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The Royal Station Master’s Daughters at War is inspired by Harry Saward who ran the station at Wolferton in the late 19th and early 20th centries.
Through his family, readers are able to get a glimpse into the challenges the family faced – from royalty to the humblest of soldiers.
Rolling out the red carpet would have once been a regular scene at Wolferton Station as staff busied themselves putting together the finishing touches to welcome their latest royal visitors.
Kings and queens would rest in the plush royal retiring rooms, one suite for the King and his male guests, while the Queen and her female companions rested in their own elegant rooms across the corridor, before continuing their journey to Sandringham House.
The Royal Station Master’s Daughters is a WW1 historical saga, the first in a trilogy and includes the heartache of women grieving back home during the tragic Gallipoli Campaign in 1915 when estate workers joined the Sandringham Company to serve king and country and suffered horrific losses.
“I learnt about the extraordinary life of royal station master Harry Saward, who ran the station from 1884 – 1924, from his great grandson, Brian Heath, and felt instantly this was a gem of an untold story that readers would enjoy.
“Incredibly, Harry records 645 special royal trains steaming in and out of Wolferton during his first 27 years there, including Queen Victoria, the German Emperor, King Carlos of Portugal, the King of the Hellenes, the Queen of Portugal, the dowager Empress of Russia and many more.
“Rasputin is even reputed to have arrived Wolferton on route to Sandringham House in the early 1900’s, turning up out of the blue to talk with King George V on matters of war. It is said the king would not see him – and instructed the very capable station master to send him back to London.”
Harry was bestowed with numerous medals and honours by European royals and invited to state dinners at Sandringham House where he mingled with crowned heads of state and distinguished guests.
“He would have been invited along with a handful of local people to these occasions, and Harry would dress formally, his medals pinned proudly on his dinner jacket,” explains Ellee.
“Actors, musicians and even a circus also alighted at Wolferton to provide entertainment for the royal family at Sandringham. One of his recollections describes loading an elephant onto a truck – and the mayhem and destruction that followed when it uprooted a lamppost and demolished the station gates!”
“It is through Harry’s daughters that we share the heartaches and courage from those times.”
See Ellee’s website for more royal stories that inspired her books: www.elleeseymour.com.
