by Griff Hosker
I stepped into a world lit at one end by a glowing fire which had slowly died down during the night. The Normans were spread along the sides but I assumed that the knights would have taken the prime positions by the hearth. I made my way through the sleeping bodies. If they woke it would be unfortunate but the closer I got to the leaders the better it would be. One of the men three back from me slipped slightly and stepped on a man. He woke with a roar and took in the armed spirits who had appeared, he began to scream a warning before he was despatched by one of my warriors but by then they were all awake. There was no time for honour and I slashed at the warrior next to me who had crouched, prior to rising. The next man was splashed by his blood and struck by his head as I decapitated him. We now outnumbered them by two. I ran towards the Norman knight I could see drawing his sword. He still had his tunic on but that was all. He advanced towards me with the sword held level with his shoulder. I slipped my dagger in my left hand and hacked at his sword with my own; there was a clash of sparks and I stabbed up at him with my dagger. It sliced through his tunic and into his side but the knight just gritted his teeth and swung his sword at me again. It was a two handed sword and longer than mine. It meant that he could keep me at bay. I feinted with my dagger and he reacted by turning with his blade. I took the opportunity to stab forwards with my sword and struck his thigh. I knew it was a deep wound as I struck a bone and deep red blood gushed from it. It had hurt him and he staggered back. I smashed down with the sword and again he struggled to stay on his feet, this time he failed and stumbled into the fire. Without meaning to he rolled away from the fire into the point of my dagger which entered his throat and ended his life. I turned quickly to see one of my men fall to a second knight’s sword. Unfortunately for the knight his side was facing me and my blade entered one side of his body and exited the other. The remaining warriors were quickly slaughtered for each faced three or four of my men.
It was like a charnel house. “Take our dead and wounded and then gather any weapons, armour or documents. We need to be away before dawn.”
There were not enough horses for us all and so I had the wounded and dead placed on the horses along with the arms and the weapons, The ten warriors with me then backed out of the village, keeping our eyes peeled for any warrior we had missed. “Put your hoods up, disguise your faces.” As we left I saw the tiny glow from doorways as the villagers fearfully peeped out. I hoped they did not recognise us. I wanted our identity to be a mystery. We made our way to our horses and met up with Osbert and Ridley. We quickly and silently headed east towards Topcliffe. The ground was hard now but the hoof prints would be clearly visible when the Normans came to look for their lost patrol. We rode to the road and then headed south for a while. When we came to the small river over which the road passed, we headed west, into the river and thence home.
“Too many men died there, my lord.”
“I know. “ We had lost three dead in the attack and then another had succumbed to his wounds. “It was a major blow to the Normans but you are right Osbert, they have more men to lose. The knights are fine warriors, even without armour. We will limit ourselves to ambushes along the road for a while. You never know, we may get more men who wish to join us.”
Osbert was not convinced. “Anyone who joins us would be a potential spy. We have to be careful.”
I could see what he meant for, with a price on my head there would be many men willing to risk all to make their fortune. As it transpired there were no volunteers and we spent the next month watching for travellers. We devised a method by which two archers would wait as close to the Jorvik road south of Topcliffe as they could manage. If they saw a likely convoy then one rode up to the place we waited to fetch us whilst the other trailed them. I was there with Osbert and twenty men, a mixture of archers and men at arms when Edward galloped in. “My lord, a column of men at arms and knight. “
“How many? “
“ Twenty men at arms and four crossbowmen but only the knight is mounted.”
I turned to Osbert. “They can’t be making for Catherick, they wouldn’t be able to get there before dark. They must be going either to Topcliffe or Medelai.”
“Then we have to take them.” We rode along the road for four miles and then turned off into the scrub land adjacent.
Edward held his hand up. “I think that they should be just down the road around the stand of trees.”
“You and the archers secrete yourselves next to the road. We will attract their attention. Take out the knight if you can or his horse and your next target will be the crossbows.”
We had discovered that the deadly bolts were the Normans’ best weapons and although we did not fear them, we respected them. “Right Osbert, I will ride down the road with four men and see if he will attack us or at least draw close to us. You and the others hide in the bushes and close with them.”
