July 17, 2011
Elizabeth Montague: Queen of the Bluestockings


'the beautiful situation of the Crescent cannot be understood by any comparison with anything in any town whatsoever'.Her friends included Horace Walpole, Burke, and Dr. Johnson. She had a number of protégés, some of which seem to have been in love with her, but she was very proper. When Dr. Monsey `declared that he did not believe a more perfect human being was ever created.' Burke replied `And I do not think that he said a word too much.' Dr. Johnson reflected, `She diffuses more knowledge than any woman I know, or indeed, almost any man. ... Conversing with her, you may find variety in one.' Elizabeth Montague anonymously contributed 3 dialogs to Lyttelton's Dialogues of the Dead in 1760. During the 1760’s, the Montagues traveled extensively, visiting Paris, Germany, Holland, and Scotland. While on these trips she visited many of the celebrities of the day. Offended by Voltaire's contempt for Shakespeare, she published her book An Essay on the Writings and Genius of Shakespeare compared with the Greek and French Dramatic Poets, with some Remarks upon the Misrepresentations of Mons. de Voltaire in 1769. This was a great success and she became known as its author. In her defense, she states,
“Few people know anything of the English history but what they learn from Shakespeare; for our story is rather a tissue of personal adventures and catastrophes than a series of political events."When her husband died in 1775, Elizabeth took control of the families’ interests and proved a formidable business woman. She was, apparently, always on good terms with her family. Friends recalled her as ‘handsome, fat, and merry.’ Her nephew, Morris Robinson, was her favorite and chief companion after her husband's death. He took the name of Montagu in 1776, and received all her (very extensive) property upon her death in 1800. History adapted from They Came to Bath and The Montagu Millenium: 1,000 Years of Worldwide Family History.