Between LWW and PC

Peepiceek

Well-known member
Ever since I started the thread Jadis's rise to power, in which I attempted to chronicle the key events between TMN and LWW, I have been promising to do a similar thing for the events between LWW and PC. I now realise that thread was posted more than four years ago, and I still haven't done anything further, so I decided it's time to start.

Here are some key questions that I will need to resolve. I invite your speculation on some answers, and then I will take from the most plausible suggestions to construct a possible history.

1) What happened in Narnia after the Pevensies suddenly disappeared? Was there a crisis of power, or was there a peaceful transition? Who came to rule?

2) How long after the Pevensies left did the Telmarines invade? What was the reason for the invasion? What was the political situation like in Narnia before the invasion? How long had the Telmarines been in Telmar before they moved to Narnia? Did the Telmarines make Narnia part of their Empire, or did they migrate en masse to Narnia, leaving Telmar behind? Was this migration sudden or gradual?

3) When and why was Aslan's How built? Was it soon after LWW or a long time? Was it before or after the Telmarine invasion?

4) What was the relationship between the Telmarines and the Narnians? Was it one of hostility from the start, or were there times of peaceful co-existence that gradually developed into hostility?

5) When and why and how did the forests begin to grow up? Had they already started to grow up before the Telmarine invasion? Were they planted deliberately or did they just grow up by accident?

6) When and why did the Telmarines come to fear the woods and the sea? Was this a fear they brought with them from Telmar, or did it develop after arriving in Narnia?

7) What was the nature of Telmarine politics? Was there often conflict between competing claimants to the throne, or was Miraz's usurpation of the throne an unusual event in a normally peaceful line of undisputed father-to-son transitions?

8) Any other questions you feel are relevant.

Peeps
 
1) I am sure in the beginning, there was a crisis, but eventually, the rightful heirs to the throne, the Archenland royal family, or at least someone they chose, ruled in Narnia. They either ruled it from afar or had a small contingency rule Narnia.

2) I think it was a few hundred years before the events of PC that the Telmarines invaded. Assuming a continuous line of Caspians, there were nine kings before Miraz was name regent and eventually king. With about 1,000 years between the two books, that would place the Telmarine invasion anywhere from 500-700 years after the Pevensies left.

As for intent, Caspian I was known as Caspian the Conquerer. That would imply he fought and won.

4) It depended on what Narnians we are referring to. The talking animals may have been much less acceptable while dwarfs were easier to accept. We know there was some interbreeding between humans and dwarfs, Doctor Cornelius is proof of that.

5, 6) The Telmarines were afraid of Aslan and, knowing he was beyond the Sea, they were afraid of the sea as well. They likely allowed the forests to grow to protect themselves from the sea.

MrBob
 
Bob,

On what basis would you see the Archenlander kings as the 'rightful heirs' to the Narnian throne? And if they were widely understood as such, why would there have been a time of crisis before they took over? And if they did rule for a time, what happened to them? Doctor Cornelius's comment would suggest that humans were not ruling Narnia at the time of the Telmarine invasion.

Is there a basis in the book for the figure of 'about 1000 years' between LWW and PC?

Why do you think the talking beasts would have been 'less acceptable' to the Telmarines? And, in a similar vein, when and why did the Telmarines acquire their fear of Aslan?

Peeps
 
So, as I started thinking about possible answers to my questions, I started to think about possible parallels in actual history. The natural parallel that sprung to mind was between the Telmarine invasion of Narnia and the Norman invasion of England. In fact, I think Lewis may well have been modelling the Telmarines on the Normans. For a start, there is the obvious parallel in names between Caspian the Conqueror and William the Conquerer. Then there is the fact that a foreign nation comes to rule over a conquered people not by making it part of their empire but by migrating and setting their own nobles over the people while retaining their old identity (they still called themselves Telmarines rather than Narnians, just as the Normans still called themselves Norman rather than English or Anglo-Saxon). Then there is the Telmarine/Norman penchant for building castles and cities, and the organisation of armies in a more formal way, which is more efficient and effective, but rather greyer and less colourful, in contrast to the more colourful but less organised and more rural pattern that went before (Narnian/Anglo-Saxon). So, I think this parallel may have been in Lewis's mind as he wrote, and I think the film plays on this even more, with a clearly feudal arrangement of kings and lords.

