OOC Information
Preferred Form of Address on A&A: Wingfield will do
Contact Information: Mjinga knows this
Other Characters on A&A: None
How You Found A&A: Aztec Gold
IC Information
Name: Benjamin Wingfield
Avatar: Paul Copley
Occupation: Fusilier
Age: Twenty-eight
Gender: Male
Appearance:
Though height is not a measurement that he considers worth judging, Benjamin stands two or three inches taller than the average man. Like his father and brother, he possesses a large frame and the brawny limbs to match. His hands and feet are both large, with his foot size making it difficult to properly fit him for shoes. Short fingers are made up for by wide palms, which are helpful for keeping hold of small objects. Benjamin's broad shoulders and chest give him a squarish appearance and where other men's bodies tend to taper at the waist, Benjamin maintains the same breadth as is in his shoulders.
Somewhat in keeping with his tree-like appearance, his face and head are both round. His fair-coloured hair is kept relatively short, just barely long enough to touch the top of his short collar, and has a tendency to curl when damp or wet. When dry, his hair lies flat and straight, formed to the contour of his head by his raccoon-fur busby. On rare occasions he is required to dress formally, Benjamin has found it necessary to grease his hair with candlewax to make it appear presentable.
A high, wide forehead nearly overshadows his face. Thick, bushy eyebrows hang over a pair of deep-set blue eyes, between which protrudes a hawkish nose with slightly flared nostrils. A wide mouth and a square chin complete the ape-like appearance of face. Along his jaw is a near-constant light stubble, for no matter how often he shaves, he cannot keep traces of a beard from growing. Along his top lip, a thin fuzz of moustache has taken up permanent residence and he no longer attempts to be completely rid of it.
On his right forearm is a long scar that curves up over the top of his arm toward his elbow. It's the remnant of a blow from their father's sword, in the hands of his brother. The scar has faded with time and exposure to the sun, though the scarred tissue leaves a slight furrow in his arm that can be easily noticed if one looks for more than a moment. Benjamin makes little effort to cover or hide the scar, as he considers it as natural a part of him as the nose on his face.
Another scar mars the pale skin of his back, also from the blade of their father's sword. His brother's despisal has left two physical marks upon him, though Benjamin only recognises that the scars are the remnants of an unfortunate accident. The sword blade carved a line across his back from right shoulder across to his left armpit, narrowly missing the brachial artery in his left arm. As with the scar on his arm, he regards the marking as a part of him and gives it no special thought, except when another soldier offers some sort of exclamation about it when he bares his back to change shirts or to bathe.
It required special tailoring to make his uniform fit properly, but he looks quite smart in his scarlet coat, with the white facings and highly-polished pewter buttons. Benjamin is careful in maintaining his uniforms and kit, and he is often the smartest turned-out man in the company. When not drilling with the rest of his company, he spends his free time cleaning his uniform, rifle, and each piece of his equipment. The white crossbelts that hang off either shoulder are always nearly-sparkling from a fresh pipe-claying and the silver plate on his helmet is polished twice a day to a gleaming shine. Even his cartridge bag receives a daily coat of paint to keep it the proper shade of black. With a freshly-scrubbed uniform, Benjamin makes a fine sight indeed. From his hackled busby to his black trousers and boots, he is every inch a well-turned-out soldier.
On his liberties, he prefers plain clothing, consisting mainly of patched corduroy trousers and a square-cut cotton shirt, with a threadbare single-breasted, sleeveless linen waistcoat. A pair of once-red suspenders are sometimes stretched over his shoulders, but he doesn't often wear them. When the weather is poor, he will grudgingly don a many-times repaired work sac coat that often doubles as an pillow. In exchange for a deck of playing cards, Benjamin acquired a coachman hat from a sergeant being invalided out of the regiment and the black felt hat completes what he believes to be a perfectly respectable off-duty ensemble.
Personality:
If one were to judge him based purely on his outward appearance and bearing, it would be easy to mistake him for being able-minded and quick of wit. The opposite, however, is true. Benjamin's mind works a little slower than others, owing in part to an inability to handle an overly-advanced or complicated train of thought. Intricate ideas overwhelm him and he does his best to avoid becoming involved in in-depth conversations. He pays close attention to detail, which accounts for his smart appearance. This comprises the bulk of his congitive abilities, however. The "big picture" often escapes him, for his view of the world is limited to, at most, his company.
Though simple in thought, he is intelligent in his own way, carrying out his duties ably and well enough to merit his rank of corporal. He knows a good deal about infantry tactics and the various weapons he is required to use. If asked, he can recite the maximum and minimum effective ranges, calibres, requirements for care, and typical durability of several rifles and pistols. His is a nearly-photographic memory, for only rarely does he forget something he's seen. Those few times where gaps appear in his memory are due to excessive drinking but he supposes it's just as well that he does not remember those times.
