Whatever great fears and hopes lay ahead for tomorrow and tomorrow, Gwenhwyfar, he would always love. Beyond that, only the Three Goddesses of Fate would know what patterns were to be woven upon the great loom of life for child, mother, and king.
Author’s Note
Arthur Pendragon, to those people who study him, is a very personal and passionately viewed character. We all have our own ideas, insist ours is the correct one, and argue like mad with anyone who disagrees! I have tried, to the best of my ability, to be as accurate as possible over background details but the why, when, how and where of Arthur himself is individual. I am not expecting anyone necessarily to agree with my telling, but then, this is only an imaginative story. A new retelling of an old, familiar tale.
Arthur, the chivalric king of the Medieval story, is not the same Arthur who appears in some of the early tales that we have of him. In these, we hear of his anger at a woman who was trying to seduce one of his men, and the consequent attack on her. He is often portrayed as someone who steals from the Church. Almost, it seems, this Arthur was condemned by the Christian priests, not revered as the man who, in the stories of five hundred or so years later, initiates the finding of the Holy Grail and who carried the portrait of the Virgin on his shoulder or shield. For that particular episode, I am satisfied that my explanation is reasonable. There are many instances of the old pagan beliefs becoming intertwined with the new embryonic Christianity. The Mother Goddess most certainly metamorphosised into the Virgin Mary.
The people of the Middle Ages created Arthur in their own image, dressed him in Medieval armour, set him in a turreted castle and made him fight for the holy cause. This was the age of the crusades and knights in armour, when women were regarded as little more than chattels and the bearers of sons. I do not see my Arthur or Gwenhwyfar in this setting. Arthur is a soldier, a strong dedicated leader. Gwenhwyfar is no subservient, blushing maiden. There is no Lancelot for her in my stories; she remains loyal to her Lord.
Hueil is fact – stories tell of a feud with Arthur. Those stories of Ider relate how the young man sets out to prove himself by slaying the three giants of Brent Knoll; in some stories he kills the giants but dies himself, in others, he survives. My version is a deviation, but is based on these early tales. Arthur’s jealousy against Ider is also part of that old telling, as are the episodes of the bear in Gwenhwyfar’s tent and Arthur questioning her about whom she would marry after his death.
Amlawdd was probably a factual character, but through the passing of time we have lost his real identity. I have used his name and existence to fit with my story but admit my usage may not be accurate. So very little of this long-past, dark age of our history is known to us as fact. A novelist’s dream, for we have a free rein of imaginative invention!
Legend has it that the King’s and Queen’s Crags near Hadrian’s Wall are so called because Arthur and Gwenhwyfar quarrelled there – even the throwing of the comb is part of that story. Apparently, you can see the mark on a rock where it fell! There are so many hills and stones named after Arthur, and I have used those few that seemed appropriate, those that tied in with my ideas.
Vercovicium is only a suggested name for Houseteads, we do not know its definite Roman name, and I confess that Winifred Castre for Winchester is total fabrication on my part – my only defence is that there is no agreed explanation for this city’s name! Caer Cadan is also my own. I needed something to reflect the Camelot of legend with the actual hill fort of Cadbury Castle, Somerset. Strictly speaking the “c” of Cadan should, in today’s Welsh, mutate to a “g” (Gadan). However, I have been advised that mutations did not influence the language until well after Arthur’s time, and I therefore ask Welsh-speaking readers to forgive my liberty. The building of the Valle Crucis Abbey come a long time after my story – but who knows what early buildings stood there first?
The Wandsdyke was built after the Romans but before the Saxons as a defence against the north. The English did not know of it before they conquered this area, hence its name, ‘Woden’s Dyke’. It seems strange that if Wandsdyke was built to keep the Saxons out, why did they not know of it? The answer can only be because it was built long before they were in that area, and must therefore have been erected by British against British. It has often been attributed to Ambrosius, but as there is no proof of this, I have given its building to Arthur.
The Medieval Norman stories – created when only the first-born, legitimate male inherited – make much of Arthur having no son. Earlier references contradict this. Nennius writing his Historia Brittonum in the ninth century, mentions Amr who was ‘slain by his father, Arthur the soldier’ and who was buried beneath the ancient stones in what is now Hereford. Llacheu, Arthur’s son, was killed in battle and in the Mabinogion, we find the story of Gwydre, son of Arthur, killed by the boar Twrch Trwyth.
Nennius is also a source of Arthur’s battles. He describes twelve, the locations of which are heatedly debated. My conclusions are a general hotchpotch of theory and guesswork. For those who know about Arthur, and are asking, ‘But what about the battle of Badon?’ you will have to wait for book three, Shadow of the King.
