Chapter 7
In which the count's pride is injured
[Braunschweig Manor, October 20th, 1077]
Lady Ida, without question the most powerful person in Frisia (for what that was worth), strode briskly down the hall towards the chambers of her nephew, count Ekbert. The count had recently participated in the Emperor's war against the pagan Obodrites, volunteering to march against the chief that held Holstein. He had returned recently, however, and had mostly stayed in his quarters, refusing to talk to anyone. Ida didn't know exactly what was going on, but she was quite determined to make it stop.
"Ekbert," she said, entering the chambers resolutely. "We need to talk about this."
Her nephew was sitting in a chair by the fireplace, staring morosely into the fire. "I don't feel like talking right now, Aunt."
Ida shook her head. "This has got to stop, Ekbert. Ever since you got back from that campaign to Holstein, you've been sitting in here brooding over something. You have more important things to do with your time. So tell me what happened up there."
Ekbert looked away. "I really don't want to talk about it, Aunt Ida."
"Very well. I'll just have to guess, then. My guess is that you all went merrily on your way to Holstein, arriving there with no problems and in the best of spirits. Right?"
"Mhm."
"And once in Holstein, you defeated the pagan forces in a glorious and thoroughly one-sided battle. Still right?"
"Yes."
"And proceeded to lay siege to a hill fortress that would fall within months, luring you all in with the promise of plunder and conquest."
"Do get on with it, Aunt."
The hill fort at Itzehoe, power base for the pagan chief of Holstein.
"Of course. And then, some duke or other arrived with his army and decided to pull rank on you, and took over command of the siege."
Ekbert made a wry face. "More or less. So that's when we decided to just take some of the chief's money in return for peace and go home."
Lady Ida nodded in approval. "And that was a very clever thing to do, Ekbert. You got a lot of the money that you spent on the campaign back, and you got experience leading your troops in the field. So what exactly is the problem?"
Ekbert jumped up from his seat. "The problem is they didn't even know who I was! That duke just marched right up to our camp and took charge, and he didn't care at all about who I was or where Frisia was located, or anything! He just… Argh!" He threw his hands in the air and paced over to the window.
Lady Ida shook her head. "Don't be silly, nephew. Of course he didn't know who you were."
"What?"
"You're a new count from an obscure province in one of the most remote parts of the Empire. Why do you think a duke would know of you?"
"But…"
"As a matter of fact, it is much better this way. When the magnates play their great games, small pawns like us always lose out in the end. Under these conditions, to be unknown is to be safe. We must work slowly and in the shadows, unnoticed by anyone who might consider us a threat if they knew of what we are doing. Do you understand?"
"I…"
"And most importantly, we must conserve our strength – conserve it and quietly build it up, until the time is right for us to strike. I'm sure this little Holstein thing of yours was very exciting at first, and I admit that it wasn't as bad a loss as it could have been, but in the end, it brought us nothing but a lot of wasted resources. There will be no further adventures of this kind, unless we have a reasonable chance of coming through with a profit. Is that clear?"
Ekbert sighed. "Yes, Aunt Ida."