SHERLOCK HOLMES: A BIOGRAPHY

by Anna Brelin

A Sherlock Holmes Biography: The Life, Times and Tribulations of The Great Consulting Detective - Want to know more about Sherlock Holmes's family? Here lists the names of many of Sherlock's family, various details about them, etc. Did you know that Sherlock's father cheated on his mother? Read all about it here!

A Sherlock Holmes Biography: The Life, Times and Tribulations of The Great Consulting Detective

Written by SeverusGirl360

(Includes known canon, writer fan-fiction and subject variations from the various writers that write about Sherlock Holmes's life and family)

Name: William Sherlock-Scott Holmes (Mycroft often refers to him as Sherlie, Sherley or Sherlock)

Born: January 6th, 1854 (At The Sherrinford Family Hornsea Estate, on the Yorkshire Coast, near Hornsea, East Riding Yorkshire, UK)

Mother: Abigail Violet-Josephine Sherrinford (Of The Sherrinfords of East Riding, East Riding Yorkshire, UK)

Maternal Grandmother: Camilla (Camille) Josephine-Marie Vernet

Maternal Grandfather: Sir Edward Augustus-Scott Sherrinford

Maternal Great-Grandmother: Bernadette Anabelle-Nikoleta Vernet nee Baschet

Maternal Great Great Aunt: Marielle Geneviève-Élodie Devaine nee Vernet

Maternal Great-Grandfather: Antoine Charles Horace Vernet

Father: Siger William-Scott Holmes II (Of The Holmes Family of Hurlingford, Helmsley, North Yorkshire, UK)

Paternal Grandmother: Abigail Élouise-Marie Holmes nee Gavan

Paternal Grandfather: Siger William-Scott Holmes I

Paternal Great-Grandmother: Philomena Vertiline (Marie) Holmes nee Spelding

Paternal Great Great Aunt: Matilda Edwina (Mattie) Tavashire nee Spelding

Paternal Great-Grandfather: Bartholomew James-Augustus Holmes (Sir Bartholomew)

Brother(s): Mycroft Siger-James Holmes (1), Ignatius William-Barnabas Holmes (4)

Sister(s): Adella Camilla-Marie Holmes (3), Nettie Lenora-Jennie Holmes (5)

INTRO:

I have always wondered about Sherlock Holmes and his family. Where he came from and what made him the lonely, deductive genius that he became. I have long taken the time to study the character's background and have even looked upon the sources of other Sherlock Holmes writers (besides just Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself) to find a clue as to how this character became the man that he was. There is as many would know some basis in reality when it comes to the study of Sherlock's bloodline and family.

Though very few would likely take the time to really, properly study it since much of what makes up Sherlock's bloodline and family are the fictional works of writers other than just the creator of Sherlock Holmes himself. However the truth of the matter is that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle didn't spend much time talking about Sherlock's background nor his early life, other than what was mentioned in the story of 'The Greek Interpreter', which not only mentioned the fact that Sherlock's grandmother was a sister of Vernet, but that he had an older brother, Mycroft, who, as Doyle claimed, was only 7 years older than the latter brother Sherlock. In this detailed study, I will break down the factual and fictional side of Sherlock's family and explain the various details behind it.

IS MYCROFT MUCH OLDER THAN ORIGINALLY CLAIMED?

I have long since believed that Mycroft is in fact much older than the original claim states since the appearance in age between Holmes and Mycroft (or in Jeremy Brett's series at least) shows that the gap in age is much wider than originally stated in Doyle's work. Recently, as shown in the series 'Sherlock', Mycroft doesn't look nowhere near as old as the Mycroft in Jeremy Brett's series of Sherlock does. Thus, I have concluded that Mycroft is much older than 7 years older than Sherlock, being more closer to 12 or 13 years older than Sherlock rather than 7 year older.

I do not wish to contradict Doyle's claims, but the evidence seems to point to Mycroft being much older than he claims him to be. In my fan-work of Sherlock Holmes, I claim Mycroft to be around 12 years older than Sherlock, but even than it is hard to account for Mycroft's full head of white-gray hair in Brett's Sherlock series, if he was in fact 7 years older than Sherlock.

But here is what I think on the matter:

Say Sherlock is around 32 years old at the time of 'The Greek Interpreter' and Mycroft, being 12 years older than Sherlock, would have been around 44 years old at the time. This is more plausible, since gray hair is known to come in at around the late 40s and early 50s. Though taking into account Mycroft's health (which didn't appear all that well for Brett's Mycroft), the appearance of gray hair would have been plausible even for a man in their mid 40s since health plays a vital part in the color of one's hair. And, taking into account Brett's Mycroft's lack of energy and ambition, it would not be all that hard to believe that he would have a full head of white-gray hair as early as 44 years of age. It also occurs to me that Brett's Mycroft is a drinker as well as a smoker; again, health would dictate the color of one's hair. Even still, the idea of Mycroft being only 7 years older than Sherlock is a bit on the far-fetched side to say the least, since Mycroft would have only been 39 years old at the time of 'The Greek Interpreter' if he was in fact 7 years older than Sherlock then.

THE VERNET SIDE:

Now let's pry into some of the factual details of Sherlock's family bloodline, with fictional connections and names. In 'The Greek Interpreter', Sherlock claims that his singular gift observation and deduction came from (or rather was inherited) from his French grandmother, who was a sister of either Horace Vernet or Carle Vernet. The Vernet Family has long been known for being a family of artists, whose works are well known in the world of art.

(Note that a few of the names mentioned and perhaps a rumor or two are fictional, though most are based on fact. Any similarities to any real or actual people, places, names and surnames are merely coincidental and are used to fill in missing gaps left in place.)

