“There’s an east wind coming, Watson.”
“I think not, Holmes. It is very warm.”
“Good old Watson! You are the one fixed point in a changing age. There’s an east wind coming all the same, such a wind as never blew on England yet. It will be cold and bitter, Watson, and a good many of us may wither before its blast. But it’s God’s own wind none the less, and a cleaner, better, stronger land will lie in the sunshine when the storm has cleared.”
Emprise. An adventurous, daring, or chivalric enterprise.
Entari. Loose garment worn indoors.
Five jack. The old impressive ‘large white fiver’ - five pounds sterling banknote, equivalent to Sterling £600 in 2015.
Galata Bridge. Spans the Golden Horn in Istanbul. From the end of the 19th century in particular, the bridge has featured in Turkish literature, theatre, poetry and novels. The first recorded bridge over the Golden Horn in Istanbul was built during the reign of Justinian the Great in the 6th century, close to the area near the Theodosian Land Walls at the western end of the city. The fifth Galata bridge was built just a few meters away from the previous bridge, between Karaköy and Eminönü, and completed in December 1994.
Ghillie suit, also known as a yowie suit, or camo tent. Type of camouflage clothing designed to resemble heavy foliage, typically a net or cloth garment covered in loose strips of burlap, cloth or twine, sometimes made to look like leaves and twigs, and augmented with scraps of foliage from the area. Military snipers, hunters and nature photographers wear ghillie suits to blend into their surroundings. The suit gives the wearer’s outline a three-dimensional breakup, rather than a linear one. When manufactured correctly, the suit will move in the wind in the same way as surrounding foliage.
Gieves. Founded in 1771 and now owned by Hong Kong conglomerate Trinity Ltd. Gieves business was originally based on catering for the needs of the British Army and the Royal Navy, and hence by association the British Royal family. In their various incarnations and premises they made uniforms for Admiral Lord Nelson and the Duke of Wellington. In 1974 Gieves Ltd acquired Hawkes and became Gieves & Hawkes. , but still informally known just as ‘Gieves’ (pronounced ‘Jeeves’).
Grisette (or grizette). A French working-class woman from the late 17th century. The term remained in common use through the Belle Époque era. From gris, (French for grey), referring to the cheap grey fabric of the dresses these women originally wore.
Guinguettes. Popular drinking establishments in Parisian suburbs. Guinguettes also served as restaurants and, often, as dance venues. From guinguet, a sour white light local wine.
Harem. ‘Forbidden place; sacrosanct, sanctum’ for female members of the family. The term originated with the Near East. Harems are the portion of households occupied by wives and often sex slaves known as concubines.
Haroony. The author’s partner Lesley Abdela is the grand-daughter of the Victorian/Edwardian ship-builders Abdela & Mitchell on the Manchester Ship Canal and Stroud. The real Haroony was a 14 tonne craft launched in 1903, destined for Turkey or a Turkish domain. She was delivered by Isaac Abdela and Sophie Moss on their honeymoon via the Riviera, Italy and Greece, back to where the Abdelas had originated before the 1860s.
Ikbal. The harem member with whom the Sultan had slept at least once. These women need not necessarily have given a child to the Sultan but simply have taken his fancy.
Junior United Services Club. Founded 1815, disbanded in 1978. Located in Pall Mall, members were princes of the blood royal, commissioned officers of the Navy, Army, Marines, Royal Indian Forces, and Regular Militia, Lieutenants of Counties, sub-lieutenants in the Army and midshipmen in the Navy. ‘No officer is eligible for admission to the club who is not on full, half or retired full-pay of the Navy, Army, Marines, or Royal Indian Forces; or who, if an officer of Militia, has not one year’s embodied service or attended three regular trainings, certified by the commanding officer, adjutant, or paymaster of the regiment.’ From Dickens’s Dictionary of London, 1879, by Charles Dickens Jr.
Kadin. Among the women of the Imperial Harem, the Kadın was a woman who was not an official wife but had borne the Sultan a child, preferably a son.
KCMG. Order of St. Michael and St. George. The Star and Badge of the Order feature the cross of St George, the Order’s motto, and a representation of the archangel St Michael holding in his right hand a flaming sword and trampling upon Satan. Unlike Sherlock, Mycroft Holmes had no hesitation in accepting a Knighthood albeit with a great sense of irony in this instance as he had intended to scupper Sherlock Holmes’s mission.
Keffiyeh. Traditional Middle Eastern headdress fashioned from a square scarf, usually made of cotton.
Kiosk (from Turkish köşk). A small, separated garden pavilion open on some or all sides. Kiosks were common in Persia, the Indian subcontinent, and in the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century onward.
L’illusion des sosies. Now often called the Capgras delusion or Capgras syndrome. Disorder in which a person holds a delusion that a friend, spouse, parent, or other close family member (even pet) has been replaced by an identical-looking impostor.
Mackintosh, abbreviated as mac or mack, is a form of waterproof raincoat made out of rubberised fabric, first sold in 1824. It is named after its Scottish inventor Charles Macintosh, though many writers add a letter k (the spelling ‘Mackintosh’ is now widespread).
Mortuus. Deceased.
Ohne Hast, aber ohne Rast. Without haste, but without rest. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
Opera seria. Italian musical term for the noble and “serious” style of Italian opera predominant in Europe from the 1710s to c. 1770.
Politique de bascule. Used here to describe how a lesser power tries to trade off two or more Great Powers to gain an advantage. Bascule is a French term for seesaw and balance.
Puggried sun-hat. Broad brimmed felt hat with a muslin wrapped round it and trailing down the back.
Princes Islands: during the Byzantine period, princes and other royalty were exiled on the islands. Members of the Ottoman sultans’ family were later exiled there too, giving the islands their present name. The islands were captured by the Ottoman fleet during the siege of Constantinople in 1453. During the nineteenth century, the islands became a popular resort for Istanbul’s wealthier inhabitants.
Race-built ships. In 1570 with England threatened by Spain, Sir John Hawkins made important improvements in ship construction and rigging. They proved decisive against the Spanish Armada. The ships were ‘race-built’, longer and with fore- and aft-castle greatly reduced in size. They were described as having “the head of a cod and the tail of a mackerel”.
Rahat loukoum. Turkish Delight. See ‘Sherbet & Spice’ in ‘Publications’.
Raki. A traditional Turkish alcoholic drink produced from different fruits in differing regions, mainly grapes, figs and plums. In 1630, the famous Turkish traveller Evliya Çelebi listed the artisans of Istanbul in the first volume of his book on his voyages, recording the small wine shops and the kinds of wine they sold and also mentioned the taverns that sold raki, like raki wine, banana raki, mustard raki, linden raki, cinnomon raki, clove raki, pomegranate raki, aniseed raki.