White Boar and the Red Dragon, The (15 page)

‘And after Raglan, what then?’

‘That I have yet to decide. Possibly to Chepstow Castle, as Earl Herbert’s son, William, inherited the castle on his father’s death and is now residing there. I feel I should meet him too. Or we may divert to Monmouth and stay at Monmouth Castle first. It is one of the most important towns of the region, and I should make myself known to its chief townspeople.’

‘And so we will be here for some time yet, I assume? A pity it is a miserable climate. I long for the comforts of home.’

‘So do I, Francis, my friend! But I assure you, just as soon as I feel I have done my duty to the people here as their overlord, we will make for the Severn Estuary below and take ship from Newport to London. I do not fancy making the long journey home the way we came over land on horseback!’ Richard laughed, rubbing his nether regions.

After another hour or so, they began to descend into the vale of the Usk, and all along the ridge, for what looked like miles and miles, stretched the great Forest of Gwent, called Wentwood, or, in Welsh, Coed Gwent. Far away, the silver ribbon of the Severn Estuary glittered, and beyond that—out of sight then in the misty rain—the sea.

‘After we have crossed the River Usk, we shall be in the forest proper, but we will leave that for tomorrow. Now, what we need is rest and refuge—and a good meal!’ Richard said. ‘Keep your eyes open for any possible shelter.’

He had hardly uttered the words when they heard voices speaking fast in the Welsh way. They could not understand what was being said, but it was easy to tell that a furious argument was going on from the continual loud outbursts in a language which was usually so lilting and musical-sounding.

A group of four or five men appeared, leading another, whose wrists were tightly bound in front of him, and he was shouting at his captors and struggling to free himself at the same time. They all stopped dead as Richard and Francis drew level with them, staring at the newcomers, obviously assessing their high status by their rich furs and velvets, though they were dripping wet.

‘What is happening here?’ demanded Richard, hoping that they also understood English but knowing it was unlikely in these parts.

‘My lord,’ the captive cried, throwing himself at Richard’s feet. ‘I am falsely accused!’ He spoke not only in English, but in a cultured voice. ‘I have ancient rights in this forest, from my father, grandfather, and back to the Conqueror. And these men challenge them. I see you are a man of great importance and perhaps you can help me, for I know of no other who will here.’

‘What is disputed? What do they accuse you of?’

The man pointed to one of his captors, who held a highly polished longbow fashioned in yew. ‘That is mine and I was simply walking through the forest hoping to track a fine deer, when I was set upon by these ruffians who say that I do not have the right to hunt here any more. By whose authority? I own this land. I inherited it from my father. It has been owned by my family for generations!’

‘Back to William the Conqueror, as you said,’ Richard answered dryly. ‘And where are they taking you?’

‘Back to my manor about a mile away for the night, and then tomorrow, they plan to take me to the Forester’s Court in the middle of Wentworth Forest to be tried. They say there is a new overlord of all this land and that he has forbidden all hunting on pain of death. There are two ancient oaks there where men are hanged…’ He shuddered visibly.

‘Do any of these men speak English so that they can tell me their version of this affair?’ Richard enquired.

‘Nay, my lord. They are but henchmen of this new overlord. They say he is Lord William Herbert of Chepstow Castle. His father died a few months ago after the Battle of Edgecote, and he, as the heir, has just taken over the castle and imposed these new restrictions, so they say.’ He pointed with disgust at his captors, shaking his head.

‘I knew his father, a brave man, loyal to the king unto death. The Earl of Pembroke, Lord Herbert, died for my brother.’

‘Your brother, my lord? You mean King Edward? Then you must be—’

‘You are in the presence of His Lordship, Richard, Duke of Gloucester!’ Francis interposed proudly.

‘My lord, I had no idea who you were! Forgive me for imposing on you with my troubles.’

‘If justice needs to be done, I am at your service. We will attend your trial tomorrow in Wentwood Forest, and I promise you I will get to the bottom of this issue, if not tomorrow, then certainly very soon. I plan to visit Lord William at Chepstow Castle on my tour of duty as Constable of South Wales after Raglan Castle, whither we are bound now, and will raise it with him. Meanwhile, may I beg shelter and food for my men and myself for the night? As you can see, we are sorely in need of it.’

