Men of Iron

“[…] Myles had pictured the Earl receiving him as the son of his one-time comrade in arms—receiving him, perhaps, with somewhat of the rustic warmth that he knew at Crosbey-Dale; but now as he stared at those massive walls from below, and realized his own insignificance and the greatness of this great Earl, he felt the first keen, helpless ache of homesickness shoot through his breast, and his heart yearned for Crosbey-Holt again.”

Though he is the son of a lord, Myles was ousted from his family’s castle at a young age and has had a much more provincial upbringing than those he will encounter at Devlen Castle. In his isolation (having mostly socialized with the monks of St. Mary’s Priory and the local children), Myles has no experience with the politics of noble life and the extent of some nobles’ power. His innocence reflects the purity of his moral conscience and his presumption that others are equally committed to chivalry.

“I tell thee truly and of a verity I did feel warm towards thee from the first time I saw thee sitting like a poor oaf upon the bench up yonder in the anteroom, an now of a sooth I give thee assurance that I do love thee as my own brother. Yea, I will take the dagger, and will stand by thee as a true friend from this time forth.”

Generosity was considered one of the greatest tenets of chivalry. When Myles purchases an ornamental dagger for fellow squire Francis Gascoyne (despite having only known him for a short amount of time), it is not the material value of the weapon which inspires Gascoyne’s loyalty, but Myles’s kindness. This is the moment which solidifies the boys’ lifelong friendship. Myles will face cruelty and deception over the course of the novel, but Gascoyne never wavers in his support of his best friend.

“‘I tell thee, Francis,’ […] ‘I tell thee I will never serve them. Prithee, what shame can be fouler than to do such menial service, saving for one’s rightful Lord? […] I judge not for thee. […] Thou art used to these castle ways, but I only know that I will not serve them though they be thirty against me instead of thirteen.’”

Myles’s fellow squires are conditioned to the culture and customs of Devlen Castle, and thus accept the older bachelors’ orders and abuse. Myles has never experienced peer pressure, but it has no effect on him nonetheless. His sense of self-preservation is rooted not in ensuring his personal safety, but in maintaining his integrity and pride despite potential consequences.

“It is sometimes no shame to be outlawed and banned. Had it been so, I would not have told thee thereof, nor have bidden thee send my true love to thy father, as I did but now. […] I sent for thee to tell thee that it behoovest thee to say not one single word concerning him to any of these new friends of thine, nor who he is, nor what he is.”

One of Men of Iron’s themes is young people coming of age, discovering how their actions affect others, and better understanding the complicated intricacies and nuances of life. Myles knows very little about why his father was sent into exile when he comes to Devlen Castle, and as a result, doesn’t understand the greater conflict at hand. His resentment of the Earl of Mackworth and Sir James Lee’s silence regarding Lord Falworth’s exile is rooted in his inflexible moral code.

“‘Thou art a fool!’ said the old knight, smiling faintly, ‘for that be’st not courage, but folly. When one setteth about righting a wrong, one driveth not full head against it, for in so doing one getteth naught but hard knocks. Nay, go deftly about it, and then, when the time is ripe, strike a blow.’”

Sir James’s advice foreshadows Myles’s later challenge of the Earl of Alban, the enemy of his father. Like his father, Myles is surrounded by enemies, but in his youthful, tenacious desire for justice, he acts impulsively, not considering the consequences of standing up to the bachelors alone. Over the course of Men of Iron, Myles develops the patience required to ensure his success, even if he is often frustrated by the need to show restraint.

“He was now (more than a month had passed) looked upon by nearly if not all of the younger lads as an acknowledged leader in his own class. So one day he broached a matter to Gascoyne that had for some time been digesting in his mind. It was the formation of a secret order, calling themselves the ‘Knights of the Rose,’ their meeting place to be the chapel of the Brutus Tower, and their object to be the righting of wrongs, ‘as they,’ said Myles, ‘of Arthur and his Round-table did right wrongs’.”

Men of Iron incorporates many references to the legendary King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. As a character who is meant to model chivalry and morality, Myles’s founding of the Knights of the Rose creates a bridge between the early 14th century and the late 19th century. Both Myles and the young Victorian reader, though separated by 500 years, share an understanding of the values and virtues espoused by the Arthurian court.

“He addressed the other with straightforward vim and earnestness, but the response was only half-hearted, and when at last, having heated himself up with his own fire, he sat down, puffing out his red cheeks and glaring round, a space of silence followed, the lads looked doubtfully at one another. Myles felt the chill of their silence strike coldly on his enthusiasm, and it vexed him.”

