Warlord of the North

by Griff Hosker

  The Scots tried to stop. This was where the weather aided us. The snow was icy and, where we had trodden it had turned to icy slush. The horses could not stop. They slithered and slipped. Some tumbled into the ditches and trees but most were impaled upon a barrier of spears. At the same time the archers who were strategically placed around the sides began to loose arrows at a ridiculously short range. Even those with armour could do nothing as the deadly arrows flew from the dark recesses of the forest. The Scots were tightly packed and had nowhere to go.

  While we still had the initiative I dismounted and, with Sir Hugh, joined my men at arms and we stood to push back the Scots. The ones on horses were at a disadvantage. The road was very narrow and they got in each other's way. Erre and Wulfric made a space for me and Wulfric grinned as he said, "Push! Now!"

  The men behind us, all twenty of them pushed into our backs as we stepped forward swinging our swords and axes. The four axes alongside Sir Hugh and I were terrible to behold. They did not just cause minor wounds and cuts, they lopped limbs, they hacked bodies, they tore mail. Sir Hugh and I stabbed slashed and hacked along with them and we moved relentlessly forward.

  Sir Hugh Manningham, meanwhile, led the rest of my knights and our mounted men at arms to charge the Scottish camp. Many Scots were caught wandering into the woods in the hope of finding some treasure or spoils of war. As the men of Hexham charged all that they received was an icy grave. While my archers and men at arms held the bulk of their men Sir Hugh Manningham tore through their camp slaughtering all. Those who could fled into the castle but the gates were quickly slammed shut as my knights closed with the mighty stone walls of Barnard Castle .

  My archers now began to slip amongst the Scots using their short swords and the packed ranks to kill all those at the edge of the forest. They were masters of such warfare. Any hope of a fight back ended as more spears prickled from our line as we spread out; my men speared and impaled the confused Scots. We were moving at walking speed. I wondered if I would either blunt my sword or tire before the slaughter ended and then we heard a collective wail as Sir Hugh Manningham brought his conroi into the rear of those in the woods. They were hemmed in from all sides. I know some escaped; some lay, feigning death. Some climbed trees and some just ran and were too quick to be caught. It took all night to finish the slaughter. As dawn broke my men were busy despatching the wounded. I took my horse from Aiden and rode with my knights to the walls of the castle. My archers were gathering anything of value from the camp. The plunder they had taken was now ours. Their horses, weapons and mail belonged to us. Even the mutton they roasted was taken to be devoured on the way home.

  We sat on our horses, out of bow range and I lifted my helmet so that Barnard de Balliol could see my face. He remained hidden but I knew he would be watching and listening. I shouted, "Barnard de Balliol you are a coward and man without honour. Your men have bled and died here yet you hide behind your walls. You send others out to attack your neighbours. Know this it is I who rule this valley. Not King David. I will hold this land until the Empress Matilda or her son come to claim it. I give fair warning that neither Scot nor rebel will be safe. If I find you then you will die. Today you have had a taste of what we can do. Warn your master that he is not safe. I fear no king and no king is safe from my blade. The only king I swore allegiance to is now dead! Your master had a hand in his death and I will have vengeance."

  I allowed the words to echo. I wanted his men to hear the implied challenge. I had insulted him and if he was a man who had any kind of honour then he would fight me. He did not.

  "Gospatric, you bloated carcass, you pustule on the backside of Scotland, I swear this. You shall never rule one inch of Northumberland but shall have a piece of earth five paces by five paces. That should be big enough to bury the vastness that is your body!"

  My knights and men at arms began banging their shields and cheering. I said nothing but continued to stare at the walls. Finally I held up my sword and all went silent. "There is no one who will answer me? Then before I go I say this. If there are any Englishmen within Barnard who cannot stomach fighting for a man who is insulted and does nothing about it then join me. If you have joined Balliol and Gospatric for riches then you have chosen the wrong side. All that they will bring you is death!"

