The Dragon And The Raven: Or The Days Of King Alfred(Fiscle Part-3) by G. A. Henty (e book reading free TXT) 📕

The Assault. The New Machines Of The Defenders Did Great

Havoc In Their Ranks,  Their Heavy Stones Crashing Through The

Roof Of Bucklers And Crushing Those Who Held Them,  And For

A Time The Norsemen Desisted From The Attack.

They Now Filled Three Of Their Largest Vessels With

Combustibles,  And Placing Them On The Windward Side Of The

Bridge,  Set Them Alight. The People Of Paris Beheld With

Afright These Fire-Ships Bearing Down Upon The Bridge,  And

Old And Young Burst Into Tears And Cries At The View Of The

Approaching Destruction,  And,  Led By The Archbishop,  All

Joined In A Prayer To St. Germain,  The Patron Saint Of Paris,

To Protect The City. The Exulting Danes Replied To The Cries Of

Those On The Walls With Triumphant Shouts. Thanks,  As The

Franks Believed,  To The Interposition Of St. Germain,  The

Fireships Struck Against The Pile Of Stones From Which The Beams

Supporting The Bridge In The Centre Were Raised. Eudes And

His Companions Leaped Down From The Bridge And With Hatchets

Hewed Holes In The Sides Of The Ships At The Water-Line,

And They Sank Without Having Effected Any Damage To The

Bridge.

It Was Now The Turn Of The Franks To Raise Triumphant

Shouts,  While The Danes,  Disheartened,  Fell Back From The Attack,

And At Night Recrossed The River,  Leaving Two Of Their

Battering-Rams As Tokens Of The Triumph Of The Besieged. Paris

Had Now A Respite While The Danes Again Spread Over The

Surrounding Country,  Many Of Them Ascending The River In Their

Ships And Wasting The Country As Far As Burgundy.

The Monastery Of St. Germain And The Church In Which

The Body Of The Saint Was Buried Still Remained Untouched.

The Bands Of Northmen Who Had Invaded England Had Never

Hesitated To Plunder And Destroy The Churches And Shrines Of

The Christians,  But Hitherto Some Thought Of Superstition Had

Kept The Followers Of Siegfroi From Assailing The Monastery

Of St. Germain.

One Soldier,  Bolder Than The Rest,  Now Approached The

Church And With His Spear Broke Some Of The Windows. The

Abbe D'abbon,  An Eye-Witness And Minute Historian Of The

Siege Of Paris,  States That The Impious Dane Was At Once Struck

Dead. The Same Fate Befell One Of His Comrades,  Who Mounted

To The Platform At The Top Of The Church And In Descending

Fell Off And Was Killed. A Third Who Entered The Church And

Looked Round Lost His Sight For Ever. A Fourth Entering It Fell

Dead; And A Fifth,  Who,  More Bold Than All,  Tried To Break Into

The Tomb Of The Saint,  Was Killed By A Stone Which Fell Upon

Him.

One Night After A Continuance Of Heavy Rain The Seine,

Being Greatly Swollen,  Swept Away The Centre Of The Bridge

Connecting The Tower With The Town. At Daybreak The

Northmen,  Seeing What Had Taken Place,  Hastened Across The

River And Attacked The Tower. The Garrison Was But A Small

One,  No More Than Twenty Men Having Slept There. For A

Time These Repulsed Every Effort Of The Danes,  But Gradually

Their Numbers Were Lessened Until At Last Fourteen Only Remained.

Their Names Have Come Down To Us. Besides Edmund And Egbert

There Were Hermanfroi,  Herivee,  Herilard,  Odoacre,

Herric,  Arnold,  Sohie,  Gerbert,  Elvidon,  Havderad,  Ermard,

And Gossuin. These Resisted So Valiantly That The Danes,

After Losing Large Numbers In The Vain Attempt To Storm

The Walls,  Brought Up A Wagonful Of Grain; This They

Rolled Forward To The Gate Of The Tower And Set It On Fire.

The Flames Rapidly Spread From The Gates To The Walls,

Which Were All Of Wood,  And Soon The Whole Were A Sheet Of

Flames. The Little Band Of Defenders Retreated On To The End

Of The Bridge,  And There,  When The Flames Had Sufficiently

Abated To Allow Them To Pass,  The Northmen Attacked Them.

Edmund And Egbert Were Both Good Swimmers,  But This Was

An Accomplishment Which But Few Of The Franks Possessed,

And None Of The Remnant Of The Garrison Were Able To Swim.

For A Long Time The Little Band Repulsed All The Efforts Of The

Danes,  But Were Gradually Driven Back Foot By Foot Until They

Reached The Edge Of The Chasm. Here They Made A Last Desperate

Stand,  But Were At Length Cut Down Or Driven Over By

Sheer Weight Of Numbers. Egbert And Edmund Had Disencumbered

Themselves Of All Their Defensive Armour,  And At The Last

Moment,  Throwing Off Their Helmets And Relinquishing

Their Spears,  They Plunged Into The Stream,  Diving Deeply

To Avoid The Arrows Of The Northmen.

