heads, arms and breasts, many of them cast down their cross-bows and did cut their strings and returned discomfited.  When the French king saw them fly away, he said:  ’Slay these rascals, for they shall let and trouble us without reason.’  Then ye should have seen the men of arms dash in among them and killed a great number of them:  and ever still the Englishmen shot whereas they saw thickest press; the sharp arrows ran into the men of arms and into their horses, and many fell, horse and men, among the Genoways, and when they were down, they could not relieve[4] again, the press was so thick that one overthrew another.  And also among the Englishmen there were certain rascals that went afoot with great knives, and they went in among the men of arms, and slew and murdered many as they lay on the ground, both earls, barons, knights and squires, whereof the king of England was after displeased, for he had rather they had been taken prisoners.

      [1] Villani, a very good authority on the subject, says 6000,
      brought from the ships at Harfleur.

      [2] A mistranslation of ‘une esclistre,’ ‘a flash of lightning.’

[3] These ‘leaps’ of the Genoese are invented by the translator, and have passed from him into several respectable English text-books, sometimes in company with the eclipse above mentioned.  Froissart says ’Il commencierent a juper moult epouvantablement’; that is, ‘to utter cries.’  Another text makes mention of the English cannons at this point:  ’The English remained still and let off some cannons that they had, to frighten the Genoese.’

      [4] The translator’s word ‘relieve’ (relyuue) represents
      ‘relever,’ for ‘se relever.’

The valiant king of Bohemia called Charles of Luxembourg, son to the noble emperor Henry of Luxembourg, for all that he was nigh blind, when he understood the order of the battle, he said to them about him:  ‘Where is the lord Charles my son?’ His men said:  ’Sir, we cannot tell; we think he be fighting.’  Then he said:  ’Sirs, ye are my men, my companions and friends in this journey:  I require you bring me so far forward, that I may strike one stroke with my sword.’  They said they would do his commandment, and to the intent that they should not lose him in the press, they tied all their reins of their bridles each to other and set the king before to accomplish his desire, and so they went on their enemies.  The lord Charles of Bohemia his son, who wrote himself king of Almaine and bare the arms, he came in good order to the battle; but when he saw that the matter went awry on their party, he departed, I cannot tell you which way.  The king his father was so far forward that he strake a stroke with his sword, yea and more than four, and fought valiantly and so did his company; and they adventured themselves so forward, that they were there all slain, and the next day they were found in the place about the king, and all their horses tied each to other.