Franklin," says he, "you 
 must go home with me and spend the evening ; I am 
 to have some company that you will like ;" and tak- 
 ing me by the arm, he led me to his house. In gay 
 conversation over our wine, after supper, he told us, 
 jokingly, that he much admired the idea of Sancho 
 Panza, who, when it was proposed to give him a gov- 
 ernment, requested it might be a government of 
 blacks, as then, if he could not agree with his people, 
 he might sell them. One of his friends, who sat 
 next to me, says, "Franklin, why do you continue to 
 side with these damned Quakers? Had you not bet- 
 ter sell them? The proprietor would give a good 
 price." "The governor," says I, "has not yet 
 blacked them enough." He, indeed, had labored 
 hard to blacken the Assembly in all his messages, but 
 they wiped off his coloring as fast as he laid it on, 
 and placed it, in return, thick upon his own face ; so 
 that, finding he was likely to be negrofied himself, 
 he, as well as Mr. Hamilton, grew tired of the con- 
 test, and quitted the government. 
 
 These public quarrels were all at bottom ow- 
 ing to the proprietaries, our hereditary governors, 
 
 560 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 who, when any expense was to be incurred for the 
 defence of their province, with incredible meanness 
 instructed their deputies to pass no act for levying 
 the necessary taxes, unless their vast estates were in 
 the same act expressly excused; and they had even 
 taken bonds of these deputies to observe such instruc- 
 tions. The Assemblies for three years held out 
 against this injustice, though constrained to bend at 
 last. At length Captain Denny, who was Governor 
 Morris's successor, ventured to disobey those instruc- 
 tions. 
 
 FRANKLIN: BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 
 
 ^ATTAR being in a manner commenced with France, 
 ** the government of Massachusetts Bay pro- 
 jected an attack upon Crown Point, and sent Mr. 
 Quincy to Pennsylvania, and Mr. Pownall, after- 
 ward Governor Pownall, to New York, to solicit 
 assistance. As I was in the Assembly, knew its tem- 
 per, and was Mr. Quincy's countryman, he applied 
 to me for my influence and assistance. I dictated 
 his address to them, which was well received. They 
 voted an aid of ten thousand pounds, to be laid out 
 in provisions. But the governor refusing his assent 
 to their bill (which included this with other sums 
 granted for the use of the crown), unless a clause 
 were inserted exempting the proprietary estate from 
 
 5 6i 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 bearing any part of the tax that would be necessary, 
 the Assembly, though very desirous of making their 
 grant to New England effectual, were at a loss how 
 to accomplish it. Mr. Quincy labored hard with 
 the governor to obtain his assent, but he was ob- 
 stinate. 
 
 I then suggested a method of doing the business 
 without a governor, by orders on the trustees of the 
 Loan Office, which, by law, the Assembly had the 
 right of drawing. There was, indeed, little or no 
 money at that time in the office, and therefore I pro- 
 posed that the orders should be payable in a year, 
 and to bear an interest of five per cent. With these 
 orders I supposed the provisions might easily be pur- 
 chased. The Assembly, with very little hesitation, 
 adopted the proposal. The orders were immedi- 
 ately printed, and I was one of the committee di- 
 rected to sign and dispose of them. The fund for 
 paying them was the interest of all the paper cur- 
 rency then extant in the province upon loan, together 
 with the revenue arising from the excise, which be- 
 ing known to be more than sufficient, they obtained 
 instant credit, and were not only received in payment 
 for the provisions, but many moneyed people, who 
 had casK lying by them, vested it in those orders, 
 which they found advantageous, as they bore inter- 
 est while upon hand, and might on any occasion be 
 used as money, so that tHey were eagerly all bought 
 up, and in a few weeks none of them were to be seen, 
 
 $6i 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 Thus this important affair was by my means com- 
 pleted. Mr. Quincy returned thanks to the Assem- 
 bly in a handsome memorial, went home highly 
 pleased with the success of his embassy, and ever 
 after bore for me the most cordial and affectionate 
 friendship. 
 
 The British government, not choosing to permit 
 the union of the colonies as proposed at Albany, and 
 to trust that union with their defence, lest they should 
 thereby grow too military and feel their own strength, 
 suspicions and jealousies at this time being enter- 
 tained of them, sent over General Braddock with two 
 regiments of regular English troops for that purpose. 
 He landed at Alexandria, in Virginia, and thence 
 marched to Fredericktown, in Maryland, where he 
 halted for carriages. Our Assembly apprehending, 
 from some information, that he had conceived vio- 
 lent prejudices against them, as averse to the ser- 
 vice, wished me to wait upon him, not as from them, 
 but as postmaster-general, under the guise of pro- 
 posing to settle with him the mode of conducting 
 with most celerity and certainty the despatches be- 
 tween him and the governors of the several provinces, 
 with whom he must necessarily have continual corre- 
 spondence, and of which they proposed to pay the 
 expense. My son accompanied me on this journey. 
 
 We found the general at Fredericktown, waiting 
 impatiently for the return of those he had sent 
 through the back parts of Maryland and Virginia 
 
 5^3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 to collect wagons. I stayed with him several days, 
 dined with him daily, and had full opportunity of 
 removing all his prejudices, by the information of 
 what the Assembly had before his arrival actually 
 done, and were still willing to do, to facilitate his 
 operations. When I was about to depart, the re- 
 turns of wagons to be obtained were brought in, by 
 which it appeared that they amounted only to twenty- 
 five, and not all of those were in serviceable condi- 
 tion. The general and all the officers were sur- 
 prised, declared the expedition was then at an 
 end, being impossible, and exclaimed against the 
 ministers for ignorantly landing them in a country 
 destitute of the means of conveying their stores, bag- 
 gag©, etc., not less than one hundred and fifty wagons 
 being necessary. 
 
 I happened to say I thought it was a pity they 
 had not been landed rather in Pennsylvania, as in 
 that country almost every farmer had his wagon. 
 The general eagerly laid hold of my words, and said, 
 "Then you, sir, who are a man of interest there, can 
 probably procure them for us; and I beg you will 
 undertake it." I asked what terms were to be offered 
 the owners of the wagons; and I was desired to put 
 on paper the terms that appeared to me necessary. 
 This I did, and they were agreed to, and a commis- 
 sion and instructions accordingly prepared immedi- 
 ately. What those terms were will appear in the 
 advertisement I published as soon as I arrived at 
 
 564 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 Lancaster, which being, from the great and sudden 
 effect it produced, a piece of some curiosity, I shall 
 insert it at length, as follows: 
 
 "ADVERTISEMENT 
 
 "Lancaster, April 26, 1755. 
 
 "Whereas, one hundred and fifty wagons, with 
 four horses to each wagon, and fifteen hundred sad- 
 dle or pack horses, are wanted for the service of his 
 Majesty's forces now about to rendezvous at Will's 
 Creek, and his excellency General Braddock having 
 been pleased to empower me to contract for the hire 
 of the same, I hereby give notice that I shall attend 
 for that purpose at Lancaster from this day to next 
 Wednesday evening, and at York from next Thurs- 
 day morning till Friday evening, where I shall be 
 ready to agree for wagons and teams, or single horses, 
 on the following terms, viz.: I. That there shall be 
 paid for each wagon, with four good horses and a 
 driver, fifteen shillings per diem; and for each able 
 horse with a pack-saddle or other saddle and furni- 
 ture, two shillings per diem; and for each able horse 
 without a saddle, eighteen pence per diem. 2. That 
 the pay commence from the time of their joining the 
 forces at Will's Creek, which must be on or before 
 the 20th of May ensuing, and that a reasonable allow- 
 ance be paid over and above for the time necessary 
 for their travelling to Will's Creek and home again 
 after their discharge. 3. Each wagon and team, and 
 every saddle or pack horse, is to be valued by indif- 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 ferent persons chosen between me and the owner; 
 and in case of the loss of any wagon, team, or 
 other horse in the service, the price according to 
 such valuation is to be allowed and paid. 4. Seven 
 days' pay is to be advanced and paid in hand by me 
 to the owner of each wagon and team or horse, at 
 the time of contracting, if required, and the re- 
 mainder to be paid by General Braddock, or by the 
 paymaster of the army, at the time of their discharge, 
 or from time to time, as it shall be demanded. 5. No 
 drivers of wagons, or persons taking care of the hired 
 horses, are on any account to be called upon to do the 
 duty of soldiers, or be otherwise employed than in 
 conducting or taking care of their carriages or horses. 
 6. All oats, Indian corn, or other forage that wagons 
 or horses bring to the camp, more than is necessary 
 for the subsistence of the horses, is to be taken for the 
 use of the army, and a reasonable price paid for the 
 same. 
 
 "Note. — My son, William Franklin, is empow- 
 ered to enter into like contracts with any person in 
 Cumberland county. B. FRANKLIN. 
 
 "To the Inhabitants of the Counties of Lancaster, 
 York, and Cumberland 
 
 "Friends and Countrymen — Being occasion- 
 ally at the camp at Frederick a few days since, I 
 found the general and officers extremely exasperated 
 on account of their not being supplied with horses 
 
 566 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 and carriages, which had been expected from this 
 province, as most able to furnish them ; but, through 
 the dissensions between our governor and Assembly, 
 money had not been provided, nor any steps taken for 
 that purpose. 
 
 "It was proposed to send an armed force imme- 
 diately into these counties, to seize as many of the 
 best carriages and horses as should be wanted, and 
 compel as many persons into the service as would be 
 necessary to drive and take care of them. 
 
 "I apprehended that the progress of British sol- 
 diers through these counties on such an occasion, 
 especially considering the temper they are in, and 
 their resentment against us, would be attended with 
 many and great inconveniences to the inhabitants, 
 and therefore more willingly took the trouble of try- 
 ing first what might be done by fair and equitable 
 means. The people of these back counties have late- 
 ly complained to the Assembly that a sufficient cur- 
 rency was wanting; you have an opportunity of re- 
 ceiving and dividing among you a very considerable 
 sum; for, if the service of this expedition should con- 
 tinue, as it is more than probable it will, for one hun- 
 dred and twenty days, the hire of these wagons and 
 horses will amount to upward of thirty thousand 
 pounds, which will be paid you in silver and gold 
 of the king's money. 
 
 "The service will be light and easy, for the army 
 will scarce march above twelve miles per day, and 
 
 567 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the wagons and baggage-horses, as they carry those 
 things that are absolutely necessary to the welfare of 
 the army, must march with the army, and no faster; 
 and are, for the army's sake, always placed where 
 they can be most secure, whether in a march or in a 
 camp. 
 
 "If you are really, as I believe you are, good and 
 loyal subjects to his majesty, you may now do a most 
 acceptable service, and make it easy to yourselves; 
 for three or four of such as can not separately spare 
 from the business of their plantations a wagon and 
 four horses and a driver, may do it together, one fur- 
 nishing the wagon, another one or two horses, and 
 another the driver, and divide the pay proportion- 
 ably between you; but if you do not this service to 
 your king and country voluntarily, when such good 
 pay and reasonable terms are offered to you, your 
 loyalty will be strongly suspected. The king's busi- 
 ness must be done; so many brave troops, come so far 
 for your defence, must not stand idle through your 
 backwardness to do what may be reasonably expected 
 from you; wagons and horses must be had; violent 
 measures will probably be used, and you will be left 
 to seek for a recompense where you can find it, and 
 your case, perhaps, be little pitied or regarded. 
 
 "I have no particular interest in this affair, as, 
 except the satisfaction of endeavoring to do good, I 
 shall have only my labor for my pains. If this 
 method of obtaining the wagons and horses is not 
 
 568 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 likely to succeed, I am obliged to send word to the 
 general in fourteen days; and I suppose Sir John St. 
 Clair, the hussar, with a body of soldiers, will imme- 
 diately enter the province for the purpose, which I 
 shall be sorry to hear, because I am very sincerely 
 and truly your friend and well-wisher, 
 >_, "B. Franklin." 
 
 I received of the general about eight hundred 
 pounds, to be disbursed in advance-money to the 
 wagon owners, etc. ; but that sum being insufficient, 
 I advanced upward of two hundred pounds more, 
 and in two weeks the one hundred and fifty wagons, 
 with two hundred and fifty-nine carrying horses, 
 were on their march for the camp. The advertise- 
 ment promised payment according to the valuation, 
 in case any wagon or horse should be lost. The own- 
 ers, however, alleging they did not know General 
 Braddock, or what dependence might be had on his 
 promise, insisted on my bond for the performance, 
 which I accordingly gave them. 
 
