Old And New In A Future History Series

Later instalments of a future history series build on earlier instalments and also add new information. In Poul Anderson's Technic History, the last instalment to feature Dominic Flandry, The Game Of Empire, introduces the Patrician System with its two colonized planets, Imhotep and Daedalus. We have never heard of either of these planets before so this is definitely new information. Starkadian land- and sea-dwellers have been settled on Imhotep and the planet is visited by one Wodenite. Cynthians and Donarrians have settled on Daedalus and the planet is visited by several Merseians. My point here is that all six of these species had already existed in the Technic History. Regular readers are already familiar with Merseians etc but will also learn more about most of them here. That is how rich this future history series is. When, on Imhotep, Diana Crowfeather overhears a Terran Marine complaining about "Merseian bastards," we know that we are on familiar territory but that we will probably also learn a lot more as in fact we do not only about the Patrician System but also about the Zacharians and about a second offspring of Dominic Flandry.