Infamous Army Part II

As the Army prepares for a possible battle with Napoleon, the Duke of Wellington arrives in Brussels to take charge.  Judith is uneasy because there is a feverish air about society, as War looms.  Charles falls more deeply in love with Barbara, and within a short time, he proposes to her.  Yet although Barbara genuinely loves her fiancé, she has been hardened by her short unhappy marriage to a selfish roué, (having married him for his money and to please her selfish and loose living father).  So, she fears becoming close to anyone, or having to submit to Charles’s and his family’s ideas of propriety.  She continues to flirt and enjoy herself.  Charles tries to overlook her capricious behavior but he is busy with his Staff work.   

Barbara grows bored with his preoccupation with his duties, and Is seen dining with Perry Taverner, who is a loose end because his wife, Harriet is pregnant and does not want to go out.  This leads to gossip among the English society, and Harriet rudely snubs Barbara publicly, because she is uneasy about her husband’s friendship with the spoiled beauty.   This causes more talk and Barbara begins to publicly flaunt her hold over the captivated Perry…

Charles returns to Brussels and he and Barbara quarrel bitterly over what he feels was her spitefulness in taking Perry away from his wife.  Barbara is angry at being criticized and feels irritated by the prudery as she sees it of the Audley family... And she breaks off her engagement.  

Charles tries to help Perry and his wife to get over their quarrel and they return to England, to try and mend their marriage.   While he turns to his work to keep himself occupied, Barbara continues to flirt and amuse herself very publicly…

Judith hopes that when he has recovered from the unhappy love affair with Barbara, Charles will grow to love Lucy…

However her cynical husband, Lord Worth doubts this and feels that Lucy is a rather insipid girl who will not attract Charles.  Judith is angry with Barbara who remains in Brussels, going out and being seen enjoying herself.. because Charles is hurt by it and cannot avoid seeing her. Napoleon has marched through France and the Allies expect war to break out soon. Charles and the Worths are invited to the Duchess of Richmond's ball in June. The Duke attends but during the ball, he gets a message that Napoleon is close by, and he realises that the Emperor has humbugged him. He and his entourage leave and the army is put into action. Charles is on his staff and leaves early... and Barbara angers Judith by asking her if he is still in Brussels. However a day later, Barbara again visits the Worths, to ask if she can stable her horses with them.. as horses are being stolen. Her brother Lord Vidal has left the town with his wife, but she wishes to stay. Lord Worth tells her that she should not stay alone in a hotel, and invites her to stay in his house. Judith has to agree out of politeness. However she and Barbara decide to go and make preparations to help the wounded, who are beginning to limp into the city. During their time at this work, they become friendlier.. and Judith feels that she has some good points. Meanwhile Charles is engaged in the Battle of Waterloo. He realises it is the worst battle he has ever seen. Barbara and Judith are startled when Lucy arrives at the house later at night, with her uncle Mr Fisher. She then reveals that Lord George Alistair, Barbaras brother, has been married to her secretly for some time. He had been in love with her but got involved in an affair with a married woman and his grandfather refused to lend him money for purchasing a promotion, so he married her secretly. Mr Fisher is horrified, as he does not think that George will be a good husband. However he and his wife agree to forgive her. Judith realises that she was very wrong about Lucy. Towards the end of the battle, Charles is badly injured and has to lose his arm. He is brought back to Brussels, where Worth and Judith are there to nurse him. Barbara goes to him and they become engaged again. After the battle the duke of Wellington returns to Brussels and comes to see Charles. Judith is amazed as she had thought that he was a rather cold man..He sends his doctor to Charles and he begins to recover, and Judith is able to congratulate the couple on their engagement.

Infamous Army Georgette Heyer Part I

Published in 1937, (in the years just before World War II) this is an unusual novel of Georgette Heyer’s.  She uses characters from some of her earlier novels… the Duke and Duchess of Avon appeared in Devil’s Cub... as Dominic Lord Vidal and Mary Challoner.  The timeline is a little bit wrong, but they are now an older couple and the grandparents of the heroine Lady Barbara Childe.   The hero, the “military man” and Peninsular soldier, the Hon. Charles Audley, appeared in “Regency Buck... He was then an amiable and good hearted young man and the younger brother of the hero of that novel... (Julian, Lord Worth).  The novel is set in 1815 - just when the British aristocracy had been enjoying foreign travel for the first time in many years.  Julian Worth and his wife, Judith and their baby son are visiting Brussels... as is Lady Barbara Childe.   So are other characters from Regency Buck, Judith’s brother the pleasant but silly young baronet Peregrine Taverner and his wife Harriet.

However at the start of the novel, Napoleon has escaped from Elba and there is anxiety in Brussels that he will reconquer Europe.  The Duke of Wellington has been summoned to Belgium to take charge of the army and the Novel’s title is taken from his real life remark that he has an “Infamous army...”  He is not very happy with the War Office and the mixture of different nationalities that he has to command...plus many of his experienced peninsular veterans have been sent to America…

Judith Worth is keen to match-make for her brother in law, who is also expected in Brussels and she has a young English girl, Lucy Devenish, whom she likes and believes will make him a good wife.  Lucy is heiress to a fortune, since her aunt is married to a wealthy, good hearted but somewhat vulgar merchant.  Judith chaperones Lucy in Brussels at times because her aunt is somewhat “indolent”, and her uncle is not “quite quite” a gentleman.

Julian -Judith’s sardonic and haughty husband is not sure if he likes his wife’s match making….

