by Griff Hosker
As I mounted Flame I said to Edward, “Have the men cut some stakes and place them before our camp. If we have to fall back then we will have somewhere to defend.” We did not have long but any defence was better than none.
“Aye lord.”
It would be a small group of knights who would ride to meet on the sand spit in the centre of the river. The King, William Marshal, the Earl of Chester, William Longespée, the Earl of Salisbury and myself. His half-brother, William Longespée, carried the standard. We said nothing as we rode to the narrow river. To meet us were the Kings of Gwynedd, Deheubarth. and Powys. As well as four marcher lords. I recognised the livery of one of them. It was one of the de Ferrers family. I had met and slain members of that family in the Holy Land and Anjou. I had no doubt that I would be recognised. I did not know the lord who bore the distinctive shield. I knew that he would make for me once the battle began.
As we waited for the kings and rebels to descend into the river I prayed that the King would change his mind about fighting the battle he had planned. Already the sun had shifted. We had, perhaps four or five hours of daylight left.
Llewelyn, later to be called the Great was in the ascendancy. King John would allow him to become a greater king than the one who met us. The other Welsh kings were minor in comparison. Had the marcher lords not been present then I believe that the King’s plan might have worked for, as we waited for the discussions to begin I saw that the Welsh knights were wearing old mail and none had the full-face helmets which we wore. Their horses were palfreys and not war horses. The marcher lords, in contrast, were armed and mounted as we were. The combination of those knights and the Welsh archers was a lethal one.
King Llewelyn spoke and that told me that the others deferred to him. “Why have you come here to Wales? Are you here to make war on us? If so then the crows will feast on your men and horses.”
“King Llewelyn. you are married to my daughter and for that reason I am in a forgiving frame of mind and will overlook the effrontery of this display before me.” He jabbed his right hand at the marcher lords. “I see before me rebels and it is they who are the cause of my presence. Hand them over to me and we shall retire.” He saw de Ferrers for the first time. “Godfrey de Ferrers, you are an ungrateful cur! I have given your family estates and bestowed coin upon you and this is how you repay me?”
De Ferrers laughed, “You have lost the right to rule just as you have lost Normandy. If you want us, John Lackland, then come and get us! You may have brought your northern hunting dogs but they will avail you nothing.”
King Llewelyn shook his head, “Peace de Ferrers. Kings are talking!”
I took heart from the fact that de Ferrers coloured. He was not happy to be spoken to like that.
William Marshal spoke, “Can we not end this amicably? No one wants bloodshed here.”
King Llewelyn nodded, “You are well respected here, Earl Marshal, but it has gone beyond talking. This will be settled by arms. It is right that it is fought here on this river which is the mightiest in this land. The ancient ones worshipped it as the Sabrina. Do your worst, King John. God is on our side and the land will protect us too!” He turned his horse and led the others back up the bank.
As we turned and rode back William Marshal said, “Will you not reconsider your plan, Your Majesty? When we charge the river will slow us down and then their archers will have free rein.”
The King shook his head, “The only thing which changes is that we walk our horses to the river and our archers and those on foot will line it. My standard will signal the advance to the river. When we have crossed the river and arrayed, I will sound the horn three times. Then we will charge!”
The Earl Marshal looked at me and I shrugged. The die was cast but I had my own plan to avoid disaster for those whom de Ferrers had called the hunting dogs of the north. I would save as many of my men and those of the Palatinate as I could.
When I reached my men, I saw that David of Wales and the valley archers were not there. That meant they had been able to hide in the woods. I could rely on David of Wales. It would not win the battle for us but it might save some of the men at arms and knights who would charge into the Welsh arrows.
“Henry Youngblood, I want a ditch digging here. When we advance you and the men at arms are to provide protection for the archers by the river. The ditch and the stakes will be our last defence.”
“It will not be a deep ditch lord.”
“I know but it must be there to slow up the enemy.”
