Welcome to the new
year and to our first guest post by historical fiction writer, Lynn Bryant who
has two series going. She became fascinated with one historical personage and
tells us more about him in this post. We’re so happy you are here to share with
us today, Lynn.
One
of the challenges of writing historical fiction is combining fictional
characters with real personalities in a way that is believable. Although the main characters of the
Peninsular War Saga are fictional, a secondary character is Arthur Wellesley,
the future Duke of Wellington. Over
time, Wellesley has developed a life of his own and I’ve grown very attached to
him.
When
Wellesley is introduced to Lieutenant Paul van Daan in 1802 he is a relatively young
and inexperienced general in India. He
had not yet married Kitty Pakenham and his first great victory at Assaye was a
year away. He was ambitious and single minded, a moderate drinker and a man who
enjoyed the company of women. Even then, he struggled to delegate, and was
suspicious of initiative in his officers.
As
I began to read more about Wellington’s character it became obvious that I had
accidentally stumbled on the perfect foil for the flamboyant, unpredictable bad
boy of the 110th infantry, Lieutenant Paul van Daan. Superficially, Paul is everything Wellington
likes to see in a young officer; he’s dedicated, intelligent and courageous. In
reality, Wellington the control-freak is about meet his worst nightmare and
their disagreements are frequent and explosive.
Wellesley
was born into an aristocratic Anglo-Irish family as The Hon. Arthur Wesley, the
third son of the Earl of Mornington – the family changed the name to Wellesley
in the 1790s. Arthur was not a promising
child, and his mother described him as her ‘awkward son Arthur’. It was only at
military school, that he began to show signs of improvement.
Wellesley
joined the army in 1787. His promotion,
through purchase, was fairly rapid and he held a series of posts in Ireland and
was elected as an MP. During this time,
he courted Kitty Pakenham, the daughter of Baron Longford and asked for
her hand in marriage but was turned down by her family due to his poor
prospects. Wellesley took it badly but put his energy into a serious
military career. He purchased up to
lieutenant-colonel in the 33rd at the age of 26 and fought in Europe and then
in India. When war broke out against the Maratha, he was a major-general and won
a significant victory at Assaye in 1803.
It
was in India that Wellesley first encountered the young Paul van Daan, an
officer already unpopular with the establishment because of his friendly
relations with his enlisted men and his casual attitude to army regulations. Wellesley was a traditionalist and never
shared Paul’s egalitarian views, but he did recognise his talent. Through the
Peninsula to the bloody field of Waterloo, Wellington and his unorthodox young
officer fought the French and argued ferociously about Paul’s flexible
interpretation of orders and Wellington’s need for control.
The
real Wellington did not have a close relationship with his staff or his
officers and often appeared sarcastic and condescending. He was a stern
disciplinarian who was respected rather than loved by both officers and men. Isolated
and worn down by lack of money, men, resources and talented officers, he became
more and more autocratic and his friendship with Paul van Daan has to endure
the storms of war and the vicissitudes of army politics.
Originally,
Lord Wellington was supposed to be a subsidiary character with little to do
apart from to issue orders and look grumpy. As so often happens with minor
characters, he developed a mind of his own and began to intrude into the action
in the most unsuitable manner. As he is a general, I thought it best to let him
have his way.
Want
to share Lynn’s insights into the Duke of Wellington with others?
Facebook: The Duke of Wellington of
the Napoleonic era decided to play a bigger role in Lynn Bryant’s historical
fiction book, AN UNCONVENTIONAL OFFICER, than she had planned. Read her post to
find out more about a character most of us know little of. http://bit.ly/2lCsTD5
Twitter: @LynnBry29527024 shares
insights in the Napoleonic-era Duke of Wellington and how he took a bigger role
than she intended in AN UNCONVENTIONAL OFFICER. http://bit.ly/2lCsTD5
Lynn Bryant was
born and raised in London's East End. She studied History at University and had
dreams of being a writer from a young age. Since this was clearly not something
a working-class girl made good could aspire to, she had a variety of careers
including a librarian, NHS administrator, relationship counsellor and manager
of an art gallery before realising that most of these were just as unlikely as
being a writer and took the step of publishing her first book.
She now lives in
the Isle of Man and is married to a man who understands technology, which saves
her a job, and has two teenage children and two Labradors. History is still a
passion, especially the Napoleonic era and the sixteenth century. When not
writing she reads anything that's put in front of her and makes periodic and
unsuccessful attempts to keep a tidy house.
Social Media Links
No comments:
Post a Comment