Earl Marshal

by Griff Hosker

  I bade farewell to the Countess at her gate. I never saw her again. The ones who had endured the civil war were becoming fewer in number. Soon it would be a distant memory. “You take care Warlord.” She frowned, “I think you are not well. Take no risks. You have a family who need you. You have served England well enough. Serve yourself.”

  I kissed her cheek, “And do not worry about your son. Henry will punish him by making him wait for his lands. It will do him no harm. And as for my family? Do not fear. I will keep Samuel with me as long as I can!”

  The hillsides around Mohald were covered in the hovels which men had erected. The knights who led the fyrd had tents. It looked disorganised. That was the way of the fyrd. The men at arms and archers would be more organised. Ralph of Lincoln led my archers and Guiscard the Gascon my men at arms. William had taken the more experienced men such as Roger of Bath with him to France. I had confidence in my men at arms and archers. All had fought in the Scottish wars.

  Sir Hugh had not been idle. “The bulk of their army is at Rhuddlan. They have warbands raiding up and down the Clwyd valley. As you ordered me we have left them alone. It was hard for they are causing great mischief; especially the Irish!”

  “Tomorrow we begin to take this land for the Prince.”

  I held a counsel of war with the Prince, his lieutenants, Owain and Gruffyd, Sir Hugh and my four knights. I saw the resentment on the faces of Owain and Gruffyd at the presence of Richard and Samuel. I did not care. My two young knights had already done more than the Welsh warriors. “We do not have enough knights to be wasteful. Sir Harold here will lead the knights.” I looked pointedly at Owain and Gruffyd, “All of them. They are our reserve. We use them as a threat. We keep one hundred with the baggage. The other four will act as sweepers down the two valley sides. Our attack will be led by Sir Hugh and myself. Along with the Prince we will attack with the men at arms backed by the archers.”

  Owain said, “You would risk the Prince?”

  I smiled, “I risk myself and it is necessary. I want the men we fight to see that Prince Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd is not afraid to fight and that he is the leader. We will not be in danger. Our standards will make the Prince’s brothers think that we have few knights and it will tempt them. When they bring up their main army then the men at arms and the archers will be the shield and the knights will be the lance. They will cut to the heart of the enemy.” I waved over my son’s squire, Thomas. He had the wine. He poured some in my goblet. “Thomas here will carry my standard. We will be behind the archers. Think of us as hunters. The fyrd will stop the game fleeing up the valley sides and stop us being attacked on our flanks. The men at arms and archers will drive the game so that it is all gathered in one place. Our attack will be slow and steady. It will grind them down and whittle down their numbers. When Sir Harold leads out knights it will be a final act and should give us complete victory. Prince Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, you need for your brothers’ armies to be completely destroyed. Then and only then will you be safe.”

  We spent some time going over the signals I would use. The rest departed leaving me with my knights and squires. “Samuel, I am sorry that I have taken your most experienced squire but I need someone on who I can completely rely. I think Sir Hugh and his squire will be strong but I am less certain about the Prince!”

  Samuel smiled, “I am happy with William and I think that Thomas will be honoured to be the one to carry your standard.”

  We rose in the dark of night. I wished to be moving by dawn. I went to the horse lines. I no longer rode a warhorse. In fact, the horse I had taken from Stockton’s stables was a palfrey. White Star was not a young horse but he was reliable and steadfast. He had been in battles and knew how to conduct himself. His last rider had been Simon. He had been my squire and now lay in a French grave. We headed over the ridge and down the road to the valley bottom. Dawn broke behind us in the east and bathed the mountains in blue light.

  Guiscard the Gascon had already arrayed the men at arms. More than half were mounted. Ralph of Lincoln had dismounted the archers and co-opted twenty of the fyrd to act as horse holders. Each archer had his quiver of arrows and two spare bundles on each horse. Our fletchers had been busy. Behind the archers were the Welsh men at arms. When I appeared next to Sir Hugh and the Prince the fyrd on the valley sides began to cheer. My men at arms beat their shields. The Prince preened himself until he managed to hear the words, “Warlord! Warlord!” His face darkened. I could do nothing about the men’s choice of chant.

