Elizabeth Vesey
Elizabeth Vesey | |
---|---|
Born | 1715 Ossory, Ireland |
Died | 1791 London, England |
Elizabeth Vesey (1715 in Ossory, Ireland – 1791 in Chelsea, London) was a wealthy Irish intellectual who is credited with fostering the Bluestockings, a society which hosted informal literary and political discussions of which she was an important member.
Life
Her girlish figure and flirtatious wit earned her the nickname of
In 1746 she married again to
Elizabeth Montagu was a very close friend, and Elizabeth co-operated with her in establishing a salon where repartee and intelligent discussion were more important than the usual drinking, card play, and sexual flirtation. They referred to their circle as the bluestocking philosophers.[2]
Her marriage meant Elizabeth split her time between London, England and Lucan in Ireland, but eventually settled mostly in London at houses in Clarges Street and Bolton Row, Mayfair. At these she hosted her intellectual salon parties.,[3] where entertainment consisted of conversations on literary subjects.
Her circle included
Elizabeth Vesey's vivacious personality and charm as a hostess made her salon the most memorable of the bluestocking group. One Mary Hamilton recorded her experience there in 1783:
....one meets with a charming variety of society … the Learned, the witty, the old & young, the grave, gay, wise & unwise, the fine bred Man & the pert coxcomb; The elegant female, the chaste Matron, the severe prude, & the pert Miss, but be it remembered that you can run no risque in Mrs. Vesey's parties of meeting with those who have no claim to respect.[4]
In 1782 both her own and her husband's health began to fail; she feared she was losing both her sight and hearing and Agmondesham Vesey died on 3 June 1785.[2]
Vesey and Miss Handcock were left facing relative poverty when they found that Agmondesham had left them nothing in his will, despite leaving £1000 to his mistress. At the time of their marriage Elizabeth had turned over all her own funds to her new husband. Their only income was Vesey's jointure and Handcock's annuity which together brought in about £800 a year. Some help was given to the pair by various relatives and in 1788 they were able to move to the house of Vesey's cousin, Lord Cremorne in Chelsea.[2]
In Chelsea, Elizabeth became consumed by a tearful depression. Despite brief appearances, she never again assumed the place she had previously held in society. Friends blamed her depression on her lack of religious conviction. Miss Handcock died in January 1789 and Elizabeth followed early in 1791.[2]
References
- ^ a b "Elizabeth Vesey". Bluestocking Members, Member Biographies. Reinventing The Feminine. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 22 May 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g Barbara Brandon Schnorrenberg, 'Vesey, Elizabeth (c.1715–1791)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 Access document – Membership or UK library card required. CitationDate 22 May 2009.
- ^ "Elizabeth Vesey (1715?–1791), Blue-stocking and hostess". NPG 3131. National Portrait Gallery, London. Retrieved 22 May 2009.
- ^ Anson and Anson, p132
Further reading
- Pohl, Nicole (2003). Reconsidering the Bluestockings. San Marino, Calif.: Huntington Library. ISBN 9780873282024.
- "Vesey, Elizabeth (c.1715-1791): Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
Bibliography
- Vesey, Elizabeth (1926). The library of Mrs. Elizabeth Vesey, 1715–1791. Newcastle-on-Tyne, England: W.H. Robinson. OL 243207M.
- Deane, Seamus (2002). The Field Day anthology of Irish writing. NYU Press. ISBN 0-8147-9907-8. Collection of Elizabeth Vesey's letters.
- Mary Hamilton, afterwards Mrs John Dickenson, at court and at home: from letters and diaries, 1756 to 1816, ed. E. Anson and F. Anson (1925)