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Jane Mary Digby

Title: Baroness of Hardy

Estate Name: Hardy

Nationality: English

Age: 21 (b. 1654)

Gender: Female

Eye Colour: Blue

Hair Colour: Blond

 

Physical Attributes

Jane took after her father's side of the family, with the classical straight nose, and blond curls with large startling blue eyes. She wore her clothes with pride, showing of the fine details of her porcelain skin, and delicate curves. She was a courty beauty and she knew it with an arrogant toss of her curls.

The first impression

Jane is a confident lady, always ready with a laugh, enticing men to talk. Pleasant company, the kind that makes a man feel good. A bit of tease, with rumours following her that she's easy because her honor was once compromised. Jane seems to dismiss such gossip however, holding up her head high.

Background

Due to her family's background at Court , always in and out favour but nothing short of spectacular and romantic, Jane had learned politics from the cradle. As was tradition in the family, she was well educated, with the finest tutors. Her mother was worried Jane prefered studying. She tried to interest Jane in more feminine pursuits like fashion, with only meager results though at least she instilled some kind of dress sense in the girl, who turned out to be an incredible beauty.

Her father, cousin to George Digby, 2nd Earl of Bristol, and Earl of Hardy in his own right, was a most unremarkable man, prefering to keep to himself and his estate. He had never understood the urge of some of the peerage to be in the public eye. No, for John Digby it was the quiet life, especially since as a Catholic he did not want to draw too much attention to himself and had no hope for public office.

Due to her beauty, as soon as Jane was old enough, her fathers second cousin Lady Anne Spencer, Countess Sunderland, insisted on introducing the girl to Court. She was introduced among other things to the Spanish faction, her family carrying a long standing bond with that country. Under her aunt's tutelage Jane was taken to all the the grand parties, mingling with courtiers. Though like her father, fond of the shadows, Jane was no shy wallflower, enjoying conversations with the very diverse kind of lords, officers and ambassadors, who on account of her beauty panted after her. She wrapped them all around her finger.

Then there was the incident with the handsome James Salvile, 2nd Baron of Sussex upon Avon, enemy to the Digby family and he himself nephew and heir to the Earl of Sussex of the same name. Rumors hold it the girl lost her honor. It was the worst kept secret in London and she was forced to take a holiday on the Continent while things simmered down.

On the continent Jane spend most of her time in Spain, where her family held contacts that were almost a century old. She was introduced at Court despite her reputation. Her blond hair, so uncommon in Spain helped her gain he reputation of beauty. It is said that is how she gained the favour of Don Pedro Ronquillo. When both were back in London, lady Jane was a kept mistress to the man for over a year. Why she left him is unknown, but it was just weeks before her father was murdered in cold blood at Windsor. Rumour has it that the Earl of Hardy, a famous Catholic, had run afoul of Catholic fanatics for not supporting the cause.

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Heather Abigail Thompson (nee Hamilton)

Title: Countess

Estate Name: Atherstone (Warwickshire)

Nationality: English

Age: 20

Gender: female

Religion: Anglican

Physical Attributes:

Heather has porcelain white skin, blemished by many redbrown freckles. Her hair is a golden red that sparkles in the light. The thick curls have a tendency to be frizzy and strawlike. Her eyes are light green, changing to yellow or blue depending on the color of her gowns or her earrings. She is every inch the Hamilton. All her brothers have the same hair and skin.

Because Heather is taller than average she looks most men into the eye. Her body is well shaped with the fashionable plumbness of the time.

The first impression:

Heather is not a shy girl, graced with an open smile that betrays a curiousity to the world around her. The lady has an air of sensuality, but is also well known for implish delight in mischief.

Background:

Heather, named after her two grandmothers, is the sixth child of the seven Hamilton children that still live. Five brothers arrived before Heather did (Henry jr, Edmund, Adrian, Darren, Clarence) Her mother Catherine Hamilton (nee Forthingale) died while giving birth to a second (dead) sister when Heather was three. She does not have many memories of her mother. It was a happy childhood with Heather having the freedom to pursue her own interests which included a lot of outdoors activity, or listening in on her brothers tutors. It was not one of great wealth, and Heather in time would not have an impressive dowry.

Her father Henry Edmund Hamilton, viscount of Elmdon (Cambridgeshire) remarried when she was eight with widow Rosana Appelbee (nee Thompson).

Until Rosana joined the Hamilton Household the children were more or less allowed the free roam of the estate, which became the source of gossip in the small community. Realizing that his children were becoming an uncontrollable wild bunch and needed a firmer hand Henry remarried a lady who was improvised after her husbands death, yet was known for her female graces. She took the education of the children, Heather especially, at hand, arranging a tutor for the older boys. Being a kind but firm lady she managed to bring back some measure of civility. Henceforth Heather was no longer allowed to play outside like one of the boys.

The reputation of a wild child continued to haunt the girl, and upon Rosana's recommendation she was married off to a cousin of Rosana, a considerable older man, a widower called Lloyd Charlton Thompson, Earl of Atherstone, who had two older children (Lloyd Charlton jr and Cedric Matthew) who already left the house with no female relatives. Lloyd was in his infirmity (far in his sixties) and needed a woman to take care of him. Heather was 17 when she married him.

It was the perfect marriage as far as Rosana was concerned. Having to take care of her husband there was less time for Heather to get into trouble, and she gained a respected title despite her somewhat small dowry. They lived in quiet harmony, with Heather spending her days between her husband and her horse.

Princeton was a gift from her husband upon their marriage. He bought it to breed horses with, after Princeton retired as a racing horse with some acclaim. While slightly inappropriate for a lady to ride a stallion, it was just what the willfull Heather needed to get rid of her energy.

Lloyd died in the winter of 1675, after her father passed away the summer before that, making it a sad year all around. The newly minted Earl of Atherstone demanded that his father's widow remarry, to which she took exception and fled to court to be away from his and her brother's influence.

The Countess of Atherstone arrived at court quite poorly, but soon managed to attract the attention of several men. She ended up with the moneylender Caleb O'Roarke who died upon her, and afterwards was briefly married to this brother. The marriage as annulled in favour of recognizing hte secret marriage to O'Roarke, who eventually was recognized as having been the true Earl of O'Roarke. Thus her son, Caleb junior was now an Earl.

Heather kept a string of lovers, including the Duke of Buckingham, and finally ended up brièfly as King's Mistress. Rumour has it that the lady in a fit of pique dumped the monarch, and they briefly engaged in a silent war of revenge till all was forgiven as was CR's style. To the surprise of many she has become and actually stayed the main mistress of the Duke of York, just returned from her confinment from their first child.

The Countess is more than her lovers however. As an independent and rich widow, she entertains a career as a writer and poetess, fancing herself a patroness of the arts.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Caroline Despanay

Title: Baroness Kendishall (widow)

Estate Name: Glandon House

Nationality: French by birth

Age: 19

Gender: Female

Eye Colour: Blue

Hair Colour: Light brown

Physical Attributes

No one would ever call Caroline beautiful in the classical sense but she has a vibrancy about her that more than makes up for it. The sparkle of her deep blue eyes, that smile which can light up a room. Standing at 5'3" and of average build, she carries herself with confidence and grace in public. She has been blessed with smooth unblemished skin, quite pale as she does not spend time in the outside sun.

First Impressions

Caroline would never be called shy, she delights in engaging people in conversation. She can be witty or even blunt and confrontational depending upon her moods. Her laugh is infectious, genuine. There is probably no subject she is not willing to engage in discussions about and does not shy from controversy, to the shock of some. She is trying to learn to control those urges though. She is a bundle of energy and can be counted on to be among the very last to leave an event or especially, a private party. She loves to flirt with any willing male and, on occasion, an uncomfortable unwilling one too. Her ability to drink heavily and show little effect is something which surprises many.

Personality

Caroline is much like her mother, whom she adored until her sudden tragic death. She neither accepts nor believes in male superiority. She wants to live her life exactly how she feels like whether society approves or not. She is a fighter, both physically brave and mentally strong. She is not very religious and sets her own moral code, not some domineering clergy with their so called sacred scriptures and threatened damnations. That said, her beloved mother was Catholic and if she subscribes to any faith at all it is Catholic, not that disgusting King's creation of Anglicism. More in the memory of her mother than any real devotion, she does attend services on occasion. However she is careful to not openly admit to any Catholic leanings. In the end, Caroline is not afraid of failure, she is afraid of dying without ever living life to the fullest.

Background

That many people find the young woman to be a complex mix of moods and actions both engaging and then startling might not be so surprising if they knew her whole story. Caroline has never been shy about telling of her background but the reality is she usually paints that canvas with a grand splash of lies. Like most though, she is a product of her upbringing and her parents history was filled with mystery liberally mixed in with deliberate falsehoods.

