This page is to help me gather material about Rosemary Sutcliff, historical novelist, writer of children’s books and fiction for young adults; and for you to take part, should you wish!
Posts made because of contact from this page or by email include:
- Rosemary Sutcliff influenced and inspired … Australian writer Keith Taylor
- Rosemary Sutcliff Dutch Translations
- Rosemary Sutcliff influenced and inspired … Reading University lecturer Matthew Nicholls
You might use this page to send me copies of reviews, or links to your own or other people’s material that you think might interest me and the increasing number of visitors to this blog. What have you read of Rosemary’s or about her or her work? What did you enjoy? Why? Would you recommend it to others? Have you recommended it? Who to ? Was your career (if you have one) or life influenced by Rosemary Sutcliff or her books at all? Anything else you want to suggest I put here about her? Do you have advice on improving this site and especially on fostering a network of the many people interested in Rosemary or touched by her in her lifetime or since? Anybody in particular to connect with for some reason? I look forward to hearing from some of you
Thank you! Anthony Lawton
a(dot)g(dot)lawton(at)gmail(dot)com
Did anyone mention here the site of Vortigern Studies? This site is an initiative of the Dutchman Robert Vermaat. The site exists for years already, but I am afraid is not maintained anymore. Nevertheless you can spend hours in reading! And guess by whom Robert Vermaat is inspired…
To get an overview:
http://www.vortigernstudies.org.uk/sitemap.htm
And here is the introduction page
http://www.vortigernstudies.org.uk/questhomepage.htm
LikeLike
I suppose everyone interested in Roman Britain noticed the excavation near Pegwell Bay where they found the camp of Caesar. If you zoom in with Google Maps you can see the excavations!
So within 2 miles now there are 3 important signs of Britais early history:
Camp of Ceasar
St Augustine’s Cross (Dawn Wind)
The Viking Ship Hugin.
A gift from Denmark in 1949 because of the landing of Hengist and Horsa, 1500 years ago. Of course Hengist and Horsa were no Vikings, but nobody knows what Saxon ships look like.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Is there an unabridged version of “The Eagle of the Ninth” audiobook? I have listened to the other two UNABRIDGED books of the series but it seems the Eagle is only abridged 🙁
LikeLike
I am interested in obtaining unabridged versions of the Rosemary Sutcliffe books. I have found Eagle of the Ninth abridged but not the other titles in the series, abridged or unabridged. Please can you tell me from where I can access the unabridged audiobooks?
Thank you
Oliver
LikeLike
Hi. I’m interested in reading the collected papers of Rosemary Sutcliff. From what I can tell, a collection was donated to the University of Southern Mississippi; it consists of roughly 80 pages — a screenplay, and a composition notebook of research notes. Other libraries seem to have copies of this collection but will not lend them out. Is there any possibility that this collection could be made available for reading online? Thank you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hello
Thank you very much for your Website which is very interesting ! I have just discovered Rosemay Sutcliff works (as an adult) and i love them very much. I enjoy especially her writing style, which is very complex and precise, and not so easy to understand for a frenchy like me ! I am trying to write her biography in Wikipedia, and I cannot find any – free – photo from Rosemary Sutcliff to add I find it a pity. Perhaps could you help me ? Thank you very much. Sabine
LikeLike
Dear Anthony,
In many books of Rosemary Sutcliff she writes about the little dark people. I wonder to what kind of people does she refer? Are there historical or literary sources about this people?
LikeLike
Could anyone please tell me which of Rosemary’s novels is set in or near Arundel Castle? I recently saw the castle from a distance, enroute from Chichester to Gatwick Airport. I think the book is Knight’s Fee?
LikeLike
I just noticed that two Dutch translations (“De sage van Finn Mac Cool” and “Helden en Monsters”) are illustrated by Tonke Dragt. But Tonke Dragt is more famous for her fantastic youth books. Yes, Tonke Dragt is my other favourite author. In the early sixties I read “De brief voor de koning” and “Geheimen van het wilde woud”. To my amazement these books weren’t translated in English till now. They are called “The Letter for the King” and “Secrets of the Wild Woods”, translated by Laura Watkinson. Here is a link:
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/tonke-dragts-the-letter-for-the-king-has-finally-been-translated-into-english-50-years-on-9826857.html
LikeLike
I have a copy of the Dutch translation of Sword at Sunset: Zwaard des Konings. (1968) I suppose it has been a property of a library. The quality is not excellent but it has no severe damages. As far as I know, there is no reprint of the book. The problem with this edition is that it has photos from a movie. As you can imagine: these photos contradict the atmosphere of Sutcliffs story. Is someone interested in this book?
LikeLike
Do you know which movie it has photos from?
LikeLike
Yes, it is “Camelot” (1967) with Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave.
LikeLike
I am no movie expert, but I read that Richard Harris was also Prof. Dumbledore in Harry Potter. 🙂
LikeLike
I have noted that Rosemary received the OBE in the early 1980s, and was promoted to CBE in 1992, I believe, shortly before her death. I cannot seem to find a citation for this award, certainly not on the Honours website. Could someone assist me in this, please?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have been hunting and cannot either, yet I hope! I suspect it was for contributions to children’s literature.
LikeLike
It was indeed for contributions to children’s literature. In the lists of recipients there is usually a phrase describing the person’s services. I can’t even find a citation for Rosemary. Who deserved it more?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Some years ago I came upon a mentioning of Rosemary Sutcliff’s book “A little dog like you”. It took me some time to get hold of a copy, but when I finally read it, as a person owned by a Chihuahua, I was overwhelmed. I knew my little dog’s breeder would adore it, but I also knew she doesn’t understand English. So I did a translation into German just for her and sent it to her together with the original book (which is so lovingly illustrated, it’s a treasure even for a non-English speaker).
LikeLike
This is really interesting. Somewhere long ago I read an article which talked about authors whom we love, and a work or works of that author which we wish he or she had not done. For years Dickens enthusiasts wished he had not written The Old Curiosity Shop, now getting the critical attention it deserves, for good or ill. A Little Dog Like You has been my least favourite of Rosemary’s works since it was published. I actually met Barnaby on one occasion, and he nearly bit me. I think if she had done it, Rosemary could easily have produced a very fine dog story — look at the dogs in Warrior Scarlet or Dawn Wind, for example. Well, only one out of fifty-eight is a wonderful record!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have loved Rosemary Sutcliff’s books from almost as early as I can remember, and snap them up whenever I find them in second-hand bookshops here in Australia. The copies I read as a child (many of which were handed down to me by my mother) are all in France, where I grew up. Every now and then I fall back into one of her novels, and am amazed that I could have enjoyed them aged 7 or 8, and yet not at all surprised because as soon as you start reading them you are completely spellbound.
The reason I found my way here tonight is because I am full of joy at having convinced my partner to read a Rosemary Sutcliff book — one I only discovered as an adult, but which I have re-read many times: Sun Horse Moon Horse. I expressed the desire the other day to visit the Uffington White Horse when we are in England at the end of the year, and he was only mildly interested — so I pulled out Sun Horse Moon Horse, and said that if he read the book and still didn’t feel like going, we wouldn’t. He read it, and I quote his message to me: “I did like it, and the ending was excellent. I feel there is something missing, but it is hard to put my finger on it. It may simply be the ephemeral difference between excellence and perfection.”
Such a sweet victory for me! Not only did I get him to read a much loved book of mine that he wouldn’t have ever picked up himself (and thereby sneakily introducing him to an author whom I was certain he would like), but of course now we are definitely visiting the White Horse.
LikeLike
Thank you for posting this.
I hope you (both) enjoy visiting The White Horse…Rosemary loved it long before she wrote the story. She knew and felt it was a special place, with echoes of centuries old traditions.
LikeLike
Hi
I grew up in Canada, we moved there when I was seven. I was a voracious reader, haunting the library, just pulling down books with covers I liked.
I remember the stories and illustrations, but not the titles. Reading through the synopses I recognise quite a few. The illustrations felt very modern, back then in the 70’s. Anyway the stories kept me connected to the uk, and I have always been interested by the archaeology and history. I ended up becoming an art conservator, eventually working in Oslo on the viking ships and collections there.
