Tim Hodkinson's Blog, page 7

On my portrayal of the Druids

When (if) people read my new book, The Spear of Crom, sooner or later they are bound to wonder what I have against the druids. Its fair to say that the druids who appear in my book are frightening, strange and superstitious and at least two of them are villains in the piece. Fergus, the hero of the book, hates the druids and with very good reason. As a Celt, shouldn’t I be portraying those Iron Age religious leaders (and leaders of the British opposition to the Imperial might of Rome) in a more favourable light? The common picture of the druids is of philosopher/gurus with long white hair and beards and robes to match, full of New Age wisdom and the authentic lore of the land. Where did I come up with these strange priests dressed in animal hides or bird feathers, with odd haircuts, distinctive head dresses and a predilection for human sacrifice?In a word, research. I should start by saying that I am fascinated both by Celtic culture and religion (I studied it at under graduate level) and also by modern New Age revivals of the old pagan faiths. Each month I very much enjoy the new episode of one of my favourite podcasts, Druidcast (http://www.druidcast.libsyn.com/). Nor do I see Roman “civilisation” as a favourable alternative to the native culture. In the book Fergus has to come to terms with the realisation that the Roman army he has joined is every bit as “barbaric” as the tribes they are fighting. However the issue with our modern perception of the druids is that it is just that: Modern. In reality we know very little about the ancient druids and most (almost all) of what we now think of when we talk about them is a modern construction. I don’t believe this will get me in trouble with OBOD (the Order of Bards Ovates and Druids) as they openly admit that the roots of their order lie in the twentieth, rather than the first, century, though they are inspired by older sentiments.What we do know about the druids from contemporary sources comes largely from classical writers who came from the Greek and Roman cultures. Given that the Romans were largely responsible for the suppression of the druids, their opinions need to be viewed in that light. Apart from classical references there is precious little other written evidence. The reason we have no druid records is because they did not write anything down- the ancient Celts had an oral culture and the druids were responsible for safeguarding the history and lore of the tribes preserved in their memories. The problem with that is that when the person dies, the knowledge dies with them, unless they have passed it on. There is, however, a body of not contemporary but certainly very old literature that contains many references to druids. Early medieval Irish literature has a host of tales in which druids appear and it was from them, and particularly the Táin Bó Cúailnge, that I decided to base my depiction of the druids. You are probably wondering why I thought these would be more trust worthy than classical authours. After all these tales were written down by Christian monks who would have had an axe to grind against their pagan predecessors in the religious hierarchy. However they were at least  descendants of people within the same culture as the druids (or at least the Irish druids anyway) leaving the possibility of the descriptions being at least half-remembered traditions. We can also guess that the tales are a reasonably authentic record of pagan traditions as the 11th century monk who compiled one version of the Táin felt obliged to add a disclaimer that the contents included  “deceptions of demons”, lies and things for the enjoyment of fools. I chose not to follow the standard portrayal of druids as clad in white. I am unsure where the idea of the long hair and beards come from -most memorably portrayed by Getafix in Astrix the Gaul- but the white robes seems to have come from the Roman writer Pliny the Elder’s description of a particular druid ritual. Instead I followed the medieval Irish depictions of druids clad in the hides of animals, particularly the bull or the horse, or wrapped in cloaks made from the feathers of birds. To me this relates better to the possible shamanic origins of the druids. Another concept I chose to include was a weird haircut, as it seems the druids possibly had a form of tonsure in the same way Christian monks do. One of the bones of contention in the dispute between the Celtic church and the Roman one the resulted in the Synod of Whitby in 664 AD was the difference between the way the clerics of the respective churches wore their tonsure. What the differences were is obscure but what is obvious is that the Celts did not wear their hair in the the way modern monks do with the top of their heads shaved. They were accused of having their hair cut in the “tradition of Simon Magus”, and it is surmised that in Ireland the Christian church had carried on the tradition of the druids in the way they had their hair tonsured. Simon Magus, while a villainous magician of the Christian tradition, in early Irish literature is often a sort of euphemism for druids. There are various theories about what this haircut looked like (no descriptions have survived) but I went for the one where the druids shaved the front of their heads, leaving a strangely high-looking forehead and elongated face. The druids commitment to human sacrifice is recorded by classical writers and Christian hagiographies and also seems born out by archaeology. The numerous bog bodies found across northern Europe are reckoned to be testament to this practice. I will deal with this topic further in a future post about the God Crom, who also appears in the book.I realise that its probably a risk to portray the druids in an unfavourable light. However I think that we have a tendency to think that anyone who is opposed to something we are opposed to is automatically like us or at least have values that match ours. Unfortunately there are many examples from history and the present day that show this is not the case. If we look for a modern analogy to the druids resistance to the Roman army in Britain, the concept of a religiously motivated priesthood leading a guerilla insurgency against the most technically advanced military machine of the time inevitably points in the direction of Iraq and Afghanistan. I really wonder how this will go down with readers. At the HNS conference in London last September, the common reaction of agents and publishers to my pitch that I had portrayed the druids as “a bit like the Taliban” was greeted with almost universal consternation, or in the case of one bes selling novelist, a sort of half shocked laughter.However while I've gone slightly against the grain, I have striven to create an image of the ancient druids that I believe to be as authentic as I can make it based on the research I undertook. Hopefully no one will take offence, as at the end of the day its just a novel anyway. All that said, the druids in my book are not all bad. The female druid, Ceridwyn could well be seen as the heroine of the book. . The Spear of Crom is available now from Amazon on Kindle and is coming soon in paperback.http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Spear-of-Crom-ebook/dp/B00BFHIP7M 

