The Road to Agincourt

by Griff Hosker

  “We both know that this is not the work of an afternoon. I should have seen her fall and prevented it earlier but I too felt the knife to my heart when Mary was taken.”

  “Looking back is always easier than looking forward.” She rose to put another log on the fire which burned beneath the simmering pot of potage. “My days are filled with little of import these days and I know that had you not come to Lithuania then my son and I would be slaves. You can leave on the King’s errand and I will do all that I can for your wife was more than kind when first I came to this land.”

  Just then I heard the sound of hooves as my captains returned. I nodded and said, “And I shall be in your debt if you can save my wife.”

  Chapter 4

  Unlike my visit to Windsor, my ride north needed a larger number of men for we would be travelling through the land which did not wish to be ruled by King Henry. More than that it was a wilder country with many places where we could be ambushed. The attempt on the Prince’s life was still relatively fresh in my mind. My two Captains each led fifteen men. We had spare horses with us and all of us were armed and prepared for war for we would ride armoured and with helmets. I had left Weedon torn between my duty to the King and my duty to my wife but Magda had arrived before I had left with a basket of cakes and biscuits she had made. When she had entered my hall, it had been with laughter in her voice and that was infectious. Agnes and the other servants took their cue from Magda and as I kissed my wife goodbye, I saw the hint of a smile in her eye. Magda had not worked a miracle but she had held my wife from the edge of the brink and would now begin to pull her back. It was what Harold had done quite literally, all those years ago, with her son. In Magda’s eyes, a debt was being repaid.

  My captains rode next to me along with Harry. The Great North Road was a wide road and it was only when we met travellers heading south that we had to move into pairs. “Father, if Archbishop Scrope is a sympathiser of the northern rebels is it wise to visit York?”

  “If the Archbishop plays a treacherous game then we must give him fair warning of the consequences. King Henry sent me for a reason; I am known to be loyal to the crown and I have the King’s ear. If I speak then it is as though it comes from the King himself.” Harry nodded. “And I slew Hotspur. He was the knight they thought to be unbeatable and sending me will remind them that they lost and that I was the instrument of their fall.”

  Captain Edgar said, “Aye, lord, but it also puts you in danger for the road twixt York and Warkworth is a dangerous one.”

  I waved an arm in a full circle, “And I have the best warriors in the land to protect me. I do not doubt that there will be an attempt upon my life but it will not be close to York. Until we reach the Tees they will not attack. That will be partly to alleviate suspicion from the Archbishop of York and also because the land there does not favour ambush. Bishop Skirlaw of Durham is a friend of King Henry; indeed, he was a friend of King Richard and we will be safe in the Palatinate. Newcastle showed its colours when it barred its gates to the Earl of Northumberland. That means if there is an attack then it will be north of Newcastle and south of Warkworth. It is why we have Stephen of Morpeth with us for that is his land and he will know where an attack is likely to come.”

  Harry shook his head and laughed, “And when did you work this out, father?”

  “While the King was telling me my task and while speaking to the Prince. Planning is never wasted, Harry.”

  I was aware that I was training Harry as I had trained Thomas. Thomas was now acting as my lieutenant in Northampton and I knew that my family was safe as was the road to London.

  Travelling with so many armed and mailed men meant that we were noticed. There were northern sympathisers who lived on the road north. Even in royal castles such as Lincoln, there were still spies and one such spy, at least, must have ridden north to York and warned the Archbishop there of our imminent arrival for we were greeted at the gates by a smiling guard from the Archbishop’s retinue.

  “Sherriff Strongstaff, the Archbishop is pleased that you have come to visit and he has had quarters prepared for you at the palace.”

  The Archbishop was obviously up to date with events happening further south for he had used the correct title. “And we will just stay one night for my business in the north is most important and commissioned by the King himself.”

