Authors: Griff Hosker
“Well Ridley, this is it.
We leave this land. Did you find out the destinations of any of the ships?”
As we hefted our bags containing our gear he said, “Aye and there are none for Constantinople.
Most go to Jorvik or London and one goes to the land of the Danes.”
“Then that is the one for us.”
He looked appalled. “That liar? You would go to his land?”
“The Jew told me to take the first boat.
It happens to go to Denmark.
Wyrd
! Besides, he said once that he owed you and me for saving his men at Jorvik. Let us see. Anyway, old friend, the world is filled with people who want to kill us. And Denmark is the shortest sea crossing. Let us find a berth on that ship. We sail to Denmark.”
Striding along the quayside I felt my heart lighten as my old friend and I set off to conquer the world or at least see a greater part of it.
The events around Edwin, Morcar and Edgar are largely true. They did submit and then rebel. Edgar did ally with King Sweyn of Denmark and invade Northumbria, attacking Jorvik. Edith and Ealdgyth both disappeared from history after Harold died. I have merely speculated. After he had won at Hastings William did spend a long time back in Normandy and eventually returned in 1067. He appointed Copsi as Earl even though he had fought with Tostig. The motivations of both men are interesting. The battles of Hastings and Stamford Bridge took out the leadership of the English which is why William was able to conquer the rest of the country with so few men.
There is a deserted medieval village called Griff close to Helmsley.
I did not make it up. It was deserted some time after the invasion. William of Perci was given Topcliffe and huge estates in North Yorkshire. He was nicknamed Aux Gemons because of his long moustaches.
Edgar did invite Sweyn of Denmark to invade England; they captured York and then ravaged the countryside.
When William came north he bought off Sweyn with the money he had raised through taxes and then punished the people of the north by slaughtering them! Edgar fled to Scotland where his sister had married King Malcolm and then William completely emptied the land north of York; killing every man woman and child. William (who was known as the Bastard) tried to wipe Anglo-Saxon England from the map. His genocide did not work and the language of England still has many Anglo-Saxon words. For a good book on this try Melvyn Bragg’s “The Adventure of English”. The reason why English did not die out is because the Norman women used Anglo-Saxon wet nurses for their children and they spoke English to the Norman children. Within a hundred or so years the nobility were using English again.
Ealdgyth, Ulf and Harold all disappeared from history following the Battle of Hastings.
This is my version of their lives. They were treacherous and dangerous times. The Varangian Guard was originally filled with men from the Rus, (Russian Vikings and Swedes) but following Hastings the numbers were swelled with Anglo-Saxon warriors fleeing the Norman tyranny.
Edgar the Aetheling did flee to Scotland where he stayed with his sister, the wife of Malcolm Canmore. Morcar and Edwin both died in captivity. William, wisely, never trusted them again!
The next and last book in the series will be Varangian and it should be out in Spring 2013 when Ridley and Aelfraed journey to Constantinople.
Fictional characters are in italics.
Name | Explanation |
aelfe | Saxon Elf |
Aelfraed | Descendant of Alfred the Great’s son |
Aethelward | Aelfraed’s uncle |
Alfred | King of Wessex |
Branton | Osbert’s brother, an archer |
byrnie | Armoured coat |
Catherick | Catherick North Yorkshire |
conroi | Knights who follow a leader |
Danegeld | Bribe paid to Danes by English kings in the 8 |
Dunelm | Durham |
Ealdgyth | Wife of |
Eidyn Dun | Edinburgh |
gammer | Old woman or mother |
Guy of Evreux | Norman knight |
Gytha | Relative of the Earl of Hereford and wife of Aelfraed |
Hetaireia | Imperial bodyguard of the Byzantine Emperor |
King Sweyn | King of the Danes |
leat | An open stretch of water close to a river |
Legacaestir | Chester |
Maeresea | River Mersey |
Malcolm Canmore | King of Scotland |
Mara | Delamere forest Cheshire |
Medelai | Middleham North Yorkshire |
Othenesberg | Roseberry Topping, Cleveland |
Osbert | Sergeant at arms of Aelfraed |
Oswald | Priest at Topcliffe |
Persebrig | Piercebridge |
Reuben | Jewish money lender |
Ridley | Housecarl of the Earl |
strategos | A Byzantine general |
thrall | slave |
Thingman | Housecarls of the English Royal family until 1051 |
Ulf | Housecarl killed at Senlac Hill |
villein | peasant |
Wight | Spirit |
Witenagemot | The council of England wh |
wyrd | fate |
him.
126
If you enjoyed reading this book then why not read another one by the author?
The Sword of Cartimandua Series
(Germania and Britannia 50A.D. – 128 A.D.)
Ulpius Felix-
Roman Warrior
Book 1
The Sword of Cartimandua
Book 2
The Horse Warriors
Book 3
Invasion Caledonia
Book 4
Roman Retreat
Book 5
Revolt of the Red Witch
Book 6
Druid’s Gold
Book 7
Trajan’s Hunters
Book 8
The Last Frontier
Book 9
Hero of Rome
Book 10
Roman Hawk
Book 11
Roman Treachery
They are all available in the Kindle format
.
The Aelfraed Series
(Britain and Byzantium 1050 A.D.- 1085 A.D.)
Book 1
Housecarl
Book 2
Outlaw
Book 3
Varangian
These are available in the Kindle format.
The Wolf Warrior series
(Britain in the late 6
th
Century)
Book 1
Saxon Dawn
Book 2
Saxon Revenge
Book 3
Saxon England
Book 4
Saxon Blood
Also available in paperback and Kindle is the book aimed at 12-15 years olds,
Great Granny’s Ghost
Carnage at Cannes
is a modern thriller and is available in the Kindle format
.
Travel
Adventure at 63-Backpacking to Istanbul
The Lucky Jack Civil War series
Book 1 The Rebel Raider
For more information
on all of the books then please visit the author’s web site at
http://www.griffhosker.com
where there is a link to contact him.
All the books are now published by Sword Books Ltd.
Griff Hosker
June 2013
If you enjoyed reading this book then why not read another one by the author?
The
Sword of Cartimandua Series
(Germania and Britannia 50A.D. – 128 A.D.)
Ulpius Felix-
Roman Warrior
Book 1
The Sword of Cartimandua
Book 2
The Horse Warriors
Book 3
Invasion Caledonia
Book 4
Roman Retreat
Book 5
Revolt of the Red Witch
Book 6
Druid’s Gold
Book 7
Trajan’s Hunters
Book 8
The Last Frontier
Book 9
Hero of Rome
Book 10
Roman Hawk
Book 11
Roman Treachery
They are all available in the Kindle format
.
The Aelfraed Series
(Britain and Byzantium 1050 A.D.- 1085 A.D.)
Book 1
Housecarl
Book 2
Outlaw
Book 3
Varangian
These are available in the Kindle format.
The Wolf Warrior series
(Britain in the late 6
th
Century)
Book 1
Saxon Dawn
Book 2
Saxon Revenge
Book 3
Saxon England
Also available in paperback and Kindle is the book aimed at 12-15 years olds,
Great Granny’s Ghost
Carnage at Cannes
is a modern thriller and is available in the Kindle format
.
Travel
Adventure at 63-Backpacking to Istanbul
Coming in Autumn 2013
The Irishman in the grey - a trilogy set in the American Civil War
For more information
on all of the books then please visit the author’s web site at
http://www.griffhosker.com
where there is a link to contact him.