| What can we tell from the names given historical | | | | Bastard.About this blue tooth; King Harald Blatand was |
| characters? Well, Harold Bluetooth didn't have a blue | | | | a 10th century Danish king whose name translated into |
| tooth, but William the Bastard, technically, was. But, | | | | English means blue tooth. So, it wasn't a physical |
| what of Ethelred? Ethelred II, The Unready was king of | | | | description - only a family name. His father was Grom |
| England between 968 to 1016. When he was seven | | | | the Old, though we don't know if it was because of his |
| years old, his father, King Edgar, died, and his | | | | age of sagacity, and his son was Sweyn Forkbeard |
| half-brother, Edward II (the Martyr), became king. At | | | | although there's no solid evidence that he had a forked |
| ten, after Edward was murdered, Ethelred succeeded | | | | beard.Was Ivan the Terrible so terrible? Probably not in |
| him to the thrown.In 1013, because of Viking invasions, | | | | the way we use terrible as a pejorative that indicates |
| Ethelred fled to Normandy, seeking protection from his | | | | being harsh or fearsome. Ivan's name, in Russian, was |
| brother-in-law, Robert of Normandy. He married the | | | | Grozny. The original meaning of that word is closer to |
| daughter of Richard I, Duke of Normandy whose | | | | the English awesome or formidable. Maybe Ivan the |
| great-nephew, William (the Bastard) of Normandy, | | | | Fearsome was what the people had in mind after his |
| used this relationship as the basis of his claim to the | | | | impressive success in battle and not because of how |
| throne of England in 1066.But why was he called The | | | | he treated his subjects. Still, we can't ignore his |
| Unready? Turns out it doesn't mean that he was | | | | shortcomings. Toward the end of his reign, his personal |
| ill-prepared. Unready derives from the Anglo-Saxon | | | | militia terrorized the country, and he was known to |
| word unraede which means lacking counsel. The | | | | have tortured and executed thousands of his subject. |
| people felt that Ethelred wasn't able to make any | | | | So, however you translate it, maybe he was pretty |
| decisions on his own. He relied heavily on the Witan | | | | terrible after all.On the other hand, I think the names |
| council which wasn't all that good an idea. So, his reign | | | | Jack the Ripper, Typhoid Mary, and Vlad the Impailer |
| was plagued by poor advice, and it didn't help that he | | | | pretty much say it all.Bill Moore is the author of Write |
| was suspected of being involved in his brother | | | | Rite Right. This compendium of homophones, |
| Edward's murder.Speaking of William the Bastard, | | | | homonyms, and frequently misapplied words is a |
| which he was, having been born out of wedlock, he | | | | necessary resource for anyone who writes for others |
| was the illegitimate son of Duke Robert I of Normandy | | | | to read. (Available on backoftheroom.com, |
| and the daughter of a tanner. Ordinarily, that would | | | | amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com) |
| have been the end of it, but when his father died, | | | | Bill works with businesses, focusing on organizational |
| William was recognized as the heir to the title, which | | | | development and corporate training with emphasis on |
| was a rather important exception to the general rule | | | | communications and product presentation. He helps his |
| that bastards can't succeed - to the title, that is. At 15, | | | | clients sharpen communication and selling skills and |
| he was knighted, and in 1066, he became William I or | | | | reach targeted audiences effectively. |
| William the Conqueror - a step up from being a | | | | |