We shall start with Horace Vernet then work our way backwards to Sherlock's great great-grandfather on the Vernet side of the family:

Émile Jean-Horace Vernet aka. Horace Vernet (June 30, 1789 – January 17, 1863): The son of Antoine Charles Horace Vernet, aka. Carle Vernet. According to the family records, there is mention of his great-grandfather (?), his grandfather (Claude-Joseph Vernet), his father (Carle Vernet), his uncle (?), and brother-in-law (?). Already this is telling me that not only did Carle Vernet have at least 1 brother, but that Horace himself had at least 1 sister, who was married to his brother-in-law. It is assumed that this brother-in-law was either of the Delagardie Family or the Lecomte Family, since both surnames of which have been mentioned in Sherlock's family history on occasion.

Though there is every chance, at least on the fictional side of this, that the brother-in-law mentioned was in fact of the Sherrinford family and was Sherlock's maternal grandfather. Some have suggested that the sister in question that was said to be Sherlock's grandmother was a sister of Carle Vernet, Horace's father.

But there is a problem with this suggestion. This sister, the one claimed to be Sherlock's grandmother in this light, would actually be Sherlock's great-grandmother, since Carle is Horace's father. This brings us back to Horace Vernet, who in reality had at least 1 sister. In my Sherlock Holmes fan-work, there is indeed more than one sister of Horace Vernet.

These sisters, named Camilla (Camille) Josephine-Marie Vernet and Violet (Violette) Francis-Philippa Vernet, were (in my Sherlock fan-work) the illegitimate fraternal twin sisters of Horace Vernet, who came from a quiet relationship between Horace's father Carle Vernet and Philippa Delagardie, who was the wife of Honore Delagardie, who is presumed to have been another famous artist of fine works.

There is also factual mention of Horace having been married, from which came his presumed one and only child, a daughter (?). This daughter would be a cousin of Sherlock in some way and her mother being Sherlock's maternal great aunt by marriage. One of these sisters, in this case, Camille Vernet, would marry a Sir Edward Augustus Sherrinford (Sherlock's maternal grandfather).

Together they would have three children, a son and two daughters. The older of the two daughters, named Abigail Violet-Josephine Sherrinford, would in turn marry Siger William-Scott Holmes II. These are Sherlock's parents according to my fan-work.

Antoine Charles Horace Vernet, aka Carle Vernet (August 14, 1758 – November 17, 1835): The father of Horace Vernet and Sherlock's maternal great-grandfather. Carle is factually mentioned as being the youngest child of Claude-Joseph Vernet (Sherlock's maternal Great-Great Grandfather), which tells me that Carle had siblings. Claude-Joseph Vernet married a stubborn Catholic Englishwoman, who was either named Adelaide or Elizabeth. It is also rumored that she had suffered from bipolar depression and that she was, at times, as mad as a hatter. This would be Holmes's maternal Great-Great Grandmother. Carle's sister (in my fan-fic, her name is Marielle Geneviève-Élodie Devaine), was sent to the guillotine during The French Revolution, prompting him to give up painting.

Claude-Joseph Vernet (August 14, 1714 – December 3, 1789): Sherlock's maternal great-great grandfather who married a stubborn and devoted Catholic Englishwoman named either Adelaide or Elizabeth (though speculations point more to her name being Adelaide). Claude, like his son Carle, was a great artist of many famous works. Lady 'Mad Wench' Adelaide (as she is referred to in my fan-fic), as she was sometimes referred to on the Holmes side of the family, suffered from a form of madness and manic depression which often disrupted Claude Vernet's household. She would cycle through her good days and her bad days and even through times of neutrality. Though a beautiful woman born of fairly wealthy parents and with strong (borderline insane) Catholic beliefs, she was often a hard woman to live with or be in the presence of.

Sherlock: "My maternal great-great grandmother was a rather vicious creature to get on with. She often suffered from violent mood swings, which at times resulted in pretty severe verbal and mental abuse. She would often pass blame onto other family members when things went wrong or when things were out of place and not where she believed that they were supposed to be in her eyes. But she did have enough sense to not get to physical in her manner of abuse except on the rare occasions when it got to hot and her self-control was overtaken by her madness, which often frightened the household so. At least, that is what I have heard about her from my mother. Thankfully, she was the only member of the family that suffered from such upsets of mental exultation..."

THE HOLMES SIDE:

Now let's pry into the fictional side of Sherlock's family tree, which we know a great deal more about than the factual side of his family tree.

(Note that many of the names mentioned are fictional. Any similarities to any real or actual people, places, names and surnames are merely coincidental and are used to fill in missing gaps left in place.)

Holmes Family Ancestral Home: Hurlingford Manor (near Helmsley, North Yorkshire, UK)

Sherrinford Family Ancestral Home: Sherrin Trope Manor, nearest to Market Weighton and Beverley, East Riding Yorkshire, UK)

Sherlock Holmes once mentioned that he was descended from country squires. There is no doubt that his family tree contains a few prominent country squires of Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, including the Holmes family itself, so would make his heritage to them all the more sound. The various families related to Sherlock Holmes are listed bellow, which include country squires and members of nobility.

The Holmes Family of Hurlingford House (Helmsley and Harrogate, North Yorkshire, UK) - Sherlock's family, which its family originated from the Cotwolds and the Cornwall regions of Great Britain.

Holmes History:

1. About 500 years before Sherlock's birth, the Holmes Family moved to Yorkshire from Wales with their patriarch Sir Milo Randulfus Holmes, along with his two brothers, the Honorable Scead Alexander Holmes and Thebaldus Nicolas Holmes and their sister, Beatricia Constancia Tailour nee Holmes. Scead's mother (and the mother of his siblings), nicknamed 'The Good Witch' Galadria Sibyl, of The Sibyl Family of Dover, an Englishwoman of French and Anglo-Saxon descent, was accused of practicing black magic due to her vast experience in herbs and plants. However, these accusations were later proven false.

2. Beatricia was married to a country squire from Cornwall. Her husband, Sir Arnaldus Tailour, was descended from French, Cornish and Anglo-Saxon roots.

