Thursday, 25 October 2018
Marie Louise, Part III
Marie Louise seemed attached to her husband and spoke well of him to her father… and he seemed very fond of her. >It’s rumoured that he still had occasional mistresses... but he was getting
older and he had over extended his Empire. His invasion of Russia was of course a great mistake, which resulted in military disaster. In Spain, Wellington was gradually winning the war with Napoleon’s marshals.
Napoleon arranged for Josephine to “accidentally” meet his son when out walking with the child’s nurse, one day. She was delighted to see the baby. But by then, the end of the Empire was getting
closer. Napoleon invaded Russia and was forced to retreat, losing a large part of his army. In his weakened position, he was attacked by Prussia, Russia and Great Britain and Austria joined in the war, against him. Marie Louise was appointed Regent but it was a nominal position When the
Allied army was on the verge of entering Paris, she wanted to stay there with her son but Napoleon wanted her to flee from his enemies. Napoleon abdicated in April, 1814, and Marie Louise was given several Italian Duchies, which were to be inherited by her son. Initially she wanted to re-join her husband but was dissuaded by her Austrian advisers. She returned to Vienna, divided between wishing to support her husband who was the father of her child, and doing what the Austrians wanted. Napoleon, exiled to Elba, hoped for a visit from her, but by the summer of 1814, she had fallen in love with Adam Von Neipperg, a middle aged married soldier. It was hoped that he would distract MarieLouise from wanting to visit her husband. She was soon involved in an affair with Neipperg and asked for an amicable separation from Napoleon. In 1816, she went to Parma, to live in her Duchy there. Neipperg accompanied her, but she had to leave her son behind, and he was cut out from the succession to the Duchy.
Neipperg was the virtual ruler of Parma, as Marie Louise left public affairs to him. She was sorry to leave her son but seems to have accepted it. Soon she had children by Neipperg whose wife had died and was preoccupied with them. However she had to wait till Napoleon’s death in 1821 to be able to marry her lover, morganatically. She had 3 children with him, a daughter who died young, and another daughter and son who survived her. She was preoccupied with private life and left her husband to run the Duchy, under instructions from the Austrian chief minister. The King of Rome, now known by the German name of Franz and titled the Duke of Reichstatdt grew up at the Austrian court and grew alienated from his mother. He felt that she had abandoned him and his father…and he spoke well of Josephine believing that she would have been a more loyal wife. Marie Louise has been criticised by Bonapartists for her leaving Napoleon and letting her son by him grow up in Austria... and the way she rapidly fell in love with a married man and became his mistress.However, she had not wished to marry Napoleon, and had tried to be loyal to him, up to a point... But while she had been fond of him, once he was banished from Europe, she regarded their relationship as at an end…It had been a political alliance... rather than any kind of love match. Neipperg died and she was devastated. She was grieved at the death of her eldest son, who died young of TB. In the early 1830s, another Austrian courtier was sent to Parma, Charles-René de Bombelles, and within 6 months, Louise married him morganatically. He proved a loyal husband and remained close to
her until her death in 1847, when she died of pleurisy. She was later buried in Austria. Her children married into the Austrian nobility….Napoleon had been hurt by her indifference and even more so by the separation from his son and the fact that the boy was going to be brought up as an Austrian prince. He did however speak kindly of his second wife and said that he had respected her much more than he did Josephine. Josephine had been unfaithful and insanely extravagant and their marriage had had its storms in the earlier days… whereas Marie Louise had been a loyal wife while they were together and had always been careful with money. However Josephine had grown to genuinely love him, though at the beginning of her marriage, she had not cared deeply for him. After his downfall, she had tried to use her position and her personal charm and magnetism to help him, as well as to help her son and daughter and their children. She had remained loyal to Napoleon in spite of receiving the Russian Tsar… who had protected Hortense. Marie Louise had grown fond of her husband and learned to get on with him, and had been grateful for his kindness.However it had been a political marriage and she is probably not to be blamed for not wanting to remain married to him in any real sense, when he was no longer Emperor…but she does come across as a rather shallow woman, who was very much led by others.
