Dorothy Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington
Encyclopedia
Dorothy Violet Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington (30 July 1889 – 11 July 1956), styled Lady Gerald Wellesley between 1914 and 1943, was an English
socialite, author, poet, and literary editor. She was born Dorothy Violet Ashton at Maidenhead
.
(himself a second cousin of the 1st Baron Ashton of Hyde
) descended from wealthy cotton manufacturers, and his wife (Lucy) Cecilia Dunn-Gardner
, later Countess of Scarbrough, and stepdaughter of the 10th Earl of Scarbrough
.
of the Hogarth Living Poets
series. She also edited The Annual in 1929.
According to W. B. Yeats
, Wellesley was one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century - see his Introduction to the Oxford Book of Modern Verse 1892-1935
. "Within two minutes of our first meeting at my house he said: ‘You must sacrifice everything and everyone to your poetry'". Yeats scholar R.F. Foster, however, has written that she was "a moderately accomplished if minor poet" though adding that "the quality of some of her work has been vindicated by time".
She was introduced to Yeats in 1935, and he eventually would edit and revise her poems well as soliciting her comments on his works. Together they edited the second series of Broadsides in 1937, and she would be at Yeats's deathbed in 1939.
(later 7th Duke of Wellington), on 30 April 1914; they separated in 1922 but did not divorce.
They had two children:
, for whom she left her husband and children in 1922, according to a memoir published in 2009 by her granddaughter, Lady Jane Wellesley. After that relationship ended, she became the lover and longtime companion of Hilda Matheson (1888–1940), a BBC producer with whom she shared a Sussex cottage
called "Penns-in-the-Rocks".
in Sussex
. After her death, her widower proposed to her half-sister Lady Serena James (widow of his former brother-in-law the Hon. Robert James), but she refused him.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
socialite, author, poet, and literary editor. She was born Dorothy Violet Ashton at Maidenhead
Maidenhead
Maidenhead is a town and unparished area within the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, in Berkshire, England. It lies on the River Thames and is situated west of Charing Cross in London.-History:...
.
Background
She was the daughter of Robert Ashton of Croughton, CheshireCheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
(himself a second cousin of the 1st Baron Ashton of Hyde
Thomas Gair Ashton, 1st Baron Ashton of Hyde
Thomas Gair Ashton, 1st Baron Ashton of Hyde was a British industrialist, philanthropist, Liberal politician, and peer.-Early life and career:...
) descended from wealthy cotton manufacturers, and his wife (Lucy) Cecilia Dunn-Gardner
John Dunn Gardner
John Gardner , formerly of and later of Chatteris House, Isle of Ely, in the county of Cambridge, known as John Townshend until 1843 and sometimes styled "Earl of Leicester", was a British Member of Parliament from 1841 to 1847, elected to represent Bodmin as a Conservative...
, later Countess of Scarbrough, and stepdaughter of the 10th Earl of Scarbrough
Aldred Lumley, 10th Earl of Scarbrough
Major-General Aldred Frederick George Beresford Lumley, 10th Earl of Scarbrough, KG, GBE, KCB, GStJ was a British peer and soldier. His first name is sometimes rendered as Alfred, not Aldred....
.
Poetry
As Dorothy Wellesley, the name she took after her marriage to Lord Gerald Wellesley, was the author of more than ten books, mostly of poetry, but including also Sir George Goldie, Founder of Nigeria (1934), and Far Have I Travelled (1952). She was editor for Hogarth PressHogarth Press
The Hogarth Press was founded in 1917 by Leonard Woolf and Virginia Woolf. It was named after their house in Richmond, in which they began hand-printing books....
of the Hogarth Living Poets
Hogarth Living Poets
The Hogarth Living Poets were two series of books published by Hogarth Press, under the editorship of Dorothy Wellesley. The editions were limited, and the books are now rare.-First Series :24 books.*1. Frances Cornford Different Days...
series. She also edited The Annual in 1929.
According to W. B. Yeats
William Butler Yeats
William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and playwright, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years he served as an Irish Senator for two terms...
, Wellesley was one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century - see his Introduction to the Oxford Book of Modern Verse 1892-1935
Oxford Book of Modern Verse 1892-1935
The Oxford Book of Modern Verse 1892–1935 was a poetry anthology edited by W. B. Yeats, and published in 1936 by Oxford University Press. A long and interesting introductory essay starts from the proposition that the poets included should be all the 'good' ones active since Tennyson's death...
. "Within two minutes of our first meeting at my house he said: ‘You must sacrifice everything and everyone to your poetry'". Yeats scholar R.F. Foster, however, has written that she was "a moderately accomplished if minor poet" though adding that "the quality of some of her work has been vindicated by time".
She was introduced to Yeats in 1935, and he eventually would edit and revise her poems well as soliciting her comments on his works. Together they edited the second series of Broadsides in 1937, and she would be at Yeats's deathbed in 1939.
Marriage
Dorothy Ashton married Lord Gerald WellesleyGerald Wellesley, 7th Duke of Wellington
Gerald Wellesley, 7th Duke of Wellington, KG , styled Lord Gerald Wellesley between 1900 and 1943, was a British diplomat, soldier, and architect....
(later 7th Duke of Wellington), on 30 April 1914; they separated in 1922 but did not divorce.
They had two children:
- Arthur Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of WellingtonArthur Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of WellingtonBrigadier Arthur Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington, , styled Marquess Douro between 1943 and 1972, is a senior British peer and a retired Brigadier in the British Army...
, b. 2 July 1915 - Lady Elizabeth WellesleyLady Elizabeth WellesleyLady Elizabeth Clyde is an English socialite. She is the daughter of Gerald Wellesley, 7th Duke of Wellington, and Dorothy Violet Ashton, and is thus a great-great-granddaughter of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington....
, b. 26 December 1918
Lesbianism
Dorothy Wellesley became the lover of Vita Sackville-WestVita Sackville-West
The Hon Victoria Mary Sackville-West, Lady Nicolson, CH , best known as Vita Sackville-West, was an English author, poet and gardener. She won the Hawthornden Prize in 1927 and 1933...
, for whom she left her husband and children in 1922, according to a memoir published in 2009 by her granddaughter, Lady Jane Wellesley. After that relationship ended, she became the lover and longtime companion of Hilda Matheson (1888–1940), a BBC producer with whom she shared a Sussex cottage
Cottage
__toc__In modern usage, a cottage is usually a modest, often cozy dwelling, typically in a rural or semi-rural location. However there are cottage-style dwellings in cities, and in places such as Canada the term exists with no connotations of size at all...
called "Penns-in-the-Rocks".
Death
The Duchess of Wellington died at WithyhamWithyham
Withyham is a village and large civil parish in the Wealden district of East Sussex, England. The village is situated 10 miles south west of Tunbridge Wells and 3.5 miles from Crowborough; the parish covers approximately .-Geography:Withyham parish lies on the edge of Weald, in the...
in Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
. After her death, her widower proposed to her half-sister Lady Serena James (widow of his former brother-in-law the Hon. Robert James), but she refused him.
Sources
- Letters on Poetry from W. B. Yeats to Dorothy Wellesley (1940, Oxford University Press) edited by Kathleen RaineKathleen RaineKathleen Jessie Raine was a British poet, critic, and scholar writing in particular on William Blake, W. B. Yeats and Thomas Taylor. Known for her interest in various forms of spirituality, most prominently Platonism and Neoplatonism, she was a founder member of the Temenos Academy.-Life:Raine was...