Lord John Rossendale

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Lord John Rossendale (17? - June 18, 1815) is minor protagonist in the Sharpe novels by Bernard Cornwell.

First appearing in 1813 in Sharpe's Regiment as a courtier to the Prince Regent ("Prinny") in London, the aristocratic Lord John is initially an ally to the rifleman whilst Sharpe is on leave in England attempting to find missing recruits from the South Essex regiment , providing him with much needed support amongst the upper classes and the Georgian monarchy.

However, by mid 1814, and Sharpe's Revenge, Rossendale's role in the novels has changed. He is responsible for cuckolding the troubled Sharpe while the rifleman is a hunted fugitive in France after being falsely accused of theft; Rossendale embarks on a whirlwind affair with Sharpe's wife, Jane, and manages to almost bankrupt the officer by extravagantly wasting his savings.

In June 1815 (as depicted in the chronologically penulitimate Sharpe novel, Sharpe's Waterloo ), Rossendale is with the Duke of Wellington's Anglo-Allied army in Belgium when Napoleon's invasion, and thus the Hundred Days campaign, begins. Despite possessing no military experience beyond holding a nominal and honorary army commission, the socialite nonetheless manages to secure a posting with Wellington's Household heavy cavalry brigade, in order to satisfy his desire to see active service. With him in Brussels is Jane, who is snubbed by society for her illicit affair with Lord Rossendale, and who suspects she may be pregnant with his bastard child.

It soon transpires that, unfortunately for Rossendale Sharpe is also with the Allied army, serving as a staff officer to the Dutch Prince of Orange, and as the campaign opens, the two clash violently, with Sharpe demanding that the aristocrat repay him his stolen money. On the night of June 15, as Napoleon's invasion begins, Sharpe, returning from a bloody reconnaissance, catches Rossendale at the Duchess of Richmond's ball in Brussels, and humiliates the proud officer, demanding his money, or else satisfaction. Shamefaced, Rossendale promises Sharpe he will return him his funds. Terrified of Sharpe, and goaded by Jane for his cowardice, Rossendale briefly contemplates murdering him during the chaos of the coming fighting, but realises he simply doesn't have the courage.

Two days later, during the confusion of the retreat from Quatre Bras, Sharpe again corners Rossendale during a heavy thunderstorm. Disdainfully disarming Rossendale after he attempts to threaten him with a percussion lock pistol, the rifle officer also breaks the cavalryman's decorous sword, scornfully telling him that he can "...keep the whore, but I want my money".

Dawn next day, June 18, sees Wellington's army facing Napoleon's across the shallow valley of Mont St Jean - the Battle of Waterloo is about to commence. Humiliated and ashamed of his dishonourable conduct, Rossendale determines to prove himself during the coming battle.

When the fighting begins, the Household Brigade quickly sees intense action, charging forward with the rest of the British heavy cavalry to complete the rout of the first, unsuccessful French infantry attack by Reille's corps. Slamming with his comrades into the unprotected French infantrymen, Rossendale fights like a man possessed, screaming in triumph as he slashes and lunges again and again with his borrowed sword. But the charge meets carnage when the unbridled enthusiasm of the British cavalymen leads them to gallop on unsupported towards the French gun line on the far crest. Caught from by fresh French light cavalry, the British horse soldiers are hacked and stabbed from the saddle, taking appaling casualties (as is historically accurate - see Battle of Waterloo article).

Pursued by a group of French lancers and hussars hoping to kill a wealthy British officer for loot, Rossendale nearly succeeds in escaping, but is caught when his horse becomes bogged down in a waterlogged field. Blinded by a sabre stroke, stabbed, stripped and left for dead, Rossendale lies on the battlefield in agony till the evening of the battle, finally meeting a pitiful end by having his throat slashed by a Belgian peasant woman searching corpses for plunder. The news is broken to Jane the morning after Waterloo, when she travels to the battlefield to search for her lover; she is left, presumably, to raise Rossendale's child by herself.