Benjamin is kind, in the manner of a well-meaning brother. Whilst not especially out-going, he is affable enough on first meeting, and his demeanour tends to improve upon closer acquaintance. Proud of his position, he does not take kindly to suggestions that he is unfit to hold it, and such slights - even if they are only perceived - are answered by a hard pummelling, if the offending party is a subordinate soldier or another corporal. If it's a sergeant or an officer belittling him, he simply endures it, but does not forget it.
Unlike other soldiers, Benjamin does not take a great interest in regular drinking or whoring, and in fact he is rather religious. His faith sets him apart from others in his company, for he attends Sunday service without fail and spends at least a few minutes a day in prayer when he can. He has been, however, induced to violence because of his faith, most often by officers who find it easier to spur the corporal into battle by goading him about the enemy who wishes to eradicate the Anglican faith. Because of this, the mere suggestion that someone might be against the Anglican church is usually enough to send his fighting blood afire.
His temper is not something often felt, but when aroused, it is a fearsome thing. The sergeants and officers superior to him took quick notice of this and use it to their advantage, particularly on overseas service, where combat is often inevitable and constant. When caught up in the fire of anger, Benjamin reacts in only one way - he fights. Either with his fists, his rifle, or whatever implement is lying closest to hand. This single-minded conduct proved useful to his company's officers whilst in South Africa, but it has made adjusting to the more settled life in England very difficult.
Despite his remarkable memory, which retains recollections of every second of his service abroad, Benjamin is not haunted overly much by what he has seen and done. His mind is blissfully simple enough that he does not feel the depth of torment or guilt that other soldiers do, and he is often at a loss when confronted by other soldiers who cannot understand why he is not affected by the time he's spent abroad.
Benjamin can be easily confused, circumstances depending. Most notable amongst items that can send him into dithering uncertainty is the matter of his nationality. His father has always described him as an Englishman, even though Benjamin speaks with a discernible Irish lilt in his voice. This is due to spending his childhood in an Army camp in Ireland. Other soldiers have described him as "the big Irishman" however, which inevitably causes him to question whether he is English or Irish. The truth is dependent on interpretation, for he was born of English parents on Irish soil. Efforts to explain that concept to him ultimately only prove too frustrating and always end in failure.
History:
The second son of Sergeant Martin Wingfield was born in a field hospital in Ireland, on an uncommonly sunny day. He was Christened Benjamin Arthur several days after his birth and to celebrate the occasion, Sergeant Wingfield's platoon held a dance. Such was the spirit of the camp into which Benjamin was born. His infant and toddler years were marked by constant doting upon by soldiers and other camp families alike, with the former teaching him rudimentary soldiering skills as soon as he was old enough to comprehend them. His brother David, admittedly the more mentally-quick of the two, had already mastered the basic skills of an infantryman, despite only being three years old than Benjamin, and resented that his brother was now receiving more attention from the soldiers than he.
By the time Benjamin was seven, it was becoming apparent that he was not on the same level mentally as other camp children. He was able enough when it came to anything relating to soldiering, but he was hopeless with most other subjects, such as mathematics and geography. Though the education offered to camp children was minimal, Benjamin struggled to grasp even the basic concepts. In contrast to his brother, his intelligence seemed almost non-existent. His brother treated him with the harsh disrepect typically reserved for useless soldiers. The relationship between siblings soured rapidly, though most of the bad feeling was held by David.
The bad feeling gradually escalated from mean-spirited pranks to an explosion of fury, when one evening Benjamin was playing with a specially-dulled bayonet given to him by one of the corporals in his father's platoon. Jealous that his brother was still receiving small gifts and attention from the soldiers, who naturally pitied his simple nature, David began the confrontation by grabbing the bayonet away from Benjamin and giving the younger boy a kick in the ribs. Then, after driving the bayonet into the ground, David fetched their father's sword, which was lying on the cot just inside the barracks. As Benjamin prised his bayonet out of the dirt, his brother came at him The first blow opened a line across the younger boy's back and elicited a shriek. Benjamin heaved his bayonet out of the ground and clumsily tried to use it to parry the next strike.
