University of Virginia Library

II.10. CHAPTER X

THE BATTLE OF MANSOORA.

AT the first peep of day, we accoutred ourselves at all points; and so soon as we were ready, we went down into the river, and our horses swam in. When we had got half-way across stream we touched bottom, and our horses found their feet. On the bank of the river we found full three hundred Turks, all mounted on horseback. Then I said to my followers: "Sirs, look out on the left! Every one is making for that side, the banks are all spongy, and their horses are rolling over onto them and drowning them." (And true it is that there were men drowned in the crossing, and among others my Lord John of Orleans, who bore a banner "wavey.")

With one accord we all turned our horses' heads up stream and found the foothold washed away, and got over somehow, thank God! without any of

us falling. And now that we were across, the Turks fled.

It had been arranged, that the Templars should form the advance-guard, and that the Count of Artois should lead the second detachment, next to the Templars. Now, as it happened, the Count of Artois had no sooner crossed the river, than he and all his followers made a dash at the Turks, who were fleeing before them. The Templars sent him a message, that he was insulting them shamefully by going on ahead, when he ought to be following behind them; and they begged that he would allow them to lead, as the King had given them leave.

Now it so happened that the Count of Artois durst not answer, because of Lord Foucault of Le Merle, who was holding his rein, and this Foucault of Le Merle, who was a very good knight, heard never a word that the Templars said to the Count, because he was deaf; and he kept shouting: " At them! At them! " Thereupon the Templars thought that they would be disgraced if they let the Count of Artois go in front of them; so they spurred on, helter-skelter, each trying to outdo the

other, and driving the Turks, who fled before them, right through the town of Mansoora and out into the fields on the side towards Grand Cairo. But when they tried to return, the Turks flung logs and timber in their way across the streets, which were narrow.

There died the Count of Artois, and the Lord of Coucy whom they called Ralph, and as many as three hundred other knights at a guess, the Templars, so I was told, lost fourteen score men there, all armed and mounted.

I and my knights agreed that we would attack some Turks who were loading up their baggage to the left of their camp, and we charged upon them. Whilst we were hunting them through the camp, I saw a Saracen who was getting on his horse, while one of his knights held the bridle for him. Just as he had got his two hands on the saddle to mount, I drove at him with my spear below the armpits, and flung him dead. His knight seeing this, left his lord and the horse, and, as I passed on, he pinned me down with his spear between the shoulder-blades, and stretched me along my horse's neck, and held me so tightly pressed down that I

could not draw the sword round my waist; so I had to draw the sword that was hung to my horse, and when he saw that I had got my sword out, he drew back his spear, and left me.

When I and my knights had got through the Saracens' camp, we found some six thousand Turks, (at a guess) who had abandoned their quarters and drawn off into the fields. When they saw us, they came charging down on us, and slew Lord Hugh of Trichâtel, Lord of Conflans, who carried his banner with me.

I and my knights clapped spurs to the rescue of Lord Ralph of Wanon, who was with me, whom they had pulled to earth; and whilst I was on my way back, the Turks pinned me down with their spears. My horse, feeling the weight, fell on his knees, and I passed on between his ears, and picked myself up with my shield round my neck and my sword in my hand. Lord Erard of Syverey, God rest his soul! who was of my company, came up to me, and said, that we had best draw off to a ruined house, and wait there until the King should come. And as we were going along on foot and horseback, a great horde of Turks broke upon us,

and bore me down, and passed over me, and snatched my shield from my neck; and when they were gone by, Lord Erard of Syverey came back to me, and led me along, till we reached the walls of the ruined house; and there Lord Hugh of Scots rejoined us, with Lord Frederick of Loupey, and Lord Reynold of Menoncourt.

There the Turks attacked us on all sides. Part of them got into the ruins, and thrust at us with their spears from above. Then my knights desired me to take hold of their horses' bridles, which I did, to prevent the horses from stampeding; and they warded off the Turks so vigorously, that they were praised by all the champions of the army, both by those who saw the deed, and those who only heard it told.