  I turned my horse around and led my men away east. Sir Hugh Manningham rode next to me, "By God Earl you make a bad enemy! Insulting them was a master stroke. There will be many inside who wonder at their lack of courage."

  I shook my head, "So long as King David backs them then they will survive. I wanted the Scottish King rousing. I hope I did so."

  "Why rouse him?"

  "I want him angry and hasty. I want him to make mistakes. When you return to Hexham send your spies to find out what goes on at Berwick and north of the border. Keep me informed. I want news, no matter how trivial. We have the upper hand and I do not intend to relinquish it." We spoke as we rode of my plans and I gave him instructions.

  When we reached the road where we had ambushed the Scots he led his men towards Auckland and thence home. I led my men south and east along the Roman Road. Edgar sought me out. "Lord, we must get Wilfred to a healer. I have staunched the bleeding but it needs Father Henry."

  I turned to Aiden, "Go with Edgar the falconer and ride as fast as you can to Stockton. You know the best ways to go. He is a brave youth. I would not have him die because of me."

  Along with Wilfred's squire the four of them sped off. They would not spare their horses and I prayed that Wilfred of Piercebridge's life would be saved. It took us all day but we reached home; we were frozen and wet but we brought great booty. The men at arms and fyrd who had walked to Auckland rode back. Every one of the fyrd who had volunteered had a new sword, helmet and, in some cases, mail. Aiden had beaten us back by some hours and my people gathered to cheer us through the gates. We had had a victory and it was close enough to home to mean something. It was the beginning of our fight back.

  Wilfred had a heavily bandaged face and was asleep when I went to visit him in the quarters I had given to him and his mother. His mother stood over him. She was the wife of a knight and she shed no tears but I saw concern etched all over her face. Father Henry was there too. They both turned when I entered.

  "Your son is brave and did well." She nodded, "Tell me, Father Henry, will he heal?"

  He nodded, "Your healer, Edgar, saved his life. He stopped the bleeding. I have instructed Alice that he should be fed broth for I do not wish him using his jaw. It is just time to heal that he requires."

  "Then tell him, to aid his healing, that when he is healed I shall knight him. He has all the virtues a knight needs and when we take back your manor he will be lord once more."

  Lady Hilda impulsively took my hand, "Thank you my lord." She hesitated, "You believe you will take back our home?"

  "I have no doubt, my lady. Come the spring when our numbers are grown and our defences here are secure then we will begin the fight back."

  "Thank you, my lord. My husband was ever your man and my son will be the same."

  We did not rest on our laurels. The next day I left my men at arms to continue to work on the gate and walls while I went with Aiden, Dick and every archer. I had another message to send. We first went to speak with Sir Edward.

  He was in his bailey practising, despite the snow, with his squire and men at arms.

  "The arm is healing then?"

  "Aye my lord but we both know that the best way to heal is to use. I will be ready the next time you fight. How went your raid?"

  "There is no threat from the west, at least not until spring. I have bought us enough time to improve our defences. And the east?"

  "My scouts have reported that Guisborough and Normanby have both begun to prepare defences. It seems your words to the spy worked!"

  I smiled, "Good. The more his word is doubted the better. The Bishop has been duped by his clerk, what better than to dupe the clerk? I ride with my own archers
to scout out the east. I need to send a message to Robert de Brus."

  "And what of the New Castle?"

  "Sir Hugh Manningham and his knights will call there and demand its surrender."

  "Does he have enough men for a siege?"

  "He needs them not. He will leave it a week and then take his men there. By then the word of our victory at Barnard Castle should have got out and the word of what I do here. We hope to deceive them into thinking we have more men than we actually have. They cannot know which of my knights remain. If it does not succeed then I will, indeed, take my men north but I wish to improve my defences. I want my castle to be a haven from the Scots."

