Erich von Stalhein info and discussion post pt. 2

[calliope85.livejournal.com]

Aaaand the second part - mostly more detailed notes on chronology. Possibly even more embarrassingly nerdy than the last part.

APPENDIX I: CHRONOLOGICAL NOTES
The majority of von Stalhein's appearances adhere to a straightforward chronology by publication date, even though the precise dramatic dates when they take place may be more difficult to ascertain. The only probably exception is 'Biggles Takes Charge': although published in 1956, directly after 'No Rest For Biggles', Johns' introductory note (dated 1955) states that it took place 'some years ago'; by implication this may place it before several von Stalhein stories which were published earlier. I have included the broad strokes of chronology in von Stalhein's biographical sketch above; the more detailed information on the dating of the individual books is set out below.

FURTHER NOTE: As I have been reading these books in chronological order in isolation from the other texts published around them, I have dated them almost purely by internal evidence and by their relation to one another. I have no doubt that the books published between them allow further refinements to the chronological scheme adopted here, and would be very happy to hear from anyone who can add further detail or corrections.

c.February 1918: events of 'Biggles Flies East'.
Biggles is said in Johns' introductory note (p.8) to have twelve months active service; to judge by the dating information in 'Biggles Learns To Fly', this would place 'Flies East' in mid-October 1917. However, the opening page mentions the 'bright spring sunshine'; I am inclined to date by this, and to take 'twelve months' as just being a nice round figure. It seems likely, however, to be set before 1st April 1918, as Biggles is still an officer of the R.F.C. rather than the R.A.F.

Midsummer ?1936: events of 'Biggles & Co'
The presence of Ginger in this story dates it to no earlier than 1934 (the year when 'Biggles and the Black Peril' is set: p.160); by the time this story is set Ginger is already a competent ground engineer (p.26), and so must have been undertaking his training at Brooklands for some little while (see 'Black Peril' p.192). The final showdown of 'Biggles and Co.', after about three weeks of preliminary activity, takes place in midsummer (p.148); I would therefore guess the story takes up approximately July 1936.

Spring ?1939: events of 'Biggles, Secret Agent'
Although published in 1940, the events of this story are clearly set prior to the outbreak of war in September 1939. It is, however, the last pre-WWII story; thus when it says it is set in spring (p.36), I assume spring 1939 is meant.

c. 3rd - 14th September 1939: events of 'Biggles In The Baltic'
This story can be dated fairly precisely: it opens with Biggles listening to Chamberlain's wireless announcement of the declaration of war on 3rd September 1939 (p.9), which is followed by a week of preparations (p.17); the main action of the book then takes place in just three days.

c. 7th - 13th March 1940: events of 'Biggles Sees It Through'
As with the other WWII stories, dating is quite precise: it takes place in the last days of the Finno-Russian 'Winter War', and ends on the day of the ceasefire, 13th March 1940. As the action seems to cover a period of approximately six or seven days, story must begin around the 7th. (NOTE: W.E. Johns, with his usual somewhat carefree attitude towards such matters, suggests on p.33 that at the time of year when the story takes place it barely gets dark in Finland. Given his explicit dating of the story to just before the spring equinox, this seems to be more of a plot-related hand-wave than a serious dating criterion.)

c. 9th April 1940 and days following: events of 'Biggles Defies The Swastika'
The dating of 'Defies The Swastika' presents some intractable problems. On the one hand, it's very straightforward: the opening chapter sees Biggles trapped in Oslo by the speed of the German invasion force, which attacked on the night of the 8th/9th April 1940. However, the project is said to have been suggested to Biggles 'two months ago', when Biggles was commanding a special squadron in France; Biggles has spent most of the intervening time in Norway, and has picked up basic conversational Norwegian in about seven weeks. However, the events of 'Sees It Through' clearly should have taken place within this time period; that they did not take place during the course of Biggles' Norwegian trip is equally clear, as Biggles has not seen Algy or Ginger during the whole of these two months. Morever, the mention of the 'special squadron' in France (which I believe is not taken up in any other story) follows directly from Raymond's comments at the end of 'Sees It Through' that he may have work for Biggles and the others in France before very long. One must, therefore, assume that in the Johnsiverse version of WWII, a greater time period elapsed between the end of the Winter War and the German invasion of Norway - probably at least three or four months, if Biggles is to have got settled with his new squadron before heading off to Norway.

