CHAPTER XLVIII.
Shakspeare made a mistake. The morning was bright and clear, and thesun shone strong and powerfully, drawing up a light mist from a marshwhich lay between a part of the earl of Richmond's forces, and themuch larger army of the king. At an early hour in the morning, all wasbustle and preparation; and, notwithstanding a great inferiority inpoint of numbers, a calm and steady cheerfulness reigned in Richmond'sarmy, which was not the case in the royal host. There each man lookedupon his neighbour with doubt; and rumours were current of emissaries,from the enemy's camp, having been seen busily passing from tent totent, amongst the king's troops, which was evinced by the doggerellines fixed on the duke of Norfolk's pavilion, as well as by severalother circumstances which made a noise for a moment or two, but weresoon forgotten. The impression, however, existed and gained strength,that much dissatisfaction reigned amongst the leaders; and when theforces of Lord Stanley appeared on the one wing, and those of hisbrother on the other, without advancing nearer than half a mile, freshdoubts and suspicions arose.
The man[oe]uvres on both parts, before the action began, were few andsimple. A tardy sort of lethargy seemed to have fallen upon Richard;and though he rode forth with a crown upon his helmet, as if desirousof courting personal danger, he moved his men but little, till the daywas considerably advanced.
Richmond rode over the whole field in person accompanied by the earlof Oxford, Sir William Brandon, Sir Gilbert Talbot, and Sir JohnSavage, and caused the marsh to be examined and its depth tried with alance. He then commanded a considerable movement to the left, with aslight advance of the right wing, so as to allow the extreme of theline to rest upon the edge of the morass, with the position which hethus took up fronting the north west. He was observed to smile when hesaw the position assumed by Lord Stanley, in front of the morass andto his own right, commanding the whole of the open field, between thetwo armies; and, immediately after, the earl of Oxford pointed out tohim another considerable body of troops, advanced to a spot exactlyfacing those of Stanley; so that the ground enclosed between the fourlines appeared very like a tilt yard on a large scale.
Richmond nodded his head, merely saying, "They are Sir William's men."Then, turning round, he demanded, "Which are Lord Chartley's troops?"
"Here, my lord," said a man from the ranks.
"I fear poor Chartley is not here to head them," said the earl ofOxford, in a low tone, running his eye along the line.
"He was here last night," said Richmond, "and sent me a strange note,saying he would be with me betimes this morning; but he has not come."
"My lord, the enemy is moving in two lines," said a horseman, ridingup; and, cantering back to the centre of his force, the rest ofRichmond's arrangements were soon made. His disposition in somerespects resembled that of his adversary. In two lines also his menwere ranged, having somewhat the advantage of the ground, but thegreat advantage of the sun behind them, while the fierce rays shonestrong in the face of Richard's soldiers.
The earl of Oxford commanded the first division, Richmond himself thesecond, Talbot one wing, and Sir John Savage the other; and all theleaders knew that death awaited them if they were taken.
In what are called pitched battles, not brought on by skirmishing orany accidental circumstance, but where parties meet with the fulldetermination of casting all upon the stake, there is generally ashort pause before the strife begins. For, perhaps, a minute, or aminute and a half, after the troops were within less than a bow shotdistance of each other, and each could see the long line of facesunder the steel caps of the archers in the opposite ranks, there was adead silence; the trumpets ceased to sound; each bowman stood with hisarm and foot extended; the fiery cavalry reined in their horses; andone might have heard a drop of rain, had it fallen upon the dry grass.Then a baton was thrown up into the air on Richard's side; and everyman of the centre front line drew his bow string to his ear and sentan arrow into the ranks of the enemy. Nor was this flight of missileswithout reply; for closer and faster still, though not so numerous,fell the shafts from Richmond's little host amongst the adversetroops. Their aim was truer too; for the eyes of his men were notdazzled by the bright beams which poured into the faces of the enemy;and many of the foe were seen to fall, while a good deal of confusionspread along the line. Mounted on a tall horse, on the summit of alittle mound, towards the centre of the second line, Richmond couldsee over the whole field; and, marking the disarray of the centre ofRichard's army, he said aloud, "Now, had we men enough for a charge onthat point, we might win the day at once."
"You and yours were lost, did you attempt it," said a deep voice near;and, looking round, the earl saw a tall figure, mounted on a strongblack horse, with armour not the best polished in the world, though offine quality and workmanship, and bearing in his hand a sharp stoutlance, which, in addition to the long tapering point, carried theblade of an axe, like that of a woodman, forming altogether a weaponsomewhat resembling an ordinary halbert. His horse was totallywithout armour; even the saddle was of common leather but the strangerbore the spurs of knighthood; and over his neck hung a gold collar,and a star.
"Why say you so, sir knight?" demanded Richmond.
