Hasn't anybody compiled an index of historical figures who have been portrayed in historical fiction? They don't even have to be the main characters, and this would include fantasy works. One in particular I wondered about was Pope Benedict IX. Has he appeared in historical fiction? Thanks.
I don't know about an actual index of fictionalized historical persons, but usually if someone has been fictionalized in a notable way there will be a note on their wikipedia page under the heading "In Pop Culture" which details the fictionalization. As for Pope Benedict IX, there is no such section on his page but that doesn't mean he hasn't been fictionalized or mentioned in fiction sometime between 1032 and now. It just means that whatever fictionalization that occurred wasn't very prominent in popular culture.
Welcome to the site! Here's the thing: history is very very big Too many thousands of historical novels have been written about too many thousands of people for anybody to find every single one. Starting with one historical figure at a time would probably work better.
Wow, yeah, I mean, I guess I knew there was a Pope Benedict IX, since Benedict XVI is still alive, but to catalog all the historical figures and cross-reference them? Not going to happen, @ginkgo88's suggestion of checking Wikipedia is probably best. ETA: But wow, I just checked his Wikipedia page, and that would be one heck of a character to write around. Kind of surprised that "Benedict" didn't end up going the same way "John" did for English royalty, after a performance like that. Thanks for mentioning him!
