by Griff Hosker
That decided me. “Then Stockton it is.” He made an adjustment to take us further west. We continued along the safe channel. Soon we would be in the ocean and then there would be danger. I knew that the last remnants of England, the Channel Islands, could be the graveyard of careless captains. “Tell me Captain, as a seafarer, is there any way to speed up the journey from the sea to Stockton?”
“Aye lord. There is huge loop by Norton. The gap between the two bends is but two hundred paces and yet the river loops for over a mile. The wind is always against you at some point for it is almost a circle. If you were to dig a cut then you could easily take a mile of river from the voyage.” He rubbed his beard as he thought it through, “And when the land was drained it would be very fertile.”
“When we reach England, I will suggest it to Sir William.” We sailed north and west for many miles until we had to make a turn. Henry checked that the other ships were on station as we headed closer to the last remnants of English rule for many miles; the Channel Islands. The wind was favourable and we were making better time than we could have hoped. I pointed to Guernsey which lay like a shadow to the north. The Breton coast lay menacingly close. “I don’t envy them. They are surrounded by enemies.”
“Don’t waste your sympathy on them, my lord. Most of them are pirates. If we had a decent King he would have put a constable in charge who would defend the seaways.”
“Who is the constable now?”
“I know not. He is based in Jersey but there is a lord on each of the islands.”
My men began to rouse themselves. Most went to the leeward side to make water or to empty their bowels. David of Wales waved, “I will get some food organized, lord.” I waved my acknowledgement.
I heard a baby crying. It had to be Rebekah. “I will go and see how my wife fared.”
Henry smiled, “Don’t worry sir, she would have been as snug as a bug in the canvas. It is restful.”
I went into the cabin and saw what he meant. My wife’s weight had pulled the canvas tight about her. The baby would have been safe and she would have been rocked to sleep. Alfred was still asleep. I saw that she was nursing the baby.
She smiled at me, “I would have one of these in my home save that it only fits one and needs the motion of the ship to work. I have never had such a comfortable night’s sleep and Alfred never murmured once.”
“Good. I will get some food organised.”
As I went on deck I heard, from the mast head, “Sail ho!”
“Where away?”
“Nor by east, Captain.”
“Can you see any flag?”
“Not yet but I think she has come from the islands. She looks English built.”
I wandered to Henry, “Trouble?”
“Could be, although we have the wind. If they are pirates then they would have to sail into the wind.”
The lookout shouted, “Captain there are three of them and they have oars too.” We had a strong wind behind us and it was taking us closer and closer to the three ships. I knew enough about ships to know that if we turned then we would lose some of the speed for the wind would not be as favourable.
Captain Henry was decisive, “Let us get some sea room. Alf, go and signal the other ships that I am taking us further west. They should have Sir Thomas’ men stand to.”
I looked at him, “Pirates?”
“I hope not but let us err on the side of caution eh, my lord?”
“David of Wales, have the men stand to. We may need your bows!”
I went to the cabin and picked up my sword. Margaret said, calmly, “Trouble?”
Could be. Better get dressed and wake Alfred.” I grinned, “He will be unhappy if he misses this battle too!”
By the time I was on deck we had made the course correction. The wind was not as favourable from that quarter. I could not make out the ships. “Will son of Robin you have good eyes. Climb the forestay and identify the standard.”
He swarmed up and reached the crosspiece. He stared and then shouted, “Red flag with yellow crosses, no, they are axes.” He looked down. “It is Brice the Chamberlain, lord.”
I shouted, “Captain Henry, it is worse than pirates. It is English men I have defeated who wish me harm!”
There was no point in donning mail. If this came to close quarters then we were dead men. This battle would be won by the skill of my captain and by my archers. I hoped that the other captains were as good as Henry. As the other ships joined us in heading north and west it soon became clear that the three ships were heading for our ship. They knew the ‘Swan of Stockton’ and that it was my vessel. For Brice the Chamberlain this was personal.
Alfred came from the cabin. He had his dagger strapped to his young body. He would not be called on to use it but his little face showed me that he was enjoying standing with his father’s warriors.
“David, get your men into the rigging. They will have better targets. If they can kill the men steering we might escape.”
“Aye lord. Right lads, up the rigging!”
I turned to Ridley the Giant. “I hope they won’t board but, if they do, then we will have to beat them back quickly. There are too few of us for a sustained battle.”
“Aye lord.”
As we were heading more west than north the wind, from the south by south west, was not as much help as it might have been. The three ships had their oars out and their sails down. They were closing with us. I went to the stern. Captain Henry looked up at the sail and then east to the three ships. “We should outrun them, my lord. Men cannot row for hours. The days of the Viking raider are long gone. The attack may add half a day to our voyage but better that than losing our ship and our lives.” He glanced astern, “The others are also heading further west. We will evade them.”
We might have done for, as time passed, I saw two of the oar driven ships begin to fall back and a gap opened. Then disaster struck. ‘Rose’ was astern of us and suddenly she almost stopped in the water. Worse, her bow slewed around. One of the crew shouted, “Captain! ’Rose’ has lost her tiller. The withies must had frayed and snapped.”
