No campaign of the First World War better justifies the poets' view of the conflict as futile and pitiless than Gallipoli. Saul David More Quotes by Saul David More Quotes From Saul David In the early hours of 16 December 1944, the Germans launched their last great offensive of the Second World War against weakly held U.S. positions in the Ardennes Forest, the site of their original Blitzkrieg success against the French in 1940. Saul David greatsuccesswarworld We've all faced the charge that our novels are history lite, and to some extent, that's true. Yet for some, historical fiction is a way into reading history proper. Saul David truereadinghistoryway Ever since World War I, superior force is no longer measured in terms of men or horses, but in the means to wreak destruction. Saul David forcemenwarworld I passed the 11-plus, but it was decided that I should take the Common Entrance exam to Monmouth School, the nearest independent. I was never entirely comfortable there, as they didn't have girls, and they played rugby instead of football. Saul David neverindependentfootballschool At school, there were more Davids than any other name: more than 20 of us cousins out of 40 pupils. When my older cousins moved on, the school had to close. Saul David cousinsnamemoreschool When I was six or seven, we went to the nearest English primary school, St Weonards, about seven miles away. The teaching was good, and this was the start of my beginning to shine as a student. Saul David shinebeginninggoodschool I worked hard at my four-year M.A., but got a 2.1. That was a big disappointment, as I wanted to write about history and thought I needed a First. Saul David thoughtharddisappointmenthistory The people who read the history books tend to have a natural zeal and are alarmingly well-read. Saul David bookswhohistorypeople Those who read the fiction assume that, because I'm also a historian, I know what I'm talking about. Saul David aboutwhoknowtalking If I'm at a book signing, and someone decides to take me to task, it can make for quite a sticky moment. Saul David someonememomentbook Few remember that the battle of Rorke's Drift was fought on the same day that the British Army suffered its most humiliating defeat at nearby Isandlwana. Saul David dayarmybattleremember From 1801, Napoleon began an ambitious programme of civil reform to standardise law and justice, centralise education, introduce uniform weights and measures and a fully functioning internal market. That achievement alone makes him one of the giants of history. Saul David aloneachievementeducationhistory It is surely no coincidence that Napoleon's two greatest heroes were Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar. In certain respects, he would outdo them both. Saul David heroesgreatcoincidencetwo Given the gruesome fate of the last Tsar, Nicholas II, and his family, and the fact that five of the previous 12 Romanov rulers were also murdered, it is easy to regard Russia's imperial dynasty as cursed. Saul David faterussiafamilyeasy The first Romanov ruler was just 16 when he was crowned Tsar Michael I in Moscow in 1613, thus ending the 'Time of Troubles' sparked by Ivan the Terrible's death. Saul David endingjusttimedeath Even a moderniser like Alexander II - who emancipated the serfs in 1861 - had no intention of devolving real power. Saul David wholikerealpower Henry Kissinger is perhaps the best-known American statesman of the 20th century. Saul David perhapsamerican20th-centurycentury Historians turning their hands to fiction are all the rage. Since Alison Weir led the way in 2006, an ever-growing number of established non-fiction writers - Giles Milton, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Harry Sidebottom, Patrick Bishop, Ian Mortimer and myself included - have written historical novels. Saul David myselfhistoricalhandsway If getting a contract was relatively straightforward, writing fiction was far harder than I could have imagined, and there were moments during the long and torturous edit process when it seemed that 'Zulu Hart,' the first of the trilogy, would never be fit for public consumption. Saul David nevermomentswritinglong Historical facts are the vital framework around which non-fiction writers construct their narratives; they are, quite simply, indispensable. Saul David quitewhichhistoricalfacts
