Games of Otterburn 1388 (48 page)

Adara slid the buckler over the big man’s left arm as he said to her, “Hie for the wood yon,” he raised his head to indicated the copse on the back side of the camp. “Stay hidden there ‘til I come for
ye
.”

“I will,” she said with a smile then plucked his helm from the ground and held it as high as she could. He took it from her hands and put it on over his mail coif.

She started to tie the dangling strings under his chin but he said, “Ne’er mind that,” as he shook his head, “Just ends up
a’chokin
’ me!”

She jumped and put her arms around his neck. With her bare feet clearly off the ground she kissed him hard as close to where she thought his mouth would be within his bushy, tangle of beard and chain.

He put her down easy then turned without another word, making his way across the confused field of activity to where
Douglas
was passing out verbal orders virtually in every direction.

Adara was happy he had cared enough for her safety to tell her he would come for her. She gathered her few things in her large pouch, belted on her sword and obeyed ‘her man’s’ orders. She had never had a man like Mungan before and she liked it. As she ran toward the copse she prayed for his safety in battle. She was unaccustomed to prayer and so she prayed again that she had said the right words on her first prayer.

Redman’s troops had sped up to a gallop as they saw in front of them what they thought was the main camp when in fact it was the servant’s camp site. With no movement of people they thought the Scots were fast asleep and they were delighted at the prospect of surprising them awake.

Because of the partial wattle fence across the road in front of the camp and the obvious mire on the left side the horsemen were squeezed to a narrow entrance into the area. Their gallop quickly became a trot losing their attack momentum as they rounded the end of the wattle.

As the first dozen or so men rode through the narrows the men and lads of Swinton’s group screamed their war cry and rushed against the English horses with their various weapons. To the best that could be said the advance van of Redman’s army was shocked they were attacked so strongly from the mix of manly and immature voices screaming at them.

They were brought down to the dirt along with their horses. Redman’s banner and bearer skidded into the morass. Swinton jabbed the fallen riders on both sides of him working his large broadsword in a wide swath. Others of his band of servants jumped on more of the English that were downed and dispatched them without mercy. For most of the servants it was their first taste of bloody war to which they quickly adopted.

Sir Matthew Redman came through the narrows to the camp and seeing his men being slaughtered started in on the campers with an angry vengeance.

More English came to the fight there and the shouts and sword clashes heard by
Douglas
at the upper part of the hill alerted him to help.

“Get Earl George to the servant’s camp!” he shouted to Davy Coleville who was still astride his horse carrying out James Douglas’ orders to the various parts of the field. “Tell him they’re
comin
’ in from the south end!”

“Aye, Milord!” answered Davy quickly. He found George mustering his men and told him Douglas’ word.

George had only about forty men-at-arms gathered amid field at that point and decided to send them under the command of Sir Alexander Ramsey with the instructions to analysis the situation and report back to him about the seriousness of the southern breach. He was not convinced Hotspur would attack the lowest ground and have to work his way up hill.

Sir Thomas
Erskins
came to
Douglas
, “Got our contingent ‘bout mustered on the ridge!” he reported in clipped fashion.

“Be there directly!” returned Douglas as his squire Simon
Glendowyn
followed the movements of his master’s legs in the attempt to strap on his shin and foot armor. With one leg covered and one leg not he was on the verge of panic for the fear of his lord’s safety.

John Dunbar rushed his spearmen to the edge of the rough made fencing rigged between one tree
trunk
to another. They held their long spears across the barrier waiting for
whomever
approached toward that sector.

The spy that John Dunbar had left watching the north
Otterburn
Valley
rode up hard and drawing rein skidded his horse on at least three hooves beside his liege. He blurted out, “Fast
ridin
’ scout is
a’goin
’ toward those ones camped in the valley!”

“Must be this bunch
attackin
’ us now that sent the rider, I reckon,” figured John as he walked along the line of his awaiting spearmen adjusting their position.

“Aye, Milord,” agreed the rider. “
Tellin
’ them to attack us, I figure!”

“How long will it be ere they get here?” asked John.

“Before sundown for certain if they move right away,” opined the rider.

“Get back and tell us when they’re aboard their horses,” ordered John. “That’ll give us a better time!”

“Aye!” he clipped as he wheeled and headed back north to his higher position.

John Dunbar quickly walked to where
Douglas
stood yet barking orders. His squires were still trying to arm their lord in more that his chest armor that they got the rivets fastened only half way and were considering that an accomplishment under the dire circumstances.

“Thomas Umfraville probably got the order to move against us now,” said John.

“How far ye say they were?”

