#sir victrix

[agathaarts]

Your honor, I love her

I also love drawing characters consistently off-model so I'm figuring out how I want to draw her. Real dorito-shaped-ass-bitch. Anyways when Earndil said the bit about her licking her glaive thank god I was alone while listening at work because I fucking YELLED.

[galacta-and-his-weird-thoughts]

Just because you can't see their faces, doesn't mean you can see their DISTAIN for each other!

[historicminiaturesnorthernva]

Highlanders of the Black Watch, 42nd Regiment of Foot, as they would have appeared in 1808 during the battle of Corunna. Not only did these troops drag the mortally wounded Sir John Moore to cover after being hit by a french cannon ball, but they played a major part of the British defense.

This regiment would continue to serve the British empire in the Peninsular War at the battles of Bussaco in 1810, Fuentes de onoro in 1811, Siege of Cuidad Rodrigo, Badajoz, Salamanca and the Siege of Burgos in 1812, and the battle of Vittoria in 1813.

Following the French retreat into France in July of 1813, the 42nd pursued after them. The Black Watch would then serve in a series of battles until Napoleon’s exile to Elbe. When Napoleon returned in 1815, the Black Watch fought at Quatras Bras and Waterloo, before the wars’ end.

Models are Victrix miniatures, with Vallejo paints.

[your-good-pal-chevy]

Swordtember : 5 : Solar

Sir William of Sungrove made his way through the crowd, smiling and waving and politely giving hands a single shake. He was utterly exhausted, but that mattered little. All eyes were on him as he strode majestically through the plaza and made his way up the temple steps.

The moment the doors of the temple closed behind him, the priests and their aides scurrying off after closing it, Sir William visibly deflated. His strong, broad shoulders drooped. He let his head roll back, closing his eyes as he took a brief moment to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Crowd never gets any smaller, does it?" The one and only Eliza Baird, Gun Witch of the Second Order, Last Sister of the Brimstone Conven, Slayer of the Gun Lich, and frequent companion of Sir William's stepped in from where she had been waiting off to the side. "Though, I suppose that's what you get for advertising your victories the way you do."

"I'm not like you," Sir William said, composing himself once more. "While I don't loathe the fame I achieve, I don't exactly strive for it either. It is simply a consequence of my duties as a Chosen Knight."

And it was true. Sir William of Sungrove, Anointed in Oils, Champion of the Three Sisters, Slayer of Victrix the Despoiler, Slayer of the Dragon of Donnberg, Slayer of Loquacious Lonnie, The Knight of the Sun, Tallest Man of Sungrove. His list of titles continued for some time, to be honest, many of them well earned in righteous battle against the various forces of evil. Many of them simply appended by those who wished to tell a grander tale than he needed.

Eliza scoffed. "Still, y'don't have to go around telling everybody who'll listen that you've done this or that. You could really stand to keep some of your heroics to yourself once in a while."

Sighing, Sir William gave her a shrug. "It is my duty to report my victories to the Temple. How they choose to use that information is... Above my pay grade."

"Pay grade. Please. At least they pay you." She folded her arms, scowling. "If they're going to keep using me as their attack dog, the least they could do is fund my damn maintenance fees. You got any idea how many bullets I go through when they send me off?" She drew a pistol from somewhere beneath her poncho, holding it by the barrel and brandishing the butt of it in Sir William's direction.

"I know, Eliza," Sir William said, pushing the gun away from himself. "Besides yourself, I doubt any know as well as I do."

Eliza scoffed again, stowing the pistol back wherever it came from.

"Walk with me," Sir William said, and the two of them ventured further into the temple.

It was a grand temple, the centerpiece of the town. It had been built some several hundred years ago and expanded over time, and now it stood as a great bastion of the faith in the entire region. When the doors were opened to the public, countless souls would teem in from the streets outside to give their praise to the Sisters, and like clockwork they would be out again by the time it came for the doors to be shut.

Few saw the day to day workings of such a place. Sir William, by virtue of his status as a Chosen Knight, was frequently compelled by duty to visit such temples outside of prayer time and make plans with the priesthood. Eliza, on the other hand, was compelled by threat of legal action.

