by Griff Hosker
“And that is why we cannot go near it. I agree that we have had food, but the ale is almost gone and I need a woman!” Rafe the Grumbler appeared to be well named.
Some of the others laughed. One sneered, “You have not enough money left in your purse to pay for a decent-looking woman. Find a sheep. They complain less.” The man had a Welsh accent.
“Owen of Newport you are a Welshman and you put up with anything. Some of your women have better beards than their men.”
The Welsh archer stood and his hand went to his dagger. The one called Rafe the Grumbler stood and they faced each other; there would be a fight. He was a man at arms, and he pulled a short dagger. The man at arms who had been sharpening his sword walked between them with his sword drawn. “And I am captain! Stand down or face me: Henry Sharp Sword!”
It was the perfect time to make our presence known. The attention of the whole camp was on the tableau close to the fire, and men would enjoy watching a fight between the two. I slid from the undergrowth and pulled back on the bow. I was less than twenty paces from them.
“Put your weapons down, for I am here on the orders of the king and his son! We seek Robert de Ferrers.”
I was watching the leader, for he had his hand on his sword, but it was the one called Rafe the Grumbler who turned and threw his dagger at me. I adjusted my aim and the bodkin-tipped arrow tore through his mail until just the fletch was showing. He fell back into the fire.
I had barely managed to move my head from the flight of the flying dagger. Three more arrows struck the men in the camp. The three had made the mistake of reaching for weapons, and my men would take no chances. In a heartbeat, I had nocked a war arrow.
The one called Henry Sharp Sword dropped his weapon and shouted, “Hold! These are trained archers!” I could barely be seen through the trees, but the direction of my arrow told him where I was. “Who are you, archer?”
“I am Captain Gerald War Bow.”
The one called Owen sheathed his weapon and said, “I have heard of him. He is as good as me.”
My men had not killed the three men they had hit. They had wounded them, and I saw blood dripping from wounds. “Drop your weapons and move to the fire, then we can tend to your wounds.”
“Do as he says!”
Weapons were sheathed or dropped, and the men moved towards the three who were injured. I kicked the body of the man who had fallen in the fire over to the side, where it smouldered. The smell of burning flesh was already in the air. “Keep them covered. Jack of Lincoln, I want an arrow aimed at their captain!”
“Aye, Captain. It is aimed at his heart!” The body of the dead man at arms was a testament to our skill.
I saw the surprise on the faces of the men at arms when my men came from all around them. Our bows were ready to release, and our eyes were on the potential captives. “Captain, you may see to your men but keep your hands from your weapons.”
It was only then I realised that I had not seen any horses. It was obvious now – but we had been concentrating so much on the men that the obvious had escaped us.
I was the first to reach the men and, when I was sure that my men had them covered, I took my arrow and placed it in my belt. Slinging my bow over my back, I drew my sword. I saw the eyes of the captain and the men at arms take in the fact that it was a swordsman’s weapon.
“Where is your master, the Earl of Derby?”
Their captain looked up at me and I saw the lie forming in his eyes.
“Captain, you and your men talk loudly. We heard what you said. You serve the earl and he has fled. We will take you to Northampton for judgement, but it is your master we seek.”
Resignation filled his face and he told me a version of the truth. “He has gone to find Simon de Montfort. We await his orders.”
“Better. John of Nottingham, collect the weapons. Matty and Will, fetch the horses.”
John of Nottingham began to do as I asked and said, “We leave tonight?”
I nodded but I did not elaborate. I did not relish trying to watch the men who survived, in a wood. Codnor Castle was a better place to guard them, and Captain William and his men could earn their silver, too. The castle was strongly made with a good moat and a drawbridge, which explained why it could be held by so few men.
I watched as two of the men at arms looked at each other while John collected weapons. They were weighing up the odds of taking us. They still wore their mail and must have fancied their chances. My hand slid around my back for my dagger.
