Northern Knight (18 page)

Ralph's eyes widened. "You are a rich man, Wulfric!"

He nodded as he put the coins back into his purse, "We all are! Even the archers!"

Ralph looked at me and said, "We will serve you well, Baron. I fear we would have all died as many did when we had the wolf winter."

I looked at Wulfric. "You had it too?"

"Aye, my lord.  The cold and the wolves took many lives that year.  We never recovered.  I think that was how the Normans managed to attack us." he paused, "You are not Norman are you my lord?"

"No, but I fight with them and for them.  If you cannot do that then we will take you to a place of safety and give you money."

"No, Baron, we know we live in a Norman land but Branton spoke well of your father and your namesake. We trust you."

Each day saw an improvement in the five young men.  As we had two horses being ridden double we could not make the speed I had hoped and it was two days after St Stephen's Day when we reached the ferry.  There was a shimmering of frost on the trees and a sea fret but the river was not frozen.  Wulfric stood behind Ralph and Alan with a huge paw on each of them.  "Well boys, there it is your new home, the manor of Stockton."

All five looked excited at the prospect. I had missed Christmas with my family but the encounter with the boys seemed more Christian somehow.  It was almost as though we had been meant to find them and rescue them from a life which would have been parlous at best. The ferry proved to be a novelty to them.  The rivers in the forest were all fordable.  Here the tide was in and it must have seemed like a mighty sea to them. I spied Adela on the ramparts as Ethelred's men pulled us across.  I saw her wave and then one of my men at arms lifted my son so that he could wave too.

I let Wulfric see to the new archers while I ran into my castle to greet my family.  When my son and wife threw their arms around me I knew that I was home. London and the plots and intrigue seemed far away.  I just prayed that Rolf and his men could keep Matilda safe. The last thing the Earl had said was that the Empress would be staying in London, at least until the spring.  That meant her father could ensure her safety.  After that…

I decided to hold a twelfth night celebration as I had missed Christmas. I took Aiden and my new archers as well as John, my squire and we went hunting on the first day of January.  We went to the land around Hartburn.  I knew there was good hunting there and I wanted my new recruits to become familiar with our land. John and I rode while the others hunted on foot.  John and I had boar spears. Aiden's dogs soon found the scent of game and we followed the trail until we saw a stag, on his own.  He was a fine beast. This was a good time to hunt stags for they had already served the hinds. It would encourage younger stags. Ralph and another of the recruits, Osbert, took down the deer and I saw that, despite their youth, they were good archers.

We found tracks of other deer but we did not see them.  Aiden's dogs and Scout alerted us to danger. A sow hurled herself from under some bramble bushes. I pulled back on Scout's reins to make him rear and thrust down with my spear. It might have gone ill for Scout had not John hurled his spear into the side of the sow's head. She fell dead at my feet. While John and I tied her feet around the spears Aiden took the archers to search for the rest of the herd.  They came back with six young.  She had attacked us because she had young.  I was just pleased there was no male close by.

"We can take them back, Baron, and raise them.  This will be the start of a new herd for us." That was the beginning of a fruitful year for us and meant that the twelfth night feast was a good one. Fortune had favoured us and our kindness with the five boys had been rewarded.

Sir Richard, Harold, Edward, Wulfstan and Osric all attended my feast.  Athelstan had the winter sickness and Father Peter insisted he stay in his hall.  His presence would have made it perfect. After we had eaten I told them of the oath we had made and then I told them about the Count of Blois. Edward had laughed, "That is one more Count who hates us, Baron! I think it better we stay on this side of the English Channel!"

Harold shook his head, "I think not for we make more coin when we go abroad. Will we be abroad again, Baron?"

"I know not.  I will be happy just staying in my own land for a while.  I have not yet had the chance to see how it fares in the summer."

The evening was perfection.  I had with me those I loved the best and those who served me.  What more could a lord ask for than to be surrounded by his oathsworn and his family.  I might have missed Christmas but the twelfth night feast lived long in my memory.

Chapter 14

We make plans and sometimes they work out and sometimes they do not. I had planned on a summer getting to know my children and my new men.  I had planned on making Leofric and John into better squires.  I had hoped to enjoy hunts with my knights.  None of that happened. As Easter approached we received a summons to meet the Earl of Gloucester at Chester. It seemed that Gruffudd ap Cynan had tried to attack the rich farmland around Cheshire and Chester. Some of the Norman lords had been enjoying an extended stay with the King in London and some castles had been burned. Our success against the Scots meant that we were the first choice for the Earl and I led my conroi across the high hills towards Chester. I was less than happy to do so.  My men had earned the right to some peace.  This was the Earl's war and not mine.

Once again I left Wulfstan to guard my home.  With Athelstan still suffering from the coughing sickness I needed someone to help Osric and Wulfstan was the perfect choice.  When I had returned from London I had noticed that he was now totally grey.  He was still a fine warrior but he would not be able to stand the rigours of a campaign in Wales. He was a visible sign that all warriors either died or grew old.