Caroline's father, Jean-Marie Claude Despanay Sieur de Naronne, is French by birth at least though he spent very little of his life in that country. He is a Hugenot though hardly devout and took up the sword early in life to become a professional soldier. Causes never meant much to him, he fought for who paid him. In 1658 he served in the Swedish army, campaigning in Poland. There he met a Polish woman, Marie Walescwa, daughter of a minor impoverished noble. Since neither had anything in the line of money or property, the marriage was actually a romantic one. In 1659 Marie gave birth to a healthy baby girl, Katrina, whose name they conveniently changed to Caroline as the couple left Poland under a cloud in 1661. Even Caroline knows nothing about why her family fled only that they had to do so quickly.

There was a short stopover in Denmark where Claude served Sweden's traditional enemy but he soon grew bored with a garrison command. All the while both parents concentrated their efforts on teaching their child to speak French for Marie also was fluent in it. From there it was a several month stay in northern France before ending up in England. As was usual, Claude hoped to take up the soldier's trade in England but, much to his chagrin, found out foreigners were not allowed to serve in the royal army. Reluctantly he settled down to the life of a country gentleman.

Caroline grew up in England, being so young she picked up the language easily enough but still speaks French too if she needs to, such as talking with her father, not that they do that much as they are no longer close. Caroline was her mother's girl, Marie lavished all her attention upon her only child and of course the girl reciprocated with something close to adoration. It was Marie who also filled Caroline with her own rather radical ideas on so many things about being a woman in this male dominated world. Claude and Marie had never had a traditional sort of marriage. Unlike many men of his age, he took no interest in other women and readily conceded a sort of co-equal status to his wife, a woman of strong personality. And both of them lied about almost everything about their past. Marie was passed off to others as French, Claude, though in truth a competent soldier, made up grand tales about former campaigns he took part in and his heroic roles in them. The girl learned to twist the truth was seemingly the norm.

The girl was provided with a tutor so she did learn to read and write. Though intelligent enough, Caroline did not take much to books and learning. She was encouraged by her mother to cultivate an interest in music and learned to play the cello. It came easily to her and, more importantly, it pleased her mother to hear her play so she took it seriously enough to become quite proficient at it. There was however one incident involving it when she was fourteen. They had visitors and she had played for them but afterwards one of the company, a boy only a year older than her, became a bit too forward with her and she broke the bow of the instrument slapping it across his face, drawing blood. That company never crossed their threshold again to visit. Despite that unpleasantry, Caroline soon became fascinated with boys and even Marie had all she could do to tamp down the girl's rather wild inclinations even back then. It did not help things that Caroline caught her mother rolling in the hay with a common stablehand. Caroline kept that secret though from her father.

As Caroline passed into her late adolescent years, her family was sundered apart forever. Both her parents were heavy drinkers, in fact Claude's bouts with alcohol grew worse once he no longer was an active soldier, peaceful life in the countryside bored him. His lack of income and his drinking were double blows to their financial status, but even worse a sudden incident was pure tragedy and scarred Caroline for life. Marie drowned in a pond next to their rural home. She had been drinking that night and apparently wandered out of the house. By the time she was found, in the water, it was too late.

So accustomed to death all his martial life, Claude took it stoically but not so Caroline who was inconsolable for months.

Then came the cause of a bitter split between father and daughter. Claude was running out of money when he was suddenly approached by a nobleman he knew from service. That man stunned him by offering to arrange a marriage between his son and Claude's daughter. It did not seem to make sense, that this baron's son could not find someone of better station than the likes of Caroline especially as there wasn't even a chance of any dowry given Claude's poverty. Caroline was against it of course, she did not even know the man she was supposed to be marrying and he was too old for her, in her view. Actually he was seven years her senior which was not at all unusual.

The marriage happened though and Caroline found herself out of her comfortable family home and packed off to the far nicer country estate at Glandon. Baron Kendishall's son, Henry, proved to be a disastrous match with her and even she soon realized the Kendishalls knew that would happen from the very start. Henry did not like women, he liked men, well boys actually. The marriage was to throw off suspicion of his sometimes questionable public behavior. The older Kendishall soon died, he had been failing and thus another reason he had been so desperate to get his son married.

Henry and Caroline really didn't even try to make much of an effort to get along, she hated him almost from the first introduction even before she found out his dark proclivities. He only wanted her as a front, more like an object of proof that indeed he was a normal man. Otherwise he ignored her. She was unhappy, furious at her father for condemning her to this, and, recalling her mother's independent ways, determined not to waste her life tied to Henry.

All that seething anger exploded one night. She caught him in the stables with the very handsome young stable boy he had recently hired but something had gone very very wrong. The boy was dead and Henry was distraught. He was also shocked at her sudden presence to see it all. She accused him of murder and he denied it, said it had been an accident. The argument got physical and Caroline, despite her size no weakling, fought back hard. She got her hands on an axe handle and when it was over, Henry lay sprawled out with a broken skull. Fighting off temporary panic, Caroline came up with a plan which she proceeded to execute. She got the animals out but then set the stables on fire. As she watched the flames consume the structure and collapse the roof upon both bodies she realized she was now free again and a Baroness at that. She might not have been quite so smugly satisfied if she had only known there was someone else who knew this secret, an eyewitness peering thru a knothole who viewed the entire bitter struggle.

Deadly fires were a fact of life and no one questioned the tragedy when the incinerated remains were found within. Caroline feigned grief and put on an actress worthy performance, playing up the poor young wife now an early widow, left alone by this act of God. After a period of mourning all properly acted out for the locals' sake, Caroline then decided to go to London and see what life would be like in the royal capital.

She was young, financially solvent, and determined never again to live her life according to the whims of others.

 

Edited by Caroline Despanay
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  • 4 months later...

James Winchester, Baron Wentwood

Character Name: James Edward Aloysius Winchester

Title: Sir James, Doctor Winchester, Baron Wentwood. Royal Physician.

Estate Name: Wentwood

Nationality: English born, Welsh title

Age: 28 (16/01/1649)

Gender: Male

Eye Colour: Grey

Hair Colour: Ash blonde

 

Residences:

* Winchester Palazzi, Chelsea

* Wentwood Manor, Wentwood, Wales

Physical Attributes

Verging on short and neat in his appearance, James does not immediately catch the eye. Neither handsome nor unnatractive, his pale and rather boyish features are expressive when he wants them to be. Thin lips are often pressed together with faint dissaprovement, but it is not until you meet his keen grey eyes and glimpse the sharp mind behind them that he seems of any note. His ash-blonde hair is worn tied neatly back, and he has a neat little mustache and goatee. He moves with a certain grace and economy of movement, and yet is rarely still.

The first impression

James appears to be a dapper and diligent gentleman of no small intellect and learning, if sometimes somewhat blunt in his manner.

Common Knowledge

* James is a knowledgeable doctor with a reputation for unusual expertise in the delicate matters of women's health. He is one of the Royal Physicians and previously the resident physician at the Chelsea Veterans' Hospital.

* There was a rather large scandal caused in May 1676 when James wed Mignonette de la Rovere, the daughter of a Viscount and niece of the Duchess of Savoy, who had previously vied for the hand of the King himself.

* James is a member of the Royal Society and has hosted Scientific Soirees, presenting scientific concepts in an entertaining manner for the interest of the court.

* James founded the Lady O'Roarke Free Clinic, on Friday Street, which provides free basic health care to any who ask for it.

* He supported Karoline's bid for the throne, and is now her Minister for Charity.

Family

* Wife: Mignonette Winchester nee de la Rovere

* Daughter: Marie Rachelle Mignonette Winchester (b. 6th April 1677)

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  • 2 weeks later...

Ambrose Turnbull

Title: Lieutenant

Estate Name: Hastings

Nationality: English

Age: 28 (b.'49)

Gender: Male

Eye Colour: Brown

Hair Colour: Black

Avatar: Adrian Lukis

 

The First Impression & Physical Appearance

Clean shaven and clear of eyes, Turnbull is a healthy man with sturdy physique and stands just shy of 6'.

Personality

He is largely unaware of the impression he casts, especially with ladies of whom is unfamiliar. He is of a reserved nature, studious and diligent. While he fancies the female of the species, he is more likely to be found in a group of gentlemen.

Housing:

Knightsbridge Barracks

Origin/Background

The second of three sons to the Baron of Hastings, Ambrose future was settled early on to be that of the military. In 1664 at the age of 15 he commenced his career as a gentleman volunteer, and had barely begun his training when the Second Dutch War begun. He served under Cumberand, and while he Turnbull not show a natural proclivity for warfare, his diligence and dependability proved valuable to his superiors. He served during the Four Day Battle, and then a month later at the English come-back that was the Saint James Day battle. The much reduced English navy was pulled to rest and rebuilding on land, when the Dutch saw their moment to launch attack. The Battle of Medway, and the less left in it's wake was testing times for any man to serve in the Navy.

Turnbull he was involved in the work of rebuilding the English navy between 67-72, continuing his studies in navigation, nautical studies, history of battles at sea, geography etc. Meanwhile his superiors were plotting an alliance with the french for a future assault. For that ocean battle he was to be stationed aboard the new third rate ship HMS Royal Oak on which one of the great guns the Ruperinoe was positioned - it was a press to have her ready and the crew trained in time.