‘Any time, my lord. I will be proud to accommodate you! And my lady wife will be in such transports of delight to have such honoured guests!’

‘You had better tell your captors what has been said here, who I am, and what has been agreed between us,’ said Richard, amused at the man’s obsequious enthusiasm.

‘My lord, I will, I will. I do not know how to thank you for what you propose to do for me.’

‘Save your thanks until I have done it!’ laughed Richard. ‘On the morrow, you will still have to face trial. I cannot just put a stop to it altogether, without having all the facts of the case.’

‘But if all goes well, you can order Lord William Herbert to release me?’ the anxious man asked, taken aback by the doubt in Richard’s voice.

‘If you are indeed innocent of the crime of which they accuse you, then you will go free, that I can promise you. The laws of Britain became very lax under King Henry VI and urgently need reform, now that men seem to be making their own and taking the law into their own hands for their own convenience! I believe all men should be treated equally, both high and low, and that a man should be assumed innocent until he is proven guilty!’

Wentwood Forest, Gwent, The Foresters’ Oaks, February 1470

‘My lord, why are you concerning yourself with this trivial issue when you have so many really important things to do and so far to travel yet before returning home?’

‘It is important, Francis. I truly believe that justice is for all. How could I live with my conscience if I left that man to his captors to do what they like with him without fair trial?’

‘But he is getting a trial today—in the Forest Court.’

‘I suspect that the whole thing is a tissue of lies and that the case against him, such as it is, is a trumped-up charge. Men are making their own laws in these troubled times. I must investigate the truth—or otherwise—of it. Surely that is part of my position here—to see that men deal fairly with each other? There is so much corruption around. The court is bad enough—that is one reason I hate to go there, with the Woodvilles jockeying for position by fair means or foul. The queen’s mother, Jacquetta, is one of the chief instigators of such behaviour. Look how she appropriated that wonderful tapestry belonging to Sir Thomas Cook! He would not sell it to her at the ridiculous price that she set, so she got him arrested on a trivial charge, then had men steal the tapestry from his house in London. Then the queen insisted that he pay an outrageous fine of eight hundred marks to her as “queen’s gold”. And he had just been fined £8,000 by the courts! No wonder the ordinary folk of this country think that they can try it on too. The court hardly sets an example of just and acceptable behaviour!’

‘I see what you mean, Richard, and your earnest wish to help all, rich and poor, is typical of your kind nature, but you cannot put right all the ills of man.’

‘No, but I can do my best for those I am able to help.’

‘You are a good young man, Richard, and that is why I am so privileged to call you my friend—but you are an idealist and I fear that you will take on more than you can possibly deal with.’

‘That is my problem. I may be of royal blood, but surely I can empathise with the common man?’

‘Richard, without meaning to sound traitorous to King Edward, I think you would make a great king, if ever the opportunity presented itself to you.’

‘It is hardly likely to. Edward is sure to have many sons. But I thank you for your loyalty. You have always been a good friend. No one could have better.’

They had been getting nearer and nearer to the centre of the forest, where the two great oaks, known as the Foresters’ Oaks, were situated. This spot had been used since time immemorial for impromptu courts, where men were judged by their peers on any kind of offence, trivial or otherwise, from the theft of a horse to murder. The local people had always accepted the decisions made here as fair and just—until the outbreak of lawlessness and violence upon people and property all over the kingdom lately, because of the lax laws.

Evan ap Thomas was very nervous, in spite of Richard’s reassurances that he would make sure that justice was done and that, if he were innocent of any crime, he would be discharged.

A crowd of locals had congregated below the great oaks to observe the proceedings, and more and more were approaching the court clearing. About a hundred yards away from the place, Richard stopped his horse and signalled to Francis and the group of men they had brought with them to do the same.

‘I will be watching, and observing everything that happens,’ he assured Evan, ‘but I will not let myself be seen until I know how things are going.’

