Messire the Constable de Nesle led the third band. First came a troop of seven hundred noble knights, with glittering armor on their bodies, and graceful banderoles on their long spears; their plumes fell waving behind their backs as they rode, and their coats-of-arms were painted in various colors upon their armor. Their horses were covered from head to foot with iron, and more than two hundred embroidered banners fluttered over the troop. It was truly the most brilliant band of knights that could be seen, even in that age. After them came two thousand horsemen, with battleaxes on their shoulders, and long swords hanging at their saddle-bows.
At the head of the fourth band rode Messire Louis de Clermont, an experienced warrior. It was composed of three thousand six hundred horsemen, bearing spears, from the kingdom of Navarre; and it was easy to see that they were picked and choice warriors. In front of the first column rode the banner-bearer, with the great standard of Navarre.
Count Robert d'Artois, general-in-chief of the army, had taken the middle division under his especial command. All the knights who had brought with them no soldiers, or had enrolled them in other companies, were with him; and the Kings of Majorca and Melinde rode at his side. Among the others it was easy to distinguish Thibaut II, Duke of Lorraine, by the magnificence of his armor. And then there came the gorgeous banners of Messires John, Count of Tancarville, Angelin de Vimen, Ranold de Longueval, Farald de Reims, Arnold de Wexmael, Marechal de Brabant, Robert de Montfort, and a countless number besides, who had formed themselves into a company. This band even surpassed the third in magnificence and splendor; the helms of the knights were covered either with silver or with gold, and their coats-of-mail were adorned with golden studs, by which their joints were secured. The burning rays of the sun fell on the glittering steel of their armor, and surrounded this peerless band as with a glowing fire. The swords which hung dangling at their saddle-bows fell with a sharp and iron clank on the trappings of their steeds, producing a peculiar sound, which seemed their fittest martial music. Next to these noble knights followed five thousand other horsemen, with battle-axes and swords; and this picked troop was accompanied by sixteen thousand infantry, drawn up in three divisions. The first consisted of a thousand crossbow men; their defensive armor was simply a breastplate of steel and a flat square helmet; small quivers full of iron bolts were suspended at their girdles, and long swords hung at their side. The second was composed of six thousand men with clubs, studded at the end with horrible steel points. The third was made up of "helm-cleavers" with their long axes; and all these men were from Gascony, Languedoc, and Auvergne.
Messire James de Chatillon, the governor-general, commanded the sixth band. It consisted of three thousand two hundred horse. On the banderoles of their spears they had painted burning brooms, the emblems of the purification of Flanders; and their horses were the heaviest of the whole army. Then followed the seventh and eighth bands; the former under the command of John, Count d'Aumale, the latter under Messire Ferry of Lorraine. Each was composed of two thousand seven hundred horse, men of Lorraine, Normandy, and Picardy. These were followed by Godfrey of Brabant with his own vassals, seven hundred horsemen, who formed the ninth band. The tenth and last was entrusted to Guy de St. Pol; he was charged with the protection of the rear and of the baggage. Three thousand four hundred horsemen of all arms rode in advance; then followed a multitude of foot-soldiers with bows and swords, whose number might amount to seven thousand. On every side ran men with blazing torches, in order to set fire to everything within their reach. Behind came the endless succession of baggage-wagons, with the tents and camp-furniture and stores.
The French army, divided into ten bands, and exceeding sixty thousand strong, marched slowly through the country, and took the road to Courtrai. It is hard to conceive how far this numerous host reached; the van was already far out of sight ere the rear had left the entrenchments. Thousands of banners fluttered in the breeze above the marching host, and the sun was reflected with intolerable brightness from the armor of the valiant bands. The horses neighed and champed the bit beneath their heavy burdens; from the crash of arms arose a sound like the rolling of a stormy sea upon the strand; but it was too monotonous to break the stillness of the deserted fields. Wherever the troops had passed, the sky was ruddy with flame, and obscured by dense clouds of smoke. Not a habitation escaped destruction; neither man nor beast was spared; as the chronicles of the time bear record. The following day, when the flames were spent, and the smoke dispersed, there was neither man, nor work, nor trace of man, to be seen; from Lille to Douay and Courtrai, Flanders was so fearfully devastated that the French vandals might boast with reason that they had swept it as with a besom.
Deep in the night the army of Messire d'Artois arrived before Courtrai. De Chatillon knew the country very well, for he had long lived in the city; and he was accordingly summoned by the general to select a suitable spot for encamping. After a short deliberation, they turned a little to the right, and pitched their tents on the Pottelberg and in the adjacent fields. Messire d'Artois, with the two kings, and a few distinguished knights, took possession of a castle called Hoog-Mosscher, close to the Pottelberg. They placed numerous sentinels on guard, and then betook themselves in peace, and without suspicion, to rest; for they
