Lady Dorothy Nevill

Lady Dorothy Fanny Nevill (née Walpole; 1 April 1826 – 24 March 1913) was an English memoirist, social and political hostess, conversationist, cultural philanthropist, horticulturist, and collector of plants, exotic animals, and art. Born into the aristocratic Walpole family, she married into the House of Nevill and was a founding member of the Conservative Primrose League.

Quotes

My learned and accomplished friend, Dr. Jessopp, has written a most interesting history, entitled One Generation of a Norfolk House. It is more or less the history of the Walpole family in early times.
- Mannington and the Walpoles, Earls of Orford. London: Fine Art Society. 1894. p. 19. (42 pages)

Among the political squibs in my scrap-book there is one directed against the over-taxation which in long-past days certainly did press heavily upon the people of England. Exceedingly well written, it is, I believe, an extract from an article by Sydney Smith, published in the Edinburgh Review about 1820.
- "Chapter I". Leaves from the Note-Books of Lady Dorothy Nevill: Insights into Victorian Society and British Aristocracy: A Literary Journey with Lady Dorothy Nevill. Good Press. 2019. (426 pages; 1st edition 1907; edited by Ralph Nevill; text at archive.org)

I remember a story that my great-grandmother, who never drove out but in a carriage and four with outriders, one day met with a mishap, her coach breaking down. In this terrible state of affairs no one knew what to do, my grandmother sitting, ruffled but dignified, in the carriage, the wheels of which seemed damaged beyond repair. Matters seemed at a complete standstill, till a servant of a daringly brilliant and inventive turn of mind ventured to suggest that her ladyship might possibly walk to her mansion, not far away; and, wonderful to relate, she actually managed to do it. As a matter of fact, the huge hoops which were at that time fashionable rendered exercise almost impossible for ladies.
- The Reminiscences of Lady Dorothy Nevill. London: Edward Arnold. 1906. p. 7. (336 pages; edited by Ralph Nevill)

Amongst other pictures which I remember in our old home was the famous 'Rainbow Rubens,' now in the Wallace Collection, as well as a fine portrait of Cardinal Fleury and another of Pope—both presents from the Cardinal and the poet to Lord Walpole.
- p. 11

My dear mother was a great friend of the poet Samuel Rogers, and we often went to his breakfasts, which were at that time celebrated, for there were usually one or two great people present. His house at 22, St. James's Place was filled with pictures and curiosities; on a sideboard in the dining-room was a cast of the head of Pope by Roubiliac, whilst between the the fireplace and window was the poet's writing-table; there was an ingenious mechanical contrivance by means of which the larger pictures in the house could be moved from their place so as to be viewed in different lights. The library and drawing-room were on the first floor, the book-cases being surmounted by Greek vases, whilst 'Cupid and Psyche,' by Sir Joshua Reynolds, hung over one of the two mantelpieces — the other, beautifully carved by Flaxman, was crowned, I think, by a study by Rubens; altogether, there were six or seven Reynolds's in the house, which was a real haven of artistic rest and repose.
- p. 47

Not very far from Islington is the quaint old town of Puddletown, which, I believe, took its name from the de Pydeles, one of those Norman families which came into England with the Conqueror. The church is particularly interesting, being one of the very few unrestored ones in Dorsetshire—a county which has suffered terribly at the hands of the restorer. ...
If only because Puddletown Church is the church of Mr. Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd, it should be left untouched.
- Under Five Reigns. Methuen's shilling library. London: Methuen & Company. pp. 10–11. (356 pages; edited by Ralph Nevill)

During my childhood at Islington the vicar of Puddletown was of the fox-hunting sort, quite different to the modern conception of a clergyman. He was popular enough with his parishioners, though I suspect he never saw half of them till they came up to be buried.
- p. 13 (The vicar mentioned is James Acland Templer.)

Lady Dorothy Nevill is the most interesting of all known and recognized nonagenarians. The very title of her new book indicates the long backward reach of her memory. She was a little girl when George IV. died. She has lived to see the accession of George V. She loves the old days, but she is no bigoted admirer of the old ways. She recognizes that, on the whole, the march of progress has uplifted classes and masses alike, though at some temporary loss, among the first, in charm and distinction of manner, and, among the second, in color and atmosphere.
- Frederick Walworth Brown, (March 26, 1911) "An English Lady under Five Reigns; Lady Dorothy Nevill Continues Her Recollections of a Long and Interesting Life (review of Under Five Reigns, published in 1910)". The New York Times: p. 166, Section R.

Writing a grief-stricken epitaph to Lady Dorothy Nevill née Walpole in 1913, the English poet and then librarian of the House of Lords, Edmund Gosse observed, ‘life was a spectacle for her and society a congress of little guignols.’ ... Gosse conjures up an image of Lady Dorothy as a master manipulator, pulling the strings of her many puppets over the years, thus suggesting the influential position this aristocratic woman held in society throughout her long life.
Born into the historical dynasty of the Walpole family, Lady Dorothy (1826–1913) was the daughter of the 3rd Earl of Orford (1783–1858). She grew up at Wolterton Hall reading the correspondence of Lord Horatio Walpole, the one-time ambassador to Louis XV, and stated proudly that ‘like my kinsman Horace Walpole I am fond of collecting’. ... Lady Dorothy gained acclaim as a botanist, a political hostess, one of the founding members of the Conservative Primrose League, an art collector, and a supporter of writers, scholars, and artists, many of whom she patronized.
- Caroline McCaffrey-Howarth, (2021) . "‘Life was a spectacle for her’: Lady Dorothy Nevill as Art Collector, Political Hostess, and Cultural Philanthropist". 19: Interdisciplinary Studies in the Long Nineteenth Century (issue 31). DOI:10.16995/ntn.3344.

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Lady Dorothy Nevill