Lady Mahon: The Short Life of William Pitt’s Eldest Sister

by Stephenie Woolterton

Lady Hester Pitt, Viscountess Mahon
by an unknown artist, c. 1770s

Little is known about the short life of William Pitt the younger’s eldest sister, Lady Hester (Pitt) Stanhope, Viscountess Mahon (1755-1780). Unlike her daughter, also named Lady Hester Stanhope, Lady Mahon did not live past the age of sixty, and travel throughout Europe and the Middle East. Instead, she married at the age of 19 and died before her twenty-fifth birthday, her body exhausted from five successive pregnancies in as many years. Nevertheless, her life is worthy of historical attention as, like her younger siblings, she was raised under the backdrop of two political dynasties - The Pitts and the Grenvilles - and she was an example of a highly educated 18th century woman.

Lady Hester Pitt was born in October 1755, the first child of William Pitt the Elder (later 1^st Earl of Chatham) and his wife Lady Hester (née Grenville). The Dictionary of National Biography lists her birthday as October 18^th, 1755, although this has not been verified in baptismal registers. She was likely to have been born at the Pay Office, where her parents were then residing, and her mother was under the care of the famous 18^th century London physician Dr. John Hunter [1]. It is probable that her father was absent when she was born as there are letters passing between the couple at the time [2].

It is not surprising that such was the case, as the Pitts spent great stretches of time apart throughout their marriage, much of it due to Pitt the Elder's own volition. Government business and trips to Bath (sometimes also for his health) usually kept him away from his wife, and she was forced to accept his frequent absences.

Unlike most girls at the time, Lady Hester benefitted from a thorough private education, being tutored at home by the family chaplain, Reverend Edward Wilson, alongside her sister Lady Harriot, and her three brothers, John (Lord Pitt), William, and James Charles. All five children were proficient in classical languages, translating ancient Greek, and quoting lengthy passages from Thucydides and Polybius [3]. Her childhood was split primarily between her parent’s two residences at Hayes Place, near Bromley in Kent, and Burton Pynsent, just outside the village of Curry Rival, Somerset.

She was accustomed to an upbringing full of scholarly stimulation and politics. Her father was raised to the peerage in the summer of 1766, the ‘Great Commoner’ becoming the first Earl of Chatham. In the following year, in a letter dated 17^th June 1767, Jane Hamilton, Lady Cathcart writes to Hester’s mother Lady Chatham, speaking of a recent visit from three of the Pitt children. Lady Hester was eleven years old:

"…We had the finest Cricket Match in our Court you can imagine. You never saw anything more like a School Boy than Ld Pitt [John], wch I think says a great deal for his Education. The Young Ladies danced: Ldy Harriet in particular I think a genius in that talent, her little feet and all her little fair figure is delightful. Ldy Hester’s Stile and Air is different ... There is an openness, a Solidity and goodness in her [Hester] that makes one quite her friend. She was as Womanly and Careful that her Br and Sisr shd not over Eat or over Heat themselves as Dame Sparry [the children’s nurse] herself could have been, wch at her age [she was 11] is delightful, as she has as much of good hum[ou]r and liveliness as any of them…" [4]

From this passage, she is depicted as the caring sister looking after her younger siblings. Several years later, her mother the Countess of Chatham wrote to their cousin Mrs. Pitt, remembering Lady Hester and Lord Pitt’s recent stay at Boconnoc: “…Our Boy [John, Lord Pitt] and Girl [Hester], tho’ Harp and dancing, and Hounds and Hunting, have furnish’d their amusements, the delights of Cornwall do not cease to be regretted." [5]

Although Lady Hester did not suffer from nearly as many childhood illnesses as her brother William, there are records of her being treated by the family physician, Dr. Anthony Addington, for muscular pains and a rash in early 1772. At the time, the sixteen year-old Lady Hester was forced to take to her bed. Dr. Addington told her mother that, "The Pains which Lady Hester has felt in her Neck, Shoulders, Collar-Bone and Side, have been all muscular," and "...bleeding, purging and James’s Powder [quinine]" were used to treat her. [6]

After weeks of lying in her bed, and following Dr. Addington’s strictures, her ailment was still persisting. The doctor wrote again to Lady Chatham on February 1, 1772, advising a new course of treatment: “…I find it necessary for Her [Lady Hester] to have Patience with her Bed … I believe Your Ladyship and Lord Chatham are satisfied with me, that it is necessary to support Lady Hester with light and nutriceous [sic] diet … For this Reason, it must be right to allow Her Chicken, or Turkey or Rabbit for Dinner with Wine and warm water; to give Tea with toasted or untoasted Bread and very little Butter for Breakfast only; to use Broth or Sago or Panada for Supper; and thin jellies or Gruel between Meals…” [7] The nature of Lady Hester’s complaint is not entirely clear, but she recovered with time.

