Murder in Sussex

The world you are about to enter is true--the region, the people and the social context are all accurate (or as accurate as possible). The plot itself is fiction, though it is based on real-life stories and situations. The more you know about the history of 12th century England, the better you will be able to solve the mystery. Prepare yourself to enter this world, and get ready to try the perpetrator(s) of this heinous crime.

The basic mystery will be laid out below. Clues will be added every week.

Contents of the Mystery:

Political Context	The Story Begins
The Location: Lewes	The Cast of Characters
The Victim	Clues and Solutions

Political Context

The year is 1193. Richard I, Coeur de Lion (the Lionhearted) is king. He went to the Holy Land on the third crusade. On his way back, he was captured in Vienna and held for ransom. Very little is known in England about his whereabouts, and there is much uncertainty about whether or not he will return. In his absence, his younger brother John (right) is plotting to claim the throne for himself.

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The Victim

William de Warenne (greatgrandson of the original Norman Lord), 23 years of age, succeeded his father (another William) as Lord of Lewes and Earl of Surrey last year (1192). William is married to Isabel, who is said to be a great beauty. They have one son, also William, aged one and a half years old. The Earl can muster 60 men at arms, owns most of the demesne land around Lewes, and controls dozens of manors in East Sussex and beyond. He has not been much liked, since he has been harsher than his father (not unlike William Hamleigh in Pillars of the Earth). William has, however, been a great friend of Prince John, who often comes to stay at the castle and go hunting with him in Ditchling Park, the deerpark west of Lewes which Henry II granted to the de Warennes (see medieval map). He has also been something of a thorn in the flesh for the Priory. The Priory is an independent manor, and it has often been recorded that there were jurisdictional disputes. Scuffles between agents of the Earl and those of the Priory have resulted in fights, and even killings.

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The Story Begins

The Earl went out hunting in Ditchling Park with some of his knights on the 15th of May. He was due back by noon on the 16th, because his manorial court was scheduled for that time. People appeared at the Great Hall of the castle as usual, but he never showed up. When John Miller, who was unaware of the Lord's absence because he had not been at the court, went to the mill later that afternoon, he made a gruesome discovery: the body of the Earl, lying mangled beneath a millstone. There was, however, a curious lack of blood.

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The Cast of Characters

*Isabel de Arundel.

Isabel is William's wife. She is said to be strikingly beautiful. They were married about four years ago in an arrangement between her father, Edmund Fitzalan, Earl of Arundel, and William's father. By making this marriage alliance, they had hoped to reduce tensions between their families over their holdings, since their domains were adjacent. However, tensions have arisen again since William was never satisfied with the terms of the marriage, and has been demanding more lands as dowry. Isabel's relationship with William was initially passionate, but has cooled significantly since their baby was born.

*Prior Hugh.

Hugh, 42, made his novitiate at the Priory of St. Pancras some twenty years ago, and gradually rose through the obedientiary ranks. He had a long, successful tenure as subprior until three years ago, when he was chosen to replace the deceased prior. He is revered by the monks for his piety, but he is also a forceful leader. He has struggled with William since he succeeded his father because the new Earl insists that some of the lands farmed by the Priory are actually his. The dispute is particularly acute regarding Ditchling Garden, a manor near Ditchling Deerpark, which Hugh maintains was given to the Priory for all time by the first William de Warenne. The current Earl has challenged this claim. Hugh also distrusts William because he keeps company with Prince John, who has never favored the Church (later when he is king, monks will actually try to poison him!). Hugh is also Isabel's confessor.

*Sir Harold de Norwich.

Sir Harold is a Knight Templar who has just returned from the Holy Land. He is--or has become--a solitary man who is staying at the Priory indefinitely. Many wonder what private demons he is fighting.

*Roger Tympan, the Alehouse Keeper.

Roger keeps an alehouse in Lewes. He has heard all of the grumbling--from peasants and lesser lords alike--about the abuses of power and cruel methods of Earl William.

*Mathilda, wife of Roger Tympan.

Mathilda had a bastard child before she married Roger. She suffered reproach for this, but never identified the father. There are rumors, however, that the Earl was responsible: he certainly had a reputation for whoring before he came into his inheritance. In the days before she was married, Mathilda lived in the castle precincts and worked as a servant. Roger took pity on her despite her sin, and married her and is raising the three-year-old girl, Gwyneth.

