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Lady Charlotte Elizabeth Guest (née Bertie; 19 May 1812 – 15 January 1895), later Lady Charlotte Schreiber, was an English aristocrat who is best known as the first publisher in modern print format of the '' Mabinogion'', the earliest prose literature of Britain. Guest established the ''Mabinogion'' as a source literary text of Europe, claiming this recognition among literati in the context of contemporary passions for the
chivalric romance As a literary genre, the chivalric romance is a type of prose and verse narrative that was popular in the noble courts of High Medieval and Early Modern Europe. They were fantastic stories about marvel-filled adventures, often of a chivalri ...
of King Arthur and the Gothic movement. The name Guest used for the book was derived from a mediaeval copyist's error, already established in the 18th century by William Owen Pughe and the London Welsh societies. As an accomplished linguist, and the wife of a foremost Welsh ironmaster John Josiah Guest, she became a leading figure in the study of
literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...
and the wider Welsh Renaissance of the 19th century. With her second husband,
Charles Schreiber Charles Schreiber (10 May 1826 – 31 March 1884) was an English academic, fine arts collector and Conservative Party politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1865 and 1884. Early life Schreiber was born at Colchester, the eldest son ...
, she became a well known Victorian collector of
porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...
; their collection is held in the
Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
. She also created major collections of fans, games, and playing cards, which she gave to the
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
. She was noted as an international industrialist, pioneering liberal educator, philanthropist and elite society hostess.


Early life

Lady Charlotte was born on 19 May 1812 at Uffington House in Uffington, Lincolnshire, the daughter of Albemarle Bertie, 9th Earl of Lindsey (1744–1818), and his second wife Charlotte Susanna Elizabeth Layard. She was christened Lady Charlotte Elizabeth Bertie. When she was six years old she suffered the loss of her father and during this year she was also caught in a house fire, from which she escaped. Her mother later remarried the Reverend Peter William Pegus, (her first cousin) whom Charlotte disliked. She had two younger brothers and half-sisters. With time her mother slowly began to change from being an active woman to someone who retreated with illness. It is during this time that Charlotte began to take over for her mother in the running of the house. It appears that she particularly enjoyed the refuge of the garden and with time she developed a dislike for being kept inside. Furthermore, at the age of nineteen she had to continually apologise for her family's actions. Ever since she was young she had a keen interest in politics and keenly expressed her views on topics that she had formed an opinion on. Charlotte showed a great aptitude for languages and literature. She taught herself
Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
,
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
, and
Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
as well as studying Latin, Greek, French and Italian with her brothers' tutor. From looking at Lady Charlotte's life it is clear that her life was structured, as she was someone who rose early and apparently despised laziness. Lady Charlotte's upbringing met the standards that society had held for her class. She learnt various skills, such as singing and dancing. As she came from an aristocratic family, the Berties, attending public school was not a success; with some members of the family being bullied, for example Lindsey, who was swiftly removed from school; his education thenceforth being supplied by a tutor. Lady Charlotte did not have any close friends and if any she was closest to the O’Brien sisters.


Career


Dedication to education

The first national working-class movement in the world, Chartism, helped Lady Charlotte understand that there was a need for "closer involvement in practical work for the people of Dowlais". Many of the wealthier people during the 19th century helped develop educational and leisure facilities for the people who worked for them: this is something that the Guests also did. With the backing of her cousin, Henry Layard, Lady Charlotte eventually focused her efforts on providing education in Dowlais. Despite her sex, a great disadvantage in that day in public affairs, Lady Charlotte managed to propagate her ideas and implement many of her educational developments. Lady Charlotte was very dedicated in her work and routinely visited schools. In addition, she used to give out prizes and otherwise encourage students. She also supplied schools with materials for needlework and arranged for the purchase of requisite teaching supplies. She supported schools in Swansea and
Llandaff Llandaff (; cy, Llandaf ; from 'church' and ''River Taff, Taf'') is a district, Community (Wales), community and coterminous electoral ward in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It was incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of ...
, as well as Dowlais. The Dowlais school is described as "probably the most important and most progressive not only in the industrial history of South Wales, but of the whole of Britain during the nineteenth century." Her dedication to trying to improve education can also be seen in the library that was constructed in the mid-1840s. Originally there was a subscription fee of 1s 6d, however this was later changed in 1853 and it became a public library.


