When the clamour ceased, the king fully
armed, and followed by the Marquis of Dorset, Sir Thomas Wyat, and the
Lord Clifford, rode into the lists.
Henry was equipped in a superb suit of armour, inlaid with gold, and
having a breastplate of the globose form, then in vogue; his helmet was
decorated with a large snow-white plume. The trappings of his steed
were of crimson velvet, embroidered with the royal arms, and edged
with great letters of massive gold bullion, full of pearls and precious
stones. He was attended by a hundred gentlemen, armourers, and
other officers, arrayed in white velvet.
Having ridden round the court like the others, and addressed his
salutation exclusively to Jane Seymour, Henry took his station with his
companions near the base of the Round Tower, the summit of which
was covered with spectators, as were the towers and battlements
around.
A trumpet was now sounded, and the king and the Lord Rochford
having each taken a lance from his esquire, awaited the signal to start
from the Duke of Suffolk, who was seated in the left wing of the royal
gallery. It was not long delayed. As the clarion sounded clearly and
loudly for the third time, he called out that the champions might go.
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