  The south bank of the Tees from Thornaby to Normanby was swampy and filled with small streams and rivulets. The safest way to reach Normanby and Guisborough was to head south and use the low line of hills. They were covered in trees. This was not farmland. A valley ran from the west to the sea and emerged at the scar which jutted out into the icy waters of the ocean. Had I so chosen I could have raided that valley. It was the granary for Normanby and Guisborough but I knew that most of those who farmed there were English.

  The low hills separated Normanby from Guisborough and I intended to show Sir Robert just how vulnerable he was. Aiden led us by trails which only he knew. I had brought Gilles with me for I wanted him to watch Aiden. If he could learn to be another Aiden then I would be satisfied.

  We emerged above the castle at Normanby. It was not a stone castle and I could have reduced it but there was little point so long as I had no lord. I also needed men to man the walls and defend against De Brus in Guisborough. I wanted De Brus on the defensive. I could not afford to have him and his men raiding the southern bank of the Tees. So long as he was isolated then he could not help King David. I was no fool and I knew that King David would have to deal with me sometime. He had the west of the land he claimed and I was the enclave in the east which he needed.

  We dismounted and tied our horses to the trees while we went to the eaves of the forest to spy out the enemy. I saw the red diagonal cross on the yellow background flying from the keep. A De Brus was in command. I doubted that it would be Robert. He would be behind the stone walls of Guisborough. We watched for a while. There were sentries watching from the walls and we heard the clash of swords as men practised. Then we saw men leave the castle and head first east and then wend their way south up the snow covered track which led to the woods we occupied.

  Dick said, "Unless I miss my guess these are hunters from the castle."

  Aiden had keener eyes than most, "They are soldiers, my lord, they carry swords as well as bows."

  I nodded, "Then let us hunt them. Gilles, watch the horses."

  There were ten hunters. I surmised they were men at arms. That made sense. When Sir Guiscard and his men had died then those who hunted for him would also have perished. Whoever ruled now in Normanby would only have those men he had brought to hunt and they would be unfamiliar with the woods. It explained the high numbers. Fortune had given me the opportunity of sending an even stronger message to De Brus.

  Dick and his archers were not men at arms. They were nimble footed wraiths who barely left an imprint in the snow. I walked behind, aware that I would be leaving a trail. The men at arms were not the best hunters in the world and we heard them before we saw them. It soon became obvious that they had set traps for game in the woods and were collecting those. Dick halted and looked at me. I stopped and nodded. They disappeared.

  I could not see what they were about but it soon became obvious. I heard the sound of arrows being loosed and the soft thud as they struck bodies unprotected by armour. There were shouts as the hunters realised they were being attacked. There were two cries and then there was silence. Henry Warbow found me, "They are all dead, lord."

  I followed him back. Already the bodies were being stripped of anything which might be of use. Aelric held up some rabbits. "They were emptying traps, lord."

  Dick held a medallion. He had taken it from around the neck of the leader. "It is the seal of De Brus. This is a sergeant at arms." He gave it to me and I put it in my surcoat.

  "Fetch the rabbits and the weapons. Let us return to our horses."

  Once mounted we rode to the path they had taken from the castle. As the crow flies the castle was just half a mile from the woods. Leaving Dick and my archers hidden in the woods I rode with Aiden and Gilles down the winding trail. The footprints of the dead hunters marked it.

  "Aiden if we are attacked then your task is to take Gilles to Dick and safety."

  "Aye lord."

  "Why do you bring me, lord? I am no warrior."

  "You are learning Gilles. When you became my groom you joined my retinue. All of my men are warriors but there is more to being a warrior than fighting with a sword. You use your head. Aiden here knows that. I would have you watch him and learn." He nodded, "Aiden, have an arrow knocked."

  I knew we were seen as we descended the hillside. I had no doubt that the woods were being watched. Whoever commanded would wonder if the three of us were alone and also speculating about the ten men at arms. We did not ride swiftly and the gates opened and five mailed men emerged. I soon saw that they wore the livery of De Brus. I halted and we waited for them. I could see that they were suspicious.

