The Trumpet Major and His Brother Robert by Thomas Hardy (1880)
If the enemy lands next Autumn
The Trumpet Major and his Brother Robert (1880) is generally considered Hardy's lightest novel. Also the only one which could be called 'historical'. It is set on the Dorset coast in 1803-1805 centred round the mill village of 'Overcombe' ( Sutton Poyntze) not far from Budmoth (Weymouth) and overshadowed by the Napoleon's threat to invade southern England. Small communities are impacted by parading soldiers and later the Press Gang make their presence known. News sheets circulate warnings of Napoleon's mobilisation across the Channel at Boulogne. A warning beacon stands ready to be lit if needed. At one point a rumour circulates stating that Napoleon's 'Army of England' has landed. And villagers start to leave their homes.
The plot is centred around a young lady from Overcombe -Anne Garland-and three potential husbands: The local squire's son Festus Derriman, an annoying slob who Anne has to avoid, leading to some genuinely funny scenes and also some quite grim incidents, with an implied attempted rape scene. And two brothers, John Loveday, a sincere and conscientious soldier and trumpeter who is stationed back near his Dorset home whilst the invasion scare is on. Then there is Bob Loveday, a jolly optimistic but unreliable sailor.The themes of unrequited love and a battlefield death show that Hardy hadn't abandoned tragedy altogether when writing this novel.
King George III was a regular visitor to this part of Dorset, staying in 'Budmouth' (Weymouth). He appears at a local theatre, and the royal coach drives through Overcombe one night to much excitement. The King later meets one of the main characters.
Hardy biographer Claire Tomalin described this novel as a 'pot-boiler' though concedes that Hardy researched the history of the Napoleonic era in the British Museum ( which then contained the British Library) and from talking to local people. A record of Thomas Hardy's research, including looking at newspapers from early 1800's, has survived as The Trumpet Major Notebook, now held at the Dorset County Library in Dorchester. Ms Tomalin also advised that both Blackwood magazine and Macmillan's Magazine rejected the story, with Good Words magazine taking the story to publish in Britain and the States via instalments after swear words and a reference to Sunday travel were removed.Roger Ebbatson goes one further and states that Good Words insisted that some of the more amorous lines were deleted. EBBATSON The novel edition was published in October 1880. Hardy sent a copy to Queen Victoria, and to Edward Prince of Wales. TOMALIN
F.B. Pinion in The Hardy Companion advised that as well as researching in the British Museum, the author visited the Chelsea Hospital for Pensioners in 1877 and 1878, speaking to some veterans of Waterloo. Hardy also interviewed the daughter of Captain Thomas Hardy ( from HMS Victory).There were also Hardy's grandmother stories about the time as noted in his poem One We Knew, describing Napoleon's menace to Wessex and to England.
Along the southern strand,
And how each night brought tremors and trepidations
Lest morning should see him land."
The more unconvinced readers feel that there are 'Boys Adventure' elements, a local sailor just happens to serve on 'The Victory' after meeting Captain Hardy in person. The Press Gang try to rampage through the community and fail to catch their prey. Moreover, Roger Ebbaston maintains in his introduction " From the nicely observed realities of mill life the novel turns towards a world of naval derring-do owing little to historical reality."EBBASTON But this barb seems to ignore the fact that Hardy simply would not have had the novel published if he featured sailors or soldiers flogged and prostitutes scrambling to meet ships once the Royal Navy reached port. Recently Doctor Andrew Hewitt has done some sterling work looking at the role of a trumpet major during the Napoleonic era in organising musicians to play to drown out the cries of soldiers being flogged. .He made the case that The Trumpet Major is a work of commemoration rather than history, effectively masking a great deal of historical reality. HEWITT An important debate but again seems to overlook the limits imposed on Victorian novelists.
Defenders would argue that the novel is quite an affectionate look at a small rural community facing the calamity of a possible French landing. Underneath all the bluster it appears that everyone knows deep down that Napoleon's battle hard troops would make short work of the opposition if they manage to reach England. With hindsight the reader knows that the Army of England at Bolougne once moved east under Napoleon's command easily defeated the Austrian and Russian forces at Austerlitz in December 1805. It is also fairly clear now that around 23rd August 1805 Napoleon abandoned the plans to invade England McLYNN, though there is little evidence he feared being defeated once his army landed.
Part of the novel's charm are details of rural life, the plants and flowers, the crockery, the food, the working of the mill, and cider pressing. The reader learns of the ingredients of a white-pudding, and plenty of dialect. Hardy even had attempted writing the lyrics to a Napoleonic War anthem 'The Sergeant's Song' in 1878, which appeared in dialect in The Trumpet Major (1803) . A more standard English version was later published in Wessex Poems and other Verses (1903.
"When Lawyers strive to heal a breach,
And Parsons practise what they preach;
Then Little Boney he’ll pounce down,
And march his men on London town!
Rollicum-rorum, tol-lol-lorum,
Rollicum-rorum, tol-lol-lay!
When Justices hold equal scales,
And Rogues are only found in jails;
p. 44Then Little Boney he’ll pounce down,
And march his men on London town!
Rollicum-rorum, &c.
When Rich Men find their wealth a curse,
And fill therewith the Poor Man’s purse;
Then Little Boney he’ll pounce down,
And march his men on London town!
Rollicum-rorum, &c.
When Husbands with their Wives agree,
And Maids won’t wed from modesty;
Then Little Boney he’ll pounce down,
And march his men on London town!
Rollicum-rorum, tol-tol-lorum,
Rollicum-rorum, tol-lol-lay! "
Throughout the novel Hardy used the Italian version of the name 'Bonaparte' -Buonaparte for some unknown reason. Napoleon's nephew- Louis Napoleon- who later ruled Second Empire as Napoleon III, had to flee France in 1871 and settled in Britain,dying in 1873. His son, the Prince Imperial, died fighting for Britain during the Anglo-Zulu War in 1879. His funeral was held in Chiselhurst where he had lived with his mother the Empress Eugenie,whom Queen Victoria befriended.Hardy attended. TOMALIN . Napoleon Jerome Bonaparte ('Plon Plon'), cousin to the late Napoleon III, was present with his two sons, and assumed the head role of the Bonaparte clan.
Books
The Trumpet-Major, Thomas Hardy, edited by Roger EBBATSON, Penguin Classics 1984/1986 edition.
A Hardy Companion -A guide to the works of Thomas Hardy and their background F.B. PINION, The Macmillan Press, 1968
Thomas Hardy The Time-Torn Man, Claire TOMALIN,Viking/Penguin Books, 2006
Napoleon A Biography, Frank McLYNN,Pimlico, 1997
Texts
Youtube
The Trumpet-Major Study Day Andrew HEWITT
Links
Victoria Web Entry for The Trumpet Major
A Literary Walk around Sutton Poyntz leaflet from 2019 text on line.
Picture Credit : The Moorland by J W Inchbold . In public domain, courtesy of Wikipedia .
Thanks to the Thomas Hardy Fans Facebook group for their help
Please note that any mistakes or schoolboy errors in this post are the responsibility of the writer and should not be attributed to any source or group cited above.
Worthing, England
28th May 2026
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