Please join me in welcoming J.R. Tomlin, author of A King Ensnared, to Historical Tapestry! After reading her wonderful guest post be sure to enter to win a copy of A King Ensnared of your very own. And now, without further delay, J.R. Tomlin....
In A King Ensnared I was presented with a rather interesting
problem: What if a lot of people like your 'bad guy'?
King Henry V of England is often presented as a hero king.
Certainly Shakespeare did so and so have many authors since. He also happens to
be the main antagonist in A King Ensnared, the man who kept King James I of
Scotland a prisoner from the time Henry ascended the throne until his death.
There are many stories that circulated at the time that he did so in direct
opposition to one of his father's dying commands.
And I have to admit that going in I personally did not like
Henry V.
His war in France was callous and brutal even for medieval
warfare. The slaughter of the French prisoners during the battle of Angincourt
is only one example, so I didn't start the project in a sympathetic frame of
mind. But I had to remember that my favorite historical person’s enemies were
people, complex and multi-dimensional human beings. They deserve to be
presented as such and not as cardboard cutout heavies, even King Henry V.
Many people use his supposed romance with Katherine of
Valois to humanize him, but there are some problems with that. After their
marriage they spent little time together and when he knew he was dying he
didn't even send for her although she was a short distance away. That was, at
the least, strange behavior for someone deeply in love. It seems to me overly
convenient that he fell in love with the one person who would strengthen his
rather tenuous claim to the French throne, so I dismiss it.
So I had to look closer to find something redeeming. There
is no doubt that he was a brave and hardy soldier. He was little more than a
child when, leading an army against the Welsh 'rebels', he was shot in the face
with an arrow. It was a horrendous wound that only the best medical care
available in a period not known for good medical care and his own strong constitution
allowed him to survive. He was of course scarred which modern representations
of him manage to ignore. This wasn't shameful but in a medieval soldier was
expected, even a matter of pride.
He was intelligent, well-educated and known to love music,
so probably a pleasant person to be around, but more importantly to
understanding him, I realized that he was deeply convinced he was right. The
throne of France was his by right, by English law, so he was right to punish
anyone who stood between him and that throne. Scotland by right should be a
fiefdom of England, so he was right to hold James prisoner. It was, in fact, a
viewpoint shared by the people around him.
There is a truism in writing that all your
character believe that they are the main character in your story. Henry
certainly thought so.Thank you J.R.! Some of my favorite characters, whether completely fictionalized or based on a person from history, are those that are so diverse and multifaceted that you cannot help but both love and hate in turn. What could be more human than that?
For a chance to win a copy of A King Ensnared leave a comment below regarding this guest post or telling us which complex character or person from history you can't get enough of. Be sure to leave your email address in the comment (no email address, no entry). For extra entries, share online and leave a separate comment with a link to where you shared. The giveaway is open to those in the US and Canada and will run until April 3rd. A winner will be selected and emailed on April 4th and will have 48 hours to respond to my email claiming their prize. Good luck everyone!
Don't forget to check out the rest of the Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tour here:
Monday, March 24
Review at Flashlight Commentary
Spotlight & Giveaway at HF Book Muse-News
Tuesday, March 25
Interview at Flashlight Commentary
Wednesday, March 26
Review at Historical Tapestry
Review at Historical Fiction Obsession
Spotlight & Giveaway at Passages to the Past
Thursday, March 27 Review at Confessions of an Avid Reader
Guest Post & Giveaway at Historical Tapestry
Guest Post & Giveaway at Let Them Read Books
Friday, March 28 Interview at Confessions of an Avid Reader
Guest Post & Giveaway at Historical Fiction Connection
Enjoyed this post about Henry V. All I've read about him concerned the battle of Agincourt. I look forward to seeing other sides of him in this novel. Loved the last sentence of the post, that all characters in a novel see themselves as a main character. Thanks for the giveaway.
ReplyDeletelcbrower40(at)gmail(dot)com
This novel looks like it covers some of the same territory as Nigel Tranter's Stewart trilogy, although perhaps the Stewarts are more fully drawn as characters.
ReplyDeleteA wonderful and fascinating novel. An individual with whom I am enthralled from history would be Sir Winston Churchill. I have read many books on his life and enjoyed them greatly. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com
ReplyDeleteThis novel would be memorable and special. Thanks. A character that intrigues me is Andrew Carnegie.Complex and creative. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to a great new read! Love to learn about Abraham Lincoln!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the giveaway!
sandy.mccarthy@yahoo.com
You make some great points here about Henry's marriage to Katherine. I don't think I'd ever really thought about it that way. Thanks for the giveaway!
ReplyDeleteI can't imagine fleeing somewhere for your life, just to end up being held for years in a foreign prison. Thank you for the giveaway.
ReplyDeletedenannduvall(at)gmail(dot)com
The thought of imprisonment in days of yore (castles, towers, dungeons, etc.) always makes me feel squeamish, particularly the lengthy ones (18 years for James?) but I love reading histories. Thanks for the giveaway.
ReplyDeletenanze55(at)hotmail(dot)com
And the winner is...Nancy! Nancy I will be sending you an email to get your mailing information so please be on the look out for it and respond within 48 hours.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations!!!