government business as well?’ he asked, slapping the table for effect. ‘While our best ally is still in Vienna, we are left facing the entire French army.’ He took a deep breath then smiled apologetically. ‘Forgive me, Adam. I’m telling you nothing you don’t already know. It just eases my mind a little if I vent my spleen in private.’
‘You certainly never do so in public, Your Grace,’ said the other with admiration. ‘Your forbearance is an example to us all. In your dealings with our allies, you always contrive to appear gracious and accommodating.’
‘And you know the reason why.’
‘Yes…we’ll never win this war without them.’
‘Too true, alas,’ said Marlborough. ‘That’s why we have to tolerate Dutch caution and Prince Eugene’s delay. Allies are such a crucial component of any success in the field — and it’s high time we had a real success.’
‘Nobody will ever forget Blenheim,’ said Cardonnel, stoutly, ‘and Ramillies was, I reckon, even more significant. The French have achieved nothing comparable in this war.’
‘Yet they still keep coming back at us, Adam, turning our gains into losses. Even though they’ve sustained enormous casualties, they’ve somehow mustered an army of 100,000 men. Think how much money and sheer effort went into recruitment. They must have scoured every corner of France. And while they were rebuilding so furiously, how did our Parliament react?’
‘Disappointingly, Your Grace.’
‘Disgracefully is a better description. When the Recruiting Bill came before the Commons, the provision for a compulsory levy of men was thrown out. It’s heartbreaking. If we get no backing from our own country, how can we possibly equal French numbers?’
‘New recruits are no match for seasoned soldiers.’
‘Burgundy and Vendome have both at their disposal. They know that they’re stronger than we are. I fear they’re about to venture.’
‘They’ve shown little sign of it so far, Your Grace. French armies in the past have tended to watch and wait.’
‘This time it could be different,’ said Marlborough, gloomily. ‘Vendome outwitted us last year so he’s full of confidence. Then we have the Duke of Burgundy, fresh to the field, keen to show his mettle, anxious to impress his grandfather, the King. Yes, I know he lacks experience,’ he went on as Cardonnel was about to speak, ‘but Vendome can provide that. What Burgundy offers is youthful enthusiasm and the natural conceit of royalty — he believes that’s it’s his right to win.’
‘You’ll soon relieve him of that misapprehension, Your Grace.’
‘I might do if I had a full complement of men at my disposal. As it is, we’re at a clear disadvantage. We just have to hope that the French don’t launch a major attack in the near future,’ confided Marlborough. ‘Otherwise, we could be in grave danger.’
‘When we left England,’ remembered Cardonnel, ‘you wanted to provoke an attack. You hoped that our apparent weakness would tempt Burgundy and Vendome to offer battle. You even talked about abandoning Brussels, if need be, and withdrawing to Antwerp.’
‘That plan was conceived on the assumption that Prince Eugene would already be on the Moselle and thus able to march north in support of us. But he’s not even here yet. Oh, I would love a battle, Adam,’ said Marlborough rising to his feet with a touch of his old defiance. ‘I’d love to lock horns with the French again. We need a victory that will echo around the whole of Europe. It’s the only way to bring the Grand Alliance back to life again.’
Daniel Rawson had to wait over a week after his visit to the farm before he had the chance to call on Henry Welbeck. The sergeant was in a typical pose, legs apart and hands on his hips as he berated the men who were digging some new latrines. On a hot day, they were positively dripping with sweat. Daniel’s arrival prompted Welbeck to move well away from them. The men heaved sighs of gratitude.
‘Good afternoon, Henry,’ said Daniel, cheerfully.
‘I see nothing good about it.’
‘We’ve got some sunshine at last. Doesn’t that gladden your hard old heart?’
‘No, Dan, it doesn’t.’
‘Oh?’
‘Fine weather might tempt the Frenchies to offer battle,’ said Welbeck, grimly, ‘and we’d be outnumbered. That’s why everyone in the camp is so nervous. They feel an attack is on the cards. From the moment we moved here, we’ve been on the alert.’
‘You’ve not been too alert,’ said Daniel, peering at his friend’s unshaven face. ‘Have you forgotten where you put your razor?’
‘I’ve had far too much to do, Dan. I’ve been so busy that I’ve barely had time to wipe the shit off my arse, let alone shave the whiskers off my chin. Down here in the ranks, we have to toil. It’s only officers like you who know what leisure is.’
‘We know what it is, Henry, we just don’t have any of it.’
‘Your life is much softer than ours,’ insisted Welbeck. ‘There’s no argument about that. Most of our officers wouldn’t last a week in the ranks.’
‘I did,’ Daniel reminded him. ‘I survived for years.’
‘You’re the exception to the rule, Dan.’
‘I daren’t ask what rule that might be. But it’s odd that you should have grown a beard. That’s exactly what I came to talk about.’
‘What — me not shaving?’
‘No, Henry. I’ve brought news about the men who burnt down those farms.’
‘It’s about time!’ muttered Welbeck.
‘There’s been a lot of work to do,’ explained Daniel. ‘But I think we’ve made progress. When I suggested that they might be deserters, His Grace called for details of everyone who’d fled from their colours. There were far too many of them, I can tell you.’
‘Desertion has always been our bane and always will be.’
‘While those details were being gathered in and collated, I spoke to the one reliable witness we had.’
‘Witness?’
‘He’s a lad of ten named Jules.’
Daniel described the visit he’d made to the farm and talked about the difficulty he’d encountered in persuading the boy to speak. Without the farmer’s help, Daniel would have got nothing from him but truculence. Welbeck was sympathetic.
‘You can’t blame him,’ he said, quietly. ‘It was a terrible ordeal to go through. In his shoes, I’d feel much the same — that everybody in a British uniform has supped with the Devil.’
‘He’ll never forgive us, Henry. Nor will the farmer who took him in. The only way to appease them is to catch the villains responsible.’
‘Catch them and skin them alive.’
‘They’ll get their deserts, don’t worry.’
‘So what’s this about a beard?’
‘It’s a red beard, to be exact,’ said Daniel, ‘and there aren’t too many of those. It belonged to the leader of this marauding band. We trawled through the lists of deserters from the cavalry regiments and we eventually found out his name.’
‘What is it — Beelzebub?’
‘No, Henry, it’s Matthew Searle.’
Welbeck scratched his whiskers. ‘Now where have I heard that name before?’ he said, racking his brains.
‘Searle fits the description given by the boy. I’ve spoken to one of the officers in his regiment and he remembered the man well. Searle was something of a menace, it seems. He was always trying to stir up trouble among the other troopers. He was punished a number of times for insubordination and being drunk on duty.’
‘They should have let me cut him down to size.’
‘In every sense, he was an unsavoury character,’ continued Daniel, ‘yet not without his virtues. He was strong and fearless. He fought well in battle and could ride a horse as if he’d been born astride one. Also, he had
