HISTORY AND THE ORDINARY MAN

There is a unifying theme running through my historical novels: it is that of the common man’s or woman’s destiny being shaped by historical events and leading him or her to encounter great personages. This theme is shaped by my historical convictions; I am not a Marxist but neither am I blind to the importance of economics in determining mankind’s existence. I quote something I read: control of the economic base does not mean control of the superstructure. Greater thinkers than I, like the philosopher De Tocqueville point to the importance of individuals in shaping history. So, a writer of historical fiction should consider the role of individuals, gender, disability and even geographic events and build them into his plot. Enough of theory!
Let’s look at some concrete examples in my writing.
 
In a recent trilogy The Saxon Shore Trilogy, I have underlined how climate change drove mass migration, one of the causes of the decline of the Roman Empire. My main character, Valdor, is a Batavian youth, a simple farm lad, who, with his fisherman cousin and others, flees the flooded Rhineland and Roman oppression to meet Carausius, a usurper who becomes emperor. Through courage and ingenuity, he rises to the rank of Count and helps the Empire defend itself against barbarian hordes. Later in the series the reader meets King Arthur, a descendant of Valdor.
 
The St Cuthbert Trilogy underlines how great forces, in this case Christianity, can influence the life of a common leather worker. He goes to war, then meets St Cuthbert, a chance encounter that changes his life. One of his descendants is caught up in the Norman Conquest, but he is a master mason responsible for constructing Durham Cathedral.
 
What about women? Absolutely vital in the historical novelist’s work if he or she is going to be realistic. Great events shape the life of Leoba, an Anglo-Saxon saint, missionary in Germany, foundress of abbeys and only female counsellor to none less than Charlemagne. I fell in love with her as I wrote her tale in The Purple Thread, set in 8th century Europe. Again, we have a main character who is not only ordinary, but a former slave, a Briton, Begiloc, forced by the church to protect Leoba because he was a valiant warrior. He meets saints, popes and bishops on his forced destiny across different countries. But why are ordinary people so important in my novels? Simply because we can identify with them and their adventures are ours.
 
That is why in the Sceapig Chronicles, another trilogy, I have chosen a deer breeder, an apple grower and other country folk to rise above their simple peaceful lives to fame. But hang on! They were forced to react by the first Viking raids to protect what little they had. Again, they meet important people. You will find these genuine historic figures scattered throughout my novels rubbing shoulders with farmers, fishermen, tradesmen, and merchants. As for settings, my interest is the Anglo-Saxon period, but no era stands in isolation, so I have explored late Roman Britain and early Norman England. In The Bretland Trilogy I cover early medieval Wales and in Expulsion, we meet the Vikings, driven out of Ireland by united clans to wander as far as Constantinople.
 
Writing historical novels implies plenty of research for accuracy, but it is fun as the literary brush leaves swathes of colourful lives and depicts many parallels with our present-day world. Oh yes, history teaches us that we never learn from history, or so they say. I wonder whether Sir Winston Churchill would have agreed with that, but as I say… greater minds than mine!