*Tom Marscal, villein.

Tom was of Anglo-Saxon stock. In the days before the Norman Conquest, his family had a manor. But after the Conquest, their lands were taken away and they were reduced to villeins. Now he farms half a virgate and owes Lord William 100 works. He has always borne a grudge against the Normans, and is frequently in the alehouse lamenting his lot.

*John, the Priest of St. Thomas a Becket, Cliffe.

Cliffe is a "suburb" of Lewes, and it is where many of the craftsmen and peasants live. John is the confessor of John Miller, Roger Tympan, and many other local people.

*John Miller.

John keeps the mill on the River Ouse near the bridge crossing from Lewes to Cliffe. He works on behalf of the Earl, and is charged with the responsibility of making sure that William receives his "cut" of the grain. William has always viewed him with suspicion, however, because he believed that John was trying to cheat him.

*Laurence Cook, the Earl's Reeve.

Laurence's father was a cook for the elder William, but Laurence himself was trusted for much more than this by the young Earl because he had been a playmate and confidant. He is hated by many people for his ruthless tactics. He is trusted by few others than William; many people suspect him of skimming the profits and lining his own pockets, unbeknownst to William.

*Geoff, the Earl's Chamberlain.

It's hard to understand how Geoff became the Earl's chamberlain, because he is a domestic incompetent. But the previous Earl took pity on him, and William has allowed him to continue. However, he is always dissatisfied with Geoff's service, and is constantly reprimanding and berating him. Several times he has even struck the hapless chamberlain. Geoff has become fed up with such abuse, and sometimes wanders the castle precincts muttering that someday the young Earl will get what's coming to him.

*Outlaw John.

John is an outlaw living in Ashdown forest (well to the north of Lewes). He was once a yeoman farmer, but he was forced into outlawry because he was accused by William of poaching his deer in Ditchling Park, even though he protested that he was innocent. He fled rather than face a court (William's court) that would surely convict him. He vowed that he would get William back. He was seen skulking on the Downs on the very day that William went hunting.

*Sir Ralph de Plaiz, Knight of Iford Manor.

Sir Ralph holds the manor of Iford from Earl William. He had been on the Crusade with Richard I, though he was fortunate to have taken a different route back and was not captured. He stopped in France for awhile on his return, and became enamored with the works of Chretien de Troyes, whose Percival and Lancelot he heard jongleurs recite. He has always been a romantic, but is, unfortunately, married to a woman he does not love.

*Edmund Fitzalan, Earl of Arundel.

Earl Edmund (whose coat of arms appears at left) is a rival of William's. Isabel, William's wife, is his daughter. Edmund gave her in marriage to William in hopes that this alliance would make peace between them. However, in recent months William has demonstrated such contempt for Edmund that he doubts if there will ever be peace between them. Further, Isabel has told her father that she is unhappy at Lewes and that William mistreats her. He has considered a raid on Lewes castle to rescue Isabel.

*Sir Ralph de Meeching.

Sir Ralph holds the manor of Meeching from Earl William. He has always been ready to support his Lord when he is called, but he grumbles from time to time that he has not been given as much recognition as he deserves.

*Sir John Neville, Lord of Ditchling.

Sir John was granted the manor of Ditchling by William de Warenne, the victim's father. During the father's time, he was allowed free access to Ditchling Deerpark, but William the younger has stopped this. The only time he is now allowed to use the hunting ground is when he accompanies the Earl. Though he is peeved at this, he has been a loyal knight of Lord William and still is to be found frequently at Lewes castle playing Nine Men's Morris with the Earl. He was one of the knights with William on his last hunt.

*Mordecai, the Goldsmith.

Mordecai is a member of a very small Jewish community in Lewes. He has done well as a goldsmith, and has prospered by lending a great deal of money to many of the local knights, including Earl William (who found the revenues from his manors less than he expected when he succeeded his father). However, in recent years--especially since the Crusades--life has become tougher for Jews. They are accused of many crimes, even ritual murder. Mordecai has been having difficulty getting Earl William to pay his debt.

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