Unto the very noble and reknowned company of gentlemen and Women who comprise the Armour Archive,

By your leave I will recount the pleasure as was had by some small company this Sunday past, at the manor of My Lord of Kelsale in Mildenhall under Savernake.

Very Pleasantly did My Lord of Kelsale and the most Glad Master Paul de Gorey give challenge and welcome to all who might journey thence to partake of his hospitality and mayhap undertake some small deeds of arms.

Thanks be to Saint Albert of Jerusalem, whose day it was, for by his grace and guidance there came to Mildenhall a preaux and noble company, whom I should blush to call myself an equal of.

There stood Master Paul de Gorey, bearing Gules a Griffin rampant sinister Or maintaining a broken sword, and My Lord Thomas Flamanc of Kelsale, bearing Azure a fess argent between three Martlets, Both as Tennans, and also Lord Thomas d'Hampton, of Argent in pale three crosses within a bordure Gules and I, Lord Robert of Canterbury of Gules Three fleeces Argent as Vennans. There Came into the party of the Vennans also Master Rhys Terafan, in haste and in great spirit, who had to be greatly entreated to take his leisure in arming himself fully ere entering the lists, such was his earnest desire to do noble deeds of Arms, and to have a full share of all such combats as might take place. He duly took his place, bearing Or, a Bend, and a chief embattled Purpure

Much was done, and many good blows struck, For the most part unto the receipt of three good blows by one party, but also unto ten, or five, with or withouten hold or let for recognition, and once for by a count of forty likewise, and that was a sore trial, and I thank Milord d'Hamton for his pleasure in that enterprise. Divers melees were had, wherein all met with much furious striving, and of particular memory was the stand of Masters De Gorey and Terafan armed with sword and buckler against the three Lords present all with pollaxes.

At the conclusion of the day, all those in the list were accorded a vote as their conscience dictated as to who might be accorded the victor of the field, and the ladies of the gallery were enjoined to declare whom between them they most favoured, and so the men at arms having privily given their vote to the most precedent Lady there present, The Duchess Alessandra Melusine, They then made public their declarations, and all spoke most passionately of the joy their preferred candidate had given them, and there was much delight for of those five men present no two were in agreement, and it fell out that there were then five noble contenders each with the support of one other, so evenly was the honour gained that day perceived.

And so fittingly it was the Lord most favoured by the ladies of the gallery who carried the day, and that was our Host, Lord Thomas Flamanc of Kelsale.

Mention needs also be made of Lord Thomas d'Hampton, who so moved the ladies by his efforts in the gathering, and glad acceptance of, such blows as it pleased him to have of his opponents, that they presented him with a marvellous cunning miniature, in Crystal, of a Swan.

So was the day concluded, to the grete joy of all there present. Do you who read this, mark well the names of those good gentlemen I have here made recounting of, for they are men of Deeds.

So do I give thanks and pen this missive in memoriam of that days deeds, on this the fourth Wednesday in September, in St Peters Parish, about the Angel's Bridge upon the Thames, at Caversham, by Reading.

Robert de Canterbury