The Last of the Barons — Complete

by Baron Edward Bulwer Lytton Lytton

  CHAPTER III. THE CAMP OF THE REBELS.

  The rebels had halted about a mile from the town, and were alreadypitching their tents for the night. It was a tumultuous, clamorous, butnot altogether undisciplined array; for Coniers was a leader of singularpractice in reducing men into the machinery of war, and where his skillmight have failed, the prodigious influence and energy of Robin ofRedesdale ruled the passions and united the discordant elements. Thislast was, indeed, in much worthy the respect in which Warwick held hisname. In times more ripe for him, he would have been a mighty demagogueand a successful regenerator. His birth was known but to few; hiseducation and imperious temper made him vulgarly supposed of nobleorigin; but had he descended from a king's loins, Robert Hilyard hadstill been the son of the Saxon people. Warwick overrated, perhaps,Hilyard's wisdom; for, despite his Italian experience, his ideas werefar from embracing any clear and definite system of democracy. He hadmuch of the frantic levelism and jacquerie of his age and land, andcould probably not have explained to himself all the changes he desiredto effect; but, coupled with his hatred to the nobles, his deep andpassionate sympathy with the poor, his heated and fanatical chimeras ofa republic, half-political and half-religious, he had, with no uncommoninconsistency, linked the cause of a dethroned king. For as theCovenanters linked with the Stuarts against the succeeding and moretolerant dynasty, never relinquishing their own anti-monarchic theories;as in our time, the extreme party on the popular side has leagued withthe extreme of the aristocratic, in order to crush the medium policy,as a common foe,--so the bold leveller united with his zeal for Margaretthe very cause which the House of Lancaster might be supposed the leastto favour. He expected to obtain from a sovereign dependent upon apopular reaction for restoration, great popular privileges. And as theChurch had deserted the Red Rose for the White, he sought to persuademany of the Lollards, ever ready to show their discontent, that Margaret(in revenge on the hierarchy) would extend the protection they had neverfound in the previous sway of her husband and Henry V. Possessed ofextraordinary craft, and even cunning in secular intrigues, energetic,versatile, bold, indefatigable, and, above all, marvellously gifted withthe arts that inflame, stir up, and guide the physical force of masses,Robert Hilyard had been, indeed, the soul and life of the presentrevolt; and his prudent moderation in resigning the nominal command tothose whose military skill and high birth raised a riot into the dignityof rebellion, had given that consistency and method to the rising whichpopular movements never attain without aristocratic aid.

  In the principal tent of the encampment the leaders of the insurrectionwere assembled.

  There was Sir John Coniers, who had married one of the Neviles, thedaughter of Fauconberg, Lord High Admiral, but who had profited littleby this remote connection with Warwick; for, with all his merit, he wasa greedy, grasping man, and he had angered the hot earl in pressinghis claims too imperiously. This renowned knight was a tall, gaunt man,whose iron frame sixty winters had not bowed. There were the young heirsof Latimer and Fitzhugh, in gay gilded armour and scarlet mantelines;and there, in a plain cuirass, trebly welded, and of immense weight, butthe lower limbs left free and unincumbered in thick leathern hose, stoodRobin of Redesdale. Other captains there were, whom different motiveshad led to the common confederacy. There might be seen the secretLollard, hating either Rose, stern and sour, and acknowledging no leaderbut Hilyard, whom he knew as a Lollard's son; there might be seen theruined spendthrift, discontented with fortune, and regarding civil waras the cast of a die,--death for the forfeiture, lordships for the gain;there, the sturdy Saxon squire, oppressed by the little baron of hisprovince, and rather hopeful to abase a neighbour than dethrone a kingof whom he knew little, and for whom he cared still less; and there,chiefly distinguished from the rest by grizzled beard, upturnedmustache, erect mien, and grave, not thoughtful aspect, were the menof a former period,--the soldiers who had fought against the Maid ofAre,--now without place, station, or hope in peaceful times, alreadyhalf robbers by profession, and decoyed to any standard that promisedaction, pay, or plunder.

  The conclave were in high and warm debate.

  "If this be true," said Coniers, who stood at the head of the table,his helmet, axe, truncheon, and a rough map of the walls of Olney beforehim--"if this be true, if our scouts are not deceived, if the Earlof Warwick is in the village, and if his banner float beside KingEdward's,--I say, bluntly, as soldiers should speak, that I have beendeceived and juggled!"

