Series: The Plantagenet Legacy Book 3
Author Name: Mercedes Rochelle
Publication Date: April 5, 2021
Publisher: Sergeant Press
Pages: 303
Genre: Historical Fiction
Book Title: The Accursed King
Series: The Plantagenet Legacy Book 4
Author Name: Mercedes Rochelle
Publication Date: April 18, 2022
Publisher: Sergeant Press
Pages: 299
Genre: Historical Fiction
The Usurper King by Mercedes Rochelle
Narrated by Kevin E. Green
The Accursed King by Mercedes Rochelle
Narrated by Kevin E. Green
The Usurper King:
From Outlaw to Usurper, Henry Bolingbroke fought one rebellion after another.
First, he led his own uprising. Then he captured a forsaken king. Henry had no intention of taking the crown for himself; it was given to him by popular acclaim. Alas, it didn't take long to realize that that having the kingship was much less rewarding than striving for it. Only three months after his coronation, Henry IV had to face a rebellion led by Richard's disgruntled favorites. Repressive measures led to more discontent. His own supporters turned against him, demanding more than he could give. The haughty Percies precipitated the Battle of Shrewsbury which nearly cost him the throne—and his life.
To make matters worse, even after Richard II's funeral, the deposed monarch was rumored to be in Scotland, planning his return. The king just wouldn't stay down and malcontents wanted him back.
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~~~
The Accursed King:
What happens when a king loses his prowess?
The day Henry IV could finally declare he had vanquished his enemies, he threw it all away with an infamous deed. No English king had executed an archbishop before. And divine judgment was quick to follow. Many thought he was struck with leprosy—God's greatest punishment for sinners. From that point on, Henry's health was cursed and he fought doggedly on as his body continued to betray him—reducing this once great warrior to an invalid.
Fortunately for England, his heir was ready and eager to take over. But Henry wasn't willing to relinquish what he had worked so hard to preserve. No one was going to take away his royal prerogative—not even Prince Hal.
But Henry didn't count on Hal's dauntless nature, which threatened to tear the royal family apart.
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Author Bio:
Mercedes Rochelle is an ardent lover of medieval history, and has channelled this interest into fiction writing. Her first four books cover eleventh-century Britain and events surrounding the Norman Conquest of England. The next series is called The Plantagenet Legacy about the struggles and abdication of Richard II, leading to the troubled reigns of the Lancastrian Kings. She also writes a blog: HistoricalBritainBlog.com to explore the history behind the story.
Born in St. Louis, MO, she received by BA in Literature at the Univ. of Missouri St.Louis in 1979 then moved to New York in 1982 while in her mid-20s to “see the world”. The search hasn’t ended!
Today she lives in Sergeantsville, NJ with her husband in a log home they had built themselves.
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Accompanying audio clip link:
https://soundcloud.com/user-678892305/retail-audio-sample
After the Battle of Shrewsbury
The axe fell with
a solid thud, cleanly severing the head of Sir Thomas Percy. King Henry IV
watched the execution from the castle ramparts with tears in his eyes. It was
just two days since the Battle of Shrewsbury where another Percy, the famous
Harry Hotspur, went down under a flurry of blades. His naked body was now
propped up between two millstones near the city gate—having been
unceremoniously torn from his temporary grave to thwart rumours of his
survival. Henry had refused to look at him, certain that Harry’s staring eyes
would condemn him, even in death. They had been friends once, a circumstance
that made this whole situation more tragic than he wanted to admit. And Thomas,
whose deportment had been flawless up until a week ago, disturbed him even
more. Henry had done his best to save his life, but his closest advisors flew
into a fury, calling the man traitor, and worse. The best he could do was
commute the execution to mere decapitation rather than the full penalty,
hanging, drawing and quartering.
This whole bloody
rebellion caught the king totally by surprise and he mourned the loss of his
valiant enemies more than they deserved. What had he done to merit their
rancour? Surely they had their disagreements, but nothing so venomous as to
warrant an attack on his throne.
And what about
Hotspur's father, the Earl of Northumberland? If he had been present the
outcome of the battle would have been much less certain. It was a terribly
close call; only Hotspur's death determined who had won the day. Where was the
earl and why hadn't he shown up?
Henry shook his
head. He would think about that later; for now, he had more important things to
worry about. His son and heir had been struck in the face by an arrow and had
continued fighting until the end of the battle. Only then had he collapsed into
the arms of his friends. The royal surgeons, confounded by the injury,
professed themselves incapable of extracting the arrowhead from the base of
Hal's skull, behind his cheek. In desperation, Henry had sent a messenger to
London, ordering the famous surgeon and metalworker John Bradmore to be
released from prison; the man had been caught counterfeiting, of all things.
Then Bradmore would be brought to Kenilworth, where Hal would be waiting for
him—if he survived the trip.
Unfortunately,
Henry didn't have the leisure to sit by his son's side and wait for him to live
or die. With Henry Percy on the loose, the rebellion still had a chance to
succeed. He had to deal with the recalcitrant earl without losing another
minute. He had already sent a messenger to the Earl of Westmorland, telling him
to block Northumberland's progress, wherever he might be. But some tasks
required the presence of the king and besides, Percy could be anywhere.
Presumably he was coming south from Northumberland, but Henry could leave
nothing to chance.
The king was right
about one thing: Henry Percy was on his way south, though that wasn't his
original plan.
Two months before,
he and his son had their eyes on lands given to them by King Henry—Douglas
lands, all in Scotland. Both Percys knew the king's offer was a hollow gesture
to keep them quiet; they had to conquer the region themselves before they could
claim it. It didn't help that they were owed a huge amount of money from their
previous two years as wardens. Their resources were not infinite! Repeated
requests for payment fell on deaf ears; the exchequer was hampered by the
urgency of the Welsh rebellion, they were told. As far as King Henry was
concerned, they were on their own; he had even sent a letter telling Percy he
wasn't going to come north—he had business in London. That was just fine; as
far as Percy was concerned, he needed money, not the king's dubious help.
Nonetheless, they
couldn't resist the opportunity. Hotspur had laid siege to the Tower of Cocklaw
in Teviotdale, deep into Douglas territory. Unfortunately, things hadn't gone
well and the garrison put up a strong resistance. Frustrated, Hotspur negotiated
with the tower's captain and they agreed upon a six-week truce. If Scotland's
governor, the Duke of Albany didn't relieve the castle, they would surrender to
the English. Meanwhile, Percy's army withdrew to England's side of the border.
It was Hotspur's
idea to use the six weeks to organize a rebellion against King Henry.
Rebellion! Even now, Percy was mystified about the abrupt change of plans.
However, he knew his son still harboured deep resentment about the way the king
had treated him the year before—demanding that he turn over Douglas and other
hostages taken at Homildon Hill. It wasn’t a pretty scene and Harry had stormed
out, threatening to see the king next on the battlefield. Percy hadn’t taken
this tantrum seriously when he heard about it later, but perhaps he should
have.
