A rare Rurtanian find

Nearly 10 years into my Ruritanian research, I have discovered a map!

I found it in a scan of the first two chapters of a French edition of 'Rupert of Hentzau', but the annotations are all in English. It seems that the map was produced for use in one of the English editions but was then used for the French edition.

There is a small amount of information available, along with some illustrations from the various books, at the Ruritanian Resistance website. I visited this several times many years ago (it's one of the sites in the Links section in the bottom left) but I've never come across the map before. However, it is there (a colourised version). Perhaps it has been added fairly recently, or maybe I just never noticed it.

According to the info from the Ruritanian Resistance, it seems to be a map from 1923, prepared for the Grosset & Dunlap edition of 'Prisoner...'.  I haven't been able to find out anything about Howard Ince yet, nor have I been able to decipher whatever is written under the signature.

Illustration by Howard Ince, possibly 1923

The text is not so easy to read, so I have transcribed it:

Reference to Plan

I The Old Castle
II The Keep
III The Chateau
A The Moat
B The Drawbridge
C Gateway where de Gautet was Killed
D Stair to the King’s Cell
E Guard-room
F The King’s Cell
G Jacob’s Ladder
H Hall of the Chateau
K Door which Johann was to open
L Black Michael’s Apartment
M Apartment of M. de Maubin
N Window from which Hentzau leaped into the Moat
O Tree to which the rope was made fast
P Road to Tarlenheim
Q The Avenue

The map is the first I have come across for the Castle of Zenda, and doesn't make me feel so bad about my own attempts to map it. These are my sketches of the castle. I have left the drawings pretty much as is but changed my captions. I think my representations of trees are clear enough, but there is no way I would make anyone try to read my handwriting.

Preliminary sketch

Second more detailed sketch: The boxed area around the tree (on the 'southern' bank) required moving to the west, as being on the opposite side to the drawbridge

Upper and lower floors of the 'King's Cell' area, The door closest to the drawbridge in the first sketch is the same door as is shown in the second. Originally these were positioned to the south side but I realised that they needed to be on the right-hand side when looking from the new to the old portions of the castle.

Inset of chateau in second sketch

Apart from the fact that I have assumed that the avenue approaches the castle from the east (it is described as looping around the hill but no starting point is given), my sketches I think show the basics: there is an island in the moat, the castle is in three parts, there is an broad avenue and so on.

Composite sketch, mostly rotated through
90 degrees, annotated using Ince's key.

One thing I notice that I did do from the first to the second sketch of the whole castle was change the relationship of the 'Keep' and the 'Ruins/Another Portion'. This is probably an error, and in the second sketch the area marked 'Keep' is probably the 'Ruins' from the first. However, this part cannot be too ruined as the guardroom is above the King's Cell, and so on.

I have tried to rationalise all of the sketches into a single plan, and because I can, I've annotated it using Ince's key. The only thing that he has included that I do not is the window from which Rupert jumped in the moat. My 'Black Micheal's Apartments' and 'Mme. de Maubin's Apartments', however, are not shown on the ground-plan as they are on the first floor, which is why I've marked their locations (thus).

I shall of course, from now on, use Ince's map. Mine were only intended to help me visualise the place.