  "And by whom, Sir Knight and cousin?" said the heir of Fitzhugh,reddening.

  "By you, young kinsman, and this hot-mouthed dare-devil, Robin ofRedesdale! Ye assured me, both, that the earl approved the rising; thathe permitted the levying yon troops in his name; that he knew well thetime was come to declare against the Woodvilles, and that no sooner wasan army mustered than he would place himself at its bead; and I say, ifthis be not true, you have brought these gray hairs into dishonour!"

  "And what, Sir John Coniers," exclaimed Robin, rudely, "what honour hadyour gray hairs till the steel cap covered them? What honour, I say,under lewd Edward and his lusty revellers? You were thrown aside, like abroken scythe, Sir John Coniers! You were forsaken in your rust! Warwickhimself, your wife's great kinsman, could do nought in your favour! Youstand now, leader of thousands, lord of life and death, master of Edwardand the throne! We have done this for you, and you reproach us!"

  "And," began the heir of Fitzhugh, encouraged by the boldness ofHilyard, "we had all reason to believe my noble uncle, the Earl ofWarwick, approved our emprise. When this brave fellow (pointing toRobin) came to inform me that, with his own eyes, he had seen thewaxen effigies of my great kinsman, the hellish misdeed of the queen'switch-dam, I repaired to my Lord Montagu; and though that prudentcourtier refused to declare openly, he let me see that war with theWoodvilles was not unwelcome to him."

  "Yet this same Montagu," observed one of the ringleaders, "when Hilyardwas well-nigh at the gates of York, sallied out and defeated him, sansruth, sans ceremony."

  "Yes, but he spared my life, and beheaded the dead body of poor HughWithers in my stead: for John Nevile is cunning, and he picks his nutsfrom the brennen without lesing his own paw. It was not the hour for himto join us, so he beat us civilly, and with discretion. But what hath hedone since? He stands aloof while our army swells, while the bull of theNeviles and the ragged staff of the earl are the ensigns of our war, andwhile Edward gnaws out his fierce heart in yon walls of Olney. How sayye, then, that Warwick, even if now in person with the king, is in heartagainst us? Nay, he may have entered Olney but to capture the tyrant."

  "If so," said Coniers, "all is as it should be: but if Earl Warwick,who, though he hath treated me ill, is a stour carle, and to be fearedif not loved, join the king, I break this wand, and ye will seek outanother captain."

  "And a captain shall be found!" cried Robin. "Are we so poor in valour,that when one man leaves us we are headless and undone? What if Warwickso betray us and himself,--he brings no forces. And never, by God'sblessing, should we separate till we have redressed the wrongs of ourcountrymen!"

  "Good!" said the Saxon squire, winking, and looking wise,--"not till wehave burned to the ground the Baron of Bullstock's castle!"

  "Not," said a Lollard, sternly, "till we have shortened the purple gownof the churchman; not till abbot and bishop have felt on their backsthe whip wherewith they have scourged the godly believer and the humblesaint."

  "Not," added Robin, "till we have assured bread to the poor man, and thefilling of the flesh-pot, and the law to the weak, and the scaffold tothe evil-doer."

  "All this is mighty well," said, bluntly, Sir Geoffrey Gates, the leaderof the mercenaries, a skilful soldier, but a predatory and lawlessbravo; "but who is to pay me and my tall fellows?"

  At this pertinent question, there was a general hush of displeasure anddisgust.

  "For, look you, my masters," continued Sir Geoffrey, "as long as I andmy comrades here believed that the rich earl, who hath half Englandfor h
is provant, was at the head or the tail of this matter, we werecontented to wait a while; but devil a groat hath yet gone into mygipsire; and as for pillage, what is a farm or a homestead? an' it werea church or a castle there might be pickings."

  "There is much plate of silver, and a sack or so of marks and royals,in the stronghold of the Baron of Bullstock," quoth the Saxon squire,doggedly hounding on to his revenge.

  "You see, my friends," said Coniers, with a smile, and shrugging hisshoulders, "that men cannot gird a kingdom with ropes of sand. Supposewe conquer and take captive--nay, or slay--King Edward, what then?"

