Men of Iron

Myles does not even register his first clash with the Sieur until he hears the roar of the crowd. He and the Sieur have each broken a lance. With renewed confidence, Myles proceeds to collect another lance. In their second charge, each knight once again breaks a lance against the other’s armor. The Sieur stops Myles before they collect their third and final lances. Speaking in French, which he knows Myles understands, he confesses that he thought Myles was going to compete like an inexperienced boy, not a seasoned knight. Since Myles has proven a worthy adversary, the Sieur will now attempt to unhorse Myles as in any other tournament. Myles takes a moment to warn the Sieur that the stitches in his girth and breastplate appear to be coming loose. The Sieur laughs, unconcerned, admitting that if they should fail him, it is only because Myles dealt a successful blow.

Collecting his final lance, Sir James says that Myles rides as if a knight for 20 years. Myles discloses that the Sieur means to unhorse him, and Sir James tasks him with striking the Sieur on his helmet, the most difficult but effective way to unseat an opponent. The former advances toward the Sieur once more, rattled by the strike of both lances. Myles is disoriented until he realizes his helmet has come off. He has unhorsed the Sieur, who is on the ground tangled in his tack. Despite his promise, the Sieur cries “I was not rightly unhorsed!,” claiming he fell because his saddle slipped. (180). Myles admits that the Sieur’s girth was compromised, but that he warned him of it before they began their final tilt. The Marshal calls the Sieur unknightly for complaining about something his opponent gave him the opportunity to fix. The Sieur, shamed, walks away. While Sir James congratulates Myles, he dismisses any doubts he might have, confirming it was Myles’s skill alone that won him the victory.

Myles takes two weeks to return to Crosbey-Dale to visit his parents for the first time in four years. There, Prior Edward provides even more background on the events surrounding Lord Falworth’s status as an outlaw. Myles’s father was not only council to King Richard II, but had encouraged the exile of Richard’s cousin, Henry IV. When Henry IV snuck back from exile, he deposed King Richard II. Myles sides with his father but understands why Henry IV might see his father as an enemy. Prior Edward agrees, as there is a difference between plotting someone’s murder, which Lord Falworth did not participate in, and simply disagreeing with someone’s right to the throne.

Serving in France, the last of Myles’s innocence disappears on the battlefield and in the cities where hedonism and vice reign. After six months, he is called to London by the Earl of Mackworth, who plans to send him to Henry, Prince of Wales, an enemy of his own father King Henry IV. Myles asks what the Earl hopes to gain through his victory against the Earl of Alban. The Earl of Mackworth wonders aloud what Lord George has said to Myles, but cannot deny that he has his own motivations beyond restoring the reputation of House Falworth. Myles would challenge Alban with or without the Earl’s support, but since the Earl stands to benefit, he asks for Lady Alice’s hand in marriage. The Earl agrees to consider it should Myles return his house to its former status.

Myles, Gascoyne, and the Earl of Mackworth travel to the court of Henry, Prince of Wales, notorious for its hedonism. Prince Henry has a reputation as a carouser who prefers sport and pleasure to his duties. He is warm and welcoming to Myles but makes it clear that he finds the Earl of Mackworth self-serving. In the month he spends with the prince who will one day be crowned King Henry V, Myles becomes a trusted confidant and kind of chaperone, accompanying Henry and his courtiers in their escapades, not judging, but never participating, earning him the affectionate nickname “Saint Myles.” Privately, Henry shares with Myles that his lifestyle does not reflect his true character. Amidst his mutual animosity with his father, Henry is intentional in the way he conducts himself as an heir. In cultivating a reputation for being lackadaisical, Henry has created the impression that he poses little threat to his father. Privately, Henry engages in maneuvers like supporting Myles, slowly chipping away at Henry IV’s power.

The Earl of Mackworth arranges for an audience with the King during which he has ensured the Earl of Alban will be present. He summons Lord Falworth to London, and informs Prince Henry that it is time for Myles to confront the enemy of House Falworth. Myles immediately recognizes the Earl of Alban, who is shocked to see Lord Falworth. The King is confused, saying he thought he was going to see the man he knighted at Devlen Castle. The Earl of Mackworth confirms Myles is he, and that Lord Falworth is his father. Alban eagerly reminds the King of Lord Falworth’s relationship with King Richard II and his concealment of Sir John Dale, who plotted against Henry IV’s life. The Bishop of Winchester reminds the King that Lord Falworth was labeled a traitor without the fairness of a hearing to determine his guilt or innocence. Myles’s father denies any part in the plot to kill the King, asserting that the prejudice against him stems from the lies perpetuated by Alban. Lord Falworth asks for justice, declaring that he has a champion who can prove his innocence. Myles steps forward and identifies himself as this champion, asking the King for the opportunity to defend the truth. Myles formally accuses Alban of lying, issuing a challenge of combat. The King accuses the Earl of Mackworth of orchestrating these events; he resents what he perceives as manipulation, but allows the challenge. He orders Lord Falworth arrested and imprisoned until his innocence or guilt is established.