Charles, 3^rd Earl Stanhope, by an
unknown artist (Wikimedia Commons)

By 1774, she was an eligible young woman, described by a family friend as “one of the most accomplished persons of the age.” [8] She certainly caught the eye of her second cousin, Charles Stanhope, Viscount Mahon. He was a tall, lanky, and eccentric young man who had recently returned to England after being educated in Geneva for ten years. Their grandparents Lucy Pitt and James, 1^st Lord Stanhope, had married in 1713, producing six children including Charles’s father, Philip [9]. Unlike today, the couple’s familial relationship was deemed unimportant, and was in any case common amongst aristocratic marriages.

Lord Mahon was intelligent, scientifically inquisitive, and passionate about social reform. It was a love match, despite the familial connection, and he quickly proposed. On September 24, 1774, Mahon’s father Philip, 2^nd Earl Stanhope, wrote to Lord Chatham to express his joy on hearing of the engagement: “My Son has rejoiced his Mother and me exceedingly by acquainting us with the proposal he has taken the liberty to make to dear Lady Hester, to whom he assures us it is not disagreeable. Our hearty approbation of a connexion which does him and us so much honour is already given, and nothing remains but the obtaining of your Lordships and Lady Chatham’s concurrence, which we flatter ourselves that the short acquaintance you have had with the young suitor has given you no cause to refuse. If we are so happy as to find you in the favourable dispositions which we wish, nothing in our power shall be wanting to settle everything as much as possible for the lasting happiness of so beloved a couple…” [10]

Lady Hester’s marriage settlement was duly drawn up. In an extract from the indenture, there was a particular provision stipulating that if she died before him, Lord Mahon would receive the Sum of £2,000 per year, “free from all Taxes and Deductions whatsoever.” [11] It may seem small in today’s currency, but it was quite a hefty sum at the time.

The couple married on December 19, 1774 at St. Mary the Virgin church in Hayes. Lady Mahon quickly fell pregnant, but she miscarried in April 1775. Her mother, the Countess of Chatham, attended her, and later wrote to Mrs. Pitt: “…I was obliged to quit my Patient at Home [Lord Chatham] yesterday to make a visit to my Daughter Mahon who is indispos’d from a Circumstance that brings some Mortification and disappointment with it. I had the Consolation however to find her better than I could have expected, and not likely to suffer long confinement…” [12]

Good news came in August, when Lady Chatham apprised Mrs. Pitt that, “…My daughter Mahon’s situation you will best understand by being told that she is both very sick, and very well.” [13] Lady Mahon was pregnant again. That child was Lady Hester Lucy Stanhope, born in London on March 12, 1776.

1778 Rate Book for Harley Street
(Westminster City Archives)

In the late 1770s, the Mahons were living at number 52 Harley Street, and paying £140 in rent [14]. Since the late 18th century, 52 Harley Street has become number 61. It served as their London residence when they were not staying at Chevening. Throughout her short marriage, Lady Mahon served as her husband’s secretary, assisting him in his new-fangled electrical experiments after he became obsessed with observing lightning strikes. At one point, Lord Mahon even attempted to induce lightning using a cow on the Chevening estate as a conductor. [15]

Over the next few years, Lady Mahon had a pregnancy that resulted in the birth of a stillborn son, and a daughter named Grizelda. In late February 1780, she gave birth to a third daughter, Lady Lucy Rachel Stanhope. Her recovery was complicated by the onset of puerperal fever. Lady Mahon was not able to write to her mother for over two months. On April 24, 1780, she told her mother, “I begin to feel very comfortable again after this long Illness,” and “…I go out every day in the Post Chaise and feel very great advantage from the Air which will I trust do all that is now to be done.” It was to be her last surviving letter. [16]

Chevening House in Kent (Wikimedia Commons)

Her health seemed to rally in the spring, and she was able to attend a ball, take drives in her chaise, and go shopping with her sister Lady Harriot for lute strings and chintzes [17].