  "You are the Earl of Cleveland." I nodded. The young man who spoke said, "Do you come here to surrender to me?"

  "And who are you?"

  "I am William, younger brother of Robert de Brus. King David has given him this land."

  "It was not his to give and far from surrendering I come to tell you that you have until Easter to vacate this castle and go back to Scotland. After that time I will destroy you."

  His laugh was not convincing for his eyes flickered around as though seeking out my army. "Bold talk for one knight with two peasants as guards."

  It was my turn to laugh, "I have seen little to frighten me here. One callow boy and four men at arms do not constitute a threat."

  One of the men at arms suddenly spurred his horse. He managed three strides before an arrow appeared in his throat. I spurred Scout and charged the four. Swinging my shield around I blocked the blow from the man at arms to my left before hacking at the head of the one to my right. He blocked the bow but fell from the saddle. The young knight and the other man at arms wheeled out of sword range. He was not ready to face King Henry's Champion. I swung Scout around and brought my blade into the back of the remaining man at arms who was trying to control his horse. His mail was severed and I heard a crack as bones broke. He too fell from his horse.

  Aiden and Gilles were already galloping up the hillside and I followed. The two rider less horses followed me. I smiled. Sometimes fortune favoured the bold. I glanced over my shoulder and saw that Sir William had summoned riders. A dozen men followed him as he pursued us. I shouted, "Aiden, Gilles, collect these two horses."

  They reined in and grabbed the reins as the two horses passed them. We continued to twist our way up the slope to the woods and my waiting archers. Two of the pursuing men at arms decided to forego the track and attempt to come directly up the slope. It was an unmitigated disaster and the two horses slithered their way to the bottom of the hill taking their riders with them.

  As I neared the top I wheeled Scout around and unsheathed my sword. I smiled as Sir William also reined in to allow his men at arms to close with me. I watched them approach and, when they were just thirty paces from me lowered my sword. Six men were plucked from their saddles and two more were struck by the arrows from Dick and his men. Sir William shouted, "Fall back!"

  As they departed I shouted, "Tell your brother this is just the beginning. None of you is safe from my men!"

  They ran back so quickly to their castle that we had all the time in the world to collect the swords and mail from the corpses.

  Chapter 7

  By the time February arrived my gate was finished and my wall almost complete. Those who had come from Cowpen had gone
to Norton to begin work on repairing the walls. More easily defended than their own home they were happy to be given the land by me. Their families remained at Stockton while the men cleared all signs of the vicious attack which had made Norton a village filled with ghosts. A rider came south from Sir Hugh Manningham. The New Castle had refused to surrender. His men besieged it but the good news was that the Bishop of Durham had stirred himself and sent some of his own knights north to join Sir Hugh and subjugate the Scots. The men in the New Castle were no long a threat to us.

  As January had progressed we had received a steady influx of volunteers. Men at arms whose lords had died or been killed by the Scots came to my castle. I used Wulfric and Dick to assess them. Not all remained. Some were sent on their way for we doubted their integrity. We were not so desperate that we would take any. We needed men on whom we could rely. Even so our numbers had swollen and we had erected another warrior hall in the town. The inner and outer baileys were too crowded. We had also had to build another stable. Horses were not the problem.

  I summoned all of my valley knights to a counsel of war. Dick and Wulfric attended too. We had made a good start but there was much yet to be done. None had far to travel and we began early in the afternoon. I told them the news that I had. There was little new. Sir Hugh Manningham kept me informed about Scottish incursions. So far they had not tried to reinforce the New Castle and Norham still blocked the route south.

  "We have hurt De Brus. Hartness and Greatham remain empty wastelands. I have Dick and his archers riding there once a week to ensure that the Scots have not tried to retake them. The question remains, 'what do we do about Normanby'?"

  No one volunteered to speak. Finally Dick rose. "My lord I think the castle would not stand long against a determined attack. We halved the garrison."

  Sir Richard said, "But what if they have reinforced it?"