by M J Porter
Orkning, of all of the shipmen, was the most undecided, but in the end, and with an apologetic nod toward his lord, eventually moved his war chest and weapons to one of the other two war-craft.
“Tell my wife and children that it was my decision,” he called to Leofric and Leofric nodded to show he would. He knew a sudden moment of fear. If Anund Jakob and Olaf Haraldsson could bring about the death of the mighty Thorkell the Tall, what could they do against Orkning? But he also understood Orkning’s need to support his king, to fight against the Norwegian’s and the king of Sweden. Orkning carried his father’s love of Olaf Tryggvason close to his chest and needed to make some sort of personal stand against Olaf Haraldsson, a man he considered to have no real claim to rule Norway.
Yet he called Orkning to him just before he let the ship out of his sight.
“Take care, my friend,” he said, fiercely, suppressing his fear of all that Orkning might face in the coming months. “Come home to your family, and you lord, safe and well.” It was an instruction and Orkning simply nodded to show he understood, and walked away from him without speaking further.
With a heavy heart, Leofric ordered his three ships to sail for home, and as he watched Orkning sail into the heart of Ribe harbor he wondered just what damage he’d caused to his ambitions this time by failing his king?
He was sailing away from a battleground, whether it took place on sea or on land, and in his place Earl Godwine would have the opportunity to make a name for himself as supporting Cnut in yet another military altercation in the northern kingdoms.
He wasn’t a failure, no, he was worse than that because in doing the right thing, and telling his king that he was more than likely sailing into a trap, he’d removed himself from supporting his king as he tried to maneuver himself out of the trap laid by the two northern kings.
Yet, as he glanced at his men, he knew they were all feeling the same sort of relief. It was the Northmen who mostly sailed with their king, the Englishmen preferring to return to England.
After all, this wasn’t really their battle and never had been. Their battles had been fought either for Cnut or for Æthelred and Edmund. Many of them might never have sailed further east than Ribe. Leofric wished Cnut good luck as he sailed into the great unknown, hampered by two men who bayed for his blood and his death.
Chapter 7
AD1026
Winchester
The journey to England was a somber experience, lifted only by the presence of Harthacnut on board the ship.
Despite all the rumors that Leofric had heard about his headstrong nature, he enjoyed the boy’s outspoken questions and his semi-imperious demands, and yet, in an environment with more possibilities than on board a ship, he could tell that Harthacnut would be difficult to manage. He was just relieved that he didn’t need to do so, and that soon he’d pass the boy over to his mother’s care and could then retire to his own estates and wait to see what the outcome of Cnut’s military aggressions would prove to be.
His own son was a little younger than Cnut’s son, but unlike Harthacnut, had no sibling to keep him company. Neither was Leofric convinced he ever would. The birth had been hard on his wife, as young as she’d been, and Leofric was pleased his nephews lived with him and could keep his son company as he grew. He would need to make his own allies as he grew, just as Harthacnut would need to, but it always helped to have some family to stand at your side. Leofric thought it would be good if the two boys managed to become irreplaceable to their cousin. It would make it far, far easier for them to rise above the ill feeling that still surfaced about Northman’s life and death as a traitor.
Returning Harthacnut to Winchester involved taking his ship to Portsmouth. As they carried the king’s son with them, the other two ships chose to escort them instead of returning to London or Sandwich, but as they docked at Portsmouth, Leofric realized that the men need not have taken the extra care of guarding their king’s son. England was untroubled by rumors of violence in Denmark and the Baltic, life continuing as normal in the busy harbor and market place and along the shorelines. While Cnut was seemingly engaged in a pivotal matter for his future kingship, it seemed that England was mostly oblivious.
Leofric could only wish he shared the same blindness about current events.
Deciding not to send word ahead that he’d arrived at Portsmouth with the king’s son, he instead made good time to return the lad to his mother. Spending time with the king’s son had made him realize how much he missed his own son and he was keen to be home. He’d been away for far less time that he’d thought he’d be, but it had still been long enough.
The weather was pleasant as they made their arrival into Winchester on horseback and made their way to the king’s palace. News ran ahead of their arrival and Leofric wasn’t surprised to find their contingent of horses greeted by the queen herself when they entered the gates of the palace compound.
Harthacnut, who’d been enjoying his time on horseback after his short trip at sea, leapt from his saddle and ran to greet his mother, a movement completely un-orchestrated but one which played into the hands of those court personnel who’d come out to witness the spectacle. The queen, immaculately dressed as always in bright clothing, sitting well on her shoulders and her around her slight waist, tears of joy sheeting down her face, swept her son into her arms, although he was now too tall for her to pick him up and indicated absent-mindedly that Leofric and his men should also leave their horses and come inside.
Leofric looked around for Earl Godwine, surprised not to find him standing close to the queen, and finally made eye contact with him. It seemed the earl had been out hunting but had been summoned back by someone who knew he’d wish to be there to witness and hear whatever news Leofric carried with him.
