‘The Days of His Grace’ (in Swedish: Hans nådes tid) is a 1960 novel by Swedish writer Eyvind Johnson (Nobel Prize for Literature, 1974) set mostly in northern Italy, close to Aquileia. The novel, based somewhat on Charlemagne conquering northern Italy in 775, tells the story of the Langobard family Lupigis as their homeland falls under Charlemagne’s domination, the underlying themes being the way the actions of the various characters are influenced by love, and the difficulty of adapting to the power of absolute monarchy. The novel received the ‘Nordic Council Literature Prize‘ in 1962.
