Of War and Women
by
D. Allen Henry
© D. Allen Henry 2015
On the Cover
Photo taken in 1946 of Odette Marie-Céline Sansom (1912-1995), George Cross, MBE. Odette Sansom served as a courier with F Section, Special Operations Executive.
From: Imperial War Museums (photograph no. HU 3213, collection no. 6101-02)
Downloaded at:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odette_Hallowes#/media/File:Odette_Sansom.jpg
{{PD-UKGov}}
Photo edited by the author
Also by D. Allen Henry
at
The Starry Message
Hawk Banks
Those Who Fought for Us
My Father the God
Enlisting Redemption
Finding Patience
Dedication
To all those women who fought for us…
Preface
The twentieth century was dominated by a succession of wars, two of which were on a global scale never before seen on this planet. As such, the effects of those wars profoundly influenced the course of history. I am speaking of course of The Great War (termed World War I in the United States), World War II, and to a lesser extent, The Vietnam War, and the Gulf Wars. Although much has been written about the history of these wars (especially the first two), much less has been written about the effect of these wars on the lives of those who lived (and died) through them.
The Sutherland Saga consists of a sequence of four novels, each of which chronicles the lives of one generation of the fictitious Sutherland family, the patriarch being the Earl of Winston. Set against the backdrop of world-changing events of the twentieth century, the saga traces the travails of the Earls of Winston and their loved ones. Having been awarded the Earldom of Winston by King James the First, the ancestral home of the Sutherland family is located at Wharton Manor in Gloucestershire, England.
I have chosen each of the four wars mentioned above as the backdrop for one of the stories within The Sutherland Saga. Accordingly, the first book in the series depicts events during the era of World War I, whereas the second book spans the period of World War II. The timing for the third book is during the Vietnam War, and the fourth in the series spans a fifteen year period roughly corresponding to the Second Gulf War, thereby leading up to present day. As such, the plots are strongly connected to their associated wars and, although the storylines are intimately related to English culture, there is also a strong thread of both Scottish and American ancestry evident as the saga evolves.
I have also written an ancillary novel, My Father the God, which may be viewed as a spin-off of the first novel in the series. This last novel in the series may be read as a standalone story, or in tandem with the second novel in the series, Of War and Women.
The idea for the Sutherland Series was born from my own experiences, travels, loves, and losses, spanning a lifetime. While the stories themselves, including the primary characters, are entirely fictional, the places are not. In addition, I have, where appropriate, included historical figures who played significant roles in the events portrayed with the series. Indeed, I have attempted to portray both historical events and historical figures within the series as accurately as possible. Where I have erred, I offer my sincere apologies.
Of War and Women, the second novel in the series, depicts the lives of the Sutherland family spanning the era of the thirteenth Earldom of Winston, the backdrop for the events depicted herein being the period spanning World War II. As such, it may be read as a standalone novel, or it may be viewed as a sequel to Those Who Fought for Us, the characters being related but the plotlines independent. I hope that this account will provide an enlightening and enjoyable experience for you the reader.
D.A.H.
Figure Credits
Fig. 1 Map Showing Gloucestershire, graphic drawn by the author {{PD-dallenhenry}}
Fig. 2 Graphic Depiction of the North African Campaign, graphic by Wikipedia contributor Stephen Kirrage, accessed in November, 2013 at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WesternDesertBattle_Area1941_en.svg
{{CC BY-SA 1.0}}
Fig. 3 Trant’s Route Across France, graphic by Wikipedia contributor Sting (modified by the author, accessed in November, 2013 at https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:France_map_Lambert-93_topographic-blank.svg
{{CC BY-SA 1.0}}
Fig. 4. Felicité’s Route Across Europe, graphic accessed in November, 2014 at
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Blank_Template_for_Greater_Europe.PNG
{{CC0 1.0}}
Author’s Note Regarding Sectional Perspectives
The reader will notice that throughout the text I have delineated sections by the use of boldface titles. Each title normally describes the setting location and date for the section that immediately follows. However, when only a date is included, it is implied that the location for that section is identical to that of the previous section. Furthermore, each section begins with a few boldface words immediately after the section setting. The name of the first person included in boldface within the section is intended to be the person whose perspective is taken within that section of the text.
Author’s Note Concerning Language
The characters in this novel come from several English-speaking nations, including England, Scotland, Wales, and the United States. Furthermore, the story is set within the central portion of the twentieth century. There is no doubt that the vernacular forms of the English language deployed by many of the characters found herein would have been markedly different from one another. In my view, any attempt to accurately portray these various differences in language would significantly detract from the story that I am attempting to articulate. With this conjecture in mind, I have ‘simplified’ the language deployed by the characters.
In some cases, I have employed terms that are crudely representative of the way that the user might have spoken, based on where they were described within the storyline to have been born. Where I have done so, it is with the intention of either intensifying the plot or as a subtle reminder of the character’s lineage. I have attempted to use these terms accurately based on my own research. Where I have erred, I apologize to those who take offense.
Chronology
1615 – Alan Sutherland is appointed the first Earl of Winston by King James I of England
1883 – William Sutherland becomes the Twelfth Earl of Winston
1893 – Robert Sutherland is born in Gloucestershire, England
1895 – Margaret MacCreedy is born in Melbourne, Australia
1914-1918 – The Great War
1917 – Trant Sutherland is born in London
1919 – Robert Sutherland marries Margaret MacCreedy
1920 – Robert Sutherland becomes the thirteenth Earl of Winston on the death of his father, William Sutherland
1919 – Felicité Delacroix is born in Italy, but moves to France when her mother dies shortly thereafter
1931 – Felicité moves to England with her father
September 1, 1939 – World War II begins
June, 1940 – France surrenders to Germany
June, 1940 – Trant and Felicité meet at a party at Wharton Manor
July – October, 1940 – Battle of Britain
December 7, 1941 – Pearl Harbor is attacked by the Japanese, The United States enters the war
February, 1942 – Trant is transferred to North Africa
March, 1943 – Felicité is transferred to occupied France
June 6, 1944 – The Allied Invasion of Normandy begins
July, 1944 – Felicité is captured and transported to Auschwitz Concentration Camp