Disclaimer: These are works of fan-fiction created for entertainment. It is not the intention of the author to infringe on anyone's copyright. No rights infringement intended. Warning: General Audience

The Sharpe Fan Fictions of Paul K.

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Bernard Cornwell’s

SHARPE’S banquet

Richard Sharpe and the
Waterloo Banquet


Novel by Paul Kaster

1822 18th June

Chapter 10
London




Outside, he saw a line of carriages. One of the cab drivers waved to him. He walked to the carriage.

“Colonel Sharpe?”

“Yes.”

“I’m hired for you, sir.”

“As you say.” He climbs into the carriage. He assumed that they were going to Lewrie’s. Anne had given him an invitation to meet at Lewrie’s house after the dinner. Sharpe appreciates that Lady Anne and Lewrie have arranged a room for Sharpe to host the friends that have gathered in London.

The ride to Lewrie’s took only a few minutes. The driver stopped and then opened the door. When Sharpe attempted to pay, the driver said.

“Already been paid, sir.”

Sharpe nodded, then turned to the door. “Quite a house.” He thought as he knocked on the door. A servant opened the door and showed him in.

“Mister Lewrie is in the room to the right, sir.”

He walked to the door, noted that there was no sound coming from inside, paused, then opened the door. As he entered, many people called out, “Huzzah for Colonel Sharpe!”

Sharpe pauses as he sees all that were gathered. Finds Lady Anne, Sir Alan, Lord Lawford and his wife, Pumphrey, Chase and his wife, Sir David Baird (who had just returned from Ireland) and Pat Harper there. Sharpe notes that Baird and Lawford are each minus an arm. He had been present with Lawford lost his arm. Did not know that Baird had lost an arm too.

Harper is the first to come to shake his hand, and to give him a drink.

“Best brandy, sir. Although Mister Lewrie here says you may be taking to something called corn whiskey.” he says as he beams a huge grin.

Sharpe takes the glass then raises it to all.

“My friends. I am so happy to see you.” To Pumphrey he says, “And to see you too Pumphrey.”

“Oh, Sharpe, are you still angry with me? And after all of our adventures together.”

Baird comes to him, “Sharpe, you know that Pumphrey here his acted only in the best interests of King and Country.”

Sharpe turns to Harper, “Pat, seems we’re back to calling all the others in the room sir, eh?”

Lawford is the first to respond. “Richard, neither Harper or you need call any of us “sir”. Harper and you have more than earned the right to call us by our Christian names.”

“Except for me. No one calls me David. Only Baird.” says the general. And he raises his glass to both.

Chase, Lewrie and Pumphrey raise their glasses too.

Pumphrey adds, “And, you know it’s Pumps for me, eh?”

“Joel, for me.”

“William, here. And, I think that I can claim that I have known you the longest of us here.”

Anne looked at the other women before asking, “So, do we call him Richard, or as the King calls him, Dick.” She laughs mischievously.

Jessica and Florence blush at Anne’s question.

“I suppose it will be Richard, eh?” She says to put the others at ease. Then she gives Sharpe a kiss on the cheek.

“Will that do, Richard?”

“Richard will be good.”

Harper tries to break to tension. “You’ll always be Dick to our King though, sir.”

Everyone laughs.

Lewrie joins the talk. “May I suggest that we all sit.” When all have found a seat, he continues. “William has claimed that he has known Sharpe the longest. I suggest that I am the newest member of this group and therefore know very little of Sharpe and you. Will you please enlighten me of the deeds and experiences that you have shared?”

Lawford stands, looks to Baird, then addresses the group. “Almost twenty-five years ago now, in India, General Baird wanted to rescue my uncle who was being held by the Sultan Tippoo. The General knew from personal experience how cruel Tippoo can be to his prisoners. My uncle had left a plan of how to extract him should he be captured. I would go to meet an agent that my uncle trusted. To go there, I would pose as a deserter. But, I needed a partner because deserters went in pairs.

Baird added, “Your uncle had developed a good plan. I too thought that you needed some help.”

“Our colonel, Arthur Wellesley, today’s Duke, brought Richard to go with me. That very day, Richard had been flogged. The Duke knew of Richard’s skills and thought that the flogging stripes would convince the Tippoo’s men.”

Baird looks at Sharpe. “Sharpe was clever. He had just been spared a number of lashes that could have killed him. He bargained to be promoted to sergeant when they succeeded in the rescue.”

