from the prince, nor also the lord James Audley of
a great season; but when he saw that they should needs fight, he said
to the prince: 'Sir, I have served always truly my lord your father
and you also, and shall do as long as I live. I say this because I
made once a vow that the first battle that other the king your father
or any of his children should be at, how that I would be one of the
first setters on,[1] or else to die in the pain: therefore I require
your grace, as in reward for any service that ever I did to the king
your father or to you, that you will give me licence to depart from
you and to set myself thereas I may accomplish my vow.' The prince
accorded to his desire and said, 'Sir James, God give you this day
that grace to be the best knight of all other,' and so took him by the
hand. Then the knight departed from the prince and went to the
foremost front of all the battles, all only accompanied with four
squires, who promised not to fail him. This lord James was a right
sage and a valiant knight, and by him was much of the host ordained
and governed the day before. Thus sir James was in front of the battle
ready to fight with the battle of the marshals of France. In like wise
the lord Eustace d'Aubrecicourt did his pain to be one of the foremost
to set on. When sir James Audley began to set forward to his enemies,
it fortuned to sir Eustace d'Aubrecicourt as ye shall hear after. Ye
have heard before how the Almains in the French host were appointed to
be still a-horseback. Sir Eustace being a-horseback laid his spear in
the rest and ran into the French battle, and then a knight of Almaine,
called the lord Louis of Recombes, who bare a shield silver, five
roses gules, and sir Eustace bare ermines, two branches of
gules[2],--when this Almain saw the lord Eustace come from his
company, he rode against him and they met so rudely, that both knights
fell to the earth. The Almain was hurt in the shoulder, therefore he
rose not so quickly as did sir Eustace, who when he was up and had
taken his breath, he came to the other knight as he lay on the ground;
but then five other knights of Almaine came on him all at once and
bare him to the earth, and so perforce there he was taken prisoner and
brought to the earl of Nassau, who as then took no heed of him; and I
cannot say whether they sware him prisoner or no, but they tied him to
a chare and there let him stand[3].

[1] The first setter-on and the best comba