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The '''Saga of Seven Suns''' is a series of [[science fiction]] novels written by [[Kevin J. Anderson]] as of November 2006. It is a series planned to span seven books, with the seventh and last to be published in two years. The series is set with a [[space opera]] theme, in a distant future. Humanity has spread out among the stars, colonizing a number of planets in the spiral arm of the [[Milky Way]] galaxy.
{{Football player infobox |
playername = Bobby Charlton |
image = |
fullname = Robert Charlton |
nickname = Bobby |
dateofbirth = {{Euro birth date and age|1937|10|11}} |
cityofbirth = {{flagicon|England}} [[Ashington]] |
countryofbirth = [[England]] |
currentclub = |
position = [[Midfielder]] (could also play as [[Striker]]) |
youthyears = |
youthclubs = East Northumberland schools<br>[[Manchester United]]|
years = 1954-1973<br>1973-1975 |
clubs = [[Manchester United F.C.|Manchester United]]<br>[[Preston North End F.C.|Preston North End]] |
<!-- NOTE: LEAGUE GAMES ONLY! -->
caps(goals) = 606 (199)<br>{{0}}38 {{0}}{{0}}(8) |
nationalyears = 1958-1970 |
nationalteam = [[England national football team|England]] |
nationalcaps(goals) = 106 (49) |
}}
==Synopsis==
Sir '''Robert "Bobby" Charlton''', [[Order of the British Empire|CBE]] (born [[11 October]] [[1937]] in [[Ashington]], [[Northumberland]]) is a former [[England|English]] [[professional]] [[Football (soccer)|football]] player who won the [[Football World Cup|World Cup]] and was named the [[European Footballer of the Year]] in 1966. He is arguably the greatest English footballer to have lived.{{Fact|date=April 2007}} He played almost all of his club football at [[Manchester United F.C.|Manchester United]], where he became renowned for his attacking instincts from [[midfield]] and his ferocious long-range shot.
===Prequel: Veiled Alliances (Graphic Novel) (2004)===<!-- This section is linked from [[Kevin J. Anderson]] -->
He began to play for United's first team in 1956, and over the next two seasons gained a regular place in the team, during which time he survived the [[Munich air disaster]] of 1958. After helping United to win the [[football league]] in 1965, he won a [[Football World Cup|World Cup]] medal with [[England national football team|England]] in 1966 and another football league title with United the following year. In 1968, he captained the Manchester United team that won the [[European Cup]], scoring two goals in the final to help his team be the first English side to win the competition. He has scored more goals for England and United than any other player. He also made more appearances for Manchester United than any other player, records which are still standing at the end of 2006. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest players of all time.
[[Image:Veiled_Alliances.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Cover image of Veiled Alliances.]]
He left Manchester United in 1973, becoming player-manager of [[Preston North End F.C.|Preston North End]],<ref>{{cite web | title=Bobby Charlton | work=britannica.com/eb | url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9002215 | accessdate=January 28 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> but decided management was not for him and left after one season.
Centuries ago, the human race began searching the Milky Way for hospitable planets, hoping to alleviate crowded conditions on Earth. Eleven ships filled with self-sufficient explorers set out for the stars, knowing that, at best, their grandchildren might someday find a new home. And now the Caillié, a generation ship on the verge of despair, has discovered something FAR more interesting - an advanced race capable of faster-than-light travel.
After assuming the post of the director at [[Wigan Athletic F.C.]] for some time, he became a member of Manchester United's board of directors in 1984<ref>{{cite web | title=Bobby Charlton | work=fifaworldcup.yahoo.com| url=http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/p/cp/eng/charlton.html | accessdate=January 23 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and remains one as of April 2007.
The Ildirans not only help the people of the Caillié settle the planet Theron, they seek out survivors of the other ships launched so long ago. Once they've located most of the remaining human pioneers, the Ildirans send an envoy to the much-changed planet Earth seeking an alliance between the two races. The Earth is now governed by the wisened King Ben, with the shadowy figure of Chairman Malcolm Stannis pulling the strings for the Terran Hanseatic League behind the scenes.
==Early life==
One of his uncles, the [[Newcastle United F.C.|Newcastle United]] centre forward [[Jackie Milburn]], was a professional footballer, but it was Charlton's mother Cissie who coached him at first. His elder brother, [[Jack Charlton|Jack]], went to work as a miner and applied to join the [[police]] before also becoming a footballer with Leeds United.
===Book 1: Hidden Empire (2002)===<!-- This section is linked from [[Kevin J. Anderson]] -->
On [[9 February]] [[1953]], Grammar School pupil Charlton was spotted playing for East Northumberland schools by [[Manchester United F.C.|Manchester United]] chief scout [[Joe Armstrong]]. Charlton went on to play for England schoolboys, and despite offers that followed from several other clubs, the 15-year old signed with United. Initially his mother was reluctant to let him commit to an insecure football career, so he began an [[apprentice]]ship as an engineer; however he went on to turn professional in October 1954.