The Fact Of The River Being In Flood,  Which Had Caused

The Destruction Of The Tower,  Now Proved The Cause Of Their

Safety. Had The Water Been Clear,  The Danes On The Bridge

Above Could Have Marked Their Progress And Poured A Storm

Of Arrows Upon Them As They Came To The Surface; But Its

Yellow And Turbid Waters Concealed Them From Sight,  And Each

Time They Rose To The Surface For Air They Were Enabled To Take

A Rapid Breath And Dive Again Before Their Enemies Could

Direct And Launch Their Arrows At Them.

As They Drifted Far Down The Stream,  They Reached The

Land Beyond Bowshot Of The Danes,  And They Soon Entered

The Town Amid The Loud Acclamations Of The Citizens. The

Danes Now For The Most Part Drew Off From The Neighbourhood,

And The Abbe Ebble Led Out A Sortie,  Which Reached

The Danish Camp,  And Driving Back Those Whom They Found

Within It,  Set It On Fire And Effected Their Retreat To

Paris Without Loss,  In Spite Of The Efforts Of The Enemy,

Who Rapidly Assembled At The Sight Of The Flames.

The Danes Had Brought In From The Surrounding Country

Such Vast Quantities Of Cattle,  Sheep,  And Goats,  That Their

Camps Would Not Suffice To Hold Them,  And They Turned The

Church Of St. Germain Into A Stable And Crowded It With These

Animals. The Saint,  As The Abbe D'abbon Relates,  Indignant

At This Desecration,  Sent A Terrible Plague Among The Cattle,

And When The Danes In The Morning Entered The Church It

Contained Nothing But Carcasses In The Last State Of

Decomposition.

The Valiant Defence Of Paris Had Given Time For The Rest

Of France To Arm,  And The Danes Scattered Over The Country

Now Met With A Stout Resistance. The Northmen Were Defeated

In Their Efforts To Capture Le Mans,  Chartres,  And Other

Towns,  And Were Defeated In Several Battles Near Chartres By

Godefroi And Odon.

In March Henri Advanced With A Strong Force To The Relief

Of Paris,  And Arriving At Night Attacked The Camp Of The

Danes,  Slew Great Numbers,  And Captured A Vast Booty; And

Then,  Having Supplied Paris With A Considerable Amount Of

Provisions,  Retired With His Band Before The Danes Had Time

To Assemble In Sufficient Strength To Oppose Him. Shortly

Afterwards The Danes Expressed The Desire Of Siegfroi To Hold

Parley With The Count Eudes. Siegfroi And A Number Of His

Warriors Landed,  And Eudes Left The City And Advanced To Meet

Them. No Sooner Had He Reached Them Than He Was Attacked

By The Northmen,  But Drawing His Sword He Defended Himself

With Immense Bravery Until The Garrison Ran Down To His

Succour,  And The Danes Were Driven Back To Their Ship With

Loss Of Nearly Half Of Their Party.

The Danes Now Left The Church Of St. Germain L'auxerrois

And Surrounded The Monastery Of St. Germain Des Pres,

But The Monks There Paid Him Sixty Pounds Of Pure Silver

To Leave Them In Peace. Siegfroi Now Wished To Abandon

The Siege Which Had Already Cost Him So Dear,  But The

Northmen,  Furious At Their Losses,  Determined Upon Another

Assault.

"Very Well," The King Said; "Have Your Way Then. Attack

Paris On All Sides,  Hew Down Its Towers,  And Make Breaches In

Its Walls; For Once I Will Remain A Spectator."

The Danes Crossed The River And Landed On The Island,

But Owing To The Absence Of Large Numbers On Other Expeditions,

And The Heavy Losses Which They Had Suffered,  Their

Numbers Were No Longer So Overwhelming,  And Count Eudes

Led Out His Forces To Oppose Them Outside The Walls. This

Time Edmund Headed His Band Of Saxons,  Who Until Now Had

Only Taken Part As Archers In The Defence.

The Combat Was A Furious One. In Spite Of The Valour Of

Eudes And Ebble The Danes Pressed Hard Upon The Franks,

And Were Driving Them Back Towards The Gates When Edmund

Led His Saxons,  In The Close Phalanx In Which They Had So

Often Met The Danes In The Field,  To The Front. With Irresistible

Force The Wedge Burst Its Way Through The Ranks Of The

Danes,  Bearing All Before It With Its Wedge Of Spears. Into The

Gap Thus Formed Eudes And Ebble With Their Bravest Men

Threw Themselves,  And The Danes,  Severed In Two,  Were Driven

Back Towards Their Ships. But For Some Hours The Rain Had

Been Falling Heavily And The River Was Rapidly Rising And Had

Already Overflowed A Portion Of The Island. Thus The Danes

Had Great Difficulty In Getting On Board Their Ships Again,

And Great Numbers Were Killed In Doing So.

There Was No Longer Any Resistance To Siegfroi's Wishes.

A Parley Was Held With The City,  And A Further Sum Being Added

To That Contributed By The Monks Of St. Germain Des Pres

The Danes Drew Off From The Town.

At This Time The Long Confinement Of So Many Men Within

The Walls Had Caused A Pestilence To Break Out In Paris. The

Archbishop Goslin,  The Bishop Everard Of Sens,  The Prince

Hugues,  And Many Others Died. The 16th Of