by David Gilman
The scaffold that had held the young squire was reinforced so that in seasons to come it would still stand and bear the remains of the man strapped across it, whose shield was bound with wire and hung from his neck. As flesh rotted, the wire would bite onto bone. The etched inscription across the black shield bore witness and warning.
Here hangs the body of this cruel murderer, killed in single combat by Sir Thomas Blackstone. So will all evil perish.
Blackstone led his men away from the valley: Killbere, John Jacob, Meulon and Gaillard with their companies; Elfred and Will Longdon at the head of their mounted archers. The breeze whispered through the valley and rattled the Savage Priest’s shield in gentle mockery.
Blackstone did not look back.
~
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The story continues in Master of War: Gate of the Dead, released in Spring 2016.
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Historical Notes
David Gilman
About the Master of War series
An invitation from the publisher
Historical Notes
When Thomas Blackstone raided north of Bordeaux the attack was inspired by the Gascon Jean de Grailly, the Captal de Buch, who in January 1356 collected a mixed force of Gascons and Englishmen and seized a number of vital castles and then moved on with six hundred men to capture the city of Périgueux. Prince Edward had already begun his great raid into southern France.
I pushed Blackstone further north and created the fictional stronghold which became a spur for the French King to seek retribution and employ the services of Gilles de Marcy, the Savage Priest. During my research I came across Arnaud de Cervole, the son of a minor family who had been stripped of his benefice in the diocese of Périgueux. My character de Marcy was not based on the brigand Cervole – who became universally known as the Archpriest – but the connection was too good to miss, so in a way he kick-started the Savage Priest into life. Arnaud de Cervole fought at Poitiers and then led a mercenary force of two thousand men who threatened Avignon. Eight years later he was murdered by his unpaid Hungarian mercenaries.
It was difficult to accurately place Blackstone in Paris in 1356 as fourteenth-century landmarks have changed so much. I looked for historical records of where the guildsmen practised and read various accounts of the city with the aid of a medieval map of the city. Very few streets were named, but there was at least one broad boulevard that ran north past Les Halles, the marketplace and burial ground. The churches I named in the book exist or existed, and as Paris expanded it did so beyond the original Roman walls.
When Charles of Navarre, the French King’s son-in-law, had Charles de Cerda, the Constable of France – and friend of the French King – murdered at L’Aigle in Normandy in 1354, it opened a new chapter in the French conflict. Events that unfolded over the next two years nearly destroyed the French nation. Navarre himself had a legitimate right to the French throne, but his continuing playing of one side against the other made him one of the most distrusted characters to emerge from that time. Edward III was prepared to deal with him and the Duke of Lancaster was given authority to negotiate. Not once but twice, Navarre changed loyalties, and even as Edward was discussing a possible alliance Navarre was already talking to agents of King John II. Yet Edward never quite ended his association with Charles of Navarre. In fact, after the Battle of Poitiers it was rumoured that Edward had helped engineer his escape from being imprisoned by the French monarch. King John II did not lack courage on the battlefield but was a poor leader surrounded by a coterie of advisers – among them Simon Bucy.
Navarre’s influence and charm brought many into his circle, including Norman lords – ever hungry for self-determination. This was an attribute they displayed fairly consistently throughout their history, steeped as they were in their legendary Norsemen heritage. Godfrey de Harcourt and other Normans were prepared to swear homage to the Dauphin in an attempt to get him to side with them against his father, but the teenage Prince had been bought off by the King by settling his debts and then King John waited to pounce on those who conspired against him.
Godfrey de Harcourt was a key player in events of that time, as was his nephew – Thomas Blackstone’s friend and mentor – Jean de Harcourt. Godfrey, the old lame knight who had helped engineer the invasion of Normandy with Edward III in 1346, was slain in an ambush. Jean de Harcourt was arrested, as I have written, at Rouen, and was taken out and butchered without trial, along with his fellow conspirators – the Lords de Graville and de Mainemares. A common thief and murderer volunteered to be their executioner in exchange for a pardon, which was granted. It was an act of great butchery.
With Prince Edward raiding in the south King John II was under pressure from the southern provinces to go to their aid but he had no army to do so. The Provost of Paris, Étienne Marcel, added insult to injury by agreeing to raise the taxes needed to equip a new army, but only on the understanding that his tax collectors amassed the funds – in a stroke preventing the King from using the money as he liked. Prince Edward had fought and gained ground in the south, and had also bought off local lords such as Jean le Galand, Lord of Limeuil. It was the fifth time that le Galand had changed sides in the past ten years. He had previously betrayed John’s father to King Edward and had then made recompense and sworn fealty to the French again. Gaillard de Durfort was another nobleman who had sold his loyalty, spurred by local interests and disagreements that led to conflict with another regional lord. These fiefdoms were as autonomous as they wished to be and would swear allegiance only to a lord of their choosing, usually one who secured them sufficient benefits. It’s possible to feel some sympathy for a beleaguered French King as he and others who betrayed him brought even more pressure to bear. It was time for the King to rid himself of the English and the traitors once and for all.
The Prince of Wales, raiding far and wide across the south, expected his father to land in the north but this invasion was postponed and King Edward, knowing that the French King had now gathered a great army, believed his son would be unable to beat the might of the French forces set against him. A messenger was sent allowing the Prince to surrender with honour and return home – in my story, knowing the English King had many connections to Italy, I created the character Father Niccolò Torellini. Historians may disagree as to whether the Prince was making a run for it when the French army caught up with him, but evidence suggests that he chose his place to fight. And chose it carefully.
