Michael JECKS: The Oath

Aketon– a thick tunic, originally padded or quilted, that was worn over the shirt but underneath a man-at-arms’ hauberk.

Alaunt– a hunting dog, like a greyhound but larger, with a broad head and shorter snout. Known for their ferocity, these dogs were used to hunt big game, even bears.

Ambler– horses for gentle riding were trained to ‘amble’, swinging both left legs together, then both right legs.

Amerce– a financial penalty that was a type of bond. For example, a man would be ‘amerced’ to attend court, and if he failed to appear, the sum was his fine.

Attach– to secure a man’s attendance at court by means of sureties.

Berner– the attendant in charge of hounds.

Centaine– a unit of men-at-arms in the King’s host: a hundred men.

Chevauchée– a technical military term, generally meaning to ride out and pillage an area.

Deodand– a tax, based on the value of a murder weapon, payable as a fine. This tax remained in force until the nineteenth century, when railway companies complained at the value of entire trains being levied for accidental homicides!

Fosser– the sexton, a gravedigger.

Garbage– animal offal used for food.

Guyenne– that part of France still ruled by the British King: Aquitaine, Anjou, etc.

Hainaulter– man from Hainault in Flanders.

Hauberk– the mail shirt that was worn over the aketonbut beneath the pair of plates.

Heriot– a fine of the best beast, rendered to a serf’s lord when the serf died.

Hobelar– armed man who rode upon a ‘hobby’, a small riding horse.

Kennel– the central gulley or gutter in a medieval street.

Leyrwite– this was the fine imposed on women for adultery or sexual incontinence.

Lurdan– a term of opprobrium – a sluggard, a laggard, a dimwit.

Mastiff– a large dog, used as a guard and sometimes for baiting.

Murdrum– the fine imposed on a villwhen none could prove ‘Englishry’ for a corpse. It had been a means of fining the English rebels after the Norman invasion, and was imposed when a body was thought to be Norman, as a way of punishing the community.

Pair of Plates– a form of body armour made by fixing overlapping plates of steel to the inside of a cloth or leather tunic. It was worn over the mail hauberk.

Palfrey– a small to medium-sized horse noted for its comfort.

Posse Comitatus– the force of the county, available to keep the peace or help hunt down felons.

Rache– a running dog, which we would probably call a greyhound today.

Rounsey– the common horse for general use: also used as a warhorse by men-at-arms, and as a packhorse.

Schiltrom– troops drawn up in battle order.

Vill– a territorial unit, comprising a number of houses and the land adjacent, which was the basic unit of administration under feudal law.

Vingtaine– a military unit of twenty men.

Sir Baldwin de Furnshill– Keeper of the King’s Peace, Baldwin was once a Templar, but now seeks a quiet life in Devon.

Simon Puttock– Baldwin’s closest friend, Simon has worked with him on many murder investigations.

Margaret (Meg)– Simon’s wife.

Peterkin (Perkin)– Simon and Margaret’s son.

Hugh– Simon’s long-suffering servant.

Rob– son of a prostitute in Dartmouth, Rob has become Simon’s servant too.

Jack– a young fellow accompanying Baldwin.

NOBLES

King Edward II– King of England.

Edward, Duke of Aquitaine, (also Earl of Chester)– the King’s eldest son, the future Edward III, who was never made a prince.

Sir Hugh le Despenser– Sir Hugh ‘The Younger’, the closest adviser to the King, his best friend, and alleged lover. Known for his outrageous greed and ambition.

Earl Hugh of Winchester– Sir Hugh’s father, known as ‘The Elder’, a loyal servant of King Edward I, but a man keen to enrich himself.

Queen Isabella– wife to the King, and figurehead of the rebellion against him.

Sir Roger Mortimer– lover to Queen Isabella and, with her, leader of the rebels.

Sir Ralph of Evesham– a knight in the service of the King.

Sir Charles of Lancaster– formerly a loyal servant of Earl Thomas of Lancaster, now he is in the service of the King.

BRISTOL

Arthur Capon– a wealthy burgess in Bristol.

Madame Capon– wife to Arthur.

Petronilla– Arthur’s daughter.

Cecily– maidservant to the Capon family.

Squire William de Bar– husband of Petronilla.

Father Paul– priest who became Petronilla’s lover.

Emma Wrey– widow of a successful merchant in Bristol.

Sir Stephen Siward– Coroner in Bristol.

Sir Laurence Ashby– the Constable of Bristol Castle.

Thomas Redcliffe– a merchant of Bristol ruined by pirates.

Roisea Redcliffe– Thomas’s wife.

SOLDIERS

Robert Vyke– a serf brought into the King’s host.

Otho– Sergeant from Vyke’s vill.

Herv Tyrel– a friend to Vyke.

Walerand of Guildford– also Walerand the Tranter, a carter pressed into the King’s service to help transport goods for the troops.

The idea for this book has had a lengthy gestation. It all began when I picked up an Everyman edition of The Old Yellow Book , which was the source for Robert Browning’s The Ring and the Book . It is not an easy book to read, because it revolves around a series of legal documents, but for a novelist it is sheer gold dust!

Browning’s piece is a poetic reworking of a story he discovered while staying in Florence in 1860. As he tells it, he was wandering round the Piazza of San Lorenzo, past a bookseller in a booth, when the soiled old yellow tome caught his eye. He bought it and took it home, where he devoured it, translating the full story over a number of days.

The book gave the record of an astonishing murder case from 1698 – the assassination of an entire family. The vile behaviour of both groom and father-in-law, set beside the misery of the poor girl-bride and her pathetic lover, were as absorbing as any Shakespearean tragedy, and I could not put it out of my mind, trying to figure out how best to use it in one of my novels.

However, it was only when looking at that other wonderfully dysfunctional family – that of King Edward II and his wife Queen Isabella – that the comparison between the two families struck a chord, and I had to go and look up Browning’s source again. Pretty soon it was clear to me that this was the book I wanted to write. There are changes, however, so anyone familiar with Browning’s work can relax – there is no way they will guess how my story ends!