Young and beautiful, Gytha Godwinson is the envy of England when her father Harold seizes the country’s crown in early 1066. However, treachery tears her house, her family and everything she holds dear apart. Soon triumph turns to terror as an evil star appears, heralding the end of an era and a new beginning for […]
Writing about 1066: a male club?
Is writing fiction about 1066, or the Anglo-Saxons in general, the exclusive preserve of a male-only club? Ellen Alpsten was surprised to hear people suggest this. The author of The Last Princess argues that the events leading to the Battle of Hastings merit a ‘female retelling’. In autumn 2024, we celebrate the 958th anniversary of […]
The Shortest History of Japan by Lesley Downer
Ever since US Commodore Matthew Perry forced Japan to open its borders in 1853, the culture of this remarkable and distant archipelago has enriched western life. At the same time the country has embraced foreign institutions, from baseball to barber shops. Yet for centuries, under the rule of the shoguns, the islands were largely sealed […]
Japan’s court ladies, warrior women and courtesans
Lesley Downer, the author of The Shortest History of Japan, looks at different roles taken by women during that country’s long history: court ladies, warrior women and courtesans. She shows how, through the ages, they have found ways to use their skills to make their voices heard. Court ladies More than a thousand years ago, […]
Love’s Knife by Tracey Warr
Beatriz de Farrera is a trobairitz (a female troubadour) at the court of Toulouse in 1096. She sings of love but intends to evade marriage and romantic entanglements. Her patron, Philippa, is the heiress of the rich city and county of Toulouse. Philippa’s uncle Raimon plans to marry his niece to the ageing king of […]
Women and the Crusades
Women played a significant role in the Crusades, whether as pilgrims, or supporting the army or, on occasion, as Queens Regnant of Jerusalem, Carol McGrath writes. And, although Richard I’s role in the conflict is well known, few people are aware of the roles of his sister Joanna, or his wife, Berengaria. The Crusades were […]
The King’s Jewel by Elizabeth Chadwick
Wales, 1093, and the warm, comfortable family life of young Nesta, daughter of Prince Rhys of Deheubarth, is destroyed when her father is killed and she is taken hostage. Her honour is further tarnished when she is taken as an unwilling concubine by King William’s ruthless younger brother Henry, who later ascends the throne under […]
Conquest by Griff Hosker
King William has the crown of Edward the Confessor, but he has many enemies both at home and abroad. He has to subdue a land that does not want a Norman yoke upon its shoulders. When Richard fitz Malet is given the manor north of York he finds that it is a poisoned chalice and […]