Norsemen;
Norsemen in Ireland;
England in 1066;
Normans in Sicily.
Historically:
Norse settlers founded the Irish cities;
Norse settlers in France became "Normans";
William of Normandy conquered England in 1066;
Strongbow led the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland in 1169.
In Ireland, we saw:
the church where Strongbow was married;
a statue of Meagher who led the American Irish Brigade;
posters for the current Presidential election.
3 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
I finally finished rereading THE GOLDEN HORN, the first volume of Poul Anderson's historical novel about King Harald Hardrede of Norway, THE LAST VIKING. Next comes the second volume, THE ROAD OF THE SEA HORSE, as Harald III consolidated his rule of Norway and made determined, if futile, efforts to conquer Denmark.
And the great telescope called the "Leviathan" at Parsonstown in Eire by the third Earl of Rosse would be a natural place for any SF fan to visit. We know Anderson visited Ireland at least once, so it's natural to wonder if he ever inspected the Leviathan, which was for many years the most powerful telescope in the world.
Sean
Paul and Sean:
*ahem* For the record, and because I find it hilarious, I should point out that Parsonstown hasn't been called that since 1899 — it's reverted to its original name: Birr (no relation). And the castle of the Earls of Rosse is "Birr Castle."
Kaor, DAVID!
Thanks for correcting me! I was going by what I read in Wikipedia. I did know BIRR Castle remained "Birr." And it would have been cool if you had been some kind of relation of the earls of Rosse!
That "Leviathan" telescope built by the third Earl really interests me. I think it's still being used for scientific purposes.
Sean
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