Power Politics
I have Niccolo Machiavelli and Louis XIV of France, as my options today, for an “on this day” style post. In 1512 the Medici family expelled Machiavelli from Florence, and in 1651, Louis became of full age and absolute monarch in his own right. Machiavelli’s...
The Lincoln Play
Abraham Lincoln was born in poverty in a log cabin in Kentucky, and self-educated. He was elected the 16th president of the United States on 6th November 1860. Lincoln is perhaps best remembered for the Gettysburg Address, arguably the best expression of American...
Book 5
Publication day for Called to Account, the fourth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures, is this coming Tuesday. I have just taken my first full step towards researching book 5. I have placed an order for Louis XIII: The Making of a King, by Elizabeth Wirth...
Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot
Thanks to an anonymous letter, guards searched the cellars of the House of Lords on the night of 4th November 1605. They arrested Guy Fawkes, as he guarded 36 barrels of gunpowder. The plan to kill King James I, and his parliament, at the state opening of parliament...
A Different Sense
We need to engage more senses when writing and reading. I haven’t posted for a few days because I’ve been busy listening to the audio files for The Suggested Assassin, book 3 in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. It doesn’t seem to matter how many times I read my...
Martin Luther’s 95 Theses, on this day in 1517
This is my pick for today, and I don’t care which calendar it was. Martin Luther sent his 95 theses to Albrecht Von Brandenburg, the Archbishop of Mainz, which precipitated the Protestant reformation. I don’t doubt that Luther had a few good points. Indulgences, that...
The War of Jenkins’ Ear declared on this day in 1739
I was tempted to opt for Queen Isabella of Spain banning violence against Indians in the Americas in 1503, but that clearly didn’t last. I remember learning about the War of Jenkins’ Ear at school. I can’t think of a better name for a war to get schoolboys interested...
Sir Walter Raleigh was executed on this day in 1618
I didn’t treat Raleigh sympathetically in The Spy who Sank the Armada. Sir Anthony Standen was working for Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, and Essex and Raleigh were rivals. Putting that rivalry aside, there is much to like about Raleigh. Raleigh was a consummate...
Giveaway
Giveaway? Yes, I have some promo codes for my audiobooks. The first two books in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures are now available as audiobooks on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. They are: The Spy who Sank the Armada, and Fire and Earth. The Spy who Sank the Armada...
Power Politics
I have Niccolo Machiavelli and Louis XIV of France, as my options today, for an “on this day” style post. In 1512 the Medici family expelled Machiavelli from Florence, and in 1651, Louis became of full age and absolute monarch in his own right. Machiavelli’s...
The Lincoln Play
Abraham Lincoln was born in poverty in a log cabin in Kentucky, and self-educated. He was elected the 16th president of the United States on 6th November 1860. Lincoln is perhaps best remembered for the Gettysburg Address, arguably the best expression of American...
Book 5
Publication day for Called to Account, the fourth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures, is this coming Tuesday. I have just taken my first full step towards researching book 5. I have placed an order for Louis XIII: The Making of a King, by Elizabeth Wirth...
Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot
Thanks to an anonymous letter, guards searched the cellars of the House of Lords on the night of 4th November 1605. They arrested Guy Fawkes, as he guarded 36 barrels of gunpowder. The plan to kill King James I, and his parliament, at the state opening of parliament...
A Different Sense
We need to engage more senses when writing and reading. I haven’t posted for a few days because I’ve been busy listening to the audio files for The Suggested Assassin, book 3 in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. It doesn’t seem to matter how many times I read my...
Martin Luther’s 95 Theses, on this day in 1517
This is my pick for today, and I don’t care which calendar it was. Martin Luther sent his 95 theses to Albrecht Von Brandenburg, the Archbishop of Mainz, which precipitated the Protestant reformation. I don’t doubt that Luther had a few good points. Indulgences, that...
The War of Jenkins’ Ear declared on this day in 1739
I was tempted to opt for Queen Isabella of Spain banning violence against Indians in the Americas in 1503, but that clearly didn’t last. I remember learning about the War of Jenkins’ Ear at school. I can’t think of a better name for a war to get schoolboys interested...
Sir Walter Raleigh was executed on this day in 1618
I didn’t treat Raleigh sympathetically in The Spy who Sank the Armada. Sir Anthony Standen was working for Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, and Essex and Raleigh were rivals. Putting that rivalry aside, there is much to like about Raleigh. Raleigh was a consummate...
Giveaway
Giveaway? Yes, I have some promo codes for my audiobooks. The first two books in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures are now available as audiobooks on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. They are: The Spy who Sank the Armada, and Fire and Earth. The Spy who Sank the Armada...