Introducing the George Wickham Papers

The recent discovery of George Wickham’s papers in circumstances as dramatic as any novel should rightly have been a cause célèbre. Perhaps mindful of the appropriation of the gentleman’s name and likeness by other authors over the years, however, the Wickham estate chose not to publicise this important discovery.

It has been my honour and privilege to be appointed by the estate to put the Wickham papers into some semblance of order. Though familiar to historians of the 18th and 19th century for his exploits in society, his endeavours on the battlefield and his occasionally startlingly informal efforts to further the cause of British diplomacy, Mr Wickham has remained a divisive figure. Highly decorated both at home and overseas, he chose to eschew his many glittering titles and continued to use the humble suffix, “Mister”, though the gentleman that emerges from his papers is far from unassuming.

On his death, Mr Wickham left not only his memoirs, written in his own distinctive voice, but a treasure trove of letters, papers and diaries. In presenting these to you, I have made very few editorial changes, preferring to let George Wickham’s voice tell his own story. You will see my hand only where necessary in footnotes to clarify facts or further elaborate on incidences where Mr Wickham’s  exuberant manner has led him to assume the reader is in possession of knowledge that a 21st century audience might not have. Likewise, Mr Wickham peppered his manuscript with notes to his own prospective editor and these have been left intact and italicised, allowing his informal voice to be heard.

The Mr Wickham that emerges from these pages is a man of no small confidence who was, it seems, blessed by fortune even as he faced privations, hardship and danger. His memoirs are those of a life well-lived but not of a life without challenges. As I bow out, it is my pleasure to hand the spotlight to Mister George Wickham; I hope you will enjoy his remarkable, if occasionally bawdy tale as it is serialised here at Austen Variations.

Should you wish to learn more about the George Wickham papers and the gentleman who shares their name, please visit the project page on Facebook.

—oOo—

[This undated piece of paper appears to have been one of the first GW wrote in his planned memoirs and indicates that he intended to tell only the story of his courtship of his wife, Lydia Bennet. As the extensive archive shows, however, GW instead embarked on a history of his family that ceased only with his death. It seemed appropriate to place this note here, to give the reader an insight into GW’s gadfly approach to his work. It is also worth noting that GW’s style here is slightly more formal than in the vast majority of his memoirs, which read rather more as though he is addressing friends around the hearth.]

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My name is George Wickham and I am, as you might have heard, a thoroughly bad lot.

I am notorious. A scoundrel, seducer, rake and rascal who has ruined women, blackened many a family name besides his own and will endure forever in infamy.

Or so they would you believe.

I beg to differ.

I have led an eventful and, some would say, charmed life. I have known the finest luxuries and the meanest hovels, been blessed by Peter and damned by Paul. Through it all, these long years, this happy life, I have maintained my silence, relished the good and survived the bad, always looking ahead to tomorrow’s sunrise. Now the time has come to tell my story and to set down the facts in the case of the maligned Mr Wickham.

It is time to return to my youth and the time beyond even that far off era.

Having discussed my intended manuscript with a rather attractive member of a European ruling house of my acquaintance, I was perturbed and delighted to see her immaculate eyebrow twitch as she turned the pages of notes I supplied1. I, embarked on a most meritorious claret, adjusted the bed linen, drained my glass and awaited the verdict of this illustrious companion.

“There is not a soul alive who will believe it,” the good lady told me, her lips curving into a smile. “Your name belongs to the people now.”

Ah, the estimable people. How my name becomes so famed, I cannot guess, yet it would appear that I have fascinated chroniclers throughout my long life. At the outset it was a trouble, a nuisance but as the years sped past, one quickly learned that notoriety equalled fame and fame equalled life… immortality, almost.

I remember too well that day, the hot summer sun glittering on the waters of the Mediterranean sea, a soft tide lapping my bare, battle-sore feet. My companion that day had not spoken a word in an age, quite unlike her, as any number of Whigs grandees will her attest. Instead, her attentions were wholly focussed on the book she held, mine rather more on the generous bosom where my carefree head rested.

“How could you?” I was wholly unprepared for the shriek that escaped her lips, let alone the sudden and swift removal of my comfortable pillow, her withdrawal depositing me on the sand. Up sat the lady, taking her bosom with her, the next words out of her mouth leaving me in a state of utter confusion. “Poor, poor Miss Darcy.”

I confess it was not a name I had expected to hear, certainly not beneath this blazing sun, this azure sky. Indeed, until the lady spoke, my only thought had been of the bosom and the oysters my companion and I would enjoy as the moon rose over the harbour. Now, however, the past, my past, had marched, guns at the ready, right into my peaceful, happy ranks.

And I had been done a most grievous wrong.

There, within the society pages was not quite my story, but a version of it as told by a lady with a fancy for romance. I confess that I hardly recognised myself in her dubious Mr Wickham and, as the hours passed and the sun cooled into evening, I devoured every slanderous word.

My companion in the sand was, God be praised, merciful and open to my exhortations of innocence. So much so, in fact, that she restored her bosom to me and I read the pages aloud. The narrative was somewhat disrupted by my entreaties to her to remember what she knew of me, of my good heart, my solid morals, and not to be swayed by the scoundrel who strutted through the pages.

