by Christopher Hare (Author)
Pierre Terrail, the renowned Bayard of history, was born at the Castle of Bayard, in Dauphine, about the year 1474, when Louis XI. was King of France. He was a French soldier, generally known as the Chevalier de Bayard. Throughout the centuries since his death, he has been known as "the knight without fear and beyond reproach". He preferred the name "The Good Knight". . In 1494, he accompanied Charles VIII's expedition into Italy to seize Naples and was knighted after the 1495 Battle of Fornovo, in which he captured a standard. Throughout his life he was known for his skill in battle. As a soldier, Bayard was considered the epitome of chivalry and one of the most skillful commanders of the age. He was noted for the exactitude and completeness of his information on the enemy's movements, which he obtained by careful reconnaissance and a well-arranged system of espionage.