 While I was at the camp, supping one evening 
 with the officers of Colonel Dunbar's regiment, he 
 represented to me his concern for the subalterns, 
 who, he said, were generally not in affluence, and 
 could ill afford, in this dear country, to lay in the 
 stores that might be necessary in so long a march, 
 through a wilderness, where nothing was to be pur- 
 chased. I commiserated their case, and resolved to 
 
 569 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 endeavor procuring them some relief. I said noth- 
 ing, however, to him of my intention, but wrote the 
 next morning to the committee of the Assembly, who 
 had the disposition of some public money, warmly 
 recommending the case of these officers to their con- 
 sideration, and proposing that a present should be sent 
 them of necessaries and refreshments. My son, who 
 had some experience of a camp life, and of its wants, 
 drew up a list for me, which I inclosed in my letter. 
 The committee approved, and used such diligence 
 that, conducted by my son, the stores arrived at the 
 camp as soon as the wagons. They consisted of 
 twenty parcels, each containing — 
 
 6 lbs. loaf sugar. i Gloucester cheese. 
 
 6 lbs. good Muscovado do. I keg containing 20 lbs. 
 1 lb. good green tea. good butter. 
 
 1 lb. good bohea do. 2 doz. old Madeira wine. 
 
 6 lbs. good ground coffee. 2 gallons Jamaica spirits. 
 
 6 lbs. chocolate. 1 bottle flour of mustard. 
 
 1-2 cwt. best white biscuit. 2 well-cured hams. 
 
 1-2 lb. pepper. 1-2 dozen dried tongues. 
 
 1 quart best white wine 6 lbs. rice, 
 
 vinegar. 6 lbs. raisins.' 
 
 These twenty parcels, well packed, were placed 
 on as many horses, each parcel, with the horse, be- 
 ing intended as a present for one officer. They were 
 very thankfully received, and the kindness acknowl- 
 edged by letters to me from the colonels of both 
 regiments, in the most grateful terms. The gen- 
 eral, too, was highly satisfied with my conduct in 
 
 570 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 procuring him the wagons, etc., and readily paid my 
 account of disbursements, thanking me repeatedly, 
 and requesting my further assistance in sending pro- . 
 visions after him. I undertook this also, and was 
 busily employed in it till we heard of his defeat, ad- 
 vancing for the service of my own money upward of 
 one thousand pounds sterling, of which I sent him an 
 account. It came to his hands, luckily for me, a few 
 days before the battle, and he returned me immedi- 
 ately an order on the paymaster for the round sum of 
 one thousand pounds, leaving the remainder to the 
 next account. I consider this payment as good luck 
 having never been able to obtain that remainder, of 
 which more hereafter. 
 
 This general was, I think, a brave man, and 
 might probably have made a figure as a good officer 
 in some European war. But he had too much self- 
 confidence, too high an opinion of the validity of reg- 
 ular troops, and too mean a one of both Americans 
 and Indians. George Croghan, our Indian inter- 
 preter, joined him on his march with one hundred 
 of those people, who might have been of great use 
 to his army as guides, scouts, etc., if he had treated 
 them kindly; but he slighted and neglected them, 
 and they gradually left him. 
 
 In conversation with him one day, he was giving 
 me some account of his intended progress. "After 
 taking Fo't Duquesne," says he, "I am to proceed to 
 Niagara; and, having taken that, to Frontenac, if 
 
 57; 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the season will allow time ; and I suppose it will, for 
 Duquesne can hardly detain me above three or four 
 days; and then I see nothing that can obstruct my 
 march to Niagara." Having before resolved in my 
 mind the long line his army must make in their march 
 by a very narrow road, to be cut for them through 
 the woods and bushes, and also what I had read of 
 a former defeat of fifteen hundred French, who in- 
 vaded the Iroquois country, I had conceived some 
 doubts and some fears for the event of the campaign. 
 But I ventured only to say, "To be sure, sir, if you 
 arrive well before Duquesne, with these fine troops, 
 so well provided with artillery, that place not yet 
 completely fortified, and as we hear with no very 
 strong garrison, can probably make but a short re- 
 sistance. The only danger I apprehend of obstruc- 
 tion to your march is from ambuscades of Indians, 
 who, by constant practice, are dexterous in laying 
 and executing them; and the slender line, near four 
 miles long, which your army must make, may ex- 
 pose it to be attacked by surprise in its flanks, and to 
 be cut like a thread into several pieces, which, from 
 their distance, cannot come up in time to support 
 each other." 
 
 He smiled at my ignorance, and replied, "These 
 savages may, indeed, be a formidable enemy to your 
 raw American militia, but upon the king's regular 
 and disciplined troops, sir, it is impossible they 
 should make any impression." I was conscious of 
 
 572 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 an impropriety in my disputing with a military man 
 in matters of his profession, and said no more. The 
 enemy, however, did not take the advantage of his 
 army which I apprehended its long line of march 
 exposed it to, but let it advance without interruption 
 till within nine miles of the place; and then, when 
 more in a body (for it had just passed a river, where 
 the front had halted till all were come over), and 
 in a more open part of the woods than any it had 
 passed, attacked its advanced guard by a heavy fire 
 from behind trees and bushes, which was the first 
 intelligence the general had of an enemy's being near 
 him. This guard being disordered, the general hur- 
 ried the troops up to their assistance, which was done 
 in great confusion, through wagons, baggage, and 
 cattle; and presently the fire came upon their flank: 
 the officers, being on horseback, were more easily 
 distinguished, picked out as marks, and fell very 
 fast; and the soldiers were crowded together in a 
 huddle, having or hearing no orders, and standing 
 to be shot at till two-thirds of them were killed; and 
 then, being seized with a panic, the whole fled with 
 precipitation. 
 
 The wagoners took each a horse out of his team 
 and scampered; their example was immediately fol- 
 lowed by others; so that all the wagons, provisions, 
 artillery, and stores were left to the enemy. The gen- 
 eral, being wounded, was brought off with difficulty; 
 his secretary, Mr. Shirley, was killed by his side; 
 
 573 
 
 19— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 and out of eighty-six officers, sixty-three were killed 
 or wounded, and seven hundred and fourteen men 
 killed out of eleven hundred. These eleven hun- 
 dred had been picked men from the whole army; 
 the rest had been left behind with Colonel Dunbar, 
 who was to follow with the heavier part of the 
 stores, provisions, and baggage. The flyers, not be- 
 ing pursued, arrived at Dunbar's camp, and the 
 panic they brought with them instantly seized him 
 and all his people; and, though he had now above 
 one thousand men, and the enemy who had beaten 
 Braddock did not at most exceed four hundred In- 
 dians and French together, instead of proceeding, 
 and endeavoring to recover some of the lost honor, 
 he ordered all the stores, ammunition, etc., to be de- 
 stroyed, that he might have more horses to assist his 
 flight toward the settlements, and less lumber to re- 
 move. He was there met with requests from the 
 governors of Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylva- 
 nia, that he would post his troops on the frontiers, 
 so as to afford some protection to the inhabitants; but 
 he continued his hasty march through all the coun- 
 try, not thinking himself safe till he arrived at 
 Philadelphia, where the inhabitants could protect 
 him. This whole transaction gave us Americans 
 the first suspicion that our exalted ideas of the prow- 
 ess of British regulars had not been well founded. 
 
 In their first march, too, from their landing till 
 they got beyond the settlements, they had plundered 
 
 574 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 and stripped the inhabitants, totally ruining some 
 poor families, besides insulting, abusing, and con- 
 fining the people if they remonstrated. This was 
 enough to put us out of conceit of such defenders, 
 if we had really wanted any. How different was 
 the conduct of our French friends in 178 1, who, dur- 
 ing a march through the most inhabited part of our 
 country from Rhode Island to Virginia, near seven 
 hundred miles, occasioned not the smallest com- 
 plaint for the loss of a pig, a chicken, or even an 
 apple. 
 
 Captain Orme, who was one of the general's 
 aides-de-camp, and, being grievously wounded, was 
 brought off with him, and continued with him to his 
 death, which happened in a few days, told me that 
 he was totally silent all day, and at night only said, 
 "Who would have thought it?" That he was silent 
 again the following day, saying only at last, "We 
 shall better know how to deal with them another 
 time/' and died in a few minutes after. 
 
 The secretary's papers, with all the general's or- 
 ders, instructions, and correspondence, falling into 
 the enemy's hands, they selected and translated into 
 French a number of the articles, which they printed, 
 to prove the hostile intentions of the British court be- 
 fore the declaration of war. Among these I saw 
 some letters of the general to the ministry, speaking 
 highly of the great service I had rendered the army, 
 and recommending me to their notice. David Hume, 
 
 575 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 too, who was some years after secretary to Lord 
 Hertford, when minister in France, and afterward 
 to General Conway, when secretary of state, told me 
 he had seen among the papers in that office, letters 
 from Braddock highly recommending me. But the 
 expedition having been unfortunate, my service, it 
 seems, was not thought of much value, for those rec- 
 ommendations were never of any use to me. 
 
 As to rewards from himself, I asked only one, 
 which was that he would give orders to his officers 
 not to enlist any more of our bought servants, and 
 that he would discharge such as had been already 
 enlisted. This he readily granted, and several were 
 accordingly returned to their masters, on my appli- 
 cation. Dunbar, when the command devolved on 
 him, was not so generous. He being at Philadelphia, 
 on his retreat, or rather flight, I applied to him for 
 the discharge of the servants of three poor farmers 
 of Lancaster county that he had enlisted, reminding 
 him of the late general's orders on that head. He 
 promised me that, if the masters would come to him 
 at Trenton, where he should be in a few days on his 
 march to New York, he would there deliver their 
 men to them. They accordingly were at the expense 
 and trouble of going to Trenton, and there he refused 
 to perform his promise, to their great loss and dis- 
 appointment. 
 
 As soon as the loss of the wagons and horses was 
 generally known, all the owners came upon me for 
 
 576 
 
Franklin: Braddock's Defeat 
 
 the valuation which I had given bond to pay. Thci r 
 demands gave me a great deal of trouble, my ac- 
 quainting them that the money was ready in the 
 paymaster's hands, but that orders for paying it must 
 first be obtained from General Shirley, and my as- 
 suring them that I had applied to that general by let- 
 ter, but he being at a distance, an answer could not 
 soon be received, and they must have patience; all 
 this was not sufficient to satisfy, and some began to 
 sue me. General Shirley at length relieved me from 
 this terrible situation by appointing commissioners 
 to examine the claims, and ordering payment. They 
 amounted to nearly twenty thousand pounds, which 
 to pay would have ruined me. 
 
 Before we had the news of this defeat, the two 
 Doctors Bond came to me with a subscription paper 
 for raising money to defray the expense of a grand 
 firework, which it was intended to exhibit at a rejoic- 
 ing on receipt of the news of our taking Fort Du- 
 quesne. I looked grave, and said it would, I 
 thought, be time enough to prepare for the rejoicing 
 when we knew we should have occasion to rejoice. 
 They seemed surprised that I did not immediately 
 comply with their proposal. "Why . . . !" says one 
 of them, "you surely don't suppose that the fort will 
 not be taken?" "I don't know that it will not be taken, 
 but I know that the events of war are subject to great 
 uncertainty." I gave them the reasons of my doubt- 
 ing; the subscription was dropped, and the project- 
 
 577 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 ors thereby missed the mortification they would have 
 undergone if the firework had been prepared. Dr. 
 Bond, on some other occasion afterward, said that he 
 did not like Franklin's forebodings. 
 
 PAUL REVERE'S RIDE 
 
 ¥ ISTEN, my children, and you shall hear 
 ^ Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere, 
 On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five: 
 Hardly a man is now alive 
 Who remembers that famous day and year. 
 
 He said to his friend, — "If the British march 
 
 By land or sea from the town to-night, 
 
 Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry-arch 
 
 Of the North-Church tower, as a signal-light, — 
 
 One if by land, and two if by sea; 
 
 And I on the opposite shore will be, 
 
 Ready to ride and spread the alarm 
 
 Through every Middlesex village and farm, 
 
 For the country-folk to be up and to. arm." 
 
