The Mark of the Horse Lord
Encyclopedia
The Mark of the Horse Lord is a historical novel
for children written by Rosemary Sutcliff
and published in 1965. It won the first Phoenix Award
in 1985.
It takes place in Roman Britain
and tells the tale of a gladiator
who becomes involved with the Dal Riada
of Earra-Ghàidheal
. Like many Sutcliff novels, the plot is driven by a crisis of leadership, hinging on acceptance of the ultimate responsibility of a sacrificial king.
-gladiator Red Phaedrus, a red haired
half Roman
, half Celt
. He receives his wooden-foil, i.e. his freedom after winning a fight-to-the-death in the Corstopitum
arena. He is soon after approached by representatives of the Dal Riada, who ask him to impersonate their king in an effort to win back tribal leadership from a usurper queen. Phaedrus is persuaded, accepts the role of Midir, the original prince who's eyes were put-out by the queen, preventing him from ruling, and receives a signifying tattoo on his forehead, the eponymous Mark of the Horse Lord. The stage is then set for a struggle between King and Queen, between Dal Riada and Caledones
, between the Sun God and the Great Mother; a theme used in many Sutcliff novels.
Phaedrus spends time in a town on the Northern Wall
, learning his role from the original prince Midir and the culture of the Celts. Several historical subjects are discussed, including Lollius Urbicus
and the laying-waste of Valentia
after subjugation, the Pax Romana
and its effects, Calgacus
's battles against General Agricola
, and the viewpoints of Tacitus
on all of this.
A revolt ensues against the Queen, and the Dal Riada capital of Dun Monaidh
is retaken, but the queen escapes to her kin amongst the Caledones
. Phaedrus is crowned king in a ceremony where he places one foot on the carved footprint
of previous kings. He lives among the Dal Riada, developing trust and understanding with some who recognize him for an impostor, most who do not.
A war ensues between the Dal Riada and the Caledones, who depicted as Picts
. The fighting occurs across the countryside around Cruachan
(described as the Shield Boss of the World), as the Dal Riada struggle to defend their frontier. Other geographical features encountered include Loch Abha
, Loch Fhiona
, the Cluta
, the Firth of the War Boats
, and Glen Croe
.
The Dal Riada eventually win, the Caledones are dispersed, but the Queen flees and finds refuge in a Roman frontier fort. An attempt to assassinate the Queen is made with the help of the true Midir, in which both die, and Phaedrus is captured by the Romans. He is offered freedom at a great cost to the Dal Riada, referencing back to the discussions of Pax Romana and Roman treatment of the native tribes.
Phaedrus instead opts to sacrifice himself for the survival of his adopted people, punctuating the concept of responsibility and the sacrificial king developed throughout the novel.
The theme of the novel is built around an individual struggling to find identify and belonging, similar to Sutcliff novels such as Outcast
and Dawn Wind
, revolving around conflicting cultures, and the duties assumed and performed by individuals within those cultures. The duties of a king
are shown in many of her novels, including Sword at Sunset
and Sun Horse, Moon Horse
, and have been credited as being influenced by James Frazer
's The Golden Bough
.
Historical novel
According to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
for children written by Rosemary Sutcliff
Rosemary Sutcliff
Rosemary Sutcliff CBE was a British novelist, and writer for children, best known as a writer of historical fiction and children's literature. Although she was primarily a children's author, the quality and depth of her writing also appeals to adults; Sutcliff herself once commented that she wrote...
and published in 1965. It won the first Phoenix Award
Phoenix Award
The Phoenix Award is awarded annually to a book originally published in English twenty years previously which did not receive a major award at the time of its publication....
in 1985.
It takes place in Roman Britain
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
and tells the tale of a gladiator
Gladiator
A gladiator was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gladiators were volunteers who risked their legal and social standing and their lives by appearing in the...
who becomes involved with the Dal Riada
Dál Riata
Dál Riata was a Gaelic overkingdom on the western coast of Scotland with some territory on the northeast coast of Ireland...
of Earra-Ghàidheal
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
. Like many Sutcliff novels, the plot is driven by a crisis of leadership, hinging on acceptance of the ultimate responsibility of a sacrificial king.