  "The Duke of Clarence, male heir to the throne," said the heir ofLatimer, "is Lord Warwick's son-in-law, and therefore akin to you, SirJohn."

  "That is true," observed Coniers, musingly.

  "Not ill thought of, sir," said Sir Geoffrey Gates; "and my advice is toproclaim Clarence king and Warwick lord protector. We have some chanceof the angels then."

  "Besides," said the heir of Fitzhugh, "our purpose once made clear, itwill be hard either for Warwick or Clarence to go against us,--harderstill for the country not to believe them with us. Bold measures are ourwisest councillors."

  "Um!" said the Lollard, "Lord Warwick is a good man, and has never,though his brother be a bishop, abetted the Church tyrannies. But as forGeorge of Clarence--"

  "As for Clarence," said Hilyard, who saw with dismay and alarm thatthe rebellion he designed to turn at the fitting hour to the service ofLancaster, might now only help to shift from one shoulder to the otherthe hated dynasty of York--"as for Clarence, he hath Edward's viceswithout his manhood." He paused, and seeing that the crisis had ripenedthe hour for declaring himself, his bold temper pushed at once to itsobject. "No!" he continued, folding his arms, raising his head, andcomprehending the whole council in his keen and steady gaze,--"no! lordsand gentlemen, since speak I must in this emergency, hear me calmly.Nothing has prospered in England since we abandoned our lawful king. Ifwe rid ourselves of Edward, let it not be to sink from a harlot-mongerto a drunkard. In the Tower pines our true lord, already honoured as asaint. Hear me, I say,--hear me out! On the frontiers an army that keepsGloucester at bay hath declared for Henry and Margaret. Let us, afterseizing Olney, march thither at once, and unite forces. Margaret isalready prepared to embark for England. I have friends in London whowill attack the Tower, and deliver Henry. To you, Sir John Coniers, inthe queen's name, I promise an earldom and the garter; to you, the heirsof Latimer and Fitzhugh, the high posts that beseem your birth; toall of you, knights and captains, just share and allotment in theconfiscated lands of the Woodvilles and the Yorkists; to you, brethren,"and addressing the Lollards, his voice softened into a meaning accentthat, compelled to worship in secret, they yet understood, "shelter fromyour foes and mild laws; and to you, brave soldiers, that pay whicha king's coffers alone can supply. Wherefore I say, down with allsubject-banners! up with the Red Rose and the Antelope, and long liveHenry the Sixth!"

  This address, however subtle in its adaptation to the various passionsof those assembled, however aided by the voice, spirit, and energy ofthe speaker, took too much by surprise those present to produce at onceits effect.

  The Lollards remembered the fires lighted for their martyrs by the Houseof Lancaster; and though blindly confident in Hilyard, were not yetprepared to respond to his call. The young heir of Fitzhugh, who had, intruth, but taken arms to avenge the supposed wrongs of Warwick, whomhe idolized, saw no object gained in the rise of Warwick's enemy, QueenMargaret. The mercenaries called to mind the woful state of Henry'sexchequer in the former time. The Saxon squire muttered to himself, "Andwhat the devil is to become of the castle of Bullstock?" But Sir HenryNevile (Lord Latimer's son), who belonged to that branch of his Housewhich had espoused the Lancaster cause, and who was in the secretcouncils of Hilyard, caught up the cry, and said, "Hilyard doth notexceed his powers; and he who strikes for the Red Rose shall carve outhis own lordship from the manors of every Yorkist that he slays." SirJohn Coniers hesitated: poor, long neglected, ever enterprising andambitious, he was dazzled by the proffered bribe; but age is slow toact, and he expressed himself with the measured caution of gray hairs.

  "A king's name," said he, "is a tower of strength, especially whenmarching against a king; but this is a matter for general assent andgrave forethought."

