Lawrence Hogue
asked
Nicola Griffith:
In Hild, what was your source for the numbers in the various war bands, particularly the big battles? I think the king went to battle with 300 gesiths at one point, for instance. (I know, weirdly specific question.)
Nicola Griffith
I did a lot of research and talked to academics directly. From what I can gather, warbands varied hugely in size, from 30 to several hundred. Warbands were utterly professional, skilled individual warriors more than grunts, but also well-practiced in working together. (If you want more info, a good place to start is Richard Underwood's Anglo-Saxon Weapons & Warfare.)
Most of the fighting would have been warband vs. warband. But every now again there would have been what Hild calls real war: the mobilisation of every man who could/would carry anything with an edge. (Perhaps to fight off a known invasion, for example.)
But in writerly terms, specificity is our friend. Given that such numbers aren't really available, I made them up :)
Most of the fighting would have been warband vs. warband. But every now again there would have been what Hild calls real war: the mobilisation of every man who could/would carry anything with an edge. (Perhaps to fight off a known invasion, for example.)
But in writerly terms, specificity is our friend. Given that such numbers aren't really available, I made them up :)
More Answered Questions
Angela Koenig
asked
Nicola Griffith:
What drew you to Hild in the first place? I've recently become aware how much of my knowledge of post-Roman Europe is received xtian propaganda. I also like the Sister Fidelma series as a counterweight. Any other suggested reading would be appreciated. Thank you for a brilliant book. So glad there's another one coming.
jo
asked
Nicola Griffith:
hi. i am a huge fan. i mean to teach The Blue Place or Slow River in the fall. your lesbian characters come from brokenness. aud torvingen, also, gets broken quite a bit more in the course of the series. how do you see the relation between being a lesbian and having endured (and keep on enduring) terrible pain?
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Jun 10, 2014 03:34PM