Dowlais Ironworks

Dowlais Ironworks The Dowlais Ironworks was a major ironworks and steelworks located at Dowlais near Merthyr Tydfil, in Wales. Founded in the 18th century, it operated until the end of the 20th, at one time in the 19th century being the largest steel producer in ...
was a major 19th-century ironworks located near Merthyr Tydfil, one of the four main ironworks around Merthyr – the other three were Cyfarthfa, Plymouth and Penydarren Ironworks. Charlotte Guest took assisted management of Dowlais Ironworks after the death of her husband John Guest in 1852. She along with G. T. Clark and Edward Divett would become executors and trustees of the Ironworks. As a result of this Lady Guest would be sole trustee while a widow but she remarried in 1855 to Charles Schreiber and de facto control fell to Clark although there are reports that she gave up running the iron works, and instead travelled and assembled an impressive ceramics collection.


Publications

Guest arrived in Wales already expert in seven languages. She learnt Welsh, and associated with leading literary scholars of the Abergavenny Welsh Society Cymdeithas Cymreigyddion y Fenni, notably including Thomas Price, and
John Jones (Tegid) John Jones (10 February 1792 in Wales, 1792 – 2 May 1852 in Wales, 1852), commonly known by his bardic name of Ioan Tegid or simply Tegid, was a Wales, Welsh clergyman and writer. He was born at Bala, Gwynedd, Bala and educated there and a ...
who supported and encouraged her in her work. Villemarqué had an initially cordial relationship with her about Breton sources, but then plagiarised her work. She translated several mediaeval songs and poems, then in 1837 she began on the ''Mabinogion''. John Jones (Tegid) borrowed a copy of the Llyfr Coch Hergest manuscript for her from Judge Bosanquet, who had originally commissioned him to transcribe a copy when Tegid was a young scholar at Oxford. The first tale Charlotte translated from Tegid's transcription was "The Lady of the Fountain" or "Owain," which was well received when published in 1838. Some characters from the tales had been profiled in William Owen Pughe's ''
Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales ''The Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales'' is a printed collection of medieval Welsh literature, published in three volumes by the Gwyneddigion Society between 1801 and 1807. Until John Gwenogvryn Evans produced diplomatic editions of the important m ...
''. Pughe published a translation of the first episode of Pwyll, from the First Branch, in 1795, and again in 1821. He made a complete translation of all the tales, but the work was unpublished at his death in 1835. Guest did not rely on Pughe's translations, though she did use a Welsh dictionary Pughe had completed in 1803. The Charlotte Guest ''Mabinogion'' became the first translation of the material to be published in modern print format. It was published in seven volumes between 1838 and 1845, with the first volumes dedicated to Guest's favourite
Arthurian King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...
material. In 1849 the work was republished in three volumes: Volume I contained the Welsh Romances '' Owain'', '' Peredur'', and ''
Geraint and Enid Geraint () is a character from Welsh folklore and Arthurian legend, a valiant warrior possibly related to the historical Geraint, an early 8th-century king of Dumnonia. It is also the name of a 6th-century Dumnonian saint king from Briton h ...
''; Volume II contained ''
Culhwch ac Olwen ''Culhwch and Olwen'' ( cy, Culhwch ac Olwen) is a Welsh tale that survives in only two manuscripts about a hero connected with Arthur and his warriors: a complete version in the Red Book of Hergest, c. 1400, and a fragmented version in the Whit ...
'' and '' The Dream of Rhonabwy''. Volume III contained the ''
Four Branches of the Mabinogi The ''Four Branches of the Mabinogi'' or ''Pedair Cainc Y Mabinogi'' are the earliest prose stories in the literature of Britain. Originally written in Wales in Middle Welsh, but widely available in translations, the ''Mabinogi'' is generally agre ...
'' and ''
Taliesin Taliesin ( , ; 6th century AD) was an early Brittonic poet of Sub-Roman Britain whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the '' Book of Taliesin''. Taliesin was a renowned bard who is believed to have sung at the courts ...
''. ''Geraint and Enid'' in Volume I was the basis for Alfred, Lord Tennyson's two poems about Geraint in the '' Idylls of the King''. The seven volume series 1838–45, and the three volume set 1849, were all bilingual, presenting Tegid's transcribed Welsh text, and Guest's English translation. They included copious scholarly footnotes, mainly in English, totalling 145 pages in all. They were lavishly produced, with full illustrations, and gold tooled, leather covers. All volumes were published simultaneously in Llandovery, Wales by the Tonn Press, and by
Longmans Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publishing company founded in London, England, in 1724 and is owned by Pearson PLC. Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman brand is also ...
of London. The next edition in 1877 was the English translation only, and this became the standard edition which was to become so very well known.


