ENGLAND. 
folemnly acknowledged by the pope’s legate, and by the 
people of France, as their king. The duke of Bedford, 
who was at the head of the Englifli affairs, was alfo the 
moft accomplilhed prince of his age, and the whole pow¬ 
er of England was at his command. He commanded 
armies accnftomed to victory ; he was feconded by the 
moft renowned generals of his time; and he was mailer 
not only of Paris, but of almoll all the northern pro¬ 
vinces. 
Charles VI. died foon after his fon-in-law, the king of 
England; and though our Henry VI. had been proclaim¬ 
ed at Paris, yet the advocates of the dauphin proclaimed 
him alfo as the rightful heir; and Charles VII. notwith- 
ftanding his apparent inferiority, was foon found to pof- 
fefs advantages, which ferved to turn the fcale. He was 
the true and undoubted reprefentative of the monarchy ; 
ail'd all Frenchmen who knew the interelf, or defired the 
independence, of their country, turned their eyes towards 
him as their foie refource. Though only in his twen¬ 
tieth year, he was of the moft friendly and benign difpofi- 
tion, of'eafy and familiar manners, and of a juft, though 
not of a very vigorous, underltanding. The love of plea- 
fure often feduced him into indolence ; but amidlt all his 
irregularities, the goodnefs of his heart dill Ihone forth ; 
and by exerting at intervals his courage and activity, he 
proved that his remfffnefs proceeded not from habitual 
errors or defeats. Yet the refentment of the duke of 
Burgundy againlt Charles ftill continued ; and the duke 
of Bedford, that he might corroborate national connec¬ 
tions by private ties, concluded his own marriage with 
the princefs of Burgundy, which had been ftipulated at 
the treaty of Arras. 
While the vigilance of the duke of Bedford was em¬ 
ployed in gaining or confirming French alliances, he did 
not overlook the ftate of more remote countries. The 
duke of Albany, regent of Scotland, had expired ; and 
liis power had devolved on Murdac, his fon, a prince of 
a weak underltanding and indolent difpofition. The ar¬ 
dour of the Scots to ferve in F'ranee, where Charles treat¬ 
ed them with great diftinction, and where the regent’s 
brother enjoyed the dignity of a conltable, broke out afrelh ; 
and new fuccours daily expatriated, and filled the armies 
of the French king. The duke of Bedford, therefore, 
perfuaded the Englifh council to form an alliance with 
James of Scotland, their prifoner; to free him from cap¬ 
tivity, and to marry him to a daughter of the carl of 
Somerfet, and coufin of the young king. Murdac, tired 
of his ftarion, entered fincerely into the treaty; and for 
a ranfom of forty thoufand pounds, the king of Scotland 
was reflored to the throne of his anceftors. To thefe 
negotiations fucceeded the operations of war. Charles, 
Hill defirous of employing his enemies in the provinces 
north of the Loire, contefted every caftle with heroic ob- 
flinacy. He had been lately reinforced by numbers of 
the Scots; and John Stuart, conltable of Scotland, with 
the Lord of EfliH'ac, had formed the fiege of Crevant in 
Burgundy. The earls of Salilbury and Suffolk marching 
to its relief, the befiegers were routed, with the lofs of 
above a thoufand men ; and the conltable of Scotland, 
with the count of Ventadour, were taken prifoners. 
Meanwhile, the duke of Bedford was engaged in the 
fiege of Yvri in Normandy ; and the governor, finding 
his refources exhaufted, had agreed to furrender the 
town, unlefs relieved by a certain day. The king of 
France, hoping by a fuccefsful enterprife, to reltore the 
1 nitre of his.arms, and to prelerve Yvri, collected with 
diligence an army of fourteen thoufand men, of whom 
one half were Scots; and entrufted it to the valour and 
experience of the earl of Buchan, conltable of France, 
who had already diltinguifhed himfelf by the defeat of 
the duke of Clarence. That general, however, arrived 
too late to fuccour Yvri, which had opened her gates; 
but he immediately inverted Verneuil, and carried it 
without difficulty. But he had no time to fecure this 
conqueft, before he was informed of the approach of the 
Gi 1 
duke of Bedford. A council of war was immediately al- 
fentbled to determine what conduit they rtiould purfue. 
