Consequences Unforeseen

Istanbul 1991 - May - Bill reflecting on top of the castle tower.

Istanbul 1991 – May – Bill reflecting on top of the castle tower.

Bill continued to look out over the expanse of beauty and magnificence that was modern Istanbul. The sun, higher in the sky now highlighted the huge tankers and cruise ships which sounded their horns as if in welcome to a new day and a new dawn. “Maybe even a new world,” thought Douglas as his mind continued to wander back and forward in time.

His Uncle John shut up earlier to allow the younger man’s mind to reflect on the story here, but now it came back with its usual intensity and interrupted his revelry, saying,

“Stop daydreamin’ right now William, my boy.” Bill smiled at this as it registered. Uncle John only ever called him ‘William’ when a lecture was on the cards, so he prepared himself for the onslaught.

Big bad John continued, “Ye’ll be wonderin’ no doubt why Archie and James were here helping this Muslim take a wonderful city away form the Byzantine Christians when we’d fought on the Christian side in the Crusades. I know ye are because I wondered too; but here’s the truth.”

Bill knew better than to interrupt his Uncle. The voice in his head saved his skin on several past occasions, so he kept his mind open and his mouth closed.

Uncle John reflected further, “Ye know the English called us the ‘ghosts of war’ an’ no wonder. We’d wreak havoc on their armies, their cities and their castles and then vanish into thin air. They never ever figured it out an’ our ancestors did the same very thing here.

Archie and James were just young men when they were here, although middle aged is closer to the truth. They were maybe twenty five or twenty six when they were here, so forgive them the sex and debauchery they enjoyed,” and he chuckled, “But they were both to be dead by the time they were thirty, so hold them dear in yer heart.”

He continued, “Ye have to remember how it was for them and how angry they were at the bastard King, James II.

We were royalty ourselves back then wi’ Archibald the 4th Earl of Douglas marrying King Robert III’s daughter in 1401, so from then we all felt ourselves to be of Royal blood.

My God, when King Robert died, Archibald became Regent to the Throne, a King but in name. He then nurtured the Young boy who would become King James I, and still went off to war in France, had an illicit relationship with a young girl called Joan and fought along side her as her Lieutenant General with ten thousand of our kin against the English at Battle of Orleans.

He was so revered that he was given the title Duke of Tourraine and his dallying there sparked a subsect of our clan in France and in Italy; but I digress, that’s for another day. He got killed in his very next battle along with his son yer lookalike an’ they never came home. They sowed seed over there though, that’s for sure.”

Bill’s mind was spinning. His Uncle spoke to him often, but never with so much detail and vehemence. So there had to be more coming his way.

Big John sighed and continued, “But it gets worse. James I was assassinated in 1437 and his wife spent all of her time focused on hunting down his killers and their accomplices. We had nothing at all to do with it and she trusted us, but her son who was crowned King James II in the same year at the age of seven, was a different matter.

Archibald The 5th earl of Douglas was promoted to Lieutenant General of the Realm and had a powerful influence on all matters of State and Government but James hated the oversight of the man.

In 1440, at ten years-of-age the King decided to end the Douglas’ influence and arranged to have William Douglas the 6th Earl and his brother David assassinated at Edinburgh castle. Ye can imagine the effect this had on the Young Archie and his brother James. Their hatred of the King knew no bounds and they swore vengeance. It became even more of a personal vendetta whien the same rogue King personally stabbed their older brother William the 8th Earl while they were here in this bloddy castle."

Bill Douglas had heard this story before from his Uncle, but here it was now laid bare in great detail, just as clear as the city below, totally exposed in the early morning sunlight.

His Uncle was silent for a few minutes but continued in a softer tone, ‘So ye see laddie, it didn’t matter to them who’s money they got, just that they got external funding for their civil wars against the King.

Religion had no part in this and the Sultan here, well, he was a very wealthy man who needed help from more experienced masons and soldiers.”

Bill shook his head to clear it now that the voice was quiet, and he turned to see he had been the subject of some scrutiny these past moments. For how long he had no idea but his boss George Fraser said quietly, “Bill, are ye OK? Ye were talkin’ to yourself there and it didn’t make much sense to me.

Bill smiled and replied, ‘C’mon George, ye know my Uncle hassles me from time to time. He’s dead these past twelve years or so, but he will not rest until he’s seen me succeed in this life the two of you chose for me.”

Fraser protested his innocence, but the Douglas just held his hands up in dismissal and joined him on his way back down into the castle. There were final plans to be made today…