Warfare in Flanders, according to Galbert of Bruges' The Murder of Charles the Good

Part 1: April 11th - 14th 

Galbert of Bruges was a cleric who worked principally in the fiscal administration of the castellany of Bruges.  He was thus a marginal member of the count’s curia, at least when the count was in Bruges, and it is reasonable to suppose that he was occasionally called on for various other, more punctual tasks like taking notes at juridical acts which served as the basis for the subsequent composition of charters, or helping the count with his correspondence.  It is possible that he was also a marginal member of the conventus of Saint Donatian, perhaps principally for the sake of compensation.  Galbert composed his chronicle of the events surrounding Charles assassination and the ensuing civil war, the De multro, traditione, et occisione gloriosi Karoli comitis Flandriarum, in the form of a journal during 1127-28.  His work is not addressed to any patron and Galbert makes no clear statement about his intended audience.  It seems that the burghers of Bruges figured most prominently in Galbert’s mind while he was composing the first part of his work (devoted to the events of spring 1127), but that his intended audience included all the inhabitants of Bruges, clergy and aristocrats as well, and even, albeit more vaguely, all the inhabitants of Flanders and any other of the faithful who might be interested in an account of Charles’s death and the punishment of his murderers.  The fact that Galbert wrote a long text in Latin shows that he had been decently educated, but there is no reason to suppose that his studies extended beyond the trivium.  He may have been educated at Saint Donatian itself or at a nearby center like Tournai, Arras, or Laon.  By the time he wrote his chronicle, however, most of his recent education had probably come from his practical experience in the count’s administration, conversation, and attendance at religious offices.  For more on Galbert, see J. Rider, God’s Scribe: The Historiographical Art of Galbert of Bruges (Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 2001), 16-28.

[Chapter 59] The citizens o f Bruges challenge the "law of the siege," April 11, 1127

On this same day Gervaise had ordered the carpenters to take apart the wooden tower which had been constructed earlier for storming the walls and now stood idle; he had ordered that the strongest beam, separated from the others, should be made into a battering ram by means of which the wall of the church could be breached. Now when the bowmen among the besieged were aiming their arrows at the workmen from their position on the summit of the tower and the strings of the drawn bows were vibrating, a certain bow with its arrow in place fell from the hands of a bowman just in the act of drawing. This was observed by the knights, who were standing by with their shields close to the work of the artisans to protect them as they skillfully operated the engines of war, such as rams, sows, projectile machines, ladders, and the like which are used customarily to destroy walls and stone structures; and they prophesied a most unlucky consequence of the fall of the bow and arrow from the besieged.

On the same day, in the evening, a serious disturbance broke out between Gervaise and his men and our citizens. For on the order of the king, and at the command of the barons of the siege, who were trying to speed up the destruction of the besieged, and who had been put to great expense throughout the whole course of .the siege, and had exerted themselves unceasingly in watching and fighting - by their common counsel and by royal edict, I say - a general decree had been issued, to the effect that no one from the whole crowd of the siege should dare to approach the tower and speak to the besieged for fear that the latter might get some idea of how they were going to be taken. The laws also provided with respect to transgressors that if anyone violated this command, he should be thrown into captivity and punished by the common judgment of the barons.

Now one of the citizens who had married a sister of a certain knight among the besieged went secretly to the tower, to get back from his brother-in-law the vessels and clothes he had lent him, and the latter gave him back the vessels. When that citizen was crossing the market place on his return, one of the vassals of Gervaise who had taken on the responsibility of enforcing the law of the king and barons and of his own lord, and also the authority of seizing transgressors of the order, followed the citizen, and seizing him, led him captive with him to the count's house. Immediately a great tumult arose among the citizens. Hastening to arms, they attacked the house of the count and the households of Gervaise which was defending itself strongly from within. They cried out that they did not intend to suffer the lordship of anyone at all, and that on the contrary, it was within their own power to correct this misdeed. And when the uproar had gone on for some time, Gervaise, in their midst, spoke as follows:

