The Queen's Secret Library...

Screaming children, camping trips and torrents of rain. It must be a Bank Holiday weekend. Yet here is where the British spirit kicks in. Celebrating 60 years of Queen Elizabeth II's reign, jubilee fever is spreading across the nation.
Yet perhaps take a moment to consider. What was the world like 60 years ago? What books, if I may so bold, was the Queen herself settling down to read as she was preparing to assume her responsibilities?

Well, here's a snapshot of her (unofficial) library....

• The Currents of Space - Isaace Asimov 
• They Do it With Mirrors - Agatha Christie
• The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemmingway
• The Voyage of the Dawn Treader - C. S. Lewis
• East of Eden - John Steinbeck
• Men at Arms - Evelyn Waugh
• Charlotte's Web - E. B. White (all books published in 1952)

Yet perhaps it is one particular piece of non-fiction work that has seen good our monarch thus far. Indeed, maybe, just maybe, the Queen has tucked in her handbag her own copy of Peale's The Power of Positive Thinking.

Alas for us, we will never know.....

The Literary King...

On this day...English monarch Alfred the Great died in 899 at the approximate age of 50. The only English royal to be attributed with such an epithet, Alfred is renowned for his miltary achievements, not least the protection of his Anglo-Saxon kingdom from the Vikings. Yet what is perhaps less well known about the youngest son of Æthelwulf of Wessex, is his penchant for learning. Inspired by Charlemange, Alfred created a court school, not only to educate his own children, but also, countering the perception of aristocratic snobbery, to educate those of lesser birth who showed intellectual potential. Indeed, after only a short time, 'they were seen to be devoted and intelligent students of the liberal arts'.

If the younger generation were embarking on a process of learning, it also made sense for Alfred to cement that of the elder, and so he ensured that literacy became a requirement for those holding a position of authority, especially in religious capacities. The king chose to lead this charge on education himself, beginning a Alfredian programme of translation of books into English that he deemed 'most necessary for all men to know'. These works included Gregory the Great's 'Pastoral Care', Boethius's 'Consolation of Philosophy', St. Augustine's 'Soliloquies', and the first fifty psalms of the Psalter.

The fugitive...

On this day...Lithuanian book smuggler Jurgis Bielinis was born in 1846. 1864 heralded the start of the Lithuanian press ban, during which all Lithuanian language books published in the Latin alphabet were forbidden by the ruling Russian Empire. Tsarist authorities hoped that this measure, part of a larger Russification plan, would decrease Polish influence on Lithuanians and would return them to what were considered their ancient historical ties with Russia.

However, Bielinis showed resistance, taking it upon himself to form the Knygnešiai society - the largest contemporary book smuggling organisation. Nicknamed 'The King of the Book Carriers', Bielinis was actively sought by the authorities, who promised a large monetary reward for his capture after he had escaped their guards at least five times. During the 31 years of his activity, it is estimated that he and his society illegally brought about half of all Lithuanian books from East Prussia into the Lithuanian mainland during the entire press ban. Bielinis died in 1918 at the age of 71.

Literary Weddings...

Prince William has today announced he will marry long term girlfriend Kate Middleton in the spring or summer of next year. Obviously the country is hoping that the marriage will be a good one, yet couples in literature have not always enjoyed a happy ending. Here is a quiz about the highs and lows of literary weddings

The Bastille in literature...

The storming of a Parisian jail in 1789, was one of the symbols of the French Revolution. Today, Bastille Day is celebrated across France to commerate the people's triumph. The influence of France on British literature, added of course, to their own fine works, ensures the fortification is a common motif, and here is a quiz on the Bastille in literature.

On this day...

English writer Geoffrey Chaucer is named chief clerk of the king's works in 1389. Appointed by Richard II, Chaucer's role was to upkeep and repair governmental buildings, with some of his projects including Westminster Palace, St. George's Chapel, Windsor, continuing to build the wharf at the Tower of London, and building the stands for a tournament held in 1390. Paid two shillings a day, a decent sum for the time, Chaucer was robbed and possibly injured a year later whilst conducting business, and it was then that he stepped down from his post. It was around the time of this particular job, or shortly before, that Chaucer began to write his magnum opus 'The Canterbury Tales'. 

On this day...

King William IV died in 1837, leading to the ascension of Queen Victoria to the throne of England and beginning arguably one of the most productive literary eras. Described by Matthew Arnold as 'a deeply unpoetical age', the Victorian era was dominated by the novel. Yet these works were not the managable romances of Austen, but heavy tomes of social injustice - their tortuous syntax leading Henry James, guilty himself of several, to name them 'loose baggy monsters'. The main culprits include Charles Dickens, author of almost a dozen major novels, George Eliot of 'Middlemarch' fame and the man of tragic persuasion, Thomas Hardy.

