The Manor of Death Read online

  Professor Bernard Knight, CBE, became a Home Office pathologist in 1965 and was appointed Professor of Forensic Pathology, University of Wales College of Medicine, in 1980. During his forty-year career with the Home Office, he performed over 25,000 autopsies and was involved in many high profile cases.

  Bernard Knight is the author of twenty-two novels, a biography and numerous popular and academic nonfiction books. The Manor of Death is the twelfth novel in the Crowner John series, following The Noble Outlaw, The Elixir of Death, Figure of Hate, The Witch Hunter, Fear in the Forest, The Grim Reaper, The Tinner’s Corpse, The Awful Secret, The Poisoned Chalice, Crowner’s Quest and The Sanctuary Seeker.

  Also by Bernard Knight

  The Sanctuary Seeker

  Crowner's Quest

  The Poisoned Chalice

  The Awful Secret

  The Tinner's Corpse

  The Grim Reaper

  Fear in the Forest

  The Witch Hunter

  Figure of Hate

  The Elixir of Death

  The Noble Outlaw

  The Manor of Death

  Bernard Knight

  LONDON * NEW YORK * TORONTO * SYDNEY

  First published in Great Britain by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd, 2008

  A CBS company

  Copyright © Bernard Knight, 2008

  This book is copyright under the Berne Convention No reproduction without permission

  ® and © 1997 Simon & Schuster Inc. MI rights reserved Pocket Books & Design is a registered trademark of Simon & Schuster Inc

  The right of Bernard Knight to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright! Designs and Patents Act, 1988.

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  A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

  ISBN 978-0-7432-9-499-7

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

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  Acknowledgements

  I would like to thank Dr John Morgan Guy of the University of Wales, Lampeter for his help on medieval religious matters and Mr Ted Gosling, the Secretary of the Axe Valley Heritage Association, for his advice about Axmouth and Seaton in ancient times - and to Gillian Holmes and Kate Lyall Grant for performing their usual editorial wonders.

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  Much of this story takes place in Axmouth in South Devon - not to be confused with Exmouth, a dozen miles to the west. Now a small and picturesque village, in former times Axmouth was one of the most important ports in the west of England, being situated on the then wide tidal estuary of the River Axe. One of the few natural harbours on that steep and rocky coast, it was an important Roman port, attested by their settlements in the vicinity. In fact, the Fosse Way, the great Roman road to Lincoln, began at Axmouth, with a spur to Exeter.

  In medieval times this port along the lower banks of the Axe was of prime importance for the shipment of tin, stone and especially wool, the last being England's most valuable export, accounting for the 'Woolsack' still being the seat of the Lord Chancellor when presiding over the House of Lords. Unfortunately, in the fourteenth century the wide entrance to the estuary began to be blocked by a huge pebble bank and, in spite of many efforts over hundreds of years to remove it, the harbour became unusable. The size of the estuary as seen today is only a vestige of how it would have appeared in Crowner John's time, when it extended several miles inland and was up to half a mile wide. The present village would have been far larger, and recent excavations have revealed the foundations of many more buildings.

  The 'Keepers of the Peace' described in the story were the forerunners of the present Justices of the Peace, first introduced in 1195 by Hubert WaIter, the Chief Justiciar to Richard the Lionheart, a year after he revived the office of coroner. Richard's castle of Chateau Gaillard, where some of the action takes place, was the finest example of military architecture in Europe, its ruins still standing above the Seine today. Unfortunately, he did not live to see its completion.

  One of the problems of writing a long series, of which this is the twelfth, is that regular readers will have become familiar with the background and main characters and may become impatient with repeated explanations in each book. However, new readers need to be 'brought up to speed' to appreciate some of the historical aspects, so a Glossary is offered with an explanation of some medieval terms, especially those relating to the functions of the coroner, one of the oldest legal offices in England.

  Any attempt to use 'olde worlde' dialogue in a historical novel of this period is as inaccurate as it is futile, for in late-twelfth-century Devon most people would have spoken Early Middle English, which would be incomprehensible to us today. Many others would have spoken a Celtic tongue similar to Welsh, Breton and Cornish, and the ruling classes used NormanFrench - while the language of the Church and virtually all writing was Latin.

