XVIII.

THE BATTLE OF LEWES.

A. D. 1264.

HENRY III., the son of King John, did not rule his kingdom wisely. He was not a bad man, but he was weak and foolish. He loved to spend money, and he did not mind making any promises that people asked for, if only he could get the money he wanted. Then afterwards he broke his promises, so that men soon found out that they could not trust him. He loved foreigners better than the English, and filled his court with them, loading them with honours and riches. For many years the English bore with him, but at last men wearied of his bad rule. One of the chief nobles, a wise and brave man, Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, put himself at the head of those of the barons and clergy who wished to make things better. The quarrel could not be settled peaceably; and at last Simon and the barons were forced to take up arms against the King and his friends.

The Queen, Eleanor of Provence, who, being a foreigner herself, liked the king's foreign friends and hated the barons, did all she could to persuade Henry III. not to do as the barons wished. This made the people of London, who were eager for the cause of the barons, very angry with her, and they did not scruple to show their displeasure. Once when the queen

left the Tower to go in a barge to Windsor, a mob of citizens got upon a bridge underneath which she would have to pass and pelted her with mud and stones, whilst they shouted out insults and curses. So great was the disturbance that she was forced to go back to the Tower. It was natural that her son Edward should be very angry with the Londoners for their conduct, and he soon had an opportunity of punishing them.

Henry III. had to give up London to the baron's party He encamped with his army at Lewes, in Sussex, where he was able to have comfortable lodgings in the priory. Earl Simon and the barons marched to attack him there. But they did not wish to fight if it could be helped, and they sent messages of peace to Henry III. in hopes that their disputes might be settled, and bloodshed hindered. Henry III. only answered their messages scornfully; and his brother Richard and his son Edward replied still more angrily and haughtily. Then the barons felt that their only hope lay in fighting. They believed that their cause was a holy cause, their hearts were filled with love to God, and to their neighbours, and they did not fear to die for their country.

Earl Simon set them an example of the spirit in which they should fight, and spent the night before the battle in prayer. The Bishop of Worcester, who was on the barons' side, for he loved his country, rode through the army, urging all to confess their sins and receive absolution. He said that those who fought bravely on the morrow would have their sins forgiven, and he bade them remember that it was glorious to suffer for the truth. The soldiers fastened a white cross upon their

breasts and their backs, as a sign that they, like the crusaders, were fighting for a holy cause. These crosses were very useful, for in the battle, as both sides were fellow-countrymen, it would not have been easy to distinguish friend from foe without some mark.

Whilst the barons' army spent the night in making ready for battle by prayer to God, the King's men, who did not know that the enemy was so near, passed their time merrily, singing and drinking and feasting together. Simon hoped to surprise them. He rose early in the gray dawn of a May morning, and led his men to the crest of a hill, from which they could see Lewes with its castle and priory, and the beautiful river Ouse winding through it. There he bade his men fall on their knees and pray to the King of all that if what they were going to do was pleasing to Him, He would give them strength and help to overpower their enemies. Then all fell upon the ground and stretched out their arms in the form of a cross whilst they prayed. After this they were ready for battle.

The tents of the nobles were pitched on the top of the hill, and amongst them was a litter which had been used to carry Earl Simon a little while before, when he was suffering from an accident. Over this streamed his banner, and in it were placed, bound in chains, four traitors, citizens of London, who had been found out plotting to give up London to the King.

Simon was disappointed in his hope of surprising the King's army. Some men had come out from Lewes early in the morning to get food for their horses, and as they were

riding through the wood they came upon part of the barons' army. Some of them were killed and some were taken prisoners, but a few escaped and rode back quickly to Lewes to give the alarm. The King's followers were still in bed, and they heard with surprise that the enemy was so near; they got up quickly and hurried out to the battle.

come out.

Edward, Henry III.'s eldest son, was one of the first to He saw in front of him that part of the barons' army which was made up of the men of London. The sight of them filled him with anger, for he remembered the way in which they had insulted his mother, and he thirsted for their blood. The rest of the army was soon ready, and the royal standard of the dragon was hoisted in the middle. It was made of red silk embroidered with gold; the tongue of the dragon seemed to be always moving, and its eyes were of sapphire.

As soon as the army advanced to the charge, Edward darted furiously forward to attack the Londoners. They were poor soldiers and could not stand against Edward's horsemen. They soon turned and fled, and Edward followed hotly after them. Many were chased into the river and drowned, and many others were slain.

For four miles Edward followed them in his anger, thinking that the day was his, and forgetting the rest of the army whilst he avenged the insult offered to his mother. When at last he turned and came back he saw Earl Simon's litter on the hill, and, thinking that Simon was in it, he hastened to attack it. He and his followers drove off the men who

guarded it, but the litter was so strongly bound with iron. bands that they could not get it open. They surrounded it with shouts of triumph, crying, "Come forth, come forth, Simon, thou worst of traitors." In vain the men inside tried to tell them who they were; they were not heard in the midst of the din. At last the litter was set on fire, and when it was too late, Edward discovered that he had destroyed four of his own party instead of Simon.

Whilst Edward was wasting time in this way, his father had lost the battle. Simon saw how foolishly Edward had left the battle with the best troops, and rushed after the Londoners. He seized his chance and attacked the rest of the King's army. The King and his men fought well; Henry had a horse killed under him; but at last he was driven back and had to seek safety within the walls of the Priory. Very few of his followers escaped with him. Some were killed on the field; others as they fled got into the marshes and were smothered. The King's brother Richard could not get into the Priory, but got into a windmill in the middle of the battlefield. There his enemies surrounded him with shouts and jests. "Come out, you bad miller," they cried; "you have turned a poor mill-owner--you who defied us so proudly." He had no chance of escape, and after a while had to give himself up as a prisoner.

The night had now come on, and those of the King's party who could tried to escape through the twilight, and reaching the sea-coast, managed to embark for France. Fighting only went on round the priory, until a truce was made for the