by Griff Hosker
I heard William’s voice shout, “Father! No!” but I was committed; we had broken through the men who had been sent to face us and I galloped towards the Egyptian standard-bearer and his bodyguards. I was helped by the fact that they were closing with Henry of Bar. The Frenchman and his knights were dying hard. I saw that the standards of Burgundy and Montfort could no longer be seen. Either they were dead or had surrendered. I could do nothing about them but Henry of Bar could be saved. With William at my side and with my knights close behind me I tore into the ranks of bodyguards. These were the best that the Egyptians had but most were attacked from the rear and I slew two before they even knew we were amongst them. I used the point of my sword on one and laid open the back of another with my second strike. William slew one whose spear was rammed towards my side. He died before he could use the weapon. Stephen of Malton made his horse rear to clatter into the skull of the standard bearer and, as the flag fell, I hurdled the horse to attack the Egyptian commander. I hacked at his shoulder and my sword drew blood. I was lucky in that he rode a small horse and Willow was just a little taller. I reared her and her hooves pounded into the rump of the Egyptian’s horse. The horse began to fall and I hacked at the warrior’s leg as he tried to control his animal. I laid his leg open to the bone as he fell backwards.
It was then I sensed, rather than saw, the sword which came at my back. I reacted instinctively and slashed around with my sword. It hacked into mail and saved my life for it came away bloody. I heard William’s voice as he shouted, “England, fall back! Mark, take my father’s reins.”
I lunged at the warrior before me and then felt a blow to the back of my head. I had never felt such pain. All became black and I could not see. Worse, I could not move my arm. It was as though time had stood still. My arms dropped, dragged down by the weight of the shield and the sword, but some instinct made me stay in the saddle. I felt a savage pain to my leg and pain coursed through my body. Willow’s reins dropped and my horse stopped. I was deep in the enemy’s lines and I could not see. The next blow would end my life, of that I was certain then, mercifully, all went black and I knew no more.
Sir William of Elsdon
Chapter 6
As we charged into the heart of the enemy I was amazed by my father who appeared like a young knight rather than the veteran he was. He had seen more wars than any man I knew and yet he seemed to bear a charmed life. As he speared warrior after warrior it took all of my skill to keep up with him and protect his right side. This was where I missed Ridley the Giant. He would have guarded my father’s left side. Sir Robert of Kendal was a good knight but he was not Ridley. My lance shattered before my father’s spear and I drew my sword. That brief moment when I reached for my blade allowed Thorn to move a little further from me and I had to spur Thorn. A Turk, spear in hand, rode across my front in an attempt to spear my father. My last spurring of Thorn allowed me to close so that, by standing in my stirrups, I was able to bring my sword down on his head. I saw now that the enemy were wise to our attack and a plumed leader was waving his spear and shouting orders. The standard-bearer next to him was a clear target and I saw my father urge Willow towards him. He intended to take out the enemy leader for Henry of Bar and his beleaguered knights were close enough for him to reach. I could see what my father, blinded by his success, could not. He would be surrounded in moments, “Father, no!”
He had reached the Egyptian warrior and Willow reared to clatter down on the Egyptian horse. It looked, unlikely though it seemed, as though my father might succeed. Then I saw Sir Robert as he was speared from the side and that meant my father was exposed to his left. Mark urged his horse to reach the gap caused by the falling knight but he had too much ground to cover. The Egyptian who had slain Sir Robert was now behind my father. As another warrior rode at my father’s sword side, I kicked Thorn on and my horse came between them. I took the blow from the spear which was intended for my father. The spearhead hit the side of my helmet. It was a well-made helmet and took the blow. I backhanded the warrior across the throat with my sword using all the strength that I had. In that moment two Turks flanked my father. I know not how he did it but he managed to, somehow, hit the one to his right with a blindly struck sword slash. The surprised warrior tumbled from the back of his horse but then I saw the second Turk smash his mace into the back of my father’s head. Time seemed to stand still. Another Turk rode up and lunged at my father with his spear. My father’s hands had dropped and I watched the spear slice through my father’s chausses. I hacked into the man’s throat as Mark reached the other Turk, the one with the mace who was raising it to end my father’s life and almost cut him in two with a blow from his sword.
