Sir Thomas More by Hals Holbein (Accessed via Wikipedia ) During lockdown, we had Time. Remember that? I was in my probationary year of teaching: almost certainly among the most exhausting years for any profession. All my time had been taken up with school work, and I regularly stayed at school until after 6pm, having arrived there at eight in the morning. Now, children, this is not sustainable and, very soon, I decided I didn’t like working where I was. Then I realised that I didn’t like teaching at all. But, in fact, neither was particularly true: I just needed to be true to myself and to say no, which would give me the ability to manage my work/life balance in a more appropriate way. What does this have to do with historical fiction, I hear you say? Well, during March 2020, we went into lockdown and suddenly I went from working ten-hour-days to ten-hour-weeks. I met up with my class on Google Meet, I put work up for them on a meticulously designed Google Classroom, but I just h...
Writing historical fiction, it is impossible to ignore the overwhelming impact religion had on people's lives. It was not only the structure of organised religion, but the interwoven beliefs which dominated people's lives. Christianity, the religion which runs through most of my historical fiction, grew and survived with its ability to adapt as it spread from place to place and culture to culture, absorbing certain traditions as it powered on. I love Theology. I did my undergraduate degree in it, and it continues to remain a real interest of mine.
I also love the idea of holding hands across history, seeing what my characters saw, and holding the same objects in my own hands as they or their peers did. Given the significance of religion and superstition throughout history, these things were common - although not necessarily accessible - and would have been understood by all. Religious iconography dominated Pre-Reformation Europe, speaking as a universal language to all. These images were not all uplifting or positive, with the growing prevalence for Memento Mori (Remember Death) appearing in churches and on gravestones.
The tradition of saintly cults within Christianity led to people adopting a saint who matched or reflected their professions or interests. People would carry certain objects with them as a talisman, almost like being in a club. Of course, in Christianity, the most common of these emblems was a cross, like the one above.
Religious emblems and influence were everywhere. The spoon below is adorned with the cresent moon and star of Islam. I do not know what it was used for, nor am I able to read the writing on the bowl of the spoon, but it is a beautiful piece of craftmanship, and demonstrates the care with which this artefacts were made.
And it was not only artisans who created religious works of art. The samplers below were viewed as both an important skill and a good devotion for young women of the nineteenth century. I do not know who made these. I love to imagine who the stitcher was and, perhaps most fascinatingly of all, why she picked these verses to stitch and display. [As an interesting aside, check out the letter A in them. It is the only lowercase letter. What a great, quirky observation to include in a story!]
The Reformation in this country wiped out an unimaginable wealth of artistry and artefacts. I feel the same way about Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries as many historians feel about the destruction of the Great Library of Alexandria. It is almost impossible to visit those ruins and imagine the overwhelming love, care, and extravagance of those buildings... Almost. I suppose that is where the imagination and creativity of writing comes in. But Henry's zealous war on the monasteries did not just see the buildings pulled down as people recycled to lead from roofs our the stones from walls. It also saw the loss of countless pieces of artwork and texts. Words which were painstakingly crafted, pictures which were painted through nothing more than a sense of devotion, were all seized, destroyed, or lost.
So, whatever your views on or about religion, if you write historical fiction, remember: Daily life was governed by these beliefs. Reminders were everywhere, imagery was everywhere, religion was everywhere. I know much of this post has been concerning Christianity, but whenever or wherever your story is set, there will have been a substantial role for your characters' religion. So make sure you don't underestimate the role it played!
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