What about the two troubled sisters?

 'Here they are, mother, Miss Hartford and Miss Sophia Hartford.' 

says Joachim as he presents the visitors to his mother [and he thinks 'I really wish they weren't here.'] 

Actually, Nell and Sophie really don't want to be there either, but having been cast out of their home in Paris they have nowhere else to go. 

Why are the sisters troubled?

They lost their brother, Captain Alex Hartford from his wounds at the battle of Waterloo. Not long after that their mother died. 

Their father, Colonel Robert Hartford thinks only of his own advancement. An aide to the Duke of Wellington, he is organising the disbanding of the Army of Occupation in Paris in 1818.[1]

In June 1817 he remarries in hopes of having another son. 

Very soon Nell sinks into a depressed state and Sophie becomes so wild, their new stepmother casts them out.

Pedestrian curricle [vélocipède] race in Paris 1817
Picture courtesy of Wikipedia

Life in Paris is full of variety, fashion, entertainments and endless dances with crowds of English, Austrian and Russian soldiers. Exactly what Sophie enjoys.

Bal Bullier, an open air dance setting at Montparnasse, established in 1787. [Picture courtesy of Les Montparnos Blog]

Going from Paris to the Pyrenees is a huge shock. What ? Life in a country chateau surrounded by lakes and mountains? No dances and no soldiers to admire her? Bor-ing!

Sophie creates havoc before she has been there 24 hours, driving Joachim into such a rage he's certain flames are coming out of his ears. After ten days he realises that Nell has not smiled once since arriving. It seems life is going to be difficult for all concerned. 

Joachim's comrade Bertrand remarks: 'My friend, I don’t envy you being saddled with that pair for months. I couldn’t put up with either of them for a week, even.’

Can life with the slightly exotic Montailhac family help the sisters make a fresh start? 

Can Joachim find anything to like in either of them? 

            His wise mother uses kindness to bring about change. 

[c] Beth Elliott

[1] The Army of Occupation by the four Allies - England, Austria, Prussia and Russia - under the Duke of Wellington, guaranteed peace in France for three years, and was disbanded at the end of 1818.

What about the youngest brother?

 There are three brothers in the Montailhac family.

Henri, the diplomat and Arnaut, the businessman, horse breeder and charming Rake have both experienced their own - very different - adventures. Their two sisters are happily settled. 

That leaves Joachim, the youngest.   

                      This year, both his brothers are away and so for the first time, he is solely responsible for managing the family estate and livestock. Athletic and hard-working, he is keen to prove himself worthy of the responsibility. Living in a remote and mountainous region, guarding the various flocks of sheep, cows and horses against attacks by bears, wolves and other predators is a part of the job.

   

Joachim is determined to prove he can do as well if not better than his brothers. But life throws up complications when his mother takes in two sisters with a troubled background.  

The first problem is that they arrive very late in Toulouse. where Joachim is waiting to escort them back to the chateau. Losing a day from his work is bad enough but as for the girls.... after a couple of hours in their company, Joachim thinks : -

   " Really, mother, inviting this pair was one big mistake. We aren’t home yet and already I can’t wait for them to leave. One is sullen and the other a desperate flirt. And as for the quarrelling...! "

Not a good start to their acquaintance, and there is a lot worse to follow. 
At this point, Joachim would prefer to deal with the wolves and the bears.

But maybe matters will improve.

                      

Lac de Campauleil, Vallée d'Orlu.

A set of covers

 

Regency Tales

  

Enjoy the trip, whether by coach, ship or on horseback.

Get cured of your ailments in Bath, enjoy the sea air in Brighton, 

walk in Hyde Park, stroll along the Gravel Walk, ride through the Pyrenees 

or go with Lady Hester Stanhope to a picnic with the ladies of the Sultan's harem in a park by the Bosphorus. 

All in the company of enterprising ladies and dashing gentlemen, on a variety of missions, good and bad. 

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