[[Image:Hidden_Empire.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Cover image of Hidden Empire.]]
Charlton became one of the famed [[Busby Babes]], the collection of precociously talented footballers who emerged through the system at [[Old Trafford (football)|Old Trafford]] in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s as Busby set about a long-term plan of rebuilding the club after the [[World War II|Second World War]]. He worked his way through the pecking order of teams, scoring regularly for the youth and reserve sides before he was handed his first team debut against [[Charlton Athletic F.C.|Charlton Athletic]] in October 1956. At the same time, he was doing his [[National Service]] in [[Shrewsbury]], where Busby had advised him to apply as it meant he could still play for United at the weekend. Also doing his [[army]] service in Shrewsbury at the same time was his United team-mate [[Duncan Edwards]].
Having colonized the worlds of the Spiral Arm, the three branches of humanity -- the Earth-based Terran Hanseatic League, the telepathic green priests of Theroc, and the fiercely rebellious, starship-dwelling Roamers -- consider themselves lords of creation. After all, humans share the galaxy with only two alien species, one harmless and one extinct. The benign Ildirans are an ancient, senescent civilization, while the Klikiss vanished ages before, leaving behind vast ruins filled with technological wonders, but no clues to their mysterious disappearance.
So ambitious humans see the galaxy as wide open for the taking. And when two xenoarchaeologists discover a Klikiss device that can convert gas giant planets into new, life-giving suns, the humans promptly put their new technology to the test. The result is hideous beyond imagination. For the supposedly uninhabitable gas giants are the homeworlds of another alien species - the Hydrogues. Infinitely more advanced than the Ildirans, supremely more powerful than the Klikiss, and now the victims of accidental genocide, the hydrogues don't seek explanations, apologies, or reparations. Instead, armadas of invincible, city-sized warships emerge from their gaseous worlds with a single purpose: to annihilate every last human - whether Hansa, Theron, or Roamer.
==Joining the first team==
Charlton played 14 times for United in that first season. They won the [[The Football League|League championship]] but were denied the 20th century's first "double" when they controversially lost the 1957 [[FA Cup]] final to [[Aston Villa F.C.|Aston Villa]]. Charlton, still only 19, was selected for the game which saw United goalkeeper [[Ray Wood]] carried off with a broken [[cheek]]bone after a clash with Villa centre forward [[Peter McParland]]. Though Charlton was a candidate to go in goal to replace Wood (in the days before [[substitute (soccer)|substitute]]s, and certainly before goalkeeping substitutes), it was team-mate [[Jackie Blanchflower]] who ended up between the posts.
Suddenly, humans need allies, but the Klikiss can't help them and the Ildirans won't. In their pride, the upstart worlds of Man have misunderstood the brutal realities of the galaxy and now face their own impending doom.
Charlton was an established player by the time the next season was fully underway, which saw United, as current League champions, become the first English team to fully embrace the [[European Cup]], reaching the semi finals where they lost to [[Real Madrid]]. Previously, [[the Football Association]] had scorned the competition but United's progress in the competition earned a great deal of [[Europe|continental]] respect. Their reputation was further enhanced the next season as they reached the quarter finals to play [[Red Star Belgrade]]. In the first leg at home, United won 2-1. The return in [[Yugoslavia]] saw Charlton score twice as United stormed 3-0 ahead although the hosts came back to earn a 3-3 draw. However, United maintained their [[aggregate score|aggregate]] lead to reach the last four and were in jubilant mood as they left to catch their flight home, thinking of an important League game against [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolves]] at the weekend.
===Book 2: A Forest of Stars (2003)===
==Munich==
{{seealso|Munich air disaster}}
[[Image:Forest_Of_Stars.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Cover image of A Forest of Stars.]]
The aeroplane which took the United players and staff home from [[Zemun|Zemun Airport]] needed to stop in [[Munich]] to refuel. This was carried out in worsening weather, and by the time the refuelling was complete and the call was made for the passengers to re-board the aircraft, the wintry showers had taken hold and snow had settled heavily on the runway and around the airport. There were two aborted take-offs which led to concern on board, and the passengers were advised by a [[stewardess]] to disembark again while a minor technical error was fixed.
Five years after attacking human-colonized worlds of the Spiral Arm, the enigmatic hydrogues maintain absolute control over the galaxy's gas giant planets. On Earth, the corrupt government is exploiting the crisis, tightening an iron grip on rebellious colonies while seeking to dominate the other humans throughout the galaxy. Earth's alien "friends", the seemingly gentle Ildirans, are secretly abducting and breeding people in enforced sex camps. And the government is using military robots to build cybernetic legions to fight the war, robots that have exterminated their own makers and may turn on mankind.