3. The Honorable Scead Alexander Holmes, the second of the three brothers, is Sherlock's ancestor.

4. The First Scandal: Scead was madly in love with a married Frenchwoman named Calanthe Berangaria de l'Angarde, who for a long time had been estranged from her marriage due to her husband's lack of fertility. Her husband Phillipe de l'Angarde, came home early one evening to find his wife and Scead in bed together in the mad throws of passion. Phillipe, angered by the sight of this, a brawl between Phillipe and Scead broke out. Phillipe promptly seized hold of a pin knife and proceeded to try and murder Scead, cutting him in several places during this fight.

However, Scead was not without his own protection. He had with him a leather whip, which he often brought with him for protection while traveling to the region where Calanthe lived. Scead wrapped his whip around Phillipe's neck then promptly strangled Phillipe to death.

Scead, in order to evade capture for the crime, ran away with Calanthe to Yorkshire where they would have three children, a son and two daughters. However, Scead was later captured, at the age of 43, by members of Phillipe's family and then later put on trial and sentenced to death by guillotine in Phillipe's home town of Najac, Southwest France, despite confirmed allegations that Phillipe was abusive to Calanthe. Scead's and Calanthe's third child was only 9 years old at the time.

Calanthe would later grow to love and be married to Scead's younger brother Thebaldus, having a further two children, 2 daughters. Calanthe died in her sleep at Hurlingford House at the age of 67 after suffering a long battle with influenza.

5. Sir Milo Randulfus Holmes would later marry a fairly wealthy Yorkshire woman named Lady Marjory Elizabeth-Marie Barnsley, who was youngest daughter of Sir Edric James-Edward Barnsley, who was a country squire. Sherlock's paternal bloodline has been mingling with Yorkshire bloodlines ever since. The Holmes Family had been living in their ancestral home of Hurlingford House for nearly 5 centuries prior to Sherlock's birth.

6. Winterbourne Place, Mycroft's small estate near Chichester, in West Sussex, which was given to Mycroft in his paternal great uncle's will and was often lived in by Sherlock and his siblings along with their parents, is often gang invaded by various members of Sherlock's family at any given time, especially during the weekends, be they members of Sherlock's immediate family or related family members there of. Quite often the Holmes's family are unable to get to Hurlingford House during certain times of the year due to the weather or due to limited vacation time. Quite often The Holmes Family will use Winterbourne Place to celebrate the Christmas holiday in. There is always someone of the family visiting Winterbourne Place during the weekends, but it becomes especially crowded there during holidays and times of celebration such as a wedding or a birth in the family. Quite often the family will gather and meet at Winterbourne Place to mourn the death of a family member.

Sherlock: "You must understand, Watson. I spent half my childhood in Winterbourne Place. While father was out solving crimes and mother was doing her civil duties, Mycroft was always there to watch over me and our other siblings. It was like a second home for me and I often saw quite a few members of my family during the weekends..."

7. The Holmes Family is dominantly Catholic and/or Roman-Catholic by religion. But there is also a loose vain of Anglicanism running through the family. This makes Sherlock himself either Catholic or Roman-Catholic with a few loosely held Anglican beliefs. Overall, his manner of beliefs are dominantly Catholic in nature. It is speculative to say that the Vernet family, or at least a good portion of it, were also Catholic or Roman-Catholic, but it is possible.

The Sherrinfords of Cummington and East Riding (Hornsea, East Riding Yorkshire, UK) - The Sherrinfords originally came from Wales, near the town of Tenby in West Wales. The family moved to Yorkshire when their patriarch, Sir Cedric William Sherrinford, of Welch and Anglo-Saxon descent, moved his entire family from Tenby to Hornsea when his third child was only 3 years old. Their ancestral estate, Sherrin Trope Manor, is in the Yorkshire Wolds, nearest to Market Weighton and Beverley. They have another estate near Hornsea, where Sherlock would later be born.

The Sherrinfords are locally famous for their uniquely intense and flavored black wine called Sherrin Trope Proof/Yorkshire Black Stallion Wine (which is actually a really dark purple), which is made from a hardy strain of grapes that is able to grow in the sandy and chalky soil of the region where Sherrin Trope Manor is located. Sir Cedric William Sherrinford moved his entire family to Yorkshire for the sole purpose of becoming a wine maker in the region, which became a fairly successful venture. The fairly large vineyard, which is stretched around Sherrin Trope Manor on the side of a set of south facing hills behind the manor, is where the privately sold wine is grown and brewed. Sherlock's mother, Abigail Violet-Josephine Sherrinford, is a member of The Sherrinford Family, the eldest daughter of Sir Edward Augustus-Scott Sherrinford.

The Gavans of Bassetshire House (Retford, Bassetlaw, Nottinghamshire, UK) - Originating from the Scottish Highlands, the Gavans of Bassetshire House moved to Nottinghamshire in the 14th century. There home near Retford in Bassetlaw, Nottinghamshire is famous for its lush landscape and farmlands. The Gavans were originally of the McGayre Family of Aviemore, Scottish Highlands. Sherlock's paternal grandmother, Abigail Élouise-Marie Holmes nee Gavan, who was half-French on her mother's side, was of the Gavan Family.

The Tavashires of Great Riverbain Manor (Donington On Bain, East Lindsey, Lincolnshire, UK) - Also originating from Wales, the Tavashires moved to Lincolnshire in the late 14th century. The Tavashires are famous for their glass making and hand-made glassware. The Tavashire Bain Glassworks Company was based in Lincolnshire, near Saxilby and Broxholme (closer to Thorpe Tilney on the River Witham), owned by one of Sherlock's 1st cousins once removed, Gebhard Roderic Tavashire. Gebhard's mother, Annelene Tavashire nee Erkenbald is of a family of noble French and German descent.

Sherlock and Gebhard grew up together and would often play together as children when Gebhard's parents would visit Winterbourne Place now and again. They often enjoyed trying to solve mock crimes together along with Gebhard's younger sister, since Gebhard himself also possessed a faculty of observation and deduction like Sherlock did. Gebhard also spoke French, German and Latin along with English and also had a love for nature, the arts and solving mysteries. In my fan-fic, Gebhard is often referred to by Sherlock as Gebhard the Handsome or Gebhard the Quick due to being a favorite amongst the ladies he would court who found him handsome, dashing and courageous. Gebhard was known for being a troublemaker and for playing tricks on other family members, including Sherlock. Gebhard often made pickpocketing an art form, "...being quick of feet as well as of hand...". Gebhard was blessed with great wit and a great singing voice as well as with bright blue eyes and shoulder-length sandy brown hair.

