Ask the Author: Darren Harris
Answered Questions (3)
Darren Harris
Hi Wendy,
Thank you for getting in touch. I am a self-published author so Jousting Knight Publishing is my own imprint. I'll gladly send you an e-book copy if you let me know where to send it. You can send me a private message on Twitter @DHarrisAuthor if this is preferable.
Regards
Darren
Thank you for getting in touch. I am a self-published author so Jousting Knight Publishing is my own imprint. I'll gladly send you an e-book copy if you let me know where to send it. You can send me a private message on Twitter @DHarrisAuthor if this is preferable.
Regards
Darren
Darren Harris
I first came across Richard of Eastwell many years ago. There is a record in the parish records of Eastwell, Kent, of a burial in 1550 of Richard Plantagenet. The question is, why would someone of royal Plantagenet descent be unacknowledged and buried in a churchyard in Eastwell?
In the 1730's Francis Peck published Desiderata Curiosa in which he tells the story of an elderly bricklayer in Eastwell, who is seen reading a book written in Latin during his breaks. Sir Thomas Moyle was intrigued why a bricklayer would be able to read Latin, so spoke with him. The bricklayer claimed that he was brought up by a Latin schoolmaster but was sometimes visited by a gentleman who paid for his upkeep. At the age of 16, the gentleman took him to see King Richard III on the eve of the battle of Bosworth. The King explained that he was his son, and told him to watch the battle from a safe vantage point. King Richard said that if he won, he would acknowledge him as his son. If the king lost, he was to forever conceal his identity. King Richard was killed in the battle, so he fled to London where he was apprenticed to a bricklayer.
Others have written about Richard of Eastwell, variously claiming that he is the illegitimate son of Richard III or Edward IV, or that he is one of the missing ‘Princes in the Tower’. Whatever the truth, I thought that he would make a fascinating character, and the fact that there is evidence that he is a real person makes him all the more interesting. In my book however, Richard of Eastwell does not become an apprentice bricklayer, his life takes a much more interesting path.
In the 1730's Francis Peck published Desiderata Curiosa in which he tells the story of an elderly bricklayer in Eastwell, who is seen reading a book written in Latin during his breaks. Sir Thomas Moyle was intrigued why a bricklayer would be able to read Latin, so spoke with him. The bricklayer claimed that he was brought up by a Latin schoolmaster but was sometimes visited by a gentleman who paid for his upkeep. At the age of 16, the gentleman took him to see King Richard III on the eve of the battle of Bosworth. The King explained that he was his son, and told him to watch the battle from a safe vantage point. King Richard said that if he won, he would acknowledge him as his son. If the king lost, he was to forever conceal his identity. King Richard was killed in the battle, so he fled to London where he was apprenticed to a bricklayer.
Others have written about Richard of Eastwell, variously claiming that he is the illegitimate son of Richard III or Edward IV, or that he is one of the missing ‘Princes in the Tower’. Whatever the truth, I thought that he would make a fascinating character, and the fact that there is evidence that he is a real person makes him all the more interesting. In my book however, Richard of Eastwell does not become an apprentice bricklayer, his life takes a much more interesting path.
Darren Harris
I have always been passionate about history and about characters from the past. I became a History teacher because of my love of this subject and always loved retelling the stories of people from the past. Writing is a natural progression of this. I read a lot, particularly historical non-fiction, and there are many fascinating historical characters I'd love to write about if I had the time. Once I've finished the Richard of Eastwell series I'll be spoilt for choice who to base the next book or series on.
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