I bought a copy of the lantern bearers at a hole in the wall second hand book shop, of the type that doesnt seem to exist anymore, years ago at uni. Its been with me over three continents. It still gets a reread every so often. I would love to reread the other books, and look at those old drawings again.
Thanks for all the work you have put into this web site.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for your intriguing post, and your kind words about the website. The ‘work’ is a pleasure: I grew up with Romey (as I knew her) in my life as a close relative.
LikeLike
Dear all,
I’m looking for any idioms connected to Bonnie Dundee in English. Is there any? I got to this website writing “Bonnie Dundee”+idiom, there is something written in Ms. Sutcliff article, but with no example. Maybe you know some?
Best regards,
KSiemieniuk
LikeLike
No particular ones I know. Sorry!
LikeLike
As we begin WWI commemorations, I’m reminded of that comment made by British Foreign Secretary, Sir Edward Grey, on the eve of Britain’s entry into the First World War: “The lamps are going out all over Europe, we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.”
I wonder if these memorable words struck a chord with the young Rosemary Sutcliff? I hear a subliminal echo in “Silver Branch”, when Carausius says, “If I can make this one province strong enough to stand alone when Rome goes down, then something may be saved from the darkness. If not, then Dubris light and Limanis light and Rutupiae light will go out. The lights will go out everywhere.”
LikeLike
Yes, she was writing after the war and lived through it, always a student of history.
LikeLike
My first Sutcliff book was The Sword in the Circle, which I was given while on holiday in Tintagel back in 1985. I was four and it was my first ‘grown-up’ book. I loved it then and love it still. For a decade or so I reread it and the other books that make up the Arthur trilogy, every couple of months. I loved all of the Sutcliff books I came accross but it was this one that pretty much formed much of my character. I still reread the book from time to time, and it still has the same impact on me now as it did back when I was younger. I will be forever grateful to Rosemary Sutcliff for writing such amazing books. In fact there is a special thank you to here on my blog.
http://abookwormuk.blogspot.co.uk/
Now might have to just dig out my copy of Blood Feud, haven’t read that one in a while…….
LikeLike
Delighted to hear from you, in such glowing terms about the enjoyment and influence of Romie (as I knew her). May I post this as a main post, linking with your blog?
LikeLike
You are welcome to post this as a main post. I was interested to stumble across this site after writing on the subject yesterday. It’s lovely to read about so many other people who experienced her work in the same way I did.
LikeLike
Thank you for this excellent website – I’m introducing Rosemary Sutcliff’s books to my children, having enjoyed them myself. We’ve done a project on The Ridgeway this winter, and so I’ve begun by reading aloud Warrior Scarlet, in the evenings. What comes next? Without getting too hung up on chronology, is there another pre-Roman book, before I begin on the eagles? Many thanks – Clara
LikeLike
I will wait for some of the Rosemary Sutcliff experts who visit this site to comment! If no response then I can offer you a suggestion or two …
LikeLike
We’ve discussed earlier the similarity of themes to be found in Rosemary Sutcliff’s work and Susan Cooper’s “Dark is Rising” sequence, particularly that of the Dark versus the Light.
https://rosemarysutcliff.com/2012/01/26/susan-cooper-wins-edwards-award-did-she-read-rosemary-sutcliff/
I recently re-read the “Dark is Rising” and was very struck by this piece, which also focuses on another theme dear to Sutcliff, continuity through transition, and thought I’d share it here:
“And into Will’s mind, whirling him up on a wind blowing through and around the whole of Time, came the story of the Old Ones. He saw them from the beginning when magic was at large in the world; magic that was the power of rocks and fire and water and living things, so that the first men lived in it and with it, as a fish lives in the water. He saw the Old Ones, through the ages of men who worked with stone, and with bronze, and with iron, with one of six great Signs born in each age. He saw one race after another come attacking his island country, bringing each time the malevolence of the Dark with them, wave after wave of ships rushing inexorably at the shores. Each wave of men in turn grew to know and love the land, so that the Light flourished again. But always the Dark was there, swelling and waning, gaining a new Lord of the Dark whenever a man deliberately chose to be changed into something more dread and powerful than his fellows. Such creatures were not born to their doom, like the Old Ones, but chose it. The Black Rider he saw in all times from the beginning.”
LikeLike
Hi Anthony
we have corresponded before regarding Rosemary’s former home Swallowshaw where we now live. We have been looking into the possibility of a blue plaque to commemorate Rosemary here in Walberton. After much effort we have discovered that this can be done through our local district council who have a scheme (English Heritage are no longer doing this outside London), and have indicated that they feel our application would be approved, we also have the backing of our local history group, many of whom remember Rosemary as an active member of village life here. Unfortunately Arun District Council want an estimated £750 to include Rosemary in their scheme and provide and fix the plaque. We would need to look at how we can raise this sum. Otherwise we can just go out and buy an off the shelf plaque without it being a part of any recognised scheme. Any thoughts? Would you be interested in getting involved? It would be great to have something official, with a proper unveiling and celebration, but we need to look at how to fund such an enterprise, and if there is sufficient interest to move it forwards.
Kind regards
Stephen & Liz
LikeLike
Hello again. Excellent idea. I would love it as all the others who would. Am appalled Arun Council charge, let alone circa £750! And appalled at London-centric English Heritage! I will be in touch by email.Maybe we can get all the publishers to pitch in and/or get a charity grant and /or use a crowd-source funding site to get say £75 x £10 contributions,. Sorry to say I have not the full £750 to offer although would be happy to join with others in contributing funding. Meanwhile it would be good to know what followers here think …
LikeLike
Anthony, do you have the email for the gentleman in Melbourne who was offering copies of the old tv series of Eagle of the Ninth? Many thanks. John Matthews
LikeLike
The book you mean is Flowers for Adonis. It seems to be very hard to get hold of and fetches huge prices on line. It’s one of the least known of Rosemary Sutcliff!s books, but well worth tracking down.
LikeLike
Then I’m in luck, since most of what I read, I’ve bought… so chances are that a copy of Flowers for Adonis is hiding in my hundreds of boxes of books. 😀
(This ‘personal library’ thing has done got out of hand!)
LikeLike
I’ve just started rereading these works after a long hiatus, and still find them utterly gripping. And I credit Rosemary Sutcliff with my ongoing love of Roman Britain. 🙂
But that’s not what I’m here to mutter about… rather, being unable to locate a copy of the novel about Alkibiades — is this her work, that ends with the chilling line, “and now there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves” …. ?? (as best I can reproduce it from memory of a single reading 30+ years ago, but you can see how it’s stayed with me!)
LikeLike
It is indeed the last line of “Flowers of Adonis”, and you’ve remembered it almost spot-on – leave out the “now” and you have it.
LikeLike
Wow, the ol’ noggin is still working, heh 🙂 That line made my hair stand on end for days afterward. It’s just occurred to me that I’ve echoed it, not the same words but the same feeling, a couple times in my own writing (I write space opera) — that it was the source I’d learned from.
LikeLike
Hilary, I can totally relate to your experience of rediscovery :-). I have read many of Sutcliff’s books as a child and teenager snd started re-reading them a couple of years ago as a “mid-fortyager” and it was like meeting old friends. visiting old places, but seeing them now from a different perspective. For instance I am now able to read them in English, too (as a child I only read the German translations) and noticed some very interesting and peculiar aspects about the process of translation (I wrote to Anthony about that and he very kindly made a main posting ot that letter, too), and also I understood much more of the background of the stories. I marvel at the obvious fact that Rosemary Sutcliff’s books are equally fascinating for children and adults and somehow seem to mature from within. Everything “adult” I find in them, now, has been there from the very beginning on. I did not overlook it then, but I looked at it with a child’s eyes. Now I look at the same things and see the adult meaning AND the meaning they held for me as a child. Take Aquila wedding Ness. As a child I was mostly troubled with how unnecessary the whole thing was, since she obviously didn’t want to marry him and he only married her to please Ambrosius. She was a nuisance! Now I can still see the trouble and pain in the story, still see them not wanting to marry each other, but as a wife and mother-of-four I can identify much better with Ness. I wonder what these books will feel like when i read them at age seventy ;-).-
LikeLike
I am looking for any novel about King Richard lll which includes his illegitimate son John of Gloucester there is one called John of Gloucester by Wendy Miall but I am looking for other novels about King Richard lll which includes John of Gloucester.
