Who was President Tito? A communist dictator who, against all odds, held the former Yugoslavia together, a partisan leader during the Second World War, a charismatic, but vain, man, says Hilary Green. She explains how she became interested in this man, who played such a large part in the history of the Balkan region. Until […]
The Battle of Brunanburh
When author Hilary Green heard that the long-forgotten site of the Battle of Brunanburh (937) had been located not far from where she lives, she had to find out more… Everyone knows about the Battle of Hastings, but how many of us have heard of the Battle of Brunanburh? Yet the outcome of this battle […]
The triumph of Greek myths and the destruction of a civilisation
With the recent publication of several acclaimed novels based on Greek myths, author Hilary Green wonders whether the time is right to look again at the history behind the ancient stories – and maybe for a novel based on the archaeological record. As someone who cut her teeth on the novels of Mary Renault, I […]
International trade in the early Middle Ages
After the fall of the Roman Empire, trade in Europe declined, roads fell into disrepair and commerce was centred on small towns and local markets; but by the 11th century new routes were opening up, Ironhand author Hilary Green tells Historia.
The Trojan Wars: Men or Myths?
Hilary Green explores the evidence of the real historical figures behind the Trojan Wars. Everyone knows the story of the Trojan War – don’t they? Achilles the great warrior, cunning Odysseus, the Trojan horse? That last, at least, has become common parlance. In recent years fewer and fewer people seemed to have heard it, but […]
Did the American Civil War End in Liverpool?
The quartermaster of the CSS Shenandoah hauled down the Confederate flag flying from the stern,
Stranger Than Fiction
When I was researching the background to ‘Theatre of War’, the third book in my ‘Follies’ quartet, Ihad a really lucky meeting. The book is set in World War ll and my hero, Richard, an agent for SOE, was going to work with the Italian partisans in an area called the Garfagnana, a valley whichruns […]