A Knight of the White Cross: A Tale of the Siege of Rhodes

by G. A. Henty

  CHAPTER XI IN COMMAND OF A GALLEY

  William Neave, the governor of the prison, looked astonished indeedwhen, upon his opening the door, the grand master and the bailiff ofthe English langue, with the twelve knights behind them, entered. He hadbeen puzzled when, four days before, he had received an order fromthe grand master that Ahmet, a servitor in the auberge of the Englishlangue, should be permitted to pass the night in his house, withauthority to move freely and without question, at any hour, in thecourtyard of the gaol, and to depart at any hour, secretly and withoutobservation, by the private gate. Still more had he been surprised whenhe received the message that the grand master would pay him a secretvisit at eleven o'clock at night.

  "Let no word be spoken until we are in your apartments," D'Aubusson saidin a low voice, as he entered. "But first lead four of these knights andpost them so that none can enter the gaol from the house. If there aremore than four doors or windows on that side, you must post a largernumber. It is imperative that there shall be no communication whateverbetween your servants and the gaol."

  As soon as this was done, the rest of the party were taken to thegovernor's rooms.

  "I can now explain to you all," the grand master said, "the reason ofour presence here. I have learned that at twelve tonight there will bea general rising of the slaves in this prison, and that, aided bytreachery, they will free themselves from their fetters, overpower andslay such of the guards in their rooms as have not been bribed, throwopen the gates, make their way down to the port, burn all the shippingthere, and make off in the six galleys manned by them, having firstoverpowered the sentries in the three forts commanding the entrance, andspiked the guns."

  Exclamations of astonishment burst from the knights, who now, for thefirst time, learnt the reason of their being called out. The governorlistened with an expression of stupefaction.

  "With all deference to your Highness," he said hesitatingly, "it seemsto me that some one must have been deceiving you with this tale. It isaltogether incredible that such a plot should have been hatched withouta whisper of the matter coming to my ears. It could only be possiblewere there, not one but many, traitors among the officials; if this isso, then indeed am I a dull ass, and unfit for my duty here, of whichI shall pray you to relieve me, and to order such punishment as thecouncil may deem just to be allotted to me for having so signally beenhoodwinked."

  "My news is sure," the grand master said; "but I deem not that you arein any way to blame in the matter. The plot has been matured, not asa consequence of any laxity of discipline in the prison, but fromdeliberate treachery, against which no mortal being can guard. Thetraitors are two of the officials who, being members of the Order, nonewould suspect of connivance in such a deed. With them are several--Iknow not how many--under officials, warders, and guards; all these havebeen bribed by an emissary from Constantinople, now in the town, andwho is doubtless furnished with large means. It is well, indeed, for theOrder, that this terrible act of treachery has been discovered in timeto prevent the plot from coming to a head, for the loss of all ourgalleys, to say nothing of the disgrace of having been thus bearded byslaves, would be a very heavy blow to it.

  "Now that the house is safely guarded, William Neave, you can admitthe rest of the knights, who are waiting outside. Then you will, in thefirst place, conduct a party, and post them so that they may arrest,as they come out to perform their share of the work, all officials,warders, and guards, of whatever rank. When you have posted knights tocarry out this--and I need not say that the operation must be performedas silently as possible, for it is above all things necessary thatthe men concerned shall have no suspicion that their plot has beendiscovered--you will conduct other parties to the various rooms occupiedby the slaves. The guards on duty inside will be made prisoners. Thedoors will then be locked and barred as before. The appearance of theknights and the arrest of the guards will be sufficient to show theslaves that their plot has been discovered, and there will be no fear oftheir making any attempt to carry it into execution. I will myself postthe main body of the knights in the courtyard. The arrest of the guardsis to be carried out at once, as all those not concerned in the plotwould be killed when the hour comes for the rising. Therefore this partof the business must be carried out immediately. I should not, however,lead the guards away to a cell, for the less tramping of feet thebetter. Therefore I shall place two knights in each room, and beg themto remain inside in charge until the traitors outside are secured."

