For Faith and Freedom

by Walter Besant

  CHAPTER XXI.

  WE WAIT FOR THE END.

  I have said that my father from the beginning unto the end of thisbusiness was as one beside himself, being in an ecstasy or raptureof mind insomuch that he heeded nothing. The letters he sent out tohis friends, the Nonconformists, either brought no answer or elsethey heaped loads of trouble, being intercepted and read, upon thoseto whom they were addressed. But he was not moved. The defectionof his friends and of the gentry caused him no uneasiness. Nay, heeven closed his eyes and ears to the drinking, the profane oaths,and the riotous living in the camp. Others there were, like-mindedwith himself, who saw the hand of the Lord in this enterprise, andthought that it would succeed by a miracle. The desertions of themen, which afterwards followed, and the defection of those whoshould have joined--these things were but the weeding of the host,which should be still further weeded--as in a well-known chapterin the Book of Judges--until none but the righteous should be leftbehind. These things he preached daily, and with mighty fervour, toall who would listen; but these were few in number.

  As regards his wife and daughter he took no thought for them at all,being wholly enwrapped in his work; he did not so much as ask if wehad money--to be sure, for five-and-twenty years he had never askedthat question--or if we were safely bestowed; or if we were well.Never have I seen any man so careless of all earthly affections whenhe considered the work of the Lord. But when the time came for thearmy to march, what were we to do? Where should we be bestowed?

  'As to following the army,' said Robin, 'that is absurd. We knownot whither we may march or what the course of events may order.You cannot go home without an armed escort, for the country is up;the clubmen are out everywhere to protect their cattle and horses,a rough and rude folk they would be to meet; and the gipsies arerobbing and plundering. Can you stay here until we come back, oruntil the country hath settled down again?'

  Miss Blake generously promised that we should stay with her as longas we chose, adding many kind things about myself, out of friendshipand a good heart; and so it was resolved that we should remainin Taunton, where no harm could befall us, while my father stillaccompanied the army to exhort the soldiers.

  'I will take care of him,' said Barnaby. 'He shall not preach of amorning till he hath taken breakfast, nor shall he go to bed untilhe hath had his supper. So long as the provisions last out he shallhave his ration. After that I cannot say. Maybe we shall all go onshort commons, as hath happened to me already; and, truth to tell,I love it not. All these things belong to the voyage, and are partof our luck. Farewell, therefore, mother. Heart up!--all will gowell! Kiss me, Sis; we shall all come back again. Never fear. KingMonmouth shall be crowned in Westminster. Dad shall be Archbishopof Canterbury, and I shall be Captain of a King's ship. All ourfortunes shall be made, and you, Sis, shall have a great estate, andshall marry whom you please--Robin or another. As for the gentry whohave not come forward, hang 'em, we'll divide their estates betweenus and so change places, and they will be so astonished at not beingshot for cowardice that they will rejoice and be glad to clean ourboots. Thus shall we all be happy.'

  So they marched away, Monmouth being now at the head of an armyseven thousand strong, and all in such spirits that you would havethought nothing could withstand them. And when I consider, andremember how that army marched away, with the cheers of the men andthe laughter and jokes of the young recruits, the tears run down mycheeks for thinking how their joy was turned to mourning, and lifewas exchanged for death. The last I saw of Robin was that he wasturning in his saddle to wave his hand, his face full of confidenceand joy. The only gloomy face in the whole army that morning wasthe face of Humphrey. Afterwards I learned that almost from thebeginning he foresaw certain disaster. In the first place, noneof those on whom the exiles of Holland had relied came into camp.These were the backbone of the Protestant party--the sturdy bloodthat had been freely shed against Charles I. This was a bitterdisappointment. Next, he saw in the army nothing but a rabble ofcountry lads, with such officers as Captain Hucker, the Serge-maker,instead of the country gentlemen, with their troops, as had beenexpected; and from the beginning he distrusted the leaders--even theDuke himself. So he hung his head and laughed not with the rest. Buthis doubts he kept locked up in his own heart. Robin knew none ofthem.

  It was a pretty sight to see the Taunton maids walking out for amile and more with their lovers who had joined Monmouth. They walkedhand-in-hand with the men; they wore the Monmouth favours; they hadno more doubt or fear of the event than their sweethearts. Thosewho visit Taunton now may see these women (now grown old) creepingabout the streets lonely and sorrowful, mindful still of that Sundaymorning when they saw their lovers for the last time.

