‘Tarchon pointed to the eagle as it soared into the stillness. ‘An eagle brought a sign to Tanaquil that her husband would be King of Rome.’ Caecilia refused to look at the bird, not wanting to hear another of Tarchon’s tales, especially about an Etruscan woman who became a… Read More »A queen, an eagle and destiny….Tanaquil by Elisabeth Storrs
It was the Spaniards who gave the world the notion that an aristocrat’s blood is not red but blue. The Spanish nobility started taking shape around the ninth century in classic military fashion, occupying land as warriors on horseback. They were to continue the process for more than five hundred… Read More »Colonial Peru, the Caste System, and the “Purity” of Blood by David Gaughran
“Truth isn’t in accounts but in account books.” Josephine Tey, The Daughter of Time You’d think that a history geek who’s passionately interested in a particular historical period, and who has made something of a career writing about it, would be delighted when she discovers more fiction set in… Read More »Propaganda, Clichés, and History by Susanne Alleyn
Did you know that Robert the Bruce’s wife, Elizabeth, was captured and held in custody by the English for 8 years? In 1306, Robert the Bruce and his ragged band were fleeing south through the Scottish Highlands after a devastating defeat by the Earl of Pembroke at the Battle of… Read More »The Capture of Elizabeth Bruce by N. Gemini Sasson
How did medieval people keep warm? The short answer might be they didn’t, but that’s only half an answer. Certainly, in medieval Wales like in modern Wales, people didn’t have to deal with extreme temperatures of say–Minnesota–but they did have to deal with snow and cold in the winter, and occasional… Read More »How did medieval people keep warm? by Sarah Woodbury