Your last kind letter, my dear FriendWilliam Elford, Sir, baronet, Recorder for Plymouth, Recorder for Totnes, Member of Parliament | Born: 1749-08 in Kingsbridge, Devon, England. Died: 1837-11-30 in Totnes, Devon, England.
According to L’Estrange, Sir William was first a friend of Mitford’s father, and Mitford met him for the first time in the spring of 1810 when he was a widower nearing the age of 64. They carried on a lively correspondence until his death in 1837.
Elford worked as a banker at Plymouth Bank (Elford, Tingcombe and Purchase) in Plymouth, Devon, from its founding in 1782. He was elected a member of Parliament for Plymouth as a supporter of the government and Tory William Pitt, and served from 1796 to 1806. After his election defeat in Plymouth in 1806, he was elected member of Parliament for Rye and served from July 1807 until his resignation in July 1808. For his service in Parliament as a supporter of Pitt, he was made a baronet in 1800. After his son Jonathan came of age, he tried to secure a stable government post for him but never succeeded. Mayor of Plymouth in 1796 and Recorder for Plymouth from 1797 to 1833, he was also Recorder for Totnes from 1832 to 1834. Sir William served as an officer in the South Devon militia from 1788, eventually attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel; the unit saw active service in Ireland during the Peninsular Wars. Sir William was a talented amateur painter in oils and watercolors who exhibited at the Royal Society from 1774 to 1837; he exhibited still lifes and portraits but preferred landscapes. He was elected to the Royal Society Academy in 1790. He was also a talented amateur naturalist and was elected to the Royal Linnaean Society in 1790; late in life, he published his findings on an alternative to yeast.
He married his first wife, Mary Davies of Plympton, on January 20, 1776 and they had one son, Jonathan, and two daughters, Grace Chard and Elizabeth. After the death of his first wife, he married Elizabeth Hall Walrond, widow of Lieutenant-Colonel Maine Swete Walrond of the Coldstream Guards. His only son Jonathan died in 1823, leaving him without an heir.
—ebb, lmw

, gave me more than usual pleasure—so you scold me, do you? Well that is greater proof of kindness than I ever expected to receive. Pray scold me again, for I like it. It makes me laugh & glow checkmark & blush, Like a tickled child—who says "[sir] don't" & yet puts herself in the way to be teased & pleased again. I would be exceedingly disappointed to be let alone. Scold on, my dear Friend. No fear but I shall give you causes. That expression was very affected—I wonder how I came by it—for I have often remarked the idiom in others as "the very quintessence of affectation." But I am delighted to find that you don't think me affected in general, for I can tell you that amongst two or three of my friends (not the most intimate however) I have that bad name—checkmarkvery unjustly in my opinion. I have gained it by over frankness checkmark—by letting out real opinions & little ends of character which because unlike their own seem impossible; [del: .][gap: 1 word.]^in short by letting truths which nobody believes. It's astonishing what creatures of habit & imitation young girls generally are—they are as alike as so many shillings & sixpences & have not the capacity to believe that any coin can be genuine which bears a different impress. So Miss WebbMary Elizabeth Webb | Born: 1796-04-15 in Wokingham, Berkshire, England. Died: .
Close friend and frequent correspondent of Mary Russell Mitford. Mary Webb was the daughter of James Webb. and Jane Elizabeth Ogbourn. Baptized on April 15, 1796 in Wokingham, Berkshire. Sister of Elizabeth (called Eliza) and Jane Eleanor Webb and niece of the elder Mary Webb, Aunt Mary. In Needham’s papers, he notes from the Berkshire Directorythat she lived on Broad street, presumably in Wokingham, Berkshire. She was the wife of Thomas Hawkins as she is referred to thus in probate papers of 1858 regarding the wills of her sister Eliza Webb Walter and her husband Henry Walter. Date of death unknown. Dates unknown.—scw, lmw & Miss ElizaElizabeth 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 talk scandal of their poor dear Friend & say she is affected. But however as you do not, nor 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, nor Mrs. DickinsonCatherine Dickinson Allingham | Born: 1787 in Middlesex, England. Died: 1861-09-02 in St. Marylebone, Middlesex, England.
Catherine Allingham was the daughter of Thomas Allingham. She married Charles Dickinson on August 2, 1807 at St. Giles, South Mimms, Middlesex. They lived in Swallowfield, where their daughter Frances was born, and where they were visited by the Mitford family. According to Mitford, Catherine Dickinson was fond of match-making among her friends and acquaintances. (See Mitford's February 8th, 1821 letter to Elford . Her husband Charles died in 1827, when her daughter was seven. Source: L'Estrange). —ajc, lmw, I shall console myself under my calamity. Mrs. DickinsonCatherine Dickinson Allingham | Born: 1787 in Middlesex, England. Died: 1861-09-02 in St. Marylebone, Middlesex, England.