  The knights outside were now marched up. The grand master ordered halfthose of Auvergne to go round to the main gate, which would be openedfor them by the governor; they were to enter quietly, and remain in abody close to it until they received further orders. Sir John Kendalltold off the rest of the knights to the various duties of watching thehouses occupied by the officials and warders, and of entering the prisonrooms and remaining in them on guard. The governor, with his privateservants, bearing a supply of torches, was to lead them to the variouscells, and unlock the doors. The knights were enjoined to move asnoiselessly as possible, and to avoid all clashing of arms againstarmour.

  The governor produced a number of cloths intended to be served out tothe slaves. Strips of these were cut off and wrapped round the feet ofthe English knights, so as to deaden the sound of their boots on thestone pavement. Then, accompanied by the grand master and Sir JohnKendall, he went the round of the cells.

  In some of these the slaves were found standing up in an attitude ofeager expectation, which, as the door opened, and the light of thetorches showed a party of knights, changed into one of terror andconsternation. Scarce a word was spoken. The guard was ordered tolay down his arms, and to take one of the torches. Two knights placedthemselves, one on each side of him, with drawn swords. The door wasagain locked and barred, and the party proceeded to the next cell. Inless than a quarter of an hour this part of the work was finished,and D'Aubusson, Sir John Kendall, and the governor, then took up theirstation with a party of knights who, concealed behind a buttress, werewatching the doors of the officials' houses.

  Ten minutes later one of these doors was heard to open, and five darkfigures came noiselessly out. They were allowed to go a short distance,in order to see if any others followed; but as no others came out, thegovernor stepped forward.

  "Whither are you going, at this time of night?" he asked. There was amomentary pause, a few hasty words were exchanged, then the five menrushed towards him with bared swords or knives; but before they reachedhim the knights poured out from their hiding place.

  "We are betrayed," one of the men shouted in Turkish. "Fight to thelast. Better be killed than tortured and executed." With a yell of furyand despair, they rushed upon the knights. So desperate was their attackthat the latter were forced to use their swords, which indeed, burningwith rage at the treachery of these men, they were not backward indoing, and in less than a minute the five traitors lay, with clovenheads, dead on the pavement.

  "It is as well so," D'Aubusson said, looking sternly down upon them;"perhaps better so, since it has saved us the scandal of their trial.We might have learned more from them, but we have learnt enough, since,doubtless, they have no accomplices among the warders, or they wouldhave been with them. Now we will deal with the arch traitors. There isno need for further concealment; the noise of this fray will assuredlyhave been heard by them, for they will be listening for the sounds thatwould tell them the slaves had been liberated."

  Followed by the knights, he went to the door of the house occupiedby the overseers, all of whom were members of the lower branch of theOrder. It was indeed evident that an alarm had been given there, forlights appeared at the windows. As they opened the door and entered thehall, several half-dressed men rushed down the stairs with drawn swords,two of them carrying torches in their left hands. As the light fellupon the figures of the grand master and the knights, they paused inastonishment.

  "There is treachery at work in the prison," D'Aubusson said quietly. "Ipray you to collect your comr
ades and to assemble here at once."

  In a minute or two some twenty officials were gathered in the hall.

  "Are all here?" D'Aubusson asked the governor.

  The latter counted the men.

  "There are two short," he said--"Pietro Romano and Karl Schumann. Theyoccupy the same room. Go and fetch them down, four of you."

  The four men nearest to the stairs at once went up with two torches.They returned in a minute.

  "The door is fastened on the inside, and we can obtain no response."

  "Fetch an axe and break it in," the grand master ordered. "Sir JohnBoswell, do you, with some other knights, take post without; they mayattempt to escape by the window, though, as we hold the gates, it wouldavail them little. Sir Gervaise Tresham, do you follow us."

  Gervaise, who had been placed with the party watching the house,followed the grand master and governor upstairs. A few blows with an axesplintered the door; its fastenings gave way, and they entered the room.The window was open, and two figures lay prostrate on the ground nearit.

  "I half expected this," the grand master said. "They were listeningthere. The conflict in the yard told them that the plot had beendiscovered, and as they saw us approaching the house, they dared notmeet the punishment of their crimes, and have fallen by their owndaggers. Put a torch close to their faces. Sir Gervaise, do yourecognise in either of these men the official you saw in conversationwith the Greek?"

  Gervaise stepped forward and examined the men's faces.