Gebhard is Sherlock's 1st cousin once removed through a son of Sherlock's father's youngest sister. Siger's Holmes II's youngest sister married a Tavashire (who was a cousin of Siger II's father), producing Sherlock's first cousins (two sons, 1 daughter), the oldest of the two sons which in turn married Annelene Erkenbald, producing Gebhard and Gebhard's sister, Elenore Tavashire.

The Speldings of Ryton Mirth Manor (Blyth, Bassetlaw, Nottinghamshire, UK) - Sherlock's paternal great-grandmother, Philomena Vertiline (Marie) Holmes nee Spelding, comes from this family. A family originally from Somerset, near the town of Clevedon, a seaside town famous for its shops and largely unspoiled Victorian architecture.

The family moved to Blyth around the early 16th century, with the purpose of becoming a major supplier of wool and cotton in the region, which became a fairly successful venture. Several country squires hale from this family, one of which was the father of Philomena Spelding. Another 1st cousin of Sherlock's, Joseph "Josey" Edwin-James Spelding, also grew up along side Sherlock, often visiting Winterbourne Place during the Summer. Joseph was famous in the family for his wit and keen skills in playing chess and like Sherlock and Gebhard, possessed the ability to observe and deduce, though not nearly as developed as Sherlock or Gebhard's skills in observation and deduction were.

The Tailours of Camelwold Place and Mouswold Manor (Camelford and Mousehole, Cornwall, UK) - Beatricia Constancia Tailour nee Holmes, a sister of Sherlock's ancestor, was married into this family. Originally from Oxfordshire, hailing from both the town of Charlbury and the village of Horspath, The Tailours first moved to Camelford, Cornwall in the late 14th century, than moved to Mousehole, Cornwall in the early 16th century. A cadet branch of the family remained in Camelford in Camelwold Place while the lead branch remains in Mousehole, in Mouswold Manor. The Tailours are renowned for their exquisite glove making skills. It was rumored that they often made gloves for several members of the French and English royal families. Both Sherlock and Mycroft, as well as several other members of the family often get their dress gloves from The Tailours. Sherlock's second cousin once removed, Alistair James Tailour, often gifts members of the family with dress gloves he made.

Sherlock: "The Tailours are quite often a rowdy bunch to hang out with. They enjoy their parties and celebrations and are not above trying to get members of the Holmes and Sherrinford families into the spirit of party and play. Their earliest ancestors were Irish seamstresses, so naturally the need to celebrate and expel an over abundance of energy naturally comes to them. But they do make good glove makers and they are all rather skilled as stitching and sewing..."

The Barnsleys of Baridore House (Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, UK) - A family native of Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, UK, they have been in existence for over five centuries. Lady Marjory Elizabeth-Marie Barnsley and her father Sir Edric James-Edward Barnsley come from this family. Their specialty was and still is horse breeding and horse racing.

The Great Yorkshire Stallions of Baridore House often produced prize-winning race horses, including their most famous champion stallion, King Great Charles Splendor, which was a beautiful black stallion whose parents who were of strong, fast and powerful French thoroughbred stock and were related to famous racing stallion Sliver Blaze (SEE episode Sliver Blaze for details). This family, like the Holmes family, were descended from country squires.

The Helyer-Teagues of Great Tunlaw Hall (Tunlaw, Sussex, UK) - Sherlock's and Mycroft's godmother, the formidable Lady Cordalia Jane Helyer-Teague of Great Tunlaw Hall, is of this family. Her family was mostly made up of famous hunters, game shooters and explorers. Cordalia's ancestor, Sir Ralph Edward-James Teague, was a famous botanist and explorer of the Orient and Cambodia. His mistress, Gabrielle Madeleine Helyer, was a famous singer and actress who was half-French on her father's side.

Sir Ralph and Gabrielle never married, but in their union produced the first members of the Helyer-Teague Family. Cordalia's father and grandfather were notable country squires, thus she inherited the country seat of her family after her father passed on. Siger Holmes II and Cordalia's father were close friends and old schoolmates and they would often played cricket together at the same club. It was through this friendship between Siger II and Cordalia's father, Sir Charles Helyer-Teague, that Siger II became Cordalia's godfather, while in turn she later became godmother to Mycroft and Sherlock.

Mycroft would later marry into the family through Cordalia's eldest niece, Lady Josephine Arlene-Violet Holmes nee Helyer-Teague, whose mother is of The Sherrinford family. Her (Josephine's) mother is married to Cordalia's eldest brother, Sir Patrick Alistair Helyer-Teague. This makes Cordalia not only Sherlock's godmother but also his aunt by marriage through his brother.

The Rosentires of Rosen Ferth Hall (Dinas Mawddwy, Gwynedd, Wales) - Originally a family from Cornwall, near the town of Saint Ives, The Rosentire Family moved to Dinas Mawddwy in Wales around the same time The Holmes Family was settling in Yorkshire, about 5 centuries ago. Peter James-Patrick Rosentire I, who later married Adella Camilla-Marie Holmes, Sherlock and Mycroft's elder sister, is from this family. The family comes from a long line of Cornish lords, country squires and knights of French, Welch and Anglo-Saxon descent. There are also rumors that they, like the Holmes family, have connections to French royal bloodline.

SHERLOCK'S EARLY LIFE (as told by Sherlock):

Mycroft was about 12 years old when I was born, in that dark and drafty house on the edge of the North Sea or that cold, bleak winter's morning of January 6th, 1854. From what I had heard, my brother was asleep in the loft with the family dog while my mother was in one of the downstairs bedrooms aiding my way into the world.

