Mary Matilda Betham, known by family and friends as Matilda Betham (16 November 1776 – 30 September 1852), was an English diarist, poet, woman of letters, and miniature portrait painter. She exhibited at the

Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

from 1804 to 1816. Her first of four books of verses was published in 1797. For six years, she researched notable historical women around the world and published ''A Biographical Dictionary of the Celebrated Women of Every Age and Country'' in 1804.

Early life

Betham was the eldest of 14 children born to Rev.

William Betham William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...

Stonham Aspal Stonham Aspal is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England, some five miles (8 km) east of the town of Stowmarket. Nearby villages include Mickfield, Little Stonham and Pettaugh. Its population in ...

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

and Mary Damant of

Eye, Suffolk Eye () is a market town and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district, in the north of the English county of Suffolk, about south of Diss, Norfolk, Diss, north of Ipswich and south-west of Norwich. The population in the 2011 census of 2,154 ...

. Her father researched and published books on royal and English baronetage genealogy. He was also a schoolmaster and the Anglican rector of

Stoke Lacy Stoke Lacy is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Herefordshire. Stoke Lacy lies on the main A465 road that connects Hereford and Bromyard and is from the former and from the latter. History The village lies in the ve ...

Herefordshire Herefordshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England, bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh ...

. Betham was baptised on 1 January 1777 and raised in

. She is said to have had a happy childhood marred by poor health. She was largely self-educated in her father's library, but gleaned from it and his occasional tutelage an interest in history and literature. She claimed that a key loss of not having attending a school was that she did not learn the art of defending herself. From a young age, Betham would recite poetry and read of plays and history voraciously. She was sent out for sewing lessons "to prevent my too strict application to books."''The Feminist Companion to Literature in English'', eds Virginia Blain, Patricia Clements and Isobel Grundy (London: Batsford, 1990), pp. 89–90. Betham learned to speak French during trips to London. Her younger brother was

William Betham (1779–1853) Sir William Betham (1779–1853) was an English-born Irish herald and antiquarian who held the office of Ulster King of Arms from 1820 until his death in 1853. He had previously served as the Deputy Ulster from 1807 to 1820. He was knighted in ...

. As the family grew, family furnishings were sold to support it, and although she was not pushed out of the home, Betham felt the need to support herself and taught herself to paint miniature portraits. It was during a trip to her Uncle Edward Beetham in London that she was inspired to pursue painting and explore her literary talents. The family lived in a centre of literary and artistic activity. While visiting the Beethams she met the artist

John Opie John Opie (16 May 1761 – 9 April 1807) was a British painter whose subjects included many prominent men and women of his day, members of the British royal family and others who were notable in the artistic and literary professions. Early ca ...

, who was instructing her cousin, Jane Beetham, and received lessons from him during her stay. Betham was also encouraged to explore her literary talents by her uncle, who was a publisher. She studied with

William Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poetry, Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romanticism, Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Balla ...

and Italian with Agostino Isola in Cambridge in 1796.

Adulthood

In 1797, Betham wrote ''Elegies, and Other Small Poems'', which included Italian poems translated into English and ''Arthur & Albina'', a Druid ballad. She received a tribute for this from

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge ( ; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets with his friend William Wordsworth ...

, who wrote ''To Matilda from a Stranger'' in 1802, comparing her to

Sappho Sappho (; ''Sapphṓ'' ; Aeolic Greek ''Psápphō''; ) was an Ancient Greek poet from Eresos or Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. Sappho is known for her lyric poetry, written to be sung while accompanied by music. In ancient times, Sapph ...

and encouraging her to continue writing poetry.} Others who encouraged her were Lady Charlotte Bedingfield and her family. Betham painted pleasant, delicate portraits, which she exhibited at the

from 1804 to 1816 as a way to be financially independent from her parents who had many children to raise. Among the dozens of exhibited portraits were those of the Harriot Beauclerk, Duchess of St Albans, the poet George Dyer, Countess of Dysart, and Betham's father and other family members. In 1804, she published ''A Biographical Dictionary of the Celebrated Women of Every Age and Country'', the culmination of six years of research. It included short biographies of

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cr ...

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

, East Indian Bowanny,

Madame Roland Marie-Jeanne "Manon" Roland de la Platière (Paris, March 17, 1754 – Paris, November 8, 1793), born Marie-Jeanne Phlipon, and best known under the name Madame RolandOccasionally, she is referred to as Dame Roland. This however is the except ...

