Northern Knight (21 page)

"We will needs must ride hard and ride fast. A warband moves swiftly."

Sir Raymond ventured, "But if they have no knights then surely they will be easy to defeat."

Sir Edward snorted, "Do not make that mistake.  It would not do to underestimate them.  These are old fashioned warriors.  They may not ride horses nor use lances but each one could be a knight if they chose. These are not like the Welsh or the hired swords we have fought before.  If they are of Viking or Irish blood then they will be sworn to fight to the death for their leader.  They may be Christian now but they believe that it is better to die honourably for an oath than live in shame." He looked at the younger knights.  "There will be no ransom from these enemies."

I waved a hand to the west, "Come we waste time.  Our enemies are yonder and our people in great danger.  We ride hard.  I would reach Gainford by dark.  Dick will command the archers and Wulfric the men at arms." They all nodded, understanding the need for a single command.

Adela came with my children to see me off. "Take care, my husband. Each time you ride away I fear I shall never see you again."

"But each time I do return and I will do so again. If there is danger then bring the people within these walls.  The men of the town can protect you."

"Fear not; your castle and your people will be here when you return."

I sent Aiden to ride as fast as possible and reach Gainford. As we passed the farms the farmers and their families knew that something was amiss. We told them all the same as we passed. "Enemies are coming and we go to fight them. Be prepared to move to safety in case we fail."

There was fear on the faces of the women and the old as I told each farmer the same but determination on the faces of the men.  We had faced wolves and enemies such as this before.  My valley would survive. Sir Geoffrey of Piercebridge caught up with us close to the estates of the Bishop of Durham some five miles west of Stockton.  He had ridden hard.

He rode next to me so that we could speak; my message to him had been succinct. I had urged him to make all haste but I was surprised to find him this close and so soon. "I had thought you might have followed the river west to Sir Guy at Gainford."

He shook his head.  "I had many of my men with me as we were going to Durham to make a pilgrimage to the saint.  My men wished to thank him for saving us from the Welsh. We were already on the road north when your rider found us."

I nodded; Sir Geoffrey and his men lived an almost monastic life.  None of them were married and they were deeply religious.  It would not surprise me if he did not take the cross one day and go to the Holy Land. "We have barbarians to deal with.  Sir Guy and his men are in danger.  They were at Barnard yesterday. We could meet them at any time."

"How many do we face?"

"The reports said a thousand but these do not fight as we do. It could be a far greater or a far smaller number. Whatever the number we will be outnumbered."

As we passed Sadberge, one of the Bishop's manors, we took the opportunity of telling the reeve there of the danger.  This was an undefended manor.  The Bishop had many such as this. The reeve collected the taxes for the Bishop but he was in charge of the fyrd.

"Robert of Sadberge, there is a warband of Vikings and Irish to the west of us. Prepare to defend your manor."

The poor man, who looked to be of an age with the ailing Athelstan, almost shook with fear. "My lord, we have neither knights nor men at arms!"

"Then call out the fyrd or if you need to then go to Hartburn or Stockton.  There you can be defended."

He nodded his thanks and hurried off. We had travelled no more than two miles when Aiden galloped in leading a horse with a wounded warrior. I saw, for he wore no helmet, that it was Sir Guy's youngest son, Hugh. Aiden spoke while Wulfric tended to the young squire's wounds. "Gainford has fallen, my lord." He pointed to the west and I now saw the pall of smoke in the distance.

Hugh of Gainford struggled from Wulfric's grip. "We did not receive your message until it was too late, my lord.  My father saw buildings burning in the distance and called out his men.  They headed north for the smoke and your rider arrived. We were ambushed close to the hamlet of Ingleton. They were wild men with axes and they fell upon our horses.  My father commanded me and your archer to ride to you." He lowered his head, "Your man, Paul of Stockton, died when four enemy scouts caught us.  He slew three before he fell and I received this wound. I owe him my life."

I nodded. Paul had been with me since the start and had been one of my best archers.  Dick would be saddened by his lost but if he had saved young Hugh and given us warning then his death had not been in vain. "Where are they now, Aiden?"

"They were five miles in that direction when I saw them." he answered my unspoken question without me asking it, "They were still north of the river.  They are heading in this direction."

I stood in my stirrups and looked around.  Sadberge was on a slight rise but a warband could sweep around us. "Is there anywhere west we can stop them?"

Sir Geoffrey said, "Aye, Baron. Close to the Skerne there is a steep slope.  We could use that as a stand.  It is like the place in Wales where the Welsh stood but this is flatter at the top.  It is like an island.  The Skerne is nothing but, at this time of the year, it is boggy and will slow them up."

"Then lead us there."

I noticed that Gille, Hugh's cousin and Edward's squire spoke to Hugh and comforted him.  The two were the last of their family.  We had suffered our first serious loss since my father's death.  My world was changing once more.

We rode as though charging into battle. We had to find a place to halt them or we would be swept away. If we could not reach this place before the warband then we might suffer the same fate as Sir Guy.  We were now weaker by almost forty men.  It was a grievous loss. As we rode I looked at the faces of my knights.  This was our first serious setback. Until this moment we had enjoyed victory after victory.  Even in Wales we had lost neither knight nor squire and now we had lost both.  They now knew that we were not invincible.  This coming fray would be a test of their character and their mettle. If any had any doubts about the skills of these barbarians they had been destroyed along with Sir Guy

When we reached the high land above the Skerne I saw that Sir Geoffrey had been correct. The small river which led to the Tees was some six hundred paces below us and the land fell away steeply.  Sadly, unlike Wales, this was not a rock and gorse strewn slope; this was land with animals grazing upon it. It would be easy to cross. The farmer, whose hut topped the rise, looked in fear at us. "Gather your animals and, with your family, drive them east.  Enemies come and we will have to fight them. They have called out the fyrd at Sadberge.  You can reach there."