"Look to the right," replied the stranger; and, turning his eyes inthat direction, the earl beheld a horseman galloping at full speedtowards the centre of Richard's line, where the king evidently was inperson, while the large body of horse, commanded by the duke ofNorfolk, was seen gliding down between the marsh and the troops ofLord Stanley. It was a moment of intense anxiety; but at the sameinstant Chartley's squadrons of horse were seen to fall back a little,in good order, so as to face the road leading round the morass; andStanley's whole force wheeled suddenly on its right, so as to join theearl's line, and nearly hem in the duke of Norfolk, between it and themarsh.
Richard's cavalry instantly halted and retreated in perfect array,just in time to save themselves from destruction. They did not escapewithout a charge however; and at the same time, the two front lines ofthe armies advancing upon each other, the battle raged hand to handall along the field.
It was just at this moment, that coming up from the rear, a little tothe left of the spot where the earl of Richmond stood, rode forward ayoung knight in splendid armour, mounted on a beautiful grey horse. Byhis side was a man no longer young, though still in the prime of life,totally unarmed, even without sword or dagger; and behind came tenspears wearing the colours of Lord Chartley. The young nobleman pausedfor an instant, gazing over the field, and the strange confused sightpresented by a battle, at a period when cannon were little used and noclouds of smoke obscured the view, extending over a line of more thanhalf a mile. Here squadrons of horse were seen charging the enemy'sline; there two cavaliers seemed to have sought each other out insingle combat; in one place a company of foot was pushing on with thelevelled pike; in another, the archers with their short swords werestriving hand to hand; the banners and pennons waved in the wind,fluttered, and rose and fell; and long and repeated blasts of thetrumpet sounded to the charge, and animated the soldiers to the fight.
It was a wild, a sad, a savage, but an exciting scene; and Chartley'sface, as he gazed with his visor up, looked like that of an eageryoung horse, furious to start upon a course.
"There is the earl, Chartley," said Sir William Arden. "That is hisstandard. The taller one in front must be the man."
Chartley instantly turned his horse, and rode up to Richmond's side.
"I am late upon the field, my lord," he said, "but I will make up forlost time. I went to save my noble friend, Sir William Arden here,from the headsman's axe. I beseech you keep him with you; for you willfind his counsel good, and he is unarmed. Whither shall I go?"
"Lord Chartley, I presume," said Richmond; "a gallant soldier nevercomes too late to be of glorious use. There, straight forward on yourpath is your noble friend, the earl of Oxford. I beseech you give himhelp. He is sore pressed and terribly outnumbered."
"Follow!" cried Chartley, turning to his men and r
aising his arm; anddown he dashed into the thickest of the fight.
Small though the aid was, the effect was soon apparent. Some groundwhich had been lost was regained in a instant; the first line ofRichard's troops was pressed back in the centre. The banner of LordOxford made way in advance; but just then Sir William Brandonexclaimed, "Richard is coming down with all his power, my lord."
"Then must we not be behind," replied Richmond. "Advance the banner,Brandon! Good men and true, keep your men back yet a while, till youreceive command. Then down upon the boar, and pin him to the earth;for I will leave my bones upon the field or win this day." Thus saying,he rode on towards a spot which had been left vacant in the strugglewhich was going on; and those who were above could see that a group ofsome twenty or thirty persons from the enemy's side moved down as ifto meet him. The greater part, however, paused where the two lineswere still striving man to man, some engaging in the combat, somegazing idly forward.
One, man, however, with two or three pages running by his side, burstfrom the rest like the lightning from a cloud. He was covered withgorgeous armour; his mighty horse was sheathed in steel; and circlinground his helmet, beneath the waving plume, appeared the royal crownof England. Straight towards Richmond he dashed, trampling down a footsoldier in his way, and rising the gentle slope, with his lance in therest, without the slightest relaxation of his horse's speed.
"Mine, mine!" cried Sir William Brandon. "Mine to win a coronet!" and,giving the standard to another, he couched his lance and bore down tomeet the king. But that unerring hand failed not. The eye was but tookeen. Straight in the throat, the point of Richard's spear struck thestandard-bearer, and hurled him dead upon the plain, while theknight's own lance shivered on the king's corslet. Brandon's horsealso rolled upon the ground, but Richard leaped his charger over itwith a shout, and spurred on.
Without asking leave, Sir John Cheney darted forth to meet him. Hisfate, however, was but little better; for, though not slain, he washurled wounded from the saddle in an instant. But at that momentRichard was met by a new adversary; for, as he was rapidly approachingthe spot where Richmond stood, the tall knight, whom I have mentioned,sprang from his unarmed horse and threw himself on foot in the king'sway. Richard checked up his horse for an instant at the unexpectedsight, and dropped the point of his lance, to strike this newadversary in the face; but ere he could accomplish it, with atremendous sweep of both his arms, the knight struck him on the sideof the helmet. The lacings gave way. The casque and crown fell off;and a deep stream of gore flowed down the pale face, which was seen,as he hung for a moment in the stirrups. The horse rushed on, but theking soon dropped upon the field; and three or four footmen, springingon him, dispatched him with their daggers.
