The Scarlet Pimpernel Explained

The Scarlet Pimpernel
Author:Baroness Orczy
Country:United Kingdom
Language:English
Set In:1792, during the early stages of the French Revolution
Publisher:Greening
Pub Date:1905
Pages:319
Preceded By:The First Sir Percy
Followed By:Sir Percy Leads the Band

The Scarlet Pimpernel is the first novel in a series of historical fiction by Baroness Orczy, published in 1905. It was written after her stage play of the same title (co-authored with her husband Montague Barstow) enjoyed a long run in London, having opened in Nottingham in 1903.

The novel is set during the Reign of Terror following the start of the French Revolution. The title is the nom de guerre of its hero and protagonist, a chivalrous Englishman who rescues aristocrats before they are sent to the guillotine. Sir Percy Blakeney leads a double life: apparently nothing more than a wealthy fop, but in reality, a formidable swordsman and a quick-thinking master of disguise and escape artist. The band of gentlemen who assist him are the only ones who know of his secret identity. He is known by his symbol, a simple flower, the scarlet pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis).

Opening at the New Theatre in London's West End on 5 January 1905, the play became a favourite of British audiences, eventually playing more than 2,000 performances and becoming one of the most popular shows staged in London. Published after the success of the play, the novel was an immediate success, gaining Orczy a following of readers in Britain and the rest of the world. The stage play and subsequent novel, with their hero and villain, were so popular that they inspired a revival of classic villainy at the time.

Orczy's premise of a daring hero who cultivates a secret identity disguised by a meek or ineffectual manner proved enduring. Zorro, Doctor Syn, the Shadow, the Spider, the Phantom, Superman and Batman followed within a few decades, and the trope remains a popular one in serial fiction today. Read by Stan Lee as a boy, the Marvel co-creator called The Scarlet Pimpernel "the first character who could be called a superhero."

Plot summary

In 1792, an early stage of the French Revolution, Marguerite St. Just, a beautiful French actress, is married to wealthy English fop Sir Percy Blakeney, baronet. Before their marriage Marguerite took revenge upon the Marquis de St. Cyr, who had ordered her brother beaten for his romantic interest in the Marquis' daughter, with the unintended consequence that the Marquis and his sons were guillotined. When Percy found out, he became estranged from his wife. Marguerite, for her part, became disillusioned with Percy's shallow, dandyish lifestyle.

Meanwhile, the "League of the Scarlet Pimpernel", a secret society of twenty English aristocrats, "one to command, and nineteen to obey", is engaged in rescuing their French counterparts from the daily executions of the Reign of Terror. Their leader, the mysterious Scarlet Pimpernel, takes his nom de guerre from the small, wayside red flower he draws on his messages. Despite being the talk of London society, only his followers and possibly the Prince of Wales know the Pimpernel's true identity. Like many others, Marguerite is entranced by the Pimpernel's daring exploits.

At a ball attended by the Blakeneys, Percy's verse about the "elusive Pimpernel" becomes an instant success. But Marguerite is being blackmailed by Citizen Chauvelin, the wily new French envoy to England: Chauvelin's agents have stolen a letter proving that her beloved brother Armand is in league with the Pimpernel. Chauvelin offers to trade Armand's life for her help against the Pimpernel. Contemptuous of her seemingly witless and unloving husband, Marguerite does not go to him for help or advice. Instead, she passes along information which enables Chauvelin to learn the Pimpernel's true identity.

Later that night, Marguerite finally tells her husband of the terrible danger threatening her brother and pleads for his help. Percy promises to save him. After Percy unexpectedly leaves for France, Marguerite discovers to her horror (and simultaneous delight) that he is the Pimpernel. He had hidden behind the persona of a dull, slow-witted fop to deceive the world. He had not told Marguerite because of his worry that she might betray him, as she had the Marquis de St. Cyr. Desperate to save her husband, she decides to pursue Percy to France to warn him that Chauvelin knows his identity and his purpose. She persuades Sir Andrew Ffoulkes to accompany her, but because of the tide and the weather, neither they nor Chauvelin can leave immediately.

