Henry II (The Anarchy Book 13)

by Griff Hosker

  Wulfric and Wilfred had war hammers which had a longer reach than my sword. They were the ones who struck the first blows and, despite their spears, the two knights who stood either side of Eustace were slain by the blows of the war hammers. There was a gap close to Eustace and I thrust forward with my sword. Eustace barely managed to block it. I punched him in the head with my shield and he reeled. I brought my sword overhand but he blocked it with his shield and yet he was still forced back. His own spear darted forward. I deflected it with my shield and, as the head lowered, I stamped upon it. He had never seen that trick before and he lost his grip on his weapon. Even as he tried to pull his sword I brought over my own sword and struck him on the helmet with all the force I could muster. It struck true and I saw the dent appear in the burnished metal. He fell. I had him.

  Fate can be cruel. Even as I shouted “Yield!” hands pulled him from beneath me and his bodyguards threw themselves at us. I barely managed to block the sword thrust which threatened to gut me. The Flemish knight was so close that I could smell what he had last eaten. I pulled back my head and headbutted him. He had not learned that and he fell. I rammed my sword into his throat and sought Eustace. He had gone. I looked up and saw him being spirited away by his bodyguards. His departure, however, precipitated a flight back into the town. It was a mistake. The gates became choked with the fleeing Flemish soldiers and my men hacked, sliced, stabbed and slaughtered those who tried to escape.

  Behind me I heard, “Lord! Lord! I have Rolf!”

  Robert had obeyed my orders and I worked my way back to him. I pulled myself into the saddle. “Stay close to me, Robert! No heroics!”

  “No lord.”

  I jerked Rolf’s reins to the right and headed along the line of my advancing soldiers and towards the knights of the Earl of Leicester. They were closing the jaws of the trap. We had to surround the walls before Eustace could escape.

  There was chaos before us. The flight of the standard of their leader seemed to ripple down the line. Some knights saw it and fled. Others were still engaged in close combat and fought on. I urged Rolf between knots of fighting warriors. I was not avoiding the fight; I was trying to end the war. I saw that Eustace and his men were not heading for the town but taking a course which would lead them to London.

  Suddenly a standard appeared from my left and I recognised the banner of William Peverel. He and his knights were charging at me to cut me off. I was not alone. Wilfred and two of my men at arms as well as Sir Gilles of Stockton had followed me on horses they had captured. The rest were still hacking their way through the Flemish soldiers. The enemy would cut me off before I could catch Eustace of Boulogne. I drew my sword and pulled my shield tighter as I blocked the spear which was thrust at me. I brought my sword overhand and hacked through the man at arms’ arm. I felt a blow to my shield and I pulled Rolf’s head around. I heard a ring to my right and saw that Robert had placed his horse between me and William Peverel who had charged at my unprotected side. My squire’s sword had blocked the blow. Before he could injure my untried squire Sir Gilles of Stockton bundled his horse into that of William Peverel and knocked him to the ground. Sir Gilles was the best horseman I had ever trained.

  I turned my horse’s head to continue my pursuit but I ran into two enemy knights who were riding to the aid of their lord. I blocked the sword of one with my shield as I parried the sword of the second. Rolf reared and I had to stand in my saddle to avoid falling. Wilfred’s war hammer appeared from over my shoulder and the spike drove into the first knight’s helmet and skull. As brains, blood and bone spattered the other I lunged forward and ended his life. The attempt on my life by Peverel and his knights was over but they had bought enough time for Eustace to escape. I saw their banners in the distance as they headed down the London road. Robert de Beaumont and his men had done as I had asked and defeated the enemy before them but they had not stopped Eustace from leaving; he would be well on his way to London now.

  I could see the banners of knights as they followed him south and west. With their leader gone most of those who had faced us now surrendered. It was over. I turned to Sir Gilles, “Well done, Sir Gilles and you too, Robert son of Hugh. I think there will be a healthy ransom from this knight.”

  William Peverel rose unsteadily to his feet. Sir Gilles’ squire held a sword to his neck. Peverel had shown us already that he could be treacherous. “One false move, lord, and you will die!”

  The Earl of Leicester reined in and untied his ventail, “A great victory, lord. A shame Eustace escaped. That was my fault.” He turned and pointed to a captured knight. “We caught one of his men. He said that his men had to carry him from the field. The blow you struck him rendered him unconscious. He may yet die.”

  I shook my head, “That one is as slippery as an eel and has more luck than he deserves. He will live. Let us invest the town. The people will be pleased to be free from his tyranny.”

  The people welcomed us like conquering heroes. Eustace had visited many privations upon the town and his men had been equally villainous. Two days later we rode towards Ipswich. My archers had already ridden close by the town and the siege works and begun to harass those besieging the town. The arrival of our banners prompted them to raise the siege and head back to London too. Hugh Bigod, the Earl of Norfolk was more than pleased to see us.

  “We were down to eating oat bread! I felt like a horse! Your arrival was timely!”

  The Earl of Chester took great delight in telling him of our victory. The two had fought in the past. I hoped that they would put that behind them. Petty differences were not needed now.