Nevertheless, her condition suddenly worsened in the summer. On June 17, 1780, the Mahons were staying at their house on Harley Street, and Grace Trevor, the great friend Lady Lucy Stanhope, the unmarried sister of Philip, 2nd Earl Stanhope, wrote to Lady Chatham that she had recently had the pleasure “…to hear dear Lady Mahon is well. We felt much for them on account of the [Gordon] Riots in London: they are, I find, as we are, under the care of the Military.” [18]

St. Botolph’s Church, Chevening (Wikimedia Commons)

Then in a letter to their former tutor Rev. Wilson on July 11, 1780, William Pitt stopped him from visiting the Mahons in Harley Street, telling him, “Ld and Lady Mahon are both at Chevening, which I hope will have agreed better with her than London seem’d to do latterly.” [19] Sadly, the air of Chevening did not improve her failing health, and Lady Mahon died the following week on July 18, 1780. [20] She was buried in the South-east vault of St. Botolph’s church beneath the Stanhope Chapel. After Lady Mahon’s death, her three little daughters were left to the care of their grandmother, Lady Grizel Stanhope.

Within a year, Lord Mahon married his deceased wife’s cousin, Louisa Grenville, and he later had three surviving sons by her. It was an unhappy marriage, and in the coming years Charles, 3rd Earl Stanhope after 1784, would fall out with all six of his children, become estranged from his second wife, and take up with a music instructor. There is no mention in the surviving Pitt family correspondence concerning Lady Mahon’s death, but they would have been greatly affected by it. Lady Mahon's death came two years after her father's passing, and by the end of 1780, her younger brother James Charles also died in the West Indies. William Pitt had stood as godfather to Lady Lucy, Lady Mahon's youngest daughter, and he would later assist her when she married an apothecary. Viscountess Mahon’s legacy continued in her free-spirited daughter Lady Hester Stanhope, and in the descendants of her daughter Lady Lucy Rachel (Stanhope) Taylor.

References:

1. Birdwood, V. (ed.) So Dearly Loved, So Much Admired: Letters to Hester Pitt, Lady Chatham from her relations and friends (1744-1801). London: HMSO, p. 5.

2. Ibid, p. 6.

3. Lord Rosebery (1895) Pitt. London: Macmillan, p. 3.

4. Birdwood, V. (ed.) So Dearly Loved, So Much Admired: Letters to Hester Pitt, Lady Chatham from her relations and friends (1744-1801). London: HMSO, pp. 97-98.

5.  Hester Chatham to Mrs. Pitt, August 27, 1771. Dropmore Papers. British Library Add Ms 59490, f. 4

6. Birdwood, V. (ed.) So Dearly Loved, So Much Admired: Letters to Hester Pitt, Lady Chatham from her relations and friends (1744-1801). London: HMSO, p. 258.

7. Ibid.

8. Kent RO: Pitt MSS U1590, Thomas Cholmondeley of Vale Royal to Lady Stanhope, 8 October 1774.

9. Ellis, K. (2008) Star of the Morning: The Extraordinary Life of Lady Hester Stanhope. London: Harper Press, p. 12.

10. Philip, 2^nd Earl Stanhope to Lord Chatham. September 24, 1774. PRO 30/70/5 f. 344.

11. An extract from Lady Hester Pitt’s marriage indenture. Stanhope MSS (C45), 17th December 1774.

12. Hester Chatham to Mrs. Pitt, April 13, 1775. Dropmore Papers. British Library Add Ms 59490, f. 24.

13. Hester Chatham to Mrs. Pitt, August 7, 1775. Dropmore Papers. British Library Add Ms 59490, f. 27.

14. The 1778 Rate Book entry for Harley Street, showing number 52: The house of Lord Viscount Mahon. Westminster City Archives, London.

15. Ellis, K. (2008) Star of the Morning: The Extraordinary Life of Lady Hester Stanhope. London: Harper Press, p. 21.

16. Lady Mahon to Lady Chatham, April 24, 1780. PRO 30/70/5, f. 358.

17. Headlam C. (ed.) The Letters of Lady Harriot Eliot. (1914) Edinburgh: Constable, Letter of 29 May 1780. 

18. Birdwood, V. (ed.) So Dearly Loved, So Much Admired: Letters to Hester Pitt, Lady Chatham from her relations and friends (1744-1801). London: HMSO, p. 213.