Where Sir William was a loyal and enthusiastic servant of the Three, Eliza was boxed in by the courts. After the Brimstone Conven fell, she alone survived and was tried on suspicion of heresy. She hadn't been guilty, but it was a bad look to allow a witch whose coven fell to demonic influence to simply walk free, and so Sir William had long ago been appointed her supervisor.

The fact that the two of them got along as well as they did, in spite of how they came to become companions, was truly a testament to his patience and her willingness to swallow her pride. She reminded him often of this.

As the two of them reached their destination, a little shrine altar tucked away in a corner of the building, Sir William began to remove his weapons and armor. Eliza, without needing to be asked, moved swiftly to assist him. With their skilled hands, it didn't take long for Sir William to shed the steel that was his skin to the world. Plates and chain and gambeson and tabard were all set aside.

Of his knightly accoutrements, only his sword remained, even the scabbard put away. Eliza watched as Sir William knelt before the altar, head bowed and sword raised before him. He muttered something lower than she could hear, and Eliza stepped away.

It always felt wrong, watching him pray. She felt like a voyeur. She felt as if she was intruding on something private and sacred, and in a way, she supposed she was.

But Sir William trusted Eliza. There were scant few others that he would allow to remove his armor, to touch him in that way. Eliza knew how much he hated the touching, the countless hands desperate to feel a connection to the divine through him. She hated watching him in a crowd, playing the part of a hero while being forced to endure such things.

Even so, to see him kneeling before an altar of the Sisters, of the Sun Goddess, it was as if he was bathed in a radiant light. Some solar energy flowed through him from above, flowed into his blade, into the world around him.

Sir William was a hero. He was truly that sort. He would have gladly put his body between the innocent and anything that would harm them. On more than one occasion, he had even gone as far as to extend his mercy to those Eliza would have simply shot dead without a second thought.

It was impossible to stand next to him, she felt, and not compare herself to his saintly manner. To not be blinded by his radiant glory.

She wondered if she was any better than those people outside, all so eager to shake his hand.

Sir William, for his part, gave none of this any thought. As he finished his prayer, he rose and found his scabbard and belt. Thrusting the sword into its home, he strapped it on and put a hand on Eliza's shoulder.

"Now then," he said, offering her his first genuine smile of the day, "Let us go speak to the elder here. He will want to know what we have accomplished in the past week."

Eliza scowled, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Sometimes, I really hate that devotion of yours, Will."

[mynamejers]

Honestly, I’ve had worse jobs.

Might gussy this up before Saturday.

@mynamejers Vaali totally has a Crawdaddimus dakimakura.

[josefavomjaaga]

Helfert, Joachim Murat, Chapter 2, part 2

However, the British Congress Legation also used language very unfavourable to the King of Naples. When in the last days of September the Duke of Campochiaro appeared before Castlereagh to explain to him that "his monarch was prepared to let his troops clear all land beyond the borders of his kingdom, even the Marches promised to him by Austria, but that he would defend Naples itself to the last drop of blood, that he had at his command an armed force of 80,000 men, not counting the militia", the Lord replied evasively: "if King Joachim had intervened in earnest during the last war, his cause would have been different; but his dithering and vacillation had put all claims in suspense, and left open a question now to be decided solely from the standpoint of high policy; besides, he could only advise the King to keep as quiet as possible in the meantime, especially not to take any action against Sicily; any hostility on that side would be regarded by England as a case of war, and she would use all her strength against it" [Footnote 1]. The Duke of Wellington, then accredited to the court of Louis XVIII, and entirely drawn into its interests, most eagerly calculated where the troops could be obtained for a crusade against Naples: 10,000 Sicilians 10,000 Spaniards 12,000 Portuguese 15 to 20,000 from the British garrisons in the Mediterranean, "with such a force the enterprise might be ventured" [Footnote 2]. A pamphlet that appeared in London at this time defending Murat's claims seems to have made little impression in congressional circles.

