To Murder a King

by Griff Hosker

  “You cannot escape! Surrender!”

  The man spat and when he spoke it was obvious that he was French or Norman. “And be hanged drawn and quartered? I will do that which I intended and then kill as many of you eaters of beef as I can! I am a warrior!”

  I drew my ballock dagger, “You are nothing more than a knife in the night! You are a killer!”

  He suddenly lunged at me with both his sword and his dagger. I barely blocked them with my blade and the force of his attack knocked me backwards. The door slammed shut and we were in complete darkness.

  His face was close to mine, “And now we are in my world. I will kill you and then your King and Queen. As you lie there bleeding to death know that you have failed!”

  The wound in my side was now bleeding freely. Soon it would weaken me and he would succeed. Those outside could not get in for I was pressed against the door. I felt him push his sword against my dagger and my left hand gradually came towards my neck. My hauberk did not cover my throat. I pushed back as hard as I could. I think I would have died had not the words of Red Ralph come to me. When I had been a scrawny boy and others had bullied me, he had taught me how to use the strength and weight of others as a means of defeating them. I suddenly kicked my legs out and his weight and mine dragged us to the ground. I was supported by the door. When a man falls he instinctively puts out his hands. So it was with the Frenchman. His sword struck the door and not my neck. Even as he fell across me I lunged blindly with my dagger. Had it been the rondel dagger in my boot then I might have ended his life but it was the ballock dagger. I found flesh and sliced across his hand. Unfortunately, he also slashed blindly with his dagger and he ripped down my cheek. Blood spurted and he shouted triumphantly. I punched with my sword and rolled from beneath him.

  “Captain! Are you alright?” Henry shouted and hands banged on the door.

  I did not shout for I was still in the dark. I could see nothing save for the shadow of the man. I rose into the crouch aware now of the blood seeping from two wounds. It was the Queen who saved me. She flicked the flint to light the candle. The sudden spark made his head turn and I lunged low. My sword entered his thigh. He shouted in pain as the blade scraped along bone. The room flared into light as the Queen lit the candle. The Frenchman turned to swing his sword at me. Even as I raised my sword to block the blow the King’s dagger slashed across his throat from behind and the assassin died.

  The door burst open and Peter and Henry stood there bathed in the light from the corridor. The Frenchman lay bleeding to death in a pool of blood. Even as I looked the life went from him. I regretted his death. Had we taken him alive then we might have learned much. “Thank you, sire, I owe you a life.”

  The King was shaking. I do not think he had ever killed anyone before. The Queen came to me with a piece of cloth. She held it to my face, “William, you owe us nothing. Had you not come when you did then Henry Bolingbroke would now be King. Fetch the doctor!”

  The slash to my face required many stitches. It would be an ugly wound. Poor Robert and Matthew had both been killed before Henry and Peter could get to them. The King was saddened by the loss of his squire. The survivors were all better warriors for the experience but the memory of that night would live long within us. The King and Queen had been within a handspan of death.

  The Chancellor and the Bishop of Durham were even more shaken. That killers could enter the castle made them fear for their own lives. It showed me that they were driven by self-interest. It was the King who had been the target. The Parliament and their demands were forgotten. The King and Queen had been within a sighing breath of death. After the room had been tidied and all had been dismissed the King and Queen sat with me.

  “William, I have treated you badly. I should not have dismissed you. The Earl of Oxford is a good man but he was wrong about you. I needed you. I will not make the same mistake again. I would have you choose for me another twenty guards before you return to your home. You are an honourable man and it is good that you serve my cousin. I know now that he is not my enemy. I was told that he sought my crown. I can see now that while he wishes it upon his head he will not try to take it. If he wished that he would not have sent you to warn me. And now we must prepare a story. This was not an attempt on my life. The killers were friends of those you killed at the gate. This was for revenge. They were trying to kill you and your guards. We have all those involved swear an oath that this attempt on my life will remain a secret.”

