fight with one another
â¦
Georges Chastellain
She fell to her knees as the first
blow was struck, then pandemonium broke out and she crawled as fast as she could over
jagged roots and stones to where she believed her son was, because in the darkness she
could not see. With every move she expected to be struck, or hauled back over the rough
ground, but in the chaos and darkness no one noticed a fallen queen, crawling about in
her ripped clothing.
A glimmer of light from the dwindling fire
briefly illuminated her son. He had his back to her and had pressed himself into the
stump of a tree, shrinking away from the fight. She clasped a hand round his mouth and
whispered, â
Câest Maman!
â And pulled him down beside her.
Together they crawled through the
undergrowth, crouching behind shrubs, moving with torturous slowness away from the
fighting men. After a little distance she rose to her feet, pulling her son upwards, and
they picked their way carefully between the intertwined roots until they emerged into a
different clearing. But some branches rustled, then parted, and a man stepped out.
A brigand of hideous and horrible
aspect approached the queen with intention to ⦠do all evil. This noble queen
⦠seeing that she could not escape the danger except by the grace of God
Himself, said that her own death meant nothing to her, she cared only for her son
the prince, saying âsave your kingâs sonâ â¦
Georges Chastellain
This seemed to mean something to him;
he took them to a cave by a stream and indicated that they should go in. The queenâs
fear flared again, for surely here, in this hidden place, he could kill them himself;
cut their throats or hold them to ransom. Hermind was working
furiously but she could not think what to do. It seemed to her that they had no choice
but to step forward, stooping into the narrow cave. As soon as she could she turned
round to face him, holding her son. She intended to plead with him but the man himself
began to speak:
Saying that he would die a thousand
deaths before he would abandon her or her royal son, and he would deliver her to a
safe place ⦠and he asked for pardon from the queen for his misdeeds as if she
had her sceptre in London, and swore to God that he would amend his life â¦
Georges Chastellain
The queen understood very little of
this; the manâs accent was so strange and he spoke in such a low, rapid voice that she
could hardly hear what he was saying. But she understood that he was kneeling.
11
King Henry Considers the Crown
It came to him as he sat in his room, in the
convent of Kircudbright, that it was a strange thing, made by man to dominate man. He
could see it shining before him in the fire and knew that the bright flames outweighed
in worth any number of golden crowns. And he saw that to give it up would be a glorious
thing.
It was a vast and dizzying thought,
containing all the freedom of the world.
Take it back
, he would say before the
gates of heaven.
It does not fit.
He would hold his wifeâs hand and they would
dance like lunatics in the flickering shadows of the fire.
At the same time he could see his wife; that
deep crease between her brows that never used to be there. She would never give it up.
The action of surrender would break her like a twig. And with this realization came a
great tenderness for her, for the young girl heâd brought from France to endure such
poverty, conflict and pain. In his mindâs eye, in the flames, he clasped her face in his
hands and his mouth worked slowly, trying to form the words
I love you
and
I will let you go.
And at that moment there came a knock on his
door. The young novice who waited on him was there. She had a sweet, plain face; a look
that softened into the deepest sympathy whenever she saw him.
âThe queen is here, your majesty,â she
said.
He
â¦
Georges Chastellain
She fell to her knees as the first
blow was struck, then pandemonium broke out and she crawled as fast as she could over
jagged roots and stones to where she believed her son was, because in the darkness she
could not see. With every move she expected to be struck, or hauled back over the rough
ground, but in the chaos and darkness no one noticed a fallen queen, crawling about in
her ripped clothing.
A glimmer of light from the dwindling fire
briefly illuminated her son. He had his back to her and had pressed himself into the
stump of a tree, shrinking away from the fight. She clasped a hand round his mouth and
whispered, â
Câest Maman!
â And pulled him down beside her.
Together they crawled through the
undergrowth, crouching behind shrubs, moving with torturous slowness away from the
fighting men. After a little distance she rose to her feet, pulling her son upwards, and
they picked their way carefully between the intertwined roots until they emerged into a
different clearing. But some branches rustled, then parted, and a man stepped out.
A brigand of hideous and horrible
aspect approached the queen with intention to ⦠do all evil. This noble queen
⦠seeing that she could not escape the danger except by the grace of God
Himself, said that her own death meant nothing to her, she cared only for her son
the prince, saying âsave your kingâs sonâ â¦
Georges Chastellain
This seemed to mean something to him;
he took them to a cave by a stream and indicated that they should go in. The queenâs
fear flared again, for surely here, in this hidden place, he could kill them himself;
cut their throats or hold them to ransom. Hermind was working
furiously but she could not think what to do. It seemed to her that they had no choice
but to step forward, stooping into the narrow cave. As soon as she could she turned
round to face him, holding her son. She intended to plead with him but the man himself
began to speak:
Saying that he would die a thousand
deaths before he would abandon her or her royal son, and he would deliver her to a
safe place ⦠and he asked for pardon from the queen for his misdeeds as if she
had her sceptre in London, and swore to God that he would amend his life â¦
Georges Chastellain
The queen understood very little of
this; the manâs accent was so strange and he spoke in such a low, rapid voice that she
could hardly hear what he was saying. But she understood that he was kneeling.
11
King Henry Considers the Crown
It came to him as he sat in his room, in the
convent of Kircudbright, that it was a strange thing, made by man to dominate man. He
could see it shining before him in the fire and knew that the bright flames outweighed
in worth any number of golden crowns. And he saw that to give it up would be a glorious
thing.
It was a vast and dizzying thought,
containing all the freedom of the world.
Take it back
, he would say before the
gates of heaven.
It does not fit.
He would hold his wifeâs hand and they would
dance like lunatics in the flickering shadows of the fire.
At the same time he could see his wife; that
deep crease between her brows that never used to be there. She would never give it up.
The action of surrender would break her like a twig. And with this realization came a
great tenderness for her, for the young girl heâd brought from France to endure such
poverty, conflict and pain. In his mindâs eye, in the flames, he clasped her face in his
hands and his mouth worked slowly, trying to form the words
I love you
and
I will let you go.
And at that moment there came a knock on his
door. The young novice who waited on him was there. She had a sweet, plain face; a look
that softened into the deepest sympathy whenever she saw him.
âThe queen is here, your majesty,â she
said.
He
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