by Griff Hosker
I left the castle to await my men on the road. They soon arrived. Like me they recognised the enormity and urgency of our task. “Sir Philip, take Sir Ralph, Sir Tristan, Sir Padraig and Sir Gilles. Ride to Prudhoe. There Sir Harold and Sir John are shadowing the Scots. Your men at arms and archers will reinforce him. I will take the rest and the knights of Durham. We will try to force a battle with the King of Scotland.”
“You divide your forces father, is this wise?” Samuel was not experienced enough to question me. Perhaps he wanted his friend, Sir Ralph, to go into battle with him.
“The King of Scotland has made a more serious mistake. He has divided his own, greater forces further. I am gambling that we can defeat him and then we can come to the aid of Prudhoe but Sir Harold needs to be a viable threat. With just two knights and a handful of warriors he is not. You will have more than sixty archers. The Scots respect our archers. Sir Philip, you will have forty men at arms as well as your knights. They will outnumber you but they will remember Gretna and Barnard. God willing, we can deflect King William and come to your aid. God speed.”
“We will do our duty, lord. God be with you. If you and the rest can defeat King William then our task will be so much easier.”
Samuel shouted, “Good luck, Sir Ralph!”
He laughed, “I need no luck for I will be with Sir Harold and Sir John!”
As I headed north, passing through the baggage of the knights of Durham, I began to doubt myself. Alnwick was under siege as well as Warkworth. His other armies were raiding the countryside north of the Tyne and south of the Tweed. The plans I had made with the Sheriff and the two constables would provide safe havens for the people but the land would still suffer. I had to somehow manage to defeat the King of Scotland. He would have more knights and a larger army.
I overtook the knights and reached the New Castle first. Goldie would need to be rested the next day. My horse was weary beyond words as was I. I was taken directly to the Sheriff.
“Thank God you are here. How many knights do you bring?”
“Not enough I fear. Just three hundred and twenty. How many do you have within your walls?”
“Barely a hundred.”
“The King comes from Prudhoe. He does not have his full army. Tomorrow we sally forth and bring him to battle.”
“That would be like risking all on one throw of the dice. You are gambling!”
“Of course I am. Our only hope is to defeat the King. He has not yet brought his full strength. If he had brought every warrior he has in his army then I would be truly gambling. He has had a clever plan. He is trying to take all of our strongholds. The cleverness of his plan is also its weakness for he is divided. I would strike before he can combine them.” The Sheriff nodded his agreement. “Where is the Scottish camp?”
“North of the walls on the moor which bestrides the Ponteland road.”
“And siege works?”
“The army arrived just two days since. They built a camp with a ditch is all.”
I laughed, “They have learned from us then. Leave just the levy to guard your walls. We take our knights, men at arms and my archers to attack them. Their King will have arrived today. I would expect him to come and view your walls.”
The Sheriff shook his head, “He came an hour since with Lord Dunbar and some mercenaries.”
“Good, then tonight he will plan the assault. He will not know of our arrival for we came across the bridge he does not control. The last thing he will expect will be an attack from us.”
There were so many knights, men at arms and archers that most were forced to camp by the river. The Scots had not encircled the town. The river prevented that but they had, instead, cut the town off from the north and the west. Perhaps the Scottish King hoped that the Bishop of Durham would be his normal obstructive self. Thanks to James he was not. I gathered the leaders with me in the Great Hall to give them my battle plan. My remaining knights attended too. Ranulf de Glanvill would lead the knights of the north. The Sheriff would remain in the castle in case things went awry.
“We will use the archers and my men at arms to attack the left flank of their camp. We have four hundred and twenty knights. That is not enough.” I waved a hand towards my two squires who were busily scribing on wax tablets the words that I said. “My squires have shown that they have courage. All of our squires will ride as a reserve. It will make the Scots think that we have twice the number of knights that we do. Each will have a pennant on his spear. They will think they are knights.”
Sir Ranulf de Glanvill said, “But Earl, is not that against our chivalric oaths?”
