Cynthia Asquith and the Spring House

Lady Cynthia Asquith (born Cynthia Mary Evelyn Charteris) was the daughter of the Earl of Wemyss, a Tory peer. Her mother was also an upper class lady belonging to a society set, called the "Souls" who were interested in intellectual and aristic matters. She married Herbert Asquith, son of the Liberal Prime Minister, a few years before World War One. He was a barrister, but he wanted to be a poet, and the young couple did not have much money. Cynthia was interested in literature and the arts, though she also enjoyed a typical upper class social life. When she realised that she and Herbert (Beb) were going to be short of money, she decided that she had to be the bread winner, although she was not brought up to work. So she took to writing and also got a job as a part time secretary to JM Barrie. She wrote biographies of the Royal Family, memoirs about the upper class life before the War, a biography of Sonia Tolstoy, and some fiction. She also wrote ghost stories. However, now she is most famous for her Diaries of life in England during World War One, from 1915 to 1918, which were published in the 1960s. I've read the Diaries many times, and loved them. They give a picture of political and upper class London. Cynthia was friends with many writers and arists and she also knew famous soldiers and politicians. Many years later, in the 1930's, she wrote a novel, "The Spring House". I hope to blog about it soon. Her heroine is called Miranda, and the novel is based loosely on her own life during the War. During that time, Cynthia was living what she called a "cuckoo" life, renting out her house and living with relatives and friends. Her husband was away at War, and she by then had 2 small children. The book starts with Miranda staying with her mother, together with her small son Patrick. Her husband is abroad and advises her to stay in England because of fears of submarine attacks. Miranda feels a bit useless and wants to do some war work but she is not sure what she can do. She is accustomed to a leisurely social type of life... Her 2 brothers have joined up and she misses them. Miranda starts to work as a nurse and enjoys it. She gets on well with the soldiers, and enjoys the feeling that she is doing something useful. She does however miss her husband yet she finds some consolation in flirtations with some of her male friends. One of them is a pacifist writer, (based on DH Lawrence). More will follow!