The Beast of Mysore (Wellington Undead Book 1)
Page 25
After the funeral, Harris had requested that Arthur join him in the quarters he had appropriated, a sumptuous set of suites within the inner palace. The general had waved him to a chair and offered him a glass of freshly-drained blood.
The two men drank in companionable silence for a while. Finally, Harris spoke. “I think, Colonel Wellesley, that General Baird would have been exceptionally proud of you today.”
Arthur hadn’t known what to say, and so settled for “Thank you, sir.” He added: “That means a great deal to me. I respected the general’s opinion enormously.” And so he had, their personal differences aside.
“I miss him,” Harris said softly, and Arthur was not sure whether he had intended to speak those words aloud in front of a subordinate, but they had somehow found voice anyway.
“I owe him everything. All that I shall ever achieve will have been made possible because of his sacrifice.” Arthur paused, then said, “It troubles me that I can never repay him.”
General Harris fixed him with a meaningful stare. “Can you not?” He passed a single sheet of cream-colored paper across the desk to Wellesley, who accepted it without comment and began to read its contents. “It is an order,” Harris saved him the trouble, “appointing you to the governorship of Seringapatam, Wellesley. Custom would dictate that I appoint a general to the position, but I prefer instead to appoint a man who I know is capable of performing the duty in an exemplary manner.”
“Thank you, sir,” Arthur replied. His mind was already accelerating, turning over the difficulties, opportunities, and possibilities in his mind. “I will not let you down, sir. You have my word.”
“Of that, I have no doubt Wellesley. See that you do not let him down either.”
Excerpt from the private correspondence of Arthur Wellesley:
To the Earl of Mornington.
Seringapatam, 8th May, 1799.
My dear Mornington,
It was impossible to expect that after the labor which the troops had undergone in working up to the place, and the various successes they had had in six different affairs with Tippoo’s troops, in all of which they had come to the bayonet with them, they should not have looked to the plunder of this place. Nothing therefore can have exceeded what was done on the night of the 4th. Scarcely a house in the town was left unplundered, and I understand that in camp jewels of the greatest value, bars of gold, have been offered for sale in the bazaars of the army by our soldiers, sepoys, and followers. I came in to take command on the morning of the 5th, and by the greatest exertion, by hanging, flogging, in the course of that day I restored order to the troops, and I hope I have gained the confidence of the people. They are returning to their houses and beginning again to follow their occupations, but the property of every one is gone.
Believe me,
ARTHUR WELLESLEY
Author’s Note
Arthur Wellesley’s adventures continue in the second volume of this series, “Goddess of the Dead.”
If you have enjoyed this book, please consider leaving an honest review. It will help ensure future books in the series.
I hope that you have enjoyed this book, the first in what will be an ongoing series chronicling the vampire alter-ego of Arthur Wellesley. As such, it contains elements of the supernatural and fantastical, and is by no means intended to be an accurate historical account of the clash between the forces of Great Britain and the Tipu Sultan in 1799.
Although the basis of the book is rooted in historical fact, and the broad strokes parallel the events of the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War, I have taken a great number of liberties both large and small. For example, many of the British officers who appear in the narrative really did exist, many with very similar personalities to their fictional counterparts, but show up in different places, roles, or positions in the command structure when they appear in The Beast of Mysore – General Baird being a prime example, to whom I have also done a disservice by having him sacrifice his life in order to save that of Arthur Wellesley. Baird actually led the charge into the city of Seringapatam once the walls were finally breached, something which he was more than motivated to do after having been a guest in the Sultan’s dungeons himself a few years prior.
This book is a work of fantasy. Although a number of characters who were truly larger than life walk through its pages, it has been necessary to alter their personalities and behaviors in order to fit the narrative. It bears repeating that the versions of Wellesley, Tipu, and others are by necessity distortions of the real men themselves. Far from being seen as a villain, there are a great many who look upon the “Tiger of Mysore” with a great deal of admiration and fondness today. I have sought to craft an entertaining tale, and hope that I have succeeded in that regard.
Where circumstances (and the needs of plotting) have permitted, I have striven for accuracy, but mistakes will inevitably creep into even the best researched manuscript. These faults are entirely mine. Some of the letters and journal entries attributed to Arthur Wellesley are genuine, whereas others have been constructed by the author; it is left as an exercise for the reader to determine which entries are which.
Readers seeking a more historically accurate fictional account of the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War would do well to seek out the excellent Sharpe’s Tiger by Bernard Cornwell. It is impossible to write about Wellesley’s army without being influenced by the work of Mr. Cornwell, and his personal take on the demise of (as he terms it) the Tippoo Sultan makes for a riveting, page-turning read.
For the historical background on the Mysore campaign itself, probably the single best source on the subject is Jac Weller’s invaluable Wellington in India. Weller is not only immensely readable (his books read like some of the very best fiction) but during his lifetime, he actually walked the ground himself, following in Wellesley’s footsteps from battlefield to battlefield and viewing them with the eye of a master tactician. Also highly recommended is Lady Elizabeth Longford’s grand overview of Wellesley’s military career, Wellington: The Years of the Sword. Arthur Wellesley’s own Dispatches of Field Marshal The Duke of Wellington have also been an invaluable source of both reference and insight.
Those seeking insights into Arthur Wesley (Wellesley) the man would do well to check out the first volume of Rory Muir’s biography Wellington: The Path to Victory, a superbly detailed and highly readable account of his Indian and Peninsular years. He has generously made available (for free) a detailed commentary on both volumes of his book, which can be downloaded at http://www.lifeofwellington.co.uk/. Mr. Muir has performed a very real service for present and future students of the Iron Duke.
He is not quite the Iron Duke yet, however – whether measured in terms of experience or by title. Arthur Wellesley has defeated the Tipu Sultan and Seringapatam has fallen to the British, but there are many more battles yet to be fought beneath the night skies of India before he can sleep beneath the soil of England once more.
I hope that you will accompany us on that journey.
Richard Estep
About the Author
RICHARD ESTEP IS AN AUTHOR, paramedic, clinical educator, paranormal investigator, and volunteer firefighter who originally hails from the United Kingdom. He now lives in Colorado, but makes his online home at http://www.richardestep.net and is the author of In Search of the Paranormal, Haunted Longmont, and The World’s Most Haunted Hospitals.
You can connect with Richard on Twitter at @estepr, and he’d love to get email from you at richard@richardestep.net
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