So, building from that parallel, I had a little look into the history around the Norman invasion, in order to find some inspiration for constructing a story of the Telmarine invasion of Narnia. The story around the Norman invasion is so complicated that it makes a Tolkien story look easy to follow, but in brief there are three major players on the scene: the Anglo-Saxons (who have been the ruling class in England for about 600 years, and from whom England took its name); the Danes, who lead periodic raids on England, exercise significant control over the northeast of England, and have had some of their kings sit on the English throne; and the Normans, an up-and-coming province in northern France. The Anglo-Saxon king Edward the Confessor's mother was in fact the daughter of the Duke of Normandy, although after his father's death she married the Danish king who had taken the English throne. Edward had therefore spent much of his early life in exile in Normandy. When he returned to rule England, with the assistance of a powerful Anglo-Saxon family, the Godwins, that also had designs on the throne, he married into the family of that rival Anglo-Saxon clan, though he later fell out with them and put his wife away. At this time, he seems to have promised that his cousin's son, William of Normandy, could be his successor. However, he subsequently found he couldn't protect England against the Danes without the assistance of the Godwins. On his deathbed, Edward named his brother-in-law Harold Godwinson as his successor. However, WIlliam of Normandy fought for his right to be king of England, based on that earlier promise, and so the Norman invasion came about.

In constructing a Telmarine invasion scenario for Narnia, I think I would cast Archenlander nobles in the role of 'Anglo-Saxons', since they seem to have the longest-standing connection with Narnia. The Telmarines obviously fit the role of the 'Normans'. In order to have a set of changing allegiances that might lead to this kind of invasion, a third party is needed in the role of the 'Danes'. I pondered the Calormenes, but in order for them to be powerful enough to be playing that kind of role, they would probably be winning the war and controlling both Narnia and Archenland themselves. However, at this time the Calormenes don't seem to be particularly dominant in the north (though they are mentioned in VDT). I think that, following the Rabadash debacle, the Calormene Empire may have taken a bit of a hit, perhaps having to deal with rebellions in their southern provinces, and so they lose a lot of their power for a time, and particularly lose their taste for northern exploits, though by the time of PC they are beginning to recover and will be looking north again by the time of TLB. Giants from the North could perhaps play this 'Danish' role - we know that Caspian was still involved in fighting against them during his rule. Another possibility is some kind of naval power developing in the islands - Galma or Terebinthia. Even though the books never hint at such a phenomenon in the islands, I like this idea best, both because a naval power matches the Danes in my parallels, and also because it could offer an explanation for the growth of the woods in the coastal regions, as a defence against coastal invasion. This could later get caught up with Telmarine fears about Narnia's traditional devotion to Aslan.

So, depending on what other ideas come forward in this thread, I might try to construct a history based around competition and shifting allegiances between Archenlanders, Telmarines and Terebinthians for control of Narnia, culminating in a Telmarine invasion under Caspian I.

Peeps

Postscript - on reflection, it''s just possible that I overthink these things a little... :D
 
Interesting theories Peeps, and Mr. Bob. Well thought-out! And thorough. Ok, mine is a little different, so here goes. At the end of the last chapter of Prince Caspian, we read:

After that came a moment which is hard to describe, for the children seemed to be seeing three things at once. One was the mouth of a cave opening into the glaring green and blue of an island in the Pacific, where all the Telmarines would find themselves the moment they were through the Door. The second was a glade in Narnia, the faces of Dwarfs and Beasts, the deep eyes of Aslan, and the white patches on the Badger's cheeks. But the third (which rapidly swallowed up the other two) was the grey, gravelly surface of a platform in a country station, and a seat with luggage round it, where they were all sitting as if they had never moved from it—a little flat and dreary for a moment after all they had been through, but also, unexpectedly, nice in its own way, what with the familiar railway smell and the English sky and the summer term before them.

I apologize for the lengthy quotation, but I wanted to draw your attention to the location of the island: in the Pacific. This provides evidence for the basis of my theory. The island is inargurably that which Aslan had just described, the one from which the Telmarine ancestors had dropped from the realm of Earth to the realm of Narnia (via Telmar) centuries prior.

It is (at least fairly) well-known that at the end of World War II, Nazis and other Axis power criminals of war escaped to South America. My theory is that Lewis had such men in mind. These pirates squabbled and fought with the natives on an island somewhere off the coast of South America and mixed with their women and fell through the cave while squabbling. I'm not sure who else at the time (just post-World War II) would be landing on an island described in Prince Caspian both as in the Pacific and in a sea called the "South Sea," thus additively suggesting the South Pacific Ocean, and imposing themselves on a native people, other than the escapee criminals of war from World War II in Europe.