Five years ago, humans thought they ruled the cosmos. Today they're the galaxy's most endangered species. But when an incredible new race of elemental entities suddenly appear, they destroy all known balances of power. For these beings have suffered genocide for millions of years and are seeking to annihilate all living things.
Back in the [[airport terminal]] for barely ten minutes, the call to reconvene on the plane came and a number of passengers began to feel nervous. Charlton and team-mate [[Dennis Viollet]] swapped places with [[Tommy Taylor]] and [[David Pegg]], who had decided they would be safer at the back of the plane. This would prove a fatal decision for Taylor and Pegg.
Now for the humans and the myriad alien factions in the universe, the real war is about to begin.
The plane clipped the fence at the end of the runway on its next take-off attempt and a wing tore through a nearby house, setting it alight. The wing and part of the tail came off and hit a tree and a wooden hut spinning along the snow until coming to a halt. It had been cut in half.
===Book 3: Horizon Storms (2004)===
Charlton, strapped into his seat, had fallen out of the cabin and when United goalkeeper [[Harry Gregg]] (who had somehow got through a hole in the plane unscathed and begun a one-man rescue mission) found him, he thought he was dead. That said, he grabbed both Charlton and Viollet by their [[trousers|trouser]] waistbands and dragged them away from the plane in constant fear that it would explode. Gregg returned to the plane to try to help the appallingly injured Busby and Blanchflower and when he turned around again, he was relieved to see that Charlton and Viollet, both of whom he had presumed to be dead, had got out of their detached seats and were looking into the wreckage.
[[Image:Horizon_Storms.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Cover image of Horizon Storms.]]
The titanic war between hydrogues - powerful aliens that live within gas-giant planets - and faeros, fiery creatures inhabiting suns, continues to sweep across the Spiral Arm, extinguishing suns and destroying planets. It is a time when Chairman Basil Wenceslas of the Terran Hanseatic League and his figurehead King Peter must unify all branches of the human race to stand together against the threat even if they must resort to deception and oppression to do so.
But the freedom-loving Roamer clans and the forest-dwelling people of Theroc, whose "green priests" can communicate across vast distances through a network of sentient worldtrees, will not give up their independence so easily.
Charlton suffered cuts to his head and severe [[Shock (medical)|shock]] and was in hospital for a week. Seven of his team-mates had perished at the scene, including Taylor and Pegg, with whom he and Viollet had swapped seats prior to the fatal take-off attempt. Club captain [[Roger Byrne]] was also killed, along with [[Mark Jones (footballer)|Mark Jones]], [[Liam Whelan|Billy Whelan]], [[Eddie Colman]] and [[Geoff Bent]]. [[Duncan Edwards]] died a fortnight later from the injuries he had sustained. In total, the crash claimed 23 lives. Initially, ice on the wings was blamed, but another inquiry later declared that [[slush]] on the runway had made the plane's facility to achieve a safe take-off almost impossible.
The iron-fist policies of Chairman Wenceslas force the disparate civilizations to forge alliances of their own, creating turmoil that may break human civilization apart, as surely as the destructive Hydrogues will.
Charlton was the first survivor to leave hospital. He arrived back in [[Manchester]] on [[February 14]] [[1958]], eight days after the crash. As he convalesced, he spent some time kicking a ball around with local youths and a famous photograph of him was taken. He was still only 20 years old, yet now there was an expectation that he help with the rebuilding of the club as Busby's aides tried to piece together what remained of the season.
Partly as a distraction from their peril, partly as a desperate hope, the Hanseatic League launches an ambitious new colonization program using the new network of alien transportals, instantaneous gateways that take hardy pioneers to settle new worlds once abandoned by the ancient insectlike Klikiss race. But the new territory comes with its own dangers and deeply buried mysteries.
Not unexpectedly, United went out of the European Cup to [[AC Milan]] in the semi finals to a 5-2 aggregate defeat and fell behind in the League. Yet somehow they reached their second consecutive FA Cup final and the big day at Wembley coincided with Busby's return to work. His words could not inspire a side which was playing on a nation's goodwill and sentiment, and [[Nat Lofthouse]] scored twice to give a professional [[Bolton Wanderers F.C.|Bolton Wanderers]] side a 2-0 win.
In the ancient Ildiran Empire, Jora'h - the newly crowned Mage-Imperator - must face the awful responsibilities and sinister secrets his predecessors have imposed upon him: from the extensive breeding program forced upon a colony of hopeless human captives, to a surprising and uneasy pact with the beetle-like Klikiss robots that could result in the total extinction of the human race. But Jora'h must also survive a threat no other Mage-Imperator has faced in ten thousand years - open rebellion among the Ildirans, an astonishing civil war and a challenge to his rule that could break apart the entire Empire.