  I nodded, “Aye, sire, for an attempt on the life of a King might encourage others to regicide. Then, when I leave, it will be seen not as desertion but as an attempt to make your lives safer.” I smiled, “Your wife has helped to make you wiser, sire.”

  He nodded, “My wife is the better half of me that is true and I bless the day we were wed.”

  The doctor had had to shave my face before he would stitch the wound. It made the wound look even worse. I would bear the scar to the end of my days. It looked worse when he had finished for it stood out on my newly shaven face. I would have to regrow my beard else I would terrify my children and my wife.

  The rest of the day was sombre. We buried our dead and disposed of the bodies. It became clear that the three killers had entered when we were distracted at the gate. One of the servants remembered cloaked men hurrying across the outer bailey but thought nothing of it. There had been many people coming and going and he was but a servant. The sentries had been watching for danger from without. The killers had hidden in the castle until we retired and then came to do their deadly deed. I now saw that they could have escaped. They merely had to rid themselves of Matthew and they could have slipped over the wall. It was my suspicious nature which had spoiled their plan.

  If I thought that life would become easier I was wrong. Two days later the Duke of Gloucester, the Bishop of Ely and the Earl of Arundel arrived at the castle. Parliament had decided and the King would not like their decision.

  The Duke of Gloucester, Thomas Woodstock, was an uncompromising man. Just a year younger than myself he had been the last of King Edward’s children to survive to adulthood. I do not know if he resented his nephew but there was no love lost between them. The other lords just followed him. As he represented England’s Parliament King Richard had to receive him. I knew that the King was intimidated for while he made the parliamentary delegation wait outside he sent for me. “I know that you are still healing from your wounds, William, but in the absence of the Earl of Oxford I need someone with a military reputation. The Chancellor is a man of coin.”

  “But I am just a gentleman, sire.”

  “A gentleman who is well respected.”

  And so I stood to the side of the two thrones as the delegation approached the King. “So, uncle, have you come to tell me that my Commons and Lords have agreed to fund the army we need to defend England?”

  I saw the look of pleasure on the Duke’s face as he said, “No, sire, I have not. As you have consistently refused to meet with us and, so I hear, threatened to have the delegation we planned to send arrested, I am here to deliver an ultimatum.”

  “Ultimatum!” I saw the Queen squeeze his hand. “I am the King!”

  “You are the King so long as the people are willing to fund you and your circle of leeches.”

  “Is that a threat, uncle?”

  He shrugged, “If we do not grant you any funds what will you do, nephew? Had you come to Osney you might have done as you did with Wat Tyler and his mob. You might have used your charm to bring them to your point of view. However, I fear that horse has bolted and the promises which were not fulfilled will not be believed a second time.” The King was silent. I knew that he had not made good on the promises which he had made. “So here is our ultimatum. The Earl of Suffolk, Michael de la Pole, is to be dismissed and his lands confiscated. He is to be imprisoned and tried for treason. The Bishop of Durham and Walter Skirlaw are also to be dismissed from office with immediate effect. The Earl of Oxford is to be brought befor
e Parliament to answer charges of corruption and murder.”

  “That is preposterous!”

  I noticed that the three men who had been dismissed hung their heads in acceptance of the sentence. The King was going to lose.

  “I have not finished. You will come to Parliament where you will have new councillors appointed to guide you.”

  “You would choose those who counsel me?”

  He smiled but it was a cold smile, “No, nephew. You choose your council and Parliament will either say yay or nay.”

  I was the only ally Richard had for his councillors had deserted him. His wife continued to squeeze his hand. He looked around at me. I smiled at him despite the fact my new wound hurt me. It was a pathetically helpless gesture. I was telling the King that he had my support. When his shoulders sagged and his head drooped then I knew that he had lost.

  “I am bereft of nobles who will defend me and I am forced to accept your decision but I would have you know that God is watching how you treat his anointed servant and like all such sins there will be punishment.”