[email protected]
Thanks.
LikeLike
Thanks Anthony. If you’ve a minute, would you mind removing my careless apostrophe in “open’s” towards the end of that post? many thanks H
LikeLike
I rediscovered Rosemary Sutcliff’s novels this winter, having watched the film The Eagle. I remembered how much I had enjoyed reading a number of her books as a teenager, so launched in with The Lantern Bearers, as the first one that I came across on my eldest son’s rather disorganised bookshelves. I then read The Silver Branch and just for completeness, reverted to The Eagle of the Ninth which I had read repeatedly as a child and young teen, so it definitely felt like rediscovering an old friend. If you know the series you’ll realise this is completely reverse order, which just seemed to add to the charm. And I honestly thought that was it for the series. Although I knew there were plenty of other books, I didn’t realise that she had continued the story over so many generations, and in fact that, in many ways the climax was still to come. So how wonderful when my caring husband produced A Sword at Sunset as a Christmas present. Genuinely, the book I really wanted to exist, but had no knowledge of! I escaped into the dark ages for the Christmas holidays and thoroughly enjoyed the epic tale, the battles, the adventuring, the sad realness of the love story and the freshness of the storytelling, despite its roots in the Arthur legend.
Now, Dawn Wind came along at Easter, just republished and a very fine piece of writing. I really have no memory of reading this as a teenager and although the book may have been aimed at young adults, either that’s still the stage I’m at (I wish) or there’s really a great deal more there for the taking. The characterisation is convincing, the story enthralling as each new stage of Owain’s life open’s up. The descriptions of place, of time, of conflict, of dogs and horses, loyalty, love and commitment are as engaging as ever. In case you’ve not read it, I’ll not spoil the ending, but go on the adventure and discover what happens in Owain’s long journey across dark age Britain for yourself!
LikeLike
Thank you for posting this. I trust it is OK with you, but I have re-produced your comments as a main post on the blog. Your professional expertise shows!(I looked up Cygnus Extra …)
LikeLike
It’s noticeable how many historical novelists who set their stories in the Ancient Roman world (and in particular Roman Britain) claim Rosemary Sutcliff as a major inspiration.
Here’s a dedication from Hazel B. West, whose 2012 young adult novel “By Blood and by Bond” is set in Rome and Caledonia.
“This book is for Rosemary Sutcliff who inspired so many of us and because, one: she made me realize that brotherhood stories were not totally out of fashion, two: she showed me that Romans weren’t all bad…if they were written into fiction, and three: because I wouldn’t know what to do without Marcus, Esca and all the others.”
LikeLike
I just added a link to the text of the introduction written by Elizabeth Goudge for Rosemary Sutcliff’s “Rider on a White Horse” to an earlier post about the connection between these two authors, who corresponded with each other and for a time shared the same publisher. I was idly browsing the internet to see if the text of EG’s introduction to Sutcliff’s “Sword at Sunset”was available online. I didn’t find it, but did come across this lovely little anectode from Deborah Gaudin, a fan and collector of Goudge’s work, which shows the warmth of their relationship:
“…I found the guide she had written for the Chapel at Buckler’s Hard, and that she had written the jacket publicity for a number of books, ‘Rider on the White Horse’, and ‘Sword at Sunset’ among them, both written by another favourite author of mine Rosemary Sutcliff. This is when the wonderful, Goudgian event occurred. My husband mentioned that he had seen the first editions of ‘The Sword and the Circle’, ‘The Road to Camlann’ and ‘The Light Beyond the Forest’ by Rosemary Sutcliff for sale, and that they were signed by the author. Was I interested? Of course I was, how could I resist?
When the books arrived, they were in perfect condition, obviously never been read, and indeed they were signed by the author, and dedicated to ‘Elizabeth with love.’ One of the books also contained a letter. It said; ‘Elizabeth, my poor Darling! Jessie told me about your poor pinned leg and I am so sorry! This is really just a Get Well Card, I’ll write properly when you feel more up to letters, and meanwhile I’ll phone Jessie for news. Much love Rosemary’. It was dated April 24th. For anyone familiar with Elizabeth’s biography, the connection of the two names Jessie and Elizabeth in the same missive had to be more than coincidence! In the ‘World of Elizabeth Goudge’ Sylvia Gower tells us how in the early spring of 1978, Elizabeth had a fall at home and injured her leg so badly she had to go to hospital. Seven months later she was still in pain enough to mention her ‘pinned leg’ in correspondence. Elizabeth told a reporter that Jessie was a great help to her with her files and papers, and indeed was told to burn all superfluous material after her death. I am sure that Elizabeth would have corresponded with a number of contemporary authors, such as Rosemary Sutcliff, especially as they belonged to the same publishing house. If a friend knows another is unwell and wishes to send love and good wishes to them, what could be more natural than sending something “homemade” or personal with the wish? For most of us it would be a pot of home made jam, or a bunch of garden flowers, between authors, first editions of their new book! What an addition to a collection. To be able to think that Elizabeth would at least have had the letter read to her, if not actually held it. The very books themselves must have come from her library. I think that along with Parson Hawthorne (‘The White Witch’) Elizabeth held books to be ‘the best of the earthly meats’, and how rich a new book could make them both feel. These books have now become a treasured part of my collection, a nugget of gold in a jewelled casket of books.”
Full text of Deborah Gaudin’s post here:
http://www.elizabethgoudge.org/Postings/Paper%20Treasure.htm
As we know from another of Anthony’s posts, EG sent a signed copy of her book “The White Witch” to Rosemary Sutcliff, so this friendly exchange of work was a two-way thing.
https://rosemarysutcliff.com/2012/02/07/rosemary-sutcliff-loved-elizabeth-goudges-novels-signed-copy-of-the-white-witch/
LikeLike
One of my personal favourite “aha” moments comes in “Knight’s Fee”, set in 12th century Norman England. While out overnighting in the Sussex Downs hills with an old shepherd, young Randal holds in his hand an ancient flint axe he recognises instinctively as having been made for a man “left-handed or one-handed”, and in that haunting moment touches Drem of “Warrior Scarlet”, its owner in the ninth century BC. This scene is a powerful expression of Sutcliff’s belief in the living land as the ongoing wellspring of continuity throughout the ages (and perhaps even of her belief in reincarnation), and sends a tingle up the spine.
“’I’ll show you a thing’, Lewin said to Randal. He put in the boy’s hand a thing somewhat like a double axe-head made from flint…Without knowing quite why he did so, for he was not left-handed, Randal put out his left hand for it, and felt his fingers close over it as something infinitely familiar. But he had never seen such an object before….
The thing he held was suddenly warm as though fresh from the knapper’s hand, and the outer crust of the centuries all gone like a little dust, leaving the beautiful, dark blue flint in all its newness. It was as though the thing flowered in his hands. He had an extraordinary sense of kinship with the unknown man who had first closed his fingers over that strange weapon; … an extraordinary feeling of oneness with Dean, of some living bond running back through the blue, living flint, making him part of other men and sheep and wolves, and they part of him.
This was the true seisin.”
LikeLike
Thanks. When I have some more I shall do some posts with these…
LikeLike
I first heard a Rosemary Sutcliffe story when I was in Primary School in the 1960s. We had a student teacher on teaching practise and each afternoon, for 30 minutes, we were invited to rest our heards on the desk, close our eyes and listen as she read ‘A Knight’s Fee’ . Magical moments which stayed with me all my life and sparked an interest in history. My children have both read many of her books, with my younger boy buying a copy of ‘The Lantern Bearers’ whilst visiting Housesteads Fort and receiving the DVD ‘The Eagle’ for Christmas!
LikeLike
David, thank you for commenting with this memory of Knight’s Fee by Rosemary Sutcliff (gentle nudge, Sutcliff has no E). She would have loved this evidence of her appeal as a story-teller – and, it would seem, of a skilful story-reader. I should re-read Knight’s Fee …
LikeLike
And if anyone’s ever idly wondered where Clusium was, it was an ancient Etruscan city, one of the Etrurian confederacy that fought it out with Rome for supremacy in the early days. Clusium did eventually become subjected to Rome.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clusium
As for why Rosemary Sutcliff used it for her famous legionary marching song in “The Eagle of the Ninth”, I think the answer lies in her early schooling. She mentions in her autobiography, “Blue Remembered Hills”, just how much she and her classmates enjoyed declaiming Macaulay’s stirring poem, “Horatius (at the Bridge)”. Who could forget that image of Horatius and his two comrades gallantly holding the Pons Sublicius against the invading army of Lars Porsena, king of Clusium in the late 6th century BC, during the war between Rome and Clusium?