At Calais, Percy openly approaches Chauvelin in the Chat gris, a decrepit inn whose owner is in Percy's pay. Despite Chauvelin's best efforts, the Englishman escapes by offering Chauvelin a pinch of snuff, which turns out to be pure pepper. Through a bold plan executed right under Chauvelin's nose, Percy rescues Marguerite's brother Armand and the Comte de Tournay, the father of a schoolfriend of Marguerite's. Marguerite pursues Percy right to the very end, determined to either warn him or share his fate. Percy, heavily disguised, is captured by Chauvelin, who does not recognise him, so he is able to escape.

With Marguerite's love and courage amply proven, Percy's ardour is rekindled. Safely back on board their schooner, the Day Dream, the happily reconciled couple returns to England. Sir Andrew marries the count's daughter, Suzanne.

Characters

Newly appointed envoy to England from Revolutionary France. He seeks the Scarlet Pimpernel, who is allowing aristocrats to escape their fate under the new regime.

Literary significance

The title character, Sir Percy Blakeney, a wealthy English fop who transforms into a formidable swordsman and a quick-thinking escape artist, established the "hero with a secret identity" in popular culture, a trope that would be seen in subsequent literary creations such as Don Diego de la Vega (Zorro), Kent Allard/Lamont Cranston (The Shadow), Clark Kent (Superman), and Bruce Wayne (Batman).[1] The Scarlet Pimpernel exhibits characteristics that would become standard superhero conventions, including the penchant for disguise, use of a signature weapon (sword), ability to out-think and outwit his adversaries, and a calling card (he leaves behind a scarlet pimpernel at each of his interventions).[2] By drawing attention to his alter ego, Blakeney hides behind his public face as a slow-thinking, foppish playboy, and he also establishes a network of supporters, The League of the Scarlet Pimpernel, that aids his endeavours.[2] A plot technique from Pimpernel also used by some superheroes is the spurious "love triangle", where a woman is torn between attraction to her staid husband and the dashing hero—although they are in reality the same man.[3] Marvel co-creator Stan Lee stated: "The Scarlet Pimpernel was the first superhero I had read about, the first character who could be called a superhero."[3]

The popular success of the novel is considered to be based on the myth of the aristocratic hero with a double life, along with the love story and conflict of loyalties.[4] Dugan says that "Behind the wigs and Mechlin lace cuffs lies an enduring human story of love, misunderstandings, conflict of loyalties, audacious bravery – and a dramatic double life." and this is a major part of the story's enduring popularity. Another aspect is the "Englishness" of the hero in the era when the British Empire began to shrink.[5]

Historical allusions

As a writer, Orczy often alluded to historical events and figures but adapted these freely in creating her tales.

Citizen Chauvelin, the recurring villain of the Scarlet Pimpernel series, is based to some extent on the real-life Bernard-François, marquis de Chauvelin, who survived the Revolutionary period to serve as an official under Napoleon. He was a noted liberal Deputy under the Bourbon Restoration.

Other historical figures who appear in Orczy's Pimpernel series include:

Publications

Initial publication

Orczy wrote the original manuscript for The Scarlet Pimpernel in five weeks during what she described as "The happiest time of her life".[6] It was rejected by most publishing houses in London, despite her previous successes with her armchair detective stories, primarily The Old Man in the Corner which first appeared in The Royal Magazine in 1901 in a series of six "Mysteries of London". Eventually a friend put Orczy in contact with the actors Fred Terry and Julia Neilson who wanted a new romantic drama. The Scarlet Pimpernel was produced and adapted by Neilson and Terry and the play opened on 15 October 1903 at Nottingham's Theatre Royal, but it was not a success. Terry, however, had confidence in the play and, with a rewritten last act, took it to London's West End where it opened at the New Theatre on 5 January 1905. The premiere of the London production was enthusiastically received by the audience, but critics considered the play 'old-fashioned.'[7] In spite of negative reviews, the play became a popular success, running 122 performances and enjoying numerous revivals. The Scarlet Pimpernel became a favourite of London audiences, playing more than 2,000 performances and becoming one of the most popular shows staged in the United Kingdom.[8] The stage play (and subsequent novel), with their hero and villain, were so popular that they inspired a revival of classic villainy at the time.[9]

