You began to speak of why you came here tonight, my liege, something to do with my need to go out and about more. Am I permitted to enquire more closely about what you meant?
Richards eyes flared open, betraying that he had been on the point of nodding into sleep. He made a harrumphing noise in his throat and sat up straighter, turning in his seat to look over to where St. Clair sat opposite de Sablé at the table. Aye, you are. I have need of you, my friend. I need you with me, by my side.
Henry fought to quell a surge of dismay upon hearing that. He allowed his face to express a lack of understanding as he asked, Here, my liege, in Anjou?
No, damnation! In Outremerthe Holy Land. He glared at St. Clair for a moment, then clearly remembered what the older man had said about his detachment from worldly affairs. I have been in close communication with the new Pope, Clement, these past few months. It seems we have had a plethora of popes in this past year, would you not agree? Urban the Third, dead in December of the year before last, then another Gregory, the Eighth, for two short months until last March, and now the third Clement, anxious to proceed with this new war after barely a year in office I suppose you heard about my fathers commitment to winning back the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Holy Cross for Gregory, last January?
St. Clair shook his head, wide eyed. No, my lord, I think not. Or if I did, the tidings did not penetrate my grief. My wife died mere weeks after Pope Urbans death.
Richard looked hard at the older man, then jerked his head in a terse nod. Aye, well, Henry swore an oath to Pope Gregory in Gisors, about a month before we heard of Gregorys death, hard on the heels of Urbans passing. In truth, he made the pledge in Gregorys absence, to Archbishop Josias of Tyre, the only Christian see left occupied in all of Outremer. Anyway, the old man committed us all to the war, myself and Philip in particular, even though I was not therebut that should not surprise you, as well as you know him and me. The old lion saw my mere absence as no impediment to his paternal dedication of my life to the papal cause.
Henry fought to quell a surge of dismay upon hearing that. He allowed his face to express a lack of understanding as he asked, Here, my liege, in Anjou?
No, damnation! In Outremerthe Holy Land. He glared at St. Clair for a moment, then clearly remembered what the older man had said about his detachment from worldly affairs. I have been in close communication with the new Pope, Clement, these past few months. It seems we have had a plethora of popes in this past year, would you not agree? Urban the Third, dead in December of the year before last, then another Gregory, the Eighth, for two short months until last March, and now the third Clement, anxious to proceed with this new war after barely a year in office I suppose you heard about my fathers commitment to winning back the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Holy Cross for Gregory, last January?
St. Clair shook his head, wide eyed. No, my lord, I think not. Or if I did, the tidings did not penetrate my grief. My wife died mere weeks after Pope Urbans death.
Richard looked hard at the older man, then jerked his head in a terse nod. Aye, well, Henry swore an oath to Pope Gregory in Gisors, about a month before we heard of Gregorys death, hard on the heels of Urbans passing. In truth, he made the pledge in Gregorys absence, to Archbishop Josias of Tyre, the only Christian see left occupied in all of Outremer. Anyway, the old man committed us all to the war, myself and Philip in particular, even though I was not therebut that should not surprise you, as well as you know him and me. The old lion saw my mere absence as no impediment to his paternal dedication of my life to the papal cause.
Although St. Clair was feigning interest in this information, he felt that his persistent ignorance was irritating Richard, who cleared his throat noisily and returned to what he had been saying. Well, it is all arranged, it seems. The French levies are to wear red crosses on white surcoats, the English white on red, and the Flemish greenpresumably on white. All highly colorful and rich with meaning, I suppose. We are all agreed to set out next year, but of course my father has no intention of going with us. This is all a ploy to set me safely out of the way while he goes about his own designs of putting my useless brother John on Englands throne. Hell plead infirmity, sickness, and old age when it comes time to rally to the standards, you wait and see.
But this third Pope Clement is not a stupid man, and he has made that more than plain to me. He can see clearly whats afoot herethanks to the snouting and burrowing of his bishops here and in Englandand he knows I will not meekly step aside for my useless, halfwit brother. And so he has expressed his sympathy for my concerns, because he has need of mewants me to take up arms on behalf of Mother Church, in Jerusalem, as leader of his new Frankish army of deliverance that will win back the Frankish Kingdom from the infidels.
