The Duke and the King

by Griff Hosker

  “And why do you remain? Caen needs you.”

  He shook his head, “My oldest friend almost died. The doctor is right. There are more important things in this life than war. I will hand Caen over to my son. He is ready for power. He will rule well and if he will not then you and I will be dead soon enough. We have done all that we should have done. Our time has gone and the world we made will be shaped by those we fathered. I will ride home and then return in a month. That will give you the time to rest.” He turned to Father Harold. “Until his son returns, I empower you, Father Harold, to restrict what the Duke does.”

  I saw that Father Harold did not relish the responsibility of trying to make me behave but he nodded. When Sámr had gone I turned to Father Harold. “I have had a warning, and I will not be a burden. I do need to see Robert and Leif.”

  “Of course, lord. They have been camped outside your chamber since you returned.”

  When they came in, I saw the look of apprehension on their faces. Robert forced a smile, “You live!”

  “Aye, and I thank you for what you did on the campaign. How many of our men remain?”

  Leif pointed to Robert, “Just us two, lord. The rest died well.”

  I shook my head, “And they should not have died! We needed young men like that to rule this land. I am now disbanding the hearth weru. I go to war no longer.”

  The look on their faces was pitiful, “You rid yourself of us, lord?”

  I smiled, “No, Robert, I promote you. Harold Mighty Fist and his sons died. You shall have his fief, Robert, and you Leif will be the commander of Rouen. Your father, like me, needs to take life easier now. Well, what say you?”

  “Duke!” Leif dropped to his knees and took my hand in his. “It is an honour. How can we thank you?”

  “By doing what you have these last few years. Instead of looking after a cantankerous old man, look after Normandy.”

  When they had left me, I asked, “And has there been any word from my son?”

  “Rumours only, lord. There have been battles. He has not requested more men and I can only assume that he has been successful. Doctor Erasmus told me about this illness, lord. It is fatal. You could die tomorrow.”

  “Or I could live another ten years?”

  “That is so.”

  “Then I must live my life. I will not put men in danger because of my illness. I will not go to war. If an enemy comes to Rouen then I will die with a sword in my hand but I will, in the fullness of time, make my son Duke of Normandy.”

  “Lord, you are Count.”

  I smiled, “Before the battle, King Charles gave me and my son the title in perpetuity. He did not write it down but there are others who know I was given the title. We will use it. The days of bowing the knee to Paris are gone, Father Harold. If young Louis attains the throne then it may well be that Normandy acknowledges him as liege lord but he is a child and in England. The next few years will see how my son can rule. I will watch. I will advise. My days as a warlord are over.”

  He left me. The admission was as much for me as for him. If this ailment took my power of movement and thought from me then I would risk no man’s life. I needed my son and I needed him in Rouen. I had to begin to train him. Each day that was granted me would be like the first day of my life. I had died once before but I had been young. Now, if I died, there would be no return.

  The next day I awoke and almost cheered. Each night, when I went to bed, I would wonder if this was my last day. I took to sleeping with a seax next to me but I could not guarantee that my hand would be on the hilt when I died. I sat and wrote a letter to William. I could write, albeit badly. I did not want to dictate to Father Harold. I wanted my son to know the truth. I wanted him to hear my words as though we were in the same room. It took all day but I was happy with the result. I sealed it and asked Leif to find me a trustworthy rider. I then went to walk my streets. I had neglected this city for so long. I had taken it for granted. Now I looked at it with fresh eyes. My grandfather had dreamed of such a home. For my father, the Haugr was as grand a place as he had ever lived in. Rouen made the Haugr look like a pig sty. I had two Dukedoms and one of the finest cities in the civilised world. I would enjoy it.

  Each day I walked a different part and spoke to the people. Oft times it was old warriors but, increasingly, it was with folk I did not know. At first, they were wary for I was their lord and master. They could suffer if they offended me but, I know not why, they warmed to me. Some even looked forward to my peregrinations. They spoke to me of their families and their occupations. They talked to me about their successes and failures. The fact that I was their lord and they were able to speak to me seemed to make them closer to me. Had I missed an opportunity? I had been Lord of Rouen for many years and this was the first time that I had bothered to talk to them. I spoke with the widows of men who had died fighting for me. Many of their husbands had fought alongside me. No one had told me that they had died. They were not lords. They were men who stood in the shield wall. I had been too busy looking outward. It was time to look into my land.

  There were changes to me. I no longer wore my mail and Long Sword hung above the fire in the Great Hall. Doctor Erasmus had told Father Harold that I needed to change the way I lived. I had to walk more. That suited me. I walked my town. He told me to eat more fish. That was easy and I would walk, each day, to the fish quay to buy fresh fish. I was told to drink more wine and less ale. That was also a simple change. Less ale meant I did not need to get up so many times during the night. As the months passed, while I waited for word from my son, I began to feel better. I still had occasional spells when my right hand tingled and the side of my head felt as though I had leaned against a chimney but they diminished as time went on.

  For the first week, Leif Egilsson had followed me about the town until I had faced him, “Leif, if I need a bodyguard in my own town then all that I have done thus far is a waste and I deserve to be slain. You now guard something greater than this ancient and decrepit body, you guard my town. You worry about the town and I will worry about death.”