The novel The Scarlet Pimpernel was published two years after the play opened and was an immediate success. Orczy gained a following of readers in Britain and throughout the world. The popularity of the novel encouraged her to write a number of sequels for her "reckless daredevil" over the next 35 years. The play was performed to great acclaim in France, Italy, Germany and Spain, while the novel was popular across the former British Empire and translated into 16 languages. Subsequently, the story has been adapted for television, film, a musical and other media.

The commercial success of The Scarlet Pimpernel allowed Orczy and her husband to live out their lives in luxury. Over the years, they lived on an estate in Kent, a bustling London home and an opulent villa in Monte Carlo. Conceiving the character while standing on a platform on the London Underground,[3] Orczy wrote in her autobiography, Links in the Chain of Life:

I have so often been asked the question: "But how did you come to think of The Scarlet Pimpernel?" And my answer has always been: "It was God's will that I should." And to you moderns, who perhaps do not believe as I do, I will say, "In the chain of my life, there were so many links, all of which tended towards bringing me to the fulfillment of my destiny."[10]

Sequels

Orczy wrote numerous sequels, none of which became as famous as The Scarlet Pimpernel. Many of the sequels revolve around French characters whom Sir Percy has met and is attempting to rescue. His followers, such as Lord Tony Dewhurst, Sir Andrew Ffoulkes, Lord Hastings, and Armand St. Just (Marguerite's brother), also take their turn in major roles.

In addition to the direct sequels about Sir Percy and his league, Orczy's related books include The Laughing Cavalier (1914) and The First Sir Percy (1921), about an ancestor of the Pimpernel's; Pimpernel and Rosemary (1924), about a descendant; and The Scarlet Pimpernel Looks at the World (1933), a depiction of the 1930s world from the point of view of Sir Percy.

Some of her non-related Revolutionary-period novels reference the Scarlet Pimpernel or the League, most notably The Bronze Eagle (1915).

Novels

Collections of short stories

Omnibus editions

Related books

Members of the League

The Life and Exploits of the Scarlet Pimpernel, a fictional biography of Percy Blakeney published in 1938, named the nineteen members of the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel.[11]

Three members of the League have betrayed their oath of loyalty:

Marguerite, Lady Blakeney, is also named as a member of the League in the book Mam'zelle Guillotine, but it is not known when she was formally enrolled. The Prince Regent is rumored to also be a member of the League, but in the original novel he refuses to confirm or deny this, saying "My lips are sealed!"; in the novel The Elusive Pimpernel, Sir Percy tells Marguerite that he has had to report to the Prince before joining her at the village gala.

Chronology of novels in the series

Orczy did not publish her Pimpernel stories as a strict chronological series, and in fact, the settings of the books in their publication sequence may vary forward or backward in time by months or centuries. While some readers enjoy following the author's development of the Pimpernel character as it was realised, others prefer to read the stories in historical sequence. Taking into account occasional discrepancies in the dates of events (real and fictional) referred to in the stories, the following is an approximate chronological listing of Orczy's Scarlet Pimpernel novels and short stories:

Book TitleSettingPublishedNotes
The Laughing CavalierJanuary 16241914
The First Sir PercyMarch 16241921
The Scarlet PimpernelSeptember–October 17921905
Sir Percy Leads the BandJanuary 17931936
Adventures of the Scarlet Pimpernel17931929each short story is set in a different month of 1793.
The League of the Scarlet PimpernelJuly 17931919
A Child of the RevolutionJuly 1793–July 17941932
I Will RepayAugust–September 17931906
The Elusive PimpernelSeptember–October 17931908
Lord Tony's WifeNovember–December 17931917
The Way of the Scarlet Pimpernellate 17931933concurrent with preceding 2 or 3 novels
EldoradoJanuary 17941913
Mam'zelle GuillotineJanuary 17941940concurrent with Eldorado
The Triumph of the Scarlet PimpernelApril–July 17941922
Sir Percy Hits BackMay–June 17941927
In the Rue Monge (short story)1790s1931unknown when set as no dates are mentioned
Pimpernel and Rosemary1922–19241924

Adaptations

Hollywood took to the Pimpernel early and often, although most of the Pimpernel movies have been based on a melange of the original book and another Orczy novel, Eldorado. The best known of the Pimpernel movies is the 1934 The Scarlet Pimpernel starring Leslie Howard, which is often considered the definitive portrayal and adaptation.[14]

Films

In 1923, Fred Terry and Julia Nelson bought the sole performance right to a stageplay based on The Scarlet Pimpernel. Orczy sued the two in an attempt to claim a separate right of performance for films, but was unsuccessful. As a result of the case, people who controlled a stage performance right under the English Copyright Act were entitled to create films with the same right.[15]

Stage

Television

Radio

Parodies and media references

The novel has been parodied or used as source material in a variety of media, such as films, TV, stage works, literature, and games:

Later usage of Pimpernel

The Tartan Pimpernel

Inspired by the title Scarlet Pimpernel, the Tartan Pimpernel was a nickname given to the Reverend Donald Caskie (1902–1983), formerly minister of the Paris congregation of the Church of Scotland, for aiding over 2,000 Allied service personnel to escape from occupied France during World War II.

The American Pimpernel

Varian Fry was a 32-year-old Harvard-educated classicist and editor from New York City who helped save thousands of endangered refugees who were caught in Vichy France, helping them to escape from Nazi terror during World War II. His story is told in American Pimpernel: The Man Who Saved the Artists on Hitler's Death List.

The Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican

Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty was an Irish priest who saved thousands of people, British and American servicemen and Jews, during World War II while in the Vatican in Rome. His story is told in two books and a film:

The Black Pimpernel

Harald Edelstam (1913–1989) was a Swedish diplomat. During World War II, he earned the nickname Svarta nejlikan ("the Black Pimpernel") for helping Norwegian resistance fighters in escape from the Germans.[44] Stationed in Chile in the 1970s, he arranged for the escape of numerous refugees from the military junta of Augusto Pinochet; this brought him into conflict with the regime, and he eventually was forced to leave the country.

This name was also given to Nelson Mandela prior to his arrest and long incarceration for his anti-apartheid activities in South Africa due to his effective use of disguises when evading capture by the police.[45] [46] [47]

Raoul Wallenberg

Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat, was directly inspired by "Pimpernel" Smith, a 1941 British anti-Nazi propaganda thriller, to begin rescuing Hungarian Jews during World War II.[48] The film had been banned in Sweden, but Wallenberg and his sister Nina were invited to a private screening at the British Embassy in Stockholm. Enthralled by Professor Smith (played by Leslie Howard), who saved thousands of Jews from the Nazis, Nina stated, "We thought the film was amazing. When we got up from our seats, Raoul said, 'that is the kind of thing I would like to do.[49] Wallenberg issued false passports identifying the Jews as Swedish nationals, and is credited with rescuing at least 15,000 Jews. He disappeared in Eastern Europe after the war, and is believed to have died in a Soviet prison camp.[50]

South Africa

"Behind the scenes, Mandela worked very closely with Walter Sisulu, who was now being pursued by the police. Z.K. Matthews told the Cape ANC in June that Sisulu was operating behind the 'Iron Curtain' of the Transkei as a Scarlet Pimpernel (before Mandela inherited the title): 'They sought him here, they sought him there, they sought him everywhere.[51] Quote cites: Karis & Carter, Vol.3, op. cit., p.128