  Almost all the names of people and places are authentic, the former being either real historical characters or taken from the Exeter Crown Pleas Roll of 1238. Unfortunately, though the sheriffs and senior churchmen are known, history does not record the names of the Devon coroners until the thirteenth century, so Sir John de Wolfe has to be a product of the author's imagination.

  The only' money in circulation would have been the silver penny, apart from a few foreign gold coins known as 'bezants'. The average wage of a working man was about two pence per day, and coins were cut into halves and quarters for small purchases. A 'pound' was 240 pence and a 'mark' was 160 pence, but these were nominal accounting terms, not actual coinage.

  GLOSSARY

  ABJURING THE REALM

  A sanctuary seeker, if he confessed his crime to the coroner, could abjure the realm of England, never to return. He had to dress in sackcloth and carry a crude wooden cross, then walk to a port nominated by the coroner and take the first ship abroad. If none was available, he had to wade out up to his knees in every tide to show his willingness to leave. Many abjurers absconded en route and became outlaws; others were killed by the angry families of their victims.

  ALE

  A weak drink brewed before the advent of hops. The name derived from an 'ale', a village celebration where much drinking took place. The words 'wassail' and 'bridal' are derived from this.

  AMERCEMENTS

  Arbitrary fines imposed on a person or community by a law officer for some breach of the complex regulations of the law. Where a fine was imposed by a coroner, he would record the amercement, but the collection of the money would normally be ordered by the royal justices when they visited at the Eyre (q.v.).

  APPROVER

  A criminal who attempted to save himself by implicating his accomplices. His confession had to be recorded by the coroner.

  ASSART

  An area where forest has been cut down to increase the amount of arable land.

  ATTACHMENT

  An order made by a law officer, including a coroner, to ensure that a person appeared at a court hearing. It resembled a bail bond or surety, distraining upon a person's money or goods, which would be forfeit if he failed to appear.

  BAILEY

  Originally the d
efended area around a castle keep, as in 'motte and bailey', but later also applied to the yard of a dwelling.

  BAILIFF

  An overseer of a manor or estate, directing the farming and other work. He would have manor reeves under him and be responsible either directly to his lord or to the steward.

  BONDSMAN

  An unfree person in the feudal system. Several categories, including villein, serf, cottar, etc.

  BURGAGE

  A plot of land, usually comprising a house and garden, in a town or city. Long and narrow at right angles to the street, it was often the property of a burgess.

  BURGESS

  A freeman of substance in a town or borough, usually a merchant or craftsman. A group of burgesses ran the town administration; and in 1195 they elected two portreeves (later a mayor) to lead them in Exeter.

  CANON

  A senior priest in a cathedral, deriving his living from the grant of a parish or land providing an income (a prebend). Exeter Cathedral, a secular not a monastic establishment, had twenty-four canons.

  CHAPTER

  The administrative body of a cathedral, composed of the canons (prebendaries). They met daily to conduct business in the chapter house, so-called because a chapter of the Gospels or of the Rule of St Benedict was read before each session.

  COB

  A plaster made of straw, clay, dung and horsehair which was applied to panels of willow or hazel withies, which filled the spaces between the frames of a house. Small cottages might be constructed entirely of cob.

  COG

  The common sea-going vessel of the 12th century, developed from the Norse longship, but broader and higher. With a single mast and square sail, it had no rudder but a steering oar on the 'steerboard' side. Partly decked with a hold, it was converted to a fighting ship by adding raised 'fore-castles' and 'after-castles' at bow and stern where bowmen and other soldiers could stand.

  COIF

  A close-fitting cap or helmet, usually of linen or felt, covering the ears and tied under the chin: worn by men and women.

  CONSTABLE

  A senior commander, usually the custodian of a castle, which in Exeter belonged to the king. The word was also used of a watchman who patrolled the streets to keep order.

  CORONER

  Though there are a couple of mentions of a coroner in late Saxon times, the office of coroner really began in September 1194, when the royal justices at their session in Rochester, Kent, proclaimed in a single sentence the launch of the system that has lasted for over 800 years. They said, 'In every county of the King's realm shall be elected three knights and one clerk, to keep the pleas of the Crown.'

  The reasons for the establishment of coroners were mainly financial: the aim was to sweep as much money as possible into the royal treasury. Richard the Lionheart was a spendthrift, using huge sums to finance his expedition to the Third Crusade and for his wars against the French. Kidnapped on his way home from the Holy Land, he was held for well over a year in prisons in Austria and Germany, and a huge ransom was needed to free him. To raise this money, his Chief Justiciar, Hubert Walter, who was also Archbishop of Canterbury, introduced all sorts of measures to extort money from the population of England.