 Then he said good-night, and with muffled oar 
 Silently row'd to the Charlestown shore, 
 Just as the moon rose over the bay, 
 Where swinging wide at her moorings lay 
 The "Somerset," British man-of-war: 
 
 578 
 
Paul Revere's Ride 
 
 A phantom ship, with each mast and spar 
 Across the moon, like a prison-bar, 
 And a huge, black hulk, that was magnified 
 By its own reflection in the tide. 
 
 Meanwhile his friend, through alley and street 
 Wanders and watches with eager ears, 
 Till in the silence around him he hears 
 The muster of men at the barrack-door, 
 The sound of arms, and the tramp of feet, 
 And the measured tread of the grenadiers 
 Marching down to their boats on the shore. 
 
 Then he climb'd to the tower of the church, 
 Up the wooden stairs, with stealthy tread, 
 To the belfry-chamber overhead, 
 And startled the pigeons from their perch 
 On the sombre rafters, that round him made 
 Masses and moving shapes of shade; 
 Up the light ladder, slender and tall, 
 To the highest window in the wall, 
 Where he paused to listen and look down 
 A moment on the roofs of the quiet town, 
 And the moonlight flowing over all. 
 
 Beneath, in the churchyard, lay the dead 
 In their night-encampment on the hill, 
 Wrapped in silence so deep and still, 
 That he could hear, like a sentinel's tread, 
 
 579 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 The watchful night-wind as it went 
 Creeping along from tent to tent, 
 And seeming to whisper, "All is well!" 
 A moment only he feels the spell 
 Of the place and the hour, the secret dread 
 Of the lonely belfry and the dead ; 
 For suddenly all his thoughts are bent 
 On a shadowy something far away, 
 Where the river widens to meet the bay, — 
 A line of black, that bends and floats 
 On the rising tide, like a bridge of boats. 
 
 Meanwhile, impatient to mount and ride, 
 Booted and spurr'd, with a heavy stride, 
 On the opposite shore walk'd Paul Revere. 
 Now he patted his horse's side, 
 Now gazed on the landscape far and near, 
 Then impetuous stamp'd the earth, 
 And turn'd and tighten'd his saddle-girth; 
 But mostly he watch'd with eager search 
 The belfry-tower of the old North Church, 
 As it rose above the graves on the hill, 
 Lonely, and spectral, and sombre, and still. 
 
 And, lo! as he looks, on the belfry's height, 
 A glimmer, and then a gleam of light! 
 He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns, 
 But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight 
 A second lamp in the belfry burns! 
 
 580 
 
Ipaul IRevere's IRtoe 
 
 "A hurry of hoofs in a village slreet." 
 
 —Vol. VIII, p. s8i. 
 


Paul Revere's Ride 
 
 A hurry of hoofs in a village street, 
 A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark, 
 And beneath from the pebbles, in passing, a spark 
 Struck out by a steed that flies fearless and fleet: 
 That was all ! And yet, through the gloom and 
 
 the light, 
 The fate of a nation was riding that night; 
 And the spark struck out by that steed, in his 
 
 flight, 
 Kindled the land into flame with its heat. 
 
 It was twelve by the village clock, 
 
 When he cross'd the bridge into Medford town, 
 
 He heard the crowing of the cock, 
 
 And the barking of the farmer's dog, 
 
 And felt the damp of the river-fog, 
 
 That rises when the sun goes down. 
 
 It was one by the village clock, 
 
 When he rode into Lexington. 
 
 He saw the gilded weathercock 
 
 Swim in the moonlight as he pass'd, 
 
 And the meeting-house windows, blank and bare, 
 
 Gaze at him with a spectral glare, 
 
 As if they already stood aghast 
 
 At the bloody work they would look upon. 
 
 It was two by the village clock, 
 When he came to the bridge in Concord town. 
 He heard the bleating of the flock, 
 
 5^8 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 And the twitter of birds among the trees, 
 And felt the breath of the morning-breeze 
 Blowing over the meadows brown. 
 And one was safe and asleep in his bed 
 Who at the bridge would be first to fall, 
 Who that day would be lying dead, 
 Pierced by a British musket-ball. 
 
 You know the rest. In the books you have read 
 How the British regulars fired and fled; 
 How the farmers gave them ball for ball, 
 From behind each fence and farmyard-wall, 
 Chasing the red-coats down the lane, 
 Then crossing the fields to emerge again 
 Under the trees at the turn of the road, 
 And only pausing to fire and load. 
 
 So through the night rode Paul Revere; 
 And so through the night went his cry of alarm 
 To every Middlesex village and farm, — 
 A cry of defiance, and not of fear, — 
 A voice in the darkness, a knock at the door, 
 And a word that shall echo for evermore! 
 For, borne on the night-wind of the Past, 
 Through all our history, to the last, 
 In the hour of darkness, and peril, and need, 
 The people will waken and listen to hear 
 The hurrying hoof-beat of that steed, 
 And the midnight message of Paul Revere. 
 
 — H. W. Longfellow 
 58a 
 
CONCORD FIGHT 
 
 DY the rude bridge that arched the flood, 
 *-^ Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, 
 Here once the embattled farmers stood, 
 And fired the shot heard round the world. 
 
 The foe long since in silence slept; 
 Alike the conqueror silent sleeps; 
 And Time the ruined bridge has swept 
 Down the dark stream which seaward creeps. 
 
 On the green bank, by this soft stream, 
 We set to-day a votive stone ; 
 That memory may her dead redeem, 
 When, like our sires, our sons are gone. 
 
 Spirit, that made those heroes dare 
 To die, and leave their children free, 
 Bid Time and Nature gently spare 
 The shaft we raise to them and thee. 
 
 — R. W. Emerson 
 
 CARMEN BELLICOSUM 
 
 o 
 
 N their ragged regimentals 
 Stood the old Continentals, 
 Yielding not, 
 
 583 
 
■ 
 
 Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 When the grenadiers were lunging, 
 And like hail fell the plunging 
 
 Cannon-shot; 
 
 When the files 
 
 Of the isles, 
 From the smoky night encampment, bore the banner 
 of the rampant 
 
 Unicorn, 
 
 And grummer, grummer, grummer, rolled the roll 
 of the drummer, 
 
 Through the morn! 
 
 Then with eyes to the front all, 
 And with guns horizontal, 
 
 Stood our sires; 
 And the balls whistled deadly, 
 And in streams flashing redly 
 
 Blazed the fires; 
 
 As the roar 
 
 On the shore, 
 Swept the strong battle-breakers o'er the green- 
 sodded acres 
 
 Of the plain; 
 And louder, louder, louder, cracked the black gun- 
 powder, 
 
 Cracking amain! 
 
 Now like smiths at their forges 
 Worked the red St. George's 
 Cannoniers ; 
 
 584 
 
Carmen Bellicosum 
 
 And the "villanous saltpetre" 
 Rung a fierce, discordant metre 
 
 Round their ears; 
 
 As the swift 
 
 Storm-drift, 
 With hot sweeping anger, came the horse-guards 
 clangor 
 
 On our flanks. 
 Then higher, higher, higher, burned the old-fash- 
 ioned fire 
 
 Through the ranks! 
 
 Then the old-fashioned colonel 
 Galloped through the white infernal 
 
 Powder-cloud; 
 And his broad sword was swinging, 
 And his brazen throat was ringing 
 
 Trumpet loud. 
 
 Then the blue 
 
 Bullets flew, 
 And the trooper-jackets redden at the touch of the 
 leaden 
 
 Rifle-breath; 
 And rounder, rounder, rounder, roared the iron six- 
 pounder, 
 
 Hurling death! 
 
 — Guy Humphrey McM aster 
 
 585 
 
SONG OF MARION'S MEN 
 
 UR band is few, but true and tried, 
 Our leader frank and bold ; 
 The British soldier trembles 
 
 When Marion's name is told. 
 Our fortress is the good greenwood, 
 
 Our tent the cypress-tree ; 
 We know the forest round us, 
 
 As seamen know the sea; 
 We know its walks of thorny vines, 
 
 Its glades of reedy grass, 
 Its safe and silent islands 
 
 Within the dark morass. 
 
 Woe to the English soldiery 
 
 That little dread us near! 
 On them shall light at midnight 
 
 A strange and sudden fear; 
 When, waking to their tents on fire, 
 
 They grasp their arms in vain, 
 And they who stand to face us 
 
 Are beat to earth again ; 
 And they who fly in terror deem 
 
 A mighty host behind, 
 And hear the tramp of thousands 
 
 Upon the hollow wind 
 586 
 
Song of Marion's Men 
 
 Then sweet the hour that brings release 
 
 From danger and from toil; 
 We talk the battle over, 
 
 And share the battle's spoil. 
 The woodland rings with laugh and shout, 
 
 As if a hunt were up, 
 And woodland flowers are gathered 
 
 To crown the soldier's cup. 
 With merry songs we mock the wind 
 
 That in the pine-top grieves, 
 And slumber long and sweetly 
 
 On beds of oaken leaves. 
 
 Well knows the fair and friendly moon 
 
 The band that Marion leads — 
 The glitter of their rifles, 
 
 The scampering of their steeds. 
 'Tis life to guide the fiery barb 
 
 Across the moonlight plain; 
 'Tis life to feel the night-wind 
 
 That lifts his tossing mane. 
 A moment in the British camp — 
 
 A moment — and away, 
 Back to the pathless forest, 
 
 Before the peep of day. 
 
 Grave men there are by broad Santee, 
 Grave men with hoary hairs; 
 
 Their hearts are all with Marion, 
 For Marion are their prayers, 
 
 587 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 And lovely ladies greet our band, 
 
 With kindest welcoming, 
 With smiles like those of summer, 
 
 And tears like those of spring. 
 For them we wear these trusty arms, 
 
 And lay them down no more 
 Till we have driven the Briton, 
 
 Forever, from our shore. 
 
 — William Cullen Bryant 
 
 H 
 
 THE DRUM 
 
 ARK! I hear the tramp of thousands, 
 And of armed men the hum ; 
 Lo! a nation's hosts have gathered 
 Round the quick alarming drum, — 
 Saying, "Come, 
 Freemen, come! 
 Ere your heritage be wasted," said the quick alarm- 
 drum. 
 
 "Let me of my heart take counsel : 
 
 War is not of life the sum ; 
 Who shall stay and reap the harvest 
 When the autumn days shall come?" 
 But the drum 
 Echoed, "Come! 
 Death shall reap the braver harvest," said the sol- 
 emn-sounding drum. 
 588 
 
The Drum 
 
 '"But when won the coming battle, 
 
 What of profit springs therefrom? 
 What if conquest, subjugation, 
 Even greater ills become ?" 
 But the drum 
 Answered, "Come! 
 You must do the sum to prove it," said the Yankee- 
 answering drum. 
 
 "What if, 'mid the cannons' thunder, 
 Whistling shot and bursting bomb, 
 When my brothers fall around me, 
 
 Should my heart grow cold and numb?" 
 But the drum 
 Answered, "Come! 
 Better there in death united, than in life a recreant, — 
 Come!" 
 
 Thus they answered — hoping, fearing, 
 
 Some in faith, and doubting some, 
 Till a trumpet-voice proclaiming, 
 Said, "My chosen people, come!" 
 Then the drum, 
 Lo! was dumb, 
 For the great heart of the nation, throbbing, an- 
 swered, "Lord, we come!" 
 
 — Bret Harte 
 
 589 
 
BATTLE-HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC 
 
 INE eyes have seen the glory of the coming of 
 the Lord; 
 He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of 
 
 wrath are stored, 
 He hath loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible 
 swift sword; 
 His truth is marching on. 
 
 I have seen him in the watch-fires of a hundred cir- 
 cling camps; 
 
 They have builded him an altar in the evening dews 
 and damps, 
 
 I have read his righteous sentence by the dim and 
 flaring lamps; 
 His day is marching on. 
 
 I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of 
 
 steel ; 
 "As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my 
 
 grace shall deal: 
 Let the hero born of woman crush the serpent with 
 
 his heel, 
 Since God is marching on." 
 
 He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never 
 call retreat; 
 
 S9° 
 
 
Barbara Frietchie 
 
 He is sifting out the hearts of men before his judg- 
 ment-seat: 
 
 Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer him — be jubilant, 
 my feet! 
 Our God is marching on. 
 
 In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the 
 
 sea, 
 With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you and 
 
 me: 
 As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men 
 free, 
 While God is marching on. 
 
