A British Perspective of the American Revolution

Hello, dear readers! Today we welcome my final guest for 2024. Can you believe another year has gone by? I'll be introducing some changes in the new year, so stay tuned for that. In the meantime, enjoy this post from Avellina Balestri about writing a British perspective of the American Revolution for her latest novel, All Ye That Pass By: Gone for a Soldier.

Welcome, Avellina!

~ Samantha

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Remembered with Honor: Writing a British Perspective of the American Revolution

Guest Post by Avellina Balestri

This past July, I finally published first book of a projected trilogy set during the American Revolution. It is entitled All Ye That Pass By: Gone for a Soldier. I am already hard at work on the subsequent volumes, Kingdom of Wolves and Blood of the Martyrs.

This story has been a long time coming. It first began to take shape when I was twelve and found myself simultaneously reading The Autobiography of a Hunted Priest by Father John Gerard, SJ, and An Original and Authentic Journal of Occurrences during the Late American War by Sergeant Roger Lamb. The 16th-century English priest who suffered torture and imprisonment for his Catholic Faith inspired me in one way; the 18th-century Anglo-Irish soldier who suffered privations and imprisonment for his King and Country inspired me in another. 

Their stories of survival against the odds spoke to me down through the centuries and made me feel as if I had come to know both men intimately. Their hopes and fears bled through the pages, and their personalities burned brightly from the hearth of history. My youthful high spirits and intense emotions assured that their stories would overlap in my imagination to create a singular spiritual vision, dealing with the dichotomy of what it might mean to be, in the words of St. Thomas More, the King’s good servant but God’s first. 

In terms of my chosen focus and setting for this narrative, I have always found the British and Loyalist experience of the American Revolution particularly compelling because of my lifelong love of Britain and her multifaceted heritage. When I was in my tweens and early teens, before my family owned a computer or printer, I would save up loose change and go to my local library branches to pay for print-outs about historical figures who struck my interest. Most of them were “redcoats”, British soldiers from the Age of Horse and Musket, clad in their tell-tale scarlet tunics. I would compile whole folders of their biographies, then file them into volumes, and read through them regularly for story ideas to expand upon in my notebooks. I would become invested in the ups and downs of each character’s journey, and see them not solely as a part of Britain’s legacy, but of America’s as well, for we once were all one people, and perhaps on a level deeper than most of us are willing to admit, still are. On both sides of the sea, we remain the children of Lady Britannia.

The cultural roots of America, based in the original thirteen colonies, produced an out-growth of Albion in the New World. This fundamental fact put the historical framework into perspective for me, especially as a native of Maryland, the only colony established by English Catholics. The more I researched the Revolutionary Era, the more the division of the Anglosphere and cessation of America’s ties to kingship seemed tinged by tragedy and drenched in kindred blood, a reality rarely addressed with the solemnity it deserves. Brother slew brother, but unlike in the case of the American Civil War, in which the Union won, we are taught to downplay this aspect when it comes to the American Revolution because separatists triumphed and the split is celebrated. 

I, for one, could never help but grieve for the lost dual identity of British Americans, once proudly held and defended by so many before and during the war, and came fairly early to consider myself as a latter-day Loyalist at heart. I am an American, by birth and upbringing, shaped by my native land in countless ways, and yet I have always felt a spiritual tie to the kings and queens of Britain far more than any president because monarchy appeals to a transcendent authority, an incarnational sacredness, and a historical continuity that stretches back beyond the year 1776 or ‘83. I do celebrate the 4th of July, but not so much out of an enthusiasm for the Declaration of Independence as out of a general appreciation of America and all the good she has to offer.

Beyond this background, the reason I wanted to write a story focusing on the British experience of the Revolution was due to the very fact that they lost. In the great turning point of the war, the Saratoga Campaign, I cannot help but see a classical tragedy of fallen knights and broken tables, in which all the best and worst aspects of the British character are on full display. This little apocalypse, brought on by pride and passion, is pregnant with the potential to explore correlating topics and profound truths that were important to me as a Catholic author. If the Revolution resulted in a political schism, it reflected an earlier religious schism, when England severed herself from the See of Rome. The arguments made for both forms of separation could eerily parallel each other, and in some ways, they feel like a mirror being held up to one another. I imagine Catholics inhabiting the British Empire at the time would have seen the pattern and reacted to it in different ways. This story explores one such possible reaction through the pilgrimage of the protagonist. 

In some aspects, this tale retells the life of the famous Jesuit martyr St. Edmund Campion, if it were put forward from the 16th to the 18th century, switching out a priest for a layman and altering his career trajectory from that of a scholar to that of a soldier. As such, the premise is both quite original and quite familiar. St. Arsenios of Paros said, “The Church in the British Isles will only begin to grow when she begins again to venerate her own saints.” This story pays homage to the tradition of hagiography, for the saint is the only true revolutionary in the world. Christ was creating the universe while dying on the Cross, and the martyr recapitulates all things in Christ through the witness of blood.

In other parts of this story, I strove to go back even farther than Campion’s Elizabethan influence, touching upon the earliest consciousness of English identity and mythic history that permeates my Robin Hood series, The Telling of the Beads. I wanted Britannia to feel both thoroughly real and also more than real, with poetry infused into the mundane, for without a soul, the land is nothing. And if Britannia is nothing, America is nothing. This realization is something sadly lacking in most fiction dealing with the American Revolution, which reduces the Mother Country to a cartoonish landscape generated by revolutionary propaganda as opposed to our very womb, where we gained our first understanding of liberty and loyalty. 

When it comes to the process of writing characters, I believe that every person is “an allegory,” as J.R.R. Tolkien once said, “each embodying in a particular tale and clothed in the garments of time and place, universal truth and everlasting life.” We can never completely de-mythologize history any more than we can fully de-spiritualize mankind, though our increasingly secular society may work its woe. I take this principle equally seriously when writing stories set during the Early Modern Period as I do with stories set during the Middle Ages. It is fundamental for us as human beings to believe that our stories are worth telling, for all their bitter glory, and through Christian eyes, I see each passing generation as another act of a Mystery Play, unfolding the secrets of salvation in manifold ways.