  When I consider the history of this expedition I am amazed that itdid not succeed. It was, surely, by a special judgment of God thatthe victory was withheld from Monmouth and reserved for William. Isay not (presumptuously) that the judgment was pronounced againstthe Duke on account of his sinful life, but I think it was thewill of Heaven that the country should endure for three years thepresence of a Prince who was continually seeking to advance theCatholic religion. The people were not yet ripe, perhaps, for thatuniversal disgust which caused them without bloodshed (in thisisland at least) to pull down King James from his throne. When, Isay, I consider the temper and the courage of that great army whichleft Taunton, greater than any which the King could bring againstit; when I consider the multitudes who flocked to the standard atBridgwater, I am lost in wonder at the event.

  From Sunday, the 21st, when the army marched out of Taunton, tillthe news came of their rout on Sedgemoor, we heard nothing certainabout them. On Tuesday the Duke of Albemarle, hearing that the armyhad gone, occupied Taunton with the Militia, and there were somewho expected severities on account of the welcome given to the Dukeand the recruits whom he obtained here. But there were no acts ofrevenge that I heard of--and, indeed, he did not stay long in thetown. As for us, we remained under the shelter of Miss Blake's roof,and daily expected news of some great and signal victory. But nonecame, save one letter. Every day we looked for this news, and everyday we planned and laid down the victorious march for our army.

  'They will first occupy Bristol,' said Miss Blake. 'That is certain,because there are many stout Protestants in Bristol, and the placeis important. Once master of that great city, our King will getpossession of ships, and so will have a fleet. There are, no doubt,plenty of arms in the town, with which he will be able to equip anarmy ten times greater than that which he now has. Then with--say,thirty thousand men--he will march on London. The Militia will, ofcourse, lay down their arms or desert at the approach of this greatand resolute army. The King's regiments will prove, I expect, to beProtestants, every man. Oxford will open her gates, London will sendout her train-bands to welcome the Deliverer, and so our King willenter in triumph and be crowned at Westminster Abbey, one King Jamessucceeding another. Then there shall be restored to this distractedcountry'--being a schoolmistress, Miss Blake could use languageworthy of the dignity of history--'the blessings of religiousfreedom; and the pure Word of God, stripped of superstitiousadditions made by man, shall be preached through the length andbreadth of the land.'

  'What shall be done,' I asked, 'with the Bishops?'

  'They shall be suffered to remain,' she said, speaking with a voiceof authority, 'for those congregations which desire a prelacy,but stripped of their titles and of their vast revenues. We willnot persecute, but we will never suffer one Church to lord it overanother. Oh! when will the news come? Where is the army now?'

  The letter of which I have spoken was from Robin.

  'Sweetheart,' he said, 'all goes well so far. At Bridgwater we havereceived a welcome only second to that of Taunton. The Mayor andAldermen proclaimed our King at the High Cross, and the people havesent to the camp great store of provisions and arms of all kinds.We are now six regiments of foot with a thousand cavalry, besidesthe King's own body-guard. We have many good friends at Bridgwater,especia
lly one, Mr. Roger Hoar, who is a rich merchant of the place,and is very zealous in the Cause. Your father preached on Sundayevening from the text (Deuteronomy vii. 5), "Ye shall destroy theiraltars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, andburn their graven images with fire." It was a most moving discourse,which fired the hearts of all who heard it.

  'They say that our chief is downhearted because the nobility andgentry have not come in. They only wait for the first victory,after which they will come in by hundreds. But some of our men lookforward to depriving them of their estates, and dividing them amongthemselves; and already the Colonels and Majors are beginning toreckon up the great rewards which await them. As for me, there isbut one reward for which I pray--namely, to return unto BradfordOrcas and to the arms of my sweet saint. Lord Churchill is reportedto be at Chard; there has been a brush in the Forest of Nerochebetween the scouts, and it is said that all the roads are guardedso that recruits shall be arrested or at least driven back. Perhapsthis is the reason why the gentry sit down. Barnaby says that sofar there have been provisions enough and to spare; and he hopesthe present plenty may continue. No ship's crew can fight, he says,on half rations. Our march will be on Bristol. I hope and believethat when we have gotten that great town our end is sure. Humphreycontinueth glum.'

  Many women there were who passed that time in prayer, continuallyoffering up supplications on behalf of husband, brother, lover orson. But at Taunton the Vicar, one Walter Harte, a zealous HighChurchman, came forth from hiding, and, with the magistrates, saidprayers daily for King James II.

  To tell what follows is to renew a time of agony unspeakable. Yetmust it be told. Farewell, happy days of hope and confidence!Farewell, the sweet exchange of dreams! Farewell to our lovely hero,the gracious Duke! All the troubles that man's mind can conceivewere permitted to be rained upon our heads--defeat, wounds, death,prison--nay, for me such a thing as no one could have expected oreven feared--such a fate as never entered the mind of man to invent.

