Story of St. Hilarion Castle and Queen Regaena
“Welcome to St. Hilarion, step forward into Queen Regaena’s chamber to receive your pay for your hard work and dedication!” As I step through the doorway, there is the alluring Queen Regaena just inside the open window of her chamber. I cross the room, and I unexpectedly feel the guards’ presence close in behind me. Suddenly, they grab me and force me through the open window. As the guards push me from the precipice outside the window, “Thank you again,” are the last words I hear, as I fall to my death in the valley below.
The fairy tale-looking castle of St. Hilarion was built by the Byzantine queen, Regaena, the end of the 11th century. Queen Regaena was the most beautiful lady in the land of Cyprus, alas; she was also the most heartless and cruel. She was a greedy woman and desired to have the most beautiful and elaborate castle in all of Cyprus.
Queen Regaena insisted on overseeing the construction of the castle herself. No detail was to be overlooked. In planning such a large and magnificent castle, Queen Regaena knew that she would need a large workforce. She gathered a large number of sturdy men from near and far and forced them to build her castle. She required the men to form lines, standing side by side, and pass the materials from man to man until they reached their assigned destination. This was difficult work since most of the materials had to be transported from the valley to the summit of the mountain. But goal was to complete the castle in Regaena’s lifetime so she could enjoy it. Finally, the glorious castle was completed and she named it St. Hilarion Castle. Its unsurpassed grandeur impressed all who beheld it. Queen Regaena should have been joyful at the completion of St. Hilarion, however, she was worried.
Over the years, Queen Regaena had amassed a large fortune of gold and wealth in her family treasury. Her greatest fear was that the workers who constructed the castle would remember the hidden location of the royal treasure room. She sat in a chamber in
the western wing of the castle and thought of a plan to prevent possible robbery. This particular chamber had a window which opened onto an enormous precipice and had a breathtaking view of the valley far below. Sitting at this window, she devised an evil plan to protect her treasure.
Filban said the home had a yard that was overgrown. “The trees and bushes were overgrown, and the house was dark,” Filban said. “And the windows were covered.” She and her sister slept in the front bedroom of the house. She remembers the bedroom having a large, floor-to-ceiling window. She said you could look out and see the wra...
The story of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII, has been elusive to historians since her death in 1536 at the hands of her husband. This, in part, can be attributed to the destruction of almost everything she touched soon after her execution. On orders of the king, the castles that were once her home had all memory stripped of her. Portraits were destroyed, letters disappeared, their symbol of the H and A intertwined had the A ripped away. The remnants of her time on the throne are pieces of history that were overlooked in the workers haste to strip the castles in preparation for Jane Seymour to become queen. There are few hints left of what really happened during Anne’s life and how important she was during her reign which has created the widespread infatuation with Anne and who she really was. Why is Anne’s life of such interest to us then? The reasons are many and include the desire to know her role in the English reformation, being the first queen of England to ever be executed, and the impact it had on her daughter and the later Queen Elizabeth I.
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is a memoir about Jeannette’s childhood experiencing many difficult situations. It is an excellent example of contemporary literature that reflects society. This story connects with social issues relevant to our time period, such as unstable home life, alcoholism, and poverty. Many of these issues, as well as others, are also themes of the story. One major theme of the story is overcoming obstacles, which is demonstrated by Jeannette, the Walls’ kids, and Rex and Mary Walls.
In conclusion, the novel The Glass Castle was an attempt to represent the challenges we face throughout our life. Every challenge should be confronted and solved. Family matters contribute to why many individuals have difficulties, but at the end we should know that they’ll always love us. No matter what happens we face the unknown and deal with it. We forgive many people who are significantly associated to us and most of all we take the responsibilities. It is important to always take action and solve the challenges we
... in that barren hall with its naked stair... rising into the dim upper hallway where an echo spoke which was not mine ut rather that of the lost irrevocable might-have-been which haunts all houses, all enclosed walls erected by human hands, not for shelter, not for warmth, but to hide from the world's curious looking and seeing the dark turnings which the ancient young delusions of pride and hope and ambition (ay, and love too) take.
