41

THE BATTLE OF THE STANDARD

军旗之战

announce, tell of.　　　　　　　　　　　equipped, furnished.
banners, flags.　　　　　　　　　　　　invasion, inroad.
collected, gathered.　　　　　　　　　　resisted, opposed.
commander, leader.　　　　　　　　　　stalwart, strong.
dales, lowland valleys.　　　　　　　　　targets, shields.
dismounted, got off their horses.　　　　yeomen, archers.

1. In the reign of King Stephen, a battle was fought between the Normans and the Scots, which is known in history as the Battle of the Standard. It deserves to be spoken of at length, because it was the first occasion on which the Norman lance and the Scottish broadsword crossed in battle.

2. King Stephen's claim to the English throne was resisted by Matilda, or Maud, the daughter of Henry the First and the widow of Count Geoffrey of Anjou.

3. David the First of Scotland, although a very quiet King, more given to building abbeys and growing flowers than to shedding blood, marched three times into the north of England to fight in behalf of Matilda against the soldiers of King Stephen. The third invasion brought him into the north of Yorkshire. All was fright and hurry among the English farmers and monks who dwelt in that part of the land; for the approach of the Scottish King had been so swift that there was no time for Stephen to reach the scene of action.

4. The old Archbishop of York collected an army—a strange force, whose leaders were chiefly clergymen. In order to give an appearance of religion to the muster, he got a four-wheeled car, and tying strongly to its centre the mast of a ship, he placed at the top of this pole a large cross; under which, spreading like wings on each side, were the banners of three saints, held in great reverence in that part of England. In the centre of the cross was set a silver box, containing a little cake of bread which had received the blessing of the priest.

5. Around this standard, which gave its name to the battle, the English army gathered on the moor of Northallerton. There were two kinds of fightin-men in the English army;—Norman knights dressed in steel armour, and equipped with lances and swords; and English yeomen, armed with long bows, and arrows a full yard from point to notch.

6. The Scottish army was made up of very different kinds of soldiers.Following a bunch of heather on a lance, which was all the standard they boasted, came a few knights and men in armour, a body of Lowland pikemen with breastplates, and a number of archers from the dales. Then came a rabble of half-naked men from Galloway and the Highlands, some carrying long pikes, and others armed with broadswords and leathern targets.

7. The Galloway men so troubled King David by their clamours for a front place in the battle, that he was forced to allow them to begin the attack. They advanced through a fog towards the position of the other army. There happened to be in David's camp at the time two nobles connected as owners of land with both Scotland and England, and therefore very anxious to bring about a peace.They bore the great historic names of Bruce and Baliol. Having tried all they could to turn David from the war, they took horse, and rode away to the camp at Northallerton to announce the approach of the Scots.

8. When the Bishop of Durham, who acted as commander of the English force, heard the news, he gathered his men round the standard car, from which he read a prayer and made a speech Scarcely had he finished, when through the mist were heard the shouts of “Alban! Alban!” —the Highland war-cry.

9. Then the torrent of wild men came streaming on in a furious rush. For a moment the solid array of the Norman knights, who had dismounted and were standing around the banner of the saint, reeled and broke; but it was only for a moment. They soon closed again around the car, and the stalwart Yorkshiremen made such havoc with their bows, that the Highlanders retired in confusion like a wave that had broken itself on an opposing rock.