The two men must have had a signal, for they suddenly launched themselves at me, pulling short swords which they had hidden beneath their blankets. Stephen Green Feather’s arrow threw one of the men from his feet as it punched into his back, but the other was on me so quickly that my men risked hitting me if they released a bodkin. Stephen’s arrow had penetrated so much that barely a handspan protruded from the man’s back.
The man at arms was confident and thought he had me, for his short sword came directly for my throat. It was a bold strike, intended to end the battle quickly. It was the wrong move, for I was able to block it with my sword while whipping my dagger around and driving it up under the raised arm of the man at arms. He wore a hauberk, but it afforded no protection under his arm. The tip slid directly into flesh and I rammed a little harder; I struck something vital. I saw the light go from his eyes as I gave him a quick death. His body slipped to the ground and I glared at the rest.
“I do not need to take you back! I do so as a service! Does anyone else relish a woodland grave?”
There remained just two men at arms who were wearing mail, the captain and one other. The archers were too far from their weapons and I dismissed the rest. They were not a threat; the two men at arms were the ones to worry about.
The captain said, “All of you, we are captured and we take our medicine. Our time will come. This is not over!” He had finished tending to his wounded man and he stood. “You will have no more trouble Captain Gerald War Bow, but I will remember this night’s work. I now have men at arms to replace!”
I nodded towards the three dead men at arms. “Have your men take the mail from your dead men and then bury them. You have no horses and we cannot carry them.”
The stripping of their dead and the burial of the corpses kept their hands occupied, and Matty and Will had returned with our horses by the time each man had been given a shallow grave. Animals would come and dig them up, but we had done the best we could. I reflected that the ones who did the burying did not shed tears over the dead. Even the captain did not ask to say words over them.
With Jack leading and John of Nottingham at the rear, we made our way back through the dark woods. Each man we had captured had a halter around his neck. Their captain was tethered next to me. He seemed in a chatty mood and spoke as we walked; the threat made before the burial was now replaced with an attempt to persuade me to change sides. Henry Sharp Sword was a clever man. “I know you serve Lord Edward, archer, but you and your men would be better paid serving de Montfort. I know a good archer when I see one, and you are better than most. An archer who can use a bow as well as you and is also a swordsman is valuable. Where did you learn to handle a sword so well?”
“Fighting the Welsh.”
“Ah, then you have fought sneaky men before. John and James were both cunning fighters.” He shrugged. “We do not have to like the men we lead.”
“I do.”
He turned, his face white in the dark. “Your lord did not hire these men?”
Shaking my head, I said, “He gave me the coins but I did the choosing. Why do you think I was so confident about taking you with so few men? Had our positions been reversed then would you have done what I did?”
I saw him glance around and then shake his head. “These are not all my men. My lord asked me to keep them close to his lands.”
“You said it is not over, which means you know more than you are saying.”
“I just know that your k
ing was lucky at Northampton. Luck is a wilful and precocious mistress. She can desert you at the wrong time.”
I noticed that he had said, ‘your king’, which meant he believed Simon de Montfort was right. I stored that information.
“You do not seem overly concerned about your capture, Captain.”
He shrugged. “We will be fed in Northampton, and my men will have their hurts healed. Our lord has suffered a setback, as has our leader, but we have the Right and together they will prevail. King Henry has abused his position. I am a patient man, Captain Gerald.”
The threat was back in his words. I had not been deceived by his apparent change. This man was a professional and he would need to be watched closely.
His words worried me, and I fretted about them all the way to Codnor Castle. Lord Edward and his father thought that the war was over, but this captain did not and he was no fool. What were the rebels planning?
All were abed by the time we reached the castle, and we had to wait for entry. Captain Williams grinned when he saw our captives. “You have saved us both time and men, Captain. Well done. And Robert de Ferrers?”
“From what I can gather he is with de Montfort and heading for Rochester. I do not think there are others in the forest.” I was telling him that we need not search any further. We could rejoin Lord Edward.
