A translation of Chapters 181 to 190 from the Latin text in Guillaume le Breton, Gesta Philippi Augusti, in H. François Delaborde, ed., Oeuvres de Rigord et de Guillaume le Breton, historiens de Philippe-Auguste, vol. 1 (Paris: Société de l’Histoire de France, 1882), 264-81.
Translated by the United States Military Academy Turma ad Latinam: Dr. Clifford J. Rogers, CDT Aidan Looney, CDT Marqus Hubbard, CDT Matthew Clifford, CDT William James, MAJ Cameron Colby and MAJ Brian Sears.
181. Now, we will proceed to describe the aforementioned victory, with the Lord’s help, as best we can.
In the year of the incarnation of our Lord 1214, as written above, King John was running wild in the lands of Anjou. Otto, having been won over to King John’s party by means of money, assembled an army in the county of Hainault), in a town called Valenciennes in the land of Count Ferrand. And the counts of Boulogne and Salisbury, and Ferrand himself, with the duke of Limbourg, the duke of Brabant (whose daughter Otto had married), and many other nobles and counts from Germany, Hainaut, Brabant, and Flanders were sent to Otto by King John, at his own cost. At that same time, King Philippe, even though his son had the majority of his knights [militie] with him in Poitou, assembled an army and, on [July 23rd], the day after the feast of Blessed Mary Magdalene, moved out from the castle that is called Péronne. And he entered into the territory of Ferrand with a strong force, and crossed through it, devastating by fires and pillaging everything to the left and the right in a kingly fashion.
Thus, he came toward the city of Tournai, which the Flemish had fraudulently seized and had much damaged in the year before—but the same king had recovered it, without delay, having sent an army with Brother Guérin and the count of Saint Pol. Otto indeed came with his own army to the castle named Mortagne, six miles from Tournai, which the previously mentioned army of the king, after having recovered the city of Tournai, had taken by force and destroyed [in 1213]. On [27 July,] the Saturday next after the feast of Saint James the apostle and of the martyr Christopher, the king proposed to attack them; but the barons dissuaded him: there was in fact no approach accessible to them that was not narrow and difficult. Therefore they changed the plan, that is to say that they would go back the way they had come, and then through another way that was more level they would invade Hainault, and totally devastate it.
182. Therefore, the next day, the sixth calends of August [July 27th], the king moved from Tournai, intending to go to the castle called Lille, where he planned to rest with his army during that night. On the same morning, Otto moved out with his own army from Mortagne. The king [Philippe], however, neither knew nor was able to believe that they [Otto’s army] might come after him. Therefore, the viscount of Melun left the king’s army, and with some light-armed cavalry he proceeded toward the region from which Otto was coming. He was followed by a most valiant man, of prudent and admirable counsel, and very skilled in foreseeing that which might occur: Guérin, the bishop-elect of Senlis. Above I referred to him “Brother Guérin”; he was in fact a declared brother of the Hospital of Jerusalem [the Knights Hospitaller], but then he was elected to become bishop of the cathedral of Senlis; nonetheless he always, as before, continued wearing the habit of a monk upon his chest. They therefore advanced more than three miles from the king’s army, until they came to a certain elevated place, from whence they were able to see clearly the units of the enemy, approaching and arrayed for battle. Therefore, at that time, with the viscount remaining behind for a little bit, the bishop-elect hastened to the king and said to him that the enemies were coming deployed and prepared for battle; and he [the bishop-elect] said that he had seen the horses of the knights covered [in mail], and their attached infantry preceding them, which was the most evident sign of an imminent fight. The king therefore ordered the army to halt, and with the nobles gathered, he consulted with them on what should be done. They were not much inclined to fight, but rather were inclined to keep advancing.
183. When the enemies came up to a certain brook, which lacked any easily accessible crossing, they passed over it little by little and made it appear (as it seemed to some of our men) that they wanted to go towards Tournai. The word passed among our knights that the enemy were turning off toward Tournai. The bishop-elect, however, felt the opposite, proclaiming very assertively that they [the French] would necessarily either have to fight or to retreat with confusion and damage. Nevertheless, the shouting and assertions of the many prevailed. Thus, we proceeded to the bridge, which was named Bouvines, which was between the place called Sainghin and the town named Cysoing. Now the greater part of the army had by this point crossed the bridge, and the king himself had removed his armor; but he had not yet crossed the bridge as the enemies thought [he had]. Their expectation was that if the king had crossed the bridge, they would at their discretion either completely destroy those whom they found still on their side of the bridge, or [at least] triumph over them decisively.
