DOE Temporarally Suspended

It is with regret that I have to inform you that, due to circumstances beyond my control, the Cryptwriters serial ‘Dream of England” has been temporally suspended.

My deepest apologies to those of you who have been waiting for the previously mentioned double episode. I hope to be able to resume the uploads in the New Year so keep an eye on our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/cryptwriters where further information will be posted.

In the meantime do feel free to upload your own work, which is what “Work in Progress” is all about: access for all Cryptwriters to share their work. I look forward to reading your contributions.

My apologies again to DOE fans but do check back in 2014 as there is a lot more historical histrionics coming up, including the tyrannical reign of King William and on into the Tudor dynasty with all the pace and excitement you’ve come to expect from DOE.

See you soon. S.

A Huge Apology to all DOE Fans

May I offer my sincere apologies to those of you who were waiting for September’s edition of our monthly Cryptwriters serial, “A Dream of England”.

Due to circumstances outside my control I’m afraid I was unable to upload this edition but, fear not valiant ones, your monthly helping of historical hijinks will be continuing as normal from now on starting again with the missing September episode so you won’t miss a thing!

My apologies again (I may try to upload two episodes this month to make up for it so be sure to keep checking back). S.

A Dream of England (or The Chronicles of Britannia)

A dream of England, beauteous fair, of all those who lived and died there

Part the Twelfth:

The coming of William the Conqueror and the death of King Harold

King Harold ruled England; he was kind and just;

the people all loved him (a man they could trust).

He took out the bad laws and kept all the good

that Edward had made and ruled as a King should.
His thoughts always for the good of his country
but he could not stop them drifting overseas,
anxiously and often looking to France
awaiting Duke William’s warships to advance,
his mind was not eased by the news that was brought
of a great fleet being built on their shores.
But different news was to turn his thoughts from
those of Duke William and the war to come:
a messenger arrived and fell on his knees
saying, “Great King I have bad tidings for thee:
Tostig, thy brother, and Hardrada of Norway,
have taken York; they slay and burn without mercy!”
So Harold gathered all his huscarls* around
and set out for Yorkshire, this new battleground,
to fight with his brother he did not want to
but for love of England this he had to do.
Roads in those days were rough, journeys were fraught
but Harold, to save time, had a clever thought:
from London to York a road Romans had made
allowed his army to get there in few days.
Almost alone rode out Harold the King
trying for peace with his brother to win,
but his brother’s loyalty was to Norway
and so a great battle was fought on that day;
both Tostig and Hardrada soon were dead
and all the ‘Northmen’ who fought with them fled.
But Harold was merciful in victory
and let them all return to their own country.
“The Battle of Stamford Bridge” this day was named
and as “Battle Bridge”, to this day, it is famed.
But, while these invaders up north faced defeat,
Duke William had finished preparing his fleet.
In white-sailed vessels over sea they came
with knights, archers, warhorses and spearmen.
The three golden lions of Normandy flew
on their banner as they sailed their course true
and when England’s shore came plainly in sight
they did not to find an army ready to fight
for all Harold’s men were up in the northlands.
A messenger was sent, told “Fast as you can,
tell the king William’s ships rest on the sand
and he and his army have laid waste the land!”
Harold’s men were resting ‘fore riding again
back down to London when the news came.
When he heard the news from the messenger’s mouth
he told all his men, “We must now ride south!”
He sent out ahead as he rode the same road
that any and all soldiers young, brave and bold,
should rally around him, their mettle to chance
and drive William and his army back to France.
Soon a great army rode out with their king
to where the Normans had made camp near Hastings.
The battle was joined and the armies engaged
and all throughout the long day the battle raged.
At one point a cry rang through the Norman ranks
that Duke William was dead; the soldiers’ hearts sank,
until William rode through them with his head bared
and the soldiers fought then harder than they’d dared.
As the day closed in England’s fortunes fell,
they had fought bravely, the French had fought well.
An Englishman won’t go down without a fight
and, in one last stance, they fought with all their might
Brave King Harold fell, pieced by an arrow,
but still they fought on, met the French blow for blow,
but Harold’s standard, bloodstained, kicked and tossed
was sign that the battle of Hastings was lost.
The bravest of England, they lay head to head
with their King on the battlefield, each one dead.
Harold was buried on the nearby seashore
and William gave honor to the foe he’d fought:
“Let him lie by his England’s sea”, he said,
“He’d guard it in life; let him guard it in death.”
William, though cruel, was not without heart
and in pity and remorse (well, maybe in part),
in the years to come an Abby there he’d build
the remains of which are found on that spot still.
And so in bravery, in valor and pride,
the very last of the English Kings there died.
A legend grew round him, a story at best,
whether it’s true we can’t hazard a guess,
that he had “England” written upon his breast;
what we do know is that he loved her to his death.