Hearings begin, during which Lord Falworth is represented by legal counsel provided by the Earl of Mackworth. The court leans in Lord Falworth’s favor, believing enough evidence exists to call his guilt into question, accepting Myles as an appropriate champion, and recommending that the King allow a trial by combat. The King is embittered by the decision, and word comes to Myles that the King has decided he will allow Myles to be killed in the fight, but will intervene however he can to prevent the Earl of Alban from the same fate. Throughout the period of preparation, Prince Henry is Myles’s constant companion, remaining at his side to provide advice and support. Henry is impressed by Myles’s maturity and the faith he has in his ability to defeat Alban on the basis of his father’s innocence. On the morning of the duel, Henry escorts Myles to church, where the prince’s own priest prays over him. Prince Henry’s court all turn out for breakfast to dine with Myles and show their support. Before the battle commences, Henry arranges for Myles to see his father, mother, and Prior Edward, the latter two having come to stay with the imprisoned Lord Falworth. Myles chooses Gascoyne and Sir James as his squires, and Prince Henry lends six of his own knights to escort him to the battlegrounds.

Myles presents himself to a representative of the High Court of Chivalry and rides forward to appear before the King, with Gascoyne by his side. He sees his supporters in the stands—Prince Henry and his courtiers, as well as Lord Falworth himself, flanked on either side by the Earl of Mackworth and Sir James. Alban appears, and the legal proceedings begin with the recitation of the charges in question, the rules of combat, and the swearing of oaths. Gascoyne begins final checks of Myles’s armor as an officiant appears to hear Myles speak the final oath, that he harbors no concealed weapons.

Each combatant has his weapons examined—which include a mace, a dagger, a long sword, and a short sword. However, Alban petitioned the King to have the customary lance replaced with a hand-gisarm, a long, crescent-shaped handled blade. This change places Myles at a significant disadvantage, as the weapon has fallen out of fashion and younger knights are no longer trained in it. Myles and Gascoyne pause for a moment to clasp hands before the battle begins.

The battle begins with both men riding toward each other, Myles fighting with the long sword and Alban with the hand-gisarm. There is excitement among Myles’s supporters as he proves to have the upper hand against the older man. Myles continues to advance, successfully dealing blow after blow, and the Earl of Mackworth cries out in frustration, wondering why Myles is showing restraint. The younger is indeed holding back, feeling at such a great advantage that he can afford the chivalrous gesture of prolonging the battle to allow Alban to save face and continue fighting. The men pause, several paces away, and Myles, acknowledging that Alban is wounded, asks if Alban will concede the fight. Furious, Alban charges Myles, who deflects his hand-gisarm; the weapon instead strikes the neck of Alban’s horse, causing it to fall forward. In its momentum, Alban’s horse tramples Myles’s horse. Myles’s foot catches in one of his stirrups, and he falls to the ground. Just as he had with Myles’s father decades before, Alban deliberately rides over Myles’s body. Under the weight of his armor, Myles is left helpless on the ground as Alban turns his horse and advances toward him again. Myles hefts his shield aloft as Alban strikes at him with the hand-gisarm, cutting through Myles’s armor and chopping into his shoulder, and then again beneath his arm. Mustering all his strength, Myles grabs the handle of the weapon and uses the leverage of Alban’s struggle to pull himself to his feet. Holding onto Alban’s horse, adrenaline numbing him to the pain of his wounds, Myles grapples against Alban’s saddle to wrest the mace from its mounting. He swings the great weapon against Alban’s head three times until his helmet is broken; his opponent is knocked to the ground with his skull crushed. Attendants and officiants rush to Myles’s side as he continues to cling to Alban’s horse, certain he is dying.

Myles’s wounds are not imminently fatal, and as it is safe for him to travel, he is taken to Scotland Yard at Prince Henry’s command—where the Prince’s personal surgeon cares for him with the help of his apprentice and Gascyone. For months, Myles is forced to convalesce, attended by Gascyone, his mother, Prior Edward, and Sir James as fever wracks his body to combat an infection. Before Prior Edward returns to Crosbey-Dale, Myles asks a question which has been plaguing his conscience: He wonders if it was a sin to have killed his father’s enemy, making a distinction between the death of Alban and the killing he participated in while at war. Prior Edward assures him that because he fought for another, and in defense of that person’s honor, his actions are virtuous.

The Earl of Mackworth visits Myles, and Myles reminds him of the promise he made to consider him as a suitor for Lady Alice. The Earl assures him that he has won her hand, moved almost to tears by Myles’s happiness at the news. King Henry IV, embittered by the defeat of Alban, refuses to return the ancestral lands of the Falworths, despite the fact that the establishment of Lord Falworth’s innocence demands it. Amidst his stubbornness, the ill King dies. Henry V is crowned King of England, and promptly restores Myles’s rightful inheritance. When Myles returns home to Falworth Castle with Lady Alice as his wife, he is welcomed by Sir James and Sir Francis Gascoyne, who has been knighted in recognition of his unwavering loyalty to Myles.