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Naversen, Ron . Masquerade: Essays on Tradition and Innovation Worldwide . Deborah . Bell . The (Super) Hero's Masquerade . 217ff . McFarland . 2015 . 978-0-7864-7646-6.
  2. Book: Robb. Brian J.. A Brief History of Superheroes: From Superman to the Avengers, the Evolution of Comic Book Legends. May 2014. Hatchet UK.
  3. News: Beat it Batman – this foppish baronet was the world's first superhero . Hodgkinson . Thomas W . . 9 March 2022 . 13 March 2022.
  4. Book: https://books.google.com/books?id=r6d9MlgiwssC&pg=PT305 . Baroness Orczy's The Scarlet Pimpernel: A Publishing History . Dugan, Sally . 2012 . Ashgate Publishing . 978-1-4094-2717-9 . Introduction . 13 February 2016.
  5. 23609988. Review . Carroll, Michael Adam . Rocky Mountain Review . 67 . 2 . Fall 2013 . 158–160 . 10.1353/rmr.2013.0019 . 161658929 .
  6. Web site: Barbadoes. A Poem . . .
  7. Web site: A Brief Biography Of Baroness Orczy, The Creator Of The Scarlet Pimpernel . 2023-03-07 . www.portwashington.com.
  8. Book: Kabatchnik, Amnon . 2008 . Blood on the Stage: Milestone Plays of Crime, Mystery, and Detection: an Annotated Repertoire, 1900 - 1925 . 28 . Scarecrow Press.
  9. Rothkirch . Alyce von . 'His Face Was Livid, Dreadful, with a Foam at the Corners of His Mouth': A Typology of Villains in Classic Detective Stories . 2013 . The Modern Language Review . 108 . 4 . 1042–1063 . 10.5699/modelangrevi.108.4.1042 . 10.5699/modelangrevi.108.4.1042 . 0026-7937.
  10. Book: Orczy . Emma . Links in the Chain of Life . 1947 . Hutchinson . 51.
  11. Book: Blakeney, John . The Life and Exploits of the Scarlet Pimpernel . 1938 . Appendix I . 7 November 2012 .
  12. Web site: The League of the Scarlet Pimpernel.
  13. Web site: The_Scarlet_Pimpernel.
  14. Book: Richards . Jeffrey . Swordsmen of the Screen: From Douglas Fairbanks to Michael York . 2014 . Routledge . 163.
  15. News: London Ruling on Play Film Rights . 24 June 1924 . Variety . 2019-12-22 . New York, NY: Variety Publishing Company.
  16. News: The Scarlet Pimpernel . 16 August 2022 . This is theatre.com.
  17. Web site: The Scarlet Pimpernel – Broadway Play – Original | IBDB .
  18. Web site: Umeda Arts Theatre The Scarlet Pimpernel Website. 24 April 2017.
  19. https://www.radiotimes.com/programme/b-sgvb6k/bbc-sundaynight-theatre-season-1/ Episode 6: The Scarlet Pimpernel
  20. Web site: BBC Programme Index. 5 February 1950 .
  21. https://www.radiotimes.com/programme/b-fpgc4b/bbc-sundaynight-theatre-season-2/?episode=b-llbkg8 Episode 2: The Scarlet Pimpernel
  22. Web site: BBC Programme Index. 14 January 1951 .
  23. https://www.radiotimes.com/programme/b-2nq1yr/bbc-sundaynight-theatre-season-6/?episode=b-5ukvu4 Episode 38: The Scarlet Pimpernel
  24. Web site: BBC Programme Index. 18 September 1955 .
  25. https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/dupont-show-of-the-month/episodes-season-4/1030157190/ The Scarlet Pimpernel
  26. Web site: "The DuPont Show of the Month" the Scarlet Pimpernel (TV Episode 1960) - IMDb. IMDb.
  27. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7959152/ Den røde pimpernell
  28. Web site: Search - BBC Programme Index.
  29. [David Quinlan (film critic)|Quinlan, David]
  30. News: The Scarlet Pimpernel . 9 July 2021 . BBC Four.
  31. Web site: The_Scarlet_Pimpernel. 18 March 2018. Internet Archive.