  Before any other (for ideas did not rush at once to words in those days)found his tongue, a mighty uproar was heard without. It did not syllableitself into distinct sound; it uttered no name; it was such a shout asnumbers alone could raise; and to such a shout would some martial leaderhave rejoiced to charge to battle, so full of depth and fervour, andenthusiasm and good heart, it seemed, leaping from rank to rank, frombreast to breast, from earth to heaven. With one accord the startledcaptains made to the entrance of the tent, and there they saw, in thebroad space before them, inclosed by the tents which were grouped in awide semicircle,--for the mass of the hardy rebel army slept in theopen air, and the tents were but for leaders,--they saw, we say, in thatbroad space, a multitude kneeling, and in the midst, upon his good steedSaladin, bending graciously down, the martial countenance, the loftystature, of the Earl of Warwick. Those among the captains who knew himnot personally recognized him by the popular description,--by the blackwar-horse, whose legendary fame had been hymned by every minstrel; bythe sensation his appearance had created; by the armourial insignia ofhis heralds, grouped behind him, and whose gorgeous tabards blazed withhis cognizance and quarterings in azure, or, and argent. The sun wasslowly setting, and poured its rays upon the bare head of the mightynoble, gathering round it in the hazy atmosphere like a halo. The homageof the crowd to that single form, unarmed, and scarce attended, struck adeath-knell to the hopes of Hilyard,--struck awe into all his comrades!The presence of that one man seemed to ravish from them, as by magic,a vast army; power, and state, and command left them suddenly to beabsorbed in HIM! Captains, they were troopless,--the wielder of men'shearts was amongst them, and from his barb assumed reign, as from histhrone!

  "Gads my life!" said Coniers, turning to his comrades, "we have now,with a truth, the earl amongst us; but unless he come to lead us on toOlney, I would as lief see the king's provost at my shoulder."

  "The crowd separates, he rides this way!" said the heir of Fitzhugh."Shall we go forth to meet him?"

  "Not so!" exclaimed Hilyard, "we are still the leaders of this army; lethim find us deliberating on the siege of Olney!"

  "Right!" said Coniers; "and if there come dispute, let not the rabblehear it."

  The captains re-entered the tent, and in grave silence awaited theearl's coming; nor was this suspense long. Warwick, leaving themultitude in the rear, and taking only one of the subaltern officersin the rebel camp as his guide and usher, arrived at the tent, and wasadmitted into the council.

  The captains, Hilyard alone excepted, bowed with great reverence as theearl entered.

  "Welcome, puissant sir and illustrious kinsman!" said Coniers, who haddecided on the line to be adopted; "you are come at last to take thecommand of the troops raised in your name, and into your hands I resignthis truncheon."

  "I accept it, Sir John Coniers," answered Warwick, taking the place ofdignity; "and since you thus constitute me your commander, I proceed atonce to my stern duties. How happens it, knights and gentlemen, that inmy absence ye have dared to make my name the pretext of rebellion? Speakthou, my sister's son!"

  "Cousin and lord," said the heir of Fitzhugh, reddening but not abashed,"we could not believe but what you would smile on those who have risento assert your wrongs and defend your life." And he then briefly relatedthe tale of the Duchess of Bedford's waxen effigies, and pointed toHilyard as the eye-witness.

  "And," began Sir Henry Nevile, "you, meanwhile, were banished,seemingly, from the king's court; the dissensions between you and Edwardsufficiently the land's talk, the king's vices the land's shame!

  "Nor did we act without at least revealing our intentions to my uncleand your brot
her, the Lord Montagu," added the heir of Fitzhugh.

  "Meanwhile," said Robin of Redesdale, "the commons were oppressed, thepeople discontented, the Woodvilles plundering, and the king wastingour substance on concubines and minions. We have had cause eno' for ourrising!" The earl listened to each speaker in stern silence.

  "For all this," he said at last, "you have, without my leave orsanction, levied armed men in my name, and would have made RichardNevile seem to Europe a traitor, without the courage to be a rebel! Yourlives are in my power, and those lives are forfeit to the laws."

  "If we have incurred your disfavour from our over-zeal for you," saidthe son of Lord Fitzhugh, touchingly, "take our lives, for they are oflittle worth." And the young nobleman unbuckled his sword, and laid iton the table.

  "But," resumed Warwick, not seeming to heed his nephew's humility,"I, who have ever loved the people of England, and before king andparliament have ever pleaded their cause,--I, as captain-general andfirst officer of these realms, here declare, that whatever motives ofambition or interest may have misled men of mark and birth, I believethat the commons at least never rise in arms without some excuse fortheir error. Speak out then, you, their leaders; and, putting aside allthat relates to me as the one man, say what are the grievances of whichthe many would complain."

