You are a thousand times too kind in sending Ms. WebbElizabeth Eliza Webb | Born: 1797-03-03 in Wokingham, Berkshire, England. Died: 1851-03-24 in Sandgate, Kent, England.
Elizabeth Webb, called Eliza, was a neighbor and friend of Mary Russell Mitford. Eliza Webb was the youngest daughter of James Webb and Jane Elizabeth Ogbourn. She was baptized privately on March 3, 1797, and publicly on June 8, 1797 in Wokingham, Berkshire. She is the sister of Mary Elizabeth and Jane Eleanor Webb. In 1837 she married Henry Walters, Esq., in Wokingham, Berkshire. In Needham’s papers, he notes from the Berkshire Directorythat she lived on Broad street, presumably in Wokingham. Source: See Needham’s letter to Roberts on November 27, 1953 . —scw, lmw another puppy—I had not heard of it till I got your letter, not having been at WokinghamWokingham, Berkshire, England | Wokingham | Berkshire | England | 51.410457 -0.8338610000000699 A market town in south east England in Berkshire, near Reading. The Mitfords sometimes travelled to Wokingham on their way to London, or to visit the home of their friends, the Webbs.—lmw, err myself since I met my FatherGeorge Mitford, Esq., or: George Midford | Born: . Died: .
Father of Mary Rusell Mitford, George Mitford was the son of Francis Midford, surgeon, and Jane Graham. The family name is sometimes recorded as Midford. Immediate family called him by nicknames including Drum, Tod, and Dodo. He was a member of a minor branch of the Mitfords of Mitford Castle in Northumberland. Although later sources would suggest that he was a graduate of the University of Edinburgh medical school, there is no evidence that he obtained a medical degree and he did not generally refer to himself as Dr. Mitford, preferring to style himself Esq.. In 1784, he is listed in a Hampshire directory as surgeon (medicine) of Alresford. His father and grandfather worked as apothecary-surgeons and it seems likely that he served a medical apprenticeship with family members.
He married Mary Russell on October 17, 1785 at New Alresford, Hampshire. On the marriage allegation papers, both gave their addresses as Old Alresford; they later came to live at Broad Street in New Alresford. Their only child to live to adulthood, Mary Russell Mitford, was born two years later on December 16, 1787 at New Alresford, Hampshire. He assisted Mitford's literary career by representing her interests in London and elsewhere with theater owners and publishers. He was active in Whig politics and later served as a local magistrate. He coursed greyhounds with his friend James Webb.
—lmw there on his return from LondonLondon, England | London | England | 51.5073509 -0.12775829999998223 Capital city of England and the United Kingdom; one the oldest cities in Western Europe. Major seaport and global trading center at the mouth of the Thames. From 1831 to 1925, the largest city in the world.—lmw, & having unluckily been out when Miss Webb called on me last week. But I am sure our good friend will feel your kindness as gratefully as we do. The poor little puppy was certainly dead—PapaGeorge Mitford, Esq., or: George Midford | Born: . Died: .
Father of Mary Rusell Mitford, George Mitford was the son of Francis Midford, surgeon, and Jane Graham. The family name is sometimes recorded as Midford. Immediate family called him by nicknames including Drum, Tod, and Dodo. He was a member of a minor branch of the Mitfords of Mitford Castle in Northumberland. Although later sources would suggest that he was a graduate of the University of Edinburgh medical school, there is no evidence that he obtained a medical degree and he did not generally refer to himself as Dr. Mitford, preferring to style himself Esq.. In 1784, he is listed in a Hampshire directory as surgeon (medicine) of Alresford. His father and grandfather worked as apothecary-surgeons and it seems likely that he served a medical apprenticeship with family members.