This, boiled down to creedal basics, is the power of Christ’s dying and rising, which shall never be emptied. It is the foundational concept behind this trilogy and all those who pass by within it. Each man and woman finds themselves fighting the long defeat, living as crucibles of a fallen world, and to greater or lesser extents, being drawn into the drama of the Cross. When all earthly goods are despoiled, and death itself beckons the soul, they must confront the Absolute, that relentless Hound of Heaven from whom they can no longer escape, for He draws all men to Himself from the height of Golgotha.        

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'Tho I Be Mute

Good morning, dear readers! Heather Miller is here to share an excerpt from her novel, 'Tho I Be Mute. You may remember her visiting before, with a snippet from Yellow Bird's Song. Based on a true story, Miller's novels dig into the history of the Ridge family and their removal from Cherokee Territory in the early 19th century.

Welcome, Heather!

~ Samantha

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'Tho I Be Mute: An Excerpt

Guest Post by Heather Miller 

“Fly,” Clarinda Ridge Skili

I awoke to shaking floors from the successive beats of wooden-heeled boots against the hardwood. The vibrations were weighty, not the same as those made by my skinny brothers running through the house with calloused feet. The shakes came from intrusive brutes gathering strength from their unified purpose. 

In our room, ten-year-old Susan woke and picked up a crying Flora from her pallet on the floor. She swayed with Flora, listening at the door. I rose and brought both to my bed. We scurried under the covers and curled into one another, while I held onto their shaking shifts. We were too frightened to go outside; we were too frightened to move anything more than our eyes, staring at the lighted gap under the door.

Susan’s body shook when bare feet followed the boots. The first were Mama’s. Another pair followed. My brother Rollin was at her heels.

Susan’s body jolted at another sound I couldn’t know. Then, she covered her face with the quilt and held it against her ears with her hands. She heard what I could not. Mama was screaming.

Susan’s first tear ushered in sobs when stillness and sunlight peered under the crack. ‘Tho I be mute, I knew then that more than the morning sun slid under our bedroom door. The Angel of Death arrived with no warning, like a Passover ghost, and cast us in mourning night with its light.

Papa flew to the Nightland, June 22, 1839. Twenty-five men drug him from his pallet on the floor and tried to kill him, but the gun misfired. So, they unsheathed their knives and drug him outside. Mama and Rollin ran after them, but the warriors, still wielding pistol and rifle, surrounded her and my brother, crossed the barrels, and held them back. 

Mama’s hysterical tears did nothing to deter the assassins. 

Keep reading 'Tho I Be Mute:

Clarinda faces a moment of profound reality—a rattlesnake bite, a harbinger of her imminent mortality—and undertakes an introspective journey. In her final days, she immortalizes not only her own story but that of her parents—a narrative steeped in her family’s insights into Cherokee heritage during the tumultuous years preceding the forced removal of Native communities.

In 1818, Clarinda’s father, Cherokee John Ridge, embarks on a quest for a young man’s education at the Foreign Mission School in Cornwall, Connecticut. Amidst sickness, he finds solace and love with Sarah, the steward’s quiet daughter. Despite enduring two years of separation, defamatory editorials, and societal upheaval due to their interracial love affair, the resilient couple weds in 1824. This marks the inception of a journey for Sarah as she delves into a world both cherished and feared—Cherokee Territory. As John Ridge advocates for the preservation of his people’s land and that of his Muskogee Creek neighbors against encroaching Georgia settlers and unscrupulous governmental officials, the stakes are high. His success or failure hinges on his ability to balance his proud Cherokee convictions with an intricate understanding of American law. Justice remains uncertain.

Grounded in a true story, ‘Tho I Be Mute resonates with a compelling historical narrative, giving an intimate voice to those heard, those ignored, those speechless, urging readers to not only hear but to truly listen.

Connect with the Author:

History is better than fiction.

We all leave a legacy.

As an English educator, Heather Miller has spent twenty-four years teaching her students the author’s craft. Now, she’s writing it herself, hearing voices from the past. Heather earned her MFA in creative writing in 2022 and is teaching high school as well as college composition courses. 

Miller’s foundation began in the theatre, through performance storytelling. She can tap dance, stage-slap someone, and sing every note from Les Miserables. But by far, her favorite role has been as a fireman’s wife and mom to three: a trumpet player, a future civil engineer, and a RN. Alas, there’s only one English major in her house.

Heather continues writing the Ridge Family Saga. Her current work-in-progress, Stands, concludes the Ridge Family Saga. 

Connect with Heather on her website, Twitter, Facebook, Amazon Author Page, Goodreads, TikTok. 

Hello, dear readers! My guest today shares an excerpt from Bandy, a story of a boy so lonely he befriends a pigeon and a young enslaved girl who plans to escape through the Underground Railroad. Sounds like a unique and touching adventure!

~ Samantha

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Bandy: An Excerpt

Guest Post by Craig R Hipkins

The afternoon dragged along. Every cracking branch put Isaac on his guard. He kept the derringer loaded and at half cock. Joy had another episode and this one was longer than the one she had earlier in the day. Isaac had kept her as comfortable as possible next to the fire.

As nightfall approached, she felt much better, and they each ate a stale biscuit and a few slabs of bacon. It was a lean meal, but enough to give them energy to continue on their way.

They decided to use the railroad. There was a stillness in the air, and they would be able to hear the clomping of hooves if any horses approached. Isaac prayed Joy wouldn’t have another one of her headaches. They seemed to come on with little warning and were debilitating.

A short time later, they passed by another small village of ramshackle houses. Isaac noticed a blacksmith’s shop. The smithy, a raw-boned man with bulging biceps was hard at work at the forge and did not even notice their passing. The glowing light of a furnace left them longing for the warmth of a fire. With any luck they would be in Portsmouth by midnight.

They were about a mile past the forge when the sound of a neighing horse grabbed their attention and they quickly darted off the tracks into a stand of pines. They crouched down behind some brambles and waited.