The name 'Mabinogion'

The name ''Mabinogion'' for these stories is often incorrectly thought to begin with Guest but it was already in use in the late 18th century cf. Pughe 1795 and his circle in the London Welsh Societies. The name was derived from a mediaeval copyist mistake where a single instance of the word ''mabynnogyon'' looks like a plural for the term 'mabinogi;' but 'mabinogi' is already a Welsh plural. The meaning ''Mabinogi'' is obscure, but it clearly roots in the word 'mab' for son, child, young person: this is to be seen in the naming convention 'son of' in genealogies. Beyond that scholars have no consensus. As a title the 'Mabinogi' properly applies to only the
Four Branches of the Mabinogi The ''Four Branches of the Mabinogi'' or ''Pedair Cainc Y Mabinogi'' are the earliest prose stories in the literature of Britain. Originally written in Wales in Middle Welsh, but widely available in translations, the ''Mabinogi'' is generally agre ...
. These are not just four stories, as each contains at least three tales, but they are formally referred to as four tales out of the eleven which comprise the standardised Mabinogion collection, post-Guest. Guest's own collection included twelve stories, adding in the Hanes Taliesin which is subsequently omitted by other scholars, as it is not found in the Llyfr Coch Hergest, or the Llyfr Gwyn Rhydderch, like the rest. In 2007 the leading modern scholar of the field, John Bollard, challenged the validity of the Mabinogion collection, saying that apart from the Four Branches of the Mabinogi which are coherent, the stories have little in common with each other except that they are prose fictions surviving in the same mediaeval manuscripts.


Personal life

During her life she had many suitors. At one point Herbert Marsh was considered as a possible suitor. She made friends with the learned men of the time and almost married (the future Prime Minister) Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881), who was attracted to her intelligence. Furthermore, her first love is believed to have been Augustus O’Brien whom she had met at the age of fourteen, something which was later described as the best day of her life. However, this relationship was doomed as her mother was entirely against her daughter being bound to the son of a local squire, even going as far as to claim that she would sooner see her daughter in a grave than married to Augustus.


