So, Cornwell launched the Sharpe series, with the success as noted above. The series by Forester did not cover the Duke of Wellington’s land-based campaign, and no other novelist had tackled it either. In a classic example of the phrase, “If you don’t see the book you want on the shelf, write it.”, Bernard Cornwell saw a gap in the Hornblower series that puzzled him, so he filled it by writing his own book. These two facts speak volumes about his early life, as well as giving some insight into his interest in family history. Peculiar peopleĬornwell’s reaction to this upbringing was to legally change his name to match his mother’s maiden name as soon as he was able (on the death of his adoptive father) and to become an atheist. As Christian Fundamentalists, novels of any kind would have been suspected as being against their principles. They were strict pacifists who frowned upon any kind of levity or fun. He was adopted by the Wiggins family from Essex, who were members of an extreme Protestant sect called the Peculiar People. Cornwell describes himself as a ‘war baby’, being the result of a relationship between his mother, Dorothy Cornwell, and a Canadian airman, William Oughtred.

When you take into account his early life and upbringing, it is a wonder that he was allowed the pleasure of reading at all. Forester was a great influence on Bernard Cornwell’s childhood and subsequent decision to begin writing. The series proved extremely popular, which helped to establish the name of Bernard Cornwell as an eminent historical novelist. Following his initial reservations at Sean Bean being given the role as the eponymous hero (due to him not resembling the character he had in mind when he wrote the stories), he soon changed his mind when he saw how well Sean took to the role. He is mostly known for his series set within the Napoleonic Wars concerning the exploits of rifleman Richard Sharpe, though this is partly as this was the first of his works to be adapted for television. His own personal story is a great example of how life shapes and influences creative people and their work. He continues to write from his bases in America, in Cape Cod and Charleston, having broadened his historical range as far as Elizabethan times and the American Civil War, and to also publish non-fiction works and contemporary thrillers. The flame bearrer Where does Bernard Cornwell live?

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