СНАР. IX. 1264 miles off, and he would have had to fight on the level, without anything to compensate for his inferiority of numbers. On arriving therefore at Offham, he turned sharp off to the right and ascended the great northern ridge of the downs by one of several tracks which lead slantwise up the steep hill-side, probably at a depression which marks the top of what is called the Combe, just to the east of Lewes Beacon.2 Thence he followed along what may be called the middle finger of the hand above spoken of, passing close by the present racecourse, and always keeping a little way down the western side of the ridge so as to avoid being seen from the town. But already fortune had begun to First favour his bold attempt. The royalists had posted a vedette somewhere on the ridge, probably on the Ann. Waverley, p. 356, make the barons 50,000, the royalists 60,000; others make the proportion in favour of the king much larger. Simons army included 15,000 Londoners, very poor troops. 2 There are three points on this ridge, one without a name immediately above Offham, at the bend of the ridge, then, westward of this, Lewes Beacon, which is higher, and lastly Mount Harry, supposed to be named from Henry III, which is higher still. Mr. Blaauw supposes the barons to have mounted by the Combe, and this is most probable, as there was no reason for them to go further west. I may take this opportunity of saying that I visited Lewes purposely without any knowledge of Mr. Blaauws account, and came to a perfectly independent decision about the battle, which I was glad to find agreed in the main with his. The chief authorities from which my account is compiled, are the Chronicles of Melrose, Lanercost, John of Oxenedes, Walter of Hemingburgh and the two Chronicles attributed to Rishanger, the Chronicon edited by Mr. Riley for the Rolls Series, and the Narratio de Bellis apud Lewes et Evesham, edited by Mr. Halliwell for the Camden Society, which are however too contradictory to have been written by the same person; all these appear to have come from independent witnesses, and are more often explanatory of one another than inconsistent. In the second rank come the Chronicles of T. Wykes, Nicolas Trivet. Waverley, and others. Unfortunately the chronicler of Osney was prevented from telling all he knew, because, as he says, 'forte quod placeret regalibus displiceret baronum fautoribus.'-Ann. Osn. 149. success. CHAP. 1264 The battle of Lewes : march of height above Offham, whence the whole country as far as Fletching could be commanded. These men however had got weary of waiting, and in the course of the night had returned to the town, leaving one the barons; solitary watcher behind them. He had naturally fallen asleep, and was roused from his slumbers by Simons men. From him they doubtless gained useful information about the enemy, and after this piece of good fortune proceeded, we are told, with great joy. When they reached the point where the Spital Mill now stands, and the ground sinks gently towards the south and east, they mounted the ridge, and from its flat top caught sight of the castle to the eastward, and the bell-tower of the priory below, just tinged by the rays of the rising sun. address of Earl baronial Then Simon, knowing that the struggle would not be long delayed, dismounted from his horse, the rest following his example, and addressed his troops as follows: My brethren well-beloved, both peers and vassals, the battle we fight to-day we fight for the sake of the realm of England, to the honour of God and of the blessed Virgin, and to maintain our oath. Let us pray the King of all men that, if that is pleasing to Him which we have undertaken, He may grant us strength and aid, that we may do Him good service by our knightly prowess, and overcome the malice of all our foes. And since we are His, to Him we commend our souls and bodies.' Then they all knelt down upon the ground, and, stretching out their arms, prayed aloud to God for victory that day. After that the order of the earl knighted young Gilbert de Clare and others, and so arranged in three bodies they marched down the hill upon the enemy. The left consisted of the Londoners, army. under the command of Nicholas de Segrave, Henry of Hastings, and others. Simon appears to have sent them, knowing they could hardly stand in the open field against the mounted and well-armed foe, to enter the town by another way and attack the enemy in the rear. The centre, probably directed against the castle, was commanded by the young Earl of Gloucester, eager to show himself worthy of his spurs. The right was led by Henry and Guy, two of Simons sons, the eldest, Simon, having been taken prisoner at Northampton; it was meant to surprise that portion of the royal army which was encamped round the priory. This was the important point, for in the priory lay the prize of victory, the king. The earl himself seems to have remained with a fourth body in reserve, to go wherever the course of the struggle should demand his presence. Even yet