Interview for "The Traitor's Wife: A Novel of the Reign of Edward II" author Susan Higginbotham
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In fourthteenth-century England, young Eleanor de Clare, favorite niece of King Edward II, is delighted with her marriage to Hugh le Despenser and her appointment to Queen Isabella's household as a lady-in-waiting. It soon becomes apparent, however, that Eleanor's beloved uncle is not the king the nobles of the land- or his queen- expected.
Today, Reader Views is talking with Susan Higginbotham, author of “The Traitor’s Wife: A Novel of the Reign of Edward II.” Susan is being interviewed by Juanita Watson, Assistant Editor of Reader Views.
Juanita: Hi Susan, thank you for talking with us today. Please give us a synopsis of your book, “The Traitor’s Wife.”
Susan: “The Traitor’s Wife” is set in fourteenth-century England. It’s told mostly from the viewpoint of Eleanor de Clare, granddaughter of Edward I, niece of Edward II, and wife of Hugh le Despenser the younger, who eventually becomes one of Edward II’s favorites. The reign of Edward II was one of constant hostility between the king and the nobility, and Eleanor, loyal to her uncle and to her husband, is soon caught up in the tumultuous events that eventually destroy both of the men she loves. She’s left to rebuild her life amid a reign that’s very unfriendly to her.
I should point out here that though there are some tragic events in my novel, it’s not 400-plus pages of misery and oppression. There’s a fair amount of humor in it and some romance, and Eleanor and her family aren’t beaten down by what happens in their lives—quite the opposite.
Juanita: What inspired you to write your book?
Susan: When re-reading the Christopher Marlowe play about Edward II, I became fascinated by the historical background to the play and began reading everything I could about this period of English history. Along the way I heard of Eleanor de Clare, and as I learned more and more about her, I thought that I had to tell her story.
Juanita: What was it about Eleanor de Clare, and/or her story that moved you so deeply?
Susan: At first I was just curious about some of the choices she made, especially in the latter part of her life. After I satisfied my curiosity, I came to respect and admire her deeply. At one point in her life, it must have seemed to her that she was totally alone, with no one willing or able to help her or to speak up for her.
There’s also the simple fact that I thought her life made a compelling story. At different times, Eleanor was a lady-in-waiting to the queen, a prisoner, an accused thief, and the object of a bitter dispute between two men about which one was her second husband. It amazed me that no historical novelist had told her story earlier.
Juanita: What is the time frame of this story?
Susan: It takes place from 1306, the date of Eleanor’s wedding, to 1337—the last months of the reign of Edward I, the entire reign of Edward II, and the early reign of Edward III.
Juanita: Give us some insight into Eleanor de Clare. What type of woman was she? What was she passionate about?...etc.
Susan: Historically, we really don’t know much about her personality, although we know the larger details of her life, the ones that shape the plot of “The Traitor’s Wife.” The letters of hers that have survived are simply letters of instruction or requests, though a couple that have been translated into English have a certain charm about them. We do know that she was extensively involved in the remodeling of Tewkesbury Abbey, where we can still see the stained-glass windows depicting her ancestors, her brother, and her husband.
Fictionally, the Eleanor who took shape in my mind is a loving, impulsive, resilient woman who’s deeply loyal to those she loves. She’s by no means perfect; she does some rather stupid things in the course of the novel, and in some ways she’s nearly as blinded by her loyalty as is Edward.
Juanita: For those unfamiliar with the reign of Edward II, can you give us a little history of what was going on in those times and the tumultuous events that weave into the story of Eleanor de Clare and “The Traitor’s Wife”?
Susan: Edward II was a man with many good qualities, but unfortunately he didn’t have the qualities that people expected of a medieval king. He very much tended to go his own way, and he didn’t make much of an effort to adapt himself to the expectations of him.
He’s best known for his relationships with two men: Piers Gaveston and Hugh le Despenser the younger. The relationships are generally thought to have been sexual, but no one knows for sure. Gaveston, though he never attempted to wield royal power, had a knack for making enemies, and this and the king’s overwhelming generosity to him eventually led to his abduction and murder. Hugh le Despenser, on the other hand, was enormously greedy, both for power and for lands, and Edward II pretty much gave him whatever he wanted. During the last few years of Edward II’s reign, Despenser was for all practical purposes running England. Queen Isabella, Edward II’s French wife, eventually became fed up with this. While on royal business in France, she formed an alliance with Roger Mortimer, an escapee from the Tower of London. The two of them became lovers, invaded England, forced Edward II to give up the throne, and put Edward II’s and Isabella’s son, Edward III, in his place. As Edward III was still a boy, Isabella and Mortimer were essentially the rulers of England during the next few years, and they turned out to be little better than Despenser in terms of greed and abuse of power.
Juanita: Hugh le Despenser was Eleanor de Clare’s husband. Who was he and what type of man could he be described as. How was their marriage?
Susan: In a recent survey of historians, he was named the top British villain of the fourteenth century, which gives you some idea! He was quite frank about his ambitions—in one letter, he tells the recipient to bear in mind that he is supposed to be getting rich. Getting rich in fourteenth-century England meant getting as much land as possible, and Despenser added to his collection just about every way he could—legally and illegally. He would bully wealthy widows, including his own sister-in-law, into handing their lands over to him.
