Men at Arms 02 - Eight Years Later

Copyright Oggbashan May 2020

The author asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

This is a work of fiction. The events described here are imaginary; the settings and characters are fictitious and are not intended to represent specific places or living persons. This story is set at the time of the Hundred Years War.

Conversations are assumed to be in the English and French of the 14th century retold in modern English.

This is a sequel to my 2017 story Men At Arms.

Two years ago we had buried Lord Henry and his wife Lady Agnes. I, as the deputy castellan of the recently finished castle and walls around the now town of Journy-des-Anglais, had been appointed temporary castellan until a suitable replacement could be appointed.

But I was worried. Eight years ago we had occupied Journy at Christmas while retreating from a defeat by the French. Our fifty men, led by the then Sir Henry, had been escorting the baggage train as the older men no longer suitable for the main army. Eight years on, we were all, except Sir Henry's former clerk, who became Squire Giles, much too old to be effective soldiers even defending walls.

Most of us had taken French wives, widowed by the wars. But most of the wives had been too old for child bearing. Even the few children that had been born were far too young. Yes, we had adopted our wives' children from their former marriages but less than five were old enough to become men at arms.

Journy and the castle were at the extreme edge of the English possessions in France and likely to be one of the first places attacked. But could I defend it with the remaining elderly men, survivors of the fifty who had taken it eight years ago? I thought not. Even before Lord Henry died we had been pleading for younger troops from the commander of the English forces in France but he had been reluctant to send efficient soldiers to sit behind walls. He needed every man for his armies in the field.

I really needed a garrison of a minimum of one hundred efficient men. One hundred and fifty would be a more realistic number given that any French army would be likely to attack with thousands. With the old men I now had, we couldn't defend the town's walls and would have to retreat into the castle keep and hope for relief from Calais.

Now I was castellan, even if only temporarily, I could do things I couldn't do as Lord Henry's deputy. I might get reproved by the commander of our armies in France, but six months ago I had sent Giles, now newly knighted as Sir Giles, to try to recruit men at arms from Sir Henry's estates in England and the surrounding area.

My wife Lady Jeanne had made a useful suggestion. Apart from my old men at arms, Journy was very short of men. Almost all the French men had been with the French armies or dead before we occupied. Then we had about two hundred single women who hadn't taken an elderly man at arms as a husband. Now the imbalance was worse, Because of roving bands of bandits many of the surrounding settlements had decided that it would be much safer behind Journy's walls. But almost all that had come to swell the town's population had been single (or widowed) women. We now had five hundred unattached women and no spare men.

So Jeanne suggested that we looked for men at arms who weren't married and we should sell Journy as a town of desperate women who wanted men. She asked Sir Giles, wife, Marie, to go with him, taking their seven year old son and a dozen of Journy's unattached younger women as a sample of what would be waiting for any man at arms who decided to join Journy's garrison.

What Giles and I wanted were experienced men at arms who felt that they were getting beyond battles in the field but could defend walls effectively. We were looking for men in their early thirties, perhaps late twenties.

Three of the women with Giles were sisters, all younger widows of Frenchmen who had been killed with the French army. They found a man at arms, Harold, a giant of a man who thought he was descended from King Harold's mistress Swanhilda. He looked like it. He was well over six feet tall, had a shock of blond hair that he had difficulty fitting under his helmet, and he fought as the Saxons had done at the Battle of Hastings. He carried a heavy axe with a six foot handle that he wielded double-handed. He could outreach swordsmen and he had a shield suspended from his neck that covered him to below the knees. Only someone as strong as Harold could wear a shield like that.

Giles was told that during Harold's last battle in France he had decapitated eight French men at arms and a fully armoured knight, shearing through the plate armour as if it had been butter. He could use a sword or longbow but preferred his axe.