One of the most ardent advocates in favour of the plan to expel the King of Naples was the representative of Great Britain in Palermo, who also received secret instructions from Castlereagh in the autumn of 1814, no doubt in accordance with Wellington's designs, to make enquiries about Murat's forces and about the mood prevailing in Naples on behalf of the Bourbons. A'Court's despatches spoke only of the "usurper" who should no longer be left on the throne, even though the envoy could not conceal the fact that "it would not be easy to give the matter a turn such that the dignity and faithfulness of the British Cabinet would not suffer shipwreck". Incidentally, it was thought in Palermo that nothing could be risked by an enterprise against Murat; every day, Ferdinand's ministers claimed, they received reports from the mainland saying that the impatience to see the ancestral king in possession of the country again could hardly be restrained. A'Court was furious when he heard that the British Consul Fagan, sent to Naples by Lord Bentinck, had assumed the position of Consul-General there, had gained admittance to the court, exchanged notes with the Minister Gallo, expressing a lively desire to strengthen the good understanding between the government of England and His Majesty's Majesty in Naples, and so on. He denounced him to Lord Castlereagh and at the same time recalled him to his former post in Palermo.

Already in the summer Castlereagh must already have uttered observations like the one mentioned earlier against King Joachim's representatives, which prompted the latter to draw up a memorandum on his attitude in the last campaign and to send it to the British First Secretary of State. This did little to improve his case. For Castlereagh obtained Nugent's and Bentinck's comments on the document, and each of them expressed himself more unfavourably about Murat than the other. "Once the allies had entered into certain obligations," the imperial general said, "they were obliged to fulfil them; but they were also relieved of all further considerations against Murat if he, for his part, had not observed them". Nugent now went through the Neapolitan account of the campaign of last spring point by point and everywhere came to the conclusion that King Joachim, by his strategic intervention, had not benefited but only harmed the allies in Upper Italy: "If the Neapolitan army had not moved, two Austrian battalions and a few squadrons would have sufficed to sweep the country clean, and if Murat, as he is pleased to claim, has conquered the country as far as the Po with his troops, this has been done at our expense, not that of our enemy".

Lord William considered the political rather than the military side, but came to similar conclusions as did the Austrian count. "Murat's policy," was Bentinck's brief opinion, "was calculated to save his crown, and so he always followed whoever seemed to emerge victorious from the struggle. At his court, as in his army, there were two parties at feud with each other and fighting for influence with him, a French and a Neapolitan one; he himself always remained a Frenchman at heart; he was of no use to the allies as a friend and, if fortune had turned his back on us, would have hastened our downfall as an enemy. Between the French and Neapolitan armies throughout the campaign there was obvious understanding; no hostile act was undertaken by either side against the other. A large part of the Neapolitan officers were burning with desire to compete with the French, but the King carefully avoided this. In the affair at Parma, March 6 to 8, the corps of General Nugent was, so to speak, sacrificed by Murat, and it has been said that a number of Neapolitan generals, because of the stain which this has placed on their militaristic character, have signed a letter to Murat" [Footnote 3].

To tell the truth, Murat's more than lax conduct of war in the last campaign was by no means the reason why people were speaking out against him more and more decidedly: it only offered a welcome excuse to be now able to turn away from him with decency, after he had been approached so often in the past. Even if, following the advice of his wise wife, he had been zealous in the interests of the Allies, he would not have been able to maintain the position he actually occupied. It must also be admitted that the "victrix causa", the cause which, after a quarter of a century of humiliations, defeats and losses of all kinds, was finally helped to victory, could have resulted in nothing else than Murat's removal from the throne, which he, too, owed only to the defeats and losses of his opponents at the time. Louis XVIII had hit the nail on the head when he exclaimed: "How can one tolerate a small usurpation after having put an end to a great one?

---

Footnote 1) Castlereagh to A’Court, Vienna October 2, 1814 X (III 2) p. 145 f.

