Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
The Countess of Blessington
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1822 Painting by Thomas Lawrence
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| Born | Margaret Power 1 September 1789 Clonmel, County Tipperary, Ireland |
| Died | 4 June 1849 (aged 59) Paris, France |
| Occupation | Novelist, miscellaneous writer |
| Notable works | Conversations with Lord Byron (1834) |
| Spouse | Cpt. Maurice St. Leger Farmer (m. 1804–1817; his death) Charles John Gardiner, 1st Earl of Blessington (m. 1818–1829; his death) |
Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington (born Margaret Power; 1 September 1789 – 4 June 1849) was an Irish writer and a popular host for famous people. She wrote novels and worked as a journalist. She also met the famous poet Lord Byron in Italy and later wrote a book about their talks.
Contents
Early Life and First Marriage
Margaret Power was born near Clonmel in County Tipperary, Ireland. Her parents, Edmund Power and Ellen Sheehy, owned a small amount of land. She learned to read on her own and from a friend of her mother's, Ann Dwyer.
When she was fifteen, Margaret had a difficult marriage to Captain Maurice St. Leger Farmer. He was an English officer who died in 1817. Margaret had left him after only three months.
After this, Marguerite lived for five years with the family of Captain Thomas Jenkins in Hampshire. He was a kind army officer who loved books. Captain Jenkins introduced her to Charles John Gardiner, 1st Earl of Blessington. He was an Irish nobleman, seven years older than her, and had four children. They got married on 16 February 1818, just four months after her first husband passed away.
Adventures on a Grand Tour
Marguerite was known for her beauty, charm, and cleverness. She also loved spending money, just like her second husband. On 25 August 1822, they started a long trip across Europe, called a Grand Tour. Marguerite's younger sister, Mary Anne, who was 21, joined them.
During their travels, they met Alfred Guillaume Gabriel, Count D'Orsay in Avignon. He had already become a close friend of Lady Blessington in London. They stayed in Genoa for four months in 1823. While there, they met the famous poet Lord Byron many times. These meetings gave Lady Blessington ideas for her book, Conversations with Lord Byron.
After Genoa, they mostly lived in Naples, Italy. There, she met the Irish writer Richard Robert Madden, who would later write her life story. They also spent time in Florence with their friend Walter Savage Landor, another writer whose work she admired.
A Famous London Home
In Italy, on 1 December 1827, Count D'Orsay married Harriet Gardiner. She was Lord Blessington's daughter from his first marriage. The Blessingtons and the newly married couple moved to Paris in late 1828. Lord Blessington suddenly died there in 1829 at age 46.
Count D'Orsay and Harriet went with Lady Blessington to England. However, D'Orsay and Harriet soon separated. D'Orsay then lived with Marguerite until she died. Their home, first at Seamore Place and later at Gore House in Kensington, became a very popular place. Many important people in literature, art, science, and fashion visited them. For example, Benjamin Disraeli wrote his novel Venetia while staying there. Also, Hans Christian Andersen met Charles Dickens for the first time at her home.
After her husband died, Lady Blessington needed to earn money. She wrote for different magazines and also wrote novels. For several years, she was the editor of popular yearly books called The Book of Beauty and The Keepsake. In 1834, she published her well-known book, Conversations with Lord Byron. Her books Idler in Italy (1839–1840) and Idler in France (1841) were popular because they included personal stories and descriptions of places. Lady Blessington also became a columnist for Dickens' newspaper, Daily News.
In early 1849, Count D'Orsay left Gore House due to financial problems. The furniture and decorations from their home were sold to help Lady Blessington pay her debts. Lady Blessington then joined the Count in Paris. She passed away on 4 June 1849.
Selected Books by Marguerite Blessington
- Conversations of Lord Byron with the Countess of Blessington (1834)
- Gems of Beauty Displayed in a Series of Twelve Highly Finished Engravings (1836)
- The Passions (1838)
- Idler in Italy (1839–1840)
- Idler in France (1841)
Images for kids
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Journal of conversation with Lord Byron, 1859
