by Griff Hosker
This time we made an armed camp. We did not wish to be surprised and we knew that we would be here for some time. A tunnel cannot be dug overnight although we would be doing most of the digging at night. I made certain that our horses were also well guarded. If they tried to break the siege then they would bring knights from the west. Normandy had sided with John Lackland. If they chose not to relieve the siege then it would tell us that they were not committed. They might be suborned to our side.
I had enough men at arms now to assign two of them to watch the horses. We would not be needed for the mining. They would only be needed for the assault and that would be many days away. Being so close to Le Mans meant that we had plenty of supplies. We had fresh bread. It took half a day to reach us but fresh bread puts heart into a warrior. There was grazing aplenty for our horses and we found a farm which had a good supply of oats. Our horses would eat well. The French knights who joined us kept a screen of scouts and knights to the north and the west. We would be warned of an attack.
Of course, the defenders would have to get a message out. Juhel assured us that none had managed to leave before he surrounded it but I did not believe him. Normans, loyal to King John, would already be preparing to relieve the siege.
My archers were used to keep down the heads of the defenders while the tunnel was begun. We had to place hurdles over the ditch and the defenders sent stones and bolts at the men who hacked away a hole. My archers slew six or seven men on the walls. Even so four of the men who would be miners perished before it was started. Once it had been begun then we worked at night. It added to the length of the siege but at the cost of just four men it was worth it.
I had the time to stay in the camp and I used my time wisely. I wandered the camp looking for signs of Templars. The two younger knights who had appeared with the Comte disappeared soon after the siege began. I asked the Comte where they had gone and he smiled his silky smile and said that they were delivering a message to the King. That did not make me any less apprehensive. I found another three knights who appeared as though they might be Templars. Part of it was their routine. The Templars followed a strict discipline and the three knights prayed at the appropriate times and did all that might be expected of a warrior priest. I had no doubt about the fighting abilities of the Templars; it was their motives I questioned.
The days and nights followed a predictable routine. The miners worked in shifts. The changes of shifts were the dangerous times. The one before dawn was the least dangerous but the one after noon required the presence of my archers. In addition, men at arms had to protect them with shields while they entered the mine entrance. The spoil from the tunnel simply tumbled down the slope. Each time it rained more was washed into the ditches. I had a new shield made. My other had almost cost me my life. While the men at arms and foot soldiers watched the walls the knights and squires who were not riding on patrol would see to our horses. A war horse was the most pampered of animals. Each night one of the miners would report to the Prince. He would detail the progress. They used a piece of knotted cord to measure the distance. We wanted the tunnel to go beyond the wall.
Ten days after they had begun they were almost complete. On that night we would begin to fill the tunnel with kindling. It was that day that they sent a relief force from Bourg-le-Roi. The French knights had done their job. They had kept a watch on the castle and reported the daily arrival of more knights. It was another reason we had kept our horses in a constant state of readiness. As soon as the battle was reported to be on the road we mounted. We would fight in three battles. A battle was the way we fought. It was easier to manoeuvre groups of perhaps eight or ninety knights rather than one enormous mass of two or three hundred. The centre one would be the knights of Anjou and Brittany led by William des Roches. This would be the largest battle. There were over one hundred knights. To the left were the French knights led by the Comte de Senonche. With eighty knights they were almost our equal. Our weakest force was the knights of Maine led by Juhel of Mayenne. There were just fifty of them. The scouts had reported over one hundred and fifty knights supported by a hundred men at arms.
The rest of the knights with whom I rode were armed with a lance. I still preferred the long spear. To me it was both easier to use and to replace. William emulated me. We still had a gonfanon but I saw that some of the other knights were confused at my choice of weapon. We did not ride far. William des Roches had made his battle plan the day we had arrived. It was a good one. I had learned that William des Roches had learned well from the Lionheart. He had an eye for a battlefield.
Lucé-sous-Ballon lay just two and a half miles from the siege works. It was ten miles from Bourg-le-Roi. William wanted our foes to be more tired than we. The ground was flat and would suit our horses. In addition, there was a slight slope which favoured us. There had been showers, mainly at night, and the ground was not as firm there. In places it was slick and in others boggy. Horses would labour up the slight slope. Our aim was simple. We would defeat the knights and turn back the relief force. Some of the less experienced knights thought it would be easy. I knew that many things could go awry in a battle. The three knights I suspected of being Templars rode with the French. They were in the van. Their position told me that they were allied to the French. That meant that Sir Ranulf had not been King John’s spy but King Philip’s.
The slightly elevated piece of land we had chosen allowed us to view their progress. As soon as they saw our banners they deployed into their own battles. I did not recognise the banners. Until recently I had not fought in this part of the Angevin Empire and I had never fought in England. The Baltic and Outremer were my battlefields. They were the standards I recognised. They, however, would know mine. The ransoms for the knights had been paid and I had no doubt that some of them would be with the horsemen who rode towards us. They would have told them about the hired sword who had captured the gatehouse. Men would ride for my banner. I would be worth capturing and ransoming.