The Spear of Crom - Cover

My editor has almost finished work on my new book, "The Spear of Crom" -a tale of Romans, Celts and pagan religions. I'm also tremendously pleased to say that Paul McDonnell of Three Creative has yet again produced a magnificent cover for me. Here it is:

Interview with Douglas Jackson

At the Historical Novel Society conference in London I had the pleasure of meeting Douglas Jackson, authour of the best selling Roman historical novels about G. Valerius Verrens and a man described by the Daily Express as "One of the best historical novelists writing today".

You can now read my interview with him on the HNS website:
http://historicalnovelsociety.org/douglas-jackson-speaks-with-tim-hodkinson-about-the-inspiration-of-rome/

Book review: The Memory of Scent by Lisa Burkitt

This is not the sort of HF I would normally read. My wife suggested I try it in an effort to broaden my mind a bit and after some initial protests (e.g. “there are no swords on the cover!”) I decided to give it a go, and I have to say I am glad I did.Bohemian Paris in the 1880s with its cafes, salons and the social milieu around the impressionist movement provides the backdrop for the novel. Lisa Burkitt manages to evoke the period admirably. There is plenty of historical detail. The reader is brought into the conversations of the likes of Degas, Renoir, Monet and Toulouse Lautrec, smells the scents of artist’s studios and explores the finer side of cuisine in the company of a gourmand. Beginning as a murder mystery, the book follows the fortunes of two models, Fleur and Babette whose lives are changed dramatically when the artist they pose for is murdered. Fleur knows Babette only by the smell of patchouli she leaves behind in the artist’s room and becomes fixated on finding her.  Themes such as the relationship between men and women, poverty, art and mental illness are explored as the narrative shifts between the initially elegant Babette and her descent into prison and prostitution while Fleur moves through the world of impressionist art and music. It’s probably not giving away too much to mention that the narrative device of the unreliable narrator is used with great success.The book is many layered and full of intrigue and secrets. It shows both the glamour and the poverty of the Bohemian lifestyle. I enjoyed it and it certainly did make a change from battles and gladiators. 
The Memory of Scent is published by The History Press Ireland. This review was of the Kindle Edition.

Did the Romans come to Ireland?

I'm currently writing the final chapters of the first draft of what I like to refer to as my attempt at a Y.A.R.N.- Yet Another Roman Novel :-)

I know the market is currently flooded with Roman militaria, but once I had started writing it was so enjoyable it just had to be completed. Its now at the point were I can start talking to people about it and in that spirit I discussed it a bit with Trudy my wife the other night. 

