Your Questions

Q

Dear Bernard, I must say that you are my favorite author, and I do read quite a bit. My favorites are the Arthur books and I've read them several times; of course I love Sharpe and Thomas of Hookton also. I can understand ending the Grail Quest but I would like to ask if you have given thought to a "prequel" to the Grail Quest. I could see you doing amazing things with the Cathars, Montsegur, the early Vexille family, and the Dark Lords. I find the Albinginsian Crusade to be endlessly intriquing (much to the chagrin of my Catholic wife!!!). I understand you will be busy for years on the new project and am anxiously awaiting book number two in October (Maybe January in the States), but hope that perhaps the Dark Lords can lure you into telling their story. Best regards and continued health and success. Mark Chapman

Submitted August 10, 2005

A

Sounds good! I'll think on it!

Q

Hello, Firstly can I say that I thoroughly enjoyed the Grail quest trilogy. I did have one query which concerned the Black Death towards the end of Heretic. It is my understanding that the form of plague described in your book is actually Pneumonic and not Bubonic plague which you mention in your historical notes. I'm aware that Bubonic is historically the correct path to use as this did indeed kill off 33% of the European populous. With Pneumonic plague, the first signs of illness are fever, headache, weakness, and rapidly developing pneumonia with shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, and sometimes bloody or watery sputum. These are almost the same symptoms as described in your book. However it is true that Bubonic can turn into Pneumonic if left untreated. As Bubonic can only be caught predominantly by fleabites or by untreated wounds coming into contact with the disease I personally can't see that the plague referred to in Heretic was anything other than Pneumonic. I will be interested to hear your views on this. Best regards, Simon McCartan

Submitted August 10, 2005

A

Don't have views. I'm aware of the discussion amongst proper historians - whether it was buboinic plague or anthrax or something else, but I took the view that the men and women of the fourteenth century didn't know, so I didn't need to make a decision! My own inclination is to think it was pneumonic, but I deliberately left it vague so that I didn't get entangled with the controversy!

Q

Dear Mr Cornwell, I read all your books and loved every one of them. I thank you very much for all these wonderful hours of reading. I find it great that you take some of your precious time to answer messages from your fans. As you probably deduced from my first sentences, English is not my first language : I'm half French, half Belgian. Though I'm a big big fan of Sharpe, I have the feeling that you are a bit unfair with the "Frogs". Soult, for example, is almost ridiculous in your Sharpe's Havoc novel though everything I read about him leads me to believe that he was a great soldier. Don't you agree ? In the historical note at the end of Sharpe's Havoc, you write that you couldn't find news of Major Dulong after the Saltador. I found a quote about him on the napoleonic-literature.com website : he supposedly was made Colonel and died in 1828. It would be nice if Sharpe was to meet him again ... I'm considering writing a novel about Dulong : do you know if it has already been done by someone before ? Thank you again for your great books : I just finished The Last Kingdom and can't wait for the Pale Horseman !!! Fabrice CORNET

Submitted August 10, 2005

A

I've never come across a novel about Dulong, and he'd make a great hero - so good luck! I don't think I was unfair to Soult in Sharpe's Havoc - it all happened much as I describe it. There were lots of terrific French Marshals and generals, their problem was that they never quite worked out how to deal with Wellington.

Q

hello Mr Comwell, I have read all of your Sharpe books, and reread them several times. I have been wondering, how in Sharpe's Honour the south essex can get a new captain for the light co. if Sharpe isnt a "real" major as you said in Sharpe's Seige. Thank you for taking time to read this and I look forward to reading many more of your books. Chris

Submitted August 8, 2005

A

It's all to do with the rather complicated procedures of promotion. The basic method was by purchase; you literally bought your way up the ladder. If an officer sells his commission to another officer, then a third man can't get the job by merit promotion, because that makes nonsense of the financial transaction. That, to us, seems like nonsense, and so it is, but there you go. You could get brevert promotion (Sharpe does). A brevet promotion did not involve money, and a man could be boosted up a rank, but he still kept his old rank. So Sharpe, as a Captain, can be breveted Major, and though he acts as a major, and is given the wages of a major, and wears a major's uniform, as soon as his major's job ends he reverts to being a captain again. By Waterloo there were lieutenants who served as Lieutenant-Colonels, but went tumbling back down the ranks afterwards because their higher rank was brevet. That's more or less why, and I know it's complicated.