  When the Duke marched out of Bridgwater, across Sedgemoor toGlastonbury, the weather, which had been hot and fine, became coldand rainy, which made the men uncomfortable. At Glastonbury theycamped in the ruins of the old abbey. Thence they went to SheptonMallet, the spirits of the men still being high. From Shepton Malletthey marched to a place called Pensford, only five miles fromBristol. Here they heard that the bridge over the Avon at Keynshamwas broken down. This being presently repaired, the army marchedacross. They were then within easy reach of Bristol.

  And now began the disasters of the enterprise. Up to this timeeverything had prospered. Had the Duke boldly attacked Bristol--Ispeak not of my own wisdom, having none in such matters, but fromothers' wisdom--he would have encountered no more than twentycompanies or thereabouts of Militia, and a regiment of two hundredand fifty horse. Moreover, Bristol was full of Dissenters, whowanted nothing but encouragement to join the Protestant champion.Not only the Duke's friends, but also his enemies, agree indeclaring that it wanted nothing but courage to take that great,rich, and populous city, where he would have found everythingthat he wanted--men and money, arms and ammunition. I cannot butthink that for his sins, or for the sins of the nation, a judicialblindness was caused to fall upon the Duke, so that he chose, oftwo ways open to him, that which led to his destruction. In short,he turned away from Bristol, and drew up his forces against Bath.When he summoned that city to surrender, they shot his herald, andscoffed at him. Then, instead of taking the town, the Duke retiredto Philip's Norton, where, 'tis said, he expected some greatreinforcements. But none came; and he now grew greatly dejected,showing his dejection in his face, which could conceal nothing. Yethe fought an action with his half-brother, the Duke of Grafton, inwhich he was victorious, a thing which ought to have helped him.In this action Lieutenant Blake, Miss Blake's cousin, was killed.From Philip's Norton the army marched to Frome, and here such wasthe general despondency that two thousand men--a third of the wholearmy--deserted in the night and returned to their own homes. Ithink, also, it was at Frome that they learned the news of LordArgyle's discomfiture.

  Then a council was held, at which it was proposed that the armyshould be disbanded and ordered to return, seeing that the King hadproclaimed a pardon to all who would peacefully lay down their armsand return home; and that the Duke, with Lord Grey, and those whowould be certainly exempted from that pardon, should make the bestof their way out of the country.

  Alas! here was a way open to the safety of all those poor men; butagain was the Duke permitted to choose the other way--that, namely,which led to the destruction of his army and himself. Yet they saythat he himself recommended the safer course. He must have knownthat he wanted arms and ammunition; that his men were deserting;and that no more recruits came in. Colonel Venner, one of hisprincipal men, was at this juncture sent away to Holland in orderto get assistance in arms and money. And the King's proclamation ofpardon was carefully kept from the knowledge of the soldiers.

  On July the 4th the army returned to Bridgwater, and now Dr. Hooke,chaplain to the army, and some of the officers were sent awaysecretly in order to raise an insurrection in London and elsewhere;the only hope being that risings in various parts would call awaysome of the King's forces from the West. Some of the Taunton men inthe army rode from Bridgwater to see their friends. But we women(who, for the most part, remained at home) learned no news savethat as yet there had been no signal victory: we did not hear ofthe large desertions nor of the Duke's despondency. Therefore, wecontinued in our fool's paradise and looked every day for some greatand crowning mercy. Those who are on the side of the Lord are alwaysexpecting some special interference; whereas, they ought to besatisfied with being on the right side, whether victory or defeat beintended for them. In this enterprise I doubt not that those godlymen (there were, I dare say, some godly men) who fell in battle, orwere afterwards executed, received their reward, and that a far, fargreater reward than their conduct deserved--for who can measure theshort agony of death beside the everlasting life of glory and joyunspeakable?

  The last day of this fatal expedition was Sunday, the fifth dayof July: so that it took no more than three weeks in all betweenits first beginning and its failure. Only three weeks! But howmuch longer was it before the punishment and the expiation wereconcluded? Nay, are they even yet concluded when thousands ofinnocent women and children still go in poverty and mourning for theloss of those who should have worked for them?

  In the morning my father preached to the soldiers on the text(Joshua xxii. 22), 'The Lord God of gods, the Lord God of gods, Heknoweth, and Israel he shall know; if it be in rebellion, or if intransgression against the Lord, save us not this day.'

