The black abbot (novel)
The Black Abbot is a crime novel by Edgar Wallace . The book was published in 1926 under the title The black abbot , in Germany 1930 by Goldmann-Verlag .
action
A gold pot is said to have been buried centuries ago on the Fossaway estate, owned by Lord Chelford. Lord Chelford wants to find this treasure, but above all a legendary elixir of life that is said to be hidden with the gold. At the same time, a mystical ghost looms on the estate: the black abbot. This ghost is said to haunt Fossaway since an abbot was supposed to have been murdered in the abbey of the estate in the 15th century and is repeatedly heard in the course of the plot by various village people. and seen residents.
Lord Chelford is supposed to marry lawyer Arthur Gine's sister, Leslie, but appears to show little interest in his fiancée and is completely preoccupied with the treasure hunt. Leslie, on the other hand, feels more drawn to Chelford's half-brother Richard Alford (known as Dick), who runs Fossaway's affairs for his brother and who secretly reciprocates her feelings.
Arthur Gine has managed the Chelfords' assets as well as those of his sister for many years. However, due to risky investments and a pronounced addiction to gambling and betting, he has lost all the money entrusted to him and is on the verge of ruin. As it turns out, Gine's office manager Fabrian Gilder has won a large part of Gine's losses through a sophisticated network of bogus companies and has the goal of blackmailing his boss: In return for Gilder stepping in for the lawyer and paying his debts, he wants Gine's sister Leslie marry. Leslie is not happy with these developments, but would accept the motion to save her brother from prison for embezzlement.
Meanwhile, Dick Alford hires Scotland Yard Sergeant Puttler to solve the mystery of the black abbot, who is seen over and over again. In parallel, both Arthur Gine and Fabrian Gilder try unsuccessfully to find the Chelford treasure, which is generally believed to be in the old abbey. Gilder gets help from the servant Thomas, who works at Fossaway and secretly spies for the office manager. One night, however, Thomas is found dead in the driveway while wearing a black monk's robe, which suggests that he is the black abbot. While Leslie Gine decides several times whether she should accept Gilder's proposal or not, events roll over at Fossaway: The next night there are several break-ins and finally both Lord Chelford and Leslie Gine disappear.
As it later turns out, Lord Chelford has been suffering from a mental illness for many years and is plagued by paranoid fits of rage. He only faked his disappearance and the kidnapping of Leslie Gine to protect himself from the influence of his brother. He, in turn, knows about his brother's condition, but could not persuade him to seek treatment. Instead, Dick regularly plays the black abbot in order to frighten Lord Chelford to the house so that no one finds out about his illness.
Through previously unknown underground passages, Leslie and Lord Chelford, who repeatedly experiences paranoid phases, reach an underground cave under a river, in which they are buried. The other participants, Dick, Arthur Gine, Fabrian Gilder and Sergeant Puttler, come together in the face of this situation to free the prisoners. To do this, they divert the river, are able to save Leslie and find the hidden gold that was buried under the river bed. Lord Chelford succumbs to his paranoia in the face of the treasure and is slain by the falling gold bars.
Dick Alford becomes the new Lord of Fossaway and plans to travel with Leslie. Fabrian Gilder, in turn, marries Lord Chelford's former secretary, Mary Wenner.
Characters
- Richard Alford, called Dick , steward and half-brother of Lord Chelford
- Harry Chelford, owner and lord of Fossaway
- Leslie Gine, fiancee of Harry
- Arthur Gine, Fossaway's attorney and legal representative, Leslie's brother
- Fabrian Gilder, Arthur Gines Secretary and Accountant
- Sergeant Puttler, Scotland Yard detective
- Mary Wenner, Lord Chelford's former secretary
- Thomas Glück, servant on Fossaway
media
As part of the Edgar Wallace films, the film of the same name was made in 1963. This was parodied in 1985 in The Mysterious Monk (with Milos Kopecký and Petr Stepánek ) and in 2004 in Der Wixxer (with Oliver Kalkofe and Bastian Pastewka ). It was also The Black Abbot recorded several times as a radio play.