The outcome was the Battle of Poitiers, probably the greatest defeat the mighty French army would ever suffer. Unlike Crécy the English and Welsh archers could not be as effective owing to their lack of arrows. Poitiers was a fight between men-at-arms slugging it out like heavyweight contenders. In simple terms the English were always better led and always had been, and were loyal to one commander – their King – whereas the French fought for glory and family honour. Their courage was recognized by all, but their lack of cohesion in battle fractured them into defeat. King John’s splendid bravery was recognized on the battlefield. He wielded his battleaxe and was nearly brought down in the thick of the fighting. His fourteen-year-old son Philip stood at his side and cried out warnings as his enemies attacked. The biggest mistake John made was to have his main force make their attack on foot. He clearly thought to copy the English success at Crécy but failed to grasp that the English were stout in defence – on foot. They were not obliged to trudge uphill to confront their enemy. The French were ill suited to the task. The Dauphin fought on foot once the French cavalry had punished the English lines, but then, when the King had him sent from the field for his own safety, the Duke of Orléans – the King’s brother – also took his troops away. No one is clear why this happened. Cowardice or misunderstanding? Either way it probably cost the French the battle.
In a final, daring bid for victory Prince Edward ordered his Gascon commander, Jean de Grailly, to ride with a hundred men behind t
he French lines. When the banner of Saint George was seen at the rear of the French the Prince risked everything by stripping his men from the ranks on the ground and using every man capable of riding a horse to attack the main body of the French army. This action decided the battle.
After Poitiers large numbers of the English army were set free from their commitment and turned to what many soldiers did throughout history when faced with a lack of war: they found employment as soldiers of fortune. These hordes of routiers scoured the land and the Italian poet Petrarch wrote after visiting France that Everywhere was grief, destruction and desolation … scars of defeat.
The gateway to Italy lay open. The powerful and ambitious Visconti of Milan were the dominant power. The mostly German and Hungarian mercenaries they employed added to the prevailing anarchy. Many Englishmen, guided by monks across the Alpine passes, went into Italy to become condottieri fighting for Florence against the anti-papal Milanese.
And this became Thomas Blackstone’s journey also.
David Gilman
Devonshire
2014
www.davidgilman.com
www.facebook.com/davidgilman.author
About this Book
FRANCE, 1356
Ten years ago, the greatest army in Christendom was slaughtered at Crécy when Thomas Blackstone and his fellow archers stood their ground and rained death on the steel-clad might of French chivalry. Blackstone left that squalid field a knight.
Now, Blackstone commands a war band and has carved out a small fiefdom in northern France. But the wound of war still bleed and a traitor has given the King of France the means to destroy first his family, and then the English knight himself.
As the traitor’s net tightens, so the French King’s army draws in. Blackstone will stand and fight – in pitched battle and in single combat. He will defy his friends, his family and his king. He may yet defy death, but he can’t defy his destiny:
Blackstone,
Master of War.
Reviews
“Page-turning and gritty.”
Daily Mail
“Gilman does heart-pounding action superlatively.”
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About the Author
DAVID GILMAN enjoyed many careers, including firefighter, soldier and photographer before turning to writing full time. He is an award-winning author and screenwriter.
Visit his website: www.davidgilman.com
Like him on Facebook: www.facebook.com/davidgilman.author
About the Master of War Series
1 – Master of War
ENGLAND, 1346
Amid the carnage of the 100 Years’ War – the bloodiest conflict in medieval history – a young English archer confronts his destiny.
For Thomas Blackstone the choice is easy – dance on the end of a rope for a murder he did not commit, or take up his war bow and join the king’s invasion.
Vastly outnumbered, Edward III’s army will finally confront the armoured might of the French nobility on the field of Crécy.
It is a battle that will change the history of warfare, a battle that will forge a legend.
Master of War is available here.
2 – Defiant Unto Death
FRANCE, 1356
Ten years ago, the greatest army in Christendom was slaughtered at Crécy when Thomas Blackstone and his fellow archers stood their ground and rained death on the steel-clad might of French chivalry. Blackstone left that squalid field a knight.
Now, Blackstone commands a war band and has carved out a small fiefdom in northern France. But the wound of war still bleed and a traitor has given the King of France the means to destroy first his family, and then the English knight himself.
As the traitor’s net tightens, so the French King’s army draws in. Blackstone will stand and fight – in pitched battle and in single combat. He will defy his friends, his family and his king. He may yet defy death, but he can’t defy his destiny:
Blackstone,
Master of War.
Book 3, Gate of the Dead, will be released in spring 2016.
A Letter from the Publisher
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The story starts here.
First published in the UK in 2015 by Head of Zeus Ltd
Copyright © David Gilman, 2015
Cover: Nik Keevil
Imagery: Shutterstock.com
The moral right of David Gilman to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act of 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. All characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
9 7 5 3 1 2 4 6 8
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN (eBook) 9781781851937
ISBN (HB) 9781781851906
ISBN (XTPB) 9781781851913
Head of Zeus Ltd
Clerkenwell House
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Contents
Cover
Welcome Page
Dedication
Epigraph
Part 1: The Savage Priest
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Part 2: Tide of War
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Part 3: Cruel Justice
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Historical Notes
About this Book
Reviews
About the Author
About the Master of War Series
An Invitation from the Publisher
Copyright
