Elizabeth Pakenham, Countess of Longford, (''née'' Harman; 30 August 1906 – 23 October 2002), better known as Elizabeth Longford, was a British historian. She was a member of the

Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 600 Fellows, ele ...

and was on the board of trustees of the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: *National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra *National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...

in London. She is best known as a historian, especially for her biographies of 19th-century aristocrats such as

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...

(1964),

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...

(1976) and the

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister o ...

(1969).

Early life

Elizabeth Harman was born on 30 August 1906 at 108 Harley Street in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it m ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. The daughter of eye specialist Nathaniel Bishop Harman, she was educated at the

Francis Holland School Francis Holland School is the name of two separate private day schools for girls in central London, England, governed by the Francis Holland ( Church of England) Schools Trust. The schools are located at Clarence Gate (near Regent's Park NW1 ...

Headington School Headington School is an independent girls' school in Headington, Oxford, England, founded by a group of evangelical Christians in 1915. The '' Good Schools Guide'' called Headington "A delightful school, hichnurtures and entertains its pupils ...

and was an undergraduate at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. "Able, articulate and beautiful", in the words of ''The New York Times'', she was "the Zuleika Dobson of her day, with undergraduates and even dons tumbling over one another to fall in love with her". A few years after her graduation, on 3 November 1931, she married Frank Pakenham, later 7th

Earl of Longford Earl of Longford is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Ireland. History The title was first bestowed upon Francis Aungier, 3rd Baron Aungier of Longford, in 1677, with remainder to his younger brother Ambrose. He had previ ...

, who died in August 2001. Her obituary by the BBC said the marriage was "famously harmonious." ''The New York Times'', in its review of ''The Pebbled Shore'', called Lady Longford "easily the best writer in what is predominantly a literary family". She and her husband were both devout Roman Catholic converts, Lady Longford having been raised a

Unitarian Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to: Christian and Christian-derived theologies A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism: * Unitarianism (1565–present ...

, and avid social reformers. The Longfords had eight children, among them the writers

Lady Antonia Fraser Lady Antonia Margaret Caroline Fraser, (' Pakenham; born 27 August 1932) is a British author of history, novels, biographies and detective fiction. She is the widow of the 2005 Nobel Laureate in Literature, Harold Pinter (1930–2008), and p ...

, Lady Rachel Billington, Judith Kazantzis, and Thomas Pakenham. Her brother, John B. Harman, was a physician; his daughter is Labour politician

Harriet Harman Harriet Ruth Harman (born 30 July 1950) is a British politician and solicitor who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Camberwell and Peckham, formerly Peckham, since 1982. A member of the Labour Party, she has served in various Ca ...

. Lady Longford was a great-niece of the politician

Joseph Chamberlain Joseph Chamberlain (8 July 1836 – 2 July 1914) was a British statesman who was first a radical Liberal, then a Liberal Unionist after opposing home rule for Ireland, and eventually served as a leading imperialist in coalition with the ...

and a first cousin once removed of the British prime minister

Neville Chamberlain Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician of the Conservative Party who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. He is best known for his foreign policy of appeasem ...

Political career

She made several unsuccessful attempts to win election to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

as a Labour MP. In

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * January 12 – Amelia Earhart bec ...

she contested Cheltenham, which was a safely

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

seat, and in 1950 she was defeated by Quintin Hogg at

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the Un ...

. Through the war she had sought selection at Birmingham King's Norton until she felt compelled to cease her candidacy upon her sixth pregnancy in 1944; the seat was a Labour gain in 1945 by 12,000 votes.

Death

Longford died on 23 October 2002, aged 96, at Bernhurst in Hurst Green, East Sussex.

Publications

* '' Victoria R.I.'' (1964) Awarded the

James Tait Black Memorial Prize The James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are literary prizes awarded for literature written in the English language. They, along with the Hawthornden Prize, are Britain's oldest literary awards. Based at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, U ...

* '' Wellington: The Years of the Sword'' (1969) and '' Wellington: Pillar Of State'' (1972), a two-volume biography of the

first Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...

, who numbered among her husband's relatives. * '' The Royal House of Windsor'' (1974) * '' Winston Churchill'' (1974) * * ''Byron'' (1976) * ''A Pilgrimage of Passion: The Life of

Wilfrid Scawen Blunt Wilfrid Scawen Blunt (17 August 1840 – 10 September 1922), sometimes spelt Wilfred, was an English poet and writer. He and his wife Lady Anne Blunt travelled in the Middle East and were instrumental in preserving the Arabian horse bloodlines ...

'' (1979) ( I.B. Tauris, re-issued 2007) * * '' Jameson's Raid'' (1982) * ''Elizabeth R: A Biography'' (1983) * * *

References

Citations

Bibliography

External links

"Lady Longford dies aged 96"
BBC News, 2002
Elizabeth Longford
, obituary by ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ...

''
"Elizabeth Longford (Elizabeth, Countess of Longford)"
Fellows Remembered, The Royal Society of Literature {{DEFAULTSORT:Longford, Elizabeth Pakenham, Countess Of 1906 births 2002 deaths Alumni of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford British biographers English Roman Catholics Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Converts to Roman Catholicism British socialists People educated at Francis Holland School Elizabeth Historians of the Napoleonic Wars James Tait Black Memorial Prize recipients 20th-century British historians British women historians Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Labour Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Wives of knights Women biographers Spouses of life peers