99 Books! 99 Authors! 99 Cents!
These blow out prices are available on Amazon only. For a listing of books offered and to enter to win some really great prizes, click here!! In honor of the ending of the world, 99 authors have come together for a blowout sale of our books. My book is The Last Pendragon, on sale for today at 99 cents! If you’ve been meaning to pick it up, now’s your chance! Click on the above link and start shopping!
Twthill
Prior to the arrival of the Normans, Twthill was a court of the kings of Gwynedd. What we see today, however, are the remains of a ‘motte and bailey’ castle erected by Robert of Rhuddlan in 1073. A kinsman of Hugh d’Avranches, the Earl of Chester, Robert attempted to consolidate Norman advances in north Wales after the conquest of William the Conquerer. Twthill was Robert’s base, and from it he subdued much of Gwynedd until his death in 1193. The area around Rhuddlan Castle was reunited with Gwynedd as part of the campaign of Owain’s father, Gruffydd, that cost the life of Owain’s elder brother, Cadwallon in 1132. Cadwallon killed some of his own uncles in order to achieve this. Owain’s marriage to Cristina reconciled these two sides of the family. The campaigns of 1136/37, which brought Ceredigion into the fold, expanded Gruffydd’s (and Read more…
The Coracle, Prince Madoc, and the Mandans
Lewis and Clark trekked up the Mississippi river in 1804 and spent the winter of 1804-05 at Ft. Mandan (present day Washburn, North Dakota). Lewis believed that the Mandan people were descended from Madoc ap Owain Gwynedd, who purportedly sailed from the new world in 1170 after the death of his father, and to escape the murder and infighting among his brothers for the throne of Wales. Given that all but one of his brothers ended up dead within 5 years, this might have been a good plan, all around. Now, if Madoc’s family hadn’t been associated with the Danes of Dublin, the notion of such an expedition would have been even more far-fetched. Madoc’s great-grandmother was Ragnhild, “the daughter of Olaf of Dublin, son of King Sigtrygg Silkbeard and a member of the Hiberno-Norse Uí Ímhair dynasty. Through his mother, Read more…
Did Medieval People Bathe?
One of the most interesting scenes in Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood (see my review: https://sarahwoodbury.com/robin-hood-review-spoilers/) is when Robin first arrives at Marian’s house and she sends him to the bath room. It’s a room off the kitchen, devoted to bathing and laundry. I LOVED to see that scene because it was one of the few times that medieval bathing was openly acknowledged in film. “Contrary to popular legend, medieval man loved baths. People probably bathed more than they did in the 19th century, says the great medievalist Lynn Thorndike. Some castles had a special room beside the kitchen where the ladies might bathe sociably in parties. Hot water, sometimes with perfume or rose leaves, was brought to the lord in the bedchamber and poured into a tub shaped like a half-barrel and containing a stool, so that the occupant could Read more…
Memo to Llywelyn ap Gruffydd’s Staff
I unearthed this from my archives and thought I’d share. Too bad this isn’t a deleted scene from Footsteps in Time 🙂 _____________________ Breaking News! A historic document has been found in the archives at the University of Bangor in Wales! Read on for the full text! 18 November 1282 To: All Welsh Staff From: Goronwy ap Heilin, Seneschal to Llywelyn ap Gruffydd RE: Dafydd ap Gruffydd, traitorous weasel Summary of Facts: Prince Dafydd ap Gruffydd, brother of Prince Llywelyn ap Gruffydd has betrayed the Cause of Wales in the following manner: 1) In June, 1255, Dafydd and his elder brother, Owain, leagued against Prince Llywelyn, discontented with his rule of Wales and his refusal to partitition Gwynedd. Prince Llywelyn repulsed them at the Battle of Bryn Derwin. 2) After Prince Llywelyn forgave this shocking betrayal and released him from prison, Dafydd Read more…
Cunedda, founder of Gwynedd
The medieval Welsh kingdoms are marked with a cultural beginning, that of the coming of Cunedda. “Historically, Cunedda became king of Gwynedd in North Wales during the first half of the 5th century A.D. and founded a dynastic clan from which Welsh nobility has claimed their ancestry for centuries afterward. Tradition holds that Cunedda originated from the territory of Manau Gododdin, the region around what is now modern Edinburgh in southeast Scotland, and later migrated to North Wales. This movement was apparently at the behest of a higher authority and designed to offer Cunedda land in return for ousting Irish raiders who had invaded and settled along the Welsh coastline in the late 4th century, near the end of the Roman occupation.” http://www.bardsongpress.com/Celtic_Culture/In_Search_of_Cunedda.htm The name of Gwynedd either derives from the Latin Venedotia, or more probably from Cunedda (=Weneda =Gwynedd). http://www.historyfiles.co.uk/KingListsBritain/CymruGwynedd.htm Read more…
100,000 Books and Counting …
Update …. congratulations to Joy and Amos, the two winners! Thank you all for playing!!!! ____ I just wanted to take a moment to thank each and every one of my readers whose enthusiasm for my books has allowed me to reach the spectacular milestone of having sold 100,000 books since I put my first book up for sale in January 2011. This has been an amazing journey. I bounce out of bed every day because I have the best job in the whole world. Thank you all for making it possible! I have every intention of filling ereaders and bookshelves with my stories for years to come 🙂 In celebration, I’m running a giveaway! If you are a US/Canadian reader, you can enter to win an autographed copy of one of my books. International readers can receive a free Read more…
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