She was obviously amused to see her husband so frightened that he shivered with fear at the prospect of a fate which he had administered with such delight to others. However, so did she terrify him, while pretending to be fearful for him, telling him stories she had heard of the terrible ends which befell those who ignored warnings from Heaven, that he decided he would go to St Albans with all speed, insisting that the knights who had taken part in the raid on the Abbey should accompany him. There he called for the Abbot who, wondering what fresh outrage was about to occur, came in fear, but when he saw the dreaded Falkes de Breauté baring his back and declaring that he had come to do penance – as King Henry II had done for Becket – he summoned his monks, and it is not difficult to imagine with what relish they belaboured the backs of those men who such a short while ago had threatened them.
When the chastisement was over, Falkes de Breauté put on his doublet and shouted that he had only done this because his wife had begged him to, and if the monks thought that what he had taken from them would be restored they were greatly mistaken.
However he left the Abbey and did not practise further sacrilege. He turned his attention to the French who at this time held firm positions in England. The death of John, the accession of young Henry and the defeat of the French had not entirely pleased de Breauté for it had meant the rise to power of Hubert de Burgh, who had demanded the return to the crown of many of the castles which John had bestowed on men such as de Breauté. He was disturbed as were the Earl of Chester and the Bishop of Winchester by the growing power of Hubert. A king who was a minor was a heaven-sent opportunity for ambitious men, and all these men were ambitious, so to see Hubert taking the most powerful position in the kingdom irked them and they decided that something must be done to curb it.
The three men met in Winchester: Peter des Roches, the Bishop of Winchester, Randulph de Blundervill, Earl of Chester, and Falkes de Breauté; and the subject of their discourse was Hubert de Burgh and how to curb his growing power.
‘He thinks there will be nothing to stop him now,’ observed Peter de Roches. ‘Each day he grows more in the King’s favour.’
‘The King is a child,’ growled Chester. ‘It is a matter of whose hands he falls into. It is you, my lord Bishop, who should be his governor and controller.’
‘De Burgh has ever worked against me,’ murmured the Bishop.
‘This cannot be allowed to go on,’ replied Chester.
‘Perhaps we could make the King our prisoner,’ suggested Falkes. ‘We could catch him when he was riding … surround him by our men … and then … he would be ours to command.’
The Bishop shook his head. ‘If that could be, I doubt not it would be an excellent way of dealing with the situation, but to take the King by force would be called treason … rebellion … or some such name. The people would not endure it. They would want our heads on spikes over the bridge. We must work more secretly.’
Falkes de Breauté looked disappointed. He was fascinated by violence and he saw himself running his sword through the bodies of the guard while he told the young King that all would go well with him if he came quietly.
‘It would seem,’ went on the Bishop, ‘that de Burgh is the richest man in the kingdom. He has done well through his marriages.’
‘One thing I’ll say for him,’ added de Breauté with a smirk, ‘the women like him.’
‘He has an ingratiating manner,’ murmured the Bishop, ‘and this has won him the heart of the King.’
‘And those of his wives!’ added Chester. ‘The Scottish Princess is the fourth … his only virgin. The rest were widows.’
‘He has a fancy for widows,’ said de Breauté.
‘A wise fancy,’ put in Chester, ‘for a widow will often have her husband’s fortune as well as that which may come to her through her own family.’
‘So it was,’ said the Bishop. ‘The daughter of the Earl of Devon, and widow of William Brewer, brought him wealth; then there was Beatrice, Lord Bardulf’s widow, and then he had the temerity to marry John’s cast-off wife Hadwisa of Gloucester, who by that time was the widow of the Earl of Essex.’
‘John took a considerable bite out of her fortune but she still had much left to help fill the coffers of shrewd Hubert,’ commented Chester.
‘I wonder how she liked Hubert after John,’ asked Breauté with a sly smile.
‘By all accounts she found the change agreeable,’ said the Bishop. ‘But she died as all his widows did, and my point is that there was not one marriage which did not bring him benefit. Now he has made the best of them all – he is brother to the King of Scotland, being his sister’s husband.’
‘You may judge a man by his marriages,’ said Chester. ‘De Burgh’s have shown him to be a wise man with a taste for wealth.’
‘It would be well if the people realised this,’ said the Bishop. ‘At this time they are pleased with their young King and the Justiciar’s rule. He has subdued the robbers and if his punishments are severe, he would say – and many would be with him – that this is the only way to keep the law effective. It will not be difficult, though, to rouse the people against him. He has served the country they might say, but it must be made known to them that in doing so, he has made himself very rich. You all know that the best way to arouse the mob against any one man is to tell them that he has so much more than they have. They will accept a man’s lechery, cruelty … his acts of expediency … but arouse their envy and they will be ready to bring him down. The people want justice in the land; they want law and order; they want to rid the country of those they call the foreigners, and methinks, gentlemen, that we should all of us fit into that category. They hate all this but their envy will be greater than their love of their country. So we will rouse the people against de Burgh. We will tell them that he is the richest man in England. He has just brought himself more advantage by marrying the Princess of Scotland. Arouse the people’s envy and in due course they will bring him down.
