Molly Murphy
asked
Sharon Kay Penman:
Do we actually know the name of the boy who got caught with Richard's gloves?
Sharon Kay Penman
Hi, Molly. No, we do not know his real name. We only know four facts about him for certain--that he spoke German, that he was quite young, and that he was both courageous and very loyal to Richard, for he had to be tortured before he'd reveal Richard's hiding place. So I had to create a background for him, and thus Arne was born. I've had to do this occasionally in the past, as in The Reckoning. We knew that Ellen de Montfort had a lady in waiting named Juliana and a knight named Hugh, but nothing more about them, so I had to create characters to go with the names. As for Arne, the threat to cut out his tongue was one actually reported by the chronicler Ralph of Coggeshill, who is believed to have gotten his detailed account of Richard's time in Germany from his chaplain, Anselm.
More Answered Questions
Jessica P
asked
Sharon Kay Penman:
I can pinpoint the exact moment I knew I would spend my life researching, writing about, and teaching American history (I walked in on my parents walking Gettysburg on a rainy day over summer vacation). Do you have a moment as vivid as this for when you fell in love with Medieval history? What was it that caused such a passion?
Stuart Dangerfield
asked
Sharon Kay Penman:
Dear Ms Penman, when oh when will we see your novels available unabridged in audiobook format? I especially wish to listen to the Sunne in Splendour and the Welsh Princes trilogy before I die. I have read all four novels multiple times and Simon de Montfort has been my hero ever since. I find that listening to my favourite many times read novels allows me to enjoy them all over again. Please help. Thanks.
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