There Lord Hugh of Scots was wounded with three spear-wounds in his face, and Lord Ralph too; and Lord Frederick of Loupey was wounded with a spear between his shoulders, and the gash was so wide, that the blood spurted out of his body as through the tap of a cask. Lord Erard of Syverey got such a sword-cut across his face that his nose hung down onto his lip.

Then I bethought me of Our Lord Saint James: "Fair Lord Saint James," I prayed, " Help and save me in this need! " No sooner had I made my prayer, than Lord Erard said to me: " Sir, if you thought it would be no reproach to me and my heirs, I would go and fetch you help from the Count of Anjou, whom I see yonder in the fields." And I said to him: "Sir Erard, methinks it would be greatly to your honour, if you were to fetch us aid to save our lives, for truly your own life is in danger." (And indeed I spoke the truth, for he died of that wound.) He asked the opinion of all my knights who were there, and they took the same view as I did; and thereupon he asked me to let go his horse whom I was holding by the bridle along with the rest, and I did so. He came to the Count of Anjou, and begged him to come to the assistance of me and my knights. A rich man who was with him would have dissuaded him, but the Count of Anjou said he should do what my knight asked him; and he turned rein to come and help us, and several of his serjeants spurred on ahead; and when the Saracens saw them coming they let us be. In front of these serjeants rode Lord Peter of Alberive, sword in

hand, and when he saw that the Saracens had left us, he charged a whole heap of Saracens who had got hold of Lord Ralph of Wanon, and rescued him, sorely wounded.

As I stood there on foot among my knights, all wounded as you have heard, the King came up with his whole battalion, with a great noise and din of trumpets and kettledrums, and halted on a raised path. Never did I see him so finely accoutred, for he towered head and shoulders above his followers, with a gilded helmet on his head, and a German sword in his hand. He came to a halt in this place; and those champion knights of his battalion, whose names I told you, hurled themselves among the Turks, together with several brave knights of the King's battalion. And I would have you know, that it was a very fine feat of arms; for there was no shooting with bows or cross -bows, but the striking on both sides was all with clubs and swords, the Turks and our men being all mixed up together. One of my squires, who had fled with my banner, but had come back, brought me a pony of mine, which I mounted, and riding up to the King placed myself at his side.

Whilst we were so stationed, Lord John of Valery, the paladin, came to the King, and said he advised him to draw off to the right, down to the river, in order to have the support of the Duke of Burgundy and of the others whom we had left guarding the camp, and also that his serjeants might get something to drink, for the heat was at its height. The King bade his serjeants go and fetch those champion knights of his council who were attached to his person, naming them by name. The serjeants went to seek them in the ranks, where the fight was raging between them and the Turks. They came to the King, who asked their opinion, and they said that Lord John of Valery's advice was good. Thereupon, the King commanded the standard of Saint Denis and his own banners to draw off to the right towards the river; and as his army began to move, there was again a great noise of trumpets and Arabian horns. He had hardly gone any distance, when he got several messengers from his brother, the Count of Poitiers, and from the Count of Flanders, and other rich men whose detachments were in that place, begging him not to stir, for they were so hard-pressed by the Turks that they could

not follow him. The King recalled all the paladins of his council, and they all advised him to wait; but shortly afterwards Lord John of Valery came back again and blamed the King and his council for delaying; and his council advised him after all to draw off to the river, as Lord John of Valery advised. Now came the Constable, Lord Humbert of Beaujeu, to him, and told him that his brother, the Count of Artois, was defending himself in a house in Mansoora, and that he must go to his assistance. The King replied: " Constable, go you on in front, and I will follow you."

I told the Constable, I would be his knight, and he thanked me much, and we took the road to Mansoora.

Then there came a mace-serjeant, all scared, to the Constable, and told him, that the King had halted, and that the Turks had got between him and us. We turned round, and saw that there were a good thousand and more between him and us, and we were only six. Then said I to the Constable: "Sir, it is impossible for us to get to the King through these fellows; let us rather go on up stream, and put this ditch, that you see before

you, betwixt us and them; and in this way we shall be able to rejoin the King. The Constable followed my advice; and know, that if they had observed us, we should all have been dead men; but their attention was fixed on the King, and on the other big detachments, and so they took us for some of their own people.