  We were taken through York’s ancient and narrow streets to the Archbishop’s Palace which was close to the Minster. The Archbishop was slightly older than I was but he had had a life which had been easier than mine and it showed in his paunch and chins. He ate and drank well. He smiled disarmingly as I was introduced and I was on my guard immediately for he was too effusive in his welcome. He had once been a supporter of Henry Bolingbroke and had been one of the churchmen responsible for deposing King Richard but he had now allied himself with the King’s enemies. I was not fooled by the smile but I, too, could play the game.

  “And it is good to see you, Archbishop. You have a strong city here which can withstand the threat from the north.”

  He frowned and tried to see the message in my words, “Threat from the north?”

  I was being duplicitous and using my words to deceive him, I smiled, “It is well known that the Scots harbour ambitions to take this city and they have been thwarted many times.”

  He looked relieved, “Indeed, save us from the privations of the Scots is an old adage. Come, I have rooms prepared for you. How long will you stay?”

  “As I told your man, overnight only for I must speak with the Earl of Northumberland urgently as the reason for my visit is the King’s business.”

  “What a pity for I had hoped to entertain you here for a few days. You have led a most interesting life and as one who was a crusader in the Baltic, I was anticipating diverting conversation.”

  I smiled, “My tale will seem dull for, in truth, we did little.”

  As we ate, he probed me, ostensibly about the Baltic Crusade but the reality was he was trying to gather information. Perhaps he saw me as someone who with the white hairs on my head and beard was getting old and might be careless. I found it easy to deflect his questions with answers which did not seem to follow. I saw that he was confused. I even had time, as we ate and spoke, to think of Peter the Priest, my old brother in arms who ran an alms house by the river. Time would not allow a visit and I found that sad. Old friends were like a good wine, the older they were the more valuable they became.

  I had warned my son and Abelard to guard their tongues and they heeded my words. As they served us, I saw that the other servers questioned them at length. I know it was hard for them to avoid divulging information but my son Harry showed his new found maturity by closely watching Abelard and protecting the young squire. My men at arms and archers were housed in the warrior hall but they too were alert and as we headed for Middleham, the next day, they confirmed what I had predicted. Riders had left the city not long after our arrival. Word would have reached Warkworth and there would, I had no doubt, be a warm welcome for us somewhere north of the Tyne. I knew that we would have given any who were following us a dilemma when we left the main road to head for Middleham and the farm of Mistress Mary, Red Ralph’s widow, as it meant leaving the road to the north. Four archers trailed us to ensure that we were not followed. We did not have enough time to spend a night at the farm but I needed the services of Sir Ralph and to ask him questions.

  When we reached the horse farm Ralph was practising with what I took to be his squire and his brothers as well as other men. They stopped as we approached and waited for us to reach them, “My lord, this is an unexpected pleasure. You should have said that you were coming here and we would have made arrangements.”

  I shook my head as Mistress Mary emerged from the hall my old friend, Red Ralph, had built, “We cannot stay as we are heading for Warkworth but I would ask you to accompany us for I fear Percy treachery.”

  “And I will come with you,” he turned to his men, “Robin,
Richard, you shall come with us. Prepare our war gear for we leave within the hour.” He looked at me, “You will, my lord, enjoy some ale and Yorkshire ham with us for my mother will wish to speak to you and Harry!”

  I dismounted and handed my reins to Abelard, “Of course.”

  Mistress Mary had returned indoors when she saw me dismount and by the time we reached the hall and the dining chamber, there was ale, ham and fresh bread awaiting us. She was about to curtsy when I picked her up in my arms and hugged her, “None of that! Here I am Will and you are Mary, the wife of the man who helped to make me what I am.”

  She nodded and I saw a tear in her eye, “I thank you for letting my son come home to me.”

  “And now, I fear I must take him away but just for a few days. We ride to Warkworth where I will deliver a message from the King.”

  “I pray you sit. I know that he still serves you and the crown and for that I am grateful. It is good that he is now close to me and I see him every day; I can endure his service to the King when he is called away.” She poured some ale and then, as I began to drink, she carved some ham for us. “And how is your family? The grandchildren will be growing.”