He married Mary Russell on October 17, 1785 at New Alresford, Hampshire. On the marriage allegation papers, both gave their addresses as Old Alresford; they later came to live at Broad Street in New Alresford. Their only child to live to adulthood, Mary Russell Mitford, was born two years later on December 16, 1787 at New Alresford, Hampshire. He assisted Mitford's literary career by representing her interests in London and elsewhere with theater owners and publishers. He was active in Whig politics and later served as a local magistrate. He coursed greyhounds with his friend James Webb.
—lmw saw it quite stiff in the bottom of the basket having waited himself the coming in of the coach. It often happens—they are very delicate & bear travelling worse than any thing. I had half a mind not to tell you, for I was sure you would be sorry—& I am afraid I wrote with great [impatience] for I wrote in such a hurry & the friend who was to take the [hose] standing by me [hat] in hand & looking page 2
as if he thought every instant an hour. Pray forgive me if I seemed abrupt or ungrateful—you must know I could not mean it. Our little lady is a perfect beauty—she is gone out to keep at a farmhouse—Do not forget to pick out a pretty name for her—She must be of your naming—& shall always be yours whenever you want her I have no doubt of her being capital.—My dear Mr. HaydonBenjamin Robert Haydon | Born: 1786-01-26 in Plymouth, England. Died: 1846-06-22 in London.
Benjamin Robert Haydon was a painter educated at the Royal Academy, who was famous for contemporary, historical, classical, biblical, and mythological scenes, though tormented by financial difficulties and incarceration. He painted William Wordsworth's portrait in 1842 and painted a cameo of Keats in his epic canvas Christ's Entry into Jerusalem(1814-20). MRM was introduced to him at his London studio in the spring of 1817, and Sir William Elford was a mutual friend, and Haydon’s own acquaintances included several prominent British Romantic literary figures. He completed The Raising of Lazarus in 1823 . He wrote a diary and an autobiography, both of which were published only posthumously, and he committed suicide in 1846. George Paston's Little Memoirs of the Nineteenth Century (1893) contends that Mitford was asked to edit Haydon's memoir, but declined.—rnes, ebb your letter went to my very heart—It does one harm to think of those cold proud selfish Patrons—as they call themselves—It lessens one's faith in human nature. But the Picture will tell—it must—The same heartless vanity which prevents their co-operating in your liberal  &delicate & unostentatious plan, will induce one of them to possess himself of their glorious work of art—I am persuaded of this. But it is heart-breaking to think that you in the meantime should be exposed to these petty cares, & harassed by doubt & vexation—you who ought to be lifted above all wordly care & to live amongst the delightful page 3
creations of your own genious. The only consolation is your elastic & buoyant spirit, which will bear you through all these trials to the prosperity you so well deserve. Fame you have already—a better & a purer fame than any living man—& competence will follow—I am sure of it—Riches you do not want—with such reputation they are not wanted. In the meantime, my dear SirBenjamin Robert Haydon | Born: 1786-01-26 in Plymouth, England. Died: 1846-06-22 in London.
Benjamin Robert Haydon was a painter educated at the Royal Academy, who was famous for contemporary, historical, classical, biblical, and mythological scenes, though tormented by financial difficulties and incarceration. He painted William Wordsworth's portrait in 1842 and painted a cameo of Keats in his epic canvas Christ's Entry into Jerusalem(1814-20). MRM was introduced to him at his London studio in the spring of 1817, and Sir William Elford was a mutual friend, and Haydon’s own acquaintances included several prominent British Romantic literary figures. He completed The Raising of Lazarus in 1823 . He wrote a diary and an autobiography, both of which were published only posthumously, and he committed suicide in 1846. George Paston's Little Memoirs of the Nineteenth Century (1893) contends that Mitford was asked to edit Haydon's memoir, but declined.—rnes, ebb, be careful of your invaluable health—& your eyes, your poor eyes as you call them—to what complaint are they liable? Who that looked at them could fancy them subject to any!—Never apologiseapologize to me for talking of yourself. It is a compliment of the highest kind—It tells me that you confide in my sympathy. Be assured you may—except my own dear family & Dear Miss JamesElizabeth Mary James, or: Miss James | Born: 1775 in Bath, Somerset, England. Died: 1861-11-25 in 3 Pembroke Villas, Richmond, Surrey, England.
