On this date, September 3rd, in medieval history: 1189 – Richard I (the “Lion-Heart”) crowned King of England 1260 – The Egyptian Mamluks defeat the Mongols at the Battle of Ain Jalut, marking the first time the Mongols had ever been decisively defeated, according to some historians 1346 – Edward… Read More »Medieval Timeline: Today in Medieval History
In my recent short story The Sea-Ghost, I make mention of William de Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury. The following is a brief biographical sketch about him. William de Longespée (also known as “Longsword”) was an English noble born in 1176, and he was the illegitimate son of Henry II,… Read More »William de Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury
On this date, August 29th, in medieval history: 1179 – Castle Chastelet falls to Saladin 1189 – Ban Kulin wrote The Charter of Kulin, which became a symbolic “birth certificate” of Bosnian statehood. 1261 – Election of Pope Urban IV 1350 – Battle of Winchelsea (or Les Espagnols sur Mer):… Read More »Medieval Timeline: Today in Medieval History
The last review I did was on the historical fiction novel The Archer’s Tale by Bernard Cornwell, and I thought I would go ahead and finish out the series before moving on to other books. Vagabond is the second installment in The Grail Quest Series by Bernard Cornwell, and the… Read More »Review of Vagabond by Bernard Cornwell
On this date, August 27th, in medieval history: 1172 – Marguerite married Henry Plantagenet and was crowned Queen of England
The Islesman by Nigel Tranter Paperback: 400 pages Publisher: Hodder Headline (June 1, 2003) Comments from the Publisher: “The absorbing tale of Angus Og MacDonald, Lord of the Isles, set in the turbulent days of Robert the Bruce. Angus Mor, Lord of the Isles, had a son, Alexander of Islay.… Read More »Medieval Historical Fiction Novel of the Week
I’ve updated my bookshelf with more fiction titles (mostly medieval historical fiction and fantasy titles though others are included), more medieval non-fiction resources, and more writing resources. Please send me your recommendations as well. I’m always eager to read authors I’ve never read before.
I’ve posted a new short story in the writing section of my site. The Sea-Ghost is historical fiction set in early 13th century medieval England. The story follows a knight and his squire in route to Wales by boat. They are traveling to Wales in order to join their lord, Earl William… Read More »New Short Story Posted: The Sea-Ghost
I was looking over my site and realized I don’t write as many reviews of novels as I would like to. So I thought I’d go back through the list of books I’ve read over the years and write reviews on them. I normally like to review novels immediately after… Read More »Review of The Archer’s Tale by Bernard Cornwell