by Griff Hosker
As we headed south Olaf concluded that we would be more likely to be attacked closer to Normandy as the Channel was narrow there. “That makes it easier. We only have to worry about the sea!”
I found the voyage much easier than when I had first braved it three years earlier. Perhaps I had grown up or more likely I was not the spoiled aristocrat I knew I had been. I found myself becoming embarrassed at some of the things I had said and done. I squirmed inside as I remembered my petulance. Sadly only three of my companions remained and only Wulfstan was whole. I knew that none of them would regret their decision to return to England. It was their home and it was where their hearts lay. Nor would they regret their death. They had died, swords in hand, defending their lord. They had had their warrior’s death.
I spent every waking hour with Harold, honing his skills. I was more determined than ever that he would become a knight. I owed it to Branton and to my father. I could do nothing about his skills with a lance until we reached solid ground once more. However he soon became almost as quick as I was with a sword. It helped that he had an archer’s eye and could react to movement quickly. His shield work was coming on too but unlike me he had not had to hold one from an early age. He had the strength but not the reactions to use it as a weapon of offence as well as defence. That would come. When riding a horse it mattered little as you used your left hand, along with your knees, to control the horse. He was lucky that he did not have to use a destrier yet. That would be an interesting experience for him.
Before we sailed we planned our voyage and our defence carefully. We knew nothing about fighting at sea; but we knew how to defend a position and between us we came up with a plan which, we hoped, would thwart any attempt by De Brus to attack us whilst at sea.
I was beginning to believe that we would escape the notice of our enemies as the coast of France loomed up and Captain Olaf told us that we had but two days left at sea. The lookout at the mast head shouted down the unwelcome news. “Sails to the south. There are three ships, master.”
We had discussed at length what to do. That had been the day before we sailed. The leading ship, ‘Mary’, took in sail and we increased speed so that we sailed but forty paces from each other. Both captains reefed their sails and the two captains matched speed and converged their courses. As the three ships approached from the south west, ropes were thrown and our two ships were pulled closer together. We used spare sails to pack between the ships and we became, effectively, a floating castle. The sails were tightly reefed and we were just making way. We had archers on both sides of our floating castle. Two archers squirmed up the mast to use that elevated position to target key sailors. We had thought out what we would do. We could not manoeuvre very well but we were a solid fighting platform.
The three ships which approached were smaller than we were but they were packed with men. Both of our captains had just two men each on the rudder and two men at the sail. All of the rest were ready for war. All had a weapon of some description. I joined all the other men on the starboard side with my bow and the quiver of arrows.
The three ships which approached had three choices: they could attack over the bow. That would diminish the effect of their numbers. An attack over the sterns would prove equally wasteful. The only solution to our unique defence was to divide their attack over our sides. That, too, was not as easy as it might have appeared. The wind would keep their ships moving north unless they turned and sailed a parallel course. That proved to be the choice they made.
It allowed us the opportunity to thin their numbers with our arrows as they sailed north, ready to turn. The three ships made the mistake of sailing too close to us. They were just fifty paces from us and our archers could not miss. Harold showed his skill when his first arrow plunged into the head of the steersman. He tumbled over the side and the ship veered away to the west. As others in the crew tried to remedy the problem they were struck by archers like Dick and John who did not miss either. We were not killing the men at arms but the ship’s crew were even more valuable. They struggled to regain control of their ship. I assumed that Edward and his men were having equal success.
Olaf ordered a little more sail and our two Titans of the sea sailed a little faster. It made the task of the three ships chasing us even more difficult. They had taken to protecting the crew with their men at arms who used their shields. The sailors shouted down, “The coast of Normandy on the port bow.”