Turnbull, like most of the crew aboard Ruperts ship, was skeptical of the French - he'd learnt early on that Cumberland's instincts on such things were to be trusted. He was amongst the crew praising their Admiral after he outmaneuvered certain destruction at the Battle of Schooneveld... Turnbull himself was promoted to 3rd Lieutenant by the end of the Third Anglo-Dutch war.

His career, while unremarkable, was consistent in that he slowly progressed. Turner showed every promise of making Captain by the time he reached 30...

His love life meanwhile was a no-show. At sea so much he had little chance to form lasting relationships with any ladies. There was his cousin Alise however, his childhood sweetheart that he continued to write to, even after she told him of her engagement then marriage. Ambrose consoled himself that it had to have been a marriage of convenience, not love.

Ambrose had risen to the rank of 1st Lieutenant aboard the Frigate HMS Foresight in the Carrib, when he received the letter from his younger brother of his Fathers passing. A letter that begged him to come home immediately. Turnbull was granted compassionate leave. Much ship hopping and 6 weeks later he again set his feet on English soil.

There were more letters from his younger brother awaiting him. Confusing reports of awful goings on. Ambrose brought a fast horse and rode hard for Hastings. The great hall was a scene from hell, all manner of wanton acts and depravity was going on, and to Ambrose shock his elder brother was...

... The new Baron was officially 'Ill', and the younger brother Reverend Jeffery was left in charge, namely in charge of sending reports to Ambrose. Then Ambrose headed to London, he needed to arrange his affairs to remain closer to home.

At length he managed to get a meeting with Cumberland, his single contact in London. There he requested assistance. Knowing that Cumberland and George Monck had been close, he asked Cumberland to help him get a position in the Life Guard under Christopher Monck. He cited 'personal reasons' for needing to ask this favor - and perhaps Cumberland knew more of the story, for he did not ask for any other details but merely gave a nod and dismissed him.

This was the story of how Ambrose Turnbull, came to serve in the Lifeguards in London 1677.

Just how he would rectify his difficult family situation - he had no idea at all.

 

Family

  • Elder Brother - Trent: Lord Hastings
    'Is Unwell' - aka confined to his room at the Family estate
  • Younger Brother - Jeffery: Reverend
    Serving in a local parish in Hastings
  • Cousin - Alise Wilkes
    Married, and living in London
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Charles Sedley

Title: 5th Baronet Aylesford

Nationality: English

Age: 38 (!639)

Hair Color: Brown

Eyes: Brown

Marital Status: Married

Background

Charles Sedley was the son of Sir John Sedley, 2nd Baronet, of Aylesford in Kent, and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Henry Savile. The Sedleys (also sometimes spelled Sidley) had been prominent in Kent since at least 1337. Charles Sedley inherited the title (5th baronet) in 1656 when his brother William died. By his first wife Lady Katherine Savage, daughter of John, 2nd Earl Rivers he had only one legitimate child, Catherine. After his first wife had been sent to a convent in Ghent on account of a serious mental condition, Sedley in vain tried to obtain a divorce. He met Ann Ayscough, probably around 1670, by whom he had two illegitimate sons.

Sedley was reputed as a notorious rake and libertine, part of the "Merry Gang" gang of courtiers which included the Earl of Rochester and Lord Buckhurst. In 1663 an indecent frolic in Bow Street, for which he was fined 2000 marks, made Sedley notorious. From the balcony of Oxford Kate's Tavern he, Lord Buckhurst and Sir Thomas Ogle shocked and delighted a crowd of onlookers with their blasphemous and obscene antics. According to Samuel Pepys, Sedley `showed his nakedness - acting all the postures of lust and buggery that could he imagined, and abusing of scripture ... preaching a Mountebank sermon from that pulpit ... that being done, he took a glass of wine and washed his prick in it and then drank it off; and then took another and drank the King's health'. This behaviour provoked a riot amongst the onlookers and condemnation in the courts, where the Lord Chief Justice gave his opinion that it was because of wretches like him "that God's anger and judgement hang over us"

Sedley is famous as a patron of literature and a playwright. However, it was Sedley's wit that his contemporaries admired. By this time he has completed three plays:

Pompey the Great (1664); adaptation and translation of Corneille's La mort de Pompée (1644); together with Charles Sackville (now Earl of Dorset).

The Mulberry-Garden (1668); party modelled on Molière's L'École des Maris (1661).

Antony and Cleopatra (1677)

In politics Sedley is member of parliament for New Romney in Kent, and is active in politics. Since his daughter became the mistress of the Duke of York, he has been joining the Whig faction in Parliament.

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Catherine Sedley

Nationality: English

Age: 20 (1657)

Hair Color: Brown

Eye Color: Brown

Marital Status: Single

Background

Daughter of Sir Charles Sedley. Her mother was Lady Catherine Savage, daughter of John Savage, 2nd Earl Rivers. She grew up "notoriously plain" (brunette and thin rather than plump and fair). While her father roistered around England, her mother spiraled into insanity until she entered a convent in Ghent during Catherine's early teens. At this low point in her life, Sir Charles introduced a common-law wife, Anne Ayscough.

Catherine was noted not for beauty but for her celebrated wittiness and sharp tongue. In the past year she became a mistress of the Duke of York and gave birth to a daughter named Caroline. The Duke of York has acknowledged the daughter as his, but has taken up with another mistress, Heather O'Roarke. Coincident with the start of the Christmas season 1677, word has it that she has taken up with the widowed Earl of Langdon instead.

Her portrait was painted by famed artist Peter Lely in 1675.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ACatherine_(Sedley)%2C_Countess_of_Dorchester_by_Sir_Peter_Lely.jpg

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Alexander Merriweather

Title: Master

Nationality: English

Age: 51 (1636)

Hair color: Blond

Eye Color: Blue

Marital Status: Single

Background

Not much is known about the family of this man. He is said to come from Northumberland but has spent the majority of his adult life abroad. Fluent in many languages, the man has obtained a great deal of wealth, which he spends liberally with his friends and love interests. He is a member of Merry Gang, known to be the most licentious of them all. Rarely taking the lead, he is often the benefactor of any project the gang undertakes.

His past is shady and dark. It is said that he acquired wealth in shady business operations abroad and a series of convenient marriages to elderly widows. He is said to be a fornicator, sodomite, pedophile, and rapist, some of which he denies.

He has fallen out of favor in recent years due to scandals coming to light about his rapes of innocent, and not so innocent, ladies at court, some of whom were connected at the highest levels of court. He had gained royal favor early in his life for the generous contributions made to the King while in exile.

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John Manners

Title: Lord Roos

Age: 39 (1638)

Hair: Brown

Eyes: Brown

Marital Status: Married

Background

He is the son of John Manners, 8th Earl of Rutland and Frances Montagu. His father is old and frail, leading Lord Roos to succeed his father as Lord Lieutenant of Leicestershire in 1677. When his father passes, Lord Roos will become the 9th Earl of Rutland.

He married, firstly, Lady Anne Pierrepont, daughter of Henry Pierrepont, 1st Marquess of Dorchester, on 15 July 1658. The failure of their marriage attracted considerable attention, as divorce was not generally available at the time. He obtained a "separation from bed and board" in 1663 on grounds of her adultery, and private Acts of Parliament in 1667 bastardizing her issue since 1659 and granting him permission to remarry in 1670. This process required considerable expenditure and trouble.

The divorce proceedings aroused enormous public interest and had some political significance since among the regular attenders in the House of Lords was King Charles himself. By his own account he was only there for the entertainment, finding the debates "as good as a play"; but there was a rumor that the King intended to use the divorce as a precedent for divorcing his own childless Queen, Catherine of Braganza.

He married, secondly, Lady Diana Bruce, daughter of Robert Bruce, 2nd Earl of Elgin, on 10 November 1671. She died on 15 July 1672 in childbed. He married, thirdly, Catherine Wriothesley Noel, daughter of Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden, on 8 January 1673 They have two children: John (1676) and Catherine (1675).

He is known to associate with the Merry Gang, having many dalliances with those not his wife. In politics, he associates with the Country Party (Whigs).

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Maureen Walker nee Lloyd

Name: Mistress Maureen Walker

Age: 19

Hair: blond

Eyes: brown

Marital Status: married to Martin Walker

Maureen is bright and exuberant, adores fashion and gossip. Her best friend is Evelyn Williamson, who is abroad after her husband's arrest.

Her father is Jaspar Lloyd, a business man doing very well as a wool merchant. He is prominent in the House of Commons, a well respected and honorable man. Jaspar is his mid forties tall enough to be 6 foot, and his thinning hair was a dark blonde, his eyes warm brown.

Her Brother: Edward Lloyd, runs Lloyd's coffeehouse

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Frances Stuart

Name: Frances Teresa Stuart

Title: Duchess of Richmond and Lennox

Age: 30 (1647)

Hair: Dark

Eyes: Blue

Marital Status: widow

Background

Frances is the daughter of Walter Stuart, a physician in Queen Henrietta Maria's court, and a distant relative of the royal family. She was born on 8 July 1647 in exile in Paris, but was sent to England in 1663 to act as maid of honor at Charles II's wedding and subsequently as lady-in-waiting to his new bride, Catherine of Braganza.

