Sherlock’s War Service.

Sherlock’s War Service.

“It was nine o’clock at night upon the second of August - the most terrible August in the history of the world.“ 

That is the rather ominous beginning of His Last Bow: An Epilogue of Sherlock Holmes. Originally titled His Last Bow. The War Service of Sherlock Holmes, it is one of the later stories that were written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. His Last Bow was first published in The Strand Magazine in September, 1917.

It was published as the last of eight stories in the anthology, His Last Bow: Some Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes. It is a rarity in the Sherlock Holmes Canon in that it is told in the third person rather than the usual first-person narrative of Doctor Watson.

In the preface to the book, Dr Watson reassures us that Sherlock Holmes is  “still alive and well.“ But Holmes’ has now retired to, “…a small farm upon the downs five miles from Eastbourne, where his time is divided between philosophy and agriculture.” 

However, Sherlock Holmes is roused from his contented retirement, as Doctor Watson reveals: “The approach of the German war caused him, however, to lay his remarkable combination of intellectual and practical activity at the disposal of the government, with historical results …”

Those results are revealed in His Last Bow. It is a spy story rather than a detective story and concerns Sherlock Holmes’ efforts to break a German spy ring that is run by a character named Von Bork. Von Bork is described as “…a man who could hardly be matched among all the devoted agents of the Kaiser.“

To achieve his mission, Sherlock Holmes adopts the disguise of a mysterious Irish-American named Altamont. Described by Von Bork as a “wonderful worker,“ Altamont, “…seems to have declared war on the King’s English as well as on the English king.“

There is also some local interest here, as there are references to the city of Portsmouth in His Last Bow. At one point, Altamont also tells Von Bork that, “My landlady down Fratton way had some enquiries, and when I heard of it I guessed it was time for me to hustle.“ 

At the climax of the story, Von Bork opens a package that has been handed over by Altamont. It contains a book titled Practical Handbook of Bee Culture. The astonished and angry German is then overpowered by Sherlock Holmes, who uses chloroform to subdue the spy master.

Doctor Watson is also in disguise as Altamont’s chauffeur. In a nice touch of humour, Watson remarks that Holmes has changed very little, “…save for that horrible goatee.“ To which Holmes replies: “These are the sacrifices one makes for one’s country, Watson. Tomorrow it will be but a dreadful memory.“

We learn that Sherlock Holmes is actually the author of the Practical Handbook of Bee Culture. He tells Doctor Watson that it is, “…the fruit of pensive nights and laborious days when I watched the little working gangs as once I watched the criminal world of London.“

During the First World War, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle visited the Western Front in 1916. While he was there, Conan Doyle was asked a question by a French general. The general wanted to know if Sherlock Holmes had enlisted in the British army. Conan Doyle replied that Holmes’ was serving his country in other ways - as was revealed the following year in His Last Bow.

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