  I know the Duke of Gloucester thought it a melodramatic gesture from the King but I knew that King Richard would never forgive his uncle. I saw the King look along the line of those who had delivered the ultimatum. One day the King would make them pay. He would have vengeance for this betrayal. I was suddenly tired of this life at court.

  “It is eighty miles to Osney, King Richard. If we leave by noon then we need spend just one night at St. Albans.”

  “And my safety? Can it be assured?”

  “Of course, but will you not be bringing your guards and the redoubtable Captain William?”

  “I will. Now leave us so that we may make arrangements.” When they had gone he turned to me, “Will, you have suffered enough for me but I would have you go to the Earl of Derby, Henry Bolingbroke. Tell him of the attack on my person. It is a secret but he should know. Tell him that I need his support. Do this for me, Will.”

  “But what of your guards? Who will lead them?”

  “They have shown that they are worthy of my livery. You choose a captain.”

  “And the Earl of Oxford?”

  “He must have been delayed. Once he knows what has happened he will rally to my side. With him and my cousin we can end this rebellion.”

  “Aye, Majesty. I will tell Dick of Craven. He is the better sergeant.”

  We left an hour after the sun was at its zenith. The Duke of Gloucester wisely skirted London and the mob. We reached St. Albans after dark. As we were in unknown territory Henry, Peter and myself slept in the King’s chamber much to the amusement of his wife. She was the one light in the King’s life and lit up his darkest moods of despair. As we rode to the Parliament I spoke with the king. “I will try to get you more guards. I know the type of men you will need.”

  The Queen said, “Do you think the threat is still there, William?”

  “I know not. All the killers who have been sent have died. From the coins in their purses they were well paid. Perhaps the King’s enemies will have to think again.” I did not mention that I was sure Robert de Vere was involved. The King still would not believe me.

  The King nodded. He had grown in the last few weeks. “I will start to choose knights in whom I can have complete faith. I would have more men like the Earl of Oxford around me. When this is over, my love, we will travel my land and seek support. England loves their King and I will prove it. My uncle thinks I am defeated but I am not. This is a setback only. I have sent to Dover for Sir Simon Burley. He is ever loyal.”

  My heart sank. Sir Simon had been one of the causes of the revolt by Wat Tyler. Sir Simon had been given the Cinque Ports and Dover. He had had enough men under his hand to come to the King’s aid but he had not.

  We parted at Osney. We stayed with the King for the first night to ensure that Captain Dick was happy about protecting the King. As we left the next morning the King was almost tearful. “I have learned much in the last month, William. No matter what happens you are a true friend and I will never forget what you have done.”

  The Queen gave me a small ring with a blue stone. “William, I give this to you. Wear it in memory of a Queen who regards you as her champion. You may not be a knight but in my mind, you are greater than any knight in the realm. Your wife is a lucky woman.”

  Chapter 14

  We did not have far to travel. Our destination was less than a day north east. We had our spare horses with our treasure which slowed us down a little. I had been away less time than I had told my wife but it still felt like a lifetime. I knew I would have to visit Stratford first and that would delay my arrival home by half a day. I would have to stay a night with Sir Robert. The last few miles, as we rode through what many considered the most beautiful part of England, I sensed that Peter and Henry were not ready yet to part company.

  “Captain, if you need Master Henry again then know that I would gladly serve.” I saw Henry nodding vigorously.

  “Your lives have both been in danger. The fate of Robert, Ralph and Matthew could so easily have been yours.”

  “But we are alive, Captain, and serving you we felt so too.”

  Henry nodded, “Peter is right. We were in danger and we were alive. We served an Earl and a King. How can I go back to learning how to tally figures and balance books? I have fought against Spaniards and defied assassins. I have rubbed shoulders with Kings and Captains of vast armies.”