I know that does not answer all of your questions, which I like and will ponder. But it forms the basis of my theory which perhaps I'll develop more. Good topic, thanks. What do you think??
 
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I've always thought that, just as Narnian time and Earth time flow at unpredictable rates with respect to each other, so each doorway between the two worlds has its own time. Consequently, there is no problem with the pirates entering Telmar before the 1940s; even, indeed, before Digory, Polly, Uncle Andrew or Jadis were even born. The description to me makes me think of a situation like that of the Bounty mutineers, who landed on and settled Pitcairn Island in the South Pacific in the 1790s.

I like your thinking about the Germans, but would they have really been described as pirates? Also, your theory would necessitate a time frame for PC taking place after the end of WW2, which would then put LWW, at the very earliest, in 1944. Not impossible - my own calculations place LWW in 1944, but most people think it must be 1940.

Peeps
 
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Now here is another line of thought that just occurred to me. If Archenland supplied a new king for Narnia after the Pevensies left, the obvious candidates for the job would be either Cor or Corin. However, there is no indication at the end of HHB that that may have happened, which makes me feel that it didn't, for whatever reason, although it does seem that Narnia and Archenland remained friends.

However, it is interesting to note that Cor's son was known as Ram the Great. Was was great about him, I wonder? 'Great' kings tend to be those who rule over a large territory, expanding their nation's territory. In another flashback to medieval history, I suddenly thought of Charlemagne (or in English translation 'Charles the Great'), who was appointed emperor in 800AD, uniting the disparate kingdoms, principalities, duchies, etc of Europe under one great overlord. Perhaps, in the absence of a Narnian king, Ram was appointed in such a fashion as an emperor over the lands of Archenland, Narnia and the islands, forming some great northern union. Perhaps his territory even stretched into Ettinsmoor, Telmar or even Calormen.

Charlemagne followed Frankish custom and divided his territory between his three sons when he died, meaning that the unifed empire lasted only one generation. Perhaps Ram did something similar, leading to a period where the northern union existed primarily in name only, with the King of Archenland as its nominal overlord, and the other territories shifting into closer or more distant relationship with Archenland as their politics demanded.

Just a thought....

Peeps
 
"On what basis would you see the Archenlander kings as the 'rightful heirs' to the Narnian throne?"

Frank's second son founded Archenland, or at least was named King of Archenland .Assuming a continuous line from the first king, that would mean the royal family of Archenland, and possibly many citizens, especially closest to the royals, were direct descendants to Frank and Helen.

"why would there have been a time of crisis before they took over?"

I am not saying it would last long, but the sudden disappearance of the rulers would lead to a crisis of sorts.

"And if they did rule for a time, what happened to them? Doctor Cornelius's comment would suggest that humans were not ruling Narnia at the time of the Telmarine invasion."

Doctor Cornelius said, "No men--or very few--lived in Narnia before the Telmarines took it". (PC, p 46-near middle of Ch 4). Even when the Pevensies ruled over it, they were presumably the only humans living in Narnia. The Archenalndians could have left a small contingency to rule, with maybe someone acting as Regent or even king/queen.

"Is there a basis in the book for the figure of 'about 1000 years' between LWW and PC?"

No real basis. However, Cair Paravel was in ruins. It takes a long time for a stone castle to topple. The land under Cair Paravel was also changed from a peninsula to an island. The Rush River had turned into a gorge. That happens over centuries or a millennia, as Trumpkin notes when they first reach the gorge in PC.

"Why do you think the talking beasts would have been 'less acceptable' to the Telmarines?"

Talking animals are much more frightening than creatures that look human. They also would be far less able to incorporate into the Telmarine society, especially being larger than the average animal of their kind.

"when and why did the Telmarines acquire their fear of Aslan?"

Without having been able to completely destroy the Narnians, the Telmarines, who heard of Aslan, may have just decided to steer clear of the sea, allowing a forest to build up to act as a protection.

MrBob
 
MrBob said:
"why would there have been a time of crisis before they took over?"

I am not saying it would last long, but the sudden disappearance of the rulers would lead to a crisis of sorts.
What form would you envision this crisis taking?

"And if they did rule for a time, what happened to them? Doctor Cornelius's comment would suggest that humans were not ruling Narnia at the time of the Telmarine invasion."