We were tantalisingly close to safety but the River Orne was some way off. The first ship began to close with us on our steer board side. Now we concentrated our arrows on the knights. Two of them were hurled to a watery death and the others retreated behind a wall of shields. Once again Harold, Dick and John picked their targets. I was just aiming my arrows at the ship and hoping for success but they were targeting key figures on the other ship. Two men fell from the top of the mast and the enemy sail remained unfurled. They needed to reef it slow themselves down. The ship began to overtake us. Our bowmen then aimed at the huddle of men by the rudder. All of them died and the ship began to veer across the bows of the third ship which had reefed its sail and was heading for our stern.
I began to think we might have won when I heard a shout from ‘Mary’, “They have boarded us, my lord!”
I had expected something like this. “Harold, keep them at bay with the archers. Wulfric, Edgar bring your swords and shields.”
This was my kind of fighting. After donning my helmet I grabbed my shield and pulled myself on to the side of the ship. There was a gap between them but I was confident. I leapt across the narrow gap and landed on my feet. Edward and my men were being forced back by the men of Anjou. We had managed to appear at the end of their line. I looked behind me and saw that my two men were safe. “Wedge!” Three men did not make a strong wedge but we would have weight and we would fight as one.
The two of them tucked in behind me and I launched myself at the end of the enemy line. They did not expect the attack. The three of us hit the end man who tumbled to the floor. A moving ship needed good balance. Edgar stabbed him in the face with his sword and I brought my sword under the arm of the next man. Wulfric swung his sword over his head and split open the skull of the next man at arms.
Suddenly they were in disarray. They outnumbered us but we had a solid line facing them while three of us were working our way down the line attacking the shield side of the men of Anjou. It is hard to fight two men at once. Edward roared a battle cry and he used his own wedge to break into their line. The two knights they had with them fell to Edward and Alan and the others broke. They had thought to have an easy victory and instead they were being slaughtered. They threw themselves back to the safety of their own ship. Barely a third of them made it. The rest either fell to their deaths between the ships or the archers and spearmen killed them as they jumped.
“Over to ‘Serpent.’ Let us end this!”
The ship which had attacked ‘Mary’ was drifting towards the rocks, out of control. There were still two ships on the other side of the ‘Serpent’. I found it easier leaping back but some of Edward’s men struggled. It did not matter. The extra archers who joined Harold and the others showered the attacking ship with so many arrows it was as though a cloud had burst above them. They began to pull away as the sails filled and the steersman edged the charnel house to safety.
We waited until they had moved far enough away to show that they were defeated. Then Edward and his men returned to their ship and we severed our ties. We now had parity of numbers but, more importantly enough leaders and key sailors had been killed to render another attack impossible.
We had won. As we rounded the headland towards the Orne I knelt and said a silent prayer of thanks. Ominously the ships did flee but waited to the north of us. When the lookout shouted down we knew why.
“The river is blocked! There is a chain across the entrance.”
We had used just such a chain at Constantinople. Count Fulk must have brought the idea back with him w
hen he returned from the Holy Land. It was simple but effective. With both ends guarded he prevented any ship from entering or leaving the port of Caen.
“That is it, captain, we cannot reach Caen!” It was annoying and frustrating to come so close and have victory snatched away.
Olaf laughed, “We can land you on the beach just south of the river.”
“Will we be able to disembark?”
“Your horses can swim. So long as you do not try to land in your armour you should be safe. Once the horses are ashore then the ‘Mary’ will ride higher in the water anyway and we have a shallow draught. You might get your arse wet but that is all!”
We drew close to the other ship and the two captains conferred. It was decided that we would land first and be ready to receive the horses. I took off my armour and we put it in the chest. I wanted it neither doused nor damaged. I put my scabbard and sword over my shoulders and I lowered myself from the side. The water came up to my chest and a rogue wave soaked me but I waded ashore and then, with sword drawn, waved the rest to brave the sea. Some suffered the indignity of falling into the surf and all were soaked but they all made it. With my men in a defensive circle the ‘Serpent’ pulled away and ‘Mary’ edged in. I was glad that it was Aiden who supervised the loading of the beasts. He wisely chose Scout to be the first one to be sent ashore. They rigged a cradle beneath him and then lowered him into the water. Aiden jumped into the water to release the strap and I shouted encouragement to my horse. The brave horse fearlessly swam towards my voice.
