Jane Loftus, Marchioness of Ely
Jane Loftus, Marchioness of Ely (née Hope-Vere; 3 December 1821 – 11 June 1890)
Early life
Jane was the daughter of James Hope-Vere,
Attendance on Queen Victoria
Jane was appointed as a
Although her service was marred by her nervousness, and taxed her health, Jane Ely quickly became one of the Queen's most trusted attendants. The Queen referred to Jane as “almost one of ourselves”, which indicates the difference that Victoria liked to maintain between herself and non-royals.[6] Jane became the most prominent of ladies that were recognised “agents” of the Queen, the others being Harriet Phipps and Horatia Stopford.[7] The role was exploited, especially in the royal household, where they found in Jane a useful advocate to the Queen when requesting approval for a course of action.[7] The use of Jane as an unofficial secretary was widely acknowledged in society, and references to her are found in many letters from the aristocracy.[8] When the Earl of Beaconsfield fell out with the Queen after he refused to meet Lord Chelmsford, he wrote despairingly to Jane, with the probable intention that she would show it to the Queen, that “I love the Queen — perhaps the only person in this world left to me that I do love; and therefore you can understand how much it worries and disquiets me, when there is a cloud between us.”[9]
Personal life
Jane's relationship with the Queen was close, but it became strained for a short period when rumours circulated that Jane was to remarry.
Following the marriage of Princess Louise in 1871, Jane was asked to live with the Queen on a more permanent basis. She continued to serve until April 1889, when, following the death of her only son, she wrote to the Queen tendering her resignation, reporting that “this last blow has quite crushed” her.[11] Following her resignation, she was granted the honorary title of Extra Lady of the Bedchamber.
Notes
- ^ required.)
- ^ "No. 21227". The London Gazette. 15 July 1851. p. 1837.
- ^ Ponsonby, p. 57
- ^ Reynolds, p. 213
- ^ a b c d Ponsonby, p. 58
- ^ Reynolds (Aristocratic Women), p. 23
- ^ a b Reynolds (Aristocratic Women), p. 213
- ^ Longford, pp. 470, 483, 490; Kennedy, pp. 72, 110–111, 136, 152
- ^ Pearson, p. 288
- ^ Dasant, 127
- ^ Buckle, p. 493
- ^ "No. 25930". The London Gazette. 3 May 1889. p. 2443.
- ^ Buckle, p. 614
References
- Buckle, George Earle, ed., Letters of Queen Victoria 1886–1901 (Volume I; John Murray, London, 1930)
- Desant, Arthur Irwin, John Thadeus Delane, Editor of "The Times": His Life and Correspondence Vol. 2 (C. Scribner's Sons, 1908)
- Kennedy, A. L., ed., My dear duchess: social and political letters to the duchess of Manchester, 1858–1869 (John Murray, 1956)
- Longford, Elizabeth, Victoria R. I. (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1971)
- Pearson, Hesketh, Dizzy: The Life & Personality of Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield (Harper, 1951)
- Ponsonby, Arthur, Henry Ponsonby, Queen Victoria's Private Secretary, His Life from His Letters (Periodicals Service Co., 1942)
- Reynolds, K. D., ‘Loftus , Jane, marchioness of Ely (1821–1890)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 29 April 2008
- Aristocratic Women and Political Society in Victorian Britain (Clarendon Press, 1998)