  Sámr had returned and he spent a month with me before he was satisfied enough to return to Caen and his son. “It is good, lord, to hand over to my son. I can look at him and see how he does things differently to me. I may not like the way he does everything but then he is half Norse and half Breton. He is a different beast to me. I grew up in a fjord in Norway. We eked out a living and lived in wooden houses. I think I would have died there some time ago had you not been fished from the water and brought, by Sven Blue Cheek, to change our lives forever. I often think about those we left there. Your descent to the depths changed our world.” He had left but promised to return regularly. Like me, he was now enjoying a simpler life. He appreciated taking the time to talk to people and to look at simple things like sunsets.

  I also made changes to my home. I had lived, largely, alone and in a world of men. When Sámr and his wife, Birgitta, had visited, she had told me how austere it was. I had rooms built to accommodate guests. I had women from the town make tapestries to hang on the walls and I made the new rooms homely.

  Almost half a year had passed by the time William returned. He came with his wife and daughters. He now had four. I had not seen him for so long that he was almost a stranger to me. Bergil and Bjorn the Brave also accompanied him although they were without their wives. I greeted them in my Great Hall. The three men stared at me and examined me closely. They knew of my ailment. I knew that they were looking for an outward sign of the disease people called Duke’s Bane.

  I first greeted my granddaughters. I barely knew them. “I am your grandfather. Do not be put off by my fierce face and the fact that I am a giant. I am a friendly giant and I hope, if your father stays here a while, that we can get to know each other. I should dearly like that.” It was too early to expect smiles and I saw apprehension. It would be a challenge. This would be a different battle but I would win it. I did not have years stretching out before me an
d I wanted the girls to remember me. The eldest, Mathilde, was the one who met my stare. She did not smile but looked to me as though she was studying me. “Father Harold will take you to your quarters. I hope you like them, Sprota. If you do not then I beg you to tell me. I will make them the way that you wish.”

  The old Duke must have terrified my son’s wife for the words of the reborn Duke made tears spring into her eyes and she rushed to me to hug me. Her head barely reached my chest, “They say you are so fierce and I confess I was afeard to come here. You are now the gentlest of men. We will stay as long as you need, Duke Robert.”

  “No titles here Sprota. The only title I wish to be accorded is, grandfather.”

  When Sprota and the girls had gone I sent for wine. I knew the three men wished to know about me but I needed news from the south. I became businesslike, “So, William, how goes it in the south?”

  “You are well?”

  “We can come to such insignificant matters later. I will be better when I know of Brittany and the people there.”

  He sighed and sipped his wine, “I was unhappy that I had to take so many men from you and when we heard of Soissons then I almost broke off my war to return to you.”

  “It was the Norns, William. We had our victory. The defeat was King Charles’. He chose his leaders badly and he followed their advice. The result is he now languishes in prison.”

  William nodded, “The Neustrians and their allies had planned well. They thought to draw us off so that the Count of Cornouaille could retake his land. We barely had enough men to hold them but we did. We needed Lord Bagsecg and his horsemen.” He smiled. “You needed them more. When time allows, I will speak with Lord Bagsecg. I need horsemen and horses.”

  “He and his sons will train your men. It worked for me.”

  “Aye, it did. When we came north, we saw the fiefs with the new lords. Those young men of Rouen are not Vikings but they are Normans! It took some time for us to rid our borders of the threat and then we besieged Andecavis. It was not that we sought more territory but Andecavis guards the entry to Brittany. We captured it and I placed Rolf, son of Gandálfr in command. He is a good warrior and helped us take the town. I have spent the last months scouring the land for rebels. I would have come sooner but Father Harold’s letters told us that you were healing.”

  Bergil nodded, “Aye, lord, now that we have given you our news what of yours?”

  I sighed and told them. I did not tell them dramatically. I gave them the facts. I had not told all in my letter and they had heard rumours only. I described the events after the battle and then concluded, “So, Doctor Erasmus has given me the sentence. It is death. We know not when it will come. I would make you Duke of Normandy, William. The sooner we do that the better.”

  He shook his head, “I do not shirk the task. I know I will be Duke of Normandy one day but your enemies are still in awe of you. Their eyes are on you. While that is so then I can travel Normandy and speak with men like Mauger and Arne in the north. I can visit Bagsecg and our other lords in the east. I have learned much about Brittany. I need to know all that there is about Normandy. Bergil will return home and watch the south. With your permission, my family will stay here in Rouen and I will spend time travelling. I also need to travel to Wessex.”

  “Wessex? Why?”

  “The Norns have spun. We do not raid with our ships. We fight on land and our enemies are to landward. King Charles gave you the title of Duke. His son is in England. I would go and speak with the Queen and with her father, King Edward. I want an alliance with Wessex. It is the most powerful kingdom in the land they now call England. I have learned that diplomacy can win wars. With Wessex as an ally then the men of Flanders will be less of a threat.”

  I smiled and raised my goblet, “You have grown wise, my son.”