Sharpe smiles as he remembers the meeting that they had had with General Harris who was in command of the British forces.

“Thought that I had nothing to lose.”

Lawford resumed, “We succeeded to rescue my uncle. Richard was promoted. Survived a massacre, rescued the Duke at Assaye, stormed a fortress before he left India. I didn’t meet him again until Portugal.”

Chase joined in. “I met Richard when he was leaving India.

Lawford smiles, “I yield to the honorable Captain Chase.” Then takes his seat.

Chase stands to begin his story. “I met Richard when he rescued me and my men from a corrupt Indian trader who had cheated Richard and me. My men had fought, but we had been captured. Richard held a pistol to the head of the trader until we were released. He then negotiated to get all the stores that we needed, all the supplies that he needed for his trip home and had his and our money returned.”

Pumphrey exclaimed, “Good God, Richard! I knew that you had skills. Had I known this, I could have used in my work. And, made you rich as well.”

Baird has been sipping his drink and appears to be more relaxed in the group. “Easy Pumps we’ll get to our stories soon enough, eh? By the by Lewrie, this whiskey is very good.”

Lewrie raises his glass to Baird.

Chase continues. “So, Richard leaves on his Indiaman. The ship is seized by the French. I rescue them. Richard joins my ship. We join Nelson’s fleet at Trafalgar. As I recall, Nelson advised you to hate the French like the very devil. How’s that going, eh?”

“I found some exceptions to his advise.” He laughed.

Harper adds, “Yes you have. And Lucille won’t let you forget either!”

All in the room laughed.

Sharpe had not thought of Nelson for some time. He is reminded of him by Baird’s and Lawford’s absent arms although both men are much bigger than Nelson was. “Nelson had his ‘Band of Brothers’. Is this mine? My God, I forgot how much I liked Nelson, even after only one meeting. It is no wonder that his men would follow him to Hell.” He recalled that last words that he had with Nelson. ‘You must be a remarkable man.’ He thought that I was intelligent because I had risen from the ranks.

Chase coughed before he went on, “Nelson had asked Richard if he knew the Duke. He had told Richard that he had met the Duke back in England before he had sailed. I believe he said ‘I found him rather frightening’.”

Lawford said, “As did the French. And, many of us in our army, eh?”

“Indeed, indeed. Going on. My Pucelle squared off against the French Revenant. Richard served with a section of our marines. The French grappled our ships together to board us. We had been hurt earlier in the fight. When the French tried to come through the gunports on the lower gundeck, Richard took his marines below to repel boarders then returned to the weather deck. With all the marine officers dead or wounded, Richard led our boarding party onto Revenant. As we landed on Revenant, Richard fired a seven-barrel volley gun into a larger group of French. They vanished.”

Harper interrupted, “That’s why you gave me Mr. Nock’s gun, eh?”

Sharpe nodded.

“The French resisted fiercely. But Richard and his men cleared one side while I took the quarterdeck. The French surrendered.”

“After Trafalgar I met Richard again during our expedition to Copenhagen.”

Baird puts down his glass. “That is my cue to tell a story, eh?”

Chase nods, then sits.

“I was reacquainted with Richard in a less than savory tavern here in London. He was trying to sell his commission after some hard times after Trafalgar. Luck would have it that our chance meeting led to Richard going off on a mission to Denmark with Pumps here.”

He turns to Pumphrey. “My lord, I believe that you know more of this story.”

“And so I do. Richard joined a special envoy to the Danish government to try to, ehm, bribe them into letting us take their fleet to avoid the French getting it. He was to protect the envoy who was transporting forty-three thousand guineas.”

Before he could continue, all but Baird and Sharpe gasped.

“That’s a bloody king’s ransom, that is.” said Lewrie.

Lawford added. “more than the value of the jewels you were rumored to have stolen from the Tippoo Richard.”

Sharpe made a face at that, but said nothing.

Harper smugly commented. “A small sum compared to what we took from the French at Vitoria. Still, a tidy sum, though.”

Sharpe made a face at Harper too because he knew that they had taken loot after Vitoria, but had told no one.

Pumps let them grasp the quantity of money that was involved before he continued.

