This is another sort-of reblog of a post from days long past. The original had some inaccuracies I now know enough to correct. Thankfully, hardly anyone saw it- one of the advantages of blogging in obscurity. As some- or maybe …

The Thirty Years War- a Condensed Version Read more »

If you’re looking for a readable pop history version of the Thirty Years War, do not read this book. I started this back in April, so it may very well have set a record for book that’s taken me the …

Book Review- Europe’s Tragedy: A New History of the Thirty Years War- Peter H. Wilson Read more »

The fantasy version of this guy wasn’t going to come into play until the second book, but he’s just too much fun to leave out. Christian, Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg and Bishop of Halberstadt, was the same age as Frederick and …

Major Player: Christian of Brunswick Read more »

The mere mention of musketeers brings to mind attractive men wearing large hats, tall boots and fighting with swords. And yet, we are not here just to stare at pictures of such. Although it was a hazard of my “research.” …

Badass of the Month: Musketeers Read more »

Since the majority of my main characters are based on historical figures, I thought I’d profile some of them, and then let you figure out who’s who. No, actually I’ll totally hit you over the head with the who’s who. …

Major Player: Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor Read more »

In doing some technical research for another main character, I came across these guys. Cuirassiers were named for the breastplates (cuirasses) they wore, and were a type of heavy cavalry popular well into the 19th century. In fact, they were …

Badass of the Month: Cuirassier Read more »

Some of you might have noticed that my book is tentatively titled The Winter King. That’s just a working title for now until I find something better. After all the changes I’ve made, there will be neither winter nor a king …

Bohemia Part 3: The Winter King Read more »

So, I jumped the gun a bit in my last post. Before the Bohemians could elect a new king, a bunch of other stuff happened. When I first started to write my book, I wanted to cover all of this. …

Bohemia Part 2: Battles in the Land of Beer Read more »

The title of this post implies it’s about peace, but never fear- it will end with war! (but just a short one) The post itself will also be mercifully short. After the considerable upheaval of the Protestant Reformation, many rulers …

The Peace of Augsburg Read more »

This agglomeration which was called and which still calls itself the Holy Roman Empire was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire.- Voltaire In other words, the title of this whole thing is very misleading. And yet, in order to …

The Holy Roman Empire Read more »