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Authors: Karleen Bradford
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the imperial forces of Alexius led to our defeat.”
“The duke does not believe them,” Amalric said, “and nor do I. They just seek excuses for their own failure.”
Theo was inclined to agree, but he heard the soldiers around him grumbling. They, too, were becoming impatient with the delay.
“If we could only go on!” Amalric was indignant. “Alexius has no right to hold us up here.”
“But we must wait for the other lords who are coming to meet us,” Theo answered.
“We could wait on the other side of Constantinople.
He could let us pass. The only reason he keeps us cooling our heels here is because Godfrey will not swear allegiance to him.”
Theo knew Amalric was right.
“My lord has only one master, Henry, the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. He cannot swear loyalty to another,” Amalric growled.
Again, Theo agreed.
Time dragged. Theo took to walking the camp from end to end, usually finishing up at the city walls. They towered above him, blank and forbidding.
It snowed, lightly at first, then more heavily. Theo found it hard to keep himself warm at night in his small tent. He slept wrapped in his woollen cloak and covered with a bearskin, but still woke stiff and cold in the frosty early mornings. Centurion, on the other hand, delighted in the winter weather. His coat grew rough and thick, and he downed the rations of four normal horses.
“Hugh of Vermandois has sworn the oath,” Amalric reported with a sneer as he sought Theo out one morning. “Alexius’s lapdog, that’s all he is. The emperor thought Hugh would persuade the duke to give in and sign as well, but my lord Godfrey sent him back with a flea in his ear, I tell you.”
Perhaps not a wise move, Theo thought. He was proven right when the supplies coming from the emperor suddenly ceased.
Angered by the short rations, the men erupted. Led by Godfrey’s brother Baldwin, they began to raid the suburbs of Constantinople. Alexius reacted quickly.
“We are to move to Pera,” Count Garnier told Theo as they ate together one morning. “The emperor has been most tactful. Pera is only a short distance away, and he suggests that we will be more sheltered from the winter winds there, but I think his real reason is that his imperial police will be able to watch and control us more closely there. I must say I cannot blame him. If Lord Godfrey cannot keep even his own brother in check …”
Theo looked at his foster father in surprise. It was the closest he had ever heard the count come to criticizing the duke. Garnier must be troubled, indeed.
Amalric, of course, was mightily offended. “They think us nothing but barbarians,” he raged. “They treat us like thieves!”
“With good reason,” Theo replied, but the behavior of the Byzantines had angered him as well. He had accompanied Count Garnier to a feast given by some of the nobles in the city, and although the visitors had dressed in their finest, Theo had been painfully aware of the disparaging glances cast their way. More than one elegant eyebrow had been raised at the rude manners of the Frankish knights. The Franks, on their part, spent the next few days mocking the effete manners of the Byzantines, but underlying their jokes was a bitter resentment.
More time passed. Still the other lords did not appear; still the emperor and Godfrey quarreled. Life in the camp around Pera settled into a routine that soon turned to boredom. Godfrey and his men were lodged within the city, but their families and all the others, including Count Garnier and his men, were encamped just outside.
Theo had fallen into the habit of meeting with Emma in the evenings to talk. He knew a few tongues wagged at this, but life in the camp was informal, and he cared little about the opinions of others. The count saw no harm in their friendship, and that was what mattered most to him. Emma always had the latest camp gossip, and she had a way of exaggerating the most trifling of stories until they
“The duke does not believe them,” Amalric said, “and nor do I. They just seek excuses for their own failure.”
Theo was inclined to agree, but he heard the soldiers around him grumbling. They, too, were becoming impatient with the delay.
“If we could only go on!” Amalric was indignant. “Alexius has no right to hold us up here.”
“But we must wait for the other lords who are coming to meet us,” Theo answered.
“We could wait on the other side of Constantinople.
He could let us pass. The only reason he keeps us cooling our heels here is because Godfrey will not swear allegiance to him.”
Theo knew Amalric was right.
“My lord has only one master, Henry, the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. He cannot swear loyalty to another,” Amalric growled.
Again, Theo agreed.
Time dragged. Theo took to walking the camp from end to end, usually finishing up at the city walls. They towered above him, blank and forbidding.
It snowed, lightly at first, then more heavily. Theo found it hard to keep himself warm at night in his small tent. He slept wrapped in his woollen cloak and covered with a bearskin, but still woke stiff and cold in the frosty early mornings. Centurion, on the other hand, delighted in the winter weather. His coat grew rough and thick, and he downed the rations of four normal horses.
“Hugh of Vermandois has sworn the oath,” Amalric reported with a sneer as he sought Theo out one morning. “Alexius’s lapdog, that’s all he is. The emperor thought Hugh would persuade the duke to give in and sign as well, but my lord Godfrey sent him back with a flea in his ear, I tell you.”
Perhaps not a wise move, Theo thought. He was proven right when the supplies coming from the emperor suddenly ceased.
Angered by the short rations, the men erupted. Led by Godfrey’s brother Baldwin, they began to raid the suburbs of Constantinople. Alexius reacted quickly.
“We are to move to Pera,” Count Garnier told Theo as they ate together one morning. “The emperor has been most tactful. Pera is only a short distance away, and he suggests that we will be more sheltered from the winter winds there, but I think his real reason is that his imperial police will be able to watch and control us more closely there. I must say I cannot blame him. If Lord Godfrey cannot keep even his own brother in check …”
Theo looked at his foster father in surprise. It was the closest he had ever heard the count come to criticizing the duke. Garnier must be troubled, indeed.
Amalric, of course, was mightily offended. “They think us nothing but barbarians,” he raged. “They treat us like thieves!”
“With good reason,” Theo replied, but the behavior of the Byzantines had angered him as well. He had accompanied Count Garnier to a feast given by some of the nobles in the city, and although the visitors had dressed in their finest, Theo had been painfully aware of the disparaging glances cast their way. More than one elegant eyebrow had been raised at the rude manners of the Frankish knights. The Franks, on their part, spent the next few days mocking the effete manners of the Byzantines, but underlying their jokes was a bitter resentment.
More time passed. Still the other lords did not appear; still the emperor and Godfrey quarreled. Life in the camp around Pera settled into a routine that soon turned to boredom. Godfrey and his men were lodged within the city, but their families and all the others, including Count Garnier and his men, were encamped just outside.
Theo had fallen into the habit of meeting with Emma in the evenings to talk. He knew a few tongues wagged at this, but life in the camp was informal, and he cared little about the opinions of others. The count saw no harm in their friendship, and that was what mattered most to him. Emma always had the latest camp gossip, and she had a way of exaggerating the most trifling of stories until they
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