"You know, citizens and my friends, that in accordance with your request, the king and count recently installed me as vis–count of your place, and it was according to the order of the king and barons that my knight just now seized the citizen, your neighbor, as a violator of the order; by this act you have per–sonally shown contempt for my office, you have attacked the count's house and my household who are in it, and finally, with–out reason you have risen up in an armed band in the presence of the king. Therefore, if you wish, I will give up the viscountship, because of the injury done to me; I will dissolve the faith and loyalty affirmed between us, so that it may be clear to all of you that I do not seek to obtain lordship over you. If it pleases you, let us put aside arms and go into the king's presence so that he may judge between us and you."

And when he had finished his speech, they went together into the presence of the king, and they were again bound to each other in faith and friendship as before.

[Chapter 60] The siege continues; the king and barons make a new plan of attack, April 12, 1127

On April 12, Tuesday, the king with the more experienced men and his counselors went into the brothers' dormitory to determine carefully in advance exactly where the attack on the church should be made. For since the dormitory was next to the church, the experts could prepare inside the building the machines to be used in breaking through the wall of the church and gaining access to the besieged. When those wretches had been unable to hold the lower parts of the church, they had blockaded with wood and stones the stairs leading to the gallery so that no one could go up and they themselves could not come down, planning to defend themselves only from the gallery and the towers of the church. They had in fact set up between the columns of the gallery lookouts and fighting posts made out of piles of chests and benches, from which they could throw stones, lead, and all kinds of heavy things down on the invaders of the church. They had also hung tapestries and mattresses in the openings of the windows in the tower so that missiles and weapons could not by any chance be hurled inside when the tower was being attacked from without. At the very summit of the towers stood the younger men among the besieged who could crush with heavy stones those who were moving about in the court of the castle. And so, having set their affairs in order in such a disorderly way, they were awaiting their end in death, showing no honor or respect to the blessed corpse which lay buried among them in the gallery, except in one respect; that is, although they scarcely called to mind the lord whom they had betrayed, they had placed a candle at his head which burned continuously in honor of the good count from the first day of the siege to the day when their attackers gained access to them. For they had laid out around the tomb of the count the flour and legumes which they consumed daily to sustain life.

And when the king and his companions were carefully investigating and were marking the place to pierce the church, Robert the Young, sticking his head out one of the windows of the church, spoke to the knights of the king and begged them to be his messengers to the king, saying humbly that he wished to submit to the judgment of the princes of the land and the barons of his lord, the king, so that according to their law he could deserve either to live, by virtue of his defense, or to be destroyed by the punishment of condemnation if he could not absolve himself. But none of the men dared to go as messengers with these words to the king, because he was so filled with anger against the traitors that he hated even the sight of them. Our citizens, however; and the king's knights, and all who had heard with what humble language the young man had implored the lord king, suffered with him, dissolved in tears, praying that his lord would take pity on him.

[Chapter 62] The besiegers breach the wall of the church, April 14, 1127

On April 14, Thursday, the battering ram, designed to drive a hole through the wall of the church, was brought into the brothers' dormitory, a hall which was adjacent to the place where the good count's body was lying in its tomb, commended to God.  And immediately the artisans who had made the ram erected high slanting approaches, like stairs, and after tearing down the wooden wall of the dormitory, which had stood next to the church, they placed the top of these "stairs" in such a way that those who dared could ascend armed to the wall of the church. For the workers had laid bare a window' of the original structure of the church in the old stonework against which they had now placed the stairs. But they lowered the approaches of the equipment temporarily so as to direct the blows of the ram below the window and, once the stone wall was pierced, to secure the window as an entrance, almost like an open door, for the steps were so broad that ten knights could stand on them fighting side by side at the same time.