Probably the most renown beauty at court during her youth, she was also known for her childish silliness and carefree manner. She caught the eye of the King, who fell in love with her. The king's infatuation was so great that it was reported that he intended to divorce the Queen and marry Frances, because she had refused to become his mistress.

She eventually married the Duke of Richmond and Lennox, also a Stuart, in March 1667. It is whispered that she had to elope to do so, after being discovered with him by Lady Castlemaine.

The now Duchess of Richmond, however, soon returned to court, where she remains despite being disfigured by smallpox in 1669, still in the king's affections. Her husband was sent to Scotland and then to Denmark as ambassador, where he died in 1672.

She has now turned 30, still maintaining her impish ways. Having no plans to remarry, she prefers to enjoy court life, known to be particularly prone to court gossip.

Her portrait

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Stewart,_Duchess_of_Richmond#/media/File:Frances_Teresa_Stuart_by_Lely.jpg

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Margaret Hughes

Name: Margaret ("Peg") Hughes

Age: 47 (1630)

Hair: Dark

Eyes: Dark

Marital Status: Morganic wife to Prince Rupert

Background

Once the King proclaimed that female roles in plays should be played by female characters, Hughes may have been the first professional actress in England. The occasion of her first performance was on 8 December 1660, in a production of Shakespeare's play Othello, when she played the role of Desdemona in a production by Thomas Killigrew's new King's Company.

Hughes is famous for her charm and beauty. It has been whispered that she was a lover of Sir Charles Sedley, in the 1660s; and she was reportedly also involved with the King himself, if only briefly. Hughes is also believed to have had an illegitimate son, Arthur.

Most famously, however, Hughes became associated with Prince Rupert, Duke of Cumberland as his lover. She became a member of the King's Company by 1669, and has joined the Duke's Company with the new Dorset Theater. She lives extravagantly with expensive jewelry and enjoys gambling.

Rupert has not formally marry Hughes, but acknowledged their daughter, Ruperta, born in 1673. Her portrait was painted by Lely.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Hughes#/media/File:Lely_margret_hughes.jpg

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Anne Scott

Name: Anne Scott

Title: 1st Duchess of Buccleuch

Age: 26 (1651)

Hair: Dark

Eyes: Dark

Marital Status: Married to James Scott, Duke of Monmouth.

Background

Anne is the daughter of Francis Scott, 2nd Earl of Buccleuch. In 1661, she succeeded to her sister Mary Scott's titles as 4th Countess of Buccleuch, 5th Baroness Scott of Buccleuch and 5th Baroness Scott of Whitchester and Eskdaill. On 20 April 1663 she married James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth (the illegitimate son of Charles II by his mistress, Lucy Walter), and she and her husband were created Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch on that day.

They have had the following children:

Lady Isabella Scott (1670)

Charles Scott, Earl of Doncaster (1672–1674), died in infancy.

James Scott, Earl of Dalkeith (1674)

Lady Anne Scott (1675).

Henry Scott, 1st Earl of Deloraine (1676)

Anne's marriage to Monmouth has been a poor one without love. The Duke has taken many mistresses over the years and is currently in love with the Baroness Wentworth. There has been talk of Anne's infidelity, but most attribute that to an attempt by Monmouth to get a divorce so that he could marry Wentworth. Word has it that she is fighting her loneliness by seeking more adventurous pursuits while she is still young.

 

AnneScott.jpg

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  • 6 months later...

Jonathan Willoughby

Sex: Male

Title: Lord Willoughby

Age: 29

Estate:Tresidder Manor St Levan, Penzance

Status: Married

Hair: Dark Blonde

Eyes: Blue

Height 5'10"

Residence: currently staying at the Red Lion (dec '77)

 

First Impressions And Physical Appearance

Willoughby is a funloving dandy of court with nary a care in his head, and always keen to pursue mischief. He is generally assumed to not have carried a serious thought in his head his entire life.

Son of an Earl, eldest of the second marriage, his older step-brother inherited his fathers title. His mother hasn't remarried.

Became married to Margaret, daughter of Lord Amyas Tresidder, upon the 12th of April in the Year of our Lord Sixteen hundred and seventy six at the All saints Chapel in Chelsea. A son was born in May 1677, heir to the vast Tressider fortune. A second child was born March 1678 

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Mignonette Winchester

 

Name:Mignonette Winchester (nee) de la Rovere

Title: Baroness Wentwood (Daughter of Comte de la Rovere, Niece of the Duke of Savoy)

Age: 23 (b.1654)

Best Friends: Alexandra, Charles W, and her little dog Louis

 

Physical Description

A petite blond, pretty but not beautiful. Her hair tends to run on the side of unruly if she doesn’t pomade it into a semblance of controlled curls. Her eyes are large, always looking around, giving her a very appropriate wide-eyed innocent look. Her milk-white skin has a tendency to easily show a blush. And she blushes often, as she is quite shy.

 

Personality

First impressions of Mignonette is that she is delicate. Her natural shyness, amplified by her new surroundings, combined with large eyes and blond hair makes her appear this way. And in many ways, she is. She believes in the good in everyone, thinking that people want to help her. While she has quite a bit of book sense, reading any book she can get her hand on, but in common sense is lacking.

 

Colours & Fashion

Likes whimsical styles, soft colours with white lace.

 

Habits

Nibbles at her lower lip. Is trusting to a fault (does not naturally question anything people tell her). Accepts direction, is biddable, though she did secretly wish things were different sometimes. Never complains of the people above her (guardians etc).

 

Common Knowledge

* Often called 'Noni' by her husband and friends.

* Was one of the three final runners vying for the King's hand.

* Married James Winchester amidst considerable scandal and with the disapproval of her aunt, the Duchess of Savoy.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Richard Sterne

Sex: Male

Title: Archbishop of Canterbury

Age: 80

Marital Status: Widower

Hair color: White

Residence: Canterbury Cathedral

Richard Sterne was Archbishop of York from 1664 to 1683.

He was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated MA in 1618, BD in 1625 and DD in 1635. He was elected a fellow of Benet College (now Corpus Christi College), Cambridge in 1623 and then served as Master of Jesus College, Cambridge from 1634.

In c.1633, Sterne became chaplain to Archbishop Laud. From 1642 he held the rectories of Yeovilton and Harleton. A Royalist, he was arrested and imprisoned by the Parliamentarians later the same year. In 1644 he was formally dismissed as Master of Jesus and in 1645 he lost his rectories, although he was released from prison.

At the Restoration in 1660, Sterne was appointed Bishop of Carlisle, from where he was translated to York in 1664. He is said to have been one of those who assisted in revising the Book of Common Prayer in 1662. He also assisted Brian Walton with the English Polyglot Bible. He founded scholarships at both Corpus Christi and Jesus Colleges.

He was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury after the sudden death of the last Archbishop. At his advanced age, he is considered a mere placeholder until the King wishes to appoint a younger man.

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  • 5 months later...

Edmund Torrington

 

Character Profile

Character Name: Edmund Torrington

Title: Sir (Baronet)

Estate Name: Torrington-Kirby Hall

Nationality: English

Age: 26 (born 11 March 1651)

Gender: Male

Eye Colour: Blue

Hair Colour: Brown

Avatar: Alexander Vlahos

 

The First Impression & Physical Appearance

 

The First Impression: Edmund is a man of moderate height, being around 5’6 tall. He is relatively gaunt. He has a naturally pale complexion from his mother’s celtic ancestry. Although this in some people’s eyes may seem attractive, Edmund is particularly conscious of it as it often gives him the look of one who is scared and/or ill, something he was mocked about in his youth. He is aspiring to be a military man and so adopts a swagger which is not necessarily one he would otherwise have, being perhaps more affected than natural. He has an abundance of nervous energy and frequently fidgets, finding it almost impossible to sit still.

Physical Appearance: Edmund avoids the fashion of wearing a wig and instead has allowed his natural brown hair to grow long but does wear it in the current fashion. He dresses to his means, albeit the upper end of his means rather than the lower. He enjoys looking good and believes that looking the part is half the battle one in almost any sphere of life. Although not to an obsessive level, he is very pedantic about being clean and tidy. Being in a state opposite to this sets him into paroxysms of anger.

 

Housing (PUBLIC):

St Marks.

 

Background

 

The first Torrington to achieve a degree of prominence was the great grandfather of the current character, William Torrington. William was alive during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. As a young man, he was apprenticed to a grocer in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the north of England. Whilst he did not exceed in his career, he was prosperous in the manner of a standard urban burgher – he married the wealthy widow of a city Alderman, was elected a Master of the Guild of Grocers and amassed enough disposable income to buy land in the surrounding Tyneside area – mostly large tracts of moor and scrub – its main purpose being so his children could call themselves landowners and country gentlemen. He died shortly after the accession of the Stuart monarchy.