I left five men at arms in my castle as well as Aiden but I took all of my archers.  I now had a fine force of bowmen and they were all mounted. We made a fine sight as we rode to the south and the west. My men at arms were all mounted on fine palfreys and each one had a full set of mail. We looked more like a column of knights.

The Earl of Gloucester would meet us at Chester.  This would not be a repeat of the war against Powys.  Gwynedd was a mountainous region.  The only flat part was the rich wheat land of Anglesey. This time there would be no fine in cattle and as the crop was not yet sown it was hard to see what we would gain from such a campaign. It was another reason for my despondency. My knights wondered the same but they hoped for riches and success.  Somehow I always seemed to manage to reap rewards. Tristan and Harold were now experienced knights and both had a small retinue of both men at arms and archers. They hoped to increase their numbers with a successful war.

When we reached Chester there were already many tents erected and Wulfric struggled to find us a camp which was not in the swampy area close to the river. I hoped we would not be there too long.  The winter rains had left the estuary muddy and wet. I did not want the pestilence to strike my men. The Earl took me to one side as soon as I arrived.

"Alfraed you and your men will not be here long.  I want you to be the vanguard.  You are all mounted and have proved that you can be trusted on your own. I want you to find this Gruffudd so that we may bring him to battle quickly. The Earl of Chester managed to stop him penetrating any further north but he has taken his men towards the east and the rich farmland there." I saw him hesitate and wondered what was on his mind. "Did you deliberately upset the Count of Blois when you were at Westminster?"

I could not lie and I would not lie. "Yes, my lord, I did."

Instead of being angry he smiled.  "I might have known you would give me the truth.  My father was angry but tell me why?"

I took a deep breath. "I was certain that I had seen Stephen of Blois when we took your sister back to Worms.  He denied it but I still do not believe him."

"You think he is a threat to my sister?"

"I know he is as do you, my lord."

He nodded, "Be careful, for Stephen and Theobald have powerful allies.  There are many in Normandy who would see Theobald as King of England." He smiled as if to make it easier for me, "Anyway he is back in Blois now so you two are unlikely to lock horns again."

"He sent men to try to kill me when I returned north."

"And?" He did not seem surprised and that annoyed me.

"And they died!"

He nodded, "I would not cross you Alfraed; you do not take prisoners do you?"

"Not the likes of Stephen I don't." He nodded and turned to go, "My lord, we have brought our warhorses.  Will we need them?  I would not risk such fine animals in the mountains of Wales."

"No, you are right.  Leave them here.  The Welsh do not use many knights and they like to kill horses." I did not want to lose Star in the mountainous valleys and summits of North Wales.

We had just the one night to spend in the damp camp by the river in Chester. We left four men to guard our war horses and my conroi set off across the east towards the flat rich plains of Cheshire.

Although the land was flatter than that which we would encounter closer to Gwynedd it still rose and fell.  It made the prospect of both ambush and attack closer. Although we had not brought Aiden both Ralph and Alan had proved adept woodsmen.  I could now see how the handful of archers had managed to survive after their leader was dead.  They had been born in the woods and had natural skills at tracking and, more importantly, avoiding being seen.  Dick was well impressed by them and the two new archers ranged far ahead of us. My captain of archers was confident in their ability. Our task was simple; we had to find and hold the Welsh and send a rider to the Earl who would then bring our army to destroy them. If we did not find any sign of them this first day then it meant we had lost them.

Alan found them within a few hours of beginning his tracking.  He came riding in with a face flushed with excitement. "I have found them, Baron! They have a camp just three miles away.  There is a river and a bridge.  Some of the town is burned and they have taken cattle and, I think, prisoners."

Had this been Dick then I could have shown him the map which the Earl had given us but Alan could not read and had never seen a map. I would have to work this out in order to send a report back to the Earl. I knew how far we had come and where we were, roughly, on the map.  There was just one bridge close to a settlement.

"Send a rider back to the Earl and tell him that we have found the men of Gwynedd close to Nantwich." I turned to my knights. "I think I know why they have chosen this place to rest.  There are many places here where they make salt.  They can use it to raid further afield while gathering plunder to take back to their mountain kingdom. They will slaughter and salt some of the cattle.  We have a chance to catch them. They must be confident."

"If there is a bridge then that might make it difficult to take."

Ralph rode in while we were preparing to move. "I have found them, Baron."

I frowned, Alan had already done so. That meant that this was a second band. Had they split up? "Where?"

He pointed to the south. "There is a large band and they are moving south and west.  They are down that road there."

"How far away?"

His face fell.  He had no idea of distance and had not learned to use the Roman stones which marked distance nor had he any concept of time. "Not far."

I smiled. It was not his fault.  The fault lay with me who had not taught him such things. "It matters not, you have done well. Tell me, how many men did you see?"

"As many as in the Earl's army."

"Alan, how many did you see?  Was it as many as the Earl's force?"

"No, my lord." He held up both of his hands ten times; a hundred.