Meanwhile the Tuscan army, right glorious to behold,
Came flashing back the noonday light,
Rank behind rank, like surges bright of a broad sea of gold.
Four hundred trumpets sounded a peal of warlike glee,
As that great host, with measured tread, and spears advanced, and ensigns spread,
Rolled slowly towards the bridge’s head where stood the dauntless Three.
http://www.englishverse.com/poems/horatius
Here are Rosemary Sutcliff’s own words, so you can see the effect Macaulay’s poem had upon her young sensibilities.
“We learned verse upon verse of Macaulay’s ‘Lays of Ancient Rome’ and proclaimed them with glorious fierceness, stiffening the sinews, summoning up the blood and lending the eyes a terrible aspect under the beetling brows of imaginary helmets:
‘Lars Porsena of Clusium, by the Nine Gods he swore That the great house of Tarquin should suffer wrong no more. By the Nine Gods he swore it, and named a trysting day, And bade his messengers ride forth, East and West and South and North, To summon his array.’
Who were the Nine Gods? What wrong was the great house of Tarquin suffering? We had no idea. But the lines have the true trumpet ring to them yet; the purposeful tramp of a legion’s feet on the march.”
LikeLike
Thanks Anne : see http://wp.me/p42Yg-2ql
LikeLike
Somehow I missed reading Rosemary Sutcliff when I was a child, but better late than never! (I’m 56 years old.) I have declared this to be “Rosemary Sutcliff Summer” and am reading every one of her books that I can get my hands on. Am anxiously awaiting the arrival of a copy of “Blue Remembered Hills” which I ordered online last week, and am nearly finished reading “Eagle of the Ninth.” Am also looking forward to her Arthurian tales-it’s going to be a great summer, filled with exceptional reading, thanks to Rosemary Sutcliff!
LikeLike
Great Project. Do write here about your progress … I love the idea of “Rosemary Sutcliff Summer”!
LikeLike
Sent to me by Mary Young on16 May, 2012
Dear Anthony
When I was young, I recall listening to Children’s Hour in which The Eagle of the Ninth was serialised. I loved it. Now I’m 65, and have just started to read the book! It’s such a beautiful book…atmospheric and informative. I live in Yeovil, Somerset, so I have plenty of Roman traces all around!
With kind wishes,
Mary Young
LikeLike
Delighted to see this Rosemary Sutcliffe site! I adore her books – my favourites, I think, are Warrior Scarlet, Song for a Dark Queen and Frontier Wolf (which I think of whenever I go to Hadrian’s Wall), and her beautiful telling of Tristan and Iseult is, for me, the definitive version of that sad story. I wrote a fan letter to her when I was about 12, and was delighted beyond measure to receive a handwritten reply. She told me about how real her characters were to her, and how delighted she was to know that other people loved them as much as she did. I can’t wait until my son is old enough to read them too.
LikeLike
Did you keep the letter?
LikeLike
Oh of course! I had a panic this morning because it wasn’t where I thought it was – but I found it tucked inside my copy of Song for a Dark Queen. Would you like me to scan and email a copy to you?
LikeLike
I would love that, thank you. a(dot)g(dot)lawton(at)gmail(dot)com .
LikeLike
A photographer now lives and works there.
See https://rosemarysutcliff.com/2011/02/23/living-and-being-creative-in-rosemary-sutcliffs-house-in-walberton-sussex/
LikeLike
Antony, could you commission someone to write Rosemary’s biography? I think it is scandalous that so great a writer (and so wonderful a friend) should not have a study done of her, except for Margaret Meek’s.
LikeLike
It requires the right person, at the right time… And a couple of significant possibilities have come and gone. I and ‘her’ agents have it in view, so one day… for I too would like to see such a study, but only an excellent one.
LikeLike
A very interesting article by Annie Murphy Paul was recently published in “The New York Times” about the effects on the brain of fiction.
We all know that we particualrly respond to vivid and evocative stories like Rosemary Sutcliff’s, with characters we can engage with. This study comes up with some neurological reasons why this is so.
“Brain scans are revealing what happens in our heads when we read a detailed description, an evocative metaphor or an emotional exchange between characters. Stories, this research is showing, stimulate the brain and even change how we act in life….
The brain, it seems, does not make much of a distinction between reading about an experience and encountering it in real life; in each case, the same neurological regions are stimulated. Keith Oatley, an emeritus professor of cognitive psychology at the University of Toronto (and a published novelist), has proposed that reading produces a vivid simulation of reality, one that “runs on minds of readers just as computer simulations run on computers.” Fiction — with its redolent details, imaginative metaphors and attentive descriptions of people and their actions — offers an especially rich replica. Indeed, in one respect novels go beyond simulating reality to give readers an experience unavailable off the page: the opportunity to enter fully into other people’s thoughts and feelings.”
Full text
“The Brain in Fiction”
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/18/opinion/sunday/the-neuroscience-of-your-brain-on-fiction.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all
LikeLike
Sorry, must have had a dozy moment there – make that Foreword, of course!
LikeLike
Recently we were chatting on the Historical Fiction Online forum http://www.historicalfictiononline.com/forums/index.php
about how good it had been to see “Sword at Sunset” reclaimed from out-of-print wilderness when it was reissued in 2008 by the Chicago Review Press .
It came to mind that you might like to read the Foreward for that edition, which was written by Jack Whyte, acclaimed author of the Arthurian series, ”The Camulod Chronicles”. (I have truncated it a bit as it’s quite long, but can provide you with the whole piece if you would like to see it.)
Foreward to the 2008 edition of “Sword at Sunset”, by Rosemary Sutcliff
In the early 1960s, when I was studying in France, an American friend gave me a novel by Rosemary Sutcliff called “Sword at Sunset”, and I am not exaggerating when I say it changed my life. At the time I had no idea how much the experience had affected me; it had not yet entered my mind that I might one day become a writer of any kind. But that initial encounter with Rosemary Sutcliff’s magnificent story set in motion a chain of events, and of perceptions, that I have lived with ever since. “Sword at Sunset” marked my maiden voyage into the realms of historical fiction, and was one of the very few books – I can think of only three in my life – that I read compulsively and then went straight from the last page back to the first to read it again. But already in the first of those two obsessive readings, all my previously held viewpoints and opinions regarding the Arthurian legend had been set aside or altered forever.
Rosemary Sutcliff wrote of primitive post-Roman Britain and the warlord called Artos the Bear, who fought so long and hard to unite and defend his fragmented holdings against the depredations of the invading Anglo-Saxon hordes. Her vision was so authoritative, so credible and convincing, that I never again thought of Arthur’s followers as knights in shining armor, nor viewed his story only in terms of myth, romance and supernatural mysticism. Instead, I thought from that point on about the historical Arthur, the man rather than the mythical king, and I saw the magnitude of the task facing him in human terms – clan and tribal loyalties and prejudices to be overcome, strategy and tactics to be envisioned and developed….
I remember when I was about to publish my first novel, “The Skystone”, in 1992, it occurred to me that I should dedicate it to Rosemary Sutcliff and “Sword at Sunset”. I didn’t do it, and I have sometimes regretted that. Now, however, I am privileged to be able to say to a whole new generation of readers, “Sit back, make yourself comfortable, and get ready to enjoy a tale that will thrill you to the marrow”.
Jack Whyte
LikeLike
well, then, give me your address, and i ll do just that..
my mail is [email protected]
LikeLike
that would be lovely, thank you.
LikeLike
I still have the letter, I keep it inside the Mark of the Horse Lord (my favourite)
But as i am very bad at scanning and I even suppose my scanner is not really up to it’sjob, i would rather copy it and send the copy to you, like it was done traditionnally…. If you don’t mind.
pia
LikeLike
I started reading Rosemary Sutcliff’s books, when I was 14. I even wrote her a letter once, at the age of 20, to tell her my admiration and she replied me very kindly.
I am 56 now and i still love these books, and read them time and time again.