A lone horseman came into view. He was a thickset man with a dark beard riding a large stallion, his menacing profile bathed in the moonlight. Isaac immediately felt a gnawing wave of fear in the pit of his stomach. The mounted man had obviously seen them. He had stopped and was peering in their general direction. He was most certainly a bounty hunter.

Isaac quietly pulled his derringer from his small holster and capped it. He felt Joy’s hand find his free one. They glanced at each other nervously.

“Come on out, yuh murderin’ boy! I done seen yuh along with that little slave girl yuh travelin’ with!”

Isaac’s pulse began to race. If he were older, he would pull this man from the saddle and pummel him for that comment.

“Let’s go, boy! I ain’t got all day now. Yuh come outta those bushes and don’t give me no trouble and ah’ll make sure yuh git a fair trial. If not, it ain’t gonna go well with yuh!”

Isaac weighed his options. The way he looked at it, he had three. He could surrender—an option which he immediately dismissed. His second option was to fight it out with the man. He had the drop on him but surely the bounty hunter had a weapon of some kind on his person, almost certainly a revolver, which would neutralize his one-shot derringer. His third and final option was to sit still and do nothing. Let the bounty hunter come to them. There was a chance, albeit a slim one, that he would not find them in the darkness. He chose option number three and quietly whispered his intentions to Joy, who wholly agreed with him. They waited. They would let their pursuer make the next move.

Keep reading Bandy - FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

Isaac’s only friend is a passenger pigeon named Bandy. He deludes himself in believing the bird talks to him. Bullied, he is resigned to a life of being the misunderstood bookworm by neighboring boys until a disastrous fire kills his parents and little sisters, sparing only his younger brother, Thomas. He and Thomas are taken in by their Uncle Raymond, an abolitionist, who plans to send Isaac to Virginia to buy Joy, a young slave with debilitating health, from her slave owner, Wil Jericho. Shortly after arriving in Virginia, Isaac learns the ugly truth. The butler who accompanied him on the journey killed his uncle before leaving and plans to do the same to Isaac to steal Raymond’s estate.

Isaac, with Joy, escape into the backwoods of Virginia. Discovering passages of the Underground Railroad, stowing away in carriages, hiding in churches, and outwitting the mercenaries hired by Jericho, the two teens fight tooth and nail to make it to Boston before they’re caught. Will Joy be taken from this life by sickness before she’s found freedom? On their journey, they learn a lot about each other. Isaac promises to bring Joy to Bandy's pond, a heavenly place where peace and serenity reign.

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Connect with the Author

Craig R. Hipkins grew up in Hubbardston Massachusetts. He is the author of medieval and gothic fiction. His novel Adalbert is the sequel to Astrolabe written by his late twin brother Jay S. Hipkins (1968-2018) He is an avid long distance runner and enjoys astronomy in his spare time.

Connect with Craig on his website, Twitter(X), Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Bluesky, Book Bub, Amazon Author Page, and Goodreads.

Good morning, dear readers! Join me in welcoming author Gina Buonaguro to the blog today to introduce her novel, The Virgins of Venice. It's a great opportunity to lose yourself in the 16th century.

Welcome, Gina!

~ Samantha 

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The Virgins of Venice

Guest Post by Gina Buonaguro

In sixteenth-century Venice, one young noblewoman dares to resist the choices made for her.

Venice in 1509 is on the brink of war. The displeasure of Pope Julius II is a continuing threat to the republic, as is the barely contained fighting in the countryside. Amid this turmoil, noblewoman Justina Soranzo, just sixteen, hopes to make a rare love marriage with her sweetheart, Luca Cicogna. Her hopes are dashed when her father decides her younger sister, Rosa, will marry in a strategic alliance and Justina will be sent to the San Zaccaria convent, in the tradition of aristocratic daughters. Lord Soranzo is not acting only to protect his family. It’s well known that he is in debt to both his trading partners and the most infamous courtesan in the city, La Diamante, and the pressure is closing in.

After arriving at the convent, Justina takes solace in her aunt Livia, one of the nuns, and in the growing knowledge that all is not strictly devout at San Zaccaria. Justina is shocked to discover how the women of the convent find their own freedom in what seems to her like a prison. But secrets and scandals breach the convent walls, and Justina learns there may be even worse fates for her than the veil, if La Diamante makes good on her threats.

Desperate to protect herself and the ones she loves, Justina turns to Luca for help. She finds she must trust her own heart to make the impossible decisions that may save or ruin them all.

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Connect with the author

Gina Buonaguro is the co-author of The Wolves of St. Peters, Ciao Bella and The Sidewalk Artist, as well as several romance titles under the name Meadow Taylor. The Virgins of Venice is her first solo novel.

She has a BA in English from Villanova University in Pennsylvania and earned an MA in English from the University of British Columbia while on a Fulbright Scholarship. Born in New Jersey, Gina Buonaguro lives in Toronto.

Connect with her on her website, Facebook, LinkedIn, 

Book Bub, Amazon Author Page, and Goodreads.

Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip

Good morning, dear readers! As soon as I read the premise of this novel, I knew it was one to share with you. Gail Ward Olmsted has found a fascinating historical woman to feature, and you all know how I love the kind of story that shines a light on a lady who has been left too much in the historical dark. Read on about Katharine Prescott Wormeley, a Civil War Nurse and road trip adventuress!

~ Samantha

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Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip: An Excerpt

Guest Post by Gail Ward Olmsted

The history behind the story:

In the fall of 1907, Katharine decides to drive from Newport, Rhode Island, to her home in Jackson, New Hampshire. Despite the concerns of her family and friends, that at the age of 77 she lacks the stamina for the nearly 300-mile journey, Katharine sets out alone. Over the next six days, she receives a marriage proposal, pulls an all-nighter, saves a life or two, crashes a high-society event, meets a kindred spirit, faces a former rival, makes a new friend, takes a stroll with a future movie mogul, advises a troubled newlywed, and reflects upon a life well lived; her own! 

Join her as she embarks upon her remarkable road trip.

Here's a sneak peek from Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip!