Dating from this point onwards become increasingly tenuous, but unless otherwise stated a basic correspondence can be assumed between the date of publication and the dramatic date.

Spring / Autumn 1947: events of 'Biggles Takes A Holiday' (publ. 1949)
The timeline of the background to this story is not altogether reliable: on p.10 Biggles states that Linton had 'been with Angus for the past twelve months', while on p.21 he says it has been 'nearly six months since Linton left him'. The sequence of events might therefore be contracted or extended by six months. The shortest version would be that Linton saw the advertisement for Paradise Valley in spring 1946 (p.11), set sail for Buenos Aires and met Angus on the boat (p.12); when Biggles says he had 'been with Angus for the past twelve months' he might have rather meant that Linton had known Angus for the last twelve months, and that Linton's escape from Paradise Valley, leaving Angus behind, was six months ago; the date would therefore be spring 1947. In the longer version of events, the six months would be additional to the time Linton had known Angus, and we would therefore be in Autumn of that year. The weather is no aid: it is chilly out and Biggles has a fire in his London flat (p.9), conditions that could apply equally well to early spring or late autumn.

December - January ?1947/1948: events of 'Biggles Gets His Men' (publ.1950)
The setting in January is fairly secure. The background sequence of events begins in 'March' (p.4) - not 'March last year', as would, I feel, be more conventional if we were into the next calender year - with the kidnapping of the first British scientists. These kidnappings continue in April (p.4) and May (p.5), at which point Gale is set up as a decoy (a process which takes 'a few weeks'); he is duly kidnapped, and Raymond's meeting with Biggles which opens this story happens five months later (p.7). We must, therefore, be in December of the same year as the kidnappings began. A month is then spent in preparations, after which the action takes place over the course of a few days, presumably in January. The dating of 1947-8 is more arbitrary: it cannot be earlier (as January 1946 would set it prior to 'Takes A Holiday', and the interaction between Biggles and von Stalhein indicates this is not the case), but it could be later: January 1949 or even (just) January 1950. More investigation is needed of the surrounding books.

?1950: events of 'Biggles Works It Out' (publ.1951)
This book is certainly dated to after January 1949 by the references to aeroplanes lost in this month (p.29); the references to Canton's pilots' license being revoked simply in 1949 suggest that the book is set at least in the next year, possibly even in 1951. There is little evidence for finer dating: on p.66 there is fog and rain in London, while it is hot in Monte Carlo: this could place us most plausibly in spring or autumn, but given the vagueries of the English climate this might be pushing our evidence too far. Importantly, this is the last book where von Stalhein is a free operative; at the end of the story he takes shelter behind the Iron Curtain. It must, therefore, be set prior to any of the books where he is a Soviet agent, including 'Biggles Takes Charge' (see below.)

?Spring 1951?: events of 'Biggles Follows On' (publ. 14/6/1952)
In terms of von Stalhein's continuity, this seems to follow on directly from 'Biggles Works It Out' (ie. one cannot insert 'Biggles Takes Charge' here): 'the last time I heard of him he was hiding behind the Iron Curtain' (p.30), a seemingly direct reference to the end of 'Works It Out'. Again, dating evidence is limited, but it is obviously set during the Korean War (25/6/1950 - 27/7/1953). The persistent drizzle but not particularly low (or high) temperatures in Prague suggest it is early autumn, late winter or spring; if one wanted to be ridiculously tenuous, one could suggest that the sunset time in Prague of approx. 8pm (p.88) sets the story in April or late August/early September; weather is usually quite good in late summer, however, so April seems a better bet. However, this may be pressing the evidence too far... This is the first story where von Stalhein is recognised as working as a Soviet agent, though he seems to be envisaged more as a free-lance operative in the pay of Moscow than as an official Intelligence agent; it should therefore be before 'Biggles Takes Charge'.

