CHAPTER THE TWENTY-THIRD.
The Varangian did not leave the Count of Paris until the latter had inhis hands his signet-ring, _semee_, (as the heralds express it,) _withlances splintered_, and bearing the proud motto, "Mine yet unscathed."Provided with this symbol of confidence, it was now his business totake order for communicating the approaching solemnity to the leader ofthe crusading army, and demanding from him, in the name of Robert ofParis, and the Lady Brenhilda, such a detachment of western cavaliersas might ensure strict observance of honour and honesty in thearrangement of the lists, and during the progress of the combat. Theduties imposed on Hereward were such as to render it impossible for himto proceed personally to the camp of Godfrey: and though there weremany of the Varangians in whose fidelity he could have trusted, he knewof none among those under his immediate command whose intelligence, onso novel an occasion, might be entirely depended on. In thisperplexity, he strolled, perhaps without well knowing why, to thegardens of Agelastes, where fortune once more produced him an interviewwith Bertha.
No sooner had Hereward made her aware of his difficulty, than thefaithful bower-maiden's resolution was taken.
"I see," said she, "that the peril of this part of the adventure mustrest with me; and wherefore should it not? My mistress, in the bosom ofprosperity, offered herself to go forth into the wide world for mysake; I will for hers go to the camp of this Frankish lord. He is anhonourable man, and a pious Christian, and his followers are faithfulpilgrims. A woman can have nothing to fear who goes to such men uponsuch an errand."
The Varangian, however, was too well acquainted with the manners ofcamps to permit the fair Bertha to go alone. He provided, therefore,for her safe-guard a trusty old soldier, bound to his person by longkindness and confidence, and having thoroughly possessed her of theparticulars of the message she was to deliver, and desired her to be inreadiness without the enclosure at peep of dawn, returned once more tohis barracks.
With the earliest light, Hereward was again at the spot where he hadparted overnight with Bertha, accompanied by the honest soldier towhose care he meant to confide her. In a short time, he had seen themsafely on board of a ferry-boat lying in the harbour; the master ofwhich readily admitted them, after some examination of their license,to pass to Scutari, which was forged in the name of the Acolyte, asauthorised by that foul conspirator, and which agreed with theappearance of old Osmund and his young charge.
The morning was lovely; and erelong the town of Scutari opened on theview of the travellers, glittering, as now, with a variety ofarchitecture, which, though it might be termed fantastical, could notbe denied the praise of beauty. These buildings rose boldly out of athick grove of cypresses, and other huge trees, the larger, probably,as they were respected for filling the cemeteries, and being theguardians of the dead.
At the period we mention, another circumstance, no less striking thanbeautiful, rendered doubly interesting a scene which must have been atall times greatly so. A large portion of that miscellaneous army whichcame to regain the holy places of Palestine, and the blessed Sepulchreitself, from the infidels, had established themselves in a camp withina mile, or thereabouts, of Scutari. Although, therefore, the crusaderswere destitute in a great measure of the use of tents, the army(excepting the pavilions of some leaders of high rank) had constructedfor themselves temporary huts, not unpleasing to the eye, beingdecorated with leaves and flowers, while the tall pennons and bannersthat floated over them with various devices, showed that the flower ofEurope were assembled at that place. A loud and varied murmur,resembling that of a thronged hive, floated from the camp of thecrusaders to the neighbouring town of Scutari, and every now and thenthe deep tone was broken by some shriller sound, the note of somemusical instrument, or the treble scream of some child or female, infear or in gaiety.
The party at length landed in safety; and as they approached one of thegates of the camp, there sallied forth a brisk array of gallantcavaliers, pages, and squires, exercising their masters' horses ortheir own. From the noise they made, conversing at the very top oftheir voices, galloping, curvetting, and prancing their palfreys, itseemed as if their early discipline had called them to exercise ere thefumes of last night's revel were thoroughly dissipated by repose. Sosoon as they saw Bertha and her party, they approached them with crieswhich marked their country was Italy--"Al'erta! al'erta!--Roba deguadagno, cameradi!" [Footnote: That is--"Take heed! take heed! thereis booty, comrades!"]
They gathered round the Anglo-Saxon maiden and her companions,repeating their cries in a manner which made Bertha tremble. Theirgeneral demand was, "What was her business in their camp?"
