TO the holy crown of France, borne to-day under God's ordinance by Charles, the sixth of that name, well-beloved and feared by all, be given praise and glory over all earthly lordships. Most high and mighty Prince, I, who am named Honore Bonet, humble Prior of Salon in Provence, time and again have had it in mind to compile a book which should be, first, to the honour of God our Creator and of the most glorious Virgin Mary His sweet Mother, and next, to the honour of your most excellent Majesty. And the reasons for which I have undertaken to do this are to my mind good ones. For first, the estate of Holy Church is to-day in such tribulation that if God provides no good remedy, nor your seigniory, which has been accustomed to end and bring to nothing the fierce hazards of the Christian Faith, then I fail utterly to perceive in what way good and speedy cure may be found. And the second reason is that I see all holy Christendom so burdened by wars and hatreds, robberies and dissensions, that it is hard to name one little region, be it duchy or county, that enjoys good peace. The third reason is that the land of Provence, in which I was born and bred, is at present so placed by the struggle for lordship, and also by the division of opinion between nobles and commons, that every wise man must hear with great grief of the ills that the people of the country suffer through that struggle. The fourth reason is that many glosses made by great clerks of recent times, who consider that they understand the ancient prophecies pointing to the present great evils, claim that, by a member of the high lineage of France, healing will be given to an age which is in such travail and disease.

These reasons, then, have urged me to write divers new matters, that your youth may be informed of certain significations of the Holy Scripture, and further, that your will may be more and more inclined to provide and offer succour to the Holy Faith of Jesus Christ, and to work to such degree that the prophecies written of your worthy person may be fulfilled by your good and virtuous deeds. So I pray you, my most excellent and sovereign Prince, that nothing that I say in this book may be distasteful to you, but rather that you may find it acceptable. For what I say therein is founded on the Holy Scripture, and the Decretals, and the laws, and on natural philosophy, which is none other than natural reason. And this book is to be called the Tree of Battles.

But since I have gone so far, it is fitting that I should explain the matter of which I make my book, seeing that I have shown the reasons moving me to compose it. I have imagined the thing in such wise that I make a Tree of Mourning at the beginning of my book, on which you may see, first, at the head, the governors of Holy Church in such sharp tribulation as never was before ; and this will be well recognised by those who shall clearly understand this book. Next, you may see the great dissension which is to-day among Christian princes and kings, and afterwards you may see the great grief and discord which exist among the communities.  And in accordance with this Tree, I shall arrange my book in four parts. The first shall treat of the tribulation of the Church in times past, before the coming of Jesus Christ our Lord ; the second part shall be of the destruction and tribulation of the four kingdoms of old times ; the third part shall be of wars in general ; and the fourth part shall be of battles in particular.

Here ends the prologue.