The lighter side of serving as a volunteer nurse on a hospital ship during the Civil War

“But it wasn’t all bad,” I told him. “When things settled down a bit, we nurses were able to chat with the soldiers or read to them. We even wrote letters to their loved ones for them.” I smiled brightly. “That was my favorite activity, the writing of letters. Just to know that they could tell their families back home how they were faring . . . well, it was quite the rewarding experience I can tell you that.” 

I felt tears well up in my eyes, and I quickly wiped them away. Many of those letters would have arrived at their intended destination long after the soldier who had dictated it had died from his injuries. I hoped that the last words they received had provided some solace to the grieving families. It had been an honor and a privilege to be involved in their lives in that way. I remembered trying and failing to imagine what it would have been like to receive a letter like that, dictated by a loved one, transcribed by a well-meaning stranger.

Keep reading Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip

More about the remarkable Katharine:

Katharine Prescott Wormeley (1830-1908) was born into affluence in England and emigrated to the U. S. at the age of eighteen. Fiercely independent and never married, Kate volunteered as a nurse on a medical ship during the Civil War, before founding a vocational school for underprivileged girls. A lifelong friend and trusted confidante of landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, she was a philanthropist, a hospital administrator, and the author of The Other Side of War: 1862, as well as the noted translator of dozens of novels written by French authors, including Moliere and Balzac. She is included in History’s Women: The Unsung Heroines; History of American Women: Civil War Women; Who’s Who in America 1908-09; Notable American Women, A Biographical Dictionary: 1607-1950 and A Woman of the 19th Century: Leading American Women in All Walks of Life. 

Get your copy of Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip 

 or read FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

Connect with Gail Ward Olmsted

Gail Ward Olmsted was a marketing executive and a college professor before she began writing fiction on a fulltime basis. A trip to Sedona, AZ inspired her first novel Jeep Tour. Three more novels followed before she began Landscape of a Marriage, a biographical work of fiction featuring landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, a distant cousin of her husband’s, and his wife Mary. After penning a pair of contemporary novels featuring a disgraced attorney seeking a career comeback (Miranda Writes, Miranda Nights) she is back to writing historical fiction featuring an incredible woman with an amazing story. Watch for Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip on June 13th.

Connect with Gail on her website, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Book Bub, Amazon Author Page, and Goodreads. 

James Alexander Hamilton wrote extensively about the issues connected to the US Civil War, including slavery, constitutionality, and preservation of the Union. The evolution of his thoughts on these topics helped me understand the mindset of Americans - or at least Northerners - of the early 19th century. From our modern point of view, it is easy to argue that the Civil War was a single-issue war, but, of course, the truth is much more complicated. 

My guest today has delved into the challenging task of discerning the attitudes and mindsets of a past generation in order to write their stories as accurately as possible. What did preservation of the Union mean to Northern soldiers? Author Richard Buxton digs into this question with some great insights.

Welcome, Richard!

~ Samantha

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Saving the Union

Guest Post by Richard Buxton

As a writer of historical fiction, I’m constantly fearful of misrepresenting the past. In practice, it’s impossible not to. The wonderful Hilary Mantel, in her 2017 Reith lectures reminded us that, ‘History is not the past, it’s the method we’ve evolved for organizing our ignorance of the past.’ Even where you have first-hand accounts, written at or close to the time, they all have their own spin. Hilary, never one for understatement, went on to say that history, ‘is the multiplication of the evidence of fallible and biased witnesses combined with incomplete accounts of actions not fully understood by the people who performed them.’

We might think of the American Civil War, the backdrop for my trilogy, as on the cusp of modern times; it’s end at Appomattox just shy of one-hundred and sixty years ago. There are very extensive army records, both official and unofficial, some photographic evidence, and lots of newspaper coverage. So getting most details right (the weather, the uniforms and equipment) should be achievable. Events tend to be presented subjectively, so are a little harder. How then to deal with a broadly held attitude or motivation?

One issue I struggled to understand is what Union meant to soldiers fighting for the North in the American Civil War, the Union being the collection of states then constituted. Today we just call it the U.S.A or the States. I played with it in the title for the trilogy, Shire’s Union; Shire fights for the Union but it also hints at his often-forlorn hopes for a future with Clara. But the idea of Union meant much more to the people at the time. It’s very evident that the long-standing irritant of slavery was the underlying cause of the war, but preservation of the Union was a far more widely cited motivation than abolition for the early volunteers in the Union Army. It was also the principal objective of the government. Lincoln famously said, ‘If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I would also do that.’ This was written well over a year into the fighting. Only later would an end to slavery get equal billing with saving the Union. And those were the two great outcomes of the struggle: slavery was abolished and the Union was restored.

Image reference:
Library of Congress 2003674570;
Created/Published New York
by Currier & Ives, c1861

But what did Union mean to the soldiers of the North? It’s hard to get at, especially for someone who’s British, where we have our own – often conflicted – ideas of Union. When the young America partially dissolved and went to war with itself, it was only eighty-five years old. The very identity of America was bound up with the idea of Union, with a hard-won rejection of old European monarchies. The Union represented a new consensus about freedom. America’s frontier was a little way west of the Mississippi at the outbreak of war, ‘the states like multi-coloured fields reaching across a half-finished farm,’ as Shire thinks when tearing a page from his father’s atlas. States like Ohio, Illinois and Iowa, were on the frontier themselves just a few decades before. Many soldiers were first or second-generation immigrants, whose spoken language was other than English. Their own or their parents’ escape from the European experience was not so distant. Most believed that preserving a Union of states bound together by freedoms for the individual was worth battling and possibly dying for. It’s subtly different than fighting for your country. It’s fighting for an idea. An end to Union – disunion - meant backsliding towards autocracies and suffering that they believed they had left on the other side of the Atlantic.

Distilling any of this into a novel through the thoughts and actions of your characters is challenging to say the least, and is best done with a very light touch. Shire’s squad in the 125th Ohio all have their own reasons for fighting. One is out to revenge his parents’ deaths at the hands of pro-slavery bushwhackers, another is a furnace worker after the sign-up bounty. Shire himself primarily sees the army as a means to get south and closer to Clara. Mason, a part-Iroquois lawyer, is perhaps the most nobly motivated, fighting for equality for all and seeing the Union, flawed as it was, as freedom’s best chance.

