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WATERLOO: TWO HUNDRED YEARS AGO THIS WEEK

6/15/2015

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Photo credit: Visit Belgium © Alex Kouprianoff

June 18, 1815, the culmination of the Napoleonic Wars when the forces of the Anglo Allies and the Prussians under the Duke of Wellington and Field Marshal von Blucher triumphed over the French Grand Armee of Napoleon Bonaparte. Within weeks, Napoleon had abdicated and was shipped off to the remote South Atlantic island of St. Helena where he died six years later.  The victorious armies of Wellington and Blucher occupied Paris, and the Bourbon King, Louis XVIII, was restored to his throne. The decisions of the Congress of Vienna, however reactionary one might now consider them, preserved a general peace in Europe, with a few exceptions, until the outbreak of another widespread conflict, WWI, in 1914.'
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In honor of the Great Battle, a group of nine authors have compiled an anthology of romantic stories.  Beaux, Ballrooms, and Battles is available as an e-book for $2.99 (click here) from all relevant platforms and from Amazon.com as a trade paperback for $14.99 (click here). Below, a description of my story, "Folie Bleue."

On the night of the 30th Anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo, Aimée, Lady Prescott, reminisces about meeting her husband in Bruxelles on the eve of the fighting. She had avoided the dashing scarlet-clad British officers, but she could not resist the tempting smile and spellbinding charm of Captain Robert Prescott of the 16th Light Dragoons who— dangerously to Aimée— wore blue.

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At the left, is an image of what my hero looks like. Actually, he is a member of the Blues and Royals on duty at Horse Guards in London, but as far as I am concerned, he is Robert Prescott. Dont you think he would appeal to any heroine worth writing about?  Yum.

Here is a short except from my story:

“…Robert and I wandered off again, away from the discussions of unworthy royals. We headed across a little bridge to an island in the small lake. As we came off the bridge, the ground was wet and spongy. He placed his arm around my waist, and we continued in the marshy grass. His hand was warm and I wished he would never take it away. I hoped he would leave it there for—oh, the next hundred years?...


      I looked back at our footprints in the dewy grass, set off by the sun glinting off our tracks. My shoes were soaked but their ruin was a small price to pay for the lasting image of our side-by-side steps. As I write about it, my heart is full. I can see it as if it had been this morning, not more than thirty years ago.”

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However you observe the bicentenary of the Battle of Waterloo, be sure to remember all those lost in all our wars, and those who were left behind when their loved ones never returned.  It's a sobering thought.
   Somehow it seems humankind has a hard time learning its lessons, n'est ce pas?  Adieu.

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A VISIT TO KENWOOD...

6/8/2015

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Today I'm writing about one of my favorite places in London -- Kenwood House.  I first visited many years ago and feasted my eyes on the stunning collection of masterworks in the Iveagh Bequest and on the justly famous Adam Library.  But I admit, the the rooms used as galleries, were -- aside from the paintings -- quite bland.  So I was delighted a few years ago to hear that the whole house was to be renovated and restored to the period, when the 1st Earl of Mansfield purchased the structure and had Robert Adam remodel it in 1764-1779.
A special bonus for me was the traveling exhibition of most of the Iveagh Bequest paintings in the U.S. in 2013-14, including at the Milwaukee Art Museum which I was able to visit several times.  Unless otherwise indicated, the pictures in this post were taken by me in August, 2014. Then, in advance of leading our Duke of Wellington Tour in a few days, Kristine Hughes and I were actually there in the refurbished Kenwood House and free to enjoy it at our leisure.  And when I say free, I mean it.  When Lord Iveagh, one of the heirs of the Guinness Brewery fortune, bequeathed Kenwood and his incredible art collection to the nation in 1927, he specified that  his collection should be exhibited free to one and all. The renovations cost about £5.95 million, so don't be surprised that they have a good-will offering suggestion! Before we got to the greatest of the artworks or the newly-refurbished library, we stopped to examine an Adam fireplace and the handsome staircase.

The library as it was when I first saw it, was certainly a room justly famous as representative of the work of the famous architect and designer Robert Adam.  However, as it once appeared, left below in a file photo, the red carpeting overwhelmed the delicacy of the ceiling and wall decoration. At the right, see how the restoration restored the colors of the ceiling to their original hues. When you look at the restored version, you realize the former decor was rather gaudy, too much so for authentic Adam.
Above, left, the newer ceiling decor; right, the entrance to the library. Below, Left, Lord Mansfield above the fireplace (more about him later), right, a classic Adam touch, a mirrored alcove to reflect the light.
In the dining room the deep red walls are appropriate to the decor and the brilliant art, not to mention the chandelier (right). The painting above the fireplace is by Anthony Van  Dyke, Princess Henrietta of Lorraine Attended by a Page.
 Elsewhere in the Dining Room are two priceless masterpieces: left, Rembrandt van Rijn, Portrait of the Artist, and on the right, Johannes Vermeer, The Guitar Player.
The furniture is certainly equal to the paintings and the setting: a handsome sidetable, left; on the right, Edwin Landseer, The Hon. E. S. Russell and His Brother, 1834. Children love this painting of the boys on their ponies with their dogs. Below, a portrait of William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, by David Martin, 1775, hangs in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. A copy hangs in Kenwood (see above).  At the right, a double portrait of Elizabeth Murray and Dido Bell, cousins, once attributed to Johann Zoffany, but currently unattributed; the version hanging at Kenwood is a copy of the original, which can be seen in Scone Palace, Perthshire, Scotland. This painting of Lord Mansfield's wards has long fascinated art experts and social commentators.  Dido Bell was the subject of a 2013 film exploring her life and times.
   Lord Mansfield was the Lord Chief Justice of Britain and authored the decision that slaves who entered Britain were no longer subject to the orders of their former masters. For this and other important judicial rulings, he was made the 1st Earl of Mansfield.
Left. Angelica Kauffman, RA, The Disarming of Cupid. Kauffman was an  excellent painter and did many Georgian interior medallions and other paintings -- and is, in my opinion, quite underrated. Right, a Carlton House Desk; the original was supposedly designed for the Prince of Wales by George Hepplewhite; These were very popular and are found in many country houses in England.
       Most of the Old Master paintings in the house are part of the Iveagh Bequest. Lord Iveagh purchased Kenwood to house his substantial collection and bequeathed it to the nation in 1927. Sadly, he passed away before the installation was complete.  Below, the Music Room on the left and on the right, Miss Murray by Sir Thomas Lawrence, painted 1824-26.
Above, left, John Hoppner, Mrs. Jordan as Viola from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, c.1785-92; right, Sir Joshua Reynolds,  Kitty Fisher as Cleopatra Dissolving the Pearl, 1759.  
      Below, left, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Mrs. Musters as "Hebe", 1782. Another version of this work can be seen in the staircase of Highclere Castle, sometimes in evidence in scenes from Downton Abbey. Right, Sir Joshua Reynolds, The Brummell Children, 1782
Above, left, Main Entrance of Kenwood House; right, the Dairy on the grounds. Below, left, walking the paths; left, the view of London from Hampstead Heath.
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    Victoria Hinshaw, Author


    Here I will share some of my articles on favorite topics, such as English Country Houses, the Regency Royals, Jane Austen, and the like. Some of these articles have been published elsewhere, probably on the blog I share with Kristine Hughes and Louisa
    ​Cornell:  numberonelondon.net

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