bulwark
the raised edge of the upper deck
capstan
rotating device operated with long bars to lift heavy weights
coach
a frigate captain’s quarters consist of a great cabin, with a bedplace and coach where ship’s administration was performed
convoy
ships sailing in company provided with an escort
corvette
flush-decked, three-masted armed vessel smaller than a frigate
cuirass
soldier’s breastplate
cutter
a ship’s boat, broader and deeper than a pinnace
devoir
an act of civility and respect due another
Divan
highest council of state under the sultan; courtly poetry
Dons
the Spanish
dragoman
an interpreter and adviser of Levantine languages
earnest, an
money in advance as a goodwill gesture
encomium
formal expression of warm praise for services completed
escritoire
writing desk with compartments for accessories, often highly ornamental
escutcheon
a shield or other containing armorial bearings
fo’c’sle
forecastle: upper deck above the bow section; in the merchant service the enclosed space below where seamen mess
gregale
northeasterly gale in the Mediterranean; St Paul was wrecked by one on his way to Rome
guardo
an unfair move on a landman; as in a guardship for receiving press-gang victims
gun-room
in a large ship, the gunner’s abode; in a frigate, the officers’ dining and mess room
hospodar
vassal Slavic ruler in the Ottoman Empire
instanter
that very moment; schoolboy Latin
Janissaries
sultan’s elite household troops
kedge
an anchor light enough to be taken to a distance by a boat to allow the ship to haul itself up to it
knittles
the small clew-lines from the edge of the canvas converging in an eye for slinging the hammock
landau
graceful open carriage with facing seats
loom
the shaft of an oar
luff
the edge of the sail closer to the wind; also, slang for lieutenant
magazines
storeplace for gunpowder
Nizam-i Cedid
new army established following reforms of Sultan Selim III
ostler
one employed at a hostelry or stable to look after horses
Pasha, Bey, Efendi
Ottoman honorifics in descending order
Peace of Amiens
peace that separated the French Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic war that followed
pennant
a long narrow flag; not to be confused with pendant
pilot
one with local nautical knowledge as an adviser; also an authoritative printed guide
piping the eye
crying, as in a child
poilu
term of endearment for French infantryman similar to “Tommy”
posset
spiced drink of hot milk curdled with ale
post-chaise
fast horse-drawn closed four-wheeled carriage
posy ring
ring with inscribed words
preventer tackles
rigged to prevent a spar taking charge in a blow
quarters
after the ship is cleared for action, the men close up at quarters for battle
reefer
midshipman
Reis-ul Kuttab
essentially the Ottoman foreign ministry
riband
ornate ribbon used in military decorations
scabbard
the sheath of a sword or bayonet
seraglio
strictly, the living quarters of the harem (wives and concubines), generalised to harem today
sextant
navigational instrument with a 60° arc, used for determining latitudes
shab
shabaroon; disreputable and unreliable
sky hook
mythical device for hoisting higher than the masthead
slasher
cutlass; barkers and slashers-pistols and cutlasses
spar
general term for mast, yard, boom, etc.
staysail
a triangular sail hoisted on the stays between the masts
stopper
to check or hold fast one rope by means of another
Sublime Porte
term for the state apparatus for receiving foreign
envoys in the Ottoman Court
tarpaulin officer
officer who started as a common seaman
Tobias Smollett
early picaresque novelist of the sea; see
Roderick Random
trusties
those men trusted to return to the ship if given liberty
Ulema
body of Islamic scholars in counsel to the sultan
victuals
provisions for the ship’s company
weigh anchor
to raise it clear of the seabed, metaphorically to start a voyage
yamak
auxiliary soldier in the Ottoman Army
zindiq
infidel, heretic
JULIAN STOCKWIN was sent at the age of fourteen to TS Indefatigable, a tough sea-training school. He joined the British Navy at fifteen, transferred to the Australian Navy when his family emigrated, and saw active service in Vietnam. A teacher and an educational psychologist, he was commissioned into the Royal Naval Reserve and awarded the MBE. Retired from the RNR with the rank of Lieutenant Commander, he now lives in Devon, England.
>WILL KYDD LAY SIEGE TO THE ANCIENT CITY OF CONSTANTINOPLE?
Thomas Kydd and the crew of L’Aurore bid farewell to the balmy waters of the Caribbean. Once home, Kydd finds his exploits are the talk of London and he and his best friend and confidential secretary, Nicholas Renzi, must part ways for good.
When British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Charles Arbuthnot, reports that the French (in an attempt to secure a vital passage to India) have been whipping up anti-English sentiment and actively wooing the Turks; Kydd is sent to the Dardanelles.
Braving treacherous currents, unreliable winds, and giant bombards, Kydd rescues the ambassador. But as the fleet waits for a response to their ultimatum, the French help strengthen Turkish defenses and an attempted coup lands Renzi in prison!
Bir gul mu var bu gulsen-i ‘alemde harsiz
(Does any bloom, in this rose-garden world, lack thorns?)
– Divan poetry from the court of Sultan Selim III
DRAMATIS PERSONAE
* indicates a fictitious character
* Thomas Kydd, captain of L’Aurore
* Nicholas Renzi,
his friend and confidential secretary, later Lord Farndon
L’AURORE, SHIP’S COMPANY
* Bowden, third lieutenant
* Brice, officer appointed into L’Aurore
* Calloway, master’s mate
* Clinch, midshipman
* Clinton, lieutenant of marines
* Curzon, second lieutenant
* Doud, seaman
* Gilbey, first lieutenant