“This envoy, as it turned out, was a traitor, tried to kill Richard, more than once, planned to keep the money for himself. With the city burning from our bombardment, Richard caught the traitor who had a list of our agents in France. He tried to enroll Richard to join him with. Richard had none of it, killed him in the flames of the library. The traitor had sent off much of the money for his escape. I sent Richard home with nine thousand that remained.”

Chase and Sharpe briefly made eye contact as they knew that Pumps, Chase and Sharpe had taken shares of what had not been taken or melted in the library fire.

Lewrie noted the looks between the men. He thought, “I can find no fault with them for taking some of the money. Early on, I had taken guineas from a prize and didn’t report that I had.” he thought

“Captain Chase, I recall that you carried him home and hosted him at your home.”

“Yes, Florence and I hosted Richard in Devonshire. Not for the last time, I tried to convince him that he should give up on the army to become a marine. He chose instead to go with the Duke’s force instead. Sir David, didn’t you convince him that battles and promotions were coming?”

“I did. Told him that he was a damn fine soldier. Saved my life at Seringapatam when he blew up the mine that was intended to kill my storming party. Told him he was one of the best of the three kinds of soldiers. There are useless soldiers, good lads who run at the first chance from fear and soldier’s soldiers. Richard here is a soldier’s soldier.

“Major Hogan called him a ‘murderin’ officer’, not a ‘killin’ officer’, Sir David.” Harper interrupted.

Baird turned to Harper, “See, others saw it in him too. Murdering officer gets men killed for a purpose. It just took the others some time to see it, eh? So, off to Portugal you went.” He looks at Richard.

“Yes, sir. Went as quartermaster. Fought at Vimeiro and Lugo. Met Chase and Pumps at Lisbon, you at Lugo.”

Baird continued, “And, you went on from there to rejoin the Duke back in Portugal. On the way, Harper and you joined forces.”

“Aye, we did, sir. Met Lord Pumphrey one more time at Cadiz. Took an French Eagle. Fought a lot of battles. Survived.”

“And, now you trade horses and own a pub in Ireland. Richard is a gentleman farmer in France.” Lawford said.

“Aye, Sir William. But, a piece of our story hasn’t been told.”

“Oh?”

“Aye, sir. Lady Anne’s not told hers.”

Harper turns to her.

“Oh, Patrick, I don’t have much to tell.”

“Aye, you do. Mr. Lewrie and the others will want to hear it.”

“Very well, then. Almost ten years ago, Harper and Richard returned to England to find their second battalion. It had gone missing. Without its replacements, their battalion would be disbanded as replacements for other regiments in Spain. The Prince of Wales, now our king, learned from Lord Lawford that Sharpe was here and wanted to meet him. When they met, Richard asked him to help to find his men. Prinny asked Lord Fenner where to find the men. Fenner told him that the men didn’t exist. The men were names on paper only.”

“Bastard Fenner lied through his teeth to Prince.”

“Yes, Patrick he did. I was sure that Richard did not accept the lie. I had my own reasons to dislike Lord Fenner. I went to Richard to warn him to give up finding his men.”

She looks at the others, “And we have all learned that Richard can be like a terrier with a rat when he is determined.”

Lawford laughs. “I remember him telling me that he worked in a dogpit counting dead rats. Must have learned something from those dogs, eh Richard?”

“Learned a lot of things in that dogpit. Skills saved me more than once.”

“So off he went. But, Fenner sent two men to kill him. He killed the assassins, made it look like the bodies were Harper’s and his and went off to be recruited for the second battalion. Got recruited and sent to a training ground at Foulness in Essex. Richard and Sharpe learned that Sir Henry Simmerson, the founder of the South Essex regiment, was crimping recruits. Lord Fenner and he shared the money. Harper and Richard escaped. Returned in uniform. ‘Released’ the recruits and marched to London. At the Prince’s Review, Sharpe marched his men in to prove that them men did exist. Lord Fenner was not happy. Richard was arrested and taken to Horse Guards. A General Maxwell was to oversee Richard’s trial. Fenner and Simmerson were present when I walked in with a ledger book that proved crimping operation.”

“Thought Simmerson was going to explode. Fenner surprised me. He surrendered to every one of your demands, including sending me back with the men to Spain. Although, Girdwood got to command.”

Harper laughed again. “Girdwood command? Not hardly. You commanded him. Coward lost his wits in his first battle. Battalion was yours again.”

“Richard, I still have the ledger books. Funny, never needed them again.”