, and other notable historical women from around the world. Four years later she published her second book of poetry. Betham was also a close friend of

Robert Southey Robert Southey (; 12 August 1774 – 21 March 1843) was an English poet of the Romantic poetry, Romantic school, and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate from 1813 until his death. Like the other Lake Poets, William Wordsworth an ...

and his wife, of

Anna Laetitia Barbauld Anna Laetitia Barbauld (, by herself possibly , as in French, Aikin; 20 June 1743 – 9 March 1825) was a prominent English poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, and author of children's literature. A prominent member of the Blue Stockings ...

and her husband, and of

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

and his sister

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

. Other acquaintances in that period were Opie, Frances Holcroft,

Hannah More Hannah More (2 February 1745 – 7 September 1833) was an English religious writer, philanthropist, poet, and playwright in the circle of Johnson, Reynolds and Garrick, who wrote on moral and religious subjects. Born in Bristol, she taught at ...

Germaine de Staël Anne Louise Germaine de Staël-Holstein (; ; 22 April 176614 July 1817), commonly known as Madame de Staël ( ; ), was a prominent philosopher, woman of letters, and political theorist in both Parisian and Genevan intellectual circles. She was ...

, and

. She made portraits of the Coleridges and the Southeys and wrote a verse for the marriage of Emma Isola, an adopted daughter of Lamb, to

Edward Moxon Edward Moxon (12 December 1801 – 3 June 1858) was a British poet and publisher, significant in Victorian literature. Biography Moxon was born at Wakefield in Yorkshire, where his father Michael worked in the wool trade. In 1817 he lef ...

. Other works Betham published in magazines anonymously, while also giving public Shakespeare readings in London. Her best-received poem was ''Lay of Marie'' (1816), based upon the story of

Marie de France Marie de France (floruit, fl. 1160–1215) was a poet, likely born in France, who lived in England during the late 12th century. She lived and wrote at an unknown court, but she and her work were almost certainly known at the royal court of Kin ...

, the medieval poet, written in couplets, included a scholarly appendix, as recommended by Southey, who said she was "likely to be the best poetess of her age." However, Betham gave up her literary career and returned to the country after a series of aggravations, a breakdown of health, misfortunes, and family circumstances. For instance, advertisements to promote her book spelled her heroine's name Mario and misspelled her name, many printed books had become mildewed, and she was in financial distress as the result of the advertising and publication costs. She became destitute and tried to gain employment painting portraits, which was difficult because her clothing had become shabby. By 17 June 1819, Betham had been put in a mental asylum by her family after she had suffered a mental breakdown, but she was acting and conversing normally again in 1820. Betham stated that she had suffered a "nervous fever" after the hard work and emotional stress of getting ''Lay of Marie'' published, and that she felt she was unjustly put into an institution without examination or treatment. Betham moved to London on her release and kept her address a secret. George Dyer successfully applied for assistance for her from the

Royal Literary Fund The Royal Literary Fund (RLF) is a benevolent fund that gives assistance to published British writers in financial difficulties. Founded in 1790, and granted a royal charter in 1818, the Fund has helped an extensive roll of authors through its lon ...

, which had been established to aid authors in 1790 by David Williams. Betham championed women's rights, called for greater participation of women in parliamentary affairs, and wrote ''Challenge to Women, Being an Intended Address from Ladies of Different Parts of the Kingdom, Collectively to Caroline, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland'' to address charges levelled against Queen Carolina during her acrimonious marriage to

King George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

, calling for women to support her against state persecution and sign a petition on her behalf. Grave of Mary Matilda Betham in Highgate Cemetery

Betham was put into an asylum again in 1822 by her family. In the 1830s she lived with her parents in

Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...

. About 1836, Betham expressed sorrow at the death of several of her siblings in ''Sonnets and Verses, To Relations and their Connexions''. A tale of two poisoned men was published in ''Dramatic Sketch'' in 1836. The manuscript for ''Hermoden'', a play that she wrote in the late 1830s was lost and remains unpublished. She was reported to be studying at the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

in the 1830s. In her later years Betham returned to London. and maintained her friendships, love of literature, wit, and her entertaining conversation and presence. However, it was hard for her to make a living. She was unable to obtain promised assistance in getting her manuscript for ''Crow-quill Flights'' printed. Betham had been rebuked when she asked friends for copies of poems that she had given them. Some of her manuscripts were accidentally burned at Stonham. Betham died 30 September 1852 at 52 Burton Street in London, and was buried on the western side of

Highgate Cemetery Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in North London, England, designed by architect Stephen Geary. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East sides. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for so ...

with her eldest sister, Theresa, who had died a year earlier. Some of her letters, along with a biographical sketch, appear in ''Six Life Stories of Famous Women'' (1880) by her niece, the novelist Matilda Betham-Edwards, but Betham-Edwards also burnt many of Betham's letters. Edwards published a biography of her in ''Friendly Faces of Three Nationalities''.