William’s eldest son was also called William (II). His father had paid for him to be privately educated in order to polish his manners and had him attached as a page to a local grandee, residing in London, and sent to Court. William II benefitted along with many other attractive young men from the wild generosity of the new King James I who bestowed Knighthoods freely and indiscriminately providing only the barest of credentials were met. William II now found himself Sir William Torrington of Kirby, Baronet. He lived a fast and loose life at Court and died in London in 1619, only two months after his sole son and heir was born to the wife he had married only a year before.

Unable to afford to live in London, William II’s widow, the daughter of a London merchant, left with her son, John (the current character’s father) and returned to the family home that was now the property of the child cradled in her arms. Amongst the tracts of mostly worthless land the grocer William Torrington had bought was a half derelict former rural Abbey, set in the village of Kirby, 30 miles from Newcastle. The first William had lavished just enough funds to make the Abbey habitable and made a stab at landscaping gardens and parkland. His son, Sir William, had preferred to turn his coin in alternative directions and so had only spent the barest amount possible on keeping what was now known as Torrington-Kirby Hall from falling down. It was here that the young Sir John grew up, under the stern and rigid discipline of his extremely Puritan mother, Lady Alicia Torrington, nee Ellis. The son was brought up in the mother’s image. He grew to become a pillar of the local Puritan squirearchy, set against the excesses of the Court in London and the Arminianism of Archbishop Laud.

In 1639 Sir John’s fortunes changed dramatically. A tenant of a parcel of moorland owned by the Torringtons was sinking a ditch across the land he rented, with a view to dividing it from a neighbour he was feuding with. What he turned up was not sod and earth, but instead thick black chunks of coal, having inadvertently stumbled upon a seam close to the surface. What followed was a year of frenetic prospecting in the course of which it was discovered that over two-thirds of the seemingly worthless tracts of land Grocer William had purchased were in fact sites of rich coal seams. Banding together with a series of local Newcastle investors, Sir John Torrington became a founding member and shareholder in “The Honourable Torrington Coale Companye”. By the time Civil War disturbed the peace of the nation, two shaft mines were fully operational, delivering several tons of coal to Newcastle for export to London each year. A modest venture until such a time as more investment could be found to sink more mines, it nevertheless vastly improved the financial situation of Sir John.

Meanwhile, Sir John, the Puritan local squire, sided with Parliament in the great conflict. He fought alongside the Earl of Essex in his campaigns in the South, before transferring several years later to Cromwell’s command. Although only in the capacity as a junior officer, Sir John fought at Naseby and Marston Moor, receiving in the former a shot through the cheek that left a disfiguring scar. After the capture of the King, Sir John was honourably discharged from the Parliamentary Army and made himself of use to the local Parliamentary governor of the north of England. In 1649, the same year Charles I lost his head, Sir John wed. Some would say it was the only indulgence that the austere, Godly, Sir John allowed himself in his entire life – his completely irresponsible choice of bride. Instead of the proper and likely dour daughter of another of God’s elect, Sir John married Aloria FitzMaurice, a green-eyed, auburn haired Irish temptress. Mistress FitzMaurice was the daughter of a Catholic Irish landowner who had taken his family across to England to fight for the King in the wars. Killed at the Battle of Lansdown, Mistress FitzMaurice found herself orphaned (her brothers serving in armies elsewhere) and she did the only thing she could to survive – she became a mistress to a Cavalier Colonel of Horse. On his death, she found herself passing the lines and becoming the mistress to another Colonel, this time the one in command of Sir John’s regiment. Sir John fell madly in love with Aloria and, once the wars were over (and the Colonel had deserted her), Sir John married Aloria and found himself ostracised from the local community for his Papist, whore bride.

Oddly, despite all this, the couple had a deep love for one another and were happy in the seclusion of Torrington-Kirby Hall. Sir John used the funds from his coal company to continue to improve the house and purchase more land. In 1651 the couple had their first child, John (the current character), followed by twins Aloria and Alicia (1653), William (1654-1656), Henry (1656) and Samuel (1658).

We now move to the life of our character. John was his father’s heir and was raised accordingly. Unlike his own upbringing, Sir John did not force a puritanical education on his children, particular on account of his own unorthodox family situation. Instead, he had his children educated privately in the family home and attempted to have young John tutored specifically in the gentlemanly arts – etiquette, riding, swordsmanship and estate management. He attempted to engage him in the running of the family business – analysing the accounts and reports sent by the Company’s day to day managers in Newcastle. This failed to stimulate his son. Although his upbringing was cloistered, young John heard perfectly well the whispers of the household staff and tenants and neighbours. Soon he knew all about his father’s record of service against the King (horrific after the Restoration and something Sir John did not flaunt). He heard his mother called all sorts of names and blushed at the thought and the shame. How did he even know he was his father’s son? He knew he was the lineal descendent of a grocer! The family money came from peddling coal! All of this ate away at the boy. When he did socialise with youths his own age they were quick enough to pick up on these unpleasant aspects of family history as well as his pallid appearance. Fights were common. Several of this youthful scraps involved him being thoroughly beaten by groups of his peers. In one such early incident, in a bid to put the upstart Torrington in his place, several youths carried him and threw him into a pig sty. The experience of the filth and muck terrified and disgusted the young boy who, ever after, was neurotic about cleanliness to the point of phobia. As boyhood turned to adolescence, John became possessed with the passion of the bullied and victimised to make something of himself and to have the Torrington name remembered for something other than it was. There was only one way to do that – in the capital, the source of wealth, favour, influence and power.

He had hoped to leave when he turned 18 in 1669. However, his father had become increasingly frail with a series of ailments. He was wasting away, forgetful, frequently ill for long periods. In his condition, it fell to John Junior to manage the Torrington estate. His younger brother Henry was sent to Oxford with a view to joining the Church. In 1675 the family’s youngest, Samuel, was apprenticed to the Captain of an East India Company vessel as midshipman. Between 1669 and 1676 John found himself in the doldrums – kicking his heels in the dingey Hall, wishing to be simply anywhere else. In early 1676 his long suffering father died. His mother, deep in grief but having seen the state of her son and fearing for him told him to leave and follow his ambitions. Now Sir John Torrington (II) of Kirby, the young baronet took with him one valet and set out on the stagecoach for London. He had no connections there and no particular idea of what he was going to do next. Yet London was the City of Opportunity and Fortune favoured the bold.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Character Profile (PUBLIC)

Character Name: Olivia Cathorn

Title: Daughter of a Baronet

Estate Name: Wersmith Hall

Nationality: English

Age: 17

Gender: Female

Eye Colour: Dark brown almost appearing black

Hair Colour: Brown

Avatar: Emmy Rossum

 

The First Impression & Physical Appearance (PUBLIC)

Olivia would not usually be described as an English rose, although it would not be common to describe her as a troll either. A slim nose, pouty lips and a delicate oval face. Her skin is perhaps her greatest flaw according to some, she does not boast a porcelain complexion. Instead her skin is on the swarthy side or has a clear yellow undertone when not fully graced by the sun which tends to darken her skin readily. Olivia's eyes are rather striking, they are large and doe-like, a lively twinkle in them even when she's at her most serious. She is of a normal height, standing at about five feet four inches.

 

Framing her face is her unruly hair, her hair is a wild mass of waves and curls. She struggles to tame her hair which has proven to be a great annoyance when trying to appear presentable during formal occasions. Olivia has resorted to pinning her hair up and praying that it stays put, though her prays often go unanswered as it is rumored that she has tried to cause harm to people with her pins which seemingly pop out of her hair at will. Her hair is a chocolate brown, often having chestnut highlights in the sunlight.

 

She is not aware of good fashion and so wears anything that she sees fit, she wears what she feels is comfortable and does not boast a large wardrobe. Olivia is on the slim side, having an extremely small waist. However she is not without womanly curves(which she is still growing into) as her derriere is plump and her bosom quite generous for her thin figure.

 

Housing (PUBLIC):

St Marks

 

Background

Olivia is of humble upbringings, she does not hail from a great estate nor does she originate from noted individuals. Her grandfather purchased a baronetcy after earning a good amount of money from working as a merchant for many years. He saw an opportunity for his family to make their way up the stone steps, however long it may take them to reach the peak.

 

Olivia's father did not inherit the deep ambition of his own father and sought to live a peaceful life, seeing the task of favour gaining and the pursuit of power to be too bothersome. He inherited the baronetcy however and with that his fathers house which was modest in size and decoration. It was enough for the baronet who preferred riding horses out in the fields to attending courtly spectacles. Unusual, but not unheard of, her parents married for love and not for convenience.