First marriage

After the brief flirtation with Disraeli, she escaped her unhappy home life through marriage in 1833, at the age of twenty-one. Her husband, John Josiah Guest, was a prominent industrialist and
ironmaster An ironmaster is the manager, and usually owner, of a forge or blast furnace for the processing of iron. It is a term mainly associated with the period of the Industrial Revolution, especially in Great Britain. The ironmaster was usually a large ...
(owner of the Dowlais Iron Company, the largest of its day) and the first Member of Parliament from the town of Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. He was much older than she was; 49 to her 21. The couple married on 29 July 1833 and moved to a newly built mansion in Dowlais in Merthyr Tydfil. Though Guest was
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
for Merthyr, extremely wealthy, and of good family, he was much lower in status than his aristocratic wife, which caused her significant social strain. Despite this they remained married until his death in 1852, and Charlotte was mainly very happy in her marriage. She bore ten children: * Charlotte Maria Guest (1834–1902), who married Richard Du Cane (d. 1904), brother of Edmund Frederick Du Cane. * Ivor Bertie Guest (1835–1914), who married Lady Cornelia Henrietta Maria Spencer-Churchill (1847–1927), daughter of John Spencer-Churchill, 7th Duke of MarlboroughJohn (2004) * Katharine Gwladys Guest (1837–1926), who married the Reverend Frederick Cecil Alderson (d. 1907), son of Sir Edward Hall Alderson * Thomas Merthyr Guest (1838–1904), who married the writer and philanthropist Lady Theodora Grosvenor (1840–1924), daughter of Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster * Montague John Guest (1839–1909), a Liberal politician, who never married. * Augustus Frederick Guest (1840–1862), who died aged 21. * Arthur Edward Guest (1841–1898), a
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
politician, who married Adeline Mary Chapman (d. 1931) * Mary Enid Evelyn Guest (1843–1912), who married Sir Austen Henry Layard (1817–1894). * Constance Rhiannon Guest (1844–1916), who married Hon. Charles George Cornwallis Eliot (1839–1901), youngest son of
Edward Eliot, 3rd Earl of St Germans Edward Granville Eliot, 3rd Earl of St Germans (29 August 1798 – 7 October 1877; styled Lord Elliot from 1823 to 1845) was a British politician and diplomat. Background and education St Germans was born in Plymouth, Devon, the son of Willia ...
* Blanche Vere Guest (1847–1919), who married
Edward Ponsonby, 8th Earl of Bessborough Memorial in the chapel at Stansted Park Edward Ponsonby, 8th Earl of Bessborough, (1 March 1851 – 1 December 1920), known as Viscount Duncannon from 1895 until 1906, was a British peer. Background Ponsonby was the eldest son of Reverend ...
(1851–1920). She took an enthusiastic interest in her husband's philanthropic activities on behalf of the local community, and they built pioneering schools for their workers, as well as piping in clean water for their cottages when this was still a very new technology. She was increasingly trusted by her husband as his assistant at the ironworks, and she acted as his representative for the company. She translated technical documents from French. John Guest was created a
baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...
in 1838, due in no small part to his wife's social engineering. The decline of Josiah's health meant that Charlotte spent more time administering the business and took it over completely following his death in 1852. She negotiated strikes and a slump, and stood up to other foundry owners, stabilising the business until in 1855 she could hand on the business to her eldest son, Ivor, and the manager G. T. Clark. Guest, with her contemporary and friend Lady Llanover, was a patron of the arts in Wales. Her ''Enid'' was a literary influence on Tennyson, and her theories and sources influenced European artists, poets and writers. She published, promoted and translated of the books of ''The Mabinogion'', with her 1877 single volume edition of the English translation being adopted as part of the Everyman series in 1902. Further editions were published during the 20th century. In 2004 the work was published online by the Gutenberg project, and in 2008 Colin Jones published recordings with music. Modern translations of ''The Mabinogion'' include John Bollard's series (2007–2010) and that of Sioned Davies (2008).


