Lady Catherine’s solution to the Elizabeth problem: To tell Darcy that the girl is determined to marry him. October 2, 1812 Lady Catherine de Bourgh sat very straight in her seat in the chaise. Her always formidable mouth was compressed into an angry, thin line, and there were patchy spots of red on her cheeks. …
No wedding clothes for Lydia… August 31, 1812 Mrs. Gardiner entered her husband’s study quietly and glided across the room. Kissing him on the cheek, she pulled a chair up beside him and sat down. To her dismay, he looked even more tired and distracted than he had been for the past few weeks. “Thank …
Nobody spoke for a moment. At the sight of Mr. Collins standing in the doorway of Lord Byron’s apartments at the Palazzo Mocenigo, the persons assembled wore expressions ranging from surprise, horror, and pained disdain; but no one looked at all happy. Mr. Collins, who seemed the least distressed, was the first to speak. “Lady …
Lydia completely fails to repent before her wedding… August 8, 1812 It was after breakfast that Mr. Gardiner was called away to consult with his man of business, Mr. Stone, and Lydia was wild with fear that he would take so long, that they would not reach St. Clement’s by eleven o’clock, when the wedding …
Mr. Wickham makes the town too hot to hold him… July 29, 1812 About a month after Lydia’s removal to Brighton, Mr. Wickham sauntered into a handsome suite attached to the Prince Regent’s palatial quarters in Marine Parade. It was not where a young officer of a common militia regiment might expect to be admitted, …
“Papa! Papa!” shrieked Allegra. The pretty little three year old girl, her father’s dimple in her chin and with sparkling eyes, propelled herself into Lord Byron’s arms. “Gently, gently, mia cara. What? You are pleased to see Papa again? But you know I said you should.” “Will you stay with me this time, Papa?” “We …
Lord Byron had quite forgotten about his dinner invitation to the Darcys, as Shelley’s arrival had distracted him. They had not met in several years, and after warm greetings Shelley lost no time in freeing his mind about his first concern: the fate of Byron’s little daughter Allegra. The child’s mother, Claire Clairmont, lived with …
I’m just back from a trip to England – my first in a few years, since before pandemic, and the loss of my husband last year. Being in England again gave me a stunning feeling of recognition, of being reconnected to places and things I love dearly, and that bring joy. My son Paul and …
Wild with excitement, Lydia enters Brighton. May 21, 1812 Early on a bright morning in late May, a gay party left Meryton: the girls, Lydia and Mrs. Forster, with the latter’s little maid, traveled all day in Colonel Forster’s chaise, driven by a coachman, as the colonel rode with the regiment. By three o’clock they …
It’s Easter, and Mr. Darcy has still not proposed to Anne de Bourgh… March 29, 1812 The wished-for proposal did not come. The green sarsanet, the primrose silk, the floral printed gown with the fichu, were all cunningly constructed so to give Miss de Bourgh’s figure consequence, and accordingly worn with her best French ringlets …
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