Hammer of the sots

The news of Stirling Bridge, fought on 11 September 1297, probably reached Edward I in Flanders by early October. On the 9th he agreed a truce with his enemy, Philip the Fair, a tacit agreement which left both kings free to deal with their problems in Scotland and Flanders.

Or at least, that is the standard interpretation. The tendency is to cut-frame straight to the battle of Falkirk, which gives the impression that Edward steamed home at a billion miles an hour to crush William Wallace with his mighty hammer.

The reality could not be more different. Despite the truce, Edward remained on the continent for another six months, and delegated the Scottish crisis to his subordinates. Earl Warenne, who had made such a fool of himself at Stirling Bridge, was entrusted to deal with the Scots. Meanwhile the king remained focused on the French war.

When he negotiated the truce, it was laid down that Edward could resume hostilities, if his ally Adolf of Nassau arrived in Flanders with a German imperial army. Adolf had sent some help, but most of the Germans fighting in Flanders were contractors on Edward's payroll, acting independently of their king. Unless he arrived in person, the ceasefire held.

So, Edward and his other ally, Count Guy of Flanders, spent the next two months with their eyes fixed on the German border. Shortly after the truce, they received encouraging news that their allies in Burgundy and Bar-le-Duc were assembling reinforcements. However, there was no word from Adolf.

Finally, in late November, Edward gave up hope that Adolf would come, and asked for an extension of the truce. This was obtained, and the war suddenly turned into a party. After knighting his son-in-law, Duke John of Brabant, the king staged a massive banquet at the convent of St Bavo, outside Ghent. Here, Edward and his allies spent the winter months getting very drunk and competing to stage the most impressive feast.

Anxious to make things go with a swing, Edward summoned a troop of musicians and professional acrobats from England. They included Matilda Makejoy, a dancing girl or saltatrix, and minstrels with names such as Grease-Coat and Maggot. The troop had been part of the household of Hugh Cressingham, recently slaughtered and flayed at Stirling Bridge. Now he was dead, perhaps Edward got them at a discount.

Thus, while Scotland slid into chaos, Longshanks spent his time under a table in Flanders, 'carousing' with Matilda Makejoy. This interesting interlude is nowhere to be seen in Braveheart or Outlaw King, alas. It casts a slightly different light on the Plantagenet, generally viewed as an 'iron man' compared to other members of his dynasty. To historians, medieval warfare is a grim old business; all stats and payrolls and complex treaties. To the kings and princes who indulged in conflict, it was often a bit of a game, fought between close relatives.

When his hangover had worn off, Edward went to Brussels to visit his daughter and her husband, Duke John. The king was all business again, and in February 1298 received the extraordinary grant of Antwerp and adjoining towns from his son-in-law. This meant that Edward had effectively annexed the Duchy of Brabant, which enabled him to install a permanent English wool staple and mercantile community. Several years later, in 1305, the English wool merchants obtained a grant of special trading privileges from the anglophile duke.