Citizendia

Violet Trefusis née Keppel (June 6, 1894 – March 1, 1972) was an English writer and socialite. Events 1508 - Maximilian I Holy Roman Emperor, is defeated in Friulia by Venetian forces; he is forced to sign a three-year Year 1894 ( MDCCCXCIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 86 BC - Lucius Cornelius Sulla, at the head of a Roman Republic army enters in Athens, removing the Tyrant Year 1972 ( MCMLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland A writer is anyone who creates a written work although the word usually designates those who write creatively or professionally as well as those who have written in many different forms A socialite is a person who is known to be a part of fashionable Society because of his or her regular participation in social activities and fondness for spending a significant She is most notable from her lesbian affair with Vita Sackville-West, which was featured under disguise in Virginia Woolf's Orlando: A Biography. A lesbian is a Woman who is romantically or sexually attracted only to other women Victoria Mary Sackville-West The Hon Lady Nicolson, CH ( March 9, 1892 &ndash June 2, 1962) best known as Vita Sackville-West (Adeline Virginia Woolf (née Stephen; 25 January 1882 – 28 March 1941 was an English Novelist and Essayist, regarded as one of the foremost Orlando is an influential novel by Virginia Woolf, first published on 11 October 1928.

Contents

Early life

Violet Trefusis was the daughter of courtesan Alice Keppel, a mistress of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom. A courtesan in mid-16th century usage referred to a mistress or trained artisan of dance and singing especially one associated with wealthy powerful or upper-class Alice Frederica Keppel, Née Edmonstone ( 29 April, 1868 &ndash 11 September, 1947) was a British Socialite Although she bore this surname until she married, she was said to be the daughter of William Beckett, a banker and MP for Whitby[1], but her mother had taken several lovers during that time, and there are several possibilities. Ernest William Beckett 2nd Baron Grimthorpe ( 25 November 1856 &ndash 29 April 1917) was a British peer and Conservative Whitby is a historic town and Civil parish in the Scarborough district of North Yorkshire on the north-east coast of England. Throughout her childhood Trefusis was witness to her mother's numerous lovers, all prominent powerful men of the day. [2]

Trefusis lived her early youth in London, where the Keppel family had a house in Portman Square. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. When Trefusis was four years old, Alice Keppel became one of the favorite mistresses of Albert Edward (Bertie), the Prince of Wales, who became King Edward VII on January 22, 1901. Events 565 - Eutychius is deposed as Patriarch of Constantinople by John Scholasticus. Year 1901 ( MCMI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting He paid visits to the Keppel household in the afternoon around tea-time (while her husband, who was aware of the affair, was conveniently absent), on a regular basis till the end of his life in 1910. Depending on a country's customs tea can refer to any of several different meals or mealtimes Discretion was a hallmark of Alice Keppel. [2]

In 1900 Violet's sister, Sonia, was born. Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar Sonia Rosemary Cubitt Baroness Ashcombe (née Keppel OBE DStJ ( 24 May, 1900 &ndash 16 August 1986) was the daughter

Her affair with Vita Sackville-West

Trefusis is best remembered today for her love affair with the wealthy Vita Sackville-West, having figured in Virginia Woolf's novel Orlando. Victoria Mary Sackville-West The Hon Lady Nicolson, CH ( March 9, 1892 &ndash June 2, 1962) best known as Vita Sackville-West (Adeline Virginia Woolf (née Stephen; 25 January 1882 – 28 March 1941 was an English Novelist and Essayist, regarded as one of the foremost Orlando is an influential novel by Virginia Woolf, first published on 11 October 1928. In this romanticized biography of Vita, Trefusis appears in it as the Slavic princess Sasha. [3][2]

This was not the only account of this love affair, which appears in reality to have been very much more strenuous than Woolf's enchanting account: both in fiction (Challenge by Sackville-West and Trefusis, Broderie Anglaise a roman à clef in French by Trefusis) and in non-fiction (Portrait of a Marriage by Sackville-West with extensive "clarifications" added by her son Nigel Nicolson) further parts of the story appeared in print. A roman à clef or roman à clé (French for "novel with a key" is a Novel describing real life behind a façade of Fiction Portrait of a Marriage is the 1973 biography of writer and gardener Vita Sackville-West completed by her son Nigel Nicolson from her journals and letters Nigel Nicolson OBE ( 19 January 1917 &ndash 23 September 2004) was a British writer publisher and politician

There are still the surviving letters and diaries written by the partakers in the plot. Apart from those of the two central players, there are records from Alice Keppel, Victoria Sackville-West, Harold Nicolson, Denys Trefusis and Pat Dansey. Alice Frederica Keppel, Née Edmonstone ( 29 April, 1868 &ndash 11 September, 1947) was a British Socialite Sir Harold George Nicolson KCVO CMG ( November 21 1886 &ndash May 1 1968) was an English Diplomat [2]

Probably the most conclusive overview of the whole story can be found in Diana Souhami's Mrs Keppel and her Daughter. [2] In headlines:

A few years, and some postludes, later it becomes increasingly clear that Trefusis's fantasy of romantic love lived to the fullest in an accepting social context were not to come true. NOTICE TO WOULD-BE-ROMEOS*************** The more traditional concept of an upfront marriage with hidden extramarital adventures to complete it - as it had been lived by Mrs Keppel, and would continue to be lived by Sackville-West and Harold - proved immensely stronger for many years to come.

