Thomas Hamilton
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This character is retired.
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Short Stats
- Character Name: Thomas Hamilton
- Title: First son of the Viscount of Oakham
- Estate Name: Oakham
- Nationality: English
- Age: 23 (b.1652)
- Gender: Male
- Eye Colour: Brown
- Hair Colour: Brown
Physical Attributes
Thomas is a tall man for the age, standing at a full 6’. As he is tall, so his shoulders are broad, but only to the extent that they offset his height to offer a well-proportioned body. This body has been passed down through the male-side of the family for generations, and Thomas was the beneficiary of this strong constitution. He does not have a barrel-chest, but his physique is quite as well-proportioned to his shoulders, as his shoulders are to his height.
Capping this body is a well-maintained set of dark brown hair that falls just below his shoulders in the fashion of the day. Whilst he has an abundance of hair on his head, he is careful to maintain a shaven face. This requires attention most days, but he has not, as of yet, developed the desire to allow a moustache or beard to take root upon his face.
Of the face there is a reasonable amount to be said. He is good looking, handsome would be the more accurate description, and pretty certainly not – nor would beautiful suffice. His looks, like his build, have been inherited through a long line of soldierly Viscounts and he has the family hawkish nose. Whilst there is no defined hook, there is certainly a bump in it. His nose is slightly bent from a previous breakage. Moving slightly away from his nose, one becomes acutely aware of his deep, grey eyes. They have a habit of staring intently and conveying a general feeling of acute observance. Whether this is in fact the truth remains to be seen. Whilst Thomas is a young man, his face has a certain age to it, though certainly not weather-beaten or sun dried, it does suggest he has spent a good-deal of time in the open. On the left jaw-line he bears a slight scar that flicks from under his jaw-line forward to appear just above it.
Initial Impression of Personality
Thomas is a happy man. To most of the world he appears to have not a care in the world. He is also an active man, as his character can attest. He walks with a quiet confidence, and talks with a degree of modesty. He is a staunch royalist and patriot, believing that a Protestant England is the only way to safe-guard English freedom.
Background
Thomas’ recess was far from boring. As the weeks went by he tried desperately to locate Lord Brigg in France. He had his little spy Toby working over time, but there was little he could do. Thomas worked closely with Thomas Hobbes and his network of informers, as they both tried to locate Brigg. Simultaneously he began learning French, picking up what he could in the time he had free. Then it came, the news of where Brigg was being held. Toby overheard some idle, drunken chatter in mid-June in which one of the French guards gave away the information. Brigg was being held in the Bastille – and that a date for his execution had been set. The very next day Thomas, his servant Joshua and Toby boarded a boat that Hobbes had arranged for them with an unsuspecting noble French family who were taking a short trip to France, ostensibly to have a brief visit to France to assist with his learning of the language. It was perfect.
Arriving early, Thomas and his men made great show of there being three of them. Then they went below, and as the ship slipped anchor Joshua jumped from the cabin window and swam to shore. Upon arriving in France, Thomas announced that his servant was sick and that they would disembark later. The French family left, and once the ship was manned by a skeleton crew, Thomas and Toby went ashore. The reason for the deception was so that once Brigg was freed they could disguise him as Thomas’ servant and sneak him out of the country that way, with French nationals vouching for him. Thomas and Toby swiftly made their way to the Bastille in Paris.
In the course of some subtle enquiries they found out about a less than honest guard that worked at the Bastille. After visiting him and offering a bribe of the equivalent in francs of 10 pounds they secured his uniform and keys, as well as knowledge of the Bastille and its rotas and shifts. The day came, and Thomas dressed in uniform, and with his heart beating quickly he made his way to the Bastille. Toby was to wait behind at a pre-arranged point with three horses. Having gained entry to the famous prison he made his way to Brigg’s cell, only to find it open and empty. With little other recourse, Thomas made his way out of the Bastille and back to the Frenchman’s house. The guard was somewhat shame faced and explained to Thomas that Brigg has been executed the day before. There was nothing else for it but to return to London, his plan foiled and his word broken. Yet as he turned to leave the house a file of soldiers came down one of the roads. Thomas turned and began to walk casually the other way, only to see another file of soldiers. It could have been coincidence, but Thomas was not willing to rely on that – after all, he was wearing a French uniform and could have been taken as a spy. He burst into the informers house, the soldiers in hot pursuit seemed to confirm his suspicions. Breaking through an upper-story window he fled across the rooftops of Paris, the occasional shot whipping by him, and one even coming close enough to pierce his clothing. His agility and pace served him well, however, and he made his escape. He did not know it at the time, but a warrant had been issued for his arrest.
The journey back was a happy affair, for Thomas had to put on a show of having enjoyed his trip to France. It was strange, he thought, that there could be such a nice French family as that which he used, yet there could be sufficiently diabolical French people as to perpetrate the act they had done to Edmund.