  32. Web site: Episode 1, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Drama - BBC Radio 4. BBC. 18 March 2018.
  33. Book: Beck . Jerry . Jerry Beck . I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat: Fifty Years of Sylvester and Tweety . 1991 . Henry Holt and Co . New York . 0-8050-1644-9 . 101.
  34. News: Ireland great Jack Kyle passes away . deviated . https://web.archive.org/web/20141205044907/http://www.espnscrum.com/ireland/rugby/story/249445.html . 5 December 2014 . . 28 November 2014 . 30 January 2024.
  35. Book: Hibbin, Sally . Hibbin, Nina . What a Carry On: The Official History of the Carry On Film Series . Hamlyn . London . 1998 . 0-600-55819-3 . 98–99.
  36. Book: Scott, Professor Derek B . 2013 . The Ashgate Research Companion to Popular Musicology . 35 . Ashgate Publishing.
  37. Book: Everett, William A . Block, Geoffrey Holden . Sigmund Romberg . registration . Scarlet Pimpernel red shadow. . 160 . New Haven . Yale University Press . 2007 . 978-0-300-11183-5.
  38. Web site: The Archivist . Library and Archives Canada . 10 April 2000 . 29 October 2007.
  39. Web site: Episode Guide for the Wayne and Shuster Show . TV Archive Canada . 2013 . 13 February 2016.
  40. Barnes, Tania . Q&A: Lauren Willig . Library Journal . 15 November 2004 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20081229120212/http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA479161.html . 29 December 2008 .
  41. Web site: Steve Jackson Games . Sjgames.com . 19 March 2013.
  42. Writers for Children XIII: Geoffrey Trease . The School Librarian and School Library Review . 13 . 1965 . 134.
  43. News: 'Scarlet Pimpernel' is last hope for death row woman . The Telegraph . 19 January 2001 . 13 February 2016 . Butcher, Tim.
  44. Web site: Human Rights in the 80s: Seeing through both eyes . Joan Baez . Baez, Joan . Commonwealth Club of California . 6 November 1981 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070926212411/http://www.commonwealthclub.org/archive/20thcentury/81-11baez-speech.html . 26 September 2007 .
  45. Time Magazine . The Black Pimpernel . https://web.archive.org/web/20071017194553/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,870031,00.html . dead . 17 October 2007 . 17 August 1962 . subscription . 13 February 2016.
  46. News: The New York Times . Nelson Mandela, South Africa's Liberator as Prisoner and President, Dies at 95 . 6 December 2013 . 13 February 2016.
  47. Web site: . NYT Takes Mandela's Death as a Chance to Mock His Fight to Free His Country . Naureckas . Jim . Jim Naureckas . 6 December 2013 . 13 February 2016.
  48. Web site: Yad Vashem database . who saved the lives of tens of thousands of Jews in Budapest during World War II ... and put some 15,000 Jews into 32 safe houses. . 12 February 2007 . Yad Vashem. https://web.archive.org/web/20070207032351/http://www1.yadvashem.org/search/index_search.html . 7 February 2007.
  49. Furlong, Ray. "Wallenberg family mark centenary with plea for truth." BBC News, 8 August 2012. Retrieved: 31 January 2021.
  50. Book: Linnéa, Sharon . Raoul Wallenberg: The Man Who Stopped Death . Jewish Publication Society of America . 1 May 1994 . 978-0827604483.
  51. Book: Sampson. Anthony. Mandela: The Authorized Biography. 1999–2000. HarperPress. London. 978-0-00-743797-9. 91.

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