The brotherhood of the runes

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Walter Scott

The Brotherhood of Runes is a historical novel by the German author Michael Peinkofer . The main character is the real Scottish writer Walter Scott . The background is the historical duel between the warring nations Scotland and England . In the medieval disputes the displaced Christianity , the pagan culture.

action

Battle of Bannockburn with Robert

prolog

The novel begins with a prologue in 1314. The Battle of Bannockburn , in which Robert the Bruce won an important victory against the English for the Scots striving for independence, has just ended. In addition to some monks, Kala, the rune woman, wanders across the battlefield. She discovers the legendary sword left behind by its owner, which is still ascribed great power a few centuries later.

Jonathan's death and Quentin's discovery

The real action begins in 1822 in the library of Dryburgh Abbey in Kelso . Walter Scott asked his student Jonathan Milton to do research for his new novel. But the young man is much more interested in the historical writings in the library. While he is reading a Latin fragment that speaks of a sword, he is surprised by a hooded intruder and falls to his death over the balustrade.

Scott is informed of the accident in his Abbotsford estate in the middle of the night and immediately goes to the crime scene. After a discussion with the local sheriff Slocombe and Abbot Andrew, the chairman of the Premonstratensian Order, it is clear that the young man did not lose his life by suicide , but fell victim to a crime.

Scott's nephew Quentin Hay, who from now on will be his uncle's loyal companion, stays in the library to get to the bottom of the matter. In view of the innumerable writings, it seems impossible to determine whether the stranger has stolen something, but Quentin nevertheless discovers something unusual. When he trips and his candle falls to the floor, he sees a strange sign under a shelf. But then he panics. First he sees a stranger, then the library goes up in flames.

British government official Charles Dellard is officially charged with the investigation. He suspects Scottish activists behind the attacks. These want to take revenge for the forced resettlement of the population in the coastal areas, the so-called Highland Clearances . However, Scott believes there is more to it than that and decides to investigate on his own, although the inspector strongly warns him not to. He discovers that the enigmatic sign is the sword rune . He discovers the same sign on a door post in his house. The beam comes from Dunfermline Church , which houses the grave of the national hero Robert the Bruce. Scott confronts Dellard and Abbot Andrew with his discovery, but meets a wall of silence on both of them. But the writer persists. After all, he's used to a lot as Chairman of the Scottish Supreme Court.

The meeting with Mary of Egton

Mary is a young woman from an English noble house. She is sent to Scotland by her family because she is supposed to be married there against her will to the unknown clan lord Malcolm of Ruthven. On the way she was confronted with the conflict over the clearances in a restaurant . The story of an old man made her very thoughtful. A few days later, the carriage in which she is traveling with her maid and friend Kitty is attacked by criminals. When they come to a bridge, it collapses. At the last moment the two women are saved. Mary is stunned when she learns that her savior is Scott of all people, because she loves the works of the famous novelist. The latter proves to be a very friendly host in Abbotsford and gives Mary some of his books. Quentin very much regrets that the two guests have to travel on because he has fallen in love with the attractive woman.

As the story progresses, two parallel storylines develop. In contrast to the novel, these are described separately below.

Scott in danger

Scott realizes that the attack on the bridge was not aimed at the two women, but for him. Dellard stubbornly refuses to provide any information and the abbot only expresses himself in mysterious hints of an impending disaster. The inspector is involved in the notorious clearings and takes brutal action against the farmers. Meanwhile, a secret group meets at a stone circle reminiscent of Stonehenge . You decide to let the enemy work for you.

An attack by activists on Abbotsford shows how serious the danger is. Quentin can frighten the attackers by killing one of them, but the group leaves a clear mark - a fire in the shape of the sword rune. Still stubborn, Dellard hires his nephew to spy on Kelso's library. There Quentin overhears a conversation between the abbot and a stranger. They say that the enemy has returned and that they must protect the secret at all costs.

When Scott Dellard confronts these findings, he finally breaks his silence. He tells of a secret society whose distinguishing mark is the sword rune. The sectarians have chosen Scott as their archenemy because the writer known as a patriot is held in high regard by the warring British government and is therefore considered a traitor. With King George's visit to Edinburgh imminent, which is of great importance for the future relationship between the two countries, there is acute danger. Dellard advises Scott to flee to Edinburgh with his family, and Scott reluctantly follows the recommendation.

The professor and the fragment

In town, Scott and Quentin visit his old friend Professor Miltiades Gainswick, who is an expert on runes and secret societies . He explains to them that there are two types of druids . The brotherhood of the runes is also one of the dark powers. The professor read a fragment in which a monk reports that the brotherhood still exists today and that Robert the Bruce was also under its influence.

Scott then goes to the Edinburgh University Library to look for the document. A room closed with an iron gate arouses his interest. However, the administrator claims that the key has disappeared. Some time ago, gloomy characters asked in vain for the key. Shortly afterwards, Scott receives the key in question in an anonymous package. While researching in the forbidden room of the library, Quentin stumbled upon the fragment he was looking for. When the two amateur detectives leave the building, a fight rages on the street behind them between the supporters of the brotherhood and an unknown group. A fight also takes place in the monastery.

Scott and Quentin go to the professor again with the fragment, but they are shocked to discover that Gainswick has just been murdered. Quentin pursues the perpetrator until he faces him. Then he is attacked by bloodthirsty figures, the "nameless", but mysterious staff fighters save him.