The three men looked at each other and nodded.
They knew there was truth in the Bishop’s words.
* * *
In the taverns the people of London whispered together; they walked along by the river and talked of the influence the Justiciar had over the young King. The Justiciar was the richest man in England. He governed the King and lined his own pockets. The servants of Falkes de Breauté and the Earl of Chester mingled with merchants and apprentices and asked them and each other why the people endured this state of affairs.
It was always the same when there was a young King on the throne, they pointed out. Ambitious men sought to rule through them; and their rule was to fill their own coffers and the devil take the man or woman in the streets.
So the resentment grew against Hubert de Burgh and when he rode out with the King there was hostility in the silence which greeted them; there was an occasion when someone threw a stone at the Justiciar. One of Hubert’s servants caught the man and his punishment was severe – the loss of the right hand which had thrown the stone.
A bitter reward, said many, for that which others would have the inclination to do had they been on the spot.
One of the principal citizens, Constantine FitzAthulf, called meetings in his house and there he with others plotted the overthrow of the King and planned to send a message to Prince Louis at the French Court asking him to come back to England where he would find the people of London ready to welcome him.
As a result there was rioting in the streets of London and Constantine marched at the head of a band of men shouting ‘Montjoie. God and our Lord Louis to the rescue.’
But the majority of the people, while they wished to remove the Justiciar, had no desire to bring the French back to England. This had not been the intention of Falkes de Breauté and his friends. All they wanted was to keep the King where he was but change his advisers so that they could step into the shoes of Hubert de Burgh and in doing so rob him of his power and riches. For this reason there was little
support for the rioters of London and in a short time they were routed and Constantine FitzAthulf and other leaders captured and thrown into prison.
Hubert was deeply disturbed. He must rid himself of Constantine and Hubert believed that he deserved to be condemned to the traitor’s death for if ever a man was a traitor to his King that man was Constantine. Hubert paused though, for he knew how unwise it would be to anger the people of London even more so than they were at this time.
He kept the men in prison while he wrestled with the problem; and in the end it was Falkes – the very man who had provoked the rebellion – who came to Hubert and offered to hang Constantine, assuring all who would listen to him that the last thing he wanted was to depose the King. He took Constantine and his friends across the river and in a quiet spot hanged them.
This did not mean that Falkes and his friends had ended their attacks on the Justiciar. They had no intention of doing this until they had rid the country of him.
They met again and Falkes put forward a plan for seizing the Tower of London. The Bishop of Winchester stressed the difficulties of bringing this about; and suggested that it would be better if they formed a deputation and called on the King, when the Justiciar was absent and pointed out the true nature of Hubert de Burgh and the need for him to rid himself of him.
The Bishop thought this was an excellent plan. They would come to Westminster and there Henry would receive them. He would be unprepared for what they would say to him and they had no doubt that, since he was little more than a child, they could win him to their point of view and get a promise from him to turn Hubert de Burgh from his office.
They chose their moment and the Bishop’s presence secured them an immediate audience with the King.
It was the first time Henry had received a deputation without having had either William Marshal, Stephen Langton or Hubert de Burgh beside him to tell him what he must do.
It was the Bishop of Winchester who addressed him and presented Falkes de Breauté and the Earl of Chester to him.
‘Your humble servants, most gracious lord,’ murmured the Bishop.
Henry inclined his head and bade them rise for they were kneeling before him which while it gratified him made him feel a little awkward. He told them they might be seated. They were so much taller than he was while they stood, which he found disconcerting.
‘You have missed the Justiciar,’ said Henry. ‘He is not in London this day.’
‘It was our purpose to miss him, my lord,’ answered the Bishop. ‘It was our King with whom we wished to speak.’
‘Say on,’ said Henry, beginning to feel more important with every passing second, which was exactly their intention.
‘It has long been apparent to us,’ said the Bishop, ‘that you, our King, have been endowed with wisdom beyond your years, and we feel the time has come for you to take a more active part in affairs. You have no need to be constantly attended by your wet nurse.’
‘My … wet nurse … you mean Hubert …’
‘We are of the opinion that the Justiciar believes you still to be in swaddling clothes. He guides your tottering baby steps, does he not, my lord?’
Henry flushed. ‘You are mistaken,’ he said angrily.
‘Do not imagine that we think you to be in need of such support, my lord. It is for that reason that we have come here.’
‘I think you should state your business,’ said Henry with dignity.
‘You know, my lord, that we have trouble in London.’
‘I know,’ said Henry, ‘that traitors were hanged for declaring themselves supporters of the French.’
‘It is the Justiciar whom the people dislike,’ said the Earl Chester. ‘It is their hatred of him which makes them revolt.’
‘I think not,’ retorted Henry. ‘They were shouting for the French.’
‘There has been much murmuring against Hubert de Burgh,’ the Bishop tried to explain. ‘If he were removed, you would find the country in a very different mood.’
‘Remove Hubert? He is my very good friend.’
