Baghdad

Baghdad is a city in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) that serves as a key point of origin for several characters in Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express. It is the place where Mary Debenham has been employed as a governess before her journey to Europe, and it is the starting point for Colonel Arbuthnot's overland route from India. The city's significance lies in its role as the geographical and social nexus where the initial connections among the conspirators against Samuel Edward Ratchett were formed, and as a crucial element in the elaborate plot that culminates in the murder on the Orient Express.

Mary Debenham's Employment and Departure

Mary Debenham had been working as a governess in Baghdad, a post she held for two years prior to the events of the novel. She tells Colonel Arbuthnot that she came out this way two years ago and spent three days in Stamboul then, indicating that her journey from Baghdad to Europe was not a new experience. Her departure from the city is marked by a sense of urgency and anxiety, as she is desperate to catch the Simplon Orient Express at Constantinople to continue her journey to London. When the Taurus Express is delayed by a minor fire under the dining-car, she becomes visibly agitated, her hand trembling as she holds the window bar, and she confesses to Hercule Poirot that she must catch that train. This anxiety, however, is later revealed to be part of a carefully constructed cover for her true purpose: she is one of the twelve conspirators who have planned Ratchett's murder.

Colonel Arbuthnot's Journey from India

Colonel Arbuthnot, a British Army officer returning from India, also passes through Baghdad on his way to Europe. He tells Poirot that he stopped for three days in Baghdad with the A.O.C., who happens to be an old friend of his. It is during this stop that he first meets Mary Debenham, though he initially claims to have met her only when they shared the railway convoy car from Kirkuk to Nissibin. This deliberate deception is part of the conspirators' plan to appear as strangers to each other, masking their pre-existing connection through the Armstrong case. Arbuthnot's presence in Baghdad is thus a crucial link in the chain of events that brings the twelve conspirators together on the same train.

The Conspirators' Planning and Coordination

Baghdad is not merely a transit point; it is the place where the elaborate plot against Ratchett is coordinated. Mary Debenham, who worked out all the details later with Hector MacQueen, is a key figure in this planning. The city serves as a hub where the conspirators, who are all connected to the Armstrong family tragedy, can converge and finalize their scheme. The fact that both Debenham and Arbuthnot are in Baghdad at the same time, and that they are able to travel together on the Taurus Express, is no coincidence. It is a deliberate part of the plan to ensure that they are on the same train as Ratchett when he makes his journey from the East. The city thus functions as a staging ground for the conspiracy, a place where the final preparations are made before the action moves to the Orient Express.

Thematic Significance: The East as a Place of Concealment and Connection

Baghdad, as a distant and exotic location in the East, serves a thematic purpose in the novel. It is a place where the conspirators can operate under the radar, away from the scrutiny of European authorities. The city's remoteness allows them to maintain their cover as ordinary travelers, while in reality they are bound together by a shared history of grief and a common purpose of vengeance. The fact that the plot is hatched in Baghdad, a city far removed from the scene of the crime, underscores the meticulous planning and the global reach of the conspiracy. It also highlights the theme of justice transcending national boundaries, as the conspirators, drawn from various countries and social classes, unite in a common cause that originates in the heart of the Middle East.