While all of the letters and newspaper articles in this novel are fiction, the people involved are all drawn from history. While most readers will know of Jane and Cassandra Austen, of course, many may not know of the others. Here is a brief list:
The Reverend James Stanier Clarke (1766-1834), Chaplain (1799-1821) and Librarian (1805-1821) to the Prince Regent. Attended Tonbridge School, matriculated 1784. He married Abigail Aitkins in 1824 and had a stroke in 1829 (though not, as far as I am aware, in Winchester Cathedral). He died in 1834. Author of several mostly unremarkable books, his personal book of collected autographs, essays and ephemera entitled Sacred to Friendship was discovered in 1955 in an antiquarian bookshop by Richard James Wheeler and includes several delightful watercolour paintings of notable people of the day. One of Clarke's most intriguing portraits, of which an interpretation by Ruth Woolaston forms the frontispiece of this novel, is of an unnamed woman wearing a black hat with red feathers and a black-trimmed red stole. Some experts have suggested that this may be a portrait of Jane Austen, but to date there is no proof of this.
The Reverend Vicesimus Knox (1752-1821) Headmaster, Tonbridge School 1778-1812, essayist and bestselling author of Elegant Extracts, among other titles.
The Reverend Dr Thomas Knox (1784-1843) He succeeded his father, Vicesimus Knox, as headmaster of Tonbridge School (1812-1834).
The Right Reverend Brownlow North (1741-1820) Bishop of Winchester 1781-1820.
Francis North, 6th Earl of Guilford (1772-1861), son of Bishop Brownlow North.
St Swithun (c. 800-2 July 863) Bishop of Winchester (852-863), alternative spelling ‘Swithin’. Patron saint of Winchester Cathedral. He had requested that, at his death, his body be buried outside the cathedral where the common people’s feet would pass over him and rain would penetrate the earth above him. In 971, however, Bishop Ethelwold had St Swithun’s remains moved inside the cathedral where they were housed in a special shrine. It was said that miracles followed but legend has it that St Swithun was so offended by the removal of his bones that he caused it to rain for forty days. This established the tradition that, should it rain on his Feast Day (15 July) then it will rain for the next forty days. The famous poem about St Swithun’s Day reads:
St Swithun’s day if thou dost rain
For forty days it will remain
St Swithun’s day if thou be fair
For forty days ’twill rain nae mare
Sometime after his interment inside the cathedral, Swithun’s skull was detached and relocated to Canterbury Cathedral and his arm was sent to Peterborough Abbey. Jane Austen’s last poem, ‘When Winchester Races’, was written three days before her death and includes this line about St Swithun: ‘When once we are buried, you think we are gone
But behold me immortal!’
The Right Reverend Bishop Charles Sumner (1790-1874) Bishop of Winchester (1827-1869).
The Right Reverend Dr Sir George Pretyman Tomline, Baronet (1750-1827) Bishop of Winchester (1820-1827).
It should also be noted that, although I have placed the Bishop's Palace in College Street, Winchester, there is, in fact, no such building there. The traditional home of the Bishops of Winchester was Farnham Castle in Surrey.
The legendary Bishops’ Chronicles are also a figment of my imagination, as is the library in which they reside. The mortuary chests are real, however, and may be found in Winchester Cathedral, although none is inscribed with the motto Dis Manibus Sacrum. Among the letters and documents recorded between the chapters, only the obituaries are authentic. These reflect the true dates, and in some cases, the original wording used to record an eminent individual’s death.
Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) Irish-born, poet, novelist and dramatist. He was a leader of an aesthetic movement advocating Art for Art’s Sake and renowned for his eccentric dressing, long hair, and clever witticisms. In 1895 he was accused of homosexual practices and sentenced to imprisonment and hard labour in Reading Gaol. His years there tragically broke him and he died in penury in Paris in 1900. His most famous works include the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, and the brilliantly clever plays, The Importance of Being Earnest and Lady Windermere’s Fan, among others. His best-known poem is The Ballad of Reading Jail.