a rain-swept moorland preparing for imminent battle.
An aide escorted them to Sussex's tent. Inside, the red-faced commander paced angrily, full of barely restrained war lust. In place of a welcome, Edward and Thomas were given a quick briefing on the battle calls. With a hasty bow, the aide ushered them out of Sussex's tent.
As Edward and Thomas moved their soldiers into position, drums sounded and bagpipes wailed. Then, the booming of artillery began as cannon fire swept the open battlefield. Ear-splitting blasts filled the air, peppering thousands with shot.
Unfortunate warriors tumbled writhing to the ground, as if felled by an invisible ax. Then, the dead and dying were left behind as the two armies charged forward, yelling their battle cries. They clashed together like wild bears set on each other. Roaring, desperate, hand-to-hand fighting raged across the blood-soaked heather.
Deployed in the English vanguard, Edward and Thomas galloped forward stirrup to stirrup. They smashed into the Scottish ranks, methodically hacking their way through the press of men and armor.
When their horses were brought down, the cousins stood back to back, swinging their heavy broadswords as men fell all around them. Before the battle was over, each had saved the other's life some dozen times.
As darkness fell, Scotland's flags and banners hung in tatters. Elizabeth's forces had won the day. Retreating in confusion back across the border, her foes were massacred along with scores of innocent townspeople caught fleeing the fighting.
Early the next morning, Sussex, mindful of Elizabeth's instructions, launched a revenge campaign across the River Tweed into Scotland. His forces laid much of the land to waste. They burned towns, raped women, and strung up more than 800 rebels on gibbets.
-:-:-
Edward found this ugly bloodletting a far cry from his father's noble training with its emphasis on honor and chivalry. The savage killings he witnessed took a terrible toll on the young man. Night after night he hung between waking and sleeping, tossing and turning restlessly in his tall tent. Beads of sweat sprang from his forehead as grisly memories paraded behind closed eyes. Battle alarms and wild oaths mixed with slashing blades and the screams of victims trampled underfoot. Thundering cannons and pounding war drums startled him from sleep.
One night, as hard-riding, wide-eyed soldiers galloped headlong through his dreams, Edward's pounding heart woke him in a cold sweat, the stench of saltpeter clogging his nostrils. With a wild cry, he stumbled out of bed and grabbed up a pen, the cannon blasts still ringing in his ears.
Soon Edward was scratching out warnings against the dogs of civil war:
"Tell the traitor - for yonder methinks he stands -
That every stride he makes upon my land
Is dangerous treason. He is come to open
The purple Testament of bleeding war;
But ere the crown he looks for lives in peace,
Ten thousand bloody crowns of mother's sons
Shall ill become the flower of England's face,
Change the complexion of her maid-pale peace
To scarlet indignation and bedew
Her pastures' grass with faithful English blood."
Once again, Edward's pen grounded his fears; the words worked their healing magic. Fears expressed on paper no longer had the power to haunt him. Edward laid his pen aside and sprawled on his bed. Sleep came quickly. Tranquil oblivion replaced dark nightmares.
-:-:-
A blistering summer heat beat down on Edward and Anne as they rode out of the sheltering woods and turned their horses towards the river Avon. By the time the riverbank came into view, Anne was feeling hungry and thirsty. To her delight, Edward's servants had set a picnic in a shaded area where several graceful willow trees dipped their branches into the gently flowing waters.
As they ate, Anne asked Edward about his early days at court. She assumed that his bravery in Scotland had established him as one of Elizabeth's favorites.
"If only it were that simple, Anne. Fighting is expected of noblemen. The Queen reserves her special praises for warriors who can advance on two fronts."
"What mean you?"
"Her Majesty favors only those who are skilled at both warfare and the arts. I set out to conquer her with a sword in one hand and my quill in the other."
WHITEHALL PALACE
By this time, Elizabeth had established her Court at Whitehall Palace, a large Tudor-Gothic building appropriated from Cardinal Wolsey by her father, Henry VIII. She delighted in the palace's gleaming white towers, glittering pinnacles and vast galleries. A large tiltyard allowed her courtiers to parade their martial skills. The Privy Garden offered privacy for her daily walks.
Best of all, the Great Hall, hung with Flemish tapestries, provided a large, well-lit setting for state occasions. Burghley encouraged the move, for Whitehall Palace, like most large structures of the day, was riddled with secret passageways, hidden escape tunnels, and peepholes.
Much to the Lord Chamberlain's disgust, Edward and Thomas not only distinguished themselves in the Scottish wars, they returned unscathed. Eager to escape Burghley House, Edward chose to reside in apartments at the Savoy.
Henry VIII had revived royal tournaments and made them a central part of court life at Windsor Castle. Elizabeth continued her father's tradition, holding earnest but friendly competitions every May. For 3 days, Windsor Castle's ancient walls echoed with the clash of metal against metal as heavily armored knights battled under the banners of their wives or sweethearts.
In 1571, Edward, splendidly dressed in armor and crimson velvet, entered his first tournament. Watching from the Queen's side, Burghley quietly congratulated himself on having banished the martial arts from his ward's education.
What the Lord Chamberlain didn't know was that Edward's father had taught him to fight at an early age. In Scotland, these formidable skills had been honed under fire on the battlefield. At Elizabeth's tournament, the newcomer fought superbly and, to the Court's amazement, bested every opponent.
After his final resounding victory in the tiltyard, the Red Knight trudged over to Elizabeth in his heavy armor. As he removed his helmet, the cheering crowd rained flowers down on his head. Kneeling, the Earl proclaimed: "My gracious Queen, along with my victory, I tender you my service, such as it is, being tender, raw, and young; which elder days shall ripen and confirm to more approved words and feats."
"A very pretty speech, milord. We thank you for your offer of brave service."
"If your Majesty would accord me the honor of accepting it, I will follow you to the death."
"Nay, milord. I would have you go before me there," Elizabeth replied with a chuckle, prompting laughter from those around her. "We have a bauble to match your rich deeds this day," she said stepping down from her throne to present Edward with a costly tablet of diamonds. The crowd applauded loudly.
-:-:-
Despite this thunderous applause, Edward hadn't forgotten that real progress at Elizabeth's Court
