Louisa Florence Durrell (; 16 January 1886 – 24 January 1964), was a British woman born in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

during the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

. She was the mother of Lawrence, Leslie, Margo and Gerry Durrell. She was featured in Gerald Durrell's autobiographical Corfu trilogy, which tells about the Durrells' years in

Corfu Corfu ( , ) or Kerkyra (, ) is a Greece, Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands; including its Greek islands, small satellite islands, it forms the margin of Greece's northwestern frontier. The island is part of the Corfu (regio ...

from 1935 to 1939 in a somewhat fictionalized way.

Biography

Louisa Florence Dixie was born in 1886 to an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

family in

Roorkee Roorkee (Rūṛkī; ) is a city and Municipal Corporations in India, municipal corporation in the Haridwar district of the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is from Haridwar, the district headquarters. It is spread over a flat terrain under the ...

, where her family were colonials in the years of the British Raj. Her father, George Dixie, was the head clerk and accountant of the Ganges Canal Foundry. In India, she met and married

Lawrence Samuel Durrell Lawrence Samuel Durrell (23 September 1884 – 16 April 1928) was a British engineer. He was the father of novelist Lawrence Durrell and naturalist and writer Gerald Durrell. Early life Durrell was born in Dum Dum, north of Calcutta (presen ...

, an English engineer also born in India. Together, they travelled all over India for Lawrence's engineering work. They had three sons and two daughters, one of whom died in infancy. Their second child, Margery Ruth, was born in November 1915 and died from

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...

in April 1916. The surviving children were Lawrence (Larry), Leslie, Margaret (Margo), and Gerald (Gerry). Louisa was described as an anxious mother, shunning social contact just to be with her children during their formative years. Louisa was actively interested in

spiritualism Spiritualism may refer to: * Spiritual church movement, a group of Spiritualist churches and denominations historically based in the African-American community * Spiritualism (beliefs), a metaphysical belief that the world is made up of at leas ...

and

cookery Cooking, also known as cookery or professionally as the culinary arts, is the art, science and craft of using heat to make food more palatable, digestible, nutritious, or safe. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely, from grilling ...

. She was unusual for mingling with

ns, more than many colonials, to learn of local spirits and cuisine. She did not conform to the views of her time regarding the segregation of social groups. Her husband died of a brain tumour in 1928 in

Dalhousie, India Dalhousie () is a hill station, near town of Chamba in Chamba district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is situated on five hills and has an elevation of above sea level. Etymology Dalhousie Town was named after The Earl of Dalho ...

, when she was 42, and Louisa decided to move her family to England. She left India with her family under dire circumstances. They settled in

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

in 1932. She bought a house in the area and named it Dixie Lodge. She moved again in 1935 with her eldest son, Lawrence, and his new wife, Nancy, to the island of

, taking her other children with her. Her youngest son, Gerald, wrote memoirs about this formative period of his childhood on Corfu, where flora and fauna abounded. He portrayed his mother as the family's well-meaning but slightly eccentric matriarch in what is known as the Corfu trilogy: ''

My Family and Other Animals ''My Family and Other Animals'' (1956) is an autobiography, autobiographical book by British naturalist Gerald Durrell. It tells in an exaggerated and sometimes fictionalised way of the years that he lived as a child with his siblings and wid ...

'' (1956), '' Birds, Beasts and Relatives'' (1969), and '' The Garden of the Gods'' (1978). In June 1939, before the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Louisa returned to England. After the war, she lived for periods with her daughter Margaret, who had a boarding house in

, as well as with Gerald at his home at the

Jersey Zoo Jersey Zoo (formerly Durrell Wildlife Park) is a zoological park established in 1959 on the island of Jersey in the English Channel by naturalist and writer Gerald Durrell. It is operated by the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust. In 2023, th ...

, founded with the proceeds from his books. Louisa died in Bournemouth in 1964 at the age of 78.

Representation in other media

Gerald Durrell's trilogy has been adapted several times for British TV and radio series. Louisa was portrayed by

Hannah Gordon Hannah Campbell Grant Gordon
Film reference website (born 9 April 1941) is a Scottish actress and presenter ...

in the 1987

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

TV series ''

'', by

Imelda Staunton Dame Imelda Mary Philomena Bernadette Staunton (born 9 January 1956) is an English actress and singer. After training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Staunton began her career in repertory theatre in 1976 and appeared in various theatre pr ...

in the 2005 BBC adaptation, by

Celia Imrie Celia Diana Savile Imrie (born 15 July 1952) is a British actress and author. She is best known for her film roles, including the '' Bridget Jones'' film series, '' Calendar Girls'' (2003), '' Nanny McPhee'' (2005), '' The Best Exotic Marigold ...

in the 2010 two-part BBC Radio drama, and by

Keeley Hawes Clare Julia Keeley Hawes (born 10 February 1976) is an English actress. After beginning her career in a number of literary adaptations, including '' Our Mutual Friend'' (1998) and '' Tipping the Velvet'' (2002), Hawes rose to fame for her portray ...

in the 2016–2019 ITV drama '' The Durrells''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Durrell, Louisa Florence 1886 births 1964 deaths Louisa People from Roorkee British people in colonial India