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Alexandra Orr or Alexandra Leighton; Alexander Sutherland Orr; Mrs Sutherland Orr (23 November 1828 – 23 August 1903) was an
Orr had one sister, Augusta and an elder brother Frederic. Her parents were Augusta Susan and Frederic Septimus Leighton who was also a medical doctor. Her grandfather's dealing's in Russia gave his family financial independence.Christopher Newall, ‘Leighton, Frederic, Baron Leighton (1830–1896)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, May 200
accessed 30 April 2017
/ref> Alexandra, the Empress of Russia, was her godmother.Elizabeth Lee, ‘Orr , Alexandra (1828–1903)’, rev. Katharine Chubbuck, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 30 April 2017
/ref> She was educated as her family travelled in Europe. When she was sixteen she lost some of her sight due to rheumatic fever. After this she had to have books read to her and to use an amanuensis. In 1855 she had met her brother in Paris and she was introduced to his good friend, the poet,
In 1869 she and her parents were living in London. Orr's friends were interested in art and literature and she cemented her friendship with Robert Browning. Browning would read to her twice a week and she joined and donated money to the
Frederic Leighton, Retrieved 30 April 2017
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
biographer of Robert Browning
Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentary, historical settings ...
. She was a model for her brother Frederic Leighton
Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton, (3 December 1830 – 25 January 1896), known as Sir Frederic Leighton between 1878 and 1896, was a British painter, draughtsman, and sculptor. His works depicted historical, biblical, and classical subjec ...
in at least two paintings.
Life
Orr was born inSaint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
in 1828, because her paternal grandfather Sir James Boniface Leighton was Emperor Nicholas I of Russia
Nicholas I , group=pron ( – ) was List of Russian rulers, Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Congress Poland and Grand Duke of Finland. He was the third son of Paul I of Russia, Paul I and younger brother of his predecessor, Alexander I ...
's physician.
Orr had one sister, Augusta and an elder brother Frederic. Her parents were Augusta Susan and Frederic Septimus Leighton who was also a medical doctor. Her grandfather's dealing's in Russia gave his family financial independence.Christopher Newall, ‘Leighton, Frederic, Baron Leighton (1830–1896)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, May 200accessed 30 April 2017
/ref> Alexandra, the Empress of Russia, was her godmother.Elizabeth Lee, ‘Orr , Alexandra (1828–1903)’, rev. Katharine Chubbuck, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 30 April 2017
/ref> She was educated as her family travelled in Europe. When she was sixteen she lost some of her sight due to rheumatic fever. After this she had to have books read to her and to use an amanuensis. In 1855 she had met her brother in Paris and she was introduced to his good friend, the poet,
Robert Browning
Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentary, historical settings ...
.
She went to India as the wife of Sutherland George Gordon Orr who led the 3rd regiment of cavalry. They had married on 7 March 1857 so they arrived as the indian mutiny
The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...
took place. Sheikh Baran Bukh is given the credit for her survival. Her husband was involved in numerous operations where the British officers were trying to establish order with Indian troops. The mutiny led to her husband's death.
Hence known as Mrs Sutherland Orr she returned to her parents who were living in Sunderland or Bath. Her portrait by her brother Frederic Leighton
Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton, (3 December 1830 – 25 January 1896), known as Sir Frederic Leighton between 1878 and 1896, was a British painter, draughtsman, and sculptor. His works depicted historical, biblical, and classical subjec ...
was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1861.
In 1869 she and her parents were living in London. Orr's friends were interested in art and literature and she cemented her friendship with Robert Browning. Browning would read to her twice a week and she joined and donated money to the Browning Society
Browning societies were groups who met to discuss the works of Robert Browning. Emerging from various reading groups, the societies indicated the poet's fame, and unusually were forming in his lifetime.Murray, H. (2002) ''Come, bright improvemen ...
. Encouraged by the society she created a ''Handbook to the Works of Robert Browning'' assisted by advice from the animal artist John Trivett Nettleship
John Trivett Nettleship (11 February 1841 – 31 August
1902) was an English artist, known as a painter of animals and in particular lions. He was also an author and book illustrator.
Life
He was born in Kettering, Northamptonshire on 11 Februar ...
.
She was given access to Browning's letters by his sister and in 1891 she published ''Life and Letters of Robert Browning''. The following year she re-published what became the sixth edition of ''Handbook to the Works of Robert Browning'' which contained her corrections.
Orr published other smaller works including a description of the Browning's religious beliefs and articles against the proposal of Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...
. Her essay on ''The Future of English Women'' caused much debate and caused Millicent Fawcett
Dame Millicent Garrett Fawcett (née Garrett; 11 June 1847 – 5 August 1929) was an English politician, writer and feminist. She campaigned for women's suffrage by legal change and in 1897–1919 led Britain's largest women's rights associati ...
to publish ''The Future of Englishwomen: A reply''. Orr died at what had been her parents house at 11 Kensington Park Gardens
Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West of Central London.
The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensington Gar ...
on 23 August 1903.
Legacy
Her brother's house became the Leighton Museum at her insistence. Her portraits are in the National Portrait Gallery in London. An 1892 portrait by her brother is at Leighton Museum.Sutherland Orr in 1892Frederic Leighton, Retrieved 30 April 2017
References
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Orr, Alexandra English biographers Women biographers 1828 births 1903 deaths 19th-century English women writers