"What is the hero called?" she asked.
"Fergus MacAmergin," I replied. 

The look on her face said it all. It sounds so ridiculous it will never sell. Who is going to believe there was an Irishman in the Roman army? Worse, how likely is it that he would have been involved in the occupation of Britain and fought during the revolt of Boudicca (61 AD)?

Well its not as far-fetched as it might at first sound. 

One of the main characters in my book is a Roman called Gnaeus Julius Agricola. Agricola was a historical figure who later made his name in conquering the Caledonians in what is now Scotland. Back in the year 60 though, he was a young Tribune assigned to the XIV Legion engaged in the subjugation of the Silures tribe in south Wales. 

We know a lot about Agricola, and that's because he was lucky enough to have a son-in-law who was a famous historian, Tacitus, and he left us an account of his wife's father's life. Suffice to say, he was a very effective general who achieved considerable success in Britain.


Agricola was also the origin of the (in)famous quote that Ireland could probably be conquered by one Roman Legion plus auxiliaries. 


So how did he come that conclusion? In chapter 24 of his history, Tacitus reported that while campaigning in south west Scotland Agricola "crossed the water" in a ship and defeated tribes previously unknown to the Romans. The rest of the chapter discussed Ireland and this has led some people to speculate that this meant Agricola made an expedition to Ireland, with a tentative identification of a legionary fort on the headland of Drumanagh, in Count Dublin. I tend to disagree about Drumanagh. If he ever did cross the Irish sea, the most likely spot Agricola would have set up a beachhead was somewhere on the north Antrim coast, particularly given the passage from Tacitus that mentions he was in the Dumfries/Galloway region when he set up a forward base "on the shores facing Ireland" with an eye to a future invasion. The sea is so narrow there you can see across with the naked eye. The last book I wrote, Lions of the Grail,  was about the Scottish Invasion of Ireland in 1315, and that was the route Edward Bruce's army took. 

As well as that, Tacitus mentions that Agricola kept an exiled Irish king as a companion, and "pretended to be his friend" with the view to using restoring him to his throne in Ireland as an excuse for a future invasion of the island by Rome. That invasion, of course never happened and it would be another millennium before Strongbow  successfully used the same strategy in 1169.

All these events happened twenty years after my book is set, but they provided enough seeds to allow the creation of my story. Who knows where it will go, but creating it has been an enjoyable experience.

Book Review: Outlaw by Angus Donald

I have to admit I have avoided reading this book for a long time through a misguided combination of jealousy and the desire to avoid disappointment. The jealousy spring from my own desire to write a novel that portrayed Robin Hood in a realistic light that was true to the spirit of the original medieval ballads about him. In those works Robin is about as far from Kevin Costner’s version of the character as you can get. There is plenty of robbing-not necessarily just from the rich-and very little giving to the poor. Murder and mutilation is a fact of life (as it was at the time) and unlucky people who happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time-rather than in some way “deserving” their fate-often end up with their throats cut by our the band of “merry men”, in one episode regardless of the fact the victim is a child. In many ways Robin acts like a modern day gangster and that is exactly what comes across in Angus Donald’s book.He does much more though and manages the almost impossible. Alongside the original ballads pretty much all the various (and at times contradicting) traditions that have grow up around Robin since are incorporated into one compelling, action packed and plausible narrative. So there is a Mariann and a Tuck, as well as a Guy, Robin operates both in Yorkshire and Nottingham and the “purist’s” problem of a medieval sheriff somehow acting like a baron is elegantly dealt with. The author creates an authentic picture of Twelfth Century England in which all these elements play and keeps the reader enthralled there as the action (and there is plenty of it) unfolds. The violence is frequent and unflinchingly brutal, but the tale is told from the perspective of Alan a Dale, following his development from thieving boy to accomplished Trouvère, which allows elements of medieval culture to be incorporated beyond the swordplay and fighting. As a bit of a language nerd, I particularly enjoyed the way the author demonstrates the medieval origins behind some of the idioms we use today such as “fast and loose” and “being caught red handed”. In many ways this is the quintessential novel for fans of the medieval period. Like a modern Ivanhoe, all the elements you would want to see are here: Outlaws, castles, knights, a Jewish character, damsels in distress, dungeons, sieges, battles, witches and Templars, its all here but woven together in a way that avoids cliche.The marketing for the book draws parallels with The Godfather, and this is particularly apt but it is more than just a tale of gangsters in chain mail: At times it slides deep into the territory of that other classic of 1970s cinema, The Wicker Man. As these are two of my favourite films, suffice to say that I was far from disappointed by the book.Suffice to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, and my regret now is that I avoided it for so long. The good news is that I now have a whole series of these books to look forward to.

