CHAPTER IV.
DEFEAT.
"What though the field be lost? All is not lost."
_Paradise Lost._
Oswald the Saxon, and Beowulf the Saxon Dane, passed out into the night,and continued their course beyond the gates of the city, which were sobroken down that they served no longer the purpose for which they wereerected. The walls also for considerable distances were thrown down, andin a state of disrepair. The insurrectionary forces had determined topush forward in the king's absence, but in the meantime they werehalting, waiting for Malcolm of Scotland, and for further counsel. Theywere encamped some miles away on the banks of the river running betweenYork and the head of the estuary of the Humber, where the Danishwar-vessels were anchored. The Danes held the head of the estuary,throwing out their forces Yorkward, but encamped sufficiently near tocover their vessels, in the event of an attack upon them. Waltheof, theleader and commander-in-chief of the Saxon forces, occupied a centralposition, having under his command the bulk of the rebels; whilstOswald, Beowulf, and others, occupied the right wing, which to a certainextent covered the city. On the news of William's landing, the bridgeswere thrown down, but in many places the river was fordable, during dryweather, both for man and horse. But to effect this in the face ofsturdy enemies was a most formidable task, and the Saxons weresufficiently numerous to guard the river effectually wherever it wasfordable.
Early in the morning, after the breaking up of the council of war, thescouts brought in the intelligence that William had arrived within sixmiles, and ere nightfall the pennants of the Normans were flying withinsight of the Saxon forces.
Very little of that night was spent by Oswald in rest. Twice hepatrolled the whole length of the river under his command, visiting andcheering every outpost. But judge how great was his consternation, andthat of his forces also, when, with the dawning of the morning, thefraction of the Saxons commanded by him were made painfully aware of thefact that the Normans had passed the river, unopposed, in the night; andworse than that, there began to be ominous rumours that this had arisenthrough the treachery of Waltheof--that he, having been bribed by theConqueror, had left the remnant to their fate. In these straits time wasprecious, for the Normans were advancing up the river, doubling up theSaxon outposts, and throwing them back on the main body. Hastily acouncil of war was called, and not a few, in face of the danger and thehopelessness of their cause in the midst of such treachery, were fordispersing without a blow; but Oswald, addressing them, said,--
"I fear it is too true that there is treachery in our ranks; but as yetwe know not its extent. If Waltheof has succumbed to William's bribes,there are still the Danes, who will be able to harass the rear of ourenemy. Hourly, also, we are expecting Malcolm of Scotland and theAtheling, so that we need not despair. Let us make a bold stand; thebattle is by no means lost if the Danes stand firm. Now, with ourhandful of men it is utterly impossible to meet the Normans in the opencountry; for they will double our left flank easily and surround us. Buton the fringe of yonder dense wood, with our line extended under coverof the thicket, and where the enemy's horse will be absolutelyuseless--where also our men will be quite in their element and be ableto ply their long bows with deadly effect, and their spears or swords atclose quarters--we shall surely avoid, in any case, the wholesaleslaughter of our men; and we shall administer a severe check toWilliam's march."
The force of this sage advice was seen at once by the leaders, and theforces accordingly retired to the wood in their rear, and took up theirfighting attitude just within its shelter. The Saxons, who were braveindividually, were still undisciplined and incapable of acting togetherwith precision in the open; but they were wonderfully heartened by thismovement, which gave them shelter from the onslaughts of the enemy'shorse--a mode of warfare which has at all times had a demoralisingeffect upon untrained soldiers. So, having their right flank resting onthe river, and in consequence shielded from any flank movement there,they threw out their left considerably, so as to prevent, if possible,any over-lapping by the Normans. They were the better able to do this,seeing that the enemy's horse were totally unable to charge throughtheir attenuated lines; the jungle being an effectual barrier to this.Oswald arranged his men in two fighting lines. The foremost ranks, withspear and sword, were to resist the advance of the Normans. The secondwere bowmen, who were to cover the front ranks by letting fly theirarrows in the faces of the foe; a most ingenious and effectiveexpedient. To Beowulf he entrusted the command of the left wing, withinstructions to in no case permit the Normans to outflank them, but, ifnecessary, to double in the left flank also, until it rested on theriver.
Scarcely had Oswald time to make this careful disposition of his men erethe vanguard of the Normans were upon them. But a shower of arrows fromthe Saxons at close quarters thoroughly disconcerted them. So fiercelywere they met, and by a force whose numbers they had no means ofgauging, that they deemed it prudent to retire beyond bowshot until theremainder of the forces advanced to their support. Then came a moredetermined assault on the Saxons' position. But, from behind trees andshrubs, the concealed defenders drave their short spears through eachassailant, or clave them with their short Saxon swords or battle-axes.Oswald and others, who were clad in armour, boldly fronted them in everygap, making great havoc in the ranks of the men-at-arms, or singling outthe Norman leaders and engaging them.
In the midst of the fray, one noteworthy incident occurred. Oswald, tohis amazement, saw the burly Norman, Vigneau, who had come withprofessions of help, now fighting fiercely against them. Immediately hisblood was fired, and pressing steadily towards him, eventually they metface to face.
"Ah, treacherous villain!" said Oswald. "This is your friendship for ourcause, is it? I have a particular message for tricksters and sneakingtraitors like you."
"Come on, varlet of a Saxon, and don't stand prating like some gowkywench, and I'll quickly give thee thy quietus," said Vigneau savagely.
Instantly there ensued a most desperate encounter between these twopowerful combatants. Each of them, however, wore a suit of armour, andcarried a shield, and each one was most skilful in the use of hisweapons, so that, desperate and determined as they both were, noconclusive blow resulted. But whilst the duel progressed, the generalbody of the Normans made steady progress, in spite of the valour of theSaxons, and speedily Oswald was quite surrounded, though totallyoblivious of the fact. One stalwart Saxon, however, who had fought byOswald's side--by name Wulfhere--saw the imminent danger in which hisleader was placed, and he rushed to his rescue, quickly cleaving his waythrough; and seizing Oswald, he exclaimed,--
"Master, you will be cut off if you don't keep in fighting line withus!"
This fierce reminder awoke Oswald to the peril of his position, and hesaid to his antagonist, "Another time, villain, will come, when I hopewe may effectually finish this quarrel."
"Sooner and better, churl; but for the present your better plan is torun away," retorted Vigneau.
In the meantime, although the Saxons had extended their lines to theutmost limits which the sparsity of their men would permit, the Normanssurged round and completely overlapped them. So Beowulf was compelled toinitiate the movement ordered by Oswald, and the left wing was graduallydoubled back until it also converged on the river; and thus the line ofbattle was in the form of a semicircle. The Saxons fought withdesperation, disputing every inch of the ground, and strewing theground, yard by yard, with the Norman slain. The masterly skill withwhich their ground had been chosen and their defence planned, gave themgreat advantage, and enabled them to maintain the unequal contest fornearly an hour. But ultimately the quivers of the archers were emptiedof every shaft, and the battle could no longer be maintained withadvantage, but would probably end in complete massacre. So Oswaldselected a spot where the river was fordable; then, he and a hundredstalwart Saxons stood shoulder to shoulder, keeping the enemy at baywhilst the rank and file crossed the stream. Then, gradually narrowingtheir own circle until every one had taken t
he river, the lasthalf-dozen, with their faces to the foe, fought their way across.
When they had reached the opposite side, the order was given fordispersal, and the gallant band melted away, and severally, or in bands,sought their distant homes. Thus ended in total failure, throughcowardice and treachery, what at one time seemed, in its very markedsuccess, a conspiracy that would ultimately wrest the kingdom from theusurper.