The Boy Knight: A Tale of the Crusades Page 4

  CHAPTER IV.

  THE CRUSADES.

  Warm thanks and much praise were bestowed upon Cuthbert for his share inthe capture of the castle, and the earl, calling the foresters roundhim, then and there bestowed freedom upon any of them who might havebeen serfs of his, and called upon all his knights and neighbors to dothe same, in return for the good service which they had rendered.

  This was willingly done, and a number of Cnut's party, who had beforeborne the stigma of escaped serfs, were now free men.

  We are too apt to forget, in our sympathy with the Saxons, that, fond asthey were of freedom for themselves, they were yet severe masters, andkept the mass of the people in a state of serfage. Although their lawsprovided ample justice as between Saxon man and man, there was nojustice for the unhappy serfs, who were either the original inhabitantsor captives taken in war, and who were distinguished by a collar ofbrass or iron round their neck.

  Cnut's party had indeed long got rid of these badges, the first act of aserf when he took to the woods being always to file off his collar; butthey were liable when caught to be punished, even by death, and weredelighted at having achieved their freedom.

  "And what can I do for you, Cuthbert?" Sir Walter said, as they rodehomeward. "It is to you that I am indebted: in the first place for therescue of my daughter, in the second for the capture of that castle,which I doubt me much whether we should ever have taken in fair fighthad it not been for your aid."

  "Thanks, Sir Walter," the lad replied. "At present I need nothing, butshould the time come when you may go to the wars I would fain ride withyou as your page, in the hope of some day winning my spurs also in thefield."

  "So shall it be," the earl said, "and right willingly. But who have wehere?"

  As he spoke a horseman rode up and presented a paper to the earl.

  "This is a notice," the earl said, after perusing it, "that King Richardhas determined to take up the cross, and that he calls upon his noblesand barons to join him in the effort to free the holy sepulcher from theinfidels. I doubt whether the minds of the people are quite prepared,but I hear that there has been much preaching by friars and monks insome parts, and that many are eager to join in the war."

  "Think you that you will go to the war, Sir Walter?" Cuthbert asked.

  "I know not as yet; it must much depend upon the king's mood. For myselfI care not so greatly as some do about this question of the Holy Land.There has been blood enough shed already to drown it, and we are nonearer than when the first swarms of pilgrims made their way thither."

  On Cuthbert's returning home and telling his mother all that had passed,she shook her head, but said that she could not oppose his wishes to gowith the earl when the time should come, and that it was only right heshould follow in the footsteps of the good knight his father.

  "I have heard much of these Crusades," he said; "canst tell me aboutthem?"

  "In truth I know not much, my son; but Father Francis, I doubt not, cantell you all the particulars anent the affair."

  The next time that Father Francis, who was the special adviser of DameEditha, rode over from the convent on his ambling nag, Cuthbert eagerlyasked him if he would tell him what he knew of the Crusades.

  "Hitherto, my son," he said, "the Crusades have, it must be owned,brought many woes upon Europe. From the early times great swarms ofpilgrims were accustomed to go from all parts of Europe to the holyshrines.

  "When the followers of the evil prophet took possession of the land,they laid grievous burdens upon the pilgrims, heavily they fined them,persecuted them in every way, and treated them as if indeed they werebut the scum of the earth under their feet.

  "So terrible were the tales that reached Europe that men came to thinkthat it would be a good deed truly to wrest the sepulcher of the Lordfrom the hands of these heathens. Pope Urban was the first to giveauthority and strength to the movement, and at a vast meeting atClaremont of thirty thousand clergy and four thousand barons, it wasdecided that war must be made against the infidel. From all parts ofFrance men flocked to hear Pope Urban preach there; and when he hadfinished his oration the vast multitude, carried away by enthusiasm,swore to win the holy sepulcher or to die.

  "Mighty was the throng that gathered for the First Crusade. Monks threwaside their gowns and took to the sword and cuirass; even women andchildren joined in the throng. What, my son, could be expected from agreat army so formed? Without leaders, without discipline, withouttactics, without means of getting food, they soon became a scourge ofthe country through which they passed.

  "Passing through Hungary, where they greatly ravaged the fields, theycame to Bulgaria. Here the people, struck with astonishment and dismayat this great horde of hungry people who arrived among them likelocusts, fell upon them with the sword, and great numbers fell. Thefirst band that passed into that country perished miserably, and of allthat huge assembly, it may be said that, numbering at the start not lessthan two hundred and fifty thousand persons, only about one hundredthousand crossed into Asia Minor. The fate of these was no better thanthat of those who had perished in Hungary and Bulgaria. After grievoussuffering and loss they at last reached Nicaea. There they fell into anambuscade; and out of the whole of the undisciplined masses who hadfollowed Peter the Hermit, it is doubtful whether ten thousand everreturned home.

