vault
belonging to the royal Kings of France, the impressive ceremony followed
of the ushers belonging to the late King breaking their staves of
office, throwing them into the grave, and reversing their maces, whilst
the king-at-arms, or principal herald, attended by many heralds, cried
in a loud, solemn voice over the tomb, "May God show mercy and pity to
the soul of the late most penitent and most excellent Charles VI., King
of France, our natural and sovereign lord!"

Hardly had these solemn words rolled echoing through the vaulted roof,
striking the hearts of the 26,000 spectators with mournful awe, than the
herald raised his voice again, and twice demanded their prayers, for the
living this time, and not the dead. And thus he cried, "May God grant
long life to Henry, by the grace of God King of France and of England,
our sovereign lord!"

[Illustration: "LONG LIVE THE KING!"]

Then, when an infant ten months old had been proclaimed King over two of
the greatest kingdoms in Europe, the sergeants-at-arms and ushers turned
their maces, and shouted together, "Long live the King! long live the
King!"

The Duke of Bedford was now sole Regent of France, whilst a council of
prelates and peers, with the Duke of Gloucester at its head, governed
England in the baby King's name, making use of the amusing fiction of
issuing all their decrees and mandates as though they were dictated by
the mouth of an infant still in arms.

Sometimes Henry misbehaved, or rather showed the natural temper of a
baby. In 1423, when his Majesty was nearly two years old, he was taken
by his mother to London to hold another Parliament. It was Saturday when
they left Windsor, and at night the Queen and her baby King slept at
Staines instead of going on. On the Sunday the Queen wished to proceed,
and had her son carried to her car, when, instead of comporting himself
with his usual dignity, "he skreeked" (says the quaint chronicler), "he
cried, he sprang, and would be carried no further; wherefore they bore
him into the inn, and there he abode the Sunday all day. But on the
Monday he was borne to his mother's car, he being then merry and full of
cheer, and so they came to Kingston, and rested that night. On Tuesday,
Queen Katherine brought him to Kennington, on Wednesday to London, and
with glad semblance and merry cheer, on his mother's barm [lap] in the
car, rode through London to Westminster, and on the morrow was so
brought into Parliament."