Book Review: The Bleeding Land by Giles Kristian

If war is Hell, then civil war must be Hell’s nastier, more vindictive sister*. This is the message I took from Giles Kristian’s historical novel “The Bleeding Land”.I’ve been waiting a long time for some quality historical fiction set during the English Civil War. A few years back I posted a question on Bernard Cornwell’s forum asking if he would ever tackle the subject. He said he had no plans to but finally a writer of equal quality has come along to take up this banner.Giles Kristian plunges the reader straight into the opening volleys of the battle of Edgehill. Mun (Edmund) and Tom Rivers- the book’s protagonist brothers-are on opposite sides. The cavalry begin their charge and the reader is hooked immediately as the action withdraws back through time to relate how the characters got into that situation. I remained engrossed as the narrative made its way inexorably back to Edgehill and the carnage that followed.The book primarily relates the story of the Rivers family, members of the English gentry, and the effect the war has on their relationships, both internally and with their associated circle of relations and neighbours. Don’t worry though: This is no turgid soap opera and there is an abundance of action and fast moving excitement. There are several levels of conflict: The war itself between King and Parliament, and then there is the internal strife within the Rivers family which leaves the brothers on opposing sides. The author does not shy away from the cliché of “a family torn apart by civil war”, but that is where convention ends. It is very human feelings of revenge and family loyalty that ultimately lead to Tom ending up a rebel while Mun and his father join the King’s army. In many respects this is what makes the book so engaging. It’s a human story rather than an exploration of 16th century politics. Men join the fight for very personal reasons that happen to align with the macrocosm conflict rather than blindly falling into line with arguments from a conflict now long past.I may have read it wrong but it seems that the author deliberately does not “pick sides”. There are bastards in both armies, as there are men of integrity. Bravery and foolishness appear in equal measure, and that-along with the way the politics of the time play a background role-make it hard for the reader (well this one anyway) to discern any possible bias. If anything this brings across the true tragedy of a land ripped apart by a civil conflict. The sights, sounds and especially the smells of 17thcentury England and London are vividly described and the reader is drawn into the time setting and kept there. Giles Kristian has obviously done his research well and there is plenty of technical detail to delight the history nerd and military buff, particularly in the area of weapons and armour. Something I personally applaud is his inclusion of historical facts that may make some readers uncomfortable, because (while true) they don’t fit with conventional portrayals of the past that are actually based on modern perceptions. For example, some folk may wonder why an Irishman is fighting for the King of England and I imagine that it will not just be the characters in the book who might be surprized by the King’s Scottish accent.A host of memorable characters bring the story to life and their portrayal ensures the reader is gripped because he or she cares about them while being dreadfully aware that they are in the middle of a very dangerous situation and not all of them can survive it. As an added bonus, fans of Giles Kristian’s Raven novels will be delighted to spot a couple of familiar faces (presumably descendants) lurking in some scenes.Tension is maintained throughout the narrative by the constant anticipation of the inevitable, relentlessly approaching battlefield meeting that must eventually occur between the two brothers. Blood proves thicker than water on a couple of occasions but the reader is always wondering just how long that can last, particularly as the bodies mount and the experience of war hardens the brothers’ hearts. There is a plenty of violent, bloody action. This land is not so much bleeding as drenched in the gore, bone shards, splattered brains and entrails of the slaughtered. I mentioned Bernard Cornwell at the start of this and it was not completely by accident. It’s probably Cornwell’s style of work that this book evokes for me most, but Giles Kristian adds several layers of depth to create a much richer experience. To give an example of what I mean, when all the boys-own adventures for the male characters are over, Kristian goes on to portray the consequences for the women who were left behind.All in all, a cracking read. “The Bleeding Land” is an excellent, gripping book and I am looking forward very much to the next book in the series. Book Details:Title: The Bleeding LandAuthor: Giles KristianPublisher: Bantam Press (26 April 2012)ISBN-10: 0593066146ISBN-13: 978-0593066140
*I’m referring to the Old Norse belief that Hell was a woman who ruled the underworld where the unworthy dead went, not being sexist

