by Griff Hosker
“We were lucky.”
“Good soldiers make their own luck Captain.” I nodded. Soldiers were superstitious. Luck played a great part in their lives. “Will you be on duty again this night, Captain?”
I nodded, “I will be glad when we are in camp! Life will be easier.”
“The lords left a while ago. I think the Earl has decided that he is better alone.”
Geoffrey greeted me and I was taken to the hall where they dined. He looked pleased to see me. He was the youngest of the Earl’s servants. I put his age at no more than ten or eleven years. The world seemed so big when you were that age. “The Earl is happy at your success, Captain. He learned much from the prisoners.”
“Where are they?”
“He had them taken to the Abbey. The monks are looking after them. He has a guard on them. He said that you had earned whatever ransom there was to be had.”
There were just five lords with the Earl when I entered. The atmosphere was totally different to the previous night. All of the knights were little older than the Earl. I wondered at that. Where was the wisdom and experience?
“William, you have done well. That arrogant young Spaniard told us much. They have heard of our landing and it has taken them by surprise. Their army is gathered much further south. They have gathered their army at Badajoz. It will take weeks to bring them north. When my father arrives we can subjugate the whole of Galicia.”
“Good.”
He shook his head, “Do you not see? When we have Galicia then I will have fulfilled my promise to my father and I can return home to England. My father will have his crown and I will be a step closer to mine.”
“Lord, King Richard lives still.”
“But he is unpopular. He should have gone to France to recover his lands. De la Pole has taxed the very life blood from England and there is nothing to show for it!” He gestured to a seat next to him. The young knight who had been seated there moved. “Now tell me of this castle. This will be my first siege and I need to know all.”
“You will not need to besiege it lord. It is small. The ditch is not deep enough. We can take it in one day.”
I saw the disparaging looks from the young knights at the table. I ignored them. “How so?”
“We send archers and men at arms across the river before the main force arrives. The bridge effectively seals off their escape. The men have a day to make hurdles. We use the hurdles like bridges and the walls can be scaled easily.”
One of the knights, an arrogant young knight called Jocelyn d’Aubigny, drawled, “That sounds like a fantasy! It cannot be done. What does a commoner know of war?”
I turned and gave him a cold look. “When I served under the Black Prince that is precisely what we did. If you have a good shield then the crossbows they use are ineffective and our archers can make their walls into charnel houses.”
“Jocelyn you are a good tourney knight. William knows how to win battles. Shut up!” The young man scowled at me. I prayed he would challenge me. He had a good war horse and if I defeated him then it would be mine. It would be worth over seventy pounds! His father was rich. “We can leave the day after tomorrow?”
“Lord, if we leave before dawn then we can reach Sigüeiro by noon. The advance guard can have cut off the castle by then. Santiago is just a few miles away. From what I have learned it is weakly held. They rely on the fact that pilgrims visit it. They believe that no one will attack it.”
He frowned, “I would not upset the church. When we have taken Sigüeiro then you must find me a way in.”
“And what of my other duties, lord?”
He waved an irritated hand. “I trust my men. My squire, Richard, will sleep outside my door. When my father’s men arrive then I shall worry. Get me Santiago! That prize is worth a crown. The crown of England.”
Chapter 6
We sold the horses back to the trader. He made a tidy profit as did we and we were both satisfied. I had learned lessons since I had first joined the Free Companies. It was better to make friends in the hostile lands in which we campaigned. Had I taken the horses as the Earl had suggested we might have made another enemy. As it was we made a friend.
Of course, it was my men who were the advance guard. I was given another twenty men who had been sent by their lords. None were knights. That suited me. I had forty good men to take and hold the bridge and we left well before dawn. I had gathered my men the night before we left. I knew how to talk to these warriors. All were professional soldiers. “No matter what your station you obey Stephen the Tracker and Roger of Chester. This is my company and we follow my rules. Whatever booty we take we share between all of us. We already have ten good horses, swords and mail. My men’s purses are full. Obey me and you shall all reap the reward.” My reputation ensured that there were no arguments. I had been the champion of a king.