Sunday, 21 October 2018
Saturday, 20 October 2018
Empress Marie Louise (Part I)
Marie Louise of Austria was the second wife of Napoleon I. She was never as popular or as well-known as his first wife Josephine. It is hard to get a clear idea of her character…Josephine was well known for being extremely extravagant... we’d now call her a shopaholic. She was terrible with
money and always in debt. Marie Louise was much more sensible, in many ways, but never loved by the French public, as Josephine was. She was born Maria Ludovica and was the daughter of Francis II, the last Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. Born in 1791, Marie Ludovica came from a very
fertile family. Her father married 3 times and had an enormous family. Her mother had borne 12.
Friday, 12 October 2018
Winifred Gerin and John Locke
Winifred and John Locke settled in Haworth, in a house they called Gimmerton....and they both worked very hard, though they enjoyed the natural beauty of Haworth and took long walks
around the countryside. They also joined the Bronte Society which was based there, and got involved in various controversies about how the Parsonage Museum was being run. Winifred was a kindly and generous woman but she had a sharp tongue and was opinionated! She worked on her biographies and branched out later into other biographies of women writers or literary figures.
She got some criticism from more rigorous historians, that she was inclined to favour her own ideas and to allow her emotions to govern what she said in her writings. She also used literary evidence from the Bronte novels to colour the information in her biographies.This was why she had not liked studying history at University, as a girl... because she tended to prefer the romantic stories and legends, rather than get involved in the heavier more rigorous research that was necessary to
study history. However, her books did spark off more critical and popular interest in the Brontes and while they are somewhat romanticised, they are not lightweight. She popularised the story that Branwell Bronte had been to London to apply for a place at Art School, but had not made the application.. that he had instead spent his time and money drinking, because he lost his nerve.But this is taken from a story he wrote, rather than from any hard evidence. It is now believed by most Bronte experts that he never did make the trip to London but had just written to the Art school to make enquiries. However, her information was based on what was known or believed at the
time…
Her husband was absorbed in his work on the biography of Patrick Bronte. He had not had much experience of writing, so it was hard work for him.. but he and Winifred were both passionate about their subject. They loved Yorkshire and enjoyed living there. But about 10 years after their marriage, John confessed to Winifred that he had fallen in love with another woman, and she and he quietly separated. There was a large age difference between them and Winifred had been John’s first love.. but it faded. There was no serious estrangement, and Winifred did not publicise the
separation. They announced that he was remaining in Yorkshire to work and she moved back to London to live with her sister Nell, who had been a close friend in her youth.
Winifred Gerin, working life
Winifred and Eugene were unhappy with being trapped in France, but they finally managed to get away and go back to England. Eugene was cut off from his family in Belgium. He and Winifred went to work for one of the secret service departments; he was preparing supportive pro Allied propaganda to broadcast to Belgium, using his local knowledge and linguistic skills. Winifred got a job as an assistant to one of the other staff, and both were very dedicated to their war work.
But in the later stages of the War, Eugene, who had been working very hard, died suddenly, he was quite a young man. Winifred was desperately saddened. He had been the great love of her life.< However, she was a strong woman and did her best to find something replace her dedication to Eugene. She found it in her work. She had been writing before and during her marriage, but had not found her medium as yet. When the war was over, she visited Belgium and kept in touch with Eugene’s family, especially her godson… but she became absorbed in writing plays. he wrote a play based on the life of Jane Austen, and also one (called Juniper Hall) on Fanny Burney. She may have felt some identification with Fanny, she was a writer, and had married a foreigner. Fanny Burney had married a French refugee, General D’Arblay.. and had spent many years as a widow. Winifred has some of the plays produced, though there was criticism that they were a bit too wordy… In the post War years, she was occupied with her work, but in the early 50s, she took a holiday with her sister, in Yorkshire. She had always loved the Brontes and felt that one needed to see Haworth, to understand them.. the moors and the natural beauty and isolation in which they lived. During the trip, she met John Locke, a young man with literary ambitions who was about 20 years her junior. She was in her early 50s and he was in his thirties. John was a shy man who wanted to write, but had been occupied with the War and with a routine job. Meeting Winifred, he fell in love and they decided that their mutual passion for the Brontes and Yorkshire would be the basis for their marriage. They bought a house in Haworth and both decided to settle into a writing project. John collaborated with the local clergyman on a biography of Patrick Bronte.. who had been the curate at Haworth.. Winifred started to write a biography of Anne Bronte. She also wrote an in depth biography of Charlotte, and a play about Charlotte’s love for her “master”, the Belgian teacher, M Heger.