The Welsh had left part of their army and continued to raid with the other half. "We will need to split our force.  Sir Geoffrey, take Hartness, Normanby and Piercebridge.  Go to the bridge and await the Earl.  Use your archers to stop them moving.  I will take the rest and find this warband.  Tell the Earl where we went."

"Aye Baron."

Although I took fewer knights I had more men at arms and archers than I left with Sir Geoffrey.  I also had the most experienced men with me. The road we travelled twisted and turned between small rises and farms. This was not a Roman Road. This was ambush country. I kept Ralph next to me so that he could tell me when we drew close to the place where he had seen our enemy. The slight rise and fall meant that even though we would be hidden from the Welsh we could come upon them unexpectedly. Suddenly he said, "Not far now.  When I saw them they were just beyond that small stand of trees."

"Good.  Dick, now is the time for your archers to do their work.  Ralph thinks they are not far ahead.  Find them but do not be seen.  Send Aelric back to me to let me know where they are." My archers trotted off. We had five knights and seven squires.  Harold and Tristan had both recently taken on a squire. Neither of them was experienced.  They did, however, look like knights.  With their helmets, mail and banners the Welsh might take them for knights.

"Wulfric we will advance down this road in lines of five.  I want ten men at arms behind us then the squires and the rest of the men at arms behind them. Leofric, leave a slight gap between your horses and those before you.  I would have them think we have two conroi." I saw his eager face nod.  He recognised the responsibility he was being given. "The front three ranks will use lances. I would shatter their first line of defence and cause confusion."

Tristan said, "But we do not know how many there are.  The scout said a warband."

"You are right, Sir Tristan, but it matters not.  These are raiders.  They will have warriors who can be trusted to range and to ravage. What they will not expect is to be attacked by mounted knights." I pointed to the north.  "There lies Nantwich and the camp they defend. They might expect us from the west but not from the north.  We charge even if it is the full army of Gruffudd ap Cynan.  We are the vanguard and we have been charged with finding and holding the enemy.  We will do so."

I understood Tristan's worries.  This was the first time he had fought so far from home and the land was totally unfamiliar to him. He was also, like Harold, now riding in the front rank of my battle. He was nervous. If he survived this encounter then he would be a better knight.

There were hedges along the side of the road.  I hoped that they would stop soon or we would be restricted in what we did. It was too late to worry about that for the die was cast.  I had committed us to a charge into their ranks.  Thankfully as we crested a low rise we crossed another track and the hedges stopped.  Ahead of us I could see the warband as it spread like a huge stain across the plain. Here were open fields separated by ditches.  I could see metal glinting in the spring sunlight.  The Welsh army appeared to be largely foot although I could see that there were horsemen mounted on the small hill ponies the Welsh favoured.  I could neither see my archers nor the cover they might use.  Just then Aelric appeared from behind us.  He came through a gap in the hedges.

"Baron, Captain Dick has the archers to the west." He pointed to another line of hedges in the distance.  It looked to be two hundred or so paces from the enemy's right flank. It was the only cover he could find but the range was extreme.  It was the best he could have managed. It meant that if we had to retreat it would be in that direction.

"Good, Aelric ride to the Earl and tell him where we are and what we do. Ask him to come to our aid as soon as he can.  We are seriously outnumbered."

Aelric was one of my most experienced archers.  I needed not tell him the importance of my message. As he rode off I said, "We charge their right side at the rear. I want us to draw them towards Dick and his archers.  There are too many for us to destroy and they have horses. Wulfric I want a good man in the rear rank."

"Aye Baron, it is Roger of Lincoln, he is a good fellow."

"Then let him know that he has to command the rearguard when we ride to the archers."

"Aye , my lord!"

I led us at the canter towards the rear of the warband.  It was some four hundred paces away and was spread over a wide area.  As we neared them I could see that, in their midst, they had some captives and some animals. What had appeared a disordered rabble now took on slightly more organisation.  I also saw that they had ringed their band with riders on small ponies.  At their head were about ten mailed warriors on full size horses.  The mass of men in the centre were armed with a variety of weapons. This was an army like the one we had fought on the Tyne; it was just far bigger.

Inevitably the thunder of our hooves alerted them to our presence.  When we were just three hundred paces away I saw the faces turned towards us and heard the shouts.  We were committed. They turned to face us.

"Charge!"

I was not aiming to do more than penetrate deep into the heart and then turn away.  I was trying, much as a hunting lion might do, to make the herd scatter. Their formation aided me. A dozen or so brave men turned, with their flimsy shields and pole weapons, to face us. I pulled back with my lance and punched forward.  These men wore no mail and I chose an easy target, the chest. The warrior looked terrified as Scout's snorting face appeared before him and he took his eye from my lance which killed instantly.  I flicked the body to the side and pulled back again.  My next target had his back to me and was an even easier hit. He was a big man and a wide man.  His fall broke my spear and I threw the now useless haft to one side. A warrior panicked and fell before Scout who had no time to turn.  His body was trampled beneath his hooves.