The spelling of "didn't" as "did n't", "center" as "centre" and other such usages, has been maintained.

Here are the definitions of some unfamiliar (to me) words.

cataplasm (poultice) Soft moist adhesive mass of meal or clay, usually heated, spread on cloth, and applied to warm, moisten, or stimulate an aching or inflamed part of the body.

doggerel Irregularly fashioned verse of a humorous nature.

halberdiers Guard armed with a halberd, a weapon having an ax-like blade and a steel spike mounted on the end of a long shaft.

sedges Grasslike plants of the family Cyperaceae, having solid stems and three vertical rows of leaves.

seneschal Official in a medieval noble household in charge of domestic arrangements and the administration of servants.