Reading Rosemary Sutcliff didn’t start my passion for history, as i always had it, But it started my passion for Britain, which I passed on to my husband and my children.
She was a very important person in my life.
pia
LikeLike
What a pleasure to read this comment, and to learn how Romie (as I knew her) was such an important person in your life. Thank you
Would you be able to send me a scanned copy of the letter she sent you – if you still have it? Would you be happy for me to put a copy here on this blog?
LikeLike
A pleasant surprise to see Rosemary Sutcliff’s novels recommended as cool teenage reads in the New York Public Library’s “Stuff For the Teen Age” blog
http://www.nypl.org/blog/2011/02/16/hot-historical-fiction-part-1-gladiators-roman-soldiers-and-slaves
LikeLike
I was just checking out The Black Gate, one of my favourite websites, and blow me down, Rosemary Sutcliff’s name jumped out at me.
Some Notes on “The Eagle of the Ninth” by Matthew David Surridge
http://www.blackgate.com/2012/02/13/some-notes-on-the-eagle-of-the-ninth/#more-30023
LikeLike
We’ve just been discussing the connection between Wallace Breem and Rosemary Sutcliff at the Historical Writers’ Association website, and I thought it might also be of interest to Rosemary Sutcliff fans.
Wallace Breem is best known for his novel “Eagle in the Snow”, set at the frontiers of the dying Roman Empire. However he did write two other excellent historical novels, sadly underrated. I recently came across “The Leopard and the Cliff”, set on the Northwest Frontier of India and Afghanistan in 1919, and reprinted in 2010 due to its resonance with ongoing events in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
I was intrigued to find that Rosemary Sutcliff was an admirer of Breem’s and he acted as advisor for several of her novels, in particular “Frontier Wolf.” You can see how they would have had an affinity- apart from the fact that both found Kipling’s work a major inspiration, many of their central themes are similar- honour, duty, brotherhood of arms and the acceptance of sacrifice as the price sometimes required for the good of the whole – the sort of virtues that went with the best of the old British Imperial service. It’s quite possible to see common elements in “Frontier Wolf” and “Leopard and the Cliff” despite their very different settings; the delicate balance between conqueror and conquered, so easily destroyed, cross-cultural friendships irreparably damaged by conflicting loyalties, making the hard choices and the long trek from a remote outpost to safety while running the gauntlet of hostile tribesmen.
Breem’s personal situation also bore some resemblance to that of Marcus in “Eagle of the Ninth”, who lost the life he loved as an officer with the Roman Army, and went through a miserable time before making a new start. All Breem ever wanted was to be a Frontier Scout with the British Indian Army. He worked hard, made it and it was everything he’d dreamed of- he loved the life and thrived on it, expecting it to be his permanent career. However, with Partition in 1947 the Northwest Frontier became part of Pakistan. The British Raj in India was dissolved and British Indian Army officers surplus to requirements. Breem was left bereft. He had a dark and confused time for a bit trying various odds and ends before eventually finding a new career as a law librarian. He actually wrote “The Leopard and the Cliff” on the ship home from India as a way of distracting himself from his unhappiness, though he didn’t publish it till many years later.
Rosemary Sutcliff loved “Eagle in the Snow”- here is the endorsement she wrote for it, published with the third printing of the first edition in 1970:
‘I found it most compelling, and painfully moving, a book of great integrity which impressed me from the first page with its feeling of complete authenticity. I felt that I really was reading a general’s memoirs (considerably more enjoyable than most generals’ memoirs!). A book very much after my own heart!’
If anyone’s interested in reading more about “The Leopard and the Cliff”, I have posted a review at the HWA website, where some of the points I’ve just mentioned came up, so please forgive me if I repeat myself.
http://www.thehwa.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,628.msg2998.html#new
LikeLike
I have been addicitve to Sutcliff’s book for about 40 years now. I have read everything by her in German and a lot in English and she is one of the very few authors I came across who benefits from translations. Mostly, when I read a book in German and then in the English original I prefer the original in comparison. Even if the translation is good (not every one is, Harry Potter is a linguistic catastrophe) normally the power and motion of the English is hardly transferred into German. Not so with Rosemary Sutcliff. Even by different translators her books are every bit enjoyable in German, sometimes even more. Where the English language is strongly built upon verbs and verbal structures (the abundant “-ing-forms” are something every German pupils has to struggle to understand the concept of), German sets the focus much more on nouns and adjectives – and so does Rosemary Sutcliff. When she describes a scene – maybe due to being forced to just sit and watch for so many years of her early life – she concentrates on things that don’t move or change, on colours and textures. Like in later life as a miniature painter she draws her scenes in minute detail – much like a German sentence as Mark Twain depicted it ;-). I find this most unusual and remarkable and one the increasingly rare examples for an author whose style of writing (not so much the plots) is in direct correspondence with her very special biography.
LikeLike
Fascinating. Thank you. I shall, if I may, put this as a main post too.
LikeLike
Anthony’s earlier mention of the 1991 interview with John Withrington got me hunting out my copy for a re-read.
We’ve also recently discussed the chronology of the novels linked by the Aquila family dolphin ring. Readers have often wondered if Rosemary Sutcliff had the whole Aquila family sequence already mapped out when she wrote “Eagle of the Ninth”, so I thought it might be of interest to note her emphatic reply when Withrington asked about this.
JW: “Sword at Sunset” is one of a series in which you use a leitmoif, that of the flawed emerald signet ring, to trace the history of a family from Roman Britain right through to Norman times. The first novel in which you used this was “Eagle of the Ninth” in 1954, but it appears later in “Frontier of the Wolf” in 1980. Was it your intention to construct a magnus opus, an epic from start to finish, in which Arthur appeared in the middle?
RS: No, it just happened. It did that of its own accord.
Intriguingly, in this interview Sutcliff Indicates more than once that she feels her novels to a certain extent shape themselves or are shaped by their characters – for example a question about “The Shining Company” elicits the response; “That’s, as I say, because of them, not me.”
LikeLike
Thank you for this!
Yes , Rosemary often spoke with me about how the stories took on a life of their own. She was not always sure where events were going exactly nor how people would develop.
LikeLike
The article, the report of an interview, struck me as intriguing: John Withrington’s questions are far longer than Rosemary Sutcliff’s answers! I sense that Rosemary was rather un-impressed by the questions!
LikeLike
Hi
I have just picked up an uncorrected proof copy of “The rider of the white horse”
The authors name is spelt Sutcliffe with an e on the endit is in very good condition binding wise, the pages are very browned from age though.
Any idea if it has any value?
LikeLike
I am afraid I have no idea!
LikeLike
Hi
Just come across this site. Saw the ‘Eagle’ movie today under duress as I felt sure it would be another movie massacre of a good book (and this being my second favourite one from my childhood, I read it when I was nine…). I was really taken aback. The plot change was clever and the way the characters were developed was really excellent. I liked both of them much more in the film than in the book and their developing friendship was more believable. I am just so surprised to to have a film version of something I preferred to the book. Incidentally, my favourite book was Rosemary Sutcliff’s ‘The Lantern Bearers’ – any chance of giving that epic-like one a go?
LikeLike
That would be good; but nothing I am afraid is in the pipeline. Depends partly on success of The Eagle.
LikeLike
Dear Anthony,
My wife and I visted Rosemary in the 80s and recorded a lengthy interview with her. Its got lost somewhere but if we ever find it we’ll make a copy for you. Her work was a huge inspiration to us as writers and we continued to correspond with her until her death. All the best. John
LikeLike
I would of course love to have a copy.
LikeLike
This is a belated thank you to the recent comments …
LikeLike
Have just returned to 21st century after a week in Romano – Saxon Britain, re-reading Dawn Wind and the Lantern Bearers. It’s hard to come back….but the internet means I’ve just found this site, which I’ll be visiting again.
Best wishes
LikeLike
Hi there,
I was so inspired after reading about Rosemary that I wrote an article on my blog “1001 Secrets of Successful Writers” at my site http://www.darrellpitt.com
The web address is:
http://www.darrellpitt.com/2011/05/rosemary-sutcliff-story-every-writer.html
She is an absolute inspiration to people everywhere. Thanks for keeping her spirit alive.