19. William Pitt to Reverend Edward Wilson, July 11, 1780. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University, Pitt MSS.

20. There are two primary sources for this date: The Gentleman's Magazine, Vol. 50, 1780, page 348, and The Dictionary of National Biography, Volume 45, by Sir Leslie Stephen and Sir Sidney Lee, (1896) page 366.

Image Credits:

Images were found via Wikimedia Commons. The portrait of Viscountess Mahon can be accessed via www.findagrave.com.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About the Author:

Stephenie Woolterton is currently writing a biography of William Pitt the Younger’s private life. Her website is www.theprivatelifeofpitt.com and she’s on Twitter @anoondayeclipse. 

Lady Hester Stanhope-A Regency Character if Ever There Was One

by David W Wilkin

Lady Hester Lucy Stanhope

March 12 1776 to June 23 1839

Her prominence is from 1803 to 1806 when she served as Hostess for her uncle, William Pitt the Younger

She was the eldest child of the 3rd Earl of Stanhope, whose wife was sister to William Pitt the Younger, and in 1800 went to live with her grandmother, the Countess of Chatham, widow of the William Pitt the elder. So Lady Hester could be counted to have lived in the households of the highest political circles. Her grandmother, the countess, Hester Pitt, who our Lady Hester was obviously named after died in 1803 at the age of 82. Our Hester was then 27 and still unmarried. She was on the shelf in our regency terminology.

At this time, Pitt the Younger was Prime Minister and also unmarried. (Nothing scandalous here I believe though Lady Hester was accounted a great beauty) The Prime Minister needed a hostess and his niece had just finished doing duty to his mother. She did this task with great success and when Pitt was out of office, she served as his private secretary.

She was the initiator of the gardens at Walmer Castle while Pitt was Lord Ward of the Cinque Ports.

Upon his death the government awarded her £1200 a year. She first lived in Montagu Squar in London, then moved to Wales but left England for the second act of her life in 1810.

It is claimed that when she and her party (which included a man who became her lover) arrived in Athens, Lord Byron dived into the sea to greet her. En route to Cairo her ship encountered a storm and was shipwrecked on Rhodes. (Again, another classic heroic tale) All possessions gone, the party had to borrow Turkish clothes. Here Lady Hester wore male garb. And this was how she met the Pasha. (Again, classic heroine stuff here.) For the next two years she visited Gibraltar, Malta, the Ionian Islands, the Peloponnese, Athens, Constantinople, Rhodes, Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon and Syria.

Her entourage to visit Palmyra was so large (22 camels just for her luggage) she was greeted as Queen Hester.

In 1815, she was now a fixture of the middle east. A document came into her possession that said a great treasure was hidden in the ruins of the mosque in Ashkelon. She journeyed there, and the governor of Jaffa was ordered to accompany her. They did not find the three million gold coins she thought she would find. But they did find a seven foot headless marble statue. She ordered it to be smashed into a thousand pieces and thrown into the sea. Aside from the horrific destruction, this was considered the first modern archealogical excavation of the Holy Lands.

One should note that Lady Hester began her travels and continued them while the Napoleonic Wars were taking place.

Now the last act of her life was her settling permanently in the Middle East. She settled in Sidon, in now Lebanon. These last years she provided sanctuary to the Druze and the local emir, Bashir Shihab II who at first greeted her with courtesy turned against her. However she had such power that she had near absolute authority over the surrounding districts. Truly, ‘Queen Hester.’ Ibrahim Pasha had to consult with her when he was about to invade Syria in 1832.

This did change. She accumulated debt, and when the money ran out, she became a recluse. Her servants began to take off with her possessions when she could not pay them any longer. She would not receive visitors in the end until it was dark, and then they would only see her hands and face. She wore a turban over her shaven head.

* * *

Mr. Wilkin writes Regency Historicals and Romances, Ruritanian (A great sub-genre that is fun to explore) and Edwardian Romances, Science Fiction and Fantasy works. He is the author of the very successful Pride & Prejudice continuation; Colonel Fitzwilliam’s Correspondence. He has several other novels set in Regency England including The End of the World and The Shattered Mirror. His most recent work is the humorous spoof; Jane Austen and Ghosts, a story of what would happen were we to make any of these Monsters and Austen stories into a movie.