That desire, were it the sole wish that Il Papa had, would leave me unimpressed, since I have intended to lead the army anyway, ever since I first heard of it. But the German Emperor, Barbarossa, jumped into Gregorys plans headlong before the old Pope died, swearing to raise an army of Teutons more than two hundred thousand strong. And that, of course, has all of Rome, Clement and all his cardinals, a-chittering in terror, because the last thing they need, or want, is to have the Holy Roman Church beholden in any way to German Barbarossa and his Holy Roman Empire, to say nothing of his unholy Roman armies. They could lose the papacy and all the world, were they to sit back and do nothing. And so, I represent the only hope they have of salvaging their Empire of Mens Minds.
The Duke plucked at his lower lip and gazed at Henry through narrowed, unfocused eyes before continuing. Clement is wooing me, seducing me into leading a Frankish host that will counter-balance Barbarossas presence in Outremer and keep the scales of power balanced in favor of the papacy. Our force will be no more than half the size of the German levies, for Barbarossa has almost three times the manpower available to him that we have, but Barbarossa is almost as old as my father, and I intend to use that age difference to my advantage. Our Franks will outfight and outperform his stolid German Goths and his Teutonic knights. And in return for providing that superiority, the Pope has offered me a guaranteebut nothing yet in writing, mind youof the succession to England upon my fathers death.
St. Clair wrinkled his nose. I see. And do you trust this pope, my lord?
Trust him? Trust a pope? Do you think me mad, Henry? Richard was grinning now. What I trust, my friend, is my own ability to know, and to do, what is best for me and for my people. And so I have agreed to his request. I will command the army if he will aid me in the raising of it.
Philip will be involved in the expedition, of coursebut he already is, since the original agreement at Gisors. Since then, of course, in August, he alienated my father forever by chopping down the old mans favorite elm tree there, the so-called Gisors Elm, beneath which the King had signed so many treaties, including the one of which I speak. We came close to open war over that incident, and I was forced to side with Philip again, in order to protect my own holdings in France, where my liege loyalties are to him.
Imagine what an upheaval that causedthe threat of a new war among ourselves in Christendom when the major threat to the papacy lies in Outremer! There was panic in the Vatican, and a flurry of papal ambassadors appealing to all of us individually. Philip allowed himself to be persuaded back into the fold and has restated his commitment to the Holy War. With him, to the prosecution of it and hence to our advantage, he will bring the most powerful vassals in his kingdom: Philip the Count of Flanders and Henry of Champagne. For his sins, poor Henry is nephew to both Philip and myselfdid you know that? My mother is his grandmother by her first marriage in France. And, for a certainty, Count Stephen of Sancerre will be there. But I will hold command. The new Pope Clement is sworn to that, albeit I am not yet King and Philip has been crowned for ten years now. He is an organizer, our Philip, an administrator without equal, but it is I who am the warrior. If my father lives long enough to see the army raised, he will make noises about wanting to lead it, but that will be a nonsense, as I have said, presented for the show of it.
Anyway, once the army is ready, we will set sail immediately for Palestine, and by the time we come home victorious, England will be mine beyond dispute, with the support and blessings of the Pope and all his court.
Richard stood up and braced an arm against the mantel, staring into the coals. St. Clair remained seated, frowning, his eyes following Richard and then shifting to where de Sablé sat watching, his face an inscrutable mask. Now he cleared his throat and spoke out.
A hundred thousand men, you said, my lord. Forgive me for asking, but who will pay for that? He hurried on before Richard could react. I mean, I know you said your father was the one who made the commitment to the venture, at Gisors, and that is as it should be, but will he carry through with it now, since the events of August, knowing you will prosper thereby?
Aye, he will. Unfazed by the question, Richard spoke over his shoulder, not quite looking at St. Clair but speaking to him nonetheless. He will, because he knows nothing and will learn nothing about my agreement with Clement. And before you ask me how I can be sure of that, the answer is that Clement needs my goodwill today far more than he will ever need my fathers. And to make doubly sure of that, I have made it clear to the Pope that I will have my own spies watching closely. Should I ever hear the smallest whisper of suspicion that the Holy Father might have been in contact with my profane father, I will resign from the army, quit the Holy Land immediately with all my men, and leave him to work out his own destiny, and that of Holy Mother Church, with Barbarossa and his Germans.