Georgiana Hare-Naylor born Georgiana Shipley (circa 1755–1806) was an English painter and art patron.
Life
Georgiana was born at
St Asaph
St Asaph (; cy, Llanelwy "church on the Elwy") is a city and community on the River Elwy in Denbighshire, Wales. In the 2011 Census it had a population of 3,355, making it the second-smallest city in Britain in terms of population and urban ...
in 1752,
the fourth daughter of Anna Maria, born Mordaunt, and
Jonathan Shipley
Jonathan Shipley (1714 – 6 December 1788) was a clergyman who held offices in the Church of England (including Dean of Winchester from 1760 to 1769), who became Bishop of Llandaff from January to September 1769 and Bishop of St Asaph from Sep ...
, then a canon of
Christ Church, Oxford and later
Bishop of Llandaff
The Bishop of Llandaff is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff.
Area of authority
The diocese covers most of the County of Glamorgan. The bishop's seat is in the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (the site of ...
and
of St Asaph. Her eldest sister Anna Maria married
Sir William Jones
Sir William Jones (28 September 1746 – 27 April 1794) was a British philologist, a puisne judge on the Supreme Court of Judicature at Fort William in Bengal, and a scholar of ancient India. He is particularly known for his proposition of th ...
, who proposed the existence of the
Indo-European language.
Georgiana was a scholar, excellent at Latin.
She learned painting in
Joshua Reynolds's studio and in 1781 exhibited at the
Royal Academy in London.
She was a few years older than her cousin and namesake Georgiana Spencer, later
Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire
Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (née Spencer; ; 7 June 1757 – 30 March 1806), was an English aristocrat, socialite, political organiser, author, and activist. Born into the Spencer family, married into the Cavendish family, she wa ...
. The duchess introduced her to
Francis Hare-Naylor,
whom her father reluctantly invited to
Twyford House.
[ The following day the young man was arrested for debt while driving in the Bishop's coach with Georgiana and her parents.]
The duchess settled an annuity of £200 on the young couple and with that they married, travelling first to Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...
, and then to the north of Italy. Georgiana devoted herself to painting and they settled in Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...
, where she formed a friendship with Clotilda Tambroni
Clotilde Tambroni (29 June 1758 – 2 June 1817), was an Italian philologist, linguist and poet. She was a professor in the Greek language at the University of Bologna in 1793–1798, and a professor in Greek and literature in 1800–1808.G. Melz ...
, Professor of Ancient Greek at the university there. Georgiana was said to be fluent in Greek, which she taught her children.
In 1792 she commissioned the artist and sculptor John Flaxman
John Flaxman (6 July 1755 – 7 December 1826) was a British sculptor and draughtsman, and a leading figure in British and European Neoclassicism. Early in his career, he worked as a modeller for Josiah Wedgwood's pottery. He spent several ye ...
to create illustrations for Homer's books The Iliad
The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Ody ...
and The Odyssey
The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Iliad'', th ...
. Flaxman's sister was the artist Maria Flaxman, governess to the Hare-Naylor children.
In 1797 her father-in-law died and the Hare-Naylors set off for England, leaving three of their children in the care of Professor Tambroni and Father Emmanuele Aponte, a Spanish Jesuit priest. They appointed Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti
Giuseppe Gasparo Mezzofanti (17 September 1774 – 15 March 1849) was an Italian cardinal and famed hyperpolyglot.
Life
Born to humble parents in Bologna, he showed exceptional mnemonic skills as well as a flair for music and foreign language ...
as tutor to their eldest son. This was thought an odd decision but Georgiana took her own counsel and her eldest attributed his love of learning to the time he spent with these scholars.[
The Hare-Naylors settled at ]Herstmonceux Castle
Herstmonceux Castle is a brick-built castle, dating from the 15th century, near Herstmonceux, East Sussex, England. It is one of the oldest significant brick buildings still standing in England. The castle was renowned for being one of the fir ...
. Her husband's principles made enemies, and he rejected a baronetcy. From 1799, when the Hare-Naylors sent for their children, life became a financial struggle, requiring support from the now-widowed Lady Jones.
A memorial to her at All Saints Church, Herstmonceux, Sussex
In 1803 Georgiana Hare-Naylor began a large series of pictures representing the Castle as it had appeared before the demolitions. She finished her work, but then lost her sight. In the following year the Hare-Naylors went to reside at Weimar
Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbouri ...
, where the reigning duchess was on good terms with the family. Georgiana was able to enjoy the company of leading scholars including Schiller and Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...
, but her health was failing.[
On Easter Sunday, 1806, Georgiana Hare-Naylor died at ]Lausanne
, neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR ...
, leaving her children to the care of Lady Jones, her eldest sister. Her husband never returned to Herstmonceux, and in 1807 he sold the estate.
There is a poignant memorial to her at Herstmonceux which shows her on her death bed entrusting her only daughter, Anna Maria Clemintina,[ then about seven years old, to her sister. The work is credited to "a Danish artist, pupil of Thorwaldsen" (presumably Bertel Thorvaldsen, mainly known as a sculptor).
]
Family
Her four sons were Francis, Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...
, Julius
The gens Julia (''gēns Iūlia'', ) was one of the most prominent patrician families in ancient Rome. Members of the gens attained the highest dignities of the state in the earliest times of the Republic. The first of the family to obtain the ...
, and Marcus, all born in Italy. Her only daughter, Anna Maria Clementina, was named after her elder sister.
References
;Attribution
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hare-Naylor, Francis
1755 births
1806 deaths
People from St Asaph
18th-century English painters
English women painters
18th-century English women
18th-century English people