THE PRISONER OF ZENDA.BYANTHONY HOPE.(Novel)
The plot of the Novel. (Summary).chapter no-1 to chapter no-24.
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| THE PRISONER OF ZENDA BY ANTHONY HOPE, chapter no-1 to chapter no-24(Summary). |
The plot of the Novel. (Summary).
Rudolph Rossendale, the main character, is twenty-nine years old. Red hair, a long nose,
Rassendyll had a “heavy mustache and carefully pointed imperial” and “six feet two inches of stature.”
He is the younger brother of the Earl of Burleson and (through the sexual debauchery of an ancestor) a distant cousin of Rudolf V, who is soon to see the coronation of Ruritania.
King Rudolph is a hard-drinking playboy, unpopular with the common people, but has the support of the aristocracy, the church, the army, and the wealthy in general. His political rivals are his younger half-brother, Michael, duke, and governor of the capital city of Strelsau.
Michael has no legitimate claim to the throne, but he wants the throne because he is his father's son from his second Morganite marriage. Michael is considered a champion of the poor working class of Strelsau.
Michael kidnaps Rudolph and imprisons him in a castle in the small town of Zenda, so Rassendyll must impersonate the future king at the coronation.
There are complications, plots, and counter-plots, among them the schemes of Michael's mistress Antoinette de Mauban, and his scheming widow Rupert of Hentzau, and Rassendale's falling in love with Princess Flavia, the king's betrothed.
In the end, the king is restored to his throne -- Princess Flavia will sacrifice her love for the honor.
CHAPTER 1
Rudolf Rassendyll
Novel lines.
Rassendyll’s sister-in-law comments on it.
"I wonder when in the world you’re going to do anything."
"You are nine-and-twenty ... and you have done nothing.
Rudolf Rassendyll’s sister-in-law, Rose, urges him to do something useful with his life. Lord Burleson, Rassendyll’s brother, tells Rassendyll that he has found him a job as an attaché to Sir Jacob Borrodaile, an ambassador to Ruritania. As the job will only start in six months, Rassendyll decides to attend the Coronation of King Rudolf the Fifth, which is to take place in Strelsau, Ruritania. Ruritania is located in central Europe country. He is not visited.
CHAPTER 2
Rassendyll Arrives in Zenda.
Rassendyll leaves for Ruritania by train. He meets his friend George in Paris. George tells him about Antoinette de Mauban who is also traveling to Ruritania on the same train. The Coronation has been brought forward. Rassendyll is unable to get room to stay in Strelsau. He decides to spend the night at an inn in Zenda, a small town about fifty miles from the capital. He hears about the King, Duke Michael/Black Michael, and Princess Flavia, and the fight for the throne. Johann, Duke Michael’s forest guard, tells Rassendyll that both Rassendyll and the King have red hair.
CHAPTER 3
Bottle of wine, a gift from Duke Michael.
The King finishes the wine all by himself.
Rudolf Rassendyll Meets King Rudolf the Fifth.
A MERRY EVENING WITH A DISTANT RELATIVE...
The next morning, Rassendyll takes a walk in the forest. He meets Colonel Sapt and Fritz von Tarlenheim.
They serve King Rudolf and are loyal to him.
They tell him that he looks exactly like their king except that he has a beard.
At that moment King Rudolf appears.
He is stunned by the resemblance between himself and Rassendyll.
The King invites Rassendyll to the hunting lodge where he is staying.
They have dinner and a few drinks. Josef, a faithful servant of the King, walks in with a bottle of wine, a gift from Duke Michael. The King finishes the wine all by himself.
Johann arranges accommodation for Rassendyll in Strelsau
Rassendyll describes the castle in Zenda:
“The old and the new portions were connected by a drawbridge, and this indirect mode of access formed the only passage between the old building and outer world, but leading to the modern chateau there was a broad and handsome avenue.”
Rassendyll falls asleep in the forest and has a dream:
“I had fallen dreaming that I was married to Princess Flavia and dwelt in the castle of Zenda.”
Sapt comments on the resemblance between Rassendyll and the king.
Why the devil’s in it! Shave him and he’d be the king!
Colonel Sapt:
He was rather short and very stoutly built, with a big bottle-shaped head, a bristly grey mustache, and small pale-blue eyes, a trifle bloodshot.”
Fritz:
She was a slender young fellow, of middle height, dark in complexion, and bearing himself with grace and
distinction.”
Rassendyll tells Rudolf V that he has been in the British army:“[Once] for a year or two I held a commission from Her Majesty the Queen.”