At first, Myles does not judge the other Knights of the Rose for hesitating to act against the bachelors, but as time passes and he sees further evidence of the bachelors’ abuse, he decides he cannot endure watching any more squires be exploited. In this quote, Myles hopes his fellow Knights will finally support him in challenging the bachelors, but is frustrated when they fail to show enthusiasm for his cause. This scene is one of many which highlight Myles as an exception to the rule—a particularly brave and virtuous young man who cares more for justice than self-preservation.

“After the first excitement of the meeting, discussing, and deciding had passed, Myles began to feel the weight of the load he had so boldly taken upon himself. He began to reckon what a serious thing it was for him to stand as a single champion against the tyranny that had grown so strong through years of custom. Had he let himself do so, he might almost have repented, but it was too late now for repentance. He had laid his hand to the plough, and he must drive the furrow.”

Although the Knights of the Rose agree to ensure that Myles is not unfairly overpowered when he challenges the bachelors, he will stand alone against them. Though he acts virtuously, Myles often does so impulsively; however, he at least has the courage and integrity to follow through with his promises. He is afraid of being hurt by the bachelors, but feels that backing down from his challenge would be far more injurious to his pride and future standing among the squires.

“…see ye not that they grow as bad as ever? An we not put a stop to this overmastery now, it will never stop. […] I want those bachelors to hear this: that we squires serve them no longer, and if they would ha’ some to wait upon them, they must get them otherwheres than here. There be twenty of us to stand against them and haply more, and we mean that they shall ha’ service of us no more.”

Myles’s declaration is addressed to all the squires but meant to be heard by the bachelors too. He is asked by both Sir James and Gascoyne why he cannot abide the custom of waiting upon the bachelors. Myles is never able to fully articulate why it angers him, but says he feels compelled to right this wrong.

“Thou art a coward caitiff, Walter Blunt!’ burst out Wilkes, who stood with a swelling lump upon his head, already as big as a walnut. ‘Well thou knowest that Falworth is no match for thee at broadsword play. Is he not four years younger than thou, and has thou not had three times the practice in arms that he hath had? I say thou art a coward to seek to fight with cutting weapons.’”

The concept of a fair fight often comes up in Men of Iron. Chief Bachelor and Head Squire Walter Blunt conceals a dagger when he and Myles grapple in the dormitory, and then insists on armored combat (which gives him an unfair advantage) when he and Myles fight again. Later on, the Earl of Alban petitions to be able to use a weapon he knows Myles is unfamiliar with during their fight. The heroes of the novel openly object to these attempts to lie and twist circumstances, educating the reader in righteous behavior.

“Every season has its pleasures for boys, and the constant change that they bring is one of the greatest delights of boyhood’s days. All of us, as we grow older, have in our memory pictures of bygone times that are somehow more than usually vivid, the colors of some not blurring by time as others do. One of which, in remembering, always filled Myles’s heart in after-years with an indefinable pleasure, was the recollection of standing with others of his fellow squires in the crisp brown autumn grass of the paddock […].”

Howard Pyle’s narrative style includes reflections on the passage of time in the life of a young man. As Men of Iron is a coming-of-age story written for young readers, Pyle deviates from the chronological telling of Myles’s adventure to explain the boy’s many transitions from a broader perspective.

“Then he told the two young ladies not only of his adventures upon the windmill, but also of other boyish escapades, and told them well, with a straightforward smack and vigor, for he enjoyed adventure and loved to talk of it. In a little while he had regained his ease; his shyness and awkwardness left him, and nothing remained but the delightful fact that he was really and actually talking to two young ladies, and that with just as much ease and infinitely more pleasure than could be had in discourse with his fellow squires.”

Before their unexpected meeting in the garden, Myles, though 15 years old, has never had the opportunity to speak with young women such as Lady Anne and Lady Alice. Still, Myles finds his rhythm and becomes genuinely happy to be in the company of the ladies. Chivalric codes of courtly behavior, admired in both the medieval and Victorian periods, emphasized gentility and grace in interactions between men and women, and Myles falls into this rhythm with ease.

“‘Nay,’ said he, stoutly. ‘I be nor Lord and I be no Prince, but I be as good as thou. For am I not the son of thy onetime very true comrade and thy kinsman—to wit, the Lord Falworth, whom, as thou knowest, is poor and broken, and blind, and helpless, and outlawed, and banned? Yet,’ cried he, grinding his teeth, as the thought of it all rushed in upon him, ‘I would rather be in his place than in yours; for though he be ruined […] Thou art attainted with shame.’”

