Sir Differel's Personal Property

The Van Helsings were not typical aristocrats in that they were not landed gentry with a long, cultured pedigree, but more like wealthy bourgeoisie. However, neither were they typical plutocrats in that they did not engage in the sitting-room culture, conspicuous consumption, and the display of wealth expected of such a nouveau riche family by British nobility. Considering that nearly all their energies were spent fighting monsters instead of engaging in elite social events or jet-setting around the world, that would be expected.

However, early on Sir Differel Van Helsing had realized that in the modern world, she could no longer afford the complacency of restricting the Caerleon Order to the British Isles as her ancestors had done, but needed to expand its activities to cover more of the globe. Technically, the Order defended the Commonwealth as well as the United Kingdom, but until after World War II, it had never had the resources to travel where needed or the strength to fight on its own, and previous Directors had relied on the local militaries to deal with any incursions. That and the years after Sir Abraham Van Helsing's death had been relatively quiet, with only minor outbreaks occurring at long intervals.

Sir Differel knew from her analysis of past incursions that her tenure would be unusually active, so starting early on she worked to build up the Order's strength. Part of that involved purchasing items that would normally be associated with conspicuous consumption, such as castles, homes, ships, and airplanes, but almost every purchase was made with an eye towards its use in support of the Order. She purchased them as personal property simply to avoid bureaucratic red tape and government regulation, but in her will all these items will be donated to the Order upon her death.

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