Second marriage

Charlotte then married
Charles Schreiber Charles Schreiber (10 May 1826 – 31 March 1884) was an English academic, fine arts collector and Conservative Party politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1865 and 1884. Early life Schreiber was born at Colchester, the eldest son ...
(10 May 1826 – 31 March 1884) a classical scholar who had recently been her sons' tutor, and who was 14 years her junior. The difference in status and age created a major social scandal and set her apart from many of her former close friends such as Augusta Hall. However, with her experienced political support, her new husband became a member of parliament for Cheltenham and later Poole. They spent many years travelling in Europe collecting ceramics which she bequeathed to the
Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
. She also collected
fans Fan commonly refers to: * Fan (machine), a machine for producing airflow, often used for cooling ** Hand fan, an implement held and waved by hand to move air for cooling * Fan (person), short for fanatic; an enthusiast or supporter, especially wit ...
,
board game Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well. Many board games feature a co ...
s and
playing card A playing card is a piece of specially prepared card stock, heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic that is marked with distinguishing motifs. Often the front (face) and back of each card has a f ...
s, which were later donated to the
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
. In 1884, Guest was again widowed, but lived on to an advanced age. In her last few years, she became blind, but used the last of her eyesight to knit scarves for cabbies. She was finally unable to continue the journal she had written almost without a break since she was 10 years old. On 15 January 1895, she died at the age of 82 at Canford Manor in Dorset.


Descendants

Among her many grandchildren were: Edward Ponsonby, the 8th Earl of Bessborough, Granville Eliot (1867–1942) and Montague Eliot (1870–1960), who became the 7th and 8th Earls of St Germans, respectively.Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990 There was also Frances Guest (1869–1957), known as Lady Chelmsford, who married Frederic Thesiger, 1st Viscount Chelmsford, who served as
Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...
, Ivor Churchill Guest (1873–1939), who became 1st Viscount Wimborne,
Christian Henry Charles Guest Lieutenant-Colonel Christian Henry Charles Guest (15 February 1874 – 9 October 1957), usually known as Henry Guest, was a Liberal Party politician in the United Kingdom. Family He was the second son of Ivor Guest, 1st Baron Wimborne and his wi ...
(1874–1957), a
Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
"MP", Frederick "Freddie" Edward Guest (1875–1937), another Liberal MP, and Oscar Montague Guest (1888–1958), who was both a Liberal, and later, a
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
MP. Among her other descendants are the American Guests (the late socialite C. Z. Guest was the wife of one of these), the
Earls of Bessborough Earl of Bessborough is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1739 for Brabazon Ponsonby, 2nd Viscount Duncannon, who had previously represented Newtownards and County Kildare in the Irish House of Commons. In 1749, he was given t ...
, the Viscounts Chelmsford, and others.


Publications

* Schreiber, Charlotte, Lady
''Playing Cards of Various Ages and Countries Volume III Swiss, Swedish, Russian, Polish, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese''
(London, England; John Murray, 1895) * Schreiber, Charlotte
''Lady Charlotte Schreiber's Journals: Confidences of a Collector of Ceramics and Antiques throughout Britain, France, Holland, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Austria and Germany from the year 1869–1885''
(London and New York: John Lane, 1911), edited by Montague John Guest. *Guest, R. and John, A. (1989), ''Lady Charlotte: A Biography of the 19th Century'', United Kingdom: Weidenfeld and Nicolson


References


Further reading

* Jones, David. "Lady Charlotte Guest: Victorian Businesswoman" ''History Today'' (1973) 23#1 pp 38–45. * Marsh, Katherine

From The Camelot Project at the
University of Rochester The University of Rochester (U of R, UR, or U of Rochester) is a private university, private research university in Rochester, New York. The university grants Undergraduate education, undergraduate and graduate degrees, including Doctorate, do ...


Retrieved 3 April 2007. * ''Schreiber, Lady Charlotte Guest''. Biography from ''British Authors of the 19th Century''; H. W. Wilson Company. 1936. * *John, A. V. (2004)
Guest, Sir (Josiah) John, first baronet (1785–1852)
, ''
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'', Oxford University Press, accessed 25 August 2007 .


External links

* * * *
BBC Wales History – Lady Charlotte Guest




{{DEFAULTSORT:Guest, Charlotte 1812 births 1895 deaths Arthurian scholars English translators Daughters of British earls Wives of baronets Mabinogion People from Uffington, Lincolnshire Welsh literature Welsh–English translators Bertie family Charlotte Women of the Victorian era 19th-century British translators 19th-century Welsh businesspeople Taliesin British ironmasters Welsh industrialists 19th-century British businesswomen