  I turned to Thomas, “Signal the advance!”

  Guiscard spurred his horse and the three lines of mounted men at arms rode down the valley. Twenty of my archers rode ahead of my captain of men, Guiscard the Gascon. The rest of my archers walked their horses behind the dismounted men at arms. It would be a slow advance. We had covered less than half a mile when, from the valley sides, I heard the clash of steel and wood as the fyrd flushed raiders from cover. I saw my archers dismount, take their bows, nock an arrow and then release their deadly missiles. I heard cries. The mounted men at arms meant I could not see the result of their arrows. I did not need to. I knew the worth of my archers. When they remounted and we continued I knew that we had first blood.

  We passed the bodies and I saw that they were Irishmen. With limed hair and tattoos I knew them to be brave but reckless. It would have galled them to run from the fyrd. As the morning passed we started more men from cover and as noon approached we had killed almost a hundred men. None had been taken prisoner and I knew that word would have reached the Prince’s brothers.

  “Prince, you know your brothers better than I do. How will they fight?”

  He shook his head, “I know not for this is the first time I have led my men. Owain and Gruffyd normally lead the army.”

  I was disappointed and I now knew why the King had sent me. He did not trust his new ally to be victorious. As we closed with Denbigh a larger group of warriors broke cover. These had horses and knights with them. I guessed they had been in Denbigh Castle. Made of wood it might withstand Welsh raiders but not the Warlord. They headed down the slope as the fyrd approached. They were not afraid of the fyrd but they had seen the metal snake in the bottom of the valley and that did frighten them.

  Guiscard the Gascon raised his spear and led the one hundred mounted men at arms after the knights and their retinue. Dressed in mail my men at arms were only distinguished from knights by the helmets and surcoats. The twenty knights and their squires who led the Welsh must have thought that the men at arms were their inferiors. They turned their horses to charge them. It was a mistake. The Prince and I had a perfect viewpoint. The twenty archers dismounted and formed two blocks to the side of the mounted men at arms. Guiscard ensured that our men rode in two straight lines. The Welsh appeared more disorganised. They were moving faster for they had the slope with them. Ralph’s archers let fly. They did not send volleys. They aimed and took out horses. The Welsh made it easy for them by sending them piecemeal. When the two lines met, one ragged and one resolute, there was a clash of steel and wood. Horses whinnied and knights and squires screamed as they were speared. The archers slung their bows and drew their knives and daggers. They ran after the men at arms. As the men at arms fought the knights, squires and Welsh men at arms, my archers reached up to drag horsemen from saddles and to slit their throats.

  The Prince said, “They are knights! What about ransom?”

  I laughed, “Men at arms and archers do not receive ransom. The mail, weapons and horses are more certain methods of making money! You want to win the war and not become richer do you not?” Eight of the Welsh escaped down the valley. I saw that we had not escaped unscathed. Men at arms lay dead. Some men from Stockton would not be returning home.

  It was late afternoon when we spied Rhuddlan and the Welsh camp. I called a halt and ordered for a ditch to be dug and stakes to be planted. We would fight the battle the next day. I sent orders for the fyrd to cut down as many stakes as they coul
d.

  The Prince said, “Should we give them a chance to negotiate?”

  “Beat them first and then negotiate. If they are not beaten they will wait until I am gone and then attack again. I fight for you this once, Prince, and then I leave. I have matters which await me in London!” No one knew the content of the letter from Sir Leofric. I had to get to London as soon as I could. Guiscard set the sentries but I walked the lines with Samuel.

  “Why do you do this grandfather? Do you not trust your sentries?”

  “Of course, I do. Have you stood a duty yet?”

  He looked down, somewhat shamefaced, “Not yet.”

  “Your father has and I have. They have a great responsibility and the least that the man who ordered it can do is to come speak with them.”