Catherine Allingham was the daughter of Thomas Allingham. She married Charles Dickinson on August 2, 1807 at St. Giles, South Mimms, Middlesex. They lived in Swallowfield, where their daughter Frances was born, and where they were visited by the Mitford family. According to Mitford, Catherine Dickinson was fond of match-making among her friends and acquaintances. (See Mitford's February 8th, 1821 letter to Elford . Her husband Charles died in 1827, when her daughter was seven. Source: L'Estrange). —ajc, lmw was here yesterday. I gave her your message with which she was very much entertained—she begs her compliments in return & page 2
says she wishes both the mothers as much pleasure with their darlings as she has with hers. Her little FrancesFrances Vikris Geils Elliott | Born: 1820-03-07 in Farley Hill, near Swallowfield, Berkshire, England. Died: 1898-10-26 in Siena, Toscana, Italy.
Frances Dickinson was the only child of Charles Dickinson and Catherine Allingham. Her father Charles died when she was seven years old, and she inherited the considerable wealth that had descended to him from his extended family's West Indian ventures. She is buried in Rome. She was married to and divorced from her first husband, John Edward Geils (1813-1894) and later married the Rev. Gilbert Elliott (1800-1891).—ajc, lmw is a beautiful child. The most beautiful I think that I ever saw. Mrs. DickinsonCatherine Dickinson Allingham | Born: 1787 in Middlesex, England. Died: 1861-09-02 in St. Marylebone, Middlesex, England.
Catherine Allingham was the daughter of Thomas Allingham. She married Charles Dickinson on August 2, 1807 at St. Giles, South Mimms, Middlesex. They lived in Swallowfield, where their daughter Frances was born, and where they were visited by the Mitford family. According to Mitford, Catherine Dickinson was fond of match-making among her friends and acquaintances. (See Mitford's February 8th, 1821 letter to Elford . Her husband Charles died in 1827, when her daughter was seven. Source: L'Estrange). —ajc, lmw has had great success matchmaking lately—an amusement of which—deny it as she may—she is remarkably fond. We have a celebrated beauty hereabouts, a Miss BroughtonBetsy Broughton
Local beauty from Three Mile Cross, engaged to Mr. Hawley through Mrs. Dickinson's matchmaking in 1821.—lmw, rnes(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, no respecter of beauties compares her to Maritornes the Asturian wench of the InnMaritornes
Character in Don Quixote. Servant at the inn who makes an appointment with Don Quixote’s carrier for a tryst, but mistakes Don Quixote for the carrier, with comic results.—lmw in Don QuixoteEl ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha, The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha, Don Quixote. Don Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra .
Published in two volumes in 1605 and 1615 —lmw a fine gentlemanly dashing spirited girl—who with the usual fate of beauties attracted a good deal of admiration & very little love. On the other hand there was a soft ladylike fair delicate youth with [sidewhiskers] & a great talent for silence the son grandson & great grandson of three generations of Generals Hawley—who well born well bred & well estated seemed just made to lean upon such a fine manly supporter as Betsy BroughtonBetsy Broughton
Local beauty from Three Mile Cross, engaged to Mr. Hawley through Mrs. Dickinson's matchmaking in 1821.—lmw, rnes. So thought Mrs. DickinsonCatherine Dickinson Allingham | Born: 1787 in Middlesex, England. Died: 1861-09-02 in St. Marylebone, Middlesex, England.
Catherine Allingham was the daughter of Thomas Allingham. She married Charles Dickinson on August 2, 1807 at St. Giles, South Mimms, Middlesex. They lived in Swallowfield, where their daughter Frances was born, and where they were visited by the Mitford family. According to Mitford, Catherine Dickinson was fond of match-making among her friends and acquaintances. (See Mitford's February 8th, 1821 letter to Elford . Her husband Charles died in 1827, when her daughter was seven. Source: L'Estrange). —ajc, lmw—& the match is made—they are already deep in [del: .][gap: 1 char.] settlements & wedding cloathsclothes, & the [del: .][gap: 1 word.]^[marriage] will take place forthwith—how she brought him to the offer I cannot imagine—she says he did it all himself—but I don't believe her. I must tell you of a misfortune that befell me in this case. I was dining at Farley HillFarley Hill, Berkshire, England | Farley Hill | Berkshire | England | 51.37339900000001 -0.9209210000000212 Village in Berkshire, in the parish of Swallowfield. The Dickinsons lived there.—lmw on the very day that it happened to strike Mrs. DickinsonCatherine Dickinson Allingham | Born: 1787 in Middlesex, England. Died: 1861-09-02 in St. Marylebone, Middlesex, England.
