Red Rose, White Rose (32 page)

I was tempted to remind Hilda that she was now Lady Middleham and perfectly entitled to seek the services of the most eminent midwife, but I took the hint and did not pursue the subject further at that time. Hilda could be touchy about such things. However, her remarks sowed the seeds of an idea in my mind, which I resolved to raise with Richard whenever he did actually rejoin his family.

Meanwhile I was exchanging letters with Alice de la Pole, a process begun after I sent her my condolences on the terrible death of her husband. I was perturbed and intrigued by her reply, penned at Kenilworth, where she was in attendance on the queen.

To the most gracious and honorable Lady Cicely, Duchess of York, greetings from her friend, Alice, Countess of Suffolk.

I am in receipt of your very kind letter expressing sympathy for the death of my beloved lord and husband and thank you most earnestly for remembering both him and me and marking his dreadful and undeserved demise.

As you may imagine, the news of it came as the most appalling shock, received as it was less than a week after he had set sail in obedience to his sentence of exile. Who is responsible for the crime of William’s capture and murder I do not know, it remains a mystery, but I want you to know Cicely that I totally reject the suggestion that the perpetrators were in the pay of the Duke of York or in any way connected with his affinity, despite persistent rumours to that end. I know that allies of the duke, your husband, spoke out against my lord in the session of Parliament which ultimately led to his arraignment for treason but I am sure you will understand that the crimes with which William was charged only arose as a result of his diligent pursuit of the king’s wishes with regard to his marriage and his fervent desire no longer to cross swords with his uncle in France. It was because the king was so conscious that William was being held responsible for something that he, King Henry, had asked him to do that he used his royal prerogative to commute the death sentence handed out by the Lords and reduce it to one of five years in exile. When he learned of his murder he immediately transferred all the Suffolk estates to me in tenure for my son.

So distressed was Queen Margaret by William’s death and the way in which it occurred that she became prostrate with grief and the irony is that I had to be called to Windsor in order to tend her grace’s prostration! I am happy to say that she is recovered now but I truly do not think that I shall ever recover from losing my dear lord and especially from the manner of his death. I believe the image of his head impaled on a spike beside his butchered corpse will haunt my days and nights forever.

Our son John is a quiet and peace-loving boy who suffers from losing his father at such a tender age. We have lost the dukedom and he will only be Earl of Suffolk when he comes of age. However, his grace King Henry has tried to make recompense by confirming his marriage to the Somerset heiress Margaret Beaufort. We are awaiting the papal dispensation.

Meanwhile I am still attending Queen Margaret and therefore acquainted with the activities of court and council. In the absence of my dear lord she has become very reliant on the Duke of Somerset for advice and it was he who instigated the court’s move here to Kenilworth. It is a very comfortable and well-situated castle set in the middle of a large lake where the queen feels safe. After the murder of my husband and also that of the king’s Confessor, Bishop Aiscough, she fears the violent displeasure of the people and envies York’s apparently growing popularity.

I tell you this out of friendship and because I think you should warn your husband to tread carefully when he returns to England. Envy creates enemies I fear and there are many interpretations of treason.

I keep you in high regard, Cicely, and remain your discreet and faithful friend,

Alice, Countess of Suffolk

As Richard travelled through the York estates in the Midlands and Lincolnshire, gathering a larger and larger force of men, I began to worry about his intentions and almost wish I were with him. It was becoming more and more obvious that he was heading to London for a confrontation with the council in order to express his grievances and to defend himself against the false accusations made about his part in the recent uprisings. His letters to me were silent on the subject however and in the end it was Cuthbert who wrote to tell me that Richard had joined forces with the Duke of Norfolk and the Earl of Devon and arrived in London at the head of four thousand men, an intimidating army even when faced with opposition from a force of similar size mustered by barons allied to the Duke of Somerset. Cuthbert told of chains being hung across the streets of the city to keep the opposing factions apart.

Correspondence from Richard himself perturbed me further because it appeared that Harry Holland, who had marched to London among the York army of retainers, had immediately been called before the council and invested with livery of his father’s estates and title. This contravened the agreement concluded when Harry had been made Richard’s ward, it being nine months before the young man’s twenty-first birthday, the legally recognized age of majority. With some justification, Richard saw this as another slight engineered by the Duke of Somerset to defraud him of due revenue. It did not surprise me that Harry had immediately severed all ties to York and allied with Somerset, officially pledging himself to the Lancastrian cause and demanding that Richard’s household and bodyguard quit Coldharbour Inn.

Reading all this sent cold shivers down my spine and the next time I saw Anne I was obliged to take her to one side and gently tell her of her husband’s desertion of the House of York and adherence to the cause of her father’s arch enemy. ‘Of course it need not affect you at present and by the time you go to Harry he may have had second thoughts,’ I added but she was not deceived.

‘If it were not a mortal sin I would kill myself before setting one foot under Harry’s roof, Mother,’ Anne said with quiet conviction. ‘I pray daily for God to smite him before my life sentence can begin.’ I longed to be able to give her a hug but in the two years since her marriage she had acquired a brittle shell which I found hard to penetrate. Now a gaping chasm existed between me and my eldest daughter. I blamed Richard for this.