  I did not know all of the sentries. Only two came from Stockton but they all knew me. I spoke to each of them. Where one looked nervous I cracked a joke. It was not a very good one but they laughed dutifully. It also allowed me to view the battlefield from closer up. It was as I was speaking with Guiscard that the arrow came flying from the west. It was an optimistic arrow for we were in the shadows of the east but it was a good archer. Had I been with another then I might have been hit but Guiscard, almost without thinking, brought up his shield to protect the three of us. The Welsh arrow slammed into the willow boards.

  He shook his head, “Warlord, you are too tempting a target. Sir Samuel, take your grandfather back!”

  I smiled, “As you wish.” We walked into the dark. I heard angry mumblings from the men we passed. They did not like the attempt on my life. I had not done this deliberately but I would exploit it.

  Samuel said, “That was close.”

  “He was a good archer.” I shrugged, “I had on my helmet and my arming cap. The Welsh are good archers but we have better arrows. I might not have died. And now we know that there will be vigilant sentries this night. Tomorrow men will seek Welsh archers and when they find them will hurt them.”

  We returned to my tent and I ate. The Prince and his lieutenants arrived when I had just finished, “How do we fight tomorrow, Warlord?”

  “Exactly as we did today. We have two large blocks of men on the flanks. They will be the fyrd. I would have them plant their stakes and just be an obdurate mass of men. The Welsh will have to climb the valley sides to reach them. I hope that they do so for it will make our task easier.”

  “But that will not defeat my brothers!”

  “No, it will just guarantee that we are not defeated. We dismount the men at arms and archers. Our archers can shower the enemy archers while our men at arms advance. When they do not break the enemy lines, they will fall back. They will run. They will flee.”

  “Flee?”

  “I want the Welsh, and especially the Irish, to chase after us and to try to slaughter us. The men at arms will flee to the two sides of the valley and shelter before the fyrd. Then we will send in the knights, squires and twenty selected men at arms. With archers in support I hope that we will drive through their own knights and capture your brothers. Then we can begin the slaughter.”

  Owain sneered, “You expect a lot of things to happen, Warlord. What if they do not?”

  “In that case I will try something else!”

  I had a pain in my head and it was making it hard for me to concentrate. I took some of Brother Peter’s potion. It did not take away the pain but it dulled it. This was the first pain I had had since I had left Stockton. I saw that as a good sign. I had not had to waste the precious potion. I took out Leofric’s letter and read it again. It made for disturbing reading.

  Warlord,

  I hope my messenger finds you quickly.

  I was serving with the King and your son when we were ambushed on the road to Le Mans. I must be getting old, Warlord, for I took a wound in my leg. The wound is not the reason for the letter but what happened on the way home. My squire and I rode in disguise. The King is unpopular in parts of France. His son, Henry, has stirred up much animosity. It seemed prudent to avoid close scrutiny.

  Thus disguised we were in an inn on the road to Angers when I spied a device I recognised. It was the de Mamers three golden orbs on a red background. It has been many years since I saw it. There were four men and two of them wore the liveried surcoat. I might have just passed that off as a coincidence and left but I heard your name spoken. When they said, ‘Earl Marshal’. I pricked up my ears. We were in a darkened corner and I think they thought they were alone. They spoke quietly but I could still hear most of what they said.

  They were being sent to England. They are the men who would be your killers, lord. They had been hired by someone, I could not discover who, but one of them, he was called Hubert said that he would do it for nothing. It was a matter of honour. They were about to divulge more when some Gascons came in. There was an altercation. I know not how or why it began. In the mêlée which ensued, Jean, my squire and I, were thrown to the ground and a Gascon’s body fell upon us. By the time we had regained our feet two more Gascons had been killed and we were held, albeit briefly, on suspicion of complicity in their deaths. Had it not been for the inn keeper we might have been imprisoned.

  By the time we reached the outside they were long gone. When we spoke with the Gascons we discovered that the four men were being sought for murder. A certain Geoffrey de la Cheppe and his family were slaughtered in their home. Was there not one of the Knights of the Empress with the same name? I heard names but I am not sure what they meant. They could have been other conspirators or potential victims. D’Oilli, Guiscard, and de Mamers were the ones I heard but there were others.

