Have you ever wondered about the Duke of Wellington? Well Penny Hampson is here to tell us about him! While you're here, check out her book, A Bachelor's Pledge!
A Bachelor's Pledge
Gentlemen, Book 3
P A Hampson
London 1810: Held in a house of ill-repute against her will, Sophia Turner makes a desperate bid for freedom before she is ruined forever. A bid that would have been thwarted but for the intervention of a handsome stranger.
Government agent Phil Cullen doesn’t hesitate to assist the distressed young woman, and once he has her safely out of the clutches of the villainess who’d abducted her, he intends to come up with a scheme for her future. But protective of her new-found independence, Sophia spurns Phil’s help and runs away, leaving him annoyed and determined to forget her.
When a twist of fate brings them together once more, it also brings the threat of danger. Determined this time to keep headstrong Sophia safe, Phil knows that he will need to work hard to convince her to trust him.
Will Sophia go along with Phil’s plan, or will her fear of losing her independence lead them both to disaster?
Heart-warming romance combined with action-filled adventure makes this third book in Penny Hampson’s Gentlemen Series a must-read for all lovers of classic Regency fiction.
Grab a copy HERE!
Wellington the Hero
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| © National Portrait Gallery, London |
As someone who writes mainly about the Regency era, one of my favourite real-life personalities of that period of history is the Duke of Wellington. From unpromising beginnings he rose to become one of the heroes of the age, lionised and feted wherever he went.
Born in Ireland in 1769 to an aristocratic Anglo-Irish family, Arthur, as he was called, was one of nine children. In 1781 Arthur’s father, the Earl of Mornington died and Arthur’s eldest brother Richard inherited the title. Like most of the nobility’s sons Arthur was sent to Eton, but a poor scholar he did not distinguish himself there. Even his own mother did not expect much of him. ‘I vow to God, I don’t know what I shall do with my awkward son Arthur.’ She went on to say that she thought him only ‘food for powder’; in other words, he was bound for the army and would probably perish in battle. How wrong was she!
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| Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington by Henry Pierce Bone, after Sir Thomas Lawrence, enamel on copper, 1845, based on a work exhibited in 1822 NPG 6297 © National Portrait Gallery, London |
Through lack of funds, Arthur and his mother were forced to move to Brussels as it was cheaper to live there. In 1786, Arthur was sent to the French Royal Academy of Equitation in Angers, an institution where he learnt not only horsemanship, but also the basics of of being an officer; it was where both his manners and grasp of French language greatly improved. On his return to England in 1787 his mother was astonished at the change in him. ‘Never did I see such a change for the better in anybody.’
Arthur then joined the British army, earning rapid promotion until by 1793 he was able to purchase the rank of a lieutenant-colonelcy in the 33rd Regiment. About this time he proposed marriage to Kitty Pakenham, the daughter of the 2nd Baron Langford, but was turned down by her family due to what they considered to be his lack of prospects.
Stung by this rejection, Arthur seems to have decided at this point to throw himself into his military career, focussing all his attention on becoming a successful commander. Moving to India with the army in 1796, Arthur began to distinguish himself as an officer, and over the course of his time there he became governor of Seringapatam and Mysore, as well as taking part in many battles, in particular winning the decisive Battle of Assaye.
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| Wellington writing his dispatches, image courtesy of ancestryimages.com |
Returning to England in 1805, Arthur renewed his suit to Kitty, even though he’d not set eyes on her for nearly a dozen years. Convinced that people’s minds did not alter, he wrongly assumed that she was still the same charming, gay, and confident young woman he’d admired in the past. Unfortunately, just as he had changed into a self-assured, ambitious, and professional military man, Kitty too had changed; now less sure of herself and uncomfortable in Society, she was not the best choice of wife for a leading public figure and military man with no time for domestic concerns. It was not the happiest of marriages, with Kitty in awe of her autocratic husband and he seemingly uncaring of his wife’s feelings.
Not long after his marriage Arthur was on his travels again, leaving his new bride behind in England. He was appointed to lead the expedition to Portugal in 1808 to put a halt to Napoleon’s subjugation of Europe. The Peninsular Campaigns, as they were called, were where Arthur demonstrated all the military skills he’d acquired in India.
With careful planning, the use of intelligence, and clever tactics, such as the construction of the Lines of Torres Vedras, whereby the French attempts to occupy the Lisbon Peninsula were frustrated, Arthur started the push back of the French invasion. The Peninsular Campaigns continued until April 1814 when Napoleon finally admitted defeat and abdicated. During that seven year period Arthur visited England only once before his final return in June 1814.
Returning to a hero’s welcome, Arthur was made a duke, choosing the name of Wellington, a town in Somerset, for his title. This might have been the end of Arthur’s meteoric rise, but with Napoleon’s escape from exile in February 1815, he was called again to lead the Allied Armies, which culminated in Napoleon’s final defeat at the Battle of Waterloo on 18th June 1815.
