I liked it for the same reason. Before the scene where Henry the Quarrelsome makes that deal with Aspasia for Henry our Bamberg Champion, I was wondering whether Judith Tarr just counted on 99% of her potential English speaking readers not knowing that Otto III will die as a very young man and without a child of his own, but no. Also, it makes the Quarrelsome a more interesting antagonist and more in line with his historical counterpart who after all did stop rebelling at this point and did urge little Henry to not follow into the Henrician footsteps and be faithful to his cousin instead. (Which future Henry II was.)
I don't know how far you are with the podcast, but Henry II was also married to a fabulous smart and tough lady, Kunigunde. (And when they didn't have any kids refused to do the blaming-the-woman thing but remained married and true to her.) So you could say that in the novel's world, he imprinted on Aspasia in the sense of valueing these qualities in a woman instead of being vexed by them/fearing them.
I was also, okay, not expecting it to end with Aspasia and Ismail breaking up! (Of course Ismail couldn't stay and she couldn't leave, but I was hoping that they'd have a long-distance relationship or something!)
I can't think of a known historical Christian/Muslim romance/marriage where one of the two parties did not convert. Now, Judith Tarr made Aspasia atypically relaxed about her religion (especially for a Byzantine princess - seriously, argueing theology was every Byzantine's favourite past time, and not just the imperial famamilies, or, to whote Gregory of Nyssa:
"The whole city [of Constantinople] is full of [arguments about Theology], the squares, the market places, the cross-roads, the alleyways; old-clothes men, money changers, food sellers: they are all busy arguing. If you ask someone to give you change, he philosophizes about the Begotten and the Unbegotten; if you inquire about the price of a loaf, you are told by way of reply that the Father is greater and the Son inferior; if you ask 'Is my bath ready?' the attendant answers that the Son was made out of nothing."
She may have thought that them actually staying together for good was too much. Also, let's not forget: Otto III? REALLY intense about being in a Christian Emperor. Super intense. If Ismail had still hung around at that point, it would not have meant good things for him, is what I'm saying.
but Henry II was also married to a fabulous smart and tough lady, Kunigunde. (And when they didn't have any kids refused to do the blaming-the-woman thing but remained married and true to her.)
Yes! I have gotten there! (I'm at the end of the Ottonian season, listening to the Q&A right now.) Kunigunde is excellent, and I love that he explicitly didn't blame her (seems very rare for this era??)
So you could say that in the novel's world, he imprinted on Aspasia in the sense of valueing these qualities in a woman instead of being vexed by them/fearing them.
Oh, I love that idea!
If you ask someone to give you change, he philosophizes about the Begotten and the Unbegotten; if you inquire about the price of a loaf, you are told by way of reply that the Father is greater and the Son inferior; if you ask 'Is my bath ready?' the attendant answers that the Son was made out of nothing."
:D This is great.
If Ismail had still hung around at that point, it would not have meant good things for him, is what I'm saying.
Ohhhhh. Wow. Yeah, I... can see why she had to have him go.
Not just for this one. *eyes Henry VIII of England*
Go you, for finishing the Ottonian season. If and when you and Mildred make it to Germany, and I get to show you Bamberg, we can do to the magnificent tomb of Henry and Kunigunde in our cathedral.
Details:
I'm of course very pleased Dirk the podcaster raved about how beautiful Bamberg is. (And it really made a stunning difference that Bamberg the city got the legacy of both Henry and Kunigunde, due to their childlessness. Mind you, we also lucked out that there was minimal war destruction in WWII, as opposed to Nuremberg which is just 60 km away and got 95% of its buildings bombed into smithereens so they had to be rebuild.)
Here's a baroque statue of Kunigunde, strategically placed on one of the main bridges:
Something you can't take a picture of is one of the most beautiful medieval manuscripts, the Apocalypse created for Henry II at Reichenau which the Bamberg Library owns; it has some of the best known Ottonian illuminations. In so many ways, the city still is the legacy of Henry and Kunigunde to the world.
