Like Fire and Powder (Violent Delights Book 18)

Afterword

As stated in the introduction, this is inspired by true events, that is, I had to take dramatic license to explain the story as much of it remains a mystery. However, the basic events are true and all characterization is based on first hand accounts.

The timeline is correct, and all dates are correct, including when Henry convened parliament, bought Elizabeth the wedding ring, and when the children were born.

Arthur was born eight months from his parent's wedding, making him a month premature. It's unlikely (but not impossible) an month premature baby would survive and be considered strong and healthy (he was), ergo it's commonly considered likely he was conceived before the wedding. It's possible Elizabeth didn't even know she was pregnant at two to four weeks pregnant (four to six based on a modern 40 week gestation which dates from last period, based on a 38 week gestation from conception, then she was only four weeks pregnant, our modern six). There is no way that the couple was attempting to conceive before planning a wedding, as there wouldn't have been time, Henry set the date in mid December, before she was pregnant, even if she conceived right about then then she wouldn't have known. Also a pregnancy was not considered confirmed till the 'quickening' which was around three to four months...so they weren't sure and it certainly wasn't a plan. If they conceived before marriage, then it was apparently because they simply wanted to. As presented in the novel, neither was presumably sexually experienced, they might have felt more comfortable having the first time on their own terms over the Christmas holiday, when Parliament wasn't in session and they had time to get to know each other and the like, and happened to conceive. Alternately, they could have figured they should start trying before Lent, that seems unlikely though since Margret was conceived during Lent so they weren't all that careful about that.

The pig's blood poison, and the cyanide being in almonds is true and in the Middle Ages they did know of it. If Jasper knew of it or tried to use it is anybody's guess, I wrote that in as dramatic license. Edward IV's death is sometimes considered in line with poisoning though there's no evidence.

Jasper and Elizabeth are both complicated as we have almost no first hand accounts of their feelings on anything, we have a couple of letters from each throughout their lives but those are mostly to do with business. We don't know how Elizabeth felt marrying Henry, eventually they did like each other very much but at the time there was likely some shock. Simply put, unless both Jasper and Elizabeth were both stone cold sociopaths, there was some level of survivor's guilt going on there. And we don't have any reason to believe they were, on the contrary, both were quite caring people. Elizabeth, known for liking her husband, being very pious, donating to charity as it were, kind, humble, liked her children, liked own pets she had spaniels and grey hounds, spent time with her children, made sure they had toys which she apparently didn't have many as a child, stayed close to her mother and sister their whole lives. Jasper, raised his nephew from a young age we don't know when but likely before he was ten years old, was solely parenting this child, stayed with the Lancasters when they were losing, went to hell and back to get Henry the throne, doesn't throw his weight around when back in power just lives quietly, gets along well with his wife, and Queen Margret and Margret Beaufort, as well as the various squires and knights he had as friends who were on the run with him and otherwise. Overall both individuals seem very normal, vey emotionally typical to rather caring, so it's likely there was some serious mental trauma there. We have almost no recorded interactions between them, that said both were at court at the same time and Jasper took Arthur to Wales when he was older, so presumably they did know each other.

Henry himself said he was a captive or a runaway from the age of five, so we assume Jasper got him sometime around five or six years old, it's very hard to track their movements. The Herberts sold custody of him on paper to his mother when he was about seven...but he's not recorded as living with her. Given Henry's statement I assume that means that past age five or so, Jasper had custody of him. For some reason historians usually say that Jasper didn't get him till he was 14, but that contradicts Henry's statement. And if he'd lived with the Herbert's from age five to fourteen...he'd have not really been a captive they'd adopted him by then as their own, why even go with his uncle? More likely the Herbert's were intended to have him if he was caught.