“With respect my lord, you cannot carry on like this.”
I saw the others smile, “Like what?”
“Always putting yourself at the fore, as you did in Catherick. Always the first one in. I know you are our leader but we can’t afford to lose you. Let me have a go this time.” He grinned to take any insolence out of his words. “See if I can manage it eh sir?”
He was right. He was as good a warrior as I was and perhaps I was hunting glory too much. “Very well, but don’t get yourself killed, I don’t want Branton pissed at me as well!”
We found some bushes and hid the horses. My horse, Sweyn, neighed; he always did that when he heard strange horses. They were approaching. Osbert and his men were in the distance riding down the road and I spied the Norman column. The knight had spotted Osbert and he showed his caution by forming his men into a defensive circle with him in the middle. Osbert halted and we had a stalemate. Edward and his archers had no target yet, at least not a target they could hit effectively. Osbert must have read my mind for he spread his men out into a line and began to trot down the road. I heard an order in French and then four crossbowmen stepped forwards to aim their weapons at Osbert. Although Edward’s men could not see the knight well enough to hit, the lightly protected crossbowmen were an easy target and they fell to the ground dead.
The men at arms turned to their left to protect against the new enemy and I shouted, “Now!” We sprang from concealment and struck the rear of their line with our spears. “Withdraw!”
The knight was a brave man and he charged at the archers. They knew better than to stay and face a mailed leviathan; they quickly mounted and sped away. Osbert galloped up and his men at arms exchanged spears with the men at arms, leaving another couple dead. When the knight reorganised his lines it was stalemate again and we withdrew. I felt disappointed but it had been a good ambush. We had killed or wounded at least eight and not lost a man. Osbert was cheerfulness personified as we rode back to camp. “Now that is how we should do it. Annoy them. Slow them down. Make them look behind every bush for us.”
By the end of the month the convoys had increased in size to protect them against our incursions. Each one had mounted men and crossbowmen to escort it. But we did notice that they cracked their whips even harder and the castles rose inexorably to dominate the skyline. I could see a pattern. They were controlling the roads. It was the chess game again; the castles controlled the board to enable their knights to attack. Luckily we received some intelligence from an unexpected source when Ralph arrived with more arrow heads.
He appeared to have grown by at least four fingers! “They have almost finished the castle at Maiden Bower and Aux Gemons…”
“Who is Aux Gemons when he is at home?”
“That is William of Perci or as he is now called Baron Topcliffe. His nickname is Aux Gemons because of his moustaches. He is now at York building that castle and William has raised the taxes. They have been doubled. He has tax collectors all over the land.”
“You have done well Ralph. Have they been to Coxold yet?”
“Aye they came there first.”<
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“You be careful when you return to Coxold and we will call in to the manor to speak with the steward.”
When he left I drew Osbert, his brother and Ridley to one side. “We will move camp.”
“What was that about visiting Coxold?”
“We will, Ridley, but it will be from our other camp.” He looked at me with a puzzled look although I could see that Osbert had worked out my meaning. “If Ralph is captured he will send any Norman west.”
“Ralph will not talk.”
“We cannot take that chance, besides they are alert to us here. It is time to collect some taxes of our own.”
To the east there were many more small villages and settlements nestled in and around the foothills. There were few forts and castles although I suspected that William would change all that soon, The road to Scarborough wound through a fertile gap in the hills and, with my military eye I could seed that a castle built at Helmsley would prevent any progress that way. It was one reason why I had selected the camp as our hideaway for it enabled to strike quickly and yet still remain hidden.
The nights were becoming shorter when we began our forays and this emboldened the Normans. It suited us too for the new growth on bushes and trees afforded us more shelter. Branton and his scouts spent the first three days watching for the tax men. He found them on the second day. They were to the south east of us around the small village of Malton and Norton. I suppose they felt secure for there was a good Roman road to York but they had reckoned without my men. We left ten in the camp to improve its disguise and we led the others to ambush the small column. There were thirty men in the column and Branton had reported neither crossbows nor knights. He did tell me that the men at arms had more armour than hitherto.
