Liberty is and has been a global struggle almost since man came to earth. Power and control over others seem to be the foundation upon which civilizations rise and fall. In the rare cases where a people come
Vasco Núñez de Balboa Read More »
I’m certain nobody really cares about some of the throw away characters that I casually include in my stories. Well known authors and editors proclaim loudly I shouldn’t include too much historical backstory
John Strong, Spain’s King Charles II, and Sir James Houblon. Read More »
The Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella were reluctant to sponsor Christopher Columbus on his first expedition. I guess I didn’t find it surprising when that reluctance vanished immediately once they
Alonso de Ojeda & Don Diego Nicuesa Read More »
Think of a privateer as a legitimized pirate, legally-sanctioned by a simple contract from a sponsoring government. The contract was usually in the form of a Letter of Marque.
The privateer was typically
Of Pirates and Privateers Read More »
One of the first challenges I faced when casting “The Conquest of Liberty” was finding a worthy conquistador to rescue an Inca princess from the sacrificial alter. This valiant conquistador and the beautiful
Martin Fernandez de Enciso – The Bachelor Read More »
Obviously the world of medicine in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries was much different than it is today. And aboard a pirate ship three hundred years ago you might guess it was different then
Al-Sayyida Al-Hurra is one of my favorite historical characters in The Conquest of Liberty. Somehow the story required that our principal antagonist escape from Granada, out of Spain and across the Mediterranean
Al-Sayyida al-Hurra Read More »
Isabella I is an important historical figure in the Conquest of Liberty. Though she died roughly six years before the story in The Conquest of Liberty begins, she, along with Ferdinand II drastically influenced
Isabella I of Castile Read More »
Though I’ve not studied many popes to whom I can compare Pope Julius II, I hesitate to offer anything but what various historians say. He was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States for ten years.
