"Love Eternal"
Godfrey Knight, is son of the Reverend Mr Knight, vicar of a parish in Essex. He was brought up in the vicarage, which is the old house belonging to the former Monk's Acre Abbey. A near neighbour and contemporary is Isobel Blake, daughter of Sir John Black,e Bt, of Hawk's Hall, a vulgar businessman, son of a rich smack owner, who married the daughter of an impoverished peer to advance his business. But although Lady Jane Lynfield was completely in her husband's powerIsobel was always independent of him, even as a child.
Isobel and Godfrey, born within six months of each other c.1885, were educated together in the vicar's private school, and grew fond of each other. But it doesn't suit either parent for them to grow too close. The elder Mr Knight hates Isobel for her radical character and agnostic views, and Sir John plans to marry her to a peer to found a dynasty. In any event Godfrey is sent to Switzerland for a year at abotu 19, to complete his education in the home of a Protestant clergyman, the Pasteur Boiset, of Kleindorf, Lucerne.
Godfrey succeeds well in Switzerland, away from his jealous, strict and narrow minded father. The only people he misses are his old nurse, and Isobel. However, due to a misunderstanding Godfrey and the latter are estranged and so not exchange letters. Godfrey gets on well with the Boisets, including the young and attractive Juliette (who is rather too low-brow to suit him) and her ambitious and well-born mother. But he grows to love the learned pastor, with whom he studies astronomy (though he disliked abstract mathematics), and resists the evil influence of the messmerist Madame Riennes. On the way to Switzerland Godfrey had fallen in the the elderly and kindly Miss Ethel Ogilvy, who was also headed there. She becomes a close friend and he spends every Sunday with her at her home, Villa Ogilvy. However, Miss Ogilvy has fallen in with a group of spiritualists, including the French-Russian Countess of Riennes, the American Colonel Josiah Smith, and the Dane Professor Petersen. They use Godfrey, whom Miss Ogilvy had discovered was a clairvoyant of no mean order, summoning a spirit named Eleanor to do their biding.
Godfrey finally discovered why he found the Sunday afternoon's so tiring - and could never remember exactly what they did - and told the pastor. He confronted Madame, after she had sent the spirit to summon Godfrey, who had refused to attend any further luncheons at the villa. Shortly afterwards Godfrey saved a fellow mountaineer, and was lauded in the papers - including in an English account the false statement that he had rescued a young woman. Isobel saw this and grew jealous.
Miss Ogilvy, who regretted having got Godfrey involved, died shortly afterwards, leaving him a modest annuity and her house, which was full of valuable furniture. Mr Knight, on hearing of this, accused his son of being a gold-digger. Isobel had by now gone to Mexico as companion to the daughter of her uncle, who was made British Minister.
Godfrey now returned home (c.1905). He quarrelled with his father, who was as narrow-minded and bitter as ever, because he declined to enter the Church. Instead, at the suggestion of Major-General Cubitte, Indian Army (retired), who was trustee of Miss Ogilvy's estate, he crammed for Sandhurst, and entered the Indian Army cavalry. At the crammers school he became close friends with the lazy but clever Arthur Thornburn, who also entered the cavalry. At this time Godfrey lived in London, boarding with his old nurse, Mrs Parsons.
After Godfrey won top marks at Sandhurst and Arthur managed to get by second to bottom, Godfrey returned to Essex to see his father. But fate was against him again. He met Isobel (just returned from Mexico), they discovered their mistake, and realised that they loved each other. In the parish church they declared their love eternal. But unfortunately Mr Knight saw them and he immediately told Sir John.
Although Knight and Blake hated one another, their interests coincided. After a furious argument - one of the few in literature which is so replete with mutually offensive dialogue - they confront the young couple. Although Sir John called Mr Knight "no more human than a dried eel", they went together to the church. Sir John hit Godfrey with his umbrella, so Godfrey floored him with a punch. After this they declared that they would not marry while their respective parents lived, but that they were united for all eternity. Godfrey went off to his regiment in India.
Seven years later Mr Knight, who had since been moved to a new parish owing to the bad blood between himself and his parishioners, died. Isobel and Godfrey had no contact with each other except an exchange of rings. Arthur Thorburn was killed in a frontier skirmish, and Godfrey was made a brevet major and received the DSO. In 1914 he was attached to an English regiment and sent to France. He took command of the battalion when the senior officers were killed and wounded, but on the retreat from Mons he himself was hit in the head by a shell splinter, and awoke in hospital in Versailles.
He was moved to London to convalesce. By a remarkable coincidence he found himself in Mrs Parsons' house - with Isobel, now a VAD commandant, as his nurse. Sir John havign died a month earlier they were now free to marry, which they promptly did. Isobel, having had second thoughts about eternity, agreed to marry in a church - the Abbey Church at Monk's Acre. However, through the influence of General Cubitte - now very aged - who thought he was doing him a good turn, Godfrey was posted to East Africa as a Lieutenant-Colonel. He found himself having to maintain relations with the restive natives. When a missionary was murdered at his altar Godfrey, in trying to prevent a massacre of Christian natives, was hit on the head with a knobkerry. This time he awoke in Mena House Hospital,Cairo, where he had lain for some months in an insentiate state. The doctor was surprised that he had recovered his wits, and rather doubted that he had in fact recovered them when he insisted that he had seen Isobel. Godfrey then discovered that Isobel, believing that he was dead - initial reports stated that he had been killed along with the clergyman, had miscarried and then thrown herself into her nursing work at Hawk's Hall, her home in Essex, now a hospital. But, in shielding a wounded soldier from falling masonry during a Zeppelin raid, Isobel had been struck and killed - calling Godfrey's name as she died. This had been two months previous - so Isobel had been dead when Godfrey saw her in Egypt.
Now unable to take a further part in the war due to his lung being injured by a spear thrust, Godfrey retired (though only just 30) to his house in Lucerne. There he met the pastor. But he was destined to die shortly afterwards, and thence rejoin Isobel.
This is probably the most depressing and truly tragic of Haggard's novels. This is not just in the story - almost all the characters are dead by the end of the account, and few die happy - but in the clear evidence of deep depresssion which Haggard was evident living under when he wrote this book. The explanation is immediately apparent once one notes the year of publication - 1918. This Great War affected Sir Henry at least as much as had the tragic death of his only son as a child - that theme runs through many of his works, especially those concerning Quatermain, his alter ego. But here the depression is more significant because it concerns not one man's tragefy, but the fate of civilisation, and of life on earth.
Sir John Blake effectively bought his title - an expedient which Haggard railes against elsewhere. He is a vulgar money-maker, with no redeeming features except business acumen. Godfrey is proud, but amiable and capable. Isobel is headstrong and opinionated - and completely devoted to Godfrey. The pastor is all Mr Knight is not - humble, worldly and generous. The consolation of religion is offered to Godfrey Isobel, but not through the ministrations of Mr Knight, or even of the pastor. It is a much more personal thing. There is a sense that happiness for them was impossible on earth, and that they would have to find it elsewhere - and that they would find it. The sense of the old order passing is also strong in this book, and all in all it is the last work of Haggard I would suggest a reader begin with. It has its moments of power - and even humour (surprising enough), but it is depressing. The confidence which Haggard exudes in most of his missing; humanity is on earth to suffer, and only elsewhere will man receive peace and reward for his efforts.