Running the Marathon

As I struggled to manage 3 miles on a treadmill this afternoon it occurred to me that exactly one year ago I was preparing myself to tackle all 26 miles of the Belfast Marathon. It seems like a distant dream now, or perhaps a half-remembered nightmare, but for the benefit of those people out there who are today facing the same prospect, or perhaps to a future version of myself (if I ever decide to do it again) I thought I would record my thoughts about what I leaned from the experience.1. BEFORE THE RACE It will sound strange, but I found this the absolute worst time of all. Never mind the months of training, the almost constant pain, the exhaustion, the injuries or the gruelling, heat-exhausted 26 mile slog on the day, the hardest bit by far for me were the few days before it. The previous one hundred and sixty days had been spent in almost constant training, then for the last week: nothing. A couple of very short runs and a long walk was the height of my last week’s exertions. Never mind the fact that muscles used to enduring hours of punishment were itching-screaming-for exercise, I felt like a mountain climber confronted for the first time by the north face of the Eiger. The sheer scale of what was about to be attempted became very real and after the training I was in no doubt what it would be like. Self-doubt crept in. The only word I can think of to describe the feeling was “daunted”. I genuinely wondered could I could really do it? This is not something I am used to experiencing. What got me through this? Telling myself to pull myself together and get over it was a start. Fate also intervened and that very week the Finnish Viking Metal band Turisas released the song “Stand up and fight” (

Norse Doom

Some more musings on Norse pagan gods this week. I’ve discovered we are all doomed (maybe) and the Vikings knew all along.
I’ve been fascinated by the Vikings for most of my 40 years but one thing that strikes me is that the link between constellations and other objects in the night sky and Norse mythology is perhaps underplayed these days. I started looking into it recently and came across a possible clue to the origin of the viking’s myth of the end of the world, and maybe even hint of impending doom from the sky.
In many cases, a lot of the origins of seemingly obscure Norse myths look like they are actually staring us in the face, or rather we are staring up at them in the night sky. For example “Bifrost”,-for the Vikings the road or bridge from "earth" (midgard) to "heaven" (asgard)-is widely believed (including in the marvel comics version of Thor) to be a rainbow, but the name translates as "trembling/shimmering road". To me, the Northern Lights or the Milky Way makes more sense as to what Bifrost was, particularly when the Eddas also say that Heimdall (the bright/white god) guards the end of Bifrost from his house "high up in the sky". That suggests that "Heimdall" is probably a very bright star somewhere at the end of the milky way or in the northern sky, perhaps the planet Venus. Venus is the brightest object in the night sky after the moon and in the evening and morning could well be perceived as being at the "far end" of either the milky way or where the Northern lights touch the horizon.
There are other specific stars that are related to incidents in Norse myths where bits of giants or gods (toes, eyes or whatever) got chopped off and placed in the sky by Thor or Odinn. Orion's belt was also possibly called "Frig’s Distaff" (Frig was Odin's wife) in the past but I can't find the origin of this theory beyond the internet, so it might just be a wiki-truth.
Famously, the Vikings thought the world was doomed. A final cataclysm called Ragnarokr (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k) will destroy the earth, men (and women presumably) and the gods themselves as they fight a last desperate battle with jotunns and monsters of chaos let loose on the world. Again perhaps there is some half-forgotten sky lore in this tale. For example, in Old Norse, the constellation Hyades was called "Ulf's Keptr," Wolf's mouth and given that the Hyades is close to the ecliptic, the apparent path of the sun, is reminiscent of the Norse myth that the wolf Skoll (treachery) pursues the Sun across the sky and at the end of the world would catch and eat it. A slight shift in the earth's rotation on its axis perhaps?
The constellation Auriga was called the "Battlefield of the Aesir*" (asar bardagi) and the obvious battle that all the gods are in is Ragnarok. Something appearing to come from that region of the sky like an asteroid could have happened and given rise to the Ragnarok myth. The Edda relates that at the climax of Ragnarok the sun becomes black, the sea rises to cover the earth, the stars vanish, steam rises and flames rise up to touch the heavens. To leap deftly into the realms of speculation, a huge firestorm, a dust cloud that blots out sun and stars and a Tsunami are reminiscent to me of a comet strike on the earth. Could the myth of Ragnarok be a half remembered memory of a comet or asteroid coming from the constellation of Auriga and striking the earth sometime in the dark ages?
The fact that the comet Hartley 2 appeared at its closed point to earth in the constellation of Auriga in 2010, and will return in 2017, suddenly gives a bit more pause for thought.