  Rather than entering the town, which had the stink of pestilence about it, we camped close by and ate in the clean, albeit cool, air. My earls and our captains sat at a table Hugh Bigod had brought out. We fell upon the food for the march had been long and hard. We had a dead horse butchered. It was not to everyone’s taste but it would serve to fill a hole. We were on campaign now and delicacies were not to be had. I saw Ranulf Earl of Chester wrinkle his nose at the taste. In contrast Wulfric devoured it as though he was a wolf.

  “So, Earl, what is the plan?”

  “It seems to me that we have two choices. We could go to London and try to capture it. That is the heart of Stephen’s power base. If we took that then eventually he would wither and we would win.”

  Dick nodded, “But that is not your way, lord.”

  The other earls looked at my former outlaw. He did not look as they did and yet all knew of his skill. I think they were amazed that he spoke to me as an equal. We were equals. Our differences in birth were irrelevant.

  “You are right Dick. The Earl of Gloucester was one to wait. It brought us little in the way of victory. We ride to meet with Stephen.”

  “But we would be outnumbered.”

  “Henry will be here soon. We have ships in the harbour. We will send one with news of our victories to the Duke and he will come. Meanwhile we will head west.” I waved James over with the map. He spread it on the table and I jabbed a finger at Malmesbury. “One of the prisoners, William Peverel, let it slip that Stephen has a force of men under his brother, Richard, and they have taken Malmesbury. If Stephen sends more men there, then Wallingford is cut off from Gloucester. By recapturing the castle, we destroy more of the enemy and we can reinforce Wallingford from the west.”

  “It is a long way, lord.”

  “Almost two hundred miles, I know but the route takes us close to London and then to Wallingford. It will keep our destination a mystery. Those in London will bar their gates and prepare for a siege. When we pass there then word will be sent to Wallingford and they will halt their siege and prepare to battle with us. In that week then much may happen.”

  And so, we left. It was a long snake of men which filled the old Roman Road as we headed west. From nose to tail we took up six miles of road. We had baggage and we had those who followed armies. It was not my way but I had to compromise. I had three Earls with me and it wa
s vital that I did not allow minor disagreements to bring disharmony into the camp. Dick and his archers ranged far ahead of us. They flushed out any attempt to ambush us and gave us warning of castles which barred our way.

  Two surrendered on our way towards London and their garrisons swelled our numbers. We passed within a mile of the walls of the great city and we camped close by. The ancient walls were filled with men who stood to prepare to give battle. I resisted the urges of Hugh Bigod to attack. He knew that Eustace lay within and wanted vengeance.

  “Earl, you must trust me. I have been fighting Stephen longer than any here. Until I fail I beg you to follow my direction.”

  They conceded and we pushed west. Now that we were closer to the enemy I insisted that we keep closer together. We could not afford to be strung out so far. As we neared Wallingford, Dick and his archers skirmished with the scouts of Stephen. My men had done this for over twenty years and there were none better. The result was that Stephen was blind. He had no idea of our intentions. When Aelric reported that Stephen had retired north of the Thames I knew we had given the garrison of Wallingford some relief. It was tempting to join them but I decided to keep to my original plan.

  We camped at Suindune. It was just fifteen miles from Malmesbury. The River Avon ran from Malmesbury south and I intended to use that as both a barrier and a defence. Turning to the Earl of Leicester I said, “I want us to be ready to move in the morning. I go to scout out the enemy’s position and decide on our strategy. I will take my men with me. Perhaps it will tempt them to come after me.”

  “You would take such a risk?”

  “It is no risk. We are well mounted and we could evade them. If they try to take me then it will tell me much about their own plans.”

  Malmesbury was not a large castle. It had belonged to Stephen but the Earl of Gloucester had captured it in the early days of the war. So many of those leaders who had fought under the Earl were now dead or long gone from England. Those who remained were not always as vigilant as they might have been. When we reached it I saw that it did not have a large garrison. Even as we approached I saw a rider leave the castle and ride along the northern bank of the Avon towards Wallingford. The river stopped a quick pursuit and we let him go.

  “What think you Wulfric?”

  “I think that we could take it, lord. They have stone walls around the town and that is a fine keep but they have built the keep into the town walls. If we were to dig a mine then we could use fire to bring down part of the wall.”

  “Then I leave you here to ring the town and castle. Sir Richard, ride to Suindune and fetch the rest of the army. This loop in the Avon will give us a good camp which we can defend.”

  “And you lord?”

  “I will go with my squires and Ralph of Nottingham. We will ride to Bristol. I need to send a message to Henry and that will be the swiftest method.”

  It was just a two-hour ride to Bristol. Still a bastion of Henry and his mother my banner was welcomed. Roger de Lisieux had been a loyal knight in the service of the Earl of Gloucester. His reward, after the Earl’s sudden death, was the manor of Bristol.

  “Word has come to us of your great victories, Earl. You have given us hope.”

  “I hope to bring more than that. Henry FitzEmpress will be arriving in England soon. He told me he would be arriving here. When he does then tell him that we are going to take Stephen’s castle at Malmesbury.”

