Shakespeare's Kings (21 page)

In
the
circumstances,
such
an
invitation
could
hardly
be
refused;
and three
days
later,
on
17
November,
the
three
Appellants
presented themselves
before
the
King
in
Westminster
Hall.
Their
troops,
however, were
not
disbanded.
They
were
negotiating
from
strength,
and
they made
their
demands
clear:
the
five
favourites
against
whom
they
were appealing
must
be
arrested
and
held
until
the
next
Parliament,
when they
must
stand
trial
for
offences
under
common
law.
A
little
to
their surprise,
perhaps,
Richard
accepted
at
once,
even
going
so
far
as
to appoint
3
February
1388
for
the
opening
of
the
sitting;
but
he
had
no intention
of
seeing
the
five
brought
to
trial.
Whatever
his
other
faults, he
was
loyal
to
his
friends,
for
whom
the
next
eleven
weeks
would allow
him
plenty
of
time
to
make
the
appropriate
arrangements.
As
for the
Appellants,
he
had
plans
for
them
also;
but
for
the
moment
he
gave no
sign.
Instead,
he
bore
all
three
of
them
off
to
his
chamber
to
celebrate the
reconciliation.

Within
days,
his
bad
faith
became
evident.
The
writs
of
summons to
Parliament
issued
in
his
name
specifically
provided
that
all
those elected
must
be
'indifferent
to
the
recent
disputes'.
As
to
the
five accused,
it
is
doubtful
whether
they
were
even
arrested.
They
were certainly
not
held
for
long,
and
only
Brembre
remained
to
face
his judges.
Tresilian
went
into
hiding
in
London;
the
Archbishop
of
York fled
to
the
north,
dressed
as
a
simple
parish
priest;
while
Suffolk
crossed the
Channel
to
Calais
disguised
as
a
pedlar,
hoping
to
find
refuge
with his
brother,
who
was
in
command
of
the
castle
.
He
suffered
a
brief setback
when
he
fell
into
the
hands
of
the
Governor,
Warwick's
brother Sir
William
Beauchamp,
who
put
him
on
to
a
ship
bound
for
Hull;
but he
was
soon
back
on
the
Continent,
and
never
returned
to
England. That
left:
only
de
Vere,
who
headed
for
Chester
with
letters
from
the King
instructing
the
Constable,
Sir
Thomas
Molyneux,
to
muster
all available
reservists.
As
soon
as
they
heard
of
his
departure,
Gloucester and
his
friends
set
about
raising
troops
of
their
own,
under
the
command of
John
of
Gaunt's
son,
the
twenty-year-old
Henry
Bolingbroke,
¹
Earl
of
Derby,
and
Arundel's
son-in-law
Thomas
Mowbray,
Earl
of Nottingham
-
two
young
noblemen
of
whom
we
shall
be
hearing
a good
deal
more
in
due
course.

The
ensuing
campaign
was
over
in
a
matter
of
days.
When
de
Vere, attempting
to
return
to
London,
learned
that
the
Appellants
had
blocked the
main
road
near
Northampton,
he
decided
to
make
his
way
from the
valley
of
the
Severn
to
that
of
the
upper
Thames,
following
the Fosseway
to
Stow-on-the
Wold.
From
there
he
could
either
take
the road
to
Cirencester,
which
would
be
relatively
safe
but
would
distance him
still
further
from
London,
or
alternatively
make
a
dash
through Burford
for
Radcot
Bridge.
He
chose
the
latter
-
and
fell
straight
into the
trap
that
had
been
set
for
him.
Bolingbroke
was
lying
in
wait
at
the river,
and
before
de
Vere
had
recovered
from
his
surprise
Gloucester appeared
in
his
rear.
Abandoning
his
men
to
save
themselves
as
best they
might,
he
fled
downstream
and
was
soon
lost
in
the
gathering December
dark.
A
day
or
two
later
he
too
was
safely
across
the
Channel. He
was
to
live
another
five
years,
but
he
never
saw
England
again.

After
Radcot
Bridge
there
could
no
longer
be
any
question
of accommodation
between
the
two
sides,
nor
-
the
twelve
months' authority
granted
to
the
Council
having
expired
the
previous
November -
of
any
legal
justification
for
the
actions
of
Gloucester
and
his
friends. The
army
that
marched
through
Oxford
to
London
just
after
Christmas 1387
to
pitch
its
camp
in
Clerkenwell
Fields
was
now
in
open
rebellion against
the
King.
Richard,
badly
frightened,
shut
himself
up
in
the Tower;
and
on
28
or
29
December,
after
careful
negotiations
mediated by
the
Archbishop
of
Canterbury
-
for
by
now
neither
side
trusted
the

other
an
inch
-
the
Appellant
lords
issued
their
ultimatum,
while
500 of
their
armed
supporters
waited
within
the
gates.
They
had
hinted before
at
the
possibility
of
deposition;
now,
for
the
first
time,
the suggestion
became
a
threat.
¹