Happy Easter. Happy Freya’s day?

It’s one of those curious paradoxes that Easter, like Hell, was originally a pagan word. Setting Hell aside for a time (hopefully a long time J ), I’ve been thinking about the origin of Easter lately, and probably because I’m choc-full of Easter eggs this morning I’ve decided to write them down.The English historian Bede, writing in the seventh century, recorded what little we know about the pre-christian English calendar in his work “The Reckoning of Time”. He also explained how we came to use a pagan term for a Christain celebration. Translated, chapter 15 of his work outlines how the fourth month of the Anglo Saxon year was called Eosturmonaþ-Easter Month- "after a goddess of theirs [the Pagan English] named Eostre". He goes on to say that the reason the name persisted into Christian times was that feasts or celebrations were held in honour of this goddess in that month, and that the English kept the name for traditional reasons: "calling the joys of the new rite by the time-honoured name of the old observance". So who was Eostre? There is a fair amount of speculation about it, but most works tend to say that her origins are "obscure", mainly because there does not seem to be any other references to a specific female goddess of that name, nor an equivalent in the Old Norse pantheon. However, a little bit of conjecture can lead us to a reasonable (well to me anyway) conclusion. As we are in the territory of historical irony, the ancient northerners (anglo Saxons, norse etc.) seemed to think their gods came from the East. It must cause some degree of discomfort to modern day white supremacists that the Vikings they think of as their ancestors referred to their Gods as "Aesir"- quite literally "Asians". It’s also cognate with Easterners or "From the East" which again is usually referred to as for reasons now obscure. I have a theory about this too: It’s relevant to stars in the night sky, but that’s for another post sometime. Or maybe the great Viking novel I’ll hopefully someday get round to writing.
This concept seems to go right back into the mists of time to the roots of the Germanic pagan religion (or maybe further) as the pagan Anglo-Saxons who became the English used the term "Os" for their deities, which also denotes the East. Eostre (with the root of our modern word "East" fossilized in it) is a female variation of the same concept, so to me the likely conclusion is that "Eostre" was not the actual name of the goddess, but a term referring to one of the female pagan gods we already know about. There were a few female pagan Germanic monsters (like Hell), but not that many goddesses, and really it comes down to just 2 main ones: Frigg (after whom the day Friday is named) and Freya. There is lots of further speculation that these two were probably originally the same persona, only split apart in the later dark ages, so in the time period we are talking about for the pagan anglo-saxons (4th or 5th century) the chances are that they were one.
So the most obvious conclusion is that if Frig/Freya was important enough to name a day of the week after, then she was probably also loved enough to have a spring festival called after her. So happy Easter, and happy Eostre.
Given Frigg/Freya’s associations with fertility, it makes me look at those eggs again too