We knew the road better after our first ride and we left the road when we reached the bridge. Stephen the Tracker did not know this wood but he knew woods and he found a hunter’s trail which brought us four miles to the east of the bridge at Sigüeiro. It was an hour after dawn when we reached it. We easily forded the narrow river. That is to say all but Henry forded it easily. He fell from his horse and Peter had to rescue him. I think the laughter from the others was worse than any physical discomfort he suffered. We tightened our girths, donned helmets and rode west along the river track. Stephen the Tracker and Alan of the Wood disappeared. They would ensure that there were no unwelcome surprises at the bridge.
It was Alan who halted us. “Captain, Stephen the Tracker is at the bridge. There are four guards there.”
I waved the other archers forward, “Go with Alan of the Wood. Eliminate the men on the bridge.”
“Aye Captain.”
As they rode off I pointed to John of Sheffield. He had brought the other men at arms. “Ride south and block the road a mile from us. If enemies approach and you cannot hold them off then return to me.”
“Aye Captain.”
Turning to the others I said, “When the Earl attacks they will send for help. We stop them. Our only task is to prevent any from escaping Sigüeiro. Ride.”
By the time we reached the bridge the four guards lay pierced with goose tipped arrows. My archers were already recovering their precious missiles. We tied our horses in the woods. “Stephen the Tracker, I want archers in the woods on both sides.”
“Aye Captain.”
The rest of you form a double line across the road. Henry, you and Peter will be the reserve. Hopefully we will not need you.”
As we formed our lines and I hefted my shield before me we were visible to those in the castle. I saw that we had caused a commotion in the castle. The villagers ran to the castle but the gates were barred. I saw the fighting platform fill with men. The Earl and the bulk of the two hundred and fifty men he had with him would be approaching the castle down the road. We had succeeded. We had drawn Don Pedro’s eye to us. I heard horns and then the gates opened. Twenty mounted men with spears appeared. I realised that they had not seen our archers. Their eye had been drawn to the twelve men at arms who blocked the road. Twenty horsemen would easily brush us aside.
I said, quietly, “These horsemen do not know whom they face. Our archers will thin their ranks before they can strike. Stand firm and lock shields. Trust in your shield brother.”
The bridge was wide enough for five horsemen only. They could deploy wider once they had left the bridge but we were just ten paces from the bridge. The yellow liveried horsemen all wore an open sallet which covered a coif and ventail. They had a surcoat over their armour. None of the horses had armour nor even a caparison. The riders bore a lance. They were confident.
I shouted, “When they hit the bridge then release your arrows.”
My archers did not reply. They did not need to. The bridge was but fifty paces from my men. At that range even a levy archer from England could not miss. These were not the levy. These were the finest archers in England
. The narrowing of the bridge made the riders bunch and slow. They made an even more inviting target. Twenty arrows flew as the first five horses reached the bridge. Before a man could count to ten five more flights had left the bows. It was carnage. Horses and men were hit by multiple arrows. The Spanish wore mail but bodkin arrows were made to penetrate mail links. Unarmoured horses had no protection. The animals fell and brought down more mounts and men. None made the middle of the bridge. Four men at the rear managed to turn and gallop back up the road to the castle. Arrows plucked them from their saddles. Not a single rider made the walls mounted. Three wounded riders crawled and dragged themselves through the gates. The four horses galloped, riderless, through the gates.
“To the bridge!”
We raced to the bridge. We had to clamber over dead and dying horses to do so but we made it within three hundred paces of the castle proper. We were within two hundred paces of the fighting platform. One foolish crossbowman raised his head to send a bolt in my direction. It struck my shield. Three arrows knocked him to the outer ward. No bolts followed.