Footnote 2) Wellington to Castlereagh September 12 and to Liverpool, December 25 1814, ibit, p.114 f., 226 — 228. „I concur very much in opinion with the King“, he writes to the First Lord of the Treasury, „that the chances of disturbance, particularly in this country, are very much increased by leaving Murat on the throne of Naples. If he were gone, Bonaparte in Elba would not be an object of great dread“. However, he asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs to not reveal anything about the entire plan for the time being: "The King is anxious that nothing should be said upon the subject at Vienna, until I shall receive an answer from England". In fact, the reply did not actually take the form the bellicose Duke had hoped for. Lord Liverpool agreed with Wellington completely on the main point; only, he said (Bath, 1 January 1815), it was necessary to wait for the time: "The only point which I wish to impress upon you is the absolute impossibility, in the present state of the circumstances and feelings in this country, of our engaging in military operations for the purpose of expelling Murat". Incidentally, in the unfavourable sentiment against Joachim, as in any question of British policy, there were also very material motives at play: "Si cette péninsule retombe dans les mains de la famille Buonaparte, le commerce anglais va à être gêné de nouveau dans cette péninsule, et certainement elle y tombera si de mesures rigoureuses et l'expulsion de Murat de l'Italie ne préviennent ce malheur"; Le Chevalier T. (Tinseau?) to Castlereagh 29 Nov. 1814; ibit p. 211, 243 f.

Footnote 3) Schöll, Recueil VI S. 364—394: Mémoire historique sur la conduite politique et militaire de S. M. le Roi de Naples etc.; S. 395—419 : Observations par le général comte Nugent etc.; S. 435—450: Dépêche de Lord William Bentinck au vicomte Castlereagh en date de Florence le 7 janvier 1815. The first two pieces are undated, but fall into the year 1814, and the memorandum into midsummer, since Castlereagh sent it to Count Bathurst on 6 September.

----

Just to add to this: Colonel Maceroni in his memoirs, as we have seen, had accused Eugène of having informed Austrian commander Bellegarde about the secret negotiations with Murat. This was obviously unnecessary, as Mier’s letters prove the Austrians to be very aware of what was going on anyway. But talked about it he surely had, as even in Paris the British had already taken note:

Lord Castlereagh to Lord Bathurst. Paris, May 3, 1814.

My Lord, I have delayed transmitting the enclosed correspondence for a few days, in the hope that I might be enabled to ascertain whether the Viceroy's assertions of Murat's treachery were supported by any documents on which the Allies could justify a change of policy towards him ; but none have as yet been received : I shall, however, take steps to ascertain the fact. The Austrian Government have no other reluctance on this point than what good faith imposes. As soon as I can learn anything further on this subject, your lordship shall hear from me.

I have, &c.,

CASTLEREAGH.

PS. Since this despatch was closed, I have received despatches from Sir R. Wilson, which throw further light upon Murat's conduct.

(taken from: »Memoirs and Correspondence of Viscount Castlereagh«, Volume X)

During that time, Eugène was still on his way to Munich; so he must have opened up quite a bit to Bellegarde before, when handing over Upper Italy to him. One can assume both commanders agreed heartily in their dislike for poor Murat.

(On a side note: As for the opinion of General Nugent cited above, I’ve recently come across an account of the battle of Raab which this gentleman apparently managed to loose singlehandedly. Not sure I’d put too much faith in his view of military matters.)

[anne-lister-adventures]

Wednesday, 16 October 1839

7 50/’’

12 35/’’

Fine but hazy morning again but finer than yesterday morning as yesterday morning and day were finer than those of Monday – Fahrenheit 60º now at 9 10/’’ a.m. – Breakfast about 9 1/2 and had read the first 30 pp.[pages] vol.[volume] 2 Karamsin now at 10 3/4 – Very fine now, the sun attempting to pierce thro the haze out at 11 10/’’ – 

At 11 25/’’ stop to see the Soukhareff gate, and go up a broad flight of stone steps from without up to reservoir of water that supplies all Moscow – Water from 18 versts off on the Troïtska road – Reservoir about 12 x 18 yards and 3 ft.[feet] 8 in.[inches] deep, now standing about 2/3 full – Delicious water – The water flows into (nearer one and then the other) the reservoir by a silver dish-fountain with silver gilt eagle – This Porte de Soukhareff formerly a prison now a Magazin de Draps for the soldiers – Magnificent view from it, but now too hazy – 1/4 hour there – A Saracenic like building – 

