Ellen Terry: The Victorian Actress Who Became Britain’s Leading Shakespearean Star

Ellen Terry: The Victorian Actress Who Became Britain’s Leading Shakespearean Star

Today I want to find out a little about Ellen Terry, one of the most celebrated actresses of the Victorian era. Her remarkable career lasted for almost seventy years, taking her from the London stage as a child performer to becoming one of Britain’s best-known Shakespearean actresses.

Alice Ellen Terry was born on the 27th of February 1847 in Coventry, Warwickshire. Acting was very much a family profession. Her parents, Benjamin and Sarah Terry, were both performers, and several of Ellen’s brothers and sisters would also go on to work in the theatre.

Ellen was introduced to the stage incredibly young. At just nine years old, she appeared as Mamillius in Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale at the Princess’s Theatre in London. She went on to play other Shakespearean roles during her childhood, including Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Prince Arthur in King John.

By her teenage years, Ellen was already an experienced performer, appearing in theatres around Britain as well as in London.

Her personal life, however, became complicated at an early age.

As a teenager, Ellen became acquainted with the respected artist George Frederic Watts, who was around thirty years older than her. Watts painted several portraits of the young actress, and the pair married in February 1864, just days before Ellen’s seventeenth birthday.

The marriage was really unhappy and they separated within a year.

Ellen eventually returned to acting, but in 1868 she left the stage again after beginning a relationship with architect and designer Edward William Godwin. As Ellen was still legally married to Watts, their decision to live together caused a huge scandal in Victorian society.

Ellen and Godwin had two children, Edith and Edward, but their relationship eventually came to an end. By 1874, Ellen had returned to the theatre once again.

Her comeback was extremely successful.

She received particular praise for her performance as Portia in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. Her reputation continued to grow, and in 1878 she began the professional partnership that would define much of her career.

Actor and theatre manager Henry Irving invited Ellen to become his leading lady at London’s Lyceum Theatre.

Irving and Terry became one of the most famous theatrical partnerships of the Victorian period.

Ellen appeared opposite Irving in numerous productions and became particularly associated with Shakespeare. Her roles included Ophelia in Hamlet, Desdemona in Othello, Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing, Lady Macbeth in Macbeth and Katherine of Aragon in Henry VIII.

Her portrayal of Portia remained one of her best-known performances.

Ellen and Irving also toured extensively, including several highly successful visits to North America. For more than twenty years, she was widely regarded as one of Britain's leading Shakespearean actresses.

One of the most memorable images of Ellen came from her appearance as Lady Macbeth in 1888. Her green costume was decorated with thousands of shimmering beetle-wing cases and was later immortalised in a famous portrait by artist John Singer Sargent.

After leaving the Lyceum, Ellen continued performing, although an attempt to manage London’s Imperial Theatre in 1903 was unsuccessful.

She later went on lecture tours in Britain, America and other places, speaking about Shakespeare’s female characters and sharing her theatrical experience.

Ellen also embraced the relatively new format of cinema. Beginning in 1916, she appeared in several silent films while continuing to perform and lecture.

Her contribution to British theatre eventually received official recognition. In 1925, King George V appointed her Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire, making her one of the earliest actresses to receive such an honour for her professional career.

Ellen Terry died on the 21st of July 1928 at her home, Smallhythe Place in Kent, at the age of eighty-one.

 

Her career helped to raise the status of professional actresses, and her performances, photographs, portraits and surviving recordings continue to preserve her story.

 

Chiune Sugihara: The Japanese Diplomat Who Defied Orders to Help Thousands of People to Escape

What would you do if families were stood outside your office knowing that your signature could mean the difference between their escape and almost certain persecution?

Today I want to find out a bit about Chiune Sugihara. He was a Japanese diplomat who risked his career during the Second World War by issuing transit visas that helped thousands of Jewish refugees escape from Europe.

Chiune was born on the 1st of January 1900 in Gifu Prefecture in Japan. He studied at Waseda University before joining the Japanese Foreign Ministry, where his ability to speak Russian helped him develop a career as a specialist in Eastern European affairs.

By 1939, Chiune was serving as vice-consul at the Japanese consulate in Kaunas, Lithuania.

The following year, the situation became increasingly desperate. Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union, while Jewish refugees who had already fled persecution in Poland and elsewhere found themselves searching for another way to escape.

Hundreds of people began gathering outside the Japanese consulate hoping to obtain transit visas allowing them to travel across the Soviet Union, through Japan and eventually further.