“It seems we are annoying them then Ridley! We will split the force and await them either side of the road in and out of Malton.” We knew that they were in Malton and had been to Norton but we had no idea if they would return to Jorvik or continue to bleed the villages dry.
It is gently sloping land around these villages and the trees were sparse; the dips and hollows, however, suited us as there was no clear line of sight over long distances. I waited with Branton and half of the men on the road back to Jorvik while Ridley took the others north. I had a scout on the outskirts of the village ready to warn us of their approach. When he did come, however, it was to tell us that the men had headed north towards Ridley. We mounted and trotted through the village; we saw some distressed villagers to whom we waved but we had no opportunity to speak with them. Ridley and Osbert would be outnumbered by the Normans, we knew they would need us.
“Branton, send two men ahead to find the end of the column.”
The two men were still in sight when we heard the clash of weapons. I kicked hard and Sweyn surged forwards. My men needed no command, the sound told them their comrades were in battle. We crested a rise in the road and saw that there was a furious fight going on. The tax collector was cowering behind the line of men battling with mine. “Branton!”
My sergeant nodded and, calling to his archers wheeled left. I grinned as I turned to my men, “Charge!”
The increase in speed coincided with the first flights falling on the backs of the Normans. They were armoured but it is highly disconcerting to have arrows falling behind you. I saw the tax collector yell something and the line began to turn. The line of men who faced us was not continuous and certainly not prepared. I stabbed down with Boar Splitter as I tugged back on Sweyn’s reins. It was a trick I had taught him; when he lifted his forelegs it helped me to remove my spear and his hooves normally terrified the men on the ground. As I withdrew it I saw that two men lay dead and I stabbed again at the back of the man before me. He fell to the side taking my blade with him. I unsheathed my sword and looked for an enemy. A rider aimed his horse at me, his spear levelled. I waited patiently and as the head came close, swept it aside with my sword and then swung the blade back to sever the man’s arm at the elbow. He screamed as he rode past me. I looked around for another enemy but they had surrendered for we had surrounded them.
I could see some empty saddles but the ground was covered in dead Normans. The tax collector was still cowering beneath his tiny vehicle and I dismounted to confront him. “Who is your lord?” I spoke in English for I knew that the Normans would need someone who could speak with the villagers.
“Baron William of Perci my lord.”
He was English and I was tempted to kill him outright for being a traitor but something told me to hold my temper. “Then when you return to your master tell him that William collects no more taxes from these people.” The surprise in his eyes told me that he thought I would kill him. “Tell him and tell your comrades here that any Norman I find in this land will die. Tell him also that no castle and no town are safe. We can strike anywhere as your men at Catherick discovered. “I turned to Osbert. “Disarm them, take their armour and helmets, take their shoes and release them.” I raised my voice and pointed. “Jorvik is that way.”
The twelve men who accompanied the tax collector looked unhappy as they trudged down the road towards the south. I wondered how they would fare in the village they had just robbed. Osbert and Ridley rode up to me. “I am surprised you let them live Aelfraed.”
“Ridley, we need them to fear us and I want them to know that we struck at Catherick. They will be looking for somewhere between the two. I am also gambling that they will think that the east is safe for them and this is the extent of our control.” I looked at Osbert. “Did we lose many?”
“Aedgar died and we have a couple of wounds.” He nodded at the weapons and the cart. “Good haul though.”
The Normans had disappeared down the road. “Right, we will ride back to the camp. Branton send a couple of men to see where they go.”
The coins the tax collectors had gathered were substantial in number but in such small denomination that it reflected the poverty of the people. Ridley and looked at it and then each other. “We cannot keep it Aelfraed.”
“I know but apart from Malton and Norton we know not who paid them.”
Osbert came over and ran his hands through the coins. “We could always just return it to the people as payment, over payment, if you catch my drift.”
“What do you mean?”
“We need goods that they have in the villages, food, clothing and the like. If we go in to buy them we can pay much more than they are worth. We may not be repaying the exact villagers whose money was taken but at least we would put money back into the villages.”