At the barrier at 11 54/’’ ∴[therefore] 14 minutes from the Soukhareff Gate to the barrier – Then at Comte Sherematieff’s (Astankina) at 12 1/4 = 21 minutes from the barrier – We had quitted the great high road to go on the sandy road alongside it because Count not farther on got from the high road across the ditch (left) to the house – But we had prepared as if for a journey, and put our 4 horses abreast instead of having 2 men and leaders – 8 versts said Leopold – 

At the Palais (the house) at 12 1/4 and the servant outside had told another servant and got the key and let us in at 12 25/’’ to 2 – Fine large entrance hall – but nothing real – or worth much (all plaster and scaglinola and paint) – Except a good white marble statue of Catherine 2 which Leopold said was by Canova (but no name upon it) and it struck me as unlike C-[Canova] to polish the drapery and not the rest of the statue – And not to put his name – And except an interesting nice slim gracefully draped statue of Health – The statue thin about the chest (near the shoulders) and natural – An inscription at the back of the pedestal states that:

“Cette ancienne statue appartenait à l’Empereur Adrien qui la transporta d’Attenne à Tivoli selon le rapport de Pausanias’ Another inscription in part” 

on the pedestal, is

“La Déesse de la Sauté avec le Dieu Terme              Tirée de la ville d’Atenne en 1789″

Right hand hold cloak over right shoulder – Left hand holds little  sort of bottle and the arm (left) leans on the God Terminus (the little God like a sort of little caryatide, arms cut off at the shoulders – On the statue of Catherine 2 the following inscription –

Victoria. Poteus. Largitate. Victrix. Legibus. Magna                    

A print (en bistre), ‘Les Bains de Cæsar en Calabrie’ dedicated to Prince Henry of Prussia – ‘Alexander Moretti piuxit’ – This seems to a fine ruin – Investigate it. 

Prints (by P. Green London) of the Visitation and the Presentation by Rubens over the altar table in the Cathedral at Antwerp – And print of the Nativity by Sir Joshua Reynolds – Several young females leaning over the infant Jesus – A queerish picture – 

In the palace till 2 – Then in the grounds – The Palace widely not lived in by the owner – He married last winter a poor Sherematieff, and she now looks after his finances – He plays – Is in the Imperial Guard – Always at St. P-[Petersburg] Æt[aetatis] 26 or 27 – 

40 minutes in the grounds – Smooth clean gravel walks – Little wood but birch – A nice little lake – Extrusive beech woods cut into vistas and champs and park-wise – came away at 2 40/’’ – 

At 3 1/4 alight near the Vauxhall to look about us and walk from there to the Palace of Petrovsky and there at 3 1/2 – Comfortably furnished – Ottoman à quatre sièges  (4 sofas back to back) Rectangle-sofas – One room had one of these in each corner with each a table and chair set round it – Chairs on casters - The frame turned in a lathe in a series of little balls – Very neat – The chairs turned in this manner were light and about as large in the seat as the old chairs (painted light oak) in the drawing room at Shibden – 

Porte derobée (leading to a bath – Near the Emperor and Empress’ bed) made to look exactly like the door of a mahogany armoire 6 or 8 in.[inches] deep – Doors like glass doors the panes being mirrors – The Salle de Danse a large circular room under the great dome – 4 doors open into this salle, and between these 4 are 4 sham glass doors 8 mirror panes in each – Reaumur 11º in the salle de reception – 

A flight of 43 stone easy steps from the front circular court (adjoining the St. Petersburg road) to the entrance hall – Or 1st to the portico of 3 arcades with drops in the centre of the arch and supported on four unlike white washed columns Grotesque looking red and white 1/2 gothic 1/2 tartar Palace – Far too much white wash within – Even the large candelabra white washed in the Salle de Danse and in some of the other rooms – 

Came away at 3 55/’’ then drove to the Pont des Mareschaux Street to Urbain French bookseller at the top of the Street – Bought Guide de Moscow. Moscow 1835 2d.[2nd] Ed[itio]n 2 vol[ume]s 8vo.[octavo] 20/- Klaproth’s Town in Georgia 2 volumes good and good map 30/- Home at 5 20/’’ – Dinner at 6 1/2 to 7 1/2 tea at 8 20/’’ in 1/4 hour – Then reading Guide de Moscow

[symbols in the margin of the page:] +          +

[in the margin of the page:]   Began vol.[volume] 2 Karamsin

[in the margin of the page:]   P.[Porte] de Soukhareff

[in the margin of the page:]   Astankina

[in the margin of the page:]   Ancient statue of the Goddess of Health mentioned by Pausanias

[in the margin of the page:]   Bains de Cæsar en Calabrie

[in the margin of the page:]   Petrovsky Palace

[in the margin of the page:]   R.[Reaumur] 11º.