Doctor Cornelius said, "No men--or very few--lived in Narnia before the Telmarines took it". (PC, p 46-near middle of Ch 4). Even when the Pevensies ruled over it, they were presumably the only humans living in Narnia. The Archenalndians could have left a small contingency to rule, with maybe someone acting as Regent or even king/queen.
So do you think these Archenlanders were still ruling at the time of Caspian I's invasion, and were overthrown by him? Why, then, does it seem that Narnia and Archenland were on relatively friendly terms at the time of Miraz's rule? (friendly enough, at least, for Prince Caspian to seek refuge at the court of Nain of Archenland).

"Is there a basis in the book for the figure of 'about 1000 years' between LWW and PC?"

No real basis. However, Cair Paravel was in ruins. It takes a long time for a stone castle to topple. The land under Cair Paravel was also changed from a peninsula to an island. The Rush River had turned into a gorge. That happens over centuries or a millennia, as Trumpkin notes when they first reach the gorge in PC.
Yes, I would certainly agree it couldn't be less than about 500 years, and probably more. In fact, my question was more pondering whether it could in fact be several thousand years. The apparent age of Aslan's How, combined with the fact that the table was heavily weathered (presumably before the How was built) could suggest a period much longer than 1000 years.

Peeps
 
I know this thread is in no way about the movie, but it is worth pointing out that our discussion so far has called into question at least two things claimed by the movie that always bothered me. The trailer for the moive Prince Caspian stated "1 year for them...1300 years for Narnia," which as Peeps pointed out could be spot on or could be way off, as it could have been much longer. Also, Trumpkin states, "It wasn't long after you left that the Telmarines invaded Narnia." Again, this is a comment that seems to have no real solid basis in the books. Pardon the aside.

At any rate, I think it's worth mentioning that perhaps Narnia existed without a monarch or regent for years. Archenland had foiled an attack by the powerful empire Calormen at the time of King Lune's reign, an underestimation aimed at seizing both Archenland and Narnia. Perhaps the quick success of the northern countries kept enemies from trying again for years.

If I remember correctly there is a reference to Telmar, or at least to lands west of Narnia, in The Last Battle. I believe it refers to outlaws living there and is the explanation for the towers built to guard Lantern Waste. This perhaps does not bear heavily on our present narrative. During the time of Prince Caspian, I remember reading in the "timeline" sometime ago something about the Telmarines laying waste the land to barren. Although I'm not sure if anything of the sort was mentioned in the books (although I'm thinking maybe this is something Aslan stated at the end of Prince Caspian). And this is supposedly why they migrated east into Narnia.

One final tidbit worth considering is Mrs. Beaver's comment that Narnia was only right when a son of Adam was sitting on the throne. (Although the converse is not true: just because a son of Adam is sitting on the throne, i.e. Caspian I or Miraz, does not mean all is well in Narnia). Nevertheless, that is irrelevant to what I want to say. Think again about Mrs. Beaver's comment, about a son of Adam needing to be on the throne in order for all to be well; it is also said in The Last Battle that when the children from our world were not in Narnia, there were endless years of peace and not much happened in Narnia. That doesn't really answer any of your questions Peeps, but combined with the beavers' statement from The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, it suggests that humans were on the throne of Narnia all of those years, which would include those between the years of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian.
 
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Thanks for your thoughtful observations, Tirian.

tirian_son_of_erlian said:
I know this thread is in no way about the movie, but it is worth pointing out that our discussion so far has called into question at least two things claimed by the movie that always bothered me. The trailer for the moive Prince Caspian stated "1 year for them...1300 years for Narnia," which as Peeps pointed out could be spot on or could be way off, as it could have been much longer. Also, Trumpkin states, "It wasn't long after you left that the Telmarines invaded Narnia." Again, this is a comment that seems to have no real solid basis in the books. Pardon the aside.
Not from the books, no, but the (much disputed) timeline places Caspian's birth in the year 2290, which I think is the film's basis for the figure of 1300 years. I am happy to accept stuff from the film wherever it doesn't contradict the books.

However, Trumpkin's "It wasn't long..." statement is hard to reconcile with that - unless we assume that there was not an unbroken line of Caspians from I to IX, but there were in fact kings with other names between them, since nine generations adds up to only about 300 years.

We also tend to uniformly assume that all the Telmarine kings were bad for Narnia. But to me it sounds like Caspian IX (and certainly his wife) may have been quite a good ruler, and others could well have been too. It was only Miraz the usurper who was clearly a tyrant. Even Caspian the Conquerer was not necessarily bad, although at some point (probably earlier rather than later in the Telmarine rule) the Telmarines did suppress the Old Narnians sufficiently that they had to go into hiding, so there must be some pretty bad kings, I guess.