And Two Peas in a Pod, a madcap tale of identical twin brothers in Regency London who find they must impersonate each other to pursue their loves.

The links for all locations selling Mr. Wilkin's work can be found at the webpage and will point you to your favorite internet bookstore: David’s Books, and at various Internet and realworld bookstores including the iBookstore, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords.

He is published by Regency Assembly Press

And he maintains his own blog called The Things That Catch My Eye where the entire Regency Lexicon has been hosted these last months as well as the current work in progress of the full Regency Timeline is being presented.

You also may follow Mr. Wilkin on Twitter at @DWWilkin

Mr. Wilkin maintains a Pinterest page with pictures and links to all the Regency Research he uncovers at Pinterest Regency-Era

Lady Hester Stanhope: Expatriat, Astrologer, Eccentric

Lady Hester Stanhope was an adventurous woman of the early 19^th century who chose to leave her native England and spend her life, first traveling around Europe, and then living the remainder of it in an abandoned monastery on a mountaintop in Lebanon among the Arabians. As a female expatriate living in an patriarchal culture, Lady Hester used her money and influence to live an unmolested life; however when her luxurious lifestyle outstripped the pension granted her by the British crown, her ability to purchase security ended.

However, Lady Hester, brilliant and innovative, or as some would accusingly say...disturbingly deluded, or even slightly insane, managed to otherwise survive and maintain to some degree, her eccentric lifestyle. Lady Heather, through either self-deluded insanity, intelligent design or genuine talent, convinced the natives that she could read the stars, and used their awe and their fear to maintain a position of power among the common people that lived in the hills and valleys surrounding her adopted home.

Presumably, Lady Hester's supposed talents were in constant demand by her neighbors. History tells us that she utilized their belief in her abilities to calm the passions of the violent; induce the unjust and the oppressor to make reparation for their wrong-doings; and other good uses, of which the following anecdote, related by herself, will furnish an example: 
 
“An Arab suspected his wife of talking too much with strangers in his absence, and one of his neighbors confirmed his suspicions. He went home, proceeded to strangle the unfortunate woman, and, when she became insensible, he dragged her to some distance, and commenced interring her: the first heap of sand which he threw upon her recalled sensation; she manifested symptoms of life, and he repented of his vengeance; he brought her to me half dead; told the story of her supposed guilt, but owned he was premature in strangling her, as he should have first got me to consult her star, to ascertain if she really deserved to die or not. I sent the woman to the harem, had her bled, and taken care of till she recovered, and then I summoned the man before me. ‘My good friend,’ said I, ‘your wife’s star has been consulted; take her back in peace, and thank God you have her; for it is written in the stars, “On vain surmises thou shalt not strangle thy wife, neither shalt thou hearken to the slanderers of her honor.”’ The man immediately held out his hand to his gentle rib; she kissed it, and forth he walked, desiring her to follow him, with the most perfect indifference. I asked the woman if she were afraid of another act of violence. She calmly replied, ‘Is he not my husband? Has he not a right to kill me, if he suspects me of doing wrong?’”

Lady Hester believed in the science of astrology to the fullest extent. She believed that we are all children of some one of the celestial fires which presided at our birth, and of which the happy or malignant influence is written in our eyes, on our foreheads, in our fortunes, in the lines of our hands, in the form of our feet, in our gesture, in our walk. She believed that, from these various elements, she could read the character and destiny of any individual who was but for a few moments in her presence. In accordance with her belief, she thought that skillful astrologers should be appointed to every district, to consult the heavenly bodies at the birth of every child and the nature of each natal star to be registered by them.

Either through self-delusion or genuine talent, Lady Hester retained her power over the commoners by manipulating their superstitious fears. However, the neighboring chiefs chose not to believe in her abilities and subjected her to robbery and harassment.   It may be assumed that greed, rather than disbelief, was more of a motivational factor for this change of heart since the chiefs resented the fact that Lady Hester could no longer pay the generous tribute to which they had grown accustomed before her fortunes dwindled.