Plot summary
The story revolves around slaveSlavery in ancient Rome
The institution of slavery in ancient Rome played an important role in society and the Roman economy. Besides manual labor on farms and in mines, slaves performed many domestic services and a variety of other tasks, such as accounting...
-gladiator Red Phaedrus, a red haired
Red hair
Red hair occurs on approximately 1–2% of the human population. It occurs more frequently in people of northern or western European ancestry, and less frequently in other populations...
half Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, half Celt
Celt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
. He receives his wooden-foil, i.e. his freedom after winning a fight-to-the-death in the Corstopitum
Coria (Corbridge)
Coria was a fort and town, located south of Hadrian's Wall, in the Roman province of Britannia. Its full Latin name is uncertain. Today it is known as Corchester or Corbridge Roman Site, adjoining Corbridge in the English county of Northumberland...
arena. He is soon after approached by representatives of the Dal Riada, who ask him to impersonate their king in an effort to win back tribal leadership from a usurper queen. Phaedrus is persuaded, accepts the role of Midir, the original prince who's eyes were put-out by the queen, preventing him from ruling, and receives a signifying tattoo on his forehead, the eponymous Mark of the Horse Lord. The stage is then set for a struggle between King and Queen, between Dal Riada and Caledones
Caledonians
The Caledonians , or Caledonian Confederacy, is a name given by historians to a group of indigenous peoples of what is now Scotland during the Iron Age and Roman eras. The Romans referred to their territory as Caledonia and initially included them as Britons, but later distinguished as the Picts...
, between the Sun God and the Great Mother; a theme used in many Sutcliff novels.
Phaedrus spends time in a town on the Northern Wall
Antonine Wall
The Antonine Wall is a stone and turf fortification built by the Romans across what is now the Central Belt of Scotland, between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde. Representing the northernmost frontier barrier of the Roman Empire, it spanned approximately 39 miles and was about ten feet ...
, learning his role from the original prince Midir and the culture of the Celts. Several historical subjects are discussed, including Lollius Urbicus
Quintus Lollius Urbicus
Quintus Lollius Urbicus was governor of Roman Britain between the years 139 and 142, during the reign of the Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius. He is named in the text known as the Augustan History, and his name appears on five Roman inscriptions from Britain; his career is set out in detail on a pair...
and the laying-waste of Valentia
Valentia (Roman Britain)
Valentia was the name of a consular northern province of Roman Britain.-History:Count Theodosius set up Valentia in 369 AD as part of his reorganisation of Britain following the Great Conspiracy, and probably named it after the reigning emperors, Valentinian and Valens.Ammianus tells of how the...
after subjugation, the Pax Romana
Pax Romana
Pax Romana was the long period of relative peace and minimal expansion by military force experienced by the Roman Empire in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. Since it was established by Caesar Augustus it is sometimes called Pax Augusta...
and its effects, Calgacus
Calgacus
According to Tacitus, Calgacus was a chieftain of the Caledonian Confederacy who fought the Roman army of Gnaeus Julius Agricola at the Battle of Mons Graupius in northern Scotland in AD 83 or 84...
's battles against General Agricola
Gnaeus Julius Agricola
Gnaeus Julius Agricola was a Roman general responsible for much of the Roman conquest of Britain. His biography, the De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae, was the first published work of his son-in-law, the historian Tacitus, and is the source for most of what is known about him.Born to a noted...
, and the viewpoints of Tacitus
Tacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
on all of this.
A revolt ensues against the Queen, and the Dal Riada capital of Dun Monaidh
Dunadd
Dunadd, , is an Iron Age and later hillfort near Kilmartin in Argyll and Bute, Scotland and believed to be the capital of the ancient kingdom of Dál Riata.-Description:...
is retaken, but the queen escapes to her kin amongst the Caledones
Caledonians
The Caledonians , or Caledonian Confederacy, is a name given by historians to a group of indigenous peoples of what is now Scotland during the Iron Age and Roman eras. The Romans referred to their territory as Caledonia and initially included them as Britons, but later distinguished as the Picts...
. Phaedrus is crowned king in a ceremony where he places one foot on the carved footprint
Petrosomatoglyph
A petrosomatoglyph is an image of parts of a human or animal body incised in rock. Many were created by Celtic peoples, such as the Picts, Scots, Irish, Cornish, Cumbrians, Bretons and Welsh. These representations date from the Early Middle Ages; others of uncertain purpose date back to megalithic...
of previous kings. He lives among the Dal Riada, developing trust and understanding with some who recognize him for an impostor, most who do not.