“We hold here. Henry, fetch John of Sheffield. We may need him and his men. Peter put the dying horses from their misery. I would not have an animal suffer. Take the other horses to join ours.” Our wagon and our spares were with the baggage train. The Earl’s pages and servants watched them. My men were too worldly wise to leave their treasures with the baggage train. Our saddle bags contained what they had taken already. Spare weapons had been sold and they were all better equipped. The exception was Henry. He refused to take from the dead. He spoke of dishonour. Roger of Chester had rolled his eyes. Young nobles were ever thus.
A Spaniard, I took it to be Don Pedro, came to the gatehouse and shouted, “Is this all that you have, Englishman? My cousin will come from Santiago with an army to defeat you.”
I smiled. I had the information I sought without having to ask. We would not need to besiege the city for the garrison would march to us. That would suit the Earl. Even as we had been leaving A Coruña the ships of John of Gaunt’s fleet had been arriving. Son and father would have been able to speak before the Earl had to leave and within a few days we would have more than four thousand men joining us.
I shouted, in English, pointing to the houses behind me, “Good for we quite like this pleasant little village!”
I wondered if he would send more men to shift this handful from the bridge. We were safe from bolts but a charge by horsemen might shift us. And then it came to me. He did not have enough men. I moved back from the bridge and taking off my helmet said to my men, “Move beyond bolt range. Eat and drink. He will not come. Stephen keep four men to watch the gate.”
Henry’s eyes were wide when I spoke with him. He had fetched me bread, cheese and ham from his saddlebags. “I thought you were all dead when I saw men with lances charging you! Was that not foolish, Captain?”
Roger of Chester put down his ale skin and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Master Henry it would have been better to have had lances but our Captain chose a position where they could not charge in a line nor could they charge at speed. If you add to that the deadly arrows of our archers then it was not a fair fight. We had all of the advantages.”
Henry looked disappointed, “You mean an archer will always defeat a knight?”
Peter said, “That was the case at Poitiers and Crécy. English bowmen are the best that draw a bow.” I saw my archers as they heard a man at arms praise them. Half had been outlaws scorned by all that they met. Here they were heroes. Their heads were held higher. No matter what happened at the end of the six months the men I had taken on in Lincoln would have their lives changed for the better.
As my men ate and bantered Henry came over to me. “What is the point of training to be a knight when a common yeoman can slay you with a bodkin tipped piece of ash?”
“A knight has many calls upon him. Fighting battles is a rarity. Many knights never have to fight against archers. However, if they do then it is possible to minimise the chances of death.” I picked up my shield. “I made this shield. I cannot make mail nor armour but I can work with wood and leather. Feel the weight.”
He picked it up. It was heavier than his own. “It is too heavy!”
“No for that weight can save my life. I have told you that you have improved and so you have but you are still not strong enough. The Earl was like you when I first met him although he was younger. He heeded my advice and is much stronger. This shield has two layers of wood and the grain of the two pieces goes in opposite directions. The two pieces are cut from one tree and it took me many months to shape them and make them the thickness I desired.” I did not tell him that I had done this to avoid working on the farm. “Between the two pieces I have packed shavings mixed with glue. The face is made from good, thick leather. It was an expense but it is worth it. You see the staff upon it?” He looked and nodded. “There are small nails there. The staff goes down the centre and the nails afford protection. Finally, there is a padded part behind the shield. A bodkin could penetrate through the leather, nails, wood, shavings and glue and the padding but the force would have gone.” I held the shield above me. “If an arrow storm came towards me then holding the shield thus would protect most of me. The fletch of the arrow would stop the missile coming through.”
Harold Four Fingers laughed, “And there, Master Henry, is a free lesson which will save your life.”
“But my shield is not the same! It is not as good!”
Peter smiled, “Then we will make it so, Master Henry. Instead of carousing at night we will make a new shield.”
“New shield?”
Peter held one of the Spanish shields from the dead horsemen. “We strip this one and use this to make a shield like the Captain’s. It will take a month but I do not think that the Captain will risk you in battle before them.”
“No indeed.”