The three sisters couldn't decide which of them should have Harold so gave him an ultimatum. If he came to Journy he could have all three, or none, and then choose someone else. Harold decided to come to Journy and be with the three sisters. Six months ago, when he had been fighting in France, his wife had died in child birth; Harold hadn't been able to attend the funeral of his wife and stillborn son. The idea of defending walls with his women inside was appealing.

Marie had another idea. She also looked for unattached tradesmen. She found a couple of blacksmiths, a farrier, some bowyers, fletchers and others. Giles wrote to me asking for provision to be made for the tradesmen to set up workplaces in Journy. Most started with widows whose husbands had been in the same trade and already had the space and tools.

A year later I was relieved that we were much better balanced. Giles, Marie and the women had recruited two hundred and fifty men for Journy. Forty were tradesmen but they could also fight if needed. I felt that my chances of defending Journy were much better. I'd like more men, so would the unattached women, but the message that Journy needed men and there were available woman was known. Over the next year or so there was a steady trickle of men at arms willing to come to Journy and find a woman's bed,

Every night Lady Jeanne made sure I knew that I was in her bed and she wanted me. Although she was older than most of Journy's women she still wanted sex every night. She rode me. I let her because I was too old to be the active participant every night. I liked seeing her breasts swinging frantically above me as she pounded up and down. A few mornings each year I would wake bundled up and tied in the bedclothes as Jeanne demonstrated again that although I might be the castellan, she owned me and I was her captive Englishman. While I was helpless Jeanne might smother me with her breasts or pussy over a cloth gag so I couldn't bite her. Every time she tied me up her lovemaking afterwards was even more frenzied and I usually slumped into an exhausted sleep.

But I was making myself unpopular. I was unpopular with commander of the English forces in Calais because I had recruited men at arms he wanted. Journy was a garrison town, totally enclosed by the walls of the castle's outer bailey. When we had occupied it, its population was about five hundred, mainly women. Now the population was nearer two and a half thousand. Although I ran it as the acting castellan, I had established a town council to decide matters that usually affected only the civilians such as trading rules. Whatever the town council decreed, my orders took precedence and some were causing my unpopularity.

Lord Henry and now I knew that the French would attack Journy. There was no question of 'if' only when. So far we had had eight years, far longer peace than we had expected, but eventually we would have to defend against a French army. By the end of his first year, Lord Henry had ordered that every household must have a month's supplies of food at all times. Gradually that had been increased and my current order was that that each household must have six months' supply and the garrison a whole year's. I had also ordered that every garden must use at least a quarter of its area for growing green vegetables, and half the castle's formerly lawned areas should also grew green vegetables.

I now had ten sergeants and every three months the sergeants would visit every house to ensure that they had the adequate six months' stock of food. Some households didn't have quite enough and were encouraged, with the threat of fines if they didn't comply, to build up more. One person, Albert, a mercer and town councillor, was always in default. He couldn't see the need for my order and refused. After being fined for three consecutive quarters my patience ran out and I ordered him and his household to be evicted from Journy. He went, grumbling and complaining. Some other members of the Town Council, while obeying, objected strongly.

My other order, following on from Lord Henry's, was that if there had been a good grain crop that a variable percentage was to be taken to the castle as taxation. That was also resented although Journy had far lower taxes than most comparable towns, English or French. The grain stores now at the castle could make bread for everyone for at least a year. That was in addition to the year's supply of food already held by the garrison.

The town of Journy could survive a close siege for at least six months' probably longer though we might be bored of stored food and hungry by the eighth month.

At the start of the tenth year I had been in temporary command for two years while expecting to be replaced by someone more senior at any time. At the time I had been made temporary castellan I had also been made a baron, Baron John of Journy-des-Anglais. Whatever happened I would still be a Baron. Jeanne, who had become Lady Jeanne when I was knighted, had become a Baroness. She still didn't believe it. Before I had married her she had been the widow of a small scale farmer. Now she was the Baroness of Journy. I wasn't sure I believed it either. Ten years ago I had been an elderly sergeant in charge of a baggage train, with no expectations except to retire to a small cottage in England if I survived. Now I had been a knight for ten years and a Baron for two. But I would still like to retire. I was getting old.