  "This is the man," he said, pointing to one of them. "I marked him soclosely that I cannot be mistaken."

  "That is Pietro Romano," the governor said; "he was an able officer,but discontented with his position and given to quarrelling with hiscomrades."

  "Have a hole dug and bury them in the prison," D'Aubusson said; "theyhave been false to their vows, and false to their religion. They havechosen their own mode of death; let them be buried like dogs, as theyare. But let a careful search be made of their garments and of thisroom. It may be that they have some documents concealed which may be ofuse to us."

  The grand master then descended to the hall.

  "Members of the Order," he said to the overseers, "your guiltycompanions have met death by their own hands, as the others concernedin this plot have met theirs by the swords of the knights. It were wellthat this matter were not spoken of outside the prison. The attempt hasbeen detected, and has failed; but were it talked of, it might inciteothers to repeat the attempt, and possibly with better success. Now,"he went on, turning to the governor, "our work is done here. Call upthe other warders. Let them take the men now prisoners in the rooms, andplace them in a dungeon. Let fresh men be placed on guard, and let allthe knights gather in the courtyard."

  When this was done, and all the knights again assembled, D'Aubussonsaid, "Our work is nearly done, brothers. The traitors are all dead, andthe revolt is at an end. It remains but to capture the author of thisattempt; but I believe he is already in our hands. I have given anaccurate description of him to Da Veschi, who has taken four knightswith him, and they probably will catch him down at the port; if not, hewill be arrested the first thing in the morning. As to the slaves, theywill be so utterly cowed by the discovery, that there will be no fear oftheir repeating the attempt. I have ordered the officials of the prisonto say naught in the town of what has taken place. There can, however,be no concealment among ourselves. I shall, of course, lay the wholematter before the council. The fact that a strong body of knights has,at so late an hour, started on some unknown mission is, of course,already known in the auberges of Auvergne and England. No concealmentof the facts is therefore possible. It is the most serious attempt at arevolt of the slaves that has ever taken place, and will be a warningto us that more vigilance must be exercised. As it is, we have only beensaved from the loss of our galleys and slaves by the acuteness of one ofthe youngest of our knights, who, in the first place, noted a suspiciousoccurrence which would have been passed by without attracting a moment'sthought by ninety-nine out of a hundred men. He laid the matter beforehis bailiff, Sir John Kendall, who accepted his offer to disguisehimself as a slave, to enter the prison under circumstances that wouldexcite no suspicions among the others, and to live and work among themin order to ascertain whether there was any plot on hand. This task--apainful one, as you may imagine--he carried out, and for two weeks herowed as a galley slave. His lot was as hard as that of the others, for,as he had reason to believe that some of the officials were concerned inthe plot, it was necessary that all should be kept in ignorance thathe was other than he seemed to be. Thanks to his perfect knowledge ofTurkish, he was able to carry his mission through with complete success,and to obtain full particulars of the plot we have tonight crushed.The knight who has performed this inestimable service is Sir GervaiseTresham, of the English langue. The action he has performed will benoted in the annals of the Order as an example of intelligence and ofthe extreme of self sacrifice, as well as of courage; for his life wouldhave been assuredly forfeited had the slaves entertained the slightestsuspicion of his real character."

  There was a murmur of acclamation among the knights. Not one of them butwould have freely risked his life in the service of the Order, but therewere few who would not have shrunk from the idea of living as a slaveamong the slaves, sharing their tasks, and subject to the orders of menof inferior rank and often brutal manners.

  The knights now returned to their auberges. It was past midnight, butat the English house the lamps and flambeaux were lighted in the greathall. The servitors were called up, wine placed on the table, and theknights discussed the incidents of the evening.

  When the meal had concluded, Sir John Kendall said, "Brother knights,when the grand master bestowed the honour of secular knighthood uponthis young comrade of ours, he predicted that he would rise to highdistinction in the Order. I think you will all agree with me that theprediction is already in a fair way of being fulfilled, and that theservices he has rendered to the Order justify us, his comrades of theEnglish langue, in feeling proud of him. I drink, brothers, to hishealth."