Leofric bowed his head to acknowledge the earl, complete with his hunting equipment, but didn’t wait for him to dismount, rather following the queen inside the large and well-maintained palace. Leofric had been here many times before, he knew his way without being guided, and although the queen wasn’t within the hall when he entered, her instructions had been heeded as a meal had been prepared for his men, one that they all hungrily attacked. Food on board a ship was a strange mixture of both too dry and too wet. The food the queen had prepared was far more palatable, consisting of boar and fish both.
As such Leofric was unsurprised when it was Godwine who approached him first for news from Cnut. The man barely gave him the time to eat a mouthful of food before he launched into an enquiry of the king’s words, wishes and instructions, and of course, for new of Olaf Haraldsson.
Following Earl Godwine’s father’s banishment in Æthelred’s reign, Godwine had absented himself from England for some time. Even now Leofric was unsure of the exact nature of all of his links with the Norsemen, but it seemed that Godwine was well acquainted with Olaf Haraldsson, as he seemed to be with many of the northern earls or jarls, as they were known in their own countries.
Godwine had discarded his outer cloak before stepping into the hall, and Leofric was almost amused to see how well the man dressed, even for a hunting trip. He truly spent as much money on his clothing as others would have done on their hall or their horse, or for the warriors amongst them all, on their sword and seax.
“The king is well, the news less so. Olaf Haraldsson and Anund Jakob have been scheming. Olaf tried to detain me in Norway but I was alerted to his deceit and made my escape under cover of darkness. Olaf’s fleet had already left to meet with Anund Jakob’s, and Olaf was to travel overland to reach it.”
Godwine’s face twisted unhappily at the news and Leofric took it to mean that he understood more from his words than Leofric had. Not that he let it concern him, because he still had to tell Godwine of the king’s wishes.
“You’re to take your ships and meet with the king. He’s heading around the tip of Denmark and then travelling toward Skåne. You should depart as soon as possible.”
Godwine looked even more uneasy at the
news, his gaze glancing from Leofric to look for where the queen would have been in attendance if she hadn’t still been with her son.
“Is that why he sent the boy home?” his voice showed his unhappiness and Leofric was surprised. He would have thought that Earl Godwine would be pleased to escort his king in his efforts to re-conquer his empire. But then, Cnut had left Godwine in a position of greater power in his absence. Perhaps Godwine resented having his brief moment of domination interrupted.
“Did Olaf give any indication of where they planned to engage Cnut?”
“None whatsoever. He showed me the church in Trondheim and offered me its services but was more interested in the treasure the ships carried than anything else. I left that night without speaking with him again.”
As he ran through his hand through his thick-hair, Godwine looked aggrieved for a long moment, before his face cleared. Turning, Leofric appreciated that the queen had appeared and that Godwine needed to play the part of loyal subject.
“My thanks,” he muttered through the corner of his mouth, but he was already walking away, to greet the prince, and Leofric watched him with an edge of disquiet. Godwine had invested his entire future in Cnut and his continuing reign. His nervousness at being asked to assist Cnut was unexpected and worried Leofric. Surely he had nothing to gain by Cnut failing? Surely he’d not made alliances with other powerful men who might benefit from Cnut having his ambitions curtailed?
Leofric tried to remove the thoughts from his mind, but Earl Godwine’s reaction had been so counter to the one he’d expected that he found his eyes following the earl closely.
First he went to greet the prince. He didn’t bend at the waist to accommodate his smaller height, but rather faced him and bowed his head. It seemed to be the correct greeting for the king and queen’s son, but still Leofric didn’t look away.
The queen was shining with excitement at having her son so unexpectedly returned to her. This had clearly not been something that the king had discussed with his wife, and it brought home to Leofric how unsure the king truly was of his opportunity for success. A more confident man might have taken his son and heir with him, but Cnut had chosen to not do that, and more, he’d sent him home to the safe haven of England even though his own sister had been responsible for protecting him in Denmark.
Cnut was more wary of the combined alliance of Olaf Haraldsson and Anund Jakob than Leofric had appreciated. It seemed that Godwine might well be as well.
Secondly, when Godwine greeted the prince, he did the same to the queen and her daughter. The girl was the younger of the queen’s children with the king, and she glared at her brother as though she only vaguely knew who he was. She was dressed simply in clothes that were rich but plain all at the same time. She looked like a little girl, not a princess and Leofric approved of the distinction and hoped it would last a long time.
One day she would have a wealthy husband, a man of power, but Emma, wary that her own childhood had been cut short by her marriage to Æthelred, was keen for her to enjoy the years when she was protected by her mother, and her father, when he wasn’t absent.
The queen was courteous in her greeting of Godwine, but her hand never strayed from her son’s shoulder, as though she claimed the boy as her own and was suspicious of any influence that Godwine might wish to exert over him.
While they spoke between themselves, making it appear as though they offered a united front in support of Cnut’s wishes, Leofric saw something else unfolding before his keen eyes. He saw a strong woman holding her ground against a man who thought he had a greater right to rule here. He wished now that he’d had the opportunity to give all of his message to Emma. It would have empowered her to tell Godwine to leave the hall and ready his men. As it was, Godwine finished speaking with the prince, and it was he who turned and gestured for food and drink, and who sat beside the queen and her two children before the assembled men in the hall.