Works

Literary

* * * * * * * * - sometimes attributed to Matilda Betham * *

Paintings

She exhibited the following paintings at the Royal Academy of Arts between 1804 and 1816: *''Miss Armstrong'', by 1808 *''F. F. Baker, Esq.,'' by 1805 *'' Harriot Beauclerk, Duchess of St Albans,'' by 1804 *''Miss B. Betham,'' by 1811 *''Miss E Betham,'' by 1806 *''Mrs. J. Betham,'' by 1816 *''Miss M. Betham,'' by 1805 *''Mr. R. G. Betham,'' by 1810 *''Mrs. R. G. Betham,'' by 1816 *''Rev. William Betham'', by 1810 *''Rev. William Betham'', by 1812 *''Mr. Boughton'', by 1806 *''Sir C. R. Boughton '', by 1806 *''Miss R. Boughton'', by 1807 *''Miss Rouse Boughton'', by 1805 *''Miss Chesshyre'', by 1806 *''Mr. Cromie'', by 1805 *''Miss A. Dove'', by 1816 *''Miss Duncan'', by 1810 *'' George Dyer'', poet, by 1807 *'' Countess of Dysart'', by 1804 *''Rt. Hon. Lady Fauconberg'', by 1806 *''Mr. Finucane'', by 1805 *''Gaiety,'' miniature, by 1808 *''Rt. Hon. Lady E. Gamon'', by 1807 *''Mrs. Colonel Gardner,'' by 1816 *''Miss M. Graham'', by 1807 *''Mr. Manners'', by 1804 *''Miss Manners'', by 1804 *''Portrait of a lady'', by 1807 *''Portrait of a lady'', by 1808 *''Portrait of Mr. de Venville, Mr. Southey the poet, and Messrs. C. and G. Betham,'' by 1808 *''Mrs. Pymar'', by 1812 *''Mr. Saxon'', by 1807 *''Self portrait,'' by 1810 *''Rev. P. Stockdale'', by 1811 *''Mrs. C. Thompson'', by 1807 *''Master F. Thompson'', by 1807 *''Lady Wilson'', by 1806

''The Dinner Party''

In 1804, the male sculptor

Kresilas Kresilas ( ''Krēsílas''; ) was a Greek sculptor in the Classical period (5th century BC), from Kydonia. He was trained in Argos and then worked in Athens at the time of the Peloponnesian War, as a follower of the idealistic portraiture of My ...

was mistakenly identified as a woman named Cresilla by Betham, who thought "she" had been placed third behind

Polykleitos Polykleitos (; ) was an ancient Greek sculptor, active in the 5th century BCE. Alongside the Athenian sculptors Pheidias, Myron and Praxiteles, he is considered as one of the most important sculptors of classical antiquity. The 4th century B ...

and

Phidias Phidias or Pheidias (; , ''Pheidias''; ) was an Ancient Greek sculptor, painter, and architect, active in the 5th century BC. His Statue of Zeus at Olympia was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Phidias also designed the statues of ...

in a competition to sculpt seven Amazons for the

Temple of Artemis at Ephesus The Temple of Artemis or Artemision (; ), also known as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to an ancient, localised form of the goddess Artemis (equated with the Roman goddess Diana). It was located in Ephesus (near the moder ...

. So Kresilas was mistakenly included in artist

Judy Chicago Judy Chicago (born Judith Sylvia Cohen; July 20, 1939) is an American feminist artist, art educator, and writer known for her large collaborative art installation pieces about birth and creation images, which examine the role of women in history ...

's symbolic history of women in Western civilization, ''

The Dinner Party ''The Dinner Party'' is an installation artwork by American feminist artist Judy Chicago. There are 39 elaborate place settings on a triangular table for 39 mythical and historical famous women. Sacajawea, Sojourner Truth, Eleanor of Aquitaine, ...

''.

Notes

References

External links

* *
(Mary) Matilda Betham
at th
Eighteenth-Century Poetry Archive (ECPA)
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Betham, Mary Matilda 1776 births 1852 deaths Artists from Suffolk Burials at Highgate Cemetery English women poets People from Stradbroke Writers from Suffolk English portrait miniaturists 18th-century English poets 18th-century English women writers 18th-century English writers 19th-century English painters 19th-century English poets 19th-century English women writers English biographers English women biographers 19th-century English biographers English women non-fiction writers 19th-century English women painters