The French made sure I couldn't retire this year. We knew from contacts at the hamlet on the borders between the English land and the French that the nearby French castle had had massive reinforcements of men and supplies. Their only purpose could be to attack Journy. I had sent that news by messenger to the English commander in Calais. The reply told me that a full scale French attack was expected, aimed at Calais. Any attack on Journy would be a diversion that could become more if Journy fell. My orders were to hang on as long as possible and if Journy was about to fall, or had fallen, to advise the English forces in Calais.

The longer I could hold out, and the more French forces involved in trying to take Journy, would help in the strategic battles for the English enclave in France. Any French forces attacking Journy couldn't be in the major battles around Calais.

I hoped we were as prepared as we could be. We had constructed many military engines such as catapults, onagers, trebuchets and had prepared Greek Fire. I and my sergeants went around our defences to check that we were ready. We would expect to be outnumbered by ten or more to one but the French numbers would be useless if they couldn't get inside our walls.

I hoped we had a secret weapon. Over the last two years I had had thousands of small crossbows made and hundreds of bolts for each one. In the six months since Albert had been expelled, and I now suspected he would be advising the French, Jeanne had enrolled almost all the women as users of the crossbow. The small crossbows could be spanned by most women, and even if not, if spanned by someone else, any woman could shoot one. Jeanne, helped by a couple of my sergeants, had been training the women. Most could hit a six inch target at fifty yards and a twelve inch one at a hundred.

Apart from my two hundred and fifty trained men at arms and about sixty civilian men, we now had over one thousand woman who could use a crossbow. Two years ago I had had about forty elderly men. Now I had a formidable defensive force that would make the French regret attacking Journy.

That night Jeanne knew I was worried. I had prepared as best I could but would that be enough?

"Even if Journy is taken, John, you will survive to be ransomed," she said.

"Ransomed? Who would pay my ransom? Unlike Lord Henry, I have no lands or money. Journy is all I have."

"Perhaps the commander at Calais will pay?"

"Why should he? He sees me as a nuisance."

"Anyway, it might not come to that. We might survive a siege."

"I hope so. That alone would help the English."

Jeanne moved up my body and squashed my head in her cleavage. I nibbled and sucked her breasts before she rode me into a dreamless sleep.

I felt more optimistic in the morning. I had Jeanne beside me and the support of her and her trained women.

+++

The French army arrived two weeks later. They sent a herald to demand my surrender. I told him to go away. As soon as he had galloped off I sent a messenger to Calais. The messenger returned within the day with a written letter from the English commander. As I had expected, Journy was on its own, No reinforcements or any relieving force could be sent until after the main armies had met. If the English won, Journy would be relieved. If the English lost, Journy would have to surrender.

But it was the rest of the letter than surprised me. Unlike previous letters that had usually included complaints, it started with an apology for those moans. He said that my newly recruited men at arms would probably be more use to the English cause than if they had been with the main army.

Every day that Journy could hold out would be of great help to the English. A week would be great because he expected the major battle before then. Any longer would be a bonus. He complimented me on my foresight and wished us all well.

+++

It was another two days before the main French force was assembled for their first attack. The tried with scaling ladders. If the garrison had been the original old men and them alone, they would have succeeded in taking the town if not the castle. But faced by a thousand crossbows, not a single ladder came within thirty yards of the town's walls and hundreds died. They retreated out of crossbow range and started building siege towers.

I left them unopposed until the towers were nearly completed. Then I used our engines to shower the towers with Greek Fire. Every tower was burned to ashes and hundreds more Frenchmen died, As yet not a single defender had even been injured and the first week was almost ended.

The French started assembling siege engines to hurl stones against our walls. It was ten days since I had rejected the herald's request for surrender when those engines were nearly ready, only for them to be destroyed by more of our Greek Fire.

The next day the herald returned, he told me that the French were now going to besiege us until we ran out of food.