  A loud shout rose from the assembled knights, for upon the return of theparty who had been away, the rest of those at the auberge had hastilyrobed themselves and descended to the hall to gather the news. When theshout had died away, and the wine cups were emptied, Gervaise, who wassitting on Sir John Kendall's right hand, would gladly have retained hisseat, but the bailiff told him that he must say a few words, and afterstanding in embarrassed silence for a minute he said, "Sir John Kendall,and brother knights, I can only say that I am very sensible of thekindness with which you have been pleased to regard what seems to meafter all to have been a very ordinary affair. I saw a man, whom I knewto be a stranger in the Island, speaking surreptitiously to a slave,and afterwards saw him conversing with a prison officer. That naturallystruck me as curious, and I followed the officer, to see to which prisonhe belonged. Any one would have thought, as I did, that such a thing wasstrange, if not suspicious, and the only way to find out whether therewas anything in it was to mix with the slaves; as I spoke Turkishwell enough to do so I asked Sir John Kendall's permission to disguisemyself. He gave me every assistance, and I shared their lot for afortnight. There was no very great hardship in that--certainly nothingto merit the praise that Sir John Kendall has been kind enough to bestowon me. Nevertheless, I am very glad to have gained your good opinion andvery grateful to him and to you for drinking to my health."

  Then he sat down abruptly.

  Sir John Kendall now rose, and the knights, following his example,betook themselves to their dormitories.

  The next morning notices were sent by the grand master to the bailiffsof the auberges, and the knights of the grand cross who happened tobe in the Island, to assemble in council. Messages were also sent toGervaise, requesting him to repair at the same hour to the palace, asthe council would probably require his attendance.

  "Oh dear! I wish this was all over," he said to Ralph, as the latterassiste
d him to buckle on his armour.

  "I don't see anything to sigh about," Ralph said. "I think that you arethe most fortunate fellow in the world. I do not say that you have notwell deserved it, because it is the tremendous way you worked at Turkishand gave up everything else that has enabled you to do this. Still,there was luck in your noticing that villain talking to the galleyslaves, and then to one of the officers of the prison. Of course, as thegrand master said last night, it isn't one in a thousand who would havethought anything more about it, and I am sure I shouldn't; so that, andall the rest, is entirely your own doing. Still, it was a piece ofluck that you noticed him talking with a slave. Don't think I envy you,Gervaise; I don't a bit, and I feel as much as any one that you havewell deserved the honour you have obtained. Still, you know, it is asort of consolation to me that luck had a little--just a little--to dowith it."

  "In my opinion luck had everything to do with it," Gervaise saidheartily, "and I feel downright ashamed at there being such a fuss madeover it. It was bad enough before, merely because I had hit on aplan for our escape from those pirates, but this is worse, and I feelhorribly nervous at the thought of having to appear before the grandmaster and the council."

  "Well, that brown dye will hide your blushes, Gervaise. I can only sayI wish that I was in your place. By-the-bye, have you heard that theycaught that rascal Greek last night?"

  "No, I have not heard anything about it."

  "Yes. The knights hid themselves behind a pile of goods on the wharf.There was no one about, so far as they could see, but soon after twelvethey saw a figure come up on to the deck of a fishing boat moored by thequay. It was the Greek; he stood there for a minute or two listening,and then went down again; he did this five or six times, and at oneo'clock they saw him throw up his arms, as if in despair; he steppedashore, and was about to make his way up into the town when they rushedout and seized him. There is no doubt as to what his fate will be. I amsorry to say that I hear my friend Vrados has been arrested; but therecan be no doubt about his loyalty, and he will assuredly be ableto explain to the satisfaction of the council how this man became aresident at his house."

  "I am sorry I met him there, Ralph. It is a very unpleasant thing tohave gone to a house, to have been received kindly, and then to be themeans of bringing trouble upon it."

  "Yes. I feel that a little myself, because I took you there; and yet Icannot regret it, for if you had not seen him and taken an objection tohim, you might not have noticed him particularly when he spoke to one ofthe galley slaves. It is certainly curious that you should have doubtedthe man, for I have met him there several times, and even after yourvisit with me I could see nothing in him to justify your dislike."

  Gervaise went up to the palace, and while waiting in the great halluntil summoned before the council he was warmly accosted by severalknights,--some of whom were quite strangers to him,--who all joined incongratulating him on the immense service he had done to the Order. Itwas upwards of an hour before he was called in.