  “Aye, they are but not all is well for God chose to take Mary to his bosom.”

  She dropped the knife she was using to butter the bread and made the sign of the cross. “I am so sorry, Will, for she was a golden child and the Lady Eleanor?”

  “Has taken it badly, I fear. This journey north has come at the wrong time.”

  “I know that I was lucky for I married Ralph when his soldiering days were over. The King is lucky to have such a loyal warrior to support him. You will return here on your way south?”

  “We will but I cannot tell you when that will be.”

  “Then we will have beds awaiting you and I will try to write some words of comfort for your wife. I lost a child once but it was in childbirth. I know it is not the same but perhaps they will comfort her.”

  Ralph appeared at the door, “We are ready, lord.”

  “Then, Mistress Mary, we will take our leave.”

  The men had been fed and it allowed us to make good time to the Tees and the bridge at Piercebridge. While we rode north, I told Ralph all for he was like family and I trusted him. “I think that you are right, Sir William. It will be north of Morpeth where the danger will lie. The Scots still raid and the land to the north of Morpeth is still wild. I have ridden with the Lord of the Northern Marches, Sir Ralph Neville, for we scoured the lands north of Lancaster of rebels. He also visited with the Bishop of Durham who watches south of the Tyne. The land north of Newcastle is unknown to me and, I think, filled with those who wish the King and his son harm.” He looked at me, “But, more especially, they will wish to hurt you too. I have heard rumours of men swearing oaths to kill the man who slew Hotspur. He was the hope of the north!”

  I smiled, “Many men have wished me dead and yet I live still.”

  We stayed at Newcastle with the Sherriff who was King Henry’s man. He confirmed what we already knew. The Percy family still had ambitions to rule the northern half of England and that his stronghold and heartlands went from Morpeth to the Scottish borders. Only the Bishop of Durham’s castle, Berwick, barred the border. So long as Glendower and Mortimer were at large the dream of a tripartite division of England between the Percy family, Glendower and Mortimer remained a real threat.

  When we left the castle we rode prepared for battle, for although we had just twenty and eight miles to travel, they would be the most dangerous on the whole road. We had servants with the horses and four of my archers guarded them. The rest rode as scouts. Stephen of Morpeth had already told us that the road north had a number of places where we might be ambushed. One was where the road crossed the River Blyth and the other, the more likely place, was Sheepwash over the River Wansbeck for that was a ford and the woods around there made an ambush likely.

  We used the same strategy at both sites. My archers left us four miles before each of the crossings and, as they wore no armour, they were able to swim across where there was no ford and approach the crossing from the north. When we crossed the bridge at Bedlington, we had shields pulled up and wore our helmets. Our archers greeted us on the other side. Captain Alan said, “It is clear, lord, and there is no sign that we could see of warriors waiting for us.”

  “Then, if Stephen of Morpeth and Sir Ralph are correct then the ambush, if there is to be one, will be at the Sheepwash.”

  He nodded, “We will be there before you.”

  They galloped off in their two groups. The baggage now just had four servants to watch the horses and spare war gear. I took the opportunity to dismount and tighten Hart’s girths. I saw Abelard chewing his lip. I smiled to put him at his ease. “Abelard, you have good mail and a padded gambeson. Your helmet is a good one and the enemy who will ambush us are not archers. They may use bows but Hotspur used Cheshire archers at Shrewsbury. Archery is not a northern skill. Stay close to Harry and use your shield to protect yourself. All will be well.”

  I know, Sir William, but I do not want to let you down.”

  “And you will not. Trust to your fellows and to God and we will prevail.”

  I mounted and Captain Edgar and David of Welshpool rode before Sir Ralph and I. Stephen of Morpeth rode alone before the Captain and David. Thanks to his prowess Ralph had good armour and wore a helmet like me. Although it was open-faced our coifs protected all but our eyes. The Prince had had a boar’s snout sallet at Shrewsbury and it had almost been his undoing. With Ralph riding next to me watching my left side, we headed for the River Wansbeck.