When the Earl of Mackworth catches Myles in the ladies’ garden, it is the first opportunity for Myles to speak openly to the Earl. Myles does not allow age or an imbalance of power hinder his expression; when he feels he must speak boldly and plainly, he does so. Prior to this quote, Myles has gradually learned more about the circumstances of his father’s exile and takes pride in his father’s integrity despite his reduced station. When he tells the Earl that he would rather be in his father’s place, he aligns himself with integrity over self-preservation.

“In that flash he fully recognized, and for the first time, this strange and wonderful forbearance the great Earl had shown to him, a poor obscure boy. What did it mean? Was Lord Mackworth his secret friend, after all, as Gascoyne had more than once asserted? So Myles stood silent, thinking many things. […] As Myles crossed the dark and silent courtyards, and looked up at the clear, still twinkle of the stars, he felt a kind of dull wonder that they and the night and the world should see so much the same, and he be so different. The first stroke had been given that was to break in pieces his boyhood life—the second was soon to follow.”

Twice the Earl of Mackworth shows Myles mercy, first in ignoring his boldness in the garden, and then when Myles writes to Lady Alice. As Myles matures over the course of Men of Iron, one of the most poignant lessons he learns is how to consider what others are communicating through their actions and inaction; Myles is bold and uncompromising in his morality and expectations of others, until he begins to appreciate the virtues of having patience and reserving judgement.

“And so ended Myles Falworth’s boyhood. Three years followed, during which he passed through that state which immediately follows boyhood in all men’s lives—a time when they are neither lads nor grown men, but youths passing from one to the other period through what is often an uncouth and uncomfortable age. He had fancied, when he talked with Gascoyne in the [Brutus Tower] that time, that he was to become a man all at once; he felt just then that he had forever done with boyish things. But that is not the way it happens in men’s lives. […] Nevertheless, there was a great and vital change in his life; a change which he hardly felt or realized.”

Pyle interjects observations throughout Men of Iron to both move the plot forward and acknowledge Myles’s growth. Myles has a dear friend in Gascoyne and a dedicated mentor in Sir James, but his early years set a tone of isolation in the way he conceives himself and his place in the world—and in this quote, he is overwhelmed by the notion of himself in relation to his place in the world.

“‘Francis, I will never forget thee!” answered Myles, pressing his friend’s hand. ‘I will always love thee better than any one in the world, saving only my mother and father.’ […] How canst thou think to serve me as squire? Thou wilt be a knight thyself some day, Francis, and why dost thou now wish to be my squire?’

‘Because,’ said Gascoyne, with a short laugh, “I would rather be in thy company as a squire than in my own as a knight, even if I might be a banneret.’”

Myles and Gascoyne both reflect the ideals of chivalry despite how different they are in personality and temperament. The scene in which Gascoyne asks to be Myles’s squire encapsulates their chivalric values: Gascoyne is willing to sacrifice personal gain to remain with Myles and assist in his mission, while Myles looks out for his friend’s future and does not want him to miss opportunities for advancement.

“In Myles Falworth’s day one of the greatest ceremonies of courtly life was the bestowal of knighthood by the King, with the honor of the Bath. By far the greater number of knights were at that time created by other knights, or by nobles, or by officers of the crown. To be knighted by the King in person distinguished the recipient for life. It was this signal honor that the ear, for his own purposes, wished Myles to enjoy, and for this end he had laid not a few plans.”

Myles embodies the chivalric and courtly values associated with the ideal knight. In structuring the narrative to include the Ceremony of the Bath, Pyle not only integrates the Earl of Mackworth’s scheme to involve the King in Myles’s knighting ceremony, but places Myles apart from other knights with the exclusive, holy nature of the ceremony. The ceremony compliments Myles’s moral purity.

“Myles had felt for a long time that he was being moulded and shaped, and that the Earl of Mackworth’s was the hand that was making him what he was growing to be; but he had never realized how great were the things expected of him should he pass the first great test and show himself what his friends hope to see him. Now he knew that all were looking upon him to act, sometime, as his father’s champion, and when that time should come, to challenge the Earl of Alban to the ordeal of single combat, to purge his father’s name of treason, to restore him to his rank, and to set the house of Falworth where it stood before misfortune fell upon it.”