You might consider that the case for the Union is made easier by exposing the argument for succession made by the new Confederacy: the smaller collection of states who decided to begin and then fight a long war to preserve and extend slavery. Against that lowest of benchmarks, it’s not too hard to see why people would fight for the other side. Common humanity isn’t exclusive to our century. Ultimately, after Lincoln made his emancipation proclamation in the middle of the war, the case for the Union and for abolition were effectively merged. Winning the war would deliver both.

I was researching in Tennessee the day of the Brexit vote, the UKs decision to leave the European Union. The day before, I’d been reading firsthand accounts from the 1860s in the archives of the East Tennessee History Museum in Knoxville.  Disunion – secession – came in via democracy. Each southern state voted to depart, leaving American patriots, notably in Eastern Tennessee, high and dry, forcing them to leave a Union they fervently believed in. What came after was horrific. Outside the killing of a generation on the battlefields, at home there was imprisonment, murder and fratricide. The grief and the strife lasted for decades. Even today, over a hundred and sixty years later, you can still easily find echoes of the war.

As I sat in Eastern Tennessee, the day after the vote, reading the voices from America’s time of disunion, the parallels with the problems in Europe were frightening: a Union arguing over its own imperfections, hotheads on both sides exaggerating dire consequences, freedoms of the individual clashing with economic imperatives. Different sorts of Union often only come about after schism: the United States after the war of independence, the League of Nations after World War I, the European Union has its roots in the ashes of World War II. Sadly, disunion is rarely any less painful.

Ultimately, people don’t read historical fiction to brush up on constitutional matters. We read it to empathise with the characters, their struggles and triumphs, to enjoy the odyssey and the climax. Perhaps, above all, to be transported to another time. To achieve the latter, a writer is obliged to strive to see their characters’ world through their hearts and minds and try to understand the wider questions and motivations of their age.

Shire's Union Trilogy

Shire leaves his home and his life in Victorian England for the sake of a childhood promise, a promise that pulls him into the bleeding heart of the American Civil War. Lost in the bloody battlefields of the West, he discovers a second home for his loyalty.

Clara believes she has escaped from a predictable future of obligation and privilege, but her new life in the Appalachian Hills of Tennessee is decaying around her. In the mansion of Comrie, long hidden secrets are being slowly exhumed by a war that creeps ever closer.

The Shire’s Union trilogy is at once an outsider’s odyssey through the battle for Tennessee, a touching story of impossible love, and a portrait of America at war with itself. Self-interest and conflict, betrayal and passion, all fuse into a fateful climax.

Written by award winning author Richard Buxton, the Shire’s Union trilogy begins with Whirligig, is continued in The Copper Road, and concludes with Tigers in Blue.

Read Shire's Union Trilogy through Amazon or Amazon UK!

Connect with Richard Buxton

Richard lives with his family in the South Downs, Sussex, England. He completed an MA in Creative Writing at Chichester University in 2014. He has an abiding relationship with America, having studied at Syracuse University, New York State, in the late eighties. He travels extensively for research, especially in Tennessee, Georgia and Ohio, and is rarely happier than when setting off from a motel to spend the day wandering a battlefield or imagining the past close beside the churning wheel of a paddle steamer.

Richard’s short stories have won the Exeter Story Prize, the Bedford International Writing Competition and the Nivalis Short Story Award. His first novel, Whirligig (2017) was shortlisted for the Rubery International Book Award. It was followed by The Copper Road (2020) and the Shire’s Union trilogy was completed by Tigers in Blue (2023). To learn more about Richard’s writing visit www.richardbuxton.net.

Connect with Richard on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Book Bub, Amazon Author Page, and Goodreads.

I'm pleased to welcome Kinley Bryan as my guest today. She shares insight into the roles of women during the American Civil War, a subject I find interesting because James A Hamilton's daughters participated in some of the work described. James was in his seventies at the time, but he still served as an advisor to President Lincoln and Treasury Secretary Salmon Chase. The Hamilton women had long been involved in charitable work, so they naturally answered the call for help when war broke out between the states. Before I get carried away talking about the Hamiltons, I will turn it over to Kinley!

~ Samantha

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Women in the Civil War

Guest Post by Kinley Bryan

As both a reader and writer of historical fiction, I’m always interested in women’s experiences of historical events. My latest novel, The Lost Women of Mill Street, offers a look at the American Civil War from the perspective of southern female mill workers. It’s one perspective of many, for women took on myriad new roles during the war. In the North, women of all races and social classes contributed to the Union war effort by organizing sanitary fairs and working as nurses. They also served as spies and—though forbidden—combatants. And some southern Unionist women courageously helped Union soldiers in times of danger.

Sanitary Fairs

Soon after the start of the war, women began organizing soldiers’ aid societies. In June 1861 the United States Sanitary Commission was formed under the authority of the government, although it was privately funded. Women and girls throughout the North knitted socks, sewed shirts, and collected money to support the USSC. Women also organized sanitary fairs in cities throughout the North to raise money for the sanitary commission. These fairs featured art, parades, dances, museums, merchandise sales, and auctions, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Nursing

Before the war, few female nurses publicly practiced medicine. In the first couple months of fighting, both the Union and Confederate armies preferred having men serve as nurses, believing women did not belong in hospitals. However, the armies were soon overwhelmed with wounded soldiers and those in charge reconsidered their views. 

In June 1861, Dorothea Dix was appointed Superintendent of Nurses for the Union Army and led the recruitment of women to serve in the nursing corps. According to the Army Heritage Foundation, roughly 3,300 women served as nurses for the Union Army during the war, overcoming their male colleagues’ objections “through appeals to national pride, patriotic duty, and through hard work and dedicated service to the sick and wounded soldiers that filled the nation’s hospitals.”

Southern Unionists

The South was not unified in its view on secession. In Women of the War by Frank Moore, published in 1866, the author recounts the experiences of a number of women from seceded states who courageously helped the Union Army. In one instance, two Tennessee women in the dark of night waved lanterns at an approaching Union Army train; after the train slowed to a stop, the women warned them that Confederate guerillas had destroyed the railroad bridge up ahead.

