ABSTRACT
The besiegers of Lincoln received timely warning of the approach of the relieving army, and sent out Saher de Quincey, Earl of Winchester, and Robert Fitzwalter to reconnoitre the advancing columns. Lewes and Evesham show a distinct advance in the art of war, which we may fairly set down to the influence of Simon de Montfort, who, though not a general of the first class, had at least a quick eye and a wide experience. The town and castle of Lewes lie at a point where the line of the South Downs is cut through by the river Ouse. The road from Fletching to Lewes passes over the easternmost of the spurs by the hamlet of Offham, and by this path would have been the shortest approach from the barons' camp. There are two roads from Evesham to Kenilworth—one by Alcester, the other by Stratford-on-Avon.