This was the palatinate and he was one of the Bishop's subjects.  I hoped that my message had reached Flambard but I had no confidence that aid would come from that direction. Perhaps my success had made everyone else complacent and they thought that I could deal with any danger in this land.  The farmer and his family grabbed their meagre possessions and began to drive their animals east.  I hoped that they would make it.

I spied a small stand of willows adjacent to the river. "Wulfric, have our men cut down the willows.  Make a palisade of sharpened stakes before us. Leave a gap in the middle five horses wide."

He grinned as he visualised what he had to do, "You draw them into a fish trap, my lord!"

I smiled, "Aye for this pike may be a dangerous fish and I would not have him twist and turn."

As I dismounted, Leofric, who was holding my horse asked, "Why do you not put a wall all around us, my lord?"

"For if I did so then the enemy would come between the stakes.  We have not enough to make a solid wall.  There have to be gaps.  By making one big enough for a large number of men through then we force them there. We can face whoever they send with an equal number and our archers can rain death upon them. Men, like fish, always choose the easiest route unless they are well led.  This is a warband and we use that weakness to our advantage." I sounded more confident than I was.  I was clutching at straws.  This defence was all that I could come up with.  I prayed it would work.

We had brought our warhorses and I had them taken to the rear of our lines to rest. When we needed them we would have to ride hard. Until then we would remain on foot. Sir Geoffrey had found us a perfect place to defend.  The warband could not get to the rich valley without first defeating us.  We could fall upon them whichever direction they chose.  Of course when they saw us they might choose to head south or north or even return west but we could follow them. That was where our horses would give us the advantage. If the numbers had been exaggerated them they would move west otherwise they would attack us and I hoped to make them bleed to death.

Wulfric and the men at arms worked swiftly.  The thick willow branches they cut were all different lengths and girths.  My men made them roughly the height of a man and they sharpened one end before driving them in at an angle. My archers then used small hatchets to sharpen the stakes.  Had we had time we would have fire hardened the tips but we wanted a barrier to slow them down and they would have to suffice the way that they were fashioned.  The slower the barbarians came the more my archers would slaughter before they arrived.

As the men at arms finished I said, "I want the knights and the squires in the gaps.  The men at arms will be in two lines behind them and the archers behind those. Plant our banners in the ground.  We do not retreat and every man fights!"

While we waited I made sure that the men ate and drank.  Another advantage, however slight, which we had, was the fact that we would be fresher than this warband which had had to move across the spine of the country. They would neither be rested nor refreshed and the slope up which they came, after a boggy crossing would sap and suck the energy from their legs.  At least, that was my hope but I still had little idea of true numbers. I knew that although he and his men had all fallen Sir Guy would have extracted a high price from these enemies. I waited to see their numbers.

Aiden had the sharpest eyes and he suddenly shouted, as he spotted them, "There my lord, to the west!"

A mile away, on the other side of the Skerne, descending the gentler western slope was the warband. I could see why we only had a vague indication of numbers.  It did not merely move, it swarmed.  The sun glinted off spear points, helmets and mail. One could not begin to estimate numbers for they did not fight as we did. They fought the way they had since before the Romans had come to these lands. It did not matter how many men the enemy had; it could be tens of thousands but we had to stop them.  Our families, our homes and our lands depended upon us. Every man fighting for me was fighting for something personal. This was not the same as fighting in Wales or the Borders for the Earl of the Bishop.  This was personal and that would make all the difference.

I stepped forward into the gap and faced my men.  I still held my helmet and my coif was hanging from the back of my head. I wanted them to see my face and know I spoke the truth. "The men of Gainford bought us time with their lives so that we might prepare here. That sacrifice will not be in vain. This warband thinks to sweep us from this hillside and take all that our people have gathered.  They will take our women and our children if we let them.  They will raze to the ground all that we have built and all that we hold dear.  That will not happen this day.  We fight neither for gold nor glory; today we fight for us and our people.  Let none of this rabble leave the field alive.  I would the buzzards feast on their flesh and only a memory returns to their heathen homes across the sea. We will show them that we are true warriors and that God is on our side. What say you?"

There was a huge roar from my men.  As I turned to return to my place I saw that the enemy host had halted across the valley.  A mile separated us and whosoever led them was contemplating our position. I saw a huddle of warriors beneath three banners.  Two of them were mailed; they would be from Orkney and Dublin. The third was not. I suspected he led the Hibernians.  This was an unholy alliance. These were the last remnants of a bygone age.  This was a meeting of two worlds; the old and the new.

I pulled my coif over my head and fitted my helmet.  Behind me were John, son of Godwin, Leofric son of Tan and Hugh, the youngest of the line of Sir Guy of Gainford.  I turned to them. "The three of you are to watch my back.  Do not step before me, Sir Edward or Sir Harold." I saw Gille nod to his younger cousin as though to confirm his words. "But you will use you spears in the gaps to stab any flesh you see.  You jab into any face for the enemy wear little mail and shun the aventail and the coif.  If they are before me, they die."

Hugh of Gainford nodded, "We will avenge my people my lord and we shall not let you down!" I saw the pride in his elder brother's eyes.

These were young men and this was a crucial battle. Soon they would be under the greatest pressure they had ever experienced in their lives.  This would be a charge by the most ferocious foot soldiers anywhere.  These were the same kind of warriors my father had led and I was under no illusion This would be a hard fought encounter.  My father had fought at Stamford Bridge when the last Viking invasion had been ended.  I had heard the story of the three berserkers holding off the whole of the Saxon army so many times I could recite my father's version word for word. These men did not surrender for ransom.  They fought until you took off their head.