“May be
hittin
’ ‘bout sundown… or a little later, James,” batted back John.

“Get George up on the hill to protect our north side,” ordered
Douglas
then added, “and if ye can spare men to help Swinton and Ramsey in the servant’s camp send them fast! I can see from here they’ve got their hands full of the English and we hain’t seen ‘our friend’ Hotspur come to get his pennon, as yet!”

John glanced at the bit of silk cloth hanging from the spear placed upright in the ground and for an instant philosophically wondered about the power some would give to such a scrap of material embroidered with semiprecious pearls but then again, he thought, perhaps it was just a kind of excuse used to go to war. A symbol of pride employed to rile his minions to a high state of blood lust.

John was shaken back to reality when
Douglas
asked, “Ye
a’right
?”

“Aye… Aye,” he replied.

“Where’s yer helm?”

John felt his head and rubbed his fingers over nothing more than chain mail covering his arming cap. “Don’t know, I reckon,” he snapped.

“Then go get George!” said
Douglas
, “Our northern flank is in jeopardy!”

“Aye, but we
will
know when they come… I have
seen to that
,” said John then left in a hurry to find his brother.

Without a warning of any sort an arrow thudded the ground at
Douglas
’ foot. He jerked back and instinctively looked about the field. Seven or eight of his men-at-arms and footmen fell to the ground from arrow wounds.

Douglas
ran down the hill to the defensive barrier. His spearmen were stoically holding strong to their weapons across the span of probable attack. Several along the line had caught English arrows and were trying to deal with the pain as they pulled them from their limbs and bodies. The thick foliage on the trees under which they were standing caught the bulk of the volleys of barbs.

Looking beyond the contingent of archers he saw their commander Hotspur. “Close the gap!!” screamed
Douglas
when he realized the knights and men-at-arms were hanging back letting the archers do their initial thinning of the army. “Close the gap!! - Close the gap!!”

John came rushing up to the waist-high wattle screaming on his own, “Over the fence!!
– Over the fence!!”
He was the first one over the barricade and the others followed in quick order holding their spears straight out to their fronts and running hard.

Hotspur saw the hurdle and realized the horses were a hindrance so he dismounted giving the order for his others to do the same. The horses were led toward the back of the army by the younger squires and pages.

The archers aimed higher and loosed their arrows as the gap closed.

Hotspur was anxious and urged his men to run their fastest to meet the enemy head on. The launched arrows could not be called back and when the sorties came to rest they pierced as many English bodies as they did Scots.

Sir John Copledyke shouted the order to the archers, “Put down your bows and get to your swords!”

The archers obeyed in quick time abandoning their horses and following Hotspur into his crucible wedge of fearfully imagined hell screaming, “Percy! Percy!”

The forces of John Dunbar and Hotspur Percy clashed on the mid ground. The front ranks of the spearmen took the brunt of the death blows in an arrogant sickening amalgamated din of groans, cries of abject pain and the violent strikes of metal forcing metal to the bend of opposing wills.

The field spread wider with the addition of the archers as they pushed against the forward mob of fighters and John Dunbar’s men were forced to give way to the overwhelming pressure rather than be flanked or even surrounded which would have been disastrous.

The sun had spent its worth for the day on Blakeman’s Law and the darkness was swallowing the whole of the welkin except for a thin red line on the western horizon.

Douglas
watched John Dunbar furiously fighting and encouraging his men onward as they were all the while backing toward him. Sir John Edmonstone was no less totally engaged with sword and dagger as he could reach his enemy in the press of death.

Douglas
glanced to his left to see his contingent formed and awaiting his leadership. He looked to his right and saw Swinton and Ramsey persevering against Matthew Redman and Robert Ogle.
 
Without realizing the lack of his full body armor and his identifying surcoat he headed straight for his contingent.

Redman’s banner was retrieved from the ground by one of his brave men as Sir Robert Ogle worked his way into the confined area with his contingent of men-at-arms.

“
Yon’s
the English plunder,” shouted Ogle to Redman as they easily fought back the untrained and
unmounted
warriors who could do little more than nip at their armor covered feet.

“Dear Hotspur wants us to get behind the main force and attack!” came back Redman.

“I figure if we go up that left side we’ll have the whole of them surrounded!” said Ogle moving his horse to swat at the heads of the brave lads attacking them.

Swinton and Ramsey were surrounded by Redman’s several knights bent on having both of the Scots heads tied to their saddlebows in short order.

“Let’s run these runts off and come back for the reived cattle and get their warhorses as well!” suggested Ogle.

“
A’right
,” agreed Redman, “They’re already
runnin
’ up the road… let’s give chase!”