There was a problem.

Japanese regulations required travellers to meet strict conditions before a transit visa could be issued. Many of the refugees standing outside Chiune's consulate simply could not meet them.

Chiune repeatedly contacted his superiors asking for permission to help. His requests were refused.

He then made an extraordinary decision.

Beginning in July 1940, Chiune started issuing visas anyway.

For weeks, he reportedly worked for hours each day writing and signing documents as quickly as he could. His wife, Yukiko, supported his decision despite understanding the possible consequences for their family.

The exact number of people ultimately saved through Chiune's actions remains debated. More than 2,000 visas were issued directly by him, but because some covered entire families, thousands of people were able to use them in their attempts to escape. Estimates of those helped vary considerably.

Many travelled across the Soviet Union on the Trans-Siberian Railway before reaching Vladivostok and continuing by ship towards Japan.

Eventually, Chiune was ordered to leave Lithuania as the consulate closed. Accounts from witnesses later claimed that he continued preparing visas almost until the time of his departure.

After the war, Chiune returned to Japan. In 1947, he left the Foreign Ministry and spent much of his later life living quietly, with relatively few people in Japan knowing what he had done.

Decades later, some of the people who had escaped using his visas began searching for the diplomat who had helped them.

In 1984, Yad Vashem recognised Chiune Sugihara as Righteous Among the Nations for his actions during the Holocaust.

He died on the 31st of July 1986, at the age of eighty-six.

Chiune Sugihara had been faced with a choice between following instructions and helping frightened people standing directly in front of him.

He chose to help.

Could you have risked your career and your family's future to make the same decision?

Bonne of Artois: The Young Duchess Who Married Philip the Good and Died Within a Year

Bonne of Artois: The Young Duchess Who Married Philip the Good and Died Within a Year

We recently learned about Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, but what about the woman who became his second wife and Duchess of Burgundy for less than a year?

Today I want to find out a little about Bonne of Artois.

Bonne was born in 1396, she was the daughter of Philip of Artois, Count of Eu, and Marie of Berry. Through her mother, she was also the granddaughter of John, Duke of Berry, who was a son of King John II of France and an influential member of the French royal family, giving her important connections within the French nobility.

In 1413, Bonne married Philip II, Count of Nevers. Their marriage was short-lived. Just two years later, Philip was killed fighting against the English at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory over the French during the Hundred Years’ War.

Bonne was left a widow while she was probably eighteen or nineteen, with two young sons, Charles and John. Her eldest son inherited the County of Nevers, which was a medieval territory in central France, centred on the town of Nevers. Bonne acted as regent while he was still a child.

Nearly a decade later, on the 30th of November 1424, Bonne married Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. He was the nephew of her first husband.

However, their marriage unfortunately didn’t last a year. Bonne sadly died in Dijon on the 15th of September 1425, she was only around twenty-nine years old.

Frank Foley: The British Intelligence Officer Who Helped Thousands to Escape Persecution.

Frank Foley: The British Intelligence Officer Who Helped Thousands to Escape Persecution.

Could you risk your career, your freedom and possibly your life to help complete strangers escape persecution?

Today I want to find out a little about Frank Foley, a British intelligence officer who used his position in Berlin to help thousands of Jewish people escape Germany before the outbreak of the Second World War.

Francis Edward Foley was born on the 24th of November 1884 in Highbridge, Somerset. He was one of several sons born to railway worker Andrew Foley and his wife Isabella.

Frank considered becoming a Catholic priest and studied in France, but he decided that the religious life was not for him. His time abroad helped him to become fluent in French and German, skills that would later prove extremely valuable.

During the First World War, Frank served in the British Army and was mentioned in despatches. His ability with languages eventually led him into intelligence work.

After the war, he was sent to Berlin as Britain’s Passport Control Officer. This apparently ordinary diplomatic position also proved to be useful cover for his work with the Secret Intelligence Service, known as MI6.

As persecution of Jewish people in Germany intensified during the 1930s, desperate families began searching for ways to leave the country.

Frank was responsible for examining visa applications.

He could have simply followed every regulation placed in front of him. Instead, he repeatedly stretched and bent the rules to help people escape.

Working with others including Jewish businessman Wilfrid Israel and Hubert Pollack, Frank helped people to obtain the documents they needed to leave Germany. He reportedly visited concentration camps, helped people who were struggling to meet immigration requirements and even sheltered Jewish refugees inside his own home.

