Difference between revisions of "William Laurence"

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Character Profile

Biography

William Laurence was the third son of Lord Allendale, who held the family seat at Wollaton Hall in Nottighamshire. He was raised a gentleman's son with all the privileges of the nobility, including an education and travel, such as a boyhood trip to Rome.

Laurence's oldest brother, George Laurence, stood to inherit his father's title, and by 1805, he had three sons (the oldest of whom would inherit from George) and a daughter.

Laurence's father would have preferred him to follow a career in the church, as his second son did, but Laurence found the prospect unappealing. He ran away from home before his father let him join the Royal Navy at age 12.

As a young midshipman, he was once taken prisoner by the French, and treated with perfect courtesy, which left a deep impression as to how prisoners should be treated. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1791.

Laurence served on first or second rate ships of the line for most of his naval career, and considered himself fortunate in his postings. As a young lieutenant at the age of 17, however, he served on the HMS Shorewise under Captain Barstowe, a coarse man who had risen through the ranks to become captain. He was conscious of his own lack of social graces and took his resentment out on those who made him feel that lack, such as young Laurence, whom he punished mercilessly.

Among other billets, he served on the HMS Goliath as a lieutenant during the Battle of the Nile and received a decoration for his service there. He also visited India prior to 1805, presumably during his naval service.

Prior to becoming an aviator, Laurence had the prospect of marriage to Edith Galman, whom he had known since childhood, but they were not formally engaged. He was four years her senior.

At the time of Temeraire's hatching in 1805, Laurence had been away from England for most of the past four years.

Laurence's personal habits were formed by his upbringing and his time in the Navy, which included observing the formalities of dress and personal interaction. He preferred his clothing to be well-kept and was distressed by the haphazard way in which aviators tended to pack. He was also unaccustomed to their casual social behavior.

Accustomed to the all-male Navy and only formal social interaction with women (except servants), he is initially deeply uncomfortable in dealing with women in the Aerial Corps. He adjusted, however, and formed a relationship with Jane Roland during September 1805 while both were at the Dover covert.