A Soldier's Sacrifice

His Imperial Royal Majesty, King Tillion Ferven Keven Pollistal

Your Highness: Dear Sir, I take my pen in hand to inform you of the conditions us soldiers are living in at this time. Knowing of your good reputation as a firm but fair ruler, I wondered if somehow you have not heard of them. Our food is poor and filled with weevils and the streams have become undrinkable because of our horses, so we have no clean water to drink. Many o fthe solderis have no tent to sleep in and must just sleep in the open air. My good friend, Rilan Maev, a brave soldier if ever I knew one, died three nights ago because of the cold and his sickness from lack of clean facilities. I am requesting that you send an inspector or someon to come and see the conditions and bring you back a report. please add speed to their journeys if possible. We are nearing the boarders of Molstin and can smell the sea.

Yours Truly and respectfully,

Edmund Linde

^{*The original letter written by Edmund Linde was destroyed. One of the original letters written by Henry Olden hangs in the Alin-Paxter museum.*}

Historical Details

History

This letter, written by a nineteen year old soldier, was the near cause of an uprising in the country of Alin-Paxtor, especially on the western borders where the king was unaware of the conditions the soldiers were in.

The letter was not sent to the king until a long time later, as events proceeded to cause its delay.

An officer, unknown to the soldiers at the time, read all letters before sending them on their way. When reading this letter, he immediately took it to the general of the regiment, who for reasons of his own did not want the king to know of the conditions his soldiers were in.

General Troln, as was later discovered, was doing everything in his power to undermine the king’s authority and destroy the country.

Keeping the money that was meant for the soldiers for his own gain was an added bonus.

Troln arrested Linde and made a public announcement that Linde had written a treasonous letter.

The morning after Linde had written his letter, he was hung in front of all the soldiers as a traitor. He was not allowed a chance to say anything.

The story that follows is written by Henry Oldon, a man near Linde’s own age and a casual friend of Linde.

<sub>"The air was cold because we had no jackets as we stood in a straight row while they lead Edmund Linde up onto the platform. Being one of the closest ones to the platform, I could see his (Edmund’s) face clearly. He looked confused and frightened. My thoughts and the thoughts of most of the men in that line were the same I think. Young Edmund did not look guilty, but as many point out, looks can deceive. However, Edmund was a popular boy among our ranks and no one had seen him do anything suspicious. Because of the hanging, marching was called off for the day, and after he was dead, we gathered in groups talking quietly and trying to understand.

It was Pel Taviman who came up with the plan to find the letter that Edmund had written. A group of the boys started a fight that was very loud, attracting General Troln’s attention. I was chosen as the one to find the letter, as I was known for stepping softly.

It was not hard to find, as the general obviously didn’t expect someone to take it. It was on top of his papers and signed in Edmund’s bold handwriting. I snatched it up and hurried back to the tent. It had to be passed around several times before anyone would believe it. Troln was not well liked, but this was worse than even we had imagined. Many of the men copied it down on sheets of paper, and the next morning when the general awoke, he found the letter posted all over the camp on every tree and shrub in sight.
Many still refused to believe it, so I sent the original to be passed around the camp. It was returned to me as we got called to role call. No one else wanted it on hand. The general demanded a search of both our persons and our belongings, but he did not know Edmund’s handwriting and many of the men had fifteen or twenty copies of the letter in their possession. Torln confiscated everyone, including the original, which we watched burn in silence. He called us to march and marched us until long after midnight before settling for the night.
Once again, when he woke the next morning, the letter was posted on every tree and shrub. As I and many others had memorized the letter, down to the spelling mistakes, it was not hard to rewrite down. Furious, Torln shortened all our rations, but by this time, all of us were filled with outrage. Someone managed to visit a tavern where he bribed an official to deliver a copy of the letter to the king, along with his own letter with a description of the subsequent events. Meanwhile, Torln was getting desparate, so he said any man with such a letter in his possession by the next day would be hung.

The first man he searched had a letter, so he hung him in front of us. He came to the next man and again, he had a letter on his person. He next was hung. Before the general could come to the next man, Pel pulled out his letter and waved it in the air. “I have one General,” he shouted. The soldier next to me pulled out three letters. “I have three!” he shouted. I smiled and held up a stack of letters. “I don’t exactly know how many I have.” Soldiers began to hold up letters, some of them even throwing them in the air. “I have fourteen!” “I have twenty-one!” “I only have one. Does somebody want to give me more?” “Quiet!” The general could be loud when he wanted, and this time, he had had some of his officers yell it with him. Silence decended on the yard, but as I looked about, I realized that every single soldier was holding up their arm with at least one letter in their hand. The general seemed to realize it too, because he spun abruptly and walked away.”</sub>

Public Reaction

The kings response to the letter was to ignore it as a prank or a joke, until another.. and another.. and another of the same copy reached him along with incidents attached to it about the death of the writer.

The king, desperate to stop the onslaught that was now coming from hundreds and thousands of soldiers, sent an envoy to check out the several different regiments. The clamor only grew, however, with many demanding that Troln be executed and even tortured.

“Dear Sir,

I cannot hold a King in respect who it appears is refusing to acknowledge what is obvious before him. A young man’s life was cut short because he attempted to save the lives of his comrades. (Unsigned)”

The king did not have to worry about that, however, for Troln was found stabbed in his tent the day after his regiment joined a large batallion of soldiers. Most of the officers that had supported him were no longer attempting to help him in any way, hoping desprately that the people would forget about them.

One captain said it was a disgrace and that all people with one of the letters found in their possion ought to be punished. To his horror, he found at least fifteen letters hidden in his own belongings the next morning.

The king finally pronounced that all soldiers would receive a higher commission, mandatory tents and at least a loaf of bread and a bowl of soup per day per soldier. The soldiers, however, were not satisfied. They wanted justice in the highest degrees. They demanded that all officers be investigated and that no one could become an officer unless they passed the majority’s approval.

The king sent negotiators, but the men would not listen. The king finally sent investiagators to investigate the officers, but still the solderis said he was half-hearted.

‘Send at least three investigators for each regiment, perhaps five or six,’ one letter demanded. Every letter he receive had a letter written by Linde attached. King Tillion sent four investigators to each regiment and soon many officers had been weeded out and new ones put in their places. The letters quieted down, but many of the soldiers kept them in their possesion for years to come.

Legacy

Linde’s letter was used as a leading example to many soldiers in many other countries who demanded their own rights.

by Perchance AI Generator

This picture of Edmund Linde was painted from memory by one of his soldier friends after the war ended.

by Perchance AI Generator

This picture of Henry Olden was painted after the war ended and the majority of the soldiers returned home.

Type

Text, Letter