I recently received some very good news from my British
publisher, Macmillan. They have
expedited their schedule for my British e-books and we now have a tentative
date of July 26th for the release of The Sunne in Splendour, Here Be
Dragons, Falls the Shadow, and The Reckoning.
To say I’m over the moon about this is a typical British
understatement. And yes, I do expect
that When Christ and His Saints Slept and Time and Chance will be available as
e-books, too, before the year’s end.
Since Macmillan has already published Lionheart in the e-book format and
Penguin released Devil’s Brood as an e-book several years ago, that will mean
that all of my historical sagas will finally be available as e-books to my
readers in the UK and Down Under. I am
afraid Justin de Quincy and company are still wandering in the wilderness, but
I hope I’ll eventually be able to send out a search party for him. And now that The Queen’s Man was released as
an e-book in the US this past spring, at least all four mysteries are now
available on this side of the Atlantic.
I got to
see Macmillan’s jacket for the paperback edition of Lionheart, which will be
published in early January. I really
like it, and will try to get Melusine to let me add the photo to this
blog. Ballantine has come up with a
striking jacket for the American paperback edition of Lionheart, too, which
will be out on December 26th of this year; I wish I could include it
here, but it was among all the e-mails
that Melusine dispatched to computer limbo last month. The curious can see it, though, on
Amazon.com, as it is already available for pre-orders. I am very happy with all four of the book
jackets for Lionheart and I haven’t always been able to say that in the
past. So to celebrate, I am giving
away a signed copy of one of my books.
Anyone who posts a comment on this blog will be in the drawing, and the
winner can choose between a hardback copy of Lionheart, Devil’s Brood, Time and
Chance, or The Reckoning. If you already
have copies of these books, you can always give it away to a friend,
right? I think giving copies of my
books as gifts would be a wonderful custom to establish and ought to be
encouraged whenever possible.
I continue
to spend all of my waking hours (at least it feels that way) working on A
King’s Ransom. To reassure you that I am exercising due
diligence to meet the deadline, I am going to conclude with a few passages from
A King’s Ransom. The first one occurs
in Chapter Two, when Richard and his men are caught in a savage winter storm on
their way home from the Holy Land.
* *
*
The ship
shuddered, like an animal in its death throes.
Its prow was pointing skyward, so steep was the wave, and the men
desperately braced themselves, knowing the worst was to come. The galley was engulfed, white water breaking
over both sides, flooding the deck. And
then it was going down, plunging into the trough, and there was nothing in
their world but seething, surging water.
Richard heard terrified cries of “Jesu!” and “Holy Mother!” Beside him, Arne was whimpering in
German. The bow was completely submerged
and Richard was sure that the Sea-Wolf was doomed, heading for the bottom of
the Adriatic Sea.
“Lord God,
I entreat Thee to save us, Thy servants!”
Richard’s voice rose above the roar of the storm, for he was used to
shouting commands on the battlefield.
“Let us reach a safe harbor and I pledge one hundred thousand ducats to
build for Thee a church wherever we come ashore! Do not let men who’ve taken the cross die at
sea and be denied Christian burial!”
* *
*
His prayer
would be answered and for centuries to come, the city-state of Ragusa, today’s
Dubrovnik, would hold the memory of the English king called Lionheart in high
esteem, as the vast amount he pledged was used to rebuild their cathedral.
The second
passage occurs in Chapter Eight. Eleanor
has been living every mother’s worst nightmare for weeks, not knowing her
missing son’s fate. On this rainy
January night in 1193, she learns from his cousin Andre de Chauvigny that
Richard is still alive but a prisoner of the Holy Roman Emperor. She takes the news hard, of course.
* *
*
His mouth
contorting, Andre said bitterly, “That craven swine on the French throne means
to put in his own bid for Richard, and if he does…”
There was
no need to finish the sentence, for Eleanor understood the consequences fully
as well as he did. She was sitting up
straight now, no longer slumped back in the chair as if her bones could not
bear her weight, and he saw that color was slowly returning to her cheeks; that
sickly white pallor was gone. As he
watched, it seemed to him that she was willing her body to recover, finding
strength from some inner source that defied her advancing years, and he felt a
surge of relief. It had shaken him to
see her looking so fragile, so vulnerable, so old. She was on her feet now, beginning to pace as
she absorbed the impact of the emperor’s letter, and when she turned to face
Andre, he saw that her hazel eyes had taken on a greenish, cat-like glitter,
reflecting nothing at that moment but a fierce, unforgiving rage.
“They will
not get away with this,” she said, making that simple sentence a declaration of
war. “We shall secure my son’s freedom, no
matter what it takes. And we will
protect his kingdom until he can be restored to us, Andre.”
* *
*
And of
course she did. The ransom demanded was
a staggering sum, estimated to be the equivalent of several trillion
dollars. If not for Eleanor’s steely
determination, men might have been reluctant to defy John, who would be king if
Richard died in a German or French prison, which seemed very likely. But as I have Richard’s chancellor, Guillaume
Longchamp, thinking later as he watches the queen mother in action, “King
Richard had been blessed by the Almighty in many ways, but above all in the
woman who’d given him life.” She would
prove to be a match for all of her son’s enemies. Such a pity that Henry couldn’t have seen
what Richard did and made use of Eleanor’s formidable intelligence and
finely-honed political skills. If he’d
done so, maybe we could have written a happier ending to their turbulent
marriage.
But that is
another one of those fascinating, frustrating What Ifs that we like to
speculate about. I’ll probably keep this
blog up for a few weeks so that there will be plenty of time to enter the book
drawing. Now…back to the 12th
century and Rome, where Joanna and Berengaria have been stranded for fear of
Heinrich.
July 16, 2012
LOVE your books and appreciate the glimpse into this story. Any of the above in the drawing would be super as I checked them all out at the local library. I love building my bookshelf.
You’re the first one in, Suzanne. Sorry I couldn’t include a photo of the book jacket, but Melusine has decided to join my other computer, Demon Spawn, on the dark side.
Can’t wait to read the rest!
I love Eleanor and the way you bring her to life in your novels. You hooked me with the DeQuincy novels, and I am unable to quit. Thank you for many hours of reading pleasure.
Just enough to whet the appetite Sharon and to create a hunger for the entirety. While these tasters stir the senses, they mean we now have months to wait before the hunger is satisfied. Nevertheless, thank you for giving an insight into what is to come.
Looking forward to A King’s Ransom to continue Richard’s story. We recently visited Trifels Castle where he was held captive and I’m anxious to see if/how you weave that gorgeous location into the story. Please enter my name in the contest – Lionheart is the only book I need for my personal collection (read it from a library loan). Thanks for all you do to keep history alive and factual!
Thank you for a glimpse of Ransom, and an opportunity to get a signed copy of one of your books! I always buy them as soon as they come out, but I don’t have the Reckoning in hardback, so fingers crossed!
As I wait for King’s Ransom, I find myself spending more and more time on Goodreads searching for books “like Sharon Kay Penman’s”.
I wonder if both Henry and Richard could accept in their mothers what they could not accept in their wives. After all, it’s not as if Maude was a shrinking violet so Henry certainly was accustomed to strong, intelligent women in his life. But I have a feeling that Henry and Eleanor’s relationship defies amateur pop psychology!
I have read all your books and loved them all, but I would choose The Reckoning as my paperback copy is pretty tattered. Waiting patiently for Ransom!
Wow! I would love to have a signed hard back copy of Time and Chance to replace my paperback, which I could then pass along to my granddaughter who loves historical fiction as much as I do. Thanks for the giveaway.
Can’t wait for the new book to come out…..love and have them all but would be amazing to win a signed copy, so keeping my fingers crossed!
Can’t wait to read any and everything that you write, Sharon! I read all of them many times and feel like I’m visiting old friends who come to life when I open the books! I would be so happy to win a signed copy of Lionheart!
Thank you for posting this! I am looking forward to reading A King’s Ransom, and I appreciate the teaser that you gave us.
Sharon, as a long-time fan of your work, I would love a signed copy of Lionheart (I already have and treasure signed copies of several of your other books, including from a book signing many many years ago when you were last in the SF area). I love the authenticity of your writing. I have just finished another book by an unnamed author, and just about choked when a 13th century character advised another that his daughter just needed her self-esteem bolstered!
Earlier this year I read “The Sunne in Splendour” and I can say that I’ve never been touched so much by a book. Last week I finished “When Christ and his Saints slept” and now I am in the last 100 pages of “Time and Chance”…and I have enjoyed both very much. “Devil’s Brood” is already waiting on my bedside table. So “Lionheart” will follow, and I would love to win a signed copy :). Thank you for the glimpse into “A King’s Ransom”!
Oh goody – a drawing! It would be so hard to decide which book, but I think I will start at the beginning again! Can’t wait for King’s Ransom – loved the excerpts here.
I love the cover picture – saw it on your Facebook page! And I wouldn’t know which book to choose if I won, but I still hope I do!
Congratulations – I can’t wait to read it when it comes out! Am a big fan of all your work.
Sharon…thanks for the glimpse into Ransom. Can’t wait for the whole thing. It will be one more of your books for me to share with my students.
I withdraw my name as a candidate for the drawing so as to give others a better chance to win… but I wanted to say I loved the glimpses of what is coming in Ransom. Sharon, I TOLD you that chapter was awesome. 😉 And I also have to throw a note out to Kasia (if she reads this) — JOIN US ON FACEBOOK!!!! 🙂
I should ever so much love to win a signed copy of Lionheart. I should put it on the shelf next to Ivanhoe and the Talisman! 🙂
Stephanie, I’ve been trying to coax Kasia onto Facebook, too, but so far she is resisting me. Maybe if we gang up on her?
Sharon, thank you for these glimpses into A King’s Ransom, I very much forward to reading it … and re-reading it .
I am slowly enjoying the Devil’s Brood once again, just to remind myself of events before I read Lionheart which is lined up on my bookshelf. I’m hoping if I read a little bit slower than I normally do, it should be perfect timing for A King’s Ransom.
Precisely my thoughts, Sharon. Oh, Kasia…. (she sings)
Can’t wait to read Ransom. Have read all your books and would love an autographed copy of Sunne or HBD (my favorites) or any of them! THanks!
I’m afraid I no longer have spare copies of either Sunne or Dragons, Charlene. When ai book is remaindered (goes out of print) publishers usually offer writers the chance to buy copies at cost. I squirreled away quite a few copies of Sunne, but over the years, I’ve given them out to charities, auctions, libraries, or deserving readers. Sadly, I never was able to get any extra copies of Dragons, as my order went astray. I’m just about out of copies of Falls the Shadow and Saints by now, but I do have copies left of the four books I mentioned above. Lionheart, of course, is not out of print in hardback–thank heaven–but my editor generously gave me more than writers usually get from their publishers, so I have a few to spare for book giveaways like this one.
Love all your books and have been a fan for many years. I wrote a long reply but it bounced–must have been Melusine; said I didn’t leave a valid e-mail address.
My favorite of your characters is Lewellyn ap Griffith. You magically created a man from the shreds of history and legend. (And I do know that the “magic” required a lot of hard work.)
I’ve loved and admired Eleanor since I was a teenager and have at least a dozen books about her. Still think you did the best job.
Sharon
I’m a huge fan, and regularly check your blog for any info. Greatly appreciated the peak at the new book. A few months back after reading all your books in cronological order, I started reading the series over again. I’ve been saving my copy of Lionheart. I would LOVE to win a signed copy (I would choose The Reckoning, since it’s the only one I haven’t purchased yet, but would take any of them).
Thanks again.
Looking so forward to Ransom! Thank you for the preview teasers!
How nice that you are doing a giveaway, again. I would like a copy of the Reckoning as my paperback is pretty worn out, too.
Thank you for an opportunity to win a copy of one of your wonderful books, Sharon.
I have most of your books Sharon and will be getting them on the Kindle too. LOVE the new cover – very sexy and a sure attention grabber!! You should be regressed as I am sure you used to live in these times :-))
The Reckoning – So tragic, but I don’t have a hard bound copy. I do have a signed copy of Dragon’s Lair so I feel rather greedy entering my name for this drawing. If I win however, I may well consider passing it along to my daughter, a fervent fan of yours, who graduated from The University of East Anglia in Creative Writing and English Literature. Thank you for the book giveaway offer!
Another fan, reporting in! I wrote you (more years ago than I’m willing to admit) to thank you for writing Here Be Dragons, as reading that set me on the path to get my MA in European history. I still have saved the lovely letter you sent back to me! I got my husband hooked on your books too!
Oh, Sharon, I would love to add to my signed collection with Devil’s Brood or Time and Chance! I love these tidbits from Ransom, too!
Sharon it would be a privilege to win & own a signed copy of Lionheart! Such a nice offer—thank you. Some great stories above. Oh to have studied English Lit at East Anglia U, or any British university for that matter!
Ransom looks to be as engrossing as your other books, thanks for the taste. I know how deeply I get into the MA just reading, I can’t imagine writing these scenes. How do you remember to do mundane things like pay bills?
What a family! I’m sure those Angevin Plantagenets really were favoured by God and the Devil alike. No other royal family of Britain could make deals with both God and the Dark Lord with impunity like this family.
I am so looking forward to A Kings Ransom. I have an insatiable need for the Bishop of Beauvais to have karma kick him you know where.
Thanks for including the passages from Ransom. I am counting down the days till I can read the whole book. And thank you for the give away. Would be a dream come true to win a signed copy of one of your books. : )
LOL, Sandy. Richard would have loved your post! If you think Beauvais was a slimy weasel in Lionheart, wait till you see what he does to Richard in Ransom.
Thanks for a glimpse into your upcoming book – I can’t wait to read Ransom. I have all the books offered in your giveaway, but know exactly who I could give one to – she happened to mention she’s a great fan of this particular period in history, and in particular of Eleanor of Aquitaine, but wasn’t familiar with your work! I was reading the final Justin deQuincy mystery at the time, and she was intrigued (being a lover of mysteries too). I loaned her the first two, and she is hooked. Another convert!
Thank you so much for these tantalising glimpses of Ransom. By the look of this we are in for another treat! The first tidbit really brings home again how terrifying sea travel was!! They showed enormous faith and courage taking it on at all. And of course I love another glimpse of the amazing Eleanor. Of all the blessings Richard had, choosing Eleanor as his Mother was the best thing he ever did. She was a force of nature that could only be defeated by death itself! Even then I imagine she would not have gone quietly into the night.
Of course, again, you have invited us to leap right into the thick of things! While I also think Henry’s lack of appreciation for his wife’s wisdom and political acumen only made things more difficult for himself, the resulting turmoil made for some pretty excellent story telling, and we thank you!
“I think giving copies of my books as gifts would be a wonderful custom to establish and ought to be encouraged whenever possible.”
Sharon, Thankyou for making me smile in the middle of what will be a long day and long week of work. I was going to say something similar to Stephanie, and withdraw my name as a candidate in your competition, but then I thought I could give one as a gift if I won. I would choose Michelle Sires and as she has already entered above, this would double her chances 🙂
Now, now, Paula… I guess if we can cast our votes for others, I may reconsider.
Wow, the possibilities are endless if Henry had only known what he had in Eleanor…to see her shine in the political arena would be a sight to behold!!
Yay Eleanor is back! LOL. I have read enough books on her history to know that eventually she would return but it was hard on this reader of “Lionheart” to wait for her return. Yes, I know the book is about Richard but Eleanor is like an old friend and I like to see my old friends make an appearance.
Stephanie, I was thinking just like you were, but then it was Sharon’s sentence that swayed me :). It is a little bit cheeky though. It costs me nothing to get a free gift for a friend if I win. I think you should reconsider :). Let’s be naughty together.
It would be ever so wonderful to get a copy of The Reckoning, for my copy was stolen along with several other books and cds last fall 🙁
Today, The Fourth Crusade captured Constantinople, and the last battle of the Hundred Year’s War took place, the Battle of Castillon, where Jean Bureau decisively defeated the English Army under the Earl of Shrewsbury, with him dying on the field (he was the father of Eleanor Talbot, of the infamous plight-troth with Edward IV).
There is only one anodyne fior the sense of deep disappointment to be finished reading Lionheart – and that’s RANSOM.
Meanwhile, re reading Devil’s Brood beckons……
If Kasia joins FB, I’ll give her a place on the Ark and a big chunk of New Wales after the waters recede!
Thanks Sharon….I was beginning to think Richard was ignoring me. I have been pinning for him for months…but I see now that he is awfully busy. LOL!!! Thanks for the giveaway!
Great bribe, Ken. Kasia, aren’t you weakening yet?
Thanks, everyone, for the wonderful comments!
Today’s Facebook Note, another long one–what a surprise, right?
Elizabeth Chadwick has an excellent article up on her website about Eleanor’s uncle Raymond, Prince of Antioch, and the charge of incest made against them, which we both think is untrue. Her information about Raymond is fascinating, too. Eleanor’s brief time in Antioch—she was only there for nine days—would leave an irradicable stain on her reputation; for a very insightful analysis of the Antioch incident and the medieval attitude toward women who broke society’s rules, I recommend Ralph Turner’s biography, Eleanor of Aquitaine. Elizabeth’s website is one of the best on the web, in my opinion; if you haven’t visited it until now, you’re in for a treat. Here is the link. http://livingthehistoryelizabethchadwick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/eleanor-of-aquitaine-raymond-of.html
Historically, on July 17, 1205, the great city of Constantinople fell to the men of the Fourth Crusade. The First Crusade is surely the bloodiest of the crusades, the Second the most inept and ineffectual, the Third the best-known thanks to the pairing of two legends, Saladin and Lionheart, but the Fourth is the most shameful. While the desire for profit was always an underlying motivation for the crusades, we sometimes under-estimate the strength of their religious underpinnings. But the dominant force of the Fourth Crusade was pure greed.
On July 17, 1453, the French defeated the English at Castillon in Gascony in what is held to be the last battle of the Hundred Years War. The English commander, John Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, was slain on the field. And for my fellow fans of Bernard Cornwell’s brilliant Saxon series, on this date in 924, Edward the Elder died; he was the son of King Alfred the Great and brother of Uthred’s love, the Lady of Mercia, AEthelflaed.
Oooh, I can hardly wait to read the whole book! Thank you Sharon, for sharing these excerpts with us. I, too love Eleanor. I have a 12th century personna in the SCA, and Eleanor is a great influence for me. 🙂
Sharon, I’m awake, just a little bit busy. After what I have just read, I’m looking forward to Ransom:-)
Sharon, Stephanie and Ken, I can’t recall whether I have mentioned that my husband is a musician and that means lots of travels for him, and for me lots of hours spent alone with my spoilt children. No mercy:-). Don’t forget about my eldest child, utterly spoilt -not by me, thank God, by his biological parents, Henry and Eleanor Plantagenets (more by Henry, I daresay)-and about my ambitious plans of bringing him back to life. So far with little success. BTW, if you are interested in what I have been recently occupied with click “Kasia (Kate)” and see for youself:-)
I am most grateful to you all for your kind threats and offers- Ken, your “big chunk of New Wales” almost irresistable- but I cannot abandon my children. Not now.
