A Clash of Lions Read online

  A Clash of Lions

  Cover

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Map

  Dramatis personae Accompanying Merrivale

  In Kent and London

  The Percy family and relations

  The Disinherited

  Northern lords and their followers

  Ecclesiastical figures

  Merchants and traders

  Scots

  French

  I

  1 The Narrow Sea, 3rd of September, 1346 Midday

  Hargate, 3rd of September, 1346 Late afternoon

  2 Crayford, 5th of September, 1346 Afternoon

  3 London, 6th of September, 1346 Afternoon

  London, 7th of September, 1346 Morning

  Lambeth Palace, 8th of September, 1346 Morning

  Westminster, 9th of September, 1346 Morning

  II

  4 Cawood, 19th of September, 1346 Evening

  5 Durham, 21st of September, 1346 Afternoon

  Chester Moor, 22nd of September, 1346 Morning

  6 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 22nd of September, 1346 Afternoon

  7 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 23rd of September, 1346 Morning

  South Shields, 23rd of September, 1346 Midday

  Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 23rd of September, 1346 Afternoon

  8 Black Middens, 23rd of September, 1346 Late afternoon

  9 Chipchase, 23rd of September, 1346 Evening

  Hexham, 24th of September, 1346 Morning

  10 Warkworth, 24th of September, 1346 Afternoon

  Newcastle, 24th of September, 1346 Evening

  11 Harbottle, 25th of September, 1346 Evening

  Harbottle, 25th of September, 1346 Midnight

  Harbottle, 26th of September, 1346 Morning

  12 Berwick-upon-Tweed, 26th of September, 1346 Morning

  Harbottle, 26th of September, 1346 Late morning

  13 Berwick-upon-Tweed, 26th of September, 1346 Evening

  Berwick-upon-Tweed, 26th of September, 1346 Night

  14 Berwick-upon-Tweed, 27th of September, 1346 Morning

  Jedburgh, 27th of September, 1346 Late afternoon

  15 Jedburgh, 28th of September, 1346 Evening

  16 Jedburgh, 28th of September, 1346 Night

  17 Jedburgh, 29th of September, 1346 Late morning

  III

  18 Berwick-upon-Tweed, 30th of September, 1346 Evening

  Berwick-upon-Tweed, 1st of October, 1346 Morning

  Berwick-upon-Tweed, 1st of October, 1346 Evening

  19 Durham, 2nd of October, 1346 Afternoon

  Hawick, 2nd of October, 1346 Evening

  Warkworth, 3rd of October, 1346 Afternoon

  20 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 4th of October, 1346 Afternoon

  Saughtree, 4th of October, 1346 Night

  21 Liddel Strength, 5th of October, 1346 Early morning

  Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 5th of October, 1346 Evening

  Liddel Strength, 6th of October, 1346 Dawn

  22 Liddel Strength, 6th of October, 1346 Late morning

  Liddel Strength, 6th of October, 1346 Evening

  Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 6th of October, 1346 Evening

  23 Liddel Strength, 7th of October, 1346 Midday

  Liddel Strength, 7th of October, 1346 Evening

  Liddel Strength, 8th of October, 1346 Morning

  Liddel Strength, 8th of October, 1346 Afternoon

  Liddel Strength, 9th of October, 1346 After midnight

  Liddel Strength, 9th of October, 1346 Dawn

  24 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 10th of October, 1346 Late morning

  Arthuret, 10th of October, 1346 Midday

  Arthuret, 10th of October, 1346 Afternoon

  Lanercost, 11th of October, 1346 Evening

  25 Lanercost, 11th of October, 1346 Night

  Lanercost, 11th of October, 1346 Night

  Roman wall, 12th of October, 1346 Early morning

  Wark Moor, 12th of August, 1346 Early morning

  26 Stonehaugh, 12th of October, 1346 Afternoon

  Hautwistle, 12th of October, 1346 Afternoon

  Stonehaugh, 12th of October, 1346 Evening

  Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 12th of October, 1346 Evening

  27 Hexham, 13th of October, 1346 Morning

  Chipchase, 13th of October, 1346 Afternoon

  Stonehaugh, 13th of October, 1346 Late afternoon

  Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 13th of October, 1346 Evening

  28 Stonehaugh, 14th of October, 1346 Early morning

  Barnard Castle, 14th of October, 1346 Night

  Hexham, 14th of October, 1346 Night

  29 Barnard Castle, 15th of October, 1346 Morning

  Ebchester, 15th of October, 1346 Night

  Auckland, 15th of October, 1346 Night

  Merrington, 16th of October, 1346 Evening

  30 Merrington, 17th of October, 1346 Morning

  Sunderland Bridge, 17th of October, 1346 Morning

  31 Neville’s Cross, 17th of October, 1346 Afternoon

  32 Neville’s Cross, 17th of October, 1346 Evening

  33 The Narrow Sea, 6th of November, 1346 Morning

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  Also by A.J. MacKenzie

  Copyright

  Cover

  Table of Contents

  Start of Content

  To the Bonner family, with whom we almost had a tour of the battlefield at Neville’s Cross before lunch and a bottle of red wine intervened. It was warm spring afternoon just after lockdown ended, and spending time with friends seemed more important than historical research. We’ll get there one day!

