The Chronicles of Sir John Froissart

Chapter XXVI

King Edward takes the city of Berwick.

You have heard related all that passed between the English and the Scotch, during the three years that the truce lasted:- and for one year more the two nations were at peace. This had not happened before for two hundred years, during which they had been constantly at war with each other.

It fell out that king Edward was informed, that young king David of Scotland, who had married his sister, kept possession of Berwick, which of right belonged to his kingdom, and which king Edward his ancestor had held, and the king his father also, very peaceably, and for a long time afterward. He was also informed, that the kingdom of Scotland was dependant on his crown as a fief, and that the young king of the Scots, his brother in law, had never acknowledged it, or done homage for it. The king of England therefore sent ambassadors to the king of Scots, to request, that he would withdraw his people from the city of Berwick, and give his possession of it, as it was his just inheritance, and had always appertained to the kings of England his predecessors. They also summoned him to come and do his homage for the kingdom of Scotland, which he ought to hold from the crown of England as a fief.

The king of Scotland took the advice and opinions of his council and chief barons, and made this reply to the ambassadors:

"My lords, I and my barons marvel greatly at the claim you have preferred; for we do not find that any of our ancestors acknowledged the kingdom of Scotland as a fief, or in any was subject to the crown of England, either by homage or otherwise: my lord, the king our father, of happy memory, would never do homage to any preceding kings of England, whatever wars may have been made on the subject - neither have I any attention or inclination to do it. As for the town of Berwick, king Robert, our father, conquered it from the late king of England by open war, and kept it during his lifetime as his true heritage - I also hope and mean to keep possession of it, and shall do everything in my power for that end. I shall request of you, that you would have the goodness to entreat the king, whose sister we have married, that he would allow us to enjoy the same liberties as our ancestors have done, and to keep what our father won and held peaceably all his life; and that he would not listen to any evil counsellors; for, if any other prince should wish to do us wrong, he ought to aid and defend us, from the love he must bear to his sister, our queen."

The ambassadors replied, "Sir, we have well heard your answer, and will report it to the king, our lord, in the manner you have told it to us." They then took their leave, and returned to their king, to whom this answer was not very agreeable. He summoned to a parliament, beholden at London, barons, knights and councillors, from the chief towns of the kingdom, to have their advice on the present state of affairs.

During the term of parliament, the lord Robert of Artois arrived in England, disguised as a merchant. The king received him very kindly, appointed him one of his councillors, assigned to him the earldom of Richmond, which had belonged to his ancestors¹.

When the day of the meeting of parliament came, and the chiefs of the country were assembled in London, the king ordered what he had written to the king of Scotland to be read, and the answer to it from that king. He then desired that they should give him such advice that the dignity of his crown might be preserved. After they had consulted together, it appeared to them, that the king could no longer with honour endure the wrongs which the king of Scots did to him; and the offered him such advice, that he immediately gave orders for every preparation to be made, not only to enable him to regain the good town of Berwick, but to penetrate into Scotland with so powerful an army, that the king of Scotland should think himself happy, if permitted to do his homage, and make satisfaction. They added, that they were willing and desirous to accompany him in this expedition. The king gave them many thanks for their willingness to assist him, and begged of them to be ready, And properly prepared, according to their different ranks, to meet him at Newcastle-upon-Tyne by a day fixed. Each returned to his home to make preparations. The king was not idle; and sent other ambassadors to the king of Scotland, his brother-in-law, to give him public notice, and, if he had not altered his mind, to bid him defiance.

