Promised Land

Roger Booth

Description

Promised Land opens in AD 413, centred on the Roman town of Burdigala (Bordeaux). Led by their King Athaulf, the town is occupied by the Visigoths who, for almost four decades, have travelled the Empire seeking a place to settle. Too weak to defeat the Roman Empire but too strong to be defeated themselves, the Visigoths under their previous king, Alaric, had briefly even captured Rome without resolving the stalemate over their future. In Rome the Visigoths captured the Princess Galla Placidia, half-sister to the Emperor Honorius. She has travelled with them as hostage ever since. In Burdigala there begins a relationship between Roman Princess and Visigoth King based on a heady cocktail of romance, political calculation and genuine idealism culminating in marriage and the birth of a son. Honorius has no children. King and Princess believe their personal union, and in time their son, will unite Romans and Visigoths so changing the then world - and, quite possibly, the world in which we live today.Except the world is not so easily changed. A Princess seldom lacks for competing suitors. And many are the men who would be King or have their son become Roman Emperor. Promised Landis a novel. The Dark Ages already throw a long shadow. Invention is necessary sometimes for the book to work and sometimes because that darkness swallowed the facts. For all that, the tale of Athaulf and Galla Placidia is a tale deserving to be told.

Sujets

• Historical fiction

Informations

• Publié par: Troubador Publishing Ltd
• Date de parution: 22 décembre 2020
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781800468771
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Copyright © 2021 Roger Booth

The moral right of the author has been asserted.

Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside those terms should be sent to the publishers.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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ISBN 978 1800468 771

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Contents
List of Place Names
Principal Characters

I
The month of May in the year of our Lord 413: at the town of Valentia in southern Gallia.
II
One week later in the same month of May: beside the main highway leading south from Valentia to Arausio.
III
The last days of May: at Burdigala
IV
The month of August: before the city of Massilia
V
Later in that month of August: at Narbo
VI
The first days of September: at Narbo
VII
The month of October: at Narbo
VIII
The month of January in the year of our Lord 414: in Narbo
IX
The month of October: in Narbo
X
The month of April in the year of our Lord 415: in Barcino
XI
The month of August: in Barcino
XII
The next day: in Barcino
XIII
The month of November: in the neighbourhood of Gades
XIV
The month of January in the year of our Lord 416: by Summum Pyrenaeum
XV
The month of February: in and around Barcino
XVI
The first day of the month of January in the year of our Lord 417: in Rome
XVII
The month of June in the year of our Lord 418: in and around Corduba
XVIII
The month of September: approaching Tolosa
XIX
The next day: in Tolosa
List of Place Names
Arausio
Orange

Arelate
Arles

Baelo Claudia
Bolonia

Baeterrae
Beziers

Barcino
Barcelona

Burdigala
Bordeaux

Carcaso
Carcassonne

Corduba
Cordoba

Danuvius
River Danube

Gades
Cadiz

Garumna
River Garonne

Liger
River Loire

Massilia
Marseille

Narbo
Narbonne

Rhenus
River Rhine

Rhodanus
River Rhone

Summum Pyrenaeum
Col de Panissars

Tingis
Tangiers

Tolosa
Toulouse

Valentia
Valence (France)

Valentia
Valencia (Spain)
Principal Characters
Visigoths
Athaulf
King of the Visigoths, a member of the Balthi clan and brother-in-law to the dead Alaric
Brodagast
A retainer of the Balthi clan
Erfrid
Brother of Athaulf and Reiks or leader of the Balthi clan
Faurgar
A cousin of Athaulf and maistans or nobleman from the Balthi clan
Rohilde
Daughter of the dead King Alaric and niece of Athaulf
~~~
Sergeric
Reiks of the Karthi Clan
Brandas
Lead retainer to Sergeric
Euervulf
Member of the Karthi clan and the King’s groom
~~~
Theoderic
Reiks of the Grethi Clan
Ardrade
Lead retainer to Theoderic
~~~
Wallia
Reiks of the Ruthi Clan
Harduric
A retainer of Wallia
Herfrig
Nephew of Wallia
Smiler
A retainer of Wallia
~~~
Rademer
A new man of the Goths
Sigesar
Bishop of the Visigoths
Romans
Flavius Constantius
Magister militum , Commander in Chief of the Western Empire
Galla Placidia
Half sister to Honorius and hostage of the Visigoths
Honorius
Emperor of the Western Roman Empire
~~~
Aemilius Lucellus
Tribune of the IVth Palatine Cavalry
Attalus
One-time usurper to the imperial throne backed by Visigoths
Boniface
senior officer in Massilia
Candidianus
Wealthy Roman in Narbo
Elpidia
Nurse and companion to Galla Placidia
Euplutius
An Imperial agens in rebus or spy
Flavius Scaervo
An infantry tribune
Ingenius
Wealthy Roman in Narbo
Jovinus
A Roman from Gaul and usurper to the imperial throne
Marcus Clavinianus
A cavalry tribune
Oddo
A peasant farmer
Postumus Dardanus
Prefect of Gallia
Others
Fredbal
King of the Siling Vandals
I
The month of May in the year of our Lord 413: at the town of Valentia in southern Gallia.
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