Whilst we were coming back down stream along the river bank, between the brook and the river, we saw that the King had reached the river and that the Saracens were driving back the rest of the King's battalions, striking and hitting with clubs and swords, and crowding the other detachments with the King's battalions back onto the river.

There the rout was so great, that some of our people took into their heads to try and swim across the river to the Duke of Burgundy; which they could not achieve, for the horses were tired, and the day had grown sultry; and we could see whilst we were coming down that the river was covered with lances and shields and horses and men, drowning and perishing.

We came to a little bridge over the brook, and I proposed to the Constable, that we should stay

and guard this bridge: " For, if we leave it, they will come down on the King from this quarter; and if our people are attacked on both sides, they are likely to lose heavily." Accordingly we did so. And people say, that that day's work would have been the end of us all, if the King had not been there in person. For the Lord of Courtenay, and my Lord John of Saillenay told me, that six Turks had seized the King's bridle and were leading him away prisoner; and he, single-handed, delivered himself from them with great blows of his sword. And when his followers saw the King showing fight, they took heart, and left off trying to cross the river, and gathered round the King to help him.

Count Peter of Brittany came straight towards us, coming straight from the direction of Mansoora. He had a sword-gash across his face so that the blood was trickling into his mouth. He was seated on a little horse smartly harnessed. He had thrown his reins onto his saddle-bow, and was holding on with both hands, so that his followers behind, who were crowding on him, might not jostle him off the path. He seemed to set small store by them, for

spitting the blood from his mouth he said: "Just look! God's head! did you ever see such a rabble?"

At the tail of his detachment came the Count of Soissons and my Lord Peter of Noville, whom they use to call "Cater," who had suffered many hard knocks that day. After they had passed over and the Turks found that we were guarding the bridge, they left them alone, directly they saw us face round.

I went up to the Count of Soissons, whose first cousin I had married, and said to him: " Sir, I think you would do well to stop behind and guard this bridge; for if we leave the bridge, these Turks here in front will certainly rush across it, and thus the King will be attacked both before and behind." He asked, whether, if he stayed, I would stay? and I answered: " Yes, right willingly." Thereupon the Constable bade me not stir thence until he should return, and he would go and fetch help.

So there I stayed, mounted on my pony; and the Count of Soissons stayed beside me on my right, and Lord Peter of Noville on my left. And lo and behold! a Turk, who was coming from the side

where the King's troops were, and was behind us; and he struck Lord Peter of Noville from behind with a club, and with the blow stretched him along his horse's neck, and then dashed on over the bridge and rushed in among his own people.

When the Turks saw that we had no intention of leaving the bridge they crossed over the brook and placed themselves between the brook and the river, just as we had done coming down, and we spread ourselves out between them, in such a fashion that we were all ready to charge them, whether they tried to pass us from the King's side, or whether they tried to cross the bridge.

In front of us were two of the King's serjeants, one of whom was named William of Boon, and the other John of Gamaches. Those Turks who were between the brook and the river brought up peasants on foot, who pelted these two serjeants with clods of earth; but they could never get them to attack us ourselves. Finally, they brought up a peasant, who threw Greek fire at them thrice. Once William of Boon caught the vessel of Greek fire on his buckler, for if it had set light to anything on him, he would have been burnt. We were all

covered with the fire-darts that missed the serjeants. By good luck, I found a Saracen's oakum tunic; and I turned the split side towards me, and made a shield of the tunic, which served me in good stead, for their fire-darts only wounded me in five places and my pony in fifteen. It chanced too, that one of my burghers from Joinville brought me a banner with an iron spear-head; and every time that we saw them crowding on the serjeants, we charged them, and they fled. By this time the good Count of Soissons was beginning to joke with me and to say: "Seneschal, let these hounds yelp; for, by God's head cloth! (which was his favourite oath) we shall yet talk over this day in the ladies' bowers."