“Aye lord.”
“Alfred, summon David of Stanhope. Edward have my valley knights gather.” When they arrived, I explained the plan. “I think that this attack is doomed to failure but we must prosecute our part. I believe that the King will order a withdrawal. I have my men at arms preparing a shallow ditch. It might help. The archers and men at arms of the Palatinate will guard the river bank.” I shook my head, “It is the knights who will suffer this day,” I looked at Alfred, “and, I fear, our squires.”
I mounted and turned to Alfred. “I will not need Scean. If I lose Flame then I will make my way back to our lines. If my horse is lost you must get back to our men at arms.”
“I will not leave you. Besides I carry the standard. If I ride back then your knights will follow.”
I gave him a steely stare, “Precisely! You are my squire and you will obey me. If you do not then you will no longer be my squire. Understood?”
“Yes, lord.”
I donned my helmet and took the spear. My knights joined me. The Welsh and the rebels were singing and banging their shields. They were confident. King John’s standard was lowered and I shouted, “Forward.”
I saw that the men who faced me were a mixture of the men of Powys and rebels. De Ferrers had chosen to face me. There was a shield wall of men at arms backed by archers. I could not help glancing to the woods which lay just one hundred and twenty paces from our left flank. I could not see my archers and I was looking for them. Protected by the river their arrows would slow down any pursuit. The water came up to my thighs as we forded the river. Poor Alfred had to endure water up to his waist. This was not the best preparation for a first combat.
I had Sir Edward on one side of me and Sir William on the other. My other valley knights were to my right and the knights of the Palatinate to my left. William Marshal and his household knights were further to our right. That gave me hope. My other hope was the sun. it would be in our eyes, which never helped, but we would be looking down and the fading light behind us would, increasingly, make it harder for their archers and easier for ours. Perhaps I was clutching at straws but I had learned that, in warfare, the margins between victory and defeat could be narrow indeed.
The King was in the front rank but I knew that as soon as we charged his household knights would form up before him. We would not risk a king. In truth he would be safe enough anyway. A captured king was more valuable than a dead one. Young Henry Winchester was safe in Windsor castle. If the King died we had a new one in waiting!
The three horns sounded. We had three hundred paces to travel. For two hundred of those paces we would be within range of their arrows. We would be travelling slowly. I had heard of some knights who had armoured their horses. I knew that I might have to consider it. I waved my spear and the knights of the north rode to battle. I did not think that we would all return. With archers facing us there was a temptation to ride faster but that would have been a mistake. The Welsh shield wall was a loose one. If we could hit them at the charge then we would sweep through them and disorder their archers. The flaw I saw in the Welsh plan was that they were relying upon their horsemen counter charging us and that would necessitate them riding through their own men.
I held my shield before me to my left. That way Flame was afforded some protection for his head. I would rely on the strength and integrity of my mail and my helmet. The Welsh had good bows, good bowmen but they used the barbed arrow. Our horses could be hurt but only a k
night with a poorly made helmet would suffer too much damage.
The arrows began to fall. The first few fell short and the second was long. It allowed us to get up to the canter. I glanced to my right and saw that our centre, led by the King was ahead of us. Their line was not as tight but they would hit the spearmen soon. An arrow struck my helmet. It made my ears ring but my padded hood and arming cap prevented any damage. Two arrows struck the cantle on my saddle and three more hit my chausses. They were targeting me. We were one hundred paces from them when I lowered my spear. To my left I was aware of a horse tumbling and throwing its rider. To my right there was the clash of steel on wood as our centre hit the Welshmen of Gwynedd. We had a continuous line still and I saw a couple of the Welsh spearmen wavering. Their archers were bravely sending arrow after arrow towards us but soon they would be trampled beneath our horses’ hooves unless they ran.