 

She was born under regular circumstances, not the first and not the last of the ever growing Cathorn brood. Before her came a brother and a sister and after her would come more sisters and another brother. The household was never dull as she grew up, her siblings were never far from her and there was always something going on. They bickered, they laughed and they cried together. Despite her father not being fond of climbing the high steps, her mother insisted on giving she and her siblings the best education that they could afford. Her father did not squander his treasure nor did he waste his coin on the alcoholic poison and so had enough to provide tutors for his children. Her tutor was an older woman who under her stern demeanor was warm and nurturing. The greying woman seemed to have an abundance of knowledge which she shared with the children, some had not a care in the world for what she spoke, but some listened on intently. Olivia was taught all of the things that a young woman should be taught. She was taught how to manage a household, how to sew, how to dance and how to read. She tried to do everything to the best of her ability, not liking to be average at anything, however she had to admit that the feminine pursuits were not things that she indulged in. Her love for reading developed quickly, at first she read anything that she could get her hands on and then she would plead for her father to bring her back some more of wonders of the literary world when he made his rare trips to the city.

 

Olivia grew up in both a sheltered and enlightening environment. Most of what she learnt, she learnt from fiction, if not for her books she would have possibly come to society completely naive in all aspects of life. When she was fourteen, she was made aware of some of the questionable sides of humans - she observed from the situation that one must be careful in who they trusted. Her older sister's reputation had been ruined at court and she was disgraced due to her frivolity. She was concerned for her sister, and naturally was not angry with her. A deep anger developed within her towards the gentleman who had plucked her sister and discarded her without a care. She did not personally know this man, but according to her sister, he had been completely charming at first and then utterly cold.

 

At the age of seventeen, it became apparent to her parents that she could not waste away in the home with her nose embedded in the folds of a book. It was time for her to leave the nest and to venture forward in life, she did not want to go to court and she did not care much for it, but did go to please her mother who thought it best for her.

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  • 5 weeks later...

Archibald Rice

Title: 4th Viscount of Ware

Estate Name:

Bluecoat Yard, a manor house.

Nationality: English.

Age: Forty nine years old.

Gender: Male.

Eye Colour: Hazel.

Hair Colour: Brown.

Avatar: Willem Dafoe

 

The First Impression & Physical Appearance (PUBLIC)

His clothes are well made yet modest, and he prefers to dress in dark tones, save for formal occasions where he seeks a tailor to dress in red or green colors. He most often adorns a dark justacorps coat, cravat with a small bow of gold ribbon, brown linen breeches and a goathair periwig. His face is striking, and may be considered odd by some, with big, lively eyes, strong cheekbones and jaw, sharp yet jagged features that are not conventionally attractive, and more often than not considered ugly or unusual.  His teeth have gaps in some places and his smile may seem mad or unnerving. He is a thin man of middling height, if a little under average; however with an excellent posture and wide shoulders.

 

Origin/Background

Lord Simon Rice had two wives in his lifetime. The first was a cousin on his mother's side, whom he loved dearly and lost early - she died giving birth to their son, Robert. The second was a Scottish heiress he had met at a ball, and nine months from their wedding night another son was born. They named him after his mother's grandfather.

He was not due to inherit the viscountcy, yet his father decided to give him a better education than the narrow and rigid grammar schools could offer, and whilst his elder brother went on to be a page for the Earl of Bristol (later knighted and fighting amongst Prince Rupert's harquebusiers), Archibald was sent to the continent as a student of Linus Fischer, a bonnie german who tutored him in mathematics, fencing and languages.

He remembers Fischer fondly as the man who has given him both a sense of honor, duty and self esteem as well as the will to study and perfect himself.

Nevertheless, his teacher was a libertine man and his company influenced the impressionable youth, so when his father decided to recall Archibald back it was too late; his son was writing satirical verses by the pseudonym of 'Bonifacius Cheese', attacking various public officials for fund mismanagement and abuse of their positions, and took a liking to the Leveller movement.

He returned to England in 1648, enlisting as a private in the New Model Army to fight at the battle of Maidstone and siege of Colchester.

His father and brother had given their word at the end of the first Civil War that they would not rise up in arms for the king again. Nevertheless, they were furious with Archibald's decision and he began to live under a cloud. His allowance cut off, he lived on his soldier's pay for some time.

However, at the end of 1649 he, along with other soldiers went to the commander-in-chief, Thomas Fairfax, and demanded the restoration of the right to petition. Archibald was cashiered out of the army right after.

This situation forced him to find a new income to sustain himself, and he took up apprenticeship with the Mercers' Company; the next seven years were spent learning the trade, and by the end of it he was adept at marketplay and undertook a few successful trading ventures in Rotterdam.

With the Spanish having been expelled from Jamaica a year earlier, Archibald began transporting African labourers to sugar plantations in the West Indies as part of the merchant navy.

For the next five years his route was from Guinea to Port Royal and back again, during which he bought commodities cheaply, and sold them to other merchant ships for more.

At the age of 38, Archibald noticed plantation revenues sharply decreasing; though there was no deficit in able-bodied laborers and no apparent infertility nor bug infestation.

Upon further inquiries and a bribe given to a street urchin, he sent the governor a list with the names of those responsible. In turn, some of them revealed the location of a maroon settlement from where they would load up the stolen goods on canoes and ships. Archibald was among those who took part in raiding the place.

This gained him the position of a plantation overseer for a senile Welshman. The property was not yielding the best results due to poor management and Rice was hired to increase revenues.

Knowing the nature of money and the nature of people, this job was well to his liking and he seemingly found a place for himself.

It was only the news from a colleague, who had informed him of Lord Basildon coming to visit Jamaica, as well as a rumor of his preferred women. Archibald sold his wheellock pistols and bought a dazzling ebony beauty off the old plantation owner.

The gift was well to Louis' liking, and two years later, when Archibald learned of the deaths of his brother and nephew in a shipwreck, as well as the estate's debts, he made haste to arrive in London and fix this state of affairs.

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  • 1 month later...

Hon. Ralph Montagu

Title: MP for Northhampton

Age: 39 (Dec. 1638)

Married: Yes

History:

Montagu served aboard the fleet as a volunteer in the second Dutch war, and at the Queen’s special request succeeded his brother in her household. Although ambassador to France at the time of the Treaty of Dover and regarded as a creature of Arlington’s, he claimed he was ignorant of its secret clauses, which he helped reveal to Parliament.

He was a rival of the Duke of Buckingham, his opposite number in the King’s household. In 1671 he bought the mastership of the great wardrobe (valued at £3,000 p.a.) from his cousin the Earl of Sandwich (Edward Montagu) for £14,000. A private income of £2,000 p.a. was settled on him on his marriage in 1673.

He had a strong claim to succeed Arlington as secretary of state in 1674, but the post was sold to (Sir) Joseph Williamson, and in 1676 he returned to Paris, where he was entrusted with negotiating Charles II’s demands with the French.

Now a creature of Shaftesbury and a confirmed member of the Country Party, he is said to be behind the French King's desire to destroy the Earl of Danby. He is a strong supporter of the Bill of Exclusion.

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  • 7 months later...

 Anne-Elisabeth Catherine Devereux

Title: Countess of Cambray

Estate Name: Seabrooke

Nationality: English

Age: 18

Gender: female

Height: 5'2”

Eye Color: golden brown

Hair Color: raven black

Marital Status: widow

First Impression & Physical Appearance:

Although not a classic beauty, Anne-Elisabeth has a pretty face. Her skin is not fair but looks kissed by the sun and her ebony hair cascades down her back in soft curls. She has golden brown eyes that reflect her intelligence and full lips that are often curved into a slightly sardonic smile. Her demeanor exudes confidence and sophistication. She carries herself proudly and always walks with her head held high.

Of average height, her figure is a bit too thin to be fashionable. She does have curves, but they are more subtle than most young ladies her age. Anne-Elisabeth tends to pad the bodice of her gowns to give her more shape. Bum rolls give her hips a fuller look. Luckily, her clothing covers the long scar that snakes down her right leg. She favors rich, bold colors, and has a fondness for tiaras, hats, and wearing fresh flowers in her hair.

Background:

The daughter of the second son of a Viscount, Anne-Elisabeth grew up on her family's lucrative sugar plantation in Barbados. When his older brother was killed in an accident, her father inherited his title and split his time between England and Barbados. Eventually, he arranged a betrothal for her to a young Earl named Arthur Devereux and brought him to Barbados. They were married there and then the entire family traveled to England to see her settled on her husband's estate.

Unfortunately, the ship went down in a storm when they were close to their destination. Anne-Elisabeth and Arthur were the only survivors. She recovered completely but her husband succumbed to his injuries and died in her arms. Now that the mourning period is over, Anne-Elisabeth is ready to live again and has come to court for the remainder of the winter season.

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  • 1 year later...

Character Details – updated to March 1678

Darlene Elizabeth Hamilton

Character Name: Darlene Elizabeth Hamilton  (nee:Chesterford)

Title: Lady Oakham (widow)

Estate Name: Oakham

Nationality: English

Age: 19

Gender: Female

Eye Colour: Blue

Hair Colour: Mahogany

Sister of James Chesterford (Earl), of Epping Hall, Chesterford

Physical Attributes:

Standing 5’4”, a restrained grin plays upon rosebud lips as she idly twirls a mahogany ringlet around a dainty finger. Her dark lashes flutter coquettishly as she deliberately sighs, the deep inhalation serving to swell her bosom, enhancing her already generous curves. Ripe would be one word to describe this girl.