In conjunction with the growing suffrage movement, the Victorian era also saw the rise of the female novelist, most notably highlighted by the Bronte sisters, but supplemented also by names such as Elizabeth Gaskell. English drama is perhaps harder to find, but the one man could make up for it all, as the brilliance and wit of Oscar Wilde takes the stage by storm, preceeding the later George Bernard Shaw, and overshadowing the foreign imports of Chekhov and Ibsen. Despite Arnold's claim, Victorian literature was by no means devoid of poetry, producing Robert Browning, master of the dramatic monologue, blank verse devotee Alfred Lord Tennyson and romantic poet Christina Rossetti.

On this day...

Anne Frank received the diary that was to make her famous, on her 13th birthday in 1942. She had pointed out the red and green book to her father only a few days previously, and although it was for autographs, Anne used it as a diary, faithfully writing in entries from the day it was given to her. Many of the earlier entries contain details of the increasing restrictiveness of the German occupation, a regime which forced her and her family to go into hiding less than a month later. Leaving behind false trails to confuse potential captors, the family took up residence in rooms behind Otto's office and were helped by a few employees, including Miep Gies.

It was of their dedication that Anne wrote in her diary, along with her relationships with her family, each aspect magnified due to their confinement. Indeed, she even wrote of her 'contempt' of his mother, going so far as to say, 'she's not a mother to me'. Yet she also took the opportunity to confide in her diary deeper feelings, the nature of which she felt could not be shared with human ears. Hopes, ambitions, feelings towards God and human nature were all expressed, thus creating a more involved and poignant narrative, which has been able to transcend time to influence readers today. Her last entry was written on August 1st 1944, and 'The Diary of a Young Girl' was published in 1947.

On this day...

A series of book burnings were conducted by the Nazis in 1933. The campaign had been brewing since early April, when the German Student Association proclaimed a nationwide 'Action against the Un-German Spirit', which was to culminate in a literary purge. They gave as a basis for their actions, a desire for a 'pure' national language and culture, and a response to the Jewish 'smear campaigns', that had thus dogged the country.

Therefore, on the night of May 10th, students from all over the nation gathered on torchlit parades through the cities, accompanied by Nazi officials. The largest crowd was at Berlin's Opernplatz, where 40,000 people assembled to hear the words of Joseph Göbbel, as he declared; 'The future German man will not just be a man of books, but a man of character'. With these words, he began to cast books into the fire. Over 25,000 books were burned, including works of authors such as; H.G. Wells, Freud, Einstein, Hemmingway, Kafka, Lenin and London.

On this day...

Vladimir Lenin, former leader of the Soviet Union, was born in 1870. A Russian revolutionary, Lenin headed the state in its initial years, between 1917 and 1924, and was also an accomplished political scientist, authoring numerous works on the subject. His extensive bibliography, a volume of 54,650 pages, comprises of pamphlets, articles and books, as well as correspondence with allies and friends world-wide. The most influential of Lenin's works, include, 'Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism', 'The State and Revolution' and '"Left-Wing" Communism: An infantile Disorder'. After his death, the USSR selectively censored his writings, removing any contradictions that existed between him, and his successor Stalin.

On this day...

Timur the Lame, or 'Tamerlane' is said to have been born in 1336. The highly controversial Mongol leader, spent a successful lifetime conquering much of Western and Central Asia, founding both the Timurid empire and dynasty. Such a life seems to have all the facets of an enthralling drama, and indeed he was the inspiration for Christopher Marlowe's 'Tamburlaine the Great'.

Written in either 1587 or 1588, the play signifies the beginning of Elizabethan drama's golden age, demonstrating for perhaps the first time, the potential of blank verse in drama.Although arguably superseded by the late-Elizabethan and Jacobean tragedies, it is easy to see its influence in the works of Shakespeare, especially in the 'Henry' sequence. The play explores humanity and its potential in the face of power and so is often seen as having atheist overtones - a criticism often levelled at Marlowe himself. Performed by the Admiral's Men, the play gave famous renaissance actor Edward Alleyn his signature role.

On this day...

Miep Gies was born in 1909. A name that you may not have heard of, yet one whose actions have echoed throughout the decades. Although an Austrian citizen by birth, at the age of 11, Gies moved to Holland, escaping the food shortagesthat existed as the remenents of World War One. By 1933, she had begun to work at 'Opetka', a spice company run by German Otto Frank. Gies' extensive knowledge of both Dutch and German became a useful tool in helping the Franks assimilate into society and she was soon close friends with the family.

The friendship that was forged was tested, yet prove to be ever-enduring, as Gies and her husband helped to hide the Franks from the Nazi patrols for over two years. When the Franks were eventually found and arrested in the Summer of 1944, Gies retrived Anne's diary before the authorities could empty the hiding place, and preserved it, giving it to Otto after the war. Gies' extraordinary humanitarian efforts have since been rewarded, receiving German, Dutch and Israeli honours and even having a minor planet named after her. She died earlier this year, at the age of 100.

On this day...

