The Passionate Enemies (30 page)

It was worthy of a ballad, said Eleanor.

The Dowager Queen raged in her apartments. The young bride attempted to soothe her.

‘There are hundreds of other men, Madam,' she said. ‘Why become so absorbed by this one?'

‘He insulted me,' said the Queen Mother. ‘He would have none of me.'

Eleanor tried to hide her smile from her mother-in-law.

‘He is a villain,' said Eleanor. ‘You will have your revenge on him I'm sure.'

‘I should like to see him torn limb from limb,' said the Dowager Queen viciously. ‘Then mayhap he would not be so proud of his beautiful body.'

‘You should let one of your lions amuse himself with your handsome knight, since he will not permit you to.'

The Dowager Queen narrowed her eyes.

‘I have a lion in a cave in my garden . . .'

Eleanor spread her hands. ‘There, you see, is your answer.'

She was mocking, but the Queen Mother's eyes were blazing with fury.

‘By all the holy saints,' she said, ‘I will do it.'

Eleanor said to her husband: ‘She will do it. There is such a fury in her that she will have him put into the cave with the lion.'

‘Her anger will cool,' said the young King of France.

‘The deed will be done before it has time to.'

‘She likes handsome men too well to spoil their beauty.'

‘Only if she can enjoy it. I saw the purpose in her eyes.'

Eleanor was smiling secretly. She too had a fancy for handsome men. She was very young and romantic and she thought the story of unrequited love and the faithful knight who would not swerve from his devotion to the lady of his choice indeed worthy of a ballad. She loved the troubadours. Her grandfather had been a poet and a minstrel and she had learned many of his poems which had been set to music.

She thought how romantic it would be for the young and handsome knight to be thrown to the lion for the sake of his love; but if he were torn to pieces that would be far from beautiful. Such things did not happen in songs, where love triumphed and the bodies of beautiful knights could not become a gory mess. That would not do. Some magic powers were given to them and they overcame the lion and returned to their true love to live happily ever after.

She knew that the Queen Mother was determined on revenge, and would have William de Albini arrested and thrown into the lion's den.

The ballad will be spoilt, said Eleanor with a grimace.

Adventurous, mischievous, liking nothing so much as to meddle in the lives of others, she sent a message to William de Albini bidding him leave for England immediately, for if he did not he would surely die.

William was no fool; he was well aware of the nature of women such as the Dowager Queen. He had seen that blazing hatred in those passionate eyes and he knew that the overwhelming desire for sexual satisfaction would be satisfied in some strange way by his destruction.

He took the advice and left the Court of France without delay.

When Eleanor knew that he had gone she wrote a ballad. A knight loved a lady in England and came to the French Court where he excelled at a tournament. A lady of high rank saw him, and desired him. She offered him honours and riches if he would be her lover. The knight was faithful to his betrothed and in an excess of fury the lady of high rank thrust him into a cave in which was a fierce lion. But virtue triumphed over evil for the knight found himself possessed of supernatural powers and when the lion flew at him he thrust his hand into its mouth and snatched out its heart so that it died immediately.

Its heart, thought Eleanor. Nay, he could not do that. It would not be in the right place. How could he reach its heart? He tore out the lion's tongue. That would be more plausible. And so the beast died and the knight triumphed and went back to his true love.

Eleanor sang the song. Many had seen the Queen Dowager's preference for the handsome knight, and the knight had disappeared, and the story became a legend and in due course was believed.

From the incident the Queen Mother learned that she would have to be very wary of her daughter-in-law who was preparing to begin on adventures of her own. As for William de Albini, he could only thank fortune for a lucky escape.

When he returned to England he told Adelicia that he thought they should marry without delay. She was agreeable to this. The King had no objection. He was busy with problems of his own. As for the Queen, she had always been fond of Adelicia and could only delight in her happiness.

They settled at Arundel and William assumed the title of Earl of Arundel. The couple were very happy and very soon Adelicia, who had been barren during her marriage to Henry I, became pregnant. In due course she gave birth to a son, called William after his father.

She had never been so happy in the whole of her life.

IT WAS ALMOST
four years since her father had died, the Empress Matilda was thinking, and still England was not hers. She had been overtaken by the most extraordinary ill luck. She had not been with her father when he died; she had been pregnant; she had suffered in childbed; she had an ineffectual husband; she had not even been able to take and hold Normandy, let alone claim England.

But this state of affairs could not be allowed to continue.

Eagerly she awaited news from England; she was constantly despatching messengers. Two good friends she had: one was her uncle the King of Scotland who had played his part in harrying the King; the other was her half-brother, Robert of Gloucester, who had at first feigned to go over to Stephen's side and had ever since kept her informed of what was happening.

She was waiting for him to tell her when the time would be ripe for her to take ship to England and claim her inheritance.

Robert had written to her that the time had almost come. The English were beginning to be very disillusioned with Stephen. They found that although he had been brought up at his uncle's Court he did not resemble Henry in the least. He was weak; this was becoming more and more apparent. Stephen was liked as a man, for he was kindly and amiable, and none could call him a coward, but he was no leader of men; he was too friendly when he should be aloof; he was soft when he should be stern. The verdict was that while men,
and women in particular, would always like Stephen, they could not respect him.

Robert wrote: ‘He has now reached the height of his unpopularity because he has brought in, with the aid of his wife, a host of Flemish mercenaries. These men are there to fight with him if the need should arise and this is a constant possibility. At the head of these men is the adventurer William of Ypres who has great influence with Stephen. He and his band of men are feared throughout the country; they ravage and pillage the land in the name of the King. They have done a great deal to turn the people against Stephen. As soon as you are ready you should leave for England.'