Close friend and correspondent of Mary Russell Mitford. She was the eldest daughter of Thomas Webb and Susanna Haycock. Her father died in 1818 and her mother in 1835. After her parents’ deaths, she lived with her two younger sisters, Emily and Susan, in Green Park Buildings, Bath, Walcot, Somerset; High Street, Mortlake, Surrey; and 3 Pembroke Villas, Richmond, Surrey. According to Coles, referring to Mitford’s diary, letters were also addressed to her at Bellevue, Lower Road, Richmond (Coles 26). She was buried at St. Mary Magdalene, Richmond, Surrey. In the 1841 census, she is listed as living on independent means; in the 1851 census, as landholder; in the 1861 census, she as railway shareholder.—lmw there is no one whom I regard with such admiring & respectful interest or of whose kindness I am half so proud.

So you are not a Queen'sCaroline, Queen Consort of the United Kingdom Caroline Queen Consort of the United Kingdom Caroline of Brunswick Caroline Amelia Elizabeth of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Princess of Wales | Born: 1768-05-17 in Brunswick, Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Holy Roman Empire. Died: 1821-08-07 in Hammersmith, London, England.
The cousin and later the estranged wife of the Prince Regent (later George IV). Caroline was adopted as the mascot of the parliamentary reform movement around the time that the Regent attempted to divorce her on grounds of adultery in 1818, and his struggles with Parliament to divorce her and prevent her from becoming Queen are known as the Queen Caroline Affair. Mitford writes humorously in her letters of 1818 and 1819 of the political fodder made of the Affair by both Whigs and Tories.—lmw, ebb, rnes
Man! How glad I am to hear it! You have no notion of the height to which this Queen fever page 4
has risen here. I am shocked & disquieted at its terrible effect on conversation. Why should people talk of such a subject? Why should they contaminate their minds by looking for an instant at such trash to settle whether a woman, whom all the world allows to be immodest, be more or less bad? There are no degrees of [comparison in her] chastity in my opinion—but all the ladies here (always excepting my own dear MotherMary Russell Mitford, or: Mrs. Mitford | Born: 1750 in Ashe, Hampshire, England. Died: 1830-01-02 in Three Mile Cross, parish of Shinfield, Berkshire, England.
Mary Russell was the youngest child of the Rev. Dr. Richard Russell and his second wife, Mary Dicker; she was born about 1750 in Ashe, Hampshire. (Her birth date is as yet unverified; period sources indicate that she was ten years older than her husband George, born in 1760.) Through the Russells, she was a distant relation of the Dukes of Bedford (sixth creation, 1694). She had two siblings, Charles William and Frances; both predeceased her and their parents, which resulted in Mary Russell inheriting her family’s entire estate upon her mother’s death in 1785. Her father’s rectory in Ashe was only a short distance from Steventon, and so she was acquainted with the young Jane Austen. She married George Mitford or Midford on October 17, 1785 at New Alresford, Hampshire. On the marriage allegation papers, both gave their addresses as Old Alresford. Their only daughter, Mary Russell Mitford, was born two years later on December 16, 1787 at New Alresford, Hampshire. Mary Russell died on January 2, 1830 at Three Mile Cross in the parish of Shinfield, Berkshire. Her obituary in the 1830 New Monthly Magazine gives New Year’s day as the date of her death.—ajc, lmw
) call me prudish old maidish I [much amiable] & read & talk on. Besides being jealous of the hitherto unstained purity of the English female character, I have another cause of grievance in the abominable [role] which my friends the Reformers have made of this bad woman. To rally the good cause by such an Ally! As to the ReadingReading, Berkshire, England | Reading | Berkshire | England | 51.4542645 -0.9781302999999753 County town in Berkshire, in the Thames valley at the confluence of the Thames and the River Kennet. The town developed as a river port and in Mitford’s time served as a staging point on the Bath Road and was developing into a center of manufacturing. Mitford lived here with her parents from 1791 to 1795, on Coley Avenue in the parish of St. Mary’s and attended the Abbey School. The family returned to Reading from 1797 to about 1804, after which they relocated to Bertram House. They frequently visited Reading thereafter from their homes at nearby Bertram House, Three Mile Cross and Swallowfield. Mitford later used scenes from Reading as the basis for Belford Regis; or Sketches of a Country Town.