‘Suppose they decide to hang me out of hand?’ Evan cried.

‘Trust me. I will be close by. Nothing is going to happen to you.’

Evan and his captors started going forward to the clearing under the great oaks, where there were about a dozen of his neighbours sitting on fallen logs or standing around, who would be the jury this day. He knew most of them, and these were his friends and acquaintances. But there were a few whom he knew had grievances against him, particularly one man who had been trying to get his hands on some of his lands for years and was wealthy enough to have bribed all and sundry to find Evan guilty. And this was the one he feared most, knowing him to be unscrupulous and ruthless, even though he felt himself to be innocent. At the worst, he had committed a crime of omission—not knowing the new law—if indeed it existed at all. But was it not said that ignorance of the law was no excuse and no defence?

‘My Lord of Gloucester, I beg you to take careful note of the man with the staff. He is an old enemy of mine and has been trying to get his hands on some of my inherited lands for years. He says that they were wrongly appropriated by my father in a boundary dispute and that they are rightfully his. But I know this is a lie. My father would have told me of it. I would not put it past this neighbour, Hugh ap Davies, to have fabricated the whole affair and bribed whoever he had to, to get his own way. He is rich enough and certainly ruthless enough to do it!’

‘I will watch and listen to him carefully, have no fear, and I will watch the chosen jury for signs of guilt.’

The proceedings began. The one chosen to be judge for this trial rose and began to speak. He spoke in Welsh, and then in English, for the benefit of those who knew no Welsh.

‘Evan ap Thomas, you are charged with hunting in the forests of the Earl of Pembroke, William Herbert, which is against the new law. How do you plead?’

‘Not guilty. I was not on any land but my own, which I inherited from my father, and which he inherited from my grandfather. How can that be unlawful?’

‘You were caught with a bow of best yew in your hands. You were tracking a deer. And there is no question that the earl is lord over the whole of the forest, so whether the land is actually yours or not, you are still subject to the earl’s decisions. And he had decided to put a stop to hunting in this area, as it is his hunting ground.’

‘But my great-great-great-grandfather was given this land by William the Conqueror! I have the original deeds to prove it. He was of Welsh blood and married a Norman noblewoman. Surely I have rights by inheritance? My ancestors have hunted on the land for four hundred years!’

The man with the staff, Hugh ap Davies, moved forward and faced the crowd. Then he hit the ground three times with the staff to get attention and held up his other arm.

‘Just because Evan ap Thomas states that this new law is not known to him does not mean that he is less guilty. We of this jury all know of it, do we not? Was it not made two months or so ago, around Christmas Tide?’ He waited for the other jurors, who nodded and murmured their assent to his words, though a few looked uncomfortable and fidgeted with their belts or daggers.

‘Then this man is guilty as charged. Is there any man here would dispute that?’ The other jurors shook their heads, but some of them kept their eyes on the ground and shuffled their feet uneasily.

‘In that case, it is up to the elected judge to pronounce him guilty and to state the appropriate punishment. I will call upon him now to do that.’ He stepped back, and the elected judge came forward to pronounce the sentence.

‘Evan ap Thomas, you have been found guilty by your peers and will receive the due punishment for this offence. But I ask also before pronouncing sentence, is there any man here that does not agree that he is guilty as charged?’

‘I do not,’ said Richard quietly as he stepped forward into the clearing, and a hush descended on the crowd who had been eager for the verdict. All eyes were upon this commanding figure. They looked at each other, wondering who it was, so young but with such authority. He was obviously a proud noble, by his luxurious furs and velvets, but most of these people had never been far outside their villages and had no idea who he was.

‘I am the king’s brother, the Duke of Gloucester.’

‘And what do you do here this day, my lord, at out humble court?’ the judge asked, puzzled.

‘I come to administer justice, where I feel it is doubtfully administered.’

‘What do you mean, my lord? We have all agreed that this man is guilty. Where is the fault?’

‘The fault is in the fact that I believe this so-called “jury” has been coerced beforehand by unscrupulous men of wealth and influence for their own ends.’