I smiled, “These are squires. They have sworn no oath save the one to serve their master. Sir Ranulf, the Scots are murderers and killers. They take slaves. They have no honour. This is my decision and I will not lose one moment’s sleep over this.” They nodded their agreement. If there was a sin then it would be mine alone. “This is like a game of chess. We have fewer pieces than our opponent and so we try to win the game by taking the King. We capture or kill the King and we have won.”
I spent some time in the chapel when my knights left to make their preparations for the battle. I prayed more for my father than for our success. I hoped that Brother Peter had found the book he wanted and by the time I returned then we would know if he had succeeded or not. I had to put him from my mind if I was to win the battle. If I failed then King William would win the ancient land of Northumbria and our enemies would be on our doorstep.
I heard a movement behind me and I turned. It was Ralph, my squire. “I am sorry, lord. I came to pray.”
I stood, “I am done. The chapel is yours. Remember Ralph that when we are returned to Stockton you win your spurs.” I smiled, “Try to win some good ones on the morrow eh?”
“I will lord. I owe it to Simon to become the best knight that I can be. We both wanted to be knights. He can never achieve that honour.”
I slept but a little and, after rising, went to find Thomas who was preparing Volva. My armour was burnished as was my helmet. All of the squires now had a spear with a small pennant upon it. Some of the squires were young and they were small. They would be with the rear rank and I hoped that our serried ranks would disguise them. Our purpose was to achieve mastery of the battle field. If that involved using a trick then I would do so. “Thomas, tomorrow you will have to look like a knight but I pray that you do not have to fight as one. I would not lose another squire as we lost Simon. If the battle goes against us then I command you to lead the younger squires back to the castle. I would have you live.”
“Lord, I could not desert the battlefield. When Sir Samuel led the squires at Gretna they helped you win the battle.”
“Listen to me Thomas, this is not Gretna. Then we fought raiders. This day we fight an army. Obey me.”
“Aye lord.”
We left by the river gate. The men who had camped outside were ready. Roger of Bath and Aelric led the archers and the men at arms east. The Constable had told us of a path which led through the woods. It was an area known as Shieldfield. According to the locals it was some ancient name for a clearing in the forest. Although most of the forest had gone the wood remained and it would provide cover. We hoped that the arrival of our knights would distract the Scots and allow our men to close with their left flank.
The land rose towards the moor. It was a flat piece of ground with few trees on it. The locals used it for grazing. We were able to approach it in a column of knights fifty men wide. That helped to disguise the squires at the rear. We were seen when we were less than a mile away. The alarm was sounded. Scottish horns and drums roused the camp. This time the King was with them. I saw his lion standard. When we reached a point half a mile from them they were beginning to array in their battle formation. I had the horn sounded, I had retained Thomas with my banner, and we formed three lines of one hundred and thirty knights. I gave no speech. I did not rouse the men. If they did not know what they were fighting for by now then
a few words from me would not help.
The knights on the two ends of my line raised their spears when all was ready and I had Thomas sound the advance. “Now ride to the squires and God be with you, Thomas! Remember my command!”
I rode next to my son and Sir James of Forcett. Both were young but had proven themselves more than enough. With spears held vertically we trotted towards the Scots who were still trying to get in some sort of formation. The woods of the Shieldfield had disguised the movement of our men on foot. They would be seen as soon as they emerged from the woods but by then the Scottish would have made their dispositions. As usual the Scots who were not nobles were vociferous in their battle lines. They jeered, cheered and chanted. Some dropped their breeks and bared their backsides at us and that suited us for it meant their attention was not on our slow and steady approach. The Scottish knights were vying for the honour of the centre of the Scottish line so that they could face the son of the Warlord.
I waved my spear forward and spurred Volva so that we began to canter. Our line was now a little uneven; the rising and scrubby ground did not help us but we were largely boot to boot. Suddenly I heard a shout from the Scottish lines and men on the extreme left began to point towards the woods of the Shieldfield. My men at arms and archers had been spotted. Indecision can lose a battle. The King vacillated. I saw him point to his right. He feared that we were trying the same on his right flank. All the time we advanced. We were less than a hundred and fifty paces from them and instead of arrows greeting us there was nothing.