 — Julia Ward Howe 
 
 BARBARA FRIETCHIE 
 
 T TP from the meadows rich with corn, 
 ^-^ Clear in the cool September morn, 
 
 The clustered spires of Frederick stand 
 Green-walled by the hills of Maryland. 
 
 Round about them orchards sweep, 
 Apple and peach tree fruited deep, 
 
 Fair as a garden of the Lord 
 
 To the eyes of the famished rebel horde 
 
 S9* 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 On that pleasant morn of the early fall 
 When Lee marched over the mountain wall, 
 
 Over the mountains winding down, 
 Horse and foot into Frederick town. 
 
 Forty flags with their silver stars, 
 Forty flags with their crimson bars, 
 
 Flapped in the morning wind : the sun 
 Of noon looked down, and saw not one. 
 
 Up rose old Barbara Frietchie then, 
 Bowed with her fourscore years and ten ; 
 
 Bravest of all in Frederick town, 
 
 She took up the flag the men hauled down ; 
 
 In her attic window the staff she set, 
 To show that one heart was loyal yet. 
 
 Up the street came the rebel tread, 
 Stonewall Jackson riding ahead. 
 
 Under his slouched hat left and right 
 He glanced ; the old flag met his sight. 
 
 "Halt!" — the dust-brown ranks stood fast. 
 "Fire!" — out blazed the rifle-blast. 
 
 592 
 
Barbara Frietchie 
 
 It shivered the window, pane and sash; 
 It rent the banner with seam and gash. 
 
 Quick, as it fell, from the broken staff 
 Dame Barbara snatched the silken scarf; 
 
 She leaned far out on the window-sill, 
 And shook it forth with a royal will. 
 
 "Shoot, if you must, this old gray head, 
 But spare your country's flag," she said. 
 
 A shade of sadness, a blush of shame, 
 Over the face of the leader came ; 
 
 The nobler nature within him stirred 
 To life at that woman's deed and word : 
 
 "Who touches a hair of yon gray head 
 Dies like a dog! March on!" he said. 
 
 All day long through Frederick street 
 Sounded the tread of marching feet: 
 
 All day long that free flag tost 
 Over the heads of the rebel host. 
 
 Ever its torn folds rose and fell 
 On the loyal winds that loved it well ; 
 
 593 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 And through the hill-gaps sunset light 
 Shone over it with a warm good-night. 
 
 — Whittier 
 
 : < 'STONEWALL' JACKSON'S WAY" 
 
 OME, stack arms, men! Pile on the rails, 
 Stir up the camp-fire bright; 
 No matter if the canteen fails, 
 
 We'll make a roaring night. 
 Here Shenandoah brawls along, 
 There burly Blue Ridge echoes strong, 
 To swell the brigade's rousing song 
 
 Of " 'Stonewall' Jackson's way." 
 
 We see him now — the old slouched hat 
 
 Cocked o'er his eye askew, 
 The shrewd, dry smile, the speech so pat, 
 
 So calm, so blunt, so true. 
 The "Blue-Light Elder" knows 'em well ; 
 Says he, "That's Banks — he's fond of shell, 
 Lord save his soul ! We'll give him" — well, 
 
 That's " 'Stonewall' Jackson's way." 
 
 Silence! ground arms! kneel all! caps off! 
 
 "Old Blue-Light's" going to pray. 
 Strangle the fool that dares to scoff! 
 
 Attention! it's his way. 
 594 
 
" 'Stonewall' Jackson's Way " 
 
 Appealing from his native sod, 
 In forma pauperis to God — 
 "Lay bare thine arm, stretch forth thy rod! 
 Amen !" That's " 'Stonewall's ' way." 
 
 He's in the saddle now — Fall in! 
 
 Steady ! the whole brigade ! 
 Hill's at the ford, cut off — we'll win 
 
 His way out, ball and blade! 
 What matter if our shoes are worn? 
 What matter if our feet are torn? 
 "Quick-step! we're with him before dawn!" 
 
 That's " 'Stonewall' Jackson's way." 
 
 The sun's bright lances rout the mists 
 
 Of morning, and, by George! 
 Here's Longstreet struggling in the lists, 
 
 Hemmed in an ugly gorge. 
 Pope and his Yankees, whipped before, — 
 "Bay'nets and grape!" hear "Stonewall" roar; 
 "Charge, Stuart ! Pay off Ashby's score !" 
 
 In " 'Stonewall' Jackson's way." 
 
 Ah ! maiden, wait and watch and yearn 
 For news of "Stonewall's" band! 
 
 Ah! widow, read with eyes that burn 
 That ring upon thy hand. 
 
 Ah ! wife, sew on, pray on, hope on ! 
 
 S95 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Thy life shall not be all forlorn; 
 The foe had better ne'er been born 
 That gets in " 'Stonewall's' way." 
 
 — /. W . Palmer 
 
 SHERIDAN'S RIDE 
 
 I TP from the South at break of day, 
 *^ Bringing to Winchester fresh dismay, 
 The affrighted air with a shudder bore, 
 Like a herald in haste, to the chieftain's door, 
 The terrible grumble, and rumble, and roar, 
 Telling the battle was on once more, 
 And Sheridan twenty miles away. 
 
 And wider still those billows of war 
 Thundered along the horizon's bar; 
 And louder yet into Winchester rolled 
 The roar of that red sea uncontrolled, 
 Making the blood of the listener cold, 
 As he thought of the stake in that fiery fray, 
 And Sheridan twenty miles away. 
 
 But there is a road from Winchester town, 
 A good broad highway leading down; 
 And there, through the flush of the morning light, 
 A steed as black as the steeds of night 
 Was seen to pass, as with eagle flight, 
 
 596 
 
Sheridan's Ride 
 
 As if he knew the terrible need ; 
 He stretched away with his utmost speed; 
 Hills rose and fell ; but his heart was gay, 
 With Sheridan fifteen miles away. 
 
 Still sprung from those swift hoofs, thundering 
 
 South, 
 The dust, like smoke from the cannon's mouth; 
 Or a trail of a comet, sweeping faster and faster, 
 Foreboding to traitors the doom of disaster. 
 The heart of the steed and the heart of the master 
 Were beating like prisoners assaulting their walls, 
 Impatient to be where the battlefield calls ; 
 Every nerve of the charger was strained to full 
 
 play, 
 With Sheridan only ten miles away. 
 
 Under his spurning feet the road 
 
 Like an arrowy Alpine river flowed, 
 
 And the landscape sped away behind 
 
 Like an ocean flying before the wind ; 
 
 And the steed, like a bark fed with furnace ire, 
 
 Swept on with his wild eye full of fire. 
 
 But lo ! he is nearing his heart's desire ; 
 
 He is snuffing the smoke of the roaring fray, 
 
 With Sheridan only five miles away. 
 
 The first that the General saw were the groups 
 Of stragglers, and then the retreating troops. 
 
 597 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 What was done? what to do? A glance told him 
 
 both. 
 Then, striking his spurs, with a terrible oath, 
 He dashed down the line, 'mid a storm of huzzas, 
 And the wave of retreat checked its course there, 
 
 because 
 The sight of the master compelled it to pause. 
 With foam and with dust the black charger was 
 
 gray; 
 By the flash of his eye, and the red nostril's 
 
 play, 
 He seemed to the whole great army to say, 
 "I have brought you Sheridan all the way 
 From Winchester down to save the day!" 
 
 Hurrah! hurrah for Sheridan! 
 
 Hurrah ! hurrah for horse and man ! 
 
 And when their statues are placed on high, 
 
 Under the dome of the Union sky, 
 
 The American soldier's Temple of Fame — 
 
 There with the glorious General's name, 
 
 Be it said, in letters both bold and bright, 
 
 "Here is the steed that saved the day . 
 
 By carrying Sheridan into the fight, 
 
 From Winchester, twenty miles away!" 
 
 —Thomas Buchanan Read 
 
 598 
 
NEW YORK SEVENTH REGIMENT 
 BY THEODORE WINTHROP 
 
 OUR MARCH TO WASHINGTON 
 THROUGH THE CITY 
 
 T three o'clock in the afternoon of Friday, April 
 19th, we took our peacemaker, a neat twelve- 
 pound brass howitzer, down from the Seventh Regi- 
 ment Armory, and stationed it in the rear of the 
 building. The twin peacemaker is somewhere near 
 us, but entirely hidden by this enormous crowd. 
 
 An enormous crowd of both sexes, of every age 
 and condition. The men offer all kinds of truculent 
 and patriotic hopes; the women shed tears, and say: 
 "God bless you, boys!" 
 
 This is a part of the town where baddish cigars 
 prevail. But good or bad, I am ordered to keep all 
 away from the gun. So the throng stands back, 
 peers curiously over the heads of its junior members, 
 and seems to be taking the measure of my coffin. 
 
 After a patient hour of this, the word is given, we 
 fall in, our two guns find their places at the right of 
 the line of march, we move on through the thicken- 
 ing crowd. 
 
 At a great house on the left as we pass the Astor 
 Library, I see a handkerchief waving for me. Yes; 
 
 599 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 it is she who made the sandwiches in my knapsack. 
 They were a trifle too thick as I afterward discov- 
 ered, but otherwise perfection. Be these my thanks 
 and the thanks of hungry comrades who had bites of 
 them. 
 
 At the corner of Great Jones Street we halted for 
 half an hour — then, everything ready, we marched 
 down Broadway. 
 
 It was worth a life, that march. Only one who 
 passed, as we did, through that tempest of cheers, two 
 miles long, can know the terrible enthusiasm of the 
 occasion. I could hardly hear the rattle of our 
 own gun-carriages, and only once or twice the music 
 of our band came to me muffled and quelled by the 
 uproar. We knew now, if we had not before divined 
 it, that our great city was with us as one man, utterly 
 united in the great cause we were marching to sus- 
 tain. 
 
 This grand fact I learned by two senses. If hun- 
 dreds of thousands roared it into my ears, thousands 
 slapped it into my back. My fellow-citizens smote 
 me on the knapsack, as I went by at the gun-rope, and 
 encouraged me each in his own dialect. "Bully for 
 you!" alternated with benedictions, in the propor- 
 tion of two "bullies" to one blessing. 
 
 I was not so fortunate as to receive more sub- 
 stantial tokens of sympathy. But there were parting 
 gifts showered on the regiment, enough to establish 
 a variety-shop. Handkerchiefs, of course, came 
 
 600 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 floating down upon us from the windows, like a snow. 
 Pretty little gloves pelted us with love-taps. The 
 sterner sex forced upon us pocket-knives new and 
 jagged, combs, soap, slippers, boxes of matches, cigars 
 by the dozen and the hundred, pipes to smoke shag 
 and pipes to smoke Latakia, fruit, eggs, and sand- 
 wiches. One fellow got a new purse with ten bright 
 quarter-eagles. 
 
 At the corner of Grand Street, or thereabout, a 
 "bhoy" in red flannel shirt and black pantaloons, 
 leaning back against the crowd with Herculean 
 shoulders, called me: "Saay, bully, take my dorg! 
 he's one of the kind that holds till he draps." This 
 gentleman, with his animal, was instantly shoved 
 back by the police, and the Seventh lost the "dorg." 
 
 These were the comic incidents of the march, but 
 underlying all was the tragic sentiment that we 
 might have tragic work presently to do. The news 
 of the rascally attack in Baltimore on the Massachu- 
 setts Sixth had just come in. Ours might be the same 
 chance. If there were any of us not in earnest before, 
 the story of the day would steady us. So we said 
 good-by to Broadway, moved down Cortlandt Street 
 under a bower of flags, and at half-past six shoved 
 off in the ferry-boat. 
 
 Everybody has heard how Jersey City turned out 
 and filled up the railroad station like an opera house, 
 to give godspeed to us as a representative body, a 
 guaranty of the unquestioning loyalty of the "con- 
 
 60 1 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 servative" class in New York. Everybody has heard 
 how the State of New Jersey, along the railroad line, 
 stood through the evening and the night to shout 
 their quota of good wishes. At every station the 
 Jerseymen were there, uproarious as Jerseymen, to 
 shake our hands and wish us a happy despatch. I 
 think I did not see a rod of ground without its man, 
 from dusk till dawn, from the Hudson to the Dela- 
 ware. 
 
