by Griff Hosker
William smiled as though he was relieved. Perhaps he had been expecting something more worrying. "Of course he does. I thought it was something far more sinister."
"But it is not his title. If any it belongs to Henry Fitz Empress."
"True and he will attain that title when his father dies. Besides it is right that Count Geoffrey becomes Duke. He has fought for this County and conquered much of it. The Empress is the Count's wife. She will still be Duchess of Normandy but the land will belong to Count Geoffrey and that is right. The people of Normandy want a leader they can follow... a man and Henry is too young. It is right that the man who has reconquered the land should reap the reward."
"You and I have done our part for him too."
He leaned forward and said each word slowly, "But not the Earl of Gloucester." Then he leaned back and waved an airy hand as thought to dismiss the Earl, "Since his father's death the Earl has not set foot on this land."
"He fights in England."
"Father you should know that there are many Angevin and Norman knights who wish to wash their hands of England. They see it as a war which cannot be won. The two armies cancel each other out. Lincoln should have been the end but it was not. It is here where we can win. If we take a few more castles then Normandy will be ours."
"And then England?"
"Why? What has England to offer us that we have not got here?"
"So when you said many Angevin and Norman knights wished to wash their hands of England you included yourself. You would not fight for England."
"I will be blunt, father, for I am now a man and not the squire who obeyed your every command. I am now Norman. You never were. You were Byzantine and then English. Everyone calls you the English knight. It is a good title and well deserved. I am not you. I never was. I will fight for England and for the Empress but my heart will not be in it. I cannot be any more honest than that."
I was stunned but I held my tongue and sipped my wine. It was understandable. He had lived almost as long in Normandy as he had in England. His wife was from this land. His children had been born here. He had a reputation here and he was well respected by both his peers and his liege lord.
"Father? Have I upset you?"
"No but you have surprised me. I suppose I had a vision of this war ending and you returning home to Stockton."
"And what? Be given a manor like Elton of Hartburn? They are too small for me. Ouistreham is a fine manor. It is like Stockton, it is a port. The land about is rich and Caen itself is but a few miles away. That is the home of the Duke or will be. My future is here but I will continue to support the Empress and to support you but I am not English. I am Norman."
The words struck me like the blows of a hammer. In that short conversation my life changed. My first born was lost to me. His children would see me as a distant grandfather. They might struggle to even remember my name. It felt as though someone had reached in and torn my heart from me. My wife had died, the love of my life was denied me, and now my son was lost too. I finished my wine and stood. "Thank you for your honesty. I appreciate it and the confidence. I hope that you will keep my confidences too."
"Of course." He put his hand on my shoulder, "Father, I am still your son but I know how much you value honesty."
"And I do. But you know that your words were not the ones I wished to hear. I must think."And now I had better clean up. I daresay there will be a feast tonight."
"There is a feast here every night. We want for nothing in Normandy, neither game nor wine nor coin."
My son was now Norman.
Count Geoffrey arrived four days later. By then there were tents strewn around the castle. My men at arms and archers had been relegated there as barons were housed in the warrior hall. That was to be expected. It was a large army the Count was taking north. At the feast which was held for the barons and earls the Count explained his strategy.
"It is now high summer. Mortain is the manor of Stephen of Blois given by my wife's father. We take that now and then, next year, we advance on Vire as a prelude to retaking Normandy!"
They were the words his men wanted to hear. I was seated on his right hand, the place of honour, and I heard three names called out by the knights: the Count's, my son's and mine. The Count had ensured that the cause for which we fought was his and not the Empress. Had I not given my word I would have headed back to La Flèche and taken ship back to England. The deciding factor was Henry who was allowed to attend and sat on the Count's left hand. I had a king to train. I had lost one son. I would not lose another.
Chapter 3
The castle at Mortain had been built by the Conqueror for his illegitimate son, Robert. The Count of Mortain had lost it when he fell out with Henry I. As the King had then given it to Stephen of Blois it was a juicy morsel to be taken. Strategically it was not as important as the Count thought but I agreed that we could take it.
It took two days to arrive at the castle. By that time the defenders knew that we were coming and had time to prepare their defences. The Count had learned his lessons from earlier campaigns and we had the parts for siege engines which we would construct once we had the castle surrounded. I rode next to Henry on the two day journey. That was partly his choice and partly the fact that his father and my son spent the ride laughing together with their close friends. I did not mind. I was an outsider. I had not shared the experiences they had and, more importantly, I could get to know Henry a little better. Gilles rode on the other side of him. It was a little to ensure his security and safety but also because they got on well. That was strange for one would be a king and the other was the son of a poor archer.
"How will we take this castle, uncle? Will we charge the walls?"
"That would waste too many lives, and a good leader never wastes the lives of those who follow him. We will surround the castle and then begin to break down the weak points. They will have laid in a good quantity of supplies, of that I have no doubt, but we have time. Your father is clever, Henry. He takes this now and then the rest of Normandy in the spring. When Mortain falls it will make every other castle fear that they will be next. That sort of pressure tells."