  And now the time was come when the last battle was to be fought.

  The Earl of Feversham, who had been at Somerton, marched this dayacross Sedgemoor and encamped at Weston Zoyland, which is but fiveor six miles from Bridgwater.

  Now it chanced that one William Sparke, of Chedzoy, hearing of thisadvance, climbed the church tower, and, by aid of a spying-glass,such as sailors use at sea, he discerned clearly the approach ofthe army and its halt at Weston. Being a well-wisher to the Duke,he sent one of his men, Richard Godfrey by name, with orders to spyinto and learn the position and numbers of the Earl's army, andto carry his information straightway to Bridgwater. This duty thefellow promised, and most faithfully performed.

  The Duke had already learned the approach of Lord Feversham,and, being now wellnigh desperate with his continued losses, andseeing his army gradually wasting away, with no fresh recruits,he had resolved upon not waiting to be attacked, but on a retreatnorthwards, hoping to get across the bridge at Keynsham, and somarch into Shropshire and Cheshire, where still he hoped to raiseanother army. But (says he who hath helped me with this briefaccount of the expedition) the retreat, which would have beenharassed by Lord Feversham's horse, would have turned into flight;the men would have deserted in all directions; and when the remainsof the army arrived at Keynsham Bridge they would certa
inly havefound it occupied by the Duke of Beaufort.

  The carriages were already loaded in readiness for this march; itwas to begin at nightfall; when the arrival of the man Godfrey, andthe news that he brought, caused the Duke to change everything. Forhe now perceived that such a chance was offered him as had neverbefore occurred since his landing: viz., a night surprise, and, ifhe were fortunate, the rout of the King's best troops.

  It is said that had the Duke shown the same boldness in the matterof Bristol that he showed in this night attack, he would have gainedthat city first and his own cause next. Nor did it appear at all adesperate attempt. For, though Lord Feversham had 2,500 men withhim, horse and foot, with sixteen field-pieces, the Duke had nearly3,000 foot (counting those armed with pikes and scythes) and 600horse with four field-pieces, and though the King's troops includedmany companies of Grenadiers, with a battalion of that famousregiment the Coldstream Guards, and some hundred horse of the King'sregiment and dragoons, the Duke had with him at least 2,000 men wellarmed and resolute, as the event showed. Besides this, he had theadvantage of the surprise and confusion of a night attack. And inaddition, the camp was not entrenched, the troopers had all gone tobed, the foot-soldiers were drinking cider, and the officers werereported to be all drunk.

  Therefore, it was resolved that the intended flight into Shropshireshould be abandoned, and that the whole matter should be brought toan issue that very night.

  Had the attack succeeded, all might yet have gone well with theDuke. His enemies boasted that his raw country lads would be routedat the first charge of regular soldiers; if he proved the contrary,those who had deserted him would have returned; those who held aloofwould join. It was not the Cause which found men lukewarm; it wasthe doubt--and nothing but the doubt--whether the Duke's enterprisewould be supported. And I never heard that any found aught butcommendation of the boldness and spirit which brought us to thebattle of Sedgemoor.

  All that day we spent in quiet meditation, in prayer, in the readingof the Bible, and in godly discourses, and herein I must commendthe modesty as well as the piety of Miss Susan Blake, in that sheinvited my mother, as her elder and the wife of an eminent minister,to conduct the religious exercises, though as the hostess she mighthave demanded that privilege. We stirred not abroad at all that day.The meeting-houses, which had been opened when the Duke marched in,were now closed again.

  In the evening, while we sat together discoursing upon the specialmercies vouchsafed to the people of the Lord, a strange thinghappened. Nay, I do not say that news may not have reached Tauntonalready of the Duke's intentions, and of the position of the King'sforces. But this seems incredible, since it was not known--except tothe council by whom it was decided--till late in the afternoon, andit was not to be thought that these would hurry to spread the newsabroad, and so ruin the whole affair. The window being open, then,we could hear the voices of those who talked in the street below.Now, there passed two men, and they were talking as they went. Saidone--and these were the words we heard--

  'I tell thee that the Duke will have no more to do than to lock thestable doors, and so seize the troopers in their beds.'

  We all started and listened. The voice below repeated--

  'I say, Sir, and I have it first hand, that he hath but to lock thestable doors and so seize all the troopers in their beds.'

  Then they passed on their way.

  Said my mother: 'My husband hath told me that not only may theconscience be awakened by a word which seemeth chance, but thefuture may be revealed by words which were perhaps meant in anothersense. What we have heard this evening may be a foretelling ofvictory. My children, let us pray, and so to bed.'