I have never been ashamed to admit that my brother possesses a greater faculty for observation and deduction than I do and this only confirms on how my brother takes after our father more than he does our mother when it comes to physical bone structure, mannerisms, build and facial appearance. The same watery blue-gray eyes, the same dark brown hair. So much like father he is, my brother. Whereas myself takes more to our mother physically and appearance-wise. Yes, I am of the Holmes family and was born into the Holmes family, but I bare more the physical appearance, air of presence and grace of a Sherrinford, as my mother would have proudly told you.

I indeed share many traits with my mother, the same raven black hair, the same hazel-green eyes with an influence of gray in them. My mother was indeed a beautiful and soft spoken woman, though she was often starved of affection as my father was often out working on his cases, solving crimes and capturing the criminals.

My mother often had her own civil duties to attend to, which often kept my parents away from one another. Oh, we'd have our happy times, where we would go somewhere together for short, precious moments as a family. And it was on one of these rare outings at the Sherrinford family estate near Hornsea on the shore of the North Sea when I was conceived, than later born there.

My father was working on a long and tedious case in Hornsea during that time, which prompted him to bring my brother Mycroft, my very pregnant mother and a couple of the servants to the Sherrinford Hornsea Estate so that my father wouldn't have to stay at a hotel. They had also brought with them Mrs. Bellodonna Bobsher nee Sherrinford, who was our family nursemaid, governess and midwife.

A winter storm came in soon after, stranding us at the estate. It wasn't after the start of the storm that my mother went into labor with me. And after a few hours that night, as the winter wind blew fiercely outside, I was brought into the world, helped along by Mrs. Bobsher.

Yes, Mrs. Bobsher. Quite a special and remarkable woman she was, for not only was she my family's nursemaid, governess and midwife, she was also family, the younger sister of my mother Abigail and was also my aunt. Like my mother she was quite beautiful, with raven black hair like my mother's, but with vibrant, piercing dark blue eyes. She often acted as a second mother to Mycroft, myself and later to my sister Adella, who came along about 3 years later. She often took care of us and tended to most of our personal and emotional needs. I did indeed love my mother and father, but they seemed to become strangers to me, especially when I got older. I rarely ever spoke to my father until I was about 12, though when I did, he would often share with me closely held words of wisdom. And my mother was indeed a great fountain of knowledge, for it was her to taught me how to play the violin. Though through watching my father I became partial to the piano as well.

Childhood was often quiet and lonely business for me and my brother Mycroft, but despite the silence that often plagued in and around the house, it was always so extraordinarily alive with intellectual pursuit. Books and pictures were a common sight amongst the house, with various subjects being read about and written about in notes and side scribblings. Quite often myself and Mycroft would write extra little notes in these books, writing them in the empty brackets of each page.

Whenever we saw a mistake in the information or a misspelled word in the paragraph, we would make the attempt to correct it through the notes we would write. Quite often I would display how learned I was in botany by adding in other names and spellings of the plant and the family it belonged to, including their scientific names. I had often made an art in doing that. However, I did have favored subjects that I would often study quite vigorously.

Among Mycroft's favorite subjects were that of Mathematics, British Law and Politics, but also Sensational Literature and Fictional Murder/Mystery stories. He like myself also possesses a practical knowledge of shoe and boot prints, but I extended my knowledge in that field to also include 42 different patterns of bicycle tires. My favored subjects were dominantly Chemistry and Botany, as well as Art and Music. My mother was a superior flute and violin player, whereas my father preferred playing the harp and the piano. It was not long before my mother passed on that she gave me her heirloom violin as a birthday present, which had once belonged to her mother and grandmother. I soon learned to play this violin with the same skill that my mother had possessed and continue to play that same violin to this day.

Unfortunately my brother Mycroft never found any interest in playing an instrument for he saw his calling amongst our father's work and well as amongst politics. My brother Mycroft has an extraordinary faculty for figures and often uses his talents in Mathematics to organize some of the finances in some of the government departments. But this is not all that my brother's job consists of and when I say that my brother's word has often decided the national policy, I mean the exact and literal truth for he possesses the greatest capacity for storing facts of any man living. Ministers often depend on my brother and though neither receiving honor or title, he is and continues to be the most indispensable man in the country.

I was first educated in Stonyhurst where I was further taught logic and further taught the value of a coherent rational world view, than I went onto receive education at the Royal Brompton Imperial College in London. I then moved on to The University of London and Stamford, St. Bart's, where I received my Master's Degree in Chemistry as well as my Bachelor's Degree in Botany. Unfortunately these were achievements that my parents would never live long enough to see.

THE LOSS, TRAGEDY AND SCANDAL OF THE HOLMES FAMILY:

In the summer of 1859, Sherlock's mother Abigail came home one evening to find her husband and younger sister, then divorced from her husband, in bed together in the wild throws of passion. It was later discovered that her husband and younger sister had been in a mad, passionate affair for quite some time and it was only until after Sherlock's half-brother and half-sister were born, who had been conceived from this pairing, that Abigail forgave her sister for the incident, though she would never get around to forgiving her husband. This makes Sherlock's two youngest siblings, Ignatius and Nettie, not only his half-brother and half-sister but also his cousins. However, tensions in the family escalated, which later prompted Ignatius and Nettie to be brought into the care and guardianship of The Sherrinford family when they were both about a year old.

Sherlock: "Their presence at the Holmes Family Estate seemed to be a great disappointment to my family. I remember the time when they were in the house, but I never really got to know them until they were brought into the folds of the Sherrinford Family. My youngest Aunt Libby took them under her and her husband's wing since they couldn't have children of their own. A bittersweet blessing one might call them. Whenever myself and my mother would visit the Sherrinford Estate, I would often see my two youngest siblings clinging onto her, wishing only to be accepted and loved by their father and their stepmother. I of course was rather close to Nettie even then, my little sister, who seemed to be the most affected by the arrangement. I felt for her and could sense her sadness. I would spend many a days in the Summer during my childhood trying to keep Nettie and Ignatius happy in my company..."

