Charles Woodcock
Encyclopedia
Charles Burger Woodcock, created Freiherr
Woodcock-Savage, later Charles Woodcock-Savage (1 May 1850 – 26 June 1923) was a New Yorker
who achieved notoriety as the lover of King Karl of Württemberg
, by some decades his elder.
Charles Woodcock was born in New York City
, the son of Jonas Gurnee Woodcock (1822-1908) and Sarah Savage Woodcock (1824-1893). He went abroad to study and found a place as chamberlain at the court of Württemberg
, where he became the favorite of the king, who had had several previous favorites. In 1888 Karl named Charles Woodcock "Baron Woodcock-Savage" creating an uproar that sent Woodcock back to New York in 1890. In New York he adopted the last name "Savage."
On 14 June 1894, Charles B. Woodcock-Savage married a widow, Henrietta Knebel Staples, with four sons. On 19 June 1897, all of her sons (Joseph, Harry, Herbert, and Leslie Curtis) legally changed their last names to Savage. Leslie Curtis also changed his first name to Charles.
In 1906 Charles Woodcock-Savage published A Lady in Waiting: Being extracts from the diary of Julie de Chesnil, sometime lady-in-waiting to her Majesty, Queen Marie Antoinette (New York: D. Appleton and Company). He dedicated it "To a Noble Soul I Knew and Loved and Mourn." The King had died in 1891. The introduction gives a circumstantial account of the yellowed pages found locked in the secret drawer of a Louis Seize cabinet sold at the auction house of Hôtel Drouot
and bought by the translator's dear friend from Paris days, an aesthete, who gives permission to publish. The memoirs offered in this frame story
are in fact a novelistic pseudo-autobiography.
Freiherr
The German titles Freiherr and Freifrau and Freiin are titles of nobility, used preceding a person's given name or, after 1919, before the surname...
Woodcock-Savage, later Charles Woodcock-Savage (1 May 1850 – 26 June 1923) was a New Yorker
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
who achieved notoriety as the lover of King Karl of Württemberg
Charles I of Württemberg
Charles was the third King of Württemberg, from 25 June 1864 until his death in 1891.-Early life:He was born 6 March 1823 at Stuttgart, as HRH Charles Frederick Alexander, Crown Prince of Württemberg the son of William I, King of Württemberg and his third wife Pauline Therese of Württemberg .He...
, by some decades his elder.
Charles Woodcock was born in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, the son of Jonas Gurnee Woodcock (1822-1908) and Sarah Savage Woodcock (1824-1893). He went abroad to study and found a place as chamberlain at the court of Württemberg
Kingdom of Württemberg
The Kingdom of Württemberg was a state that existed from 1806 to 1918, located in present-day Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It was a continuation of the Duchy of Württemberg, which came into existence in 1495...
, where he became the favorite of the king, who had had several previous favorites. In 1888 Karl named Charles Woodcock "Baron Woodcock-Savage" creating an uproar that sent Woodcock back to New York in 1890. In New York he adopted the last name "Savage."
On 14 June 1894, Charles B. Woodcock-Savage married a widow, Henrietta Knebel Staples, with four sons. On 19 June 1897, all of her sons (Joseph, Harry, Herbert, and Leslie Curtis) legally changed their last names to Savage. Leslie Curtis also changed his first name to Charles.
In 1906 Charles Woodcock-Savage published A Lady in Waiting: Being extracts from the diary of Julie de Chesnil, sometime lady-in-waiting to her Majesty, Queen Marie Antoinette (New York: D. Appleton and Company). He dedicated it "To a Noble Soul I Knew and Loved and Mourn." The King had died in 1891. The introduction gives a circumstantial account of the yellowed pages found locked in the secret drawer of a Louis Seize cabinet sold at the auction house of Hôtel Drouot
Hôtel Drouot
Hôtel Drouot is a large auction house in Paris, known for fine art, antiques, and antiquities. It consists of 16 halls hosting 70 independent auction firms, which operate under the umbrella grouping of Drouot....
and bought by the translator's dear friend from Paris days, an aesthete, who gives permission to publish. The memoirs offered in this frame story
Frame story
A frame story is a literary technique that sometimes serves as a companion piece to a story within a story, whereby an introductory or main narrative is presented, at least in part, for the purpose of setting the stage either for a more emphasized second narrative or for a set of shorter stories...
are in fact a novelistic pseudo-autobiography.
Further Reading
- Katz, Jonathan Ned. "Americans in Württemberg Scandal." www.OutHistory.org in four parts.
- Smith, Geoffrey Dayton (1997) American Fiction, 1901-1925: A Bibliography (Cambridge University Press) no. W-847.
- Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart, E 75 (Württembergische Gesandtschaft in München) Bü 6 (Presseerörterungen betr. den Freiherrn von Woodcock-Savage, 1888)
- Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart, E 55
- Roots: Charles Burger Woodcock