King's Blood (49 page)

Most of the events of the novel actually occurred, or are presumed to have occurred—including the debacle of William the Conqueror's death and burial, and the events surrounding William Rufus' death. Sister Gunnhild's adventure, Anselm's forced investiture, the role of Walter Tirel in William's death, even the fact that whenever William was minded to cross the English Channel, storms died down and the weather cleared for the crossing—all occurred essentially as written.

Edith of course was not known to have been a Lady of Avalon. After her escape to Scotland in 1093, she returned (or was returned) to Wilton, from which she was produced in the year 1100 to marry the new king—and yes, that wedding took place on the old Celtic festival which the Christians called Martinmas. She did indeed pay a price for whatever sins she may have committed: she died rather young, in 1118, two years before the death of her only son, William Atheling, in the tragedy of the White Ship.

As for Cecilia, daughter of William the Conqueror and sister of his sons William and Henry, she was a nun and later abbess of a convent in Caen. Her dates of birth and death are not known; she was given to the abbey in 1066 and took full vows in 1075, and became abbess in 1113. As far as we know, she never set foot in England and played little if any role in the affairs of the kingdom.

For further readings in the history of these characters and their times, see Frank Barlow,
William Rufus
(New Haven, 2000) and C. Warren Hollister,
Henry I
(New Haven, 2001).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Judith Tarr
is a World Fantasy Award nominee and the best-selling author of the highly acclaimed novels
Pride of Kings
and
Kingdom of the Grail
. A graduate of Yale and Cambridge Universities, she holds degrees in ancient and medieval history, and breeds Lipizzan horses at Dancing Horse Farm, her home in Vail, Arizona. You can find her on the Internet at
www.sff.net/people/judith-tarr
.