Aiden sent the palfreys and the rouncys next. I saw that the ship rode higher and the captain brought her a little closer inshore. It made the journey shorter and the animals all made it to the beach safely. The most nerve wracking part was the landing of the destrier. Aiden sat astride Star as he was lowered into the water. My master of the horse spoke to him all the way down and then hung on to his mane as he swam ashore. We only had three destrier and Aiden had to perform the same action with them all. They were all landed successfully. The freedom I had given my slave had repaid me many times over.
With the horses landed we were able to land the armour and the rest of the men. It was almost dark when it was completed but we were ashore and had lost neither a man nor a horse. The two captains waved as they headed away from the darkening shore and we were alone in Normandy. Now all we had to do was to get to Caen. The question was, where was Count Fulk and his army?
It was too late to scout and we built a camp in the dunes. We ate cold rations but the delay in beginning our march proved a blessing in disguise as it allowed our horses to recover a little from the voyage. The attack by the three ships had resulted in some more armour and treasure from the dead bodies. Edward shared it out between the men at arms. It was a good start. We all shared the sentry duty, much to the annoyance of Richard who wondered why we had men at arms if the knights had to be sentries.
I sent Aiden off to the east before dawn. I needed to know if there was any danger ahead. He disappeared into the east and we prepared for our journey. We donned our war gear. It galled me but we had to use four of my men at arms to guard our chests and supplies. We had too few men as it was and I did not need to waste four men in such a way. I had my hostage with them and they were under clear orders what to do if he attempted escape. Until we joined King Henry’s army we were in danger and I could not risk my hostage warning De Brus and Fulk of our presence.
“Wulfric, I want you and three men to guard the spare horses and the supplies. Take Geoffrey de Mamers with you. If he attempts to flee then you know what to do.”
“I gave you my word! I have honour.”
“And this will be a test of that honour. I have spoken with Adele and know how she was abused. I have treated you well up to now so do not complain!” He nodded. “Wulfric, you and your men will ride in the middle of the column. Our supplies and our spare weapons need to be guarded.”
“Aye my lord.”
“Edward, take four men and guard the rear.” With those measures in place I waited for Aiden. “Dick, have half of the archers on the left flank. John, take the other half on the right.”
I now had just seven of us at the front of the column. We were the van and it would be up to us to meet any danger, head on.
Dawn broke and I saw Aiden appear over the dunes. “I saw the men on the chain but no others, but…”
“But what?”
“I saw many fires in the distance. There may be a camp ahead.”
I expected a camp but I thought that it would be that of the King. It now seemed unlikely that this was the case. The chain across the river suggested a siege. ”You have done well. Take charge of the three destrier. They will need time to recover from the voyage.” I could forget the destrier if Aiden was watching them.
We crossed the dunes and headed north to find the river. I knew that Caen lay to the east of the coast along the river. The fact that the port was blockaded was worrying. If we could not join the king in Caen, then what would we do? Once we reached the river we were able to ride close to the trees along its side. It gave us some protection from observation. We soon began to come across bodies. There had been fighting in this area. It looked to have been some time ago. The bodies had been stripped of all valuables and weapons but it made me even more cautious.
Scout saved us again. The land rose a little to a small ridge and Scout whinnied. I waved Dick forward. He was a woodsman and could hide in plain sight. He slipped from his horse and nocking an arrow he disappeared into the small stand of trees some hundred paces from us. He seemed to be away for a long time and I contemplated sending John after him. He returned just as I was about to wave John forward.
“There were two sentries my lord. They are both dead. They wore the same livery as those that attacked us. Ahead is the camp of Anjou. They are laying siege to Caen.”