Regards,
Darrell Pitt
LikeLike
I have seen “The eagle” and was disappointed its plot divurged so much from “The eagle of the Ninth”, though I enjoyed it very much, as a film. Now, I would like to see the BBC’s dramatisation of the novel, made in 1977. I gather that a lot of people have contacted the BBC about this already.
I was reading your Facebook site which is attached to this one; and saw that one person was having difficulty contacting the BBC. The address is:
British Broadcasting Corporation, Wood Lane,
London W12 7BX
The corporation can also be contacted through its Website: http://www.bbc.co.uk
Go to the bottom of the page, and you’ll find a button reading “Contact us” in the right-corner
LikeLike
One name you might like to add to the “Rosemary Sutcliff influenced and inspired” list is the English author Lynne Ellison, who wrote the novel The Green Bronze Mirror, about a teenage girl who goes back in time to ancient Rome, at the age of 14. Lynne is still alive and living in Sheffield, UK. Her account of how she came to write this book, as well as a free extract of it, are available at http://www.authonomy.com/writing-community/profile/22340dcd-fd3f-43a3-a774-404d67637a08/lynne-ellison/
LikeLike
I have added her … see at http://wp.me/p42Yg-1LG
LikeLike
Belatedly, I thought to add a link to my blog pointing here to RosemarySutcliff.com — added it just now —
LikeLike
May I invite you to read my blog post on visiting the ruins of the Roman town of Viroconium? It starts out about how I first became acquainted with “The Eagle of the Ninth” (in sixth grade, in the US), because I don’t seem to be able to write about one thing at a time. Ah, well.
general link: http://mefoley.wordpress.com
permanent link to that post:
http://mefoley.wordpress.com/2011/04/01/viroconium/
LikeLike
I have belated used your comment – I hope that is OK? http://wp.me/p42Yg-1LI
LikeLike
Okay? I’m delighted you were interested!
LikeLike
Hi Anthony
I have just used the interview material published by the Broadcasters Bulletin to create an interview with you for Castledown Radio. It will be transmitted on my morning show tomorrow, the 26th, at 8.30 and 9.30 (it’s in two parts). You can listen live via http://www.castledownradio.info. If you want the mp3 files send me your email address.
Best regards
John Sparrow
Castledown Radio
104.7 FM
Ludgershall, Wilts
LikeLike
Thanks. I’ll try to listen; but yes please for the mp3 files – I will email you.
LikeLike
An interesting article by author Manda Scott in the “Independent” looks at the role Rosemary Sutcliff and the “Eagle of the Ninth” have played for today’s crop of historical novelists writing fiction with a Roman setting, herself included.
‘Rome recast for today as “Eagle of the Ninth” is adapted for big screen’
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/rome-recast-for-today-as-eagle-of-the-ninth-is-adapted-for-big-screen-2244715.html
LikeLike
My father was (and still is) a huge fan of Rosemary Sutcliff and when I was a kid he gave me every novel of hers that he could find. I loved them as much as he did, and I re-read them to this day. When my dad’s vikings novel Black Sun came out in 1980, Rosemary wrote the cover blurb – something that delighted both Dad and me, as you can imagine!
LikeLike
Thank you – a wonderful anecdote to receive. Have you the text of the cover blurb? (I shall try to track it down anyway).
LikeLike
I was a teenager when I read The Eagle Of The Ninth and it inspired me to both read and write. I told my teacher I wanted to be a writer, but being a disabled person, I doubted I would succeed. Not too long after the school had a visitor, it was Rosemary. I had my answer and I still have the passion for writing. In my opinion Rosemary is up there with the best.
LikeLike
Thanks for this. Rosemary would have been delighted to know of her effect on you as a visitor to your school: I have re-posted it on the main blog. I hope that’s OK?
Anthony
LikeLike
I can’t claim any past history, apart from the fact that The Eagle of the Ninth was one of the books that was on our list in school, and was particularly enjoyed.
So much so that, 30 years later, when I read the synopsis of the film, I turned to my wife and immediately recalled that I’d read a very similar book a long time ago.
That’s as good a tribute as I can give – given the hundreds of books that I’ve read in the intervening years, this story was still fondly recalled.
Robert
LikeLike
I remember visiting Rosemary once, as a small boy. I believe she is a second cousin to my father Malcolm. I would like to add someone famous to the family tree I am putting together and Rosemary would seem like a good candidate.
My late brother Michael was a polio victim and I believe the visit may have been to inspire him, by showing that a physical disability does not crush a creative spirit.
I have a childhood memory of Rosemary seated in a very bright room, adjacent to a wooded area. I also have a memory of seeing a red squirrel, the first I ever saw.
The point of this post is to try and establish the names of Rosemarys parents for my tree.
LikeLike
Great to hear from you. Yes Rosemary seems a good candidate for your famous family tree member. Rosemary’s father was George Ernest Sutcliff. Her mother’s name escapes me now I start typing but I will check up for you. She was my grandfather’s sister!
Sad to read that your brother both had polio and is now dead, but it would be good to think that he was indeed inspired. I suspect that the bright room you remeber is Rosemary’s study which had french windows and large other windows; and the wooded area was her garden which can be seen, as it is now here
LikeLike
In conjunction with the release of “The Eagle” movie and tie-in books, Ben Kane, author of the “Forgotten Legion Chronicles”, has written an article paying homage to Rosemary Sutcliff, and reviews of “The Eagle of the Ninth” and “Silver Branch”.
http://www.commandposts.com/author/bkane/
Command Posts are also running a competition for 5 free sets of the “Eagle of the Ninth” trilogy, though it looks as if this may only be for US residents
http://www.commandposts.com/2011/02/win-1-of-5-sets-of-the-roman-britain-trilogy/
LikeLike
We live in Rosemary’s old house in the lovely Sussex village of Walberton. Rosemary lived here until she died in 1992. She is very fondly remembered here, having been an active member of village life. Our next door neighbours daughter remembers coming to the house to help out and many other villagers have stories to tell, we have heard how Rosemary would welcome groups of children from the village school for talks.
The cover photograph for Blue Remembered Hills was taken in the garden, last year we replaced the dovecote in her memory.
The property includes a flint cottage which I think was once a barn/pigsty. In Rosemary’s day her housekeeper lived here. As a photographer I use this as an office & studio, and we are aware of a creative atmosphere in the house, a legacy of Rosemary’s that we continue.
One day we hope that English Heritage will see fit to honour her memory with a blue plaque.
LikeLike
How wonderful to read this. I know the house well, having spent many a day there from age about 6. Latterly I used to come to stay with Rosemary with my two small children. We, or at least they, were terrorised by her little dogs! I am delighted you have replaced the dovecote in her memory-she treasured it. And she would have been so delighted that creativity continued at Swallowshaw.
Actually her handyman-driver lived in the flint cottage, as I recall. The housekeeper(s) always lived in the house, partly so there was someone around if Rosemary (who was severely disabled) needed help.
It would be wonderful if you could get some of the villagers to post their stories here too. And we should pursue the blue plaque!
LikeLike
Absolutely, we should pursue the blue plaque! I was wondering what had happened to Swallowshaw, having visited it almost annually from 1969 to 1987. What a lovely tribute!
LikeLike
I have come here via the Awfully Big Blog Adventure site. I first read Rosemary Sutcliff as a child. Her books came to via the Children’s Country Lending Service – a marvellous scheme that got library books, free of charge, to children in remote areas of South Australia.
For me the books were far more than mere stories. They were an escape into an entirely different world. The characters were my companions in what would otherwise have been a very lonely existence. My love of history at school can be directly traced back to reading Rosemary Sutcliff and Cynthia Harnett.
Some years later I mustered enough courage to actually write her a letter and thank her. I knew it would be as difficult for her to reply as it was for me to actually write the letter so I asked her not to answer but a letter came back anyway – in her own handwriting. I have had to write thousands of letters over the years and received thousands in reply. Eventually I had to destroy all but a few but I have kept hers and one or two others. She also supported my endeavours in getting International Literacy Year off the ground by asking a number of people of her acquaintance to write to the United Nations in support of the idea.
It would have been fascinating to actually personally know someone with such a feel for history. Best wishes with your endeavours.
LikeLike
Catriona: What a lovely comment to wake up to …. it does not surprise me that Romie – as I knew her – responded by hand to you, as she always did to every single letter.
