942-943 Conceal the Nor torians. Every historian is grievously tempted either 942-954 to colour out or to blot out whatever may displease his taste or contradict his views; perhaps the latter course is the safest and most honest, ments of Could the purest conscience or the clearest mind man histell the whole truth concerning our Civil wars in such a guise, that his narrative should be pleasant and profitable equally to Cavaliers and Roundheads? Compromise can never answer in such cases. Fancy a portrait of Charles Stuart, party per pale, Saint and Tyrant, both proper,-would such a likeness gratify either High Church or Nonconformity? This disagreeable incident in the life of Richard Sans Peur is completely ignored by the Father of Norman history, who, like all the other Norman writers, discreetly labours to suppress all examples of the struggling vitality yet retained by Pagan principles. Not a word of the young Duke's perversion appears in the invaluable memorials which we owe to Dudo's diligence. Dean Dudo and all his successors, whether in prose or verse, were thoroughly ashamed of this passage in the Norman annals, and resolved that Duke Richard's infantine adoption of pagan error should be considered as a thing which never had been. How anxious the Panegyrist was to maintain the Christian character of his patrons, may be gathered from the circumstance that he addresses Guillaume Longue 942-954 épée as a Holy Martyr. Our knowledge of Thormod's successful mission is solely derived from the 942-943 French historians, who, scoffing at the Leader of the Pirates, take a grim delight in bearing witness to his child's facility. Had it not been for the malicious sincerity of Frodoardus the monk of Rheims, and Richerius, the son of Louis d'Outremer's confidential officer, the whole transaction would have been buried in oblivion. Hugh-le- energy The boldness of the Danishry excited corresponding exertions on the part of Duke Hugh and of the King. Had the pagan Danes succeeded in effecting the occupation of Normandy, then the Duchy of France and the kingdom of France would have been equally jeopardized. The grandson of Robert-le-Fort rivalled his grandsire's strenuousness: Hugh waged such a rapid succession of conflicts with the enemy that the chroniclers have failed to number them. Skirmishes and forays kept up the continuity of warfare. The Danes were very stiff in the stour; Hugh-le-Grand, during his campaign, suffered great losses, nevertheless he retained his position steadily, and, favoured by his Christian partisans amongst the Romanized Danes, was enabled to establish himself in Evreux. Louis, on his part, directed his operations with the spirit and talent of a great Captain. Avenger of the murdered Guillaume, and Guardian, as he professed himself, of the infant Heir, he advanced into Normandy for the rescue of the young Rich- 942-954 ard and the re-establishment of Christianity. As he moved, borne before Imperial En- Louis was magnificent in the field. 942-943 the Rescue." Danes Louis and Sithric The Pagan Host, commanded by Thormod "Battle of and Sithric, was numbered by thousands.-Eight defeated by hundred full-armed knights constituted the nu- Thormod cleus of the army which Louis had assembled ;-slain. a formidable force in themselves, yet not sufficiently ample to enable him to outflank the enemy. He therefore concentrated his cavalry, and made the onslaught. A sanguinary battle ensued, terrible as any which a Carlovingian Monarch had ever waged. The Danes gave way before the charge. King Sithric fleeing, tried to conceal himself amongst the bushes in a spinney, but his VOL. II. A A 942-954 pursuers following the trail, found him out, and the spears of three French warriors dispatched the 942-943 crouching victim. Louis, at the head of his horsemen, rode over Thormod, and, galloping forwards without recognizing the man whom he had run down, attacked another Danish battalion. The elastic Thormod had, however, instantly curled up from the trampled turf-ground, unbruised and unharmed. His keener eye enabled him to mark the King, and, scurrying on with his companions, they assailed Louis in the rear. Whilst Louis was sabring to the right and to the left, Thormod ran at him behind, and thrusting at the King through the fault of his hauberk, wounded him dangerously under the shoulderblade; but Louis, quickly turning round, clave his adversary's skull. Hugh-le-Grand poured in also with his forces, and the Danes,-nine thousand miscreants, taking to their vessels, abandoned their enterprize. The French gloried in the slaughter. The Christian party having regained their preponderance, the regular order of things was fully restored. The Regents resumed their powers, Oslac, Raoul Torta, and Bernard the grey-beard: the latter, honoured and respected by all parties, was considered as the Stadt-holder. The "Battle of the its import ance. § 7. The locality where the armies met is Rescue" not ascertained, but the final conflict probably ensued somewhere nigh the Ponthieu Border. We will therefore designate the battle as the "Battle of the Rescue," for the result absolutely 942-943 liberated the young Richard from the grasp of 942-954 the Pagan Danes, and a battle without a name is unquotable in history. The tale is told to us in tones of triumph-the chroniclers exhibit unwonted animation in their brief details-The agile start of the overthrown assailant, and the fate of the skulking Viking—are incidents bestowing a romantic character upon the narrative, most rare in this period of dull though sanguinary hostility. A Christian King engaged in single combat, chasing the rascal heathens, and wielding his weapon in the midst of the melée, had performed achievements which revived the antient days of imperial glory. Oft and oft and desperately, had Charlemagne's fate-stricken lineage warred amongst themselves, brethren against brothers, uncles against nephews, and nephews against uncles, sons against fathers, and fathers against sons; but, how scantly had they measured their ineffectual swords against the weapons of the common enemy! During the sad interval of misfortune and misery which had elapsed between the death of Charlemagne and the "Battle of the Rescue," once only had the dreary annals of graceless dissension and national degradation been brightened in the plain of Saulcourt, when, as the Gleeman (See Vol. 1. sang, the blood rose in the cheeks of the Frankish soldiers, rejoicing in the sport of war. But the arm of the young hero of Saulcourt had been p. 575.) |