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Wellington at Waterloo, by Sutherland, image courtesy of Yale Center for British Art |
Waterloo marked the end of Wellington’s impressive active military career, but the beginning of his career as a leading statesman and influential politician. He was twice a Tory Prime Minister and spoke in favour of Catholic Emancipation - the Catholic Relief Act was passed in 1829. He remained a leading figure in the House of Lords until his retirement in 1846. But retirement from political life didn’t stop him from holding other public offices; Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, Chief Ranger and Keeper of Hyde Park and St James’s Park, Chancellor of Oxford University, were but a few of the many positions he held up to his death at the age of eighty-three in September 1852.
Wellington was given a state funeral in November of that year and crowds packed the route to St Paul’s Cathedral, where he was buried.
So, from a lazy, unmotivated lad, whose own mother didn’t rate his chances of success, Arthur had become one of the most famous and successful military leaders of the age and a respected politician and statesman. His character was held to be the epitome of manliness and public spirit; known for his integrity, courage, and devotion to public duty, Wellington was held up as a model that all young gentlemen should aspire to. An astounding transformation for a lad who’s mother thought he would amount to nothing.
EXCERPT
The door rattled and Phil looked up. ‘Enter.’
He wondered what Mrs Dobson wanted now. The door moved on its hinges, and a head appeared round it – a head that most definitely did not belong to his housekeeper.
‘Mrs Dobson told me that I’d find you in here.’
Phil leapt to his feet. ‘Come in, Miss Hart. I trust you slept well? Have you breakfasted yet?’
Her gaze flickered over the room as she answered in softly modulated tones.
‘Thank you, yes, Mr Cullen, to both your questions. I’m afraid I have rather overslept. I’m usually up at first light.’
She was seemingly satisfied with the state of his study. Who indeed would not approve of such a well-or- dered temple of industry, with its tidy desk with neat piles of papers and shelves of carefully arranged books? A smile lit up her face as she added, ‘Mrs Dobson was kind enough to bring me a tray when she woke me.’
Phil’s eyes widened momentarily. It wasn’t usual for his housekeeper to indulge his friends. It occurred to him that perhaps Mrs Dobson had just been making an exception for the higher sensibilities of such a charming female. Seeing Miss Hart in daylight, he had to admit that she looked very charming, especially when she smiled. Ordering his thoughts to behave, he smiled back at her.
‘Come and sit down, Miss Hart.’
He pulled out a chair for her and perched himself on the side of his desk. His gaze took in her dainty, reddened hands as she ran them over her skirts in a futile attempt to smooth the creases. Her dress, though shabby, was clean and well repaired. He noted that her dark chestnut hair, which he recalled as being rather unkempt the previous night, was now tied back in a neat bun. She raised her head, and for the first time he had an excellent view of her face. The pallor of her cheeks, which he attributed to her confinement by the despicable Mrs Newbody, contrasted with the dark lustre of her hair. Her striking blue eyes peered at him with a peculiar intensity and what he could only describe as a hint of anxiety. It was difficult for him to drag his own gaze away. In short, she was attractive – not a beauty, but definitely not a hardship to gaze upon.
‘I suppose I’d better decide what is to be done with you, Miss Hart.’
He knew he’d said the wrong thing when two spots of colour appeared in her cheeks.
‘I beg your pardon, sir?’
Her eyes flashed as she spoke, and he was taken by surprise at her tone: suppressed anger, if he was not mistaken. Though why should she be angry? He’d rescued her from that awful place, hadn’t he?
‘What is the matter, Miss Hart? I’m merely stating the obvious. I will need to come up with a place of safety for you. You can’t stay here.’ No, she definitely couldn’t stay. His was a bachelor household.
Her blue eyes narrowed. ‘I agree, Mr Cullen. But I will decide—’
He cut her off. He was in charge here. ‘What are you talking about? You’ve told me you don’t have any family. You do not know London. How can you possibly decide for yourself ? Leave it to me, why don’t you?’
He disguised his irritation at her impertinence with the smile he’d withheld previously. A smile that usually got him out of tight spots. It didn’t work now. Miss Hart continued to glare at him. If looks could kill, he was sure he’d be lying dead on his Turkey carpet by now.
Penny Hampson writes mysteries, and because she has a passion for history, you’ll find her stories also reflect that. A Gentleman’s Promise, a traditional Regency romance, was Penny’s debut novel, which was shortly followed by more in the same genre. Penny also enjoys writing contemporary mysteries with a hint of the paranormal, because where do ghosts come from but the past? The Un-quiet Spirit, a spooky mystery/romance set in Cornwall, was published by Darkstroke in 2020.
Penny lives with her family in Oxfordshire, and when she is not writing, she enjoys reading, walk-ing, swimming, and the odd gin and tonic (not all at the same time).
Penny's Books
THE GENTLEMAN SERIES (Regency Historical Mystery/Romances)
(A spooky contemporary mystery/romance)
(An anthology of dark stories set in Scotland) includes ‘The Rowan Tree’, one of Penny’s short stories. All royalties got to two Scottish charities.
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