Catherine Allingham was the daughter of Thomas Allingham. She married Charles Dickinson on August 2, 1807 at St. Giles, South Mimms, Middlesex. They lived in Swallowfield, where their daughter Frances was born, and where they were visited by the Mitford family. According to Mitford, Catherine Dickinson was fond of match-making among her friends and acquaintances. (See Mitford's February 8th, 1821 letter to Elford . Her husband Charles died in 1827, when her daughter was seven. Source: L'Estrange). —ajc, lmw that they would make a [del: .][gap: 1 char.][good] nice couple & had the ill luck to sit next to Mr. HawleyMr. Hawley
Descendant of General Hawley, engaged to Betsy Broughton through Mrs. Dickinson’s matchmaking.—lmw at table, who held his tongue in the most provoking manner possible, & when I made him talk, talked, not nonesense but the dullest gravest prosiest sense, vapid, stale, commonplace, a hundred years behind the spirit of the age, such tame moralities as the first General HawleyGeneral Hawley
Possibly Lieutenant General Henry Hawley (c. 1679 to 24 March 1759), British army officer who served during the War of Spanish Succession as well as the Jacobite Rebellion.—lmw might have discussed with one of the Queen Anne Queen Anne | Born: 1655-02-06 in St James’s Palace, Westminster, England. Died: 1714-08-01 in Kensington Palace, Middlesex, England.
Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland on 8 March 1702. In 1707, after the Acts of Union uniting England and Scotland into Great Britain, she reigned as Queen of Great Britain and Ireland.—lmw
's maids of honor. Well after dinner, as I was standing wearily before the drawing room fire indulging in the ennui engendered of Mr. HawleyMr. Hawley
Descendant of General Hawley, engaged to Betsy Broughton through Mrs. Dickinson’s matchmaking.—lmw's page 3
silence & conversation, Mrs. DickinsonCatherine Dickinson Allingham | Born: 1787 in Middlesex, England. Died: 1861-09-02 in St. Marylebone, Middlesex, England.
Catherine Allingham was the daughter of Thomas Allingham. She married Charles Dickinson on August 2, 1807 at St. Giles, South Mimms, Middlesex. They lived in Swallowfield, where their daughter Frances was born, and where they were visited by the Mitford family. According to Mitford, Catherine Dickinson was fond of match-making among her friends and acquaintances. (See Mitford's February 8th, 1821 letter to Elford . Her husband Charles died in 1827, when her daughter was seven. Source: L'Estrange). —ajc, lmw full checkmark of her new project & wanting my assistance to accomplish it brought Miss BroughtonBetsy Broughton
Local beauty from Three Mile Cross, engaged to Mr. Hawley through Mrs. Dickinson's matchmaking in 1821.—lmw, rnes up to me & asked in her quick manner "How do you like Mr. HawleyMr. Hawley
Descendant of General Hawley, engaged to Betsy Broughton through Mrs. Dickinson’s matchmaking.—lmw's face? What does it express?"—"Nothing" said I in a lazy truthtelling tone—little dreaming that I was giving this flattering opinion before his future lady & love—& now must I apologise, like Mrs. Bennett Bennet, Mrs.
Character in Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice.—lmw to LizzyElizabeth Bennet, or: Lizzy Bennet
Character in Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice.—lmw for having so much disliked Mr. DarcyFitzwilliam Darcy, or: Mr. Darcy
Character in Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice.—lmw—do you remember? In our old friend Pride & PrejudicePride and Prejudice: A Novel. London: T. Egerton. 1813. . This [del: .][gap: 1 char.]awkward blunder notwithstanding—& notwithstanding my inevitable habit of laughing at serious things I am really glad of the match—they are both very worthy & well-meaning young people though its a pity they cannot change sexes, & there is great chance of their improving one another & greater still of their being happy together—which is a much better thing.

Have you read MelmothMelmoth the Wanderer: A Tale. Edinburgh: A. Constable and co.. 1820. ? I don't advise you so to do—any more than I should advise you to have the nightmare. And yet it's a very grand thing. I never read much of Mr. MaturinCharles Maturin | Born: 1782-09-25 in Dublin, Ireland. Died: 1824-10-30 in Dublin, Ireland.
's writing before—BertramBertram; or, The Castle of St. Aldobrand: a tragedy, in five acts. London: John Murray. 1816. I did not like & just skimmed WomenWomen: Or Pour et Contre. A Tale. Edinburgh: Constable and co.. 1818.
Mitford records that she don't like it much--too dismal.In Journal Saturday 27 March 1819. .—lmw I did not like & left off in the middle, & MontorioThe Fatal Revenge; or, the Family of Montorio, Montorio; or the Fatal Revenge. London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, Brown. 1807. & the rest I never met with. But MelmothMelmoth the Wanderer: A Tale. Edinburgh: A. Constable and co.. 1820. I have read fairly through almost without taking breath—nobody can lay that down—& yet nobody I should think would ever [del: .][gap: 1 char.] wish to read it a second time—it is so inconceivably painful. But there's power, terrible power—some matchless painting of external scenery-& some touches of pathos & horror equal to any written except the elder Dramatists. With all these merits there are a thousand faults—particularly a font of grandiloquence which is you know the patrimony of IrelandIreland | 53.1423672 -7.692053600000008 An island in the North Atlantic and part of the British Isles in Europe, which contains Great Britain and over six thousand smaller isles.—bas from Lady MorganSydney Morgan Owenson, Lady Morgan, or: Lady Morgan | Born: 1781-12-25 in Dublin, Ireland. Died: 1859-04-14 in London, England.
