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

King And His Brother Was Spacious And Lofty. The Walls Were

Covered With Hangings Of Red Cloth,  And A Thick Brown Baize

Covered The Floor. The Ceiling Was Painted A Dark Brown

With Much Gilding. Round The Sides Of The Room Stood Several

Dressers Of Carved Oak,  Upon Which Stood Gold And Silver Cups.

On A Table Were Several Illuminated Vellums. At Croyland

Edmund Had Seen A Civilization Far In Advance Of That To Which

He Had Been Accustomed In His Father's Abode; But He Saw

Here A Degree Of Luxury And Splendour Which Surprised Him.

Alfred Had,  During His Two Visits To Rome,  Learned To

Appreciate The High Degree Of Civilization Which Reigned There,

And Many Of The Articles Of Furniture And Other Objects Which

Met Edmund's Eye He Had Brought With Him On His Return

With His Father From That City.

Across The Upper End Of The Room Was A Long Table Laid

With A White Cloth. Elswitha Was Sitting In A Large Gilded Chair

By The Great Fire Which Was Blazing On The Hearth.

Prince Alfred Presented Edmund And Egbert To Her.

Elswitha Was Well Acquainted With The Ealdorman Eldred,  As

His Lands Lay On The Very Border Of Her Native Mercia,  And She

Received The Lad And His Kinsman With Great Kindness. In A

Short Time They Took Their Places At Table. First The

Attendance Brought In Bowls Containing Broth,  Which They

Presented,  Kneeling,  To Each Of Those At Table. The Broth Was

Drunk From The Bowl Itself; Then A Silver Goblet Was Placed By

Each Diner,  And Was Filled With Wine. Fish Was Next Served.

Plates Were Placed Before Each; But Instead Of Their Cutting

Food With Their Own Daggers,  As Edmund Had Been Accustomed

To See In His Father's House,  Knives Were Handed Round.

After The Fish Came Venison,  Followed By Wild Boar,  Chickens,

And Other Meats. After These Confections,  Composed Chiefly

Of Honey,  Were Placed On The Table. The King And Prince

Alfred Pledged Their Guests When They Drank. No Forks Were

Used,  The Meat As Cut Being Taken Up By Pieces Of Bread To

The Mouth. During The Meal A Harper Played And Sung.

Edmund Observed The Decorum With Which His Royal

Hosts Fed,  And The Care Which They Took To Avoid Dipping Their

Fingers Into Their Saucers Or Their Plates. He Was Also Struck

With The Small Amount Of Wine Which They Took; For The Saxons

In General Were Large Feeders,  And Drank Heavily At

Their Meals.

When The Dinner Was Over A Page Brought Round A Basin Of

Warm Water,  In Which Lavender Had Been Crushed,  And

Each Dipped His Fingers In This And Then Dried Them On The

Cloth. Then At Prince Alfred's Request Egbert Again Related

In Full The Details Of The Two Days' Desperate Struggle At

Kesteven,  Giving The Most Minute Particulars Of The Danes'

Method Of Fighting. Egbert And Edmund Then Retired To The

Royal Guest-House Adjoining The Palace,  Where Apartments

Were Assigned To Them.

After Remaining For A Week At Reading They Took Leave

Of The King And Started For The Lands Which He Had Assigned

To Edmund. They Were Accompanied By An Officer Of The

Royal Household,  Who Was To Inform The Freemen And Serfs Of

The Estate That By The King's Pleasure Edmund Had Been

Appointed Ealdorman Of The Lands. They Found On Arrival That

The House Had Been Newly Built,  And Was Large And Comfortable.

The Thanes Of The District Speedily Came In To Pay Their

Respects To Their New Ealdorman,  And Although Surprised To

Find Him So Young,  They Were Pleased With His Bearing And

Manner,  And Knowing That He Came Of Good Fighting Blood

Doubted Not That In Time He Would Make A Valiant Leader. All

Who Came Were Hospitably Entertained,  And For Many Days

There Was High Feasting. So Far Removed Was This Part Of

England From The District Which The Danes Had Invaded,

That At Present But Slight Alarm Had Been Caused By Them;

But Edmund And His Kinsman Lost No Time In Impressing Upon

Them The Greatness Of The Coming Danger.

"You May Be Sure," He Said,  "That Ere Long We Shall See

Their Galleys On The Coast. When They Have Eaten Up Mercia

And Anglia They Will Assuredly Come Hither,  And We Shall Have

To Fight For Our Lives,  And Unless We Are Prepared It Will Go

Hard With Us."

After He Had Been At His New Residence For A Month

Edmund Sent Out Messengers To All The Thanes In His District

Requesting Them To Assemble At A Council,  And Then Formally

Laid The Matter Before Them.