We were trapped on the wrong side of the enemy. Thanks to the deadly accuracy of Dick’s bow we were able to watch the enemy’s dispositions from the top of the ridge. Our small numbers meant that we could hide whilst observing our enemy.
“We need to get inside Caen.”
Richard shook his head, “It is impossible. We are as likely to be attacked by our own side as the men of Anjou.”
“We cannot know that. We need more information about the enemy and the defenders. Richard, take charge here and let the men rest. We may need to move tonight.” I could see that he thought the situation was hopeless. Now I knew why he had become an impoverished knight. I saw obstacles as something to be overcome. He saw them as a barrier. Sadly I was stuck with him. King Henry expected three knights.
There was still plenty of daylight and I went, with Edward, a little closer to the walls and the defences. I had to see what Fulk was up to. Harold and Alan came with us. Their bows might be the difference between a sudden death and survival. I had thought that there would be more men outside than we actually found. Then I realised that the king had asked for the muster to be a few weeks later. De Brus had warned Count Fulk and he had attacked while the king had small numbers inside Caen. That worked in our favour. We might be able to force a passage. The numbers were not huge. It would, however, require cunning. This was where I missed Wulfstan and the others. They had done this sort of thing before. For me it was my first time. I used the knowledge and skills that they had given me. ‘First, gather all the intelligence you can. Second, exploit the enemy’s weakness.’ I looked again. The main camp was opposite the main gate. There looked to be over two hundred men camped there. There was a smaller one at the east gate. It looked to have a handful of tents only. That would be our best opportunity to get in.
“The problem is, Edward, that Richard is correct. Unless we can let the king know that we are coming we will be attacked as if we were the enemy.”
“I hate to agree with him but unless we can find a way to fly a message in then we are stuck outside.”
Harold suddenly laughed, “Then we can get a message inside.”
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“How? Witchcraft?”
“No, my lord, archery.” He pointed to the hill to our right. It was just three hundred paces from the castle wall. “If I released an arrow from there, with a message attached I could drop it into the castle and the king would know we were coming.”
Edward clapped him on the back. “He is right, my lord and if we used Dick and John too then we would have three times the chances of one of the messages reaching the king.”
I thought about it briefly. It was our only chance. This might be a glorious failure but I believed it would succeed. “Very well, Edward, fetch the men while Harold and I write the messages and prepare the arrows.”
Although we had some small pieces of sheepskin we had used to protect our weapons on the voyage we had no ink. Harold proved himself to be ever resourceful. He went to the dead fire of the sentries we had killed and brought a piece of charcoal. He selected one with a fine point but which would not break easily. I wrote the same message on each one. Harold trimmed the sheepskin to make it as small as possible and then he tied each one on a carefully chosen arrow.
“The extra weight will shorten the distance the arrow travels but the hill helps us, my lord. We can loose the arrow high and it should descend over the wall.”
While he finished his task I looked at the problem we faced. The drawbridge was raised. We would have to clear a path to the moat and then shout for the bridge to be lowered and the gate opened. That meant we had to eliminate the camp before us and do so silently so that Fulk’s men did not come from the main camp to stop us. The problem ruled out a headlong charge. We would need to use silence. My archers could help but then it would be down to the speed and skill of our swords. There was still enough light to see the numbers who faced us. There were eight men close by two pavises forty paces from the bridge. They would be our last obstacle. The main camp was two hundred paces from the moat. There were twenty warriors there and they too had a number of pavises strategically placed for protection. I could see no sign of any knights. This looked to be a small force of men at arms who were there to stop any messenger escaping through the small side gate. Even as I watched, they carefully changed the guard at the moat. They did so under a wall of shields. I saw the sentries on the wall looking for an opportunity of sending arrows their way. They were careful and the defenders wasted no arrows. I took a guess that they would do this every four hours. It would keep the men alert. They had a hard task. Their eyes would have to remain on the gate and the bridge. I began to see the possibility that we might succeed although the odds were still against us. We had to wait until night and then try my risky strategy.