  "The council have received, Sir Gervaise Tresham," the grand mastersaid, "full details from Sir John Kendall of the manner in which youfirst discovered, and have since followed up the daring plot by whichthe slaves at St. Pelagius were to have risen, slain the guards who werefaithful, spiked the cannon in the three water forts, burnt the merchantshipping, carried off six galleys and burnt the rest, and in theirname I thank you for having saved the Order from a great calamity. Themembers of the council agree with me that you have shown an amount ofdiscernment of the highest kind, and that you are worthy of exceptionalfavour and reward for your conduct. I therefore in my own name appointyou to the commandery of our manor of Maltby in Lincolnshire, which,having fallen vacant, is in my gift; and I release it from the usualpayment of the first year's revenue. Knowing that you desire toestablish yourself here, the council have, at my request, decided tomake an exception to the general rule that a knight, on promotion to acommandery, must return and take charge of it in two years from the timethe grant is made to him. The commandery will therefore be administeredby the senior of the knights attached to it.

  "The council, on their part, have requested the bailiff of Auvergne, asgrand master of the Fleet, to appoint you to the command of the galleynow building, and approaching completion. This he has consented todo, feeling, as we all feel, that although such an appointment isunprecedented for a young knight, yet in the present case such anexception may well be made. I may add that the Admiral has--inorder that no knight greatly your senior should be placed under yourcommand--determined that he will appoint to it only young knights, whowill, we are assured, gladly serve under one who has so distinguishedhimself, feeling certain that, under his command, they will have ampleopportunities against the infidels to prove themselves worthy of theOrder. I may add, also, that the bailiffs of all the langues promisethat they will select from among the young knights such as may seem bestfitted for such service, by their skill in warlike exercises, by theirready obedience to orders, and good conduct. And I foresee that thespirit of emulation, and the desire to show that, though still butprofessed knights, they are capable of performing as valiant deeds astheir elders, will make the galley under your command one of the mostsuccessful in the Order.

  "As you are aware, it is a stringent rule, which even in so exceptionala case we should not be justified in breaking, that a knight must residein the Island for five years previous to being promoted to a commandery.It is now two months more than that time since you were received as pageto the late grand master, and in promoting you to a commandery I havenot, therefore, broken the rule. You may retire, Sir Gervaise."

  Gervaise, overwhelmed by the unlooked for honours thus bestowed uponhim, bowed deeply to the grand master and the members of the council,and then retired from the chamber. He passed out of the palace by a sidedoor, so as to avoid being accosted by the knights in the great hall,and took his way out on to the ramparts, where he walked up and down fora considerable time before returning to the auberge. He felt no hilarityat his promotion. He had never entertained any ambition for rising tohigh office in the Order, but had hoped only to perform his duty as atrue knight, to fight against the infidels, and some day, if need be, todie for the Order. The commandery was, he knew, a rich one, and asits chief he would draw a considerable revenue from the estate. Thisafforded him no pleasure whatever, except inasmuch as it would enablehim, in his new command of the galley, to keep a handsome table, and toentertain well the knights who served under him.

  It seemed to him, however, that the reward and honours were so farbeyond his deserts that he felt almost humiliated by their bestowal. Theresponsibility, too, was great. Would these young knights, the youngestof whom could be but a year his junior, serve willingly under hisorders? And, above all, would they be able to emulate the deeds ofexperienced warriors, and would the galley worthily maintain the fame ofthe Order?

  At the end of two hours he was joined by Ralph Harcourt.

  "I have been looking for you everywhere, Gervaise. You seemed to havedisappeared mysteriously. None had marked you leave the council chamber,or knew where you had gone; and after searching everywhere I rememberedyour fondness for walks upon the walls, so I climbed to the top ofSt. John's tower and thence espied you. Well, I congratulate you mostheartily on the honours that have fallen to your share, especially thatof the command of a new galley."

  "It is too much altogether, Ralph. I feel ashamed at being thus thrustinto a post that ought to be given to a knight of age and experience.How can I expect a number of young knights, of whom well nigh all mustbe my seniors in age, to obey me as they would an older man?"

