Susanna Harriot Hope

Susanna Hope

Born 13 June 1768
Derby
Died 1839
Westminster
Nationality British
Other names Susanna Harriot Gordon
Known for subject of painting and scandalous divorce
Spouse(s) Joseph Seymour Briscoe
Robert Gordon
Children Mary Briscoe

Susanna Harriot Hope; Susanna Harriot Gordon or Susanna Briscoe (13 June 1768 – 1839) was a British subject of a Joseph Wright painting and a party to a scandalous divorce.

Life

Hope was born in Derby in 1768. Her father, Charles Hope, was the rector of All Saints church in Derby.[1] She was painted by a family friend Joseph Wright of Derby not in contemporary dress but in a 17th-century costume.[2] This painting is extant and was sold at Christie's in 2009.

Hope married Joseph Seymour Briscoe on 22 May 1786 with the consent of her father as she was not yet 21.[3] Briscoes uncle was Edward Seymour, 9th Duke of Somerset.[1] And their marriage appears happy for about seven years. They had a daughter named Mary. Mary was to eventually marry the prospective M.P. Sir Robert Inglis, 2nd Baronet in 1807.[4]

Her husband spent more time in hunting than at home and whilst he was out his Hope began an affair with Robert Gordon who was a family friend and the owner of the house where they were staying. Her husband would go out hunting early each morning but Gordon would not go out until he thought that Briscoe would return. Servants reported that Mrs Briscoe would go out riding where she would meet Gordon, but Gordon would see her home but never enter the house with her.[5] Gordon eloped with Mrs Briscoe on 21 October 1794.[6]

Hope's husband did not file for divorce but instead sued for £10,000 damages in December 1794. The caused scandal as Hope was by then living with Gordon. Hope did not appear but in her absence her husband was granted £5,000 for the "criminal conversation". It was said that although this was a large amount of money, Gordon could easily afford to pay this amount.[6] After the trial the proceedings were published under the title "The Trial of Mrs. Biscoe for Adultery with Robert Gordon, Etc".[5]

Hope's marriage to Briscoe was eventually dissolved by act of parliament in 1795.[7] Briscoe married Stephanie Law in 1799. She was the daughter of Dr John Law the archdeacon of Rochester.[8]

She died in Westminster in 1839, but she was described as a widow of Brighton.

References

  1. 1 2 the lady magazine. 1786. p. 335.
  2. ↑ Dr Hazel Conway (21 August 2006). Design History: A Students' Handbook. Routledge. pp. 22–23. ISBN 978-1-134-88715-6.
  3. ↑ marriage record, Phillimore Derbyshire Parish Registers - Marriages volume 9, page 87, retrieved 10 January 2016
  4. ↑ Stephana Biscoe, Legacies of British Slave-ownership, UCL, Retrieved 10 January 2016
  5. 1 2 Susanna Harriet BISCOE; Robert Home GORDON (1794). The Trial of Mrs. Biscoe for Adultery with Robert Gordon, Etc. Allen & West. pp. 26–36.
  6. 1 2 Anne M Powers (July 2012). A Parcel of Ribbons : Letters of the 18th Century Lee Family in London and Jamaica. Lulu.com. pp. 315–317. ISBN 978-1-105-80974-3.
  7. ↑ Great Britain (1795). Statutes at Large ...: (43 v.) ... From Magna charta to 1800. pp. 546–.
  8. ↑ The Lady's Magazine Or Entertaining Companion for the Fair Sex: Appropriated Solely to Their Use and Amusement. Baldwin, Cradock & Joy. 1799. pp. 96–.
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