Irish author, amateur performer, and Romantic-era literary celebrity.—lmw
to Charles PhilippsPhillipsCharles Phillips | Born: 1787 in Sligo, Ireland. Died: 1859-02-01 in London, England.
Irish author and barrister. Mitford mentions him a letter of 1819, along with Edmund Burke and other Irish writers, as exhibiting a typical example of somewhat overblown Irish eloquence.—lmw
.—Now I am going to talk about KenilworthKenilworth. Walter Scott. London Edinburgh: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne. 1821. but you may read on page 4
for a little till you meet with a hook—& truly if I were to have a wager I would bet that you went on after you met with the hook. What! Shall there be a Blue Beard Bluebeard
Title character in French folktale of the same name. Story was best known in Mitford’s time through a frequently-performed melodrama version, Bluebeard, or Female Curiosity: a Dramatic Romance in Three Acts by George Colman the younger.—lmw's chamber in a letter & you have the key & not open it! Is not a man as curious as a woman? I am quite certain that you will read on—but I shall put the hooks notwithstanding Now for it [KenilworthKenilworth. Walter Scott. London Edinburgh: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne. 1821. seems to be the most painful of any book that Walter ScottWalter Scott, Sir, Baronet, or: Sir Baronet | Born: 1771-08-15 in College Wynd, Edinburgh, Scotland. Died: 1832-09-21 in Abbotsford, near Melrose, Roxburghshire, Scotland.
Scottish advocate, antiquarian, poet, and novelist. Also worked as clerk of the Court of Session in Edinburgh. He assembled a collection of Scottish ballads, many of which had never before been printed, in Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, first published in 1802, but continually expanded in revised editions through 1812 . Author of the long romance poems, The Lay of the Last Minstrel (1805), Marmion (1808), and The Lady of the Lake (1810). From 1814-1831, Scott published 23 novels, and over the course of his literary career, he wrote review articles for the Edinburgh Review, The Quarterly Review, Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, and the Foreign Quarterly Review.—ebb, esh
has ever written—the Bride of LammermoorThe Bride of Lammermoor. Walter Scott. Edinburgh: Constable and co.. 1819.
Part of Tales of my Landlord, third series. Bride of Lammermoor made up volumes one and two and Legend of Montrose volumes three and four of the four-volume work.—lmw not excepted. The catastrophe hangs over one like a sense of real calamity—it is like some over time misfortune—long expected—& yet when it comes even more crushing than fear had anticipated—There is a sense of helpless grief—of powerful pity—I would rather read MelmothMelmoth the Wanderer: A Tale. Edinburgh: A. Constable and co.. 1820. again than KenilworthKenilworth. Walter Scott. London Edinburgh: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne. 1821. . Besides there is too much villainy—the author has not protected us as he generally does by interposing some sweet & frank & delightful character between his knaves & villains & the reader's feelings. And we the less forgive this from the age in which he has placed the story—an age of fine spirits of [gap: 1 word.][fierce] intellect—of noble during. Why such men as 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
RaleighWalter Raleigh | Born: 1552 in Hayes Barton, Devonshire, England. Died: 1618-10-29 in London, England.
Early modern English courtier, military leader, explorer, and poet. He was a court favorite of Elizabeth I, who knighted him in 1585. Twice granted a royal patent to explore Virginia, he helped to popularize the use of tobacco in Europe and also attempted to find a fabled City of Gold in South America. He participated in the suppression of rebellions in Ireland and was rewarded with property confiscated from Irish owners. He was twice imprisoned in the Tower of London, by Elizabeth I and by James I. He was arrested and executed in 1618 after his second unsuccessful mission to South America, during which his men had ransacked a Spanish outpost. Mitford held an idealized view of his character, mentioning him in a letter of 1821 along with Shakespeare & Spenser as belonging to an age of fine spirits and noble daring, when such men must have purified the very air. (See February 8, 1821 letter to Elford.)—lmw
& SpenserEdmund Spenser | Born: 1552 in London, England. Died: 1599-01-13 in London, England.