May I take your ‘comment’ and post it on the main page? I would love to do that.
LikeLike
Hi, Anthony,
As you know I’ve written a few appreciative posts about Rosemary Sutcliff on my blog. Here’s one of the many facets of her writing that appeals to me.
She’s such a great story-teller that I sometimes find myself racing through her descriptions of the natural environment to get to the next development of plot. I think she put some of her best descriptive images closest to unfolding plot climaxes. Your eye catches the fine phrases and, if you’re like me, this puts you in a quandary, whether to move swiftly on or linger over the marvelous images. Here are some of the phrases I’ve most enjoyed (usually on my second or third reading of the books in which they occur):
— a brief wing of sunlight brushed along the flank of the little glen
— a dark soughing of the wind across the dead heather
— the green rooty smell of things growing, and the air full of the lonely bubbling mating-call of curlew
— the first pollen scattered from the whippy sprays so that they rode through a sudden golden mist
— Snow was still spitting down the wind as they rode out, but the sky was less full than yesterday; and presently as they rode, the low dawn showed a bar of cold daffodil yellow through a break in the cloud-room far down to the south-east.
— A puddling of snow still lingered in the hollows; and far off, the higher hills of the Frontier Country were still maned and crested with white; but nearer moors showed the sodden darkness of last year’s heather, and the wind that always harped along the Wall had gone round to the West, and the green plover were calling.
— He saw the hearth-smoke rising blue against the tawny flank of the mountain beyond, and a few people moving about the kale plots and the cattle-byres. The track swung right hand, towards the village, skirting a small village, an orchard cradled in the loop of the river, the apples ripe on the dripping branches of the little half-wild trees.
This last one describes an art and by extension the culture of a people:
— “Look now at this shield-boss. See the bulging curves that flow from each other as water flows from water and wind from wind, as the stars turn in the heavens and blown sand drifts into dunes. These are the curves of life; and the man who traced them had in him knowledge of things that your people have lost the key to – if they ever had it.”
Jeff
LikeLike
thank you!
LikeLike
Dear Anthony,
I was a bit left out in my family when everyone else was reading & enjoying The Eagle of the Ninth (it was too serious for me then) until I got a copy of The Armourer’s House (‘cosy & sweet’ = just right).
It became my favourite book and I later called my cat Tamsyn – then regretted not keeping the name available for my firstborn.
Having authors and books that we all like is curiously important for families and I was surprised quite how delighted I was when my niece’s frst work experience on a film set was make-up for roman soldiers for the new film of one of ‘our’ books.
One day I’d like to plot the story on Google Earth then visit some of the places Tamsyn visited.
Warm Regards,
Alison.
PS I always wondered what the carols sounded like. Now, by the power of you-tube, I can hear them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUTINiGtctc&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzptn_a2QGs .
LikeLike
Hello, here is a nice academic site which has reviews of several works of Arthurian fiction:
http://www.cit.griffith.edu.au/~s285238/DECB/DECB-fiction_reviews.html
The author is Professor Howard Wiseman of Griffith University in Australia.
The Lantern Bearers and Sword of Sunset are reviewed here, and come off better than most.
As for me, I really liked them, and I’m glad my interest in Arthurian novels led me to discover Sutcliff. I’ve also read The Shining Company – more of the same good gloomy stuff. I’m trying to finish The Eagle of the Ninth before the movie comes out.
What are the chances of the other dolphin ring books, especially the two Arthurian ones, being filmed in the future? It’s just that there are quite a few Arthurian projects in the works of late. The people behind The Tudors are doing Camelot, and Hollywood will be making three movies, two of them called Excalibur. The other will be called Pendragon.
LikeLike
Thanks for this. I live in some hope someone may be inspired to do a film of a later dolphin ring book ….
LikeLike
With excitement about “The Eagle” movie building up, I thought maybe other readers might like to check out this information sheet (with photo) from the Reading Museum on the Silchester Eagle, the discovery of which was the inspiration for Rosemary Sutcliff’s novel “Eagle of the Ninth”.
http://romanhistorybooks.typepad.com/files/sileagle-38.pdf
LikeLike
This is fantastic! Thanks Anne.
LikeLike
Jim Bob
I don’t know how your search has gone, but RS’s Camelot stories are available as a 3-in-1 edition which is can be bought from Amazon via various sellers. It isn’t currently in print, but second-hand copies are readily available, and not too expensive.
http://www.amazon.com/King-Arthur-Trilogy-Rosemary-Sutcliff/dp/0099401649
Cheers,
Anne
LikeLike
Thanks Anne for this
LikeLike
I see the movie trailer for “The Eagle” is now out on You Tube for anyone wanting a taster.
LikeLike
Sorry; a new job is keeping me from this blog and keeping up-to-date. This will improve: Rosemary Sutcliff’s 1st cousin twice removed (my son!) is going to help for the next few weeks.
I saw the whole film last week, kindly invited to the cast and crew preview. The film is very, very good …
LikeLike
This is a wonderful site. May I just point out a small error. You say that The Lantern Bearers is set in the seventh century AD. Surely, however, it’s set in the fifth century?
LikeLike
oops! WIll amend to ensure accuracy….thanks for highlighting this. And of course thanks for the kind compliment. Maybe you’d write something at the You! tab about your reading of RS? (And anyone else who reads this)
LikeLike
Dear Anthony,
I’m trying to locate all of the Camelot Novels. The only one that appears to currently be in print is The Sword and the Circle. Do you know where in the US I can find all three? Thanks!
Blessings,
Jim Bob
LikeLike
sorry for delay…I have been otherwise occupied. I will check.
LikeLike
Jim Bob, there is an edition (a UK one) which has the three books in one volume, under the title The King Arthur Trilogy. Here is the citation, and you can find it from Amazon.co.uk or blackwell.co.uk:
Sutcliff, Rosemary. The King Arthur Trilogy. London: Random House UK, 1999. ISBN10: 0099401649 . GBP8.99
LikeLike
Hi Anthony- I just came across this excellent article on The Cimmerian website by Keith Taylor, posted on June 7. It would make a great addition to the material you’te gathering.
“Rosemary Sutcliff: An Unforgettable Writer”
http://www.thecimmerian.com/?p=15337
LikeLike
Well thank you; and you beat Google to it! I have added it as you suggest because it is indeed a great addition. See the new post http://wp.me/p42Yg-155
LikeLike
I enjoyed this. Thank you.
LikeLike
I’ve always been fascinated by Rosemary Sutcliffs ability to bring the world of Roman Britain vividly before your very eyes! On my part it’s also the ears, really…
It all started when I came across a copy of “The Mark of the Horselord”. Since then I’ve been hearing the soundtrack for a film that has not been produced yet. As a matter of fact I’ve started to write that music down; as a first short result I’d like to share a little video I’ve made (containing some bagpipe music, too, though I didn’t know it was Rosemary’s favourite instrument!).
Also without a film, the whole project will make a nice CD some day; just enjoy and watch out for more!
LikeLike
I only read two of her books when I was young, Beowulf and The High Deeds of Finn McCool. I really enjoyed these, especially the latter. Right now I am reading Eagle of the Ninth after discovering it in the library. Sutcliff is just as good as I remembered her from when I was young. I am exploring this website very carefully to avoid spoilers. I am pleased to see that a movie is being made, and the edition of the book I am reading also mentions that it was made into a BBC TV series. I wonder if that is available on DVD.
LikeLike
Thank you so much for commenting here – and keep enjoying TEOTN. Sadly there is no DVD that I am aware of. (I am new to blogging – what do you mean about spoiler?)
All the best
Anthony
LikeLike
Spoiler is not strictly a blogging term. It just means any information about the plot especially the ending.
LikeLike
The opening of The Hound of Ulster, Rosemary’s retelling of the Cuchulain legends, is one of her greatest pieces, I think.
LikeLike
I’ll not have the ability at 5:00 am in NorCal (CA) to really sum up all my thoughts about Rosemary Sutcliff. Little things really, the rose that eventually fell to the ground, summoning up the end of Marcus’s hopes of returning to the Legions, the dreadfully hard decision in The Silver Branch, I think, of whether to stay in Britain or return to Rome, or the painful reconciliation between brother and sister after the sister had been taken by the invading Barbarians.