TO BE CONTINUED…

NEXT ON “A DREAM OF ENGLAND”:

Hereward the Wake and the last stand of the English

NOTE:

*Huscarls” -  During this period England did not have a National Army, ready at all times for battle, like we have today; the King would have a few soldiers he kept as his personal bodyguards and these were known as his “Huscarls”.  The rest of the soldiers were servants of the nobles and rich merchants who came together in times of national battle and then returned afterwards back to their own masters.

A Dream of England (or The Chronicles of Britannia)

A dream of England, beauteous fair, of all those who lived and died there

Part the Eleventh:

Edward to Confessor to Harold Godwin

The first thing that he did when Edward was king

was to bring his Norman friends here with him:

The Normans, like the Danes, were haughty and proud,

they behaved arrogantly, rude and so loud;
soon they were hated as the Danes had been
and Godwin regretted his choice of the king.
Eustace, Count of Boulogne, Edward’s friend,
and his men were on their way to France again;
they stopped off in Dover, their trip to begin,
and behaved as if the town belonged to them:
the best houses they went in for bread and board
without any leave and went without a word
of thanks to the occupants. This was too much,
an Englishman’s home is his castle and such
a thing as this must, ultimately, be stopped,
they would not stand for being bullied and robbed!
One brave man refused them entry to his place
and a Norman soldier struck him in the face.
He returned the blow, soon the town was alight
with Dover ‘gainst Normans in one massive fight.
The Englishmen fought well, beat the Normans down,
and drove every one of them out of their town.
A furious Eustace rode back to the king,
with lies in his throat he said, “Look at this thing
your Englishmen have done to my soldiers brave”,
neglecting the fact that they stirred up the rage.
King Edward was angry and ordered to come,
Earl Godwin, as Dover was in his Earldom.
Godwin, he saw through all the Norman’s plain lies
and that the fault was not all on Dover’s side.
The King ordered Godwin to punish the English
but Godwin refused and so he was banished;
all his lands to other people they went
and Edith, his daughter, sent to a convent.
Now, with no restraint on him, Edward alone
brought over more friends, even promised the throne
to his cousin who was the Duke of Normandy,
when he died, England’s crown, William’s would be.
But Godwin was not one to welcome a spurn
and, to the people’s delight, he soon returned
with his sons in tow; the king was appalled,
but the people all rallied around Godwin’s cause
and, with clever strategy, without a war,
Godwin got the king to send his French friends all
back over to France and put Englishmen in
the top places at court and the son of Godwin,
Harold by name, who was by the earl’s side
took over his place after his father died.
In the end Edward was a different man
and it was really Harold who ruled the land.
Harold loved his country and would not be swayed
but trouble came from a promise Edward made:
One day, in a shipwreck, the mighty storm’s roar
washed Harold alive upon Normandy’s shore.
Duke William knew that Harold was a great man
and was pleased to have him, captured, in his hand.
William showed pretend kindness to his foe
but kept him a prisoner, would not let him go,
until he promised just what Edward had done;
once that was accomplished then Harold was gone,
bitter at heart from what he had endured
and hating William and the Normans much more.
On 5th of January Edward’s last breath
was breathed and his body was then laid to rest
In Westminster Cathedral – finished that same day –
and King Harold over all England held sway.
In the end Edward was not a bad man
just could not love his country the way true kings can:
as “Edward the Confessor” he’s known today
but many mistakes he made along the way,
his promise to William perhaps worst of all
as this was to plunge England into turmoil;
unknown to the people, who loved their king so,
Harold had promised the same thing to their foe,
and when William of Normandy heard the news
that Edward was dead and Harold had assumed
the crown of England, he, furious with rage,
demanded that the vows made to him were paid
but Harold said, “No, the people they choose me
and their king of England I remain to be”.
So William he began to build an army
mightier than any that sailed out to sea;
his fierceness and fury just grew over time,
as he demanded, “England’s crown shall be mine!”