The distances and speed of Arthur’s horses are not far fetched. It is quite possible to average thirty or forty (modern) miles a day without overtaxing horses if they have adequate feeding, a moderated pace and the occasional day’s rest. In 207 BC the Consul Nero covered three hundred miles in a seven-day forced march with no ill effect, save the horses lost weight.
The story of Gwenhwyfar’s offer to be shared between Arthur and Amlawdd is borrowed from a most ancient tale. Correctly, the other man involved should have been Melwas, who appeared briefly in The Kingmaking, but Gwenhwyfar’s trickery did not fit neatly into that particular story and so I have used it against Amlawdd in this. The same story is also credited to Tristan and Isolde. Perhaps those early Tellers of Tales felt justified in re-using a good plot to fit their heroine’s needs? I feel equally justified in blatantly borrowing it for myself!
Helen Hollick
2011
Place Names
Abus River Humber
Alclud Dumbarton
Aquae Sulis Bath
Bodotria Firth of Forth
Caer Arfon Caernarvon
Caer Cadan Cadbury Castle
Caer Gloui Gloucester
Caer Luel Carlisle
Calleva Silchester
Cilurnum Chesters – Hadrian’s Wall
Deva Chester
Dalriada Area around Dumbarton
Din Eidyn Edinburgh
Dun Pelidr Traprain Law
Durnovaria Dorchester
Durovernum Canterbury (Canti Byrig)
Eboracum York
Great River River Tweed
Gwy River Wye
Hafren River Severn
Lindinis Ilchester
Lindum Colonia Lincoln
Mount of Frogs Brent Knoll, Somerset
Pengwern Bury Walls, Shropshire
Place of Ravens Dinas Bran
Summer Land Somerset
Tava Firth of Tay
Treanta River Trent
Trimontium Eildon near Melrose
Venta Bulgarium Winchester (Winifred’s Castre)
Vercovicium Houseteads Fort, Hadrian’s Wall
Viroconium Wroxeter
Winta Ingas Ham Winteringham
Yns Witrin Glastonbury Tor
Yr Wyddfa Mount Snowdon
Pronunciation
A basic guide to the rough pronunciation to some of the Welsh names
Abloyc ab-loy-c
Bedwyr bed-oo-ear
Cei kay
Cunedda kin-eth-a
Cymraes cum-rice
Dogmail dog-my-l
Dunaut din-eye-t
Enniaun en-nee-eyen
Gorlois gor-loys
Gwenhwyfar gwen-hwe-var
Gwynllyw gwin-(h)lee-oo
Iawn yown
Llacheu (h)lak-eye
Mel
was mel-oo-as
Meriaun merry-eyen
Morgause mor-gice
Rumaun rim-eyen
Typiaunan typ-ee-eye-nan
Uthr oo-tha
Ygrainne ig-rine-ya
Acknowledgements
My sincere thanks go to the efficient and helpful team at my new publishing house, SilverWood Books – I look forward to a long and happy partnership. I must also repeat my gratitude to my original editor at William Heinemann, Lynne Drew, who guided me through the first confusing muddle of becoming an author. Thank you also to Jo and Michaela, my present editors, and my readers Stuart and Kelly.
To my special friends, Hazel and Derek, although sadly Hazel is no longer with us, she is very much missed; to Mal for his belief in me and to Sharon Penman for her support and encouragement; Elizabeth Chadwick for the same, and also to Bernard Cornwell.
Especially, thank you to Cathy Helms of Avalon Graphics for her superb covers and graphics design – she is a treasure of pure gold.
Also, a thank you to Richard Cope for his knowledge of birds; Sue and Geoff for showing me the very beautiful area of Wales near Valle Crucis Abbey; Joan, and her late husband Bill, who taught me so much about horses. It is often the little things that help the most.
My only regret is that my dad is not alive to share the pleasures of success.
Finally, and most important, I thank my husband Ron and daughter Kathy, who have never complained at my involvement in my work, nor minded the long journeys to visit remote sites for research. Ron has supported me through some difficult years of writing. I am proud to have him as a husband, and to him I dedicate Pendragon’s Banner, with all my love.
Helen Hollick,
2011
To My Readers
A personal message from Helen Hollick
Writing can be a silly occupation. Solitary, often hard, tedious work for few rewards. But it is compulsive, and those few rewards can be great indeed: seeing your novel on a shelf in a bookstore; receiving an e-mail from an appreciative fan; a fabulous review; a nomination for an award. There is the sheer pleasure of starting with a blank page and experiencing the excitement of bringing a character to full and glorious life. Of delving beneath the facts of what happened and when, and filling in all the missing bits of why, how and with whom. That is the joy of writing!
