The weather had now cleared, and the aspect of things was, consequently, much brightened; and, as we approached Blaye, the skies were fine, and the air fresh and agreeable.
A group of islands, called _Les Isles de Cazau_, rises from the waters; and on one of them appears the singularly-shaped tower of Blaye, so like a _pate de Perigord_, that it is impossible, on looking at it, not to think of Charlemagne, or his nephew, the famous paladin, Rolando, who should be the presiding genii of the scene.
All along the left bank of the river extend, in this direction, the far-famed plains of Medoc--once the haunt of wolves and wild boars, now covered with the vines renowned throughout Europe.
The first place, after Mortagne--where once stood the castle of that Jeanne de Vendome who falsely accused Jacques Coeur--is Pauillac, a town of some commercial importance; and near is an island, called Patiras, formerly the abode of a pirate, called Monstri, whose depredations were so extensive that the parliament of Bordeaux was obliged to send a considerable naval force to put him down.

But Monstri was not the only depredator who found the Gironde a fitting theatre for his piracy.
Amongst all that _coquinaille_,--as Mezeray designates the notorious Free Companies who, after their services were no longer required to drive the English from the recovered realm of Charles VII., exercised their cruelties and indulged their robber-propensities on the people of France, wherever they came,--was a knight and a noble, who may serve as a type of those of his time, Roderigue de Villandras, known as _Le Mechant Roderigue_; together with Antoine de Chabannes, Lord of Dammartin, the Batard de Bourbon, and others; Villandras led a troop of those terrible men, who boasted of the name of _Ecorcheurs_.

It was true that, in the lawless period when the destitute _Roi de Bourges_ had neither money nor power, they had done great service to his cause--as a troop of trained wolves might have done--ravaging and destroying all they came near; but the end once accomplished, the great desire of all lovers of order was to get rid of the scourge which necessity had obliged the king to endure so long.

To such a pitch of insolence had these leaders arrived, that, not content with despoiling every person they met, Villandras had, at last, the effrontery to attack and pillage the baggage of the king himself, and to maltreat his people.

Enraged at finding the vexations of which his suffering subjects had so long bitterly complained, come home to himself, personally, Charles resolved on vigorous measures, and gave instant command that these companies should be pursued and hunted from society: that every town and village should take up arms against them, and, as for Chabannes, Roderigue, &c., they were banished from the kingdom.