Name/TitleHarriette Wilson's Memoirs
MakerWilson, Harriet
Maker RoleAuthor
MakerBlanch, Lesley
Maker RoleEditor
About this objectHardback book in protective board sleeve titled 'Harriette Wilson's Memoirs' Selected and Edited with an Introduction by Lesley Blanch' and published by Tho Folio Society. The original book, 'The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson: Written by Herself' was published in 1825. The introduction states: "Harriette Wilson lived among and was an integral part of a wealthy society where privilege, arrogance, and leisure flourished. This is the courtesan's natural background; once these things disappear, particularly the wealth which leisure implies, the courtesan is doomed. She does not flourish in an industrial age. She may be said to have vanished with the nineteenth century, the first half of which, specifically, was the heyday of all those women whose personality and style, more than beauty alone, were such that they could command, besides large sums of money, independence and respect. The basic difference between the courtesan and the prostitute was not so much a question of class as of personality. The legendary courtesans provided more than sex alone. In England, Harriette Wilson was an outstanding example of her profession."
Medium and MaterialsOrganic, board and paper
MeasurementsH: 265 x W: 160 x D: 35 mm
Date Made1964
PeriodLate 18th - early 19th century
Place MadeEngland, London
PublisherThe Folio Society
Publication Date1964
Publication PlaceEngland, London
Subject and Association Descriptionhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harriette_Wilson:
Harriette Wilson (2 February 1786 – 10 March 1845) was an English courtesan and writer. The author of The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson: Written by Herself (1825), she was a famed Regency era courtesan who became the mistress of the Earl of Craven at the age of 15. Later in her career, she went on to have formal relationship arrangements with the Duke of Wellington and other prominent people. ... Wilson began her career at the age of fifteen, becoming the mistress of William Craven, 1st Earl of Craven, 7th Baron Craven. Among her other lovers with whom she had financial arrangements was Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, who reportedly commented "publish, and be damned" when informed of her plans to write her memoirs. Wilson even attracted George IV's attention, who claimed he would "do anything to suppress what Harriette had to reveal of [his mistress] Lady Conyngham". Wilson makes a claim in her memoir about Frederick Lamb, 3rd Viscount Melbourne, assaulting her. She attributes his violent act toward her to the jealousy that she had become acquainted with the Duke of Argyll and a lover, a Lord Ponsonby. According to her account, Lamb attacked her because she refused him. For obvious reasons, most politicians with whom she had relationships paid high sums to keep their interactions with her private. Her decision to publish was partly based on the broken promises of her lovers to provide her with an income in her older age. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson, Written By Herself, first published in 1825, is celebrated for the opening line: "I shall not say how and why I became, at the age of fifteen, the mistress of the Earl of Craven." It was reprinted by the Navarre Society in 1924, as was a follow-up title Paris Lions and London Tigers (1825) with an introduction by Heywood Hill in 1935, although how much of this latter title was the work of Harriette Wilson herself is debatable [continues].
Subject and Association Keywordswomen's history
Subject and Association Keywords(auto) biography
Subject and Association Keywordswomen's writing & literature
Subject and Association Keywordsfemale relationships
Subject and Association Keywordssex work, prostitution, courtesans
Named CollectionGlasgow Women's Library
Object TypeBook
Object numberGWL-2025-112-2
Spine LabelHarriette Wilson's Memoirs ~ THE FOLIO SOCIETY
Copyright LicenceAll rights reserved