Early modern poet and courtier, author of The Faerie Queen. Served in the military in Ireland and was later rewarded with lands confiscated from the Irish. Friend of Walter Raleigh. Buried in Poet's Corner in Westminster Abbey.—lmw
must have purified the very air—the atmosphere that they breathed could not have nourished a VarneyRichard Varney
Character in Walter Scott’s novel Kenilworth. Squire to the Earl of Leicester.—lmw or a LambourneMichael Lambourne
Character in Walter Scott’s novel Kenilworth. Nephew of innkeeper Giles Gosling.—lmw. KenilworthKenilworth. Walter Scott. London Edinburgh: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne. 1821. is very powerful too—full of fine delineation of manners—& Queen ElizabethElizabeth Tudor, Queen Elizabeth I, Queen of England, France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, etc. | Born: 1533-09-07 in Palace of Placentia, Greenwich, England. Died: 1603-03-24 in Richmond Palace, Surrey, England.
The last of the Tudor monarchs, and defender of father’s instition of a Protestant Church of England, Elizabeth I was Queen of England, France, and Ireland from 1588 until her death in 1603. —ebb, rnes is a matchless portrait—It is much stronger & more finished than the AbbotThe Abbot. Walter Scott. London Edinburgh: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne. 1820.
Historical novel: One of Scott’s series of Tales from Benedictine Sources, The Abbot introduces the character Roland Graeme, and renders the experiences of Mary, Queen of Scots during her imprisonment and escape from Loch Leven Castle in 1567 .—ebb or the MonasteryThe Monastery.
As Mitford reads, she rates it not very good, not so good as some of his Novels and then, presumably as she reads the final volume, pretty good too. In journal entry Friday 7th April 1820 .—lmw, though I prefer either of them—& will probably be cried up as a second IvanhoeIvanhoe. . But I regret to find his spirit saddened & darkened—I fear we shall have no more OldbucksJohn Oldbuck
character in The Antiquary.—esh or Dandie DinmontsDandie Dinmont
Character in Guy Mannering.—esh or Barons of Bradwardine. Tell me what you think of KenilworthKenilworth. Walter Scott. London Edinburgh: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne. 1821. ] And now goodbye for a day or two my dear Sir WilliamWilliam Elford, Sir, baronet, Recorder for Plymouth, Recorder for Totnes, Member of Parliament | Born: 1749-08 in Kingsbridge, Devon, England. Died: 1837-11-30 in Totnes, Devon, England.
According to L’Estrange, Sir William was first a friend of Mitford’s father, and Mitford met him for the first time in the spring of 1810 when he was a widower nearing the age of 64. They carried on a lively correspondence until his death in 1837.
Elford worked as a banker at Plymouth Bank (Elford, Tingcombe and Purchase) in Plymouth, Devon, from its founding in 1782. He was elected a member of Parliament for Plymouth as a supporter of the government and Tory William Pitt, and served from 1796 to 1806. After his election defeat in Plymouth in 1806, he was elected member of Parliament for Rye and served from July 1807 until his resignation in July 1808. For his service in Parliament as a supporter of Pitt, he was made a baronet in 1800. After his son Jonathan came of age, he tried to secure a stable government post for him but never succeeded. Mayor of Plymouth in 1796 and Recorder for Plymouth from 1797 to 1833, he was also Recorder for Totnes from 1832 to 1834. Sir William served as an officer in the South Devon militia from 1788, eventually attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel; the unit saw active service in Ireland during the Peninsular Wars. Sir William was a talented amateur painter in oils and watercolors who exhibited at the Royal Society from 1774 to 1837; he exhibited still lifes and portraits but preferred landscapes. He was elected to the Royal Society Academy in 1790. He was also a talented amateur naturalist and was elected to the Royal Linnaean Society in 1790; late in life, he published his findings on an alternative to yeast.
He married his first wife, Mary Davies of Plympton, on January 20, 1776 and they had one son, Jonathan, and two daughters, Grace Chard and Elizabeth. After the death of his first wife, he married Elizabeth Hall Walrond, widow of Lieutenant-Colonel Maine Swete Walrond of the Coldstream Guards. His only son Jonathan died in 1823, leaving him without an heir.
—ebb, lmw

—Here is quite enough for one dose—Is there not?—

Feb. 9th—I have a frank in view & shall therefore finish hastily—Pray do you see those magazines respecting one of which I made my false step? If you do you will have seen that there has been something like a battle between the Editors, Mr. LockhartJohn Gibson Lockhart, or: John Gibson Lockhart | Born: 1794-07-12 in Lanarkshire, Scotland. Died: 1854-11-25 in Abbotsford, near Melrose, Scotland.