John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster died in 1399. Perhaps it might at first glance seem an innocuous link to literature, yet the historical figure, and his descendents, play a major role in some of Shakespeare's most successful and popular plays. Father of Henry 'Bolingbroke' IV, and grandsire to Henry V, Gaunt can even caim the illustrious House of Tudor as being directly from his lineage, thus inadvertently inspiring Shakespeare's eponymous works, 'Henry IV part I and II', 'Henry V' and the later 'Henry VIII'. Gaunt himself, appears as a character in 'Richard II'.

The original historical tetralogy was written approximately 200 years after the first events which were portrayed; and indeed the events were vastly important. The overthrow and muder of Richard, the Battle of Shrewsbury and the Battle of Agincourt all feature, and all to some extent, especially 'Henry V', have been seen in a patriotic light since. Introducing the young Prince Hal and jovial Falstaff, the plays are ever popular, and indeed The Globe is staging both parts of Henry IV, in their 2010 season.

History beckons...

A new literary award is to be unveiled, honouring historical novels in the name of the father of the genre. The Walter Scott Prize, is being set up by the Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch, to 'properly honour' the author's 'immense achievements', and cement his place 'as one of the world's most influential novelists'. Scott's novel 'Waverly' is generally regarded as one of the first historical novels. Published in 1814 and set in1745, it is this work which is to define the term 'historical novel'; the parameter established as needing at least sixty years between the publication date and time period of its setting. The £25,000 award will feature at the Borders Book Festival in June.

On this day...

Adolf Hitler was sworn in as German Chancellor in 1933. Eight years before, he had unwittingly created one of the most interesting yet abhorrent literary works of the 20th century; 'Mein Kampf'. Written while he was imprisoned for contributions to the failed revolution of 1923, the two volumed book outlined his belief of Communism and Judaism as the twin evils of the world. Despicable though its contents may be, the book was extremely popular both at home and abroad. Indeed in 1938, the United Kingdom saw more than 53, 700 copies sold, and by the time he gained power in 1933, Hitler is said to have accrued 1.2 million Reichsmarks; 250 times that of a teacher's annual salary.While in office, Hitler published three editions of the book, including the 'Hochzeitsausgabe', given away free to every marrying couple, and the 'Tornister- Ausgabe', which was given to every serving soldier. Copying or printing the book is illegal in Germany and sale restrictions apply in countries worldwide.

On this day...

British historian, Edward Gibbon, died in 1794 at the age of 56. Although a sickly and weak child, Gibbon showed himself to be a voracious reader from a young age; so much so, that he was sent to Oxford University at the age of 15. Yet, perhaps unusually for such a great academic, he found it the 'most idle and unprofitable' time of his life. Instead, under the tutelage of a pastor, he journeyed to Switzerland and began to write, namely about his foreign experiences. Upon his return to England, he published his first book 'Essai sur l'Étude de la Littérature', yet his flowering literary career was, for the time being, to be cut short by his enrolement and subsequent service in the military, for 3 years. It was but one year later, that he visited Rome and so conceived his 'magnus opus', 'The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'; its six volumes now regarded for the quality of primary source usage as well as its prose. The achievement, for which Gibbon received over £1000 at the first publication, has led to him being called the first modern historian of Ancient Rome.

On this day...

Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of Henry VIII, died in 1536 at the age of 50. As a member of the Tudor dynasty, she and her historical contempories have found themselves popular subjects for recent fiction works. Perhaps the newest example, is that of Hilary Mantel's 'Wolf Hall'. The protagonist of her Booker winning novel, Thomas Cromwell, served as Henry's chief minister and was a strong advocate for his divorce from Catherine and subsequent split from the Church. The influential Tudor period has also found its way into the work of other modern authors. Philippa Gregory's historical fiction, concentrated on Henry's wives and daughters, is highly successful. Her first novel of the series, 'The Other Boleyn Girl' has recently been adapted for the screen and the rights for the sequel, 'The Boleyn Inheritance' have already been sold. Other authors to write about the period include Alison Weir, Kate Emerson and Jean Plaidy. 

On this day...

Queen Mary I, died in 1558; leading to the ascension of Queen Elizabeth I to the throne, and sparking of one of the greatest periods of literature in history. The Elizabethan era is, of couse, best known for dramatist and poet William Shakespeare. 25 of his 37 plays were purportedly performed during Elizabeth's reign, and she herself was known to be an admirer; the Lord Chamberlain's Men said to have performed over thirty-two times at court. Yet Shakespeare was not the only influential playwright of the era; contempories Ben Jonson and Christopher Marlowe are equally renowned, the latter possibly even more so in his lifetime. Elizabethan literature also widely contributed to the field of poetry, not least with the reinvention of the sonnet by Shakespeare, but also through the works of Philip Sidney and the first writings of John Donne; Donne was voted this year, the nation's second favourite poet. Other figures of the era include; Thomas Kyd, John Webster and Thomas Middleton. Much of this prolific writing continued into the Jacobean period.