Twenty paces from the Welsh line I spurred Flame. An arrow had nicked his side and he was angry. His mouth was open and his teeth were already seeking a target. As I pulled back my spear the Welshman who faced me thought better of it and he ran. I brought my spear forward and hit the surprised archer he had exposed by his flight, in the chest. There was a loud crack on either side of me as spears hit shields, helmets and bodies. I was desperate to look right and see how the King fared but that would have been disastrous. I pulled back my arms and skewered a fleeing archer in the back.
I heard a horn and, looking ahead saw that the line of rebel and Welsh horsemen were readying for a charge. My knights were still with me and were almost in a solid line. I gambled. “Alfred, signal the charge!” He lowered the standard to face the enemy. Not all of my knights would see it. That did not matter. Enough would and they would know that we followed through with our charge. If I had had two squires then the second would have had a horn.
De Ferrers rode for me. He had a lance and he had a good warhorse. He was eager for vengeance. He was too eager for the knights around him were echeloned back. Godfrey de Ferrers had the best horse and he was waiting for no man.
I sacrificed length of strike for accuracy by choosing a spear. De Ferrer’s lance wavered up and down as he rode over the rough ground. He would hit me first and I would have to take the hit and hope it was not a mortal one. I shortened my grip so that only half of the spear stuck out before me. It would have looked suicidal to the rebel knight who charged me. I had allowed him to approach from my right where I had no shield. That meant he had no shield either. He had done this before for he stood in his stirrups to add power to the blow. He rammed it at me. As luck would have it although he aimed at my middle the ground made it rise up and catch my helmet a glancing blow. Splinters shattered. Some came through the holes in my helmet but, mercifully, they missed my eyes. I had to strike almost blindly but when I rammed forward I was rewarded by the rasp of spear on mail and then, as he began to pass me, his momentum drove my spear into his middle and finally tore it from my grasp. He tried to stay in the saddle but I knew it would be in vain.
I had no time to take a spear from Alfred. Instead I drew my sword. De Ferrers’ charge meant I was through their horsemen. I was facing their fyrd. I felt reckless for I had done that which I thought impossible, I had broken through their knights. I spurred Flame. By now he had the joy of battle in him. He reared as I spurred him. That must have terrified the fyrd for they turned and fled. With my household knights and their squires, we drove deep into the heart of pig farmers, yeomen and villeins. Our horses did most of the work for us and I only had to lay out two men with the flat of my sword. Then I heard King John’s horn. We were in retreat.
I was close enough to my knights and squires to shout to them, “Fall back! We have done enough!”
I saw blood spattered surcoats. I saw a couple of squires nursing wounds but we were alive. I turned and we headed back. David of Stanhope and Stephen of Spennymoor had held the charge of the knights but they were hard pressed. We did not charge we almost walked into the rear of the line of knights from Powys. The shock of our sudden attack made them wheel away and I shouted, “Knights of the Palatinate, we have done enough! Fall back.”
Our attack had made the enemy fall away but seeing us flee they turned to charge after us. Our horses were spent. Edward and I were at the rear. I glanced over my shoulder and saw twenty knights almost upon us. Behind them were fifty more. When David of Wales unleashed his arrow storm it came as a bolt of lightning on a summer’s day. Our arrows were not hunting arrows, they were knight killers. As Edward and I descended to the water the sun began to set behind the Welsh hills and the men of Powys died. By the time we had scrambled up the other bank it was over. The men who had chased us were heading back to their own lines with arrows still finding men and our warriors were all chanting. The King and the Earl of Chester might have suffered a defeat but we had not. We had been a heartbeat away from their baggage. I would take that as a victory!
The knights of Durham had suffered. They had lost squires and knights but those who had followed King John and the Earl of Chester had lost more. My archers had been our saviours. I was summoned after dark to the King’s tent. I saw that he had suffered a wound as had William Marshal. The King glowered at me, “How is it, Earl that you always survive these battles and other, worthier knights do not? I have lost household knights whom I value.”
