And so he moved his army to
The village of Alrehede,
And had them bring there logs and beams,
All tied together, rows of trees,
Held up by balloons of sheep skin fleece
Positioned underneath.

And so a causeway soon was born
Across the watery peat,
Upon this men could safely march –
Lured on by greed they did too fast,
Called on by treasure from the past,
A rumoured concealed treat.

Under the beat of running feet
The bridge began to shake,
At first a creak and then a crack,
A shudder shock the Conqueror’s track,
Until it split apart, was wracked,
Hurling bodies in its wake.

(Alrehede, pronounced Al-re-heath, modern day Aldreth in Cambridgeshire)

William’s plan is pulled apart by haste and greed.
(29.09.26)

© Ben Quant 2026
Photo by Jeremy Kwok on Unsplash