Lady Hester was quite the eccentric, especially given the position of women in the times which she lived. She lived an outstandingly unusual life, and became quite the legend in her own time. A traveler, who, in 1832, was allowed to visit her—a favor rarely granted to Europeans, described a visit with Lady Stanhope:

“I was introduced into her cabinet by a little negro child. It was so extremely dark, that it was with difficulty I could distinguish her noble, grave, yet mild and majestic features, clad in an Oriental costume. She rose from the divan, advanced, and offered me her hand. She appeared to be about fifty years of age; but she possessed those personal traits which years cannot alter. Freshness, color, and grace, depart with youth; but when beauty resides in the form itself, in purity of expression, in dignity, in majesty, and a thoughtful countenance, whether in man or woman, this beauty may change with the different periods of life, but it does not pass away—it eminently characterized the person of Lady Hester Stanhope.

“She wore a white turban, and on her forehead was a purple-colored woolen fillet, which fell on each side of her head as low as her shoulders. A long, yellow Cashmere shawl, and an immense Turkish robe of white silk, with flowing sleeves, enveloped all her person in simple and majestic folds, while an opening of these folds upon the bosom displayed a tunic of rich Persian stuff, covered with flowers, which was attached round the neck by a clasp of pearls. Turkish yellow morocco boots, embroidered with silk, completed this beautiful Oriental costume, which she wore with that freedom and grace, as if she had never used any other from her youth.”

A variety of motives have been ascribed to the unusual conduct of Lady Hester: eccentric imagination, a turn for adventure, a love of power, an intolerance for the constricted life of an England lady in her homeland, or simply because she could. Lady Hester Stanhope—simply eccentric or something more...you be the judge.

To read more about Lady Hester Stanhope, and her adventures and delusions, please see my blog post from September 27, 2011.

Compiled From Sources In The Public Domain.


Smiles and Good Reading,
Teresa Thomas Bohannon
Author of the Old-Fashioned Regency Romance Novel
A Very Merry Chase
Teresa's Regency Blog MyLadyWeb Women's History & Women Authors
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Lady Hester Stanhope: Regency England's Eccentric Expatriate

Lady Hester Stanhope was born into a family of wealth and privilege in 1776. Her father, the third Earl of Stanhope was fascinated with progressive mechanics and philosophy, while her mother was from one of the great political families of the day.  Hester's mother passed away when Hester was quite young, and the Stanhope children were sent to live with their maternal grandmother and uncle, the English Prime Minister, William Pitt. 

Although her father was both wealthy and successful, genius was the only inheritance Hester received from him. William Pitt held vast philosophical differences from those of Hester's father—differences that eventually created a breach between himself and his children. Stanhope championed the improvement of social institutions, and hailed the French revolution as the beginning of a necessary change in societal norms. He urged his children to educate themselves so they might earn a living by some honest calling. When they adhered to the more elitist principles held by their uncle, Lord Stanhope renounced them, saying, “that, as they had chosen to be saddled on the public purse, they must suffer the consequences.”

Lady Hester later went on to play political hostess for her uncle and served as his secretary once he retired from office. Upon his death, the only provision he could make for his niece, was to recommend her to the favor of his king and country, who acknowledged their obligation to him by bestowing upon her a pension of twelve hundred pounds, annually.

Soon after the death of her uncle, Hester left England, and spent many years visiting the chief cities of continental Europe. Her rank, beauty, and fortune attracted crowds of suitors; but all were all rejected. After satisfying her curiosity in Europe, she, with a large retinue and a great deal of private property in tow, embarked for Constantinople with the intent of making a long sojourn in the East. A storm overtook the vessel near the Isle of Rhodes, driving the vessel against the rocks. The ship sank, and Lady Hester’s jewels and other property were lost to the sea. The lady herself, however, miraculously escaped. The piece of the wreck on which she had taken refuge was cast on the shore of a small, desert island, where she remained twenty-four hours, without help or food of any kind before being rescued by some local fisherman who bore her safely to Rhodes.

Undaunted by this disaster. She returned to England, collected the remains of her fortune, and, after investing a portion of it in the English funds, embarked once more for the East, taking with her articles for presents, and whatever else might be of service in the countries she planned to visit. This time, her voyage was prosperous, and she landed near Tripoli and Alexandretta, on the coast of Syria.

Here she settled temporarily as she began preparing for the rigors of her intended journey into the most inaccessible parts of Arabia, Mesopotamia, and the desert. She strengthened her body by diet and exercise, studied the Arab language and familiarized herself with the local culture by interacting with the various natives of the country.