 Upon the train we made a jolly night of it. All 
 knew that the more a man sings, the better he is likely 
 to fight. So we sang more than we slept, and, in fact, 
 that has been our history ever since. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 
 At sunrise we were at the station in Philadelphia, 
 and dismissed for an hour. Some hundreds of us 
 made up Broad Street for the Lapierre House to 
 breakfast. When I arrived, I found every place at 
 table filled and every waiter ten deep with orders. 
 So, being an old campaigner, I followed up the 
 stream of provender to the fountain-head, the kitchen. 
 Half a dozen other old campaigners were already 
 there, most hospitably entertained by the cooks. 
 They served us, hot and hot, with the best of their 
 best, straight from the gridiron and the pan. I hope, 
 if I live to breakfast again in the Lapierre House, 
 that I may be allowed to help myself and choose for 
 myself below-stairs. 
 
 602 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 When we rendezvoused at the tram, we found 
 that the orders were for every man to provide himself 
 three days' rations in the neighborhood, and be ready 
 for a start at a moment's notice. 
 
 A mountain of bread was already piled up in 
 the station. I stuck my bayonet through a stout loaf, 
 and, with a dozen comrades armed in the same way, 
 went foraging about for other vivers. 
 
 It is a poor part of Philadelphia; but whatever 
 they had in the shops or the houses seemed to be at 
 our disposition. I stopped at a corner shop to ask 
 for pork, and was amicably assailed by an earnest 
 dame — Irish, I am pleased to say. She thrust her 
 last loaf upon me, and sighed that it was not baked 
 that morning for my "honor's service." 
 
 A little further on, two kindly Quaker ladies 
 compelled me to step in. "What could they do?" 
 they asked eagerly. "They had no meat in the house ; 
 but could we eat eggs? They had in the house a 
 dozen and a half new laid." So the pot to the fire, 
 and the eggs boiled, and bagged by myself and that 
 tall Saxon, my friend E. of the Sixth Company. 
 While the eggs simmered, the ladies thee-ed us 
 prayerfully and tearfully, hoping that God would 
 save our country from blood, unless blood must be 
 shed to preserve law and liberty. 
 
 Nothing definite from Baltimore when we re- 
 turned to the station. We stood by, waiting orders. 
 About noon the Eighth Massachusetts Regiment took 
 
 603 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the train southward. Our regiment was ready to a 
 man to try its strength with the Plug Uglies. If there 
 had been any voting on the subject, the plan to fol- 
 low the straight road to Washington would have been 
 accepted by acclamation. But the higher powers 
 deemed that "the longest way round was the shortest 
 way home," and no doubt their decision was wise. 
 The event proved it. 
 
 At two o'clock came the word to fall in. We han- 
 dled our howitzers again, and marched down Jef- 
 ferson Avenue to the steamer "Boston" to embark. 
 
 To embark for what port? For Washington, of 
 course, finally; but by what route? That was to re- 
 main in doubt to us privates for a day or two. 
 
 The "Boston" is a steamer of the outside line from 
 Philadelphia to New York. She just held our le- 
 gion. We tramped on board and were allotted about 
 the craft from the top to the bottom story. We took 
 tents, traps, and grub on board, and steamed away 
 down the Delaware in the sweet afternoon of April. 
 If ever the heavens smiled fair weather on any cam- 
 paign, they have done so on ours. 
 
 THE "BOSTON" 
 
 Soldiers on shipboard are proverbially fish out 
 of water. We could not be called by the good old 
 nickname of "lobsters" by the crew. Our gray 
 jackets saved the sobriquet. But we floundered 
 about the crowded vessel like boiling victims in a 
 
 604 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 pot. At last we found our places, and laid ourselves 
 about the decks to tan or bronze or burn scarlet, ac- 
 cording to complexion. There were plenty of cheeks 
 of lobster-hue before next evening on the "Boston." 
 
 A thousand young fellows turned loose on ship- 
 board were sure to make themselves merry. Let the 
 reader imagine that. We were like any other excur- 
 sionists, except that the stacks of bright guns were al- 
 ways present to remind us of our errand, and regular 
 guard-mounting and drill went on all the time. The 
 young citizens growled or laughed at the minor 
 hardships of the hasty outfit, and toughened rapidly 
 to business. 
 
 Sunday, the 21st, was a long and somewhat anx- 
 ious day. While we were bowling along in the sweet 
 sunshine and sweeter moonlight of the halcyon time, 
 Uncle Sam might be dethroned by somebody in 
 buckram, or Baltimore burned by the boys from 
 Lynn and Marblehead, revenging the massacre of 
 their fellows. Every one begins to comprehend the 
 fiery eagerness of men who live in historic times. 
 "I wish I had control of chain-lightning for a few 
 minutes," says O., the droll fellow of our company. 
 "I'd make it come thick and heavy and knock spots 
 out of secession." 
 
 At early dawn of Monday the 22d, after feeling 
 along slowly all night, we see the harbor of An- 
 napolis. A frigate with sails unbent lies at anchor. 
 She flies the Stars and Stripes. Hurrah ! 
 
 605 
 
 20— Vol. 8 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 A large steamboat is aground further in. As 
 soon as we can see anything, we catch the glitter of 
 bayonets on board. 
 
 By and by boats come off, and we get news that 
 the steamer is the "Maryland," a ferry-boat of the 
 Philadelphia and Baltimore Railroad. The Massa- 
 chusetts Eighth Regiment had been just in time to 
 seize her on the north side of the Chesapeake. They 
 learned that she was to be carried off by the crew and 
 leave them blockaded. So they shot their Zouaves 
 ahead as skirmishers. The fine fellows rattled on 
 board and before the steamboat had time to take a 
 turn or open a valve, she was held by Massachusetts 
 in trust for Uncle Sam. Hurrah for the most im- 
 portant prize thus far in the war! It probably saved 
 the "Constitution," "Old Ironsides," from capture 
 by the traitors. It probably saved Annapolis and 
 kept Maryland open without bloodshed. 
 
 As soon as the Massachusetts Regiment had made 
 prize of the ferry-boat, a call was made for engineers 
 to run her. Some twenty men at once stepped to the 
 front. We of the New York Seventh afterward con- 
 cluded that whatever was needed in the way of skill 
 or handicraft could be found among those brother 
 Yankees. They were the men to make armies of : they 
 could tailor for themselves, shoe themselves, do their 
 own blacksmithing, gunsmithing, and all other work 
 that calls for sturdy arms and nimble fingers. In 
 fact, I have such profound confidence in the univer 
 
 606 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 sal accomplishment of the Massachusetts Eighth that 
 I have no doubt, if the order were: "Poets to the 
 front!" "Painters present arms!" "Sculptors charge 
 bayonets!" a baker's dozen out of every company 
 would respond. 
 
 Well, to go on with their story — when they had 
 taken their prize, they drove her straight down- 
 stream to Annapolis, the nearest point to Washington. 
 There they found the Naval Academy in danger of 
 attack, and "Old Ironsides," serving as a practice 
 ship for the future midshipmen, also exposed. The 
 call was now for seamen to man the old craft and save 
 her from a worse enemy than her prototype met in 
 the "Guerriere." Seamen? Of course! They were 
 Marblehead men, Gloucester men, Beverly men, sea- 
 men all, par excellence! They clapped on the frig- 
 ate to aid the middies, and by and by started her out 
 into the stream. 
 
 In doing this their own pilot took the chance 
 to run them purposely on a shoal in the intricate 
 channel. A great error of judgment on his part! 
 As he perceived, when he found himself in irons 
 and in confinement. "The days of trifling with 
 traitors are over!" think the Eighth Regiment of 
 Massachusetts. 
 
 But there they were, hard and fast on the shoal, 
 when we came up. Nothing to nibble on but knobs 
 of anthracite. Nothing to sleep on softer or cleaner 
 than coal dust. Nothing to drink but the brackish 
 
 607 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 water under their keel. "Rather rough!" as they 
 afterward patiently told us. 
 
 Meantime the "Constitution" had got hold of a 
 tug, and was making her way to an anchorage where 
 her guns commanded everything and everybody. 
 Good and true men chuckled greatly over this. The 
 Stars and Stripes also were still up at the fort at the 
 Naval Academy. 
 
 Our dread, that, while we were off at sea, some 
 great and perhaps fatal harm had been suffered, was 
 greatly lightened by these good omens. If Annapolis 
 was safe, why not Washington safe also? If treach- 
 ery had got head at the Capital, would not treachery 
 have reached out its hand and snatched this door- 
 way? These were our speculations as we began to 
 discern objects, before we heard news. 
 
 But news came presently. Boats pulled off to us. 
 Our officers were put into communication with the 
 shore. The scanty facts of our position became known 
 from man to man. We privates have greatly the ad- 
 vantage in battling with the doubt of such a time. 
 We know that we have nothing to do with rumors. 
 Orders are what we go by. And orders are facts. 
 
 We lay a long, lingering day off Annapolis. The 
 air was full of doubt, and we were eager to be let 
 loose. All this while the "Maryland" stuck fast on 
 the bar. We could see them, half a mile off, making 
 every effort to lighten her. The soldiers tramped 
 forward and aft, danced on her decks, shot over- 
 
 608 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 board a heavy baggage truck. We saw them start 
 the truck for the stern with a cheer. It crashed 
 down. One end stuck in the mud. The other fell 
 back and rested on the boat. They went at it with 
 axes and presently it was clear. 
 
 As the tide rose, we gave our grounded friends a 
 lift with a hawser. No go! The "Boston" tugged 
 in vain. We got near enough to see the whites of the 
 Massachusetts' eyes, and their unlucky faces and uni- 
 forms all grimy with their lodgings in the coal-dust. 
 They could not have been blacker if they had been 
 breathing battle-smoke and dust all day. That ex- 
 perience was clear gain to them. 
 
 By and by, greatly to the delight of the impatient 
 Seventh, the "Boston" was headed for shore. Never 
 speak ill of the beast you bestraddle! Therefore 
 requiescat "Boston!" May her ribs lie on soft sand 
 when she goes to pieces! May her engines be cut up 
 into bracelets for the arms of the patriotic fair! 
 Good-by to her, dear old, close, dirty, slow coach! 
 She served her country well in a moment of trial. 
 Who knows but she saved it? It was a race to see 
 who should get first to Washington — and we and the 
 Virginia mob, in alliance with the District mob, were 
 perhaps nip and tuck for the goal. 
 
 ANNAPOLIS 
 
 So the Seventh Regiment landed and took An- 
 napolis. We were the first troops ashore. 
 
 609 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 The middies of the Naval Academy no doubt be- 
 lieve that they had their quarters secure. The Massa- 
 chusetts boys are satisfied that they first took the town 
 in charge. And so they did. 
 
 But the Seventh took it a little more. Not, of 
 course, from its loyal men, but for its loyal men — for 
 loyal Maryland and for the Union. 
 
 Has anybody seen Annapolis? It is a pictur- 
 esque old place, sleepy enough, and astonished to find 
 itself wide-awake by a war and obliged to take re- 
 sponsibility and share for good and ill in the move- 
 ment of its time. The buildings of the Naval Acad- 
 emy stand parallel with the River Severn, with a 
 green plateau toward the water and a lovely green 
 lawn toward the town. All the scene was fresh and 
 fair with April, and I fancied, as the "Boston" 
 touched the wharf, that I discerned the sweet fra- 
 grance of apple-blossoms coming with the spring- 
 time airs. 
 
 I hope that the companies of the Seventh, should 
 the day arrive, will charge upon horrid batteries or 
 serried ranks with as much alacrity as they marched 
 ashore on the greensward of the Naval Academy. 
 We disembarked, and were halted in line between 
 the buildings and the river. 
 
 Presently, while we stood at ease, people began 
 to arrive — some with smallish fruit to sell, some with 
 smaller news to give. Nobody knew whether Wash- 
 ington was taken. Nobody knew whether JefT. 
 
 610 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 Davis was now spitting in the presidential spittoon, 
 and scribbling his distiches with the nib of the presi- 
 dential goose-quill. We were absolutely in doubt 
 whether a seemingly inoffensive knot of rustics, on a 
 mound without the inclosure, might not, at a tap of 
 drum, unmask a battery of giant columbiads, and 
 belch blazes at us, raking our line. 
 
 Nothing so entertaining happened. It was a 
 parade, not a battle. At sunset our band played 
 sweet strains enough to pacify all Secession, if Seces- 
 sion had music in its soul. Coffee, hot from the cop- 
 pers of the Naval School, and biscuit were served 
 out to us; and while we supped, we talked with our 
 visitors, such as were allowed to approach. 
 