  Anglo-Scottish Borders, 1346

  Dramatis personae

  Accompanying Merrivale

  Simon Merrivale, herald to the Prince of Wales and queen’s envoy to the north

  Mauro, his servant

  Warin, his groom

  Diccon, his groom

  Tiphaine de Tesson, Norman noblewoman and daughter of an executed rebel

  Peter de Lisle of Chipchase, the herald’s apprentice

  In Kent and London

  Reginald, Lord Grey of Hargate

  Lady Grey, his wife

  Lady Mary Grey, his daughter and wife of Sir Richard Percy

  Philippa of Hainault, Queen of England

  John Stratford, Archbishop of Canterbury and president of the council

  William de la Pole, banker and merchant

  John Pulteney, banker and merchant

  The Percy family and relations

  Henry Percy, Baron Percy of Alnwick

  Lady Idonia, his wife

  Harry Percy, their eldest son and heir

  Richard Percy, their younger son, currently fighting in France

  John Grey, her brother, currently fighting in France

  The Disinherited

  Edward Balliol, claimant to the throne of Scotland, now defeated and in exile

  Gilbert d’Umfraville of Harbottle, Lord of Redesdale and claimant to the Earldom of Angus in Scotland

  Lady Joan, his wife

  Jamie Hall, hobelar from Redesdale, in Umfraville’s service

  Thomas Clennell of Hesleyside, claimant to the Lordship of Selkirk in Scotland

  Thomas Wake, Baron Wake of Liddell

  Walter Selby of Biddlestone, captain of Liddel Strength

  William Selby, his son

  Robert de Lisle of Chipchase, father of Peter de Lisle

  David Harkness of Blackfell

  Northern lords and their followers

  Ralph Neville, Baron Neville of Raby

  Thomas Rokeby, High Sheriff of Yorkshire and royal commander in Berwick

  Tom Rokeby (Young Tom), his nephew

  John Coupland, border la
ndowner

  John Stryvelyn, keeper of the castle at Berwick

  Roger Heron, Stryvelyn’s deputy

  John Croser (Kalewater Jack), hobelar in Heron’s retinue

  Eckies Nickson, hobelar in Heron’s retinue

  Eustace de Manenghem, Lord Rowton

  Ecclesiastical figures

  William de la Zouche, Archbishop of York and Warden of the Marches

  Thomas Hatfield, Bishop of Durham, currently with the army in France

  Hugh de Tracey, treasurer of Durham Priory

  John of Bridekirk, prior of Hexham

  Gilbert de Tracey, formerly the king’s banker, now a canon at Hexham Priory

  Oswald of Halton, Dominican friar

  John of Bothcastle, prior of Lanercost

  John of Eskdale, abbot of Jedburgh

  Alexander Seton, preceptor of the Order of Saint John in Scotland

  Merchants and traders

  William Blyth, merchant of Newcastle-upon-Tyne

  Oliver Woodburn, man-at-arms in Blyth’s service

  Adam Murton, alderman of Newcastle-upon-Tyne

  Egidia Murton, his wife

  Kristoffer Tielt, Flemish merchant resident in Newcastle-upon-Tyne

  John Brotherton, merchant of Berwick-upon-Tweed

  Henry Cheswick, merchant of Berwick-upon-Tweed

  Oppicius Adornes, banker in Bruges

  Scots

  David II Bruce, King of Scotland

  Niall Bruce of Carrick, his half-brother, illegitimate son of Robert the Bruce

  Patrick Dunbar, Earl of Dunbar and March

  Agnes Randolph, his wife, Countess of Dunbar and March and Lady of Mann and Annandale

  Lady Mora of Islay, shieldmaiden in the service of the Countess of Dunbar

  Somairle of Mann, man-at-arms in the service of the Countess of Dunbar

  John Randolph, Earl of Moray, brother of the Countess of Dunbar

  Sir William Douglas of Liddesdale

  James Craig, Master of Kinross

  Archibald Graham, Lyon Herald

  John Graham, Earl of Menteith

  William Murray, Earl of Sutherland

  Robert Keith, Marischal of Scotland

  French

  Rollond de Brus, Norman nobleman and cousin of the Scottish Bruces

  Guy Dampierre, Count of Béthune and Lord of Hamilton in Scotland

  Yolande of Bohemia, Countess of Béthune, his wife

  I

  1

  The Narrow Sea, 3rd of September, 1346

  Midday

  The wind picked up halfway across the short crossing from France to the Kent coast, and the horizon of grey-white cliffs and cloud-speckled blue sky rose and fell at speed. Simon Merrivale stood firmly on the deck of the roundship Grace-Dieu, braced against the buffeting of the lively waves. The warm rays of a late summer sun shone on the little flotilla of ships ferrying a number of Englishmen, and at least one Frenchwoman, along with their horses and baggage back to England.