But in the later stages of the War, Eugene, who had been working very hard, died suddenly, he was quite a young man. Winifred was desperately saddened. He had been the great love of her life.< However, she was a strong woman and did her best to find something replace her dedication to Eugene. She found it in her work. She had been writing before and during her marriage, but had not found her medium as yet. When the war was over, she visited Belgium and kept in touch with Eugene’s family, especially her godson… but she became absorbed in writing plays. he wrote a play based on the life of Jane Austen, and also one (called Juniper Hall) on Fanny Burney. She may have felt some identification with Fanny, she was a writer, and had married a foreigner. Fanny Burney had married a French refugee, General D’Arblay.. and had spent many years as a widow. Winifred has some of the plays produced, though there was criticism that they were a bit too wordy… In the post War years, she was occupied with her work, but in the early 50s, she took a holiday with her sister, in Yorkshire. She had always loved the Brontes and felt that one needed to see Haworth, to understand them.. the moors and the natural beauty and isolation in which they lived. During the trip, she met John Locke, a young man with literary ambitions who was about 20 years her junior. She was in her early 50s and he was in his thirties. John was a shy man who wanted to write, but had been occupied with the War and with a routine job. Meeting Winifred, he fell in love and they decided that their mutual passion for the Brontes and Yorkshire would be the basis for their marriage. They bought a house in Haworth and both decided to settle into a writing project. John collaborated with the local clergyman on a biography of Patrick Bronte.. who had been the curate at Haworth.. Winifred started to write a biography of Anne Bronte. She also wrote an in depth biography of Charlotte, and a play about Charlotte’s love for her “master”, the Belgian teacher, M Heger.
Saturday, 6 October 2018
Mickey Gilley, cousin to Jerry Lee
Mickey Gilley is a country singer, and the cousin of both Jerry Lee Lewis and the evangelist Jimmy Swaggart. Born in Mississippi in 1936, Mickey, like his cousins loved music. Jerry Lee used to sneak into black clubs, as a kid, to hear what was then called “race music” i.e. African American styles of music like R&B. He played piano, with a wild style, and great technical ability. Mickey also learned to play piano from his cousin. When Jerry Lee began to have massive success, Mickey started his country music career in the later 50s He had some hits and opened a club in Pasadena Texas, where country music was played and there was a mechanical bull to give his customers something of the rodeo experience. He was doing well and over the 70s, began to sing crossover and pop country songs. One of his best known hits was “The Girls all get prettier at Closing Time”, a song he performs in Dukes of Hazzard…other hits included a cover of the Song “Stand by Me” and “A room full of Roses.”
In 1980, his club was featured in the Travolta film Urban Cowboy, where John Travolta played a young working man who works in an oil refinery by day and dreams of going back home to
the land. The film brought publicity to his club, and Mickey’s singing career continued successfully in the 1980s. However in the later 80s, his stream of hits dried up, and he had some
financial problems. His club in Pasadena had to close, but he later opened a theater in Branson Missouri. In 2009, he suffered an accident in moving furniture which left him paralysed for a time, but with determination and physical therapy, he recovered, though he wasn’t able to play piano. He is still working, and has been married twice, having 4 children. Friday, 5 October 2018
Ernest Tubbs 1914-84 and Lucky Tubbs
Ernest Tubbs was born in Texas in 1914. Hs father was the manager of a cotton farm and the family moved around. His parents divorced when he was about 12. He stayed with his very religious Mother who loved music. He worked on farms. As a teenager he was influenced by Jimmie Rodgers and began to sing. In the late 1930s, he took several jobs, such as driving trucks, to support himself while trying to get a start in the singing business. He had a tonsillectomy in 1939 that affected his singing style – he lost the ability to yodel. He turned to song writing. His voice was twangy and often flat, and sounded “western” –the sound of a cowboy out on the trail…
However he had excellent musicians in his band, the Texas Troubadours and he joked about his singing style. In the 1940s he returned to singing and then had a hit with the song “Walking the
Floor over you”… He had his own radio show and sang at the Opry… and had a very loyal following.
He also had the Ernest Tubbs record shop, on the Broadway in Nashville which is still there… He married twice and had children and one of his sons, Justin became a successful song writer as well.
Ernest’s great nephew, Lucky Tubbs is a successful country singer and has worked with Hank Williams III... he has a good voice, also. He has a ‘twangy” western sounding voice and he has performed some of his great uncle’s hits.
