# Nicholas B. — A Personal Record character guide

> Nicholas B. in A Personal Record by Joseph Conrad.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Nicholas, Mr. Nicholas B., poor Mr. Nicholas B., dear Nicholas, Mr. B., Captain Nicholas B.

**First appearance:** 0002-a-personal-record

## Snapshot

A one-time soldier of Napoleon wounded in the heel like Achilles, reduced by lost wars and family treachery to a quiet, phlegmatic old age.

## Who they are

Mr. Nicholas B. is the narrator's great-uncle, a veteran of the Hundred Days who shrank from returning to his province after Napoleon's fall and never quite explained how he crossed an armed Europe. His dry, deliberate indignation—summed up in the single word 'Imbecile'—and his assumed indifference about a heel wound worthy of emperors reveal a man both proud and resigned. His ruined inheritance at the hands of a charming stepfather shadows the family history that Conrad weaves into his own origins.

## Relationships

### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_personal_record_se/characters/narrator)

_friendship_

Nicholas B. is a minor acquaintance or friend, with infrequent but cordial interactions.

### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_personal_record_se/characters/narrator)

_friendship_

Nicholas B. is a minor acquaintance or friend, with infrequent but cordial interactions.

## In the story

### [A Personal Record](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_personal_record_se/chapters/a-personal-record)

Granduncle who ate a dog, mentioned as part of family lore.

### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_personal_record_se/chapters/ii)

Granduncle who ate a Lithuanian dog on active service; his deed is recalled with childish horror.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_personal_record_se/chapters/iii)

Mr. Nicholas B. is the central figure of the chapter. His military career under Napoleon, his survival of the retreat from Moscow (including eating a dog), his service in the Polish Army, and his later life of silent contradiction are detailed.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_personal_record_se/characters/nicholas_b
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_personal_record_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_personal_record_se/characters