Bourne Archive: FNQ: Hereward XXIII

http://boar.org.uk/ariwxo3FNQsupXXIII.htm Latest edit 25 Apr 2010.

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De Gestis Herwardi Saxonis.

XXIII.

Ubi de insula conquassi sunt, et quid fecerunt, et quomodo rex pacificare cum eis disposuerat nisi sui quique hoc dissuaderent.

Hoc autem eo referente, ecce quidam ex illis militibus quos rex apud foveam ¹ de Rech obsidionem facere constituerat, paulo ante superveniens, vix expleto isto sermone, intulit : Num et vobis hæc incredibilia sunt, aut vana videntur ? hesterna die quippe et nonnullos ex insula egressos vidi, et tamen non multos, nisi septem militari habitu et procinctu belli insigne armati, quos omnes monachos esse præter duos qui et militiam sibi sicut cæteri milites eos bene noverant, asserebant vindicantes, et militis jura exercentes, injectis flammis in villa quæ [vocatur] de Burewell ², et mala perpetrare undique, non solum nunc illi, sed et sæpe alii discurrentes. Quos enim quidam ex nostris numero x. pervenire ante omnes nos qui illuc obsidionem fecimus, inconsulte nimis accelerantes, eos captare æstimabant, quia pauciores illi quam [nos]. Tandem erga prædictam foveam utique sibi invicem et ictu lancearum sese obvios habuere. Et diu dimicantes, nostri omnes tandem succubuere præter unum insignem militem, Richardus ³ nomine, et ex cognomento, nepos vicecomitis videlicet Osberti ⁴, cui forte uni [unus] eorum extra comitatum, Wenochus vocabulo, adhæserat ut eum expugnaret. His ergo duobus diu dimicantibus cum illi qui de insula egressi sunt, neutrum eorum prævalere diutius præstolando perciperent, et nos cum militari agmine eminus appropinquare conspicerent, eos dissociare Herwardus magister militum ⁵ fecit, et non ab aliquo ei aliquam vim inferre permisit, indignum dicens esse duos aut tres contra unum præliare, et de suis hoc se nullatenus fieri velle permittere, sicut a prædicti militis ore percepimus. Tamen denique ad naves eorum eos usque persequuti sumus, et unum ex nautis ipsorum jaculo peremimus, et alterum cepimus qui nobis dignitates eorum recensuit et qui fuerunt peroravit, nomina eorum adjugens, Herwardus magister militum, Wenochus, Turstanus ⁶ juvenis, qui post Præpositus cognominatus est, Boter de Sancto Edmundo ⁷, Siwardus, Levricus ⁸, et Acer Durus, quoniam durus erat ad sustinendum laborem sic cognominatus. Hi vero, licet monachi, præclarissimi in omni militia fuerunt, et cum Herwardo sæpe in virtute laudis experti et in tirocinio valde probati. Rex autem quicquam non est loquutus ex his, nec verbum aliquod boni vel mali intulit, indignum apud se ipsum dicens, viros exprobrare magnanimiter agentes, aut inimicos ejus ante suos præferre laudibus cogitabat cum illis pacem facere, insulam natura et præclarissimis viris munitissimam sciens, et nullo modo eis ingressum et exitum prohibere non posse intelligens. Verum accersitis magnatibus et consiliariis, eis quod in mente conceperat exponit, ut faciat cum illis pacem qui in insula sunt, asserens nimis grave esse tales viros in medio terræ suæ a tergo relinquere quum jam contra exercitum Danorum ire deberent et postea statim in Normanniam proficisci. Nonnulli itaque majorum qui aderant et qui magis erant a secretis, hoc audito, confestim dissuadebant regi ne fieret, quia res eorum multas qui in insula sunt invaserant, et penitus omnes sibi partes de eorum possessionibus acceperant, dicentes, Quomodo, si illos qui magis et diutius contra nimis insanierunt regnum impune dimittitis et ad pacis donum convertere persuadeatis, quum hoc humiliter et deprecanter non exorant, quum eis jura concessa ; omnes excellentiam vestram subsannabunt, et taliter in vestro regno operari non verebuntur. Quibus rex etiam cum ira respondit non se posse expugnare insulam, nec locum ex virtute Dei naturaliter munitum. Ad quod quidam qui aderat, Ivo Taelle Bois ⁹ nomine, indignando intulit, Jam vero ante diu novi etiam quandam vetulam, quæ si adesset, sola arte omnem virtutem eorum et præsidium contereret, et illos omnes de insula timidos ejiceret : verumtamen propter hanc se velle mittere asseruit, si rex acquiesceret. Quo audito confestim omnes qui aderant hoc regi persuadebant, dicentes, non esse renitendum, sed magis opem ferendum et donis maximis ditandum, si quis arte vel ingenio seu quolibetcumque modo inimicos domini regis conteret. Rex autem eorum persuasionibus et verbis obtemperans, anum statim adduci jussit, sed tamen secrete, ne palam fieret. Ipse postea iterum in circuitu insulæ suum congregare fecit exercitum ; et valde a foris illam undique munire, per semetipsum huc atque illuc custodias faciens et obsidionem constituens, ne aliquis de insula egressus, quid ad expugnationem eorum actitaretur ipsi intelligerent, unde artem contra molirentur vel ingenium.

