Editing The Bellicose Prince

{{Major spoiler}}{{Character
|image1 = Maggot.png 
|location = [[The Shuttered Palace]]
|name = Arthur William Patrick Albert
|relationships=[[The Empress]] (mother)<br>[[The Consort]] (father)<br>[[The Royal Family]] (siblings)
}}<blockquote>''"It was all and yet none of these. You must return, and return again, until you have eaten your way through to your own rotten core, and devoured it. Until then, this torture is no less than you deserve."<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London'']</ref>''</blockquote>The '''Bellicose Prince '''is the seventh child and third son of the [[The Empress|Empress]] and her [[The Consort|Consort]]. He is a veteran of [[London]]'s Army, and his room is filled with military memorabilia.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Gift_(Story) The Gift, ''Fallen London''] ''"Battlefield dioramas fill a half-dozen tables. Lead soldiers skirmish in miniature forests. A tin cavalry charge across a brassy desert. Weapons hang on the walls. A splintered musket. Notched sabres. A spear, tasselled with golden strands."''</ref>

As a child, Prince Arthur was enthralled by war; he staged mock battles with tin soldiers and dreamed of one day leading the Empire's armies.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"The Empire billows outwards like smoke from a roaring fire. War is what fuels it. One day you shall lead an army into battle yourself, and you must be ready. You line tin soldiers along the nursery carpet and order them to massacre a horde of marauding dolls. With a paper tricorne atop your head, you mount your hobby-horse and charge at the enemy troops."''</ref> In a key difference from real-world history, his mother paid little mind to his interests.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"When the day is won, you march to your mother's room to inform her of your triumph, but she closes the door in your face."''</ref> After the [[The Fall of London|Fall]], he and his siblings were granted an immense supply of [[Gaoler's Honey|red honey]] — but as he consumed the memories of soldiers, he found the grim reality of war far different from the glory he had imagined. He abandoned the honey, which temporarily spared him from transforming into a monster like most of [[The Royal Family|his siblings]].<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"There is more honey than you could possibly eat, in any flavour you desire. You ask for soldiers' memories, but there must be something wrong with the honey because these recollections taste only of boredom and pain. You cast the spoon aside and watch as your siblings eat, and grow monstrous."''</ref>

When [[London]] launched the [[Campaign of '68]] against [[Hell]], however, Arthur seized his chance.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"You are a young man now, and London is at war. Valiant soldiers are riding into Hell to rescue it from itself, just as the Empire's forces once spread across the Surface. This time, you shall be among them."''</ref> He fled the [[The Shuttered Palace|Palace]] and joined the Campaign in disguise, selling his family's possessions to fund his way in.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"When you were last seen outside the palace, you were just a boy, so no one will recognise you now. Your family are too honey-drunk to notice as you gather their trinkets so that you can pay your way to the front. You shall spill devil blood on the fields of Hell!"''</ref> But just like his experience with honey, the horrors of trench warfare quickly brought him down to earth.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"You dreamed of a cavalry charge, but instead your platoon scurries into a trench like rats. The other men huddle together and try to sleep, but you keep yourself apart from them. There is no majesty in their souls."''</ref> As the tide turned against London, the higher-ups issued orders to retreat, but Arthur, still seeking glory, burned the letter sent to his platoon.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"The lieutenant is a coward, and will not advance. When a rider brings him an envelope, you intercept it. It contains orders to retreat. Your heartbeat quickens. This campaign is your last chance for glory, and if you return to London—You burn the letter."''</ref> The platoon was ambushed by Hellish forces;<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"Incandescent grubs bubble out of the earth, filling the trenches. They stink of your deepest shame. Most men fall to their knees into the glowing mire, but one hauls himself out of the trench and flees across the thorn-laced plains of Hell. In tears, you stumble after him until he is lost from view amid the roses."''</ref> the entire unit was captured except for Arthur and one other man, who both escaped as deserters.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"Alone, you crawl up an outcrop and fumble for your field-glasses. You watch helplessly as devils storm the glowing trenches, and herd the rest of the platoon into cages. This is your doing."''</ref> Arthur's guilt in causing this series of events took a massive toll on his self-image,<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"Back at the palace, you stare at the military murals in disgust. Perhaps if you could understand how you became so despicable, you could reverse the process."''</ref> and he turned to red honey again, including consuming honey made from his own memories.<ref name=":0" /> With his habit renewed, he was transformed into the miserable maggot of a man he had always believed himself to be.<ref name=":0">[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"For weeks, you let the bees tear away pieces of your mind. You relive the torture every time you swallow your own honey, but the agony is nothing to that of confronting yourself. Sometimes, the pain recedes enough for you to see what is happening to your body, but it comes as no surprise. This new form matches who you have always been."''</ref>

He is now a "weeping, horse-sized grub."<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Gift_(Story) The Gift, ''Fallen London''] ''"The carcass of a goat stretches across the table. Around it, horrors congregate. [...] A weeping, horse-sized grub half-mounts the table [...]"''</ref><ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"There is an undulating creature on the Bellicose Prince's bed, almost the size of a horse. In the low light, you cannot make out its form."''</ref><ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"The creature's translucent flesh spasms, sending rivulets of slime into the filthy counterpane. Its midsection is barely contained by a sheath of red fabric, and its tapered tail spills onto the floor. Its frilled mouth is smeared with honey, which froths as it tries to scream."''</ref> In his current form, Arthur cannot speak but may communicate through other means.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"[...] He cannot talk, but he can communicate just well enough to bid me do that—" he hangs his head, "—and something else."''</ref> In the mirror, Arthur is a middle-aged, mustached man with pale blue eyes; he wears a military uniform adorned with medals.<ref>[https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_Crown_of_Thorns A Crown of Thorns, ''Fallen London''] ''"A middle-aged man in regimental dress writhes upon the bed, damp with sweat, his head clutched in his hands. His medals clink as he spasms, and he cries out in pain. After some moments the worst of the torture appears to pass, and he drops his hands, revealing a moustache stained red with honey. He turns his pale blue eyes to you, but sees nothing."''</ref>

== Historical Inspiration ==
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Arthur,_Duke_of_Connaught_and_Strathearn Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn] (1850-1942) was the third son and seventh child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Born at Buckingham Palace and christened Arthur William Patrick Albert, he shared a birthday with his godfather the Duke of Wellington, and was named after him. Arthur was reportedly Queen Victoria's favorite child.

Arthur enrolled at the Royal Military Academy in 1866 and went on to pursue a distinguished military career. He served around the British Empire, strengthening its influence in Canada, Egypt, and India. He achieved the rank of full general in 1893 and was promoted to field marshal in 1902. In 1911, Arthur was appointed Governor General of Canada, becoming the first member of the British royal family to hold the position. During his five-year tenure, he was actively involved in military recruitment and philanthropy, especially during the early years of World War I; made extensive renovations to Rideau Hall, the Governor General's official residence; and learned to ice-skate (this was simply too amusing not to include).

Arthur married Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia in 1879, and they had three children. Margaret became Crown Princess of Sweden by marriage, while "Young Arthur" married his first cousin once removed. The youngest, Patricia, was very popular with Canadians during her father's governorship, but eventually relinquished her status as a princess and married a Royal Navy admiral. After his term in Canada, (the elder) Arthur continued his involvement with various public and military engagements for the rest of his life; he died in 1942, at the age of 91, at a royal residence in Surrey.

==References==
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