Two soldiers tackled the wild-eyed David before he could take another swing with the sword, whilst another two grabbed Benjamin and bundled him off to the hospital. Their father came barrelling up at a run from the mess hall, a white linen napkin still tucked in his shirt collar. The beating he delivered to the angrily-wailing David made even the watching soldiers wince. Afterward, defiant and angry, David loudly declared that the regular infantry was for fools and simpletons and stormed out of the infantry side of the camp, not even bothering to gather any of his belongings. Word came a day or two later that he had taken refuge in the cavalry barracks. Benjamin had been released from the hospital after half a day, with bandages on his arm and back, and his father made it publicly known that David was no longer considered part of the Wingfield family. The cavalrymen took responsibility for David, and Benjamin did not see his brother again until years later.
The incident lingered in his father's memory for years, though within a month it had lost most of its meaning to Benjamin, who came to regard it as little more than a fight. He passed the remainder of his pre-teen years quietly enough, watching the soldiers in his father's platoon at drill and mimicking their movements. He was never one to stir up trouble and in fact he did his utmost to avoid it. From his mother, he received constant tutoring in the lessons of the Bible, from which grew his devotion to the Anglican faith. Where his father shunned religion, his mother embraced it and in turn, so did Benjamin. His Sundays were spent at morning service, and later in lessons drawn from the various parts in the Bible. These afternoons helped to shape his views of the world, and also of the people in it. In his estimation, he was a lad destined to serve not only the Queen, but God as well.
When his sixteenth birthday began drawing close, his father began questioning him closely about the path he planned to take. To the infantry sergeant's lack of surprise, Benjamin expressed a desire to accept the life of a soldier. By now, he had grown into a brawny lad who, despite his relative mental slowness, knew a good deal about surviving as an infantryman. A few days after his sixteenth birthday, a sergeant he had never seen before came to collect him, and thus began Benjamin's service. In accordance with the custom, he could not serve in the same battalion as his father, he was taken into Second Battalion for training and regular service.
He was determined to perform his best, and applied himself fully to each task given him. The years spent mimicking drill movements and receiving personalised lessons given by soldiers in his father's platoon helped him gain an advantage over other trainees. He was considered suitable for assignment to a platoon after a few weeks and was moved from the recruit barracks to the men's barracks, there to move in with his new platoon. The men welcomed him, more or less, and Benjamin settled into the barracks as does one who is born to such a life. His battalion remained on home service for a few years, before receiving orders to embark with a Navy squadron and sail for India.
India, however, was not in the cards. Orders came for Benjamin and several other soldiers to transfer to another regiment, the Twenty-Fourth of Foot, just before the Fifteenth was to depart for India. Their officers, annoyed with the unexpected change, reluctantly separated the men and sent them to their new home in Warwickshire. The young private accepted the change with his usual forbearance and did not complain. He and his fellow transfers did their best to settle into their new regiment, even though the Twenty-Fourth was idling on home service. His one annoyance was that he was forced to remain at home, whilst the Fifteenth travelled to their new posting in India.
Home service for the Twenty-Fourth lasted only a few years, until the news of hostilies in South Africa came. The regiment was mobilised at once and sent to help quell the troublesome natives. Excitement at the prospect of seeing new lands and possible combat spread through the regiment, and speculation on their tasks was rampant. Benjamin looked forward to the assignment with the sort of brutish eagerness of a bear moving into a new territory. South Africa was hot and dry, but the regiment was largely enthralled by the landscape they found themselves in. Given orders to march for a place none of them could pronounce, the Twenty-Fourth moved inland.
Elements from First and Second Battalions were separated and sent to small outposts, and amongst these was Benjamin's company. His company was given a small mission to guard, alongside support elements from Second Battalion. Their work consisted mostly of improving the roads and handling supplies, which was hardly the exciting adventure that many had looked forward to. The relatively peaceful life of the men at the mission carried on for a few weeks. News of enemy advances from a nearby garrison, however, resulted in the bulk of the mission's soldiers being moved out to support the other post, leaving only one company behind.
Defences were hurriedly built, mostly consisting of mealie bags and biscuit boxes, whilst tents were struck and weapons gathered. A sense of desperation had fallen over the mission and every man was busy preparing to stand against the approaching parties of enemy warriors. Large groups of dark-skinned natives were seen on the hillsides, which lent urgency to the preparations. Unlike the other soldiers, Benjamin was not fearful of the surrounding enemy. He had faith in the men around him and in his own courage. When the attack began, Benjamin found himself with a squad of men assigned to defend the hospital on the western side of the mission.