Leofric felt uneasy watching the forced display of unity. He didn’t think the queen valued or liked Earl Godwine, but it was obvious that Godwine thought even less of the queen. He hazarded a guess that he might hate her for her connections with Æthelred, the man who’d had his own father banished from the kingdom.
The hum of conversation in the hall was only slight, as no more than his own men ate and drank after their long journey, yet there was still a hive of activity as women came and went, bringing more and more food, tending the fire being used for both heat and cooking, and generally seeing to the running of the royal hall.
Leofric was impressed for a while and then he grew weary, unsurprised to catch Harthacnut trying to suppress his own yawn. The queen eyed her son with unease but Godwine failed to notice the exhaustion on the lad’s face, taking pity on both himself and Harthacnut, Leofric approached the queen.
“My lady,” he began, having ensured his face was clear of any stray pieces of food.
Emma, still happy to have her son back, turned a dazzling smile on Leofric and he bowed his head to her.
“I fear I must ask to be excused, my men as well. We’re exhausted from our long journey and must sleep. I think perhaps Harthacnut would benefit from more sleep as well.”
The boy was almost swaying on his chair, and Emma quirked a smile.
“Of course Sheriff Leofric, you and your men have my permission to withdraw. I take it you have told me all you must about your brief meeting with my husband, your king?” He didn’t miss that she too called his sheriff and not earl, but he held his peace.
There was a question in her words, and he considered what Godwine might have told her, before remembering that the king had told him that Emma knew he would ask for Godwine to follow him to Denmark. Whether Godwine knew it or not, it seemed that Emma did, and so Leofric opened his mouth to speak.
“Sheriff Leofric informs me that my men and I should meet with the king, take ship to Denmark and join his attack on Anund Jakob and Olaf Haraldsson,” Godwine spoke so quickly into the small conversation gap that Leofric was left standing with his mouth wide open, the words dying only slowly on his lips.
The queen, no doubt amused by Godwine’s attempts to exert his authority, merely nodded as he spoke, although her eyes stayed on Leofric’s.
“Very good,” she nodded, “the king informed me of his decision before he left. I take it you will be ready within the week?” she grilled Godwine, although her eyes were again on her yawning son.
She signaled that Leofric’s sister should escort the boy to his bed, and at the same time interrupted Godwine before he could speak.
“Leofric, you and your men may sleep the rest of the day and the night away. I’ve had space prepared for you in the room your father always used. I appreciate you won’t all fit in there, but the hall is still busy and I don’t think the men will get much sleep here.”
“My thanks for your concern,” he muttered softly, watching Harthacnut being led away by his sister. “We arranged quarters on the way through the town, but I’ll be pleased to sleep here tonight. I’m worried I won’t make it back to the house in the center of the town without falling asleep.” With that he turned and walked away. He would leave Emma and Godwine to their struggle and he’d sleep and hopefully when he woke Earl Godwine would be gone to join Cnut and Emma and he would be able to speak openly. He would also be able to take his leave of the king’s son and return to his own.
Wiping his itchy and tired eyes, he gestured to his men that they could leave when they wanted to and trailed to find a bed to sleep within. He barely made it to his room, let alone his bed, before he collapsed, fully clothed and thought no more of kings, war or ungrateful earls.
He was woken at some point by soft feet on the wooden floor, before his hearing was assaulted by the raucous snores of others who’d found it easier to sleep at the palace than return to the house in the center of Winchester.
It was his sister’s hand on his shoulder and there was bright sunlight penetrating the shutter. She grinned at him.
“You can sleep until tomorrow if you want, or you can come to the hall and listen to Earl Godwine’s excuses.” She didn’t whisper, but she spoke quietly enough that none of the other men stirred. Sleepily, Leofric sat upright, and looked around at the mass of bodies, while wrinkling his nose at the smell of stale mead and sweaty men.
His sister giggled at his disgusted expression, and he was surprised to see her so jovial.
“Come on then,” she entreated, and Leofric swung his legs from the bed and skimmed his way over his still sleeping men.
“I need to bathe,” he told his sister once they were in the hallway and she nodded in agreement.
“Come, I’ll show you where you can bathe and then you need to come to the hall. Godwine isn’t keen to follow the king’s orders and the queen is seething. She’s looking for people to support her and ensure that Godwine follows his orders. I understand that Earl Hakon is making his way here anyway, but until he arrives, the queen is virtually powerless to compel him. She’s even had Harthacnut repeat the orders Cnut gave you, but Godwine is brushing them off as though they mean nothing.”
“What can I do to assist?” he grumbled, his head fuzzy from sleep.
“The queen needs you to speak Cnut’s instructions before everyone within the hall.”
“But then Earl Godwine will be uneasy with me,” he complained and his sister nodded in agreement.
“He will yes, but when the king returns it’d be best if he knew you’d done what you could to help the queen. He can deal with Earl Godwine himself.”