When these were in place, they adjusted the great beam, suspended by ropes, so that it would pierce the church in that very place, above the stairs; and they attached nooses to it and also placed by the nooses armed men who were to draw it back from the church, raised on high, and, once it was pulled back with all their force and strength, to hurl it skillfully and effectively against the wall of the church. Over the heads of those ascending the stairs, coverings of green branches were woven together and inserted in the beams so that if the roof of the dormitory should by some device be broken through by the besieged, those who were driving the ram would be safe under the shelter of the branches. And wooden "walls" had also been placed before them as a protection so that they would not he wounded by arrows or spears coming from inside. Then, having pulled the ram back from the church wall by means of the nooses as far as they possibly could with outstretched arms, all together, with one impetus and. one cry, they drove the great mass and weight of the ram against the church with their maximum strength and effort. At each blow a great heap of stones fell to the ground until the whole area of the wall was perforated in the place where it was pounded. They had equipped the beam in the head of the ram with a very strong piece of iron so that it could not suffer any damage except what it incurred as a result of its own weight and force. The work of ramming was long drawn out; begun at noon it was not finished until after evening had come.

[Chapter 63] The church is now invaded by the besiegers, April 14, 1127

Meanwhile the besieged, realizing that the wall was weak and would quickly be breached, were undecided and uncertain what to do; finally they fixed up coals, burning inside, and besmeared with pitch, wax, and butter which they threw onto the roof of the dormitory. And in a moment the coals, adhering to the roofing, vibrated with flames as the wind blew, so that enormous flames shot up and spread all over the roof. Now from the upper part of the tower they were throwing mill stones onto the roof of the dormitory over the place where the ram was battering the church, both in order to prevent anyone from extinguishing the fire thrown on the roof, and also to guard themselves against the danger of a breach in the wall by hurling down stones from on high to crush those who were breaking through into the church. But neither the number nor size of the stones hurled down could impede the drivers of the ram. For when the knights saw the flames vibrating over their heads, one of them went up onto the roof and managed to extinguish the fire, in spite of the stones and javelins that were –being hurled. After so many blows of the ram an enormous hole now lay open in the church wall, which had been breached more quickly than one would have believed, because since the time of the former fire in the church, the whole structure of the church had become almost rotten from the rain and infiltration of water, lacking, as it did, any wooden roof roofing

Then a great cry arose outside, and all who had fought against the besieged at the doors and in the lower part of the church and through the windows and in every place where they could secure access to them, hearing that the church wall had been breached, were now attacking with greater zeal of spirit and with audacity greedy for victory. And, in fact, they had all fought continuously on both sides from noon to evening, almost succumbing from the exertion of the struggle and the weight of arms. But now, knowing about the opening made by the ram, they were refreshed and strengthened in spirit, as if they had rushed to arms for the first time, and they began to attack the besieged and to pursue them in earnest. The wretched besieged, however, though weak in numbers, were even weaker in the fight because they had the disadvantage of fighting, not all in one place, but rather at all the points of access, that is, at the doors and windows, in the choir and especially in the place which the ram had now taken over. Having suffered to the bitter end the misfortunes of life, and now fighting separately on all sides, they were henceforth anticipating ruin and destruction at the hands of their enemies. Those in the Church who had been hurling stones, arrows, pikes, stakes, and all kinds of spears against the drivers of the ram were even more fearful because they were few in number and because, separated from their companions and almost succumbing from their day‑long struggle, they were fighting against such a strong army. What is more, lacking arms, they did not have the means of defending themselves; they resisted, nevertheless, as much as they dared.