In vain did the moft experienced French officers remon- 
ftrate on the imprudence oft hazarding an army, the la It 
refource of their king : the Scots rejected with contempt 
the indignity of retiring before the Englilh; their opinions 
were efpoufed by the rafh and prefumptuous ; and it was- 
finally refolved to wait the arrival of the duke of Bedford. 
The armies came in fight of each other near Verneuil, 
and were equally balanced in point of numbers. The 
earl of Buchan refolved to wait with patient firmnefs the 
charge of the enemy ; but his tneafures were difconcerted 
by the impatience of the vifeount Narbonne. After a 
bloody conflict, the French being preffed on all (ides, 
began to retreat; and that retreat was foon changed into 
a tumultuous flight. Four thoufand of their braveft fol- 
diers, .with the earls of Buchan and Douglas, the counts 
of Aumale, Ventadour, and Narbonne, perifhed in the 
field. The victors, however, purchafed their triumph 
at the expence of fixteen hundred men ; a lofs fo unufual, 
that the duke of Bedford forbad all rejoicings for his fuc- 
cefs. 
The deftruCtion of Charles now appeared inevitable; 
and from the danger which threatened to overwhelm him, 
he could only be laved by the dirtenfions of his enemies, 
which, fortunately for him, rofe to a height that forbad 
him to defpair. Jaqueline, heirefs of Hainault and Hol¬ 
land, had efpoufed John duke of Brabant, coufin-german 
to the duke of Burgundy. The marriage had been dic¬ 
tated by policy ; but the mafeuline fpirk and brilliant 
capacity of the princefs defpifed her ill-matched confort, 
who was equally feeble in body and mind. Contempt 
was foon the parent of antipathy ; and, impatient of the 
dilatory meafures and doubtful determination of the court 
of Rome, (lie efcaped into England, and folicited the pro¬ 
tection of the duke of Gloucefter. The impetuous paf- 
fions of that prince blindeu him to the true interefts of 
his country ; the charms and the inheritance of the coun- 
tefs, prefented themfelves to his view ; and without any 
further ceremony, he entered into a marriage contract 
with Jaqueline, and immediately attempted to render 
himfelf mafter of her dominions. 
The duke of Burgundy refented the injury offered to 
his kinfman the duke of Brabant; and, at length, openly- 
declared in his favour, and marched troops to his fup- 
port. The quarrel, which at firft was political, foon be¬ 
came perfonal; and the duke of Gloucefter ftill perfifting 
in preffing the war in the Low Countries, the duke of 
Bedford, inftead of improving the victory of Verneuil, 
was obliged to crofs the feas to England, that he might 
try, by his counfels and authority, to check the mad ca¬ 
reer of his brother. He found the Englilh rniniftry dif- 
traCted by jealoulies ; the bilhop of Winchefter, to whom 
the care of the young king’s education was entrufted, had 
continual difputes with his nephew the protettor; and 
the duke of Bedford was obliged to employ the authority 
of parliament to reconcile them. The rivals now fwore 
to bury all quarrels in oblivion ; and time alfo feemed to 
open expedients for compoling the difference with the 
duke of Burgundy. The pope having declared the con- 
trad void, between Humphrey of Gloucefter and Jaque¬ 
line, the duke, defpairing of fuccefs, married another 
woman, who had lived fome time with him as his miftrefs. 
The duke of Brabant died foon after; and his widow, 
before lhe could recover poffeffion of her dominions, was 
obliged to declare the duke of Burgundy her heir, in cafe 
(lie Ihould die without iffue, and to promife never to mar¬ 
ry without his confent. But the advantage which the 
latter prince reaped from the accommodation of thefe 
differences, did not prevent him in future from regarding 
the Englifh with jealoufy ; and the fatisfaCtion which the 
regent enjoyed from reconciling one ally, was foon alloyed 
by the unexpected defection of the duke of Brittany and the • 
earl of Richemont, who now joined the ftandard of their 
legitimate fovereign, Charles VII. 
During- 