For a while the king, weary from the journey, idled for a moderate rest in that place, mostly disarmed, under the shadow of a certain ash tree, near a certain church established in honor of the blessed Peter. There, a messenger sent by those standing in the rearguard, hurrying very quickly, returned, shouting very loudly that the enemies were approaching, and were now about to clash with the rearguard. The viscount, with the crossbowmen and the light-armored cavalry and sergeants from Champagne, were sustaining their attack with greatest difficulty and danger, hardly able to hold back their rage and boldness any longer. After receiving that report, the king entered the church and, after briefly praying to the Lord, he went back out, putting on his armor again. And with an eager face, and as joyfully as if he were had been called to a wedding, he mounted his horse. Everywhere through the camp it was shouted: “To arms, to arms, men!” The trumpets rang, the cohorts that had already crossed the bridge turned back, calling back the banner of Saint Denis, which ought to proceed all in war—but it did not return quickly enough, so they did not wait for it. The king, however, did turn back his course quickly and put himself in the front line of battle, where no one stood between him and the enemies.
184. Therefore, the enemies, seeing the king’s turning around and coming back, contrary to their hope, were as if struck by numbness and a certain horror. And as I bear witness, they diverted to the right side of the path on which they were advancing, and they extended themselves roughly toward the west. They occupied the more elevated part of the field, on the northern part. They had the sun, which that day was more boiling hot than usual, in their eyes. Likewise, the king extended his own wings directly opposite them, and he stood on the southern side with his own army, having extended linearly through a fairly extensive space of the field, having the sun on his shoulders. And thus, they stood there with the battle lines of the two sides extended to an equal length, separated from one another by a short space of the field. In the middle of their formation in the first rank was King Philippe. Sticking close to his sides were Guillaume des Barres, a flower of knighthood; Barthélemy de Roye, a wise old man; and young Gauthier, a prudent and excellent man of mature counsel; Pierre Mauvoisin; Gérard La Truie; Stephen Longchamp; Guillaume de Mortemer; Jean de Rouvray; Guillaume de Garlande; and Henri count of Bar: young in age, old in spirit, a man of virtue and charming form, who had recently succeeded his deceased father, the king’s maternal cousin, in the honor and responsibility of the countship. It would be too long to enumerate the names of so many others, worthy men of virtue and always practiced in arms, who were for those reasons specifically assigned to the protection of the king himself in this battle.
On the opposite side, Otto was standing in the middle of a very tightly formed line. He had himself erected, as a banner, a gilded eagle above a hanging dragon standard, on a tall pole in a wagon. The king, however, before he engaged, addressed his knights with this short and humble speech: “In God all our hope and trust is placed; King Otto and his army, who are enemies and destroyers of Holy Church’s possessions, have been excommunicated by the Lord Pope, and the money for their pay is acquired through the tears of the poor and by robbing the churches of God and the clergy. We, however, are Christians, and we delight in the communion and peace of the holy church, and, though we may be sinners, nevertheless we are in harmony with the church of God, and we defend the liberty of the clergy to the best of our ability. Therefore, we ought to rely confidently on God’s mercy, who, although we may be sinners, will grant us triumph over His and our enemies.” With these words having been spoken, the knights sought a benediction from the king; he, with a raised hand, prayed for God’s blessing upon them; and at once the trumpets sounded, and they made an assault manfully on the enemy, and they collided most boldly and with great vigor.
185. In that same hour, the chaplain who wrote this, along with another cleric, were standing behind the king, not far off from him. They, having heard the noise of the trumpet, with a loud voice, sang (as well as they were able to, despite bursting into mixed tears and sobs) the psalm, “Blessed be the LORD my strength which teacheth [my hands to fight], etc.” [Psalm 144] up to the end, and then, “Let God arise,” [Psalm 68] up to the end, and “The king shall rejoice in your strength, O Lord,” [Psalm 21] up to the end. And with pure devotion in the presence of God, they called to memory the honor and freedom in which God’s church rejoiced under the power of King Philippe, and the disgrace and reproach that it suffers and has suffered as a result of the rule of Otto and King John, by whose actions all those enemies had been provoked against the king [Philippe] in his own kingdom, and dared to fight against their own lord.
186. The first combat, however, was not fought there where the king was: for already before he himself was engaged, there was a fight against Ferrand and his men on the right flank, that is to say, on the right of the king, with the king himself, as I suppose, being unaware of it. The first line of the fighters was certainly in an extended line, as we have said, and it occupied 1,040 paces across the battlefield. The bishop-elect [Brother Guérin] was indeed there—not to fight, certainly, but rather to encourage and inspire the troops, to the honor of God, the kingdom, the king, and especially to the defense of their own salvation.
These troops were, namely: first of all, Eudes, the most-noble duke of Burgundy; Gauthier, count of Saint Pol (who was suspected by some for having supported the enemies at one time, wherefore he himself said to the bishop-elect that he would be a good traitor on that day); Mathieu de Montmorency, the most-excellent knight; Jean, count of Beaumont; and many other active knights, and following them knights from Champagne to the number of 180. All these men were in one battle line, as the bishop-elect had arranged them—having moved others, whom he knew to be fearful and unmotivated, from the front to the back. The ones of whose worthiness and fervor he was certain, on the other hand, he placed in the first battle line, and said to them: “The field is wide; extend yourselves through the field in a straight line, lest the enemies cut you off. It is not fitting that one knight make a shield for himself out of another knight; but stand thus so that you all may be able to fight in one line.” With these words said, the bishop-elect, according to the counsel of the count of Saint Pol, sent forward 150 mounted sergeants to start the battle, with the intention that the aforementioned elite knights might [when they followed the sergeants] find their enemies somewhat disturbed and disordered.