  “How, lord? It is not a large castle but it is made of stone. Will you use war machines?”

  “No, my lord. We will mine it.”

  He smiled, “Then I might be of some assistance. We captured some Welsh miners last year. We have held them here. Perhaps they would help you in return for their freedom.”

  My father had been right. Sometimes Fate intervened. It was wyrd. The fifteen Welshmen were more than happy to exchange a life of servitude for the possibility of freedom. As we headed north I realised that they would do all they could to bring the siege to a rapid conclusion. The sooner the castle fell the sooner they would be free.

  The army had not arrived by the time we returned to Malmesbury but Wulfric had fires ringing the walls of the town and the castle. He was delighted with the Welsh miners. Our men could dig but the miners would do so more efficiently.

  “Tomorrow we need to close with the walls and build a shelter for the miners.” I waved over Llewellyn, the leader of the miners. “Where would you suggest was the best place to begin a mine?”

  We were three hundred paces from the walls. He walked a little to the left and then to the right. “Under the corner of that tower lord. It is attached to the wall and the keep. We will dig down to the foundations. We will put beams in to support the wall above and continue digging. Then we will light a fire. We will then dig a second mine ten paces from it. If we keep one fire burning, then the stones will become weaker and the two mines will become one which will bring down a large part of the wall and the tower. When the tower falls, it will bring down part of the keep too.”

  “You know your business. I leave it to you. When the wall is down then you and your men have you freedom. Wilfred, have some men go with the miners to hew down trees for the beams.”

  “Aye lord.”

  “Dick, you and Sir Phillip will have your archers clear the walls. Wulfric, we will need hide shields. They will try to burn them.”

  “Aye lord. I will take some men now. I spied a field of cattle. The fresh hides will not burn well and we can use the meat!”

  We had become adept at cattle thieving and our men brought back ten head of cattle. The hides were quickly skinned and stretched over a wooden framework. With small trees hewn down we would build the shelter where we wanted the mine. The hides would shrink and twist the frames but that would take many days. We hoped we would only need them for four or five.

  Chapter 19

  The army began to arrive the next day and I had Sir Harold allocate each Earl and Captain one section of the wall to watch. It must have been a depressing sight for the defenders. It took all day for the three earls to bring all of their men to surround the walls. With my two squires, I joined my archers close to the wall. The enemy had crossbows. They clattered into our shields. I waved Dick and his men over. My best archers killed them first. Until they were eliminated they kept up a regular barrage of bolts. I had four in my shield. I was the most popular of targets. It was why I had stood there. It drew arrows like a flame draws moths. If they aimed at me then my archers were safe. Eventually they had lost enough men for the bolts to diminish.

  Dick shouted, “Now, Wulfric, now is the time!”

  Wulfric led his men to the walls. They carried the hide shelters over them. They were as effective as armour. One or two brave souls tried to hurl spears at them and they paid with their lives. Once the shelters were in place, I said, “Now Llewellyn.”

  My Welsh miners ran like startled hares. Wulfric and his men had their shields ready to protect them. They disappeared beneath the shelters. The defenders then tried stones. My archers ended the lives of those that tried. I saw smoke from the town. They were preparing fire. The miners worked quickly. I saw a spoil heap forming behind them. It grew far faster than I would have expected. These men were used to hewing iron and coal. Soil was far simpler.

  Suddenly shields appeared on the wall and I saw a cauldron. I shouted, “Wulfric, ware fire!”

  Wulfric repeated the warning and they stepped away from the walls. The miners leapt out and took shelter beneath the shields of my men. My archers slew three of those with the cauldron but the boiling fat fell on to the shelter. Brands were hurled over and one of them ignited the pig fat. I had thought all of our work was undone when Llewellyn suddenly led his men from the shelter of the shields. They used the spoil and threw the soil on top of the fire. Their spades and shovels were a blur. I could not believe how quickly the fire was quenched.

  Llewellyn’s voice seemed remarkably calm, “Right, boyos, back to work!”

 
; I realised that any attempt to set fire to it again was doomed to failure. Soil would not burn. Just to make sure the Welsh miners put the next soil on top of the first. The spoil heap grew. I contemplated returning to the camp when they tried their next trick. James shouted a warning, “Lord, the sally port!”

  There was a small sally port forty paces from the mine. A dozen men suddenly emerged and ran towards the miners. Wulfric and his ten men turned to face them. “At them!”

  I drew my sword, “Come, let us give aid to our men.”

  Dick and his archers used their bows to aid Wulfric but the men who charged from within were reckless. I hurried over to them with my squires but before we reached the frenetic fight the defenders lay dead. Wulfric was in no mood for prisoners.

  The work on the mine continued all day. When it became dark we had a dilemma. If we abandoned the mine for the night, then the defenders would emerge and destroy all of our work. Wilfred arranged for some of our men to spend the night inside the mine. They used brands to give them light and my archers watched the sally port and the walls.

  I spoke with Llewellyn. “If you divide your men into shifts then we could keep working through the night. It must be easier for a few of you to work at the mine than all of you.”