Around the time when Sherlock was about 14 years old, his father Siger II died in his sleep after a long struggle with complications from an injury he had sustained in one of his last ever cases. Sherlock's mother Abigail would follow along in death not long after his father, dying from the effects of Yellow Fever, contracted from the bite of an infected mosquito after visiting with friends. Abigail suffered in pain those last few weeks, but everyone in the family took their part in trying to keep her comfortable until the end. After Sherlock and Mycroft's parents passed, care and guardianship over Sherlock fell to his brother Mycroft and their godmother Lady Cordalia.

Mycroft would become responsible in funding Sherlock's education at Royal Brompton and later at The University of London, while their Aunt Libby and her husband paid for the education of Sherlock's two youngest siblings. At the age of 16, Mrs. Bellodonna Rosentire nee Sherrinford (ex-Bobsher, remarried), who had been seen by Sherlock as his second mother, died in a carriage accident along with her youngest child Peter James-Patrick Rosentire II, who was only 1 and half years old at the time. Sherlock's Uncle-In-Law, Peter James-Patrick Rosentire I, had long suspected that foul play was involved. He suspected that Bellodonna's first husband, Alexander Bobsher, who was set on revenge, had planned out and plotted the death of his late estranged wife. His suspicions would later be proven true upon the evidence that was later uncovered through a search of his house and through evidence given by Alexander Bobsher's housemaid. He pleaded guilty and was later hanged for the murders of Bellodonna and her infant son.

Peter James-Patrick Rosentire I would later re-marry to Adella Camilla-Marie Holmes, Sherlock and Mycroft's elder sister, where together they would have two fraternal twin daughters, Edith Florence Rosentire and Ida Harriet Rosentire, than later another son, Oliver Raymond Rosentire. Though his memories of Belladonna and his first born son Peter were never far away.

SPECULATIVE CONNECTIONS TO THE FRENCH ROYAL FAMILY:

I have always had the feeling that Sherlock had in some way or another some family connections to the French Royal Family through the Vernet side of the Holmes family. I had come upon an article once that had entertained the notion that Sherlock Holmes had ancestors who were illegitimate members of the French Royal Family. Taking into account the scandalous nature that some of the Holmes family possessed (including Sherlock's own father), I would have not been surprised of somewhere along Sherlock's long bloodline there is in fact scandalous relationships between members of the Holmes family and members of the French Royal Family.

However, I would not be able to exactly pinpoint which member or members of the French royal family would have had relationships with members of the Vernet family or the Holmes family. However, according to my fan-fic, relationships occurred between members of the Charlotte-Aglaé family (A French Royal Family from 1700-1761) and the Vernet Family, which were said to have produced illegitimate members of the Vernet family that were of both Vernet and Charlotte-Aglaé descent. In this light, Sherlock would have some bloodlines to the French Royal Family, at least on his mother's side.

THE SECRET LOVE LIFE AND FAMILY LIFE OF SHERLOCK HOLMES:

Watson: "I have always had it in my mind that Mr. Holmes, though no doubt capable of love and being in love, has never actually succumbed to the need nor desire to love, for feelings such as those were aberrant to his cold and precise mind. But one day, while I was coming into the drawing room after my evening walk from the club, it didn't take long for me to notice a small wooden box full of letters and photographs scattered out upon the table in the room. At first, I didn't take much notice of the box until I caught glimpse of the face of a girl on one of the photographs closest in my view.

She appeared to be a young girl of fair complexion, about 14 years old, with long reddish-blond hair and eyes that were of a dazzling shade of deep sky blue. Moving closer to the box, it was then that I noticed Holmes, quietly muttering to himself as he sat on the windowsill with a white veil of smoke hanging in the air around him. He had noticed that I was looking at the box and began to talk to me about it.

He said that this day was the anniversary of the death of Elizabeth Jane Hardy, a niece of one of Sherlock's late professors, Rupert T. Waxflatter. He went on to explain to me that he was around 15 years old at the time when he was sent to the Royal Brompton Imperial College in London, where then he had met Elizabeth Jane Hardy on a cool, crisp autumn evening in the year 1869, which would have made him about 15 years old at the time.

He said that Elizabeth Jane Hardy was one of his dearest and closest friends, but as I glanced at some of the letters and pictures that were held within the box, it was clear to me that Sherlock Holmes and Elizabeth Jane Hardy were more than just that. Sherlock had clearly been in love with Elizabeth Jane Hardy, having wrote her love letters and love poems to her. I confronted Holmes with this evidence thus causing him to reveal the truth about their relationship.

I of course was somewhat irked by the fact that Holmes had lied to me about not ever having been in love and went on to ask why he had lied. His answer was of course simple and to the point. Holmes is not accustomed to revealing the details of his early life nor is he accustomed to revealing details about his family. This of course was understandable, but I felt within my rights as a close friend to know or at least be aware of this girl and of their relationship together.

Holmes than revealed to me another piece of information which to me was both surprising but also not inconceivable. He explained to me that he would have eventually married and settled down with Elizabeth Jane Hardy had she not been shot and killed in a battle between himself and his mathematics professor, Professor Rathe Samra Zahir-Moriarty, who was of Anglo-Egyptian descent. Elizabeth Jane Hardy had stepped into the path of a bullet fired from Rathe's gun at Sherlock Holmes.

She had sacrificed her life in order to shield and protect Sherlock Holmes from the bullet fired from Rathe's gun and died only minutes after in Sherlock's arms after he had defeated Rathe, who apparently died after falling through the ice on the River Thames during the battle between him and Mr. Holmes. Elizabeth Jane Hardy was buried in Royal Brompton Cemetery, next to her uncle. Sherlock than revealed further details about the battle and the case which prompted the encounter and the eventual death of Elizabeth Jane Hardy.

Not long after Elizabeth Jane Hardy's death, Holmes discovered that Professor Rathe Samra Zahir-Moriarty had survived the battle between himself and Mr. Holmes, having disappeared after the defeat and promptly changing his name to Professor James Edward Moriarty. The discovery of his old mathematics teacher still being alive prompted Holmes track down Moriarty's whereabouts during some of his early cases some 6 years before he met me in that laboratory in St. Bartholemew's Hospital so long ago. It was during those early years when Holmes discovered the great and mighty organization that Moriarty had built and soon set about breaking it down and following it to its heart.

