weapons. How much plunder do they expect to find in a poor village where the serfs scrape a bare existence from the soil?”
“Perhaps something of worth from the manor houses of the local thegns, perhaps a hoard of silver or some plate,” replied Hugh. “A substantial part of the problem is the lack of fresh provisions for the army. An army on friendly soil can expect to receive supplies either bought or requisitioned from the local villages, or brought in by wagon from further away. An army on the march in enemy territory is expected to feed itself as it moves, meaning that it had to constantly keep moving, emptying the countryside of food like a plague of locusts. An army in enemy territory that stands still is at a severe disadvantage. Apart from the strategic implications of a stationary army losing any advantage of manoeuvre, within days it cannot feed itself.”
While the move from Pevensey to Hastings was an improvement, a few hours on horseback showed Alan that the situation was still unsuitable for an army. Hastings was effectively a small triangle of land with Bulverhythe harbour to the west. To the east were the marshy valleys of the Bede and Rother rivers. To the north a track led through the Andreas Forest on the way to London, some sixty miles away.
Alternatively, a route east led across the Bede and Rother rivers and the coastal route to London via Dover. Both routes placed William’s army at a disadvantage due to the ground being unsuitable for cavalry. The area was heavily wooded and contained few villages and little food. Some ships arrived with food and provisions, but these were few and made little impact on the situation for an army that would soon be slowly starving.
Within a week the area had been ravaged of all food. There was scarcely a chicken or pig within five miles. Haystacks were carried off to feed the warhorses. What little money or loot was available had long gone- stolen by the soldiers or hidden by owners who had fled.
And still nothing was heard of the English or their army.
CHAPTER THREE
CALDBEC HILL OCTOBER 1066
On 7th October a messenger rode in for Duke William from Robert fitzWymarc, a distant relative of the duke who had long lived in England after being given land by King Edward. FitzWymarc advised of Harold’s incredible march from London to York, his crushing victory over the Norwegians at Stamford Bridge and his rapid march back to London where both the professional troops who had been victorious at Stamford Bridge and the thegns and fyrd of East Anglia and Hertfordshire were being raised against William’s army- together with the men from Harold’s own lands of Kent, Middlesex and the lands of the West Saxons. Harold would soon possess an army of crushing strength.
“We can’t sit here, that’s for sure,” commented Alan on hearing this latest news. “Harold is coming, as we always knew he would. We’re penned up in a tiny pocket of land, where we’ll soon be starving. There’s no way we can winter here.”
“And Harold’s ships will soon be cutting off what little supplies and reinforcements we receive by sea,” agreed Robert morosely. “Why do you think that William has ordered a harrying of the land around here? It’s been stripped pretty bare anyway but that’s just what happens when you have a hungry army with time on its hands, particularly when at least a third of the men are mercenaries. Now he wants everything torching except the abbey’s lands.”
Alan shook his head in mystification. “Harold seems to be able to move his army fifty or sixty miles a day. If he was in London two days ago, he could be here today.”
“But not in force,” replied Robert. “The longer he waits the stronger he will be when he arrives.”
“What of the pope’s threat of excommunication to any who oppose William? What effect do you think that will have?” asked Alan.
Hugh de Berniers, who had been listening, laughed sardonically. “I think it’ll mean little to the English. If Harold wins and we’re defeated, I’m sure that Harold will convince the pope that it’s all a mistake and no sentence of excommunication should be proclaimed. If he loses this battle and there’s a prolonged campaign, perhaps it’ll affect the English morale in the long term. Don’t forget they’re fighting for their homes against us foreign invaders. What another foreigner, however influential, says is likely to be of little consequence to them. After all, ‘The Bastard’ was in trouble with Pope Leo over his marriage to Matilda and that didn’t prevent him from getting what he wanted eventually- it just took some time and cost a lot of money to bribe the pope. I understand the cost was the building and endowment of two new abbeys. Stigand, the Archbishop of Canterbury, has been under anathema of excommunication for years- excommunicated by five successive Popes, and both Edward the Confessor and Harold retained him in the most influential ecclesiastical position in the land for political reasons. To me that indicates the English pay scant attention to the interdictions issued by the Holy Fathers in Rome.”
“Anyway, who’s to say the English even know of the interdict?” commented Robert. “We received news only a few weeks ago and few ships will have been able to sail against the wind to England in that time. I’m more interested in how many of the English huscarles and thegns were killed or wounded at Fulford Gate and Stamford Bridge, and how many march against us. One thing is for certain, it’s been a difficult few weeks for Harold and the English.”
“How did the duke get Pope Alexander’s Blessing for the expedition?” queried Alan.
“Politics!” replied Hugh. “The pope is Italian. We Normans are very influential in Italy and Sicily these days. There are a lot of us down there- and no Englishmen! Alexander received the duke’s embassy and didn’t even bother to send for the English to hear their side of the argument. William claimed Harold is an adulterer and forsworn. If that’s the worst he could come up with then Harold must have led a fairly blameless life!
“What Bishop Lanfranc offered the pope was a chance to bring the English church to heel. It’s been quite independent, even having the scriptures translated into English and Mass spoken in the local language- which most churchmen find offensive. The churchmen of Normandy and France claim the English church is full of corruption, with offices bought and sold or given as bribes- the crime of simony. Considering the situation of Odo, the Duke William’s half-brother and now Bishop of Bayeux, the pope must have found it hard to control his mirth on hearing that argument! Odo was appointed as bishop when he was still a child, has no learning and no knowledge of the scriptures. How many bishops put on armour and ride into battle as part of their religious duties? Several of the Norman bishops do!
“What tipped the balance was that Lanfranc offered that Duke William promised to hold England as the pope’s vassal, expanding the power of the Holy See. I’m sure that’s one promise that will be quietly forgotten! Still, it means that the duke has received a papal ring, the flag of St Peter and a written edict blessing him as king of England- and promising excommunication to all who oppose him. These are quite considerable weapons in the duke’s armoury!”
Nothing happened for several days, to the frustration of the Norman army. Then an English monk rode out of the trees and was taken to William’s camp. A few hours later scouts rode in and word passed around the camp that a large English army had been seen amongst the trees of the Andreswald some ten miles to the north. Matters appeared finally to be moving to some sort of a conclusion. The English monk, accompanied by a French monk and with several knights as an escort, rode out early the following day- Friday 13th October.
Although without formal instructions and little to go on other than gossip, the Normans spent the day in camp in final preparations for battle, many attending the several large outdoor Masses that were being celebrated, hoping to increase their chances of Redemption if matters went against them in the coming battle.
That night Alan sat with Robert and Hugh near a camp-fire. “There’s plenty of firewood, and the horses can crop the grass. It’s a pity that we don't have much to eat- we can’t eat grass! Thanks for providing the hare, Hugh,” commented Robert, as he carefully broke a small stale loaf of bread into three and handed a piece to Alan and to Hugh.
Hugh used his knife to turn the carcass of a small hare that was roasting on the fire. “There’s going to be barely a mouthful of meat each, and the damn thing cost me a denier! Praise be to God that one way or the other something will happen soon, otherwise next week we'll have to start eating the horses! Turning an expensive destrier into stew is not a good use of resources!”
“What do you think is going to happen?” asked Alan.