Moore also describes how, in 1862, a Kentucky woman whose husband fought for the Union was home alone when eleven Confederate soldiers raided her property. As they relaxed by the fireplace, she stole their muskets, shot and killed one who tried to get them back, and the next morning marched the rest at gunpoint to a nearby Union camp.

Spies and Combatants

Though women were barred from military service, there were some who, disguising themselves as men, served in the Union Army. Others served as spies. Harriet Tubman, the formerly enslaved woman known for leading hundreds of people to freedom on the Underground Railroad, was also a Union spy. Having volunteered for the Union as a cook and nurse, she was recruited by Union officers to establish a network of spies behind enemy lines. Disguised as a field hand, Tubman led scouting and spying missions and reported valuable intelligence to Union officers. At the same time, she continued to help enslaved people flee to freedom.

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The Lost Women of Mill Street

1864: As Sherman’s army marches toward Atlanta, a cotton mill commandeered by the Confederacy lies in its path. Inside the mill, Clara Douglas weaves cloth and watches over her sister Kitty, waiting for the day her fiancé returns from the West.

When Sherman’s troops destroy the mill, Clara’s plans to start a new life in Nebraska are threatened. Branded as traitors by the Federals, Clara, Kitty, and countless others are exiled to a desolate refugee prison hundreds of miles from home.

Cut off from all they've ever known, Clara clings to hope while grappling with doubts about her fiancé’s ambitions and the unsettling truths surrounding his absence. As the days pass, the sisters find themselves thrust onto the foreign streets of Cincinnati, a city teeming with uncertainty and hostility. She must summon reserves of courage, ingenuity, and strength she didn’t know she had if they are to survive in an unfamiliar, unwelcoming land.

Inspired by true events of the Civil War, The Lost Women of Mill Street is a vividly drawn novel about the bonds of sisterhood, the strength of women, and the repercussions of war on individual lives.

Get your copy of The Lost Women of Mill Street!

Connect with Kinley Bryan

Kinley Bryan's debut novel, Sisters of the Sweetwater Fury, inspired by the Great Lakes Storm of 1913 and her own family history, won the 2022 Publishers Weekly Selfies Award for adult fiction. An Ohio native, she lives in South Carolina with her husband and three children. The Lost Women of Mill Street is her second novel.

Connect with Kinley on her website, Twitter(X), Facebook, Instagram, Book Bub, Amazon Author Page, and Goodreads.  

It's been a while since we talked medieval on this blog! I've been considering a return to a much earlier chapter for my next story, so when I had the opportunity to host author Anna Belfrage, I couldn't say no. A love for British history isn't the only thing Anna and I have in common. We both participated in the Women's History Month special for Historical Writers Forum a couple of years ago. She is a brilliant, prolific writer, so I will hand the reins over to her.

Welcome, Anna!

~ Samantha 

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1294 . . . a bad year for Edward I

Guest Post by Anna Belfrage

My latest release, Their Castilian Orphan, is primarily set in 1294. Why? Well, because it was a bad, bad year for Edward I. Mind you, I think he was of the opinion most years after the death of his wife in 1290 were pretty bad, but a year in which he was tricked out of his lands in France must qualify as exceptionally bad, right? 

Edward I

Before we go on to detail the events of 1294, we’re going to need some backstory. That backstory starts with the Sicilian Vespers. And yes, I forgive you, lovely peeps, if your immediate reaction isn’t “The Sicilian Vespers – but of course!”

For those of us fascinated by 13th century politics and all its bloody connotations, the Sicilian Vespers can be seen as a beginning for many things. In 1282 the Sicilians rebelled against the heavy-handed rule of Charles of Anjou, a younger brother of St Louis of France, and were supported in their rebellion by Peter of Aragon, who was of the opinion Sicily rightfully belonged to his wife, Constanza. 

I lean towards agreeing with Peter. Charles of Anjou used the support of the papacy to oust Manfred Hohenstaufen (Constanza’s father). He also went on to capture Manfred’s family. His young widow was brutally separated from her children and would die in captivity. Constanza’s half-brothers were put in chains and locked up, despite the eldest only being six. Purportedly, Charles also had the young boys maimed. Constanza’s half-sister was put under lock and key—alone. In brief, Charles comes across as brutal. But then, kings at the time were brutal. One only needs to remember how Edward I handled Dafydd ap Gruffydd’s children. They too were locked up—forever. 

Back to our backstory: As a consequence of the Sicilian Vespers, the crown of Sicily passed to Peter of Aragon—on behalf of his wife. In Rome, the pope was furious. The papacy ordered Peter to return the crown to Charles. I am thinking he got the medieval equivalent of a middle finger in return . . . The pope retaliated by excommunicating Peter.

The pope wasn’t the only one who was angry. Leaving aside the apoplectic Charles of Anjou himself, his nephew, Philippe III of France, was just as incensed. Losing Sicily meant more of the Mediterranean under Aragonese control, and that did not please the French. So when the pope declared a crusade against Aragon, Philippe III was more than happy to lead it. 

Initially, the French saw some success. They even managed to crown Philippe’s second son, Charles of Valois, as king of Aragon, but theirs was a fleeting moment of triumph. In 1286, what little remained of the French army staggered back home. Philippe III was dead of dysentery, replaced by his teenaged son, Philippe IV. Instead of covering themselves in glory, the French were humiliated.

Philippe IV & fam

This led to an unstable political situation in Europe. The pope was still demanding Sicily be returned to Charles of Anjou. The French refused to sign a peace treaty with Aragon without the pope’s blessing. In Aragon, Peter had died, replaced by his eldest son, Alfonso (who was also Philippe IV’s first cousin). Plus, at some point Aragon had got their hands on Charles of Anjou’s eldest son, Charles of Salerno, and were holding him captive. This, dear peeps, is when Edward I waded into the fray, despite being pissed off with the pope for having redirected monies intended to finance Edward’s “real” crusade to the Holy Land to this stupid and failed venture in Aragon.