The author notes that the King at an early age relied mostly on his mentors for knowledge and advice, notably two of which were councils of elders. The King’s entire life and on matters of decisionmaking was under the influence of these elders and from members of the court. The effects of overreliance on the need to make a decisive decision is witnessed when the moment to plan the escape, the King ponders and waste a lot of time in thinking and going over the idea of evading. The King took much time that Marie and Fersen had already begun planning for the escape long before the king had already given the consent for such an idea. Marie’s plan was underway and was schedule on May but the King’s nature of indecisiveness led to his postponing of the due date. Timothy Tackett notes down that the King does not just postpone the escape once but six times. These acts of postponing the escape finally end as he decides on the twentieth of June as the eloping day. The author yet again argues that if the family had left earlier on agreed dates their chances of a safe gateway would be higher and less risky. The King’s decision on postponing and prolonging the escape paved way for a chance that led to the conspiracy to be
Pollick, Amy. “Dispelling Myths about queen.” Dectur Daily, The (AL) 20 July 2008: Newspaper Source. Web. 15 Nov. 3013.
Primary source: The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls pages (68, 112, 280, 180-181, 225, 212-213)
His innate caution took hold, and he drew back to examine it at greater length. Wary of what he saw, he circled the batholith and then climbed to the ridge behind it from which he could look down upon the roof. What he saw from there left him dry-mouthed and jittery. The gigantic upthrust was obviously a part of a much older range, one that had weathered and worn, suffered from shock and twisting until finally this tower of granite had been violently upthrust, leaving it standing, a shaky ruin among younger and sturdier peaks. In the process the rock had been shattered and driven by mighty forces until it had become a miners horror. Wetherton stared, fascinated by the prospect. With enormous wealth here for the taking, every ounce must be taken at the risk of his life” (L’Amour 149-150). The mountain contained at the time’s worth thousands and thousands of dollars worth of gold, and during the old west thousands of dollars would bring a person a long ways. Since there was so much gold presented to Wetherton in one spot, greed got the best of him, having the mindset of “one more day” of mining and there being so much and the gold being very concentrated, the trap of
Throughout the novel, We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson, we notice by Mary Katherine Blackwood’s thoughts, actions, and words that she is not completely mentally healthy and may have several mental illnesses, one of them being paranoid schizophrenia. This disorder makes it difficult for readers to understand what is real and what is a figment of Merricat’s imagination. Through other characters’ speech towards and about her, we can better understand Merricat’s thought process.
After researching and learning about the Tower of London, I’ve realized how great of an impact it has on British history. Writing this paper has opened my eyes to a larger world, and shows me how deep history really goes. The people that impacted the Tower, and the events that occurred within the Tower, are what makes the Tower grand and strong, with thousands of tales being passed on from generation to generation of the dramatic experiences they have had while in the tower. Therefor the walls of the tower of London hold within them secrets of history, which has changed not only England but the whole world as well. If only these walls could talk, they could tell us the truth behind the history and tales that occurred within the Tower of London.
Jeannette Walls’ memoir, The Glass Castle, encapsulates her childhood in poverty and trails her nomadic lifestyle with her irresponsible and arguably negligent parents. Although formidable and destructive when intoxicated, Walls’ father Rex was an intelligent, inventive man when sober. During the times when he was unemployed, Rex would design inventions to acquire wealth, such as “The Prospector”, a machine that would separate gold nuggets from other rocks based on weight. Moreover, he had formulated blueprints for an architecturally advanced and complex house, which had been named the Glass Castle. According to Walls’, “Once [Dad] finished the Prospector and we struck it rich, he’d start work on our Glass Castle” (Walls 25). This idea of
One of the world’s most significant buildings is Buckingham Palace. This building has over 50,000 people visit each year for banquets and royal events (NWE 1). Representing the British Empire, the palace symbolizes the British royalty (NWE 1). They constructed it for the Duke of Buckingham (EBP 1). In 1761, George III wanted to buy the house for his wife, Queen Charlotte, to have a home close to St. James Palace. Here, many court occasions took place. Some of these court occasions included official receptions, royal marriages, and christenings. People referred to this house as The Queen’s House (History 1).
We walked towards the castle, drawn like magnets, already sensing the buzz of activity that lay inside. My friends were overly excited from the many energy drinks they had consumed earlier, so as to give them ultimate performance. My friend explained to me that a man named John Bishop built this castle single handedly, with little help from his family in 1963 and that every year he would add something new to it. It was nestled in the foothills of Pueblo, Colorado. As we walked closer the butterflies in my stomach flapped faster and more vigorously.
Queen Supayalat stands as a strong character throughout The Glass Palace. Once or twice a year the Queen would ride out with her daughters, her face a white m...