Once prepared, she organized a large caravan, loaded her camels with rich presents for the Arabs, and embarked on her travels. She visited every place worthy of note in Syria. At Palmyra, hordes of wandering Arabs assembled round her tent, and, charmed by her beauty, grace, and splendor, proclaimed her queen of that once imperial city. They agreed that every European under her protection might proceed in perfect safety through the desert, by paying the tribesmen a certain fixed tribute.

However, despite these tributes, Hester narrowly escaped being carried off by a tribe hostile to those of that region. Fortunately, she received warning and—thanks to the swiftness of her horses, and a marathon journey of speed and endurance lasting twenty-four hours—managed to place herself and her caravan beyond the enemy's reach. 

 

Lady Hester eventually settled on one of the mountains of Lebanon. Her adopted home rose from a barren valley into a flat summit covered with a beautiful green vegetation. A white wall surrounded her verdant enclave and marked the habitation of the “Sittee Inglis,” or “English lady.” Here, within the ruins of an abandoned monastery, she created a desert paradise—gardens containing bowers of fragrant vines, kiosks embellished with sculpture and paintings, fountains of marble; and arches formed of orange, fig, and lemon-trees.

She resided there for many years in Eastern magnificence, surrounded by her English retinue, a host of servants, both black and white, and a large number of young females. At this point, she was quite friendly with the Sublime Porte, various pachas, and the local tribal chieftains. In fact, such was the state in which she lived, and the influence which she exerted, that she might well have imagined herself “Queen of the Desert.”

But the splendor of her reign was soon dimmed. Her wealth was not substantial enough to bear the brunt of her luxurious lifestyle. Her Arab friends affections were dependent upon a stream of gifts, and the friendly relations cooled somewhat when her gifts to them became less lavish and less frequent. Eventually, her English retinue died or deserted her, and she devolved into a reclusive life of near poverty.

However, some sources of influence still remained to her. Astrology—a science long devalued in Europe—still held sway in the East. The people of her adopted homeland came to believe that Lady Hester could read the stars—a belief which she exploited, thereby procuring the respect of the commoners, and, to a certain extent, the personal security which had formerly been purchased with shawls of Cashmere, and a rich silver-mounted pistols.

But while practicing these arts upon others, Hester herself became the victim of strange delusions—coming by degrees to the certainty that all was written in the stars, and that she therein had read the history of the world. In Hester's stable there resided two mares, both of which figured prominently in her delusions. She believed that the Messiah was soon to appear upon the earth, and that she, while mounted upon a milk-white mare of matchless beauty, was destined to be his bride and witness the conquest of Jerusalem, and the establishment of his kingdom on earth. Her companion was to ride on the second mare. This animal, in all other respects of beautiful proportions, had behind the shoulders a cavity large and deep, imitating so completely a Turkish saddle, that one might easily say that she was foaled complete with saddle. The second mare, so unique in her deformity, was watched with the greatest care by two grooms, one of whom was never to lose sight of her. No one had ever mounted her, and from her bearing one might have fancied that the creature was conscious of the admiration and respect which were entertained for her by all around, and felt the dignity of her future mission.

Though Lady Hester retained her power over the lower classes by means of their superstitious fears, the neighboring chiefs were not to be thus restrained, and some of them sought by robbery to indemnify themselves for the loss of the accustomed presents. Hoping to coerce her into a renewal of them, they harassed her by petty vexations; her camels were seized; and her servants were beaten. When she retaliated, an edict was procured, forbidding any Mussulman, on pain of death, to remain in her service, or to carry water to her house. This last prohibition was quite severe, since water for her house and garden had to be brought from a river three or four miles distant. Her appeal, however, to the Porte procured the withdrawal of the edict, and saved her gardens.

In 1837, a new source of vexation arose. The British government appropriated Lady Hester's pension to pay her creditors. Her ladyship, rallied the Duke of Wellington and other opponents of the Whig administration to her aid, but 'twas to no avail. Failing in these efforts, she appealed to the queen herself—with no better success. Lady Hester did not long survive this new source of mortification. She died on the 23d of June, 1839.

 Compiled From Sources In The Public Domain.



Smiles and Good Reading,
Teresa Thomas Bohannon
Author of the Old-Fashioned Regency Romance Novel
A Very Merry Chase
Teresa's Regency Blog

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