My road to this website began many years ago with an innocuous book about the kings and queens of England. A chance visit to the UK rekindled that bit of boyhood inspiration, in particular the reign of Henry III and his adversary Simon de Montfort. Today that interest has expanded to include their wives, both named Eleanor, and other family members, many of them also with the same names. The backdrop to their lives is the 13th century, an age of crusades and political evolution from initiatives like Magna Carta to the rise of the parliamentary state.

I do my research and writing in a little corner of the Czech Republic, a long way from South Carolina where I first picked up that book. After school I spent several years in the US submarine fleet, studied languages at the University of Connecticut, and embarked on a backpacking tour of Eastern Europe that led me to where I am today. 

My name is Darren Baker and feel free to contact me any time at darren@simon2014.com.