  One of the other men was a Templar. I recognised his sign. I am sorry that I have failed you, Warlord. I will continue to search for them. I did not want to write to your son in case the letter was intercepted. I know that William of Kingston will deliver it safely,

  Your squire, your knight and your servant,

  Leofric of La Flèche

  When I finished I folded it up and slipped it into my purse. After we had dealt with the Welsh and left Wales, I would show it to Harold and the others. Until then it would be a distraction. I had seen neither sign of Templars nor men with three golden orbs on a red background. Of course, they would not know where I was. It was more likely that they sought me in Stockton. I had time.

  Thomas was diligent. When I finished reading the letter, I had walked out to stand by the fire. “Earl Marshal, should I sharpen your sword?”

  “I have not had to draw it in anger since Alf’s son Egbert, put a good edge on it. Do your own. You will need a good edge on your sword tomorrow.”

  “I know, Earl Marshal.”

  “I am sorry that you have to sit by an old man tomorrow. I fear it will not be an easy task. I do not intend to go into danger but my banner will be a target for our enemies. We have perilous few knights. I am praying that Sir Harold has other knights as stout hearted as Sir Richard, Sir James and Sir Samuel.”

  “Surely they must be!”

  I lowered my voice, “Sir Hugh and his men can be relied upon. The Welsh? I have fought in a civil war and it is often hard to know which side men are on. We watch for treachery.”

  He nodded, “I have attended to White Star and his needs. He is the calmest horse I have ever seen.”

  “A tip Thomas, a steady horse is better than an aggressive horse. When you use a lance, you will find it easier to hit the mark if your horse is steady.” I stretched. “And now I will retire. Have the sentry wake me before the last watch is set.”

  One advantage of being a commander was that you had a tent to yourself. Many generals used a cot on which to sleep. I did not and neither did my sons. The slight benefit of comfort was offset by the guilt at knowing that your men did not have that luxury. I knelt and said my prayers. Adela and the Empress were first and foremost in my thoughts. Then I asked for protection for my sons and grandsons and finally for the people at home. I had kept them safe so that when I died they woul
d all prosper. Long after the Earl Marshal was dead Cleveland would remember the young English knight who had come with his father and made the Tees a safer place.

  I then lay on my fur and slept. I could always fall asleep easily. The difference was that now I was older I tended to wake earlier too!

  I heard the sentry enter and my eyes were open as he approached. I spoke before he did and I saw him jump. “Good morning! How goes the watch?”

  “Our men slew five men who tried to sneak into our camp. Sir Harold ordered them to be placed on spears before our lines so that the enemy could see them.”

  I chuckled, “Sir Harold knows how to send a message. Find me some food and ale, eh while I make water.”

  “Of course, Earl Marshal.”

  Sir Harold walked over.

  “I hear there was some trouble in the night.”

  “Luckily it was one of Sir Hugh’s men at arms who was captain of the guard. He woke Sir Hugh and he woke me. There was never any danger.” He laughed. “I had to make water anyway and so I stayed awake.”

  The sentry brought me food and ale. “Hit them hard this morning, Sir Harold. I want them hurting so that they will not dream of fighting us again.”

  He lowered his voice, “Can we trust this Prince?”

  I shrugged, “He is marrying the King’s half-sister. So long as he does not cause trouble for a while then I will be happy. My son and the King will soon be back and then my task will be over.”

  He gave me a searching look, “Yet you took your leave of those at home. Many thought it sounded like a final farewell.”

  “Just caution. We both know that men can die at unexpected times. Dick was one such. You and I have enjoyed more luck than we might have expected. It was caution which made me speak, nothing more.”

  He did not look convinced. He had been an outlaw and they had senses which others did not.

  After I had eaten and drunk I sent Thomas to fetch the Prince and my leaders to my tent. Our camp was already awake and I could hear the noise of the Welsh preparing for battle. They would have known that their night attack had failed and they would have it confirmed when dawn broke and the heads of their dead were revealed.