From Hadrian’s Wall
to Glastonbury Tor
Roman Britain: The
Unfurling of The Banner #7
By: Donna Fletcher
Crow
Britannia, the furthest-flung spot on the map of the
mighty Roman Empire; the last kingdom to be conquered; the first to be
abandoned. And yet, the Roman Eagles marched the length and breadth of the land
for 500 years, bringing order, engineering and trade to the Celtic tribes who
accepted Roman rule with varying degrees of
compliance.
Marcellus surveyed the great stone
and earthwork wall rising twelve feet above his head. The world called it
Hadrian’s Wall, but Marcellus thought of it as his wall.
For three years now he had been
chief engineer at Vercovicium, in charge of the continual refortifications and
repairs necessitated by this foul wet climate and the even more foul, more
vicious Picti and their eternal raiding parties. But this morning, it was
neither the elements nor the savage Picti that worried Marcellus.
It was Prefect Festus,
engineer-in-charge from Coristopinum, the one person in the entire eighty Roman
miles of the wall to whom Marcellus was answerable in matters of wall
construction. All others answered to Marcellus.
Certainly no one could fault Festus
on his engineering skills nor on his diligence in the line of duty. His ability
to build bridges of stone was faultless. Since Marcellus prided himself on
possessing equal skills, applied with equal attention to detail and duty, and
since in his five years of following the eagle he had tended to neglect any
people-reaching skills he might possess, the relationship between the two men
had never been comfortable. Indeed, their exchanges often stung as much as the
quicklime which held the massive stones of the wall in place. But in all his
years of suffering under Festus’s bouts of nitpicking inspection, Marcellus had
never had to bear such an outrage.
The courier had arrived a few
moments after cockcrow sounded and accosted Marcellus in his barracks with a
salute that was sloppy if not insolent. Marcellus could still feel the parchment
crinkle in his hand as he crushed the message in anger. “No reply. Dismissed.”
He turned on his heel even before the messenger could retreat.
And so, Marcellus Artois, founder of the family Artoii in
Britannia, is accused of treason and sent to a posting in the southwest of the
land to stand trial. Thus begins the saga of the Romano-British family who
lived in the region of Inys Witrin which later ages came to call Glastonbury.
Aaron and Julius, among Britain’s first martyrs, Saint George, Saint Patrick—
all touched this island of mystery, this Holy Avalon and interacted with the
lives of the Artoii.
The armies of the mighty Roman Empire marched, religions
flourished and faded, but on the mist-shrouded Inys Witrin prayers continued as
holy men and women gathered around the tiny church built by Joseph of
Arimathea, he who first brought The Holy Grail to Glastonbury.
Until finally the family Artois lent their heritage to the
greatest of their line, he whom the bards called Arthurius— King Arthur.
Two millennia of history and legend intertwine around
Glastonbury’s broken arches. And through
it all— through ages ancient and modern— the faithful have sought to answer the
same question that Arthur asked: Where
is the Holy Grail?
Donna
Fletcher Crow is the author of 40 books, mostly novels dealing with British
history. Besides the award-winning Glastonbury,
Donna is also the author of The Monastery Murders: A Very Private Grave and A Darkly Hidden Truth, as well as the
Lord Danvers series of Victorian true-crime novels and the romantic suspense
series The Elizabeth & Richard Mysteries.
Donna
and her husband live in Boise, Idaho.
They have 4 adult children and 11 grandchildren. She is an enthusiastic
gardener. To read more about all of Donna’s books and see pictures from her garden and research
trips go to: www.DonnaFletcherCrow.com.
Donna’s
blog http://www.donnafletchercrow.com/articles.php
Twitter:
@DonnaFletchCr
