Jenny Louise Hengler (later Jenny Kamienski, born 23 March 1849 – 16 April 1935) was a British equestrian performer at her family's Hengler's Circus. She rose to be the star performer before she moved to

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territor ...

in the 1880s.

Life

Hengler was born in

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre ...

Her parents were Mary Ann Frances (born Sprake) and Frederick Charles Hengler. Her paternal great-grandfather was circus performer Michael Hengler (died 1802), was a rider and performer in

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

, who moved to England. Other relatives also performed in circuses. Her great grandmother was

Sarah Hengler Sarah Hengler (c.1765 – 9 October 1845) was a British businesswoman, pyrotechnist and firework artist. She was one of the "Fire Queens" of Vauxhall Gardens. Early and personal life Sarah Hengler was born in Surrey, England c. 1765. She was th ...

, known professionally as Madame Hengler, a leading fireworks pyrotechnist at

Vauxhall Vauxhall ( ) is a district in South West London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. Vauxhall was part of Surrey until 1889 when the County of London was created. Named after a medieval manor, "Fox Hall", it became well known for ...

and

Ranelagh Pleasure Gardens Ranelagh Gardens (; alternative spellings include Ranelegh and Ranleigh, the latter reflecting the English pronunciation) were public pleasure gardens located in Chelsea, then just outside London, England, in the 18th century. History The Ran ...

, Astley’s Circus and many high profile outdoor public entertainments. Her father was not a performer per se but he started the Hengler's Circus in 1847. The circus moved to the first of several permanent buildings in 1857. The first was in Liverpool and others followed over the next 15 years. She was soon a performer and by 1857 she is recorded as appearing in a Bradford pantomime. She was renowned for the quality of her riding which was regarded as a touchstone when judging how others rode. Her beauty was also widely acknowledged. In 1871 she was on the cover of the

Illustrated Newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sport ...

. She became the star of the London location in 1873. The following year she married Waldemar Alexander Oscar Kamienski on 6 May 1874. Her husband had been a rider with the circus since 1869 and was said to be a Polish Count. He rode and performed at Hengler's Circus under the name "Alexander Oscar". She never appeared again at her family's circus venues but in 1882 she performed at Hengler's International Circus in Newcastle upon Tyne. Sometime in the 1880s they went to America where they had a house at Astoria, Long Island. Her husband organised horse riding at Beretta College. She was reported to have returned to England in 1892 to attend her sister's wedding. She and her husband had three children, Walter, Albert, and Beatrice. By the time of the

1901 United Kingdom census The United Kingdom Census 1901 was the 11th nationwide census conducted in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and was done on 31st March 1901 "relating to the persons returned as living at midnight on Sunday, March 31st". The total ...

, she was a widow. She died in

Paddington Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Padd ...

on 16 April 1935, at the age of 86.

Legacy

A pub in Glasgow in

Sauchiehall Street Sauchiehall Street () is one of the main shopping streets in the city centre of Glasgow, Scotland, along with Buchanan Street and Argyle Street. Although commonly associated with the city centre, Sauchiehall Street is over in length. At its ...

is named "The Hengler's Circus" after the family's circus. Jenny Hengler features in a number of the information boards inside.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hengler, Jenny 1849 births 1935 deaths 19th-century English women 19th-century English people British circus performers English female equestrians People from Lewes