"I would to the general-in-chief, cavaliers," answered Bertha, "havinga secret message to his ear."
"For whose ear?" said a leader of the party, a handsome youth of abouteighteen years of age, who seemed either to have a sounder brain thanhis fellows, or to have overflowed it with less wine. "Which of ourleaders do you come hither to see?" he demanded.
"Godfrey of Bouillon."
"Indeed!" said the page who had spoken first; "can nothing of lessconsequence serve thy turn? Take a look amongst us; young are we all,and reasonably wealthy. My Lord of Bouillon is old, and if he has anysequins, he is not like to lavish them in this way."
"Still I have a token to Godfrey of Bouillon," answered Bertha, "anassured one; and he will little thank any who obstructs my free passageto him;" and therewithal showing a little case, in which the signet ofthe Count of Paris was enclosed, "I will trust it in your hands," shesaid, "if you promise not to open it, but to give me free access to thenoble leader of the crusaders."
"I will," said the youth, "and if such be the Duke's pleasure, thoushalt be admitted to him."
"Ernest the Apulian, thy dainty Italian wit is caught in a trap," saidone of his companions.
"Thou art an ultramontane fool, Polydore," returned Ernest; "there maybe more in this than either thy wit or mine is able to fathom. Thismaiden and one of her attendants wear a dress belonging to theVarangian Imperial guard. They have perhaps been intrusted with amessage from the Emperor, and it is not irreconcilable with Alexius'spolitics to send it through such messengers as these. Let us,therefore, convey them in all honour to the General's tent."
"With all my heart," said Polydore. "A blue-eyed wench is a prettything, but I like not the sauce of the camp-marshal, nor his taste inattiring men who gave way to temptation. [Footnote: Persons among theCrusaders found guilty of certain offences, did penance in a dress oftar and feathers though it is supposed a punishment of moderninvention.] Yet, ere I prove a fool like my companion, I would ask whoor what this pretty maiden is, who comes to put noble princes and holypilgrims in mind that they have in their time had the follies of men?"
Bertha advanced and whispered in the ear of Ernest. Meantime jokefollowed jest, among Polydore and the rest of the gay youths, inriotous and ribald succession, which, however characteristic of therude speakers, may as well be omitted here. Their effect was to shakein some degree the fortitude of the Saxon maiden, who had somedifficulty in mustering courage to address them. "As you have mothers,gentlemen," she said, "as you have fair sisters, whom you would protectfrom dishonour with your best blood--as you love and honour those holyplaces which you are sworn to free from the infidel enemy, havecompassion on me, that you may merit success in your undertaking!"
"Fear nothing, maiden," said Ernest, "I will be your protector; andyou, my comrades, be ruled by me. I have, during your brawling, taken aview, though somewhat against my promise, of the pledge which shebears, and if she who presents it is affronted or maltreated, beassured Godfrey of Bouillon will severely avenge the wrong done her."
"Nay, comrade, if thou canst warrant us so much," said Polydore, "Iwill myself be most anxious to conduct the young woman in honour andsafety to Sir Godfrey's tent."
"The Princes," said Ernest, "must be nigh meeting there in council.What I have said I will warrant and uphold with hand and life. More Imight guess, but I conclude this se
nsible young maiden can speak forherself."
"Now, Heaven bless thee, gallant squire," said Bertha, "and make theealike brave and fortunate! Embarrass yourself no farther about me, thanto deliver me safe to your leader, Godfrey."
"We spend time," said Ernest, springing from his horse. "You are nosoft Eastern, fair maid, and I presume you will find yourself under nodifficulty in managing a quiet horse?"
"Not the least," said Bertha, as, wrapping herself in her cassock, shesprung from the ground, and alighted upon the spirited palfrey, as alinnet stoops upon a rose-bush. "And now, sir, as my business reallybrooks no delay, I will be indebted to you to show me instantly to thetent of Duke Godfrey of Bouillon."
By availing herself of this courtesy of the young Apulian, Berthaimprudently separated herself from the old Varangian; but theintentions of the youth were honourable, and he conducted her throughthe tents and huts to the pavilion of the celebrated General-in-chiefof the Crusade.
"Here," he said, "you must tarry for a space, under the guardianship ofmy companions," (for two or three of the pages had accompanied them,out of curiosity to see the issue,) "and I will take the commands ofthe Duke of Bouillon upon the subject."
