The Façade of Quad in Nimrod takes place in a fictional 1826 – 1827 England.
Just out of curiosity, I wondered what the world was really doing during 1826 – 1827. So I decided to look it up and write about it. Here we will talk about January, 1827.
January, 1827 In The Novel
This month marks the closing of many mysteries and a “what happened after” for many major characters. It also marks a new beginning for some of them.
But what of the real world? What were WE doing?
Opium In January
Jan 1 – Dutch Trade Company NHM gets opium monopoly on Java (from website: On This Day). It’s actually called Netherlands Trading Society and Dutch name is Nederlandsche Handel-Maatschappij and it was established in 1824 by the king of the Netherlands and said to be the successor of Dutch East India Company (Wiki: Netherlands Trading Society).
There was the opium wars going on from 1839. Opium was a growing big thing.
In “The Facade of Quad in Nimrod” opium is used as a recreational drug by some in the lower class and one of my characters is addicted to it. This caused me to look up things like “what does opium taste like” and the withdrawal symptoms of opium.
It’s not pretty, let me tell ya that.
A Normal Historical Fact
Jan 17 – Duke of Wellington appointed British supreme commander (from website: On This Day) specifically Commander-in-Chief of the British Army (Wiki: Duke of Wellington political career). I can’t tell you anymore about this day because facts aren’t as interesting.
“Yzma” Was Born
A century (100 years) later,
on Jan 17, 1927, Eartha Kitt, the voice actor of Yzma from “The Emperor’s New Groove” was born.
FOXWOOD FOREST 