which were written in the duke's | order. But it having been said to hand these words: To carry on him by some persons of high rank war in France seven hundred thou- that this was the most dangerous sand crowns are required every month. of them all, and that some days A diamond heart, they say, was before he had held a conversation taken from his finger by the Sieur most insolent and full of extreme d'Entragues. But as the Sieur de contempt to the discredit of his Beaulieu was making this search, majesty, and among the rest, this: and perceived some slight move"That he did not wish to die till he ment in the body, he said to him, had put and held the head of this "Monsieur, as some little life is tyrant between his legs, to make a still left to you, ask pardon of God crown on him with the point of a and the king." Then without be- dagger;" these words, whether they ing able to speak, fetching a great were true or false, so moved the deep sigh, as with a hoarse voice, spirit of the king that without he gave up his life, and was delay he resolved to despatch him, covered with a grey cloak, and on which was done next morning. the top was put a cross of straw. Being ordered by the Sieur Du He remained thus about two hours, Gast, captain of the guards, to come then was delivered into the hands to the king, and at this order feelof the Sieur de Richelieu, grand ing a presentiment of what was provost of France, who, by the king's going to happen, he begged the command, had the body burned by Archbishop of Lyons to confess his executioner, in that first hall him, seeing that it was necessary which is below, to the right, as you to prepare for death. This done, enter the castle; and finally the they embraced each other, and took ashes were cast into the river. farewell. And as the cardinal approaches the door of the chamber, and is ready to go out, he finds himself attacked by blows of the halberts of two men commissioned and sent for this execution; after which his body was dealt with in the same fashion as had been done with that of his brother. As for the Cardinal de Guise the king ordered that he and the Archbishop of Lyons should be taken and guarded in the Tower of Moulins, his majesty having no wish to punish the cardinal save by imprisonment, out of the respect he had for those of this THE BATTLE OF IVRY. (Sully's Memoirs.) A.D. 1590. I KNEW that, without very great diligence, I should arrive too late for the battle with these companies, which I foresaw the king would be in extreme need of, as he was much inferior in number to the enemy. I therefore lost not a moment, and was fortunate enough to arrive an hour and a half before it began. The king ordered me to make my company pass to the right wing, where his own squadron was, to which he joined it; and making the two companies of arquebusiers dismount, sent their horses amongst the baggage, designing to make use of them as the forlorn hope. After this, he bid me follow him to see the disposition of the two armies, "in order," added he, "that you may learn your trade." He had no sooner placed himself at the head of his squadron, than the trumpets sounded the charge. I shall attempt nothing here against the rights of historians; I leave it to them to particularise this battle, and shall confine myself only to what I was an eye witness of. It is sufficient to say, that, upon this occasion, the principal causes that gave the victory to the weaker party, were, the valour of the Maréchal d'Aumont, who prevented the entire defeat of the light horse; the great difference between the enemy's manner of using their artillery and ours; and more than all this, the singular talents of the king, which were never so perfectly known as in the day of battle, in the disposition of his troops, in rallying them, in their discipline, and their exact and ready obedience. It is certain the Duke of Mayenne and the Count of Egmont, who were at the head of the Spaniards, imagined that if the king durst wait for them the victory would certainly be theirs; and that, if he yielded, or gave ground before them, as they expected, they did not reckon upon anything less than forcing him out of whatever place he should retreat to, and thus finishing the war at a single blow. With such dispositions, what must be the consequence? I say no | thing of the persons of the generals, | received another wound in my who alone are worth many thou- hand. A pistol-shot gave me a sand men. The stronger party third more considerable wound; never makes use of those precau- the ball entered my hip, and came tions that are necessary against an out near my belly. I should have enemy of equal strength; and, infallibly perished, if my equerry upon the other hand, the weaker had not run to my assistance with never forms a resolution to defend another horse, upon which I itself against a more numerous mounted, though with a good deal army, without determining like- of difficulty. This affection brought wise to supply, by valour and ad- many wounds upon poor Maignan, dress, the deficiency of numbers. and had like to have cost him his The surprise that a courage, ani- | life. mated by glory and difficulties, creates, assists a small number against a greater: by this all become in some sort equal. The king's squadron where I was, had the attacks of the Count of Egmont to sustain, who fell upon us with his own squadron, and a second of 1000 or 1200 German horse. It is true, the Germans, who professed the same religion as our soldiers did, fired almost in the air: but the Count of Egmont, we must do him justice, behaved like a man who was determined to conquer. He charged us with such fury, that, notwithstanding the desertion of the Germans, after a terrible fire, and an encounter which lasted a full quarter of an hour, and covered the earth with dead bodies, the left of our squadron fled, and the right was broken and gave ground. At the first onset my horse was wounded in the nostrils, and at the second in the neck, where the saddle did not reach, and a third brought him quite down, carrying away two of his