Fótr rode behind me with the gryphon banner. He held it in his left hand and his shield protected it. That had been my suggestion. I remembered Arsuf. He was a good rider and would be able to defend himself. He did not ride a war horse but Flame. Flame was a clever and nimble palfrey. Fótr just needed to stay close to me and avoid the knights.
The enemy host stopped. William de Roches recognised their banners. “They are led by Richard, Viscount of Beaumont-en-Maine. He is a good warrior. Do not underestimate him.”
We rode with the banner of Brittany but the Prince was not with us. He had wanted to but William des Roches had been adamant that we did not want to risk the figurehead in the savage fight which would ensue. In our battle there were sixty knights in the front rank with our squires behind. William’s second in command, Richard de Clare, led the rest of the knights as a reserve. William allowed the enemy knights to begin their attack. When they were two hundred paces from us William ordered the charge. We did not gallop. We spurred our horses but kept our line. We were boot to boot and the lances of the knights were raised. It was a foolish knight or a novice who rode with it horizontal for any length of time.
I was to the left of William des Roches and Walther Reedwood to his right. We would be the subject of their attack. Already I could see that their line was no longer straight. It had become an arrow head with the Viscount of Beaumont-en-Maine eager for glory and to take William des Roches.
Once I knew that I could see the knight with whom I would be fighting. He was to the right of the Viscount. He had a green shield with three yellow fesses. He had his lance lowered. It wavered up and down. He had not yet learned to rest it on his horse’s head. I pulled my shield a little tighter to my body. He would aim for my chest. He had seen me and chosen me too for we were now closing rapidly. The slightly slippery slope was causing problems for the enemy line. They were riding too quickly and the hooves of the horses were slipping slightly. We were still boot to boot but there were gaps in their line.
I lowered my
spear when we were fifteen paces from the enemy. I was one of the last to do so. It was easier for me to do so as my weapon was lighter. To my left my household knight, William, copied me. I pulled back my arm when I was five paces from the green shield with three yellow fesses. His lance was longer and he would hit me first. I saw his arm pull back. The end of the spear moved up and down so much that I wondered if he would hit me at all. He must have had great strength for he struck my shield. I had it angled so that the head slid off my new shield and it cracked and shattered on the wood at the rear of my saddle. I punched with my spear. It was a shorter and more accurate weapon. I hit him in the thigh. Although my spear shattered it had penetrated not only the knight’s chausses and leg but also pricked his horse which reared and threw him.
I drew my sword. Fótr had my banner and I could not afford the time to replace the spear. As our lines had clashed then all momentum had stopped. It was a mêlée. In such a fight a lance was an encumbrance. I spurred my newly acquired war horse, Dragon, towards the nearest knight to my right. His spear turned slowly towards me. Again, it wavered up and down. He was also trying to turn his horse to meet me square on. As he punched I spurred Dragon and the lance hit fresh air. I brought my sword back hand to strike him in the back. His turn, my blow and the slippery ground made him tumble from the saddle. Fótr was close behind and as the knight lay prostrate my squire placed my banner to the knight’s throat. “Yield to Sir Thomas or die.”
The knight nodded and I heard a mumbled, “I yield.”
I left Fótr with the captured knight and his warhorse. William was still with me and he had his spear. I shouted, “Follow me!”
The men at arms were hurrying up the slope to get to us. I saw our chance. We had broken through the line of knights. The banner of Richard, Viscount of Beaumont-en-Maine still flew. I saw it waving close by the banner of Brittany. The two of us rode from behind the enemy knights. One must have sensed our approach and he turned. His long and heavy lance took an age to swing around and William’s spear hit him in the side knocking him from his saddle. I saw the Viscount’s standard bearer. It was a knight. He was guarded by two other knights. William held his spear above his shoulder and threw it. Perhaps God directed his arm or he may have just been lucky but the spear embedded itself in the back of one of the standard’s protectors. They both turned. The standard’s falling would be the signal for the army to fall back. They could not allow that. William rode for the standard bearer and I for the more dangerous of the two, the standard’s protector.
I was the one riding up the slope and I deliberately slowed down Dragon so that his hooves could gain purchase and grip the slope which was now slick with mud and blood. The knight had a war axe. He rode towards me and swung his axe. I did not meet it with my shield. I turned Dragon so that I was on his right and blocked it with my sword. The knight was strong and my arm shivered with the force of it but I stopped it and only the edge of the axe scored a line down my helmet. I had taken a sliver of wood from the axe’s haft. An axe is heavy and as he pulled it back I lunged with my sword at his throat. He jerked his head back but my blade tore across the mail of his ventail. The mail coif was no longer whole. He turned his horse to mirror mine. He swung his axe and my sword was behind me. I just managed to get my shield between us. My left arm shivered. As he swung his arm back I stood in my stirrups and brought my sword down towards his head. His shield was on the wrong side and he used his axe to block it. Already weakened my sword smashed it in two and the head fell to the ground. In an instant my sword was at his throat. I pricked the skin through his broken mail. “Yield!”