Thankfully, through some alchemy at present unknown, my dear Lydia had not, at that time, learned that her husband was on the road to celebrity. (Nor, thank the Lord, has she learned of the existence of that companion, nor her comfortable bosom. No matter, I shall leave it at the discretion of my estimable editor!)2

And I am ahead of all of us; you shall meet Lydia, the light of my life, in the fullness of time. You shall follow me into battle and into some rather glorious salons, meet the family I am blessed to call my own and perhaps even make the acquaintance of one or two kings and queens. My life might well have been charmed, but it was never, ever without incident.

The man that flowed from the ink of the society columnists did, one must admit, embody some of my more estimable qualities. I am indeed blessed with an appealing aspect, a quick wit and a lively conversation. I am not, however, the scandalous rascal she would have you believe. Upon my return from that jaunt in the sun I sought out those who had attempted to appropriate my name for their fictions but found them, alas, indisposed.

With no other option available to me, I took up my pen and began to write.

And so, once again, I return to that bed, my noble companion at my side, the manuscript in her graceful hands.

“There is not a soul alive who will believe it,” was her amused exclamation before I tumbled her into the sheets, kissing away her doubts.

Not a soul alive, she says?

Well, we shall see about that.

Notes

1: The notes GW so tantalisingly refers to were found among his papers and are currently being transcribed. They make for considerably illuminating reading and provide new information on the relationship between GW and Fitzwilliam Darcy, a lifelong friend and eventual brother-in-law of GW. This relationship is discussed at some length across the span of the GW papers.

2: This note, handwritten in the margin, appears to be addressed by GW to his unknown 19th century editor. There are innumerable such notes throughout the papers, the increasing familiarity of the language suggesting that the anonymous editor becomes well known to the author. Indeed, it is the increasing informality of the notes that has allowed me to place many of the pages in their proper order, presumably as the relationship between GW and his editor became less one of business, more one of friendship.

 

44 comments

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    • Anji on November 12, 2016 at 2:03 am
    • Reply

    Ah, that was a joy to read over my breakfast this morning, Catherine!

    It’s going to be fascinating to see life through the eyes of the notorious Mr. W. and especially to see his point of view of events with which we are so familiar. Thanks so much for editong and transcribing these papers.

    1. Thank you so much for reading. Mr W’s archive is extensive and chaotic, but I believe it will shed some interesting new light on his life and times!

      1. A joy indeed, Anji!!!

        Thanks SO much, Catherine, for taking up the task, it must be daunting indeed, but so fascinating!! Can’t wait to hear what he has to say, and I hope you won’t need so very long to put his papers in order. Is his penmanship anything like Mr Bingley’s 😀 ? Good luck and can’t wait for the next installment!

        1. Mr Wickham’s penmanship varies depending on the amount of claret enjoyed or the entertainment he is keen to get to, but it is never, ever dull!

      • George Wickham on November 18, 2016 at 8:27 am
      • Reply

      Good day, madam! Thank you for reading my efforts, I do hope to shed some light on past events, with the assistance of my estimable editor.

  1. I absolutely love this! It is so clever, and so very well done. Thank you for a treat with my morning coffee.

    1. Thank you; working on Mr W’s papers is a dream job for me, so I’m so pleased people are enjoying it!

      • George Wickham on November 18, 2016 at 8:27 am
      • Reply

      Many’s the lady who has said *that* to me, madam!

    • Lis B on November 12, 2016 at 5:28 am
    • Reply

    Excellent. A delight to read with my mid-morning coffee. Ah dear Wickham, as Lydia would say. I do hope there will be more delightful extracts from George Wickham’s papers – please.

    1. There will certainly be more; Mr W has much to say on all sorts of matters!

      • George Wickham on November 17, 2016 at 6:59 pm
      • Reply

      I understand that, now my archives are open, all shall be revealed!

    • Deborah on November 12, 2016 at 5:44 am
    • Reply

    This was so much fun to read. Thank you.

    1. Thank *you*!

  2. This is such fun! I’m sure GW will have much to say for himself and I look forward to learning all his secrets. Thank you! Have a great weekend.

    1. I am sure he will be happy to oblige; thank you!

      • George Wickham on November 18, 2016 at 8:28 am
      • Reply

      I cannot promise to share *all* of my secrets, a fellow must leave a little mystery, after all…

  3. “I remember too well that day, the hot summer sun glittering on the waters of the Mediterranean sea, a soft tide lapping my bare, battle-sore feet. My companion that day had not spoken a word in an age, quite unlike her, as any number of Whigs grandees will her attest.”

    Brava, Catherine! You have captured the elusive Mr. Wickham. Dare I wonder what sort of battle led to his battle-sore feet? Somehow I doubt it was the sort to involving soldiers marching through the muck!

    1. You are too, too kind! Mr W will return us to that shore and those battle-sore feet in time, including just what he had been up to before he settled on the sand.