When Charles comes to Brussels, Judith is keen to introduce him to her protégée, but to her amazed annoyance, he meets Barbara Childe at a dance and is completely smitten with her on first sight.  Barbara is very beautiful, and a widow, and older than Heyer’s usual heroines. (Like her great Grandmother Leonie, she is a redhead).

 She is also a more selfish harder character.  She is one of the “bad Alistairs” who have a reputation for wildness and extravagance. and her status as a married woman and widow means that she can get away with more excessive behavior than the young “ingénue” heroines.  Barbara is living with her elder brother, Lord Vidal and his wife... who are keen to persuade her into a second marriage.  Her other brothers George and Harry are both in the army.  George is a rake and a selfish young man, but he is fond of Barbara.  Harry is just out of school and has not yet seen action.

In “Infamous Army”, Judith is now a married woman and comes across as a more priggish, prudish character than she did in Regency Buck.  She is horrified about her brother in law falling in love with Barbara, who is known to be selfish, and a hardened flirt. She is known for “taking up” men and having them fall in love with her... and then dropping them.   

short blog on Cornish names

Cornwall is traditionally associated with King Arthur and has names that are not usually found in other parts of Britain. 

The TV series Poldark in the 1970’s made some of these names popular.. The name of the chief female character was Demelza.. which was mentioned in the books as an old Cornish name.  In fact it was a name that Winston Graham had seen as a village name in Cornwall.  It means “hill fort of Maeldaf”.  It was well liked… as was Ross  - of course, the name of the hero of the books.

Another Cornish male name is Jago, which evolved as a version of James and which had a bit of a revival in the 20^th century…

Morwenna is  another important female character.. she is one of four sisters, Rowella, Garlanda and Carenza.  Morwenna means “maiden” and there are several Cornish churches named after  an early Saint Morwenna. Carenza is sometimes spelled “Kerenza” and means love or affection, so it is quite a charming name.

Loveday is another name mainly found in Cornwall. It refers to the medieval custom of “love days” which were days when disputes were settled. In the 13^th century children of both sexes who were borne on these days were often called “Loveday” (which was sometimes pronounced “Lowdy”).   Nowadays the name is still used in  Cornwall but is confined to female children.  (In Poldark we learn in the later books that Morwenna's daughter by her second husband.. Drake Carne is Loveday).

A male name, not mentioned in Poldark, is Piran or Perran.  It is a Cornish place name and there was a St Piran who was the patron saint of miners. The name’s origin is unknown but it may derive from the name Peter which was often abbreviated as Perkin in medieval times.

Plaxy is another unusual name said to be derived from the Greek word Praxis.. but it’s not clear why it was popular in Cornwall.

Melior or Meliora is a girl’s name.. which is derived from the Latin word “melior” which means “better” and is largely a Cornish name.  It appears in the Poldark books as the name of a minor character.. one of the children of Dwight Ennis…

Bible names for Women

The Bible is largely a book of men, and so the number of names for women is relatively limited.  Two of the most popular women’s names have historically been Mary and Elizabeth, which are of course the names of Jesus’s Mother and the Mother of his cousin John the Baptist.  

Mostly the names in the bible are Hebrew and have “meanings” which are usually related to God, or Yahweh as the Hebrews called him.  In the New Testament, however some names are Greek…. as the church began to spread through the Roman Empire many of its converts were Greek or Roman.  

Abigail is a name that has become increasingly popular, as has the abbreviated form of Gail.  It means “Father rejoices” and was common in the 17^th and 18^th centuries.  However Queen Anne of England had a “favourite” lady, Abigail Masham.. who was not much liked by the public and as a result the name began to go out of fashion. Because the biblical Abigail, (one of King David’s wives) referred to herself as a “handmaid”, “abigail” became a term for a lady’s maid or servant in the 18^th Century.

Bethany is another girl’s name which has become popular in the later 20^th century…the word Beth means house and Bethany is a place name in Israel. 

Chloe is another Biblical name briefly mentioned in the New Testament.  It was also well known among Puritans into the 17^th century… It is a Greek name which means green... and for a time it was one of the most popular names in the UK.

Dinah was the name of Jacob’s daughter and the mane means “Vindicated.”  It was used for a time but is rarely used now... and tends to be confused with “Diana” which is a different name.

Deborah is another name that has survived into the 20^th and 21^st Centuries… and means “bee”.  Deborah was a leader of the Israelites….

Jemima has also gone out of fashion but at one time was a very popular name.  It was one of the names of one of Charles II’s illegitimate daughters... and was sometime considered as a female version of James.  The name means “dove” and was the name of one of the 3 daughters of Job… It was very much used from the 17^th century to the 19^th.  

Keziah was another daughter of Job, the name means “Cassia tree”. And it has become more popular in recent years.

Another bible name that does not seem to have become well known is Keturah... it was the name of the second wife of Abraham, and means “incense” and while it was used by Puritans, it has not survived as a popular name.

Another almost forgotten name is Jerusha the name of the wife of King Uzziah… the name means “possessed”.     more to come!

Rough Music by Nadine Sutton

A “band” story set in the US, in the late 1970s.   I enjoyed writing this as it is not a romantic love story and does not have a happy ending. It’s more of a work story, about music and the life of an up and coming band.  I’;ve always been a fan of old style country singers in the days when touring was a constant part of their lives.  It was hard work and took its toll on the marriages of many singers.   But I love the music of the 1960s and 70’s.  I love country pop, people like Glen Campbell... and I also love the Williamses… especially Hank Junior.  I enjoy Lynrd Skynrd.  So my story is all about that sort of life…   

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rough-Music-Nadine-Sutton-ebook/dp/B01AEQS0G0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452977780&sr=8-1&keywords=nadine+sutton