  I shook my head, “I have a message to deliver to the Earl. That message may determine that he no longer needs me. Part of me hopes that is true for I tire of this deceitful world where men struggle for crowns when ordinary men fight merely to live.”

  Peter smiled, “You do yourself a disservice, Captain. I watched and I listened. You have done your best for those ordinary men. If you are not there then the land will be fought over by the nobles.”

  I sighed, “I will take you home Master Henry. You now have the skills to fight as a knight. As for the rest? Learning the rote, reading, writing, composing a ballad, holding a vigil? All of that is a foreign land to me. Your grandfather can teach you. When you are a knight then you will not wish to associate yourself with a mere gentleman.”

  He said, quietly, “That will never be true, Captain.”

  The braziers outside his grandfather’s hall beckoned us and ended our conversation. It should have been a joyous reunion but Henry wanted more time with me. I felt sorry for his grandparents. His grandmother burst into tears when she saw him and embraced him so long I feared he would not be able to breathe.

  Sir Robert put his arm around me. “He has grown and he looks like a man. You have brought him back to me safely and you have earned your bounty.”

  “He is a good man. He left a boy but he is a man. He has killed, lord, more than once.” The look of shock on Sir Robert’s face almost made me smile. What did he expect? “More than that he has protected and saved the life of the King. King Richard will be forever in his debt.”

  “But there is talk of rebellion!”

  I turned to face him and my words became harsh. This was a merchant. This was someone who worried more about piles of coins than the heart of a country. “Put those thoughts from your head! King Richard is King of England and your grandson will support him. You mention rebellion and you drive a wedge between you and your heir. He does not wish to be a merchant. You set him on a path and now there is no turning back. He will go to war. My suggestion is that you have him tutored so that he can pass the rites of knighthood. He has come back rich. He does not need your support.”

  “He has his own coin?” I heard incredulity in the knight’s voice.

  I pointed to Peter who was unloading their chests. “As does Peter. If Peter is a freeman then he may choose to leave your service.”

  The knight looked crestfallen, “Had I known this…”

  “You could have done nothing about it. Henry takes after your son. He would be a soldier.”

  His eyes were
sad as he said, “You are right. We opened the box and now must live with it.” His wife took Henry inside the house. “And you, what of you?”

  “I fear that in serving you I have opened my own box and it is infinitely more dangerous than yours. I will say no more for the less you know the better. I will go home for a few days and see my wife and then I will leave. The Earl of Northampton is happy that you fulfilled your promise and you will be safe but your grandson will leave one day and your choice is to make it easy or hard.” He nodded. “It is late and…”

  “Of course! How rude of me. You are our honoured guest. I must seem churlish to you. You have done all that I asked and yet I carp on about matters which are nought to do with you. Come. We will feed you this night and hear my grandson’s tales.”

  I felt inordinately sorry for Henry’s grandmother. She was desperate to have her grandson back home but he had already left and she did not know. I watched his grandfather as Henry animatedly spoke of events in Castile and Eltham. I thought, at one point, that he might speak of the attempts on Henry and Richard’s lives but he did not. He had grown. Peter was not invited to the feast and for that I felt sad. The two had been so close for so long that the absence of Peter seemed almost a crime. It was, perhaps, no wonder that Peter wished our lives could continue as they had.

  As Henry spoke of the meeting with the Duke of Gloucester and my presence at that meeting Sir Robert said, “You are a more important man than I thought, William.”

  “I was at the meeting but I could not alter the outcome. It is important men who shape the world in which we live. Men like me are used to alter outcomes. There is a difference. No one ever asks my opinion.”

  “You are not the man I expected when I invited you to take Henry under your wing. You have earned your one hundred pounds and more.”

  “You need not pay me. Henry is a good squire and he has helped me immeasurably.”

  “I may not fight from a horse nor do I have the courage to do as you do but I am a knight and my word is my bond. The money I promised is yours and it is small enough payment for the return of my grandson. I am in your debt and it is a debt I can never fully pay.”