When the king finally agreed to grant Richard an audience, it turned out to be far from private or peaceful.

Richard wrote:
‘I went to the king’s Great Chamber at Westminster Palace hoping to be able to re-establish our childhood friendship and found myself confronted by the Earl of Somerset and all his cronies who consistently harangued me, construing every word I uttered as criticism of themselves or the king. Henry just sat there on his crimson and gold throne looking as if he wished he could be anywhere else; every time I tried to address him directly one of his councillors interrupted to answer for him. I could see regret and contrition in his eyes but he seemed unable to exert himself to stop them. It is no wonder the country suffers from such inept government when people like Somerset have for so long been allowed to steer the ship of state as it pleases them and cream off the richest posts and grants for themselves. Tomorrow I intend to draft a Bill, to be placed before the new parliament when it opens in November, urging the arrest of those responsible for the false execution of the king’s justice and prerogatives and presenting myself as his honest and loyal vassal who is willing and able to redress the situation. My agents have ensured that this time the Commons membership will consist of a high percentage of York supporters and that the Speaker will therefore be a candidate chosen by me, so my Bill will be presented early. Until then, for my own safety and contentment, I intend to leave London and hurry to your side at Ludlow.

In haste and great joy at the prospect of our imminent reunion,

I am your faithful husband

Richard, Duke of York.’

He was as good as his word, leaving London before Somerset’s men could discover the existence and content of his bill. I awaited his arrival with some trepidation, wondering if he would bring with him all the anger and frustration that he had communicated in his letters.

In the event it proved to be the joyful reunion he had anticipated. It had been a good summer in the Welsh Marches; there had been little unrest and a plentiful harvest and game was abundant. Richard took great pleasure in taking his older sons hunting while Hilda and I planned feasts and entertainments to enliven the lengthening October evenings. It was after one of these lively evenings, when Richard was mellow with wine and laughter, that I broached the subject I had been mulling over since Hilda had told me of her coming child.

‘What is your opinion of Hilda and Cuthbert’s marriage?’ I asked Richard when the curtains were drawn around the bed. ‘Were you surprised when Cuthbert told you?’

‘Yes, I was a little surprised,’ he admitted. He had removed his chamber robe and was comfortable under the covers, lying back propped up on his pillows. ‘I had always considered Cuthbert to be one of those knights bachelor who are dedicated to keeping their skills and weapons honed to perfection; the ideal champion for a great lady such as yourself.’

‘Oh I think he is still that,’ I responded. ‘Cuthbert will always be a perfectionist when it comes to being a knight but he is to be a father now. Did he tell you that?’

‘No, he did not.’ He looked surprised. ‘That was quick work. Dame Fortune has smiled on them, considering their ages. When will the babe be born?’

‘In spring – April, by Hilda’s reckoning. She says Cuthbert was amazed when he told her.’

‘Amazed or horrified?’ Richard grinned a little impishly. ‘She was married for a long time previously without any sign of children. Perhaps he had counted on having all the fun and none of the responsibility.’

I was seated on the bed but not yet in it, still wearing the bed gown my women had wrapped me in. I chastised him with a light-hearted nudge. ‘Do not mock, Richard! Cuthbert is delighted at the prospect of becoming a family man but we should provide them with a more secure future, do you not agree?’

Richard pursed his lips doubtfully. ‘We already pay them well and provide comfortable accommodation. What more do you suggest?’

I took a deep breath. I was determined on my course of action but I did not want to provoke an argument. ‘It was something Hilda said when she told me she was with child. I realized that she lost a great deal when her brother disowned her. Her family had long been Neville tenants. They were landed, not just retained knights and I would like to restore her to her proper status. My dowry was paid in coin not manors so I cannot make the grant myself but I wondered if, for my sake, you would consent to settle some York land on my faithful knight champion and his wife?’

When Richard’s brow creased in a frown I thought he was going to refuse my request point blank but it seemed he was giving it serious consideration. ‘It is not a bad idea but I cannot immediately think which of my manors might be suitable. Cuthbert would no doubt prefer to have a foothold in Yorkshire but your brother of Salisbury has seigneurial rights over the lion’s share of that, however hard the Percys try to take it from him. I will think on it.’

I stared at him, nonplussed. I had been diffident about raising the topic because I thought Richard’s mind would be focused on what might be going on in London but suddenly I realized that Richard had always taken his responsibilities of patronage and reward seriously and he had not changed. I felt a sudden rush of love and relief.

‘Thank you, my dear lord. I should tell you that before your return from Ireland, Cuthbert and Hilda both swore their oath of allegiance to York. Until then they had considered themselves bound to Neville so it was not a decision taken lightly. Their loyalty really does deserve reward.’

Richard’s expression changed from one of pensive consideration to something more intense. Impatiently he reached out and pulled my gown off my shoulders. ‘Enough of thinking about the future of others – let us consider the here and now of ourselves.’ He stroked the line of my jaw with his finger and drew it down my throat to the swell of my breast. ‘I desire evidence of the love and fidelity of my wife.’