“Seems Simmerson forgot them and survived the scandal. Met him again in India.”

“And, Lady Anne, can you believe it, Mister Sharpe saved Simmerson’s life. The man got Sharpe religion after that!”

“Do you think Willoughby Parfitt has forgiven you two yet?”

Jessica Lawford said, “That was just before Waterloo, was it not?”

“Yes, During the peace in late 1814, Richard retired on half pay to live in France. Someone in Horse Guards recalled Richard to serve in Yorkshire with the Scarsdale Yeomanry. If he refused, he would lose his half pay. So he came.”

Sir William spoke, “Some of Fenner’s and Simmerson’s friends in the government saw an opportunity to punish Richard for what he had done. They wanted to send him to Australia to govern a penal colony.”

Baird had almost gone to sleep from the whiskey. “Could have sent him to many more worse places.”

Pumphrey agreed. “Going to the West Indies is still seen as a death sentence.”

Lewrie says, “Not to detract from your story Anne, but West Indies was seen as a death sentence in my younger years. I survived Yellow Fever. Many did not.”

The others in the room looked at him. The women showed concern on their faces. Florence covers her mouth in awe that he had survived. She knows many of Joel’s fellow navy officers had not survived the West Indies.

“So Richard, with Harper, went to Yorkshire. He had lived there as a boy. He knew some of the local people. Parfitt had a prissy captain name Wickham leading the yeomanry until Richard arrived. Wickham had been dealing with machine breakers and worker unrest. When a gathering of workers is broken up by Wickham and people are killed, including women and children, Wickham blames Richard.”

Jessica asks, “Was that the Keighley Massacre?”

“Yes. Parfitt reported to Horse Guards that Richard had colluded with the leader of the workers and had then ordered the massacre. I had been staying at Parfitt’s estate at the time. I was interested to invest in some of his businesses. He was interested in me.”

Harper is feeling that he should say something. “Lady Anne has a way about her that she can collect information from others without them realizing that they are giving up secrets. She did this time and again on the night before Waterloo.”

“Thank you, Patrick. That is a different and a story that is too trivial to be told.”

Sharpe nods his approval to her.

“I sent word to Richard that I had heard that a new machine that was coming to Lord Stanwyck was going to be attacked. Harper and Richard stopped that machine breakers, who happened to be Wickham and some of his men. He turns them over to Lord Stanwyck who then confronts Parfitt who had been the sponsor of the attacks. He wanted to remove the competitors to his mills.”

Anne pauses to see if any of the others have stories to add. When no one speaks, she says, “And that my dear Alan is what we here have to share about our Richard.”

Lewrie stands, takes Anne’s hand, gives it a kiss, then bows to the rest of the room.

“You have told quite entertaining and magnificent stories of Colonel Sharpe. I envy you that you have had such a man in your lives. As I listened, I think that I heard that every one of you had Richard save your bodily, your reputational and financial lives. And, in return you saved Richard many times too.”

Sharpe has remained quiet through most of the talk. “You all have been too good to me over the years. I owe every one of you in some way since the first time that I met each of you. Well, maybe not you, Patrick.” He turns to Harper.

Everyone laughs heartily.

Lewrie walks to Sharpe to shake his hand. “You deserve everything that you have and that which you will be given tomorrow.”

“Amen to that!” Shouts Baird.

Lewrie waits until the others stop congratulating Sharpe. “Now, may I suggest that we let Richard go. He will need his sleep before he goes to court tomorrow.”

“Sir, Alan, I thank you for being the host of this gathering. I have not seen some of these for many years. I am happy that each of you has come to see me here. I am honored.” He holds up a hand to stop them from saying anything more.

“I agree with Sir Alan that it is time to rest. I am not as young as I used to be.”

The others laugh. Chase and Lawford leave with their wives. Baird talks with Pumphrey about another place to go after they leave.

“Pat, you may want to join them. I do want to sleep.”

“Well, I may have to go with Sir David to make sure he knows that the only good whiskey comes from Ireland.” He winks at Sharpe.

“Good night Pat.”

Harper joins Baird and Pumphrey as they go.

Finally, he goes to Lady Anne and Sir Alan.

“Thank you for this.”

“I always cherish to see you Richard.”

“And, I am happy to meet you and to be added to your band. We will join you at court tomorrow. Until then, good night.”

Richard leaves. It is a short walk to his lodging. He will sleep well.

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