In Memory of Lord Amadeus William Kingsley

Name: Lord Amadeus William Kingsley, Earl of Stunnington Age: 37 DOB: 20th August 1968 POB: Buckinghamshire, England Hair: Dark brown, almost black Eyes: Dark brown Height: 6’2’’ Weight: 157 Ibs Identifying Marks: Some scarring at the side of his neck, usually wears high collars to cover it. Hobbies: Listening, playing and writing music - plays the piano, harpsichord, violin and acoustic guitar. Red wine. History. Art and architecture. Literature. Horse riding. Fencing.  Languages: English, French, Italian, Latin, Ancient Greek Family: Father, Lord William Kingsley, Marquess of Maldon. Mother, Lady Maria Kingsley, Marchioness of Maldon. Late-wife, Lady Jane Kingsley, Countess of Stunnington. Son, Lord Alfred ‘Bosie’ Kingsley (thirteen years old, and also a passenger on the plane). Son, James Kingsley, (nine years old) Seat: 2 D

Background: The first born of Lord William Kingsley, Marquess of Maldon, and Lady Maria Kingsley, Marchioness of Maldon, Amadeus William Kingsley was always meant for great things. He was the heir to his father, and so the first in line to inherit his father’s title of Marquess upon his death. As such, his treatment differed from the other children, his lifestyle  and education taken much more seriously with little chance for the same games and relaxation afforded to his siblings. Even from an early age, he was groomed to become the perfect aristocratic gentleman, just as his father had before him, and his father before that. His lessons were taken much more seriously, and there was no time for indulgences into the favourite subjects or hobbies he may have...instead, his tutors were instructed to give him a thorough education in all the important areas of study. As he grew up, he became fluent in many languages, alive and dead. He had a thorough knowledge and appreciation of all the arts, an intimate understanding of the sciences and an intense immersion into the humanities. He was lucky in the fact that he was a fast reader, and that he naturally soaked the information up, a talent that kept his tutors and father happy.

He was, of course, also instructed in the other essentials for a gentleman...chivalrous behaviour to cover up what really went on, all the hobbies and pastimes a gentleman should have, even dancing. His favourites quickly became music, fencing and horse riding, and he could often disappear for hours in the old barn to do any of the three. He proved to be developing a shrewd mind for business and politics, and it was soon apparent that he would be a very worthy heir to inherit all that his father had kept for him...title, estates, land and fortune.

At the age of 19, his uncle died, leaving him his own title and fortune. Amadeus became the Earl of Stunnington, giving him a title and large amount of land and money in his own right. This, along with his reputation for charm, charisma and intelligence, plus his dark and classical beauty of the Kingsley line, made him a very eligible bachelor. A wife for him meant four simple things; a pretty face to show off, a sensible head to run the house, a good family to enlarge his fortune and social standing, and an heir. Love didn’t feature in his requirements at all. Marriage to him was simply a contract, as simple as a business deal. He picked the daughter of another Marquess, Jane Hardy. She ticked all of the boxes and had always liked him. When he proposed marriage, he was very clear on what it meant to him and was honest in the fact that he could never love her. He would have his lovers to satisfy that part of his life, and she, of course, was free to have her own. She assured him that she understood the arrangement for marriage, but despite that, by the time they had been married for six years and she had given birth to their second son, she had done the one forbidden thing...fallen in love with him.

Her mental health declined as she fell deeper and deeper in love with him, and he still maintained he could never love her. She started drinking, just a little at first but it soon became heavier and heavier. She started arguing with him, resenting him for his distance from her and being trapped in both a loveless marriage, and an empty upper class existence. He tried to be a good friend, but it wasn’t enough for her. Her drinking and resentment of him caused her to start making scenes in front of friends and guests, something that sparked bigger arguments between her and Amadeus, and he began to find it difficult even to offer friendship when she was doing so much damage and causing him so much stress. He found her in bed, early on a May morning, blood staining the sheets and mattress. She’d cut her wrists and was already dead by the time he’d found her.

He found himself consumed in guilt for her death. Her suicide note clearly blamed him... blamed him for trapping her into a marriage, for not loving her when she needed him, for shutting her away in the mansion and making her life a misery. A few weeks later, Amadeus took himself up to the tower, slipping a rope around his neck. He stepped off the ladder, trying to hang himself out of guilt and shame. His personal aide shot him down, getting him to bed on his own and keeping the suicide attempt secret from the other servants. He helped him work through his guilt, and reminded him that his sons had already lost his mother. He re-entered life with a renewed determination, refusing to let her spite ruin the Kingsley name, for that is how he saw the punishing act of her suicide and malicious note left to him even after her death. He redoubled investments in business and bought up more land, started attending the important and most exclusive events on the social calendar as a plainly available bachelor again, and became intent on building up his fortune, land, reputation and properties even higher to pass his son an even more affluent and powerful Kingsley legacy than the already impressive one he received himself.

Whilst not always feeling his best, he made sure to plaster the charm filled smile of the old Amadeus back on for the rest of the world to see, walking tall as if he were the most fortunate man in the world. He lavished expensive gifts on friends as a way to try and fill the emptiness he felt on his own. He increased his time with his sons, grooming the eldest to one day fill his shoes when he was gone. Under it all, he was lonely and bored, lacking any real challenges or even motivations in life. He had everything. But he never let anyone see anything but a successful, indulgent and proud man...the first rule of his class being not to let others see when you are down. He was travelling after a holiday with his eldest son in Tokyo, the younger at home in England with measles, to Seattle to meet up with a friend of the family, but the plane went missing with all passengers.

Personality: Amadeus is always quick with a charm filled smile, and his features can remain honest, relaxed and warm even if he lies. His eyes, however, always tell all of his emotions...dark and expressive, there is little he can do about it, even with all of his acting skills he has developed over the years at having to present a mask of propriety and perfection. When with other people, he will always use ‘the smile’ as it has become known, a charm filled smile that can both smooth the most difficult of situations over and seduce at the same time. Under the smile, the real Amadeus is lonely, bored and ambitionless, having everything he could want already. He is an extremely well educated man, and has read an exceedingly large number and wide variety of books. On the outside he can be warm, a faultless host, a perfect gentleman, always in control of himself and a situation, proud, indulgent, regal in manner, wrapped up in luxury, painfully upper class and charming...however, secretly behind closed doors he is quiet, introspective, private, bored, and lonely in the lack of people who understand him or the position he is in.

Player's contact: K