I forced myself to remain calm, “I would say luck, Majesty, save that most of my men survive too. Perhaps they are better trained.”
He waved an irritated hand as though to dismiss me. “We shall need you and your luck in the morning. I suspect the Welsh will take advantage of this setback and attack us.”
I was going to speak but thought better of it. William Marshal spoke for me as he had had the same idea. “Lord, let them attack. They will have the same problem that we had. They have the river to cross and our horses have made the bank both slippery and harder to climb. We cannot win this battle but we can ensure that we do not lose. Dismount our knights and have them fight on foot.”
I saw the King chew his lip. His half-brother, the Earl of Salisbury was the deciding factor, “If our archers can do what Cleveland’s men did then we can make them bleed before they even get to the river.”
The King agreed. By the time I reached the camp Flame’s wounds had been seen to and Alfred had already sharpened my sword. I said, “You did well today, Alfred. You followed orders. Did you have to use a weapon?”
He nodded, “I used your spare spears and thrust them into the men who were fleeing. I could not hold on to them, lord and I lost them.”
“Then that is a small price to pay. Tomorrow you will be mounted and holding my banner. Make sure you wear your arming cap and helmet. Use your shield. Sitting on a horse you will be a target.”
“We just wait for them to attack us?”
“We just wait. Now fetch food. I am hungry.”
I joined my knights sitting around the fire. “Sir Fótr, Sir Ralph, how are your squires?”
“Happy that they have survived the battle and that they have a wound which they can show.”
Sir Ralph nodded his agreement, “They were bloody rather than damaging. They may both be stiff tomorrow but by then we will be heading home will we not, lord?”
I shook my head, “We stand and wait for them to attack. If they do then we have a chance of getting home unscathed. If we flee we will be chased and harried all the way to Oxford and beyond.”
Gilles brought Sir Edward some food. He sniffed at it then said, “If they attack then we can hold them. I counted twenty dead knights yesterday including de Ferrers. They have plenty of men left but the ones who fought us broke. When they come they will be worried.”
Sir Peter said, “Then all is well?”
Edward shook his head, “There will be precious little booty and treasure.”
Sir William laughed, “You have followed Sir Thomas too long. There will be other wars and other battles. We are alive, Edward.”
Sir William s
aid, “And we still have our honour.”
“My men kept a good watch. They had benefitted from the late battle for they had slipped over the river and taken the valuables from the dead rebel and Welsh knights. They also found four horses wandering, riderless. We had fought enough wars and battles to knowhow to make the most of the aftermath.
Ridley the Giant woke me before dawn. I looked around, “Alfred?”
My sergeant at arms grinned, “He was grooming the horses after you retired, lord. I thought to let him sleep. There will be little for him to do this morning.”
“The enemy are awake?”
He nodded, “The night sentries heard them well before dawn. They are planning an attack. I heard them moving their horses. We have time, lord. Henry Youngblood has horsemeat cooking. Those small Welsh horses make good eating… if there is nothing better to hand.” He turned to go, “I have had Master Alfred’s horse saddled for him.”
My men were resourceful. “Thank you, Ridley.”
“My sons have told me how hard it is to be a squire.”
When I heard the Welsh horns I woke Alfred. “Come, dress. Soon the battle will commence.”
The Welsh horns were to order the enemy into their positions. All of the men on the left flank were already in position. Some of those in the centre were a little tardy but as we did not need horses it was of little matter. After Alfred had made water he ran to me with my shield.
“Go and eat something. Your horse is saddled. I will call you if they come earlier than we expect.” I carried my helmet and slung my shield over my left shoulder. Our spears were already rammed into the soft earth where we would fight. My knights were already there. Edward had a war axe. He grinned wolfishly at me. “A horse might charge you, even with a spear sticking from it but I have yet to see one charge with no head!” I had seen Edward wield an axe before. It was a frightening sight for he had long arms and a broad body. He could almost have the same reach as with a spear.