==Hero of United & England==
At the same time, Charlton's emergence as the country's leading young football talent was completed when he was called up to join the [[England national football team|England]] squad for a [[British Home Championship]] game against [[Scotland national football team|Scotland]] at [[Hampden Park]]. It would be the start of a long, prolific, record-breaking and globally respected career for his country.
===Book 4: Scattered Suns (2005)===
Charlton was handed his debut as England romped home 4-0, with the new player gaining even more admirers after scoring a magnificent thumping volley dispatched with authority after a cross by the left winger [[Tom Finney]]. He scored both goals in his second game as England beat [[Portugal national football team|Portugal]] 2-1 in a friendly at Wembley; and overcame obvious nerves on a return to [[Belgrade]] to play his third match against [[Yugoslavia national football team|Yugoslavia]]. Unfortunately, England lost that game 5-0 and Charlton played poorly. He was selected for the squad which competed at the [[Football World Cup 1958|1958 World Cup]] in [[Sweden]], but didn't kick a ball, something at which critics expressed surprise and bewilderment, even allowing for his lacklustre performance in Belgrade.
[[Image:Scattered_Suns.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Cover image of Scattered Suns.]]
Charlton began to settle back into his footballing life with Manchester United and England and enhanced his reputation as a scorer of great goals as well as a great goalscorer - rarely is a player regarded as both. In 1959 he scored a [[hat-trick]] as England demolished the [[United States men's national soccer team|USA]] 8-1; and his second England hat-trick came in 1961 in an 8-0 thrashing of [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]]. He also managed to score in every [[British Home Championship]] tournament he played in except [[1963 British Home Championship|1963]] in an association with the tournament which lasted from 1958 to 1970 and included 16 goals and ten tournament victories (five shared).
The destructive Hydrogues continue their war against humans and the fiery entities, the Faeros -a struggle that kills planets and extinguishes whole stars. Newly crowned Mage-Imperator Jora'h, the leader of the ancient and vast Ildiran Empire, struggles with the knowledge that the Hydrogues are only willing to give them peace if they help destroy the humans. But Jora'h's empire is destroying itself from within, when his mad brother launches a bloody rebellion across the Ildiran planets, appointing Jora'h's own first-born son as its leader.
In the Terran Hanseatic League, Chairman Basil Wenceslas continues his red-herring war against the Roamer clans, eager to achieve a decisive victory, even against a supposed enemy that poses no threat. Their homes destroyed, the wandering Roamers scatter into hiding, trying to keep their culture and government intact, even when faced with enemies from all sides.
He played in qualifiers for the [[Football World Cup 1962|1962 World Cup]] in [[Chile]] against [[Luxembourg national football team|Luxembourg]] and Portugal and was named in the squad for the finals themselves. His goal in the 3-1 group win over [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]] was his 25th for England in just 38 appearances, but his individual success could not be replicated by that of the team, which was eliminated in the quarter final by [[Brazil national football team|Brazil]], who would go on to win the tournament.
Cesca Peroni, leader of the Roamers, finds herself stranded on a small icy outpost where miners have uncovered a hibernating army of alien Klikiss robots. Once released, these robots trigger another dark and ancient plot, one that could lead to a massacre across all human-inhabited planets. In a galaxy torn by war, treachery, and shifting alliances, it is clear that many of the races are untrustworthy, and that they are likely to turn on each other.
===Book 5: Of Fire And Night (July 2006)===
Further success with Manchester United finally came when they beat [[Leicester City F.C.|Leicester City]] 3-1 in the FA Cup final of 1963, with Charlton finally earning a winners' medal in his third final. Busby's post-Munich rebuilding programme continued to progress with two League championships within three seasons, with United taking the title in 1965 and 1967. In between, there was the pressing matter for Charlton of the [[Football World Cup 1966|1966 World Cup]] for which England, as hosts, had not needed to qualify. A successful (though trophyless) season with Manchester United had seen him take the honours of ''[[Football Writers' Association|Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year]]'' and ''[[European Footballer of the Year|European Footballer Of The Year]]'' into the competition.
[[Image:Of_Fire_And_Night.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Cover image of Of Fire and Night.]]
By now, England were coached by [[Alf Ramsey]] who had managed to gain sole control of the recruitment and team selection procedure from the [[committee]]-based call-up system which had lasted up to the previous World Cup. Ramsey had already cleared out some of the older players who had been reliant on the loyalty of the committee for their continued selection - it was well known that decorum on the pitch at club level had been just as big a factor in playing for England as ability and form. Luckily for Charlton, he had all three.
The extermination of mankind is at hand. In a war against alien races, killer robots, and elemental beings, Earth slips deeper into desperation. The Terran government always knew the hydrogues were a vicious enemy bent on humanity’s destruction, but they didn’t predict how many other factions would turn against them.
