by Griff Hosker
It was late afternoon when we arrived but my son and the rest of my men had arrived many days earlier and a watch had been kept for me. Consequently, I was greeted by a wharf full of people from my wife down to Tam the Hawker. They seemed pleased to see me and I was touched. When I saw Matilda, I saw that she was with child. I would have a grandchild. My heart filled with joy. For some reason I felt close to tears and I knew not why. I was a warrior and warriors did not weep.
I was greeted as a conquering hero and yet I had done little. The two battles we had fought had never been in doubt. My wife hugged me and kissed me. She whispered in my ear, “You are to be a grandfather!”
I laughed, “Even an old warrior knows that Matilda has not just been overeating. When is the child due?”
“The child should be born soon.”
“And Rebekah?”
My wife shook her head, “God has not blessed them with a child yet. She and Sir Geoffrey are at Elton. They have finished their hall and live there now.” She smiled. “They will be trying for a child. Tonight, we eat simply but I will send for Sir Edward and Sir Fótr as well as Sir Geoffrey to attend a celebration tomorrow night. We should have a feast to toast your safe return. Our son and his wife have only waited for your swift arrival. They will head to Seamer the day after the feast. Matilda is anxious to make her new hall into a home.” She turned to William. “Come my son for you have grown and your brother and Sir Jocelyn have been telling me that you are now close friends with a King! Let me hug you before you become too important!”
Isabelle rushed to me and threw herself into my arms, “My father, the hero!” Her arms squeezed me tightly. She said, in my ear, “Alfred has told me of some of the things that you did. It is not necessary to be the hero of Arsuf every day of your life! Let others take the risks too.”
As she drew away I said, “A man cannot change the way he is.”
She nodded, “I will have the wine ready when you reach the castle.” She laughed. Her laugh was like tinkling water. “You still have many people to greet!”
Alfred and his wife approached, “Congratulations!” I clasped his arm
Alfred looked happy. “Victories, treasure and a child! I am truly blessed. You left the King safe?”
“As safe as any man surrounded by book keepers. We have made a start, my son and now it is up to the Council to teach him politics and diplomacy. I am happy that he knows how to fight a battle. Sir Robert is a good knight.” I looked around. “Where is Sir Jocelyn?”
“He and his squire, along with his men, rode out to Seamer. We were unsure when you would return and he and his squire said that they would ensure that the work was moving on apace.” He laughed, “If I did not know better then I would say that he had a woman somewhere. He kept sneaking off in Wales and came back smelling as though he had been with a woman.” He shrugged, “Bachelor knights eh? They plough where they will!”
“He is a good knight. I had hoped he might become one of the King’s men.”
We began to walk back to the castle. “He wishes to learn about you and how you rule this valley. He spoke of nothing but you on the journey home. He asked about the most minute detail of your routine. Edward tired of it and told him to shut up!” Alfred laughed. Edward never changes.”
I shook my head, “There is nothing remarkable about me.”
“That is what Sir Edward said. He became cross when Sir Jocelyn began to ask about your favourite rides. I confess I did not understand the reason. You seem to be an obsession for him. Still, that is why he has come here to learn how to be more like you. I suppose that he has to study every detail of you.”
Matilda giggled, “And Isabelle will not be unhappy that he stays close by. I think she likes him.”
“Ah, and Sir Jocelyn? Does he return the feelings?”
Alfred shrugged, “He only seems to have an interest in you and becoming the best knight that he can be. And, as I say, there may be a woman he has secreted.” We entered my inner bailey. “He knows that he will never inherit the Gower. He made enough coin in the campaign to have money but he wishes to be a lord of a manor. I think he hopes that you will give him one.”
“He would be better served following the King. I will speak with him when he returns.”
It was a cosy meal that we enjoyed. Only Rebekah was absent. It was good to have my family around me. My wife and Isabelle gave me all the news from the manor. They knew who had died, which mothers had given birth; who had become parents. They told me of new families coming to the town and the manor. It was a litany of trivia and yet a relief after looking at lists of dead warriors. I had not lost any men save Harry son of John but other lords had. De Clare and de Braose had lost loyal knights and warriors. I knew myself what it was like to lose oathsworn. There was a guilt for you knew that you had led them into battle.
My wife, Matilda and Isabelle retired before my sons and I. Matilda was tired. Isabelle had no Jocelyn to admire and my wife, well, I think she went to prepare our bed.
Alfred spoke and I knew why he had kept this news for the three of us alone. “When we came through Skipton we spoke with the lord there. He told us some disturbing news.” I looked at him. “It seems we did not manage to account for all of Sir Hugh’s men. Some must have escaped for there was mischief after we had left for Wales. He sent to Sir Ralph for help and they discovered the remains of the camp they had used. They are fled.”
I nodded, “We knew that from the four men we hired.”
William said, “Surely, they are just brigands. They can cause no more trouble.”
I remembered the letter. I told my sons about it. “Sir Hugh had a son. It seems clear to me that that reprobate of a baron wished to leave something to his son. Who knows what message he sent to him. If there was a son then they may have found him. If they joined him then they would seek vengeance or perhaps the manor.”
