Quotation from: A Popular History of France from the Earliest Times, Volume 3

Written by: Francois Pierre Guillaume Guizot


The King of England readily entertained the overtures announced to him by
his herald. He had landed at Calais on the 22d of June, 1475, with an
army of from sixteen to eighteen thousand men thirsting for conquest and
pillage in France, and the Duke of Burgundy had promised to go and join
him with a considerable force; but the latter, after having appeared for
a moment at Calais to concert measures with his ally, returned no more,
and even hesitated about admitting the English into his towns of Artois
and Picardy. Edward waited for him nearly two months at Peronne, but in
vain. During this time Louis continued his attempts at negotiation. He
fixed his quarters at Amiens, and Edward came and encamped half a league
from the town. The king sent to him, it is said, three hundred wagons
laden with the best wines he could find, "the which train," says
Commynes, "was almost an army as big as the English;" at the entrance of
the gate of Amiens Louis had caused to be set out two large tables
"laden with all sorts of good eatables and good wines; and at each of
these two tables he had caused to be seated five or six men of good
family, stout and fat, to make better sport for them who had a mind to
drink. When the English went into the town, wherever they put up they
had nothing to pay; there were nine or ten taverns, well supplied,
whither they went to eat and drink, and asked for what they pleased. And
this lasted three or four days." An agreement was soon come to as to the
terms of peace. King Edward bound himself to withdraw with his army to
England so soon as Louis XI. should have paid him seventy-five thousand
crowns. Louis promised besides to pay annually to King Edward fifty
thousand crowns, in two payments, during the time that both princes were
alive. A truce for seven years was concluded; they made mutual promises
to lend each other aid if they were attacked by their enemies or by their
own subjects in rebellion; and Prince Charles, the eldest son of Louis
XI., was to marry Elizabeth, Edward's daughter, when both should be of
marriageable age. Lastly, Queen Margaret of Anjou, who had been a
prisoner in England since the death of her husband, Henry VI., was to be
set at liberty, and removed to France, on renouncing all claim to the
crown of England. These conditions having been formulated, it was agreed
that the two kings should meet and sign them at Pecquigny, on the Somme,
three leagues from Amiens. Thither, accordingly, they repaired, on the
29th of August, 1475. Edward, as he drew near, doffed "his bonnet of
black velvet, whereon was a large fleur-de-lis in jewels, and bowed down
to within half a foot of the ground." Louis made an equally deep
reverence, saying, "Sir my cousin, right welcome; there is no man in the
world I could more desire to see than I do you, and praised be God that
we are here assembled with such good intent." The King of England
answered this speech "in good French enough," says Commynes. The missal
was brought; the two kings swore and signed four distinct treaties; and
then they engaged in a long private conversation, after which Louis went
away to Amiens and Edward to his army, whither Louis sent to him "all
that he had need of, even to torches and candles." As he went chatting
along the road with Commynes, Louis told him that he had found the King
of England so desirous of paying a visit to Paris that he had been
anything but pleased. "He is a right handsome king," said he: "he is
very fond of women; and he might well meet at Paris some smitten one who
would know how to make him such pretty speeches as to render him desirous
of another visit. His predecessors were far too much in Normandy and
Paris; his comradeship is worth nothing on our side of the sea; on the
other side, over yonder, I should like very well to have him for good
brother and good friend." Throughout the whole course of the negotiation
Louis had shown pliancy and magnificence; he had laden Edward's chief
courtiers with presents; two thousand crowns by way of pension had been
allowed to his grand chamberlain, Lord Hastings, who would not give an
acknowledgment. "This gift comes of the king your master's good pleasure,
and not at my request," said he to Louis's steward; "if you would have me
take it, you shall slip it here inside my sleeve, and have no letter or
voucher beyond; I do not wish to have people saying, 'The grand
chamberlain of England was the King of France's pensioner,' or to have my
acknowledgments found in his exchequer-chamber." Lord Hastings had not
always been so scrupulous, for, on the 15th of May, 1471, he had received
from the Duke of Burgundy a pension for which he had given an
acknowledgment. Another Englishman, whose name is not given by Commynes,
waxed wroth at hearing some one say, "Six hundred pipes of wine and a
pension given you by the king soon sent you back to England." "That is
certainly what everybody said," answered the Englishman, "that you might
have the laugh against us. But call you the money the king gives us
pension? Why, it is tribute; and, by St. George, you may perhaps talk so
much about it as to bring us down upon you again!" "There was nothing in
the world," says Commynes, "of which the king was more fearful than lest
any word should escape him to make the English think that they were being
derided; at the same time that he was laboring to gain them over, he was
careful to humor their susceptibilities;" and Commynes, under his
schooling, had learned to understand them well: "They are rather slow
goers," says he, "but you must have a little patience with them, and not
lose your temper. . . . I fancy that to many it might appear that the
king abased himself too much; but the wise might well hold that the
kingdom was in great danger, save for the intervention of God, who did
dispose the king's mind to choose so wise a course, and did greatly
trouble that of the Duke of Burgundy. . . . Our king knew well the
nature of the King of England, who was very fond of his ease and his
pleasures: when he had concluded these treaties with him, he ordered that
the money should be found with the greatest expedition, and every one had
to lend somewhat to help to supply it on the spot. The king said that
there was nothing in the world he would not do to thrust the King of
England out of the realm, save only that he would never consent that the
English should have a bit of territory there; and, rather than suffer
that, he would put everything to jeopardy and risk."

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