As the enemy drew close, Benjamin's sergeant seized him by the shoulder and, thrusting an arm toward the approaching horde of warriors, cried that the natives sought to crush all that was Christian and replace it with pagan rituals and gods. The exhortion was picked up and repeated by his corporal, and the idea that those dark-skinned heathens were trying to overthrow God made the young soldier furious. He was the first to open fire on the enemy, and when the natives began the headlong charge toward the defenders, Benjamin leapt the wall to meet them with the sharpened point of his bayonet. The fighting on the western side became savage and the squad was forced to fall back, giving up the hospital to the enemy. A small group of privates fought the advancing warriors from room to room in the hospital, whilst their comrades maintained the defence of the compound outside as best they could. Benjamin had expended his ammunition but fought on with bayonet and rifle butt, until he was grabbed by his sergeant and dragged behind a wall of biscuit boxes.
Midnight came and the company had been pushed back to the centre of the mission station, but to everyone's surprise, the ferocity of the enemy attacks vanished. Sporadic firing continued for a few hours, until the enemy withdrew. The soldiers were left in a small redoubt, all the ground they still held against the overwhelming number of native warriors. Confused and wary, the garrison waited hours, watching the hillsides anxiously for a second assault. None came, and by midmorning a column of soldiers from their regiment appeared. Jubiliation at the arrival of the relief swept through the weary defenders, which was quickly tempered by the news of the massacre at the nearby camp. The significance of their victory was lost on many of them in light of the realisation that over a thousand of their comrades had been killed.
His actions at the mission earned him a promotion to corporal, which he was inordinately proud of. The rank, to Benjamin, meant more than the medal he received for gallantry. After the battle, the battalion regrouped and moved to relieve other elements of the regiment. In the following months, the Twenty-Fourth, collectively, fought a string of victories against the native warriors, bringing an end to the war. Following the end of hostilities, the regiment withdrew to Gibraltar, and then was sent to India. Whilst on service in India, the regiment was renamed the South Wales Borderers. Benjamin didn't understand the reasons for the change of name and felt it slighted the men who had fought and fallen in South Africa. Though his sergeant tried to explain the change, Benjamin could not grasp the idea and resented it.
It was whilst in India that he encountered a man he had not seen in years. His brother David was also in India, serving with the Ninth Queen's Royal Lancers. The meeting was not a happy one, for David was still a private, owing to his poor attitude toward the infantrymen that his regiment supported. Stunned and disgusted that his brother had been made a corporal while he languished as a lowly private, David spat on Benjamin and loudly proclaimed that standing before him was a disgrace to the Queen's army. Unfortunately for David, Benjamin's sergeant was nearby and witnessed the insult being delivered. Bawling for the sentries, the sergeant seized David and had him placed under arrest for assaulting a corporal. The meeting disheartened Benjamin, for he had thought highly of his brother for being a cavalryman, and therefore having the ability to move over great distances much faster than could a common infantryman.
His brother earned forty stripes with a birch cane for his conduct and Benjamin requested transfer to a regiment on home service. He could not remain in a place so near to David, who clearly hated him. It saddened him that his own brother could not abide him, for he had nothing but good regard for David. After months of fighting the beauracy, was granted his request. Glad to be departing a regiment that, he believed, did not sufficiently honour its soldiers, he went aboard a mail packet bound for England. His new regiment, he discovered upon arrival in Liverpool, was the Lancashire Fusiliers. He was assigned to First Battalion, which was quartered in crumbling barracks in Hawes. The main attraction of the battalion was a city called Lindebo, not far from the barracks. Benjamin discovered the Anglican cathedral in the city and made Lindebo his primary destination during his liberties.
Strengths:
Riflery - Benjamin excels in rifle drill and handling. He is a good shot and is in charge of training soldiers in new drills and maintaining competency in established drills.
Loyalty - His fierce loyalty to his fellow soldiers serves him well, as he often goes out of his way to ensure that none of them get into serious trouble with local authorities.
Memory - He has only to look at a thing once to remember it for life. This includes the brutal fighting he experienced in South Africa, though the memories do not affect him as they do other men.
Weaknesses:
Fighting - Benjamin is easily induced to fisticuffs, particularly on matters of religion. If someone is foolishly down-talking the Anglican faith, punches are usually not long in coming. He is also defensive on the matter of his brother, even though David has no positive regard for him.
Mental ability - Whilst not a simpleton, Benjamin is not as mentally agile as most other men. His cognitive skills are not the best, and he can barely read and write.
Religion - His faith has put him at odds with his fellow soldiers, many of whom regard organised religion as "hokey". The beliefs to which he holds also, at times, conflict with his duties, which has endangered his reputation on more than one occasion.
Weapons:
*Snider-Enfield Mark II rifle
*Martini-Henry Mark III rifle
*Beaumont-Adams Mark III revolver
*Enfield Mk I & Mk II revolver
*Socket bayonet (for rifle)
*Zulu war club (taken as a prize)
Picture:
I haven't made a banner/av set yet.