A war ensues between the Dal Riada and the Caledones, who depicted as Picts
Picts
The Picts were a group of Late Iron Age and Early Mediaeval people living in what is now eastern and northern Scotland. There is an association with the distribution of brochs, place names beginning 'Pit-', for instance Pitlochry, and Pictish stones. They are recorded from before the Roman conquest...
. The fighting occurs across the countryside around Cruachan
Ben Cruachan
Ben Cruachan is a 1126 m mountain that is the highest point in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It gives its name to the Cruachan Dam, a pumped-storage hydroelectric power station located in a cavern inside the mountain, as well as providing the slogan for Clan Campbell.It is the high point of a...
(described as the Shield Boss of the World), as the Dal Riada struggle to defend their frontier. Other geographical features encountered include Loch Abha
Loch Awe
Loch Awe is a large body of water in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It has also given its name to a village on its banks, variously known as Loch Awe, or Lochawe. There are islands within the loch such as Innis Chonnell and Inishail.- The loch :It is the third largest freshwater loch in Scotland with...
, Loch Fhiona
Loch Fyne
Loch Fyne is a sea loch on the west coast of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It extends inland from the Sound of Bute, making it the longest of the sea lochs...
, the Cluta
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde forms a large area of coastal water, sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre peninsula which encloses the outer firth in Argyll and Ayrshire, Scotland. The Kilbrannan Sound is a large arm of the Firth of Clyde, separating the Kintyre Peninsula from the Isle of Arran.At...
, the Firth of the War Boats
Loch Long
Loch Long is a body of water in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The sea loch extends from the Firth of Clyde at its southwestern end. It measures approximately 20 miles in length, with a width of between one and two miles...
, and Glen Croe
Glen Croe
Glen Croe is a glen in the heart of the Arrochar Alps surrounded by large and rugged mountains characterised by huge boulders.-Geography:Glen Croe is located to the north west of Loch Lomond and Loch Long, draining into the latter. At the head of the glen is the pass leading to Glen Kinglas...
.
The Dal Riada eventually win, the Caledones are dispersed, but the Queen flees and finds refuge in a Roman frontier fort. An attempt to assassinate the Queen is made with the help of the true Midir, in which both die, and Phaedrus is captured by the Romans. He is offered freedom at a great cost to the Dal Riada, referencing back to the discussions of Pax Romana and Roman treatment of the native tribes.
Phaedrus instead opts to sacrifice himself for the survival of his adopted people, punctuating the concept of responsibility and the sacrificial king developed throughout the novel.
The theme of the novel is built around an individual struggling to find identify and belonging, similar to Sutcliff novels such as Outcast
Outcast (Sutcliff novel)
Outcast is a historical novel for children written by Rosemary Sutcliff and published in 1955.It takes place in Roman Britain and tells the tale of an orphaned Roman child who is shipwrecked on a coast of Dumnonia in Celtic Britain, outside of Roman rule...
and Dawn Wind
Dawn Wind
Dawn Wind is a historical novel for children written by Rosemary Sutcliff and published in 1961 by Oxford University Press, with illustrations by Charles Keeping....
, revolving around conflicting cultures, and the duties assumed and performed by individuals within those cultures. The duties of a king
King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...
are shown in many of her novels, including Sword at Sunset
Sword at Sunset
Sword at Sunset is a 1963 book by Rosemary Sutcliff, part of her The Eagle of the Ninth series. It is a modern interpretation of the legends of King Arthur....
and Sun Horse, Moon Horse
Sun Horse, Moon Horse
Sun Horse, Moon Horse is a historical novel for children written by Rosemary Sutcliff and published in 1977.It takes place in Bronze Age Britain, telling the tale of a chieftain's son of the Iceni who is caught up in a conflict with the neighboring Attribates, and plays an instrumental part in...
, and have been credited as being influenced by James Frazer
James Frazer
Sir James George Frazer , was a Scottish social anthropologist influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion...
's The Golden Bough
The Golden Bough
The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion is a wide-ranging, comparative study of mythology and religion, written by Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer . It first was published in two volumes in 1890; the third edition, published 1906–15, comprised twelve volumes...
.