CHAPTER VII.
THE BATTLE OF EVESHAM _When the barons in armes did King Henrye oppose,_ _Sir Simon de Montfort their leader they chose;_ _A leader of courage undaunted was hee,_ _And oft-times he made their enemyes flee._ _At length in the battle on Eveshame plaine_ _The barons were routed and Montfort was slaine._ -- THE BEGGAR'S DAUGHTER OF BEDNALL GREEN.
One of the treasures of the Abbey of Saint Mary and Saint Egwin at Evesham was the tomb of the great and popular hero Simon de Montfort.
Such tombs were a source of much profit to the ecclesiastical institutions of those days.

Hither pilgrims flocked in great numbers, particularly on the day specially devoted to the memory of the saint or martyr, and offerings were made proportionate to the wealth of the devotee.

Not only was it supposed that spiritual advantages could be gained by devotion at these holy places, but cures innumerable were believed to have been worked through the intercession of the departed spirit.

Hence the great monasteries often partook of the nature of our present-day hospitals, "the maimed, and the halt, and the blind" thronging thither; and, if at first unsuccessful, trying shrine after shrine in the hope of eventual restoration to health.
Though de Montfort was not canonised as a saint and martyr, yet he appears to have been regarded in such a light by the common people, and among the archives of the Monastery was preserved a long list of accredited cures and miracles reported to have been worked at his tomb.
It was on the morning of Tuesday, August 4th, 1265, that the memorable battle, ending in the death of Simon de Montfort, was fought.

Earl Simon was travelling on the previous day from the neighbourhood of Worcester to join his eldest son, also named Simon, at Kenilworth.
With the Earl was King Henry the Third as prisoner or hostage, and on the night of Monday, the 3rd of August, the Earl and his retinue were received as guests in the Abbey, his army being quartered or encamping in the town.
Prince Edward, King Henry's eldest son, was in the neighbourhood with a large army, but his movements for some days past were unknown to de Montfort.