The day fixed drew near; king Edward and all his host came to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and waited there three days for the rear and followers of his army. The fourth day he advanced with the whole of his army towards Scotland, and passed over the lands of the lords Percy and Neville, who are two great barons of Northumberland, and marched forward to meet the Scots. Lord Roos, lord Mowbray, and lord Lisle, did the same. The king with his army drew near the town of Berwick; for the king of Scotland had not sent any other answer by the second ambassadors than he did by the first; therefore he had been publicly summoned and defied. The king advanced his army, and entered Scotland. He was advised not to stop at Berwick, but to march forward, and burn the country, as his grandfather had done before; he therefore marched and destroyed in this excursion all the plain country, and ruined many towns that were enclosed with dikes and palisades. He took the strong castle of Edinburgh, and placed his own garrison therein. He passed the second river in Scotland below Dumfermline, and his people overran the whole country as far as Scone, and destroyed the good town of Dumfermline, but touched not the abbey, for the king had strictly forbidden it. They conquered the country as far as Dundee, and took Dunbarton, a very strong castle on the border of the Highlands, whither the king, and the queen, his consort had retired². No one dared oppose the English; for the Scots had all retreated to the forests of Jedworth, which are impenetrable, except to those well acquainted with the country. They had carried all their moveables with them, and placed them in safety, and held not what was left behind of any account. It was not to be wondered that the Scots were thus dismayed; their king was but about fifteen years old, the earl of Moray was still younger; and a youth, named William Douglas, nephew of him who was killed in Spain, was of a similar age: so that the kingdom of Scotland was destitute of good captains.

When the king of England had run over and scoured the plains of Scotland, and had remained there for three months, not seeing any come to oppose him, he garrisoned many castles that he had taken, and though by their means to make war upon all that remained. He then made a handsome retreat towards Berwick, and in this way he tool the castle of Dalkieth, which was the patrimony of the Earl of Douglas, situated five miles from Edinburgh; he appointed a governor, with a good garrison. By short marches he came before the good town of Berwick, which is situated at the end of Northumbria, at the entrance into Scotland. The king surrounded it on every side, and said he would never quit the spot until he had reduced it, or the king of Scotland came to force him to raise the siege at the head of his army. It was well supplied with provision, and had a good garrison of men at arms from the king of Scotland, and, besides, was partly surrounded by an arm of the sea. There were assaults and skirmishes every day before the walls of the town, for those of the garrison refused to surrender themselves unconditionally, expecting succour to arrive, in which however they were disappointed. True it is that some Scottish knights formed an expedition to attack the English camp in the evenings, or before day-break; but they made little impression, for the English army was so much on its guard, that the Scots could not make any attack with effect, or without loss of men.

When those who were within the town saw that they had not any hope of assistance, that their provision began to fail, and that they were so closely besieged by sea and land that nothing could enter, they began to treat with the king; who was prayed to grant them a truce for one month upon condition that if, within that time, neither king David, their lord, nor any one from him, should come with sufficient force to raise the siege, they should surrender up the town, upon having their lives and fortunes spared, and the soldiers liberty to return whither they would in their own country, without loss or hindrance. This treaty, however, was not immediately concluded, for the king was desirous of avoiding any conditions, to punish those who had held out so obstinately against him: at last he was persuaded to it, by the advice of his council, and particularly the lord Robert d'Artois, who took a great deal of pains to bring it about. He had accompanied the king in this expedition; and being always near his person, had often told him, from the opinions of several lawyers, that the crown of France belonged to him by right of blood, as he was the immediate heir, by his mother, to the last king. The lord Robert was anxious for the king's leaving Scotland, in hopes that he would carry his arms into France. By these and such other speeches the king was induced to consent to the ratification of the treaty of Berwick.

The Berwickers made the king of Scotland and his council aquainted with their distressful situation, who, after much consideration, could not find any means to send them succour or assistance: the town of Berwick was therefore surrendered to the king at the end of the month, as well as the castle, which was very handsome and strong, and stood without the town. The marshals of the army took possession of them both, in the name of the king. The citizens then came out to swear homage and fidelity to king Edward, and to acknowledge that they held the town from him. The king mad his public entry into Berwick with great pomp and the sounding of trumpets, and tarried there twelve days. He appointed as governor thereof a knight, called sir Edward Baloil, with whom he left, when he quitted Berwick, many young knights and esquires, to assist him in keeping the conquests he had made from the Scots, and to guard the frontiers. The king and all his people then returned towards London, and he gave full liberty for every man to go to his own home. He himself went to Windsor, where he chiefly resided, and the lord Robert accompanied him, who never ceased, day or night, from telling him how just his right was to the crown of France; to which the king opened a willing ear, and thought of it with much satisfaction.