A prominent writer for Blackwood's Magazine in its early years, Lockhart joined the staff of the magazine in 1817, and came to be associated with its abrasive style and particularly (though without verification) its insulting characterization of London artists and literary figures as a Cockney School in 1820 and 1821. Assumptions and bitter accusations in the matter led to a bitter personal conflict aired in the pages of Blackwood's and The London Magazine resulting in the death by duel of The London Magazine's editor, John Scott in February 1821, at the hands of Lockhart's literary agent Jonathan Christie . Lockhart married Walter Scott's daughter Sophia in 1820, which caused John Scott and others to assume that Walter Scott had some involvement with Blackwood's campaign against the Cockneys. Lockhart took over the editorship of the Quarterly Review from March 1826 until June 1853, shortly before his death. He is perhaps best known as the author of his father-in-law's 7-volume biography, Life of Walter Scott, published in 1837-1838 .—ebb
[Sir W. ScottWalter Scott, Sir, Baronet, or: Sir Baronet | Born: 1771-08-15 in College Wynd, Edinburgh, Scotland. Died: 1832-09-21 in Abbotsford, near Melrose, Roxburghshire, Scotland.
Scottish advocate, antiquarian, poet, and novelist. Also worked as clerk of the Court of Session in Edinburgh. He assembled a collection of Scottish ballads, many of which had never before been printed, in Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, first published in 1802, but continually expanded in revised editions through 1812 . Author of the long romance poems, The Lay of the Last Minstrel (1805), Marmion (1808), and The Lady of the Lake (1810). From 1814-1831, Scott published 23 novels, and over the course of his literary career, he wrote review articles for the Edinburgh Review, The Quarterly Review, Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, and the Foreign Quarterly Review.—ebb, esh
's son in law] John Gibson LockhartJohn Gibson Lockhart, or: John Gibson Lockhart | Born: 1794-07-12 in Lanarkshire, Scotland. Died: 1854-11-25 in Abbotsford, near Melrose, Scotland.
A prominent writer for Blackwood's Magazine in its early years, Lockhart joined the staff of the magazine in 1817, and came to be associated with its abrasive style and particularly (though without verification) its insulting characterization of London artists and literary figures as a Cockney School in 1820 and 1821. Assumptions and bitter accusations in the matter led to a bitter personal conflict aired in the pages of Blackwood's and The London Magazine resulting in the death by duel of The London Magazine's editor, John Scott in February 1821, at the hands of Lockhart's literary agent Jonathan Christie . Lockhart married Walter Scott's daughter Sophia in 1820, which caused John Scott and others to assume that Walter Scott had some involvement with Blackwood's campaign against the Cockneys. Lockhart took over the editorship of the Quarterly Review from March 1826 until June 1853, shortly before his death. He is perhaps best known as the author of his father-in-law's 7-volume biography, Life of Walter Scott, published in 1837-1838 .—ebb
alias Dr. MorrisDr. Peter Morris
Protagonist in John Gibson Lockhart’s 1819 novel, Peter’s Letters to his Kinfolk.—ncl, alias Christopher NorthChristopher North
Pseudonym for John Wilson in Blackwood’s Magazine.—lmw &c &c &c editor of BlackwoodBlackwood’s Magazine. Edinburgh: 1817-04-1980.
Founded as a Tory magazine in opposition to the Whig Edinburgh Review.—ebb's[1] Here, Mitford seems to believe that Lockhart, editor of Blackwood's Magazine, wrote under pseudonyms Christopher North and Dr. MorrisChristopher North was actually the pen name of Blackwood's writer John Wilson. "Peter Morris" was the pseudonym Lockhart used in Peter's Letters to his Kinfolk.—lmw challenged John ScottJohn Scott | Born: 1784-10-24 in Broadgate, Aberdeen, Scotland. Died: 1821-02-21 in York Street, Covent Garden, London, England.
Journalist and editor who revived The London Magazine in 1820 and edited it until his death on 27 February 1821. Died as the result of complications from a gunshot wound received in a duel fought on 16 February with Jonathan Henry Christie (John Gibson Lockhart's agent) at Chalk Farm. The duel resulted from an escalation of attacks and counterattacks between the editors of the London and Blackwood's Magazines over Blackwood's characterizations of a Cockney School.—lmw, ebb
Editor of BaldwinThe London Magazine. 1820-1829.
An 18th-century periodical of this title (The London Magazine, or Gentleman’s Monthly Intelligencer) ran from 1732 to 1785 . In 1820, John Scott launched a new series of The London Magazine emulating the style of Blackwood’s Magazine, though the two magazines soon came into heated contention. This series ran until 1829, and this is the series to which Mitford and her correspondents frequently refer in their letters. Scott’s editorship lasted until his death by duel on 27 February 1821 resulting form bitter personal conflict with the editors of Blackwood’s Magazine connected with their insulting characterization of a London Cockney School. After Scott’s death, William Hazlitt took up editing the magazine with the April 1821 issue.—ebb, lmw's—who upon some etiquette of Editorship or the Duell (which I as a woman [gap: 1 word, reason: torn.][cannot] of course understand) refused to fight & has pub[gap: 6 chars, reason: torn.][lished] the documents. These documents are very diverting chiefly from their profound & statesman like gravity—You will find them at the begining of the last no. of the 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. Baldwin's LondonThe London Magazine. 1820-1829.