Early spring ?1952?: events of 'Biggles Takes Charge' (publ. 1956)
NOTE: The placing of this novel in this position is tentative and theoretical. As noted above, Johns' introductory section, dated 1955, states only that the story took place 'some years ago', and there is little internal evidence to date it conclusively. Indeed, what there is is self-contradictory, suggesting (if one wanted to play the Great Game) that like Watson, Johns has attempted to obfuscate the date of events for his own ends. Algy, on arriving at Boris' chateau and finding no one there to whom he can give the key Boris lent him in 1939, reflects that 'no harm had been done. When he departed in the morning things would be exactly the same as when he had left Paris: would be the same, in fact, as far as he was concerned, as they had been for nearly ten years' (p.16). The implication should surely be that events take place in around 1948; and this date would also fit the rawness of the wounds which the German occupying forces inflicted on the population. However, the reference to the Nord Noroits brings the dating later: the prototype was not flown until January 1949, and the plane which Biggles uses has been bought by the French government and modified; it is difficult to place this plane any earlier than 1950. More importantly, von Stalhein is known as 'an important secret service agent from behind the Iron Curtain', and Algy treats this as an established situation (p.42); as von Stalhein does not disappear behind the Iron Curtain until c.1950 ('Biggles Works It Out'), and is not recognised as an official Soviet operative by Biggles & co. until c.1951 ('Biggles Follows On'), this book must be set later than W.E. Johns suggests.

Setting 'Biggles Takes Charge' before 'Biggles In The Blue' also obviates another problem. When Fritz Lowenhardt discusses von Stalhein's career in 'Biggles Buries A Hatchet', he states that von Stalhein had been losing the confidence of his superiors because of Biggles' interventions for some time before 'In The Blue' (p.12); unless 'Takes Charge' is inserted before 'In The Blue', we have in fact only seen one failure by von Stalhein as a Soviet agent because of Biggles' actions before his fall (in 'Follows On'). Placing 'Takes Charge' in the gap between these two books alleviates this difficulty. See also below for von Stalhein's career between 'Biggles in the Blue' and 'Biggles Buries A Hatchet'.

The dating to 'early spring' is secure (p.11).

?May 1953: events of 'Biggles in the Blue' (publ. 20/7/1953)
The onset of torrential tropical storms in the latter half of this book suggests it is set around the beginning of the rainy season in May; the statement in the narrative that 'the hot season was well advanced' may be referring rather to the cooler but dryer season, which runs from around November to April. As the max-min. temperature in Kingston seldom vary by more than about four degrees throughout the year, the reference to a 'hot' season is otherwise a little mystifying. The year is more certain: Wolff is said to have been resident in Jamaica for the past eight years (p.11), since the end of the war: we must therefore be in the first few months of 1953. NOTE: von Stalhein's failure in this book is said to be the catalyst for his final fall from favour in the Soviet Union; although there are two stories where he again acts as Soviet agent which are almost certainly set after this ('Biggles in Australia', 'No Rest For Biggles'), the first is rather a shambles and von Stalhein only plays a subordinate role, and in the second he clearly shows signs of desperation at the difficulties of his position (see Biographical Sketch above). I am therefore inclined to set 'Biggles Takes Charge' before 'Biggles In The Blue', as I cannot see him being allowed the kind of autonomous and trusted role he seems to hold in 'Takes Charge' after his failure in 'In The Blue'.

?Late 1953 / early 1954: events of 'Biggles, Foreign Legionnaire' (publ. 23/9/1954)
There is really no concrete dating information in this book that I could see, beyond the fact that it is set directly after 'Biggles in the Blue' in terms of Biggles' interaction with von Stalhein (Raymond informs Biggles that von Stalhein's 'Iron Curtain friends have chucked him out for bungling that Inagua affair': p.18) and before the publication date.

c. November ?1954: events of 'Biggles in Australia' (publ.31/3/1955)
Again, there is little concrete information about the year: it could indeed easily be set before 'Biggles In The Blue', but as Johns usually highlights changes between publishing order and chronological order (as in 'Takes Charge'), it is best to assume that publishing order should be followed. The shipwreck which initially brings von Stalhein's plans to Raymond's attention takes place 'in the season of willie-willies, which in North-West Australia can occur at any moment between November and April' (p.187); the fact that the rains are not due 'for another week or so' (p.180) suggests that we are in mid to late November, as at Darwin (the approximate location of much of the action) the main rainy season tends to begin in late November - early December.

