Page:History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the Catholic Vol. III.djvu/103

77 VICTORY OF CERIGNOLA. 77 from one of them took effect on the unfortunate chapter XII. young nobleman, and he fell mortally wounded '- — from his saddle. At this juncture, the Swiss and Gascon infantry, briskly moving up to second the attack of the now disordered horse, arrived before the intrenchments. Undismayed by this formidable barrier, their com- mander, Chandieu, made the most desperate at- tempts to force a passage ; but the loose earth freshly turned up afforded no hold to the feet, and his men were compelled to recoil from the dense array of German pikes, which bristled over the summit of the breast-work. Chandieu, their lead- er, made every effort to rally and bring them back to the charge ; but, in the act of doing this, was hit by a ball, which stretched him lifeless in the ditch ; his burnished arms, and the snow-white plumes above his helmet, making him a conspicu- ous mark for the enemy. All was now confusion. The Spanish arquebus- ^"g"^^^^^"'^ iers, screened by their defences, poured a galling fire into the dense masses of the enemy, who were mingled together indiscriminately, horse and foot, while, the leaders being down, no one seemed ca- pable of bringing them to order. At this critical moment, Gonsalvo, whose eagle eye took in the whole operations of the field, ordered a general charge along the line ; and the Spaniards leaping their intrenchments, descended with the fury of an avalanche on their foes, whose wavering columns, completely broken by the violence of the shock, were seized with a panic, and fled, scarcely offering