—lmw address, am not at all astonished—ReadingReading, Berkshire, England | Reading | Berkshire | England | 51.4542645 -0.9781302999999753 County town in Berkshire, in the Thames valley at the confluence of the Thames and the River Kennet. The town developed as a river port and in Mitford’s time served as a staging point on the Bath Road and was developing into a center of manufacturing. Mitford lived here with her parents from 1791 to 1795, on Coley Avenue in the parish of St. Mary’s and attended the Abbey School. The family returned to Reading from 1797 to about 1804, after which they relocated to Bertram House. They frequently visited Reading thereafter from their homes at nearby Bertram House, Three Mile Cross and Swallowfield. Mitford later used scenes from Reading as the basis for Belford Regis; or Sketches of a Country Town.—lmw is in a perpetual state of effervescence—a bottle of ginger beer in hot weather—bouncing & frothy & flying in every body's face—but that Sir Francis BurdettFrancis Burdett, Sir, 5th Baronet of Bramcote | Born: 1770-01-25 in Foremarke Hall, Derbyshire, England. Died: 1844-01-23 in St. James's Place, London, England.
Famous and frequently-caricatured radical and reformist politician, and member of Parliament. Gave many public speeches, protested abuse of prisoners and flogging of soldiers. His harsh critique of the House of Commons for excluding reporters from their debates led to the Commons voting to imprison Burdett in the Tower of London in 1810, where he was committed until June after clashes between crowds of Burdett's supporters and the army in London. The incident increased his popularity. Burdett introduced a parliamentary reform bill in 1818, condemned the Peterloo Massacre in 1820, and remained politically active into the 1830s. Source: ODNB.—ebb


& Mr. HobhouseJohn Cam Hobhouse, or: 1st Baron Broughton | Born: 1786-06-27 in Redland, England. Died: 1869-06-03 in Berkeley Square, London, England.
A friend and traveling companion of Lord Byron who contributed notes to the fourth canto of Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage , John Cam Hobhouse was elected to the House of Commons in 1820 as a member of the Whig party. In 1851, he became the First Baron Broughton.—err, lmw
should lend themselves to such mischievous wickedness is really astounding.—Yes page 5
ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare | Born: 1564-04 in Stratford upon Avon, Warwickshire, England. Died: 1616-04-23 in Stratford upon Avon, Warwickshire, England.
Early modern era actor, theater manager, poet, and playwright. Part owner of playing company The Lord Chamberlain's men and author or co-author of thirty-eight plays. Considered the greatest English dramatist and Britain's national poet. Mitford wrote in the Introduction to her Dramatic Works: I had grown up—it is the privilege of English people to grow up—in the worship of Shakespeare, and many of his favourite scenes I literally knew by heart. —lmw
knew the Mob most thoroughly—Is it not the most astonishing of all his astonishing qualities that with so deep an insight into the weakness & the wickedness of human nature he should yet have regarded it with so intense & indulgent a love? There is some soul of goodness in things evil[1] Here, Mitford quotes a line from King Henry's opening monologue in Act IV, scene i of Shakespeare's Henry V.—errmight be his motto.

I am engaged in a job just now compared to which the water-pitcherings of the Danaides
In Greek mythology, the fifty daughters of Danaus. They are to condemned to spend eternity carrying water in leaky vessel or sieve, and so become proverbial for an impossible task that cannot be completed.—lmw were hopeful. I am persuading PapaGeorge Mitford, Esq., or: George Midford | Born: . Died: .
