Thus the official memo announced the lord king’s crossing to Gascony, to crush the rebellion of Gaston Moncada de Béarn and his allies. Henry was seen off by his fourteen-year old son Edward, who sobbed his eyes out until the royal flagship had vanished over the horizon.
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| Benauges |
The king arrived to find the revolt well underway, with La Réole and the castle of Benauges as the focal points. Apart from the troops he brought over from England, Henry relied on the aid of loyalist barons and what support he could get from the towns. He also benefited from the support of his Lusignan half-brothers, who supplied an extra 100 knights from Poitou.
Some of the towns were annoyed with the king for having seized or detained their wine in England. A few, such as the Solers family of Bordeaux, were angry enough to join the standard of Alfonso X of Castile, who laid claim to the duchy. Henry was still able to call on the military services of the communes: he demanded 300 men from the town of Bazas, for example, while Bordeaux was ordered to send 3000 crossbowmen to Rions. These towns were also required to supply wine, armour, cord, weapons and other supplies for the king’s use.
Apart from Bordeaux, the chief town in the south was the port of Bayonne. In September the king ordered the Bayonnais to seize all the goods of Gaston de Béarn and his subjects within their jurisdiction. He also required large sums of money from the communes, and obtained loans from Bayonne, Dax, St-Sever and other places.
Henry’s first tactical move was to march on La Réole. He was in camp outside the walls for just three days, 8-11 September, and then moved on to Gironde, St Macaire, Loupiac and Rions. Presumably he was taking the submission of rebels in these towns, and there was some damage: on 22 September he paid compensation to one Garsias Aken, a citizen of St Macaire, whose vineyards had been destroyed by the royal army.
On 1 October Henry arrived outside the walls of rebel-held Benauges (pictured), an impressive castle located on a high bank of the Gironde.
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