He looked at me. "They will fear you, won't they?"
"What makes you say that?"
"I heard my father talking to your son. He said that now you were here the people would be terrified. They call you a wolf." He pointed at my surcoat with the emblem of my wolf sewn on to it. "Your son and my father are a mighty force but you... you are the champion of the Empress and the King." He leaned in and spoke quietly. "There are many men who wish to kill you."
I was surprised and asked, "How do you know?"
He shrugged, "I am young but I have ears. My father allows me to attend many feasts and I hear men when they are drunk." He suddenly looked at me. "Why do men become foolish when they drink?"
"Not all men do. If men wish to kill me that is something I understand." I pointed to Gilles. "Gilles and Richard know that too. They sleep with a dagger close to hand should anyone try to enter my chamber at night."
His eyes widened, "Truly?" I nodded. "Then where are you safe?"
"My castle in Stockton."
"And is that the only place?"
"Every man in that castle is oathsworn to me. Many years ago we had a spy and we paid the price. We will not make that mistake again. When I sleep in my castle it is the only deep sleep I enjoy."
"And yet you put yourself in danger for me, my mother and England." I nodded. "I did not know. I thought you did it for glory. I can see that I was wrong."
He became silent as we rode north. His fertile mind was working as he reassessed his world.
I am not sure if the Count and my son were trying to prove that they could outdo me but I was ignored as they planned the assault on the castle. They had, however, made good preparations. We spent a week encircling the castle so that no one could get in or out. Then the siege engines were brought up. As July approached we were ready for the assault. One of the pr
iests we had brought with us, Father Pierre, suggested that we might try to negotiate the surrender. I was brought into the discussion and asked my opinion. "Perhaps it might save lives. Our intent is to reduce this castle. If we can do that without too great a loss of life then it means we will have more men to assault Vire."
The three of us, the Count, my son and I approached the castle for a truce. The castellan was an Englishman, Sir John de Villiers. He leaned over the parapet. "What is it you want Count?"
"I come to demand the surrender of this castle."
Sir John laughed, "And you have brought the wolf and his cub to make me fill my breeks. Do not worry, this castle will laugh away your siege. The tide is about to turn and you will be swept away with it. Enjoy the gains you have made for they will be short lived."
I could see the Count becoming annoyed and before he could say something he might regret, such as no quarter, I spoke. "If we attack, Sir John then many of your men will die. We have overwhelming numbers and the siege has you surrounded."
"And you would surrender as you did when the Scots surrounded your castle with equally overwhelming numbers? I think not. You held out and so shall we. Do your worst for we are prepared."
As we rode back my son, as astute as ever, said, "I was not expecting that. It was almost as though he knew something we did not."
The Count seemed not to be bothered by the attitude. It was the castle which was his focus. "Even if he is prepared it makes no difference. We break down his walls with the siege engines and we use arrows to slay those on the walls."
I was not so sure. When we reached our camp I sent for Griff of Gwent and James the Stout. "I have a task for you two."
Griff grinned, "I have missed this, my lord. Life on the Loir is very pleasant and very easy. Training new archers is not challenging. As soon as you arrived I knew our lives would become more interesting."
"Perhaps not. It may be I am becoming an old man who worries needlessly. However indulge me." They nodded. "I would have you scout to the east and south of us."
Griff frowned, "But the enemy lies to the north."
"The enemy we see lies there but as the hairs on the back of my neck are prickling I would have you go and see if they are caused by a foe who wishes to trap us against these walls."
"Aye my lord."
"Take supplies with you. This may take a couple of days."
They turned and left. Gilles and Richard had been listening. Gilles asked, "But how could there be enemies behind us, lord?"
"How long have we known that we were coming here to attack Mortain?"
"Two, three weeks lord."
"And the Count knew for longer. My son knew for longer and that means men in both their households knew. Other lords were aware of it. This is too predictable, Gilles. The castellan's words had warning in them. He was too confident in a castle with just a narrow moat around it and wooden towers. Our siege machines will make them kindling and we have more men than enough. Perhaps I am wrong. If this was England then we would expect an attack on our siege works, why should it be different here in Normandy?"
"Will you tell the Count and your son, lord?"
"I will wait until my archers return but you two need to be ready to go to war instantly. If others choose to become drunk and lax then do not emulate them. Now take my helmet back to my tent. I must speak with Brian and Padraig."
I went to my men at arms and told them to make sure that my men did not drink too much and that I wanted them alert. Unlike my squires they did not question my command. They knew me of old when we had clung on to the Tees with our fingertips and fought against Scots and traitors.
As I had expected there was a relaxed atmosphere around the camp. Drink flowed although a watch was kept. What secretly pleased me was that my son and his conroi did not do as other lords did. They did not drink heavily and they kept weapons to hand. Like me my son was suspicious.
He spoke to me before we retired, "This is too easy, father. I expected the castellan to negotiate for time but he did not."
"Stay alert."