Kasia, you mean you’re passing up a chance to be titled nobility in New Wales just because your children need to be fed? How about if we name the new kingdom after a certain young king you’re partial to? Two quick questions for you. Is it okay if I post the link to your Young King website? And I have something to send you, so can you e-mail me at sharonkaypenman@gmail.com? Thanks!
Thanks, too, to all the interesting comments and compliments. I wish you all could win the drawing. Well, maybe I’ll win the lottery and then I’d be able to say like Captain Jean-Luc Piccard on Star Trek, “Make it so.”
Sharon
I read – and re-read! – your books while at university over twenty years ago. I am delighted that they will be available as e-books and I am very much hoping that the costs per book will not be unaffordable!
Me, to, Deborah. Sadly, writers don’t get to set the prices. My American publisher initially set the price way too high for the When Christ and His Saints Slept and Devil’s Brood e-books, and the sales showed it. But when they lowered them, people started buying them. But all writers can do is watch from the sidelines unless they self-publish.
Loved the excerpts, Sharon. Not surprising, lol. Cannot wait for the book.
Sharon,
It is said that the best things in life are those worth waiting for. Judging by the excerpts you shared with us, A King’s Ransom is definitely one of those things. With only a few sentences, you make the real world disappear and the past return to life. I particularly like the scene with Eleanor and André. I can feel Eleanor’s anguish and turmoil over the faith of her dearest son, Richard.
I’ve only just started acquiring hardback copies of your novels and if I’m lucky enough to win, I would love to receive either Time and Chance or The Reckoning.
Eagerly awaiting “Ransom”. The UK paperback cover on FB was lovely!
I sent you an e-mail as requested so as to receive information concerning your planned “Eleanor” tour,fall 2013, but did not receive a response. Perhaps the mail went the way of those others that disappeared. I wish so much that your future book tour for “Ransom” would take you to Dallas, Texas. Any possibility?
Sharon, Ken’s innocent offer is nothing in comparison to your bribe:-) Well, at least no one would dare to call young Henry “the King of Lesser (or Little) Land” any more. Not even Bertran de Born himself from the depths of Dante’s Inferno:-)
As for the link, I would be honoured. I am writing to you straight away.
I am getting paranoid now. It is one thing for my Facebook comments to disappear, but what happened to the one I wrote to you, Sara? I answered you as soon as I read your post, and it is goine! We are not amused. I told you that I had responded to your e-mail straight-away, and it is disturbing to learn that you never got it. I remembered our meeting in Houston very well and was pleased that you might be able to go on the tour. This is sort of scary, for e-mails function on faith. When we hit that Send button, we have to be able to believe that the e-mail will actually get where it is supposed to go. I figureed I’d just resend the lost e-mail, Sara, only when I went to look for it in my Eleanor file, I realized you must have sent it before June 10th, for it is not there, nor is my response. On June 10, Melusine joined Demon Spawn on the dark side and wiped out all of my e-mails, not just those in the In Box but all those in the folders and files. I was told that a file had become corrupted and the missing e-mails are likely still on my hard drive. But I have to wait until my computer guru Lowell comes to visit for him to try to retrieve them. So can you either e-mail me again via my website or e-mal me at sharonkaypenman@gmail.com? Once I have your e-mail address, I will be able to give you more information about the tour. I’m so glad you mentioned this here.
Kasia, did you e-mail me at my Google e-mail? Because it is not there. I really hope you just haven’t had time to do it; otherwise there is some major sabotage going on!
Sharon, just in case your e-mail is playing up and lost the possum, I sent you a photo of an albino one that visited me one night. I also thanked you for taking the time to talk to the Aussie fan club and answer my ‘serious’ question about the Bishop of Beauvais.
Yikes, Paula. It is one thing for Melusine to play mind games with me, but when she starts to mess with albino possums, that is going too far. I never got this either. Could you possibly resend? Thanks!
Sharon, I am afraid there is some major sabotage going on! I have sent my e-mail at your Google e-mail just after I wrote I would. So far I haven’t got any info from Deamon Mailer cocnerning the problems with delievering my message, but, after what you have written about Melusine and her moods I suppose it’s just a matter of time:-)
Shall I write and send it again or wait a little bit? Perhaps it will miraculously appear at your e-mail.
Koby, I’ve dropped in on Wikipedia and found out that on this day in 1290 Edward II issued the Edict of Expulsion, banishing all Jews from England. Wikipedia claims this was Tisha B’Av on the Hebrew calendar. Could you write a few words about this particular commemorating day (I don’t know whether it can be called a feast day). There is a Wiki note, of course, but I’m not sure whether I can rely on it or not. I would be most grateful for your explanation and for enlightning me:-)
Well, I was planning to do so anyway, Kasia, but now that by doing so I will be fulfilling your wish, I am even happier about it.
Firstly though, allow me to say that besides Edward I issuing the Edict of Expulsion, Godfrey of Bouillon, Protector of the Holy Sepulchre died today, and the Battle of the Allia took place, leading to the (first) Sack of Rome.
Now. Kasia, we have a different calendar, a lunar one. There are 12 months, with 29-30 days each. Av is the 11th month, and it starts this Friday. Tisha means ninth, so Tisha b’Av is literally ‘The Ninth of Av’. It is not a feast day, but rather a fast day. It is the traditional Jewish date for many calamities, including the Destruction of both Temples, the utter ruin of the Bar Kokhba Revolt, and more (I will no doubt elaborate on the actual date).
Throughout history, this has continued to be an evil date for the Jews, and is considered a day of misfortune, so much that it is said that any business done on that day will never succeed. The First Crusade was declared on this day (July 20th), which killed 10,000 Jews in its first month and destroyed many Jewish communities. The Jews were expelled from England on Tisha b’Av, and 202 years later, from Spain as well (July 31st). World War I broke out. The mass deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto began. And many others evil events.
So, on this day we mourn for all the destruction and evil that has come unto us for our sins. The fast begins at sundown, and ends at nightfall of the next day. We read the Book of Lamentations and many dirges and elegies.
I think that is enough for now. Again, I will not doubt elaborate further on the actual date, especially if you have questions you wish to be answered.
Wonderful post, as always, Koby. Thank you. I’d llike to repost it on my Facebook page, if that is okay?
Paula, your possum post came through the second time, thanks. Kasia, I haven’t checked my Google e=mail yet but as of late last night, it had not surfaced; nor had Sara’s. I’ll let you know if we need to adopt a Plan B.
Here is my Facebook post for today.
We often are critical of Edward I here for sentencing Davydd ap Gruffydd to such a savage death, for imprisoning his two young sons, for turning the Welsh into second-class citizens in their own homeland, and for his abusive treatment of Robert the Bruce’s female relatives. But we ought not to forget what he did on July 18, 1290. The thirteenth century saw a steady erosion of the status and safety of medieval Jews, beginning with the Fourth Lateran Council when Pope Innocent III decreed that the Jews were to wear badges to differentiate them from Christians. The English kings reflected this growing hostility toward the Jews, Henry III and Edward I being much more anti-Semitic than Henry II and Louis VII of France. Edward did a practice run in 1287, expelling all of the Jews from Gascony, which enabled him to confiscate their goods and lay claim to the debts owed them. And on July 18, 1290, he issued the Edict of Expulsion, forcing all of England’s Jews to flee the country. Sadly, this edict was a popular one, for anti-Semitism was the ugly underside of medieval life. I’ve occasionally been asked about various historical figures I’ve written about, readers wanting to know if they were anti-Semitic. The answer would be yes, for this was a poison they all breathed in from birth, a bias sanctioned by the Church; the degree of that bias varied considerably, of course. We do not know the exact number of those affected by Edward’s expulsion; I’ve seen estimates ranging from 2,000 to 16, 000. They would not be welcome again in England for more than 350 years.
Of course, Sharon, if that is your wish. I quite enjoyed your post as well.
Thanks, Koby. I just postet it.
I don’t know what is going on, by my earlier post to you is gone, Kasia. I told you that your e-mail has yet to turn up in my google account. I think you were exchanging e-mails with Malcolm for a while? If I am right, I will ask him to give you my personal e-mail address since I can’t trust the google account. If I am wrong, we’ll have to work out a Plan B!
Sharon, did you get the email from me that gave you the information about George Clooney coming to visit you? I hope that one didn’t get lost. T’would be a shame.
Very funny, Stephanie. Keep it up and I will put the curse of the cat people on you. Anyway, I’d rather visit George; he is the one with the Italian villa, after all. Not that I’m shallow enough to be influenced by that, of course.
I’m sorry, Sharon. I couldn’t write back earlier. Let’s leave the unfortunate
e-mail, although I have to admit I’m very curious what you were planning to send to me 🙂 The exchange of e-mails with Malcolm is a little bit risky business, I’m afraid. At least when I am concerned. I’m sure that Malcolm is chuckling to himself while reading it, am I right?
BTW, Malcolm, I’ve started reading The Duchesses and Devils, and cannot stop thinking about Geoffrey and his involvement in the theft of the relics of St Petroc. If true it puts him yet in a new and different light. Makes him even more adventurous, I daresay. Not in an open way like Richard, and not in a clumsy way like Hal [:-)], but in his own, let me call it “underground” way. IMHO, it’s a material for a separate story.
I know I should rather focus on serious matters, such as Margaret’s involvement in the Great Rebellion, but I simply cannot. Geoffrey and the relics have roused my imagination for good. Maybe Sharon will be allowed to add an extra chapter or extra plot to the next edition of Devil’s Brood?:-)
O! One more thing, Malcolm! I am most grateful to you for helping me in
a crucial matter. In The Duchesses I have- utterly by chance- come across the information I’ve been looking for. I have finally found out where the meeting between William the Lion and Henry II was held in 1166. What a luck! I will be able to edit my news concerning William the Lion and Henry the Young King on Henry’s website. Thank you so much.
P.S. Malcolm, I’m writing to you on Sharon’s blog because my latest e-mail sent to you yesterday has already come back with the well known information from Mailer Deamon. Sharon, now you know what I mean:-)
Koby, thank you for the explanation. I have learned a lot thanks to you:-)
When I was in Prague two weeks ago I visited Spanish Synagogue and discovered that the Jews that lived in the capital of Bohemia (later on Czechoslovakia) and built the synagogue there were the direct descendants of the Jews expelled by Isabella of Castile in 1492. My freshly acquired knowledge left me with goose pimples all over my body (as usual on such occassions).
Again, thank you.
We have to work this out, Kasia. Trust me when I say this is something you aboslutely must have!
Good afternoon Sharon. Once upon a time all I knew of Wales came from the movie, How Green Was My Valley. Some years back, the libraian at the Naval Hospital on Guam suggested your novels, and I was carried away with your writing and captivated by a country I knew almost nothing about. A few years ago my husband and I visted north Wales, setting out from Chester with a wonderful guide. Edward’s castles are magnificent, but it is the Welsh castles that tug at the heart. Because of the wonderful way you present your historical characters, I felt that I had known some of the people who lived, loved, and fought in those places. At Dolwyddelan, it was both Llewelyns and their wives that I thought about. At Cricieth, I saw Joanna and the children walking on the beach. At Dolbadarn, I thought of Owain and Davydd. Even though the castle ruins at Dinbych are not those of Davydd’s castle, he would have looked out upon the same hills. And so it went with each site that we visited. We would not have gone, and the visit would not have been so special if not for your novels. I have all of your novels, but an autographed one would be treasured.
Kasia, I am going to plead with you again to join FB. I think those of us there would really benefit from getting to know you. Pretty please? Pretty pretty please????? And I have young children too, but it has yet to stop me. Probably should, but hasn’t.
Thank you so much, Melody. I confess that before I moved to Wales to research Here be Dragons, about all I knew of Wales was that the incomparable Richard Burton was Welsh. The book was supposed to be about the story of King John and his daughter. Well, it only took Llywelyn a fortnight to steal the book right out from under John’s nose.
Kasia, I think I’ve solved our problem. If you go to my website instead of the blog and click onto Contact, you will have the opportunity to e-mail me. These e-mails are then forwarded to me by my webmaster. Trust me on this; it will be worth the trouble. Not to be too cryptic, but what I have for you concerns a certain young king you’re rather fond of. 🙂
Today, The Great Fire of Rome began, the Battle of Guadalete took place, where the Umayyads decisively defeated the Visigoths, with the Visigoth king Roderic dying on the field, beginning the conquest of Hispania (Spain). The Battle of Halidon Hill also took place today, where Edward III decisively defeated the Scots under Archibald Douglas. Phillipa of Lancaster, John of Gaunt’s daughter and Queen of Portugal died, as did Mary Boleyn, sister to Anne and Mistress to Henry VIII [IX]. Lastly, Lady Jane Grey’s nine-day reign ended.
Sharon, I’ve just sent the message according to your instructions. I hope this one will reach you. Otherwise we’ll have to work out plan C:-)
Stephanie, you are disarming! And most kind! I should be flattered and indeed I am. Unfortunately, in my case, it’s not just about my children. I’ve been gathering materials for my Polish novel for some time now. I’m planning to get down to work this summer. I’m in a hurry for being a teacher means the return to my duties after summer holidays.
There is still Henry the Young King, of course. Although he’s long past dead I feel I could not let him down, and I’m afraid that joining FB might distract me from my writing. Still, I do thank you for your kind words:-)
Koby, again thank you for your exhaustive explanation. I’m writing just in case you haven’t read my previous message with thanksgiving:-)
Kasia, if you are comfortable talking about it, we’d love to know more about your Polish novel.
Today’s Facebook Note.
This is the date in 64 AD that the great fire of Rome occurred, giving birth to the legend that Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Margaret George is working now on a novel about Nero and I am looking forward to her dramatization of this event. On July 19, 1374, one of the great poets of the Middle Ages, Francisco Petrarch died, he of “Laura” fame. On July 19, 1543, Mary Boleyn, Anne’s less celebrated sister died; I like to think that she found some contentment away from the toxic Tudor court, although she must have been haunted by the murders of her sister and brother and their craven betrayal by her father and uncle. And on July 19, 1553, the reluctant queen, Jane Grey, was deprived of the crown she’d never wanted by her cousin, the rightful heir, Mary Tudor. Just a reminder: Susan Higginbotham has a new novel out about Jane, called Her Highness the Traitor.
So happy to have found this blog! Your books have brought me countless hours of enjoyment. Now I’m off to spend a few hours reading your blog…
Sharon, thank you so much for your e-mail. I will write back as soon as I put my children to bed and tuck them in. I’m exhausted after the whole day spent in their dear company:-). And God be my witness- I do hate cooking!
P.S. If you don’t mind I will write a few words about my novel tomorrow.
Kasia, I totally understand! 😉 But I will keep trying… And looking forward to hearing about your novel!
Sharon, I’ve just written back. Please do let me know if my e-mail has come through. If it hasn’t I will use Contact section on your website again.
Thank you, Stephanie. I will write in the morning (my morning, of course:-)).
It came through fine, Kasia. I hope to be able to mail your package tomorrow.
Hi Sharon, I first became acquainted with your writing whilst visiting Caernarvon Castle in Wales and browsing the gift shop. I have been hooked ever since and have read all your novels. The latest “Lionheart” has kept me entertained for many wonderful hours. I work with the UN in a remote location of the world so reading is a serious means of passing the hours. I am looking forward with eager anticipation to “A King’s Ransom” and having read your excerpts, can’t wait for publication.
A signed copy of Lionheart would be truly a thrill.
Best wishes.
Today, Alexander the Great of Macedon was born, and Roger Mortimer, Earl of March, heir presumptive to Richard II and grandfather of Richard Duke of York died. Lastly, the great Battle of Ankara took place today, where Timur decisively defeated the Ottoman Empire, taking Sultan Bayezid I prisoner.
Sharon, once I was into Sunne by only a handful of pages I declared that you were my favorite author. You haven’t let me down! I finished Lionheart knowing that I’d have to wait a bit for the next book so I immediately picked up Dragons and got lost in it. My manager teases me that he’ll take my book so I won’t be tempted to read before my lunch break 🙂 Thank you for making history not only fascinating but also comprehensible.
Amy, that has to be one of the nicest compliments I’ve ever gotten. Thank you all for such wonderful comments. Writers cherish reader feedback–as long as it is favorable, of course! I may be MIA for a while, as I explain below in my Facebook Note for today.
I won’t be able to spend as much time on Facebook as I usually do for a while, as I have been hit by the Perfect Storm; I know that has become a cliché, but it is so useful. I found myself having to work on the book proposal for my next book, finishing an interview that Margaret George and I are doing for Ballantine’s paperback edition of Lionheart, and doing some heavy-duty research about Languedoc—all at once. So I will be flying under the radar until the storm subsides. I’ll pop in when I can, am sure I can count on you all to keep things lively. The last time I checked, one of the threads on my fan-club page had over 400 posts!
For today’s happenings, I am borrowing Koby’s post on my blog. July 20th was also the start of the Eighth Crusade, the second for one the French king, Louis IX, later St Louis. He’d have been better off staying home in Paris, for he died a month later in Tunis on August 25, 1270, probably of dysentery. Here are Koby’s comments for this date.
“Today, Alexander the Great of Macedon was born, and Roger Mortimer, Earl of March, heir presumptive to Richard II and grandfather of Richard Duke of York died. Lastly, the great Battle of Ankara took place today, where Timur decisively defeated the Ottoman Empire, taking Sultan Bayezid I prisoner.”
Where can I go to meet new guys at online? I was using Bing and found your website..I was hoping you could help it through your website!
Today’s Facebook Note.
July 21, 1403 is the date of the battle of Shrewsbury, in which King Henry IV defeated Henry “Hotspur” Percy, who was slain on the field. An excellent account of this battle is Edith Pargeter’s A Bloody Field by Shrewsbury.
Indeed, Sharon. In addition, the Battle of Taillebourg also took place today, where Louis IX (‘Saint Louis’)of France and his brother Aphonse of Poitiers decisively defeated Henry III [IV] of England and his stepfather, Hugh de Lusginan.
Thanks for that reminder, Koby. I ought to know for I wrote about the battle in Shadow!
Ah, well, to be fair, it did take part in two phases, with the second only occurring tomorrow (the 23rd)… so you’ve got a good excuse.
Today, Godfrey of Bouillon was elected the first Defender of the Holy Sepulchre of The Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Battle of Falkirk took place, where Edward I defeated William Wallace and the Scots. John Hunyadi of Hungary defeated the Ottomans under Sultan Mehmed II in breaking the Siege of Belgrade. The Battle of Lochmaben Fair too place, where Royalist forces loyal to James III of Scotland defeated invading English forces under Alexander Stewart, Duke of Albany and James Douglas, Earl of Douglas, who had invaded with the permission of Richard III. Isabella of Angouleme gave birth to John’s first legitimate daughter, Joan, who would be Queen of Scotland. Lastly, Charles VII of France died, leaving the throne to his son Louis XI, the Spider King.
Sharon, I’m back. Our area was without power for two days because of the gale that ravaged my neighbourhood. Two cars were crushed by a falling tree. Fortunately there was nobody inside, so the only consequence was lack of electricity, for the same tree damaged electric wires. I have also been forced to postpone the writing of my essays concerning two important anniversaries striclty connected with Henry the Young King.