An essential difference between Mrs Keppel and Sackville-West seems to be that Mrs Keppel made a trade of never distressing her lovers (and their marriages), thus advancing her family socially and financially, while Sackville-West caused broken hearts more than once: for her marriage was rather the refuge she could always come back to after periods of abandonment.

As a side-note it might appear not so surprising that, notwithstanding some general changes in social context by that time, the inherent unresolved tensions of all three models (Trefusis's, Mrs Keppel's and Sackville-West's) - including mothers taking sides in view of a socially acceptable solution - reappeared in the Diana - Camilla - Charles triangle - surely not so exceptional in this respect.

The two former lovers met again in 1940 after the war had forced Trefusis to come back to England. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland They continued to keep in touch and send each other affectionate letters.

Further Reading About the Affair

There have been extensive writings on the affair, many reflecting what is believed to have been the mistreatment of Trefusis by Sackville-West. Most reflect that Trefusis was completely engulfed and overwhelmed by the affair, as was Sackville-West, but that it was Sackville-West who was ultimately in control. Jullian Phillipe wrote Violet Trefusis: A Biography, Including Correspondence with Vita Sackville-West, which was released in paperback in 1985. Year 1985 ( MCMLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays 1985 Gregorian calendar) Other writings on the affair include the Jullian Phillipe and John Phillips book, The Other Woman, A Life of Violet Trefusis, and Mrs. Keppel and Her Daughter by Diana Souhami. [1]

Later life

From 1923 on Trefusis became one of the many lovers of the Singer sewing machine heiress Winnaretta Singer, daughter of Isaac Singer and wife of the homosexual Prince Edmond de Polignac, who introduced her to the artistic beau-monde in Paris. Singer Corporation is a manufacturer of sewing machines first established as I Winnaretta Singer Princess Edmond de Polignac ( 8 January 1865 - 26 November 1943) was an important musical Patron and heir to the Isaac Merritt Singer ( October 27, 1811 – July 23, 1875) was an Inventor, Actor, and Entrepreneur. Prince Edmond Melchior Jean Marie de Polignac ( 19 April 1834 - 8 August 1901) was a French Composer. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city Trefusis conceding more and more to her mother's model of being "socially acceptable", but at the same time not wavering on her sexuality.

Singer, as Sackville-West had, dominated the relationship, though apparently to mutual satisfaction. The two were together for many years, and seemed to have had a healthy and happy relationship. Trefusis's mother, Alice Keppel, did not object to this affair, most likely due to the wealth and power of Singer, and the fact that Singer carried on the affair in a much more disciplined way. Trefusis seemed to prefer the role of submissive, and therefore fit with Singer well, as she was typically dominant and in control in her relationships. Neither were completely faithful during their long affair, but unlike her affair with Sackville-West, this seemed to have had no negative effect on their relationship.

In 1924 Mrs Keppel bought L'Ombrellino, a large villa overlooking Florence, where once Galileo Galilei had lived. Florence ( Italian: Firenze Florentia and Fiorenza) is the Capital City of the Italian region of Tuscany Galileo Galilei (15 February 1564 &ndash 8 January 1642 was a Tuscan ( Italian) Physicist, Mathematician, Astronomer, and Philosopher Eventually, after her parents' death in 1947, Trefusis would become the chatelaine of L'Ombrellino, till the end of her life.

In 1929, Denys Trefusis died, completely estranged from his seemingly unfeeling wife. After his death, Violet published several novels, some in English, some in French, that she had written in her medieval "Tour" in Saint-Loup-de-Naud, Seine-et-Marne, France - a gift from Winnaretta. Seine-et-Marne is a French department, named after the Seine and Marne rivers and located in the Île-de-France region This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.

During the Second World War, in London, Violet participated in the broadcastings of ([2]) La France Libre, which earned her a Légion d'Honneur after the war. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including

Nancy Mitford said that Violet's autobiography should be titled Here Lies Violet Trefusis, and partly based the character of "Lady Montdore" in Love in a Cold Climate on her. Nancy Freeman-Mitford, CBE ( 28 November 1904, London - 30 June 1973, Versailles) styled The Hon Love in a Cold Climate is a Novel by Nancy Mitford, first published in 1949.

References

  1. ^ Taylor, Clare L. (2004). "Trefusis, Violet (1894–1972)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Retrieved on 2007-11-29. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1777 - San Jose California, is founded as el Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe  
  2. ^ a b c d e Souhami, Diana (1998), Mrs. Keppel and Her Daughter, St. Martin's Press, ISBN 0312195176 
  3. ^ Woolf, Virginia (1955), Orlando: A Biography, Wordsworth Editions, ISBN 1853262390  In the introduction, p. vii, by Merry Pawlowski.

Further reading

External links

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
 Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic