with my lord the king of the French, who lodges in the city, and with all his followers, shall perfect peace be preserved. Let two thousand bold knights,[1] the choice of the entire army, and a thousand foot, archers, be made ready within two days. Let the law be enforced without remission; let the footman, who flies full speed, lose his foot, the knight be deprived of his girdle. Let every man, according to military discipline, be disposed in line in exact array, and on the third day, at the sound of the horn, let them follow me. I will head them and shew them the way to the city!" The assembly separated with the greatest applause; the king, having relaxed the sternness of his countenance, was seen returning thanks for their good-will with his wonted affability of expression.
Sect. 25. It wonderfully fell out that not even the king's enemy could pretend that his cause was unjust. On the third day on which the army was to have been led forth to battle, very early in the morning, Richard, archbishop of Messina, the archbishop of Montreal, the archbishop of Pisa, Margaritus Admiralis, Jordan de Pin, and many other of King Tancred's familiar friends, having taken with them Philip, king of the French, the bishop of Carnot, the duke of Burgundy, the counts of Nevers and Perch, and many followers of the king of France, also, the archbishops of Rouen and Auch, the bishops of Evreux and Bayonne, and all who were supposed to have any influence with the English, came reverently to the king of England, that they might cause satisfaction for all his complaints to be given to his content. The king, after long and earnest solicitation, is prevailed on by the entreat of such honourable men, and commits the matter to be settled by their arbitration. They would consider well the enormity or what he had had to brook, and would provide that the satisfaction should be answerable to the offence. Whatever their general deliberation should have determined to be sufficient, would be satisfactory to him, if only, from that very moment, none of the Griffones would lay hands on his men. Those who had come were even more astonished than rejoiced at this unhoped-for clemency, and giving him at once what he had last propounded, they retired from the king's presence, and were assembled at some distance to treat of the rest.
- ↑ Literally, men who have not their hearts in their boots.