The first, 22nd July, 1174, was the day when the siege of Rouen began. Henry the Young King was at Gravelines, Flanders, waiting for the propitious winds to take him to England, when he learned about William of Scotland’s capture before the walls of Alnwick. He knew perfectly well that with the imprisonment of the Scottish king his rebellion on English soil had been doomed. He and Philip of Flanders decided to join Louis and try luck in capturing the Norman capital. I recommend Devil Brood where Sharon brilliantly employed Luc, Henry’s most effective spy to give a detailed account of the siege.
The second anniversary is Henry the Young King’s burial on 22 July 1183. After forty days of wandering Henry could finally rest where he had chosen, giving Rouen its first royal burial. At present I’m working on the detailed account of what happened after 11 June. Strange as it may seem- to write about a dead body- but scarcely ever in history did royal body encountered so many adventures after death as Henry’s. I’m trying to come up with a suitable title. I’ve been thinking about “Over His Dead Body” or “One Royal Body’s Ups and Downs”. I will probably choose the former. I hope I will be ready with at least one text for today’s evening.
Sharon, good luck with your work. The research about Languedoc sounds fantastic. I will have to do one myself, for I’ve been in love with Bertrand de Born and his cheeky verse appeals to the Angevin princes. He was merciless when it came to Hal and his doubts concerning joining the Poitevan rebels against Richard, not only bestowing the well known title upon the Young King but also criticizing him beyond measure. Would it be okay if I cite one of Bertran’s songs? I’m sure you know it, but maybe the others have not had the occasion to read it so far.
Luc is Henry II’s spy, of course:-)
Kasia, I am so sorry to hear of your storm. It sounds like the Derecho that hammered the East Coast of the US two weeks ago; I’d never heard of a Derecho, a violent thunderstorm that feeds upon itself. I’m glad your house wasn’t damaged. And thanks for such an interesting post.
Here is my Facebook post, about a tragedy that still hits a nerve with me today.
I had to surface today for too much happened in history to be ignored—an important battle, two meetings of old enemies. But for me July 22nd will always be the date of the massacre of the citizens of Beziers in 1209. I haven’t time to do one if my usual detailed (long-winded?) accounts, but this could not pass unnoticed. The Albigensian Crusade is one of the darker chapters in the history of the Church, and it began with a bloodbath. A French army led by the papal legate and abbot of Citeaux, Arnaud Amaury, pitched camp before the town of Beziers in the south of France and demanded that the townspeople surrender 222 Cathars, who were considered heretics by the Church. The townspeople indignantly refused to betray their fellow citizens and would pay a horrifying price for their loyalty. The next day some of the townsmen foolishly made a sortie out to taunt the besiegers. In the conflict that followed, some of the routiers in the French army managed to get inside the city walls with the fleeing townsmen, and a massacre followed. Most of the citizens were Catholic, but that did not save them. Priests were struck down at their altars and the churches where the desperate people had taken refuge became charnel houses. When soldiers asked the papal legate, Arnaud Amaury how they could tell the Catholics from the Cathars, he was reported to have said, “Kill them all. God will know His own.” Historians today tend to distrust this claim, made a few years later by an admiring German monk. But even if he did not speak those exact words, they expressed the sentiments of the crusaders all too well. Arnaud Amaury sent a triumphant letter to Pope Innocent III, telling him that “nearly twenty thousand of the citizens were put to the sword, regardless of age and sex.” In his joy at such a victory, he was exaggerating the death toll, for Beziers was half that size, “only” about 10,000 people. Kill them all. God will know His own.
Also on this date in 1170, Henry II and Thomas Becket had their last meeting at Freteval in France; less than six months later, Becket would be martyred in his own cathedral. And on July 22, 1298. Edward I defeated the Scots and William Wallace at the battle of Falkirk. Lastly, on July 22, 1470, Louis XI, the wily French king known as the Universal Spider, spun the most unlikely of webs at Angers, persuading the Earl of Warwick and Marguerite d’Anjou that they must put aside their mutual hatred If they were to have any chance of defeating their Yorkist foe, Edward IV.
I am now retreating back into my turtle’s shell, dragging my laptop with me.
Kasia, everyone would be delighted if you cited a Bertran de Born song. And I would vote for Over his Dead Body.
Sharon, Bertran knew all the princes and whether his words were meant as provocation or not (and we know they were:-)), he seemed to share the same opinion as you when it came to the “noble duke of Brittany”:-) I’ve read this particular sirventes before, but in different translation. The one I’m going to introduce is more “graceful”, I would say. Although I have found a flaw in it! The Young King, William Marshal and the knights of their times did not “joust”:-) Jousting as a separate sport came later. BTW, to all interested, I do recommend Tournament by David Crouch .
A new sirventes, singer! Music ho!
I’ll cry abroad the young king’s latest deed:
His father ordered him to quit at once
His claim against his brother Richard’s lands,
And he obeyed him! Henry, landless king,
For it I crown you king of cowards!
A coward surely, now you live like this
On paid and promised money; not the peer
Of heroes such as fought in other years.
And, men of Poitou, he betrays your trust;
He lies to you and leaves you penniless.
Sir Richard may not want my good advice;
But, heed it or not, I’ll tell him this:
Although your brother is no threat to you,
You ought to treat your loyal liegeman well,
And stop the pillage of their lands and crops,
Don’t take their castles on the least excuse!
And then, for all I care, the younger king
Can stay and joust at Flemish tournaments!
If only Geoffrey, noble duke of Brittany,
Had been the eldest of the English princes;
For he’s a better ruler than you both!
Bertran de Born “D’um sirventes nom cal far loignor ganda”
Malcolm, I’m sure you agree with Bertan as well:-)
When you return, there’ a message somewhere “in the north” waiting for you. In it I mentioned my latest problems with sending another e-mail to you. There are also a few words concerning Duchesses and Devils, and the “noble duke of Brittany”. Just head north :-).
Kasia, I love your mischievous sense of humor! Definitely Over his Dead Body. I’m still chuckling. Sharon, between you, Kasia, & Ken, & a few others from time to time, we’re provided with a pretty steady stream of LOL material. Love the above song. Sharon, how did these guys get away with presenting them—did they have license? Special dispensation? Would they have been journalists of a sort—a lot of info did get around through their troubadouring—perhaps the “original journalists”?!? Looks like I’m going to have to find the book Tournament now too (my copy of The KIngs & Queens of Scotland just came in, Kasia—very enticing if I can manage the extremely small print)—I find the jousting & tournaments an exciting aspect of the MA, though didn’t realize jousting came later.
A signed copy of one of your books would have pride of place on my bookshelf. Lionheart might be the only one I don’t own a hard copy of actually.
Sharon, I’m not sure if you or one of your readers posted this youtube docu some time ago—The Greatest Knight–Timewatch–BBC. I had it bookmarked—very interesting with entertaining dramatizations as Dr Saul David investigates both William Marshall & the “tournament”. At one point we go to a site north of Paris, popular for tourneys & am wondering if this is where Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany was killed (couldn’t catch the name). David Crouch makes his appearance as well, which I was happy to see because I’m going to enjoy Tournament even more now—what a lovely lyrical voice—his writing must be superb!
Joan, all of Professor Crouch’s works are meticulous and superbly written studies. You may find his biography of William Marshal of interest, too. His Tournament is one of my favourite, if not favourite, books on history ever written. I guess, it has much to do with the way Hal is depicted:-) Professor casts a new light on the Young King and other young arisocrats of the times and their involvement in tournaments.
Here are the other books you may want to read. All of them by David Crouch.
The Image of Aristocracy in Britain, 1000-1300.
The Normans: The History of a Dynasty.
The Birth of Nobility: Constructing Aristocracy in England and France: 900-1300.
As for Bertran de Born and his poetry- BTW, you will learn more about him in Tournament- he was quite different from his fellow troubadours. In his sirventes he did not glorify and celebrate love. His muse was war. And always war. Was he ever punished for his impudent appeals? Probably in the afterlife, when Dante, in his Divine Comedy, put him in Inferno for turning the sons against their father. Still, I wouldn’t call it punishment, for thanks to it Bertran has been immortalized. In this life Bertran was clever
enough to escape Henry II’s wrath after Hals’ death.
As for Richard, he must have been highly amused while listening to Bertran’s cheeky sirventes and probably forgave him on the spot. I guess, they understood each other. How do I know? In other sirventes Bertran wrote:
‘I don’t complain about Sir Yes-and-No, for I know well that he doesn’t halt war or slow it down; for him peace and truce have never been noble’:-)
Hi Sharon!
Such a great idea and it would be awesome to be able to win a signed copy.
I already read “The Sunne in Splendour” and it became on of my Top 5 easily.
At the moment I’m in the middle of “When Christ and His Saints Slept” and I really love the ship motiff!
Kasia, I agree with you, also recommend Dr Crouch’s books, too. In his biography of William Marshal, he solved the mystery of the family background of Henry II’s illegitimate son, Morgan; without him, I could never have made Morgan a major character in Prince of Darkness. I’d always been interested in Morgan, who passed up a bishopric because he refused to deny that Henry II was his father, so I owe Dr. Crouch one.
Joan, none of the chroniclers menntioned where the tournament was held, so I chose the place celebrated for its tournaments that was near Paris–Lagny. That is probably the one that Dr Crouch mentioned.
Today’s Facebook Note.
I’m making another brief foray into the real world—I suppose that includes Facebook? I wanted to share with you all a funny, tongue-in-cheek article that ran in the Wall Street Journal a few weeks ago, kindly sent to me by Margaret George. In it, the American columnist Joe Queenan takes the British to task for their indifference to a certain medieval king. You’ll have to read it to find out who has been forgotten—hint, I’ve written about him.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304550004577509010464132748.html
This is a photo of the new Lionheart cover to be published December 26th. I think it looks fabulous!
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51lTDF0ZvsL._SL500_AA300_.jpg
Just finished Lionheart (library loan). I had not been closely following your work for the last few years, until I got on Goodreads and decided to return to my personal bookshelves and re-read “When Christ and His Saints Slept.” Which then, of course, led me all the way through the trilogy– only to find it was more than a trilogy and Lionheart was already published! I was so excited that I did not have to say good-bye! I appreciate that you are diligently working on “A King”s Ransom.” Please continue to give us these little glimpses of that book. It just may tide me over until it is published! Thank you for your wonderful work! If I am selected I would choose to receive Lionheart as it is the only one I do not have to date.
Thanks, Julie!
Sharon, the article is brilliant! Thanks for posting. Kasia, thank you once again for recommending more books. I am now more than excited to read Tournament & some of his other works. Have you ever met him, Sharon? Re Bertran de Born—now wouldn’t he be an interesting fellow to spend a day with in our time travels! And Emilie, a while back you mentioned another R Omar book, David, so thank you for that.
I loved these snippets from “King’s Ransom”–thank you so much for putting them on your blog! As a new mama, I can relate to Eleanor’s emotions, although mine are confined to heart-wrenching tumbles on the playground at the moment. I’d love a copy of “The Reckoning”–as much as I love all of your work, my favorite is most certainly the Welsh trilogy. Thanks again for posting this!
Just finished Lionheart – WOW!
I’ve never been able to keep all the Richards & Henrys straight – but thanks to your books, now I can, because you’ve really brought them to life for me. Thank you & can’t wait for A King’s Ransom! Godspeed!
Sharon, thank you for your books and for your blogs. I am addicted and do look forward to my daily “read” – I have learned so much and am trying to collect all of your books in hardcover. I gave a couple of your books away, but told my daughter to make sure I have a duplicate!!:)
Sharon, great article! Brilliantly written. Of course, I have drawn my own, rather sad conclusion. If John, as the author claims, has been almost utterly forgotten by his fellow countrymen what of Henry the Young King and Geoffrey Duke of Brittany?
Professor Crouch’s discovery concerning the identity of Morgan’s mother has again confirmed that history is still full of mysteries to discover, and that’s the best part of it all, don’t you think? Just like Francis Lovel case.
Joan, Sharon is right. The tournament site mentioned by David Crouch in the BBC series must have been Lagny-sur-Marne. It was a traditional place to held tournaments in Henry the Young King’s times (see The history of William Marshal and the meeting after Philip Augustus’s coronation). Professor Crouch went there while writing his Tournament and described it in detail, so you are going to learn more when the book arrives:-)
That was quite an interesting article, Sharon. The loss of history is always a tragedy.
Today, the five day Siege of Damascus by Baldwin III of Jerusalem, Conrad III of Germany, Louis VII of France and Thierry of Alsace began. It would end in utter failure and the dissolution of the Second Crusade. Mary Queen of Scots was forced to abdicate her throne in favor of her son, James VI (and later I of England). Lastly, la Gran Contessa, Matilda of Canossa, one of the strongest women in the Middle Ages died today.
Koby, could you write a few words about Matilda of Canossa? I will probably make a fool of myself with the confession that I have never heard about her. I don’t know whether I can rely on Wikipedia, so I would be grateful if you could enlighten me again:-) The name sounds so wonderfully mysterious.
Thank you all for such wonderful compliments about my books.
Today’s Facebook Note.
Today is Susie Bloom’s birthday and she was curious about the historical happenings on July 24th. Several of my readers—Rania, Adele, and Samantha—came through for her, so all I can do is to elaborate a bit on their information. In 1148, Louis VII besieged Damascus, a humiliating failure that ended in just four days with the French army slinking away in full retreat. In Devil’s Brood, I have Henry make a snarky comment that Louis was conducting the siege of Rouen with all the military skill of a mother abbess, and that could also apply to his time in the Holy Land. The entire Second Crusade was a fiasco from the get-go, and it would expose the widening cracks in the royal marriage, as well as unfairly tarnishing Eleanor’s reputation for centuries to come. And in 1557, Mary Queen of Scots, another one who never met a bad decision that she didn’t want to embrace, was forced to abdicate in favor of her young son, who would later become King of England. Also, I found the following note on Wikipedia that I couldn’t resist sharing; on July 24, 1487,the citizens of Leeuwarden in the Netherlands went on strike against the ban on foreign beer.
Meanwhile back at the ranch, I continue to juggle bowling bowls; at least it feels that way. I will eventually surface again, though.
Yay Netherlands!! Forward thinking, even back then! (My mom’s Dutch)
I have an interview up with Mary Tod on her blog here. She has an interview up with Susan Higginbotham too, and plans interviews with C.W. Gortner and Michelle Moran. It is a very interesting site for book lovers and I plan to stop by on a regular basis. http://awriterofhistory.com/2012/07/23/top-historical-fiction-authors-sharon-kay-penman/
Today, Henry Percy, 3rd Earl of Northumberland was born, who would be a solid Lanacastrian and die at the Battle of Towton, in command of the van.
Kasia, I would be happy to tell you more of Matilda, but I believe this site will do far better (and be much more amusing) that I could: http://www.badassoftheweek.com/matilda.html I will warn though that there is quite a bit of profanity used. If that disturbs you, there are informative links at the bottom without cursing.
Sharon, I enjoyed every single sentence of the interview, but one in particular turned out to be of great comfort and consolation, at least when I’m concerned: “I usually have ideas marinating in my brain for years before I actually begin to write” 🙂
As for today’s anniversaries, on this day in 1173, Matthew Count of Boulogne, Philip pf Flanders’s younger brother and heir, and the third husband of Eleanor of Vermandois, was mortally wounded at the siege of… and here I have encountered major problem, for some sources claim it to be the castle of Arques, whereas the others Driencourt. I would be grateful for any information. Anyway, Matthew’s death was a grave blow to Hal’s rebellion, for grief-stricken (or just seeking the excuse to abandon none too successful campaign) Philip of Flanders withdrew to his territory.
Kasia, thanks for mentioning Matthew’s death; I totally forgot about him, as you can see in my Note below. This was important for the reasons you cite, causing Philip (whatever his motivation) to abandon the war against Henry.
My sources said Arques, assuming my aging memory can be trusted.
Today’s Facebook Note.
Some interesting happenings on this date. On July 25, 1261, Emperor Michael Palaologis succeeded in recapturing Constantinople for the Byzantine Empire. It had been lost to the Latins when the greedy lords of the Fourth Crusade assaulted and sacked the wealthy city of Constantinople rather than having to go all the way to Jerusalem. And on July 25, 1554, Mary Tudor wed the Spanish king, Philip, surely one of the most depressing of royal marriages. Mary is undeniably a sad figure with her traumatic childhood and abusive treatment by her own father and her false pregnancies. But I’d find it easier to be sympathetic to her if she hadn’t burned so many of her own subjects at the stake. And moving from Mary the zealot to a man who was anything but, my favorite French king, Henri of Navarre. On this date in 1593, Henri converted from Protestantism to Catholicism in order to gain the French throne, saying “Paris is worth a Mass.” Henri was one of the most popular French kings and seems to have genuinely cared about his subjects. Even though it happened centuries ago, I still think it tragic that he was assassinated. I’ve always wanted to write about Henri and his spirit has been good company over the years. But I’ve had to tell him I’d probably need nine lives like a cat in order to fit him in. Being a good-natured soul, he has forgiven me, but being a king, he is sure he can eventually win me over, so he is still hanging around the house. He gets along with Lionheart better than I’d have expected. (Do I sound like someone urgently in need of a vacation?)
I love US cover for Lionheart! And thanks for glimpse of Ransom 🙂 Haven’t read Lionheart yet and I’d love to win a copy.
Sharon, re your interview in above site, an equally important reason we are so drawn to your books is the sheer brilliance & beauty of your writing & how your own story weaves in & out of the solid facts with such fluidity. The weft-warp metaphor is yes, overused but there it is. And it isn’t long before we’re emotionally involved with your people—it can happen in a paragraph! When I came across this passage in HBD, I knew I was onto something (p. 24 in the trade paperback)—Llewelyn is walking through the woods & comes across a fox—–“Boy & fox stared at one another in rapt silence, and then Llewelyn snapped his fingers, freeing the fox to vanish into the shadows as if by sorcery; not a twig cracked, not a leaf rustled to mark its passing.” Poetry! No wonder we are so grateful upon discovering your work.
Sharon, thank you for your e-mail. I have already replied- forgive me my longish message :-). I’m just writing to make sure whether it has come through.
Just discovered your books, finished reading my first last night. I was so entangled in the story that I cried and cried. Truly a great book. Can’t wait to read the Reckoning.
Sharon I replied to Kasia and mentioned the birth of Henry Percy this day in an above comment, but it seems that because I added a link, it is still awaiting moderation – would you mind taking care of it?
Joan, thank you so much for such a lovely compliment. Because writing is both solitary and subjective, reader feedback like yours means so much to me. Koby, I will log in now to free your captive post. Kasia, I did get your e-mail and it is nice now to know what you look like! Shannon, can I ask which one of my books made you cry? I should warn you that by the time I finished The Reckoning, I was in need of grief counseling; I think that is the most tragic of all my books, and heaven knows the body count is depressingly high in most of them. But The Reckoning involved the loss of a country’s independence.
Thank you, Koby! I will take care of the link:-)
Sharon, I’m glad my e-mail hasn’t been lost somewhere on the way:-)
I am just wondering: haven’t we missed one important anniversary or my worn-out notebook is wrong? It says that on Sunday, 25 July 1137 Eleanor and Louis were married at Bordeaux. I haven’t forgotten about Matthew’s mortal wound, for I try to bear in my mind all the anniversaries and all the persons strictly connected with Hal, that’s why I haven’t checked the notebook… until now. If my notebook is right, it means that I have forgotten about his mother and his father-in-law’s wedding 🙂 Shame on me!
Koby, if that doesn’t disturb you, I don’t mind the curses at all :-). To be honest, after reading just a few sentences, I’m chuckling in front of my computer screen. What a lively and vivid style! Thanks!
Today’s Facebook Note.
I’d like to thank my friend Kasia for reminding me that I totally forgot a highly significant event. Yesterday was the 875th anniversary of the wedding of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Louis VI, the King of France. The thirteen year old bride and seventeen year old groom were wed amid great splendor in the cathedral of St Andre in Eleanor’s city of Bordeaux on July 25, 1137, although they did not spend their first night together as man and wife until they’d reached Taillebourg Castle several days later. Lady Eleanor is not accustomed to being forgotten, but I suspect there must have been times when she also wished that she could have forgotten her marriage to Louis, especially after he had her taken from Antioch by force. Eleanor would prove to be as astute a politician as any man, but as a woman, she was limited in the exercise of her talents, as she would learn with both her husbands, who were utterly unlike in all other respects. Fortunately, her son was quite willing to entrust power to her, for had he taken Henry as a role model, he might well have rotted in a German or French prison. I seriously doubt that the staggering ransom demanded for Richard’s release could have been collected if not for his mother’s steely resolve. It is never a good idea to threaten a mother lioness’s favorite cub.
And today, July 26th, is the anniversary of the battle of Edgecote in 1469. Edward was awaiting reinforcements to deal with the threat posed by the return from exile of his cousin, the Earl of Warwick. But they were intercepted by the Earl of Warwick and his allies, who gained a complete victory. The Yorkist leaders, Lord Herbert and his brother, were captured and beheaded although they’d been fighting for their lawful king, proof that few wars are as bitter as civil wars. This loss was to have huge consequences for Edward, for within days, he found himself the prisoner of his cousin Warwick, now set upon unmaking the king he’d claimed he’d made. This was one of my favorite scenes in Sunne, but I’ll save my comments for the events at Olney.
PS That should read Louis VII, not Louis VI
Sharon, I just want to add that on 26 July 1158, Geoffrey, Henry II’s younger brother and Eleanor’s might-have-been husband died at Nantes, aged twenty-four. Wikipedia gives 27th of July as the date of his premature passing, but all the book sources unanimously agree on 26th.
It’s interestening to speculate what might have happened had Geoffrey lived. I think that Henry might have faced not only the rebellions of his sons but also another uprising of his younger brother. Or the uncle and his nephews might have joined forces in 1173?
And just an afterthought, IMHO, for Henry the Great Rebellion must have been more heart-breaking and difficult to “swallow” than the one of 1183 (despite the fact that Hal died). Taking into account a long “tradition” of feuds between brothers in Henry’s family- Elias vs. Geoffrey le Bel, Geoffrey of Nantes vs. Henry II- it might have been a little bit easier for Henry and his contemporaries to understand brothers standing against each other, rather than sons taking up arms against their father. But it’s just my view:-)
July 26th is now a very significant day on the Penman calendar. Here is the link to Amazon.com.uk so you can see why. Oh, okay, I’ll spill the beans. Sunne in Splendour, Here Be Dragons, Falls the Shadow, and The Reckoning are now available in the UK and Down Under as e-books!!!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Sunne-in-Splendour-ebook/dp/B008NB2GI2/ref=sr_1_4?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1343309715&sr=1-4
I see I’ve been neglecting your blog in favor of Facebook, Sharon. I don’t know how you are able to keep up with all of this–do you sleep? I am really looking forward to A King’s Ransom. Your teasers are making me mentally salivate.
Most of my readers prefer Facebook to the blog, Joan, based on the traffic on both sites. Do you find that is true with your readers, too? Sleep? Not sure what you mean–can you define the term?
I am slightly terrified of reading this book, because Crusaders are such a controversial topic but I am so excited to read it because reading one of your books let me step outside of myself and experience life as someone radically different from me!! So I welcome the experience.
Richard I has fascinated me since my mum spent her toddlerhood in Acre. When I visited as 12, I remember imagining the Crusader ships arriving and just being awed at the beauty of the port city.
Thank you as always for being an amazing writer!
Did you go to Israel to do research?
I knew I had more than a few things in common with Eleanor of Aquitaine. My wedding also took place on July 25 & lasted 25 years, though the relationship had more similarities to her 2nd marriage. TMI??
Sharon, the e-book version of Sunne looks really impressive. I have to take a look at the rest 🙂
Congratulations on your e-book releases! I have all the books in hard copy, but my husband adores his e-book and will be ecstatic! : )
Your books do make excellent gifts. My father, sister, sis-in-law and husband all thought so anyway. 🙂 And I’m glad your e-books are working out too…I must say it would have been nice to have an e-Sunne while I was backpacking the UK 13 years ago, instead of carting the huge paperback around strapped to the front of my pack in a giant ziplock bag. Cheers to you and thanks for the previews…REALLY looking forward to Ransom now!
Thanks, Sharon, for the excerpts from “A King’s Ransom,” am eagerly awaiting the published version. Although I have already read everything you have written, I would love to have a signed copy of any of them!
Thanks for having this giveaway
Congratulations on your books going on ereader.
My son has one and I am sure he will love your books.
Sharon, thank you for your reply. I’m writing just in case my reply to your reply has not come through:-)
I’m sure you are going to write more about John and Otto’s humiliating defeat at the Battle of Bouvines. I just want to add that in Richard Barber’s biography of Henry II, I have found the info that on 27 July 1176 Joanna set off toward the south, first accompanied by Hal, then by Richard, to meet her future husband, William II of Sicily.
I want to be included in a book drawing. If I have the book, I would still iove another copy, because I am always trying to get friends hooked on your wonderful books.
I love my e-copies also.
Congratulations on the E-books coming out, Sharon. I see Kasia already mentioned the Battle of Bouvines, and Sharon will no doubt expand, but I will say that Philip II Augustus defeated an army of English, Imperial and Flemish soldiers, under the command of Emperor Otto IV, William Longespee, Earl of Salisbury, Renaud de Dammartin, Count of Boulogne, Ferrand, Infante of Potrugal and Count of Flanders, Theobald, Duke of Lorraine and Henry I, Duke of Brabant. William, Renaud and Ferrand were captured on the field, Renaud lasting until the end, forming a ring of pikemen and holding off every French Cavalry attack while leading sorties and charges, only defeated by a charge of 3000 men-at-arms.
Also, the Battle of Basian took place today, where the Georgians, though vastly outnumbered, won a decisive victory over the Seljuqid Sultanate of Rüm.
I don’t have time to post about Bouvines, so I borrowed your post for my Facebook pages, Koby. I can always count on you and Kasia for interesting posts when I am bogged down in Ransom. Kasia, the Barber bio was incorrect, as Joanna did not leave England till September. But I am so glad you mentioend it for this gave me an opportunity to write a little about Joanna. So here is my admittedly long Facebook Note below. Thanks, Koby.
On July 27, 1214 a highly significant battle occurred, the battle of Bouvines, which had severe consequences for King John and Otto, the Holy Roman Emperor. Otto was John and Richard’s nephew and was very close to his uncle Richard; he will be a character in Ransom. John was not present at the battle; his brother William Longsword was taken prisoner and John was eventually able to ransom him. Renaud de Dammartin was not as fortunate. He was a minor character in Devil’s Brood and Here be Dragons, Count of Boulogne because he’d abducted the heiress and forced her to marry him. Philippe considered him a traitor and not only refused to ransom him, he had Renaud chained to a log in his dungeon cell and held him there till he died.
I don’t have time to go into details about the battle, so I am sharing Koby’s post on my blog for you all. I am in the midst of getting Joanna and Berengaria out of Rome and on their way home and this is such a demanding chapter that I have to devote all of my time and energy to Richard’s women for now. Thankfully I have friends like Koby to take up the slack. Jayne also has a post about Bouvines on one of my Facebook pages, and Kasia noted that on July 27th, 1176, Joanna had started out on her long journey to Sicily.
My sources say Joanna did not sail from Southampton for Barfleur until September 8th, which also happened to be her brother Richard’s nineteenth birthday, but it seems appropriate to write about Joanna this morning since she is currently on center stage in Ransom. Joanna was only ten when she was parted from her parents. We normally don’t know much about such child brides, but the chroniclers were unusually generous with their coverage of Joanna. We are told that Henry provided for her so extravagantly that she needed seven ships. Hal met her upon her arrival at Barfleur and accompanied her into Poitou, where Richard took over, escorting her through Aquitaine to St Gilles in the territory of the Count of Toulouse, where she bade Richard farewell and was turned over to the Bishop of Siracusa. She sailed for Sicily on November 9th, and suffered so dreadfully from seasickness that they had to come ashore at Naples and continue the rest of her journey on-land. This is why I had her so seasick on the journey to the Holy Land in Lionheart, for she was clearly susceptible to mal de mer. She would be given a spectacular entry into Palermo, the city aflame with torches as she rode through the streets on a white horse, her hair loose about her shoulders as befitted a virgin bride. She would become a wife and a queen in February, 1177, at age eleven.
Joanna was luckier than so many medieval princesses, for William treated her well (even if he did keep a harem of Saracen slave girls) and although she was held in confinement after his sudden death in 1189, she had a knight errant to come to her rescue, big brother Richard. Poor little Agnes, the sister of the French king who’d been dispatched at age eight to wed the heir to the Byzantine throne, was not so fortunate; I mention her harrowing experiences in Lionheart. I’ve often wondered how it was for parents to send their daughters off to foreign lands and foreign princes at such young ages. Even if this is how it was always done, surely some parents must have found it painful. I write about this in Devil’s Brood, in a scene between Henry and Eleanor as they discuss Joanna’s impending departure. And now, here is Koby’s post about Bouvines.
“Congratulations on the E-books coming out, Sharon. I see Kasia already mentioned the Battle of Bouvines, and Sharon will no doubt expand, but I will say that Philip II Augustus defeated an army of English, Imperial and Flemish soldiers, under the command of Emperor Otto IV, William Longespee, Earl of Salisbury, Renaud de Dammartin, Count of Boulogne, Ferrand, Infante of Potrugal and Count of Flanders, Theobald, Duke of Lorraine and Henry I, Duke of Brabant. William, Renaud and Ferrand were captured on the field, Renaud lasting until the end, forming a ring of pikemen and holding off every French Cavalry attack while leading sorties and charges, only defeated by a charge of 3000 men-at-arms.
Also, the Battle of Basian took place today, where the Georgians, though vastly outnumbered, won a decisive victory over the Seljuqid Sultanate of Rüm.”
I would love to read further about Joanna—my heart went out to her from the moment she arrived on the scene. Is there a novel or a study about that devotes at least part of the book to her story?
No biographies of Joanna, I am sorry to say, Joan. You have to search for nuggets of information about her in other histories. If you like, I can e-mail you her entry in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Go to my website and the Contact section, which will enable you to e-mail me. Once I have your e-mail address, I can send it to you.
Nothing medieval about this, but it is a stunning video of New York City being lit up by last night’s storm.
http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_t2#/video/weather/2012/07/27/vo-new-york-lightning.cnn
Sharon, I don’t want to take up your valuable time with this—I’ll address it another time. You & Kasia have been so generous with recommending books, etc when your time is so limited, & I appreciate it very much. I couldn’t be happier with everything that’s been recommended. It has occurred to me that I’ve probably got a good enough base now to do some research of my own. A good winter project, esp if I land that course at Ott U, then I’ll have the library at my disposal! Thanks so much & enjoy the weekend.
It is not a problem, Joan. I subscribe to the Dictionary of National Biography and am entitled to e-mail entries to other people, though I doubt I could publish one here. So if you contact me, I’d be happy to send you Joanna’s entry. Sadly, it is not that detailed. Women took often fell through the cracks in the MA, even queens.
Today’s Facebook Note; July 28th was a busy day.
July 28th is a day that ought to be draped in crepe for several notable people passed away on this date. We’ll start with William Clito, Count of Flanders. He was the nephew of the English King Henry I, and he posed a threat to Henry’s possession of Normandy, for his father Robert, imprisoned by Henry for over thirty years, had been the Duke of Normandy and many felt the duchy should have passed to his son. Henry certainly saw him as a threat and tried several times to get William Clito into his power, which would not have ended well for William. The sinking of the White Ship strengthened William Clito’s hand, for he was now the logical male heir after the drowning of Henry’s only legitimate son, and his claim was supported by the French king and Henry’s other enemies; Henry may have lacked scruples, but he never lacked enemies. But William Clito was wounded on July 12, 1128 while besieging Aalst, and the wound festered, gangrene setting in, as would happen 71 years later with his cousin Richard Coeur de Lion at Chalus. William Clito died on July 28th, at the age of twenty-five. I suppose it is conceivable that Maude would not have been recognized as Henry’s heir had William Clito lived, but it was always dangerous to wager against Henry and I suspect he’d still have gotten his way.
The next significant death occurred on July 28, 1230, when the Duke of Austria, Leopold VI died. His reign was a highly successful one, so much so that he was known as Leopold the Glorious. He was to have wed the Damsel of Cyprus as part of Richard’s settlement with Heinrich von Hohenstaufen, but the death of his father in December of 1194 put a stop to those plans. He appears as a character in A King’s Ransom along with his elder brother Friedrich, who was to have wed Richard’s niece Aenor, the daughter of Geoffrey and Constance. You all can imagine how happy Constance was to learn that her daughter had been bartered to win the Lionheart’s freedom.
Lastly, on July 28, 1540, Thomas Cromwell was beheaded in the Tower of London, having been charged with treason by his ungrateful king, Henry VIII. I can’t wait to read how Hilary Mantel will handle this in the final book of her Cromwell trilogy! And that same day, the ever sensitive Henry wed wife #5, silly little Catherine Howard. It is hard to decide which of Henry’s wives was the most unfortunate; a case can be made for all of them. But Catherine is surely the most pitiful, a little minnow who suddenly found herself swimming with sharks.
Sharon, I’ve sent you my email address. Looking forward to the entry so thanks again.
Sharon, wonderful news about your ebook versions. I hope you haven’t drawn the book give-away yet as I would just love a signed copy of Lionheart! Keep up the great work 🙂
Not to worry, Peta, the drawing is still open. I’ll probably leave it up for another week. Joan, I haven’t gotten your e-mail yet, but I’ll keep a lookout for it.
Here is today’s Facebook Note.
You know how in those horror films you want to scream out to the teenagers, “For God’s sake, do not go down into the basement!” Well, something happened on July 29th, 1565 that elicits the same response. On this date, Mary Stuart married Lord Darnley. I am not even a fan of Mary’s and yet I want so much to stop her! I always thought this disastrous marriage was the handiwork of the fiendishly clever Elizabeth; I really believe she deliberately sent the handsome but vacuous Darnley to Mary’s court after first insulting Mary by offering her Robert Dudley as a husband, knowing Mary would take the bait. Her plan succeeded beyond her wildest expectations, for less than two years later, Darnley had been murdered and Mary was in free fall, taking her first steps along the road that would eventually lead to Fotheringhay Castle.
On a more cheerful note, July 28, 1166 was the birthdate of one of my favorite characters in Lionheart, Richard’s nephew Henri, Count of Champagne. I very much hope that Henri will get much more time on center stage in my next book.
So after Sabbath and most of a fast, I have returned.
Firstly, I will mention that Sharon did forget to mention that in addition to Mary getting married to Lord Darnley, their son, James VI and I was crowned King of Scotland today, the English under Lord Howard and Francis Drake defeated the Spanish Armada at the Battle of Gravelines, and Pope Urban II, who preached the First Crusade and encouraged the Norman conquest of Sicily died.
Secondly, I promised Kasia I would speak of this, so: Today is the Fast Day of the Ninth Av, the greatest day of mourning for Jews. Firstly, the five traditional calamities took place: It was decreed that the People of Israel who came out from Egypt would not enter Israel, but wander 40 years in the desert, for listening to the 12 spies. The First Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians. The Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans. The Romans crushed Bar Kokhba’s revolt and destroyed the city of Betar, killing over 100,000 Jews. Following the Bar Kokhba revolt, Roman commander Turnus Rufus plowed the Temple Mount.
Over the years, many other calamities have been added, cementing the position of Tisha b’Av as the greatest day of misfortune and evil. Among them: The First Crusade officially commenced – it would kill 10,000 Jews in its first month and destroy Jewish communities in France and the Rhineland. Jews were expelled from England under Edward I’s decree.
Jews were expelled from Spain under Isabella and Ferdinand. World War I broke out. Lastly, the mass deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto.
I will end with the verse from Isaiah that ends the services of this day: “To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.”
A beautiful verse Koby. One of the most memorable musical tributes I’ve been to was—The Raanana Symphonette Orchestra of Israel—Alma Rosé: Vienna to Aushchwitz. You are probably familiar with her story—Alma, born to a Viennese musical dynasty, was in charge of the women’s orchestra at Birkenau upon her arrest, keeping many women alive through this venue. Courageous & defiant, she rewrote the words to a piece, her version being about freedom & peace, & continued performing it even when forbidden. The concert ended with Karin Shifrin performing the song. There wasn’t a dry eye in the audience as you can imagine. Nitai Zori, principal violinist, was mesmerizing!
What exciting news about the ebooks and the book covers- I’m glad things are going well and it’s always a privilege to enjoy some of your writing. I’m currently down with morning sickness and think that it’s time to reread my favorite of all the Here Be Dragon’s trilogy. Thank you for sharing!
Wow! This is so great! I don’t have any of your books yet, so I’ll be happy to receive any of them, although I do live in South America, so I’m not sure I’ll be able to be included… but at least I can hope! LOL
Love Sharon Kay Penman’s books! I have read them all and can’t get enough! Can’t wait for the second Richard book to be released!!
Another fascinating post, Koby–we can always count on you.
Joan, I still haven’t gotten your e-mail via my website; could you resend it? I am embarrassed to admit I am unfamiliar with Alma Rose’s story. She sounds like a very courageous woman.
Anne, congratulations—on your baby, not your morning sickness!
Romina, you are aboslutely eligible; I will send books anywhere in the world and I love it when I connect with readers from other countries, especially since so few of my books have been translated into other languages. Sunne has been translated into Spanish, I am happy to report, which might be of interest to you unless you live in Brazil!
This was a slow history day, so I am sharing a very moving story called Savannah Comes Home, about a soldier’s grieving family, his adventuresome husky, and a random act of kindness.
http://dailynightly.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/07/19/12815862-bringing-savannah-home-family-finds-lost-dog-and-new-life-mission?__utma=14933801.165047828.1342442425.1342666577.1342706427.10&__utmb=14933801.1.10.1342706427&__utmc=14933801&__utmx=-&__utmz=14933801.1342442425.1.1.utmcsr=(direct)|utmccn=(direct)|utmcmd=(none)&__utmv=14933801.|8=Earned%20By=msnbc%7Ccover=1^12=Landing%20Content=Mixed=1^13=Landing%20Hostname=www.nbcnews.com=1^30=Visit%20Type%20to%20Content=Earned%20to%20Mixed=1&__utmk=146505140
Just sent my email again Sharon. What was also so great about attending the concert is that it coincided with my sister’s visit—around that time, we had both been reading novels recounting true life stories during that period, so I surprised her with her ticket when I met her at the airport—the concert was that evening. I forgot to mention that at the end of the concert we were told that the violin played by Nitai Zori had been in the camp, though not Alma’s.
Sharon, I have been waiting for audiobooks for so long. Cant wait. Here Be Dragons was my first introduction and to be able to hear it. Fantastic 🙂
I’ve read all your books and absolutely can’t wait for the next one. You’ve really made the Plantagenets come alive.
Joan, I don’t understand this, but I still haven’t gotten your e-mail. Usually when people contact me via my website, they are sent to me straightaway.
Thank you for the praise, Sharon. Today, the Battle of Cravant took place, where the English once again defeated the French, despite being outnumbered at least two-to-one, and the Jews were expelled from Spain.
You’re developing quite a fan club, Koby, for I quote you a lot on Facebook! Speaking of which, here is my Facebook Note for today.
On July 31st, 1492, Queen Isabella of Castile and her husband Ferdinand of Aragon implemented the Alhambra Decree, also known as the Edict of Expulsion, ordering all the Jews in Spain to convert to Catholicism or go into exile. If they did neither, the penalty was death. Historians cannot agree how many people were forced to leave their homes; the estimates range from 130,000 to 800,000. About half of the exiles took refuge in Portugal, where I hope they were able to rebuild their shattered lives. Anti-Semitism was truly the ugly underside of medieval life. C.W. Gortner has a new novel out, The Queen’s Vow, about Isabella. I have not been able to read it yet, thanks to my killer deadline for A King’s Ransom, but I will be very curious to see how he portrays the controversial Isabella, who is a minor character in his intriguing novel about Isabella and Ferdinand’s daughter, The Last Queen, which is the story of Juana la Loca, sister of Katherine of Aragon. It was not always easy to be a highborn pawn in the MA, and Juana’s story is a sad one.
On a happier note, one of my British Facebook friends, Paula Lofting, has a novel out, The Sons of the Wolf, set in 1054 England, during the reign of the Saxon king Edward. I haven’t been able to read it yet, being in thrall to the looming deadline for A King’s Ransom, but I did read a sample chapter on my Kindle and it definitely held my interest, so it is now on that towering skyscraper pile of books TBR. Here is the Url to Amazon so anyone interested can check it out. It is available on Amazon.co.uk, too, of course. http://www.amazon.com/Sons-Wolf-Paula-Lofting/dp/1781320276/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1343740814&sr=1-1&keywords=Paula+Lofting
Michael alerted me that Amazon is offering a special deal on Noah Gordon’s The Physician, which I’d read many years ago and loved. You can buy it now as an e-book for $1.99
I’m so happy I’m eligible then! I live in Paraguay, the ‘heart of South America’, so Spanish it is, although I do prefer to read books in their original language. I already read ‘The Sunne in Splendor’ and loved it, which is what made me become your fan! I’m currently reading ‘When Christ and His Saints Slept’, but haven’t gone that far into it yet.
I just finished The Queen’s Vow & have to say I have mixed feelings about Isabella. How she gave in to the huge pressure to both approve the Inquisition & expel the Jews due to her commitment to a unified Spain & her strong faith somehow doesn’t quite fit the portrayal of a basically caring, thoughtful, & generous queen. She had to be one tough cookie to accomplish what she set out to do politically. Lots of contradictions, which Gortner does attest to in his Afterword. Overall I enjoyed the novel & especially her relationships with Fernando (Gortner uses that version of his name), her children, & closest friends. Also enjoyed the lovely language & imagery in his writing. Also sent me to the dictionary a lot, which is always fun. I’m definitely going to continue with his novels on these intriguing women.
I’ll try contacting you again Sharon—just to get this right—it’s the Contact section with the little comment box & other slots for my address, etc??? But not to worry if it doesn’t go through.
Joan, I just finished The Queen’s Vow this week, too. I enjoyed it and love the way Mr. Gortner portrays the personalities of his characters. I have a hard time with the deep seated discrimination the Jews underwent and a member of the clergy once explained that the Christians (the Church) held that the Jews were the ones that killed Jesus.
I pushed submit too soon! I meant to add that I feel that most people have overcome that pattern of thinking. Thank God!
The literary world lost a lion in the death of Gore Videl. I loved his novel Julian about the Roman emperor. Here is a link to an excellent Washington Post obituary. http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/gore-vidal-celebrated-author-playwright-and-commentator-dies-in-los-angeles/2012/08/01/gJQA17a9NX_story.html?wpisrc=al_national
The link did not come through, so I am trying again.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/gore-vidal-dies-imperious-gadfly-and-prolific-graceful-writer-was-86/2012/08/01/gJQAFF7FOX_story.html
Indeed, Sharon, thank you for that wonderful obituary. In history, today, Louis VI le Gros of France died, leaving the throne to his son Louis VII and his new wife, Eleanor. Edmund of Langley, Duke of York also died – he was the grandfather of Richard Duke of York. The Battle of the Nile began, where Nelson decisively defeated the French fleet. The Old Swiss Confederacy was formed with the signature of the Federal Charter. And the Acts of Union of 1800 were passed, merging the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Oh, also, today is Lughnasadh (or Imbolc for those in the Southern Hemisphere).
Sharon, I try to bear in mind “Do not defame the dead”, but Gore Vidal’s A Search for the King was a huge disappointment. In this case it’s just my view, but maybe I should not express it so freely under the circumstances.
Anyway, I’m back after three days spent in Slovak mountains and castles and life utterly cut off from the means of communication (read the Internet).
As for Polish history, a very important anniversary. 1 August 1944, 17.00 (so called “the W hour”- “godzina W”), the Warsaw Uprising, a major WW II operation against the Nazi German occupation by the Polish resistance movement breaks out in Warsaw to hold for 63 days without outside support. Please do read Wiki entry to learn more. I’m so deeply moved- as always this day- that I can hardly find proper words to write more. One thought, really, it was there, in Warsaw, Koby, where the histories of our nations met and intertwined. On 4 August I will write about one death strictly connected with the Uprising.
Sharon, I do have a question. I know that recently you’ve been very busy, but Yes/No answer will suffice:-) Was Geoffrey of Vigeois actually present at Hal’s deathbed? Because I’ve got the impression that he learned about Hal’s last hours from the Young King’s household knights when they stopped at the Geoffrey’s monastery on their way north. I’ve mentioned that I haven’t had access to Geoffrey’s Chronicon, and have had the second-hand information (Professor Crouch’s biography of William Marshal and Death of King: Royal deaths in Medieval England by Michael Evans).
I would be most grateful for your help. I’m still working on Over His Dead Body, and this tiny detail concerning the prior is of crucial importance to me:-)
Interesting posts as always, Koby and Kasia. I love the way you both acquaint us with eastern happenings; I tend to focus upon western history. Kasia, I do not believe Geoffrey of Vigeois was at Hal’s deathbed. At least I’ve encountered no reference to that. I think he’d have mentioned it if he’d been there. I do think he was a very reliable source for these events becaue of his proximity to them. I gave him a small part in Devil’s Brood in honor of his history–see Chapter 40.
Below is today’s long Facebook Note–but in my defense, a lot happened on this date.
On some dates, history seems to have been napping; on others, all hell breaks loose. Such was August 1st, a day of some momentous medieval happenings. Instead of doing this chronologically, I am going to focus first on three events that were of great significance in my novels Lionheart, Here Be Dragons, and Falls the Shadow.
On August 1, 1192, King Richard Lionheart came to the rescue of the city of Jaffa, under siege by the forces of Saladin. He scored a very unlikely victory, regaining control of the city, and three days later won an even more improbable victory when he managed to hold off a much larger Saracen army in a surprise dawn attack. An eminent military historian, men not usually given to hyperbole, described the battles of Jaffa as when Richard “rode into immortality.” It was also at Jaffa that he burnished the Lionheart legend even brighter by riding out alone to challenge the Saracen army once it was obvious that he’d won the day. This sounds so “Hollywood” that I would not have believed it had it not come from two of the Saracen chroniclers, one of whom was a participant in the battle and was mortified that none had dared to accept Richard’s challenge.
And on August 1, 1202, Richard’s brother John scored his greatest military victory. His mother Eleanor was trapped at Mirebeau Castle, under siege by her own grandson, Arthur of Brittany. She got word to John and he raced to the rescue, arriving in time to save his mother and take his enemies by surprise, capturing them all, including Arthur. John was no coward, despite the nasty nickname his foes bestowed upon him—John Soft-sword. Richard was a difficult act to follow, after all. If he did not have his brother’s military genius, few did. But John’s reign saw one major defeat after another, with only one golden military moment—his triumph at Mirebeau. Sadly, he tarnished it afterward by the merciless way he dealt with his enemies. His nephew Arthur was sent to an Angevin dungeon, never to be seen alive again; John’s contemporaries were sure that he had Arthur killed, as are historians. It is not as well known that he also exacted an awful vengeance upon some of the knights and lords taken prisoner with Arthur, starving them to death, including a major character in Lionheart. John was intelligent, capable, and had the potential to be a good king—had he not been so crippled by insecurities that made it impossible for him to trust others and which, in turn, made it im-possible for them to trust him. For whatever reasons, he seems to have been the most damaged of the Devil’s Brood.
And on August 1, 1265, Simon de Montfort’s son and namesake (my Bran in Falls the Shadow to avoid the madness of having to deal with two Simons) was attacked by his cousin Edward as his men took their ease at Kenilworth Castle, swimming in the lake and enjoying the company of the prostitutes that flocked to medieval armies. Edward had been warned of Bran’s carelessness by a spy (a female one!) and staged a rare night march to take Bran by surprise. He then raced back to Evesham to spring his trap against Bran’s father Simon. Bran eventually gathered his scattered forces and set out in pursuit, arriving at the battlefield in time to see his father’s head on a pike—which no novelist would have dared to invent had it not actually happened. Bran was struck a fatal blow at Evesham, too, for he was unable to live with the guilt that consumed him, blaming himself for the deaths of his father and brother, and his life after Evesham was a slow, sad spiral down into the dark.
Also on August 1st, the French king, Louis VI, died in 1137. Known as Louis le Gros (the Fat) Lousi died just days after his son and heir, the future Louis VII, had wed the young heiress, Eleanor of Aquitaine, at Bordeaux.
And on August 1, 1415, King Henry V was blessed by fortune when a plot against him unraveled at the eleventh hour. Sometimes called the Southampton Conspiracy, it was led by his cousin, Richard, Earl of Cambridge, with the intent of assassinating Henry and replacing him on the throne with Richard’s brother-in-law, Edmund, Earl of March. Edmund, a frail reed, lost his nerve, though, and revealed the plot to Henry. The Earl of Cambridge paid the ultimate penalty—beheading. He was the father of Richard, the future Duke of York, and thus the grandfather of “my” Yorkist kings Edward IV and Richard III.
Thank you, Sharon. I just wanted to make sure that the impression I’ve got from Professor Crouch’s work was right.
As for Mirebeau, I’ve read once that John’s niece Eleanor, was taken captive together with her brother. I can’t recall the source, what’s more I have come across the info only once, so don’t know whether it’s true or not.
Yes, that is was always believed, Kasia, and how I wrote it in Dragons. But I recently read a fascinating article about Eleanor of Brittany by a historian and she says it is quite possible that Eleanor was already in John’s power. I had always wondered myself why Arthur would have taken his sister on a military expedition, so I’m inclined to accept this revision. The author also points out that while John is justly criticized for imprisoning Eleanor, his son Henry III somehow skates free and he was just as guilty, if not more so, for he kept her prisoner for another 25 years and she posed no risk to him.
Sharon, thank you so much for sending the entry on Joanna. I appreciate this. Once you’ve completed Ransom & see your way clear for awhile I’ll take you up on your offer for a few other entries. For a short life, Joanna had a pretty complicated one, which seems par for the course— so much history around one individual seems to be the rule, it really is mind-boggling. I’ll get more of her story when I read Lionheart & Ransom—I want to read them back to back. Is she really buried at Fontevrault beside Richard? I wish there were more Angevin effigies to photoshop!!
Simply fascinating, Sharon. I knew of Richard’s landing at Yafo, but was unsure if this was the correct date, and knew that if so, you would no doubt be able to elaborate upon it far more than I could.
Today is a day of both ancient and medieval history: The Battle of Charonea took place, where Philip of Macedon defeated the Greeks lead by Athens and Thebes. This is considered one of the most decisive battles in ancient history, as it led to the formation of the Hellenic League, giving Macedon the ability to lead them all into battle against the Persians, as Philip’s son Alexander famously did.
The Battle of Cannae also took place, where Hannibal once again destroyed a Roman army of over 80000 (of whom over 50000 are said to have died on the field), in one of the earliest known examples of the pincer movement.
As for medieval occurrences, William II ‘Rufus’ of England died today while hunting in New Forest due to an arrow through the lung, with the circumstances never clear. Raymond VI, count of Toulouse also died today – he married Joanna Plantagenet after her return from the Holy Land, and was much vilified by the Church. Though Toulouse was taken fro him in the Albigensian Crusade, he managed to eventually regain it, and it passed to his and Joanna’s son, Raymond VII. For any who live (or visit) Minnesota, he can be found on the ceiling of the Minnesota Supreme Court, representing an aspect of law – The Adjustment of Conflicting Interests.
Also 2 August is one of the two probable dates- the other being 12 August- of Walter de Fontaines’s death in 1175. Walter was put to death after he had allegedly been caught in adultery with Isabelle of Flanders, count Philip’s wife and Raoul of Vermandois and Petrinilla’s elder daughter. The knight denied fervently and wanted to prove his innocence, but was ignored. Philip had him tied hand and foot and put to death in most humiliating manner. The wretch was wounded with swords and clubs, and later suspended by his feet in a latrine hole until he was dead. Roger de Haveden in his Annals called Walter’s death “shocking”. Philip was to paid for this act of cruelty. Walter’s family allied with the lord of Guise and ravaged the count’s lands in retaliation. To stop them, Philip was forced to pay them compensation. Isabelle was punished as well. Philip took over all her titles and lands. I have also come across the infromation that he had her placed in a convent, where she lived out her days. She died in 1182.
I’m glad you got Joanna’s biographical entry, Joan; yes, Joanna was buried with her family at Fontevrault, as was her son, Raimond VII, who’d asked in his will to be buried with her. Raimond showed great devotion to Joanna’s memory even though he was very young when she died, naming his own daughter after Joanna. Sadly, both Joanna’s and her son’s effigies were lost and while we know they are buried in the church, we don’t know where.
Kasia, I always was rather skeptical of the adultery charge brought against Eleanor’s niece, for it enabled the highly cynical Philip to claim her very valuable county of Vermandois. Certainly her alleged lover’s brothers did not believe it, for they rebelled against Philip. Do you know the name of the convent where she was sent? Fascinating information about Hannibal, Koby; thanks.
Here is today’s Facebook Note, which is about an unjustice close to my heart.
On August 2, 1100, King William II of England, more commonly known as William Rufus, was slain while hunting in the New Forest, struck by an arrow in the chest. It was certainly a convenient death for his younger brother Henry, a member of the royal hunting party, who left the king’s body there in the forest and galloped hell-for-leather for Winchester, where he seized the royal treasury and arranged for his coronation ASAP. Historians today tend to see it as a hunting accident, which were not that uncommon. But it can certainly be said that Henry showed no grief for his dead brother; he did not even bother to attend William Rufus’s hasty, rather shabby funeral. Of course he had a crown to claim and Henry never saw sentimentality to be a virtue. Probably the best biography of William II is the one by Frank Barlow, who is also the author of an excellent biography of Thomas Becket.
There was another significant death on an August 2, this one in 1122, that of Raimond de St Gilles VI, Count of Toulouse and second husband of Richard I’s sister Joanna. Raimond is one of the most maligned figures of the Middle Ages, his reputation and his honor utterly destroyed by his enemies, which unfortunately for him, included the Church. He was the most prominent victim of the shameful Albigensian Crusade and a good example of what happens when history is rewritten by the victors. He was painted as a heretic, as a dissolute womanizer, a sinner sure to burn for aye in the hottest flames of Hell, all to justify the invasion of the lands known today as Languedoc. His is a tragic story, for his sin was that he was tolerant, unwilling to burn heretics at the stake. He always denied that he was a Cathar, and this was proved when he was dying and was accepted into the Order of the Knights of the Hospital of Saint John. Had he been a Cathar, he’d have summoned one of the priests their enemies called the perfecti and they called the “good men,” who’d have given him their one sacrament, the Consolamentum, which was the only way for Cathars to be admitted to Heaven. Raimond died a Catholic, but he also died an excommunicate, although he’d tried repeatedly to seek absolution for his sins and was always denied it. His son by Joanna sought desperately to have him buried in consecrated ground. While the Church used that as leverage to get him to make outrageous concessions, permission was never granted, and Raimond’s coffin remained unburied, his corpse eventually eaten by rats.
One of the worst war lords of the 12th century, Geoffrey de Mandeville, which my readers may remember from When Christ and His Saints Slept, also died excommunicate, in his case richly deserved, for he’d ravaged England with fire and sword, creating such fear that it was said grass never grew where he’d walked. Yet his sons were allowed to buy him a posthumous pardon so he could receive a Christian burial. But that was denied to Raimond, who received no more justice in death than he’d received in life. And unlike Richard III, there is no Raimond de St Gilles Society dedicated to making the truth known about this decent man. There are a number of books written about the Albigensian Crusade; ironically, France now seeks to attract tourists to “Cathar Country,” where the ruined silhouettes of gutted medieval castles still testify to the hell that had been unleashed upon the people of Languedoc, Catholics and Cathars alike, first the horrors of war and then the horrors of the Inquisition. For those interested in knowing more of this sad story, I highly recommend Joseph Strayer’s The Albigensian Crusade.
I’d like to correct a typo above; of course Raimond died in 12222, not 1122. I had proof-read it, too, but the brain so often “sees” what it expects to see, doesn’t it?
Sharon, remember how we wrote about Eleanor of Vermandois and her grant to the abbey of Ourscamp? She made it for the souls of her sister, her past and present husbands and ‘young King Henry, my cousin’ [Tournament by David Crouch]. You thought it highly probable that Isabelle was sent to Ourscamp. The sources do not mention the name of the convent, only the event itself. And, to be honest, I’m not sure whether they are fully reliable, for they have more to do with literature- both being biographies of Chretien de Troyes- than history.
Still it’s worth pointing out, for, IMHO, the info couldn’t have been taken out of nowhere. The authors do not give their sources, and seem to take Isabelle’s fate for granted. I will try to check and confirm it, but, as you know, my own sources are rather limited.
And Sharon, I’m afraid there’s another typo lurking in the year of Raymond’s death:-)
My life is so low tech…can’t believe I didn’t think to look for your website before now. Picked up four or five of your novels at a library book sale in 2010 and was hooked. It’s been difficult finding your books in bookstores (even used)! I believe that’s because as soon as they put them on the shelf, someone buys it! Finally was able to pick up Lionheart today and it looks like Amazon has a few that I’ve been looking for…hurray! I appreciate your attention to historical facts and weaving them into stories that I can’t put down! Thanks!
Welcome aboard, Eileen. I was rather late to the technology party, too, and as my blog regulars and Facebook friends can attest, my computer woes are the stuff of legend.
Kasiia, a couple of readers caught the 1122 typo, too; I’d proof-read it but our brains sometimes see what they expect to see, whether it is really there or not!
I have a lot of confidence in Dr Crouch, Kasia, so I think we can rely upon his sources. Of course even the best historians make occasional mistakes, but none of his come at once to mind. (For my own mistakes, I have a Medieval Mishaps section on my website!)
Sharon, I meant one more typo, namely 12222:-)
As for David Crouch, he didn’t state that Isabelle was sent away to convent. He only mentioned the grant made by her sister to the abbey of Ourscamp, and he did it in connection with Hal. I would never dare to doubt Dr Crouch’s words. He’s the most reliable and trustworthy author, almost the Bible to me 🙂
I meant the authors of two more books devoted to Chretien de Troyes (as you know Philip of Flanders, next to Marie of Champagne, was Chretien’s patron). They mentioned the “convent episode” without giving the info about their sources.
Here is today’s Facebook Note.
On August 3, 1189, Richard Lionheart landed at Portsmouth, England to claim the crown that was his upon his father’s death on July 6th. He’d been in no hurry to sail for England since he knew his new kingdom was in very capable hands, those of his mother Eleanor. The 12th century Annals of Roger de Hoveden described her activities upon regaining her freedom: “Queen Eleanor, the mother of the before-named duke, moved her royal court from city to city, and from castle to castle, just as she thought proper; and sending messengers throughout all the counties of England, ordered that all captives should be liberated from prison and confine-ment, for the good of the soul of Henry, her lord, inasmuch as , in her own person, she had learnt by experience that confinement is distasteful to mankind, and that it is a most delightful refreshment to the spirits to be liberated therefrom.” Making a royal progress, she issued edicts establishing uniform weights and measures, eliminated restrictions Henry had imposed upon monasteries, demanded oaths of fealty to her son (and to her!), and even found time to establish a hospital for the poor. As I have Richard tease her in Devil’s Brood, “I assume that upon the seventh day, you rested?”
Jumping ahead several centuries, on August 3, 1460, King James II of Scotland was killed while besieging Roxburgh Castle. James was enthusiastic about the potential of artillery, and he died when a cannon he’d imported from Flanders exploded as it was being loaded. He was only thirty and had been a successful and popular king, so it is interesting to speculate how Scottish history might have been changed had he not been so hands-on with this new technology.
As an American, I have to mention that on August 3, 1492 Christopher Columbus sailed from Spain for the New World.
And on August 3, 1553, Mary Tudor was welcomed warmly into London by the citizens. It is rather sad to consider the initial enthusiasm for her queenship in light of how badly it ended. She would be crowned in October, thus achieving what had been denied the Empress Maude, who was chased out of London before her own coronation.
I did receive Joanna’s entry Sharon & I replied above (Aug 1st at 10:40pm). You also acknowledged it in your post on Aug 2nd. A few days ago a strange message appeared—“Blocked plug-in”—when I bring up your website (it’s in the area next to the picture of you) just before I click Author’s Blog. Does that sound familiar to anyone?
Sharon, I know you will write about the worst day in Bran’s life, that’s why I’m going to write about one tragic event in Polish history.
On 4 August, 1944, in the course of the Warsaw Uprising we lost one of our most talented young poets of the Generation of Columbuses (Pokolenie Kolumbów). Our Polish Rupert Brooke (although, I daresay, even more promising than his English counterpart), Krzysztof Kamil Baczyński, was killed in action by a German sniper, He was only 23. His pregnant wife, Basia, aged 22, whom he immortalized in his poems, was killed on 1 September, so one month after his death. The English call WW I the Great War. For us, the Polish, the Great War was certainly WW II. It was then when we lost our War Poets.
P.S. In more cheerful mood, I have finished Over His Dead Body at last. If you are interested in the outcome, and have enough time to see the fruit of my strivings, click onto “Kasia (Kate)”. But beware, the text is, to put it gently, longish :-). Sharon, thank you again for your encouragement to share my interest in Hal with you all on your blog.
Sharon, I hope you don’t mind that I have mentioned you and Devil’s Brood in “Those who did not forget” part. I’m full aware that Hal is not a favourite of yours, but you have made him such a “complete” human being in DB that I had to write about it:-)
Kasia, Berczyriski’s death is such a tragic one. Of course almost any death is sad, but he was so young; imagine what other poetry he could have composed. Have any of his works been translated into English?
I am flattered that you mentioned Devil’s Brood on your blog! I’ll zip over later to read it. I bet others do, too.
Today’s Facebook Note.
August 4th is the date of two significant medieval battles. On August 4, 1192, Richard Lionheart won a remarkable victory at Jaffa against a much larger Saracen army. Richard was camped outside the city walls, having managed to regain control of Jaffa. Learning that re-enforcements would not be coming, Saladin staged a surprise attack upon the crusaders. He may have won a huge victory if not for a sharp-eyed Genoese who’d risen early to relieve himself and spotted the sun glinting off the shields and spears. Richard had time to rally his small force and they held off assault after assault, until late in the day he took the offensive with barely a handful of knights and scored one of the more improbable triumphs in military history. For those who haven’t read Lionheart yet (what are you waiting for???), I naturally dramatize this battle in considerable detail, for I was lucky enough to have eye-witnesses accounts from both the crusaders and the Saracens who actually fought in this conflict.
And on August 4, 1265, another brilliant medieval general, the future Edward I, trapped his godfather and uncle, Simon de Montfort, at Evesham. Edward had earlier staged a successful assault upon Simon’s son, Bran, who was camped at Kenilworth Castle, and he used some of the captured banners so that Simon would assume this was his son arriving with the much-needed reinforcements. By the time they realized the truth, it was too late. Simon, watching the approaching army from the bell tower in Evesham, said, “They come on well. He learned that from me.” He then uttered one of history’s better exit lines, saying to his sons and soldiers, “We must commend our souls to God, for our bodies are theirs.” In the ensuing battle, a violent thunderstorm broke out over the field at the height of the battle. Simon was slain and his body horribly mutilated by Edward’s men. Simon’s eldest son died on the field with him and his younger son, Guy, was gravely wounded. Edward showed no mercy; even the squires were killed, which was highly unusual. A chronicler would later write, “Such was the murder of Evesham, for battle it was none.” Simon’s son, Bran, would arrive on the battlefield in time to see his father’s head on a pike. Simon’s widow and daughter were allowed to go into French exile. Simon’s death was not forgotten; much to Edward’s frustration, people began to make surreptitious pilgrimages to Evesham to pray to a man some saw as a saint. A saint, he most definitely was not. As I said in the Author’s Note for Falls the Shadow, “A French-born English hero, lordly champion of the commons, an honorable adven-turer, Simon continues to be as controversial and enigmatic and paradoxical a figure in our time as he was in his own.” I think he’d have been pleased, though, with the memorial stone erected in his honor at Evesham on the 700th anniversary of his death, which was unveiled by the Speaker of the House of Commons and dedicated by the Archbishop of Canterbury:
HERE WERE BURIED THE REMAINS OF
SIMON DE MONTFORT, EARL OF LEICESTER,
PIONEER OF REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT, WHO WAS
KILLED IN THE BATTLE OF EVESHAM ON 4 AUGUST 1265.
Oh, my, my, my! I finished reading Lionheart today. And then, I checked your blog only to find that the almost-unbelievable victory at Jaffa happened on this date! Thank you for a wonderful story. I can’t wait for A King’s Ransom to come to my bookstore so that I can catch up with these remarkable characters. I’m not ready to say good-bye to them yet!
Sharon I LOVE your books and fell in love with the story of Eleanor and Henry II through your writings. I can’t put your books down. You make the MA seem so real. Historical fiction is the only fiction I read. I like background facts. I was a French teacher and have told my students may things about this time period in France. The only book of yours I have not read yet is Lionheart. Being retired now, I have even reread Falls the Shadow and The Reckoning! I’d really enjoy one of your tours.
And today, Henry I was crowned King of England, and William Wallace was captured by the English.
Thank you so much, Sharon! I hope you will enjoy Lionheart, too; if not, feel free to lie to me. 🙂
Today’s Facebook Note, another long one, I am afraid.
On August 5, 1063, Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, was betrayed and slain by his own men while struggling to repulse an invasion by Harold Godwinson, later King of England. Gruffydd is the only man to rule over all of Wales, from 1057 until his death, allthough he was called King of the Britons, not King of Wales. His wife was Ealdgyth of Mercia, who would later wed Harold. Was she willing to wed the man responsible for her husband’s death? We know virtually nothing about this woman, aside from the fact she was said to be beautiful, so we can only conjecture about her marriage to Harold. She would be widowed again three years later when Harold was slain at Hastings, but she then disappears from history, her fate unknown.
August 5, 1100 was the coronation of Henry I, just days after his brother William Rufus’s death in the New Forest.
August 5, 1301 is the birthdate of Edmund of Woodstock, Earl of Kent, son of Edward I and thus half-brother to Edward II. He would be executed in 1330 for engaging in a plot to free Edward II from captivity. Since Edward had been declared dead in 1327, historians have not been kind to Edmund, seeing him as gullible at best, a fool at worst. His is a complicated story and I hope I can persuade Kathryn Warner to stop by and explain it since I am urgently needed back in Narbonne to finish a scene with Joanna and Berengaria and it is bad manners to keep queens waiting.
On August 5, 1305, William Wallace was captured near Glasgow, betrayed by a Scottish knight loyal to Edward I. He would be executed in a truly barbarous fashion (being drawn and quartered, one of Edward I’s more dubious contributions to the English judicial system). What he said at his trial could also serve as an epitaph for the last Welsh prince, Davydd ap Llywelyn, who was drawn and quartered for treason 22 years earlier: “I could not be a traitor to Edward for I was never his subject.”
Lastly, two non-medieval events worth mentioning. On August 5, 1620, the Mayflower and Speedwell sailed from Southampton for the New World. They had to turn back when the Speedwell sprang a leak. The Mayflower would subsequently sail alone on September 6th, anchoring off the tip of Cape Cod in November after two harrowing months at sea. I have always marveled at the courage it took to sail in bygone times. When I was writing Lionheart, I watched some truly terrifying videos on YouTube of ships being tossed around like toothpicks by angry seas, and these were large ships equipped with modern technology! Imagine how it would have been to be caught in a storm in a medieval ship like Richard’s galley, the Sea-Cleaver. I would so have been a stay-at-home had I been born back then.
And it came as a minor shock to me to realize that it has been 50 years since the death of the American film icon Marilyn Monroe on August 5, 1962.
Sharon, I distinctly remember the morning of the day after Marilyn’s death, Sunday, 6 August 1962. As a 17-year-old, I was rowing on our lake on Cape Cod with my friend Phil, and I know we talked about her sudden death. Later that day, my father took us up to Boston for a Red Sox game. That was my final “birthday present” game. At 18, living in Cambridge as a college freshman, I started taking myself to the games across the Charles River.
Of course, Marilyn had a connection with baseball through her marriage to Joe DiMaggio.
Good morning:-) I have learned that on 6 August 1171, Henry II arrived in England and on his journey he visited Henry of Blois, bishop of Winchester (king Stephen’s younger brother), who was on his deathbed. The bishop reproached Henry for the death of Thomas Becket and predicted that it would cost the king dearly.
Seven years later, on 6 August Geoffrey, Eleanor and Henry II’s fourth son was knighted by his father at Woodstock. By far the most elaborate description of a knighting ceremony in this period is the one by John of Marmoutier, who provides us with the details of Geoffrey’s paternal grandfather and namesake, count Geoffrey le bel of Anjou’s knighting.
I enjoyed reading it in the Plantagenet Chronicles.
Malcolm, welcome back! There’s a message awaiting your reading somewhere in the far north:-) My last try to contact you via e-mail proved to be futile again.
Memories are strange, Malcolm, for I do not remember my reaction to Marilyn Monroe’s death at all, but I do remember vividly learning of Elvis Presley’s death; same for John Lennon.
Today’s Facebook Note.
On August 6, 1171, Henry II returned to England for the first time since the murder of Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. He did not linger for long. After paying a dutiful courtesy call upon the dying Bishop of Winchester, the scheming brother of King Stephen, who’d lost his sight and gained a conscience in his last years, and who was said to have lectured Henry for the part he’d played in Becket’s death, Henry sailed for Ireland, where he lay low waiting for the furor over Becket’s killing to die down. He would return to England in April, 1172, which coincidentally marked the beginning of Devil’s Brood.
On August 6, 1195, Heinrich der Lowe—Henry the Lion—the former Duke of Saxony and Bavaria died. He was the husband of Henry and Eleanor’s daughter Matilda (Tilda in my books to avoid a surfeit of Matildas) and was buried at her side. Their daughter Richenza was a character in Devil’s Brood and Lionheart and will appear again in A King’s Ransom, as will her brother Otto, both of whom were very close to their uncle Richard.
And on August 6, 1623, Anne Hathaway, the mysterious wife of the equally mysterious William Shakespeare, died at Stratford upon Avon.
Lastly, there is still time to enter the book giveaway on my blog; anyone who posts a comment is eligible to win a signed copy of Lionheart, Devil’s Brood, Time and Chance, or The Reckoning, the winner’s choice. I plan to put up a new blog to announce the winner by week’s end. Here is the link for those who’d like to enter it. http://sharonkaypenman.com/blog/
Cannot wait for A King’s Ransom to come out! Thank you, Sharon, for the glimpse into this next chapter in the Plantagenets’ legendary story. Also, very happy to hear that your books will be available as e-products; I work in publishing and although I will always love the feel of a hard copy book I am also fast embracing ebooks and can certainly see their appeal. Will look out for them here in Oz!
I would love to enter the contest! Of course I already own all the books, although I am in the habit of permanently lending them to friends and having to buy new copies.
I’d LOVE a signed copy of one of your books! Thanks for the opportunity!
You are one of my favorite authors and I thoroughly enjoy how vividly you bring history to life in your books (not to mention your “this day in history” posts). Keep up the good work! Thank you!
I, too, would love to have a signed copy of one of your books! Thanks so much for the opportunity.
I would love to add a signed copy to the few that I currently have.
My favorite bookstore, Chester County Book company, is closing!! Horrors, that’s where I have gone to meet you and have books signed. We last saw you for the Lionhart signing. It’s a sad time for those of us who still love the feel of a book in our hands.
PICK ME, PICK ME!! oops, sounds like Max, my black lab……………
I have all of your books and I’ve had to purchase them again a few times when I loaned them out and didn’t get one back. This one (should I the lucky winner) would not be loaned out but it does mean I can safely loan out one of my other copies. Thank you for the chance to own such a treasure.
I would love to have a signed copy of one of your books. I also fully intend to purchase them as ebooks (when funds allow) so I don’t have to keep hauling my old paperbacks on holiday! One day I might even make it to one of your booksignings too & get a full set of singed SKP books 🙂
Commenting in hopes of winning one of the books so I can freshen one of my deteriorating-through-reading copies!
In 1987 I was about to head to graduate school and a copy of The Sunne in Splendor caught my eye in a used book shop. I moved to a new town shortly after and began reading. I was hooked! I have read every book Ms. Penman has written and without exception feel transported to 12th century England every time. I am also a fan of her mystery series and am a big fan of Justin de Quincy mysteries.
Without question I know when I read anything written my Sharon Kay Penman, it is a thrill, a journey and an adventure that I will not forget. I am so glad she is back to writing and I am already looking forward to seeing what her next project will be.
Just as a brief aside, I look forward to her regular historical posts on Facebook as much, perhaps more, than any of the other posts I subscribe to there.
Thank you for your love of medieval England and your gift of bringing us with you into that long-ago-world so vividly!
C. Farrell
Sharon, your book Here be Dragons is one of my top books of all time. Joanna’s story touched me deeply and while I read it I had several overwhelming emotional moments. Thank you so much for continuing to write such quality historical novels.
I would love to win a copy of Lionheart, as it’s the only one I don’t have on my shelves!
I do not understand how an e-book available in the US is not available elsewhere in the world. An e-book is digital and consequently available to be sent anywhere on the globe once it is in e-book format. Electronic media “doesn’t need no ‘stinkin’ border limits” (grin) to be available to anyone with electronic monies to pay for it.
Jeanne, I heard about the closing of the Chester County bookstore, and I was so sorry that we’ll be losing it. I’ve had some of my best book signings there over the years. Hugs to Max; I hope he is not afraid of thunderstorms like my shepherd, Tristan. Its been a stressful summer for him, though his thunder-shirt seems to be helping a little.
Natalie, there was a slight glitch over the e-books, but I’ve been assured that they will be available Down Under this week. My wonderful Australian Facebook fanclub has promised to let me know if we need to prod my publisher again.
Thank you all for such lovely compliments. You got my day off to the best possible start.
I love all of your books! I recently finished The Devils Brood for the hundreth time. You had mentioned in your authors note that 10 pages was too much. I would love a book that was nothing but an authors note. I look forward to those just as much as the books itself! I can’t imagine a world without my favorite author in it. Can’t wait for Ransom!
Lionheart paperback cover USA: http://www.amazon.com/Lionheart-Novel-Sharon-Kay-Penman/dp/0345517563/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344263103&sr=1-4&keywords=lionheart+by+sharon+kay+penman
i keep forgetting to favorite this blog, and now i’ve just spent an hour reading it…i especially liked susan’s rules on writing about jane grey. LOL! i shouldn’t be laughing just yet, but i couldn’t help it. i’ve now favorited your blog, sharon!
Reading your books has been a wonderful experience! Even when I’m at work and accidently late when I just can’t put the book down. Ooops! Eagerly waiting to read more about Richard and the rest of the cast. It fascinates me that the money was raised for Richard’s ransom, especially from England, knowing he wasn’t all that keen on that part of his lands. It probably would have been much different if Eleanor hadn’t been around to push for the cost. Thanks for sharing your work and love for these legends with us!
I remember waiting with bated breath for your next book to arrive. I drove my husband crazy searching bookstores. I loved Lionheart!
I am so engrossed in reading Lionheart! To win one of your books would be so exciting!!! Keep up the wonderful research and writing in English historical fiction.
Sharon — I’ve fallen in love with your writing…and with Richard in The Sunne in Splendour! This is the first of your books that I’ve read, and I literally can’t put it down. Love to escape into the world of King Edward and his brothers… And I’d love to have a copy of any of your other works. I hope the drawing is still open!
