John F. Shaw first edition - 1901
An interesting tale which, with a background of the Duke of Buckingham's intended rebellion against Richard III in the Autumn of 1483, charts an uneasy relationship between two young men: 16 year-old Ralph Mortimer, of Mortimer Castle in Yorkshire, and 17 year-old Wat Jocelyn, son of Hugh, moathouse keeper to Sir John Mortimer, Ralph's father. As often occurs during a period of Civil War, the two lads find themselves, despite their close friendship, on opposite sides. Ralph is a fervent Lancastrian, whilst Wat favours the Yorkist faction. They are both in London for the crowning of Richard of Gloucester on 6th July 1483, and they listen to a Friar holding forth at St. Paul's Cross. Paul has no time for Richard's machinations - he has stolen the throne...it is clear that he was determined from the first to be king. Did he not seize and throw into the Tower his own nephews, the two young princes...has he not beheaded some of the best men in the kingdom - like Earl Rivers and Sir Thomas Vaughn...but he will not enjoy his villainies for long, even though the heir of the House of Lancaster is a lonely exile in Brittany...
Whilst in London, the boys bump into the nasty Simon Catesby - his eyes were deeply sunk and black, his hair was thick and of the same colour, and his skin was wrinkled and seared like parchment. He was not a pleasing sight, for his general features were sinister, suggesting craft, cruelty, and other evil traits. He is also devoted to Richard. Catesby recognizes Jocelyn, by an old jagged scar on his arm, and swear to kill both boys - why, we don't find out until the very end of the book. During all the upheavals of the next 300 pages, one constant is Catesby's reappearance and determination to carry out his threat. Paul and Wat head back to Yorkshire with their fathers, fearful that their Lancastrian sympathies will get them into trouble in Yorkist London.
Incident follows incident; both boys' parents are killed, both just about to spill a major secret (and the reason for Catesby's hatred) before death precludes this. We wait for 100 pages, before a young girl is unveiled - Maud Talbot, daughter of that brave (and now murdered) Lancastrian squire David Talbot. She has an uncle living near the Severn in Wales, which is lucky as Ralph is heading that way with a message for Buckingham at Brecknock Castle. On their way, they fall in with Wat. By now, the latter has declared his Yorkist loyalty and the friendship with Ralph appears irretrievably broken - Can I call one a friend who wears that hateful, thrice accursed badge - the brand of shame and murder? So much for the silken-white rose fastened to Wat's shoulder. To Ralph, the world is black or white; or, rather, red or white.
This meeting, on an island in the river Wye, is the first of several coincidences which litter the book. As a John Buchan fan, I am quite relaxed about incidents which border on the possible, if not the probable. However, Armitage pulls too many totally unlikely rabbits out of the hat. Not only does Wat conveniently happen to be on the very small island that Ralph and Maud end up on, but Catesby reappears in an inn they subsequently make for. I should get irritated by this, but I did.
The Duke of Buckingham is given a relatively good 'press', although his temper is short and his thirst for attacking the King is marked. Quick to anger maybe, but also speedy to give credit. One of his servants is a Humphrey Bannister, who is ever ready to lead from the front for his master. Interestingly, a Ralph Bannister, in reality, was to betray the duke for a sizeable reward. The description of the flooded river Severn is well done, as is the failed attempt by Buckingham and his small force to cross into England. The chapters At the Mercy of the Flood and A New Peril, highlight the extreme danger for Ralph of trying to escape down the river: flotsam and jetsam of all kinds, logs and fences, timbers and household furniture, haycocks, carts, overturned houses, the drowned bodies of horse, oxen, sheep, of beasts of prey, and sometimes the corpse of a man or woman, all float past.
Then four totally unlikely coincidences happen one after the other: Robin of Redesdale (a real figure in History), who had previously been with Ralph since Yorkshire, now passes in a boat to save the boy; a house about to be swept away shows a white skirt fastened to a pole - it is Maud, just waiting to be rescued; a shepherd's hut where they seek rest and food just happens to be where Wat is hiding. He has now forsworn the Yorkist cause and joins Robin, Ralph and Maud in their fervent Lancastrian beliefs. Finally, guess who?... Simon Catesby reappears, to try yet again to capture and kill everyone. The ruffian, has the three men strung up, ready to be hanged. Then, just in time, the cavalry arrive - it is Maud's uncle Gervase with his band of merry Welsh Lancastrians. Catesby is mortally wounded, but is able to deliver the secret of his hatred before expiring. There will be no spoiler alert!
Within two brief paragraphs, the author wraps up his tale. Buckingham has failed and his whereabouts unknown; Ralph and Wat sail for France; as later do Gervase and Maud, where, for the present, we may leave them to enjoy the rest and protection they so richly deserved. Did Armitage plan a sequel? If so, it never arrived.
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The Victorian Research Web says that Alfred Armitage was unknown. However, it appears that it was a pseudonym for William Murray Graydon (1864-1946), an extremely prolific American writer, who also wrote under the pen-names of William Murray and Tom Oliver. He wrote adventure, historical fiction and Sexton Blake detective stories for boys' story papers.
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