Man, figuring out the internal chronology for the 'Redwall' books can be a project. Brian Jacques jumped around the timeline a lot. If you want the story order, it goes like this: 'Lord Brocktree' is the absolute earliest, then 'Martin the Warrior', 'Mossflower', 'The Legend of Luke', 'Outcast of Redwall', and 'Mariel of Redwall' all happen pretty close together. After that, it's 'The Bellmaker', 'Salamandastron', 'Redwall' (the first published, but set way later!), 'Mattimeo', 'The Pearls of Lutra', 'The Long Patrol', 'Marlfox', 'The Taggerung', 'Triss', 'Loamhedge', 'Rakkety Tam', 'High Rhulain', 'Eulalia!', and finally 'The Sable Quean'.
I tried reading them this way once, and it's a different experience. You see the abbey's history unfold, but you miss the charm of discovering the lore backwards, the way most of us did. Honestly, for a first-time reader, publication order still wins. You get the foundational mysteries of 'Redwall' first, which makes the prequels more rewarding later.
The biggest gap in the timeline is between the early founding era and the 'Redwall' novel. So many generations pass, it’s almost a reset.
2026-08-08 08:42:45
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