In later years, Ernest’s hits dried up but he continued to perform at the Opry. He went on touring, but his health was giving problems. He had developed emphysema in the 1960s and by the 70’s he had to carry oxygen around with him. Like Jimmy Rodgers, he had to rest between shows… He died in 1984 and is buried in Nashville….
Rough Music a Novella by Nadine Sutton
A “band” story set in the US, in the late 1970s. This isn’t a romantic love story and does not have a happy ending. It’s more of a work story, about music and the life of an up and coming band. I’ve based it on what I’ve read about country singers in the days when touring was a constant part of their lives. It was hard work and took its toll on the marriages of many singers. But I love the music of the 1960s and 70’s. I love country pop, people like Glen Campbell... and I also love the Williamses… especially Hank Junior. I enjoy Lynrd Skynrd. So my story is all about that sort of life…
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rough-Music-Nadine-Sutton-ebook/dp/B01AEQS0G0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452977780&sr=8-1&keywords=nadine+sutton
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rough-Music-Nadine-Sutton-ebook/dp/B01AEQS0G0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452977780&sr=8-1&keywords=nadine+sutton
Wednesday, 3 October 2018
Somerville and Ross Part i
Edith Somerville was an Anglo Irish writer, who wrote several novels and stories, in collaboration with her cousin and good friend,Violet Martin…Even after Violet’s death, Edith continued to write using her partner’s name because she believed that her cousin was still influencing her
writing. She believed in spiritualism and tried to contact her by séances. They wrote as “Somerville and Ross”. Edith was born in 1858, in Corfu, where her father, a member of the Anglo Irish gentry was stationed on military service. They moved back to Cork, in Ireland, and settled there, in one of the “big Houses.” She was highly intelligent and her family allowed her to have a good education and to go abroad to study art.
She loved the country and riding and outdoor life. While by today’s standards she was “snobbish”, she did love the Irish people and felt that she understood them… She had a warm relationship with her work people and the tenants... She was very interested in the way that the Irish spoke English - and the amusing expressions and ability to talk well that most Irish people possessed.
She met Violet Martin, whom she had not known before, in 1886... and they became close friends. Violet was more conservative than her cousin, and was a strong Unionist, whereas Edith was increasingly sympathetic to the Irish Nationalist cause. Both women were suffragists and believed that women should have the vote and that they were capable of leading independent lives.
Both were keen horsewomen and loved hunting. In later life Edith managed the family property as well as writing and being involved in women’s politics.
Violet’s family came from Galway, from a landed estate, but they lost it due to various financial problems. The Great Famine bankrupted many landlords and the Martins were caring landlords
and tried to help their tenants, so they found that their financial problems had resulted in the loss of the estate. They moved to Dublin. Living in genteel poverty in Dublin gave her a certain knowledge and breadth of experience which helped her with her writing. Francie, one of the leading characters in their best novel, the Real Charlotte, comes from an impoverished but Protestant background... who lived in genteel poverty in Dublin and nearby Bray…Violet was probably the better writer of the two, and she could not have created Francie, and given a picture of middle class not so well off Protestants, without her having lived in Dublin.
One of their most popular works was the set of short stories called Experiences of an Irish RM. They are comic stories, set in the countryside, about an English Resident Magistrate who takes up a post in Ireland, and gets married. He mingles with the upper classes and also with the Catholic poor and middle class. His landlord is Mr Florence (Flurry) Knox, a Protestant who has a small estate and who is "always ready to sell a horse". Flurry gets into scrapes, loves hunting and shooting and breeding hounds, and has a running battle with his elderly Grandmother Old Mrs Knox, who owns a bigger estate. Major Yeates the RM, ends up in embarrassing and ridiculous situations, usually owing to Flurry or his Irish servants trying to put one over on him.
Beds and Blue Jeans Story on Amazon
Beds and Blue Jeans –is a fun story.. a realistic
romance about a contemporary couple in America, a young man and woman who find they have to get to know each
other, after they have got together and produced a baby. Sam and Pattie come to learn that love is about learning
to compromise, working out the best way to do things and growing to love each
other.
http://www.amazon.com/Beds-Blue-Jeans-everyday-mayhem-ebook/dp/B01370SMFO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1443265304&sr=8-2&keywords=nadine+sutton
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