feet, and a piece of flesh of the calf of my leg. I At a second charge this horse was likewise slain, and, in the same moment I received a pistolshot in the thigh, and a cut with a sword in the head. I remained upon the spot, and, along with my senses, lost all the remaining part of the action, which, from the advantage the Count of Egmont had already gained, boded, I thought, no good to us: and most certainly the king had been vanquished if all the rest of the enemy's army had behaved in the same manner. All that I know is, that, a long time after, recovering my senses, I saw neither enemies nor any of my servants near me, whom fear or disorder had dispersed; another presage which appeared to me no less unfavourable. I retired without a headpiece, and almost without armour, for my own had been battered to pieces. In this condition I saw a trooper of the enemy's running towards me, with an intention upon my life. By good fortune I found myself near a pear tree, under which I crept, and with that little motion I was still capable of, made to support himself, that I was tempted to take all I saw for an illusion, or the effect of my wounds. I was soon undeceived. My prisoners (since they would be so) made themselves known for MM. de Chataigneraie, de Sigogne, de Chanteloup, and d'Aufreville. They told me that the Duke of Mayenne had lost the battle; that the king was now in pursuit of the vanquished, which had obliged them to surrender, for fear of falling into worse hands, their horses not being in a condition to carry them out of danger : at the same time De Sigogne, in token of surrender, presented me with the white standard. The three others, who were the Duke of Nemours, the Chevalier d'Aumale, and Tremont, not seeming inclined to surrender, I endeavoured to persuade them by good reasons that they ought to do so; but in vain. After recommending their four comrades to me, seeing a body of the victors advance, they rode away, and showed me that their horses were still vigorous enough to bear them from their enemies. Thus mounted, I was going to learn news of the battle, which I believed to be lost, when I saw seven of the enemy coming straight towards me, one of whom carried the white standard belonging to the Duke of Mayenne's company. I thought it impossible to escape this new danger; and, upon their crying Qui vive? I told my name, as being ready to surrender myself a prisoner. What was my surprise, when, instead of attacking me, I found four of these persons entreating me to receive themselves for prisoners, and to save their lives; and while they ranged themselves about me, appearing | the standard, which was a burden charmed at having met with me! I granted their request: and it seemed so surprising to me, that four men unhurt and well armed should surrender themselves to a single man, disarmed, covered with his own blood, mounted upon a little paltry nag, and scarce able I advanced with my prisoners towards a battalion of Swiss, and meeting one of the king's chief pages, I gave him the charge of too heavy for me. I then saw more plainly the marks of our victory. The field was full of the fugitive Leaguers and Spaniards, and the victorious army of the king pursuing and scattering the rest of the large bodies, that had dispersed or gathered together. The Swiss soldiers of the two | crying, "'Sdeath! thou traitor to armies meeting, faced each other thy king, whom thou hast murwith their pikes lowered, without dered, and triumphed in the deed.” striking a blow, or making any motion. The white standard, embroidered with black flowers-de-luce, was known by every one to be that of the Guises, which they bore in memory and horror of the assassination of Blois, and attracted all, as to a prey equally rich and honourable. The black velvet coats of my prisoners, which were covered with silver crosses, were resplendent from afar in the field. The first who flew to seize them were MM. de Cambrai, De l'Archant, Du Rollet, De Crevecœur, De Palcheux, and De Brasseuse, who were joined by the Count de Torigny. I advanced towards them, and supposing they would not know my face, altogether disfigured by blood and dust, I named myself. The Count de Torigny no sooner knew La Chataigneraie, who was his relation, than judging that, in the condition he saw me, I could not preserve my prisoners from insult, he entreated me to give Chataigneraie to his care, for whom he would be answerable to me. I readily granted his request, yet it was with regret that I saw him go away. What Torigny did through a principle of friendship, had in effect a fatal consequence for the unhappy Chataigneraie. He was known some moments after, by three men belonging to d'O's company, who had been guards to Henry III. These men, levelling their pieces at him, shot him dead, I might have made the Count of Torigny pay this prisoner's ransom, and I was counselled by several persons to do so; but I could not resolve to add this new cause of affliction to what he already felt for the death of a man with whom I had myself been particularly acquainted. I was not long ere I was surrounded by many persons, amongst whom there was not one that did not envy my good fortune. D'Andelot came after the rest, and pressing through the crowd, perceived De Sigogne, and the page who carried the standard. He was preparing to seize it, believing his good destiny had kept this prey for him, when a report that the enemy had rallied, obliged him to depart abruptly. I had not time to draw him out of his error; for, after he had bid the page keep that standard for him, he suddenly disappeared. The intelligence was found to be false, and had no other foundation than the arrival of two hundred soldiers from Picardy, whom MM. de Moy and De la Boissiere had brought to the Duke of Mayenne. Being now disengaged from the crowd, and having need of help, especially for the wound in my hip, by which I lost a great deal of blood, I advanced with my prize to the head of Vignole's regiment, which had behaved bravely in the battle. Here, fearing no further surprise, I ordered a surgeon to |