Q

thanks for the arthur and thomas stories!-what about john twelve hawks and the book 'the traveller' including, it is said, a group of characters called the harlequin!?-best richard

Submitted August 8, 2005

A

Afraid I've never heard of it - but I'll look for it, thank you.

Q

Dear Bernard Such great novels! I am steadily working my way through your inventory, though slowly, as I sadly have too little time to read and like to read widely. I would say that the Grail Quest series is my favourite of your books, as it's my favourite period of history, though when I open another Sharpe, I feel at home. Certainly looking forward to the next instalment! One question: As a keen writer myself (only for pleasure - no plans to publish) I am constantly amazed by some of the things the pros so effortlessly achieve. For example, the thing that sticks most in my mind from the Sharpe series is Sergeant Hakeswill's catchphrase, "Says so in the scriptures." I have tried to introduce similar things into my own writing, but have always abandoned them as sounding too contrived. Just wondering if you remember how you thought of that catchphrase. Was it something you spent a long time dreaming up, or did it just spring to mind? Keep up the good work and all the best. Chris. PS. Any plans to tour Australia soon?

Submitted August 8, 2005

A

Honestly don't know. These things just come. Wish I could be more helpful! Sorry - Australia's not in the plans at the moment.

Q

Hi there - yet more questions about Warlord I'm afraid! How do you actually pronounce Nimue? And what do you think happened to her after Camlann? Adam

Submitted August 8, 2005

A

Nim-you-ay. And I've never wondered what happened to her. A nice question, but alas, not one I can answer!

Q

I just finished reading The Last Kingdom and I loved it. This is one of my favorite periods of English history and I've found so little fiction written about it. In particular, I always thought that the most extraordinary person from this time was Elthelflaed, the Lady of the Mercians. I hope that she will be featured in some of your future novels.

I am rereading The Last Kingdom and enjoying it just as much as the first time. One thing I'm wondering about is the depiction of Alfred's wife, Ellswith. You aren't very flattering about her character. Is there really very much known about her? She is the mother and grandmother of some very amazing characters. Isn't it unusual for women to be mentioned at all in this time period?
Thank you for such an enjoyable read. Ann Madonna

Submitted August 8, 2005

A

She's there, in The Last Kingdom! Very young, of course, just a baby, and in the next book, The Pale Horseman, she appears again, but still only a child. I think you can guarantee that if she's present in those early books then I intend to use her in later ones - indeed, I've long known that she's the heroine of the whole series!

We know next to nothing about her - and I've probably been unfair to her. We do know she came from northern Mercia and that her father was an ealdorman. It was fairly usual for high-born women to be mentioned, because they had status, so we have the names of many noble and royal wives. We know a lot about Aelswith's daughter, Ethelflaed, because she became the Lady of Mercia and led armies against the Danes. We know a fair bit about some prominent abbesses. But it was still a man's world, and how.

Q

This question may be an obvious one but the Patrick Lassan of Cooperhead is made out to be a relation to Sharpe yet he seems to have gone through conflict and I was wondering what conflict that was? Jack Upton

Submitted August 8, 2005

A

Probably the Crimean War!

Q

In Sharpe's Eagle you mention Sharpe has never met 'Daddy' Hill, yet in 'Sharpe's Havoc' he has conversations with him. Are you planning to revise 'Sharpe's Eagle'? And if so, when shall it be available? Your's sincerely. A beloved collector of Sharpe.

Submitted August 8, 2005

A

Perhaps one day the inconsistencies will be corrected - but not any time soon.