made upon their territory both by the King of Poland and the Grand Duke of Muscovy.
In the year of our Lord 1502, in the month of September, Alexander, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, prevailed upon Walter von Pletenberg, the lord of Livonia, under certain stipulations, to lead an army against the provinces of the Grand Duke of Muscovy, promising that by the time he reached the enemy's country, he himself would be present with a large force. But as the king did not come at the appointed time, and as the Russians, when they heard of the approach of an enemy, came forth to meet the master with a vast multitude; the master finding that he was deserted, and that he could not retreat without extreme disgrace as well as peril, first addressed his soldiers in a few words, as time was pressing, and then discharged his artillery and vigorously attacked the enemy, and at the first onslaught routed the Russians, and put them completely to flight. But as the conquerors were few in number in comparison with the enemy, and loaded with heavier furniture, they were unable to pursue the enemy very far; the Russians perceiving this, took fresh courage, and again returning to the ranks, made a vigorous attack upon Pletenberg's infantry, who could only present to the enemy a force of about one thousand five hundred. In that battle, the general, Matthew Pernauer, with his brother Henry, and the standard-bearer Conrad Schwartz, perished. A glorious action is related of this standard-bearer; for when overwhelmed with the darts of the enemy, and unable to stand any longer from exhaustion, before he fell, he called out with a loud voice for some brave man near him to take the flag from him: on hearing which, Lucas Hamerstete, who boasted of being sprung, although illegitimately, from the dukes of Brunswick, ran to the spot, and endeavoured to take the standard from the hands of the dying man; but Conrad, either from suspicion of his fidelity, or thinking him unworthy of so