To this nothing could be objected, and Bertha had nothing better to do,than to admire the outside of the tent, which, in one of Alexius's fitsof generosity and munificence, had been presented by the Greek Emperorto the Chief of the Franks. It was raised upon tall spear-shaped poles,which had the semblance of gold; its curtains were of thick stuff,manufactured of silk, cotton, and gold thread. The warders who stoodround, were (at least during the time that the council was held) oldgrave men, the personal squires of the body, most of them, of thesovereigns who had taken the Cross, and who could, therefore, betrusted as a guard over the assembly, without danger of their blabbingwhat they might overhear. Their appearance was serious and considerate,and they looked like men who had taken upon them the Cross, not as anidle adventure of arms, but as a purpose of the most solemn and seriousnature. One of these stopt the Italian, and demanded what businessauthorized him to press forward into the council of the crusaders, whowere already taking their seats. The page answered by giving his name,"Ernest of Otranto, page of Prince Tancred;" and stated that heannounced a young woman, who bore a token to the Duke of Bouillon,adding that it was accompanied by a message for his own ear.
Bertha, meantime, laid aside her mantle, or upper garment, and disposedthe rest of her dress according to the Anglo-Saxon costume. She hadhardly completed this task, before the page of Prince Tancred returned,to conduct her into the presence of the council of the Crusade. Shefollowed his signal; while the other young men who had accompanied her,wondering at the apparent ease with which she gained admittance, drewback to a respectful distance from the tent, and there canvassed thesingularity of their morning's adventure.
In the meanwhile, the ambassadress herself entered the council chamber,exhibiting an agreeable mixture of shamefacedness and reserve, togetherwith a bold determination to do her duty at all events. There wereabout fifteen of the principal crusaders assembled in council, withtheir chieftain Godfrey. He himself was a tall strong man, arrived atthat period of life in--which men are supposed to have lost none oftheir resolution, while they have acquired a wisdom and circumspectionunknown to their earlier years. The countenance of Godfrey bespoke bothprudence and boldness, and resembled his hair, where a few threads ofsilver were already mingled with his raven locks.
Tancred, the noblest knight of the Christian chivalry, sat at no greatdistance from him, with Hugh, Earl of Vermandois, generally called theGreat Count, the selfish and wily Bohemond, the powerful Raymond ofProvence, and others of the principal crusaders, all more or lesscompletely sheathed in armour.
Bertha did not allow her courage to be broken down, but advancing witha timid grace towards Godfrey, she placed in his hands the signet whichhad been restored to her by the young page, and after a deep obeisance,spoke these words: "Godfrey, Count of Bouillon, Duke of Lorraine theLower, Chief of the Holy Enterprise called the Crusade, and you, hisgallant comrades, peers, and companions, by whatever titles you may behonoured, I, an humble maiden of England, daughter of Engelred,originally a franklin of Hampshire, and since Chieftain of theForesters, or free Anglo-Saxons, under the command of the celebratedEdric, do claim what credence is due to the bearer of the true pledgewhich I put into your hand, on the part of one not the leastconsiderable of your own body, Count Robert of Paris"---
"Our most honourable confederate," said Godfrey, looking at the ring."Most of you, my lords, must, I think, know this signet--a field sownwith the fragments of many splintered lances." The signet was handedfrom one of the Assembly to another, and generally recognised.
When Godfrey had signified so much, the maiden resumed her message. "Toall true crusaders, therefore, comrades of Godfrey of Bouillon, andespecially to the Duke himself,--to all, I say, excepting Bohemond ofTarentum, whom he counts unworthy of his notice"--
"Hah! me unworthy of his notice," said Bohemond. "What mean you bythat, damsel?--But the Count of Paris shall answer it to me."
"Under your favour, Sir Bohemond," said Godfrey, "no. Our articlesrenounce the sending of challenges among ourselves, and the matter, ifnot dropt betwixt the parties, must be referred to the voice of thishonourable council."
"I think I guess the business now, my lord," said Bohemond. "The Countof Paris is disposed to turn and tear me, because I offered him goodcounsel on the evening before we left Constantinople, when he neglectedto accept or be guided by it"--
"It will be the more easily explained when we have heard his message,"said Godfrey.--"Speak forth Lord Robert of Paris's charge, damsel, thatwe may take some order with that which now seems a perplexed business."
