For our June ’22 meeting Karin gave us a very entertaining and amusing talk on Mary ‘Perdita’ Robinson (1756-1800), who was an author, poet and actress and first love of George IV. She was a high-class courtesan and was painted by the notable artists of her day, such as John Hoppner, George Romney, Joshua Reynolds and Thomas Gainsborough. Her memoirs were written in a rather breathless, over the top style. Her father deserted her mother early on and she and her mother moved from Bristol to London. As a 15yr old she had red/gold hair and aspired to be an actress She was hosted at the home of David Garrick the versatile actor/director, who was then about 60 years old. He invited her to play Cordelia to his Lear. In those days theatre had a rather scandalous reputation. She lived in Marylebone, an area where ‘ladies of the night’ plied their trade. At fifteen she married a solicitor, Thomas Robinson believing him, mistakenly, to have an inheritance. Her husband became involved in gambling and racing debts and was imprisoned. She shared imprisonment with him and their young baby when only sixteen. She started writing poetry to pay off his debts and sent a bound volume of poems to the Duchess of Devonshire who befriended her and invited her to her home and helped her with money.
Later, she recited for Sheridan and landed Shakespearean roles at Drury Lane. She played Ophelia and Rosalind and becomes known for her “breeches’ roles. There is a portrait of her with Sheridan’s wife by Gainsborough. She also played Perdita in The Winters Tale before the royal family. The Prince of Wales (only 17 at the time) paid her compliments. She corresponded with him and they started to rendez-vous at Old Kew Palace. George, Prince of Wales, had many loves and eventually rejected her. Her reputation was subsequently trashed in the press. She became involved with Lord Malden who gambled on her fidelity. Her subsequent lover, Banastre Tarleton was a hero of the American War of Independence and was also a gambler.
Still in her 20’s she had a difficult pregnancy, resulting in a still birth followed by a stroke and paralysis. Tarleton returned to nurse her. She resorted to begging from the Prince of Wales and lived an impoverished life in France and Windsor, nursed by her daughter. Her literary output consisted of seven novels and collections of poetry. She gained a reputation as an author and moved in literary circles with Mary Wollstonecroft, William Godwin and Coleridge. She may have been a model for a Jane Austen character. Mary’s novel The Natural Daughter has autobiographical elements. She gradually became more political , feminist and left wing and published the novel The False Friend (1799) .She was interested in women’s education and wanted to build a university for women. Later, The Royal Holloway Women’s College was established. Locks of her hair were left to George IV and Tarleton. She died in 1800 aged 44 near Windsor Cottage.
This was an interesting and humorous presentation about a tumultuous life which attracted a lot of attention from the artists and writers of her day. The slides, including the portraits of Mary Robinson, added much to this lively presentation.
Publications
Poems by Mrs. Robinson (1775, Parker)
Captivity ( 1777 – poems relating to the horrors of prison captivity)
The Natural Daughter (1792 – novel, somewhat autobiographical)
Vancenza (1792)
The False Friend (1799)
See an extensive list in the Wikipedia article on Mary Perdita Robinson.
Biography
Byrne, P. Perdita: The Literary, Theatrical and Scandalous Life of Mary Robinson (2004, Random House)
Davenport, Hester . The Prince’s Mistress, (2004, Sutton)
Lois Coulthart