But when the drivers of the ram, and other knights of the king, and the young men of our place; armed and avid for conflict, finally saw the besieged opposite them, they summoned all their courage. They may have been picturing in their mind's eye how noble it would be to die for father and fatherland, and what an honorable victory was set before the conquerors, and how infamous and criminal those traitors had been who had made a den for themselves out of the church of Christ, but in fact it seems more likely that they were intent on rushing against the besieged because they were avid and greedy to seize the treasure and money of the lord count, and that for this reason alone they were hastening forward. But regardless of motives, they hurled themselves through the middle of the opening in one rush, without order, without line of battle, without any thought for the arms they bore, so that by rushing in all at once they could prevent the besieged from having any time: or place in which to fight and kill anyone. For they did not cease to rush in until they lead transformed themselves into a kind of continuous bridge, and, by the marvelous dispensation of God, they advanced without mortal danger to their lives, some dashing, others stumbling, some pushed in forcibly, others falling down and trying to get up again, some in complete confusion, as is usual in such a great tumult. Not only the church but the whole castle and its vicinity was filled with the sound of their shouts and cries, with the noise of their passage, the crumbling of the wall and the clamor and clash of arms. Outside they were praising God and thanking him for this victory by which He honored the victors, glorified the king and his men, cleansed his church in part from the defilers, and made it possible at last for that glorious martyr, his count, to be mourned by the pious veneration of good men and to be sustained by the prayers of his faithful.

[Chapter 64] The besieged are driven from the gallery into the tower, April 14, 1127

Now at last Fromold junior [a notary and supporter of Count Charles] was able to do what had not been possible before and what he had long and ardently desired, to offer prayers to God for the salvation of his lord, the count, to make a sacrifice in tears and contrition of heart, and to rejoice greatly in the sight of the place where his lord, buried, was resting .in peace; and so for the first time he was preparing funeral rites for his lord whom he had not been able to see since he was buried, that is for forty-four days. Since he could see not his body but only the outside of the tomb, he wished and implored with the prayer of both lips and heart that God on the day of common resurrection would permit him finally to see his lord and prince, Charles, raised to double glory among the faithful rulers and highest princes of his present Church, and to stay with him and be blessed with him eternally in the glory of the contemplation of the Holy Trinity. Therefore he considered it a great boon to be able to mourn the death of his lord at his tomb, to lament the ruin of the fatherland, and to perform with the greatest love the last rites for one whom he had cherished in life, now betrayed by his serfs. He did so, indeed, not without tears. Oh God, how many prayers of your faithful you deigned to receive on that day! Whatever part of the divine cult had not been performed in that church was more than compensated for in that hour by the magnitude and multiplicity of the prayers of the just. A wax candle was standing at the head of the count, placed there by the traitors in honor and veneration of their lord.

            Now after they had rushed into the church against the besieged and a great clamor had arisen in the pursuit, those most wretched of men had retreated both from the hole in the wall and from the doors and defense posts and, ascending the tower to defend themselves, they were resisting their attackers on the stairs. Therefore the victors, the most Christian knights of the king of France, hastened to obstruct and block up the stairs with stones and wood, with chests and beams and other bulky things so that none of the besieged could come down into the gallery where the count was lying. And now the king, coming to the church, mourned the death of his cousin, Charles, and placed a guard to watch the tower carefully; in alternating vigils the king's knights watched the tower where the besieged were. Whatever was found in that gallery which could be seized was anybody's loot.

            Finally the canons of the church, climbing up on ladders to the gallery from the choir, arranged for certain of the brothers to keep vigils every night around the count's tomb. Looking around, they saw that although the church vessels were shattered and nothing was as it had been before, the altars and altar tables by God's care had remained in place, and with great rejoicing the brothers took possession of whatever they found, not by right or merit, but only by the gift of God. Then God brought that day to its conclusion by closing up his enemies and giving victory to the faithful, exalting the name of his power to the ends of the earth. The besieged, however, did not desist from setting watches in the tower, sounding their horns and acting proudly in such straits as if they still possessed some authority, not recognizing how extremely wretched they were, for they were confirmed reprobates. Therefore whatever they did henceforth was not pleasing to God or men but was reprobate and hateful.

 This section is originally from Galbert of Bruges, The Murder of Charles the Good, translated by James Bruce Ross (Columbia University Press, 1953).  We thank Columbia University Press for allowing us to republish this section.