The tall knight leaned for an instant on the staff of his weapon, andlooked up and down the field; and then, as if he had gathered all inthat brief glance, he exclaimed, in a loud and vehement voice. "Now,earl of Richmond, gaze not on the dead, but on to support the living!Sir William Stanley is charging the enemy in the flank. On with yourwhole force, and the day is yours. If not, it may be lost still. Giveme my horse, boy."
The order was instantly given; the whole force of Richmond moved downthe hill; and though the struggle was protracted for some twentyminutes longer, it was no longer doubtful. All was confusion indeed,in the ranks of Richard; but Norfolk and many other noble gentlemenstruggled to the last, and died without yielding an inch of ground.Northumberland took no part in the fight; and others fled soon, whileothers again remained to be made prisoners; but steadily the earl ofRichmond's line advanced, till the whole of Richard's host either layon Bosworth field, or were in full flight across the country.
At the end of two hours from the commencement of the battle thetrumpet sounded the recall, and Richmond's tent was set up, on thespot where Richard had commanded at the beginning of the day. Thecurtains were drawn up, and knights and noblemen crowded round, whilethe field was searched, to ascertain the numbers and the quality ofthe slain. Litters, formed hastily of lances laid across, were seenmoving about the plain, bearing the wounded from the field of carnage;and many a group might be observed, in distant parts of the prospect,engaged probably in less pious offices.
Richmond, now on foot, and with his casque laid aside, stood forseveral minutes gazing silently on the scene before him; and, oh, whoshall tell what passed through his mind at that moment? How often hasthe flood of success a petrifying effect upon the heart! and,doubtless, it was so with him; but he had then just stepped into thoseLethe waters, which so often drown in dull oblivion all the nobler andmore generous feelings of the soul.
Nobody ventured to break upon his silence; for it was evident to allthat strong emotions were busy at his heart, till, at length, a voicewithout, said--
"Lord Stanley!" and many others took it up, repeating, "Stanley,Stanley!"
Richmond took a step forward; but ere he reached the verge of the tentStanley himself appeared. He bore in his hands the royal croft, whichRichard had carried on his helmet, and, without a word, he advancedstraight to Richmond, and placed it on his brows. Then, bending theknee, he said, aloud--
"Hail, king of England! Long live our sovereign lord, King Henry theSeventh!"
Richmond embraced him warmly, while a shout rent the air, and somewords passed between the two which no ear heard. Then advancing, withthe crown upon his head, Henry graciously thanked those around him fortheir aid and service, adding a few words upon the glorious event ofthe day.
"There is one, however," he continued "whom I see not here, and towhom double thanks are due. I cannot name him, for I know him not; buthis hand defended my life when two gallant gentlemen had fallen beforemy enemy, and his hand slew the usurper of the crown I now bear. Hewore round his neck the collar and star of some foreign order, and--"
"He is fearfully wounded, sire," said Lord Chartley, who had just comeup. "That litter, which you see yonder, is bearing him, at his ownrequest, to the abbey of St. Clare. He earnestly besought me toentreat your grace, if your time would permit, to pass thither for abrief space, on your march. He is a man of high and noble birth,allied to a royal house; but I must say no more. The rest he will tellyou, if he live till you arrive."
"Noble Lord Chartley, to you too I owe great thanks," said Henry; "andthey shall be paid in coin that you will like full well. But thisnoble gentleman has taken strong possession of my mind. How did hefall?--I saw him late in the battle, safe and foremost."
"True, sire," replied Chartley; "he was before Sir George Talbot andmyself, as we followed the last troops of the enemy which kepttogether, to disperse them. Then, however, just on the brow of thehill, the young Lord Fulmer turned with his band, and bore my noblefriend down with his lance while he was contending with two men infront."
"But you avenged him, Chartley," said Sir George Talbot; "for youcarried the young serpent back on your lance's point, like an eel onan eel-spear. He will never take odds against a gallant knight more."
"I know not that," said Chartley; "for I saw him remounted and ledaway between two servants. But, if your grace will visit the noblegentleman of whom you spoke, I will forward at once and bear thetidings after him."
"I will not fail," replied Henry; "'tis but a mile or two about, Ibelieve; and, as soon as we have taken some order here, I ride thitherere I go to Leicester."
Chartley thanked him and retired; and the king, calling a page,whispered to him some brief words, adding aloud, "To Tamworth then,with all speed. Say, there must be no delay--no, not a moment."