The Exploits of Hereward the Saxon.

XXIII.

What they did when they were disheartened about the Isle, and how the King was disposed to make peace with them, unless some of his own men had dissuaded him.

As he was relating this, one of those soldiers whom the King had appointed to make the blockade at the dyke at Reach ¹, coming in a little before, as soon as the man had finished his story, said : “Are these things incredible to you ? and do they seem false ? Only yesterday I saw some men coming from the Isle, not a great number, no more than seven, in the dress of soldiers, and armed with proper equipments for war, all of whom except two were manifestly monks, and they were well acquainted with warfare like the rest of the soldiers, and claimed to exercise the rights of a soldier, set fire to the town of Burwell ², and inflicted mischief in all directions, and not only they, but others also, running about. And some of our men, ten in number, before all of us who were engaged in the blockade, hurrying without consideration to them, thought to capture them, because they were fewer in number than ourselves. At length they came up with them by the dyke aforesaid within distance of throwing lances. after long fighting our men at last succumbed, except one fine soldier, Richard ³ by name, and by surname grandson of the Viscount Osbertus⁴, to whom by himself, apart from the main body, a man named Wenochus had stuck closely, endeavouring to take him. While these were long fighting, and they who had come out of the Isle waited and could see neither prevailing, and observed us with a band of soldiers drawing near, Hereward, the leader of the soldiers ⁵, caused them to be separated, and suffered no one to offer violence to Richard, saying that it was a unworthy thing for two men or three to be fighting against one, and that he would on no account allow such a thing to be done by his men ; and this we learn from the mouth of the man himself. Finally we pursued them to their ships, and we killed one of their sailors with a javelin, and caught another ; and he recounted to us their dignities and who they were, adding their names, Hereward the leader of the soldiers, Wenochus, Turstanus ⁶, a young man, who was afterwards surnamed Warden, Boter of Saint Edmunds ⁷, Siwardus, Levricus ⁸, and Acer the Hard, so called because he was hardy in enduring labour.” These truly, although monks were most distinguished in all military knowledge, and often with Hereward made trial of valorous deeds and were thoroughly approved in their training. But the King spake nothing, no word either good or bad, thinking to himself that it was an unworthy thing to abuse men who acted valiantly, and yet unwilling to extol his enemies before his own men. But he contemplated making peace with them, knowing the Isle to be protected both by nature and by very brave men, and perceiving that he could in no way prevent their going in and out. And so, summoning the nobles and counsellors, he explains to them what was in his mind, to make peace with those in the Isle, declaring that it was too serious a thing to leave such men in the middle of the land in his rear, when they ought to be marching against the army of the Danes, and after that to go directly to Normandy. Whereupon some of the elders who were present, and most intimate with him, hearing this, straightway began to dissuade the King from his purpose, because those in the Isle had invaded many of their estates, and had taken to themselves shares of their possessions, saying, “If you dismiss without punishment those who have long and vigorously been raging against your rule, and agree to make peace with them without their begging for it humbly and with prayers, and when rights are granted to them ; how will all men mock at your superiority, and none will be afraid to act likewise in your dominion.” To whom the King with anger replied, that he could not take the Isle, nor any place so fortified naturally by the power of God. To this one who was present, Ivo Taillebois ⁹ by name, indignantly answered, “I have known for a long time an old woman ¹⁰ who could, if she were here, by her single skill crush all their valour and all their defences, and drive them all in alarm out of the Isle.” And he declared that he was willing to send for her, if the King consented. On hearing this at once all who were present began to persuade the King to give consent, saying that they ought not to oppose, but rather assist, and enrich with very great presents, any one who could by skill, or ability, or in any way whatever, crush the enemies of the King’s Majesty. And the King, yielding to their persuasions, immediately ordered the old woman to be brought to him, but in secret, and that it was not to be done openly. He himself, afterwards, again made his army to enclose the Isle ; and to guard it from without everywhere, himself appointing sentinels here and there, and ordering a blockade, lest any one should come out from the Isle and discover what they were themselves doing towards taking it, whereby they might contrive some art or invention against them.

Commentary.

This chapter consists entirely of information reported from William’s side of the story. Hugo Candidus may have fabricated it on the basis of subsequent events but by the time he was writing, things had settled down over several decades and everyone was so to speak, on the same side. A more or less informal report may have come from William’s court via one or several of Hugo’s informants.

Domesday Book references come from the Lincolnshire (Lincs), Nottinghamshire (Notts) and Cambridgeshire (Cambs) volumes because those are the ones I have. This information is therefore arbitrarily placed geographically, in the vicinity of Lincolnshire.