10. But wave after wave flowed on; and the northern warriors did not pause until nearly all their spears and swords were broken in the unequal strife. The lance and the armour had beaten the broadsword and the plaid; but the Norman knights and men-at-arms had learned how hard a Scotsman could smite with his wheeling blade, and how bravely he could pour his life out in fighting the battles of his King

中文阅读

1. 在斯蒂文国王当政时期，诺曼人与苏格兰人之间爆发了一次战争，这就是历史上著名的“军旗之战”。对于这场战争，有必要在此多花些笔墨介绍一下，因为这是诺曼人和苏格兰人有史以来的第一次兵戎相见。

2. 斯蒂文要求继承英格兰王位，但有一个女人坚决反对，她就是马蒂尔德，即莫德。她是亨利一世的女儿，也是安茹伯爵杰弗里的遗孀。

3. 苏格兰国王大卫一世，平日算是个沉默寡言的人，相对于上战场浴血奋战，他更喜欢修修寺庙，种种花草。即便如此，后来他还是连续三次带兵入侵英格兰，站在莫德一方与斯蒂文国王的军队开战。在第三次的时候，他把大军开进了约克郡。当地的农民和教士们吓坏了，惊慌失措，到处躲藏；因为大卫军队行军极其迅速，斯蒂文国王根本来不及应对。

4. 约克郡的老主教临时组建了一支军队，不过这个队伍很奇怪，全部由神职人员组成，其目的是想让参战的军队体现出宗教色彩。他弄了一辆四轮板车，在车中央牢牢固定住一根大船的桅杆，杆顶上钉着一个很大的十字架，十字架下面有很多面旗帜像翅膀一样飘舞着，旗帜上有当地三位德高望重的圣徒的绣像。十字架中心有一个银色盒子，里面装着一小块面包，那是被这位主教祭拜过的贡品。

5. 就在给这场战争冠名的军旗的召唤下，英国军队在诺思阿勒尔顿的野外集结完毕。这支军队里面的战士有两类：一类是穿着钢铁盔甲，拿着刀剑的诺曼骑士团；另一类是举着老式长柄弓箭的乡野农民。

6. 苏格兰军队里的战士则来源复杂。在大刀上捆扎着一束石南紫罗兰，这就是他们引以自豪的资本了，自以为派头十足。这群人中有穿着铠甲的骑兵和步兵，有拿着盾牌来自平原地区的枪兵，有来自山地的弓箭手；还有一伙从加洛韦山区与苏格兰高地下来的光着膀子的地痞，有的拿长矛，有的拿大刀，有的举盾牌，纯粹一帮杂牌军。

7. 就是这些加洛韦人让大卫国王很头疼，因为他们不停大声嚷嚷要求走在队伍最前面，并且要首先上战场，最后大卫没办法，只得同意他们率先发动攻击。得令之后，加洛韦人便穿过当天荒野上的大雾，向对方阵营进发了。而就在这时，大卫的阵营中正好有两位伯爵达成联盟，他们分别在在苏格兰和英格兰的领地，因此自然急于希望和平。这两位名垂青史的伯爵就是布鲁斯与巴里奥，他们想尽了一切办法让大卫班师回朝，最后骑上战马奔驰到诺思阿勒尔顿的前线，想劝阻正在行军的苏格兰人。

8. 当时的英军指挥官是杜伦郡的主教，得知此消息后，主教把所有人召集到十字军旗之下，读了一首祷诗后开始演讲。就在演讲快要结束时，从近郊的薄雾中传来了嚣叫声“奥尔本！奥尔本！”这是苏格兰人的作战口号。

9. 很快这支野蛮军队便冲了过来，不一会儿就把围在圣徒军旗之下的诺曼骑士团冲杀得东倒西歪，但这仅仅是暂时的。没多久诺曼骑士们又重新聚拢在军旗战车周围，强壮的约克士兵们也用弓箭让敌人尝到了厉害，苏格兰军队很快就被打得落花流水，慌乱撤退，并且撤退过程中又把后面继续往前冲的人浪彻底打乱，场面极其狼狈。

10. 不过苏格兰军队还是一浪接一浪地涌来，只要刀剑还在，即使力量对比如此悬殊，这些北方战士们依然没有停止进攻。长矛与铠甲虽然击败了苏格兰的大刀与格子布，但是诺曼骑士和士兵们也领教了苏格兰人浴血奋战的武勇精神，以及他们对国王是何等的誓死效命。