TO BE CONTINUED…

NEXT ON “A DREAM OF ENGLAND”:

The coming of William the Conqueror and the death of King Harold

A Dream of England (or The Chronicles of Britannia)

A dream of England, beauteous fair, of all those who lived and died there

Part the Tenth:

The reign of Canute, the last Danish kings and the coming of the Normans

Under the deal that the two kings agreed,

Canute, now the one king of England would be

uniting the whole of the country as one,
which did not know Edmund, himself, had two sons
for Canute banished them to Hungary
insuring never on the throne would they be.
It was in some cruelty his reign began
but he would soon grow into a wise man.
The English, they loved him as one of their own
though he did not just sit on England’s throne:
for Denmark and Sweden and also Norway,
kingship of these lands, too, Canute held sway.
The nobles they praised and they flattered their king
so much and so often it made his head spin;
“All England obeys you”, they cried, “and look see:
not only the land but the waves of the sea!”
This was absurd talk, so wise Canute then
thought a lesson he’d teach these foolish men:
To his servants he called, “Bring me a chair
and set it in front of the tide over there.”
The nobles all proudly stood round this royal seat
as Canute sat down and proceeded to speak:
“Go back!” he said to the waves, “I, your lord
and master say to you to come in no more,
remove your selves away from my royal seat
and do not even dare to come wet my feet!”
The sea, of course, could not hear nor could obey
and soon everyone’s feet had got wet that day.
Canute then arose and to his nobles said,
“Foolish men, have you no brains in your head?
I have no power the sea to control,
it is God alone who has say over all;
he rules the earth and the sky and the sea
and we, his obedient subjects, must be.”
The nobles they learned their lesson that day
and Canute, too, had a change in his way
for, from that day forth he no more wore his crown
but on Winchester’s statue of Christ was it found.
Their king was a Christian and all the Danes who
were still pagans soon became Christians too.
The differences between the English and Danes
soon faded away and they all became
one united kingdom, though not overnight;
it took some time for them to forget their fights.
Though the other lands the king ruled were near
he needed someone to help him to rule here;
into four he divided the whole thing:
an earl in each earldom ruled it for the king.
In Wessex he placed a man there named Godwin
who was to have great sway with a future king,
but, like his forebears king Canute soon died
and was buried in Winchester, 1035.
Harefoot and Hardicanute, his two sons,
were then to rule where their father had done;
but neither were wise or good like their dad
and these were the last Danish kings England had
for earl Godwin (whom we mention again)
said Edward, son of Ethelred, should now reign.
Now Edward, brother to King Canute who died
and also to the brave Edmund Ironside,
had stayed in Normandy, as was his wish,
and was much more Norman than he was English.
But Godwin, earl of Wessex, had a plan
to get him in good standing with this man,
he’d give him his daughter, Edith, to wife
to make him much more love the English life;
a more mis-matched couple there never had been,
yet Edward became king and Edith his queen.

TO BE CONTINUED…

NEXT ON “A DREAM OF ENGLAND”:

Edward to Confessor to William the Conqueror

A Dream of England (or The Chronicles of Britannia)

A dream of England, beauteous fair, of all those who lived and died there

Part the Ninth:

The revenge of the Danes and the courage of Edmund Ironside

The truth of Gunhilda’s words soon came to be

as the might of all Denmark set sail out to sea.

Over the blue waves came these fierce sea-kings
in ships carved and painted with wondrous things:
with birds, beasts and dragons and serpents regaled,
glittering golden prows and purple sails,
no storm stayed their way; as they grew ever near
the people’s hearts all to a man filled with fear.
And not without reason for soon the blood flowed
and, in their, wake, death and destruction followed.
Ethelred, coward and weak to the core,
fled with his family to France’s shore
where the Duke of Normandy reigned there as king
and to his wife, Emma, was father and kin.
In Norman courts Ethelred took delight
and he soon forgot his country’s dread plight.
Now Sweyn, king of Denmark, had conquered England
but never as England’s king was he to stand
for he died suddenly and Canute, his son,
got all of the spoil that his father had won.
But the people harked back to Alfred’s throne,
for Englishmen all want a king of their own;
so messages to Ethelred were sent through
saying, ‘rule us better and we’ll fight for you’.
Ethelred returned but he had not changed,
the people were willing but all was in vain;
the soldiers soon lost heart, all hope now seemed gone,
but help was to come through Ethelred’s brave son.
Edmund for his courage was named “Ironside”,
he inherited none of his father’s weak side,
and soon around him the armies rallied round
but the nobles, foolishly, Canute they had crowned
saying, ‘against the Danes there’s no way we can win’
but the armies of England refused to give in:
Edmund they crowned king when Ethelred died,
now England had two kings and one great divide.
The new English king was a brave and wise one
and five battles under him were fought and won.
With Ethelred gone, now under Edmund’s reign,
the English grew strong and their courage regained.
Battle after battle was now being won
but Edmund’s heart was becoming a sad one:
he loved his country and his people dear
but the horror of war was lasting many years;
although a warrior, deep down inside,
he longed for peace so no more people died.
He saw the sun shine on dead fields and burned homes
whilst in his tent on the battlefield alone,
it was then that a thought came into his head
and he sent a message to king Canute which read:
“I, Edmund Ironside, king of England,
to single combat I challenge you and
the winner will rightly then rule everything,
the loser be buried as befits a king.”
Canute, when he heard this, he thought for a while
but then he agreed to this one-on-one trial.
Arrayed in their amour with sword, shield and spear,
the two kings marched out, their armies watched in fear.
The battle was joined, first with spear and with horse,
then down on the ground with their shields and their swords;
both kings were strong but king Edmund was taller
and Canute felt himself beginning to falter;
in a loud voice he cried, “Why should this be?
Two kings should be brothers and not enemies,
let us agree that this fighting shall cease
and divide the kingdom and live then in peace.”
Edmund dropped his sword and held out his hand,
"As kings and brothers we two shall rule this land.”
And so it was England divided again.
the south to the English, the north to the Dane;
there was peace in the land but not for so long
for in just seven months king Edmund was gone.
He died as he lived as a brave and wise king,
but his death meant England united again
for, when the kings fought, a deal they agreed
that, whoever lived longest, the one king would be.