With his increasingly irrational leadership, Chairman Basil Wenceslas has driven humanity into a corner. The Chairman’s punitive treatment of Hansa colonies and free-spirited Roamers, as well as his refusal to aid the burned forest world of Theroc, has made enemies all around. Enemies that Earth cannot afford.
Charlton had remained the attacking midfield player around whom Ramsey had intended to build his team. He was still scoring and creating freely and as the tournament was about to start, he was expected to become one of its stars and galvanise his established reputation as one of the world's best footballers.
Earth’s own Soldier compies have rebelled, taking over much of the military, stealing ships and slaughtering crews across the galaxy. Even our staunch allies the Ildirans, led by Mage-Imperator Jora’h, are secretly scheming with the hydrogues to exterminate the human race.
As the war continues to go badly for Earth, the remaining factions of humanity plan for their own salvation. Worldtrees allied with “green priests” on Theroc have rallied hulking, thorny tree battleships, while Roamers work with powerful water entities, the wentals, to seed scattered planets with a growing force to challenge the hydrogues.
==The success of 1966==
The opening game of the tournament was Charlton's 69th for his country - a goalless draw with [[Uruguay national football team|Uruguay]]. England swept aside this minor hiccup to dispose of Mexico in the next game, with Charlton scoring one of the most famous goals of his career.
After Chairman Wenceslas has alienated and cut off so many potential allies, it seems clear that Earth is not well defended, and that it may be destroyed.
Picking up the ball in the centre circle of the Wembley pitch, Charlton issued a Mexican challenger with a body swerve which sent his opponent the wrong way and opened up a sizeable gap ahead of him. His reputation for long-range finishes now the stuff of legend, everyone braced themselves for a shot - and Charlton memorably obliged. It arrowed straight into the top corner of the Mexico net, finally opening England's goal account in the tournament and setting them up for a 2-0 win. This was followed by an identical scoreline against [[France national football team|France]] and England were in the last eight.
===Book 6: Metal Swarm (Due out December 2007)[http://www.wordfire.com/seven.html]===
There they overcame a thuggish Argentina side with a slender 1-0 win - the game was the only one in which Charlton received a caution - and Portugal awaited in the semi finals. This turned out to be one of Charlton's most important games, for both himself and those for whom he played.
[[Image:Metal_Swarm.JPG|thumb|150px|right|Cover image of Metal Swarm.]]
The alien hydrogues have been defeated, driven back into the cores of their gas-giant planets by an alliance of the Earth Defence Forces, the ancient Ildiran Empire, the gypsy-like Roamer clans and fantasic water elemental beings as well as gigantic living 'treeships'. But as the various factions try to pick up the pieces and recover, the deep-seated wounds may be fatal. The Hansa's brutal Chairman Basil Wenceslas struggles to crush any resistance even as King Peter breaks away to form his own new Confederation among the green priests on Theroc, the Roamer clans and an ever-growing number of breakaway colonies who have declared their independence.
Charlton opened the scoring with a crisp side-footed finish after a run by [[Roger Hunt]] had forced the Portuguese goalkeeper out of his net; the second was a sweetly struck shot after a run and pull-back from [[Geoff Hurst]]. Charlton and Hunt were now England's equal-highest scorers in the tournament with three each, and a final against [[Germany national football team|West Germany]] was to come.
Like jackals smelling wounded prey, swarms of ancient black robots built by the lost insectoid Klikiss race continue their depredations on helpless worlds with stolen and heavily armed Earth battleships. A race of capricious and terrifying fiery elementals, the faeros, has joined with an Ildiran madman to declare war against all life. And the original, voracious Klikiss race - long thought to be extinct - have returned, intent on conquering their former worlds and willing to annihilate anyone who happens to be in the way.
Though the game had drama, great team performances and some breathtaking individual displays, it actually turned out to be one of Charlton's quieter days. He had a young [[Franz Beckenbauer]] marking him and vice versa, and the two ultimately seemed to cancel each other out. However, the team did what was required and won 4-2 (although controversy still exists as to whether the 3rd goal ever crossed the line), with Hurst's hat-trick entering football folklore (and overtaking Charlton and Hunt as England's top marksman). Charlton was playing alongside his brother Jack and the two openly embraced and wept as the greatness of their achievement sank in.
===Final Book 7: The Ashes of Worlds (Due out in 2008)===
==European glory==
Charlton's next England game was his 75th as England beat [[Northern Ireland national football team|Northern Ireland]]; 2 [[cap (football)|caps]] later and he had become England's second most-capped player, behind the veteran [[Billy Wright]], who was approaching his 100th appearance when Charlton was starting out and ended with 105 caps.