Aelric and his archers sent their own arrows towards the left flank of the Scots and that initiated stones and arrows at us. I lowered my spear and spurred Volva. We were now less a hundred paces away and the Scottish horn belatedly sounded the charge. Their knights made a ragged attempt to counter charge us but they only had fifty paces in which to do so and it was not enough. I pulled back my spear and, sliding the shaft over my horse’s neck, rammed it at the chest of a Scottish knight. His shield blocked it but he was not moving quickly enough and he was knocked from his horse. I pulled my arm back and stabbed at a knight to my right. He had a lance he was trying to move around in order to unhorse me. My spear took him in the shoulder as his lance banged against my arm.
James of Forcett, James de Puiset and Samuel, my son were still with me. The blood on their spears showed that they had done their duty already. I spied the King and his household knights. I pointed my spear at him, “We take the King!” My knights and those behind cheered. As I lowered my spear I saw that, to my right the archers and men at arms had managed to drive the Scottish foot from the field. They were fleeing north.
King William shouted something and pointed at me with his sword. Ten knights immediately spurred their horses towards us. I did not look around for I knew that I would be supported. The knights who charged us had no lances. They charged us with swords, war hammers and axes. They did not have speed and we did. I still had my spear and that gave me the first strike. I aimed at the right side of the knight who had the golden lion on his surcoat. He tried to block it with his sword but failed. My spear tore through his mail and into his upper arm. Perhaps I ripped tendons, I know not but his sword fell. Pulling back my arm I switched to my left for a knight was swinging his war hammer at my shield. My father had suffered a serious wound after being hit by such a weapon on his shield. I braced myself for the impact as I stabbed almost blindly at the Scot. The blow made my shield and arm shiver but my spear struck mail and then flesh. It tore through the ventail and into his skull. He was dead before his body slipped from my spear.
It was then that two brave knights sacrificed themselves for their King. They rode across our line of charge. Our horses baulked. We lost momentum. Their shields faced us but our spears found gaps and the two of them died. They had given the King the chance to escape. His squire sounded the horn. He turned his horse and, surrounded by his household knights he headed north and west. The Scots were fleeing. Their King had gone and despite our lack of numbers we had struck harder than they had expected. My father was not with us but it was his plan which had worked.
The battle was not over for groups of knights and isolated bands of warriors fought on. The knights eventually surrendered. The ordinary warriors fought until they were killed. It all took time. By the time the battle was over there was no sign of the Scots who had fled. I took off my helmet to better view the field. I turned and saw that my household knights were still alive. In fact, I could see that we had lost few knights. To our right lay the largest number of bodies. The archers and men at arms had slaughtered the foot who had faced them.
“Search the tents and the baggage. Let us see what the King has left for us!”
I turned as I heard hooves behind me. It was Ralph my squire. He held in his hands a pair of spurs! Thomas was leading a war horse upon which was a hauberk and sword. Ralph was ecstatic, “I killed a knight and I have his spurs, mail and war horse!”
I nodded, “And you, Thomas heeded my words! Good!”
My plan had worked. The squires pretending to be knights had fooled the enemy. I was not sure we could use the same ruse a second time.
Samuel rode over and clapped my squire on the back, “Well done, Ralph and when you are knighted you shall have Thornaby!”
I was surprised, “You are sure, Samuel?”
He nodded, “Ruth lost her baby. Eleanor is with child and I would have my wife close to my mother. Stockton is my home; it is my castle. With grandfather there it seems right that I live there too. There will be three generations of knights. It is meant to be father.”
“Aye You are right.
Chapter 17
Masood and Aiden rode in during the afternoon. Men were still being cleared from the battlefield. “Lord, we spotted the King. He and his men were heading to Prudhoe.”
“Then he reinforces the siege.”