One might say Holmes was prompted to tear down Moriarty's organization for the good and the sake of the people and the public affected by it. But I have come to believe that Holmes did it out of love and revenge for his late lover but possibly for both reasons, though I never could tell. Holmes would eventually encounter Moriarty again at Reichenbach Falls, where Holmes defeated Moriarty once more and promptly ending Moriarty's criminal reign of terror. And to think that Irene Adler, who Sherlock often referred to as 'The Woman', was the closest thing to loving a woman that he had ever had..."

Though unbeknownst to Watson at the time he discovered the existence of Elizabeth Jane Hardy, Sherlock had been seeing and bedding with another, equally beautiful woman by the name of Arietta "Arietty" Josephine Chelsin.

Arietta: "My father was an artist, writer and a very imaginative man. When I was born, he wanted to give me an extra special name. My mother wanted to name me Henrietta after her father's French grandmother while my father wanted to name me Arielle after his French great aunt. He then thought of mixing the two names together, which brought about the name Arietta. It is an extraordinary name for an extraordinary woman..."

Her maternal grandmother was Violet (Violette) Francis-Philippa Vernet, the younger sister of Sherlock's maternal grandmother Camille. This made Sherlock and Arietta 2nd cousins to one another. Like Sherlock Holmes, Arietta had inherited the same powers of observation and deduction from her maternal grandmother and was famous in Yorkshire and Northern England as not only the first woman detective in the world, but also the first woman consulting detective, though unlike Sherlock, she was an official consulting detective, unless leaving Sherlock the only unofficial consulting detective in the world.

It was during The Case of The Mugging of Sir James Winslott, one of Arietta's cases, when she met Sherlock Holmes at a restaurant, who was introduced to her my a close friend of Sir James Winslott, Mr. Jonas Elkstone. Sherlock was instantly fascinated by her and her own powers of observation and deduction and eventually they fell in love with one another. Though despite the seemingly overwhelming presence of love and affection between them, it neither lessened nor weakened their abilities to observe and deduce.

Together, Sherlock and Arietta would solve dozens of cases together over a two year period, unbeknownst to Watson. It was not until after their 5th case solved together, The Case of Lover's Leap, when they would discover that they were 2nd cousins to one another. However, this did not lesson their love and affection for one another nor did it have any effect on their relationship. It was during this same case that Arietta seemingly drowned to death while fighting upon a high rocky ledge with Edward Moriarty, who was at the heart of his own criminal organization (under the guidance of his father) and had planned to use an unusual mixture of chemicals, which among them included potassium chloride, to kill a selected party of people in Ascot, which included many valuable and important people.

Edward Moriarty: "Every Earl, Duke and Countess there is worth their full weight in gold. Should any or all be killed in some unfortunate manner, there stocks and shares would double in price and value. Myself and my father would become rich upon there deaths. The most complex crime of the century and no one will suspect a thing..."

This 'mass killing of the elite' idea was hatched from the brain of Edward Moriarty, who had on more than one occasion proven himself to be as great of a mastermind as his father, according to Arietta.

Arietta: "I First encountered Edward Moriarty in the Spring of 1884, just after Easter. He had been behind the death of a powerful duke in a carriage accident. He had brought up some of the duke's most valuable stocks and bonds, which would double in price and value upon the duke's death. His organization need only do little to end the duke's life. Following the clues left behind, I followed them to the members of Edward's organization that were involved in the death of this duke. They were quickly caught, trialed and executed. But I knew that the real challenge would be Edward Moriarty, who did not know of me until much later. Edward Moriarty would give anything to see my end if he wasn't so respectful and fascinated by me. But we have a great deal of respect for one another, but no love loss or gained between us. He may have respect for me and may be fascinated by me, but he hates me with all his mad bohemian soul..."

It was later found out my Sherlock that Arietta had planned her 'death' a month in advance, which she later explained in a letter to Sherlock a month after her 'death':

Arietta (Letter): "...It was the hardest thing for me to leave your side, my dear. But I had gotten to noisy, as I fear that you have now. It is a dangerous business we are in you and I and sometimes we need to step into the shadows for a while in order to find our way back into the light..."

Arietta also revealed in the same letter that she was pregnant with Sherlock's child and that she was currently on the Continent, near Florence Italy. Not long after receiving the letter from Arietta, Sherlock was sent to France to investigate the disappearance of the Mona Lisa, which caused him to be away in France for four months. After his encounter with Professor James Moriarty in Switzerland and Sherlock's 'death' in that encounter, Sherlock would meet up with Arrietta in Florence Italy, marking the start of Sherlock's 3-year hiatus. By this time, Arietta was about 5 and a 1/2 months pregnant.

Later in Tibet, Arietta gives birth to her's and Sherlock's first born, a son. There fraternal twin daughters come about a year later. Than a year and a half after that, there youngest son is born. Later, Arietta, along with her's and Sherlock's children, find there way back to England while Sherlock briefly goes to France to do a study in the Cold Hard Derivatives prior to being drawn back to England himself upon The Case of The Empty House. Both Sherlock and Arietta reestablish themselves back into their old professions. There children live with Arietta and Sherlock sneaks away often to see them under Watson's and the world's nose.

Watson is however use to Sherlock disappearing for days on end and doesn't get overly concerned about it, even though he is curious as to what Sherlock is doing.

THE FUTURE LINEAGE OF SHERLOCK HOLMES:

In the Fall of 1915, Sherlock's eldest son, Theodore Sherlock-Jeremiah Holmes, marries singer and writer Florence Isabella Berkshaw, who's mother was American. Together they have two sons and 1 daughter.

In the Spring of 1917, Sherlock's elder daughter (elder of the twins) Lillia Isabella-Ilene Holmes, marries a French-American author/writer, Andrew James Herrington, who is half-French on his mother's side. He often published short adventure stories in The Strand. Together, they have 1 son and 1 daughter.

