That day Henry took up his headquarters at the monastery of Chelles, a fortified place within six leagues of Paris, on the right bank of the Marne.  His army was drawn up in a wide valley somewhat encumbered with wood and water, extending through a series of beautiful pastures towards two hills of moderate elevation.  Lagny, on the left bank of the river, was within less than a league of him on his right hand.  On the other side of the hills, hardly out of cannon-shot, was the camp of the allies.  Henry, whose natural disposition in this respect needed no prompting, was most eager for a decisive engagement.  The circumstances imperatively required it of him.  His infantry consisted of Frenchmen, Netherlanders, English, Germans, Scotch; but of his cavalry four thousand were French nobles, serving at their own expense, who came to a battle as to a banquet, but who were capable of riding off almost as rapidly, should the feast be denied them.  They were volunteers, bringing with them rations for but a few days, and it could hardly be expected that they would remain as patiently as did Parma’s veterans, who, now that their mutiny had been appeased by payment of a portion of their arrearages, had become docile again.  All the great chieftains who surrounded Henry, whether Catholic or Protestant—­Montpensier, Nevers, Soissons, Conti, the Birons, Lavradin, d’Aumont, Tremouille, Turenne, Chatillon, La Noue—­were urgent for the conflict, concerning the expediency of which there could indeed be no doubt, while the king was in raptures at the opportunity of dealing a decisive blow at the confederacy of foreigners and rebels who had so long defied his authority and deprived him of his rights.

Stafford came up with the king, according to his cordial invitation, on the same day, and saw the army all drawn up in battle array.  While Henry was “eating a morsel in an old house,” Turenne joined him with six or seven hundred horsemen and between four and five thousand infantry.  “They were the likeliest footmen,” said Stafford, “the best countenanced, the best furnished that ever I saw in my life; the best part of them old soldiers that had served under the king for the Religion all this while.”

The envoy was especially enthusiastic, however, in regard to the French cavalry.  “There are near six thousand horse,” said he, “whereof gentlemen above four thousand, about twelve hundred other French, and eight hundred reiters.  I never saw, nor I think never any man saw, in prance such a company of gentlemen together so well horsed and so well armed.”

Henry sent a herald to the camp of the allies, formally challenging them to a general engagement, and expressing a hope that all differences might now be settled by the ordeal of battle, rather than that the sufferings of the innocent people should be longer protracted.