Chapter Text
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The Marriage - Written 21 Nov. 2019
Barsetshire, ENG – 1831
The marriage of Francis Newbold Gresham and Miss Arabella de Courcy was looked upon with both joy and scrutiny. Young Frank was the son and heir of the squire John Newbold Gresham of Greshamsbury, a fine Member of Parliament and an even better Tory.
Arabella de Courcy was the sister of the Earl de Courcy, a Whig and a good one. Her brother gave her away to the hand of the younger Gresham, much to the quiet objection of those of East Barsetshire.
Courcy Castle to the west had held a long line of respectable Whigs; so respectable and proud the stench of it all filled the nostrils of those of East Barsetshire. Frank Gresham smelled naught and took the hand of his Lady.
Years passed and the mantle of Tory that was draped on the shoulders of young Gresham was shifted inch by inch until, soon after the passing of Gresham Sr., the name of Gresham bore little resemblance to either the position of Tory or Whig. It became, eventually, a name that held the ghost of a political stance, and a strong scent of financial distress that was spoken of in whispers by those of East and West.
Politics can be a rather irritating element to stories of romance, and so I shall elaborate no further on the politics of those at Greshamsbury.
Instead, we shall look on at a simpler, sweeter event within its walls....