He nodded. “Aye, we have wasted enough time. We will leave these at Northampton. Mayhap we can catch our lord before the battle is fought.”
Both of us were confident about Lord Edward’s skill in battle. Although he was young and sometimes reckless, he was also a clever leader who knew how to deploy men on a battlefield. He would relieve the siege and then we would have a reward for our efforts.
We fought for his money. When the war was over, we would be dismissed and we would need to earn a living. A full purse gave us choices.
Chapter 2
It took six days to reach Northampton, for we had walking men with us, and by that time we heard that the siege was over. We still headed south, towards Winchelsea and Rochester. The king and his son had recaptured the mighty castle of Rochester; this part of England was back in royal hands. Simon de Montfort had fled to London and the Earl of Derby was with him. We rode directly to the camp of the king and his son, which was close to Winchelsea for, with de Montfort holding London, the king needed men to blockade the River Thames: the Cinque Ports were his only hope. As we rode down the road towards the huge camp outside Winchelsea, I saw heads on spears lining the road.
The king had placed groups of men to guard the road. We reined in at one, and Captain William asked, “Who are these fellows, friend?”
The sergeant at arms pointed at me. “They are like the captain here. They are archers. They have caused the king much trouble of late and hurt our men. They have been punished.” The men of the Weald were good archers; they knew the forests well and were to be respected. “They made the mistake of holding us up as we advanced, and then they killed the king’s cook. When he captured them, he had three hundred beheaded and their heads left as a warning.” The sergeant at arms grinned at me. “The king does not like archers!”
Continuing towards the camp, I wondered if Lord Edward regretted sending us on the wild goose chase to capture de Ferrers. We might have been able to neutralize the archers of the Weald, for we knew how to sniff out an ambush.
When we reached the camp, Captain William and I left our lieutenants to organise our own area while we walked into Winchelsea to speak with the king. The grumbling of the men we passed told us there was little food to be had. Apparently, the Cinque Ports had not welcomed the king as generously as he might have liked.
It was Baron Mortimer who came to us, as we cooled our heels outside the home of the wine merchant that the king was using as his base. Sir Roger was a fierce warrior, with lands in Herefordshire. I liked him as he was loyal to Lord Edward and a good man in a fight. He recognised us. “You succeeded in your mission, Captain William?”
Captain William was senior, and it was he who reported to Sir Roger,“No, my lord. We captured his men, but Sir Robert is in London with de Montfort.”
He nodded. “Just so. I will tell Lord Edward of your return. Where are you camped?” We told him. “Then I will send for you when the king decides where we go.”
“And food, my lord?”
He grinned. “If you find any, then I pray you share it with us! There is perilously little to be had, but I do not think we will be here long.”
As we walked back to the camp Captain William said, “I think we will need you and your men to hunt for us.”
“They do not mind hunting. So long as they have full bellies and coins in their purses, they are happy,” I said.
We stopped at a tavern. There was little food but more than enough ale and wine. We spoke with other captains who were gathered there and learned much. The king had left twenty banners and four hundred men at Tonbridge, to guard the castle which guarded the river. With Rochester reinforced, the king did not have as many men as he might have liked and, alarmingly, those he had were mainly mounted men. I discovered that we were amongst the only archers in the king’s retinue.
As we headed back to our new camp, I voiced my fears to Captain William. “This land through which we travel is perfect for archers. The archers of Weald are good, and if they choose to ambush the king and his knights then all we have gained might be lost.”
Captain William believed in mail armour and horsemen. Despite our closeness, he still thought that men at arms were superior to archers. Most men at arms came from the stock of landowners; archers, by and large, came from poorer families or outlaws. “Trust in Lord Edward,” he said.
I was not as confident as Captain William, but I obeyed orders and I would do as he suggested. What choice did we have?