During the years 1286-1289, Edward spent all his time in Gascony, negotiating a treaty acceptable to all parties. He had a vested interest in that Charles of Salerno was his cousin, but more than that, Edward needed a treaty so as to send off his eldest daughter to marry Alfonso of Aragon. But the French demanded some sort of compensation for Charles of Valois’ lost crown (!) and were generally reluctant to any compromise—as was the pope. 

In 1288, some sort of treaty was signed, and everything was finally sorted. Not. The conflict between the pope and the crown of Aragon would continue into the next century.

So what does all this have to do with 1294? Well, Charles of Valois supposedly never forgave Edward for “giving away his rightful crown”. Plus, I think Philippe IV was not exactly enamoured of the fact that a huge chunk of land within his kingdom was ruled by Edward. 

Gascony was part of France, and accordingly, Edward I had to do homage to Philippe IV. Not something he fully enjoyed, what with him being much older than Philippe and (I’m guessing) quite convinced he was the superior monarch of the two. Philippe was to prove to the entire world that he deffo considered himself the most superior person around—not only was he to destroy the Templars, he was also to relocate the pope to Avignon, keeping His Holiness firmly under the royal thumb. But in 1294, all that lay in the future, the very handsome Philippe some years shy of thirty having his hands full with France and his siblings. One such sibling was Marguerite, and seeing as the English king was recently widowed, it was Philippe’s considered opinion that his half-sister would make Edward an excellent queen.

Edward was not opposed. I don’t think he wanted to marry again—he’d shared over thirty years with his Eleanor and likely missed her for the rest of his life—but he didn’t have a choice. After all, Edward only had one surviving son, and everyone knew a king needed at least an heir and a spare. 

Other than sorting the potential “spare” issue, marrying Marguerite would reconfirm the happy relationship between the House of Capet and the House of Plantagenet. Since fifty or so years back, the French and the English kings had not only been brother kings, but also family. Henry III of England and Louis IX of France married sisters. Henry’s brother, Richard of Cornwall and Louis’ brother Charles of Anjou married the two remaining sisters, which likely had the Count of Provence hissing a satisfied “yessss!” as he saw all four of his daughters so well settled. (Raymond was, however, dead, before his fourth daughter wed. . .)

In the early 1290s, Edward was expending most of his efforts on Scotland—in some years to become his primary concern. Once he’d managed the Scottish matter to his satisfaction, it was 1293 and the French/English relations had nose-dived. Late in 1292, there was a major brawl in a Norman port between English and French mariners. Come May of 1293, that brawl assumed massive proportions, a fleet of English and Gascon ships attacked by Norman ships who flew red streamers, thereby indicating they would give no quarter. Turns out the English and Gascons ships were better captained, and several French ships, including crew and cargoes, were captured. 

The French were incensed. This is an opportune moment to suggest that someone high up in the hierarchy had instigated that brawl in Normandy, someone like Charles of Valois, who very much wanted to rub the English nose in something. The English chroniclers openly accused him of fanning the flames of discord.  

 

Edward had no desire to lock horns with the French, not when the entire Christian world had recently been shocked by the Muslim capture of Acre. No, Edward wanted to go on a crusade, and with the new, hostile situation in the Holy Land, the Church was more than eager to bankroll such a venture. But for Edward to be able to ride east, he needed peace with his neighbour, so when the French sent a sequence of irritated messages regarding their captured ships, Edward suggested three different solutions: his first suggestion was that the matter be sorted according to English law. One could argue that as it was the French who were the aggressors, this made some sense, but Edward must have known the French would refuse that outright. His second suggestion was that the matter be handled by a commission set up by France and England. His third suggestion was that the matter be put before the pope. 

The French refused all three suggestions. This, according to the French, was not a dispute between two kings. Oh, no: it was a dispute between the French king and his vassal, the duke of Gascony (!!!) I imagine that did not go over well with Edward. The French ships, after all, had attacked English ships. 

Late in 1293, Edward was rudely summoned to Paris, the wording borderline offensive as the French king demanded his unruly vassal to present himself before him. 

“In your dreams,” Edward muttered—or whatever the medieval equivalent was. But he sent immediate instructions to his brother Edmund, who was presently in France, to somehow sort this mess. 

Edmund of Lancaster was, obviously, also a close relative to the French king. But he was also the step-father of Philippe’s queen, having taken as his second wife Blanche of Artois, who was wed to Henri, King of Navarre, and gave him a daughter, Jeanne, before Henri departed this world. 

Edmund, together with his wife and step-daughter—and Philippe’s step-mother, Marie of Brabant—started working on a compromise. Philippe himself was in and out of the room, and one gets the impression that Philippe was presenting himself as most amenable towards finding a peaceable solution. Edmund definitely believed he was making progress. Turns out he was wrong.

The compromise hammered out by Edmund and the ladies involved the surrender of several Gascon towns to Philippe—on the understanding that this was for show only. Edward would publicly express remorse and reiterate his loyalty, and the French king would then kiss his loyal duke and return the surrendered towns and hostages. Everyone would live happily ever after and to really ice the cake, Edward would marry Marguerite. 

In February of 1294, Edward fulfilled his part of the deal. And then he waited. And waited. At some point, it became clear for Edmund (and the ladies) that Philippe, egged on by his brother Charles of Valois and many of his counsellors, had no intention of honouring the deal. 

In April of 1294, Edward’s seneschal in Gascony, John St John, crossed over to England to inform his king that the French had no intention of returning the Gascon towns. 

For Edward, this was a terrible humiliation. It also killed any remaining hopes he may have had to go on crusade—he could not leave while his kingdom was at war with France, and one thing was certain: Philippe’s actions meant war. By the summer of 1294, Edward was mustering a huge army in Portsmouth. 

In England, there was a major ruckus when the barons understood just what had happened in Gascony (Edward had kept all of this close to his chest) Many were the voices suggesting this was all due to an old man lusting for a much younger bride. At the June parliament of 1294, Edward swore to the assembled magnates that he had not acted as he did out of lust, but because he desired to have peace with France so he could set off on his crusade. Apparently, he did this so eloquently he had the people present baying for French blood.  

