It was apprehended by the French monarch, that the
monastery might be converted into a depot by the English; and they were
commanded either to demolish the church, or to fortify it against the
invaders. They naturally regarded the latter as the lesser evil; and the
consequence was, that the abbey was scarcely put into a state of
defence, when it was attacked by the enemy, and, after sustaining a
siege for a month, was obliged to surrender. A great part of the
monastic buildings were levelled to the ground; and the fortifications
which had been so strangely affixed to them were also razed: meanwhile
the monks suffered grievously from the contending parties: their
sacristy was plundered; their treasury emptied; and they were themselves
exposed to a variety of personal hardships. At the same time, also, the
tomb of the Empress Maud[59], which faced the high altar, was destroyed,
after having been stripped of its silver ornaments.
Considering the number of illustrious persons who were abbots or
patrons of Bec, and who had been elected from it to the superintendance
of other monasteries, the church does not appear to have been rich in
monuments. We read indeed of many individuals who were interred here
belonging to the house of Neubourg, a family distinguished among the
benefactors of the convent; and the records of the abbey speak also of
the tomb of Richard of St.
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