  The road turned when we neared the river and headed along its southern bank for there was a steep slope to the right of us. Stephen of Morpeth had warned us of this and so I had some men watching the slope in case we were wrong and the ambush would be the south side of the river. I saw that the ford was close to two small islands and they were both covered in vegetation. Whilst there were few trees south of the river, on the northern bank was a wood. The hairs on the back of my neck prickled and I knew that Stephen of Morpeth was right. There were places closer to Warkworth where we could be ambushed but they would also throw blame squarely at the Percy family, here they could blame it on bandits, brigands or even the Scots. I slid my blade in and out of its scabbard so that when I drew it, it would not stick.

  My shield, tunic and the banner held by Abelard marked me for who I was, Strongstaff and I knew that when we were attacked, I would attract the most attention. As we descended to the river, I had to lean back in the saddle for the slope was steep. I kept my shield up as I did so. Stephen of Morpeth had just splashed into the water when the attack began. Four boys rose from the undergrowth and hurled stones at my leading three riders and a flurry of crossbow bolts hurtled towards Ralph and I. Even as I heard the cracks of the crossbows, I pulled my shield up to cover my face. I had a breastplate and mail not to mention a padded aketon beneath. It would take a lucky bolt to hurt me but my face was a different matter. Two bolts smacked into my shield and one penetrated the leather and the wood. Another clanged off my helmet. Hart had continued to pick her way down the slope and as I reached the bottom, I spurred her, not towards the other bank but towards the undergrowth. As I did so I felt a sudden blow to my back. I had fought for enough years to know that it was a stone. The boy slingers were brave but they would pay for that bravery with their lives. I knew that the men behind us would be seeking out the boys and they would be slain. An ambush against men at arms was not for the faint-hearted. If you succeeded then the rewards were great but failure would bring death.

  Crossbows take time to reload. Good ones which used a windlass were more powerful but even slower to reload. The crossbowman was still pulling back the cord when my sword hacked into his skull. He died instantly but I had no time for congratulation as a spear was rammed up at my left side. It scraped off my shield and, turning Hart, I stood in my stirrups and brought my sword down to split the poorly
made helmet and skull of the spearman. Then I heard the distinctive sound of a longbow release a deadly bodkin tipped arrow. The mailed man at arms who fell at my feet had one of Christopher White Arrow’s distinctive missiles sticking from his back. As the rest of my archers let fly so my sergeants tore into the ambushers who were now attacked from before and behind. My men showed no mercy for none would have been shown to us and when I saw Alan of the Woods walking towards me, I knew that the ambush had been thwarted.

  Thirty men lay dead and they were all the men of the north. None were knights but twelve were men at arms. The boy slingers had all been killed as had the crossbowmen but at least twenty had escaped which told me that they knew our numbers and had intended to overwhelm us. Had Stephen of Morpeth not warned us then their ambush might have succeeded but our mail, plate and skill had saved us. “Take the weapons and mail from the dead. Leave their bodies here as a reminder of the dangers of attacking warriors such as you! Have the wounded tended to.”

  Thanks to our foresight none of my men had been killed but I had men who had been wounded. Uriah Longface and Gilbert of Ely had both been struck by crossbow bolts and the two men would not be able to walk well for some time. Four others had slightly less serious wounds. Abelard had also been wounded. He had been hit on the hand by a stone. I admired him for he had not dropped the standard despite the fact that three of his fingers had been broken. It was his left hand and would not impair him although Harry took the standard from him. He had done his duty and my son would now carry the banner.

  As we rode the last twelve miles to the castle, we kept a wary eye out for enemies but we saw none. Captain Alan was mortified that they had failed to stop the ambush before it had begun but I shook my head as I answered him, “They were well hidden and it was a cunning ambush. They knew that we would have difficulty controlling our horses at the ford and until they attacked their positions were hidden. It was a risk we took and it has paid off.”