The lords in King Henry's party pitched a field and fortified it very strongly, and like unwise men broke their array and field and took another, and before they were prepared for battle the queen's party was at hand with them in the town of St Albans, and then everything was to seek and out of order, for their scouts came not back to them to bring tidings how near the queen was, save one who came and said that she was nine miles away. And before the gunners and Burgundians could level their guns they were busily fighting, and many a gun of war was provided that was of little avail or none at all; for the Burgundians had such instruments that would shoot both pellets of lead and arrows of an ell in length with six feathers, three in the middle, and three at one end, with a very big head of iron at the other end, and wild fire, all together.... In time of need they could not shoot one of them, for the fire turned back on those who would shoot these three things. Also they had nets made of great cords of four fathoms long and four feet wide, like a hedge, and at every second knot there was a nail standing upright, so that no man could pass over it without a strong chance of getting hurt. Also they had a pavise borne as a door, made with a staff folding up and down to set the pavise where they like, and loop holes with shooting windows to shoot out at.... And when their shot was spent and finished, they cast the pavise before them; then no man might come over the pavise because of the nails that stood upright, unless he wished to do himself a mischief. Also they had a thing made like a lattice full of nails as the net was, but it could be moved as a man would: a man might squeeze it together so that the length would be more than two yards long, and if he wished, he might pull it wide, so that it would be four square. And that served to be at gaps where horsemen would enter.... And as the real opinion of worthy men who will not dissemble or curry favour for any bias, they could not understand that all these devices did any good or harm, except on our side with King Henry. Therefore they are much neglected, and men betake themselves to mallets of lead, bows, swords, glaivers, and axes. As for spearmen, they are only good to ride before the footmen and eat and drink up their victuals, and many more such fine things they do. You must hold me excused for these expressions, but I say the best; for in foot soldiers is all the trust.
William Gregory. "Chronicle of London" in Historical Collections of a Citizen of London in the Fifteenth Century. (London: 1876), p. 212.
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