How much Eleanor knew about these activities, and how she felt about them, is not clear. I thought of her as being sort of a medieval Mafia wife, living a rather sheltered existence in her home while Hugh was off doing his dirty work, and not asking too many questions of him.
It’s difficult to say for sure, but Hugh’s twenty-year marriage to Eleanor seems to have been a happy one, or at least a mutually satisfactory one. The couple had at least nine children together, and during the time that Hugh was the king’s favorite, Eleanor was put into positions of trust by him and the king. After Hugh’s death Eleanor had him depicted in stained glass at Tewkesbury Abbey. It doesn’t seem that she would have made that gesture if she hadn’t cared for him.
Juanita: What statements does “The Traitor’s Wife” make of loyalty?
Susan: It’s a central issue in the novel. The characters run the gamut from those like Edward, whose loyalty to his friends is all-encompassing and ultimately destroys him, to those like Isabella, who turns against her husband and comes very close to turning against her own son. In between are a whole host of people who have to choose where to put their allegiances, some out of conscience, some out of expedience, and who sometimes pay a heavy price for their choices.
Juanita: “The Traitor’s Wife” is a historical fiction. How much and what type of research did you undertake to prepare you for writing your novel?
Susan: I read pretty much everything I could find in English related to the reign of Edward II. Fortunately, there’s been a bit of a boomlet in Edward II studies in the last few years, with Roy Haines, Ian Mortimer, Alison Weir, and Paul Doherty all publishing books relating to the reign in some form or fashion. There’s also an excellent study of Eleanor’s sister Elizabeth de Burgh called For Her Good Estate, written by Frances Underhill. I also looked through books such as the Close Rolls and the Patent Rolls, which contain royal orders of various sorts, translated into English.
Since no one’s written a biographical study of Hugh le Despenser, much less Eleanor, I had to do quite a bit of sleuthing to find details about Eleanor—a mention here, a mention there—and to put them all together.
Juanita: What does Eleanor de Clare’s life and story have to teach readers?
Susan: I think she was a woman of enormous courage and strength, who at one point lost nearly everything she held dear—her husband, her children, her freedom, her lands—yet managed to survive and rebuild her life. One thing that deeply impresses me about medieval women is how strong they were, emotionally, and how they managed to cope and keep living day to day in the face of events—death, imprisonment, political upheaval--that might totally floor a modern, “empowered” woman. I hope that a reader would come away with that same high respect for their fortitude.
Juanita: What is your personal connection with this aspect of history?
Susan: My sympathies have always lain with the outsider, the nonconformist, the person who somehow doesn’t fit it, which is probably one of the things that attracted me to the story of Edward II. And I’ve always had the greatest respect for people who can meet adversity with grace and humor, which I think is reflected in my portrayal of Eleanor and her family.
Juanita: Tell us about your recent award for “The Traitor’s Wife.”
Susan: I won the silver award—second place—in the historical fiction category of ForeWord Magazine’s 2005 Book of the Year Awards. The awards, which are open to books published by small presses, university presses, self-publishers, and subsidy publishers, recognize “quality books published by independent and university presses,” according to ForeWord’s website. The quality of the entries was quite high, so I was thrilled to place in the awards, which are judged by librarians and booksellers.
Juanita: How long have you been writing and how much of your life is dedicated to your writing pursuits?
Susan: I’ve been writing since I was five or six, if you count all the stories about kitty cats I wrote when I was little. I have a full-time job and a family, so I have to squeeze in my writing when I can, mostly when everyone’s asleep.
Juanita: Who have been your literary influences?
Susan: I’m not sure how much if at all my writing reflects them, but my favorite writers are the greats of English literature—Shakespeare, Dickens, Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte. I also enjoy Anne Tyler’s novels. I was thinking about this the other day, and I think that all of the writers I enjoy have something in common—a sense of humor, even if the stories they tell are tragic ones, and an emphasis on character.
As far as historical fiction goes, I think I learned a great deal from reading Sharon Penman’s novels—painstaking research, panoramic, sweeping plots, and memorable, fully human characters. Because I came to reading historical fiction rather late, I’m still discovering new authors every day.
Juanita: How can readers find out more about you and your endeavors?
Susan: I have a website, www.susanhigginbotham.com, which I update regularly, and a blog, http://susandhigginbotham.blogspot.com/, on which I post two or three times a week, depending on how the work world is treating me. The website has a lot of information on Edward II and his reign, as well as about my book, and my blog deals mostly with what I’m reading and what historical figures have piqued my interest. I can also be reached at mail@susanhigginbotham.com, except for those people who keep trying to sell me stock or who want me to help them recover money from Nigerian bank accounts.
Juanita: Thank you for talking with us today Susan, and congratulations on the success of “The Traitor’s Wife.” Do you have any last thoughts for your readers?
Susan: Thank you! I enjoyed writing this book very much, and I hope readers enjoy it too. This was a fascinating period in English history, and I encourage people to read more about it.
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