    • Debbie B. on November 12, 2016 at 12:01 pm
    • Reply

    Wow! I love the way Mr. Wickham expresses himself thus far. He certainly demonstrates himself to be a master of Recency charm. Most elegant writing, indeed!

    1. I was surprised to discover how eloquent he can be, even if he did seem determined to spill claret or the contents of his mess tin here and there. Happily, his letters to a certain who resided at Pemberley remained unsullied, as do those to that gentleman’s father.

      • George Wickham on November 17, 2016 at 6:59 pm
      • Reply

      I am a man of the pen as well as the sword, it seems!

    • Glynis on November 12, 2016 at 12:08 pm
    • Reply

    Yes well I still need to be convinced that he is not the scoundrel portrayed in P&P plus most of the variations but I will read on and see if he can change my opinion. Thanks for sharing

    1. Mr W’s life was never without incident and he seems content to leave the matter of judgment to the reader, though he is never slow to make his case. If nothing else, however, his papers are a most invaluable and occasionally scandalous record of the time in which he lived.

    • Carole in Canada on November 12, 2016 at 1:41 pm
    • Reply

    It appears that he writes as smoothly as he speaks! I must wonder at the illustrious Darcy family’s opinion of George’s memoirs! Looking forward to your findings.

    1. Happily, I am not responsible for the diplomatic manoeuvres of the Wickham estate with regard to the archive, that is for loftier folk than I!

    • Mary on November 12, 2016 at 1:54 pm
    • Reply

    Oh,dear!

    It seems that we have all misjudged George!

    He is not the philandering,saucy,red coated seducer of young ladies,that we heretofore have been led to
    believe!

    Lies,lies and more lies!
    Yes,,apparently this is what we’ve been fed and like lambs to the slaughter,we have followed where vile innuendo,slander and untruths have led us.

    Pray,do enlighten us and show us the errors of our ways!
    I for one am anxious to atone for maligning such a fine soldier,one of high moral fibre and strong character!

    Loved this post and look forward to reading more of the same in the future,Catherine.

    1. I can assure you that Mr Wickham is certainly no saint and his papers (particularly his letters) contain plenty of evidence of that famed rogue that history has remembered him as. He does, however, have his moments of bravery and brilliance, and he never lost his sense of humour, no matter what life threw at him. I do hope you will enjoy meeting Mr Wickham’s grandparents and discovering all that went before, during and after Pemberley!

  4. It is so fortunate for us that we get to see this rare and unfiltered side of Mr. Wickham. Bravo, Dear Catherine, for transcribing such important documents in history for the reference of those who dearly love the Regency–and a laugh!

    1. Thank you; it really is a most rewarding assignment!

    • Maia on November 13, 2016 at 1:18 pm
    • Reply

    Dead? Mr. Wickham is dead? Oh, my goodness. I can hardly believe it. When did this happen? I spoke with him just this morning. Oh, I am inconsolable. Please excuse me while I cry a river into my lace handkerchief. Sniff. Sob. Oh, I feel much better now. A good weep does one the world of good. Ah, well. Life goes on. And I have his memoirs to comfort me. Mr. Wickham writes very well, I must say.

    1. I understand Mr Wickham has managed to secure access to Facebook from the Regency and is communicating quite freely with his 21st century friends. How he has managed this, I can hardly guess but if anyone could, it is he.

        • Maia on November 14, 2016 at 4:36 am
        • Reply

        So there is some kind of time warp? Upon my word, this is exciting stuff. I’ve never been involved in any sort of paranormal activity beyond the grave before. Mr. Wickham, would you be so good as to jump ahead a little farther and give me the Lottery jackpot numbers for the next draw?

        1. I’m afraid that I’m only responsible for the GW papers; any business he transacts elsewhere is entirely his own affair!

            • Maia on November 14, 2016 at 12:47 pm
            • Reply

            And he has many of those.

            1. His love life was certainly tangled, to put it mildly.

  5. Absolutely charming, Catherine! Thank you for unearthing these important documents. It’s crucial to correct the mistakes made by history. It looks like Mr. Darcy misrepresented some aspects of Wickham’s character.

    1. Thank you; Mr W’s papers are certainly illuminating. Refreshingly, he doesn’t sugar coat everything, as we shall see!

    • Rae on November 14, 2016 at 11:42 am
    • Reply

    I love a new approach and a new point of view. Anticipating Mr. Wickham’s words.

    1. Thank you, I do hope you enjoy his efforts!

      • George Wickham on November 18, 2016 at 8:31 am
      • Reply

      I do like to leave a lady with a sense of anticipation, brava!

    • Odette on November 15, 2016 at 4:08 pm
    • Reply

    I look forward to read more of these exciting papers of Mr Wickham

    1. I am delighted to confirm that there is much more to come!

    • Sheila L. Majczan on December 11, 2016 at 6:37 pm
    • Reply

    I am just now finally determined to go back and read all these chronicles in order. Tongue in cheek I am thinking is the tone I am hearing but we will see how this turns out. Thanks for writing.

      • George Wickham on January 22, 2017 at 5:38 pm
      • Reply

      It was a pleasure and a privilege, I can assure you.

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