  "This first attempt to rescue the holy sepulcher was followed by othersequally wild, misguided, and unfortunate. Some of them indeed begantheir evil deeds as soon as they had left their home. The last of thesebodies fell upon the Jews, who are indeed enemies of the Christianfaith, but who have now, at least, nothing to do with the question ofthe holy sepulcher. As soon as they entered into Germany the Crusadersput them to death with horrible torture. Plunder and rapine indeedappeared to be the object of the Crusaders. On this as well as on mostother preceding bands, their misdeeds drew down the vengeance of thepeople. At an early period of their march, and as soon as they reachedHungary, the people fell upon them, and put the greater portion to thesword.

  "Thus, in these irregular expeditions no less than five hundred thousandpeople are supposed to have perished. Godfrey de Bouillon was the firstwho undertook to lead a Crusade according to the military knowledge ofthe day. With him were his brothers Eustace and Baldwin, the Counts ofAnault and St. Paul, and many other nobles and gentlemen, with theirretainers, well armed and under good order; and so firm was thediscipline of Duke Godfrey that they were allowed to pass freely by thepeople of the countries who had opposed the previous bands.

  "Through Hungary, Bulgaria, and Thrace he made his way; and though hemet with many difficulties from Alexius, the crafty and treacherousEmperor of the Greeks, he at last succeeded in crossing into Asia. Therehe was joined by many from England, as well as from France and othercountries. Duke Robert, the son of our first William, led a strong bandof Normans to the war, as did the other great princes of France andSpain.

  "The army which crossed the narrow passage of the Hellespont isestimated at no less than seven hundred thousand fighting men. Of theseone hundred thousand were knights clad in complete armor, the remainderwere men-at-arms and bowmen.

  "Nicaea, the place which had been the scene of the massacre of Peter theHermit's hosts, was taken after a desperate conflict, lasting for manyweeks, and the Crusaders afterward defeated the Turks in a great battlenear the town of Doryleum. After these successes disputes arose amongthe leaders, and Count Baldwin, brother of Duke Godfrey, left the mainbody with about fifteen hundred men, and founded a kingdom for himselfin Mesopotamia.

  "The main body, slowly and painfully, and suffering from disease,famine, and the heat, made its way south. Antioch, a city of greatstrength and importance, was besieged, but it proved so strong that itresisted for many months, and was at last only taken by treachery.

  "After the capture of this place the sufferings of the Crusaders so farfrom being diminished were redoubled. They themselves during the siegehad bought up all the food that could be brought from the surroundingcountry, whi
le the magazines of the town were found, when an entry waseffected, to be entirely deserted. The enemy, aided by a great Persianhost, came down, and those who had been the besiegers were now besieged.However, when in the last strait the Christian army sallied out, andinspired with supernatural strength, defeated the Turks and Persians,with a slaughter of one hundred thousand men. Another slow movement tothe south brought them into the Holy Land, and pressing forward, theycame at last within sight of Jerusalem itself.

  "So fearful had been the losses of the Crusaders that of seven hundredthousand who crossed the Hellespont, not more than forty thousandreached the end of the pilgrimage. This fragment of an army, which hadappeared before a very strongly fortified town, possessed no means ofcapturing the place--none of the machines of war necessary for thepurpose, no provisions or munitions of any kind. Water was scarce also;and it appeared as if the remnant of the great army of Godfrey deBouillon had arrived before Jerusalem only to perish there.

  "Happily just at this time a further band of Crusaders from Genoa, whohad reached Jaffa, made their appearance. They were provided withstores, and had skilled workmen capable of making the machines for thesiege. On July 14, 1099, the attack was made, and after resistancegallant and desperate as the assault, the Crusaders burst into the city,massacred the whole of the defenders and inhabitants, calculated atseventy thousand in number, and so became masters of the holy sepulcher.

  "The Sultan of Egypt was meanwhile advancing to the assistance of theMohammedans of Syria; but Godfrey, with twenty thousand of his best men,advanced to meet the vast host, and scattered them as if they had beensheep. Godfrey was now chosen King of Jerusalem, and the rest of hisarmy--save three hundred knights and two hundred soldiers, who agreed toremain with him--returned to their home. The news of the victory ledother armies of Crusaders to follow the example of that of Godfrey; butas these were almost as completely without organization or leadership asthose of Peter the Hermit, they suffered miserably on their way, and fewindeed ever reached the Holy Land. Godfrey died in 1100, and his brotherBaldwin succeeded him.

  "The history of the last hundred years has been full of fresh efforts tocrush the Moslem power, but hitherto it cannot be said that fortune hasattended the efforts of the Christians. Had it not been indeed for thedevotion of the Knights of St. John and of the Templars, two greatcompanies formed of men who devoted their lives to the holding of thesepulcher against the infidel, our hold of the Holy Land would have beenlost.

  "Gradually the Saracens have wrested post after post from our hands.Edessa was taken in 1144, and the news of this event created an intenseexcitement. The holy St. Bernard stirred up all France, and Louis VII.himself took the vow and headed a noble army. The ways of God are notour ways, and although the army of Germany joined that of France, butlittle results came of this great effort.