This news threw Matilda into a fever of impatience. So Stephen's wife was proving to be not the lily-livered creature she had imagined. Stephen was relying on her more and more. This knowledge increased Matilda's desire to be there, to see Stephen for herself, to take personal revenge.

Even so it was not until the September that she was ready to sail.

Robert met her with one hundred and forty knights.

She demanded: ‘Where is the army I shall need?'

Robert replied that they would have to muster the army as they marched through the country. Her tardy arrival was unfortunate, for the country position had recently changed and was now in a comparatively peaceful state. Stephen had subdued the rebels and had enriched himself by taking several of their castles. The moment was not exactly appropriate and he suggested that they go to Arundel and there seek refuge with her stepmother and her husband, William de Albini.

As there was nothing else to be done Matilda agreed to do this.

Adelicia was astonished when she was told by one of the men-at-arms that a party was seen to be approaching. She went with William to the topmost tower to see for herself. She did not recognize the riders but in view of the uncertain state of the country was considerably alarmed.

William was in the courtyard when they arrived.

‘The Earl of Gloucester!' he cried. ‘And . . .'

He stared in dismay at the arrogant woman riding beside the Earl.

‘It is Matilda, the true Queen of England,' said Robert. William knelt and Matilda nodded curtly.

‘Where is my stepmother?' she asked. ‘Ah, I see her.' Adelicia had come into the courtyard. She too stared in dismay and astonishment.

‘I am weary,' said Matilda. ‘I have travelled far. I need food and a bed.'

Adelicia replied: ‘Welcome. I beg of you come into the castle.'

Matilda allowed herself to be helped from her horse. Adelicia embraced her, thinking: What means this? What have we done? Has she come to fight for the crown?

And she and William had only that day been congratulating themselves that they had satisfactorily removed themselves from court intrigue and conflict.

‘The best room must be prepared for you,' said Adelicia. ‘Orders shall be given. You must be refreshed.'

The knights encamped about the castle and an apartment was prepared for Matilda and another for Robert while refreshment was brought.

Matilda explained then to her hosts what her intentions were.

‘Stephen usurped my throne,' she declared. ‘I have come to regain it.'

‘He has held it for nearly four years,' Adelicia reminded her.

‘I intend that he shall not hold it for another four weeks.'

‘You will fight, my lady?' asked William, thinking of the hundred and forty knights against Stephen's army and the Flemish adventurers.

‘I shall gather an army together and take the crown that it may be set on the head to which it belongs.'

Dear God, prayed Adelicia, let her not stay here. Let her go away so that we are not involved in this.

‘You will march through the country?' she asked. ‘That is your intention?'

‘I have to get my army together. Rest assured I shall do that with ease. Stephen must give up the crown, and that will be the end of King Stephen . . . and his Queen. Queen Matilda! How dare she take my name. There is only one Matilda who shall rule this land. I am that Matilda.'

‘If he hears you are here . . .' began Adelicia.

Matilda laughed. ‘He will hear soon enough. And he will come here. I shall know how to deal with Stephen.'

‘If he comes with his armies . . .' began William.

‘Let him come. I have no fear of his armies.'

Nay, thought William, but we have, and we are being forced to side with you against the King.

Matilda went on: ‘I should like to see him here. I look forward with pleasure to seeing Stephen again.'

Robert said that it would be necessary for him to raise an army to add to his knights. He believed he could do this for there were many people who were weary of Stephen's rule and many more who believed that Matilda was the rightful Queen. He proposed to leave Arundel with the men he had with him and add to them; when he had an army to fight with him on behalf of Matilda, she could place herself at the head of her troop. In the meantime it would be advisable for her to stay under the roof of her stepmother.

The peace of Arundel was shattered. Matilda was a demanding guest. She made it clear to everyone from the highest to the lowest that she expected immediate obedience. No one's wishes were of any consequence if they did not coincide with her own.

Robert of Gloucester had gone to Bristol and hourly she expected to hear that the people of England had rallied to her cause and were ready to help her oust the usurper from the throne and place herself there instead.

She enjoyed the company of Adelicia towards whom she showed a somewhat contemptuous affection. Adelicia would sit with her tapestry affecting a quiet she did not feel, while Matilda paced up and down and talked of what she would do when she was on the throne of England.

‘I trust,' said Adelicia on one occasion, ‘that this will be achieved without bloodshed.'

‘I shall not hesitate to shed the blood of those traitors who oppose me.'

Adelicia shivered. ‘These wars are tragic. Particularly when men of one country are fighting each other.'

‘I fear my cousin Stephen's soul is burdened with guilt. The
best thing he could do would be to go on a pilgrimage.' She smiled, contemplating the picture. ‘I might suggest that to him when he stands crownless and in chains before me.'

The vindictive note which crept into her voice when she mentioned Stephen horrified Adelicia.

‘I trust these matters will be settled amicable.'

‘You are too trusting, stepmother,' retorted Matilda. ‘It is strange is it not that I am once more under your roof? Do you remember when my father gave me into your keeping? Dear stepmother, 'twould have been better if he had given you into mine. But now that I am returned to be Queen of this realm I shall not forget our friendship.'

Adelicia did not reply. She wondered whether Matilda would take the crown as easily as she planned to.

‘Yes,' went on Matilda, ‘my father put me into your care and do you remember that Christmas when I was kept to your apartments? The King was afraid to let me mingle with the Court for fear of what I should betray.'

‘I heard it mentioned.'

‘That my first husband was alive, that he was mad, that he had wandered from his bed! And that, Adelicia, was exactly what he did. He rose from our bed and walked out into the night in nothing but a pilgrim's robe and carrying a staff. He was mad, Adelicia. What they do to us! Does it not rouse your fury? We are married at an early age without our consent. I was twelve years old when I was married to the Emperor. Imagine it, Adelicia. How old were you when you were given to my father?'

‘I was eighteen years old.'