‘He is his own very good friend, my lord. Did you know how rich he has become?’
‘I know full well that he has been rewarded and rightly so. I myself have given him castles.’
‘And he has done very well with his wives,’ added de Breauté slyly.
Henry conveyed by a certain regal manner that the man’s coarseness offended him; and the Bishop signed to de Breauté to allow him to do the talking.
‘My lord,’ said des Roches ingratiatingly, ‘out of respect for you and the crown we have come to you in this way. We have seen with admiration how you have grown in stature since the crown was put on your head. You do not need such counsel. You are well able to manage your own affairs.’
‘I am not forced to obey the Justiciar, you should know,’ retorted Henry. ‘I use my own judgment … frequently.’
‘Which is the very reason why you can dispense with this man.’
‘Dispense with him! You mean send him away, or would you like me to rob him of his estates? To send him to the Tower perhaps? To punish him in some way – to put out his eyes … to cut off a limb or two.’ Henry was looking straight at de Breauté. ‘I believe that you, Falkes de Breauté, oft times employ such methods. I will tell you this, my lords, you may go from here. I like not your words. I like not your manners and I like not you.’
They were taken aback. They had come expecting to face a boy of fourteen and they had found a king, moreover one who was loyal to his friends and would have none of their treachery.
* * *
The reaction of the King forced the conspirators to abandon hope of a quick victory. Peter des Roches was beginning to feel that it was time they shelved their plans for a while, but he had reckoned without Falkes de Breauté who had already summoned the malcontents to Northampton, with plans for marching on London.
Henry had quickly summoned Hubert who laid the matter before Stephen Langton and as a result the Archbishops and Bishops – with the exception of Peter des Roches – stood firmly with the King, and threatened excommunication for the rebels.
Even Falkes had to see that his small troop of malcontents would have no chance against the King’s army and if those who rebelled were excommunicated they could never gather together the necessary men to work with them.
It was defeat. Nor were they to be let off lightly. The leaders were summoned to Westminster where the Archbishops and Bishops invited them to lay their grievances before the King.
They met in the great hall of the Palace, the King since his encounter with the three rebels grown considerably in dignity. Hubert had told him that he had conducted himself like a king, and he would have said the same even if he had not been so completely loyal to himself.
Henry was seated on the chair of state, Hubert was on his right hand; and Stephen Langton, on the other side of the King, invited the Bishop of Winchester to state his grievance.
Peter des Roches, addressing the assembly, declared that he was no traitor and nor were those who stood with him. They had deplored the rising of the citizens of London who had been ready to invite the French into the land. One of their members, Falkes de Breauté had actually carried out the hanging of Constantine FitzAthulf. Their grievance was this: the King was never allowed to act unless one man was always at his elbow. It was not Henry III who reigned, it was Hubert de Burgh. All he and his followers wanted was to see that man removed, and the King to engage a new minister in the place of de Burgh.
Henry said: ‘I have spoken to you on this matter before, Bishop. I like not your tone. I am at this time very well served and have been so since I took the crown.’
‘My lord King, Hubert de Burgh has enriched himself. His policy is to pour gold into his own coffers and if by so doing the crown should suffer he cares not.’
Hubert rose and asked the King’s permission to speak.
‘Pray do,’ said Henry. ‘Add your voice to mine and we will let these traitors
know that we are of like mind.’
‘I thank you, my lord,’ said Hubert. ‘You, Bishop, are at the root of this trouble. It is you who have incited these men. You want my position for yourself. I understand that well, but our king is no puppet to be jerked this way and that. He will choose his ministers where he likes – and I doubt very much that if I were removed from his services – which God forbid – that you would be chosen to take my place.’
Peter des Roches was white with rage. He shouted: ‘I tell you this, Hubert de Burgh, I will spend every penny I possess to prove that you are unworthy of office and to get you turned out.’
Then he turned and stormed out of the hall.
There was silence. Then Henry said: ‘We see what a malicious man we have in the Bishop of Winchester. I would have you know that I will no longer tolerate these rebellious subjects.’
Hubert said: ‘My lord, if you give me your wishes with regard to them I will act upon them.’
‘That I shall quickly decide,’ said the King.
‘In the meantime, my lord, we shall see that they do not have the opportunity of escape,’ said Hubert.
Stephen Langton said that such dissensions were bad for the country and he believed that troublemakers should be put where they could make no more trouble.
The assembly seemed to be in agreement and all except the rebels were delighted with the King’s show of strength.
* * *
The result was that shortly afterwards an assize was held at Dunstable and the castles of the men accused of treason were confiscated. De Breauté would not give in easily and he fortified himself at Bedford Castle and when the justices were on their way to deal with him they learned that he was waiting for them with men to capture them, and remembering his reputation for torturing his victims they decided to escape. There was one who did not succeed in this, Henry de Brayboc who was undersheriff of Rutlandshire, Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire, and had at first supported John against the Barons but later had seen the Barons’ point of view and had changed sides. When Louis was defeated he had professed loyalty to Henry – as so many had – and consequently his lands were restored.
The Battle of the Queens Page 11