  "The Emperor Conrad, with the Germans, was attacked by the Turk Saladinof Iconium, and was defeated with a loss of sixty thousand men. The Kingof France, with his army, was also attacked with fury, and a largeportion of his force were slaughtered. Nothing more came of this greateffort, and while the first Crusade seemed to show that the men-at-armsof Europe were irresistible, the second on the contrary gave proof thatthe Turks were equal to the Christian knights. Gradually the Christianhold of the Holy Land was shaken. In 1187, although fighting withextraordinary bravery, the small army of Christian Knights of the Templeand of St. John were annihilated, the King of Jerusalem was madeprisoner, and the Christian power was crushed. Then Saladin, whocommanded the Turks, advanced against Jerusalem, and forced it tocapitulate.

  "Such, my boy, is the last sad news which has reached us; and no wonderthat it has stirred the hearts of the monarchs of Europe, and that everyeffort will be again made to recapture the holy sepulcher, and to avengeour brethren who have been murdered by the infidels."

  "But, Father Francis, from your story it would seem that Europe hasalready sacrificed an enormous number of lives to take the holysepulcher, and that after all the fighting, when she has taken it, it isonly to lose it again."

  "That is so, my son; but we will trust that in future things will bebetter managed. The Templars and Hospitalers now number so vast a numberof the best lances in Europe, and are grown to be such great powers,that we may believe that when we have again wrested the holy sepulcherfrom the hands of the infidels they will be able to maintain it againstall assaults. Doubtless the great misfortunes which have fallen upon theChristian armies have been a punishment from heaven, because they havenot gone to work in the right spirit. It is not enough to take up lanceand shield, and to place a red cross upon the shoulder. Those who desireto fight the battle of the Lord must cleanse their hearts, and go forthin the spirit of pilgrims rather than knights. I mean not that theyshould trust wholly to spiritual weapons--for in truth the infidel is afoe not to be despised--but I mean that they should lay aside allthoughts of worldly glory and rivalry one against another."

  "And think you, Father, that such is the spirit with which King Richardand the other kings and nobles now preparing to go to the Holy Land areanimated?"

  Father Francis hesitated.

  "It is not for me, my son, to judge motives, or to speak well or ill ofthe instruments who have been chosen for this great work. It is of allworks the most praiseworthy, most holy. It is horrible to think that theholy shrines of Jerusalem should be in the hands of men who believe notin our Redeemer; and I hold it to be the duty of every man who can beararms, no matter what his rank or his station, to don his armor and to goforth to battle in the cause. Whether success will crown the effort, orwhether God wills it otherwise, it is not for man to discuss; it isenough that the work is there, and it is our duty to do it."

  "And think you, Father, that it will do good to England?"

  "That do I, my son, whether we gain the Holy Land or no. Methinks thatit will do good service to the nation that Saxon and Norman should fighttogether under the holy cross. Hitherto the races have stood far toomuch apart. They have seen each other's bad qualities rather than good;but methinks that when the Saxon and the Norman stand side by side onthe soil of the Holy Land, and shout together for England, it must needsbind them together, and lead them to feel that they are no longerNormans and Saxons, but Englishmen. I intend to preach on the villagegreen at Evesham next Sunday morning on this subject, and as I know youare in communication with the forest men, I would, Cuthbert, that youwould persuade them to come in to hear me. You were wondering what couldbe found for these vagrants. They have many of them long since lost thehabits of honest labor. Many of them are still serfs, although most havebeen freed by the good earl and the knights his followers. Some of thosewho would fain leave the life in the woods still cling to it becausethey think that it would be mean to desert their comrades, who beingserfs are still bound to lurk there; but methinks that this is a greatopportunity for them. They are valiant men, and the fact that they arefond of drawing an arrow at a buck does not make them one whit the worseChristians. I will do my best to move their hearts, and if they will butagree together to take the cross, they would make a goodly band offootmen to accompany the earl."

  "Is the earl going?" Cuthbert asked eagerly.

  "I know not for certain," said Father Francis; "but I think from what Ihear from his chaplain, Father Eustace, that his mind turns in thatdirection."

  "Then, Father, if he goes, I will go too," Cuthbert exclaimed. "Hepromised to take me as his page the first time he went to war."

  Father Francis shook his head.

  "I fear me, Cuthbert, this is far from the spirit in which we awhile agoagreed that men should go to the holy war."

  Cuthbert hung his head a little.

  "Ay, Father Francis, men; but I am a boy," he said, "and after all, boysare fond of adventure for adventure's sake. However, Father," he said,with a smile, "no doubt your eloquence on the green will turn memightily to the project, for you must allow that the story you have toldme this morning is not such as to create any very strong yearning inone'
s mind to follow the millions of men who have perished in the HolyLand."

  "Go to," said Father Francis, smiling, "thou art a pert varlet. I willdo my best on Sunday to turn you to a better frame of mind."