"You'll run out first," I retorted. They had to supply ten thousand men sitting out in the open. They had been bringing supplies in by ship up the river but Greek Fire from the mill's defences had burned a supply ship that had sunk blocking the navigable channel. They now had to unload a mile away and move supplies by cart.

I had seen Albert in the distance with the French commander.

"Ask Albert why we sent him into exile?" I suggested.

The herald left. He returned four hours later,

"Albert said that you exiled him for not keeping six months' supply of food in his house. We don't believe that everyone else has so we will wait until you starve."

"We won't!" I retorted.

I gave the herald five sticks of newly baked French bread.

"We could bake enough to feed your troops with fresh bread every morning for months. Obviously we won't but neither will we starve. We will outwait you."

The herald left, shaking his head.

+++

The French dug trenches around the town out of crossbow or arrow shot. They weren't beyond the range of our siege engines but there were rarely enough enemies in one place to make shooting at them viable. Even so, we could harass them and during the next two weeks we killed about fifty and injured another eighty at no cost to the defenders.

I had reduced the defenders on the walls to fifty men. If there were signs of a French attack they could summon the other defenders by ringing the church bells. Half would be there within five minutes and everyone within ten.

But the French didn't attack. They just sat in their trenches. We couldn't get a messenger through nor receive news from outside so we had no idea whether the main battle had happened and if so, who had won. We were just bored but four nights out of five the men at arms could spend their nights in bed with their wives. As the commander, I couldn't. I spent two nights of five with Jeanne and enjoyed each one.

I set drill alerts that could happen at any time. Instead of all the church bells being rung which would happen for a real attack, just two bells were used. I was pleased that even for a drill everyone turned up ready to fight.

Once a day I allowed the defenders to bombard a section of French trenches. We didn't use Greek fire, which was expensive to produce and very difficult to handle, but other cheaper flaming missiles. Each time we killed some Frenchmen and reduced their trenches to mere dents in the ground that they had to rebuild further away. It kept us busy but it was no more than an annoyance to the besiegers.

We celebrated the Church's festivals with more fervour than usual as a distraction from the boredom. Each one was marked by a feast which we could manage because we had ample supplies.

Two and a half months since the French army had first arrived a sentry on the castle keep's roof reported that a large body of armed men was approaching from the direction of Calais.

Would they be English, relieving us, or French coming to demand our surrender? By the time they vanished into the valley we had not been able to identify them. All we knew was that it was an enormous force, probably a hundred thousand men.

When they crested the ridge about five minutes from Journy we knew the answer. They were English. The French commander surrendered because he was vastly outnumbered. The siege of Journy was over.

I sat on the dais in the Great Hall of the castle with Jeanne beside me. We had goblets of wine. I stood up to welcome the commander of the English forces.

It was Sir Hubert who had built the castle ten years ago, now Baron Hubert.

"Congratulations, Lord John," he said. "You held off the French forces for months without losing a single man..."

"Or woman," Lady Jeanne added.

"Woman?" Hubert didn't understand.

"When the French tried a frontal assault at the start, they were repelled by a thousand crossbows - wielded by women," I said. "Those women were available for the whole siege. Their presence and demonstrated accuracy deterred the French from trying another assault."

"I knew you were different, Lord John, but using woman as defenders? That is a real innovation."

"But if Journy had fallen those women would have been raped," Jeanne said. "They were defending themselves and their menfolk."

"If you don't mind, we'll pretend they weren't there," Hubert said. "It might upset the Church."

I nearly said something rude about the Church but bit my tongue. I couldn't afford to offend the Church.

"Without your walls, Hubert, we wouldn't have survived so well." I said.

"Don't underestimate yourself and your insistence on household stores, John. Which reminds me. You are formally replaced as castellan but will be paid as if you have been in the full post for the last two years. The King has given you lands in Hampshire that formerly belonged to a Lord who died without children. They are near where Lord Henry's lands were. You can retire in peace and with honour."