Good evening Mr Cornwell.

I hope you are well and avoiding the Covid 19.I have just finished Sword of Kings which I enjoyed immensely as I have all the other books in the series.There is one issue I’d like to raise though, which Rick Keeson also raised on 13th January on your website regarding Cripplegate.

Mr Keeson suggested you may have muddled your London gates.You politely suggested it would be ‘immensely rude’ of you to suggest he was wrong. Unfortunately, I’m going to be immensely rude (but that’s me!!) and suggest that you are in error. Before my retirement in 2010,my office was two or three hundred yards from The Museum of London, the remains of the London wall and specifically the sight of Cripplegate at the junction of Wood St. and St. Alphage Garden. On many occasions, lunchtime walks took me to all these places and I am very familiar with the area. The gate was definitely in the north facing wall of the Roman fort, about 200 yards from it’s western wall. The Wallbrook (also mentioned in Sword of Kings) is to the east and the next gate to the east of that was indeed Bishopsgate (Moorgate didn’t exist at that time).

I have enjoyed your books over more than 2 decades and am looking forward to the next installment.

Finally, many thanks for mentioning the Wirral Archaeological finds. That one passed me by but I can now watch out for developments.

Keep safe

Nick