Epilogue

Abstract

In an ideal world, salonnières would be friends to create a communal culture of female conversation and learning. Mary Berry, Lady Holland, and the Countess of Blessington were aware of one another but did not cooperate as hostesses, on the contrary, they were at best ignoring one another, at worst involved in fierce competitions over territory and guests. Although their tireless activities did improve the world of sociable encounters, they did not dream of improving it together. Still, the modest Strawberry, Old Madagascar, and the Countess of Cursington resemble one another at least in some respects. All three experienced an early immersion into the conversational culture of the continent through their journeys to France and Italy, where they explored real, emotional, and intellectual spaces and made contacts relevant to their later activities as London hostesses. Even if they did not befriend one another, their networks included guests like the poet Thomas Moore, who frequented all three circles (and cracked jokes about them all). The three women enjoyed books, although the extent of their reading is not evenly documented. Even some political interests ran parallel. If Holland House was a center of the Whigs and of the Fox cult, Berry at least read and politely praised Fox (“so much thought, and so many new views of things,” 1808, JCB 2: 350–351), or wrote about Russell, the Whig martyr, while her friend Damer gave a bust of Fox to Napoleon. Blessington attracted some politicians and liberal thinkers to her library-salon.