==Timeline==
In 1968, Manchester United reached the [[European Cup]] final, ten seasons after Munich. Even though other clubs had taken part in the competition in the intervening decade, the team which got to this final was still the first English side to do so. On a highly emotional night at Wembley, Charlton scored twice in a 4-1 win after extra time against [[SL Benfica|Benfica]] and, as United captain, lifted the trophy. Weeks later he scored his 45th England goal in a friendly against [[Sweden national football team|Sweden]], breaking the record of 44 set the previous year by [[Jimmy Greaves]]. He was then in the England team which made it to the semi-finals of the [[1968 European Football Championship|1968 European Championships]] where they were knocked out by Yugoslavia in [[Florence]]; England defeated the [[USSR national football team|Soviet Union]] 2-0 in the third place match.
Ca. 1940's - Ildirans discover Klikiss robots on Hyrillka ice moons.
In 1969, Charlton was awarded the [[Order of the British Empire|OBE]] for services to football. More milestones followed as he won his 100th England cap on [[21 April]] [[1970]] against Northern Ireland, and was made captain by Ramsey for the occasion. Inevitably, he scored. This was his 48th goal for his country - his 49th and final goal would follow a month later in a 4-0 win over [[Colombia national football team|Colombia]] during a warm-up tour for the [[Football World Cup 1970|1970 World Cup]], designed to get the players adapted to [[altitude]] conditions. Charlton's inevitable selection by Ramsey for the tournament made him the first - and still, to date, only - England player to feature in four World Cup squads.
2100 - ''Peary'', ''Balboa'', ''Marco Polo''; first 'Generation' ships to depart from Earth.
==World Cup 1970 and retirement from playing football==
England began the tournament with two victories in the group stages, plus a memorable defeat against Brazil. Charlton played in all three, though was substituted for [[Alan Ball (footballer)|Alan Ball]] in the final game of the group against [[Czechoslovakia national football team|Czechoslovakia]]. Ramsey, confident of victory and progress to the quarter final, wanted Charlton to rest.
2103 - ''Burton'', ''Caillie'' depart.
England duly reached the last eight where they again faced West Germany. Charlton controlled the midfield and suppressed [[Beckenbauer]]'s runs from deep as England coasted to a 2-0 lead. Beckenbauer pulled a goal back for the Germans and Ramsey replaced the ageing and tired Charlton with [[Colin Bell]] who further tested the German keeper [[Maier]] and also provided a great cross for [[Geoff Hurst]] who uncharacteristically squandered the chance. West Germany, who had a habit of coming back from behind, eventually scored twice - a back header from [[Uwe Seeler]] made it 2-2 after which [[Gerd Müller]]'s goal finished England off. England were out and, after a record 106 caps and 49 goals, Charlton decided to end his international career at the age of 32. On the flight home from Mexico, he asked Ramsey not to consider him again. His brother Jack, two years his senior but 71 caps his junior, did likewise.
2104 - ''Amundsen'' departs.
Despite populist opinion the substitution did not change the game as [[Beckenbauer]] had scored before Charlton left the field, hence Charlton had failed to cancel out the German. Charlton himself conceded that the substitution did not affect the game in a [[BBC]] documentary. His caps record lasted until 1973 when [[Bobby Moore]] overtook him, and Charlton currently lies third in the all-time England appearances list behind Moore and [[Peter Shilton]], whose own England career began in the first game after Charlton's had ended. The goals record still stands, with [[Gary Lineker]] the only player subsequently to threaten it, with a total of 48 goals for England.
2106 - ''Clark'', ''Vichy'' depart.
Manchester United were in real difficulties in the early 1970s, with the team often fighting relegation. At times, Charlton was not on speaking terms with United's other superstars [[George Best]] and [[Denis Law]], and Best refused to play in Charlton's testimonial match, saying that "to do so would be hypocritical".<ref>{{cite book | title =Manchester United: The Betrayal of a Legend | pages =100-101 }}</ref> Charlton left Manchester United at the end of the 1972-73 season, having scored 247 goals and set a club record of 752 appearances, a record which is likely to be broken by [[Ryan Giggs]] in the near future. His last game was against [[Chelsea F.C.|Chelsea]] at [[Stamford Bridge]], and before the game the BBC cameras for ''[[Match Of The Day]]'' captured the Chelsea chairman handing Charlton a commemorative [[cigarette]] case.
2109 - ''Stroganov'' departs.
==After playing football==
Charlton became the player-manager of [[Preston North End F.C.|Preston North End]] in 1973, taking United and England team-mate [[Nobby Stiles]] with him as player-coach, but his first season was not a success and he left at the end of it. However, he was awarded the [[Order of the British Empire|CBE]] that year and began a casual association with the [[BBC]] for punditry on matches which continued for many years. In 1975 he scored 18 goals in 31 appearances for [[Waterford United]].
2110 - ''Abel-Wexler'' departs.