Rassendyll is surprised at the likeness of Rudolf V:
“The King of Ruritania might have been Rudolf Rassendyll, and I Rudolf the King.”
Rudolf V is extremely happy to meet his distant relative:
“Rudolf -V burst into the merriest fit of irrepressible laughter, which rang through the woods and proclaimed him a jovial soul.”
Despite astonishing likeness, Rassendyll points out some differences,
“The king’s face was slightly more fleshy than mine…and his mouth lacking something of the firmness which was to be gathered from my close-shutting lips.”
After supper, they all talk differently when they got drunk:
“The king began talking of what he would do in the future, old Sapt of what he had done in the past, Fritz of some beautiful girl or other, and I of the wonderful merits of the Elphberg dynasty.”Rassendyll describes the bottle of drugged wine brought by Josef,
Josef
“Josef set before the king a marvelous old wicker-covered flagon. It had lain so long in some darkened cellar that it seemed to blink in the candlelight.”
Rudolf V refuses to share this wine with anyone:
"Everything is yours to the half of Ruritania. But ask me not for a single drop of this divine bottle.”
CHAPTER 4
Rassendyll Becomes Rudolf the Fifth
THE KING KEEPS HIS APPOINTMENT
The next morning they discover that the King has been drugged. The drug was in the wine sent by Duke Michael. Since both the King and Rassendyll look alike, Sapt suggests that Rassendyll takes the place of the King and attends the Coronation. Fritz thinks it is a good idea too. Rassendyll agrees to take the King’s place.
Uncertain whether the last bottle was drugged, Sapt says the king drank too much.
“He drank three times what either of you did.”
Sapt comments on the seriousness of the situation:
“The whole nation’s there to meet him; half the army—aye, and Black Michael at the head. Shall we send word that king’s drunk?”
People know that the king is fond of drinking.
“They know his illnesses too well. He’s been ‘ill’ before!”
Sapt hints at Michael’s popularity: “Has Strelsau no other candidate?”
Sapt comments on the seriousness of the situation:
"As God’s alive, man, the throne’s lost if the king shows himself not in Strelsau today."
The only reason for Sapt’s support is his loyalty to the kingdom.
“The drunken dog! But he’s an Elphberg and the son of his father, and may I rot in hell before Black Michael sits in his place."
Sapt considers Rassendyll’s arrival as Divine help,
“As a man grows old he believes in fate. Fate sent you here. Fate sends you now to Strelsau.”
Sapt convinces Rassendyll to impersonate the king:
“if you don’t go I swear to you Black Michael will sit tonight on the throne, and the king lie in prison or his grave.”
Sapt does everything for the sake of his duty and disregards any offense that he may cause to the king:
"Are we women? Who cares for his forgiveness?"
Sept is determined to save the throne for the king:
"If we’re detected, I’ll send Black Michael down before I go myself, so help me, Heaven!"
Rassendyll gets ready:
“I dressed in the uniform of a colonel of the Guard,”
Sapt instructs Rassendyll on the history of the king.
"Sapt instructed me most minutely in the history of my past life, of my family, of my tastes, pursuits, weaknesses, friends, companions, and servants. He [also] told me the etiquette of the Ruritanian court."
The Ruritanian king was a Catholic, but not Rassendyll:
Sapt gives him “a rudimentary lesson in the practices and observances of the Romish faith.”
Sapt comments on Rassendyll’s craving for food:
"You’re an Elphberg, every inch of you."
Sapt warns Rassendyll of another danger:
"You must be as civil as butter to the cardinal. We hope to win him over because he and Michael have a standing quarrel about their precedence.”
CHAPTER 5
No one realizes that he is not the real King.
Rassendyll Arrives in Strelsau to Be Crowned
Rassendyll shaves his beard and wears the King’s uniform.
The King is hidden in a cellar and Josef is to look after him.
The old woman who cooked for them is tied up and left in another cellar.
They take the train to Strelsau.
Several ministers and the head of the Army of Ruritania are introduced to Rassendyll.
No one realizes that he is not the real King. The Coronation procession begins
Rassendyll was ready to face any situation:
“The last thing I did was to feel if my revolver were handy and my sword loses in the scabbard.”
Rassendyll praises Marshal Strakencz:
“I knew that I was in the presence of the most famous veteran of the Ruritanian army.”
Rassendyll becomes confident after a while:
“No one betrayed the least suspicion, and I felt my nerve returning and the agitated beating of my heart subsiding.”
The process begins:
“I started to ride through the streets with the marshal on my right and Sapt on my left.”