Captain Henry cursed, “Damn!”
“Can they repair it?”
“Aye lord but the nearest galley will be upon her before she does.”
“Then we must turn and fight them!” He looked at me as though I was mad. “Captain I have the finest archers anywhere. If you can close with them then my bow men can do so much damage that the galleys will be unable to continue.” I pointed astern. “I cannot let those people fall into the hands of Brice the Chamberlain!”
“You are the lord. We will do as you command. Come about!”
I turned and saw Margaret with Rebekah, she had come on deck and was holding her hand on Alfred’s shoulder. She smiled at me. “You are a good man, husband. Alfred, come and have something to eat.”
“But the battle!”
“Will wait until you have eaten and besides the ship’s crew do not need a small boy beneath their feet.” He obeyed.
As soon as we turned then the wind caught us and the ‘Swan’ flew. The stricken ‘Rose’ had given the rowers on the three ships renewed energy and they had changed course to go to her. Only Brice’s ship appeared to be the danger. Our sudden manoeuvre had taken them by surprise and we were now much closer to them than they were to ‘Rose’.
“Captain can you take us by their stern and around her?”
He shook his head. “We would lose way, lord. We would be sailing into the wind.”
I nodded, “Then the other alternative is to sail before her bows and up across her stern. We will still have the wind.”
“That would work, lord but my crew would have to be nippy and your men swift.”
“Do not worry about my men!”
As the captain gave his orders I shouted up to the archers, “We will sail across her bows. Kill as many of the crew as you can. Then we sail around her stern. I would have all there killed!”
David’
s voice drifted down, “Aye lord, Young Dick died at the hand of these men. They shall pay.”
We appeared to be closing alarmingly quickly. Suddenly Captain Henry threw the tiller over and we almost stopped. The bows of the galley seemed to be aiming at our midships and then he put the tiller over again and the wind caught us. Arrows flew from my archers and I saw the lookout pitch to the deck from the mast. The wind caught us and we flew. We were so close that I could see, at the stern, Brice the Chamberlain. He shouted orders but, even as the men grabbed crossbows, they fell. The oars became ragged as my archers slew the oarsmen.
Captain Henry shouted, “Hold on archers! We come about!” He turned us so that we passed between the leading ship and her consorts some eight lengths away. They were rowing for all their might as we passed by the stern of Brice the Chamberlain’s ship. David of Wales and his archers were few in number and they were precariously perched but they knew their business and the crew at the stern were killed to a man. The exception was Brice the Chamberlain. He hid beneath his shield and was protected by his armour. Even so, as we turned to head north and west once more I saw two arrows sticking from his leg. Our arrows had done the damage. The ship slewed to face south as the sailor steering fell. My archers kept up a withering rate and oarsmen fell. We watched as the other two ships slowed. They would not catch us.
I saw ‘Rose’ resume her course. The other ships were further west. Their captains had looked to themselves. I turned and saw a grinning Alfred with Fótr standing protectively close. He had seen the effect of my archers for the first time. It was a lesson for the future. When he became a knight he would know how to use the skills of such men.
It took most of the day for us to regain our formation. As we passed ‘Rose’ Sir Edward and the crew of that ship cheered and waved as we passed. Their captain shouted, “The tiller is repaired!”
Captain Henry murmured, “It should never have broken in the first place. You can tell when a rope is frayed!”
We sailed north and east under reefed sails for it was night time and Captain Henry did not want us to risk losing one of the fleet. We were far from land. The coast of Cornwall lay many leagues to the north and our flight had taken us well to the west of Guernsey. It did mean that we had sea room.
I was tired enough to need sleep more than food or wine. I shared one of the hanging canvas beds with Alfred. My wife was correct, it was cosy and soporific. I could have closed my eyes and been asleep instantly. Alfred, however, had other ideas and he chattered away with questions about the battle and my archers until, eventually, his mother said, “Alfred if you wake your sister I will make you sleep outside on the deck! Go to sleep! Your father needs it even if you do not!” It worked. He was silent and I slept.
Dawn saw us approaching the busy waterways between Flanders and England. After I had made water and taken some of the cheese and ham from Ridley the Giant I joined Captain Henry at the stern. He smiled, “We are all in formation and making good time. The other captains have realised the benefits of staying close to us or perhaps your men aboard them have chivvied the captains. I have never seen such close sailing.”
“And is that the dangerous part over?”
“In terms of human enemies, yes, but it will take us half a day to reach the headland of Dover. We will be lucky to have cleared the Thames estuary by dark. I am afraid the waters there are crowded. However, I am happier that we travel these waters in daylight. There is less chance of collision. We will have to crawl north. Tomorrow we will make better time. Our course to escape the galleys proved a blessing. The winds we found have made this one of the quickest voyages I can remember. Perhaps the Good Lord wishes to hasten your arrival in Stockton!”
“Perhaps.”
He was right. The journey took longer than I had expected to reach Dover. Ships sailed across our bows as they headed to the ports on the south coast. We had to negotiate fleets of fishing ships. There were other ships heading south and, to take advantage of the wind, their course oft times meant that we had to slow to avoid a collision. Once we passed the busy waterways we had a sea which was almost empty. Any ships we saw were many miles away and there was no danger of collision.