I am up to Devil’s Brood and absolutely love these books! I remember when you said Ranulf was not a real brother of Maude’s – I picture him still in the lovely valleys of Wales with his wife Rhiannon.
Maude’s winter get-away from the castle, with her white cloak blowing in the winds, is an image I will never forget.
There are so many comments I wish I could “like” on this page!
Thanks for this glimpse into the next book, Sharon! I can’t wait to read it!
I stumbled across the Welsh Trilogy about 8 years ago and was hooked! I’ve now read all your books many, many times over. Every time I pick up one of the books my husband usually asks ‘so does this make this the 60th time you have read that book?’ I’m really looking forward to A King’s Ransom.
A book, a book! A King’s Ransom for a book! Or is that a book for A King’s Ransom? Either way, would love to win a book.
It would be SUCH a treat to win a copy of “The Reckoning”, probably one of my favorite of Sharon’s books (except, of course, that they’re ALL my favorites!!!
I would love to win Lionheart or Devil’s Brood.
Loved your Welsh Trilogy! 5 Stars all the way!
Tough times and have everything except Lionheart which I would LOVE !!!
Simply put you are the reigning historical fiction queen.
I see my new job is causing me to fall behind updating historical events… we shall see if I manage to do better tomorrow. In any case, today in addition to all the above, the Battle of Tletsk took place, where the Lithuanians decisively defeated the Crimean Khanate.
Have read (and loved) all of them, except Lionheart. Would love a signed copy!!
I agree with the all of the posts. I have spent many hours enjoying your informative and addicting blogs. I have also have such fun telling others of your books and passing on some as well. I would be so thrilled to have an autographed copy of The Reckoning.
Thank you for all you offer your readers, Sharon. Hope you write for years and years to come.
I can’t wait to read Lionheart! I have been a fan forever.
Looking forward to continuing to learn more about Richard and his life – not a topic I knew much about so many thanks for enlightening me. Although my heart will always be with LLewellyn and Joanna!
A truly tantalising taste of Ransom – can’t wait for it! To have a signed copy of ANY of your precious tomes would be amazing Sharon, and I could EASILY find a good home for any of my jealously guarded SKP collection! My own signed copy would be as revered as any Holy relic!
I have learned so much from your writing and enjoy reading your books, blogs, and Facebook posts. Adding an autographed book to my collection would be so special.
Just can’t wait. I am not a fast reader, but I will admit to reading too quickly with Lionheart. Time well spent, kept the great prose coming Sharon. Such a creative mind, I sometimes feel as if I’m in the scene.
I am so happy this book is out. I really am looking forward to reading it. I feel like I should re-read the entire series first though. Need to get another copy of When Christ…, mine seems to have gone missing.
I am so happy this book is out. I really am looking forward to reading it. I feel like I should re-read the entire series first though. Need to get another copy of When Christ…, mine seems to have gone missing.
Today, Elizabeth of Rhuddlan, Edward I’s youngest daughter was born. So was another Elizabeth, the infamous Elizabeth Bathory. And Heinrich IV Holy Roman Emperor who changed the attitude of the Emperors towards the Papacy with the Investiture Controversy and his Walk to Canossa died.
I love these little advance glimpses into the books. And what luck for Richard to have such a mother! Pity he didn’t think to drag John along on crusade…he could be Chief Arrow-Absorber and be more useful than he was back in England.
My copy of “Time and Chance” is paperback; the others I have are all hardback. Perhaps I will upgrade Time and Chance and give my copy away.
August 7th is not a date I’m likely to celebrate, for on this day in 1485, Henry Tudor landed at Milford Haven in Wales, and began the march that would lead to Bosworth Field and eventually to the Showtime series, The Tudors, both of which I’d expunge from our collective memories if I could. And one of history’s more monstrous figures was born on this date in 1560. Elizabeth Bathory is the Hungarian countess often compared to Vlad the Impaler, who is said to have been the inspiration for Dracula. The countess was accused of the most horrific crimes, of torturing and murdering hundreds of young girls, and lurid tales were told of her bathing in the blood of virgins in an attempt to retain her own youth and beauty. How much of this is true? I honestly don’t know. All I can report is that the accusations were made, and while she was not brought to trial herself, her accused accomplices were found guilty and put to death. She was bricked up in a windowless chamber at Cachtice Castle, with air vents and slots for food and water to be slid in to her; amazingly enough, she survived for three years in this living entombment.
Sorry the stories are so gruesome today—the coming of the Tudors and a mass murderer. But our news is not much better; that massacre at the Sikh temple in Wisconsin is as brutal as any medieval murders. My heart goes out to the victims and their families.
Sharon, Elizabeth Batory, the niece of our Polish king, Stefan Batory, was an amazing figure. Well-educated (with exceptional flair for languages), strong, calculating, and skilled, unfortunately living in the times when those features were not welcome in a woman. The accusations you’ve mentioned were probably fabricated by her enemies and were aimed at getting rid of her-her own relatives were eager to take over her estates . She proved to be too formidable an opponent, ruling, after her husband’s death with an iron hand over their vast domains in what is today’s western Slovakia. I’ve been to Cachtice Castle two years ago. What I’ve seen was a very picturesque ruin with beautiful surroundings. What I’ve managed to catch was a mood of sadness drifting in the air.
P.S. I do not know whether my informers are right, but according to them, on 7 August, 1173 Henry II with his mercenaries arrived at Conches, only to hurry in the direction of besieged Verneuil.
Sharon, with all these brutal items today would you mind if I enclosed this link to lighten the heart? It’s a film montage from the best of Period Drama, probably the most beautiful one out there & includes snippets from films inspired by our beloved Jane Austen & many others. If you are a dyed-in-the-wool romantic, I guarantee you will watch it over & over, swooning & goose-fleshed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mFEy5F9srY
Sharon I just posted something including a link. Would you like to check it out & see if you’d like to post this for everyone—a bit of romantic lightness & beauty for this gruesome day of past & present events.
Hi Sharon! I am currently reading Time and Chance and would love to win an autographed copy of one of your books for my bookshelf (which no one understands why I keep them all….)
Well, if I win it would be like pokemon. Got to collect them all. On other topics, thank you for the recommendations on a couple of books I will put them on my forever long wish list. I hope one day you can write about Frederick Barbossa and his dealings with the Pope and his own lands.
Looking forward to “A King’s Ransom”. It’s soooo hard to wait!
I’m anticipating another wonderful trip back in time with your latest novel! I would love to win & be able to spend some leisure hours engrossed in any thing you research & share with us.
I haven’t been able to keep up with all the comments as I’ve been giving first priority to a challenging chapter in Ransom, which has allowed me to spend some time vicariously in a place I love, Carcassonne. Once it is done, though, I will catch up, and also do the book drawing.
Meanwhile, here is today’s Facebook Note.
A slow medieval news day for this date. On August 8, 1171, Henry of Blois, Bishop of Winchester, conniving younger brother of King Stephen, died in his episcopal palace. I always thought he was a contender for the title bestowed on the French king, Louis XI, “the Universal Spider,” as I saw him as the driving force behind Stephen’s usurpation of the Empress Maude’s crown. He was also a self-server, bouncing back and forth between Stephen and Maude like a wayward Ping-Pong ball. But in his later years, he seems to have developed a conscience, possibly because he’d lost his sight and realized he needed to mend fences with the Almighty.
And on August 8, 1503, King James IV of Scotland wed Margaret Tudor, daughter of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York, in Edinburgh. Margaret was only 13 and her mother had died just a few months before her journey to Scotland. Her husband was not faithful to her, and her dower castle of Stirling contained the royal nursery for his seven illegitimate children. There was a lot of tragedy in her life. Her first son was born in 1507, which indicates James waited until she was at a suitable age for sexual relations, as was usually the case in the MA; the birth of Henry Tudor to his thirteen year old mother, Margaret Beaufort, was fortunately not the norm. Margaret’s first son died within a year, and a few months later, she gave birth to a daughter who died that same day. A second son, named Arthur, was born in 1509 and died the following year. She had a stillborn daughter in 1512, and another son born in 1514, after his father was slain at Flodden in 1513, who died in 1515. She did have one surviving son, who’d become James V. She forfeited the regency when she took a second husband, the Earl of Angus in 1514; this marriage would end in bitter enmity, and her third marriage would fail, too. She was unpopular with the Scots, who felt that she was partial to English interests. When her brother Henry VIII tried to gain control of her sons, James and Alexander, the latter by the Earl of Angus, the Scots took both boys away from her. Having lost her regency, her sons, and her revenues, she fled to England in 1515, where she nearly died giving birth to a daughter. She was still extremely ill when her two year old son, Alexander, died, and for a time they kept the news from her in her weakened state. The remainder of her life continued to be turbulent, with estrangements from her brother Henry and her third husband and her son James. She died of a stroke in 1541, at age 52. While she found little happiness in Scotland, the Stuart line that would eventually rule England resulted from her marriage to James V; he was the father of Mary Queen of Scots and thus grandfather of the man who’d assume the English crown after Elizabeth Tudor’s death.
Correction; I was typing too fast for my own good. The last sentence should read that Margaret’s marriage to James IV would result in the Stuart line in England; her son James V was the father of Mary Queen of Scots and grandfather of the man who’d succeed Elizabeth tudor.
I didn’t see the date for the drawing so I hope I’m not too late here! I’ve only read a few of your books so far but have all of them on my “to-read” list at Goodreads. I tried looking for them as ebooks last year but was unsuccessful so I hope they are available soon in the US but until then I will keep on with the print books. Looking forward to Lionheart!
Ah! Despite my fears, I am on time. Today, the Battle of Pharsalus took place, where Julius Caeser defeated Pompey, giving him control of the Roman Empire. The Battle of Adrianopole took place, where the Goths defeated the Roman Empire, with over half the Roman Army including the Emperor Valens dying on the field. Najm ad-Din Ayyub, Saladin’s father died today, and the Sistine Chapel was opened.
The drawing is still open. I am bogged down in a very challenging scene at Ombriere, Eleanor’s palace at Bordeaux, but once it is done, I’ll hold the drawing since the blog has been up for a while.
Meanwhile, here is today’s Facebook date. Thanks for verifying the date of death for Saladin’a dad, Koby–I was a little hesitant to take Wikipedia on fiath!
In the non-medieval world, Caesar defeated Pompey at the battle of Pharsalus on August 9, 48 BC; Pompey fled to Egypt, which, of course, did not end well for him. In the medieval world, not much happened, though. Wikipedia says that Saladin’s father died on August 9, 1173, but a Wikipedia report is not exactly like Moses bringing the Ten Commandments down from Mt. Sinai and I don’t have time to verify this for myself.
So, I thought I’d range further afield today and give my fellow dog-loving friends an update on the white wolf. For new readers, Tristan is a white German shepherd that I adopted last year from Echo White Shepherd Rescue, a wonderful organization that has saved hundreds of dogs from death. Tristan’s Echo Angel pulled him from a high-kill Florida shelter just hours before he was to be put down, and then 13 wonderful volunteers drove him up the coast to me as we followed his odyssey on Facebook. He was painfully skinny and bald in patches from near starvation, but he has made a remarkable recovery, morphing from a frail senior shepherd into a 95 lb Godzilla. He’d had a rough life before Echo rescued him, but he adjusted very well to such creature comforts as air conditioning, a soft bed for his aging bones, and the occasional scoop of ice cream. But one psychic scar from his Florida years remains, his fear of thunderstorms. He was an outside dog, chained up 24-7 in a backyard, so it is all too easy to understand how he developed this phobia. I can always tell when a storm is coming, for suddenly I have a second shadow, sometimes a second skin. During really bad storms, he has been known to dive into the bathtub, not showing Olympic form but still an impressive feat for a dog with arthritis. At the suggestion of friends, I bought him a Thunder-shirt, which is supposed to sooth his fears by constricting them. I am a huge fan of the writer Temple Grandin, who has written several books about her struggles with Asperger’s Syndrome, and she said that a similar device helped to control her panic attacks. I am happy to report that the Thunder-shirt seems to be helping Tristan, at least somewhat. He is never going to be a happy camper during a storm, but we’ve had some very violent ones this summer, and I really think the Thunder-shirt has eased some of his anxieties. He hasn’t been diving into the bathtub as much, for example. The only fly in the ointment is Holly, his little groupie, the spaniel I adopted last December, who is as great a fan of Tristan as I am of George Clooney. The first time I tried the Thunder-shirt, I’d turn around and it would be loose and flapping in the wind. I’d re-attach it, and then it would happen again. Baffled, I kept vigil after the third time, and caught Holly in the act of tugging on it till the Velcro straps loosened. Apparently she prefers him in all his naked splendor, and has been sulking now that I’ve spoiled her fun. But for those of you with nervous dogs and no crazy little spaniels, I do recommend giving the Thunder-shirt a try. Any one else have stories about whether it worked or not?
Speaking of the Sistine Chapel, the TV program Museum Secrets delved into some of the Vatican Secrets, one interesting bit about the “cover-ups”—literally! Pope Julius 2nd in 16 C was the “conscience” behind the strategic drapings on Michaelangelo’s masterpiece in the Sistine Chapel while Innocent X in 17C was behind the lopping off of certain man parts on all sculpture, replacing with fig leaves. A rumor goes around that there is a secret drawer somewhere that is filled with said body parts.
Speaking of the Sistine Chapel, the TV program Museum Secrets delved into some of the Vatican Secrets, one interesting bit about the “cover-ups”—literally! Pope Julius 2nd in 16 C was the “conscience” behind the strategic drapings on Michaelangelo’s masterpiece in the Sistine Chapel while Innocent X in 17C was behind the lopping off of certain man parts on all sculpture, replacing with fig leaves. A rumor goes around that there is a secret drawer somewhere that is filled with said body parts.
Oops!!!
I have thought so many times about sending a letter to you, Ms. Penman, to say just how much I appreciate your books and how much they inspired my choice to go into History and a career in special collections work! The depiction of Eleanor in When Christ and His Saints Slept so enthralled me that I even focused on women’s history for my undergrad history thesis. I love the idea that it really is what happens behind closed doors between men and women that end up affecting so much more! I have found this to be true throughout history, not just in the case of Eleanor. I can’t begin to tell you how much a signed copy of any of your books would mean! Thank you for writing!!
Today, the Battle of Lechfeld took place, where Otto I ‘the great’, founder of the Holy Roman Empire decisively defeated the larger Magyar army, ending their raids on the west, and leading to his soldiers proclaiming him Emperor in the Roman fashion. The Battle of St. Quentin took place as well, where the Spanish under the House of Savoy defeated the French, which eventually lead to the re-establishment of the House of Savoy, which survived until after World War II.
Thank you, Sara!
Today’s Facebook Note. Once I get this chapter done, I’ll do the drawing.
I managed to escape from Bordeaux, but now I’m stuck in Saintes, so I will be MIA on Facebook and Goodreads and my blog till I can get Joanna and Berengaria safely to Poitiers. Good luck to all in the path of those violent storms today. Tristan has been wearing his thunder-shirt all morning, which means I’ve had to keep a hawk-eye on Holly, who is set on stripping him of it….sigh.
On August 11, 1467, Mary, the second daughter of King Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville was born. Sadly, Mary died in 1482, a few months shy of her fifteenth birthday. She was buried at St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, where her father would be buried the following year after his own untimely death. In 1813, Mary’s lead coffin was opened and it was discovered that she had pale gold hair. Supposedly, those opening the coffin said that her eyes were open and they were blue, but her body disintegrated as soon as it was exposed to the air.
And on August 11, 1492, Jeremy Irons became Pope. Whoops, I mean Rodrigo Borgia was elected as Pope Alexander VI. The Borgia Pope was one of the most controversial in the history of the papacy, and Jeremy is, of course, magnificent in the Showtime series, The Borgias. I didn’t know enough about the Borgias to have their screenwriters’ liberties do damage to my blood pressure—unlike The (shudder) Tudors. I am sure they did indeed take such liberties, but I was rather surprised when I did a bit of Borgia reading—out of morbid curiosity—for some of the improbable events I was sure were sheer fantasy were actually true; for example, Lucrezia Borgia really did escape her first marriage to Giovanni Sforza on the grounds of his purported impotence.
Well, back to the 12th century. But as Edward IV said when he was forced to flee England in 1470, “I shall return!” Or was that General Macarthur?
Sharon, on our trip to the South of France (including a day and two nights in Carcassonne), we spent the first night in Saintes. I remember our visit to an ancient arena there that seemed quite neglected.
Wonderful-I get to enjoy your passion-in depth descriptions of these families & events. Afraid I’m not able to purchase many books but I do get to grab one of yours at sales when available & with such delight! Thank you for the heart & soul you give to your writing, and to us. Lord bless.
Love the books. Keep up the good work! I actually sent a bunch of books to you several years back to be signed so looking forward for a chance for another one.
Malcolm, that would have been the ruins of the Roman ampitheatre. Did you see the Arch of Germanicus? I was there briefly to take a look around for the battle in Shadow. We don’t know Joanna and Berengaria’s itinerary, but it was easy enough to figure out where they’d have stopped and Saintes would have been a likely place; I think they’d have gone west to avoid Angouleme since its count had been embroiled in the rebellion while Richard was in the Holy Land. But they’d have been able to stay at the de Lusignan castle since Hugh de Lusignan had fought with Richard in the crusade and since Richard had arranged for Guy de Lusignan to have Cyprus, for the moment, the de Lusignans were actually playing a rare role, that of the loyal vassals.
Today’s Facebook note:
One of history’s more celebrated and intriguing women died on August 12, 30 BC, when Cleopatra committed suicide rather than let Octavian bring her back in triumph as a prisoner to Rome. All of the early sources say that she died after being bitten by an asp, an Egyptian cobra. A modern historian has challenged this, saying she more likely died after taking hemlock, but I’m inclined to accept the early sources. Stacy Schiff wrote a successful biography of the famed Egyptian queen, “Cleopatra: a Life”, to follow up on her wonderful biography of Ben Franklin, “A great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America”, and Margaret George has written a novel about Cleopatra which I recommend. Michelle Moran has also written an interesting novel ,“Cleopatra’s Daughter,” about the fates of Cleopatra and Mark Antony’s children, who were sent back to Rome to be raised by his long-suffering wife, Antonia. Her son by Julius Caesar, Caesarian, was murdered by Octavian. He would. I suppose Cleopatra has gotten a small measure of revenge, though, for I’d guess that she is better known today to the general public than Octavian.
And on August 12, 1099, the Battle of Ascalon was fought, in which Godfrey de Bouillon defeated a much larger army in what is considered to be the last battle of the bloody and brutal First Crusade. Godfrey, a younger son of the Count of Boulogne, distinguished himself in battle and was among the first to breach the wall at Jerusalem. When Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse refused the kingship, it was offered to Godfrey, who accepted but refused the title of king, saying that belonged only to God. His reign was a short one; he died the following year in Jerusalem after a prolonged illness. Nearly a hundred years later, Henri, the Count of Champagne, showed the same reluctance to accept the kingship, and while he did marry the Queen of Jerusalem, Isabella, and seems to have been very happy with her during their time together, he never claimed the kingship for himself, continuing to call himself Count of Champagne or sometimes Lord of Jerusalem. I’d keep my fingers crossed that I’ll get to write about Henri in my next book except that it makes typing a bit of a challenge.