  “Because I have learned from a great teacher, you. When I return and I have done all that I intend then I will take on the mantle of Duke. We will hold the ceremony here in Rouen.”

  “You know that outside of these lands they still call me Count?”

  “Aye, just as they think of us as Vikings. As you showed at Soissons, we are not, we are Normans.”

  Bergil and William stayed a week. I learned more about the battles in the south and why my son was suspicious of the men of Flanders. They had captured some Flemish mercenaries fighting for the Count of Cornouaille. It was from them that they learned of Count Arnulf and his ambitions. Our northern border was a weakness. Then they left and I got to know my granddaughters.

  I could never get their names right. I wondered if this was my ailment. When I had had my first attack, I had not recognised Sámr, Mauger and the others. The grandchildren did not mind and the ones who could speak teased me about it. I bounced them on my knees. I gave the older ones horse rides on my back. I told them stories. Some were made up but others were real. I told them of my grandfather and father. The story which fascinated them the most was the tale of my sinking beneath the waves. The younger ones were still little more than toddlers but they could understand my words. Mathilde, the eldest, was quite a sensitive child. When I had the youngest on my knees, she would stand behind me and stroke my hair. When she thought I had had enough of the smaller ones she would whisk them away so that I could have quiet.

  One night, when her mother and the servants had taken the others to bed, she sneaked into the study I used. I liked to go there at night and carve chess pieces. I had made half the set already. I was using walrus tusks. I liked the feel of the smooth bone and it coloured easily. I had begun making them when I had first visited the market and I had found the act of carving, soothing. Soon I would be ready to stain one half with cochineal. Once I would have used that to stain my eyes and terrify my enemies. Now I stained chess pieces.

  Mathilde crept in while I carved. She tried to sneak in but I knew she was there. She gave a gasp when I said, “Come, little one. What is it that you wish?” I put the knife and the half-carved queen on the table and held my arms for her. She scurried around and I lifted her on my knee. She laid her head on my chest. “Should you not be in bed?”

  “I asked my mother if I could speak with you. She said I could.”

  “Then let us talk. Do you wish a story?”

  “Perhaps but I have questions.” I nodded. “My father says that you are dying.”

  “Aye child. I am the oldest man in this land. I should have died many times before. Perhaps I was kept alive so that I could see my granddaughters. If so then it is the greatest gift I could have been given.”

  “I do not want you to die.”

  I put my arm around her and squeezed. I said, in her ear, before I kissed her, “And I do not want to die. I had thought I would be ready but I am not. Life is precious. I have a family I need to get to know.” This would be hard. I had been baptised but, in my heart, I still believed in the old ways. I could not make Mathilde doubt her faith. “You know there is a heaven?” She nodded. “Well, when I was growing up and before I was baptised, I believed in a slightly different heaven. It was one filled with warriors. This new heaven is better for when I die, I shall see my mother again and my foster mother. I believe that they have been watching over me. When I die, Mathilde daughter of William Longsword, then I will watch over you and your sisters.”

  “I would rather have you here. I would rather curl my fingers in your beard and hear you do funny voices. I would watch my sisters ride on your back and I would have nothing change.”

  I sighed, “As would I but that cannot be. We have to make the most of the time we have left.”

  “And when you are gone my father will rule?”

  “Aye, he will be Duke of Normandy.”

  “And when he dies, I will be the Duchess and I will rule?”

  She was clever and had thought things through well. “Would you like that?”

  “I am not sure I could ever fight but if I had to then I would.”

  “If you had a brother then he would be Duke. It i
s not because you are a girl that this would be so but, as you said, you would have to fight. I have spent more than sixty years fighting.”

  “Did you have sisters?”

  I nodded, “And I have not seen them for so long that I can barely remember their names or their faces.”

  She cuddled in, “I am sad, grandfather. You have had a hard life and God has not treated you well!”

  I smiled as I saw her grip her crucifix, “We all have different lives. Make the best of what you are given Mathilde and live life to the full.”

  The door opened and I heard Sprota’s voice, “Come child. You have bothered your grandfather enough.”

  I kissed the top of Mathilde’s head, “There was no bother. Any time she wishes she can join me.”

  As she was taken away, I wondered at the change in me. There were people who were terrified of me still. What would they say if they saw the sentimental old man with tears coursing down his cheeks? The old man who would change everything just to have enough years left to see Mathilde become a woman.

  Chapter 15

  My son took more than three months to travel the land north of the river. He was no longer the young warrior who lived for raids, drinking and whoring. He had grown. Had that been my doing or a family? Was it inevitable? I had never had the opportunity for that. I had spent my formative years in the Haugr with my grandfather and then a brother’s treachery had made me fight for life and a place in the world. In the end, I decided that it was the Norns.

  “I will return to Nantes. William son of Æbbi will make a good lord for that town and Bergil can be Count of Brittany.” He looked at me, “With your permission, of course.”

  I nodded, “You are, as far as I am concerned, the Duke of Normandy now. I hold the reins of power until you can mount the horse. It is a good decision Æbbi Bonecrusher was a loyal warrior. He will be happy that his son has turned out so well.”

  “It will take me some time to ensure that all is well in Brittany. You are happy to continue here?”