The next morning, May 7th, the people of the castle saw
three of these unhappy men hanging up, by the duke's
orders, on the trees of the pleasance. Immediately three




Fig. 38.
Burgundian prisoners were hanged on the battlements of
the barbican.
None of the bridges had been destroyed by the besieged.
They were occupied by the duke's men, and defended each
by a good bretkhe (Fig. 38), to hinder any communication
from one bank to the other. The south wall of the abbey
was strengthened by palisades joining the two ridges west



THE FOURTH SIEGE.
i8s



and east of the plateau. A guard was posted in the two
mills belonging to the monastery,' and a. wooden tower
built by the side of the rivulet, below the south-east part
of the castle.
These first measures adopted, the duke had a ditch dug,
with a mound crossing the pleasance of the castle within
bowshot, and connecting the two ridges. This intrench-
ment of contravallatibn was strengthened by two wooden
towers, one at each end, with an outlet near each of them,
and one in the middle (Fig. 39). The castle was thus
completely invested (May 15th).
f,,-^.
Fio. 39.
While these works were being executed, there were
trifling skirmishes every day between the defenders and
the besiegers. They were trying each other's strength, but
nothing serious was attempted. The duke bent his whole
strength towards preventing the lord of Roche-Pont and
his men from escaping : he was taking his time. Baron Guy
was often closeted with a certain individual whom he
called his chaplain, and who had accompanied him from
Palestine. In the castle, this so-called chaplain never went
1 See G, Fig. 35.
i86 ANNALS OF A FORTRESS.