Alfred shook his head, “The son can have no claim on the land and the men would be hanged as bandits.”
My son had missed the point, “Alfred, that is not the danger. We are the reason that this unknown son lost a father. I killed him and we hanged his squire. Vengeance may be on his mind.”
“Then we will be vigilant. My little brother is little no longer. He is almost a man grown. He can watch your back and your men at arms can smell a villain!”
I nodded but I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck prickling.
I rose early. My wife had made my welcome complete when I had returned to my chamber. I woke feeling like a new man. The sense of menace I had felt the night before was gone thanks to my wife’s tender embraces. After I had spoken with Geoffrey I left to ride to the home of Ridley the Giant. He had a farm which lay to the north of my town. It was close to the Oxbridge and stood on a piece of high land. He had a fine view of Hartburn woods. My people all rose earlier than those in my castle and I was greeted by all that I passed. It made me feel part of the manor again. Once I crossed the bridge the land rose to the hall on the hill.
Marguerite, his wife, loved the farm. She was Swedish and their life on a farm in that cold northern land had been hard. Here in England it was easier and she loved the variety of crops they could raise. Ridley was away so much that it was she who was the farmer and Ridley’s success in war meant that they never had to rely on the success of what they grew. His two daughters and their husbands lived on the farm with them. The two men had been warriors but preferred the life of a farmer. It suited Ridley for he was no farmer. Even as I rode up I saw him stripped to the waist and hewing logs. He was still preparing for war. The axe he swung was a weapon even though his actions were peaceful.
“Good morning lord. You are up and about early!”
“As are you.” I dismounted and Alf, one of his sons in law, took my horse to water her. “I thought to speak with you privately.”
He swung the axe to embed it in the log. “This sounds ominous, lord.”
“Not really. Henry Youngblood spoke to me. He tires o
f war and wishes to see his grandchildren grow. He will be the castellan for me. I thought to ask you to lead my men at arms.” I added, hurriedly, “If you wish to spend more time with your family then I would understand.”
He grinned with relief. “I would be honoured. I thought I had done something wrong.”
I shook my head. “There is one thing, however, Hugh of Craven had men who escaped. I fear they may wish to make mischief in my land. Keep a good watch for strangers eh? Your farm has a good aspect.”
“Aye lord. I still worry about Harry son of John.”
I stroked my beard and told him my suspicions.
“You may be right. Morag was a sneaky bitch. We will watch for a woman too.” He poured a pail of water over his sweating body. “Then we are home for a while?”
“We are. I hope to see my first grandchild born before we go to war once more.”
“Then as the new leader of your men at arms I will assign two warriors to watch you.”
“That will not be necessary, Ridley.”
He looked at me seriously, “Lord all of us owe all that we have to you. Robert of Newton and Sam Strongarm are young. They have no families. They can watch over you and both can help Master William practise the art of being a knight.”
For some reason, as I rode back to Stockton I felt happier. I had too much to live for and the thought of a knife in the night ending that was too much. My wife was keen to make this a celebration to remember. Anya and Brigid, the two young girls rescued from Sir Hugh’s clutches, had not left my castle. Aunt Ruth was still helping with their recovery but they were much happier these days. Nanna looked after Matilda but Aunt Ruth and my wife used the girls, who had become young women, as almost ladies in waiting. They helped to organise everything and it was they who greeted me when I returned to my hall. “Your lady wife said that you should send riders to invite your knights and their families for the feast.”
“Yes, lord, she was insistent that you should do so as soon as you returned.”
I smiled for I could hear the tone my wife would have used. She would have been annoyed that I had ridden abroad before sending riders. “Tell her I will do so.” They were about to turn away when a thought came to me. “Are you able to speak of your time with Sir Hugh yet? If not then I will understand.”
The one called Anya nodded, “We have cried away the pain of those times. Lady Ruth told us how to deal with those memories. We can speak but not, I pray, of the horror we endured.”
“I would not know that. I cannot conceive how a man can do what he did. Did Sir Hugh have a son?”
“He had no wife, lord. No woman would be able to abide living with him. There was no son.”
“And there was none who visited him, perhaps in the last year before I came?”
“No sir… oh I forget myself.” Anya looked at Brigid. “Those hooded men who came. Who were they?”
Brigid said, “I know not.” She looked at me. “It was more than six months before you rescued us lord and not long after the Lady Matilda was brought to Skipton. Three hooded men arrived late one night. One was a servant for he slept in the stable and they were gone by dawn.”
“You did not hear their names nor see their faces?”
“No lord but the reason I remember them was because Sir Hugh did not send for us that night. We had a night where we were not…”
I held up my hand, “I would not ask more save this. Were they old or young?”
They looked blankly at me and then Anya said, “One wore mail and had spurs.”
“Aye and they both had swords but their hoods covered their faces.”
“Thank you.” As I headed to the warrior hall I reflected that I knew more now than I had done. I would ask Sir Ralph if there had been a knight amongst the men he had hunted.
