HOW THE ENGLISH CONSULTED, AND WENT TO MEET THE
NORMAN HOST; AND HAROLD AND GURTH
WENT FORTH TO RECONNOITRE.
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Whilst Harold and William communicated in this way by messengers, clerks
and knights, the English assembled at London. When they were about to
set out thence, I have heard tell that Gurth, one of Harold's brothers,
reasoned thus with him.
"Fair brother, remain here, but give me your troops; I will take the
adventure upon me, and will fight William[1]. I have no covenant with
him, by oath or pledge; I am in no fealty to him, nor do I owe him my
faith. It may chance that there will be no need to come to blows; but I
fear that if you fight, you will pay the penalty of perjury, seeing you
must forswear yourself; and he who has the right will win. But if I am
conquered and taken prisoner, you, if God please, being alive, may still
assemble your troops, and fight or come to such an arrangement with the
duke, that you may hold your kingdom in peace. Whilst I go and fight the
Normans, do you scour the country, burn the houses, destroy the
villages, and carry off all stores and provisions, swine and goats and
cattle; that they may find no food, nor any thing whatever to subsist
upon. Thus you may alarm and drive them back, for the duke must return
to his own country if provisions for his army shall fail him."
But Harold refused, and said that Ourth should not go against the duke
and fight without him; and that he would not burn houses and villages,
neither would he plunder his people. "How," said he, "can I injure the
people I should govern? I cannot destroy or harass those who ought to
prosper under me."
However all agreed that Gurth's advice was good, and wished him to
follow it; but Harold, to shew his great courage, swore that they should
not go to the field or fight without him. Men, he said, would hold him a
coward, and many would blame him for sending his best friends where he
dared not go himself[2]. So he would not be detained, but set out from
London, leading his men forward armed for the fight, till he erected his
standard and fixed his gonfanon right where THE ABBEY OF THE BATTLE is
now built. There he said he would defend himself against whoever should
seek him; and he had the place well examined, and surrounded it by a
good fosse, leaving an entrance on each of three sides, which were
ordered to be all well guarded.
The Normans kept watch and remained throughout the night in arms, and on
their guard; for they were told that the English meant to advance and
attack them that night. The English also feared that the Normans might
attack them in the dark; so each kept guard the whole night, the one
watching the other.
At break of day in the morning, Harold rose and Gurth with him. Noble
chiefs were they both. Two warhorses were brought for them, and they
issued forth from their entrenchment[3]. They took with them no knight,
varlet on foot, nor squire; and neither of them bore other arms than
shield, lance and sword; their object being to reconnoitre the Normans,
and to know where and how they were posted. They rode on, viewing and
examining the ground, till from a hill where they stood they could see
those of the Norman host, who were near. They saw a great many huts made
of branches of trees, tents well equipped, pavilions and gonfanons; and
they heard horses neighing, and beheld the glittering of armour. They
stood a long while without speaking; nor do I know what they did, or
what they said, or what counsel they held together there; but on their
return to their tent Harold spoke first.
"Brother," said he, "yonder are many people, and the Normans are very
good knights, and well used to bear arms. What say you? what do you
advise? With so great a host against us, I dare not do otherwise than
fall back upon London: I will return thither and assemble a larger
army."
"Harold!" said Garth, "thou base coward! This counsel has come too late;
it is of no use now to flinch, we must move onward. Base coward! when I
advised you, and got the barons also to beseech you, to remain at London
and let me fight, you would not listen to us, and now you must take the
consequence. You would take no heed of any thing we could say; you
believed not me or any one else; now you are willing, but I will not. You
have lost your pride too soon; quickly indeed has what you have seen
abated your courage. If you should turn back now, every one would say
that you ran away. If men see you flee, who is to keep your people
together? and if they once disperse, they will never be brought to
assemble together again."
Thus Harold and Gurth disputed, till their words grew angry, and Gurth
would have struck his brother, had he not spurred his horse on, so that
the blow missed, and struck the horse behind the saddle, glancing along
Harold's shield. Had it gone aright, it would have felled him to the
ground. Gurth thus vented his humour, charging his brother with
cowardice; but they galloped on to the tents, and shewed no sign of
their dispute, neither let any ill will appear between them, when they
saw their people coming. Lewine, Harold's next brother after Gurth, had
also arisen early, and gone to Harold's tent; and when he found not his
two brothers where he left them over night, he thought he should see
them no more. "By Heaven," cried he, "they have been taken and delivered
to their enemies;" for he thought they must either have been killed, or
betrayed to the Normans; and he ran forth like a madman, shouting and
crying out as if he had lost his senses. But when he learned where they
were, and that they had gone out to reconnoitre the Normans, he and his
companions, and the earls and barons, mounted quickly upon their horses,
and set out from the tents; when behold! they met the brothers. The
barons took it ill that they went so imprudently, and without any guard;
but all turned back to the tents, and prepared for battle.
When they came in front of the enemy, the sight alarmed them grievously;
and Harold sent forth two spies[4] to reconnoitre the opposite troops,
and see what barons and armed men the duke had brought with him. As they
drew near to his army, they were observed, and being taken before
William, were sore afraid. But when he learnt what was their errand,
and that they wanted to estimate his strength, he had them taken through
all the tents, and shewed the whole host to them. Then he used them
exceeding well, gave them abundantly to eat and drink, and let them go
without injury or molestation.
When they returned to their lord, they spoke very honourably of the
duke; and one of them, who had seen that the Normans were so close
shaven and cropt, that they had not even moustaches, supposed he had
seen priests and mass-sayers; and he told Harold that the duke had more
priests with him than knights or other people. But Harold replied,
"Those are valiant knights, bold and brave warriors, though they bear
not beards or moustaches as we do."
[Footnote 1: This emulation between the brothers is also vouched by
_Ordericus Vitalis. Gaimar_, in one MS. calls Gurth, Gerard; another MS.
reads Gerd.]
[Footnote 2: _Benoit_ bears ample testimony to the personal
qualifications of Harold:
Pros ert Heraut e virtuos,
E empernanz e corajoz:
N'estoveit pas en nule terre
Sos ciel meillor chevaler querre:
Beaus esteit trop, e beaus parlers,
Donierre e larges viandiers.
His mother, according to the same authority, dissuaded him from the
enterprise, equally with his brother; who, besides the reasons urged in
_Wace_, presses the army's need of repose after the late campaign.]
[Footnote 3: In the continuation of Wace's _Brut d'Angleterre_, Harold's
morning is differently employed; and a curious legend is given,
assigning a reason for his defeat. See our appendix.]
[Footnote 4: The spy's mistake is also told by _William of Malmesbury_.
The Bayeux tapestry constantly represents the English with moustaches,
and the Normans with none. The latter, however, soon adopted the fashion
of flowing hair. In 1106, the bishop of Seez thought it necessary, in a
sermon before Hen. I. to inveigh bitterly against the custom of wearing
long hair and long toes, then assumed by the Normans.]
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