the streams that enter turn two mills, which served for grinding the food of the citizens and people; passing the mills the water issues forth from the tunnel, and runs in full stream through the middle of the town to the port.

The other side of the town, opposite to the king, is well fortified with a double ditch, of which the interior one is of unknown depth, and the proper breadth. This town is but small, but very fairly fortified, and surrounded with walls embattled, and therefore, according to Master Giles,' very difficult to be attacked, and very easily and securely to be defended; with towers lofty and well built, and other lower intermediate

1 Mr. Sharon Turner considers, (Hist. of England, ed. 1826, vol. ii. p. 397,) with great probability, that the "Master Giles" alluded to in the text, was the person whose work, entitled "De Regimine Principum," was at that time exceedingly popular, and the third book of which treats of military affairs. It was, Mr. Turner observes, written before cannon were used, but it recommends, c. 17, that something fiery or ignited should be attached to the stones, which were thrown from machines, to shew by the blaze the state of the place where they fell. A beautiful copy of this work, which is said to have been so generally esteemed, as to have been translated into Hebrew, is preserved in the Harleian Collection, No. 4802.

defences, having three gates for ingress and egress, one towards the side where the king shewed himself, and two on the opposite side, both of which, on account of the water running in the said ditches, were inaccessible to our approach. And before the entrance of each of these gates, the prudence of the enemy had erected a strong defence, which we term a Barbican, but commonly called bulwarks; that towards the king was the strongest and largest, being defended without with round thick trees, nearly to the height of the walls of the town, fastened around, bound, and girded together very strongly. The interior is fortified with a wall of earth and rough hewn beams in the bye-paths and narrow places, for the reception of the enemy, with narrow chinks and places full of holes through which they might annoy us with their tubes, which we in English call gunnys, and with arrows, crossbows, and other offensive weapons. The structure of it was round, containing

more in diameter than the cast of a stone, with which our common people in England are want to amuse themselves by the road side: water of great depth and breadth surrounded it, being about two lances length broad in the narrowest part, having a bridge for ingress and egress towards the town, and a little wooden gate, which at the will of the enemy might be either placed or withdrawn, as often as it was thought convenient to sally out upon us. The interior of the town is adorned with handsome buildings, closely built, and one parish church. The port for the reception of ships, and which receives them as far as the middle of the town, is furnished with walls closing on each side of the channel, beyond the walls of the town, with three defences at proper distances. At its entrance are two fine towers, between which the water ebbs and flows, one of which is lofty and

m Titus Livius says, that in this port a very large fleet of ships might ride in safety. p. 9. Harl. MSS. 35, f. 24.

very commanding, doubly armed at the top and middle, and the other tower armed only at the top; the chains of each preventing any vessel without license, from passing or repassing between them; which entrance, and a great portion of the wall where the sea was open for vessels at the flowing of the tide, the enemy had prudently previously fortified with stakes and trunks of trees, thicker than a man's thigh, placed in great bodies, both towards the town within and towards the river without; so that if our ships had approached at the flowing of the tide, to make an irruption through the port, or an assault on the walls, the stakes being perceived, they would either withdraw, or not caring for their own safety, the stakes being perchance covered by the flowing of the tide, they would dash themselves upon them, and very likely suffer shipwreck.

And when, as has been before written, our king on the Saturday" shewed

a 17th August.