  The travellers were a somewhat mixed group. Some had been sent by King Edward III to take home the news of the great victory at the battle of Crécy a week earlier; others had sought permission from their king to return and look after urgent personal or estate business. Merrivale, perhaps uniquely, had been sent on a secret and sensitive mission for the king. He was not, at least in name, one of the king’s own servants; his official master was Edward, Prince of Wales. But, as Merrivale had observed several times in the past few months, when a king called, a prince’s servants still jumped to serve.

  If he was honest, Merrivale thought, it suited him very well to be away from the prince’s entourage for a while. The prince and his friends were very full of the spirit of victory. A young man who had begun the summer uncertain and awkward with the reins of power had been transformed into a battle-hardened commander, who felt invincible and was flexing his muscles.

  As the prince’s herald, Merrivale was one member of the household who found this tedious. The regular drinking and gaming that accompanied most evenings had little appeal for a man half a generation older than most of the prince’s court. So when King Edward requested his presence, Merrivale had greeted the invitation with some enthusiasm, albeit tempered by the knowledge that the king usually had more than one scheme in mind at any one time.

  * * *

  ‘Come in, Merrivale,’ the king had said. They were in the royal pavilion in the middle of the camp on high ground overlooking the town of Wissant, which the army had reached earlier in the day while making its leisurely way north from Crécy.

  The king gestured towards a bench. Normally one stood in the royal presence. Mmm, thought Merrivale, if he wants me sitting down, I really do need to watch out.

  Edward III was, like his son, still flush from his recent victory. His short coat speckled with fleurs-de-lys sparkled in the sunlight coming through the walls of the tent, and his manner was even more confident than usual.

  ‘So, Merrivale. Do we think Edward de Tracey’s death means an end to the plotting against us?’

  Merrivale had given this question a great deal of thought in the days following the battle. ‘Honestly, sire, I do not. Even though many of those on the French side perished, I cannot feel comfortable that all the tendrils of this plot are cut off. It had supporters in several parts of Europe, and some of the plotters will be keen to continue. They have a plan that they hope will bring them power and riches. Despite what happened at Crécy, they are unlikely to forego it.’

  ‘I agree,’ said the king. ‘Therefore, I am sending you back to England to track down any more of these tendrils, as you call them.’

  ‘What about my duties with the prince, sire? Is he aware that you require my services?’

  ‘Yes, yes, of course. My son can do without his herald for the moment, and I have need of your knowledge and skills. It is highly likely that Tracey had co-conspirators at home, working against us. We need to hunt them down and we need to do it promptly, before the attacks from the north begin.’

  ‘Attacks?’ Merrivale asked.

  ‘The Scots will launch against us soon, we can be certain of that. It is part of their pact with the Valois adversary, to raid from the north while most of our men are in France. I need you to go to London and meet with the queen and council, describe the plot as you have uncovered it and work with them to rid England of this cancer. We have enough enemies outside the country, we don’t need them inside as well.’ The king took a sip of wine from a cup standing at his elbow. ‘Where do you intend to start once you land in England?’

  Nothing like making up plans on the spur of the moment, Merrivale thought. ‘I would start with de Tracey’s family, sire, especially with his brother Sir Gilbert, the banker. His position would provide ample opportunity for fomenting plots and he has the funds to support them. Of course, he might be completely innocent, but even so he may know something that will be useful.’

  The king nodded. He knew Gilbert de Tracey well; the banker was one of the most prominent men of commerce in London, a merchant of the Staple and a force to be reckoned with. The king himself had borrowed money from Tracey on a number of occasions. ‘Agreed, that is a good beginning,’ he said. ‘My formal messengers to London are preparing to leave, but I would like you also to carry some special letters to the queen on this affair. As you well know, you may depend on her wise counsel in all matters. She has already seen your reports on the summer’s events. You shall have special passes as usual to speed your journey, and the Grace-Dieu is in port at Wissant, ready to take you across to England.’

  ‘Yes, sire. There is one small matter, however. If I am to return to England I am reluctant to leave the Demoiselle de Tesson here without my protection. She has been under my care since Carentan, and has no family here to support her. I want to take her with me to England for her own safety.’