  Hubert revived the office of coroner, which was intended to collect money by a variety of means relating to the administration of the law. One of these was by investigating and holding inquests into all deaths that were not obviously natural, as well as into serious assaults, rapes, house fires, discoveries of buried treasure, wrecks of the sea and catches of the royal fish (whale and sturgeon). Coroners also took confessions from criminals and fugitives seeking sanctuary in churches, organised abjurations of the realm (q.v.), recorded the statements of approvers (q.v.) who wished to turn King's Evidence, attended executions to seize the goods of felons, and organised the ritual of ordeals (q.v.) and trial by battle.

  As the Normans had inherited a multiple system of county and manorial courts from the Saxons, the coroner also worked to sweep more lucrative business into the new Royal Courts. This gave him the title of Keeper of the Pleas of the Crown, from the original Latin of which (custos placitorum coronas) the word 'coroner' is derived.

  Although the coroner was not allowed to try cases (this was later again specifically forbidden by Magna Carta), he had to create a record of all legal events to present to the royal justices when they came on their infrequent visits to the Eyre (q.v.). The actual recording on the 'coroner's rolls' was done by his clerk, as the coroners, like the vast majority of people, were illiterate. Reading and writing were almost wholly confined to those in holy orders, of whom there were many grades besides the actual priests.

  It was difficult to find knights to take on the job of coroner, as it was unpaid and the appointee had to have a large private income: at least £20 a year. This was supposed to make him immune from corruption, which was common among the sheriffs. Indeed, one reason for the introduction of coroners was to keep a check on sheriffs, who were the king's representatives in each county.

  COVER-CHIEF

  More correctly 'couvre-chef', a linen head cover flowing down the back and shoulders, worn by women and held in place by a band around the forehead. Called a head-rail in Saxon times.

  CURFEW

  The prohibition of open fires in towns after dark, for fear of starting conflagrations. The word is derived from 'couvre-feu', describing the extinguishing or banking down of fires at night. During the curfew, the city gates were closed from dusk to dawn. A thirteenthcentury mayor of Exeter was hanged for failing to ensure this.

  DESTRIER

  A sturdy warhorse able to carry the weight of an armoured knight. Destriers were not the huge beasts often portrayed in historical art; they were rather shortlegged, the rider's feet being not that far from the ground.

  EYRE

  A sitting of the King's Justices, introduced by Henry II in 1166, which moved around the country in circuits. There were two types, the 'Eyre of Assize', which was the forerunner of the later Assize Court, which was supposed to visit each county town regularly to try serious cases. The other was the General Eyre, which came at long intervals to scrutinise the administration of each county.

  FARM

  The taxes from a county, collected in coin on behalf of the sheriff and taken by him personally every six months to the royal treasury at London or Winchester. The sum was fixed annually by the king or his ministers: if the sheriff could extract more from the county, he could retain the excess, which made the office of sheriff much sought after.

  FRANKPLEDGE

  A system of law enforcement introduced by the Normans, where groups (tithings) of ten households were formed to enforce mutual good behaviour amongst each group.

  FREEMAN

  A person other than a bondsman of the feudal system. The villeins, serfs and slaves were not free, though the distinction did not necessarily mean a different level of affluence.

  FLETCHING

  The feathered flights on the end of an arrow made by a fletcher. On crossbow bolts, the fletching was usually of leather.

  GAOL DELIVERY

  As the circulation of the King's Justices at the Eyre of Assize was so slow, with years between each visit, the counties were visited more often by lower judges, called Commissioners of Gaol Delivery, in order to clear the overcrowded prisons of those held on remand.

  GUILDS

  Trade or merchant associations set up for mutual protection. Merchant guilds mainly functioned to ward off foreign competition and to set prices. Trade guilds were organisations for the many crafts and manufactures, controlling conditions of work, the quality of goods and the welfare of workers and their families.

  HALL

  Most houses, as opposed to tofts (cottages), had a single room, the 'hall' which occupied most of, or even all the building. Then 'solars' were added (q.v.) and extra side-rooms in larger homes. Outhouses in the yard or bailey provided kitchens, wash-houses, brew-sheds and privies.