Sutcliff, through her interlocking stories, shows Britain changing through the centuries, embracing new peoples and ways while always holding fast to a core set of beliefs. That sounds so dry and she is anything but. When I try to explain her to someone, I talk about the struggle between the light and the dark. The idea that a light, a belief, can be so strong as to change a life. Or I tell them that her characters are often not “whole” but that their struggles to become what they were born to be makes them whole.
All of my children, now 20 (girl), 22 & 29 (boy), have written about The Eagle of the Ninth for their first major school book reports — and it is a credit to Sutcliff that that experience did not ruin their love of her books.
I’m terrified that the upcoming movie with not do justice to Sutcliff’s masterpiece but it really doesn’t matter. When I stood on Hadrian’s Wall for the first time a few years back it was Sutcliff that was in my head.
LikeLike
… pretty good for 5.00am, it seems to me! Thank you so much for your comment. I am hopeful about the film: the producer, director and writer as well as starts Jamie Bell and Channing Tatum are passionate about the story and Rosemary Sutcliff; and they understand the essence of the story that Rosemary told while appreciating that a film story is not a book story.
LikeLike
Sutcliff died when I was one year old, but it wasn’t until my middle schooling years that I came across her work. Our homeschooling curriculum had one of her books in it, and I remember my mother sitting down each evening just before bed with my sister and I to read The Eagle of the Ninth to us. And oh! did I fall in love with that world! It was like magic to me. Sutcliff, like Kipling himself, could bring to life times in which she had never walked herself. Like any two people, Sutcliff and I don’t always see eye to eye, but she became my mentor. I loved her faint archaisms, her way of looking at the world as though it were a living thing. Sheer magic.
To each his own. My own is The Silver Branch. I don’t know how many times I’ve read it – I’m slowly working on complete memorization – but every aspect of it I find fascinating. She throws you at once into the Roman’s Gateway to Britain and you’re caught up in poor Justin’s life, his friendship with Flavius, his discovery of and growing loyalty to Britain, and his fight to save it. Without being heavy with historical facts, she drops you into the lives of people who could have very well being living at that time: simple, throbbing, real people.
That’s what I love about Sutcliff, and without her work I might never have thought to be a writer myself.
Along with the slow process of completely memorizing The Silver Branch, I am slowly working on world domination. My social sphere is somewhat limited, but I have managed to encounter one other rabidly ecstatic Sutcliff fan like myself, and I have pressed upon several others the desire to read her work. I am making slow progress, but it is progress nonetheless.
LikeLike
Though I’ve loved her books since I was about seven, It’s only in recent years that I’ve got round to reading some of Rosemary’s later books, and what a pleasant surprise they’ve proved to be! I’d previously thought that, after the great novels of the late 50s and 60s, she had rather declined into ‘retellings’, but many of these late novels are quite outstanding, and some feature periods she rarely if ever explored in her earlier books-the 17th century in Bonnie Dundee, and, marvellously, the Napoleonic period in the dreadfully titled ‘Blood and Sand’. And Frontier Wolf is a triumphant return to the world of ‘Eagle of the Ninth’ and perhaps the closest she comes to a Romano-British ‘Western’!
Having said all that, I do think that, in purely literary terms, perhaps ‘The Mark of the Horse Lord’ is her finest novel, and indeed one of the great landmarks of writing for young people.
LikeLike
Thank you for your comments on my blog on http://www.buzzaboutbooks.com to which I’ve replied.
I’m delighted to find your website as I’ve been a huge Rosemary Sutcliff fan ever since an inspired teacher read us ‘The Armourer’s House’ when I was eight.
And it’s great to read of your family connection, too. I did admire her. She was not afraid to go for the jugular, emotionaly speaking. Certain episodes in ‘Knight’s Fee’ and ‘Outcast’ still bring tears to my eyes.
Elizabeth Hawksley
http://www.elizabethhawksley.com
LikeLike
I think the first of Rosemary Sutcliff’s novels that I read as a youngster was from my local library. Dad and I used to go every other week (swimming on non-library Saturdays) and I would get out whole shelves of books, six at a time. Even then there was a definite historical slant to my reading matter, and thanks to a children’s edition of the legends of King Arthur that my Great-Granny had given me I was already primed to be a Sutcliff fan when I first spotted her works on the shelves. ‘Tristan & Iseult’ was an early favourite, renewed several times over so I could read it again, but eventually I started saving my pocket money to purchase books of my own. They were the Puffin paperbacks of the mid 1980s, with fairly realistic paintings for covers. I think the cover of ‘Frontier Wolf’ would have sold it to me even if the opening chapter hadn’t been such a belter of a hook. My absolute favourite Rosemary Sutcliff novel though was – and is – Dawn Wind. Dawn Wind has a cracking opening scene too, with young Owain waking up wounded on the battlefield to find the rest of his family dead. What would you do if you were the only survivor? I was hooked from the start, and young as I was I think I pretty much finished the novel in one sitting. I recently re-read Dawn Wind, twenty years on, and I still find it a gripping read. Sutcliff always kept her stories engaging and appropriate for younger readers but there is plenty of grit in them too. In Dawn Wind there are lice, wounds, malnutrition, hints at adultery and the deaths of several major characters. Sutcliff doesn’t pull her punches, and she certainly doesn’t patronise, which I think is why I can still enjoy the novels now. This approach has definitely influenced me in my own writing, and I hope I would never treat younger readers with less respect than adult readers either. I aspire to emulate Sutcliff’s lightness of touch too, neither scrimping on historical detail nor chucking in huge chunks of pace-killing description – a savvy young reader can be inspired to research around the story for themselves. I certainly was. Three degrees in archaeology later, with a lifetime of reading, and visiting historic sites, and now a historic novel of my own, I am grateful that my little provincial library kept a good stock of Sutcliff novels, and grateful to Rosemary Sutcliff herself for writing them.
Sally Newton
LikeLike
Hurrah for Sally! Dawn Wind is my favourite of Rosemary’s novels too, certainly of the novels for young adults. The opening is stunning. It puts the reader in a very, very quiet place, where the noise of the surrounding world is just too harsh. Every time I read it I feel that same sense of silence, and, more importantly, the sense of huge events happening, of which we have only a small sense. I think Rosemary’s imagination is full out in Dawn Wind, and would argue that it is the greatest of her novels for young readers. Could it please be brought back into print, soon?
LikeLike
I discovered Rosemary Sutcliff when I was twelve. We were on vacation at a friend’s house in the country. It was fall, and the air was just turning crisp. I sat on a rocking chair in front of the fireplace and read “Blood Feud” all day. Even now, the smell of wood-smoke in early autumn always reminds me of reading a good book.
What made Sutcliff’s books special was her well-crafted characters, and their bravery in dark times. I think she had a deeper understanding of trials because of the challenges in her own life. It comes through in her books: “Suddenly Marcus found that he was praying, praying as he had never prayed before, flinging his appeal for help up through the grey to the clear skies that were beyond.” (The Eagle of the Ninth).
When I was thirteen, the house next door went up for sale. I secretly hoped a Roman with a wolf cub would move in, but a family with a Jack Russell terrier bought it instead. But sometimes, when it rained – because rain always makes things seem more magical – I imagined it was really Cub from Eagle of the Ninth, and not a Jack Russell terrier.
If you’re curious what my favorite Sutcliff book is, read my blog post here:
http://theessentialemily.blogspot.com/2010/04/all-things-roman-or-how-i-wait-for.html
LikeLike
Anthony:
We had some correspondence a long time ago, shortly after Rosemary’s death. My mother was her friend and correspondent for many years, since meeting her father in New York during WWII. I visited her on a couple of occasions while I lived in London in the 1970s.
I have the miniature that she painted for my mother, which I treasure. Are any of her paintings on view anywhere? I remember her showing me a drawer where her paintings were and that there was one of a centaur which stays in my mind.
I also have the broach which she sent my mother as a wedding present. It is mother-of-pearl with a worm encapsulated in it, and it is phallic in appearance which made my mother laugh. She always wondered whether this was something Rosemary did intentionally or not. Now I see she had a ‘rude’ sense of humor, so perhaps she was being naughty!
Nice to find your site and great information about a wonderful author. I still go back to her books for a “comfort read” and her vivid descriptions are so evocative and telling of her artistic talent.
Helen
LikeLike