the advancing army does not seem to have been perceived, until it came into collision with a party which had come out in the early morning to forage, some of whoni, rushing back into the town, gave the alarm. From the point where the barons halted to the castle is about a mile, to the priory about a mile and a half, so that the royalists had no time to lose. Prince Edward, who was in the castle, was naturally the first to appear, and sallying forth fell 1 7. of Oxenedes, p. 221, says that Simon sent 'quosdam ex nobilioribus' to fire the town in the rear of the enemy; these I suppose to have been the nobles who led the Londoners. This is the only way I can account for the Londoners being near the castle, so as to meet Edwards attack, for it seems to me absurd to think, with Mr. Blaauw, that they had the place of honour, and were sent directly against the castle, the strongest point. They were, as we know, on the left, and would naturally have been employed on this sort of service. Edward must have sallied forth before Gloucester with the centre reached the gates. CHAP. IX. 1264 The Battle defeat of the Lon Joners; vigorously upon the first portion of the enemy that he came across. These happened to be the Londoners, whom he probably took in flank as they were hurryof Lewes ing past the castle to enter the town, and were doubtless in very poor order. They were immediately put. to flight, and pursued by the relentless victor for some miles. They appear to have fled along the road to Offham, and their bones have been discovered in pits along the steep hill-side, up which they hoped that the horses of their pursuers could not follow them.' When he had sufficiently glutted his sword with the blood of these unwarlike townsmen, and bitterly avenged the insult they had put upon his mother, the prince was returning towards the battle-field, when he descried upon the hill where Simons army had halted a large vehicle, on the top of which the earls standard was flying. This was the carroccio, or waggon, on which it was the custom of the time to carry the standard of a town to battle.2 On this occasion however it had been made use of by the earl as a place of confinement for four citizens of the royalist party, whom he had taken with him as hostages on leaving the city. The waggon was very strong and barred with iron. Round it was piled what baggage the army had brought with it. The royalists, seeing the earls standard, and fancying that he was within, as being not yet sufficiently recovered from his fall to be able to mount on horseback, attacked the waggon attack on the carroc cio. 1 Blaauw, Barons' War, pp. 354, 356. 2 As for instance in the Battle of the Standard, where the flags of York, &c, and in the Battle of Legnano, where that of Milan was carried. This number is given in Rish., de Bellis, &c., and Matt. West. ;. others give three or two. Some say they were the citizens who had barred the gates of London against Simon in the previous autumn. with great vehemence. They lost some time in driving off those who guarded the vehicle, and more in breaking it open, for its strength defied for a long while all their efforts. In vain they shouted, 'Come out, come out, thou devil Simon! come out, thou basest of traitors!' In vain did those within declare that not Simon but friends and allies were there. The royalists, finding all their efforts to burst open the waggon unavailing, at length set fire to it and burnt it with its unfortunate inmates.1 By this time the day was far advanced, and Prince Edward, the Rupert of his day, returned to Lewes, exhausted with his easy but fruitless victory, to find the main battle lost. and won.2 For de Montfort no sooner saw the best troops of the enemy engaged in pursuing the least valuable portion of his own force, than he hurled the rest of his army upon that body of the royalists which was led by the two kings in person. The latter were taken completely by surprise, but speedily ranged themselves in the best order they could, and issued from the priory enclosure with the royal standard, the 3 1 Chron. Mailr. p. 194, says that some of the Londoners, in order to deceive the enemy, told them that Simon had pretended he could not ride, and had not wished to come with them; that they had therefore confined him in the waggon, in fear that if they left him behind he would play them false. But Edward can hardly have been fool enough to believe this story, which sounds as if it had been made up by the Londoners after the event. A good deal of guile has been imported into this affair, which was probably, after all, merely a lucky accident, 2 Blaauw, Barons' War, p. 204, says he returned about 8 o'clock; but surely usque ad octavam horam' (Chron. Mailr. 195) means 2 o'clock: even this is hardly possible. 3 Ann. Wav. p. 357, say that the barons paused on the hill, and did not attack at once, so as to give the royalists time to wake; so too Rob. of Glouc. 547 but this is almost too Quixotic to attribute to them. CHAP. IX. 1264 Defeat of the kings main body. |