In the evening, just as the sun was setting, the Constable brought us the King's cross-bowmen on foot, and they ranged themselves in front of us; and when the Saracens saw our feet in the stirrups of the cross-bows, they fled.

Then said the Constable to me: "Well done! Seneschal. Now get you hence to the King, and leave him no more, until he shall have alighted in his own pavilion."

I had just joined the King, when Lord John

of Valery came to him and said: "Sir, my Lord of Châtillon begs you to grant him the rearguard," which the King did very gladly, and then started on the road. As we were going along, I made him take off his helmet, and presented him my iron cap that he might get the air.

And then there came to him Brother Henry of Ronnay, who had crossed the river, and kissed his mailed hand, and asked him, if he had no tidings of the Count of Artois his brother? And the King replied: That indeed he had tidings of him, for he knew for certain that his brother, the Count of Artois, was in Paradise. "Ah, Sir, you have much to console you; for never did such great honour kill to any King of France as has fallen to you; for to fight your enemies you have swum a river, and have discomfited and driven them from the field; and have got possession of their engines and their quarters, and shall lie in them yourself this very night."

The King replied, that: God be praised for all is mercies! and then great tears began to fall from his eyes.

When we reached our lodging we found that

some Saracens on foot had struck a tent, and were tugging at it on one side whilst our camp-followers were tugging it on the other. We charged them, the Master of the Temple and I, and they ran away, leaving the tent in the hands of our people.

In this battle, there were many people who made a very fine show, but ran away most disgracefully from the fight, and fled in a panic over the little bridge of which I spoke; and not one of them could we persuade to make a stand beside us. I could very well tell you some of their names; but I shall refrain, because they are dead.

However, I need not refrain from mentioning Lord Guy Malvoisin, for he came away from Mansoora in all honour; and indeed he came down the very way that the Constable and I went up. And just as the Turks hung upon Count Peter of Brittany and his troop, so they hung upon Lord Guy of Malvoisin and his men; and they lost heavily, he and his followers, in that day's work. And it was no wonder if he and his men acquitted themselves nobly on that day, for people, who knew his affairs well, told me, that all his battalion,

with scarcely any exception, were knights of his lineage, or knights who were his liege-men.

NOTE TO CHAPTER X
THE BATTLE OF MANSOORA

So far as can be gathered from contemporary Christian accounts, the events of this famous Shrove Tuesday were as follows:

On quitting the camp on the north side of the river (in which was left all the baggage under the guard of the Duke of Burgundy and a sufficiency of mounted and foot soldiers) the King had put his forces into regular formation, and given strict orders that the lines were to be kept; and that each detachment after crossing the ford was to draw up and wait for the others. The ford proved much worse than was expected and threw the troops into disorder.

The Count of Artois and the others who were first across, disregarding orders, turned to the right and rode up stream long the bank of the river of Raxi (or of Tanis, as most narrators call it), until they came opposite their own old camp, and into that of the Saracens. There, taking the Saracens by surprise while most of them were still asleep, they fell upon them, and cut to pieces every living thing in the camp, giving no quarter to man, woman, or child.

The butchery even made an impression on Jean Pierre Sarrasin, who, after describing it, says, " A very piteous thing it was to see such a quantity of dead bodies, and such an outpouring of blood that is, if they had not been enemies of the Christian faith."

After this, a great dispute arose between William of Sonnac, Master of the Temple, and Robert of Artois. There was always very bad feeling and considerable jealousy between the men " from home " and the " colonial " barons, which the Count of Artois seems to have exasperated on every possible occasion. The Master of the Temple was for staying and securing their position and guarding the Saracen engines which were left in their hands. The Count of Artois and his followers were for pushing on and attacking the stronghold of Mansoora, which lay a little further up, at the dividing of the Nile and the stream of Tanis. One of them actually accused the Templars and Hospitallers of treachery, saying that but for them the country would have been conquered long ago; and the Count of Artois told the Master to " stay behind if he were afraid," to which the Master replied, " Sir, I and my brethren are not afraid. We will go with you; but doubt whether either of us will return." The whole arty then galloped forward, disregarding another special message from the King desiring his brother to go no further; drove the Saracens before them through the town f Mansoora; and then tried to return, but found the beets barricaded and themselves in a trap. Almost the hole of the Templars were cut to pieces in the hand-hand fighting that followed. Robert of Artois tried to scape by swimming the river and was drowned, with