I patted him on the shoulder. “That is a good idea, Osbert!”
“Yes my lord.”
“Edward, disguise yourself and find out which villages have been taxed. It may take you a couple of days. As they were heading north I would work south from Norton but avoid the road and the Normans.”
Edward sniffed, “You’ll be teaching my grandmother to suck eggs next my lord!”
I laughed, my men needed no instructions about avoided detection, and we were like spirits of the night. “Osbert find someone who did not fight at Malton and send them with a horse to buy things from the two villages. Take a third of the money. Ask the camp guards what we need.”
When Branton returned at dusk he was grinning. “They were not happy bunnies by the time they reached Hutton. Luckily for them they found some other Normans there building a small fort.”
“Is it worth us visiting?”
He shook his head, “I think it is just a place to tax those who use the road. Stupid really, for there are many ways to avoid it.”
For the next month we continued to seek out William’s collectors and we robbed them. They increased the guards they used but, as they rarely used knights and crossbowmen we always came out on top. Word came to us, in early summer that the castles William had been building were nearing completion and that William had his knights with him, searching the land around Medelai and Topcliffe. “He is looking for us my lord.”
; “Yes Osbert, which means that it is time to move back there.”
I think I saw Ridley’s jaw actually drop. “Back there but didn’t you hear? William is looking for us there.”
“But we aren’t there, we are here and by approaching from the east we will see him before he sees us. Once he has searched and found three charcoal burners only he will head here, to the area around Malton where we first struck.”
Osbert nodded. “Makes sense and we move at night. “
We had noticed that the Normans feared not the night but those who prowled in the hours of darkness, the human wolves, us! I also wondered about creating some mischief on the way over to Medelai. The castle at Topcliffe was not yet finished and I had an idea how to slow it down; it was probably a petty gesture but the Normans had taken everything from us and I wanted to repay them.
We travelled light and left just before sunset. We skirted Thirsk for there were signs of construction there too. We headed south towards Topcliffe. We were approaching from the northern side which faced away from the rivers and we knew the land well. We dismounted in a wood, a mile to the north of the castle and, leaving five men to guard the horses, travelled across the fields to the construction site. Some had bows but most had daggers and swords for the work would be close in and bloody. Our dull brown and green hooded tunics and lack of helmets meant that we were almost invisible as we scurried towards the mound rising in the distance. I sent Branton and Edward, with their archers, forward and when we reached them they pointed to the ramparts and held up three fingers. There were only three guards on the walls! We approached slowly. There was a ditch and the spoil had been used for the mound. They had yet to complete the outer wall and the keep was a wooden affair with a small inner wall. Two of the guards were talking above the small gatehouse. I pointed at Edward and signalled for him to take an archer and deal with the other guard. I pointed to the two guards and then at Branton. He and four men aimed at the two men. They allowed enough time for Edward to get around the other side and then they loosed their arrows Branton’s men were good and the two men were hit in the throat and fell to a silent death punctuated only by the dull thump as they hit the ground. We ran to the walls and, using two of the shields we had brought, two men were hoisted above our heads to climb over the walls. A few heartbeats later the gate was opened. Once inside we would see that there was a stair leading to a door half way up and the ground floor had the horses. Branton led the horses to safety while Osbert quietly climbed the steps and jammed four spears against the stairs and the entrance to bar a speedy exit for any occupant. Ridley and I went into the stables where there was a ripe smell of hoses and hay. The Normans had fodder in there for their steed and it was dry. My men brought in some of the wood we found outside, obviously ready to build the ramparts, and they stacked it in piles. Using a flint we sparked a few flickering flames which we fanned until the hay and the wood caught and began to burn. We quickly left the stable as an inferno erupted. Once outside we watched the tower blaze. As soon as the smoke rose we heard coughing and then the men inside tried to get out of the door. The spears held them for quite a while and, when the flames began to consume the ladder, we knew that they were doomed. Two men managed to break open the door but Branton’s archer’s arrows, mercifully, ended their suffering. When no one else emerged we mounted the Normans’ horses and rode north east to where ours had been left.