"It Is,  Above All Things," He Said,  "Necessary That We Should

Have Some Place Where We Can Place The Women And Children

In Case Of Invasion And Where We Can Ourselves Retire In

Extreme Necessity. Therefore I Propose That We Shall Build A

Fort Of Sufficient Size To Contain All The Inhabitants Of The

District,  With Many Flocks And Herds. My Cousin Egbert Has

Ridden Far Over The Country,  And Recommends That The Roman

Fortification At Moorcaster Shall Be Utilized. It Is Large

In Extent,  And Has A Double Circle Of Earthen Banks. These

Differ From Those Which We Are Wont To Build,  Since We Saxons

Always Fill Up The Ground So As To Be Flat With The Top Of

The Earthen Banks,  While The Romans Left Theirs Hollow.

However,  The Space Is So Large That It Would Take A Vast Labour

To Fill It Up,  Therefore I Propose That We Should Merely Thicken

The Banks,  And Should,  In Saxon Custom,  Build A Wall With

Turrets Upon Them. The Sloping Banks Alone Would Be But A

Small Protection Against The Onslaught Of The Danes,  But Stone

Walls Are Another Matter,  And Could Only Be Carried After A

Long Siege. If You Fall In With My Views You Will Each Of You

Send Half Your Serfs To Carry Out The Work,  And I Will Do The

Same,  And Will,  Moreover,  Pay Fifty Freemen Who May Do The

Squaring Of The Stones And The Proper Laying Of Them."

The Proposal Led To A Long Discussion,  As Some Thought

That There Was No Occasion As Yet To Take Such A Measure; But

The Thanes Finally Agreed To Carry Out Edmund's Proposal.

Edmund And Egbert Devoted Most Of Their Time To

The Building Of The New Fort,  Living Very Simply,  And

Expended The Whole Of The Revenues Of The Lands On

The Payment Of The Freemen And Masons Engaged Upon The

Work. The Roman Fort Was A Parallelogram,  The Sides Being

About 200 Yards Long,  And The Ends Half That Length. It Was

Surrounded By Two Earthen Banks With Wide Ditches. These

Were Deepened Considerably,  And The Slopes Were Cut Down

More Sharply. The Inner Bank Was Widened Until It Was 15

Feet Across The Top.

On This The Wall Was Built. It Was Faced On Both Sides

With Square Stones,  The Space Between Filled Up With Rubble

And Cement,  The Total Thickness Being 4 Feet. The Height Of

The Wall Was 8 Feet,  And At Intervals Of 30 Yards Apart Towers

Were Raised 10 Feet Above It,  One Of These Being Placed At

Either Side Of The Entrance. Here The Bank Was Cut Away,  And

Solid Buttresses Of Masonry Supported The High Gates. The

Opening In The Outer Bank Was Not Opposite To The Gate In The

Inner,  Being Fifty Yards Away,  So That Any Who Entered By It

Would Have For That Distance To Follow The Ditch Between The

Two Banks,  Exposed To The Missiles Of Those On The Wall

Before Arriving At The Inner Gate.

Five Hundred Men Laboured Incessantly At The Work. The Stone

For The Walls Was Fortunately Found Close At Hand,  But,

Notwithstanding This,  The Work Took Nearly Six Months To

Execute; Deep Wells Were Sunk In The Centre Of The Fort,

And By This Means An Ample Supply Of Water Was Secured,

However Large Might Be The Number Within It.

A Very Short Time After The Commencement Of The Work

The News Arrived That King Edmund Of East Anglia Had

Gathered His Forces Together And Had Met The Danes In A Great

Battle Near Thetford On Sunday The 20th Of November,  And

Had Been Totally Defeated By Them,  Edmund Himself Having

Been Taken Prisoner. The Captive King,  After Having Been For

A Long Time Cruelly Tortured By The Danes,  Was Shot To Death

With Arrows. It Was Not Long After This That News Came That

The Whole Of East Anglia Had Fallen Into The Hands Of The

Danes.

Early In The Month Of February,  871,  Just As The Walls Of

His Fort Had Begun To Rise,  A Messenger Arrived From The King

Bidding Edmund Assemble All The Men In His Earlship And

March At Once To Join Him Near Devizes,  As The News Had

Come That A Great Danish Fleet Had Sailed Up The Thames And

Had Already Captured The Royal Town Of Reading.

Messengers Were Sent Out In All Directions,  And Early The

Next Morning,  400 Men Having Assembled,  Edmund And His

Kinsman Marched Away With Them Towards Devizes. Upon

Their Arrival At That Town They Found The King And His Brother

With 8000 Men,  And The Following Day The Army Moved East

Towards Reading.

They Had Not Marched Many Miles Before A Messenger

Arrived Saying That Two Of The Danish Jarls With A Great

Following Had Gone Out To Plunder The Country,  That They Had

Been Encountered By Aethelwulf,  Earl Of Berkshire,  With His

Men At Englefield,  And A Fierce Battle Had Taken Place. The

Saxons Had Gained The Victory,  And Great