Highlighting Historical Romance: Regan Walker
The issue of emancipation for Catholics consumed England for many decades, beginning in the 18th century and continuing until the Catholic Emancipation Act in 1829. Prior to that, Catholics could not, among other things, hold public office nor serve in Parliament. Ironically, the Prince Regent opposed Catholic Emancipation even though he married (illegally) Maria Fitzherbert, a twice-widowed Roman Catholic, who was arguably the love of his life. He did not, however, veto the new law in 1829, pressed by the Whigs and opposed by the Tories.
Daniel O’Connell by George Hayter
Daniel O’Connell, who in the 1810s and 1820s was one of the leading barristers in Ireland, did indeed lead the campaign for emancipation and thus won the title “The Liberator.” He stood for election in 1828 in County Clare in Ireland, and though he was elected, could not take a seat in the House of Commons until 1829. He was a moderate and a brilliant voice speaking for the Irish in a way that England could not ignore.
Though a Deist in his youth, after the infamous duel in 1815, where killed John D’Esterre, a leading member of the Protestant Ascendancy who had challenged him, O’Connell returned to his faith in 1816, and became a devout Catholic, to the great joy of his wife.
Daniel O’Connell was a tall, handsome man with a head of dark curls and shinning blue eyes. I like to think my hero, the fictional Morgan O’Connell, had the same appearance. Daniel O’Connell did have a Protestant cousin and Protestant friends, so it’s possible, right? In his younger days before he married, when he was training in England, Daniel was quite the rake. Perhaps my fictional Morgan O’Connell was one as well until he met Rose Collingwood.
About The Shamrock & The Rose
A stint playing Portia at the Theatre-Royal at Haymarket in London, a dropped valentine and a dangerous desire lead gentle-born Rose Collingwood into the arms of an Irishman whose love will hazard all she knows and is.
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About the Author
Regan Walker is an award-winning, #1 bestselling author of Regency, Georgian and Medieval romances. A lawyer turned full time writer, she has six times been featured on USA TODAY’s HEA blog and nominated four times for the prestigious RONE award (her novel, The Red Wolf’s Prize won Best Historical Novel for 2015 in the medieval category).
Years of serving clients in private practice and several stints in high levels of government gave her a love of international travel and a feel for the demands of the “Crown.” Hence her romance novels often involve a demanding sovereign who taps his subjects for “special assignments.” Each of her novels features real history and historical figures. And, of course, adventure and love.
Regan’s website: http://www.reganwalkerauthor.com/
Author website: http://www.reganwalkerauthor.com/
Blog: http://reganromancereview.blogspot.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/regan.walker.104
Thanks for having me on the blog, Carol. And Happy St. Patrick’s Day!