Two days later we saw the cliffs of the Yorkshire coast. Once we had passed the Fens the number of ships we passed diminished and we could use more sail. Only a handful of my men had ever seen this part of the world and they were with Edward astern of us. The rest lined the sides of the ship as they looked at the abbey of Whitby rising high above the cliffs and the small fishing ports nestled in tiny inlets along the coast.
My wife had left our sleeping daughter with a servant and she joined me. Alfred was with Fótr and both were too busy looking landward to bother us. “I will be glad when this voyage is over, husband. I must smell foul.”
I nuzzled her head and kissed her hair. “You smell fine to me!”
She shook her head, “I am sorry, husband, but as you smell worse than a stable I doubt your judgement. And I will be pleased to be spared the indignity of making water on a ship!”
I had much sympathy with her. The arrangements were primitive. For modesty’s sake Captain Henry had rigged a canvas in the leeward side of the bows but, even so, the ladies had to sit with their rears hung over the water. They had learned to do what they had to in pairs.
“And food! Salted ham and cheese! I will be happy if I never eat them again! I yearn for something cooked. I am desperate for bread!” She suddenly looked at me, “Will your aunt be able to cope with the sudden influx of people?”
I nodded, “From what I have been told our coin will be more than welcome. I will not impose upon my aunt and her husband. I will buy what we need from Stockton. We left La Flèche rich. I would use that coin to make our life here in England comfortable.”
When we turned west at the river the journey slowed. The wind was now against us and we had to use the crew and my men to man the sweeps and row us down the river. For the ladies the sight of the seals basking on the sands and wild birds soaring as we passed, kept them entertained but it took a whole day and night for us to crawl the few miles to Stockton. I would suggest to Sir William that we make a cut in the river. The journey was intolerable.
When we reached Stockton the rest of the passengers were relieved and pleased. I felt sad for I saw the desolation of King John. The castle had gone and all that remained was the hall. I saw that Sir William had fortified it with a fighting platform and a small tower. Thornaby castle had also gone. All that remained was the church. This was not the river and home I had left to follow my father and King Richard to the crusades but this time, at least, I was coming home. I would not have to flee to Sweden and I could begin my life anew. On my last visit there had been despair and anger. I had a family and I had followers; there was now hope.
Home to England
Chapter 9
We docked at the quay. Our approach had been so slow that I had expected my aunt and her husband to greet us. They did not. Instead we were greeted by a small, neat man, “Are you Sir Thomas?”
“I am.”
“I am Edgar my lord’s steward. Lady Ruth begs your forgiveness for not greeting you personally. She would have been here to meet you but Sir William is close to death.”
I nodded, “Fótr, see to the unloading. I must go to Sir William!”
“Aye lord!”
The days when we would have had to negotiate the gatehouse were gone. It was open bare ground before the halls, stables, store rooms, bakery and the kitchen. I hurried after the steward. Everything was as I remembered it from my last visit but it looked a little more run down and decrepit. The Great Hall was easily recognisable and Edgar took me up the stairs in the south tower to the master chamber. When I entered there was the smell of death. It was as familiar as the smell of my horse. I had sat with enough dying men to recognise it. Sir William lay propped up on the bed and my aunt sat holding his hand. He looked like a skeleton. He was gaunt and thin. A tendril of blood was wiped aw
ay from his mouth by my aunt even as I entered. A priest stood close by chanting prayers.
Lady Ruth rose and came to hug me, “God has given you wings. Had you been an hour later then he would have passed away. My husband has clung on to life for he knew you were coming.” She shook her head, “I know not how. Come he would speak with you.”
I went to the bed. The priest made to leave but Sir William said, “Father Richard I beg you to stay. I wish you to attest to the words which I now say to Sir Thomas.”
He nodded.
Sir William took my hand, “I have followed your exploits from afar. If I had had a son then he would have been just like you. I am dying. It is not a warrior’s death. I have not long. Are you listening, Father Roger?”
“I am, lord.”
“This manor was granted to me and my heirs. My wife is a woman and the Bishop of Durham has made it clear that a woman cannot inherit. The Church is both mean and petty. The Bishop, or his nephew, at least, knows I have no children. I therefore adopt Sir Thomas of La Flèche as my heir. I give him the manor and the right to protect the people. I ask him to watch over his aunt, as I know he will. To my wife I leave my treasure, little though it is.”
Ruth squeezed his hand, “My treasure lord, is the time I have spent with you. You have given me a life I could not have expected.”
He nodded. “You heard that priest?”
“I did lord.”
“Then go now and write it down quickly. I would not have clerks and clerics rob this warrior of the home he deserves!”
He scurried away and Sir William closed his eyes. The effort had been too much for him. My aunt took a jug and poured wine into a goblet. She held it to his lips. She whispered to me, “The healers have put a drug in here. It numbs the pain. He hoped that you would come before the end.” I saw tears in her eyes. “He is a good man and wonderful companion. I will miss him.”
“I should leave you alone.”
She shook her head. “When he passes I would have you here with me. It will comfort me much.”