I realised that I should have shouted before. Now I found my voice as the enemy killed Henry of Bar and his oathsworn. “England, fall back! Mark, take my father’s reins.” My father was slumped forward, his body held by the cantle. I saw blood on his leg and there was a dent in the side of his helmet which was as big as my fist. It did not bode well for him.
Sir Stephen and Sir Richard reached me as did Padraig, Richard Red Leg and the rest of my father’s men. We were a wall of steel. I shouted, “Matthew, help your brother! Get my father somewhere safe!”
“Aye, lord! We will not fail you!” Come, brother!”
“We hold them and give our squires time to save my father. Back your horses and await my command to break!”
I heard Padraig laugh but it was a cold and chilling laugh, “Aye, Sir William, and we will make these heathen bastards bleed for they have done for the Earl!”
A line of horsemen galloped at our thin line. We were helped by the fact that Henry of Bar’s men were still dying as they protected the standard and the bodies of their comrades. I took the first spear on my shield and chopped down at the unprotected Muslim leg. My sword must have caught the horse for it reared and threw the maimed warrior to the ground. His body and that of his fallen horse broke the enemy line. Sir Stephen fought like a lion. His sword swung around at head height. He caught a warrior below the edge of his helmet and tore out the man’s eyes. Padraig was wielding his sword like a club. He and Richard Red Leg were battering our enemies and were, seemingly, oblivious to the wounds they were suffering. I saw a spear lunge at Richard Red Leg’s leg and when it came away bloody, I knew he was hurt.
Rearing Thorn I stood in my stirrups and looked behind us. Mark and his brother were leading Willow north. Behind us, the remnants of our conroi were fighting to keep the gap to the north open. It was time.
“England, fall back! Peter of York, take the reins of Richard Red Leg’s horse and take him to safety!”
We would all have perished that day but for Cedric and the archers he commanded. Protected by Sir Robert’s men at arms they were dismounted behind their horses.
“Release!” I heard Cedric’s booming voice as our handful of archers sent their bodkin tipped arrows over our heads. My archers were the most skilled in the Crusader army and I heard the arrows strike the Muslims who were just thirty paces behind us. I do not believe that any others could have been as accurate. Four more flights soared over us before we reached the line of horses and I slowed.
“Knights, turn and give the archers time to mount.”
I wheeled a weary Thorn around and saw that the arrows of our archers had had a devastating effect. A handful of enemy horsemen had survived the arrow storm. They rode up to us but my knights and men at arms were angry. I saw Padraig spur his horse and ride into the midst of them. Sir Stephen followed as did Sir Richard. The ones who were not slain turned and fled. I saw, however, that the Egyptians had finally overcome Henry of Bar’s men and the great mass of the enemy were now preparing to charge us. There were still isolated groups of Crusaders fighting but I saw that most were either dead or had surrendered. The battle of Gaza was almost over. I was stunned. A quarter, at least, of the crusader army were dead or captured!
“Ready, my lord!” Cedric’s voice brought me to my senses.
/> “We ride back to the main army. We fight when they close with us.”
We had not been beaten despite our losses and I heard them chorus, “Aye, lord!”
We did not gallop for our horses were too weary but we kept our weapons ready for the next attack which we knew would come. I could not see Mark and Matthew. I had to hope that they had taken my father’s body to safety. He did not deserve to have it butchered and his head displayed by our enemies. I knew that would be the fate of Sir Robert. I saw, far ahead, Peter of York and Richard Red Leg. Richard would need attention but to stop would be fatal for both men. All along the flanks, Muslim horse archers were galloping along sending arrow after arrow at us. They were aiming at our men and that saved us for they could not pierce the mail.