Father of Mary Rusell Mitford, George Mitford was the son of Francis Midford, surgeon, and Jane Graham. The family name is sometimes recorded as Midford. Immediate family called him by nicknames including Drum, Tod, and Dodo. He was a member of a minor branch of the Mitfords of Mitford Castle in Northumberland. Although later sources would suggest that he was a graduate of the University of Edinburgh medical school, there is no evidence that he obtained a medical degree and he did not generally refer to himself as Dr. Mitford, preferring to style himself Esq.. In 1784, he is listed in a Hampshire directory as surgeon (medicine) of Alresford. His father and grandfather worked as apothecary-surgeons and it seems likely that he served a medical apprenticeship with family members.
He married Mary Russell on October 17, 1785 at New Alresford, Hampshire. On the marriage allegation papers, both gave their addresses as Old Alresford; they later came to live at Broad Street in New Alresford. Their only child to live to adulthood, Mary Russell Mitford, was born two years later on December 16, 1787 at New Alresford, Hampshire. He assisted Mitford's literary career by representing her interests in London and elsewhere with theater owners and publishers. He was active in Whig politics and later served as a local magistrate. He coursed greyhounds with his friend James Webb.
—lmw to be good & take care of himself & keep quiet & go to the sea & get well. I might as well talk to the wind. He has an unpleasant infection on his legs—I think erysipelas [2] Erysipelas is a bacterial infection. Symptoms include fever and raised red patches on the skin.—errthough he will not allow it—for which all our medical friends advise the warm sea bath—& he could go to SouthhamptonSouthhampton, Hampshire, England | Southampton | Hampshire | England | 50.90970040000001 -1.404350900000054 Southampton is a major port city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, near the New Forest.—lmw in a day—leave MamaMary Russell Mitford, or: Mrs. Mitford | Born: 1750 in Ashe, Hampshire, England. Died: 1830-01-02 in Three Mile Cross, parish of Shinfield, Berkshire, England.
Mary Russell was the youngest child of the Rev. Dr. Richard Russell and his second wife, Mary Dicker; she was born about 1750 in Ashe, Hampshire. (Her birth date is as yet unverified; period sources indicate that she was ten years older than her husband George, born in 1760.) Through the Russells, she was a distant relation of the Dukes of Bedford (sixth creation, 1694). She had two siblings, Charles William and Frances; both predeceased her and their parents, which resulted in Mary Russell inheriting her family’s entire estate upon her mother’s death in 1785. Her father’s rectory in Ashe was only a short distance from Steventon, and so she was acquainted with the young Jane Austen. She married George Mitford or Midford on October 17, 1785 at New Alresford, Hampshire. On the marriage allegation papers, both gave their addresses as Old Alresford. Their only daughter, Mary Russell Mitford, was born two years later on December 16, 1787 at New Alresford, Hampshire. Mary Russell died on January 2, 1830 at Three Mile Cross in the parish of Shinfield, Berkshire. Her obituary in the 1830 New Monthly Magazine gives New Year’s day as the date of her death.—ajc, lmw
at WinchesterWinchester, Hampshire, England | Winchester | Hampshire | England | 51.059771 -1.3101420000000417 City and county town of Hampshire. Site of Winchester Cathedral and Winchester College, one of the oldest public grammar schools. Jane Austen died here and is buried in the Cathedral. John Keats wrote several of his best-known poems while on a visit to the city.—lmw where she has an engagement, & I would stay & keep house here & he might come back to me in a fortnight fresh & well—& he will not go. Is not this very naughty? How he stays—walking ten miles a day & [getting to every house]. I wonder what he would say if I were to behave so!—-He desires his best & kindest remembrances to you nevertheless—& so does MamaMary Russell Mitford, or: Mrs. Mitford | Born: 1750 in Ashe, Hampshire, England. Died: 1830-01-02 in Three Mile Cross, parish of Shinfield, Berkshire, England.