TO BE CONTINUED…

NEXT ON “A DREAM OF ENGLAND”:

The reign of Canute and the last Danish kings

A Dream of England (or The Chronicles of Britannia)

A dream of England, beauteous fair, of all those who lived and died there


Part the Eighth:
Alfred the Great to Ethelred the Unready

A collection of laws was made by Alfred;
he sifted the good and threw out the bad
and added new laws and wrote them all down
for now a learned man wore England’s crown.
One such new law was, no man be condemned
lest his guilt be agreed on by twelve just and true men.
The people loved Alfred and kept all his rules,
he encouraged learning and founded new schools.
Most books were in Latin, Alfred saw the need
to translate them to English for people to read.
He built even more ships and opened up trade
to sell in far lands what the English had made.
He even invented a wax candle clock
divided in parts, each a hour it took
to burn to the next mark: This measure provided
Alfred the three parts of each day he divided.*
There were still battles during Alfred’s reign:
They were fought for defense, not for conquest or gain.
Alfred was good, wise and kind as a king,
known as, “Great”, “Truthteller” and “England’s darling”.
In 1901 Alfred the Great died
and Edward, his son, to England’s throne did rise,
called “Edward the Elder”, for many more came
after him to the throne who bore the same name,
helped by his sister, Lady Elthelfleda,
who, herself, proved to be a military leader.
He was a good king through a difficult reign
for the Danes had begun to cause trouble again.
Athelstane, after Edward, rose to be England’s king
and he, like his father, did many good things.
The Danes grew more daring, more ships sailed from home
in the times of the “Boy Kings” who sat on the throne.
A hundred years after the days of Alfred
the last of these “Boy Kings” ruled, called Ethelred:
He was foolish and slow, his direction unsteady,
so he became known by the nickname, “Unready”.
He never was sure what he wanted to do
so his soldiers lost heart, his captains quarreled too.
He finally came up with a foolish plan
he thought would drive the Danes out of the land:
“I’ll pay you some money if you go away.”
The Danes delightedly collected their pay.
At first they were glad but the people’s mood turned
for, when they’d spent their money, the Danes soon returned.
Ethelred paid them again, they left England’s shore;
each time they returned they were paid more and more.
And where did this money come from? You may ask:
From the people of course through increases in tax.
Then Elthred’s mind it turned dark and cruel,
tired of being taken for a fool,
he commanded the people to kill all the Danes,
not those attacking but those that remained.
On 13th November the deed would be done
but amongst the Danes there in England was one
Princess Gunhilda who, a Christian become
and wed to an Englishman, was sister to none
other than Sweyn, king of Denmark, no less.
When the slaughter began and the air filled with death
her husband and sons fought to keep her apart
but an Englishman’s sword was plunged straight through her heart.
The last word she said as she died at his hand:
“My death will bring great sorrow upon England.”
Her words proved prophetic, soon Sweyn’s rage would see
the might of all Denmark sailing out to sea.

TO BE CONTINUED…

NEXT ON “A DREAM OF ENGLAND”:
The revenge of the Danes

NOTE:

* 8 hours work, 8 hours strudy & 8 hours sleep.