The Abbot's Tale
Page 43
On a final note, the fact that the name of Ethelred the Unready actually meant ‘Nobel counsel’ (Æthel-rœd) the ‘Ill-counselled’ (Un-rœd) must be one of the earliest jokes, if not the earliest, in the English language. ‘Old Good-Advice, the badly advised’ is a fair approximation.
In 1066, a vast invasion of Viking Norse launched from France. To some extent, the modern age began in that century, but the torch was lit on the bones of great kings, at least in Wessex. The people remained and endured and suffered and worked and thrived – and in 1497 sent a ship under John Cabot to Newfoundland and began the largest empire the world has ever seen. All such empires fall away, leaving stories behind: from Plato’s men staring at shadows in a cave or Horatius on the Bridge, to Sir Francis Drake playing bowls and a thousand more. It has been my privilege to tell just one.
Conn Iggulden London, 2016
Acknowledgements
My thanks to Shelagh Broughton, who did a vast amount of research on this one. Also to Mauraid Moran, who was kind enough to check the manuscript for matters monastic. Any remaining errors are all my own. I should also thank Clive Room, who asked questions in obscure churches and came back with some extraordinarily useful information, surprising us both.
Finally, I must thank my agent, Victoria Hobbs, and both Louise Moore and Jillian Taylor of Michael Joseph. I do love to tell stories like this. Thank you all for making it possible.
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THE ABBOT’S TALE
Pegasus Books Ltd.
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New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2018 by Conn Iggulden
First Pegasus Books hardcover edition May 2018
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ISBN: 978-1-68177-730-6
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