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Collection Overview

Creator:
Montagu, Elizabeth (1720-1800)
Title:
Collected Correspondence of Elizabeth Montagu
Repository:
Manuscripts Division
Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/1v53jw98z
Dates:
1660-1903 (mostly 1740-1810)
Size:
2 boxes and 0.6 linear feet
Storage Note:
  • Firestone Library (scamss): Box 1-2
Language:
English

Abstract

Contains correspondence of Elizabeth Montagu, known as "queen of the Bluestockings," an informal group of 18th-century English literary figures and intellectuals that gathered frequently at her home.

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

The collection consists primarily of correspondence of Montagu and her contemporaries collected by A. M. Broadley for his 1903 extra-illustrated copy (in twelve volumes) of Dr. (John) Doran's A Lady of the Last Century (Mrs. Elizabeth Montagu) (London, 1873). Included are letters by Robert Adam, Hugh Blair, William Cowper, Richard Cumberland, David Garrick, George Lyttleton, Conyers Middleton, Sir Walter Scott, Richard B. Sheridan, Voltaire, William Wilberforce, and Edward Young. In addition, there are twenty letters by Montagu to various members of her circle and four letters to her from Frances Reynolds.

Collection Creator Biography:

Montagu

Elizabeth Montagu was born on October 2, 1720, in York, England. She was the first daughter and fifth child of Matthew and Elizabeth Robinson, two well-connected and wealthy members of society who were generally distant and preoccupied parents. She spent much of her childhood in Cambridge at the home of Dr. and Mrs. Conyers Middleton, Elizabeth's grandmother and her second husband. On these stays, Montagu and her closest sister, Sarah, were introduced to academic pursuits and pleasures. They were educated in Italian, French, and Latin and read classical and English literature and history.

Montagu's interest in lively intellectual life continued through many important friendships in her adolescence and early adulthood. She was a close companion of Lady Margery Harley, whom she met in Cambridge. Harley was three years older than Elizabeth and introduced her to a glamorous society life. After Harley married the second duke of Portland, Elizabeth regularly visited them in London, experiencing the sort of free intellectual discourse between men and women at their home that she would later emulate in her "bluestocking" gatherings.

Elizabeth married Edward Montagu on August 5, 1742, despite her disdain for marriage. Her only child John died unexpectedly in September 1744, devastating Elizabeth. Her relationship with her husband was cordial but distant; he was preoccupied with his business and political interests and she enjoyed her intellectual pursuits.

Montagu is most famous for her "bluestockings parties," gatherings of literary figures and intellectual socialites at her London home at which drinking and card games were banned in favor of witty discussion of literature, philosophy, and other topics. Often called the "queen of the bluestockings," Montagu and her friend Elizabeth Vesey organized these meetings. Montagu also pursued her own writing, including an appreciated and acclaimed essay on Shakespeare, displaying her nationalism and belief in his genius and condemning the less positive evaluations of contemporary critics such as Samuel Johnson and Voltaire.

Montagu died in 1800, leaving her estate to her nephew, Matthew Robinson Montagu.

Collection History

Acquisition:

Gift of Dickson Q. Brown in 1954 .

Appraisal

No appraisal information is available.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Anna Bialek in June 2005 . Finding aid written by Anna Bialek at the end of June 2005 .

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Credit this material:

Collected Correspondence of Elizabeth Montagu; Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/1v53jw98z
Location:
Firestone Library
One Washington Road
Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
(609) 258-3184
Storage Note:
  • Firestone Library (scamss): Box 1-2

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Bibliography

The Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1922) was consulted during preparation of the biographical note.

Subject Terms:
Women intellectuals--Great Britain. -- 18th century
Genre Terms:
Correspondence -- 18th century
Names:
Broadley, Alexander Meyrick (1847-1916)
Places:
Great Britian--Intellectual life. -- 18th century