If I remember correctly there is a reference to Telmar, or at least to lands west of Narnia, in The Last Battle. I believe it refers to outlaws living there and is the explanation for the towers built to guard Lantern Waste. This perhaps does not bear heavily on our present narrative. During the time of Prince Caspian, I remember reading in the "timeline" sometime ago something about the Telmarines laying waste the land to barren. Although I'm not sure if anything of the sort was mentioned in the books (although I'm thinking maybe this is something Aslan stated at the end of Prince Caspian). And this is supposedly why they migrated east into Narnia.
I can't see any reference to Telmar in TLB. There is a reference to the Western Wild (where the hunter killed the lion whose skin Puzzle later wore), to outlaws in Lantern Waste (hence the building of the towers) and to islands in the far west (from which "strange unearthly things" emerged at the end of the world).

In the timeline (the one I've seen, anyway) the references to Telmar are:
The Timeline said:
300 The empire of Calormen spreads mightily. Calormenes colonise the land of Telmar to the West of Narnia.
302 The Calormenes in Telmar behave very wickedly and Aslan turns them into dumb beasts. The country lies waste.
460 Pirates from our world take possession of Telmar.

The first two of these items are never mentioned in any of the books.

One final tidbit worth considering is Mrs. Beaver's comment that Narnia was only right when a son of Adam was sitting on the throne. (Although the converse is not true: just because a son of Adam is sitting on the throne, i.e. Caspian I or Miraz, does not mean all is well in Narnia). Nevertheless, that is irrelevant to what I want to say. Think again about Mrs. Beaver's comment, about a son of Adam needing to be on the throne in order for all to be well; it is also said in The Last Battle that when the children from our world were not in Narnia, there were endless years of peace and not much happened in Narnia. That doesn't really answer any of your questions Peeps, but combined with the beavers' statement from The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, it suggests that humans were on the throne of Narnia all of those years, which would include those between the years of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian.
Yes, I was thinking about that comment too - though if memory serves correctly it was in fact Trufflehunter that said it, not Mrs Beaver.

In TLB, it does mention hundreds of years of peace. However, the only monarchs mentioned (Queen Swanwhite and King Gale) were before the Golden Age, not after. Nevertheless, it seems reasonable to infer from that conversation that the times when children from our world were the times of maximum crisis in Narnia, and therefore that the times in between were mostly peaceful, and certainly not as disturbed as the times we read of in the books.

Edit: Here is the full quote:
TLB ch 8 said:
But the Unicorn explained to her that she was quite mistaken. He said that the Sons and Daughters of Adam and Eve were brought out of their own strange world into Narnia only at times when Narnia was stirred and upset, but she mustn't think it was always like that. In between their visits there were hundred and thousands of years when peaceful King followed peaceful King till you could hardly remember their names or count their numbers, and there was hardly anything to put into the History Books. And he went on to talk of old Queens and heroes whom she had never heard of. He spoke of Swanwhite the Queen who had lived before the days of the White Witch and the Great Winter, who was so beautiful that when she looked into any forest pool the reflection of her face shone out of the water like a star by night for a year and a day afterwards. He spoke of Moonwood the Hare who had such ears that he could sit by Caldron Pool under the thunder of the grea waterfall and hear what men spoke in whispers at Cair Paravel. He told how King Gale, who was ninth in descent from Frank the first of all Kings, had sailed far away into the Eastern seas and delivered the Lone Islands from a dragon and how, in return, they had given him the Lone Islands to be part of the royal lands of Narnia for ever. He talked of whole centuries in which all Narnia was so happy that notable dances and feasts, or at most tournaments, were the only things that could be remembered, and every day and week had been better than the last. And as he went on, the picture of all those happy years, all the thousands of them, piled up in Jill's mind...
I'm noticing the references to "thousands of years", which is making me think that perhaps the timescale is longer than the 'timeline' suggests.

Peeps
 
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"What form would you envision this crisis taking?"

More of a lack of leadership, not necessarily a full-blown crisis. The only two enemies were the giants and Calormenes. The giants doubtfully would have learned of the disappearance while the Calormenes, or at least Rabadash, was barred from attacking Narnia. I could see the Narnians going to discuss the situation with King Cor and Queen Aravis.

"So do you think these Archenlanders were still ruling at the time of Caspian I's invasion, and were overthrown by him?"

As I said, they didn't have to be a proper ruling family. However, whatever happened, the Telmarines were only able to take Narnia. The mountains proved too hard to take and the giants could successfully protect the north. Over the next few centuries, the relations between the Telmarines and Archenlanders improved.

