¶ Here it is conuenient to adde the battell of Pa|uia, wherein the French king was taken prisoner, most notablie discoursed by Guicciardine, Abr. Fl. ex Guic. pag. 902, & sic deinceps. The battell of Pauia, wherein the French king is taken pri|soner. in the fif|téenth booke of his historie: the principall matter wherof, to make the report of Pauia and the French king more perspicuous, it were good to inferre. On the night (saith mine author) before the fiue and twen|tith of Februarie, a daie dedicated by the christians to the apostle saint Matthew, and also the daie of the [...]tiuitie of the emperour, the imperialles determi|ned to march to Mirabell, where laie incamped cer|teine companies of horssemen and footmen. In this march they stood vpon this intention, that if the French men mooued, then they had set at libertie the siege of Pauia: and if they mooued not, then to ad|uenture the fortune of the battell. Therefore the bet|ter to aduance this determination, all the beginning of the night they gaue manie alarmes, the more to kéepe trauelled and wearie the French men, making semblance as though they would charge them on that side towards Paw, Thesin, and saint Lazarus.

About midnight euerie souldior, by the comman|dement of the capteins, put on a white cassakin ouer his armor, to be knowne from the Frenchmen. They were cast into two squadrons of horssemen, & foure of footmen In the first were six thousand footmen equallie compounded of lanceknights, Spaniards, and Italians: this squadron was led by the mar|quesse of Guast: the second stood onelie vpon cer|teine bands of Spanish footmen vnder the charge of the marquesse of Pisquairo: the third and fourth squadron were of lanceknights, commanded by the viceroy and the duke of Burbon. They arriued at the parke walles certeine houres before daie, and by the working of their masons, and readie willes of their souldiers, they cast downe to the earth thrée score fadome of wall: by which breach, being entred within the parke, the first squadron drew towards Mirabell, and the residue of the armie tooke the waie to the campe.

As soone as the king vnderstood that they were entred into the parke,Whie the French king desired to fight in plaine and o|pen field. thinking they would draw to Mirabell, he issued out of his lodging to fight in plaine and open field, desiring to draw the battell rather to that place than to anie other, for the ad|uantages which it gaue to the horssemen: he com|manded to turne the artilleries toward the enimies, which beating them in flanke, brought great da|mage to the reregard. But in the meane while, the battell of the imperialles gaue a furious charge vp|on the kings squadron, which ordinarilie was the battell: but as the Spaniards went, it was the reregard. The king fought valiantlie, & abode with great courage the violence of his enimies, who with the furie of their harquebuziers forced his men to giue ground, till the rescue of the Switzers came, when the Spaniards were repelled, as well by them as by the horssemen that charged them in flanke. But the viceroy being called in by the marquesse of Pisquairo, who broght to the fight his lanceknights, they were easilie broken, not without great slaugh|ter of the Switzers, who that daie did nothing an|swer the opinion of valor which aforetimes they had woont so honorablie to expresse in battelles.