Indeed Sharon, once again my job has led to you preempting me. But I will mention that you forgot (or did not know), that the Battle of Harim also took place today, where Nur-ad-Din defeated the Crusaders of Tripoli, Antioch, the Byzantine Empire and Armenia, capturing Raymond III of Tripoli, Bohemund III of Antioch, Joscelin III of Edessa, Thoros II of Armenia and Hugh VIII of Lusignan (the father of Amalric and Guy who would be kings, and grandfather to Hugh IX who would cause John such trouble).
And on this day a few years ago, our favourite (and the World’s best) author was born! Happy Birthday Sharon!
Today’s Facebook note.
August 13th is a slow history day; apparently nothing of note happened, unless my entry into the world counts? Seriously, thank you all so much for the lovely birthday wishes. I won’t be around today, but will resurface tomorrow.
PS I hope to have the book giveaway drawing done in a day or so.
Would love to win one of your autograhped books. I will treasure it! Fingers crossed that I win.
Well, now Ken and Sharon have preempted me, but I can still join all the best wishes for Sharon. So happy birthday, and many more to come with us all.
Ah! I am here, and nobody before me! Today, Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, George of Clarence’s daughter was born, as was Princess Catherine of York, Edward IV and Elizabeth’s 6th daughter.
Dear Sharon, Happy Birthday! I’m sorry for being late, but recently I’ve been a little bit busy. Family matters, again. I will have to catch up on what’s been going on here, on your blog, and on Hal’s website:-). Now, let me wish you all the best in my native Polish:
Droga Sharon, wszystkiego najlepszego z okazji urodzin!
Oh, and one more thing! Sharon, Joan, Koby, Malcolm, Ken, I’m truly happy to be back with you 🙂
Malcolm, let me thank you again for the Duchesses and Devils. I’ve written more about my impressions somewhere before on Sharon’s blog. My try to contact you via e-mail has failed. As usual:-)
Ken, how are you? And how is Othon, your Ark, and my big chunk of New Wales?:-) Are you in Cornwall or travelling?
P.S. As far as I can recall, on this day in 1174, the siege of Rouen ended with yet another failure of Hal and his allies, yet another stain on Louis VII’s honour, and yet another indisputable victory on Henry II’s part.
Hi Kasia! I’m still in beautiful Cornwall and have thoroughly enjoyed the Olympics and the uplift it has given the whole country after all the bad economic news of the last few years.
I will leave for the south of France in late September and am thinking of staying there right through the winter. I hate the long, dark, cold and wet winters we have in the UK, having spent much of my adult life in Africa and the Far East.
Othon is struggling with his conscience at the moment. Edward is proving to be much more of a ‘Leopard’ than a Lion and my straight, honest, upright soul mate, who has pledged himself to Edward finds it hard to accept some of his actions and still remain loyal.
Your part of New Wales is perfectly safe. You will have all the land now called New Merioneth to the south of Sharon’s New Gwynedd. You should make for good neighbours!
I loved the short paragraphs from ‘A King’s Ransom’. I’m really looking forward to this book!
Welcome back,Kasia. I had a lot of fun writing that scene in Devil’s Brood, for Henry was in such good spirits, flying high after the capture of the Scots king and his reconciliation with St Thomas; I believe I had him laughing at Louis’s military ineptitude, saying he was conducting the siege of Rouen with all the military skill of a mother abbess, which was true.
Today’s Facebook Note.
I would like to thank everyone who sent me birthday good wishes, a lovely way to launch a very enjoyable birthday. It was fun to get greetings in other languages, too; kudos to Stephanie for being the only one to dare a greeting in Klingon. And I am pleased to report that Joanna and Berengaria have safely reached Poitiers after a long and eventful journey from Rome, escorted by a papal legate, Cardinal Melior, and Raimond de St Gilles, future Count of Toulouse.
On August 14, 1040, King Duncan of Scotland was killed in battle against Macbeth, who would rule Scotland for the next seventeen years and would be unlucky enough to attract the attention of an Elizabethan playwright named Shakespeare. The result would be a great play, but not an accurate portrayal of the flesh and blood Macbeth. When the truth comes up against genius, the latter usually prevails, as the victim of another immortal Shakespearean play can testify.
On August 14, 1473, Margaret Pole, daughter of George, Duke of Clarence, and Isabel Neville, was born. She would later wed the Earl of Salisbury and meet a gruesome death at the age of 68, brutally executed by Henry VIII’s axman on a trumped-up charge of treason. Her judicial murder was one of the darker stains on the Tudor record; she would later be beatified as a martyr by the Roman Catholic Church. Hazel Pierce has written a biography of this interesting woman, Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, 1473-1541.
And on August 14, 1479, Catherine of York, the sixth daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville was born. She would later wed Edward Courtenay, son and heir of the Earl of Devon; widowed at 31, she took a vow of chastity and—unlike another king’s daughter, John’s daughter Eleanor (My Nell in Falls the Shadow)—Catherine would hold to hers, dying in 1527.
Then, on August 14, 1561, Mary Queen of Scots left her beloved France for her alien homeland, Scotland. As we all know, this would not end well. I wrote recently that Mary never met a bad decision she did not want to embrace, so she is not a favorite of mine. But never-theless, there is something sad about this date, as the young, naïve queen sails off to her new life, doubtless with a mixture of unease and excitement. I think Margaret George does a fine job of bringing Mary to life in her novel, Mary Queen of Scots.
And for a total change of pace, August 14, 1851 was the birthday of the consumptive dentist and sometime gunman, pal of Wyatt Earp, made famous or infamous by the gun-fight at the OK Corral, Doc Holliday.
I hope to have the new blog with the drawing winner up later today. Meanwhile, here is my Facebook Note for Wednesday, the 15th.
An eclectic mix of historical events on August 15th, so much so that I strayed out of the MA for a few. On this date in 778 AD, Roland was slain at the battle of Roncevaux Pass in the Pyrenees. Very little is known about him; one legend has it that he was Charlemagne’s nephew. But he became a medieval rock star, the hero of the Chanson de Roland, which was immensely popular in the MA. Coincidentally, Joanna and Berengaria stopped in Blaye after they left Bordeaux in my last chapter. Blaye is reputed to be where Roland was buried, but they were more interested in the romantic legend of the troubadour Jaufre Rudel, the Lord of Blaye, who was said to have fallen in love with the Countess of Tripoli, a woman he’d never met. He took the cross and accompanied Eleanor and Louis on their ill-fated Second Crusade, where he became gravely ill and was brought ashore at Tripoli. The countess was told of his devotion and visited him in time for him to die in her arms. Or so the story goes.
I just mentioned MacBeth yesterday, as he’d become King of Scotland on that date in 1040; well, he died on August 15, 1057, in battle, of course; not too many early kings got to die peacefully in bed.
The one historical event connected to my books occurred on August 15, 1196, when Conrad, the Duke of Swabia, was murdered. Conrad was the younger brother of the Lionheart’s nemesis, the Holy Roman Emperor, Heinrich von Hohenstaufen, and he sounds like a real piece of work. None of the contemporary chroniclers had anything good to say about Conrad, and he was killed by the husband of a woman he’d raped. At least that is one account; another says he was bitten by a virgin he was raping and the wound became infected. This paragon was only twenty-three at the time of his death, and his brother Otto would be murdered a few years later after engaging in more feuds than the Hatfields and McCoys. Heinrich would show a sadistic streak himself once he assumed power in Sicily. Yet the youngest brother Philip, who would rule after Heinrich’s untimely death, seems to have been a genuine nice guy; maybe he was a foundling?
On August 15, 1483, Pope Sixtius IV consecrated the magnificent Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo’s masterpiece, though Botticelli and a few other Renaissance artists had a hand in it, too.
On to the non-medieval. On August 15, 1769, Napoleon Bonaparte was born on Corsica, which I mention because of the huge impact this man had on European history. And on August 15, 1771, Sir Walter Scott was born; of course he wasn’t a “sir” yet. I mention Sir Walter because his Ivanhoe did a lot to popularize the legend of Robin Hood, Richard the Lionheart, and evil Prince John. I also did an introduction for an edition of Ivanhoe some years ago which is not a fond memory, for I came back from a writer’s conference in Anchorage, Alaska very sick with the flu and still had to write that introduction despite feeling as if I ought to be writing my last will and testament.
Sharon:
Happy Belated Birthday! I loved reading your blog and the comments of other events happening on or near your birthday. I just finished reading Elizabeth Chadwick’s “The Greatest Knight.” You very kindly gave her a good review, and her writing is personable with great dialogue, but a don’t think a reader would really get the full feel of the entire age without having read your trilogy of Henry and Eleanor. It was like reading a vast footnote to Time and Chance and the Devil’s Brood. I feel I can’t go further with her books until The King’s Ranson is published. I want to know what happens to Richard on his way back to England. Thanks for your tips as to other great books. I will look them up. By the way, Spartacus is in my top ten best movies too. Young people have no conception of what it took to create an “epic” without CGI. That’s why “Gladiator” is good, but not on par with something like Spartacus or Ben Hur. Love ya!
what a wonderful world we are living, i still wonder this spell caster how he did it!!!
My mouth is full of testimony, Am LarRecha McCray my husband left the home for two years to south Africa for a tourist,he meant a prostitute and he was bewitch be the girl my husband refuse to come back home again, i cry day and night looking for who to help me, i read a news paper about a powerful spell caster called obeduneedospelltemple@gmail.com and i contacted the spell caster to help me get my lover back to me and he ask me not to worry about it that the gods we fight for me.. he told me by mid-night when all the spirit is at rest he will cast a spell to reunite my lover back to me. and he did in less than 3 days my husband came back to me and started crying that i should for forgive him, i,m so happy for what this spell caster did for me and my husband. Dr saga mudo of obeduneedospelltemple@gmail.com is the best spell caster in the whole wild world.
Hi would you mind letting me know which hosting company you’re using? I’ve loaded your blog in 3 different web browsers and I must say this blog loads a lot faster then most. Can you recommend a good hosting provider at a fair price? Thanks a lot, I appreciate it!
I have been exploring for a little for any high-quality articles or blog posts on this sort of area . Exploring in Yahoo I at last stumbled upon this website. Reading this information So i am happy to convey that I have an incredibly good uncanny feeling I discovered just what I needed. I most certainly will make certain to don’t forget this web site and give it a glance regularly.
I only discovered your books last month. Little did I know that I already owned Dragon’s Lair when I bought Liorienheart. My curiosity peeked (spelling?) I looked for Dragon’s Lair to read first. Fell in love with Justin de Quincy. I read Liionheart in record time. I am holding my breath until King’s Ransom. In the meantime I have acquired your already published books in the Justin series. I am anal. I must have hardbacks and first editions is at all possible. My friends think I am pathetic where my books are concerned.
How embarrassing. I will never get the hang of this laptop. I haven’t got a clue how the rie ended up in the middle of Lionheart. Or the extra i. Of course, I have been writing all day, amateur, of course. I did conclude a cute childrens’ book last week and sort of have an inkling of what it feels like to reach that point that you can say, “I did it”. In my case on a very small scale.
This can be a good article thanks for sharing this informative information.. I will go to your blog usually for some latest post.
He is mentioned in The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding by Bill Dobbins and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Ray also wrote a book about how to become a bodybuilder, named The Shawn Ray Way. Ray has appeared on more Flex Magazine covers than any bodybuilder in history and has also featured in many fitness and bodybuilding magazines worldwide. Shawn was a co-host on Flex Magazine Workout on ESPN for 5 years as well as hosting bodybuilding competitions for ESPN as a commentator for 8 years.
My brother suggested I would possibly like this website.
He was once totally right. This submit truly made my day.
You cann’t believe just how a lot time I had spent for this info! Thank you!
Hey! Someone in my Facebook group shared this site with
us so I came to take a look. I’m definitely loving the information. I’m book-marking and will be
tweeting this to my followers! Terrific blog and fantastic design
and style.
With havin so much written content do you ever run into
any issues of plagorism or copyright violation? My site has a lot of unique content I’ve either created myself or outsourced but it looks like a lot of it is popping it up all over the internet without my authorization. Do you know any methods to help prevent content from being ripped off? I’d definitely appreciate
it.
Foods for weight loss. Are you fed up with diets that don’t work? Your food choice may be to blame! Here’s a list of our favourite slimming foods.
I’ve been surfing online greater than three hours these days, yet I never found any fascinating article like yours. It is beautiful worth sufficient for me. Personally, if all website owners and bloggers made good content material as you probably did, the internet shall be much more useful than ever before.
I was extremely pleased to find this site.
I wanted to thank you for your time for this fantastic read!
! I definitely liked every bit of it and i also have you bookmarked to look
at new things in your web site.
Hi to all, for the reason that I am genuinely eager of reading this web site’s post to be updated daily. It carries nice stuff.
Magnificent beat ! I wish to apprentice at the same time as you amend your web site, how can i subscribe for a weblog website? The account aided me a acceptable deal. I were a little bit acquainted of this your broadcast provided shiny transparent idea
J’ai aimé ce que vous pensez, et j’espère fortement qu’on soit tous ensemble pour rendre la Tunisie le meilleur pay du monde .
It is really a great and helpful piece of information. I am glad that you simply shared this useful information with us. Please stay us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for another great post. Where else may just anyone get that type of information in such an ideal manner of writing? I’ve a presentation subsequent week, and I’m on the search for such info.
I’m really enjoying the design and layout of your blog. It’s
a very easy on the eyes which makes it much more enjoyable for me to come here and visit more often.
Did you hire out a developer to create your theme?
Great work!
This may not be the best place to ask but, I need to find someplace to take my Mac for servicing. Has anybody tried this mac repair service? It’s located in West Los Angeles, which is only 5 minutes from my home. It’s called – Mac Repair Los Angeles, 11322 Santa Monica Blvd, Ste B Los Angeles, CA 90025 (310) 966-9099.
This may not be the best place to ask but, I have been looking for someplace to take my Mac for servicing. Do you know anything about this mac repair service? It’s located in West Los Angeles, which is not too far from my place. It’s called – Mac Repair Los Angeles, 11322 Santa Monica Blvd, Ste B Los Angeles, CA 90025 (310) 966-9099.
This may not be the best place to ask but, I need to find a place to bring my Mac for repair. Has anyone ever heard of this apple repair service? They’re located in West Los Angeles, which is only 5 minutes from my place. It’s called – Mac Repair Los Angeles, 11322 Santa Monica Blvd, Ste B Los Angeles, CA 90025 (310) 966-9099.
This may not be the best place to ask but, I have been searching for a place to take my Mac for servicing. Do you know anything about this apple repair service? It’s right in West Los Angeles, which is near my place. It’s called – Mac Repair Los Angeles, 11322 Santa Monica Blvd, Ste B Los Angeles, CA 90025 (310) 966-9099.
Not to hijack this thread but, I have been looking for someplace to bring my Mac for repair. Has anybody tried this apple repair service? They’re located in West Los Angeles, which is not too far from my place. It’s called – Mac Repair Los Angeles, 11322 Santa Monica Blvd, Ste B Los Angeles, CA 90025 – (310) 966-9099.
This may not be the best place to ask but, I have been searching for a place to bring my Mac for repair. Does anyone have any info on this apple repair service? It’s right in West Los Angeles, which is only 5 minutes from my place. It’s called – Mac Repair Los Angeles, 11322 Santa Monica Blvd, Ste B Los Angeles, CA 90025 – (310) 966-9099.
This may not be the best place to ask but, I need to find someplace to bring my Mac for servicing. Do you know anything about this mac repair service? They’re right in West Los Angeles, which is close by my home. It’s called – Mac Repair Los Angeles, 11322 Santa Monica Blvd, Ste B Los Angeles, CA 90025 – (310) 966-9099.
Merely wanna input that you have a very nice site, I the design it actually stands out.
I quite happy to discover this site on bing, just what I was searching for : D too bookmarked .
Thanks a lot lots regarding revealing this particular operating individuals you really notice what you’re really referring to! Saved. Be sure to on top of that check with this site Implies). Organic meat employ a website link trade set up between united states
Very great post. I simply stumbled upon your blog and wished to mention that I’ve really loved browsing your weblog posts. After all I will be subscribing for your feed and I hope you write again very soon!
Hello all, here every one is sharing these familiarity, therefore it’s nice to read this weblog, and I used to pay a quick visit this webpage all the time.
I like it when individuals get together and share views.
Now about going thru the OPs post everyone will accept the above since its what we actually think and it’s great finding a web guy that’s telling this for us to look at
This web page is really a stroll-through for all the info you needed about this and didn’t know who to ask. Glimpse here, and you’ll positively uncover it.
magnificent points altogether, you simply won a new reader. What might you recommend in regards to your post that you just made a few days ago? Any sure?
This post is a very special post.
I want to read even more things approximately it!
Wonderful beat ! I would like to apprentice while you amend your web site, how can i subscribe for a blog web site? The account aided me a appropriate deal. I have been tiny bit acquainted of this your broadcast offered bright transparent idea
when do you want a plumbing engineer?
I’m recommended this amazing site by way of my relative. My business is no longer confident if it post is definitely written by method of him or her seeing that no one realize this sort of particular about my own challenge. You are awesome! Thanks!
This was a really great article – TY for taking the time to make it, I’m positive this will help a ton of people! =)
Pretty nice post. I simply stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I’ve truly loved surfing around your weblog posts. In any case I’ll be subscribing in your rss feed and I am hoping you write again very soon!
It’s the best time to make some plans for the longer term and it’s time to be happy. I have learn this post and if I may just I wish to counsel you few attention-grabbing things or tips. Perhaps you could write subsequent articles regarding this article. I wish to learn more things about it!
Sick and tired of all the men scoops? I’m on this website for your needs
Greetings! Very useful advice within this article! It’s the little changes that
will make the biggest changes. Thanks a lot for sharing!
Superb posts, With thanks!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts about physical training.
Regards
Hello, always i used to check web site posts here in the early hours in the morning,
as i like to find out more and more.
Thanks, I’ve been searching for facts about this subject for ages and yours is the best I have found so far.
Currently it appears like WordPress is the top blogging platform available right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you are using on your blog?
I believe one of your advertisings caused my browser to resize, you may well want to put that on your blacklist.
Most of the things you point out happens to be astonishingly precise and that makes me ponder the reason why I hadn’t looked at this in this light previously. This particular article truly did switch the light on for me as far as this particular issue goes. Nevertheless there is actually just one position I am not necessarily too comfortable with and while I make an effort to reconcile that with the actual central theme of the point, allow me see exactly what the rest of the visitors have to point out.Well done.
We stumbled over here coming from a different web address and thought I should check things out. I like what I see so now i am following you. Look forward to finding out about your web page for a second time.
Thanks for your marvelous posting! I really enjoyed reading it, you are a great author.I will ensure that I bookmark your blog and will eventually come back down the road. I want to encourage one to continue your great job, have a nice day!