Cedric stopped our archers and, dismounting, they sent enough arrows into the Turkish archers and their horses to discourage them. It bought us time. Godfrey of Richmond was at the fore and I heard his shout, “My lord, it is the King! The army has come!” I saw the standards fluttering in the hazy distance. Looking back, I saw that the Muslims were still closing and they were gaining on us. It was a race we could not win. Thorn was lathered as were the other horses. The Egyptians would catch us and spear us like hunted pigs. Our only hope was to make a last stand and hope that King Thibaut was less tardy than he been, hitherto.
“England, dismount! We make our last stand here! Our horses are too weary and I am sick of showing my back to our enemies.”
Padraig spoke for them all when he shouted, “Aye, let’s show them how Englishmen can fight and die!”
“Wounded, hold the horses. I want a shield wall. Cedric, you know what to do!”
“Aye, lord!”
The horses would take little holding. I saw that I just had four knights left. The front rank was made up of my men at arms. Padraig stood on my right and Sir Stephen to my left. The Muslims saw us prepare and they halted too. Their leader formed lines. I saw at least a thousand men before us. Cedric and his archers had warned them of the skill of our bows and they halted beyond bow range. Then a horn sounded and the first line of two hundred and fifty men galloped towards us. The second two hundred and fifty would follow soon enough.
“Lock shields!” I held my sword over the top of my shield as Sir Stephen and Padraig locked shields with me and they, too, added their swords to the hedgehog of steel.
The ground shook beneath our feet as a thousand hooves thundered. Our mail meant that they could not use their horse archers to best effect and so they sent their mounted horsemen. Only some would be mailed and none of their horses would be protected. Had we had spears we could have held them off for a long time; we had none but I was confident that we could endure the first charge.
“Loose!”
The arrows soared above us and horses and riders fell. The arrows then followed as quickly as men could draw. My father’s men were the better bowmen and they kept up a faster rate.
“Brace!”
We did not have enough men for three ranks and I knew that it was likely we would be pushed back but we were big men and we all wore mail. The Egyptian horses were much smaller than ours. This was all to do with timing and Padraig and I, along with our Stockton men at arms, were better. As one we lunged forward. Horses baulked as the long swords came for the heads of the animals. English horses would have towered above us but the horses’ eyes were at a convenient height as they were smaller animals. As the horses turned so they exposed horsemen who were trying to control a horse, a lance and a shield. I felt my sword ram into the ribs of an Egyptian. As soon as it scraped off a bone I twisted and pulled. Entrails and guts were tugged from the body as I withdrew and then sliced sideways. The horses and their riders were so close that my backswing ripped open the thigh of the warrior whose horse had been killed by Padraig. As the warrior fell at our feet Padraig brought his sword down to smash through the turbaned helmet and head of the warrior. Their leader must have expected his front line to destroy us for the second line of horsemen was too close to the first and they had to slow. I saw only parts of this through the gaps left by dying horses and men. Cedric and his archers reaped a fine harvest as horsemen slowed and tried to avoid crashing into the rear of the ranks ahead of them.
Even though we were having success our men were still dying. Falling horses and their flailing hooves cared not if a man wore mail or not. I braced my shield arm as a lance was rammed at it. Sir Stephen hacked down across the lance and I forced the tip of my sword into the throat of the horse. As the blood spurted the horse fell to the side and the warrior was crushed by the hooves of a horse which followed closely. Behind me, I heard horns but they sounded as though they were miles away. My father’s decision to try to save some of our army had been a good one but, in saving a few hundred, he had doomed himself and the rest of us to a desert death. The hero of Arsuf would perish at the disaster that was Gaza and with him King Henry’s knights. My father’s sense of honour had doomed us but I would not change the man he was.
An Egyptian trumpet sounded and the remnants of the first two lines withdrew. Before us was a mass of broken animals and dying warriors. Padraig spat out a tooth which had been dislodged in the last attack, “They will come at us from the flank, my lord!”
I knew he was right. The barrier of horseflesh before us negated the Egyptian’s best weapon, the charging horse. They would merely come around the side. I nodded. “Turn back to back and face east and west. We will let the Egyptian dead guard one flank. Move any wounded to the horses. Pick up the discarded Muslim lances and spears; they will keep the horses away from us.” I was clutching at straws but I knew that my father would not have given in until there was no hope left!