I sent riders to invite my lords and then went to the Great Hall. There were duties and responsibilities I had neglected whilst being on campaign. There were trials to arrange. I would need to hold a courts baron. I would need to inspect the archers when they met at St. John’s well for their Sunday practice. My priest, Father Harold, would have notice of births, deaths and marriages which I would need. Many lords simply allowed their steward to perform these acts. I was not one of those. It brought me close to the people.
Geoffrey, Father Harold and myself spent what remained of the morning going through all that I needed to know and, more importantly, to do. My wife ended the meeting by shooing away the priest and my steward, “Come, it is time for food and I need time with my husband too!”
They backed away and I was left with my wife. I sighed for I knew that she would not have asked the two men to leave unless she had something important to tell me. “Yes wife, what is it? If it is Isabelle and her infatuation with Sir Jocelyn then I know.”
She waved a hand, “That is nothing. He is handsome and young. He is not the man for our daughter. He is pleasant enough but she will get over him. This is more important. The keep is no longer large enough for us. We now have Anya and Brigid living here. Soon we will have grandchildren and I would have them stay with us. Babies and young children require a great deal of space.”
I was relieved. This was a problem with which I could deal. “We could build an annex in the bailey but that would make that area crowded.”
“No, there is enough there already.”
“Then we build upwards.” We had a square keep. There were four small towers. They were really turrets. My keep had just two floors and a cellar. The proximity of the river meant that when there was flooding then the cellar filled with water and one year the Great Hall had been flooded. “We build two floors and move the Great Hall upstairs. This can be divided up into chambers. I will take this opportunity to increase the size of one tower. I have a mind to have a solar as my father did.” I looked at my wife. She looked disappointed. “What is wrong my love?”
“I expected an argument. I thought you would complain about the expense.”
“The expense is nothing but I must write to the King to ask permission. The extra floors are not a problem but if I am to build a tower then that might be deemed an aggressive act. I do not want to give other barons the opportunity to use me as an example. Does my idea meet with your approval? I know that there might be flooding in a bad winter but you do not want young children to have a great number of stairs to negotiate.”
“It is an acceptable risk. I feared it might impair your ability to defend the castle.”
“We have good gatehouses. As we will be buying stone and having a mason employed then I will have a barbican built at the south gate. It will be amore imposing entrance. I also thought to have a church built for the town to use. The one inside the castle is too small. Little more than our chapel it is barely large enough for the garrison. I thought to have one built on the high ground overlooking the common and St. John’s well. I will speak with Father Harold. It would mean another priest.”
She came to me and kissed me, “You are a constant surprise. Here was I expecting an argument and you have already come up with more ideas than I. When did you think of these improvements?”
“When I travel I do not just fight. I have eyes and I look. I have stayed in many castles and halls. Most are worse but some are better and I have looked at those. After we have eaten I will seek out Walter the Mason. I dare say he will be grateful for the work.”
“And the coin?”
“I brought back a chest and we have more in the strong room. I have enough.” It was true that I had plenty of gold for I had worked hard as a sword for hire to make profit. I used money to hire men but that was my only expense. My farms were profitable and the taxes from my town brought me a good income.
I found my mason with his labourers. Cedric the Chandler was reaping the benefit of increased trade along the river. After a long voyage north ships often needed to buy new tackle and sails. Being based by the river he needed sturdy foundations. He was having a stone quay and workshop built upstream from the
castle and the wharf. It was close enough for me to walk there.
“Walter.”
They all stopped. The men all gave a bow. “Yes, lord?”
“I will not keep your mason long, Cedric. I have work for him.”
Cedric would pay good coin but I was the Earl! Walter wiped his hands on his apron and pick up his wax tablet. I was not sure that he could read but he understood his own marks. “Yes lord. I have nearly finished the work for Cedric. It will be time for the carpenters and joiners next. What do you require, my lord?”
I led him back to the castle. I heard Cedric bark at the men to continue working. Time was money to Cedric. I pointed out what we wanted. He listened as I went through all the work. He could see the site for the church, the barbican and the extension. He scribbled his marks on his wax tablet. To me they made as much sense as the marks I had seen the Egyptians use on their temples but he seemed to understand them. He sucked a deep breath and scratched his ear, “It will be expensive lord.”
I laughed, “I am not a fool, Walter. I know that it will cost gold. You are a good mason and, if you wish to continue to work in my town then you will not rob me. Whatever it costs I will pay.”
He shook his head, “I would not dream of robbing you, lord. It is just that it is such a big job that I will have to employ other masons and their labourers.”
“Good for I want the work to begin as soon as possible.”
“I will send word to the other masons and I can begin work four days from now. I can start on the foundations for the church and the barbican. The keep will need to wait for the stone to arrive.”
“Good. Come to my hall on the morrow before you begin work for Cedric and I will have silver for your expenses. Could you do a drawing so that I may see what it is like?”
“Of course, lord and you can change it to whatever design you like. This will be good for my sons. They are both apprentices and I want them to see how to build a church. One day we may build an abbey or a cathedral.”
“I doubt that there will be one in Stockton.”