Bertha resumed her message; and, having briefly narrated the recentevents, thus concluded:--"The battle is to be done to-morrow, about twohours after daybreak, and the Count entreats of the noble Duke ofLorraine that he will permit some fifty of the lances of France toattend the deed of arms, and secure that fair and honourable conductwhich he has otherwise some doubts of receiving at the hands of hisadversary. Or if any young and gallant knight should, of his own freewill, wish to view the said combat, the Count will feel his presence asan honour; always he desires that the name of such knight be numberedcarefully with the armed crusaders who shall attend in the lists, andthat the whole shall be limited, by Duke Godfrey's own inspection, tofifty lances only, which are enough to obtain the protection required,while more would be considered as a preparation for aggression upon theGrecians, and occasion the revival of disputes which are now happily atrest."
Bertha had no sooner finished delivering her manifesto, and made withgreat grace her obeisance to the council, than a sort of whisper tookplace in the assembly, which soon assumed a more lively tone.
Their solemn vow not to turn their back upon Palestine, now that theyhad set their hands to the plough, was strongly urged by some of theelder knights of the council, and two or three high prelates, who hadby this time entered to take share in the deliberations. The youngknights, on the other hand, were fired with indignation on hearing themanner in which their comrade had been trepanned; and few of them couldthink of missing a combat in the lists in a country in which suchsights were so rare, and where one was to be fought so near them.
Godfrey rested his brow on his hand, and seemed in great perplexity. Tobreak with the Greeks, after having suffered so many injuries in orderto maintain the advantage of keeping the peace with them, seemed veryimpolitic, and a sacrifice of all he had obtained by a long course ofpainful forbearance towards Alexius Comnenus. On the other hand, he wasbound as a man of honour to resent the injury offered to Count Robertof Paris, whose reckless spirit of chivalry made him the darling of thearmy. It was the cause, too, of a beautiful lady, and a brave one:every knight in the host would think himself bound, by his vow, tohasten to her defence. When Godfrey spoke, it was to complain of thedifficulty of the determination, and the short time
there was toconsider the case.
"With submission to my Lord Duke of Lorraine," said Tancred, "I was aknight ere I was a crusader, and took on me the vows of chivalry, ere Iplaced this blessed, sign upon my shoulder: the vow first made must befirst discharged. I will therefore do penance for neglecting, for aspace, the obligations of the second vow, while I observe that whichrecalls me to the first duty of knighthood,--the relief of a distressedlady in the hands of men whose conduct towards her, and towards thishost, in every respect entitles me to call them treacherous faitours."
"If my kinsman Tancred," said Bohemond, "will check his impetuosity,and you, my lords, will listen, as you have sometimes deigned to do, tomy advice, I think I can direct you how to keep clear of any breach ofyour oath, and yet fully to relieve our distressed fellow-pilgrims.--Isee some suspicious looks are cast towards me, which are caused perhapsby the churlish manner in which this violent, and, in this case, almostinsane young warrior, has protested against receiving my assistance. Mygreat offence is the having given him warning, by precept and example,of the treachery which was about to be practised against him, andinstructed him to use forbearance and temperance. My warning healtogether contemned--my example he neglected to follow, and fell intothe snare which was spread, as it were, before his very eyes. Yet theCount of Paris, in rashly contemning me, has acted only from a temperwhich misfortune and disappointment have rendered irrational andfrantic. I am so far from bearing him ill-will, that, with yourlordship's permission, and that of the present council, I will haste tothe place of rendezvous with fifty lances, making up the retinue whichattends upon each to at least ten men, which will make the stipulatedauxiliary force equal to five hundred; and with these I can have littledoubt of rescuing the Count and his lady."
"Nobly proposed," said the Duke of Bouillon; "and with a charitableforgiveness of injuries which becomes our Christian expedition. Butthou hast forgot the main difficulty, brother Bohemond, that we aresworn never to turn back upon the sacred journey."
