Gwladys Ethel Gwendolen Eugénie Sutherst (1884 – 1959), after 1905 Gwladys, Marchioness Townshend, was a British writer. In addition to writing novels, poems, and plays, she was probably "the first peeress to write for the cinema."Mirte Terpstra
"Gwladys, Marchioness of Townshend"
''Women Film Pioneers Project'' (September 27, 2013). She also served a term as Mayor of

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...

. The details of her marriage and finances were often aired in the courtroom and in newspapers.

Early life

Gwladys Sutherst was the daughter of Thomas Sutherst, a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

Career

Gwladys Sutherst Townshend was credited as the scenarist on eight silent films, all of them now lost, made by the Clarendon studio, all of them made in 1913, 1914, or 1915, all starring Dorothy Bellew and directed by

Wilfred Noy Wilfred Noy (born Wilfred Noy Blumberg, 24 December 1883 – 29 March 1948) was an English film director, actor, screenwriter and producer of the silent era. Noy was the maternal uncle of Leslie Howard.Eforgan, Estel. Leslie Howard: The Los ...

. Titles included ''The Convent Gate'', ''The House of Mystery'', and ''A Strong Man's Love''. She claimed to be "the first peeress to write for the cinema." Her play ''Sir John and the Compriere'' was produced in 1914, in London. She co-edited a fiction collection, ''True Ghost Stories'' (1936). Her autobiography, ''It Was, and It Wasn't'', was published in 1937. Other books by Townshend included a book of poems, ''In the King's Garden'' (1906), and a novel, ''The Widening Circle'' (1920). In 1928 she was elected to a term as Mayor of

, though she opposed the idea of women as lawmakers. "As Mayor I give two banquets a year, a reception to the townspeople, open bazars, lay cornerstones, and represent the town at all affairs," she explained to an American reporter."Lady Mayor of Lynn"
''Boston Sunday Globe'' (May 26, 1929): B3. In that role, she travelled to the United States in 1929, to help the city of

Lynn, Massachusetts Lynn is the eighth-largest municipality in Massachusetts and the largest city in Essex County. Situated on the Atlantic Ocean, north of the Boston city line at Suffolk Downs, Lynn is part of Greater Boston's urban inner core. Settled by E ...

, celebrate its tercentenary.

Personal life

Gwladys Sutherst married twice. In 1905 she married

John Townshend, 6th Marquess Townshend John James Dudley Stuart Townshend, 6th Marquess Townshend (17 October 1866 – 17 November 1921), known as Viscount Raynham from 1866 to 1899, was a British Peerage, peer. Early life Townshend was the son of John Townshend, 5th Marquess T ...

; their financial arrangements became the subject of scandal and lawsuits, when it was revealed that her father did not make an expected settlement on the couple. There were also concerns that her husband's mental status was unsound, and accusations that Gwladys was keeping him hidden even from his mother. The Townshends had two children,

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

and Elizabeth; given earlier scandals, the paternity of the Townshend children was also a matter of press speculation. Gwladys was widowed when John died in 1921. She remarried, to Bernard le Strange. She died in 1959, aged 75 years, in London."Marchioness of Townshend"
''New York Times'' (October 13, 1959): 39. The current Marquess Townshend,

Charles Townshend Charles Townshend (28 August 1725 – 4 September 1767) was a British politician who held various titles in the Parliament of Great Britain. His establishment of the controversial Townshend Acts is considered one of the key causes of the Ame ...

, is her grandson. Music producer and sound engineer

Cenzo Townshend Vincenzo Capellini Townshend (born 28 October 1963) is an English record producer, mixer, and audio engineer, and has worked with artists and bands including the Rolling Stones, a-ha, Kaiser Chiefs, U2, Snow Patrol, Florence and the Machin ...

is her great-grandson.

References

External links

Photographs of Gwladys, Marchioness of Townshend
in the collection of the

National Portrait Gallery (London) The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...

. * G. E. G. E. Sutherst Townshend
''In the King's Garden and Other Poems'
(Long, 1906). * G. E. G. E. Sutherst Townshend
''The Widening Circle: A Chronicle''
(D. Appleton and Company, 1920). {{DEFAULTSORT:Townshend, Gwladys Sutherst 1884 births 1959 deaths British women writers Women film pioneers British marchionesses

Gwladys Saint Gwladys ferch Brychan () or St Gladys ( la, Gladusa), daughter of King Brychan of Brycheiniog, was the queen of the saint-king Gwynllyw Milwr and the mother of Cadoc "the Wise", whose ''Vita'' may be the earliest saint's life to mention ...