PETERS, Ellis

“Nothing learned is ever quite wasted.”

Edith Mary Pargeter (nom de plume Ellis Peters) was an English author working particularly in the genre of history and historical fiction. Her murder mysteries are what she is perhaps best known for, particularly the medieval detective series The Cadfael Chronicles. 

She was born in Shropshire and during World War II she had an administrive role in the Women's Royal Naval Service, reaching the rank of petty officer in 1944. After a visit to Czechoslovakia in 1947 Peters became fascinated by the Czech language and she later won awards for her Czech classics translations into English. She never attended university perfering to teach herself about areas that interested her. 

To commemorate Peter's life and work, the British Crime Writer's Association awarded the best historical crime novel of the subsequent years the Ellis Peters Historical Dagger (2006-2005) (later called the Ellis Peters Historical award (2006-2012)). Such winners include Sarah Waters and Antonia Hodgson.