An 18th-century periodical of this title (The London Magazine, or Gentleman’s Monthly Intelligencer) ran from 1732 to 1785 . In 1820, John Scott launched a new series of The London Magazine emulating the style of Blackwood’s Magazine, though the two magazines soon came into heated contention. This series ran until 1829, and this is the series to which Mitford and her correspondents frequently refer in their letters. Scott’s editorship lasted until his death by duel on 27 February 1821 resulting form bitter personal conflict with the editors of Blackwood’s Magazine connected with their insulting characterization of a London Cockney School. After Scott’s death, William Hazlitt took up editing the magazine with the April 1821 issue.—ebb, lmw. For the other is a trumpery catchpenny thing—BaldwinThe London Magazine. 1820-1829.
An 18th-century periodical of this title (The London Magazine, or Gentleman’s Monthly Intelligencer) ran from 1732 to 1785 . In 1820, John Scott launched a new series of The London Magazine emulating the style of Blackwood’s Magazine, though the two magazines soon came into heated contention. This series ran until 1829, and this is the series to which Mitford and her correspondents frequently refer in their letters. Scott’s editorship lasted until his death by duel on 27 February 1821 resulting form bitter personal conflict with the editors of Blackwood’s Magazine connected with their insulting characterization of a London Cockney School. After Scott’s death, William Hazlitt took up editing the magazine with the April 1821 issue.—ebb, lmw's is the "real Simon Pure." —

Pray what do you mean to do with yourself this Spring? Are you bound for BathBath, Somerset, England | Bath Somerset England | 51.375801 -2.359903900000063 A city in the county of Somerset in south west England, located in the valley of the River Avon, near Bristol. A resort and spa town since Roman times, known for its mineral hot springs. Now a UNESCO world heritage site.—lmw or for 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? In a word have we any chance of seeing you? You must not pass us again—Will you—I am fairly sick of the QueenCaroline, 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
. So really will not say another word of her except that your mark of [Shippification] is the very best thing I have seen on the subject.—Very glad you like Mr. PalmerCharles Fyshe Palmer, or: Long Fyshe | Born: 1769 in Luckley House, Wokingham, Berkshire, England. Died: 1843-01-24 in Wokingham, Berkshire, England.
Charles Fyshe Palmer was the son of Charles Fyshe Palmer and Lucy Jones. He married Lady Madelina Gordon Sinclair in 1805 at Kimbolton Castle in Kimbolton, Herefordshire . They lived at Luckley House, Wokingham, Berkshire and at East Court, Finchampstead, Berkshire. Through her siblings, Lady Madelina was connected to several of the most influential aristocratic families in the country, and Charles Fyshe Palmer’s marriage to Lady Madelina thus gained him access to aristocratic houses, including the Holland House.
A Whig politician, Palmer began running for Parliament elections as the member for Reading after 1816, and appears to have served off and on in that role until 1841. He led the Berkshire meetings to protest British government’s handling of the Peterloo Massacre in 1819. On March 16, 1820, Palmer ran for a seat in Parliament against two other candidates. The votes ran: John Berkeley Monck (418 votes), Charles Fyshe Palmer(399 votes), and John Weyland(395 votes.) Mitford’s letters around this time indicate she much preferred his opponent J. B. Monck, and she had earlier satirized Palmer in 1818 as vastly like a mop-stick, or, rather, a tall hop-pole, or an extremely long fishing-rod, or anything that is all length and no substance.
Mitford also mentions Palmer in connection with a legal issue surrounding the Billiard Club, in her letter to Talfourd of 31 August 1822 . Mitford also mentions the ways that Palmer’s political opponents sometimes undermined his Whig reformist positions by referencing the noble privileges (and money) he accrued by marrying the Lady Madelina Gordon in 1805.
—ajc, lmw
See note 2 in The Browning’s Correspondence rendering of Mitford’s letter of 12 March 1842 to Elizabeth Barrett Browning .
's politics—though as to moderation—he is about as moderate as 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


or 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
. I have not seen him these six months or more—his 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 constituents complain of his absence & I am very much afraid that a candidate with money & residence would oust our poor friend in spite of all the patriotism of 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 & [del: .][gap: 1 word.][the] its Members. Don't tell Lady MadelinaMadelina Madalina Sinclair Palmer, the Lady, or: Lady M.P., Lady Mad., Lady Madelina Palmer | Born: 1772-06-19 in Gordon Castle, Bellie, Moray, Scotland. Died: 1847 in Chapel Street, Grosvenor Place, London, England.