Mary Russell was the youngest child of the Rev. Dr. Richard Russell and his second wife, Mary Dicker; she was born about 1750 in Ashe, Hampshire. (Her birth date is as yet unverified; period sources indicate that she was ten years older than her husband George, born in 1760.) Through the Russells, she was a distant relation of the Dukes of Bedford (sixth creation, 1694). She had two siblings, Charles William and Frances; both predeceased her and their parents, which resulted in Mary Russell inheriting her family’s entire estate upon her mother’s death in 1785. Her father’s rectory in Ashe was only a short distance from Steventon, and so she was acquainted with the young Jane Austen. She married George Mitford or Midford on October 17, 1785 at New Alresford, Hampshire. On the marriage allegation papers, both gave their addresses as Old Alresford. Their only daughter, Mary Russell Mitford, was born two years later on December 16, 1787 at New Alresford, Hampshire. Mary Russell died on January 2, 1830 at Three Mile Cross in the parish of Shinfield, Berkshire. Her obituary in the 1830 New Monthly Magazine gives New Year’s day as the date of her death.—ajc, lmw
—I am so glad that the [coursing] season approaches—so are they.

God bless you, my dear Mr. HaydonBenjamin Robert Haydon | Born: 1786-01-26 in Plymouth, England. Died: 1846-06-22 in London.
Benjamin Robert Haydon was a painter educated at the Royal Academy, who was famous for contemporary, historical, classical, biblical, and mythological scenes, though tormented by financial difficulties and incarceration. He painted William Wordsworth's portrait in 1842 and painted a cameo of Keats in his epic canvas Christ's Entry into Jerusalem(1814-20). MRM was introduced to him at his London studio in the spring of 1817, and Sir William Elford was a mutual friend, and Haydon’s own acquaintances included several prominent British Romantic literary figures. He completed The Raising of Lazarus in 1823 . He wrote a diary and an autobiography, both of which were published only posthumously, and he committed suicide in 1846. George Paston's Little Memoirs of the Nineteenth Century (1893) contends that Mitford was asked to edit Haydon's memoir, but declined.—rnes, ebb—

How is Mr. KeatsJohn Keats | Born: 1795-10-31 in London, England. Died: 1821-02-23 in Rome, Papal States.
Romantic-era poet, known for his Odes. Trained in the field of medicine, he worked as a dresser (surgeon's assistant) at Guy's Hospital, London and received his apothecary's license while studying to become a member of the Royal College of Surgeons in London. Friend of Leigh Hunt, Charles Lamb, and Benjamin Haydon, as well as publishers Taylor and Hessey and lived near them in Hampstead, where he became part of a circle of Hampstead writers and artists known to Mitford. In 1821, he traveled to Rome to preserve his health, but died there at the age of twenty-five.—lmw, rnes
? Is he gone to LisbonLisbon, Portugal | Lisbon | Portugal | 38.7222524 -9.139336599999979 The capital city of Portugal, located on the western Iberian peninsula; one of the oldest cities in the world.—err, lmw yet? I have not been able to procure hisJohn Keats | Born: 1795-10-31 in London, England. Died: 1821-02-23 in Rome, Papal States.
Romantic-era poet, known for his Odes. Trained in the field of medicine, he worked as a dresser (surgeon's assistant) at Guy's Hospital, London and received his apothecary's license while studying to become a member of the Royal College of Surgeons in London. Friend of Leigh Hunt, Charles Lamb, and Benjamin Haydon, as well as publishers Taylor and Hessey and lived near them in Hampstead, where he became part of a circle of Hampstead writers and artists known to Mitford. In 1821, he traveled to Rome to preserve his health, but died there at the age of twenty-five.—lmw, rnes
Poems. Perhaps when you come you will have the goodness to bring your copy with you.—Goodbye once more.