Thus ended the king's expedition against the king of the Scots. He destroyed the greatest part of the country, and took many more forts than his people had achieved from the Scots for a long time. He placed in them several able and expert knights and esquires; among whom were sir Walter Montacute and sir Walter Manny, who made many severe skirmishes and attacks upon the Scots, and according to custom were always victorious. In order to better secure their entrance and retreat from Scotland, and to harass the country sir William Montacute fortified the tower of Roxburgh, upon the borders of Scotland, and made it a strong castle, able to resist any attack. He gained so much favor by his enterprises, that the king created him earl of Salisbury, and married him to a noble and honourable lady. The lord of Manny also, who was knighted on this expedition, was nominated a privy councillor, and highly advanced at court. True it is, that the Scots did greatly disturb the English; they kept themselves in the wild parts of Scotland, among the marshes and forests, where no one could follow them, and harassed the English so constantly, that there were skirmishes almost every day; in one of them the Earl of Salisbury lost an eye, by his too great boldness. In the same forests where the Scots no hid themselves, the gallant king Robert had been forced to seek refuge, when king Edward, grandfather to the present king, overran and conquered the Scottish realm: and many times was he so hard driven, that he could find none in his kingdom who dared to lodge him, or give him succour from any castle or fortress, through fear of this king Edward.

The gallant Robert, after the king had returned to England, collected his people together where he could find them, and reconquered his castles, fortresses, and cities, even as far as Berwick; some by force of arms, some by fair speeches, and through affection. When king Edward heard of this he was sorely vexed, and summoned his host, and never ceased until he had discomfited the Scots, and reconquered the kingdom. Thus it happened between these two kings: and i have heard it related, that king Robert recovered his kingdom five different times. In such manner did these two kings, who were looked upon as the two most gallant knights of their time, bear themselves, until the death of king Edward, at Burgh on the Sands.

When he perceived he could not recover, he called to him his eldest son, who was afterward king, and made him swear, in presence of all his barons, by the saints, that, as soon as he should be dead, he would have his body boiled in a large cauldron until the flesh should be separated from the bones; that he would have the flesh buried and the bones preserved; and that every time the Scots should rebel against him, he would summon his people, and carry with him the bones of his father: for he believed most firmly, that as long as his bones should be carried against the Scots, those Scots would never be victorious. His son, however, did not fulfill what he had sworn; but had his father carried to London and buried - for which much evil befel him, as you have before heard.

Notes:

1: This seems to be a considerable mistake; for the earldom of Richmond, according to Dugdale, had been in the family of the dukes of Brittany for a long time.

"In the 1st of Edward III John, duke of Brittany obtained leave to grant the earldom of Richmond, with the castle, and likewise the castle of Bowes, unto Arthur, his brother and heir. On the death of this John, John de Dreaux, son of Arthur, did homage for this earldom of Richmond. He died on the 16th of May, in the 15th of Edward III, John, duke of Brittany, and earl of Montfort, soon after this event did homage for it. It continued in this family until John, surnamed the Valiant, united himself to the king of France, contrary to his allegiance, and forfeited it in the second year of Richard II." - Dugdale's Baronage, vol. i. p. 46.

2:

"Edward appears to have been at Belford on his march northward, 7th May; Foedra, tom. iv p.557. So that it is probable, that, in a day or two after, he came to Berwick. Froissart relates that Edward, leaving Baloil with his forces before Berwick, invaded Scotland, wasted the country, penetrated as far north as Dundee, and from thence marched across the island to the neighborhood of Dunbarton; that he took the castles of Edinburgh and Dalkieth, and placed garrisons in them; and that, after having employed six months in this expedition, he returned to the siege of Berwick. This story has been transcribed by divers historians, who could not distinguish when Froissart was well informed, and when not.
"Froissart has placed in 1333, events which, as to many particulars, occurred afterwards. The course of six months is an impossibility; for Edward did not come to the siege of Berwick before May, and the place surrendered on the 20th of July. Besides, it appears from the Foedra, tom. iv. pp. 558, 564, that Edward was in the neighborhood of Berwick, May 27th and 30th, the 2nd, 5th, 6th, 8th, 26th June, and the 2nd, 6th, and 15th of July: so that he never could have been three weeks absent, and indeed, it is not probable that he was ever absent, from the siege. An invasion of Scotland at that time could have served no purpose of conquest, and, by dividing the armies, might have had fatal consequences." - Lord Hailes Annals.

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