Chapter 7: The Beowulf Lords of Anglesey
When a land loses a king, even one as cruel and foolish as the king of Mercia, the land revolts. The newly independent Derby was no different, as scores of vagabonds and criminals from the war ran from Mercian justice to the free forests. Earl Derby’s own vassals were much afraid and confused, not least because he had spent every coin they all had and used every farmer and worker to secure his own seat. Much needed to be done to restore the realm to order, and even beyond the borders of Mercia, many strange and wonderful things were happening. One such story I shall tell to you now.
It all began with a series of attempted kidnappings, highway robbery and general skulduggery on the road between Chester and Derby. The great Bishop of Halton was attacked, the most pious and powerful within the new earldom. Derby rounded up the villains and dispensed them with the just hand he would become renowned for.
There was much to be done still. Derby sat uneasily between two giants called Mercia and Northumbria. Northumbria was a harsh and unruly land by all measure, yet had dominated the seven kingdoms for many centuries. As there were lords within their midst who desired Derby’s lands, he had to be ever watchful of their movements.
To the south of course lay the Mercians. Defeated perhaps but by far the stronger presence to Derby. Old Offa may have died but his dreams of unifying the entire south east under his banner had not. Whilst the new king turned from the north in bitterness to greedily eye more tempting prizes, Derby would have a short while to build a force of his own to match his former king.
It was thus to the Britons that the Earl turned. A savage race of men, pushed by Mercian expansion far into the mountainous regions of the west. Yet Anglesey was a proud and wealthy kingdom, whom had at times blunted Offa’s great army in the days of Old Chester. If such a land could be made to bend, if just a little, a great deal could be gained from it. Of course, to get to the island, several other factions would need to be pushed out of the way. Powys was a kingdom that Offa’s Dyke was designed to keep out. Thus, it was with no small amount of bravery that Derby decided to war with them for tribute. The Briton army was quick to respond, marching straight over the earthen mound and towards Derby.
Chester remained the military power in those lands however, and so the Earl was able to raise his army there before moving to intercept the invaders at Chesterfield. The Britons, or the Welsh as they would become known, were fine archers. For over an hour, they frustrated Derby with constant barrages and skirmishes, felling many before he finally brought his heavy infantry into their midst. They fell back quickly and the battle was won, but both sides lost almost as many men due to the tactics on display. However, Powys could ill afford any lost men, whilst Chester had plentiful peasants to send to the field.
With Powys beaten back, Derby moved to occupy their lands beyond the Dyke. Swiftly it became apparent why hitherto Saxons had struggled in these parts. The land was rocky and mountainous, and where it was not, it was marshy and thickly covered in forest. Ambushes and treachery were rife. The weather was dismal. Powys’ army would have to be flushed into the open once again, and so Derby retreated back to Chester to resupply and rethink. His scouts reported however that they were being trailed by a growing body of Welshmen, and so Derby planned for two battles, one if they attacked before he reached Chester, and one if after. The Welsh began attacking at Macclesfield, and so battle commenced there soon after.
This time, Derby was wise to the Welshman’s tricks and whilst maintaining his shield wall, sent his own skirmishers and huntsmen around the flanks to entrap the enemy. Macclesfield saw far better gains to loses, with the enemy losing half their army and Derby only three score.
He had also managed to disperse the Welsh in many different directions far from their homeland, which he then marched into unimpeded. The weather had also improved. Soon, King Cadell’s halls were put to the torch and his crop sized by the men of Chester. There was more land and wealth to seize, but Derby did not wish to press his fortune too far in those treacherous and dismal lands. He returned to Chester, just in time to face the reformed remains of Powys one last time.
Cadell conceded defeat and promised to support and obey Derby, for as long as his strength and life held against his enemies. The Earl’s first victory in war was celebrated greatly, but there were storm clouds on the horizon that stilled the cheer within Chester. First, Wigberht, Derby’s son and heir, became very ill and infirm, and physically retired.
Second, the Earl of Yoredale had noted our war against the savages and pressed his claim to Chester with Derby away in Powys. If he brought the might of Northumbria, or even his own not inconsiderable force down upon Derby, the new realm would shatter before it had truly begun.
Second, the Earl of Yoredale had noted our war against the savages and pressed his claim to Chester with Derby away in Powys. If he brought the might of Northumbria, or even his own not inconsiderable force down upon Derby, the new realm would shatter before it had truly begun.