The next day we assembled the siege weapons and, under the protection of large shields pulled them into position. Before we sent the ram to batter down the gate we would weaken the walls as well as the resolve of the defenders. Stones were hurled at the gatehouse while our archers, fewer than I would have liked, sent arrows at those brave enough to show their heads above the walls. By the end of the day stones in the gatehouse had been loosened and one of the towers had been damaged. It had been at a cost. Two of the stone throwers had been damaged and would need to be repaired. We knew that the defenders would be working all night to repair the damage we had done. It was why sieges took time. It seemed you took three steps forward only to take two back but the Count was pleased with the progress.
He gathered his commanders together at his tent. Along with my son there were Sir John of Nantes, Sir Hugh of Langeais and Sir Stephen of Azay. They had all been young knights when I had first met them. I had trained them to fight in the tourney and they were the close companions of the Count. They seemed confident as we gathered around the fire.
The Count was ebullient. "This will not take as long as I had thought. In two days we can send in the ram. We might even be able to advance on Vire before winter sets in!"
It was my son who advised caution, "Lord, the broken war machines need repair and Vire is a more challenging proposition. There is a river there."
The Count had been drinking and he waved a hand towards me, "We have your father with us! Did he not use the river at Lincoln to aid their attack?"
I shook my head, "With respect, Count, there we were relieving a siege. We had those within the walls to help us. There my archers from within helped to slay some of their key commanders and cause confusion."
William suddenly said, "Where were Griff and James today? I saw other archers but not the two finest in Normandy and Anjou."
I had been hoping that their absence would not be noted. I had to speak the truth or be seen as a disruptive force in the army, "I sent them to scout."
The Count swivelled his head towards me and his eyes narrowed, "Scout? But we know where the enemy lies." He pointed his goblet at the castle. Some wine spilled. "Where were they scouting?"
I watched his three close companions as I pointed south and east, "There."
"But that is friendly country. The enemy lie before us."
"Then all that I have done is give my archers some discomfort. There is nothing lost."
"What do you think they will find, father?"
"I am not certain but I liked not Sir John's confidence. It was misplaced. You noted it too." My son nodded. "If our enemies knew where we were coming then they could have prepared an ambush."
Sir Hugh of Langeais said, "But that would mean one of our men conspires with the enemy."
Stephen of Azay shook his head, "Surely you cannot suspect any of us. We have followed the Count since the beginning."
Sir John of Nantes had drunk more than most and he spluttered, "I would vouch for all of my men!"
My son said, "As would we all but that does not mean there cannot be treachery."
Silence descended around the fire until I broke it. "The Earl of Chester was one of the Empress' closest supporters and then he changed to support the Usurper. Now he has changed back to support our cause. If the high and the mighty can do so then why not a baron who wishes a larger manor or a man at arms who wishes more gold?"
The Count had sobered slightly. "In which case you are wrong, Earl, for only those around this fire knew of our destination."
"A week ago you told the army, Count. A week is long enough if you have been planning this for some time."
"What mean you, Earl?"
"Summer is the time you campaign. The enemy may not be strong enough to meet you in the field but he can ambush you or attack you in the rear. Who knows what word passes between London and Cherbourg? It is but a short sea crossing."
; My words had caused upset and dissention. Words rattled across the fire and I remained silent. Suddenly there was the sound of horses' hooves and I heard the cry, "Stand to!"
In the distance I heard raised voices and then Raymond of Chinon appeared with Griff and James. "My lord the Earl's men have news. I apologise for disturbing you."
The Count looked at me, "These are your scouts?" I nodded and the Count smiled, grimly, "It seems they have found something!"
Griff and James had dropped to their knees and I nodded when Griff looked up at me. He began, "My lord we found a Norman army. It is camped a short march away to the east. We counted more than two hundred horses and at least forty banners and standards." He looked at me, "We saw the banner of Blois and that of Flanders."
Sir Hugh said, "But Theobald is busy fending off the French."
My son said, "There is another Blois. Stephen's son Eustace."
It showed that I had lost touch with the politics of this part of the world for I had forgotten the usurper's son. "He is but a child!"
William smiled, "He is thirteen or fourteen but he married the sister of the King of France two years since. I had heard he was in Boulogne."
Sir John said, loudly, "We have no need to fear a stripling boy!"
I smiled, "When first the Count went to war with me he was not much older, were you my lord?"
"The Earl is right and besides if he is married to the sister of the King of France then he may have experienced leaders with him." He reached into his purse and threw two gold coins to Griff. "Thank you, you have done great service. I have no doubt your wise lord will reward you too but you have saved this army from disaster."
They took the coins, "Thank you my lord."
"And now what? March to meet them?"
"First, Count, I think we need to ensure that no one leaves the camp. We do not wish the game to be startled. If they are camped a short way to the east then I am guessing they will attack during the morning when they think our efforts will be directed to the castle walls. We let them march here, unawares and meet them when they do not expect it. If they have many horses then they will try to use them. We meet them on foot with ground prepared before us."