delicious Sunday roast
dinners. I’d love to be back
home. First I must make my
family, country and William
proud. Importantly, if
William does not think I’ve
worked hard I will not be
paid, if I am not paid we
will starve. Oh no… it’s
time. I must fight.
Ellie McCarroll
Dear Editor Today we
besieged the city of
Mahruba, near Aleppo we
routed the Turks, who
had set out to devastate
the surrounding country,
and we rescued many
Christians. Moreover, we
led back the horses and
camels with very great
booty.
While we were besieging
the city, the Turks from
the nearest redoubt daily
killed those entering and
leaving the army. The
princes of our army
seeing this, killed 400 of
the Turks who were lying
in wait, drove others into
a certain river and led
back some as captives.
You may be assured that
we are now besieging
Antioch with all diligence,
and hope soon to capture
it. The city is supplied to
an incredible extent with
grain, wine, oil and all
kinds of food.
Please pray for us.
Guy d’Orly
Dear Editor I am writing
from Campania and here
the Normans have been
forbidding Greek customs
in church. Our cousins
from Eastern Christendom
are now closing the Latin
churches in
Constantinople. The
bishop Leo of Ochrid has
been attacking the Latin
use of unleavened bread
and other practices. In
response to this
provocative treatise, Pope
Leo has sent his chief
adviser, Humbert, but in
my opinion he is a tactless
and narrow-minded man
with a strong sense of
papal authority to
Constantinople. If the
Normans and the Patriarch
cannot be persuaded to
reach an agreement soon,
the whole of Christendom
will split in two.
Anna Rosa Soave
Dear Editor Lets hope the
arrival of William will start
making the thanes look
after us Churls a little
better. We have been
farming the and near Ely
for 6 generations,
growing wheat, barley
and rye as well as peas,
cabbages, parsnips,
carrots and celery.
Recently raisers from
Suffolk have been
stealing our herds of
goats, cattle and pigs and
flocks of sheep. But not a
peep from the thanes. I
don’t they care as long as
we pay the tithe/At the
moment we cant grow
enough food to keep
many of their animals
through the winter so as
winter approached most
of them had to be
slaughtered and the meat
salted.
Courtney Lippeat
Dear Editor I am raging!
Yet again my lands have
been ravaged by thralls,
poaching my coneys and
deer. When they are
caught they come crying
that there is not enough
food to eat, hanging is
too good for them I say.
Why only last week I
personally hung four
such miscreants for
poaching coneys. If the
Earls don’t do something
very soon we will
descend to anarchy.