As the ones with wounds were shifted, I saw that Sir Stephen was wounded. His white surcoat was bespattered with not only the blood of his enemies but also his own for his cheek had been laid open to the bone.
“You are wounded, Sir Stephen.”
He nodded, “Now I see the benefit of a full-face helm. I will get one when this is over.”
My visor was raised to allow relatively cool air to refresh me. “Get one like this; I prefer them to the great helm.” It was almost laughable that, in the face of almost certain death, we were still able to chat about helmets as though Sir Stephen would get the chance to buy one!
Egyptian trumpets sounded again. Sir Richard of Tewksbury said, “Why is not the King closer? Can they not see we are dying?”
I said, calmly, although I did not feel so inside, “They will get here as soon as they are able. If they gallop then the Egyptians will be able to destroy the rest of our army. We have to trust to God that he will save us!”
We ran towards the Egyptian dead to find spears and lances. It mattered not if they were broken so long as they were longer than a sword. Padraig was proved right. The last two lines of Egyptians did not ride directly at us but came in two columns, from the flanks. They had seen how few archers we had and they were dividing the arrows. Cedric and his archers would not be able to clear swathes of the enemy; they would have to pick off leaders and standard-bearers. More of the Muslim horde would reach us intact and more of my men would die; there were few enough as it was. I was at the end closest to the dead horses and Sir Stephen had my back. Padraig was next to me. Padraig kissed his cross before tucking it inside his surcoat. He said, quietly, “I shall soon join Sir Thomas. You have done your father great credit today, my lord. It was like fighting alongside Sir Thomas thirty years ago!”
“You will die when I say so, Padraig the Wanderer, and not before and that goes for the rest of you! We hold the enemy and pray that the King comes!!
The Muslims had no obstacles before them and this time they were able to gallop. The archers would still hit men and horses but there were so few on each side that it would barely halt, let alone, turn the tide. At least we had spears and lances this time. I knew that my blade had no edge to it. When I had to draw it again it would be like fighting with an iron bar! The Mu
slims were riding almost boot to boot but they were not as close to each other as a Frankish army would have been. Nor were they in a completely straight line. Some were ahead of the others, eager to close with us. Such tiny actions could decide if a man lived or died. This time I was the end man. No one protected my left save for Egyptian dead. My shield was across my front, locked with Padraig’s and I saw that four heavily mailed warriors had targeted me. Perhaps they saw me as the leader or it may have been because I was at the end and they wished to roll up our line. I know not. Four lances came at the two of us. My right foot braced the spear which rested on the top of my shield. The horsemen were able to lunge at the two of us and we had to endure the wooden lances smashing into us but in doing so they had to stand and expose themselves. There was a clatter and a crash as their lances hit our shields and knocked us backwards. This time we had other mailed men behind us and my back pressed against Sir Stephen’s. The wooden lances splintered but neither Padraig nor I suffered splinter wounds for we both had a visored helmet. It was then that our borrowed lances came to our aid. Mine went into the ribs of the warrior the second from the end and drove upwards through his ribs to rip into his heart. As he fell, he knocked the end warrior from his saddle and my borrowed lance broke. I drew my sword and stepping on to the body of the dead Muslim I leapt towards the fallen man. I skewered him to the ground and then turned as Padraig slew the man who would have speared me. I whirled my sword at head height. It caught one horse on the muzzle and it reared.
I heard horns and I turned to look north. It was there that I saw the Duke of Brittany, with Henry Samuel and John close by, leading the Breton knights. They ploughed into the end of the Muslim line. The Egyptians were undone by their own attempt to outflank us. It was like the sound of thunder as the heavily mailed and armoured Bretons crashed and cracked into the lighter horses of the Muslims. The Duke had a thousand spears behind him and they tore into the remains of a mere two hundred Egyptians. The ones who survived fled and Peter of Brittany raised his sword in salute as they galloped by us. We had survived. Henry Samuel and John wheeled their horses to come to join us.