Nicholas Seychelles I

Nicholas Seychelles I (c. 1510s-1557) was the founder of the Seychelles Dynasty.

Early Life

Nicholas Seychelles was born in Darton, England, between 1513-14 in the summer months. He had no siblings, and his mother died in childbirth. At age four, his father died in a fire set by barbarians and a lifelong xenophobia came to life, something that would pass through several generations. Nicholas was rescued by several members of the town and placed into the care of a family called the Seychelles. The family was small, consisting of the mother: Mary Seychelles, husband: James Seychelles and another boy, the same age as Nicholas, John Seychelles. James and Mary Seychelles adopted Nicholas because of a series of miscarriages and stillbirths when they attempted to have children (John was one of 5 pregnancies which had survived), he took their name, but kept his first name which he remembered. Nicholas and his family practiced Catholicism.

Nicholas befriended John and they looked out for each other. For the first two years, still in Darton, they got into rock fights with older boys and stole desserts from the local bakery. This got them in trouble with their father and they were given corporal punishment, but it was never severe or unprovoked. Two years after his adoption, the Seychelles' moved to Nordine, England (1520-21). It was a larger town and safer than Darton had been (it was further inland and away from invasion). While there, Nicholas and John continued to get into trouble, but also went to school and learned farming as a trade. Nicholas became an avid reader, unlike most of his classmates, who were in large part illiterate.

At the age of sixteen, Nicholas went with John to London, and his world flew open. He decided to move and invited John to come with him. John declined and stayed in Nordine to look after his aging parents, manage the family farm and marry Mariam Clovens. Nicholas went alone, taking little to no money with him. He got a job at a local print shop and took it on as a trade. When he was still working the printing press, he met Katherine Wilkes, whom he quickly started courting.

Four months after meeting her, Nicholas and Katherine married. He took her back to Nordine at the time so she could meet his family. It was also at this time that he met his niece. After the union, Katherine took Nicholas' name and they went back to London without honeymoon. He met her parents in London, both merchants. At almost eighteen, Katherine moved in with him in his small flat above the shop (there were two, one held by Nicholas and once held by his elderly boss and wife ).

Nicholas and Katherine had thirteen children during this period, two of which were stillborn, and three who died as infants. They were as follows: Nicholas Seychelles II (1532-1568), Denise Seychelles (1534-1535), Elizabeth Seychelles (stillborn) (1535-1535), John Seychelles III (1538-1557), Joan Seychelles (1540-1585), Cuthbert Seychelles (1543-1550), Robert Seychelles (stillborn)(1544-1544), Frances Seychelles (1546-1561), Edmund Seychelles (1547-1549), James Seychelles II (1548-1559), Elinor Seychelles (1548-1565), Leonard Seychelles (1550-1584), and Katherine "Kat" Seychelles II (1552-1593). Only Nicholas II, John III, Joan, Elinor, Leonard, and Katherine (6) survived into adulthood (16).

Career Ascent

After starting at the print shop in 1529, Nicholas rapidly advanced through the ranks. He took a two year apprenticeship from the owner and his mentor, Cuthbert Whitter (the namestake of his son, Cuthbert). When he turned eighteen, he decided to join the War of the League of Cognac, in which England was an ally for the French. They ended up losing the war, but Nicholas was promoted to Corporal by the end of it (1532). During this time, his young wife stayed with her parents.

He came back from the military and was embraced back into Whitter's printshop. After a year or so of apprentice-like duties to warm up to the job again, at 21 Nicholas became a writer for the journal. He quickly became known for his quick wit and became the chief editor in two years. At 26, he became a partner with the elderly Whitter, ten years put into the job. The next year, Whitter unfortunately died because of a bout of smallpox (the same disease killed Denise a few months later). The paper: The Mayfair Post, started to do quite well and gained prominence under Seychelles' hand. He was a natural businessman and good with people, unlike Whitter who'd purposefully made the shop small, local and personal.

Later Life

The births of Nicholas' last three children (Elinor, Leonard and Kat), took their tolls on his wife Katherine. She was forty at the time of Kat's birth and ended up dying after getting seriously ill after the girl's birth. Nicholas' wife died weeks later and he was left a widow with seven children to care for, four of which were under five. He named his daughter after his wife and dove into courting fairly quickly. He inherited Katherine's money from her merchant parents and used it to pamper the daughter of a member of the House of Commons. She was fairly younger than he, 22 and widowed as well. She'd had two children who died young. The two married just a year after Katherine's death, but had no children as she - Sally Klineston, suffered miscarriages. She took on the role of mother for his children however and the younger children saw her as their mother (though some older ones such as Nicholas II held resentment, if they showed this they were corporally punished). Nicholas ended up dying in 1557 of cholera and the shop went to his eldest son, Nicholas II.

Personal Life

Though he married quickly after his first wife's death, he suffered emotionally. After his companion's passing, he became dependent on the drink and never fully recovered, though his business never reflected his inner turmoil. He didn't break down in front of the children, but did become slightly cold after Kat's death, and more likely to dish out corporal punishment. Sally is believed to be the reason why he didn't get worse. It is believed that he also loved Sally, though in a different way from Katherine who he considered the love of his life.