"If we can elude that oath upon the present occasion," said Bohemond,"it becomes our duty to do so. Are we such bad horsemen, or are oursteeds so awkward, that we cannot rein them back from this to thelanding-place at Scutari? We can get them on shipboard in the sameretrograde manner, and when we arrive in Europe, where our vow binds usno longer, the Count and Countess of Paris are rescued, and our vowremains entire in the Chancery of Heaven."
A general shout arose--"Long life to the gallant Bohemond!--Shame to usif we do not fly to the assistance of so valiant a knight, and a ladyso lovely, since we can do so without breach of our vow."
"The question," said Godfrey, "appears to me to be eluded rather thansolved; yet such evasions have been admitted by the most learned andscrupulous clerks; nor do I hesitate to admit of Bohemond's expedient,any more than if the enemy had attacked our rear, which might haveoccasioned our countermarching to be a case of absolute necessity."
Some there were in the assembly, particularly the churchmen, inclinedto think that the oath by which the crusaders had solemnly boundthemselves, ought to be as literally obeyed. But Peter the Hermit, whohad a place in the council, and possessed great weight, declared it ashis opinion, "That since the precise observance of their vow would tendto diminish the forces of the crusade, it was in fact unlawful, andshould not be kept according to the literal meaning, if, by a fairconstruction, it could be eluded."
He offered himself to back the animal which he bestrode--that is, hisass; and though he was diverted from showing this example by theremonstrances of Godfrey of Bouillon, who was afraid of his becoming ascandal in the eyes of the heathen, yet he so prevailed by hisarguments, that the knights, far from scrupling to countermarch,eagerly contended which should have the honour of making one of theparty which should retrograde to Constantinople, see the combat, andbring back to the host in safety the valorous Count of Paris, of whosevictory no one doubted, and his Amazonian Countess.
This emulation was also put an end to by the authority of Godfrey, whohimself selected the fifty knights who were to compose the party. Theywere chosen from different nations, and the command of the whole wasgiven to young Tancred of Otranto. Notwithstanding the claim ofBohemond, Godfrey detained the latter, under the pretext that hisknowledge of the country and people was absolutely necessary to enablethe council to form the plan of the campaign in Syria; but in realityhe dreaded the selfishness of a man of great ingenuity as well asmilitary skill, who, finding himself in a separate command, might betempted, should opportunities arise, to enlarge his own power anddominion, at the expense of the pious purposes of the crusade ingeneral. The younger men of the expedition were chiefly anxious toprocure such horses as had been thoroughly trained, and could gothrough with ease and temper the manoeuvre of equitation, by which itwas designed to render legitimate the movement which they had recourseto. The selection was at length made, and the detachment ordered todraw up in the rear, or upon the eastward line of the Christianencampment. In the meanwhile, Godfrey charged Bertha with a message forthe Count of Paris, in which, slightly censuring him for not observingmore caution in his intercourse with the Greeks, he informed him thathe had sent a detachment of fifty lances, with the correspondingsquires, pages, men-at-arms, and cross-bows, five hundred in number,commanded by the valiant Tancred, to his assistance. The Duke alsoinformed him, that he had added a suit of armour of the best temperMilan could afford, together with a trusty war-horse, which heentreated him to use upon the field of battle; for Bertha had notomitted to intimate Count Robert's want of the means of knightlyequipment. The horse was brought before the pavilion accordingly,completely barbed or armed in steel, and laden with armour for theknight's body. Godfrey himself put the bridle into Bertha's hand.
"Thou need'st not fear to trust thyself with this steed, he is asgentle and docile as he is fleet and brave. Place thyself on his back,and take heed thou stir not from the side of the noble Prince Tancredof Otranto, who will be the faithful defender of a maiden that has thisday shown dexterity, courage, and fidelity."
Bertha bowed low, as her cheeks glowed at praise from one whose talentsand worth were in such general esteem, as to have raised him to thedistinguished situation of leader of a host which numbered in it thebravest and most distinguished captains of Christendom.
"Who are yon two persons?" continued Godfrey, speaking of thecompanions of Bertha, whom he saw in the distance before the tent.
"The one," answered the damsel, "is the master of the ferry-boat whichbrought me over; and the other an old Varangian who came hither as myprotector."
"As they may come to employ their eyes here, and their tongues on theopposite side," returned the general of the crusaders, "I do not thinkit prudent to let them accompany you. They shall remain here for someshort time. The citizens of Scutari will not comprehend for some spacewhat our intention is, and I could wish Prince Tancred and hisattendants to be the first to announce their own arrival."