Lady Madelina Gordon was born on June 10, 1772, the daughter of Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon, and Jane Maxwell, at Gordon Castle, Bellie, Moray, Scotland. Her first husband was Robert Sinclair, 7th Baronet Sinclair; they married in 1789 and had one child, John Gordon Sinclair. Her second husband was the Reading Whig politician Charles Fyshe Palmer. They married in 1805 at Kimbolton Castle in Kimbolton, Herefordshire. They lived at Luckley House, Wokingham, Berkshire and at East Court, Finchampstead, Berkshire. Through her siblings, Lady Madelina was connected to several of the most influential aristocratic families in the country. Her sister Charlotte Gordon became Duchess of Richmond through her marriage to Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond, 4th Duke of Lennox and 4th Duke of Aubigny. Her sister Susan Gordon became Duchess of Manchester through her marriage to William Montagu, Duke of Manchester. Her sister Louise Gordon became Marchioness Cornwallis through marriage to Charles Cornwallis, Marquess of Cornwallis. Her sister Georgiana Gordon became Duchess of Bedford through marriage to John Russell, Duke of Bedford. Her brothers were George Duncan Gordon, who became 5th Duke of Gordon, and Lord Alexander Gordon. Charles Fyshe Palmer’s marriage to Lady Madelina thus gained him access to aristocratic houses, including the Holland House. Lady Madelina’s name is variously spelled Madelina and Madalina, although Madelina appears to be the more common and standard spellling of the name, as an anglicization of the French Madeline. For more on the Palmers, see note 2 in The Browning’s Correspondence rendering of Mitford’s letter of 12 March 1842 to Elizabeth Barrett Browning .—kab, ebb, ad, lmw that I say so!—Pray is it true that your friend & neighbour Sir MorpethGeorge Howard, Viscount Morpeth, 6th Earl of Carlisle (third creation), Lord Privy Seal under George IV and Canning , Lord Privy Seal under William IV and Melbourne , Lord Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire , Member of Parliament, or: Viscount Morpeth , 6th Earl of Carlisle (third creation) , Lord Privy Seal under George IV and Canning Lord Privy Seal under William IV and Melbourne Lord Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire Member of Parliament | Born: 1773-09-17 in London, England. Died: 1848-10-07 in Castle Howard, Yorkshire, England.
English peer and politically moderate Member of Parliament and statesman who served under both Whig and Tory governments, the son of Frederick Howard, 5th Earl of Carlisle, and Lady Margaret Caroline Leveson-Gower. He married Lady Georgiana Dorothy Cavendish, daughter of William, 5th Duke of Devonshire, and they had six sons and six daughters. He served as Member of Parliament for Morpeth from 1795 until 1806; in 1806, he was sworn to the Privy Council and also served as envoy extraordinary to Prussia. He then served as Member of Parliament for Cumberland unti 1820 and later took his seat in the House of Lords in 1825 upon the death of his father. He served as First Commissioner of Woods and Forests and then as Lord Privy Seal in the Tory governments of George Canning and Lord Goderich; he later served as a member of the cabinet in the Whig governments of Lord Grey and of Lord Melbourne in the 1830s. He was Lord Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire between 1824 and 1840 and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.Mitford mentions him in a letter of 1821 in a political context; at this time, he was known as Viscount Morpeth and was no longer serving as Member of Parliament for Cumberland, having given up his seat in 1820.—lmw

threatened to bring in CobbettWilliam Cobbett, Member of Parliament for Oldham, or: Member of Parliament for Oldham | Born: 1763-03-09 in Farnham, Surrey, England. Died: 1835-06-18 in Normandy, Surrey, England.
Politician, reformer, and journalist. Founded weekly newspaper The Political Register and also collected and published British state trials and parliamentary debates. He was frequently charged with seditious and treasonous libel because of his political writings; he supported Parliamentary reform, Catholic emancipation; and criticized the Corn Laws. He was a political supporter of Francis Burdett and John Cartwright. In a letter of 1825, Mitford compares Cobbett's character to that of William Macready: both men of headstrong passion—zealous partisans, vindictive enemies, fascinating companions—both great bullies—& as I suspect both great cowards. —lmw
if he were not released? This is the Whig story—& truly if he did I think he was right—He & page 6
Mr. SwanHenry Swan, Mr.
On the 17th, convicted of bribery at an election for the borough of Penrhyn, in Cornwall, was sentenced to be confined in the King's Bench Prison for one year. See Edinburgh Magazine 5 (July-Dec. 1819): 568 and Encyclopaedia Londinensis, or, Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Literature, vol. 19 (London: for the Proprietor, Encyclopaedia Office, 1823): 563. Google Books. —lmw, rnes seem to have been very unjustly imprisoned—Whilst the present system lasts nothing can be so inconsistent as to make sacrifices to the purity of Cornish Boroughs.—Well I won't begin talking politics.—Adieu my dear friend. Write to me very soon—& believe me ever

Kindest regards from 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 & 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 hope you have been all quite well this unhealthy winter.—Once more goodbye my dear Friend—Pray write soon.