The House of the Four Winds
Encyclopedia
The House of the Four Winds is a novel of adventure by John Buchan, first published in 1935. It is a Ruritanian romance
Ruritanian Romance
A Ruritanian Romance is a story set in a fictional country, usually in Central or Eastern Europe, such as the Ruritania that gave the genre its name...

, and the last of his three Dickson McCunn books.

Plot introduction

The novel is set in the fictional Central European country
Fictional country
A fictional country is a country that is made up for fictional stories, and does not exist in real life, or one that people believe in without proof....

 of Evallonia in the early 1930s. It concerns the involvement of some Scottish visitors in the overthrow of a corrupt republic and the restoration of the monarchy. It is a sequel to Castle Gay
Castle Gay
Castle Gay is a novel by John Buchan. It is the second of his three Dickson McCunn books and is set in south west Scotland in the Dumfries and Galloway region in the 1920s.-External links:*...

, in which some Evallonians visited Scotland on a secret mission two years before the start of this novel.

Plot summary

At the beginning of the novel several characters formerly seen in Huntingtower
Huntingtower (novel)
Huntingtower is a novel written by John Buchan in 1922. The first of his three Dickson McCunn books, it is set near Carrick in south west Scotland around 1920. The hero is a 55-year old grocer Dickson McCunn, who has sold his business and taken early retirement...

and Castle Gay are about to go to Europe for the summer, for a number of different reasons: Mr McCunn going to a German Kurhaus for his health, Alison to join her parents in the Tirol, the Roylances to attend a dull conference in Geneva, Jaikie on a walking tour, Dougal on a mission for his newspaper.

Jaikie meets Randal Glynde who encourages him to visit Evallonia, which is on the verge of a revolution, and arranges for him to meet Prince Odalchini at his castle, "The House of the Four Winds". On the way he meets Ashie, a friend from Cambridge who is now a leader of the third element in the Evallonian political scene, Juventus, a cross between a youth group and a national revival movement. The Juventus people, like the Monarchists, want to overthrow the corrupt and unpopular government, but see young Prince John as a puppet of the conservatives, "the old gang". Jaikie eventually agrees to act as a secret liaison between the two groups.

Meanwhile Alison and the Roylances have rescued Prince John from Mastrovin. They bring him into Evallonia in disguise. Dickson McCunn, informed of the situation by Dougal and feeling obliged by his promise to Prince John to lend a hand, joins the Monarchists and proposes a shrewd scheme for inducing Juventus to back Prince John.

Mishaps and the machinations of Mastrovin lead to dangerous complications before the prince attains the throne.

Characters

The Scots
  • Dickson McCunn, a retired 63-year-old Glasgow grocer with a practical business head and a romantic heart
  • John "Jaikie" Galt, adopted son of Dickson McCunn, a recent graduate of Cambridge University
  • Alison Westwater, daughter of Lord Rhynns, Jaikie's beloved
  • Dougal Crombie, old friend of Jaikie's, a reporter and manager of the influential Craw Press
  • Sir Archibald "Archie" Roylance, a Member of Parliament
    Member of Parliament
    A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

  • Janet Roylance, his wife, a cousin of Alison's
  • Randal Glynde, a cousin of Alison's, a mysterious adventurer who is also the proprietor of the Cirque Doré


The Evallonians
  • Prince John, the rightful king of Evallonia
  • Prince Odalchini, a leader of the Monarchist party
  • Count Casimir Muresco, a leader of the Monarchist party
  • Count Paul "Ashie" Jovian, a leader of Juventus
  • Countess Araminta Troyos, a leader of Juventus
  • Professor Jagon, a former monarchist, now advisor to Countess Araminta
  • Mastrovin, a communist connected with the republican government


The Cirque Doré
  • Luigi, a gipsy fiddler
  • Tatius, the circus manager
  • Meleager, a clown
  • Newsom, a temporary chauffeur
  • Aurunculeia, an elephant

Contemporary references

While essentially a romantic adventure, the novel alludes to certain trends in European life such as post-war nationalism and the focus on democracy. Juventus resembles the German Youth Movement
German Youth Movement
The German Youth Movement is a collective term for a cultural and educational movement that started in 1896. It consists of numerous associations of young people that focus on outdoor activities. The movement included German Scouting and the Wandervogel...

, and Mastrovin represents communist gangsterism.

External links

  • Gutenberg (Australia) text
  • A contemporary review from Punch
    Punch (magazine)
    Punch, or the London Charivari was a British weekly magazine of humour and satire established in 1841 by Henry Mayhew and engraver Ebenezer Landells. Historically, it was most influential in the 1840s and 50s, when it helped to coin the term "cartoon" in its modern sense as a humorous illustration...

    , 31 July 1935
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