King Lewes, considering what gaine the Eng|lishmen had gotten by making warre in France; and what miserie, what calamitie, and what pouertie the French nation had suffered, and manie yeares susteined, by reason of the said warres; determined clearelie rather to pacifie and interteine the Eng|lish nation by faire words and great rewards (al|though it were to his great charge) than by too much hardinesse to put himselfe, his nobilitie & realme in hazard, by giuing them battell, as his predecessors had vnwiselie doone at Poitiers, and at Agincourt. Wherefore to buie peace, he granted king Edward for a yearelie tribute fiftie thousand crownes, to be paied at London; which, accounting a crowne at foure shillings, amounteth to ten thousand pounds. And to haue the fauour and good will of his chiefe councellors, he gaue great pensions, amounting to the summe of sixteene thousand crownes a yeere, that is to saie: to his chancellor, to the lord Hastings his chiefe chamberleine, a man of no lesse wit than ver|tue, and of great authoritie with his maister, and that not without cause; for he had as well in time of ad|uersitie, as in the faire flattering world, well and tru|lie serued him: and to the lord Howard, to sir Tho|mas Montgomerie, to sir Thomas Sentleger, to sir Iohn Cheinie maister of the kings horsses, to the marques Dorsset, sonne to the queene, and diuerse o|ther, he gaue great and liberall rewards, to the in|tent to keepe himselfe in amitie with England, while he wan and obteined his purpose and desire in other places.

These persons had giuen to them great gifts, be|side yearelie pensions. For Argenton his councellor affirmed of his owne knowledge, that the lord Ho|ward had in lesse than the tearme of two yeares, for reward in monie and plate, foure and twentie thou|sand crownes; & at the time of this méeting, he gaue to the lord Hastings the kings chiefe chamberleine, (as the Frenchmen write) an hundred markes of sil|uer, made in plate, whereof euerie marke is eight ounces sterling. But the English writers affirme, that he gaue the lord Hastings foure and twentie doo|zen bolles, that is to saie, twelue doozen gilt, & twelue doozen vngilt, euerie cup weieng seuentéene nobles: which gift, either betokened in him a great liberall nature, or else a great and especiall confidence that he had reposed in the said lord chamberleine. Beside this, he gaue him yearelie two thousand crownes pension, the which summe he sent to him by Piers Cleret, one of the maisters of his house, giuing him in charge to receiue of him an acquittance for the re|ceipt of the same pension, to the intent that it should appeare in time to come, that the chancelor, chamber|leine, admerall, maisters of the horsses to the king of England, and manie other of his councell, had bin in fée and pensionaries of the French king, whose yearelie acquittances (the lord Hastings onelie ex|cepted) remaine of record to be shewed in the cham|ber of accounts in the palace of Paris.

When Piers Cleret had paied the pension to the lord Hastings, he gentlie demanded of him an ac|quittance for his discharge. Which request when he denied, he then onlie asked of him a bill of thrée lines to be directed to the king, testifieng the receipt of the pension: to the intent that the king your maister should not thinke the pension to be imbeselled. The lord Hastings, although he knew that Piers de|manded nothing but reason, answered him:

Sir this gift commeth onelie of the liberall pleasure of the king his maister, and not of my request: if it be his determinat will that I shall haue it, then put you it into my sléeue; and if not, I praie you render to him EEBO page image 701 his gift againe: for neither he nor you shall haue ei|ther letter, acquittance, or scroll signed with my hand of the receipt of anie pension, to the intent to brag another daie, that the kings chamberleine of Eng|land hath béene pensionarie with the French king, & shew his acquittance in the chamber of accounts, to his dishonor.