Consort: England’s Medieval Queens (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2008, ISBN 978 0 297 85261 2).
The Historia Novella of William of Malmesbury, ed. by K. R.
Potter (Nelson, 1955).
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Hollister, C. Warren, Henry 1 (Yale University Press, 2001, ISBN 0 300 08858 2).
Huntingdon, Henry of, The History of the English People 1000–
1154, trans. from the Latin by Diana Greenway (Oxford University Press, 2002 edn, ISBN 0 19284075 4).
The Letters and Charters of Gilbert Foliot, ed. by Adrian Morey and C. N. L. Brooke (Cambridge University Press, 1967).
Norgate, Kate, England under the Angevin Kings, Volume 1
(Elibron Classics, ISBN 1 4212 5984 2).
Tyerman, Christopher, Who’s Who in Early Medieval England (Shepheard Walwyn, 1996, ISBN 0 85683 132 8).
Warren, W. L., Henry II (Eyre Methuen, 1977 edn, ISBN 0
413 38390 3).
Articles and Related Items
Brown, R. Allen, Castle Rising Castle (guide book, English Heritage, ISBN 1 85074 159 X).
King, Alison, Akashic Record Consultant.
King, Edmund, “The Memory of Brian FitzCount,” The Haskins Society Journal, Vol. 13, 1999 (Boydell, 2002, ISBN
184383 050 7).
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an excerpt from
The Greatest
Knight
W hen William entered the Queen’s chambers in Poitiers, he was immediately struck by the familiar scents of cedar and sandalwood and by the opulent shades that Eleanor so loved: crimson and purple and gold. He drew a deep, savouring breath; he was home. Eleanor had been standing near the window talking to Guillaume de Tancarville but, on seeing William, she ceased the conversation and hastened across the chamber.
Somewhat stiffly, William knelt and bowed his head. Clara had shorn his hair close to his scalp to help rid him of the remainder of the lice and the air was cold on the back of his neck.
“William, God save you!” Eleanor stooped, took his hands and raised him to his feet, her tawny eyes full of concern.
“You’re as thin as a lance, and I was told that you had been grievously injured.”
“A spear in the thigh; it is almost healed, madam,” William replied, not wanting to dwell on his injury. “I am for ever in your debt for ransoming me.”
Eleanor shook her head. “There will be no talk of debt unless it is on my part. You and your uncle sacrificed yourselves for my freedom and I can never repay that. Patrick of Salisbury was my husband’s man, and did his bidding first, but he was honourable and courteous and I grieve his death. His murderers LadyofEnglish.indd 509
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will be brought to justice, I promise you that.” Behind Eleanor, de Tancarville made a sound of concurrence.
“Yes, madam,” William agreed, his mouth twisting. He had sworn an oath on his sword on the matter. Until the Lusignan brothers had taught him the meaning of hatred, he had harboured strong grudges against no man. Now he had that burden and it was as if something light had been taken from him and replaced with a hot lead weight.
“You have no lord now, William.” Eleanor drew him further into the room and bade him sit on a cushioned bench.
He did so gratefully for his leg was paining him and he had yet to regain his stamina.
“No, madam.” William glanced at Guillaume de Tancarville, who was watching him with an enigmatic smile on his lips.
William had half expected the Chamberlain to invite him to rejoin his household, but the older man remained silent. “It is the tourney season, and I still have Blancart. I can make my way in the world.”
De Tancarville’s smile deepened. “Are you sure about that?
You seem to have an unfortunate skill for losing destriers and putting yourself in jeopardy.”
“I would have done the same for you, my lord, were you in my uncle’s place,” William replied with quiet dignity, thereby wiping the humour from de Tancarville’s face.
“I’m sorry, lad. I should not have jested. Perhaps it’s because I know more about your future than you do. You won’t need to ride the tourney roads or accept a place in my mesnie.”
“My lord?” William gave him a baffled look; Eleanor shot him an irritated one, as if de Tancarville had given too much away.
“What my lord Tancarville is saying in his clumsy fashion is that I am offering you a place among my own household guard,” Eleanor said. “I will furnish you with whatever you need in the way of clothing and equipment…and horses should 510
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the need arise,” she added with a twitch of her lips. “It is more than charity. I would be a fool of the greatest order not to