The William Marshal Chronicles
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Although most Americans have never heard of William Marshal, he is considered by many historians to be “the world’s greatest knight.” In an age when social mobility was rare, William managed to rise from the status of a penniless, fourth-born son of a manager of horse stables to knighthood, tournament champion (he won 500 competitions), Regent of England, and signer of the Magna Carta.
The William Marshal Chronicles tells the story of William’s early years from happy days with his mother, siblings, and a pet pig, to his father’s betrayal and an experience that should have killed him. William re-emerges as a young servant in the household of his father’s archenemy, King Stephen, where he makes new friends, falls in love, and learns how to stay alive in The Chaos of England’s 12th century.
The William Marshal Chronicles tells the story of William’s early years from happy days with his mother, siblings, and a pet pig, to his father’s betrayal and an experience that should have killed him. William re-emerges as a young servant in the household of his father’s archenemy, King Stephen, where he makes new friends, falls in love, and learns how to stay alive in The Chaos of England’s 12th century.
William Marshal
I started out thinking that I was going to write a short book on William, but the deeper I delved into the research, the more interested I became. I am not exactly sure how I am going to create a website as a teaser for the book series, but that is what I'm trying to do. This first volume, now completed, depicts William's tumultuous life up to around age 12. I am in the midst of writing volume two.
In the 12th century, record-keeping was sporadic and not always reliable. The main document of William Marshal's life was a biographical poem commissioned by his youngest son, Anselm, that was begun near the end of William's life. So, if you are writer (perhaps a minstrel) being paid a tidy sum to write a biography of a rich and powerful man, you probably would not "go gonzo" in your reporting and instead, might focus on the positives. If you are a war-weary, rich and powerful 74-year-old man, your memory might not be totally objective or accurate. Yet, that document is the most comprehensive and authentic account of William's life.
I have run descriptions of settings and several characters from the book through various AI image creators. I'll post a few that I like from two different settings. One setting is Newbury Castle, where William grew up. The other setting is Dover Castle, where William eventually went to live, and which remains intact today
In the 12th century, record-keeping was sporadic and not always reliable. The main document of William Marshal's life was a biographical poem commissioned by his youngest son, Anselm, that was begun near the end of William's life. So, if you are writer (perhaps a minstrel) being paid a tidy sum to write a biography of a rich and powerful man, you probably would not "go gonzo" in your reporting and instead, might focus on the positives. If you are a war-weary, rich and powerful 74-year-old man, your memory might not be totally objective or accurate. Yet, that document is the most comprehensive and authentic account of William's life.
I have run descriptions of settings and several characters from the book through various AI image creators. I'll post a few that I like from two different settings. One setting is Newbury Castle, where William grew up. The other setting is Dover Castle, where William eventually went to live, and which remains intact today
Medieval Moment 2:
The reviled King Stephen In 1147, when Henry II was only 14 and trying to help his mother, the Empress Matilda, fight King Stephen for the English crown, he journeyed to England and encountered nothing but disaster. He was disorganized, poorly equipped, broke, and his armies kept losing badly to the armies of King Stephen. Most of his soldiers started deserting and he had no funds to attract new men. In desperation, Henry II wrote to King Stephen and asked for financial help. Perhaps surprisingly, King Stephen sent money to the desperate Henry II to help him through his "rough patch." Apparently, Stephen's displays of generosity have not endeared him to historians, most of whom have characterized him as weak and insufficiently ruthless. But, King Stephen's mother was a saint (literally) and he and his wife created a flurry of humanistic enterprises, including a combination hospital/refuge for the poor. William Marshal's father gave William to King Stephen as collateral as a demonstration that he would honor an agreement with the King. When William's father broke the agreement, it was expected that William would be killed, but King Stephen let William live, and instead accepted him into his own household. In light of the cruelty and malice of our current age, King Stephen seems like a bright beacon of hope and goodwill. 
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Medieval Moment 3:
The original herbal supplements Bald's Leechbook was a manual for healers that was often used in the 12th century. Some of the prescriptions for ailments seem absurd and funny today. Here's one for hiccups: Hiccup comes on either by reason of repletion, or of emptiness, or of austere juices biting upon the stomach, and when these are vomited forth it ceases....It is also a recognized fact, that some turning their food sour, hiccup; and many also hiccup after shivering. We shall find then that a vomit is a sufficient cure for those who hiccup from repletion or irritation. I don't know about you, but I'd rather just stick with the hiccups than vomit. Anyway, some prescriptions mentioned in the Leechbook have proven effective. For example, an ointment concocted for problems with the eyes, made from "garlic, leeks, wine, and the bile from a cow's stomach" has been tested and found to be as effective as the modern remedy. 
Medieval Moment 1:
All Saints Day and Hallowed Eve Established in the early Middle Ages, November 1 is still known as "All Saints Day," and is set aside for Christians to honor individuals--saints and non-saints--who have died, but who lived laudatory lives. Churches today, like those in medieval times, celebrate All Saints Day by decorating cemeteries with flowers, providing "books of remembrance," and celebrating with a feast. The eve of this hallowed day is, of course, October 31, Hallowed Eve, or Halloween. Because pigs were the most popular form of meat in Europe during medieval times, Halloween was a day of death for many pigs, as they became the main course for feasts on All Saints Day. |