He then joined [[Wigan Athletic F.C.|Wigan Athletic]] as a director, and was briefly caretaker manager there. He then spent some time playing in [[South Africa]].<ref>{{cite web | title="Seven of my former 1966 World Cup winning team mates all played in South Africa." |work= Soccer Through The Years |url=http://www.soccerthroughtheyears.com/reviews.html| accessdate=October 20 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> He also built up several businesses in areas such as travel, jewellery and hampers, and ran soccer schools in the UK, the USA, Canada, Australia and China. In 1984, he was invited to become member of the [[board of directors]] at Manchester United, partly because of his football knowledge and partly because it was felt that the club needed a "name" on the board after the resignation of [[Matt Busby|Sir Matt Busby]].<ref>{{cite book | title =Manchester United: The Betrayal of a Legend | pages =181-182 }}</ref> He remains a director of Manchester United as of 2007.
2113 - ''Kanaka'' departs, last Generation ship.
Charlton helped to promote Manchester's bids for the 1996 and 2000 [[Olympic Games]] and the [[2002 Commonwealth Games]], England's bid for the [[2006 FIFA World Cup]] and [[London]]'s successful bid for the [[2012 Olympic Games]].<ref>{{cite web | title=Charlton leads tributes to Banks | work= news.bbc.co.uk | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/front_page/4594202.stm | accessdate=January 28 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> He received a [[knighthood]] in 1994 and was an Inaugural Inductee to the [[English Football Hall of Fame]] in 2002. On accepting his award he commented ''“I’m really proud to be included in the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame. It’s a great honour. If you look at the names included I have to say I couldn’t argue with them. They are all great players and people I would love to have played with."'' He is also the (honorary) president of the [[National Football Museum]], an organisation about which he said ''“I can’t think of a better Museum anywhere in the world.”''.
2196 - ''Kanaka'' leaves colony at Meyer rubble belt; becomes Rendezvous.
==Miscellaneous & family life==
He met his wife, [[Norma Ball]], at a [[dry cleaners]] in Manchester in 1959 and they married in 1961. They have two daughters - [[Suzanne Charlton|Suzanne]] and Andrea - the former of whom became a public figure herself as a [[meteorologist|weather forecaster]] for the [[BBC]].
2200 - Christian Gellar made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
Charlton began to lose his hair in the early 1960s and for a while refused to go bald gracefully, sporting a style of stranded, isolated hairs which would often flop around when he was running before he would tug them back over his head. This style is today still known as "the Bobby Charlton [[Comb over|Comb-Over]]".
2215 - Roseanna Burke made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
==References==
*{{cite book
| author=Crick, Michael; Smith, David
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| year =1990
| month =
| title =Manchester United: The Betrayal of a Legend
| chapter =
| editor =
| others =
| edition =
| pages =
| publisher =Pan Books
| ___location =
| id =0330314408 }}
2221 - King Ben crowned on Earth.
==Notes==
2223 - William Danforth Pape made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
<div class="references-small">
<references />
</div>
2230 - Mage-Imperator Yura'h ascends.
==External links==
* [http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/p/cp/eng/charlton.html FIFA World Cup: Bobby Charlton]
* [http://www.ifhof.com/hof/charlton.asp International Football Hall of Fame: Bobby Charlton]
* [http://www.planetworldcup.com/LEGENDS/charlton.html Planet World Cup: Bobby Charlton]
* [http://www.manutdzone.com/legends/BobbyCharlton.htm Manchester United Legends: Bobby Charlton]
* [http://www.nationalfootballmuseum.com/Hall%20of%20Fame/bobbycharlton.htm English Football Hall of Fame Profile]
2243 - Malcolm Stannis made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
{{start box}}
{{s-awards}}
{{succession box|title=[[European Footballer of the Year]]|before=[[Eusébio da Silva Ferreira|Eusébio]] |after=[[Florian Albert]]|years=1966}}
{{succession box|title=[[FWA Footballer of the Year|Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year]]|before=[[Bobby Collins]] |after=[[Jack Charlton]]|years=1966}}
{{end box}}
2244 - Ildirans encounter ''Caillie''; Theroc established as colony.
{{England Squad 1958 World Cup}}
{{England Squad 1962 World Cup}}
{{England Squad 1966 World Cup}}
{{England Squad 1970 World Cup}}
2245 - Ildirans come to Earth, search for more Generation ships.
<!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]] -->
2247 - ''Kanaka'' found, settlers taken to Iawa.
2249 - Compy OX returns to Earth.
Thara Wen (14 years old) becomes the first to 'take the green'.
2250 - Roamers begin skymining operations at Daym and elsewhere.
2253 - Francine Meyer made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2254 - Dobro experiments begin.
First Klikiss ruins (Llaro) reported by Madeliene Robinson.
Theroc officially delcares its independence from the Hansa.
King Ben poisoned; King George crowned.
2270 - Adam Cho made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2274 - King Christopher crowned.
2291 - Bertram Goswell made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2298 - Regan Chalmers made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2299 - Sandra Abel-Wexler made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2307 - King Jack crowned.