?1955: events of 'No Rest For Biggles' (publ.15/3/1956)
This book is utterly hopeless for dating information. Bertie's reference to Roger Bannister on p.130 suggests it is set after Bannister's four-minute mile in June 1954, though Bannister was of course a reasonably well-known athlete who specialised in this distance before his record-breaking run. It is also clearly set after 'Biggles in the Blue', as Biggles is already familiar with von Stalhein's Soviet partner / handler, Zorotov.

Spring ?1957: events of 'Biggles Buries A Hatchet' (publ. 8/9/1958)
It is said to be 'some weeks' until the ice in the Tartar straits usually breaks up (p.48), but the blizzards they encounter, while not being entirely unexpected, are still more extreme weather than they were expecting: a date in late spring seems plausible. However, I have at present little information about the climate of Sakhalin, so cannot date this more precisely.
Von Stalhein is said to have been badly shaken by the Soviet crushing of the Hungarian revolt, which took place 4th - 10th November 1956 (p.15); it is described as 'the recent uprising', which rather suggest that the story is set the following spring.

August ?1957: events of 'Biggles In Mexico' (publ. 19/1/1959)
This book was published directly after 'Biggles Buries A Hatchet'; Biggles has not seen von Stalhein in the intervening period, and Fritz has returned to live in West Berlin with his mother, who (presumably under pressure from Raymond) has been successfully extricated from East Berlin. Either 1957 or 1958 are thus reasonably plausible. That the date is August is suggested by the fact that the rainy season arrives during their time in Mexico; in the state of Sonora, where the action takes place, this falls in July, but this year the rains are said to be 'very late (p.59).

c. March-May ?1958: events of 'Biggles at World's End (publ. 1959)
The story takes place in summer (p.55); W.E. Johns states in the introduction that clear skies only really occur between March and May. The year suggested is simply an extrapolation from the dating of the previous stories.

Late August 1961: events of 'Biggles Takes A Hand' (publ. 6/5/1963)
Roth was arrested three weeks before the beginning of the story, and his family escaped just after his arrest; this was before the Berlin wall went up (p.59), which has been built in the intervening period. We must therefore assume the story takes place in late August 1961.

September ?196?: events of 'Biggles Looks Back' (publ. 26/2/1965)
Events are stated as taking place in November (p.30), but as this is the last von Stalhein story, it's difficult to be sure where it falls, other than the likelihood that it takes place between 1961 and 1965. Certainly the relationship between Biggles and von Stalhein has become infinitely warmer than it was in 'Biggles Takes A Hand': Biggles now describes their relationship as being 'very good friends' (p.85).

APPENDIX II: EDITIONS USED IN ORIGINAL PUBLICATION ORDER, and CHECK-LIST OF VON STALHEIN APPEARANCES:
'Biggles Flies East' - Red Fox omnibus edition under the title 'Biggles Story Collection II' (Random House 2001), containing 'Flies East' and 'Flies West'.
'Biggles and Co.' - Red Fox (Random House) 2004
'Biggles, Secret Agent' - OUP 1940 (repr. 1949)
'Biggles in the Baltic' - OUP 1940 (repr. 1947)
'Biggles Sees It Through' - OUP 1941 (repr. 1949)
'Biggles Defies the Swastika' - OUP 1941 (repr. 1951)
'Biggles Takes A Holiday' - Hodder & Stoughton 1949
'Biggles Gets His Men' - House of Stratus 2001
'Biggles Works It Out' - Hodder & Stoughton 1951 (repr. 1952)
'Biggles Follows On' - Hodder & Stoughton 1952
'Biggles In The Blue' - Brockhampton Press 1953 (repr. 1954)
'Biggles, Foreign Legionnaire' - Red Fox (Random House) 1995
'Biggles in Australia' - Hodder & Stoughton 1955
'No Rest For Biggles' - Hodder & Stoughton 1956
'Biggles Takes Charge' - Brockhampton Press 1956
'Biggles Buries A Hatchet' - Knight Books (Brockhampton Press paperbacks) 1969
'Biggles In Mexico' - Brockhampton Press 1959
'Biggles at World's End' - Brockhampton Press 1959
'Biggles Takes A Hand' - Hodder & Stoughton 1963 (hardback edition)
'Biggles Looks Back' - illustrated .doc ebook

Comments

[003chan.livejournal.com]

A very belated thank-you for this post :)