Not just for this one. *eyes Henry VIII of England*
What I was thinking!
Kunigunde was also one of my favorite parts of the podcast, and if I ever make it to Bamberg, you will have to show me the sites in person! In the meantime, I shall enjoy your pictures.
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Re: Eagle's Daughter
I don't know how far you are with the podcast, but Henry II was also married to a fabulous smart and tough lady, Kunigunde. (And when they didn't have any kids refused to do the blaming-the-woman thing but remained married and true to her.) So you could say that in the novel's world, he imprinted on Aspasia in the sense of valueing these qualities in a woman instead of being vexed by them/fearing them.
I was also, okay, not expecting it to end with Aspasia and Ismail breaking up! (Of course Ismail couldn't stay and she couldn't leave, but I was hoping that they'd have a long-distance relationship or something!)
I can't think of a known historical Christian/Muslim romance/marriage where one of the two parties did not convert. Now, Judith Tarr made Aspasia atypically relaxed about her religion (especially for a Byzantine princess - seriously, argueing theology was every Byzantine's favourite past time, and not just the imperial famamilies, or, to whote Gregory of Nyssa:
"The whole city [of Constantinople] is full of [arguments about Theology], the squares, the market places, the cross-roads, the alleyways; old-clothes men, money changers, food sellers: they are all busy arguing. If you ask someone to give you change, he philosophizes about the Begotten and the Unbegotten; if you inquire about the price of a loaf, you are told by way of reply that the Father is greater and the Son inferior; if you ask 'Is my bath ready?' the attendant answers that the Son was made out of nothing."
She may have thought that them actually staying together for good was too much. Also, let's not forget: Otto III? REALLY intense about being in a Christian Emperor. Super intense. If Ismail had still hung around at that point, it would not have meant good things for him, is what I'm saying.
Re: Eagle's Daughter
Yes! I have gotten there! (I'm at the end of the Ottonian season, listening to the Q&A right now.) Kunigunde is excellent, and I love that he explicitly didn't blame her (seems very rare for this era??)
So you could say that in the novel's world, he imprinted on Aspasia in the sense of valueing these qualities in a woman instead of being vexed by them/fearing them.
Oh, I love that idea!
If you ask someone to give you change, he philosophizes about the Begotten and the Unbegotten; if you inquire about the price of a loaf, you are told by way of reply that the Father is greater and the Son inferior; if you ask 'Is my bath ready?' the attendant answers that the Son was made out of nothing."
:D This is great.
If Ismail had still hung around at that point, it would not have meant good things for him, is what I'm saying.
Ohhhhh. Wow. Yeah, I... can see why she had to have him go.
Re: Eagle's Daughter
Not just for this one. *eyes Henry VIII of England*
Go you, for finishing the Ottonian season. If and when you and Mildred make it to Germany, and I get to show you Bamberg, we can do to the magnificent tomb of Henry and Kunigunde in our cathedral.
Details:
I'm of course very pleased Dirk the podcaster raved about how beautiful Bamberg is. (And it really made a stunning difference that Bamberg the city got the legacy of both Henry and Kunigunde, due to their childlessness. Mind you, we also lucked out that there was minimal war destruction in WWII, as opposed to Nuremberg which is just 60 km away and got 95% of its buildings bombed into smithereens so they had to be rebuild.)
Here's a baroque statue of Kunigunde, strategically placed on one of the main bridges:
Something you can't take a picture of is one of the most beautiful medieval manuscripts, the Apocalypse created for Henry II at Reichenau which the Bamberg Library owns; it has some of the best known Ottonian illuminations. In so many ways, the city still is the legacy of Henry and Kunigunde to the world.
Re: Eagle's Daughter
Not just for this one. *eyes Henry VIII of England*
What I was thinking!
Kunigunde was also one of my favorite parts of the podcast, and if I ever make it to Bamberg, you will have to show me the sites in person! In the meantime, I shall enjoy your pictures.