We’re delighted to announce the winners of the 2022 HWA Crown Awards, celebrating the best historical writing of the year, fiction and non-fiction!
The winners of the Gold Crown for fiction, the Non-fiction Crown and the Debut Crown were revealed on Wednesday, 23 November at a packed party in a historic former church in London, St Ethelburga’s Centre.
There were more entries this year than we’ve ever had before, and we’d like to thank the authors and publishers for their submissions — and the judges for their commitment and hard work.
The winners of the HWA Gold, Non-fiction and Debut Crown Awards, out of a very strong field, are:
The HWA Gold Crown Award 2022
The shortlisted books were:
Small Things Like These by Clare Keegan (Faber)
A Winter War by Tim Leach (Head of Zeus)
The Fortune Men by Nadifa Mohamed (Viking)
The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley (Bloomsbury)
The Great Passion by James Runcie (Bloomsbury)
Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead (Doubleday)
The winner of the 2022 Gold Crown Award
The Fortune Men by Nadifa Mohamed
Antonia Senior, who chaired the judges for this year’s Gold Crown Award, said: “That the wrongful execution of Mahmood Mattan is still being talked about today makes this novel all the more poignant.
“The writing is masterful and the reader isn’t spared from the injustice that this man faced for refusing to become a ‘good immigrant’. ”
The judges for the 2022 Gold Crown Award were Antonia Senior (chair), Kate Atherton, Stephen Baird, Louise Hare, Rachel Hore and Pip Kazan.
The HWA Non-fiction Crown Award 2022
The shortlisted books were:
The Irish Assassins by Julie Kavanagh (Atlantic)
Metaphysical Animals by Clare Mac Cumhaill and Rachael Wiseman (Vintage)
The Library by Andrew Pettegree and Arthur der Weduwen (Profile)
Loot by Barnaby Phillips (Oneworld Publications)
The Searchers by Robert Sackville-West (Bloomsbury)
National Treasures by Caroline Shenton (John Murray)
The winner of the 2022 Non-fiction Crown Award
Metaphysical Animals by Clare Mac Cumhaill and Rachael Wiseman
Elizabeth Buchan, chair of the Non-Fiction Crown Award judges, commented: “Acutely observed, often wry, Metaphysical Animals is a sparkling group biography of Iris Murdoch and three fellow philosophers who deserve to be remembered just as well — Mary Midgley, Philippa Foot, and Elizabeth Anscombe.
“The authors give us the bonus of a thoroughly readable philosophy lesson as they explore the trials, tribulations, and breakthroughs of these remarkable women.”
The judges for the 2022 Non-fiction Crown Award were Elizabeth Buchan (chair), Jad Adams, Ben Buchan, Isabelle Grey, Jagjeet Lally and Timothy Philips.
The HWA Debut Crown Award 2022
The shortlisted books were:
The Leviathan by Rosie Andrews (Bloomsbury)
Moonlight & The Pearler’s Daughter by Lizzie Pook (Mantle)
The Deception of Harriet Fleet by Helen Scarlett (Quercus)
Hear No Evil by Sarah Smith (Two Roads)
The Plague Letters by VL Valentine (Viper/Profile Books)
The Spirit Engineer by AJ West (Duckworth Books)
The winner of the 2022 Debut Crown Award
The Spirit Engineer by AJ West
Ayo Onatade, chair of the Debut Crown Award judges, said: “Haunting, deeply moving and witty, The Spirit Engineer looks at the subject of spiritualism during the Edwardian period through the experiences of an incredibly troubled man.
“An atmospheric and haunting tale that covers some disturbing subjects. An amazing story that is Gothic and spooky at its best. Fantastic.”
The judges for the 2022 Debut Crown Award were Ayo Onatade (chair), Dan Bassett and Susan Heads.
HWA Chair Imogen Robertson, whose hard work made the Crown Awards, and the party, such a success, said: “It was wonderful to see so many brilliant writers, agents, publishers and friends gathered together to celebrate and support historical writing.
“We were so pleased to have all the winners present to receive their awards for the chairs of the judging panels, and the shortlists are superb buying guides for Christmas this year (though I’m keeping all of my purchases to read myself).”
Our thanks to the three teams of judges, who had both the joy of reading a large number of superb historical books and the near-impossible task of choosing just one winner in each category.
A series of interviews with Crown Award-winning and shortlisted authors will begin in Historia with us talking to the winner of the Debut Crown, AJ West.
And you can win all six of the books in each of the shortlists in our three Historia giveaways. The first, to win the books shortlisted for the 2022 Non-fiction Crown Award, runs from 1 to 7 December, 2022.
The awards party
We announced the awards at a party in St Ethelburga’s Bishopsgate held to celebrate the HWA Crown Awards and HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition winners.
Here are some photos from the event. First, the winners, starting with Nadifa Mohamed, who won the HWA Gold Crown Award. Here she is, being congratulated by the judging panel chair, Toni Senior
Chair of judges Elizabeth Buchan hands the HWA Non-fiction Crown Award to the winners, Rachael Wiseman (left) and Clare Mac Cumhaill (centre)
Ayo Onatade, chair of the HWA Debut Crown Award judges, announces the winner, AJ West
And here’s the man himself, with a gold crown which suddenly turned up
It was also a party to celebrate the winner and runners-up of the 2022 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition. Congratulations again to (left to right) Ruth Moore, who was highly commended, our winner, Chrissy Sturt, and shortlisted writers John Irving Clarke and Stuart Fortey
The room filled up quickly. It was a treat to see so many historical writers, publishers, and agents together again
Our photographer, John Behets, took a fair number of photos of groups chatting
Here are authors Louise Hare and Jim Burge
Matt Casbourne of Duckworth Books with Gill Paul and Maggie Brookes
Rachel Hore with David Godwin, James Runcie’s agent
AJ West with fellow Debut Crown shortlisted author Rosie Andrews
Jim Burge and Emma Darwin
There was delicious cheese with specially chosen drinks thanks to the Cheese Tasting Company
And here’s the HWA Crown Award itself
A hat tip tip all our wonderful members and guests for making it a night to remember!
We’re grateful to our sponsors, the excellent History Press, for their generosity.
All party photographs ©John Behets 2022.