To your point elsewhere, there would have had to be good Telmar kings in order for these relations to improve enough. Caspian IX would have been one if his son could have sought refuge with them.

MrBob
 
I ought to know my history better, but if my memory serves me correct, didn't one of the early Roman emperors shortly after Christ's walk on this earth bury the site of the tomb of his resurection? Do you think Lewis intended this as a parallel to the mound being built above the stone table?
 
I ought to know my history better, but if my memory serves me correct, didn't one of the early Roman emperors shortly after Christ's walk on this earth bury the site of the tomb of his resurection? Do you think Lewis intended this as a parallel to the mound being built above the stone table?
I've never heard of that. Unless you mean Constantine who built a church over it (which is still there) - though whether he got the right site is a matter of dispute.

Peeps
 
MrBob said:
As I said, they didn't have to be a proper ruling family. However, whatever happened, the Telmarines were only able to take Narnia. The mountains proved too hard to take and the giants could successfully protect the north. Over the next few centuries, the relations between the Telmarines and Archenlanders improved.
You assume several things here:

1) That the Archenlander kings continued a line of unbroken succession from Frank and Helen (though King Nain could perhaps himself be a Telmarine); it is not even certain that Lune and Cor were descendents of the original stock of Frank's descendents.

2) That the Telmarine invasion was simply an empire-building land-grab, rather than based in some genuine claim over Narnian territory. If my suggestion of the parallel with the Normans is correct, though, there would be a reason why they only took Narnia, and so their choice not to attack Archenland or Ettinsmoor was not because they were unable to or couldn't be bothered. If it were a land-grab, it seems strange that the Telmarines seem to have migrated to Narnia, rather than annexing it to Telmar.

3) That the Archenlander kings would have taken the side of the Old Narnians rather than of the Telmarines. But if there had been some falling out previously (most likely with the dwarfs, I would guess, judging from Trufflehunter's words) that would not necessarily be the case.

Peeps
 
Here's one more point I just thought of which has a bearing on the period between LWW and PC. In VDT, Caspian tells Gumpas that there is no record of Narnia receiving the tribute from the Lone Islands for about 150 years. This timescale puts it within the period of the Telmarine kings. Therefore, there must have continued to be some trade with the sea at least until the reign of about Caspian IV.

When do you suppose this connection was lost? Did the Narnian kings continue to call themselves 'Emperor of the Lone Islands'? And if they did, why did they not care about preserving their territory and the revenue they could get from it?

Peeps
 
Pressure from the Calormenes and from the northern giants might have kept them too busy to do anything about less-urgent oceanic affairs.
 
Copperfox said:
Pressure from the Calormenes and from the northern giants might have kept them too busy to do anything about less-urgent oceanic affairs.
As noted previously, though, the Calormenes do not seem to be significant players in PC, VDT or TSC, which makes me feel that during the Telmarine period they had largely lost their appetite for northern exploits, until nearer the time of Tirian, at least.

Moreover, if they were regularly having to deal with giants, it seems odd that the Telmarines would have been able to convince themselves that all the other non-human creatures such as fauns and dwarfs and talking animals were purely mythical.

I've just started re-reading PC, to assist with this thread. It strikes me from the description of Cair Paravel that it was deserted very soon after the Pevensies left. Everything appears to be pretty much as they left it - in the treasure house, as well as the discovery of one of their chess knights. This isn't proof that the castle was vacated immediately they left, but it seems unlikely to have had a long line of permanent residents.

I also note that Peter specifically says that a channel has been dug to cut the castle off from the mainland; so this raises the question of who, when and why. (I had always thought it was cut off by natural erosion, but the geographical details seem to make this unlikely - see my new post in 'Things you'd never noticed').

I'm also wondering whether Miraz's distaste for the stories of Old Narnia was because he disbelieved them and thought them nonsense (in which case, anger seems a strange response) or because in fact he knew them to be true but didn't want his people to believe them.

Peeps
 
As noted previously, though, the Calormenes do not seem to be significant players in PC, VDT or TSC, which makes me feel that during the Telmarine period they had largely lost their appetite for northern exploits, until nearer the time of Tirian, at least.

Speculation is made awkward by dear Mister Lewis having seemingly made it up as he went along. As far as I know, the Calormenes were not featured in PC, VDT or TSC because he hadn't thought of them yet. But since he finally did get around to imagining them, it is possible, in fact necessary, to think about what they might have been doing just off stage.


 
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