1 ↑ Reach is at grid reference TL5666. It lies at the fenward end of the Devil’s Ditch, a very clear, major, artificial boundary across the low, broad ridge of chalk overlain by glacial till, on which Newmarket Heath lies, between Newmarket and Cambridge. On the line of the ditch, the nearer to Reach one comes, the less the till is found and the more the chalk. That this obstacle is meant by the text seems clear because the word used, fovea, means ‘a pitfall’ rather than a ditch for drainage or any other purpose (Langenscheidt). It looks as though the writer perceived the ditch as a defensive trap. However, fovea as used in Chapter XXIV seems to mean any sort of ditch along the fen margin, including the Devil’s Ditch.

2 Burwell is at grid reference TL5866: 2 kilometres east of Reach and like Reach, on the fen edge. There are castle earthworks at TL587660.

3 A Richard is mentioned as being a sub-owner under the Abbot of Peterborough, of Scotton (SK8899), Lincs (Morris 8,15). Also under Norman of Arcy, in Great Coates, Lincs (TA2310) (Morris 32,5). Also under Durand Malet, in Great Coates (Morris 44,8). Also under Ralph of Mortimer, in Grimsby, Lincs (TA2709) (Morris 36,1). The last property is particularly interesting as it was owned pre-conquest, by Eadgifu, a name which is a form of Edith or Adeva, the name of Hereward’s mother. See Chapter V note I. Eadgifu is the name given by Morris’s translation but in his parallel Latin text is given ‘Eddiue’. Since a u is interchangeable with v we have something very close to the form of Ediva’s name we have from our text.

Other of Richard’s property is; in Notts, under Roger of Bully, at Perlethorpe (SK6471) (Morris 9,37): under Ralph son of Hubert, at Annesley, Notts (Morris 13,11): under Hugh son of Baldrick, at Cuckney, Notts (Morris 22,2).

In post-conquest Nottinghamshire, Osbern son of Richard held property formerly owned by Earl Algar (Ælfgar, Hereward’s half brother (Morris 27) and in the far south-east of Cambs, Thurstan son of Richard owned property under Robert Gernon, in Camps (TL6343). These personal names need to be treated with care as there was a pre-conquest Richard associated with Leofwine at Kingston on Soar, Notts. (Morris 3,4) and with Harold and Fran, at Keyworth (Morris 9,88).

Eadgifu’s property in Lincs in 1066, was at Denton (SK8632) (Morris 18,25): East Thorpe (Morris 26,26): Melton Ross (TA0610) (Morris 34,1): Messingham (SE8904) Morris 34,3): Kettleby (Morris 34,8): Grayingham (SK9396) (Morris 34,27): Grimsby (TA2709) (Morris 36,1): Thornton Curtis (TA0817) (Morris 36,2) and Stow St. Mary (SK8881) (Morris 36,5). The church of this last place was supported by Leofric, her husband (more danico) and his wife, (more romano), Godiva. See the Anglo-Saxons site.

4 In 1086, an Osbert was a small estate owner in Marston (SK8943), Lincs (Morris 57,35) and East Stoke (SK7549), Notts (Morris 11,6); perhaps also elsewhere but not in Cambs (Morris) or Rutland (Morris). Both these parishes lie between Grantham and Newark. This is not likely to have been the ‘Viscount’ Osbert of the text, since the ‘viscount’ (in reality, ‘the sheriff’, see Chapter XVIII note 2) had an adult grandson in 1071.

5 ↑ Unus is the subject of adhærserat. It has apparently become dative in the text by the mental process called ‘attraction’ - following the form of cui. Using unus, the translation becomes ‘to whom (i.e. Richard), by chance, one of them (the English force) whose name was Wenochus and who was detached from the main body (of the English force) stuck closely, with the intention of capturing him’.

6 One of the places in the text, where Hereward is clearly described as magister militum.

7 ↑ Thurstan

8 Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk (TL8564). More specifically, the Abbey is probably meant. Boter has already appeared in Chapter I. See note 9. There he is called Broter, brother of Siward.

9 Siward (Chapter V) and Leofric the Deacon (Chapters I and XIX), we have met before.

10. Ivo Taillebois was a prominent landholder post-conquest, in Lincolnshire. The name might mean woodcutter: tailler une haie is ‘to lay or trim a hedge’. Rather than having anything to do with a trade, it may have been one of those surnames earned by some feat during a militarily episode. However, the greater likelihood is that he came from Taillebois, which lies between Falaise and Flers. The way he was treated at William’s court implies that he was a member of the family which owned Taillebois.

11. ↑ This is where the witch is introduced to the story. She seems to give modern people trouble when judging the veracity of the text. It is hard to know why – these eleventh century people were only a couple of generations from first giving the new-fangled Christianity credence. A Scandinavian form of Shamanism will inevitably have been in the background of their characters.