The king had planned to have his troops cross the Channel during the summer, but the weather had other ideas. The major invasion was now set for September, but yet again, the weather refused to cooperate. And it was at this point in time that Edward got the news that really put 1294 at the top of the “most hated years ever”, likely coming a close second to 1290, the year Eleanor died. You see, in October the Welsh rebelled.

Edward’s amassed forces were hastily deployed to Wales and the rebels were ultimately crushed. But in Gascony, the French still ruled, and it would take many years before some sort of peace was re-established. 

Personally, I believe the Gascon conflict embittered Edward. Indirectly, the machinations of Philippe contributed to creating the ruthless king who was to ride so roughshod over the Scots. Not, of course, an excuse: Edward—and only Edward—bears the responsibility for his actions. And the Welsh, of course, would point out that he was pretty ruthless back in 1282/83 when he invaded Wales . . . 

Their Castilian Orphan

It is 1294 and Eustace de Lamont is back in England after five years in exile. He will stop at nothing to ruin Robert FitzStephan and his wife, Noor d’Outremer.

Robert’s half brother, Eustace de Lamont, has not mellowed during his absence. He is more ruthless than ever, and this time he targets Robert’s and Noor’s foster son, Lionel.

Lionel is serving King Edward as a page when Eustace appears at court. Not only does Lionel become the horrified witness to Eustace’s violent streak, Eustace also starts voicing his suspicions about Lionel’s parentage. The truth about Lionel’s heritage is explosive—should King Edward find out, all would be lost for Robert and Noor.

In October of 1294, Wales rises in rebellion. Robert must leave his family unprotected to fight the Welsh rebels on the king’s behalf, comforted only by the fact that Eustace too is called to fight.

Except that Eustace has no intention of allowing his duty to his king—or a mere rebellion—come between him and his desire to destroy Robert FitzStephan . . .

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Connect with Anna

Had Anna been allowed to choose, she’d have become a time-traveller. As this was impossible, she became a financial professional with three absorbing interests: history, romance and writing. Anna has authored the acclaimed time travelling series The Graham Saga, set in 17th century Scotland and Maryland, as well as the equally acclaimed medieval series The King’s Greatest Enemy which is set in 14th century England. Anna has just released the final instalment, Their Castilian Orphan, in her other medieval series, The Castilian Saga,which is set against the conquest of Wales. She has recently released Times of Turmoil, a sequel to her time travel romance, The Whirlpools of Time, and is now considering just how to wiggle out of setting the next book in that series in Peter the Great’s Russia, as her characters are demanding. . .

All of Anna’s books have been awarded the IndieBRAG Medallion, she has several Historical Novel Society Editor’s Choices, and one of her books won the HNS Indie Award in 2015. She is also the proud recipient of various Reader’s Favorite medals as well as having won various Gold, Silver and Bronze Coffee Pot Book Club awards.

Find out more about Anna, her books and enjoy her eclectic historical blog on her website, Twitter, Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, Book Bub, AmazonAuthor Page, and Goodreads.

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Autumn and the Silver Moon Stallion

 

I have loved reading books about horses for as long as I can remember. From Black Beauty and Misty of Chincoteague to Horse by Geraldine Brooks, it is a genre that I enjoy as much now as I did as a child. In Love and War by John Jakes, Charles Main's connection with his horse, Sport, was one of the most moving relationships in the book. If any of these are favorites of yours as well, you won't want to miss today's guest! Enjoy a snippet from Autumn and the Silver Moon Stallion by VP Felmlee.

~ Samantha

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Autumn and the Silver Moon Stallion: An Excerpt

Guest Post by VP Felmlee

As one, Becky, Autumn, and Silver Moon looked up just in time to see a tower of water coming over the top of the canyon, right towards them.

Autumn turned to run.

Becky turned to run.

Silver Moon was still coming down the trail, watched as waves hit the ground, then rose up like a living thing several feet in the air before crashing down first on Autumn then on the girl. 

More water was coming from above, splashing and crashing, ramming its way from canyon wall to canyon wall, shoving anything in its way forward, relentless and unstoppable.

Without thinking, Silver Moon jumped in.

Becky looked back, trying to see Autumn, swallowing ice-cold water in the process. She spat it out, then saw the palomino struggling to get her footing. The water was too deep, and was forcing them along at an incomprehensible speed. 

Becky grasped a large boulder. She couldn't hold on to it. Her body banged against an outcrop, driving the air from her lungs.

I have to watch where I'm going, she thought, don't look back, look forward.

The filly was trying hard to get to Becky, who was just ahead of her. The water pushed her against the canyon walls, forcing her to one side, then another. Instinct took over, her legs began to move. I have to keep my head up.

She was now whale-eyed, growing more terrified with each second. She couldn't avoid the boulders and slammed into them time and again.

She began to panic.

Silver Moon was strong and big but he was almost no match for the churning maelstrom the canyon had become.

Just ahead, he saw Autumn losing the fight to keep her head up. He saw her disappear, briefly emerge, then disappear.

KEEP READING AUTUMN ND THE SILVER MOON STALLION

An abused, neglected filly is abandoned on a remote country road, left to die. 

A young woman grieves the loss of her best friend, the champion horse she had built her life and future around.  

The heir to one of the largest ranches in Wyoming comes home to face the ire and disappointment of his grandfather.  

A world-renown scientist clashes with the U.S. government over a brutal, decades-long war to decide the fate of thousands of mustangs, a beloved icon of the American West.  

Autumn and The Silver Moon Stallion is their story of love, hatred, and death.  Will their struggles give them hope to fight for their beliefs, or tear them forever apart?

Connect with VP Felmlee

V P Felmlee is the author of The Abandoned Trilogy: Price Tadpole & Princess Clara; Good Boy Ben; and the third book in the series, Autumn and the Silver Moon Stallion. A former newspaper reporter and editor, she has a degree in geology, and has been active in historic preservation and animal welfare issues. Her articles have appeared in several magazines, and she has won numerous awards. 

She will be the 2025 president of Women Writing the West and lives in Grand Junction, Colorado, with her husband, two dogs, and six cats.

Connect with her on her Website, Twitter,  Facebook, Amazon Author Page, and Goodreads.