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 […]
International Trade in the Middle Ages by Hilary Green
This is a journey through the complex developing trade of the Middle Ages, which is the foundation of trade today. Taking the production of wool in the abbeys of the north of England as a starting point, she follows its journey to Flanders where it was woven into a variety of textiles in the growing […]
Twice Royal Lady by Hilary Green
Matilda of England. Betrothed at eight. Married at 12. And crowned Empress in her late teens. Matilda is the only legitimate daughter of Henry I of England. She’s also the granddaughter of William the Conqueror and is a descendent – through her mother – from the ancient line of Anglo-Saxon kings. She is made a […]
Operation Kingfisher by Hilary Green
Southern Auvergne, France, 1943. Occupied France is a dangerous place for Luke and Christine, especially when they are the children of a French mother and a British father. Desperate to escape, the two teenagers embark on a perilous journey back to England to the safety of their grandparents. But there are eyes everywhere. Luke and […]
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.
Ironhand by Hilary Green
1095. Pope Urban calls on the princes of Christendom to free Jerusalem from the infidel. Bohemond of Taranto arrives in Sicily seeking recruits for his force of Crusaders. Ranulph of Erbistock, known as Ironhand, joins him. Bohemond’s army is beset by enemies without and dissension and treachery within, but Ranulph becomes one of his trusted […]
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 […]