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The Powder of Death

by Julian Stockwin Book 2 in the Moments of History series.

First published 2016

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4.0(131)

In Oxford in 1261, Roger Bacon learns from the returning Franciscan traveller William of Rubruck that China possesses a powder capable of explosive force. The two scholars decide that such knowledge is too dangerous to spread, but their attempt to suppress it cannot prevent later generations from rediscovering its ingredients and military possibilities.

The story follows blacksmith Jared of Hurnwych as personal loss and obsession draw him into experiments with the powder, political rivalry and the service of Edward III. Its climax at the Battle of Crécy connects one man’s pursuit of a destructive invention with the early use of gunpowder weapons in European warfare and the changing military order of the Hundred Years’ War.

Historical Periods

Battle of Crécy1346 CE Reign of Edward III1327–1377 CE

Genres

Court & Political Fiction Historical Thriller War Fiction

Historical people

Edward III of England1312–1377 Roger Bacon William of Rubruck

Series reading order

Books in the Moments of History series

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