1. Sword for Hire
After his father is killed at Arsuf while protecting Richard the Lionheart, Thomas is knighted but loses hope of inheriting the family manor when Prince John consolidates power during the king’s absence. With only a small following, Sir Thomas leaves England and travels to Sweden in…
2. Return of the Knight
Sir Thomas and his new bride, Lady Margaret, have been forced to leave the Baltic. They cannot go to England and so he heads for Anjou where he hopes to take over the old manor of Sir Leofric. Upon his arrival he finds himself thrown into…
3. Baron’s War
At the beginning of the thirteenth century, King John’s loss of Normandy and the murder of Prince Arthur deepen the crisis surrounding the English crown. Sir Thomas of Cleveland finds himself caught between rebellious Norman barons and the loyalty he believes he owes his king. Leaving…
4. Magna Carta
The Earl of Cleveland has managed to put himself in King John’s good graces just at the time when other barons decide to rebel. They seek more land and power. The newly appointed Earl is caught in the middle. When the Scots begin to raid once…
5. Welsh War
England has a new King. Henry is the young son of King John. Guided by a Council of regents and the Earl Marshal he has a divided England to heal. When William Marshal gives Sir Thomas, Earl of Cleveland, the responsibility of making the young King…
6. Henry III
Sir Thomas of Stockton crosses to France with a small group of trusted men after the death of his son, pursuing the enemy he holds responsible. The private quest brings him into the politics of the French crown and into contact with King Louis before revenge…
7. The Bloody Border
Sir Thomas of Cleveland is charged with maintaining order along the Anglo-Scottish frontier after kings have negotiated a peace that local feuds repeatedly threaten to break. His son William receives the northern manor of Elsdon and quickly discovers that treaties signed at court offer little protection…
8. Baron’s Crusade
Sir Thomas, Hero of Arsuf, rides to war again! When a king asks a baron to go on crusade it is an order not a request and, as such, is not to be ignored. The Earl of Cleveland has done his duty for his King and…
9. Sentinel of the North
When Sir William and his father, Sir Thomas of Stockton, the grandson of the Warlord, return from the crusade, they have to fight a new enemy: The Scots. Now that Queen Joan has died then King Alexander of Scotland is under the influence of the French.…
10. War in the West
King Henry has need of a sword to help him recover land taken by the Prince of Wales! And he looks to the north and the border knights who have served him so well. Now that Sir Thomas is becoming too old for war, Sir William…
11. Debt of Honour
When men fight together, especially in a holy cause, there is not only a bond but also an unspoken promise to come to the aid of their shield brother. When Birger Persson discovers that he is dying he asks his son to seek help from two…
12. Blood of the Warlord
The original Warlord and the generations immediately after him are dead, their service to successive kings having cost the family heavily. Henry III nevertheless turns again to the same bloodline, asking Sir Henry Samuel, Sir Alfred and the newly knighted Sir Thomas to accompany his son…
13. The Fettered King
King Henry III rules England but it is an England controlled by barons who wish to usurp his crown. When a new Pope demands unpaid monies owed to him then Sir Henry Samuel is dispatched to Rome to buy time for the beleaguered king. Once in…
14. De Montfort’s Crown
Henry III’s strained rule brings the English baronage into open conflict with the crown, and Simon de Montfort emerges as the most powerful leader of the opposition. The king’s son Edward promises firmer government, but reform, personal ambition and distrust push the dispute beyond negotiation and…
15. Ripples of Rebellion
Sir Matthew, nephew of Sir Henry Samuel, reluctantly joins Henry of Almain on crusade, leaving an England that has not fully recovered from the rebellion associated with Simon de Montfort. The expedition proves difficult, and events abroad offer no simple escape from the political obligations waiting…