Bertha accordingly intimated the pleasure of the French general to theparties, without naming his motives; when the ferryman began to exclaimon the hardship of intercepting him in his trade; and Osmund tocomplain of being detained from his duties. But Bertha, by the ordersof Godfrey, left them, with the assurance that they would be soon atliberty. Finding themselves thus abandoned, each applied himself to hisfavourite amusement. The ferryman occupied himself in staring about atall that was new; and Osmund, having in the meantime accepted an offerof breakfast from some of the domestics, was presently engaged with aflask of such red wine as would have reconciled him to a worse lot thanthat which he at present experienced.
The detachment of Tancred, fifty spears and their armed retinue, whichamounted fully to five hundred men, after having taken a short andhasty refreshment, were in arms and mounted before the sultry hour ofnoon. After some manoeuvres, of which the Greeks of Scutari, whosecuriosity was awakened by the preparations of the detachment, were at aloss to comprehend the purpose, they formed into a single column,having four men in front. Wh
en the horses were in this position, thewhole riders at once began to rein back. The action was one to whichboth the cavaliers and their horses were well accustomed, nor did it atfirst afford much surprise to the spectators; but when the sameretrograde evolution was continued, and the body of crusaders seemedabout to enter the town of Scutari in so extraordinary a fashion, someidea of the truth began to occupy the citizens. The cry at length wasgeneral, when Tancred and a few others, whose horses were unusuallywell-trained, arrived at the port, and possessed themselves of agalley, into which they led their horses, and, disregarding allopposition from the Imperial officers of the haven, pushed the vesseloff from the shore.
Other cavaliers did not accomplish their purpose so easily; the riders,or the horses, were less accustomed to continue in the constrained pacefor such a considerable length of time, so that many of the knights,having retrograded for one or two hundred yards, thought their vow wassufficiently observed by having so far deferred to it, and riding inthe ordinary manner into the town, seized without farther ceremony onsome vessels, which, notwithstanding the orders of the Greek Emperor,had been allowed to remain on the Asiatic side of the strait. Some lessable horsemen met with various accidents; for though it was a proverbof the time, that nothing was so bold as a blind horse, yet from thismode of equitation, where neither horse nor rider saw the way he wasgoing, some steeds were overthrown, others backed upon dangerousobstacles; and the bones of the cavaliers themselves suffered much morethan would have been the case in an ordinary march.
Those horsemen, also, who met with falls, incurred the danger of beingslain by the Greeks, had not Godfrey, surmounting his religiousscruples, despatched a squadron to extricate them--a task which theyperformed with great ease. The greater part of Tancred's followerssucceeded in embarking, as was intended, nor was there more than ascore or two finally amissing. To accomplish their voyage, however,even the Prince of Otranto himself, and most of his followers, wereobliged to betake themselves to the unknightly labours of the oar. Thisthey found extremely difficult, as well from the state both of the tideand the wind, as from the want of practice at the exercise. Godfrey inperson viewed their progress anxiously, from a neighbouring height, andperceived with regret the difficulty which they found in making theirway, which was still more increased by the necessity for their keepingin a body, and waiting for the slowest and worst manned vessels, whichconsiderably detained those that were more expeditious. They made someprogress, however; nor had the commander-in-chief the least doubt, thatbefore sunset they would safely reach the opposite side of the strait.
He retired at length from his post of observation, having placed acareful sentinel in his stead, with directions to bring him word theinstant that the detachment reached the opposite shore. This thesoldier could easily discern by the eye, if it was daylight at thetime; if, on the contrary, it was night before they could arrive, thePrince of Otranto had orders to show certain lights, which, in case oftheir meeting resistance from the Greeks, should be arranged in apeculiar manner, so as to indicate danger.
Godfrey then explained to the Greek authorities of Scutari, whom hesummoned before him, the necessity there was that he should keep inreadiness such vessels as could be procured, with which, in case ofneed, he was determined to transport a strong division from his army tosupport those who had gone before. He then rode back to his camp, theconfused murmurs of which, rendered more noisy by the variousdiscussions concerning the events of the day, rolled off from thenumerous host of the crusaders, and mingled with the hoarse sound ofthe many-billowed Hellespont.