Andrew Bond is the father of James Bond and the spouse of Monique Bond. Like his wife, the character has only a brief mention in Fleming's penultimate novel, You Only Live Twice. Although alluded to in 1995's GoldenEye and 2012's Skyfall, he has never been portrayed in film. His role in James' life has been expanded upon in the many novels following Ian Fleming's death, most notably the Young Bond series, and Jeffery Deaver's 2012 novel Carte Blanche.
Overview[]
In the novel On Her Majesty's Secret Service Bond reluctantly relays to professional genealogist Sir Hilary Bray that his father was a Scot from the Highlands near Glencoe and he has no living relatives.
It was not until the penultimate novel, You Only Live Twice, that Ian Fleming gave Bond a sense of family background, using a fictional obituary, purportedly from The Times. The book was the first to be written after the release of Dr. No in cinemas and Sean Connery's depiction of Bond affected Fleming's interpretation of the character, to give Bond both a sense of humour and Scottish antecedents that were not present in the previous stories. The novel reveals Bond is the son of a Scottish father, Andrew Bond, of Glencoe, and a Swiss mother, Monique Delacroix, of the Canton de Vaud. The young James Bond spends much of his early life abroad, becoming multilingual in German and French because of his father's work as a Vickers armaments company representative. When his parents are killed in a tragic mountain climbing accident in the Aiguilles Rouges near Chamonix, eleven-year-old James is orphaned.
Novel biography[]
Early Life[]
After his birth in Glencoe, Scotland, Andrew left home at age twelve to attend boarding school at Fettes College, and other places and never returned. However, as a boy, he and his younger brother Max would often go fishing in Glencoe's rivers.[2] He then studied Chemistry at the University of St. Andrews, but his studies were interrupted by World War One. He joined the Royal Navy at the first opportunity and survived numerous battles, his ship sinking, and a rescue from the icy waters of the north Atlantic. When the war ended, he was Captain of the HMS Faithful. The losses he suffered in the war made him want to experience his life to its fullest extent. He was offered a job by Vickers, and travelled around Europe trying to convince people to buy his company's weapons.[1] After two years of constant travel, he met Monique Delacroix, and the two were quickly married. Despite attempts to settle down, Andrew's constant moving prevented any kind of normal life. His son James was born in Zurich, Switzerland.[3]
SilverFin[]
As a young child, James was a bit scared of his father, and he later came to consider him to be quiet, serious, and distant. However, he did love his son, and would always bring a small surprise back with him from his travels.[4] While at Eton College, James learned that while working at Vickers', Andrew had a sporting rivalry with Randolph Hellebore in their attempts to re-arm the nations of the world after the destruction of their weapons in World War One. While riding a train to Scotland, James reflected on his life and Andrew's place in it. After Monique and James had set up a permanent residence, Andrew continued to travel, and whenever he got a holiday, the activities of climbing, skiing, and the like were considered too dangerous for James, and so he was often left behind.
Double or Die[]
After being poisoned by being force-fed Gin and passing out on a boat, James Bond recalled that his father had been an adept sailor, and that they had enjoyed sailing together, despite Andrew's being absent for longer than James would have liked him to be. On one occasion while teaching James to sail, They were returning to port, and James had his hand over the side of the boat, despite Andrew's previously instructing him not to. Because of this, James got his fingers smashed by the pier and gave an immense howl, which Andrew considered to be his son "being an ass".
Carte Blanche[]
In Jeffery Deaver's continuity, Andrew Bond worked for an arms company, and would often take the young James Bond with him on business trips and allow him to sit in on meetings. Andrew was killed when his wife was assassinated by a Soviet spy killing operation called a Steel Cartridge.
The resulting police investigation resulted in the operation being declared as a tragic accident, they did find a chrome cartridge of bullets in the snowdrift that appeared to kill them. While its presence was never explained, It was left by the Soviet operative as a warning to the SIS.
Film biography[]
Alec Trevelyan reminds James how he was orphaned when his parents died in a climbing accident.
He resided in Skyfall Lodge before his death alongside his wife, leaving James distraught. After that, his primary caretaker became Kincade, the gamekeeper of Skyfall Lodge. He and his wife are buried nearby in the graveyard of the estate's chapel. James does not like to talk about his roots or his parents.
Aside from his home, his only notable possession was a gun collection which was maintained by Kincade. Following James' supposed demise in Turkey, the guns were sold off to an American collector. The only one to remain was Andrew's engraved hunting rifle, which James initially used when Skyfall came under attack.
Behind the Scenes[]
In an interview with John Creusemann published in the January 2, 1964 edition of the Daily Express, Ian Fleming was quoting as saying, “Bond is Scottish. On both sides, as I shall explain in my next book.” [5] However, Bond was instead established as only being Scottish on his father's side, while his mother was Swiss. The Swiss element is perhaps there to explain his multilingualism.
Ian Fleming's own father Valentine Fleming was a Scot and during his boyhood his father often brought Ian and his brothers on hunting trips near Glencoe which Fleming recalled fondly. Those Highland holidays continued after his father's death in 1917.[6][7][8][9]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Charlie Higson (2005). SilverFin. Ian Fleming Publications, 85. ISBN 1423122623.
- ↑ Charlie Higson (2005). SilverFin. Ian Fleming Publications, 185. ISBN 1423122623.
- ↑ Charlie Higson (2005). SilverFin. Ian Fleming Publications, 86. ISBN 1423122623.
- ↑ Charlie Higson (2005). SilverFin. Ian Fleming Publications, 60. ISBN 1423122623.
- ↑ Ian Fleming on James Bond's all-Scottish parentage - The Bondologist Blog
- ↑ The name’s Fleming (PressReader.com)
- ↑ Scottish Roots People - Ian Fleming
- ↑ JAMES BOND MEMES: James Bond's Scottish roots, as revealed in Skyfall
- ↑ Arnisdale and Corran (glenelgscotland.com)