Having a book published, however, is not always plain sailing. Several years ago my backlist was dropped by William Heinemann – historical fiction had gone out of fashion – and simultaneously my agent abandoned me. I was on my own and facing the prospect of not writing another novel. I spent two weeks sobbing, then pulled myself together and set out to find an alternative publisher.
I discovered an independent company who, as a part of their small mainstream imprint, took my backlist and my new venture: the first of the Sea Witch voyages. There were hiccups, but the office staff were enthusiastic and I had high hopes for the future. Sadly, the current economic climate is not kind to small firms, and for a second time I found myself facing the prospect of being out of print. I had four choices:
Give up writing
Find an alternative mainstream publisher
Go self-publish (produce my books myself)
Find a company that provided assisted publishing
For me, 1 was not an option. I cannot give up writing, not while I still have a story in my head to share. Choice 2: I am mainstream published in the US and other countries, but approaching a similar UK publishing house, with their full lists and tight printing schedules, could have resulted in my novels being unavailable for several months. I have many friends who would be so disappointed to see them temporarily disappear, as would I. Lacking the technical knowledge, or time, to go self publish was not viable or practical, although the thought of running my own company was tempting. However, excited by the prospect of being in control of my destiny – and my books – I decided to opt for choice 4.
I have known Helen Hart of SilverWood Books for several years and it was therefore an easy choice to send my precious novels into her good care, confident she would produce quality editions, quickly and efficiently.
Transferring my list of seven books has been hard and dedicated work, not just for me, but for the team at SilverWood Books, my graphic designer Cathy Helms of AvalonGraphics, and my editors Jo Field and Michaela Unterbarnscheidt.
Nor have the production costs been cheap – more on the ‘gulp’ level – but the quality result has been worth it…I love my characters and have great respect and fondness for all my followers, fans, friends and readers. Your encouragement and enthusiasm was all the incentive I needed to make the decision to keep my characters alive and well. And in print.
For that, I thank you.
Helen
About the Author
Helen Hollick lives in north-east London on the edge of Epping Forest with her husband, adult daughter and a variety of pets, which include several horses, a cat and a dog. She has two major interests: Roman / Saxon Britain and the Golden Age of Piracy – the early eighteenth century. Her particular pleasure is researching the facts behind the small glimpses of history and bringing the characters behind those facts to full and glorious life. She has an Honours Diploma in Early Medieval History, and may one day, if ever she finds the time, to go on to obtain her full degree.
For up-to-date information, you are invited to visit: www.helenhollick.net
Praise for Helen Hollick
If only all historical fiction could be this good
Historical Novels Review
I am so completely and thoroughly obsessed with this author right now. This trilogy is just beautiful. I love how the author turns King Arthur into a man and then the King of legend. The amount of research Ms. Hollick must have done is astounding because the detail in this book is wonderful.
bibliophilicbookblog.com
Hollick’s writing is one of the best I’ve come across – her descriptions are so vivid it seems as if there’s a movie screen in front of you, playing out the scenes.
passagestothepast.com
Uniquely compelling… bound to have a lasting and resounding impact on Arthurian literature
Books Magazine
Helen Hollick is an author who is conquering the world one country at a time with her intricate way of bringing the past to life.
Suite 101 Romance
Hollick adds her own unique twists and turns to the familiar mythology
Booklist
Helen Hollick brings history to life… she weaves fact with fiction in such a way that keeps you spellbound and turning the pages as quickly as you can to find out what will happen. From love and loyalty to fighting raging battles there is never a boring moment.
peekingbetweenthepages.blogspot.com
Also by Helen Hollick
The Sea Witch Voyages
Sea Witch: The first voyage of pirate Cpt Jesamiah Acorne
Pirate Code: The second voyage of Cpt Jesamiah Acorne
Bring It Close: The third voyage of Cpt Jesamiah Acorne
Ripples In the Sand: The fourth Voyage of Cpt Jesamiah Acorne
(published autumn 2011)
The Saxon 1066 Series
A Hollow Crown (UK edition title)
The Forever Queen (US edition title)
Harold the King (UK edition title)
I Am The Chosen King (US edition title)
The Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy
The Kingmaking: Book One of the Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy
Pendragon’s Banner: Book Two of the Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy
Shadow of the King: Book Three of the Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy
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