The first impression:

Darlene has a gregarious personality, and delights in all life has to offer, her vivid imagination enhancing the simplest day to melodramatic proportions. Though her thirst for excitement and adventure brings great highs and lows, her curiosity will not allow her to restrain her interest in all that is about her -- drama is all around this little lady.

Origin/Background:

Darlene is the youngest of the 6 Chesterfield children, and from a very early age it became apparent she enjoyed issuing instructions to each and everyone of them. Their compliance begun from amusement, and then continued from not wishing to bear the tantrums she threw when her wishes were denied. Life was very good for Darlene, who developed a passion for theatre, such that she directed and starred in a pantomime for her parents each Christmas, with her siblings as necessary extras. They were of course the very best pantomimes in all of England, so Darlene said.

By the age of 13, her older brothers were about their careers, the Eldest (James) attending Oxford, with Walter and Henry in the navy. Her sister was married and living in Essex, leaving just Percival (only a year older than she) and herself at home with her parents.

This reduced coterie did not serve Darlene much joy, Percival managing to spend a great deal of time out hunting (so he said). Darlene begun to spend ever more time in her imagination, with the great company of her favourite playwrights copies.

Her interest at that age had shifted to a fascination with the local theatre manager himself, a man named Evan Richards; a dark haired an angular man whom she found mesmerising. She didn’t dare talk to him, but begun a covert correspondence. Evan was bemused at the noble daughters interest, and wondered if it might bring him a dividend one day thus goaded her along in the correspondence, while safely keeping her letters which became more and more inappropriate. The young girl spoke melodramatically of great lusts and ardour she felt for him words she used more for their passionate sound that their real hold over her. Darlene was falling in love (with love!.)

Percival was packed off to commence a career in the church, at about the same time Darlene had the reigns tightened too, she found herself undergoing oppressive tutoring in correctness. Darlene spent the most dreadful year working upon culturing an appearance of perfection while imagining wild adventures of running away to join the Theatre with Evan Richards.

How long her parents might have kept her locked away she was not to discover, for the night of the bad clam chowder removed them from this earth. James, her eldest brother returned from Oxford with a friend Jerome, determined to settle the estates affairs in sort measure. Namely to have his remaining sister wed, and take a wife to himself (of whom he had good prospects in mind).

Much to Darlene’s aghast; James had a prospect in mind for her marriage as well, the very fellow he’d brought from Oxford! Now Jerome Digby; a weedy redhead with poor skin, and apparently ever-dry lips for he was forever licking them. When she discovered James plans (after the initial tantrum), she sought her brother out and begged him to reconsider.  She negotiated with him to allow her a debut at Court in which to find herself a premiere match!

Darlene became entangled with William Cavandish, Duke Newcastle – though it had been the stout and sensible fellow Thomas Hamilton that she finally married. Marital bliss was not to be theirs however…. Thomas was stationed in the Carib, a locale that Darlene wilted under, but his decision to allow her to return to England alone had ramifications.

Her love of theatre was primarily to blame.  Along with her association with Mr Killigrew.  Yes it was Theatre and Mr Killigrews fault entirely that led to her being arrested and imprisoned in the Tower!

 

Family: 

James (30) Earl Chesterford, a Scientific fellow.

Walter (28) In the navy

Henry – d. 1676

Elizabeth (25) Married

Percival (21) in the church

 

 

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  • 4 weeks later...

 

Henry Compton

Title: Bishop of London

Estate Name: Fullham Palace

Nationality: English

Age: 46 

Gender: Male

Eye Colour: Pale Blue

Hair Colour: Flecked with grey

 

The first impression

Small framed, none the less the Bishop commands a strong presence.   He is a man of impeachable character.   He needs reading glasses, but can easily quote the bible without need of them.

 Hobbies

When upon his leisure Henry spends much time in his garden. 

Family

His brother is Sir James Compton, 3rd Earl of Northampton, appointed in 1675 Constables Of The Tower Of London.

Lives at Fullham Palace Chelsea

In the earlier 17th century, the gardens at Fulham Palace suffered from some unsympathetic attentions. The antiquary John Aubrey records among his memoranda, "the Bishop of London did cutte-down a noble Clowd of trees at Fulham", occasioning the sharp remark from Sir Francis Bacon, a dedicated gardener, "that he was a good Expounder of dark places."

Henry Compton was ordained Bishop of London in 1675; he imported several new plant species to the gardens at Fulham Palace and first cultivated some flora found in Britain today, including the American magnolia.  The Palace is located just to the west of Chelsea.

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Nicolas Staggins

Title: Master of the Kings Music                                                                   

Nationality: English

Age: 25

Gender: Male

Eye Colour: Black

Hair Colour: Dark Brown

 

The first impression

He has dark, somewhat lank hair, expressive eyebrows and dark and night eyes.

A nervous fellow, yet ambitious.  Wears his finery with pride, favoring tones of deep blue and black.   While secretly prolific, he has had only one piece performed for a royal audience thus far.  He has been working with Dryden for some while on another compositon.   A perfectionist, he is most critical of his own compositions, which are admittely lacklustre. 

He tends to employ composers such as Purcell for state functions. 

Background:

Staggins first studied music under his father.  He was initially employed by the Stuarts as Anne Palmer's (now Lennard) piano teacher.

Nicolas was appointed Master of the King's Music by Charles II in 1675, following his predecessor (French violinist Louis Grabu's) untimely death.  

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Arthur Cadogan

Title: Mr                                                                                                                 

Nationality: English

Age: 43

Gender: Male

Eye Colour: green

Hair Colour: brown flecked with grey

 

The first impression:

Arthur Cadogan; a man in his fifties, with wrinkles lacking in quantity that made up for in their depth. His tufted eyebrows are flecked with a white strands, shaggy in contrast to his perfectly trimmed sideburns that were connected by a narrow line of hair running along the jawline, like a helmet strap under chin.

His favourite jacket is camel hair.                                  

 

Background:

Formerly served as a secretary for the house of Audley, before going into a partnership with Mr Smith in London town.  Here they dealt with Investments and Procurements, and is a registered member of the Exchange. The business was thriving until, in ’75, Mr Smith died under extenuating circumstances at the Docks of London. An inquiry is still being conducted.    

Financially the business struggled to recover. Late in 77 Cadogan took up a new ‘temporary’ office in Westminster.   His office and postal address is currently c/o Jno. B. Parsimmons & Co. of Westminster Hall

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Henry Grey

     Name: Henry Nathaniel Grey

     Title: Baron Grey (of Codnor)

     Estate Name: Codnor Castle, Derbyshire

     Nationality: English

     Age: 42 (b. July 23rd, 1635)

     Gender: male

     Eye Colour: hazel

     Hair Colour: dark brown

     Height: 5' 6"

     Marital status: single

First Impression & Physical Appearance

     Neither ugly nor handsome, yet a bit above plain. Pleasant would be a good word to describe his face. Auburn hair was thick and abundant, with threads of silver beginning to peek out, worn shoulder-length, loose most of the time, or tied with a haphazardly-chosen colored ribbon. Hazel eyes changed from gold in bright sunlight to a deep green indoors and with little light, to almost yellow when angered.

     A bit on the thick side for his 5’ 6” frame, perhaps due to lack of strenuous physical activity and the onset of middle-age. Calves were thick and muscular, well-turned under silken stockings, something he had never paid attention to. Clothing was of good fabric and make, usually in muted or earthen hues. Practical and never on the cutting edge of fashion, sometimes out of style if truth needed to be told, still they fit his frame. Henry often carried a walking stick and a pocket watch, his only conscious concessions to frivolity and fashion, but hardly ever used bejeweled rings, and cravat pins only when needed.

Personality

     There was a certain shyness to Henry that came from thinking too much and saying too little, and from working in his experiments alone. But there was also great determination to succeed, forged in the same fire. Henry drove himself hard and expected others to follow his example. Yet, he was not a harsh taskmaster as, when he carried himself beyond the limits of human endurance and saw others falter, he understood that he had taken things too far, and simply called it a day.

     He was a staunch friend, and a very vocal enemy. He kept the notes of his research and observations in cypher, as most contemporary scientists did, but he shared his general thoughts freely with his friends. He had never been exposed to politics or courtly intrigue and was quite uncomfortable with the notion of being sucked into the world of politics and policy. Yet, if his involvement in politics could lead the way for fostering, sharing and applying new discoveries and ideas, and if he could make contributions for the aggrandizement of England, perhaps it would be a bearable evil, he thought.

Housing

     The Red Lion Inn, Yacht Room.

Origin/Background

     This branch of the Grey family was based at the 13th century Codnor Castle. Together with the other branches of the Grey nobility, they shared descent from the Norman knight Anchetil de Greye, a vassal of William the Conqueror.