What made his actions particularly dangerous was that Frank did not have diplomatic immunity. If the German authorities had discovered the full extent of what he was doing, he could have been arrested.

When the Second World War began, Frank continued working in British intelligence. He later served in Norway during the German invasion and was involved in questioning Rudolf Hess after Hess flew to Scotland in 1941.

After the war, Frank returned to Germany and became involved in efforts to locate suspected war criminals.

He retired in 1949 and died in Stourbridge on the 8th of May 1958 at the age of 73.

Much of the wider public knew little about his wartime activities during his lifetime.

Frank was eventually recognised by Yad Vashem as Righteous Among the Nations in 1999 and was named a British Hero of the Holocaust in 2010.

He had spent years working behind the scenes, but for thousands of people trying to escape persecution, the decisions he made could mean the difference between being trapped and finding safety.

Had you heard of Frank Foley and the risks he took to help Jewish families escape Germany?

Roger Ascham: The Tudor Teacher Who Guided Elizabeth I and Admired Lady Jane Grey

Roger Ascham: The Tudor Teacher Who Guided Elizabeth I and Admired Lady Jane Grey

We have been finding out about some of the people connected to Lady Jane Grey, but what about the scholar who left us one of the most famous stories from her childhood?

Today I want to find out a little about Roger Ascham. He was an English scholar, writer and royal tutor who taught the future Elizabeth I and later described finding Lady Jane Grey reading Plato in Greek while the rest of her household were out hunting.

Roger was born around 1515 in Kirby Wiske, Yorkshire. He was one of several sons born to John Ascham, who worked as a steward for the Scrope family.

Roger was educated in the household of Sir Humphrey Wingfield. Alongside his studies, he developed an enthusiasm for archery, a subject that would later inspire his first major book.

At around fifteen years old, Roger entered St John’s College, Cambridge. He became particularly interested in Greek and soon gained a reputation as a talented scholar and teacher.

Roger believed that teaching a subject was one of the best ways to improve your own understanding of it. He helped other students learn Greek and eventually became one of Cambridge’s leading scholars in the language.

In 1545, Roger published Toxophilus, a book promoting archery. Rather than writing in Latin, he chose English because he wanted to show that serious subjects could be discussed clearly and elegantly in his native language.

The book was dedicated to Henry VIII, who rewarded Roger with an annual pension.

Roger’s royal career developed further in 1548, when he was chosen to tutor the fourteen-year-old Princess Elizabeth.

He taught her Greek and Latin and guided her through the works of classical writers. Roger was deeply impressed by Elizabeth’s intelligence, determination and ability with languages.

He remained her tutor until 1550, when he left England to work as secretary to the diplomat Sir Richard Morrison.

Before travelling abroad, Roger visited Lady Jane Grey at Bradgate House in Leicestershire.

According to Roger’s later account, Jane’s family and household were outside hunting when he arrived. Jane had chosen to remain indoors, where he found her reading Plato’s Phaedo in its original Greek.

Roger was astonished that such a young girl could read and understand such a difficult philosophical work.

When he asked why she preferred studying to joining her family outside, Jane reportedly explained that she was often harshly corrected for her mistakes. However, her tutor, John Aylmer, treated her kindly and encouraged her love of learning.

Roger was not Jane’s regular tutor, but he used their conversation to support his belief that children learned more successfully through patience and encouragement than through fear and severe punishment.

However, he recorded the meeting years later in a book written to promote his educational ideas. His description should therefore be treated as his own memory and interpretation rather than a word-for-word account.

Roger later served as a Latin secretary to Mary I and continued working at court after Elizabeth became queen in 1558.

He began writing The Scholemaster in 1563. The book focused on teaching Latin but also criticised teachers who relied too heavily on physical punishment.

Roger died in London on the 30th of December 1568. The Scholemaster was published after his death in 1570.

Roger Ascham is remembered as an important Tudor scholar, a supporter of writing in English and a teacher who believed kindness could encourage a genuine love of learning.

He is also forever connected to two highly educated Tudor women: Elizabeth I, whom he taught, and Lady Jane Grey, whom he famously found reading Plato while her family were out hunting.

Do you think that Roger Ascham should be remembered most for teaching Elizabeth I or for preserving this famous story about Lady Jane Grey?

Carlos Sampaio Garrido: The Portuguese Diplomat Who Helped to Protect Around 1,000 Jewish People

Carlos Sampaio Garrido: The Portuguese Diplomat Who Helped to Protect Around 1,000 Jewish People

Let’s find out more about some of the incredible people who used their positions to protect others in World War Two.

