The Voice of Holmes

“My dear Watson,” said the well-remembered
voice, “I owe you a thousand apologies. I had no
idea that you would be so affected.”
I gripped him by the arm.
“Holmes!” I cried

― Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventure of the Empty House

How do you imagine Holmes sounded like? Do you picture it being a deep, slow voice? High-pitched and fast-talking? Did Holmes have an accent? Well, we can answer some of those questions, speculate on others, and perhaps through a winding maze of origins and theories, arrive at an answer.

To discover his voice, we first must look at his origins. Holmes’s past is one that we know little about. It is difficult to assess whether or not he would have a strong accent from his upbringing. The fullest account we get of his past comes from “The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter,” in which he states:

“To some extent,” he answered thoughtfully, “my ancestors were country squires, who appear to have led much the same life as is natural to their class. But, none the less, my turn that way is in my veins and may have come with my grandmother, who was the sister of Vernet, the French artist.”

So while we can speculate that perhaps Holmes (and his brother Mycroft) grew up in the countryside, it truly gives no indication of where that piece of country lay. It is also extremely unlikely, though not impossible, that he may have had a trace of a French accent from his (likely maternal) side of the family. There is a theory that Holmes is from Sussex originally, as by the time of the events of “His Last Bow” and a few other stories, we are told that Holmes has retired to the Sussex Downs in order to keep bees. It’s an interesting theory, but without more to go on, there is only further speculation on his precise origins. Our trail runs cold from a biographical point of view; nearly, we will revisit the subject.

The name “Holmes” likely derives from Irish origins. It being being the anglicized form of Mac Thómais. Did Holmes have an Irish accent? Sherlock itself is of Old English origin, though some scholars point out that it too has an Irish connection, a name well rooted in Ireland since the 13th century. It is certainly possible. Though any other signs we have that Holmes was Irish are non-existent within the canon.

So is there nothing to be done? Will the voice of Holmes forever be lost? Well, there is one last avenue in which to explore. That of Holmes’s education.

“Now and again cases came in my way, principally through the introduction of old fellow-students, for during my last years at the University there was a good deal of talk there about myself and my methods.”
– Sherlock Holmes, The Musgrave Ritual

It is indisputable that Holmes was an educated man. He states, as seen above, in The Musgrave Ritual, that he had attended university. In another chronicle, “The Gloria Scott,” Holmes states positively that he was at college for at least two years. Scholars of Holmes are certain that there are only two possibilities for the university: the most prestigious schools in all of England, Oxford or Cambridge.

To go into the evidence of what school he attended would be an entire essay in and of itself. Let us carry on with the assumption that the scholars are correct that he attended one or the other, or perhaps even both universities.

If we were to place one way the great man sounded as the most likely, it would be that he spoke in an accent known as Received Pronunciation. While there is no doubt that in the time of Holmes, students received an education that included elocution and oratory, it would not have been uncommon to still have regional accents in their speech. Even some prime ministers in the late 19th century still contained traces of regional accents when they spoke, despite being taught Received Pronunciation. He may have learned how to “correct” these speech patterns, but no evidence exists either way regarding whether he kept any trace of his original accent, assuming he had one.

Holmes, a man of brilliance and with a strong education, undoubtedly spoke in a manner that we would consider “posh” today. Still, there is one last thing we must remember. What the world of detection gained in Holmes is also what the stage lost. Holmes, who could have been as brilliant an actor for the stage as any throughout history, undoubtedly could have sounded however he pleased.