  And now there was silence, for the knights and gentlemen knew littleof the complaints of the populace; the Lollards did not dare to exposetheir oppressed faith, and the squires and franklins were too uneducatedto detail the grievances they had felt. But then the immense superiorityof the man of the people at once asserted itself; and Hilyard, whoseeye the earl had hitherto shunned, lifted his deep voice. With clearprecision, in indignant but not declamatory eloquence, he painted thedisorders of the time,--the insolent exactions of the hospitals andabbeys, the lawless violence of each petty baron, the weakness of theroyal authority in restraining oppression, its terrible power in aidingthe oppressor. He accumulated instance on instance of misrule; he showedthe insecurity of property, the adulteration of the coin, the burdenof the imposts; he spoke of wives and maidens violated, of industrydefrauded, of houses forcibly entered, of barns and granaries despoiled,of the impunity of all offenders, if high-born, of the punishment of allcomplaints, if poor and lowly. "Tell us not," he said, "that this isthe necessary evil of the times, the hard condition of mankind. It wasotherwise, Lord Warwick, when Edward first swayed; for you then madeyourself dear to the people by your justice. Still men talk, hereabouts,of the golden rule of Earl Warwick; but since you have been, thoughgreat in office, powerless in deed, absent in Calais, or idle atMiddleham, England hath been but the plaything of the Woodvilles, andthe king's ears have been stuffed with flattery as with wool. And,"continued Hilyard, warming with his subject, and, to the surprise of theLollards, entering boldly on their master-grievance--"and this is notall. When Edward ascended the throne, there was, if not justice, atleast repose, for the persecuted believers who hold that God's wordwas given to man to read, study, and digest into godly deeds. I speakplainly. I speak of that faith which your great father Salisbury andmany of the House of York were believed to favour,--that faith which iscalled the Lollard, and the oppression of which, more than aught else,lost to Lancaster the hearts of England. But of late, the Church,assuming the power it ever grasps the most under the most licentiouskings (for the sinner prince hath ever the tyrant priest!), hath putin vigour old laws for the wronging man's thought and conscience; [TheLollards had greatly contributed to seat Edward on the throne; and muchof the subsequent discontent, no doubt, arose from their disappointment,when, as Sharon Turner well expresses it, "his indolence allied him tothe Church," and he became "hereticorum severissimus hostis."--CROYL.,p. 564.] and we sit at our doors under the shade, not of the vine-tree,but the gibbet. For all these things we have drawn the sword; and ifnow, you, taking advantage of the love borne to you by the sons ofEngland, push that sword back into the sheath, you, generous, great,and princely though you be, well deserve the fate that I foresee andcan foretell. Yes!" cried the speaker, extending his arms, and gazingfixedly on the proud face of the earl, which was not inexpressive ofemotion--"yes! I see you, having deserted the people, deserted by themalso in your need; I see you, the dupe of an ungrateful king, strippedof power and honour, an exile and an outlaw; and when you call in vainupon the people, in whose hearts you now reign, remember, O fallen star,son of the morning! that in the hour of their might you struck down thepeople's right arm, and paralyzed their power. And now, if you will,let your friends and England's champions glut the scaffolds of yourwoman-king!"

  He ceased. A murmur went round the conclave; every breast breathed hard,every eye turned to Warwick. That mighty statesman mastered the effectwhich the thrilling voice of the popular pleader produced on him; butat that moment he had need of all his frank and honourable loyalty toremind him that he was there but to fulfil a promise and discharge atrust,--that he was the king's delegate, not the king's judge.