Carlos Sampaio Garrido was a Portuguese diplomat who helped Jewish people to escape persecution in German-occupied Hungary.

Carlos was born on the 5th of April 1883. He entered the Portuguese diplomatic service and became Portugal’s representative in Budapest.

Following the German occupation of Hungary in March 1944, Jewish families faced danger. Carlos began helping people obtain Portuguese protection. Teixeira Branquinho later continued and expanded this work by issuing protective documents to people with links to Portugal, Brazil or Portuguese territories.

He helped to establish a Portuguese Red Cross office at the legation, providing support and shelter there for refugees.

Carlos went even further by hiding twelve Jewish people in a house he rented outside Budapest. Hungarian police raided the property on the 28th of April 1944 and arrested those inside.

Carlos protested, insisting that the house was protected by diplomatic rights. Although they were detained, his intervention helped to secure their release.

After leaving Budapest, he continued helping from Switzerland by sending names of people who needed protection.

Carlos and Teixeira are credited with helping around 1,000 Jewish people. In 2010, Yad Vashem recognised Carlos as Righteous Among the Nations.

Matthew Webb: The Victorian Swimmer Who Conquered the English Channel

Matthew Webb: The Victorian Swimmer Who Conquered the English Channel

Can you imagine swimming through a cold and rough sea for nearly an entire day. That is what Matthew Webb did while knowing full well that nobody had ever successfully completed the challenge unaided before?

Today I want to find out a little about Captain Matthew Webb. He was an English sailor and endurance swimmer who became the first person recorded to swim across the English Channel without using a flotation device or other artificial assistance.

Matthew was born on the 19th of January 1848 in Dawley, Shropshire. He was one of thirteen children born to Dr Matthew Webb and his wife.

His family later moved near the River Severn, where Matthew learned to swim while he was still a child. Recreational swimming was far less common than it is today but he became unusually confident in the water.

When Matthew was twelve, he began training for a life at sea aboard HMS Conway. He later joined the Merchant Navy and travelled to destinations including India, China, Singapore and Egypt.

According to accounts of his maritime career, he once repeatedly dived beneath a ship in the Suez Canal to cut away a rope tangled around its propeller.

On another occasion, Matthew jumped into the Atlantic Ocean after a man fell overboard from a fast-moving ship. Although the missing sailor could not be saved, Matthew remained in the freezing water for more than half an hour before being rescued.

His bravery earned him the first Stanhope Gold Medal which was awarded by the Royal Humane Society for his courageous attempt to rescue the missing sailor.

Matthew later became fascinated by the possibility of swimming across the English Channel. Several people had attempted the crossing, but nobody had completed it without some form of artificial assistance.

His first attempt, on the 12th of August 1875, ended when worsening weather forced him to leave the water.

But, Matthew refused to abandon his ambition.

On the 24th of August, he entered the sea at Dover wearing a red swimming costume. A support boat followed him, it carried food and drinks that could be passed to him during the crossing.

Matthew mainly used breaststroke as he battled strong currents, cold water and exhaustion. He was also painfully stung by a jellyfish.

For several hours, currents near the French coast appeared to prevent him from reaching land. But he did not give in and continued to swim.

At approximately 10:41am on the following morning, after he had spent nearly twenty-two hours in the water, he finally reached the French coast near Calais.

Because the tides had pushed him backwards and forwards, he had reportedly covered around thirty-nine miles rather than swimming in a straight line.

Matthew returned to Britain as a national hero. Crowds gathered to welcome him, newspapers celebrated his achievement and public donations provided him with a considerable amount of money.

He became a professional swimmer, taking part in endurance races, exhibitions and increasingly dangerous stunts. But, public interest gradually declined and his financial situation worsened.

In 1883, despite suffering from tuberculosis and poor health, Matthew attempted to swim through the powerful Whirlpool Rapids below Niagara Falls.

Friends warned him that the challenge was too dangerous, but he continued with the attempt anyway.

Matthew entered the water on the 24th of July 1883. He was pulled beneath the surface by the violent currents and sadly did not emerge alive. His body was recovered four days later.

He was only thirty-five years old.

Matthew Webb is still remembered as one of Victorian Britain’s most extraordinary endurance athletes. His Channel crossing proved that a challenge widely considered impossible could be achieved through determination, preparation and remarkable physical courage.

Do you think Matthew’s later stunts showed bravery-or had his search for fame become too dangerous?