     In 1643, John Grey became the 12th Baron Grey. The civil war had just begun, and the Baron decided that, since he had no heir at that point, he would remain as neutral as possible. He had a long but obscure tenure as a baron, dying in 1675 at the age of 67. John’s oldest son, Richard, became the 13th Baron, but his tenure was short-lived. In the summer of 1677, Richard died from a wound sustained in a hunting accident. Although there was a formal inquiry, no ill intent was found, so there was nothing more to do, and the inquiry was closed.

    John’s second son, Henry, was sent to The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster at the age of thirteen, in 1648. After graduating from Westminster School, Henry was admitted to Trinity College, Cambridge. He obtained his B.S. in 1653, and his M.Sc. in 1665. The Masters took him a lot longer than expected because his field of interest was unusual: applied optics. It was hard going when few people could teach him, and most that could, like the Venetian glassblowers, did not want to, especially regarding manufacturing processes of lenses and mirrors without major imperfections in them. He traveled extensively during that time, seeking the best glass makers in the Continent, learning manufacturing techniques in Bohemia and Italy from the few that would share them, always looking for ever-better lenses for his telescopes.

     In 1674, Henry Grey was made a fellow of Trinity College, nine years after having finished his Masters. He would not have been yet for some time, except that the Chancellor of the university applied his political weight and pulled all the strings he felt like to get him the post. Henry’s main interests were applied refracting and reflecting optics, and their application to astronomy in general, and telescopes in particular. His most remarkable desire was to produce a detailed map of the moon, something that would take years to accomplish. His hurdles were many, especially regarding the optics, but the invention of the reflecting telescope by Newton held much promise. Things were looking bright for the now middle-aged scientist.

     And then, disaster struck. In the summer of 1677, Henry’s eldest brother, Richard, died from a bullet wound in a hunting accident. Henry suddenly found himself the unwilling 14th Baron Grey of Codnor. Many things changed, like having to resign from his fellowship at Trinity to involve himself in the matters of his estate, and many other details that he needed to take care of. Then, Henry left for London, with the fading hope of returning soon to his beloved Cambridge and, at the age of 42, traveled to the London where he had spent five years of his youth.

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  • 2 months later...

Charles Whitehurst 

Name: Charles Clarence Whitehurst
Title: Earl of Langdon 
Estate Name: Broadhurst 
Nationality: English 
Age: 21 
Gender: Male 
Height: 6 foot 
Hair Color: Dark Brown 
Eye Color: Brown 

Physical Attributes: Tall and dark, Charles is a good looking lad with an innocent air about him. 

First Impressions: One sees a good looking lad with a youthful face, though trying hard to appear older and more mature than he is. As such, he can often be overserious around those he is seeking to impress. His clothing is not particularly fashionable and he prefers to wear military uniforms to showy clothing. 

Reputation: The son of a great soldier and huntsman, and a chip off the old block. 

Background: George Whitehurst (Charles' father) was an expert horseman and a reknown soldier, who managed to attain the rank of Major in the King's Life Guard before he died unexpectantly. He started his career in the cavalry and he served as a young officer with Prince Rupert in the English Civil War against Parliment. When Royalist fortunes collapsed, George took his family and fled to Holland (since he was a Protestant) until King Charles returned with the Restoration. George married the only daughter of a British privateer captain who sailed with Rupert's fleet against the Parlimentarian fleet. 

Charles was born in Holland, five years prior to the Restoration. His paternal grandfather had died long before and his maternal grandfather died in the waning days of the Civil War. George was restored to Langdon, but it had fallen into disrepair. Much of his money was spent rebuilding it, and what he had left was used to gamble upon horse racing in the hopes of winning his fortune back. 

George's interest in horse racing rubbed off on his son, as did his skill for riding. Where George was a gifted rider, and often rode in royal hunts, Charles, his eldest son, proved to be as gifted. It was George's skill at hunting and his association with Prince Rupert that managed to gain him a commission in the Royal Life Guard. No longer a wealthy man, George relied on his salary to augment the rents from his estate. George raised racehorses at Langdon in the hopes of winning large purses or gaining stud fees. He was the owner of the famed stallion "Heaven's Bolt," that was said to be one of the fastest horses of his generation. Yet, an addiction to gambling meant that George could never manage to attain the wealth that he sought. 

Charles, at the age of 12, was sent off to sea as a midshipman, to see if he had aptitude for the Royal Navy. Charles, however, preferred to ride on horseback, as opposed to the waves. At 15, Charles was made a lieutenant in the Royal Dragoons and served with distinction for five years, making his father proud. 

In the 15 years since the Restoration, George was invited to many royal hunts, and became a regular riding companion with the royals (as well as serving as protection for them). There was speculation that he might be named the Royal Huntsman, since he had managed to catch the King's favor, as well as Rupert's. But the Office did not come. Instead, George was promoted to Major in the Life Guard, which itself was a great honor, for it was the King's bodyguard regiment. 

The year 1674 was a dark one for the Whitehurst family. George's younger brother died and his wife, Claudia, was soon to follow. Left alone to raise his three sons, George gambled more heavily in hopes of making sufficient wealth to purchase commissions for each of his boys. Instead, he found himself deeply in debt. Deciding he needed to remarry to gain a healthy dowry, George settled on marrying his Colonel's sister, a wealthy widow who married a Dutch Merchant. Sailing to bring her back to Langdon for the wedding a month ago, his ship was lost in a storm, leaving Charles and his two younger brothers orphaned. Even worse, his father left behind no money. 
 

Brothers

William (b.58)

Bradley (b. '61)

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Title: The Marquess Mountjoy

Estate Name: Athelhampton

Nationality: English

Age: 31 (born 1647)

Gender: Male

Height: 5’10”

Hair Color: Brown

Eye Color: Grey-Green

Marital Status: Married

Residence in London: Saxony House, St. James Square

Country Seat: Athelhampton House Dorset

Hunting Retreat: The Queen’s Lodge Epping Forrest

 

 

Physical Attributes: On the taller side of average with a slender graceful physique that has been honed by sporting activities.

First Impressions: Mountjoy exudes the grace, confidence, manners and comportment typified by the English Gentleman of breeding. Always impeccably turned out he manages to be fashionable without being foppish. He can be formal and serious to the brink of being haughty yet is unfailingly polite to those of his class and can exhibit a mischievous (if sometimes naive) wit to those he is familiar with.

Reputation:  Mountjoy is a staunch Royalist known for his ardent support of the Kings prerogatives in the House of Lords where he is acknowledged to be a capable orator. His service to the King has garnered him respect as a jurist and skilled administrator. A noted collector of Meissen porcelain he gifted their Majesties a magnificent dinner service of such upon their wedding. An avid hunter notorious, given the least encouragement, for regaling those polite enough to inquire about the subject with lengthy and minute details of his exploits. 

Office: Solicitor General of England and Wales, Master of the Horse to Queen Karoline, Lord Lieutenant of Dorset. 

 

Background: From and old family known for their support of the Crown to such an extent that an ancestor, one Sir Walter, was eulogized by William Shakespeare in Henry IV for his bravery and devotion to the King. Inheriting his title wile still a minor his uncle the Marquess of Sherborne was appointed his guardian. Upon reaching his majority he accused his Uncle of malfeasance in administering his estate resulting in a vicious drawn out legal battle that was ultimately won but in doing so he irrevocably soured relations with his de Courtnay relations. A graduate of Christ Church College Oxford he is one of the youngest recipient of a Doctorate of Civil Law degree in the universities history.  

Initially arriving at Court as a young man of respectable family, good education and strained finances his connections with the Finch family allowed him to secure the patronage the Lord Chancellor which, in conjunction with his political and legal abilities, enabled him to rise steadily at Court. A natural supporter of the Crown he persistently strove to be of service to the King being a prime architect in the formation of the Bank of England and an early supporter and confidant of the Queen. His efforts to advance his position bore fruit as he obtained an advantageous marriage, wealth, influence and preferment from the King culminating in being awarded with the title to the Royal Forrest of Epping and investiture as Marquess Mountjoy during the St George’s Day awards.

He has been away for a year on a mission to the various German States and has recently rejoined the Court.

Family and Relations:

Wife: Ursula of Saxony, (suo jure) Margravina Hildebrandt, Sister to the Elector of Saxony, Mistress of the Robes to the Queen.

Children: Hope Caroline Charlotte, a small child.

Mother: Elizabeth Blount née Knollys, Dowager Viscountess, retired to Athelhampton

Siblings:

Isabella, Paulett née Blount, m. John, Baron Paulett a country Gentleman

Sofie, Married to their cousin Francis de Courtenay resides in London.

Relations:

Edward de Courtenay, (cousin) with whom he is on bad terms.

Francis de Courtenay, (cousin) married to his younger sister thus is tolerated.

Alice de Courtenay, (cousin) distrusts and despises.

Friends and Enemies:

Henage Finch sr. mentor and respected role model

Henage Finch jr. childhood friend.

Thomas Butler, Duke of Ormonde, friendly as their wives are close acquaintances.

Prince Rupert, Friend of his Grandfather from the war, respected and admired.

Anthony Ashley-Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury, political rival.

Edited by Charles Blount
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