The description of the capital city, Strelsau:
“In the outer circles the upper classes live; in the inner, the shops are situated; and behind their prosperous fronts lie
hidden populous but wretched lanes and alley, filled with a poverty-stricken, turbulent, and (in a large measure) criminal class.”
The relative popularity of the duke and the king:
“The New Town was for the king; but to the Old Town Michael of Strelsau was a hope, a hero, and a darling.”
Rassendyll is thrilled at the marvelous reception:
“But the truth is that I was drunk with excitement. At that moment I believed – I almost believed – that I was in very truth the king.”
Rassendyll becomes nervous when Antoinette de Mauban closely looks at him:
"I, collecting myself, met her eyes full and square, while again I felt my revolver. Suppose she had cried loud, “That’s not the king!”
Rassendyll has now accepted this responsibility and wants to do it in the best way possible:
“But if fate made me a king the least I could do was to play the part handsomely.”
Rassendyll goes unguarded through the streets of Michael’s quarter to increase the king’s popularity.
“Let those in a front ride on till they are fifty yards ahead… And see that no one is nearer me. I will have my people see
that their king trusts them.”
Rassendyll begins to assert himself:
“Sapt laid his hand on my arm. I shook him off. The marshal hesitates.”
In Old Town, people show their love for Michael:
“The mass of people received me in silence and with sullen looks, and my dear brother’s portrait ornamented most of the windows – which was an ironical sort of greeting to the king."
Rassendyll speculates on Rudolf’s reaction to Michael’s portraits:
“I was quite glad that he had been spared the unpleasant sight. He was a man of quick temper, and perhaps he would not have taken it so placidly as I did.”
For Rassendyll, everything was in a mist, but he could clearly see two faces [Flavia and Michael]:
“the face of a girl, pale and lovely, surmounted by a crown of the glorious Elphberg hair.” and, “the face of a man whose full-blooded red cheeks, black hair, and dark, deep eyes told me that at last, I was in the presence of my brother, Black Michael.”
Rassendyll describes their expression of Michael at the arrival of the king when he least expected it:
“when he saw me his red cheeks went pale all in a moment, and his helmet fell with a clatter on the floor.”
The coronation ceremony is quite unusual:
“I rose to my feet, and stretched out my hand and took from [the cardinal] the crown of Ruritania and set it on my head, and I swore the old oath of the king.”
Rassendyll took advantage of the situation:
“And for an instant, I thought what I had best do. Then I drew [Princess Flavia] to me and kissed her twice on the cheek, and she blushed red.”
Michael looked bewildered when he came to greet Rassendyll:
“His face was patched with red and white, and his hand shook so that it jumped under mine, and I felt his lips dry and parched."
Rassendyll feels tense because Sapt has not told him about the deep of relation between Rudolf and Flavia:
“Now I felt in difficulty, because I had forgotten to ask Sapt the state of my affections, or how far matters had gone
between the princess and myself.”
Rassendyll voices his romantic wish:
“Frankly, had I been the king the further [matters] had gone the better should I have been pleased.”
Princess Flavia notices the difference in “the king”:
“You look soberer, more sedate; you’re almost careworn, and I declare you’re thinner.”
She also says the following in the same breath:
“Surely it’s not possible that you’ve begun to take anything seriously?”
Rassendyll mentions how low opinions his sister-in-law and Flavia hold:
“The princess seemed to hold of the king much the same opinion that Lady Burlesdon held of me.”
Flavia warns Rassendyll of danger from Michael:
“Do be careful. You don’t – indeed you don’t – keep enough watch on him.”
CHAPTER 6
Rassendyll Is Crowned King Rudolf the Fifth
Rassendyll meets Duke Michael and Princess Flavia.
SHE NOTICE King slightly behaves differently. And warns him from Black Michael.
The people of the New Town give the King a rousing welcome.
There is hardly any trouble in the Old Town.
Rassendyll rides bravely down the streets and wins the hearts of the townspeople.
The procession stops at the Cathedral for the Coronation.
Rassendyll is crowned King.
Then Rassendyll meets Black Michael and Princess Flavia for the first time.
The Princess tells him that she finds him rather different.
CHAPTER 7 Where Is the King?The real king is no longer in a lodge. Missing king.
Black Michael leaves for Senda. Both Sapt and Rassendyll also leave for Zenda.
They use a secret passage to leave the Palace.
They ride towards Zenda. Along the way, they see Duke Michael and Max Half [Johann’s brother] ride toward the Castle.
At the lodge Rassendyll and Sapt find the cook missing and Josef dead. The King is missing too.
CHAPTER 8
Rassendyll Must Return to Strelsau as King
Rassendyll's finger is injured by a bullet.