The king's sword

You can find a drawing at the professor's house showing a sword and a rune. Scott explains to his nephew that it is the legendary king's sword. After the freedom fighter William Wallace , known as Braveheart , who had won a great victory in the Battle of Stirling Bridge, was betrayed after the defeat at Falkirk , the cursed weapon came into the possession of Robert the Bruce . The latter is buried in Dunfermline. Scott and Quentin travel there. On the grave, the young man discovers that runes are hidden in the illustrations. After deciphering the runes, they know that the Brotherhood is planning a major conspiracy when the lunar eclipse occurs in a few days' time . This meeting takes place shortly before the king's visit.

Then the mysterious staff fighters reappear, who reveal themselves as the monks of Kelso under the leadership of Abbot Andrew. He tells you in detail the story of the king's sword with which Robert the Bruce won against an overpowering opponent. After the battle, however, he left the weapon in the field and was accepted into the church as an insightful penitent . The sectarians now want to get possession of the sword, which apparently has not lost its power, in order to carry out an assassination attempt on the king.

The tunnel

The abbot leads the two men to an inn on Edinburgh High Street, which is considered the Brotherhood's secret meeting place. While searching for traces, Quentin discovers a royal coat of arms with runes on the mantelpiece . The sword rune is also on a stone slab in the fireplace. When they smash it, the three detectives come into a tunnel. At the end of the underground passage, which is lined with dangerous pitfalls, they find the legendary sword, but their joy is short-lived. Because Inspector Dellard, who is now known as a member of the Brotherhood, turns up surprisingly. He murders the abbot and steals the sword. Scott and Quentin are captured and meet Mary again, who has had exciting adventures herself in the meantime.

Cool reception for Mary

After parting from Abbotsford, Mary had no reason to be happy. When she arrives at Ruthven Castle, she is greeted with cool arrogance. They are reprimanded for their bad clothes and their fondness for literature. She begins to dream of Gwynneth fighting with her brother Duncan. The former Lord von Ruthven describes William Wallace as a traitor. The next morning, Mary meets Malcolm. Her future husband shows her his extensive property. The young woman expresses her sympathy for the peasant people living in the Highlands , which Malcolm doesn't like at all. He also tells her that he doesn't love her at all and that his mother Eleanor alone arranged the situation. Mary loses more sympathy when she leaves a reception in her honor and instead has fun at the wedding of the blacksmith Sean and the servants . Eleanor is so angry that she burns Mary's books to demonstrate her authority.

Soul kinship with Gwynneth

Looking back, Gwynneth meets the rune woman Kala in the forest. The old woman tells her that Duncan is intriguing against William Wallace. Then Mary also receives a visit from Kala. She warns the young woman about dark forces and specifically names Gwynneth, of whom Mary has dreamed several times.

The next night, Malcolm tries to rape his reluctant partner. On the run, Mary comes into a tower room, where she is initially safe. She finds an old document behind a loose stone in the wall. She is surprised to find that these are Gwynneth's records from 1305, in which she describes herself as a "prisoner". Mary reads the text with great interest.

Gwynneth secretly observes a meeting of the Brotherhood of the Runes. Duncan is about to join the group planning a conspiracy. Kala then tells her more about this dark force. The young woman decides to warn the endangered William Wallace and asks Father Dougal for help. A short time later Duncan comes to her. He is accompanied by the French Count Millencourt, whom Gwynneth recognizes as the leader of the Brotherhood. Duncan reports with satisfaction that the father was murdered and does not allow himself to be changed by his sister's desperate calls for help.

Gwynneth's account ends with a statement by Kala that can serve as the motto for the entire story:

When half a millennium has passed, my child, your deeds will be remembered. And a young woman will realize how much her fate is like yours. She will decide to change it and declare war on the dark power.

Mary is desperate and flees the castle. She wants to go back to Scott, who helped her before. But she doesn't get very far. Dellard lies in wait for her and arrests her. She is now a prisoner of the Brotherhood. When she mentions the name Gwynneth to the leader, the masked man pricks up his ears and forces her to report on the records. To their horror, the leader reveals himself to be Malcolm.

Then she dreams of the Jacobite revolt in 1746. Malcolm's grandfather Galen of Ruthven fled with an earl through the tunnel that Scott discovered from Edinburgh Castle. Due to a collapse, however, the count who carried the king's sword was buried. Galen fought his way out with bloody violence, where he was finally shot.

Mary tells Malcolm about her dream. The latter then orders his men to look for the sword, while the young woman sees Scott and Quentin again.

The final

After Mary tells the two men about their adventures, Scott shares a theory by a French scientist. Accordingly, it is possible to bridge long periods of time through kinship. So was z. B. found a buried burial chamber in Egypt through the tip of a princess. Quentin swears to Mary that he will protect her. When the woman lies a short time later on the brotherhood's offering table in the middle of the circle of stones, she returns his love. Mary knows what is in store for her now, as Gwynneth was made a human sacrifice for the Brotherhood in the same situation 500 years ago . As the lunar eclipse draws closer, Malcolm recapitulates what happened with Scott. When he was accused of being insane, Malcolm replied that all great rulers like Alexander the Great , Caesar and Napoleon were affected.

However, the moment he raises his sword to kill Mary, fate turns against him. Lightning strikes the sword and kills him. After Quentin kills Dellard in battle, the monks appear and defeat the brotherhood. Eventually they decide that Scott should hand over the King's Sword to the government.

The epilogue reports that Quentin and Mary got married and are now traveling by ship to the USA to find their personal freedom there.

Historical reference

The main character in Peinkofer's work, Walter Scott, really lived. Quentin became the model for the hero in Scott's novel Quentin Durward from 1823. This experienced at the time of Louis XI. his adventures in France. The battles mentioned and the parties involved are also historically documented. The royal sword is now on display at the Royal Museum in Edinburgh. However, it was actually discovered in the throne room of the castle by Scott and the governor of the city in 1818.

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