Thomas proceeded from the port to visit Felicity to let her know he was well; that done, he made his way up to Oakham, leaving Toby behind in London, tasking him to do any jobs that Felicity might need him to do. His time there was spent in more enjoyable spirits. He practiced his shooting with his brothers, and whilst William was a far better shot than he, Thomas slowly but surely improved his shooting until he was quite gifted in the skill. In tandem with that he continued his lessons in French, engaging a tutor to help him with his studies. Along with this Thomas received regular correspondence from Darlene, which he naturally replied to. Unbeknownst to him, she worried what his family might think – she needn’t have worried, Thomas made sure all his post came to him directly without his family or any of the servants bar Joshua being aware of it. As well as Darlene he sent several letters to the Duchess of Richmond to maintain their friendly relationship. Lady Armitage too received letters by his hand, as indeed did the young Henry Cavendish. Thomas had his eye on that young man – he seemed to be made of the right stuff, and Thomas thought that with some tutelage he might well become a valuable ally in the vendetta Thomas had against the French. His cousin, Heather Thompson, had sent him several letters that he discovered on his return from France, and replied to.
Developments in August were far from pleasant. Firstly the death of the Viscount of Camton died, and his son, James Randolph, Thomas’ rival, inherited the Viscountcy. On top of that, the man received a promotion to Earl.
Of more concern was his returning to his room one evening to find a note on his bed, written in French saying:
“We can touch anyone, anywhere, at anytime.”
It was signed with a large, florid ‘F’ – surely standing for France.
Thomas had the house searched, but there were no signs as to who had got in, and how. Determined not to take such an affront without reaction, Thomas resolved to return to London to respond robustly to the challenge. Upon arriving in London he made his way to Kemp’s coffee house. He knew from Toby’s reports that a particularly hot-blooded French officer by the name of Louis Bardeaux, the son of the Marquise de Lardonne, from the embassy was a regular there, and thus he visited every day until the man arrived in the company of two other gentlemen. Thomas ‘accidentally’ barged into the Marquise’s son, spilling the man’s coffee over him. Bardeaux looked angrily at Thomas, demanding that he apologise.
“In England, we learn to hold our coffee properly. It seems that French manners leave much to be desired.” Thomas said with a smug smile, and as the Frenchman exploded Thomas felt smugger on the inside.
“Indeed? Perhaps that is why your King Charles behaves as he does – for he learned all that he knows in France. No wonder he has so many lovers.” Louis retorted angrily, and loudly. Thomas couldn’t believe such an opportunity had been handed to him, and in front of a reasonably large crowd of witnesses in the coffee house.
“You challenge the honour of my King?” Thomas replied aghast. “I demand you apologise immediately, or I shall have satisfaction.”
No apology was received. One of the Englishmen present, a young gentlemen named Roger Bannery, son of the Baron of Thetford, immediately offered to be Thomas’ second, and Thomas agreed. The duel was to take place the next day, August 20th, at dawn. It was a brutal affair. The Frenchman was talented with the blade, and furious as well. The blows rained in on Thomas. First blood was gained by Thomas, but they had arranged to fight until one yielded. The duel lasted for half an hour. Thomas received something of a savage cut to the left side of his neck, a deep gash that somehow managed to avoid major arteries and veins – but was destined to leave an ugly scar on his neck, visible from the side and from behind. In return the Frenchman received several cuts to his arm, and face. The bout finally ended when Thomas severed the man’s thumb, causing the sword to slip free and fall dumbly to the floor. The Frenchman could do nothing but yield to Thomas, and promise a public apology. By the end of the bout both men were bloody and wounded. Thomas’ were mostly superficial, save the one to his neck that was bound up. Louis, as well as losing his thumb, also lost the sight in his right eye – the long scar coming down from his forehead, across his eye and into his cheek gave the obvious reason why, and the milky white colour of his eye made it clear that he would never see out of it again.
As August became September, Thomas was still adamant that he would be seeking further revenge from the French. It was just a matter of how and when – whilst passionate, Thomas was not stupid enough to act rashly, and thus he waited. His first aim was to find out where the man who had kidnapped Darlene had gone, and it was with that in mind that Hobbes announced there was one of his informers that needed to meet with Thomas on September 12th.
The Basildon wedding was the last occasion that Thomas Hamilton, heir to the Viscounty of Oakham, was seen in London. It was only after his return that news of where he had been spread. His journeys had taken him far from the shores of merry old England, as he took working passage on an English ship, the Apollo, destined for the Mediterranean. His reputation preceded him, and thus the Captain was keen to welcome aboard the renowned warrior, especially as his ship would be skirting the territory of the Barbary pirates.
Thomas, of course, had an ulterior motive. Convinced that he could not approach Darlene with his proposal of marriage without some token of his affection, he had decided upon journeying to the edge of the civilised world to seek it out. His destination was Venice, where the world of Christendom met the world of the East. His perusal of the markets there gave him the opportunity to make his purchases. In good time he was ready to sail back with the Apollo. The return journey was not uneventful, and he discharged his pistols and bloodied his sword in an action against Barbary pirates that would escape the quill of the history books, but live forever in the memories of the sailors who faced the screaming savages in the full knowledge that were they to lose they would find themselves for sale in the slave markets of the East. They were, thankfully, victorious, and many a pirate’s body was tossed into the watery oblivion of the Mediterranean.
Thomas arrival back in London was in the depth of winter. He felt the weather as he approached the country, and on disembarkation he had to battle through sporadic blizzards before he retrieved Achilles. Taking with him only the presents for Darlene, his weapons and the clothes on his back he galloped for Windsor, where he understood court had retired to. Joshua, his servant, had orders to forward his effects to Windsor. He was instructed to bring Toby with him, but the young urchin had no interest in coming to Windsor. Thomas would have to find himself another pair of ears about the castle.
Married to Darlene Chesterford.