Sapt realizes that Duke Michael has captured the King.
Sapt tells Rassendyll that he has to continue playing the part of the King until the King is saved.
Eight of Black Michael’s men arrive to bury Josef’s body.
Sapt and Rassendyll attack and kill three of them.
A bullet hits Rassendyll’s hand injuring one of her fingers.
CHAPTER 9
The Famous Six
Fritz informed Black Michel and the three of his famous Six are in Strelsau.
Rassendyll and Sapt reach Strelsau safely,
Rassendyll carries out the King’s duties. Fritz informs them that Black Michael is back in Strelsau.
Only three of Black Michael’s Famous Six are with him.
Sapt believes that the King is alive and that the rest of the Famous Six are guarding him.
Save the king becomes complicated. Rassendyll leaves for an appointment with Princess Flavia.
CHAPTER 10
Rassendyll Meets Black Michael and Three of the Famous SixRassendyll Fritz's visit to Princess Flavia’s.Rassendyll is in love with the princess.Balck Michal asks about the injury to Rassendyll's finger.
Rassendyll and Fritz ride off to Princess Flavia’s house. Rassendyll realizes that he is in love with the princess.
He knows that it is wrong as he is not the true King. Princess Flavia is pleased to meet Rassendyll, unaware that he is not the real King.
Duke Michael also calls on the Princess. Rassendyll makes Duke Michael angry when he unknowingly kept Duke Michael waiting to see the Princess.
Duke Michael introduces Rassendyll to the three men who are part of the Famous Six
Bersonin, De Gautet, and Detchard.
CHAPTER 11
A Kind of Tea-partyThe King held a prisoner in Zenda Castle,Antoinette de Mauban,Rassendyll goes to the horse and visits herand tells him a plot plan to kill three.
Rassendyll locates the location of the real King in Zenda.
Sapt informs Rassendyll that the King is being held prisoner in Zenda Castle.
Rassendyll receives a letter from Antoinette de Mauban.
She wants him to meet her as she has information that might save him.
Rassendyll meets Antoinette.
She says that Duke Michael forced her to write the letter.
She tells Rassendyll about the Duke’s plan to take over the throne and marry Princess Flavia.
She urges him to leave at once because three of the Famous Six are on their way there to kill him.
They arrive and a fight breaks out. Rassendyll escapes unhurt.
Rassendyll encounters three of the Famous Six They try to kill him.
He escapes using a round iron tea table as a Shield.
CHAPTER 12
The Marriage Will Shortly Take PlaceThe people of Ruritania are angry with the King for not fixing his wedding date,Sapt tells Rassendyll to ask the princess to marry the King.Rassendyll feels uneasy as he is not the real King. He wishes to be honorable.
Rassendyll dances with Flavia and in the garden tells her that he loves her with all his heart
Flavia feels very happy that the King (Rassendyll) loves her
The next afternoon, Sapt informs Rassendyll that the Duke, his three men, and Antoinette have left the city for Zenda
During a dance, that night, both Rassendyll and the Princess confess their love for each other.
Rassendyll realizes that she really loves him – Rudolf Rassendyll- and not the King.
He wants to tell the Princess the truth but Sapt stops him.
CHAPTER 13
Between Love or Honour?Rassendyll chooses to honor his word to save the King.
Rassendyll is determined to save the King and urges Colonel Sapt to start the rescue efforts immediately,
Rassendyll is determined to save the King and urges Colonel Sapt to start the rescue efforts
immediately. He informs Flavia, who is deeply hurt by his hunting plans.
Flavia reminds him to be extra careful once she knows that the hunting trip is to get back to Michael
Rassendyll feels torn between his love for Flavia and being honorable to the King.
He decides to rescue the King. Rassendyll, Sapt, and Fritz head to Zenda with ten other men.
Sapt spreads the news that they are going hunting near Zenda.
Before leaving, Rassendyll tells Marshal Strakencz to help rule the country until Princess Flavia is crowned Queen.
If anything happens to the King. Rassendyll and his men leave for the Castle of Tarlenheim, which belongs to Fritz’s uncle. The castle is located five miles from the castle of Zenda.
CHAPTER 14
Rassendyll Revisits the Inn in ZendaDuke Michael sends three of his Famous Six, the Ruritanians, to visit Rassendyll at the Castle. Rassendylolo meets Rupert of Hentzau for the first time. Rassendyll goes to the inn in Zenda with Fritz.
He reveals himself as the AKing to the daughter of the innkeeper.
He asks her to tell Johann to meet her at the bridge just outside Zenda at ten o’clock the next night.