187. The men of Flanders, who were extremely eager to fight, were indignant, because they were not attacked by knights, but first by sergeants. So they did not move from the place where they were standing, but waiting in that very place they received them fiercely, and they killed nearly all of their horses, and afflicted them with many wounds. They lethally wounded only two. For these sergeants, from the valley of Soissons, were extremely worthy, and they fought just as well without horses as with horses. However, Gauthier de Ghistelles and Buridan (who, like a man of wonderful courage and almost fearless, was recalling to the memory of his knights their lady-loves, just as if he were involved in the games of young knights [a tournament]), after they had struck some of those sergeants to the ground, turned away from them and advanced onto the open battlefield, wishing to join in battle with the knights. And they encountered certain knights from the army of Champagne who were no less worthy than themselves. And so, with the lances of each side broken and swords unsheathed, they increased their blows. But with the arrival of Pierre de Rémy (Remy) and those who were in the same unit, Gauthier de Ghistelles and [Jean] Buridan were captured by force.
A certain knight of theirs named Eustache de Malenghin was shouting very pridefully: “Death to the French! Death to the French!” The French surrounded him, in such a way that one of them took hold of him, and pressing his head between his elbow and chest, he pulled his helmet from his head; another, thrusting a dagger in between his chin and chain mail and through his throat and into the chest up to his vitals, caused him in horror to endure the death that, with his shouts, he had been threatening to the French. His death, along with the capture of Walter and Buridan, increased the boldness of the French; and, as if now certain of victory, with all fear cast aside, they made use of all their strength.
188. The sergeants, who, as we said, were sent ahead by the bishop-elect were followed by Gauthier, the count of Saint Pol, with his own knights whom he had chosen as the best. No less swiftly than if an eagle were flying into doves, he pierced them, passing through the middle of them with amazing speed, striking blows against many and being struck by many, slaying and striking down both horses and men indifferently, capturing no one. And in the same manner, he went back through another part of the enemies, cutting off as great a multitude of them as possible within an arc. He was followed with no less audacity by the count of Beaumont, Mathieu de Montmorency with his own people, and the duke of Burgundy himself, surrounded closely with many good knights, and the men of Champagne. An admirable battle was waged there by both sides. The duke of Burgundy, who was very fat, and phlegmatic in complexion, was stuck down to the ground, his horse having been killed by the enemies. A battalion of Burgundians crowded around him, surrounding him in a wedge; another horse is led up; the duke is lifted from the earth by the hands of his own men; he is set up on the horse; he brandishes a sword in his right hand; he says that he wants to avenge his fall! He attacks the enemies with passion; he makes no distinction among whom he meets, but rather avenges his fall against all he encounters, just as if each one he met was the one who killed his horse.
The viscount of Melun, who was doing battle amazingly well, was fighting in the same place, having in his own unit most-worthy knights. There, in the same manner as the count of Saint Pol had done, he attacked the enemies on another front, and pierced them through, and returned through the other side, through the middle of the enemies. There in that unit, Michel de Harmes was struck by a certain Flemish lance through his shield, coat of mail, and thigh, and was sewn to his saddle and horse, so that both he and his horse fell to the ground. Hugues de Maleveine was struck down to the ground, and many others were struck down with their horses killed, but got back up valiantly, and fought no less fiercely on foot than on horseback.
189. The count of Saint Pol, having retired from that place a short distance, as he was so tired from the innumerable blows that had been inflicted on him and by him, rested a little while, with his face turned toward the enemies. He saw one of his own knights surrounded by the enemies. No way to reach him to rescue him was open. Although he had not yet recovered his breath, in order to be able to pass through the densest battalion of enemies with the least danger, he bent himself over the neck of the horse, grasping its neck with both his arms, and urging the horse with spurs, he penetrated through the battalion of enemies and went all the way through the middle of them toward his own knight. There, raising himself up, with his sword stretched forth, he marvelously scattered the encircling enemies, and thus with admirable audacity (or perhaps rashness), at immense risk to himself, escaping from the hands of the enemies, he returned back to his own army, with his knight unharmed and saved from death. They who were present truly swore that he himself was in so much danger that at one point he was struck by twelve lances simultaneously! Nevertheless, they were not able to strike him or the horse down, or separate him from the horse. And so, after recovering his breath for a short while, he advanced again with his own knights (who meanwhile had rested), into the middle of the enemies.
190. And so, victory hovered there on uncertain wings for some time, until the battle had continued very fervently for a period of three hours. Finally, the entire weight of the battle turned against Ferrand and his men. For he, pierced through with many wounds and struck down onto the ground, was captured and led away, and very many of his knights with him. He indeed, nearly lifeless from the long duration of fighting, surrendered specifically to Hugues de Maleveine and his brother Jean. All others who were fighting in that region of the battlefield either were killed, or were captured, or were saved from the pursuing French by a disgraceful flight.