[in the margin of the page:]   very fine day -

Page Reference:  SH:7/ML/E/23/0104

[mattyunijourneybrief1]

A look at Manchester Pubs - The Pub Crawl (It was research, honest!)

To gain an understanding of Manchesters beer culture and history, I went on a day trip to 8 pubs in Manchester that are enriched with history:

1.   The Crown and Kettle

A pub has stood at this location since 1734 (previously as the Iron Dish & Cob of Coal). The pub remained closed for 16 years and suffered from vandalism and at least one fire. The pub was once a Wilsons house.

2.   Sam's Chop House

This basement boozer is another of Manchester's best known and most famous sons. LS Lowry is sat at the bar in there! 

Situated just off Cross Street, Sam's Chop House first opened in 1872, and is a welcoming pub with a renowned restaurant too.

3.   The City Arms

The City Arms has a compact, rowdy nature, where conversations rage and the world is regularly set to rights.

It was an Empress Brewery house in the 1930s, Walkers in the 1970s and a Tetley's house in 1994. 

It is wedged between the Waterhouse and The Vine. The small front room and bar area leads to a little cavern-like back room down a few steps.

4.   Sir Ralph Abercromby

In the shadows of the former Bootle Street nick sits the Sir Ralph Abercromby. This pub holds a CAMRA Award, which makes this a hidden gem for beer lovers. 

Sir Ralph Abercromby was Lieutenant General during the Napoleonic Wars, but the pub itself was known as the Abercrombie as a Chesters house, and Sir Ralph Abercrombie Inn, a Whitbread house, in the past before the pub reverted to the correctly spelt name.

5.   Gas Lamp

This ornately tiled beer bunker offers plenty of choice, including rotating guest ales and the added bonus of no windows, so you don't have to worry about whether it's still daytime or not.

6.   The Briton's Protection

The Britons Protection is a fine pub, sat just behind the Bridgewater Hall and one of the oldest surviving pubs in Manchester. 

It has been licensed since 1806 as the Britons Protection, and the Ancient Briton before that from 1795. 

There is artwork displayed on the corridor walls as well, with some depicting the Peterloo Massacre at St Peter's Field in 1819.

7.    The Wharf

The Wharf is a large yet cosy Castlefield pub which has vistas of the canal. The Wharf is actually a modern building, built in 1998, but a map of the site from 1889 apparently shows two travelling cranes running on 25 foot high gantries. The wharf was actually open to the skies to enable the stacking of goods beside the canal.

Castlefield was the site of the Roman era fort of Mamucium (or Mancunium), established in AD 79, which guarded the Roman road that ran from Deva Victrix (Chester) to Eboracum (York). 

Interestingly, Mamucium means 'a hill shaped like a breast', which presumably made it easy to defend.

The fort would have been garrisoned by a cohort of about 500 troops. Originally constructed in turf and timber, it was expanded and re-inforced with stone around 200 AD, when about 1,000 men would have been stationed here.

Castlefield is now a conservation area as a result of its rich industrial history: it was the terminus of the Bridgewater Canal, the world's first industrial canal built in 1764, with the oldest canal warehouse being built here in 1779.

[agathaarts]

I gotta level with y'all, folks. I was like "wow, Baldric's exactly my type!" and then I was like "wow, Tannhauser's exactly my type!" and

Victrix is a fucking laser-targeted tactical nuke to the part of my brain that's activated by mean fucked-up bitches. I gotta figure out how I want to draw her, how to really push her proportions to be a little off in the best way.

Everyone send prayers to my husband for getting a lot of messages like this lately.