The Fall of Acre by Seamus O’Griffin

Author:Seamus O’Griffin [O’Griffin, Seamus]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781622740956
Publisher: n/a
Published: 2015-02-15T05:00:00+00:00

Sixteen

Acre / May 4, 1291

I escorted Master de Beaujeu to the harbor to greet the arrival of the king. Word had reached us early on the morning of the 4th of May that a fleet had arrived bringing much needed reinforcements. Master de Beaujeu was pleased to know Henry II had brought the rest of his army from Cyprus and insisted we go and greet him. As we pushed our column into the harbor area, I began to count the newly arrived ships. De Beaujeu noticed and asked, “How many ships, Ronan?”

“Forty, my lord.”

“That is all? You are sure?”

I counted them again, all were flying the king’s colors. “Yes, my lord, forty.”

De Beaujeu turned in his saddle and asked Marshal de Severy, who also accompanied us, “Peter, how many men do you think forty ships will hold?”

De Severy pointed to the harbor and said, “Master, four of those ships are horse transports. Mayhap a hundred mounted knights or men-at-arms, no more than two thousand or so spearmen. Not nearly enough, my lord. Not nearly enough.”

De Beaujeu grunted his disappointment. “Lead us to His Majesty, Ronan.”

I did as commanded, forcing a passage from atop our horses through the throngs of onlookers. We received word that the king was already ensconced in his residence in the Castle of the Constable and so turned our mounts north and east, eventually reaching the gates to the compound some thirty minutes later.

Our men were ushered into the yard of the castle and allowed to dismount while I accompanied the master and Marshal de Severy into the great hall of the fortress.

The king did not stand on ceremony but rather stepped down off the dais when he saw us enter the hall. Guards in tow, he swept down the hall and greeted Master de Beaujeu warmly. The two gave each other the kiss of peace and then, without preamble, Henry said, “Guillaume, I am sorry. I brought what I could. There has been no word from the Pope.”

Master de Beaujeu nodded. “I had expected as much. We will do what must be done with what we have.”

The king signaled for his guards to clear a path and led our party from the hall to an anteroom nearby. The room was furnished with several trestles and benches and along one wall a fire crackled in a small hearth. After seeing that we were seated and had been served wine, Henry asked Master de Beaujeu, “Tell me, my lord, how bad is it?”

De Beaujeu turned to Marshal de Severy and said, “Peter, I believe it would be best if you answer His Grace.”

Marshal de Severy nodded, gulped his wine, and responded. “Your Grace, we are holding but just so. The outer enceinte is crumbling. All of the towers on the outer wall are damaged to some degree. The barbican that protects the Tower of the King is in danger of eminent collapse. It is being mined as we speak, as are most of the towers and gates of the outer wall.

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