In the Summer of 1919, Sherlock's younger daughter (younger of the twins), Eleanor Ilene-Evelyn Holmes, marries Joseph Augustus-Herbert Gavan, who is an explorer, world traveler, geologist and musician, often publishing what he learned about in his travels in The Strand. He is of the Gavan Family and is Sherlock's third cousin once removed. Together, they have two sons and three daughters.

In the Fall of 1923, Sherlock's younger son, Percival Vincent-Harold Holmes, marries Margaret Eleanor-Anne Francis, who is an American landscape painter and amateur botanist. Together, they would have two sons and two daughters.

In the winter of 1937, Theodore's elder son, Theodore II, marries British-American writer/artist Mildred Anne Meldingsworth, who was born in Georgia and whose mother and grandmother had been nurses in WWI. She is about 3 years older than her husband. Together, they would have two sons and 1 daughter. Both Theodore II and his wife would play there part in WWII. Theodore II joined the Royal British Airforce. Mildred became head nurse of a British War Camp, where she would tend to thousands of injured and wounded.

Theodore II's elder son, Milo Charles-Edward Holmes, born in 1948, would later become the father of Edwin Edward-Milo Holmes, born in 1976, and the fraternal twins Eleanor Edith-Anne Holmes and Charlotte Bethany-Ophelia Holmes, both born in 1981. Milo Charles-Edward Holmes married British musician/singer/writer Lydia Camille-Ilene Sherrinford, of The Sherrinford Family. Lydia is a distant cousin of Sherlock Holmes and is 11 years Milo's junior. Lydia's mother was of the Vernet Family, who continue to carry the ability to observe and deduce, as does Milo's line of The Holmes Family and presumably those of the other three of Sherlock's children. Milo and Lydia came to live in America later.

Eleanor Edith-Anne Holmes, the great-great granddaughter of the world famous consulting detective Sherlock Holmes, continues her heritage as a present-day consulting detective, with Watson's great-great grandson, James P. "Percival" Watson, who, like his great-great grandfather, is a doctor and a writer who makes records of all of Eleanor's cases. Eleanor often refers to James as Percy or Watson. Eleanor had been in active practice for 11 years prior to meeting James Watson while on the trail of a case in the local park (SEE 'The Case of Hangman's Bluff' later). She later calms to have gone to the came college and university as her famous great-great grandfather, brought up in same religion and similar fashion to her great-great grandfather, only her mother suffers from mood swings and mild insanity, similar to that of Sherlock's maternal great-great grandmother Adelaide.

Eleanor: "You wouldn't want to meet my mother, Watson. She can be most foal when she doesn't get her way. She isn't all bad at times I will admit, but I always have to stand on my toes for fear that she might lash out at any given moment. Insanity occasionally shows up in the family, but were never sure who in the family is next to be afflicted by it. We wish we new precisely what her problem was, that way we would find the necessary medication for her. She is also quite clingy at times, so if she happens to show up at our rooms sometime, don't be surprised if she is a little 'off'."

Eleanor: "I don't get very many visitors from my family, Watson. They are usually off doing there own thing. But me, the troubled detective, deals with everyone from the ally-dwelling poverty to the highest elite in the land. They all fall into my hands wanting for my advice, guidance or sympathy. I may have been born in America, Watson, but my father land is England. England, the land of my ancestors, the land of my glorified great-great grandfather. Though that doesn't at all mean that I am not proud to be an American as well nor does that mean I am not proud of my great-great grandfather and his contributions to the world.

But I must admit that my loyalties are divided between the two lands, which can not be helped with a person like me, who grew up caring not of either side of the political power struggle. Both sides no doubt have their positives, but also their negatives. Politics, Watson, does not interest me. Deduction and reasoning is what interests me, solving a case is what interests me."

Watson: "But you should be concerned about such things, Holmes. Do you not care of the life that your descendants might lead?"

Eleanor: " *snorts* Politics. Such a dry and uninteresting subject, Watson. I would much rather talk about the evolution of The Venus Fly Trap than talk about who's running the country or who's number 1 on the Billboard Top 100, it does not interest me..."

Watson once did a brief classification on Eleanor's knowledge in certain subjects, unbeknownst to her, and this is what he came up with:

Literature: Nil.

Philosophy: Nil.

Sports: Nil.

Politics: Feeble, but largely uninterested.

Poetry: Amateur and Variable. Occasionally recites bits and pieces of published poetry, including that of Robert Frost and sometimes recites and writes her own.

Botany: Immense. Recognizes the families of several dozen plants by their appearance, but is most informed in Belladonna, as well as those plants of the Nightshade Family, Opium and poisons general.

Biology: Practical.

Geology: Practical. Recognizes quite a few fossils, rocks and minerals. She can tell at a glance the differences in types of soils.

Astronomy: Variable, recognizes the names of all 88 constellations as well as the names of all the planets in the solar system as well as the names of a few of the moons as well as the names of a few of the stars in those constellations. She also knows the names of a few of the galaxies, nebulae and star clusters in the universe. She has no interest in the more complicated side of Astronomy.

Chemistry: Profound.

Anatomy: Accurate and Practical, knows the differences between human and animal bones.

Meteorology: Practical, knows a great deal about the weather and the composition of the atmosphere. Well up on the various gases which make up the atmosphere and the air currents in general.

Music: Variable. Prefers 80s music, dance, trance, progressive house and club music mostly, but dabbles in others, including new age, world, instrumental and orchestra music.

Art: Variable, will dabble in drawing and painting at times.

Sensational Literature: Practical.

She is an excellent chess player, violin player, pianist, amateur singer and is well trained and experienced in Bartitsu. Recognizes the patterns of several dozen different shoe and boot prints, as well as the patterns of over 100 different bicycle, car and truck tires.

James Percival Watson's great-great grandparents were Dr. John H. Watson (Sherlock's Watson) and Mary Morestan, who had two sons together, John Watson II and Edward Watson, both of which became doctors and writers. It is from Edward Watson's line that James P. Watson comes from.