Pimpernel and Rosemary
Encyclopedia
Pimpernel and Rosemary is a novel by Baroness Emmuska Orzcy, originally published in 1924. It is set after the First World War
and features Peter Blakeney, a descendant of the Scarlet Pimpernel
.
The action is mainly set amongst the disaffected Hungarian nobility in Transylvania, allowing Orczy to draw on her knowledge of Hungarian history and politics.
Peter Blakeney is the great, great grandson of the Scarlet Pimpernel
, and the very image of his famous ancestor. A gifted sportsman educated at Eton
and Oxford, Blakeney has rowed in the varsity eights
, been awarded a VC
in the war and is widely regarded as one of the finest cricket
ers England has ever produced.
Blakeney is deeply in love with Rosemary, and she with him, but owing to his foolish pride and ambition he has lost his chance to marry her. Reluctant to simply be known as the husband of a world-famous wife, he has put his career and determination to win fame and fortune in his own right, ahead of love -- and has driven her into the arms of his best friend, Lord Jasper Tarkington.
Tarkington, who was the correspondent for the Daily Post in Hungary
in 1919, is still a young man, but rather conservative in his tastes. He worships Rosemary but whilst she sees him as gentle, impassive and wonderfully kind, he fails to arouse the same level of passion in her heart as Peter.
The day their engagement is announced, Peter meets Rosemary at the Five Arts’ Ball at the Albert Hall
, after dancing with her he takes her to a secluded box and reveals his true feelings for her, yet she cannot bring herself to forgive him for the snub of the previous summer and insists that in six months time she will be Jasper Tarkington’s wife.
Watching the couple dance at the Ball, is the Roumanian
diplomat, General Naniescu, the guest of Lady Orange. On hearing that the beautiful young woman is the author of the articles which have caused his government so much harm, he asks Lady Orange to arrange a meeting at which he proposes that Miss Fowkes should visit Translyvania and study the conditions now prevailing in the territory now occupied by Roumania at first hand. She will then publish her studies in the English and American press, without fear of censorship.
Rosemary is soon taken with the idea, but although Lord Tarkington has vowed not to get in the way of her journalistic efforts, he insists that she marries him immediately, so he can go with her and protect her as only as husband can. She agrees, and they are soon on their way to Translyvania, to stay with relations of Peter’s who she knows from earlier visits she took with Peter’s Hungarian mother.
On arriving in Cluj
, she meets with Peter’s cousin Anna Hever, and discovers that Anna has been helping her cousin Philip Imrey to smuggle anti-government articles which he has written, out of the country and into the British press, where they have caused an outburst of sympathy for the Hungarians of Translyvania.
Rosemary realises that Anna and Philip are playing a dangerous game and promises to tell no-one of their secret, yet only days after she has arrived to stay at the Imrey’s house, Philip and Anna are arrested as traitors.
Rosemary meets with Naniescu to plead for the pair, but he tells her that the only way she can secure their freedom is to write articles for the British press, which put the Roumanian regime in Translyvania in a positive light, and which will undo some of the harm done by Philip’s reports. The duo will be temporarily freed for the month she has to write the articles. When they are published the duo will be allowed to leave the country but if she refuses they will be re-arrested and sentenced to death as traitors.
Meanwhile, Rosemary gets news that Peter Blakeney is in the country, allegedly to organise a cricket match between the Hungarians and Roumanians in Budapest. Jasper resolves to go to meet the Roumanian King and plead for leniency for Anna and Philip, but before he goes he tells Rosemary not to reveal anything of what has happened to Peter.
Rosemary is shocked that Jasper appears not to trust Blakeney, whom she has always considered the perfect English gentleman, yet when she speaks to Anna about how their activities could have been discovered, her suspicions are aroused when she finds out that the only other person Anna had told about the scheme was Peter.
Eventually Rosemary writes the arictles on the behest of her husband, but having consulted with Elza Imrey, who is not willing to pay such a price for the freedom of her son and niece, has agreed to destroy them. However, before she can do so, they are stolen by Blakeney who uses them to barter with Naniescu for the title deeds to the Imrey's chateaux.
Who is the mysterious "Number 10"?
Can Peter really be a spy in the employ of the Romanian government?
Why is Jasper suddenly acting so strange?
How can Rosemary stop the stolen articles from being published in the Times?
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and features Peter Blakeney, a descendant of the Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a play and adventure novel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, set during the Reign of Terror following the start of the French Revolution. The story is a precursor to the "disguised superhero" tales such as Zorro and Batman....
.
The action is mainly set amongst the disaffected Hungarian nobility in Transylvania, allowing Orczy to draw on her knowledge of Hungarian history and politics.