  "You have spoken, bold men," said he, "as, in an hour when the rights ofprinces are weighed in one scale, the subject's sword in the other, I,were I king, would wish free men to speak. And now you, Robert Hilyard,and you, gentlemen, hear me, as envoy to King Edward IV. To all of youI promise complete amnesty and entire pardon. His highness believes youmisled, not criminal, and your late deeds will not be remembered in yourfuture services. So much for the leaders. Now for the commons. My liegethe king is pleased to recall me to the high powers I once exercised,and to increase rather than to lessen them. In his name, I pledge myselfto full and strict inquiry into all the grievances Robin of Redesdalehath set forth, with a view to speedy and complete redress. Nor is thisall. His highness, laying aside his purpose of war with France, willhave less need of impost on his subjects, and the burdens and taxes willbe reduced. Lastly, his grace, ever anxious to content his people, hathmost benignly empowered me to promise that, whether or not ye rightlyjudge the queen's kindred, they will no longer have part or weightin the king's councils. The Duchess of Bedford, as beseems a lady sosorrowfully widowed, will retire to her own home; and the Lord Scaleswill fulfil a mission to the court of Spain. Thus, then, assentingto all reasonable demands, promising to heal all true grievances,proffering you gracious pardon, I discharge my duty to king and topeople. I pray that these unhappy sores may be healed evermore, underthe blessing of God and our patron saint; and in the name of Edward IV.,Lord Suzerain of England and of France, I break up this truncheon anddisband this army!"

  Among those present, this moderate and wise address produced a generalsensation of relief; for the earl's disavowal of the revolt took awayall hope of its success. But the common approbation was not shared byHilyard. He sprang upon the table, and, seizing the broken fragments ofthe truncheon, which the earl had snapped as a willow twig, exclaimed,"And thus, in the name of the people, I seize the command that yeunworthily resign! Oh, yes, what fools were yonder drudges of the hardhand and the grimed brow and the leathern jerkin, to expect succour fromknight and noble!"

  So saying, he bounded from the tent, and rushed towards the multitude atthe distance.

  "Ye knights and lords, men of blood and birth, were but the tools of amanlier and wiser Cade!" said Warwick, calmly. "Follow me."

  The earl strode from the tent, sprang upon his steed, and was in themidst of the troops with his heralds by his side, ere Hilyard hadbeen enabled to begin the harangue he had intended. Warwick's trumpetssounded to silence; and the earl himself, in his loud clear voice,briefly addressed the immense audience. Master, scarcely less thanHilyard, of the popular kind of eloquence, which--short, plain,generous, and simple--cuts its way at once through the feelings to thepolicy, Warwick briefly but forcibly recapitulated to the commons thepromises he had made to the captains; and as soon as they heard of taxesremoved, the coinage reformed, the corn thrave abolished, the Woodvillesdismissed, and the earl recalled to power, the rebellion was at an end.They answered with a joyous shout his order to disperse and retire totheir homes forthwi
th. But the indomitable Hilyard, ascending a smalleminence, began his counter-agitation. The earl saw his robust form andwaving hand, he saw the crowd sway towards him; and too well acquaintedwith mankind to suffer his address, he spurred to the spot, and turningto Marmaduke, said, in a loud voice, "Marmaduke Nevile, arrest that manin the king's name!"

  Marmaduke sprang from his steed, and laid his hand on Hilyard'sshoulder. Not one of the multitude stirred on behalf of their demagogue.As before the sun recede the stars, all lesser lights had died inthe blaze of Warwick's beloved name. Hilyard griped his dagger, andstruggled an instant; but when he saw the awe and apathy of the armedmob, a withering expression of disdain passed over his hardy face.

  "Do ye suffer this?" he said. "Do ye suffer me, who have placed swordsin your hands, to go forth in bonds, and to the death?"

  "The stout earl wrongs no man," said a single voice, and the populaceechoed the word.

  "Sir, then, I care not for life, since liberty is gone. I yield myselfyour prisoner."

  "A horse for my captive!" said Warwick, laughing; "and hear me promiseyou, that he shall go unscathed in goods and in limbs. God wot, whenWarwick and the people meet, no victim should be sacrificed! Hurrah forKing Edward and fair England!"

  He waved his plumed cap as he spoke, and within the walls of Olney washeard the shout that answered.

  Slowly the earl and his scanty troop turned the rein; as he receded,the multitude broke up rapidly, and when the moon rose, that camp was asolitude. [The dispersion of the rebels at Olney is forcibly narrated bya few sentences, graphic from their brief simplicity, in the "PictorialHistory of England," Book V, p. 104. "They (Warwick, etc.) repaired in avery friendly manner to Olney, where they found Edward in a most unhappycondition; his friends were dead or scattered, flying for their lives,or hiding themselves in remote places: the insurgents were almostupon him. A word from Warwick sent the insurgents quietly back to theNorth."]

  Such--for our nature is ever grander in the individual than themass--such is the power of man above mankind!