Violet Fane facts for kids

Violet Fane was the special writing name, or pseudonym, of Lady Mary Montgomerie Currie (born Lamb). She was born on February 24, 1843, and passed away on October 13, 1905.

Mary was a talented poet and writer. Later in her life, she also worked as an ambassadress, helping her husband in his diplomatic role. She was a well-known figure in the British writing world from 1872 until her death. Many famous writers and artists, like Robert Browning and Oscar Wilde, were her friends. Oscar Wilde even said she had amazing ideas about art and nature.

Violet Fane's Early Life

Mary Montgomerie Lamb was born a bit early on February 24, 1843, in Littlehampton, Sussex. She was the oldest daughter of Charles James Savile Montgomerie Lamb and Anna Charlotte Grey.

Her father, Charlie Lamb, came from two important families. He was set to inherit a special family title and land. Her mother, Charlotte Grey, was the daughter of a fabric seller. Charlie and Charlotte got married secretly.

A few years later, when Mary was just one month old, her parents sent her to live with her father's parents. They asked for forgiveness for their secret marriage. Mary grew up with her grandparents at their family home, Beauport Park. Her parents went on a long trip and later joined them.

Mary's parents and their friends loved Eastern cultures. They were the first to show Mary these exciting customs when she was a child. They encouraged her to wear Turkish clothes and go barefoot, just like them.

Mary had four younger brothers and sisters: Clara, Archibald, Flora, and Charles Anthony. Three of them lived to be adults. Clara, who died young, became a very important topic in Mary's poems. These poems are known as the ‘Clara Poems’.

Growing Up and Marriage

When Charlie Lamb died in 1856, Lady Sophia Adelaide Theodosia Pelham took care of young Mary. Lady Sophia introduced Mary to London society, where Mary quickly became known for her clever conversations and sharp wit.

In the early 1860s, Mary fell in love with Clare Vyner, a handsome man from Yorkshire. However, they did not get married.

In 1864, when Mary was 21, she married Henry Sydenham Singleton. He was 45 years old. Mary's mother did not approve of the marriage. Even after marrying Singleton, Mary still had feelings for Clare Vyner. This unrequited love inspired many of the poems she wrote in the 1860s. These poems were later published in her first poetry book, From Dawn to Noon, in 1872.

Henry Singleton owned a lot of land in Ireland and England. He earned a good income from his properties. People described him as a "strange" and "misanthropic" person who seemed unable to make Mary happy.

Around 1869 or 1870, Mary met Philip Currie. He was a young diplomat. They met at Singleton's country home, Hazely, which was close to Philip Currie's family home.

Violet Fane's Writing Career

Mary Montgomerie Lamb had a talent for poetry from a young age. A note in her 1892 book, Poems, mentions her family's history of writers.

Her first published work was not poetry. In 1863, before she married Singleton, some of her drawings appeared in a special edition of Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s poem, Mariana. This poem is about a woman who is sad because her lover is away. Mary might have felt a connection to the poem because of her own feelings for Clare Vyner.

Mary started publishing her poetry under the name ‘Violet Fane’ in 1872. Her first collection was called From Dawn to Noon. She chose a pen name because her family did not approve of her writing. She took the name ‘Violet Fane’ from a book called Vivian Grey by Benjamin Disraeli.

Mary said that Disraeli called her his "dear goddaughter" when they met because she used the name Violet Fane. She claimed she had forgotten about the character from his book when she chose her pen name. However, she later said she chose the name because the character in the book "died in the arms of her lover," and Mary thought such a death was "worth living for." This idea fits with the emotional tone of her book, Dawn to Noon.