 First the boys of the school — fine little blue- 
 jackets — had their story to tell. 
 
 "Do you see that white farmhouse across the 
 river?" says a brave pygmy of a chap in navy uni- 
 form. "That is headquarters for Secession. They 
 were going to take the school from us, sir, and the 
 frigate; but we've got ahead of 'em and the Massa- 
 chusetts boys have come down" — and he twinkled all 
 over with delight. "We can't study any more. We 
 are on guard all the time. We've got howitzers too, 
 and we'd like you to see, to-morrow, on drill, how we 
 can handle 'em. One of their boats came by our 
 sentry last night," (a sentry probably five feet high) 
 "and he blazed away, sir. So they thought they 
 wouldn't try us that time." 
 
 611 
 
Great Men and Famous DeecL 
 
 It was plain that these young souls had been well 
 tried by the treachery about them. They, too, had 
 felt the pang of the disloyalty of comrades. Nearly 
 a hundred of the boys had been spoiled by the base 
 example of their elders in the repudiating States, and 
 had resigned. 
 
 After the middies, came anxious citizens from 
 the town. Scared, all of them. Now that we were 
 come and assured them that persons and property 
 were to be protected, they ventured to speak of the 
 disgusting tyranny to which they, American citizens, 
 had been subjected. We came into contact here with 
 utter social anarchy. No man, unless he was ready 
 to risk assault, loss of property, exile, dared to act or 
 talk like a freeman. "This great wrong must be 
 righted," think the Seventh Regiment, as one man. 
 So we tried to reassure the Annapolitans that we 
 meant to do our duty as the nation's armed police, 
 and mob-law was to be put down so far as we could 
 do it. 
 
 Here, too, voices of war met us. The country was 
 stirred up. If the rural population did not give us a 
 bastard imitation of Lexington and Concord, as we 
 tried to gain Washington, all Pluguglydom would 
 treat us a la Plugugly somewhere near the junction of 
 the Annapolis and Baltimore and Washington Rail- 
 road. The Seventh must be ready to shoot. 
 
 At dusk we were marched up to the Academy and 
 
 quartered about in the buildings — some in the fort, 
 
 612 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 some in the recitation halls. We lay down on our 
 blankets and knapsacks. Up to this time our sleep 
 and diet had been severely scanty. 
 
 We stayed all next day at Annapolis. The "Bos- 
 ton' 7 brought the Massachusetts Eighth ashore that 
 night. . Poor fellows! what a figure they cut, when 
 we found them bivouacked on the Academy grounds 
 next morning. To begin; they had come off in hot 
 patriotic haste, half-uniformed and half-outfitted. 
 Finding that Baltimore had been taken by its own 
 loafers and traitors, and that the Chesapeake ferry 
 was impracticable, had obliged them to change line 
 of march. They were out of grub. They were 
 parched dry for want of water on the ferry-boat. 
 Nobody could decipher Caucasian, much less Bun- 
 ker-Hill Yankee, in their grimy visages. 
 
 But hungry, thirsty, grimy, these fellows were 
 GRIT. 
 
 Massachusetts ought to be proud of such hardy, 
 cheerful, faithful sons. 
 
 We of the Seventh are proud, for our part, that it 
 was our privilege to share our rations with them, and 
 to begin a fraternization which grows closer every 
 day, and will be historical. 
 
 But I must make a shorter story. We drilled and 
 were reviewed that morning on the Academy parade. 
 In the afternoon the Naval School paraded their last 
 before they gave up their barracks to the coming 
 soldiery. So ended the 23d of April. 
 
 6l 3 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Midnight 24th. We were rattled up by an alarm 
 — perhaps a sham one, to keep us awake and lively. 
 In a moment, the whole regiment was in order of 
 battle in the moonlight on the parade. It was a most 
 brilliant spectacle, as company after company rushed 
 forward, with rifles glittering, to take their places in 
 the array. 
 
 After this pretty spirit, we were rationed with 
 pork, beef and bread for three days, and ordered to 
 be ready to march on the instant. 
 
 WHAT THE MASSACHUSETTS EIGHTH HAD SEEN 
 
 DOING 
 
 Meantime General Butler's command, the Massa- 
 chusetts Eighth, had been busy knocking disorder in 
 the head. 
 
 Presently after their landing, and before they 
 were refreshed, they pushed companies out to occupy 
 the railroad track beyond the town. 
 
 They found it torn up. No doubt the scamps who 
 did the shabby job fancied that there would be no 
 more travel that way until strawberry-time. They 
 fancied the Yankees would sit down on the fences and 
 begin to whittle white-oak toothpicks, darning the 
 rebels, through their noses, meanwhile. 
 
 I know these men of the Eighth can whittle, 
 and I presume they can say "darn it," if occasion 
 requires ; but just now track-laying was the business 
 on hand. 
 
 614 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 "Wanted, experienced track-layers!" was the 
 word along the files. 
 
 All at once the line of the road became densely 
 populated with experienced track-layers fresh from 
 Massachusetts. 
 
 Presto change! the rails were relaid, spiked, and 
 the roadway levelled and better ballasted than any 
 road I ever saw south of Mason and Dixon's line. 
 "We must leave a good job for these folks to model 
 after," say the Massachusetts Eighth. 
 
 A track without a train is as useless as a gun with- 
 out a man. Train and engine must be had. "Uncle 
 Sam's mails and troops cannot be stopped another 
 minute," our energetic friends conclude. So — the 
 railroad company's people being either frightened 
 or false — in marches Massachusetts to the station. 
 "We, the people of the United States, want rolling 
 stock for the use of the Union," they said, or words to 
 that effect. 
 
 The engine — a frowzy machine at the best — had 
 been purposely disabled. 
 
 Here appeared the deus ex machina, Charles Ho- 
 mans, Beverly-Light Guard, Company E, Eighth 
 Massachusetts Regiment. 
 
 That is the man, name and titles in full, and he 
 deserves well of his country. 
 
 He took a quiet squint at the engine — it was as 
 helpless as a boned turkey — and he found "Charles 
 Homans, his mark" written all over it. 
 
 615 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 The old rattletrap was an old friend. Charles 
 Homans had had a share in building it. The ma- 
 chine and the man said "How d'y' do?" at once. 
 Homans called for a gang of engine-builders. Of 
 course they swarmed out of the ranks. They passed 
 their hands over the locomotive a few times, and 
 presently it was ready to w r histle and wheeze and 
 rumble and gallop, as if no traitor had tried to steal 
 the go and the music out of it. 
 
 This had all been done during the afternoon of 
 the 23d. During the night, the renovated engine was 
 kept cruising up and down the track to keep all clear. 
 Guards of the Eighth were also posted to protect pas- 
 sage. 
 
 Our commander had, I presume, been co-operat- 
 ing with General Butler in this business. The Naval 
 Academy authorities had given us every despatch 
 and assistance, and the middies, frank personal hos- 
 pitality. The day was halcyon, the grass was green 
 and soft, the apple trees were just in blossom : it was 
 a day to be remembered. 
 
 Many of us will remember it, and show the marks 
 of it for months, as the day we had our heads 
 cropped. By evening there was hardly one poll in 
 the Seventh tenable by anybody's grip. Most sat in 
 the shade and were shorn by a barber. A few were 
 honored with a clip by the artist hand of the petit 
 caporal of our Engineer Company. 
 
 While I rattle off these trifling details, let me not 
 
 616 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 fail to call attention to the grave service done by our 
 regiment, by its arrival, at the nick of time, at An- 
 napolis. No clearer special Providence could have 
 happened. The country-people of the traitor sort 
 were aroused. Baltimore and its mob were but two 
 hours away. The "Constitution" had been hauled 
 out of reach of a rush by the Massachusetts men — 
 first on the ground — but was half -manned and not 
 fully secure. And there lay the "Maryland," help- 
 less on the shoal, with six or seven hundred souls on 
 board, so near the shore that the late Captain Ryn- 
 der's gun could have sunk her from some ambush. 
 
 Yes; the Seventh Regiment at Annapolis was the 
 Right Man in the Right Place! 
 
 OUR MORNING MARCH 
 
 Reveille. As nobody pronounces this word a la 
 francaise, as everybody calls it "Revelee," why not 
 drop it as an affectation, and translate it the "Stir 
 your stumps," the "Peel your eyes," the "Tumble 
 up," or literally the "Wake"? 
 
 Our snorers had kept up this call so lustily since 
 midnight, that, when the drums sounded it, we were 
 all ready. 
 
 The Sixth and Seventh Companies under Captain 
 Nevers, are detached to lead the van. I see my brother 
 Billy march off with the Sixth, in the dusk, half 
 moonlight, half dawn, and hope that no beggar of a 
 Secessionist will get a pat shot at him, by the road- 
 
 617 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 side, without his getting a chance to let fly in return. 
 Such little possibilities intensify the earnest detesta- 
 tion we feel for the treasons we come to resist and to 
 punish. There will be some bitter work done, if we 
 get to blows in this war — this needless, reckless, 
 brutal assault upon the mildest of all governments. 
 
 Before the main body of the regiment marches, 
 we learn that the "Baltic" and other transports came 
 in last night with troops from New York and New 
 England, enough to hold Annapolis against a square 
 league of Plug Uglies. We do not go on without 
 having our rear protected and our communications 
 open. It is strange to be compelled to think of these 
 things in peaceful America. But we really knew 
 little more of the countnr before us than Cortes knew 
 of Mexico. I have since learned from a high official, 
 that thirteen different messengers were despatched 
 from Washington in the interval of anxiety w T hile the 
 Seventh was not forthcoming, and only one got 
 through. 
 
 At half-past seven we take up our line of march, 
 pass out of the charming grounds of the Academy, 
 and move through the quiet, rusty, picturesque old 
 
 town. It has a romantic dulness Annapolis — 
 
 which deserves a parting compliment. 
 
 Although we deem ourselves a fine-looking set, 
 although our belts are blanched with pipe-clay and 
 our rifles shine sharp in the sun, yet the townspeople 
 stare at us in a dismal silence. They have already 
 
 618 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 the air of men quelled by a despotism. None can 
 trust his neighbor. If he dares to be loyal, he must 
 take his life into his hands. Most would be loyal, if 
 they dared. But the system of society which has 
 ended in this present chaos has gradually eliminated 
 the bravest and best men. They have gone in search 
 of Freedom and Prosperity; and now the bullies cow 
 the weaker brothers. "There must be an end of this 
 mean tyranny," think the Seventh, as they march 
 through old Annapolis and see how sick the town is 
 through doubt and alarm. 
 
 Outside the town, we strike the railroad and move 
 along, the howitzers in front, bouncing over the 
 sleepers. When our line is fully disengaged from 
 the town, we halt. 
 
 Here the scene is beautiful. The van rests upon 
 a high embankment, with a pool surrounded by pine- 
 trees on the right, green fields on the left. Cattle are 
 feeding quietly about. The air sings with birds. 
 The chestnut leaves sparkle. Frogs whistle in the 
 warm spring morning. The regiment groups itself 
 along the bank and the cutting. Several Maryland- 
 ers of the half-price age — under twelve — come gap- 
 ing up to see us harmless invaders. Each of these 
 young gentry is armed with a dead spring frog, per- 
 haps by way of tribute. And here — hallo! here 
 comes Horace Greeley in propria persona! He 
 marches through our groups with the Greeley walk, 
 the Greeley hat on the back of his head, the Greeley 
 
 619 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 white coat on his shoulders, his trousers much too 
 short, and an absorbed, abstracted demeanor. Can 
 it be Horace reporting for himself? No; this is a 
 Maryland production and disposed to be a little bit 
 sulky. 
 
 After a few minutes' halt we hear the whistle of 
 the engine. This machine is also an historic charac- 
 ter in the war. 
 
 Remember it! "J. H. Nicholson" is its name. 
 Charles Homans drives, and on either! side stands 
 a sentry with fixed bayonet. New spectacles for 
 America! But it is grand to know that the bayonets 
 are to protect, not to assail, Liberty and Law. 
 
 The train leads off. We follow, by the track. 
 Presently the train returns. We pass it and trudge 
 on in light marching order, carrying arms, blankets, 
 haversacks, and canteens. Our knapsacks are upon 
 the train. 
 
 Fortunate for our backs that they do not have to 
 bear any more burden! For the day grows sultry. 
 It is one of those breathless baking days that brew 
 thunder-gusts. We march on for some four miles, 
 when, coming upon the guards of the Massachusetts 
 Eighth, our howitzer is ordered to fall out and wait 
 for the train. With a comrade of the Artillery, I 
 am placed on guard over it. 
 
 ON GUARD WITH HOWITZER NO. 2 
 
 Henry Bonnell is my fellow-sentry. He, like my- 
 
 620 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 self, is an old campaigner in such campaigns as our 
 generation has known. So we talk California, Ore- 
 gon, Indian life, the Plains, keeping our eyes peeled 
 meanwhile, and ranging the country. Men that will 
 tear up track are quite capable of picking off a sen- 
 try. A giant chestnut gives us little dots of shade 
 from its pygmy leaves. The country about us is open 
 and newly plowed. Some of the worm-fences are 
 new, and ten rails high; but the farming is careless, 
 and the soil thin. 
 
 Two of the Massachusetts men come back to the 
 gun while we are standing there. One is my friend 
 Stephen Morris, of Marblehead, Sutton Light In- 
 fantry. I had shared my breakfast yesterday with 
 Stephe. So we refraternize. 
 
 His business is: "I make shoes in winter and 
 fishin' in summer." He gives me a few facts — sus- 
 picious persons seen about the track, men on horse- 
 back in the distance. One of the Massachusetts 
 guard last night challenged his captain. Captain re- 
 plied: "Officer of the night." Whereupon, says 
 Stephe, "The recruit let squizzle and jest missed his 
 ear." He then related to me the incident of the rail- 
 road station. "The first thing they know'd," says he, 
 "we bit right into the depot and took charge." "I 
 don't mind," Stephe remarked — "I don't mind life, 
 nor yit death; but whenever I see a Massachusetts 
 boy I stick by him, and if them Secessionists attack 
 us to-night, or any other time, they'll get in debt." 
 
 621 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Whistle, again! and the train appears. We are 
 ordered to ship our howitzer on a platform car. The 
 engine pushes us on. This train brings our light 
 baggage and the rear-guard. 
 
 A hundred yards further on is a delicious fresh 
 spring below the bank. While the train halts, 
 Stephe Morris rushes down to fill my canteen. "This 
 a'n't like Marblehead," says Stephe, panting up; "but 
 a man that can shin up them rocks can git right over 
 this sand." 
 
 The train goes slowly on as a rickety train should. 
 At intervals we see the fresh spots of track just laid 
 by our Yankee friends. Near the sixth mile, we be- 
 gan to overtake hot and uncomfortable squads of our 
 fellows. The unseasonable heat of this most breath- 
 less day was too much for many of the younger men, 
 unaccustomed to rough work, and weakened by want 
 of sleep and irregular food in our hurried movements 
 thus far. 
 
 Charles Homans' private carriage was, however, 
 ready to pick up tired men, thirsty men, men with 
 corns, or men with blisters. They tumbled into the 
 train in considerable numbers. 
 
 An enemy that dared could have made a moder- 
 ate bag of stragglers at this time. But they would 
 not have been allowed to straggle if any enemy had 
 been about. By this time we were convinced that no 
 attack was to be expected in this part of the way. 
 
 The main body of the regiment, under Major 
 
 622 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 Shaler, a tall, soldierly fellow with a mustache of 
 the fighting color, tramped on their own pins to the 
 watering-place, eight miles or so from Annapolis. 
 There troops and train came to a halt, with the news 
 that a bridge over a country road was broken a mile 
 further on. 
 
 It had been distinctly insisted upon, in the usual 
 southern style, that we were not to be allowed to pass 
 through Maryland, and that we were to be "wel- 
 comed to hospitable graves." The broken bridge 
 was a capital spot for a skirmish. Why not look for 
 it here? 
 
 We looked, but got nothing. The rascals could 
 skulk about by night, tear up rails, and hide them 
 where they might be found by a man with half an 
 eye, or half-destroy a bridge; but there was no shoot 
 in them. They have not faith enough in their cause 
 to risk their lives for it, even behind a tree or from 
 one of these thickets, choice spots for ambush. 
 
 So we had no battle there, but a battle of the ele- 
 ments. The volcanic heat of the morning was fol- 
 lowed by a furious storm of wind and a smart shower. 
 The regiment wrapped themselves in their blankets 
 and took their wetting with more or less satisfaction. 
 They were receiving samples of all the different lit- 
 tle miseries of a campaign. 
 
 And here let me say a word to my fellow-volun- 
 teers, actual and prospective, in all the armies of all 
 
 the States: 
 
 623 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 A soldier needs besides his soldierly drill: 
 i. Good Feet. 
 
 2. A good Stomach. 
 
 3. And after these come the good Head and the 
 good Heart. 
 
 But Good Feet are distinctly the first thing. 
 Without them you cannot get to your duty. If a 
 comrade, or a horse, or a locomotive, takes you on its 
 back to the field, you are useless there. And when 
 the field is lost, you cannot retire, run away, and save 
 your bacon. 
 
 Good shoes and plenty of walking make good 
 feet. A man who pretends to belong to an infantry 
 company ought always to keep himself in training, 
 so that any moment he can march twenty or thirty 
 miles without feeling a pang or raising a blister. 
 Was this the case with even a decimation of the army 
 who rushed to defend Washington. Were you so 
 trained, my comrades of the Seventh? 
 
 A captain of a company, who will let his men 
 march with such shoes as I have seen on the feet of 
 some poor fellows in this war, ought to be garroted 
 with shoe-strings, or at least compelled to play Pope 
 and wash the feet of the whole army of the Apostle of 
 Liberty. 
 
 If you find a foot-soldier lying beat out by the 
 roadside, desperate as a sea-sick man, five to one his 
 heels are too high, or his soles too narrow or too 
 thin, or his shoe is not made straight on the inside, so 
 
 624 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 that the great toe can spread into its place as he 
 treads. 
 
 I am an old walker over Alps across the water, 
 and over Cordilleras, Sierras, deserts and prairies at 
 home ; I have done my near sixty miles a day without 
 discomfort — and speaking from large experience, 
 and with painful recollections of the suffering and 
 death I have known for want of good feet on the 
 march, I say to every volunteer: Trust in God; BUT 
 KEEP YOUR SHOES EASY! 
 
 THE BRIDGE 
 
 When the frenzy of the brief tempest was over, it 
 began to be a question : "What to do about the broken 
 bridge?" The gap was narrow; but even Charles 
 Homans could not promise to leap the "J. H. Nich- 
 olson" over it. Who was to be our Julius Caesar in 
 bridge-building? Who but Sergeant Scott, armorer 
 of the Regiment, with my fellow-sentry of the morn- 
 ing, Bonnell, as First Assistant? 
 
 Scott called for a working party. There were 
 plenty of handy fellows among our engineers and in 
 the line. Tools were plenty in the engineer's chest. 
 We pushed the platform car upon which howitzer 
 No. i was mounted down to the gap, and began 
 operations. 
 
 "I wish," says the petit caporal of the Engineer 
 Company, patting his howitzer gently on the back, 
 
 625 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 "that I could get this putty-blower pointed at the 
 enemy, while you fellows are bridge-building." 
 
 The inefficient destructives of Maryland had only 
 half spoiled the bridge. Some of the old timber 
 could be used— and for new ones, there was the 
 forest. 
 
 Scott and his party made a good and a quick job 
 of it. Our friends of the Massachusetts Eighth had 
 now come up. They lent a ready hand as usual. The 
 sun set brilliantly. By twilight there was a practi- 
 cable bridge. The engine was despatched back to 
 keep the road open. The two platform cars, 
 freighted with our howitzers, were rigged with the 
 gun-ropes for dragging along the rail. We passed 
 through the files of the Massachusetts men, resting 
 by the way, and eating by the fires of the evening the 
 suppers we had in great part provided them; and so 
 begins our night march. 
 
 THE NIGHT MARCH 
 
 O Gottschalk! what a poetic Marche de Nuit we 
 then began to play, with our heels and toes, on the 
 railroad track! 
 
 It was full moonlight and the night inexpressibly 
 sweet and serene. The air was cool and vivified by 
 the gust and shower of the afternoon. Fresh spring 
 was in every breath. Our fellows had forgotten that 
 this morning they were hot and disgusted. Every 
 one hugged his rifle as if it were the arm of the girl 
 
 626 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 of his heart, and stepped out gayly for the prome- 
 nade. Tired or foot-sore men, or even lazy ones, 
 could mount upon the two freight-cars we were using 
 for artillery-wagons. There were stout arms enough 
 to tow the whole. 
 
 The scouts went ahead under First Lieutenant 
 Farnham of the Second Company. We were at 
 school together — I am afraid to say how many years 
 ago. He is just the same cool, dry, shrewd fellow he 
 was as a boy, and a most efficient officer. 
 
 It was an original kind of march. I suppose 
 a battery of howitzers never before found itself 
 mounted on cars, ready to open fire at once and bang 
 away into the offing with shrapnel or into the bushes 
 with canister. Our line extended a half mile along 
 the track. It was beautiful to stand upon the bank 
 above a cutting and watch the files strike from the 
 shadow of a wood into a broad flame of moonlight, 
 every rifle sparkling up alert as it came forward. A 
 beautiful sight to see the barrels writing themselves 
 upon the dimness, each a silver flash. 
 
 By and by, "Halt!" came, repeated along from 
 the front, company after company. "Halt! a rail 
 gone." 
 
 It was found without difficulty. The imbeciles 
 who took it up probably supposed we would not wish 
 to wet our feet by searching for it in the dewy grass 
 of the next field. With incredible doltishness they 
 had also left the chairs and spikes beside the track. 
 
 627 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Bonnell took hold, and in a few minutes had the rail 
 in place and firm enough to pass the engine. Re- 
 member, we were not only hurrying on to succor 
 Washington, but opening the only convenient and 
 practicable route between it and the loyal States. 
 
 A little further on, we came to a village — a rare 
 sight in this scantily-peopled region. Here Sergeant 
 Keeler, of our company, the tallest man in the regi- 
 ment and one of the handiest, suggested that we 
 should tear up the rails at a turn-out by the station, 
 and so be prepared for chances. So "Out crowbars" 
 was the word. We tore up and bagged half a dozen 
 rails, with chairs and spikes complete. Here, too, 
 some of the engineers found a keg of spikes. This 
 was also bagged and loaded on our cars. We fought 
 the chaps with their own weapons, since they would 
 not meet us with ours. 
 
 These things made delay, and by and by there 
 was a long halt, while the Colonel communicated, by 
 orders sounded along the line, with the engine. Ho- 
 mans' drag was hard after us bringing our knapsacks 
 and traps. 
 
 After I had admired for some time the beauty of 
 our moonlit line, and listened to the orders as they 
 grew or died along the distance, I began to want ex- 
 citement. Bonnell suggested that he and I should 
 scout up the road and see if any rails were wanting. 
 We travelled along into the quiet night. 
 
 A mile ahead of the line we suddenly caught the 
 
 628 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 gleam of a rifle-barrel. "Who goes there?" one of 
 our own scouts challenged smartly. 
 
 We had arrived at the nick of time. Three rails 
 were up. Two of them were easily found. The 
 third was discovered by beating the bush thoroughly. 
 Bonnell and I ran back for tools, and returning at 
 full trot with crowbar and sledge on our shouders. 
 There were plenty of willing hands to help — too 
 many, indeed — and with the aid of a huge Massa- 
 chusetts man we soon had the rail in place. 
 
 From this time on we were constantly interrupted. 
 Not a half-mile passed without a rail up. Bonnell 
 was always at the front laying track, and I am proud 
 to say that he accepted me as aide-de-camp. Other 
 fellows, unknown to me in the dark, gave hearty 
 help. The Seventh showed that it could do some- 
 thing else than drill. 
 
 At one spot, on a high embankment over standing 
 water, the rail was gone, sunk probably. Here we 
 tried our rails brought from the turn-out. They 
 were too short. We supplemented by a length of 
 plank from our stores. We rolled our cars carefully 
 over. They passed safe. But Homans shook his 
 head. He could not venture a locomotive on that 
 frail stuff. So we lost the society of the "J. H. Nich- 
 olson." Next day the Massachusetts commander 
 called for some one to dive in the pool for the lost 
 rail. Plump into the water went a little wiry chap 
 and grappled the rail. "When I come up," says 
 
 629 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 the brave fellow afterward to me, "our officer out 
 with a twenty-dollar gold piece and wanted me to 
 take it. 'That a'n't what I come for,' says I. 'Take 
 it,' says he, 'and share with the others.' 'That a'n't 
 what they come for,' says I. But I took a big cold," 
 the diver continued, "and I'm condemned hoarse yit" 
 — which was the fact. 
 
 Further on we found a whole length of track torn 
 up, on both sides, sleepers and all r and the same thing 
 repeated with alternations of breaks of single rails. 
 Our howitzer-ropes came into play to hoist and haul. 
 We were not going to be stopped. 
 
 But it was becoming a Noche Triste to some of 
 our companions. We had now marched some six- 
 teen miles. The distance was trifling. But the men 
 had been on their legs pretty much all day and night. 
 Hardly any one had had any full or substantial meal 
 or sleep since we started from New York. They 
 napped off, standing, leaning on their guns, dropping 
 down in their tracks on the wet ground at every 
 halt. They were sleepy, but plucky. As we passed 
 through deep cuttings, places, as it were, built for de- 
 fence, there was a general desire that the tedium of 
 the night should be relieved by a shindy. 
 
 During the whole night, I saw our officers mov- 
 ing about the line, doing their duty vigorously, de- 
 spite exhaustion, hunger, and sleeplessness. 
 
 About midnight our friends of the Eighth had 
 joined us, and our whole little army straggled on to- 
 
 630 
 
New York Seventh Regiment 
 
 gether. I find that I have been rather understating 
 the troubles of the march. It seems impossible that 
 such difficulty could be encountered within twenty 
 miles of the capital of our nation. But we were mak- 
 ing a rush to put ourselves in that capital, and we 
 could not proceed in the slow, systematic way of an 
 advancing army. We must take the risk and stand 
 the suffering, whatever it was. So the Seventh Regi- 
 ment went through the bloodless Noche Triste. 
 
 MORNING 
 
 At last we issued from the damp woods, two 
 miles below the railroad junction. Here was an ex- 
 tensive farm. Our vanguard had halted and bor- 
 rowed a few rails to make fires. These were, of 
 course, carefully paid for at their proprietor's own 
 price. The fires were bright in the gray dawn. 
 About them the whole regiment was now halted. 
 The men tumbled down to catch forty winks. Some, 
 who were hungrier for food than for sleep, went off 
 foraging among the farm-houses. They returned 
 with appetizing legends of hot breakfasts in hospi- 
 table abodes, or scant fare given grudgingly in hostile 
 ones. All meals, however, were paid for. 
 
 Here, as at other halts below, the country-people 
 came up to talk to us. The traitors could easily be 
 distinguished by their insolence disguised as obse- 
 quiousness. The loyal men were still timid, but 
 more hopeful at last. All were very lavish with the 
 
 631 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 monosyllable, sir. It was an odd coincidence, that 
 the vanguard, halting off at a farm in the morning, 
 found it deserted for the moment by its tenants, and 
 protected only by an engraved portrait of our (for- 
 mer) Colonel Duryea, serenely smiling over the 
 mantelpiece. 
 
 From this point, the railroad was pretty much all 
 gone. But we were warmed and refreshed by a nap 
 and a bite, and besides, had daylight and open coun- 
 try. 
 
 We put our guns on their own wheels, all dropped 
 into ranks as if on parade, and marched the last two 
 miles to the station. We still had no actual infor- 
 mation. Until we actually saw the train awaiting 
 us, and the Washington companies, who had come 
 down to escort us, drawn up, we did not know 
 whether our Uncle Sam was still a resident of the 
 capital. 
 
 We packed into the train and rolled away to 
 Washington. 
 
 WASHINGTON 
 
 We marched up to the White House, showed 
 ourselves to the President, made our bow to him as 
 our host, and then marched up to the Capitol, our 
 grand lodgings. 
 
 There we are now, quartered in the Representa- 
 tives Chamber. 
 
 And here I must hastily end this first sketch of 
 
 632 
 
The High Tide at Gettysburg 
 
 the Great Defence. May it continue to be as firm 
 and faithful as it is this day! 
 
 I have scribbled my story with a thousand men 
 stirring about me. If any of my sentences miss their 
 aim, accuse my comrades and the bewilderment of 
 this martial crowd. For here are four or five thou- 
 sand others on the same business as ourselves, and 
 drums are beating, guns are clanking, companies are 
 tramping, all the while. Our friends of the Eighth 
 Massachusetts are quartered under the dome, and 
 cheer us whenever we pass. 
 
 Desks marked John Covode, John Cochran, and 
 Anson Burlingame, have allowed me to use them as 
 I wrote. 
 
 THE HIGH TIDE AT GETTYSBURG. 
 
 A CLOUD possessed the hollow field, 
 ** The gathering battle's smoky shield. 
 Athwart the gloom the lightning flashed, 
 And through the cloud some horsemen dashed, 
 And from the heights the thunder pealed. 
 
 Then at the brief command of Lee 
 Moved out that matchless infantry, 
 With Pickett leading grandly down, 
 To rush against the roaring crown 
 Of those dread heights of destiny. 
 
 633 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 Far heard above the angry guns 
 
 A cry across the tumult runs — 
 
 The voice that rang through Shiloh's woods 
 
 And Chickamauga's solitudes, 
 
 The fierce South cheering on her sons! 
 
 Ah, how the withering tempest blew 
 Against the front of Pettigrew! 
 A Khamsin wind that scorched and singed 
 Like that infernal flame that fringed 
 The British squares at Waterloo! 
 
 A thousand fell where Kemper led; 
 A thousand died where Garnett bled: 
 In blinding flame and strangling smoke 
 The remnant through the batteries broke 
 And crossed the works with Armistead. 
 
 "Once more in Glory's van with me!" 
 Virginia cried to Tennessee; 
 "We two together, come what may, 
 Shall stand upon these works to-day!" 
 (The reddest day in history.) 
 
 Brave Tennessee! In reckless way 
 Virginia heard her comrade say: 
 "Close round this rent and riddled rag!" 
 What time she set her battle-flag 
 Amid the guns of Doubleday. 
 
 634 
 
The High Tide at Gettysburg 
 
 But who shall break the guards that wait 
 Before the awful face of Fate? 
 The tattered standards of the South 
 Were shrivelled at the cannon's mouth, 
 And all her hopes were desolate. 
 
 In vain the Tennesseean set 
 
 His breast against the bayonet! 
 
 In vain Virginia charged and raged, 
 
 A tigress in her wrath uncaged, 
 
 Till all the hill was red and wet! 
 
 Above the bayonets, mixed and crossed, 
 Men saw a gray, gigantic ghost 
 Receding through the battle-cloud, 
 And heard across the tempest loud 
 The death-cry of a nation lost! 
 
 The brave went down! Without disgrace 
 They leaped to Ruin's red embrace. 
 They only heard Fame's thunders wake, 
 And saw the dazzling sun-burst break 
 In smiles on Glory's bloody face! 
 
 They fell, who lifted up a hand 
 And bade the sun in heaven to stand! 
 They smote and fell, who set the bars 
 Against the progress of the stars, 
 And stayed the march of Motherland; 
 
 63 5 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 They stood, who saw the future come 
 On through the fight's delirium! 
 They smote and stood, who held the hope 
 Of nations on that slippery slope 
 Amid the cheers of Christendom. 
 
 God lives! He forged the iron will 
 That clutched and held that trembling hill. 
 God lives and reigns! He built and lent 
 The heights for Freedom's battlement 
 Where floats her flag in triumph still! 
 
 Fold up the banners! Smelt the guns! 
 Love rules. Her gentler purpose runs. 
 A mighty mother turns in tears 
 The pages of her battle years, 
 Lamenting all her fallen sons! 
 
 — Will Henry Thompson 
 
 ADDRESS AT THE DEDICATION OF THE 
 GETTYSBURG NATIONAL CEMETERY 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 FOURSCORE and seven years ago our fathers 
 * brought forth on this continent a new nation, 
 conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposi- 
 tion that all men are created equal. 
 
 Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing 
 
 6 3 6 
 
Address at Gettysburg 
 
 whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and 
 so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a 
 great battle-field of that war. We have come to 
 dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting- 
 place for those who here gave their lives that that 
 nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper 
 that we should do this. 
 
 But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we 
 can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. 
 The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, 
 have consecrated it far above our poor power to add 
 or detract. The world will little note nor long re- 
 member what we say here, but it can never forget 
 what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather, 
 to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which 
 they who fought here have thus far so nobly ad- 
 vanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to 
 the great task remaining before us — that from these 
 honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause 
 for which they gave the last full measure of devotion ; 
 that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not 
 have died in vain; that this nation, under God, shall 
 have a new birth of freedom; and that the govern- 
 ment of the people, by the people, for the people, 
 shall not perish from the earth. 
 
 637 
 
 21— Vol. 8 
 
SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 PELLOW-COUNTRYMEN— At this second ap- 
 * pearing to take the oath of the presidential 
 office, there is less occasion for an extended address 
 than there was at the first. Then a statement some- 
 what in detail, of a course to be pursued, seemed fit- 
 ting and proper. Now, at the expiration of four 
 years, during which public declarations have been 
 constantly called forth on every point and phase of 
 the great contest which still absorbs the attention and 
 engrosses the energies of the nation, little that is new 
 could be presented. 
 
 The progress of our arms, upon which all else 
 chiefly depends, is as well known to the public as to 
 myself ; and it is, I trust, reasonably satisfactory and 
 encouraging to all. With high hope for the future, 
 no prediction in regard to it is ventured. On the 
 occasion corresponding to this four years ago, all 
 thoughts were anxiously directed to an impending 
 civil war. All dreaded it — all sought to avert it. 
 While the inaugural address was being delivered 
 from this place, devoted altogether to saving the 
 Union without war, insurgent agents were in the city 
 seeking to destroy it without war — seeking to dis- 
 solve the Union, and divide effects, by negotiation. 
 
 638 
 
Second Inaugural Address 
 
 Both parties deprecated war; but one of them would 
 make war rather than let the nation survive; and the 
 other would accept war rather than let it perish. 
 And the war came. 
 
 One-eighth of the whole population were colored 
 slaves, not distributed generally over the Union, but 
 localized in the Southern part of it. These slaves 
 constituted a peculiar and powerful interest. All 
 knew that this interest was, somehow, the cause of the 
 w r ar. To strengthen, perpetuate, and extend this in- 
 terest was the object for which the insurgents would 
 rend the Union, even by war; while the government 
 claimed no right to do more than to restrict the ter- 
 ritorial enlargement of it. 
 
 Neither party expected for the war the magni- 
 tude or the duration which it has already attained. 
 Neither anticipated that the cause of the conflict 
 might cease with, or even before, the conflict itself 
 should cease. Each looked for an easier triumph, 
 and a result less fundamental than astounding. Both 
 read the same Bible, and pray to the same God; and 
 each invokes his aid against the other. It may seem 
 strange that any men should dare to ask a just God's 
 assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of 
 other men's faces; but let us judge not, that we be not 
 judged. The prayers of both could not be answered 
 — that of neither has been answered fully. 
 
 The Almighty has his own purposes. "Woe unto 
 the world because of offences! for it must needs be 
 
 639 
 
Great Men and Famous Deeds 
 
 that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the 
 offence cometh." If we shall suppose that American 
 slavery is one of these offences which, in the provi- 
 dence of God, must needs come, but which, having 
 continued through his appointed time, he now wills 
 to remove, and that he gives to both North and South 
 this terrible war, as the woe due to those by whom the 
 offence came, shall we discern therein any departure 
 from those divine attributes which the believers in 
 a living God always ascribe to him? Fondly do 
 we hope — fervently do we pray — that this mighty 
 scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God 
 wills that it continue until all the wealth piled up by 
 the bondman's two hundred and fifty years of unre- 
 quited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of 
 blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another 
 drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand 
 years ago, so still it must be said, "The judgments of 
 the Lord are true and righteous altogether." 
 
 With malice toward none; with charity for all; 
 with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the 
 right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in ; to 
 bind up the nation's wounds; to care for him who 
 shall have borne the battle, and for his widow and his 
 orphans — to do all which may achieve and cherish 
 a just and lasting peace among ourselves, and with all 
 nations. 
 
 64O 
 

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