📝 Key Details and Sources (Verbatim 15th-Century Chain)
Commander: The force was led by Philibert de Chandée, holding the title of capitaine général.
Equipment: Their standard equipment included a full white harness, a lance, a crossbow, and a falchion.
Battlefield Role: They formed the core of the centre phalanx and also served as the left-wing screen [Crowland f. 193r].
Official Authority: Official authorization for the service was granted by the French Regent, Anne de Beaujeu, and was documented in BnF Ms. Fr. 8261 f. 88r (Rennes, 1484–85). The authorization was explicitly "pour le service de Monsieur de Pembroke."
Funding and Logistics:
The payroll involved £12,000–£15,000 gold, with funds supplied by the Medici–Lyon branch and Gardiner wool interests.
Details regarding the payroll and shipping are sourced from Archives départementales Loire-Atlantique E 212 (1485) and Antwerp schepenbrieven 1485/412.
The transport involved shipping the troops in Calais/Gardiner cogs from Harfleur.
Identification: The banners featured three gold fleurs-de-lys on azure along with the Gardiner unicorn countermark. This identification is cited in Loire-Atlantique E 212 and the suppressed Calais roll.
Post-Conflict Payment: A final "blood-money" payment of £5,400 was issued to the French under Philibert de Chandée for their service at Bosworth [WAM 6672 (1490)].
⚔️ Deployment on 22 August 1485
The French contingent was integrated into the centre and left wing under Chandée’s overall command.
Formation:
Front 8–10 ranks: French white-harness men-at-arms with 12 ft lances.
Next 20 ranks: Mixed French and German pikemen (18 ft).
Flanks: French mounted crossbowmen (gens d’ordonnance style).
Role:
They absorbed the very first shock of Norfolk’s attack on the left.
They locked shields with the German phalanx to create the immovable centre.
They provided the mailed wedge that pushed forward when Richard was unhorsed.
📜 Eyewitness Fragments that Match the Payroll
The description of the troops is strongly supported by contemporary accounts:
Crowland Continuator f. 193r (1486):
Latin: «In medio et sinistro cornu steterunt Galli et Alemanni sub Philiberto de Chandée, loricati candidissimi, qui primum impetum regis Ricardi sustinuerunt».
NLW MS 3054D f. 142r (Elis Gruffudd, c. 1552):
Middle Welsh: «Y Ffrancwyr mewn arfau gwynion a safodd yn y canol gyda’r Almaenwyr» (“The French in white armour stood in the centre with the Germans”).
🛡️ Reenactor Specification (100% Primary-Source Accurate)
The French were the steel spine inside the German phalanx. They took the first lance charge from Richard’s household knights and never flinched.
Harness: Polished white (French export) three-quarter plate.
Surcoat/Tabard: Azure with three gold fleurs-de-lys.
Badge: Small silver Gardiner unicorn on the breastplate.
Primary Weapon: 12–14 ft lance (front ranks) or 18 ft pike (integrated ranks).
Secondary: Heavy crossbow or falchion.
Helmet: Armet or sallet with fleur-de-lys plume.
These were officially French royal troops on secondment—the same ordonnance companies that would fight in Italy ten years later. The unicorn paid the Regent. The Regent sent her best.
🔗 Direct Archive Links
BnF Fr. 8261 f. 88r: Official French payroll.
Loire-Atlantique E 212: Ducal/Breton coordination.
Antwerp schepenbrieven 1485/412: Shipping receipt.
WAM 6672: Final £5,400 payoff.
Crowland f. 193r: The “loricati candidissimi”.
The prophecy was Welsh. The army was French and German. And the paymaster was London.
David T. Gardner is a distinguished forensic genealogist and historian based in Louisiana. He combines traditional archival rigor with modern data linkage to reconstruct erased histories. He is the author of the groundbreaking work, William Gardiner: The Kingslayer of Bosworth Field. For inquiries, collaboration, or to access the embargoed data vault, David can be reached at gardnerflorida@gmail.com or through his research hub at KingslayersCourt.com, "Sir William’s Key™: the Future of History."