Third, Warwick remained a contention even without Mercia. The brother of the murdered child earl remained himself childless, and thus Derby stood to inherit all of his land and wealth. Naturally, this caused a great deal of tension between the two sides of the family, and might have proven an issue that the king himself would forcibly correct.
Again of course, hope springs eternal my dear listeners. The Earl’s vassals were slowly beginning to appreciate his rule. His wife became pregnant once again. The treasury began to fill with coin from Chester and with tribute from Powys.
Better still, the Karling child Old Chester had promised to Maria so long ago had suddenly and quite unexpectedly become King of the Franks, and now ruled a great empire that had not been seen since the days of Old.
And again, better still, the marriage contract specified that the man would take the maid’s family line for himself. As amazing as it sounded, the rather young family created by Old Chester would become the founder of not one but
two great kingdoms within Europe, due to this union, and be spread far and wide throughout the world. The birth of Cenraed months later only solidified the growing prominence and promise of this dynasty.
But forgive me. You do not wish for this history lesson on Francia, as interesting as it might be. You wish to now of Beowulf of Anglesey, the Great Bear Lords of Wales. Well, I shall tell you for it is a most fascinating tale.
You see, in those days on the Isles of Anglesey, a rather peculiar local tradition had arisen, possibly from old Germanic stories or other such ancient place, of the majesty of bears and their ilk. The mighty beasts had long since vanished from these shores, yet their memory and image remained. So, when a tribe of them appeared in the Irish Sea, it was treated in no small exaggeration, as an act of divine provenance. The people of the island wept with joy, and threw great parades and festivals upon the bear’s rescue from the seas. They named them, and their king adopted them into his hearth and home. As extraordinary as it sounds, they practically worshiped the creatures, and well they might. For these were gigantic things, larger even than the type found in Francia. Pure white of fur, powerful limbed and majestic brows, it is not so hard to imagine the simply folk of that time worshiping the ground at their paws.
But here my story gets even more extraordinary and amazing. For you see, when the old king died (under most violent of circumstances, I mark you!), they made the oldest male bear their king! Yes! Hywel, the Duke of Gwynedd, ruled the rich and prosperous land of Anglesey as what we called their Beowulf Lord.
What is most remarkable are the stories we heard, for we did war with these people in the days before Lancaster, and the Beowulf Lord was said to have enjoyed many games and magic tricks, though his temperament suggested a grave paranoia of his surroundings.
Naturally, when Derby received word of this, he set out to tribute or conquer these madmen of North Wales. Of course, that meant not only fighting in harsh conditions along the coast but also against a stronger power than Powys, and also fighting a skirmisher army backed up by dozens of great bears! Well! The war was one of such legend and absurdity that much has been said of it so I shall not recount it all here. Let it be said however that though Derby did in the end slaughter most of the Beowulf army, they put up an almighty fight. That grand Duke Hywel himself was a tough fighter and warrior by himself, felling many men and horses upon the battlefield.
Truly without the support of Welsh archers of our own, it is hard to say how the whole sorry tale might have ended. As it was, Anglesey could be pinned against the coast and thus far more effectively committed to battle than Powys. As destructive as that was for Chester’s population, Derby’s army became very proficient at fighting in the savage lands by war’s end.
At Holyhead on the isle of Anglesey itself, the final battle between a much reduced but well-bloodied Derby army crushed the remaining Welsh defenders, though at great cost. Derby lost one of his oldest, indeed, he was sixty-one at the time, commanders, and friend of Old Chester.
Another battle had to be fought on the island before victory was won. The Great Bear died of Rabies, caught perhaps in his many rampages through our lines. Derby was pleased with his second war for tribute, though the human cost had been greatly escalated by the presence of the bear lords. He thus spread out the remaining ones amongst the settlements in Anglesey, and placed the cub of Hywel upon his father’s throne.
With not only more money from his conquests but now a Bear Honour Guard and an experienced if diminished army, Derby looked elsewhere for further targets. However, the battlefield glory had led to personal revelation, and the Earl became far more spiritual than he had been before. He decided to pay off the Jewish moneylenders in Chester, and then take a pilgrimage before deciding what to do next. Thus ends the first part of the story of the Beowulfs, but as you are all well aware, it would not be the last of their adventurers in these lands.