Suddenly we heard horns. Half of the faces disappeared from the fighting platform. The Earl had arrived. We did not see the battle, we heard it. I knew, from my words with the Earl, what he would be doing. The wooden bridges would be laid across the ditch. Ladders would be placed against the walls while the Earl’s archers kept the defenders busy. When the last of the men on our side of the castle disappeared I knew that they were racing to defend the breach.
“Come, we march to the gates!” I picked up my shield and donned my helmet. If the gates opened and the Spanish tried to flee then we would have to fight them.
When we neared the gates, I heard the sounds of combat within. The clash of steel and the cries of wounded and dying men filled the air. I heard the bar on the gate as it was lifted. “Shield wall!”
I heard Peter say, “Master Henry out of the way!” My men formed around me. We had three rows of seven. My archers formed a double row behind that. When the gate creaked open I saw a mass of women, children and old men. Their faces were filled with horror as they saw a wall of steel. They had not been on the fighting platform. They thought to escape. Their shoulders sagged. A horn from within told me that the battle was over.
Harold, one of the Earl’s squires, forced his way through the villagers. “The Earl says you can let the villagers go, Captain, but not the men. They are to be kept within. He desires conference with you.”
Taking off my helmet, I turned, “Roger of Chester, let the women, children and old depart. Stephen the Tracker, we will make camp in those woods on the other side of the bridge. Henry, Peter, come with me.”
There were fewer dead than I had expected. The crossbowman slain by my archers still hung awkwardly from the roof of the oven. The oven had been lit and steam rose from it. “Peter, pull that poor fellow’s body from the oven.”
“Aye Captain.”
The main fighting appeared to have taken place close to the hall. I saw the Earl. He was speaking to a disconsolate group of armed men. Don Pedro lay dead at his feet. The Earl had a bloody sword. I had trained him well.
“My plan wo
rked! You did your part too, Captain. Now we can march on Santiago tomorrow.”
I frowned and looked at the disarmed prisoners. There were three knights there. “Did the prisoners not tell you, lord?”
He shook his head, “Tell me what?”
“Henry, Lord of Santiago de Compostela is marching north to fight you.”
“How do you know?”
“When we scouted the other day, we saw a rider heading south. That and the words of Don Pedro. He told me that an army was marching north to defeat you.”
The Earl walked up to one of the knights. “You, you spoke English to me. Why did you not tell me?”
The young knight looked shame faced, “Lord you did not ask me.” His words told me that he was French.
The Earl back handed the French knight across the face. He still had on his mail gloves and the knight’s face was raked. “Now tell me!”
“I protest, lord! I surrendered. I should not be mistreated like this.”
“Unless I am satisfied with your words then you will die!” I saw the hard side of Henry Bolingbroke that day.
“Don Pedro sent to Santiago two day’s since. Yesterday we had word that an army was marching north to send you back to the sea.”
The Earl turned to his knights. “Sir Jocelyn, send these prisoners back to my father. Tell him that he should come with all haste, even if it is by foot. We have a battle to fight!”
Sir Jocelyn said, “Let me stay close to you lord.”
“No, my friend, I need someone I can trust. There will be no fighting until you return.”
“Aye lord. Come gentlemen. We have far to travel.”
When they had gone the Earl said to the knights around him, “Now we have the chance for a single victory which will give us Galicia and the honour will be ours!” He rubbed his hands. “And the treasure of Santiago too!”
I rejoined my men at the camp. The Earl had been busy and he had not asked for me to guard his body. I took the opportunity to make certain that my company were safe and secure. I need not have worried. They had cut down saplings and sharpened them to make a barrier around our horses and our camp. James War Bow and two archers had gone to fetch our wagon. We were lucky in that we had two horses to pull our wagon. The four horses we had just captured would be added to our horse herd. I knew from experience that horses were more vital in this unforgiving land than in England. My men had used the cloaks from the dead Spaniards to rig a shelter from the sun. The trees and the cloaks made it almost bearable.