many others. William Longsword, Earl of Salisbury, the famous grandson of King Henry and Fair Rosamund, refused to fly, and was literally cut to pieces, after performing wonders of velour equal to those of the ancient paladins. His defence and death raised him to a national hero almost a saint. His mother Ela, in her English nunnery, on the night after his death, saw him in a vision ascending to heaven in full armour, and on learning of his fate received the news with such joy and resignation that all were astonished. His virtue is made manifest even to the Saracens by the light that proceeds from his bones; and a future Sultan offers to give them to King Louis as a valuable Christian relic.

Whilst the Count of Artois and the rest of the advance guard were pursuing the Turks into Mansoora, the rest of the army and the King finished crossing the river and arched on towards the Saracen camp in good order. recently they were met by the Saracens, coming from Mansooraa flushed with their victory and slaughter of the Christians. The King's troops were forced back onto the river of Tanis, just opposite their old camp on the other bank; and despite the King's personal bravery they would eve been destroyed, had not the Duke of Burgundy and he men in the old camp hastily constructed a floating bridge of timber, on which they got over to their assistnce. The King was at a disadvantage from want of cross-bowmen, most of whom had perished with the advance guard.

It is difficult quite to understand the lie of the land in Joinville's scene of action. The annexed map gives a plausible idea of it.

Longsword's death became an epic subject for chroniclers and ballad-makers. Matthew Paris gives a moving prose account [1] of it:

" Said Robert of Artois: 'Oh William! God fights against us we can no longer hold out I advise you, save yourself alive, if you can, by flight, whilst your horse has strength to carry you, lest when you wish to "you no longer can.'

To whom William replied curtly, as the tumult permitted.

'Please God, the son of my father shall never fly for any Saracen. I would rather die a good death than live a base life.'

Then the Count of Artois fled to the river and was drowned, and the French were scattered and slain.

When William, on whom the Saracens turned their attack, saw this, he knew that his life was forfeit. Manfully he bore up against all assailants, and cutting in pieces many, sent their souls to Hell. Yet though his horse had succumbed and his own feet were cut off still he continued to lop off the hands, heads, and feet, of such as attacked him.

And then, after sustaining many blows and wounds, with blood gushing out, and overwhelmed by the stones of his assailants, he, a most glorious martyr, breathed out his soul, that sped forth to assume its crown. And with him (died) his Standard Bearer, Robert de Vere, an excellent knight, and many other English, who had followed in his tracks, guided by the trail he left behind him."

There was between William Longsword and Robert of Artois an old-standing quarrel. While the army was at Damietta, the Earl had actually retired with his followers to Acre in consequence of the insults he had received from the King's brothers; and it was only by King Louis' efforts that they were reconciled. It is said that Robert of Artois' only remark when he heard of Longsword's defection, was: " Thank God, we are rid of those tailed monkeys!"

The author of a Norman-English poem 1 on the battle of Mansoora (who seems to have cordially entered into the feud, and sends the souls of French and Saracen alike unhesitatingly to hell) gives a detailed account of the fight in the streets and Longsword's death; which may be pure fiction, or may be genuine details gathered from an eyewitness, or tradition. It is sufficiently interesting for a few stanzas to be quoted.

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Here follow the exploits of his five followers: Wymond of Ascalon, Robert of Widel, Ralph of Henfield, Alexander Giffard, and John of Bretain.

Longsword begs Giffard if he escapes to execute his will and take charge of his possessions. A Norman knight urges him to escape by the river: Longsword replies—

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A Saracen Emir tries to persuade him to surrender, but in vain, and he goes on fighting furiously.

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He prays to Christ that he may he avenged on this hatefu! race, and goes on fighting with his left hand.

The Alexander Giffard mentioned in the poem as Longsword's confidant did escape, wounded in five places. In the next generation his family is found intermarried with the Longswords.