He nodded and took off his helmet. I turned and saw that Johann had managed to give William a spear and the Viscount’s banner fell to the ground as William skewered the standard bearer. Battles do not end instantly but the effect of the falling of the standard was dramatic. All those who were within sight of it stopped fighting. William des Roches took advantage of the dismay to force the Viscount to yield and the advancing men at arms and foot first stopped and then, seeing that their leaders were captured, began to run back to Bourg-le-Roi! We had won.
I turned to William and Fótr, “Today you achieved more in one battle than many knights achieve in a lifetime. I am immensely proud of you both.”
Sir William took off his helmet and smiled, “We have learned from you, Sir Thomas!”
King Philip of France
Chapter 4
With Richard, Viscount of Beaumont-en-Maine as our prisoner there would be no more attacks from Bourg-le-Roi. I had taken two knights as prisoner and two war horses. My personal treasure was growing. For me that meant more men and archers! We headed back to the siege. Knights had been lost but, as we had held the field, none were taken for ransom. Those who had yielded were saved as their captors fled. Such was war. Only a handful of knights had fallen on each side. Had the men at arms and crossbows joined in then it might have been a different story. I saw that the three Templars now had captives of their own. That confirmed, to me, that they were not working for King John. The French knights had done well too.
The Comte de Senonche and William des Roches were in high spirits as we headed back. They were both fulsome in their praise of both me and William. His timely spear thrust had won the day and both were grateful. With only two miles to travel back we were soon at our camp. My men at arms and archers looked up as we rode into our camp with the two war horses. Soon we would have the mail from the knights and two more of my men at arms would be attired as knights. Sir Guy and Sir Roger had not understood why I did not have more knights to serve me. The answer was simple. I was well served by my men at arms and until Fótr and Johann were ready to be knighted then I would not change my system.
The Prince was also eager to speak with us. However, I was disturbed that he first went to speak with the Comte before asking either William des Roches or myself what had happened. I think the Lord of Le Mans was surprised and I became even more disturbed when the three Templars also joined them.
“I like not that, Sir Thomas. The Duke is young and he has spent a great deal of time with the French. I fear that he is being used.”
“Then, my lord, it is up to us to see that he is not. Let us make a pact to keep him away from the French as much as possible.”
He smiled at me, “In that case I would suggest you stay close to him. He seems somewhat in awe of you, the hero of Arsuf.”
I did not like that but if I could use my influence on the impressionable young prince then I would do so.
“Should we see how the tunnel goes?”
“If we can fire it tonight then we can exploit the victory of today. Our knights will be in good humour.”
David of Wales and my archers were the closest to the workings. During daylight hours they maintained a close watch on the walls. The defenders had learned how accurate they were. The only way that they could defeat a mine was to countermine beneath it and that would take more time than they had. “How goes it, David of Wales?”
“My lord, they are well under the wall. The mine is empty now and the miners are resting. As soon as it is dark they will pack the kindling and then it will be ready to fire.”
William des Roches nodded, “Then we make it a dawn attack I would like to see the walls fall. This will be a long war and I do not want to lose men when we do not need to.”
When we returned to our tents Prince Arthur approached us. We both bowed. “Have I offended you, lords? I wished to have conference with you.”
William des Roches shook his head, “No offence intended, your Grace. We were inspecting the mine and besides you had the Comte to speak with.” He gave a bow. “And now, if you will excuse me, I will go and arrange for the ransoms.”
It was a brusque answer and I could see that he had hurt the young Prince’s feelings. “What have I done wrong?”
“Can I speak honestly, your Grace, without offending you?”
“Of course.”
“The Lord of Le
Mans and myself feel that you are too close to the French. It is good that they help us but Sir William and I believe it is to take parts of your land.”
He shook his head, “No, lord, you are wrong. The Comte has assured me that all that King Philip wants is to see me on the throne of England.”
I sighed, “And why would he wish that, my lord?”
The Prince was silent, “Perhaps he thinks he can control me.” I nodded. “But he cannot. The Lionheart trained me well! Do not worry about me, lord. My mother has also made me strong. I know what the French King intends and I will thwart him and my uncle. My subjects need to have faith in me. My noble sire, Henry the Second, was not much older that I was when he took the throne. He had the help of his mother too. It is an omen!”
I could not help but like the young prince but I was not certain that he was right. He seemed to me to have more enemies than friends.
“Then know this, my lord, my men and I will do all in our power to see that you attain the throne.” I meant it and I hoped that he would achieve the throne for if he did then I would regain my lands!
I was up well before dawn. William des Roches and Prince Arthur joined the Norman and Angevin knights as the miners set fire to the tunnel. It was spectacular. The miner who threw in the burning brand barely escaped with his life. The flames, fuelled by oil and straw, took hold immediately. There was a cheer from all of those outside who watched while from inside we heard a wail of despair. All of those inside knew what we intended. Once the initial flames died we just saw the glow from the tunnel and smoke began to pour out of the entrance. The wind fanned the flames and ensured that they would burn a long time. It was late in the morning when we saw the first evidence of the fire. A large crack appeared in the mound. The soil was shifting. It was sliding down to the ditch.