Plot summary
It’s 1922 and Rosemary Fowkes is the darling of London post-war society. One of those women on whom Nature seems to have showered every one of her most precious gifts. As well as being tall, graceful and beautiful, Rosemary is also highly intelligent and a talented political writer. She is the author of a series of articles on the evils of bureaucracy in the near East, which have been published in the International Review under the pseudonym “Uno”.Peter Blakeney is the great, great grandson of the Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a play and adventure novel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, set during the Reign of Terror following the start of the French Revolution. The story is a precursor to the "disguised superhero" tales such as Zorro and Batman....
, and the very image of his famous ancestor. A gifted sportsman educated at Eton
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and Oxford, Blakeney has rowed in the varsity eights
The Boat Race
The event generally known as "The Boat Race" is a rowing race in England between the Oxford University Boat Club and the Cambridge University Boat Club, rowed between competing eights each spring on the River Thames in London. It takes place generally on the last Saturday of March or the first...
, been awarded a VC
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
in the war and is widely regarded as one of the finest cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
ers England has ever produced.
Blakeney is deeply in love with Rosemary, and she with him, but owing to his foolish pride and ambition he has lost his chance to marry her. Reluctant to simply be known as the husband of a world-famous wife, he has put his career and determination to win fame and fortune in his own right, ahead of love -- and has driven her into the arms of his best friend, Lord Jasper Tarkington.
Tarkington, who was the correspondent for the Daily Post in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
in 1919, is still a young man, but rather conservative in his tastes. He worships Rosemary but whilst she sees him as gentle, impassive and wonderfully kind, he fails to arouse the same level of passion in her heart as Peter.
The day their engagement is announced, Peter meets Rosemary at the Five Arts’ Ball at the Albert Hall
Albert Hall
Albert P. Hall is an American actor.Born in Brighton, Alabama, Hall graduated from the Columbia University School of the Arts in 1971. That same year he appeared Off-Broadway in The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel and on Broadway in the Melvin Van Peebles musical Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death...
, after dancing with her he takes her to a secluded box and reveals his true feelings for her, yet she cannot bring herself to forgive him for the snub of the previous summer and insists that in six months time she will be Jasper Tarkington’s wife.
Watching the couple dance at the Ball, is the Roumanian
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
diplomat, General Naniescu, the guest of Lady Orange. On hearing that the beautiful young woman is the author of the articles which have caused his government so much harm, he asks Lady Orange to arrange a meeting at which he proposes that Miss Fowkes should visit Translyvania and study the conditions now prevailing in the territory now occupied by Roumania at first hand. She will then publish her studies in the English and American press, without fear of censorship.
Rosemary is soon taken with the idea, but although Lord Tarkington has vowed not to get in the way of her journalistic efforts, he insists that she marries him immediately, so he can go with her and protect her as only as husband can. She agrees, and they are soon on their way to Translyvania, to stay with relations of Peter’s who she knows from earlier visits she took with Peter’s Hungarian mother.
On arriving in Cluj
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, she meets with Peter’s cousin Anna Hever, and discovers that Anna has been helping her cousin Philip Imrey to smuggle anti-government articles which he has written, out of the country and into the British press, where they have caused an outburst of sympathy for the Hungarians of Translyvania.
Rosemary realises that Anna and Philip are playing a dangerous game and promises to tell no-one of their secret, yet only days after she has arrived to stay at the Imrey’s house, Philip and Anna are arrested as traitors.
Rosemary meets with Naniescu to plead for the pair, but he tells her that the only way she can secure their freedom is to write articles for the British press, which put the Roumanian regime in Translyvania in a positive light, and which will undo some of the harm done by Philip’s reports. The duo will be temporarily freed for the month she has to write the articles. When they are published the duo will be allowed to leave the country but if she refuses they will be re-arrested and sentenced to death as traitors.
Meanwhile, Rosemary gets news that Peter Blakeney is in the country, allegedly to organise a cricket match between the Hungarians and Roumanians in Budapest. Jasper resolves to go to meet the Roumanian King and plead for leniency for Anna and Philip, but before he goes he tells Rosemary not to reveal anything of what has happened to Peter.
Rosemary is shocked that Jasper appears not to trust Blakeney, whom she has always considered the perfect English gentleman, yet when she speaks to Anna about how their activities could have been discovered, her suspicions are aroused when she finds out that the only other person Anna had told about the scheme was Peter.
Eventually Rosemary writes the arictles on the behest of her husband, but having consulted with Elza Imrey, who is not willing to pay such a price for the freedom of her son and niece, has agreed to destroy them. However, before she can do so, they are stolen by Blakeney who uses them to barter with Naniescu for the title deeds to the Imrey's chateaux.
Who is the mysterious "Number 10"?
Can Peter really be a spy in the employ of the Romanian government?
Why is Jasper suddenly acting so strange?
How can Rosemary stop the stolen articles from being published in the Times?