2315 - Clare Faso made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2323 - King Bartholomew crowned.
2337 - Mage-Imperator Yura'h dies; Cyroc'h ascends.
2338 - Miguel Byron made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2347 - Tam Charles Wicinsky made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2352 - Uthair and Lia Theron born.
2357 - Bram Tamblyn born.
2359 - Caleb Tamblyn born.
Robert Roberts II made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2360 - Andrew Tamblyn born.
2363 - Wynn and Torin tamblyn born.
2367 - Kelly Kirk made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2372 - Alexa Theron born.
2373 - Uthair and Lia Theron become Father and Mother of Theroc.
2375 - Yarrod Theron born.
2376 - Karla Baker born.
2380 - Maureen Fitzpatrick made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2381 - King Frederick crowned.
2389 - Ronald Palomar made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2390 - Margaret and Louis Colicos married.
2397 - Ross Tamblyn born.
2400 - Idriss and Alexa married.
2402 - Reynald Theron born.
Jess Tamblyn born.
2403 - Beneto Theron born. Uthair and Lia Theron retire.
2406 - Sarein Theron born.
Basil Wenceslas made Chairman of Terran Hanseatic League.
2408 - Nira Khali born.
2411 - Tasia Tamblyn born.
2413 - Raymod Aguerra born.
2415 - Estarra Theron born.
2417 - Celli Theron born.
2427 - Oncier ignited with Klikiss Torch.
Ross Tamblyn dies.
King Peter crowned.
==See also==
* [[Species of 'Saga of the Seven Suns'|Races and Species]]
* Characters: [[Ildirans]], [[Humans in 'Saga of Seven Suns'|Humans]]
* [[Planets of 'Saga of the Seven Suns'|Planets]]
* [[Ships of 'Saga of the Seven Suns|Ships]]
* [[Saga of Seven Suns Species List|Species List]]
==External links==
*[http://www.wordfire.com Kevin J. Anderson's web site]
{{Persondata
*{{isfdb name|id=Kevin_J._Anderson|name=Kevin J. Anderson}}
|NAME= Charlton, Robert
* [http://freesfonline.de/authors/andersonkj.html Kevin J. Anderson's online fiction] at ''Free Speculative Fiction Online''
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES= Charlton, Bobby
*[http://boards.theforce.net/Authors_&_Artists/b10347/5816881/?112 Kevin J. Anderson discussion at theforce.net Message Boards]
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=Footballer
*[http://www.funtrivia.com/quizzes/literature/authors_a-c/kevin_j_anderson.html Saga of Seven Suns quizzes at Funtrivia.com]
|DATE OF BIRTH= [[11 October]] [[1937]]
|PLACE OF BIRTH= [[Ashington]], [[England]]
|DATE OF DEATH=
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
[[Category:Science fiction book series]]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Charlton, Bobby}}
[[Category:EnglishSpace footballersopera]]
[[Category:EnglandSaga internationalof footballersthe Seven Suns]]
[[Category:English football managers]]
[[Category:Manchester United F.C. players]]
[[Category:Preston North End F.C. managers]]
[[Category:Preston North End F.C. players]]
[[Category:Waterford United F.C. players]]
[[Category:European Footballers of the Year]]
[[Category:FIFA 100]]
[[Category:FIFA World Cup 1958 players]]
[[Category:FIFA World Cup 1962 players]]
[[Category:FIFA World Cup 1966 players]]
[[Category:FIFA World Cup 1970 players]]
[[Category:FIFA World Cup-winning players]]
[[Category:UEFA Euro 1968 players]]
[[Category:Footballers with 100 or more caps]]
[[Category:Football knights]]
[[Category:Knights Bachelor]]
[[Category:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:People from Ashington]]
[[Category:1937 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Survivors of air disasters]]
[[de:Saga der Sieben Sonnen]]
[[ar:بوبي تشارلتون]]
[[bn:ববি চার্লটন]]
[[bs:Bobby Charlton]]
[[ca:Robert Charlton]]
[[cs:Bobby Charlton]]
[[da:Bobby Charlton]]
[[de:Bobby Charlton]]
[[es:Bobby Charlton]]
[[fr:Bobby Charlton]]
[[gl:Bobby Charlton]]
[[hr:Bobby Charlton]]
[[id:Bobby Charlton]]
[[it:Bobby Charlton]]
[[he:בובי צ'רלטון]]
[[ka:ბობი ჩარლტონი]]
[[nl:Bobby Charlton]]
[[ja:ボビー・チャールトン]]
[[no:Bobby Charlton]]
[[nn:Bobby Charlton]]
[[pl:Bobby Charlton]]
[[pt:Bobby Charlton]]
[[ru:Чарльтон, Бобби]]
[[fi:Bobby Charlton]]
[[sv:Bobby Charlton]]
[[zh:博比·查尔顿]]
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