Men of Iron gradually builds to the climax of the narrative—the battle between Myles and the Earl of Alban to absolve House Falworth of treason. As the story progresses, Myles slowly begins to appreciate not only the significance of the role he will play relative to his family, but the political reverberations which will accompany his victory.

“‘I swear to thee, by my faith, I had not thought to meet in thee such an opponent as thou dost prove thyself to be. I had thought to find in thee a raw boy but find instead a Paladin. Hitherto I have given thee grace as I would give grace to any mere lad, and thought of nothing but to give thee opportunity to break thy lance. Now I shall endeavor to unhorse thee as I would an acknowledged peer in arms. Nevertheless, on account of thy youth, I give thee this warning, so that thou mayst hold thyself in readiness.”

Pyle uses the observations of other characters (such as the Sieur) to impress upon the reader how exceptional Myles is in his skill and prowess as a knight. The Sieur’s decision to treat Myles as any other combatant is a testament to Myles’s competence—with him going back on his word further reinforcing the latter’s chivalry in comparison.

“‘Mine own dear boy,’ he said, holding him off at arm’s-length, and winking his one keen eye rapidly, as though to wink away a dampness of which he was ashamed—‘mine own dear boy I do tell thee truly this is as sweet to me as though thou wert mine own son; sweeter to me than when I first broke mine own lance in triumph, and felt myself to be a right knight.”

During his three years of intensive training, Myles is frustrated by the lack of positive feedback from Sir James. Sir James constantly advises Myles, but rarely praises his progress—so when the gruff knight offers this rare gesture of affection, Myles is moved. The relationship between mentor and mentee is secretly warm, but contrasts with Myles and Gascoyne’s open affection.

“A little space of silence followed, during which the earl sat musingly, half absently, regarding the tall, erect, powerful young figure standing before him, awaiting his pleasure in motionless, patient, almost dogged silence. The strong, sinewy hands were clasped and rested upon the long heavy sword, around the scabbard of which the best was loosely wrapped, and the plates of mail caught and reflected in flashing, broken pieces, the bright sunlight from the window behind.”

Pyle continues to interject reflections on Myles’s growth throughout the narrative, describing changes in his mindset and physicality. The moment in which the Earl of Mackworth sees Myles for the first time since the young knight’s time in France is his most dramatic change. His body is physically stronger, and his stature is more imposing, conveying a formidable decorum hard won on the battlefield.

“I, the son of the accused, do offer myself as champion to this cause, beseeching thee of thy grace leave to prove the truth of the same, being a belted knight by thy grace and of thy creation and the peer of any who weareth spurs.’ Thereupon, rising, he drew his iron gauntlet from his girdle, and flung it clashing down upon the floor, and with his heart swelling within him with anger and indignation and pity of his blind father, he cried, in a loud voice, ‘I do accuse thee, William of Alban, that thou liest vilely as aforesaid, and here cast down my gage, daring thee to take it up.’”

This speech—delivered by Myles before the King, the Earl of Mackworth, his father, and his father’s sworn enemy, the Earl of Alban—constitutes a pivotal moment in the story, wherein Myles embraces his destiny to restore his family’s honor. His eloquent, formal tone starkly contrasts with the frustrated, impulsive outbursts of his younger self. Though he is more composed, Myles is just as committed to justice and truth as he was when he first refused to carry water for the bachelors, willing to stand alone against the tyrannical use of power for personal gain in defense of autonomy and dignity.

“Myles had three times given his enemy grace when victory was almost in his very grasp. He had three times spared him, in spite of all he and those dear to him must suffer should his cruel and merciless enemy gain the victory. It was a false and foolish generosity, partly the fault of his impulsive youth—more largely of his romantic training in the artificial code of French chivalry. He felt that the battle was his, and so he gave his enemy three chances to recover, as some chevalier or knight-errant of romance might have done, instead of pushing the combat to a mercifully speedy end—and his foolish generosity cost him dear.”

The term “fool” is used many times throughout the novel to describe Myles, generally with respect to his impulsive or reckless behavior. Despite having matured prior to his battle with the Earl of Alban, Myles still maintains some of his foolishness, acting with reservation rather than impulse. Myles always abides by the notion of a fair fight. He tries to act fairly, but Alban and the King place him at a disadvantage (by allowing the use of a hand-gisarm instead of a typical lance). Realizing he is the better fighter; Myles allows the Earl of Alban to save face—and it nearly costs him his life.