Sapt warns Rassendyll to be careful. Bernenstein was shot because he was mistaken for Rassendyll.
CHAPTER 15
Rassendyll Narrowly Escapes Death
Rupert of Hentzau brings a message from the Duke.
Duke Michael offers Rassendyll a hundred thousand pounds to leave Ruritania.
Rassendyll refuses the offer.
Rupert stabs Rassendyll wih a dagger. He wounds Rassendyll on the left shoulder. Rupert escapes. Johann is caught.
He tells Rassendyll about the King’s whereabouts in the old Castle and the danger the King is in if the castle is attacked.
Rassendyll, Sapt, and Fritz decide that something has to be done quickly.
CHAPTER 16
Murder in the Moat
Johann reports that the King is ill and growing worse every day. Rassendyll, Sapt, Fritz, and six men set out for Zenda Castle to rescue the King.
Rassendyll goes down into the moat to find a way to rescue the King.
He sees Max Half sleeping in a boat in the moat and kills him.
Three of the Famous Six [Rupert of Hentzau, Lauengram, and Kaufstein] leave the castle.
Rassendyll’s men fire at them. Rupert escapes by jumping into the moat.
Lauengram, Kaufstein, and three of Rassendyll’s men are killed in the fight.
They are not able to help the King that night and they return to the Castle of Tarlenheim.
CHAPTER 17
Rupert of Hentzau and Madame de Mauban
Antoinette pleads with Rassendyll to rescue her from the Castle.
The next morning, Rassendyll and Princess Flavia meet the Chief of Police while riding through the streets of Zenda.
He informs Rassendyll that the British Ambassador is looking for a missing person [ Rudolf Rassendyll].
Rassendyll asks Rupert to join forces with him but Rupert refuses. Instead, Rupert asks Rassendyll to join him in a plot to kill both the King and the Duke.
Antoinette pleads with Rassendyll to rescue her from the Castle.
CHAPTER 18
Rassendyll Makes A Plan
The wedding date is fixed. The King has to be rescued before the wedding.
The Duke is furious about the news of the wedding. There are more quarrels among the Duke,
Antoinette and Rupert of Hentzau.
The King is very ill.
A doctor who is attending to the king is also a prisoner at the Castle.
Rassendyll plans to rescue the King the next morning.
CHAPTER 19
Rupert of Hentzau Also Makes A Plan.
Rassendyll, Sapt, and Fritz carry out their plan to rescue the King.
Rassendyll sets out alone.
He reaches Zenda Castle and climbs down into the moat.
Rassendyll sees Rupert in Antoinette’s room.
She is angry. Black Michael comes into Antoinette’s room.
Rupert leaves. Rupert and De Gautet leave the castle.
Then Rassendyll sees Rupert in the moat. Rupert swims in the direction of Antoinette’s room.
CHAPTER 20
Rassendyll Fights Bravelyand kills form six to Save the King.
The light goes out in Antoinette’s window and a terrible scream is heard.
The Duke and Rupert start fighting in Antoinette’s room.
Other men join the fight. Rupert jumps out the window and into the moat.
Rassendyll kills De Gautet.He takes the keys from De Gautet and goes to save the King.
Rassendyll also kills Bersonin and Detchard .Rassendyll is wounded
CHAPTER 21
The danger for Rassendyll Danger forRupert of Hentzau
Duke Michael is dead and Rupert is pleased.
Sapt and his party reach the New Castle.
Antoinette shoots at Rupert but she misses.
Rupert runs away.
Rassendyll, though very weak, chases after Rupert. Rassendyll attacks Rupert and he almost gets killed.
Fritz reaches them in time to save Rassendyll. Rupert escapes.
CHAPTER 22
I Am Not the King
The king is safe. Princess Flavia hears that the King is seriously wounded.
She rides to Zenda with the Marshal and some guards.
Colonel Sapt meets them halfway. Princess Flavia learns the truth about Rassendyll
CHAPTER 23
They have to sacrifice their love for the sake of honor.
Honour Must Come Before Love.
The King thanks Rassendyll for saving his life and the throne.
Fritz takes Rassendyll to see Princess Flavia who is waiting for him in another room.
They both know that they have to sacrifice their love for the sake of honor.
Rassendyll leaves Ruritania.
CHAPTER 24
The Adventure Is Over
Rassendyll stays for a while in the Alps and then goes back to England.
He refuses Sir Jacob Borrodaile’s job offer.
He lives a quiet life in the country.
He is still in love with Princess Flavia. Once a year he meets Fritz and his wife in a small town outside Ruritania.
They talk about old times. Every year Queen Flavia and Rassendyll exchange red roses.