  "What has age to do with it?" Ralph said. "You have shown that you havea head to think, and, as you before proved, you have an arm to strike.Why, every young knight in the Order must feel proud that one of theirown age has gained such honour. It raises them all in their own esteem,and you will see that you will get the pick among all the professedknights, and of a good many who have finished their professi
on, and areserving here in the hope of some day getting promotion to a commandery.Not such an one as you have got; that, in the ordinary course of things,does not fall to a knight until he is well on in years, and has servedin many commanderies of smaller value. I can tell you, directly Sir JohnKendall came back and told us that you had been appointed commander ofthe new galley, and that it was to be manned wholly by young knights,there was not one of those serving their profession in the auberge whodid not beg Sir John to put down his name for it; and ten or twelveothers, myself among them, who have obtained full knighthood also."

  "You don't mean to say that you have put down your name to serve underme, Ralph? It would be monstrous."

  "I see nothing monstrous in it, Gervaise. As I said just now, years havenothing to do with it, and, putting aside our friendship, I would ratherserve under you than under many knights old enough to be your father. Idon't know whether I shall have the luck to be one of the chosen, as SirJohn said that there were to be only seven from each langue, which willmake forty-nine--with yourself fifty. If I am chosen--and, knowingour friendship, I hope that the bailiff will let me go with you--it islikely enough I may be named your lieutenant, as I shall be the only onebeside yourself who is a secular knight, and am, therefore, superior inrank to the rest."

  "That would be pleasant indeed, Ralph, though I would rather that youhad been made commander and I lieutenant; but at any rate, with youto support me, I shall feel less oppressed by the thought of myresponsibility."

  As Ralph had declared would be the case, the young knights in the otherauberges were as anxious as those of England to be enrolled among thecrew of the new galley, and the bailiffs had some trouble in choosingamong the aspirants. Very few were selected outside the rank ofprofessed knights, and as great pains were taken to comply with thegrand master's wishes that only young knights of good conduct anddisposition, and distinguished by their proficiency in warlikeexercises, should be chosen, the crew was in every way a picked one.Most of them had made one or two of the three months' voyages inthe galleys, though comparatively few had had the good fortune to beabsolutely engaged with the Moslem pirates.

  To the great satisfaction of himself and Gervaise, Ralph Harcourtwas nominated lieutenant of the galley. The fact that so many hadvolunteered impressed all those who were chosen with the sense that itwas at once an honour and a piece of good fortune to be selected, andall were determined that the boy galley, as the elder knights laughinglytermed it, should do honour to the Order.

  It was a fortnight before she was launched. Gervaise had heard, withgreat satisfaction, that it had been decided by the council that nopunishment should be inflicted upon the slaves for their share in theintended rising at St. Pelagius. All were guilty, and there was no meansof saying who had taken prominent parts in the plot. The council feltthat it was but natural that they should grasp at the prospect offreedom, for they themselves would have done the same had they beencaptives of the infidels. Even the warders and guards were allowed togo unpunished, although their offence was a much more serious one. Thosewho could have named the men who had accepted bribes were dead, and thelesson had been so severe a one that there was no probability of anyagain turning traitors. The author of the rising had been publiclyexecuted. Seeing the hopelessness of denial, he had boldly avowed hisshare in the matter, and had acknowledged that he was acting as agentfor the sultan, and had been supplied with ample funds before leavingConstantinople.

  He declared that he was absolutely unable to give any names whatever ofthose concerned in the plot, save those of the two overseers, as thesehad undertaken the work of suborning the warders and guards, though headmitted that he had on several occasions spoken to slaves as the gangswere on their way back to the prison, and had told them to be preparedto take part in a plan that was on foot for their rescue from slavery.The torture had not been, as was then the usual custom, applied toextort information; partly because his story was probable, still morebecause the grand master and council did not wish that more publicityshould be given to the affair, and were glad that it should be allowedto drop without any further trial of the delinquents. In the citygenerally it was only known that a plot had been discovered for theliberation and escape of some of the slaves; and, outside the members ofthe Order, none were aware of its extent and dangerous character. To thesatisfaction of Gervaise and Ralph, Vrados was able to produce lettersand documents that satisfied the council that he had been deceived as tothe character of the Greek, and was wholly innocent in the matter.