I sent my best hunters into the woods to find game. We needed to eat, and Sir Roger had been a little vague in his timetable. Better to have food to hand when we began our march than to wait until we were ordered to leave. When John of Nottingham and the other hunters returned, they brought disquieting news. “Captain, there are signs of many men marching through these woods and heading north.”
“Towards London?”
“That would be my guess, Captain.”
“Thank you, John, I will speak with Lord Edward when time allows.”
We busied ourselves preparing the meat. We would eat fresh, and then we would salt and dry the rest. All the time my men wrestled with the worry that Lord Edward and his father might have miscalculated. In the event, we had but one day to wait to discover what this news heralded.
Simon de Montfort had raised what Lord Edward called ‘the rabble of London.’ The Prince of England himself came to our camp to tell us that we would be leaving, and that we would be the van of the royal army which went to fight them. We would have to be ready to ride before dawn.
After he had told us I said, “Lord, my men saw signs of archers and other such warriors heading north from the Weald. Your news confirms that they are headed for your enemies. Archers could hurt our army.”
He laughed. “He can bring all the rabble he likes. It is knights who will win this battle, Captain Gerald. We fight not the wild men of Wales this time. We have many more knights than our enemy. This will be the last battle, and our knights shall win it! You and your archers have done good work in the past, but this time you will be spectators and can watch mighty heavy horse sweep the scum of London back to that rat-infested bolt hole. The men of London will pay for their many and varied insults to my family and to my father; de Montfort will be put in his place once and for all. Do not worry, Captain Gerald, this war is over, and soon you and your men will be able to return to your former lives, for my father’s realm will be at peace.”
As Captain William and I returned to our men, I said, “I thought that we would be Lord Edward’s men, well… forever.”
Captain William shook his head. “In the grand scheme of things, we are not expens
ive. We cost less each year than a new warhorse, but the great and the good do not need us, Gerald. They prefer their own around them. I heard the insult. He thinks knights are our only mounted force. My men may not all be noble-born, but I would back them against any of de Montfort’s knights.”
“Then I suppose I should plan for life after Lord Edward. It seems that there will be perilously little available for us when Lord Edward wins.”
“There are many knights who wish to have archers when they go on a crusade.”
I shook my head. “I would like to stay in this country.” He shrugged. “I suppose we could always hire ourselves out as guards for merchants.”
“Could you live such a dismal existence?”
“We need coins in our purses. The alternative is the life Jack of Lincoln lived, and that does not appeal.”
As we headed towards Lewes, in the early hours of the morning, I confided in my men. They needed to know that if we won the battle then we might well be out of a job. They were more phlegmatic than I had been, for they all had other avenues they could explore.
“There are always knights who are willing to hire good archers, Captain. Baron Mortimer lives on the Welsh borders, and he would hire you in a heartbeat. You could find a place easily. But I confess that I like this company. You know yourself that there are archers like Guy of Sheffield, and they sour a company. Here we are all one. I shall miss that!”
Guy of Sheffield had been a bad archer who had tried to betray us. I would not employ another such as he.
Jack of Lincoln scratched his split nose. “Do not dismiss us so easily, John of Nottingham. We have not won this battle yet, nor has Lord Edward discharged us. If my time in the forest taught me anything, it was not to predict what might happen in the future. Leave that for the witches and soothsayers.”
It seemed good advice; Jack’s time as an outlaw had given him a different perspective on life.
The rest of the army moved extremely slowly. As the van and moving without baggage, we made Lewes and the castle quickly – and that gave us the opportunity to scout out the battlefield. What I saw, I did not like. The castle was close to the river but the land rose to the north. Worse, there was not only a wood on the top of the slope, but there were also at least two pieces of dead ground where men could be hidden. I believed that Lord Edward was overconfident, as was his father, and his uncle, Richard of Cornwall. It seemed to be a family trait. Simon de Montfort had been a soldier for his whole life and had fought on crusades. He was not to be underestimated.