“Aye lord and we saw that two of the warbands have combined and were heading for Alnwick.”
This meant that the King had realised his mistake of dividing his army. He was combining. Speed was even more important now. I called an immediate war counsel. “We have to relieve Prudhoe’s siege and then head for Alnwick.”
The Sheriff and some of the Durham knights were not certain. “Earl William, this was a great victory. You said we had to drive the King hence and we have done so. Men are weary. They fought hard this day. Let us recover.”
I shook my head. “The men of Prudhoe led by Odinel d’Umphraville and my knights do not have that luxury. We have not yet won. Appleby has fallen, Brough has fallen, Carlisle, Alnwick, Wark, Warkworth, all are under attack. If I had led this army to Prudhoe first to relieve the siege would you be happy for us to wait there and recover while you fought the Scots?”
My last argument worked and the next morning we headed west. I rode Lightning this time. I split the army into two. I led the one south of the Tyne and Sir Ranulf de Glanvill led the other. I divided the knights equally but I took my archers and men at arms. It would be a pincer movement intended to catch the Scots on two sides. It was just a twelve-mile ride and we heard the sound of battle as we approached. I had chosen the southern side because the rest of my knights, archers and men at arms were there. There was fighting on the southern side and that meant my men were involved. It spurred me on. Masson and Aiden rode ahead. They returned quickly.
“Lord our men are surrounded. They are making a last stand!”
“How far away are they?”
“A mile at most, lord. They are the other side of the stand of trees.”
I turned, “Sound the charge!”
Samuel said, “But we are not yet in battle order!”
“It matters not. Our men will hear it and they will take heart!” Without waiting for a spear, I spurred Lightning and took off followed by Masood and Aiden. Both were fine archers. I glanced to my right and saw Samuel and James. To my left was Alf.
I could now hear the sound of battle. I prayed that our horn
had steeled Sir Harold and my men. As we cleared the trees I saw that my men were gathered around their banners. They were fighting back to back. Archers, men at arms, squires and knights; all stood together. They were truly brothers in arms. There was a ring of bodies around them and the Scots were pressing hard. I waited for no one. Masood and Aiden leapt from their mounts and began to release arrow after arrow in the press of men around Sir Harold, Padraig and the others. I saw that Sir Harold was wounded but he and his son, Richard, held on to the standard. My men were dying. I roared with anger and spurred Lightning. I saw a Scottish lord on a horse try to make his horse rear and bring them to clatter down on the head of Stephen the Grim. Aiden’s arrow smacked into his head and as he fell backwards he pulled the horse with it. Stephen the Grim had lost his shield and was using his sword two handed. I rode at the Scottish knight who was ordering his men forward and was the closest man to me. One of his men shouted a warning and he turned. He was too late and I tore my sword across his middle. I did not pause but stood in my stirrups to bring my blade down across the helmet of the man who had shouted a warning. Sir James de Puiset was next to me and he was doing terrible damage to the men on foot. He had learned to lean from his saddle and lay about him with his sword. Samuel too was cleaving heads but still our men fell. I saw Sir Harold disappear as the Scots surged forward.
I spurred Lighting and headed for the knot of Scottish warriors on foot who were trying to hack their way through my men at arms. I wondered what my archers were doing and then I saw that they were fighting with swords in their hands. I leaned forward and slashed down with my sword. My shield was still over my leg and I had to endure blows from swords as I passed men who had fled my horse. I struck first to the right and then, over my horse’s head to the left. A spear was thrown at me and I barely had time to move my head. It clattered from my helmet. I saw that there were just three men between me and my warriors. I reined in Lightning and stood in the stirrups whilst pulling up his head. He reared and as he fell he killed two of the men. Stephen the Grim finished the third. I leapt from my horse and turned to face our foes. I blocked a war hammer with my shield and as the warrior had used it two handed was able to sink my sword deep into him. Our last attack had broken their spirits. They were fleeing as more of my men arrived. The knights of Durham, led by Robert of Howden pursued them to the walls of Prudhoe.